Fantasy Football Recap Week 9: 15 Things You Need To Know

Week 9 of the NFL season was wild. It was another week of being up early for an international game. This time, two of the league’s highest octane offenses went to Germany and essentially disappeared. There were several close games that went back and forth. It felt like every tight end in the league scored a touchdown. We even had a running back kick a field goal! Oh yeah, and more devastating injuries. Let’s hop right in.

Top Players

C.J. Stroud was simply magical. He broke the record for most passing yards in a game by a rookie quarterback. The Ohio State product threw for 470 yards and five touchdowns, leading his team to a late comeback victory over the Buccaneers.

CJ Stroud just set the NFL single-game rookie passing yardage record with 470 yards and 5 TDs … and is about to lead the Texans to an improbable come-from-behind win over Tampa.

— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) November 5, 2023

Dalton Schultz played the best game of his career. With Stroud’s performance on Sunday, nearly any of his pass catchers could been mentioned in this recap. However, Schultz stood out by setting career highs in targets, catches, and yards. He caught 10 of 11 targets and amassed 130 yards. It was the first time he topped the century mark in his career. He also scored a touchdown to solidify his outstanding fantasy performance.

Dak Prescott kept on rolling with his second straight 300+ yard performance. Facing division rival, Philadelphia, Prescott tallied 374 yards and tossed three touchdown passes. He added 14 yards on the ground and was tackled just short of the goal line or he would’ve had an even bigger day.

Flop Players

Travis Kelce put up a snoozer while fans were trying to keep their eyes open for an early start game from Germany. The future Hall-of-Famer caught just three passes for 14 yards. It was his worst performance since 2018. Kelce had better hope Taylor Swift is in attendance at his next game because he cannot afford another clunker like the one he had on Sunday.

Kenneth Walker and Zach Charbonnet were the subject of preseason debate on who would be the bigger contributor to Seattle’s run game. The answer on Sunday was neither. Walker managed 16 yards on nine carries while Charbonnet ran for eight yards on four carries. Of course, the entire Seattle offense could have been included in the flop section of this recap as they completely stunk in an embarrassing blowout loss against Baltimore.

Zay Flowers came up small in Baltimore’s runaway victory. Facing a favorable matchup, the rookie caught just one pass for 11 yards. After having a rather robust start to his career, Flowers has been ineffective in consecutive weeks. He has 30 yards on six receptions in his last two outings.

Chris Godwin went missing in Tampa’s loss at Houston. Though the Buccaneers put up 37 points, it was no thanks to Godwin, who caught two passes for 16 yards. He will look to right the ship at home next week against Tennessee.

Pop Players

Keaton Mitchell made a bid for more playing time in the Baltimore backfield. Earning his first nine career carries, the rookie converted them into 138 yards as he gashed the Seahawks’s defense again and again. He scored his first career touchdown and looked very spry in the Ravens’ dominant victory.

Ravens finished with 298 yards rushing (would've been 300 if not for two kneel-downs at the end) and three rushing TDs.

Top 3 rushers:

- Keaton Mitchell: 138 yards, 1 TD (15.3 average)

- Lamar Jackson: 60 yards, 0 TD (6 average)

- Gus Edwards: 52 yards, 2 TD (10.4 average)

— Sarah Ellison (@sgellison) November 5, 2023

Noah Brown was another recipient of C.J. Stroud’s record-breaking outing. Brown caught all six of his targets and compiled 153 receiving yards as the Texans topped the Buccaneers. He even found himself celebrating in the end zone on his first touchdown catch of the season.

Cade Otton was one of the numerous tight ends who found the end zone on Sunday. In fact, he got there twice while catching six passes for 70 yards. In a season where a number of tight ends are on the injured reserve list, Otton could be a nice waiver wire option heading into Week 10.

Tyson Bagent posted the biggest performance of his young career. Making his third consecutive start filling in for the injured Justin Fields, Bagent had his first multi-touchdown game. He threw for 220 yards and a pair of scores while also doing damage with his feet. The rookie quarterback ran for 70 yards on eight carries. Some of the shine was rubbed off his big day as he turned the ball over four times in a seven-point defeat against New Orleans.

Drop Players?

Cam Akers left the game in the Vikings’ victory on Sunday. He suffered an ankle injury. Head coach, Kevin O’Connell, later confirmed that he suffered an Achilles injury. He is expected to miss the remainder of the season.

Daniel Jones exited the Giants’ defeat in the second quarter. He sustained an injury to his right knee. The team fears he has a torn ACL. Jones will undergo an MRI to confirm.

The initial fear is that quarterback Daniel Jones has a torn ACL in his right knee, per sources. MRI coming Monday to determine full extent of the injury but there is concern for a serious injury.

— Jordan Raanan (@JordanRaanan) November 6, 2023

Josh Downs was knocked out of Sunday’s game in the second quarter. He was being evaluated for an injured knee. Downs was later ruled out for the game.

Jalen Hurts injured his knee just before halftime of the Eagles’ victory. He remained in the game but the injury does appear to be something requiring further monitoring.