DraftKings NFL picks, Week 15: Best DFS fantasy football values
By Drew DeLuca
Week 15 NFL DraftKings Values: Running Backs
Premium Tier ($7,000 and up): Two super-premium running backs on the main slate this week carry a price tag of $9,000 or more: Derrick Henry (TEN vs. DET, $9,500) and Dalvin Cook (MIN vs. CHI, $9,000). Between the two, we’d pay the extra $500 for Henry, who could very well post his second 200-yard rushing game in a row in his matchup against the hapless Lions.
If the strain that Henry places on the remaining lineup budget is too much to bear, two alternate players who should produce stud-level production at lesser prices are Alvin Kamara (NO vs. KC, $7,400) and Jonathan Taylor (IND vs. HOU, $7,200). Kamara should benefit from both the absence of Michael Thomas and the return of Drew Brees, while Taylor, up against a bottom-of-the-barrel run defense, looks to log his fourth straight game with 100 or more total yards as his role in the offense continues to expand as both a rusher and receiver:
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Mid-Tier Values ($6,000 to $6,900): It was nice to see Doug Pederson remember that Miles Sanders (PHI at ARI, $6,900) exists on his roster; in Week 14, the second-year Penn State product logged just his second game with 18 or more touches since Week 2, catching four or more passes for just the second time this season. Interestingly, the Eagles have lost just one game of the six in which Sanders has hauled in four or more passes so far in his young career; we hope Pederson bears this in mind going forward.
We also like D’Andre Swift (DET at TEN, $6,400) in what promises to be a favorable matchup; the Lions should lean on Swift more heavily than last week, when he logged 50 total yards and a touchdown in his first game back after missing time with a concussion. We just feel far more confident in Cam Akers (LAR vs. NYJ, $6,600) against the Jets, given an established trend of increased usage culminating in his selection as the reigning NFC Offensive Player of the Week.
Value Tier ($5,500 to $5,900): After watching fellow rookies Taylor and Akers have their moments in the sun in recent weeks, J.K. Dobbins (BAL vs. JAX, $5,900) is primed for his own breakout performance against a vulnerable Jacksonville Jaguars defense that has allowed more points to fantasy running backs than any other defense in the league. We also like the value of yet another first-year running back: LSU standout Clyde Edwards-Helaire (KC at NO, $5,800) should remind everyone why he was the only running back selected in the first round in his first homecoming game as a pro.
Bargain Bin: Raheem Mostert has been given the green light to play through an ankle injury, but odds are high he’ll once again share time with Jeff Wilson, Jr. (SF at DAL, $5,100) who has logged 12 or more touches in two of his last three games and faces a Cowboys run defense that has been quite kind to opposing fantasy running backs; the Cowboys have coughed up 25.4 FPPG to the position over the last three weeks, ranking in the bottom four in the league.
If Matt Breida (MIA vs. NE, $4,000) doesn’t butter your biscuit, throw a dart at the Tampa Bay Buccaneers backfield, because someone is going to put up numbers against the Atlanta Falcons this week. Leonard Fournette (TB at ATL, $4,500) will start, but his recent residency in Bruce Arians’ doghouse could pave the way for Ke’Shawn Vaughn (TB at ATL, $4,000) to see extended action for the first time this season; LeSean McCoy (TB at ATL, $4,000) will play some on passing downs, but is basically a poor man’s Frank Gore at this stage of his career.
Best Buys: We’re starting Akers everywhere, but sign us up for Edwards-Helaire, also. The latter should be slept on a bit this week, but we’ve seen enough of Andy Reid to know how much he loves to employ running backs in his system. With Le’Veon Bell continuing to disappoint, we expect the rookie to see 15 or more touches for the third time in four games against a New Orleans Saints run defense that was just ground to a pulp by Miles Sanders and Jalen Hurts last week.