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Joe Nicely's DraftKings NFL DFS picks and lineup sleepers for the Week 3 (September 2024) Main Slate. His top daily fantasy football lineups to target for DraftKings DFS contests.
Thanks for joining me for our weekly DraftKings NFL DFS article here at RotoBaller! I hope you all enjoyed Week 2 and had some profitable DFS lineups. Not sure about you, but the Cooper Kupp early exit hurt what were some strong lineups.
It's an interesting Week 3 Main Slate that features some intriguing matchups with strong DFS potential. While pricing has tightened a bit, we can still construct some very nice-looking lineups!
These DraftKings lineup recommendations are based on matchups, projected DK points and ownership, overall upside/talent levels, and opportunity, as well as factors such as Vegas odds, home-field advantage, and more. There are quite a few great plays available on DK for Week 3. Also, be sure to check out our weekly FanDuel DFS lineup picks and lots of other great NFL DFS articles and NFL DFS tools to help you win big! Good luck with your DraftKings DFS lineups -- let's dominate this slate together!
Be sure to check all of our fantasy football rankings for 2025:- 2025 fantasy football rankings
- Running back (RB) fantasy football rankings
- Wide receiver (WR) fantasy football rankings
- Tight end (TE) fantasy football rankings
- Quarterback (QB) fantasy football rankings
- FLEX fantasy football rankings
- Defense (D/ST) fantasy football rankings
- Kicker (K) fantasy football rankings
- Dynasty fantasy football rankings
DraftKings Quarterbacks - Week 3 DFS Picks
Jalen Hurts - PHI at NO ($7,300)
Hurts is yet to post a true ceiling game in 2024, though his average of 22.1 DraftKings PPG is the third highest at the QB position to this point. The absence of A.J. Brown is unfortunate, but there are still plenty of paths to Hurts breaking the slate in this domed matchup against the red-hot Saints that features a juicy projected point total of 49.5.
He's tied for the league lead in QB rushing attempts (26) and is gaining an average of 4.5 yards per carry. That production on the ground translates to a ridiculously high DFS floor. With the New Orleans offense humming on all cylinders against a still-leaky Eagles secondary, Hurts and this Philly offense will likely be pushed to keep pace in Week 3.
Kyler Murray - DET at ARI ($6,900)
After dealing with former Cardinals head coach Kliff Kingsbury and a couple of injury-plagued seasons, Kyler Murray looks completely rejuvenated through the first two games of 2024. He arguably played his best game as a pro in last week's woodshedding of the L.A. Rams, completing 17-of-21 passes for 266 yards and three TDs while also picking up 59 rushing yards on five carries.
KYLER MURRAY ARE YOU SERIOUS?! 😱
📺: #LARvsAZ on FOX
📱: https://t.co/waVpO909ge pic.twitter.com/gfHzqbrZ0w— NFL (@NFL) September 15, 2024
There's reason to be optimistic that Kyler 2.0 stays hot in a Week 3 home matchup against the Lions. Detroit has relinquished the league's sixth-most DraftKings points to the QB position through the first two weeks of the season.
In addition to their beatable secondary, the Lions also have the type of offensive firepower needed to put points on the board against Arizona. This one could be a shootout.
Additional Week 3 QB Considerations: Lamar Jackson ($7,500), Derek Carr ($5,800)
DraftKings Running Backs - Week 3 DFS Picks
Jordan Mason - SF at LAR ($6,200)
Despite a Week 3 price bump of $1,000, DraftKings might still have Jordan Mason underpriced. The third-year pro has responded beautifully to the challenge of filling an injured Christian McCaffrey's shoes, and boy, the Niners haven't been shy about handing Mason the ball, as he leads the NFL with 48 rushing attempts through the first two games of the season.
Jordan Mason is a truly exquisite zone runner pic.twitter.com/BdhliKMyaV
— Ted Nguyen (@FB_FilmAnalysis) September 17, 2024
With stud wide receiver (and quasi-backup running back) Deebo Samuel Sr. out in Week 3, San Francisco will continue to lean on Mason in a divisional matchup against the Rams. It's a smash opportunity for the 25-year-old, as L.A. has been shredded on the ground in 2024.
With Aaron Donald no longer anchoring the defensive line, the Rams have been steamrolled for 309 rushing yards by opposing RBs through the first two games of the season. The Niners will feed Mason this week.
D'Andre Swift - CHI at IND ($5,600)
The early struggles of No. 1 overall draft pick Caleb Williams have kept the spotlight off the ineffectiveness of another one of Chicago's big offseason acquisitions, running back D'Andre Swift. Signed to a $24 million free-agent deal, Swift has yet to make any sort of impact for the Bears, thanks in part to a pair of brutal matchups against Tennessee and Houston to open the year.
