Week 9 of the fantasy football season featured plenty of notable performances around the NFL on Sunday. What should we make of them? Matt Bowen and Tristan H. Cockcroft offer their analysis.
Christian McCaffrey shows no rust in return
McCaffrey returned from his high ankle sprain on Sunday and didn't skip a beat. He vastly exceeded Mike Davis' totals in terms of offensive snaps played (52-28) and total touches (25-6), and his 37.1 PPR fantasy points gave him a seventh consecutive game with at least 20 such points, which is the longest active streak among non-quarterbacks. McCaffrey's 10 receptions tied for the seventh most in his 51-game career, a surefire signal he has no lingering effects from the injury. Welcome back, No. 1 running back in fantasy. -- Cockcroft
Kyler Murray continues torrid pace
It was a painful loss for him and the Cardinals, but Murray can be happy to claim 37.9 PPR fantasy points, most among quarterbacks and second most among all players entering Sunday Night Football. With that, he now has 233.5 points at the midway point of his team's schedule, which is the most by any quarterback through eight team games in any season. -- Cockcroft
Tristan, we have to hit on Murray's ability as a runner here. On Sunday, he rushed for a career-high 106 yards -- with a touchdown -- on 11 carries. That gives Murray a rushing score in each of his past three games, with a total of 33 carries during that stretch. We know Murray has high-level second-reaction ability. Pull the ball down and go in scramble situations. He's electric in space. But let's not forget about the designed run schemes for Murray in Kliff Kingsbury's offense. Coming into Week 9, Murray had already registered 42 designed run carries. Think of the zone read here, QB lead draw, more. That's a key element of the Cardinals' offense, especially with the ball inside the red zone. He brings scoring upside to your fantasy lineup as a runner, in addition to the passing numbers he can produce in Kingsbury's well-schemed route tree. -- Bowen
Tom Brady's disastrous Sunday Night Football performance
Entering with a chance to break Jerry Rice's all-time record for PPR fantasy points, Brady flat-out stunk during his Sunday night game against the Saints. Brady's 2.4 points were his sixth-fewest in 294 career games, and his fewest since he scored 1.1 during Week 14 of the 2006 season. He was intercepted thrice for only the 12th time in his 21-year career, including the postseason, as his Buccaneers were routed, 38-3, including a 31-point deficit at halftime. In the process, Drew Brees, who scored 22.7 fantasy points in the win, took over the No. 2 spot on the all-time list. Here's where the three now stand entering Week 10, with Brady set to face the Panthers and Brees the 49ers: -- Cockcroft
Rice 5,141.8 PPR points
Brees 5,134.4
Brady 5,132.6
Will Fuller V extends scoring streak
Make that six games in a row with a receiving touchdown for Fuller, perhaps the most under-the-radar streak in recent memory. To think he was almost traded before this past week's deadline, but by remaining in Houston, he's still the benefactor of Deshaun Watson's long attempts, ones that continue to elevate the wide receiver's weekly statistical ceiling. Fuller's 21.0 PPR fantasy points gave him 131.0 at the midway point of his season, meaning he's already three points away from his previous single-season best (134.0, 2019), and his 16.4 point-per-game average is already his best in any of his five NFL seasons. He tends to get underrated in fantasy these days because of his injury history, as well as the Texans' team struggles, but there's a lot to like here in the context of a weekly WR2. -- Cockcroft
Matt Ryan heats up
Even with Calvin Ridley down for this game, Ryan still threw for three touchdowns in the Week 9 win over Denver, registering 22.36 fantasy points. But should managers deal Ryan given his upcoming schedule? I know Tristan is going to counter me here on Ryan's future matchups -- including the fantasy playoff slate -- but I'm not going to move the veteran. With upcoming games versus the Saints (twice) and the Raiders, I like Ryan too much as a QB1 over the next three weeks. Remember, the Saints' secondary has been one of the most inconsistent units in the NFL this season, and the Raiders' limited pass rush will lead to opportunities for Ryan. If that means I have to bench Ryan later in the season for a viable QB2 with a more favorable schedule, I'll do it. -- Bowen
I'll preface this by saying that, yes, it's usually difficult to trade a player during the week entering his bye, especially one that occurs this late in the year. Still, if there's any chance at peddling Ryan at the return rate of a true QB1, I'd cash in this chip. Matt mentioned that Ryan's rest-of-November schedule is favorable, but I'd counter that the Saints could prove difficult, especially if Marshon Lattimore can cover Julio Jones, should Ridley miss any additional time due to injury. In addition, Ryan's fantasy playoffs schedule is brutal: @LAC, TB, @KC, @TB. I'd at least explore a trade possibility. -- Cockcroft
Terry McLaurin comes up big again
