DFS Alerts
Ravens expected to be without Elvis Dumervil, Jerraud Powers vs. Bills
Neither Dumervil or Powers has practiced the past two days and it’s looking like neither player will be able to suit up Sunday against Buffalo. It doesn’t change things drastically for the Buffalo skill position players, but it does slightly improve LeSean McCoy’s outlook. He’s locked into heavy usage without Karlos Williams around; Williams not only stole touches, but he stole valuable looks in the red-zone, vulturing nine total TDs. Williams also finished with only one fewer carry inside the opponent’s five yard line last season. The Ravens were an average defense against the run last season and the Bills finished with the second-most rush attempts per game, a great combination for Shady.
Carlos Hyde practices in full on Thursday
Hyde was wearing a non-contact jersey in practice yesterday after being cleared to return following a concussion. The NFL is very serious about the concussion protocol, so it appears Hyde is fully healthy and ready to assume a full workload Monday night against the Rams. Per RotoWorld’s Rich Hribar, Hyde has averaged 2.2 more YPC over his career on runs from the shotgun or pistol as opposed to the quarterback under center, while Chip Kelly ran 78% of his running plays out of the shotgun/pistol. Volume shouldn’t be an issue for Hyde either, so feel free to fire him up as a solid GPP target in the last game of the weekend.
As reported by: Matt Maiocco Markus Wheaton misses Thursday's practice
Wheaton is dealing with an injured shoulder and likely just doesn’t want to push it prior to the season opener on Monday night. He’s still fully expected to play and given that he’s simply dealing with a sprain, it would be very surprising if his outlook takes a turn for the worse as the weekend unfolds. Wheaton figures to compete with a combinaton of Sammie Coates, Eli Rogers and Jesse James for looks behind Antonio Brown.
As reported by: Ray Fittipaldo Other tagged players: Sammie Coates, Eli Rogers, Antonio Brown Jordan Reed is the top pivot for Thursday players concerned about Gronk's status
When he’s healthy, Reed continues to inch closer to Rob Gronkowski in terms of the league’s top tight end. He finished as the top TE in PPR formats and figures to have another productive season alongside Kirk Cousins, and they should get right back on track Monday night against the Steelers. Reed was targeted on 28.6% of his routes last season, most among TEs. Also working in his favor is the fact that the Steelers allowed the second most targets per game to the position, and there is little doubt that he’ll be the most heavily utilized member of the passing attack in Week 1. Reed had the second-highest 2x% among TEs (46.67%) and came in with the highest 3x% (33.33%), giving us both an elite floor and ceiling. The Patriots play on Sunday night so we may not even have a definitive ruling on his status by 1 PM ET, but if he’s ruled out, both Martellus Bennett and James White would figure to benefit as a result, catapulting the GPP value of each player.
Other tagged players: Martellus Bennett, James White Rob Gronkowski a "coaches decision" for playing on Sunday
The Patriots TE told reporters today that his hamstring is bothering him and that it’ll be a coaches decision as to whether he plays this week. For what it’s worth he did state that he wanted to and would play if they let him. If he is unable to go, it’s an uptick to Martellus Bennett in terms of likely targets. Regardless, it’s a tough match up for the Patriots as they face a top defense in Arizona with an unproven QB at the helm. We’ll update you on Gronk’s status whenever news comes in.
As reported by: Mark Daniels on Twitter Other tagged players: Martellus Bennett
Kevin White limited in practice with hamstring injury
The Bears #2 wideout was limited in practice today due to a hamstring injury. Expectations are high for the promising youngster but he’s struggled in preseason and the injury concern makes him essentially unplayable in DFS this week against a tough Texans defense (which is looking like a better option by the minute). We’ll update you on White’s status as more news becomes available.
As reported by: Jeff Dickerson on Twitter Jamaal Charles and Charcandrick West will practice on Thursday
For the second day in a row, all 53 players on the Chiefs’ 53-man roster will practice. That includes both Jamaal Charles (knee) and Charcandrick West (elbow). The Chiefs have previously indicated that Jamaal Charles will not start this week even if he is active. We’ll certainly provide an update on the status of West and Charles when inactives are announced on Sunday. If both suit up, Spencer Ware becomes a much less appealing option. In FanDuel Thursday-Monday contests, Ware certainly comes with a lot more uncertainty. This doesn’t completely take Ware out of cash-game consideration—we know he’ll have some role—but it makes similarly-priced pivots more attractive. Those pivots include Christine Michael ($4,800 on FanDuel) and Ryan Mathews ($6100 on FanDuel).
As reported by: BJ Kissel Other tagged players: Charcandrick West, Spencer Ware, Ryan Mathews, Christine Michael
Carlos Hyde out of no-contact jersey
49ers starting RB Carlos Hyde is out of his no-contact jersey and looks as if he will be cleared from the concussion protocol in time for their Monday night game with the Rams. It’s a tough match up for the 49ers going against a slow-paced Rams team that has a solid defense (top 8 in all DVOA metrics last season), but it’s encouraging that he’ll likely be able to play.
As reported by: Cam Inman on Twitter Julio Jones a full participant in practice today
The Falcons star WR has been limited this week with an ankle injury but is feeling better and was a full participant in practice today. It’s full go for Jones who is projected by most injury experts as the top play at WR this week. If anything changes with his status, we’ll update you when we learn of it.
