Boom or Bench: Week 9 start/sit fantasy tips

Boom or Bench provides insight and analysis to help you handle your difficult fantasy football starting lineup decisions every week.

QB: Rams' Matthew Stafford vs. Saints

The Rams are expecting Puka Nacua to return from injury to play against the Saints, and that should only help Stafford continue his hot streak. The 37-year-old quarterback has finished as QB8 or better in three of his last four outings, going over 25 fantasy points in all of those contests.

Stafford's matchup is also solid. The Saints are tied for seventh in touchdown passes surrendered with 14, and they've only hauled in four interceptions. New Orleans also ranks in the bottom half of the league in team sacks notched. Stafford should take advantage of the opportunities presented to him.

Projection: 259 passing yards, 3 passing TDs

Other QBs primed to boom:

• Seahawks' Sam Darnold at Commanders

• Bears' Caleb Williams at Bengals

RB: Chargers' Kimani Vidal at Titans

No team has allowed more rushing touchdowns (12) or scrimmage touchdowns (14) to running backs this season than the Titans. Vidal has scored twice in three games since taking over the Chargers' backfield. That's a great combination of factors for Vidal managers this week.

Vidal was held in check two weeks ago against the Colts, but he's been one of fantasy's best running backs in his two other lead games. Against the Dolphins and Vikings, he combined for 265 scrimmage yards and two touchdowns. Another big game is more than plausible for Vidal.

Projection: 111 rushing yards, 12 receiving yards, 2 receptions, TD

RB: Giants' Tyrone Tracy vs. 49ers

Tracy should see the majority of the Giants' running back snaps and touches after Cam Skattebo sustained a dislocated ankle against the Eagles last Sunday. Tracy played at least 57% of New York's offensive snaps in 12 games last season, only falling short of that mark in one of his starts.

The 49ers are a decent draw for Tracy's return to the lead role. They rank tied for 13th in rushing yards and 12th in receiving yards allowed to tailbacks, and they've given up seven scrimmage touchdowns to the position. Tracy's background as a former wide receiver could be a big factor if the Giants fall behind, and he's a capable runner if the Giants keep things competitive.

Projection: 58 rushing yards, 49 receiving yards, 5 receptions, TD

Other RBs primed to boom:

• Titans' Tyjae Spears vs. Chargers

• Seahawks' Kenneth Walker at Commanders

WR: Ravens' Zay Flowers at Dolphins

This one is more of a feel play than a matchup one. The Dolphins have been one of the better defenses at defending wide receivers, but they haven't faced Lamar Jackson. The two-time MVP is making his return against Miami on Thursday Night Football, and he should be plenty motivated to get the Ravens back in the win column.

While the vibes around Flowers are good, Jackson's previous performances against Miami give me extra confidence that his top wideout will have a big game. Jackson has averaged 300.3 passing yards and 3.5 touchdowns in four games against the Dolphins.

Projection: 98 receiving yards, 6 receptions, TD

WR: Vikings' Jordan Addison at Lions

Addison has a solid matchup this week with the Lions. Detroit has given up plenty of fantasy points to wide receivers, thanks in large part to them surrendering the second-most receiving touchdowns (11) to the position. Only the Cowboys (15) have allowed more.

The USC product hasn't been elite in his past outings against Detroit, but he's had over 50 yards in two of those games and at least four targets in all four of those matchups. Addison should benefit plenty from quarterback Carson Wentz being replaced by J.J. McCarthy, but Addison still made do when the backup was under center. He had two 100-yard games and scored touchdowns in the other two contests with Wentz.

Projection: 82 receiving yards, 7 receptions, TD

Other WRs primed to boom:

• Cardinals' Marvin Harrison Jr. at Cowboys

• Jaguars' Brian Thomas at Raiders

TE: Ravens' Mark Andrews at Dolphins

Andrews, like Flowers, should benefit immensely from Lamar Jackson's return to the starting lineup. The tight end has caught a receiving touchdown from Jackson in all three of his career games against the Dolphins, and he's gone over 100 receiving yards in two of those three contests.

The 30-year-old should be even more enticing in PPR or TE premium leagues. Andrews has recorded at least eight targets and six receptions in all three games against the Dolphins, and Miami has given up the third-most receptions to tight ends.

