Should I start Sione Vaki or Saquon Barkley in Week 9?
Updated Nov 4, 7:11 AM ET. Week 10 answers post Tuesday.
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Start Sione Vaki: 25 percent of the snaps and 18 percent of the carries over their last 3 games, against Saquon Barkley's 19 percent of the snaps and 27 percent of the carries. 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.
Should I drop Sione Vaki for Saquon Barkley?
Yes, on the rest of the season. Saquon Barkley projects 61 market-implied PPR points from Week 9 through Week 17 (7.6 a game over 8 games), Sione Vaki 14 (1.6 a game over 9 games).
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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.
RB36 · DET · bye unlisted
2026 vs anytime td line 0-7
- Overall rank
- 114
RB39 · PHI · bye 10
2026 vs carries line 1-5
- Market-based projection
- 11.3 pts a game Wk 8 price
- Overall rank
- 117
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The gap
- Board size306 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 Sione Vaki, and the board ranks him 114th overall on the rest of his evidence.
Live drafts hold no current pick on Saquon Barkley, and the board ranks him 117th overall on the rest of his evidence.
By format he goes standard: ADP 3; 2QB: ADP 14.
The market-based projections
The market-based projection for Sione Vaki is 3.8 PPR points a game off 4 markets across 8 market sources. That is 90 percent of what a running back's projection needs, so it is a fragment of one rather than a projection.
The market-based projection for Saquon Barkley is 3.4 PPR points a game off 1 market across 1 market source. That is 30 percent of what a running back's projection needs, so it is a fragment of one rather than a projection.
Sione Vaki's projection is not complete, so the two figures are not set against each other here.
This season through Week 8
Through Week 8, Sione Vaki has been on the field for 24 percent of DET snaps, taken 14 percent of the carries, drawn 2 percent of the targets and had 1 percent of the red zone chances.
He has taken 1 of the offence's 60 third down targets, had 0 of its 22 chances inside the five and seen 0 of its 30 two minute targets.
His 6 targets have averaged 1.7 air yards.
In Week 5 against ARI he carried 6 times for 11 yards and did not score.
In Week 7 against GB he carried 1 time for 5 yards and did not score.
In Week 8 against MIN he carried 11 times for 65 yards, caught 1 of 1 target for 5 yards and did not score.
Through Week 8, Saquon Barkley has been on the field for 33 percent of PHI snaps, taken 36 percent of the carries, drawn 6 percent of the targets and had 20 percent of the red zone chances.
He has taken 1 of the offence's 53 third down targets, had 4 of its 13 chances inside the five and seen 0 of its 41 two minute targets.
His 10 targets have averaged 1.3 air yards.
In Week 4 against LAR he carried 2 times for 8 yards, caught 1 of 1 target for 2 yards and did not score.
In Week 7 against DAL he carried 7 times for 62 yards, caught 2 of 2 targets for 9 yards and scored 1 touchdown.
In Week 8 against WAS he carried 13 times for 30 yards, caught 1 of 1 target for 24 yards and scored 1 touchdown.
Their 2025 seasons
In 2025 Sione Vaki played 11 games and scored 0.4 PPR points, 0.0 a game, finishing RB143.
He carried 1 time for 4 yards and 0 touchdowns, and caught 0 of 0 targets for 0 more yards.
That came to 0.1 carries a game at 4.0 yards a carry.
He was on the field for 0 percent of the snaps in the games he played.
In 2025 Saquon Barkley played 16 games and scored 232.3 PPR points, 14.5 a game, finishing RB14.
He carried 280 times for 1140 yards and 7 touchdowns, and caught 37 of 50 targets for 273 more yards.
That came to 17-18 carries a game at 4.1 yards a carry and 2.3 catches a game.
He was on the field for 78 percent of the snaps in the games he played.
Saquon Barkley was available for 5 games more.
Head to head
In 2025 Saquon Barkley scored 14.5 PPR points a game and Sione Vaki 0.0, 14.5 a game between them.
Sione Vaki finished RB143 that year and Saquon Barkley RB14.
Saquon Barkley had 279 more carries than Sione Vaki, 280 to 1.
Saquon Barkley had 37 more catches than Sione Vaki, 37 to 0.
This season Saquon Barkley holds the bigger snap share, 33 percent against 24 percent.
This season Saquon Barkley holds the bigger share of the carries, 36 percent against 14 percent.
Byes and availability
Saquon Barkley is off in Week 10. No bye is listed for Sione Vaki.
Drop or keep
Should I drop Sione Vaki for Saquon Barkley?
Yes, on the rest of the season. Saquon Barkley projects 61 market-implied PPR points from Week 9 through Week 17 (7.6 a game over 8 games), Sione Vaki 14 (1.6 a game over 9 games).
Should I drop Saquon Barkley for Sione Vaki?
No. Keep Saquon Barkley: he projects 61 market-implied PPR points from Week 9 through Week 17 (7.6 a game over 8 games), Sione Vaki 14 (1.6 a game over 9 games).
Both players in full
Week 9 on the board
- Is Sione Vaki playing Week 9?
- Is Saquon Barkley playing Week 9?
- Lions depth chart
- Eagles depth chart
- Week 9 RB 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
