Fan Duel Strategy 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 FanDuel that will let you splurge elsewhere. And remember, scoring is IMPORTANT. Here is FanDuel’s scoring system.
The bargains are listed in the order I like them.
Quarterbacks
Drew Lock, Broncos ($7,300): Lock is coming off a dreadful game in the snow vs. the Chiefs, but the 40 pass attempts he was allowed to show are an insight into how the Broncos feel about him. Lock is, for now, the QB of the future in Denver and that means he’ll be entrusted to chuck it the rest of the season. The Lions are on the slate this week, so he won’t have to battle the elements, or a good defense. In a week were QB bargains are non-existent, here is a true value, even if it eclipses the $6,600 mark I try to abide by.
Daniel Jones, Giants ($7,300): It appears that Jones will be back in the saddle, and just in time for a tasty matchup vs. the Redskins, who will enter play ranked 18th against the pass per Football Outsiders. The ‘Skins have played better of late, but are vulnerable to chunk plays and blowup games. Jones will have close to his full complement of pass-catchers (TE Evan Engram is on IR), and Saquon Barkley looked like himself again. Combine those factors with Jones’ rushing potential, and this is a possible Top 12 finish.
Running Backs
David Montgomery, Bears ($6,300): The Chiefs rank improved to 30th last week after limiting Denver’s running game, but it was fluky thanks to bizarre Broncos play calling in the snow. The Chiefs can’t stop the run in 2019, and the Bears would be wise to force the issue with Mitchell Trubisky proving this year he can’t be relied upon to carry this offense with his arm. Montgomery has seen volume all season, and sometimes has turned in useful performances. He’s lacked in the touchdown category, which is the type of stat that fluctuates randomly and often regresses to the mean. I can see Montgomery’s positive regression beginning here, with multiple scores.
Devonta Freeman, Falcons ($6,200): Freeman might be washed as a fantasy RB1, but his workload has been good enough this year to be trustworthy. He’s typically anywhere between 10-17 carries this season; that’s a wide gap, but 10 carries is still worthwhile depending on the matchup, and Freeman gets to feast on the Jaguars in Week 16. I’m very happily plugging him in as my RB2, and he can be an RB1 for you if you want to really load up at WR.
Wide Receivers
Terry McLaurin, Redskins ($6,500): WR is where the bargains are this week, beginning with Terry McLaurin. While he’s been scary at times with Dwayne Haskins at QB, he’s come on lately, scoring in back-to-back games and actually posting a monster 5-130-1 line last week against the Eagles. This week he has the opportunity to light up the Giants, one of the worst defenses in football and literally the worst against No. 1 receivers, according to Football Outsiders.
Mike Williams, Chargers ($6,500): Williams has been a consistent source of receiving yards this year, specializing on huge plays. Unlike last year when he scored 10 touchdowns, though, Williams has largely disappointed because finding the end zone has been tough. That’s changing, as he’s scored in back-to-back games while keeping those yards up. I expect him to keep rising as he’ll get to go to town on Oakland’s horrid pass defense.
Michael Gallup, Cowboys ($6,500): Gallup was a massive flop last week vs. the Rams, in a game Dallas put up 44 points. That happens. It doesn’t change the fact that Gallup has been targeted 10 or more times in four games this year, and was on a five-game streak of 55 or more yards that contained two efforts in which he went over 100 yards. Gallup is a damn good receiver in an offense that affords him volume. In a must-win game vs. a struggling secondary, I’ll happily toss this big play threat on my roster.
Tight Ends
Jared Cook, Saints ($6,500): Cook has been helpful for fantasy owners and DFS players alike for most of the season, averaging close to 50 yards a game at a position where goose eggs are weekly threats from anyone but the elite. This week Cook gets a nice matchup against Tennessee, a solid defense that ranks just 22nd against opposing TEs. I’m not sure I see a huge performance here, but his customary 50ish yards may come with a TD in what should be a competitive matchup.
Noah Fant, Broncos ($5,900): Lock and Fant might be a nice stack this week. Fant has a low floor – he has four games this year with fewer than 15 receiving yards – but he also has a high ceiling, as he’s gone over 100 yards with a TD twice. Against Detroit, all things are possible for passing games. He has the potential to be the TE1 this week, so for $5,900 he is worth the risk of a dud.
Austin Hooper, Falcons ($6,000): Hooper has been rough since returning from injury, but before getting hurt he had spent time as the TE1 on the year, and has hovered inside the Top 5 all season. The targets are still there from Matt Ryan, whose lost WR Calvin Ridley for the year, and the Jaguars are a fine opportunity to bounce back in a huge way (31st vs. TEs).