This article is part of our Yahoo DFS Football series.
Before jumping in headfirst into the whirlwind of fun that is Yahoo Daily Fantasy Football, be sure to differentiate from the variety of games offered. Since Head-to-Heads, 50/50s and Double Ups pay nearly half of entrants, your best bet to cashing is to target players with higher floors. Think heavily targeted No. 1 WRs, RBs who get the bulk of a team's carries and upper-echelon QBs in matchups with a tight Vegas point spread and a high total.
Tournaments/Guaranteed Prize Pools (GPPs) require a bit more of your inner contrarian -- target offensive players with higher ceilings in advantageous matchups. Huge point totals can come from the most unpredictable of places -- the most obvious plays are not always the right ones. Although previous week's performances should be noted, each new week of action should be considered its own season. Don't chase last week's stats.
TOURNAMENTS (GPP - GUARANTEED PRIZE POOL)
Marcus Mariota (TEN, $29)
Projecting Mariota's weekly output is akin to picking a holiday gift for grandma. Mariota has thrown two or more touchdown passes in five games this year, but has also failed to throw a TD pass in three. The rookie quarterback averages 17.9 fantasy points per game, which puts him smack in the middle of the pack among starting QBs this year. With Mariota, it is clearly all about timing. He is reasonably priced this week and will be off folks' radars with recent memories of the sloppy Thursday night matchup with the Jaguars from Week 11. For the rematch, the Titans are at home and are the favorites. Also, Kendall Wright is back in action and will give Mariota another option besides tight end Delanie Walker on short and intermediate routes. The Jaguars are much tougher against the run, and the Titans' run game is virtually non-existent. Mariota's arm will be heavily relied-upon, and he may need to dial it up 40-plus times for just the second time this season.
Matt Forte (CHI, $31)
Forte may be the forgotten man who earns you the big bucks this week. Forte is among the most expensive running backs on the board, and it's hard to imagine others paying up for him with all of affordable options this week. Forte has rushed for more than 100 yards just once this season (141 in Week 1), and recency bias (44 yards last week) along with legitimate concerns of his timeshare with Jeremy Langford will keep Forte's percentage-owned in the doldrums this week. The Bears are favored by a touchdown and will look to re-establish the running game with Forte in his second game back from injury. This is not a play for risk-averse DFS players, but is definitely the type of option that can end up being a difference-maker.
DeVante Parker (MIA, $13)
Parker's 4-for-80 and a touchdown in Week 12 was the breakout outing we've been waiting for all season. Parker played a career-high 59 snaps with Rishard Matthews absent. Matthews is expected to miss this week's game against the Ravens as well, which should create more yardage and scoring opportunities for the dynamic youngster. Parker is no longer dealing with the foot injury that plagued him in training camp and in the beginning of the season. The Dolphins fired offensive coordinator Bill Lazor earlier in the week -- a move in the right direction toward getting Parker even more involved. Change is on the horizon with the Dolphins' offense, and Parker will succeed with a huge role in it.
Other Against-the-Grainers:
QB: Kirk Cousins (WAS, $28)
RB: Giovani Bernard (CIN, $19), David Johnson (ARI, $10)
WR: Dez Bryant (DAL, $24), Kendall Wright (TEN, $15), Keshawn Martin (NE, $10)
TE: Martellus Bennett (CHI, $16)
DEF: Chicago Bears ($11)
CASH GAMES (H2H, 50/50s and DOUBLE UPS)
Quarterback
Cam Newton (CAR, $40)
Newton failed to connect on a touchdown pass for the first time all season against the Cowboys last week, but did manage to run one in himself -- his seventh of the season. He finished with less than 20 fantasy points for just the fifth time in 11 games. Expect Cam to bounce back in a big way against a horrific secondary. The Saints have allowed a league-high 30 TDs through the air and are seven-point dogs in one of the highest projected totals of Week 13. They could keep this one close as Brees and company usually play better at home. In Week 3 against the Saints, Cam threw for 315 yards and three TDs (one rushing). Cam is the second-priciest QB this week and rightly so -- only Tom Brady has averaged more FPG this season.
