FanDuel Studs and Duds of Week 4
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Welcome to the fourth edition of FanDuel Studs & Duds! You may be familiar with The Fantasy Footballers’ Studs and Duds segment. This will take a closer look at who shined and who disappointed specifically in FanDuel pricing and scoring the week before. If you’re new to DFS all together, read the The Beginner’s Guide To FanDuel DFS. First, we’ll take a look at the Expensive Studs; guys who were worth the big bucks. Second, the Value Studs; guys you got at a decent price, good value. Third, I’ll highlight the Super Bargain Studs; guys who were studs in a big way at little cost to you. Then, last and least, we’ll look at the Duds; guys who really disappointed relative to their cost.
All prices and point totals are from FanDuel.
Expensive Studs
WR Julio Jones vs CAR, $8500, 42 pts.
-12 receptions, 300 receiving yards, 1 TD
After catching just one pass for 16 yards last week, Jones absolutely torched the Carolina Panthers to become just the 6th player in NFL history to gain 300 yards in a game. It was an unforgettable performance by one of the league’s best. This week however, I’m staying away from his $8900 salary with a matchup in Denver. The Broncos are allowing less than 200 receiving yards a game and have only given up 2 receiving touchdowns all year.
QB Ben Roethlisberger vs KC, $8400, 34 pts.
-300 passing yards, 5 TD, 2-pt conversion
It didn’t seem to matter who Big Ben was throwing to as 4 different receivers caught 5 of his touchdowns on Sunday night against the Kansas City Chiefs. This was his 40th home game in a row with a touchdown pass, good enough for the third-longest streak in NFL history. He will try to make it 41 next week as the New York Jets come to town. The Jets are giving up a 26th best 285 passing yards a game. His $8600 salary is just $200 more than last week but doesn’t deter me from using him.
RB Ezekiel Elliott vs SF, $8100, 22.2 pts.
-1 receptions, 19 receiving yards, 128 rushing yards, 1 TD
The rookie out of Ohio State continues to impress as he dominated the Dallas Cowboys backfield once again. Elliott now has 94 attempts on the season, 70 more than back up Alfred Morris. All the preseason talk of Elliot losing touches can be thrown out the window. His $7900 price tag next week is just a tad high for me as he goes against a defense just outside the top 10 against the run in the Cincinnati Bengals.
WR Antonio Brown vs KC, $9400, 20.4
-4 receptions, 64 yards, 2 TD
TE Jordan Reed vs CLE, $7500, 23.8 pts.
-9 receptions, 73 yards, 2 TD
Value Studs
QB Blake Bortles vs IND, $7700, 25.8 pts.
-207 passing yards, 2 passing TDs, 36 rushing yards, 1 rushing TD
If you overslept and forgot to take Bortles out of your lineup, thank your snooze button for the help. In his first 20 point performance of the season, he led the Jacksonville Jaguars to the team’s first win of the season across the pond in London. The bye Week comes are the perfect time for the team to figure out its offensive struggles. With three juicy matchups in Week 6-8 (@CHI, OAK, @TEN), I’ll be looking at Bortles to produce big numbers when he returns.
RB Matt Jones vs CLE, $6600, 20.8 pts.
-2 receptions, 21 receiving yards, 117 rushing yards, 1 TD
Playing with a lead for most of the second half, the Washington Redskins leaned on Jones to kill the clock. His 117 rushing yards are the second highest of his career. His 66.5 rushing yards a game average seems just about right for the remainder of the season. Hard to imagine him turning out big games like this unless it’s in another blowout. I will politely be saying “No, thanks” to his $6900 price next week at Baltimore.
WR Michael Crabtree vs BAL, $6500, 30.3 pts.
-7 receptions, 88 yards, 3 TDs
The third time was a charm for Crabtree on Sunday as his third touchdown came with just 1:23 left in the game to give his team the win. Costing less than star Amari Cooper, the two have almost identical stats so far this season, except Crabtree has 4 touchdowns while Cooper has yet to find the end zone. At $6900 this week, I like Crabtree to find the end zone once again in a high scoring game against the San Diego Chargers.
RB Will Fuller vs TEN $6700, 23.6 pts.
