NFL Week 9 Fantasy Football Recap: Atlanta Falcons vs. Los Angeles Chargers

• Austin Ekeler: 14 carries, 47 yards, 1 touchdown, 7 receptions, 24 receiving yards, 1 receiving touchdown

• Cordarrelle Patterson: 13 carries, 44 yards, 2 touchdowns, 1 reception, 9 receiving yards

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Cordarrelle Patterson’s return: Patterson returned off injured reserve to rejoin the Falcons as part of a four-man committee.

There were reports before the game that Patterson would get eased in rather than handle his normal workload.
He received roughly one-third of snaps in most situations, but luckily he received nearly all of the goal-line work. He was the clear goal-line back when he was healthy at the beginning of the season, too.
Fantasy managers can safely start him despite the crowded backfield. He will still score the touchdowns, and his snaps should increase.
Tyler Allgeier put up 99 yards on 10 carries and is a clear sell-high candidate. Patterson will likely take a higher percentage of carries going forward, and Damien Williams could still return sooner rather than later.

The Falcons No. 2 wide receiver: Olamide Zaccheaus’ role as the Falcons’ No. 2 wide receiver is becoming more secure, as the receiving room has become less crowded.

Zaccheaus has consistently received the second-most snaps among Falcons wide receivers, but his percentage of offensive snaps has steadily increased.
Bryan Edwards started the season as his closest competition, but Edwards’ role in the offense steadily decreased over two months, and he was a healthy inactive for Week 9.
The Falcons’ No. 2 wide receiver doesn’t matter too much for fantasy football currently when no Atlanta player had more than 27 receiving yards, but it’s worth noting for single-game competitions and prop bets, and it becomes relevant if the Falcons ever do rely more heavily on the pass game.

Isaiah Spiller the new No. 2 back: Spiller saw the second-most action in the Chargers’ backfield for the first time all season.

He was a healthy inactive for the first several weeks behind Austin Ekeler, Joshua Kelley and Sony Michel.
Kelley landed on injured reserve two weeks ago with a sprained MCL.
Spiller made his season debut last week as the third back.
He gained 29 yards on seven carries.
This is roughly the role several expected him to have at the start of the season.
It likely won’t be enough for him to have standalone value without a blowout win for Los Angeles, but he should be picked up in leagues that are large enough where all of the other handcuffs are also on rosters.

Los Angeles without its top two receivers: Both Keenan Allen and Mike Williams were inactive, giving their backups even more playing time this season.

Josh Palmer was the Chargers’ top wide receiver, handling his most playing time in weeks. He caught eight passes for 106 yards. He is a waiver wire target, as he will likely remain a starter for several more weeks.
DeAndre Carter was the No. 2 receiver — and the primary slot receiver, as he’s been most of the season.
Carter could have some value going forward, as the Chargers have the sixth-best schedule for fantasy wide receivers over the rest of the season.
2021 undrafted wideout Michael Bandy was the clear third receiver for the second straight week after barely playing earlier in the season.

Table Notes

• Snaps include plays called back due to penalties, including offensive holding or defensive pass interference. The other three stats have these plays removed.

• Targets may differ from official NFL sources. The most likely discrepancy would be from a clear thrown-away pass, where the NFL may give the target to the nearest receiver, while this data will not.

• Carries are only on designed plays. Quarterback scrambles won’t count for the total number of carries in the game.