Welcome To The Halfway Point
WE MADE IT!
We’ve arrived at the beginning of the second half of the fantasy football season!
At this point in the season, you have a pretty good idea of where your team stands in 2019 which is a good thing no matter what your record is. Regardless if you are doing poorly or not we here at Fantasy In Frames will always advise you keep playing like you have nothing left to lose and everything left to gain. Keep making those trades and keep working that waiver-wire religiously until the season is over. I, personally, am not one that believes that just because a team is out of contention for the fantasy playoffs that they should automatically stop trying to win games and pick up players. Some people consider that to be a huge no-no because it robs people who are in playoff contention of the opportunity to improve their rosters as they inch towards a #4EYEDchampionship. My response to that is just because I might not be in the running for a title doesn’t mean I’m here to help anyone else win a championship. I’m here to win. Period. Finish strong no matter what.
That being said before we start jumping the gun talking about fantasy championships, let’s take a deep breath and focus on making that final push to get into the fantasy football playoffs. You have 5 weeks left to either turn the corner or to cement your spot in the playoffs and that process of doing so begins right now!
Here is a list of players I believe will have the best matchups for you to take advantage of and help deliver you another victory on the road towards the promised land.
Here are my 4-EYED PREVIEWS for Week 9
Quarterback: Derek Carr should drive you to victory this week.
Riding high after his 285 yards passing, 3 TD performance against Houston in week 8, Derek Carr and the Raiders welcome to town a Lions team that ranks 19th in pass coverage and 23rd in terms of pass-rushing effectiveness. Last week Detroit gave up 322 passing yards, 4 TDs, and allowed Daniel Jones to score 28.1 fantasy points, and with a Lions secondary that is in shambles with the trade of Quandre Diggs last week to Seattle, Tracy Walker’s injury during the Giants game, and Darius Slay’s hamstring injury, Carr finds himself in another advantageous fantasy matchup this week. Start your engines with confidence with Derek Carr in week 9.
Running Back: Mark Walton should have a respectable showing for the Fins this week.
Look….I know. His MNF performance in week 8 wasn’t that inspiring, but this week he gets his chance at redemption against a Jets team that just traded away it’s best defensive lineman to the Giants. The Dolphins made it clear on Monday night that Mark Walton was going to be their bell cow going forward by giving him 17 total opportunities with the ball in his hands which was more than double than what any other running back had on that team. On the season the Jets are allowing the 8th most fantasy points per game to opposing running backs and now with Leonard Williams no longer along that defensive line, look for that average to increase this week. Flex Walton this week, folks!
Wide Receiver: Danny Amendola will produce another solid performance, this time against the Raiders.
If you read my 4-EYED OBSERVATIONS yesterday you would have read me swooning over how valuable Danny Amendola has been for the Lions when targeted often in the passing game, and this week he’ll be going up against slot cornerback Lamarcus Joyner who PFF ranks as the best WR/CB matchup in this Lions/Raiders game for Detroit. The Raiders are giving up the 7th most fantasy points to slot wide receivers in the NFL making this a great matchup for Amendola this week.
Tight End: Cameron Brate will once again show why he’s Jameis Winston’s favorite tight end.
Ranked as one of the best matchups for tight ends this week Cameron Brate will be going up against free safety Tedric Thompson who has yielded a league-leading 3.36 yards per routes ran against by tight ends this season. The Seahawks are 4th in points allowed to tight ends and given Jameis Winston’s propensity to “huck it and chuck it”, for better or worse, towards his most trusted targets look for Brate to provide top 5 tight end upside this week!
IDP OF THE WEEK
Defensive Lineman: Arik Armstead will continue to play second fiddle and that’s OK!
Since Nick Bosa’s emergence as one of the most dominant defensive ends in the NFL, Arik Armstead hasn’t been too shabby playing on the opposite end of that defensive line either. Posting 17 total tackles, 3.5 sacks, and solid 9.3 fantasy points per game (scoring based on our IDP scoring rubric shown above) over the past four weeks Armstead will look to take advantage against a Cardinals offensive line that ranks 29th in terms of pass blocking according to footballoutsiders.com.
That wraps up my 4-EYED PREVIEWS for WEEK 9!
Our 4-EYED ASSESSMENT article comes out tomorrow and our HEROES & VILLAINS article will drop on Friday!
ALSO, our Week 9 Fantasy Preview podcast will be dropping Friday evening!
Make sure to follow us Twitter, Facebook, & Instagram as well as reach out to us to get your personalized fantasy football questions answered!
Thanks for visiting Fantasy In Frames!
*Stats provided by FantasyData.com and ProFootballFocus.com