Frank Ammirante's Fantasy Football Starts and Sits: Week 9 Sleepers, Busts

November 7, 2026

Frank Ammirante's fantasy football starts and sits for Week 9 of the 2026 season. His top sleepers and busts on the start-sit bubble, including Malik Willis and Mike Washington Jr.

Start 'Em, Sit 'Em for Week 9. This week, we've got two teams on bye (Steelers and Titans). I'm subbing in for the great Adam Koffler for the next couple of weeks, so let's try to steer you in the right direction.

Last week, Adam had some solid calls, including Rachaad White as a start and Quinshon Judkins as a sit. I'll look to build on that with my Week 9 column.

Remember, the goal of this article is to provide actionable advice on players being talked about. Guys who come up in the most questions asked by you. Here are my top trending starts and sits for Week 9, with some bonus names provided.

Week 9 Fantasy Football Starts

Malik Willis - QB, Miami Dolphins vs. DET

Malik Willis is starting to find his groove with the Dolphins. He's put up 20+ fantasy points in two of his last three games, including 26.0 against the Jets in Week 7. During this stretch, he's rushed eight times twice and thrown for 200+ yards twice as well.

Last week, Willis only had one carry for two yards, but that's because he was dealing with a groin injury. This week, he's off the injury report, so it's wheels up for the dual-threat quarterback.

START MALIK WILLIS IN WEEK 9!

Willis has been DEALING over his last two games:

• 3rd in EPA/dropback
• 11th in yards per attempt
• 2nd in catchable throw rate

Miami is a 7-point underdog against Detroit, setting up a pass-heavy game script.

I'm starting Willis this week. https://t.co/rXk2oCMaQ7

— Nicho Roessler (@NichoRoessler) November 7, 2026

I love the projected game environment against the Lions, with the Dolphins as six-point home underdogs with a 50.5-point total. That means more dropbacks in a potential shootout. More dropbacks mean more opportunities to take off and run.

While the Lions' defense has been better lately, they lost a few players to injury in Week 8, including DJ Wonnum, D.J. Reed, Jack Campbell, and Jimmy Rolder. Brian Branch got hurt as well, but he's expected to play.

Facing a banged-up defense, Willis is in line for a spike week. The Lions are allowing the most fantasy points per game to opposing quarterbacks. I've already started Willis over Trevor Lawrence in one of my leagues. I'd fire him up over big names like Caleb Williams and Jayden Daniels as well.

Caleb Douglas - WR, Miami Dolphins vs. DET

Caleb Douglas is a rookie wideout who has shown some upside this season, putting up a spike week in two of his four games, including 70 yards and two touchdowns against the Jets in Week 7.

We saw his route participation increase from 67.9% to 81.1% last week. That doesn't seem like much, but you have to remember that Week 7 was when Douglas returned from injury, so it appears that the Dolphins were initially easing him back in. But now, he's entrenched in a full-time role.

Caleb Douglas saw his route participation jump from 67.9% to 81.1% last week.

He has two spike weeks in four games this year.

I'm stacking Malik Willis with Douglas against the Lions this week.

— Frank Ammirante (@FAmmiranteTFJ) November 5, 2026

I like Douglas' chances of another big game against a Lions defense that is giving up the fourth-most fantasy points per game to wide receivers this year. Douglas is a terrific pairing with Willis in this favorable game environment.

I'm well above consensus on Douglas in my Week 9 rankings, putting him inside the top-30 wide receivers. I'd fire him up over players like Denzel Boston, who we'll get to later in this article.

Ashton Jeanty - RB, Las Vegas Raiders at SF

I'll admit it: I was too high on Ashton Jeanty. That is looking like a major miss so far, especially with how inefficient he's been on the ground. But that doesn't mean he can't be a useful running back in fantasy.

Let's not overreact to Jeanty's two carries and three catches last week. Yes, it will be a committee with Mike Washington Jr. moving forward, but the disparity in touches won't be this massive. I'm betting that the extreme lack of usage for Jeanty was disciplinary after his foolish comments about the Jets defense earlier in the week.

