It all came together in week 5 during Daily Fantasy Football.
Three of my top four picks finished in the top four of their respective positions in fantasy points, with running back David Johnson being the best fantasy running back in week 5. My fourth selection, Brandon Marshall as wide receiver, wasn’t bad either, finishing ninth among wide receivers in points.
Getting those top players on your Daily Fantasy team is important, so here’s my week 6 Daily Fantasy Football best options.
Quarterback
Russell Wilson vs. Atlanta Falcons
Don’t be fooled by the week 5 performance by Atlanta. The Falcons dismantled Denver in week 5, but let’s not overvalue that victory.
The Broncos were working in a second-string rookie quarterback and had some injury concerns on the offensive line. That’s a recipe for disaster. So to think Atlanta is going to be a monster defensively for two straight weeks on the road is misguided.
Seattle is coming off a bye and historically, Wilson has been masterful after a bye week. In his career, he’s thrown eight touchdowns against one interception after a bye week since 2012, and has been over 220 yards passing in three of those contests. It’s not just through the air that he has done damage either.
After bye weeks, he’s gone for at least 40 yards on the ground three times, with one effort of over 100 yards.
Seattle is a strong team after bye weeks and the offensive line still isn’t necessarily where I would like it to be. That means the Seahawks will put the ball in Wilson’s hands and there could be enough points scored in this game to force Wilson to find the endzone more often.
Running Back
Le’Veon Bell vs. Miami Dolphins
In two games since coming back from suspension, Bell has only amassed 332 total yards. No big deal for an offense that doesn’t care who you are in the backfield. Pittsburgh running backs are going to get fantasy points.
And against Miami that’s a common theme for any running back carrying the ball.
The Dolphins are once again the worst team in the NFL against the run, yielding 150.8 yards per game. That’s 20 more yards per game than the Washington Redskins, who own the third-highest total in the NFL.
The best thing about Bell is no matter who Pittsburgh faces, he’s going to get some looks. If the opposition focuses on stuffing the run, as was the case in week 5 against the New York Jets, the Steelers will target him in the passing game.
If the opposition focuses on the pass, as was the case in week 4 against Kansas City, Bell can go for a big rushing total, like he did in week 4 with 144 yards on the ground.
He’s a three-down back against a bad defense. This is a no-brainer.
Wide Receiver
DeAndre Hopkins vs. Indianapolis Colts
Call this a hunch, but I’m anticipating Hopkins to break out of his early season struggles.
The good thing about this pick is that you can get him cheaper on DraftKings as opposed to earlier in the season. And this is just the right situation for him to have a big game.
I expected a drop in production this season from Hopkins. That’s why I wasn’t giving him a first-round fantasy grade entering the season. The Texans have more weapons than last year and he could not keep pace with the amount of targets he generated at the beginning of 2015.
But lately, there’s been signs of progress. He received nine targets last week against Minnesota’s top defensive back Xavier Rhodes. He caught five of those balls for 11 fantasy points. And despite an awful showing in week 4 against Tennessee, he’s still seeing a healthy diet of balls thrown his way.
That’s important against the Colts, which own one of the worst passing defense in the NFL. The Colts surrender 307 yards per game and give up 29.6 points per game, the second-highest total in the NFL.
There are touchdowns to be scored against the Colts and the Texans can do well against lower-level competition. It’s just when they play upper echelon teams when they disappear.
Tight End
Greg Olsen vs. New Orleans Saints
I didn’t think Olsen’s value could get any higher, but then Derek Anderson stepped on the field.
Anderson targeted Olsen 13 times during the week 5 loss to Tampa Bay. Olsen responded with nine catches for 181 yards. He didn’t score a touchdown, but that kind of production from a tight end can’t be ignored.
He’s gone for at least 70 yards receiving in four of five games this season and that shouldn’t stop this week against New Orleans. The Saints (surprise) are once again terrible against the pass, allowing 309 yards per game through the air.
Olsen will be targeted heavily once again, regardless of who is at quarterback for Carolina. He’s expensive on DraftKings, but is one of only a few sure bets at the position.
