What strong producer from Week 2 do you expect to stay hot in Week 3 to be a DFS value?
RB - Corey Clement is probably the answer here because Projected Touches minus Salary is the only formula that matters in rostering running backs. Chasing big days from the likes of Phillip Lindsay and Austin Ekeler often leaves DFSers thirsty, because projecting part-timers to big lines means projecting wild efficiency that, frankly speaking, shouldn't be projected. Clement looks like a lock for 15-20 touches, as well as plenty of red zone work.
WR - All Kenny Golladay, all the time. He's more than just some situational spark plug; Golladay has out-snapped Golden Tate and out-targeted both Marvin Jones and Theo Riddick. Matthew Stafford is enamored of the second-year dynamo with the sneaky deep speed and freakish catch radius, and the two will look to hook up week after week, regardless of matchup. The results won't always be there, but the opportunity will, and few are better equipped to maximize opportunity than Golladay.
TE - Maybe this is the year Eric Ebron breaks out as a red zone threat. He was always knocked in college and in Detroit as soft near the goal line, but Andrew Luck has a way of making touchdown artists out of tight ends. Dating all the way back to Stanford, Luck has targeted the position disproportionately inside the 10-yard line, and his tight ends have routinely posted bloated touchdown lines. Ebron is an oversized slot man with underrated ball skills and looks to be earning Luck's trust. We haven't seen the last of his 3-catch, 1-touchdown games from the cheap end of the spectrum.
James Brimacombe:
QB - Patrick Mahomes seems like the obvious answer here but I am going to go with Matt Ryan at home against division rivals the Saints. Ryan is coming off his first multi-touchdown game in forever and the Saints defense have been off to a sluggish start. Sometimes these division games can turn out to be back and forth high scoring affairs and that is what I am counting on here for Matt Ryan.
WR - Keelan Cole had his breakout game and has shaped into the Jaguars top receiver. The Titans are a matchup that the Jaguars will need to spread the ball out and Cole will once again see a decent amount of targets and has strong potential to find the end zone on back to back weeks. Bortles remains an under respectable quarterback but through two weeks he has the Jaguars looking like the Super Bowl contender in the AFC.
TE - O.J. Howard will be the guy that Tampa Bay look to target this week with a potential shootout with the Steelers. Howard showed his big-play skills with a long touchdown against the Eagles in Week 2 and with Ryan Fitzpatrick spreading the ball around to all receivers the Steelers will have a tough time shutting down Howard.
Will Grant:
QB - Kirk Cousins had some rough moments on the road last week against Green Bay, but he still managed to move the offense enough to win the game had his kicker come through. The Vikings have a new kicker in Dan Bailey, but I don’t think they’re going to need him this week when Buffalo comes to town. The running game is still sputtering, so even if the Vikings build a decent lead in this one, Cousins is going to need to throw. It’s tough trying to decide to start Stefon Diggs or Adam Theilen, but Cousins will certainly get his fair share of points this week.
Alessandro Miglio:
QB - Ryan Fitzpatrick
Patrick Mahomes is the obvious answer here, and he is a must-start in cash games. Looking for a better answer yields Ryan Fitzpatrick. Who is sold on Fitzpatrick after two huge games? Will you ever trust him? We are all waiting for him to turn back into a pumpkin, which could well happen any given Sunday. The Bucs offense is simply lights out, though, and Fitzmagic is going to make a third consecutive appearance this week against that Swiss-cheese Steelers defense.
RB - Kenyan Drake
I'm not sure I trust any of these guys to be consistently great fantasy options, but Kenyan Drake appears to be in the best position for continued success in Week 3. The Dolphins have quietly been good on offense, and Drake has been a huge part of that success. He should see 15-plus touches against a middling defense, including several receptions.
WR - Kenny Golladay
As I discussed above, the Lions are liable to have some big fantasy numbers in a loss this week. Kenny Golladay is averaging 10-plus targets a game on the young season, and he should see double digits again against the Patriots.
TE - Jimmy Graham
Graham had a great Week 2 that would have been even better if his touchdown wasn't taken off the board. The Packers are utilizing Graham effectively, and Aaron Rodgers seems to be looking his way often now. A big week is coming.
Phil Alexander:
QB - The easy answer is Patrick Mahomes until his price gets closer to the top tier running backs. Blake Bortles at home as a seven-point favorite against the Titans lousy pass defense makes sense too, especially if Leonard Fournette sits out again.
RB - Chris Thompson is essentially Washington's WR1. Even as his price continues to rise, he's in play for a 4x salary multiple on full PPR sites, regardless of opponent. Green Bay allowed five receptions to Jordan Howard in Week 1 and 52 receiving yards to Dalvin Cook before he left last week's game early.
WR - Will Fuller's efficiency is off the charts in his games played with Deshaun Watson. There's no reason to think he won't slip behind the Titans secondary for at least one splash play this week.
TE - Will Dissly was in on 70% of the Seahawks snaps on Monday night football (up from 60% in Week 1) and delivered his second straight game with a touchdown. Seattle is short on red zone weapons with Doug Baldwin sidelined and Jimmy Graham in Green Bay, opening the door for Dissly to maintain his role as the team's de facto touchdown maker. Dallas, his Week 3 opponent, allowed 16.5 yards per catch to Greg Olsen in Week 1 and 7-67-1 receiving line to Evan Engram in Week 2.
While all of the other quarterbacks off to fast starts have been priced way up, Bortles remains a major bargain and a major DFS value in Week 3. On FanDuel, he is priced as QB22 (tied with Joe Flacco and Case Keenum). On DraftKings, Bortles is QB21.
There are a few reasons for optimism regarding Bortles. First, he has a deep and surprisingly talented group of pass catchers. Keelan Cole looks like a major breakout candidate. Dede Westbrook, Donte Moncrief, DJ Chark, Austin-Seferian Jenkins, Corey Grant, and T.J. Yeldon provide plenty of solid depth. Second, the dual-threat nature of Bortles game often goes under appreciated. Through two games, he has 10 rushes for 77 yards. In a solid matchup at home against Tennessee, Bortles is very much in play this week.
RB
Matt Breida is a very intriguing GPP target this weekend. While he has been in a true committee with Alfred Morris and only handled 11 carries in each of the first two games, Breida has flashed his elite athleticism. Plus, his game-breaking speed is better suited for a potential game script against Kansas City in which San Francisco may fall behind and need to score points in bunches to keep up with Mahomes and the Chiefs offense.
WR
Will Fuller has been a fantasy monster when in the lineup catching balls from Deshaun Watson. In four games last season, Fuller caught seven touchdowns (most of which came from long distance). In their first game together this season, the magic was very much still alive. Fuller caught 8-of-9 targets for 113 yards and 1 touchdown. Teams have a very hard time double-covering Fuller due to the presence of DeAndre Hopkins on the other side. In single-coverage, Fuller’s 4.3 speed and ability to separate are a nightmare for opposing cornerbacks. He is a great DFS option in GPPs this week against the Giants.
TE
While George Kittle didn’t produce big numbers in Week 2, he was still highly productive for the Lions and has been a breakout performer early in 2018. In addition to his two catches last week, he drew three penalties for either holding or pass interference, which came at important times. Kittle has been so close to having big games in each of the first two weeks and is worth strong consideration in Week 3 in a potential shootout against the same Chiefs defense that was torched by Jesse James last week.
