NFL

4 NFL FanDuel Stacks for Week 10

Stacks fuel upside in FanDuel contests. To that point, colleague Brandon Gdula took a deep dive into hit rates and correlation for stacks. It's worth a read.

Every week, I'll lay out my four favorite stacks in this space. Here are the stacks I'm honing in on this week.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Tom Brady ($8,300), Mike Evans ($7,400), and Tyler Johnson ($5,100)

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are coming out of their Week 9 bye in rough shape. The team has already ruled out Antonio Brown and Rob Gronkowski, and Chris Godwin's status is a game-time decision. Even if Godwin plays, he's likely less than 100 percent healthy, suffice to say. Maybe the Bucs will be forced to run the ball more than they're accustomed to doing.

However, maybe they'll keep slinging the rock all over the field. According to Sharp Football Stats, the Buccaneers are passing at the highest rate (67 percent), airing it out at the second-highest rate when the offensive scoring margin ranges from trailing by seven points to leading by seven points, and chucking it at the third-highest rate (58 percent) when leading by eight or more points. So, passing is in their DNA. With Brady leading the offense and still equipped with talent in the passing attack, Tampa may not change its stripes against the dreadful pass defense of the Washington Football Team.

The Football Team ranks as the second-worst pass defense by our metrics. Brady must be licking his chops in anticipation of carving them up. According to Pro Football Reference, the G.O.A.T. is first in passing yards per game (331.3) and touchdown passes (25). He's built to terrorize Washington's pass defense.

The game is set up to play at a break-neck pace. According to Football Outsiders, Tampa Bay is playing at the 6th-fastest situation-neutral pace, and Washington is playing 10th-fastest. A fast pace will lead to more plays being run, and more plays mean more fantasy scoring potential.

Evans is my favorite stacking partner for Brady. The big-bodied wideout brilliantly blends vertical usage and scoring-territory prowess for a walking spike-week threat. According to Sports Info Solutions, he is ninth in intended air yards (915). Evans leads the Buccaneers in targets (seven), receptions (six), and receiving touchdowns (five) from inside the 10-yard line. Toss in a probable uptick in overall volume, and it's easy to understand why we project him as the WR2 this week with the highest point-per-dollar value at the position.

Johnson is an attractive value option to round out this stack regardless of Godwin's playing status. Per Pro Football Focus, in three games Antonio Brown has missed this year, Johnson is third on the team in routes (82). In those three games, Johnson is responsible for 14 targets, 10 receptions, 144 receiving yards, and 1.76 yards per route run.

Thus, even if Godwin plays, Johnson has showcased the ability to carve out a viable role as the third receiver. If Godwin is out, he's primed for a move up the pass-catching food chain.

Atlanta Falcons

Matt Ryan ($7,300), Cordarrelle Patterson ($7,800), Kyle Pitts ($6,900)

I'm locked in on pace this weekend. I cited the pace ranks for the Buccaneers and Football Team above. However, the game between the Atlanta Falcons and Dallas Cowboys features a pair of faster-paced teams. Atlanta is playing at the ninth-fastest situation-neutral pace, and Dallas is playing at the third-fastest.

When the Falcons are pulling their weight in an uptempo game, you should expect them to lean on their passing attack. Atlanta is passing at the ninth-highest rate (60 percent) when the offensive scoring margin ranges from trailing by seven points to leading by seven points. Matty Ice is largely thriving in new coach Arthur Smith's offense. Sure, he has a clunker in Week 1 and another in Week 8 on his ledgers. However, Ryan has tossed multiple touchdowns in his other six contests. He's thrown for more than 335 yards with multiple touchdowns in three of his last four games.

Pitts is the apple of Ryan's eye in Atlanta's pass-happy offense. The unicorn rookie is leading the team in targets (57) and receiving yards per game (68.3). He is also a top-ranked player among his peers at tight end. Pitts is eighth in receptions (36), seventh in routes (264) and third in receiving yards (546) at the position. Out of 29 tight ends targeted at least 25 times this year, Pitts is third in yards per route run (2.07) and second in yards per reception (15.2).

