FanDuel NFL Lineups: Preseason Week 3 Thursday

Welcome to the FanDuel NFL Lineups column for week three of NFL preseason action.  We’re a Daily Fantasy Football column focused on top picks and best value for your weekly FanDuel NFL lineups.  We arm you with information for a big FanDuel NFL payday each week.

After watching new, and sometimes old, names battling for a final spot on a NFL roster during preseason games the past two weeks, we should finally see some lengthy starting or second line action for week three of the preseason.

While there will still be big question marks about who could be targeted by quarterbacks or will get the most carries in the backfield, we know most of the teams in the NFL treat preseason week three like a dress-rehearsal for the regular season.

We may not see older, or more established, NFL players take the field this week like Tom Brady or Darren Sproles, but Dalvin Cook, Leonard Fournette, Carson Wentz, and Jay Cutler will likely be on the field for extended time, making this week a little easier to target players and more exciting for bigger point plays.

We start preseason week three off with two games on Thursday and Friday night, provided small, but exciting, slates each night.  Saturday night is again the big slate night, but Sunday will be attractive as well with three games.  So who do we have tonight?

Here’s a look at the scheduled games for the Preseason Week 3 Thursday slate:

Miami Dolphins at Philadelphia Eagles (7pm EDT) NFL Network

Carolina Panthers at Jacksonville Jaguars (7:30pm EDT)

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A reminder, with all players having a similar salary ($6,000), we need to drop the value part of our picks for FanDuel NFL preseason.  We are focused mostly on who has the most time on the field, but also may have the greatest opportunity for yards and touchdowns.

We’ll check each game, narrow down who will see the most time on the field, and highlight our top picks.  We’ll also check an initial list of lineup picks for this slate.

FanDuel NFL Lineups: Preseason Week 3 Thursday – Quarterbacks

Dolphins at Eagles

The Dolphins and Eagles quarterback situation is less complicated than the Panthers and Jaguars, who have injuries and a quarterback battle to deal with this preseason.

We all know the Dolphins signed Jay Cutler ($6,000) earlier this preseason, when Ryan Tannehill went down with a season-ending injury.  Cutler is still learning the Dolphins system, but already looked very sharp this week in a duel-camp with the Eagles.

Yes, the Eagles DB’s have struggled this preseason, so Cutler’s success may be the result of their failure, but with the Dolphins eager to get Cutler set into their system, we should expect Jay to have a successful Thursday night, with a lot of time on the field.

Like Cutler, Carson Wentz ($6,000) is expected to take a lot of time from the other quarterbacks on the field Thursday.  And like Jay, Carson had a fantastic week against the Dolphins DB’s this week, a great sign for the Eagles after looking shaky in the first two weeks of the preseason games.  Both Wentz and Cutler are strong plays at quarterback on Thursday night, more attractive than the other game on the schedule.

Panthers at Jaguars

For the first time this preseason, we could see Cam Newton ($6,000) lining up with the projected starters for the Carolina Panthers, and for an extended period.  I am nervous about playing Newton, though, as he’s finally emerging from a shoulder injury and it would be surprising to see the Panthers coaching staff push Cam with another preseason left on the schedule and a few weeks away from the start of the regular season.

So Derek Anderson ($6,000) and Joe Webb ($6,000) are still in play, with Newton likely taking safer snaps and not tucking and running with the football on Thursday night.  However, while Newton isn’t one of the better plays at quarterback, he should still have many great offensive weapons surrounding him, opening the door for Cam to have a decent night, quickly.

The Jaguars now have an open competition with head coach Doug Marrone, announcing last week, the starting QB job is wide-open.  For the growing number of Blake Bortles ($6,000) haters out there, this isn’t surprising.  Bortles has done nothing in camp or in preseason games to show improvement in his play and shine as a leader at quarterback for the Jags.

Chad Henne ($6,000), however, had completed over 75% of his passes with over 180 yards, a touchdown, and no interceptions.  Brandon Allen ($6,000) has also looked better than Bortles, and some suspect Henne and Allen are actually battling for the top spot and the Jags are shopping Blake.  So while the Jags might try to shop Bortles on the field, don’t expect much from Blake and target Henne first.  Allen should see most of his time next Thursday.

FanDuel NFL Lineups: Preseason Week 3 Thursday – Running Backs

Dolphins at Eagles

Jay Ajayi ($6,000) has cleared concussion protocol and will start against the Eagles on Thursday night.  While the Eagles poor play from their defensive backs has been the story of the camp for defense, their run defense performed very poorly against the Dolphins in camp all week, and Ajayi should have a good night with plenty of time on the field.

Kenyan Drake will be off the field tonight, so if you’re fading Ajayi but like the Dolphins run game against the Eagles on Thursday, your next best bet is Damien Williams ($6,000).  Williams has looked like a strong number two back for the Dolphins, but there’s clear light between Williams and Ajayi.

