Week 4 Lessons Learned: Amari Cooper Ceiling Week

by Tyler Strong, October 5, 2020

Give an athletic phenom 16 targets in the perfect Game Script, and that’s the Amari Cooper ceiling scenario. Cooper racked up 134 yards and a score on 12 catches in a game where Dak Prescott had over 500 passing yards. The Cowboys can’t stop anyone, and it makes for unreal passing volume. Cooper is a top-5 play going forward, especially as Michael Gallup fades further into the ether. 

Joe Mixon ran well against the poor Jaguars defense, with a long burst of 34 yards. The offensive line woes for the Bengals have been highly publicized, but Joe Burrow’s continued improvement week over week has forced defenses to spread out against the balanced attack. Mixon will attempt to continue his success against… the Baltimore Ravens. He makes for a choice tournament play with a precocious Joe Burrow ready to do battle with a Ravens team that’s shown unevenness in games they trail.

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The Infirmary- Week 4 Injury Report

by The “Mad Chatter” Ryan MK, October 4, 2020

A big question mark for Monday Night, Davante Adams practiced in limited fashion on Saturday. In addition to the Allen Lazard injury, this may leave quarterback Aaron Rodgers with a cast of wideouts led by Marquez Valdes-Scantling. Robert Tonyan anyone? He’s caught a touchdown each of the last two weeks, garnering five targets for five receptions including the TD in Adams’ absence versus the Saints. It appears he’s earned some semblance of Rodgers’ trust, which could be huge come Monday Night.

Plenty of teams are suffering multiple injuries, a few nearly decimated at one position. The Eagles, for example, continue to play thin at wide receiver and the injury to Dallas Goedert exacerbates the situation, given he’s out multiple weeks. Greg Ward needs to be in lineups this Sunday, if it wasn’t already obvious. However, don’t forget about Philadelphia’s two rookie wide receivers, John Hightower and Quez Watkins, the latter of which is set to return from I.R.

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Top DFS Flex Value Plays for Week 4

by Taylor Smith, October 4, 2020

Without the top two corners in New Orleans, this matchup with the Lions should be a shootout. That will benefit Tre’Quan Smith the most as the de facto alpha receiving option for New Orleans. Detroit ranks No. 27 in Defensive DVOA, so the Saints will have ease moving the ball even with Drew Brees’ deteriorating arm. This matchup is tied for the second-highest total on the slate at 54.5 points, so stacking this game looks viable for tournaments given these affordable prices.

Adam Trautman should slide right into Jared Cook’s role as a big-bodied move tight end having already played out of the slot on 35.9-percent of his snaps this season. He clearly has the talent and will now get the opportunity in an offense commanded by the most accurate QB of all time with a creative offensive play-caller. The game environment sets up well for this min-priced TE and he offers some much-needed salary relief for cash game lineups.

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Expected Points Added (EPA): What It Is and How to Use It

by Josh Larky, October 3, 2020

Carson Wentz hasn’t been great for fantasy in 2020, but he hasn’t been terrible. In Weeks 1-3, he’s recorded 15.0, 14.4, and 23.5 fantasy points. Look at his EPA though, and you’ll see that his -22.6 ranks second-lowest of all quarterbacks through three weeks, in front of only Sam Darnold. With three passing TDs, six INTs, and a paltry 5.6 yards per attempt, Wentz will need to step it up if he wants to remain the starter in Philadelphia.

EPA has been added to PlayerProfiler to help you become a more well-rounded football fan, but more importantly, to help you get better at dynasty. Jalen Hurts is a Konami code QB with elite speed and burst, but he’s stuck behind 2017 MVP finalist Wentz. Utilizing EPA, we can now see that Hurts is a great dynasty stash. Not just for his rushing ability, but because the guy in front of him on the depth chart has “added” -22.6 points to his team thanks to his erratic throws and poor decision-making.

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NFL Monkey Knife Fight Props: Week 4

by Cody Carpentier, October 3, 2020

There is nothing like getting some skin on a Sunday or Monday Night Football shootout. The game with the highest point total on the slate is the last game, Atlanta @ Green Bay on Monday Night. Green Bay has allowed five touchdowns to running backs, third-most in the league, while Atlanta has given up four of their own. While Aaron Jones leads the league in rushing touchdowns, the Packers lead the league in scoring, averaging a whopping 41 points.

If Ryan Fitzpatrick and the Dolphins can push Russell Wilson to throw more then he needs to on Sunday, 607.5 combined passing yards will be a cakewalk. If you are confident in this game shooting out, you can move up to 663.5 or 720.5 combined passing yards for increased odds. With a Projected 53-point game total, Vegas is predicting a little Fitzmagic in Miami on Sunday. Are you?

