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Fantasy football starts/sits for SNF, expert advice for all Seahawks vs. Commanders Week 9 matchups on Sunday Night Football. Our start em, sit em picks for Kenneth Walker III, Zach Charbonnet, Jacory Croskey-Merritt, more.
Welcome to our Sunday Night Football start/sit chart for Week 9 of the 2025 NFL season. Below you will find our start/sit matchups chart for all players in the SNF game between the Seattle Seahawks and Washington Commanders.
In addition to our start/sit recommendation and matchup ratings for each player, you can also read the fantasy football outlooks for key players like Sam Darnold, Jayden Daniels, Kenneth Walker III, Jacory Croskey-Merritt, Jaxon Smith-Njigba, Deebo Samuel Sr. Which Seahawks and Commanders players should you start or sit in Week 9?
Make sure to set your winning lineups for Week 9, whether you're setting season-long or DFS lineups. We will have our fantasy football start/sit matchup charts available all season long -- focusing on who to start, who is on the fence, and who should find the bench -- so be sure to check back. Good luck in Week 9, RotoBallers!
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Seattle Seahawks Start/Sit Matchups
See the full stats in our Fantasy Football Matchup Ratings Projections
| Player | Start/Sit | Matchup Rating ▾ |
Game Matchup |
| Jaxon Smith-Njigba, WR | Start | 122.8 | @ WAS |
| Sam Darnold, QB | Start | 112.6 | @ WAS |
| Seattle Seahawks, DEF | Start | 110 | @ WAS |
| Jason Myers, K | Start | 106.1 | @ WAS |
| Zach Charbonnet, RB | Risky Start | 104.2 | @ WAS |
| Kenneth Walker III, RB | Risky Start | 103.8 | @ WAS |
| AJ Barner, TE | Risky Start | 103 | @ WAS |
| Tory Horton, WR | Sit | 101.2 | @ WAS |
| Elijah Arroyo, TE | Sit | 100.9 | @ WAS |
| George Holani, RB | Sit | 95.7 | @ WAS |
| Drew Lock, QB | Sit | 92.3 | @ WAS |
| Jalen Milroe, QB | Sit | 91.7 | @ WAS |
Sam Darnold, QB - SEA
Hopefully, you rostered Seattle Seahawks quarterback Sam Darnold (chest) through his bye week because he draws a great matchup with the Washington Commanders on Sunday. The Commanders' defense has had trouble stopping opposing passing offenses with a leaky secondary. Darnold should have no issues spreading the ball around to his various wide receivers all day. Prior to a tough matchup with the Texans in Week 7, Darnold had notched five straight games with at least 16.08 fantasy points.
While those are no world-beating numbers, they are enough to anchor your fantasy team at the quarterback position. Darnold's superpower this year has been his lack of turnovers. The Commanders have had difficulty forcing turnovers all season long. They only have four interceptions in eight games. Darnold should be rostered for the rest of the season as a QB2 with upside.
However, he should absolutely be in lineups in a week in which the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Philadelphia Eagles, and their respective quarterbacks, are on a bye. Darnold was dealing with a chest injury all week, but he logged three full practice days. The injury should be of no concern.
Kenneth Walker III, RB - SEA
Seattle Seahawks running back Kenneth Walker III is a flex play in Week 9 against the Washington Commanders. The Commanders' defense has been middle-of-the-pack against opposing running backs in fantasy. However, it may be difficult for Walker to exploit the matchup while he continues to split time with Zach Charbonnet in this backfield. Walker is currently the RB28 in fantasy, and he has not scored more than 9.6 fantasy points since Week 4.
His rushing volume has remained solid, but he is a non-factor in the receiving game. He has one or fewer receptions in six of seven games this year. With no receiving volume, Walker's upside is completely capped. Given that Charbonnet is the goal line back, Walker needs to break off a big play to be fantasy relevant. Based on where you drafted him, you may not have a better option with four teams on a bye. He is a flex option with limited upside in Week 9.
