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It was a great Week 9 as all of our recommendations came through. Newton was a little disappointing because the Panthers scored 42 points, but he failed to throw for 250 yards. However, as mentioned in the write up last week, his rushing ability gives him the stable floor and he finished with 33 yards on the ground and still threw two touchdowns. There are a lot of teams in great scoring environments this week so I don’t think we have to worry about any one player being highly owned.
Quarterbacks
Cash Game Option:
Los Angeles Chargers Philip Rivers ($12,400) – The Chargers offense is in a great spot this week going up against the Raiders as they have an implied team total of 30. The Raiders defense can’t stop anyone as they rank 31st in defensive DVOA according to Football Outsiders and rank dead last against the pass. All we have to do is look back to Week 5 and see that Rivers had the best game of the season as he threw for 339 with two touchdown passes to finish with 24.36 Fantasy Draft points. The Raiders seem more disinterested this time around so I can see a similar performance by the veteran. Rivers is the fourth highest priced quarterback this week and rightfully so as he should do what he wants against this secondary.
Tournament Option:
Chicago Bears Mitchell Trubisky ($11,100) – The Lions were able to limit Vikings quarterback Kirk Cousins to only 164 yards, but game flow dictated that performance. Football Outsiders has the Lions pass defense ranked 30th in the league and their cornerback Teez Tabor is ranked as one of the worst in the league at his position according to Pro Football Focus. Trubisky is still too inconsistent as a passer, but this matchup is a juicy one. What makes Trubisky even more appealing is his ability to run as he has topped 45 rushing yards four times this season. The young signal caller has proven that he has an extremely high ceiling which is what we want in tournaments and that can be on display again in Week 10.
Tight Ends
Cash Game Option:
Green Bay Packers Jimmy Graham ($8,600) – Entering Week 9, the Dolphins allowed tight ends to catch 13 passes for 108 yards and five touchdowns in their previous three games. They faced Jets tight end Chris Herndon in Week 9 and allowed the rookie to tie a career high in catches and set a career high in receiving yards with 62. On deck for the Dolphins is a matchup against Graham and the potent Packers offense. Graham has been a disappointment overall this season, but he continues to dominate the snaps for the Packers as he has been on the field for over 70 percent of the team’s snaps in every game this season. The Packers have an implied team total of 28.75 so there shouldn’t be a shortage of scoring and Graham seems in line to benefit.
Tournament Option:
Washington Redskins Jordan Reed ($8,000) – The breakout performance in 2018 by Reed is coming and it could be this week as the Redskins take on the worst defense according to Football Outsiders. We have picked on the Buccaneers all season long with great success and we shouldn’t stop now. The Redskins offense has been a disappointment as they are led by Alex Smith and they are dealing with a ton of injuries as well. Their struggles is why I can’t recommend them in cash lineups, but the potential to smash is there and Reed and company are fully in play in tournaments.
Defenses
New York Jets ($6,700) – The Jets take on a Bills offense that is a mess right now as they continue to rotate at the quarterback position. As of Friday morning, there is no clarity who will be the starting quarterback as Derek Anderson was once again ruled out with a concussion and rookie Josh Allen continues to deal with an elbow injury. Nathan Peterman may get the nod again which will be great news for those that will be using the Jets defense. Regardless of who starts at quarterback, the Bills have a slate worse implied team total of 14.75. The Jets rank 10th in defensive DVOA and should be able to limit the damage by the Bills. They are a strong play in cash games and can be used in tournaments as well.