As reported by: Jeanna Thomas on Twitter Will Fuller limited in practice for second straight day
The promising rookie WR is battling a hamstring injury and was limited in practice for the second straight day. The team is hopeful that Fuller, who was in line for a big game against a bad Bears defense, will still be able to play Sunday. If Fuller is unable to go, it’d be a bump for Jaelen Strong who would get more looks his way. We’ll monitor this situation closely and update as more news comes in.
As reported by: Aaron Wilson on Twitter Eagles and Cardinals two DST's to target in Week 1
Two DST’s that will have low ownership percentages that week but have plus match ups are the Philadelphia Eagles and Arizona Cardinals. Their stories as to why they will likely be low-owned differ. The Eagles will be largely ignored because they weren’t that good last year (17th in total defense DVOA and 28th in run defense DVOA) but a different coaching philosophy (to start with a much slower pace than a Chip Kelly led team) and facing a young, inexperienced Cleveland team (with the second lowest projected total) as a four point home favorite makes it a spot where the Eagles are in play in GPP’s. The Cardinals will be overlooked because they are facing the Patriots, who on name recognition alone will scare people off. However, this is not a Tom Brady led team, and the Cardinals were one of the highest scoring DST’s last season. They come in as six point home favorites and if they get a lead will be sending all kinds of pressure after Jimmy Garoppolo. For the record, Arizona was 3rd in total defense DVOA, 4th in pass defense DVOA, and 2nd in rush defense DVOA last season. That’s pretty good.
Murky RB situations to keep your eyes on
Normally as we enter the opening week of the NFL season, the roles of RBs on teams is somewhat defined. There are several spots this week, however, that are anything but that. First, there is the mess that is Baltimore where they released Justin Forsett, exciting all the Terrance West truthers for a few days, before picking him back up. Forsett stated yesterday that he was starting for the team, but West has looked like the better back in the preseason and the workload between the two should be split with Javorius Allen also spelling those two (especially in passing situations). Are any of them playable? It’s debatable but given they are facing a Bills defense that ranked 30th in Run Defense DVOA last season, something you have to at least consider. Allen is unplayable, Forsett unplayable at FanDuel but worth a flyer or two on DraftKings, with West slightly below Forsett but also worth a shot in a lineup or two. For the most part though it’s a situation to steer clear of. The other unsettled situation is in Seattle where it appears Thomas Rawls will be limited in terms of touches which leads to Christine Michael getting more run. The Seahawks are huge home favorites against the Dolphins suggesting game script should favor Michael (and if the Seahawks are up, they are likely to want to risk playing Rawls). He’s looked great in preseason and at a reduced price tag makes for an appealing GPP option if you want to fade the chalk that is Spencer Ware. We’ll keep an eye on these two teams and if any news breaks that defines the roles more clearly we’ll let you know.
Other tagged players: Thomas Rawls, Justin Forsett, Terrance West Is Eddie Lacy being overlooked due to recency bias?
After an extremely disappointing 2015 season it appears that many are scared of taking a chance on a somewhat slimmer Eddie Lacy despite a match up that screams he’s a good play. While we typically want to use RB’s that are home favorites, the probable game script for the Packers suggests that they will have the lead late in the game and will be running it in crunch time. If that happens, the odds are good that it will be Lacy shouldering the load. With a team total of 27 and favored by 6 and despite facing a Jaguars team that is better against the run (17th in DVOA) than they are the pass (31st in DVOA), the probability that Lacy gets into the end zone is fairly high. His projections for this weekend are significantly lower than similarly priced RB’s which means his ownership will be low. He makes for a great pivot from those higher-priced backs with higher ownership. Fat Eddie might just lead to a fat wallet.
Both Green Bay and Jacksonville were top-10 in offensive pace last year, setting up for a potential Wk 1 shootout
The receivers on both sides are particularly interesting GPP targets. Jordy Nelson is back in the fold for the Packers, and while that may seem to decrease Randall Cobb’s value on the surface, he’s actually been more productive with Nelson in the lineup. Cobb is likely to see plenty of Jags rookie Jalen Ramsey in the slot, a match-up Cobb should be able to exploit in the early going while Ramsey adjusts to the speed of the NFL game. Nelson himself is also an intriguing GPP play, although heavy exposure isn’t warranted here considering it’s been well over a year since Nelson has appeared in an NFL game. His presence should still help Cobb’s upside and the dynamic slot receiver will continue to be heavily utilized in the red-zone. He’s one of the top GPP targets at a stacked WR position. As for the GB running game, Jacksonville ranked as a top five unit in terms of YPC, which also figures to benefit the passing attack. On the Jacksonville side, Allen Robinson and Allen Hurns are both worthwhile tournament targets, as the Jags are expected to be playing from behind late and no offense recorded a higher percentage of their TDs through the air last year.
Other tagged players: Jordy Nelson, Allen Robinson, Allen Hurns, Blake Bortles, Aaron Rodgers Will Fuller (hamstring) added to the mid-week injury report
He’s dealing with a balky hamstring and the NFL’s new rules with injury reporting aren’t going to make it an easy situation to decipher. He still appears likely to suit up for the season opener and he has an appealing draw with a Bears secondary that will likely be without a few of it’s top corners, and it’s not a terribly talented secondary to begin with. DeAndre Hopkins is going to get his, but Fuller appears to be second in line for looks from Brock Osweiler. Fuller isn’t a recommended cash game play, but he has plenty of deep-GPP appeal.
As reported by: Aaron Wilson