BretskyBall.com

Week 9 Daily Fantasy Sleepers and Values

At this point in the season, you should have an idea of whether your redraft fantasy football team will be in the mix down the stretch. And while you certainly should play to the whistle, those of you sitting with six or seven losses probably will need work some stretch run magic to have a shot at the playoffs. But that doesn’t quite mean the fantasy season is over does it?

Of course not. With the litany of daily fantasy sites cropping up, football fans can get themselves back in the game week after week. With that, we’ve launched a new resource center here at BretskyBall, dedicated to daily fantasy sports play that we’ll update throughout the remainder of the football season. Check back each week for lineup recommendations and analysis and also, be sure to fertilize the handy widget provided by Fantasy Pros that syncs with our weekly rankings to provide advice for daily fantasy players.

We’ll also keep you updated on some of the best promo offers and free rolls available across the internet so you can get the most out of your money each and every week.

Before we get into our picks for Sunday, we’ll also remind you to check out the 4th Down Fantasy Football Podcast as hosts Wayne Bretsky and Michael Pichan recap the latest news and notes from around the league and also provide their weekly DFS sleepers and value plays.

Week 9 Daily Fantasy Picks

Quarterback

Aaron Rodgers

Rodgers has been playing nearly flawless football over the last several weeks and after completing 24-for-29 passes for 285 yards and two touchdowns last week versus Minnesota, Rodgers will look to put together his third-straight multi-touchdown effort against another division rival when the Packers host the Bears on Monday night. Chicago is not the defense that we have come to know over the past several seasons and with Rodgers elevating his game t another level in the past couple of weeks, he’s well worth the investment in Week 9.

Tony Romo

Romo has had a bit of a hot-and-cold season to this point, putting together a couple of mediocre performances following his 506-yard, five-TD game against the Broncos in Week 5. He did, of course, bounce back with three touchdown strikes against Detroit last week and now is looking ahead to a matchup with a Minnessota team yielding 19.1 fantasy points per game to opposing quarterbacks — the fourth most in the league. Dez Bryant is making a case as the second-most dangerous wideout on the planet and as Terrance Williams continues to develop, Tony Romo makes a very nice weekly play.

Philip Rivers

Rivers, the most efficient QB in the league to this point, figure to shred the Redskins’ suspect secondary this weekend. Coming off of the bye, San Diego is well rested and ready to exploit a porous defense.

Alex Smith

Smith faces off with a Buffalo Defense that has allowed a league-worst 20 touchdown passes to opposing quarterbacks. Smith isn’t going to light up the stat sheet an, in fact, he’s yet to top 300 passing yards in a game this season. He has, however, tossed multiple touchdown passes in four of his eight games this season and has a great chance to continue that trend in Week 9.

Running Back

Adrian Peterson

The Cowboy’s defense has allowed 1,136 all-purpose yards and seven touchdowns to opposing running backs in eight games this season. That works out to 142 yards-per-game for opposing running backs. Peterson has been criminally underused in the past several weeks, totaling just 36 rushes in his last three games. Neither Christian Ponder or Josh Freeman is a particularly skilled passer, but it’s tough to throw a pick when turning around and handing the ball to you most talented player. If Minnesota expects to compete on Sunday, they will lean on their mos talented player.

Eddie Lacey

If Brandon Jacobs can run all over the Bears defense, we have little doubt that Eddie Lacey will find some open room this weekend. The Pack has made a commitment to the run of late and we expect that the volume will continue.

Ryan Mathews

Mathews went into the Chargers Week 8 bye putting together his two strongest games f the season, piling up 212 yards on 43 carries with a touchdown. Yes, he’s losing third down and even some goal line work to Danny Woodhead, but the Redskins’ defense is generous enough for both to play well.

Stevan Ridley

The Patriots offense has been seemingly going in reverse since the return of stud tight end Rob Gronkowski and, by all accounts, Week 8 was one of the ugliest games of Tom Brady‘s career. Stevan Ridley, though has been coming on since his own sluggish start to the 2013 season. The Steelers are not the suffocating defense they once were and while the team has had some success defending the pass this year, opposing running backs have had their way with the Velvet Curtain. Pittsburgh has allowed eight rushing touchdowns this season, the third highest total in the league behind the Jacksonville and Washington. Ridley will have his way with the Steelers’ D in short yardage situations and is well worth the investment this week.

Darren Sporles

Sproles is staring at a very difficult matchup in Week 9 after he was barely involved in the Saints’ thrashing of the Buffalo Bills in Week 8. The usage has been a concern for owners as the slight receiving back netted a big ol’ goose egg in the stat sheet, literally gaining zero yards on four reception. He was on the field for just 16 offensive snaps without being given a single carry. In fact, he’s failed to cap 30 offensive snaps in any of his last three starts. Still, the faith remains on this end and Sproles is developing into a very nice buy low option both for Week 9 and beyond. The Saints, perhaps better than any other team, know how to form their game plan to attack an opposing tam’s weakness. Last week against Buffalo, it was that joke of a secondary that the Bills have been running out their. The Jets offer a much tougher matchup in the rushing game and perhaps that will lead Sean Peyton and Drew Brees toward a more Sproles-heavy attack. Have confidence that the work will be their for one of New Orleans’ key cogs in the passing game.

Wide Receiver

Pierre Garcon

San Diego has struggle against the pass for the majority of the season and a week after an embarrassing performance against the Broncos, you can bet that RGIII will look to flex his strength early and often this Sunday.Garcon is Griffin’s most reliable target and he’s primed for a monster week against a secondary that is allowing over 25 fantasy points per game to opposing wide receivers.

Denarious Moore

While the Eagles’ defense has been much improved over the past two weeks, the secondary remains a weakness. Traveling across the country is never an easy task, so take a shot on Moore, who has very quietly put up a top-20 season at his position to this point.

Tight End

Rob Gronkowski

Gronk was a target monster in his season debut a couple of weeks ago, but struggled along with the rest of the Patriots offense against the Jets last Sunday. This team is too good to look this bad. Expect Brady to force the issue with Gronkowski and invest in the tight end as he looks for his first score of the season.

Scott Chandler

The Chiefs — who have not allowed a touchdown to a tight end all season — certainly do not represent a sot matchup, but we’re still bullish on Scott Chandler this weekend. The tight end saw 11 targets from QB Thad Lewis this week, turning those looks into seven catches for 72 yards. Given that type of volume, Chandler should have no problem out-earning his bargain basement price tag of just 4% of your budget in the daily game. **Note: If Thad Lewis (ribs) is ruled out, all bets are off with Chandler**

Best of Luck in Week 9!

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *