NFL DFS Rankings for DraftKings, FanDuel - Week 9 Picks for Cash and GPP Contests

Just when we thought a slate couldn’t get uglier than Week 7, here comes Week 9! There are no games on the slate this weekend with a total of over 50 points, and the Dallas/Philadelphia game is the only one that looks mildly promising from a fantasy perspective. When a slate has only one obvious stacking spot, it makes a lot of sense to look elsewhere to try to beat the chalk. Thankfully, several sneaky teams are lurking this weekend ready to break the slate. 

You will see some unusual names atop the ranks this weekend as the Chiefs, Dolphins, Bills, Bengals, Chargers, Lions, and 49ers aren’t on the slate. Mac Jones? He’s a viable cash play this weekend. Rashid Shaheed? He could be part of a GPP-winning stack. With ugliness comes opportunity and there is plenty of that this Sunday. 

There are quite a few great plays available on DK for Week 9, but my goal is to create a hierarchy of plays so you know who to prioritize when building your lineups! Also, be sure to check out all of our other great NFL DFS articles and NFL DFS tools to help you win big!

DraftKings NFL DFS Cash Rankings - Quarterbacks

1. Mac Jones (New England Patriots - $4,900)

Mac Jones isn’t a great fantasy quarterback. He’s scored more than 20 DraftKings points only once this year, and that was back in Week 1. Thankfully, he’s got a matchup this weekend against a Commanders defense that has made mediocre signal-callers look lethal all year long. Tyrod Taylor, Desmond Ridder, Justin Fields, and Russell Wilson have all had strong games against Washington in 2023. 

As bad as they’ve been, the Commanders may even be worse going forward as they just traded Montez Sweat and Chase Young from their pass rush. So now not only is their secondary awful, but they are going to struggle to generate a pass rush as well. At $4,900, Jones only needs about 15 DraftKings points to hit value and that’s a number every quarterback who has faced them since Week 2 has exceeded. Saving $1,600 by using Jones instead of Dak Prescott allows you to spend up at both wide receiver and running back, something especially important as those positions lack a lot of value this weekend.

2. Dak Prescott (Dallas Cowboys - $6,500)

3. Derek Carr (New Orleans Saints - $5,700)

Others in consideration: Others in consideration: Taylor Heinicke, Lamar Jackson

DraftKings NFL DFS GPP Rankings - Quarterbacks

1. Derek Carr (New Orleans Saints - $5,700)

The Dallas-Philadelphia game is going to be the most popular game on the slate by a wide margin. It’s the only game with a decent total and it features many of the best passing options on the slate. Add in the fact that Dak Prescott is underpriced at just $6,500 and people are going to flock to that game. While it’s okay to use heavily owned players in a tournament, it’s also important to find teams with high upside that the public may avoid.

The New Orleans Saints fit that bill perfectly in Week 9. Derek Carr has passed for more than 300 yards and scored more than 20 DraftKings points in each of his past three games, yet is still only priced at $5,700. He has four reasonable stacking options in Chris Olave, Alvin Kamara, Michael Thomas, and Rashid Shaheed, and using any combination of two of them makes a lot of sense (Olave/Shaheed is my preferred tournament stack as of this writing). 

The Bears are strong against the run, but they’ve allowed 298 or more passing yards in four of their last seven games. This game is in New Orleans, so the Saints will have a fast track and no weather to deal with. Using the Saints won’t prohibit you from running a secondary stack from the Cowboys-Eagles game, so you can still get your exposure while winning the roster percentage game

Derek Carr has had three consecutive 300-yard passing games:
- Week 6: 353
- Week 7: 301
- Week 8: 310

It's the first time a #Saints QB has done that since Drew Brees in 2015 (he did it in the final 4 games). Willie Snead, Brandon Coleman, Brandin Cooks were the leading WRs.

— Jeff Nowak (@Jeff_Nowak) October 31, 2023

2. Dak Prescott (Dallas Cowboys - $6,500)

3. Gardner Minshew (Indianapolis Colts - $5,200)

Others in consideration: Lamar Jackson, Jalen Hurts, Mac Jones, Taylor Heinicke, CJ Stroud

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DraftKings NFL DFS Cash Rankings - Running Backs

1. Alvin Kamara (New Orleans Saints - $8,100)

The Bears haven’t allowed a team to rush for 100 or more yards since Week 3, but you don’t roster Alvin Kamara for his rushing upside. Kamara is the most targeted running back in the NFL, and he’s seen at least 25 opportunities (carries + targets) in every game he’s played this season. He’s had only two games where he caught less than seven passes, but he’s averaged 23 DraftKings points in those games because of his tremendous nose for the end zone. Overall, Kamara hasn’t scored less than 17 DraftKings points in any game he’s played this year and his floor is the safest on a slate that lacks strong matchups at the running back position.

Alvin Kamara since he returned:

PPR RB1 🚀 pic.twitter.com/mCNw773k8A

— PFF Fantasy Football (@PFF_Fantasy) October 31, 2023

2. Saquon Barkley (New York Giants - $7,900)

3. Darrell Henderson (Los Angeles Rams - $5,100)

Others in consideration: Kareem Hunt, Chuba Hubbard

DraftKings NFL DFS GPP Rankings - Running Backs

1. Jonathan Taylor (Indianapolis Colts - $6,400)

Jonathan Taylor looked so good in the first half against the Panthers last weekend. He rushed for over 90 yards, including a long run of 42 yards. It appeared as if he was ready to take his lead-back role from Zack Moss…and then nothing. No word of an injury came out, but for some reason, the Colts just stopped using him.

