Fantasy football advice, Week 9: who to start/sit for New Orleans Saints vs. San Francisco 49ers

Bye week hell continues in Week 9 with six more teams on byes. And you thought it couldn’t have been worse in Week 8? Now, fantasy owners get to scramble as skill position players on the Patriots, Bengals, Washington, Cardinals, Bears and Texans all get to sit out of lineups. But with the Saints and 49ers squaring off on Sunday, options, though few of them, still remain for fantasy owners.

Fantasy owners get the dreaded circumstance of Drew Brees away from The Superdome on Sunday, but against a 49ers defense that has been pitiful all season long, Brees’ Jekyll and Hyde home/road splits don’t have to be considered as heavily. Brees remains a high-end QB1 for Sunday, taking Brandin Cooks, Mike Thomas and Willie Snead with him to lofty fantasy statuses. All three receivers could conceivably provide fantasy value amid such a favorable matchup, but Cooks is the preferred option of the three.

Coby Fleener played just 34 percent of snaps to Josh Hill’s 80 percent in Week 8, causing legitimate alarm among Fleener’s fantasy owners. It’s feasible that head coach Sean Payton wanted the bulkier Hill to match up with the Seahawks’ punishing defense, but if Fleener doesn’t see more playing time against the 49ers, there isn’t much reason for fantasy owners to keep him on rosters. Fleener is start-worthy on Sunday due to his upside, but fantasy owners should avoid this situation if at all possible.

Another murky situation is the running back position, after Mark Ingram lost the football, and subsequently, the keys to the backfield. Though Ingram is still expected to be part of the rotation, the degree to which he and Tim Hightower will be used remains a mystery. It’s conceivable that both running backs are start-worthy against the worst run defense in the NFL, but fantasy owners have to expect a big downside from whichever running back is inserted into lineups. Both can be considered boom-or-bust flex options.

Daniel Lasco, Travaris Cadet and Hill do not deserve to be in fantasy lineups for Week 9 and beyond.

With head coach Chip Kelly playing coy on Carlos Hyde’s status, it puts fantasy owners in a bind. Hyde would have one of the premier matchups in Week 9 if he saw the field, but for now, fantasy owners have to have backup options in place. DuJuan Harris would likely head a committee approach in Hyde’s absence, and would be a capable flex option.

Unfortunately, with Colin Kaepernick under center, there isn’t much in the 49ers’ passing game to be excited about. Jeremy Kerley’s value has all but vanished without checkdown-king Blaine Gabbert throwing him high-percentage routes, and Torrey Smith has as low of a fantasy downside as any receiver in the NFL. Even in a fabulous matchup against the Saints and in a heavy bye week, the 49ers’ passing game is best avoided.