NFL DFS Week 8: The Sunday Crossword

I believe it was Leo Tolstoy who said, "All happy daily fantasy sports tickets are alike; each unhappy ticket is unhappy in its own way." And for the third week in a row, the happy tickets were those who stuck with players in strong NFL matchups. In fact, the highest-owned player, Todd Gurley (this week's price $6,300) was owned by 67 percent of players in the DraftKings Millionaire Maker G.P.P. and by a whopping 86 percent of players in the larger 50/50s.

And lo, Gurley rewarded those believers with 35 points against the lowly Browns rush defense. Lamar Miller (Thursday game this week) and Mike Evans ($6,800) were darlings of the sharp set, owned on even fewer tickets, and each paid off in spades. So what if DeAndre Hopkins ($8,700) and Larry Fitzgerald ($7,700) disappointed? They were rightly part of that happy subset of attractive-looking match-ups. And if you stuck with the tasty match-ups, you still had a strong chance of cashing in.

So check the match-ups. Look for San Diego and Cleveland against the run, and Tampa and Baltimore against the pass. I would also love to take every player going up against Houston. I'm not, because they're playing Tennessee this week, but you know what I mean. Pay attention to that OPRK (opponent rank) column next to the players you select and justify your choice matchup wise or, even better, check out the Harris Index.

Also look for the teams fresh off a bye. Recent bye team Tampa may not have beaten Washington, but Evans, Jameis Winston ($5,200), and Doug Martin ($5,500) combined for 77 DraftKings points. Similarly, the Rams defense ($3,200) was the top scoring D (highest % ownership, too), and we've been over Gurley. Chicago, Cincinnati, Green Bay, and Denver have just had their byes, although Green Bay and Denver play each other, which might cancel that advantage out. So Bears and Bengals then! They've been staring at Minnesota and Pittsburgh's flaws for two weeks.

So don't make your ticket unhappy in its own way. Don't go out on a limb that's hard to justify.

Miami and New England play on Thursday night, Detroit and Kansas City play early Sunday morning in London, while Buffalo, Jacksonville, Philadelphia and Washington have byes.

Here are some players who might look good on a ticket:

QB

Cam Newton ($6,800) – Versus run or pass Indy is weak. Cam does both.

Ben Roethlisberger ($6,700) – So many weapons; obviously make sure he's active first.

Philip Rivers ($6,600) – Great matchup against Ravens.

Andy Dalton ($6,000) – Top scoring QB in the field, off a bye, in good matchup…and priced 12th?

Jay Cutler ($5,200) – Cheap and off a bye; Minny is strong, though.

Ryan Fitzpatrick ($5,200) – Cheap and competent.

RB

Devonta Freeman ($8,000) – Still want him despite only getting 18 points last week.

Todd Gurley ($6,300) – Don't see anyone who had him last week passing on him this week.

Justin Forsett ($6,100) – Did great at home against Cleveland three weeks back; now it's San Diego.

Doug Martin ($5,500) – Priced too nice.

Chris Johnson ($4,600) – Great matchup against Cleveland.

WR

Julio Jones ($9,200) – A matchup to pay for against Tampa.

Antonio Brown ($7,800), Martavis Bryant ($5,300) – Oh, I will have a stack with Big Ben.

Keenan Allen ($7,700) – He only scores 30-plus when I don't have him; great matchup.

A.J. Green ($7,600), Marvin Jones ($4,200) – Off a bye, alone or together.

Alshon Jeffery ($6,400) – Man against boys against Detroit; let's see what he can do off a bye.

Eric Decker ($5,300) – Oakland won't be as good as last week, and still weak against the pass.

Stephon Diggs ($4,800) – Ownership % was high last week; expect higher this week.

Nate Washington ($3,600) – DeAndre Jr.? (Okay, not really)

TE

Tyler Eifert ($5,300), Martellus Bennett ($4,900) – Bengals or Bears footie pajamas for me.

Antonio Gates ($4,800) – If he plays, I'll take him.

Gary Barnidge ($4,700) – Last of the expensive guys, but you almost have to take one.

Ben Watson ($3,500) – Unless you like this guy against the Giants.

DEF

Cardinals ($4,000) – Will face gimpy McCown or healthy Manziel.

Packers ($3,300) – If rested Broncos haven't figured things out, rested Packers could sting them.

Panthers ($3,200) – Indy is grist for their mill.

Rams ($3,200) – Another great matchup against Niners.

Texans ($3,100) – Not really; just seeing if you're paying attention.

My DraftKings Ticket

Ryan Fitzpatrick, Todd Gurley, Justin Forsett, Keenan Allen, A.J. Green, Eric Decker, Martellus Bennett, Nate Washington, Rams Defense

Craig Clark is a Daily Fantasy Sports expert who appears weekly on the Harris Football Podcast. You can follow him on Twitter @pcclark59.