Fantasy Football Week 15: Tuesday's Daily Fantasy Market Report

Daily fantasy football players are tasked with converting the news and trends from around the NFL each week into actionable and successful investments in the DFS marketplace.

The potential returns of superstar receivers A.J. Green of the Cincinnati Bengals and Julio Jones of the Atlanta Falcons add valuable upside for Week 15 tournament competition in daily fantasy. In San Diego, meanwhile, we could mine for meaningful value with an injury to Chargers tailback Melvin Gordon.

We detail these scenarios and several notable trends and matchup metrics that could prove influential for the week ahead in daily fantasy football.

Join us in discussing several key news items affecting the daily fantasy football market for Week 15, and please share your thoughts and lineup questions in the comments below.

Kenneth Farrow Could Shine with Melvin Gordon Ailing

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Mounting evidence suggests the San Diego Chargers' Melvin Gordon could miss Week 15 with hip and knee ailments suffered in last week's loss to the Carolina Panthers, according to Michael Gehlken of the San Diego Union-Tribune.

Gordon has been invaluable this season, ranking fourth in the NFL with 22.7 touches per game and leading the league with 4.2 red-zone touches per game. 

If Gordon's sidelined this week, we could see backup Kenneth Farrow earn a meaningful workload against the Oakland Raiders—a team that has surrendered 111.5 yards per game on the ground to tailbacks, third most in the NFL. Per Gehlken:

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There is a chance, if Gordon is sidelined, the Chargers could platoon Farrow with Ronnie Hillman this Sunday versus Oakland. Hillman has yet to be active since being claimed off waivers on Nov. 22. Andre Williams also is an option on the practice squad, although he’s not known for his complementary abilities in the passing game.

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The note about a potential platoon could only drive down Farrow's ownership, and Hillman isn't a threat for meaningful early-down or goal-to-go work. 

Farrow netted 22 touches in place of Gordon last week, while his price this week is just $4,400 on DraftKings, ideal for contrarian tournament exposure against a soft defensive front.

Tyrod Taylor Still Starting for Choice Matchup with Cleveland

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The Buffalo Bills' Tyrod Taylor has produced at least 16 fantasy points on DraftKings in six of the past eight outings. Despite somewhat sound fantasy production, Taylor has struggled in real regards with just five passing touchdowns since Week 7. 

There has been growing chatter around Orchard Park, NY, that Taylor's job could be in jeopardy, but ESPN.com's Mike Rodak reports coach Rex Ryan—also on the hot seat—supports his signal-caller as the starter for Week 15 against the hapless Cleveland Browns.

The Browns have ceded a touchdown on 30.3 percent of opposing drives this season, the highest allowance in the NFL and the most points per drive in the league. With such a rewarding allowance rate in place, Taylor is a must-start cash game commodity as the 16^th-priciest quarterback of the week on DraftKings.

We also appreciate a potential stack with big-play maven Sammy Watkins, as he played on a season-high 94.2 percent of the team's offensive snaps in Week 14 and is due for a breakout performance against the Browns' suspect defense.

The rare team stack is in play with LeSean McCoy angled for 20 touches against a Cleveland defense that has allowed the most rushing yards per game in the AFC to opposing backs. We advise finding multiple avenues to the Bills' upside-laden roster for this choice matchup.

Superstar Wideout Julio Jones Could Practice Wednesday

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Season-long investors in Atlanta Falcons superstar Julio Jones surely missed his presence in Week 14, as he sat out the team's drubbing of the L.A. Rams with a toe ailment. 

Daily fantasy investors, however, can reap the rewards of Jones' potential return to action in Week 15. Andrew Hirsh of the Falcons' website reported that Jones could return to practice this Wednesday.

Jones is third in fantasy points per game among wideouts on FanDuel's scoring key this season at a robust 15.9 per game. His matchup with the suspect San Francisco 49ers' secondary could prove rewarding this week. The 49ers have ceded 1.54 receiving touchdowns per game to wideouts this season, tied with the Baltimore Ravens for the most in the NFL.

With compromised ownership rates given his injury concerns, Jones could deliver a slate-shifting performance for the bigger tournament fields in Week 15.