Facing a 49ers defense that ranks 1st in Rush EPA, I expect the Raiders to have a tough time running the ball. That means they'll have to target their running backs in the passing game as de facto running plays. This plays right into Jeanty's skill set, as Washington isn't a good receiver or pass-blocker.

The Niners have allowed the fourth-most receiving yards to running backs. With the Raiders likely playing from behind as 10-point underdogs, it's the ideal setup for Jeanty to make an impact in the passing game. I'd start him over Quinshon Judkins this week.

Antonio Williams - WR, Washington Commanders vs. LAR

Antonio Williams didn't do much in Week 8, catching 5-of-7 targets for 54 yards, but if you look at the volume stats, you have to be encouraged. The rookie wideout had a season-high 20.7% target share in that game, tied with Stefon Diggs for the team lead.

It was the first game all year where Williams had a 20+% target share. Now entrenched as the No. 2 wideout with Terry McLaurin out for the season, expect Williams to have fantasy value for the rest of the year.

The Commanders are likely to be playing from behind against the Rams this week, so we could see them air it out at a higher rate to keep pace. That bodes well for Williams. I'd play Williams over Rome Odunze this week.

Bonus starts: Jonah Coleman @ CAR, Adonai Mitchell @ KC, Blake Corum @ WAS, Jadarian Price vs. ARI

Week 9 Fantasy Football Sits

Mike Washington Jr. - RB, Las Vegas Raiders @ SF

Mike Washington Jr. dominated the workload in the Raiders' backfield last week, out-carrying Jeanty 25-to-2. However, as I mentioned above, I don't think that gap will be as wide going forward. It was likely partly for disciplinary reasons.

Washington is in a tough spot against the 49ers, who rank 1st in Rush EPA. The Raiders have one of the worst running games in the NFL, so it's unlikely that they'll be able to generate much yardage on the ground here.

Add in the fact that this projects as a negative game script with the Raiders as 10-point underdogs, and this feels more like a Jeanty game. I'd sit Washington for Jeanty in this one.

Denzel Boston - WR, Cleveland Browns @ NO

Denzel Boston has had a promising rookie season, but now Deshaun Watson is out with a concussion, forcing Shedeur Sanders to start. We don't know Boston's chemistry with Sanders, but we do know how his skill set fits.

Boston is the deep threat in this Browns offense, while Sanders prefers to target the short-to-intermediate passing game. That means this feels like more of a KC Concepcion game than it does for Boston.

Add in the fact that Boston has been dealing with a calf injury all week, and this looks like a sit. I'd bench Boston for Douglas in this one.

Jordan Mason - RB, Minnesota Vikings vs. BUF

Jordan Mason returned to action for the Vikings last week, but he had eight carries for 20 yards. Minnesota mixed in DeeJay Dallas on passing downs. Of course, there's also Aaron Jones.

What we have here is an ugly committee. Perhaps it was just the Vikings easing Mason in following a lengthy absence, but we don't know that for sure.

To that end, you're better off benching Mason this week. I have no issue sitting him for a wide receiver like Caleb Douglas.

Braelon Allen - RB, New York Jets at KC

Braelon Allen has been a monster for the Jets in Breece Hall's absence. But now, Hall is ready to return. While Allen has played well enough to retain a sizeable role in this backfield, we don't know how the usage will look.

On top of that, the Jets are 10-point road underdogs against a Chiefs team that ranks 9th in Rush EPA. Hall is the better pass-catcher, so with the Jets likely playing from behind, the projected game script aligns more with him than it does with Allen.

I know it's tough with how well Allen has played, but I'd sit him for Jeanty this week.

Bonus sits: DeMario Douglas vs. GB, Aaron Jones Sr. vs. BUF, J.K. Dobbins at CAR, Zach Charbonnet vs. ARI

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