The Nightmare Rushes On: Week 9 Fantasy Football Injury Report

As our esteemed experts in Final Fantasy have pointed out, the Nightmare is a demonic colt that will flatten you with cloven hooves, a fiery mane, and gnashing teeth scarred from Halloween candy. A nightmare is also trying to figure out what to do with your fantasy football team now that Jonathan Taylor is out — AGAIN. Aw, Hufflepuff. The fantasy football season is halfway done, and you can barely call your usage of your top RB “fun-sized.” 

Let’ s jump into the fray and see if there’s anything we can do to solve your injury and roster woes for the upcoming week! 

The following players are listed as OUT at the time of writing: 

Week 9 Injuries and Roster News

Deon Jackson: I get it: he’s undrafted, he’s untested, and you have probably added and dropped him three times by now. But I was dropped more than that as a child and I’ll still here! With Jonathan Taylor out for the week and top-12 richest RB in the NFL Nyheim Hines traded off, our favorite wunderkind Deon Jackson steps into the RB1 role for the Indianapolis Nightmares Colts. The last time Jackson took the RB1 role? He finished as the fantasy RB1, with 120 all-purpose yards and 10 receptions. Oh yeah, Matt Ryan was the QB at the time too, and he’s gone. Oh yeah yeah, part 2: Jackson played the Jaguars that week. I could probably rush for a couple yards against the Jaguars if security didn’t notice a middle-aged pale white dude take the field. They’d say, “What is Matt Ryan doing on the field?” as I snuck forward for a yard, crushing my vertebrae in the process and collecting a sweet NFL pension for the rest of my life. ENYWHEY. Enough about my fantasy. Your fantasy (team) should be adding Deon Jackson and starting him in your RB2/FLEX spot. 

D’Andre Swift: At work today — no not at Razzball HQ, we don’t actually do work there, just foosball — a colleague came up to me and asked “Swift for Najee?” and then we talked about how they’re RB2 behind the powerhouses that are Jalen Warren and Jamaal Williams. Swift struggled to practice…but is reported as getting duties on Sunday? Isn’t that how we got into this problem in the first place? But that’s Swift’s identity: the scrappy lunchpail kid who plays through pain and the piranha that is actively attached to his ass. Come on docs, why can’t you do a fishectomy? Swift was awful last week playing through the pain, although he did manage to sneak in for a TD. I mean, if I told you to start Rex Burkhead every week — OK, I already do that — you’d eventually hop into the comments and say, “EWB, this just ain’t working out. Swift for Najee PPR 10 team?” That’s OK, I know you well enough by now. Assuming Swift is playing Sunday, he gets my start nod for your RB2 or Flex spot. Also, I’m a middle-aged dumpy dude so my nods are pretty creaky and loaded with pain, just like your fantasy team. 

Gus Edwards: Continues to miss practice and is questionable for Sunday. Hmm, something about running backs coming back from season-long injuries and succumbing to other, less serious injuries. Lemme go over to my baseball mind and see if this applies to pitchers. Oh, yeah, it does. Kenyan Drake and Justice Hill could get some extra touches, but honestly they’re DFS investments at best. For your regular fantasy football needs, you’re better off staying up until 4AM to add Deon Jackson. 

Mark Andrews: The guy has missed fewer games in his career than Drake — the rapper, not the backup Ravens RB — has missed hits, but Andrews continues to be off the practice field going into week 9. Isaiah Likely blew up last week with Andrews out, and he’s still available in nearly 80% of leagues. With Rashod Bateman out for the rest of the year, who’s left to catch passes in Baltimore? Oh wait — Lamar Jackson will just rush for 200 yards a game. Whatever. Likely — the player, not the aside — is worth an add for the rest of season, because Devin Duvernay really isn’t the answer to the Ravens’ passing game. 

Cam Akers: Much like every Gen Z person, he’s not moving anywhere for the next year because the price is too expensive. The trade deadline came and went, and Akers — who had been a healthy scratch for weeks due to clubhouse disagreements — remained on the Rams. Humbling, ain’t it? To work so hard to come back from injury, and then to have no interest from other clubs. ENYWHEY. Akers is back to practicing with the Rams, although he’s not guaranteed playing time this week. He could be an interesting DFS play for massive entry competitions, but regular fantasy footballers want to stay acres away from Akers. 

Chuba Hubbard: Remember Devine Ozigbo? I mean, he’s so two years ago, I’m not even gonna bold his name. ENYWHEY. Lenny Fournette gets traded from the Jags. Ozigbo was next in line to be the RB1 on the Jags, but then he gets Covid, and it becomes Long Covid. This undrafted guy named James Robinson comes in and takes the Jags by storm, snagging a couple million in his first contract and becoming a trade piece for the Jets (more than Cam Akers can say). Meanwhile, Ozigbo is now on the Broncos and has rushed for less than 60 yards in his career. Go for a walk down the street. Great! Your cardio has improved and you’re now further away from home than Ozigbo has rushed in his career. ENYWHEY, part 2: all this feels relevant to Chuba Hubbard. Hubbard did OK in 2021 in relief of the injured Christian McCaffrey, but 2022 could have been his year. Hubbard was ADP 200, and RB60…which in a best ball tournament is the middle of the pack. Actually, over at NFBC, Hubbard had a min pick of 73! Imagine going into the 6th round and seeing Hubbard off the board while Tony Pollard was still there. ENYWHEY, part 3: The Return of the Interjection — Hubbard is out again this week and has rushed for 97 yards on the year. His compatriot, D’Onta Foreman, topped that total twice this year in [checks notes] two starts. Sometimes you get lucky, and sometimes luck gets you. 

Josh Palmer: I don’t always believe Vegas, but sometimes you gotta trust those majestic casinos and hotels. And what those fancy fountains are saying: The highest-scoring matchup on the week 9 slate is the Chargers vs Falcons. Yeesh. Is this a bad week or something? Mike Williams is out, which implies that Josh Palmer will somehow get 100 receiving yards and 3 touchdowns, fulfilling the destiny of the Chargers to put up a bajillion points and prove Vegas correct. Palmer is available in 30-40% of leagues, so go do your thing. 

Drop those questions down into the comment box, everybody! Hope you have an awesome weekend, and I’ll see you for the recap on Monday morning!