Moving onto Week 8 of the 2023 season, and we are going to give you some DraftKings bargain bin plays for the week. These are plays that are on the ultra-value/ GPP contrarian side. So generally avoid these plays in cash game lineups, but in GPPs- especially big fields go for it!
You can find all of our DFS content here, and be ready for the week.
Taylor Heinicke v MIN ($5,000)
Poor Desmond Ridder; he burned too bright for this world. One week you’re hitting the (wuthering) heights of your career and making your 3rd successive appearance in this column, the next you’re hitting the pine and have been replaced by a guy who just 3 years ago was a back-up quarterback in the XFL. Ah well, we thank Mr. Ridder for his service and welcome Mr. Heinicke back to fantasy relevance as the new starting quarterback for my favourite underrated offense in the NFL. In relief of Ridder at the half, Heinicke threw for 175 yards and a score in the Falcons defeat in Tennessee last Sunday. I’m no mathemagician, but that gives him a 17 game pace of 5950 yards and 34 touchdowns, and it’s hard to argue with science. All jokes aside, Heinicke looked competent and will offer the Falcons something Ridder could not; the ability to throw downfield. Expect to see more deep balls in the coming weeks, especially when Drake London returns from his groin injury. Minnesota allowed Jordan Love to put up over 220 yards last time out; I expect my new favourite Taylor (sorry Ms. Swift) to top that in week 9.
Bryce Young v IND ($5,100)
The Colts defense is a gift to opposing fantasy quarterbacks, with the Saints’ Derek Carr the latest to benefit from their generosity. The former Raider passed for 310 yards and 2 touchdowns as New Orleans ran out 38-27 winners in Indianapolis last Sunday night. Carolina’s Bryce Young is the next man up to take on this struggling Indy pass D and the No.1 pick in this year’s draft will be looking to put up only his second multi-touchdown game of his young career. Young continues to hyper-target Adam Thielen but has given increased looks to fellow rookie Jonathan Mingo in recent weeks. If the 2021 Heisman winner continues to consistently connect with Thielen and Mingo, as well as utilise his safety valve Chuba Hubbard, he could be in for a very cost-efficient fantasy day for managers looking to spend down this weekend.
P.J. Walker v AZ ($4,800)
I may be beginning to sound like a broken record at this point, but please start literally any quarterback who is facing off against Arizona. Ironically, this advice comes one week after the current holders of the first pick of the 2024 NFL Draft (that’s the Cardinals) held Lamar Jackson to only 157 yards and a single touchdown through the air. Lamar’s sub-par fantasy performance was largely in part to Gus Edwards having a career day with 3 rushing scores, and less due to the heroics of the Arizona defense. Walker is a dicey play this week, be sure to monitor the situation with DeShaun Watson who may return to the fold at any time, but if P.J. draws the start, I am backing him to put up serviceable numbers that will more than pay back the meagre $4800 investment for your roster. It’s not going to be pretty, but on a slate where Geno Smith is the 5th most expensive QB who will actually play, what more are you really hoping for? If Walker gets the nod, I’ll have a good level of exposure to him on Sunday.
Chuba Hubbard v IND ($5,000)
Any talk of a split backfield in Carolina is over, this is Chuba’s world and Miles Sanders is just living in it. The 3rd year back out of OSU out snapped teammate Sanders 15-2, and whilst he may have only put up 28 yards on those attempts, his 1.9 yards per carry was exactly 1.9 yards per carry better than the former Eagle, who amassed a whopping 0 yards with his modest workload. Chuba also drew the only targets at the running back position, solidifying his status as the only back worth rostering in Charlotte. Hubbard now gets a crack at an Indianapolis defense that is nearly as generous to running backs as it is to quarterbacks. Alvin Kamara tallied 110 total yards and 2 scores in Indy last week, I don’t anticipate Chuba equalling Kamara’s efforts, but even tallying two-thirds of Kamara’s 25 fantasy points in week 8 would be a good return on your $5000 investment.
Zach Charbonnet @BAL ($4,300)
It’s the first week of November and the debates on whether or not it’s too early to start getting in the Christmas spirit, have well and truly begun. Bonfire Night, Thanksgiving and Christmas can all go on the back-burner, because the only notable occasion I want to celebrate at this point in time is ZACH CHARBONNET SEASON! Much like your neighbours’ Christmas tree, I may be celebrating a tad too early on this one, but week 8 brought the first glimpse of the committee approach that had terrified Ken Walker dynasty managers throughout the pre-season. Charbonnet out snapped Walker 31-24 on the day, however KW3 did see more rushing attempts, carrying the ball 8 times to Charbonnet’s 5. Both backs were incredibly effective on the limited work they received with Walker amassing 66 yards on his 8 carries and rookie Charbonnet putting up 53 for 10.6 yards per carry. Walker doesn’t have a designation entering the week 9 trip to Baltimore, but Charbonnet may have done enough to earn an increased role in this backfield moving forward. He could be a steal at $4300 this week.
Devin Singletary v TB ($4,300)
I already liked Singetary’s price this week after the former Buffalo Bill outperformed starter Dameon Pierce for the second straight week, but that like has turned to a full on love affair with news of Pierce’s second missed practise on Thursday. Singletary has yet to hit double digit fantasy points on the season…that will undoubtedly change if Pierce is forced to sit out through injury, clearing a path for Singletary to inherit a majority share of the load in the Texans backfield. Houston hosts Tampa in week 9, and whilst the Bucs have been incredibly difficult to beat on the ground this season, they are a pass funnel defense, which may present a number of short yardage and goal line opportunities for Singletary on Sunday afternoon. The opportunity to roster a 3-down starter at the running back position for only $4300 is rare, don’t let it pass you by if Piece is ruled out this weekend.
