Fantasy Football: Jordyn Tyson's targets per route in his long-awaited NFL debut, plus more key stats from Week 9

In fantasy football, you have to look back to move forward. Fantasy points are the goal, but how a player gets there is the key. Analyst Joel Smyth breaks down 8 numbers to know from Week 9 in order to win your matchup in Week 10 and beyond.31%Targets per route for Jordyn Tyson. The long-awaited debut for the top-10 pick didn’t come with a staggering box score, but it did offer some hope. The rookie was on a very limited snap count, only running 16 routes, yet was targeted five times, the second-most on the team to Chris Olave. Devaughn Vele, the Saints WR2 to begin the season, was only targeted on four of 44 routes. ​After starting the day with a fumble, Tyson turned it around with three receptions in the fourth quarter as New Orleans came back to tie the game and send it into overtime. Although he was limited, when Tyson was used, it was in a role that can be beneficial going forward. In an offense that provides plenty of completions with Tyler Shough ranking third-highest among QBs, Tyson was used in the slot and on the move, very similar to Vele, who averaged 12.3 PPG going into the week. Olave will be the No. 1, but Tyson can still get enough volume to show off why he was a top-10 NFL Draft selection.Jordyn Tyson coulda had one pic.twitter.com/7g7rjYQAv3— wok (@wokdior) November 8, 202680.8%Of the RB touches went to Jonah Coleman, the second-highest by a Broncos RB since Sean Payton took over in 2023. Payton historically has a committee at RB, whether it's a trio in Denver or Alvin Kamara with Mark Ingram back in New Orleans. They produce without being the workhorse. So when a RB does have the clear majority in a Payton-led backfield, it leads to a major fantasy impact. When a rookie is doing it, it’s even more impressive. Coleman has been getting everything in Denver since the second quarter of Week 8: the receiving, red-zone work and carries overall. RJ Harvey experienced the same success last season after the J.K. Dobbins injury, posting RB1 numbers in the most important time of the year as the lead back, including a game over 80.8%. Harvey will be back eventually, but Coleman looks to be the clear No. 1 going forward either way, and should be the main red-zone back, even if work is more distributed in the future. For now, Coleman is a short-term RB1 in fantasy with the potential of it sticking based on how much Harvey is involved upon return.64.3%Of the NYJ RB touches went to Breece Hall in his return; however, that is his lowest mark this season. It’s a lose-lose in New York. Braelon Allen managers going from 17 PPG scored in half-PPR leagues to a fringe flex at best, while Hall managers no longer have a bellcow. It’s only the first game back, but it’s an especially bad sign for Hall that Allen had 2x as many routes on Sunday, as Hall’s receiving has been a major reason for his past fantasy ceiling. A fumble didn’t help Allen’s case this week, but it didn’t seem to affect his playing time the rest of the game. If Hall doesn’t gain more of an edge in Week 10, his rest-of-season value is heavily held back by Allen’s presence in this offense.16.2%Target share for Nico Collins since Week 5. There are fewer and fewer excuses that can be accepted for Collins decline. Yes, he scored over 15 PPR points this week, but it only came out to be 17% of Houston’s receiving points as C.J. Stroud threw for 384 yards and five touchdowns. His 10.8% target share in Week 9 is even more concerning considering the absence of Jaylin Noel, the second WR to go down for the season for the Texans, joining Jayden Higgins. The two biggest preseason threats to Collins’ target share are out, and he hasn’t been able to separate from the other wideouts in volume. With how well Stroud is playing, his fantasy value remains high, just with much more risk for floor weeks as we saw in Week 8.1.4Touchdowns per game for the Colts since Week 5, above only the Chargers. First-round fantasy pick Jonathan Taylor has been struggling in all aspects. The volume is decreasing, the efficiency is down and the team is on a five-game losing streak with a crumbling offense. The 2025 Taylor is nowhere to be seen. After originally having an elite 85% of the Colts’ RB touches to begin the season, Taylor’s share has dipped to 63% over the last three weeks, an average rate at best. With a declining offensive line and the inability to sustain drives, Taylor has gone downhill fast with no signs of a rebound if he sticks in Indy. Although the offense is built around him in the red zone, his fantasy production has dropped from the overall RB2 in the red area in 2025 to 16th in 2026. With no signs of life for the Colts, it’ll be difficult for Taylor to be more than an average fantasy RB2. ​21.0Touches per game this season for Bucky Irving, the fifth-most among RB. The only four above him are all top-five fantasy RBs on the season. After a 24-touch night in Chicago, Irving extends his streak of 20+ touch games to five, as the Buccaneers’ running back has become the star and primary focus of the offense. He touches the ball on 58.4% of his snaps with Baker Mayfield at QB, mostly in the run game, but plenty as a receiver too, with Mayfield targeting him on 27% of his routes. Kenny Gainwell may give him some breaks, but when Irving is on the field, he’s on the field for a reason. Irving’s 58% is the second-highest mark behind only Derrick Henry, who isn’t nearly as involved in the passing game. And now that both Bucky and the Tampa Bay offensive line are healthy this season, the rushing offense looks unstoppable, even against worthy rushing defenses such as the Bears.38.3%Completions per dropback for Joe Milton in his first start this season. The Eagles’ offense needed a spark, and they tried in Week 9 with a QB change. Unfortunately for Makai Lemon and Dallas Goedert, the floor looks to be dangerously low. On 47 dropbacks, Milton only completed 18 passes, enough to get Lemon and Goedert to double digits, but failing to get Saquon Barkley a single reception or Darius Cooper more than a pair on his eight targets. Barkley’s day was salvaged by a goal-line touchdown, but with Milton in at QB, the receiving value and touchdown potential take a major dip. The Eagles RB will need a major increase in volume to be trusted in this offense, as Elijah Mitchell is taking enough away from Barkley, decreasing his fantasy floor.​2.7The average depth of pass attempt for Patrick Mahomes on Sunday. It lowered his second-lowest ranking to last, behind Bo Nix, as the Chiefs’ offense stuck with their grind-it-out mentality. Fantasy quarterback success often comes down to ceiling potential. A lot of NFL quarterbacks can get you 17 fantasy points any given week, but who can get 25 or more? Since Week 3, Mahomes has only scored over 17 in one of six tries. The offense has no downfield weapons, especially without Tyquan Thornton, forcing Mahomes and this offense into a condensed passing attack. They play good defense, run the ball great and when Mahomes does get the passing scores, it’s mostly just to reach his fantasy floor. The rushing for Mahomes has dipped coming off the ACL tear, and it hasn’t been made up for with any aggressive passing. Unless there is a last-minute move before the deadline, I wouldn’t expect a huge change in offensive identity to propel Mahomes from a great superflex QB to a great 1QB league option.