Injuries to pivotal players should throw a wrench in ownership tendencies for NFL DFS this Sunday. We'll dive into context and incorporate UFCollective projected ownership percentage to highlight interesting themes emerging in Week 2 DraftKings contests. Who's the public on, off, etc.
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The thought exercise: Examine opportunities to diversify our DK lineup with the right mix of high- and low-owned players on the Sunday main slate.
Week 2 Rankings:
Quarterback | Running Back | Wide Receiver | Tight End | D/ST | Kicker
NFL Week 2 DFS Ownership: Quarterback
Drew Brees ($7,200) and Pat Mahomes ($6,100) stand well ahead of the QB pack in UFCollective ownership. Both comfortably topped 4X value on DraftKings last week and they see the No. 2 and No. 1 Vegas game totals in Week 2, respectively.
A rough opening game and a week of injury reports could limit Ben Roethlisberger ($6,900) to mid-tier ownership despite tangoing with Mahomes in a week-high Vegas point total between the Chiefs and Steelers in Pittsburgh. Aaron Rodgers ($6,800) comes off a Sunday night classic yet pushes away the public — if he's even active — due to a knee sprain keeping him out of practice.
WEEK 2 DFS GPP LINEUPS: Yahoo | FanDuel | DraftKings
NFL Week 2 DFS Ownership: Running Back
Pittsburgh will get plenty of exposure despite QB and TE getting the pass. James Conner ($6,700) should go heavily rostered after redeeming the chalk in rainy Cleveland last Sunday. He and James White ($4,500) seem chalkiest of the sub-$7K backs, the latter contingent on a Rex Burkhead scratch.
David Johnson ($8,200) likely heads for contrarian stud status as perhaps the only back above $7K with a decent shot of threatening low single digits in roster percentage. The Cards visit LA as massive road dogs after an ugly Week 1, though DJ's role suits negative game script just fine.
WEEK 2 DFS CASH LINEUPS: Yahoo | FanDuel | DraftKings
NFL Week 2 DFS Ownership: Wide Receiver
Antonio Brown ($8,800) tops UFCollective roster rate against a KC defense that Philip Rivers fell a few drops away from gashing for 500 passing yards. Michael Thomas ($8,600) and Tyreek Hill ($7,600) are probably getting stacked a ton with the aforementioned Brees and Mahomes.
Things got really ugly for the Lions in prime time on Monday, and struggles on both sides of the ball should push their ownership down. The Jets shredded Detroit, and the 49ers offense was generally considered far better than Gang Green entering the season, so negative game script and therefore increased receiving volume could come the way of Marvin Jones Jr. ($6,200) and Kenny Golladay ($4,800).
MORE WEEK 2 DFS: Values | Stacks | Lineup Builder
NFL Week 2 DFS Ownership: Tight End
Speaking of the Lions defense, George Kittle ($3,800) could very well lead the pack after Jimmy Garoppolo gave his tight end opportunities to win downfield in Week 1, even if production was left on the table. There might even be a market for people who've yet to get burned by Jared Cook ($3,600), or those willing to just take their chances the week after Cook goes off.
Travis Kelce ($5,900) shapes up as the stud contrarian since Mahomes has only really allowed Hill to tear it up in his handful of regular and preseason starts. Kelce's history with getting schemed opportunities in Andy Reid's offense and his track record of coming through keep him interesting.