Could Cincinnati's A.J. Green Return in Week 15?

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The Cincinnati Bengals could regain a vital offensive cog this week, as superstar wideout A.J. Green is on the mend from a significant hamstring injury suffered in Week 11. 

Coach Marvin Lewis noted Green's forecast for this week is "partly sunny" and that he could return to the practice field on Wednesday, per Jim Owczarski of the Cincinnati Enquirer.

With his expected return to practice, it's worth noting Green produced 38 percent of his team's receiving yardage through the first 10 weeks of the season, the highest production share in the season over that sample.

The Pittsburgh Steelers have been solid against the pass this year, ceding the fifth-fewest fantasy points to receivers on DraftKings' scoring key. But at just $7,400 on DraftKings and $7,600 on FanDuel, we do admire upside-laden tournament shares of Green in Week 15.

Kenneth Dixon Continues Ascent as PPR Maven

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The Baltimore Ravens' backfield has undergone a meaningful transition over the past several games. 

Rookie tailback Kenneth Dixon was on the field for a career-high 60 percent of the team's offensive snaps in Week 14, per Pro Football Focus. Veteran Terrance West, meanwhile, saw the field for just 20 percent of team's plays against the New England Patriots on Monday night, his lowest snap rate of the season, again per PFF.

Quietly becoming a total yardage maven, Dixon has produced at least 72 yards from scrimmage in four of the past five games and scored his first career touchdown in Week 14's emergent snap outing.

Dixon led the Ravens with 11 targets against the Patriots, and according to PFF, he led the nation in yards per route run (2.21) among draft-eligible tailbacks last season at Louisiana Tech.

Priced at just $3,800 on DraftKings' points-per-reception format for Week 15 against the Philadelphia Eagles, Dixon is an ideal pay-down option at the position in cash games given his recent surge in exposure and usage.

Chasing Shares of Carlos Hyde in Week 15

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Lost in the hype over Le'Veon Bell's historic performance for the Pittsburgh Steelers this past week was the epic 200-yard outing from the San Francisco 49ers' Carlos Hyde.

Hyde delivered a career-best 193 rushing yards against a New York Jets front that entered Week 14 ceding just 82.6 yards per game to backs—ninth-fewest in the league. Most impressive might be the fact Hyde produced 143 yards before contact in the rousing rushing performance. He had produced 126 yards before initial contact in his previous five games combined. 

Even though the 49ers aren't winning, we can expect Hyde to earn a healthy workload this week. He's 10^th in the league with 19.75 touches per game and third in the league in yards from scrimmage per appearance over the past four games.

Hyde is reasonably priced on DraftKings at just $5,900 for Week 15's tilt with the Atlanta Falcons, a team that has surrendered the third-most fantasy points to tailbacks in ESPN leagues and the second-most points to backs on DraftKings' scoring model.

While building around superstars like Bell is crucial for success in daily fantasy competition, identifying mid-tier studs like Hyde helps build high-floor backfields for cash games.

The Steelers' Ladarius Green Is a Strong Tournament Option in Week 15

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Only the Kansas City Chiefs' Travis Kelce and Philadelphia Eagles' Zach Ertz have produced more receiving yards among NFL tight ends than the Pittsburgh Steelers' Ladarius Green over the past three weeks. 

A proven big-play maven, Green leads all tight ends with 20.2 yards per reception since Week 12 and has hauled in five receptions on targets of at least 15 yards downfield from Ben Roethlisberger. Over the past two seasons, Roethlisberger has completed just four such receptions to all other tight ends, evidence of Green's dynamic deep abilities.

Don't let Green's quiet Week 14 throw you off his trail as an emerging weapon in the Steelers' passing game. He was targeted on a robust 28.6 percent of his routes despite the lack of results.

With a modest price point of just $3,700 on DraftKings and $5,600 on FanDuel for Week 15, it's imperative to note the Cincinnati Bengals have ceded the most yards per game to tight ends and the second-most fantasy points to the position on DraftKings' scoring key.

Data such as target share, drive rates and fantasy allowance sourced from an ESPN database.