Fantasy Football: 3 Bold Predictions for NFL Week 9

There's nothing quite like the NFL.

Football is one of the most intense, exciting sports on the planet. The source of the now-ubiquitous saying "Any Given Sunday," the NFL is a place where even struggling teams have a chance to topple the best in the league. Anything can happen when you play only 17 regular season games a year.

That uncertainty is a huge driver behind the excitement the NFL generates each and every season. What's more fun than watching something totally unexpected unfold before your eyes?

That's why, this year, we'll be bringing you some bold predictions to watch for in each week the 2025 NFL season.

All NFL betting odds come from FanDuel Sportsbook and may change after this article is published.

NFL Bold Predictions for Week 9

Nico Collins Falls Under 45 Receiving Yards

Two of the NFL's top-tier defenses meet between the Denver Broncos (sixth) and Houston Texans (first) as both units are inside the top six in schedule-adjusted defense. The total sits at only 39.5, suggesting few points ahead. Each defense is in the top six of pass rush win rate, as well. This especially causes concern for the Texans, who have the fifth-lowest pass block win rate compared to the Broncos boasting the highest pass block win rate.

The Broncos carry the best pass rush in the league, ranking first in adjusted pressure rate while carrying a league-high 36.0 sacks (second-most is 26.0). C.J. Stroud could be under constant pressure, taking away from the passing game. Plus, this helps cover up the absence of Patrick Surtain II (pec).

Nico Collins' receiving prop is only 60.5 yards, but I'm still expecting Houston's top wideout to finish well under this mark. He comes off a 27-yard performance and is averaging 39.5 receiving yards per game over his previous two appearances. The Broncos feature man coverage at the highest rate, and Collins carries 1.68 yards per route run against man compared to 2.00 when facing zone. He still has a tough matchup against Riley Moss -- who has allowed the lowest catch percentage in the league.

From Weeks 4 to 7, Collins wasn't the leader in target share at 20.0%, either, while Dalton Schultz posted a 21.0% target share during that span. While Collins sports a 37.5% downfield target (10-plus air yards) share on the season, Denver is allowing the fewest yards per downfield target. This goes hand-in-hand with the Broncos' elite pass rush, which should limit Collins' average depth of target (aDOT) of 11.0 yards.

As the NFL's 16th-worst adjusted pass offense, I'm not expecting much from Houston against the 5th-best adjusted pass D.

Kimani Vidal Rushes for 100+ Yards

Since Omarion Hampton's absence began in Week 6, Kimani Vidal has dominated the workload in the Los Angeles Chargers' backfield. In fact, he touts a 69.4% snap share paired with 24.0 adjusted opportunities (carries plus 2x targets) per game compared to Hassan Haskins' 30.9% snap rate and 6.5 adjusted opportunities per contest during the three-game span. Vidal's work was limited to only nine carries in Week 7, for the Bolts trailed the Indianapolis Colts by double digits for most of the game.

When Vidal received a good workload in Weeks 6 and 8, he totaled 20.5 carries and 120.5 rushing yards per game. His efficiency certainly checks out with NFL Next Gen Stats giving him 1.52 rushing yards over expectation per carry (RYOE/c) since Week 6. This week's opponent -- the Tennessee Titans -- ranks as the sixth-worst adjusted rush defense while permitting 4.9 yards per carry (seventh-most).

Most of this pick is leaning on the likely game script ahead. The Chargers are favored by 9.5 points, and our Brandon Gdula's adjusted pace and pass report for Week 9 gives this the fifth-slowest projected pace. As long as Los Angeles does not find itself in a negative game script, Vidal should have plenty of rushing attempts coming his way. A big lead should only mean even more carries.

Coach Jim Harbaugh complemented Vidal following Week 8's performance, saying "He's playing like a number one running back in the NFL." His volume is very secure; if anything, it could increase as Haskins is battling a hamstring injury.

Everything about this week's matchup points to Vidal staying hot. Look for the Bolts' back to stack at least 100 rushing yards for the third time since Week 6.

Travis Hunter Produces 15.0+ Fantasy Points

Travis Hunter comes off his best performance by a mile, totaling eight catches for 101 receiving yards, one touchdown, and 20.1 fantasy points on 14 targets in Week 7. The Jacksonville Jaguars could treat Hunter like their WR1 going forward. As our Aidan Cotter discussed in Week 9's Start/Sit, a rookie coming off bye usually yields positive results.

Leaning on Hunter doesn't take much convincing, for Brian Thomas Jr. has a -13.2% catch rate over expectation (CROE) and -18.2 receiving yards over expectation (RecYOE). He was a limited participant at Wednesday's practice due to a shoulder injury, as well.

Week 9 features a potential pass-funnel matchup against the Las Vegas Raiders, and I believe Hunter is the best bet to take advantage of the matchup. Las Vegas is the 5th-best adjusted rush defense and allows 4.0 yards per carry (10th-fewest) compared to holding the 8th-worst adjusted pass D while permitting 7.1 yards per passing attempt (14th-most).

The Raiders have the second-worst adjusted pressure rate, and Jacksonville boasts the fifth-highest pass block win rate. Trevor Lawrence should have more than enough time to pick apart a vulnerable secondary. The Jags already carry the seventh-highest pass-play rate, too.

In Week 3, Hunter posted a 53.0% snap rate at receiver. That jumped to 57.1% and 64.8% in Weeks 4 and 5. Week 6 brought a 79.4% snap share while Week 7 featured a season-high 86.5% snap rate. His snaps have increased every single week over the course of five games. This feels like an increased role we can lean on -- especially for an emerging rookie.

As mentioned, Week 7's high snap rate brought an excellent 101-yard performance, giving Jacksonville even more reason to lean on Hunter. Over his last two games, Hunter carries a 50.0% red zone target share while leading the team with 10.5 targets per game and a 23.6% target share.

Expecting another big game from Hunter is also banking on Thomas' continued struggles. Las Vegas runs zone coverage at the sixth-highest rate, and Thomas totals only 1.41 yards per route run against zone compared to 2.34 when seeing man.

Our NFL DFS projections have Hunter ranked as WR50 this week with only 7.0 projected fantasy points. Hunter's yet to prove he's a consistent producer, meaning we can jump on this trend ahead of the crowd while getting excellent value.

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The above author is a FanDuel employee and is not eligible to compete in public daily fantasy contests or place sports betting wagers on FanDuel. The advice provided by the author does not necessarily represent the views of FanDuel. Taking the author's advice will not guarantee a successful outcome. You should use your own judgment when participating in daily fantasy contests or placing sports wagers.