Week 3 Game Scripts to Target in Daily Fantasy Football

Philadelphia Eagles vs. Pittsburgh Steelers

Over/Under: 46.0
Eagles Implied Team Total: 20.50
Steelers Implied Team Total: 25.50

This game doesn't boast quite the elite over/under that some of the other games on the slate do, but 46 points is nothing to scoff at. It also provides several fun opportunities to take advantage of whatever game script you envision unfolding in this game with highly-correlated plays, as both team's tend to funnel their offenses through a few select players.

Antonio Brown, WR, Pittsburgh Steelers

FanDuel Price: $9,500

Antonio Brown and the Pittsburgh Steelers boast fourth-highest implied team total on the slate against a Philadelphia Eagles defense that has performed well this season but allowed the second-most fantasy points (ESPN Standard Scoring) to opposing receivers in 2015. It's very possible that their defense is exposed this week, as the Ben Roethlisberger-Antonio Brown connection is much more intimidating than anything they've had to face this season.

Brown also has a juicy matchup from an individual perspective this week, as he will spend most of his time matched up against Nolan Carroll, who is one of just nine cornerbacks to grade below a 40 on Pro Football Focus' (PFF) 100-point scale. Per PFF, Carroll has spent 94 percent of his snaps locked in as the right cornerback, which is the position Brown has run over 50 percent of his snaps against this season.

Aside from a juicy matchup and high team-total, Brown has performed much better as a favorite over the past two seasons. Per the Rotoviz Game Splits App, in six games when favored by at least 5 points, Brown has averaged 10.5 catches on 13.7 targets for 149 yards and 1.3 touchdowns, which equates out to 28.2 FanDuel points per game. In the 12 other games since the beginning of last season, Brown has averaged just 15 FanDuel points per game.

It's scary to imagine what Brown could do in this game. If you think Pittsburgh wins this in a closely-contested shootout, as Vegas predicts they will, Brown is clearly the best way to get exposure to the Steelers.

Jordan Matthews, WR, Philadelphia Eagles

FanDuel Price: $6,900

On the other side of the ball, garbage-time hero Jordan Matthews profiles as a solid stand-alone play, as well as a nice way to game stack if you see this turning into a shootout. Through two games, Matthews ranks 2nd in the NFL in targets (23), 7th in catches (13), and 12th in yards (185). He has also accounted for the largest market share of targets (32.4 percent) of any player in the NFL. It's clear that rookie Carson Wentz is locked in on Matthews.

Game script favors Matthews well in this one, as the Eagles should be throwing plenty in this one against Pittsburgh's defense, which ranks 4th in Adjusted Defensive Rushing NEP per play this season, but are 12th in Adjusted Defensive Passing NEP per play. If the Vegas line holds true, they might be playing catch up too, which would lead to even more pass attempts.

Per the Rotoviz Game Splits App, when the Eagles have been underdogs since 2014, Matthews has averaged more targets per game, while seeing his FanDuel points per game rise from 10.9 to 12.3. In games in which the Eagles were underdogs and playing in a game with at least a 48-point over/under, he saw that average rise to 13.9 FanDuel points per game.

In addition to having Wentz locked in on him and game script favoring him, Matthews has a favorable individual matchup against Pittsburgh's slot corner, Sean Davis. PFF has Davis graded as the sixth-worst cornerback this season, giving him a 38.4 out of 100 through two games. He appears to be the clear weakness on Pittsburgh's underwhelming secondary.

Pairing Matthews with any of Pittsburgh's players is a high-upside way to get exposure to this potentially fantasy friendly game.

Others to Consider

It's impossible to ignore what DeAngelo Williams has done as a starter for Pittsburgh over the past two seasons, averaging 20.7 FanDuel points per game on a workhorse-like 23.4 touches per game, according to the Rotoviz Game Splits App. Despite being listed as the most expensive back on the slate, he is firmly in play in this potential shootout, especially with Pittsburgh favored.

Similar to Brown, Ben Roethlisberger has played very well when the Steelers have been favorites. Since the beginning of last season, when favored by at least 5 points, he has seen his passing line rise from 305 yards and 1.4 touchdowns per game to 345 yards and 2.7 touchdowns per game. He's not a bad tournament play.

If choosing an Eagles running back, I'd go with Darren Sproles this week, who, despite playing with a lead, has out-snapped Ryan Mathews 79 to 58 this year. He ranks third on the team in targets and has accounted for 78 percent of Philly's running back targets thus far. At $1,400 cheaper than Mathews, Philly's pass-catching back seems like the clear choice of the two.