DraftKings College Football: Week 2 Main Slate

Week 2 is upon us, and after a fun Week 1, we have another great slate to enjoy this weekend. Listed below is our suite of DFS tools along with a cheat sheet with relevant data to help you build your lineups. There's still plenty of noise in some of these stats as a few teams on this slate were able to beat up on lesser opponents in Week 1. As long as you're aware of this and take some of the numbers with a grain of salt, you'll be able to get some use out of the cheat sheet. 

I also have a breakdown of some of the games I'm targeting on this slate, along with picks for each position. 

DFS Tools

Stats

Targets

Team Trends

Odds

DFS Primer

Cheat Sheet

Games to Target

The Texas A&M-Clemson matchup of course has the biggest impact on the playoff landscape, but I'll mostly be looking elsewhere when building my lineups for this main slate. That's not to say there aren't interesting one-off options, though. 

Kellen Mond ($7,800) has the dual-threat capability that gives him both floor and ceiling, and Clemson's lockdown secondary could lead to him running bit more than usual. It's worth noting that he has troubling road splits, though, as I detailed in Start/Sit earlier this week. If nothing else, Mond is a high-end talent with the matchup baked into his price, making him worth a spot in tournament lineups. 

Travis Etienne ($9,400) is virtually matchup-proof but he's also the priciest player on the board. The fact that he'll likely be relied upon for 60 minutes makes him awfully tempting, though. I mean, we're talking about a guy who has averaged 8.1 yards per carry over 323 rushes and has scored a touchdown on 12.3 percent of his carries. Just ridiculous.

Nebraska (-3.5) at Colorado

We've got a slate-best over/under at 64.5 points, with each side having an implied total in the 30s. This seems like a good place to start. Nebraska's defense looked stout and opportunistic in Week 1, but that was against South Alabama at home. Facing off against Colorado, especially in Boulder, will be an entirely different test. With that, there are some appealing options on the Buffs. Steven Montez ($7,300) is affordable, as is Week 1 darling Alex Fontenot ($6,300) who ran for three touchdowns against Colorado State. But, we all know the main attraction here. To Laviska or not to Laviska, that is the question. 

On the one hand, there's no way Shenault gets just five targets again, right? When healthy, he never had less than 10 targets against any FBS opponent last season. And it's not like he looked anything less than his 2018 form last week as he caught the team's lone passing touchdown among receivers and averaged 9.6 YPT. It comes down to whether you want a cheaper share of this passing game like Tony Brown ($4,400), who had three catches for 71 yards last week, or KD Nixon ($5,200). Also, choosing Shenault makes it tougher to go after Rondale Moore, who is likely the safer bet in a PPR format given his ridiculous target volume. 

On the Nebraska side, it starts with Adrian Martinez ($7,000), who I'm definitely not mad at for burning me in several leagues last week (6.7 DK points are you kidding me?!). But seriously, there's no reason to jump ship on him or this offense after a clunky opener. Martinez brings dual-threat ability (629 yards, eight touchdowns in 2018) and he's surrounded by talent. Look for a bounce back from him, and I'll use his modest price tag as a buying opportunity. 

This should be a fun game with enough pace and scoring to make several players pay off relative to their price tags. 

Illinois (-20) vs. Connecticut

Just as you were expecting when you opened this article, right? 

I am serious, though. This game has some DFS appeal and the best part is you don't actually have to watch it. Illinois seriously has the highest implied total of any team on this slate. So how do the Illini reach that ~40-point mark? It starts with quarterback Brandon Peters ($6,400) who went for 28.1 DK points in Week 1 against Akron. I'm not directly saying that Connecticut's' defense is worse than Akron's. But I'm not saying it's not not worse, ya dig? Peters is a competent passer with a little bit of mobility (36 rush yards, 1 TD in Week 1) and the talent around him at the skill positions is actually decent.  

Ricky Smalling ($4,000) is a cheap way of rounding out your receiving corps. He's not explosive on a per-target basis (career 6.6 YPT) but the volume seems fairly locked in after Peters looked his way 10 times last week. Always take cheap catches where you can get them in this format. Trevon Sidney ($4,200) and Josh Imatorbhebhe ($3,400) are two transfers from USC with talent that Connecticut won't really be able to contain, too. 

At running back, you'll have to keep an eye on Reggie Corbin's ($4,400) status, but if he's a full-go, he's a steal at that price. Only Kennedy Brooks, Greg McCrae, and Darrell Henderson averaged more yards per carry than Corbin among backs with at least 100 attempts last season.

