Should I start Deebo Samuel Sr. or A.J. Brown in Week 9?

Where the draft room stands

Live drafts hold no current pick on Deebo Samuel Sr., and the board ranks him 92nd overall on the rest of his evidence.

Live drafts hold no current pick on A.J. Brown, and the board ranks him 97th overall on the rest of his evidence.

In 2QB drafts he goes at ADP 23.

The market-based projections

The market has Deebo Samuel Sr. at 3.2 PPR points a game off 1 market across 1 market source. That is 30 percent of what a wide receiver's projection needs, so it is a fragment of one rather than a projection.

The market has A.J. Brown at 3.0 PPR points a game off 1 market across 2 market sources. That is 30 percent of what a wide receiver's projection needs, so it is a fragment of one rather than a projection.

Deebo Samuel Sr.'s projection is not complete, so the two figures are not set against each other here.

This season so far

Through Week 5, Deebo Samuel Sr. has been on the field for 57 percent of SF snaps, drawn 15 percent of the targets and had 10 percent of the red zone chances.

He has taken 2 of the offence's 35 third down targets, had 2 of its 14 chances inside the five and seen 2 of its 21 two minute targets.

His 20 targets have averaged 2.6 air yards.

In Week 3 against ARI he carried 2 times for 14 yards and did not score.

In Week 4 against DEN he carried 3 times for 44 yards, caught 5 of 6 targets for 26 yards and scored 1 touchdown.

In Week 5 against SEA he carried 2 times for 4 yards, caught 2 of 3 targets for 21 yards and did not score.

Through Week 7, A.J. Brown has been on the field for 68 percent of NE snaps, drawn 22 percent of the targets and had 15 percent of the red zone chances.

He has taken 6 of the offence's 26 third down targets, had 0 of its 1 chance inside the five and seen 7 of its 21 two minute targets.

His 20 targets have averaged 13.4 air yards.

In Week 1 against SEA he caught 3 of 4 targets for 26 yards and did not score.

In Week 6 against NYJ he caught 3 of 10 targets for 27 yards and did not score.

In Week 7 against CHI he caught 3 of 6 targets for 48 yards and did not score.

Their 2025 seasons

In 2025 Deebo Samuel Sr. played 16 games and scored 188.2 PPR points, 11.8 a game, finishing WR25.

He caught 72 of 99 targets for 727 yards and 5 touchdowns, with 11 red zone targets.

That came to 6.2 targets a game, a 73 percent catch rate and 10.1 yards a catch.

He was on the field for 72 percent of the snaps in the games he played.

In 2025 A.J. Brown played 15 games and scored 220.3 PPR points, 14.7 a game, finishing WR11.

He caught 78 of 121 targets for 1003 yards and 7 touchdowns, with 12 red zone targets.

That came to 8.1 targets a game, a 64 percent catch rate and 12.9 yards a catch.

He was on the field for 91 percent of the snaps in the games he played.

Deebo Samuel Sr. was available for 1 game more.

Head to head

In 2025 A.J. Brown scored 14.7 PPR points a game and Deebo Samuel Sr. 11.8, 2.9 a game between them.

Deebo Samuel Sr. finished WR25 that year and A.J. Brown WR11.

A.J. Brown had 22 more targets than Deebo Samuel Sr., 121 to 99.

A.J. Brown had 276 more receiving yards than Deebo Samuel Sr., 1003 to 727.

This season A.J. Brown holds the bigger snap share, 68 percent against 57 percent.

This season A.J. Brown holds the bigger target share, 22 percent against 15 percent.

Byes and availability

Deebo Samuel Sr. is off in Week 8 and A.J. Brown in Week 11, so either can cover the other's bye.

Deebo Samuel Sr. is listed as out on the injury report.

A.J. Brown is listed as out on the injury report.