Daily Musings: Preseason Week 1 Friday Darts

If you caught the Thursday preseason darts, you might have won yourself some money. Now that the DraftKings blog is live, those pieces will live here.

There is a running disclaimer on all these—this is the preseason, the wild West of DFS. There are no Vegas lines, season trends, or even known quantities of playing time to rely upon. That said, here are some of my favorite plays for the Week 1 Friday slate:

Quarterback

Brock Osweiler, DEN @ SEA

Peyton Manning rests, and the Broncos are preparing for their future without him. Brock Osweiler should get extended run this week, and he has the advantage of not being a middling rookie.

Joe Webb, CAR @ BUF

It's everybody's favorite quarterback-with-receiver-eligibility! Remember that? Joe Webb and his rushing ability should get a bunch of playing time against the Buffalo Bills tonight with Cam Newton and Derek Anderson likely exiting before the first half is even over.

R.J. Archer, SEA vs. DEN

Who is R.J. Archer, you ask? Why only a four-year Arena League veteran liable to get the entire second half against the Broncos third-team defense, that’s who. If you're looking for a guy with potential with whom to differentiate your roster, Archer isn't a bad look.

Running Back

Antone Smith, ATL vs. TEN

Devonta Freeman and Tevin Coleman are nursing hamstring injuries that could keep them out of the game altogether tonight. Antone Smith is a human touchdown machine. Put the two together, and...

Karlos Williams, BUF vs. CAR

The Buffalo backfield is dinged up—Fred Jackson and Anthony Dixon will probably miss action this week—and Karlos Williams has gotten some training camp love. Bryce Brown’s fumble-itis hasn’t helped his cause, either. We could see a ton of Williams this week.

Benny Cunningham, STL @ OAK

Todd Gurley will miss the preseason, and Tre Mason is the de facto starter. That is to say, Mason probably won’t see the field much. That leaves just pass-catching threat Benny Cunningham and draft bust Isaiah Pead as the main men in the backfield, though a few guys behind them might get run in the second half.

Thomas Rawls, SEA vs. DEN

We’ve seen Christine Michael tear it up for Seattle in preseasons of yesteryear, and that very well could be the case for a man on the roster bubble. But Thomas Rawls has been talked up this offseason, and he could see some heavy action in the second half against the Broncos.

Wide Receiver

Rashad Greene, JAX vs. PIT

The rookie has been making some waves this preseason, and the Jaguars figure to give him a long look after the starters depart.

Justin Hunter, TEN @ ATL

The hype train is firing up the boiler for Justin Hunter, who has been making noise at Titans training camp. Add to that the fact he had a huge preseason a year ago and we could see some fireworks.

Corey Washington, NYG @ CIN

Only Brice Butler had a better 2014 preseason than Corey Washington, who scored four touchdowns. He had no impact in the regular season, though, and he is reportedly looking to improve on last year’s great preseason.

Tyler Lockett or Ricardo Lockette, SEA vs. DEN

Who to stack with R.J. Archer? Either of these guys seem like good GPP-style darts.

Lockett has generated some buzz at training camp, but Lockette is a bigger receiver looking to make the roster with a big preseason.

Justin Hardy, ATL vs. TEN

Another rookie generating buzz this offseason, Justin Hardy seems to be running with the starters as a slot guy. That makes him a bit dangerous from a DFS standpoint—if he exits with the starters after two series, that will stink—but he could see more playing time than most starters given his rookie status.

Tight End

Gabe Holmes, OAK vs. STL

Clive Walford is back from injury, but he likely won’t play against the Rams. With Lee Smith also nursing injury and Mychal Rivera exiting after the first quarter, at worst, undrafted rookie Gabe Holmes could be in for some targets in the second half.

Anthony McCoy, SEA vs. DEN

We won’t likely see Jimmy Graham much against the Broncos, and Luke Willson might join him on the bench soon after. That leaves Anthony McCoy and Cooper Helfet duking it out for a roster spot. We’ve seen McCoy do some good things in the past.

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