It doesn’t seem like long ago that the NFL 2020 season not only felt like eons away, but we weren’t even certain we’d get a season. Suddenly, here we are headed into Week 2 (and Marlon Mack is hurt once again), so let’s be thankful and delve into FanDuel NFL DFS player picks by position based on Awesemo Point and Value grades. Unfortunately there’s already been a number of injuries to take into account, most notably at running back. James Conner could potentially sit out this week against Denver, while LeVeon Bell is on injured reserve and won’t be eligible to return until Week 5. Sadly, in the case of the aforementioned Mack, he’s already been placed on season-ending IR. This means we’ll be getting looks at opportunities for Benny Snell, ageless wonder Frank Gore, rookie Jonathan Taylor and Nyheim Hines (who already had a stellar performance in Week 1).
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The Saints’ Michael Thomas is the standout injury concern at the wide receiver position in Week 2, which creates another open window for Emmanuel Sanders alongside Tre’Quan Smith and tight end Jared Cook.
Tampa Bay wide receiver Chris Godwin has been placed in concussion protocol as well, which translates to a clear opportunity for Mike Evans to right the ship with quarterback Tom Brady.
Following the noteworthy Week 1 performances by an array of Seattle Seahawks against the Atlanta Falcons, ownership projections suggest the field will be enthralled by several Dallas Cowboys players in Dak Prescott, Ezekiel Elliott, Amari Cooper and Michael Gallup looking to make up for their close loss to the Los Angeles Rams on Sunday Night, with all four players currently coming in at 16% ownership and above.
FanDuel NFL DFS Picks Week 2
QB Aaron Rodgers: Points B, Value A
The Packers are coming off a vintage performance of quarterback Aaron Rodgers (364 yards, four touchdowns) with life-link wide receiver Davante Adams (14 catches, 156 yards, two touchdowns), as the Packers scored 43 points against divisional rival Minnesota and draw an even more favorable opponent in the Lions in Week 2. Detroit currently has the 23rd-ranked pass defense following a loss to the Bears to start the season, allowing 214 passing yards and three touchdowns in Week 1.
Adams is far and away the primary target for Rodgers, and he saw at least 10 more targets than any other player on the Packers offense. Adams will likely be defended on the outside by a tandem effort of Desmond Trufant and Amani Oruwariye, who struggled to cover the perimeter in Week 1 against Chicago. Pairing Rodgers with Adams is an absolute no-brainer, and by adding Marquez Valdes-Scantling to the mix as a three-player stack, you’ll still have $6,400 per player in salary to comfortably balance spend-up options.
The projected ownership for Rodgers is another attractive element, coming in as only the seventh-highest-owned quarterback for Week 2 on FanDuel with just over 5% of the field in line to roster him. The ownership aligns with his value grade rank at the position for this week, yet his point projection is the second best at his price tier of the $8,000 vicinity (behind Brady). Despite the massive ownership projected to come with Adams as the highest-owned wide receiver (26.3%), pairing Rodgers and Adams with Valdes-Scantling will certainly get you into much more of a unique lineup, as Vales-Scantling is slated to bring less than 1% of the field with him.
Projected FanDuel Ownership: 5.8%
RB Ronald Jones: Points C, Value B
While the Buccaneers are still licking their wounds from their Week 1 34-23 loss to New Orleans, Ronald Jones provided some promise to his top standing on the team’s depth chart over newcomer Leonard Fournette. The third-year Buccaneer running back rushed for 66 yards on 17 of the team’s 26 attempts on the ground, and more testimony to his workload was that the volume came despite trailing from the second quarter going forward.
Jones’ B-rated value comes on behalf of the recently proven volume of carries on the wings of his price-conscious salary tag at $5,900. This money well spent (so we hope) comes inclusive of a Panthers opponent who recently surrendered 122 yards and three touchdowns to Oakland’s running backs (with almost all of that going to Josh Jacobs). The flexibility provided across the remainder of your roster is worth noting as well. If his ownership were projected lower, Jones may have been carrying an A-rating into Sunday.
