Daily League Bargains: Week Three
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Sunday, bloody Sunday.
It was gruesome end to the weekend on the injury front throughout the NFL and for fantasy owners. Robert Griffin III, Jamal Charles, Knowshon Moreno, Ryan Mathews, Mark Ingram, A.J. Green, DeSean Jackson and Vernon Davis all went down with injuries. With NFL trainers being so busy, anybody that submitted a DFS lineup and was able to avoid the carnage and cash out should certainly count themselves lucky.
There is a silver lining to all the injuries for daily players, however. It creates opportunities for lesser known (and cheaper) players which can create value in the coming weeks. Let’s try to identify some of that value for week three on FanDuel.
Keep in mind that these suggestions are made for GPP (Guaranteed Prize Pool) tournaments with more than 50 participants where players are looking for bargains to fill out their lineups after already inserting their “studs” for the week. They shouldn’t necessarily be considered in head to head or 50/50 games.
Quarterback
Kirk Cousins, QB WAS
If you’re looking for a discount under center in week three, the best (and perhaps only) place to look is in Washington where Cousins ($6,800 on FanDuel) has taken over for RG3. The former Spartan signal caller looked good in relief in week two, throwing for 250 yards and two scores on 22 of 33 (66.7%) passing. Many have pointed to the Jacksonville defense as the reason he put up such impressive numbers, but fantasy players should keep in mind he posted them coming in cold off the bench with limited reps in practice throughout the week.
This week, Cousins will face an Eagles defense that has given up a league highfive touchdown passes in the first two games and he’ll take all the reps leading up to the matchup. He’s a good bet to throw for 250+ yards and multiple scores against Philly on Sunday.
Other Options: Jay Cutler ($8,100)
Running Back
Knile Davis, RB KC
Listed at $7,000 on FanDuel, Davis may not be considered a bargain by many daily players. When you consider the price of Jamal Charles ($8,700), the guy he’s replacing in the Chiefs’ lineup, and his potential to put up the same numbers as his backfield mate, Davis looks like he may be carrying a $1,700 discount this weekend.
Davis showed exactly what he can do in week two against the Broncos, running for 79 yards and two touchdowns on 22 carries after Charles left the game with an ankle injury. In week three, Davis and the Chiefs will go to Miami to take on the Dolphins. He should be leaned on the handle the ball more than 20 times and that’s hard to get for the price.
Stevan Ridley, RB NE
Before going into too much detail, it should be mentioned playing Ridley ($6,200) in any format is a risk. He only saw the field for 22 snaps in week one, running for just 21 yards on eight carries. Then in week two he handled the rock 25 times for 101 yards and a touchdown while playing 37 snaps as the Patriots nursed a big lead.
I’m not about to guess how Bill Belichick and the rest of the New England coaching staff is planning on using Ridley and the rest of the tailbacks on their roster this week at home against Oakland. I do feel confident saying that whoever gets the majority of those carries will put up some very useful fantasy numbers on Sunday. After all, the Raiders have the worst run defense in the league, giving up 200 yards per game on the ground and five yards per carry.
Ridley may be the ultimate boom-or-bust play at running back in week three.
Lamar Miller, RB MIA
Miller ($6,600) suffered an injury of his own on Sunday afternoon and didn’t return to the game but the latest news out of Miami suggests he’ll be good to go for the Dolphins’ tilt with the Chiefs this weekend. That’s good news for DFS players since his backfield mate, Knowshon Moreno, will miss the game with an injured elbow so Miller is in line to be the featured back for the Dolphins in Kansas City on Sunday.
The Chiefs are giving up 125 yards per game on the ground and will be without defensive end Mike DeVito and star linebacker Derrick Johnson for the season. They may also be missing safety Eric Berry in week three which could be a deadly blow to their run defense.
As long as he’s healthy, Miller may prove to be an excellent bargain in week three.
Donald Brown, RB SD
Through two weeks, Brown ($6,200) hasn’t looked very good in limited opportunities. With only nine carries under his belt thus far in 2014, he’s rushed for only 19 yards and averaged just 2.1 yards per carry. San Diego has played two of the best run defenses to open the season in Arizona and Seattle which could explain the relatively meager average.
Now with Mathews out due to injury, Brown figures to take over as San Diego’s early down tailback which figures to give him between 12 and 18 carries per game. In week three, the Chargers travel to Buffalo to face the Bills defense that has only given up 83 yards per game on the ground and hasn’t given up a rushing touchdown to this point.
