Here’s the latest fantasy football news and advice to help you with your lineups this week and moving forward, especially regarding RB Alvin Kamara.
Is Alvin Kamara Playing in Week 9?
Alvin Kamara (hand/rib) was limited for Wednesday’s practice, just as he was for every session leading up to Week 8. He was limited again on Thursday before being removed from the New Orleans Saints’ injury report on Friday. He will suit up again at the Panthers on Sunday.
Kamara recently told reporters that he’s been playing through a broken hand and is dealing with the broken ribs he suffered in Week 3.
Carr’s return to New Orleans’ starting lineup should help all of the club’s skill players, Kamara included. Kamara was fantasy’s RB6 or better three times over the first four weeks of the season. He’s still been effective since, with RB21, RB17, RB33, and RB13 performances over the ensuing four games — but Kamara hasn’t found his ceiling recently.
Fellow Saints RB Jamaal Williams (groin) is doubtful for Week 9, while Kendre Miller (hamstring) has been ruled out. Taysom Hill could work as Kamara’s backup on Sunday.
We’ll continue to monitor the Saints’ 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 Alvin Kamara in Week 9?
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.
All of the predictive trends are pointing in the wrong direction, and that’s concerning. Yet, this is #PantherWeek for the Saints, and that obligates you to bump everyone up a tier.
If Kamara takes advantage of this matchup, I wouldn’t blink twice about selling him to the highest bidder on Monday morning — potentially before you get your first cup of coffee.
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.
Alvin Kamara’s Fantasy Points Projection in Week 9
Kamara is projected to score 16.1 fantasy points in PPR formats. This includes 14.4 rushing attempts for 55.8 yards and 0.4 touchdowns. It also includes 4.1 receptions for 31.5 yards and 0.2 touchdowns.
Check out the free PFN Fantasy Start-Sit Optimizer for the latest projections and advice for your lineups this week.
PFN Insights: Carolina Panthers Defense
Outside of one aberration against the Raiders in Week 3, the Panthers have consistently had a bottom-10 defense this season. They are simply bad across the board, with their best trait being that they rank 23rd in turnover percentage. Most of the rest of their numbers are among the bottom two statistically, which is never ideal (to state the obvious).
The offense’s struggles have not helped the cause. The inability of that unit to sustain drives has resulted in the Panthers being on the field for the fourth-most plays per game (65.13). When you have a unit that is already struggling, the last thing you want is them playing a high number of snaps, but that is what is happening to the Panthers.
For more insight on all other team defenses, head to our PFN Defense+ Metric Analysis.
Alvin Kamara’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 RB PPR Rankings
1) Bijan Robinson | ATL (vs. CAR)
2) Jahmyr Gibbs | DET (vs. MIN)
3) Derrick Henry | BAL (vs. CLE)
4) Jonathan Taylor | IND (vs. JAX)
5) Josh Jacobs | GB (vs. CHI)
6) Bucky Irving | TB (vs. NO)
7) Chase Brown | CIN (at PIT)