Carolina also no longer has Luke Kuechly staring him down from just beyond the line of scrimmage, which is an added bonus for Jones (although sixth-year linebacker Shaq Thompson is no joke to account for either, and he registered nine tackles in Week 1 against Oakland). And when cross-referencing the Awesemo FanDuel Big Board, you’ll find Jones sitting at a somewhat surprising 36th player across all positions, and with an above-average 63 rating he happens to be the only running back in his price range who ranks that high just outside of Hines (64 rating, 31st overall).
Projected FanDuel Ownership: 12.8%
WR Adam Thielen: Points A, Value C
Coming fresh off a 28-fantasy-point performance, Adam Thielen heads into Week 2’s matchup with the Colts with both teams hungry for their first win following divisional losses in Week 1. Although Thielen will be dragging a bit of the field ownership along with him, his matchup with Rock Ya-Sin is an enticing one.
The Vikings star slot receiver recently reminded everyone who’s boss in Minnesota, notching six receptions for 110 yards and two touchdowns on a team-high eight targets against Green Bay in a 43-34 loss. He’s also recently proven he is versatile outside the slot, lining up on both the right and left outsides of the field for a majority of snaps in Week 1 (33 combined out of 50 total snaps), and that could mean more deep-ball Thielen for fantasy output.
Facing a Colts secondary that just surrendered 129 yards and three touchdowns through the air to wide receivers (Jaguars receivers nonetheless), Thielen is more than primed for a stellar day should the opportunity lend itself to him. And to top things off, his $7,300 price tag doesn’t necessarily break the bank by any means, leaving an ample amount of wiggle room across other positions without having to go bargain basement.
Projected FanDuel Ownership: 13.9%
TE Mark Andrews: Points A, Value D
The high ownership appears to be the ding on value here, with the Ravens standout tight end projecting to be the highest-owned at the position on FanDuel. With that much aside, Mark Andrews is a fantastic play given his matchup and high fantasy ceiling intact along with it.
Andrews is coming off of a typical dominant performance of his, racking up five receptions for 58 yards and two touchdowns on six targets in Week 1’s Ravens 38-6 destruction of the Browns. He tied Marquise Brown for the team-high in targets and receptions and looks to replicate the success against the Texans on Sunday, which could certainly be achievable.
Given the clear-cut opportunity over his slated head-to-head defender in strong safety Eric Murray, Andrews has a six-inch height advantage and nearly a 60-pound weight differential in his favor over the stature of Murray. Combine that with the Texans surrendering six receptions for 50 yards and a touchdown to opposing tight ends in Week 1 (in fact, a similar beast to Andrews in that of Travis Kelce).
I will spend up and eat the chalk all at once. Andrews (like Kelce) is in a tier of his own against a mediocre defense at the tight end position.
Editor’s Note
Awesemo’s Player Prop Stat Projections are predicting Mark Andrews to have a few more receiving yards than his Vegas totals suggest. There is some variation in the lines across sportsbooks, so use OddShopper to take advantage of this possible money-making player prop.
*Betting odds as of Friday, Sept. 18 at 5:30 EST
Projected FanDuel Ownership: 15.3%
Contrarian Stack: Vikings
Following a high-scoring loss in a shootout with the Packers in Week 1, the Vikings draw a Colts defense who appeared aimless against the Jaguars. Indianapolis made Gardner Minshew look outstanding, as he threw for three touchdowns and 173 yards with no interceptions on 19-of-20 passing. Quarterback Kirk Cousins is looking to be less than 1% owned, and while he was nothing spectacular against the Packers, he still managed 22.76 FanDuel points.
Pairing Dalvin Cook (who had a monster Week 1 himself) with both Cousins and Adam Thielen would make for a great start, while the inclusion of wide receiver Olabisi Johnson would be certain to get your lineup different, at the same time providing under-the-radar upside with his favorable matchup against cornerback Xavier Rhodes. Johnson was the second-highest-targeted player on Minnesota’s offense in Week 1 against the Packers (three catches, 56 yards on four targets), just behind Thielen.
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