Each week, this article shines the spotlight on players outside the top-12 at their respective positions on DraftKings and FanDuel to help you win your contests in daily fantasy. This advice should help you avoid having a lineup of players on much of the competition’s rosters, giving you a chance to win big every week. This article goes big or goes home. Going outside the top-12 at every position on both sites takes the best options off the board. Admittedly, that is all part of the fun. These picks aren’t building blocks for your cash or tournament lineups. They will put lineups over the top and win some big paydays.
WINNERS
Giovani Bernard vs. TEN; 62 rushing yards, three catches, 16 receiving yards, two total TDs, 22.8 DraftKings / 21.3 FanDuel points
Brandon Aiyuk vs. SEA; 11 targets, eight catches, 91 yards, one touchdown; 23.1 DK / 19.1 FD points
LOSERS
Jimmy Garoppolo vs. SEA; 11-16, 84 yards, zero TD, one INT, 2.76 DK / 2.76 FD points
Le’Veon Bell vs. NYJ; Six carries, seven yards, three catches, 31 yards, 6.8 DK / 5.3 FD points
Marquise Brown vs. PIT; Two targets, one catch, three yards, one TD, 7.3 DK / 6.8 FD points
Irv Smith vs. GB; One target, one catch, 16 yards, 2.6 DK / 2.1 FD points
Yikes! Week 8 did not go as expected. Jimmy G turned in an F against the Seattle Seahawks. Meanwhile, the Kansas City Chiefs destroyed the New York Jets through the air and did nothing on the ground. That was bad news for Bell and his teammate, Clyde Edwards-Helaire.
COVID-19 is going to throw some wrenches into the daily fantasy machine this year. Always check your lineups before they lock, and feel free to reach out on Twitter with questions. Good luck in Week 9.
Quarterbacks
Derek Carr, LV at LAC ($5,700 DK | $7,000 FD)
The Las Vegas Raiders are quietly 4-3, and it’s thanks to their quarterback taking a step forward in 2020. Carr is averaging career-bests with a 71.1 completion percentage, six percent touchdown rate, and only throwing an interception on 0.9 percent of his throws. The 29-year-old has thrown at least 31 passes in five of his seven games this season. He has thrown multiple touchdowns in those five contests every time and is averaging 21.34 fantasy points per game.
Carr will face the Los Angeles Chargers this week, and the matchup makes him an appealing option in Week 9. The Chargers are seeing 39 pass attempts against them per game. They have also allowed opposing signal-callers to score multiple touchdowns in five of their last six games. The volume and Carr’s impressive play this year makes him an excellent, low-cost option at the quarterback position.
Running Backs
David Montgomery, CHI at TEN ($5,700 DK | $5,900 FD)
In Weeks 1-3 this season, Montgomery did not play more than 56 percent of the Chicago Bears offensive snaps. Then, Tarik Cohen went down with an injury, and it all changed. Monty has played at least 81 percent of the snaps since he lost his backfield competition. There is no one else in Chicago that will challenge him for touches.
The sophomore running back will face the Tennessee Titans in an easier matchup than most people perceive. In seven games, nine different running backs have either scored a touchdown or topped 100 yards versus the Titans. They have given up the 11th-most point to the running back position, and the fact that Montgomery is game script proof makes him a great play in the sub-$6,000 range.
Justin Jackson, LAC vs. LVR ($4,900 DK | $5,900 FD)
Since Austin Ekeler‘s injury in Week 5, Jackson has seen some great results on the gridiron. The third-year back has 37 carries for 172 yards on the ground while also racking up 13 catches on 17 targets for another 199 yards. He has more snaps, touches, and targets than either Joshua Kelley or Troymaine Pope. The one thing that has escaped Jackson’s stat line is touchdowns. Fortunately, the Raiders should fix that problem. Jackson has the versatile skill set and ability to have a huge day against the Raiders. The Raiders allowed three running backs to score multiple touchdowns this season and allow the fifth-most points in PPR formats. This game has the highest over/under on the main slate this week, and it should set up for a ton of fantasy points.
Wide Receivers
Brandin Cooks, HOU at JAC ($5,500 DK | $6,100 FD)
Cooks has come alive in the Houston Texans offense since Bill O’Brien was fired. In Weeks 1-4, Cooks saw 21 targets and caught 10 of them for 148 yards and zero touchdowns. Since then, the former Rams receiver has been on fire. He’s averaging 10 targets per game and has already faced the Jaguars secondary. On that occasion, he saw 12 targets and reeled in eight of them to produce 161 yards and a touchdown.
Cooks is $1,300 cheaper than teammate Will Fuller, but there is a path where he has a better day. Considering he already did it in Week 4 just further strengthens the point. The only fear here is that the Texans are a seven-point favorite and will ice the game through David Johnson. It shouldn’t matter, though, because Cooks has been cooking (Sorry, had to), and if the Texans are up big, he will likely have played a big part in that happening.
John Brown, BUF vs. SEA ($4,600 DK | $5,500 FD)
In the first two games of the season, Brown caught 10 of 16 targets for 152 yards and two touchdowns. Since then, he has dealt with injuries and a Buffalo Bills offense that has gotten away from passing the ball. Fortunately, he has a matchup with the Seattle Seahawks secondary this weekend.
On the year, opponents average 47 pass attempts per game versus the Seahawks. This will give Brown enough volume to produce like he was earlier in the season. Seattle gives up 58 fantasy points per game to wide receivers. Stefon Diggs and Cole Beasley could both put up 20-point performances, and there would still be plenty for Brown to have a great fantasy day. He is the cheapest of the trio, but having a piece of this game will go a long way to have a big day on the main slate.
Tight Ends
Albert Okwuegbunam, DEN at ATL ($2,800 DK | $5,000 FD)
Okwuegbunam is strictly a DraftKings play because his pricing on FanDuel is out of control. At least on DraftKings, the tight end only needs to catch a touchdown to return value. Luckily, catching a touchdown is precisely what the rookie did last week versus the Chargers. The tight end position is so up in the air that taking a flyer on Okwuegbunam could make a massive difference in your tournament lineups.
Over the last two seasons, the Atlanta Falcons are the fourth-worst defense versus tight ends. However, once we cut it down to just the 2020 season, they become the worst defense in the league by a wide margin. Tight ends average 6.25 catches per game and have finished inside the top-12 at the position in six of Atlanta’s eight games. The rookie will be the secondary option at the position to Noah Fant, but, as previously stated, it only takes one catch in the endzone to return value and have the rookie return stable value on his salary in Week 9.
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