5 Daily Fantasy Football Matchups to Exploit in Week 2
Baltimore Ravens Passing Offense
This will be the truest test of how easily you are swayed by Week 1 results. Joe Flacco finished the first week with the second worst Passing NEP in the league, besting only noted hater of efficiency Blake Bortles. What does that mean for them heading into Week 2?
In facing the Denver Broncos, the Ravens were up against the seventh-ranked team in Adjusted Defensive Passing NEP per play last year. This week, they dip down to the team that ranked 25th in the Oakland Raiders. Those Raiders allowed Andy Dalton to post the seventh best Passing NEP total for Week 1. This should be positive for the efficiency side of things.
Additionally, Vegas doesn't seem overly concerned about Flacco's struggles. They have the Ravens favored by 7 points with an implied total of 25 points. This total seems to hint that the odds makers are looking more at what the Ravens did last year (ranking seventh in Adjusted Passing NEP per play) more than they are looking at just last week. Good on them.
The problem here is who on this green Earth do you target? The wide receiver depth chart is in absolute flames, and Steve Smith converted his 7 targets into 2 catches for 13 yards. Dope. Real pumped about this.
Smith's struggles, though, were more likely a product of the team's opponent. Both of the Broncos' top corners went to the Pro Bowl in 2014, and they really didn't have a whole lot else to focus on outside of Smith. He's not going to face similar obstacles against the Raiders. I have no problem rolling him out for $6,700 on FanDuel.
This could also be a good matchup for Justin Forsett. He garnered seven targets in Week 1, and Bengals running backs were targeted seven times in their matchup with the Raiders. This is a situation in which Forsett might not be the most efficient rusher, but his volume in the running game and potential effectiveness in the passing game could help him return value at $7,800 on FanDuel.
Finally, if you want to punt tight end, you could potentially consider doing so with Crockett Gillmore. It was the Raiders who allowed Tyler Eifert to get down with his bad self in Week 1, and Gillmore tops the depth chart over rookie Maxx Williams. That said, Rotoworld's Rich Hribar noted earlier this week that Gillmore was only targeted four times in Week 1 despite being on the field for 95 percent of the snaps. Sigh. Gillmore's floor isn't pretty, but he provides enough ceiling for consideration in tourneys at just $4,500.
