NFL
NFL Players Most Likely to Dominate in Week 9
Breaking down the players most likely to dominate their matchup in Week 9
Brace Hemmelgarn-USA TODAY Sports
While Fantasy Football and real NFL games have their differences, they share one common theme: If a player goes off in fantasy it usually means he went off in the real game as well. For Week 9, here are the players with the best chances to dominate their opponents. These players, due to their History, Situation, and Matchups could be extremely valuable to their teams this week with their monster performances.
Facts To Know:
Matthew Stafford, coming off of a huge week against the New York Giants, has become the 6th QB in NFL history to throw for 300+ yards & 3+ touchdowns in 22 different career games. Stafford has a WR core of Kenny Golladay, Marvin Jones, and Danny Amendola, who have shown to produce for the Detroit Lions. They have caught 11 of Stafford’s 16 touchdowns, and 1,264 of his 2,093 yards (Golladay with 508 of those yards). The matchup looks to be in Stafford’s favor as the Oakland Raiders have the lowest percentage of QB pressure in the league at 14.3%, and blitz only 18.0% of the time. With a lack of pressure in his face, and being tied for second in passing touchdowns, Stafford has a chance to do keep lighting it up this week.
Honorable Mention: Russell Wilson, SEA (v.TB)
Facts To Know:
Looking to continue his dominant season, Dalvin Cook and the Minnesota Vikings are playing against the Kansas City Chiefs who are known for high scoring games on both sides of the ball. Cook has shown he can run the ball effectively, but also gain yardage as a receiver as well. Cook leads the NFL in rushing yards and rushing touchdowns with 823 yards and 9 touchdowns. However, back up RB Alexander Mattison does get a slight share of the snap count, so Cook is not the only running back who produces in Minnesota’s offense. The Chiefs are ranked 29th against opposing RBs and have allowed the third most rushing yards (978) this season. Cook will be trying to keep his great year going against a weak rush offense this week.
Honorable Mention: Ezekiel Elliot, Dal (@NYG)
Facts To Know:
Amari Cooper is going to be playing the New York Giants for the second time this season. Cooper had caught the ball 6 times for 106 receiving yards and a touchdown in the week one matchup against NYG. Cooper isn’t the only one who produces on the Dallas Cowboys as Micheal Gallup, Jason Witten, Randall Cobb, and Ezekiel Elliot have taken a decent chunk of the targets as well. However, on the positive side, having all of those quality receivers will open up the field, and give Cooper the space to dominate his side of the field. The New York Giants have given up big performances to top WRs this season such as Mike Evans, Kenny Golladay, and Adam Thielen. The Giants are going to have to cover all of the Cowboys weapons, giving Cooper a great chance to build off of his first game against the G-Men.
Honorable Mention: Tyreek Hill, KC (v.MIN)
Facts To Know:
Evan Engram has helped his rookie QB ease into playing at the professional level. Engram, despite missing a week, leads in all receiving categories for the Giants. While the Giants frequently use two TEs, Engram is more of the receiving one. Robert Ellison plays on 46.9% of the offensive snaps as well, which does take some plays from Engram, but typically they result in rushing plays. The last time these two teams played against one another, Engram had a stat line of 11 receptions, 116 receiving yards, and a touchdown. Also to note, that was when Eli Manning was the starting quarterback. With Daniel Jones the starter now, Engram’s QB has shown the ability to move the ball down the field for the Giants, and his 1st career TD was a 75-yard pass to Engram. There is a good opportunity for Engram to keep producing against the Cowboys on MNF.
Honorable Mention: Travis Kelce, KC (v. MIN)
Facts to Know:
Tyler Lockett has developed well into becoming the WR1 on the Seattle Seahawks. Lockett has 615 receiving yards and four touchdowns coming into the week, and is clearly Russel Wilson’s favorite target. In Lockett’s favor is emerging rookie WR DK Metcalf who’s having a productive year himself with four touchdowns and 402 receiving yards. While newly-claimed Josh Gordon likely won’t make much of an impact, if any, Metcalf’s presence will take pressure off of Lockett and give him chances to get open in single coverage. The Tampa Bay Buccaneers have allowed 27+ points in their last five matchups as well.
Honorable Mention: WR Allen Robinson, Chi (@PHI)
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