Welcome to Week 9 and the fallout from this past weekend! Scott Hanson of RedZone aptly summed it up with the Week 8 quote, “Welcome to Ref Zone.” It was a great week for those who enjoy high-scoring affairs, as only two games from this past Sunday went under, with one of them barely missing the line by a meager .5 points. The average score per game yesterday was over 50 points! Unfortunately for the streaming category of fantasy, that’s usually a harbinger of bad surprises and upsets. You could throw a stone in any direction from your home page and find a DST ranking on the internet that was high on the Bengals last week, and this column was no exception. But it’s Halloween, and one trick deserves another, so we were treated to another surprise with the Falcons getting drummed at home. After dealing with some upset tummies from having to stomach those two defensive performances, we were given an actual treat with our Chargers pick, hitting home with double-digit fantasy points! This week, there are fewer teams on the bye; however, the options on waivers fall off sharply, so let’s focus on teams that had a week of rest and are coming in sharp and fresh rostered around 50 percent of leagues or fewer.
Please note that there’s a decent chance that better teams above this 50 percent threshold are available in your league, but we can’t assume they’re available to everyone. We have to draw the proverbial line somewhere, so stay active and monitor the league home page; someone might drop a desirable defense after waivers clear.
Los Angeles Rams
Opponent: vs. New Orleans Saints
ESPN % Rostered: 36%
Yahoo % Rostered: 41%
Coming off the bye, the Rams get to host a Saints team that has been atrocious on the road this year, averaging double-digit fantasy points over to opposing defenses. Los Angeles has 11 sacks over their past two games and will look to add to their totals against a New Orleans team that has seen Spencer Rattler take nine sacks in their past two. Rattler has thrown five interceptions to contribute to a staggering eight turnovers for the team over that same span. With Los Angeles getting some key players on offense back after the bye, the Saints will need to score to keep up, which will be a tall task against this Rams defense that has the second-highest quarterback knockdowns and sack total in the NFL. They are also in the top five of net passing yards allowed per attempt on defense.
Jacksonville Jaguars
Opponent: @ Las Vegas Raiders
ESPN % Rostered: 23%
Yahoo % Rostered: 8%
I said a few weeks ago to keep an eye on the Jaguars to see how they fare through a tough three-game gauntlet of stout opponents on offense, as their post-bye week schedule would be much lighter. While this DST started the season on fire, they did not come out through that three-game stretch looking as good as hoped. Nonetheless, their bye week has come and gone, and now they hit the road to face a Raiders offense that has been a boon to start defenses against this season. The one game where they didn’t give up a sack was the same game they turned the ball over four times, and the only game where they didn’t turn the ball over, they surrendered five sacks. They have given up double-digit fantasy points to opposing defenses in four of their last six games this season.
Detroit Lions
Opponent: vs. Minnesota Vikings
ESPN % Rostered: 58%
Yahoo % Rostered: 54%
The Lions come off their rest week hosting a divisional rival before heading off to face their NFC East gauntlet in a four-week span. While Carson Wentz is done for the season, J.J. McCarthy is expected to return to take the start under center for this one. A reminder that McCarthy only has two games to his NFL resume so far, and has two touchdowns and three interceptions, and a fumble lost, while only averaging 150 passing yards. Detroit’s DST has been lights-out in fantasy over their last four games when not playing at Arrowhead, delivering double-digit fantasy points in three of those matchups, which puts them at an average of two turnovers generated and three sacks per game. Given that McCarthy has been sacked nine times in just two starts, the Lions make an excellent candidate for a waiver claim.
After the Cut
Los Angeles Chargers (E:41% Y!:67%) – Those who grabbed them last week are rewarded with a game against the Titans this week. Look to see if they are still available in your league!
Houston Texans (E:75% Y!:60%) – The number two defense in fantasy hosts the Broncos and has two better-looking games after that as a stash candidate if they are still out there for your league.
Green Bay Packers (E:67% Y!:67%) – It’s showing signs of it all starting to come together for the Packers, and we could see their first double-digit fantasy showing as they host the Panthers this week, especially if their backup QB gets another start.
If you see something I don’t, leave a comment or hit me up with feedback @MikeoftheFF on Twitter or find me on Reddit!
Feature image by Michael Packard (@CollectingPack on Twitter) / Photography by Matthew Pearce / Icon Sportswire