What we know
As we approach the back nine of the NFL regular season, there are a few things we know for sure. The London series is awful, Tom Brady is worth every penny, and you can’t trust Blake Bortles. We have also identified players who are routinely underpriced and roster them without hesitation. Here are the best underpriced players for week 9.
5. Dak Prescott – $7,600
The Cowboys Quarterback has taken the NFL by storm and deserves all the credit in the world for his on field success. On the other hand, his fantasy production is often overlooked. Since his second game against the Redskins, Prescott has scored at least 17.5 points in every game he’s played, including two games in which he scored over 23 points. This level of consistent play is usually exclusive to the most expensive Quarterbacks. But not even Brees, Rodgers, or Newton can say they have scored at least 17.5 points in every game since week one.
Dak Prescott looks to extend his great play against the Cleveland Browns this Sunday.
This week’s matchup against the Cleveland Browns could be another monster day for Prescott. The Cowboys will have no trouble moving the football against a bottom eight rush and pass defense. Inside the Red Zone, expect the Browns to do everything they can to stop Ezekiel Elliot and Jason Witten. Their focus on stopping Elliot and Witten will create huge running lanes that Dak will take advantage of inside the 10 yard line. Also, Prescott’s underpriced value allows for great player stacks like Dez Bryant or Ezekiel Elliot.
4. Kyle Rudolph – $5,000
The Vikings, specifically their offense, were exposed these past two weeks versus Philadelphia and Chicago. The element that both of these defenses share is the ability to rush the passer. Both the Eagles and Bears rank among the top 10 teams in sacks. Luckily, the Lions are not a top 10 team in terms of sacks. This means that Sam Bradford will have slightly more time to deliver the ball to the largest target on the field, Kyle Rudolph.
While he hasn’t scored a touchdown in three games, expect that to change this Sunday. The Detroit Lions have been incredibly inept when it comes to covering Tight Ends this season.
How is this possible? Well, the Detroit Lions continually used Outside Linebacker Kyle Van Noy to cover the opposition’s Tight End. Van Noy was so brutal in coverage that the Lions traded him to the Patriots, so clearly he’ll find a way to excel in New England’s system, because that’s what they do. Even though he wasn’t covering CJ Fiedorowicz Sunday, the defense proved to still be vulnerable to the Tight End position.
Rudolph’s $5,000 price tag gives great flexibility to any DFS lineup. But this week, it’s more about the Lions inability to cover Tight Ends than the underpriced Kyle Rudolph.
3. Emmanuel Sanders – $6,800
Emmanuel Sanders will play a pivotal role in the Bronco’s game plan Sunday night. Sanders has one of the most fantasy friendly matchups of the week as he faces off versus the 27th ranked pass defense, but the matchup is even more favorable than expected. Non-number one receivers have had great success against Oakland. This includes Russell Shepard of Tampa Bay (9.4 points), Marqise Lee of Jacsksonville (14.2 points), and Travis Benjamin of San Diego (15.2 points). Sanders is no doubt more talented than all of those receivers and has seen a minimum of six targets in every game this season, including two games with 13 targets.
On the other hand, Sanders hasn’t scored a touchdown in four games. But, the Raiders have allowed other pass catchers to break out of their End Zone slump including Steve Smith (3 games), Julius Thomas (3 games), and Cameron Brate (3 games). While this isn’t the greatest stat ever, it does breed more confidence in starting the underpriced Sanders, who is due for a touchdown given the volume of targets he is getting on a weekly basis.
2. Frank Gore – $6,300
Even at 33 years old, Frank Gore still finds a way to be a productive DFS player. This is the lowest price tag for a starting Running Back that does not operate in a committee situation. Gore has scored a touchdown in five of his eight games and has accumulated over 63 all-purpose yards in each of his games.
Other Running Backs in this price range include Terrence West, Jonathan Stewart, and Jerick McKinnon. All of these Running Backs combined only have eight all-purpose touchdowns compared to Gore’s five. Gore has also produced against top defenses. He scored at least 11 points against Denver, Houston, and Tennessee, all of which are in the top 10 FanDuel defenses. Meaning, Green Bay’s seventh ranked defense shouldn’t scare people away from using Frank Gore this weekend.
At this point, Gore hasn’t shown a propensity to record a performance with more than 20 points, but that is a result of the Colts always playing catch up. While I don’t see Gore getting his first 20 point performance this Sunday, I absolutely see him getting his usual 13-17 points which is a bargain for his underpriced value.
1. Michael Thomas – $5,800
I’m not sure how Michael Thomas is still valued under $6,000 at this point in the season. Thomas has established himself as the number two Wide Receiver on the highest scoring offense in the NFL with a hall of fame Quarterback at the helm. In four of his seven games Thomas has scored at least 12 points and has been targeted at least five times in each of those four games.
The only other Wide Receivers with comparable numbers in this price range are Anquan Boldin and Tavon Austin. Boldin has only scored at least 12 points in two of his eight games and Austin has done the same three times in seven games. What makes Thomas underpriced is that his floor is much higher than Boldin and Austin.
Thomas’ least productive day was against the Giants, in which he scored 7.6 points. Boldin and Austin’s least productive games were 0.9 points against the Texans and 3.5 points against the Niners respectively. Thomas should be rostered whenever possible and is a must play if you are considering a New Orleans stack.
Michael Thomas has emerged as the Saints’ go to Wide Receiver and is poised to have a great day versus the 49ers.
The post The 5 Best Underpriced Players for Week 9 appeared first on The Game Haus.