Daily fantasy football continues to climb in popularity as jackpots have risen consistently and more fans are joining sites every week. Our weekly article showcases players to target at three general levels of value: The big dollar talent (Heavy Hitters), the average-priced contributors (Average Athletes), and the guys very questionable players at the bottom of the cost charts (Sneaky Sleepers). Our selected players are based on DraftKings values as that is our daily fantasy site of choice, but the values should translate fairly well to any other sites you may use. We don’t share specific lineups or optimized computer rankings, but we will give you some great candidates for you to consider. We set this breakdown up that way because while winning is great, a big part of the fun draw of daily fantasy is mixing and matching your lineups to see how you can maximize your team. That and the fact that we are trying to win the same way that you are, and quite frankly, we don’t want our readers to all have the same exact lineups.
NFL Week 8 Recap
Following our best performance of the season in week 7, we weren’t able to follow it up with a repeat winning weekend. The disappointment started with our Star of the Week, Raheem Mostert. The Dolphins were throwing all game, quite successfully, and after a first half deficit, Mostert never really got the touches we anticipated. He had a serviceable game from a true game standpoint, but for fantasy purposes he couldn’t even crack the double-digit mark. Having him as a staple in our rosters hurt us across the board, even in the lineups that featured some heavy hitters or nice stacks. After back-to-back weeks nailing the Star of the Week, some serious regression hit us. No sense in dwelling too much on it, back to the studying. Before we do that, let’s look at the guys that did play well that we highlighted, and the ones that really let us down
These Players Made Us Look Good:
Jalen Hurts – 285 Yards Passing, 10 Yards Rushing, 4 Total TDs
Derrick Henry – 219 Yards Rushing, 9 Yards Receiving, 2 Total TDs
Tyreek Hill – 188 Yards Receiving, 9 Yards Rushing, 0 Total TDs
Marcus Mariota – 253 Yards Passing, 43 Yards Rushing, 3 Total TDs
Tyler Allgeier – 39 Yards Rushing, 43 Yards Receiving, 1 Total TD
Antonio Gibson – 19 Yards Rushing, 58 Yards Receiving, 1 Total TD
These Players Made Us Look Foolish:
Tyler Higbee – 15 Yards Receiving, 0 Total TD
Hunter Renfrow – 6 Yards Receiving, 0 Total TD
NFL Week 9 Preview
This Sunday offers the smallest slate of afternoon games so far this season as there are only 10 contests to select players from. That can actually be advantageous, but narrows down the field even more, making selecting the top players even more important than with a larger card. With the trade deadline just passing it’s also wise to look for one week sleeper players, or guys who might get a spot opportunity. For example, a tight end in Minnesota, or a running back in Miami. Stacking options aren’t quite as obvious as a week ago, however there are some teams that still have some nice combination value. You’ll be able to spot the one we like with our featured players below.
Before we highlight our three levels of talent, let’s look at our projected star of the week:
STAR OF THE WEEK:
Being able to grab Washington Commanders top wideout Terry McLaurin for under $6,000 would have been unheard of during his peak performances the previous two seasons. McLaurin was routinely a top 5 WR option and usually around the $7,000 mark, which makes his value pretty strong for this upcoming week. In evaluating his stats on the season, the price tag is probably pretty spot on as the talented receiver has grabbed only a pair of touchdowns during the 2022 campaign thus far. So why are we taking a gamble on a player who has averaged just over 13 fantasy points per game this week? It’s pretty simple really, it’s all about the quarterback play in Washington. In the two games since returning as starter, Taylor Heinecke has leaned heavily on McLaurin, which included last week’s 6-113-1 line, his overall best of the season. Having gotten 16 targets the past two weekends, it’s pretty fair to assume Heinecke will be looking in McLaurin’s direction again in their contest with the Vikings. Minnesota ranks just 26th in points allowed to opposing receivers, and they’ve given up quite a few big plays on the year. We’re also expecting a fair amount of points from the Vikings, which means Washington won’t be able to just lean on their running game throughout their meeting. You’re going to have to find another dominant player to carry your roster Sunday, perhaps a Cooper Kupp or Aaron Jones, but McLaurin should definitely be able to help you add to your totals. The price is right on “Scary” Terry right after the Halloween week.
Quarterbacks:
Josh Allen – $8,500 vs. Jets
Kirk Cousins – $6,200 vs. Commanders
Running Backs:
Aaron Jones – $7,400 vs. Lions
Josh Jacobs – $7,300 vs. Jaguars
Wide Receivers:
Cooper Kupp – $8,900 vs. Buccaneers
Justin Jefferson – $8,600 vs. Commanders
Tight Ends:
Zach Ertz – $5,100 vs. Seahawks
Gerald Everett – $4,800 vs. Falcons
Defense / Special Teams:
New England Patriots – $4,100 vs. Colts
Quarterbacks:
Geno Smith – $5,800 vs. Cardinals
Taylor Heinecke – $5,400 vs. Vikings
Running Backs:
Travis Etienne, Jr. – $6,300 vs. Raiders
Rhamondre Stevenson – $6,200 vs. Colts
Wide Receivers:
Keenan Allen – $6,500 vs. Falcons (check injury report)
Chris Godwin – $6,200 vs. Rams
Tight Ends:
Tyler Higbee – $3,700 vs. Buccaneers
Evan Engram – $3,300 vs. Raiders
Defense / Special Teams:
Tampa Bay Buccaneers – $3,000 vs. Rams
Quarterbacks:
Marcus Mariota – $5,300 vs. Chargers
Trevor Lawrence – $5,200 – vs. Raiders
Running Backs:
Antonio Gibson – $5,500 vs. Vikings
Tyler Allgeier – $5,400 vs. Chargers
Wide Receivers:
Curtis Samuel – $5,200 vs. Vikings
Mack Hollins – $4,500 vs. Jaguars
Tight Ends:
Cade Otton – $3,100 vs. Rams
Will Dissly – $3,000 vs. Cardinals
Defense / Special Teams:
Carolina Panthers – $2,300 vs. Bengals
If you play Daily Fantasy Football, we love talking sports and we’d love to hear your take and who you like each week, find us on Twitter @TheBetCrushers and let us know. Good luck and enjoy the weekend! 
