Welcome back to Cap’s Fantasy Corner, your go-to article series for all of your fantasy football needs! In this week’s edition, I’m breaking down 3 players I believe are sneaky starts who could win you a fantasy matchup Week 3 of the NFL Regular Season. If you want the best fantasy football tools, personalized fantasy coaching, and a team of experts at your disposal this season, then be sure to sign-up for our premium fantasy football season pass.
Before I jump into the starts, I want to make sure you’re on top of your DFS game this season. There’s no better way to do that than by checking out our NFL Projections Portal. It’s the best tool on the market that can instantly help you increase your DFS bankroll this season. If you want to up your game to an even higher level, I encourage you to join Karma Nation as a premium member. Start dominating DFS in every sport the way you should be this season!
1. Saquon Barkley vs. Atlanta Falcons
Seeing Barkley on a sneaky start list might seem counterintuitive since you’re probably thinking “who isn’t starting Barkley if they roster him?” The answer to that question is tons of managers over the past two weeks. I advocated for Barkley to be sat last week and early on in the season since the Giants were easing him back into a full workload. I expect this week to be the one Joe Judge and company take the training wheels off of Barkley and let him get a full workload against the Falcons, who allow an average of 24.70 PPR points to running backs per week. Week 1, Barkley’s rush share was just under 50%. Week 2, it increased to 70%. I believe we’ll see an 80% rush and snap share this week. With a great matchup on paper against the Falcons, Barkley is in a prime spot for the boom game we’ve been waiting for. Seeing his explosiveness return in a 40-yard run last week in a matchup against the elite Washington Football Team rushing defense has me extremely encouraged for Barkley this weekend. I am full steam ahead on Barkley as a fantasy RB1 in Week 3.
2. Jalen Reagor vs. Dallas Cowboys
Jalen Reagor has quietly had the 2nd most targets and receptions for the Philadelphia Eagles through 2 weeks of the NFL season. Last week was a down one for the entire Eagles offense, but in Week 1, Reagor posted 6 targets for 6 receptions, 49 yards, and 1 TD, good for 16.90 PPR points. I expect Reagor and the Eagles offense to get back on track this week against the Dallas Cowboys passing defense, who have allowed the 4th most points to fantasy wide receivers through 2 weeks. I’m firing up Reagor in my lineups as a high-ceiling flex play if I’m needing a spark.
3. Austin Hooper vs. Chicago Bears
On paper, this isn’t a great matchup for Hooper. The Chicago Bears defense is only allowing an average of 7 PPR points to tight ends per game thus far in the season. However, with Browns wide receiver Jarvis Landry on IR and Odell Beckham Jr. coming into his first game off of a torn ACL, I’d expect Hooper to have enough receiving volume to be a playable fantasy option at tight end–which is more than you can say for most tight ends. I’m not anticipating a blow-up game, but I think 10-12 PPR points is a reasonable expectation for Hooper this week, making him a great streaming option at the position.
I hope you enjoyed these starts and that they help you win some games! Give my most recent episode of No Cap by DFS Karma a listen if you do. You can find it on any podcast platform but click the image below to listen now.
