The Carolina Panthers will face the New Orleans Saints 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 RB Jonathon Brooks.
Is Jonathon Brooks Playing in Week 9?
Jonathon Brooks is unlikely to make his Carolina Panthers debut in Week 9. While he’s officially considered questionable for Sunday’s game, head coach Dave Canales said Brooks probably won’t play against the Saints
Carolina designated the second-round rookie to return from the non-football injury list two weeks ago. This week, he’s been a full participant in each of the first two practices.
Brooks, who tore his ACL with Texas in November, was the first RB off the board in April’s draft after posting 1,425 total yards and scoring 11 touchdowns in 11 games for the Texas Longhorns in 2023. While the Panthers will want to see what Brooks can do, he’ll have to battle veteran RB Chuba Hubbard for playing time.
Through eight weeks, Hubbard has rushed for 593 yards while ranking sixth among running backs in success rate (42.4%) and eighth in EPA per rush (-0.01). Carolina is not required to activate Brooks until Week 10.
We’ll continue to monitor the Panthers’ 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 Jonathon Brooks in Week 9?
Brooks is practicing and nearing his NFL debut, but there’s no need for you to try to get ahead of this situation. Chuba Hubbard is running well, and with this team in no position to make a run, they are likely to take a conservative approach with their second-round pick.
He should be rostered across the board, but he won’t rank as a top-30 running back for me until we see him play and be used in a significant way — I’m fine with being a week late rather than a week early.
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.
Jonathon Brooks’ Fantasy Points Projection in Week 9
Brooks is projected to score 0 points in Week 9.
Check out the free PFN Fantasy Start-Sit Optimizer for the latest projections and advice for your lineups this week.
PFN Insights: New Orleans Saints Defense
The New Orleans Saints’ collapse is one of the more bizarre stories of this season. Sure, we know now that blowing out the Panthers and Cowboys may not have been as impressive as it first looked. Yet, this was a defense that was ranked in the top 10 in Weeks 3 and 4 against the Eagles and Falcons, two good offenses. Since then, the wheels have fallen off. The Saints’ highest ranking is 15th in Week 8, with a low of No. 28 in Week 6.
The offense’s loss of Derek Carr has certainly not helped, but it cannot be the entire reason for the defense’s transition from a top-10 unit to close to a bottom-10 unit. They have stopped getting pressure as easily, and with it, their sack and turnover rates have started to drop. They have also been struggling in the red zone in recent weeks, and teams have realized they can run the ball on them consistently.
It is hard to see how this gets better for the Saints. Hopefully, the offense can relieve some of the pressure when Carr returns, but there is a bigger underlying issue here than the offense.
For more insight on all other team defenses, head to our PFN Defense+ Metric Analysis.
Jonathon Brooks’ Week 9 Fantasy Ranking
Our Weekly Consensus PPR Rankings are below — both positional and overall. They were last updated at 11:45 PM ET on Saturday, January 25.
Conference Championship RB PPR Rankings
1) Saquon Barkley | PHI (vs. WAS)
2) James Cook | BUF (at KC)
3) Brian Robinson Jr. | WAS (at PHI)
4) Isiah Pacheco | KC (vs. BUF)
5) Kareem Hunt | KC (vs. BUF)
6) Austin Ekeler | WAS (at PHI)
7) Ray Davis | BUF (at KC)
8) Ty Johnson | BUF (at KC)
9) Samaje Perine | KC (vs. BUF)
10) Kenneth Gainwell | PHI (vs. WAS)
11) Jeremy McNichols | WAS (at PHI)
12) Will Shipley | PHI (vs. WAS)
13) Carson Steele | KC (vs. BUF)
14) Reggie Gilliam | BUF (at KC)
15) Chris Rodriguez Jr. | WAS (at PHI)
New Orleans Saints at Carolina Panthers Insights
New Orleans Saints
Team: New Orleans has lost six straight games, matching their longest skid of the 2000s (also: Weeks 5-11, 2005).
QB: Derek Carr might return to a skeleton crew that doesn’t have the big play upside of the offense he left. Can he make it work? It’s possible – he’s completing a career-high 77.5% of his short passes this season.
Offense: The Saints have scored 45 points in their past three games—they averaged 45.5 points per game during their 2-0 start this season.
Defense: Over the last three weeks, New Orleans has created pressure on just 25% of opponent dropbacks (Weeks 1-5: 38.1%).
Fantasy: Alvin Kamara has more targets (18) than rush attempts (17) over the past two weeks. After averaging 90.5 rushing yards per game in September, he didn’t reach 70 once in October.
Betting: Since 2020, unders are 27-13 (67.5%) in Saint games played after Halloween.
Betting: The Saints have been 1-6-1 ATS since the start of 2022 when they were favored on the road.
Carolina Panthers
Team: Carolina is technically the home team next week in Germany against the Giants – their next true road game doesn’t come until December 8 (Week 14 at Philadelphia).
QB: Baby steps – Bryce Young threw a touchdown pass under pressure against the Broncos on Sunday, doubling his career total of such passes in the process.
Offense: The Panthers are averaging 4.0 yards per play in Bryce Young’s starts this season (Andy Dalton: 5.3).
Defense: Every team that has faced the Panthers this season has posted a passer rating north of 95 (last week against Denver was the fourth time this season they allowed a rate over 125).
Fantasy: Chuba Hubbard ran for 56 yards in Denver on Sunday, 59 of which came after contact.
Betting: The Panthers have failed to cover four straight at home, failing to cover by a total of 40.5 points during that stretch.
