This article is part of our Depth Chart Watch series.
Cardinals RB - With Stepfan Taylor sitting out in Week 9 due to a calf injury, Marion Grice took over the majority of the backup role to Andre Ellington, rushing five times for 12 yards and a touchdown. Robert Hughes didn't run the ball, but had a couple pass targets come his way. All in all, the Cardinals' backfield remains focused on Ellington - no matter who's backing him up.
Cardinals WR - It's starting to look like the fantasy community got a bit ahead of itself in declaring Larry Fitzgerald's run as Arizona's top receiver to be over. Not that he's having a huge year, but Fitz again led the Cards' wideout crew in targets on Sunday, reeling in five of six for 70 yards; meanwhile, Michael Floyd caught all four of his targets for just 36 yards. Floyd's been targeted just 11 times, total, in the last three weeks. John Brown, Jaron Brown and Ted Ginn all got their value diluted by evenly splitting the rest of Carson Palmer's passes toward wide receivers.
Ravens RB - While Justin Forsett remained the leader in the Baltimore backfield Sunday, he only out-touched Lorenzo Taliaferro 14-10, although Taliaferro's touches came mostly in garbage time, and his inefficiency and lost fumble surely won't help him parlay that into a bigger role. Bernard Pierce was barely used.
Ravens WR -Torrey Smith showed up to play for the first time in a while Sunday, catching four balls for 63 yards, including an impressive 35-yard touchdown. That's the end of the good news for this crew, as Steve Smith turned in a third straight quiet week. I predicted this would happen to the elder Smith even while he was rocking the league over the first six weeks, and now it's coming to pass.
Ravens TE - Owen Daniels returned from his minor knee surgery after missing just one game, and it was like he never left, collecting a very himself-like six catches for 53 yards. Backup Crockett Gilmore stole a two-yard touchdown from him for his only catch.
Bills RB -The Bills seem likely to come out of the bye with a backfield led by Anthony Dixon and backed up by Bryce Brown, as Fred Jackson (groin) seems unlikely to make a stunningly quick return in Week 10. With an iffy schedule, though, it may not be worth starting either Dixon or Brown in fantasy even if Jackson's recovery is slow.
Panthers RB - DeAngelo Williams did indeed return in time for the Thursday night game against New Orleans, and with eight carries for 20 yards, it's like he never left. Williams did bust a 30-yard gain on his only catch, at least. Jonathan Stewart split the carries with him, but was much more efficient, rushing for 46 yards. I'd feel comfortable cutting either to the wire - don't pick them up unless you're not expecting more than about six points in any given week.
Bengals RB - With Giovani Bernard (hip) unable to make the start Sunday, Jeremy Hill took every advantage of the opportunity afforded him, ripping off 154 yards and two touchdowns on 24 carries. Hill did leave briefly with a knee issue, but was able to return. The Bengals have a quick turnaround now, as they play Cleveland on Thursday, so Hill might be in line to get another start before Bernard feels well enough to return.
Bengals WR - Even with A.J. Green back from his foot injury and in action for Week 9, Mohamed Sanu remained Andy Dalton's most productive (and most heavily targeted) receiver. Green scored a touchdown to go with his 44 yards, and that's promising, but Sanu ripped off 95 yards and a TD of his own on just seven targets. He's really made a name for himself this season, even if Green again comes to dominate Andy Dalton's attention.
Browns QB - Well, Brian Hoyer just keeps not imploding - even though he was picked off twice Sunday, he also threw for 300 yards and two scores, both coming in the second half with the team narrowly trailing against Tampa. Johnny Manziel can only sit by and watch as Hoyer continues looking competent enough to remain the starter.
Browns RB - A tremendously ineffective Ben Tate (three yards on 10 carries - hideous - though at least he caught four balls for 29 yards) ended up yielding the majority of Sunday's carries to Terrance West, who toted 15 times for a still-not-impressive 48 yards and also caught a two-yard touchdown pass. The schizophrenia of this backfield has been bizarre all season, especially with regard to West, who's been the backup to Tate, the head of a two-man crew with Isaiah Crowell, scratched entirely, restored as the third-stringer, and now apparently leading a two-man timeshare. For Crowell's part, two consecutive ineffective weeks led to a zero in the box score Sunday. But the way things are going here, who knows how it'll shake out moving forward?
