NFL DFS Bargain Bin: Week 14 Sunday Slates
NFL DFS Bargain Bin: Week 14 Sunday Slates Running Backs
James Conner, PIT at BUF ($6,300-DK/$6,500-FD)
Conner is priced a tad higher on DK than I prefer my value backs to be, but he’s well within the mid-range at the position salary-wise and is worth a roll of the dice for those playing in slates that encompass the Sunday night game. The fourth-year running back was taken off the reserve/COVID-19 list Wednesday and will thus get a full week of practice in for this favorable matchup. After missing the last two weeks and having his rush attempts relatively managed throughout the season, he should certainly have fresh legs. The Bills actually make for appealing targets as well, considering Buffalo is allowing a robust 130.8 rushing yards per home game and checks in ranked in the bottom half of the league with 4.54 adjusted line yards and RB yards per carry surrendered.
Then, coach Mike Tomlin has already said he’s optimistic about center Maurkice Pouncey, a key component of the ground game, coming off the reserve/COVID-19 list ahead of this game after receiving the designation Dec. 2, and Pittsburgh’s head man could also be leaning toward establishing the running game a bit more considering the amount of dropped balls his pass-catching corps has been plagued by lately. Finally, consider Conner also regularly sees multiple targets a game, and the Bills have given up an average of 4.7 receptions per contest to running backs.
Kenyan Drake, ARI at NYG ($5,500-DK/$6,500-FD)
Drake typically has a secure lead-back role that has yielded him double-digit carries in each game thus far this season, and although his receiving work isn’t voluminous by any stretch, he has seen multiple targets in five of the last six contests. The veteran is also logging a ton of red-zone work despite sharing the field with one of the most mobile QBs in the league, seeing between three and nine rush attempts inside the 20 in all but the opening game of the season, leading to a whopping 44 carries in that part of the field overall.
The Giants do have what appears to be an impressive run defense on the surface, allowing just 96.7 rushing yards per game for the season. However, there are a couple of holes to be poked in that number. One, that impressive figure is partly attributable to New York having faced the fourth-fewest rush attempts (228) in the league while absorbing the sixth-highest pass play percentage (61.48 percent). Additionally, the Giants have given up 4.24 RB yards per carry, a middle-of-the-pack number that further belies their cumulative per-game figure. Drake is averaging a solid 4.3 yards per carry in his own right, and although his passing game role has been mostly muted as mentioned earlier, it’s worth noting Big Blue has given up the second-most receptions (74) and most receiving yards (622) to running backs this season.