On the menu for Week 5 is a 12-game slate. To gain leverage in GPPs, stacking is a strategy that every DFS player should use. Rostering a quarterback with one or more of his pass catchers gives lineups the upside it needs to have a chance at finishing near the top of the leaderboards. The NFL DFS advice below will evaluate how to utilize NFL DFS stacks for Week 5 DraftKings and FanDuel lineups by finding the top the stacking options from Awesemo’s Top Stacks Tool. The Top Stacks Tool will break down the stack in terms of its overall projection of being the No. 1 stack of the week, the ownership of the quarterback, if it is a value or not and the overall leverage on the rest of the field.
Top NFL DFS Stacks for Week 5 on DraftKings + FanDuel
Top Stack: Tampa Bay Buccaneers
The Buccaneers head to Miami to face the Dolphins and are rating as the top stack of the week via Awesemo’s Top Stacks Tool. Tampa Bay’s implied team total is the second highest on the slate (29 points), and this game’s total is the sixth highest on the board at 47.5 points. According to Awesemo’s Advanced Stats, both the Buccaneers and Dolphins rank inside the top seven in game script-adjusted pace. Additionally, Tampa Bay is one of the most pass-heavy offenses in the NFL, ranking fourth-to-last in game script-adjusted rush percentage. Brady has been outstanding this season, posting 7.4 yards per attempt and 10 touchdowns against two interceptions. Brady is PFF’s highest-graded quarterback. His zero-touchdown performance last week against the Patriots was an anomaly, and he should rebound in a big way this Sunday. Brady opened the season with three straight games over 30 DraftKings points and has thrown for over 300 yards and multiple touchdowns in six of his past 10.
Mike Evans has run a route on 89% of Brady’s dropbacks this season and has a team-high 20.9% target share. Plus, he ranks sixth in the league in air yards (471), fifth in red-zone targets (six) and has seven targets over 20 yards. Next are Chris Godwin and Antonio Brown. Godwin leads the NFL in routes run this season and has a 17.5% target share, including five red-zone targets. Brown has been on the field far less, running a route on 43% of Brady’s dropbacks, but he has been targeted on 24% of those routes. Furthermore, he leads the team in aDOT (15.5) and in targets north of 20 yards (eight). While all three are strong options, Evans brings the best upside for GPPs, particularly with him slated for the lowest ownership of the group on DraftKings.
With Rob Gronkowski (ribs) sidelined, Cameron Brate is a cheap way to gain exposure to the Buccaneers. Last week he ran a route on 31 of Brady’s 45 dropbacks with Gronkowski inactive and saw six targets, one of which came in the end zone. Brady has targeted tight ends 19% of the time this season, and Brate is averaging a solid 10.3 yards per reception. In only four games the Dolphins have already given up three touchdowns to tight ends this season, and Brate is a decent bet to find the end zone this week.
Awesemo Top Stack Projection: 13.5% (highest)
Awesemo QB Ownership Projection: 7.1%
Top Stack: Arizona Cardinals
The Cardinals are the second-best offense to stack for Week 5 via Awesemo’s Top Stacks Tool. This NFC West matchup’s total is the third highest on the slate (50.5 points), and Arizona’s implied team total ranks fourth at 27.75 points. The Cardinals rank second in game script-adjusted pace and Kyler Murray’s stellar season should continue Sunday. Murray ranks second in yards per attempt (9.6), second in DraftKings points per dropback (0.77) and has produced 13 total touchdowns. He is rushing it 5.8 times a game and has already seen six red-zone carries in only four games. Jalen Hurts destroyed the 49ers for 82 yards and a touchdown on 10 carries in Week 1, and Murray has the highest ceiling at his position in this spot. When Arizona has had an implied total of at least 25, Murray has averaged at 28 DraftKings points per game. For both DraftKings and FanDuel, he has the highest quarterback projection on the slate per Awesemo’s projections.
As for players to pair with Murray, DeAndre Hopkins sits atop the list, and this is an opportune time to buy low on a stud receiver coming off back-to-back quiet outings. While his target share is down from a year ago, it is still the best on the team (19.4%) and includes five red-zone targets. Hopkins is also leading his club with a 97% route rate. A.J. Green has fit in nicely with the Cardinals so far this season. He has run a route on 88% of Murray’s dropbacks and has a 18.6% target share through the first four games. Green has also seen five red-zone targets and five targets over 20 yards, all of which he has converted into receptions. Rounding out the Cardinals receiver trio is deep threat Christian Kirk. He has run a route on 74% of Murray’s dropbacks, and while his 13.6% target share is subpar, Kirk leads his team in air yards (269), aDOT (14.9) and has seen five targets greater than 20 yards. Finally, Maxx Williams is a viable flier for Cardinals stacks. His 57% route rate is low, but he has been targeted on 19% of those routes. Williams has caught all but one of the 14 targets thrown his direction and ranks sixth in yards per reception among tight ends (11.2).
Via Awesemo’s ownership projections, all four of these pass catchers have sub-5% ownership on DraftKings, making Cardinals stacks an elite way to gain leverage in GPPs.
Awesemo Top Stack Projection: 10.% (third highest)
Awesemo QB Ownership: 7.5%
Value Stack: Minnesota Vikings
At a reasonable cost, the Vikings bring tremendous upside this week against the Lions. Vegas gives Minnesota the second-largest implied team total on the slate (29 points), and this game’s total is the fourth highest, at 49 points. Kirk Cousins struggled last week against the Browns, but this matchup with the Lions is a significant upgrade. Cleveland has held their opponents to the seventh-fewest yards per attempt (6), while Detroit has given up the most in the league (9.8). This season Cousins is averaging 7 yards per attempt and has nine touchdowns and one only interception. Plus, before the dud against the Browns, he had at least 25 DraftKings points in seven of his previous 10 starts. When the Vikings have an implied total of 28 or more over the last two years, Cousins has supplied 30.1 DraftKings points per game.
The best player to roster with Cousins is Justin Jefferson. Through the first four weeks of the season, Jefferson has led Minnesota in target share (24.2%), red-zone targets (five), targets over 20 yards (seven), air yards (428), aDOT (11.6) and yards after the catch (117) while running a route on 96% of Cousins’ dropbacks. Since joining the league last season, Jefferson has been a different player on his home turf. He has nearly doubled his fantasy production at U.S. Bank Stadium and has provided a robust 30.2 DraftKings points per game when the Vikings have been at home and boasted an implied team total of at least 28 points. After Jefferson, Adam Thielen is also an excellent choice. He sports a team-high 98% route rate and has seen a 22.2% target share, including four red-zone targets. Prior to the loss to the Browns, Thielen had 10 touchdowns in his previous 10 games and should get back on the board against the defensively inept Lions. Both Jefferson and Thielen have the potential to erupt in this near perfect spot, and double-stacking them with Cousins is a strategy very few DFS players are going to use this week.
While Jefferson and Thielen stand head and shoulders above them, K.J. Osborn and Tyler Conklin are viable if looking for inexpensive options to pair with Cousins. As the Vikings’ third receiver, Osborn has run a route on 78% of Cousins’ dropbacks and ranks third on the team with a 15.7% target share. He has caught 90% of his targets, including both of his targets greater than 20 yards. Replacing the injured Irv Smith (knee), Conklin has handled a 66% route rate and 14.4% target share, including three red-zone targets as the Vikings’ primary tight end.
As a whole, the Vikings are projected for low ownership and have the fourth-highest team stack leverage score on the slate, via Awesemo’s Top Stacks Tool.
Awesemo Top Stack Projection: 7.7% (fifth highest)
Awesemo QB Ownership: 5.8%
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