Browns WR - Taylor Gabriel emerged in Week 9 to lead the team with five catches, 87 yards and a touchdown, and it's now become worth noting that he's cleared 60 yards in four of his last six games. Fellow undersized receiver Andrew Hawkins led the team in targets again with eight to Gabriel's six, but caught just three for 34 yards. Miles Austin and Travis Benjamin keep hanging around on the fringes of fantasy uselessness, too, although Benjamin gets a boost if you play in a league that offers bonuses for yards per reception - he's averaging 18.2, which would be fourth in the NFL if he had enough catches to qualify. You know who does qualify, landing him at second in the NFL in yards per catch? Gabriel.
Browns TE - Jordan Cameron sat out with his concussion Sunday, leaving the workload at tight end to Jim Dray and Gary Barnidge once more. Those two combined their powers into one mediocre tight end, catching three of six targets for 42 yards. Although Barnidge saw four of those targets, Dray outgained him easily with his lone 26-yard catch. There hasn't been much to see here even when Cameron's suited up - now there's even less.
Cowboys QB - Tony Romo's back prevented him from suiting up in Week 9, leaving the Dallas offense in the perhaps less-than-capable hands of Brandon Weeden, who was largely chewed up and spit out by the Arizona defense.Romo's two back fractures loom large, but he's expected to travel to London (and presumably start) for Week 10 against the Jaguars. If Romo isn't feeling better, though, it would be less than surprising to see the Cowboys rest him with their bye coming up in Week 11. At 6-3 and facing lowly Jacksonville, that's a luxury they've got.
Broncos RB - Despite scoring two touchdowns (one rushing, one receiving), Ronnie Hillman didn't have the strongest game Sunday in New England, totaling just 16 ground yards on 10 carries. He did show up in the passing game, though, catching seven balls for 47 yards. Montee Ball could be back in practice this week, but it doesn't sound like he's on the path to being ready in time for Week 10. Even if he makes it back by Week 11, it's entirely possible that Hillman - who'd looked great on the ground prior to this dud against the Pats - could hold onto the starting role.Juwan Thompson and C.J. Anderson don't seem to be making any kind of serious play.
Broncos WR - Emmanuel Sanders has just been blowing up lately, and even a rib injury suffered Sunday couldn't stop him from ripping off 10 catches on 16 targets for 151 yards - all team highs. Despite Peyton Manning throwing the ball 57 times and racking up 438 yards, he only threw to three wide receivers - Sanders, Demaryius Thomas (127 yards on 10 targets) and Wes Welker (three catches on seven targets for 31 yards). Welker looks like he's achieved total uselessness at this point, and with the back injury he suffered Sunday, he could miss more time.
Lions RB - Reggie Bush (ankle) should be feeling better after the bye and therefore seems likely to suit up against Miami in Week 10, but his proclivity for injury as well as the emergence of Theo Riddick as a pass-catching weapon makes deploying Bush a very uncertain proposition. Joique Bell will also continue to see a good-sized role despite finishing under 3.0 YPC in three of the last five weeks.
Lions WR - Calvin Johnson "definitely expects to play" in Week 10 after sitting out the last three games and the bye, and it seems likely that he's reasonably close to 100 percent now. That implies something of a hit to Golden Tate's fantasy value, though Tate should retain a rather significant role in the offense with the way he's played.
Lions TE - The entire top trio of Brandon Pettigrew, Joseph Fauria and Eric Ebron sat out the week before the bye, and we'll have to see how they look in practice this week before we have a clear idea of who'll take the most reps in Week 10.
Packers QB - Aaron Rodgers tweaked his hammy before the bye, but is expected to be all better in time for a Week 10 matchup with the Bears. Don't expect him to run around too much, though.
