Week 8 begins tonight with the Denver Broncos taking on the San Diego Chargers. For the first time this season, the Thursday slate will have a ton of fantasy implications, with both offenses being amongst the top in the NFL.
XN Sports will present values and picks for DraftKings each and every week throughout the season for all your daily fantasy needs. Check out all the contests at DraftKings here, and be sure to enter the Week 6 freerolls right away.
If you have not played on DraftKings yet, be sure to make your first deposit which will earn you a free spot in a paid tournament. Why play DraftKings? In addition to being one of the most aesthetically-pleasing websites on the internet, DraftKings offers user-friendly scoring and rules which can be found in full here. In addition, there is no kicker so any of those six field goal days will not ruin your weekend.
The details of this week’s contest:
Contest Details
-DraftKings $100K Play-Action
-Turn $2 into $10,000
-$100,000 in Total Prizes
-$10,000 First Place prize
-Just $2 to enter
Without further ado, your value plays and lineups for Week 8.
Reminder: The Falcons/Lions game starts at 9:30 a.m. EST on Sunday morning.
Running Back
Joique Bell, $4,800
With pricing on DraftKings being a little on the soft side this weekend, a lot of players will invest in values at running back. One of the values, and possibly the best, is Bell. With Reggie Bush listed as questionable and not practicing, Bell’s value could be even higher. Bell and the Lions take on the Falcons this week, who are, by far, the best matchup for opposing running backs. The Falcons have allowed a dozen rushing touchdowns on the season already, along with 886 yards rushing. In addition, if Bush is out that makes Bell a feature in the passing game too. The Falcons have allowed opposing running backs to catch 42 passes for 379 yards this season as well, both in the bottom five amongst NFL defenses. Bell may be owned by everyone this weekend, but it is still worth adding him to your lineups.
Wide Receiver
Wes Welker, $3,500
Welker seems like an afterthought behind Demaryius Thomas, Julius Thomas, and now Emmanuel Sanders in the Broncos passing game. That is one reason why his price has fallen to $3,500. But, do not let that scare you away. Welker has played in four games this season, and only has one dud in terms of fantasy performance. In Week 6 against the Jets, Welker only caught one pass for eight yards. In the other three games however, Welker has averaged over five catches for 55 yards, and he has scored one touchdown. While not a top-tier play, that is a solid floor for a player that costs the same as Miles Austin and Markus Wheaton. In addition, the Chargers will likely be without their top corners, which will give Welker a huge boost against someone lower on the depth chart. Chris Davis could be an option, and he has allowed five catches on six targets as a rookie in limited snaps this season.
Tight End
Zach Ertz, $3,200
The minimum price for tight ends on Draft Kings is $3,000, which means you can get Ertz for just over the minimum. With players like Julius Thomas, Rob Gronkowski, and Jimmy Graham costing almost double his price, that makes Ertz a value this weekend. Ertz has three or more catches in every game but one this season, and only has one game below 6.9 fantasy points on DraftKings. Ertz and the Eagles will take on the Cardinals this week, who have allowed 35 catches for 414 yards and three touchdowns to tight ends this season. Only twice have the Cardinals allowed less than nine fantasy points to an opposing tight end, and that was against the Raiders (whose top tight end only has 25 targets) and the Niners who were playing without Vernon Davis. In the other four games, the Cardinals allowed no less than 99 yards and/or a touchdown to opposing tight ends.
Tight ends against the Cardinals in those four games:
San Diego Chargers (Antonio Gates): eight catches for 105 yards, or 18.5 DraftKings points.
New York Giants (Larry Donnell): eight catches for 82 yards and a touchdown, or 22.2 DraftKings points.
Denver Broncos (Julius Thomas): seven catches for 83 yards and two touchdowns, or 27.3 DraftKings points.
Washington Redskins (Jordan Reed and Niles Paul): nine catches for 99 yards, or 18.9 DraftKings points.
Lineup (Including Thursday)
QB – Peyton Manning $8,900
RB – Joique Bell $4,800
RB – Matt Forte $8,800
WR – Larry Fitzgerald $4,400
WR – Demaryius Thomas $7,900
WR – Wes Welker $3,500
TE – Zach Ertz $3,200
FLEX – LeSean McCoy $5,800
DST – Vikings $2,600
Lineup (Sunday-Monday)
QB – Nick Foles $6,300
RB – Joique Bell $4,800
RB – LeSean McCoy $5,800
WR – *Calvin Johnson $6,300
WR – Jordy Nelson $7,800
WR – Dez Bryant $6,900
TE – Zach Ertz $3,200
FLEX – *A.J. Green $5,900
DST – Cowboys $3,000
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* Indicates possible inactive, check inactive reports an hour before kickoff.
