Every week, the first step of your DFS homework should be to examine the opening Vegas odds on all the NFL games for that week. Through some fairly simple algebra, it is easy to derive a spreadsheet that predicts team totals for every game, thereby allowing you to develop a rudimentary gamescript to help narrow down your decisions for the week. Once the appealing (and unappealing) games have been highlighted, it becomes easier to focus upon those games to help build your core of players for that week; the caveat, however, is that the NFL is a dynamic league and anything is subject to change from Tuesday to Sunday...so keep that in mind as the week progresses and always monitor player injuries, weather conditions, and potential roster moves. Let's take a look.
UPDATED FRIDAY, JANUARY 4th @ 8 PM (EST)
| Team | Opponent | Odds | Team Total | Game Total | Passing | Running | Team Defense |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Houston | Indianapolis | -1 | 24.75 | 48.5 | + | + | |
| Chicago | Philadelphia | -6.5 | 24 | 41.5 | + | + | ++ |
| Indianapolis | Houston | 1 | 23.75 | 48.5 | + | ||
| Dallas | Seattle | -2 | 22.5 | 43 | |||
| Baltimore | LA Chargers | -3 | 22.25 | 41.5 | + | ||
| Seattle | Dallas | 2 | 20.5 | 43 | |||
| LA Chargers | Baltimore | 3 | 19.25 | 41.5 | |||
| Philadelphia | Chicago | 6.5 | 17.5 | 41.5 |
SUMMARY
3-STARS
- Quarterback: None
- Running Back: None
- Receivers: None
- Defense: None
2-STARS
- Quarterback: None
- Running Back: None
- Receivers: None
- Defense: Bears
1-STAR
- Quarterback: Deshaun Watson (Texans), Mitchell Trubisky (Bears), Andrew Luck (Colts)
- Running Back: Lamar Miller (Texans), Jordan Howard/Tarik Cohen (Bears)
- Receivers: DeAndre Hopkins/Keke Coutee/DeAndre Carter (Texans), Allen Robinson/Anthony Miller/Taylor Gabriel/Trey Burton (Bears), T.Y. Hilton/Chester Rogers/Dontrelle Inman/Eric Ebron (Colts)
- Defense: Ravens