Welcome to another season of Daily Fantasy Football. These articles will focus on games being played at FanDuel. Each week I will highlight some of my preferred plays of the week, plus some deeper “Tournament” plays, who will be decent options to mix in for the larger field tournaments in an effort to differentiate your lineup from the similar higher owned lineup options.
For those of you who are not familiar with the format at FanDuel, here is a quick primer:
- Scoring: Half PPR with 4 point Pass Touchdowns, -1 for Interceptions and -2 for Fumbles Lost.
- Lineups: 1 Quarterback (QB), 2 Running Backs (RB), 3 Wide Receivers (WR), 1 Tight End (TE), 1 Kicker (K), and 1 Defense (D).
- Salary Cap: 60,000 with player salaries ranging from 4,000 to approximately 10,000 in any given week.
Different from some of the other sites, there is a smaller range of salaries from the top to bottom players, so rather than a “Stars & Scrubs” approach as many will take on certain sites, on FanDuel you are better off looking for value in the midrange and avoiding the bottom end players unless a clear value play emerges.
Fanduel Weekly Picks (Week 4)
Note: These rankings are only for the full Sunday/Monday FanDuel leagues. The Baltimore Ravens/Pittsburgh Steelers Thursday game and New York Jets/Miami Dolphins game in London are not part of these rankings.
Another note: the New England Patriots and Tennessee Titans are on bye this week.
Quarterback Top Plays
- Cam Newton, Carolina Panthers (8300 @ TB) – It is looking like Jonathan Stewart is going to sit out this game, so Cam will be the top quarterback and running back for the Panthers against a soft Tampa Bay defense.
- Andy Dalton, Cincinnati Bengals (7600 v. KC) – Dalton will be widely owned this week, so I would look elsewhere in big entry tournaments, but Kansas City has allowed the most points to quarterbacks and wide receivers, so he makes for a good smaller tournament/cash game choice.
- Blake Bortles, Jacksonville Jaguars (6800 @ IND) – The Colts will score against the Jaguars defense, so Bortles will likely be throwing early and often against a defense that has given up a lot of yards.
Secondary Plays
- Aaron Rodgers, Green Bay Packers (9200 @ SF)
- Tyrod Taylor, Buffalo Bills (7600 v. NYG)
- Derek Carr, Oakland Raiders (7000 @ CHI)
Tournament Plays
- Russell Wilson, Seattle Seahawks (8200 v. DET)
- Brandon Weeden, Dallas Cowboys (6400 @ NO)
- Ryan Mallett, Houston Texans (6300 @ ATL)
Running Back Top Plays
- Latavius Murray, Oakland Raiders (7500 @ CHI) – Murray keeps on pumping along and has a strong matchup this week against the Bears who just traded away Jared Allen; people will be high on Carr/Cooper this week, but I think Murray is the best bet for the Raiders.
- Melvin Gordon, San Diego Chargers (6800 v. CLE) – Gordon has been on the edge of breaking out, and this looks like his best chance to get his first 100 yard day and his first trip to the end zone against the Browns who struggle mightily against the run.
- Karlos Williams, Buffalo Bills (6300 v. NYG) – Williams will likely be the highest owned player in every FanDuel league this week, but for good reason; if you are going with one bullet, plug Williams in and start working on the rest of your lineup.
Secondary Plays
- Mark Ingram, New Orleans Saints (8100 v. DAL)
- Frank Gore, Indianapolis Colts (7300 v. JAC)
- Devonta Freeman, Atlanta Falcons (7200 v. HOU)
Tournament Plays
- Matt Forte, Chicago Bears (8300 v. OAK)
- Joseph Randle, Dallas Cowboys (7400 @ NO)
- Matt Jones, Washington Redskins (6300 v. PHI)
Wide Receiver Top Plays
- Julio Jones, Atlanta Falcons (9400 v. HOU) – What can you say about Julio so far this season? He is rewriting the record books, and a home dome game against one of the fastest paced teams in the league should provide a good spot for another big performance.
- Donte Moncrief, Indianapolis Colts (6300 v. JAC) – Moncrief saw his targets and receptions drop last week, but he still found the end zone. This price is still too low for a talented receiver playing the second wide receiver role on an offense that is liable to break out soon.
- James Jones, Green Bay Packers (6000 @ SF) – One of the best bets to score twice this week with Davante Adams out; Green Bay will likely need to keep the offense rolling with a road game, and San Francisco’s secondary is a mess right now.
Secondary Plays
- Randall Cobb, Green Bay Packers (8200 @ SF)
- Amari Cooper, Oakland Raiders (7200 @ CHI)
- Percy Harvin, Buffalo Bills (5700 v. NYG – Sammy Watkins is out)
Tournament Plays
- DeAndre Hopkins, Houston Texans (7900 @ ATL)
- Marvin Jones, Cincinnati Bengals (5500 v. KC)
- Allen Hurns, Jacksonville Jaguars (5300 @ IND)
Tight End Top Plays
- Travis Kelce, Kansas City Chiefs (6400 @ CIN) – There is not a lot of value at tight end this week with Gronkowski on bye so do not try to get too cute here. Kelce is a stud and Cincinnati does not cover tight ends well.
- Charles Clay, Buffalo Bills (5200 v. NYG) – This is the only guy to try to get cute with, Clay has been very solid all season and the Giants are horrendous against the tight end.
Secondary Plays
- Greg Olsen, Carolina Panthers (6300 @ TB)
- Tyler Eifert, Cincinnati Bengals (5700 v. KC)
Tournament Plays
- Jason Witten, Dallas Cowboys (6000 @ NO)
- Jordan Reed, Washington Redskins (5600 v. PHI)
Kicker Top Plays
- Brandon McManus, Denver Broncos (4900 v. MIN) – This may be a decent week to pay up for a kicker. McManus is a stud at home.
- Mike Nugent, Cincinnati Bengals (4700 v. KC) – Kansas City is giving up loads of points so far this year, but they have some defensive talent, if they can buckle down in the red zone a few times, there is a big game coming for Nugent.
Secondary Plays
- Dan Bailey, Dallas Cowboys (5000 @ NO)
- Matt Bryant, Atlanta Falcons (4800 v. HOU)
Tournament Plays
- Dan Carpenter, Buffalo Bills (4700 v. NYG)
- Josh Lambo, San Diego Chargers (4500 v. CLE)
Defense/Special Teams Top Plays
- Denver Broncos (4700 v. MIN) – Denver has quietly been putting out one of the best defenses in the NFL, a home date against the hapless pass offense of the Vikings will be a big one.
- Indianapolis Colts (4400 v. JAC) – I like some of the offensive players on Jacksonville, but game flow will allow for a lot of sack and turnover opportunities for the Colts at a good value.
Secondary Plays
- Seattle Seahawks (5300 v. DET)
- San Diego Chargers (4500 v. CLE)
Tournament Plays
- Buffalo Bills (4800 v. NYG)
- Philadelphia Eagles (4500 @ WSH)
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