4 NFL FanDuel Studs to Target in Week 4
Spending your available salary in any DFS lineup on a stud can make or break your lineup. These high-salaried plays will take up the majority of your salary cap, so it’s critical to carefully consider which ones you’ll want for each slate. Whether it’s trying to capture a safe floor in a cash game or chasing a huge game to help you win a tournament, nailing the expensive players is one of the keys to making winning NFL lineups on FanDuel.
Week 4 features a slate with most of the NFL's biggest stars, so let's pick out the best ones that we'll want to roster in their matchups this week.
Update: The Kansas City Chiefs and New England Patriots game has been postponed and is expected to be played on Monday or Tuesday. Cam Newton has tested positive for COVID-19 and will not play this week.
Lamar Jackson, QB, Baltimore Ravens
FanDuel Salary: $9,600
Projected Points: 25.2
Lamar Jackson had a brutal game on Monday night in the Baltimore Ravens loss to the Kansas City Chiefs. It was the first time in his career he failed to throw for over 100 yards, but he managed to salvage some points with 83 rushing yards. We can expect that to be just a one-time thing against an underrated pass defense and still treat Lamar like one of the best quarterbacks in fantasy football. That should especially be true this week.
The Ravens will face the Washington Football Team in a spot that could easily see them bounce back. Baltimore has an implied team total of 30 points, according to our daily fantasy matchup heat map. They are also 13-point favorites, the biggest favorites on this week's main slate. That should allow Baltimore to impose their will on Washington, who will be without Matt Ioannidis and could be missing Chase Young as well along the defensive line. We saw Kyler Murray have a big game on the ground against Washington in Week 2, so that should set up well for Jackson to get loose and scramble for lots of yards and touchdowns.
Lamar's weapons will have good matchups as well in this game. Marquise Brown should be able to exploit a weak Washington secondary, especially if their pass rush is taking a hit due to injuries. Washington has allowed three touchdowns to tight ends in the first three games, so it's a good opportunity for Mark Andrews to get right after two dud performances. Either one of these players makes for a good stacking option with Jackson.
Lamar is numberFire's highest-projected player at any position this week. Fantasy managers may overreact to a bad performance in a nationally televised game, which could keep his roster percentage down. If that's the case, we could take advantage of the recency bias and roster one of the highest upside players in all of fantasy football.
Alvin Kamara, RB, New Orleans Saints
FanDuel Salary: $8,800
Projected Points: 19.0
13 catches, 139 yards, 2 receiving touchdowns. If I told you that a New Orleans Saints player had the stat line in Week 3 prior to the season, you would have bet a lot of money that it was Michael Thomas. However, in Thomas' absence, it was Alvin Kamara who picked up the receiving work and has done so with great effect. His 27 catches this season are the second-most in the league thus far. That usage in the passing game has led to Kamara being the RB1 in fantasy this season. This week, he gets a good matchup that could see him erupt again.
The Saints are on the road to play the Detroit Lions in Week 4. Their offense hasn't been the same we've seen in years past, with many people questioning if Drew Brees still has enough arm strength to lead the offense to success. This hasn't hurt Kamara's fantasy value -- in fact, it has helped him with all of the short targets he has received. Kamara could get things going on the ground in this game as well, considering Detroit ranks 31th in schedule-adjusted run defense, according to numberFire's metrics. So even if Thomas does make his return, this will be a good spot for Kamara.
Kamara is our second-highest projected running back for the main slate this week. Despite their struggles in the past two games, their implied point total is 29 against a suspect Lions defense. Kamara has demonstrated great upside this season, showing that he has overcome the injuries that plagued him last season. He is in play in all formats this week.
DeAndre Hopkins, WR, Arizona Cardinals
FanDuel Salary: $8,700
Projected Points: 17.1
Last week in this column, DeAndre Hopkins was the wide receiver selection. He went out and put up 10 catches for 137 yards, good for 18.7 FanDuel points. This week, he has another great matchup, so we'll run it back with him. There's also a decent chance that he can outperform last week if he is able to score a touchdown this week.
The Arizona Cardinals have benefitted from a nice opening-season schedule, especially from an offensive standpoint. That continues this week when they face the Carolina Panthers and their defense that we always will want to pick on in fantasy. Last week, we saw Keenan Allen catch 13 balls for 132 yards and a touchdown against Carolina. Hopkins is being used in a similar fashion as Allen, being a possession receiver for the Cardinals this season. Hopkins has the most catches in the league and is tied for the most targets with Allen, so he should be able to roast the Panthers defense like Allen did.
The Cardinals are implied for a healthy 28 points, even if that isn't one of the highest on the slate, it should mean the offense will have some success. They will lean on Hopkins as they have this season. Hopkins is projected for 17.1 points, which is 3.0 points higher than any other wide receiver. He stands out above the rest at the position, thanks to the volume he's seeing and matchup. If you are able to pay up at the position, Hopkins is the clear-cut option.
Travis Kelce, TE, Kansas City Chiefs
FanDuel Salary: $7,600
Projected Points: 14.4
He hasn't had any spiked week performances yet this season, but Travis Kelce has been his normal, productive self at the tight end position. He leads all tight ends with 21 receptions and is tied for the lead in targets with 28. Those 28 targets also have him in the lead on the Chiefs. If you're trying to get exposure to one of, if not the best offense in the NFL, Kelce is a great way to do it.
The Chiefs are hosting the New England Patriots in Week 4, but that shouldn't slow them down. They are implied for 29.75 points and are 7.0-point favorites. We saw Russell Wilson shred the Patriots defense when they went on the road, and also saw Patrick Mahomes have a brilliant game against a very good Ravens defense. This offense seems to be pretty matchup-proof, and shouldn't scare anyone off rostering Kelce this week.
Kelce is our highest-projected tight end of the week, and also probably has the best upside. He has scored two touchdowns on four red zone targets this season, so he could be looked at in scoring areas where we want our tight ends being targeted. Tight end can be a thin position for upside players, and this week is no different, so spending up for Kelce makes sense to separate your lineup at that position.
Nicholas Vazquez is not a FanDuel employee. In addition to providing DFS gameplay advice, Nicholas Vazquez also participates in DFS contests on FanDuel using his personal account, username hbyanksman. 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.
