This article is part of our DraftKings USFL series.
We're headed into Week 5 of the USFL and there's little separating most of the teams in the league. Only the New Orleans Breakers remain undefeated, and the only other team above .500 is the Birmingham Stallions. That doesn't leave much in terms of obvious mismatches between teams, leaving plenty of places to look for opportunity to pick off value. The battle for the North Division in particular will heat up this weekend as we have all intra-division matchups and all four teams are either 2-2 or 1-3. From a fantasy perspective, the Birmingham Stallions- Houston Gamblers contest looks to be one that will have plenty of points.
Quarterback
McLeod Bethel-Thompson ($11,000) vs. Memphis
Bethel-Thompson appears nearly every week in this article, but he has arguably the best floor at the position. He posted a season-low 11.2 DK points in Week 4, but otherwise he has posted at least 18.8 points. While Memphis showed some fight to earn their first win last weekend, they're tied for allowing the most points per game and have allowed the second-most passing yards per game.
Kenji Bahar ($8,000) at Birmingham
Bahar has topped 230 passing yards and thrown for multiple touchdowns in each of the last three weeks. He was on the way to his full breakout in Week 4 but was pulled out of precaution due to a minor injury and with Houston in possession of a comfortable lead. Bahar's price is down heading into a matchup against Birmingham, but it's likely to be the last time we say that this season.
Running Back
Kerrith Whyte ($4,900) at New Orleans
White has taken over the lead back role in Memphis, displacing Alex Colins due to injury. There's some risk that Collins regains his full health and his role, but he was active in Week 4 and took a back seat to Whyte. That risk is worth taking on for the price given that he's put up double-digit DK points in each of the last two weeks. Whyte will be a key value on the slate.
Wes Hills ($10,600) vs. Memphis
We can go to the opposite end of the price range to Hills for our next pick. Simply put, he has the most potential of any player to break the slate after posing 36.7, 44.7 and 34.9 DK points in the last three weeks. We've already covered Memphis' struggles against the pass, and they aren't better at defending the run, so Hills should be in a good spot to produce again.
Wide Receivers/Tight End
Davion Davis ($9,100) vs. Houston
Davis has proven to be among the most talented and most productive wide receivers in the USFL. He's second in the league to only Saige Surratt in receiving yards despite having 11 fewer targets and seven fewer receptions. That indicates that he can work very efficiently with his opportunity, and he saw a season-best 10 targets last week. Houston is one of only three teams to score over 100 points this season and Birmingham is another. This game should shootout, giving Davis a great chance to deliver a strong performance.
Justin Hall ($6,800) at Birmingham
Given what we just said about this matchup and about Bahar, it only makes sense to target a Houston pass catcher. Hall has comfortably been the most productive receiver on the team. That production has come a bit sporadically, as he recorded only 6.0 DK points in a blowout Week 4 loss and 4.0 DK points in Week 1. In between, he's popped off for performances of 34 and 27 DK points. That increases the risk and volatility to his profile, but pricing is more efficient at wide receiver than running back so finding a player in Hall's price range that has tournament-winning upside is important.
Defense/Special Team
New Jersey Generals at Philadelphia ($4,200)
Philadelphia has been one of the more surprising offenses in a negative way to begin the season, as they've tallied only eight offensive touchdowns – second-fewest in the league. Meanwhile, the Generals have been an impressive defensive unit, as they limited the dynamic New Orleans offense last week and have put up at least seven DK points in each of the last three games.
