NFL Week 9 DFS Picks For FanDuel

The NFL even numbered week came through again! Last week, the lineup was able to hit in all formats which kept the streak of cashing on even numbered weeks alive. My NFL lineups have been on fire as of late, so hopefully we can stay hot this week. With no London game and less byes, we have returned to the normal sized slates with 11 total games, so the player options and lineup combinations are limitless. There doesn't seem to be a whole lot of chalk at this point, so I expect ownership to be more diverse than in weeks past. It should be a fun week with all the interesting situations such as Jordan Love's first career start, and a lot of questionable tags on prevalent players that would open paths for others. Let's dive in to the breakdown of the NFL main slate on FanDuel for Week 9!

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Top Play:

Austin Ekeler ($9000) -

While most NFL players shy away from caring about fantasy performances, Austin Ekeler promised fantasy players that he would deliver if they drafted him prior to the start of the season. Thus far, Austin Ekeler has delivered on his promise as he currently sits as the RB3 in PPR formats, and should be moving up soon with the injury to Derrick Henry. As we expected going in to the season, the main reason for the fantasy success of Ekeler has been his work as a pass catcher. He has had five or more targets in every game this season excluding Week 1, and saw a season high ten targets last week against New England. His role as as receiver creates for a safety blanket in fantasy, as he has scored 10+ FD points in all but one week. $9000 is not a cheap price to pay for Ekeler, but he should be able to explode against an Eagles defense that sits at 23rd against the run. They also have allowed the seventh most receiving yards to opposing running backs, which makes the matchup all that much more enticing.

Best Value:

Kadarius Toney ($5700) -

There are not many running backs that I like priced under $6000 for the Week 9 NFL slate, but there are some great value plays at receiver. For running back, Chase Edmonds and Carlos Hyde (if Robinson is out) would be fine plays at a reduced cost, but they also carry low floors with limited upside due to their roles. For the pass catchers, Jerry Jeudy, DeVonta Smith, Kadarius Toney, Hunter Renfrow, and Jakobi Meyers are all intriguing options that are priced under $6000. Of the bunch, Kadarius Toney is my favorite. Toney has yet to find the end zone to start his NFL career, but has been the focal point of the Giants offense since Saquon Barkley and Sterling Shepard went down with injury. Toney has had injury problems in each of the last three weeks, but he carries no injury designation heading into Sunday, and has seen a total of 22 targets in the two games he played fully this season. I don't think there is a single player that is worthy of being a lock, but I would try working in at least one of the mentioned value receivers this week.

Best Game Environment:

MIN @ BAL ?-

Similar to last week, I am more in favor of targeting different players in different games this week rather than focusing on one singular game to stack. Of course, if you are a player who plays many lineups, then stacking games will probably be the way to go. The reason that I am more in favor of mini-stacks rather than full game stacks for this week is because there is no standout game that screams shootout to me. I would rather focus on fitting in top plays in great scenarios than leaning on one matchup to go the distance. Of all the games, MIN @ BAL has the highest implied total (50.5), so if I had to choose one game to target, it would be that. The Ravens pass defense is currently ranked last in the NFL, although their run defense is near the top. The Vikings are in the bottom half of the league in both categories, so if the offenses show up, we could be in line for some points. BUF @ JAX, LAC @ PHI and GB @ KC, even with Jordan Love, are games that came close to holding this spot.

Main Player Pool: Quarterback:

Josh Allen ($9000)

Lamar Jackson ($8300)

Justin Herbert ($7600)

Other great plays: Patrick Mahomes ($8500), Jalen Hurts ($7800), Kirk Cousins ($7400), Tua Tagovailoa ($7300), Jordan Love ($6000)

Running Back:

Austin Ekeler ($9000)

Aaron Jones ($8500)

Nick Chubb ($7600)

Other great plays: Dalvin Cook ($8800), Joe Mixon ($7400), Damien Harris ($6600), Devontae Booker ($6300), Myles Gaskin ($6100)

Wide Receiver:

Stefon Diggs ($7600)

Kadarius Toney ($5700)

Jakobi Meyers ($5500)

Other great plays: Davante Adams ($9000), Tyreek Hill ($8500), Ja'Marr Chase ($7900), Mike Williams ($7300), Keenan Allen ($7000), Jaylen Waddle ($6100), Jerry Jeudy ($5800), DeVonta Smith ($5800), Hunter Renfrow ($5600), Laviska Shenault Jr. ($5500)

Tight End:

Travis Kelce ($7800)

Mark Andrews ($7100)

Darren Waller ($6800)

Other great plays: Kyle Pitts ($6600), Dalton Schultz ($6100), George Kittle ($6000), Jared Cook ($5200), Austin Hooper ($4900), Albert Okwuegbunam ($4500)

D/ST:

Bills ($5200)

Dolphins ($4300)

Cowboys ($3900)

Other great plays: 49ers ($3500 - if Murray is out), Chiefs ($3300)

Cover Picture Attribution: All-Pro Reels, Austin Ekeler (cropped), CC BY-SA 2.0