Fantasy Football Week 9 Start ‘Em Sit ‘Em QB rankings: Geno Smith looks to bounce back, but Dak Prescott already has

Quarterbacks have always been among the most important fantasy football players during each NFL season. They always represent the highest-scoring position every year, making their scores extremely valuable in lineups. Starting the right quarterbacks each week can sometimes carry fantasy teams to victories, but wrong moves can be devastating.

Week 9 of the 2023 NFL season has many important factors to consider before plugging any fantasy quarterback into a starting lineup. With the exception of a few elite options, who can be started every week regardless of their specific matchup, the rest of the field should only be utilized in favorable situations. Blindly starting players often results in a failure to maximize fantasy scoring.

Managers looking to stream the best quarterbacks each week will weigh many variables, including direct weekly matchups, recent individual performances, injury situations to relevant players, projected team score, and expected offensive roles, among many others. Bye weeks must also be taken into consideration, as four teams will be sitting out the Week 9 slate.

This complicated analysis process can be made simpler by taking advantage of the Start/Sit Optimizer before finalizing any lineup decisions. This valuable tool weighs every possible variable on any player in a given week to generate fantasy projections and lineup suggestions. It was also used to help generate the following list of quarterbacks to target or fade in Week 9 of the 2023 fantasy football season.

Fantasy Football Week 9 Start 'Em: Quarterbacks

Prescott vs Smith

#1 - Dak Prescott

Dak Prescott got off to a sluggish start to the 2023 fantasy football season, finishing outside of the Top 15 quarterbacks in each of his first five games. He has bounced back in a big way across his past two games, ranking among the top three in both of them.

His strong form comes just in time for a rivalry game when the Dallas Cowboys meet the Philadelphia Eagles in Week 9. While the Eagles have one of the best overall defensive units in the NFL, they have struggled to contain fantasy quarterbacks. This is great news for Prescott, as they are currently allowing the fourth-most fantasy points per game to the position.

#2 - Derek Carr

Derek Carr also got off to a slow start to the 2023 fantasy football season in his first year with the New Orleans Saints. He finished outside of the Top 25 fantasy quarterbacks in three of his first four games. He has been solid since then, ranking inside of the top 15 quarterbacks in his past four consecutive games and eclipsing 300 passing yards in each of his past three games.

Carr has an excellent opportunity to build off of his solid recent form when he hosts the Chicago Bears in Week 9. They feature one of the worst defenses in the entire NFL in many different categories, including allowing the third-most fantasy points per game to quarterbacks.

#3 - CJ Stroud

While CJ Stroud entered the 2023 NFL season as a promising quarterback prospect, he was pretty much off the radar for fantasy football. This is especially true in traditional season-long formats, as rookie starting quarterbacks will always hold a ton of value in Dynasty leagues

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Stroud proved the doubters wrong this year by becoming a relevant fantasy option immediately. His peak span of five weeks included four finishes among the top 12 fantasy quarterbacks, making him a QB1 on many fantasy rosters. With four bye weeks and many injuries in Week 9, Stroud makes for a solid streamer against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers' bottom-10 passing defense.

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For managers looking to acquire any of these Week 9 targets, make sure to consult the fantasy football trade analyzer first.

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Fantasy Football Week 9 Sit 'Em: Quarterbacks

#1 - Geno Smith

Geno Smith enjoyed a breakout fantasy football season last year in his first opportunity to serve as the starting quarterback for the Seattle Seahawks. He shockingly finished the year ranked inside of the Top 10 overall quarterbacks in total fantasy points.

Smith has failed to follow up with another solid fantasy season so far this year, finishing better than QB15 just once through eight weeks. It won't get any easier for him in Week 9 against the Baltimore Ravens' elite defense. They currently allow the fewest fantasy points per game to quarterbacks of any NFL team.

#2 - Daniel Jones

The New York Giants have been without starting quarterback Daniel Jones for each of their past three games. He's expected to finally make his return to the lineup in Week 9 against the Las Vegas Raiders. While he provides a boost for the Giants, he will be tough to trust in fantasy football.

With the exception of his massive QB1 finish in Week 2, Jones has failed to score a touchdown in any of his other four games this season. The fact that the Raiders rank inside the top 10 in defending fantasy quarterbacks further confirms that Jones is a complete fade this week, and every week until he can prove to be productive again.

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#3 - Gardner Minshew

The Indianapolis Colts lost rookie quarterback Anthony Richardson to a season-ending injury, opening the door for Gardner Minshew to take over as their starting quarterback. He turned in an outstanding QB3 performance two weeks ago, but finished outside of the Top 15 quarterbacks in his other two games.

Minshew is a solid streamer when playing in favorable matchups, but Week 9 isn't one of them. While the Carolina Panthers have been one of the worst teams in the NFL this season, their defense has allowed just the eighth-fewest fantasy points per game to quarterbacks.

Week 8 QB rankings for 2023 fantasy football

1. Patrick Mahomes
2. Josh Allen
3. Lamar Jackson
4. Tua Tagovailoa
5. Jalen Hurts
6. Dak Prescott
7. Justin Herbert
8. Joe Burrow
9. Derek Carr
10. CJ Stroud
11. Sam Howell
12. Jordan Love
13. Bryce Young
14. Geno Smith
15. Kenny Pickett
16. Gardner Minshew
17. Baker Mayfield
18. Will Levis
19. Daniel Jones
20. Matthew Stafford
21. Zach Wilson
22. Tyson Bagent
23. Desmond Ridder
24. Jimmy Garoppolo
25. Mac Jones
26. PJ Walker
27. Jaren Hall
28. Clayton Tune