FanDuel Tournament Pivots for the Divisional Round

Running Back

Chalk

On the high end, it is hard to ignore Le'Veon Bell. He's clearly the most expensive player on the slate, but he's also the best. And if there is one place where the Jacksonville Jaguars can be beaten, it's the run game. They are most vulnerable against backs that can catch, as was evident when the Jags and Pittsburgh Steelers met earlier this season. Bell finished with 10 catches in that game, mainly because the Steelers were trying to play catch-up. Don't expect the Jags to take a big lead this week. The Steelers are rested and will be ready to get pa yback after their embarrassing defeat in Week 9.

On the cheaper end, both Derrick Henry and Dion Lewis should be popular. Henry is coming off the best game of this season, totaling 191 and a score, with his current salary providing cap relief to pay up at other positions. Lewis is a bit more expensive, but still a far cry from Bell and Alvin Kamara. After finishing the season with two games of at least 28.3 FanDuel points, one can see the appeal of rostering him again in a game the Pats are favored by nearly two touchdowns. Something makes me think head coach Bill Belichick won't give his lead back only 11 carries, as was Kareem Hunt's fate last week against the Titans.

Pivot

Jay Ajayi, (vs. Atlanta Falcons)

The 2017 Atlanta Falcons have not been the cake matchup for running backs that they have been in the recent past. After being a bottom-five rushing defense in PPR leagues in each of the past three seasons, they stepped up their game and were 14th this year while also being 8th in FanDuel points per game. They did give up a league-leading 107 receptions to opposing backs, but only allowed one rusher to top 100 yards on the ground: Jay Ajayi, who ran for 130 yards on 26 touches against Atlanta in Week 6 with the Miami Dolphins.

Ajayi's transition to the Philadelphia Eagles has been relatively slow. He saw no more than nine carries in each of his first four games with his new team, but the coaching staff has begun to give him more work. In his last three games before resting in Week 17, he saw at least 14 touches and 73 total yards in each. The Eagles don't have the Ginger Slinger at the helm any more since he went on injured reserve, so they would be wise to focus heavily on the run game and work the clock, especially since they are home underdogs as the top seed. What better time is there to give Ajayi a heavy workload?

Ajayi is no doubt a risky play here. His high score this season is a whopping 13.7 FanDuel points, not even two-times value at his current salary. However, if his carries continue to trend up, which makes sense for the Eagles' situation without Wentz, then he could prove an excellent pivot off a player like Henry, who could lose value quickly if New England goes up big.