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Cedric Tillman | Week 9 Start/Sit Sleepers For Fantasy Football To Look For (2024)

Week 9 Shore Thing Sleepers (2024)

by Ben Siebert

Happy Halloween, or if you happen to be reading this in November, happy belated Halloween! Hopefully, this first half of the season has been treating you nicely rather than tricking you! I know some of our benches this week are full of ghosts, if it’s due to injuries or the Steelers and 49ers being bye. So, in the Halloween spirit, let’s dress up as “Ghostbusters” and dominate Week 9 with some sleepers!

Before we do, I always recap last week’s “Shore Thing Sleepers,” and while it was another milk dud, I am not too disappointed. Dalton Schultz was the only highlighted player to score over projection, albeit by one point. Jalen McMillan was only one point under projection, and Drake Maye was 2.78 points under projection but got hurt and did not return to the game. If we were to add Jacoby Brissett‘s fantasy point total, it would have been 5.6 points over projection. Also, Alec Pierce got a touchdown called back. It was just one of those weeks where luck was not on my side. So, the total was 12.5 points under projection, but if we combine Brissett’s total with Maye’s, it was only 4.2 points under projection.

Week 9’s “Shore Thing Sleepers” will be full of Halloween candy-related *bad* puns/jokes because who doesn’t like candy? After all, it should be expected because considering these players in your start/sit decisions might make you and I look like some Smarties.

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Fantasy Football Start/Sit Consideration: Week 9 Sleepers

Quarterback

Trevor Lawrence (Jacksonville Jaguars)

Trevor Lawrence‘s candy name could be “Trevor Licorice.” Ironically, it would be fitting for this week because few people like licorice as a Halloween treat. Few have liked Lawrence, as he’s failed to put up top-15 quarterback numbers for the week, and he’s even more off the radar this week after the Jaguars suffered massive WR injuries last week. He was finally getting a hold of things, too. After not finishing as a top-15 quarterback in any of his first four weeks, he has gone three out of his last four games with top-15 finishes, two of them being top 10!

Wide receiver injuries might be an issue with Christian Kirk out for the season with a broken collarbone. Brian Thomas Jr. (chest) and Gabriel Davis (shoulder) are also considered day-to-day. This leaves Parker Washington and Evan Engram as the healthiest options for Lawrence. However, this won’t be the first time he has been without Kirk. In Weeks 13-18 last season, Lawrence had four complete games without Kirk, and he averaged 281.5 total yards, 2.2 total touchdowns, 1.2 interceptions and 19.6 fantasy points per contest. Even though they all accounted for losses, he was helping your fantasy football teams.

The matchup, the Eagles, might be allowing the seventh-fewest fantasy points to quarterbacks this season, but Consider this:  In two of their last three games, they’ve faced Deshaun Watson and Daniel Jones. Would you not expect low fantasy numbers from those quarterbacks? The Jaguars will have to pass the ball a lot to stay in the game. And it just so happens that the two non-Watson “home games” for the Eagles this season have allowed quarterbacks to average 250.5 passing yards, two touchdowns, 0.5 interceptions and 17.4 fantasy points.

Running Back

Raheem Mostert (Miami Dolphins)

Raheem Mostert has been sweet and sour since returning in Week 5, like a SweeTART. The sweet part has come in two of his last three games with double-digit fantasy points. The sour came in the five-point Points Per Reception (PPR) dud he put up in Week 7 against the Colts.

Based on the matchup with the Bills, you might think that the game script would not favor the Dolphins. I get it; the last three games have averaged the Dolphins losing 33-14. Get that sour taste out of your mouth and follow along why I’m not worried about Mostert! The Dolphins RB duo of Mostert and De’Von Achane was in full force last week, with Achane having 147 scrimmage yards and a touchdown and Mostert scoring two touchdowns!

The Bills aren’t ready for this duo, as they’ve allowed the fifth-most fantasy points to the RB position over the last five weeks. In three of those five games, the Bills allowed an RB duo to score over 8.5+ fantasy points! Two of the three duos saw the RB with single-digit carries score a rushing touchdown. Now, doesn’t that fit with what Mostert does? When not having to replace Achane, Mostert has not seen over 11 carries a game.

Whether it’s the 32-year-old Purdue product or the 23-year-old from Texas A&M, it can be both that help you win your matchup this week.

Austin Ekeler (Washington Commanders)

After five straight games of scoring double-digit fantasy points, Austin Ekeler has hit a slump. In his last two games, Ekeler is averaging 5.5 carries and two receptions for 39.5 scrimmage yards and 5.9 fantasy points, with a ceiling of 7.8. I am not expecting that streak to extend to three straight games, and here’s why.

