FFL's Week 1 DFS Lineup
With the start of the 2018 season comes Fantasy Football Live’s first ever DFS (Daily Fantasy Sports) lineup! Each week we’ll release an optimal DFS team for Sunday’s games, giving anyone having a poor fantasy season a chance at redemption. Our week 1 lineup below was created on Draft Kings with a $50,000 budget.
QB: Andy Dalton
Matchup: @ Indianapolis Colts
Price: $5,800
Analysis: As mentioned in our QB streamers article, Andy Dalton not only has a great matchup against the Colts but also has a lot of weapons to help him have a great fantasy week. He’s priced as the 12th best quarterback this week which is fairly reasonable for a quarterback who should stuff the stat sheets.
RB: Leonard Fournette
Matchup: @ New York Giants
Price: $7,100
Analysis: Leonard Fournette should have a great week against the New York Giants. The Jaguars are set to pound the rock this year with Fournette, and he’s facing a defense which wasn’t particularly good at stopping the run last year. The Giants also traded away one of the better run stopping defensive ends in Jason Pierre-Paul this offseason. Even with Damon “Snacks” Harrison on the Giants D-line, the Jaguars offensive line should win the battle in the trenches, helping Fournette get plenty of fantasy points.
RB: Christian McCaffrey
Matchup: vs. Dallas Cowboys
Price: $6,400
Analysis: Initially I doubted McCaffrey as a top fantasy option, but everything we’ve seen in the preseason has shown otherwise. Norv Turner has historically used one bellcow running back, and based on the little reps CJ Anderson received with the first team, it seems that Turner has decided McCaffrey is his guy. McCaffrey is a playmaker who is set to get plenty of touches in this game as a 3 down back.
WR: Keenan Allen
Matchup: vs. Kansas City Chiefs
Price: $7,500
Analysis: Last year the Kansas City Chiefs had one of the worst passing defenses in the league, and they lost their top corner in Marcus Peters this year. On the other side of the ball, the Chargers’ pass offense was the best in the league, and they made significant upgrades to their O-line and get Mike Williams back from injury. In summary, the Chargers are going to have a potent passing attack on Sunday, and Keenan Allen would be a direct beneficiary. Allen should be a lock for 100 yards, and if he can get a bit more than that and a touchdown he should finish as a top 5 WR this week.
WR: AJ Green
Matchup: @ Indianapolis Colts
Price: $7,300
Analysis: Similar to Keenan Allen, AJ Green will benefit from what projects to be a good passing day for Andy Dalton. The Colts don’t have any talented corners that can effectively cover Green which should allow him to get open with ease. If Andrew Luck is back to his former self, this game could easily turn into a shootout which would also be great news for Green. As Dalton’s top option against a bad defense, Green is set to have a very productive day.
WR: Keelan Cole
Matchup: @ New York Giants
Price: $3,800
Analysis: Keelan Cole burst out onto the scene last year in the fantasy playoffs, scoring more than all other receivers other than DeAndre Hopkins during that time period. Because of a season ending injury to Marqise Lee, Cole now comes into week 1 as the WR1 for the Jags. While Bortles hasn’t looked good in the preseason, he should have plenty of time to throw the ball. As mentioned before, the offensive line is solid, and Olivier Vernon (OLB, New York Giants) has been ruled out Sunday. Without Vernon, the Giants will struggle getting pressure on Bortles. Cole might only get you single digit fantasy points, but he has a realistic chance to put up big numbers, which makes him a great pick at his price.
TE: Jack Doyle
Matchup: vs. Cincinnati Bengals
Price: $3,600
Analysis: The third player in this DFS lineup from the Bengals v. Colts game, Jack Doyle should also pile up fantasy points. It’s no secret that the Colts plan on relying on Andrew Luck to be the source of their offense, meaning the Colts will pass a lot. While Luck has looked good in the preseason, most of his pases were short to medium range throws as he is still getting used to throwing the football after being injured for so long. This compared with the fact that the Bengals let up the 11th most points to tight ends in 2017 makes Doyle a great pick.
FLEX: Alex Collins
Matchup: vs. Buffalo Bills
Price: $5,600
Analysis: Alex Collins was the first player I chose when creating this DFS lineup, mainly because he is a no brainer pick at his price. Collins’ matchup against the Bills is one of the best in fantasy this week, as the Bills not only let up the 5th most fantasy points to RBs last year but also allowed a league high 22 rushing touchdowns. Add on top of that a game script that projects the Ravens to win and control the ball most of the game and you get a situation that is close to perfect for a fantasy running back. Collins should finish as a top 10 RB this week.
D/ST: Tennessee Titans
Matchup: @ Miami Dolphins
Price: $2,900
Analysis: The Titans weren’t a spectacular fantasy defense last year by any means, but their matchup this week is hard not to like. Signing Malcolm Butler over the offseason should improve the Titan’s defense, and expected positive regression on Marcus Mariota and the rest of the offense should also help. Along with the fact Ryan Tannehill, an already average quarterback at best, is playing in his first game since 2016, it should be expected that the Titans force some turnovers. Dolphins’ receiver DeVante Parker is also expected to miss this game, which will make it a lot easier for the Titans’ defense in the passing game.