Who Should I Start? Jalen Nailor or Josh Downs

Friday, October 31, 4:41 PM

Minnesota Vikings wide receiver Jalen Nailor will have some outside streaming appeal in deep leagues when the Vikings travel to play the Detroit Lions in Week 9. The former Michigan State Spartan has played at least 59% of the team's offensive snaps in every game this season, and he's drawn at least four targets in five of Minnesota's seven games. The Lions' defense is holding opponents to points on fewer than a third of possessions, but quite a bit of the damage has been through the air, as Detroit has allowed 14 passing touchdowns in just seven weeks. Though second-year quarterback J.J. McCarthy will return from an ankle injury this week, Minnesota has continued to favor three-receiver looks that will give Nailor opportunities. He'll naturally be behind receivers Justin Jefferson and Jordan Addison, though, which will make Nailor a touchdown-dependent option for managers in very deep leagues.

Saturday, November 1, 9:53 AM

Indianapolis Colts wide receiver Josh Downs (hip) practiced fully on Thursday and Friday after missing his team's Wednesday practice and is listed without an injury designation heading into a Week 9 road matchup against the Pittsburgh Steelers. Downs will look to build upon an encouraging Week 8 outing that saw him haul in all three of his targets for 39 yards and a touchdown in a win over the Tennessee Titans. He has a great matchup on tap as the Steelers are allowing the sixth-most fantasy points per game to wide receivers this season. Downs has been overtaken in the passing-game pecking order by Michael Pittman Jr., but he remains a solid WR3/flex option in fantasy in this prime matchup on Sunday.