We’re headed into wild card weekend, and it couldn’t be filled with more inconsistent QBs. Using our FantasyLabs Stacking tool we will identify some of the top stacks of the weekend. The following stacks were made using the Levitan Player Model.
QB-WR (DK): Matt Moore – Jarvis Landry
I know what you’re probably thinking: How do you garner the confidence to start a backup QB on the road in the playoffs? Well, he’s just $5,100 and his projected ownership of just nine to 12 percent is appealing for guaranteed prize pools. The Steelers are currently giving up an Opponent Plus/Minus of -2.3. While the matchup is unfavorable, Moore has thrown eight TDs in just three games. His 88 percent Bargain Rating is the highest among all QBs.
Landry is the highest-rated WR on the entire slate, largely in part to his salary of just $5,100. However, Landry has an extremely low projected floor of 4.4 points. This makes him much more appealing in GPPs than cash games. Landry’s Projected Plus/Minus of +3.91 is the highest among all WRs.
QB-TE (FD): Russell Wilson – Jimmy Graham
Wilson has been a disappointment nearly all season, but Wilson is nearly $1,000 cheaper than Aaron Rodgers and Ben Roethlisberger, and he’s tied with Roethlisberger with a slate-high 2.5 Pts/Sal.
Graham will likely be one of the chalkiest TEs this week with a projected ownership of 26 to 30 percent. He may be worth fading in GPPs, but he’s the safest TE on the slate with the highest projected floor as well as ceiling.
RB-D/ST (DK): Ty Montgomery – Packers D/ST
If you’re going to use this stack, don’t do so in cash games. Both Montgomery and the Packers D/ST carry risk that is acceptable for GPPs but probably not for cash.
Montgomery saw his workload diminish last week as second-year fullback Aaron Ripkowski surprisingly played as the lead back for much of the game. Still, there haven’t been any reports this week suggesting that Ripkowski has actually overtaken Montgomery in the backfield.
The Packers secondary is in rough shape with Quinten Rollins and Sam Shields out. Luckily, the Pack have been able to generate a solid pass rush this season. They are sixth in sacks and tied for fourth in interceptions on the season. They have the second-highest sack projection at 5.2.
QB-RB-WR (FD): Ben Roethlisberger – Le’Veon Bell – Antonio Brown
Kiss over half of your salary goodbye. If you were to attempt this star-studded three-man stack, you’d be left with a measly $3,783 per player for the rest of your entire roster. It’s a risky move, but the Steelers have a slate-high implied Vegas total of 28.5 points. Roethlisberger’s at home, where his Plus/Minus is the highest in the league. Per our Trends tool:
Bell is by far the most expensive player on the slate. His price tag of $10,300 is tough to accomdate, but he’s almost impossible not to roster in cash games. Bell has a ludicrous 97.15 rating in the Levitanimal Model, and the game script should also heavily be in Bell’s favor. Bell currently has 17 Pro Trends, a slate-high Projected Plus/Minus of +6.19, and a 99 percent Bargain Rating. The model loves Bell, I love Bell, and you love Bell.
Brown may have the sneakiest upside of all three of these players due to his competition. Per our NFL News feed, No. 1 cornerback Byron Maxwell (ankle) is doubtful to play, and so Brown is likely to run many of his routes this game against WR-turned-CB Tony Lippett (per our Matchups tool). Lippett has played well this season, but he’s no match for Brown, who tends to move across the formation and will also likely run some routes against Xavien Howard, who is the third-lowest Pro Football Focus CB active with a pathetic 50.6 grade. Brown currently has the position’s highest median projection.
QB-RB-WR-WR (DK): Eli Manning – Rashad Jennings – Odell Beckham – Sterling Shepard
Manning is the Levitan Model’s highest-rated QB partially because of the absurdly high +5.9 Opponent Plus/Minus. The Packers have been grilled through the air this season. Manning has been inconsistent this season, but historically his turnover ratio and play in general is better in the playoffs than the regular season — but he hasn’t been to the playoffs in over five season so it’s possible Playoff Eli is a thing of the past.
Jennings is the most volatile player in this stack. Rookie Paul Perkins is coming off a game in which he saw 21 carries, and Jennings hasn’t seen over 50 percent of the offensive snaps since Week 14. Still, keep in mind that Week 17 was essentially a meaningless game for the Giants. Perkins and Jennings will likely split the work, and we’re projecting Perkins to have significantly higher ownership even though Jennings has the higher projected ceiling.
Beckham will be chalky this week, as he should be. The Packers this year have allowed the second-most fantasy points to WRs: 43.3 DK points per game. Beckham is a target monster, finishing the season second in the league with 169 targets, and his projected ceiling of 30.9 leads the entire slate.
Shepard averaged 6.5 targets per game this year, and was targeted more frequently near the end zone after the team’s bye in Week 8, scoring six touchdowns in the Giants’ final nine games. Running in the slot, Shepard has established himself as the team’s second-best receiver this season, trailing OBJ by only two TDs.
Good luck everyone!
News Updates
After this piece is published, FantasyLabs is likely to provide news updates on a number of players herein mentioned. Be sure to stay ahead of your competition with our industry-leading DFS-focused news blurbs:
