Game-Time Decisions and Trade Targets: The Engel Eye

Scott Engel provides some key fantasy football insights on injury decisions and last-minute trade targets before Week 9 kickpffs.

There is a lot to consider over the weekend as we head towards kickoff times on Sunday. Once again, there are major injury concerns, but we are here to help you handle them for your fantasy football rosters.

The Cardinals-49ers game is causing a great amount of fantasy anxiety regarding top players on both teams. The recommended routes to take should prepare you to set a satisfactory lineup for Week 9.

I also provide some weekend trade targets to consider, observations from Thursday night’s game, and more. Good luck with your rosters and teams in Week 9.

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Week 9 Roster Tips and Key Observations

-One of my consistent sayings about injury concerns is “when in doubt, always go with the healthy player.” That heavily applies to Kyler Murray and DeAndre Hopkins this week, as both are game-time decisions in a 4:25 p.m. ET matchup with the 49ers. Do not wait to find out if Murray or Hopkins will be held out if your other alternative at QB or WR plays at 1 p.m. ET and there is no clearly updated information on the status of either Cardinals star by that point. Start the healthy player at 1 p.m. ET for peace of mind and minimized risk. Conflicting published reports are not offering much clarification on Murray's status, so be ready to use your alternative.

I do not expect either Kyler Murray nor DeAndre Hopkins to play Sunday against the 49ers.

— Johnny Venerable (@JohnnyVenerable) November 5, 2021

Kliff Kingsbury said Kyler Murray is still a game-time decision and his sprained left ankle continues to progress. If the Cardinals feel like Murray can play at a “high level” in the pocket - make his progressions and protect himself - then he’ll play Sunday, Kingsbury said.

— Josh Weinfuss (@joshweinfuss) November 5, 2021

-In the same game, Deebo Samuel and Elijah Mitchell are both game-time decisions. It is so hard to effectively replace Samuel, who has truly emerged as a fantasy WR1 this season. You may have to take a similar approach with Samuel and Mitchell as we recommended with Murray and Hopkins. There are not a lot of good pivoting options available on waivers in most leagues, but you have to avoid taking a zero if you can.

-A reminder that even if you are up or down big after the Colts-Jets game, your Week 9 matchup is far from decided. Never get too high or too low after just one NFL game has been played. Big leads after one game frequently are matched when Sunday games take place. There are still 13 games left to be played this week. An early lead may improve your outlook, but it is far from a guarantee.

-Elijah Moore had his breakout game on Thursday and may be the hottest waiver wire add of Week 10. Now that Moore is officially on the fantasy map along with Michael Carter, the Jets should feature their two most dynamic playmakers often the rest of the way. They want to make progress towards the future and getting important reps for their two young stars should be a significant focus. Moore benefitted from the absence of Corey Davis and also took advantage of defensive miscues on Thursday. The Jets have actually put together a pretty good crew of playmakers, and you can look for them to get the ball into the hands of Carter and Moore a lot the rest of the way.

-This will not be a week to consider using Adrian Peterson. He may be active, and Peterson has become legendary for how he always exceeds expectations, especially when he is doubted. But Peterson missed the entire preseason and eight weeks of the regular season. Jeremy McNichols is worthy of flex consideration, as he should get a healthy amount of rushing attempts and will be on the field often as a pass-catcher as the Titans play from behind against the Rams. Peterson may not be much of a factor statistically in his Titans debut.

-Donovan Peoples-Jones is truly questionable for Sunday’s game vs, Cincinnati. He may be available in your league and should be added even if he does not make an impact this week. He should step in as an effective fill-in for the departing Odell Beckham Jr. Peoples-Jones is averaging 17.5 yards per catch this season and had 171 yards in a two-game span last month. He certainly looked like a WR who could produce more in an expanded role.

-There are still some “wait and see” types on Kadarius Toney out there. This may be your last chance to trade for Toney over the weekend before he confirms that he is indeed a real standout on the rise. All the scouting reports and insider takes suggest that he is a special talent. Daniel Jones has been improving, and Toney is the significant talent he could be connected to for some time. You have about one day left to get on board the Toney bullet train. Injuries and a small sample size have led to some skepticism, but the upside is clearly real when he is available to play.

Kadarius Toney 10 targets per game who says nopic.twitter.com/SgrsmKfhpc

— Ian Hartitz (@Ihartitz) November 3, 2021

-I think this is also a good time to trade for Jaylen Waddle before he busts out. Tua Tagovailoa was starting to show some real signs of progress before he ran into a dominant, smothering Buffalo defense. As Tagovailoa improves, Waddle is going to unlock more of his upside. The climb to fantasy stardom will hit a notable marker in a big game vs. the Texans this week.

-Emmanuel Sanders provided a doughnut last week in the box score, but I doubt that will happen two weeks in a row. He has been a really good fit with Buffalo. In what should be an easy matchup with the Jaguars. I expect  Josh Allen to make sure he gets Sanders involved again. Sanders should be started as a WR3 this week. He is also +850 on DraftKings Sportsbook to be the first TD scorer of the game. I recommend that prop play, as Allen will go to Sanders early to ensure he is back in the offensive flow.

-Many fantasy players have become big Khalil Herbert fans, and I have even heard of talk about holding onto him in keeper leagues or trading for him in dynasty formats. He certainly has been impressive, and the Bears should be commended for finding another good RB option. But David Montgomery could be back soon and remains the No. 1 RB for Chicago. Herbert should be thanked for his contributions to your team, but the reduced role is likely coming soon.

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