Week 3 is set to get underway, which means it’s time to welcome Le’Veon Bell back into the action. While Bell hasn’t played in 2015 due to his suspension, the question immediately becomes how he’ll perform in his first game of the season. Better yet, will Bell rank among the top running backs in daily fantasy football for Week 3?

Bell is just one of many hot topics this week, and it’s safe to say that you’ll not only find some great options for expensive players, but that there are some great value plays as well.

In recent weeks, we’ve seen plenty of low-priced players step up and post impressive stat lines, making them more than worth their DraftKings cost. This week, who will the top value plays be, and will they allow you to get the superstars with the best matchups into your lineups?

That’s our job to figure out, so let’s get right into the Week 3 rankings and value plays.

Begin Slideshow

NFL

Fantasy Football

Fantasy

Daily Fantasy

Football Daily Fantasy

Having a rough start to the NFL season? A long year remains to get the hang of daily fantasy football, so let’s see your “Everything is OK” face.

Bob’s Burgers fans may be too distracted by football to watch Sunday’s season premiere, but many will feel Tina Belcher’s anxiety while watching the day’s NFL slate unfold. Why didn’t Tom Brady throw a touchdown in the first quarter? Keenan Allen doesn’t have any catches through two series. Where’s Keenan Allen?

Avoid some pain by respectively using or ignoring these highlighted players on DraftKings.

Stock Up

Nick Foles, QB, St. Louis Rams ($5,200)

No team has relented more DraftKings points to quarterbacks than the Pittsburgh Steelers, and that’s not all because of Tom Brady. After getting gutted by the New England Patriots, they gave up huge gains to a less dangerous San Francisco 49ers offense.

Nick Foles followed a sharp showing against the Seattle Seahawks with a dud versus Washington, the reverse of what most onlookers would have anticipated. The new St. Louis Rams quarterback lives and dies by deep throws, making him a volatile choice.

With Le’Veon Bell returning alongside Ben Roethlisberger and Antonio Brown, the Steelers will light up the scoreboard, forcing St. Louis to throw often. Foles will spend most of the day chucking bombs to keep up; he just needs a few hits against a vulnerable secondary.

For $5,200, take the chance on an affordable, high-upside tournament play.

Melvin Gordon, RB, San Diego Chargers ($5,000)

When Melvin Gordon followed a tepid preseason with 3.6 yards per run and a fumble, people prematurely panicked. The San Diego Chargers rookie quickly quelled those fears with 88 rushing yards on 16 carries against the Cincinnati Bengals.

He flashed big-play potential with a trio of huge runs, compiled by Michael Gehlken of the San Diego Union-Tribune:

The first-round pick earned a fan in Adrian Peterson, whose Minnesota Vikings will host Gordon’s Chargers in Week 3.

“He’s got real nice feet,” Peterson told ESPN.com’s Eric D. Williams. “He runs physical, and he’s quick in between the tackles. I think maybe that’s why I like him so much, because he reminds me of how I would run the ball with the talent that I’ve been presented with.”

Minnesota has relinquished 4.9 yards per carry, mostly all Carlos Hyde’s doing. San Diego doesn’t want to throw 53 times on a strong secondary like Matthew Stafford did, so look for a heavy dose of running on both sides.

Seattle Seahawks, D/ST ($3,400)

Defense is usually a place to save a few bucks with a cheap matchup pick. This weekend, however, the Seahawks will offer the best return on investment despite costing the most of any unit.

Earlier in the week, the Chicago Bears confirmed that quarterback Jay Cutler and wide receiver Alshon Jeffery will both miss Sunday’s game at Seattle:

Jimmy Clausen will step into the starting spotlight at the worst possible time. After an 0-2 start, the Seahawks will welcome back star safety Kam Chancellor, who will play after ending his holdout, according to CBS Sports’ Jason La Canfora:

A second-string quarterback facing a traditionally stout defense on the road without the team’s top target sounds like a recipe for success and a reason to pay up for Seattle’s defense.

