Austin Hooper, TE, Atlanta Falcons
DraftKings Price: $3,000
Projected Points: 7.7
Projected Value (points per $1,000): 2.57
Finding value at the tight end position often feels like throwing darts. Only 8 tight ends have seen 20 or more targets this season, and only 4 have seen 30 or more. By comparison, 15 running backs have seen 20 or more targets.
With such limited opportunity at the position, it is paramount to look at matchups if you are going to be trying to use a value player. There has been no better matchup for tight ends this year than the Pittsburgh Steelers.
The surprisingly 1-2-1 Steelers have given up 21.23 DraftKings points per game to opposing tight ends this year, worst in the NFL. They are one of only two teams giving up more than 20 per game to the position and have given up at least 19.90 points to tight ends in each of the past three weeks.
The Steelers are 24th against tight ends by DVOA and dead last against them by our metrics. Teams are catching on, too. Receptions by opposing tight ends have increased each week against the Steelers, from 4 in Week 1 to 10 last week.
Hooper is averaging just 8.13 DraftKings points per game, a number which is largely boosted by a 16.9-point outing against the Carolina Panthers in Week 2. While that type of output isn't going to win you a week, it's enough to justify a position in cash games, especially for a player who has a salary of just $3,000.
We project him for 7.7 points this week, but with a 17.02-point upside. If he were to touch that higher number, he'd return a value of 5.67 points.
Ian Goldsmith is not a FanDuel employee. In addition to providing DFS gameplay advice, Ian Goldsmith also participates in DFS contests on FanDuel using his personal account, username zoidbergs_revenge. While the strategies and player selections recommended in his articles are his/her personal views, he/she may deploy different strategies and player selections when entering contests with his/her personal account. The views expressed in his/her articles are the author's alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of FanDuel.