DraftKings & FanDuel Week 4 WR Report
Color Codes:
Favorable Matchup
Neutral
Matchup Risk/Against the Grain
Tough Matchup with Limited Upside
Playing Time Concern
Antonio Brown (DK – $9,300/FD – $9,200): Brown has double targets (11, 11, and 14) in each game in 2017 while posting two strong games (11/182 and 10/110/1). Antonio has five catches over 20 yards with one netting over 40 yards. Last year he had two solid games (7/85/1 and 10/96/1) vs. the Ravens. After three games, Baltimore hasn’t been challenged by WRs (28/340/1 on 55 targets) due to poor QB play in Cinci and Cleveland plus the Jaguars didn’t need their WRs to beat the Ravens. Brown should have an edge over CB Jimmy Smith, but Roethlisberger has struggled to throw TDs (3) on the road so far in 2017. Great player with a winnable matchup, but he needs a huge point total to pay off for his high salary. A solid option at the top end while needing multiple TDs to be in play.
Odell Beckham (DK – $8,900/FD – $9,100): There’s no doubt that the Giants’ offense hinges on the success of Beckham. With Odell back to full strength (well almost – 55 of 69 plays), he caught nine of his 13 targets for 79 yards and two TDs. Beckham gained only 8.8 yards per catch as the Eagles tried to keep him from making a big play. Tampa had a tough time with the Vikings’ WRs (16/282/2 on 23 targets) last week after coming up short in this area the previous Sunday against the Bears (17/204/1 on 25) who had weak options at WR. CB Brent Grimes is fading, and he will be tested in this game. The Bucs lost one of their top linebackers (Lavonte David), and DT Gerald McCoy is banged up. New York did nothing offensively over their first 11 quarters before scoring three TDs in the fourth quarter vs. Philly. The failure of Tampa in pass coverage in Week 3 will lead to Beckham being an attractive play this week. Can it be that easy?
Julio Jones (DK – $8,800/FD – $8,400): Jones ranks 23rd in WR scoring after three games while still looking for his first TD. He only has 5.9 Fantasy points more than Odell Beckham in PPR leagues, which seems crazy based on Odell missing a game while being limited in another game. Julio has 21 targets over the last two games with 199 yards and 12 catches, which is line with his career resume. The Bills enter this game on a high note defensively with two TDs allowed in three games (both rushing). WRs have 44 catches for 477 yards on 72 targets vs. Buffalo while facing NYJ, CAR, and DEN. The Bills did show some risk vs. WRs in Week 3 (17/228 on 31 targets) while allowing six plays for 20 yards or more. Atlanta will pressure this defense on all areas of the field. CB E.J. Gaines has no chance in this matchup, and I expect a huge day for Jones. His downside will be tied to struggles by Bullafo offensively. Julio enters this week with a back issue, so I would follow his progress closely. If he’s off the injury report, I would shove all in.
A.J. Green (DK – $8,600/FD – $8,000): Green lived up to Fantasy owner’s expectations last week when he delivered ten catches for 111 yards and a TD on 13 targets. Over the first three games, A.J. has 31 targets with little success vs. BAL (5/74) and HOU (5/67). Last season he had a monster game at home vs. the Browns (8/169/1 on eight targets) while missing the second game. WRs have 31 catches for 473 yards and two TDs on 43 targets against Cleveland in 2017. Both Antonio Brown (11/182) and T.Y. Hilton (7/153/1) have big games against the Browns already this year. The Browns has a risk in two CB slots plus CB Jason McCourty isn’t the player he once was. Winnable match and Green is the top-ranked WR again in Week 4 by Scout.
Brandin Cooks (DK – $7,600/FD – $7,900): The Cooks’ ERA finally arrived last week. Brandin caught the game-winning TD to help him post the third highest score at WR in Week 3 (5/131/2). As good as it looks, Cooks only had seven targets giving him only 18 through three games. Five of his ten catches this year have gone for 20+ yards with three reaching 40+ yards. He’s developing into the play man in this offense (25.6 yards per catch). Last year he had a great game (7/173/1 on nine targets) in New Orleans vs. the Panthers with less success on the road (7/42 on eight targets). This season WRs have 31 catches for 340 yards and three TDs on 47 targets against Carolina while facing two weak passing offenses (SF and BUF). Brees was able to pick apart their secondary last week (13-for-15 for 157 yards and three TDs by WRs). The Panthers will try to keep New England from making big plays in the passing game, so Cooks will need a much high role as far as targets to have success in this game. His matchup history gives him a chance, but I can’ trust his targets enough to believe in an impact score in the daily games in Week 4.
