The Tennessee Titans will face the New England Patriots in Week 9. Here’s fantasy football start-sit advice for every Titans skill player who has the potential to make a fantasy impact during the game.
Looking for more lineup advice? Head over to our Week 9 Fantasy Start-Sit Cheat Sheet, where we cover every fantasy-relevant player in every game.
Mason Rudolph, QB
Mason Rudolph was able to produce early last week by loading Calvin Ridley down with targets in the first quarter, but that strategy ran out of gas with time and isn’t a sustainable way to pay the fantasy bills moving forward.
He has a sub-4% career touchdown rate and should be nowhere near fantasy rosters for Week 9. His greatest asset will be his willingness to lock in on Ridley, something we hope sustains for as long as he is under center
Will Levis, QB
If it needs to be said that you’re not trusting Levis under any circumstances, it might be time to explore other hobbies.
The foliage in New England is beautiful this time of year. Fall is a great time to explore new recipes. There are other ways to spend your fall days than banking on Levis to develop out of nowhere.
We aren’t sure if a shoulder injury will again keep him out of action, but with his yards per attempt down 21.1% from last season, there’s no reason to be waiting on this status. Mason Rudolph has filled in as best he can, but that’s not a direction to be going, either.
If you’re hell-bent on getting Titans exposure, you can be encouraged by the connection that Rudolph showed with Calvin Ridley for a 10-minute stretch last week. Outside of that, you can move on from this game without much thought.
Tony Pollard, RB
Pollard isn’t exciting, but his usage lands him as an RB2 in my rankings every week, and I don’t see that changing any time soon. He’s carried the ball at least 16 times in six of seven games and brought in multiple passes in every game this season, versatility that makes him immune to variable game scripts.
The Patriots own the second-worst goal-to-go defense and the fourth-highest RB rush touchdown rate — flaws that give Pollard enough of a ceiling to play him with confidence this weekend.
Tyjae Spears, RB
A hamstring injury has forced Spears out of consecutive games; while he is thought to be trending in a positive direction, does it matter?
Titans running backs are averaging the fewest yards per carry before contact this season (32.9% less than any other team), something that I find unlikely to change given how little pressure this passing game puts on opposing defenses.
He checks in as a middling Flex assuming that he is fine and Tony Pollard (foot) is inactive — he’s a volume bet in that situation and nothing more. Should both Spears and Pollard sit, Julius Chestnut is the add in desperate situations, but this offensive environment doesn’t make a third-string running back a must play, even if he profiles for a bellcow role.
Spears is an interesting buy in dynasty formats due to a lack of early career usage, but with just one game of more than eight touches in 2024, he’s not someone redraft managers need to keep rostered.
Calvin Ridley, WR
Calvin Ridley’s 118 first-quarter receiving yards were the 10th most in a first quarter since the start of 2015 and came out of nowhere, given that he entered the game with 56 receiving yards in his previous four games.
The next three quarters played out like the first seven weeks (25 receiving yards), and that is why Ridley still doesn’t make it into Flex conversations for me. His role is clear, and the targets aren’t going anywhere, but the floor/ceiling combination isn’t worth it.
He’s the unquestioned alpha in an offense that is going to be playing from behind consistently, and somehow he has one — count ‘em, one — end-zone target. You’re chasing 15 good minutes and overlooking a month of struggles, and that’s a good way to lose ground in your fantasy standings.
Nick Westbrook-Ikhine, WR
You have to have a hyphenated name to score in three consecutive games. I don’t make the rules, I just follow them. It’s Westbrook-Ikhine and Amon-Ra St. Brown. That’s your entire list of receivers who have scored in each of their past three games.
On the bright side, he played the majority of snaps for the first time this season (91.5%). On the less bright side, he still plays for the Titans.
Tennessee’s pass ranks, 2024:
- 24th in passing touchdown rate
- 29th in yards per pass attempt
- 32nd in passer rating
- 32nd in interception rate
This is the same offense that has supported two top-40 Calvin Ridley weeks over two months. You missed out on Westbrook-Ikhine’s random touchdown barrage, and that’s OK — the bigger mistake is chasing points that you are unlikely to cash in on in the future.
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.