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NFL Week 3 Fantasy Breakdown

Nick and Michael discuss the NFL Week 3 Fantasy Breakdown for DFS!

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Hopefully everyone enjoyed ANOTHER huge week of cashing in Week 2 NFL DFS Cash Games! It’s officially NFL DFS Season. The purpose of this article is to identify my top plays for a NFL DFS cash game lineup on DraftKings and FanDuel Sunday Main Slates (also known as a double-up). Players in this article are usually a mix of the following:

  • High-floor/high-volume “safer” players (players with a very low bust-rate)
  • VALUE PLAYS
  • Not a part of a stack – Stacking is great for GPPs, but if you stack in cash games, your lineup is entirely too dependent on said stacked team. If that team does poorly, your whole lineup does… Not a risk we need to take in a cash game. QB/WR pairing is fine, but unless there’s extreme value in a 3-man stack, let’s keep it to QB/WR or QB/TE at most.
  • Extremely chalky for the week… in GPP’s I’ll usually always fade volatile players at > 40% ownership, but in cash games, it’s usually best to eat the chalk. If that player underperforms, it does not hinder your ability to cross the pay-line as 40% or more of the field is in the same boat. If you fade this player(s) and he has a great game, your lineup is likely toast… as you’re now behind 40% or more of the field. Make sense? If not, hit me up on Discord/Twitter to discuss further.


In my opinion, cash games are extremely important for long-term bankroll building and sustainability. I’ll consistently use at least 50% of my weekly bankroll towards cash games. It’s not sexy, but it works and allows me to take big shots in high dollar GPPs.

Long story short, if we hit our cash games each week, the worst we can do is break-even (not counting your GPP shots with the remaining 50% of your weekly bankroll). The weeks you hit both, you smash. The weeks you miss your GPPs, your cash game lineup will carry you. It’s my job to ensure you always hit those cash games.

If you haven’t yet, I would strongly advise giving my NFL DFS Strategy article I published this offseason before diving into the 2020 NFL DFS season. If you have any questions or would like some further help when building your lineups, please do not hesitate to reach out to me directly on Twitter. Without further ado, let’s do this thing!

*Some notes on what I believe to be the “optimal” roster build for NFL DFS Cash Games. I’ll include this in all the Checkdown articles moving forward. For Week 3, please see below for my notes on roster construction:

  • The player pool is starting to slim down with all of these injuries. There are a ton of great value plays at WR/RB, but QB and TE are getting slim. There will not be a lot of different optimal builds this weekend.
  • Miles Sanders chalk week – Play him in cash games!
  • Just because a player is not mentioned in this article, does not mean they are not cash viable.
  • AETY Model Projections change throughout the week, please ensure you check out our final projections before lock!
  • I update this article periodically through the week. Be sure to check back on Saturday night for any additions/revisions!!

NFL DFS Cash Game Quarterbacks

  1. Russell Wilson ($7,300 DK / $8,700 FD) – Another week of backing Russell Wilson. The dude is on another planet right now and the model loves him (as everyone’s does this week). Wilson has a whole boatload of weapons at his disposal and faces up against a bottom-half pass defense (in terms of DVOA) with Dallas. Not to mention, the total in this game is at 56, lol.
    AETY Projection: 24.74 points
  2. Kyler Murray ($6,800 DK / $8,400 FD) – Not a whole lot to say about Kyler Murray besides “I told you so”. Every SiriusXM show we did this summer I mentioned this will be the first year I “reach” on a QB in the 5th or 6th round for Kyler Murray. He’s damn near a running back and goes up against the 24th ranked pass defense DVOA in Detroit. There aren’t many safer plays than Murray this week.
    AETY Projection: 25.35 points
  3. Cam Newton ($6,700 DK / $7,700 FD) – The AETY Model LOVES Cam Newton this weekend against the Las Vegas Raiders who apparently the public thinks are a good team after beating New Orleans on Monday Night. Cam is going to have a field day with this defense. My only concerns are the ability of a banged-up Raiders offense being able to keep the pace moving and forcing Newton to continue moving the football.
    AETY Projections: 24.42 points
  4. Mitch Trubisky ($5,700 DK / $7,500 FD) – We say it week in, week out… the Atlanta Falcons are the nuts matchup for opposing QBs coming in at 28th in pass defense DVOA. If you need salary relief, Trubisky is your guy this week despite how ugly the points may look.
    AETY Projections: 19.07

    Honorable Mention: Dak Prescott, Carson Wentz

Running Backs

  1. Miles Sanders ($6,400 DK / $7,400 FD) – It’s Sanders’ Week, plain and simple. He’s incredibly low priced for the floor/upside and likely to be rostered by over 60% of cash game players this week. Cincinnati’s run defense ranks 25th in DVOA and is going to have a hard time keeping up with a 3-down back like Sanders at home. Use him.
    AETY Projection: 20.42 DK / 18.92 FD
  2. Dalvin Cook ($7,600 DK / $8,600 FD) – With Barkley and McCaffrey out, this slate is missing its true #1 running back. The AETY Model really likes Dalvin Cook this week and for good reason: you can run all over the Titans who rank 22nd in run defense DVOA. Pair that with a Gary Kubiak outside-zone running scheme and you’re in for a big day.
    AETY Projection: 19.99 DK / 18.37 FD
  3. Kenyan Drake ($6,000 DK / $6,500 FD) – He’s simply too cheap and also a guy that’s going to be over 40% in cash game ownership. We love picking on Detroit’s run defense (insert all of your screenshots of rostering Aaron Jones last weekend) and can certainly go back to the well in NFL DFS Cash Games this week. I hate using two players on the same team in cash (especially QB/RB), but this week, it’s OKAY if you do it with Kyler and Drake. I still don’t prefer it.
    AETY Projection: 18.56 DK / 16.64 FD
  4. Ezekiel Elliott ($8,300 DK / $9,000 FD) – He’s probably too expensive for my builds this week and I’d truthfully rather roster a Dallas wide-receiver, but it’s hard to not love Elliott every week. Seattle’s run defense is not nearly as bad as the public thinks. I’m not going to play him in cash, but he’s always cash viable with that volume.
    AETY Projection: 22.01 DK / 20.32 FD
  5. Jonathan Taylor ($7,000 DK / $6,700 FD) – Can’t believe DraftKings priced him up so high, but on FanDuel, you probably need to lock him in as an 11-point home-favorite against a minor-league Jets’ team.
    AETY Projection: 19.07 DK / 17.69 FD
  6. The Value Backs

    Mike Davis ($5,100 DK / $6,000 FD)
    Joshua Kelley ($5,000 DK / $5,900 FD)
    Jerick McKinnon ($4,900 DK / $5,700 FD)
    Devin Singletary ($4,900 / $5,900 FD)UPDATE: I’m likely locking in Singletary on DraftKings cash games.
    Jeff Wilson Jr. ($4,000 DK / $5,200 FD)

    Honestly, just pick whichever one you prefer because you’re likely to need one for salary relief. If your build doesn’t require that, you’re in good shape.

    Mike Davis – love the PPR floor here and not much competition behind him.
    Joshua Kelley – more viable on FanDuel, but certainly a smash spot against Carolina’s poor excuse of a run defense (dead last in DVOA and bleeding touchdowns to opposing backs.
    Jeff Wilson Jr. / Jerick McKinnon – I’m not buying into McKinnon getting a large workload. Wilson is going to be the lead runner here while McKinnon plays a stronger role in the passing game. If you think the Giants can push the pace, McKinnon is your guy. If you think the Giants lay an egg, go with Wilson.
    Devin Singletary – Meh. There’s no one else there, I guess. Solid for PPR.

    Honorable Mention: James Conner, Austin Ekeler, David Montgomery

Wide Receivers

  1. DeAndre Hopkins ($7,900 DK / $8,500 FD) – The dude’s target share is through the roof and there’s no Christian Kirk this week. Detroit’s pass defense is very bad, but they are likely to bring some bracket coverage towards Hopkins. I don’t think it matters, he’s the WR1 on this slate.
    AETY Projection: 21.14 DK / 17.42 FD
  2. Chris Godwin ($6,700 DK / $7,900 FD) – For the same reason we loved JuJu Smith-Schuster against the rookie cornerback in Denver is why we love Godwin this week. Denver’s run defense is actually quite solid and Tampa Bay knows that. They’ll get their points through the air and a lot of that via Chris Godwin. He’s 100% healthy and ready to rock.
    AETY Projection: 15.26 DK / 12.21 FD
  3. DK Metcalf ($6,500 DK & FD) / Tyler Lockett ($6,400 DK / $6,800 FD) – They are both in absolute smash spots against this awful Dallas secondary in the highest game total on the slate. On FanDuel, I’ll roll with Metcalf. On DraftKings, I’ll roll with Lockett. You’re likely going to need one of these guys in your cash game lineup.
    Metcalf AETY Projection: 17.33 DK / 14.69 FD
    Lockett AETY Projection: 18.53 DK / 15.21 FD
  4. Julian Edelman ($6,200 DK / $6,500 FD) – Model loves Cam. Model loves Edelman. Coming off of the most receiving yards in a single game (for his career), I’m loving this matchup against inside cornerback, Lamarcus Joyner. If I can pick on Joyner, I’ll always do so. James White being out for this game gives Edelman even more of a slight bump than just a plus-matchup.
    AETY Projection: 17.94 DK / 14.49 FD
  5. Allen Robinson ($6,200 DK / $6,900 FD) – Every week we lock in a receiver against Atlanta’s secondary. This week is no different, play Robinson.
    AETY Projection: 17.07 DK / 14.02 FD
  6. Diontae Johnson ($5,400 DK / $6,300 FD) – When will they raise his price, lol? The dude is tied for third in the NFL in targets (granted, it’s only been two weeks), but this price is too low against a horrid Houston secondary. This game has sneaky shootout potential and Johnson should smash value.
    AETY Projection: 14.41 DK / 11.73 FD
  7. CeeDee Lamb ($5,400 DK / $5,600 FD) – Getting cheap exposure to the Seahawks/Cowboys game is a must for me. Lamb is getting a high target share and should have a strong outing in a shootout against Ugo Amadi (who actually looked decent against the Patriots) and the rest of this Seahawks’ secondary.
    AETY Projection: 11.73 DK / 9.68 FD

    Honorable Mention: N’Keal Harry, Calvin Ridley, JuJu Smith-Schuster, Odell Beckham Jr., Keenan Allen, Adam Humphries

Tight Ends

  1. Jonnu Smith ($5,200 DK / $5,600 FD) – I hate rostering Smith in cash games, but it’s slim pickens at the tight-end position this week. Smith is by far their biggest threat in the red-zone with A.J. Brown out yet again.
    AETY Projection: 11.01 DK / 9.30 FD
  2. Evan Engram ($5,000 DK / $5,900 FD) – Not going to lie, the AETY Model loves Evan Engram this weekend against a 200% depleted San Francisco defense and no Sterling Shepard. Just use him in NFL DFS Cash Games.
    AETY Projection: 12.16 DK / 9.77 FD
  3. Hunter Henry ($4,800 DK / $6,000 FD) – Herbert absolutely loved targeting Hunter Henry last weekend against Kansas City and I’ll be more than happy to invest in that chemistry again. I’m usually not a 100% believer in rookie QBs loving their tight-ends as a safety blanket, but Herbert refused to throw the the ball outside and that’s likely not going to change this weekend.

    You all know how much Mike Williams I had last weekend 🙁
    AETY Projection: 11.76 DK / 9.41 FD
  4. The Punt Plays…

    Logan Thomas ($3,700 DK / $4,900 FD)
    Drew Sample ($3,500 DK / $4,800 FD)


    I rank Thomas much higher due to the proven target share, but if you choose to go dumpster diving at tight-end on Sunday, Sample is probably as low as I’ll go. Let’s try to just stick with Thomas if we go that low in NFL DFS Cash Games.

    Honorable Mention: Zach Ertz, Hayden Hurst, Jack Doyle

Defense / Special Teams

I’ll rarely write about defense and special teams in the Cash Game Checkdown. I believe it’s much more important to lock in your key skill position players and hopefully a solid defense fits your build for NFL DFS Cash Games. Prices considered, here’s who I’ll take a look at:

  1. Indianapolis Colts ($4,100 DK / $4,800 FD)
  2. Cleveland Browns ($3,800 DK / $3,900 FD)
  3. Los Angeles Chargers ($3,600 DK) *too expensive on FD
  4. Los Angeles Rams ($3,000 DK / $4,100 FD)
  5. Chicago Bears ($2,900 DK / $4,200 FD)

NFL DFS Cash Game Sample Lineup (DK)

QB: Cam Newton
RB: Miles Sanders
RB: Kenyan Drake
WR: Allen Robinson
WR: Tyler Lockett
WR: Chris Godwin
TE: Logan Thomas
FLEX: Josh Kelley
DST: Bears

Good luck to all!

Make sure you follow me on Twitter at @stixpicks and be sure to sign up for an ALL ACCESS GOLD ACCOUNT account here at Win Daily Sports. Gain access to our Projection Model powered by AETY and jump into our Discord where we will have our experts talking plays across every sport and slate as sports FINALLY return.

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NFL Game by Game Breakdown: Week 3

Week 2 treated us very well as a lot of things went right once again! It would have helped if Derrick Henry has done some work but you can’t get it all right. If your lineup made it through the day without an injury, you were likely in a good spot. We’ve got 13 games to get through so let’s get kicked off for NFL Game By Game Breakdown: Week 3!

Raiders at Patriots, O/U of 48 (Patriots -5.5)

Raiders

QB – He is the butt of many jokes, but Derek Carr isn’t the worst option on some weeks. He doesn’t turn the ball over and he’s got more weapons this year, even if he’s overthrowing them. Carr rebounded from a slow start to throw for over 280 yards and three touchdowns on Monday night, but the matchup is still on the difficult side. Just because Russell Wilson can shred the New England defense doesn’t mean Carr can do the same. He’s just 26th in intended air yards but he is fourth in on target rate. My fear is what happens if the Patriots neutralize Darren Waller? Can Carr put up a good game if they do? Those are questions better left answered on someone else’s roster.

RB – Did you know that Josh Jacobs is currently second in targets on the Raiders? Waller is a monster, with a 38.7% share and 24 overall but Jacobs has nine, Henry Ruggs has eight. That leaves Jacobs tied for seventh in targets and tied for fifth in receptions. When you add in the second-most rushing attempts on the season, you have a volume monster.

He is the RB4 in salary but it’s still only a little over $7,000. Despite a matchup that features a New England defense that has only allowed 184 yards on the ground, he feels slightly cheap. He ground out 13.5 DK against the Saints and that was without scoring. Only Ezekiel Elliott, Derrick Henry and Christian McCaffrey have more red zone carries than Jacobs early on. He could actually be fairly sneaky if the Raiders can keep this one close traveling on a short week.

WR – I wouldn’t get too suckered in by the green in the matchup column here for the receiving corps. Not only has no receiver from the Raiders stood out yet, New England is better than they looked Sunday night by a long shot. I still don’t mind taking some shots here and there with Ruggs. He’s got speed for days and he’s playing a decent amount in the slot, almost 38% of the time. Patriots corner Stephon Gilmore has played just 6.8% of his snaps in the slot, so Ruggs could avoid him a little bit. With an aDOT of 18.1, it’s not a secret where the Raiders are targeting him. Every other receiver is at five targets or fewer, and are a tough sell. I suppose Hunter Renfrow could take on a bigger role if Waller gets stifled, but I’m not sure there’s any upside there.

*Update* Ruggs is out, but I’m still quite leery of tangling with the Patriots in New England with any weapon depending on Carr.

TE – Waller absolutely dominated Monday night, scoring 31 DK points while catching 12 passes for 103 yards and a score. I’m hard pressed to believe he gets close to that this week. New England is going to make him a focal point of their defense, for right reasons. We saw Waller cook safety Malcolm Jenkins on multiple occasions, so Bill Belichick might well use a safety and linebacker here. He’s been so good taking away a team’s primary weapon over the years, it wouldn’t be a surprise if Waller is held in check. I’ll likely stay off him and wait for another week.

D/ST – Not a chance against the Patriots and a resurrected Cam Newton.

Patriots

QB – His team may have lost but Cam Newton reminded the world when he’s healthy, he is a stud quarterback in this league. He’s already the QB5 in salary and it’s interesting when looking at the salaries this week. The top five options are inside the top eight in rushing yards for QB’s. Perhaps DK is finally catching up on how much of a Konami code rushing yards are for QB’s. To be fair, every single one is also averaging over 30 DK points per game so far as well and four are in the top eight in passing yards. Anyways, let’s get back to Cam.

His completion rate is 71.4% and he’s already leading the position in rushing attempts. On top of that, he’s logged 11 red zone rushing attempts which is 64.7% of the chances. With his upside on the ground and passing potential against a weaker Raiders secondary, Cam is in play in all formats. If we spend up, I do want to get to Russell Wilson but we’ll get to him.

RB – It’s early in the week to know if James White will play after the passing of his father in a car accident. As far as on the field, White is the only back I’m interested in if he’s active or it’s Rex Burkhead. If you’re playing a back for the Patriots, they need to be able to catch the ball. Cam is the goal line back so the touchdown equity is just not going to be there for anyone in this backfield. When James was out Sunday night, Burkhead played 71% of the snaps and saw six targets. He did nothing with his six rushing attempts with just two yards, but he is running back minimum. If we get double-digit touches at this price, we need to at least consider him.

*Update* White will not be active for this game, so Burkhead is at least in play in GPP. The issue is if Vegas can’t keep up, it hurts the PPR upside and he likely doesn’t get red zone work.

WR – Through two weeks, Julian Edelman is dispelling some notions that he’s just a short range receiver. His 12.9 aDOT is fairly impressive, especially since N’Keal Harry sits at 5.5 yards so far. Both these receivers are tied for 18 targets a piece, but Edelman holds the 223-99 edges in air yards. It shows in the production as well since Edelman sits at 236 yards and Harry is only at 111. The difference in production is worth the difference in salary as Edelman is clearly the man to target of the receiving corps as the main piece.

The wildcard is Damiere Byrd. He actually leads the receivers in snaps at 118 and played a significant role Sunday night. After a Week 1 where he wasn’t targeted at all, Byrd was targeted nine times in Seattle. The game script is important to note as this game was very competitive and saw New England playing from behind in the second half. Still, Byrd is minimum priced and is at least in play for GPP if nothing else. The aDOT is 10.3 so there is some potential here.

TE – The Patriots offense has not used Devin Asiasi at all year as far as targets go and Ryan Izzo sits at four targets after two games. With Cam being the battering ram at the goal line, the “hope for a TD” angle doesn’t even have a high chance of success. New England is also 23rd in passing attempts per game so there’s not much of a reason to go this route.

D/ST – The price really isn’t all that bad and I can’t say I have a major problem with them. Some of their losses on the defensive side were shown on Sunday night, but the talent levels between Russ and Derek Carr are significant. Carr also doesn’t turn the football over much since he’s allergic to taking chances down the field. The Pats were gifted an interception for a score Sunday and played Ryan Fitzpatrick Week 1. They’ve only sacked the QB three times so far. They’re just average for me.

Cash – Cam, Edelman

GPP – Byrd, Harry, Burkhead or White

Bears at Falcons, O/U of 47.5 (Falcons -3)

Bears

QB – It’s never a good sign when an NFL quarterback isn’t completing even 60% of his passes. That is Mitchell Trubisky, in what is a make or break year. His own receiver is on Twitter liking tweets about seeing just a handful of catchable balls. Even with all the flaws in Trubisky’s game, and they are legion…I’m not sure I can turn away from this matchup.

The Atlanta Falcons are a train wreck defensively so far. I get it to some extent. They’ve played Russ and Dak Prescott, a tough start for any defense. Still, they’ve allowed the second-most passing yards and completions. They’ve yet to intercept a pass and have allowed five passing touchdowns. Some of their DK points given up came from Dak running it in three times, but this is still a poor defense by every metric. If Trubisky can’t have a solid game here, he may as well pack it in. I’m hesitant, but Trubisky is actually cash viable at this salary.

RB – Speaking of cash viable, David Montgomery needs to be squarely in the conversation as well. Still under $6,000, he’s the RB17 in PPR heading into Week 3. He’s 16th in carries and that was missing some snaps in Week 2 after a scary looking injury that turned out to be nothing major. He’s quietly ripping off a 5.0 YPC and has 55 yards on just four receptions. Montgomery has also hit pay dirt just once so far so he could have some type of positive regression coming. The YPC and contributing in the passing game is what Chicago thought they were getting with this draft pick last year.

Atlanta has already allowed the fourth-most receptions to running backs, continuing a trend of the past few seasons. Not only does that bode well for Montgomery, you can look at Tarik Cohen as well. I will admit I’m at a bit of a loss as to why they gave him an extension and then played him just 21 snaps for six touches Sunday, but nobody has accused Matt Nagy of being the best coach ever. He’s a risky GPP play that could take one to the house.

WR – Allen Robinson sits at a disappointing 18.6 DK points through two games but it’s certainly not all his fault. He’s suffering through poor QB play yet again, and sits seventh in air yards across the league right now. The 28.1% target share is great, but some of them just need to be catchable. Robinson leads in red zone targets for the Bears as well with three and it doesn’t appear that Anthony Miller is in the good graces of the coaching staff right now.

Coach Nagy mentioned his drop no less than three times in his press conference, which is not a great sign. He’s actually in danger of being passed in snaps by Javon Wims and he’s played fewer snaps than Darnell Mooney right now. You can’t feel comfortable with him outside of GPP. Mooney and Wims have 10 targets between them, so I’m not exactly looking that direction either.

