2023 Fantasy Football Breakout Candidates: Week 9
We are officially at the halfway point of the 2023 NFL Season! Each week, we go over at least three fantasy football breakout candidates who could … you know, break out … in the upcoming week! Before we dive into which four players could break out this week, let’s see how we did in Week 8!
- Dameon Pierce, RB, Texans: 12 car., 46 yards
- Odell Beckham Jr., Ravens: Did not have a target
- Kenny Pickett, QB, Steelers: 10-16, 73 yards (got injured midway through the game.)
There’s no way to go but up, ladies and gentlemen!
Let’s dive into our Week 9 fantasy football breakout candidates!
Aidan O’Connell, QB, Raiders
Jimmy Garoppolo out; Aidan O’Connell in. After the organization fired head coach Josh McDaniels and general manager Dave Ziegler this week, it was announced that rookie quarterback Aidan O’Connell–who impressed in the preseason–will be the presumptive starter ahead of Garoppolo. The Giants have a decent secondary and Wink Martindale is one of the blitz-heaviest defensive coordinators in the league, but this is still a good opportunity for O’Connell to get this new regime off on the right foot inside Allegiant Stadium this week.
Aaron Jones, RB, Packers
Jones has had a rocky season, in part due to injury but also due to poor offensive line play and suboptimal quarterback play. He’s averaged a career-low 4.2 yards per carry and hasn’t recorded more than 11 touches this season. He’s due, and the Rams, who have a mediocre run defense. Packers must key in on Aaron Donald for Jones to have any success in between the tackles, however, which is nothing short of a big task.
Demario Douglas, WR, Patriots
Douglas is expected to be one of New England’s top pass-catching options in Week 9 with injuries to Kendrick Bourne and DeVante Parker. The rookie wideout logged seven targets, five catches and 25 yards last week, but I expect him to surpass those marks against the Washington Commanders, who have one of the worst pass defenses in the NFL and flipped both Montez Sweat and Chase Young at the 2023 NFL Trade Deadline this week.
Juwan Johnson, TE, Saints
This one is another deep cut; you likely don’t have Johnson rostered unless you’re in a really deep league. He’s only played in four games with eight catches this season. But I expect Johnson to get back to where he was in the first three weeks in terms of targets and receptions against a porous Bears pass defense. Last week, he played in only 61 percent of New Orleans’ snaps in his first game back from injury, but I expect him to tread around 65-70 percent with a higher target share in Week 9.
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