4 NFL FanDuel Studs to Target in Week 5
We are already to Week 5. How? A quarter of the way through the 2019 season, and it's time to set those FanDuel lineups and gear up for a monster weekend of football.
As is the case when playing any sport on FanDuel, it’s imperative to hit on the high-priced players in your lineup. They require a big chunk of your salary, and when paying up for a player, you shouldn’t have to worry about him letting down your lineup.
Here are four studs who should prove to be worth their high price tag.
Deshaun Watson, QB, Houston Texans
FanDuel Price: $8,000
Projected Points: 21.3
Is this the week that Deshaun Watson finally snaps out of things? Let's hope so.
So far this season, Watson and the Houston Texans haven't been at their best offensively, but maybe the porous Atlanta Falcons passing defense will provide a lift. They rank sixth-worst against the pass via our per-play metrics, masking Watson's Passing Net Expected Points (NEP) mark of 0.16.
Per oddsFire, 67% of total cash coming is on the Texans, so sharps seem to expect that Watson is likely to rebound. If Houston can maintain their strong situation-neutral pace, where they rank 13th, this could be a bounce-back week for our top-projected signal-caller.
Christian McCaffrey, RB, Carolina Panthers
FanDuel Price: $9,100
Projected Points: 22.1
Four games into the year, stud back Christian McCaffrey is averaging a crisp 24.9 FanDuel points-per-game. That means this week's projected score would be below his season-long average. Buckle up.
First, he squares off against a Jacksonville Jaguars defense that clocks in only 18th against the run. Both LeSean McCoy and Phillip Lindsay gashed this run defense pretty heavily.
And as our Jim Sannes notes, McCaffrey leads all running backs in the NFL in Adjusted Opportunities (rushes plus 2X targets) -- regardless of game script, he will be heavily involved.
Take advantage of this brilliant matchup and roster CMC.
Keenan Allen, WR, Los Angeles Chargers
FanDuel Price: $7,500
Projected Points: 16.0
Taking on the same Denver Broncos defense, is this the same one that we have come to know and love?
This Broncos version, at least so far, is falling well short of expectations. They clock in 27th in team defense, including 26th against the pass. So far this season, they've been roasted in the air game by Tyrell Williams (six catches, 105 receiving yards, one touchdown) and Marquez Valdes-Scantling (6-99-1).
That should mean it's time to eat for Keenan Allen and Philip Rivers. The clear alpha dog in the passing game, Allen has racked up a 32.2% target market share this year -- pair that with an offense which ranks 10th in pass-to-run ratio (1.63), and it could be a monster day.
Evan Engram, TE, New York Giants
FanDuel Price: $6,300
Projected Points: 10.9
Somewhat rejuvenated with the insertion of Daniel Jones as the starting quarterback, this New York Giants seems to have found a little bit of fire, even with mega-back Saquon Barkley out of the mix.
One thing has remained consistent -- Evan Engram is still a very integral part of this offense. Regardless of who has been under center, over 160 drop backs, Engram leads the team with 37 targets and 27 catches.
The matchup this weekend is also an intriguing one. The Minnesota Vikings have allowed the 11th-most points to opposing tight ends on a point-per-game basis (13.4).
Look for Engram to be a big scorer this weekend at the tight end slot.
Matt Kupferle is not a FanDuel employee. In addition to providing DFS gameplay advice, Matt Kupferle also participates in DFS contests on FanDuel using his personal account, username MKupferle. While the strategies and player selections recommended in his articles are his personal views, he may deploy different strategies and player selections when entering contests with his personal account. The views expressed in his articles are the author's alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of FanDuel.