Texans RB - I hope Arian Foster owners are handcuffing with Alfred Blue, as Foster's scheduled for an MRI after suffering a groin injury against the Eagles on Sunday. Fortunately, the Texans are on bye in Week 10, giving Foster some added recovery time before Houston visits run-friendly Cleveland in Week 11. Don't wait 'til next week - check in on Blue's status now.
Colts RB - Trent Richardson (hamstring) should be back in there Monday night as the complement to Ahmad Bradshaw, who at this point has likely secured himself the bigger share of the backfield touches.
Colts WR - With Reggie Wayne (elbow) scheduled to return Monday night, Donte Moncrief won't retain much of the fantasy luster he created with his Week 8 breakout. T.Y. Hilton should remain the most liberally used wideout in this crew.
Jaguars RB - I guess at some point I have to just accept that Denard Robinson is a quality fantasy asset at running back as the Jags' starter. Three big weeks in a row have me convinced, although his sub-200-pound frame may imply durability issues. Toby Gerhart looked good while seeing more work in the passing game, for what it's worth, catching three balls on four targets for 49 yards. He also rushed thrice for 19.
Jaguars WR -Surprisingly, Allen Hurns emerged Blake Bortles' favorite in Week 9, leading the team with seven catches, nine targets, 112 yards and two touchdowns. Cecil Shorts and Allen Robinson saw seven and eight targets, respectively, but only combined for 75 yards on their nine catches. Football's just weirder in London, maybe.
Dolphins RB - With Miami dumping on the Chargers 37-0 on Sunday, I expected more from Lamar Miller than 11 carries for 49 yards and a score, but a shoulder stinger knocked him out in the third quarter. That resulted in 11 carries for Damien Williams largely in garbage time, which he turned into only 28 yards, thoughhe did add 23 yards receiving. Miller's injury is reportedly minor and shouldn't limit him in Week 10, though a tough matchup against the Lions in Detroit might.
Vikings RB - In a Week 9 game that can only be described as brutal for fantasy owners, Jerick McKinnon got all the best work stolen from him by Matt Asiata, who took the minority of the carries (10 to McKinnon's 14) and turned them into 26 whole yards… oh yeah, and three touchdowns! Asiata surely delivered most of that production on fantasy benches and waiver wires while McKinnon owners were frustrated by another TD-free day in which he accumulated a fairly modest 68 total yards.
Vikings WR - It's back to the doom and gloom for Cordarrelle Patterson, who was only able to collect one out of seven targets for nine yards in Week 9 against Washington. At this point, Patterson simply can't be trusted for fantasy purposes despite his upside, and though Greg Jennings saw a fairly steady amount of work (a season-high 10 targets Sunday), his upside is very limited and highly touchdown-reliant.
Patriots RB - Despite the Pats spending a lot of Sunday's game playing with the lead, their backs didn't manage to make major gains on the ground, with Jonas Gray turning 12 carries into just 33 yards and Shane Vereen generating 29 yards on 11 carries of his own, though he found the end zone on one of his five receptions. It is promising to see that Vereen was targeted 10 times.
Patriots WR - Julian Edelman returned with a vengeance in Week 9, though Brandon LaFell remained Tom Brady's most heavily targeted receiver (13!) Though LaFell had some drop issues, resulting in him catching just six of those passes, he did still score a touchdown. As usual, Danny Amendola saw precious little work in the No. 3 role.
Patriots TE - Tim Wright disappeared again on Sunday while Rob Gronkowski romped his way to nine catches, 105 yards and a score. That's to be expected.
Saints RB - Mark Ingram... is a star? I mean, if you consider 272 yards and three touchdowns on the ground in two games to be star numbers. And I do. The long break between games means Khiry Robinson (arm) will have some extra time to get healthy for San Francisco in Week 10, but it's awfully hard to believe that Robinson will return to a committee role with the way that Ingram's been dominating as the bell cow. With Pierre Thomas likely to remain out due to his shoulder injury, Travaris Cadet should keep seeing some work in the pass game, but there wasn't much there for him Thursday - just three catches on five targets for 29 yards.
