The Worksheet, a comprehensive fantasy football preview by Rich Hribar, breaks down everything you need to know about the Week 9 matchup between the Bears and Cardinals.
Find a breakdown of every Week 9 NFL game in our Worksheet Hub.
| Chicago | Rank | @ | Arizona | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1.0 | Spread | -1.0 | ||
| 21.75 | Implied Total | 22.75 | ||
| 23.3 | 16 | Points/Gm | 22.3 | 18 |
| 17.0 | 4 | Points All./Gm | 25.6 | 24 |
| 63.9 | 7 | Plays/Gm | 57.8 | 29 |
| 60.6 | 13 | Opp. Plays/Gm | 63.3 | 22 |
| 4.7 | 27 | Off. Yards/Play | 5.9 | 8 |
| 5.3 | 9 | Def. Yards/Play | 6 | 28 |
| 45.19% | 15 | Rush% | 47.40% | 11 |
| 54.81% | 18 | Pass% | 52.60% | 22 |
| 41.98% | 14 | Opp. Rush % | 48.22% | 25 |
| 58.02% | 19 | Opp. Pass % | 51.78% | 8 |
- The Bears are the only team remaining that has not scored first in any game this season.
- The Cardinals have trailed for 64.7% of their offensive snaps, ahead of only the Panthers (67.5%) and Raiders (70.6%).
- 42.3% (11-of-26) of the scoring plays allowed by Chicago's defense have been touchdowns, the lowest rate in the league.
- The Bears have allowed 1.45 points per drive, fourth in the league.
- Arizona allows 2.64 points per drive, 31st in the league.
- Arizona is 31st in success rate against rushing plays (53.7%) and 32nd against passing plays (47.7%).
- Chicago has converted a league-worst 31.8% (7-of-22) of their third-and-short (needing 3 or fewer yards) situations. The league average is 58.1%.
- Arizona has converted 70.8% (17-of-24) of those third-and-short situations, 5th in the league.
- The Cardinals have converted a league-worst 9.7% (3-of-31) of their third-and-long situations (needing 7 or more yards).
Trust = spike production for that player
Quarterback
Kyler Murray: Sunday was the best that Murray has played outside of that week when this offense roasted the Rams.
Murray threw for a season-high 307 yards in Miami.
It was only the second time this season he threw multiple touchdown passes.
His 8.5 yards per pass attempt where the only second time he has passed for more than 7.0 Y/A in a game.
He was excellent in the second half, going 18-of-22 (81.8%) for 228 yards (10.4 Y/A) and a touchdown.
This was a solid development and not a coincidence that Murray’s two best games as a passer this season have coincided with the best Marvin Harrison Jr. outings (more on that in a bit).
While all of that was good to see, let’s see this offense build on that.
We have seen this passing game tease us before.
I still prefer to use Murray as a fringe QB1/high-end QB2 this week and take on any upside outcome that comes along before chasing a spike week here.
The Chicago pass defense has been sturdy going back to last season.
The Bears are second in the NFL in passing points allowed per attempt (0.299) and passing points allowed per game (9.7).
The Bears have not allowed more than two passing touchdowns in a game since Week 8 of last season.
If using Murray as a back end QB1, that sample does include a matchup with Murray in Week 16 last season.
Murray was the QB11 in that one (20.4 points).
He only threw for 230 yards and 6.1 Y/A, but he did toss two scores while rushing for 32 yards.
Caleb Williams: After back-to-back QB1 scoring weeks, Williams came out of his bye and struggled against Washington, finishing as the QB28 (9.3 points).
He completed a season-low 41.7% of his passes, going 10-of-24 for 131 yards.
One positive was that Williams kept running more. He rushed for 41 yards after rushing for 34 and 56 yards the two games prior.
He was pressured on a season-high 64.5% of his dropbacks, the highest rate for a quarterback in a game this season.
We mentioned how Williams has struggled under pressure as a rookie, and that was illuminated on Sunday.
He was 4-of-12 for 5.8 Y/A under pressure against Washington.
For the season now, Williams is 23-of-59 (39.0%) for 256 yards (4.3 Y/A) under pressure.
The good news for him here is that Arizona is 30th in the NFL in pressure rate (27.1%).
When Arizona has not pressured the opposing passer, they have allowed a 74.0% completion rate (27th), 8.1 Y/A (26th), and a 5.0% touchdown rate (22nd).
While the rate stats for Arizona are among the league’s worst against the pass, they have not been a complete fantasy boon as a fantasy matchup.
They have only allowed three QB1 scoring weeks this season.
Jared Goff (QB18), Brock Purdy (QB19), Justin Herbert (QB16), and Tua Tagovailoa (QB20) all had in-game success against them that did not come attached to fantasy points.
I would not run from Williams in this matchup, but he is more of a floor-based QB2 capable of running into a spike week.
Running Back
To continue reading this article
and gain access to The Worksheet and all of Rich's regular content, including positional rankings, DFS picks, and chats, click below to learn more about our fantasy package
Learn MoreMore Week 9 Fantasy Breakdowns From The Worksheet:
| Matchup | Time |
|---|---|
| Texans @ Jets -- FREE | Thursday Night Football |
| Cowboys @ Falcons | Sunday -- 1 p.m. ET |
| Dolphins @ Bills | Sunday -- 1 p.m. ET |
| Raiders @ Bengals | Sunday -- 1 p.m. ET |
| Chargers @ Browns | Sunday -- 1 p.m. ET |
| Patriots @ Titans | Sunday -- 1 p.m. ET |
| Commanders @ Giants | Sunday -- 1 p.m. ET |
| Saints @ Panthers | Sunday -- 1 p.m. ET |
| Broncos @ Ravens | Sunday -- 1 p.m. ET |
| Jaguars @ Eagles | Sunday -- 4:05 p.m. ET |
| Bears @ Cardinals | Sunday -- 4:05 p.m. ET |
| Lions @ Packers | Sunday -- 4:25 p.m. ET |
| Rams @ Seahawks | Sunday -- 4:25 p.m. ET |
| Colts @ Vikings | Sunday Night Football |
| Bucs @ Chiefs -- FREE | Monday Night Football |