NFL DFS Value Plays: Week 18 Bargain Bin for DraftKings, FanDuel, Yahoo Includes Kyler Murray, Blake Corum, Garrett Wilson, and more

January 4, 2025

Juan's top NFL DFS sleepers and DFS value plays for Week 18 of 2024. These DFS bargains are cheap on FanDuel, DraftKings, Yahoo daily fantasy football contests.

Welcome to the Week 18 main slate edition of RotoBaller's NFL DFS Bargain Bin for the 2024 NFL season, where the goal is to touch on some potentially mispriced players across the industry who find themselves in favorable matchups and/or suddenly expanded roles.

Each week, I’ll give you my thoughts on where there may be some value spots to exploit. On this 18th main slate of the 2024 campaign, I'm glad to report that value-salary players are abundant on Yahoo, FanDuel, and DraftKings.

In addition to offering multiple candidates at each position, I'll list at least one more player to consider, along with some site-specific value plays when applicable.

NFL DFS Bargain Bin Intro

Before we go NFL DFS Bargain Bin hunting, here are a few particulars about format and content.

The nature of the beast with value plays is at least a modest amount (and sometimes substantially more) of risk. Therefore, the Bargain Bin may be a bit more of a roller-coaster ride on some slates than your typical “tout” article!

Naturally, that doesn’t mean there isn’t an upside to be had. All of these selections are, therefore, suitable for GPPs and can also often serve as solid cash-game plays while often helping you accommodate multiple higher-priced studs into your lineup.

Typically, I’ll suggest players who are value-priced across three major DFS sites (DraftKings, FanDuel, and Yahoo). However, there are certainly occasions where one or more sites price a player significantly lower than others. Whenever possible, I’ll typically at least note those players as an “XYZ site special.”

This article is by no means intended to serve as an exhaustive list of all value options for the week. Rather, it’s meant to take a deeper dive into those I feel offer some of the best combinations of savings and upside.

The goal is to recommend truly affordable players, as opposed to, say, a player priced just $300-$400 away from the highest-priced option at his position. I don’t have set-in-stone price limits in mind for each site, but I do consider legitimate affordability a very important criterion.

Quarterback DFS Value Plays

Kyler Murray, ARI vs. SF | DK: $6,000, FD: $7,600, Yahoo: $29     

Any Week 18 game between two teams eliminated from postseason contention can always spell good things for us in DFS, and the fact the contest is always guaranteed to be between division rivals makes it all the more likely both coaches will open up the playbook.

That's the foundation of my suggestion of the talented Murray in this spot, as he'll be at home and hungry to put a positive cap on a disappointing season overall from a team perspective.

The 49ers still have a talented defense despite the team's ugly record, but they could be missing multiple starters in the secondary on Sunday. Murray posted 25.1 DK and FD points and 24.1 Yahoo points versus San Fran back in Week 5, and the 49ers have been a bit more generous against the pass (220.7 PYPG allowed) in the last three games.

Additionally, Murray needs 50 rushing yards and a touchdown to earn an additional $750,000 in incentives Sunday, and he already lit up the Niners for 83 rushing yards and a TD on just seven carries in the first meeting.

Kyler Murray 🎯 pic.twitter.com/9VaN5jv63t

— Ian Hartitz (@Ihartitz) December 30, 2024

Joe Flacco, IND vs. JAX | DK: $5,400, FD: $7,000, Yahoo: $20

Anthony Richardson's rollercoaster second season has officially come to an end, as he was ruled out due to his back injury Friday. That sets up Flacco for another start after eclipsing 300 yards in the disappointing loss to the Giants in Week 17, one that officially eliminated the Colts from postseason contention.

However, Indy has a strong opportunity to close out the season on a strong note in this matchup against a vulnerable Jaguars defense.

Flacco hung 359 passing yards and three touchdowns at Jacksonville back in a Week 5 start, a performance that netted 30.6 DK/29.6 FD/26.6 Yahoo points. That level of success isn't surprising considering Jacksonville's performance against the pass this season, which includes allowing 271.9 passing yards per road game on an elevated 70.1 percent completion rate and a 28:6 TD:INT overall.

ALSO CONSIDER:

• Geno Smith, SEA at LAR | DK: $5,500, FD: $7,200, Yahoo: $24
• Tyler Huntley, MIA at NYJ | DK: $4,800, FD: $6,700, Yahoo: $22

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Running Back DFS Value Plays

Isaac Guerendo, SF at ARI | DK: $5,900, FD: $7,000, Yahoo: $24         

Guerendo is another intriguing option from the 49ers-Cardinals tilt, and he's just the type of Week 18 player we want to roster -- hungry, with fresh legs, and plenty of incentive to make the most of a starting opportunity.

The rookie has already flashed plenty of upside during the stretch run, and the fact he's healthy and playing with a legitimate rushing threat at quarterback in Joshua Dobbs should only help him find running room against an inconsistent Cardinals defense.

The Cardinals have allowed 125.7 rushing yards per game, including 142.3 over the last three. Arizona has also yielded the eighth-most rushing yards to running backs (1,682) and 12 rush TDs to the position, along with a 76-585-3 receiving line.

Guerendo is a big pass-catching threat in addition to what he offers on the ground, having recorded 10 receptions for 133 yards on 10 targets while averaging an impressive 2.61 yards per route run in that sample.

40 yard pass to Isaac Guerendo 🔥 pic.twitter.com/Toix4UIWlo

— OurSF49ers (@OurSf49ers) December 31, 2024

Blake Corum, LAR vs. SEA | DK: $5,600, FD: $5,500, Yahoo: $10

Rams head coach Sean McVay left no doubt as to his Week 18 personnel plans Friday when he confirmed that essentially all of the Rams' front-line offensive players would sit out the game. That naturally includes workhorse back Kyren Williams, who's logged a career-high number of touches this season and could use the break before the postseason.