Mike Evans (DK – $7,400/FD – $7,900): The Vikings did a nice job on Evans in Week 3 (7/67 on 12 targets). He has seven catches in each of his first two games with a TD and 160 yards on 21 targets. Best of all, Mike caught 66.7 percent of his targets after struggling in this area for his whole career (2014 – 55.3, 2015 – 50.0, and 2016 – 55.5). WRs have 28 catches for 338 yards and a TD on 52 against the Giants in 2017. They held Dez Bryant to two catches for 43 yards on nine targets in Week 1, Golden Tate to four catches for 25 yards on four targets in Week 2, and Alshon Jeffery to four catches for 56 yards on eight targets in Week 3. Evans will draw CB Janoris Jenkins in coverage this week on many plays pointing to a less than impactful game. Jameis Winston will give him plenty of chances to make plays, and he may even score, but his final number will fall short of playable value in the daily games.
Keenan Allen (DK – $7,200/FD – $7,300): Allen caught five of his nine targets in Week 4 for 61 yards pushing his season targets to 29. His best game came (9/100) at home vs. the Dolphins. After playing well vs. WRs against the Redskins (14/152 on 25 targets) and Chiefs (10/120 on 13 targets), the Eagles CBs had a tough time vs. the Giants WRs (25/284/3 on 35 targets). Philly lost starting CB Ronald Darby in Week 1 due to an ankle injury pushing CB Rasul Douglas into more playing time. Keenan is expected to face CB Patrick Robinson in coverage out of the slot, which is a very winnable matchup. The Chargers’ offense played poorly last week. I expect Rivers to rebound this week with Allen being reward with a nice game. For him to be in play, he’ll need almost double-digit catches for 100+ yards and a TD.
Stefon Diggs (DK – $7,100/FD – $7,200): Diggs is off to a great start in 2017 with two impact games (7/93/2 and 8/173/2) while averaging only 8.3 targets per game. His success is driven by TDs and five big plays. The fear of the QB in Minnesota being DOA looks to be over. I don’t expect Sam Bradford to play this week, but the Vikings are playing at home. WRs have 41 catches for 448 yards and three TDs on 69 targets vs. the Lions. Detroit held Julio Jones (7/91), Odell Beckham (4/36), and Larry Fitzgerald (6/74) out of the end zone. Stefon had 13 catches for 80 yards on 14 targets against the Lions last year. CB Darius Slay will let him catch plenty of balls in front of him while limiting the damage in big plays and TDs. I don’t expect a TD with only mid-teens upside in this matchup.
Dez Bryant (DK – $6,500/FD – $7,800): Bryant has a TD in his last two games, but he only had two targets last week (2/12). His best opportunity came vs. the Broncos in a chaser game (7/59/1 on 16 targets). His catch rate (40.7) has been poor over his last three seasons (2015 – 43.1 and 2016 – 52.1) suggesting his game is regressing in a big way. The Rams held the Colts’ WRs to six catches for 114 yards on 14 targets while playing with a weak QB. Kirk Cousins didn’t need his WRs (7/89/1 on 11 targets) in Week 2 due to a high success in the run game. The 49ers were forced to throw leading to success by their WRs (14/259/1 on 23 targets). Tough to believe in Bryant’s targets while he does offer scoring ability. This week Dallas should try to get their running game going leading to me fading Dez.
