DFS Alerts
DeSean Jackson listed as questionable for Sunday
Jackson is officially listed as questionable for Sunday’s game against New England. He was limited in practice all week, but appears to be on the right side of the questionable tag and is tentatively expected to play. His presence will eat into the value of Pierre Garcon and Jordan Reed, although Reed is still a solid target at TE this week with Washington expected to be playing from behind most of the afternoon. It’s best to avoid all of the Redskins in cash games, but Reed is a viable tournament target.
As reported by: Washington Post
Rob Gronkowski, Delanie Walker leading TEs in POW
Through eight weeks, the leaders in percentage of workload at the tight end position are Rob Gronkowski (11.33% POW, 16.67% RZ POW) and Delanie Walker (11.04%, 10.64% RZ). It’s not at all surprising to see Gronkowski on this list, as he’s clearly the most talented TE in the league, but Walker’s presence on this list is somewhat surprising. The Titans have very little talent at WR and Walker has been their most consistent playmaker all season long, which makes him a very interesting value play against a Saints defense that has had a ton of trouble stopping the pass this year. With the Titans expected to be playing from behind, Walker is a sneaky tournament target.
As reported by: RotoGrinders TE Targets Page Stevie Johnson looking like a premier value in Week 9
With Keenan Allen out for the season, the Chargers will desperately need one of their secondary wideouts to step up, and Johnson seems like the best bet to fill Keenan Allen’s role. Johnson is a more polished possession receiver compared to Malcolm Floyd (who is more of a deep threat), so his target count should end up somewhere in the 7-10 range against a Bears defense that has struggled against the pass this season (21st vs. WRs). His price on both major DFS sites is really hard to pass up in cash games if you are punting a WR spot.
Tyrod Taylor offers solid value, upside at Week 9 price
Tyrod Taylor will return as the Bills starting QB this week against the Dolphins, and even despite a very strong start to the season, he’s still priced like a value play. His $7,200 price tag (on FanDuel) is a tier too low given what he’s done this season, and he may have all of his main weapons (save for Percy Harvin) healthy at once for the first time all year. Miami owns a middle of the road pass defense and they may benefit from having seen Taylor once already this year, but the upside at this price tag is hard to pass up in tournaments. Pairing him with Charles Clay in large-field tournaments is your best bet if you are looking to also target one of Taylor’s weapons.
Matt Forte out
This confirms what most already believed would be the case. Jeremy Langford will be one of the most popular plays of the week as he goes against a San Diego Chargers defense that is one of the worst in the league against the run.
As reported by: Dan Wiederer on Twitter
Larry Donnell and Victor Cruz ruled out
Victor Cruz being out isn’t much of a surprise. Donnell had missed practice all week so him not playing this weekend was also somewhat expected. Will Tye will step in for Donnell and could be a sneaky value play as the Giants face a Tampa Bay defense that is very vulnerable to the pass.
As reported by: Greg Auman on Twitter Vincent Jackson ruled out
Vincent Jackson will not play this weekend which is a shame because it’s a very favorable match up against a Giants team that just got lit up by Drew Brees and the Saints. Mike Evans was already a tremendous play and now will get the ball force fed to him even more. Austin Seferian-Jenkins, if he plays, will benefit as well and don’t be surprised to see Doug Martin and Charles Sims even more involved in the passing game.
As reported by: Art Stapleton on Twitter Antonio Gates practices as limited participant
The veteran tight end was a limited participant in practice today but is fully expected to participate in the Monday Night game against the Bears. With no Keenan Allen, Gates should be the recipient of plenty of Philip Rivers passes and is one of the elite TE options of the weekend.
As reported by: Michael Gehlken on Twitter Sammy Watkins says he "definitely" plans to play Sunday
While he didn’t practice on Friday, it’s at least good to see that Watkins himself is optimistic about his chances of playing on Sunday. With Percy Harvin already ruled out, the Bills will need Watkins to add some depth to the WR unit, but he’s nothing more than a GPP dart throw this week. We’ll need to see something out of Watkins before recommending him as anything more.
As reported by: Mike Rodak on Twitter Marcus Mariota named Week 9 starter
This was believed to the case all week. Mariota will re-enter the starting lineup against a Saints defense that was just torched by Eli Manning, and given that the Titans are expected to be playing from behind, Mariota could be a sneaky GPP target that’ll be overlooked by the masses. Kendall Wright will miss Week 9, which leaves Dorial Green-Beckham, Justin Hunter and Harry Douglas as the Titans top options at WR.
As reported by: @SportsCenter T.Y. Hilton misses practice on Friday
We’re officially concerned about his status for Sunday’s game. He’s yet to practice at all this week, which is usually a bad sign for anyone hoping to suit up on Sunday. If he’s able to play against Denver, he’s a tournament play at best given the immense strength of the Denver secondary (and defense as a whole). Donte Moncrief and Andre Johnson would both see nice value bumps if Hilton is ruled out.
As reported by: Zak Keefer on Twitter Eric Decker practicing
Eric Decker and Brandon Marshall are both practicing today – a good sign as both head into a plus match up against the Jaguars this weekend. Both are in play in GPP’s.
As reported by: Howie Kussoy on Twitter Demaryius Thomas, Jarvis Landry leading WRs in POW
Demaryius Thomas leads all WRs in percentage of workload heading into Week 9 with a 16.37% Percentage of Workload mark. His red-zone usage drops to 9.62%, but that number will continue to rise as the season wears along, as Thomas is the Broncos best pass-catching threat towards the goal line. He’s stuck in a fairly tough match-up this week, as he’ll likely see a fair amount of Vontae Davis. That’s a CB match-up we almost always avoid for DFS, which turns Thomas into a GPP-only play. Jarvis Landry is right behind Thomas in percentage of workload at 16.08%, but Landry’s red-zone usage (21.05%) is much higher. He’ll be Ryan Tannehill’s most oft-used weapon this week, making him a great target in all formats.
As reported by: RotoGrinders Targets Page Alshon Jeffery leading the league in red-zone targets per game
Jeffery is actually tied with Antonio Gates in terms of red-zone targets per game at 2.33, with each player having only played in three games. This week’s match-up for Jeffery isn’t ideal, as he’ll likely run most of his routes against Jason Verrett, who has been one of the best cover corners in the league according to PFF metrics. Despite that, the Bears #1 WR will still see a high volume of targets with the Bears losing Matt Forte last week, making Jeffery the obvious alpha in the Chicago offense. While he’s not a cash game staple this week, Jeffery has a nice ceiling on Monday night.
As reported by: RotoGrinders Targets Page Michael Crabtree is still too cheap in Week 9
It’s amazing that Crabtree is still priced under $6K on FanDuel. What more does he have to do? Crabtree is averaging just shy of 10 targets per game, something you almost never see from someone priced in this range, and he’s having success with his high volume of looks. He’s scored double-digit fantasy points (FD scoring) in four of the last six weeks, and has scored TDs in back-to-back weeks. Crabtree has seen no fewer than six targets in a game this season, giving him a surprisingly high floor. The Steelers are also easier to throw against, and Crabtree won’t have a notably tough match-up in the secondary regardless of where he lines up. Target him in all formats at this price.