Russell Wilson Among 5 Essential Fantasy Football Must-Plays in Week 9
The 2019 season has passed the midway point, which should provide a clear picture for you to assess your fantasy football and what it needs to make a strong push towards the playoffs. Every week, several matchups are just far too favorable to pass up the opportunity to start with the optimism of huge fantasy outputs. Here are five must-plays for this week’s action.
5. Le’Veon Bell
ESPN PROJECTIONS: 16.1 PTS
It hasn’t been the start of his career with the New York Jets that he would have hoped. Bell has also made it through trade chatter that came just hours before Tuesday’s deadline.
The Pro Bowler has had his struggles with finding consistency on the field, but he and the Jets have a favorable matchup in Week 9 against the winless Miami Dolphins. There lies an opportunity for him to put forth his best outing of the season as the Dolphins are 29th against opposing running backs this season, allowing 27.6 points per contest.
Miami has allowed north of 25 points five times and are coming off James Conner drumming them for 145 rushing yards. All this paves the way for Bell to go off in a similar fashion.
4. Josh Jacobs
ESPN PROJECTIONS: 16.5 PTS
Through the first half of the season, the Oakland Raiders rookie running back has proven to be the real deal. Jacobs has been as consistent as they have come out of the backfield with four double-digit outings.
The Alabama product will have the chance to add another double-digit performance to his ledger as the Raiders take on the Detroit Lions. Jacobs will face a Lions defense that is ranked 31st in the league in fantasy against opposing running backs allowing 28.2 points per contest with more than 20 points given up in each game.
It spells out the recipe for Jacob to put up a big outing with his sizable workload.
3. Aaron Jones
ESPN PROJECTIONS: 15.9 PTS
Through his first two seasons in the league, there was much frustration for fantasy owners of Jones because of the Green Bay Packers’ inability to use their talented running back correctly. All of these complaints have ceased to exist in the 2019 season as he has been one of the most productive running backs in the league.
Jones has notched double-digit scoring all but twice this season, which he has hit north of 30 points on two occasions. He has a favorable matchup against the Los Angeles Chargers, who are 23rd against opposing running backs and have given up more than 30 points three times in the last four games. It’s certainly a trend that should continue with the Packers’ offense rolling with Jones leading the charge.
2. Russell Wilson
ESPN PROJECTIONS: 23.0 PTS
The Seattle Seahawks are out to a strong start to the 2019 season, which has been primarily fueled by Wilson’s strong play. He has been one of the most productive quarterbacks in fantasy tallying no fewer than 14.3 points in every game.
Wilson has a favorable matchup ahead of him against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, who are 25th against opposing quarterbacks, giving up 20.4 points per contest. He will be in line for a strong performance facing a struggling defense that allowed Ryan Tannehill to tally three touchdowns against them.
1. Dalvin Cook
ESPN PROJECTIONS: 20.6 PTS
Cook has put his injury woes behind him in 2019, which has helped him produce at a career-best pace, currently ranked as the league’s leading rusher heading into Week 9 action. He has been a fantasy powerhouse with double-digit performances in each of the first eight games while topping more than 20 points, all but twice.
The FSU product will carry on that trend this week against the Kansas City Chiefs, who are 30th against opposing running backs. The Chiefs are coming off giving up 55.2 points to the Packers’ backfield that has continued a streak of six straight games with more than 20 points allowed. Cook will be the latest to add to those defensive woes with another huge outing.
