If you've never played weekly salary-cap fantasy games, you’re missing out on what’s quickly becoming the hottest new trend in fantasy football and a great way to make some quick cash. No longer are you locked into a team for an entire season (or longer) and subject to the pain of injuries and poor performance. Instead, each week you pick a new set of players to fill your lineup. This is an exciting format that takes away a lot of the stress that goes with season-long fantasy leagues.
For those not familiar with DraftKings’ format, you are awarded a total budget of $50,000 to fill a roster of nine players (QB, RB1, RB2, WR1, WR2, TE, FLEX (RB/WR/TE), K and DST). You must pick players from at least two different NFL teams that represent two different games that week. The scoring rules are similar to most PPR scoring leagues, but you can check out the details over at DraftKings for more information there.
Now that we've gotten the introductory information out of the way, here’s the most valuable DraftKings lineup for Week 8.
Quarterback
Robert Griffin III, Washington Redskins ($8,000)
Griffin III continues to improve and is finally starting to look like the stud he was last year, which indicates an uptick in production moving forward. This week, Griffin III and Washington get to take on the Denver Broncos’ 20th-ranked pass coverage unit, sporting a -12.2 grade and allowing the most fantasy points-per-game to opposing quarterbacks with 20.1. Griffin III is averaging 21 fantasy PPG this year on DraftKings and should put up a ton of garbage time points against the Broncos this weekend.
Running Back
Eddie Lacy, Green Bay Packers ($6,100)
Lacy has rattled off three-straight games with 100-plus total yards of production and is currently averaging 12.6 PPG on DraftKings. With the Packers suffering another blow to the receiver corp with Jermichael Finley’s injury, look for them to feed the ball to Lacy — especially this week against the Vikings 26th ranked run defense with a -16.0 grade. They’re also allowing 21 fantasy PPG to opposing running backs, which is second most in the league.
Knowshon Moreno, Denver Broncos ($6,000)
Moreno is a great value at just $6,000, seeing as he’s the fifth best fantasy running back this season, averaging 18.9 PPG. The Redskins are ranked 30th in run defense with an abysmal -33.3 grade and are allowing 22.3 PPG to opposing ‘backs, which is currently the most in the league. If Denver can jump out ahead of Washington's terrible defense, they will look to slow things down and pound the ball with Moreno, which sets him up for a ton of points this weekend.
Wide Receiver
DeSean Jackson, Philadelphia Eagles ($6,700)
Jackson is obviously the best weapon that the Eagles currently possess in the passing game and will be Michael Vick’s top target this week, as usual. Jackson will be going up against the New York Giants’ pass-coverage unit is ranked 21st with a -14.2 grade and are giving up 22.4 PPG to opposing receivers. With New York struggling heavily on defense and Jackson averaging 19.6 points per game, he’s a great start this week.
Pierre Garçon, Washington Redskins ($6,200)
This goes back to starting RG3. If you’re going to play him, you might as well play his No. 1 target as well. Especially with Denver giving up over 27 PPG to opposing receivers this season.
Tight End
Tony Gonzalez, Atlanta Falcons ($6,300)
Julio Jones is out for the season and Roddy White is still dealing with a nagging injury, which leaves Gonzalez as the obvious No. 1 target. The Arizona Cardinals are the worst defense against fantasy tight ends this season, allowing a league-high 16.3 PPG. With Gonzalez receiving the bulk of the targets this weekend, he’s obviously going to have a huge day.
Flex
Terrance Williams, Dallas Cowboys ($4,900)
Williams has come on strong in recent weeks and established himself as the true No. 2 receiver in Dallas, catching a touchdown in each of the last-three games. The Detroit Lions’ secondary is ranked fifth this season with a +10.8 grade, but still allow too many big plays per game and are allowing the sixth-most fantasy PPG to opposing receivers with 25.6. Dallas loves to air it out, so even if Dez Bryant gets a little more than half of those points, that leaves Williams with around 11-plus, which is right on track with his season average of 12.0 PPG. He’s a tremendous value at just $4,900.
Kicker
Sebastian Janikowski, Oakland Raiders ($3,000)
The Raiders have shown that they can keep up with some talented teams, which the Pittsburgh Steelers really aren't this season. This should leave Janikowski with ample opportunity to rack up points this weekend. He’s a good value in the cheapest kicker price bracket and should be able to easily give you seven points or more.
Defense and Special Teams
Miami Dolphins ($2,600)
Miami’s defense is averaging 7.5 fantasy PPG this season which is about what you can expect from them against the New England Patriots. While that isn't a whole lot of fantasy production, it’s enough to get the job done and is a great value at just $2,600.
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