NFL player prop bets can offer some of the best betting value on the board in any given week. They typically feature smaller limits and take less action than traditional game bets, so the market can often be less efficient than NFL sides and totals.
This is where the FantasyLabs Player Prop tool comes in handy.
We leverage prop bets from across the industry against our player projections from Sean Koerner, the No. 1 in-season fantasy football ranker in three of the past five seasons. Each prop bet then receives a Bet Quality grade between 1 and 10, with 10 representing the largest betting edge.
Let’s break down five prop bets providing value for Sunday’s NFL Week 2 main slate:
Eagles WR Greg Ward
The Pick: Over 31.5 receiving yards (-112) & Over 2.5 receptions (-130)
FantasyLabs Grade: 10 out of 10
The Eagles have been decimated by injuries to start the season. They’re down three starters on their offensive lineup, and they’re also dealing with injuries to their WR corps. Alshon Jeffery remains out with a foot injury, and rookie first-rounder Jalen Reagor is out with a thumb injury.
That opens up an opportunity for Ward to absorb a bigger workload. Reagor played on 85% of the Eagles’ offensive snaps last week, and most of those should be absorbed by Ward and J.J. Arcega-Whiteside.
Ward is also in a strong spot for the Bengals. Their defense has struggled to begin the season, ranking just 22nd in Football Outsiders’ defensive DVOA.
[Bet Ward now at DraftKings and get a $1,000 bonus, including a $500 risk-free bet]
Panthers WR Curtis Samuel
The Pick: Over 2.5 receptions (-130)
FantasyLabs Grade: 10 out of 10
The big news in this contest is the injury to Christian McCaffrey. McCaffrey will miss at least the next three weeks with a high ankle sprain, and that's obviously a huge blow to the Panthers’ offense. He’s garnered just nine targets to start the 2020 season, but McCaffrey led the team with 142 targets in 2019.
Expect Samuel to see a larger workload this week with McCaffrey out of the lineup. Not only should he see a few additional targets at WR, but he also has the potential to play a few snaps out of the backfield.
This line is arguably too low even if McCaffrey was healthy. Samuel saw eight targets in his first game this season and has averaged 3.5 catches per game.
[Bet Samuel now at DraftKings and get a $1,000 bonus, including a $500 risk-free bet]
Seahawks QB Russell Wilson
The Pick: Over 1.5 passing TDs (-250)
FantasyLabs Grade: 10 out of 10
Seahawks head coach Pete Carroll and offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer have finally seen the light. After years of hamstringing Russell Wilson, they have finally decided to #LetRussCook in 2020. The Seahawks have increased their pass rate to 57% in one-score games this season, and while that is probably still a bit too low, it represents a solid increase compared to last season.
Wilson has thrived with more opportunities, tossing nine touchdowns through his first two games. That includes five passing touchdowns last week against the Patriots, who were easily the top pass defense in the league in 2019. In fact, Wilson threw four touchdowns to wide receivers in that contest, and the Patriots allowed just four passing touchdowns to wideouts all of last year.
If Wilson can find that kind of success against the Patriots, I have no worries about his ability to succeed against the Cowboys.
[Bet Wilson now at DraftKings and get a $1,000 bonus, including a $500 risk-free bet]
Cardinals WR DeAndre Hopkins
The Pick: Over 6.5 receptions (-118)
FantasyLabs Grade: 6 of 10
This prop isn't grading out as high as some of the others using the Prop tool, but I still think it has plenty of merit. Switching teams can be hard for wide receivers, but Hopkins isn’t most wide receivers. He has been an absolute target hog through his first two games, and he’s turned those targets into at least eight catches in both contests.
Now, he’ll face arguably his easiest matchup to begin the season against the Lions. They were absolutely torched by Aaron Rodgers in Week 2, and they’re currently down two of their top three cornerbacks. That is simply not a good formula for shutting down one of the best receivers in the game.
[Bet Hopkins now at DraftKings and get a $1,000 bonus, including a $500 risk-free bet]
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