 Welcome back for another week of cashing in here at Razzball. I am here with your weekly DFS-focused article laying out my favorite options to target at each position for the Sunday DFS main slate. This DFS Flash article goes position by position, giving you my favorite pay-up option and my favorite pay-down or dart-throw option at each position to help you build out a winning DFS lineup.
I use DraftKings pricing as a point of reference to seek out some values, and the goal is to help you “double up” in a 50/50 cash game with solid plays. Of course, you can use the dart throws to try to win the GPP tournaments, but at the end of the article, I give you my “double up” lineup using players discussed in this article. Let’s get right into it, let’s build this lineup and let’s make some money. Fantasy football.
Quarterback:
Pay up – Tua Tagovailoa – $6,200 – There are a lot of big-name players that are not on the main slate this week, especially at quarterback. That will allow us to find value at the position this week. Kyler Murray is a great play this week, but he will cost you $7,500, whereas Tua is only $6,200, so I like the discount on Tua. This is an excellent matchup against a Detroit defense that ranks 28th against opposing quarterbacks, and they give up just under 250 passing yards per game. Tua will be heavily rostered, but in a cash game build, we’re not so much worried about that. I will look to stack this game up as we expect it to be a shootout. You’ll likely see more players from this game mentioned later in this article.
Dart Throw – Sam Ehlinger – $4,000 – This is the minimum possible price for a quarterback on DraftKings, and it’s extremely rare to get a guy at this price who will be a starter, but that’s exactly what we have here this week. Frank Reich announced early this week that Ehlinger would be the starter moving forward for the Colts, and he gets to make his first start in a favorable matchup. He has a trio of capable wide receivers and offers some mobility to give us some rushing upside. He could vulture a rushing touchdown just as well as he can connect with his receivers, and at this price, we only need 12 points from him to get a three-times return on investment. With the minimum salary and dual-threat ability in a home matchup against a bad defense, it’s worth throwing a dart on Ehlinger.
Running Back:
Pay Up –Saquon Barkley – $8,100– Saquon Barkley and Derrick Henry are in smash spots this week. Not only do you get a small discount on Saquon, but I also think his game will be higher scoring, so I will go with Barkley as my pay-up. This game has one of the highest expected point totals, and Seattle is a good team to run against. They have allowed 10 rushing touchdowns on the season and give up nearly 150 rushing yards per game. Even if they sell out to stop the run, they won’t have success against a red-hot Barkley. I love the matchup and will look to fit him in my lineups this week.
Pay Down – D’Onta Foreman – $5,300 – In the Panther’s first game without Christian McCaffrey, the backfield duties were split between Foreman and Chuba Hubbard. Both backs played well, but Foreman had the big play with a 60-yard run as a part of his 118-yard rushing day on 15 carries. Hubbard got banged up in the game and has been missing practice all week. He was seen in a walking boot on Thursday, and it doesn’t look like he will be playing this week. If he doesn’t go, the backfield belongs to Foreman, and he once again gets the opportunity to step up. This is another one of those opportunities to get a starter at a backup price, and at $5,300, we only need 16 points to get over a three-times return. With a bell cow role on tap, the volume should allow Foreman to get there for us.
Wide Receiver:
Pay Up – Justin Jefferson. – $9,100 – Fresh off the bye week, Jefferson gets to come back to a tasty matchup against Arizona and its porous secondary. The good thing is that the Minnesota secondary is almost just as bad, so Arizona should put up points and force Kirk Cousins to keep throwing to Jefferson all game long.
Pay Down – Chris Olave – $6,000 – Olave has been one of the most impressive rookies we have seen this season. He has become a target monster, and it looks like the Saints receiving corps will still be missing some pieces this week. Olave got 14 targets last week, and that was the third time already this season that he saw at least 13 targets! Coming off his second 100-yard receiving game of the season, I believe Olave could go back-to-back with another one this week. The Raiders have given up 13 touchdowns through the air this season and give up over 275 receiving yards per game. With not much competition for targets, Olave should eat once again on his way to another solid fantasy day.
*Bonus Dart Throw – Dee Eskridge – $3,300 – Honestly, this is kind of a gut play here. I don’t recommend this for a cash game build, but if you want to throw a dart in a tournament, this could be a good one. With DK Metcalf expected to miss this game, Eskridge could see a good amount of slot snaps this week and have some opportunities to make plays. At this salary, all you need is a few opportunities with the ball in his hands, and if he takes one to the end zone, he will pay off handsomely for you while allowing you to afford some higher-salary players in your lineup.
Tight End: fantasy football
Pay Up – Zach Ertz – $5,100– With Kelce on a bye and Andrews playing prime time, we can save money while still paying up at tight end this week. Ertz gets a great matchup against a Minnesota team who gives up a lot of points to tight ends. DeAndre Hopkins came back last week and monopolized the targets, but in a game that I expect to be a shootout, there should be plenty to go around for Ertz to be involved this week as well. Ertz has scored double-digit fantasy points in every game until last week, so I expect him to get back on track and be more involved this week to pay off in our lineups.
Pay Down – Mike Gesicki – $3,800 – Everybody is a good play in this matchup against the Detroit defense, but I do like Gesicki a lot. Gesicki has back-to-back games with seven targets, and he has seen 5 of those targets in the red zone, which we love. He is clearly involved in the offense and has as good of a chance as anybody to join the scoring parade in this matchup this week. With a touchdown and a few catches, Gesicki will absolutely return value this week.
Defense:
Pay Up – Eagles – $3,900 – Pretty simple here. Possibly the best defense in the league, at home, off a bye, against a rookie quarterback and a struggling offense. Spend it if you got it!
Pay Down – Texans – $2,600– This defense could get absolutely gashed by Derrick Henry this week, BUT if they can somewhat contain him, they could also stick around in this game long enough to force an injured Ryan Tannehill to turn the ball over. If they can get us positive points at this price, it will open things up for some pay-up players.
JB’s Example “Double Up” Lineup: fantasy football
QB – Sam Ehlinger
RB – Saquon Barkley
RB – D’Onta Foreman
WR – Justin Jefferson
WR – Chris Olave
WR – Terry McLaurin
TE – Mike Gesicki
Flex – Wan’Dale Robinson
DST – Patriots
That will do it for your Week 8 DFS Flash. Thanks for checking in, and I look forward to seeing you here every week to build out a winning DFS lineup. Make sure you check out all the fantastic new tools on Razzball.com and sign up for a FREE TRIAL of the Razzball tools subscription as you get ready to set the rest of your Week 8 fantasy lineups. You are always invited to follow me on Twitter @FantasyCoachJB and ask me any questions you may have. Good luck in your upcoming matchups, and I’ll see you in the winner’s circle! Fantasy football, fantasy football, fantasy football, fantasy football, fantasy football, fantasy football.
