The New England Patriots will face the Tennesee Titans 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 QB Drake Maye.
Is Drake Maye Playing in Week 9?
New England Patriots rookie quarterback Drake Maye got off to a fast start against the New York Jets on Sunday before going down with a concussion in the second quarter. Maye completed three of six passes for 23 yards while adding 46 rushing yards and a touchdown before exiting.
Fortunately, he could be on track to return in Week 9. Maye began the week with limited practices on Wednesday and Thursday.
Before Friday’s practice, Patriots head coach Jerod Mayo said Maye still was in the NFL’s concussion protocol and would be limited in practice. Because he remains in the protocol, Maye is officially considered questionable for Week 9.
However, when asked whether Maye could play Sunday, Mayo said “Yes.” At this point, all signs point toward Maye starting for the Patriots against the Titans.
Veteran Jacoby Brissett, who began the season as New England’s starting QB, completed 15 of 24 attempts for 132 yards in a 25-22 upset over Gang Green. He’d be back under center if Maye can’t go on Sunday.
We’ll continue to monitor the Patriots’ 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 Drake Maye in Week 9?
Jerod Mayo was surprised when the medical staff told him that Drake Maye had to go into the blue tent following his head injury but admitted that “pulling him out of the game and putting him in protocol is above my pay grade.”
It doesn’t sound like a lasting injury, but concussions have carried with them a missed game on average, and for a team not going anywhere in 2024, that seems like the most likely outcome for the No. 3 overall pick.
Maye has a fantasy-friendly skill set and had a pair of top-12 QB finishes prior to the injury. Asking him to be a weekly option for your team this season is a bit optimistic, but assuming health, I don’t think his days as a viable streamer are over.
The Patriots get a nice three-game run to round out the month (Rams, Dolphins, and Colts), a stretch where I could see playing Maye in a pinch.
I’m not playing a compromised version of him or Jacoby Brissett this weekend against a Titans defense that is quietly top five in completion percentage, yards per attempt, and first-down rate. However, adding Maye after this week is a luxury move I’d entertain if your QB situation is fluid.
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.
Drake Maye’s Fantasy Points Projection in Week 9
Maye is projected to score 9.8 fantasy points in Week 9. This includes 159.9 passing yards, 0.7 passing touchdowns, and 0.4 interceptions. It also includes 1.2 rushing attempts for 5.9 yards and 0.1 touchdowns.
Check out the free PFN Fantasy Start-Sit Optimizer for the latest projections and advice for your lineups this week.
PFN Insights: Tennessee Titans Defense
If you listened to NFL Network or the broadcast on Sunday you would have thought the Tennessee Titans’ defense was an elite unit, and while they are not bad, they are far from elite. They have only put together two top-10 performances in a single game this season, and both of those came against below-average offenses (the Bears and Dolphins). Outside of that, they have had one week inside the top 15 from the other five games.
Sunday got messy fast, and while it was not all the defense’s fault, they did little to stop the Lions. They continue to struggle inside the red zone, allowing touchdowns on 61.9% of trips. They also rank last in the league in terms of turnovers rate (2.6%), while they are fifth from last when it comes to creating pressure without blitzing.
There have been some positives, as they rank in the top five in terms of third-down conversion rate, yards per play, and success rate against the pass. The problem is that their offense cannot score enough points, and this defense cannot create turnovers or stop teams scoring consistently when they get inside the red zone.
For more insight on all other team defenses, head to our PFN Defense+ Metric Analysis.
Drake Maye’s Week 9 Fantasy Ranking
Our Weekly Consensus PPR Rankings are below — both positional and overall. They were last updated at 3:45 AM ET on Wednesday, December 25. If you're in a Superflex league, make sure you check out our Weekly Consensus Superflex Rankings.
Week 17 QB PPR Rankings
1) Josh Allen | BUF (vs. NYJ)
2) Lamar Jackson | BAL (at HOU)
3) Jalen Hurts | PHI (vs. DAL)
4) Joe Burrow | CIN (vs. DEN)
5) Jayden Daniels | WAS (vs. ATL)
6) Baker Mayfield | TB (vs. CAR)
7) Sam Darnold | MIN (vs. GB)
8) Kyler Murray | ARI (at LAR)
9) Bo Nix | DEN (at CIN)
10) Jordan Love | GB (at MIN)
11) Jared Goff | DET (at SF)
12) Anthony Richardson | IND (at NYG)
13) Brock Purdy | SF (vs. DET)
14) Tua Tagovailoa | MIA (at CLE)
15) Matthew Stafford | LAR (vs. ARI)
16) C.J. Stroud | HOU (vs. BAL)
17) Patrick Mahomes | KC (at PIT)
18) Justin Herbert | LAC (at NE)
19) Caleb Williams | CHI (vs. SEA)
20) Aaron Rodgers | NYJ (at BUF)
21) Geno Smith | SEA (at CHI)
22) Russell Wilson | PIT (vs. KC)
23) Cooper Rush | DAL (at PHI)
24) Bryce Young | CAR (at TB)
25) Drake Maye | NE (vs. LAC)
26) Michael Penix Jr. | ATL (at WAS)
27) Aidan O'Connell | LV (at NO)
28) Mac Jones | JAX (vs. TEN)
29) Mason Rudolph | TEN (at JAX)
30) Tommy DeVito | NYG (vs. IND)
31) Dorian Thompson-Robinson | CLE (vs. MIA)
32) Spencer Rattler | NO (vs. LV)
New England Patriots at Tennessee Titans Insights
New England Patriots
Team: The Patriots beat the Jets on Sunday with 247 yards of offense. Surprisingly, that was the eighth time in eight weeks a team has won with under 250 yards of offense (the Broncos also did it to the Jets in Week 4).
QB: Jacoby Brissett has yet to clear 5.5 yards per attempt in a game this season and has two touchdown passes on 159 attempts (Will Levis thinks that’s a low rate; he has five on 125 attempts this season).
Offense: The Patriots have converted six of seven red zone trips into touchdowns over the past three weeks (Weeks 1-5: 4-of-13).
Defense: New England’s defensive game plan adjusts as much week over week as any. They blitzed 17.2% of the time on Sunday – they’ve been at 25%, the lowest in four games, but also at 40% or the highest in three games, including Weeks 6-7).
Fantasy: Rhamondre Stevenson scored a pair of touchdowns on Sunday, but his 27 carries over the past two weeks have gained just 66 yards, and if Drake Maye misses time, even more running lanes are likely to close.
Betting: The Patriots are 1-3 ATS on the road this season – they’ve had plenty of issues since Tom Brady left town, but they’ve yet to have a losing ATS road record since his departure.
Tennessee Titans
Team: The Titans have been blown out in back-to-back weeks by Super Bowl contenders, but they own a +9 point differential this season in three games that are sub-.500 this season.
QB: Mason Rudolph averaged 15.6 yards per pass in the first quarter on Sunday and 3.9 the rest of the way.
Offense: The Titans converted 46.2% of their third downs in 2020. That number dipped to 43.6% in 2021, 36.5% in 2022, and 33.5% in 2023. Through eight weeks this season? The trend continues: 30.6%.
Defense: The Titans have failed to force a turnover in five of seven games this season.
Fantasy: Calvin Ridley had 118 first-quarter receiving yards, the 10th most in a first quarter since the start of 2015. He entered the game with 56 receiving yards in his four games prior.
Betting: The Titans have failed to cover all three home games this season and are just 1-5-1 ATS over their past seven in front of their fans.