This article is part of our Yahoo DFS Football series.
The Week 9 main slate begins Sunday at 1:00 p.m. EDT and features 12 games, while the Packers and 49ers kick off the week Thursday at 8:20 p.m. EDT, the Patriots-Jets game concludes the week Monday at 8:15 p.m. EDT, and the Bengals, Browns, Eagles and Rams are on bye. Some of the standout Week 9 options include a quarterback-wide receiver combo that's looking to beat up on a vulnerable division rival for the second time this season, a star running back positioned to carry lineups for the second time in as many weeks and a tight end who's primed for success despite some questions about his quarterback.
TOURNAMENTS (GPP – GUARANTEED PRIZE POOL)
QB: Drew Lock, DEN at ATL ($24): Lock's coming off perhaps the best performance of his young career, as he tossed a trio of fourth-quarter touchdowns to lead the Broncos back from a 24-3 second-half deficit in last week's 31-30 win over the Chargers. If he can carry over the momentum from that performance into this matchup with a Falcons secondary that's allowing 311.4 passing yards per game -- second most in the league -- Lock would be a tremendous value as this week's 22nd-most expensive quarterback.
RB: Leonard Fournette, TB vs. NO ($16): While teammate Antonio Brown's debut will get the headlines, it's another big-name Buccaneers acquisition who could carry fantasy lineups this week. Fournette capitalized on an early Ronald Jones fumble and finished with 51 offensive snaps to Jones' 17 in last week's win over the Giants while topping 70 scrimmage yards for the third time in his last four games. Considering Jones has topped 100 yards on the ground three times this season, Fournette will be stepping into a favorable backfield situation if he grabs the reins as the lead back moving forward.
WR: John Brown, BUF vs. SEA ($20): Fellow Bills wideout Stefon Diggs ($31) should be a popular choice in all formats and has separated himself as Josh Allen's go-to target while Brown has battled a knee injury in recent weeks, but Brown's big-play ability gives him an equally high ceiling against a Seahawks defense that's allowed a league-high 358.7 passing yards per game. The duo coexisted just fine when they were healthy in Weeks 1 and 2, as Brown had 10 catches on 16 targets for 152 yards and two touchdowns over that span. After playing 81 percent of Buffalo's offensive snaps last week, it's possible that Brown will be getting back to full health just in time to create a perfect buy-low opportunity in this favorable matchup.
Other Against-the-Grainers
QB: Ryan Tannehill (TEN, $30), Lamar Jackson (BAL, $31), Philip Rivers (IND, $22)
RB: James Robinson (JAX, $30), Ezekiel Elliott (DAL, $25), Mike Davis (CAR, $21)
WR: Darius Slayton (NYG, $16), Tyler Lockett (SEA, $30), Robby Anderson (CAR, $19)
TE: Mark Andrews (BAL, $20), Albert Okwuegbunam (DEN, $16)
DST: Houston Texans (at JAX, $12), New York Jets (vs. NE, $15)
CASH GAMES (H2H, 50/50s and DOUBLE UPS)
QUARTERBACK
Deshaun Watson, HOU at JAX ($35): Watson's looking for a fifth consecutive game with 300-plus passing yards and has tossed multiple touchdown passes in each of those contests, including a 359-yard, three-touchdown performance against Jacksonville in Week 5. Meanwhile, the Jaguars have allowed 30-plus points in six consecutive games since upsetting the Colts in Week 1. Watson's primed to keep rolling through the air and is also capable of more than he has shown so far on the ground, as he has only one rushing touchdown through seven games after running in five scores in 2018 and seven last season. Houston's likely to dominate time of possession against a Jaguars team that's starting rookie sixth-round quarterback Jake Luton, so Watson should have ample opportunities to match or even exceed his Week 5 performance.