Running Back
Doug Martin (TB, $25)
Despite already rushing for more than 1,000 yards -- second only to Adrian Peterson -- Martin is the ninth-most expensive running back this week. It's a price inefficiency to take advantage of, especially against a Falcons team that allowed 158 rushing yards to Peterson last week. Martin has only found the end zone four times this season, but has hit triple-digit rushing yards four times, including a mammoth 235-yard effort against the Eagles two weeks ago. Atlanta's rush defense is no slouch (3.7 YPC against), but its 13 rush TDs allowed is second most behind the Lions. The Bucs are favored at home in this one, and Martin should be heavily involved all four quarters.
C.J. Anderson (DEN, $14)
Anderson is an early round bust for season-long teams, but started making it up to his owners last week, collecting 143 all-purpose yards and two rushing TDs (29.3 FP) against the Patriots on Sunday night. It was just his second 100-yard effort this season. Anderson has been dealing with a toe injury for most of the season and appears to be fully recovered and assuming his role as the thunder to Ronnie Hillman's lightning in a run-heavy offense. A matchup against the Chargers' anemic rush defense as four-point favorites sets up advantageously for Anderson this week. At this incredibly cheap price, he will be a popular play in both cash games and tournaments and should be faded at your own risk.
Wide Receiver
Julio Jones (ATL, $35)
Jones has been the best receiver in football this season. He leads the league in receiving yards (1,245), receptions (94) and has just three less targets (142) than DeAndre Hopkins, who trumps everyone in that category. Jones has surpassed 90 receiving yards in eight of 11 games this season and is the epitome of a cash-game play. This week is no different as he has an immaculate matchup against exploitable Bucs' corners, including undrafted rookie CB Jude Adjei-Barimah who will line up against Jones for a good chunk of snaps. Jones rang the Buccaneers up for 162 yards on 12 receptions in Week 8.
T.Y. Hilton (IND, $19)
Hilton stepped up with a big game in Week 12, catching two touchdowns on six receptions and 95 yards. Matt Hasselbeck targeted him 12 times -- only the fourth time in 12 games that Hilton has seen double-digit targets. His catch rate is a disappointing 49 percent (51 receptions on 104 targets), which is a huge drop from his 63 percent rate last year. Much of the drop can easily be attributed to having to play tough secondaries (CAR, DEN, NE, NYJ, TEN). He is building a solid rapport with Hasselbeck and is simply too cheap to be omitted from lineups this week. The Steelers secondary has gotten burned lately, including five receiving touchdowns allowed to the Seahawks last week.
Kamar Aiken (BAL, $17)
Aiken has become the de facto star of a Ravens offense that has been decimated with injuries to Joe Flacco, Justin Forsett and Steve Smith. Aiken averages more than 15 targets in his last three games and has scored a touchdown in consecutive games. Aiken lines up for nearly half of snaps on the right side and should hopefully avoid cornerback Brent Grimes for most of the game. Either way, Grimes has been a shell of his former self. Both he and RCB Jamar Taylor are allowing nearly 0.30 fantasy points-per-target (per ProFootballFocus) -- ranking near the bottom among cornerbacks in the NFL this season.
Tight End
Scott Chandler (NE, $10)
The waiver-wire darling of Week 13 will be a popular play given his minimum salary, and the fact that he suddenly becomes a focal point of Tom Brady's offense with Rob Gronkowski and Julian Edelman sidelined. Chandler was targeted 11 times against the Broncos last Sunday, catching five for 58 yards and a touchdown -- his second TD in three games. The 30-year-old veteran is one behemoth of a target (6-foot-7, 260). Pairing him with running backs Anderson or David Johnson ($10) at flex allows for much flexibility for your studs.
Defense/Special Teams
Cincinnati Bengals ($14)
Although we typically don't seek defenses on the road, we can make an exception for the Bengals this week. They face third-string quarterback Austin Davis and the Browns' porous offensive line. The Bengals have six interceptions in their last three games and have held opposing offenses to 10 points or less four times this season. The Bengals are nearly 10-point favorites and should force Davis into making some mistakes as he will be forced to throw most of the game.
Honorable Mentions:
QB: Ben Roethlisberger (PIT, $33)
RB: DeAngelo Williams (TB, $27), LeGarrette Blount (NE, $24)
WR: Odell Beckham (NYG, $34), Alshon Jeffery (CHI, $33), Eric Decker (NYJ, $28), Jeremy Maclin (KC, $18)
TE: Jacob Tamme (ATL, $14)
DEF: Arizona Cardinals ($13)
Sedler is a CDM Hall of Famer, winning the Football Super Challenge in 2013.
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