Welcome to Week 2 of the 2019 NFL season. I’m excited to get going so here are the week 1 NFL players I love on FanDuel and DraftKings.
My breakdown covers the Sunday Main slate of games, so no TNF, SNF or MNF players will be covered. The bulk of the action on both sites is on the main slate so that’s why I narrow my focus.
For each position I’ll shine the flashlight on 5-8 players at different price points that I think are good plays for this week. The point of this article is to provide you with a pool of players you can build your lineups from. While there’s no magic bullet, this is the group of players that I’ll be building my lineups from. With so many different options I won’t put together a lineup in this article, though I will provide the lineup I’ll be playing on Sunday mornings in a new post. I do that in case I find something in my research or if there is any late injury news that can affect how I build my lineups. To that point, if I end up adding or removing anyone from my list of players, I’ll be sure to update this article with that info.
Follow me on Twitter @FlashlightDFS for my latest updates, last minute info, game day entertainment and lineup advice.
I don’t break down every single player at the top. It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out that Pat Mahomes, Saquon Barkley, Julio Jones or Travis Kelce are good players. If you want to play a stud player that I don’t highlight, go for it.
***JUST BECAUSE I DON’T WRITE A PLAYER UP DOESN’T MEAN YOU SHOULDN’T PLAY HIM IF YOU WANT TO. I’M HIGHLIGHTING GUYS AT DIFFERENT PRICE POINTS THAT I LIKE THE BEST***
QUARTERBACK
Pat Mahomes (9000 FD/7500 DK) – Mahomes tore up Jacksonville last week while losing his #1 receiver and spraining his ankle in the first half. He faces Oakland who just lost TWO starters from their defensive secondary. He’s expensive but I can’t convince myself that he won’t pay off, and this could be a blowout game for him if the Raiders can keep things semi-competitive.
Derek Carr (6600 FD/5100 DK) – Hear me out on this one, it’s directly correlated to the Mahomes play. Oakland’s defense is down TWO starters from their secondary last week so KC will put up points. What do teams who are losing big do? They throw the ball. KC gave up 275/2 to Gardiner Minshew last week once Nick Foles was hurt. Carr was a highly efficient 259/1 last week. Seems to me that Carr will have every opportunity to score this week and at such a low price he’s hard to resist.
Tom Brady (7800 FD/6400 DK) – Brady lit up the Steelers on Sunday night to the tune of 341/3 and he gets to face the Dolphins who just gave up 324/5 to Lamar Jackson. There’s concern about a blowout here, there’s concern that Belichik will use this game to get his run game in order as it totally sucked last week. Is there any way Brady doesn’t throw for 250/2 against Miami? I don’t think so and that performance will pay off the salary.
Dak Prescott (7700 FD/6300 DK) – Dak lit up the Giants for 405/4 last week and he’s got the Redskins who just gave up 313/3 to Carson Wentz. Unfortunately for Zeke owners the run D is stronger for Washington so it looks like the Cowboys will lean on Prescott’s arm to move the ball down the field.
Ben Roethlisberger (7600 FD/5800 DK) – Big Ben’s home/road splits are insane. The Steelers are at home, pissed off after getting embarrassed by the Patriots on Sunday night and they face the Seahawks who gave up 418/2 to Andy Dalton. There’s risk here for sure, but I like a bounce back for Big Ben and the Steelers.
RUNNING BACK
Alvin Kamara (8700 FD/8200 DK) – Kamara faces the Rams who were torched by CMC last week. Kamara saw 20 touches (13/97 rushing, 7/72 receiving) last week. With similar skill sets it’s hard to imagine Kamara not having another impact game, and if he can convert a TD or two it’ll make a big week bigger.
Dalvin Cook (7900 FD/7200 DK) – Dalvin’s price is rising but he’s still very affordable considering his usage. With 21/111/2 on the ground last week it’s pretty clear what the Vikings want to do: RUN THE BALL. Hell, even his backup had 9/49 last week. I don’t think the Packers run D is as good as it seemed last week so I’m confident rolling out Cook again who should have another very solid week.