One would have to think that he’s going to start seeing more work as he’s been back for a month and has a fat new contract. If there was ever a week for that breakout to come, it’s this weekend against a Panthers team that has allowed over 110 rushing in every game they’ve played. Nobody is going to use him because of his lack of touches in the second half and that could be a mistake given his massive upside and fantastic matchup. 

2. Josh Jacobs (Las Vegas Raiders - $6,900)

3. Tony Pollard (Dallas Cowboys - $6,800)

Others in consideration: Saquon Barkley, Kareem Hunt, Alvin Kamara, Rhamondre Stevenson, D’Andre Swift, Rachaad White, Kenneth Walker

DraftKings NFL DFS Cash Rankings - Wide Receivers

1. CeeDee Lamb (Dallas Cowboys - $8,200)

Not a lot of the big-time receivers have a good matchup this weekend, but Ceedee Lamb does. The Eagles are shockingly horrible against opposing receivers, giving up the most fantasy points in the league to them. Dallas finally figured out how to use Lamb last weekend, throwing him 14 targets. He responded with his best game of the year.

Dallas is going to have to throw in this game to keep up with the Philly offense, and their first look is going to be Lamb. Even when Dallas wasn’t using him right, he was still getting five to seven targets per game and put up double-digit fantasy points in all but one game. You’re going to want some exposure in cash games to the Dallas-Philly game as it’s the only one with a decent total, and Lamb is the one to target for a high floor.

CeeDee Lamb was cooking the Rams secondary all game

pic.twitter.com/dVAnhQP0AF

— ✭ Shane ✭ (@shane_8804) October 30, 2023

2. Demario Douglas (New England Patriots - $4,000)

3. Adam Thielen (Carolina Panthers - $7,500)

Others in consideration: Chris Godwin, Tyler Lockett, Zay Flowers, Josh Downs, Noah Brown

DraftKings NFL DFS GPP Rankings - Wide Receivers

1. Adam Thielen (Carolina Panthers - $7,500)

While it won’t be advisable to run a full Panthers stack this weekend, a secondary stack of Jonathan Taylor and Adam Thielen could be huge given their matchups and upside. Thielen has seen his price steadily rise to the land of the elite, but it’s a worthwhile price hike as he’s seeing a target volume that gives him a monster ceiling. Thielen is clearly the top option on the Panthers offense, and he’s seen eight or more targets in every game since Week 2. He’s rewarded those who have believed in him with four games of 20 or more DraftKings points this year. 

This game is going to be sneaky, but it really shouldn’t be as four of the last five Colts games have been fantasy bonanzas. They’ve allowed 29 or more real-life points to each of those four opponents, and the game totals have exceeded 50 points in all four of them. If this game becomes another shootout, Thielen could once again be looking at ten or more targets with a high touchdown equity.

Adam Thielen saw a 35.5% target share today. He's been over the 35% mark in three consecutive games.

— JJ Zachariason (@LateRoundQB) October 29, 2023

2. AJ Brown (Philadelphia Eagles - $8,600)

3. Rashid Shaheed (New Orleans Saints - $4,500)

Others in consideration: Tyler Lockett, Ceedee Lamb, Brandin Cooks, DeVonta Smith, Cooper Kupp, Amari Cooper, DJ Moore, Romeo Doubs, Michael Pittman

DraftKings NFL DFS Rankings - Tight Ends

1. David Njoku (Cleveland Browns - $3,800)

David Njoku has quietly become a favorite target of whomever is playing quarterback for the Browns. He has seven or more targets and double-digit fantasy points in three of his last four games and on Wednesday the Browns traded Donovan Peoples-Jones. That will open a few more red zone opportunities for Njoku, and he could become more of a priority on third and fourth down as well.

Peoples-Jones was often the only wide receiver on the field for Cleveland in short-yardage situations, meaning he’d be the main option for play-action passes. That job could now shift to Njoku, on top of his big body in red zone situations. The tight end position this weekend is a tire fire, so it makes a lot of sense to spend down regardless of which player you fall on for your cash game lineups.

2. Logan Thomas (Washington Commanders - $3,500)

3. Jake Ferguson (Dallas Cowboys - $4,000)

Others in consideration: Trey McBride, Mark Andrews, Hunter Henry, Taysom Hill, Cole Kmet

DraftKings NFL DFS Rankings - D/ST

1. New York Giants - $2,300

I’m going to write this every week because it’s the only thing that matters when choosing a value defense, “target a defense that can pressure the opposing quarterback.” The Giants aren’t a great team this year, but it’s not really the fault of their defense. One thing they have been doing well is disrupting quarterbacks. They have ten sacks over their last two games, and Jimmy Garoppolo isn’t the most mobile quarterback. He got sacked repeatedly against the Lions in Week 8 and a similar fate could come his way this weekend. As the cheapest defense on the slate, you really couldn’t have asked for a better situation for the Giants. They’ll be immensely popular, but that’s not something to avoid at this price point.

2. New Orleans Saints - $4,100

3. Atlanta Falcons - $3,700

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