DeAndre Hopkins (DK – $6,400/FD – $7,300): It’s only a matter of time before Hopkins turns into the shining star we thought he was in 2015 (111/1521/11). He’ set a nice floor so far in 2017 (seven catches in each game while averaging over 12 targets per game). His catch rate (56.8) still needs work plus Deshaun Watson needs to hit him on some bigger plays. His first three opponents (JAX, CIN, and NE) have talent at CB. After struggling in Week 4 vs. the Titans in 2016 (1/4 on six targets), DeAndre had seven catches for 123 yards on 11 targets at Tennessee. The previous season with better QB play, Hopkins had two strong games (8/94/1 and 7/117/1) against the Titans. WRs have 42 catches for 502 yards and five TDs on 69 targets in two games vs. Tennessee. Four WRs have six catches more against Tennessee in 2017 (Michael Crabtree – 6/83, Allen Hurns – 6/82/1, Marqise Lee – 7/76, and Doug Baldwin – 10/105/1). You have to find a way to get him in your daily lineup this week as long as he’s upgraded from questionable with his knee issue. Possible best WR on the day…
Golden Tate (DK – $6,300/FD – $7,100): Tate is just a gamer. He fell just short of scoring a game-winning TD last week, which would have put him close to 25 Fantasy points in PPR leagues. Golden has 27 targets over the first three games with two solid games (10/107 and 7/58/1). Last season he had a plus game in Minnesota (11/79/1 on 12 targets) with less success at home (5/77 on seven targets). WRs have 49 catches for 644 yards and three TDs on 78 targets against Minnesota this year while facing three good offenses (NO, PIT, and TB). Tate will have an edge over CB Terence Newman while his two outside WRs will have tough coverage. Golden will get plenty of chances in this game, but he needs to hit on a long play or score a TD to fill his salary box.
Demaryius Thomas (DK – $6,300/FD – $6,900): Fantasy owners are still looking for an impact game from Demaryius, which hasn’t happened since Week 11 in 2014 (10/87/3). Over the last 2+ seasons, Thomas has only nine games with over 20 Fantasy points in 29 starts (9/92, 10/111, 8/168, 5/61/2, 5/117/1, 6/100/1, 6/94/1, 8/87/1 and 10/126) while failing to score a TD in 11 of his last 12 games. Last season vs. the Raiders in two games, he had two flat games (5/56 and 4/47). Demaryius has 25 targets over the first three games with boring results (5/67, 6/71, and 6/98) for the daily games. WRs have 38 catches for 427 yards and three TDs vs. the Raiders with Jermaine Kearse (4/64/2) having the most success. CB Sean Smith isn’t healthy, and he only played three plays last week after missing Week 2 with a neck issue. This puts rookie first-rounder Gareon Conley on him in coverage on many plays. Certainly capable of a 20+ point game while having plenty of chances. Dark horse sleeper.
Alshon Jeffery (DK – $6,200/FD – $7,100): Jeffery is batting .333 after three games with one playable game (7/92/1) in the daily space. He has 28 targets, but a short catch rate (50.0). Alshon only has one play over 20 yards. Two years ago, he had ten catches for 151 yards on 16 targets against the Chargers with Jay Cutler throwing the ball for the Bears. After three games, WRs have 41 catches for 432 yards and five TDs on 62 targets with most of the damage coming from slot WRs (Jarvis Landry – 13/78 and Tyreek Hill – 5/77/1). LA needs to put CB Casey Hayward on him to lower his upside. More of a neutral option with a chance at double-digit targets. His matchup points to only a steady game.
Michael Crabtree (DK – $6,200/FD – $7,400): Crabtree took a hard hit in last week’s game leading to questionable tag this week. He turned a couple of limited practices this week, which puts him on track to play on Sunday. After his impact games (6/80/3), Michael paid back Fantasy owners in a bad way last week (1/7 on three targets) while playing 31 of 51 plays run by Oakland. Last season he had only seven catches for 74 yards on 14 targets against the Broncos in two games. Bad matchup with injury concern is poor play in the daily games.
Larry Fitzgerald (DK – $6,100/FD – $6,700): After a slow start to the year (nine catches for 95 yards on 19 targets), Fitzgerald put it all together in last week’s game (13/149/1 on 15 targets) to put his name back on the Fantasy map. Last season he had two strong games vs. the 49ers (6/81/2 and 12/132) while receiving 26 targets (18 at home). The Panthers barely looked to their WRs against San Fran in Week 1 (5/98/1 on nine targets) due to game score. They held the Seahawks’ WRs to 15 catches for 143 yards and a TD on 24 targets. LA had the most success from the wide receiving position (15/235/2 on 17 targets). Larry will have a huge edge over CB K’Waun Williams in the slot pointing to an attractive play in the daily games.
