NFL Yahoo Cup Three and Out: Round 9

Welcome to the NFL Yahoo Cup Three and Out! This free-to-enter, single-entry fantasy football contest consists of 18 rounds where the top 25,200 entry overall and top 1,000 entries per round share $150,000, with $10,000 to first overall and $1,000 + YFFC Live Final entry to first per round. Scoring will be cumulative across all rounds, with your three lowest scores dropped at the end. You may join this multi-round NFL DFS contest at any point, but enter today to give yourself the best chance to take home the title. Click here to begin the chase!

We will focus on three players — one quarterback, one running back and one wide receiver — to be NFL DFS picks for Week 9’s NFL Yahoo Cup contest. For a breakdown of the popular players and contrarian options this week, check out Geoff Ulrich’s Week 9 Yahoo rostership report and top pivot plays.

NFL Yahoo Cup Fantasy Football Picks | Round 9

NFL DFS Quarterback: Lamar Jackson — $36

Lamar Jackson leads the Yahoo points and value categories for quarterbacks in Awesemo’s Week 9 rankings. The Ravens have the third-highest team total on the slate this week and the best team total in a spread of 7 or less. That means Vegas expects both a lot of points and a back-and-forth affair. Usually that means it is Jackson time in Baltimore.

Jackson is continuing his run as the league’s best rushing quarterback. He leads the position in yards (480) and has played one fewer game than second-ranked Jalen Hurts (432 yards). When a quarterback gets almost 7 points a game before he even throws the ball, it raises his floor and ceiling tremendously. Additionally, Jackson is due for some touchdown regression. Prior to 2021, he scored a touchdown once every 138 yards rushing. This year he has scored two, making that ratio once every 240 yards. Touchdowns follow yards, not the other way around, so expect more scores form Jackson moving forward.

The Vikings are a tough matchup for quarterbacks on paper as the eighth toughest in fantasy points allowed per game. However, their run defense ranks 20th in DVOA, and they were torched by Kyler Murray for 35.1 Yahoo points (including 31 yards and a touchdown rushing) in Week 2. This will be their first matchup with a quarterback ranked in the top 10 in yards rushing per game, but expect Jackson to capitalize on the ground. This will also be the first game Jackson has all three of his top receivers active at the same time, with Marquise Brown, Sammy Watkins, Rashod Bateman and Mark Andrews all expected to play. Jackson is one of the safest quarterbacks and has the highest ceiling for NFL Yahoo Cup contests in Week 9.

NFL DFS Running Back: Devontae Booker — $15

There are no running backs on the Yahoo Cup Week 9 slate with an A grade for points in Awesemo’s rankings. Of those with a B grade, only one has an A in value: Devontae Booker. Booker has performed admirably filling in for Saquon Barkley, with at least 13 points in three of the four games.

Booker has seen at least 16 opportunities in every game with Barkley inactive. Crucially, he has also averaged over four targets per game in that span. With targets more valuable than carries in NFL DFS, that is a big boost to Booker’s production. At $15 in Week 9, he is far too cheap for his role and the matchup against an average Raiders defense. That is because DFS platforms priced Booker expecting Barkley to return in Week 9.

There is still a chance that Barkley will be active, although it has grown slimmer. He was questionable due to his ankle injury before testing positive for COVID on Wednesday. Since Barkley is vaccinated, he could return on Sunday with two negative tests. However, the combination of factors makes him unlikely to play. If he does, consider pivoting to Barkley at only $21 for Yahoo Cup lineups.

NFL DFS Wide Receiver: Brandin Cooks — $18

Cooks has the coveted Double-A grade in Awesemo’s rankings for Yahoo contests in Week 9. He is seeing a league-best 45% of his team’s air yards as well as almost nine targets a game. The Texans are devoid of talent outside of Cooks, leading to his outsized role. He also has the benefit of negative game scripts on a weekly basis.

While none of that is any different for this week (the Texans are still 6.5-point favorites), the matchup is. Houston is facing the Dolphins’ 26th-ranked pass defense this week. The last time Cooks faced a team in the bottom 10 in pass defense rankings, he turned seven targets into five catches and 132 yards. The Texans won that game too, meaning Cooks ‘ volume should increase this week. Cooks is a great play in all Yahoo contests. His volume provides a solid floor (necessary in a season-spanning NFL DFS contest like the Yahoo Cup), but his deep-threat role affords him a solid ceiling as well.

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