NFL Survivor Pool Week 9 strategy: Worth saving the Chiefs, and breaking down every worthy option

Week 8 finally brought calm in a sea of madness that is NFL Survivor pools in 2022, with all the obvious options pulling out wins. In the Circa Survivor, just two of the remaining 125 entries lost, and both losing teams (Colts, Jaguars) had the lead with less than two minutes to play in their respective games. The two most popular teams, the Cowboys and Eagles, both won by more than 20 points.

Now we've come to our first mega-bye week of the season, with six teams off in Week 9. That reduces the number of potential options on the board, though there are three double-digit favorites available this week in the form of the three best teams in the league. Survivor participants employing a long-term strategy likely have at least one of the Bills or Eagles left, but is this the right week to use one of them?

Each week, I break down several options you should consider and lay out the other spots where you might end up wanting to use each team later in the season, along with your other options on those weeks. That format should allow you to tailor the advice specifically to the size of your survivor pool remaining as well as the teams you've already burned. There are three clear options to use this week, though if you're trying to make it through the entire season, you may be looking to save all three. The team I would be least likely to use is the Kansas City Chiefs.

The Chiefs should have no problem taking care of a Titans team that will either start a limited passer at quarterback in Malik Willis or a potentially-limited Ryan Tannehill at less than 100% health. But Mike Vrabel has had a history of surprising the Chiefs in recent years. That includes last season, when the Titans stomped Kansas City 27-3. The Titans also beat the Chiefs during the 2019 regular season, but Andy Reid was able to get his revenge in the playoffs en route to winning the Super Bowl. The 2022 versions of these teams are of course different than the squads that took the field in years past, but it has to count for something that Vrabel has been able to challenge these Chiefs on multiple occasions. Couple that history with the Chiefs being the big favorite who's toughest to replace in the week where I have them earmarked to use, and I think it's wise to stay away from Kansas City this week and plan on using them down the road.

Why listen to me? Well, I'm 445-378-24 on against-the-spreads picks over the last five years and even better with my top five picks each week, going 329-250-21 (56.8%) over the last seven years in the Westgate SuperContest. While this doesn't involve picking against the spread, I do believe by applying the strategies I've developed to have long-term success on those picks to survivor pools, we'll be in the best position to outlast the competition.

What are the best options to use in survivor pools in Week 9? And which teams should be saved to use later in the season? ... Join SportsLine right now to see NFL Survivor Pool strategy from the expert who's 445-378-24 on ATS picks from 2017-21, returning $2,542 to $100 players!