He should find much more daylight this week against a struggling Indy defense. The Colts enter Week 3 ranked dead last against the run and the 450 rushing yards they've allowed to the RB position is the most in the NFL.
Priced at just $5,600 thanks to his slow start, Swift quietly received 19 opportunities in Week 2 and is a great buy-low candidate in GPP formats.
Additional Week 3 RB Considerations: Alvin Kamara ($7,500), De'Von Achane ($7,000), Tony Pollard ($6,000)
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DraftKings Wide Receivers - Week 3 DFS Picks
Nico Collins - HOU at MIN ($7,500)
As a total boomer, watching Nico Collins reminds me of Terrell Owens. While that probably doesn't mean much to readers of a certain age, if you know, you know.
The addition of Stefon Diggs hasn't put a serious dent in Collins' volume, as he's earned target counts of eight and 10 through Houston's first two games of the season. He's parlayed that usage into the most receiving yards in the NFL (252) through the season's first two weeks.
I’m glad the offseason is over where people were debating if Nico Collins was a WR1 and if he was a top TWENTY WR.
You can make the argument that there aren’t 5 better than Nico. pic.twitter.com/BKLvrWnrQD
— Jacob (@Stroud4MVP) September 19, 2024
While Minnesota defensive coordinator Brian Flores has found success with his creative schemes, the Vikings secondary is a middling group by almost every statistical measure. There's certainly no need to fade Nico at this still-too-cheap $7.3K price point. Hop on now, he'll be $8K+ soon.
Rashid Shaheed - PHI at NO ($5,300)
We touched on Jalen Hurts at the QB position and I want as much exposure to this Eagles vs. Saints game environment as I can get this week. A low-cost, high-upside option, New Orleans wide receiver Rashid Shaheed is a standout salary saver on the Week 3 main slate.
Shaheed has been a huge beneficiary of new Saints offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak's fresh scheme, as the burner is seeing work both downfield, as well as around the line of scrimmage, and even on some end-around runs. He sports a ridiculous 17.6 aDOT, while his mark of 5.28 yards per route run currently leads the NFL.
The Eagles tried to shore up their secondary during the offseason, but the improvement hasn't been noticeable yet. Philly ranks near the bottom of the NFL in yards (385), TDs (four), and DK points (98.10) allowed to the WR position this season.
Additional Week 3 WR Considerations: Amon-Ra St. Brown ($7,500), DeVonta Smith ($6,900), Brandon Aiyuk ($6,200)
DraftKings Tight Ends - Week 3 DFS Picks
George Kittle - SF at LAR ($5,700)
UPDATE: George Kittle has been ruled OUT
The seemingly always-tricky tight-end position is pretty straightforward this week if you are playing cash or single-entry contests. San Fran's George Kittle is as close to a set-it-and-forget-it option as it gets in Week 3, as several factors have converged to make him the top TE option on the slate.
In a Niners offense with so many mouths to feed, Kittle has often been forced to be hyper-efficient on limited volume to pay off his (usually) high-end DFS price tag. With both Christian McCaffrey and Deebo Samuel sidelined in Week 3, the stud tight end could feast against a Rams defense that's allowing an eye-popping 92.3% catch rate to the position.
Brock Bowers - CAR at LV ($5,400)
I'm ready to run it back with rookie Brock Bowers in Week 3. The collegiate superstar out of Georgia has made the transition to the NFL look seamless to this point in his young career.
While his landing spot with the Raiders made some pessimistic about his potential production, Bowers has quickly calmed those fears by combining for 146 yards on 15 catches across his first two starts as a pro, both of which lead all NFL tight ends.
🚨HISTORY: #Raiders rookie TE Brock Bowers has the most receptions of all time by a rookie tight end in their first two games.
Bowers is on pace to have more than 125 receptions as a rookie 🤯
LEGEND IN THE MAKING.
(h/t @AthleteDynasty_)
pic.twitter.com/nuGQROWJnX— MLFootball (@_MLFootball) September 17, 2024
In Week 3, Bowers draws his best matchup to date against the pitiful Carolina Panthers. The Panthers defense has struggled in most ways and those woes extend to containing the TE position. Carolina ranks bottom-10 in the NFL in receptions (11) and receiving yards (104) allowed to opposing tight ends.
Additional Week 3 TE Considerations: Trey McBride ($6,200), Isaiah Likely ($4,700)
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