TE – Now that Jimmy Graham has a game where he only saw one target, I feel more comfortable fading him across the board. He saw seven in Week 1 and three red zone targets, but that seems to be an anomaly. I suppose you can make the argument for him. After all, Dalton Schultz ripped the Falcons apart on Sunday. That moved the Falcons to the second-worst team to the position. Maybe in MME formats you sprinkle in a share but he’s not a primary target with the volatility of the target share.

D/ST – I have no interest in playing defenses against the Falcons offense right now. Atlanta is only allowing the seventh-least sack percentage and that used to be an Achilles heel. With the set of receivers they have and Mat Ryan, it’s foolish to get after them in my eyes. Four of their five sacks came against the Giants which I’m not sure we should weigh all that heavily. Chicago is only getting an 11% pressure rate so far this year.

Cash – Trubisky, Montgomery, Robinson

GPP – Miller, Graham

Falcons

QB – There’s not a quarterback in the league that is getting much less publicity than Matt Ryan right now. He’s thrown for the second most yards and easily sits atop intended air yards. The completion rate is almost 68% and he has a 6:1 TD:INT ratio. Of course, he’s not going to give you much of anything on the ground but you don’t need it. He’s got a ton of weapons and I’m not letting the Bears scare me. They are the fifth-best team as far as DK points allowed but that’s come against Matt Stafford without Kenny Golladay and Daniel Jones. He should come in a little less popular than the top five QB’s in salary which would be a nice bonus.

RB – The husk of Todd Gurley is getting the volume we love but he’s not doing a thing with it. Racking up 35 carries is great news through two games, but the game script couldn’t have gone better for him on Sunday and he could barely muster up six DK points. The lack of involvement in the passing game is scary as well. With Ryan sitting second in attempts, it’s alarming that Gurley has five targets and zero this past week. Given the salary, I’d much prefer to play Montgomery on the other side of the ball and continue to not be interested in Gurley. He’s going to need to score a TD almost every game to make him worth playing.

WR – If the first two weeks are any indication, Russell Gage continues to be a great value. He’s drawing a 23.8% target share and the 8.7 aDOT is actually a good thing. Gage is the intermediate target in the passing game while Julio Jones and Calvin Ridley work the deeper parts of the field. Since Atlanta is so pass heavy, they can support three receivers every game. Gage actually had a TD pass dropped by Julio, who had a rough go on Sunday.

Julio seems to be perpetually questionable but he was limping around pretty good this past game. As long as he’s active, I might actually prefer Ridley at this point. He’s on pace for 32 touchdowns, after all. In more seriousness, Ridley leads in red zone targets on the Falcons and only Aaron Jones has more this year. Julio is always going to get the majority of the coverage and Ridley has more freedom to do the damage. All three receivers are in play without a doubt this week. I rank them Ridley, Gage, Julio given the salaries involved.

*Update* Julio is now a GTD. Gage becomes a dynamite salary saver in theory, but I’m not sure losing Julio helps them immensely. More of the defensive focus shifts to Ridley now and Gage might move out of the slot a bit more.

TE – The hard part is figuring out what to do with Hayden Hurst. The stats look great, but he had a 42 yard touchdown that Dallas just decided to not cover. That’s over 33% of his receiving yards so far this year, although the eight targets was a step in the right direction. Past the broken play, he only had a 4/30 line and that wouldn’t get it done at his price. The Bears have allowed 120 yards and a score so far, but I do prefer other tight ends on this slate.

D/ST – This is a hard pass, even with Trubisky on the other side. If they were cheaper, I could maybe buy into playing them. All three of their turnovers came from Dallas having butter fingers in the first quarter. They have four sacks through two games with just a 14.6% pressure rate. I’ll make a strong effort to play the Pats, for instance.

Cash – Ryan, Gage, Ridley

GPP – Hurst, Julio

Bengals at Eagles, O/U of 46 (Eagles -5)

Bengals

QB – It seems like a long time ago, but Joe Burrow was wildly impressive last Thursday night. He threw the ball 61 times without an interception on a short week with no preseason. If the Bengals can keep him upright, he should be a pretty strong value here. The accuracy can use some work at just a 71.3% on target rate, but one thing that hasn’t gone well so far is his connection with AJ Green.

Out of the 37 incompletions so far for Burrow, 14 have come on targets intended for Green. That just simply won’t stick so the completion rate right under 62% should be coming up. Burrow is third in red zone attempts and fourth in attempts inside the 10, exactly what we want looking at a quarterback. Only two quarterbacks have more intended air yards and the Eagles have given up four passing touchdowns already. There’s a chance this could be the most talented quarterback they’ve faced so far and I really like Burrow in all formats.

RB – I’m writing this on Tuesday and Joe Mixon is already messing with my head. Plenty were frustrated at how much work Gio Bernard got in the last game but Mixon still did get 20 touches. That’s nothing to sneer at, especially since his price has fallen to $5,900. He’s already down almost $1,000 in two weeks, despite 40 total touches. Philly has averaged a little over 100 yards per game on the ground given up in two games. That’s a bit out of character for them and they’ve given up three scores to running backs. I think this might be a good buy low spot for Mixon that has the reputation of being an awful spot (still might be, two games is minuscule sample), but it’s a GPP play only.

WR – The receivers are pretty easy because Tyler Boyd is the cash play and Green is the GPP play. So far, Green has six end zone targets. The next closest is Calvin Ridley who is tied with Mike Gesicki at four. Green also leads the league in air yards by 56 over DeSean Jackson. Unless you think Green is just completely and utterly washed, he is one of the best candidates to blow up with Philly already over 300 yards given up to receivers. Green has also played under 70% of the snaps. Philly is also 12th in yards per attempts surrendered, so it seems like a matter of time before the dam breaks.

Boyd is the safer option and just keeps quietly chugging along. He’s second on the team in targets and has caught 11 out of 13 looks so far. The 6.2 aDOT is perfectly fine for a receiver in his role and in PPR settings, he’s easy to get behind at this price. Boyd is playing almost 80% of his routes in the slot, which explains the bit of an easier chemistry with Burrow early. Philly corner Darius Slay is allowing 1.20 fantasy points per target but hasn’t been targeted much. That could change Sunday and he should matchup with Green, as he only has an 11.9% slot rate this year.

TE – I’m not sure how real he Eagles rank against tight end is since Tyler Higbee shredded them for three touchdowns, but Drew Sample is one of the premier values at tight end this week regardless. The tight end position has combined for 21 targets already, and C.J. Uzomah is done for the year. Sample already leads the team in red zone targets with four and has an end zone target. It’s clear this is a spot that Burrow is leaning on and I have no issues with Sample in any format.

D/ST – There’s not much of a route for success here for the Bengals to my eyes. They have generated a good amount of pressure at over 27% but they aren’t converting it with just two sacks. They also have just one interception so far so even though Philly is highly flawed, I won’t be using them that much.

Cash – Boyd, Sample, Burrow

GPP – Green, Mixon

Eagles

QB – I’m not entirely sure you could have drawn up a worse start for Carson Wentz. You really can’t even just throw your hands up and say he’s been pressured constantly. That might have been true for Week 1, but the overall pressure rate for Wentz is 20.2%. That’s not excuse for a 2:4 TD:INT ratio even two games in, plus a lost fumble. To make matters worse, his completion rate is under 60% and the on target rate is 27th.

At least in the early going, the Bengals have been the third-best team as far as DK points given up to the quarterback. They’ve only allowed the fifth-fewest passing yards but they’ve also faced just the second-fewest attempts. With so many options for quarterback, I’m not running towards Wentz until Philly gets some issues sorted out.

RB – Of those issues, running back is no longer one of them. Miles Sanders returned to the lineup and immediately accounted for 23 touches while playing 77% of the snaps. There’s no concern about the hammy at this point and the Bengals just got destroyed on the ground by the Browns. No team has given up more rushing yards to this point and Cincy has been scored on five times by running backs already. Sanders is still a bargain for his volume and could be a staple in my lineups.

WR – Between Jalen Reagor and DeSean Jackson, they have a combined 13 slot snaps this year. These two are playing outside almost the entire game and Jackson is second in air yards, as we mentioned earlier. The production just has not been there at all. D-JAx has 18 targets to just eight for Reagor, but they only have 13 receptions put together. Jackson also carries the lowest aDOT at 17.6, which seems almost counterproductive at this points. Wentz is not completing enough throws, why keep chucking it downfield like this?

Eventually, the passes will start falling but this is another spot the Bengals have excelled at early. They’ve only allowed the seventh-fewest yards to receivers and just one score. Additionally, they are the third-best team in terms of DK points given up. Jackson is a GPP play, Reagor is a real dart throw.

*Update* Reagor is out with a torn UCL in his thumb

TE – Maybe it shouldn’t be a surprise with Wentz starting slow, but Zach Ertz has been miserable to kick off the 2020 campaign. The targets are there with 14, second-most on the team but that’s turned into eight receptions for 60 yards. Thank goodness for the touchdown in Week 1, because it’s been little else otherwise. He’s behind the slot rate that Dallas Goedert is showing at a 30.7% rate. Goedert also leads the team in targets with a healthy 8.2 aDOT. On the one hand, you’re getting the targets leader for a team for $4,900. On the other, the Eagles offense is dysfunctional at best. I’m leaving the pass catchers to GPP this week.

D/ST – Where’s the upside here to go after the Eagles defense? They’re allowing over 30 points per game, averaging two sacks per game and have one turnover forced. Burrow has been sacked six times but he’s leading the league in attempts. That’s not an egregious rate. I’m not super interested in either defense here.

Cash – Sanders

GPP – Goedert, Jackson, Ertz, Wentz

49ers at Giants, O/U of 42 (49ers -4)

49ers

QB – My goodness the 49ers are beat up. At this point, we’re not expecting Jimmy Garoppolo to suit up with an ankle injury. That would mean Nick Mullens would start and I guess is technically in the running for a GPP spot at such a low price. He does have eight starts under his belt and honestly, he wasn’t abjectly terrible. The completion rate was over 64% and the TD:INT rate was 13:10. He has a great offensive coach in Kyle Shanahan but he’s also operating a pop gun offense with the injuries. New York has allowed five touchdown passes and the argument is 3x is only 15 DK points. I’m going to disagree on the 3x rule this time. Even 20 DK could put you behind the field at that position. You had better nail the rest of your roster if you use Mullens, making him GPP only and risky at that.

RB – Go ahead and give me all the Jerick McKinnon this week. I will say, DraftKings did a relatively solid job of pricing, when they though Tevin Coleman would play. That now doesn’t look like it will happen and McKinnon is going to be the main back. Not only have the Giants allowed 218 yards on the ground, teams have added another 71 yards through the air. McKinnon at $4,900 in a split would have been a question. Without a major split is much easier, and he’s averaging over 10 yards per touch. The explosion looks like it’s still there.

Do not be surprised if Jeff Wilson tilts you off the planet either. In 2019, he had 60 carries and 16 came in the red zone. In 2018, he had 66 attempts and 11 came in the red zone. He will get some run when it matters most I’m betting. If you think he scores multiple times, you could throw him in since San Fran will be looking to run it, protect a backup QB and get off the East Coast.

*Update* There are rumblings that Wilson could get more work than I thought. If going for a minimum back, I’d much prefer him to Burkhead.

WR – I don’t love the price, but I wonder if Kendrick Bourne gets some extra love with Mullens at the helm. When Mullens started eight games in 2018, Bourne wound up leading the 49ers receivers in targets. The rest of the corps is rookie Brandon Aiyuk, Mohamed Sanu who played 13 snaps and Trent Taylor. This is a situation I’m steering clear of outside of Bourne. There’s just far too many unknowns.

TE – San Francisco is saying that George Kittle will be ready to play, but I don’t believe he’ll be in many of my lineups. First, I’m not terribly excited to pay for the highest salaried tight end on his slate. With Mark Andrews and Travis Kelce on the Monday night showdown, Kittle is the only tight end over $6,000. It’s more believing he’s not going to be fully healthy. In 2018, he had 136 targets, 88 receptions, almost 1,400 yards and five scores. Provided Kittle is active, Jordan Reed is likely out of play. He only played 10 snaps in Week 1 and was targeted twice.

*Update* Kittle is out, so Reed is in play. He’s not the free square price he was and has a downgrade at QB, so he’s not a must play.

D/ST – The 49ers defense is missing Nick Bosa, Solomon Thomas, Richard Sherman, Dee Ford and Jason Verrett is questionable. Even playing he turnover machine that is Daniel Jones, I’m not interested at what is still a premium price. They are way too expensive for my blood given the injuries.

Cash – McKinnon, Reed

GPP – Mullens, Bourne, Wilson

Giants

QB – I’d like to think this is an exploitable spot for Daniel Jones and the Giants offense but I’m not convinced I can get there yet. Turnovers continue to plaque the former Duke Blue Devil, with four already compared to just two touchdowns. The good news is the Niners are beyond banged up and making their second consecutive cross-country trip to a stadium they complained about. Perhaps that’s enough to get Jones back towards the 19.4 DK points he scored in the opener.

He’s just 18th in accuracy for on target throws at 77.3% and 18th in intended air yards. Losing the best player on this offense isn’t going to help, and the pressure rate is 23.4%. There’s a lot of mediocrity baked into the metrics for Jones. If you play him, you’re banking on a San Francisco let down spot and maybe Jones does some work on the ground. He is still averaging over 21 yards per contest rushing.

RB – Oi, this spot is going to get no love from me. Like the other spots for backup running backs, DK priced Dion Lewis and Wayne Gallman to right around $5,000. That wouldn’t have been comfortable to start, and then the Giants signed Devonta Freeman. He’s practicing with them Wednesday and is eligible to play on Sunday. Now, I don’t expect him to have a monster role immediately but he’s going to chip away at Lewis and Gallman. Saquon Barkley had some tough times finding running room. I can’t imagine the other three will fare better.

WR – I want to see how the week goes, but Darius Slayton could once again emerge as a premier target on this slate for value receivers. He was quiet in Week 2 but all three options including Golden Tate and Sterling Shepard were active. Slayton is still the only receiver in triple digits in air yards and is tied for the team lead in targets at 15. He also leads in red zone targets while playing mostly outside. That’s not a big surprise given the skill sets of Shepard and Tate. If Shepard is ruled out, with Slayton and Tate are bargains. I would still prefer Slayton for the red zone work and upside for $400 more, especially since the 49ers will for sure be missing Sherman.

*Update* Shepard is on IR, leaving Slayton as my clear favorite and Tate as a very solid value.

TE – I will admit I’m not sure what to make of Evan Engram. He’s seventh in targets and target share for his team for tight ends, which is great. Engram is tied for second in red zone targets but yet he is 17th in air yards among his position. He checks in as the TE8 for salary and I’m going to have a tough time clicking his name with the other options around him. It’s not the best metric given who the 49ers have faced, but they have allowed one reception and five yards to tight ends so far. That’s not the reason I’m fading Engram, but it’s kind of crazy to see given we’re in Week 3.

D/ST – The Giants defense might be in the sweet spot. They are under $3,000, possibly facing a very depleted offense including a backup and have mustered six sacks and three turnovers so far in two games. They’re only giving up 21.5 points per game and are generating a pressure rate over 19% with a blitz rate just over 23%. As of Tuesday, there sure looks to be worse options on this slate.

Cash – D/ST, Slayton, Tate

GPP – Jones, Engram

Texans at Steelers, O/U 45 (Steelers -4)

Texans

QB – It’s only been two weeks but it sure looks like Deshaun Watson is missing DeAndre Hopkins. Only Russell Wilson has been pressured at a higher rate than Watson and he’s tied for the league lead in being sacked. Wilson is first in on target rate while Watson sits 19th, and he’s under 530 passing yards through two games. That’s 12th so it’s far from terrible but it’s just not exactly what we were expecting.

It’s kind of funny to see Hopkins and Stefon Diggs get traded and their new offenses be thriving while the old ones flounder. To Watson’s credit, he’s still pushing the ball downfield for the 12th most passing yards but given the matchup and receiver issues, I’m not likely to play Watson much if at all.

RB – David Johnson is getting his second straight tough matchup and the Steelers are still one of two teams to hold running backs to under 100 yards rushing so far. Melvin Gordon was one of my least favorite plays last week and if he hadn’t scored a receiving touchdown, he would have scored single-digit DK points. Banking on your running back to score a receiving TD just to come close to value is a bad play. That’s especially true when the offense he’s in is currently 30th in plays per game.

WR – I can’t imagine people are going to be too pumped to go right back to Will Fuller after a goose egg last week. The matchup didn’t help, but neither does this one. He’s still just two snaps behind Randall Cobb for the team lead, and his aDOT looks perfectly fine right now. It’s 12.9 which is right in line with Brandin Cooks at 13.1. Cobb is the slot receiver, with almost 70% of his snaps coming from that spot. That means Fuller should see plenty of Joe Haden. Cobb will have to deal with Steve Nelson, so Cooks might be the best choice almost by default.

TE – I’m not always the biggest fan of using players against he Steelers, but Jordan Akins might be pretty sneaky. Pittsburgh had some issues against Noah Fant and Akins has caught all nine of his targets. If Cobb is being mostly handled in the slot, Akins should be the security blanket for Watson. Pittsburgh can get after the quarterback and tight ends have rolled up a 9/96/1 on them already.

D/ST – I don’t play defenses against the Steelers when they’re at home. They’ve scored 26 points per game so far, which is in the top half of the league. Pittsburgh has also only given up three sacks so far and Houston is only getting a 15.6% pressure rate.

Cash – Akins

GPP – Watson, Cooks, Fuller

Steelers

QB – My thoughts on Ben Roethlisberger really aren’t that different than last week. The metrics show he’s still not cutting the ball loose, sitting in the high 20’s in intended air yards and around the same spot in accuracy. There’s going to come a day when those metrics change for the better and in the meantime, Ben has scored 22 DK in back to back weeks. If he can do that while not being fully unleashed, the bigger games are not far away. He only has one turnover and five touchdowns already as well. He’s fine for cash but is more of a GPP target.

RB – It’s back to the James Conner show, and I will still contend it’s not the best decision. Even though I will cite it at times, YPC isn’t he best stat to use. Conner averaged 6.6 YPC Sunday, which is great until you realize a 59 yard scamper came to put the game on ice. He was at 3.1 YPC for the 15 carries before that. That’s not going to cut it over the long run. However, I mentioned this in Discord Tuesday. It’s one thing to think Benny Snell deserves more work. Maybe he does. It doesn’t matter because the Steelers don’t think he does. End of discussion for fantasy. Conner is the man in this backfield for Week 3, and he’s overpriced in my eyes even though Houston has given up the third-most rushing yards.

WR – Hello, Diontae Johnson. This man is a target machine in the Steelers offense and his price simply didn’t come up enough yet. The list of players that have more targets than Johnson is DeAndre Hopkins and Darren Waller. *Checks Notes*…no that’s it, that’s the list. He’s soaking up a 31.9% target share which is fourth in the NFL and is higher than Antonio Brown achieved in 2016-18. Now, I’m not telling you that Johnson is an AB style talent at all. But the target share is massive and he’s not only barely $5,000, he’s cheaper than JuJu Smith-Schuster by $1,200!! Take advantage before DK catches up.

That isn’t to say ignore JuJu, but he is clearly the GPP target given his salary. The aDOT is just 4.1 while Johnson’s is a little higher at 6.3. JuJu is also the red zone leader in targets with two, but that shouldn’t be the deciding factor with only five red zone targets for the team right now. The gap between James Washington and Chase Claypool got closer in snaps this past week. Claypool played five more and Washington played six fewer. It’s something to keep an eye on after Claypool flashed for an 88-yard touchdown. They are nothing more than darts for now but we want to be on the front end of Claypool possibly emerging.

TE – For a red zone player, Eric Ebron sure isn’t showing it yet. He has zero looks in the red zone and only seven targets overall, just three more than Vance McDonald. Houston has held Kansas City and Baltimore combined to eight receptions, 90 yards and 1 target. Considering those two teams house two of the best tight ends in the league, I’ll pass on Ebron this week again.

D/ST – Pittsburgh has the highest scoring average on the slate, so it’s not hard to see why they are $4,000. The pressure rate is over 42% and the blitz rate is an astounding 61.4%. No other team is over 50%. While I think Watson does manage to burn the blitz a few times for some points, he’s in danger of getting sacked 5+ times in this one and turning the ball over. If you spend up, this is a great spot to do it.

Cash – Ben, Johnson, D/ST

GPP – JuJu, Conner, Claypool, Washington

Titans at Vikings, O/U of 48.5 (Titans -2.5)

Titans

QB – The top five of on target rate is quite the mix. First and fifth make sense since it’s Russ and Tom Brady. Gardner Minshew is second, Josh Allen is fourth (!!) and Ryan Tannehill is third at 85.5% so far. He might only be 22nd in intended air yards but he’s top 10 in completion rate and has yet to turn the ball over. Tannehill absolutely scorched the Jaguars but one fear did come true – volume. He only threw 24 times, which can be tough to rely on. If you’re not throwing for there or four scores, 24 attempts isn’t likely to get the job done. Given that Tannehill is still under $6,000 and Minnesota has already given up the sixth-most passing yards with a 5:1 TD:INT ratio, Tannehill is in play in all formats. Between the new contract and watching Adam Gase ruin another franchise, life is good for Tannehill right now.

