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 7 Recap

With the injury in practice to Packers running back Aaron Jones we made a late switch to Chargers rookie quarterback Justin Herbert as our Star of the Week. Hopefully you took advantage of that as the moderately priced youngster had a career day, in what looks like it may shape up to be a seriously good career. Herbert got things done through the air, running on the ground, and finding the end zone four times for his team.

We had plenty of nice performances from our other posted quarterbacks as well as all six put up big numbers, headed by Aaron Rodgers, Kyler Murray and Joe Burrow. The same really can’t be said with our running backs as collectively, they didn’t have a ton of production. Alvin Kamara did his usual work, but was unable to find paydirt. Some nice wide receiver play including our lower-priced guys like Terry McLaurin and Tyler Boyd who both had monster games. We rolled with the Washington Football Team defense/special teams in all of our lineups and they didn’t disappoint, overwhelming a decimated Dallas offensive line. Overall, a good, not great week with a little winning and a little losing.

Who Made Us Look Brilliant?

• Justin Herbert – 347 Yards Passing, 66 Yards Rushing, 4 Total TDs
• Aaron Rodgers – 283 Yards Passing, 4 Total TDs
• Kyler Murray – 360 Yards Passing, 67 Yards Rushing, 4 Total TDs
• Joe Burrow – 406 Yards Passing, 37 Yards Rushing, 4 Total TDs
• DeAndre Hopkins – 103 Yards Receiving, 1 Total TD
• Terry McLaurin – 90 Total Yards, 1 Total TD
• Tyler Boyd – 101 Yards Receiving, 1 Total TD
• Giovani Bernard – 37 Yards Rushing, 59 Yards Receiving, 1 Total TD
• Kansas City Chiefs DST – 2 INTs, 2 FR, 3 Sacks, 1 Total TD
• Washington Football Team – 3 Pts, 6 Sacks, 1 FR, 1 INT

Who Made Us Look Foolish?

Way too many misses as we mentioned, especially at the top of the list. Ben Roethlisberger played an efficient game as his team dominated their rivals. As a result, he wasn’t asked to do much in the game. We missed with both of our big-time tight ends as Johnnu Smith and Mark Andrews were basically irrelevant in their contests. David Montgomery was disappointing as he couldn’t capitalize on a dream matchup with just over 50 yards and no scores.

• Hunter Henry – 23 Yards Receiving, 0 Total TD
• Robert Tonyan – 37 Yards Receiving, 0 Total TD
• Demarcus Robinson – 4 Yards Receiving, 0 Total TD
• Cleveland Browns DST – 34 Pts, 468 Yards, 1 INT, 4 Sacks
  

NFL Week 8

STAR OF THE WEEK:

The Cleveland Browns start their season without Odell Beckham, Jr. this weekend against the Las Vegas Raiders looking to ride the momentum of an exciting last minute win. Much has been made of Baker Mayfield’s success without OBJ in the lineup, so a huge change in the gameplan is probably not in the cards. It’s probably safe to assume that there will be at least a slightly bigger emphasis on the running game however, which is where Kareem Hunt comes into play. Although Hunt hasn’t been great, he’s certainly been solid playing the lead back role with Nick Chubb on IR. This weekend really seems to be shaping up as what could be a breakout performance for him as the absence of Beckham, combined with the their opponent should have fantasy owners excited. The Raiders have not been good stopping the run at all, and a strong runner like Hunt will pose some issues wearing them down. The Browns are hopeful their strong guard Wyatt Teller will return to the lineup which should only help things in the run game. Throw in the fact that he’ll be a strong candidate to score at least once and is always good for a few catches and he should be in line for a very productive game.

For the rest of the week, make sure you’re building around your favorite heavy hitter as there are a lot of potential busts, and you need to make sure you select the right player. Guys like Alvin Kamara and Derrick Henry can certainly carry the load, but you may want to steer clear of some of these in their respective matchups.

PLAYERS WE’RE TARGETING:

Quarterbacks:

Aaron Rodgers – $7,600 vs. Vikings
Ryan Tannehill – $6,800 vs. Bengals

Running Backs:

Kareem Hunt – $6,900 vs. Raiders
Clyde Edwards-Helaire – $6,500 vs. Jets

Wide Receivers:

Davante Adams – $8,800 vs. Vikings
A.J. Brown – $6,900 vs. Bengals

Tight Ends:

Travis Kelce – $6,600 vs. Jets
Darren Waller – $5,600 vs. Browns

Defense / Special Teams:

Kansas City Chiefs – $4,500 vs. Jets

Quarterbacks:

Jared Goff – $6,500 vs. Dolphins
Joe Burrow – $6,200 vs. Titans

Running Backs:

Alexander Mattison – $6,000 vs. Packers
Melvin Gordon III – $5,600 vs. Chargers

Wide Receivers:

Tee Higgins – $5,600 vs. Titans
Cole Beasley – $5,300 vs. Patriots

Tight Ends:

Robert Tonyan – $4,300 vs. Vikings
Johnnu Smith – $4,100 vs. Bengals

Defense / Special Teams:

Green Bay Packers – $2,900 vs. Vikings

Quarterbacks:

Derek Carr – $5,500 vs. Browns
Jimmy Garoppolo – $5,400 – Seahawks

Running Backs:

Jamychal Hasty – $5,000 vs. Seahawks
Le’Veon Bell – $4,500 vs. Jets

Wide Receivers:

Julian Edelman – $4,400 vs. Bills
Rashard Higgins – $4,200 vs. Raiders

Tight Ends:

Tyler Kroft – $3,500 vs. Patriots
Drew Sample – $3,400 vs. Titans

Defense / Special Teams:

Miami Dolphins – $2,400 vs. Rams

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!