NFL DFS Value Plays: Week 2 Bargain Bin for DraftKings, FanDuel and Yahoo

September 15, 2022

Juan's top NFL DFS value plays for the Week 2 of the 2022 season. These sleepers are cheap on FanDuel, DraftKings, and Yahoo daily fantasy football contests.

Welcome to the Week 2 Sunday main slate edition of RotoBaller's NFL DFS Bargain Bin, where the goal is to touch on some potentially mispriced players across the industry that find themselves in favorable match-ups and/or suddenly expanded roles.

Each week I’ll give you my thoughts on where there may be some value spots to exploit on the Sunday main slate and I hunt for value that might be site-specific on Yahoo, FanDuel, and DraftKings.

Week 2 offers us a solid amount of value plays -- there are salaries for certain players that aren't quite reflective of their Week 1 performances and/or their Week 2 matchups, with several Commanders serving as especially fitting examples.

Bargain Bin Intro

Before we go NFL DFS Bargain Bin hunting, 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 prove to 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 that 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              

Carson Wentz, WAS at DET | DK: $5,800, FD: $7,400, Yahoo: $22  

Wentz got his Commanders tenure off to an impressive start in Week 1 against the Jaguars, throwing for 313 yards and four touchdowns. The veteran had a similarly encouraging early stint with the Colts last season before famously fading a bit toward the end of the campaign, but Wentz should have a good chance of staying hot in Week 2 against a defense with even more question marks than Jacksonville. The Lions gave up 243 passing yards to the Eagles in Week 1, and that was to a less accurate QB in Jalen Hurts.

Philadelphia was able to make plenty of inroads by focusing heavily on A.J. Brown, and even though DeVonta Smith and Quez Watkins were shut out completely, that may have been more a reflection of Hurts' choice of target distribution than scheme. Wentz arguably has a more diverse target pool to work with considering how well the likes of Curtis Samuel, Jahan Dotson and Logan Thomas played in the opener, as well as the presence of Antonio Gibson and Terry McLaurin. Given his Week 1 production, the fact Detroit gave up 90 rushing yards to Hurts as well, and the expected game environment, the mobile Wentz profiles as an intriguing value play.

Baker Mayfield, CAR at NYG | DK: $5,300, FD: $7,000, Yahoo: $23

Mayfield got through an emotional first game in a Panthers uniform against his former Browns teammates with solid numbers, throwing for 235 yards and a touchdown while adding another score on the ground. The 2018 first overall pick now travels to MetLife Stadium in Week 2 and looks to continue building chemistry with his new group of pass catchers against a Giants defense that was adequate but not exactly suffocating versus Ryan Tannehill in Week 1. Tannehill finished with 266 passing yards and two touchdown tosses while connecting with nine different targets.

Mayfield showed a decent command of the offense in Week 1 while hitting six different targets, and he encouragingly got Robbie Anderson, who was virtually an afterthought last season, involved right from the jump with a 75-yard touchdown pass as part of a team-high five receptions. Additionally, some optimism can be drawn from the fact Tannehill hit RB Dontrell Hilliard for his two touchdown passes and 63 receiving yards overall, considering Christian McCaffrey's pass-catching ability and the fact he and Mayfield already connected on four occasions in Week 1.

ALSO CONSIDER: Matt Ryan, IND at JAX | DK: $5,500, FD: $6,800, Yahoo: $26

Running Back DFS Value Plays   

Javonte Williams, DEN vs. HOU | DK: $6,500, FD: $7,300, Yahoo: $23

Williams was surprisingly outpaced in carries by older backfield mate Melvin Gordon in Week 1 against the Seahawks, but the second-year back was highly efficient with his opportunities and also was outstanding as a receiver with a 11-catch night. While the amount of passing-game work appeared to be largely tied into game script and Williams also had a back-breaking red-zone fumble, he still shapes up as a very appealing value play against a Texans team that appeared to still have plenty of trouble stopping the run in Week 1.

Houston was trampled by Jonathan Taylor for 161 yards on 31 carries in the opener. Williams logged only seven carries against Seattle but gained 43 yards with them, while his 11 receptions and 65 yards rounded out his fantasy performance nicely. The second-year back should undoubtedly be in for a heftier workload in a game Denver should have a solid chance of leading in for a good portion, and the fact Houston allowed 10 receptions to Colts RBs overall in Week 1 is also especially noteworthy considering Williams' pass-catching prowess.

Antonio Gibson, WAS at DET | DK: $6,200, FD: $7,400, Yahoo: $18

Gibson was another back that stood out as a receiver in Week 1, leading the Commanders with a 7-72 line through the air in addition to a 14-58 tally on the ground. The third-year back should be in for another busy day in Week 2 against the questionable Lions defense, which allowed 96 yards and a touchdown on just 13 carries as well as a couple of catches to Miles Sanders in Week 1.

Detroit gave up a whopping 216 rushing yards overall to Philadelphia in the opener, and even though Hurts accounted for 90 one of those, the other 126 came via Philly running backs. The Lions conceded 127.5 rushing yards per game at home a year ago as well, so at least through one game, it appears they're hasn't been much improvement yet. Moreover, Gibson, as he amply proved in Week 1, can robustly supplement his fantasy production through the air, which should give him an even better chance of delivering a strong return on his reasonable salaries.