RB – Oh, Derrick Henry you fickle man. After bulldozing the NFL at the end of last year, he’s had an….uninspiring start. It’s very weird. He leads the league in attempts, percentage of his team’s attempts, tied for the lead in red zone attempts and is second in rushing yards. Despite all that, 13.8 DK points per game feels super hollow. Maybe it’s because he hasn’t scored and he’s only caught three passes. If you’re not doing at least one of these, it can be tough to post monster games. This is a perfect spot to bounce back. He burned a LOT of people last week, and the Vikings just lost linebacker Anthony Barr. Even with him, they have allowed the fourth-most rushing yards. It’s a good week for Henry to find the end zone for the first time.

WR – Bone bruises in the knee typically cost players more than one week, so my hope for A.J. Brown isn’t there quite yet. It’s a real shame because the Vikings are ripe for being taken advantage of by the receiving corps. Granted a lot of it was from Aaron Rodgers but they have allowed the fifth-most receiving yards to the position. Are you sensing a pattern yet for Minnesota’s defense? Corey Davis and Adam Humphries were both fine this past week, with a touchdown each and at least five targets. Combining for 11 of the 24 targets isn’t all that bad. Both are in play with no Brown, and Humphries is especially cheap.

*Update* Brown is out as we mostly expected, so Humphries and Davis make sense. The volume remains the lone concern, since Minnesota is now down multiple cornerbacks as well.

TE – The mountain of a man known as Jonnu Smith can share the end zone with Henry at any moment right now. He’s already collected three scores on 12 targets. That’s definitely not going to sustain through the season, but he does lead the team with three red zone looks and two end zone targets. What’s super interesting is his aDOT is only 3.8. Tennessee is just getting the ball in his hands and letting him do some work. The 86 yards of YAC on 120 total receiving yards is a touch deceiving since a lot came on a blown play, but still. It speaks to the athleticism he has and his growing role in the offense. With all the pass catchers, you need serious efficiency on such a low number of passes.

D/ST – Tennessee is a premier streaming option, but I’m not sure if I’m paying the premium for them in DFS. You can, don’t get me wrong. The Vikings passing game looks like a DISASTER right now. Having said that, the Titans themselves have just two sacks and three turnovers. The pressure rate is under 20% and you’re banking on Minnesota’s passing game still being awful. I’d rather find $100 for Pittsburgh or just go lower.

Cash – Henry, Tannehill, Smith, Humphries

GPP – D/ST, Davis

Vikings

QB – I wanted to put, “LOL, no” and move on but that’s not fair. Kirk Cousins looks completely lost right now. He’s the QB29 in fantasy points right now and has twice the interceptions to touchdowns, not to mention under a 59% completion rate. It’s like he and Josh Allen just switched bodies for this season. Only Baltimore has attempted fewer passes, and that’s by one attempt and because they’re winning in blowouts.

To his slight credit, Cousins is 11th in intended air yards through two weeks. The bad news is he’s 22nd in on target rate and is getting pressured the fifth-most in football. Cousins now lacks the weaponry to deal with pressure or when things go wrong, and it’s showing in a major way. I can’t buy much of a reason to play him at a loaded position. Justin Herbert is 2.6 fantasy points behind Cousins with one fewer game.

RB – Considering how poorly Minnesota’s offense looks so far (20th in points per game), it’s impressive Dalvin Cook is averaging close to 20 DK points per game. He only has 26 carries this season through two games and the game scripts just have not cooperated. Cook only has five red zone rush attempts but he’s cashed those in for three red zone touchdowns.

I think one of the most disappointing aspects is only four targets. Cook had 63 last year so his pace is basically cut in half right now. That’s very odd considering they had to replace 94 targets from Diggs. If the game scripts don’t improve and he’s not involved in the passing game, why pay this much for him? It’s hard to get on board with the options around him.

WR – Well, this can be quick. Adam Thielen is the only receiver that is really worth considering. He owns 52% of the team’s air yards and is the only player that has earned more than seven targets so far. Thielen only has nine catches and he’s plying under 13% in the slot. That should leave him on Malcolm Butler for a good chunk of the game, who has allowed four receptions for 36 yards so far. Being the WR5 in salary leaves him as a volume play but that is about the best I can muster up. There are much better options on paper, but the volume keeps Thielen in the cash considerations.

TE – When I said Thielen was the only receiver with more than seven targets, that included the tight ends. Both Kyle Rudolph and Irv Smith are under three DK points per game right now. They have combined for four receptions, zero red zone targets, zero end zone targets and 35 yards receiving. That’s not worth playing solo, let alone when it’s split between two tight ends. Tennessee has been victimized by tight ends with 150 yards given up and two touchdowns, but it’s a really tough sell from the Minnesota side. I’d go Rudolph if choosing with his 15.2 aDOT and a couple more snaps.

D/ST – Thanks, but no thanks. Tennessee doesn’t turn the ball over hardly at all. Minnesota has no corners, is missing their best pass rusher and just lost a linebacker. There’s just no piece that really fits here. On top of that, the Titans have allowed just one sack per game.

Cash – Thielen

D/ST – Cook, Rudolph

Washington at Browns, O/U of 44 (Browns -7)

Washington

QB – Much like Mullens, Dwayne Haskins looks appealing for the salary he’s going to save you but there’s still an opportunity cost at the position. Haskins hasn’t yet thrown an interception but he’s also averaging just 200 passing yards a game and Washington ranks 24th in attempts per game. That is a BAD mix for fantasy, even in what appears to be a solid matchup on paper. Cleveland has faced the second-most passing attempts and given up the fourth-most yards, but that style of volume isn’t likely to happen in this game. Even in a game where Washington trailed almost instantly last week, Haskins only threw 33 times. That would rank 22nd if he stayed at those attempts all year. Haskins ranks 33rd in on target rate and 15th in intended air yards. At least he’s trying to push it downfield, but his score could kill you at 12-15 DK.

RB – There’s now a clear player in this backfield to target and it’s Antonio Gibson. He took over the lead in snaps and carries for Washington last week and has averaged over 4.0 YPC. That’s not terrible for this offense, although it should be noted that they lost offensive lineman Brandon Scherff. That’s not going to do this offense any favors. Still, Gibson has three red zone rushing attempts and has 20 yards on those attempts. The receiving end of his game hasn’t gotten off the ground yet. He’s only been targets four times but he’s caught three of them. It’s a matter of time until he puts a game together. The Browns have been tough on the ground, allowing the third-fewest rushing yards so far so maybe we wait for another week.

WR – This is quite the interesting spot for Terry McLaurin. He’s the co-leader in targets and leads in air yards. He’s caught 12 of his 17 targets but he’s going to draw a tough assignment. Denzel Ward has only been targeted once so far through two games and he’s given up a reception for 12 yards. With McLaurin only having a 19% slot rate, he likely sees Ward on the majority of snaps. McLaurin is talented enough to warrant GPP consideration at a great price, but I wouldn’t go further than that. Cardinals corner Patrick Peterson hasn’t allowed a reception so McLaurin’s production last week came on other members of the secondary. Dontrelle Inman and Steven Sims are eating into each other too much. They are third and fourth in targets in a low volume passing attack.

TE – We love the volume of targets for Logan Thomas even if the production didn’t follow on Sunday. He’s seen eight and nine the first two weeks, tying him with McLaurin for the team lead. He leads the team in red zone targets with three and end zone targets with two, so the scoring upside is certainly there. This is a great matchup as well, since the Browns have been wrecked by the position so far. They’ve allowed the second-most receptions and the sixth-most yards with three scores. Only the Saints (say hi to Darren Waller) have given up more DK points per game. He was a bit of a disappointment last week but I have zero issues going right back to Thomas this week.

D/ST – This unit is always in play as long as they are healthy. Sure, the Browns are only allowing Baker Mayfield to be pressured 13.6% of the time. Only Tom Brady and Aaron Rodgers have been afforded less pressure in the pocket. Even so, Washington has gotten pressure 24.7% of the time and have the league lead in sacks at 11. Pittsburgh is he only other team in double-digits already. The price is very solid and they are in play for all formats.

Cash – D/ST, Thomas

GPP – McLaurin, Gibson

Browns

QB – We shouldn’t be shocked but Cleveland finds itself near the bottom of the passing attempts ladder this year, leaving Baker Mayfield as just a guy on this slate. Mayfield is 10th in intended air yards but he’s all the way down to 26th in actual passing yards with just a 3:2 TD:INT ratio. Since the Browns are heavy favorites, we shouldn’t expect Mayfield to chuck it all over the yard. He’s been really inaccurate so far as well, ranking 32nd in on target throws. Much was made of the play action scheme that he would be running, but he’s only attempted 17 passes in that play type. That’s 13th in the league and has accounted for 121 yards. Even at a cheap salary, I prefer Tannehill, Trubisky and possibly one other option.

RB – The tandem of Nick Chubb and Kareem Hunt were on full display last week and they should be again this week. Chubb holds the edge in snaps and rushing attempts, along with red zone carries at 4-2. Hunt is more involved in the passing game, with six receptions to two for Chubb and more targets. Even in total touches, they are neck and neck. Chubb has 34 total touches while Hunt is at 29. This is all to illustrate that both backs are in play every single week. Hunt has carved out 37% of the rushing attempts and a 14.3% target share. Washington has controlled the running game so far with just 145 rushing yards allowed to backs and only 39 yards receiving. Even still, the Browns are ninth in attempts so far and trail only Green Bay in rushing yards per game. Cleveland has ripped off over 175 yards per game on the ground. Hunt is a little easier to fit via salary so I prefer him. Both backs are cash viable, especially on DK where Hunt gets the full PPR scoring.

WR – It was nice to see Odell Beckham get into the end zone on a 43 yard bomb, but he really didn’t do anything else. He’s such a confusing player. He leads the team in target rate (28.6%), air yards (12th in the NFL), percentage of air yards (40.8%) and yet has all of seven receptions for 96 yards. If that one big play doesn’t connect, he’s string at 8/53/0 after two games. It’s just so bizarre that he hasn’t been able to make much work consistently in Cleveland. I don’t particularly want to play him at his salary with the floor that’s involved.

Usually that means I’m playing Jarvis Landry and I don’t have a major issue with it. He’s still chugging along with over 60% of his snaps coming in the slot and an 18.5% target share. The problem there is 18% of a low volume passing offense has equated to nine targets through two games. Unless you see Washington making this one competitive, it might be best to avoid the receivers from this game altogether. If you don’t get the volume, you need scores or efficiency. OBJ brings nothing to the latter part, and Landry has zero red zone targets so far.

TE – Only the Browns could hand out a massive contract for a player and then target him six times through two games. That’s where we’re at with Austin Hooper and he’s fourth on his own team in targets. If you remember back to the Week 1 breakdown, this was a fear. All four of the top targets from the 2019 passing game were back. What role was Hooper going to get? Right now, it appears like it’s not going to be much. Washington’s ranking against the position got thrashed against the Eagles and likely isn’t quite this bad. I don’t see many reasons to play Hooper.

D/ST – The salary here is what absolutely kills me. If they were down near the $3,000 range, I could buy that with the turnover potential from Haskins and missing a key cog in the offensive line. Cleveland is getting pressure on the quarterback, sixth-most in the league. They are also tied for second for QB hurries, so they have potential for sure. I just hate the price.

Cash – Hunt, Chubb

GPP – Landry, D/ST, Beckham

Rams at Bills, O/U of 47.5 (Bills -2)

Rams

QB – It’s not a usual thing to see the Bills around middle of the pack in passing yards given up. They’re up to 19.8 DK points given up to the position after finishing 2019 with a 13.8 mark. It’s a significant jump, and we have to figure out if it’s a hiccup or a trend. What’s a little worrisome is they’ve faced Sam Darnold and Ryan Fitpatrick and have only forced one interception and allowed three touchdowns. They only allowed 15 all of last year.

Having said all that, Jared Goff checks in as a pretty sneaky play this week. He’s not someone you go heavy with, but he’s more talented than the first two quarterbacks the Bills have faced and his coach is far more gifted offensively too. Goff is 30th in intended air yards but his receivers are doing work since he’s ninth in passing yards. Goff is one of four quarterbacks with over 300 yards in YAC already. The Bills are blitzing at a 44% rate so if Goff can get the ball out, his receivers can carry him to a pretty big day. It helps he’s only being pressured 17.2% of the time.

RB – The Bills look much more like expectations in the run game, where they’ve only allowed 133 rushing yards to the running backs. They have been bit a little through the air for 11 receptions for 84 yards and the backfield for the Rams should be more condensed this week. Cam Akers suffered a rib injury and could be unavailable, while Darrell Henderson went up to a 42% snap rate. He made the most of his touches with 121 total yards and a score. My issue is he’s not overly cheap and should still be sharing work with Malcolm Brown, who missed some time with a thumb injury last week. Henderson does have four red zone rushes compared to six for Brown, but Brown has almost double the rush attempts. I’m not likely to play one, but Henderson would be my choice.

*Update* Akers is out

WR – He might be the most expensive of the group, but I much prefer Cooper Kupp in this spot. He’s playing a 48.7% slot rate which is going to leave him off Bills corner Tre White almost half the time. White is one of the few corners I actively avoid, and Robert Woods should see more of him. White has only played in the slot 3% so far so it seems clear that Kupp has the “easiest” path to a good fantasy game. The targets are condensed with Kupp at 11, Woods at 13 and Van Jefferson at eight. Jefferson is only in the slot 22% so Kupp holds the edge there as well. Additionally, Kupp has the lowest aDOT of these three options so with the Bills blitz rate, he really seems like the best fit.

TE – Part of the reason the Bills have let up some passing yards is because Mike Gesicki lit them up last week. Tyler Higbee is coming off a monster game of three touchdowns, but he also only saw five targets. He’s third on the team in targets but does have 21% of the air yards for the team. Buffalo has allowed the third-most receiving yards to the position and the ninth-most DK points. I really don’t care for the price point but I wouldn’t take Higbee out of play. This game could be pretty high scoring and Higbee could be a key part of it.

D/ST – I’m sort of surprised to say this, but I’m a little leery about playing the Rams defense against this Bills offense right now. Josh Allen leads the league in passing yards and they are seventh in points per game. The Bills QB has only been sacked four times and is only being pressured 16.9%. With only two turnovers by Allen, I’ll find another path defensively.

Cash – Kupp

GPP – Goff, Henderson, Higbee, Brown

Bills

QB – Ladies and gentlemen, your passing yards leader heading into Week 3 is Josh Allen. He’s completing over 70% of his passes, sits fifth in on target rate and has seven total touchdowns. Allen has passed for over 300 yards in both games so far and is doing all this work with only two red zone rushes. I can’t find enough good things to say about Allen right now and the trade for Stefon Diggs is paying off in spades.

The Rams have been stout against the quarterback so far, holding Dak Prescott and Wentz to 16 DK points per game, with a 1:2 TD:INT ratio passing. If that scares folks off Allen, so be it. I don’t think he’s a needed play in cash, but he’s in play in all formats again and could be quite the pivot off the two options priced ahead of him.

RB – The split between Devin Singletary and Zack Moss continued for the second straight week. Singletary holds a small advantage in carries at 19 while Moss is at 17. The red zone work is strongly slanted to Moss with seven red zone attempts to three for Singletary. They do both at least have two red zone targets and Singletary does own the overall target lead at 10 – 4.

It’s a tough deal to try and figure out. They both have strengths and weaknesses to hone in. As long as Moss is cheaper, I’ll take my chances that he scores but either player could have a big game at any moment. Miles Sanders proved last week that the Rams can be had in the running game to some extent and both players are pretty affordable. They’ll also be pivots off some chalkier options we’ll get too.

*Update* Moss is a surprise inactive, so Singletary is far more in play without him. I’m not head over heels, but there’s nothing overtly wrong with him.

WR – At cost, John Brown is certainly the easier option to fit in the lineups. Diggs has definitely carried the water for DK points so far, but the metrics point us to these players being closer than we may think. Brown only trails by six targets and they are tied with red zone targets at three each. The air yards aren’t that different either with Brown only being 20 yards behind in that facet. Both players have an air yards% over 33, so they are the 1A and 1B so far in this offense.

Brown has only played 11 snaps in the slot compared to 25 for Diggs. Jalen Ramsey has only played 2.9% of his snaps in the slot but it’s interesting to see what he’s yielded so far. Ramsey has given up 12 receptions on 17 targets for a 1.50 fantasy point per target. Maybe Allen doesn’t test him but Ramsey hasn’t exactly lived up to reputation the first two weeks. I prefer Brown just for salary, but I might double stack in GPP with Allen.

TE – There’s really no logic behind playing Dawson Knox. Not only did he miss the first practice of the week with the effects of a concussion, but he’s just not involved in the offense at all. He’s a distant fifth in target share and has under 3% of his team’s air yards. I’ll skip him for most of the year as things stand.

*Update* Knox is out

D/ST – It’s not often that I don’t particularly like the Bills defense, but this week is one of them. The salary doesn’t make a lot of sense to me with the other options around them. The Bills do have a solid pressure rate at 23.1% and six sacks and two turnovers. The Rams also only have two turnovers so far so this isn’t the spot for them at $3,400.

Cash – Allen, Brown, Diggs

GPP – Singletary

Panthers at Chargers, O/U of 44 (Chargers -6.5)

Panthers

QB – I’m torn on the Teddy Bridgewater play this week. On the one hand, his job isn’t going to be easier without Christian McCaffrey in the lineup. He is 14th in on target rate but that’s still 80%, which is more than solid. He’s shedding the “Checkdown Teddy” moniker so far with the ninth-highest intended air yards through two weeks. The 17 DK point average for him isn’t actually that bad since he’s got three turnovers to just one touchdown. Being fourth in total passing yards helps and the Chargers look like a solid matchup. However, they’ve given up the second-most rushing yards and a score on the ground. LA has only given up the 12th fewest passing yards and only two scores, including a game against Patrick Mahomes. Of all the super cheap QB options, Bridgewater is my favorite but I may not dip that far down at all.

RB – It’s a little early in the week to figure out who’s going to be chalk at running back, but Mike Davis could be an option. He played 33% of the snaps last week after CMC left the game and gobbled up targets with eight, third on the team. On DK, that might be enough to warrant a play even if the rushing production isn’t really there. After all, he got all of one carry. Curtis Samuel had four and ripped off 26 yards on those carries. It’s not known yet if Samuel will maintain his involvement but if he gets even eight carries, we need to be interested at $4,000. I don’t believe Davis is all that great but if he’s in the receiving role, we have to pay attention. This is a play that I’m happy with in cash if it’s needed, but would likely fade chalk in GPP.

*Update* Samuel has said he expects the bulk of his work to be at receiver

WR – I find myself really liking Robby Anderson as a pivot in this offense at the Davis price point. He’s only played 19 snaps in the slot and only trails D.J. Moore by four targets on the year. These two receivers have combined for 78% of the team’s air yards, with Moore at 47%. Moore has played even less in the slot and I would think corner Casey Hayward is going to draw the bulk of the coverage. Hayward is under 1.00 fantasy point per target while Chris Harris has only been targeted once. I usually avoid Hayward and would take my chances with Anderson. He has good chemistry with Bridgewater and continues the trend of players performing after leaving the tutelage of Adam Gase.

TE – Ian Thomas has played 84 snaps and has a 2.7% target rate with….two. He’s yet to be targeted in the red zone and has yet to be involved in the offense at all. Even with CMC missing, that’s just 12% of the targets so far. Thomas just isn’t worth a play by any metric we look at.

D/ST – About the only positive thing you could say is the Panthers will face a rookie quarterback on his second start. This unit is dead last in pressure rate at only 4.6% and has zero sacks. With only two turnovers and 32.5 points allowed per game (and it would have been MUCH worse if the Bucs receivers could catch), there’s no real reason to go after them here.

Cash – Davis, Anderson

GPP – Moore, Samuel, Bridgewater

Chargers

QB – DK did a solid job pricing Justin Herbert because if he was around $5,000, the play becomes easier. At almost $6,000, we actually have to decide here. He looked excellent when he got pressed into duty at literally the last second on Sunday. He was on target on 80.6% of his throws which is top 12 right now. If he averaged the same intended air yards as he did last week, he’d be around 10-12 in that category as well. Herbert was not just a game manager when he got his chance, which is encouraging at his price point.

Carolina has only allowed the second-fewest DK points because A. the Bucs receivers and backs dropped three TD’s for Tom Brady last week and B. the Raiders ran the ball down their throats. That later part is a concern here. The Chargers are leading the league in rushing attempts per game and could grind out this game. Herbert does have upside in that facet as well with 18 yards rushing and a score in his first game. With the volume being iffy, I would leave Herbert for GPP but couldn’t complain if that’s the QB you run with in cash.

RB – We talked about the Cleveland tandem both being in play and the exact same thing is in play for the Chargers. Both Austin Ekeler and Joshua Kelley are tied for fifth in carries with 35 each. Kelley has also doubled up Ekeler in red zone work at an 8-4 ratio, taking up 57% of the red zone attempts. Not only is it a surprise that the ratio of carries is dead even, I’m shocked to see Ekeler only getting five targets to three for Kelley in two weeks. Carolina has continue to be weak against the run from 2019, yielding the sixth-most yards already. Additionally, they lead with six touchdowns given up after 27 last year. Over the last 18 games, they have surrendered 33 touchdowns on the ground. If Davis and others are chalk, Kelley might turn into my favorite pivot. Ekeler is totally viable in all formats as well.

WR – At least for one week, Keenan Allen was happy with a rookie quarterback. He led the team in targets with 10 and air yards with 106. This isn’t to say he was poor in Week 1 but with a rookie signal caller, it’s nice to know he focuses on the top receiver on the team. Mike Williams on the other hand only saw four targets but at least had a 16.0 aDOT to go with it. If you believe that the Chargers will ground and pound, Williams can’t be that exciting. The price point is solid for him and a long TD pays it off instantly, but you saw the floor last week. Allen has a safe floor and likely the higher ceiling this week.

