Week 9 is just about the rearview mirror, but worry not because we still have a Monday Night Football game left to scratch that DFS itch. Tonight's matchup between the Tennessee Titans and Dallas Cowboys may not be the most exciting contest on paper with a modest 40.5-point total, but that doesn't mean a little single-game slate action can't spice things up.
For those unfamiliar with the single-game format, scoring is identical to its full roster cousin, except lineups consist of five flex spots, and kickers (remember them?) are an option in place of defense/special teams. The one twist? One of the five roster spots is your designated "MVP," who receives 1.5x his total fantasy points. Naturally, it's crucial that you choose your MVP carefully if you want to be at the top of the leaderboards when it's all said and done.
Let's run through some of tonight's top plays, starting with the best options to consider for your MVP slot.
MVP Candidates
Ezekiel Elliott ($17,000 on FanDuel): The most obvious and chalkiest play will no doubt be Ezekiel Elliott, but in a game with few fantasy standouts, it's with good reason. Elliott hasn't had as many spike weeks as some other workhorse backs this season, but the volume remains elite, with his massive 42.3% market share of carries and targets exceeding even that of Todd Gurley. Elliott is averaging 18.9 carries and 5.1 targets per game, and as a 4.5-point home favorite against numberFire's 21st-ranked rushing defense, the workload, game script, and matchup all line up in his favor.
Dak Prescott ($16,000): Dak Prescott has mostly maintained a quiet 2018 fantasy campaign, but he's now exceeded 20 FanDuel points in two straight games following the re-emergence of his running game. He notched a rushing touchdown in each of those two performances, and he has logged at least 6 carries and 30 rushing yards in each of the last three. Although Tennessee's passing defense ranks top-10 in passing yards allowed per game, this isn't necessarily an imposing a matchup as they rank just 24th by numberFire's schedule-adjusted metrics. Prescott's passing numbers remain underwhelming, averaging a mere 202.4 yards per game with 8 passing touchdowns, but as long as he keeps running, there's renewed upside in his profile moving forward.
Dion Lewis ($12,000): The Titans' offense hasn't exactly been a gold mine of fantasy points, but if you want to take a chance on someone on Tennessee, then Dion Lewis might be your guy. Derrick Henry's presence continues to hurt Lewis' fantasy value, but Lewis is coming off a 19-touch performance (13 carries, 6 receptions) in a losing effort against the Chargers, and he has played at least 63% of the snaps in four straight games. Although Dallas checks in as numberFire's third-best rushing defense, which certainly won't help, Lewis has a solid 17.1% target market share as the superior pass-catching option to Henry, and a negative game script should result in another high workload.
Value Plays
Amari Cooper ($10,000): Amari Cooper is the shiny new toy in the Cowboys' offense, and while there's no way to know exactly how he will be used in his first game, he had a bye week to get comfortable, and all indications are that he will be heavily involved from the get-go. One figures Dallas has big plans for Cooper after dealing away a first-round pick for his services, but this is still an offense that ranks just 28th in passing play percentage and 29th in passing yards per game, so it remains to be seen what kind of ceiling Cooper will have. Still, we've seen Cooper flash big-time upside as recently as Week 4, when he grabbed 8-of-11 targets for 128 yards and a score versus Cleveland (22.8 FanDuel points).
Corey Davis ($9,000): Corey Davis has seen an elite-level 29.0% target market share this season, but in a passing offense that ranks just 27th in Adjusted Passing Net Expected Points per play, that hasn't translated to much success in the box score as Davis is averaging just 8.6 FanDuel points per game. Much like Dallas, the Titans remain a run-heavy team, ranking 31st in passing play percentage and 30th in passing yards per game, so there simply haven't been many fantasy points to go around. Regardless, he's still the top dog in this passing attack, and that still stands for something at this price point.
Tajae Sharpe ($8,500): As you would expect, the secondary pass-catching options in these offenses aren't terribly exciting, but you'll likely have to take a chance on someone to fill out your lineup. Tajae Sharpe doesn't have notable numbers on the year, but he led the team in targets (9), receptions (7), and receiving yards (101) in the Titans' last game, and he has played just under 80% the snaps in back-to-back contests. Meanwhile, Taywan Taylor continues to see his role dip as he has received only four targets over the last two games and has been out-snapped by Sharpe in three straight. On the other side, you can take a shot at Michael Gallup ($7,500), who is also coming off his best performance of the season (15.6 FanDuel points and a season-high 84% of the snaps), although Cooper's presence could eat into his playing time.
Kenyatta Storin is not a FanDuel employee. In addition to providing DFS gameplay advice, Kenyatta Storin also participates in DFS contests on FanDuel using his personal account, username yatters. While the strategies and player selections recommended in his articles are his personal views, he may deploy different strategies and player selections when entering contests with his personal account. The views expressed in his articles are the author's alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of FanDuel.