Below is our game-by-game previews on which players should be considered on your roster as well as which players you may want to stay away from.
Arkansas State at toledo
Kickoff: 7:00 PM EST
Spread: Toledo -7.5
O/U: 58.5
Arkansas State-
Team Expected Points- 25.0
QB- Fredi Knighten- $6,900
Analysis:
Fredi Knighten has been absolutely awful this season so far. He has only rushed for 50 yards in the two games he has played, and his completion percentage has been 41.3% while throwing for a total of 183 yards in 2 games. This was a player who last season had a 3,277 passing yards, 24 passing touchdowns, while also rushing for 779 yards and 11 touchdowns. Needless to say, he still possesses that upside, but he needs to start turning it around pretty quickly. Toledo defense has been good, but if Fredi can return to his old self, he is matchup proof.
Recommendation:
Fredi is a GPP play only, as his price is cheap enough that he has the upside that no other quarterback in his price range has. He should not even be considered for cash games, and you should not have heavy exposure of him for GPP’s, as he is the riskiest player we will be recommending on this slate.
Toledo-
Team Expected Points- 32.5
QB- Phillip Ely- $5,800
Analysis-
For those of you who are unfamiliar with Phillip Ely, he is a former Alabama quarterback who transferred to Toledo. He is incredibly talented, but has been in two tough matchups so far this year. Arkansas State does not have the defense that Arkansas or Iowa State had. Ely would benefit tremendously if Kareem Hunt is out.
Recommendation:
There are a lot of great quarterbacks in this slate, but if Kareem Hunt is out, Ely becomes a great play for GPP’s or as a potential QB2 in cash games.
RB- Kareem Hunt- $7,300
Analysis-
Kareem Hunt is one of the best backs in college football, and proved it last game with 129 yards against Iowa State after being suspended for the season opener. Kareem Hunt had 1,631 yards last season and is going to be a running back that you are going to want to get to know this season. Unfortunately he has a hamstring injury, which makes it difficult to start him as even if he plays he will not be 100% this week.
Recommendation:
Kareem Hunt is going to be a guy that is going to be in our lineups a lot this season, but due to injury he is only a GPP play if he starts. He will be under-owned due to his injury concern and Arkansas State’s defense is bad enough that if he plays and is 90-95% he could have a monster game. We just aren’t willing to take that risk in anything except for a cheap GPP.
Texas A&M AT Arkansas
Kickoff: 7:00 PM EST
Spread: Texas A&M -7
O/U: 58
Texas A&M
Team Expected Points- 32.5
QB- Kyle Allen-$7,700
Analysis:
Kyle Allen continues to be one of those players that is incredibly difficult to figure out. He has all the talent a quarterback could possibly want, and a coach in Kevin Sumlin that loves to run up passing numbers for quarterbacks. Last week was one of his best weeks of his career in four touchdown passes with 270 yards. That game was a blowout game, and he has an opportunity to finally throw for four quarters in what should be a close game against Arkansas.
Recommendation:
With so many quarterbacks on this slate, combined with the inconsistency that we have seen from Allen in his career he is nothing more than a GPP play.
WR- Speedy Noil, Christian Kirk, Ricky Seals-Jones
Analysis-
What have we learned from Texas A&M so far this season? Realistically, the answer is that we can trust none of their wide receivers. They are so hit or miss based on rotating five or six wide receivers per game that make it almost impossible to actually predict who is going to be the wide receiver that is going to step up in this game.
Recommendation:
Christian Kirk has been the only consistent wide receiver, but realistically he is too expensive to play him this week at $6,000. If you’re willing to go back to the well, Ricky Seals-Jones might be the most talented wide receiver outside of Christian Kirk, as he has the size-speed combination that you are looking for when you’re looking for upside. He may have no catches, but he also could have 5 catches for 80 yards and a touchdown which at a price tag of $3,700 would be tremendous value.
Arkansas
Team Expected Points- 25.5
QB- Brandon Allen- $7,100
Analysis:
Brandon Allen started this season on fire as he was averaging 360 yards passing per game over the first two weeks of the season. He showed some major regression back to his 2014 average when he only had 196 yards passing in a favorable matchup against Texas Tech. We expect that this is more of who Brandon Allen is instead of the 300+ passing yards Brandon Allen as Arkansas is going back to their ground and pound offense.
