NFL Week 9: Daily Fantasy Football Preview

The NFL season is in full throttle now and there are a ton of questions moving into Week Nine. Is Ezekiel Elliot playing or isn’t he? Will the Eagles keep winning? Is the loss of Deshaun Watson going to end the Texans playoff hopes? All of these questions will be answered in the coming weeks and the answers may determine many fantasy football outcomes.

Obviously, players like Elliott will have a direct impact on who wins fantasy matchups but his presence will also cause a domino effect that will impact the performance of his teammates (Mainly Dez Bryant and Dak Prescott) as well. The same can be said about Deshaun Watson, whose absence will have a negative impact on Will Fuller, D. Hop and the rest of the Texans offense.

The Eagles offense gained another weapon this week then they traded for Jay Ajayi. It will be interesting to see how he fits into their offensive system and how his blocking ability moves Carson Wentz closer to the top tier of fantasy quarterbacks. Everything is lining up for a strong end to the fantasy season. Choosing the correct players week to week will not be easy but finding a diamond in the rough would go a long way to a tournament win for fantasy players.

Quarterback

Drew Brees

The Saints offense is starting to look more like the offense that fantasy players have come accustomed to. Their run game as improved since the trade of Adrian Peterson to the Cardinals. Expect Drew Brees to air it out against a weak Bucs secondary. In typical Brees fashion, it is hard to determine which receivers will be his top target so starting Brees “naked” (without another player stacked with him) may be the best way to go.

Alex Smith

Every week fantasy owners wait for Smith to finally come back down to earth. It hasn’t happened yet and it doesn’t look like this week will be the week that it does. The Chiefs will depend on Smith to go stride for stride with the Cowboys offense in this potential shootout. A multi-touchdown game is not out of question but again this may be a situation to start the quarterback without any teammate stacked with him in a lineup.

Deep Sleeper: Jared Goff

This is a complete gut feeling. Goff is often forgotten about with the success of other young quarterbacks like Wentz and Watson but he has produced an excellent fantasy season so far. The Rams offense is always a threat to blow up each week but going against the Giants defense that has suspended some of their top players recently may be a recipe for success for Goff. The Rams should attack through the air and pairing Goff with Sammy Watkins might a great low cost/high result play.

Running Back

Kareem Hunt

Again, with the game expected to be a bit of a shootout it is easily conceivable that fantasy players should look to the Chiefs best player. Many players will be off of Hunt this week because he has had a few performances where he didn’t reach his value. That makes this week an excellent week to pay up for the star running back. He may be under ten percent owned in tournaments which Is lowest he has been in weeks.

Adrian Peterson

A bye week goes a long way in regards to forgetting players. AP was the talk of the fantasy world after his first game with the Cardinals and now after being with the team for a good amount of time, the team losing its starting quarterback to injury, and him having more time to study the playbook AP may be ready for a breakout game. The 49ers are the perfect team for him to go against right now and a large fantasy output can be expected.

Deep Sleeper: Christian McCaffrey

The Panthers traded away Kelvin Benjamin which makes McCaffrey Cam Newton’s number one target (like he wasn’t already). He is still a sleeper since he hasn’t produced heavily yet this season but his usage rate should increase and some big games may be on the way for the pass catching running back.

Wide Receiver

Julio Jones

Fantasy players are still waiting for that big game from Julio. It may come this week with him facing the Panthers in what is looking like the most important game for the Falcons all season. Big players are supposed to step up in big games and sooner or later Jones is going to go off for over 200 yards. His ownership will also be low which is a huge plus for a great talent.

TY Hilton

The Colts will be playing from behind most of the game as always. Hilton is by far their best option on offense and although he may not have large number of receptions he is always a threat to break a big play. His big-play ability is what makes him a great GPP play on a weekly basis.

Deep Sleeper: Sammy Watkins

Stack him with Goff and Gurley for a low-owned fantasy play that could net big winnings. Not many people will have the Rams offense in a full stack so chances are if the play hits fantasy players will win big. Watkins is still a major talent but he has yet to really mesh with Goff. They are going to have a breakout game in the next couple of weeks and facing the lowly Giants may be the perfect time for it.

Tight End

Travis Kelce

Kelce is the real deal. He talks the talk and he walks the walk. He, Gronk, and Zach Ertz are always the top plays at tightend but with Ertz on the injury list and Gronk on a bye, Kelce is the man this week. Stack the Chiefs in this match up and maybe even make it a game stack with Dez,and Zeek added in.

Vernon Davis

If Jordan Reed is out Davis will be the best option for Kirk Cousin across the middle of the field. He has had a great year so far and is showing signs of having a lot left in the tank. Davis was at one time a premier tightend in fantasy. Even though Seattle has a great defense, they do get exposed by tight ends.

Deep Sleeper:  Cameron Brate

Brate is a modern day Chris Carter,“All he does is score touchdowns!”. The Saints/Bucs games will most likely be another shootout and with Brate being one of Winston’s top options in the red zone. He could be a low cost asset for any fantasy player. On Draftkings a nice strategy may be to start two tightends (Davis and Brate).

Deep Deep Sleeper: Trey Burton

If Ertz does not play, expect the Eagles to use Burton and his athletic ability to its fullest. He is a great pass catching tight end and Denver is another strong defense that allows tightends to shred them. Whichever Eagle gets the most snaps on Sunday will be in line for a big day. Burton will not be played by many people at all. This is a big time long shot for fantasy players.

Defense

Arizona Cardinals

The Cardinals are facing a 49ers team that got their butts handed to them last week by Philly. They will not be paying their new franchise quarterback this weeks o they will face on  more week of hell. The offense has talent but they just lost their top receiver to injury and their starting running back has been inconsistent all year. The Cards should thrive.

Philadelphia Eagles

The Eagles are at home again and Denver is going with Brock Osweiler at quarterback this week. This looks like the chalk play for the week so if a fantasy player can pivot to a lower owned defense it may be a good idea. Philly should still do well.