DFS Building Blocks – Week 15
The trusty 49ers came up big and the Purdy + CMC + Samuel stack proved fruitful, with Zay Flowers also chipping in with a good score. The 49ers get the Cardinals this week, which means they will be even more popular!
There were some good performances from the Bengals and Browns last week, which came as a bit of a surprise, and the Bears who we were also targeting last week. It is good to see that Browning is helping keep his star players relevant, and Joe Flacco is turning back the years and slinging it to make Cleveland’s games more enjoyable.
This week’s early slate is a relatively sleepy affair, but the afternoon more than makes up for it. The 49ers should be a DFS goldmine, and the Bills vs Cowboys game is one to grab the popcorn for.
There are fewer games to pick from this week, thanks to a triple header on Saturday. Let’s see what catches the eye in week 15.
Game Overviews
Chicago Bears @ Cleveland Browns
Location: Cleveland Browns Stadium, Cleveland
Time: Sunday 1 p.m. ET
Money Line: Chicago Bears (+140) ; Cleveland Browns (-165)
Spread: Cleveland Browns -3
Total: 38.5 (Opened at 38.5)
A matchup between two teams that surprised us with big wins last week. The Bears knocked off their division-leading rivals, the Detroit Lions, and the Browns defeated the Jacksonville Jaguars, who were shooting for the number one seed. I don’t think anyone expected Joe Flacco to outplay Trevor Lawrence, but that is what he did. 311 yards and 3 touchdowns reflect his willingness to throw the ball, and David Njoku was the main beneficiary.
I love Njoku again this week. I could see him being the focal point of the Browns’ offense moving forward. Amari Cooper popped up with a good game as well, catching 7 balls for 77 yards. The Bears are a better defense than you would expect, but Cooper and Njoku should be fine. I wouldn’t be looking the way of Elijah Moore or David Bell though who are very much tertiary pieces.
Jerome Ford led the running backs last week, taking 12 carries for 51 yards and 5 catches for 31 yards. He may cede the goal line work to Kareem Hunt, but he does pretty much everything else. I don’t mind him, but his upside is always capped.
For the Bears, the DJ Moore and Justin Fields duo seems unstoppable. Moore went over 20 fantasy points for the third time in a row last week. It will be tricky to make it four out of four, as he now faces the Browns’ elite secondary, who are giving up the fewest passing yards per game. This also makes Cole Kmet hard to trust, despite hitting back-to-back 11-point games. If they get some early big plays though, it could drive this game to the over, making it a sneaky spot to target at tiny ownership, especially with Flacco providing a clear passing game versus the prior QBs.
D’Onta Foreman is also a sneaky good play at running back. He retook the starting role after injury last week and had 3 targets. The Bears should look to run the ball, which will help Foreman.
Building Blocks (stacks to build around)
Fields + Ford + Moore + Njoku
Fields + Foreman + Cooper + Njoku
Individual Plays (players that can be rostered alone to fill out your lineups that are built around other stacks)
Ford
Foreman
Cooper
Moore
Njoku
Kmet
Lottery Picks (stacks and individual players that can surprise in a large-field
tournament)
Elijah Moore
Tampa Bay Buccaneers @ Green Bay Packers
Location: Lambeau Field, Green Bay, Wisconsin
Time: Sunday 1 p.m. ET
Money Line: Buccaneers (+150) ; Packers (-175)
Spread: Green Bay Packers -3.5
Total: 41.5 (Opened: 42.5)
The Love train hit a bump last week, but I am not too worried about it in the long run. Tommy DeVito is clearly just unstoppable and the Packers were one of many teams that will fall to him… just joking, of course.
I will be hoping that last week’s loss has scared people away from the Packers because this is the perfect bounce-back spot. Only two teams are conceding more passing yards per game than the Buccaneers, which means I will be considering a Packers stack to get me through the early slate this weekend.
Jayden Reed is a very exciting rookie, and the Packers are trying to get him the ball as much as possible. He had 10 targets and 4 carries last week, resulting in a 20-point fantasy outing. He has gone over 15 points in four of his last five games, so I will be building around him.
No one else stands out for Green Bay from a wide receiver standpoint, with no other player getting more than 4 targets. I am happy to go for Tucker Kraft at a big discount at tight end though. He is getting more involved with Luke Musgrave now out. His ceiling isn’t massive, but it is a good matchup, and the discount lets us shoot for more upside elsewhere. Doubs does still have a good redzone role too.
