If you’re reading about the best survivor pool strategy and looking for the top NFL Week 9 survivor picks then congratulations are in order. After two weeks with very few upsets, many survivor pool contestants drowned in a bloodbath of upsets as two of the top teams picked, the Cincinnati Bengals and Atlanta Falcons, fumbled their way to big losses to the New York Jets and Miami Dolphins respectively. For those of us still alive, we inch one step and one week closer to taking down the big prize. Remember, the best survivor pool strategy isn’t simply about picking the biggest favorite each week; it’s about understanding matchups, managing risk, and planning several weeks ahead. Sometimes, though, the football gods have a different plan. You can do all the right things, make the best picks and still find yourself on the losing side of things. We’ll try and help you avoid that as best we can. Those who are still in it are ready to scratch and claw their way to the final weeks, so identifying the best survivor pool strategy can be the key to outlasting the competition and claiming the prize. In this week’s article we'll take you through our process to help you make the most sensible picks to advance to next week and beyond.

 

 

Best NFL Survivor Pool Strategy for 2025 NFL Week 9

We still believe the best survivor pool strategy at this point of the season, revolves around the "chalky" plays. We’re always looking ahead, but right now, we’re still looking at the reliable favorites with the biggest spreads and hopefully, not overexposed in most pools. We prefer to have a home team and, in a lot of cases, avoid divisional matchups and short weeks, so don’t expect to see much in the way of Thursday Night Football picks, even though the Baltimore Ravens just got back Lamar Jackson and square up against the Miami Dolphins on Thursday Night Football. Tempting? For sure. But we’re going to pass.

For NFL Week 9, the premium examples are the Los Angeles Rams who are a two-touchdown, home favorite home against the New Orleans Saints, and the Green Bay Packers who are a 13-point home favorite against the Carolina Panthers. Our friends over at Pool Genius also point out, the Los Angeles Chargers, 9.5-point favorites over the Tennessee Titans could also be a popular pick. They currently have a 24-percent popularity score, second-highest of the week, and only a 0.6 Future Value. Is this the only legitimate week we have left to take them? The Rams are actually considered the most popular with a 48-percent mark and have a 1.0 Future Value and the Packers have just a 16-percent popularity score with a 1.5 Future Value. Are people not on the Packers because of the Future Value of because they’ve used them already in their pools. You’ll have to check the availability within your survivor pool to get the answer to that question. 

 

 

Dominate Your Survivor Pool with Pool Genius

Back in Week 3, you got a great introduction to Pool Genius and everything they have to offer. It doesn’t matter that it’s Week 8 – there is still an opportunity for you to join and still take advantage of everything they have to offer. If this is your first time hearing about them, please allow me to show you the way, because they have some exciting tools to help you make the right picks. What happens is, you load in all the information about your pool – how many total participants, cost per entry, specific rules to your pool regarding things like repeat picks or buybacks and since we are already here in Week 9, who you’ve taken so far. From there, they analyze all the data and make suggestions as to who to take, so it is a VERY personalized service.

To continue guiding you, I am using all the tools Pool Genius has to offer and making one of my picks based solely off their data and recommendations. The pick I had been tracking in this article series had Arizona in Week 5, so I am shifting gears. I have a few other picks in pool, so I am still using the tools here, but instead of trying to track another pick, I will simply discuss the top few recommended picks overall and from there, you can determine who you want to take each week.

The top Pool Genius recommendations are as follows:

  1. Green Bay Packers (vs. Carolina Panthers, 16% popularity)
  2. Los Angeles Chargers (at Tennessee Titans, 24% popularity)
  3. Los Angeles Rams (vs New Orleans Saints, 48% popularity)
  4. Detroit Lions (vs Minnesota Vikings, 3% popularity)

According to Pool Genius the Rams are expected to be the most popular pick this week and as a 14-point favorite with a -1000 money line, it’s pretty understandable. It’s not a divisional matchup and the Saints are throwing rookie Tyler Shough to the wolves here. The game that ranks second-highest in popularity is the Chargers at 24-percent. Of course, they’re on the road and as someone who has lost a lot of money on the Chargers over the years, I’m not sure I can go in this direction, even though the team at Pool Genius lists them as their second-favorite this week. They list the Rams, the most popular team as just their third-favorite, despite having the second-highest win probability on the slate. 

Now before I get to my favorite picks to use, I do want to remind you that Pool Genius is a paid service, but for the Fantasy Alarm #Family, they have some discounts available to you. The data and service they provide has been fantastic thus far and I feel confident using their suggestions. 

Now let’s get to my three favorite options for NFL Week 9:

 

 

NFL Survivor Pool Picks for Week 9

Green Bay Packers vs. Carolina Panthers: Pick Green Bay Packers

Our friends over at Pool Genius aren’t the only one who believe this is the pick to make this week as they give the Packers an 86-percent chance of winning this game. Vegas also believes it with the -900 money line. The Packers are playing some great ball right now, having just won three in a row (3-0 at home this year too) and have a very well-balanced approach. Josh Jacobs has been a beast on the ground and Green Bay just re-added Christian Watson to their receiving corps. The panthers are their fourth-straight soft opponent before facing the Eagles next week, but head coach Matt LaFleur has them focused on winning one week at a time.

The Panthers have a few wins under their belt, but got a wake-up call during their 40-9 drubbing at the hands of the Buffalo Bills. They aren’t a very good team. Bryce Young should return under center this week, but will it be enough to best the tough Green Bay defense? I don’t think so.

Los Angeles Rams vs. New Orleans Saints: Pick Los Angeles Rams

When Pool Genius listed the Rams with the highest popularity score, I got a little nervous. Even with a -1000 money line, I hate siding with the public as they bet what they want to see, not what they actually will see. However, this Rams team is firing on all cylinders as Matthew Stafford gets Puka Nacua back on the field this week. With him and Davante Adams, this passing attack is crazy formidable. The Saints corners are not good, so this match-up kind of excites me. And that’s without even talking about how much I like running back Kyren Williams.

On the other side, I can’t help but feel sorry for Saints fans as this team has gone from the highest of highs to some serious lows this season. Alvin kamara doesn’t fit Kellen Moore’s offensive scheme and now there’s a change at QB with rookie Tyler Shough taking over. There’s a reason they were going with Spencer Rattler and it’s not because he’s a good QB. He was more like the lesser of two evils.

Los Angeles Chargers vs. Tennessee Titans: Pick Los Angeles Chargers

Our friends at Pool Genius are pretty high on the Chargers this week, despite the game being played on the road. There’s an 80-percent win probability and just a 0.6 Future Value which indicates a “take them now while you can” thought process. If you have multiple picks in a pool, then perhaps some exposure here is warranted. After all, Justin Herbert has been clutch, he’s got an array of pass-catchers most teams drool over and with both Joe Alt and Trey Pipkins healthy on the offensive line, Kimani Vidal has been a solid replacement for the injured Omarion Hampton. All signs except for my superstition against the Chargers point towards a win.

The Titans just aren’t a good team and need serous help n both sides of the ball. The offensive line is weak which is why Cam Ward is the most-sacked quarterback in the NFL right now and they’ve lost some guys in the secondary to injuries. The running game is weak and their best receivers are a couple of rookies. Chargers should win this one, so if you have multiple picks in a survivor pool, maybe you invest.

These are the picks in my order of preference this week. Best of luck to you all in your survivor pool contests.