Recommendation:
Brandon Allen is a guy you can avoid until he can show that he is a guy who will continue to throw as much as he did in the first two games. Arkansas is a run heavy offense, and he just won’t see the volume needed to be a reliable starting quarterback.
RB- Alex Collins- $8,500
Analysis:
Alex Collins was the exact opposite of Brandon Allen, as he was someone who started the year off slow when expectations were high considering the starting running back Jonathan Williams the Arkansas starting running back was ruled out for the season. Collins is a guy who should continue to see a heavy volume this season as the 28 carries he had last week should become more of normal as the season progresses. Texas A&M has a solid run defense, but Collins is a player who under Bret Bielema is going to be fantasy relevant on a weekly basis.
Recommendation:
Due to the Texas A&M having a great run defense, we are recommending that Collins is a GPP only play as he is in the price range of Royce Freeman and Devontae Booker both of which we will get to later in this article.
Vanderbilt at Ole Miss
Kickoff: 7:00 PM EST
Spread: Ole Miss -27
O/U: 53.5
Vanderbilt
Team Expected Points- 13.5
WR- Trent Sherfield- $4,800
Analysis:
Trent Sherfield came out of nowhere last game catching 16 passes for 240 yards and a touchdown. The competition level is going to increase this week as he takes on Mississippi instead of last week when Vanderbilt played Austin Peay. Vanderbilt is going to have to throw most of the game in order to have a chance to not get blown out.
Recommendation:
Sherfield is a GPP only play as he has upside if the stats from last game can carry over, but be careful as Ole Miss has one of the best defenses in the country and if this game gets out of hand quickly Sherfield will not play the entire game.
Ole Miss
Team Expected Points- 40
QB- Chad Kelly- $7,900
Analysis:
Chad Kelly has quickly turned himself into the best quarterback in the SEC. The former Clemson quarterback has been putting up great stats in this pass heavy offense of Ole Miss. He has thrown for over 300 yards in his last two games, and would have thrown for over 300 if the first game of the season was more competitive as Ole Miss won 76-3.
Recommendation:
Kelly is our favorite QB play for this slate start him in both your cash games and your GPP’s.
WR- Cody Core- $5,400
Analysis:
Cody Core has turned himself into the deep threat of this offense, as so far this season he has catches of 33, 57, 73 all for touchdowns. Vanderbilt defense is not horrible, so they should be able to keep this game close for a little while allowing Core to play most of the game
Recommendation:
Core is a GPP play, as at that price you are going to hope he makes another big play this week. He does not have the consistent volume that we are looking for in a cash game.
Missouri at Kentucky
Kickoff: 7:30 PM EST
Spread: Kentucky -2.5
O/U: 44.5
Missouri-
Team Expected Points- 21
Missouri is the worst offensive team in the SEC as they only scored 9 points last week against Connecticut. There are a lot of offensive oriented teams to load up on in this slate, and we do not recommend looking to anyone on the Missouri Tigers. In an over/under of 44.5 this is not a game to target.
Kentucky-
Team Expected Points- 23.5
WR- Dorian Baker- $3,600
Analysis:
Dorian Baker is not a player who is going to be a focal point of this Kentucky offense, as they spread the ball around to too many receivers for one guy to become a star. What he brings however is consistency at the wide receiver position. In his three games so far this season he has either had 4 catches or 50+ yards.
Recommendation:
Dorian Baker is not a guy that we love this week, but in cash games you’re always going to be looking for a punt play, and he is a good one just because he brings what should be a consistent 9-12 points which at $3,600 is really all you’re looking for.
Mississippi State At auburn
Kickoff: 7:30 PM EST
Spread: Auburn -2.5
O/U: 59
Mississippi State
Team Expected Points-28
QB- Dak Prescott- $8,900
Analysis:
For those of you who are unfamiliar with Dak Prescott he is one of the best quarterbacks in college football. His ability to beat you through the air as well as his legs is what we are looking for in the fantasy game. He does have some upside limitations, as the team around him is not good. Thankfully this week, he plays an Auburn team that has a defense that is one of the worst defenses in college football, as they allowed over 100 yards rushing to Louisville’s Lamar Jackson. This is the first week that Auburn is facing a dual-threat quarterback.
