The Daily Dose: Week 9 FanDuel Starts
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Welcome to the Week 9 edition of The Daily Dose: FanDuel Starts Of The Week. Every Friday on The Fantasy Footballers Podcast, the guys welcome Chris Meaney from the FNTSY Sports Network to deliver his top DFS picks of the week. Here I’ll summarize Chris’ picks and give you some bonus picks of my own. You can follow Chris on Twitter @chrismeaney and myself @brandontsanders. Don’t miss all of Episode #301, and you can also jump straight to The Daily Dose segment on YouTube.
Quarterbacks
With the continuation of the “Bye-pocalyse” still going on and multiple teams having the weekend off, we are left with just a few choices to choose from. Chris believes playing it safe this week will be the ticket to success but he also wanted to give a particular player’s name that isn’t as popular but could be an outstanding GPP play for Week 9.
Aaron Rodgers vs IND, $9,100
With the most expensive option at QB this week, A-Rod faces one of the worst secondaries in the NFL in the Colts this weekend. He will be looking to pepper his sneaky RB/WR in Ty Montgomery as well as Davante Adams who has come on strong in the previous weeks. Add in the veteran Jordy Nelson, and Indianapolis is in for a long day of playing points catch up. This game could turn into a bonanza as both teams have struggled this season to contain the passing game, so Rodgers could be worth every penny you pay up for him.
Drew Brees @ SF, $8,600
Just like when you get to play the Cleveland Browns if you have a strong QB that is going to play the San Francisco 49ers, it’s pretty imperative that you play him. Luckily it’s future Hall of Famer Drew Brees this week that looks to continue his hot streak of performing well against passing defenses. He went for 20.7 FanDuel points just last week against a very game Seattle Seahawks who ranked 6th against the pass, and now this week with San Francisco ranking 7th right behind their rivals in the Seahawks.
Dak Prescott @ CLE, $7,600
It’s the rookie sensations first chance to get to play the Cleveland Browns and with the tear he’s been on, it’s no surprise here that Dak could have a very strong outing both in the passing and the running game this weekend. He found a returning Dez Bryant for 14 targets, 114 yards receiving and a TD just last week. You add that with Ezekiel Elliott literally plowing through everyone for 799 rushing yards so far in the season ranking 1st among RBs, and you got a lot of options and looks that Prescott can look for. At a much better pricing option than the previous two, the production could pay off in all formats of FanDuel.
Colin Kaepernick vs NO, $7,200
This will probably be one of the riskiest and toughest glory plays of the season, but with limited options with the bye weeks occurring, Colin Kaepernick is looking like a very sneaky but solid play for GPP tournaments for Week 9. He was able to rush for 140 yards in the past two weeks, and New Orleans has always ranked in recent history as a team you can pass on as well. If Kaepernick can get both the passing and his running game going, he could definitely lead your FanDuel team to some money. Plus he saves on the budget so you can spend up on some other elite players.
Running Backs
The theme for Week 9 continues as some of the best matchups will likely cost the bigger budget, but there are some really good savings out there this week due to some injury, and the other being a resurgence from an RB determined to become the RB1 for his team. Let’s take a look at what Chris likes.
Ezekiel Elliott @ CLE, $9,200
Once again the priciest of them all, but Chris thinks the ground game is going to get going early in this contest, and with Zeke getting over 16 FanDuel points for the 6 of the last 7 games, you have to spend up to get the best RB in the league right now. You may be able to discount at the wideout and tight end positions to do so, but would be worth it to play it safe and bank on the continuous amount of fantasy points that Elliott can supply you week in and week out.
Devontae Booker @ OAK, $7,000
Mr. Booker makes his second appearance back to back on The Daily Dose, but with his rising production also means his rising price point for FanDuel. This week he’s at $7,000, but still, a great play as Denver travels to Oakland to take on their rivals in the Raiders. The Raiders currently rank 28th in rushing defense, and with Devontae getting 1 touchdown in each of the last 2 games, Chris thinks the writing is on the wall and we may see more touchdowns coming. He is a much cheaper option that Easy E this weekend as well. Keep monitoring the shoulder injury closely, but it looks like he will start at the writing of this article.
Theo Riddick @ MIN, $6,600
We know what you may be thinking, play an RB against the Minnesota defense?!? The simple answer to that question is “yes”. With the Vikings being so dominant against the run and passing game, this is a great sneaky GPP play as Matt Stafford will have to check down quite often and find someone that can complete the short yardage game. Luckily for him, he has the top-ranked RB in passing touchdowns this year in Theo Riddick who has 4 to his name already for 2016. If the Lions want to survive and win this game, Riddick could be one of the keys to getting the job done this weekend.