TE – It really seems like Hunter Henry is underpriced on this slate. He saw eight targets with Herbet last week and sits tied for fourth in targets at the position. Henry is the TE11 in scoring because he hasn’t found the end zone yet. Still, being the TE10 in salary seems odd. With the targets among the position, it’s only a matter of time until he has a nice ceiling game. With eight targets in each game so far, consistency shouldn’t be a giant worry. He’s a solid option in all formats even though Carolina has given up under seven DK points per game. That’s a metric to pay attention to with a game against Waller on the resume.

D/ST – We have to consider the Chargers defense in all formats this week. They have the fifth-best pressure rate in football but have only hit home four times. They’ve also only allowed 18 points per game, which is tied for third-best in the league. That’s great news since safety Derwin James was lost in camp.

Cash – Kelley, Ekeler, Allen, Henry, D/ST

GPP – Herbert, Williams

Jets at Colts, O/U of 43.5 (Colts -10.5)

Jets

QB – Goodness the Jets suck. It’s not all Sam Darnold’s fault but it’s nearly impossible to build a case to play him. He’s without his top running back and could be without his top three receivers in this game. No quarterback is going to succeed with the deck stacked against him, especially with a terrible coach. Darnold is 28th in intended air yards, total passing yards but he is 15th in on target rate. I think he’s better than he’s shown statistically, but this is DFS and we need the production. Of all the cheap quarterbacks, Darnold is my least favorite after seeing Kirk Cousins last week.

RB – If you’re going after a running back from this team, it’s going to be GPP only. Knowing that, you may as well go for broke and play La’Mical Perine. He only played nine snaps but he showed explosiveness with almost 20 yards on just three carries. Frank Gore is just totally underwhelming at this point and Perine at least has some potential. I’m not strongly advocating to play him since the Colts have only allowed 142 yards so far and DeForest Buckner has been a great addition to that defense. Perine is definitely an MME play.

WR – By every possible account we have, it sure looks like Jamison Crowder and Breshad Perriman will be out this week. That leaves Chris Hogan, Braxton Berrios and Josh Malone as the three healthy receivers on DK for the Jets. Berrios was the star for this corps in Week 2 with eight targets, 32% of the air yards and a touchdown. If he’s going to see this kind of role, he is a viable salary saver. That’s really the best I can say about a player that has a career 12 receptions. Hogan also had eight targets and led in air yards, but these are gross plays. Someone has to catch the ball I suppose but I don’t have to like it.

*Update* Crowder and Perriman are out

TE – You could make the same argument for Chris Herndon, except he’s not on the field all the time. He’s barely cleared 70% of the snaps so far and has blocked almost 40% of the time on Darnold’s drop backs. If you look at DK scoring, we don’t get points for blocks. Herndon has 11 targets which isn’t all that bad but it terrifies me that he’s staying in to block so much. I will pass with other cheap options on this slate, like Sample and Thomas.

D/ST – For how awful that offense is, the defense isn’t playing all that bad. They are seventh in pressure rate and have six sacks, a respectable number so far. Three turnovers isn’t horrible either but they are giving up almost 30 points. Facing a Colts offense that has one of the better offensive lines isn’t a good match for them either. They’ve only given up two sacks and are averaging almost 120 rushing yards per game. In GPP, the Jets are so cheap you can shoot with them but don’t expect very much.

Cash – None, Berrios and Hogan are closest

GPP – Perine, D/ST

Colts

QB – If you want a nice helping of mediocre for fantasy, Philip Rivers is your man. The Colts are 15th in pass attempts per game, and Rivers is on the wrong side of a 2:3 TD:INT ratio right now. I severely doubt he has to throw a lot in this game, and you saw last week when the game script played along he had 25 passing attempts. It’s not going to do you any good for DFS real often a that volume, especially when he’s 17th in intended air yards. To his credit, he is seventh in on target rate but this game really doesn’t seem like one where he has to push the envelope. Rivers is a pretty easy fade for me, although the Jets have allowed over 24 DK points per game. Rivers could thrash this secondary but only if he needs to.

RB – The balance of power in the Colts backfield didn’t take very long to transfer. I assumed that Nyheim Hines would maintain some of the role we saw in Week 1 after Marlon Mack went down. Apparently, all Jonathan Taylor needed was a week of practice as the number one because he dominated touches and snaps this past week. Hines was third behind Jordan Wilkins in snaps and touched the ball exactly once. By contrast, Taylor had 28 touches and six red zone attempts. The Jets have already gotten tagged for 225 rushing yards and two scores on the ground, along with 14/88/1 through the air. Don’t overthink this one, Taylor should be $7,000 and 28 touches is elite volume behind a great O-line.

WR – I’m focusing more on what Week 2 shows us because Parris Campbell is now missing and the game script should be closer to last week than Week 1. Last week saw rookie Michael Pittman co-lead in targets with six and he got a red zone look. He accounted for 21% of the team’s air yards, which was third behind T.Y. Hilton and Mo Alie-Cox. Pittman also went over 90% of the snaps while Hilton played under 60%. Both Hilton and Pittman have great matchups and Hilton has 38.6% of the team’s air yards on the season. He also leads with two end zone targets, it just hasn’t translated yet. I think both are best served for GPP since the volume should continue to be lower than we like for these players.

TE – We would need Jack Doyle to sit again, but Alie-Cox could be in play here. I blew him off but Rivers loved him, targeting him six times and the tight end responded with a 100+ yard receiving game, the first of his career. He had 35% of the air yards for the Colts last week too, so he was getting some attention down field. A red zone target followed him and at under $4,000, you could do worse. He’s just not my favorite option in this range.

*Update* Doyle now looks like he’ll play

D/ST – How can they not be in play, even at the highest salary on the board? New York is pulling receivers off the street at this point and their receiving tight end can’t go out on routes because he has to block. The Colts have generated the fourth-highest pressure rate on just the second-lowest blitz rate. That is a great combo to attack, and they’ve turned the ball over three times with seven sacks, tied for third-most. About the only negative is they lost safety Malik Hooker, but that’s not enough to worry me.

Cash – Taylor

GPP – Rivers, Pittman, Hilton

Lions at Cardinals, O/U of 55 (Cardinals -5.5)

Lions

QB – This game is really interesting because it’s only a half point behind the Seahawks game for the O/U but I’m betting the ownership isn’t going to be all that close. Matthew Stafford has somehow scored almost the exact same 17.2 DK points in each game so far, and that’s been without receiver Kenny Golladay. Stafford is seventh in intended air yards, which is a great sign without his top receiver. Additionally, he’s managed to still be in 10th in passing yards through the first two weeks. The on target rate doesn’t look spectacular but sitting 12th in air yards per attempt mitigates that a bit. The downfield targets are some of the most valuable for a quarterback.

The Lions have done a great job of not letting Stafford get pressured at just 25th in the league, 17.6%. The Cardinals look like a tough matchup but step further back. They’ve faced Haskins and Jimmy G with no healthy receivers. This is easily the best passing game they’ve faced in the first three games, and they’ve given up a 3:0 TD:INT ratio. Stafford is a great GPP play this week when compared to the chalkier Seahawks game.

RB – It appears that getting game script correct is going to be imperative to choosing a Detroit running back. When they were leading against the Bears, Adrian Peterson had 14 carries but this week he only had seven. Week 2 was when they were getting housed by the Packers so rookie D’Andre Swift got targeted five times for 60 yards. Now, the snaps aren’t going to look good for any of them. Kerryon Johnson hasn’t been over 32% and they are always going to split. The bad news is the red zone work has been split in a big way as well. Peterson has four, Johnson has three and Swift has two. With the high over/under, I do favor Swift but we need to remember Golladay is back. Swift is in play, but I’d pass on others.

WR – So far, Quintez Cephus and Danny Amendola have combined for 37% of the targets and almost 50% of the air yards. Amendola will still maintain some of his role, but Golladay is walking into a massive role like he had last year. He won’t take all of that production, which is why I still like Swift. The fear would be that he could be limited after missing the first two games but $6,200 is not that expensive for a healthy Golladay. Cardinals corner Patrick Peterson hasn’t been great this year either. He’s allowing a 126.6 passer rating when targeted and over 2.0 fantasy points per target. Don’t sweat him with Golladay or Marvin Jones. He’s tied for the target lead without Golladay and his job gets easier with him in. Last season, Jones only had four fewer red zone targets than Golladay so don’t come off him completely just because he’s the number two.

*Update* Golladay is officially questionable

TE – The Cards have already shown immense improvements against the position from last year. They were a sieve, but early they are the 11th best defense to tight ends. T.J. Hockenson has a 12.7% target share but only one red zone look so far. Further, he’s only accounted for 6.9% of the air yards on the team so far. I don’t love his involvement in the passing game so far and I would prefer to stick with the receivers in this game.

D/ST – The Lions have the seventh-worst pressure rate so far and has only got home to the quarterback twice. They have forced no turnovers yet and have a formidable task in front of them with the Arizona offense. I have no interest here.

Cash – None that are needed

GPP – Stafford, Jones, Golladay, Swift

Cardinals

QB – Kyler Murray is the first quarterback in the history of the league to pass for over 500 yards and run for over 150 in the first two games of the year. He’s certainly priced more appropriately this week than last, but that doesn’t mean he’s any less in play. It just means he’s not likely to be the cash chalk that he was last week. Detroit is about mid-pack to the QB but I believe Murray might be about the closest replica of Lamar Jackson in the league. He’s already snagged the lead for rushing yards for quarterbacks and has DeAndre Hopkins at his disposal. The Lions lack the corners to stop the passing game, and the rushing floor is rivaled by a select few. He’s 14th in intended air yards and can be even more accurate, ranking just 21st in on target rate. Murray is a great play in all formats.

RB – It’s really hard not to love Kenyan Drake after seeing Aaron Jones wreck this defense last week. Drake is underpriced in part because he’s yet to find the end zone more than once. He’s getting plenty of work, sitting inside the top five in carries on the season although Chase Edmonds is stealing a little bit of the passing work. Edmonds leads in targets by a 9-4 rate but Drake has been on the field for 65% of the snaps or more in both weeks so far. Drake also has more red zone rushes than anyone on the team, including Murray. Now, that’s not to say Murray can’t hurt Drake a bit. If Murray doesn’t have touchdown runs of 22 and 21 yards, maybe Drake has more than one touchdown. Detroit only trails the Bengals in yards given up to backs on the ground, and they’ve yielded three scores. Drake is an elite play for me this week.

WR – Hopkins is the most expensive receiver on this slate, but that’s what happens when you lead the NFL in targets. Nuk hit pay dirt last week and is hogging 35.7% of the target share through two weeks. The Lions have no corner that scares me in the least, so I won’t tell you Hopkins is a bad play regardless of format. I wish we had been able to see Davante Adams at full strength last week.

The interesting portion of this offense is Christian Kirk. He’s only had nine targets so far but he’s accounted for 36.2% of the team’s air yards and is the clear deep ball threat. If he’s unable to go with an injury, Larry Fitzgerald becomes more viable as a salary saver. Fitzgerald already has 12 targets, second on the team and the loss of Kirk could funnel him a couple extra. The replacement for Kirk’s role would be Andy Isabella, who can fly and get deep. He’s got 58 air yards on just two targets so far this year.

*Update* Kirk is out, so Isabella is worth a shot in large field, MME GPP entries.

TE – Arizona does have a tight end in Dan Arnold, but he has all of six targets through two games. He doesn’t have a red zone look and that’s where Murray’s legs would scare me the most. Arnold isn’t getting a lot of plays called for him close to the end zone.

D/ST – The Cards are tied for third in sacks already and maybe that’s why the price is a little high for my liking. Stafford has been brought down five times but I just wish Arizona was a hair cheaper. They’ve only forced two fumbles and the O/U really doesn’t have me too interested. Sure, they’ve only given up 17.5 points per game but I refer you again to who they’ve played and the circumstances so far.

Cash – Kyler, Drake, Nuk

GPP – Isabella, Fitzgerald

Cowboys at Seahawks, O/U of 55.5 (Seahawks -5)

Cowboys

QB – The Seattle defense hasn’t contained much of anything yet and this is one of the games of the week for fantasy. Featuring the highest O/U on the slate, Dak Prescott should pull some ownership after helping the Cowboys to a massive comeback win last week. Three rushing scores is unlikely to repeat but so far Prescott has been dealing as a passer. Despite sitting 17th in on target rate, Prescott has the third-most passing yards and the sixth-highest intended air yards. Seattle is the only team over 800 passing yards given up so far, but they have faced the most attempts. They still rank as the fourth-worst team for yards per completion and we just saw Cam Newton light them up beyond belief. This game is very stackable, and Prescott is absolutely a great option to do it with.

RB – I don’t think we need to spend the most time on Ezekiel Elliott. He’s third in the league in carries, tied for first in red zone attempts and is eating up over 75% of his team’s rushing attempts. I likely prefer other backs as I want to go with the passing game here, but if Zeke is one of the less popular plays for this game, that’s just a bonus. The Seahawks have allowed the fewest rushing yards to running backs of any team, but Zeke is matchup proof.

WR – Now we get to the fun part, the receivers for Dallas. Amari Cooper is still the lead dog by targets with 27.4% and 36.3% of the air yards. Rookie CeeDee Lamb has carved out 17.9% of the targets and is the slot receiver at a 90.8% slot rate thus far. That has left Michael Gallup with only 10 targets, fifth on the team. However, he should not be overlooked in this game. He owns 27.9% of the air yards and if he’s coming in less popular than Lamb (very likely), he’s an elite GPP pivot. These three and Zeke are carrying 68% of the target share and I actually expect that to go up as the season moves on. The Seahawks have given up 731 yards to receivers so far, easily the most in the league. The next worst team is the Falcons at 524 yards. I’m not great at math, but that’s a 200 yard difference. In large field GPP, Dak with the triple receiver stack is different and can be done. Ask Atlanta from Week 1.

TE – One of the reasons I can get behind the triple stack for Dallas is because I do not believe that Dalton Schultz is going to see another 10 targets in this game. He went from backup to a position that wasn’t heavily used in the passing game to the leading target? That’s highly doubtful to continue. He also led in red zone targets and while I think he could have some role (especially if the Dallas defense can’t figure some things out), I just have a hard time seeing the repeat. Seattle is top-five against the tight end, but they haven’t faced much yet.

D/ST – I’m just not touching either defense from this game, let’s make it pretty easy. They are averaging five DK points combined, Seattle is the only team over 22% in pressure rate and they have five sacks between them. Additionally, there’s four turnovers between the two. We have more appealing options, even though there can be turnovers and sacks in a high-powered offensive game.

Cash – Dak, Zeke, Cooper, Lamb

GPP – Gallup, Schultz

Seahawks

QB – Much like Zeke, we don’t need a lot of time here. Russell Wilson is fifth in passing yards, first in accuracy, first in passing touchdowns with nine, fifth in rushing yards among the position and has one turnover (that was 100% on Greg Olsen). I would play him against any defense right now, and the Cowboys just got ripped apart by Atlanta and Matt Ryan. Oh, and all this has come with Seattle ranking 25th in passing attempts per game. I’m not screaming, you’re screaming in frustration. Just let Russ be the offense, this isn’t that hard.

RB – I’m more comfortable with Chris Carson now that he’s played over 60% of the snaps in a game. Carson only has 23 carries through two games and has been splitting a good bit of work with Carlos Hyde overall, but that seemed to reverse Sunday night. Carson got 17 carries and that’s what we need at this price point. It’s a nice bonus that he’s third in target share on the team and he’s not that bad of a receiver. If he can get a head of steam in any facet of the game, he’s hard to stop. Carson also does lead the team in red zone carries but it is just three. The view is jus like Zeke – I don’t have any issues with Carson, but I prefer the passing game on this side as well.

WR – The featured image gives it away, but I’m not sure I love a player more than DK Metcalf this week. He’s top 15 across the league in air yards and has accounted for 48.2% of Seattle’s air yards. The target share is a healthy 23.3% and he has the most snaps of any receiving option. Dallas has given up the sixth-most yards to receivers along with three scores. Both these defenses are bottom-five in yards given per completion, so this is why we’re leaning on the passing games here.

Tyler Lockett is a pretty good receiver as well and he leads in overall targets on the team. He’s got a 33.6% air yard share and has he exact same matchup Metcalf does. Byron Jones is in Miami so there’s no corner that I fear. The Patriots have a great secondary and it didn’t matter in the least on Sunday.

TE – This isn’t a position that’s been very involved so far. Olsen wasn’t targeted after his drop for the interception and Will Dissly is A. questionable and B. has three targets all season. You need a touchdown from Olsen to be worth it and he has all of one red zone target. Anything can happen in a shootout but this is an unappealing option.

D/ST – Refer to a little further above.

Cash – Russ, Metcalf, Lockett

GPP – Carson

Buccaneers at Broncos, O/U of 43.5 (Buccaneers -6)

Buccaneers

QB – Brady has to be fairly annoyed after last game. His total is super deceiving and there was a higher comfort level in the offense in Week 2. He’s inn line to have a fully healthy Mike Evans and Chris Godwin for the first time, which is not a bad thing. Brady is sixth in accuracy and 16th in intended air yards. The Tampa offensive line has done great work keeping him upright with the lowest pressure rate in football, just 10.7%. Denver is right around middle of the pack in DK points given up and Brady is pretty cheap. I just wonder how many times he throws in this game as they are heavy favorites and only 16th in attempts as it is. Brady is fine, but not a primary target.

RB – I thought we had one more week of Ronald Jones last week but that was not to be. Leonard Fournette took over the snap count lead, had more carries and now has more targets. While LeSean McCoy is going to be the passing down back, Fournette is the man to play in this backfield. He has six targets himself and two of them are in the red zone, to go with three red zone carries. The Broncos have actually yielded the seventh-most rushing yards to backs but just one touchdown, saving their ranking a little bit. Fournette is strictly GPP for me but he’s the only back worth targeting since Coach Bruce Arians blamed Jones for a fumble last week.

WR – I’m still going to prefer Chris Godwin now that he’s ready to go since he’s playing the majority of his snaps from the slot. Godwin sits at a 69% rate compared to under 35% for Mike Evans and Godwin is just a hair cheaper. They both have a near identical aDOT of 9.5 for Evans and 9.4 for Godwin. The red zone targets are equal as well, which is very unhelpful. The Broncos have deployed Essang Bassey in the slot about 53% of the time and he’s allowing a 70% catch rate and a 1.20 points per target. That’s enough for me to head Godwin here.

TE – Well so much for the Brady and Rob Gronkowski reunion. Gronkowski has been an absolute disaster. He’s gotten more snaps than O.J. Howard but Howard has the target lead at 9-4, including three red zone targets to lead the team. Howard also has 18.6% of the team’s air yards. That’s slightly misleading with the injuries to receivers but Howard has a healthy 10.9 aDOT that shouldn’t change too much. The Broncos have allowed two scores to the position but under 100 yards. Howard is GPP, but not a priority.

D/ST – I do like playing the Bucs defense if you spend up. They’ve allowed just 22.5 points per game, have six sacks and four turnovers already. Both Drew Lock and Jeff Driskel are in the top 10 in pressure rate, so the Broncos offensive line have had a bit of a rough time protecting their quarterback. The front is the strength of this unit and we could see some Broncos mistakes.

Cash – Godwin, Evans, D/ST

GPP – Howard, Brady, Fournette

Broncos

QB – I have to give Driskel a bit of respect here because even in the face of the amount of pressure he dealt with, he scored almost 20 DK points. Defenses can have trouble with backup quarterbacks in the middle of a game, but then the next one can prepare for him. Driskel has 315 career attempts with a completion rate under 59% and a 12:7 TD ratio. I can’t build a case for him without Courtland Sutton even at salary.

RB – Poor Melvin Gordon. He’s got the backfield to himself with Phillip Lindsay out of action, but faces the second straight very difficult spot. Tampa has allowed just the fourth-fewest rushing yards to backs, but through the air is a serious weakness. Only one team has allowed more receptions and only one other team has allowed more receiving yards. Gordon only has six targets (tied for fifth on Denver) but he could see more work with Sutton out. With names like Hunt, Mixon and Montgomery around him, Gordon could get overlooked again this week and on DK has enough receiving upside to be a GPP target.

WR – Sutton only has played part of one game, so it’s hard to get an accurate read on his role. He only had six total targets but had 106 air yards, good for 13.2% of the total. It stands to reason that rookie Jerry Jeudy and KJ Hamler are going to be the main cogs in the passing game outside Noah Fant. What is interesting to see is Kamler’s air yards through one game. He’s already third with 14.4% of the team’s total. At bare minimum, he’s quite the salary saver and just one play could pay off his salary in spades. He had seven targets last week as well, so it’s not like it’s only one or two targets. Jeudy leads the team in total targets and is at a solid price point. He’s played almost 70% of his snaps in the slot where he should see a good bit of Bucs corner Sean Murphy-Bunting. He’s allowed a 133.7 passer rating and over three points per target. Either player is a fine GPP target, but I won’t trust Driskel for cash.

*Update* Jeudy is questionable, but he did practice in full Friday

TE – Fant has been excellent through the first two games and sits second in targets on the Broncos. He’s tied with Gordon for the red zone target lead at two and he has two touchdowns on the season. Tampa has been stout against the position so far with under 90 yards allowed and no touchdowns. However, Fant, Jeudy and Hamler are the passing game for the most part. I prefer other options but Fant likely isn’t that popular.

