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DFS Three And Out 2017 week 2

By Bob Harris

Three DFS players I'm investing heavily in for tournament (GPP) play this week. ... And one I'm not.

I'm in:

Jacquizz Rodgers, RB, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
As ESPN's Matthew Berry pointed out, Rodgers "was a volume monster when he was the focal point last season and considering that the Bucs ranked seventh in time of possession while the Bears ranked 31st last season, Quizz should be among the touch leaders this weekend. ..." No doubt about that. In the last five games Doug Martin missed, Rodgers averaged 23 touches for 105 yards per game. So the workload will be there. But what can Rodgers do with it? There's hope there as well. Berry went on to note that the Bears didn't contact runners until they were 2.71 yards downfield (10th-highest rate) and last season, Rodgers averaged more yards per carry after first contact than Ezekiel Elliott, DeMarco Murray and Melvin Gordon. Rodgers ($4400 on DraftKings, $6600 on FanDuel) cuts well and is a compact, powerful runner. Concerns? According to the Chicago Tribune, the Bucs will try to get the Bears in their sub package and run on them, but NFL.com's Adam Rank chimed in with the notion that running backs who can catch the ball will be a better option against Chicago (Tevin Coleman had 12 touches, including four receptions for 42 yards, when the Falcons took on the Bears last week). So Charles Sims will chip in. Still, given the price (even if it's a bit higher on FanDuel) and anticipated workload, Rodgers will be a staple in my lineups this week.

Chris Hogan, WR, New England Patriots
Hogan had a pretty quiet opener. He caught one ball for eight yards despite being targeted five times, mostly well down the field. His biggest contributions actually came on three end-arounds totaling 17 yards. After tying for the NFL lead at nearly 18 yards per catch a year ago, Hogan could transition into a role as a more slot-based underneath threat given the injuries to Julian Edelman and Danny Amendola (concussion). And as ESPN's Mike Clay notes, assuming Amendola is out (and he didn't practice all week), Hogan -- who lined up inside on 65 percent of his routes in Week 1 -- will work inside against Saints CB P.J. Williams, who allowed 100 receiving yards (fifth-most in the league) on eight targets last Sunday. Hogan has the versatility to make plays on option routes and over the middle and could very well be asked to take over a role as that slot type beginning this week. With the Saints focused on stopping dangerous former teammate Brandin Cooks and tight end Rob Gronkowski, Hogan ($5600 on DraftKings, $6200 on FanDuel) could see an increase in both his targets and receptions in more of a volume role against a young, very much suspect Saints secondary that gave up a combined 16 catches for 249 yards and two touchdowns to Stefon Diggs and Adam Thielen last Monday night.

Coby Fleener, TE, New Orleans Saints
Fleener scored a touchdown and caught five of six targets for 54 yards against the Vikings last week adding to his resume of producing well will Willie Snead not on the field. As numberFire.com's JJ Zachariason notes, Snead was set to be the Saints' slot receiver this year, having run 77 percent of his routes last season from the slot, which was the 11th-highest rate in the league among 50-plus target wideouts. With Snead out, Fleener is serving as a de facto slot receiver. This isn't new. Look back to Week 3 of last season, when the Saints went up against Atlanta with Snead sidelined by a toe injury. During that game, Fleener played 77 percent of snaps (per Zachariason, the second-highest rate of his season) while catching 7 of 11 targets (better than a 20 percent target share) for 109 yards and a touchdown. It was his second-best fantasy performance of the season and the third-best of his entire career. So in two games as a Saint without Snead, Fleener has averaged 6 catches for 82 yards and a touchdown (on 8.5 targets). Whatever the case, Fleener will be in the mix again going up against a Patriots defense that was quite generous in Week 1. And the pricing ($3100 on DraftKings, $5300 on FanDuel) makes him even harder to resist.

I'm Out

Dez Bryant, WR, Dallas Cowboys
Since I can't go with T.Y. Hilton for a second-straight week (can I?), the search for another higher-profile/priced wideout yielded another guy I'll be avoiding this week (in addition to still avoiding Hilton, despite the Colts promoting Jacoby Brissett ahead of Scott Tolzien this week). So Dez, heading into the No Fly Zone secondary of the Broncos, is my huckleberry here. Granted, Bryant isn't without some hope. While he'll see plenty of Chris Harris Jr. and Aqib Talib, Dez will also run some of his routes against Bradley Roby. According to ESPN's Mike Clay, it's a spot where he can take advantage after Roby allowed four catches for 69 yards and one touchdown on eight targets against the Chargers. Still, Dez is pretty touchdown dependent. As Berry pointed out since the beginning of last season, Bryant is averaging just 7.1 PPR points in games in which he does not score a touchdown. Given his price ($6600 on DraftKings, $7600 on FanDuel), that kind of production won't cut it. Meanwhile, Denver allowed the fewest receptions, receiving yards and receiving touchdowns (just 13 total) last season. By the way, I considered going with Miami's DeVante Parker here given his matchup against the Chargers' dynamic cornerback duo of Casey Hayward and Jason Verrett, but the pricing ($5400 on DraftKings, $6400 on FanDuel) actually makes me think he's worth a share or two.