It’s fantasy football week nine, which means we’re only seven weeks from fantasy championships, and over halfway through the real fantasy football season. “What about week seventeen championships?” you might ask. To that, I say: join a real fantasy football league. As always, we’re here to help with some fantasy football sleeper running backs to help plug holes in your lineup. These guys are owned in less than 50% of Yahoo! leagues, with one player available in at least 90% of Yahoo! leagues. The same caveats apply: see if the guy’s in Waleed’s Waiver Wire Cheat Sheet are available in your league. If they aren’t, then here are some fantasy football sleeper running back options for you!
Week Nine Fantasy Football RB Sleeper:
Mark Walton versus N.Y. Jets (49% Owned)
Kenyan Drake is finally off the roster entirely, which means a whole week of prep for Mark Walton: RB1. Granted, you usually want a running back on a good offense (see below), but beggars can’t be choosers. There’s nothing of value behind him on the roster (RIP Kalen Ballage), and he’s had at least 15 touches in each of the last two games. He wasn’t able to do much with it, but this is a volume play (and a hope he kicks in a TD play). This week, Walton gets a Jets squad fresh off getting shellacked by Leonard Fournette last week, and Sony Michel before that. They average the eighth-most fantasy points to running backs, and that was before they traded Leonard Williams across the hallway to the Giants. This could be Walton’s big, breakout game.
Week Nine Fantasy Football RB Sleeper:
Alexander Mattison at Kansas City (30% Owned)
It’s questionable if Patrick Mahomes suits up for KC this weekend. Even if he doesn’t, the Colts cracked the code on defeating the Chiefs: keep the ball away from the offense, and grind the clock. That means very little Kirk Cousins, lots of Dalvin Cook, and a good amount of Alexander Mattison. The Vikings have no qualms about using Mattison a lot (he has at least 13 carries in two of the last three games), so it’s likely they spell Cook with Mattison again in a game where they should be running the football. Mattison should produce, even with limited carries. The Chiefs allow the fourth-most fantasy points to running backs, and they allow the highest yards per carry to the position so far. You may remember them from feebly trying to stop the Packers running backs last week on Sunday Night Football.
Deep Dive Week Nine Fantasy Football RB Sleeper:
Raheem Mostert at Arizona (7% Owned)/Jeff Wilson Jr at Arizona (2% Owned)
Go see if these guys are playing, in that order. Every single running back behind Tevin Coleman got banged up on Sunday as the 49ers redefined destroying the opposition when they destroyed their opposition. One of these guys is likely to go, and Matt Breida isn’t, so it’s time to mine that 49ers running game for fantasy football points. The 49ers run game has produced more fantasy points for running backs per game by a nearly three-point per game margin this season. Whichever one of these guys gets a shot at the #2 role, depending on injury, will produce. The Niners get a neutral matchup in the Cardinals, but they’ve given up double-digit fantasy days to running backs in each of their last six games.
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