Week 7. Another week to roll the dice and hit the yo, eleven before next week’s bye Armageddon. The matchup against the Browns is a tough one for De’Von but the possibility for the returns of CeeDee Lamb and Mike Evans would be quite the concession. This must be heaven. Justin Fields at $5,700 against the Carolina Panthers. Another banana in the tailpipe lesson? Let me ask you another question. Is it healthy to have such an obsession? Well, this hobby occupies my mind and time, likely keeping me out of a state of depression, but then I go and click on a receiver that doesn’t score touchdowns, with his only role being that for possession.
Baltimore and Buffalo have a bye this week.
We’ve got 10 games on this main slate. Per DraftKings Sportsbook, six games have spreads of three points or less. The biggest favorite is Kansas City at home over Las Vegas by 11.5 points. Five games have a total of at least 45 points, with WAS/DAL the highest at 54.5 points. The lowest total is the MIA/CLE at 37.5 points. There are six home dogs.
Set your DraftKings fantasy football lineups here: NFL $2.75M Fantasy Football Millionaire [$1M to 1st].
Quarterback
Stud
Jayden Daniels, Washington Commanders at Dallas Cowboys ($6,900) – After missing a few weeks due to injury, Daniels wasn’t great in Week 5, completing only 57.7% of his passes. Last week, he went 19-of-26 for only 211 yards but threw three touchdowns and rushed 10 times for 52 yards. And it’s that dual threat ability that provides a high floor/ceiling combo. It also helps that he could be getting Terry McLaurin back and that the Cowboys pass defense has been swiss cheese this season, posting the highest EPA per dropback and the 15 pass touchdowns allowed are the most in the NFL. The ownership will likely be high for Daniels since this game has the highest total on the slate by a wide margin, so be wary of that when constructing rosters.
Other Options – Patrick Mahomes ($7,000), Dak Prescott ($6,500), Justin Herbert ($6,400), Drake Maye ($6,300), Jordan Love ($6,200)
Value
Justin Fields, New York Jets vs. Carolina Panthers ($5,700) – Fields was horrifically awful last week, completing only 9-of-17 passes for 45 yards while rushing seven times for 31 yards, good for 4.9 FPTS. Fields isn’t a great quarterback but the Denver defense is a ferocious unit. Outside of Week 2 when he got injured, Fields has put up at least 25 FPTS in each of the other three games, with a high of 29.5 FPTS. He has never been nor will ever be a prolific passer from the pocket, but we don’t care about that for fantasy because his legs can take us to glory. And with Garrett Wilson potentially missing this game, Fields may channel his inner Forrest Gump. Recency bias will likely keep the ownership very low for Fields. At home and against a defense not in the same class as Denver, it wouldn’t surprise me if he gets back to putting up 25 FPTS again.
Other Options – Daniel Jones ($6,000), Caleb Williams ($5,800), Bo Nix ($5,600), Bryce Young ($5,300), Carson Wentz ($5,000), Jacoby Brissett ($4,500) if he starts.
Running Back
Stud
Jordan Mason, Minnesota Vikings vs. Philadelphia Eagles ($6,200) – The Vikings are coming off their bye and will be at home for this one. Mason has yet to garner a 70% snap share, but over the last three weeks, the playing time has increased from 60% to 62% and 66%. Against a tough Browns defense, Mason rushed 13 times for 52 yards and a touchdown while catching three of four targets. He now faces an Eagles defense that has been uncharacteristically bad against the run, posting the 11th-highest EPA per carry, allowed eight rushing touchdowns and the yards per carry is 4.7.
