This article is part of our FanDuel Fantasy Football series.
It's the final week of NFL regular season games and we have two Saturday games to play some DFS with. This week is always tricky in fantasy football as this is when NFL teams will sit starters, especially if the game outcome has no impact on their playoff standings. I will avoid those possible situations and give you the top-value pick for each position. Enjoy Week 18 DFS!
Quarterback:
Jarrett Stidham ($7,000) vs. Kansas City Chiefs
What a nice surprise Stidham was for the Las Vegas Raiders last week. He threw for 365 yards and three touchdowns against the league's best defense. Although it was just one game, it will be very difficult to prove it was a fluke this week as his matchup is too good.
The Kansas City Chiefs' defense is ranked 30th against the quarterback position and has allowed a quarterback to score multiple touchdowns in 13 games this season. Stidham may not be a household name, but he has a plus matchup, Davante Adams and Darren Waller to target, and Josh Jacobs to keep the opposing defense crowding the box.
Running Back:
Isiah Pacheco ($6,500) at Las Vegas Raiders
On the other side of the ball in this matchup, we have the Kansas City Chiefs' ball carrier. The Las Vegas Raiders have given up the fifth-most fantasy points to the running back position this year, and I'd expect the Chiefs to hand the ball off more than usual this week.
Jerick McKinnon has been outstanding as a pass-catching option for this Chiefs backfield, however, Pacheco has been the main ball carrier. Pacheco has double-digit carries in seven of his last eight games. He still scored a touchdown for the Chiefs. This just feels like the kind of game in which Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs gain an early lead and run it with Pacheco more as the game progresses.
Wide Receiver:
Marvin Jones ($5,500) vs. Tennessee Titans
Keep in mind, we are limited to four teams for the Saturday slate, and I did say I'd be giving you value plays. They are not supposed to excite you. In fact, if you want to win any big tournament in DFS, you should feel slightly uncomfortable with your lineups.
Now that I've made you completely second-guess this pick, allow me to put you at ease. Trevor Lawrence is finally looking like an elite option at quarterback, and Jones has seen an increase in target share over the last three weeks. In that span, Jones has 17 targets and is coming off his best yardage game since Week 5. The Tennessee Titans have given up the most fantasy points to wide receivers. I'm expecting the targets Jones sees this week to be at the highest quality with top-shelf opportunities, given the terrible Titans' secondary.
Tight End:
Evan Engram ($5,800) vs. Tennessee Titans
Why not double down on Jaguars' receiving options? I just mentioned how bad the Tennessee Titans' defense is against wideouts and they are not much better vs the tight end position. The Titans are the 29th-ranked defense against tight ends. Prior to last week, Engram had exploded in three consecutive games amounting to a total of 337 yards and two touchdowns. He did come back down a bit last week, but given the vulnerability of the Titans' defense, I fully expect Engram to bounce back, especially with how good Lawrence has been at quarterback.
Defense:
Jacksonville Jaguars ($4,700) vs. Tennessee Titans
Let's keep things going with the Jacksonville Jaguars love this week. Their defense has been outstanding, only giving up six total points to the Jets and the Texans in the last two weeks. They have double-digit points on FanDuel in each of their last four games.
The Tennessee Titans are broken heading into this week. They are expected to start Joshua Dobbs at quarterback and will likely lean on Derrick Henry who missed last week's game with a hip injury. The Jaguars have been decent against the run, only giving up the 13th most fantasy points to opposing running backs. I'd expect a few turnovers from this defense and potential scoring opportunities.
