Just when you thought the National Football League couldn’t get any crazier, Week 9 happened. Seven NFL betting underdogs won outright on Sunday. Along with the wild final scores, several surprising names contributed in big ways on the fantasy football front. That’s probably to be expected considering the success of underdogs on the field. The NFL is known for its parity and unpredictability. One could argue that there are more questions than answers following this week’s insanity!
Let’s take a look at the top fantasy football performances from Week 9 of the NFL season across each position. This week’s notable top fantasy performers include James Conner, Nick Chubb, DeVonta Smith and George Kittle.
Top Week 9 Fantasy Football Performances | RB
James Conner | Arizona Cardinals
Stat Line: 21 carries, 96 yards, 2 touchdowns; 5 receptions, 77 yards, 1 touchdown
PPR Fantasy Points: 40.3 (RB1)
The Cardinals’ backfield has been a very even timeshare all season between James Conner and Chase Edmonds. Sunday’s stunning win over the San Francisco 49ers served as an example of how dangerous one of these RBs can be in fantasy football when the other is unavailable. After Edmonds went down early with an injury, Conner put on a clinic for the shorthanded Cardinals. He finished with 96 yards rushing, 77 yards receiving and three total touchdowns in Arizona’s upset victory. The 40+ PPR-point performance was easily the best of the week across all positions.
Conner now leads the NFL in touchdowns scored through the first half of the season. His fantasy football stock will rise dramatically going forward should Edmonds land on the short-term IR. If that is the case, managers might consider holding onto Conner as opposed to selling him high following a performance that is almost guaranteed to not happen again this season.
Nick Chubb | Cleveland Browns
Stat Line: 14 carries, 137 yards, 2 touchdowns; 2 receptions, 26 yards
PPR Fantasy Points: 30.3 (RB3)
Lead Browns RB Nick Chubb has been lingering as a fantasy football buy-low candidate for several weeks now. That window may have officially closed after he ran roughshod over the Cincinnati Bengals on Sunday. Chubb was extremely efficient with his touches, turning 14 carries into 137 yards rushing and a pair of scores. For those interested in the math, that equates to 9.8 yards per carry. Chubb can be expected to maintain the dominant role in Cleveland’s backfield so long as Kareem Hunt remains sidelined by injury. Had the Browns run more plays and/or been in a tighter game, he potentially could have delivered an even bigger performance.
Cordarrelle Patterson | Atlanta Falcons
Stat Line: 9 carries, 10 yards; 6 receptions, 126 yards
PPR Fantasy Points: 19.6 (RB7)
Among the massive NFL betting underdogs who won outright on Sunday were the Atlanta Falcons. From a fantasy football standpoint, Cordarrelle Patterson continued to amaze. He finished Week 9 as the RB7 in PPR scoring despite never finding the end zone. When you have a skillset diverse enough to lead the league in receiving yards as a “running back”, you’re one unique player. That’s precisely what Patterson did, finishing with 126 yards receiving on six receptions. Only one of his 19.7 fantasy points came via the ground game. No catch was bigger than his toe-tapping reception along the sideline that set Atlanta up for the game-winning field goal.
Top Week 9 Fantasy Football Performances | WR
DeVonta Smith | Philadelphia Eagles
Stat Line: 5 receptions, 116 yards, 1 touchdown
PPR Fantasy Points: 22.6 (WR2)
Last year’s Heisman Trophy winner had been very quiet for several weeks after a strong start to his NFL career. DeVonta Smith got back into the good graces of fantasy football owners on Sunday with an explosive outing in a narrow Eagles’ loss. Smith posted his best PPR fantasy point total to date with 116 yards receiving and a score on five receptions. It marks the first time Smith has exceeded 20 PPR points and also the second 100-yard game of his young pro career. While the Eagles passing attack has struggled mightily this season, owners should be encouraged by Smith’s relatively stable target floor. He has seen at least six passes come his way in all but two games on the season.
Keenan Allen | Los Angeles Chargers
Stat Line: 12 receptions, 104 yards
PPR Fantasy Points: 22.4 (WR3)
Finishing just behind DeVonta Smith for the top WR fantasy football line on Sunday was Keenan Allen. After two miserable performances by the Chargers’ offense, it was very encouraging to see Allen get going. He was incredibly efficient, catching 12 of his 13 targets and going over 100 yards for the first time since Week 2. Despite Los Angeles’ recent struggles, Allen has very quietly scored double-digit PPR fantasy points in every game this season. He has also seen at least eight targets in seven of the Chargers’ eight games played. He remains a top-tier wideout in fantasy and is aided by a healthy Mike Williams working opposite of him.
Olamide Zaccheaus | Atlanta Falcons
Stat Line: 3 receptions, 58 yards, 2 touchdowns
PPR Fantasy Points: 20.8 (WR4)
Cordarrelle Patterson wasn’t the only Falcons player to turn in a big-time fantasy football performance in their upset win over the division rival New Orleans Saints. With Calvin Ridley set to miss perhaps the rest of the season for personal reasons, Atlanta was desperate for a wide receiver to step up. Although he was only on the field for 49% of the team’s offensive snaps, Zaccheaus came through when called upon. He hauled in all three of his targets for 58 yards and a pair of touchdowns to crack the 20-point threshold in PPR formats.
