Fantasy Football Week 9 QB Start 'Em, Sit 'Em: Target Jared Goff, Fade Bryce Young

The byes are very nice to us in Week 9. The Steelers and Titans are the only teams off this week, and while Aaron Rodgers has had a few good games, Cam Ward has been fairly terrible in fantasy outside of last week's shootout against the Bengals. With plenty of fantasy options to choose from, owners can be a little more picky with their decision making.

Let's look at three quarterbacks to start and three to sit in Week 9 of the NFL season. Most stats are from NFL.com, and fantasy points and rankings are from FantasyPros.

Use FantasySP's start/sit tool to compare players and help make your toughest lineup decisions each week!

Start

Jared Goff, Detroit Lions @ Miami Dolphins

Goff ranks among the top 10 quarterbacks in fantasy points and has already had his bye; he's a most-weeks starter but not a must-start player. Last week was a great example, as a tough matchup against the Vikings led to Goff scoring around 10 fantasy points. He's worthy of a spot on your roster but not an automatic start.

This week is a different story. Miami has allowed the second-most yards per pass attempt and is tied for the third-most fantasy points per game allowed to quarterbacks. The Dolphins have struggled to stop the pass all year, allowing multiple touchdown passes in every game except for one, when they let Kyler Murray throw for a season-high 247 yards.

This is a big-time matchup for Goff and the Lions. We could see one of their Ben Johnson-era performances here with Goff going for over 300 yards and four touchdowns. Even if he doesn't reach those heights, this should still be a successful outing.

Drew Lock, Seattle Seahawks vs. Arizona Cardinals

News broke on Wednesday that Sam Darnold will miss at least one game with a quad injury. I was originally going to list Darnold here this week, but let's pivot to his backup Lock, who played almost two full games earlier this season. The game he started came against these same Cardinals, and Lock went for 235 yards on 9.0 per attempt with three touchdowns.

Arizona presents maybe the best matchup of any team, allowing the most yards per pass attempt and the second-most fantasy points per game to quarterbacks entering Week 9. The Cardinals gave up at least three passing touchdowns in four of their eight games to this point, and they allowed a combined 93 rushing yards and two touchdowns to QBs over the past two weeks (Bo Nix and Dak Prescott). This is one of the most vulnerable defenses in the league.

Lock's big Week 2 included an 82-yard touchdown to Jaxon Smith-Njigba, but that's part of it. Having the best receiver in football only raises Lock's ceiling, and even if the team is struggling to make an impact offensively elsewhere, the great matchup and his WR1 have Lock in line for another good performance, even if he's more of a low-to-mid-level streamer.

Brock Purdy, San Francisco 49ers vs. Las Vegas Raiders

You might see Purdy as close to a must-start fantasy player given his QB7 status, but there have been a few slower games, and his skill players have been decimated by injuries. San Fran's offense has overcome; having Kyle Shanahan, Christian McCaffrey, and George Kittle in the fold helps. It's worth questioning Purdy in tougher matchups, though, so that makes him worth mentioning here.

This is the opposite of a bad matchup. The Raiders have given up the fifth-most yards per pass attempt and are tied for the third-most fantasy points per game allowed to QBs. They have given up multiple passing touchdowns in all but two weeks, and those games were against the Dolphins and Chargers, the two lowest-scoring teams in football right now. Las Vegas is a team to target weekly.

Purdy is a must-start player this week. The injuries are still a factor for his pass catchers, as McCaffrey, Mike Evans, Deebo Samuel Sr., and Christian Kirk are all questionable, even after their bye last week. Demarcus Robinson could return, but no matter who is on the field, the 49ers will likely find their way on offense, and Purdy will be a benefactor of the matchup.

Sit

Gardner Minshew, Arizona Cardinals @ Seattle Seahawks

After taking over for Jacoby Brissett in the second half last week and leading the Cardinals to a come-from-behind win against Dallas, Minshew was elevated to the starting role, and reports say that Brissett will be traded to the Ravens (who are dealing with major QB injuries). Minshew did well in relief, but that was in a great matchup against the Cowboys, and he will be very dependent on the matchup for fantasy value.

This is as far away from a good matchup as you can get. The Seahawks have given up the fewest yards per pass attempt and the second-fewest fantasy points per game to quarterbacks, shutting down essentially every quarterback they've faced. Caleb Williams had a decent game last week, but he was the first QB to reach 200 passing yards against Seattle this season (or 7.0 per attempt, which is around average).

Minshew is likely to struggle hard in this game. There will be chances for him to have a little value later in the season, but Minshew is a must-sit player in Week 9.

Geno Smith, New York Jets @ Kansas City Chiefs

Smith was listed in the Start section last week because of a fantastic matchup against the aforementioned Raiders, and he came through with 290 yards and two touchdowns (and an interception). While the Jets still lost, they put up 33 points against Las Vegas, the first time they topped 25 this season. Smith has been solid all year, and while that has mostly come against good matchups, he has shown that he is still a starting-level NFL quarterback.

This is probably his toughest matchup of the season so far, as the Chiefs have given up the 10th-fewest yards per pass attempt and the sixth-fewest fantasy points per game to QBs. They performed better at the beginning of the year than they have lately, but Kansas City still has a strong defensive core, and I'm not excited about targeting them in the passing game.

Garrett Wilson is in concussion protocol, and that would bring Smith's floor and ceiling down even more. There's still intriguing pass-catching talent in New York, but with a tougher matchup and a quarterback who generally has a lower ceiling, it's best to look for another option this week.

Bryce Young, Carolina Panthers vs. Denver Broncos

Young started the season on fire, ranking as QB3 before Carolina's Week 5 bye. He has thrown the ball a ton, reaching at least 36 attempts in all but one game, but it's his efficiency that has dropped since the bye. After averaging 7.8 yards per attempt with 10 touchdowns (one rushing) over the first four weeks, Young is down to 6.1 with four TDs in the past three games. Matchups help explain that a little, but it has really taken the shine off Young and the Panthers.

This is another tougher matchup, though the Broncos aren't nearly as stingy as last season, when they were one of the top pass defenses in the league. Denver has given up the eighth-fewest yards per pass attempt while sitting a little better than average in terms of fantasy points given up to quarterbacks.

The matchup isn't as bad as it could be, but we're a little short on guys for this section, so Young fits the bill given his recent struggles. His true level is probably somewhere between that hot start and his current performance, but an average-ish guy with a below-average matchup is a player you can probably improve upon if you look around.