8 Fantasy Football Sleepers for Week 9

Alex Smith, QB, Washington

After being little more than a streaming option for much of his career, Alex Smith blew up last year and was actually getting some fantasy football love with his move to Washington this offseason.

That didn't last long, though, and he's back on the waiver wire in more than 50% of leagues. He has finished four of his seven games with fewer than 15 fantasy points this year, and Weeks 7 and 8 saw him post his two lowest fantasy scores of the season.

Both of those games were against teams allowing bottom-12 fantasy numbers to quarterbacks on the year, and this week's matchup is a lot softer.

Our schedule-adjusted metrics have the Atlanta Falcons as the league's fourth-worst pass defense, and the Falcons have allowed the second-most fantasy points per game to opposing quarterbacks. Of the seven starting quarterbacks to face the Falcons, each of the last six have notched at least 20 fantasy points, averaging a ridiculous 27.6 per game. The lone exception to this generosity was the very first game of the season, when they held Nick Foles in check.

Like Mayfield, Smith hasn't been entirely without competent fantasy showings this year. He has games of 16.8 and 19.6 fantasy points to his name, and while he's certainly a low-ceiling option, he stands out as a relatively safe play this week.