Emmanuel Sanders (DK – $6,100/FD – $6,900): Siemian looked Sanders way 15 times last week, but he only caught seven of his chances for 75 yards. This came after a nice game at home vs. the Cowboys (6/62/2 on eight targets). Last year he had five catches for 47 yards on 11 targets against the Raiders on the road (missed the home game). His matchup with CB David Amerson looks to be neutral. Improving targets with some value at the goal line, but this isn’t a great matchup.
Chris Hogan (DK – $6,000/FD – $6,900): It’s pretty clear now that Hogan is going to be active in the Patriots’ offense. Over the last two games, Chris only has 12 targets. He’s made the most of his opportunities (9/146/3), which will command more targets going forward. Hogan is the WR2 with the most WR snaps (197) on New England. His matchup with CB James Bradberry isn’t great. Priced high for his targets, which gives him disaster downside in some game if he doesn’t hit on a long play or TD.
Kelvin Benjamin (DK – $6,000/FD – $6,300): Benjamin left last week’s game with what looked like a bad injury. The reports were positive earlier in the week, and he turned in a full practice on Thursday. The Panthers expected him to be in the starting lineup on Sunday. Kelvin doesn’t have a TD in 2017 while producing two short games (1/25 and 2/8). At this point of the season, Fantasy owners don’t know if they have the 2014 or the 2016 version of Benjamin. WRs have 40 catches for 572 yards and three TDs on 61 targets against New England. Kelvin will draw the Patriots’ top CB Malcolm Butler in coverage plus New England will shade coverage toward to Benjamin to forcing Cam Newton to use his secondary receiving options. If you want to chase the last week’s points in Week 2, his name will have a circle around it.
Amari Cooper (DK – $6,000/FD – $7,500): Cooper has been just about a no-show in his last two games (4/33 and 1/6) while catching only 50 percent of his ten targets. The Raiders looked his way 13 times in Week 1 (5/62/1), but his catch rate (38.4) was an area of weakness as well. Last year Amari had ten catches for 95 yards and a TD on 16 targets in two games vs. the Broncos. WRs have 35 catches for 355 yards and four TDs on 61 targets against the Broncos. Cooper isn’t playing well, and he’s listed as questionable for this week’s game with knee issue while Oakland expects him to play. I wouldn’t sit him in the season-long games while avoiding him in the daily games.
Sammy Watkins (DK – $5,900/FD – $7,200): The Rams rode Todd Gurley early vs. the 49ers while Watkins closed out the second half with a strong showing. He finished the game with six catches for 106 yards and a TD on seven targets. Over the first three games, Sammy only has 14 targets with two empty games (5/58 and 2/30). LA placed him in concussion protocol after his big game. He should be cleared by Sunday. WRs have 44 catches for 476 yards and four TDs on 64 targets against the Cowboys with the most risk coming vs. Arizona (17/205/2 on 25 targets) with Larry Fitzgerald having a big game (13/149/1). If Dallas controls the game and the scoreboard, Sammy should have the most targets of the season. Explosive type player playing against a secondary with risk. Possible gamble.
Adam Thielen (DK – $5,800/FD – $6,400): Thielen continues to get it done in Minnesota. He has five catches or more in each game while averaging eight targets. Adam has six catches of 20 yards or more with two going for over 40 yards. He’s still looking for his first TD while posting a plus game in Week 1 (9/157). Last year Thielen had 12 catches for 121 yards on 17 targets in two games vs. the Lions. CB Quandre Diggs is one of the better slot corners in the league so I’d leave Adam on the bench in the season-long games.
J.J. Nelson (DK – $5,600/FD – $5,900): Easy come, easy go for Nelson. He was the buzz in Week 2 (5/120/1), but the Cowboys shutout him out on three targets last week while being on the field for 52 of 81 plays as the WR3 in the Cardinals’ offense. J.J. is listed as questionable for this week’s game with a hamstring issue. Even with a zero last week, Nelson was close to hitting on a couple of long plays. His game has HR ability. In limited playing time in two games vs. the 49ers in 2016, J.J. had two catches for 29 yards on seven targets. Possible long TD, but his targets won’t be an edge. His salary is too high for his opportunity.
