(Photo by Mark Goldman/Icon Sportswire)
Well, this was an interesting week. We nailed it with two of our under-owned teams (Philly and Tampa Bay), and our stream of the week (Seattle) finished eighth overall. On the other hand, we ran into three surprising results. The Chargers, up 24-10 after three quarters, allowed for a huge comeback at the hands of Drew Lock. Then, the Bengals shocked the Titans in a 31-20 win. We finished up with the Vikings dominating the Packers–though Green Bay made the final score look closer than it was. Luckily, Seattle should have been available at only 34% rostered heading into last week. Here’s a look at the full top-12.
| Rank | Team | Opponent | Fant. Pts. | % Owned | Sacks | Interceptions | Fumbles |
| 1 | Miami Dolphins | LA Rams | 23 | 15% | 2 | 2 | 2 |
| 2 | Philadelphia Eagles | Dallas | 20 | 87% | 4 | 0 | 2 |
| 3 | Pittsburgh Steelers | Baltimore | 18 | 96% | 5 | 1 | 1 |
| 4 | Indianapolis Colts | Detroit | 15 | 72% | 5 | 1 | 1 |
| 5 | Dallas Cowboys | Philadelphia | 13 | 19% | 4 | 2 | 2 |
| T-6 | Las Vegas Raiders | Cleveland | 9 | 2% | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| T-6 | Kansas City Chiefs | NY Jets | 9 | 98% | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| T-8 | Seattle Seahawks | San Francisco | 7 | 30% | 3 | 1 | 1 |
| T-8 | New Orleans Saints | Chicago | 7 | 68% | 5 | 1 | 0 |
| T-8 | Tampa Bay Buccaneers | NY Giants | 7 | 94% | 3 | 2 | 0 |
| 11 | Atlanta Falcons | Carolina | 6 | 2% | 3 | 1 | 0 |
| 12 | Los Angeles Rams | Miami | 5 | 86% | 1 | 0 | 2 |
The biggest takeaway from the week is the Miami Dolphins. Here is what Miami has accomplished over its last five games:
- 4-1 team record
- 13.0 fantasy ppg
- 3.0 sacks per game
- 1.4 INT per game
- 0.8 fumbles recovered per game
- 15.6 pts allowed per game
These are excellent numbers. In case you were wondering, the opponents during this stretch were @Jacksonville, Seattle, @ San Francisco, NY Jets, and LA Rams. That is not an ‘easy’ stretch, and Miami only lost to Seattle by eight. The Dolphins went from a joke at the start of the year to be a team that appears playoff-bound. Miami is a top add priority for the week, and they are looking matchup-proof after their big game against the Rams. For those who are curious, here is Miami’s upcoming schedule:
- @ Arizona Cardinals
- vs LA Chargers
- @ Denver Broncos
- @ New York Jets
- vs Cincinnati Bengals
That’s at least three excellent matchups, and it’s a schedule I’m happy to roll against. As usual, we can continue to stream anyone playing the Giants, Cowboys, Eagles, Jets, Broncos, Patriots, and Washington. I am temporarily avoiding the Bengals and Vikings after a big week eight. If we don’t need to face them, I’d like to wait a week and see. So who are we targeting in week 9? Unfortunately, this is a bit of a slim week for streaming. the Pittsburgh Steelers (96%) draw the hapless Cowboys. Philadelphia and Cleveland are both off this week. Then Denver faces Atlanta–a defense that gives up 28 points per game. Still, we have some solid options available. Let’s take a look.
Under-owned Teams
New England Patriots (79%, @ NY Jets)
Our monster pickup for week nine is the Patriots. Sure, New England has looked bad for a few weeks now. They aren’t ‘Jets bad’ though. This has all the makings of a get-right game, and I would wager that Bill Belichick and his team come out punching hard. The Jets give up close to four sacks a game, and they haven’t reached 11 points in any of their last four games. Woof. New England, for their part, is still a talented defense and they should feast on an overmatched Jets team. This might be my number one overall defense of the week, and they are only 79% rostered. That’s worth checking.
Week 4 Streamers
Green Bay Packers (36%, @ San Francisco) Stream of the Week
Green Bay was embarrassed by the Vikings in week eight, and they saw their record drop to 5-2. Their run defense was pathetic, and they clearly had no answer for Dalvin Cook. Luckily for the Packers, the 49ers don’t exactly have the same firepower on their roster. San Francisco just lost George Kittle and Jimmy Garoppolo for an extended time, and they feature a revolving door of options at running back. Despite their modest numbers as a defense so far, the Packers should have an easy time of this one in what looks like a near-perfect matchup. Green Bay is my stream of the week for week nine.
Miami Dolphins (15%, @Arizona)
I said plenty about the Dolphins earlier, so let’s discuss their opponent. Arizona was the one reason I hesitated to suggest the Dolphins this week. Arizona has been killing it lately, averaging 35 points per game over their last three outings. Sure, Miami has been great recently. Just beware that they are traveling across the country to face a white-hot offense. This is not my favorite week 9 matchup, but you could think of it as an investment for those next four games after (Chargers, Broncos, Jets, Bengals). Miami is still under the radar and we can buy in before it’s too late. If you have the roster space, consider grabbing them and benching them for one week. I don’t usually recommend it, but I think it makes sense here if your team is in good shape for the playoffs.
Washington Football Team (16%) vs New York Giants (11%)
We finish up with what is starting to become a weekly tradition: the listing of the NFC East game. Let’s start with the 2-5 Washington Football Team. Washington is currently shopping the quarterback they drafted last year, and they are averaging about 170 passing yards per game over their last three contests. They don’t turn the ball over much, but they have trouble moving it at all. Washington’s offense is as bad as their numbers appear. Looking at the other side, the Giants are no slouch either. They have put up 170+ passing yards only twice in their last six games and they average two turnovers per game. Even when things are going well for New York (the Ronald Jones fumble, the lead after three quarters) they still blow it. I don’t have much faith in either team here, and I could easily bet on either to look terrible. The question, then, is which team looks more terrible. I am going to do something I don’t want to: bet on Daniel Jones and the G-men. I think New York has been better lately, and I think they take this one. I wouldn’t watch it, but I would bet on the Giants if I need someone still. If you are more of a Washington believer, you aren’t crazy to roll with them either. Jones did throw two more picks last night…