Should I start Amon-Ra St. Brown or James Cook III in Week 9?

The market-based projections

Amon-Ra St. Brown's market-based projection is 18.3 PPR points a game, built from 3 markets across 13 market sources. That is the 15th highest figure of the 226 players with a market-based projection.

James Cook III's market-based projection is 16.4 PPR points a game, built from 5 markets across 12 market sources. That is the 26th highest figure of the 226 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 15th overall on the rest of his evidence.

In 2QB drafts he goes at ADP 11.

Live drafts hold no current pick on James Cook III, and the board ranks him 7th overall on the rest of his evidence.

By format he goes standard: ADP 2; 2QB: ADP 10.

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, James Cook III has been on the field for 54 percent of BUF snaps, taken 54 percent of the carries, drawn 9 percent of the targets and had 35 percent of the red zone chances.

He has taken 1 of the offence's 7 third down targets, had 2 of its 7 chances inside the five and seen 0 of its 2 two minute targets.

His 3 targets have averaged 2.7 air yards.

In Week 8 against BAL he carried 21 times for 80 yards, caught 2 of 3 targets for 21 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 James Cook III played 17 games and scored 302.2 PPR points, 17.8 a game, finishing RB6.

He carried 309 times for 1621 yards and 12 touchdowns, and caught 33 of 40 targets for 291 more yards.

That came to 18.2 carries a game at 5.2 yards a carry and 1.9 catches a game.

He was on the field for 60 percent of the snaps in the games he played.

Both were available for 17 games that season.

Side by side

In 2025 Amon-Ra St. Brown scored 19.1 PPR points a game and James Cook III 17.8, 1.3 a game between them.

Amon-Ra St. Brown finished WR3 and James Cook III RB6, which are two different ladders.

Amon-Ra St. Brown is a wide receiver and James Cook III 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 James Cook III in Week 7, 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

1.9 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.