Cracking DraftKings Week 5

Ben Cummins's Cracking DraftKings Week 5 Ben Cummins Published 10/09/2021

Favorite Games

  • 49ers at Cardinals - Over/Under 48.5
  • Eagles at Panthers - Over/Under 46
  • Packers at Bengals - Over/Under 50.5
  • Browns at Chargers - Over/Under 47
  • Titans at Jaguars - Over/Under 49

Favorite Additional Spots

  • Patriots on the road against the Texans - Implied Team Total 24.25
  • Vikings at home vs. the Lions - Implied Team Total 29.5
  • Cowboys at home vs. the Giants - Implied Team Total 29.5
  • Buccaneers at home vs. the Dolphins - Implied Team Total 28.75

CASH GAMES

Quarterbacks

Rank Play Opponent Salary
1 Dak Prescott vs. Giants $6,900
2 Kirk Cousins vs. Lions $6,500
3 Aaron Rodgers at Bengals $7,100
4 Justin Fields at Raiders $5,200

Dak Prescott leads a Cowboys offense ranked third in DVOA and ranks tied for third in pass touchdowns (10). He gets to play at home in a game with a surprisingly high Over/Under (52) against a Giants defense that ranks 27th in DVOA and 24th in pass DVOA.

Kirk Cousins is in an incredible spot at home against a Lions defense that ranks 31st in DVOA and 30th in pass DVOA. Vegas agrees as the Vikings Implied Team Total of 29.5 is tied for the second-most of the entire week. He's a great tournament play as well but lands in the cash section due to my hesitation Mike Zimmer will unleash Cousins in a contest where their running game should find success too.

I'm highly intrigued in this Packers vs. Bengals AKA Aaron Rodgers vs. Joe Burrow matchup and believe both sides can be considered in all DFS formats. The Bengals defense is rated highly according to DVOA through four weeks but a quick glance at their schedule reminds us they've faced Kirk Cousins, Andy Dalton, Ben Roethlisberger, and Trevor Lawrence so far. None of those quarterbacks are even close to being in Aaron Rodgers' stratosphere and Rodgers has proven he's matchup proof for years. And with blue-chip Green Bay defenders, Jaire Alexander and ZaDarius Smith, both out, Joe Burrow will be putting up points as well. This game has shootout potential.

Free from Myles Garrett's reign, Justin Fields fared better in his second career start against the Lions, completing 65% of his passes and throwing for 209 yards on only 17 attempts. The touchdowns went to the running backs last week but that could change on Sunday for Fields against a beatable Raiders defense. And let's remember Fields has untapped rushing upside that could be unleased this week as well. He costs only $5,200.

Running Backs

Rank Play Opponent Salary
1 Derrick Henry at Jaguars $9,000
2 Ezekiel Elliott vs. Giants $7,000
3 James Robinson vs. Titans $6,000
4 Leonard Fournette vs. Dolphins $5,200
5 Damien Williams at Raiders $5,600
6 Samaje Perine vs. Packers $4,000

Derrick Henry receives the no-brainer RB1 ranking this week. Henry ranks first in the league in opportunities per game (32) by a wide margin and the Titans are 4.5 point favorites against a Jaguars defense that ranks 30th in DVOA.

After a down Week 1 where the Cowboys decided to avoid Tampa Bay's stout run defense, Ezekiel Elliott has received opportunity totals of 18, 20, and 21 over the past three weeks and scored at least one touchdown in every contest. Elliott plays on a Cowboys offense ranked third in DVOA and gets to play at home against a Giants defense that ranks 27th in DVOA and 26th in run DVOA.

After a slow start to the season sharing time with Carlos Hyde, James Robinson has been unleashed over the past few weeks and he has taken full advantage, just as he did throughout the entire 2020 season. Robinson saw 20 opportunities and scored two touchdowns with Hyde on the shelf in Week 4 and turned 21 opportunities into 134 total yards and a touchdown the week prior as well. Robinson now gets a Titans defense that ranks 26th in DVOA and 24th in run DVOA.