AJ Dillon has a broken thumb, so we can’t be sure if he is playing. Even if he is, the Buccaneers are good against the run. He isn’t worth trusting. Aaron Jones is really cheap on FanDuel for his talent level. He’s still banged up too, but if he works in your lineup, I wouldn’t be afraid to take a shot.
For Tampa Bay, Rachaad White and Mike Evans have been money this year. Evans had a quiet game last week, but he should bounce back with no problem. The offense revolves around him and White, so they can be trusted most weeks.
Building Blocks (stacks to build around)
Love + White + Reed + Evans + Kraft
Love + White + Reed + Kraft
Individual Plays (players that can be rostered alone to fill out your lineups that are built around other stacks)
White
Evans
Godwin
Reed
Otton
Lottery Picks (stacks and individual players that can surprise in a large-field
tournament)
Tucker Kraft
Houston Texans @ Tennessee Titans
Location: Nissan Stadium, Nashville, Tennessee
Time: Sunday 1 p.m. ET
Money Line: Texans (+125) ; Titans (-145)
Spread: Tennessee Titans -2.5
Total: 37.5 (Opened: 37.5)
This game is the Derrick Henry smash spot. King Henry rushed for 200 yards four times in a row against the Texans, before only managing 126 in last year’s second fixture. They are seemingly incapable of stopping him, and I expect him to be popular in DFS this week. With Will Levis providing a spark to help them defeat the Dolphins last week, Henry’s ceiling is higher than it looked a few games ago. At $6,900 on DK, he is great value.
Houston has played well this year, but they are attackable through the air. Deandre Hopkins has been peppered with targets in the last two weeks, converting 24 of them into 12 catches for 199 yards and 2 scores. He will be motivated to play well against his old team, and I like him to have a big game.
Chigoziem Okonkwo is improving at tight end and looks reliable to give you a good floor, but I don’t see there being much upside. This should be a Derrick Henry and Deandre Hopkins game, with little else to go around.
It is a rough situation when looking at the Houston offense. What was once one of the most exciting units in the league has been decimated by injury. CJ Stroud, Nico Collins and Dalton Schultz are all likely to miss, with Tank Dell already out for the year. I’ll be considering Noah Brown simply because he’s the last man standing and should get all the volume he can handle. With the injuries, it’s worth thinking about a Henry + Titans DEF stack too.
The Tennessee run defense is good, and it is difficult to know which of Devin Singletary or Dameon Pierce will get the most work. I would just save yourself the trouble and say no to any Houston options.
Building Blocks (stacks to build around)
Levis + Henry + Hopkins + Tennessee D/ST
Henry + Tennessee D/ST
Henry + Brown
Individual Plays (players that can be rostered alone to fill out your lineups that are built around other stacks)
Henry
Hopkins
Okonkwo
Tennessee D/ST
Lottery Picks (stacks and individual players that can surprise in a large-field
tournament)
Noah Brown
Tyjae Spears
New York Jets @ Miami Dolphins
Location: Hard Rock Stadium, Miami Gardens, Florida
Time: Sunday 1 p.m. ET
Money Line: Jets (+360) ; Dolphins (-450)
Spread: Miami Dolphins -8.5
Total: 37.5 (Opened: 40.5)
The Dolphins are reeling after their loss to the Titans, and the Jets are feeling a rare sense of optimism after crushing the Texans. To make matters worse, Tyreek Hill could be out of the game with a high ankle sprain. Even if he plays, he will likely be less explosive, which doesn’t bode well against one of the NFL’s best secondaries. If Hill does play, that might make me more interested in Jaylen Waddle as an option. Hill will still demand top coverage, which could free up space for Waddle.
De’Von Achane is also injured, which will hand more work over to Raheem Mostert. He is the only Dolphin player I would feel confident about starting. Their defense is also an option.
For New York, the return of Zach Wilson is good news. He is still not in consideration for DFS, but he does service his main weapons well. Both Garrett Wilson and Breece Hall are dynamic players who can put together good games on volume alone.
This is not a game that I would be too excited about exploiting, but there are a few options that you can consider.
Building Blocks (stacks to build around)
Tua+ Mostert + Hall + Waddle
Mostert + Miami D/ST
Individual Plays (players that can be rostered alone to fill out your lineups that are built around other stacks)
Mostert
Hall
Waddle
Wilson
Lottery Picks (stacks and individual players that can surprise in a large-field
tournament)
Tyler Conklin
Kansas City Chiefs @ New England Patriots
Location: Gillette Stadium, Foxborough, Massachusetts
Time: Sunday 1 p.m. ET
Money Line: Chiefs (-400) ; Patriots (+320)
Spread: Kansas City Chiefs -7.5
Total: 37.5 (Opened: 37.5)
The Chiefs are another AFC powerhouse who needs to get back on track. They have now lost two on the bounce after falling to the Packers and Bills, with sloppy wide receiver play proving to be an achilles heel.
