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We're onto Week 9 of the NFL season and after a week's worth of surprising studs and duds and a chaotic trade deadline, it's time to see which players are risers and which guys are falling in fantasy football value. We now have a lot of good information we can use to help make decisions as we head into Week 9 and beyond.
In this weekly column, we'll be looking at players whose arrows may be pointing up, and players whose arrows may be pointing down based on the previous week's games. We'll try not to overreact, but instead, use relevant data to make informed decisions about certain players.
Here are the key risers and fallers coming out of Week 8 of the NFL season.
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Week 9 Fantasy Football Risers
Travis Etienne, Jacksonville Jaguars
Etienne enthusiasts rejoiced when James Robinson was traded to the New York Jets, and he didn't disappoint as the bell cow back against the Denver Broncos. The second-year back out of Clemson rushed 24 times for 156 yards and a touchdown and caught all three of his targets for six yards. He played 50 of the Jaguars' 65 offensive snaps, so any worry about JaMycal Hasty having a significant role was dismissed.
At his preseason ADP of RB18, Etienne now has league-winning upside in an offense that is capable of producing big-scoring performances. If he continues to produce at a high-end RB1 level, we could see him climb into the late first or early second round in 2023 fantasy drafts.
In a matter of a few weeks, he went from a disappointing flex play to a real RB1 with boatloads of upside in a backfield he controls.
Rondale Moore, Arizona Cardinals
Moore truthers worldwide were waiting on a breakout game in 2022, and he finally delivered it with a seven-catch, 92 yards, and one touchdown stat line against the Minnesota Vikings.
His weekly floor is clearly not great, but he's now drawn at least eight targets in three of his five games played this season. With Marquise Brown (foot) out for at least a month, Moore has an upside after finally flashing some of that big-play ability we saw at Purdue.
Tyler Boyd, Cincinnati Bengals
When the injury of Ja'Marr Chase (hip) was announced, Boyd's value climbed since he'd be locked into the No. 2 wideout role in the Bengals' offense, but after two big fantasy performances, he's looking like a top-24 weekly option at the position.
In the last two matchups with the Atlanta Falcons and Cleveland Browns, Boyd has totaled 11 receptions for 193 yards and two touchdowns. Boyd is quietly the WR15 in PPR leagues through eight weeks and since Chase is expected to miss at least a few more games, Boyd has WR1 upside in every contest.
It's worth noting the touchdown in Week 8 saved him from being a fantasy bust, but his target share, air yards share, end zone targets, and everything we love as fantasy football enthusiasts should see a significant jump with Chase out of the lineup.
Tony Pollard, Dallas Cowboys
Tony Pollard was featured in last week's edition of this article, but after he exceeded sky-high expectations in the absence of Ezekiel Elliott (knee), we can hope the Cowboys are smart enough to increase his role when Zeke gets back to healthy.
Pollard rushed 14 times for 131 yards and three touchdowns in the Cowboys' offensive explosion against the Bears. After this performance, Pollard is now averaging 6.2 yards per carry.
The fantasy football community has been banging the drum for Pollard for the last few seasons, and we were finally treated to a Pollard workhorse role.
Other Risers: Justin Fields, Kenyan Drake, A.J. Brown, D'Onta Foreman, Jerry Jeudy, Antonio Gibson, Mack Hollins
Week 9 Fantasy Football Fallers
Trevor Lawrence, Jacksonville Jaguars
Lawrence has flashed some of his No. 1 overall pick talents this season, but his performance against the Denver Broncos in London opens the door for more criticism and doubt.
Lawrence completed just 18 of his 31 passing attempts for 133 yards and one passing touchdown to two interceptions. One of his picks was just about as bone-headed as it gets, where he threw it straight to a Denver defender in the end zone.
The perception of Lawrence has flip-flopped a few teams this year as the Jaguars once looked like a solid team that could compete in the weak AFC South. After a huge fantasy dud in a matchup with a strong defense, his value takes a meaningful hit.
Jonathan Taylor, Indianapolis Colts
Taylor's first game with new starting quarterback Sam Ehlinger did not go as planned for fantasy managers that drafted him with a top-two selection before the season. Ehlinger only targeted him once and he finished the day with 76 rushing yards, no receptions, no touchdowns, and a fumble.
Nyheim Hines has been traded to the Buffalo Bills, but after Taylor picked up another injury in Week 9 (ankle), the Colts will likely give Deon Jackson a significant role in what feels like a lost season.
Jackson is a riser with Hines gone, but it's hard to say Taylor's outlook changes.
Courtland Sutton, Denver Broncos
Sutton saw at least seven targets in each of his first five games with Russell Wilson, but over the last three contests, he's posted a total of just six receptions for 50 yards and no touchdowns.
Jerry Jeudy and Greg Dulcich are beginning to emerge as real target competition, so Sutton's weekly floor and ceiling have taken a massive hit in recent games.
Sutton is still worth rostering because he often earns a ton of air yards and valuable targets in the red zone, but he's becoming someone to bench in less-than-favorable matchups.
Davante Adams, Las Vegas Raiders
The Josh McDaniels experiment in Las Vegas has been a complete disaster through seven games, and Adams' fantasy production hit rock bottom in the shutout loss to the New Orleans Saints.
Adams saw four targets in Week 8, catching one of them for three yards -- while adding one rushing attempt for negative one yard. Needless to say, this is a fall from grace for the former locked-in WR1 over the past few seasons.
Adams is never going to be benchable, but his floor is as low as anyone could have expected. Derek Carr is failing to win games in a prove-it year, and the Raiders continue to fall further out of the AFC playoff picture. Adams will likely have a few more nuclear performances this season, but there's certainly a chance he posts a few more duds before it's all said and done.
Other Fallers: Daniel Jones, Derek Carr, Brian Robinson, James Cook, Hunter Renfrow
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