Fantasy football managers need to approach weekly lineup decisions as if they are an actual NFL coached.
When Andy Reid sits down and formulates his game plan for the week, he looks at everything from his own personnel’s strengths and weaknesses to the opposition’s schemes and coverages he expects to see.
When you look at your roster and decide which players to start, you need to do the exact same thing.
It is the same when playing DFS on DraftKings or FanDuel, and it is the same when you are betting NFL games.
Find the right matchups to exploit and you will find yourself in the winner’s circle.
Though most people look at this week’s Giants-Seahawks game and assume Kenneth Walker is just going to rush for another three touchdowns, your job is to know that Geno Smith is the guy you want in your lineups this week.
The Giants rank 24th in DVOA (Defense-adjusted value Over Average) against the pass, but more importantly, Smith has averaged 46 pass attempts per game over the past three weeks.
New offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb knows how to run the football, but his offensive scheme is predicated on heavy passing, and they will continue to throw regardless of what the scoreboard says.
Last week, Smith threw the ball 56 times in a losing effort, but he threw 34 times in a game Seattle won 24-3 against the Dolphins the week before, and he threw 44 times in a Week 2 win over the Patriots.
Yes, the Seahawks will find a way to establish the run, but not at the expense of a heavy dose of passing.
Steelers running back Najee Harris also has a fantastic matchup.
Both Jaylen Warren and Cordarrelle Patterson have missed late-week practices with injuries, so we expect offensive coordinator Arthur Smith to unleash Harris against this soft Dallas defense.
The Cowboys rank dead-last in DVOA against the run, allowing the seventh-most rushing yards and already have allowed eight rushing touchdowns.
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If you’re debating whether or not to start him this week, you should, and you should load him up in a FanDuel contest this week.
Remember Amari Cooper’s 82-yard touchdown that was negated last week because of a holding penalty.
Well, line him right back up, because he is matched up with Benjamin St-Juste of the Commanders this week.
Cooper will be the fifth player to hang another touchdown on the Commanders’ cornerback.
The beautiful thing about football being so popular in our culture is there are always opportunities to profit off matchups.
Be the person who finds and exploits those matchups and you will find plenty of success in all your fantasy endeavors.
Howard Bender is the head of content at FantasyAlarm.com. Follow him on X @rotobuzzguy and catch him on the award-winning “Fantasy Alarm Radio Show” on the SiriusXM fantasy sports channel weekdays from 6-8 p.m. Go to FantasyAlarm.com for all your fantasy football news and advice.
