Week 9 Fantasy Football WR/TE Snap & Target Report: Jaxon Smith-Njigba, Jakobi Meyers, Jake Ferguson, Jerry Jeudy and Nick Westbrook-Ikhine Deserve Your Attention

Morgan takes a look at important usage numbers for fantasy football pass catchers coming out of Week 9.

It’s time for another fantasy football story on the usages of wide receivers and tight ends.

Check back soon for an article on running back usage.

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Top Targets

Kansas City’s Travis Kelce was targeted a whopping 16 times in week 9. He caught 14 passes for 100 yards.

It was a vintage fantasy performance for Kelce, who has been a much better fantasy option over the past five weeks. He’s a safe fantasy starter moving forward again.

Los Angeles Rams’ Cooper Kupp had 14 targets this past week, catching 11 for 104 yards.

Kupp led the way for the Rams after Puka Nacua was ejected for throwing a punch. Kupp will remain a good fantasy option, but might not be that involved when Nacua plays a full game. Demarcus Robinson (94 yards and two scores on six catches and nine targets) isn’t likely to continue performing that well with Nacua around.

Seattle’s Jaxon Smith-Njigba had seven catches for 180 yards and two scores across 13 targets.

JSN got a few more targets with no DK Metcalf around. Smith-Njigba has plenty of targets on the season, but his fantasy performances have been inconsistent.

Dallas’ CeeDee Lamb had 12 targets in week 9, catching eight for just 47 yards. He also got injured in the contest.

Dallas also lost Dak Prescott in the game, and that too will hurt Lamb’s fantasy outlook going forward. He’s talented enough to produce with any quarterback, but while also battling an injury, Lamb’s not a locked-in fantasy starter for the time being.

Tampa Bay’s Cade Otton, Cincinnati’s Ja'Marr Chase, Cleveland’s Jerry Jeudy and Cedric Tillman, New York Jets’ Davante Adams, New York Giants’ Malik Nabers and Las Vegas’ Jakobi Meyers all finished with 11 targets this week.

Otton went for 77 yards and a touchdown on eight catches. He looks to be emerging as one of the better fantasy tight ends in the NFL, and even when Mike Evans returns, Otton might still produce enough to be a locked-in fantasy starter.

Chase had seven grabs, but for just 43 yards. In a game where Joe Burrow threw five touchdowns and with Tee Higgins out, it was surprising that Chase didn’t do more. I think having Higgins out there actually leads to bigger fantasy days for Chase, but he’s still a great starting option regardless.

Jeudy had 73 yards on seven receptions, while Tillman went for 75 yards and a score on six grabs. These two look like weekly starting options with Jameis Winston playing quarterback. Tillman has delivered three straight weeks, while Jeudy has emerged over the past two.

Adams had his best game as a Jet, turning seven catches into 91 yards and a score. It resulted in a New York win, and I’d expect both he and Garrett Wilson to be good fantasy starting options the remainder of the season.

Speaking of Wilson, he posted 90 yards and two scores on nine grabs. He’s a locked-in fantasy starter even with Adams there now.

Nabers had 59 yards on nine grabs. It wasn’t his best fantasy showing, but with a big-target day again, Nabers continues to serve as a good/great fantasy option, depending on the defensive matchup. Keep him in those starting lineups!

Meyers had 105 yards on eight receptions. It was his second straight big-time fantasy performance, but with a tougher matchup against the Dolphins looming, I wouldn’t immediately throw him into my starting lineup.

Along with Wilson, Jacksonville’s Evan Engram, Buffalo’s Dalton Kincaid, Denver’s Courtland Sutton, Chicago’s Keenan Allen and Dallas’ Jake Ferguson had 10 targets each.

Engram went for just 45 yards on five receptions. It was great to see Engram get all those targets, but the fantasy production wasn’t all that great. I still like the idea of starting Engram because of those high-target totals.

Kincaid only had 32 yards on four receptions. Again, it’s great to see a ton of targets, but the yardage and catch totals were pretty underwhelming.

Sutton had 122 yards on seven grabs. He’s been good in back-to-back games now, and fantasy owners are trusting Bo Nix more and more with each passing week, and Sutton should be trusted alongside him as his top target.

Allen finished with 36 yards on four receptions. He’s got 22 targets over the past three games combined, but has been below 45 yards in each contest, making him a flex-level option, but a pretty weak one.

Ferguson went for 71 yards on seven receptions. His fantasy outlook will take a bit of a hit with Prescott out, but Ferguson could turn into a sneaky good option if Lamb is banged up for a while, or misses a couple games.

High Snap Count Percentages

Instead of looking at the players who played the most snaps this week, let’s look at the snap count percentages, which probably tell a bigger story.

Atlanta’s Darnell Mooney and Jeudy were the only players to play every one of their team’s offensive snaps. Mooney turned his 57 snaps into 88 yards and a score on five catches and nine targets. He remains an above-average fantasy option for standard leagues.

Chicago’s D.J. Moore and Minnesota’s Justin Jefferson played in 99% of their team’s snaps in week 9.

Jefferson is a fantasy superstar and had 137 yards on seven grabs and nine targets this past week. He needs to be in fantasy lineups.

Moore was viewed as one of the top fantasy wideouts coming into the season, but has struggled more often than not. He only had 33 yards on four catches and nine targets this week. The target total was good, but with an inconsistent quarterback throwing to him, Moore projects as an average fantasy player at best most weeks.

Wilson played in 98% of his team’s snaps, while Meyers was at 97%. That gives another positive reason to play both players in fantasy leagues.

Tennessee’s Nick Westbrook-Ikhine and Miami’s Tyreek Hill were on the field for 97% of the team’s offensive plays.

Hill only had five targets and four catches, but turned them into 80 yards. He continues to fall short of his preseason fantasy hype, but he’s at least putting up double-digit fantasy points for the PPR fantasy owners out there.

Westbrook-Ikhine had 50 yards and a touchdown on five receptions and six targets in week 9. He’s been solid in back-to-back weeks and is flying under the radar for the most part. Westbrook-Ikhine should be rostered in a lot of deeper leagues, and he’s actually a decent standard league flex option in the right matchups already.

Tillman played in 96% of his team’s offensive snaps, again showing another reason why he’s a surging fantasy option who should be in most starting lineups.

Philadelphia’s DeVonta Smith and New England’s Kayshon Boutte played in 96% of their team’s snaps.

Smith went for 87 yards and a score on four catches and six targets. He’s a weekly fantasy starter, but should be a locked-in option with A.J. Brown now banged up in Philly.

Boutte had just 18 yards on two catches and six targets in week 9. It was his second straight game with six targets, so although the fantasy points haven’t followed, I like the idea of adding and stashing Boutte in deeper leagues. He’s a player to keep tabs on in case he and Drake Maye form a connection in the second half of the season.

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