daily fantasy sports articles

Love It – Joseph-Aukuso Suaalii - $12,650

Joey Manu has been given the nod at fullback over Suaalii with Tedesco out, and it’s showed up in the prices of the two Roosters’ centres. Manu has been set at a whopping $19,840, whilst Suaalii’s price has remained pretty stagnant, sitting at $12,650. I’m not convinced that Manu plays 80 minutes at fullback, or even starts there. There’s a good chance Trent Robinson has named Suaalii at centre to keep the pressure off the kid heading into this massive clash. The upside here is Suaalii plays fullback and scores well, with the downside being he plays centre, and in my opinion, is still undervalued. His floor is solid enough that he won’t cost you much, even if he has a poor game, but his upside for this price is huge.

Love It – Jahrome Hughes - $18,810

Hughes sits at a nice discount on the other premium HH options this week, sitting a decent $2,400 less than Sam Walker, and a whopping $4,700 less than Harry Grant. Hughes isn’t coming back from injury, rather a suspension, so he has had a nice little break for a couple of weeks and should come back in great shape. In a game I’m predicting to be tight and low scoring, kicking metres could prove vital. Hughes is generally the number 1 option for the Storm for long kicking, so a nice little base should be formed here. He’s always involved in attacking plays, and has a knack for bobbing up at the right time for a try. Probably a nice little POD, with high upside and a solid floor.

Love It – Christian Welch - $13,640

Welch has a slight discount on his price, based on his season average of 45. Dig a little deeper, and you will see Welch is averaging around 0.92 points per minute, with his lone sub 44-point score being in round 3 against the Titans (32). For some reason, Welch only managed 32 minutes in that contest. I’m certain (barring injury) that Welch’s minutes will be over 50 this week against the Roosters. With that being the case, a 50+ score is a great chance, and for this price is tremendous value.

Hate It – Jaxson Paulo - $13,670

The big scores have finally caught up with Paulo, who now sits as the second most expensive outside back in this slate. Paulo has been a revelation since coming over from the Rabbitohs, however this week is the week I see his outstanding form ending. This left centre/wing combination for the Storm hasn’t given up a try to a right sided winger all season, and I’m banking on them keeping up that record here. Paulo has a decent base for a winger, but going from base dollar last week ($9,000) to $13,670 this week, I’m not buying it. There’s plenty of better buys that are cheaper, and that’s where I’ll be looking in a game that will likely be light on for tries scored.

Hate It – Egan Butcher - $15,260

Butcher is about as consistent as you can get, scoring between 38 and 47 in his 4 games this season. He has zero attacking statistics, meaning his points are all base stats. In this price range, I much prefer edge back rowers who can score attacking points for me. In this slate, players like Loiero, Katoa, Radley, and Welch are far more likely to score attacking stats. In these one game slates, you need to pick players with as much upside as possible, and barring an unexpected try, Butcher is not your guy.

Who Knows – Joey Manu - $19,840

As mentioned in the Suaalii blurb above, I’ve got a sneaking suspicion that Trent Robinson is playing ducks and drakes. If that’s the case, Manu is well over-priced if playing in the centres. We all know how good Joey Manu is, but close to $20k for him in the centres is not worth the outlay. However, if Manu happens to play fullback, you’re onto a winner. Manu will run for 250+ metres, and more than likely get involved in attacking plays. He’s a high risk, high reward selection this week, but there’s no way I won’t have some exposure to Manu in this slate. He’s that good.