Should I start David Njoku or Gunnar Helm in Week 9?
Updated Nov 3, 6:16 AM ET. Week 10 answers post Tuesday.
Start Gunnar Helm: 76 percent of the snaps and 6 percent of the targets over their last 3 games, against David Njoku's 33 percent of the snaps and 15 percent of the targets. No market projection is posted on either of them this week, so this is a usage call, and a lower confidence one than a call made on a projection. What follows is what each of them has done.
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Your next move
More fantasy football tools and rankings, all built from the same board.
Neither man carries a season projection right now, so this is their usage this season and their last full season's numbers, side by side.
TE · LAC · bye 7
2025 vs rec yds line 3-9
- Overall rank
- 281
TE · TEN · on bye this week
2026 vs anytime td line 0-8
- Market-based projection
- 5.8 pts a game Wk 8 price
- Overall rank
- 287
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The gap
- Board size297 draftable players
Draft data is not current for these two, so the figures that depend on it are left out. The call above comes from each player's usage.
Where the draft room stands
Live drafts hold no current pick on David Njoku, and the board ranks him 281st overall on the rest of his evidence.
Live drafts hold no current pick on Gunnar Helm, and the board ranks him 287th overall on the rest of his evidence.
The market-based projections
No season market is posted for David Njoku, so the only market valuing him on this page is the draft room.
No season market is posted for Gunnar Helm, so the only market valuing him on this page is the draft room.
Neither carries a posted market, so this page rests on the draft room and on what the two have already done.
This season so far
Through Week 2, David Njoku has been on the field for 33 percent of LAC snaps, drawn 15 percent of the targets and had 7 percent of the red zone chances.
He has taken 2 of the offence's 16 third down targets, had 0 of its 2 chances inside the five and seen 0 of its 7 two minute targets.
His 8 targets have averaged 6.6 air yards.
In Week 1 against ARI he caught 5 of 5 targets for 58 yards and did not score.
In Week 2 against LV he caught 1 of 3 targets for 9 yards and did not score.
Through Week 8, Gunnar Helm has been on the field for 78 percent of TEN snaps, drawn 11 percent of the targets and had 4 percent of the red zone chances.
He has taken 8 of the offence's 67 third down targets, had 0 of its 17 chances inside the five and seen 5 of its 38 two minute targets.
His 26 targets have averaged 5.8 air yards.
In Week 6 against IND he was not given the ball.
In Week 7 against CLE he caught 3 of 4 targets for 24 yards and did not score.
In Week 8 against CIN he caught 5 of 9 targets for 76 yards and did not score.
Their 2025 seasons
In 2025 David Njoku played 12 games and scored 86.3 PPR points, 7.2 a game, finishing TE34.
He caught 33 of 48 targets for 293 yards and 4 touchdowns, with 8 red zone targets.
That came to 4.0 targets a game, a 69 percent catch rate and 8.9 yards a catch.
He was on the field for 64 percent of the snaps in the games he played.
In 2025 Gunnar Helm played 16 games and scored 91.7 PPR points, 5.7 a game, finishing TE31.
He caught 44 of 55 targets for 357 yards and 2 touchdowns, with 7 red zone targets.
That came to 3.4 targets a game, a 80 percent catch rate and 8.1 yards a catch.
He was on the field for 53 percent of the snaps in the games he played.
Gunnar Helm was available for 4 games more.
Head to head
In 2025 David Njoku scored 7.2 PPR points a game and Gunnar Helm 5.7, 1.5 a game between them.
David Njoku finished TE34 that year and Gunnar Helm TE31.
Gunnar Helm had 7 more targets than David Njoku, 55 to 48.
Gunnar Helm had 64 more receiving yards than David Njoku, 357 to 293.
This season Gunnar Helm holds the bigger snap share, 78 percent against 33 percent.
This season David Njoku holds the bigger target share, 15 percent against 11 percent.
Byes and availability
David Njoku is off in Week 7 and Gunnar Helm in Week 9, so either can cover the other's bye.
David Njoku is listed as ir on the injury report.
Both players in full
Week 9 on the board
- Is David Njoku playing Week 9?
- Is Gunnar Helm playing Week 9?
- Chargers depth chart
- Titans depth chart
- Week 9 TE rankings
- Week 9 fantasy rankings
- Week 9 start or sit
- Week 9 waiver wire
- Week 9 trade value chart
- Trade deadline buy low, sell high
- Fantasy football rankings
- Start 'em sit 'em Week 9
- Waiver wire pickups
- Fantasy sleepers
- Rest of season rankings
- Week 9 kicker rankings
- Week 9 defense rankings