D/ST – Denver only has two sacks on a pressure rate that is under 22% and with the Bus O-Line doing work, I’m not all that interested. The Broncos have only managed two turnovers as well and are sorely missing linebacker Von Miller.

Cash – None

GPP – Jeudy, Gordon, Hamler, Fant

Core Four (Cash Game Based)

Metcalf, Drake, Diontae, Sanders

I moved McKinnon out of the Core because of the rumors of Wilson being more involved. Additionally, I trust Stix when he says Sanders is 60% meaning he’s chalk we should absolutely eat in cash. It turns out he will be a staple in my cash lineups.

Game Stacks

Cowboys/Seahawks – Russ, Metcalf, Gallup, Lockett, Lamb, Cooper, Dak, Zeke, Carson

Lions/Cardinals – Kyler, Nuk, Drake, Jones, Golladay, Stafford, Swift, Kirk/Isabella

Bears/Falcons – Ryan, Ridley, Gage, Montgomery, Robinson, Julio, Trubisky, Hurst

Bengals/Eagles – Burrow, AJG, Boyd, Sanders, Mixon, Sample, Jackson, Goedert, Ertz

Rams/Bills – Allen, Brown, Diggs, Kupp, Higbee, Goff, Henderson

Team Stacks

Steelers – Big Ben, Johnson, JuJu, Conner

Patriots – Cam, Edelman, Byrd, Burkhead

Titans – Henry, Tannehill, Smith

Chargers – Herbert, Kelley, Ekeler, Allen, Henry

Let’s get after it this week my friends! 

Make sure you follow me on Twitter at @bucn4life and be sure to sign up for an ALL ACCESS GOLD ACCOUNT account here at Win Daily Sports. Gain access to our Projection Models and jump into our Discord where we will have our experts talking plays across every sport and slate!

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Victory Values – Week 3

Welcome to Victory Values – Week 3!  In this article, I’ll be looking at the best player values that will lead you to DFS paydirt!   You won’t see lame advice to start Kamara, Hopkins or Kelce.  You know that already.  I’ll go under the hood to find the players with the best matchups and lowest salaries to round out your DFS lineups with big upside – so that you CAN start the studs you want and have a great chance to win!   Let’s get started!

QB Values Under $6,000

Ryan Tannehill – TEN @ MIN  – $5,900 ($7,400 in FanDuel) –  Why fight it?  Tannehill has picked up where he left off last year with multiple TD games in nine consecutive regular season starts.  Last week, he destroyed the Jags D to a tune of 18-24-239 and four TD’s.  The Vikings have given up 5 passing TD’s and 289 passing yards per game over the first two weeks. This is a smash spot for Tannehill and a Top 5 finish is in the cards.

Carson Wentz – PHI vrs CIN – $5,800 ($7,600 in FanDuel) – It’s been brutal for Wentz over the first two weeks.  He did score a TD on the ground in Week 2’s loss to the Rams, but now has 4 picks on the year with only 2 TD’s.  Cue the Cincinnati Bengals. Wentz should be getting some more skill position players back in Week 3, and is too good a QB to put up a stinker against this Bengal defense.  Look for a Top 10 finish in this one.

RB Values Under $5,000

Jerick McKinnon – SF @ NYG – $4,900 ($5,700 in FanDuel) –  With knee injuries to Raheem Mostert and Tevin Coleman, McKinnon could be in line for a huge workload vrs the Giants. In limited action, McKinnon has 6 carries for 101 yards and a TD as well as 3 catches for 20 yds and a TD through two games. Running backs have shredded the Giants in two games thus far both on the ground and through the air.  McKinnon makes for a terrific value play

Antonio Gibson – WASH @ CLE – $4,700 ($5,500 in FanDuel) – Gibson’s usage ticked up in Week 2 with 13 carries (55 yards) and two targets, scoring an 11 yard TD on the ground.   It’s apparent that Washington realizes what they have and they are making a concerted effort to involve Gibson in the game plan. The Browns gave up 86 scrimmage yards to Joe Mixon last week, so there is opportunity for production against this defense. 

Tarik Cohen  – CHI @ ATL- $4,300 ($5,000 in FanDuel) – It’s been slim pickings for Cohen so far, as both David Montgomery and Cordarelle Patterson have more carries and targets. But that should change this week against the porous Falcon defense.  The Bears will need to keep up against the high powered Falcon offense, and Cohen should return to his pass catching, PPR role.

WR Values Under $5,000

Anthony Miller  – CHI @ ATL – $4,900 ($5,500 in FanDuel) – It’s criminal to see how little the Bears have used Miller to this point. With only three targets (no catches) last week, the Bears seem to have forgotten that Miller (4-76-1 in Week One) scored the winning touchdown in their Week 1 win.  Many DFS players will see Miller’s Week 2 zero stat line and be off of him.   Don’t make that mistake.  The Bears will need to score 30-35 points to beat the Falcons and Miller should be heavily involved in that effort.

Darius Slayton – NYG vrs SF – $4,900 ($5,500 in FanDuel) –  Slayton was quiet with just 3-33 last week, but he’s still Daniel Jones’ favorite target and is always capable of his Week 1 stat line (6-102-2).  The Niners D is beset with injuries as both Joey Bosa and Soloman Thomas are out for the year.  This defense is simply not the same without those players.  Start Slayton with confidence as he should be very productive.

Michael Pittman Jr. – INDY vrs NYJ – $4,000 ($5,000 in FanDuel) –  Pittman’s usage increased in Week 2 has he had 6 targets, producing 4 catches for 37 yards.   His involvement should continue to rise in the coming weeks, as Pittman lands in a smash shot vrs the awful New York Jets defense.  You should be starting as many Colt offensive players as you can in this match up, especially an inexpensive one with Pittman.

TE Values Under $4,000

Logan Thomas – WASH @ CLE – $3,700 ($4,900 in FanDuel) – With 17 targets through two weeks, Thomas is a prime candidate to produce against the 32nd ranked Browns D.  After Terry McLaurin, Thomas (4-37-1) is Dwayne Haskins favorite receiver.  There should be a good deal of fireworks in this game and Thomas is likely to find the end zone.

Drew Sample – CIN @ PHI – $3,500 ($4,800 in FanDuel) – If you watched last Thursday’s Browns/Bengals game, you’d notice that Sample’s name was called a lot. It’s normal for a rookie QB to depend on his tight end.  Joe Burrow looked Sample’s way 9x last week (7-45) as the Bengals look to be playing catch up again in Philadelphia.  Garbage receptions count too. Sample is a sneaky good play as his target share dictates success.

D Value Under $3,000

GIANTS vrs SF – $2,700 ($3,600 in FanDuel) –  Jimmy Garoppolo is most likely out for this game.  Jerick McKinnon seems to be the Niners’ only starting caliber RB available.  George Kittle is doubtful to play as Deebo Samuel is still on IR.  As long as the Giants double cover Jordan Reed (9-62-2 last week), they should be able to force Nick Mullens into some turnovers, sacks and negative plays.

Thanks for checking out this article for Victory Values: Week 3! Make sure to follow us on Twitter @WinDailySports and make sure to head over WinDailySports.com to find more great content to win big!

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NFL Week 2 Fantasy Recap

Nick and Michael discuss the NFL Week 2 Fantasy recap! Where we were right, where we were wrong, and some season long plays that might be waiver claims. You can sign up for our Gold Membership at WinDailySports.com and start winning big like we did this week!

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NFL Week 2 Fantasy Breakdown

Nick and Michael discuss the NFL Week 2 Fantasy Breakdown for DFS!

Make sure to check out the Win Daily Sports Betting Membership for even more shark plays and always be on top of the best lines on our Betting Lines page!

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$25k and Ready for More

It was a GREAT first week of the NFL season for us over here at Win Daily Sports! First off, shout out to @StixPicks for his NFL Projections and AETY model, the guy spent all off season perfecting this and it’s starting to pay off. I also appreciate Nick for allowing me to beat him in Week 1 of the inaugural Win Daily Season Long Fantasy Football League, thank you Sir. $25k and ready for more!

I was the direct beneficiary of utilizing the Win Daily Sports Family’s models, cheat sheets, articles and ideas to turn my love of the NFL into $25,000. This is not a bad way to start week 1 of the season! Looking to the game stacks and one offs were easy when you have a team of people that are looking out for your best interest and want to see you do just as well as them! And thankfully, the Family here is all about that.

When constructing my lineup I knew a couple things were locks. The Seattle at Atlanta game was the game stack I wanted to focus on the most. Josh Jacobs and Davante Adams would be locks in a very high percentage of my cash and gpp lineups due to pure volume. The value of Hollywood Brown was too much to pass up and I wanted exposure to the Lions value at receiver/tight end position. I went ahead and split my exposure to Marvin Jones and TJ Hockenson because of it. Then when it came to RB2 I simply limited my player pool to about 5-7 running backs I liked and Mostert was the one who fit this build perfectly and I knew his ownership would be low. Last but not least my Defense slot had to be decided with a cheap D and after speaking to Sia he convinced me that this front four from Washington would cause problems to the bad offensive line of the Eagles. It was also a great leverage play to everyone who loaded up on Boston Scott (which we all agreed was a good fade in tournaments). When the night ended this lineup was .5 away from $50,000 and 4 points away from $200,000, but like I said earlier I can’t ask for a better start to Week 1 and I am grateful and excited of what the future holds for the entire Win Daily Family.

Make sure to hop in our Expert Discord Chat to ask a couple quick questions, hit up our projection model, read a few articles, and follow our lead to victory! If you’re looking to get in on this party and you are not already a gold member, make sure to hit us up on twitter @WinDailySports and get 7 days FREE to our Expert Chat where all the magic happens by going to WinDailySports.com/Chat!

We’re producing DFS, Season Long, and Betting articles every week and we even have a lot of free content up on our podcast as well! Check out our Prop Locks article that talks about the player props we like the most this week, our Game by Game breakdown where we spell it all out for you, and be on the look out for our GPP and Cash Game articles as well!

We will also be doing a Livestream every Sunday morning at 11am EST right on WinDailySports.com to breakdown the whole slate, one more time for you! All this Win Daily Sports content is exactly helped me to $25k and I’m ready for more!

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NFL Game by Game Breakdown: Week 2

It was a great week to kick off the NFL season as the Win Daily team saw a whole bunch of green screens! We managed to really hit on a lot of plays without a preseason, and I can tell you that’s not easy. It’s really important to not overreact to just one week, but that’s the only data we have in front of us. If it doesn’t match what was done last year, just keep that in mind. With that said, let’s start digging around on NFL Game by Game Breakdown: Week 2 and figure out who we’re after this week!

Lions at Packers, O/U of 49.5 (Packers -6)

Lions

QB – Matt Stafford isn’t coming off the best game of his career but he had a game-winning touchdown dropped that would have helped his output. He still threw for almost 300 yards without Kenny Golladay in the lineup and he’ll likely need to put up some points to keep up with Aaron Rodgers and the Packers offense.

It’s a little tough to tell what the Packers defense looks like. They got out so far ahead of the Vikings on Sunday that much of the passing game production came in garbage time. They didn’t allow over 260 yards and only gave up two touchdowns on top of that as well. If Golladay is back in, Stafford’s outlook is considerably better. The Pack only got pressure 7.9% of the time in Week 1 and created 2 sacks. Give Stafford time and he can pick it apart.

RB – I was a little surprised by the usage in the Lions backfield. Kerryon Johnson started, D’Andre Swift got the most snaps and Adrian Peterson got the most carries and was the most productive overall. Alrighty then. What truly stands out at this point (add in the just one game caveat that should resonate through this article) is the red zone rushes. Yes, Swift got a rushing touchdown but AP had six red zone rushes to Swift’s one.

The encouraging facet for Swift was he did get six targets, fourth on the team. That did include a really poor drop that could get him punished in Week 2 but that’s speculation. Green Bay did a good job holding Dalvin Cook in check last week but the game script also played a part in that. Both Swift and AP are in play for a value back. Peterson might be a hair “safer” but if the Lions have to chase the score, Swift could have the better game.

WR – A lot here hinges on the health of Golladay. If he’s full go, he’s likely not expensive enough coming off a year scoring 11 times with questionable QB play through half the year. If he’s out again, the combo of Marvin Jones, Danny Amendola and Quintez Cephus are all intriguing. Cephus led the team in targets Week 1 with 10, quite the mark for a rookie. He only converted those into three receptions but the volume is what we’re after. Green Bay gave up almost 200 yards and two touchdowns to the position last week.

Jones had a quiet game but could easily explode here, Golladay or not. Three of his eight targets came in the red zone and that was second-most on the week. Even last year, he was only two targets behind Golladay in the red zone and the price is still reasonable. Amendola is more of a safe pick with a floor, but the ceiling might not be as high as we’d like.

*Update* Golladay has been ruled out yet again. Jones is a great bounce back candidate and could be overlooked after a relative dud last week.

TE – It was a fine game for TJ Hockenson in Week 1 with a touchdown scored on his one red zone target. Finishing tied for fourth on the team in targets was a little more disappointing but he was on the field for 50 of the 78 snaps. Green Bay did snuff out the tight ends for Minnesota and being over $5,000 does Hockenson no favors. I just struggle to see any reason to pay for him as the TE6 for salary on this slate. That’s even more true if Golladay is back in action.

D/ST – After seeing Rodgers going full on Vintage Rodgers and not having corners to guard Davante Adams? No thanks.

Cash – Stafford, Jones

GPP – Peterson, Swift, Cephus

Packers

QB – I wasn’t particularly on Rodgers and that game stack but fortunately Stix and the rest of the boys were and it went crazy. Rodgers finished with over 335 passing yards and four touchdowns while checking in with over 370 intended air yards. Maybe even better for his outlook was 44 passing attempts in a game they seized control of early. He also finished second in red zone attempts, a big boon for his value.

My main concerns with Rodgers coming into the year were the lack of secondary receivers behind Adams and finishing only 17th in passing attempts per game. The secondary receiver issues is still up in the air but if Rodgers gets closer to 40 passing attempts, we could be in store for a massive season. He is the QB3 on the slate and you can certainly go lower but Rodgers remains an excellent target his week.

RB – Aaron Jones only played about 55% of the snaps on Sunday but he still recorded 20 touches and that’s plenty for me. Jones was third on the team in targets with six, four of which came in the red zone. Add that to the three red zone rushes and we’re talking about seven total opportunities. Jones is normally going to be a TD heavy player when he really goes well, so it’s great to see him getting this volume where it matters most. Not having a reliable second receiver really helps Jones out when the field gets compressed.

Jamaal Williams was also involved with 11 total touches and he did get a couple red zone carries. I still wouldn’t really be chasing him this week even at the savings, but he does carry at least a chance at a very low salary. Rookie AJ Dillon was barely on the field and only had two carries. He’s not in play until something changes.

WR – It’s safe to say Davante Adams is #goodatfootball at this point. He exited Week 1 with the overall target lead with 17 and boatloads of targets should be expected all season long. As we mentioned, the Packers didn’t address the wide receiver position really at all. Somewhat surprising was the 9.6 aDOT but that isn’t much of a nitpick with that many targets. He won’t maintain a 40% target share but he should be the highest salaried receiver on the board and I will absolutely have shares.

*Update* There was a discussion in Discord about Adams and how he plays vs Matt Patricia as coach so I wanted to see how the stats looked. In 2019, Adams played the Lions once and went 7/93/1 and in 2018 he played them once for 9/140/1. Patricia hasn’t stopped him yet.

The secondary wide receivers could provide some serious value. Marquez Valdes-Scantling is cheaper than Allen Lazard and MVS had a higher target share in Week 1. They both scored, but MVS had seven targets to four for Lazard. The Lions gave up 201 yards and two touchdowns to Mitchell Trubisky and the Bears. If Rodgers gets 40 attempts, all three receivers could have big days just like last week.

TE – The Packers tight ends combined for three total targets on Sunday. Jace Sternberger had one and Josiah Deguara had two. There’s no reason to take this route, even if you’re just hunting for a TD only punt. Green Bay and Rodgers just don’t use this position much.

D/ST – Green Bay generated two pressures all day, but only faced 25 pass attempts. They’re kind of pricey for my taste as the eighth-most expensive defense. Detroit only allowed one sack to Chicago as well, doing a good job of protecting Stafford. I definitely prefer other options at this point.

Cash – Adams, Rodgers, Jones

GPP – MVS, Lazard

49ers at Jets, O/U of 42.5 (49ers -7)

49ers

QB – I’m torn early in the week. At the first glance, Jimmy Garoppolo would be my cash QB at this salary. However, we need to see who’s going to be catching passes for him come Sunday. Jimmy G passed for 259 yards and two touchdowns and had really no options in the passing game. Both Brandon Aiyuk and Deebo Samuel were out and George Kittle missed a couple snaps with injury (and has a knee sprain).

Still, this Jets defense just let Josh Allen pass for 312 yards. We mostly expected them to get gouged through the air and that was on display early. Garoppolo is at an excellent price tag and even though he didn’t push the ball down the field with 220 intended air yards, there’s plenty of upside in this spot. I’d love for Kittle and Aiyuk to play, but may roll Jimmy G in cash regardless.

RB – I’m not 100% sure what to make of this backfield yet either. Based on just the box score, Raheem Mostert was the dominant back. That could be slightly deceiving. It seems like the 49ers were cautious with Tevin Coleman with the air quality as he was barely involved. Additionally, 75 of Mostert’s 95 receiving yards came on one pass play. The speedster always has a shot of taking a play to the house but I’m not convinced he should be over $6,000 in this spot.

Jerick McKinnon certainly looked good coming back off injury as well, generating 44 yards on just six touches. Again, does he get three carries and five targets with Coleman potentially all the way back? That remains to be seen. The safe play might be to avoid this backfield until we see some clarity. Coleman himself is an interesting GPP value at minimum for a running back on DK.

WR – The good news is Aiyuk is believed to be able to play this week, according to Shanahan. The 49ers really do need him with a current corps of Kendrick Bourne, Trent Taylor and the ghost of Dante Pettis. The former two got five targets a piece but did nothing of note with them. I would give Aiyuk a look at his price if he’s active, but past that the ball gets spread around and nobody really sticks out. Taylor at least saw three red zone targets, but I’m not sold on that.

*Update* Aiyuk is not listed on the injury report at all, so he’s in line to start. He could eve an awesome value at receiver on a slate that has a lot. That holds even more true now that Kittle is out.

TE – Much like the receiver situation, we need clarity on Kittle. I will be up front right now – even if he’s active, I’m not playing him. It’s not Kittle isn’t a great player and can’t produce while banged up. There’s a tight end $400 cheaper in one of the best spots for his position that I’m going after. Even Kittle only saw five targets on Sunday which isn’t exactly what you want from an expensive tight end. I don’t expect that to be the case all year but it’s all about another tight end this week for me.

*Update* Kittle is out and we should expect Jordan Reed to step right into the role to some extent. He’s not Kittle at all but he used to be one of the most athletic tight ends in the league. The price is wonderful and you would need just 10 DK for about a 4x return.

D/ST – This is another spot that I love in a vacuum, but you won’t see me play a D/ST at $4,000 almost ever. The Jets did very little on Sunday outside a big play and they are now without Le’Veon Bell. San Francisco only got two sacks and had one takeaway. I’d expect them to pad those numbers this week but they’re just quite expensive.

Cash – Jimmy G, Aiyuk, Reed

GPP – Mostert, Coleman, D/ST, McKinnon

Jets

QB – There’s no reason to go after Sam Darnold yet again. He did nothing to change that idea in a tough matchup with Buffalo, finishing with not even 220 yards and only one touchdown. It’s certainly not all his fault, but playing him puts you at a major disadvantage to almost every other quarterback. There’s going to be a couple weeks to use him as a salary saver but it’s not Week 2.

RB – Bell is out but I’m not chasing either Frank Gore or Josh Adams. The 49ers allowed 86 rushing yards to the Arizona backs, but the talent level is far different. Gore is likely to see double-digit carries and maybe he lucks into a touchdown, but this is an example of playing value just for price, not for expected production. These two combined 32 yards rushing eight rushing attempts. Adams was targeted in the passing game and had 14 yards on two receptions. You could talk me into savings on the salary, but I’m not going there in cash unless the ownership is just overwhelming.

WR – The player with the fifth-most targets after one week? Jamison Crowder. His price really didn’t come up that much and he’s going to continue to see a ton of targets as the season goes. The 49ers struggled with DeAndre Hopkins, but who hasn’t? New York doesn’t have anyone approaching that talent level, especially on the outside. Breshad Perriman played all the snaps and managed six targets. He just did nothing with only a 3/17/0 line. Considering the 49ers do have good corners, I’ll take Crowder in the slot here.

*Update* It now looks like Crowder is in serious danger of missing this game. The 49ers will be without corner Richard Sherman so I guess you could talk me into a Perriman share but it’s not a play I love.

*Update Two* Crowder has been ruled out. I may have blown off Perriman a bit too quickly. He did see a 6.4 aDOT which isn’t great and the targets could approach double-digits. I shouldn’t just scoff at that potential volume for such a cheap price.

TE – With the fact that Perriman and Chris Hogan are far from premier threats on the perimeter, Darnold is likely to struggle to get the ball downfield. That means loads of targets in the intermediate area and Chris Herndon stands out as well. He finished second on the team with seven targets, catching six of them. That was fourth among tight ends in Week 1 and he’s really at a low price tag. If you don’t spend up at this spot, Herndon is an excellent punt choice.

