Fantasy Football: Alvin Kamara, Jordan Love and 4 other players to consider fading in Week 9

Welcome to Week 9 of the fantasy football fades and busts of the week! I am your host, Matt Okada, and will be bringing you half a dozen players to avoid each and every Thursday, throughout the fantasy season. We took a swing last week with Daniel Jones (and without many other options at QB) that missed, but the other five names all posted single-digit fantasy totals. Still looking for the perfect 6-for-6!

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As a note, just because a player earns a fade" or bust" designation doesn't automatically mean they should be benched - it depends on the rest of your roster or the options on your waiver wire. But you can expect them to fall short of expectations (when I get them right).

Without further ado, here is my list for Week 9 of the 2025 season.

Jordan Love, QB, Packers

Coming off an absolute beauty of a Sunday night against the Steelers in which he scored 28.3 fantasy points with 360 yards and three TDs, Jordan Love is going to stay in a lot of starting lineups for Week 9. I wouldn't be so confident. Love has just three games this season with more than 16 fantasy points - against the Commanders, Cowboys and Steelers. Turns out, those have been three of the softest matchups for QBs all season.

Carolina has been incredibly spotty against the position - allowing 22+ points to four different QBs - but have been largely unfriendly to the fringier" starters. Green Bay is heavily favored in a game with a low total, so Love may throw a touchdown or two but is unlikely to see high volume or high yardage in a run-first win. This is shaping up to be one of his days with 13-15 points, rather than one of his big outings.

What to do Amidst the ongoing slew of injuries, benchings and a bye week that removes Jalen Hurts and Baker Mayfield from the picture, Love still slots in as a fringe QB1 this Sunday. But if you have a strong streamer or are looking for upside, look elsewhere.

Rico Dowdle, RB, Panthers

Don't hate me, I'm just the messenger. And the message isn't great. Since Chuba Hubbard returned two weeks ago, Rico Dowdle has averaged 13 touches per game and totaled just 15.5 fantasy points. Both those numbers were heavily impacted by the ineptitude of the Panthers offense in a 40-9 loss to Buffalo last week (even in a soft matchup for running backs). Unfortunately, Green Bay is a much tougher opponent, allowing the third-fewest fantasy points to the position, with just two rushing touchdowns all year. They've also allowed the third-lowest explosive run rate, which is where Dowdle had been making much of his hay in Hubbard's absence.

Panthers head coach Dave Canales has amended his previous comments on a commitment to a split backfield, saying the team cannot ignore the fact that Rico has been exceptional," so there's a chance he sees a heavier workload in Week 9. But even a Dowdle-favored 60-40 split with Hubbard might not be enough against this defense.

What to do Dowdle is on the very fringe of RB2/RB3 range this week (ranking somewhere around RB24 or RB25), so he might crack lineups without great depth or with Saquon Barkley, Quinshon Judkins and Breece Hall on bye. That said, waiver wire options like Tyrone Tracy Jr., Bam Knight, Kareem Hunt and Woody Marks are all strong considerations over the Panthers back.

Alvin Kamara, RB, Saints

Former fantasy superstar Alvin Kamara has gotten a pretty long leash in lineups this year, and it saw an extension when Kendre Miller hit injured reserve. Sadly, it's probably time to cut the aging veteran loose. Kamara has not topped 12 carries or 35 rushing yards since Week 4, hasn't scored a touchdown since Week 1 and hasn't totaled 15+ fantasy points in a single game this season. He had one great game as a receiver (five catches for 45 yards against the Patriots), but has not been able to fall back on that area of his game in an otherwise dismal fantasy year. Now, he draws a matchup with the Rams, the only team that hasn't allowed a rushing touchdown to a running back all season. They're also surrendering just 3.8 yards per carry to the position, and Kamara's only averaging 3.6 himself. Kamara is 2025's RB36 in points per game, and that might be a generous ranking in this matchup.

What to do Kamara should not be started except in the deepest of leagues or direst of situations. Go to the waiver wire, start upside options like Broncos rookie RJ Harvey or Pats rookie TreVeyon Henderson, and generally do whatever you can to avoid Kamara in your starting lineup.

Stefon Diggs, WR, Patriots

Stefon Diggs has a recognizable name and double-digit fantasy points in three of his last five outings. As such, he might be a tempting option this week for rosters hurting at wide receiver. Look elsewhere if possible. Diggs has scored a touchdown once all season, and while it was last week against Cleveland, it came in an otherwise horrendous fantasy outing (three catches for 14 yards). He's been a bit of a roller coaster the last month or so and might be hitting a bit of a drop against the Falcons secondary in Week 9. Atlanta has been very tough against wide receivers this year, allowing just three strong performances ... to Emeka Egbuka (with two touchdowns), Jaylen Waddle (with a 43-yard TD) and Deebo Samuel (with a TD). If anyone tags them on Sunday, it'll likely be Kayshon Boutte on a deep touchdown, not Diggs and his up-and-down target share.

What to do Diggs isn't the worst option in this article, and can be played as a WR3 or a flex option, but he has a lower floor than high-volume guys like Chris Olave, Wan'Dale Robinson and Keenan Allen, and a lower ceiling than talented young wideouts like Brian Thomas Jr. and Jordan Addison. Start him with caution, if you must.

Courtland Sutton, WR, Broncos

This one's rather risky, as Courtland Sutton has scored double-digit fantasy points in five of eight games and has six or more targets six times. However, he's also averaged just 8.2 fantasy points per game over the past three weeks, with Troy Franklin and Evan Engram getting more involved and Bo Nix being spotty except in the juiciest of matchups.

The Texans defense is not a juicy matchup, and Sutton is likely to get a whole lot of shutdown corner Derek Stingley Jr. on Sunday. Jaxon Smith-Njigba and Puka Nacua had good days against Houston - and are literally the two best receivers in fantasy - but Emeka Egbuka, Zay Flowers, Mike Evans, Davante Adams, Brian Thomas Jr. and others were all bottled up (for fewer than 11 fantasy points apiece). Sutton fits much more comfortably in that second group and is at significant risk of a single-digit day in Week 9.

What to do Considering his production for most of the season, you're likely going to be hard-pressed to sit Sutton. At the very least, adjust expectations, avoid him in DFS and consider squeezing in names like Tetairoa McMillan, Chris Olave or even Addison over him.

Bonus Note: I initially considered Jameson Williams here, but my research revealed that the Vikings have been disastrous against the deep ball, and Jared Goff is at home on Sunday. I sneakily believe Williams might have his once-a-month big day for fantasy.

Hunter Henry, TE, Patriots

The vast majority of leagues are still rostering Hunter Henry and at least three or four startable tight ends are on bye this week, so the Patriots tight end - who started the year red-hot - might be a consideration for some of you. Run away, as fast as you can. First, Henry hasn't caught more than four passes or topped 50 receiving yards since Week 3, and he has just one touchdown over the last month. But more importantly, the Falcons are a legitimate black hole for tight ends. They haven't allowed double-digit fantasy points to a single tight end all season, with Zach Ertz, T.J. Hockenson and George Kittle combining for just 6.8 fantasy points between them in their Atlanta matchups. I'd be worried about a decent TE1 against this defense, but I'm 100% hands-off with Henry. Find another option. Any other option.

What to do Do not play Henry against the Falcons. You can go with Colston Loveland, Theo Johnson, Evan Engram, Dalton Schultz or any other of a handful of waiver wire options. Just not Henry.