Week 9 is the halfway point of the NFL regular season, but the fantasy season is quickly creeping closer to playoff time. With each passing week getting more and more crucial, hitting on waiver wire pickups is as important as ever, especially for those looking to make up ground in the standings. With that in mind, here are this week’s batch of shrewd pickups straight from some of the industry’s leading fantasy experts.
Speaking of pickups, pick up our spread predictions for each and every game of the NFL’s Week 9 here.
[sc:Football ]
Experts’ Pickups for 2014 NFL Season Week 9
Michael Fabiano – NFL.com
Position
Player
Running Back
Denard Robinson
Wide Receiver
Brandon LaFell
Wide Receiver
Odell Beckham, Jr.
Quarterback
Robert Griffin III
Running Back
Jonathan Stewart
Running Back
Jonas Gray
Wide Receiver
Allen Robinson
Tight End
Jace Amaro
Wide Receiver
Josh Gordon
Running Back
Charles Sims
[sc:NFL240banner ]This week, Michael Fabiano of NFL.com suggests doubling up on Jaguars’ Robinsons, running back Denard and wide receiver Allen. While the Jags slumped to yet another defeat to the Dolphins last Sunday, the Robinsons racked up the fantasy points; Denard ran for 108 yards, his second 100-yard game in as many weeks, while Allen has also caught a touchdown in consecutive weeks.
This is another lost season for the Jags, which means the second half of the year will be spent seeing what they have in their youngsters. Denard has definitely shown more upside than either Toby Gerhart or Storm Johnson in the backfield, and Allen has been the most frequent catcher of the balls Blake Bortles isn’t throwing away to the other team. Barring injury, those two should get their share of touches until the end of the season.
Nate Loop over at Bleacher Report agrees that Robinson is a decent pickup at wide receiver, along with the Pats’ Brandon LaFell, the Steelers’ Martavis Bryant and the Browns’ Andre Hawkins. No one would think of LaFell and Hawkins as No. 1 receiver-type players, but they’re suddenly looking like the top guys for their respective teams. The Pats and Browns aren’t exactly teeming with options at wideout, so it shouldn’t be surprising to see those two continue to rack up the targets.
Meanwhile, Bryant is a more interesting case over at Pittsburgh. Antonio Brown is the undisputed WR1, while Markus Wheaton entered the season as the WR2. But with the Steelers suddenly veering toward a more passing-oriented offense, someone’s got to step up and catch Big Ben’s passes. That someone just might be the young rookie, who’s caught three touchdowns in his first two games of the season.
Brad Pinkerton – Sporting News
Position
Player
Wide Receiver
Martavis Bryant
Wide Receiver
Donte Moncrief
Running Back
Jonathan Stewart
Running Back
Bobby Rainey
Running Back
Charles Sims
Running Back
Jonas Gray
Running Back
Lorenzo Taliaferro
Running Back
Juwan Thompson
Quarterback
Carson Palmer
Tight End
Tim Wright
For anyone looking for a decent running back, Brad Pinkerton of Sporting News has you covered with as many as six possible pickups. However, please bear in mind that none are particularly long-term solutions. Bobby Rainey and Charles Sims may split carries in Tampa Bay, while the Ravens’ Lorenzo Taliaferro and the Broncos’ Juwan Thompson are goalline backs whose production may vary from week to week.
Jonathan Stewart will get majority of the carries for the Panthers, but only until DeAngelo Williams returns, which may not be long from now. That leaves Jonas Gray, who may be the best play. He got the Stevan Ridley-type touches for the Pats against the Bears while Brandon Bolden had none. He’s probably got the best situation of the lot to be the most productive in the long run, although this week’s matchup against the run-stopping Broncos may not be his most impactful week.
