Week 2 2023 DraftKings picks — Pickard’s ‘pick-six’

I am going to ask you a divergent question. Would you rather fight one horse-sized duck or 100 duck-sized horses? Seriously, think about the instinctual answer that came to you. That’s you, your spirit, your pneuma, and we will use it to play Draft Kings. If you selected the horse-seized duck, you want to keep an eye on your opponent as it is easier to monitor. You can watch every move they make. Head-to-head is the most underused game for new to intermediate players. If your budget is $200 or less weekly, you must lock into this if you want long-term success. Investments take time to grow, and deep down, you want that security of winning and, in turn, not losing any money. The rush of victory is far greater than in large field tournaments. A simple $1 head-to-head can be entered anytime, and should you come out with the W, you win $1.80. You will learn to sharpen your lineups in this process, creating correlation in those small field games. 

Now I want to talk to the wild animals reading who want to fight 100 duck-sized horses. You welcome DFS tournaments with bloodthirst and carnage. With aspirations of being the alpha dog at the top of the leaderboards. Advice comes in many forms, and the consensus is something to pay attention to. Successful weeks come more to those who fill the maximum entries of the contest they are entering. The millionaire maker is what we all want to win. There are a total of 236,600 thousand tickets available for week 2. A ticket is only $20, and on the surface, that seems like fantastic odds vs. winning a million dollars from other betting sources. Are you prepared to put 150 lineups in to fill the max entry limit for the contest? Because there are a lot of other people that are. The philosophy stands here: only play games you can max out. Start simple with 3-20 max entry. Your initial chances are now even. You have just as many pieces on the board as anyone else. Aim for games that will pay a minimum of double your initial investment if you hit a payout. Winning 50/50 is challenging; you must finish within the top 40% in tournaments. A 60% win ratio in the NFL is 10-7. Only nine of the 32 NFL teams finished with 10+ wins in 2022. This means only 28% of the league did it. Learn how to create lineups from small field games first, and you will find success. 

Week 2 ‘Pick-Six‘ Pics: 

1) Geno Smith QB, SEA $5,900 – Comeback player of the year in 2022, and we are looking for comeback player of the week. Geno didn’t do anything wrong last week, but this offense had no wow factor. The last team he played the Lions, he walked away with an eye-watering 48-45 masterpiece victory. This outcome most likely won’t repeat itself, but I like the odds of this game. With a total implied points of 47.5, I am invested to get away from all the Josh Allen chaulk this week. 

2) Saquon Barkley RB, NYG $8,000 – This is a perfect week for Barkley. The Giants looked like an 8-year-old tried to fight Prime Mike Tyson last week against the Cowboys. Saquon is the focal point of this offense, as he finished first for all RBs in 2022 with an astounding 75.4% snap share. They are facing the highest-owned defense of the week, and if you want to smash the slate, this correlates. 

3) Zay Jones WR, JAX $4,700 – Highest scoring game on the slate, and I am pivoting to the #2 WR on this Jags offense. His price is perfect for a candidate who went over 20+ points four times last season. Ridley will command a lot of ownership, and Kelce will be the highest-owned TE of the week. Any affordable piece you can acquire from the game will be tricky, as this is projected to be the highest-scoring game of the week. 

4) Sam LaPorta TE, DET $3,900 – This is an excellent bring-back piece in this game. Historically, TEs are the best for $/points of return on teams vs. your QB/WR/WR stack. A lot of ownership will be on the WRs and RBs in this game and we can still grab a chance at a TE for under $4k. 

5) Nico Collins WR, HOU $4,800 – “The odds of hitting your target go up dramatically when you aim at it.” – Mal Pancoast. Last week, Collins had 11 targets and 26.2% of the target share. What we are looking at is the perfect target-rich environment. His cost doesn’t break the bank, and he could quickly earn the bonus for 100+ yards against a shaky Colts defense.

6) Titans DST, TEN $2,400 – “…some men aren’t looking for anything logical, like money. They can’t be bought, bullied, reasoned, or negotiated with. Some men just want to watch the world burn.” – Alfred. There will be a lot of attention on the highest-owned RB of the week, with Ekeler sitting this one out. RB Joshua Kelly had a great week; his stock is at an all-time high. QB Justin Herbert and his two WRs, Allen and Williams, also draw significant ownership. Let me play the villain role and spoil the party with a Titans defense that came into the season with projections of being the #1 defensive line. They can create pressure, and if Derrick Henry can play keep away, I like the play. Forced throws have a higher chance of turnovers, and if this offense flops, you have the main reason.

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