This article is part of our FanDuel Fantasy Football series.
While it isn't time to panic yet in season-long leagues, it's always a good week to dip your toe in the DFS waters. This week, FanDuel is running another Sunday Million contest where you can turn a $5 entry into the $1,000,000 top prize. Let's see if we can find some players to use in that lineup.
QUARTERBACKS
Lamar Jackson ($8,400) should be a solid play this weekend given his away matchup with the Detroit Lions. Detroit as a whole has been a dumpster fire to start the season and a miraculous turnaround doesn't appear to be on the horizon. They've given up 76 points through two games, and both Aaron Rodgers and Jimmy Garoppolo had good fantasy games against them. Jackson wasn't at practice Thursday but that was likely due to some weekly maintenance.
I'm surprised I'm writing this, but this may be a Daniel Jones ($7,400) opportunity, given he's home and facing the lowly Atlanta Falcons. Jones has scored 29.46 and 21.38 fantasy points in his first two games and has yet to throw in interception in 69 pass attempts. He has 122 rushing yards and two rushing touchdowns to start the season, and the presence of Saquon Barkley is helping to keep opposing defenses honest. I wouldn't be adverse to using him in cash games this week if the extra salary cap space is needed for the other positions.
My favorite GPP play at the position this week is Justin Fields ($6,500). The price is right here, and he's had a full week of practice to get ready for his first professional start. Not surprisingly, Patrick Mahomes had a great Week 1 against the Browns, but then Tyrod Taylor followed that up with an excellent start last week before leaving the game with an injury. There's a low floor here but also a high ceiling, which is why Fields is perfect for tournament use.
RUNNING BACKS
Looking at the upper-tier running backs, it would appear Dalvin Cook ($9,500) is in line to have a big game this week at home against the Seahawks. Cook has more than 100 yards from scrimmage in both of his games and got 25 and 27 touches in those contests. Just keep an eye on the injury report as he continues to work on getting his balky ankle back to 100 percent.
Austin Ekeler ($7,000) seems poised for a huge game this week given the Chiefs' struggles on defense against opposing running backs. Kansas City has allowed 29.9 fantasy points per game through the first two contests (yes, a small sample) but that's a big number considering they only saw 53 touches over that span. One positive sign is the Chargers got back to using Ekeler in the passing game, as he saw nine targets, turning them into nine catches for 61 yards.
Now is probably the time to buy into Saquon Barkley ($6,000), as the Giants slowly but surely appear to be getting him more touches. He went 11 to 15 from Week 1 to Week 2, so expecting him to at least match those 15 touches is more than reasonable this week. He looked healthy on a long run in the first half against the WFT and got a full 10 days of rest since playing in the Thursday Night Football game. Atlanta has been equally as bad against the run as the pass, allowing 255 rushing yards over their first two games.
WIDE RECEIVERS
The absence of Jerry Jeudy opened up targets and allowed for Courtland Sutton ($6,900) to play the role of the No.1 wide receiver for the Broncos. Sutton responded with a line of 12-9-159, leading to 20.9 fantasy points despite not finding the end zone. Denver is a solid stack this week, as it's easy to see a path for a big day using Sutton, Teddy Bridgewater ($7,300) and either Tim Patrick ($5,900) or KJ Hamler ($5,200). It's noteworthy that while Sutton saw the increase in targets, Hamler saw the increase in snaps, so an uptick in targets shouldn't be too far behind.
It's tough to ignore how good Cooper Kupp ($7,900) has been to start the season, accumulating 52.6 FanDuel fantasy points over his first two games. Kupp has gotten 10 and 11 targets the first two weeks, and has essentially put the rest the argument of who was the better fantasy player drafted between him and Robert Woods ($6,100). While the Buccaneers are a tough defense, they're more likely to get beat through the air and have to travel across the country to play the Rams at SoFi Stadium.
Other Players to Consider This week: Kenny Golladay ($5,600), Julio Jones ($6,700), Anthony Schwartz ($4,800), Allen Robinson ($7,300), Chase Claypool ($5,800), Will Fuller ($5,500).
TIGHT ENDS
There was a lot of speculation that the switch from Matthew Stafford to Jared Goff was going to adversely affect the fantasy value of T.J. Hockenson, but he's been a fantastic fantasy asset to start the season. He has 16.6 and 21.7 fantasy points through two games, and the other number that bodes well for the rest of the season is his 20 targets. That's a huge number for a tight end, and the Detroit wide receivers might be the worst group in the lead. That means Goff should continue to heavily target Hockenson, leading to consistent fantasy production.
Now that I've spoken ill of the Atlanta Falcons defense, let's look on the other side of the ball for them. Kyle Pitts ($6,200) increased his fantasy from 5.1 fantasy points to 9.8 over the first two week, and it's a matter of time before he finds the end zone and has his breakout game. That game could come Sunday against the Giants who have allowed 32.8 total fantasy points to opposing tight ends over their first two games. Pitts is more talented than any of the tight ends on Denver or the WFT, pointing to him having a solid game.
DEFENSES
I'd consider using the Tennessee Titans ($4,500) only if Carson Wentz is declared inactive due to his banged up ankles. At this point, he didn't practice Thursday, and the Colts may err on the side of caution and look at the bigger picture and not want this to be a recurring problem all season.
It'll be interesting to see how Justin Fields does in his first start, but if you think the rookie will struggle playing the Dawg Pound, you should consider using the Cleveland Browns ($4,200). Cleveland does have a solid pass rush, and they'll be an unpopular pick after scoring only six fantasy points over their first two games.
