It looks like Aaron Rodgers may be returning to his former self. He threw for 246 yards and 4 touchdowns against Atlanta in Week 8. In addition, he ran for 60 yards and a two-point conversion. Owners who invested a high draft pick on him should continue to see a return on their investment. Over the next three weeks, he faces Indianapolis, Tennessee and Washington. The lack of a running game has forced him to shoulder a heavier load in the offense. Hopefully that doesn’t cause him to take unnecessary risks, which might result in an injury.
Fantasy football rankings, Week 9: Quarterbacks
The SB Nation fantasy team reveals which quarterbacks rank in the top 25 heading into Week 9.
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Alex Smith was thought to have sustained a concussion in Week 8 and was forced to leave the game twice. It’s reported now that he doesn’t have a concussion but will be monitored. Kansas City is going to play it safe and have him proceed through the concussion protocol anyways. I’m thinking that he’ll be safe to start in Week 9. Ben Roethlisberger may try to give it a go for Week 9 but conflicting reports have him missing a few more weeks. The practice reports will reveal whether he’s safe to start or not.
Six teams again have their bye week: Arizona, Chicago, Cincinnati, Houston, New England and Washington. Tom Brady, Andy Dalton, Kirk Cousins and Carson Palmer will be missed as fantasy starters this week. My suggested streamers for Week 9 would be Colin Kaepernick and Blake Bortles. Kaepernick will continue to improve in the San Francisco offense but you cannot ignore the points he produces on the ground. Bortles will no doubt struggle again but his garbage time fantasy points are a goldmine.
My sleeper this week is Dak Prescott. He’s not much of a sleeper but I’ve found him available in quite a few leagues. His matchup against Cleveland is sweet and should help fantasy owners to a win. I think he’ll finish with 280 yards passing, three passing touchdowns and a rushing touchdown. Prescott is locking up the job for the long term in Dallas.
Quarterbacks, Week 9
(ZS: Zach Senvisky, JM: Jason Marcum, SK: Scott Kaliska, JG: Jeff Goldberg, KB: Kyle Bennett, DG: Derek Gordon)
| Rk | Consensus | Tm | Opp. | ZS | JM | SK | JG | KB | DG |
| 1 | Aaron Rodgers | GB | vs. IND | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| 2 | Matt Ryan | ATL | @ TB | 3 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 3 |
| 3 | Drew Brees | NO | @ SF | 2 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 4 |
| 4 | Cam Newton | CAR | @ LA | 4 | 4 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 5 |
| 5 | Andrew Luck | IND | @ GB | 5 | 7 | 4 | 5 | 5 | 2 |
| 6 | Philip Rivers | SD | vs. TEN | 7 | 5 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 7 |
| 7 | Derek Carr | OAK | vs. DEN | 9 | 6 | 14 | 7 | 7 | 8 |
| 8 | Dak Prescott | DAL | @ CLE | 8 | 9 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 15 |
| 9 | Marcus Mariota | TEN | @ SD | 13 | 10 | 9 | 10 | 10 | 6 |
| 10 | Russell Wilson | SEA | vs. BUF | 12 | 11 | 11 | 12 | 11 | 9 |
| 11 | Ben Roethlisberger | PIT | @ BAL | 6 | 8 | -- | 9 | 9 | 10 |
| 12 | Eli Manning | NYG | vs. PHI | 14 | 12 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 11 |
| 13 | Jameis Winston | TB | vs. ATL | 11 | 13 | 7 | 14 | 13 | 18 |
| 14 | Matthew Stafford | DET | @ MIN | 16 | 16 | 13 | 13 | 14 | 12 |
| 15 | Colin Kaepernick | SF | vs. NO | 10 | 15 | 17 | 18 | 15 | 17 |
| 16 | Joe Flacco | BAL | vs. PIT | 17 | 14 | 22 | 15 | 16 | 16 |
| 17 | Blake Bortles | JAC | @ KC | 20 | 22 | 12 | 16 | 17 | 14 |
| 18 | Ryan Tannehill | MIA | vs. NYJ | 15 | 17 | 18 | 17 | 18 | 20 |
| 19 | Tyrod Taylor | BUF | @ SEA | 18 | 16 | 19 | 19 | 19 | 23 |
| 20 | Trevor Siemian | DEN | @ OAK | 24 | 23 | 21 | 21 | 22 | 13 |
| 21 | Ryan Fitzpatrick | NYJ | @ MIA | 23 | 24 | 15 | 23 | 20 | 19 |
| 22 | Case Keenum | LA | vs. CAR | 22 | 20 | 24 | 22 | 21 | 21 |
| 23 | Alex Smith | KC | vs. JAC | 21 | 19 | 23 | 20 | 25 | -- |
| 24 | Carson Wentz | PHI | @ NYG | 19 | 21 | 25 | -- | 24 | 22 |
| 25 | Sam Bradford | MIN | vs. DET | 25 | 25 | 16 | 24 | 23 | 24 |
| -- | Josh McCown | CLE | vs. DAL | -- | -- | 20 | 25 | -- | -- |
| -- | Cody Kessler | CLE | vs. DAL | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | 25 |
