Week Nine was full of very close games with big players making big plays left and right, let dive into our recap.

Best Overall Player:

Adam: Dalvin Cook MIN RB

Minnesota Vikings running back Dalvin Cook has had an MVP type of season so far, and this past Sunday was no exception. Cook had 206 rushing yards off of 22 carries and topped it off with 2 touchdowns. Cook added 2 catches for 46 receiving yards to put the cherry on top of his best game of the year. If Cook can stay healthy for the rest of the year, he will be a game-changer for fantasy owners.

Louis: Josh Allen BUF QB

Josh Allen and the Buffalo Bills absolutely torched Seattle’s defense in a Bills win on Sunday. Allen accounted for 429 yards and 4 touchdowns against the worst secondary and worst total defense in the NFL. He ended the game with an impressive 36 fantasy points. Josh Allen has shown the world that when he has a favorable matchup, he will perform like a top 5 QB. But, he is still unproven in big-time games and moments.

Mac: Christian McCaffery CAR RB:

A return from injury saw McCaffery shine as bright as the star he has been for the Carolina Panthers. After missing 6 weeks of action, Mccaffrey returned with a very positive performance against the Kansas City Chiefs. Mccaffery ran for 69 yards and 1 touchdown on 18 carries while also connecting with Quarterback Teddy Bridgewater on 10 passes for 82 yards and another score. Fantasy owners finally got to play the number one pick in many drafts this week and he earned them 37.1 points.

Best Underrated Player:

Adam: Terry McLaurin WSH WR

Washington wide receiver Terry McLaurin has been on a tear as of late. McLaurin came into the matchup against the Giants off of an almost 100-yard performance this past week against the Cowboys. McLaurin did not disappoint as he hauled in 7 catches for 115 receiving yards and 1 touchdown. As long as McLaurin does not get another quarterback change, expect him to have a lot more over 20 point performances in the last half of the season.

Louis: Keenan Allen LAC WR

Los Angeles Chargers wide receiver Keenan Allen has quietly had an outstanding season. The connection between him and rookie QB Justin Herbert has given opposing defenses nightmares and will continue to do so in years to come. Allen had a great performance this week that seemed to go unnoticed. He put up 103 yards and a touchdown, with 25.3 fantasy points. It’s time to start giving Allen the respect he deserves.

Mac: Christian Kirk ARI WR

Continuing the trend of having a wide-out be the underrated player for the week, Kirk has been on a rampage the past 3 weeks. In an offense that already contains the best receiver in the league in Deandre Hopkins, Kirk has become the number two target for the young up and coming quarterback, Kyler Murray. Kirk this week caught 5 passes for 123 yards and a touchdown earning his fantasy owners 23.3 points. Continue to watch Kirk as he may continue this hot streak as the Cardinals push to take the NFC West.

Booms of the Week:

Adam: JuJu Smith-Schuster PIT WR

JuJu Smith-Schuster has not had a great year since his rookie season back in 2018, but he is now showing that he can be a valuable target in a deep core of receivers in steel country. JuJu had a stellar performance this past week against the Cowboys with 6 catches for 93 receiving yards as well as 1 touchdown. With JuJu finally stepping up, expect him to have bigger numbers than usual.

Louis: DJ Chark JAX WR

DJ Chark has been a disappointment for fantasy owners this year. But, with new starting QB Jake Lutton, there is still hope for Chark. This week Chark absolutely tore up the depleted Texans secondary as he went for 146 yards and 1 touchdown on just 7 catches and had 27.6 fantasy points. Chark may finally be breaking out of his funk which is great news for fantasy owners. ‘

Mac: Richie James SF WR

If I asked 10 random NFL fans that are not San Francisco fans what team does Richie James play for, I’m willing to bet 10 out of 10 of them would say who.  James has not scored fantasy owners any points this season so it is very surprising to see him on this list. James must really hate the Green Bay Packers because this week he balled out and score fantasy owners 33.4 points. Halling in 9 passes for 184 yards and one touchdown is a very good game and likely a game Richie will never forget.

