NFL DFS Bargain Bin: Week 8 Sunday Slates
NFL DFS Bargain Bin: Week 8 Sunday Slates Wide Receivers
Henry Ruggs III, LV at CLE ($4,900-DK/$5,700-FD)
Much like Newton, Ruggs perfectly fits the profile of a tournament play, especially for large-field contests. The rookie’s elite speed allows him to potentially pay off on just a handful of targets, but he also brings the risk that a player with a massive average depth of target of 21.1 yards typically carries. Despite the inherent uncertainty you have to embrace when rostering him, Ruggs is in a favorable enough spot to consider him in Week 8. As the Bengals’ Joe Burrow amply demonstrated in Week 7, Cleveland’s secondary is highly targetable, and the Browns come in allowing the third-most passing yards per game (288.1), as well as the second-most DK (50.0) and FD (40.6) points per contest to wide receivers. They’re also giving up a healthy 12.9 yards per grab to wideouts and have surrendered the second-most receiving touchdowns to the position (11), making them a tantalizing target for a player of Ruggs’ upside.
A.J. Green, CIN vs. TEN ($4,500-DK/$5,800-FD)
In a fitting reminder of how unpredictable the NFL can be, Green has impressively bounced back from a forgettable Week 4-5 span where he secured one of six targets for three yards. While Green still has just a 50.0 percent catch rate on the campaign, that figure is actually considerably on the rise, courtesy of the 15 receptions (on 24 targets) for 178 yards he’s posted in the last pair of contests. With the talented veteran seemingly back on track, he now draws a matchup versus a Titans secondary that sprung its share of leaks this season. Tennessee comes in having surrendered a 103-1,169-9 line to receivers over its first six games, along with averages of 47.7 DK/37.4 FD points per contest to the position. Green has an impressive 20.4 percent of Cincy’s targets thus far, making him a reliable bet to remain heavily involved.
Rashard Higgins, CLE vs. LV ($4,200-DK/$5,500-FD)
Higgins is in line to take over No. 2 receiver duties as part of the domino effect of Odell Beckham‘s season-ending ACL tear, but his salaries certainly don’t reflect what will be a significantly expanded role beginning in Week 8’s highly favorable matchup. The fifth-year wideout already began providing glimpses of his potential production with the added opportunity, posting a 6-110 line in emergency duty against the Bengals in Week 7. While rookie Donovan Peoples-Jones opened some eyes as well against Cincinnati, Higgins has the experience to capitalize on the matchup versus the porous Raiders secondary. Although Las Vegas has allowed a modest 74 receptions to wideouts over the first six games, they’ve come with the Raiders surrendering a 69.2 percent catch rate and have also included seven receiving touchdowns. Those numbers have translated to 40.4 DK/32.8 FD points per game allowed to receivers, figures that bode well for Higgins offering a solid return on his very affordable salaries.