Week 9 Recap

Week 9 was the lowest scoring week in modern fantasy history. I don't know how predictive that will be moving forward, but the parity this year is unheard of. Weissbard could easily lose out, Billy lost King Henry, and even the Marco/Z/Ajay trio at the bottom of the standings are within striking distance of the NiJo spot. 

Not a lot of analysis this week because I'm traveling, but Mock Trade Mania is coming next week.

But first, the Playoff Picture:

1. Weissbard - Bye - Division Champion
2. Billy - Bye - Wild Card 1
3. AGD - Division Champion
4. Kumpf - Division Champion
5. Levine - Wild Card 2
6. Marco - NiJo Spot

There is a decent amount of space between Levine and the rest of the Wild Card contenders, but Barnard, Nick, and Zacherman are within 30 of NiJo Spot.

Trade Grade 9
Ajay receives Tom Brady
Marco receives Caron Wentz and Darren Waller

After the draft, Ajay trading Waller seemed inevitable. He was totally screwed at RB, had a wildly unnecessary luxury with multiple top three TEs, and Waller blew up Week 1. Since then, Kittle got hurt, Waller slowed down a bit, and Ajay somehow is relatively stacked at RB. Wentz was holding down the fort at QB, but Brady is an obvious upgrade and the downgrade at Flex is not too big as long as everyone stays healthy. 

For Marco, the question was if he wants to have uncertainty at QB or TE. Other than Weissbard, the self-proclaimed Tight End Whisperer, streaming QBs tends to be a lot easier than streaming TEs, even in this league. Wentz is certainly a downgrade from Brady, but given his easy schedule and the massive upgrade at TE, it makes a lot of sense for Marco.

Is this a true win-win? Marco's roster looks as good as it has all season, and Ajay has the upgrade at QB that could gain some ground in the NiJo race. Well done to both.

Grades:
Ajay: B+
Marco: A-

Week 9 Power Rankings

1. AGD (Last Week: 1st)
2. Levine (Last Week: 4th)
3. Kumpf (Last Week: 2nd)
4. Fraudbard (Last Week: 6th)
5. Nick (Last Week: 3rd)
6. Billy (Last Week: 8th)
7. Mejia (Last Week: 5th) 
8. Ajay (Last Week: 7th)
9. Zacherman (Last Week: 9th)
10. Marco (Last Week: 11th)
11. Barnard (Last Week: 10th)
12. Alan (Last Week: 12th)
13. Gutman (Last Week: 13th)
14. Esco (Last Week: 14th) 

Matchup of the Week: Billy vs. Fraudbard

A divisional, top six Power Ranking matchup that could very well determine who wins the Regular Season prize. Two weeks ago, I would have Billy coming in as the heavy favorite, but since then he lost Henry and Weissbard got CMC back. That makes this relatively even on paper, but the Week 10 matchups are weighted pretty heavily in one direction.

Outside of Herbert, Cooper, and the shockingly valuable Pat Freiermuth all of Weissbard's players have some rough matchups. CMC is matchup-proof when healthy, but he's going up against Cards D, so that's going to be a tough needle to thread for Weiss. Billy on the other hand gets a series of dream matchups for his key players, and I can see Carr, JTT, Najee, and the Bills D combing for 100 themselves. I've been on an absurdly rough stretch in the MotW predictions, but this one seems like a lock.

Pick: Billy 
MotW Record: 3-6
Rivalry Week Record: 3-4