 

Busts of the Week:

Adam: DeAndre Hopkins ARZ WR

The Arizona Cardinals star receiver has had an amazing year with a new team, but this game was just not his game. Hopkins was not getting a lot of targets from MVP candidate quarterback Kyler Murray this past game against the Dolphins due to a lack of time in the pocket and Hopkins being matched up with all-pro cornerback Byron Jones. Hopkins had 3 catches for 30 yards and no touchdowns. This is not going to be the only time that Hopkins faces a good defense this year, but expect him to put up bigger numbers soon.

Louis: Derrick Henry TEN RB

Derrick Henry is known for his toughness and consistency, and he showed no signs of either of those on Sunday. Now, he did play very stout and disciplined defense, the Chicago Bears. But, to only have 68 yards on 21 attempts is unacceptable for a top 5 back in the NFL. He only had 6.8 points for fantasy owners. Next week the Titans play arguably the best defense in the NFL, the Colts, and look for Henry to have a bounce-back week.

Mac: Tom Brady TB QB

What an impressive hot streak all to be ruined by good ole Drew Brees. After putting together four straight winning performances, Brady did not come to play on Sunday night. Brady threw for 209 yards on 22 complete passes out of his 38. Where this game went bad was his three interceptions. Those Interceptions cost fantasy owners a lot of points because, in the end, Brady only finished 2.36 points. This is your goat?

Players to Start:

Adam: Chase Edmonds ARZ RB

After starting running back Kenyon Drake got injured, the Cardinals little known backup Chase Edmonds stepped in and boy has it shown in the past couple of games. Edmonds has had 3 over 10 point performances with his best one being in week 7 against the Seahawks. Expect Edmonds to have a bigger role in Arizona now since Kenyon Drake wasn’t producing enough before he was hurt.

Louis: AJ Brown TEN WR

AJ Brown has been one of the most consistent wide receivers since coming back from injury in week 5. Since coming back in week 5 he has averaged 20.7 fantasy points and has managed to score a touchdown in every game played but one. Keep in mind that Brown is not going up against weak defenses by any means during this stretch. He has had to face the Steelers defense, Bears defense, and next week he faces the Colts defense. Brown has continued to prove that he is matchup proof and will still put up great numbers no matter who he is falling. Start AJ Brown every single week.

Mac: Tua Tagovailoa MIA QB

So it starts. Everyone remembers how dominant he was in college. Everyone predicted him to be an NFL star one day. No one predicted him to beat the Arizona Cardinals. Tua played very well in Sunday’s game and flashed high potential. His next 4 games are against The Los Angeles Chargers, Denver Broncos, New York Jets, and the Cincinnati Bengals. These 4 teams struggle heavily on defense so we should hear his name 2x as much on ESPN which is just fantastic. As if we couldn’t get enough of him in college.

Players to Bench: 

Adam: 49ers Defense/ST

I put the 49ers Defense on my booms of the week a couple of weeks ago, but now that injuries have taken over the team, their defense is not looking good at all. The 49ers gave up 38 points to the Packers on Thursday Night Football and did not look like their usual self. I am not a believer in their defense anymore, and they will not be a starter on any fantasy team for the rest of the year.

Louis: Leonard Fournette TB RB

Sunday night Tampa Bay faced off against the Saints and it was not pretty. The Saints destroyed Tampa Bay by a score of 38-3 and the Buccaneers looked lost. Their leading rusher that game, Ronald Jones had just 3 carries for 9 yards and Fournette had 1 carry for 0 yards on the game. Now, teams do seem to pass more when they are trailing by a large margin but to only run the ball 5 times the entire game is a terrible game plan. This game was proof that the Buccaneers coaching staff does not trust the RBs. Fournette did have a decent game through the air catching 6 passes for 41 yards, but if he is not getting carries Fournette should not be a starter on fantasy teams.

Mac: Antonio Brown TB WR

AB is not back, don’t say he is. Simple as that.