PlayerProfiler is home to award winning dynasty rankings and tools. Our Dynasty Deluxe package includes complete Dynasty Rankings, Rookie Rankings, Trade Analyzer, Draft Planner, Mock Drafts, and more. Check it out. Below, Joel Ybarra details performances by top NFL rookies in Week 9 of NFL action.
Now halfway through the NFL season, depth charts continue to shift and make room for rookies to step up. Rookies are becoming more comfortable in their roles in NFL offenses. Now is the time to keep an eye on usage increases for rookies across the NFL. Some rookies are going to break out across the second half of the season.
Rookie Performance of the Week
Drake Maye | QB, New England Patriots
29/41-206-1 passing, 8-95 rushing
Drake Maye brought the Patriots back from a seven-point deficit against the Titans Sunday with zero seconds left on the clock, throwing a touchdown pass to Rhamondre Stevenson, sending the game to overtime. The Pats eventually lost in the extra period, but Maye has shown his ability to be a dynamic playmaker in real live game action and a valuable asset in fantasy. He ran for nearly 100 yards, which adds a nice floor while he improves his competence passing and identifies some reliable targets.
Other Notable Rookie Performances
Brock Bowers | TE, Las Vegas Raiders
5/8-45-1 receiving
Brock Bowers continues to buoy the Vegas passing offense along with wideout Jakobi Meyers. The rookie tight end is a favorite target of both quarterbacks, Aidan O’Connell and Gardner Minshew.
Bowers scored the second touchdown of his young career Sunday and added eight targets to his season target total. He leads all tight ends in targets and is No. 6 among all pass catchers.
Malik Nabers | WR, New York Giants
9/11-59 receiving
Malik Nabers had his fifth game out of seven with double-digit targets. That was even while having only one target in the first half (which he did not catch). He is tied for No. 2 in the league in targets (84), even while missing two full games. We are talking about targets from Daniel Jones, who had zero yards passing at halftime Sunday, but Nabers still ranks top-six in fantasy PPG. On an offense that scored more touchdowns, Nabers would be in the conversation for the overall WR1. Still, the LSU product has three TDs in seven games played.
Rome Odunze | WR, Chicago Bears
5/7-104 receiving
Rome Odunze had his second 100-yard game of his young career and should have had more against a beatable Cardinals pass defense, but it wasn’t the Bears’ day.
Questions are going to be raised about a Bears offense that scored just nine points and zero touchdowns Sunday with a QB prospect like Caleb Williams and these weapons. Odunze will only continue to get better, especially as he takes on a more featured role in the offense.
Trey Benson | RB, Arizona Cardinals
8-37-1 rushing, 1/1-18 receiving
James Conner was rolling – 18-for-107 rushing versus the Bears – but Trey Benson also produced in limited work. He had his highest number of carries on the season (eight), broke one for 17 yards and then scored a touchdown from the one-yard line at the end of the first half. The Florida State product also caught his one target and took it for an 18-yard gain.
Xavier Legette | WR, Carolina Panthers
4/6-33-1 receiving, 1-6 rushing
With Diontae Johnson in Baltimore, Xavier Legette led the Panthers in routes and targets. He is also showing he has a nose for the end zone, scoring his fourth TD of the season in an offense that doesn’t score that many touchdowns.
Ray Davis | RB, Buffalo Bills
4-20 rushing, 2/2-70-1 receiving
Ray Davis is a dog, and a top-three handcuff in fantasy. If something were to happen to James Cook, Davis would eat. He took one of his two targets and exploded for a 63-yard touchdown in the third quarter Sunday, breaking two tackles.
Theo Johnson | TE, New England Patriots
3/6-51-1 receiving
Theo Johnson ran the third-most routes for the Giants Sunday and earned the second-most targets. He also caught a 35-yard touchdown down the seam in the fourth quarter to bring the Giants within one score of the division-leading Commanders.
Johnson is not a weekly play but is an intriguing dynasty asset. At 6-6 and 259-pounds, he is the seventh-most athletic tight end all-time in the PlayerProfiler database.
Key Usage Notes
AJ Barner | TE, Seattle Seahawks – third in routes (34) on team, 4/7-27 with Noah Fant out
Tyrone Tracy Jr. | RB, New York Giants – 16-66, 1/1-3
Ja’Tavion Sanders | TE, Carolina Panthers – third in routes (18) on team, 4/5-87
See all Joel’s PlayerProfiler’s articles here, including The Rookie Report for every week of the NFL season.