Pierre Garcon (DK – $5,500/FD – $6,600): If I owned Garcon in the season-long games, I’d be pleased with his start to the year even without a TD. Pierre has ten targets in two of his three games with solid production in catches (6 and 7) and yards (81 and 142). Last season vs. the Cardinals, he had seven catches for 78 yards on nine targets. WRs have 36 catches for 509 yards and five TDs on 58 targets against Arizona. Pierre will draw CB Patrick Peterson in coverage on most plays, which limits his upside and scoring ability.
Martavis Bryant (DK – $5,400/FD – $6,100): After three games, Bryant only has seven catches for 135 yards and a TD on 18 targets. His catch rate (38.9) is well below his expected value even with his short success in this area in 2015 (54.3). The natives are getting restless with his starting value, so I’m sure he’ll be a bench in many season-long leagues vs. the Ravens on the road. Last week he just missed hitting for a 75-yard TD on the first play of the game, which would have made his day. This week he’ll draw veteran CB Brandon Carr in coverage who grades as a league average player. Most feel Martavis is developing into only a start at home, which is supported by his 2016 resume in Pittsburgh (ARI – 6/137/2, CLE – 6/178/1, IND – 4/114/1, and DEN 10/87). He did produce two good games on the road in 2014 (@NYJ – 4/143/1 and @CIN – 4/109/1). Sometimes you have to bet against the field. I won’t sit him in the season-long games.
Devin Funchess (DK – $5,400/FD – $5,400): Over the last two games, Funchess has eight catches for 126 yards on 16 targets. His bump in chances (10) in Week 3 was created by the injury to Kelvin Benjamin. In Devin’s career (34 games), he only has one game with more than four catches (Week 17 in 2015 – 7/120/1). Funchess has fewer than 70 yards receiving in his last 18 games with only four TDs. His game did flash more upside in 2015 (31/473/5). The injury Greg Olsen should lead to the WR2 targets with mid-level TDs once Cam Newton regains his form. CB Stephon Gilmore has talent and speed so Devin would be a tough start for me while his salary is too high for his career resume.
DeSean Jackson (DK – $5,200/FD – $6,700): Jackson hit on a TD (25 yards) setting up a steady game (4/84/1 on seven targets) in Week 3. Over his first two games in Tampa, DeSean caught seven of his 14 targets for 123 yards and a TD. Last season he had one good game vs. the Giants (5/96/1). CB Eli Apple has struggled out of the gate so the Bucs may pick on him this week giving Jackson a chance to shine. DeSean can be explosive while still having failure risk. This matchup points to an uptick in chances so I’d look to get him in your WR mix at this level.
Sterling Shepard (DK – $5,000/FD – $6,100): Shepard delivered his best game (7/133/1) of his career last week thanks to a 77-yard TD. He’s on pace 85 catches for 1,067 yards with five TDs. Sterling has 22 targets while leading the Giants in WR snaps (180) and outplaying Brandon Marshall at this point of the year. His matchup vs. CB Robert McClain looks favorable. I like his path so far in 2017, but there are plenty of options in this passing game. More of play in the season-long contest where consistent mid-teen points is a good day at the office.
Rishard Matthews (DK – $4,900/FD – $6,000): Matthews had a nice catch and run for a TD last week leading to his best game (6/87/1) over this short season. Over three games, Rishard has 24 targets with 14 catches for 201 yards and a TD. Last year he had a great game at home vs. the Texans (9/114/1 on 13 targets) with a short opportunity on the road (2/82). WRs have 30 catches for 477 yards and four TDs on four targets against Houston with most of the failure coming last week vs. the Patriots (12/247/4 on 18 targets). Top receiving option in this offense with the Texans showing some risk in the secondary. Not ideal, but Houston may score better than most would think, forcing the Titans to throw. His CB/WR matchup looks favorable vs. the aging CB Johnathan Joseph.
Danny Amendola (DK – $4,600/FD – $5,900): Amendola was on the field for 32 of 65 plays in Week 3, which was the same total in Week 1. He finished with three catches for 48 yards on five targets. New England is going to use him as their WR3 over the short term until he gets healthy. Danny is listed as questionable for this week’s game with a knee issue. Tough investment in Week 4 in the daily games.