Tasked with a tough matchup on paper against the Giants, and specifically cornerback James Bradberry, who lined up against McLaurin for 27 of 39 routes, McLaurin scored 24.5 PPR fantasy points, his second-highest total of 2020 and third best in his 22-game NFL career. Interestingly enough, he caught an identical number of passes (seven) to his last game against Bradberry and the Giants (in Week 6), but it was a 68-yard touchdown reception while lined up against Darnay Holmes that made the difference this week, underscoring the wide receiver's true WR1 talent. Even the likely long-term switch at quarterback to Alex Smith -- starter Kyle Allen was lost to injury during Sunday's game -- shouldn't thwart that, as Smith targeted McLaurin on six occasions, including the aforementioned touchdown. McLaurin's 28.4% target share (which ranks fifth in the league) illustrates his importance to the offense. Washington isn't likely to shift things, even with Smith possessing a more conservative approach to passing, relying on shorter and behind-the-line-of-scrimmage throws, but his tendency to avoid mistakes might do as much to benefit McLaurin from a volume perspective as it could hurt him in big-play potential. Look at some of the teams on that schedule -- the Cowboys, Bengals and Seahawks, in particular. -- Cockcroft
David Montgomery becoming less of a factor
I've tried to boost up Montgomery because of his traits as a runner, plus his natural fit in the Bears' zone schemes. After being held to just 2.1 yards per carry versus a banged-up Tennessee defensive front, however, can we really keep Montgomery in the RB2 ranks moving forward? While the Bears have injuries on the offensive line. this group simply can't get a consistent push off the ball, and even with some targets as a pass catcher, Montgomery hasn't topped the 15-point mark in PPR scoring since Week 5. He'll drop down to the flex range in my ranks for the Week 10 matchup versus the Vikings' defense. -- Bowen
Agreed, Matt, considering that most of the pro-Montgomery case is founded upon his lacking much in the way of backfield competition, plus what's a favorable remaining schedule on paper. If he couldn't step up for this one -- and put some of the blame on a bad Bears offense -- why tout the future, dream matchups against the Packers (Weeks 12 and 17), Lions (Week 13) and Texans (Week 14)? I made the case to trade for him with those in mind weeks ago, but the more I watch, the more I think it's a trap. -- Cockcroft
Quick-hitters
Dalvin Cook, RB, Minnesota Vikings: He's just soooooo good. Cook carried his fantasy teams for the second consecutive week, finishing a hair shy of 40 PPR fantasy points (39.2), a threshold that, had he reached it, would've made him only the ninth running back, and 18th player at any position, to have scored 40-plus in consecutive games within the same season. With it, Cook temporarily took over as the leading running back scorer in fantasy for the season (201.1), though Alvin Kamara (195.7) will probably overtake him on Sunday Night Football. Cook does appear likely to conclude the week as the top points-per-game scorer at his position, owning a 28.7-28.0 advantage over Kamara, and it's a big drop to the third best. -- Cockcroft
Josh Allen, QB, Buffalo Bills: That was a "get right game" for Allen in the win over Seattle. Just look at the schemed-up throws versus the Seahawks' zone coverages. Or the answers to pressure in the second half. And don't forget about the designed QB run game inside the tight red zone that led to a rushing score. After failing to top the 17-point mark in fantasy scoring in each of his past four games, Allen finished today with a season-high 36.0 points. -- Bowen
Justin Herbert, QB, Los Angeles Chargers: His unreal start to his NFL career continued on Sunday, and we need to take him rather seriously as a fantasy option at this point. Herbert's 23.4 PPR fantasy points gave him 170.4 through his first seven career starts, which is the third-most by any quarterback through that many since at least 1950. In fact, had Donald Parham Jr. maintained control of Herbert's would-be winning touchdown pass, Herbert would've exceeded the point totals of the two men ahead of him on that list, Deshaun Watson (174.2) and Billy Volek (172.6). -- Cockcroft
Jerry Jeudy, WR, Denver Broncos: The rookie posted a season-high 25.5 PPR points after catching seven passes (on 14 targets) for 125 yards and a touchdown in the Week 9 loss to the Falcons. Game flow, and the matchup versus the Atlanta defense, played a role here in Jeudy's target volume and his final numbers. We know it. However, Jeudy has flashed explosive play ability in his last two games to pair with his route-running traits. With a matchup versus the Raiders' defense in Week 10 (more zone looks), Jeudy has a WR3 ceiling. -- Bowen
James Robinson, RB, Jacksonville Jaguars: With at least 15 PPR points in his past three games -- plus feature back volume in the Jaguars' offense -- we see Robinson as a locked-in RB1 for the Week 10 matchup against the Packers. Yes, Robinson doesn't flash dynamic traits as a runner. His ability to get north/south and finish runs behind his pads, however, leads to production when he sees the ball consistently. Robinson has now racked up 47 carries in his last two games, with 218 yards on the ground and two scores. -- Bowen
Chase Edmonds, RB, Arizona Cardinals: Edmonds' 11.8 PPR points didn't mesh with the high ranking I put on the Cardinals' running back this week. However, Edmonds did log 27 touches in the Cardinals' loss to the Dolphins. If Kenyan Drake is still down with an ankle injury for the Cardinals' Week 10 matchup with the Bills, I see Edmonds as a solid RB2. -- Bowen