DFS Week 3 Picks: Top Plays for FanDuel & DraftKings

Ryan Weisse

8 months ago

Welcome back to DFS Academy at Club Fantasy! We’re keeping things simple this year. No full DFS article series, but you can still catch our DFS podcast every week, plus this quick-hit recap to go with it. Think of it as your DFS Week 3 study guide.

And don’t forget, you can play against us every week on DraftKings and FanDuel. Subscribe to the pod, hop in the Discord, and join the fun.

Here are your necessary links:

DFS Week 3 Picks

Answers to the Test

The Week 2 milli-maker lineup dropped a 260.2, and it was a masterclass:

Russell Wilson – Jonathan Taylor – Christian McCaffrey (Austin Pick) – Malik Nabers – Amon-Ra St. Brown – Rome Odunze (Austin Pick) – Jake Ferguson – Wan’Dale Robinson – 49ers DEF

Lineup Notes: Double stack with a bring-back in NYG/DAL, plus a CHI/DET correlation. The lineup told a story, and the author didn’t miss a single chapter.

Cash Plays: Austin’s Specialty

Cash is all about safety, and Austin has the syllabus.

Top of the Class ($8k+)

Christian McCaffrey (DK $8,200 / FD $9,100) – It’s CMC. We’ll play him until the sites finally adjust.

Band Nerds ($6k–$8k)

Jaxon Smith-Njigba (DK $6,500 / FD $8,000) – 22 targets through two games. Volume wins cash.
Javonte Williams (DK $6,100 / FD $7,200) – Solid touches plus pass-game involvement at a great price.
Emeka Egbuka (DK $6,300 / FD $6,300) – Consistent role, though we’ll pivot to Alvin Kamara or Brian Thomas Jr. if he sits.

Bookworms ($4k–$6k)

Drake Maye (DK $5,300 / FD $7,300) – Steady through two weeks. Doesn’t need much to return value.
Rome Odunze (DK $5,300 / FD $6,400) – Averaging double-digit targets, in the slate’s highest O/U.
Jakobi Meyers (DK $5,600 / FD $6,200) – A weekly safety blanket. Over 10 targets per game.
Jordan Mason (DK $5,400 / FD $5,800) – With Aaron Jones out, Mason steps in as must-play value.

C’s Get Degrees (<$4k)

Harold Fannin (DK $3,600 / FD $5,200) – Cheap, consistent volume at TE.
Houston Texans DST (DK $2,700 / FD $3,400) – Good defensive front vs. a shaky Jags line.
Carson Wentz (DK $4,000 / FD $6,000) – The free square. Ugly, but viable.

Tournament Talk

Cash is safe, but GPPs are the real test. Here’s where we’re swinging for the ceiling.

Quarterback

Austin: Caleb Williams (DK $5,600 / FD $7,100) – Best game environment on the slate at 50.5 O/U, with no other game higher than 45.5. Pivoting off Dak Prescott for leverage makes sense.
Honorable mention: Daniel Jones (DK $5,400 / FD $7,800). Looking for ways to pivot off Williams and Prescott without going too far awry. You can’t pay him to play Jones on FanDuel—well, maybe you could.
Ryan: I’m with Austin on Caleb, but for diversity, give me Justin Herbert (DK $6,200 / FD $7,600). He’s throwing way more than expected, and the run game isn’t ready to take over yet. If Daniel Jones can score 20, Herbert can score 40.

Running Back

Austin: Jaylen Warren (DK $5,500 / FD $6,200). Lots of games in the 44–45 point range, and Pittsburgh–New England could hit the over. Warren is still the lead guy, and Kaleb Johnson even lost his return job.
Alvin Kamara (DK $6,300 / FD $8,000). Quietly doing Kamara things again. Seattle is giving up the 6th-most points to RBs, and the Saints likely play from behind. Only a DK play for him.
Ryan: Bijan Robinson (DK $7,900 / FD $9,500) vs. CAR. Give me RBs against Carolina. Even if it’s chalk, Bijan’s one of the few backs with true pop-week potential.

Wide Receiver

Austin: CeeDee Lamb (DK $8,000 / FD $8,800) – 10+ targets and 100+ yards in both games so far.
DJ Moore (DK $5,400 / FD $6,300) – Leverage on Odunze.
Jaxon Smith-Njigba (DK $6,500 / FD $8,000) – Correlates nicely with Kamara. All that volume and no TDs yet.
Jauan Jennings (DK $5,000 / FD $6,000) – Heavily used with Mac Jones under center, intriguing game environment.
Ryan: My favorite is Rome Odunze, but he’ll be chalk. Instead, I like George Pickens (DK $5,900 / FD $6,200) as leverage in that CHI/DAL game. Everyone wants Dak–Lamb or Caleb–Lamb or a Ferguson pivot. This feels like a Pickens TD spot.

Tight End

Austin: Tyler Warren (DK $4,400 / FD $5,600) – Heavy usage but still hasn’t found the end zone.
Jake Ferguson (DK $4,000 / FD $5,200) – Easy to pivot from chalky WRs, so why not pivot further on Fergi?
Ryan: I was on Tucker Kraft, but his knee injury is concerning. I’ll pivot to Juwan Johnson (DK $3,900 / FD $5,700). Pure volume play, and cheap volume at that. Saints will be chasing points.

Defense

Austin: Jacksonville Jaguars (DK $2,800 / FD $3,300) – This game might just be two bad O-lines fighting to see who’s worse.
Ryan: Atlanta Falcons (DK $3,200 / FD $3,800) vs. CAR. The pass rush is heating up, and the Panthers are still stuck in detention. Falcons are the #2 fantasy defense right now.

Valedictorian Shootout

Austin moves to 2-0 in our head-to-head DraftKings battle, taking Ryan down 141.8 to 120.4. Another rough QB call for Ryan. At this point, he might need office hours.

Austin: Maye + CMC + Javonte + JSN + Meyers + Odunze + Egbuka + Fannin + HOU
Ryan: Caleb + Bijan + Warren + Odunze + Pickens + Puka + Travis Hunter + Juwan + ATL

Winner gets bragging rights each week, and by season’s end, we’ll see who’s crowned Valedictorian and who ends up class clown.

Join the Class

You can test yourself against us every week! Join our contests on DraftKings and FanDuel, and we’ll shout out winners on the pod and in Discord.

DraftKings – Austin takes it with 153.10. Back-to-back wins and his 9th all-time.
FanDuel – jaymalaga grabs the W with 142.0, first win of the season.

The semester’s still young. Come play with us, join the banter in Discord, and subscribe to keep up with DFS Academy. And remember, in DFS, sometimes Cs really do get degrees.