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The Monday night game provided perhaps the most exciting finish to a FanDuel week so far.  With so many players having ridiculous performances many finishes were tight to the wire and seemingly insurmountable deficits were easily erased at the hands of guys named Cruz, Brees, and Graham.  This probably left quite a few of you getting your face stomped in (too soon?)  We’re closing in on the end of the season quickly with only 5 games left but there’s still a bevy of undervalued gems to be discovered.  Let’s get to work. But first, join us in a 20 team league for fun’s sake!

Value Town

QB

Kyle Orton $5700:  Tyler Palko and Orton split the first team reps as of Wednesday and with Palko’s six interceptions to zero touchdowns the past two weeks I can’t envision a scenario short of neckbeard loving aliens abducting Orton where he doesn’t suit up and take the field.  Remember, we’re dealing with a very talented player here who while having his ups and downs has seen patches of effectiveness when given the green light.  He’s got a strong supporting cast of receivers around him and for the price tag he carries is certainly worth a look.

Matt Moore $6700:  Maybe one of the biggest surprises this season has been Moore, whom when we last saw him was erasing the last shred of evidence of him being a competent NFL quarterback in Carolina.  It’s funny what a change of scenery and a no pressure situation can do for a man.  Oakland has allowed their opponents to run amuck and I have a sneaking suspicion that Moore will come up with huge numbers.

 

RB

Toby Gerhart $5000:  Flashing exactly 0% brilliance, Gerhart managed to turn in a very workhorse like effort against a tough Atlanta front seven.  With Adrian Peterson ruled out again for this week Gerhart is looking at a similar workload.  This time however, he’ll be squaring off with the significantly less intimidating Denver Broncos who are giving up 155 yards per game and were most recently sliced and diced by one Ryan Mathews for 137 yards.  He’s the value buy of the week.

Donald Brown $5600:  The brass in Indy came out this week praising Brown as one of lone “bright spots” on the team this year.  This author wonders how anything covered in Peyton Manning’s droppings could be considered “bright” but I digress.  It looks like the coaches are on board and in a year where the Colts are looking to establish an identity for their future direction that’s a good indicator of where the primary backfield duties lie.  Against a decimated New England defense Brown could be looking at an 80-1/2-30 line.

CJ Spiller $5600:  So we knew Spiller wasn’t THAT good before Sunday’s game right?  Right.  That being said I think it’s too soon to write off the new feature back (and he clearly is) in a once prolific offense.  I’m not saying he’ll replace Fred Jackson’s production or anything (even if he were to clone himself) but I do believe that against a much weaker Titans front seven we’ll get a chance to see exactly what he’s capable of.

WR

Victor Cruz $7000:  One of the coolest things about FanDuel is that when the player values are determined for the next week’s contests, Monday Night Football has not yet taken place.  Cruz has been undervalued all season and is even more so now as his price tag from last weekend hasn’t increased.  I honestly can’t think of a reason why he shouldn’t be in a majority of everyone’s lineups at this point, the value is simply too good to pass up.

Percy Harvin $6800:  Another Peterson-less week for the Vikings, another increased workload for their second most prolific talent.  Harvin came through big at Atlanta and is in line for another target and touch heavy day.  Like Cruz it’s difficult to imagine spending salary room on any of the tier 1 receivers with options like these.

Laurent Robinson $6400:  Reports are that Miles Austin may be coming back but at this point I don’t even care.  Robinson is clearly the receiver Tony Romo trusts the most at the moment and the two have developed a rapport that won’t easily be broken.  Arizona is surrendering 188 yards per game to wideouts and with the damage being done lately by Robinson it’s shaping up to be a big day.

TE

Jake Ballard $5100:  After a few quiet weeks Ballard gets to face off against a Packers team giving up the 30th most points to opposing tight ends.  The way the Giants defense has been playing lately leads my gut to say they’ll be playing from behind most of the game and that Eli and company will be airing it out early and often.  I’m thinking that a line like 4-70-1 seems reasonable.

Brandon Pettigrew $5400:  The Saints are hot and the Lions are barely clinging to playoff hopes, with each game meaning more than one before.  Without their best pass rusher, Brees will be able to sit back unmolested and pick apart the Lions secondary with ease.  Like the Giants/Packers game Detroit will resort to throwing early on in the contest which should yield plenty of opportunities for Ballard to contribute.

D

Atlanta Falcons $5000:  The Falcons have been as stingy as they come against the run and guess what their next opponent, the Texans, excels at?  With unproven TJ Yates under center, Mike Munchak has unabashedly admitted that the team has shifted towards an even more conservative, run heavy approach.  In theory this sounds fine but should the Texans go down by a few possessions early they’ll be forced to air it out, possibly exposing the rookie to mistakes.

New England Patriots $5000:  The Patriots have been surprisingly effective at generating turnovers this season due in large part to the huge leads they accumulate, forcing their opponents into making poor decisions.  Oh and did I mention they take on the Dan Orlovsky led Colts?  I wouldn’t be surprised to see this be one of the highest scoring defenses on the weekend.

Thanks for reading, Seacreast out.

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