A look into week 9 of fantasy football in the NFL

Week eight of the NFL season has been completed and it cannot be stressed enough how important depth is. Depth may be one of the biggest driving factors for teams looking to make a push for the playoffs at this point in the season. 

If you are looking to sneak yourself into a playoff spot you need to be making sure your team is geared up for when players have byes, or if something unexpected comes about like COVID-19 cases within an organization or even injuries. 

If your team is sitting pretty atop the standings, this may be your time to start selling your depth to some of the teams who need it in order to get any chance at making the playoffs. If you seem set and ready as a lock for the postseason, selling your depth is definitely not a bad thing. 

We are nearing the point in the season where fantasy trade deadlines are approaching, and teams will need to make moves if they are struggling. As a top team in the league, try and sell your depth for players who have great playoff schedules. 

San Francisco 49ers wide receiver, Deebo Samuel, is a pricey but amazing addition if you are a team looking to get rid of depth. Samuel has an A+ for not only the remaining schedule, but also the playoff schedule. 

The 49ers play zero teams within the top 10 in fantasy passing defense and four teams inside the bottom 10 in fantasy defense in the remaining stretch of the season. The rest of their opponents are middle of the pack when it comes to giving up points to opposing receivers, so Samuel is a must add from here on out.

If there is anyone else you can find with a similar weakness in their schedule, they are going to be a must buy as fast as you can before their value rises significantly.

This past week also brought several low candidates on star players. There were many, but two notable ones include Vikings wide receiver Justin Jefferson and Lions running back D’Andre Swift. 

Jefferson was quite lackluster on Sunday night against Dallas, catching just two passes for 21 yards. He was amazing last year for fantasy owners, and he will be a big bounce back candidate next week against Baltimore.

Swift is in the same boat as Jefferson, putting up a dud in week eight. The Lions got the opportunity to play the second worst fantasy rushing defense in week eight, and were not able to do anything against them.

The team only scored six points to the Eagles 44, and that will undoubtedly change once they get back from bye in week 10. After two weeks of notably low usage, Swift owners may be in shambles and this would prove to be a great time to buy him low. 

As far as sell high candidates go there are many to choose from as well. Two notable ones that pop off the sheet in my eyes include Saints running back Alvin Kamara and Seahawks wide receiver Tyler Lockett. 

Kamara has been great to this point in the season, but that is thanks to quarterback Jameis Winston, who tore his ACL this past week in the game against the Buccaneers. In his place will either be Trevor Siemian or Taysom Hill. 

If Hill is to start, it will be concerning for Kamara’s fantasy output, given last season’s struggles when Hill took over the starting job during Drew Brees’ absence. Even with Siemian at the helm the Saints are almost guaranteed to struggle to get down the field on offense, which will be detrimental to Kamara’s fantasy season.

Outside of Kamara is Lockett, a speedy wide receiver in Seattle who just saw his second best performance this season in PPR formats behind 12 catches and 142 yards against Jacksonville this past week. A huge concern for Lockett is his remarkable inconsistency, and poor quarterback play until Russel Wilson gets back from his finger injury. 

Lockett has scored over 25 points three times this season and in every game outside of those three above 25, he averages only 6.6. Lockett is the definition of inconsistency, and if he booms, he is an immediate sell for me.