The Panthers should be able to take advantage of the Colts’ week defense
Another so-so week for my daily fantasy stacks. My Week 7 stacks weren’t stupendous, but they weren’t duds either. Let’s evaluate last weekend’s picks. Once again, all point values come from FanDuel.
Create lineup stacks with our free DFS Lineup Optimizer 
WEEK 7 RECAP
Premium Stack
Matt Ryan – 11.74 points
Devonta Freeman – 14 points
Julio Jones – 19.7 points
Naturally, Freeman put up his worst performance in six weeks the week I select him as a part of my primo stack. Matt Ryan didn’t have a great game and the Falcons suddenly look vulnerable even though they slipped past Tennessee by a 10-7 score. Low-scoring games don’t exactly translate to stacking success.
Value Stack
Carson Palmer – 19.2 points
Larry Fitzgerald – 5.4 points
John Brown – 14.5 points
The Cardinals were a bit underwhelming on Monday night, as this game was closer than many expected. Fitzgerald was neutralized against a mediocre Ravens’ secondary, but John Brown made up for it with another nice game.
Risky Stack
Andrew Luck – 26.02 points
Frank Gore – 10 points
Coby Fleener – 6.2 points
Luck has thrown for at least 300 yards and three touchdowns in back-to-back games. I tried to save money by excluding T.Y. Hilton, but if you had added Hilton to your stack, you were likely reaping the benefits. Indy’s running game isn’t very good, and Frank Gore cannot be considered a reliable DFS back.
Time to move onto my Week 8 stacks. This week features three home teams and even a primetime option. All prices come from FanDuel.
WEEK 8 PREDICTIONS
Premium Stack
Indianapolis Colts @ Carolina Panthers (8:30 p.m. ET kickoff, Monday night)
Players of note
Cam Newton ($8,000), Jonathan Stewart ($6,600), Greg Olsen ($6,400)
Rationale
Let’s start with Stewart. First of all, he is priced just $100 more than Alfred Blue and $200 more than Darren McFadden. Second, Stewart seems to be finally hitting his stride. Stewart has rushed for 203 yards and two touchdowns the past two weeks and faces an Indianapolis defense that has allowed 122.7 yards per game to opposing tailbacks.
Newton also has a favorable matchup against a dreadful Colts’ defense. The Colts have allowed an average of 286 yards through the air along with 12 passing touchdowns. Even without many weapons, Newton should be able to slice through the Colts on Monday night. Olsen will likely be the leading target, as he faces a Colts’ defense that has allowed at least 89 yards and a touchdown to opposing tight ends the past two weeks.
Value Stack
New York Giants @ New Orleans Saints (1 p.m. ET kickoff)
Players of note
Drew Brees ($7,900), Mark Ingram ($8,000), Benjamin Watson ($5,400)
Rationale
Brees isn’t an elite quarterback anymore, but that doesn’t mean he cannot put up spectacular performances. This week sets up for an explosion for Brees. His Saints are at home and will face a Giants’ secondary that has allowed 288 yards per game through the air. It’s time for Brees to be elite, even it’s only for a week.
Ingram seems to be a safe bet to flirt with 100 yards and score at least one touchdown. The G-Men have surrendered an average of 113 yards on the ground and five touchdowns this season.
The risk comes with Watson. A big part of stacking is trying to extract value and save some dollars for the rest of your team. Watson doesn’t jump out as a great option, but he has a good matchup and a nice price tag. The Giants have been the fifth-most generous defense to opposing tight ends and Brees doesn’t have a plethora of options to target. Watson is worth an affordable flier considering the uncertainty surrounding the tight end spot on a weekly basis.
Risky Stack
San Diego Chargers @ Baltimore Ravens (1 p.m. ET kickoff)
Players of note
Joe Flacco ($7,400), Justin Forsett ($6,900), Crockett Gillmore ($5,000)
Rationale
Remember that one time I struck gold on Gillmore? What’s that? It was one of my few good picks this season? Yeah, yeah. I know. Anyways, Gillmore faces a good matchup against the Chargers, who have given up at least 46 yards to tight ends the past four weeks. Steve Smith might make more sense, but the Chargers have done a good job against opposing wideouts.
Oh, by the way, the Chargers have given up an average of 132 rushing yards per game this season.
I always keep an eye out for West Coast teams heading East for an early kickoff. The Chargers just let the Oakland Raiders torch them for 412 yards and 37 points. The Ravens might stink, but they should have a good day against a bad Chargers’ team. This will be a shootout.
Be sure to check out our free DFS Lineup Optimizer
Matt Barbato is a correspondent at FantasyPros. For more from Matt, you can view his archive or follow him @realmattbarbato.
