This article is part of our Yahoo DFS Football series.
The Sunday-only NFL main slate for Week 9 features 11 games, excluding the Bengals, Cardinals, Colts, Eagles, Giants and Jaguars (bye), Raiders-49ers (Thursday Night Football), and Titans-Cowboys (Monday Night Football). That's a lot of fantasy star power being taken off the table, but there are still plenty of options ready to pop in Sunday's games, including a wide receiver still looking for his first touchdown and a running back who's quietly recorded touchdowns in four straight games.
TOURNAMENTS (GPP – GUARANTEED PRIZE POOL)
QB: Ryan Fitzpatrick, TB at CAR ($29): Fitzpatrick is the physical manifestation of the GPP tournament player's mindset -- a fearless risk-taker who can carry his team to great heights as he did with three consecutive performances over 400 yards to start the season, but also a player fully capable of snatching defeat from the jaws of victory. Just ask Jets fans, who watched him literally throw away the 2015 season by tossing a trio of interceptions in a Week 17 loss to miss the playoffs. The monikers Fitzmagic and Fitztragic sum up this man's Jekyll and Hyde act perfectly, but Tampa Bay looks ready to take a chance on Fitzpatrick for the rest of the season and so should you. The quarterback of an offense that's averaging 376.3 passing yards per game is available at $29. If he even comes close to that yardage and limits his turnovers, Fitzpatrick will have those who picked him singing his praises.
RB: Isaiah Crowell, NYJ at MIA ($18): Crowell has been the definition of a feast or famine player this season, as he's totaled 22.2, 18.1 and 29.6 fantasy points in his three best games while failing to eclipse 6.2 in any of the other five. The former Cleveland running back has a firm grip on early-down work with Bilal Powell on IR due to a neck injury, and that role could translate into massive results against a Miami defense that's been gashed for 143.1 yards per game on the ground. It's no secret that the Jets will rely on their rushing attack with the receiving corps decimated by injury, but the Dolphins may not be able to stop the run even if they know it's coming. After all, both Detroit's Kerryon Johnson (158) and Houston's Lamar Miller (133) easily set season highs in rushing against this defense over the past two weeks.
WR: D.J. Moore, CAR vs. TB ($19): Moore showed off the skills that prompted the Panthers to pick him in the first round of the most recent draft against a stout Ravens defense, racking up a team-high 90 receiving yards on five catches while adding 39 yards on two carries last week. The talented rookie will continue to start if Torrey Smith (knee) is unable to return, but Moore's earned a larger role in the offense even if Smith's able to come back. With a Buccaneers defense that's allowing 318.4 passing yards and 33.3 points per game coming to town, Moore has a high ceiling this week.
Other Against-the-Grainers
QB: Alex Smith (WAS, $29); Joe Flacco (BAL, $30)
RB: James Conner (PIT, $30); Duke Johnson (CLE, $14); Kerryon Johnson (DET, $22)
WR: DeVante Parker (MIA, $15); Paul Richardson (WAS, $18); Kelvin Benjamin (BUF, $12)
TE: Chris Herndon (NYJ, $10); Austin Hooper (ATL, $16)
DST: Kansas City Chiefs ($15); Baltimore Ravens ($16)
CASH GAMES (H2H, 50/50s and DOUBLE UPS)
Quarterback
Drew Brees, NO vs. LAR ($36)
Five quarterbacks are priced above Brees, but it wouldn't be surprising if he finishes as the top performer at the position this week, even coming off a down game last week in Minnesota. He's been sensational at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome, completing 83.5 percent of passes with an 8:0 TD:INT and an average of 348.3 passing yards in three home contests. With an undefeated Rams team that's averaging 33.0 points per game coming to town, Brees will need to throw early and often to keep pace. Los Angeles has plenty of talent on defense, but the team's beat-up secondary will be hard pressed to slow Brees down in New Orleans.