8) Aaron Jones | MIN (at DET)
9) De'Von Achane | MIA (at NYJ)
10) Zach Charbonnet | SEA (at LAR)
11) Kyren Williams | LAR (vs. SEA)
12) Tyjae Spears | TEN (vs. HOU)
13) Brian Robinson Jr. | WAS (at DAL)
14) Breece Hall | NYJ (vs. MIA)
15) Ray Davis | BUF (at NE)
16) D'Andre Swift | CHI (at GB)
17) Rico Dowdle | DAL (vs. WAS)
18) Najee Harris | PIT (vs. CIN)
19) J.K. Dobbins | LAC (at LV)
20) Isaac Guerendo | SF (at ARI)
21) Jaleel McLaughlin | DEN (vs. KC)
22) Joe Mixon | HOU (at TEN)
23) Tyrone Tracy Jr. | NYG (at PHI)
24) Blake Corum | LAR (vs. SEA)
25) Kenneth Gainwell | PHI (vs. NYG)
26) Tank Bigsby | JAX (at IND)
27) Jaylen Warren | PIT (vs. CIN)
28) Ameer Abdullah | LV (vs. LAC)
29) Travis Etienne Jr. | JAX (at IND)
30) Rhamondre Stevenson | NE (vs. BUF)
31) Michael Carter | ARI (vs. SF)
32) Rachaad White | TB (vs. NO)
33) Miles Sanders | CAR (at ATL)
34) D'Onta Foreman | CLE (at BAL)
35) Jerome Ford | CLE (at BAL)
36) Kimani Vidal | LAC (at LV)
37) Tyler Allgeier | ATL (vs. CAR)
38) Audric Estimé | DEN (vs. KC)
39) Javonte Williams | DEN (vs. KC)
40) Antonio Gibson | NE (vs. BUF)
41) Justice Hill | BAL (vs. CLE)
42) Trey Benson | ARI (vs. SF)
43) Raheem Blackshear | CAR (at ATL)
44) Will Shipley | PHI (vs. NYG)
45) Ty Johnson | BUF (at NE)
46) Alexander Mattison | LV (vs. LAC)
47) Cam Akers | MIN (at DET)
48) Isiah Pacheco | KC (at DEN)
49) Devin Singletary | NYG (at PHI)
50) Kareem Hunt | KC (at DEN)
51) Raheem Mostert | MIA (at NYJ)
52) Roschon Johnson | CHI (at GB)
53) Cordarrelle Patterson | PIT (vs. CIN)
54) Kenny McIntosh | SEA (at LAR)
55) Kendre Miller | NO (at TB)
56) Jeremy McNichols | WAS (at DAL)
57) Craig Reynolds | DET (vs. MIN)
58) Braelon Allen | NYJ (vs. MIA)
59) Patrick Taylor Jr. | SF (at ARI)
60) Samaje Perine | KC (at DEN)
61) Jamaal Williams | NO (at TB)
62) Sean Tucker | TB (vs. NO)
63) Julius Chestnut | TEN (vs. HOU)
64) Isaiah Davis | NYJ (vs. MIA)
65) Chris Brooks | GB (vs. CHI)
66) Mike Boone | CAR (at ATL)
67) Tony Pollard | TEN (vs. HOU)
68) Emanuel Wilson | GB (vs. CHI)
69) Clyde Edwards-Helaire | NO (at TB)
70) DeeJay Dallas | ARI (vs. SF)
71) Pierre Strong Jr. | CLE (at BAL)
72) Chris Rodriguez Jr. | WAS (at DAL)
73) Dare Ogunbowale | HOU (at TEN)
74) Khalil Herbert | CIN (at PIT)
75) Trey Sermon | IND (vs. JAX)
76) Rasheen Ali | BAL (vs. CLE)
77) Hassan Haskins | LAC (at LV)
78) Carson Steele | KC (at DEN)
79) Kyle Juszczyk | SF (at ARI)
80) Dameon Pierce | HOU (at TEN)
81) Jaylen Wright | MIA (at NYJ)
82) Sione Vaki | DET (vs. MIN)
83) Hunter Luepke | DAL (vs. WAS)
84) Tyler Goodson | IND (vs. JAX)
85) Ke'Shawn Vaughn | SF (at ARI)
86) Alec Ingold | MIA (at NYJ)
87) C.J. Ham | MIN (at DET)
88) Michael Burton | DEN (vs. KC)
89) Jeff Wilson Jr. | MIA (at NYJ)
90) D'Ernest Johnson | JAX (at IND)
91) Eric Gray | NYG (at PHI)
92) Jermar Jefferson | DET (vs. MIN)
93) Patrick Ricard | BAL (vs. CLE)
94) Joshua Kelley | NYG (at PHI)
95) Ty Chandler | MIN (at DET)
96) Israel Abanikanda | SF (at ARI)
97) Adam Prentice | NO (at TB)
98) Dylan Laube | LV (vs. LAC)
99) JaMycal Hasty | NE (vs. BUF)
100) George Holani | SEA (at LAR)
101) James Conner | ARI (vs. SF)
102) James Cook | BUF (at NE)
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.