Travis Kelce is the most reliable option on the offense, but his upside is not what it used to be, thanks to a much less potent Chiefs offense. He and Rice are the only options you can consider. They should get home, even though the Patriots pose a challenge on defense. There are simply not that many other people that can be trusted with the ball on the Chiefs’ offense, so they should see plenty of targets. Look out for the Patriots working to minimize Kelce, making Rice perhaps the more viable option, but he’s popular this week.
The injury to Isiah Pacheco means that the Chiefs backfield will be a combination of Jerrick McKinnon and Clyde Edwards-Hellaire. Edwards-Hellaire got more work last week, but we have seen them use McKinnon in big spots over the last couple of years so it wouldn’t surprise me if they went his way. I would just leave both out of your lineups for now.
The Bailey Zappe experience on Thursday Night Football last week was exciting, but I am not sure we can put much faith in it happening again. The Chiefs have been disappointing on defense in recent weeks, but they still have enough class to shut him down. I can’t trust him to make any of his receivers relevant. Even Hunter Henry, who had 2 scores last week, which came on only 3 targets.
I am happy to throw in Ezekiel Elliott though. Zeke had 22 carries and 8 targets, which is true bell-cow usage. He had 27 fantasy points and should figure to be heavily involved again. Fire him up! He’ll be chalk at the RB spot this week, but he makes sense given the volume and likely check-down receptions.
Building Blocks (stacks to build around)
Mahomes + Zeke + Rice
Individual Plays (players that can be rostered alone to fill out your lineups that are built around other stacks)
Zeke
Rice
Kelce
Chiefs D/ST
Lottery Picks (stacks and individual players that can surprise in a large-field
tournament)
JuJu Smith-Schuster
New York Giants @ New Orleans Saints
Location: Caesars Superdome, New Orleans
Time: Sunday 1 p.m. ET
Money Line: Giants (+210) ; Saints (-250)
Spread: New Orleans Saints -6
Total: 39.5 (Opened: 36.5)
Tommy DeVito is the talk of the town, but I am not ready to trust him in DFS. A matchup with the Saints is tough, as they boast a secondary that is limiting opposing quarterbacks to the second lowest completion percentage in the NFL (57%).
DeVito did make some throws last week, but I still see him as having a very low ceiling, and it is difficult to identify who will make plays for him. Saquon Barkley should see another heavy workload, and Wan’Dale Robinson clearly has something about him. Robinson caught 6 balls for 79 yards last week, also tacking on a 36-yard rush. He does most of his work close to the line of scrimmage, so he should have more success than his fellow receivers on the outside.
The Saints put up 28 points against the Panthers, but it felt like tough sledding and the crowd were sending down boos well into the second half. The offense is not a good unit, meaning you can only look to the star players for DFS value. Chris Olave and Alvin Kamara are talented enough to create fantasy points out of low-value opportunities, but you don’t want to be relying on anyone else.
There are no quarterbacks to trust here, so we will be looking at individual player options only.
Building Blocks (stacks to build around)
Nope.
Individual Plays (players that can be rostered alone to fill out your lineups that are built around other stacks)
Kamara
Barkley
Olave
Robinson
Taysom Hil
Lottery Picks (stacks and individual players that can surprise in a large-field
tournament)
Jamaal Williams
Atlanta Falcons @ Carolina Panthers
Location: Bank of America Stadium, Charlotte, North Carolina
Time: Sunday 1 p.m. ET
Money Line: Falcons (-165) ; Panthers (+140)
Spread: Atlanta Falcons -3
Total: 34.5 (Opened: 35.5)
The Falcons are the next lucky team to take on the Panthers, who pose little threat to any of their opponents. Carolina is surprisingly stingy against wide receivers and tight ends, but are giving up the third most points to the running back position. Therefore, we should be in for a big Bijan Robinson week! Bijan has taken control of the backfield in Atlanta, and the results have been very good. He is their best player after all and is coming in at surprisingly low ownership as the low point spread is scaring people off. But it could legitimately end up 28 to 7 with 3 Bijan TDs.
With Bijan to see a lot of work this week, as the Falcons go run-heavy against the Panthers’ dismal run defense, this will cap the upside of Drake London and Kyle Pitts, who had good weeks last week, and it might bring Tyler Allgeier into play as a cheap option in the flex.
