Daily Fantasy Football Best Bargains 2021: Week 15 Top DFS Values on DraftKings and FanDuel
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 and DraftKings that will let you splurge elsewhere. And remember, scoring is IMPORTANT. Here are Fanduel’s and DraftKings’ scoring systems.
Quarterbacks
Ben Roethlisberger, Steelers ($6,600/$5,600): Roethlisberger, as old and immobile as he’s looked all year, has actually been productive for fantasy the last two weeks. The skill talent surrounding him makes it difficult to be a total bust, and while he’s still managed that feat at times – he’s this price for a reason – he also possesses way more upside than others in this range. The Tennessee matchup isn’t great, but it’s also not bad, and he’s thrown three touchdown passes twice in the last four weeks.
Matt Ryan, Falcons ($6,500/$5,300): Ryan is like Roethlisberger, but with way less surrounding skill talent. He has eclipsed 200 passing yards just once in the last five weeks, and hasn’t thrown more than one touchdown pass in a game since Week 9. But, at his best he can top 300 yards and get you multiple touchdowns, and San Francisco’s humming offense should force the Falcons to air it out. Do I love this? Not at all, but if I must save my money at QB, then I’d rather Ryan than Zach Wilson or Trevor Lawrence.
Running Backs
David Montgomery, Bears ($6,500/$5,900): Montgomery hasn’t had many blowup games lately, but he remains extremely involved in this offense on the ground and through the air, and should feast on Minnesota’s defense, which ranks 26th in Rush DVOA per Football Outsiders. Any time you can combine high volume with a smash matchup, you’d be silly not to take advantage.
James Robinson, Jaguars ($6,300/$5,400): Robinson’s sudden lack of volume is staggeringly stupid, as the Jaguars have completely sputtered offensively. It’s also getting a lot of attention, which means we can expect a correction to occur. Robinson should get back to approaching 20 carries, along with a few targets, and they’ll all come against a Texans defense that just allowed Rashaad Penny to run wild for 137 yards and two TDs. I’d be very surprised if Robinson wasn’t a borderline RB1 this week.
Devonta Freeman, Ravens ($5,900/$5,500): Freeman doesn’t have the ceiling of Montgomery or Robinson, but his volume is just as safe. Freeman has seen double-digit rushing attempts for six games in a row, and scored twice in the last four weeks. The Packers look like a tough matchup, but they actually have just the 24th-ranked Rush DVOA, and Freeman could see the work increase as Lamar Jackson recovers from a sprained ankle. Sneaky safety here from a sub-$6,000 player.
Wide Receivers
Brandon Aiyuk, 49ers ($6,600/$6,300): The Falcons allow 6.4 points per game to WR2s, Jimmy Garoppolo has been heating up, and the Falcons defense overall has the NFL’s fourth-worst Pass DVOA. Meanwhile, Aiyuk has scored twice in the last four games, and, more importantly, drawn six or more targets in each of his last four games. This is a good opportunity for him to get in the end zone.
Jamison Crowder, Jets ($5,700/$5,000): Crowder could be a big value if you can stomach major risk. The Jets offense truly sucks, so Crowder could be a land mine on your roster, but he’s also the de facto WR1 in Week 15, and the Dolphins’ otherwise strong defense allows 9.2 points per game to WR1s, one-tenth of a point behind the Rams for the worst mark in football.
Tight Ends
Hunter Henry, Patriots ($6,000/$4,200): Henry is a total smash play despite catching two or fewer passes in seven of his last eight games. Henry is absolutely a TD-or-bust play, and for a while he was consistently finding himself with the ball in the painted portion of the turf. He’ll find himself there again, as he takes on the Colts’ NFL-worst defense against TEs. They allow 9.4 points per game to the position, and you better believe the Patriots’ coaching staff and QB Mac Jones are aware.
Dalton Schultz, Cowboys ($5,600/$4,900): Schultz is in a similar spot to Henry, just in a better offense with a slightly worse matchup. Schultz should succeed vs. the Giants’ defense, which allows the seventh-most points to opposing TEs (8). Schultz has a lot of competition for touches, but this matchup is plush, and he’s pretty cheap for a guy who could reasonably score multiple touchdowns.
Tyler Higbee, Rams ($5,200/$4,000): If you really need to save money, Higbee fits the bill. It’s been a while since he was impactful, but there are a few marks in his favor. The Seahawks give up the second-most points per game to TEs (8.8), and the Rams will likely be without Odell Beckham Jr., who was added to the Covid list. Higbee could absolutely suck --he’s topped 50 receiving yards only twice all season – but the offense has such scoring capability that his upside is really special for being this much of a bargain.