Position by Position Breakdown

Quarterback

Kelly Bryant, Missouri ($7,700) vs. West Virginia

The  turnovers weren't great, nor were the mere 20 rushing yards in Bryant's debut. But he threw for 423 yards and two scores on 64.6 percent passing on the road in altitude against Wyoming. This week he gets a home matchup against a West Virginia team that very well may be worse than the 'Pokes. 

As you can see, the Bryant-led Tigers ran a slate-high 90 plays last week and Missouri's 38.25 implied points Saturday ranks near the top and makes this an offense to target. West Virginia only scares me in terms of fouling up the game script by trying to keep Missouri's max-tempo offense on the sidelines by playing a plodding, possession-focused brand of offense. A few short drives could put that out the window, though. 

We know Bryant is a dangerous runner from his 2017 season at Clemson when he ran for 665 yards and 11 touchdowns. If he can stress the defense with his legs in addition to inflicting damage with a high volume of passes, there's a good chance Bryant returns the most value of any quarterback on this slate. 

Justin Fields, Ohio State $8,900 vs Cincinnati

This one doesn't require a ton of explanation. Even though Cincinnati should put up a better fight than whatever that was last week from FAU, there just aren't many teams that are going to be able to slow down Fields. He's devastating as a rusher, as he showed on the long touchdown run early on in the season-opener. And he's extremely promising as a passer in his own right, while also being surrounded by an NFL-caliber receiving corps. If you're looking to pay up at quarterback, Fields is the guy.

I'll have shares of Peters, Montez, and Martinez in various lineups. Looking outside these five quarterbacks, Maryland's Josh Jackson may be worth a look at $6,500 at home against Syracuse. Maryland is projected to score 30.25 points and Jackson should have a low ownership. 

Running Back

Ke'Shawn Vaughn, Vanderbilt ($6,100) at Purdue

I give Vaughn a pass for last weekend's outing when he was held out of the end zone as Vanderbilt's offense was completely stifled. Vaughn quietly had an efficient night against Georgia, though, totaling 98 yards from scrimmage and averaging 4.9 YPC. 

This week he gets Purdue, a defense that allowed 4.3 yards per carry in Week 1, but that was against Nevada. Even if Purdue's run defense is respectable, it's likely not enough to stop Vaughn over the course of a game. Vaughn averaged 7.9 yards per carry in 2018 and is still one of the most dangerous big-play backs in the nation. Getting him at $6,100 should end up being a steal. 

Mekhi Sargeant, Iowa ($6,200) vs. Rutgers

Sargent seems to have a firm hold on the lead role in the Iowa backfield, taking 14 carries for 91 yards and a score in the opener while adding four catches on five targets for 65 yards. The other Iowa backs combined for 18 carries, 84 yards, two catches, and 11 receiving yards. That bodes well heading into a conference game at home against Rutgers. 

If Rutgers was giving up 5.38 yards per carry to Massachusetts, it's hard to imagine what this Iowa run game might do the the Scarlet Knights. The only thing standing in Sargeant's way is Iowa not wanting to overload him once the game is out of hand. 

Johnny Ford, South Florida ($5,800) at Georgia Tech

If this was non-PPR, Ford wouldn't be on my radar. He's mislabled as a running back despite having moved to the slot during spring practice. That can be used to our advantage this week, though. 

Ford (5-5, 176) is a small and shifty player who was arguably South Florida's most dynamic player in 2018, averaging 6.8 yards per carry over 115 attempts and turning three receptions into 78 yards and a score. Reports out of spring ball raved about how easy his transition to slot receiver was, so there's reason for optimism for Ford in his new role. 

Given how shaky South Florida's receivers looked against Wisconsin without Ford, it's plausible that he immediately becomes Blake Barnett's favorite target. Even if Ford doesn't find paydirt, he should be in line for enough targets (and receptions) to return value. 

Others to Consider

Maurice Washington, Nebraska ($3,700) at Colorado

It appears that Washington's initial discipline from the football program has been served, so he'll likely be available for the full game Saturday. He's the most talented back on the roster and averaged 6.5 yards per carry in the second half against South Alabama while the rest of the team was held to 1.55 yards per carry (sack yardage hurts, but still). If Nebraska turns Washington loose, he could be a steal for that low price tag.

