4 FanDuel NFL Values to Target in Week 7

Nicholas Vazquez•@nickvaz

7mo

Finding value is a key part of daily fantasy football on FanDuel. We need to identify the low-salary players who have the potential to pay huge dividends, which allows you to play studs elsewhere in your lineup.

As always, we're looking at players on the main slate, which kicks off at 1 p.m. ET on Sunday. All betting odds come from the NFL odds at FanDuel Sportsbook.

Geno Smith , QB, Seattle Seahawks

FanDuel Salary: $7,000

We haven't seen the same level of success for Geno Smith that we saw last season. He's only the fantasy QB23 by points per game so far.

Smith is still capable of having big games, though. He had a nice outing against the Detroit Lions in Week 2. It's no mean feat, as Detroit is ranked 11th in numberFire's pass-defense metric. He's also played teams like the Los Angeles Rams, New York Giants and Carolina Panthers -- all of whom have pass defenses that rank in the top half of the league, believe it or not.

This week, Geno will face the 30th-ranked pass defense of the Arizona Cardinals, giving him a better chance at fantasy success. The Cardinals also rank 30th in adjusted fantasy points allowed per drop back.

The Seattle Seahawks got back left-tackle Charles Cross, which should help their offensive line. Smith should have time to throw in this game, as Arizona ranks dead last in pressure rate.

You can definitely take a chance on Smith for just $7,000 in this matchup. He has two great weapons to throw to in D.K. Metcalf and Tyler Lockett -- and maybe a third if they can get rookie Jaxon Smith-Njigba going.

With Seattle having the second-highest implied team total (25.75 points) on the slate, we can expect Geno to have a good outing for fantasy purposes.

Jahmyr Gibbs, RB, Detroit Lions

FanDuel Salary: $6,200

The Lions selected Jahmyr Gibbs with the 12th pick in the first round in this year's draft. Running backs don't typically go this high in the draft anymore, so it was pretty surprising to see.

This shot Gibbs' value up in fantasy drafts throughout the summer. The logic was that if Detroit was willing to spend that high of a pick on him, they must be willing to give him a lot of usage.

That hasn't come to fruition so far. Gibbs has clearly been behind David Montgomery in the Lions' backfield.

But we won't have to worry about Montgomery this week, as he will be out with a rib injury. Craig Reynolds also missed practice Thursday, and he was the back behind Gibbs.

Hopefully, we get some better usage for Gibbs this time than when he played without Montgomery in Week 3. In that one, Gibbs saw 17 carries but only one target. We'd like our running backs to get more work in the passing game, as targets are more valuable than carries, especially when the back has the passing-game chops that Gibbs has.

Detroit's offensive line ranks number-one in the league heading into Week 7, so we can feel good about that for Gibbs. They're playing against the Baltimore Ravens and are listed as a 3.0-point road underdog. The Lions being underdogs could lead to more usage in the passing game for Gibbs.

This is a pretty good matchup for Gibbs to see that passing-game work, as the Ravens are 26th in adjusted fantasy points per target allowed to backs. If he can get over 20 adjusted opportunities (carries + 2x targets), he should do more than enough to hit as a value back.

Christian Watson, WR, Green Bay Packers

FanDuel Salary: $6,600

Christian Watson should be back to full health and is in a matchup that he should thrive in.

In the Green Bay Packers' last game before their Week 6 bye, Watson got up to 85% of the routes (per PFF). He also saw 25% of the targets and a stunning 76% of the air yards. He's clearly the number-one target for this offense when he is healthy, and another full week off should mean Watson is at full speed.

Watson has a great matchup this week. The Packers are playing against the Denver Broncos on the road. Denver has been torched by fast players all season long, and Watson has a 99th-percentile speed score. The Broncos rank 32nd in schedule-adjusted pass defense, according to numberFire. They are also 29th in adjusted fantasy points per target allowed to wideouts.

Green Bay's team total of 23.25 is tied for fourth on the main slate. Watson has big-play potential that is rare for someone at this salary, and he's a great play in tournaments this week.

Michael Mayer, TE, Las Vegas Raiders

FanDuel Salary: $4,900

The Las Vegas Raiders finally decided to take the chains off Michael Mayer in Week 6.

Mayer ran 67% of the routes, having never run more than 50% in any other week. He also saw a target on 27% of those routes and accounted for 21% of the targets overall. The team will have a downgrade at quarterback with Jimmy Garoppolo ruled out , but Brian Hoyer played well enough last week to believe that he can still get the ball to Mayer.

Hoyer, Mayer and the rest of Vegas' offense gets the benefit of playing the Chicago Bears this week. Chicago is 31st in pass defense. Against tight ends, they rank 22nd in adjusted fantasy points given up per target.

It often takes rookie tight ends time to get up to speed, and it appears Mayer -- a highly touted prospect -- has done just that and is ready to roll.

You may not want to fully commit to this Raiders offense -- a meh attack and one with a backup QB at the controls -- by rostering someone with a high salary such as Davante Adams, but Mayer for just $4,900 at the hardest position to fill could make sense.

Interested in playing NFL DFS? Head over to FanDuel’s daily fantasy football lobby to see all the offerings for this week's slates.

The above author is a FanDuel employee and is not eligible to compete in public daily fantasy contests or place sports betting wagers on FanDuel. The advice provided by the author does not necessarily represent the views of FanDuel. Taking the author's advice will not guarantee a successful outcome. You should use your own judgment when participating in daily fantasy contests or placing sports wagers.