Week 9: Working 9 to 5
What a way to make a living! Something I’m sure Matthew Berry, Mike Clay, Brad Evans, and others say every morning. I’m just your average Joe with some above-average (I like to think) fantasy recaps. In our 4-EYED RECAP of Week 9, let’s dive into who burned brightly and who flew too close to the sun.
Quarterback: Teddy Bridgewater
| Format | Fantasy Points Scored | Avg FPPG |
| FanDuel (0.5PPR) | 28.3 | 20.2 |
One if by land! Two if by air! In Week 9, Teddy Bridgewater unleashed an areal barrage of 310 yards and 2 TDs on 36 of 49 attempts, adding 19 rushing yards and 1 rushing TD. Is the return of Christian McCaffrey the magic elixir that turns Teddy from a streaming option to a verifiable starter?
I find it hard to believe Teddy B will be attempting 49 passes again this season. Only twice has he thrown the ball more than 37 times and is averaging 34 attempts per game. Additionally, Teddy tends to keep the ball close to the line of scrimmage. Going into Week 8, he was averaging only 7.0 air yards per attempt, which includes catches and incompletions. That is 26th best in the league, just behind Sam Darnold and Derek Carr.
But air yards don’t tell the full story for Teddy B. He is 8th best among QBs in terms of yards after the catch per completion (7.8). Although Teddy doesn’t rack up air yards, his talented receivers (including CMC) rack up yards after the catch. Streaming Teddy against the Buccaneers next week seems risky, but he then squares off against the Lions and Vikings before his Week 13 bye and should do well in both games.
Honorable Mention: Don’t look now, but Kyler Murray is averaging 30.1 fantasy points per game over 8 games this season. Last year, in Lamar Jackson’s record-breaking season, Jackson averaged 28.1 fantasy points per game. Kyler is on pace to have 4000+ passing yards, 32 passing TDs, 1000+ rushing yards, and 16 rushing TDs. By comparison, Jackson had 7 rushing TDs all of last season. If you can somehow get Kyler by trading a solid RB2 or even low-end RB1, consider it.
Running Back: Antonio Gibson
| Format | Fantasy Points Scored | Avg FPPG |
| Non-PPR | 9.5 | 10.4 |
| FanDuel (0.5PPR) | 11.0 | 11.8 |
| PPR | 12.5 | 13.2 |
Two weeks ago I wrote that Antonio Gibson “quelled fears” of a changing of the guard in Washington and that, if he saw 5 targets per game going forward, he’s a locked and loaded RB2. My colleague Jonathan cautioned that Gibson was losing touches to J.D. McKissic in the passing game. Fast forward to Week 9, Gibson saw 6 rushes for 20 rushing yards and 1 TD, along with 3 catches on 3 targets for 35 yards and a fumble. Panic time?
The scariest stat for Gibson owners is that McKissic saw 14 targets and 3 carries this week. In a game where Washington lost their starting QB and trailed most of the day, Washington clearly leaned heavily on McKissic in the passing game. But should Gibson owners be concerned that this is the new normal in Washington?
Gibson’s talent is still showing on the field. Going into Week 9, he had the 10th best juke percentage (32%) among RBs, was tied for the 5th most broken tackles among RBs (14), and led the league in the fewest number of rushing attempts per broken tackle (6.0). Gibson was also 11th among RBs in terms of yards created per attempt (1.67), meaning he averaged 1.67 yards per rush after following his blocker. Gibson is hard to hit and hard to bring down. Those are two good qualities for a running back. Now if only Washington could involve him more in the passing game…
Honorable Mention: On the flip side, Todd Gurley has no issue finding volume in the Atlanta backfield. In Week 9, he had 19 rush attempts for 53 yards and 1 TD, along with 2 targets for 2 yards. Also on the flip side, Gurley continues to be a model of inefficiency, averaging only 3.7 yards per carry. Going into Week 9, Gurley ranked 38th among RBs in terms of yards before contact per attempts (1.7). Gurley will likely finish as an RB1 this week, but you should take his average of 1 TD per game this season and find a willing trade partner.
Wide Receiver: D.J. Chark
| Format | Fantasy Points Scored | Avg FPPG |
| Non-PPR | 20.6 | 9.7 |
| FanDuel (0.5PPR) | 24.1 | 12.0 |
| PPR | 27.6 | 14.4 |
Back from the injury and into our hearts. D.J. Chark rewarded his loyal fantasy managers (even if they had him on the bench…) by catching 7 balls on 12 targets for 146 yards, including a 73-yard bomb from rookie QB Jake Luton’s second career pass in the NFL. No doubt that Luton, assuming he keeps the starting job, will lean on Chark for victory. The question is can you, manager of the Wentz Twice Three Times a Brady, lean on him too? (My wife came up with the name and I couldn’t be prouder.)
