We had some nice hits on the NFL DFS preseason slates the last couple of days. Hopefully it helped you cash. Tonight we get a preseason Monday Night Football game, with the Cincinnati Bengals battling the Washington Commanders.
Normally I’d say stack the defenses, but this game actually has a hefty game total and both teams are expected to play their starters a bit. That means we can target the big names a little, although we’ll want to make sure we get exposure to guys battling for roster spots or looking to move up the depth chart.
It’s a Showdown slate, so you can do whatever you want, but I’ll give you a pool of players I will be focusing on for each position.
QB: Joe Burrow, Jake Browning, and Jayden Daniels
It’s a mess, but we do know Burrow/Daniels are starting and should play 2-3 series. I think that’s enough to get me to split my ownership between those two guys for the most part. I lean toward Daniels due to the rushing floor he brings to the table, but both look good.
Jake Browning ranks 3rd for me, and then I don’t mind a sprinkling of Josh Johnson and Sam Hartman. Those two in particular are interesting, as I imagine they’ll be pretty low-owned to close out this slate.
RB: Chase Brown, Tahj Brooks, Austin Ekeler, Jacory Croskey-Merritt, Christian Rodriguez, and Kazmeir Allen
It remains to be seen if we see Brian Robinson Jr. in this game. He sat out Washington’s first game and is technically still the team’s top tailback, but there are rumors that he’s currently being shopped.
That could make this a showcase game, or the Commanders could sit him out if a deal is in the works. If he suits up, I would have interest, but as you can tell, Washington has a lot of RBs, so the touches should be split.
Robinson potentially sitting would really open things up, while Jacory Croskey-Merritt is banged up and could also possibly sit. I really like him if he’s in, but keep an eye on his status.
If both of these guys sit, we could see a lot of Christian Rodriguez and speedy rookie Kazmeir Allen. Veterans like Austin Ekeler and Jeremy McNichols would also be in the mix for work if they play, but I would have to believe they wouldn’t play a ton. With everyone eating into each other and only so many roster spots to be had, Rodriguez and Allen stand out as my two favorite Commanders RBs.
For the Bengals, I don’t mind taking a shot on Brown in 2-3 series. He is quite explosive, he is involved as a receiver, and he’s a red-zone factor. He could easily hit 10+ fps in limited action. Whether you play Brown or not, Brooks should get a good amount of work here. He’ll be popular, but he is shaping up to be a great play. I don’t mind going away from him and playing Brown or a Commanders RB if he’s insane chalk, though.
WR: Ja’Marr Chase, Tee Higgins, Charlie Jones, Deebo Samuels, Luke McCaffrey, Andrei Iosivas, and Jaylin Lane
Chase is a home run threat and with 2-3 series on hand, is the guy with the best floor and ceiling amongst all starters in this game. He’s still risky just because he obviously has to smash in limited duty – and he’ll be owned – so I don’t mind leveraging the ownership with more Tee or Deebo than him in GPPs.
Jermaine Burton is out, so someone like Charlie Jones could dominate targets in the second half. Iosivas is also in line to see a few more snaps. Both are viable, but Jones feels like the Bengals WR who will be out there the longest.
For Washington, Noah Brown is out and Terry McLaurin is not expected to play despite being activated from the PUP list.
Deebo Samuel could play and if he does, he’d be Jayden Daniels’ top guy for as long as they’re out there. He’s a vet and they could take it easy on him, but I have interest. Luke McCaffrey and Jaylin Lane are two young guys who are looking to lock up a roster spot and push for the #3 role, so they could both play quite a bit and should also run with the starters. I like them a lot and slightly prefer Luke.
TE: Ben Sinnott, Tanner Hudson, and Noah Fant
Zach Ertz is being rested, so Sinnott looks like a great play for this Showdown slate. Young guy without a clear role trying to earn more work, plus he’s super talented. I expect him to play a lot and he’s one of my favorite plays.
Hudson has been a preseason god, but keep in mind the Bengals did sign Noah Fant and they still have a couple of other tight ends. It remains to be seen just how much they’ll play Fant, of course, while Mike Gesicki won’t suit up. Hudson looks like the next best bet after Sinnott and you could argue he’s the top TE of the slate.
K/DEF: Matt Gay and Evan McPherson
The kickers should play most if not all the game, so both are in play – especially since this game has a pretty high total. That makes the defenses less interesting, but let’s keep in mind that the starters probably won’t play more than a quarter on either side, so playing defenses against the likes of Browning, Johnson, Hartman, etc.
I wouldn’t pair the defenses, but using one in some lineups is a fine strategy.
Overall, I don’t mind eating some of the starter chalk. Just make sure you’re getting a bit different and switch up your CPT usage. Preseason ownership is tough to guess, but I would assume Chase/Burrow/Daniels would be the highest owned players.
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