NFL – Industry Expert Consensus – Week Two

Plenty of excitement as the NFL was back in full force last week. If you didn’t get a chance to check out the podcast, we hope you’ll do so this week. It should be up later tonight. Be sure to check out our NFL Expert Standings as Stephen jumped out to an early lead. As Brad mentioned in his Offensive Tendencies article, there are nine divisional matchups this week. At times those games tend to be tight, lower scoring contests due to the familiarity of the teams. Best of luck and drop us a line in the comments with your feedback.

As a reminder, the number in the parenthesis is the number of experts that chose that player so you have more context regarding the gaps between players and the tiers.

Quarterbacks

Highly Touted

• Eli Manning (13x) – Manning is definitely my top play for the week. Should light up Saints defense that didn’t put up much of a fight last Sunday.
• Cam Newton (11x) – Will be interesting to see how Cam bounces back from some cheap hits late in last Thursday’s contest in Denver.
• Matthew Stafford (9x) – Stafford was fantastic in week one where he threw for 340 yards and three touchdowns.

Recommended

• Blake Bortles (6x) – Bortles topped the 300-yard mark last week. Will get a chance to face the Chargers, a team in which Alex Smith feasted on last week.
• Drew Brees (6x) – Brees looked like vintage-2010 Drew Brees in week one. Should have ample opportunities to do the same thing on Sunday.

Suggested

• Philip Rivers (4x) – Without his top wideout, Keenan Allen, for the remainder of the season. Expect him to rely heavily on Gates with some unproven commodities on the outside.
• Joe Flacco (4x) – Is Joe Flacco elite? The great debate rages on. He’ll take on the Browns in Cleveland and should provide a fairly high floor.
• Marcus Mariota (4x) – Mariota gets a Lions defense that was shredded by Andrew Luck. Solid value for the price.
• Dak Prescott (3x) – Prescott was the DFS darling last week. It seems that they hype has cooled a little bit. Same ol’ Cowboy…move the ball like crazy between the 20’s and kick a ton of field goals.
• Carson Palmer (3x) – Palmer found Fitz in the endzone twice against the Pats last week. He’s an oldie but a goodie.
• Josh McCown (3x) – Josh McCown is not a bad NFL quarterback. He’ll, once again, take the reigns of a team and will get the Ravens out of the gate.

Running Backs

Highly Touted

• CJ Anderson (14x) – CJ Anderson should feast this week. As only the 7th highest priced RB on DraftKings, his ownership should be very high.
• Danny Woodhead (11x) – Woodhead picks up a lot of value due to his ability to catch the ball out of the backfield. Led the team in receptions in week one.
• DeAngelo Williams (9x) – Man, he proved he has a bit left in the tank. Should be a grind it out matchup in a tough divisional game.
• TJ Yeldon (7x) – Yeldon got 21 carries in week one. The problem? He only gained 39 yards on those 21 carries.
• LeGarrette Blount (7x) – The New England backfield is so unpredictable; however, at a price of $4K, it’s hard to go wrong.

Recommended

• Rashad Jennings (6x) – Had a nice game against Dallas on Sunday. Should have plenty of redzone opportunities to punch a couple in against a bad Saints defense.
• David Johnson (6x) – Johnson found the endzone in week one. He’s the workhorse in the Arizona backfield. The highest priced RB on the board.
• Ezekiel Elliott (5x) – Elliott was another fantasy darling in week one. He certainly did not dazzle in his debut. Let’s see if he can get something going behind the best O-line in the league.
• Lamar Miller (5x) – Miller topped 100 yards but failed to find the endzone. He’s set up to have a great year. Not sure if playing him against the KC defense is the best spot though.

Suggested

• Mark Ingram (4x) – Only received 12 carries but averaged almost 5 yards per.

Wide Receivers

Highly Touted

• Odell Beckham, Jr. (12x) – No surprise here. OBJ should be able to throw up some big numbers.
• Tyrell Williams (9x) – Should see a big increase in targets with Allen out the rest of the year.
• Antonio Brown (8x) – He put up big numbers in week one.
• Travis Benamin (8x) – Should be another recipient of increased targets in the SD offense. He caught 7 balls last week but didn’t even top 40 yards with those catches.
• Tajae Sharpe (8x) – Saw 11 targets and caught 7 balls in week one. Still only priced at $4,100. Should provide some solid value.
• AJ Green (7x) – Caught 12 balls for 180 yards and a touchdown. We’ve gotten all to used to big games out of this beast.

