DFS Week 14 Lineup: Best Plays, Value Picks For Daily Fantasy Football
To all the fantasy football owners who didn’t make the playoffs in your season-long leagues: Welcome. We’re glad to have you along.
Week 14 features some terrific matchups across the NFL, from a clash of NFC titans in Los Angeles (Eagles-Rams) to a fascinating inter-conference matchup in Jacksonville (Seahawks-Jaguars). As usual, there are plenty of intriguing plays across the board in the daily fantasy realm, so let’s get right into it.
Here are our best plays and value picks at each position for Week 14.
QUARTERBACK
Best play: Carson Wentz, Philadelphia Eagles. It’s a rough week for quarterbacks, as the elite QBs all face difficult matchups. Wentz is in that category against a stout Los Angeles Rams defense, but something tells us he’ll bring a little extra in a showdown with Jared Goff, the only player taken ahead of him in the 2016 NFL Draft.
Value pick: Eli Manning, New York Giants. All right, we missed the mark a bit with Geno Smith last week. But we’re doubling down this Sunday to predict an Eli Manning Revenge Game. A new coach, an ax to grind and a Dallas Cowboys secondary that’s allowed at least two touchdown passes in five straight games? Crazier things have happened.
RUNNING BACK
Best play: Le’Veon Bell, Pittsburgh Steelers. If the Sunday night game is included in your contest, Bell is your man. He’s fresh off a 182-total-yard performance in Week 13 and lit up his Week 14 opponent, the Baltimore Ravens, for 186 total yards and two scores earlier this season. Outside of Bell, Rams running back Todd Gurley is the second-best play.
Value pick: Giovani Bernard, Cincinnati Bengals. You’ll need to check Joe Mixon’s status, but if the rookie running back can’t return from a concussion on a short week, Bernard is a great bargain play. The Chicago Bears have allowed 100-plus rushing yards in each of their last two games, and Bernard looked solid filling in for Mixon on Monday night.
WIDE RECEIVER
Best play: Antonio Brown, Pittsburgh Steelers. Brown managed eight catches for 101 yards and a TD on an injured toe last week and should see even more targets with JuJu Smith-Schuster suspended. If your contest doesn’t include Sunday night, the red-hot Keenan Allen is the next-best play.
Value pick: Marquise Goodwin, San Francisco 49ers. Goodwin is developing quite the rapport with Jimmy Garoppolo, who targeted the Niners’ top wideout eight times for 99 yards on eight catches last weekend. A matchup with the Houston Texans’ shaky secondary should yield another big day for Goodwin.
TIGHT END
Best play: Travis Kelce, Kansas City Chiefs. There’s no debate about the top fantasy tight end this week thanks to Rob Gronkowski’s one-game suspension. Kelce is a strong play versus an Oakland Raiders team that allowed seven catches, 99 yards and a score to Evan Engram last week.
Value pick: David Njoku, Cleveland Browns. The Green Bay Packers have been very stingy against opposing tight ends this year. But Josh Gordon’s return opened things up for Njoku last week to the tune of 74 receiving yards and a score, and we like that trend continuing despite the matchup.
DEFENSE
Best play: Los Angeles Chargers. The Chargers’ defense is red-hot and is primed to keep rolling at home against a Washington Redskins offense that’s allowed 36 fantasy points to opposing D/ST units over the last two weeks.
Value pick: Buffalo Bills. Buffalo’s defense has struggled of late, but all signs point to a rebound this Sunday, as the woeful Indianapolis Colts are in town with snow potentially in the forecast for Sunday.
