5 Daily Fantasy Football Matchups to Exploit in Week 9

Back in the day, there was no day I looked forward to more than when my Lego Magazine arrived in the mail.

As a subscriber to the greatest publication known to man, I had the ability to look at all of the dope new sets the beautiful people at the company had cooked up over the past month. The pages were drenched in saliva by the time I was done reading.

There was one downside of this magazine, though. Because my allowance was seven dollars per week, there was no way I could afford more than one set per issue.

Bruh.

You can't put 30 pages of greatness in front of an eight year old and expect him to pick just one that he wants most. It's un-American.

Regardless, it was a task that had to be done. I knew I had to suck it up, channel the bravest version of myself, and just pick the elite.

We face a similar dilemma in Week 9 for daily fantasy football.

As I scroll through the player pool, there are far too many delectable options from which to choose. The stars have aligned to pair bad defenses with opposing offenses that have the assets to exploit their weaknesses. It's gorgeous.

After spending countless hours staring blankly at the screen trying to find my favorite matchups, I've narrowed the list down to five. Yes, there are others deserving of recognition, but in a week this crowded, we have to make some sacrifices. It's sad, but we must soldier on, brothers and sisters.

We'll be identifying these matchups using numberFire's Net Expected Points (NEP). If you're new to the site, NEP is the metric we use to track the efficiency of both teams and players. Prior to each play, there is an expected number of points the team will score on their current drive. A positive play (such as a three-yard rush on 3rd and 2) will increase that, resulting in positive NEP. A negative play (such as a three-yard rush on 3rd and 4) will decrease that, resulting in negative NEP. Sum up all of the plays throughout the year, and you've got yourself an NEP, with the team totals being adjusted based on strength of schedule.

I should note that -- until further notice -- the New England Patriots aren't going to be included here. They are crazy good, and they're going to be in a positive matchup most weeks. This week is not an expection, and you should scoop exposure to both their passing and rushing offenses. However, you don't need me to tell you this. Let's look at some of the other potential spots you can target in Week 9.