It’s that time of year again, folks. It’s time to throw your hats in the ring in the DraftKings main slates. Whether it’s the Milly Maker, the Fair Catch, the Play Action, or one of the many other smaller contests, everyone wants to get in on the action in Week 1. So let’s get you prepared for the streets and see what kind of lineups we can cook up.
Las Vegas Raiders @ New England Patriots
The Patriots are currently 3-point favorites at home to start the season, with a new (but also not new) coaching staff and a lot of new personnel. New England spent copious amounts of money in free agency to beef up their roster, and we get to see how they plan to deploy their revamped offense with second-year QB Drake Maye in their first home game of the season.
My Targets:
Drake Maye – $5,500
Stefon Diggs – $5,300
Hunter Henry – $3,900
I think Drake Maye unstacked is totally fine, as his upside is that he will run more than his salary would have you believe. However, I also think a single stack with either Diggs or Henry is a great way to save some money at QB and WR, or TE.
For the Las Vegas Raiders, Geno Smith is the new sheriff in town under new coach Pete Carroll. Vegas added high-profile running back Ashton Jeanty in the first round of the NFL draft, pairing him with superstar tight end Brock Bowers and the stalwart (and now disgruntled) Jakobi Meyers. So why are they underdogs? We don’t know exactly how good their offense will be yet, and while talented, their defense is still suspect.
My Targets:
Ashton Jeanty – $7,000
Brock Bowers – $6,500
Dont’e Thornton Jr. – $3,600
While I’m not opposed to Geno Smith, I’m not sure he can get the passing volume from a yards perspective to truly be a difference maker in your lineup. If you disagree, though, I think a Raiders double stack makes a ton of sense as a less-owned game stack, especially if you take a rookie shot on the big play upside of Dont’e Thornton Jr.
Carolina Panthers @ Jacksonville Jaguars
Jacksonville are 3.5-point favorite at home against the Carolina Panthers, once again sporting a new coaching staff and an exciting new offensive mind at the helm. Travis Hunter is going to play both sides of the ball. Trevor Lawrence needs to finally prove that he’s actually a franchise quarterback. Also, the running back room is an absolute mess to figure out right now. But I’m all in, baby.
My Targets:
Trevor Lawrence – $5,300
Brian Thomas Jr – $6,800
Travis Hunter – $5,000
Brenton Strange – $3,300
I love stacking this game. The Panthers’ defense was awful last season, and I don’t think a healthy Derrick Brown and their offseason additions will turn that crew around enough to not attack them early in the season. TLaw is too cheap, Brian Thomas Jr. is the cheapest true alpha on the slate, while Strange is a great budget tight end, and Travis Hunter is priced well for the amount of upside he represents.
Carolina finally has the slightest sliver of hope for the first time since they drafted Bryce Young, in part because Bryce Young progressed from the worst quarterback in statistical history through his first year and a half to an actual okay quarterback the back half of last year. Add in rookie wide receiver Tetairoa McMillan to the team, and the offense feels like it could give you some juice for the first time in a while.
My Targets:
Tetairoa McMillan – $5,200
Xavier Legette – $4,200
Ja’Tavion Sanders – $2,900
Similar to Geno, I think Bryce is a perfectly fine quarterback to play, but I like the cheaper Lawrence more in the same game. I love the Carolina pass-catchers, though. This will be the cheapest McMillan is all season, and Sanders and Legette could both be the second target on the team.
Arizona Cardinals @ New Orleans Saints
Despite being at home, the Saints are 6.5-point dogs, with yet another new head coach in Kellen Moore and a roster that feels like it may finally be on the unfortunate front end of finally being rebuilt. With that comes the worst quarterback room in the league, which is impressive considering the Browns exist. It’s hard to feel great about anyone on this team, but I do have one sneaky name that I think is playable in Week 1.
