The Baltimore Ravens will face the Denver Broncos 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 WR Diontae Johnson.
Is Diontae Johnson Playing in Week 9?
Johnson is not listed on the injury report this week, so barring any unexpected setbacks, he is on track to play this weekend.
We’ll continue to monitor the Ravens’ injury report. You can also visit and bookmark our NFL Injury Tracker and Fantasy News Tracker for the latest updates.
Should You Start or Sit Diontae Johnson in Week 9?
Johnson was dealt from Carolina to Baltimore on Tuesday, as big a team trajectory change as he could possibly hope for. He’s plenty capable of winning in the slot, but he moved outside more this year when playing alongside Adam Thielen. While Zay Flowers isn’t as pigeonholed role-wise as the aging Thielen, I expect his 39.6% slot participation to sustain, thus requiring Todd Monken to be creative when it comes to the usage of his newest chess piece.
We’ve seen plenty of receivers moved over the past few weeks (DeAndre Hopkins, Amari Cooper, etc.), and they’ve been eased into action. I suspect that will be the case here. That means I’m taking a cautious approach.
Johnson is a Flex play for me this week, understanding that better days are ahead. This trade elevates his status for the remainder of the regular season. While I think he takes a little food off the plate of Flowers, it’s the tight end position that will be most impacted for our purposes.
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.
Diontae Johnson’s Fantasy Points Projection in Week 9
Johnson is projected to score 11.5 fantasy points in PPR formats. This includes 4.4 receptions for 51.3 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: Denver Broncos Defense
The Denver Broncos’ defense continues to put together an impressive 2024 resume, with this marking their sixth finish inside the top 10 and having finished inside the top 15 in all eight weeks of the season to date. That consistency goes into their metrics as well, as they rank inside the top 10 almost across the board, including first in yards/play (4.4), defensive total EPA per game (11.21), pass EPA per dropback (0.17).
Some of the key things the Broncos do not rank inside the top 10 for are forcing turnovers (12th) and third-down conversions (16th). This defense will get its hardest tests of the season in the next two weeks when facing the Baltimore Ravens and Kansas City Chiefs. If they still rank at the top after those games, then we can start discussing whether this is one of the best defenses since 2019.
For more insight on all other team defenses, head to our PFN Defense+ Metric Analysis.
Diontae Johnson’s Week 9 Fantasy Ranking
Our Weekly Consensus PPR Rankings are below — both positional and overall. They were last updated at 7:00 PM ET on Friday, December 13. If you're in a Superflex league, make sure you check out our Weekly Consensus Superflex Rankings.
Week 15 WR PPR Rankings
1) Ja'Marr Chase | CIN (at TEN)
2) Amon-Ra St. Brown | DET (vs. BUF)
3) Puka Nacua | LAR (at SF)
4) Justin Jefferson | MIN (vs. CHI)
5) Nico Collins | HOU (vs. MIA)
6) A.J. Brown | PHI (vs. PIT)
7) Tyreek Hill | MIA (at HOU)
8) Mike Evans | TB (at LAC)
9) Terry McLaurin | WAS (at NO)
10) Drake London | ATL (at LV)
11) Malik Nabers | NYG (vs. BAL)
12) CeeDee Lamb | DAL (at CAR)
13) Jaxon Smith-Njigba | SEA (vs. GB)
14) Courtland Sutton | DEN (vs. IND)
15) Cooper Kupp | LAR (at SF)
16) Tee Higgins | CIN (at TEN)
17) Davante Adams | NYJ (at JAX)
18) Calvin Ridley | TEN (vs. CIN)
19) Jauan Jennings | SF (vs. LAR)
20) Garrett Wilson | NYJ (at JAX)
21) Jerry Jeudy | CLE (vs. KC)
22) Zay Flowers | BAL (at NYG)
23) DK Metcalf | SEA (vs. GB)
24) Khalil Shakir | BUF (at DET)
25) DJ Moore | CHI (at MIN)
26) Brian Thomas Jr. | JAX (vs. NYJ)
27) Ladd McConkey | LAC (vs. TB)
28) Marvin Harrison Jr. | ARI (vs. NE)
29) Jakobi Meyers | LV (vs. ATL)
30) Jaylen Waddle | MIA (at HOU)
31) Jordan Addison | MIN (vs. CHI)
32) DeAndre Hopkins | KC (at CLE)
33) Michael Pittman Jr. | IND (at DEN)
34) Jayden Reed | GB (at SEA)
35) Keenan Allen | CHI (at MIN)
36) Adam Thielen | CAR (vs. DAL)
37) Jameson Williams | DET (vs. BUF)
38) Darnell Mooney | ATL (at LV)
39) Amari Cooper | BUF (at DET)
40) DeVonta Smith | PHI (vs. PIT)
41) Tank Dell | HOU (vs. MIA)
42) Elijah Moore | CLE (vs. KC)
43) Rome Odunze | CHI (at MIN)
44) DeMario Douglas | NE (at ARI)