Stock Down

Matthew Stafford, QB, Detroit Lions ($6,300)

Stafford’s 286 passing yards against Minnesota look worse when accrued through 53 attempts, and he hasn’t reached the 300-yard plateau in his last five starts. As noted by Pro Football Focus’ Sam Monson, the Detroit Lions quarterback rates No. 31 in the site’s grading system at minus-5.9. He attributed the poor production to meltdowns under pressure:

When kept clean this season he has had a passer rating of 102.5, completing 78.8 percent of his passes with two touchdowns and one pick. His yards per attempt figure on those passes is a healthy 7.4, but the problem has been when the heat has been applied.

Stafford’s passer rating has tumbled to 43.1 on plays where he felt pressure, completing just 32.3 percent of his passes and throwing as many interceptions (two) as touchdowns. That near 60-point drop in passer rating is nearly double the NFL average of 33 points, and represents a figure that will cause major problems to an offense, especially one hemorrhaging pressure as much as the Lions are right now.

Bad news: His Week 3 opponent, the Denver Broncos, rate as Pro Football Focus‘ top pass-rushing unit. Along with their seven sacks, the Broncos are the only team yet to allow a passing touchdown. Only the Carolina Panthers have relinquished fewer yards per attempt (4.4) than Denver’s 5.4.

Stafford—who has shredded an old injury-prone label—doesn’t not appear in danger of missing his first game since 2010 with injured ribs. But he wouldn’t make an appealing choice at full health, so stay far away in spite of his price dipping from $6,800 to $6,300.

Brandin Cooks, WR, New Orleans Saints ($7,100)

According to ESPN.com’s Mike Triplett, Brandin Cooks doesn’t expect an ankle injury to sideline him this weekend:

Great, but Drew Brees won’t join him. The New Orleans Saints confirmed the dreary news on Friday:

Projected to pursue a 100-catch campaign as Brees’ top target, Cooks has instead delivered an underwhelming nine catches for 111 yards. Now the 22-year-old loses Brees, the main reason everyone pegged him as a breakout candidate in the first place.

With Luke McCown throwing him the ball, Cooks at best is a tame No. 3 receiver benefiting from a high-volume workload. New Orleans, however, is likely to lean much more on Mark Ingram and Khiry Robinson in Brees’ absence.

Even with a healthy Brees, Cooks is drastically overpriced at $7,100. Julian Edelman ($7,000), Jarvis Landry ($6,400) and Brandon Marshall ($6,200) are vastly superior choices at cheaper costs.

Owen Daniels, TE, Denver Broncos ($2,900)

Owen Daniels is the latest to prove that sleepers don’t always wake up. A popular preseason choice, Denver’s starting tight end has registered 24 receiving yards this season.

Peyton Manning has targeted Daniels seven times despite the veteran playing 136 of Denver’s 150 snaps, according to Pro Football Focus. Virgil Green has played far less frequently, but he snatched a touchdown during Week 2’s victory over the Kansas City Chiefs.

Daniels hasn’t generated more than nine yards on a play this season. Perhaps expectations were too high for someone who averaged 3.2 catches and 35.1 yards per game with the Baltimore Ravens last year.

Opponents (the San Diego Chargers and Minnesota Vikings) have completed an NFL-high 81.4 completion percentage against the Lions, but take that as a reason to consider Demaryius Thomas or Emmanuel Sanders rather than the struggling tight end. His $2,900 salary is tempting, but Jared Cook ($2,800) is a better play at that price point.

Note: All pricing and scoring data obtained from DraftKings.com.

Read more Fantasy Football news on NerdyFootball.com

NFL

Fantasy Football

Fantasy

Daily Fantasy

When the results of NFL football games take unexpected turns, as they did in many of Week 2’s matchups, fantasy teams are affected as well.

Some of the confidence you may have had in your lineup last week at this point has been replaced with nervousness. What if you’re leaving the sleeper of the week on the bench? What if your early-round pick disappoints like he did last week?

There’s no such thing as a surefire guarantee in real or fantasy football. But let’s look at a few guys who have great potential to put up big points and a few others who may underachieve.

Start ‘Em

QB Cam Newton, Carolina Panthers

The New Orleans Saints pass defense has been a mess so far this year, letting the Arizona Cardinals’ Carson Palmer shred it for 307 passing yards, three touchdowns and no interceptions in Week 1. The next week, Tampa Bay Buccaneers rookie Jameis Winston had a huge bounce-back game with an efficient 207 yards, one score and no interceptions.