My Target:
Chris Olave – $5,100
This is definitely not an offense to stack up. If you want to put your chances of a million dollars on the shoulders of Spencer Rattler, peace be with you. For me, Olave has a target floor to give you points, and a lucky touchdown or two, and can give you a leg up on an unpopular player with so many other enticing options out there.
Meanwhile, for Arizona, there was basically no meaningful change to the personnel on offense. The ball still goes through James Conner, and the passing offense still only has two real weapons to focus on. The biggest question facing the Cardinals is how big a step Marvin Harrison Jr. will take.
My Targets:
Trey McBride – $6,200
James Conner – $6,200
Marvin Harrison Jr. – $5,500
I personally wouldn’t giga-stack the Cardinals, despite being huge favorites. I would either play Conner and no one else, or play Kyler and pick one of the two pass-catchers to dart throw going nuclear this week. I’m expecting a bit of a blowout, to be honest, and it’s not a fun bet to make to try and catch all the fantasy points in the short time the Cardinals are scoring the points.
Cincinnati Bengals @ Cleveland Browns
Buckle up, folks. This may be the only game you can play a Browns player in DFS all year, and boy howdy is it a doozy of a game. Cleveland are 5.5 home underdogs, and they face the world-beating offense and high school-level defense of the Cincinnati Bengals. With little to no resistance from Cincinnati, I am all-in on Cleveland pieces in this game.
My Targets:
Joe Flacco – $4,900
Jerry Jeudy – $5,400
David Njoku – $4,700
Harold Fannin Jr – $3,100
This is my favorite stack of the slate. You can stack 2-3 pass-catchers with Flacco for cheap (yes, even Harold Fannin Jr, believe it!). Betting that the Browns score a lot of points to keep up with the Bengals, and then stacking the rest of your lineup with expensive, well-projected studs.
On the Cincinnati side, it really depends on how you want to play this game. The Bengals should win this game and should do so, scoring a boatload of points. Even if the scoring output is not as high as we may be hoping for. The tried and true Bengals pieces can still go off individually at any time, pretty much.
My Targets:
Joe Burrow – $6,900
Ja’Marr Chase – $8,100
Chase Brown – $6,600
Tee Higgins – $6,400
Any combo of these four players, I think, is a great way to play it. Burrow is leverage against Jayden Daniels as the most chalky quarterback of the slate, Chase is the most expensive receiver and might be passed over by the field, Tee Higgins is direct leverage on Chase as the most common stacking partner with Burrow, and Chase Brown still projects for a huge workload and isn’t going to be massively owned in most contests.
Miami Dolphins @ Indianapolis Colts
The home team Indianapolis Colts are 1.5 point favorites and seem intent on starting Daniel Jones at quarterback over Anthony Richardson, at least to start the year. If Jones can even be league average or slightly below, the weapons on this team could hugely benefit, and the Dolphins’ weak defense is a great match-up to start out the year.
My Targets:
Jonathan Taylor – $6,800
Tyler Warren – $4,400
A lot of folks love the Colts’ receivers, and while I don’t think they are bad plays at all, I simply like a lot of the receivers in that price range for other games better. I do think that Taylor could be the highest scoring player overall this week. That Miami run defense is… yikes.
On the Miami side, I don’t have much greater confidence in the Colts’ defense either. I also have much more confidence in the Dolphins’ offense when Tua is healthy. I understand the hesitancy to buying back into Miami, but I think doing so could open the potential for very high-scoring players this week, and that is what I’m looking for, trying to beat thousands of other entries.
My Targets:
Tua Tagovailoa – $5,800
De’Von Achane – $6,900
Tyreek Hill – $6,700
Jaylen Waddle – $5,700
Similar to the Bengals, I think this is a very fun team to stack up, and the offense projects to be very concentrated in who touches the ball and who will get opportunities. Tua will be low-owned, and this will be either the most expensive or cheapest that Tyreek is all year, depending on how he plays this week.
