Daily Fantasy Football Week 14: Best Lineup Advice, Matchups for 1-Week Leagues

It takes a lot of research and careful planning to build your one-week lineup, though sometimes all you need to do is nail the matchups. Sometimes, picking the right player facing the right opponent is the difference between a good week and a great one. 

In an effort to help you determine the matchups to exploit this week, I've provided my own lineups for FanDuel and DraftKings and offered a breakdown on some of the most enticing matchups. Sometimes, it's as much about the player you choose as it is about the team he's facing. 
 

Recommended Lineups

Position	Lineup 1	Price	Lineup 2	Price
QB	Russell Wilson	$8.5k	Russell Wilson	$8.5k
RB	Mark Ingram	$7.7k	Mark Ingram	$7.7k
RB	Rashad Jennings	$7.4k	Andre Williams	$6.5k
WR	Kelvin Benjamin	$7.5k	Randall Cobb	$8.4k
WR	DeAndre Hopkins	$7.5k	DeAndre Hopkins	$7.5k
WR	Stedman Bailey	$6.3k	Stedman Bailey	$6.3k
TE	Antonio Gates	$5.6k	Antonio Gates	$5.6k
D/ST	Minnesota Vikings	$5.0k	Minnesota Vikings	$5.0k
K	Shayne Graham	$4.5k	Shayne Graham	$4.5k
		Total = $60k		Total = $60k

Position	Player	Price
QB	Russell Wilson	$7.7k
RB	Eddie Lacy	$7.8k
RB	Mark Ingram	$6.5k
WR	Torrey Smith	$5.7k
WR	Doug Baldwin	$4.4k
WR	Stedman Bailey	$4.3k
TE	Antonio Gates	$4.7k
FLEX	Joique Bell	$5.5k
D/ST	Minnesota Vikings	$3.4k
		Total = $50k

Matchups to Exploit

Ezra Shaw/Getty Images

This week, many of the quarterback matchups that are really enticing involve quarterbacks who may be a bit risky. There's Ryan Tannehill, for example, facing a Baltimore Ravens defense that is 31st in pass defense and has given up 803 passing yards and six touchdowns in the past two weeks.

I was disappointed that Tannehill didn't torch the New York Jets last week, a team with one of the worst secondaries in the league, but I'll forgive him for posting mediocre numbers on the road against a divisional rival on a cold November night outdoors.

Fool me once, shame on you, Mr. Tannehill. Fool me twice, well, shame on me. Hopefully he won't make me look silly against Baltimore.

Or how about Cam Newton for the truly brave among us, facing a New Orleans defense that just gave up 435 passing yards and two touchdowns to Ben Roethlisberger?

No, I'm not brave enough to start Newton either. A nice alternative is Russell Wilson, who is about as safe as quarterbacks come this year in fantasy and faces a Philadelphia Eagles defense that is 26th in the NFL in pass defense and has given up 24 passing touchdowns, tied for 27th in the league. Wilson should feast this week.

At running back, you should essentially be picking the player facing the Tennessee Titans every week. Tennessee has given up an astonishing 815 rushing yards and nine touchdowns to opposing running backs in their past five games. That makes either Rashad Jennings or Andre Williams (if Jennings can't play) a very enticing option.

Rob Foldy/Getty Images

Of course, the friendliest defense to opposing running backs this season has been the Oakland Raiders. They've allowed opposing backs to rush for over 100 yards eight times this season and made Tre Mason look like Eric Dickerson last week. Frank Gore has been pretty inconsistent this year for fantasy owners, sure, but a matchup against Oakland could be just what the doctor ordered.

And let's not forget that the Atlanta Falcons have given up a league-worst 15 rushing touchdowns this year, so Eddie Lacy has a great chance of reaching paydirt. Well, if Aaron Rodgers doesn't just throw for five touchdowns or so himself, that is.

You don't have to stray too far from the quarterback matchups to exploit to find a few wide receivers worth starting. Doug Baldwin is my sleeper special of the week, while Mike Wallace and Jarvis Landry should be able to exploit Baltimore's suspect secondary.

And then there is the duo of Calvin Johnson and Golden Tate, facing a Tampa Bay defense that has given up 22 passing touchdowns on the season, 16 of which have come from wide receivers. Only the Eagles and Houston Texans have given up more (the Bucs have also given up one rushing touchdown to a wideout). 

I'm all about Megatron and Tate this week.

Not surprisingly, the aforementioned Jets are also pretty friendly to opposing tight ends, having given up a league-worst 12 touchdowns to the position. So if you don't mind gambling a bit, Kyle Rudolph is a sleeper with big upside this week. 

Jim Mone/Associated Press

I also love Antonio Gates against the New England Patriots, a team that has given up the second-most yards to opposing tight ends this season. Gates has still got it, folks, even well into his 30s, and Philip Rivers is going to need him to come up big in a game that has shootout potential.

If you're looking for a defense, you never need to look past the team facing the Jacksonville Jaguars. That's the Texans this week, who just so happen to have that J.J. Watt fella. Or you could go a little cheaper on your one-week budget and nab the Minnesota Vikings, a defensive unit that has been pretty good this year for fantasy owners and faces a Jets team that is terrified to let Geno Smith throw the ball. 

I love the Vikings this week. I'm guessing Geno and the Jets won't be so enamored by them.

All statistics via ESPN standard-scoring leagues, FanDuel or DraftKings leagues. Hit me up on Twitter—I'll answer your fantasy questions and make some corny jokes, too. It's more fun than being Richard Sherman when the San Francisco 49ers come to town.