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Here are my DraftKings value plays for Week 15. They are listed in descending price order, not a ranking of who to play out of each group. YOU ultimately make the decision on these players and whether to put them in your lineup. These are not necessarily must plays (some are in my opinion) but players you can squeeze for extra value to save money on the rest of your roster. Be sure to check out the Fantasy Knuckleheads Podcast that airs live every Tuesday at 10pm (Value plays) and Thursday at 10pm (Lineups, Start/Sit).
The Ultimate Bromance.
Quarterback
Matt Ryan - $6600:
If Julio is healthy enough to play this week, Matt Ryan is in for a monster week. In the past four weeks, the Steelers’ starting corners (William Gay and Ike Taylor) have given up 28 catches for 584 yards and seven scores including a 67+ yard touchdown in each week. Oh yeah, and he’s playing in Atlanta.
Eli Manning - $6400:
The Redskins are the third worst defense against quarterbacks this year. The first time Eli went up against the Skins, he threw for four touchdowns and ran for another. Im not saying he’s going to repeat that performance, but if I had to pick one week to play Eli for the rest of the season, this is it.
Johnny Manziel - $5900:
Yes, Johnny gets his own picture. Why? Why not is the real question you should be asking. In short relief duty two weeks ago, Manziel looked fantastic against a stout Bills defense, going 5 for 8 for 63 yards in the air and two for 13 and a score on the ground. With Manziel under center, this offense will open up so many more lanes for the Browns’ playmakers. With the added attention the defense needs to put on Johnny Football’s legs, Crowell will have less defenders to beat for big runs and Gordon will see less double coverage. Is it risky? Absolutely, we have only seen two drives from Johnny under center. But that upside with these playmakers….
Derek Anderson - $5000:
I am a HUGE fan of this play this week if you can stomach it. Because of his price, you don’t need him to have a top-5 quarterback day to create a winning lineup. In just his second start of the season, he is miraculously starting against the Buccaneers…again. With Benjamin and Olsen in his corner, 200+ yards and 2+ scores should be no problem against this secondary.
Running Back
Alfred Morris - $5000:
If McCoy starts you can COMPLETELY IGNORE ME on this one, but when RG3 starts, Morris is a different running back. The threat of RG3 running the football (even if it is imagined at this point) opens up lanes for Morris that are nonexistent with Cousins or McCoy under center. Morris clocked in 90+ yards in each ofRG3’s four full games (Weeks 1, 9, 11 and 12.) Without RG3, Morris has only cracked 80 yards once; Week 2 against the Jags when RG3 started and went down with the dislocated ankle.
Dan Herron - $4900:
If not for the matchup, I would be all over this one. Houston has been surprisingly stout against running backs this year and have only allowed three backs to secure more than four receptions all year. I think Herron could become the fourth, but his scoring chances will be limited in this one and Luck will likely take advantage against a much weaker secondary.
Isaiah Crowell - $4900:
I already touched on Crowell a bit with Manziel, but I’m expecting big things from him this week. Last week, Crowell was hampered by a hip injury that does not seem to be an issue this week and should out-touch West against a very leaky Bengals run defense.
Latavius Murray - $4000:
There are rarely starting running backs at this price with this amount of upside on DraftKings. Murray is a freak of nature who can take any carry to the house at any time given proper space. His line did not do him any favors against the Niners last week, but considering the massive success he had against the Chiefs in limited duty in Week 12. In addition to his own personal success against the Chiefs, Murray is one of four running backs that have gone over 100 yards against the Chiefs in the last four weeks who are trending way down in the run stopping department.
Wide Receiver
Mike Evans/Kelvin Benjamin - $6600/$6200:
I apologize for grouping these two together, but it is just too perfect an opportunity not to do so. Evans and Benjamin are the two best (from a statistical standpoint**) rookie wide receivers so far this season and are a big reason why so many people are excited about this draft class. In their first matchup, Evans was not really acclimated into this offense yet, but Derek Anderson was all about throwing to Kelvin, including a tremendous touchdown catch that started turning heads towards this rookie class of receivers. Since then, Benjamin has continued to show freakish athleticism while Mike Evans has essentially been given the #1 receiver role in Tampa. I see this as a game where both receivers try to one-up each other all game long which means plenty of entertainment and more than enough fantasy points.
Martavis Bryant - $4800:
If you watch/listen to our podcast, I discussed at length the comparison between the Steelers and Packers wide receivers and how they matchup against the Falcons. Short version: Antonio Brown profiles more as a Randall Cobb and Martavis profiles more like Jordy Nelson from a pure usage standpoint. The Falcons were able to contain Cobb but Nelson went OFF. I’m not saying that Brown will suffer the same fate as Cobb did last week, but considering the Falcons are unable to generate a consistent pass rush, Ben will have plenty of time to load up and look towards Martavis deep more than once.
Donte Moncrief - $4000:
Shocker, another rookie wideout that I love. With the Wayne injury, Moncrief has been given more opportunities for targets and has been consistently getting more snaps than Hakeem Nicks in recent weeks. Since Week 9, the Texans have allowed two wideouts to score double-digit points…IN EACH GAME. I’d rather bet that Moncrief is with Hilton scoring 10+ than Wayne with his torn triceps.
Marqise Lee - $3600:
The Ravens are terrible against wideouts and if not for Jarvis Landry tweaking his knee last week, they would be even worse. Lee has seen consistent targets since Allen Robinson went down and has led the Jags’ wideouts in receiving yards every game since the their bye in Week 11. I’ll gladly take 60+ yards and 5+ receptions for this price and stack the rest of my lineup.
Marquess Wilson - $3000:
Without Brandon Marshall, Wilson is the closest thing Cutler can get to having him in the lineup. Wilson is 6’4” and freakishly athletic (like Marshall) but obviously does not have the rapport with Cutler or the experience Marshall gives this offense. For a punt play, there is no other option with as much upside as Wilson has in a potential shootout where Cutler will be slinging the rock to anyone on the field.
Tight End
Larry Donnell - $3800
Donnell has alternated between good weeks and bad weeks almost all season long. Donnell had a bad week last week. Donnell will have a good week this week. Not to mention those three touchdowns he secured the last time the Giants and Redskins squared off.
Marcedes Lewis - $3200
We’ve seen Clay Harbor have some very nice days as the starting tight end with Bortles, and Lewis is a lot better in my opinion. Since coming back from an ankle injury that kept him out for eight games, Lewis has slowly regained his form. Last week Lewis secured three or his four targets for 69 yards and looks like a sneaky play for bare bones price.