Unfortunately, Zaccheaus doesn’t figure to have sustainable value going forward like Patterson. This line was propped up by the two touchdown receptions. Owners should wait to see if Zaccheaus’ snap count and target share increase before rushing to roster him.
Top Week 9 Fantasy Football Performances | TE
George Kittle | San Francisco 49ers
Stat Line: 6 receptions, 101 yards, 1 touchdown
PPR Fantasy Points: 20.1 (TE1)
While the 49ers were busy laying a complete egg in an embarrassing home loss to the short-handed Arizona Cardinals, tight end George Kittle made a triumphant return to fantasy football lineups across the country. He was one of the few bright spots for San Francisco on Sunday, catching six balls to finish with over 100 yards and a score. When healthy, Kittle remains one of the best fantasy TEs in the game. Unfortunately, Kittle and healthy aren’t exactly two things that have gone together often recently.
Travis Kelce | Kansas City Chiefs
Stat Line: 5 receptions, 68 yards, 1 touchdown
PPR Fantasy Points: 17.8 (TE2)
It was another uncharacteristic performance from the Chiefs’ offense in their narrow home win over the Green Bay Packers on Sunday. Something remains broken in Andy Reid’s system, and it is clear that Patrick Mahomes has lost some of his confidence. Thankfully for Travis Kelce owners, the star tight end hauled in Kansas City’s lone touchdown of the game. After a very disappointing effort last week, Kelce rebounded to finish as the TE2 in PPR scoring for Week 9 with 17.8 fantasy points. Despite all of the Chiefs’ struggles offensively, Kelce is still the TE1 on the season by over 24 points to runner-up Mark Andrews.
Top Week 9 Fantasy Football Performances | QB
Justin Herbert | Los Angeles Chargers
Stat Line: 32/38 passing, 356 yards, 2 touchdowns; 5 carries, 14 yards, 1 touchdown
PPR Fantasy Points: 31.64 (QB1)
It was an impressive bounce back for the Chargers’ offense this week as they amassed nearly 450 yards of total offense. Along with Keenan Allen, quarterback Justin Hebert finished the day with one heck of a fantasy football line. The second-year QB totaled 356 yards passing and two scores. He added a rushing TD to finish as the fantasy QB1 on the week. This effort notably came against one of the worst defensive secondaries in the NFL. Will Herbert and the Chargers be able to find similar success against tougher defensive opponents in the coming weeks?
Lamar Jackson | Baltimore Ravens
Stat Line: 27/41 passing, 256 yards, 3 touchdowns, 2 interceptions; 21 carries, 120 yards
PPR Fantasy Points: 30.64 (QB2)
Quarterback was certainly one position where the fantasy football stars got it done in Week 9. One could argue that no other NFL QB would be able to throw two interceptions and still post over 30 fantasy points as easily as Lamar Jackson. His rushing ability enables him to accumulate points quicker than every other fantasy quarterback. Jackson led the Ravens with 120 yards rushing on 21 attempts in a thrilling overtime win. He also finished with over 250 yards passing and three touchdowns. This marked Jackson’s third game with more than 30 fantasy points in what has been a roller coaster year for the Baltimore signal-caller and his owners.
Top Week 9 Fantasy Football Performances | D/ST
New England Patriots
Stat Line: 1 sack, 3 interceptions, 6 points scored; 240 yards allowed, 6 points allowed
PPR Fantasy Points: 20.0 (D/ST1)
Remember when fantasy football and NFL “experts” were piling heaps of praise on Carolina Panthers quarterback, Sam Darnold? Turns out a change of uniform did not change the fact that Darnold still sucks at football. Bill Belichick and the New England Patriots took full advantage of that on Sunday to finish as the top D/ST in fantasy football. The Patriots came away with three Darnold interceptions in total. Two of those were courtesy of corner, J.C. Jackson. He ran one of those INTs back 88 yards for a defensive touchdown. Matthew Judon continued his phenomenal season with a sack of Darnold to add to the 20-fantasy point performance.
Top Week 9 Fantasy Football Performances | K
Matthew Wright | Jacksonville Jaguars
Stat Line: 3-4 FG, 1 from 20-29, 1 from 30-39, 1 from 50+
PPR Fantasy Points: 11.0 (T-K3)
Although seven kickers finished with double-digit fantasy points in Week 9, none managed to separate themselves as a runaway top performer at the position. As a result, we’ll use this space to give a nod to Jaguars’ placekicker, Matthew Wright. He provided all of Jacksonville’s scoring in a massive upset win over the Buffalo Bills. Wright hit three of his four field-goal tries, including one from 55 yards out.
Despite being 15.5-point NFL betting underdogs, the Jaguars rose to the challenge and won without ever scoring a touchdown. It was easily the biggest shocker of the season to date in a weekend that was filled with them. Apparently, the best Josh Allen in the NFL plays for the Jaguars. Sunday’s game was a literal reincarnation of the “Sacksonville” defense that fell one game short of reaching the Super Bowl five seasons ago. All I can say is, “DUUUVAL!!!”
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