This week’s lineup advice is a bit different than usual. A quartet of players from one contest make up a game stack, and they’re joined by a high-upside QB/WR stack coming off of a disappointing showing made all the more disappointing by their team’s fireworks.
Enter our exclusive DraftKings contest. First place wins a LIFETIME FantasyPros subscription 
Derrick Henry (RB – TEN): $5,500 @ Browns
Delanie Walker (TE – TEN): $5,800 @ Browns
Duke Johnson Jr. (RB – CLE): $4,900 vs. Titans
Ricardo Louis (WR – CLE): $4,200 vs. Titans
The absence of the Sunday Night Football game on DraftKings’ main slate over the last few weeks eliminates this week’s highest over/under total from the mix, and it makes Tennessee’s implied over/under total of 25.5 points, per Pinnacle, all the more attractive. The Titans are 5.5-point favorites which is favorable for Henry serving as a late-game hammer, much like he did against the Colts on Monday night. Henry turned his 19 carries against the Colts into 131 yards and a score, and he also caught a pass for 14 yards. The Browns have been tough on backs, and Football Outsiders (FO) ranks them third defending the run. They’ve also held running backs to just 3.09 yards per carry, according to Pro-Football Reference. The matchup isn’t great, but I believe in Henry wearing Cleveland down. He could be in line for 20-plus touches, too, if DeMarco Murray — who hasn’t practiced yet this week — is out. If Murray is out, Henry’s ownership will get a huge bump, yet even if the former suits up, the latter should see an uptick in ownership anyway. I’m delighted to eat the chalk with Henry regardless of Murray’s playing status.
If the Titans win handily like the spread suggests, I expect Walker to have a hand in that. The matchup is outstanding for him. In fact, it couldn’t get better. The Browns have yielded the most DraftKings points per game to tight ends this year, and they’ve been the most giving to them in terms of targets (56) and receptions (42). The Browns have also surrendered the second most yards (402), and they’re tied for the third most touchdowns (five) allowed to tight ends this year. FO ranks Cleveland 31st defending the position. After not being on the injury report earlier in the week, Walker was a limited participant Thursday with what coach Mike Mularkey deemed an “upper calf issue.” Check back before finalizing lineups Sunday.
DeShone Kizer has been reinserted as Cleveland’s starting quarterback after sitting in favor of Kevin Hogan last week, and that bodes well for Johnson’s outlook. The pass-catching back is coming off of his worst game of the season in the passing attack with three receptions on five targets for negative-one yard. He entered last week averaging 54 yards receiving per game on 4.6 receptions per game. The 24-year-old back was a favorite of Kizer’s, and the spread for the game projects a favorable catch-up game script for Johnson. If things go according to script, that’s good for Louis, too. The sophomore wide out turned in a clunker with Hogan starting after back-to-back useful games in which he reeled in 10 of 17 targets for 135 yards. He’s been targeted six or more times in four straight games, and the matchup is great for him turning continued heavy usage into a nifty fantasy line. The Titans have allowed the 10th most DraftKings points per game to receivers this year. Spinning back to Johnson, the matchup is good for him, too. The Titans have allowed the eighth most receiving yards (301) to running backs at a whopping 11.1 yards per reception, and FO ranks them 25th defending running backs as pass catchers. Using this quartet of players together increases ceiling by correlation. In other words, if the combo of Henry and Walker push the Titans out to a big lead like the odds project, then Johnson and Louis are in a great spot for heavy usage. Finally, it’s all tied together by Henry getting lots of work to close this game out, again, if things go according to plan.
Drew Brees (QB – NO): $7,600 @ Packers
Michael Thomas (WR – NO): $7,500 @ Packers
There’s no Tom Brady and Matt Ryan to pick from on DK’s main slate since it’s the Sunday Night Football game, and that removes two of the top options from the quarterback player pool. Toss in that Deshaun Watson is on bye, Aaron Rodgers is out with a broken collarbone, and Carson Wentz and Kirk Cousins aren’t on the main slate because they’re squaring off on Monday night, and quarterback is thinned out this week. Brees should get an ownership boost as a result of who isn’t available, so I’m not expecting him to be a low-owned option. However, I suspect teammate Mark Ingram will be exceptionally popular after gashing the Lions for 114 yards and two scores on the ground, and five receptions for 36 yards through the air. Even with the lost fumble last week, he recorded 34.0 DraftKings points, and with the Saints favored by four, game script should work in his favor. He’s a high-upside play, but my preference is to spin away from him to New Orleans’ passing attack.
As four-point favorites in a game with an over/under total of 47.5 points, the implied over/under total for the Saints is a juicy 25.75 points. Brees has been sharp on the road this year averaging 259.7 yards passing per game and tossing six touchdowns and zero interceptions in three road tilts. If Brees is good, there’s a solid chance his top playmaker is benefiting from it. Thomas leads the Saints in targets (43), receptions (28), receiving yards (321), and is tied for the team lead in touchdown receptions (two). The second-year pro had his worst game of the season last week with just three receptions for 11 yards on six targets, but this is a great bounce-back spot. The Packers have allowed the 13th most DraftKings points per game to receivers, and FO ranks them 21st defending No. 1 receivers. Last week’s six targets were a season-low for Thomas, and he’d received at least eight targets and caught at least five passes in each of New Orleans’ other five games. He blends a high ceiling with a reliably large target share every week.
Create Optimal DraftKings lineups using our DFS Lineup Optimizer tool
Josh Shepardson is a featured writer at FantasyPros. For more from Josh, check out his archive and follow him @BChad50.
