NFL

Week 14 NFL FanDuel Salary Movers

Running back injuries give way to opportunities and salary changes. Who makes the list this week?

Things can change quickly in fantasy football. To quote Ferris Bueller, "Life moves pretty fast. If you don't stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it."

We're here to "look around" and make sure we don't miss any week-to-week salary changes that could pay dividends on FanDuel.

Maybe a player had an outlier performance and saw their salary rise too high, making them a sub-optimal play. Perhaps a player saw an increase in their role but played on Monday night after salaries for the following week's slate already came out, and therefore they haven't been priced accordingly.

This week's article will take a look at which players salaries have changed the most from Week 13 to Week 14 and dig into why those moves happened.

Now that you're ready, let's get to it!

Ben Roethlisberger, QB, Pittsburgh Steelers

Week 13 Salary: $7,900
Week 14 Salary: $8,600

Ben Roethlisberger at home in primetime is usually a great spot for him to succeed. The Steelers held a 16 point in the second quarter but couldn't hold on as the Chargers won in Pittsburgh 33-30. He attempted 45 passes, connecting on 29 for 281 yards and two touchdowns, scoring 18.24 FanDuel points. That's his lowest scoring game since playing Cleveland back in Week 8.

This week, Ben and the Steelers travel to Oakland looking to rebound against the league's worst passing defense. His salary increase reflects the great matchup and is warranted, as the Raiders allow 20.8 FanDuel points per game to quarterbacks. Ben's projection of 22.9 points is fifth-most on the main slate and the Steelers' implied team total of 31.25 trails only the Los Angeles Rams.

Other Big Movers:

Drew Brees, New Orleans Saints: $9,000 | $8,500
Andrew Luck, Indianapolis Colts: $7,900 | $8,200
Josh Allen, Buffalo Bills: $6,800 | $7,400

Austin Ekeler, RB, Los Angeles Chargers

Week 13 Salary: $5,400
Week 14 Salary: $6,700


Melvin Gordon suffered an MCL sprain in Week 12 and missed the Chargers' game against the Steelers on Sunday night. Austin Ekeler took over in the lead running back role and played 78 percent of the snaps. He was given 18 touches but did very little with his opportunities against the NFL's 11th ranked rushing defense. He was out-rushed by rookie Justin Jackson on fewer carries and scored only 6.8 FanDuel points.

Gordon has yet to return to practice so Ekeler should lead the backfield once again. The good news for him is the matchup at home this week is much easier, as the Bengals allow 30.1 FanDuel points per game to opposing running backs. At $6,700, he's still a strong value play and will be a popular choice alongside Spencer Ware in the same salary range. The role increase and matchup make him the biggest salary mover of the week at any position.

Other Big Movers:

Phillip Lindsay, Denver Broncos: $7,000 | $7,900
Spencer Ware, Kansas City Chiefs: $5,200 | $6,400
Jeff Wilson, San Francisco 49ers: $4,500 | $5,600

Zay Jones, WR, Buffalo Bills

Week 13 Salary: $4,600
Week 14 Salary: $5,100

Zay Jones had his second big game in three weeks Sunday as the Bills fell on the road to the Dolphins 21-17. He was targeted nine times, securing four of them for 67 yards and two touchdowns for 22.7 FanDuel points. With the release of Kelvin Benjamin and Andre Holmes, he should be the de facto number one receiver for Josh Allen and the Buffalo Bills.

Jones has a 20 percent target share over his last three games and faces a New York Jets defense with the tenth-worst adjusted defensive passing NEP per play rating of 0.12. In their first meeting back in Week 11, Jones scored 19.3 FanDuel points; hauling in eight of 11 targets for 93 yards and a touchdown. The Bills are projected to score just under 21 points in what will likely be an overall low scoring game. However, at only $5,100, Jones should be in your player pool for tournaments if we assume his role in the offense increases.

Other Big Movers:

Adam Humphries, Tampa Bay Buccaneers: $6,000 | $6,500
Michael Gallup, Dallas Cowboys: $4,700 | $5,100
Rashard Higgins, Cleveland Browns: $4,600 | $5,000

Ian Thomas, TE, Carolina Panthers

Week 13 Salary: $4,100
Week 14 Salary: $4,900

Greg Olsen missed nine games last season to a fractured foot and the injury required surgery. With Olsen approaching age 34 and coming off surgery, the Carolina Panthers selected Ian Thomas from Indiana in the fourth round. That move looked prescient when Olsen fractured the same foot in the season opener and missed three games. He injured the same foot Sunday and unlike earlier in the season, Thomas was productive in Olsen's absence. He caught all five of his targets for 46 yards and 7.1 FanDuel points while playing 75 percent of the snaps.

Much like the running back movers this week, Thomas' salary increase is a response to an increased role due to injury. The Panthers travel to Cleveland this week and face the Browns' number two ranked passing defense. We shouldn't write him off becasue of the matchup, as the Browns are just 28th overall against the tight end position using our advanced stats. If you need a salary saver for tournament lineups, Thomas allows you to climb the ladder at other positions.

Other Big Movers:

Eric Ebron, Indianapolis Colts: $5,600 | $6,400
Rob Gronkowski, New England Patriots: $6,700 | $6,200
Evan Engram, New York Giants: $5,400 | $5,000



Ryan Bobbitt is not a FanDuel employee. In addition to providing DFS gameplay advice, Ryan Bobbitt also participates in DFS contests on FanDuel using his personal account, username Drummerinabox. While the strategies and player selections recommended in his articles are his/her personal views, he/she may deploy different strategies and player selections when entering contests with his/her personal account. The views expressed in his/her articles are the author's alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of FanDuel.