The Arizona Cardinals will face the Chicago Bears in Week 9. Here’s fantasy football start-sit advice for every Cardinals skill player who has the potential to make a fantasy impact during the game.
Looking for more lineup advice? Head over to our Week 9 Fantasy Start-Sit Cheat Sheet, where we cover every fantasy-relevant player in every game.
Kyler Murray, QB
Murray has been a top-12 QB in three of his past four games, and we again got a glimpse of what could be. Last week, his 22-yard touchdown pass to Marvin Harrison Jr. was nothing short of perfection, and his dynamic ability opens up throwing lanes that he is finally maximizing (9.1 yards per out-of-pocket pass, three full yards ahead of his career norm).
We just saw the Bears lock up Jayden Daniels for 59 minutes and 59 seconds, but I think part of that was their respect for Washington’s run game, thus bringing them closer to the line of scrimmage to muddy up Daniels’ quick reads.
That won’t be the case in this spot (Washington RBs rank fifth in yards per carry before contact while Arizona’s rank 29th), putting Murray in a spot to exceed 40 scoring opportunities (pass and rush attempts). If that’s the case, he doesn’t have to be overly efficient to produce top-10 numbers — I think that’s what we see here.
James Conner, RB
James Conner has multiple receptions in four straight games and at least 18 carries in four of his past five, with the lone exception being a blowout at the hands of the Packers.
Without much concern of a game script like that, I think we can safely pencil in the veteran back for north of 15 touches. There are a few running backs in tough spots this week (J.K. Dobbins, Rhamondre Stevenson, and Javonte Williams among them) — give me Conner of that group.
Trey Benson, RB
The rookie has seen his snap share decline in three straight games and hasn’t had a red-zone touch since the second week of the season. James Conner has over 1,500 touches on his NFL résumé and has missed multiple games in every season of his career — Benson is a reasonable stash for those with the luxury to do so, but if I’m in the thick of a playoff hunt and need weekly outs, moving on from Benson is plenty acceptable.
Marvin Harrison Jr., WR
His sliding touchdown catch was a work of art and paid the fantasy bills, but be careful — his 19.4% on-field target share was his lowest since his NFL debut. That said, he was in the slot for a season-high 32.1% of his routes, an encouraging sign of this team’s willingness to move him around and elevate his projectable efficiency.
In this era of instant gratification, we are predisposed to expecting greatness immediately and accepting nothing else. Is it possible that Harrison is worthy of all the hype we gave him this summer and is just slow to realize it?
Through eight weeks, Harrison has produced either 90% over or 45% under expectations five times. His production has been all over the place, and that can happen for a 22-year-old kid tasked with beating adults consistently in a spotty offensive setting.
The Bears are allowing the third-lowest passer rating when receivers are the target, bringing these floor weeks into play. I’m not projecting a dud, but it’s time to adjust your expectations to a WR2 as opposed to the WR1 you hoped you were getting this summer.
I have Harrison ranked on the fringes of the top 20, alongside stable names like Khalil Shakir and similar high-pedigree options that lack consistency around them like Garrett Wilson and DJ Moore.
Michael Wilson, WR
I get excited about this kid once a month. The tools are in place, and I like his Robin role to Marvin Harrison Jr.’s Batman, but I think the days of this offense providing us with two usable receivers is probably more of a 2025 thing.
Wilson’s size has allowed him to score three times this season, but he’s totaled just 57 receiving yards across those three games, meaning we aren’t even being rewarded in a big way when he does find paydirt.
Wilson has produced at least 26% over target expectations in three of his past four games and has seen three end-zone targets over the past three weeks. However, I can’t rank him as a top-40 receiver until we see his number called more regularly. His aDOT has been stuck in reverse lately, and that’s simply not the way to attack Chicago (top five against short passes in yards per pass, passer rating, and touchdown rate).
I’m telling you now — I’ll be leading the Wilson hype train this summer. Tickets are available at @KyleSoppePFN with early-bird pricing now available.
Trey McBride, TE
That’s now 15 straight games with at least six targets, a role that is worth its weight in gold these days at the TE position. Okay, so maybe not “gold,” but it could well prove to be worth your league pot as the 24-year-old not only boasts elite usage but gets the Panthers and Rams during the fantasy Super Bowl window (Weeks 16-17).
Trey McBride has been targeted on over a quarter of his routes in five of seven games and racked up over 100 air yards on Sunday for the first time this season. He’s producing at a more than viable level right now and has plenty of room to improve. He has just one end-zone target this season and hasn’t seen a red-zone look in the majority of his games.
Chicago Bears at Arizona Cardinals Insights
Chicago Bears
Team: For the first time in the 2000s, the Bears have allowed 21 or fewer points in each of their first seven games of a season.
QB: It’s been a simple story with Caleb Williams – his passer rating is 42.8 points higher when not pressured than when he is this season.
Offense: The Bears didn’t run for even 85 yards in any of their first three games – they’ve cleared 125 rushing yards in all four games since (Week 8 at Washington: season-high 196 rushing yards).
Defense: Bend but don’t break – the Bears haven’t allowed a red zone touchdown in two of the past three weeks (that, of course, isn’t going to help when defending Jayden Daniels Hail Marys).
Fantasy: Is there a running back playing better than D’Andre Swift? Over his past four games, he’s produced 33.4% over expectation, averaging 22.6 PPR points per game in the process.
Betting: Six straight Bear road games have come in under the closing total.
Arizona Cardinals
Team: The Cardinals are seeking their first three-game win streak since starting the 2021 season 7-0.
QB: Kyler Murray posted a 127.2 in-pocket passer rating against the Dolphins last week, his highest since Week 13, 2021.
Offense: The Cardinals beat the Dolphins last week without leading for a single offensive snap. It’s their second game this season in which every offensive snap came from behind and their second win when they were trailing for over 87% of their offensive snaps (Also: Week 5 at the 49ers).
Defense: Arizona has allowed their opponent to pick up at least half of their third downs in five of the past six games (Dolphins in Week 8: 11-of-15, 73.3%).
Fantasy: Marvin Harrison Jr.’s sliding touchdown catch was a work of art and paid the fantasy bills, but be careful – his 19.4% on-field target share was his lowest since his NFL debut. That said, he was in the slot for a season-high 32.1% of his routes, an encouraging sign of this team’s willingness to move him around.
Betting: Overs are 9-4 in Kyler Murray’s career when he starts in a game with a spread of less than three points.