Other Options – Jonathan Taylor ($8,800), Josh Jacobs ($7,800) if he plays, Rico Dowdle ($6,800) if Chuba Hubbard is out, Jacory Croskey-Merritt ($6,100)
Value
Rhamondre Stevenson, New England Patriots at Tennessee Titans ($5,200) – Stevenson has been bad this season, averaging 3.1 yards per carry with a 37.3% success rate. He’s also fumbled three times. But TreVeyon Henderson hasn’t done anything to move up the depth chart and only played 30% of the snaps last week while Stevenson received 72%. Drake Maye has been great this season, so the chains should be moving often while producing opportunities in the red zone. Tennessee has allowed 11 rushing touchdowns, the most in the NFL. The Patriots defense has also been good so the game script should be favorable for Stevenson. New England is favored by 7 points on the road.
Other Options – Quinshon Judkins ($6,000), Kimani Vidal ($5,500), Isiah Pacheco ($5,000), Michael Carter ($4,800), Kyle Monangai ($4,700) if D’Andre Swift is out
Wide Receiver
Stud
Rome Odunze, Chicago Bears vs. New Orleans Saints ($6,800) – Odunze wasn’t great coming out of the bye, as he received only five targets and caught two for 32 yards. In the four games prior to the bye, Odunze put up at least 15 FPTS in all with a high of 34.8 FPTS. The matchup is a good one as the Saints have allowed the fourth-highest EPA per dropback and the 14 pass touchdowns allowed are the second-most.
Other Options – Justin Jefferson ($7,600), CeeDee Lamb ($7,500) if he plays, George Pickens ($7,300) if Lamb is out
Value
Rashee Rice, Kansas City Chiefs vs. Las Vegas Raiders ($5,600) – Rice will be making his season debut. There is uncertainty as to his fitness and how many snaps he will play, but I’m more bullish on both prospects. The uncertainty could lower the ownership a bit which makes this the time to take advantage. In three games last season, Rice garnered nine, six and 14 targets. I think he gets peppered with targets in this one.
Other Options – Ladd McConkey ($6,000), Keenan Allen ($5,500), Chris Olave ($5,400), Jordan Addison ($5,100), Romeo Doubs ($5,000), Luther Burden III ($4,300)
Tight End
Stud
Trey McBride, Arizona Cardinals vs. Green Bay Packers ($5,700) – There is uncertainty as to who will be under center for Arizona, but both Kyler Murray and Jacoby Brissett will feed McBride, so no worries on that front. Last week with Brissett at quarterback, McBride received 11 targets and caught eight for 72 yards and a touchdown. Green Bay is favored by 7 points on the road, so Arizona will likely have to tilt towards the air. Green Bay has allowed the third-most FPTS on average to tight ends this season.
Other Options – Jake Ferguson ($5,500), Tyler Warren ($5,200), Tucker Kraft ($4,900), Dallas Goedert ($4,500)
Value
Mason Taylor, New York Jets vs. Carolina Panthers ($3,400) – Last week, Taylor caught one target for two yards, but the Denver defense completely neutered Justin Fields. Things will be much easier for Fields this week, so Taylor should bounce back in a big way, especially since Garrett Wilson is unlikely to play. In Week 5, Taylor garnered 12 targets and caught nine for 67 yards. Carolina has allowed the second-most FPTS on average to tight ends this season.
Other Options – Harold Fannin Jr., ($3,900), Zach Ertz ($3,800), Michael Mayer ($3,500), Chig Okonkwo ($3,300), Oronde Gadsden II ($3,300)
Defense/Special Teams
Stud
Patriots DST at Tennessee Titans ($3,400) – The Patriots have one of the best run defenses, so the unit will likely make Tennessee one-dimensional on offense. In addition, the Patriots offense will likely score points. And that spells trouble for rookie Cam Ward, who’s thrown four interceptions and been sacked a league-high 25 times.
Other Options – Chiefs DST ($3,700), Broncos DST ($3,500)
Value
Browns DST vs. Miami Dolphins ($3,000) – The Browns have one of the best defenses in the league with a ferocious defensive line. That unit will likely create havoc for a porous Miami offensive line. Tua Tagovailoa has thrown seven interceptions this season and has been sacked 13 times.
Other Options – Vikings DST ($2,600), Jets DST ($2,600)