D/ST – I don’t believe there’s much upside for this unit as far as turnovers and sacks. Sure, they got to Josh Allen there times but he’s a bit of a different QB than Jimmy G. If I’m punting a defense, I want some sort of upside and there’s not much of a reason to believe they have it.

Cash – Herndon

GPP – Gore, Adams, Perriman

Giants at Bears, O/U of 42 (Bears -5.5)

Giants

QB – The Giants are on a bit of a short week from Monday Night Football and Daniel Jones is interesting at his price tag. He once again showed his athleticism with 22 yards rushing to go with his 270+ yards passing. The turnovers were still a bit of an issue with two picks, but the Steelers defense is tough. Chicago only got one pressure and Jones could pretty easily pay off this price tag. He threw for an extra touchdown in garbage time but it doesn’t matter how they come in fantasy, just how many. Anytime you get a QB under $6,000 that can run a little and throw 35+ times with 10 red zone attempts, you should be interested.

RB – It was a tough night for Saquon Barkley on Monday. He average 0.4 YPC and had just SIX total rushing yards on 15 attempts. Yeesh. The good news at least was he also saw nine targets which co-led the team. If you give Barkley 20+ touches, it’s going to end well way more often than not. The Bears were surprisingly mediocre against the running backs this past week. They let up 151 total yards and a touchdown. Detroit splits their backfield but New York doesn’t to any real extent. Being RB2 in salary is more than fair and he could be lower-owned coming off a relative dud.

WR – Golden Tate being out didn’t hurt but it was a great 2020 debut for Darius Slayton. He co-led the team in targets with nine and went for 6/102/2 against a very difficult matchup. That included a 41-yard touchdown and the garbage time one but at $5,000 he certainly is on the radar in a major way. The fact he comes in under the Sterling Shepard price is a nice addition to the play.

If Tate plays, the ball targets could definitely change a little bit. I do wonder though if Shepard and Tate are more the intermediate route runners while Slayton is the home run hitter. If that’s the case, he’s certainly the best value of this corps.

TE – It was a big mixed bag for Evan Engram. On the one hand, he saw seven targets and that’s great volume for a tight end. On the other, he turned that into a whopping nine yards on two receptions. The Bears didn’t give up a ton to the tight ends in Week 1 outside the Hockenson touchdown, but it was a tough first game for Engram. I’m likely to go elsewhere on this slate but he’s an excellent bounciest-back candidate game log chasers won’t look at.

D/ST – They played better than I thought against the Steelers to start, but that may have been the rust from Big Ben more than anything else. However, they do still interest me to some extent. Mitchell Trubisky is one of the weakest starting quarterbacks in the NFL and is mistake prone. We talk about we want sacks and turnovers and even though Chicago only gave up one sack in Week 1, we can at least consider them as a punt. Let’s see how other defenses line up.

Cash – Saquon, Slayton

GPP – Jones, Engram, D/ST, Shepard

Bears

QB – We say we don’t care how/when the production comes, but you have to feel a little lucky with Trubisky’s box score from last week. He was dreadful as has been the par for the course until he went off for three touchdowns in the fourth quarter. The positives to take from it are he still finished at 20/32, so he rebounded from the poor start. Also, kicking in 26 rushing yards is always appreciated. New York did just give up three passing touchdowns to the Steelers and Trubisky is still very affordable. Lastly, Trubisky had the third-most red zone attempts and cashed in twice. I won’t go there in cash, but he’s still very much GPP viable.

RB – I feel like I’m just being too optimistic, but I actually think David Montgomery could have a pretty solid game here. He rushed 13 times in a game that the Bears had to mount a furious comeback late. Additionally, one of his traits coming out of college was breaking tackles. He did break 28 last year but broke five in Week 1 alone. Montgomery is the lead back here even with Tarik Cohen soaking up seven carries. Steelers running back Benny Snell rolled up well over 100 yards rushing last week on the Giants, showing it is possible. At only an $800 difference, Montgomery is the favored play since he should roughly double the touches for Cohen.

WR – It was just an average day at the office for Allen Robinson last week but that just means the price came down by $100. He still saw nine targets and two of them came into the red zone. The great news is Robinson and Anthony Miller had aDOT’s of 16.4 for A-Rob and 18.2 for Miller. Compare that with 11.4 and 10.4 in 2019 and it’s easy to see how these days could have been bigger. Now, they won’t stay this high but both receivers are interesting here. Robinson had the advantage in red zone targets at 2-1 but Miller got the touchdown from 27 yards out. A-Rob is still my favorite but Miller is not far behind at all.

TE – I didn’t want much to do with Jimmy Graham but he sure was a part of the Chicago offense. He had a touchdown called back and had one count on seven total targets. He led in red zone targets with three. Is it the best thing for the Chicago offense to funnel so much to Graham? That’s debatable but it’s clear they tried. He’s right with Herndon as a viable punt. Herndon is going to be safer on a PPR site like DK, but Graham has some TD upside.

D/ST – The Bears defense is in the same boat as San Francisco’s. Do I think they run up a few sacks and a couple turnovers? Yes I do but I’m not looking to pay for it. They are also not my favorite high end target so I won’t have much exposure here. Having said that, Danny Dimes is still fairly mistake prone. Once a mistake happens, it takes one return for defensive scoring to go through the roof.

Cash – A-Rob, Miller, Montgomery

GPP – Trubisky, Graham, D/ST

Rams at Eagles, O/U of 45.5 (Rams -1)

Rams

QB – If a quarterback plays a week and doesn’t throw a touchdown, did he actually play? Jared Goff was efficient in Week 1 but he also finished 29th in intended air yards. He had the third most YAC after one week which means his receivers did a good bit of work. That’s honestly not a bad thing against this Eagles secondary. Philly only gave up 113 yards and 11 receptions to Washington, but the Rams offense is constructed decidedly differently.

Goff finished ninth in on target throws at 82.1%. You had better be accurate when you tie for last in air yards per attempt, with just 4.5. Goff and Coach Sean McVay can do a better job seizing on the weaker Philly secondary than Dwayne Haskins did so I do like Goff a good bit. The Eagles should be able to handle the Rams rushing attack so this shapes up as a Goff game to me.

RB – To the surprise of nobody that has watched Philly the past few seasons, they Eagles snuffed out the running game last week. They only allowed 2.2 yards per attempt and the eighth-fewest yards on the ground total. They gave up two close touchdowns, messing with the ranking early. Malcolm Brown was the clear lead dog as far as snaps in Week 1 with just over 60%. He had 21 touches while rookie Cam Akers had 15.

That’s not bad for Akers considering he played under 40% of the snaps in Week 1. Brown had four targets to one for Akers but there’s not a lot of reason to run against the brick wall here. You have the Indy backs at the same price range as Brown and others just a bit lower. On a 13 game slate, you have to be alright with just erasing some plays. Brown and Akers are some of them for me. They just don’t rate well on paper.

WR – You can definitely make a case for both in this spot but Robert Woods shouldn’t be priced above Cooper Kupp based on Week 1 production. They played almost identical snaps but Woods led with eight targets and three of which came in the red zone. Only two players had more in the first week. Woods also had a rushing attempt, which he’s capable of doing every week. The Rams aren’t going to be afraid to go pass heavy in this one and double-digit targets for Woods (and Kupp) wouldn’t be that surprising. Van Jefferson and Josh Reynolds didn’t exceed two targets, so I would focus on just the top two receivers.

TE – The 2020 campaign didn’t get off to a great star for Tyler Higbee. He only saw four targets the entire game and the loss of Brandin Cooks and Todd Gurley were supposed to help him. That was 111 targets that went out the door but it didn’t compute yet for the young tight end. Philly gave up a touchdown to a tight end last week but not much else. I can’t say there’s a ton here for Higbee based on what we have in front of us, but it’s still hard to let go of how well he finished 2019.

D/ST – Now we might be cooking for a defense. We rode Washington to a massive DK score last week at what amounted to minimum price. The Rams got pressure on Dak Prescott 22.2% of the time last week and sacked him three times. After giving up the most sacks in Week 1, Philly has shown to be vulnerable. They could get lineman Lane Johnson back, but they are still banged up regardless. Philly also had three turnovers, so the Rams shape up to be a solid value this week.

Cash – Woods, Kupp, Goff, D/ST

GPP – Higbee

Eagles

QB – Carson Wentz got harassed all day long and it showed up. He finished tied for 24th in on target throws last week with just 66.7%. He also finished with the most bad throws with 13. He turned it over three times and has to face another tough pass rush. It’s not all his fault, but I can’t say I love him at all this week.

Having said all this, he also finished first in intended air yards and was the only QB over 12 last week. I would make a lot of sense if the Eagles dialed that back a bit since they couldn’t protect him all that well. If they can get the ball out quicker, Wentz could have a better day and make it a bit easier to get the secondary to creep up on those intermediate routes. He has some GPP appeal, but nothing past that for me.

RB – With the surprise inactive of Miles Sanders, his backup Boston Scott was popular and flopped pretty badly. He managed almost 59% of the snaps but just 11 touches. I don’t particularly weigh the Week 1 numbers for the Rams against running backs much. They faced Ezekiel Elliott so that’s not exactly a fair measuring stick.

What’s more interesting to me is the health of Sanders. If he can suit up for this game, can we risk it? He’s only $6,000 and he’s far more talented than Scott. I’d be willing to take the chance in GPP but Philly is almost surely going to baby him if he plays. Understand you’re getting a set snap count most likely.

*Update* Sanders says he’s 100% ready to go and Scott didn’t exactly drape himself with glory last week. If Sanders gets 20 touches, he is a pretty significant bargain.

WR – Two of the top three receivers in aDOT from Week 1 reside in Philly in Jalen Reagor (first) and DeSean Jackson (third). Those types of targets are wildly valuable…if you can complete them. They combined for 11 targets but only had three receptions put together. Neither player saw a target in the red zone, so they seem to remain volatile players at the moment.

Reagor was a little banged up in this game but actually played a few more snaps to lead Jackson and all receivers. However, no receiver played over 59% of the snaps. You could argue for both but if I’m leaning one, I’ll take Reagor at a $1,300 discount and hope he can finish a 55 yard bomb in the end zone.

TE – Part of the reason you’re playing roulette with the receivers is the tandem of Zach Ertz and Dallas Goedert. Ertz was really bailed out by his early touchdown because he only caught three passes for 18 yards the entire game. Goedert was the leading receiver in this one with nine targets, eight receptions, 101 yards and 1 TD.

You can argue at $5,000 he could be the best play of the entire Eagles receiving corps. He had just a 6.3 aDOT but that could mean security blanket. Anyone remember 2019 Austin Hooper? Goedert was only four snaps behind Ertz for the team lead and both players should be viewed as receivers. Goedert could be an option for a 2TE attack on a DK lineup as well with this style of volume. He was second on the Eagles for targets last year as well.

D/ST – Philly got pressure often enough at 22%and finished with three sacks but I’m not all that interested. I’ll play the Rams for cheaper in this game and expect Aaron Donald to wreck the offensive line.

Cash – Goedert, Ertz

GPP – Wentz, Reagor, Jackson, Sanders

Jaguars at Titans, O/U of 42.5 (Titans -9)

Jaguars

QB – I don’t know how often the Mustached Maniac Minshew is going to throw three touchdowns, but Gardner Minshew was outstanding on Sunday. He only had a single incompletion on his 20 attempts and he was tied with Goff for the lowest intended air yards per attempts. He was the only starter that was under 100 intended air yards total.

It remains to be seen what happens to the play book if they get down big. Since they pulled the upset, the Jags likely didn’t show us all the tricks for the passing attack. Still, if Minshew can maintain his accuracy in Jay Gruden’s system, he has some upside. The price is certainly acceptable and even though the Titans only gave up 216 passing yards, Minshew still could pay of his price with ease. Jacksonville was the only team to get under 50 plays in Week 1, which should change this week.

RB – I wish we had got the game script we assumed last week. Now I’m still not sure what to make of James Robinson. He was solid, with 90 total yards on 17 touches and played 68% of the snaps. The question is if that happens when they’re behind or if Chris Thompson gets more burn. Thompson couldn’t have gotten much less with just two targets and receptions total. Tennessee gave up over 100 yard son the ground Monday night to mostly Melvin Gordon. The prices for both backs keep them afloat as salary savers. Just remember the game script in Week 1 is likely atypical for the Jags. Thompson could still be quite sneaky.

WR – Between just 20 pass attempts and the fact Dede Westbrook missed the game, it’s really difficult to peg down the Jaguars receivers. Keelan Cole led with five targets but both D.J. Chark and Laviska Shenault had four. The latter two each had one red zone target and the both cashed them in for scores. If we look at snaps, Chark had a sizable lead with Cole and Shenault basically split. The Titans were the fifth-best unit to receivers this week but Denver was missing Courtland Sutton. I will likely avoid this situation for the most part, with Chark remaining the favorite.

TE – If the first week holds true, Tyler Eifert and the Jaguars tight ends won’t matter much. Even with 20 attempts, just one target is really nothing. He also only played just 56% of the snaps, so there’s really no excitement here to use Eifert.

D/ST – I’ll pass here. Tennessee didn’t turn the ball over and likely won’t do that a whole lot this season. The Broncos only managed one sack of the Titans and they have more talent than the Jags defense for the most part. The Jags did generate two turnovers, but Rivers gonna Rivers. We can find other teams with higher chances at this splash plays we love.

Cash – Minshew

GPP – Robinson, Chark, Shenault, Robinson, Thompson

Titans

QB – Ryan Tannehill did about exactly what we should expect through the 2020 season. He completed 67.4% of his passes and had no interceptions, throwing for two touchdowns. I doubt he throws it 43 times very often but that’s the way the game went on Monday night. If they had a kicker that could kick, maybe he wouldn’t have. That franchise has just been cursed lately with kickers.

Tannehill falls into the Jimmy G/Minshew category. You’re banking on efficiency, but Goff remains my favorite QB in this range. Tannehill might find his way into a lineup or two since the Jaguars got smashed for 363 passing yards, third-worst of the week.

RB – It’s sign of respect that Derrick Henry ran for 116 yards and added 15 on three receptions and we all kind of went “meh”. Henry didn’t seem to be running with quite the same gusto as normal, but he ground it out for 19.1 DK points without a touchdown. Here’s where things get a little weird. Jacksonville got scorched by running backs in Week 1 but it was through the passing game. They gave up 17 receptions for 142 yards and a touchdown. Henry isn’t the back to do damage through the air, but I wouldn’t trust the rushing defense for Jacksonville. Henry is under $8,000 and one of the safest plays on the board. He already leads the league in attempts.

WR – This could be a great “play low” chance for AJ Brown. He had a pretty disappointing day for results, but was close to a monster day. Tannehill missed that he broke open backed up near their own end zone. It was a 75 yard touchdown in the making. Later, Tannehill threw it to him in the back of the end zone and overthrew it. Brown was one decision and a few inches from having a monster day. Not many will roster him.

I can’t emphasize how much I don’t want to get sucked into the Corey Davis play. He’s only $4,000 and coming off a 20 DK point game. He garnered eight targets and caught seven of them for 101 yards. Could he be on the DeVante Parker path and things are just starting to click? I’m not willing to bet on it after one week. He’ll only be used if we need to match the field in cash. Adam Humphries also had seven targets, but remember how often Tannehill will attempt 40+ passes.

*Update* Brown has a bone bruise that seems to put his status for this week and next in jeopardy. If he misses, I think Davis does become cash chalk and we might just need to bite the bullet.

*Update Two* Brown has been ruled out so Davis is going to garner some attention. Unless you play Tannehill (I can’t say I am), I’m limiting myself to just one Titans pass catcher.

TE – I love me some freak athletes at the tight end position and the mountain of a man that is Jonnu Smith qualifies. He sucked up seven targets and was one of five players to get a red zone look. Tying for second in targets is a good start, though he’s going to still mostly be a TD or bust style player. I prefer him in GPP for that reason since you could justifiably go all the way down to Herndon if you needed the savings.

D/ST – The Titans did not record a sack and only forced one turnover from Drew Lock. They’re no even cheap so they’re not particularly on my radar at all. That was with Jadeveon Clowney pushing for 80% of the snaps as well.

Cash – Henry, Tannehill, Davis

GPP – Smith

Panthers at Buccaneers, O/U of 47.5 (Bucs -9.5)

Panthers

QB – The Bucs finished 12th in pressure rate in Week 1 and gave Drew Brees some issues. The front seven is undeniably the strength of that defense so Teddy Bridgewater could have his hands full a little bit from that perspective. The Raiders managed a 15.4% pressure rate on Teddy B in Week 1 and the Bucs have a better chance at that.

It was nice to see Bridgewater throwing downfield. He had an 8.2 intended air yards per attempt and that was 11th. One of the knocks was not taking chances but at least for one week, he let loose a little bit.He was the victim of a couple drops last week as well that could have helped the fantasy production. I don’t feel much need to go to him this week in this range and with the matchup. The Bucs did just hold Drew Brees to 198 yards on 31 attempts.

RB – It was basically another day at the office for Christian McCaffrey. He went for almost 29 DK points and racked up two touchdowns on 14 total yards. The only small complaint is he only saw four targets after averaging over seven per game last year. The Bucs let up the sixth-most receiving yards to the backs last week and Alvin Kamara is a similar type of weapon in the passing game to CMC. As always, it’s just a matter of if you like enough value to play CMC but he’s always in play in every format.

WR – Part of the reason CMC’s targets may have been down a touch is the trio of DJ Moore, Robby Anderson and Curtis Samuel. They combined for about 70% of the targets on Sunday and it’s something to monitor. Moore is a year better, Anderson is a new arrival that deserves targets and those two in turn can open avenues up for Samuel. The former two were over a 10.0 aDOT while Samuel was around 8.8. It’s not crazy to wonder if CMC sees a slight downturn in targets.

You of course don’t want to overreact to Week 1, but the Bucs held the Saints receivers to 53 yards. Michael Thomas didn’t get hurt that early to explain that. It was one of the more surprising developments when compared to the 2019 performance. I believe all three are in play in GPP since they all played at least 74% of the snaps and would rank them as they are in salary.

TE – Ian Thomas was on the field like you’d want but the production didn’t follow. He only carved out two targets and none came in the end zone. The only three end zone targets were divided up to the trio of wide receivers. If Thomas is going to be fifth in the passing tree, there’s no reason to roster him even though the Bucs gave up 80 yards to the tight ends on Sunday.

D/ST – No, no thank you. Barley a 10% pressure rate, no sacks and no turnovers. There’s a reason they spent their draft on this side of the ball. They also had multiple defensive players get ruled out, so a poor unit got worse.

Buccaneers

QB – Is it a little odd that I don’t love Tom Brady at this price? He was fine Sunday, but the lack of game action was evident at some points. The Mike Evans injury certainly didn’t help him at all, but being on target for just 74.3% of his throws is very un-Brady like. That was just 19th on the week and Brady was ranked fifth in bad throws. His fantasy game was fine in part because of a QB sneak for a score, but that’s not what you want to bank on. I will only play Brady in GPP as this offense evolves and he gets better in it. The Panthers only allowed 239 yards passing but that might be more because they got hammered in the run game again.

RB – If Ronald Jones gets another 19 touches in this game, he could really go off. Carolina gave up the seventh-most rushing yards and was the only team to allow three touchdowns. Jones was only on the field for about 45% of the snaps but Leonard Fournette and LeSean McCoy combined for seven total touches. Jones even got three red zone attempts and everything lines up for him to smash this weekend, provided he’s allowed the same volume. I believe you can use him in cash but you shouldn’t with how the slate shapes up. He’s a dynamite GPP play.

WR – It’s still tough sledding in the Tampa wide receiver room. Chris Godwin is in the concussion protocol and Mike Evans still isn’t practicing in full yet. Now, Evans played so many snaps in New Orleans that I’m not sweating him yet. I do have worries about timing and chemistry with Brady, but not really the hammy at this point. Godwin is a different story. Thursday will tell us a good bit, but concussion protocol is tough to predict.

Regardless of these two players, Scotty Miller looks like a bargain yet again. He co-led the team in targets with Godwin and played over 61% of the snaps. He’s barely over the $4,000 mark and only needs 6/60 to pay it off at a 3x multiplier. He did that last week and it’s not hard to see Miller being a legit part of this offense after getting strong praise all of camp.

*Update* Godwin is still in concussion protocol so I would proceed as if he will be out Sunday. Both Evans (who is reportedly over his hamstring injury) and Miller take a step up.

*Update Two* Godwin is doubtful, so add Miller to the list of receivers we want a piece of.

TE – The tight end spot is a perfect example of Week 1 being noisy. On the one hand, Rob Gronkowski and OJ Howard each played at least 53% of the snaps with Howard finishing with six targets to Gronk’s three. Howard also got two looks in the red zone and reeled in one for the touchdown. Is that because Evans wasn’t involved as much with only five targets? Is this real? With Evans playing mostly the entire game, I have to wonder if Howard is legitimately going to be a thing in this offense. The prices are about equal and I might want to take some shots with Howard more than Gronkowski. There could be quite a few games like this for him all year.

D/ST – It’s a somewhat interesting spot for the Bucs. They generated the 12th highest pressure rate in Week 1, no mean feat against Drew Brees. They didn’t finish them off with sacks but they seemingly have that potential. They also didn’t force a turnover but this is a unit that has talent up front. They could be a problem against lesser quarterbacks than Brees. I still prefer other options, but am interested to see how they play in this game.

