DFS Stacks: NFL 2021 Week 1 Games to Target

Just like the rest of our Week 1 content, the Week 1 Games to Target column tries to identify old memories of teams that may not be valid from 2020. Some will carry over into ’21, but the time is now to strike against outdated opinions.

A Note from Mario: For the past two years, I have been giving some over-under picks to this column for any games that had a particular edge. These picks were decent, but do not have the same track record of the against-the-spread picks. I will continue to provide them as I see fit, but please do your research and play responsibly.

In the world of daily fantasy roster construction, ‘stacking’ players from the same team can often lead to big results. In this column of games to target in Week 1, Luke and Mario will give their thoughts on a few games that are worth watching for fantasy purposes, and whether they like the value or feel the game is getting too much attention. 

Luke’s Top Games to Watch

Arizona Cardinals at Tennessee Titans

Despite having some fairly strong feelings entering this season, this is one of the very few Week 1 games where I find myself liking both offenses. While I expect both to produce plenty of yards and points in this game, the real appeal here is that in theory, the means to get those yards and points should be fairly predictable. The Cardinals simply have not been a great running team, and the swap of Kenyan Drake to James Conner isn’t likely to have much of an impact on that. Kliff Kingsbury entered the league with his fast-paced, aerial-attack-style offense, and there is no reason to expect anything different this season. The receiving group that Kyler Murray has to work with is quite impressive, starting with DeAndre Hopkins, a prime bounce-back candidate in A.J. Green, and then Christian Kirk and rookie Rondale Moore. We know Hopkins is going to dominate targets, but each of those other three receivers should see plenty of opportunities and are worthwhile fliers any given week if their price tags remain this low. For the Titans, the focus is primarily the opposite, as they want to bludgeon their opponent to death with a Derrick Henry-sized weapon. While it is hard to imagine he can keep up the rate of rush attempts and yardage we’ve seen from him in recent years, it is also hard to see him slowing down just yet. With the Cardinals’ defense likely to focus on trying to slow Henry down, that should open the Titans play-action game where Ryan Tannehill should be able to feed Julio Jones and A.J. Brown all game long. It is hard to imagine a defense being able to account for Henry, Jones, and Brown on each play, so one of those three should constantly be making plays. 

Green Bay Packers at New Orleans Saints

Last season, we rode the “Aaron Rodgers is out to prove something” train essentially every week. While that may seem