Charcandrick West vs JAX, $5,600
This is probably the most popular pick you’ll see in Head to Head and 50/50 matchups this week, but for such a juicy matchup and pricepoint, it would be a shame not to roll him out there and let him earn and withstand you some victories. With Spencer Ware still in concussion protocol as of Friday morning, and with Jamaal Charles sent to IR for what looks like the rest of the season, “Charzard” has a fantastic opportunity to run wild on the Jaguars defense that ranks 27th against the run game. He could also help you pull some more of the elite options this week that have been discussed already as well to stack on your roster because of the savings on the budget.
Darren Sproles @ NYG, $4,800
Even though the Eagles head coach Doug Pederson claims Ryan Mathews is still the “starting running back”, the writing is on the wall as Darren Sproles continues to be used more and more in their game plans and has passed the “eye test” as the clear lead back. He has produced more than 200 yards in both the running and the passing game. He faces the 11th ranked New York Giants this weekend, but with how crafty and fast he plays, he could cause some issues for the Giants, especially if everyone keeps game planning for Ryan Mathews instead. At 4,800, if you need one more option at RB and you’re strapped for budget, this would be an awesome glory play this weekend. Especially for GPP play.
Wide Receivers
Mr. Meaney has quite the roster of wideouts for you to choose from this weekend. Even with a bye week, it is so much easier to find a WR that can still get it done for you in Week 9. Let’s go down the list and highlight the guys that could win you some serious cash.
Antonio Brown @ BAL, $8,700
Antonio Brown isn’t over $9,000 dollars this week?! What?! He has a bit of a discounted price this weekend and with a possible Big Ben return and a division rivalry game against the Baltimore Ravens, this might be the time to enlist one of the most prolific wide receivers the NFL has ever seen. This could also mean that Brown could be back to form with his starting QB back in the lineup and looking for him and Bell to move the sticks against the Ravens and pull off a divisional win. Before the bye week Brown did sustain a hip pointer, but with time off he is back to feeling 100%, and that should show this Sunday.
Dez Bryant @ CLE, $7,800
It’s play all your studs versus the Cleveland Browns segment of the article, and Dez Bryant returned in fashion last week with his 114 yards and a touchdown. With such a mismatch he brings against the Browns, this is a no-brainer for this weekend, and with the discounted price of $7,800, he’s a great pairing with some of these other receivers we will list below. Also a fantastic stack with Prescott as well.
Davante Adams vs IND, $7,100
The “stinky cheese” has not been stinky at all this season. In fact even with no TD last weekend, he still was able to bring in 12 targets for 73 yards and was targeted frequently in the passing game. He is becoming a favorite of Aaron Rodgers to look for near the end zone as well. For the price point, an awesome stack with A-Rod would equal some pretty awesome success against the horrendous Colts secondary for Week 9.
Emmanuel Sanders @ OAK, $6,800
Did you know Emmanuel Sanders has accumulated 75 targets already this season? That’s an insane amount of looks, and with a very tasty matchup against Oakland this week, Sanders could find himself pelted with more of those targets and looked at for some big yardage play if the Broncos want to look to confuse the Raiders and change up the running game they have been succeeding with the past few weeks that started against the Houston Texans on Monday Night Football. A great price for Sanders as well, enlist this speedster in your lineups.
Allen Robinson @ KC, $6,700
It seems that everyone is down on Allen Robinson here recently with his production not being near what it was last season, but a lot of it has to do with the performance of his QB Blake Bortles. Luckily Bortles knows he’s been struggling and has brought in his personal Quarterback trainer to work on his mechanics to refresh and fix the issues he’s having. So if you’re looking for an out of the normal GPP play, A-Rob could be your guy this week against a good Kansas City defense that does give away long receiving plays from time to time.
Donte Moncrief @ GB, $6,100
The returning Moncrief from injury proved to be a staple in the Colts offense yet again as he went for 9 receptions, 41 receiving yards and a touchdown. Now that Andrew Luck has both Moncrief and Hilton to throw to, Hilton’s production may come down a bit, but Donte’s should continue to rise as he gets back in the groove of being the biggest wideout in the passing game in Indy, and looked for more so in the end zone in the coming weeks. He has an awesome value for $6,100 this weekend.
Michael Thomas @ SF, $5,800
Even though most people would consider this more of contrarian pick, Chris Meaney wanted to point out that the rookie from Ohio State has had the most targets thrown at him overall on the New Orleans Saints this season at 55 targets. Drew Brees even recently said that he “couldn’t ask for more” out of his new WR, and constantly looks for him on a weekly basis. He currently sits at 42 receptions for 500 yards and 3 touchdowns already this season. Great low price for a stud rookie wideout.
