We’ll start by saying that any picks used or mentioned for cash games can be played in tournaments, including the “Other Options.” That’s an important thing to know and can sometimes get confusing when the two are discussed separately. For that reason, I’ve tried to avoid mentioning my cash game plays for this article.
There is merit to using or fading individual players in tournaments, whether it be ownership expectations, bust potential, etc. Just about all of the cash game plays are viable for tournaments. If you’d like to see Cash Game Plays, you can check that out here. With that said, let’s get to some other picks for tournaments. Getting a mixture of popular and lower-owned players is the best way to go. Let’s go for the big bucks. Here are the favorite GPP Plays, Game Stacks, and Dart Throws for Week 14.
Quarterback
Deshaun Watson ($7,600 DK, $8,000 FD)
Let’s take a stroll down the narrative street. The Bears really should have drafted Watson over Trubisky in the 2017 NFL Draft. Watson is still upset, claiming that the Bears didn’t even interview him. The way the Bears defense has looked the past few weeks, this is more than just a narrative. Watson has played outstanding football and could carve them up similarly to how Aaron Rodgers and Matthew Stafford have the past two games, combining for 613 yards and seven touchdowns. Buster Skrine has been terrible in the slot. He’s been ruled out with a concussion. The Bears will start either Duke Shelley, Kindle Vildor, Sherrick McManis, or DeAndre Houston-Carson, most likely. If Skrine was playing that bad and continued to play, what does that say about his potential replacements? Watson to Keke Coutee in the slot could be a very underrated stack.
Matt Ryan ($5,700 DK, $7,300 FD)
Matt Ryan hasn’t been talked up much this week, and with the news about Julio Jones, I’m sure there will be people telling you to fade him now. I think that is a mistake. The Chargers should come out firing after last week’s abysmal performance. Ryan will need to air it out, and his price tag is more than affordable and easy to stack with. Stack him up with Calvin Ridley with a little bit of Russell Gage and Hayden Hurst.
Other Options: Russell Wilson, Justin Herbert, Tom Brady, Kirk Cousins, any Cash Game QB
Running Back
Dalvin Cook ($9,400 DK, $10,200 FD)
Any time you have the opportunity to roster the most productive fantasy running back producer of the season at less than 10 percent projected ownership, you take it. The matchup versus the Tampa Bay Buccaneers is less than ideal, but risk it for the biscuit, as they say.
Jonathan Taylor ($5,800 DK, $7,000 FD)
Taylor has been getting some more opportunities and is playing better recently. From Weeks 1-10, he forced nine total missed tackles. In the last two games alone, he’s forced eight. The Las Vegas Raiders rank dead last in rush DVOA (6.01 percent). If Taylor continues to get opportunities, he could have a field day against this unit.
Other Options: Ezekiel Elliott, D’Andre Swift, Kenyan Drake, Wayne Gallman, Giovani Bernard, and Cash Game RB
Wide Receiver
Keenan Allen ($7,700 DK, $8,500 FD)
Last week was an odd one for the Los Angeles Chargers as a whole. They were completely upended by Bill Belichick and the New England Patriots and lost 45-0. Rookie quarterback Justin Herbert was never able to find his rhythm. With that said, we could see a bounce-back game here against the Atlanta Falcons. The Falcons haven’t exactly been world-beaters on the defensive side of the ball. They are dead last in DK points allowed to the quarterback position and second-to-last in DK points given to opposing wide receivers. The masses will be flocking to Davante Adams. Allen is a cheaper “spend up” option with a similar ceiling.
DJ Chark ($5,400 DK, $5,900 FD)
Put a star next to this one. Chark is my favorite tournament option on the slate. The Titans secondary allows the third-most DK points to opposing wide receivers and is third-worst in pass DVOA. Playing from behind should help Chark’s cause. It’s only a matter of time before he has a huge two-touchdown game.
Other Options: D.K. Metcalf, Tyler Lockett, Brandon Aiyuk, A.J. Brown, Keke Coutee, Calvin Ridley, any Cash Game WR.
Tight End
T.J. Hockenson ($5,000 DK, $6,000 FD)
The Packers are going to put up points, that much we know. However, the Lions are more than capable of putting up some on the other side as well. Matthew Stafford threw for over 400 yards and three touchdowns last week against the Chicago Bears. Hockenson didn’t find the end zone but caught seven of nine targets for 84 yards. He finds himself in kind of a dead range as far as tight end pricing goes, being not all the way up, but not inexpensive. Jaire Alexander is a good cornerback who will most likely cover Marvin Jones. I could see Stafford looking over the middle quite a bit for his tight end.
Darren Waller ($6,800 DK, $7,100 FD)
Waller smashed last week, putting up 48 DK points on 13 catches for 200 yards and two touchdowns. Fast forward to this week, and we are hearing nothing about him simply because of his matchup against the Indianapolis Colts. The Colts are allowing the second-fewest points to the tight end position. This is a solid way to get different in tournaments. Bet on Waller’s talent and his 28.3 percent target share.
Other Options: Travis Kelce, Mike Gesicki, Hunter Henry, Hayden Hurst, any Cash Game TE.
Game Stacks
DET vs. GB
CHI vs. HOU
JAC vs. TEN
LAC vs. ATL
Dart Throws
QB – Mike Glennon ($5.100 DK, $6,000 FD)
Glennon has no idea if he’ll get more opportunities to start past this season. Because of that, he’s letting it fly. Over the past two weeks, no quarterback has attempted more deep passes than Glennon. This aligns perfectly with my strong feeling about Chark. If you’re feeling Baker Mayfield level dangerous, stack them together and run it back with some solid Tennessee Titans options (Corey Davis, A.J. Brown, Derrick Henry).
WR – Brandon Zylstra ($3,000 DK, $4,500 FD)
With D.J. Moore out, much of the ownership is heading Curtis Samuel and Robby Anderson’s direction. However, they could keep Samuel in the slot and line up Zylstra on the outside. In Week 17 last year, in place of Moore, Zylstra caught six of eight passes for 96 yards. By no means is it likely, but if it happens, you have this week’s Chad Hansen from last week.
Good luck this week, and let’s win some money!
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