Larry Rountree III, Missouri ($7,200) vs. West Virginia

A full year of strong production from Rountree outweighs one dud outing at Wyoming. The ownership should be low, at least. 

Wide Receiver

Rondale Moore, Purdue ($8,100) vs. Vanderbilt

Again, no need to sell you on Moore's merits as a player. Those are well-established. The case that needs to be made here is opting to choose the priciest wideout on the board. 

In Moore, not only are you getting an exceptional talent, but you're getting a player who is as close to a lock for double-digit targets on a given week as any player on this slate, let alone in all of FBS. He saw 14 targets in the season-opener and has seen double-digit targets in each of his last eight games dating back to last year. That level of volume stacked on top of a talent like Moore's makes him the top receiver play on the board with good reason.

KJ Hill, Ohio State ($5,900) vs Cincinnati

Chris Olave and Binjimen Victor were the big scorers from this receiving corps last week, which should draw much of the Ohio State wide receiver attention their way. Hill is extremely cheap considering his talent and role as a starter in this explosive Ohio State offense. This is a player who averaged 9.0 YPT over 92 targets last season. There's also no need to be overly concerned with the Cincinnati pass defense. Yes, it shut down UCLA a week ago, but the Chip Kelly-designed and Dorian Thompson-Robinson-led offense looked completely out of sorts. Justin Fields won't have those same issues, and Hill stands to bounce back after a quiet Week 1.

Johnathan Johnson, Missouri ($6,000) vs. West Virginia

This is a target chasing type of play as there are other options in this receiving corps with a higher big-play upside, like Jonathan Nance, Kam Scott, or Jalen Knox. I like all of those guys as tournament plays, and as we discussed earlier, Kelly Bryant will be going to the air enough to support production from all of these players. In Johnson, though, we have a higher target upside. Bryant looked his way a whopping 11 times in Week, which was nearly twice as many targets as any other Missouri wideout. Of course, there's also Albert Okwuegbunam to contend with as well, but he might be a bigger threat to the other receivers as he's a prime red zone target. Johnson can fill a chain-moving role between the 20s, giving you easy and bankable production thanks to the scoring format. Any of the Missouri receivers are in play, Johnson just projects to have the easiest path to production. 

JD Spielman ($4,700) and Wan'Dale Robinson ($4,100) vs Colorado

I swear I'm not from Nebraska, nor am I a Nebraska fan, per se. But I love this matchup for the Cornhuskers and I'm a huge fan of the price tags for both of these players. If last week showed us anything with this Nebraska offense, it's that the target tree could be fairly narrow. Robinson and Spielman combined for 10 of Nebraska's 22 targets in Week 1. Admittedly, the production wasn't impressive as they also combined for five catches for 69 yards and no receiving touchdowns. 

Even with a weak stat line from the opener, there's still reason to believe in Spielman and Robinson on Saturday thanks to their locked-in roles. in my opinion, no other receivers in their $4,700-and-below price range offer the same level of floor and ceiling that these two do. 

Demetric Felton, UCLA ($4,500) vs. San Diego State

This isn't a recommendation as much as it is a discussion point. When Chip Kelly kept Joshua Kelley (knee) on the sidelines in Week 1, he turned to Felton -- a receiver by trade -- as the primary running back for the Bruins. He's still listed at receiver this week on DraftKings, but the question is: will he have the same role in Week 2?

If Kelley is available, Felton's value gets completely squashed. Felton is listed as a running back for this week, but it's as the backup behind Martell Irby. In all, this could be a mess of a backfield situation until Kelley gets back healthy, and last week may have represented the mountain top in terms of Felton's value. It's difficult to see him seeing 23 carries again even if Kelley is out. 

Ihmir Smith-Marsette, Iowa ($4,300) vs. Rutgers

Picking an Iowa receiver can be tricky based on what we've seen from the Hawkeyes in recent years. That said, it doesn't look like the next George Kittle, Noah Fant, or T.J. Hockenson is ready to take over at tight end. Smith-Marsette and some of the other Iowa receivers see a bump in their projections as a result. He and Brandon Smith tied for the team-lead in targets in the opener, but with was Smith-Marsette who had the higher yardage output and YPT than his counterpart. Both caught touchdowns, though, and both get to face a shaky Rutgers secondary that made UMass look competent for a stretch in Week 1. The Iowa receivers, including former four-star wideout Oliver Martin ($4,100), are all interesting at their respective price points heading into this favorable matchup versus the Scarlet Knights.