Fantasy Football 2018: Start or sit for Week 9

Start

Cooper Kupp at New Orleans- Cooper Kupp is all but set to go for Sunday after sitting the last few weeks out with a knee injury. Kupp has proven himself to be an important piece in the Rams offense and in fantasy lineups alike, scoring a combined 58 points the two weeks prior to essentially missing the next three weeks (carted off in Denver before missing next two games).

Kupp makes his return in what surely appears to be another high scoring affair between the Rams and Saints on Sunday. As long as Kupp is cleared to play (can confirm through the Rams official twitter account), there’s no reason not to start him. With a savory, high-octane affair in order, expect Cooper and the rest of Los Angeles’ receiving corps to continue their productive ways against a Saints defense that allows 315 yards per game through the air.

Kenny Golladay at Minnesota- The first five weeks of the season, the Golladay Inn Express was open for business 24/7. However, Golladay has remained quiet in his last two outings, scoring a combined seven fantasy points in Weeks 7 and 8. The Lions travel to Minnesota to take on a Vikings secondary that is without Xavier Rhodes and a few others in the defensive backfield.

Sit

Michael Crabtree vs. Pittsburgh- With John Brown stealing the show in Baltimore, it’s fair to say Michael Crabtree just isn’t having the fantasy impact he had in Oakland. Some of the blame can be shown to the Ravens prioritizing the rushing attack, or their infectious love of throwing to tight ends. Crabtree has eclipsed 20 fantasy points just one time in 2018 thus far, leaving little room for hope that week nine will deviate any further from the mean.

In Crabtree’s first meeting with Pittsburgh, he caught three balls for 29 points. As long as Joe Flacco is slinging the ball for the Ravens, he will continually look for big plays, a service that Brown provides much better than Crabtree has thus far. Unless Crabtree can find the end zone against the Steelers, his ceiling is otherwise limited in an offense that runs through running backs rather than receivers.

Sammy Watkins at Cleveland- Mark my words, I will die on this hill. Sammy Watkins made yours truly eat my words last week with a two touchdown performance against Denver, scoring a season high 30 points. While Watkins was able to find success against the Broncos, I will again cater my thoughts and beliefs to the law of averages.

Watkins has been extremely inconsistent thus far, and the likelihood of Watkins emerging ahead of the Hill/Hunt/Kelce trio is low regardless of who they play. Watkins accumulated a season high in catches, yards and touchdowns last week, who’s willing to bet he booms two weeks in a row? This is no slight to Sammy, who appears to be a great guy and a talented receiver. However, it’s hard to sell the notion that last week will become a regular thing in an offense with plenty of mouths to feed.