The Eagles running game has been anemic this summer, but the Dolphins struggled to defend the run during camp this week.  LaGarrette Blount ($6,000) finally showed the burst of speed through the hole like the Eagles were hoping to see since signing him.  But they have a crowded backfield in Philly, and it’s hard to decide who will emerge as the top back during Thursday’s regular season dress-rehearsal.  It’s more likely the Eagles will continue to rotate through the depth chart until they find what they want, making their running backs a risky play.

Panthers at Jaguars

Panthers veteran starting running back Jonathan Stewart ($6,000) should see more carries and maybe a target or two on the field Thursday.  But, Christian McCaffrey ($6,000) has been the primary target from the backfield for the Panthers this summer, and has been more productive.

With both McCaffrey and Stewart likely getting a lot of time with the starters on the field most of the game Thursday, they’re each a great play.  Stewart may be more of a goal line hand-off target, but McCaffrey will see the ball more often, making him a top three back tonight.

I was looking forward to watching Leonard Fournette all preseason, but his nagging foot injury, a carry-over from his LSU days, is keeping him out of the game on Thursday night, and maybe for the rest of the preseason slate.  That’s disappointing for fantasy football players, and raises concern about his durability.

Also out for the Jags is T.J. Yeldon, nursing a hamstring injury.  So that opens the door wide-open for Chris Ivory ($6,000) to get the bulk of the carries on Thursday, against a touch Panthers run defense.  While the Panthers were great at stopping the run last year, they should have a more vanilla type of defense on Thursday, and Chris has had a very productive summer, so Ivory is one of your top five picks tonight.

FanDuel NFL Lineups: Preseason Week 3 Thursday – Wide Receivers

While the wide receiver position has been difficult to target the first two weeks of the preseason, we can be more confident with our week three picks, thanks to the more targeted dress-rehearsal passing targets expected today.

Dolphins at Eagles

With Cutler shredding the Eagles passing defense all week, we have to target Jarvis Landry ($6,000), DeVante Parker ($6,000), and Kenny Stills ($6,000) as potential top ten FanDuel NFL wide receiver targets on Thursday night.

I’m still not convinced Parker is an elite receiving talent, but DeVante is developing a rapport with Cutler right away.  However, we’re more excited about Jarvis’ ceiling with Jay slinging the rock to him now, and veteran Stills should see several targets on Thursday too.

The Eagles have a similar situation on Thursday, after Wentz and the Eagles passing game finally emerged this week against the Dolphins.  Alshon Jeffery ($6,000) seems to be grasping the Eagles offense this week, Torrey Smith ($6,000) looks to be more than a one or two big-play guy, and Neslon Agholor ($6,000) is settling in as the slot receiver with Matthews now on the Bills.  Of the three Eagles receivers, Jeffery has the most upside.

Panthers at Jaguars

The Jaguars passing game has been dreadful, except for Allen emerging toward the end of each game.  However, rookie Dede Westbrook ($6,000) has been a bright-spot and the coaching staff may mix Westrbook in with Henne at quarterback during the middle part of the game.  Westbrook is a sneaky pick at wide receiver Thursday.

The Panthers have a plethora of receiving options for Newton this Thursday.  Kelvin Benjamin ($6,000) is having a good summer and appears to be responding to rumors around his laziness and lack of production.  Curtis Samuel ($6,000) may finally get on the field Thursday, but we’re skeptical.  Keep an eye on news of Samuel potentially playing.  If Curtis gets the nod to play, he could be a good pivot option for any one of our three receivers.

FanDuel NFL Lineups: Preseason Week 3 Thursday – Tight End / Kicker / Defense

The options at tight end for Thursday night aren’t great.  But with Cam Newton back on the field with his offensive weapons around him, we have to expect Newton to target his favorite receiver a few times, Greg Olsen ($6,000).  Olsen has been active so far this preseason, and we have no reason, yet, to believe he’ll sit on Thursday.  He’s our best shot at decent points from the tight end position.

At kicker, I’m going to avoid the Carolina Panthers competition at the position, and look for the expected top offenses on Thursday, the Dolphins or the Eagles.  Each has a good shot at giving their kicker plenty of opportunity on the field, and I expect Caleb Sturgis ($6,000) to edge out Franks.

On defense, while the Panthers ($6,000) pass defending took a giant step back last season, they had one of the best run-defenders in the NFL.  And so far this season, the Panthers defense seems to be maturing and re-emerging, making them very attractive against a struggling Jacksonville Jaguars passing offense this preseason.

So after reviewing all the options, we put together our favorite lineup for the day.  Here’s a look at our Final FanDuel NFL Preseason Week 3 Thursday Lineup:

QB – Wentz (PHI)

RB – McCaffrey (CAR)

RB – Ajayi (MIA)

WR – Jeffrey (PHI)

WR – Landry (MIA)

WR – Benjamin (CAR)

TE – Olsen (CAR)

K – Sturgis (PHI)

D – Carolina Panthers

Once again, we have $6,000 left over, but there’s no way to avoid it.  Still, we have FanDuel to thank for finding a way to make the NFL preseason a more enjoyable event!

Next: Fantasy Football: Zero Running Back Strategy

Good luck with your FanDuel NFL plays Thursday night, and stay tuned to Fantasy CPR on Twitter for all the late breaking lineup news and roster updates!