CFB DFS DraftKings Main Slate Breakdown: Week 2

by Jordan Vanek (vanekjordan)

Created Sep 10, 2026

Last Updated 2026-09-10 18:44:46 Premium Content Part of the product CFB Premium

Using his experience as a former scout and staff member at Central Florida under Josh Heupel, Jordan Vanek takes an in-depth look at the upcoming CFB DFS main slate on DraftKings for Week 2. Winner of the Fantasy Sports Writers Association’s 2025 College Sports Writer of the Year award, Jordan’s deep dive into the best stacks, running backs, and wide receivers is a must-read before you start building your lineups.

Week 1 is finally over, and we can stop looking at “ORs” on a depth chart and start using data that shows us who actually started and who didn’t. Usage is still very much up in the air for a lot of teams on this slate because of the competition they faced and how quickly they controlled their games.

On this slate alone, Arizona played Northern Arizona (and even shortened the game in the 4th quarter), Temple played Rhode Island, and Syracuse played New Hampshire. There are still plenty of teams we’re trying to figure out and understand what they’ll look like this season. The good news is that teams like Oregon, Washington State, and Duke played in competitive games, giving us much more to take away from Week 1.

For those who are new, our CFB DFS projections will be updated throughout Saturday’s slate with any news that comes out. Our projections team will also be posting real-time updates in the RotoGrinders Discord, letting you know what news came in and how it impacted the projections.

CFB DFS DraftKings Picks: Top Stacks, RBs, & WRs for Week 2

Very small sample here, but we have some new defensive coordinators with trends worth discussing. Illinois is breaking in its new 3-3-5 defense and played a ton of zone coverage this past weekend. One thing I noticed with Illinois was the poor tackling, as UAB generated a lot of yards after contact.

On the other side of the spectrum, Syracuse played a ton of man coverage, but I don’t expect that trend to continue. This was a one-week sample against a very bad team. Syracuse made one of the best defensive coordinator hires in the country (Vince Kehres), and I expect him to have some more complex looks saved for this California passing attack.

Oregon’s two-high usage remained very high against Boise State, and that appears to be the trend for Dan Lanning’s defense. Syracuse played a lot of Quarters and Cover 2 Man, and I expect that to remain similar against California this weekend.

UCF played a lot of Cover 1 and Cover 3, just like they did last season, and this will be a big test against an offense capable of attacking through the air. Pittsburgh quarterback Mason Heintschel only saw single-high coverage in Week 1 and ended up throwing 7 touchdowns.

Game Stacks

Mason Heintschel ($7,600, QB, Pittsburgh)

Censere Lee ($4,700, WR, Pittsburgh)

Alonza Barnett III ($6,600, QB, UCF)

Dylan Wade ($3,900, WR, UCF) and/or Josh Derry ($3,600, WR, UCF)

This Pittsburgh team plays with a ton of pace, and Heintschel has an incredible arm. UCF’s defense has funneled targets to the slot, and Lee is Pittsburgh’s primary slot WR. I prefer Lee over Malik Knight ($4,800, WR) and Cataurus Hicks ($6,300, WR) because the matchup is much better inside, and neither of them move into the slot very often. Heintschel looked incredible in Week 1, and at home, I expect him to carry that momentum into Week 2.

Pittsburgh’s defense has struggled to defend TEs because it blitzes so much, allowing talented TEs to get into the flats and make plays. Last season, Pittsburgh allowed two TEs to go over 100 receiving yards, and Wade is capable of having that type of game. I don’t mind doubling Barnett with Josh Derry ($3,600, WR), who looks like the best WR on this UCF team and someone they’re making a point to get the ball to.

The only drawback is that Barnett has not played well against the blitz in his career, and Pittsburgh is looking to blitz over 50% of the time. His numbers against the blitz weren’t great last weekend either, but some of that was due to drops.

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