So you can understand why Newton, who was picked much earlier in 2015 fantasy drafts than Palmer and Winston, will probably explode against New Orleans.

Newton’s receivers are definitely some of the worst in the NFL, but he still has tight end Greg Olsen and his own legs, which provided 76 yards and a touchdown last week.

RB C.J. Anderson, Denver Broncos

Anderson was a first- or second-round pick in most drafts, but he’s produced a total of just 56 rushing yards and zero touchdowns through two games. However, if one fantasy bust is poised to break out in Week 3, it’s him.

The Broncos are visiting the Detroit Lions Sunday night, who are 0-2 and have been gashed on the ground by their first two opponents. Detroit has allowed an average of 147 rushing yards and four total touchdowns, ranking 28th and last in the NFL, respectively.

With his job possibly on the line, Anderson will come through with some nice points in Week 3.

QB Russell Wilson, Seattle Seahawks

Wilson has gotten off to an OK start to the fantasy season, putting up decent stats in the face of a terrible Seahawks line. If you drafted him as your No. 1, maybe you’re a little bit disappointed.

But whatever you do, do not leave him on your bench against the Chicago Bears.

Aaron Rodgers and Carson Palmer combined for a 128.0 passer rating in Weeks 1 and 2 versus the Bears, accumulating seven passing touchdowns. At home, Wilson is primed for another big game against the helpless Chicago defense with his dual-threat abilities. The Bears have zero sacks through two games this season, which suggests that the Seattle offensive line may be able to play a good game for once.

Add in the fact that Seahawks head coach Pete Carroll says running back Marshawn Lynch is a game-time decision for the contest, per Around the NFL’s Dan Hanzus, and Wilson’s workload looks ideal for a huge fantasy outing.

Sit ‘Em

QB Ryan Tannehill, Miami Dolphins

Tannehill is having a solid fantasy season, but you have to consider who he’s played—the Washington Redskins and Jacksonville Jaguars, neither of whom are known for shutting down their opponents’ passing games.

Against the Buffalo Bills, he’ll have to face a talented unit fresh off a disappointing loss to the New England Patriots. Not only that, but Tannehill is only probable due to an ankle injury, per the South Florida Sun-Sentinel‘s Omar Kelly. That could compromise his mobility, should he play.

Additionally, the Miami Herald‘s Armando Salguero reported Dolphins left tackle Branden Albert is doubtful for Sunday because of a knee injury. Kelly provided some context for that:

Tannehill is hobbled, playing against a good defense and will probably be missing his left tackle Sunday. That spells trouble.

RB Bishop Sankey, Tennessee Titans

For all of the Indianapolis Colts’ problems right now, their run defense has surprisingly not been an issue during their 0-2 start.

Sure, they’ve allowed 248 rushing yards through two games, but opponents have only gotten 3.9 yards per carry so far. The Bills and New York Jets both got off to leads against the Colts in Weeks 1 and 2 and milked their running games to run out the clock, which inflated their numbers.

Many will play Sankey here against the Colts because of Indy’s reputation as a weak team against the run, but don’t make that mistake. The second-year back is talented, but it’s likely he won’t gobble up a bunch of yards in Week 3. The Titans probably won’t be leading this contest most of the time, which means Tennessee quarterback Marcus Mariota may actually be the better fantasy play.

WR Brandin Cooks, New Orleans Saints

Being Drew Brees‘ No. 1 wide receiver automatically made Cooks a high pick in most draft picks. But Saints head coach Sean Payton announced Friday that Brees’ shoulder injury will keep him out of the game against the Panthers, according to ESPN.com’s Mike Triplett. Luke McCown will be filling in for the 36-year-old veteran quarterback.

With Brees out and the underwhelming McCown (68.3 career passer rating) in, Cooks becomes an easy sit for any fantasy owner who has decent depth at the wide receiver spot.

Carolina has also been stingy against the pass. The Panthers have only faced the Houston Texans and Jacksonville Jaguars so far (two teams with less-than-stellar quarterbacks), but they’ve stopped both aerial attacks nonetheless.

Read more Fantasy Football news on NerdyFootball.com

NFL

Fantasy Football

Opinion