Indianapolis Colts vs. Dallas Cowboys Fantasy Football Matchup Breakdown For Week 9
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Indianapolis Colts vs. Dallas Cowboys Fantasy Football Matchup Breakdown For Week 9

John Laghezza breaks down the Colts vs. Cowboys matchup for the Week 9 fantasy football slate.

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In a game that only a fantasy player could love, it’s movable forces meeting stoppable objects as we try to figure out what’s more condemning a signal from sportsbooks; Dallas favored on the road, or the Colts expected to stay within a TD of anyone …

Colts vs. Cowboys Matchup Breakdown For Week 9 Fantasy Football

*Fantasy Football Rankings listed are Fantasy Life's half-PPR consensus ranks at the time of writing.

DAL_cowboys-logo.svgDallas Cowboys Fantasy Preview For Week 9

How ‘bout them Cowboys? No, really … What's going on with this team? I’ll tell you what I see, and it ain't pretty. Well past the point of knowing their three excellent WRs spearhead the strengths of this team, Dallas has started inexplicably running 12-personnel at the highest rate all season. The results tracked with the eyerolls against Arizona — DAL ran their second-most plays (72) for their worst yards/play (3.6) mark by over a full yard. Dak Prescott’s still been great via volume, with room to run as positive touchdown regression hits (he’s the only top-10 fantasy QB with a sub-5% TD rate). Honestly, it feels like the Boys’ biggest enemy is in the mirror.

Javonte Williams just broke a string of five straight top-20 finishes on the back of an inefficient (24-56-0; 1-1-0) stinker, but it’s par for the course at times. Still controlling one of the game’s premier workloads (79 UR; 72% opportunity share, 20 goal-line rushes), Williams perpetually projects as a must-start mid-range RB1. Weekly reminder, however, that no slate of weekend games ever should kick off with Tyler Goodson sitting on waivers — he’s the only other Cowboy RB to receive a meaningful touch in six weeks, and a 1% roster rate for that risk-reward ratio borders on criminal.

What’s there to say about the DAL wide receiver room that hasn’t already been said? CeeDee Lamb’s ADP in hindsight will drive turn-drafters crazy for years to come on this incredible overall WR2 runout (20.9 points/game, 33.8% target/route, 2.61 yards/route). Conversely, George Pickens continues to frustrate managers more than anyone as fantasy’s WR26 in points/game, but patience remains a virtue once more — there are solid advanced metrics (21.8% target/route, 1.87 yards/route), plus a few drops and positive TD regression to come. If you’re looking for an honest worry regarding Pickens, it’s not the environment but the emergence of the best WR3 in the game for my money, Ryan Flournoy. The third-year, sixth-rounder just out-routed Pickens for the second time in 2026, consistently acting as a thorn in his side due to actual target-earning abilities.

  • Start: Dak Prescott (QB5), Javonte Williams (RB7), CeeDee Lamb (WR4), George Pickens (WR18)
  • Sit: Brevyn Spann-Ford (TE26)
  • Sleeper: Ryan Flournoy (WR41)

IND_colts-logo.svgIndianapolis Colts Fantasy Preview For Week 9

How little can I cover on this Indianapolis offense without getting too much stink on us? Owners of bottom-3 macros across the board (4.5 yards/play, -0.11 EPA/play, 15 turnovers committed), the Colts jettisoned their best O-lineman, sitting on the verge of a seventh straight game of negative offensive EPA. Yikes. What a difference a year makes since Daniel Jones captained one of the most efficient units in recent history to this unmitigated disaster in 2026 — he’s currently the QB39 in points/game in a 32-team league. The worst.

You’d think we’d get a little bit of fantasy love for Indy’s receivers through negative game scripts but nope — IND’s one of three teams without a single top-10 WR finish on the season (LAC, MIA). Keenan Allen’s soaking up low-calorie targets at a high enough frequency to start (27.0% target/route, 1.76 yards/route), but there’s zero explosivity or end zone looks. Perhaps we’d say the opposite for Josh Downs, who still looks dangerous with the ball in his hands; it just doesn’t happen nearly enough. Without a true vertical threat in the WR room, route redundancy or overlap cancels out any ceiling for the low-aDOT players. Don’t drop Downs just yet, in case he gets moved to a competitor at the deadline … you’d kick yourself in the behind if he winds up in San Fran.

For the second year in a row, Jonathan Taylor’s ironclad role finds loose footing as winter approaches. Not much we can do other than start him in the meantime, with a hope the Vikings make an offer the Colts can’t refuse. Taylor’s going to dominate backfield opportunity share so long as the game script allows, but therein lies the rub — this Colts defense stunk to high heaven before moving on from DeForest Buckner. Hold onto JT with an eye on the two-thirds of formats where Seth McGowan’s available. Now’s the time to speculate on these moves before they happen and beat a potentially massive waiver rush.

  • Start: Jonathan Taylor (RB9), Keenan Allen (WR31), Tyler Warren (TE7)
  • Sit: Daniel Jones (QB27)
  • Sleeper: Josh Downs (WR37)

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