Week 9 Wide Receiver Projections & Rankings: Nico Collins Returns to the Starting Lineup while Terry McLaurin sits

Finding impact wide receivers for any format was challenging in Week 8, a week after 15 wideouts scored over 20.00 fantasy points in PPR formats. My deep sleeper of the year, Troy Franklin, was the wide receiver (6/89/2), giving him two winning days (Week 2 – 8/100/1) on his sophomore campaign. Only six other wideouts scored over 20.00 fantasy points last week.

Rashee Rice (25.50)
Michael Pittman (23.50)
Ja’Marr Chase (21.10)
Jaylen Waddle (20.90)
Ladd McConkey (20.80)
Khalil Shakir (20.80)

After eight games, Franklin has 33 catches for 358 yards and four touchdowns on 54 targets, putting him on pace to catch 70 passes for 761 yards and eight touchdowns (194.10 fantasy points in PPR formats).

Best Fantasy Football Wide Receivers In 2025

Here are the top 12 wide receivers in scoring average in PPR leagues after eight weeks:

Puka Nacua (23.13)
Jaxon Smith-Njigba (22.29)
Ja’Marr Chase (21.49)
Amon-Ra St. Brown (20.96)
George Pickens (18.44)
Drake London (15.98)
Davante Adams (15.73)
Michael Pittman (15.70)
Romo Odunze (15.47)
Emeka Egbuka (15.39)
Justin Jefferson (15.37)
Keenan Allen (14.99)
Chris Olave (14.91)

Week 8 Fantasy Football Bust Wide Receiver

Week 8 Fantasy Football Bust: Darnell Mooney, Atlanta Falcon — Atlanta Falcons wide receiver Darnell Mooney (1) on the field before the game against the Miami Dolphins at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. | Dale Zanine-Imagn Images

Darnell Mooney, Atlanta Falcons

Based on him missing time this year and an empty resume over his first four games (10 catches for 147 yards on 21 targets), Mooney should even be worthy of being a bust candidate. Unfortunately, the downgrade to Drake London led to Mooney getting an expected bump in value while drawing a flex option start in many fantasy leagues in Week 8, as so many good players were on a bye. Kirk Cousins looked his way only four times, resulting in one catch for 11 yards and a thanks for nothing in the fantasy market. Atlanta had him on the field for 90% of their snaps.

Runner Up: Deebo Samuel (3/12) sucked in the fantasy market this week by turning in full practices and losing his questionable tag. Washington had him on the field for 74% of their plays (a team-high among wide receivers), which aligned with his last two games (78% and 72%).

Each week, I’ll release my depth charts and projections on Wednesday, with a neutral eye informed by hints from previous results or in-season injuries. These statistics represent baseline outlooks, with their potential already factored in. Touchdowns create impact scores and winning fantasy days, especially in non-PPR formats. Who scores them each week is the Holy Grail that the fantasy market searches for weekly.

My projections will be sorted into rankings that won’t resemble the weekly consensus. My man, Matt Brandon, is in charge of finding a balance between my player outlooks and the public view of each week's rankings.

Week 9 Fantasy Football Wide Receiver Projections & Rankings Preview

Here’s a look at our opening Week 9 top 12 wide receiver projections:

The top end of the wide receiver ranking this week is loaded with star power, thanks to multiple players having favorable matchups. Six wide receivers are projected to gain over 100 yards, with Justin Jefferson drawing the least amount of trust due to another quarterback change in Minnesota.

Fantasy Football Trade Advice Ahead of Week 9

Due to multiple lingering injuries and a lack of chemistry with Trevor Lawrence, I would trade Travis Hunter straight up this year for Brian Thomas. In the Jaguars’ last game overseas, Jacksonville finally allowed its rookie wideout to progress his route running to the open areas downfield, signaling a fun finish to the year for Hunter. I love the ceiling and potential of Thomas, but a shoulder issue paired with what appeared to be a lower leg injury suggests troubled waters over the second half of the year. A two-week break came at the right time for Thomas, almost forcing the fantasy market to start him if he plays this week.

Week 9 Waiver Wire Wide Receiver

Chimere Dike, Tennessee Titans

With Calvin Ridley out over the last two games, Dike posted back-to-back winning outcomes (4/70/1 and 7/93 on 12 combined targets) after only having nine catches for 26 yards (2.9 yards per catch) over Tennessee’s first six matchups. His experience (42/786/2 in 2024) with Cam Ward at Florida gives him the inside track to more targets. The Titans’ passing offense has been more air-driven over their last four games (149 pass attempts and 94 completions), leading to 250 passing yards per contest. Even if Ridley is back this week, Dike appears to have seized the Titans’ WR2 role over the fading Elic Ayomanor (2/44, 2/18, 3/27, 2/29, and 4/52).

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