Welcome to NFL DFS advice for the Titans at Dolphins matchup during Week 1 of the 2018 season. Every week, Joshua Huffman will preview some of the main participants from the Titans’ weekly contests. These guides will include player pricing, injuries, potential mismatches, and anything else players should consider when choosing players from Tennessee and/or their opponents. Let me know if there’s anything you’d like to see in future previews.
Titans at Dolphins: Key Players & Pricing
QB Marcus Mariota ($6300)
RB: Kenyan Drake ($5900)
WR: Corey Davis ($5600)
RB: Derrick Henry ($5400)
QB: Ryan Tannehill ($5300)
WR: DeVante Parker ($5300)
TE: Delanie Walker ($4900)
RB: Dion Lewis ($4900)
WR: Rishard Matthews ($4800)
WR: Kenny Stills ($4700)
WR: Danny Amendola ($4200)
WR: Albert Wilson ($3700)
RB: Frank Gore ($3700)
WR: Taywan Taylor ($3600)
TE: Mike Gesicki ($2900)
D/ST: Titans ($2900)
TE: Jonnu Smith ($2800)
D/ST: Dolphins ($2400)
Titans at Dolphins: Key Injuries (Injury Report)
Titans (LB Harold Landry, LB Derrick Morgan, OT Jack Conklin, S Kendrick Lewis, LB Rashaan Evans)
Dolphins (WR DeVante Parker, RB Frank Gore, G Josh Sitton, C/G Ted Larsen, WR Jakeem Grant)
Titans at Dolphins: Key Matchups
- Derrick Henry, Dion Lewis vs Dolphins Run Defense
- Titans O vs Dolphins D/ST
- Delanie Walker, Jonnu Smith vs Dolphins pass defense
- Kenyan Drake vs Titans D
- Titans O adjusting to new coaching staff vs Dolphins O adjusting to new talent.
Titans at Dolphins: Preview
Tennessee enters this contest as 1.5-point favorites with an over/under set at 45. Vegas line updated as of Thur. night.
Both offenses feature questions aplenty. The Titans play their first game under rookie offensive coordinator Matt LaFleur. How will he distribute carries between Henry and the newly added Lewis? 2017 first-rounder Corey Davis has breakout potential, but the Dolphins have a solid trio of cornerbacks that includes 2018 first-rounder Minkah Fitzpatrick.
Ryan Tannehill returns as Miami’s starting quarterback. How will he perform now that Jay Ajayi and Jarvis Landry are gone? Making matters worse is that DeVante Parker appears doubtful with a finger injury. The Titans finished 2017 with one of the NFL’s best secondaries. Adding Malcolm Butler outside with 2017 first-rounder Adoree’ Jackson and nickelback Logan Ryan makes this unit even better. A receiver trio of Stills-Amendola-Wilson/Grant could have a long day.
Miami’s 2017 run defense was tied for sixth-most fantasy points allowed against running backs. That was with Ndamukong Suh, who now plays for the Los Angeles Rams. Miami did add Robert Quinn to their defensive line. Dion Lewis is worth plays in PPR formats because his catching prowess gives him more upside. The 2017 Dolphins surrendered 98 RB receptions. I’m concerned about Henry because scoring opportunities may prove difficult.
Last year’s Titans were one of the worst at defending RBs against pass routes. Opposing RBs had 99 receptions for a league-high 967 yards and five touchdowns against Tennessee. With the Dolphins WR/TE situation, expect Drake as a centerpiece in both the running game and passing game. Just take note that Gore could steal goal-line carries from him. Furthermore, Titans are expected to have another great run defense.
Dolphins may provide a decent enough defense for those who’d rather punt that position so they can spend elsewhere. The problem is that Mariota is more of a game-manager who, while limited production on the stat sheet, avoids giveaways. While the 2017 Dolphins had the third most giveaways, remember that Jay Cutler is not here anymore. Outside of Kevin Byard (eight interceptions in 2017), Titans are an average-at-best takeaway defense.
Here’s a punt to consider: Jonnu Smith. The 2017 Dolphins surrendered 94 receptions for 1,034 yards and 10 touchdowns against tight ends. Tight ends were targeted a league-high 136 times. Walker and Smith are a solid TE tandem. Smith’s usage should increase in LaFleur’s offensive system.
For fantasy football purposes, Titans at Dolphins isn’t the most appealing Week 1 matchup. There’s a couple good PPR-style running backs. Neither team impressed during preseason play. Both teams will need time for their offenses to develop either due to coaching changes or roster reconstructions. Dolphins head coach Adam Gase is an offensive-minded individual who’s in his third season. I hate Miami’s receivers against Tennessee’s secondary, but Drake’s playable because of his skill-set and Gase’s offensive prowess.
For Tennessee, try Lewis, Walker and Smith. Maybe Rishard Matthews if you’re into “revenge game” theory. Mostly Lewis though. I’m very skeptical about how this offense will fare in a road game with a brand new offensive coordinator. This is a much different offense than what they were accustomed to under Mike Mularkey. I wouldn’t recommend playing Mariota unless you’re making a Titans stack. Mariota-Lewis-Walker/Smith. You could throw Davis/Matthews into that but there are a lot of great WR plays at all levels of pricing. Titans have some blowout potential. Miami doesn’t. Overall, I think this could prove ugly like the Thur. Night opener.
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Joshua Huffman was born and collegiately edumacated in Middle Tennessee. That said, Huffman spent 13-plus years with the type of Northern Wisconsinites and Yoopers who turn Nashville bars into alcohol wastelands whenever NFC North teams travel to play the Tennessee Titans. This makes him the NoBro of SoBros. He has published content for Yahoo! Sports (via Contributor Network) and Titan Sized, among other venues. At SoBros, he’ll provide Daily Fantasy Sports suggestions and broad sports coverage. Follow him on Twitter.
