The Washington Commanders will face the New York Giants in Week 9. Here’s the latest fantasy football news and advice to help you with your lineups this week and moving forward, especially regarding WR Terry McLaurin.
Is Terry McLaurin Playing in Week 9?
McLaurin was listed with an ankle injury but has been a full participant in practice this week. Barring any setback, he is set to play this weekend.
We’ll continue to monitor the Commanders’ injury report. You can also visit and bookmark our NFL Injury Tracker and Fantasy News Tracker for the latest updates.
Should You Start or Sit Terry McLaurin in Week 9?
Terry McLaurin’s third 100-yard game of the season resulted in his sixth straight top-30 finish, making him the cream of the crop when it comes to reliable options in the WR2-3 range.
We haven’t seen the eye-popping numbers that we envisioned once he was finally playing alongside an NFL-level quarterback, but McLaurin is a lineup lock week in and week out, without much question as long as Jayden Daniels is under center.
The Giants have been reasonably stingy against receivers this season, but that’s more the result of them being more inept at other spots on the field. Four of the five highest WR games against New York have come from the alpha target earner in the offense (it would be 4 of 4 if not for Calvin Austin’s punt return touchdown last week vaulting him into this conversation).
There’s no denying that is what McLaurin is in Washington (145 more receiving yards than the next two most productive Commanders receivers combined).
Are you looking for start/sit advice for other players in your lineup? Read our Week 9 Fantasy Start-Sit Advice Cheat Sheet for every fantasy-relevant player in every game.
Terry McLaurin’s Fantasy Points Projection in Week 9
McLaurin is projected to score 16 fantasy points in PPR formats. This includes 5.6 receptions for 75.8 yards and 0.5 touchdowns.
Check out the free PFN Fantasy Start-Sit Optimizer for the latest projections and advice for your lineups this week.
PFN Insights: New York Giants Defense
The New York Giants’ defense has done its best to keep the team’s hopes of a playoff spot alive this year, but they have not quite been effective enough to drag this offense through games. The Giants have held opposing offenses to 21 points or fewer on five occasions but have only won two of those games, which is well below the league average of a 76.3% win rate in those games since the start of 2019.
The problem was highlighted on Monday Night Football when the Giants’ defense was excellent in terms of red-zone efficiency and points per drive but still took an eight-point loss. This defense has been good at putting pressure on opposing quarterbacks and leads the league in sack rate, but that has not translated to wins.
The Giants’ defense has been a top-10 unit in four games this year but has lost three of them. The defensive improvement has been impressive, but the offense’s failings hide the fact that this unit has improved since last year and is putting together a solid run over the last month.
For more insight on all other team defenses, head to our PFN Defense+ Metric Analysis.
Terry McLaurin’s Week 9 Fantasy Ranking
Our Weekly Consensus PPR Rankings are below — both positional and overall. They were last updated at 6:00 AM ET on Thursday, January 2. If you're in a Superflex league, make sure you check out our Weekly Consensus Superflex Rankings.
Week 18 WR PPR Rankings
1) Ja'Marr Chase | CIN (at PIT)
2) Amon-Ra St. Brown | DET (vs. MIN)
3) Justin Jefferson | MIN (at DET)
4) Mike Evans | TB (vs. NO)
5) Puka Nacua | LAR (vs. SEA)
6) Brian Thomas Jr. | JAX (at IND)
7) Ladd McConkey | LAC (at LV)
8) Drake London | ATL (vs. CAR)
9) Terry McLaurin | WAS (at DAL)
10) Jaxon Smith-Njigba | SEA (at LAR)
11) Malik Nabers | NYG (at PHI)
12) Tee Higgins | CIN (at PIT)
13) George Pickens | PIT (vs. CIN)
14) Davante Adams | NYJ (vs. MIA)
15) Courtland Sutton | DEN (vs. KC)
16) Jauan Jennings | SF (at ARI)
17) Jordan Addison | MIN (at DET)
18) Tyreek Hill | MIA (at NYJ)
19) DJ Moore | CHI (at GB)
20) Nico Collins | HOU (at TEN)
21) Zay Flowers | BAL (vs. CLE)
22) Jameson Williams | DET (vs. MIN)
23) Garrett Wilson | NYJ (vs. MIA)
24) Jaylen Waddle | MIA (at NYJ)
25) DK Metcalf | SEA (at LAR)
26) Deebo Samuel Sr. | SF (at ARI)
27) Jalen McMillan | TB (vs. NO)
28) Adam Thielen | CAR (at ATL)
29) Calvin Ridley | TEN (vs. HOU)
30) Keenan Allen | CHI (at GB)
31) Jakobi Meyers | LV (vs. LAC)
32) Jayden Reed | GB (vs. CHI)
33) Cooper Kupp | LAR (vs. SEA)
34) Josh Downs | IND (vs. JAX)
35) Marvin Harrison Jr. | ARI (vs. SF)
36) Michael Pittman Jr. | IND (vs. JAX)
37) Quentin Johnston | LAC (at LV)