Recommended

• Kelvin Bejamin (5x) – Saw no limitations to his snap count in the first week. That’s huge for DFS players as he should put up big numbers all year.
• Cole Beasley (5x) – You can snag him at almost minimum price. He and Prescott have a solid connection as he was targeted 12 times and caught 8 balls.

Suggested

• Jarvis Landry (4x) – Has had some success against New England in his young career.
• Willie Snead (4x) – Snead has a huge game last Sunday. Not sure he keeps up that price but still provides solid value.
• Marvin Jones, Jr. (5x) – Only caught 4 balls though he was targeted 10 times in his Lions debut.
• Allen Robinson (4x) – Fifteen targets last Sunday! Caught 6 balls for 72 yards.
• Allen Hurns (4x) – I love Hurns as a value play. Caught 4 balls for 75 yards.
• Sterling Shepard (4x) – Shepard saw a slight bump in his price. I still see him as the best value on the board at WR. I’ll pump this guys up until he gives me reason to not do so.
• DeAndre Hopkins (3x) – He found the endzone buy was outplayed by rookie, Will Fuller.
• Amari Cooper (3x) – Cooper and Derek Carr have formed a dynamic duo. He caught 6 balls for 137 yards against a porous Saints secondary.
• Emmanuel Sanders (3x) – Can we trust Siemien yet? If you think so, Sanders is a great value play.
• Golden Tate (3x) – Tate caught all 7 balls that were thrown his way. He only picked up 41 yards on those catches though.
• Chris Hogan (3x) – Hogan is listed as questionable. He found the endzone last week and caught 3 balls for 60 yards.
• Will Fuller (3x) – Fuller exploded onto the scene. Caught 5 balls for 107 yards. A nice value play this Sunday.
• Mike Wallace (3x) – He is exactly what Flacco needs. A speedster that can run under those bombs that Flacco can unleash. Caught a 66 yard touchdown in week one.
• Larry Fitzgerald (3x) – Fitz found the endzone twice. Another oldie but goodie.

Tight Ends

Highly Touted

• Delanie Walker (13x) – The experts love Delanie Walker this week. He’s a solid value considering the Lions were gutted by the tight end last week.
• Gary Barnidge (9x) – Barnidge did not catch a ball last week. However, having Josh McCown back in the saddle will help him tremendously.

Recommended

• Eric Ebron (7x) – Had a big opener. Caught 5 balls and found the endzone. If the Lions sling it, he’ll be the recipient of targets.
• Jordan Reed (5x) – Reed came out smoking in the 1st quarter on Monday but tapered off a bit as the game drug on.
• Jesse James (5x) – He caught 5 balls in week one. Could be a solid punt play at TE.

Suggested

• Jason Witten (4x) – Witten is always a solid play. Prescott seems more comfortable dinking and dunking which benefits the vet.
• Antonio Gates (4x) – Gates should be the biggest recipient of the loss of Keenan Allen.
• Coby Fleener (4x) – Fleener caught one ball for six yards in his Saints debut.
• Virgil Green (4x) – Green caught 4 balls last week. He’s priced under $3K on DraftKings.
• Greg Olsen (3x) – Caught 7 balls for 73 yards on opening night.
• Jacob Tamme (3x) – Tamme is priced under $3K and coming off a 6 catch, 51 yard game.

Defense/Special Teams

Highly Touted

• New England Patriots (9x) – The Pats get Tannehill and the Dolphins. The Fins go from Seattle to Boston so we’ll see if the cross-country trek has any effect on their play.

Recommended

• Carolina Panthers (6x) – The Panthers will get a chance to hassle Blaine Gabbert.
• Baltimore Ravens (5x) – Ravens taking on the Browns would look like a better play if RG3 was still under center.
• Seattle Seahawks (5x) – Seahawks take on the Rams, who were not able to score last week.

Suggested

• Denver Broncos (3x) – The Donkeys play Indy. This defense is studly; however, there is always some risk playing a quarterback like Luck.

Hope that you find the right combination to cash! Follow me on twitter @mbutlerok.