Tyrell Williams vs TEN, $5,600
If Travis Benjamin doesn’t get to start this week, Tyrell Williams should be the receiver to own in San Diego this weekend. Even though he hasn’t had stellar performances recently due to facing Denver twice, when he does play against a bad passing defense, he has excelled. He went for 140 yards receiving against the Falcons and had over 5 targets per game all but one game going into those matchups with Denver. Even if he’s not the WR1, he’s still the guy to have from the Chargers. Great matchup with a low price this week.
Tight Ends
It’s time to put on our boots and walk through the sludge yet again to pull a top Tight End performance out to maximize points for our FanDuel teams. We have one obvious, and couple more that could help you out in Week 9.
Greg Olsen @ LA, $7,500
Mr. Consistent, Greg Olsen is someone that you probably need to pay up for this week. With no Gronk, Bennett, or Eifert playing this week, it’s imperative to find the best option available and that would be Olsen. He does have a harder matchup against the Rams, but he’s been proven to be matchup proof and a must start if you can afford him on your budgets.
Travis Kelce vs JAX, $6,600
“Zeus” is back for the second straight week on The Daily Dose, but this time for a much different reason. There’s no Alex Smith this week, nor Spencer Ware, and with Nick Foles running the show against the Jaguars on Sunday, he’s likely to play the check down game and look for Kelce early and often. Foles has a tendency to use his Tight End more, so this puts Travis on the list this week as a possible winner for your lineups.
Lance Kendricks vs CAR, $4,500
Yep, Lance Kendricks is on this list. Why? Because at the bottom of the barrel price he sits at, and the matchup against an almost non-existing secondary Carolina Panthers, and we could have the GPP play of the week here. He did have a season-high 9 targets and 55 yards receiving against the Giants before they entered their bye week. Can he continue the trend forward and take advantage of the juicy matchup ahead of him? Chris seems to think so.
Defenses
Chris Meaney and I usually have one philosophy, you pay up for your defenses and let them do their job, and focus on the other positions and assemble your lineup. Here are the plays you wanna look for on defense this week to help you rake in some dough.
Kansas City Chiefs vs JAZ, $5,100
Denver Broncos @ OAK, $5,000
Dallas Cowboys @ CLE, $4,900
Philadelphia Eagles @ NYG, $4,600
Brandon’s Picks
To add with Chris Meaney’s picks, I’m going to give you one more option at each position to give you what I think might be the best chance of us piling in some cash on Week 9’s FanDuel. So let’s take a look of my go-to’s this weekend.
QB: Marcus Mariota @ SD, $7,600
Mariota has been a beast over the past few weeks, even last Thursday night where he went off for 18 completed passes, 270 passing yards, and 2 touchdowns with no interceptions. For the year Marcus has 32 carries as a QB, ranking 5th overall. If he can find some holes in the San Diego offense, he can torch them through the air, or punish them for running yards. San Diego currently ranks 23rd overall against the pass. For the price, it’s hard to not give Mariota the shot this weekend.
RB: Ty Montgomery vs IND, $6,500
It looks as though Ty Montgomery is recovering from his sickle-cell trait sickness that left him on off the roster for Week 8. Now it looks as though he will, in fact, play and will be looked at the most in the starting RB role for the Packers. Add in he can give you mass receiving yards in the WR game and big target in the red zone, and you have a very dangerous dual threat to go against those struggling Colts. He is right in that sweet spot for your budget and him and Charcandrick West pairing could be awesome for a payday.
WR: Corey Coleman vs DAL, $5,600
Before his hand injury that has left him out for the most of the season, in the first 2 games of Corey Coleman’s NFL career, he raked in 173 receiving yards and a pair of touchdowns. He was the key cog in the passing game for Cleveland, and with his return in Week 9, I believe he becomes the main focus for the rest of the season. He’s got that bargain bin price and awesome for all formats on FanDuel for this week.
TE: Jason Witten @ CLE, $5,200
So far in 2016, Dak Prescott has targeted Jason Witten 45 times, which is 8th best among tight ends. He will continue to do so as Dak has found a great rapport with Witten, and with the FanDuel scoring of half a point per reception, this could be a great play against the Browns who rank 24th against the passing attack of other teams.
Defense: Los Angeles Rams vs CAR, $4,500
With the Rams being the 7th best defense overall against opposing offenses, and being the 5th ranked defense in fumbles recovered, they could try to impose their will against Cam Newton and the Panthers who had to make the trip from the East in North Carolina all the way to sunny California. I see fatigue possibly being a factor in this contest. The Rams are also cheaper than the options that were listed earlier as well.
Be sure to stop by next week as we’ll have brand new picks for you in Week 10. Don’t forget to catch all of Episode #301 of The Fantasy Footballers Podcast. See you all next week DFS fans!
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