Daily fantasy football: FanDuel lineups for week 4

Sep 21, 2014; Orchard Park, NY, USA; San Diego Chargers quarterback Philip Rivers (17) gets hit by Buffalo Bills defensive end Jarius Wynn (92) after he throws the ball during the second half at Ralph Wilson Stadium. San Diego beats Buffalo 22 to 10. Mandatory Credit: Timothy T. Ludwig-USA TODAY Sports

I’m having so much fun playing FanDuel, if you aren’t playing, you are completely missing out! FanDuel is a weekly fantasy football game that allows you to take home real cash payouts each week based on your performance. There are money leagues, and then there are free leagues in case you just want the challenge or fun of setting a weekly lineup with a salary cap. Here are some of the players I like this week, with their weekly values.

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Quarterbacks-

Philip Rivers v. Jaguars ($8,400)- Jacksonville has been clearly horrible against all teams in every format imaginable. The Jaguars have already managed to give up 1,000 passing yards this season, which is 135 more yards than any other team in the NFL. The Eagles and the Jaguars are tied for giving up a league leading 8 passing touchdowns to opposing quarterbacks. Rivers is expensive, but he’s worth it.

Colin Kaepernick v. Eagles ($8,100)- I realize that Colin Kaepernick hasn’t looked that good this season so far, but great news, the Eagles defense has been almost as bad as Jacksonville against opposing quarterbacks. I think the 49ers use this game as a “get right” game for their quarterback. One bright side about Colin Kaepernick’s fantasy value right now is his ability to run the ball. The 49ers are allowing Kaepernick to run the read option like crazy, which is making his value look like he’s playing a lot better than he actually is.

Jay Cutler v. Packers ($8,100)- Cutler has been over 15 fantasy points in standard scoring every single week so far this season, and of course this week he gets another great matchup against the Packers. It looks like Alshon Jeffery is officially healthy, and it seems as if Brandon Marshall is also headed to a clean bill of health.

Quarterback Cheap Skates play:

Teddy Bridgewater v. Falcons ($5,900)- Teddy Bridgewater is making his first career start on Sunday against the Falcons. This could go a couple of different ways, and that is why he’s cheap. He has a great matchup, so he might actually surprise the Falcons and put up a good game. Or Atlanta could ride their hot hand defense and get to the quarterback with ease which could lead to a nice three-pick game for Teddy Bridgewater.

Running Backs:

Sep 21, 2014; Foxborough, MA, USA; New England Patriots running back Stevan Ridley (22) is defended by Oakland Raiders safety Tyvon Branch (33) at Gillette Stadium. The Patriots defeated the Raiders 16-9. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY SportsSep 21, 2014; Foxborough, MA, USA; Oakland Raiders against the New England Patriots at Gillette Stadium. The Patriots defeated the Raiders 16-9.Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

Lamar Miller at Raiders ($6,900)- This game is actually taking place in London, and we never really know how these games are going to go. However, I think Lamar Miller is kind of a must-start this week in FanDuel or any other format. Miller is a talented runner with the ability to catch passes out of the backfield. The Raiders have given up the 7th most fantasy points to running backs so far this season. All the Raiders have done this season is travel and now they have to go across country, then across the Atlantic, to London.

Fred Jackson at Texans ($6,300)- Did you see what Rashad Jennings was able to do to the Texans last week? It was impressive. The Bills have better line play, and a quarterback that loves getting the ball to his running backs in the receiving game. Fred Jackson is worth a look in this matchup as he could have two touchdowns and around 8 catches. Going back to last week, Jackson managed only six carries along with eight receptions for over 100 total yards and a touchdown. He easily could produce the same results this week with more touches.

Stevan Ridley at Chiefs ($6,100)- I’m trying to get inside the head of Bill Belichick, I know, good luck. The way you attack the Chiefs is on the ground, and you have to run in-between the tackles. If you’ve watched any film at al,l you can tell that Stevan Ridley is a better in-between the tackle runner than Shane Vereen. The Chiefs were amongst the worst rush defenses last year, and they lost everyone up front. Losing everyone up front makes you believe there is a good opportunity that the Patriots will attack the Chiefs on the ground. If they manage to attack them on the ground, then Ridley will be the running back to own this week.

Ahmad Bradshaw v. Titans ($6,100)- Ahmad Bradshaw already has three receiving touchdowns this season, and they have all come in the last two games. Tennessee actually has been okay against the pass this season, which is a reason the Colts might lean toward the running game, especially if they get out to a big lead. The Titans give up the second fewest fantasy points to opposing quarterbacks, meaning I like the Colts running game this week.

Running Backs Cheap Skate play:

Chris Ivory v. Lions ($5,800)- I don’t love the matchup between the Lions and Jets for Ivory, but I love his passion. If you watch film, you see that Chris Ivory is a hard, reckless runner. Not only has Chris Ivory’s running style impressed me, it has also impressed his coaches, as Rex Ryan said that he wants to get Chris Ivory more touches. Ivory is cheap this week because he has a terrible matchup, as the Lions give up the 6th fewest fantasy points to opposing running backs.

