DraftKings NFL Week 1 DFS Ownership Projections

Week 1 RBs – DraftKings NFL week 1 highest projected ownership

• Dalvin Cook

• Chris Carson

• Christian McCaffrey

• Austin Ekeler

• Saquon Barkley

• Leonard Fournette

Dalvin Cook ($6000) returns to the Vikings offense in his third year after struggling with injuries in the first two. His price on this slate has skyrocketed him to the top of the ownership projections and he should be over 20% on Sunday’s main slate.

Cook had a solid presence in the passing game last season and will instantly be re-inserted should Stefon Diggs be out or limited. He faces a Falcons defense that allowed the 4th most DK points to opposing rushing attacks last season a 30 DK points per game. He had an excellent preseason and should be in the game for at least 60% of the snaps. It will be tough to fade Cook so start planning on other contrarian plays across the board.

With Rashaad Penny falling quickly, Chris Carson ($5700) has solidified himself as the undoubted #1 in Seattle. In 14 games last season, Carson had 1151 yards and 9 TD on the ground and added 20 receptions for 163 yards through the air.

Despite his high ownership projections, it will be incredibly hard to fade Carson with the Seahawks facing a Bengals team that allowed the most DK points per game (31.7) to opposing RBs last season. With a light rain and wind expected on Sunday, expect Seattle to pound the ball against Cincinnati.

Christian McCaffrey ($8800) is the third highest priced running back on the slate behind Ezekiel Elliott and Saquon Barkley in a match up against the Los Angeles Rams who were among the middle of the pack against running backs last season. McCaffrey was a fantasy monster last season with 1,945 all-purpose yards, 7 rushing TDs, 107 receptions (on 124 targets) and 6 receiving TDs after starting all 16 games last season. McCaffrey has possibly the highest floor on the slate with an average of 21.06 touches per game last season including 7.75 targets per game.

Austin Ekeler ($5500) will be the main replacement for Melvin Gordon in his absence to start the year for the Chargers. Even with Melvin Gordon in the fold for most of 2018, Ekeler was still able to put up 958 all-purpose yards with 6 TDs.

Similar to the Philip Rivers situation, Ekeler could be the beneficiary to a high-paced Colts offense with a new starting QB and could see a lot of action if Indianapolis struggles to keep the Chargers off the field. At $5500 and a sub-20% ownership tag, Ekeler is a relatively safe play on DraftKings.

Saquon Barkley ($9000) clocks in as the second highest priced RB on the slate behind only Zeke Elliott. Barkley enters his sophomore season after an absurd 2028 all-purpose yards, 15 touchdown and 91 reception season.

I’m not sure it’s possible but he may even get MORE touches this season with the absence of Odell Beckham Jr (now with Browns). Barkley faces a Cowboys defense that was among the top 15 against opposing RBs last season. That being said, Barkley put up 137 rushing yards on 28 carries with 1 TD and 18 receptions for 113 yards against Dallas last season which was relatively quiet compared to his other performances last season.

Leonard Fournette ($6100) will enjoy a juicy match up against a Chiefs defense that allowed the 3rd most DraftKings points per game to opposing RBs last season at 30.9 and dead last in DVOA against the run.

Fournette is one of the elite talents in the league but has struggled with injury woes in his first two seasons. But DFS is a week-by-week game so Fournette is a great option in Week 1 vs. Kansas City. With his price tag, reasonable ownership level, high game total expected and his high share of carries expected, Fournette becomes one of my favorite plays on the slate.

Other players with high ownership: Nick Chubb, David Johnson, Mark Ingram, Ezekiel Elliot

Who Should I Play Out Of The Chalk?

I will be leaning towards the running backs in the mid-tier of pricing this weekend who are all in great spots. My lineups will have heavy exposure to Dalvin Cook, Chris Carson and Leonard Fournette based on the savings they offer and a few awesome match ups, specifically Carson and Fournette.