The Panthers’ offense is one of the most painful watches every week. I can’t recommend any of the pass catchers at the moment, but Chuba Hubbard is getting enough work to be considered at running back. He had back-to-back 20 fantasy point games before getting 23 carries for 87 yards last week. He is the only productive outlet for the Panthers, and I expect them to utilize him. At $5,600, I don’t mind some exposure to him.
The Falcons defense will be popular as well, as most defenses are against Carolina.
Building Blocks (stacks to build around)
Bijan + Falcons D/ST
Individual Plays (players that can be rostered alone to fill out your lineups that are built around other stacks)
Hubbard
Bijan
London
Falcons D/ST
Lottery Picks (stacks and individual players that can surprise in a large-field
tournament)
Tyler Allgeier
Washington Commanders @ Los Angeles Rams
Location: SoFi Stadium, Inglewood, California
Time: Sunday 4:05 p.m. ET
Money Line: Commanders (+240) ; Rams (-290)
Spread: Los Angeles Rams -6.5
Total: 50.5 (Opened: 48.5)
Matthew Stafford is absolutely slinging it at the moment. He was red hot against the Ravens and now gets to play against a Commanders’ defense that is giving up the most fantasy points to quarterbacks and the second most to wide receivers.
As a result, I will be getting plenty of exposure to the Rams pass attack. After taking a back seat for a few weeks, Cooper Kupp went off as the primary receiver against the Ravens’ talented secondary. He had 8 catches for 115 yards and a touchdown. Puka Nacua wasn’t completely left out though, as he nabbed 5 receptions for 84 yards. Those two receivers led the way on a 294-yard day for Matthew Stafford, who also had three touchdowns.
Kyren Williams popped up as well with yet another big game. He had 114 yards on the ground, which means he has only had under 10 fantasy points twice on the year. The Rams stack looks like a very good one this week.
In terms of options on the Washington side, Sam Howell has been a very consistent performer. He creates opportunities for his playmakers, but spreads the ball around enough to make it tricky to know who to look at. Coming off the bye week against an inexperienced Rams secondary, I would expect them to try and get Terry McLaurin some action. Their star receiver was disgruntled at getting 0 targets before the bye week, which often leads to a hefty chunk of targets to say sorry.
Brian Robinson looks set to miss again with his hamstring injury, which will give Antonio Gibson the lead role. He hasn’t given us much this year, so it is difficult to plug him in. At $5,200 on DraftKings though, he isn’t a bad bargain option. You at least know he should get volume.
Building Blocks (stacks to build around)
Stafford + Gibson + Kupp
Stafford + Williams + Kupp + McLaurin
Individual Plays (players that can be rostered alone to fill out your lineups that are built around other stacks)
Williams
Gibson
Kupp
Nacua
McLaurin
Samuel
Thomas
Lottery Picks (stacks and individual players that can surprise in a large-field
tournament)
Dotson
San Francisco 49ers @ Arizona Cardinals
Location: State Farm Stadium, Glendale, Arizona
Time: Sunday 4:05 p.m. ET
Money Line: 49ers (-800) ; Cardinals (+550)
Spread: San Francisco 49ers -12.5
Total: 47.5 (Opened: 47.5)
The MVP chat has been heating up in recent weeks for Purdy, with many people pointing to his elite cast of weapons as a reason why. Well, those talented stars get to go up against one of the worst defenses in the NFL this week, which means the 49ers will be chalk central in DFS.
The 49ers should have no problem putting up a big total this week. Purdy and McCaffrey are a lock, with the receivers being slightly harder to figure out. It has been Deebo blowing up in recent weeks, but Aiyuk hasn’t exactly been quiet. I still lean towards Deebo, who is unstoppable at the moment. Of course, Kittle is an option as well.
Despite being one of the worst teams in the NFL, Arizona has been boasting options in fantasy. Trey McBride is the star of the show. He has become the focal point of the offense, with Kyler Murray sending the ball in his direction on a regular basis. The 49ers have one of the best linebacker groups in the league, and they are giving up the second-fewest points to the tight end position. McBride will still get volume, but the upside isn’t as high this week.
Marquise Brown has been underwhelming this year, and a heel injury has prevented him from rekindling his chemistry with Kyler Murray. I would be leaving him out. James Conner had a big game against Pittsburgh before the bye. He carried 25 times for 105 yards and 2 scores. He can be utilized as a pass-catcher should the game script go against the Cardinals, but I won’t be going out of my way to play him against the 49ers.
