The Pittsburgh Steelers (4-3) will be taking on the Tennessee Titans (3-4) in this Week 9’s Thursday Night Football action, with kickoff set for 8:15 p.m. ET. George Pickens found his third touchdown of the season in Week 8, but was otherwise relatively quiet on the day. Let’s take a look at the fantasy outlook for Pickens ahead of the Week 9 action.
Fantasy Football analysis: Steelers WR George Pickens
Pickens caught just one of his five targets in the Week 8 loss to the Jaguars, totaling 22 yards and a touchdown on the play. He was able to salvage a few points with that TD, but still only ended up with 9.2 fantasy points in PPR leagues. It was just the third time he’s scored single-digit points this season, as he’s scored at least 11.5 points in his four other outings.
Start or sit in Week 9 PPR leagues?
Start in Week 9 in PPR leagues.
The Jaguars did well to shut Pickens down on the day as he logged a season-low in targets, catches, and yards. Prior to the Jaguars loss, Pickens was coming off two consecutive games with 100+ receiving yards as he continues to be one of Kenny Pickett’s favorite targets. Expect him to bring in more catches in Week 9 against the Titans as he should be a solid play as a WR2 or FLEX.
Start or sit in Week 9 standard leagues?
Start in Week 9 in standard leagues.
Pickens has been able to find the end zone three times this season, and has been fairly efficient as he’s logged over 100 yards in three separate games so far. While the PPR points serve as a nice boost, he’s not heavily dependent on number of catches, averaging 18.6 yards per reception all season long which has made for some nice output. He should be on your radar to put in your lineup this week.
Player(s) you would start ahead of George Pickens
Pickens comes in as the WR27 on the FantasyPros PPR rankings ahead of week 9, but if you’re looking for an alternative around the same tier, you can look to DJ Moore or Tee Higgins, who both have favorable matchups in Week 9.