Every week in DFS, there is a player who comes out of nowhere to be the slate-breaker. These seemingly incognito players can be a game-changers if you manage to roster them during the right week.
Tournament-only fliers have plenty of appeal, offering low ownership, below value pricing, cheap stacking options, roster flexibility and underrated ceilings. The purpose of this article is to identify dart throws to take your shots on during the main slate on FanDuel.
There are plenty of intriguing tournament options on FanDuel in Week 2. It’s no coincidence that the three passers with the highest implied team totals -- Patrick Mahomes, Lamar Jackson, and Tom Brady -- will be highly rostered. Although I'll have my fair share of each of them, my strategy this week is to pivot to similar-priced passers in favorable spots.
Ben Roethlisberger, QB, Pittsburgh Steelers
FanDuel Salary: $7,600
The Pittsburgh Steelers are in a prime spot to bounce back after being thoroughly throttled by the juggernaut that is the New England Patriots. Ben Roethlisberger is footballs Jekyll and Hyde when it comes to home road splits, as the Steelers scored a touchdown more per game at Heinz field in 2018. Coming off a career high in pass attempts a year ago, Big Ben will be facing a Seattle Seahawks defense traveling across the country, fresh off giving up a career high in passing yards to the Red Rocket, Andy Dalton. The Steelers have the fifth-highest implied team total and Ben ranks as the fourth-best point-per-dollar value, per our models. With a more concentrated target distribution, a Pittsburgh onslaught is certainly in play. Roethlisberger makes for a nice pivot off Tom Brady, who is $200 more.
Jared Goff, QB, Los Angeles Rams
FanDuel Salary: $7,600
Like Big Ben, Jared Goff and the Los Angeles Rams' offense transforms into the best version of themselves at home, averaging 10 more points per game in LA in 2018 than they did on the road. No team had a larger points discrepancy in home and away splits. The Rams-Saints matchup is ripe for fantasy plunder, boasting the highest over/under of the slate (53), with LA implied for the fourth-highest team total. There's plenty of shootout potential here, and Goff might not be super popular given his underwhelming fantasy output in Week 1.
Chris Thompson, RB, Washington
FanDuel Salary: $5,300
Scatback Chris Thompson has played an entire season only once during his entire pro career. When he does play, the back is a target magnet, and the trend continued in Week 1 as he ranked second in targets for the position with 10, per NFL Savant. Now that Derrius Guice is out of the picture, Washington will turn to early down plodder Adrian Peterson. AP is not a pass catcher, and the team is yet again projected as an underdog, this time at home versus the Dallas Cowboys. At only $5,300, Thompson should see similar target numbers to Week 1 in what will likely be a negative game script. He will allow for roster savings and might make for an ideal game stack with Michael Gallup or Amari Cooper.
Sony Michel, RB, New England Patriots
FanDuel Salary: $6,800
Sony Michel might not be your standard GPP dart throw, but he is in a prime bounce-back spot and should be a staple of your tournament lineups. Michel’s poor performance in Week 1 and his lack of passing-game prowess could cause his ownership to dip in a more-than-exploitable matchup against the punchless Miami Dolphins. The Baltimore Ravens, Philadelphia Eagles, New England Patriots, Seattle Seahawks, Green Bay Packers, and Chicago Bears defense combined to give up fewer rushing yards than Miami did in Week 1. New England is projected for the highest implied total of the slat, and they sport almost a three-touchdown spread -- meaning there should be plenty of positive game script with trips to the red zone. As a rookie, Michel played in only 13 games yet ranked sixth in red zone carries. We should expect the second-year back to get on track versus the “Fish Tank” defense.
Cooper Kupp, WR, Los Angeles Rams
FanDuel Salary: $6,800
Cooper Kupp might not fit all the criteria of your standard GPP dart throw being that he is decently priced and might have a fair amount of ownership. In this case, I’m willing to break with the norm for a guy who is in a money spot for fantasy goodness. As we said earlier, no team a year ago showed a greater disparity in home and away splits when it comes to scoring than the Rams did. Kupp is no exception.
Per RotoViz, at home Kupp sees a significant boost in fantasy points per game, receptions, touchdowns, targets, and averages 24 more receiving yards. Kupp will match up against slot defenders P.J. Williams, Eli Apple the rest of a Saints defense that is licking their wounds after Deshaun Watson had a big day against then in Week 1. Channeling his inner Dorothy, there is truly no place like home for Kupp.
Marquise Goodwin, WR, San Francisco 49ers
FanDuel Salary: $5,200
Marquise Goodwin is your perfect tournament flier being that he is cheap, will likely be low-owned, and is easy to stack. An Olympic sprinter in his free time, Goodwin boasts turbo-like 4.27 speed and is slated to go up against Dre Kirkpatrick, who runs a modest 4.57 40-yard dash. Although the Cincinnati Bengals held their own against Seattle, the secondary did give up five deep pass attempts that were converted into three explosive pass plays, including a 44-yard bomb to fellow speedster Tyler Lockett. Expected to play in negative game script as a 2.0-point 'dog, Goodwin should see plenty of opportunities to capitalize on his wheels.
Travis Benjamin, WR, Los Angeles Chargers
FanDuel Salary: $4,800
Travis Benjamin is another cheap option to consider. As it stands now, the Chargers are expected to be without Hunter Henry and Mike Williams, which could lead to some extra targets for speedy deep threat. Benjamin has 4.33 speed, which pairs nicely with Philip Rivers, who ranked sixth in deep-ball completion percentage in 2018. The Los Angeles Chargers own a strong 25.0-point implied total for this one.
Delanie Walker, TE, Tennessee Titans
FanDuel Salary: $5,900
Everyone and their mother are going to be on the Darren Waller train at only $5,400. In tournaments, the obvious strategy will be to go contrarian and pay up for guys like Travis Kelce and George Kittle. Another strategy to deploy is pivoting off Waller for a slightly more expensive but lower owned Delanie Walker. The Titans' veteran has roasted the division rival Indianapolis Colts.
Per Rotoviz, Walker's half-PPR points per game clip inflates by slightly more than five points and his targets jump by over three when facing Indy. Walked showed last week that he's still Marcus Mariota's favorite red zone target.
Nathan Coleman is not a FanDuel employee. In addition to providing DFS gameplay advice, Nathan Coleman also participates in DFS contests on FanDuel using his personal account, username nac89. 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.