RUNNING BACK
Dalvin Cook, MIN vs. DET ($37): Cook will likely be the main building block for a large portion of lineups after carving up the Packers for 226 scrimmage yards and four touchdowns last week. That was Cook's third game with at least 130 rushing yards in his last four appearances, and he has a nice opportunity to top that mark again with the Vikings favored at home against a Lions defense that's allowing 130.0 rushing yards per game.
James Conner, PIT at DAL ($26): The undefeated Steelers should have no trouble carving up a Dallas defense that's giving up a league-high 33.3 points per game, and there's a good chance that the game plan goes run-heavy with Pittsburgh heavily favored to build up a large lead considering the Cowboys will once again be without their top two quarterbacks. Conner has found the end zone in five of his last six games while logging at least 18 touches in each of those contests, and he should remain both busy and effective here.
WIDE RECEIVER
Julio Jones, ATL vs. DEN ($33): Jones has dominated in three games since returning from a hamstring injury, catching 23 of 29 targets for 371 yards and two touchdowns. Atlanta's top receiver should get even more attention from Matt Ryan if Calvin Ridley (foot) can't go in this juicy matchup against a Broncos secondary that just allowed a combined 14 catches for 166 yards and two touchdowns to the Chargers' wide receiver duo of Mike Williams and Keenan Allen.
Brandin Cooks, HOU at JAX ($17): Teammate Will Fuller ($23) has a five-game touchdown streak going and should be a popular choice as well, but Cooks shouldn't be overlooked as an option to stack with Watson if you choose to build around Houston's passing game this week. After a slow start to his Texans tenure, Cooks broke out with eight catches for 161 yards and a touchdown on 12 targets in Week 5 against Jacksonville. He has been on fire ever since, as that performance began a three-game stretch in which Cooks caught 24 of 30 targets for 289 yards and two touchdowns.
Allen Robinson, CHI at TEN ($24): Robinson is by far the top receiver on the Bears heading into a matchup with a Titans team that has struggled mightily to defend the position. Despite already having its bye week, Tennessee has allowed the second-most catches (124), fifth-most yards (1,398) and eighth-most touchdowns (10) to wide receivers this season. Robinson has broken 70 receiving yards in six of eight games, and his 77 targets this season are two shy of Diggs' league-leading total.
TIGHT END
T.J. Hockenson, DET at MIN ($19): Hockenson's living up to his billing as a top-10 pick in the 2019 draft, with at least 7.3 fantasy points in every game this season and a solid line of 29 catches on 41 targets for 321 yards and four touchdowns through seven games overall. The standout tight end's likely to see an even greater share of targets this week with top wide receiver Kenny Golladay (hip) expected to sit, and while Matthew Stafford's placement on the reserve/COVID-19 list lowers Hockenson's ceiling in the event that Stafford can't go, Hockenson would still have plenty of appeal as a security blanket for established backup Chase Daniel against a Vikings defense that's allowing a league-high 69.7 yards per game to tight ends.
DEFENSE
New York Giants, NYG at WAS ($16): The Giants are 1-7, but four of those losses have come by four points or fewer, as the defense has managed to keep New York in games. The team's one win came against Washington, and the defense carried New York in that one with the go-ahead touchdown in the fourth quarter and 14.0 fantasy points. Expect another strong performance from this unit, which has quietly racked up multiple sacks in every game this season, against a Washington offense that's starting Kyle Allen under center. In 18 career appearances (16 starts), Allen has thrown 17 interceptions and fumbled 14 times, losing eight.
Honorable Mentions
QB: Justin Herbert (LAC, $36), Josh Allen (BUF, $35), Matt Ryan (ATL, $31)
RB: JaMycal Hasty (SF, $17), Clyde Edwards-Helaire (KC, $27), David Johnson (HOU, $20)
WR: Chase Claypool (PIT, $23), Terry McLaurin (WAS, $22), Keenan Allen (LAC, $26)
TE: Rob Gronkowski (TB, $19), Eric Ebron (PIT, $15)
DST: Pittsburgh Steelers (at DAL, $21), Arizona Cardinals (vs. MIA, $16)
