The Chiefs are back from their bye week for a Week 7 showdown with the 49ers, and it looks likely that they’ll have JuJu Smith-Schuster ($4,000) available after the veteran receiver was able to practice on Friday. While he was officially listed as questionable, Smith-Schuster seems on track to play. “I think he’ll be fine,” coach Andy Reid said. “He was good today.”
He had a “hamstring spasm” in practice Thursday, but unless something goes wrong, he’ll likely be able to suit up on Sunday in San Francisco. Does that mean he should be in your fantasy football lineups?
Unless you’re in a very shallow league or totally stacked at wide receiver, Smith-Schuster is worth starting in season-long leagues and is a great value play for DFS. He’s only $4,000 in DFS contests like the NFL $2.5M Fantasy Football Millionaire [$1M to 1st]. While he will likely be very chalky due to his upside, his expected volume, if healthy, makes him a hard “free space” play to pass up.
Smith-Schuster was released before the season began by the Patriots after he struggled throughout his time with the team. He then re-joined the Chiefs, and has been asked to step up after significant injuries to Marquise Brown (shoulder) and Rashee Rice (knee).
Before the bye week, in the Chiefs’ first game without Rice, Smith-Schuster finished second on the team with seven catches and eight targets behind only Travis Kelce ($6,300). He led the team with 130 receiving yards and totaled 23 fantasy points. He had only had two catches on four targets combined through the first four games of the season, but is obviously a much bigger part of the team’s plan now that Rice is unavailable.
While Xavier Worthy ($6,400) has more dynamic, big-play ability, Smith-Schuster will get plenty of volume and red zone looks, as he has such a strong rapport with Patrick Mahomes ($7,000). If the game with the 49ers is competitive, it’s hard to imagine Smith-Schuster not getting enough work to be a good DFS value and at least an excellent FLEX play.
JuJu is +220 to find the end zone in Week 7 and +130 to get 50+ receiving yards. The Chiefs are 1.5-point underdogs as they look to extend their unbeaten start to the season and improve to 6-0.
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