Recommendation:
Prescott makes for a good cash game play and a great GPP play based on his upside. Auburn has talent on the defensive side of the ball, but for whatever reason they can’t stop mobile quarterbacks, so Prescott should have a great game running the football.
Auburn-
Team Expected Points- 30.5
RB- Peyton Barber- $4,500
Analysis:
Peyton Barber has become a major piece of this Auburn offense, although he had a down game last week against a tough LSU defense in a blowout, he is still going to be the workhorse running back on this Auburn team. In the first two games of the season he averaged 23.5 carries for 120 yards, which if he gets the amount of carries should be an achievable target this week. He does not possess the talent level that Leonard Fournette has, but Fournette against Mississippi State was able to run for 159 yards and 3 touchdowns.
Recommendation:
Barber is a great play as he provides salary relief for the rest of the slate. Assuming he gets the number of carries we expect him to, he should easily surpass value.
Ball State at Northwestern
Kickoff: 8:00 PM EST
Spread: Northwestern -18.5
O/U: 48.5
Ball State
Team Expected Points- 14.5
Northwestern statistically has one of the best defenses in college football so far this season. There are better options than to start a player against them in this slate.
Northwestern
Team Expected Points- 34
RB- Justin Jackson- $6,700
Analysis:
Justin Jackson is a guy that a lot of people haven’t heard of as Northwestern had a bad year last year, but he was great in his freshman campaign totaling 1,187 yards and 10 touchdowns. So far this season he is averaging 110 yards per game and two of those games came against Stanford and Duke who have some of the best defenses in college football. Ball State has one of the worst run defenses in the country as they have allowed 270 yards rushing to Texas A&M earlier this season. Justin Jackson is in a prime matchup, and as long as the game stays close should have a huge game this week.
Recommendation:
Justin is our favorite running back play on this slate, and makes for a great GPP and cash game play. His consistent volume combined with a great price/matchup make him the ideal play this week.
Hawaii At Wisconsin
Kickoff: 8:00 PM EST
Spread: Wisconsin -24.5
O/U: 50
Hawaii-
Team Expected Points- 12.5
We do not recommend starting anyone on Hawaii, as their offense so far this season has been poor, and they’re only expected to score 12.5 points.
Wisconsin-
Team Expected Points- 37.5
RB- Dare Ogunbowale- $4,700
Analysis:
With Corey Clement out for the next 4-6 weeks in what is a devastating injury for Wisconsin, they are going to turn to Dare Ogunbowale a 5’11 200lb running back to take his place. We have seen Dare over the last two weeks, and he is still splitting carries with Taiwan Deal who is a much larger back at 6’1 220lbs. Deal is the type of back that may come in on goal line situations, which hurts Ogunbowale’s upside, but Ogunbowale is the more talented back and the guy that you are going to want to own as he will do most of the work this week, as well as has the ability to break a long touchdown run.
Recommendation:
At 4,700 Dare becomes a great option for cash games and a good option for GPP’s, as his upside is a little bit hindered by the potential goal line touchdown being taken from him by Taiwan Deal.
WR- Robert Wheelwright- $3,500
Analysis:
Robert Wheelwright was a wide receiver that going into this season no one knew very much about as he only had 3 career catches over two season. He came through in a big way in week 2 as he had 6 catches for 79 yards and 2 touchdowns. Hawaii should be another potential blowout game so he has the opportunity to have another great game this week.
Recommendation;
At this price, he is a great punt play, although there is some risk involved in this pick as there is not a lot of film on Wheelwright.
UCLA At Arizona
Kickoff: 8:00 PM EST
Spread: UCLA -2
O/U: 65
UCLA
Team Expected Points- 33.5
QB- Josh Rosen- $7,600
Analysis:
Josh Rosen is one of the best freshman quarterbacks in college football. Typically freshmen are going to be more inconsistent than older players just from an experience standpoint. He had a rough game last week against BYU which is one of the best defenses in the country. Arizona has a defense that has largely underperformed so far this season as they allowed 32 points to Texas San-Antonio and 20 points to Nevada. This game has the makings of a typical Pac 12 shootout, so Rosen should be in a great spot.
