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If you’ve never played weekly salary cap games, you’re missing out on an exciting game to play throughout the NFL season. The game that we’ll be breaking down in this weekly article is for the website FanDuel.
For those of you that have never played a salary cap game before, I’ll quickly go over the rules so you can understand how these games work. Each player is given a monetary value based on statistics, matchups and that player’s hype. You then try to create the ideal lineup using as salary cap, such as $60,000.
The purpose of this weekly article is to point out the best values each week so you can make the most ideal lineup. A few positions you’ll never see on this article is defenses and kickers. With these positions you’re just basically looking for the most ideal matchup, whether that’s a rookie quarterback for a defense or a terrible defense for a kicker.
With all this information, let’s now take a look at some of the most ideal matchups over at FanDuel. We’ll also give you an ideal lineup using these bargain players while also breaking down a handful of huge upside plays for the riskier folks out there.
Ideal Matchup at Each Position
Quarterback – Thad Lewis, Buffalo Bills
Lewis started his first game of the season last week for the Bills and was quite impressive in his debut. In fact, impressive might not be a strong enough word. Lewis graded out as the ninth-best quarterback in Week 6, ahead of studs like Peyton Manning, Andrew Luck and Aaron Rodgers. With the easier defense of the Miami Dolphins this week, Lewis should be able to keep up this type of play for at least another week. And with a cost of only $5,500, starting Lewis could pay off huge for your team.
Running Back – Joseph Randle, Dallas Cowboys
While Randle only played 24 snaps and posted a grade of -1.3, things are looking up this week. For starters, Randle should get a much larger work load for the Cowboys. Starting back DeMarco Murray isn’t practicing and Randle has been taking first-team snaps. His matchup is against the Philadelphia Eagles, and while they have an above-average run defense, the Cowboys will need Randle to run well in order to set up their potent passing game. Randle’s cost is only $5,500, which is ridiculously low for a back that should get the majority of the carries for a top offensive team.
Wide Receiver – Jarrett Boykin, Green Bay Packers
The Packers misfortune with injuries gives you a rather good deal at wide receiver this week. Boykin is our best-value play this week with a cost of only $5,000. He looked rocky at times last week, especially with his two dropped passes, but once Boykin got the ball in his hands you could easily see his ability to make big plays. On his lone reception, Boykin picked up 44 yards after the catch while breaking three tackles along the way. He’s got a favorable matchup against the Cleveland Browns this week and should see plenty of passes coming his way. As long as he can catch them and not drop them, Boykin has the potential to put up some really solid numbers.
Tight End – Joseph Fauria, Detroit Lions
It may seem a little strange to play a player who only has seven receptions and nine targets on the year. However, when five of those seven receptions have gone for touchdowns, it makes the decision a little easier. With a cost of only $5,200 this week, Fauria has the potential to pay off in a huge way. Is he likely to catch another three touchdowns this week? Probably not, but the fact that it’s even a possibility means you have to take a chance on him.
Ideal $60K Salary Team
Last week we looked at the ideal team with a salary cap of $55K. This week we’ll up our salary cap a little and take a look at the ideal $60K salary team. With a higher salary cap to work with, you can spend a little more on players who have fantastic matchups.
However, you still need to be able to find value picks at a number of positions, which is exactly what we’ve done below.
QB – Jay Culter, Chicago Bears ($7,900) – Chicago plays the Washington Redskins this week. Considering Washington currently boasts the second-worst graded pass defense in the NFL with a grade of -28.7, I’d say Cutler has a good shot at putting up rather significant numbers this week.
RB – Alfred Morris, Washington Redskins ($8,000) – Let’s stick with the Chicago-Washington game and look at what Morris will be running against this week. The Bears have the second-worst run defense in the league with a -27.4 grade. With Robert Griffin III continuing to struggle, look for the Redskins to pound the ball to Morris.