While “Facing the Giants” might not be a Halloween movie, it can be classified as inspirational, just like facing the Giants has been inspirational to running backs recently. Ekeler already faced the Giants in Week 2, and he had 85 scrimmage yards and 11.5 fantasy points in that game. The Giants have allowed an RB duo in their last two games to have a 114-yard rusher and a different running back to have 59+ scrimmage yards, both scoring at least 7.7 fantasy points. Another thing to consider is that Ekeler is also a receiving back, with his average rushing yards being 34.2 and receiving yards being 29.5, which helps him to get to these double-digit performances. Overall, the Giants have allowed the seventh-most rushing yards and sixth-most receiving yards to running backs this season.

Look at it like a Toblerone triangle. One side is his 11.5-point game against the Giants. Another side is the Giants’ trouble at stopping running back duos in the last two games. The final side is his receiving upside. Combine those stats, and you get a treat!

Wide Receiver

Cedric Tillman (Cleveland Browns)

A Sour Patch Kid is supposed to be sour and then sweet. We aren’t talking about no kid here, though. We’re talking about a man, Cedric Tillman. The Browns’ offense was sour, but it’s been pretty sweet in the last two weeks, especially for Tillman. He didn’t finish in the top 100 for WRs in Weeks 1-6, but he’s finished top 10 in Weeks 7-8.

Sour Patch Kids is a popular candy for trick-or-treating, and Tillman will be a popular treat for the people who were able to grab him. This two-week stretch has been unlike any other! He’s averaging 10.5 targets for 7.5 receptions, 90 yards, a touchdown and 22.5 fantasy points.

How convenient that the Chargers allowed their first receiver this season to see eight-plus targets last week. That receiver was Chris Olave, with a backup quarterback, who posted eight receptions for 107 yards last week. Jameis Winston, who was the backup quarterback in Cleveland, is giving Tillman and the offense new life.

I can easily see two straight games of a receiver going for a great stat line with eight-plus targets from a backup quarterback.

Tim Patrick (Detroit Lions)

He might have trick in his name, but Tim Patrick will be a treat this week. Take last week out of the equation because a quarterback going 12-for-15 with 85 yards is as close to an anomaly as you’ll get. Patrick has been quietly putting up some numbers in this high-scoring offense. Since Week 4, the Lions have not scored under 31 points, and Patrick scored 7.2+ fantasy points in two of those games.

This former Denver Bronco is averaging 13.1 air yards per target, the second-most on this Detroit offense. Jameson Williams is the player in first, but he is serving a suspension. Since Week 4, the Packers have seen five wide receivers with 13+ air yards per target that have a reception against them. Three of those players scored a touchdown and posted 11.8+ fantasy points. That’s not all! Last week, three different wide receivers did that and scored 7.6+ fantasy points against them. If you were looking for the average, it was 2.6 receptions for 55 yards, 0.3 touchdowns and 10.1 on the scoreboard!

It reminds me of when you get a York Peppermint Pattie in your Halloween bag. You’re shocked that you got one, but it’s a great surprise to have at the bottom of your bag! So, get the sensation of Patrick now, especially for those needing a receiver in deeper leagues!

Tight End

Isaiah Likely (Baltimore Ravens)

Move over, Mike and Ike. This is more “Mark and Like.” This tight end tag team has been adventurous this season, to say the least, whether it was Isaiah Likely‘s Week 1 shocker of 26.1 fantasy points or Mark Andrews‘ resurgence. It took another turn when the Ravens traded for Diontae Johnson earlier this week.

With the Johnson trade, I believe this will be the last time you can use Likely this season unless something happens to Andrews. The duo has combined for eight-plus targets in four straight games, with both getting a split of four-plus targets. Yes, Andrews has scored 9.5+ in four straight games, but sneakily, Likely has scored 8.7+ in two of those four games. Interestingly enough, Likely was the one who had the most receiving yards of the duo last week.

Denver has allowed 42 receptions to tight ends this season, which is tied for ninth-most this season to the position. With their eight games played this season, they’re giving up an average of 5.25 receptions! Also, in three straight road games, The Broncos have allowed a tight end duo to have eight-plus targets and they’ve allowed a tight end to score 5.7+ fantasy points in those games.

That may not be much, but only the Chiefs’ tight end group is putting up numbers like the Ravens tight ends in the past five weeks. The Ravens’ tight ends have the second-most receiving yards and the most touchdowns in that span.

Check out all of our Week 9 fantasy football content:

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Thanks for reading this week’s “Shore Thing Sleepers”! If you’re looking for more fantasy content like this or need help with the last-minute fantasy football start/sit decisions for your roster, you can find me on Facebook at “Fantasy Sports Start or Sit’Em Questions” or on Twitter/X @FSSOSEQ

*Photo Credit: Ken Blaze – USA TODAY Sports*

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