Derrick Henry (7500 FD/6000 DK) – Henry had a nice game last week racking up 14/84/1 rushing and caught a screen pass for a 75-yard TD. Monster game but we can’t count on the receptions. Bottom line is that Henry was the lead dog and gets all goal line work. They play Indy who didn’t have many answers for the Chargers rushing attack last week.
Mark Ingram (7500 FD/6000 DK) – Ingram put up a nice 14/107/2 stat line against the Dolphins last week. I expect a closer game from the Cardinals this week and I also expect more than 14 carries which should bring in another nice statistical week.
RISKY PLAYS – GPP OK, UP TO YOU IN CASH (In order of risk from least to most)
***SATURDAY AFTERNOON UPDATE*** Mixon was limited Friday so it’s unsure if he’ll play or not. If Mixon is inactive, Bernard is up at the top of my list right in the Henry/Ingram area. If Mixon plays, I won’t touch Gio. Keep an eye on Mixon’s status for Sunday.
Gio Bernard (5700 FD/5300 DK) – IF…and I repeat on IF Joe Mixon is inactive on Sunday, Bernard becomes a nice play at home versus Cinci. Once Mixon went down last week Bernard played nearly every snap so he’ll take a similar role this week. His price is too low versus a bottom half defense and he’s a pretty easy plug and play. Mixon didn’t practice on Wednesday but his injury status needs to be monitored as Bernard loses serious value if Mixon is going to play.
Matt Breida (5600 FD/5200 DK) – Breida is taking over the lead role in SF with Tevin Coleman suffering a high ankle sprain in week 1. Breida will share duties with Raheem Mostart but I think the workload will be split 65/35 in Breida’s favor. He can catch the ball and is a good runner too. He’s a small back which adds to injury risk but Chris Carson ripped up the Bengals last week so Breida will have the same chance this week.
LeSean McCoy (5800 FD/4700 DK) – This is the riskiest play I’ll list but one I really like. McCoy was with the team for less than a week and he put up 10/81 rushing and 1/12 recieving. The theory here is that with another week of meetings and practices McCoy will be more involved in the offense this week and this could be the last time we see him priced so low as I think there’s a good chance he takes the lead back role over in the next few weeks.
WIDE RECEIVER
JuJu Smith-Schuster (8100 FD/7500 DK) – JuJu was blanketed last week and still produced 6/78 on 8 targets. He’s going against SEA who were roasted for over 400 yards last week. The Steelers have something to prove to their home fans after a public ass-whooping last week and the passing game runs through JuJu.
***SATURDAY AFTERNOON UPDATE*** AB will not be put on the commissioner’s exempt list this week so no worries about him sitting. He’s a full go in my book.
Antonio Brown (7800 FD/7000 DK) – Obviously you need to monitor his status for Sunday following the allegations brought on AB this week. If he goes I expect a big game. AB will be out to prove something, Brady will want to play with his new toy and the Dolphins D is one step above putting 11 dead bodies out there. There’s certainly some risk to this play but I think it’s more likely that AB goes off.
Tyrell Williams (5900 FD/4400 DK) – Almost a must play on both sites due to pricing, Tyrell had a nice game versus DEN in week 1 posting 6/105/1 on 7 targets. The KC/OAK game will have lots of scoring and if the Raiders are playing catch up (like I think they will) that will mean another week of opportunity for Williams.
Michael Thomas (8500 FD/8000 DK) – Another game that has a high projected total, another great receiving option. If you’re not going with Kamara, Thomas is a great way to get a piece of the Saints offense. He had a monster game last week with 10/123 on 13 targets, so he’s absolutely the primary target in NO.
