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Who Should I Start for Week 9? Fantasy Football outlooks for DaVante Adams, Trey McBride, CeeDee Lamb, Jaxon Smith-Njigba, Amon-Ra St. Brown, Jonathan Taylor, Jahmyr Gibbs, Christian McCaffrey.
Who Should I Start? Who Should I Sit? Some of the most common Week 9 fantasy football lineup decisions involve players like Davante Adams, Trey McBride, CeeDee Lamb, Jaxon Smith-Njigba, Amon-Ra St. Brown, Jonathan Taylor, Jahmyr Gibbs, Christian McCaffrey. 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 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.
Compare up to four players and we'll tell you who to start...
Fantasy Football Matchup 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:
DaVante Adams, WR, Los Angeles Rams
Los Angeles Rams wide receiver Davante Adams will drop back down to second on the depth chart with Puka Nacua (ankle) returning against the New Orleans Saints in Week 9. Nevertheless, he's still one of the better No. 2 options in the NFL and is a borderline must-start in fantasy football.
The 32-year-old comes off his bye week ranking as the overall WR13 in PPR leagues, tallying a solid six touchdowns to this point. Even with Nacua back in action, managers shouldn't overthink this decision.
New Orleans is a great matchup for Adams, as the Saints have allowed the seventh-most receiving touchdowns in 2025. Start him as a high-end WR2 or low-end WR1 in all leagues.
Jaxon Smith-Njigba, WR, Seattle Seahawks
Seattle Seahawks wide receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba is ready to deliver another massive outing on Sunday night against a Commanders defense that just got torched by Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs last Monday. Smith-Njigba has been a revelation for the Hawks this fall. Even with the bye week, JSN leads the league in receiving yards.
He is also scoring touchdowns like a fiend, which escaped him during his first two seasons in the league. Washington is No. 23 against opposing wide receivers in fantasy. With quarterback Jayden Daniels back in the lineup this week, the Commanders may put continued pressure on the Seahawks to throw the ball.
Smith-Njigba's volume was never in jeopardy, but the chance for even more volume could make this an even better fantasy outing. Smith-Njigba has No. 1 overall wide receiver upside in Week 9. Set him in your lineup and do not worry.
Amon-Ra St. Brown, WR, Detroit Lions
Across seven games so far this season, Detroit Lions wide receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown has recorded 50 catches for 538 yards and seven touchdowns on 61 targets. The 26-year-old has seen at least six targets in every game he's played, and he earned double-digit targets in each of Detroit's last two games before its Week 8 bye. St.
Brown and the Lions will host the division rival Minnesota Vikings in Week 9. The Vikings have been a stingy pass defense, allowing the fourth-fewest passing yards (1,428) in the NFL. Across two games against Minnesota in 2024, St. Brown looked like his usual self by recording 14 catches for 189 yards and a touchdown on 15 targets.
He's a good bet to see 8-10 targets in his first matchup of 2025 against the Vikings and profiles as a must-start fantasy wide receiver in Week 9.
Jonathan Taylor, RB, Indianapolis Colts
Indianapolis Colts running back Jonathan Taylor is putting together a historic season so far in 2025. Through eight games, Taylor has rushed for 850 yards and 12 touchdowns while adding two receiving touchdowns for the Colts. The best player in fantasy over the first half of the season,
Taylor has scored exactly three touchdowns in a game four times so far this season, with the most recent instance coming in a Week 8 win over the Tennessee Titans. He will look to keep it going in a road matchup against the Pittsburgh Steelers in Week 9.
The Steelers have been solid against the run this season, allowing just the 22nd-most fantasy points per game to the running-back position through seven games. Despite the tougher matchup, Taylor remains a top-three fantasy running back in Week 9.
Jahmyr Gibbs, RB, Detroit Lions
Through his first seven games of 2025, Detroit Lions running back Jahmyr Gibbs has recorded 720 yards from scrimmage and seven touchdowns on 130 touches. In his final outing before Detroit's Week 8 bye, Gibbs racked up 218 scrimmage yards and two scores in 20 touches against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
In Week 9, Gibbs and the Lions will face a Minnesota Vikings defense that has been roughly mid-pack against the run. Through eight weeks, Minnesota ranks 20th in rushing yards allowed (913) and 10th in rushing touchdowns allowed (five).
Gibbs had two monster performances against the Vikings in 2024, recording a combined 327 scrimmage yards and six touchdowns on 47 touches. Lions RB2 David Montgomery did not play in one of those games, but Gibbs' history of success against Minnesota is still noteworthy. He profiles as a must-start fantasy running back in Week 9.
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 - DaVante Adams, Trey McBride, CeeDee Lamb, Jaxon Smith-Njigba, Amon-Ra St. Brown, Jonathan Taylor, Jahmyr Gibbs, Christian McCaffrey. 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 (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 searches and comparisons from our Who To Start tool for Week 9 for DaVante Adams, Trey McBride, CeeDee Lamb, Jaxon Smith-Njigba, Amon-Ra St. Brown, Jonathan Taylor, Jahmyr Gibbs, Christian McCaffrey:
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