New York Giants @ Washington Commanders
The 6-point home favorite Commanders added Deebo Samuel to the receiving room in the off-season, and somewhat surprisingly moved on from Brian Robinson Jr. less than a month ago. Who will take his place? Good question. We honestly don’t know right now, and to be honest, I don’t really want to take that gamble this week with so many other great plays out there.
My Targets:
Jayden Daniels – $7,000
Deebo Samuel – $5,200
I don’t think the Commanders are an offense to stack up. Daniels will be a popular, though good, play. I don’t have much interest in McLaurin after missing most of camp with bank account-itis. I do like Deebo, though, especially for the upside that he might get some goal-line rushing work or gadget plays.
Concerning the Giants, they have an entirely new quarterback room led by Mr. Unlimited himself. They also drafted intriguing prospect Cam Skattebo to join Tyrone Tracy in the backfield, and for some reason didn’t add any pass-catchers at all to help out Malik Nabers.
My Target:
Malik Nabers – $7,000
I think Nabers gets a 30+% target share almost every week, and with Russell Wilson being willing and able to throw the deep ball still, Nabers has the talent and target share to easily pay off his salary.
Pittsburgh Steelers @ New York Jets
No one. Avoid this game like the plague. Next!
Tampa Bay Buccaneers @ Atlanta Falcons
This is my favorite game of the slate, bar none. I think both offenses will smash, starting with the Atlanta Falcons, who are 1.5 underdogs at home. We will get to see a full year of Michael Penix Jr as the starter, with a concentrated, sensible offense built around him. Their defense should be improved, but may still be average enough to let this offense score a lot of points out of necessity, more weeks than not.
My Targets:
Michael Penix Jr – $5,600
Bijan Robinson – $8,000
Drake London – $6,500
I have multiple teams with all three of these guys on the same team. I also think you can mix in Bijan or London as one-offs on other bets as well. Penix has 300+ yard bonus potential, and he is not a popular play whatsoever. I love this game.
Tampa Bay has another new offensive coordinator for the third year in a row, and a brand new rookie first-round pick at receiver to add to Mike Evans and Chris Godwin (when he’s healthy). Baker Mayfield is coming off his best season ever, and surprise sensation Bucky Irving is poised to take a leap in year two. And in this game, I want to play a lot of Bucs.
My Targets:
Bucky Irving – $7,100
Mike Evans – $6,600
Emeka Egbuka – $4,600
I’m not quite as into Baker at his elevated price point, but he’s a fine play. However, I love the pieces around him. A lot of folks are into Egbuka as the cheap upside play, and while I agree, be aware he will probably be higher-owned than you would want.
San Francisco 49ers @ Seattle Seahawks
The Seattle Seahawks enter this game as 2.5 home underdogs to the 49ers. Seattle has a new quarterback in Sam Darnold, and no longer has a dynamic duo at wide receiver with DK Metcalf shipped to the Steelers. Now it’s just Jaxson Smith-Njiba, the husk of Cooper Kupp, and a bunch of rookies.
My Target:
Jaxson Smith-Njiba – $5,800
I have no interest ever in Sam Darnold behind a bad offensive line, regardless of how bad the opposing defense projects to be. The target share for JSN seems nice, though, and at $5,800, I’m happy to buy into the floor JSN offers, knowing that there’s still potential for a high ceiling.
I love the 49ers this week, despite the Seahawks’ defense being good on paper. Brandon Ayiuk will miss a chunk of the season, Deebo Samuel is gone, and CMC is back healthy (maybe?). The Niners have the easiest schedule in the league on paper, and they are primed to put up a lot of fantasy points if that expectation holds true.
My Targets:
Brock Purdy – $6,200
Christian McCaffrey – $7,300
George Kittle – $5,800
If Christian McCaffrey gets his old workload, $7,300 is absolutely criminal. He’s required in every lineup at that price. I also really like George Kittle as the third-highest-salaried tight end. To me, he has the best target share at the position, and with Jennings missing most of camp and Pearsall being the only healthy receiver available for the majority of the summer.
