Should I start Amon-Ra St. Brown or Bucky Irving in Week 9?

The market-based projections

Amon-Ra St. Brown's market-based projection is 18.2 PPR points a game, built from 3 markets across 13 market sources. That is the 16th highest figure of the 225 players with a market-based projection.

Bucky Irving's market-based projection is 13.8 PPR points a game, built from 5 markets across 14 market sources. That is the 59th highest figure of the 225 players with a market-based projection.

Where the draft room stands

Live drafts hold no current pick on Amon-Ra St. Brown, and the board ranks him 9th overall on the rest of his evidence.

In 2QB drafts he goes at ADP 11.

Live drafts hold no current pick on Bucky Irving, and the board ranks him 33rd overall on the rest of his evidence.

This season through Week 8

Through Week 8, Amon-Ra St. Brown has been on the field for 85 percent of DET snaps, drawn 31 percent of the targets and had 18 percent of the red zone chances.

He has taken 24 of the offence's 60 third down targets, had 5 of its 22 chances inside the five and seen 9 of its 30 two minute targets.

His 76 targets have averaged 8.4 air yards.

In Week 5 against ARI he caught 6 of 11 targets for 69 yards and did not score.

In Week 7 against GB he carried 1 time for -1 yards, caught 9 of 11 targets for 153 yards and did not score.

In Week 8 against MIN he carried 1 time for 10 yards, caught 7 of 8 targets for 46 yards and did not score.

Through Week 8, Bucky Irving has been on the field for 63 percent of TB snaps, taken 57 percent of the carries, drawn 11 percent of the targets and had 45 percent of the red zone chances.

He has taken 4 of the offence's 60 third down targets, had 6 of its 14 chances inside the five and seen 1 of its 44 two minute targets.

His 23 targets have come 2.0 yards behind the line of scrimmage on average.

In Week 6 against PIT he carried 19 times for 46 yards, caught 2 of 3 targets for 3 yards and did not score.

In Week 7 against CAR he carried 24 times for 106 yards, caught 1 of 2 targets for 4 yards and scored 2 touchdowns.

In Week 8 against ATL he carried 27 times for 170 yards and scored 1 touchdown.

Their 2025 seasons

In 2025 Amon-Ra St. Brown played 17 games and scored 324.0 PPR points, 19.1 a game, finishing WR3.

He caught 117 of 172 targets for 1401 yards and 11 touchdowns, with 34 red zone targets.

That came to 10.1 targets a game, a 68 percent catch rate and 12.0 yards a catch.

He was on the field for 85 percent of the snaps in the games he played.

In 2025 Bucky Irving played 10 games and scored 138.5 PPR points, 13.9 a game, finishing RB34.

He carried 173 times for 588 yards and 1 touchdown, and caught 30 of 35 targets for 277 more yards.

That came to 17.3 carries a game at 3.4 yards a carry and 3.0 catches a game.

He was on the field for 62 percent of the snaps in the games he played.

Amon-Ra St. Brown was available for 7 games more.

Side by side

In 2025 Amon-Ra St. Brown scored 19.1 PPR points a game and Bucky Irving 13.9, 5.2 a game between them.

Amon-Ra St. Brown finished WR3 and Bucky Irving RB34, which are two different ladders.

Amon-Ra St. Brown is a wide receiver and Bucky Irving a running back, so the question is which slot you fill first rather than which of them is better.

Byes and availability

Amon-Ra St. Brown is off in Week 6 and Bucky Irving in Week 10, so either can cover the other's bye.

Amon-Ra St. Brown is listed as questionable on the injury report.

What would change the answer

4.4 points a game is the entire case. The market restates it every week, and a line that moves moves the order with it.

The draft market is the half that is missing: when live drafts hold these two again they can order them differently from the projection, and this page will follow the drafts rather than the market-based projection when they do.