This article is part of our Yahoo DFS Football series.
TOURNAMENTS (GPP – GUARANTEED PRIZE POOL)
QB: Philip Rivers (LAC, $38)
Producing just one game with more than two TDs over his last eight contests, Rivers looks like a limited-upside option on the surface. However, he's been dealing lately, and it's just a matter of time before the big TD totals follow. He's averaged 366 yards over the last three weeks, and he'll be taking aim at the Chiefs this week. KC has one of the most atrocious secondaries in the league and they've done little to generate a consistent pass rush. With the AFC West title potentially on the line, this could easily be a shootout. Look for Rivers to come up huge.
RB: LeSean McCoy (BUF, $33)
There's no doubt that the Dolphins defense has been very leaky, as they've been a bottom 10 unit against the run this year. A closer look reveals that they've sunk further, as they've been a bottom five unit over roughly the last month. McCoy's been hurt by the fact that the Bills have been in some non-competitive games, which has taken away much of his volume. However, Miami hasn't been a very strong team, and the Bills, especially at home and likely in cold weather, should be able to keep the game close. That should allow McCoy to have one of his signature performances. Despite some shaky fantasy game totals, he's run for at least 6.1 yards per carry in three of his last five games along with a 4.9 average in a snowstorm last week. He's been money, and that should translate into fantasy production this week.
WR: Rishard Matthews (TEN, $21)
While Matthews was out, it was clear how much he meant to the Titans and their passing offense. He finally should be back to full health after returning to action last week from a hamstring injury that cost him two games. Although he'll face a 49ers defense that's been in the middle of the pack against WRs, they've had significant struggles with their boundary CBs. On the season, Matthews has already had three games with at least eight targets, and look for Marcus Mariota to dial up a deep shot or two as well, which could easily lead to him having one of his better days of the season. It also could help that this contest looks like it could be higher scoring that many might expect.
Other Against-the-Grainers
QB: Cam Newton (CAR, $35), Blake Bortles (JAC, $28)
RB: Devonta Freeman (ATL, $31), Jay Ajayi (PHI, $18), Jordan Howard (CHI, $28)
WR: Travis Benjamin, (LAC, $18), Julio Jones (ATL, $40), A.J. Green (CIN, $31)
TE: Jack Doyle (IND, $21), Kyle Rudolph (MIN, $18)
DST: Seattle Seahawks ($14), New Orleans Saints ($18)
CASH GAMES (H2H, 50/50s and DOUBLE UPS)
Quarterback
Kirk Cousins (WAS, $29)
There's no question that Cousins hasn't been a strong fantasy option since his O-line started to fall apart over the past month. In that time, any team with a strong pass rush has been able to crush the pocket and make the Redskins passing attack struggle. This week he'll be at home against the Cardinals, who'll travel cross country for this game, which could have them coming out a bit sluggish. Also, aside from Chandler Jones, there's not much of a consistent pass rush from the Cards to worry about. When Cousins goes back to pass, as long as he avoids Patrick Peterson, he'll find the Arizona secondary to be quite generous to WRs as they've been for most of the year.
Running Back
Alfred Morris (DAL, $21)
The Raiders have been a disappointment on defense this season, and that's a good starting point to use when making DFS lineups. Morris is in a great spot, especially since the Dallas O-line has re-established themselves as a great run-blocking unit over the past few weeks. Look for them to consistently get Morris to the second level on runs, which should lead to him flirting with 100 yards and hopefully finding his way into the end zone as well. Even though he was out-touched and out-produced by Rod Smith last week, Morris' physical style should help him against the Oakland defense. Dallas will want to control the clock, and he'll be a key cog in their attempt to do so.
Le'Veon Bell (PIT, $37)
It's so difficult to move away from paying up for the extreme volume that Bell provides each week. Even when he's not breaking off huge plays, the volume eventually has him putting up more points than the majority of RBs. He'll be facing the Patriots this week, and although they've improved, especially with their pass defense, they're still vulnerable against the run. Of course, they'll certainly pay plenty of attention to Bell, but regardless of whether he does it as a passer or a runner, his bottom line will be very useful, especially in an anticipated higher-scoring game.
Wide Receiver
Larry Fitzgerald (ARI, $29)
Give Blaine Gabbert tons of credit for realizing that the best way to be a successful QB in Arizona is to feed the ball to Fitzgerald. Over the last four weeks, he's had games with 13 and 15 targets, and that type of volume is extremely rare for any player to see. His matchup against the Redskins is better than it might appear. They have excellent boundary CBs, but they've had significant struggles in the slot, and that's the main area that opponents are able to attack. This certainly shouldn't profile to be a very low-scoring game, and it would almost be a surprise if Fitzgerald didn't flirt with double-digit targets, which should result in another strong performance.
Marqise Lee, (LAC, $21)
Although he always seems to be on the injury report, Lee has shown the toughness needed to suit up and play well on game day. Aside from a pair of games when he was held in check by CBs Jason McCourty and Patrick Peterson, he's otherwise been money for most of the season. He's posted at least 65 yards on seven different occasions, and he's also been targeted at least nine times in five of his last seven games. This week, he'll be facing a Texans secondary that's near the very bottom of the league in terms of production allowed to WRs. Not only does Lee have a solid floor this week, but he has upside as well.
Alshon Jeffery (PHI, $26)
After a bit of a slow start to the season, Jeffery's become an ultra-reliable weekly option. He's posted at least 60 yards in each of his last six games while also adding five TDs during that time. The good news is that he's been extremely efficient, as he's been targeted eight or fewer times in half of those games. It shouldn't matter that he'll be without Carson Wentz this week, as Nick Foles is a veteran QB who's capable of running the offense effectively. He'll have a matchup to exploit this week when he faces the Giants, who have lost a significant number of their defensive starters, including shutdown CB Janoris Jenkins. In addition, they haven't been able to generate a consistent pass rush. Put those elements together, and it's looking like another high-floor week for the Eagles top WR.
Tight End
Delanie Walker (SF, $21)
Amazingly, Walker looks like he's getting better, despite being one of the older skill position players in the league. Although he's averaging about seven targets over the last six games, last week was the only time he went for less than 63 yards during that span. He's also found the end zone in two of his last three games, and he's clearly playing at an elite level. He'll be in great position to continue his dominance against a 49ers secondary that is working without their two starting safeties. Look for Mariota to exploit this mismatch as Walker looks to get revenge on the team he started his career with before heading to Tennessee.
Defense/Special Teams
Philadelphia Eagles ($19)
It's very unlikely that the injury-depleted O-line of the Giants has much of a chance to have any type of sustained success against the incredible front seven of the Eagles. Not only will New York struggle to find success on the ground once they're in obvious pass situations, the Philly pass rush will give Eli Manning more trouble than he can handle. Despite this being a road game, this is an extremely safe lineup option.
Honorable Mentions
QB: Aaron Rodgers (GB, $37), Jimmy Garoppolo (SF, $27)
RB: Frank Gore (IND, $18), DeMarco Murray (TEN, $18), Alex Collins (BAL, $26)
WR: Golden Tate (DET, $24), Keenan Allen (LAC, $39), Robert Woods (LAR, $21)
TE: Rob Gronkowski (NE, $26), Greg Olsen (CAR, $18)
DST: Jacksonville Jaguars ($22), Minnesota Vikings ($14)