38) Darnell Mooney | ATL (vs. CAR)
39) Romeo Doubs | GB (vs. CHI)
40) Khalil Shakir | BUF (at NE)
41) Jerry Jeudy | CLE (at BAL)
42) Rome Odunze | CHI (at GB)
43) Rashod Bateman | BAL (vs. CLE)
44) DeMario Douglas | NE (vs. BUF)
45) Wan'Dale Robinson | NYG (at PHI)
46) Dontayvion Wicks | GB (vs. CHI)
47) Olamide Zaccheaus | WAS (at DAL)
48) Jalen Coker | CAR (at ATL)
49) Xavier Worthy | KC (at DEN)
50) Nick Westbrook-Ikhine | TEN (vs. HOU)
51) DeAndre Hopkins | KC (at DEN)
52) Hollywood Brown | KC (at DEN)
53) Brandin Cooks | DAL (vs. WAS)
54) Marvin Mims Jr. | DEN (vs. KC)
55) Parker Washington | JAX (at IND)
56) Amari Cooper | BUF (at NE)
57) Kayshon Boutte | NE (vs. BUF)
58) Tim Patrick | DET (vs. MIN)
59) Joshua Palmer | LAC (at LV)
60) Ray-Ray McCloud III | ATL (vs. CAR)
61) Andrei Iosivas | CIN (at PIT)
62) Devaughn Vele | DEN (vs. KC)
63) Marquez Valdes-Scantling | BUF (at NE)
64) Jalen Tolbert | DAL (vs. WAS)
65) Ricky Pearsall | SF (at ARI)
66) Calvin Austin III | PIT (vs. CIN)
67) Michael Wilson | ARI (vs. SF)
68) Keon Coleman | BUF (at NE)
69) Tre Tucker | LV (vs. LAC)
70) Jalen Nailor | MIN (at DET)
71) Jamison Crowder | WAS (at DAL)
72) Elijah Moore | CLE (at BAL)
73) Xavier Legette | CAR (at ATL)
74) Kendrick Bourne | NE (vs. BUF)
75) KaVontae Turpin | DAL (vs. WAS)
76) David Moore | CAR (at ATL)
77) Adonai Mitchell | IND (vs. JAX)
78) Mike Williams | PIT (vs. CIN)
79) Demarcus Robinson | LAR (vs. SEA)
80) Malik Washington | MIA (at NYJ)
81) Allen Lazard | NYJ (vs. MIA)
82) Alec Pierce | IND (vs. JAX)
83) Tyler Lockett | SEA (at LAR)
84) John Metchie III | HOU (at TEN)
85) Robert Woods | HOU (at TEN)
86) Darius Slayton | NYG (at PHI)
87) Van Jefferson | PIT (vs. CIN)
88) Troy Franklin | DEN (vs. KC)
89) Mack Hollins | BUF (at NE)
90) Tyler Boyd | TEN (vs. HOU)
91) Luke McCaffrey | WAS (at DAL)
92) Tutu Atwell | LAR (vs. SEA)
93) Kevin Austin Jr. | NO (at TB)
94) Dante Pettis | CHI (at GB)
95) Xavier Hutchinson | HOU (at TEN)
96) Ryan Miller | TB (vs. NO)
97) Greg Dortch | ARI (vs. SF)
98) DJ Chark | LAC (at LV)
99) Lil'Jordan Humphrey | DEN (vs. KC)
100) Michael Woods II | CLE (at BAL)
101) Cedrick Wilson Jr. | NO (at TB)
102) JuJu Smith-Schuster | KC (at DEN)
103) Devin Duvernay | JAX (at IND)
104) Justin Watson | KC (at DEN)
105) Tylan Wallace | BAL (vs. CLE)
106) Jahan Dotson | PHI (vs. NYG)
107) Josh Reynolds | DEN (vs. KC)
108) Ryan Flournoy | DAL (vs. WAS)
109) Trey Palmer | TB (vs. NO)
110) A.J. Brown | PHI (vs. NYG)
111) DeVonta Smith | PHI (vs. NYG)
Washington Commanders at New York Giants Insights
Washington Commanders
Team: Washington begins a stretch this week where they play an NFC East team three times in four weeks (Eagles in Week 11 and Cowboys in Week 12.
QB: Against the Bears, Jayden Daniels threw 12 deep passes, five more than he had attempted in any other game.
Offense: Tress Way had five punts on Sunday against the Bears – he had four in September.
Defense: Washington has held its opponents to five first downs on 22 third-down conversion attempts over the past two weeks (22.7%). Through six weeks, that rate stood at 46.2%.
Fantasy: For the first time this season, Brian Robinson failed to score and didn’t reach 100 yards on the ground. He’s the lead man in this backfield, but without a 20-yard run in five straight and just a single catch over his past three games, this fantasy profile is a little thinner than you might assume.
Betting: The Commanders have seen their past five road games (and seven of their past eight).
New York Giants
Team: The last time Daniel Jones threw a touchdown pass at home was January 1, 2023 – one day before the Damar Hamlin injury.
QB: Monday was Daniel Jones’ fourth game this season with 20-plus completions and zero touchdown passes. Since 2020, this is the third instance in which a QB has “accomplished” that: Jared Goff did it in 2021, and … well, Daniel Jones did it in 2020.
Offense: Since 2022, only twice has an NFC team failed to score more than 18 points in at least six games through Week 8—the 2023 Giants (seven) and the 2024 Giants (six).
Defense: The Giants didn’t allow a red zone touchdown on Monday, but it didn’t matter … again. The Giants are 0-3 this season when not allowing a red zone touchdown (all other NFL teams are 20-7 this year in such spots).
Fantasy: Tyrone Tracy had 145 rushing yards, the most by a rookie drafted in the fifth round or later since Phillip Lindsay (Week 13, 2018 at Bengals: 157 rush yards).
Betting: The Giants have covered 12 of their past 15 games when playing on short rest (six straight when that game is played in front of their home crowd, including a Week 4 cover against the Cowboys).