-7 receptions, 81 receiving yards, 1 receiving TD, 1 returned TD
RB Isaiah Crowell vs WAS, $6600, 20.9 pts.
-112 rushing yards, 1 TD
WR Steve Smith vs OAK, $6100, 21.1 pts.
-8 receptions, 111 yards, 1 TD
Super Bargain Studs
WR Dontrelle Inman vs NO, $5700, 21.5 pts.
-7 receptions, 120 receiving yards, 1 TD
Inman set career highs in both targets and yards on Sunday as Philip Rivers seemed to zone in on the undrafted receiver. His 11 targets were a team high in a crowded receiving core. It could be a situation where you’ll never be able to guess which receiver goes off for the Chargers. Next week they have the worst defense in the NFL in the Oakland Raiders. At $6100 this week, I think he could worth a gamble.
WR Eddie Royal vs DET, $5500, 20.6 pts.
-7 receptions, 111 receiving yards, 1 TD
Vintage Royal came to play on Sunday as he filled in the production of a hobbling Alshon Jeffery. He caught all 7 of his targets from Brian Hoyer, which was the second most on the team. As long as Jeffery is still healing, Royal should see more production. His price tag doesn’t go up too much at $5700 as he takes on the Baltimore Ravens on Sunday. So far the Ravens are the number 1 ranked defense, but just gave up 4 touchdown passes to Derek Carr. I’m not scared of his price but I’d much rather take a chance on someone with a better matchup.
RB Terrance West vs OAK, $4900, 17.3 pts.
-113 rushing yards, 1 TD
Those paying attention to Twitter early Sunday morning saw the surprise scratch of Justin Forsett, leaving the running back duties to West. Carrying the ball 21 times, West was the feature back for the team as backup Buck Allen had a mere 3 carries. Until we hear otherwise, West should get the bulk of the carries against a subpar Washington Redskin defense that’s giving up an average of 133 rushing yards a game. West will be in my lineups this weekend at $6400.
WR Brian Quick vs ARI, $4500, 19.9 pts.
-2 receptions, 69 yards, 2 TD
QB Brian Hoyer vs DET, $6000, 19.78
-302 passing yards, 2 TD
Duds
WR DeAndre Hopkins vs TEN, $8600, 0.9 pts.
-1 receptions, 4 receiving yards
If I told you that Washington Redskins kicker Dustin Hopkins is outscoring DeAndre Hopkins so far this season, would you believe me? Well, you should. The Houston Texans’ receiver almost seemed absent in a good matchup on Sunday. Despite getting 6 targets, he didn’t catch a pass until the 4th quarter. He gets arguably the best defense in the NFL on Sunday, the same defense that held Kelvin Benjamin catchless and Odell Beckham Jr. to just 23 yards. There is no way, no how, I’m paying the $8200 for Hopkins on Sunday.
RB Latavius Murray vs BAL, $7100, 3.4 pts.
-2 receptions, 5 receiving yards, 19 rushing yards.
Remember when the Oakland Raiders gave Murray over 300 touches last season? Yeah, that was fun while it lasted. This past Sunday Murray barely led the team’s rushing attack with rookie DeAndre Washington chomping at the bit to get more playing time. This could be on the verge of the dreaded RBBC. At $6100 against a poor San Diego Chargers defense, it would have been a perfect play but with Washington seeming to get into the mix, it’s hard to trust just how much he’ll play.
QB Matthew Stafford vs CHI, $8300, 8.2 pts.
-213 passing yards, 2 INT
Unfortunately, this is the Stafford we’ve all come to know. After being one of the highest scoring quarterbacks this season, Stafford looked like hot garbage on Sunday in Chicago. Despite his fault filled performance, FanDuel expects him to bounce back against the Philadelphia Eagles, barely dropping his price to $8200. The Eagles have given up just 27 points all season, holding the Pittsburgh Steelers to just 3 points in Week 3. At that price, I’m staying away from Stafford until he figures everything out.
RB Matt Forte vs SEA, $6900, 5.3 pts.
-2 receptions, 16 yards, 27 rushing yards
TE Delanie Walker vs HOU, $6700, 4.4 pts.
-2 receptions, 34 receiving yards
WR DeSean Jackson vs CLE, $6900, 1 pt.
-1 reception, 5 yards
The new prices are already out for Week 5!
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