RADIO
The NFL season is finally here, and I’m sure you’re every bit as excited as I am! In this Daily Fantasy Football article, I'll be looking at NFL FanDuel Targets, highlighting a few of my top plays at each position. I’m sure we’re all itching for the season to start, so let’s get down to it!
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FanDuel DFS Quarterbacks for Week 1
Ryan Tannehill (at WAS, $8,000)
Ryan Tannehill seemed like a Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde type player last season. What I mean by that is that he was great one week and then awful the next week. After opening him up for the majority of the season, the Dolphins tried to limit his throws toward the end, but he still compiled a ridiculous 590 pass attempts. He completed 392 of them for 4,045 yards and 27 touchdowns. He also added 311 yards and 1 touchdown on the ground. He gets a great matchup against the Redskins this week, who ranked as the 31st passing defense last season. Tannehill is extremely cheap for his upside, and he could easily be the best point-per-dollar quarterback of the week.
Tyrod Taylor (vs IND, $5,000)
I’m going to try to avoid recommending guys that are this cheap, because we have another article that will cover those type of players for you, but it’s impossible to ignore Tyrod Taylor. He’s an example of why I hate that FanDuel and DraftKings put their week one contests so early. He played extremely well in preseason, completing 23 of 34 passes for 236 yard, but more importantly, he added 108 yards on the ground with only 11 carries. The Bills will likely be losing for most of the game, which means that Rex Ryan will have to let his quarterback throw the ball, regardless of his rushing plans. Taylor has great upside because of his legs, and he is nearly a lock to hit value this week.
FanDuel DFS Running Backs for Week 1
Eddie Lacy (at CHI, $8,500)
A lot of people tend to think that the receiving group is the biggest benefactor from the Nelson injury, but Lacy may benefit the most of anyone. He had a solid season last year with 1,313 yards and 13 touchdowns. He was also extremely underrated in the receiving game, as he caught more passes than players like Jamaal Charles and LeSean McCoy. He proved that he could be a huge part of the passing game in week 8 last season, recording eight receptions for 123 yards against the Saints. Green Bay may also try to feed him a bit more as they attempt to limit possible receiver mistakes early in the season. The Bears also had the 29th ranked run defense in the NFL, which will only help Lacy’s upside. He’s the 8th most expensive running back on FanDuel this week, but he’s the sleeper to score the most fantasy points.
Doug Martin (vs TEN, $6,900)
Martin had an extremely rough season last year, recording only 134 carries for 494 yards (3.7 YPC) and two touchdowns. Those numbers are a far cry from his 319 carries, 1,454 yards (4.6 YPC), and 11 touchdowns he recorded in his rookie season. The most telling part of these numbers is that Martin clearly has talent, although we haven’t particularly seen it in two years. He was recently named the Bucs primary ball carrier, and there are reports that state he has slimmed down in an attempt to gain more speed. He gets a great matchup against the Titans, who ranked last in the NFL in run defense last season. Martin’s price is low, and he’s worth a shot in GPPs this week.
FanDuel DFS Wide Receivers for Week 1
Julio Jones (vs PHI, $9,000)
Jones is the most expensive wide receiver on the slate, and for good reason. He draws a matchup against the Eagles, who will be looking the push the pace of the game. That means the Falcons will see extra snaps this game based on how fast the Eagles are going to run their offense. The Eagles also had one of the worst secondary’s in the NFL last season. Jones flashed his upside last season against Green Bay last year when he recorded 11 catches for 259 yards and two touchdowns (37.3 FPs). It’s no secret that he’s one of the best wide receivers in the NFL, and he should have no problem dominating the Eagles weak corners. Jones can be used in all leagues this week.
Davante Adams (at CHI, $5,00)
Adams is another player that benefits from FanDuel’s prices coming out so early. He’s likely going to be owned by everyone and their mothers, but it would be foolish to avoid him. Adams is going to be a large part of the Green Bay offense, as they love his potential, and he will be taking a lot of the load left behind by the Jordy Nelson injury. Adams caught 46 balls for 570 yards and four touchdowns last season, and I wouldn’t be surprised if those numbers doubled this year. This is the only week that Adams will be this cheap, and it’d be a smart play to add him to your lineups.
FanDuel DFS Tight Ends for Week 1
Greg Olsen (at JAC, $5,900)
Rob Gronkowski plays on Thursday, which means Olsen will likely be the highest owned tight end on Sunday. He’s coming off a dominant year in which he recorded 91 catches for 1,103 yards, and six touchdowns. He’s going to be an even bigger part of the offense with Kelvin Benjamin out for the season with an injury. In the preseason games after Benjamin was injured, Olsen received a ridiculous amount of targets, which will likely be the case during the regular season, as well. He’s the 4th most expensive tight end on the slate this week, but I will be surprised if he doesn’t score the most points. He can be used in all leagues this week.
Austin Seferian-Jenkins (vs TEN, $4,700)
The Bucs have been raving about how well ASJ has been playing in practice. Seferian-Jenkins is a mountain of a man at 6’6” and 258 lbs., but he also has some wheels after reportedly running in the 4.5s during workouts. He had 21 receptions for 221 yards and two touchdowns in only nine games last season. I’m anticipating those numbers will shoot up with Winston at quarterback, and ASJ is an extremely high upside play against a weak Titans defense this week.
