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We can all figure out who the studs are on a football slate. No one has to go out of their way to tell you to play Patrick Mahomes or Josh Allen on a particular slate. What really takes the effort is combing through the player pool and figuring out who are some of the best values on the board ahead of the Sunday slate. That’s what we’ll do in this piece each and every week. I’ll help you save some salary while hopefully not skimping on the fantasy production.
Let’s get into some of the best value plays at each position for the Week 5 main slate on DraftKings.
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Quarterback
Geno Smith, Seattle Seahawks vs. Arizona Cardinals, $5,700 — Maybe we're finally at the point where Smith is #good? At least through the first five weeks of the season, he’s been a value monster for fantasy. He’s averaging 21.2 DKFP per game and leads the league in both completion percentage (75.2%), and adjusted completion percentage (80.7%) amongst all starting quarterbacks. Over the last three weeks, Smith has also finished as a top-10 fantasy QB. topping out as a QB2 against the Lions. Against the blitz, which the Cardinals do often, Smith has completed 79% of his 38 attempts.
Smith is also not afraid to go deep downfield to his receivers. He’s made 19 attempts of 20+ yards and has completed 11 of them for an average of 29.4 yards per reception and six of his nine passing touchdowns. This big play potential makes him a legitimate steal at this price point, especially with the shootout potential this game brings.
Other Option – Daniel Jones ($5,200) vs. BAL
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Running Back
Cam Akers, Los Angeles Rams vs. Carolina Panthers, $5,300 — We’ll continue to target running backs against the Panthers as we did last week with Jeff Wilson Jr. As a refresher, Wilson gained 120 yards on the ground on 17 carries while adding an additional 12 yards through the air. Now, more than ever, this could be the breakout game Akers desperately needs. Akers handled all the carries amongst the team running backs last week, making 13 carries for 33 yards. It wasn’t a great fantasy game by any means but the narrative on Akers could change this week.
The Panthers have been gouged on the ground, allowing 27.6 DKFP per game to opposing backs. They’re gaining 120 yards per game on the ground and 4.8 yards per carry. The biggest knock on Akers thus far has been his inefficiency when carrying the ball. He’s averaging a meager 3.0 YPC and 2.92 yards after contact. This could finally be the game where that average gets a nice bump up.
Other Options – Kenneth Walker ($5,400) vs. ARI
Wide Receiver
Isaiah McKenzie, Buffalo Bills at Kansas City Chiefs, $5,000 — After missing last week due to being in the concussion protocol, McKenzie could easily be one of the more overlooked options in this projected barnburner. Plenty of attention will be focused on the high-priced receivers in this offense like Stefon Diggs ($8,400) and Gabe Davis ($6,500) but McKenize offers a cheap way to gain exposure to this one. He’s averaging just over five targets per game, a number that’s been on the rise after drawing a total of 15 in his last two games. He turned those into 11 receptions for 97 yards, two touchdowns, and a total of 33.3 DKFP.
With a game total set at 54 (as of Friday morning), plenty of opportunities will be had for both sides on offense. The Bills team total is currently set at 28.5 while the Chiefs are at 26.5. In coverage, McKenize draws a favorable matchup against CB L’Jarius Sneed. In coverage, Sneed has allowed a 77.4% reception rate on 31 targets for 215 yards and an average of 9.0 yards per reception.
Other Options – Devin Duvernay ($4,700) vs. NYG
Tight End
Zach Gentry, Pittsburgh Steelers vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers, $2,600 – This is very contingent on the status of Pat Freiermuth ($3,800), who’ll likely have a hard time getting cleared due to suffering a concussion last week. If that’s the case, Gentry looks like a tremendous value just above the stone minimum in pricing. Last week, he saw six targets and made five catches for 43 yards and 9.3 DKFP. He was on the field for 64% of their snaps and could see similar usage as underdogs against the Bucs.
Other Options – Adam Trautman ($3,000) vs. CIN
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