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Panthers vs Texans
By Matt Morrison (@dynastyjerk)
Hello Dynasty Owners. Welcome to Week 3 and Thursday Night Football. Before the season started, I looked at every Thursday night matchup just to get an idea of what matchups will be the most exciting. This matchup didn’t fit that description. Rather, I thought there was a decent chance both the Panthers and Texans would be winless. As it turns out, neither are winless and the Panthers are actually undefeated. The Jets’ matchup was not a surprise win, but them beating the Saints was unbelievable. I really like watching this new Panthers team with Sam Darnold as the leader.
Value Of The Game Recap
Last week I broke down a match-up between the New York Giants and the Washington Football Team. The Football Team came out with the win. In that matchup, I predicted Antonio Gibson would be the “Value of the Game.” The sad reality is that Gibson had a poor performance that mainly stemmed from the fact he had only two receptions for four yards. He also had zero touchdowns. Gibson wasn’t even close to the “Value of the Game” with 9.3 Dynasty Owner fantasy points. Instead, that honor goes to his teammate, Terry McLaurin. Terry was an absolute superstar with Taylor Heinicke delivering the passes. McLaurin had 11 receptions for 107 yards and one touchdown. Truly an amazing game. This was good for 27.7 Dynasty Owner fantasy points. That output combined with a salary of $961,918 makes McLaurin the Week 2 Thursday Night Football Value of the Game.
What To Watch For
The main thing I’m looking for in this matchup is if Sam Darnold continues to play like a MVP candidate. Darnold currently has four total touchdowns combined with a completion percentage of 68.5 percent. I see no reason why this success cannot continue into this game. This is also one of the few games throughout the season where I would feel comfortable sliding Darnold into my Starting lineup. Obviously this decision depends on your other quarterback options, but I would consider it.
Starters
All the players that I include in this list are players who I think should be started in most, if not all, Dynasty Owner leagues. They are:
Christian McCaffrey ($16,015,875)
D.J. Moore ($2,792,829)
Robby Anderson ($10,000,000)
Brandin Cooks ($16,200,000)
Bench Players
After the starters come the Bench players. In Dynasty Owner, players that are on your Bench count towards your overall team total. Those players receive 25 percent of their fantasy points. Here are the players that I’m not confident enough to start, but should be on your Bench.
Sam Darnold ($7,561,929)
Mark Ingram ($2,500,000)
David Johnson ($5,000,000)
Philip Lindsay ($3,250,000)
Terrace Marshall Jr. ($1,432,372)
Dan Arnold ($3,000,000)
Value Of The Game
My Value of the Game is the cheapest starter who I listed. That player is D.J. Moore. Moore has had a hot start to his 2021 season. This is something that Dynasty Owners, especially Dynasty Owner CEO Tim Peffer, have been waiting on for quite a while. Not only is the high reception total happening (7 per game), but he has been posting high yardage numbers (79.5 per game) with a single touchdown. The Texans look to be a rock solid matchup against the Panthers’ weapons. I do believe that we are starting to witness the beginning of the D.J. Moore breakout, and I can’t wait to see it. Here are my predictions for Moore tonight…
| Week 3 Projections | Receptions | Receiving Yards | TDs | DOFP |
| D.J. Moore | 7 | 94 | 1 | 22.4 |
This reception and yardage total put him pretty much on track with his yearly average so far. I do think he gets in the endzone in this game as well. I have the Panthers easily beating the Texans by eight points in this game. Start Moore with confidence.
This prediction combined with his very cheap salary of $2,792,829 makes D.J. Moore my Week 3 Value of the Game.
Thank you all, and I will see you next week. Take care and be safe.
TheJerk