Week 9 Rankings: Standard | PPR
More often than not, you want to avoid the Thursday night game, but Week 9's tilt between the Falcons and Buccaneers falls squarely into the "exceptions" category. We have two shaky -- at best -- defenses, and two offenses that want to put the ball in the air early and often. Forget your typical grind-it-out, ugly Thursday night game. This one promises to have plenty of fireworks.
For once, Fantasy players should be excited to have players going on Thursday night.
Smartest Sit
Usually, there's one player we want to sit this week, but it's just hard to find one. Sure, the likes of Antone Smith or Peyton Barber are going to be hard to rely on, but they are high-risk fliers to begin with. If you're sitting them, you're in pretty good shape to begin with. Don't rub it in.
Each of our Fantasy experts has Jameis Winston as a top-10 QB; Devonta Freeman ranks no lower than ninth at RB; Julio Jones is the consensus top WR on the board, and Mike Evans is no lower than fourth. We're expecting a lot of firepower in this game, and the stars should be out in full. Which means we're going to be very disappointed if tonight's game turns out to be a bust.
Biggest No-Brainer
I don't need to spend much time on this. Like DeMarco Murray last week (123 yards and a touchdown vs. Jacksonville), Matt Ryan is just an obvious must-start player this week. You can't perfectly predict everything, but this seems like a slam dunk.
Ryan is playing at the highest level of his career, and he gets to go against a defense that allows the fourth-highest yards per attempt to opposing quarterbacks, with 14 touchdowns allowed and only four interceptions in seven games. Maybe Ryan won't live up to expectations. Maybe the short week throws him off, or the Falcons commit to grinding out a win on the ground, or... something else extremely unlikely. But the point is, Ryan is about as sure a bet as you can make against this matchup, and should light up the scoreboard for you tonight.
Lineup Hail Marys
We're still not entirely sure who will get the bulk of the work for the Buccaneers in the backfield, but Antone Smith seems like the best bet as of now. He is the favorite for third-down work, which should help him get on the field even if this game turns into a shootout, as expected. The question is, will Smith work much in non-obvious passing situations, or will Peyton Barber get the bulk of the carries? The way the game seems likely to go, Smith is the better bet, but neither is assured of more than 10 touches.
Julio Jones' ankle injury hasn't bothered him practice this week, but we've seen he's had a bit of an up-and-down season, and lower leg injuries have played a part in his inconsistency. Matt Ryan has continued to produce even when Jones hasn't been productive, a testament to the level Ryan is playing at, but a whole slew of new weapons hasn't hurt either.
Mohamed Sanu has been an inconsistent part of the offense, but occasionally a very valuable one. He is on pace for just under 700 receiving yards, but he has three games with double-digit Fantasy points, and remains a decent boom-or-bust flex play if bye weeks have you desperate.
Cameron Brate developed a rapport with Jameis Winston in the offseason that led to him beating out Austin Seferian-Jenkins for the starting job, but that hasn't quite led to him joining the ranks of Fantasy relevant tight ends. He has managed to score in double figures in standard Fantasy scoring just twice, as the young duo just hasn't been on the same page often.
Still, Brate fits in that second tier of tight ends who have enough of a role in their offense you can hope for a good game when the matchup is right. The Falcons' defense is still an issue, and there could be red zone opportunities for Brate in this one.
Scout Team
The focus has largely been on Smith and Barber in the Tampa Bay backfield, but they did add Mike James to the roster this week, and he actually has plenty of success on his track record. Back in 2013, the Miami product started three games for the Buccaneers and racked up 242 yards on 52 carries, with 41 yards on nine receptions. Those aren't incredible numbers, but at least he has shown the ability to be productive. You have almost no reason to add James, who is essentially the No. 6 RB in Tampa Bay at this point, but if Smith is relegated to passing downs only and Barber stumbles, he could have a chance to emerge as a contributor here.
If you're really desperate for a tight end this week, Austin Hooper might be worth a look. He hauled in five passes for 41 yards in Week 8, and is likely to see a larger role moving forward with Jacob Tamme sidelined at least for tonight by an injury. Hooper has shown off some big play potential this season, averaging 17.7 yards per catch in his limited role, and Matt Ryan has leaned heavily on his tight ends this season, a sign that Hooper might be worth the roll of the dice.
If you don't need a tight end this week, you should still keep an eye on Hooper, because he could be a nice option down the stretch if Tamme's injury lingers.