Leonard Fournette turned 25 opportunities into 139 total yards last week and now gets to play at home against a Dolphins defense that ranks 20th in run DVOA and that has allowed the seventh-most rushing yards (547) so far.

With David Montgomery out, Damien Williams projects as the clear-cut RB1 for the Bears against an average Raiders defense that ranks 15th in DVOA and 18th in run DVOA. And Williams isn't your average backup. He's a talented player who has flashed skill in both Miami and Kansas City and came up big some big playoff spots for the Chiefs.

Joe Mixon is all but ruled out for this game meaning Samaje Perine projects to see the majority of the early-down work in a timeshare with Chris Evans. His ceiling will be limited but at only $4,000, he makes sense as a salary saver against a Packers defense that ranks 23rd in DVOA and 27th in run DVOA.

Wide Receivers

Rank Play Opponent Salary
1 D.J. Moore vs. Eagles $7,500
2 Davante Adams at Bengals $8,200
3 Ja'Marr Chase vs. Packers $5,800
4 Adam Thielen vs. Lions $6,600
5 CeeDee Lamb vs. Giants $6,200
6 Amari Cooper vs. Giants $6,100

Christian McCaffrey is listed as Doubtful and will likely miss another week. That's extremely significant since Matt Rhule and Joe Brady used D.J. Moore out of the backfield at times last week to minimize the effect of McCaffrey's loss. At the wide receiver position, Moore ranks tied for second in targets (42), tied for second in receptions (30), fourth in receiving yards (398), and he's caught three touchdowns as well. And he gets to play in a favorable matchup in one of the best fantasy games of the week.

Davante Adams ranks tied for first in targets (45), first in receptions (31), and fifth in receiving yards (373) at the wide receiver position. He'll benefit from playing in one of the best fantasy games of the week against a Bengals defense that has yet to be tested in 2021.

Like Davante Adams, Ja'Marr Chase also gets to play in this potential shootout. Chase will benefit from the absence of Jaire Alexander due to injury and gets to play at home against a Packers defense that ranks 23rd in DVOA and 20th in pass DVOA. Chase has scored four touchdowns through four games and has hit big play after big play to begin the season.

The Vikings passing offense is in an incredible spot at home against a Lions defense that ranks 31st in DVOA and 30th in pass DVOA. Vegas agrees as the Vikings Implied Team Total of 29.5 is tied for the second-most of the entire week. That helps Adam Thielen who is still a clear-cut top two receiving option for Kirk Cousins. Thielen has carried his incredible touchdown momentum over from 2020 as he has four touchdowns through four weeks.

Dak Prescott leads a Cowboys offense ranked third in DVOA and ranks tied for third in pass touchdowns (10). He gets to play at home in a game with a surprisingly high Over/Under (52) against a Giants defense that ranks 27th in DVOA and 24th in pass DVOA. Despite Dalto Schultz hogging the passing production the past few weeks, we should not expect that to continue and remain consistent. Instead, it should be projected that Dallas' two incredible wide receivers should benefit from this favorable spot, especially with Michael Gallup not around to steal targets. In fact, Lamb and Cooper still lead the Cowboys in targets and receiving yards so far on the year.

Tight Ends

Rank Play Opponent Salary
1 Darren Waller vs. Bears $7,300
2 Dallas Goedert at Panthers $5,100
3 Zach Ertz at Panthers $3,400
4 Dalton Schultz vs. Giants $4,400

Darren Waller leads all tight ends in targets (39), ranks tied for first in receptions (24), second in receiving yards (274), and has scored twice as well. If the salary is there for your squad, Waller is the clear-cut top tight end option on the main slate this week.

This Eagles at Panthers game is one I'm gravitating to and Jalen Hurts gets a Panthers defense that got exploited by Dak Prescott in their first tough matchup of the season in Week 4. Dallas Goedert and Zach Ertz are both significant contributors in Philadelphia's passing game and both project to benefit from this fantasy-friendly atmosphere against the Panthers.