Saints WR - Why do fantasy owners hate owning New Orleans receivers? Because Drew Brees' ball distribution is wholly unpredictable except that we know Jimmy Graham will get his. In Week 9, Kenny Stills saw more targets (eight) than every other Saints wideout combined. Marques Colston and Brandin Cooks were targeted just thrice each, and Robert Meachem had the other one. None of them turned in much of a fantasy line, with Stills' 72 yards leading the way.
Giants RB -Rashad Jennings (knee) won't return in time for Monday night's game, leaving Andre Williams as the lead rusher for the Giants again. Maybe he'll do better this time, having had the bye for extra preparation, than he has the last two games. Peyton Hillis will handle most passing downs while Jennings takes aim at returning next week in Seattle.
Giants TE - Keep an eye on Larry Donnell's workload, as this situation - which was so unclear at the start of the year, then seemingly so clear in the early going, and now is all muddled again - should have some light shed on it Monday night. We'll see if Donnell's two Week 7 fumbles mean Daniel Fells works himself into a significant portion of the touches.
Jets QB - Michael Vick was pretty accurate, if unspectacular, in his first start as a Jet, going 21-for-28 for 196 yards and a touchdown. He didn't generate much on the ground, rushing four times for 18 yards, and as usual, the Jets didn't collect many points - just 10. Vick suffered a head injury that resulted in some reps for Matt Sims, but the veteran was able to return. Rex Ryan's already announced that Vick will be the starter again in Week 10, and it seems like he'd have to be pretty bad (or, well, unsurprisingly injured) for Geno Smith to make it back in.
Jets WR - Percy Harvin broke out big-time in his second game as a Jet, racking up catches on 11 of his 13 targets for 129 yards. That didn't stop Eric Decker from seeing plenty of action - he caught nine of 12 for 63 yards and a touchdown. It only makes sense for this pass game to focus on that duo at the expense of everyone else.
Jets TE - The Jets' tight ends were barely used in the passing game Sunday, compiling a combined zero catches on two targets - both of which went to Jeff Cumberland. Jace Amaro's generally been targeted pretty regularly this year, and I'd expect to see him work his way back into the offense next week against Pittsburgh.
Raiders TE -I'm not even going to write about the pile of useless bodies known as the Raiders' wide receiver corps this week. Instead, let's talk about Mychal Rivera, who's been blowing up out of nowhere the last two weeks, with 20 targets in that span, including 11 on Sunday. In those two games, he's caught 15 of those 20 passes for 121 yards and two touchdowns, a total that probably plays at tight end in your format. It'd be good to see him get some more action down the field, but he's probably in line for another big workload next week against Denver.
Eagles QB - Nick Foles broke his collarbone Sunday, so all of a sudden, it's Mark Sanchez time for at least the next several weeks. Good luck with that, Philadelphia. That said, Sanchez was pretty good in Foles' place despite a couple interceptions (15-for-22, 202 yards, two TDs), and he's certainly better suited to Chip Kelly's offense than he was to Rex Ryan's. (Then again, who's well suited to the Jets' offense? I feel like Ryan could make a bust out of Peyton Manning.) His weapons are surely much better than any he's had before, so maybe we'll see a career renaissance out of Sanchez. Or maybe he'll find new and intriguing ways to buttfumble.
Eagles WR - The mid-game switch to Sanchez certainly didn't hurt Jeremy Maclin, who's been an absolute monster this season and continued to be just that. However, but the Eagles did spread the ball around otherwise, with Riley Cooper drawing six targets while Jordan Matthews and Josh Huff had four each.
Steelers WR - Oh, you know, no big deal, just two consecutive six-touchdown games for Ben Roethlisberger. As you might expect, that created a lot of riches to go around. Rather typically, Antonio Brown remained the greatest beneficiary (and is now close to 1,000 receiving yards for the year), but Markus Wheaton made the most of his two catches (62 yards and a score), while Martavis Bryant caught another two touchdowns despite a quiet day yardage-wise. That's five touchdowns in three NFL games now for Bryant, who's looking like PlaxicoBurress Lite in the red zone.
Chargers QB - Philip Rivers' disaster game Sunday ended with a hand injury, and he was replaced by Kellen Clemens late. There's no word on the severity of the ailment, but with San Diego's bye week here for him to shake it off, I'd be surprised if Rivers misses any action.