Cash – Miller, RoJo

GPP – Brady, Evans, Howard

Broncos at Steelers, O/U of 41.5 (Steelers -7.5)

Broncos

QB – I’m going to pass on Drew Lock in almost any format this week. If you run 150 lineups, throw him in one or two since nobody will play him. I actually don’t think he played horribly on Monday Night without Courtland Sutton, but this will be his seventh game started ever. The Steelers got a massive 42.6% pressure rate and blitzed a league-leading 57.4% of the time. I feel like Lock may hit a long pass to Sutton for a big play once or twice but he’s going to make some errors as well.

RB – I’ll go one step further than Lock with Melvin Gordon – not in any lineups. The Steelers utterly dominated the Giants running game on Monday night, allowing seven rushing yards. That’s a 7, as in less than eight. Obviously that’s not sustainable, but there’s no reason to play Gordon when the Steelers were a top half team against the run last year. They’re healthier this year and even if Phillip Lindsay is out with turf toe, I won’t play Gordon.

*Update* Lindsay is out and it hasn’t changed my mind at all

WR – At a guess, I would say Sutton plays this week. He got in a limited practice on Wednesday and that’s a very positive sign. I’m still not going to be very interested. AC joint injuries can be a tough one for receivers to deal with. Add in he’s drawing a good secondary and it’s tough to make a strong case for him at the salary. You’d be hoping for the home run ball that Darius Slayton got Monday. That’s possible with the blitz rate, but there are better plays on paper.

I would still be sort of interested in Jerry Jeudy if Sutton is in. Once he’s in, he has to be respected and that means coverages are played differently. Jeudy could have had a bigger game but dropped a couple of passes. That’s way out of character for him. The fact he was targeted eight times bodes well, even with Sutton back. He played just under 75% of the snaps and is still on the radar for GPP.

TE – Pittsburgh was able to mostly erase Evan Engram Monday and this is after a season they were mostly strong against the tight end. They were top 10 in receptions and yards allowed, but one area they struggled was touchdowns. They were tied for fourth in touchdowns surrendered with eight. It’s not a great idea to predict touchdowns from year to year for any position, but you could build a case for Noah Fant. He was right behind Jeudy in targets and cashed in his red zone target for a score. Just like Jeudy, Sutton being back is a net positive. He pus stress on the defense and could allow more seams for Fant to take advantage of.

D/ST – They played the Titans tough, but I generally don’t play defenses against the Steelers in Pittsburgh. They did manage to get pressure on the QB 22% of the time even missing Von Miller, but the Steelers offense started to click the later Monday’s game went. They’re not cheap enough for the gamble in my eyes.

Cash – None

GPP – Fant, Jeudy, Sutton

Steelers

QB – I have to be a fan for a second and say how happy I was to see Ben Roethlisberger back in action. He warmed to the task after shaking off some rust and looked mostly pretty sharp. His ball placement was solid for the most part and he has plenty of weapons in the passing game. As the Steelers get deeper into the season, Ben should get unleashed even more.

He was only 19th in intended air yards per attempt, which shouldn’t be a big surprise. Find the rhythm first, then cut it loose. The good news is he was on target 83.9% of the time, sixth-best in Week 1. If/when he starts pushing the ball downfield a little more, that’s going to be some big fantasy numbers. If Denver gave up 249 and two touchdowns to Ryan Tannehill, the ceiling is higher for Big Ben.

RB – So I was excited for the Big Ben writeup but I’m rolling my eyes right now. James Conner left last week with a sprained ankle and did not practice Monday. The local media is saying that A. they think he’ll play as of Wednesday and B. if he plays, he’s starting. All I will say is the leash had better be pretty short because Conner was severely outplayed by Benny Snell.

Conner had eight total touches and totaled 17 yards. He had a 1.5 YPC. Snell came in and ripped off 113 yards on 19 carries for 5.9 YPC while not catching a pass. This is the eye test, but #BennySnellFootball was running to win a job Monday. He was excellent and was credited with three broken tackles, tied for third-most. He’s not going to be a plus in the passing game (the Steelers like Jaylen Samuels in that facet) but 15-20 rush attempts in the Steelers offense is worth FAR more than $4,500. If Conner plays, I’d have a couple Snell lineups just in case.

*Update* Conner is not listed on the injury report, so Snell is out for cash. I stand by playing him in MME formats.

WR – Neither JuJu Smith-Schuster nor Diontae Johnson practiced Wednesday but that’s of no consequence to me. Johnson might be one of my favorite values of the receivers on this slate. He saw 10 targets Monday, most on the team by a lot. While he didn’t get a red zone look, Ben only threw five passes in that zone. Johnson seemed to take minute to shake off an early fumble and get on the same page with Ben but he racked up easy receptions and yards as the game went.

Smith-Shuster had himself a game with two touchdowns, caching all six targets thrown his way. There’s absolutely nothing wrong with playing him and I might double stack both these wideouts with Ben in a few lineups. However, I’ll opt for the savings of Johnson overall. James Washington played 37 snaps to 17 for Chase Claypool, but neither player should be relied upon for anything past a dart throw. They only combined for five targets.

TE – I’ll admit, I fell for it. I was super pumped for the Eric Ebron signing this offseason. Pittsburgh never goes real deep into the free agency waters but I felt like Ebron was a great match for Ben in the red zone. That may still be tru this year, but he only saw two total targets and not one where it mattered most. Vance McDonald had the same amount of targets, got a red zone look and Ebron only played two more snaps. It’s a situation that’s likely best to avoid for now with Vance being a super cheap hope for a TD.

D/ST – If you want to pay up for the Steelers defense, there’s nothing wrong with it. This is a spot where they can get pressure on a very inexperienced quarterback and rack up points. It’s going to be a very positive game script for them if Denver has to chase points. Pittsburgh and Baltimore are two of my top three high end options this week.

Cash – Big Ben, Johnson, JuJu, D/ST

GPP – Conner, Snell (avoid both if not MME)

Falcons at Cowboys, O/U of 52.5 (Cowboys -4.5)

Falcons

QB – It wasn’t exactly by design but Matt Ryan had himself a monster of a game this past week. He leads the league in yards, completions and attempts and this game shapes up to be very similar from a volume standpoint. Atlanta’s defense did not look good at all and this game is a projected shootout. The Seahawks only got pressure on him 19% of the time and Dallas only had an 11.8% pressure rate in the first game. Ryan has some serious receivers at his disposal, likely needs to put up a lot of points and may not get pressured to throw him off his groove. This game is only one of two with an O/U above 50 on the main slate. Game. On.

RB – It seems a lot of the issues that Todd Gurley had last season have followed him, at least judging by the first week. He scored the first TD and things were looking great. The the rest of the game happened and he produced very little. He was under 50% of the snaps which was partly due to game script, but garnering two receptions for a yard isn’t a good look.

The targets were there at six, which was the second most after 12 a piece for the top three receivers. I will admit a bit of a blind spot with Gurley since I didn’t play him virtually at all last year, but he wouldn’t be heavy in my player pool even with the Rams running backs playing well last week against Dallas.

WR – So can someone tell me why Julio Jones went for 9/157/0 and his price went down?? Sure, he’s still not cheap and never will be but the price going down $300 is just non-sensical. Julio is always in play and this week is not any different.

Calvin Ridley isn’t that far behind in salary and he shouldn’t be. Is he living a bit of a charmed life playing next to Julio? Sure but he’s making the absolute most of it. He’s now played 30 career games and scored a ridiculous 19 times. Julio had the highest aDOT of 15.7 but Ridley was at a healthy 11.8 himself. Just like last week, if Ryan doesn’t get pressured the receivers could both have a monster day. Not to be forgotten is Russell Gage. He also got 12 targets and played just about 70% of the snaps. He continues to be an underrated PPR player and the salary is excellent in this game script again.

TE – It was not a good debut for Hayden Hurst. While many felt that he might be the Austin Hooper replacement but he only saw five targets in his first game as a Falcon. That’s really not going to get it done. With Gage playing just seven fewer snaps, he’s a real threat to Hurst’s target share. The aDOT for both players was a near identical 7.6 for Hurst and 7.4 for Gage. If they’re playing about the same role in the offense, I’d side with Gage at this point.

D/ST – I was a little surprised to see that the Falcons ended with the fourth-highest pressure rate, over 30%. That didn’t do much for the fantasy production since they only turned it into three sacks, no turnovers and giving up 38 points. Dallas didn’t show a ton on offense on the scoreboard Sunday night but I’m believing that changes this week.

Cash – Ryan, Julio, Ridley, Gage

GPP – Hurst, Gurley

Cowboys

QB – It was an average night at the office for Dak Prescott on Sunday, but talk about a bounce back spot. Russell Wilson just scorched this Atlanta defense for over 300 yards on 31-of-35 throwing and added in 29 yards rushing. Prescott has that same style of upside here, even down to the rushing ability if the Falcons continue to get pressure. The price is high at the QB4 in salary, but it’s completely justified. The Falcons gave up the most DK points to the quarterback in the first week and they could easily add to that this week.

RB – It’s certainly no surprise to see Ezekiel Elliott standing at the fifth-most carries after one week and he’s one of five backs to carry the ball 20+ times. He even kicked in five targets and caught three of them for an additional 31 yards. That’s going to be key with the passing game as crowded as it is. Zeke had jus four red zone rushes and still put up over 27 DK points. Atlanta was an oddball in Week 1. They only gave up 43 yards on the ground but got hit twice through the air for scores by Chris Carson. I do prefer a couple other options in this range, but you can almost never go wrong with Zeke and the volume will always be there.

WR – Prescott went to Amari Cooper early and often in the first game, targeting Cooper 15 times. That was third-most in the NFL and Cooper might be a little too cheap here. I don’t particularly expect him to maintain a 37.5% target share but he’s at home against a bad secondary. You could do a lot worse in this range and if he gets even 8-10 targets, he’s a threat to be a slate-breaking play.

The bigger question is who do we target as a secondary play (you could take the Atlanta Week 1 route and go triple stack but it’s quite risky) and I lean CeeDee Lamb. He was only 10 snaps behind Michael Gallup and they drew the same amount of targets. He played almost exclusively in the slot and ran 40 routes. With tight end Blake Jarwin on IR, Lamb should be an even bigger part of the game plan. He’s with Johnson as my favorite cheap receivers and I think he winds up chalky this week in cash, but we’ll see.

TE – Pour one out for my man Jarwin. He had some sleeper hype around him but tore his ACL fairly early. That’s a true bummer and hopefully he has a speedy recovery. That leaves Dalton Schultz as the starter, but he’s going to be fifth on the target tree. There’s a host of cheaper tight ends that I would rather play.

D/ST – The Cowboys had the third-worst pressure rate of Week 1 and created one turnover. While Matty Ice and the Falcons can give up sacks, I would really rather find $100 to play the Rams defense.

Cash – Dak, Zeke, Cooper, Lamb

GPP – Gallup

Vikings at Colts, O/U of 48.5 (Colts -3)

Vikings

QB – The results were good for Kirk Cousins, but it took a blowout to get him there. That shouldn’t be a surprise since Minnesota finished 30th in passing attempts last year and threw under 30 times per contest. Even in this game, Cousins threw it just 25 times, tied for third-least among starters.

He threw for two touchdowns and a two point conversion which somewhat bailed him out, but we look for volume. He’s under $6,000 but he’s not one of the prime targets in that range. If the Vikings have their way, he might throw it 20 times and run the ball 40 times.

RB – The Colts gave up just 62 yards on the ground, but there’s a pretty significant gap in talent between Jaguars running back James Robinson and Vikings running back Dalvin Cook. The latter didn’t even get a lot going on the ground Sunday and the Vikes fought an uphill battle all game. Still, he had 13 touches and ran in a two pointer. He also got three rushes in the red zone. This game should stay closer and there’s absolutely nothing wrong with playing Cook. I prefer Henry and might prefer another back later on, but Cook is still a strong option.

WR – It’s fairly difficult to get excited for any receiver outside of Adam Thielen. He sucked up 35% of the targets and no other receiver saw more than three total. Thielen racked up a 17.9 aDOT on top of the target share, making him the man to play from this group.

Both Justin Jefferson and Olabisi Johnson played under 70% of the snaps in the best game script possible for them. I don’t think I can make a strong case for either with the other values at the position.

TE – The tandem of Kyle Rudolph and Irv Smith both were right about 60% of the snaps, which is solid. The bad news is neither saw a red zone target nor did either see more than two targets. The Colts ranking against the tight end is irrelevant given their matchup last week and both these options are super cheap.

This is a good spot to fall back onto last season to get a better idea of what we should expect. Both payers were right about a 12% target share and they are still replacing Stefon Diggs’ 96 targets. Now the joke is they’re just going to run the ball an extra 80 times but that’s obviously not the case. Rudolph is a pretty solid value here but I can’t say he’s a favorite for me personally.

D/ST – Indy only gave up one sack in the first game and that’s not a shock given their offensive line. The Vikings really struggled to get pressure without Danielle Hunter, generating a second-worst 9.1% pressure rate. They did turn the ball over twice but I just don’t expect the pressure to be there and we certainly shouldn’t trust those corners as the Packers showed us.

Cash – Cook, Thielen

GPP – Cousins, Rudolph

Colts

QB – The Colts wound up being tied for the second-most passing attempts, which was certainly surprising. They also lost the game when they were supposed to roll so those were likely related. Despite the attempts, Rivers finished with just the 10th most intended air yards and that’s likely because he continued to pepper his backs with targets. Rivers was also on target 82.6% of the time, 11th best in Week 1. There’s not a lot of reason to dislike Rivers here. If he gets even 35 attempts, he shouldn’t have much of an issue paying off. That’s especially true if he’s not pressured at all.

RB – Welcome to Jonathan Taylor Chalk Week and if you play cash, you set him and forget it. I’m lifting this right from Ghost in our Discord – after Marlon Mack got injured, Taylor had 10 carries (one called back due to penalty) to just two for Nyheim Hines. Each player touched the ball 15 times total, with Taylor being the main guy after the Mack injury. This is highly encouraging to me and with a full week to integrate Taylor (and remember, no preseason), he’s going to be the chalk for good reason.

NOW, that is not to say that Hines is not in play himself by ANY means. My love for Taylor is not putting down Hines, who had a lot of red zone work and is a dynamite PPR asset. Both players had two red zone targets but Hines did have four red zone rushes. Do I expect that to continue? No, but Hines can still definitely hit 3x at his salary. Rivers targeted running backs with 17 of his 46 attempts. Some old dogs don’t learn new tricks. Taylor is the cash play as of now, Hines is perfectly suited for GPP.

WR – Oh look, another receiver value. Really, you could say that both T.Y. Hilton and Paris Campbell are values. Hilton led the Colts with nine targets but Campbell had eight. The latter played almost every single snap out of the slot as well, which is going to be great for his stock. Rivers tends to like passing to the slot and Minnesota has issues at corner if Week 1 is an indication.

The funny part is these players had an identical aDOT of 11.4 so they both have potential upside in this matchup. At the prices, I would prefer Campbell but there’s a very interesting route in GPP where you fade the backs and play both these receivers. Having near 20% of the target share is plenty to support both in the right spot.

TE – I really though Jack Doyle would play a big role and at least through one week, that’s not going to happen. Frankly, if the backs account for 37% of the targets and Hilton and Campbell are at about 40%, Doyle is really going to be fighting for the scraps. He hasn’t practiced so far this week either, so he could miss this game. If that’s the case, I would pass on this position myself. I’m not falling for the Mo Alie-Cox play.

*Update* Doyle is out which could shift even more to Campbell

D/ST – I am slightly interested here. The Colts didn’t do much on the turnover department, but they did get home on the QB four times and created the third-best pressure rate of 32.1%. What’s impressive about that is they managed it on the lowest blitz rate in football at just 10.7%. If you love the rest of your lineup, I could live with the play.

Cash – Taylor, Campbell, Rivers, Hines (would likely just do GPP since JT should be chalk)

GPP – Hilton, D/ST

Bills at Dolphins, O/U of 41 (Bills -5.5)

Bills

QB – Only Russell Wilson and Aaron Rodgers scored more DK points than Josh Allen in the first week. Even then, Allen was within 1.2 points of the top score. We saw everything that makes him a fantasy dynamo Sunday with 57 rushing yards (14 attempts, three of which were scrambles) and a score. He even fumbled two times and still scored 33.2 DK. He set career marks in attempts and yardage, including the third-best on target rate in Week 1. Yes, it was the Jets defense but we could be seeing what happens when he has an alpha receiver.

What is going to be super interesting is to see how much of the field plays him against Prescott and Ryan. Those QB’s are $100 in either direction and that game is about 10 points higher for the O/U and a projected shootout. Allen has an incredible ceiling, draws a Dolphins defense that gave up 75 rush yards and two scores to Cam Newton and will likely not be popular. He’s a perfect GPP choice and is quite safe for cash.

RB – Well, it seems that some of my fears with Devin Singletary and Zack Moss were correct. The former out-touched the latter 14-12 but what is scary is the red zone work. Moss got eight red zone carries and two targets, while Singletary was at three targets and one rush. With Allen there to poach touchdowns as well, it’s really hard to see ceiling for either back here. If we’re going to play one, I would lean Moss since he has the best chances at a touchdown based on what we know. Singletary only playing 12 more snaps isn’t enough to counter the red zone work for Moss.

WR – The prices might hold me back overall, but Stefon Diggs and John Brown both looked great in their first game as a tandem. They each had double-digit targets and were above 20% of the share The aDOT isn’t going to wow you from game one at right about 10 yards, but both players have the speed to burn every corner in football. The matchups don’t look spectacular with Xavien Howard and Byron Jones on the other side. They would be GPP only and I’m really curious to see if Allen is going to continue to throw as much.

TE – Dawson Knox may yet break out, but I’m not sure this is the year for it. He’s dealing with Diggs, Brown, Cole Beasley, his own quarterback who scores rushing touchdowns….it’s a rough outlook for Knox. He only saw two targets on Sunday and he’s going to be the definition of TD or bust almost every week.

D/ST – We talked about Pittsburgh as elite defense and Buffalo has to be up there as well. Ryan Fitzpatrick is an interception machine with 28 over his past 24 games. The Bills blitzed at the third-highest rate and even though Miami gave up just one sack last week, Buffalo can really create havoc here.

Cash – Allen, D/ST

GPP – Diggs, Brown, Moss

Dolphins

QB – If I think Buffalo is going to be a good matchup for the defense, that means I’m not going to be crazy about Fitzpatrick here. He might be one of the cheapest starters on the board but there’s reasons for that. He ranked 27th in on target throws last week with just 70%. The Beard was also only 20th in intended air yards, so it’s not like he was throwing it all over the yard. He has the bad luck of playing New England and Buffalo right out of the gate, and there’s no reason to go this route.

RB – There’s likely a chance that Myles Gaskin hits the technical 3x value at his price, but I’m not sure there’s a grosser play this side of the Jets. He played 62% of the snaps last week while Matt Breida was at 22% and Jordan Howard was at 14%. Buffalo only allowed 46 rushing yards, the fourth-fewest in the league. Gaskin did finish third on the team in targets with four, but I just have no interest in this play with so much other value on the slate that I actually like.

WR – To add to Fitzpatrick’s bad spot, DeVante Parker is questionable with a bad hamstring. That’s not doing anyone any favors and one of he or Preston Williams has to go up against Bills corner Tre White on most plays. White didn’t travel a lot but he is capable so if Parker is out, expect Williams to see a ton of White. Parker only played 37% of the snaps last week while Williams was over 90% and he had a 14.0 aDOT. It’s great to see Williams is recovered from the ACL, but this isn’t the spot for either player.

*Update* Parker is questionable, and lowers any minor interest I May have had

TE – My man Mike Gesicki was quiet last week and the road doesn’t get easier this week. After finishing 2019 giving up the second-fewest yards to tight ends, Buffalo allowed under 40 yards in Week 1. Gesicki had an aDOT of almost 11.0 and he and Williams each had a red zone target. Since he’s occupying the slot so much and garnering a 17% target share, he’s still well in play and will be quite stealthy if he goes off. I don’t think he’ll be $4,000 very often this year.

D/ST – I was on Miami as a salary saving defense last week and they’re plenty cheap again his week. I just don’t have near the confidence in using them. Allen can turn the ball over but the Dolphins couldn’t handle Cam on the ground. I don’t think they can handle Allen and he has better receivers than Cam does. There, I said it.

Washington at Cardinals, O/U of 47.5 (Cardinals -6.5)

Washington

QB – Based on one game, it doesn’t look like Dwayne Haskins would get the volume he’d need to be usable for fantasy. What’s interesting is the game really didn’t go how many thought. Washington got down by 17, but Philly never scored after that so Haskins only threw it 31 times. He was 19th in intended air yards which isn’t spectacular and he finished 30th in on target throws with just 63.3%.

I’m slightly surprised they didn’t use a little more play action passing with a young quarterback and a commitment to the run game. Washington finished with tied for the fourth-most rushing attempts but Haskins used play action just seven times. The game script should lead to more volume and Arizona finished with the fifth-least time between snaps last week. Haskins settles in as someone I’m not interested in, but the price could lead to a super cheap 16-18 DK if it goes right.

RB – It was a big disappointment to see rookie Antonio Gibson only play 18 snaps, just 25%. I’m not sure there’s any question already about who has the most natural talent in this backfield. Sure, Gibson didn’t light the world on fire but 44 total yards on 11 touches isn’t the worst against that Philly run defense. I mean, Peyton Barber averaged 1.7 yards on 17 carries. He got bailed out by two touchdowns on a ridiculous 10 red zone carries. J.D. McKissic played the most snaps at 31 and turned that into four touches for -1 yard.

