DraftKings NFL Picks Week 4

This isn’t the article where you find out that the most expensive players on the slate are good at football. You already know that, and so does everyone else in your contest. The players who separate winning lineups from the rest of the field are usually the ones in the cheaper tiers, ignored by the masses. That’s where this list lives.

Every name below is on the cheaper side of the salary scale, and most aren’t the chalk plays half the field will load into lineups this week. Some have a workload that DraftKings hasn’t caught up to yet. Some are stepping into a bigger role because of an injury ahead of them on the depth chart, and a couple are simply too cheap for the production they’ve already put on tape.

The goal is simple. Find the players who can deliver like a mid-tier or high-end option at a discount, so you have the cap room to pay up wherever you actually want to. Each pick is flagged for whether it fits better in cash games, tournaments, or both.

QB Sam Darnold

DraftKings Salary: $5,500

Darnold has had a strange calendar year. He won a Super Bowl but posted a modest 202-yard performance that he’s admitted still doesn’t sit well with him. Then he got hurt on the first drive of Seattle’s season opener, missed time with a glute injury, and came back to throw for a career-high 379 yards, but in a losing effort to Washington as a big favorite. That’s a competitor with something to prove, and the arm is clearly fine.

Seattle hosts a Chargers team that’s sitting at 0-3 and has every reason to throw the kitchen sink at this game, which sets up well for another 300-yard day. At $5,550, Darnold is a strong value in both cash and tournament builds.

RB Kyren Williams

DraftKings Salary: $5,900

This one looks like a pricing mistake. Williams piled up 158 total yards last week against Denver, 88 on the ground and another 70 on six catches, while Blake Corum managed just 15 scrimmage yards on his limited touches. Over three weeks, he’s averaged 5.6 yards per carry and caught 11 of 12 targets, making him one of the most complete backs in the league right now. Philadelphia is a tougher test than Denver was, but a (near) three-down back with this kind of receiving role doesn’t need a soft matchup to pay off. Under $6,000 is a bargain, and he’s a cash game cornerstone this week.

RB Aaron Jones Sr.

DraftKings Salary: $6,000

Minnesota is 3-0 and has won eight straight going back to last season; the formula hasn’t been complicated. Jones handled 22 touches in the win at Tampa Bay last week; his knee isn’t carrying a game designation, and Justin Jefferson has been ruled out with an ankle injury. That last piece matters. With their top receiver sidelined, the Vikings have every reason to keep the offense simple and put the ball in Jones’s hands.

Miami has already allowed four rushing touchdowns this season, so the scoring upside is there even if the yardage comes in steady rather than spectacular. He’s a solid cash play with real touchdown equity for tournaments.

WR Michael Wilson

DraftKings Salary: $5,500

If you didn’t know by now, Wilson is Arizona’s true WR1. He saw 17 targets last week and turned them into 11 catches, 89 yards, and a touchdown. Marvin Harrison Jr., meanwhile, drew under 10 percent of the team’s targets in that same game, and the target distribution makes it clear who Jacoby Brissett trusts when he needs a completion. Volume like that is the safest thing you can buy in DFS, and Wilson draws a Giants secondary this week at a price that doesn’t reflect his role.

Lock him into cash games and feel fine about him in tournaments too.

WR Christian Watson

DraftKings Salary: $6,700

Watson scored again last week, catching 7 of 10 targets for 96 yards and a touchdown in Green Bay’s loss to Atlanta. He’s become a consistent end zone threat in this offense, and another week like that will push his salary into the $7,000 range. This might be the cheapest you get him the rest of the season.

Green Bay travels to Tampa Bay this week, and Watson’s big-play ability makes him an especially strong tournament option, with enough target volume to hold up in cash as well. The Packers are rested from playing in the Thursday night game in week 3.

WR Kalif Raymond

DraftKings Salary: $3,600

Everyone keeps waiting for Raymond’s hot streak to cool off, and maybe it will. But he caught 6 of 7 targets for 90 yards and a touchdown last week. The Bears WR has been one of the most productive receivers in football early in the season. At $3,600, there’s no reason to fight it. He’s still behind Rome Odunze, Luther Burden, and Colston Loveland on paper, so this is a tournament dart rather than a cash lock, but the Bears host the Jets, and the price makes the risk easy to swallow.

WR Konata Mumpfield

DraftKings Salary: $3,400

Mumpfield had a career day last week, catching 4 of 8 targets for 93 yards and a touchdown in the loss to Denver. That production came with Puka Nacua sidelined, though, and Nacua is carrying no game designation for this week’s trip to Philadelphia. With Nacua back, Mumpfield’s target share will likely shrink, turning him into a deep tournament dart rather than a confident value play. If you’re building a Matthew Stafford stack and want a cheap piece who has already shown he can produce, he fits, but keep the exposure light.

TE Tyler Higbee

DraftKings Salary: $3,100

For most people, it’s been too many cooks in the kitchen to feel confident about any Rams tight end; however, that changes this week. Terrance Ferguson has been ruled out with an ankle injury and placed on injured reserve, and Colby Parkinson is questionable after missing practice all week with knee and shoulder issues. Higbee is healthy and available, making him the clear option in an offense that likes to use its tight ends.

At $3,100, he’s a perfect cheap add and pairs naturally with a Stafford stack in tournaments.

TE T.J. Hockenson

DraftKings Salary: $3,300

Hockenson and Higbee both fit the mold. Hockenson has seen 13 targets through three games, right around four per week, which gives him a steady floor for a punt-priced option. The bigger story is Justin Jefferson’s absence. With the Vikings’ top receiver ruled out against Miami, those targets have to go somewhere, and Hockenson is one of the most obvious beneficiaries. That makes him a viable cash punt and a sneaky tournament play at a position where saving salary is usually the smart move.