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    David Njoku Fantasy Hub: Week 9 Injury Update, Start/Sit Advice, Projections, and More

    Here's the latest David Njoku fantasy football news and advice to help you with your lineups, including injury status, start-sit advice, trade insight, and more.

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    The Cleveland Browns will face the Los Angeles Chargers in Week 9. Here’s the latest fantasy football news and advice to help you with your lineups this week and moving forward, especially regarding TE David Njoku.

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    Is David Njoku Playing in Week 9?

    David Njoku missed practice on Thursday but returned on Friday and was removed from the Cleveland Browns’ injury report. He will play against the Chargers on Sunday.

    Njoku was battling an ankle injury on Thursday, which is especially concerning given that Njoku missed three games with a high ankle sprain earlier this season. Cleveland may have simply given him a maintenance day to allow him to rest ahead of Week 9.

    Njoku’s role in the Browns’ passing offense has expanded since the club traded wideout Amari Cooper. Over the past two weeks, Njoku hauled in 15 catches for 137 yards and two touchdowns, finishing as fantasy’s TE1 and TE7.

    We’ll continue to monitor the Browns’ injury report. You can also visit and bookmark our NFL Injury Tracker and Fantasy News Tracker for the latest updates in real time.

    Should You Start or Sit David Njoku in Week 9?

    Njoku has been a physical mismatch ever since he entered the NFL, and Jameis Winston is as good at taking advantage of talent as there is. We saw that on the 23-yard touchdown last week in single coverage where he just outmuscled the defender, and I suspect we see more of it moving forward given Winston’s propensity to trust his top playmakers.

    He’s scored in consecutive weeks and can be used as a weekly option across all formats with confidence as the featured pass catcher in the fourth most pass-oriented offense when inside the red zone. It should be no surprise that Njoku posted his highest aDOT since Week 12, 2022, giving him an upside that only a handful of tight ends in today’s game have.

    Are you looking for start/sit advice for other players in your lineup? Read our Week 9 Fantasy Start-Sit Advice Cheat Sheet for every fantasy-relevant player in every game.

    David Njoku’s Fantasy Points Projection in Week 9

    Njoku is projected to score 12.4 fantasy points in PPR formats. This includes 5.1 receptions for 54.5 yards and 0.3 touchdowns.

    Check out the free PFN Fantasy Start-Sit Optimizer for the latest projections and advice for your lineups this week.

    PFN Insights: Los Angeles Chargers Defense

    Seeing the Chargers put together their best performance against Spencer Rattler and Jake Haener is hardly a surprise, and it is a pattern we have seen. The Chargers have dominated against lower-tier quarterbacks such as Gardner Minshew and Bryce Young and then have been closer to the league average when the competition level ramped up. Right now, they appear to be doing enough to make them a playoff team, but can they sustain it?

    Most of their year-long statistics are excellent, but one that stands out as a concern when they face tougher opposition is their ability to get pressure without blitzing (26th). Overwhelming lesser quarterbacks by sending five or more rushers is one thing, but if defenses consistently send extra men against the best quarterbacks and offenses, that is often when they get found out.

    For more insight on all other team defenses, head to our PFN Defense+ Metric Analysis.

    David Njoku’s Week 9 Fantasy Ranking

    Our Weekly Consensus PPR Rankings are below — both positional and overall. They were last updated at 5:15 AM on Sunday, November 10. If you're in a Superflex league, make sure you check out our Weekly Consensus Superflex Rankings.

    Week 10 TE PPR Rankings

    1) George Kittle | SF (at TB)
    2) Trey McBride | ARI (vs. NYJ)
    3) Travis Kelce | KC (vs. DEN)
    4) Cade Otton | TB (vs. SF)
    5) Evan Engram | JAX (vs. MIN)
    6) Kyle Pitts | ATL (at NO)
    7) Jake Ferguson | DAL (vs. PHI)
    8) Dalton Kincaid | BUF (at IND)
    9) Mark Andrews | BAL (vs. CIN)
    10) Sam LaPorta | DET (at HOU)
    11) T.J. Hockenson | MIN (at JAX)
    12) Mike Gesicki | CIN (at BAL)
    13) Taysom Hill | NO (vs. ATL)
    14) Dallas Goedert | PHI (at DAL)
    15) Dalton Schultz | HOU (vs. DET)
    16) Zach Ertz | WAS (vs. PIT)
    17) Hunter Henry | NE (at CHI)
    18) Pat Freiermuth | PIT (at WAS)
    19) Cole Kmet | CHI (vs. NE)
    20) Jonnu Smith | MIA (at LAR)
    21) Tyler Conklin | NYJ (at ARI)
    22) Will Dissly | LAC (vs. TEN)
    23) Ja'Tavion Sanders | CAR (vs. NYG)
    24) Colby Parkinson | LAR (vs. MIA)
    25) Juwan Johnson | NO (vs. ATL)
    26) Chigoziem Okonkwo | TEN (at LAC)
    27) Theo Johnson | MIN (at JAX)
    28) Noah Gray | KC (vs. DEN)
    29) Grant Calcaterra | PHI (at DAL)
    30) Josh Oliver | MIN (at JAX)
    31) Foster Moreau | NO (vs. ATL)
    32) Lucas Krull | DEN (at KC)
    33) Dawson Knox | BUF (at IND)

    Los Angeles Chargers at Cleveland Browns Insights

    Los Angeles Chargers

    Team: We still haven’t seen 40 total points scored in a Charger game this season (the Browns aren’t exactly explosive on either side of the ball, but even they’ve seen 40 points hit three times this season)

    QB: Over the past two weeks, Justin Herbert is 20-of-24 for 328 yards and a touchdown when throwing out of play-action.

    Offense: In Weeks 1-4, the Bolts averaged 1.5 points per drive. In the past three weeks, however, that number has spiked to 2.0 (up 33.3%).

    Defense: Los Angeles is the only team in the league that can say they’ve recovered as many fumbles as rushing touchdowns they’ve allowed (three).

    Fantasy: This is a low-volume offense, and those situations typically result in touchdowns to pay off fantasy managers – J.K. Dobbins was able to help you out with a short score, but that’s not going to be the norm for a team that ranks 31st in percentage of drives that reach the opponents’ 20-yard line (20.8%, only the Browns have been worse).

    Betting: Unders are 5-1 in the last six Justin Herbert starts in which the Chargers have been a road favorite.

    Cleveland Browns

    Team: Cleveland leads the league in play-action rate this season (19.4%), which they essentially mirrored in Jameis Winston’s first start (19.7%).

    QB: Winston went 8-11 when throwing deep downfield (15-plus air yards) on Sunday against the Ravens, totaling 167 yards and two touchdowns.

    Offense: The Browns completed just 19.2% of their third downs through Week 6. Against the Bengals in Week 7, they were eight-of-19 (42.1%) and, in the upset win over the Ravens on Sunday, eight-of-15 (53.3%).

    Defense: Cleveland leads the NFL in pressure rate this season (42.7%) and made Lamar Jackson uncomfortable on 50% of his dropbacks last weekend (the second time this season, they created chaos on at least half of their opponents’ pass attempts.

    Fantasy: David Njoku has scored in consecutive weeks and can be used as a weekly option across all formats with confidence as the featured pass catcher in the fourth most pass-oriented offense when inside the red zone.

    Betting: Since the beginning of last season, the Browns are 7-2 ATS when playing at home with a total that closes under 40 points (unders are 6-2-1 in those games).

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