Draft Kings Week 16: Best Bargains At Each Position
The best way to cash on weekly fantasy football sites is to load up on as many stars with good matchups as possible. Due to budget restraints, however, fantasy players must sacrifice other positions to nab the stars they want.
Here, you'll find the top bargains at each position on Draft Kings that will let you splurge elsewhere. And remember, scoring is IMPORTANT. Here is Draft Kings’ scoring system.
The bargains are listed in the order I like them.
Quarterbacks
Kirk Cousins, Redskins ($5,400): Cousins has had two rough weeks in a row, and he’s up against a Broncos defense that on paper looks tough, but in reality is a deadened unit shuffling toward the finish line of this lost season. While the Broncos don’t have much to play for, Cousins is playing for a future contract. His yardage isn’t what we’re used to, but he has thrown two or more touchdowns in four of his last five games. There aren’t many reasonably priced QBs this week, and the others in this range are clear notches below Cousins. This is the Week 16 sweet spot for you to start splurging elsewhere.
Mitchell Trubisky, Bears ($4,700): Trubisky hasn’t proven he’s a good quarterback by any means, but in the last two games he’s thrown 32 and 46 passes, showing that the Bears are slowly taking off the kid gloves. Last week Trubisky threw for a career-high 314 yards, and he will be facing the Browns, one of the NFL’s worst pass defenses. Are you excited about starting him? No, or at least you shouldn’t be. But he will probably put up decent stats with this cake matchup and he’s cheap as hell.
Bryce Petty, Jets ($4,400): Petty stunk last week vs. the Saints, throwing for 179 yards, one touchdown and two picks while completing fewer than 50 percent of his passes. He’s also a starting QB, and he costs less than several backups. Price is the only reason to use Petty, but I’m not doing my job if I don’t point out that a starting QB costs $4,400 this week.
Running Backs
Carlos Hyde, 49ers ($5,000): Hyde has been a quality workhorse all season, and this week is a perfect time to grab him. San Francisco is about to run into the NFL’s top pass defense (Jacksonville), and Jimmy Garoppolo is going to have a tough time. The Jaguars have been vulnerable on the ground though (26th vs. the run per FootballOutsiders.com), and the Niners have no real hierarchy behind Hyde anymore. He could be in line for 20 carries, and that will lead to big numbers if he can hit – or approach – that number.
Jay Ajayi, Eagles ($5,100): Ajayi’s work has been increasing each week he’s been in Philadelphia, and this week he gets to feast on a gorgeous matchup. Ajayi will be running against Oakland’s awful defense, and even though their greatest vulnerability is against the pass, they’re no great shakes vs. RBs either. He’s registered double-digit carries for two straight weeks, and is due for a TD as he hasn’t hit paydirt since Week 8; the Eagles’ tendency to feature Corey Clement near the red zone bothers me, but that could change as Ajayi’s role grows.
Bilal Powell, Jets ($4,000): Powell’s been disappointing in 2017 as he’s had to share so much work with Matt Forte and Elijah McGuire, but he’s gotten double-digit carries for three straight games and remains a viable threat in the passing game. That kind of workload is a big value at $4,000, and he has a lowkey cushy matchup. The Chargers have a solid overall D, but rank just 29th against the run. Snagging a cake matchup at this low a price is exciting.
Wide Receivers
Nelson Agholor, Eagles ($5,200): Agholor remains underrated, which is great for DraftKings fans. He’s scored in three of his last four games, averaged 88 yards per game in his last three, and is matched up against the most porous pass defense in football (Raiders). Nick Foles is no Carson Wentz, but he’s a competent backup QB who literally couldn’t face softer opposition. I love Agholor this week.
Paul Richardson, Seahawks ($4,300): Richardson carries risk, as he’s been held to fewer than 20 receiving yards in two of Seattle’s last three games. He’s also a threat for a long strike at any time, and is averaging an impressive 16.2 yards per catch this year. Dallas has a poor ranking (23rd) against WR2s this year, and despite their solid pass rush, the Seahawks are due to rebound from last week’s utter demolition at the hands of the Rams.
Sammy Watkins, Rams ($4,400): Watkins hasn’t caught five passes in a game since Week 3, and yet he’s been one of the more useful bargains for a month or so. Despite the low targets, weak yardage, and depressing catch totals, Watkins saves himself almost weekly by scoring a touchdown. No joke, Watkins, who has averaged 43 receiving yards per game over the last seven games, has scored five times in that span. Not only that, he’s scored those touchdowns in five separate games. He’s a near lock for a touchdown a game, which you’ll absolutely sign up for at $4,400.
Tight Ends
Eric Ebron, Lions ($3,700): Ebron is not fun to rely on, but this week he has a beautiful matchup with the Bengals, one of the worst teams against tight ends in the sport, and hes actually been very involved the last two weeks. He’s caught 15 passes in the last two weeks, and he found the end zone last Sunday. I’d normally still shy away from Ebron, but that uptick, plus the matchup, makes him an intriguing play.
Jesse James, Steelers ($3,400): James is very, very inconsistent, but he can show up in a big way when presented with a good matchup. This is one of those weeks, as James takes on the Texans (27th vs. TEs) without target hound Antonio Brown in the lineup. Expect Ben Roethlisbegrer
Dion Sims, Bears ($2,700): Sims has been anything but good this year, so this is obviously high risk. But fellow Bears TE Adam Shaheen is banged up, and the Browns absolutely STINK against TEs. Like, I might score a TD if they lined me up at TE. So if you’re a risk taker, Sims might be worth a shot. Hell, stack him with Mitch Trubisky on a $1 roster and have a blast.