Demario Douglas v WAS ($4,300)
It was back to business as usual for Bill Belichick and the Patriots as they crashed back down to earth following their victory over the Bills in week 7, with a two-score defeat at the hands of Miami in South Beach last Sunday. As if being put to the sword by a divisional rival wasn’t bad enough, the Pats also lost leading receiver Kendrick Bourne for the year after the veteran pass-catcher suffered an ACL tear in the 4th quarter that subsequently ended his season. There are a number of candidates lining up to replace Bourne as New England’s No.1 target, but with DeVante Parker currently in the League’s concussion protocol and JuJu Smith-Schuster just not being very good – the man I am playing my chips on is rookie Demario Douglas. The 6th round pick from Liberty is 2nd in team targets at the WR position so far this season, and will be leaned on heavily in the coming weeks as the 2-6 Pats look to salvage what they can of the year. New England welcomes Washington who are allowing almost 200 yards per game to opposing wide receivers and rank dead last against the position. Douglas could be in for a breakout week, and at $4000 I want that in my lineups. Oh, and did I mention his nickname is ‘Pop’…how much more convincing could you need, start him.
Jayden Reed v LAR ($3,600)
Another rookie pick, this time Green Bay’s second round speedster and former Michigan State Spartan. Reed had a career best 83 yards in the Pack’s divisional loss in Lambeau last weekend at the hands of the Minnesota Vikings. Christian Watson has returned to the fold to give Jordan Love a complete set of weapons, but it appears that the rookie Reed has earned himself a notable role in this passing offense, even with Watson back in the lineup. Week 9 sees another home game for the Packers as they welcome the Rams to the Frozen Tundra (well, maybe more the Kinda Cold Tundra at a projected 7°C) fresh off a 43-20 humiliation, in which they allowed Dak Prescott to throw for over 300 yards and 4 touchdowns. I don’t project Jordan Love to hit those heights, but I am confident Reed will have a respectable fantasy day in Wisconsin – he’s a solid start with TD upside at $3600.
Jonathan Mingo v IND ($3,400)
Third wide receiver pick, third rookie, third Carolina Panther in this article. Jonathan Mingo is slowly emerging as the clear No.2 option in the passing game for fellow rookie Bryce Young. The 39th overall pick in this year’s draft continues to outpace veteran D.J. Chark in season long targets, with Mingo seeing 5 looks to Chark’s 4 in Carolina’s first win of the season against Texas last weekend. Chark was also far more productive with his opportunities, putting up 62 yards on 4 receptions compared to Chark’s 2 grabs for 23 yards. The rookie out of Ole Miss is yet to find the end zone in his young career, he has a great shot to change that at home against a soft Colts pass defense on Sunday.
Michael Mayer v NYG ($2,800)
Spooky season is over, and with it the deluge of Michael Mayer Halloween puns. The season of the witch is over, and after seeing only 2 targets last week in Detroit, fantasy managers will be hoping for a resurrection in Mayer’s productivity. With the Raiders cleaning house on Tuesday, firing HC Josh McDaniels and GM Dave Zieglar, there will be a fresh start in Sin City with LB Coach Antonio Pierce taking over play calling on an interim basis. The Giants are not the easiest matchup for TEs and I’m expecting to see Davante Adams get an ungodly amount of targets; but Mayer could provide some sneaky value at the position this week at only $2800. Is this the week we see the return of Michael Mayer to fantasy relevance…after those awful puns, I hope so.
Daniel Bellinger @LV ($2,500)
Why can’t I have nice things? As a devastated Darren Waller manager in re-draft, it gives me no pleasure recommending sophomore tight end, and Waller’s replacement Daniel Bellinger as a punt start this weekend against the Raiders. Waller is set to miss “weeks not days” and is a prime candidate for the IR, so expect to see Bellinger make this role his own until early December at least. Danny Dimes will be back under centre for the G-Men when they travel to Vegas, looking to right the wrongs of their disastrous OT defeat to the Jets last week in the Battle of New York. Starter snaps for only $2500 – yes please! He’s worth a punt this week to save some salary and spend up elsewhere.
Arizona Cardinals @CLE ($2,700)
The Cardinals defense are not good, but they do get to take on a Cleveland Browns offense led by P.J. Walker this weekend. On the season no team is throwing less efficiently than the Browns, completing only 55.6% of their passing attempts. Of the passes that do find a target, Cleveland are T-30th on yards per completion at a pitiful 5.9 (tied with the Cardinals). If you need any more convincing why to start the Cardinals DST – only the Giants have thrown fewer touchdowns, and only the Raiders have thrown more interceptions. As I said, the Cardinals defense is not good; but they are definitely worthy of a start this week at only $2700.
New York Giants @LV ($2,300)
Embarrassed by their city rivals in a game that was easier to win than lose, and now travelling to a 3-5 Raiders team that have just fired their Head Coach and General Manager…what could go wrong! Big Blue will get to take on 25-year old rookie Aidan O’Connell (no that’s not a typo) in his second pro start, as the 4th round pick replaces Jimmy Handsome as the Raiders QB1 for the rest of the season. The former boilermaker can’t be any worse than Garoppolo was on national TV against the Lions this past week…but he may not offer any significant improvement. Vegas allowed Jimmy G to be sacked 6 times against Detroit, the Giants will be hoping to subject his replacement to similar treatment on Sunday.
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Image Credit: Troy Taormina – USA TODAY Sports
