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We’re officially into many season-long league playoffs now, which is great for 30% of fantasy football owners, but what about the rest of you!? Well, DFS is still rolling and if you have never really dabbled in the daily games, a combination of: reasonable investment, game play discipline and realistic expectations can really help you actually recoup some of your season long loses. I always suggest playing 50/50’s to start and throwing a $1 tournament LU in here and there just for the feel of “upside action”. However, lose the notion you’re going to play DFS for a weekend and quit your job Monday. Instead, approach it like a short season where you are trying to grow a $200 investment into a $500 investment before the Super Bowl. That’s far from an impossible task, and Relative Position Value per Dollar is the place to start that journey.
Here are the top 20 salaried RB’s on FanDuel ranked with RPVPD for Sunday’s Main Contest:
FPPG | Raw RPV | Salary | Pts per $ | RPV Per Dollar | |
23.4 | 0.647 | 9200 | $393 | 0.249 | |
18.9 | 0.330 | 8000 | $423 | 0.192 | |
21 | 0.478 | 9300 | $443 | 0.154 | |
14.8 | 0.042 | 6600 | $446 | 0.148 | |
15 | 0.056 | 6700 | $447 | 0.147 | |
13.9 | -0.022 | 6500 | $468 | 0.107 | |
17.5 | 0.232 | 8400 | $480 | 0.083 | |
13.8 | -0.029 | 6700 | $486 | 0.073 | |
13.8 | -0.029 | 7000 | $507 | 0.031 | |
14.4 | 0.013 | 7400 | $514 | 0.019 | |
12 | -0.156 | 6200 | $517 | 0.013 | |
14.1 | -0.008 | 7500 | $532 | -0.016 | |
11.5 | -0.191 | 6300 | $548 | -0.046 | |
13.2 | -0.071 | 7400 | $561 | -0.071 | |
12.8 | -0.099 | 7400 | $578 | -0.104 | |
12.6 | -0.113 | 7300 | $579 | -0.106 | |
11 | -0.226 | 6400 | $582 | -0.111 | |
11.4 | -0.198 | 6800 | $596 | -0.139 | |
10 | -0.296 | 6600 | $660 | -0.260 | |
9.1 | -0.360 | 6500 | $714 | -0.364 |
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With Ezekiel Elliott playing Thursday and DeMarco Murray on a bye, the running back position is a tad thinner than usual. David Johnson holds a huge price tag, but don’t let that fool you. Johnson is still the most cost efficient as well and is equally valuable in both Cash games and tournament play. Melvin Gordon and the streaking Le'Veon Bell are right behind him making it crystal clear that allocating significant budget to RB is a wise decision. LeGarrette Blount is perhaps the surprise top 5 back. Despite his two week downward trend, Blount is facing the 20th ranked run defense and is certainly more viable at the goal line with Rob Gronkowski out. He’s a nice fade from the elite salaried group.
Jay Ajayi has seen his production dip as he Dolphins O-line has deteriorated due to injury. Thomas Rawls was my pick last week to break out, but he stalled out of the gates along with the rest of the Seahawks offense. At home, he should rebound, but he’s a safer season long play than a daily one. Todd Gurley’s value has fallen off the face of the Earth and even though he still carries name recognition, the salary is still not enough to warrant his DFS use. Doug Martin may be at the bottom of the barrel, but his FPPG are slightly negatively skewed based upon his injury limitations. Martin actually has more upside than the RPVPD shows, but he’s still more of a secondary lineup type selection, not a primary. The other back who stands the best chance of outperforming his ranking is Carlos Hyde. He looks healthier than he’s been all year, and the Bears rank in the bottom third in terms of run defense. His solid floor of 12 points makes him a limited risk and a potential large reward in Sunday contests.
BLACK BOOK LINEUP WEEK 13
QB Matt Barkley CHI $6K
Barkley at this price versus the 49ers at home should hit 2x value by just showing up. He also allows for the next two RB’s to share the same roster.
RB David Johnson ARZ $9.2K, Le’Veon Bell PIT $9.3K
Johnson is $300 cheaper than last week and he has nearly the same potential return value versus the 25th ranked Washington run defense. Bell has been on fire, and although the Giants defense has played well, they have yet to weather a test like the weapons featured in the Steelers’ attack.
WR Mike Evans TB $8.5K, Michael Thomas NO $6.9K, Sammy Watkins BUF $6.3K
Mike Evans has been the most consistent #1 WR in the NFL this year and there will be plenty of opportunity for him in San Diego. Brandin Cooks may be demanding the ball more, but I still think Michael Thomas has the higher floor. Sammy Watkins was 3/80 in limited action during his Week 12 return and he has a nice matchup versus the Raiders soft defense.
TE Vernon Davis WAS $4.6K
With Jordan Reed out, Davis once again becomes a viable fantasy option. And yes, I’m still uncomfortable saying that!
K Caleb Sturgis PHI $4.5K
Double digit points in 4 of his last 5 games.
D/ST Redskins $4.7K
Carson Palmer has been a turnover machine this year!
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Joe Pisapia (@JoePisapia17) is the eight-time best-selling author of the Fantasy Black Book Series for baseball and football. He hosts On Target Fantasy weekdays at 12 noon est, The Fantasy Black Book Tues and Thurs 8-10pm est and Sunday Game Day 8-11am on FNTSY Network Radio.