Washington Commanders Start/Sit Matchups
See the full stats in our Fantasy Football Matchup Ratings Projections
| Player | Start/Sit | Matchup Rating ▾ |
Game Matchup |
| Jayden Daniels, QB | Start | 110.6 | vs. SEA |
| Deebo Samuel Sr., WR | Start | 107.5 | vs. SEA |
| Zach Ertz, TE | Risky Start | 104.4 | vs. SEA |
| Jacory Croskey-Merritt, RB | Risky Start | 103.9 | vs. SEA |
| Matt Gay, K | Risky Start | 102.1 | vs. SEA |
| Jeremy McNichols, RB | Sit | 100.3 | vs. SEA |
| Chris Moore, WR | Sit | 98.7 | vs. SEA |
| Luke McCaffrey, WR | Sit | 98.6 | vs. SEA |
| Chris Rodriguez Jr., RB | Sit | 96.5 | vs. SEA |
| Jaylin Lane, WR | Sit | 95.3 | vs. SEA |
| Marcus Mariota, QB | Sit | 95.2 | vs. SEA |
| John Bates, TE | Sit | 94.3 | vs. SEA |
| Ben Sinnott, TE | Sit | 93.8 | vs. SEA |
| Washington Commanders, DEF | Sit | 84.3 | vs. SEA |
Zach Ertz, TE - WSH
Washington Commanders tight end Zach Ertz has seen six or more targets in three straight games since his no-catch performance in Week 5 against the Chargers. The veteran tight end continues to be a reliable threat in the red zone, leading the team with four receiving touchdowns. The 34-year-old will be happy to have second-year quarterback Jayden Daniels back as the starter, who he has been more productive with compared to backup Marcus Mariota. Ertz has uncharacteristically had multiple costly drops this season.
The veteran has already totaled five drops in only eight games this season, more than he had all of last year and one off of his career high of six back in 2021. Ertz will likely see a solid target share with top wideout Terry McLaurin (quadriceps) out, and it's a decent matchup against a Seattle defense that has allowed 47 receptions to opposing tight ends, tied for seventh most. Ertz is ranked as RotoBaller's TE13 in PPR formats for Sunday Night Football.
Deebo Samuel Sr., WR - WSH
Washington Commanders wide receiver Deebo Samuel Sr. has turned in two of his quietest performances of the season over his last two games. Samuel missed Week 7 against the Cowboys due to a heel injury, but he's totaled just seven catches for 26 yards on 11 targets in Weeks 6 and 8 as he still seems to be impacted by the injury.
The 29-year-old will hope to return to his early-season form on Sunday Night Football against the Seahawks, as Washington will again be without top wideout Terry McLaurin after he re-aggravated his quadriceps injury during their Week 8 loss at the Chiefs. Samuel has averaged 16.4 PPR points per game without McLaurin in the lineup, compared to 12.3 with him, but he'll face a tough Seattle defense getting top cornerback Devon Witherspoon back in action.
The former San Francisco 49er wideout will face a familiar division rival he knows well, averaging 110.4 total yards per game with seven total touchdowns in eight career games against the Seahawks, including a three-catch, 102-yard, one touchdown performance in a Week 6 primetime matchup against them last season.
Who Should I Start Tool
Not sure who to start? Check out the Who Should I Start tool:
Compare up to four players and we'll tell you who to start...
Who Should I Start? Who Should I Sit? Some common Week 9 fantasy football lineup decisions are regarding players like Sam Darnold, Jayden Daniels, Kenneth Walker III, Jacory Croskey-Merritt, Jaxon Smith-Njigba, Deebo Samuel. But not to worry, we are here to help make these decisions and build winning lineups in Week 9.
Week 9 Player Decisions. Set your optimal fantasy football lineups for Week 9 of the 2025 NFL season. Our free Who Should I Start? tool will help make your fantasy football lineup decisions. Compare up to four NFL players, and we tell you who to start... all free! Get your winning lineups set, and make the right decisions.
Using The Tool. This is a simple tool but very powerful. The first step is to enter the player names that you want to compare. In the first box, search for the first player's name. In the second box, search for the second player's name. Compare up to four NFL players at once, and then click the Who To Start? button to see who the recommended starts are based on weekly fantasy football matchups.
Improvements For Who Should I Start? You may have noticed, we've added lots of great features for you to give you as much information as possible to win your fantasy football matchups each week. You'll see NFL player tiles with headshots and bye weeks, enhanced search results with data to compare, and a slick new interface. We hope you enjoy!
How It Works. Each week, our RotoBaller staff puts together their weekly fantasy football rankings and projections based on their research. That information is the core data that is powering the decision-making in this tool. When you search for player names, you will only see those players who are ranked. If someone is out for the week, they will not appear in the search results.
Scoring Formats. Fantasy football managers play in various types of leagues, and this tool allows you to choose whether it's PPR scoring, Half-PPR scoring, or Standard (Non-PPR) scoring. The second thing you want to do is to select the scoring format. There are three small radio buttons (small circles), so click on the scoring format you prefer. The results may vary based on the scoring format you select.
Popular Week 9 Searches. Curious to see some tough lineup decisions for Week 9 (2025)? Below you will find a list of some popular Who Should I Start? searches that RotoBaller readers are looking at this week. Click any of the links to see the result and recommendation.
Popular Week 9 Searches - Start/Sit Player Comparisons
Below are some popular Week 9 searches and comparisons from our 'Who To Start' tool:
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