Fantasy Football Week 9 Start ‘Em & Sit ‘Em: Myles Gaskin gets to shake off the bust against Texans

This has been quite a week, and we haven’t even had a game yet in Week 9. I can’t wait for the on-field drama because everything going on off the field has been a whirlwind.

Since Monday, we have had major news involving Derrick Henry, Jameis Winston, Aaron Rodgers, Saquon Barkley, Noah Fant, Michael Thomas and Odell Beckham. There also was the tragic situation involving Henry Ruggs III, who is no longer with the Raiders and is facing felony charges of DUI after being involved in a deadly car accident in Las Vegas early Tuesday morning.

Henry and Winston are out for the season after getting hurt in Week 8, and Rodgers and Barkley are out in Week 9 after being placed on the reserve/COVID-19 list (Fant still has a chance to play). Thomas also is out for the season after suffering a setback with his injured ankle. As for Beckham, his time in Cleveland might be done since he appears to be disgruntled after not getting traded. You can’t plan on starting Beckham this week — if you even considered it.

We might get good news if Christian McCaffrey (hamstring) is able to play this week, but that seems unlikely. What is likely is Fantasy managers potentially scrambling for quality players, especially with four teams on a bye (Tampa Bay, Seattle, Washington and Detroit).

As always, we’ll do our best to help with your lineup decisions, and hopefully your teams are successful. I’m ready for the games to begin because this has already been a crazy week.

Editor’s Note: Projections are provided by CBS Sports and not Jamey Eisenberg. Projected points are for PPR leagues.

More Week 9: RB Preview | WR Preview | QB Preview | TE preview | Trade Values | Cut List | Towers’ Top 150 | Waiver Wire

Start ‘Em & Sit ‘Em

Myles Gaskin has been a Fantasy bust so far this year. I had high expectations for him as a breakout player, but he’s been disappointing and tough to trust. That ends this week.

Gaskin will benefit in a favorable matchup against the Texans in Week 9, especially with Malcolm Brown (quad) on injured reserve. We saw what that looks like the past two weeks with Gaskin getting 19 total touches in Week 7 against Atlanta when Brown first got injured and then 15 total touches last week at Buffalo.

Gaskin has four games this season with at least 15 total touches, and he’s scored at least 17 PPR points in two of those outings. He should have the chance for an increased workload this week against the Texans, who have struggled against opposing running backs all season.

Houston has allowed a running back to score a touchdown in six of eight games this season, including five in a row. Four running backs in the past five games against the Texans have scored at least 12 PPR points, with Jonathan Taylor in Week 6 and Darrell Henderson in Week 8 each scoring at least 22 PPR points.

I’m expecting Gaskin to finish as a top-15 PPR running back this week (top 20 in non-PPR), and I’m excited about his outlook in this matchup and beyond, especially with Brown out. Hopefully, Gaskin can finish the season strong and erase the disappointment from the start of the year. He still has the chance to help Fantasy managers in a big way in 2021.

Patriots (at CAR): Sam Darnold (concussion) appears on track to play in Week 9, but keep an eye on his status. I would like the Patriots DST even more if P.J. Walker starts given how Bill Belichick does against unproven quarterbacks. Darnold knows all about that given his history against the Patriots. In four career meetings with New England when Darnold was with the Jets, he had one touchdown, six interceptions and two lost fumbles. The Patriots DST should have a huge Week 9 outing.

Dolphins (vs. HOU)

Raiders (at NYG)

Saints (vs. ATL)  

Broncos (at DAL): The Broncos defense should struggle this week against the Cowboys with Dak Prescott (calf) back. So far this season, Prescott has been sacked just nine times. While Prescott does have four interceptions, the Cowboys are averaging 32.1 points per game. Denver also just traded Von Miller to the Rams, so this should be a DST to avoid this week — and maybe the rest of the season.

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