We’re back! The start of the football season is upon us, and our offseason-long wait for some DFS action is officially over. We have plenty of big names changing teams, but the bulk of the main slate actually offers value on much of what we have seen in the past.
Based on our expected Week 1 DFS game flow analysis and Week 1 DFS Overview published earlier, we can carry our thoughts into actual lineup positions. The long list of players that fit the requirements set forth by the projected flow of the game was cut dramatically by the requirements set forth by salaries.
Below are Sporfolio’s DFS Week 1 Plays:
Quarterback
Lamar Jackson – Everything points to a big game from Lamar Jackson on Sunday. For starters, he has been extremely public about his desire for a new contract with the Baltimore Ravens, and the deadline apparently passed without a deal. Jackson is a dynamic, take-control-of-the-offense type of player and, while that generally scares us for longterm viability, allows him to dominate when the setup is right. The setup is right against one of the worst offenses in the league last year — that will now be led by an aging veteran. A few years ago, Jackson was doubted as the starting quarterback for Baltimore and promptly delivered five passing touchdowns on Opening Day. The sky is the limit for him in Week 1.
Marcus Mariota – Marcus Mariota is the perfect high risk-reward player to use in a DFS tournament. He’s inexpensive compared to other quarterbacks, and he is an easy person to ignore because of the state of the Atlanta Falcons from last year. Therein lies his value. The Falcons appear to the football-watching world as noncompetitive, but why should that be the case in 2022? Atlanta still won seven games last year and has a head coach that found success with the Titans as the team’s offensive coordinator a few seasons ago. At the time, Mariota was on the roster, and there was clearly something that stood out to Arthur Smith. Now that he is at the helm for the Falcons, he brought in Mariota, and we can buy into the unknown before anyone correctly identifies his value. Perhaps most importantly, Mariota can provide fantasy value from his legs so, even if he struggles to throw the ball in his first start, there is a path to a big day from him.