The Houston Texans will face the Kansas City Chiefs in the NFL’s season opener on Thursday, Sept. 10 at 7:20 p.m. CT on NBC. The game features two explosive offenses and several fantasy football stars.
For the Texans, quarterback Deshaun Watson should have a good game, but he’s an expensive quarterback ($6,900) in DraftKings’ daily fantasy salary cap challenge (roster limit: $50,000). With an average of $5,555 available per player in the cap challenge, splurging on Watson would leave you with limited options at other positions.
Houston’s new running back, David Johnson, will make his debut against Kansas City but he also has a costly cap hit ($6,000). Johnson’s cost seems to be based more on name recognition than actual performance, making him a poor play in DFS.
The Texans player to start this week could be fellow running back Duke Johnson, who has an affordable cap hit of $4,500. David is listed as the starter on Houston’s depth chart but Duke seems like a much better value.
Duke could serve as the Texans’ primary receiving back this year after catching 44 passes for 410 yards and three touchdowns last season. KC had the fifth-highest scoring offense in the NFL last season and Houston might have to throw often to stay in Thursday’s game.
When the Texans faced the Chiefs in the Divisional Round of the Playoffs last season, Watson threw 52 passes and Duke led the team’s backfield with five receptions. He also got limited work in the ground game with one rush.
Duke Johnson will share touches with David Johnson but his low cap hit makes him an intriguing option for Week 1.
