4 NFL FanDuel Stacks for Week 9
On the Week 9 FanDuel main slate, there are four games projected for an implied total of 48-points or more, with five teams projected to score at least 24-points this week – a rather low projected scoring week, which allows for Daily Fantasy Sports (DFS) players to get a little more contrarian with their lineups.
In this article, I will reflect my favorite DFS stacks for this week. These decisions are made by using player projections, Vegas implied team totals and player ownership projections.
Green Bay Packers
Aaron Rodgers ($8,100) and Davante Adams ($8,000)
There may not be a quarterback playing better than Aaron Rodgers right now, and it sounds like his number-one receiver, Davante Adams, is on track to return for Sunday’s Week 9 contest against the Los Angeles Chargers.
Having Adams back in the lineup would be a huge boost for Rodgers, who’s already playing at an exceptional level. Rodgers is coming off his best two fantasy performances this season -- games in which he combined for 70.86 FanDuel points -- all while Adams has been sidelined with an injury. Having Adams back in the lineup this week will help allow Rodgers to continue racking up big-time numbers against the Chargers.
The Packers are currently implied to score 25.25 points this week against the Chargers, the third-most on the main slate. The Green Bay offense could score well above that number should the Chargers be able to lead or keep this contest close. Rodgers shouldn’t have any issues carving up the Chargers' defense as the Bolts rank in the bottom-six in both pass and rush D this season, per our schedule-adjusted metrics.
Assuming Adams is confirmed to play this Sunday, I like stacking him up with Rodgers. He does not have the easiest of cornerback matchup this week, as PFF expects him to be shadowed by Casey Hayward. However, cornerback matchups are less of a concern for me with elite wide receivers -- which I consider Adams to be -- especially when you have Aaron Rodgers throwing you the ball.
Adams has been targeted an average of nine times per game this season, with an average of 15.1 yards per catch. With a 60.4% catch rate, that puts Adams on pace for an average of 94.36 yards per game, a number he’s exceeded in two of four games this season. With an already depleted receiving corps in Green Bay, look for Rodgers to lean on Adams even more this Sunday, should Adams be full-go.
Carolina Panthers
Christian McCaffrey ($9,700) and Carolina D/ST ($4,000)
After last week’s performance against the San Francisco 49ers' defense -- which is a two-two D, per our numbers -- it’s safe to say that Christian McCaffrey is essentially matchup-proof. In a game in which many expected McCaffrey to under-perform, the running back posted a stat line of 117 rushing yards, 38 receiving yards and one rushing touchdown. That translated to 25.5 FanDuel points -- again, against one of the league’s best defenses.
This week McCaffrey may be looked at as having another tough matchup as he's up against the Tennessee Titans, but it's a spot we’re not afraid of. Per our projections, we currently have McCaffrey projected to be the top-scoring running back on the main slate. With his level of opportunity through both the running and passing game, that shouldn’t come as a surprise. We currently have him projected for 21.36 rushing attempts, 96.02 rushing yards and 0.66 rushing touchdowns on the ground. On top of that, he’s also projected to see 7.74 targets and 45.68 receiving yards. A lack of touches is never a concern for McCaffrey.
I like stacking McCaffrey with the Panthers D/ST this week. Prior to their loss against the Niners, the Carolina Panthers were on a four-game win streak. That was largely due to the play of McCaffrey and the Panthers' defense. During that four-game stretch, the Panthers defense was averaging 15.5 FanDuel points per game and never scored fewer than 13 FanDuel points.
With the Titans implied to score only 19.0 points this week -- the fourth-lowest total on the main slate -- the Panthers D/ST is primed to have a bounce-back game. They’ll faceoff against Titans quarterback Ryan Tannehill, who is starting just his third game this season and has turned the ball over four times in his first two starts.
Seattle Seahawks
Russell Wilson ($8,600) and Tyler Lockett ($7,500)
Yes, I’m going back to another Seattle Seahawks stack again this week, but for all the right reasons. This week I like stacking Russell Wilson with Tyler Lockett against a Tampa Bay Buccaneers team that has been susceptible to the passing game all season.
The Seahawks are currently implied to score 28.50 points, the highest total on the main slate. I expect a majority of those points to come through the passing game as the Bucs' rushing defense has been no joke this season, ranking as the top run defense in the league, per our numbers. Therefore, it makes sense to use the Seahawks' passing game in this contest.
Wilson’s play this season has put him in the MVP conversation for 2019. Per FanDuel Sportsbook, Wilson currently has the second-best odds to win MVP, and he has a great matchup to keep building his case this week against the Buccaneers. The Tampa defense is currently allowing 21.1 FanDuel points per game to opposing quarterbacks this season, the eighth-most across the league. We currently have Wilson projected to score the most points of any quarterback on the main slate (22.1). With a four-touchdown implied total, Wilson’s ceiling score could go well beyond that number.
I like pairing Wilson with Tyler Lockett. The chemistry between these two has undeniable this season as they are connecting at a league-high 85.19% catch rate. According to Next Gen Stats, Lockett has also provided one of the league’s best Average Cushion scores this season (6.3), tied with the likes of Tyreek Hill, Mike Evans and Cooper Kupp.
Per PFF’s wide receiver/cornerback matchup chart, Lockett also has a 20% advantage over Buccaneers cornerback Vernon Hargreaves III. That ranks eighth-best across all receiver/corner matchups on the main slate. Lockett’s speed and route running should cause problems for Hargreaves all game, and this game could turn into a shootout.
Oakland Raiders
Derek Carr ($7,300) and Darren Waller ($6,800)
Finally, I like stacking a couple of Oakland Raiders players this week against the Detroit Lions. While I won’t be shying away from rostering Oakland running back Josh Jacobs in this matchup, I’m going to be targeting the stack of Derek Carr and Darren Waller.
Surprisingly, the Raiders are currently implied to score the second-most points on the main slate this week (26.50). That is likely due to the subpar defensive play the Lions have displayed over their last four games, a span in which they’ve allowed 31.25 points per game to their opponents. With Oakland coming off back-to-back tough losses against the Packers and Houston Texans, this is a great bounce-back spot for the team.
Carr is fresh off his best fantasy football performance this season, when he threw three touchdowns against the Texans and posted 23.4 FanDuel points. This week, we have Carr projected to throw for 1.83 touchdowns, the fifth most on the main slate. In a game that could potentially end up being a shootout, I wouldn’t be surprised if we see Carr score 1.5 times more fantasy points than the 17.4 FanDuel points we have him projected for.
I prefer stacking Waller with Carr this week. We have Waller projected to score 0.43 touchdowns, tops among all tight ends on the main slate. Waller is seeing a time-high 29.65% target share. The next highest pass catcher on Oakland is Hunter Renfrow, who’s seeing a 15.08% target share. Waller also leads all Raiders in red zone targets, seeing a 30% red zone target share.
Waller’s 6’6” frame should cause issues against Lions safety Tracy Walker, who is listed as 6’2”. Per PFF’s tight end matchup chart, Waller currently has a 15% advantage over Walker. That ranks fifth-best across all tight end matchups on the main slate. Waller shouldn’t have any issue building on his breakout season this week against a suspect Lions secondary.
Griffin Swanson is not a FanDuel employee. In addition to providing DFS gameplay advice, Griffin Swanson also participates in DFS contests on FanDuel using his personal account, username GriffDogg_. 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. (edited)
