NFL DFS: Week 7 High Value Targets

As with the running back list the day before yesterday, targets mean nothing if you're not converting them into catches, yards, a ultimately touchdowns.  Sometimes a receiver can be getting targeted a lot and simply not catching them (Jordan Matthews this year for instance).  Other times a receiver is producing a great deal under the radar, and needs to be high-lighted for it.  Here's a list of 5 high value targets so far this season.  Guys that turn targets into points.  THOSE are the guys you need.  Now, to be clear, these are not necessarily the 5 best, in 1-5 order.  They are all top ten however, and lesser than household name type receivers.  Here we go!

Willie Snead WR New Orleans Saints

Willie Snead is a guy whose name you've probably heard on ESPN or NFL Network over the past few weeks.  He's quickly become the favorite target of future Hall of Fame QB Drew Brees, and has turned those opportunities into yards more often than not, so he headlines this list.  He's currently averaging just over 6 targets a game and reeling in 68.4% of them for an average of almost 17 yards per catch (11.47 per target).  That's the highest per target average of the guys who caught enough balls to qualify for my list (30) this season and it's for a reason: YAC.  This guy piles up the yards after catch, averaging 6.23 per catch.  He makes a great, productive, and cheap option in Draft Kings leagues.

Rishard Matthews WR Miami Dolphins
Matthews is the lesser known receiver targeted behind Jarvis Landry in Miami, and while his fame and role on the depth chart may be behind Landry, his production has certainly been much better than that of his more well known teammate.  He's averaging just over 6 targets per game, and catching 71.8% of them, for the second best percentage among wide receivers on this list.  When he catches these passes, he turns them into yards, averaging 15.8 yards per reception (11.34 per target) and with 3 touchdown catches on the season.  The Dolphins play the Texans this weekend, and I expect Matthews to exploit the secondary, fill your roster out with him this weekend.

John Brown WR Arizona Cardinals
John Brown is the most targeted player that appears on this list, with 45 targets over 6 games for 7.5 a game.  He's also got the highest catch percentage of any player on this list, pulling in 73.3 percent of those targets for 15.1 yards per catch (or 11.04 per target).  Brown is the closest player to exceeding all goals I set for players to make this list: 75% catch rate, 15 yards per reception, 10 per target.  His 73.3% catch rate leaves him just short of perfection, but he's still appearing at third on this list, so it's not all bad news for him or his owners.  Pick him up this weekend against a poor Detroit secondary inside a dome with a red hot Carson Palmer throwing to him and you could reap the rewards.

Allen Hurns WR Jacksonville Jaguars

Hurns is the sidekick to lead Jaguar receiver Allen Robinson, or one half of the Jags' two Allens.  While he's technically the second option, he's turned it into being the lead producer in that unit.  In 6 games he's been targeted 43 times, and hauled in 29 of those at 15.9 yards per catch.  That includes 4 touchdowns and half a dozen plays of over 20 yards!  His 15.9 per reception and 67.4% catch rate h as him averaging 10.69 per target, a pretty productive receiver.  If he continues being targeted 7 times per game, and catching about 5 of those, that's a minimum of 10.5 fantasy points per game in full ppr leagues.  Add in the likelihood of a touchdown (66% chance) and you're talking a floor of 16.5 points-not bad for a second option.  The Jags are also facing the Bills this week, whose lead CB Stephon Gilmore has held the opposing teams' lead receiver under 100 yards including the likes of Julian Edelman and AJ Green this season.  Sounds like a recipe for that second option to produce like a first option again.

Tight Ends Travis Kelce and Gary Barnidge

I had to throw some non wide-outs on this list, so here's the top pair of tight ends, producing when targeted on the field.  Kelce has been targeted 39 times for the Chiefs, picking up 416 yards through the air with 2 touchdowns.  He's pulled in 74.3% of his targets for best on this list, and averaging 14.3 yards per reception-for 10.6 per target.  Barnidge, has been targeted 40 times and caught 27 of them for 413 yards (really close numbers, right?) and 5 touchdowns over the course of 6 games.  If he continues being targeted about 7 times per game and catching about 5 of them, as well as a touchdown each game as his current rate stands, his floor stands at about 16 points per game, pretty solid for any receiver, let alone a tight end.

Danny Woodhead RB San Diego Chargers
I couldn't not put Woodhead on this list because his YAC is just off the charts, and he's the most productive target at the running back position by a mile (well, 2.5 yards per target, but still that's a lot here).  Woodhead has been targeted 34 times this season, and caught for 332 yards.  What really pumps his position on this list up though, is his YAC, as I previously mentioned.  It's ridiculous, at 11.3 yards per catch!  That's a first down AFTER the reception every time he catches the ball.  It also translates to 8.64 of his total 9.76 yards per target after the catch, meaning a whopping 88.5% of his yards come after the catch.  In PPR leagues, this makes Woodhead a fairly valuable add, especially if you're looking to plug some value buys in DFS leagues.

A few big names who aren't mentioned here but qualify based upon my constraints: Larry Fitzgerald and AJ Green.  Thanks for the read, and good luck!