Building Blocks (stacks to build around)
Purdy + CMC + Deebo/Aiyuk/Kittle
Individual Plays (players that can be rostered alone to fill out your lineups that are built around other stacks)
CMC
Deebo
Aiyuk
Kittle
49ers D/ST
Lottery Picks (stacks and individual players that can surprise in a large-field
tournament)
Rondale Moore
Dallas Cowboys @ Buffalo Bills
Location: Highmark Stadium, Orchard Park, New York
Time: Sunday 4:25 p.m. ET
Money Line: Cowboys (+110) ; Bills (-130)
Spread: Buffalo Bills -2.5
Total: 50.5 (Opened: 49.5)
The NFL schedule makers have been treating us in recent weeks. Every game is a must-win game for the Buffalo Bills, and the Cowboys are in the hunt for the number one seed in the NFC. It doesn’t get much bigger than this in the regular season.
The star of the show in Buffalo’s win over Kansas City last week was James Cook. Cook averaged 5.8 yards per carry on the ground and collected 5 receptions for 83 yards and a touchdown. I like him again this week. He adds balance to the offense and is an explosive weapon.
Diggs was mostly shut down by the Chiefs’ talented cornerbacks, but I expect him to have a much better week this week. DaRon Bland has made history with his pick sixes, but he is an aggressive cornerback. The Seahawks showed that he can be exposed by targeting him a couple of weeks ago. Gabe Davis is a true boom-bust receiver. He can win you weeks, but you have to be brave to trust him. I think this is a Diggs week personally.
At tight end, Dalton Kincaid is hobbled with an injury and ceded work to Dawson Knox in his return. I would leave them both out.
For Dallas, you can go back to all of your usual suspects. CeeDee Lamb is as reliable as it comes at wide receiver, earning plenty of targets since the bye week. When the going gets tough, he is the player that Dak looks to. This week’s game is crucial, so we should see his number called plenty. I would be happy to pay up for the CeeDee + Dak stack at surprisingly low ownership.
Brandin Cooks has also eased his way into a good role in the offense, and Tony Pollard has a good matchup against the Bills’ run defense. Buffalo are giving up 4.8 yards per carry on the ground, which is 29th in the NFL. Dowdle is involved more though, so I like Pollard better on DK. He’s looking too popular on FD this week, making me want the Dak stack leverage even more.
Building Blocks (stacks to build around)
Dak + Cook + Lamb + Ferguson
Dak + Lamb + Diggs + Ferguson
Dak + Cooks + Diggs + Ferguson
Allen + Cook + Diggs + Lamb
Individual Plays (players that can be rostered alone to fill out your lineups that are built around other stacks)
Cook
Pollard
Diggs
Davis
Lamb
Cooks
Ferguson
Lottery Picks (stacks and individual players that can surprise in a large-field
tournament)
Shakir
The Lineup Build
Three ways to go this week, choose your own adventure:
- Cowboys vs Bills overstack.
- Balanced roster with the afternoon games.
- Off the radar early game stack (Bears vs Browns or Packers vs 49ers)
Honestly not sure which I’ll settle on, but my early builds have me leaning to number 2. I always like an overstack though…
FD
Matthew Stafford is too cheap. He’s popular because of it, but we’ll eat the chalk here, adding Gibson on the other side and Kupp at WR. White + Reed gets us exposure to that early game. Adding Noah Brown for his volume. Bijan plus Falcons DEF, then take your pick at TE.
A lot of different ways you could go here. I’m interested in Dak, Stafford, Purdy, Howell, Mayfield, and Love at QB. I’m interested in Mostert, Jones, Bijan, Elliott, Gibson, White, CMC (of course) at RB. Lots of different ways you could mix and match them this week.
DK
Stafford is too cheap here also. Nacua comes in lower than Kupp here than on FD, so we’ll add Puca here. Gibson again on the other side, but adding Thomas as a cheap TE option. Elliott for his volume again. Bijan plus Falcons again, then play around with the rest.
Same thing on DK though, can mix and match a ton of different ways this week. I keep getting pulled to the more balanced Stafford lineups, but don’t be afraid to go with the other two build options.
Yahoo
Unsurprisingly, the 49ers are expensive this week. Christian McCaffrey has the biggest price tag across all platforms, and Deebo is not too far behind. Purdy joins them to complete the 49er stack with Trey McBride coming in at tight end for Arizona.
It’s bargain-hunting time for the other running back and wide receiver slots. Tyler Allgeier has upside in what should be a run-heavy game for Atlanta, and Khalil Shakir comes in at receiver.
Rashee Rice is a good price for the final wide receiver slot. The Falcons come in as the defense to stack with Allgeier, which leaves enough for Zeke in the flex. Having him and Rice in the lineup means I will always have a playmaker on the field in the Chiefs vs Pats game.