Fantasy football: FanDuelin' Week 4

Week 3 Recap

$5 50/50 Entry
Finished 23 of 100 (Top 50 win $9)
Winnings $0

Final Roster

Matthew Stafford $9000 - 6.64 pts
Montee Ball $7800 - 3.4 pts
Ahmad Bradshaw $5200 - 15.3 pts
Michael Crabtree $6500 - 19.4 pts
Jordy Nelson $8600 - 8.4 pts
Golden Tate $5000 - 7.6 pts
Jimmy Graham $8400 - 8.4 pts
Shayne Graham $700 - 2 pts
Cleveland Browns Defense $4700 - 2 pts

Summary

When all of your $8000+ players fail to reach double digit fantasy points you probably don't have a good chance of finishing "in the money". Such was the case with my week 3 FanDuel squad. The Lions/Packers game wasn't the shootout I expected and Michael Crabtree nearly outscored Stafford, Nelson and Tate combined. If you aren't keeping score at home, my current record is below

Starting Bank: $60
Week 1: Lost $1
Week 2: Won $4/Lost $5
Week 3: Lost $5
Current Bank: $53

Here is my set up for week 4:

$5 50/50 League $60,000 Player Acquisition Budget
100 players Top 50 Win $9

Quarterback:

Colin Kaepernick (San Francisco 49ers) $8,100

Kaep currently ranks 9^th among QBs through 3 weeks. His passing and rushing attempts are rising and the San Francisco defense can't hold leads. Philadephia's defense has given up the second most fantasy points to quarterbacks this season as their secondary has been eaten alive by Kirk Cousins and Andrew Luck. #7 should be able to go for 300+ combined yards and hopefully a touchdown or six.

Running Backs

Le'Veon Bell (Pittsburgh Steelers) $8,800

Bell has been one of the most consistent backs this season. I expect that trend continues when the Tampa Bay Buccaneers travel to Pittsburgh. If the Steelers can get an early lead and again lean on their running backs to salt away the clock I like Bell's chances to make a handsome return on my investment.

Donald Brown (San Diego SuperChargers) $6,300

Someone at FanDuel must be put off by Brown's yards per attempt last week. Can't say I was impressed either, but Brown is the lead back on a run heavy team going against a still developing defense (Jacksonville). With a price tag lower than the injured Knowshon Moreno, I imagine he'll be a popular pick this week.

Wide Receivers

Jeremy Maclin (Philadelphia Eagles) $8,000

It's week 4 and Jeremy Maclin's knees haven't imploded. Good on you, Jeremy! The guy is a top 15 WR when he is healthy and the 49ers secondary is about as scary as a dessert display. The Eagles offensive line woes are a worry, but it's not like the Niners are getting that much pressure these days. Vegas has this game as the second highest over/under of the week. I got burned chasing a shootout in week 3, hopefully the fantasy fairies treat me better on Sunday.

Michael Crabtree (San Francisco 49ers) $7,000

I've shook the Crabtree two weeks in a row and he has yet to let me down. I'll give King Crab another shake this week considering he should see a lot of Cary Williams who won't be making the cover of "Shutdown Corner Weekly" magazine any time soon.

Golden Tate (Detroit Lions) $5,500

When it comes to cheap wide receivers I just can't give up on "Golden Tee". He's averaged 7 targets a week and gets the NY Jets reception friendly secondary on Sunday. Of course, there is that other receiver in Detroit, but I'm thinking the Jets could force more passes with the league's best run defense.

Tight End

Martellus Bennett (Chicago Bears) $6,000

Look out Julius, stand down Jimmy Graham, there's a new sheriff in tight end town. Martellus Bennett is looking like the receiving threat Chicago hoped for since the departure of Greg Olsen. Tied for the league lead in touchdowns, Bennett is a solid play even based solely on receptions (averaging over 6 a game). Green Bay's linebackers and safeties are going to have their work cut out for them trying to contain all the Chicago passing options. Fingers crossed for Bennett to make it 4 straight weeks with a visit to the end zone.

Kicker

Shaun Suisham (Pittsburgh Steelers) $4,900

Cheap kicker, playing at home against a bad defense, plus he has a last name that's fun to say? I plan on going Suis-HAM on my FanDuel opponents this week.

Defense

Indianapolis Colts $5,400

Team defense has been the bane of my weekly fantasy existence this season. This week, it was a tossup between Indy and San Diego. Jake Locker could be out this week, leaving Charlie Whitehurst to lead a struggling Titan offense. Blake Bortles is making his first start, but I know Whitehurst isn't "that dude". Bortles could surprise a few folks in San Diego this week, so I chose to roll with the Colts.

Good luck to you and your lineups this week, especially if any of my players are also on your team.

Also, if you want to find me on FanDuel my screen name is "DerekRVA". My photo is of wrestling legend Koko B Ware. Feel free to challenge me to a head-to-head game!

Fooch's Note: SB Nation's partner FanDuel is hosting a $350,000 Fantasy Football Contest for Week 4's NFL games. It's only $10 to join and first prize is $30,000. Starts Sunday, September 28th at 10am PT. Here's the link.