Sep 7, 2014; Arlington, TX, USA; San Francisco 49ers receiver Michael Crabtree (15) runs after a catch against the Dallas Cowboys at AT&T Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Matthew Emmons-USA TODAY Sports

Wide Receivers:

Jeremy Maclin at 49ers ($8,000)- Maclin has had a surprising first three games to the general public. I mean we all knew that he was talented, however I don’t think that anyone expected that he would receive these kind of targets. Through the first three weeks of the season, Maclin has caught 16 passes on 31 targets which is still an average of double-digit targets every week. Receivers receiving double digit targets on a weekly basis are tough to pass on. According to the stats so far this season, the 49ers have given up the 2nd most fantasy points to opposing wide receivers, which means that Maclin has a great matchup on top of double digit targets.

Alshon Jeffery v. Bears ($7,600)- Brandon Marshall is banged up, and Alshon Jeffery hasn’t been listed on the injury report, which means he will be good to go on Sunday. Jeffery was involved in the receiving game and the rushing game last week, catching eight passes and receiving two carries to total 10 touches. Jeffery has been without a touchdown so far this season, but I believe that this week is when all of that ends as Jeffery finds his way for 100 yards and a touchdown.

Kelvin Benjamin at Ravens ($6,700)- Is anyone watching the star receiver that Kelvin Benjamin is emerging into right in front of our eyes? He clearly has to improve in some areas of his game, of course. He isn’t a polished route runner, and he makes catching difficult passes look simple and makes catching easy passes look difficult. This week Benjamin gets to matchup against the Ravens, which isn’t the greatest matchup, but he has to play a factor if the Panthers want a chance to win. Benjamin has accumulated 27 targets, 16 catches and two touchdowns so far this year.

Antonio Brown v. Buccaneers ($8,400)- Antonio Brown is an absolute must start regardless of his matchup. Every week he dominates the game in every way that he can, and it seems that FanDuel did us a huge favor in making Brown only a small amount of the cap. With the way Brown has been playing, he should be up there in the $9,000’s. Brown has caught 22 passes on just 28 targets this year, which means that he is currently catching 78.6% of his targets and he’s averaging 100-yards and a touchdown every single game. Tampa Bay just got torched by the Falcons number one receiver Julio Jones, could they get torched by Antonio Brown this week?

Wide Receiver Cheap Skate plays:

Brandin Cooks at Cowboys ($6,200)- Cooks has been the Saints best receiver so far this season. Cooks has managed 18 catches on 24 targets and is in a potential shoot out on the road against the Cowboys on Sunday Night Football. My thinking, the Cowboys have struggled against tight ends this season, however they are going to do everything that they can to lockup Jimmy Graham, which could open up things for Brandin Cooks.

Steve Smith v. Panthers ($6,100)- Revenge game. “You’ll find out week four”, is what Steve Smith said after his first Ravens touchdown. Well the week 4 game is against the Panthers, a team that Steve Smith has spent all of his career with before they cut him this offseason. Steve Smith has received 32 targets over the past three weeks and although he only has one touchdown, he’s averaging nearly 100 yards receiving a game.

Sep 21, 2014; Foxborough, MA, USA; New England Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski (87) celebrates a touchdown against the Oakland Raiders during the second quarter at Gillette Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Greg M. Cooer-USA TODAY Sports

Tight Ends:

Jimmy Graham ($8,200)- Can you create the cap room that it takes to acquire Jimmy Graham? He’s really expensive, however it’s because he has the best possible matchup this week. He gets the Cowboys on the road, and the Cowboys have given up the most fantasy points to opposing tight ends in the league. The Cowboys have given up four touchdowns to opposing tight ends already this season, and this week they get to play the leagues best tight end.

Rob Gronkowski ($7,600)- This is more of a gut feeling than an actual statistical call. The Chiefs have given up the 7th most points to opposing tight ends this season, although I just have a feeling that Gronk is going to explode on Monday Night Football. Gronkowski’s been on a limited snap count, only playing 48.2% of the Patriots offensive snaps this season. From Week 2 to Week 3, we saw Gronk go from 27 snaps up to 44 snaps in Week 3. The limitations on his playing time are dropping, which is indicating that Gronk is getting more-and-more healthy.

Tight End Cheap Skate play:

Jason Witten ($5,900)- I actually haven’t went back and looked at the tape on Jason Witten, but it’s 100 percent true that the Cowboys just haven’t been throwing enough for him to be a factor in the offense yet this season. This is a week that I believe that it could all change and the Cowboys could attempt 30-35 passes this week in a high scoring game. Witten has played 100% of the Cowboys snaps so far this season, which is why I’m so surprised that he hasn’t been a factor in the passing game. It’s hard to believe that Witten wouldn’t be involved in the offense for the whole season.

Defense/Kicker:

Sep 11, 2014; Baltimore, MD, USA; Baltimore Ravens running back Justin Forsett (29) is tackled by Pittsburgh Steelers safety Troy Polamalu (43) in the second quarter at M&T Bank Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Evan Habeeb-USA TODAY Sports

Defense:

Steelers D/ST v. Buccaneers ($4,900)- The Steelers defense has taken a huge hit, losing nearly everyone on Sunday Night Football. However, even with all their losses on the defensive side of the football, Tampa Bay is still without an offensive coordinator. Mike Glennon is better than Josh McCown, but Glennon could still struggle heavily without a play caller.

Kicker:

Shaun Suisham v. Buccaneers ($4,900)- Suisham has managed to score double digit fantasy points in two of his three games this season.