Just as important, McVay noted he was looking forward to seeing what Corum would do with an expanded workload. This is music to the ears of DFS players who are already familiar with the upside the rookie brings from his college days at Michigan.

The Seahawks could facilitate a strong performance, allowing 128.6 rushing yards per road game and 4.7 yards per carry in that split. Seattle has also conceded a 72-572-2 receiving line to RBs, further brightening Corum's outlook.

ALSO CONSIDER:

• Ray Davis, BUF at NE | DK: $5,200, FD: $6,200, Yahoo: $10

Wide Receiver DFS Value Plays  

Garrett Wilson, NYJ vs. MIA | DK: $6,000, FD: $6,800, Yahoo: $28            

Sunday is widely believed to be Aaron Rodgers' final game with the Jets, and it could potentially be a career swan song as well, although that seems less likely.

Nevertheless, the expectation is the future Hall of Famer will try to put together a strong finish to what has been a profoundly disappointing tenure in the Big Apple. Although the Dolphins will be playing for a playoff spot, Wilson should be one of the primary beneficiaries of an approach that could be a bit pass-heavy.

Despite New York's struggles overall, Wilson has averaged a solid 15.9 DK/12.8 FD/12.0 Yahoo points per game. He's once again eclipsed the 1,000-yard mark, and he's recorded between seven and 10 targets in each of the last five games.

That sample includes a 7-114 line on 10 targets in Week 14 against this same Dolphins squad, a performance that netted 21.4 DK/17.9 FD/14.9 Yahoo points and included a season-high yardage tally.

INSANE @GarrettWilson_V 🤯 pic.twitter.com/9iyccffEHS

— NFL (@NFL) November 1, 2024

Marvin Harrison Jr., ARI vs. SF | DK: $5,500, FD: $6,700, Yahoo: $21

As mentioned in Murray's entry, the Cardinals should be cutting loose to an extent in this finale, and having Harrison head into the offseason with some momentum is likely going to be a priority.

The much-ballyhooed rookie had an underwhelming season relative to preseason expectations, and he's very unlikely to hit the 178 yards he would need to get to 1,000 for the campaign. However, Harrison has seen at least eight targets in four of the last five games, and he should continue to garner plenty of Murray's attention.

Harrison should be in a position to exploit the shorthanded 49ers secondary, and San Francisco has allowed 14 receiving touchdowns to WRs along with 30.6 DK/24.7 FD points per game to the position. While Harrison has often disappointed this season, his salaries and the potential for a more aggressive game plan on the part of the Cardinals should give him a chance to close out the season strong.

Josh Downs, IND vs. JAC | DK: $5,300, FD: $6,000, Yahoo: $18

Downs fell short of expectations in Week 17, with Flacco back under center, logging only four targets, which he turned into a 3-22 line.

However, the second-year wideout enjoyed plenty of success with Flacco as his quarterback earlier in the season, and the underwhelming performance last week versus the Giants has brought Downs' salaries down some for this very favorable matchup versus a Jaguars team he put together an impressive performance against in Week 5.

Downs posted a 9-69 line on 12 targets in Week 5 against the Jaguars while working with Flacco as his QB, a performance that netted 15.9 DK/11.4 FD and Yahoo points. As mentioned in Flacco's entry, Jacksonville has been very vulnerable defending the pass as well, giving up the third-most receiving yards (2,749) and 16 receiving TDs to wide receivers.

ALSO CONSIDER:

• Jalen McMillan, TB vs. NO | DK: $5,100, FD: $6,100, Yahoo: $27
• Ricky Pearsall, SF at ARI | DK: $4,100, FD: $4,900, Yahoo: $10

Tight End DFS Value Plays   

Noah Gray, KC at DEN | DK: $3,800, FD: $5,500, Yahoo: $11     

The Chiefs locked up the No. 1 seed in the AFC and all of the benefits that bring on Christmas Day at the expense of the Steelers, meaning we won't see any of the Chiefs' stars for even a series.

That certainly includes Kelce, who's listed as doubtful for Sunday's game for rest purposes. That should set up Gray, who's already put together a career-best season, for a performance that could see him overdeliver considerably on his current salaries.

The Broncos have been so good against wide receivers that they have funneled a fair share of production to tight ends as a result. Denver checks in, allowing a 92-773-5 line to the position on a league-high 135 targets. Gray has already put up four double-digit DK-point tallies this season despite seeing as many as six targets only once so far this season.

Had some Gray in the forecast yesterday ☁️#ProBowlVote + Noah Gray#ProBowlVote + @PatrickMahomes pic.twitter.com/8XiApRZxQS

— Kansas City Chiefs (@Chiefs) December 16, 2024

Noah Fant, SEA at LAR | DK: $3,700, FD: $4,900, Yahoo: $13

Fant has been a steady complementary component of the Seahawks' air attack throughout the season, and during a game where the Seahawks will be looking to help Geno Smith hit some key contract incentives, he could certainly enjoy success versus a Rams defense that's likely to be stocked with backups most of the game.

Fant enters the finale with at least three receptions in nine straight games, and there's every reason to believe that streak will comfortably continue to close out the season.

The Rams have been generous to the tight end position all season, tying for the third-most receptions (96) and giving up the fifth-most receiving yards (1,004) to the position. Los Angeles has also conceded five receiving TDs to TEs and 14.8 DK/11.6 FD points per contest to the position, setting Fant up with what should be a reliable floor with room for expansion.

ALSO CONSIDER:

• Devin Culp, TB vs. NO | DK: $2,800, FD: $4,300, Yahoo: $10

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