John Brown (6300 FD/5200 DK) – John Brown lit up the Jets for 7/123/1 last week, but that’s not why I like him this week. I like him because he got 10 targets last week! I like him because he’s playing the Giants this week who decided not to defend the pass last week. And finally I like him because of Josh Allen’s rocket arm built to throw the long ball, which makes those two a match made in heaven.
Brandin Cooks (7000 FD/6300 DK) – Cooks had a pedestrian first outing with only 2/39 on 6 targets. This week the Rams host the Saints in what’s projected to be the 3rd highest scoring game of the week. Cooks is the home run hitter for LA so there’s risk involved, but I think the Rams will run the ball to set up play action passes which is how Cooks gets open deep.
GPP ONLY – PSYCHO PLAY
Donte Moncrief (5400 FD/4000 DK) – Moncrief sucked on Sunday night. He dropped more passes than he caught and ended the night with a 3/7 stat line. That’s not a typo. What brings me to him is the targets stat…10 targets. Ben threw to him 10 times last week, and it looks like the Steelers are giving him one more chance this week to redeem himself. Remember that JuJu has become AB, so Moncrief has assumed the JuJu role (for now). I think Moncrief gets one more game to prove himself, so yeah I’ll take a shot on him in a GPP.
TIGHT END
***SATURDAY AFTERNOON UPDATE*** Sterling Shepard has been ruled out with a concussion so the Giants passing offense will run through Engram and Barkley. Since Buffalo only has him to focus on I actually think this could slow him down so I’ll likely pivot to Andrews/Walker in cash but stick with Engram in GPPs.
Evan Engram (6400 FD/5200 DK) – Engram was the main pass catcher for the Giants last week and had a huge game posting 11/116/1 on 14 targets. He’s going to continue to be the main pass catcher for the Giants going forward.
Mark Andrews (6100 FD/3800 DK) – Andrews tore it up last week and he gets to face the Cardinals who gave up a huge game to a rookie TE last week. He went 8/108/1 on 8 targets which is encouraging for his prospects both this week and moving forward.
Delanie Walker (5900 FD/3500 DK) – I was proud of my Delaine call last week and I’m going back to him again. He got 6 targets and converted that in to 5/55/2. He was the main red zone passing target and still looks to be Mariota’s security blanket.
Vernon Davis (5100 FD/3200 DK) – Facing the Cowboys who gave up a lot to Evan Engram last week helps, but it was good to see Davis get 7 targets. The Cowboys strugged to cover the TE last week so Davis should have some room to operate. Keep an eye on Jordan Reed’s injury status though, as Davis is off the list if Reed gets cleared from concussion protocol. Reed is a suitable replacement if the salary works for you (5300 FD/3400 DK).
T.J. Hockenson (3000 DK) – I like Hockenson, especially at this DK price. He had a great 1st game and it’s clear that Matt Stafford likes throwing his way. He’s going against the Chargers who didn’t give up much to the TE last week but Hock is a big part of this offense. He’s dirt cheap on DK but his FD price (6000) keeps me off him over there so this is a DK only play.
DEFENSE
New England Patriots (4900 FD/3700 DK) – Held the Steelers to 3 points last week. Playing the Dolphins this week. Any questions?
Baltimore Ravens (5000 FD/3800 DK) – Mangled the Dolphins in week 1. Hosting the Cardinals this week. I love a defense at home versus a rookie QB for his first road start.
Chicago Bears (4500 FD/3900 DK) – The Bears D was ferocious last week with 5 sacks and only gave up 213 yards to Green Bay. Denver didn’t look great, Flacco looked bad. Pass rush brings pressure which brings sacks and turnovers which brings us points.
Minnesota Vikings (4000 FD/3000 DK) – Nice lower priced option here, there’s a discount because they’re on the road in Lambeau. The Vikings looked good last week and got 4 sacks, 2 picks and a fumble. Green Bay gave up 5 sacks last week.
Good luck this week!
Don’t forget to follow me on Twitter @FlashlightDFS for updates or to reach out to me with your fantasy football questions.
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