Recommendation:
Rosen at his price, should is a great GPP play as there is always risk in starting a Freshman quarterback on the road. He makes for a good cash game play as they will have to throw the ball to keep up with the high powered Arizona offense.
RB- Paul Perkins- $8,400
Analysis:
Even though Rosen is getting a lot of the hype so far this season, this team is going to ride on the shoulders of Paul Perkins. He is another under the radar running back who had a monster year last year with 1,575 yards and 9 touchdowns. He is off to another great start having ran for 219 yards last week against BYU and 151 yards and 2 touchdowns the week prior against UNLV. He is in a great spot this week and should be relied on in what should be
Recommendation:
He is expensive, but if you can fit him into your lineup he makes for a great play this week for both GPP’s and cash games. He has one of the highest floor combined with one of the highest ceilings of any running back on this slate with his ability to catch the ball as well as getting a significant amount of carries.
Arizona
Team Expected Points- 31.5
QB- Anu Solomon- $8,400
Analysis:
UCLA’s defense has been decimated with injury losing two of their best players for the season. This bodes extremely well for Anu Solomon who is off to a great start so far this season throwing for 10 touchdowns in 3 games. The yardage hasn’t been there so far this year as he has yet to eclipse the 300 yard mark, but this is largely due to the games not being competitive so far for Arizona. Solomon is one of the best quarterbacks in the Pac-12 and in a game that should be a shootout should have a great game.
Recommendation:
He’s expensive, but he should definitely be in consideration as a cash game play, as he has the highest floor of any quarterback that is on this slate.
RB- Nick Wilson- $7,500
Analysis:
Losing two key components in their front 7 in Myles Jack and Eddie Vanderdoes opens up some great upside for Nick Wilson in this matchup. Wilson is a guy who has been off to a great start with 5 touchdowns in 3 games. He is also averaging 144 yards rushing over those three games. He does have a boom/bust type game log since he has been a starter, so there is a little bit of risk especially against this UCLA team where he only had 9 carries for 18 yards last year.
Recommendation:
Nick Wilson is one of our favorite GPP running backs on this slate, as he will be under-owned and possesses the upside that no other running back has due to his ability to put together 2 or 3 touchdown games on a regular basis.
WR- David Richards- $ 4,700
Analysis:
David Richards had a monster game last week, so we need to mention him in this article. He had 8 catches for 120 yards and 2 touchdowns. He has largely been unknown as he has been around the program for a long time, but has never strung together the production that he is putting together so far this season. One caution is that he is a guy who so far has put up points after the game has been out of hand. With this game expected to be close, there is some risk that he will not see the field as much as he did in the past games.
Recommendation:
Richards is a GPP only play as he is not safe due to this game not being a likely blowout.
Utah at Oregon
Kickoff: 8:00 PM EST
Spread: Oregon -10.5
O/U: 64.5
Utah
Team Expected Points- 27
RB- Devontae Booker- $8,800
Analysis:
If you haven’t heard of Devontae Booker, he is one of the most consistent running backs in college football. His usage rate in both the running game and the passing game is one of the highest that you will see as he had 292 carries and 43 receptions last season. So far this season, he has been off to a typical consistent start averaging 157 total yards with 4 touchdowns in 3 games. This Oregon team has struggled in the past with elite running games, and allowed 197 yards rushing to a Michigan State team that does not have a running back the caliber of Booker.
Recommendation:
Booker is a great cash game play this week. At his price, there are probably better GPP options as there are running backs with the same upside at a cheaper price.
Oregon
Team Expected Points- 37.5
RB- Royce Freeman- $8,700
Analysis:
Royce Freeman only had 10 carries last week, but still managed to have 101 yards and find the end zone. He is facing a Utah defense that is one of the best in the nation in stopping the run. Freeman will get close to 20 carries this week, as last week was a blowout situation, but it will be a tough 20 carries against this Utah defense.
Recommendation:
Freeman is not a great option due to his price. There are better options in this slate.
WR- Bralon Addison- $5,700
Analysis:
Bralon Addison is Vernon Adams’ favorite target which is not saying much as Oregon spreads the ball around so much. In the only close game that Oregon has had, Addison torched the Michigan State defense going for 7 catches for 138 yards. Addison in the other two games had only had 6 total catches for 47 yards so he is a boom/bust candidate but if he can have another performance similar to Michigan State he will easily pay off value.
