Week 8 of the DraftKings main slate begins tomorrow. And we have quite the high-scoring slate. Seven games on the slate have an implied total over 45 points. Which means there are plenty of options on this main slate. Two games are at 54.5 implied points, and we are going to start with a quarterback from one of those games.
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Week 8 DraftKings Main Slate Picks
Quarterback
Favorite Play: Jacoby Brissett, Arizona Cardinals ($5,700)
Picking on the Dallas Cowboys is becoming a weekly thing. Their defense is struggling. And that is putting it nicely. They are giving up the ninth-most points per game. And the ninth-most fantasy points to opposing quarterbacks. The Cardinals are touchdown underdogs against Dallas this weekend. And they are already passing the ball the most in the league at 40.6 times per game. That sounds like a recipe for fantasy success. Brissett is a value on DraftKings at $5,700 and is an easy stack on DraftKings with Michael Wilson or Trey McBride.
Contrarian Play: Malik Willis, Miami Dolphins ($4,900)
Willis played his best game of the season last week against the New York Jets. Willis scored 26 DraftKings points last week in an impressive performance. Now Willis gets a tougher matchup against the New England Patriots. They are giving up the 12th most passing yards. However, they give up the tenth-fewest DraftKings points to opposing quarterbacks. Despite the tough matchup, Willis’s rushing upside at that salary is too good to pass up
Running Back
Favorite Play: Derrick Henry, Baltimore Ravens ($7,200)
Henry sees his salary dip dramatically after two poor outings. In both, he failed to eclipse seven points on DraftKings. Sinking any lineups he was in at his salary. Now, he gets Lamar Jackson back, which is as big of a boost as anything. And given their matchup against the Buffalo Bills, it explains why they are tied for the highest-scoring game on the slate at 54.5 points. Henry is also -240 to score a touchdown. A dominant RB1 who leads the league in carries with 147. Will now get to go against the defense giving up the fourth-most fantasy points to running backs. Henry is a high-end RB and a must-play on DraftKings
Contrarian Play: Chase Brown, Cincinnati Bengals ($6,300)
It is hard to believe that Chase Brown has not scored over 20 points on DraftKings yet this season. The running back has struggled and has started ceding touches to Samaje Perine on the goal line. However, the snap share is still where it should be, around 75%. The Tennessee Titans are giving up the seventh-most rushing yards. And tied for the seventh-most rushing touchdowns given up to opposing running backs. Brown will need a big showing to prove that the Bengals shouldn’t trade for another running back. And he can do that with an explosive run. The Titans give up the fourth-most 40+ yard runs. Brown struggled to start last season. And was the RB3 down the stretch last season. Let’s see if he can repeat that magic.
Wide Receiver
Favorite Play: Justin Jefferson, Minnesota Vikings ($7,100)
Jefferson has been lackluster since dropping 31.2 DraftKings points in Week 1 against the Green Bay Packers. In his other four games, Jefferson has 40.9 DraftKings points. It’s been a rough go for Jefferson. However, the Detroit Lions secondary is a great spot to target. They allow the fourth-most fantasy points to the wide receiver position. And the eighth-most receiving yards to the position. Minnesota is 31st in passing attempts per game. The team will need to up that number as they are 3.5-point underdogs against the Lions. Jefferson has the sixth-highest salary on DraftKings at wide receiver. He is a value for his matchup and talent level. Just be aware that many people will have the same idea on Sunday.
Contrarian Play: Garrett Wilson, New York Jets ($6,300)
It feels like Wilson is falling out of favor in New York. He only had nine targets in the past two games. He has fewer targets than Omar Cooper Jr. and Mason Taylor. Not a welcome sight for the top wide receiver on your team, who’s making the eighth most at the position. The Las Vegas Raiders provide a good matchup for Wilson. They run man coverage at the 11th-highest rate in the league. Wilson is 15th in yards per route run against man coverage. Wilson also leads the league in separation score. Fire up Wilson against the Raiders, who give up the fourth-most points per game in the league.
Tight End
Favorite Play: Hunter Henry, New England Patriots ($4,300)
Brock Bowers and Trey McBride are getting overly expensive on DraftKings. And rightly so; they lap the field in terms of points. DraftKings users will have to build lineups around those two. So the pivot is Hunter Henry. Henry has been quietly consistent, with four straight games with over 10 DraftKings points. The Miami Dolphins allow the second-most fantasy points to opposing tight ends. Add in that A.J. Brown is popping up on the injury report now with a knee injury. Henry could be a centerpiece of the offense in Week 8. The Patriots’ total is set at 25.25 points, the seventh-highest in the league. Expect Henry to contribute big, potentially as the offense’s top target.
Contrarian Play: Jake Ferguson, Dallas Cowboys ($4,100)
The Dallas Cowboys team total is the highest of the week at 30.75. They get to take on the Arizona Cardinals. So how could any member of their offense be contrarian? Well, Jake Ferguson did have zero DraftKings points last week. And Brevyn Spann-Ford’s snap count is creeping up toward Ferguson’s. Ferguson only had two more snaps than Spann-Ford last week.
Arizona gives up the seventh-most fantasy points. So, while Ferguson hasn’t been great, it is a great bounce-back spot for the tight end who’s scored three times already this season.
Final Thoughts
Picking the right chalk will be the name
of the game on DraftKings this week. Ownership will gravitate to those two top games. And trickle down to the ones that are over 45 implied points. This week promises to be high-scoring, and I wish everyone the best of luck on the Week 8 main slate.
Make sure to check out all of our Week 8 Fantasy Football Rankings and Analysis!
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