“It’s good to be king, if just for a while. To be there in velvet, yeah, to give’em a smile. It’s good to get high and never come down. It’s good to be king of your own little town.”
- “It’s Good To Be King,” Tom Petty
The NFL is a wild, wonderful place. From week to week, we see incredible things that defy logic. Somehow, the Panthers go from being a complete dumpster fire to highly functioning. The Bucs fall from the ranks of the undefeated at the hands of Bo freakin’ Nix. But after three weeks, a few patterns start to form, and those truths (we hope) will lead us to smart streaming options at the DST position.
Week 4 is the last set of games before BYE weeks begin. Let’s find a winner for today and keep an eye on the weeks ahead.
(Teams owned in fewer than 50% of Yahoo leagues)
Drake’s Top 5 Adds
- Dolphins vs. Tennessee
- Titans @ Miami
- Rams @ Chicago
- Cincinnati @ Carolina
- Raiders vs. Browns
Higher-owned Options
Miami Dolphins (47%) vs. TEN – While the Dolphins may look lost on offense, they’ll face a team in Tennessee that’s never even heard of a map. Will Levis is the Netflix comedy special you tell your friends about at parties. He’s thrown five interceptions in three weeks. In Yahoo standard DST scoring, the Titans have given up 24, 11, and 21 points thus far. To quote the great American poet George Costanza, “That’s like finding plutonium by accident.” If you enjoy the thought of your DST scoring (two of the Titans' first three opponents have), maybe the fact Levis was sacked eight times on Sunday will perk up your ears. I think the Dolphins get right versus Mr. Mayonnaise.
Top Targets
Las Vegas Raiders (43%) vs CLE — Wow, the Raiders stunk it up in Week 3. They scored negative fantasy points as a DST. I didn’t know that was possible. I’m going back to the well, though, because they are facing Deshaun Watson and the turnstile offensive line from Cleveland. On Sunday, Watson was hurried 17 times and sacked eight. That’s hard to do. News of Pro Bowl guard Wyatt Teller missing multiple weeks for Cleveland doesn’t help. The Raiders lost safety Marcus Epps for the year with a knee injury, but I’m back in black for next week, possibly two, as the Raiders will face Bo Nix and the unpredictable Broncos in Week 5.
Tennessee Titans (3%) @ MIA – Our boy Skylar Thompson (ribs) didn’t even make it out his debut. He was injured and replaced by Tim Boyle (stinks). If the Dolphins have to roll with Boyle, it’s not only abandon ship for all Miami skill players on offense, but the Titans (who aren’t even good) become a must-play. There’s a chance that newly acquired Snoop Huntley could get the call. He’ll run some, but I think he will also take several sacks and turn the ball over. Titan up!
Tim Boyle (NCAA Career)
— Scott Barrett (@ScottBarrettDFB) September 22, 2024
12-26 TD:INT ratio
5.6 YPA
Tim Boyle (NFL Career)
4-12 TD:INT ratio
5.1 YPA https://t.co/fez6IRv6K1
Going Deeper
Los Angeles Rams (1%) @ CHI — I’m not sure what radio station Shane Waldron was listening to when he won the call-in contest to become Bears offensive coordinator, but I need to file a complaint with the FCC. The Bears will fool people with Caleb Williams’ gaudy numbers from Week 3. I’m not buying it. The Bears signal caller still threw a pair of picks while taking four sacks. Chicago has given up double-digit scoring weeks to their last two opponents. This is a deep cut, as the Rams' defense isn’t great by any means. Only break this glass if you truly are in an emergency.
Cincinnati Bengals (28%) @ CAR – OK, let’s be honest. This looked a lot better a week or so ago when Bryce Young was still under center for Carolina. Andy Dalton revived the Panthers' offense, and they looked, dare I say, functional. But, It’s still Andy Dalton. Let’s not get crazy here. There’s a reason he’s been a backup. Now he gets to face his former team, which I’m sure will have him jazzed up like me after a 16 oz Red Bull. But even as my stomach turns being full of that junk, so will yours watching Dalton drop back against his old friends. This isn’t a strong recommendation, especially when the Bengals just got absolutely torched by Jayden Daniels on Monday night, but when the wire isn’t bountiful, we get this.
NOTE: The Kansas City Chiefs DST is owned in 85% of Yahoo leagues but only 48% of ESPN leagues. They could be on your waiver wire and face a Chargers team that is likely without Justin Herbert and definitely missing rookie tackle Joe Alt.
DFS Tournament Plays
High-priced (DraftKings)
Kansas City ($3600) — As noted, the KC DST will face a beat-up Chargers team that potentially will have Taylor Heinicke under center and a backup tackle replacing Joe Alt.
Pittsburgh ($3300) — This is the best defense in football. They’ll make Anthony Richardson’s life miserable. I can visualize T.J. Watt recovering the strip sack for a touchdown already.
Las Vegas ($3200) — I don’t love this price tag in DFS. While the Raiders should pressure Watson and the Browns out of the building, I wish they were a few hundred cheaper. Vegas isn’t good enough on its own to validate this number.
Miami ($3200) — As I laid out above, Will Levis is awful. He’s made for DFS because he can throw a bucketful of interceptions that go to the house and win someone… well, a new house.
Lower Priced
New England ($2400) — Cheapest DST on the board (along with Carolina), and they aren’t facing the Super Bowl 49ers. This is the no Deebo, Kittle, CMC group who just lost inexplicably to the Rams. The Pats defense is no joke. I can see them making a play on Purdy and scoring some points.
Looking ahead to Week 5
Seattle vs Giants
Denver vs Raiders
New England vs Dolphins
Green Bay @ Rams
Las Vegas @ Broncos
