Week 4 FanDuel Picks: NFL DFS lineup advice, strategy for GPP tournaments

Bennett Bedford

Week 4 FanDuel Picks: NFL DFS lineup advice, strategy for GPP tournaments image

Last week’s FanDuel core plays disappointed. Stefon Diggs struggled, and Kyler Murray didn't live up to the hype despite finally being let loose with his legs. It was also beyond disappointing that Ezekiel Elliott didn't score a touchdown against Miami, but at least Nelson Agholor had a big volume day at his value price. We'll hope for better luck in our Week 4 NFL DFS picks for GPP tournaments on FanDuel.

If you're new to this article, we pick four players every week we'll be overweight on in our lineup builds. Then, we give an example of how we'd fill in around them in tournaments. Our "Core Four" this week is Russell Wilson, Austin Ekeler, Tyler Lockett, and Phillip Dorsett. This isn't an "optimal lineup", but it's an example of one you could build if you start with our "Core Four". If you're looking for more great NFL, NBA, or MLB, or PGA DFS advice, give me a follow on Twitter (@DFSBenj).

WEEK 4 DFS LINEUPS:
DK cash | DK GPP | FD cash | FD GPPY! cash | Y! GPP

FanDuel Picks Week 4: NFL DFS example lineup 

CORE PLAY: QB Russell Wilson, Seahawks @ Cardinals ($7,800)

The Seahawks have by far the best matchup on the board this week playing at Arizona. The Cardinals have the perfect combination of a bad defense that can’t stop anyone through the air, and an uptempo offense that allows opposing offenses to also run more plays. Wilson is my top overall play this week, and while his price tag is high, it's still tolerable at $7,800 on FanDuel. 

Wilson was a garbage-time hero for fantasy owners last week, throwing for more than 400 yards with two passing and two rushing touchdowns. That resulted in a monster 41.34-fantasy point outing. While I normally try to take advantage of recency bias and fade players coming off big weeks, the matchup and game environment for Wilson are just too good to overlook. Expect Wilson to be one of the most popular quarterback plays on the slate, but he is by far the best high-end value at the position. 

MORE WEEK 4 DFS: Top values | StacksLineup Builder

CORE PLAY: RB Austin Ekeler, Chargers @ Dolphins ($8,100)

We have been blessed with three straight weeks that featured a deep pool of viable running back options. However, Week 4 is a different type of challenge with Saquon Barkley, Ezekiel Elliott, Le'Veon Bell, and Alvin Kamara not on the main slate. This leaves us with a choice between Christian McCaffrey, Ekeler, and Dalvin Cook as our best options. I like all three and will have exposure to all of them, but for my core play, I’m going with Ekeler. 

Not only do you get a nice price discount with Ekeler at $8,100, but you also get the best possible matchup for a running back against the Dolphins. Ekeler has perhaps the highest touchdown equity on the slate with Los Angeles coming in as 16-point road favorites. Even if Ekeler doesn’t score a touchdown, he is getting more than enough volume in the passing game to pay off his salary through yards and catches alone. He has seen 20 targets through the first three games, and I don’t see that volume dropping as long as TE Hunter Henry is out of the lineup. Ekeler is the home run cash game play and is a player you should get some exposure to in GPPs given his upside if he is able to get into the end zone a few times. 

WEEK 4 NON-PPR RANKINGS:
Quarterback | Running back | Wide receiver | Tight end | D/ST | Kicker

RB Dalvin Cook, Vikings @ Bears ($8,300)

Going with Cook at running back over McCaffrey is a great leverage play. Cook is likely to be half the ownership of McCaffrey but comes in at a nice price discount of $700. The matchup with the Bears is tough, but we know that the Vikings are going to feed Cook with 20-25 touches, and his talent is such that he can smash in any matchup. 

CORE PLAY: WR Tyler Lockett, Seahawks @ Cardinals ($6,600)

There isn’t a player on the slate this week that is as underpriced as Lockett, and I’m going to take advantage by slamming him in my lineups in all formats. I already ran through why I love the matchup for the Seahawks, and all of that information applies to their clear-cut WR1. Additionally, the Cardinals have one of the worst groups of defensive backs in the league as long as Patrick Peterson is still suspended. While we certainly can’t expect Lockett to see the type of volume that he saw last week against the Saints (14 targets), we can still project him for at least nine targets given the projected pace of this game. 

The Cardinals currently rank 28th in DvP against wide receivers, and Seattle will likely look to lean on their passing game with Chris Carson having fumbling issues and fellow running back Rashad Penny struggling with a hamstring injury. Lockett, like Wilson, will be a chalky option, but the matchup, price, and projected volume is too much to pass up in any format.

WEEK 4 PPR RANKINGS: Running back | Wide receiverTight end

CORE PLAY: WR Phillip Dorsett, Patriots @ Bills ($5,900)

We will need to find some value at the wide receiver position if we want to get Wilson and two of the high-end running backs in our lineup. The guy that I’m looking at is Dorsett at $5,900. Some of Dorsett’s value is dependent on the status of Julian Edelman, who is questionable to play with a rib injury. If Edelman is forced to miss this week’s game against Buffalo, then Dorsett slides into the valuable WR2 option in the Patriots passing game besides Josh Gordon. 

The matchup with the Bills is notable, as well, because they have one of the best cover corners in the league in Tre'Davious White. The good news for Dorsett is that White will likely shadow cover Gordon on the outside, which leaves Dorsett with the much better individual matchup against Levi Wallace or Kevin Johnson. Dorsett is a tough sell when Edelman is in the lineup because he becomes very touchdown-dependent, but he could push for upwards of eight targets with Edelman on the sidelines and Gordon dealing with White. 

WEEK 4: Waiver pickups | FAAB planner | Trade valuesSnap counts

WR Julio Jones, Falcons vs. Titans ($8,500)

Jones is continuously overlooked by the DFS community. There has been a narrative around Jones that he doesn’t score touchdowns, but with four TDs this season and the longest running touchdown streak among wide receivers in the league going back to last season, that narrative is completely untrue. He has a plus matchup against the Titans at home and should be sub-10-percent owned.

TE T.J. Hockenson, Lions vs. Chiefs ($5,200)

The tight end spot will go to rookie Hockenson, who has a great matchup against the Chiefs. Hockenson has struggled the past two weeks but is in a nice breakout spot with the projected volume bump for the entire Lions passing game.

FLEX Christian Kirk, Cardinals vs. Seahawks ($5,900)

Kirk is a correlation play against Russell Wilson and Tyler Lockett. Kirk has been a volume machine, with 32 targets over the first three weeks. While most of his targets have had a low aDOT, the Cardinals could opt to stretch the field a little more this week against a bad Seattle secondary. 

D/ST Carolina Panthers @ Texans ($3,500)

The defense looks gross with the Panthers, but there really isn’t an obvious defense play unless you want to spend way up for the Chargers or Patriots. I’m prioritizing getting Ekeler and McCaffrey into my cash game lineup so a punt on the position is in order. Carolina should get a few sacks at least against the Texans' brutal O-line.

Bennett Bedford