Daily Fantasy Football Week 10: Strategy Advice for DraftKings, FanDuel Lineups

The nature of daily fantasy means keeping up with the latest news is vitally important to your chances of victory.

During the week, it may become clear a star player will be out or possibly see a decreased workload as a result of injury, which informs decisions on who to avoid as well as potential sleepers.

According to Jon Machota of the Dallas News, Dallas Cowboys wide receiver Dez Bryant did not practice Thursday, which would suggest his status for Week 10 could truly be up in the air.

Next, the New York Jets backfield is in the news.

According to Brian Costello of the New York Post, running back Matt Forte also did not practice Thursday.

Finally, the big news: Cowboys running back Ezekiel Elliott is suspended again, according to Adam Schefter of ESPN.

And this one will actually stick until at least December 1, which is when Elliott's expedited appeal hearing with the Second District Court will take place, according to Kate Hairopoulos of the Dallas Morning News: 

All three of these players' statuses could make a difference Sunday, so continue to monitor these situations.

Now, let's get into the lineups.

DraftKings ($50,000 Budget)

QB: Josh McCown, NYJ (at TB), $6,100

RB: Devonta Freeman, ATL (vs. DAL), $6,000

RB: Bilal Powell, NYJ (at TB), $4,100

WR: Adam Humphries, TB (vs. NYJ), $3,100

WR: Antonio Brown, PIT (vs. IND), $9,500

WR: Robby Anderson, NYJ (at TB), $5,200

TE: Darren Fells, DET (vs. CLE), $2,500

FLEX: Le'Veon Bell, PIT (vs. IND), $9,800 

D/ST: Pittsburgh Steelers (vs. IND), $3,300

Total: $49,600

The two teams we will be attacking this week are mainly the New York Jets and Pittsburgh Steelers.

First, we have McCown, Powell and Anderson from Gang Gree.

Before Week 9,  McCown threw multiple touchdowns in four straight games. Like it or not, he's producing in fantasy, and his Week 10 price tag just north of $6,000 represents solid value.

Although it's on the road, McCown will get a Tampa Bay Buccaneers defense that ranks 31st in DVOA against the pass.

Should Forte suit up, this lineup would need to be altered, but Powell is the choice the moment. Fellow running back Elijah McGuire is also tempting, but Powell's pass-catching prowess and minor price difference is the kicker.

Powell will get his fair share of carries and targets should Forte sit, and the Bucs rank 29th in DVOA against receiving backs.

On DraftKings where you get one point per reception, Powell could provide plenty of value.

For the last Jets player, it's only natural to stack the No. 1 wide receiver with his quarterback, so Robby Anderson is the choice here. The Bucs can't defend No. 1 receivers, ranking 25th in DVOA against them.

Anderson isn't our last player from the Jets-Bucs game, though. When you stack a team, it's also a good idea to get some players from the opposition.

Humphries is a total shot in the dark. He is known for being a PPR guy, and fellow wide receiver Mike Evans will not play in Week 10 after being suspended for fighting in Week 9.

For the Steekers, we have Brown, Bell and the defense. This one is simple: they're playing the Indianapolis Colts, and the Indianapolis Colts stink. Brown will get plenty of catches, the Steelers will pull ahead and Bell will rack up his touches as well. And even though Indianapolis quarterback Jacoby Brissett has been serviceable this year, he will have to chase the game against a Steelers secondary that ranks fifth in DVOA against the pass.

Fells is somewhat of another dart-throw, but his playing time has increased to the point where he played in more snaps than Eric Ebron in Week 9, according to Nathan Jahnke of Pro Football Focus.

Not only that, but the Browns are atrocious against tight ends, ranking 30th in DVOA.

Freeman is priced low this week. Sure, he hasn't had any big games as of late, but this matchup against the Dallas Cowboys could be the one. Dallas ranks 30th in DVOA against the run, and a statistical outpouring could come from all corners of each team in a likely shootout.

Given his talent, price and the opponent, you cannot pass on Freeman this week.

FanDuel ($60,000 Budget)

QB: Josh McCown, NYJ (at TB), $7,400

RB: Devonta Freeman, ATL (vs. DAL), $6,500

RB: Le'Veon Bell, PIT (vs. IND), $9,400

WR: Antonio Brown, PIT (vs. IND), $9,300

WR: Robby Anderson, NYJ (at TB), $6,500

WR: DeSean Jackson, TB (vs. NYJ), $6,300

TE: Darren Fells, DET (vs. CLE), $4,900

K: Wil Lutz, NO (at BUF), $4,900

D/ST: Pittsburgh Steelers (vs. IND), $4,600

Total: $59,800

We have a lot of the same here as DraftKings, with the exception of Jackson, Lutz and no Powell. FanDuel uses a kicker, so the lineups change slightly.

Jackson is basically an upgraded version of Humphries. The Jets-Bucs game could be a shootout, and we could see a bomb or two Jackson's way. This is another shot in the dark, but it represents a chance worth taking.

Either way, Lutz should get some action. Even if the Bills defense comes up strong, Lutz could get his fair share of field-goal chances.

Make sure to keep an eye on injury reports. These lineups could change, but this is where you should start prior to Sunday.

Statistics courtesy of Football Outsiders and NFL.com.