With six teams on a bye entering Week 9 of the NFL season, fantasy football owners may have some tougher decisions to make regarding who to start and who to sit. Let's look at the start 'em sit 'em running backs for Week 9.

The Cleveland Browns, Dallas Cowboys, Denver Broncos, New York Giants, Pittsburgh Steelers, and San Francisco 49ers are all off this week, which means top-tier options like Nick Chubb, Tony Pollard, Saquon Barkley, Najee Harris, and Christian McCaffrey are all unavailable.

Which players should you plug in to replace them? And which should stay on the bench?

Here's the fantasy football start 'em sit 'em running backs list for Week 9.

Week 9 Start ‘Em: Running Backs

Jamaal Williams, Detroit Lions

Yes, D'Andre Swift is back, though it seems like he's not fully back. And yes, I'm as frustrated as anyone about the backfield by committee that the Lions have deployed. But we simply can't ignore the opportunity that Jamaal Williams has been given. He ranks second (!) in red zone production among all NFL running backs, scoring more rushing touchdowns inside the 20 than every other player in the league. His 19 carries are tied for fourth. This week, the current RB9 gets the Green Bay Packers, who are around the middle of the pack in points allowed to running backs. Williams had more carries than Swift in Week 8, and it's clear that Dan Campbell wants both involved moving forward.

Miles Sanders, Philadelphia Eagles

Thursday games are always a toss-up from a scoring standpoint, but the Philadelphia Eagles are a different breed. They rank third in points per game (28.0) and sixth in rushing yards (1,047). Meanwhile, the Houston Texans allow the most fantasy football points to opposing running backs, giving up a whopping 31.5 per contest. The Los Angeles Chargers, who are second on the list, allow nearly five points fewer at 26.7 per game. With three top-four finishes in his last three games, start Sanders with confidence.

Antonio Gibson, Washington Commanders

The Minnesota Vikings have been effective against the run in allowing only 18.6 points per game to opposing running backs (10th in the NFL, but Gibson can still provide value. He's had back-to-back top-16 finishes thanks a touchdown in each game, most recently notching all seven of his targets for 58 yards and a touchdown against the Indianapolis Colts. That's where he can shine even with Brian Robinson Jr. being the leader in carries. The Commanders could actually put up some points against the Vikings, so Gibson is a solid receiving option out of the backfield for Taylor Heinecke.

Week 9 Sit ‘Em: Running Backs

Tyler Allgeier, Atlanta Falcons

The issue with starting Allgeier is that you have no idea who will get the carries in any game that Arthur Smith coaches for the Falcons. It could be Allgeier, but it could also be Caleb Huntley or Marcus Mariota. Huntley had 16 carries for 91 yards on 5.7 yards per carry, while Allgeier had 14 carries for 39 yards on 2.8 yards per carry. One of those is better than the other, but neither are a particularly attractive option since that's the definition of a split backfield. The Chargers do allow the second-most points to running backs, but it's a guessing game as to whether Allgeier, Huntley, or Mariota produces the better rushing numbers.

Isiah Pacheco, Kansas City Chiefs

Like many others, when the term “starting running back” was used to describe Pachecho before the Chiefs' bye, I made sure to stash him on my bench for the potential upside moving forward. That upside was not shown in his first game as the starter, as he notched just eight carries for 43 yards and had zero targets in the passing game. Until he actually gets a starter-worthy workload, it's best to keep him stashed on the bench than start him. He could get more carries this week against the Tennessee Titans, but since they're fourth in fantasy football in holding running backs to just 16.8 points per game, there's not a high ceiling. Let the Chiefs prove they're going to use him more before adding him into your lineup.

Michael Carter, New York Jets

The Jets' offense isn't exactly hitting its stride at this point, and with the Buffalo Bills up next, it's also not a surprise that anyone would suggest to sit anyone on the New York offense. But the conversation is more about Carter's fantasy football value, which could continue to drop due to the addition of James Robinson. While Robinson had just five carries against the Patriots (Carter had only seven), the expectation is his workload will increase as he gets more acclimated to the offense. Even with a lot of top running back stars on a bye, the potential for Robinson to get more touches makes Carter a risky play against the team ranked fifth in allowing running to notch only 16.9 points per game.