Fantasy Football Start or Sit, Week 9

There might be six teams on bye but that doesn’t mean there aren’t some tough star or sit decisions facing owners for Week 9 in Fantasy Football!

With so many teams on a bye, we’re going to have another trimmed down version of Fantasy Football – start and sit. Many owners are going to be in a desperate spot and could struggle with some players this week. If you’ve got a decision that you can’t figure out, tweet me @bucn4life these next couple days and I’ll do my best to help with anything I can. Let’s dive in!

Fantasy Football Quarterbacks

Start Ben Roethlisberger – at Baltimore Ravens

Many among the fantasy community will tell you to not start Roethlisberger because he stinks on the road. That has been true in the past but it’s not exactly the case so far this season. His yards per attempt are much higher on the road, it’s really just a lack of passing attempts that holds him back. Pittsburgh has only played three road games and Ben has five touchdown passes. If he can throw for two each time out, that’s very solid fantasy production.

The Ravens have made life very difficult on quarterbacks this year, giving up the third fewest fantasy points. It’s still a tall task to stop Roethlisberger and Antonio Brown when they’re on the same page and they have been lately. In the past five games, Brown has averaged 78.4 yards and scored seven touchdowns. That’s plenty reason to start Big Ben even in a tough spot.

Also Consider Starting – Baker Mayfield vs Kansas City – Mitchell Trubisky at Buffalo Bills

Sit Philip Rivers – at Seattle Seahawks

One tough matchup that I’m looking to avoid is Rivers in Seattle. I have to give the Seahawks a lot of credit for being a much better defense than I ever would have imagined at the start of the season. They have also given up the fewest points to quarterbacks and have as many interceptions as allowed touchdowns. Only the Cleveland Browns have a better ratio. Rivers has had extra time to prepare and might have a floor, but the upside would seem to be capped. Rivers currently has his career low in interception rate and is due to throw a couple picks sooner than later.

If Melvin Gordon is ready to go, the Chargers could just go a little ground and pound here. The main difference for me between Rivers and Roethlisberger is the presence of Brown. Rivers and Keenan Allen haven’t really caught fire yet so I’d lean Roethlisberger even though both players are in difficult matchups on the road.

Also Consider Sitting – It’s honestly a little hard to find a quarterback that most fantasy owners would play that I likely wouldn’t. Even Rivers is fine if you’re in a pinch this week, it’s just someone I would avoid if I have the option.

Fantasy Football Running Back

Start Aaron Jones – at New England Patriots

For the record, the trade of Ty Montgomery really isn’t the reason behind this. He played under 15 percent of the snaps last week and wasn’t much of a factor in the offense. The Patriots aren’t a glaringly fantastic matchup as they’ve controlled running backs so far. I’ll side with the running back who’s getting reps behind Aaron Rodgers. Jones was on the field for over 60 percent of the snaps and should at least get 12-15 touches in a spot where the Packers should have to score a lot of points. Hopefully Mike McCarthy and his staff have finally realized Jones needs to continue to see the majority of touches this week.

Also Consider Starting – Dion Lewis, at Dallas Cowboys – Austin Ekeler, at Seattle Seahawks

Sit Tevin Coleman – at Washington Redskins

I know, there’s six teams on a bye week. There’s going to be plenty of owners who have no choice but to start Coleman this week and I can’t fault you for it. However, I’m not very optimistic on his outlook this week. The Washington defense might be one of, if not the most underrated defense in football. They’re giving up the second fewest rushing yards per game and are fifth in points allowed with 19.1 per game on the season. That’s not a receipe for success for a running back who is only averaging 44.3 yards per game on the ground.

Now, that average is certainly skewed a bit since he’s split the workload all season but he’s also eclipsed 51 rushing yards once. I would not expect much more than around 40 yards and a reception or two. He almost surely needs a touchdown to need be a dud this week.

Also Consider Sitting – Peyton Barber, at Carolina Panthers – Alex Collins, vs Pittsburgh Steelers

Fantasy Football Wide Receiver

Start John Brown – vs Pittsburgh Steelers

It’s been a little bit feast or famine the last three weeks for Brown. He’s had two weeks where he’s been under 30 yards and that’s something that can happen when you’re getting so many deep targets. His catch percentage of 50.8 percent also points to some volatility but I’ ready to start him against Pittsburgh.

This is a team that he scorched for 116 yards and a touchdown earlier in the season. Pittsburgh’s defense has shown recent signs of improvement but they still have 17 passing touchdowns, third most in the league. Even though Joe Haden has been playing some pretty good defense lately, it only takes one misstep for Brown to get behind him.

Also Consider Starting – Josh Gordon, vs Green Bay Packers – DeSean Jackson/Chris Godwin, at Carolina Panthers

Sit Tyler Lockett – vs Los Angeles Chargers

Even during a thin week, starting Lockett is terrifying right now. If he doesn’t make a splash play in very limited opportunities, there’s no redeeming value. Since he’s in a passing offense that isn’t throwing the ball hardly at all(over 31 rush attempts a game), he’s not seeing a ton of targets. The market share would appear solid at a little over 19 percent.

What the percentage doesn’t tell you is Lockett still only has 34 total targets. That’s just five a game and he has to score a long touchdown typically to score enough points to be worth it. On top of that, the Chargers have allowed only 13 touchdowns and about the average of passing yards per game. This isn’t the spot for Lockett.

Also Consider Sitting – Corey Davis, at Dallas Cowboys – Calvin Ridley, at Washington Redskins

Fantasy Football Tight End

Start Ben Watson – vs Los Angeles Rams

Watson being a streaming candidate has taken a hit these past few weeks. Since Mark Ingram has returned to the Saints lineup, they’ve gone from around 40 pass attempts a game to under 30. That’s a precipitous drop and it hurts everyone involved, including the quarterback. This week reasons to be different with the high-octane Rams on their way into town.

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New Orleans is going to have to put a lot of points on the board and that should mean more towards the 40 number for pass attempts. Watson does only see an average of four targets this season but for a tight end that you might have to pick up to start, that’s plenty in a game that has the highest total on the week.

Also Consider Starting – Hayden Hurst, vs Pittsburgh Steelers

Sit Kyle Rudolph – vs Detroit Lions

I don’t care how thin the week is, I’m done with Kyle Rudolph. He’s seeing right about five targets a game which is usually plenty to get me excited about in a good passing offense. That just hasn’t been the case with Rudolph at any point this year. He’s been over 60 yards one time this whole season and has a whopping two touchdowns.

The touchdown numbers aren’t exactly surprising since he has a total of seven red zone targets, three of which came last week. Adam Thielen and Stefon Diggs are doing so much work in the passing game that there’s nothing left for Rudolph to rely on.

Also Consider Sitting – Austin Hooper, at Washington Redskins – Trey Burton, at Buffalo Bills

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