Coming into Week 9, Chark’s efficiency was lacking. He isn’t amassing a ton of yards before the catch (9.6 per reception, 36th among WRs) or after the catch (1.6 per reception, dead last among qualifying WRs). His average depth of target of 13.2 yards is good (34th among WRs) but not what you hoped for after his break-out 2019 campaign.
Perhaps it’s merely bad QB play. But even his “true” catch percentage – factoring in only catchable balls – is only 83.9%. That’s good enough for 58th among wide receivers. In addition, Chark is only averaging 1.32 yards per route run (66th among WRs). Including his 73-yard TD catch from this week, Chark has only 3 receptions of 25+ yards.
Is Chark now healthy and #LutenFree with Jake Luten under center? Time will tell. But you may want to sell Chark high after this stellar performance against a bad Houston secondary.
Honorable Mention: Buy, buy, buy Terry McLaurin! Squaring off against a difficult cornerback in James Bradberry and catching balls from back-up QB Alex Smith, McLaurin nabbed 7 of 8 targets for 115 yards and 1 TD. Although 68 yards came on a long TD-pass from Alex Smith, McLaurin continued to show he has a solid floor and is a dependable number 1 target in Washington. Alex Smith has supported very fantasy-relevant wide receivers in the past, even in Washington with Jamison Crowder, Jordan Reed, and Vernon Davis. Plus, who doesn’t want to root for Alex Smith and, by proxy, F-1 McLaurin?
Tight End: Irv Smith Jr.
| Format | Fantasy Points Scored | Avg FPPG |
| Non-PPR | 13.0 | 3.7 |
| FanDuel (0.5PPR) | 14.0 | 4.6 |
| PPR | 15.0 | 5.4 |
WOW! Irv Smith‘s stat lines are the things dreams are made of…well, dreams relative to the nightmare of streaming TEs. Two receptions on 4 targets for 10 yards and 2 TDs? Gimme, gimme, gimme! But are you going to be chasing those fantasy points and come up empty?
As my colleague David wrote about a week ago, Smith’s snap percentages have continued to increase. Since Week 4, he has been on the field for at least 41% of snaps. In addition, Smith has seen 4+ targets in 3 of the past 4 games. Opportunity? Sorta. Volume? Meh. But, again, we’re talking about TEs here.
Honorable Mention: Over the past 3 games, Logan Thomas is averaging 10.0 fantasy points per game (half-PPR). True, he had only 28 receiving yards, but that’s almost thrice the yardage total that Irv Smith had. Thomas just didn’t snag 2 TDs, or any TDs for that matter. He has seen at least 4 targets in every game this season yet only has 3 TDs to show for it. If the TDs follow, Thomas could win you a week. Well, Thomas could at least not lose you a week.
Defensive Lineman: Carlos Dunlap
| Format | Fantasy Points Scored | Avg FPPG |
| FantasyPros | 16.00 | 6.28 |
Amazing what a change of scenery can do. In his first game after being traded from Cincinnati to Seattle, Carlos Dunlap feasted on the run-first Buffalo Bills offense. Dunlap had 5 total tackles (3 solo, 2 assisted), 3 of which were for a loss, and 1 sack. Seattle has been starved for a difference-maker on the defensive line. With Seattle’s powerful offense, Dunlap should see plenty of positive game scripts for hunting down opposing QBs.
Defensive Back: Jabrill Peppers
| Format | Fantasy Points Score | Avg FPPG |
| FantasyPros | 21.00 | 10.00 |
For those you who were out on Jabrill Peppers after his slow start, best pay attention. In Week 9, he had 6 tackles (4 solo, 2 assisted), 3 passes defended, 1 interception, and 1 fumble recovery. Peppers had posted fewer than 10 fantasy points every game through Week 6. Perhaps there was still some rust from his season-ending injury in Week 13 of last year. Since Week 6, Peppers has posted no less than 13.5 fantasy points every week. If Peppers is still on your IDP waiver wire, get him now!
Linebacker: Eric Wilson
| Format | Fantasy Points Scored | Avg FPPG |
| FantasyPros | 24.25 | 13.88 |
Eric Wilson just doesn’t know when to quit. Against the Lions, he had 13 total tackles (8 solo, 5 assisted), 0.5 sacks, 1 pass defended, and 1 interception. In eight games, Wilson has averaged almost 14 fantasy points per game. However, in half of those games, he posted fewer than 10 fantasy points. And this was his first week with 10+ tackles. Wilson is a viable starter in deep IDP leagues, but he’s a rare boom-bust LB option.