NFL Week 1: Top Picks
Week 1 Top Picks
NFL Daily Fantasy Preparation Part 2 of 4
Week 3 of the preseason, the NFL’s dress-rehearsal, is one game away from being in the books. Unless you are in a 20 team Dynasty league, your preseason scouting has likely come to an end. It’s time to gear up for the real deal. Week 1 NFL Salary Drafts, Live Drafts, and Bracket Challenges are now up at Draft Zone, and contests should be available on all of the sites very soon. With only 17 regular season weekly game opportunities for the NFL compared to over 10 times that amount for daily fantasy baseball, this makes any edge you can gain in the early weeks very valuable. It is tough to multi-task two sports at the same time, so we’re already here to help you out with a Week 1 analysis of NFL salary contests.
This week’s featured site is Draft Zone, because they do NFL daily fantasy contests right. Live Drafting takes selecting a roster beyond simply creating a player list, forcing you to adjust and respond to each and every situation. That being said, their Salary Draft values are excellent, and provide for challenging and entertaining contests week in and week out. They present a strategic blend of accurate real-time rankings with enough salary value to exploit. Using these values, we have broken down our Top NFL Picks at each position for week 1.
Week 1 – Top Picks – All Positions
| Quarterback | Opponent | Salary Cost | What We Like |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aaron Rodgers | @ Eagles | $10,000 | You won’t see us often, but despite being the most expensive Quarterback, we still like Aaron Rodgers this week. You’ll have to cut back at the other spots, but Rodgers couldn’t have looked better this preseason with a 141.2 Passer Rating with 6 TDs and 0 INTs. There is already Packer Super Bowl talk, and Rodgers seems poised to make the step to Elite Status this season. |
| Kyle Orton | @ Jaguars | $8,160 | With the arrival of Tim Tebow, talk of Kyle Orton’s strong offseason and 1 year contract extension fell under the radar. Orton has been solid, and is under the helm of Josh ‘Offensive Genius’ McDaniels. More importanly; Denver’s RBs are banged up, and he’s facing the Jaguars pass defense which is bordering on pathetic |
| Jason Campbell | @ Titans | $7,060 | The Raiders have quietly improved across the board this offseason. Their RB situation is a bit of a mess, but what is looking good is the upgrade from JaMarcus to Campbell, Louis Murphy, Zach Miller, and even Heyward-Bey is improving. Match this with Tennessee’s stout Run D and Weak Pass D, and it’s a recipe for a lot of pass attempts. |
| Running Back | Opponent | Salary Cost | What We Like |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chris Johnson | vs. Raiders | $12,000 | CJ2000 vs. Raiders Run D will be more of a mismatch than Randy Couture vs. James Toney was |
| Arian Foster | vs. Colts | $4,500 | Even if Arian Foster were up against the Jets D, for $4,500 I would take him after his preseason |
Ronnie Brown – @ Bills – $5,690
Ronnie Brown is back to 100% after his foot injury, and I mean hey, it’s Week 1, He should be able to avoid an injury for the first 4 quarters of his season…plus the Bills gave up 123 Rush YPG so far this PreSeason
| Wide Receiver | Opponent | Salary Cost | What We Like |
|---|---|---|---|
| DeSean Jackson | vs. Packers | $8,000 | Kolb is showing signs of inconsistency, but Green Bay’s secondary won’t be able to contain DeSean Jackson. He’s my #2 overall WR this week behind Andre Johnson. |
| Mike Williams | vs Dolphins | $5,000 | The 38th Mike Williams to enter the NFL, might be the best. His rookie offseason has me convinced he’s a future star, with either Bucanneer Josh at QB for Week 1. The Dolphins Pass Defense is also weak. |
| Louis Murphy | @ Titans | $4,640 | With Chaz Schiliens out indefinitely, Louis Murphy has become the clear #1 option in Oakland, and has looked really good now that an NFL-worthy QB is tossing to him. |
| Tight End | Opponent | Salary Cost | What We Like |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jermichael Finley | @ Eagles | $6,670 | Let me make it clear, that I am not trying to say Finley is a sleeper. I think the entire world knows he’s a Top 3 Tight End this season. Tight End is deep this season, but for only $6,670, Finley is the easy choice at Tight End for value. |
| Defense | Opponent | Salary Cost | What We Like |
|---|---|---|---|
| New York Giants | vs. Panthers | $4,670 | The Giants Defense has potential to bounce back this season, but they look headed for another middle of the pack season. This pick is more about the matchup vs. the Panthers, who averaged only 10 points per game this preseason. |
Salary Legend – Draft Zone – NFL
| Team Salary Cap | $60,000 |
|---|---|
| Highest QB Cost | $10,000 |
| Highest RB Cost | $12,000 |
| Highest WR Cost | $10,000 |
| Highest TE Cost | $9,000 |
| Highest DF Cost | $8,000 |