DK Building Blocks Week 3

From week to week this article is going to evolve, just like we need to do with our thinking. It’s difficult to do sometimes – we’re hard-wired to look for patterns and create things from those patterns that will fit the narrative we already have decided to be true. This article will be a bit lighter than usual as I am getting married tomorrow. I do have some plays I like and I’ll be on the live stream Sunday to expand on that group and go over anything additional.

Quarterbacks

This week I think just about any QB is viable. It’s a matter of who you’re going to stack them with.

Kyler Murray(6,800)- Look this is going to be something that I say every week. If I don’t say it on a given week it’s fair to assume that he’s still in play. This week the match-up really doesn’t get much better. You have a dome game, against a team in disarray, and a team that that isn’t a very good Defense to start with. If there’s anything to be said to fade Kyler it’s that despite Detroit’s inability to stop almost anything defensively over the last few years they’ve done an admirable job limiting rushing yards from Quarterbacks. That and if the Cardinals can get out to a large enough lead that they start running everything through Drake and limiting the fantasy output from the air attack. I don’t see that happening, and with Golladay returning for the Lions we have an even higher chance for a large fantasy number from everyone involved.

Russel Wilson(7,300)- They’re letting Russ cook! The Cowboys are allowing massive points to opposing offenses. Their own ability to keep up and make the game a shoot-out also helps the other side. I feel very good about Russ here. The flip side to it would be at some point there’s going to be some TD regression and they’re going to run the ball in. When that hits you’re going to have Russ at a high price and ownership fail those that roster him. It doesn’t appear this will be the week that will happen.

Cam Newton(6,700)- The role Cam is playing in this offense makes him playable every week. Furthermore, it appears he’s got something to prove and a healthy Cam with a chip on his shoulder is someone we can look at week in and week out. Couple all that with the Patriots not having a solid running back and that means we’ll see a ton of goal-line touches for Cam throughout the season.

Big Ben(6,400)- Ben has looked good this year, his weapons have looked good, the defense has looked good. The only issue with Ben is that last part, the defense. The concern is that the defense locks the opposing offense down to a degree that the Steelers won’t have to press as much. At this price, I don’t think that’s a concern this week. It is something to consider if you’re thinking of stacking 2 skill players with Ben though. You have to worry about a more conservative approach late and the rushing attack taking away touchdowns. That said this will be by far the best offense they’ll have faced so far.

Running Backs

Kenyan Drake(6,000)- See above for Murray. This Lions defense is terrible and just let Aaron Jones go absolutely bonkers on them last week. Jones is a better back than Drake, but the role Drake plays in this offense is similar and I find his touches and involvement to be safer. He will be excessively owned for these reasons so it wouldn’t hurt to get away from him in GPPs.

Derrick Henry(7,800)- Look Derrick has the touches and role we want. Even last week when he let a lot of his fantasy owners down he still touched the ball over 30 times. He dropped a screen pass that was a walk-in touchdown and if he hadn’t then his stat line looks very different. I love looking to Henry in a spot where he should be one of the top-owned backs, but won’t likely even be in the top 5, due in large part to recency bias

Austin Ekeler / Josh Kelley(6,800/5,000)- Carolina was a defense that we wanted to attack with the ground game going into the year. Being bad last year and then losing your best defensive player seemed to mean they’d struggle. That’s been the case so far, but as mentioned on the live stream their inability to stop receptions to the running back has been equally as bad as stopping the run in general. This is a spot where you could go either one of the backs for different reasons. Kelley has seen the larger amount of High-Value Touches and he’s far less expensive. Ekeler for that reason should be lower owned and with the reception, upside makes him a playable asset as well. It will be interesting to see what the Chargers offensive game plan is this week playing a far less lethal offensive team in Carolina as opposed to Kansas City. Furthermore, an entire week for Herbert to practice with the first squad could change the entire dynamic of the team.

Antonio Gibson(4,700)- This pick is a bit off the board. He’s an explosive back who has a clear spot in the offense. The biggest problem in week 1 was the workload 18/70 snaps. Week 2 saw a shift though where Gibson played 43/60. This isn’t the easiest matchup for him, but I love the price. He’s a cheap back in an offense where his role seems to be increasing. Without any preseason they may have treaded lightly that first week. Still given the uncertainty and the team total he isn’t more than a GPP play but pairing him with mega chalk Miles Sanders really can change what you do at the WR position giving you that leverage you’ll need in large-field tournaments.

Wide Receivers

DeAndre Hopkins(7,900)-Second highest team total, 27 targets through two games, and the teams second WR missing the game. Hopkins should smash here. His price is high enough that he isn’t a free square but he’s my favorite player to stack with Murray. You can absolutely play Murray/Drake/Hopkins. You’ll just need to find other ways to differentiate in large GPPs. This should be a very popular cash trio.

Chris Godwin(6,700)- Godwin should have a reduced ownership level coming off of injury. I know it was a concussion and that isn’t exactly something we should worry about him re-injuring. That’s exactly why I’m not concerned. The general public doesn’t think of things like that and while I don’t expect him to be criminally under-owned he’ll have suppressed ownership and whenever we can get a guy like Godwin sub 7k at lower ownership I’m interested.

Kenny Golladay(6,200)- This game has the second-highest total of the week. I want some exposure to the players. Golladay coming off injury will scare people off. Unlike Godwin though there is legit concern about him tweaking that injury. That’s the risk you take, but that’s reflected in the price and upside. I don’t want to be all-in on Kenny but I want some shares.

Adam Thielen(6,900)- Huge bounce-back spot for Thielen. Love using him in a mini-stack with Henry or a larger game stack with Tannehill and the Titans pass catchers.

Desean Jackson(5,200)-The targets(7,9), snap count, and just overall involvement have been there for Jackson. He just hasn’t found the end zone as the Eagles offense has struggled to stretch the field a bit. I like looking his way again for his ability to make a big play, the fact that he’s burned people the last two weeks with duds, and because this skill group from Philly isn’t getting any healthier.

Tight End

Hayden Hurst – good spot with all the attention on Ridley.

Jonnu Smith – starting to put it together on a team that needs pass-catchers.

TJ Hockenson – play tight ends against Arizona, enough said. Great player to come back with on your Kyler Murray stacks.

Drew Sample – if you’re playing a Sanders lineup, this could be a nice mini-stack to target.

Dallas Goedert – always undervalued, always has potential for two TDs.

Defense

Pittsburgh(4,000)- There comes a time in every season where I just start locking in one defense and building from there. It’s usually when you can identify who the best defense is going to be. One year it was Chicago, one year it was Jacksonville, and this year it looks like it will be Pittsburgh. I’m not sure I’m there yet, but they’re certainly in contention for me every week.

Washington(3,000) – Second highest sack percentage in the league thus far, coupled with a Quarterback that has questionable footwork and can be flustered by pressure. It’s a recipe for turnovers. From those, if we can get a defensive touchdown or two we’ll be super happy with the result.