Daily Fantasy Football Sept. 24: DFS Stock Up, Stock Down

There are sleepers coming through in the clutch, while big-named players are letting us down in big-time ways. Certain players see their stocks skyrocketing, while others are in the midst of taking a major fall. Regardless, we are going to take a look at a few of the biggest risers and biggest fallers on DraftKings as we head toward Week 3.

While players like Sam Bradford and DeMarco Murray of the Philadelphia Eagles were major letdowns in Week 2, is there anyone else on the roster who specifically is trending downward?

On the other side of the spectrum, there are plenty of positives to take away from some impressive showings in Week 2. Could that list possibly include the new leader of the Oakland Raiders?

There's a whole lot to talk about as we head into Week 3, so let's take a look at a few of the players whose stock is going up as well as a few who are trending down.

Stock Up: Dion Lewis ($4,200), RB, New England Patriots

Gary Wiepert/Associated Press

Dion Lewis started off his 2015 season with a bang, rushing 15 times for 69 yards and catching four balls for 51 yards against the Pittsburgh Steelers. From there, few knew what to expect in Week 2. One thing we knew for certain was LeGarrette Blount would be back for game No. 2, this one against the Buffalo Bills and their stellar defense.

Apparently, Lewis was just too good to keep off the field. While he only rushed seven times for 40 yards, he caught six balls for 98 yards and scored a rushing touchdown against the Bills. Essentially, Lewis was fantasy gold once again in Week 2.

Even with Blount—who received a grand total of two carries for four yards—back out there, it was simply Lewis' show. Much of the concern was that Lewis would lose touches to Blount, but in the end, he was on the field for 73 of the Patriots' 86 offensive snaps.

Through two weeks, Lewis is averaging 20.4 fantasy points on DraftKings, which you simply can't overlook for the $4,200 price tag.

Stock Down: Darren Sproles ($3,800), RB, Philadelphia Eagles

Michael Perez/Associated Press

Just a week removed from his five-rush, 50-yard performance that included seven catches for 76 yards, Sproles and the Philadelphia Eagles offense fell flat on their face. In total, Philadelphia rushed for seven yards in the 20-10 loss to the Dallas Cowboys. Worst of all, Sproles didn't really get much of a chance to help them turn things around.

Sproles received one carry for minus-four yards, while DeMarco Murray got the bulk of the work for his old team, posting a stat line of 13 carries for a miserable two yards. The only thing that even partially salvaged Sproles' day was his four catches for 23 yards.

Regardless, when you go from 19.6 fantasy points to 5.9 fantasy points in a one-week span, it's a cause for concern. Sproles' stock may have begun trending downwards, but we could probably say the same thing about the Eagles as a whole at this point. Week 1 was bad for their offense, but Week 2 was basically a catastrophe.

Stock Up: Travis Benjamin ($4,200), WR, Cleveland Browns

Ron Schwane/Associated Press

What can you say about Travis Benjamin's start to the 2015 season? It's easiest to sum it up in one word, which would be "explosive." After a Week 1 performance where he caught three balls for 89 yards and a long touchdown, Week 2 took it to another level.

Showing an incredible connection on the deep ball with backup quarterback Johnny Manziel, Benjamin caught three passes for 115 yards. He tacked on two touchdowns as well, one of 50 yards and another of 60 yards. Those numbers alone make Benjamin's stock, which was already high, shoot into outer space.

Oh, but to finish off the rant about Benjamin's incredible Week 2 performance, he also had a 78-yard punt-return touchdown. When the day came to a close, Benjamin had 35.5 fantasy points on DraftKings, making him the definition of a stud.

Stock Down: Marshawn Lynch ($7,400), RB, Seattle Seahawks

Matt Ludtke/Associated Press

It's pretty incredible to see one of the top running backs in the NFL on the "stock down" list this early in the season, but hey, look where the Seattle Seahawks currently are sitting. It seems while the Seahawks are struggling, Marshawn Lynch won't be able to bail them out by himself.

This was even more obvious after seeing the Seahawks lose to the Green Bay Packers 27-17 in Week 2. The loss dropped them to 0-2, while Lynch rushed 15 times for just 41 yards. He caught three balls for 21 yards to help out his fantasy numbers a bit, but he still wound up with just 9.2 points on DraftKings.

Lynch is one of the most expensive running backs on the board, yet he saw his fantasy production get cut nearly in half from Week 1 to Week 2. If the Seahawks are going to turn this thing around and have success in 2015, they'll need Lynch to get back to his "Beast Mode" running style.

Seattle faces the Chicago Bears this week, which is a great opportunity for him to turn things around. Chicago has allowed 121.5 rushing yards per game through two games in 2015, so expect Lynch to get plenty of opportunities.

Stock Up: Derek Carr ($5,300), QB, Oakland Raiders

Tony Avelar/Associated Press

Derek Carr legitimately just refused to lose in Week 2 of the NFL season. After the Oakland Raiders began the season with a brutal 33-13 loss to the Cincinnati Bengals, it was Carr who led the turnaround. In Week 2, Carr led a fourth-quarter comeback over the Baltimore Ravens to even Oakland's record at 1-1.

That's all fine and dandy, but the question is, how does that impact your daily fantasy teams? Well, we finally got to see what a healthy Carr can do for your DraftKings lineup. Fortunately, it looks like a beautiful thing.

Not only did he complete 30 of 46 passes for 351 yards, but he tossed three touchdowns as well. Carr finished up the win with 30.34 fantasy points, making him one of the best values on the board last week due to his sub-$6,000 price tag.

This week? The value is still there, as Carr costs just $5,300. If he can produce even 20-plus fantasy points, it makes him far more than worth that low price tag. Carr looked stellar in the second game of his sophomore season. The question is, will it continue?

Stock Down: Lamar Miller ($5,200), RB, Miami Dolphins

Phelan M. Ebenhack/Associated Press

Not only is Lamar Miller's stock dropping, but his price on DraftKings is as well. Unfortunately, it may still not be the best idea to pay the $5,200 price to get him in your lineup. After a mediocre Week 1 performance that included 13 rushes for 53 yards with one catch for 22 yards, he followed that up with a brutal rushing performance.

Miller rushed 10 times for 14 yards in Week 2 but salvaged his numbers a bit by catching five balls for 28 yards in the loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars. So on 23 attempts in 2015, Miller has totaled just 67 yards. When looking at his fantasy points, he's managed to score an average of 8.9 points per game.

To top it all off, the No. 1 running back in Miami is dealing with an ankle injury that may be slowing him down. Regardless of what the reasoning is, Miller's stock is trending in the wrong direction and doesn't seem to be turning around anytime soon.

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Pricing information and scoring data obtained from DraftKings.com. All statistics courtesy of ESPN unless otherwise specified.

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