Every week, the first step of your DFS homework should be to examine the opening Vegas odds on all the NFL games for that week. Through some fairly simple algebra, it is easy to derive a spreadsheet that predicts team totals for every game, thereby allowing you to develop a rudimentary gamescript to help narrow down your decisions for the week. Once the appealing (and unappealing) games have been highlighted, it becomes easier to focus upon those games to help build your core of players for that week; the caveat, however, is that the NFL is a dynamic league and anything is subject to change from Tuesday to Sunday...so keep that in mind as the week progresses and always monitor player injuries, weather conditions, and potential roster moves. Let's take a look.
Updated Saturday, January 11th @ 9 AM (EST)
| Team | Opponent | Odds | Game Total | Team Total | Passing | Running | Team Defense |
| Kansas City | Houston | -9.5 | 51.5 | 30.5 | ««« | ««« | |
| Baltimore | Tennessee | -9.5 | 47 | 28.25 | ««« | ««« | |
| San Francisco | Minnesota | -7 | 44 | 25.5 | « | « | |
| Green Bay | Seattle | -4.5 | 46 | 25.25 | « | « | |
| Houston | Kansas City | 9.5 | 51.5 | 21 | |||
| Seattle | Green Bay | 4.5 | 46 | 20.75 | |||
| Tennessee | Baltimore | 9.5 | 47 | 18.75 | |||
| Minnesota | San Francisco | 7 | 44 | 18.5 |
SUMMARY
3-STARS
- Quarterback: Patrick Mahomes II (Chiefs), Lamar Jackson (Ravens)
- Running Back: Damien Williams (Chiefs), Mark Ingram (Ravens)
- Receivers: Tyreek Hill/Sammy Watkins/Travis Kelce (Chiefs), Marquise Brown/Mark Andrews (Ravens)
- Defense: None
2-STARS
- Quarterback: None
- Running Back: None
- Receivers: None
- Defense: None
1-STAR
- Quarterback: Jimmy Garoppolo (49ers), Aaron Rodgers (Packers)
- Running Back: Raheem Mostert/Tevin Coleman (49ers), Aaron Jones (Packers)
- Receivers: Deebo Samuel/Emmanuel Sanders/George Kittle (49ers), Davante Adams/Allen Lazard/Jimmy Graham (Packers)
- Defense: None