Projection: 93 receiving yards, 8 receptions, TD

Other TEs primed to boom:

• Falcons' Kyle Pitts at Patriots

• Bears' Colston Loveland at Bengals (if Cole Kmet doesn't play)

QB: Texans' C.J. Stroud vs. Broncos

Stroud and the Texans have used a very pass-heavy gameplan recently, attempting 88 throws over the last two weeks. They will likely try to play a more balanced style of offense against a Broncos team that's allowed the third-fewest fantasy points per game to quarterbacks this season. Only the Bills (seven) and Texans (six) have allowed fewer passing touchdowns than the Broncos' eight.

Stroud's Denver counterpart, Bo Nix, will also be in for a tough matchup, but it's the Broncos' pass-rushers that are most concerning. The Broncos lead the league with 36 sacks, which is 10 more than the next closest team. Consistent pressure and hits will likely make it difficult for Stroud to get into a rhythm.

Projection: 205 passing yards, 1 passing TD, 1 INT

Other QBs to bench:

• Broncos' Bo Nix at Texans

• Lions' Jared Goff vs. Vikings

RB: Saints' Alvin Kamara at Rams

Kamara hasn't finished better than RB16 in half-PPR scoring any week of this season. The Saints' overall offensive woes haven't helped, but Kamara hasn't done much with his opportunities. He's averaging just 3.6 yards per carry and 4 yards per touch, both of which would be career lows.

It's difficult to see the 30-year-old turn things around versus a Rams defense that's been one of the best in the league at keeping running backs from scoring fantasy points. Only the Packers are allowing fewer fantasy points per game, and the Rams have allowed just a single touchdown to tailbacks in seven games.

Projection: 24 rushing yards, 30 receiving yards, 4 receptions

RB: Jaguars' Travis Etienne at Raiders

Etienne finished RB12 or better in three of his first four games, but he hasn't been better than RB22 or scored double-digit points in his last three games. His snap share percentage has remained relatively steady, but his volume and efficiency have taken a big hit. Plus, he hasn't found the end zone since Week 4.

The Raiders haven't done a great job at keeping running backs out of the end zone, allowing eight touchdown runs, but the Colts scored four of those, with Jonathan Taylor accounting for three. They've been very effective at keeping tailbacks from racking up yardage, though. Las Vegas has allowed the eighth-fewest rushing and the eighth-fewest receiving yards to the position. Plus, they haven't given up a receiving touchdown to a running back this season.

Projection: 37 rushing yards, 17 receiving yards, 2 receptions

Other RBs to bench:

• Panthers' Rico Dowdle/Chuba Hubbard at Packers

• Broncos' J.K. Dobbins at Texans

WR: Lions' Jameson Williams vs. Vikings

Williams remains one of fantasy football's most volatile boom-or-bust plays. I'd expect him to finish on the bust side this week. The Vikings have done a solid job of limiting fantasy points to the position, surrendering the ninth-fewest points per game to wide receivers. They've also allowed the fewest receptions to wideouts (62).

The speedster has also been underwhelming in his four previous games against Minnesota. He's never gone over 50 yards against them, and he's only scored once. That lone touchdown came in 2022 on Williams' only catch of that game. The 24-year-old has as many games with a touchdown against the Vikings as he does games with negative yardage.

Projection: 38 receiving yards, 3 receptions

WR: Packers' Romeo Doubs vs. Panthers

Doubs has only finished one game as a top-24 wide receiver. The Panthers are tied for the fifth-fewest fantasy points allowed to wideouts this year. That's a bad combination for the 25-year-old's fantasy value this week.

Doubs has been a consistent part of the Packers' offense, but he hasn't eclipsed 72 yards in a game and has just one touchdown when excluding his three-touchdown explosion against the Cowboys. The combination of Doubs' middling production and the poor matchup is just too much to stomach this week.

Projection: 44 receiving yards, 4 receptions

Other WRs to bench:

• Patriots' Stefon Diggs/Kayshon Boutte vs. Falcons

• Saints' Chris Olave/Rashid Shaheed at Rams

TE: Patriots' Hunter Henry vs. Falcons

Henry has a matchup with what is clearly the best defense in the league at limiting tight ends. The Falcons have only given up 105 yards and one touchdown to the position this season. That's just 15 yards per game, and Henry hasn't been exceptional enough in the yardage department to overcome this.

The 30-year-old hasn't gone over 50 yards since Week 3, and has been under 40 yards in each of his last three games. Quarterback Drake Maye has started to build better chemistry with his wide receivers as the season has progressed, leaving Henry less involved overall.

Projection: 24 receiving yards, 2 receptions

Other TEs to bench:

• Vikings' T.J. Hockenson at Lions

• Broncos' Evan Engram at Texans

Andrew Dixon is a contributing fantasy analyst for theScore.