Something has to give in this backfield. Gibson is a player we want to be on the front side of his big game, and 49ers just had their backs go for 162 receiving yards against Arizona. Yes, Raheem Mostert broke off a 75 yard reception but that’s still 87 other receiving yards. If you play anyone, it’s Gibson. He will have zero buzz after last week but even he is GPP only.

WR – In the same boat as being surprised at Haskins, seeing Terry McLaurin finish third in air yards on his own team also is weird. He did at least score the second-most targets on the team and led in receptions. He did see a red zone look and it’s impossible to judge how Arizona looks against wide receiver since San Francisco didn’t have any last week. Seriously, receivers against Arizona totaled 41 yards in Week 1.

Steven Sims was a security blanket type of option in the offense since he only had an aDOT of 5.0 but he also only saw three targets. When he’s more expensive than MVS, Diontae Johnson, Paris Campbell and even Brandon Aiyuk, I can’t build any case for Sims.

TE – If you pay down at tight end, you’re looking at Chris Herndon with no Jamison Crowder or you’re looking directly a Logan Thomas. He led the team in targets and total air yards and scored a TD on top of everything else. With Jordan Reed and Vernon Davis out of town, there was some noise from camp that Thomas was taking over that spot. He sure lived up to it in Week 1 and his price didn’t crack $4,000 yet. We may not get many weeks to take advantage of that. Only Hunter Henry, Evan Engram and Dallas Goedert finished with more targets at the tight end position. I prefer Thomas to Herndon this week, but it is close.

D/ST – They’re still in play, but I’m not stumping for them like I did last week. Washington took advantage of the big mismatch in the trenches with the Philly O-Line in shambles. They generated the fifth-highest pressure rate last week while blitzing 34% of the time. They also lead the league with eight sacks and got three turnovers, but there’s a massive difference in this matchup this week.

Cash – Thomas

GPP – Gibson, McLaurin, Haskins

Cardinals

QB – That difference is Kyler Murray. Whereas Carson Wentz scrambled zero times, Kyler led the league with seven in Week 1 and racked up just about 90 rushing yards off those plays. Washington is going to have to be exceptionally disciplined in their rushing lanes to contain him and I just don’t think they do it for 60 minutes. Murray leads the league in rushing yards for quarterbacks and he very well might add to it this week.

Oh, and he passes the ball too! Wentz had trouble getting to the secondary of Washington but make no mistake, that’s still a weak spot. Murray was not super accurate for on target throws last week but the 49ers defense is good on all levels. The matchup gets easier this week and Murray still completed 65% of his passes. He only threw one red zone pass but did complete it. That was an area he struggled with his rookie season. The rushing yards are a cheat code and Murray is FAR too cheap this week.

RB – Even with some injury concerns in camp, Kenyan Drake will continue to be the man for Arizona. He played over 70% of the snaps and handled 18 touches, which was fantastic to see. He was able to rack up 14.5 DK points with only one red zone rushing attempt and two targets, so the ceiling is sky high. The fact he’s under $6,000 and everyone is flocking to Jonathan Taylor in that price range could leave him as a fabulous GPP target.

This is absolutely just an MME play, but Chase Edmonds had a role in this backfield as well. The snaps weren’t super high at just around 30% but he still had almost double-digit touches. I don’t think this is quite a Nick Chubb/Kareem Hunt situation, but it might not be far from it. If Arizona plays at such a high pace all year, the touches are there to go around and Edmonds is talented.

WR – If there’s one thing we learned for sure the first week, it’s that Murray really like throwing to DeAndre Hopkins. Only Davante Adams had more targets and the 16 Nuk saw was a massive 43.2% target share. That number actually beat Adams by about 3% and the aDOT leads us to believe he’ll be a PPR asset. It was only 6.1 in the opening week and he’s going to catch a boatload of passes. Nuk could have approached the 40 DK mark had he not been dragged down at the half yard line last week. If you pay up at WR, I believe Adams is the very slightly better play. Murray’s scrambling ability could cost Nuk a couple extra receptions.

Christian Kirk had a terrible results game with just one reception for five yards but he was targeted five times at a team-leading 13.5 aDOT. If Murray can evade pressure, he might be able to make Washington pay with deep completions where the Eagles could not last week. Goodness knows they tried to hit deep passes all day long. Larry Fitzgerald is just a guy at this point and there’s better values out there, as much as that hurts to say.

TE – The next time the Cardinals under Kliff Kingsbury uses the tight end in a fantasy relevant way will be the first. Let’s keep trucking.

D/ST – At the prices, I would rather just play the Washington defense. I don’ have a huge issue with the Cards but their upside doesn’t match Washington and their front. They’re a defense that falls into the “facing a questionable quarterback with limited weapons” category. Those types of defenses can always end at the top of a slate but I would prefer others.

Cash – Kyler, Nuk, Drake

GPP – Kirk, Edmonds

Chiefs at Chargers, O/U of 47.5 (Chiefs -8.5)

Chiefs

QB – The defending Super Bowl champs are coming off an extended rest and Patrick Mahomes should be the QB2 in salary. He threw for three touchdowns in a game where it didn’t feel like the Chiefs offense ever needed to get out of second gear. Mahomes was fifth in on target passes in Week 1 and only had 147 intended air yards. When a QB has that few air yards but still scores over 20 DK, you know where the ceiling lies. Plus, it’s Mahomes. The only real question is can the Chargers mount enough offense to force the ceiling game from Mahomes? I tend to think no and prefer some others, but we know he’s in play 16 weeks out of the season.

RB – Welcome to the NFL, Clyde Edwards-Helaire! The rookie out of LSU was dominant in his first action at this level and he led all running backs in yards and finished second in attempts and red zone attempts. If nay-sayers want to criticize he didn’t score from close range, that’s on them. The fact they gave a rookie that workload (even in a game that was out of reach) is impressive. The Darrel Williams role was overblown with just 33% of the snaps and nine touches. Most of them came early, as well. CEH only saw two targets and that’s a facet he should excel in. He’s a top five option for running backs on this slate.

WR – Find yourself someone that loves you like Sammy Watkins loves Week 1 of an NFL season. He went off again for the second year in a row but it’s going to be tough to peg each week which receiver we want. Watkins, Tyreek Hill and Demarcus Robinson are all in the mix every single game. No player had an aDOT over 7.2 for Hill, and no player had more than nine targets (Watkins).

Hill and Watkins played the majority of the snaps while Robinson played under 50% and had a couple drops, or at least didn’t come down with catchable passes. Seeing how the strength of the Chargers defense is corner, I would settle with Watkins since he’s under $5,000. Hill is always a deep threat and no Derwin James ups the chance he hits a home run in this game. Still, Watkins is a great way to get access to this passing game on the cheap.

TE – If you’re going the expensive route, I’d go Travis Kelce before I went Hill. The aforementioned loss of James is a huge blow in containing Kelce. Since James has been drafted in 2018, Kelce has games of 6, 24, 61 and 92 receiving yards. He’s scored once in those four games. With James on the sideline, the task gets far more difficult for the Chargers to contain him. Kelce tied Watkins for the most red zone targets with three, and that finished second among tight ends.

D/ST – If the Chiefs can replicate the 45% pressure rate from their first game, I love them in this spot. Chargers center Mike Pouncey is done for the season and the Chargers gave up two sacks to the Bengals. With Chris Jones and Frank Clark up front, this could be a big mismatch with the big uglies. The other tope end defenses will likely be more popular as well.

Cash – Mahomes, CEH, Kelce

GPP – Watkins, Hill, Robinson

Chargers

QB – I’m not here to claim I’m the sharpest NFL mind around, but can someone explain to me why in the world Tyrod Taylor had the fifth-highest intended air yards last week? He hasn’t played in almost two full seasons. His best weapons are Keenan Allen and Austin Ekeler as far as moving the ball. So he threw it downfield and finished 27th in on target throw% while putting up no points. Isn’t there a time when you have to change the game plan up a little? Alright, I digress.

As far as this matchup goes, there’s certainly some upside as far as game script goes. The Chiefs are one of the biggest favorites on the slate and Taylor should have to throw more than the 30 times he did last week. With there being so much value, I feel like these lower-end QB’s are going to go Everly overlooked and could be a great way to get different. Garbage time counts too.

RB – What a weird day for Ekeler. He was the most dangerous receiving back outside of CMC last year and he got all of ONE target on Sunday. Just. One. Now the very positive news is he got 19 rushing attempts, tied for sixth-most in Week 1. That’s great and it’s the volume you want to see rushing, but the Chargers have to get this guy involved in the passing game. He racked up 993 receiving yards last year, 31st in the NFL among all players! He led the league in broken tackles on receptions. It was just bizarre usage and going right back to the well makes plenty of sense.

This likely isn’t the game for him, but keep an eye on Joshua Kelly. He earned 12 rushing attempts on just 18 snaps, ripping off a healthy 5.0 YPC and cashing in a score. He seem in line to be a 2019 Melvin Gordon type player, where he still gets double-digit rushes per game and gets red zone work. He out-numbered Ekeler 6-3 in red zone rushes.

WR – Taylor really did love him some Mike Williams on Sunday. Williams was unsure if he’d play but wound up with the 13th highest aDOT in Week 1 and led the Chargers in targets with 10. If he’s getting even 60% of that role every week, there’s going to be points with he would destroy the $4,200 price tag. He’s always going to be just a GPP player for me with his QB, but the price is tantalizing in this game.

I wonder if Allen gets passed over this week. Since the results really weren’t there, folks may not remember he still got targeted eight times and had a 10.5 aDOT himself. He saw a red zone target and even if the Chiefs drop down Honey Badger into the slot to cover him, volume alone could get him there. He’s not one of my top plays, but I get the logic as well.

TE – Much like Williams, Hunter Henry was a target magnet with nine and three of those came in the red zone. He was also third on the team in aDOT so he could be a major focal point again. With almost a third of the target share and the Chiefs giving up a touchdown to the position makes him very interesting. I wonder if anyone really looks his way with Dallas Goedert right below him in salary. I have eyes on either high end or low end, which means Henry is likely a solid GPP target.

D/ST – Nope. Moving on.

Cash – None for me

GPP – Allen, Williams, Ekeler, Henry, Taylor

Ravens at Texans, O/U of 51.5 (Ravens -7)

Ravens

QB – As is the normal anymore, Lamar Jackson is the top QB as far as salary. Sticking with the same pattern of the last 18 or so weeks, Jackson is well in play. He racked up over 27 DK points and he sat out a chunk of the fourth quarter (again). Jackson was ninth in on target throws and 17th in intended air yards. There’s not much of a reason to feel uncomfortable playing him. He’s a threat to throw for three or more scores any time and a threat to rush for over 100 yards. He’s not a much for cash but if you love the lineup and have the money, you can spend it on Jackson.

RB – Now we get to the messy part of the Ravens offense. We have to weigh the blowout, but the trio of Mark Ingram, J.K. Dobbins and Gus Edwards all played between 23 and 15 snaps. That’s…not good for fantasy. Ingram and Dobbins both had two red zone rushes each and Dobbins cashed both his in for scores. No back recorded a target, which is maddeningly unhelpful. With so many great plays at running back, I’m not super interested in wading into this mess. If you had to play one of them, I’d go with Dobbins.

WR – The only receiver I want from this group is the same one I played last week – Marquise Brown. He was a monster last week with an 18.8 aDOT and 18.1 DK points. That came without a score and no red zone looks is about the only thing missing from his Week 1 resume. Brown led in targets and his speed makes him so difficult to defend every play. His price came up by over $1,000 but it was deserved. Willie Snead scored but only saw four targets. Don’t get too attached.

TE – Give me ALL the Mark Andrews again. Loving so many cheap receivers and backs give me an easier route to take to pay up for Andrews. Maybe a mild take, but he’s going to be the TE1 this season. He played 71% of the snaps in a blowout and he tied for the lead all with three inside the 10 yard line targets. With the threat of Jackson and the run game, Andrews is going to be a lethal threat at the goal line and was already an elite tight end with a low snap percentage last year. He’s still far too cheap.

D/ST – Houston had Deshaun Watson under siege in Week 1 and the Ravens blitzed 54.8% of the time. By contrast, KC only brought a blitz 32.5% of the time and still led the league in pressure rate. We say it all the time that pressure creates mistakes, especially with the corners that Baltimore boasts. Of the four of the top five defenses in salary that I like, I rank them Steelers, Ravens, Bills and the 49ers.

Cash – Jackson, Andrews, Brown, D/ST

GPP – Dobbins, Ingram

Texans

QB – He always bring a high ceiling, but Deshaun Watson is at a price that just doesn’t make me want to play him. You have Big Ben, Murray and Stafford underneath him in salary and they all have a good chance to match or exceed his score. Watson was only 19th in accuracy in Week 1 which makes sense with how much he was pressured. He was a respectable 11th in intended air yards but the Ravens are such a tough matchup. Even going back to last year, they allowed the second-fewest DK points to the position. There’s no reason to head here.

RB – Just like Watson, I like David Johnson but this isn’t the spot for him. He played over 81% of the snaps and touched the ball 14 times in a blowout. That’s great and he’ll be the main man in Houston that we can use at another time. Baltimore did allow 137 rushing yards to the Browns, but the Chubb/Hunt duo is far more dangerous. I will say that Bill O’Brien will continue to run regardless of the score. Just watch some of the third quarter in Kansas City. Still, there’s too many other backs that are far better plays.

WR – If you’re looking for an off the wall volume play, Will Fuller might well be the man for you. Not only did he rack up a 12.8 aDOT, he saw a whopping 10 targets. Watson favored him in a major way and with Hopkins in Arizona, maybe we shouldn’t be surprised. Ravens corners Jimmy Smith, Marlon Humphrey and Marcus Peters are all quite good but they can fall for double moves at times. Fuller still has elite speed and it only takes one play.

Nobody else on the Texans garnered more than four targets, making them tough sells. Randall Cobb let us down big time even though he played almost 80% of the snaps. He only saw three targets total and they were deep into the fourth quarter. Brandin Cooks is still questionable and only played 52% of the snaps in Week 1. I’ll be passing for the most part, with maybe a Fuller share here and there.

TE – If you want a cheap tight end that nobody will play, Jordan Akins is there for you. He converted his one red zone look for a score and played over 80% of the snaps, so the starting gig is his with no doubts. If the corners can hold the receivers in check, this could quietly be a very good game for Akins at his price. Do I wish he got more than two targets? Absolutely, but these are some of the chances you can take in this salary range and GPP.

D/ST – Ha. They play the Ravens.

Cash – None

GPP – Fuller, Akins, Watson

Core Four (Cash Game Focused) – Derrick Henry, Diontae Johnson, Jonathan Taylor, Jordan Reed (still love Lamb)

Game Stacks

Cowboys/Falcons – Dak, Julio, Zeke, Lamb, Ridley, Cooper, Gage, Ryan

Panthers/Bucs – Brady, Miller, Rojo, CMC, Moore, Anderson, Evans, Howard,

Packers/Lions – Rodgers, Adams, Marvin Jones, Aaron Jones, Stafford, Hockenson

Colts/Vikings – Taylor, Campbell, Thielen, T.Y., Rivers, Hines, Cook

Team Stacks

Chiefs – Mahomes, Kelce, CEH, Watkins, Hill

Ravens – Lamar, Andrews, Brown

Steelers – Big Ben, Johnson, JuJu

Cardinals – Kyler, Nuk, Kirk, Drake

Rams – Goff, Woods, Kupp

Packers/Lions – Rodgers, Adams, Marvin Jones, Aaron Jones, Stafford, Hockenson

Bills – Allen, Diggs, Brown, Moss

Let’s get after it this week my friends! 

Make sure you follow me on Twitter at @bucn4life and be sure to sign up for an ALL ACCESS GOLD ACCOUNT account here at Win Daily Sports. Gain access to our Projection Models and jump into our Discord where we will have our experts talking plays across every sport and slate!

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Victory Values: Week 2

Welcome to the first ever Victory Values feature for Week 2!  In this article, I’ll be looking at the best player values that will lead you to DFS paydirt!   You won’t see lame advice to start McCaffery, Thomas or Kelce.  You know that already.  I’ll go under the hood to find the players with the best matchups and lowest salaries to round out your DFS lineups with big upside – so that you CAN start the studs you want and have a great chance to win!   Let’s get started!

QB Values Under $6,000

Jared Goff – LAR @ PHI – $5,800 ($7,300 in FanDuel) – Goff put up nice but pedestrian numbers against the Cowboys last week (20-31-275-0-1) as Malcolm Brown converted two short TD runs.  With the Eagle offense under injury seige – the Rams should once again own time of possession and deliver better passing results with additional opportunities.  Unless you think Malcolm Brown is the 2nd coming of a younger Todd Gurley – Goff should rebound with 2-3 passing TD’s and perhaps a score on the ground.

Mitch Trubisky – CHI vs NYG  – $5,500 ($7,200 in FanDuel) –  Where was THIS Mitch Trubisky last year (20-36-242-3-0) who led the Bears to a comeback win over Detroit.  We know Trubisky isn’t perfect, but sometimes, you have to play the matchups.  The New York Giants just allowed Big Ben (21-32-229-3-0) to dissect them – as they do not have the secondary talent to keep with AROB and Anthony Miller (4-76-1).

RB Values Under $5,000

Zack Moss – BUFF @ MIA – $4,800 ($5,200 in FanDuel) – As some analysts predicted, Moss almost equaled Devin Singletary’s touches in Week 1.  Both players had 9 carries last week.  Singletary had 5 catches.  Moss had 3 catches.  Moss had all the rushing attempts near the goal line.  For this price, you can load up at other positions and know that Moss gives you a realistic chance to score TD’s every time the Bills reach the red zone.

Chase Edmonds – ARI vs WASH – $4,600 ($5,000 in FanDuel) – We know that Edmonds, if given the opportunity, has performed like an RB1.  The Cardinals have a plan for Edmonds as he scored a TD in Week 1 with 3 catches, 16 yards and ran for 26 yards.   Edmonds had 5 targets in Week 1, compared to just 2 for Kenyan Drake. At this price, Edmonds has a solid base of involvement and always has a shot to break one.

Benny Snell Jr – PITT vs DEN – $4,500 ($4,600 in FanDuel) – With James Conner leaving the game with an ankle injury, Snell picked up the slack with a career high 113 yards vs the Giants.  We don’t know yet if Connor will be ready to suit up in Week 2.  Snell may end up being the bell cow starter.  Worst case, Connor plays and they share playing time. Snell should still have 10-12 touches with a very good opportunity for more.

WR Values Under $5,000

Curtis Samuel – CAR @ TB – $4,700 ($5,200 in FanDuel) – It was the Robby Anderson show last week for Teddy Bridgewater. Chances are #1 WR DJ Moore will have some positive regression, but don’t sleep on Samuel.  The Panthers should be in catch up mode in this game and Samuel would face the nickel TB CB.  In what should be a high scoring affair, Samuel is a worthy dart to light up the board.

Marques Valdes-Scantling – GB vs DET – $4,600 ($5,100 in FanDuel) –  After what Mitch Trubisky did to the Lions defense last week, it’s safe to say that Aaron Rodgers could feast once again in the Packers’ home opener. It seems like Scantling (6-96-1) is back in Rodger’s good graces as the two connected on a long 45 yard TD. If Rodgers continues to show trust in MVS, you should put him in your lineup – especially at this price.

Parris Campbell – IND vs MIN – $4,500 ($5,300 in FanDuel) – Campbell led all Colt WR’s last week with 9 targets and a 6-71 receiving line.  With #1 WR, TY Hilton still battling his hamstrings, and rookie, Michael Pittman (2 catches, 10 yards) not earning Philip River’s (363 passing yards, 1 TD, 2 INT) trust – it should be Campbell who receives the bell cow of looks vs a suddenly vulnerable Viking secondary. 

TE Values Under $4,000

OJ Howard – TB vs CAR – $3,900 ($4,800 in FanDuel) – Tom Brady has always liked this tight ends.  While his old tight end (Gronk) still rounding into shape, Howard caught a TD against the Saints (4 catches – 36 yards) and was 2nd on the team with 6 targets.  With this kind of target share and attention,  Howard has a chance to hit paydirt every week, especially this week against a very giving Panther defense.

Dan Arnold – ARI vs WASH – $3,300 ($4,400 in FanDuel) – For the Cards in Week 1, it was the DeAndre Hopkins show.  Can you blame Kyler Murray for playing with his new toy?  Last week, Eagle TE’s (Ertz and Goedert) totaled 11 catches, 119 yards, 2 TD’s and 16 whopping targets against Washington. It’s clear that this is a winnable matchup to exploit and I look for the Cards to take advantage of it.

D Value Under $3,000

LAR vs PHI – $2,800 ($4,500 in FanDuel) –  The Rams talented defense just held the mighty Cowboys to 17 points – the same number that the lowly Washington football team (Can’t we just the name them the Sentinels already?) just allowed to a banged up Eagle squad.  Washington delivered 8 sacks, two INT’s and a fumble recovery.   You’d hard pressed to do better starting a very formidable Rams D against a depleted Eagle team missing their top 3 offensive lineman, starting RB and two starting receivers. 

Thanks for checking out this article for Victory Values: Week 2! Make sure to follow us on Twitter @WinDailySports and make sure to head over WinDailySports.com to find more great content to win big!

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NFL Week 1 Fantasy Recap

Nick and Michael discuss the NFL Week 1 Fantasy recap! Where we were right, where we were wrong, and some season long plays that might be waiver claims. You can sign up for our Gold Membership at WinDailySports.com and start winning big like we did this week!

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