FanDuel Bargains: Week 15

Mike Valverde Posted On December 18, 2016

Editor’s Note: We’re going to be bringing you an unprecedented amount of content this year during the season, mostly dynasty related. However, seeing the explosion of DFS games, we’ll also be ramping up our Daily coverage, similar to last season. Even if you don’t play in DFS games, these articles can help you in making lineup decisions or judge the current value of your dynasty assets.

Over the next 17 weeks (and into the post-season), I’ll be highlighting some of the best bargains on the best daily site in the industry, FanDuel.

Keep in mind that these suggestions are 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. Many of them are risky plays and shouldn’t necessarily reflect good choices for head-to-head or 50/50 games. Rankings courtesy of ESPN

Quarterbacks

Sam Bradford, QB MIN ($6,700)

It appears that Sam Bradford just isn’t much of anything, and the Minnesota Vikings traded their first round pick for a lesser productive Alex Smith. Bradford has a rank of the 23rd quarterback for FanDuel and he has outpaced that mark in seven of nine games. So, his price could be misleading when taking on the Indianapolis Colts.

Last week against the Dallas Cowboys, he was in constant passing mode, throwing 45 times and completing 32 for 247 yards and a touchdown with zero interceptions. Even this looks like a solid outing, most of his numbers came within the two-minute warning.

The Colts are allowing 24 points per game and 313 total on the season (25th). They are also having a hard time turning the ball over. Just seven interceptions and five fumble recoveries. It also appears that Patrick Robinson may be out as well.

Sam Bradford is averaging 14 FanDuel points per game.
The implied points for the Vikings is 25
The Minnesota Vikings are favorites (4.5) at home and the over/under is 45.5

Running Backs

LeGarrette Blount, RB NEP ($6,300)

LeGarrette Blount rushed 18 times for 72 yards and a touchdown in Monday night’s win over the Ravens. He also hit 1,000 yards on the season, and it came against the toughest run defense in the NFL. Blount now has 14 touchdowns, tying the Patriots all-time touchdown mark on the season. He is their trusted goal line back and with Rob Gronkowski out, and will be relied on continuously.

Facing the Denver Broncos will be a tough task for the passing offense even if it is run by Tom Brady. The Broncos are allowing just 183 yards in the air, which is first in the NFL. The run defense for Denver has been the opposite. They are ranked 29th in that department, allowing 127.2 yards per game.

It’s going to be difficult to score against the Broncos, as they only allow 17.4 points per game and just 226 overall this season (second). They are good at getting after the passer with 38 sacks on the season (second), and forced fumbles 11 (second). They are just going to have to learn how to contain Blount this week.

LeGarrette Blount is averaging 14.8 FanDuel points per game.
The implied points for the Jets is 23
The New England Patriots are favorites (3.0) at home and the over/under is 43.5

Kenneth Farrow, RB SDC ($6,00)

It’s Kenneth Farrow’s world this week after Melvin Gordon (hip) was ruled out. He stepped up last week when Gordon went down, playing 85 percent of the offensive snaps and tallying 22 touches. By the end of the game, Farrow collected 55 yards on 16 carries and caught six passes on six targets for 23 yards in Sunday’s 28-16 loss to the Carolina Panthers.

The Chargers brought in Ronnie Hillman, but there’s no need to sweat what he will do. He is just there to allow Farrow a breather. Especially since Farrow is about as fresh as someone can get this late in the season. He is the definitive bell-cow. He should be a nice value for GPP.

The San Diego Chargers will be facing the Oakland Raiders and their garbage defense. The Raiders are 30th overall and 26th against the rush (120.2) yards allowed on the ground. They also have allowed 15 touchdowns to running backs in the season as well. The Raiders are giving up 24.2 points per game and have allowed 314 (26th) points on the season. They struggle to sack the quarterback (28th) but force their opponents to turnover the ball. They have 12 forced fumbles (first) and collect errant passes with 12 interceptions (tenth).

Kenneth Farrow is averaging 10.8 FanDuel points per game.
The implied points for the Chargers is 23
The Oakland Raiders are favorites (2.5) on the road and the over/under is 49

Kenneth Dixon, RB BAL ($5,100)

The Ravens are liking what they are getting out of rookie running back Kenneth Dixon, and they have rewarded him with an increase in carries. The best part of all of it, is that his price tag is cheap.

Last week against the Patriots, he rushed for 39 yards on 11 carries and caught eight passes on 11 targets for 42 yards and scored a touchdown. He played a season-high 60% of offensive snaps in Week 14. Consider this a price tag that you want to see with a volume as large as his. He is also getting more looks than Terrance West and even though the Philadelphia Eagles are tough against the run, look for Dixon to continue to get the opportunities.

The Eagles rank 15th against the run, allowing 101.4 yards per game. Philadelphia also is tough when allowing points (20.5 a game), and 266 total on the season (13th). They have been average at getting after the quarterback (15th) but have nine forced fumbles (ninth) in 13 games.

