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 5 Recap

Our Star of the Week for week five was a somewhat surprising scratch so hopefully you adjusted your lineups accordingly. We swapped out Dalvin Cook for Alexander Mattison, which proved very fruitful. Unlike a week ago, we had more big hits and big misses, as opposed to a lot of really quality performances. In our preview, we kind of anticipated that, as some of the pricey players definitely proved their worth, led by Tom Brady and Derrick Henry. Somehow Tom Brady did something he’s never done, tossing 5 TDs and over 400 yards, despite sitting out the final 9 minutes of the game. His supporting cast, mainly Antonio Brown, also crushed it. We mentioned he might end up being WR1 on Sunday and he came through with a monster stat line. Our lineups that had the big hitters cashed in, where as we whiffed in some other scenarios. Not a bad weekend by any stretch, but not the best either.

Who Made Us Look Brilliant?

• Tom Brady – 411 Yards Passing, 13 Yards Rushing, 5 Total TDs
• Derrick Henry – 130 Yards Rushing, 3 Total TDs
• Antonio Gibson – 60 Yards Rushing, 12 Yards Receiving, 2 Total TDs
• Nick Chubb – 161 Yards Rushing, 9 Yards Receiving, 1 Total TD
• CeeDee Lamb – 84 Yards Receiving, 4 Yards Rushing, 1 Total TD
• Antonio Brown – 124 Yards Receiving, 2 Total TDs
• Leonard Fournette – 67 Yards Rushing, 43 Yards Receiving, 1 Total TD
• Philadelphia Eagles DST – 267 Yards Allowed, 3 Sacks, 3 INTs, 1 Total TD
  

Who Made Us Look Foolish?

• Terry McLaurin – 46 Yards Receiving, 0 Total TD
• T.J. Hockenson – 22 Yards Receiving, 0 Total TD
• Jared Goff – 203 Yards Passing, 0 Total TD, 1 INT
• Dallas Goedert – 22 Yards Receiving, 0 Total TD
• D.J. Moore – 42 Yards Receiving, 0 Total TD
• Adam Thielen – 40 Yards Receiving, 0 Total TD

NFL Week 6 Preview

Monitor the injuries around the league as it gets closer to Sunday as you’ll probably need to find some late sleepers that can produce for you. There are some near slam-dunk options at the top of the money board. The key to winning in week six is going to be finding the complimentary smaller priced players to provide some balance and points. The position that provides the biggest question mark, as it often does, will be at tight end. We’re always leery of spending big bucks here, but it’s so appealing to grab Travis Kelce, or Monday night hero Mark Andrews. With Andrews, the question is whether or not it’s chasing the points with him, or if he and Lamar Jackson found that connection that was somewhat missing to start the season. One thing we’ll definitely be doing this week is having a lot of consistency with our top players. It’ll be a boom or bust Sunday for the BetCrushers.

STAR OF THE WEEK:

There are quite a few options for Star of the Week, at all three of the big positions. After studying the numbers for a bit, it was very difficult to find a clear edge, so we used a little less scientific approach. We’re simply fading the winless Detroit Lions defense and taking Bengals running back Joe Mixon. Through the first five games of the season Mixon is only averaging 14.1 PPG, so it’s a bit of a dice roll in banking on him to lead your team. The workhorse is more than capable of producing, but again, this is more about taking a shot at a Lions rush defense that is ranked 31st in giving up points to opposing runners. Coming off of an ankle injury, Mixon split time with Samaje Perine against the Packers. This weekend he should have some extra time to heal up, and Perine just tested positive for COVID-19, meaning Mixon is the only veteran back currently on the roster. Cincinnati will lean on him and he should find the end zone at least once in this game. The Bengals should be winning, or at least close in this game, which means the running game will remain relevant throughout. We’re not suggesting Mixon will be the top scorer in your lineup, however at a modest $6,400 price tag, he’s definitely worth locking in.

PLAYERS WE’RE TARGETING:

Quarterbacks:

Patrick Mahomes – $8,300 vs. Washington Football Team
Justin Herbert – $7,300 vs. Ravens

Running Backs:

Austin Ekeler – $7,900 vs. Ravens
Ezekiel Elliott – $7,100 vs. Patriots

Wide Receivers:

Tyreek Hill – $8,500 vs. Washington Football Team
Terry McLaurin – $7,100 vs. Chiefs

Tight Ends:

Travis Kelce – $7,000 vs. Washington Football Team
Mark Andrews – $5,200 vs. Chargers

Defense / Special Teams:

Denver Broncos – $3,900 vs. Raiders

Quarterbacks:

Matthew Stafford – $6,700 vs. Giants
Sam Darnold – $6,100 vs. Vikings

Running Backs:

D’Andre Swift – $6,300 vs. Bengals
Darrell Henderson – $6,000 vs. Giants

Wide Receivers:

Keenan Allen – $6,400 vs. Ravens
Brandin Cooks – $5,800 vs. Colts

Tight Ends:

Evan Engram – $3,400 vs. Rams
Jared Cook – $3,200 vs. Ravens

Defense / Special Teams:

Carolina Panthers – $2,900 vs. Vikings

Quarterbacks:

Taylor Heinicke – $5,800 vs. Chiefs
Carson Wentz – $5,400 vs. Texans

Running Backs:

Devontae Booker – $5,400 vs. Rams
Damien Harris – $5,200 vs. Cowboys

Wide Receivers:

Hunter Renfrow – $4,900 vs. Broncos
Van Jefferson – $3,400 vs. Giants

Tight Ends:

Mo Alie-Cox – $3,100 vs. Texans
Ricky Seals-Jones – $3,000 vs. Chiefs

Defense / Special Teams:

Detroit Lions – $2,100 vs. Cincinnati 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!