The numbers don’t suggest a great matchup for Brown, but any back in line to get as many touches as him is worth consideration in DFS.
Terrance West, RB CLE
I suggested West ($5,800) in this space last week and he didn’t disappoint, accounting for 90 yards from scrimmage and a touchdown and scoring 16 points on FanDuel – that was against the Saints’ below average run defense. This week, he’ll take on the Ravens who are a bit stingier against the run, but the Browns have shown a commitment to the ground attack and West will no doubt be featured once again.
West should be in line for at least 16 carries again this week and should get the opportunities around the goal line. He’s an excellent choice for those looking for a cheap option in order to fit some high priced playmakers into their lineup.
Other options: Danny Woodhead ($5,900), Ahmad Bradshaw ($5,200) and Justin Forsett ($5,200)
Wide Receiver
Steve Smith, WR BAL
Many dynasty owners wrote off Smith ($6,200) a couple years ago, but it’s time to get re-acquainted if you’re submitting a lineup of FanDuel this weekend.
Over the first two weeks of the season, Smith has been targeted by quarterback Joe Flacco 25 times and caught 13 passes for 189 yards and a touchdown. The Ravens take on Cleveland in week three and the Browns are among the worst in the league stopping the pass, giving up 313 yards per game in the air.
Smith is sure to be a big part of the Ravens’ game plan in week three and makes for one of the best WR3 options on FanDuel for the cost.
Mohamed Sanu, WR CIN
With Marvin Jones already sidelined due to injury and Green going down to a foot injury in week two, the Bengals are in desperate need of a receiver to fill the void. Sanu ($6,100) has the most experience of the rest of the Cincinnati wide outs and will be asked to pick up the slack for Andy Dalton. He was targeted just four times in week two but made three grabs for 84 yards and a touchdown.
In week three, I wouldn’t be surprised to see Sanu targeted 8-10 times and Dalton to take a couple deep shots to him against the Titans.
If you’re looking for a bargain basement option, Dane Sanzenbacher ($4,500) may be worth a look for a the Bengals as well.
Golden Tate, WR DET
Tate ($5,000) is my favorite bargain of the week. Coming off a game where he was targeted eight times and caught five passes for 57 yards against Carolina’s very tough pass defense, Tate and the Lions will take on the Packers defense this weekend which is among the worst in the league. Green Bay will likely give extra attention to Calvin Johnson which will give Tate the chance to work against single coverage which he’s routinely taken advantage of to this point in the season.
Tate will be in most of my GPP lineups in week three as a cheap WR3 with upside. I expect him to make at least six catches against the Packers with a good chance to find pay dirt.
For the record, Tate’s quarterback Matthew Stafford ($9,000) is my quarterback of choice in week three as well – but he’s hardly a bargain as the fifth highest priced signal caller.
Other Options: Kelvin Benjamin ($6,500), Brian Quick ($5,200) and Davante Adams ($4,600)
Tight End
Zach Ertz, TE PHI
If it’s not broken, why fix it? For the third straight week, Ertz ($5,800) is listed among FanDuel bargains at tight end and as long as his price stays low, I’ll keep inserting him into my lineups.
In week one, Ertz hauled in 3 passes for 77 yards and a beautiful touchdown. Because the Eagles played on Sunday night, his price didn’t go up much so he was a value once again in week two. Of course, prices for week three were set before the Eagles and Colts kicked off on Monday night and Ertz caught 4 balls for 86 yards.
Most likely, Ertz price will spike going into week four. This may be our last chance to get him in our lineups without paying top-five tight end prices. He’ll likely be highly owned in GPP tournaments this weekend so going another direction may be a good strategy – But if you chose to go with the talented Eagle, I wouldn’t blame you.
Niles Paul, TE WAS
When Paul ($5,000) caught four passes for 86 yards in relief of Jordan Reed in week one, many fantasy owners wrote it off as nothing more than a blind squirrel finding a nut. When he tallied eight more catches for 99 yards and a score in week two, owners took notice.
The Redskins seem committed to including the tight end in their passing game no matter whose starting and Paul looks to be running with the opportunity. With Cousins taking over under center, logic says he may trust Paul more than any other receiver on the roster due to their time together on the scout team over the last few seasons. If you buy that, you should expect their chemistry to continue on Sundays as long as they’re on the field together, starting this week against the Eagles.
Other options: Travis Kelce ($4,900) and Larry Donnell ($4,900)
Follow me on Twitter for more daily nuggets as well as lineup advice: @dmeylor22
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