NFL Week 3 DFS Stacks

Did anyone stack Daniel Jones with Darren Waller last week? No? 

That’s fantasy football for you. Week 2 taught us a lesson in forgiving and forgetting — if you’re forgiving a quarterback who can run the ball with a target-hog tight end. Regardless, it’s now Week 3 and a new perfect stack must be found. 

Let’s get into the DFS-winning stacks for the third week of NFL play! 

This weekly column will provide you with the information you need before choosing a stack in DFS. Prices are sourced from DraftKings Fantasy Sports.  

A “steep stack” -  A top-priced QB and a top-priced WR or TE — pricey, but still worth it.

A “sleeper stack” - The inverse of a “steep stack” including a QB outside the top-10 and an offensive weapon deep off the radar.

A “no pain, no gain stack” - Exemplifies the risk/reward that DFS players are accustomed to.

Steep stack

Kirk Cousins and Justin Jefferson

Sometimes the best plays are the obvious ones. While that didn’t work out perfectly last week by picking Patrick Mahomes and Travis Kelce, the process was sound and will be tried again. 

Jefferson has been the superstar everyone expected him to be, with a whopping 309 receiving yards through two weeks. Yet the Vikings wide receiver has yet to grace the end zone with his griddy, coming a hair close to doing so in Week 2 before fumbling the ball. The odds seem good he’ll finally do his dance against a Chargers defense that has allowed four passing touchdowns already in 2023, tied for 25th in the league. 

Cousins also sits fourth in passing attempts in an offense that was always going to pass the ball among the league leaders. When Justin Herbert and the Chargers are on the other side of the ball you can bet Cousins will need to sling it to keep up. 

Sling it he shall. Fire up Cousins and Jefferson, a more obvious stack that will still be worth the investment. 

Lamar Jackson and Zay Flowers make up another attractive stack for Week 3 against a pitiful Colts secondary. 

Sleeper stack

Gardner Minshew and Michael Pittman Jr.

How much arm twisting is needed to get people to subscribe to Minshew Mania? Or have you already slotted him in your lineup? 

Well, your suspicions are fair and based in good faith. The mustachioed maniac is a surprisingly interesting play against the Baltimore Ravens in Week 3. With the injuries to Marcus Williams and Marlon Humphrey — the latter hasn’t played yet this year due to a foot injury —  the Ravens' secondary is very beatable. It just hasn’t faced a quarterback capable of doing so. 

C.J. Stroud couldn’t in his first career start, and neither could a hobbled Joe Burrow. Whether Minshew can outperform those two has yet to be seen, but his play in Week 2 and historical production suggests he’s capable of doing just that. He completed 72% of his passes for 170 yards and a score after entering in the second quarter due to Anthony Richardson’s concussion. 

Playing Minshew against an offense that should score and keep the passing game flowing makes sense. Michael Pittman, who has commanded a remarkable 32.9% target share through two weeks, is the natural pairing for the low-key stack. 

No pain, no gain stack

Deshaun Watson and Amari Cooper

Watson looked downright terrible in the team’s loss to the Steelers in Week 2. He missed throws, turned the ball over, and looked nothing like the three-time Pro Bowl quarterback he was in Houston. Watson has taken nine sacks in just two games, and only Zach Wilson touts a worse completion percentage than the Browns quarterback. 

So why is he even considered for a DFS start? Well, let’s take a lesson from Daniel Jones. 

Jones bounced back in a much-friendlier matchup in part thanks to his rushing ability. His maligned start led him to be barely rostered in DraftKings lineups. Watson can run — he hasn’t done much of it while wearing a Browns uniform — but the injury to Nick Chubb could change that. 

Watson ran the ball six times in Week 2 and could marginally increase his carry amount to provide a small boost for fantasy production. When you combine that with a get-right spot in Tennessee — a team that was just gashed by Justin Herbert to the tune of 305 yards and two passing touchdowns. 

If Watson can provide some rushing baseline while taking advantage of a Titans defense that has been strong on the ground but suspect through the air, he can be due for a big bounce-back week. Amari Cooper would be the natural stack to play Watson with, though Elijah Moore’s target totals have been promising and his ownership would be lower.