Who Should I Start for Week 9? Fantasy Football outlooks for Drake London, D'Andre Swift, Saquon Barkley, Makai Lemon, Austin Ekeler, Efton Chism III, Chris Godwin Jr., Marvin Harrison Jr., Kaelon Black.
Who Should I Start? Who Should I Sit? Some of the most common Week 9 fantasy football lineup decisions involve players like Drake London, D'Andre Swift, Saquon Barkley, Makai Lemon, Austin Ekeler, Efton Chism III, Chris Godwin Jr., Marvin Harrison Jr., Kaelon Black. However, don't worry; we are here to help you make these decisions and build winning lineups in Week 9. Set your optimal fantasy football lineups for Week 9 of the 2026 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.
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Week 9 Fantasy Football Outlooks
Below are some fantasy football outlooks written by our NFL team here at RotoBaller, bringing you their fantasy football analysis and advice on which players to consider starting in Week 9:
Saquon Barkley, Philadelphia Eagles
Philadelphia Eagles running back Saquon Barkley (hamstring, back) was not spotted at practice on Wednesday, per Brooks Kubena of The Athletic. Barkley has been battling injury issues for multiple weeks. The 29-year-old has played a limited snap share in each of the Eagles' last two games, but he's been relatively productive in his opportunities, recording 20 carries for 92 yards and two touchdowns over the last two weeks.
Given that Barkley has been on the field for the Eagles lately, he may just be getting a rest/injury management day off on Wednesday. If Barkley has suffered a setback, Eagles backup running backs Elijah Mitchell and Jaydon Blue could be in line for increased workloads in Week 9 against the New York Giants.
Drake London, Atlanta Falcons
Atlanta Falcons wide receiver Drake London caught just one of six targets for eight yards as his team suffered an ugly 16-0 loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in Week 8. It was London's most unproductive game since Week 1, when he caught just two passes for 29 yards in a season-opening loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers.
London was expected to be targeted heavily in Week 8, but Sunday was an overall bad fantasy sports day for Atlanta as Michael Penix Jr. completed just eight passes for 125 yards and threw four interceptions. The Falcons will aim for a massive rebound in Week 9 against a 21st-ranked Cincinnati Bengals defense, but that won't erase London's bust performance after he entered Sunday considered a low-end WR1.
Makai Lemon, Philadelphia Eagles
Philadelphia wide receiver Makai Lemon is a rising fantasy asset going into Week 9. He has 31 receptions for 251 yards and a touchdown across 46 targets so far this season. Lemon had 57 receiving yards on six grabs and nine targets in Week 8 and tallied 67 yards and a score on seven receptions and eight targets in Week 7.
He's getting more usage on a Philly offense that's been battered by injuries. Injuries to wideouts DeVonta Smith (hamstring) and Dontayvion Wicks (ankle) have helped Lemon's fantasy cause, and the rookie could remain heavily utilized until those two wideouts are back on the field. Lemon's Week 9 matchup against the Giants is a pretty average one, so he has streaming appeal in all leagues, especially if Smith and Wicks are out again.
Efton Chism III, New England Patriots
New England Patriots wide receiver Efton Chism III has ascended into a fantasy-relevant role amid injuries to A.J. Brown (knee), Mack Hollins (calf), and Romeo Doubs (shoulder). While the former undrafted free agent's role and volume have fluctuated a little bit over the past few weeks, he has been mostly productive while filling in for Brown (who missed Week 8) and Hollins and Doubs (who are on injured reserve).
Just last Sunday, despite rainy conditions in Miami, Chism caught five passes for 37 yards while handling a career-high 88% snap share. We can expect him to maintain a similar snap share if Brown and Hollins can't suit up in Week 9 against Green Bay. If Chism remains in the No. 2 role behind DeMario Douglas, there's a legitimate argument for him to be streamed as a WR3/flex in fantasy leagues with 14+ teams.
Marvin Harrison Jr., Houston Texans
Houston wide receiver Marvin Harrison Jr. will look to start producing a bit more for his new team after the team had its bye in Week 8. Since being traded to the Texans, Harrison has eight targets, but just four catches for 40 yards. His lone catch in Week 7 against the Giants was a touchdown, so that's maybe another reason why his fantasy value is rising a bit.
Harrison logged just 12 offensive snaps in Week 6, then played 13 snaps in Week 7. It's fair to assume his playing time and role could improve now that he's been around the team for several weeks. Harrison is still only WR66 in our RotoBaller Week 9 projections. He has a pretty average fantasy matchup coming against the Chargers, but until he produces more on the field, he's just a deep-league option.
Who Should I Start Tool
You can also see the Who Should I Start tool here.
Week 9 Player Decisions. Today's focus is on specific players - Drake London, D'Andre Swift, Saquon Barkley, Makai Lemon, Austin Ekeler, Efton Chism III, Chris Godwin Jr., Marvin Harrison Jr., Kaelon Black. These are some of the most common searches for fantasy football lineups in Week 9.
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 name. In the second box, search for the second player 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 that our 'Who Should I Start?' tool has gotten an overhaul. 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, stats, projections, strength of schedule, players news, and enhanced search results with data to compare with 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 circle), 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 (2026)? 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 searches and comparisons from our Who To Start tool for Week 9 for Drake London, D'Andre Swift, Saquon Barkley, Makai Lemon, Austin Ekeler, Efton Chism III, Chris Godwin Jr., Marvin Harrison Jr., Kaelon Black.
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