Running Back
Tarik Cohen, CHI at BUF ($17)
Offensive guru Matt Nagy continues to put Cohen in position to succeed, as the shifty playmaker has scored an offensive touchdown in each of the past four games. Over that span, Cohen has 138 yards on 29 carries (4.8 yards per carry) and 350 yards on 23 catches (15.2 yards per catch). He should find plenty of space against a Bills defense that will be playing on a short week after facing the Patriots on Monday Night Football, and Cohen's a threat to contribute a touchdown in the return game as well.
Lamar Miller, HOU at DEN ($21)
Miller's come alive with 100-plus rushing yards and a touchdown in each of the past two weeks. In fact, he's picked up at least 98 yards on the ground every time he's gotten at least 18 carries. Having had an extra few days to rest up after playing on Thursday in Week 8, Miller should be the workhorse against a Denver defense that's allowing 135.8 rushing yards per game. The Broncos' run defense is sixth-worst while their pass defense (237.5 yards per game) is 11th-best, so a run-heavy game plan is likely in the cards for the Texans.
Wide Receiver
Julio Jones, ATL at WAS ($31)
Sure, Jones somehow still doesn't have a touchdown this season. But he's been far from a fantasy dud with an average of 7.6 catches for 116 receiving yards per game. At his absolute worst, Jones still recorded five catches for 62 yards. Atlanta had an extra week to game plan for Washington's middling pass defense, so Jones is primed to exceed nine catches and 100 yards for the fourth time in the last five games. If he finally gets into the end zone, that's just gravy.
Jarvis Landry, CLE vs. KC ($23)
Landry has earned double-digit targets in all but one game this season, with his 94 total targets ranking just two behind Adam Thielen's league-leading total. It therefore comes as no surprise that the precise route runner has caught 18 balls over the past two weeks. Whoever calls the offensive plays for Cleveland moving forward, you can bet that "throw it to Landry" will be a major part of their vocabulary. Kansas City's defense has righted the ship recently, but there's still the potential for oodles of garbage time production here.
Brandin Cooks, LAR at NO ($29)
Cooks is primed for a strong performance in this revenge game against the team that selected him in the first round of the 2014 draft. New Orleans has had trouble covering wide receivers, particularly on the outside, where Stefon Diggs had his way with newly acquired cornerback Eli Apple on national TV last week. Cooper Kupp will man the slot if he returns from his knee injury, and that role would be occupied primarily by Robert Woods otherwise. Either way, Cooks gets to continue doing his thing on the outside. His thing should involve plenty of yards and maybe even a couple trips into the end zone in what promises to be a high-scoring affair.
Tight End
O.J. Howard, TB at CAR ($19)
Howard's average numbers are skewed down because he was knocked out of one game early with an MCL injury, but he's recorded at least 54 yards in each of his other appearances while also scoring touchdowns in half of his six healthy contests. The 2017 first-rounder can stretch the field from the tight end position, having come down with at least one catch of 20-plus yards in each of those six games. Despite having already had their bye, the Panthers have allowed the fourth-most completions (45) to the tight end position and sit one touchdown behind the league-high total of five allowed.
Defense/Special Teams
Minnesota Vikings, MIN vs. DET ($15)
The Vikings are starting to get their swagger back on defense. Sure, they managed just 2.0 fantasy points in last week's loss to the Saints, but they still forced Brees into throwing his first interception of the season and only allowed 24 points to an offense that came in averaging 35. Prior to that game, Minnesota had posted at least 12.0 fantasy points in three consecutive contests. Detroit is closer to the rest of the field than to the Saints offensively, so a return to double-digit fantasy points is a strong possibility for this Vikings unit.
Honorable Mentions
QB: Tom Brady (NE, $34); Mitchell Trubisky (CHI, $32)
RB: Chris Carson (SEA, $21); James White (NE, $26); Alvin Kamara (NO, $34)
WR: Mike Evans (TB, $26); Julian Edelman (NE, $21); Davante Adams (GB, $33)
TE: Jordan Reed (WAS, $14); David Njoku (CLE, $17)
DST: Chicago Bears ($22); New York Jets ($16)