Mohamed Sanu (DK – $4,800/FD – $5,600): Sanu scored a TD early last week, but he ended up with a short game (4/28/1) while receiving six targets. Mohamed has 21 targets through three games leading to 15 catches for 160 yards and a TD. He’s on pace for his best season of his career. Slot CB Leonard Johnson played better early in his career, but he jumped to four different teams over the last four seasons. I expect the Falcons to play well offensively, so Sanu has a chance to be viable even with short chances.
Allen Hurns (DK – $4,700/FD – $6,400): Over the last two games, Hurns has two TDs with nine catches for 102 yards on ten targets. His best success came in Week 2 (6/82/1 on seven targets). Last week the Jaguars didn’t need their WRs to win the game vs. the Ravens. Over the first three games, WRs have 34 catches for 389 yards and five TDs on 52 targets vs. the Jets. To play Allen, it comes down to opportunity. He has scoring and big play ability with a favorable matchup vs. CB Buster Skrine. Game score is the key to his upside.
Jermaine Kearse (DK – $4,600/FD – $5.600): Kearse was outplayed by Robby Anderson in Week 3 leading to only three catches for 42 yards on three targets. He continues to get starting snaps on New York. Even with success in Week 2 (4/64/2), Jermaine only had five targets giving him eight over the last two games. WRs only have 19 catches for 201 yards and a TD on 46 targets vs. Jacksonville. Pure avoid as the Jaguars have two CBs playing at a high level.
Brandon Marshall (DK – $4,600/FD – $6,400): Marshall developed a pulse vs. the Eagles. He caught eight of his 11 targets for 66 yards while receiving WR2 snaps (65) for the third straight game. Brandon showed failure risk over the first two games (1/10 and 1/17). CB Vernon Hargraves hasn’t played well, which matches Marshall’s direction early in the year. Based on career resume, Brandon should win this matchup easy if this was 2015.
Jeremy Maclin (DK – $4,500/FD – $6,400): The Jaguars dominated the Ravens’ passing attack last week leading to minimal yards passing (64 yards). Jeremy caught one of his five targets for eight yards. He scored a TD in each of the first two games with short production (2/56/1 and 4/31/1) due to Baltimore playing from the lead. As this point, there isn’t a lot of trust in any player in the Ravens’ passing game. WRs have 20 catches for 220 yards and a TD on 34 targets in 2017. Reasonable price if Pittsburgh forced the issue on the scoreboard. On the positive side, Pittsburgh played three poor QBs (Kizer, Keenum, and Glennon) disguising possible downside in pass coverage. If you want to ride the beaten down dog, Flacco with Maclin or Mike Wallace may surprise.
Rashard Higgins (DK – $4,500/FD – $5,100): Higgins could have been the biggest sucker’s bet in Fantasy football in 2017. Fantasy owner invested big free agent dollars in him in the season-long games while other owners committed to him as a low-value option in the daily games. Rashard caught two of his six targets for ten yards while being on the field for 52 of 77 plays run by Cleveland. Even with success in Week 2 (7/95 on 11 targets), he’s only a gamble in the daily games with more risk than reward.
Cole Beasley (DK – $4,500/FD – $5,100): Cole has been extremely quiet over the first three games (3/32, 4/33, and 1/4) after flashing upside in 2016 (75/833/5). Beasley only has 14 targets in 2017. CB Troy Hill should be starting slot CB for the Rams with relatively short and underwhelming resume. Cole has a chance to post his best game of the season, but he’s too tough to trust in the daily space.
Marqise Lee (DK – $4,500/FD – $6,200): Lee has a chance to be undervalued asset in the Fantasy market going forward. He has 11 catches for 141 yards on 19 targets over the last two games while looking for his first TD of the season. Of all the Jaguars’ WRs, Marqise has the toughest CB matchup. He may very well be active in the game, but a TD is a must for him to reach a playable number in the daily games.
Tyrell Williams (DK – $4,400/FD – $6,200): Williams is another player that gives Fantasy owners the heebie-jeebies with the thought of putting him in the starting lineup in the season-long games. He has 11 catches for 123 yards on 18 targets after three games while holding the edge in WR snaps (178) in LA. His resume is high enough in 2o16 (69/1059/7 with three games with over 100 yards receiving) to take a chance at this level. Low percentage own backend filler with big plays and scoring ability.