Recommendation:
Addison is a GPP play only as his price makes it so that he will be under-owned. He is very risky as he may only go for 3 catches for 30 yards which makes him not usable for cash games.
Fresno State At San Jose State
Kickoff: 10:30 PM EST
Spread: San Jose State -4
O/U: 54.5
Fresno State
Team Expected Points- 26
Fresno State-
WR- Da’Mari Scott- $4,400
Analysis:
Da’Mari Scott is quickly turning into the #1 wide receiver this season for Fresno State. Over the last two games he has 10 catches for 128 yards and a touchdown. This matchup should be a good one for Da’Mari as San Jose State’s defense is below average so Fresno State should have a better opportunity than what they have had in the first few games.
Recommendation:
Da’Mari at his price can safely be used in both cash games as well as GPP’s.
San Jose State
Team Expected Points- 29.5
RB- Tyler Ervin- $7,600
Analysis:
Tyler Ervin is similar to Devontae Booker in that he is a player who used heavily in both rushing and receiving games. In his first 3 games, he already has 12 receptions. From a running standpoint he has 341 yards and 6 touchdowns. Fresno State has one of the worst defenses in college football as they have allowed 118 points over the last two games. Ervin should have his way against this defense in both the rushing game
Recommendation:
At this price, Ervin is one of the top plays for this slate for both GPP and cash games.
WR- Tyler Winston- $5,100
Analysis:
Tyler Winston is a possession receiver which makes him incredibly value for DraftKings. So far this season he has 16 receptions and is on pace to repeat the 78 receptions that he had last season. He is in a great spot against a Fresno State defense that as we mentioned is one of the worst in college football.
Recommendation:
Tyler Winston is guy who can safely be used in cash games as he should see an increase in volume facing the Fresno State defense.
USC At Arizona State
Kickoff: 10:30 PM EST
Spread: USC -5.5
O/U: 60.5
USC
Team Expected Points- 33
QB- Cody Kessler- $8,700
Recommendation:
Cody Kessler is one of the best real-life college quarterbacks this season. The problem is that this doesn’t always transition to the fantasy game, as he does not have the rushing ability to make him elite. So what we get is that we get a quarterback who is very safe as he is going to throw for 275-300 yards most weeks with 2-3 passing touchdowns. This week is no different as he faces an Arizona State team that does not have a great defense allowing 38 points to Texas A&M week one.
Recommendation:
Kessler is a cash game play, but due to his lack of running ability is not a great GPP play.
WR- Juju Smith-Schuster- $7,500
Analysis:
Juju Smith-Schuster is a top 5 wide receiver in college football and is largely matchup proof as he is going to receive a majority of the volume in this offense. Last week against a very good Stanford defense, Smith had 8 catches for 153 yards and a touchdown. He is following the footsteps of Nelson Agholar, Robert Woods, Marqise Lee and should put his name right among those elite college wide receivers when the season is over.
Recommendation:
Juju Smith is a top option every week in both GPP and cash games.
WR- Darreus Rogers- $4,000
Analysis:
We are still waiting for Darreus Rogers to emerge as the #2 wide receiver in this USC offense. Last week he had 4 catches for 44 yards in his best game of this season. He is risky, as he doesn’t have a defined role so far this season, but he is one of the most talented wide receivers on this team and should continue to work with Cody Kessler as this team desperately needs a #2 wide receiver.
Recommendation:
At $4,000, Rogers is a great punt play, as the first two games were blowout games, and in a game that was close he started to see the volume that we expect.
Arizona State-
Team Expected Points- 27.5
WR- Devin Lucien- $4,000
Analysis:
Most of Arizona State’s offensive players are overpriced based on the matchup, so we are going to dig deep with Devin Lucien in our recommendation. Lucien left the last game with a hamstring injury, and was off to a great start prior to going out having 4 catches for 49 yards. In week 2, he had 7 catches for 79 yards which is what we are going to expect from Lucien on a week-to-week basis. He is an incredibly talented wide receiver who transferred in from UCLA in the offseason. All signs are pointing towards him being healthy this week, but it won’t hurt to double check prior to lineup lock. If he is out, slide Tim White into your starting lineup.
Recommendation:
Lucien is one of the top punt plays on the day assuming he’s playing.