Week 6: Top 2 Games of the Week and Other Players to Target in DFS

Pittsburgh at Cincinnati 52.5 O/U:

rd in Rushing defense, the Bengals have let up 4.5 yards per rushing attempt and a total of 118.2 rushing yards per game. Including letting up 183 rushing yard to Christian McCaffery who in the past has struggled to put up big rushing games. Conner may be the best pure runner they have seen all season, and with his ability to pass catch as well look for him to vie for RB1 in points this week. I also love Mixon this week, especially at his 7,500 price point on Fanduel. With Gio Bernard still out you can expect Mixon to get all the carries again this week. Mixon is averaging 90.67 yard per game, good enough for 2nd in the NFL, look for him to continue to pile up the yards in what could be a rushing-centric divisional rivalry game. The combination of price, volume and skill Mixon brings makes him a no-brainer play this week. The other player in this game to heavily target this week is C.J. Uzomah. The Steeler’s defense has been atrocious verse Tight Ends so far this season, last week giving up a touchdown to Austin Hooper who has been quiet so far this year. His price is relatively low on Fanduel at 5,100 and with Kroft being ruled out this week that eliminates any worry that he may vulture targets from Uzomah. If you are looking to pivot off of the hyper-chalk that is Brate this week, CJ Uzomah is definitely a good option to consider. Conversely my big fade in this game is Andy Dalton. Dalton is projected to be the third highest owned Quarterback this week after Ryan and Winston, making him an easy fade target for me. Andy in a divisional match up against the Steelers is primo bad chalk if there ever was some. Historically Dalton has been significantly worse against common opponents, or divisional rivalries. When looking at common vs uncommon opponents, in games where the opposing team has played verse Dalton last season or earlier in the current season he is sporting a 77.5 passer rating, 59.8 Completion percentage, and 3.3% TD rate. In comparison with his 101.6 passer rating, 66.8 completion percentage and 6.1% TD rate vs uncommon opponents. When looking to pick your qb this week, stay well clear of Andy Dalton. Additionally you should stay from Tyler Boyd who also looks to be chalk this week. The AFC North divisional matchup comes in at the second highest total on the main slate. I would ride the under on this game, AFC North interdivision matchups rarely shootout even when both teams have a good offense. Look for this game to be a more defensive, ground and pound matchup than everyone is expecting. The Steelers defense has steadily improved through the season led by emerging star TJ Watt. Meanwhile the Bengals defense will be in week 2 of having Burfict back, and are coming off a game where they had two key defensive touchdowns. That doesn’t mean this game should be a complete fade though. I would lock in both James Conner and Joe Mixon. It may look like chasing points with Conner, but I expect him to have another huge game against a defense that has been gashed by the run. Ranked 23in Rushing defense, the Bengals have let up 4.5 yards per rushing attempt and a total of 118.2 rushing yards per game. Including letting up 183 rushing yard to Christian McCaffery who in the past has struggled to put up big rushing games. Conner may be the best pure runner they have seen all season, and with his ability to pass catch as well look for him to vie for RB1 in points this week. I also love Mixon this week, especially at his 7,500 price point on Fanduel. With Gio Bernard still out you can expect Mixon to get all the carries again this week. Mixon is averaging 90.67 yard per game, good enough for 2in the NFL, look for him to continue to pile up the yards in what could be a rushing-centric divisional rivalry game. The combination of price, volume and skill Mixon brings makes him a no-brainer play this week. The other player in this game to heavily target this week is C.J. Uzomah. The Steeler’s defense has been atrocious verse Tight Ends so far this season, last week giving up a touchdown to Austin Hooper who has been quiet so far this year. His price is relatively low on Fanduel at 5,100 and with Kroft being ruled out this week that eliminates any worry that he may vulture targets from Uzomah. If you are looking to pivot off of the hyper-chalk that is Brate this week, CJ Uzomah is definitely a good option to consider. Conversely my big fade in this game is Andy Dalton. Dalton is projected to be the third highest owned Quarterback this week after Ryan and Winston, making him an easy fade target for me. Andy in a divisional match up against the Steelers is primo bad chalk if there ever was some. Historically Dalton has been significantly worse against common opponents, or divisional rivalries. When looking at common vs uncommon opponents, in games where the opposing team has played verse Dalton last season or earlier in the current season he is sporting a 77.5 passer rating, 59.8 Completion percentage, and 3.3% TD rate. In comparison with his 101.6 passer rating, 66.8 completion percentage and 6.1% TD rate vs uncommon opponents. When looking to pick your qb this week, stay well clear of Andy Dalton. Additionally you should stay from Tyler Boyd who also looks to be chalk this week.

Locks: James Conner, Joe Mixon, CJ Uzomah. James Conner, Joe Mixon, CJ Uzomah.

