Week 9 Fantasy Football position previews
BOSTON -- It's starting to get late in the fantasy football season, and owners have very little margin for error.
If you need a little assistance heading into your Week 9 matchup, we have you covered. CBS Sports' Heath Cummings breaks down the best plays at each position to put you in the best position to win.
Here are Cummings' position previews for Week 9:
Quarterback
Buffalo's Josh Allen @ NY Jets, Kansas City's Patrick Mahomes vs. Tennessee, Philadelphia's Jalen Hurts @ Houston (on Thursday night), Cincinnati's Joe Burrow vs. Carolina, and Arizona's Kyler Murray vs. Seattle round out the Top 5 QB plays this week.
With an enticing matchup against the Chicago Bears, Miami's Tua Tagovailoa is Cummings' daily fantasy pick at quarterback for the second straight week.
"I don't see any reason to get away from Tagovailoa after he diced up the Lions. This Bears defense may be just as bad as the Lions and the Dolphins' quarterback looked fully in command of the offense in Week 8. He leads the NFL at 9.0 yards per pass attempt and he's thrown at least 33 passes in every complete game he's played this season. The pricing hasn't yet caught up with just how special he can be against a bad defense," writes Cummings.
In that same matchup, Chicago's Justin Fields is playing himself into weekly consideration.
"Fields has been a top-6 quarterback over the past month due to an increase in his passing efficiency and rushing volume. He could be a set-it-and-forget-it starter for the next month due to favorable matchups," Cummings writes of Fields. "He may just be turning into a starting Fantasy QB regardless of matchup."
Read Cummings' full quarterback preview here.
Running Back
L.A. Chargers' Austin Ekeler @ Atlanta, New Orleans' Alvin Kamara vs. Baltimore (on Monday Night Football), Tennessee's Derrick Henry @ Kansas City, Green Bay's Aaron Jones @ Detroit, and Las Vegas' Josh Jacobs @ Jacksonville are the Top 5 running backs this week.
Just outside of the Top 5 is Jacksonville's Travis Etienne, who is Cummings' top daily play of the week.
"The way Etienne has looked the past two weeks, he may just be a top-five running back rest of season," writes Cummings. "The pricing has not caught up to that reality, as Etienne is the ninth-most expensive running back on DraftKings, and the eighth-most on FanDuel. There are only three running backs on the entire slate I like more than him regardless of price."
Check out Cummings' full running back preview here.
Wide Receiver
Buffalo's Stefon Diggs @ NY Jets, Miami's Tyreek Hill @ Chicago, L.A. Rams' Cooper Kupp @ Tampa Bay, Minnesota's Justin Jefferson @ Washington, and Tampa Bay's Mike Evans vs. Los Angeles are the top plays at receiver this week.
Tampa Bay's Chris Godwin is also an intriguing -- and cheap -- option at wideout this weekend.
"Godwin's lack of touchdowns make him both a great buy low and a cheaper DFS play than he should be. He's averaging double-digit targets per game since he returned in Week 4, which should make him a borderline top-five wide receiver," writes Cummings. "I'm going to play him every week in DFS until that touchdown regression hits."
Read Cummings' full wide receiver preview here.
Tight End
Kansas City's Travis Kelce vs. Tennessee, Baltimore's Mark Andrews @ New Orleans (MNF), Philadelphia's Dallas Goedert @ Houston (Thursday night), Green Bay's Robert Tonyan @ Detroit, and L.A.'s Tyler Higbee @ Tampa Bay round out the Top 5 tight ends this week.
Tonyan is Cummings' top play in daily leagues.
"With Travis Kelce, Mark Andrews, and Darren Waller all in primetime, there are no sure things in Week 9. Tonyan has 10-target upside and faces one of the worst defenses in football," he writes. "A 20-point outburst isn't out of the question."
Read Cummings' full tight end preview here.
