The Minnesota Vikings will face the Indianapolis Colts 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 TE T.J. Hockenson.
Is T.J. Hockenson Playing in Week 9?
T.J. Hockenson’s 2024 debut is imminent. The Minnesota Vikings must activate Hockenson from the PUP list before Friday, and NFL Network confirmed that the transaction will take place.
Nearly 11 months after tearing his ACL, Hockenson will face the Colts on Sunday. He fully practiced on Wednesday and Thursday, his first non-limited sessions of the year, and is no longer listed on Minnesota’s injury report.
Hockenson could quickly usurp WR Jordan Addison to become Sam Darnold’s No. 2 target behind Justin Jefferson. He posted a career-high 95 receptions for 960 yards and five touchdowns before going down last season and will return to an advantageous matchup.
Indy allows the fourth-most fantasy points to opposing tight ends and ranks sixth-worst in DVOA vs. TEs.
We’ll continue to monitor the Vikings’ 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 T.J. Hockenson in Week 9?
We’ve been teased with Hockenson’s (knee) return in consecutive weeks. If we finally get it on Sunday night, he should be locked into your lineup given recent tight ends’ performances against the Colts …
- Week 4, Pat Freiermuth: Five catches for 57 yards and a TD
- Week 5, Brenton Strange: Caught all four targets and a TD
- Week 7, Jonnu Smith: Caught all seven targets for 96 yards and a TD
I don’t think defensive numbers against tight ends are overly sticky, but those are interesting notes as we take a look at a Vikings offense that lacks a secondary pass catcher next to Justin Jefferson. It didn’t take Hockenson any time to get rolling last season (he was a top-six tight end in each of Minnesota’s three games, catching 23 passes across those contests).
While it stands to reason that his snaps could be capped in this spot, that didn’t stop the Rams from weighing down Puka Nacua in his return last week. Hockenson is a top-10 tight end for me right now — and that’s conservative with his status still unofficial.
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.
T.J. Hockenson’s Fantasy Points Projection in Week 9
Hockenson is projected to score 9.8 fantasy points in PPR formats. This includes 4.1 receptions for 41.4 yards and 0.3 touchdowns.
Check out the free PFN Fantasy Start-Sit Optimizer for the latest projections and advice for your lineups this week.
PFN Insights: Indianapolis Colts Defense
It appears as though we may have an improving unit on our hands in the Indianapolis Colts’ defense. After finishing in the bottom half in three of the first five weeks, they have now ranked 16th or above in each of the last three weeks. Doing that against the Titans and Dolphins was not all that impressive, but their most recent outing against the Texans was a promising sign.
Indianapolis is still struggling to get pressure, and that has been showing up in terms of their sack rate, their ability to prevent third-down conversions, and their EPA on dropbacks. A big part of their recent improvement has been performing better on third downs and in the red zone, so hopefully, they can maintain their momentum in those areas.
For more insight on all other team defenses, head to our PFN Defense+ Metric Analysis.
T.J. Hockenson’s Week 9 Fantasy Ranking
Our Weekly Consensus PPR Rankings are below — both positional and overall. They were last updated at 8:30 AM ET on Sunday, January 12. If you're in a Superflex league, make sure you check out our Wild Card Superflex Rankings.
Wild Card TE PPR Rankings
1) Mark Andrews | BAL (vs. PIT)
2) T.J. Hockenson | MIN (at LAR)
3) Zach Ertz | WAS (at TB)
4) Pat Freiermuth | PIT (at BAL)
5) Dalton Kincaid | BUF (vs. DEN)
6) Tucker Kraft | GB (at PHI)
7) Dallas Goedert | PHI (vs. GB)
8) Isaiah Likely | BAL (vs. PIT)
9) Will Dissly | LAC (at HOU)
10) Tyler Higbee | LAR (vs. MIN)
11) Dalton Schultz | HOU (vs. LAC)
12) Payne Durham | TB (vs. WAS)
13) Dawson Knox | BUF (vs. DEN)
14) Cade Otton | TB (vs. WAS)
15) Stone Smartt | LAC (at HOU)
16) Grant Calcaterra | PHI (vs. GB)
17) Luke Musgrave | GB (at PHI)
18) Darnell Washington | PIT (at BAL)
19) Josh Oliver | MIN (at LAR)
20) Lucas Krull | DEN (at BUF)
21) Cade Stover | HOU (vs. LAC)
22) Hayden Hurst | LAC (at HOU)
23) Nate Adkins | DEN (at BUF)
24) Colby Parkinson | LAR (vs. MIN)
25) Devin Culp | TB (vs. WAS)
26) John Bates | WAS (at TB)
27) Adam Trautman | DEN (at BUF)
28) Tucker Fisk | LAC (at HOU)
29) Davis Allen | LAR (vs. MIN)
30) Ben Sinnott | WAS (at TB)
31) MyCole Pruitt | PIT (at BAL)
32) Ko Kieft | TB (vs. WAS)
33) E.J. Jenkins | PHI (vs. GB)
34) Johnny Mundt | MIN (at LAR)
35) Connor Heyward | PIT (at BAL)
Indianapolis Colts at Minnesota Vikings Insights
Indianapolis Colts
Team: The Colts are 4-4 this season, with five games decided by a field goal or less (2-3 in those games).
QB: Pressure is one thing; seeing ghosts is another – Richardson went 6-of-20 for 78 yards and an interception against the Texans when not pressured.
Offense: The Colts gained 21.2 yards per drive in the Week 7 win against the Dolphins, their lowest rate of the season. In the loss to the Texans on Sunday, that number was 21.0.
Defense: In Weeks 1-5, the Colts forced a punt on 23.6% of drives, a rate that has spiked to 48.6% since.
Fantasy: Anthony Richardson hit Josh Downs for a 69-yard touchdown pass of the season – his third of 50-plus yards.
Betting: Indianapolis has covered eight of their past 10 road primetime games (this is their first game since Week 13, 2022).
Minnesota Vikings
Team: The Vikings have played just three true road games this season – after this week, they go on the road for three straight (Jaguars, Titans, and Bears).
QB: Sam Darnold posted his highest in-pocket passer rating of the season on Thursday night (134.0, he’s been over 106.0 in six of seven games.
Offense: In Weeks 1-4, Minnesota averaged 6.5 yards per play on first down, a rate that is down to 4.8 since.
Defense: The Vikings posted their highest pressure rate of the season in Week 7 against the Lions (58.6%) but couldn’t make Matthew Stafford uncomfortable in Week 8 (11.8%, 18 percentage points below their previous season low).
Fantasy: Against the Rams on Thursday night, Sam Darnold started hot and then struggled – 67.5% of his fantasy points as a passer were scored on Minnesota’s first two drives.
Betting: Since 2020, 74.4% of Vikings games played after Halloween have gone over the total (29-10-1, league average: 48.4%).
Betting: The Vikings are 1-5-1 ATS in their past seven games played on extended rest.