Fades: Andy Dalton, Tyler Boyd Andy Dalton, Tyler Boyd

Tampa Bay at Atlanta 57.5 O/U:

Two good offenses going up against two completely awful defenses all in a dome, this a fantasy matchup made in heaven. It is going to be the chalk of the week, but I see no way to fade this game as it could easily go over the huge 57.5 total. If you are playing multiple lineups you definitely want to have exposure to both a Bucs-centric games stack and Falcons-centric game stack, but if you are stuck with just picking one I lean towards a Falcons-centric stack with either Evans or Jackson running it back. Despite his $900 higher price tag, Matt Ryan is safer option with a higher ceiling. Winston is a bit of unknown coming into his first start of the year, and while he was trending upwards at the end of last season he still carries risk. Though I wouldn’t consider a huge risk considering how bad the Atlanta defense has been this year. Ryan on the other hand, aside from last week, has been one of the top fantasy performers this year with 29, 40, and 31 points in the games prior to the letdown against the Steelers. Back at home, in the dome, against a defense that made Mitch Trubisky look like the best qb in the league, the former MVP is ripe for a giant day. To pair with him Julio is a must start this week. He has been somewhat of a disappointment this year despite still being 3rd in receiving yards, because he has yet to see the endzone. This week he is due for some positive regression against far and away the worst defense in the NFL. Not to mention Julio’s past peformances against Tampa have been stellar. If you are looking for another option to pair with Ryan, look no further than Mohammed Sanu, who is still priced all the way down at 5,800, 900 dollars cheaper than fellow receiver Calvin Ridley. Ridley is still priced up from his two home run weeks, but Sanu has been seeing a similar target share to Ridley despite the hype behind the rookie out of Alabama. Hooper should be a fine option as Tampa’s defense to no surprise has been rocked by tight ends this year, but at 5,600 on Fanduel I like paying down for other options. On the other side of the ball, Cameron Brate is looking to be super chalk. Yes his price at 4,500 is super appealing for the possible number of targets he may see whether OJ Howard is out or limited, but the insanely high ownership he is going to have coupled with the volatility of the tight end position makes Brate an easy fade for me. Desean Jackson is always a good target in GPPs as he can go off in any game, especially one with such a high projected total, and he is priced reasonably at 6,500, but if you can afford to, I love paying up for Mike Evans instead who is actually underpriced at 8,000. He is proven to be an elite wr in this league and is clearly Winston’s favorite target. Personally I will be staying away from Chris Godwin this week, his price is appealing at 5,900, but we haven’t seen a rapport established with Winston like he had with Fitzpatrick through the first month of the season. If you want to take a real shot in the dark in GPPs, you could play Adam Humphries who is only 4,600, if you believe the connection established between him and Winston in the second half of the Bears game is one that will continue this week. Finally on the Bucs offense, don’t get cute with messing around with their backfield. Yes, Atlanta has struggled mightily against running backs this season, especially pass-catching backs, but Peyton Barber and Ronald Jones are terrible. Neither can catch, and really neither has proven they run either. Speaking of backfields, stay away from Tevin Coleman, he will be big chalk this week with the announcement that Devonta Freeman will be out, but Coleman could easily have his touchdowns vultured by Ito Smith. If anything I would rather play Ito at 5,000 on Fanduel.

Locks: Matt Ryan, Jamies Winston, Julio Jones, Sanu, Mike Evans, DeSean Jackson.

Fades: Cameron Brate, Tampa’s backfield, Tevin Coleman : Cameron Brate, Tampa’s backfield, Tevin Coleman





Various Great Plays:

Antonio Callaway 4,900: I love Callaway at this price point. With a lessened role and a bit of slump these past two weeks people might be off Callaway, but he will be thrust back into the number 2 wideout position with the injury to Rashard Higgins. Callaway’s big play upside at such a low price, up against a bad chargers defense makes him a great option in GPPs. I love Callaway at this price point. With a lessened role and a bit of slump these past two weeks people might be off Callaway, but he will be thrust back into the number 2 wideout position with the injury to Rashard Higgins. Callaway’s big play upside at such a low price, up against a bad chargers defense makes him a great option in GPPs.





Russell Wilson 7,600: Wilson always hits his stride mid-season and look for him to continue that trend against a mediocre at best Oakland defense. Yes his upside isn’t as high as previous seasons because he hasn’t been running under new offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer, but at this price point Wilson is a top option this week. Playing in the London game which frequently shoots out, look to pair Wilson with deep threat Tyler Locket.





Marshawn Lynch 6,500: Speaking of the London game, Lynch is a prime pay down option at running back in a week where you will likely need to pay up for receivers like Julio and Mike Evans. Beastmode is in a revenge game against the Seahawks, whose rush defense is ranked 29th in the league. Unless Oakland gets down big early, Lynch should see a big workload. Speaking of the London game, Lynch is a prime pay down option at running back in a week where you will likely need to pay up for receivers like Julio and Mike Evans. Beastmode is in a revenge game against the Seahawks, whose rush defense is ranked 29in the league. Unless Oakland gets down big early, Lynch should see a big workload.





Zeke Elliot 8,100: th. Look for Zeke to have unexpected good day. If you are looking to pivot off James Conner who might get pretty chalky, Zeke is a prime candidate. 100 dollars cheaper, the Dallas running back will come in low owned this week against what is perceived to be a bad matchup against Jacksonville. However, while the Jags pass defense led by Jalen Ramsey has been amazing, their run defense sits in the middle of the pack at 14. Look for Zeke to have unexpected good day.





Niles Paul 4,800: A nice pivot play off chalk play Cameron Brate, Paul come in only 300 dollars more expensive. Niles had a big second half with Austin Sefarian-Jenkins coming out of the game against the Chiefs. Look for him to have similarly good day as the lead tight end against the Cowboys.



