Getty Gallery: 4/5
150-Max Entry Lineup
– CAPTAIN: Odell Beckham Jr. ($15,000)
– Matt Ryan ($11,200)
– Julio Jones ($10,600)
– Evan Engram ($5,000)
– Ito Smith ($4,400)
– Giorgio Tavecchio ($3,400)
So here's the deal. Between Odell Beckham Jr.'s sideline explosions and the Giants horrific showing last week, I actually think the star wideout will be low-owned. And as far as placing him in the captain spot? I don't envision that happening often, but I'm all for it in a 150-max game. The Falcons have given up 1,094 yards and 11 touchdowns to opposing wideouts, so as long as Manning can just put the ball near him, Beckham should have a big night.
One key way I decided to differentiate this lineup was to leave Barkley out. He's arguably my favorite play on the slate, but he should have ownership close to 50 percent. It's a unique approach that I'm hoping pays off, and even if he scores 20 DraftKings points, that can be overcome by a few players in this lineup.
As far as the Matt Ryan and Julio Jones pairing goes, I think we're going to see a lot of players focus on it, but not as many as you'd think on the surface. With Beckham, Barkley and Ryan all around Jones in price it could drive his price down a bit, or at least that's the hope. This does seem likely to be the week Julio finds the end zone, though, so I'm excited about that. This matchup bodes well for Ryan and his favorite receiver and the Falcons should easily top 30 points.
I spoke about the spot Evan Engram finds himself in above, and while he's coming back from an injury, it's unlikely to deter me from using him. The spot is too good for him and the issues the Giants have had offensively should bode well for the young tight end. I'm a big fan of his game and think his potential to find the end zone this week is high.
While so much attention is on how bad the Giants have been defensively, it's worth noting that the Falcons have allowed 29, 41, 37, and 43 points in their past four games. As great of a spot as this is for the Atlanta offense, the G-Men have a legitimate chance to right the ship this week as well.
Ito Smith is my inexpensive target along with Engram and I think (fingers crossed) fantasy players will look at his game log and move along. The only thing that hurts our chances of getting a low-owned Smith here is the fact that he's scored a touchdown in each of the past three games. The Falcons back has eaten into Tevin Coleman's workload in a big way, specifically when Devonta Freeman is out.
Smith has had at least 10 touches in three games this season and if we're projecting a game flow that features major points, he could see 12-14 touches. His big-play potential and knack for finding the end zone is a nice added bonus.
And then there's Giorgio Tavecchio, who I'll provide some additional insight on, but should be drastically low-owned.