Kenneth Dixon is averaging 6.4 FanDuel points per game.
The implied points for the Ravens is 23
The Baltimore Ravens are favorites (6.0) at home and the over/under is 40.5

Wide Receivers

Michael Crabtree, WR OAK ($6,000)

Michael Crabtree at $6,000 is at a dirt-cheap price and we will probably have to watch for ownership percentage. He has dropped like a stone in production over the last five weeks, but two of those games were against two tough passing defenses in the Denver Broncos (first) and Houston Texans (fifth). Over the past seven weeks he is outproducing Amari Cooper by three targets per game.

Last week against the Kansas City Chiefs, it appeared Derek Carr had his worst performance of the season. Carr’s ineffective performance reflected Crabtree’s output. He caught four passes on seven targets for 21 yards. The encouraging aspect is he has at least six+ targets in his last seven games, and an 11+ in four of them. The matchup between these two teams should result in a high-scoring game as the Raiders face division rival the San Diego Chargers.

The Chargers are a sieve on defense and have allowed 24.7 points per game and a total of 321 (28th) on the season. They struggle to sack the quarterback with only 23 on the year (27th), but they are very good at forcing turnovers, just like the Raiders. They have picked off the opposing quarterback 16 times (first) and have caused nine fumbles (ninth). They do have trouble in stopping the passing game. They have allowed on average 261.4 (25th) yards per game.

Michael Crabtree is averaging 12.2 FanDuel points per game.
The implied points for the Raiders is 26
The Oakland Raiders are favorites (2.5) on the road and the over/under is 49

Dontrelle Inman, WR, SD vs. OAK ($5,500)

Dontrelle Inman has been up and down this season, but in the last three weeks he has scored (16.1, 11.9, 20.9) a total of 48.9 in the last three games. Last week, against the Carolina Panthers he had six receptions for 71 yards and a touchdown.

He has scored in each of his last three games and caught 14-of-18 targets for 239 yards and three touchdowns. The extra bonus is that Philip Rivers is looking his direction on a continuous basis. Those opportunities should be available to him this week against the Oakland Raiders.

The Raiders are one of the worst defenses in the NFL. They rank 30th overall and 27th against the pass, allowing 264.3 yards per game. Also, their rushing defense is just as lousy, allowing 120.2 yards on the ground (26th) in the NFL. Teams are putting up 24.2 points per game against them, and they have allowed 314 points overall. They have struggled to sack the quarterback, but have been solid in forcing turnovers. They are tenth in interceptions and first in fumble recoveries.

Dontrelle Inman is averaging 8.6 FanDuel points per game.
The implied points for the Chargers is 23
The Oakland Raiders are favorites (2.5) on the road and the over/under is 49

Jordan Matthews, WR PHI ($5,900)

Jordan Matthews is not having a very good season. His best performance was week one against the Cleveland Browns (7-114-1), but since then he has had double-digit FanDuel point weeks just four times. He hasn’t scored in five weeks and has only three touchdowns on the season and 65 receptions. He does have six games with six or more receptions, and has caught at least three balls in all games except for one.

Last week, Matthews caught eight passes for 79 yards against the Washington Redskins. He was targeted ten times as the Philadelphia Eagles tried to get him involved as much as possible. This week he will be facing the Baltimore Ravens who are 11th against the pass. The good news is that he will probably play the slot, which means Carson Wentz should involve him heavily this week.

The Baltimore Ravens allow just 17.5 points per game and have given up only 227 points on the season (third). They are solid when it comes to forcing their opponent to turn over the ball. They have 15 interceptions on the season (second) and ten fumble recoveries (sixth).

Jordan Matthews is averaging 10.6 FanDuel points per game.
The implied points for the Eagles is 17
The Baltimore Ravens are favorites (6.0) at home and the over/under is 40.5

Tight End

Trey Burton, TE PHI ($4,500)

You may ask yourself why anyone would place a tag on someone like Trey Burton when Zach Ertz is the tight end in Philadelphia? Good question, and the answer is that Burton is more than a typical tight end, he is a good receiver who can line up almost anywhere on the field. So, while defenses are game planning around Ertz, Burton is finding himself wide open and Carson Wentz is finding him.

Last week, Burton caught seven passes for 65 yards. In the prior two games his volume has risen, as he has been targeted 20 times in that span. The previous nine weeks he totaled just 28. Even though Burton has not done much up until now, Wentz has certainly changed that in the last few weeks. The tight end will have very low ownership, and his price tag will allow you to spend more elsewhere.

Burton will go against the Baltimore Ravens defense that has been strong this season. However, last week they allowed Martellus Bennett to catch four passes for 70 yards and a touchdown. Overall, they have been a top five team against tight ends.

Trey Burton is averaging 4.4 FanDuel points per game.
The implied points for the Eagles is 17
The Baltimore Ravens are favorites (6.0) at home and the over/under is 40.5

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Mike Valverde

Writer at Dynasty League Football

I have a Bachelor of Arts degree in Criminal Justice to go with my master degree in Business Administration. In between these programs, I graduated the from the police academy. Yet, I decided to write for a career. You can catch me at the movies, playing video games, reading or writing out cryptograms, basically anything that requires me sitting on my arse. And it's a surprise to many why I like fantasy football so much.