Dalton Schultz has 12 catches on 15 targets for 138 yards and three touchdowns over the past two weeks. Clearly, Michael Gallup's absence has increased Schultz's outlook in one of the best offenses in football. Schultz showed last season he is a solid player and he gets a favorable matchup in this one against a Giants defense that is one of the worst in the league at covering the tight end position.

Team Defenses

Rank Play Opponent Salary
1 New England Patriots at Texans $4,900
2 Minnesota Vikings vs. Lions $3,000
3 Tampa Bay Buccaneers vs. Dolphins $4,700

Bill Belichick eats rookie quarterbacks alive, Davis Mills is only starting because Tyrod Taylor got hurt, and the Texans have less offensive talent than an expansion franchise would have. The Texans have the lowest Implied Team Total (15.75) of the week and Mills is coming off a horrendous performance where he threw for only 87 yards, had four interceptions, and was sacked three times.

A Mike Zimmer defense wasn't going to be terrible forever and they finally got back on track last week, sacking Baker Mayfield three times and only allowing 155 passing yards. They now get to play at home against a Lions team tied for the third-lowest Implied Team Total (19.5) of the week.

Tua Tagovailoa and Will Fuller are both out and DeVante Parker is a game-time decision. Despite many injuries on Tampa Bay's defense as well, this is still a favorable spit against backup Jacoby Brissett. The Dolphins have the second-lowest Implied Team Total (18.75) of the week.

GPPs

Quarterbacks

Rank Play Opponent Salary
1 Kyler Murray Photos provided by Imagn Images
Tags:
Daily FF DraftKings Davante Adams Brandon Aiyuk Jaire Alexander Robbie Chosen Dan Arnold Tavon Austin Saquon Barkley Odell Beckham Jr Kendrick Bourne Cameron Brate Jacoby Brissett A.J. Brown Antonio Brown Sean Murphy-Bunting Joe Burrow Nick Chubb D.J. Chark Jr Randall Cobb Tyler Conklin James Conner Dalvin Cook Amari Cooper Kirk Cousins Andy Dalton Sam Darnold Carlton Davis III Jamel Dean Trevon Diggs Ross Dwelley Chase Edmonds Austin Ekeler Ezekiel Elliott Evan Engram Zach Ertz Chris Evans Mike Evans Noah Fant Justin Fields Leonard Fournette Will Fuller V Michael Gallup Jimmy Garoppolo Myles Garrett Mike Gesicki Chris Godwin Dallas Goedert Kenny Golladay Rob Gronkowski KJ Hamler Damien Harris Derrick Henry Hunter Henry Justin Herbert Rashard Higgins Tee Higgins Austin Hooper DeAndre Hopkins Jaycee Horn Chuba Hubbard Jalen Hurts Carlos Hyde Justin Jefferson Jerry Jeudy Aaron Jones Daniel Jones Julio Jones Marvin Jones Jr Mac Jones Christian Kirk George Kittle CeeDee Lamb Trey Lance Jarvis Landry Trevor Lawrence Allen Lazard Patrick Mahomes II Terrace Marshall Jr Blake Martinez Alexander Mattison Baker Mayfield Christian McCaffrey Terry McLaurin Jakobi Meyers Davis Mills Elijah Mitchell Joe Mixon David Montgomery Darnell Mooney DJ Moore Kyler Murray Greg Newsome II Josh Norman Albert Okwuegbunam DeVante Parker Tim Patrick Donovan Peoples-Jones Samaje Perine Jason Pierre-Paul Tony Pollard Dak Prescott Allen Robinson II James Robinson Aaron Rodgers Ben Roethlisberger John Ross Curtis Samuel Deebo Samuel Mohamed Sanu Dalton Schultz Anthony Schwartz Ricky Seals-Jones Laviska Shenault Jr Sterling Shepard Darius Slayton Darius Slay DeVonta Smith Jonnu Smith Za'Darius Smith Courtland Sutton Montez Sweat Tua Tagovailoa Tyrod Taylor Adam Thielen Logan Thomas Kadarius Toney Robert Tonyan Jr Marquez Valdes-Scantling Jaylen Waddle Darren Waller James White Damien Williams Jameis Winston Robert Woods Chase Young

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