Chargers RB - It's never good to be stomped 37-0, as San Diego was in Week 9, but it was helpful to one Charger: Ryan Mathews. Why? Well, Branden Oliver's brutal 13 carries for 19 yards mark his second consecutive week of ineffectiveness, and it sounds likely that Mathews will return to head the backfield following the Week 10 bye.
Chargers WR - With the team getting shut out, it was no surprise to see Keenan Allen return to his typical ways of many targets and few yards Sunday. He led the team with nine passes thrown his way, catching all of four for 47 yards. Malcom Floyd (four catches, 60 yards) was the only other wideout to catch a pass from Philip Rivers, who had a legit disaster game.
49ers WR - If you took a shot with Brandon Lloyd on Sunday, as I did, you didn't get rewarded, as he had just a lonely 10-yard catch. Michael Crabtree continued his Keenan Allen-like ways of being oft targeted, but unproductive, creating just 40 yards on the nine passes his way. AnquanBoldin is a rock, Steve Johnson has a role, and Crabtree owners are livin' on a prayer.
Seahawks WR -Doug Baldwin was the only Seattle wideout to exceed 20 yards Sunday, and he only made it to 38 on his five catches. Hope you didn't overrate him after his one big game. No other receiver in this offense is even close to being worth owning except in the deepest of leagues. Worth noting, perhaps, is that Jermaine Kearse led the team in targets with seven… and caught one pass for four yards.
Rams RB - While Tre Mason hasn't been blowing the doors off the barn, he continued to dominate the backfield touches Sunday, rushing 19 times for 65 yards. Benny Cunningham didn't look efficient on his four carries, though his 38 receiving yards were enough to lead the team in that category. For what that's worth.
Buccaneers QB- An ineffective Mike Glennon turned in his fourth game in five tries with a completion rate under 60 percent Sunday, and with Josh McCown now all the way back from his thumb injury, it's possible that the Bucs go back to their disappointing offseason acquisition in Week 10 against the Falcons. This one's worth monitoring, especially if you're in a two-QB fantasy scenario - or if you own one of the Bucs' receivers, who did practically nothing while McCown started over the first three weeks.
Buccaneers RB - Doug Martin's ankle injury kept him out in Week 9, again leaving the backfield duties to Bobby Rainey, and though Rainey didn't find the end zone, he didn't disappoint either, rushing 19 times for 87 yards and adding a 34-yard catch. Consistency has been his bugaboo, though, as Rainey's had a proclivity in his career for following big bust-out games with big busts. That in mind, rookie Charles Simsis in line to carve out a role once he returns from his own ankle injury, and Martin - though he may have lost the starting gig by now with his injuries and 2.9 YPC - will certainly see some touches as well.
Buccaneers WR - Sunday finally brought us the Mike Evans-Vincent Jackson combo we've been waiting for, with Evans turning in a dominating 124-yard, two-touchdown performance (accounting for practically half of Mike Glennon's production) while Jackson turned in an inefficient, but still reasonable day, catching six out of 12 targets for 86 yards.
Titans QB - Zach Mettenberger appears to be in line to start for the rest of the season unless he stumbles badly.
Titans RB - Bishop Sankey is expected to hold onto the starting role coming out of the bye even with Shonn Greene back, but neither has much fantasy value until one of them (okay, Sankey) can demonstrate otherwise.
Redskins QB - Robert Griffin (ankle) made his return Sunday, and though he led the Redskins to a fourth-quarter comeback, the Vikings ended up coming back themselves to deny Washington a win. RGIII was decent in his return, throwing for 251 yards and a touchdown while being intercepted once. He also rushed seven times for 24 yards. Now he'll get the bye week to heal up some more in anticipation of a Week 11 matchup against the Buccaneers.
Redskins TE - The Skins didn't look for much out of the TE position at all Sunday - although Niles Paul hauled in both of his targets and Jordan Reed caught his only one, they combined for just 35 yards. If you're going to own one, Reed's the one, but it looks like things will be inconsistent for him.