Patterson might appear to be an unusual inclusion in this stack. Don't fret. He meshes well with Ryan because the converted receiver is often still used as a receiver. Among running backs, Patterson is sixth in slot snaps (28), second in inline snaps (nine), and first in snaps aligned wide (58).

It is also a disservice to address Patterson's receiving work compared to only fellow running backs. Among all players targeted at least 25 times this year, Patterson is second with 3.33 yards per route run. He is also 25th out of 149 qualified pass-catchers with 9.8 yards per target. The explosive jack-of-all-trades is averaging 4.8 reception, 57.4 receiving yards, and 34.8 rushing yards per game, scoring seven touchdowns for good measure. I love this three-man stack in GPPs.

Atlanta Falcons at Dallas Cowboys

Kyle Pitts ($6,900) and Ezekiel Elliott ($8,000)

If it isn't apparent from the write-up above, I completely expect the Falcons and Cowboys to produce offensive fireworks. Pitts is a carryover from the aforementioned stack. Thankfully, if you're multi-entering GPPs, you can use this stack with the previous one.

Also, I sandbagged a bit with Pitts' write-up, saving some for this section. Concluding my analysis for Pitts, he is projected to finish as the top scorer at tight end. As a bonus, he is projected for the second-highest point-per-dollar value, too.

Zeke is bouncing back from a disappointing 2020 campaign. He is sixth in rushing yards per game (77.8) and tied for seventh in rushing touchdowns (five). Elliott is also a contributor in the passing game, averaging 2.9 receptions and 19.1 receiving yards per game and adding another score through the air.

Dallas's lead back has a great matchup. The Dirty Birds are ranked as the 10th-worst rush defense, per our numbers. The betting lines are ideal for Zeke. The Cowboys' implied total of 31.75 is the highest on the main slate, and the Cowboys are 9.0-point favorites. If the game goes according to plan, Elliott is in a prime spot to pile up carries.

Minnesota Vikings at Los Angeles Chargers

Dalvin Cook ($8,500) and Mike Williams ($6,900)

The final stack is from another game with an over/under of more than 50 points. However, this one is projected to be a closer contest, as the Los Angeles Chargers are only 3.0-point favorites against the visiting Minnesota Vikings. Even though Cook is game-script proof, the narrow spread is optimal for his outlook against the Chargers' horrendous run defense.

As long as the Vikings can keep the game close, expect Cook to run wild on the Chargers. The Chargers are in the basement of our power rankings for run defense. Additionally, according to Pro Football Reference, the Chargers are getting steamrolled for 4.86 yards per rush attempt by running backs.

Cook should be keeping the Chargers up at night, as he is 3rd in rushing yards per game (92.3) and 14th among qualified rushers with 4.8 yards per attempt. Predictably, Cook is projected to produce this week, ranking as the RB6 and possessing the seventh-best point-per-dollar value at the position.

On the other side of this contest, I'm hopping on Williams. Unfortunately, he hasn't maintained the momentum from his explosion out of the gate this year. Regardless, he's demonstrated blow-up ability, and his 4.6 receptions per game, 71.9 receiving yards per game, and six touchdown receptions are nothing to sneeze at.

Justin Herbert routinely throws to Williams near the end zone. Herbert has attempted 22 passes from inside the 10-yard line, and Williams' six targets tie for the team lead with Keenan Allen. Williams' scoring-territory usage is dreamy for his touchdown potential and upside.

Additionally, he has a mouthwatering matchup for his ability to win vertically. The Vikings are coughing up 13.90 yards per reception to receivers.

I'm encouraged by a specific mark trending in the right direction on Williams' resume. According to Pro Football Focus, Williams had an average depth of target of 9.9 yards in Week 1 through Week 3, when he was destroying defenses. His average depth of target ballooned to 15.6 yards in Week 4 through Week 8 (the Chargers had a bye in Week 7), making him more volatile. However, last week, his average depth of target of 13.4 yards was his shallowest since Week 3 after sporting a somewhat palatable depth of target of 14.0 yards in Week 8. I'm optimistic the Bolts can find a happy medium for Williams' target depth that results in a big game in a plus matchup.



Joshua Shepardson is not a FanDuel employee. In addition to providing DFS gameplay advice, Joshua Shepardson also participates in DFS contests on FanDuel using his personal account, username bchad50. 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.