DFS Deep Dive: Week 2
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Wide Receivers
Ja’Maar Chase $7900/Tee Higgins $6400 vs Ravens
The Ravens haven’t had much luck lately when playing the Bengals, frequently missing key starters while the Bengals rock up with a clean bill of health. Excuses don’t count for much though and this Bengals offense will be desperate to wash away a bad loss against the Browns. Ja’Maar Chase has had eight or more targets in every game dating back to Week 4 of 2022, his production occasionally doesn’t live up to his ceiling outcomes, but he’s as capable as any player on this slate at truly breaking it. Tee Higgins eight targets for zero receptions is a far cry from what drafters expected, and even if it’s accurate to point out that his targets pale in comparison to Chase’s, in this matchup against a Ravens defense missing Marlon Humphrey and Marcus Williams, we can consider playing either or both players.
Usage Suggestions: Ravens defensive coordinator, Mike McDonald, has had Joe Burrow’s number in recent matchups, and as such I don’t feel confident enough to play full Bengals stacks or Chase/Higgins in cash games. Instead, I’d look to this play for tournament upside.
Amon-Ra St. Brown $7800 vs Seahawks
In Week 1 the Seahawks allowed the fourth most fantasy points to wide receivers playing out of the slot, and now they’ll face arguably one of the very best slot receivers in the NFL, Amon-Ra St. Brown. The Lions know what they have in St. Brown and he’s a virtual lock for 8-10 targets a week.
Usage Suggestions: This is the kind of play I love for cash games. Certified volume and a nice matchup at home. For tournaments, it makes sense to correlate with a Seahawks pass-catcher. My lean is Tyler Lockett or Jaxon Smith-Njigba.
Calvin Ridley $7200 vs Chiefs
Welcome back to the NFL Calvin Ridley! There should be no doubting Ridley’s ability to be a value this season and after a cushy matchup with the Colts he now strolls into a barnstormer of a game with the Chiefs. Ridley led the team in targets (11), receiving yards (101), Air Yards (100) and Yards After The Catch (36), simply put this was everything you wanted to see from a receiver.
Usage Suggestions: Certified good play for all formats, especially as part of game stacks for this appealing matchup.
Keenan Allen $7100 @ Titans
The Titans aren’t a good team and will be picking a quarterback high up in the 2024 draft to replace the two they’ve taken in recent years. The Chargers roll into town with their freshly paid franchise quarterback, who will no doubt be looking to target Keenan Allen, who has had nine or more targets in seven of the last eight games. The Titans surrendered the second most fantasy points to opposing slot receivers in Week 1 and if Austin Ekeler misses out with an ankle injury this matchup could turn even more in the favour of Allen.
Usage Suggestions: I like Allen for cash games, where the volume is important, but also in tournaments because the Chargers play fast and might drag the Titans along with them.
Michael Pittman Jr. $6300 @ Texans
This Colts offense is going to rely upon RPO plays often, and the majority of them will feature Michael Pittman as the first read in Anthony Richardson’s progressions. Pittman hauled in eight of his 11 targets in Week 1 and turned it into 97 yards and a touchdown, which was a whisper away from a really big day on Draftkings with a 3-point bonus if he’d reached 100-yards. The Texans defensive line was beastly against the Ravens but they struggled covering the Ravens wide receivers and that could be an area Pittman capitalizes in.
Usage Suggestions: A little too thin for cash games, but a fine play for tournaments, either stacked with Richardson or correlated with Nico Collins.
Brandon Aiyuk $5800 @ L.A Rams
Not every week will be as dominant for Brandon Aiyuk as Week 1 was against the Steelers, but at $5800 we can afford to go back to the well against a poor Rams defense. Aiyuk led the team with a 28% target share along with 129 yards and 2 receiving touchdowns. Since Brock Purdy entered the starting lineup in Week 13 of 2022, Aiyuk has averaged 65.5 yards per game and it feels very possible we’re witnessing the start of a true breakout.
Usage Suggestions: Purdy is a consistent scorer, but not necessarily someone I’m ever overly interested to stack, but against this Rams team it’s not a bad idea for tournaments and it’s easy to note the correlation with Puka Nacua.
Zay Flowers $5000 @ Bengals
Call me a homer all you like but when a rookie plays his first game and averages 3.5 yards of separation on his routes, along with consistently seeing a team find ways to put the ball in his hands, then I’m going to play that player till the price point or performance tells me not to. The Ravens secondary is in a bad way and so is the ground game, even with the return of Mark Andrews, Zay Flowers can eat.
Usage Suggestions: Because of the target competition it’s perhaps a little thin for cash games but a fine play for tournaments.
Jahan Dotson $4900 @ Broncos
Terry McLaurin looks primed to matchup with Patrick Surtain, who shadowed Davante Adams to good effect in Week 1 and is one of the premier corners of the NFL. Meanwhile Jahan Dotson likely faces coverages from the same defenders who allowed Jakobi Meyers to go ham last week, finishing as the WR3 overall. The Commanders don’t look overly impressive on offense, but the price is right here.
Usage Suggestions: Tournaments only. Very little that looks worth correlating with.
Nico Collins $4800 vs Colts
An offseason darling who shot up ADP over the course of the Best Ball Summer, Collins led the Texans with 11 targets, turning them into six catches for 80 yards. Collins also boasted 14.4 air yards per target and was the only receiver on the Texans to be in the double-digits. The Colts defense surrendered three completions of 15+ passing yards to Trevor Lawrence and it’s an area the Texans should be looking to capitalize on.
Usage Suggestions: Perhaps a little iffy for cash games, but in tournaments, we can correlate Collins with Anthony Richardson and possibly even Michael Pittman, for a nice little mini-game stack.
Hunter Renfrow $3900 @ Bills
Last week Renfrow recorded zero targets on a paltry 13 snaps with it being clear that the Raiders coaching staff see Jakobi Meyers as the wide receiver they want accompanying Davante Adams on the field. With Meyers still in concussion protocol though, Renfrow becomes a sneaky interesting play.
Usage Suggestions: Tournaments only.
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