Kenny Britt (DK – $4,300/FD – $5,500): Britt made progress in last week’s game (3/54/1) while receiving a season-high ten targets. This was twice his opportunity over the first two games. Kenny tied Ricardo Louis for the most WR snaps (52) on the Browns in Week 2. Britt missed practice this week with a knee issue while being on track to play on Sunday. His catch rate (33.0) is extremely low plus the Bengals due have talent at CB. WRs have 28 catches for 386 yards and three TDs on 48 targets vs. Cinci. Not in the right form and his QB will have a tighter window to make plays this week.
Cooper Kupp (DK – $4,300/FD – $5,600): Kupp wasn’t part of the scoring party in San Fran in last week’s game leading to a short game (2/17 on two targets). Over three games, Cooper has been on the field for 109 of 182 plays by LA compared to 150 by Robert Woods and 127 by Sammy Watkins. The Cowboys were beaten up in the slot by Larry Fitzgerald (13/149/1) last week. CB Orlando Scandrick should return this week, which is an upgrade for Dallas’s secondary. I like Kupp’s talent, and he could surprise in this matchup.
Eric Decker (DK – $4,200/FD – $5,600): Decker had his best game (4/49 on five targets) last week, which isn’t saying much. Eric only has ten catches for 91 yards on 18 targets in three games while waiting for Marcus Mariota to find his rhythm in the passing game. The injury to starting CB Kevin Johnson led to the Texans’ starting CB Kareem Jackson who does have downside risk. Weak opportunity as far as targets, but Eric will score TDs in the red zone. In my thoughts, but I may be on an island if I start him this week.
Taylor Gabriel (DK – $4,100/FD – $5,500): Gabriel made a play (40-yard TD) last week leading to his best game (5/79/1) of the season. Over three games, Taylor has ten catches for 129 yards and a TD on 13 targets. He’s on the field for 94 of 185 plays by the Falcons. He’ll draw rookie CB Tre’Davious White in coverage who is a first-round draft pick. Gadget player with his best value coming when tied to Matt Ryan. His ticket came in last week, so I’ll pass based on his CB coverage.
Marvin Jones (DK – $4,000/FD – $5,700): Jones hasn’t been a factor in the Fantasy market over the first three games (six catches for 88 yards on 13 targets), but he does have a pair of TDs. Last season Marvin only had five catches for 59 yards on 16 targets in two games against the Vikings. A date with CB Xavier Rhodes points minimal upside. Avoid.
Jordan Matthews (DK – $3,900/FD – $6,300): Matthews only has 11 targets after three games leading to eight catches for 152 yards. Last year he had six catches for 73 yards on ten targets against the Falcons after playing well in this matchup in 2015 (10/102 on 13 targets). WRs have 44 catches for 444 yards and two TDs on 64 targets this season against Atlanta. He’ll have an edge in size vs. slot CB Brian Poole while losing the quickness battle. Possible chaser game works in his favor.
Will Fuller (DK – $3,900/FD – $4,500): The Texans have been wheeling out second-tier talent at WR2 and WR3 all season. This week Deshaun Watson will get a new toy in the deep passing game with Fuller. Will suffered a broken collarbone in the preseason costing him the first three games of the season. In 2016, his season started off with three playable games (5/107/1, 4/104, and 7/81/2) with the last coming vs. the Titans. Teams have doubling DeAndre Hopkins all season so a couple of deep shots to Fuller should be in the cards. Right kind of gamble in a Watson stack. Will just need to get full-time snaps.
Robby Anderson (DK – $3,800/FD – $5,600): Anderson hit on a couple of long passes leading to his best game (3/95/1 on six targets) of the season vs. the Dolphins. Jacksonville has two top CBs with an improving pass rush. This gives Robby bench value in all formats. I wouldn’t touch him in the daily games this week, and a zero wouldn’t surprise me in this game.
Mike Wallace (DK – $3,500/FD – $5,200): After one catch for less than ten yards in each game in 2017, Wallace has found his way to the waiver wire in many leagues. He’s only had nine targets this year with a poor catch rate (33.0). Last season he had four catches for 124 yards and a TD on six targets in his home game against the Steelers. Priced in the right range to pay off for his career resume, but he needs Joe Flacco to throw him the damn ball. Not for the faint of heart.