45) Rashod Bateman | BAL (at NYG)
46) Christian Watson | GB (at SEA)
47) Xavier Worthy | KC (at CLE)
48) Deebo Samuel Sr. | SF (vs. LAR)
49) Michael Wilson | ARI (vs. NE)
50) Nick Westbrook-Ikhine | TEN (vs. CIN)
51) Marquez Valdes-Scantling | BUF (at DET)
52) Ray-Ray McCloud III | ATL (at LV)
53) Alec Pierce | IND (at DEN)
54) Quentin Johnston | LAC (vs. TB)
55) Xavier Legette | CAR (vs. DAL)
56) Jalen McMillan | TB (at LAC)
57) Kendrick Bourne | NE (at ARI)
58) Parker Washington | JAX (vs. NYJ)
59) Tim Patrick | DET (vs. BUF)
60) Wan'Dale Robinson | NYG (vs. BAL)
61) Devaughn Vele | DEN (vs. IND)
62) Calvin Austin III | PIT (at PHI)
63) Joshua Palmer | LAC (vs. TB)
64) Demarcus Robinson | LAR (at SF)
65) Tre Tucker | LV (vs. ATL)
66) Brandin Cooks | DAL (at CAR)
67) Dontayvion Wicks | GB (at SEA)
68) David Moore | CAR (vs. DAL)
69) Sterling Shepard | TB (at LAC)
70) Tyler Lockett | SEA (vs. GB)
71) Mike Williams | PIT (at PHI)
72) Keon Coleman | BUF (at DET)
73) Darius Slayton | NYG (vs. BAL)
74) Van Jefferson | PIT (at PHI)
75) Adonai Mitchell | IND (at DEN)
76) Jalen Tolbert | DAL (at CAR)
77) Allen Lazard | NYJ (at JAX)
78) Ricky Pearsall | SF (vs. LAR)
79) Tyler Boyd | TEN (vs. CIN)
80) Andrei Iosivas | CIN (at TEN)
81) Jalen Nailor | MIN (vs. CHI)
82) KaVontae Turpin | DAL (at CAR)
83) Kevin Austin Jr. | NO (vs. WAS)
84) JuJu Smith-Schuster | KC (at CLE)
85) Malik Washington | MIA (at HOU)
86) Marvin Mims Jr. | DEN (vs. IND)
87) Josh Downs | IND (at DEN)
88) Tutu Atwell | LAR (at SF)
89) Mack Hollins | BUF (at DET)
90) Cedrick Wilson Jr. | NO (vs. WAS)
91) Justin Watson | KC (at CLE)
92) Curtis Samuel | BUF (at DET)
93) Devin Duvernay | JAX (vs. NYJ)
94) Michael Woods II | CLE (vs. KC)
95) Jahan Dotson | PHI (vs. PIT)
96) Bo Melton | GB (at SEA)
97) Greg Dortch | ARI (vs. NE)
98) Jalen Reagor | LAC (vs. TB)
99) Jalin Hyatt | NYG (vs. BAL)
100) Derius Davis | LAC (vs. TB)
101) Zay Jones | ARI (vs. NE)
102) Terrace Marshall Jr. | SF (vs. LAR)
103) Jermaine Burton | CIN (at TEN)
104) Jonathan Mingo | DAL (at CAR)
105) DJ Chark | LAC (vs. TB)
106) Tyler Johnson | LAR (at SF)
107) Trey Palmer | TB (at LAC)
108) Ben Skowronek | PIT (at PHI)
109) Rakim Jarrett | TB (at LAC)
110) Jalen Brooks | DAL (at CAR)
111) Jake Bobo | SEA (vs. GB)
112) Xavier Gipson | NYJ (at JAX)
113) Kadarius Toney | CLE (vs. KC)
114) Malik Heath | GB (at SEA)
115) Johnny Wilson | PHI (vs. PIT)
116) Brandon Powell | MIN (vs. CHI)
117) Ramel Keyton | LV (vs. ATL)
118) KhaDarel Hodge | ATL (at LV)
119) Tim Jones | JAX (vs. NYJ)
120) Kristian Wilkerson | LV (vs. ATL)
121) Jalen Coker | CAR (vs. DAL)
122) Romeo Doubs | GB (at SEA)
Denver Broncos at Baltimore Ravens Insights
Denver Broncos
Team: Both the Broncos and Ravens are 5-1 over their past six games, with Denver (+66) holding the significant edge in point differential (Baltimore: +43).
QB: Over the past two weeks, Bo Nix is just 1-11 when pressured (43-52 when not pressured). The Ravens rank 27th in pressure rate this season and are coming off of their two lowest pressure rates of the season.
Offense: The Broncos picked up 64.7% of third downs on Sunday, their first game over 36.4% this season.
Defense: The Broncos allow a first down on just 19.% of opponent rush attempts, the third lowest rate in the league (Vikings and Ravens).
Fantasy: Nix is still a raw prospect, but he’s cleared six fantasy points with his legs in four straight and has thrown multiple touchdown passes in three of those games.
Betting: Denver has covered seven of their past nine games when installed as an underdog by more than six points.
Baltimore Ravens
Team: The Ravens are 1-2 outright when favored by at least seven points this season (they were 17-3 in such spots over the previous four seasons).
QB: Blitz at your own risk – Lamar Jackson has completed 28-of-36 passes against the blitz over the past three weeks.
Offense: In Weeks 1-5, Jackson’s sack-per-pass attempt rate was 3.3%. Since then, it has remained at 8.1%.
Defense: Baltimore’s defensive success rate through four weeks stood at 62.3%, but it has plummeted to 53.4% since
Fantasy: Over his past six games, Zay Flowers has three with over 110 receiving yards and three with no more than 20. On the plus side, three of his five end zone targets this season came on Sunday in Cleveland.
Betting: Over tickets have cashed in six of Baltimore’s last eight home games (2-1 this season).