It's Week 9, and the fantasy football season has officially hit the point where your roster either feels like a masterpiece... or a modern art project no one understands. Bye weeks, injuries, and unpredictable usage have turned even the most confident managers into nervous wrecks scrolling through projections at 2 a.m. But don't worry -- our Featured Pros have you covered. They've studied the matchups, crunched the numbers, and maybe sacrificed a lucky pair of socks to the fantasy gods to help you separate the Starts from the Duds this week.
Which player outside of the top 100 in the FantasyPros Flex rankings is a good sleeper start, and why do you think he has upside this week?
"Kendrick Bourne. Picking a meaningful contributor outside of the top 100-ranked players by pure reality of circumstance means there is risk involved. There are no slam dunks when it comes to picking low-ranked sleepers. However, Bourne provides some upside. He's physically gifted, he's the 49ers' No. 2 WR target with Ricky Pearsall injured, and the New York Giants are the sixth-worst defense in fantasy points allowed to wide receivers. Now, to be fair to both sides, he was ignored and understandably struggled in his two most recent games against two of the stingiest defenses in fantasy points allowed to wide receivers (Atlanta and Houston), but he returns to face friendlier competition in Week 9 with the lowly Giants pass defense lining up across from the explosive wideout. Any big-play receiver facing a defense as porous as the Giants working in a scheme as creative and as dangerous as Kyle Shanahan's is a sleeper worth a shot. He had back-to-back 142-yard receiving games with 20 total targets in Weeks 5 and 6, minimized only by his lack of a touchdown in either game. Don't be surprised if Bourne makes this one a 142-yard game again with two touchdowns to make up for being ignored in the red zone in those matchups. If the bye week has you buckled in to chasing a flier, there are significantly worse options than Bourne this week."
- Chris Mitchell (FantasyData)
Which player inside the top 40 in the FantasyPros Flex rankings is likely to disappoint fantasy managers this week?
"As of this writing, Brian Thomas ranks WR19 in ECR, 39th overall. He's currently tied for WR40 in half-PPR fantasy scoring, averaging 52.1 receiving yards per game, with only one touchdown this season. Thomas is dealing with a shoulder injury, and we saw No. 2 overall draft pick Travis Hunter have a big surge in usage right before the Jaguars' Week 8 bye. Thomas has a soft matchup against the Raiders, but the matchup alone might not be enough to propel him to a big day."
- Pat Fitzmaurice (FantasyPros)
"James Cook is an interesting running back. Coming off a breakout season where he rushed for over 1,000 yards and scored 18 total touchdowns, totalling 249 Fantasy points, ranking him 11th overall in fantasy scoring and eighth among running backs. He's already quietly rushed for 753 yards and seven touchdowns, putting him on pace for potentially 1,500-1,800 rushing yards and a monstrous 300-350+ point season. However, there's a catch. He's non-existent in the passing game (one target in his last three games and 14 total targets the entire season), the Bills have "restrained" Josh Allen's superman potential up to this point, which will have to change to outscore the powerhouse Chiefs. Cook has struggled toting the rock in two of his last three games -- against New England (ranked 29th in fantasy points allowed to backs) and Atlanta, ranked a meager 11th. This week, the Bills and company face the red-hot Kansas City Chiefs defense, which allows the fifth-fewest fantasy points to running backs, as well as an offense on fire. This game is going to be a shootout. Josh Allen is going to have to suit up in full Superman tights and run like the most physically gifted quarterback possibly ever. To beat Patrick Mahomes, who has returned to being the best quarterback on the planet, Allen is going to have to have season-highs in passing yards, touchdowns and attempts. It's tough enough that the Chiefs' run defense is stifling, but their electric offense is going to force the Bills' game plan to ignore Cook and focus almost entirely on Josh Allen. Unless your league allows points for successful blocks and bonuses for great blitz pickups, you're going to be left wondering if Cook even got off the plane when this game is done. You can't bench a potential 1,500-yard rusher regardless of the matchup, but you should run from him in daily formats, and if you have the guts to pull it off, sure, brag about the time you benched him for an RB3 and won because of it. That's going to be the reality on Tuesday morning."
- Chris Mitchell (FantasyData)