Fantasy football sleepers: DT - Week 6

October 14, 2010 @ 12:26:00

By Bryce McRae
Edited by Tim Heaney

Fantasy football sleepers: QB | RB | WR | TE | PK | DT

In this article KFFL breaks down the fantasy football sleepers of the week. We will avoid marquee names because players of that caliber are rarely benched, regardless of their matchup. Instead, we will focus on the players that make your fantasy lineup decisions stressful each week. Read on to learn which midrange to low-end players you wouldn't necessarily consider that you need to get into your lineup.

Note: All statistics are from Week 2 to Week 5, unless otherwise stated.

Fantasy football sleepers: Defensive teams

Oakland Raiders at San Francisco 49ers

Fantasy value: No. 1 or bench

• San Fran has only allowed 2.00 sacks per game over the last month (tied for 17th most), but they've surrendered 1.75 picks per game (tied for second most) in that time. The 49ers are still trying to get their feet wet in a new offensive system, and Alex D. Smith has been erratic and is on thin ice for the quarterback job.
• Oakland has played the run tough this season, though their stats are skewed from one long run allowed to the Tennessee Titans' Chris Johnson and a poor day against the Houston Texans.
  Raiders run D hasn't been as bad as their stats (that's my opinion) and should be able to shut down Frank Gore. Corner Nnamdi Asomugha is versatile enough that he could limit tight end Vernon Davis or wideout Michael Crabtree.
• It was against the woeful San Diego Chargers special teams, but Oakland's Nick Miller gave their return game a bit of a spark with a 46-yard punt return last week.

Kansas City Chiefs at Houston Texans

Fantasy value: No. 1 or bench

• Kansas City limited the Indianapolis Colts' high-powered offense to just 19 points last week. They recorded one sack and one interception of Indy quarterback Peyton Manning, but consider that was only Manning's second interception and fifth sack this year.
• Houston quarterback Matt Schaub was dropped three times last week and has been sacked 14 times in five games this year. In two games against 3-4 defenses this year, Schaub has thrown three picks (only two in three games against 4-3 D's) and been sacked nine times (five in three games against 4-3s).
  KC is averaging 2.33 sacks per game over the last month, good for 12th most in the league.
• The Chiefs are allowing just 14.3 points per game in the last four weeks (three games), though that is a bit skewed because they faced the Cleveland Browns and San Francisco 49ers. Houston's offense has wavered enough with a hobbled Andre Johnson and Jacoby Jones (calf), though, that KC could succeed.

Fantasy football sleepers: QB | RB | WR | TE | PK | DT

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Bryce McRae
Bryce McRae is a Managing Editor with KFFL and has been involved in fantasy sports since 1999. He joined KFFL as a volunteer writer in March 2005 before becoming a Hot off the Wire Analyst in March 2006. He began working in his current capacity in September 2008. His work has appeared on fantasy sports sites such as Yahoo! and CBS Sportsline as well as in print. He graduated from the University of British Columbia in 2008 with a B.A. in History and U.S. Studies.

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