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Week 3 Usage Rates: Buy David Montgomery, Sell Todd Gurley Ahead Of Week 4

by Joshua Kellem, October 3, 2020

Averaging 12.5 (No. 26) Fantasy Points per Game, David Montgomery is in line to become a full-time player – 70-percent Snap Share or higher – with a slight uptick in touches. He averaged 14 carries and three targets per game before Tarik Cohen’s injury. Hurting Montgomery’s case, though, is that the Bears rank in the bottom half of the league with 19 running back targets. Montgomery is a volume-based RB2 moving forward. If he can push for 20 touches with Nick Foles at quarterback, his fantasy football outlook is optimal.

Despite the great opportunity, Evan Engram’s production is lackluster. He has a 35-percent (No. 10 among qualified tight ends) Slot Rate with 56 (No. 5) Slot Snaps, emphasizing his passing game utilization. He’s commanded 20 (No. 7) targets on a Giants team averaging 40.7 (No. 7) Team Pass Plays Per Game. Lastly, his Target Share is decent at 18.9-percent (No. 9), though he only has a 17.9-percent (No. 48) Target Rate. Basically, he’s not commanding a dominant share of the targets, nor is he targeted on a dominant rate of the routes he runs.

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Air Yards DFS Value Index – Week 4

by Edward DeLauter, October 2, 2020

Is it really paying up when D.J. Moore is priced at $5,600 or is it just outright theft? The Air Yards Value Score leader entering Week 4, Moore has thus far failed to meet expectations this year, posting only one fantasy WR1 week. With 139 (No. 19 among qualified wide receivers) Unrealized Air Yards, a WR1 week is coming soon. Look for Moore to get back on track this week against the Cardinals.

John Brown has formed a formidable one-two punch with new teammate Stefon Diggs as part of a revamped Buffalo passing attack. While Diggs has averaged 20.6 (No. 6) Fantasy Points per Game to Brown’s 12.4 (No. 37) mark, it’s Smokey who leads the Bills in Air Yards through three weeks. With 171 (No. 11) Unrealized Air Yards, this may finally be the week where Brown outscores Diggs in fantasy points.

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Wide Receiver-Cornerback Matchups to Target and Avoid: Fantasy Football Week 4

by Aaron Stewart, October 2, 2020

Kenny Golladay secured a 22.6-percent (No. 20 among qualified wide receivers) Target Rate in his first game back from injury and averaged 2.53 (No. 16) Fantasy Points Per Target. Lattimore allows 18.6 (No. 69) Yards per Reception. On the other side, Golladay averaged 18.3 (No. 4) Yards per Reception last season. It feels weird to say that Lattimore is the cornerback matchup to target here, but his 2020 season has been downright horrible. This is a wheels up situation.

To say that Tavierre Thomas has struggled in 2020 is an understatement. His 23.1-percent Burn Rate is fourth-highest among all cornerbacks, while his 139.1 Passer Rating Allowed is only better than 11 cornerbacks in the league. CeeDee Lamb averages 1.90 (No. 46) Fantasy Points Per Target, while Thomas allows 2.50 Fantasy Points Per Target. Amari Cooper may receive more targets than Lamb this week, but Lamb will do more with each of his targets than Cooper will against Denzel Ward.

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Upside Wide Receivers For Week 4 GPPs

by Alex Johnson, October 2, 2020

DeVante Parker has a mouth-watering Week 4 matchup with the Seahawks, who have become the first team in NFL history to allow 1,200 passing yards in three games. With the Seattle offense playing as well as it has, Game Script should call for heavy pass volume on the Miami side. Parker is only $5,700 on Draftkings in a week where he can feasibly finish as a top-five wideout.

Tee Higgins has seen his Snap Share increase every week and is now a starter in this Bengals offense. He draws a Jaguars defense in Week 4 that allowed Ryan Fitzpatrick to set a Dolphins franchise record, completing 90-percent of his Week 3 pass attempts. It might feel like chasing points, but the peripherals say he’s here to stay. At $4,500 on Draftkings, this future alpha is a nice Week 4 value play.

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Weighted Opportunities DFS Value Index – Week 4

by Sean McClure, October 2, 2020

Fantasy football does not have to be hard. David Montgomery ranks No. 1 among this list of 10 players in a volume-driven metric that has no idea Tarik Cohen is out for the season. Montgomery was already seeing over 65-percent of Chicago’s opportunities and will now be a true workhorse. Nick Foles takes over the offense, which should increase the team’s play volume, touchdown potential, and efficiency. This is a rare opportunity to get this large of a projected workload at under $6,000.

Devin Singletary’s Opportunity Share and per-game numbers are inflated by Zack Moss’ Week 3 absence. Yet, Singletary has been much more involved in the passing game this season. The Bills are now among the top offenses in the league, which leaves room for both Moss and Singletary to be productive in their roles. Singletary’s red zone usage compared to Moss is worth monitoring, but Singletary is among the top plays of the week in a plus-matchup against the Raiders.

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