4 sleepers at wide receiver for fantasy football in Week 9

Alec Pierce (Indianapolis Colts)

Since Gardner Minshew has taken over for Anthony Richardson, Josh Downs has been a must-start almost every week and one of the best fantasy football wide receivers. However, Downs popped up on the injury report on Thursday due to a knee injury. While he isn't guaranteed to miss this week's game against the Carolina Panthers, being added mid-week is never a great sign.

If Downs is ruled out or forced to miss this game, Alec Pierce is a great sleeper option this week. The Colts second round pick from the 2022 NFL Draft has taken a back seat to Downs but has been more involved as of late with 14 targets over the past three weeks compared to 16 targets in the first five games.

The Carolina Panthers defense has done a good job against wide receivers this season. However, if the Panthers focus on slowing down Michael Pittman Jr., this could be a good week for Alec Pierce to carve out a bigger role in the offense.