RADIO
Ben Rolfe analyzes optimal DFS cash game value plays for Week 2 of the NFL season. These players are worth considering on FanDuel and DraftKings daily fantasy sports cash games.
Week 1 was a lot of fun. Put quite simply win or lose it is just a great feeling to have football back. However, winning always helps make the return even better, so hopefully, you had some success with your DFS lineups last week.
This week we have a monster 13 game main slate as there is no double Monday Night Football, and we have not reached the bye weeks yet. The highest totals on the main slate Sunday can be found in Oakland and Los Angeles. However, all of the games this week have projected totals of 40 or more, with many sitting over 45. It should be another action-packed week in the NFL.
This article will take a look at some of the value plays for each week of the NFL. However, usually when you look at value plays for GPP you are swinging for the fences somewhat. Here I will be focusing on cash games and the necessity for slightly more safety as you are just looking to finish in the top half or so of the competition. Therefore, we are looking for cheaper players who should see a decent workload, be that pass attempts, targets or carries. Let's take a look at the cash value plays for Week 2 of the 2019 NFL season.
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Week 2 Quarterback Cash Game Value Plays
Josh Allen, BUF @ NYG | DK: $5,300, FD: $7,500
A week after Dak Prescott made the Giants secondary look very ordinary we get a chance to attack them again with Josh Allen. When Allen gets it right he can put up a lot of points, with a lively arm and his ability to pick up yards with his legs. Last week was tough on Allen as he was credited with two fumbles and two interceptions, but you can make the case the interceptions were not his fault. Outside of those, we saw plenty of good from Allen, who threw the ball 37 times and carried it 10, including on a touchdown run. Against this woeful Giants Defense he should be able to have a solid outing.
Derek Carr, OAK vs. KC | DK: $5,100, FD: $6,600
Nick Foles and Gardner Minshew combined for 350 passing yards and three touchdowns on 33 passing attempts against the Chiefs last weekend. Carr is in my eyes every bit as good as those, and he might even have the best weapon on either team in Tyrell Williams. The Raiders will be flying high off their victory last week and Carr was incredibly efficient, with an 85% completion rate and a touchdown. Oakland will need to be aggressive if they are to stand a chance this week, and facing a Chiefs team coming out of the heat in Jacksonville and flying all the way across the country should give the raiders a chance to compete this week.
Week 2 Running Back Cash Game Value Plays
Devin Singletary, BUF @ NYG | DK: $4,200, FD: $5,700
Singletary did not get as much work as I hoped in the running game last week, but he impressed when he got the chance. On four carries he had 70 yards, including a longest carry of 23 yards. That longest carry tells you that Singletary was a constant threat when he got the ball as his 70 yards were fairly evenly distributed throughout his carries. He was also targeted six times with five receptions for 28 yards, adding more valuable points. The issue for any back in Buffalo is that Josh Allen is essentially the goal-line back, which will limit their upside somewhat. However, having a QB with the running threat of Allen also opens things up for Singletary and the veteran Frank Gore. Singletary remains a solid value at this price, but this might be the last time we get this kind of value on him.
Chris Thompson, WSH vs. DAL | DK: $3,900 FD: $5,300
Just let this sink in for a moment, Thompson had 10 targets last weekend, and Derrius Guice had a further three. That is 13 targets for the backs last week, and with Guice now out and Adrian Peterson expected to step back in, the majority of those targets should once again go to Thompson. Thompson has a sneaky chance to have both a solid floor because of his targets, but also the ceiling for a monster day if he can break one or find the end zone.
Raheem Mostert, SF @ CIN | DK: $3,800, FD: $5,600
Mostert did a solid job last week stepping in for Matt Breida and Tevin Coleman after their injuries. Breida is expected to suit up this week, which limits the upside for Mostert, but in total there were 30 carries and five targets for running backs in this game. Breida is too brittle to see all of those and Mostert has a solid opportunity for another 10-to-15 touches this weekend against a Bengals Defense that had to make a lot of tackles last week in Seattle.
Week 2 Wide Receiver Cash Game Value Plays
John Brown, BUF @ NYG | DK: $5,200, FD: $6,300
There was a lot of quiet hype surrounding Brown entering the season, and Week 1 has done nothing to squash that excitement. Brown led the Bills with 10 targets, reeling in seven of them for 123 yards and a touchdown. What was also encouraging was that Brown had an average depth of target (aDOT) of 14.4 yards. This offense is likely to be a deep threat type of offense and Brown has the speed and talent to be the star. That could continue this week against a secondary that gave up plenty of big plays last week to Amari Cooper and Michael Gallup.
Tyrell Williams, DAL vs. NYG | DK: $4,200, FD: $5,900
My jaw simply dropped when I saw this price for Williams this week. Last week he led the Raiders in targets for wide receivers and boosted that with an impressive 17.9 aDOT. There are not many people in the NFL community who are not expecting this to be a shootout. The Chiefs Defense could be gassed in their second road out, and they just got shredded by the likes of Chris Conley and DJ Chark.
James Washington, PIT vs. SEA | DK: $3,900, FD: $5,500
The Steelers offense was woeful last week in New England but there were some bright spots. One of those bright spots was six targets for James Washington. Only pulling in two of those was a concern, but that is negated by having an aDOT of 28.2. He was the clear deep threat with Johnny Holten the only other receiver to have an aDOT in double-digits. This week the Steelers are facing a Seahawks Defense that struggled to contain Andy Dalton last week, and are now flying cross country for an early kickoff on the East Coast. John Ross blitzed the Seahawks for 158 yards and two touchdowns and his role is most similar to the role I see for Washington in this Steelers offense.
Week 2 Tight End Cash Game Value Plays
Mark Andrews, BAL vs ARI | DK: $3,800, FD: $6,100
This price looks to be a steal for the man who led the Ravens in targets last week in Miami. He caught all eight of those targets for 108 yards and a touchdown, finishing with an impressive 31% target share. Will it be that high every week? Probably not, but they clearly trust him in this offense and he is in a nice spot. Last week, rookie tight end TJ Hockenson caught 6-of-9 targets for 131 yards and a touchdown against this Arizona defense. A tight end trusted by his team facing a defensive unit who may not be sound against the position? Gimme, gimme, gimme.
Annoyingly Andrews is much more fairly priced on FanDuel and therefore is less of a "value". However, he is still $1,900 less than Travis Kelce and I do not love many tight end options on this slate.
T.J. Hockenson, DET vs. LAC | DK: $3,000, FD: $6,000
We will stick with Hockenson here as well, as he is clearly the preferred receiving tight end out of himself and Jesse James. The Chargers did well against the tight end position last week, holding the Colt's guys to 28 yards on five targets and two receptions. However, that could have looked a lot different had Eric Ebron not have bobbled a touchdown catch in the end zone. Hockenson demonstrated last week he has the trust of his QB and could be set for another big day at a bargain-basement price on DraftKings.
Frustratingly, Hockenson is also not a great value on FanDuel, but the position feels quite ropey after him and Andrews, so it is worth just paying for him this week in that format.