ALSO CONSIDER: Jeff Wilson Jr., SF vs. SEA | DK: $5,100, FD: $6,300, Yahoo: $16 

Wide Receiver DFS Value Plays   

Christian Kirk, JAX vs. IND | DK: $5,700, FD: $6,500, Yahoo: $17

Kirk was a hit in his first game with the Jaguars, immediately paying some dividends on the $72 million deal he signed in the offseason by posting a 6-117 line on a whopping 12 targets. The workload certainly supports the notion Trevor Lawrence is already well in sync with his top target, and Kirk's salaries remain extremely reasonable going into a Week 2 matchup against a Colts defense that gave up a 7-82 line to a similar receiver in Brandin Cooks during their opener.

Indy was a stingy defense against the pass on the road a season ago, giving up only 212.6 passing yards per contest in that split. However, starting cornerback Kenny Moore II is dealing with a hip injury, and it's worth noting that in last season's infamous Week 18 finale versus Indy in Jacksonville, Trevor Lawrence threw for 223 yards and two touchdowns in a game the Colts needed to lock in a playoff spot. While racking up another 100-yard effort may be a tricky proposition for Kirk, a solid performance in the neighborhood of the 80-to-85-yard range with six or seven receptions and a touchdown is certainly within reach at minimum and would represent excellent returns on his salaries.

Jerry Jeudy, DEN vs. HOU | DK: $5,600, FD: $6,300, Yahoo: $18

Jeudy was a bright spot for the Broncos offense in a largely frustrating opener against the Seahawks, producing four receptions for 102 yards and a touchdown on seven targets. The 2020 15th overall pick appears to already have good chemistry with Russell Wilson if those numbers are any indication, making him an especially intriguing value against a Texans defense that allowed a massive nine-catch, 121-yard, one-TD effort to Indy's top target Michael Pittman Jr. in Week 1.

A 100-yard effort right out of the gate in his first game with Wilson certainly bodes well for Jeudy, who has no shortage of big-play potential and whose speed should always give him an advantage over the visitors in the thin Denver air. While the Broncos are likely to focus fairly heavily on the run as already explained in Williams' entry, the Wilson-led offense will be aiming to tighten up all aspects of its play in Week 2 against an opponent they should be confident against, and there should consequently be plenty of opportunity for Jeudy to offer solid returns.

Curtis Samuel, WAS at DET | DK: $4,600, FD: $5,700, Yahoo: $15

Samuel is yet another member of the Commanders that bears heavy consideration in the potential Week 2 shootout against the Lions. The versatile veteran appears to finally be healthy and got his season started by garnering 72 total yards (55 receiving, 17 rushing) and a touchdown in Week 1 against the Jaguars. Samuel filled the type of diverse role that he managed with success back in his Panthers days, which ups his chances of racking up a strong fantasy performance in a game that could have plenty of scoring on both sides.

As already detailed in Wentz's entry, the Lions allowed an abundance of production all the way around to the Eagles, and Samuel's role in the ground attack should afford him the chance to make some plays as a runner against Detroit's inconsistent defensive front. Additionally, the fact he logged 11 targets in his first game with Wentz speaks volumes about the burgeoning connection between the two, all the more reason to consider Samuel at his salaries in both tournaments and cash games.

ALSO CONSIDER: Allen Robinson, LAR vs. ATL | DK: $5,500, FD: $5,700, Yahoo: $18; D.J. Chark, DET vs. WAS | DK: $5,100, FD: $5,700, Yahoo: $15

Tight End DFS Value Plays  

Dalton Schultz, DAL vs. CIN | DK: $5,200, FD: $5,600, Yahoo: $20

The Cowboys air attack will be going through a transitional period over the next several games while Dak Prescott remains sidelined by his thumb injury, and Schultz could certainly serve as one of interim quarterback Cooper Rush's biggest security blankets in the meantime. Further upping the chances of that transpiring in Week 2 is the fact Michael Gallup (knee) is reportedly trending toward missing the game, and Schultz already got his season off to a strong start with a 7-62 tally on nine targets against Tampa Bay.

The Bengals were a sieve last regular season while allowing a 96-1,083-8 line to tight ends, and they also gave up a combined 7-115 line to Pat Freiermuth and Zach Gentry in Week 1 against the Steelers. Schultz is a trusted target for whomever is under for Dallas; that may be even truer with the Cowboys' short-handed receiving corps and the fact Rush may be looking to get rid of the ball fairly quickly considering the type of pressure the  increasingly short-handed offensive line is likely to concede.

Tyler Higbee, LAR vs. ATL | DK: $4,200, FD: $5,300, Yahoo: $13

Higbee's salaries are particularly noteworthy when considering not only his proven body of work from past seasons, but the fact he opened 2022 with 11 targets against the Bills as well. While that workload only netted a 5-39 line, Higbee faces a more palatable defensive matchup this week and won't have to do an inordinate amount to justify his rostering.

In his first season with Matthew Stafford in 2021, Higbee averaged just under six targets per game while generating the second-highest reception total (61) and yardage (560) tallies of his career, along with a co-career-high five touchdowns. The Falcons tied with the Seahawks for fourth-most receiving touchdowns given up to tight ends in 2021 (nine), and the sure-handed Higbee, who has just six official drops on 145 targets the last two seasons, also drew a career-high 20 red-zone touches in 15 regular-season games from Stafford last season, including eight inside the 10-yard line.

ALSO CONSIDER: Logan Thomas, WAS at DET | DK: $3,400, FD: $5,200, Yahoo: $15

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