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With Bryce Young injured, how does Tetairoa McMillan’s fantasy football value change for Week 8?

With Bryce Young injured, how does Tetairoa McMillan’s fantasy football value change for Week 8?

DraftKings Fantasy Advice Season Long DFS

Published:

By: Alex Hunter

Bryce Young suffered a high-ankle sprain in the Panthers’ win over the Jets this past Sunday and the quarterback is expected to miss this Sunday’s matchup vs. the Bills, per NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero.

With Young sidelined, Andy Dalton ($4,500) is expected to start at quarterback for Carolina, which is good news for the Panthers’ passing game, given how poorly Young has played this season. Among 39 qualifying quarterbacks, the 24-year-old ranks 32nd in completion percentage (61.8%) and 34th in YPA (5.8).

Dalton made five starts for Young last season and while he struggled with turnovers, throwing six picks, Dalton threw seven touchdowns, completed 66.3% of his passes and averaged 6.2 YPA. While these weren’t compelling numbers, Dalton was more effective than Young last season, with the two players finishing 52.2 and 50.7 in QBR, respectively.

Plus, Dalton has looked great in his limited snaps this season. The veteran has played 36 snaps and Dalton has completed 9-of-13 passes (69.2%) for 118 yards and one touchdown, resulting in a strong 9.1 YPA. Yes, this is a small sample, but Dalton is very likely to be a notable upgrade from the struggling Young and the veteran’s presence should be a big boost for Tetairoa McMillan ($5,700).

With a team-high 23.9% target share this season, McMillan is averaging 12.3 FPTS per game, which is a solid output considering Young’s inefficiencies. With the quarterback struggling mightily, McMillan has hauled in only 57.7% of his targets, which is the sixth-worst catch rate among players that have seen at least 40 targets.

Having Dalton under center should help McMillan’s catch rate and his target share will likely increase as well, naturally improving the rookie’s fantasy stock. Diontae Johnson was Carolina’s No. 1 receiver when Dalton made his five starts for the club last season and Johnson scored at least 19 FPTS in three of those five games, leading the Panthers with a 28.1% target share during that span.

McMillan gets a tough matchup vs. the Bills this Sunday – Buffalo is giving up the sixth-fewest yards per pass this season (6.1) – but with Dalton throwing him passes, McMillan has a ceiling over 20 FPTS and he will be a terrific GPP play for DFS at only $5,600 on DraftKings.

With Young expected to be out, the Panthers are a 7.5-point underdog vs. the Bills on DraftKings Sportsbook.

Alex Hunter
Alex Hunter is an avid DFS player and sports handicapper, who has been a proud member of the DraftKings Network team since 2020. He is a data-driven analyst, who earned his bachelor’s degree in communications at Worcester State University and has been in the sports content business for nearly a decade, covering the NBA, NFL and PGA TOUR. Alex is a diehard Boston Celtics fan, who loves to be on the golf course when he isn’t grinding lineups or producing content. For all of Alex’s work or if you need any lineup advice, be sure to follow him @Hunta512 on X.
Disclaimer

I am a promoter at DraftKings and am also an avid fan and user (my username is Hunta512) and may sometimes play on my personal account in the games that I offer advice on. Although I have expressed my personal view on the games and strategies above, they do not necessarily reflect the view(s) of DraftKings and do not constitute a representation that any particular strategy will guarantee success. All customers should use their own skills and judgment in building lineups. I may also deploy different players and strategies than what I recommend above. I am not an employee of DraftKings and do not have access to any non-public information.