Tennessee Titans @ Denver Broncos
The Broncos are the heaviest favorites in the Sunday slate. Whether that is chiefly because of just how bad the Titans were last year, or because of how good folks think the Broncos will be. They have a new second-round rookie running back in RJ Harvey to inject into the offense, and a third wide receiver in Pat Bryant.
My Target:
Courtland Sutton – $6,000
Despite the Broncos being heavily favored, I’m not the biggest fan of the options for them. The running back room is too ambiguous. We don’t know how much Marvin Mims will play, and this game could be a blowout pretty early on. I like Courtland Sutton as a more “boring” target share guy to mix in as the field leans toward the newer “fun” players.
In Tennessee, they come into this game as 8.5-point underdogs on the road. They are led by rookie number-one overall pick Cam Ward and a few intriguing day-three rookies that the team is hoping could emerge. The real question is, Ward and how far he can take them in his first year under center.
My Targets:
Tony Pollard – $5,700
Calvin Ridley – $5,000
I think Cam Ward is also playable if you want to ensure you have a unique stack this week, but it’s definitely a risky play. Pollard is going to get an obscene amount of work with Tyjae Spears on IR, and Calvin Ridley is still the only reliable target we can count on to start the year at least.
Detroit Lions @ Green Bay Packers
The Green Bay Packers are somewhat surprisingly 2.5 home favorites against Detroit. They finally have a rookie first-round receiver on the roster, a strong offensive line, and hopefully a fully healthy Jordan Love this year. Everything feels good for the Packers to have a strong season offensively, and they now have Micah Parsons to lead their defense as they go for the ultimate prize.
My Targets:
Jordan Love – $6,100
Josh Jacobs – $6,700
Matthew Golden – $4,900
Tucker Kraft – $4,000
I think this game is very sneaky to be a high-scoring affair. While both teams have good defenses, they also have elite offenses when at full strength. I like a low-owned stack of Green Bay with a concentrated rushing and passing offense that may have to put up a lot of points if Detroit keeps cooking offensively.
Meanwhile, for Detroit, there are a lot of questions surrounding the offense sans Ben Johnson. The core group of players is still intact, though the offensive line is down a few pieces that made them so potent. The question remains, though, can Detroit continue to be nearly unstoppable on offense without their vaunted offensive coordinator?
My Targets:
Jahmyr Gibbs – $7,700
Amon-Ra St. Brown – $7,100
Jameson Williams – $5,500
I love all the primary pieces for this team. Gibbs will be less owned with CMC and Bijan being the more popular plays at the price point. Amon-Ra continues to project for his normal gigantic target share. And Jamo always has slate-breaking athleticism and upside any given week. I think Goff is perfectly fine to stack as well, though I prefer Love out of the two quarterbacks.
Houston Texans @ Los Angeles Rams
The last game of the slate features the Texans facing the 3-point home favorite Los Angeles Rams. The big story of the off-season for the Rams was Davante Adams joining the team, and Matthew Stafford’s back doing everything possible to try and trigger retirement for Stafford. All that being said, the Rams boast multiple fun players to consider on a weekly basis, including here in Week 1.
My Targets:
Puka Nacua – $7,600
Davante Adams – $6,100
I like taking one of the Rams receivers as a one-off lineup filler this week, just to see if you can bank a 10-target game from one of them. I’m not as confident in a full-on stack of both with Stafford personally.
The Houston Texans are going to be missing Joe Mixon for an unknown amount of time to start the season, and it leaves their running game in a very scary spot for the health of the offense as a whole. They also still have a pretty bad offensive line on paper, which does not inspire confidence.
My Target:
Nico Collins – $7,400
With Christian Kirk most likely missing this game, I’m all-in on Nico Collins. He’s going to see a ton of targets in this game, and he has game-breaking potential on any given play. I’m avoiding the Texans’ running game altogether, and I don’t have enough confidence in any tertiary passing weapons to want to play them here.