RB – Joseph Randle, Dallas Cowboys ($5,500) – With DeMarco Murray sidelined for Sunday’s game, Randle becomes the No. 1 back for Dallas. While the Philadelphia Eagles have a decent run defense, this game has the makings of being a complete shootout. Don’t be surprised if Randle does a good amount of damage as a receiver as well as on the ground to post some solid numbers this week.
WR – Demaryius Thomas, Denver Broncos ($8,200) – Thomas is coming off back-to-back mediocre performances, which means he’s due for a big game. With the Indianapolis Colts on the schedule this week, and all the drama surrounding Peyton Manning and Jim Irsay, you can be sure that the Broncos are going to want to score as much as possible this week. Look for Thomas to get back on trick in a big way against the Colts in Week 7.
WR – Justin Blackmon, Jacksonville Jaguars ($7,100) – There is no doubting the talent level of Blackmon. Unfortunately, he’s stuck with terrible quarterbacks throwing him the ball. However, that didn’t stop him from catching 14 balls for 190 yards last week. With the San Diego Chargers and their dead-last pass defense on the schedule this week, Blackmon has a serious shot at posting even better numbers this week.
WR – Jarrett Boykin, Green Bay Packers ($5,000) – With Randall Cobb out and James Jones potentially out for this game, Boykin becomes a rather important player for the Packers offense. He was targeted five times last week in a little over a half, and while he caught only one pass, it did go for a whopping 43 yards. Boykin should be plenty involved in the Packers offense this week, so he should be able to have a great game.
TE – Joseph Fauria, Detroit Lions ($5,200) – All Fauria does is catch touchdowns. He had three receptions last week and all three went for six points. That was enough to give him a 3.2 grade in Week 6, the third-best grade for any tight end. With Fauria’s efficiency in the red zone, he should have no trouble continuing to catch touchdowns.
K – Alex Henery, Philadelphia Eagles ($5,300) – Remember how we just talked about the Eagles and Cowboys having an offensive shootout this week? Well, Henery should have plenty of opportunities to continue his success as one of the premier fantasy kickers this year.
DEF – Kansas City Chiefs ($6,000) – In terms of fantasy football, and real-life football, the Chiefs have one of the best defenses in the league. And with a matchup against the pick-six Houston Texans, that shouldn’t change this week. If the Chiefs cost was $10,000 this week, they’d be a must start.
High Upside Picks
Josh Freeman, QB, Minnesota Vikings
It didn’t take long for Freeman to get the starting job in Minnesota, and now he has a chance to prove that the Vikings didn’t make a poor decision by signing him. Freeman plays the New York Giants this week, which just happen to have the ninth-worst pass defense in the league. While Freeman absolutely stunk it up for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, nothing is better motivation than a chance to prove everyone was wrong about you. At a cost of only $5,000 this week, Freeman could pay off in a huge way.
Zac Stacy, RB, St. Louis Rams
The fact that Stacy only costs $4,900 this week should be considered highway robbery. Over the past two weeks, Stacy has cemented his status as the No. 1 back for the Rams. Stacy played in 38 of the Rams’ 47 offensive snaps last week and posted a respectable grade of +2.2. With a matchup against the Carolina Panthers’ mediocre defense, look for Stacy to have the best game of his rookie season this week.
Harry Douglas, WR, Atlanta Falcons
Julio Jones is out for the season. Roddy White is still injured and playing like a shell of his former self when he is on the field. That leaves Douglas as the No. 1 receiver for quarterback Matt Ryan this week against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Yes, he’ll likely have to play against Darrelle Revis for the majority of the game, but he should get plenty of targets. At only $4,800, his upside is simply too good to overlook.
Jeff Cumberland, TE, New York Jets
Sure, the Jets offense isn’t exactly the most potent in the league, but Cumberland has developed into a rather nice option for quarterback Geno Smith the past few weeks. He’s posted positive grades of 1.7, 2.4 and 2.2 the last three games and has seen his snap count increase in each contest. His cost is only $4,600 this week. At that cost, his upside outweighs the big gamble of playing an offensive player from the Jets.
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