For each week's Draftkings slate, I will give a chalk and tournament play. I will also provide a player that I am fading as well. Before I go into this week's picks, I will give a little definition of chalk and tournament play.
A chalk pick is a player that will be highly owned across most all contests. Typically, this might be because of a low price, a great situation, or a combination of both. These plays are best for cash games (50/50s and head to heads) but can also be used for tournaments.
A tournament or GPP (Guaranteed Prize Pool) are contests that have payouts weighted heavily towards the top. The most famous one is the weekly Millionaire contest that DraftKings has on most NFL slates. Hopefully, we can find a player at smaller ownership, thus increasing the likelihood of a unique lineup and, if the player hits, the potential for a huge payout.
Last Week's Plays
Chalk- Ken Walker- At the time of writing last week James Conner had not been ruled out and when he was Eno Benjamin became the go to value piece. However Walker was still pretty chalky at 30% in double ups and did well with 19 points.
Tournament Play- Cooper Kupp- A decent real life game does not always mean a great fantasy game. He was certainly low owned in tournaments though.
Fade- Debo Samuel- Debo got 16 points which was not enough for any takedowns as WRs around him such as Ja’Marr Chase and Tyreek Hill did much better.
Week 7 Selections
Chalk
Josh Jacobs- So much for all the fuss about Josh Jacobs playing in the Hall of Fame game. Most analysts and pundits left him in the scrap heap. Fast forward to now, and he is in a great spot against a porous Texans defense. He's $6,500, and Jacobs is still too cheap. Right now, he's sitting at 25% to 35% ownership, but it will likely be much higher in cash. There's always merit to fading a chalky back, but I don't see how you make a case for fading Jacobs this week. Jacobs has had almost 50 carries the last two weeks (28 Week 5, 21 Week 4), and with a 26-team implied total should be in line for a ton of work come Sunday.
Tournament Play
Dalton Schultz- I know Dalton Schultz has not performed well as of late. I know he’s been hurt as well. But Schultz is getting Dak Prescott back this week, which is a massive upgrade over Cooper Rush. Last year Schultz had 8 touchdowns with Dak, and both Schultz and Dak are facing a terrible Lions defense. Most DFS players want to play Ezekiel Elliott, but pivoting away from that and playing the Dallas passing attack could be a low-owned play. Plus, at $3,600, he also gets you in a different type of lineup, as many players will be playing Greg Dulcich at the stone minimum of $2,500.
Fade
Greg Dulcich- Ugh. At $2,500, I understand why Greg Dulcich is projecting for over 10% ownership, but it's painful to plug him into my lineup. He's a great cash play, but Dulcich should be avoided at all costs in tournaments. Russell Wilson (AKA Mr. Unlimited) has been terrible this season. Wilson is hurt and might not even play this week, either. Also, the only reason he is getting hype is everyone saw him score the opening TD in primetime football. Dulcich had three targets for two catches and got lucky by getting a TD. I can see him easily putting up two catches for 20 yards. Dulich might have a floor of like four points, but I see no way he has the upside for a takedown in tournaments.