When the 2019 NFL season gets underway, DFS players are going to have some new players at their disposal when they set their lineups—the rookies. Some rookies will be coming in with high expectations; some, not so high.

Of course, the guys with higher expectations are going to cost more. But since they will be unproven until Week One, their price tags should be a lot better than established running backs.

Some will get the chance to prove themselves quicker than others—which could make them advisable options for daily fantasy players as early as Week One.

But who?

Several rookie running backs are going to get some playing time as early as Week One, but only a handful are likely going to get enough work to be worthy of a roster spot in daily fantasy play:

• Josh Jacobs, Oakland Raiders: He was a reliable running back for Alabama last season and will move right into the starting role for the Raiders as long as he doesn’t have a bad preseason.
• Miles Sanders, Philadelphia Eagles: They may look to Jordan Howard more for carries in the run game early on. But Sanders will get enough action in the run and passing game to be worth considering (if the price is right).
• David Montgomery, Chicago Bears: Tarik Cohen is more of a change-of-pace guy which will leave the every-down duties to either Montgomery or Mike Davis. Davis may get the nod early on in the preseason but look for Montgomery to be the guy in Week One.
• Darrell Henderson, Los Angeles Rams: With the mystery surrounding the health of Todd Gurley’s knee, Henderson could be in line for a decent number of carries early in the season. With his potential to break open plays, he could be fantasy worthy even as a back-up.
• Devin Singletary, Buffalo Bills: LeSean McCoy looked over the hill last season, and Frank Gore is right there with him. It would not be shocking if either of them is cut before Week One. Whoever is left will be backing up Singletary.

The Best of the Rest

There are going to be other players worth watching as the season begins but may not be worth starting in daily fantasy play until their roles become defined: Bryce Love, Washington Redskins; Alexander Mattison, Minnesota Vikings; Trayveon Williams, Cincinnati Bengals; and Ty Johnson, Detroit Lions.

The third leg of the Triple Crown, the Belmont Stakes tends to attract more casual horse racing fans when the Crown is on the line. But for the third time in four years, it will not be on the line. The winner of the Kentucky Derby, Country House, didn’t run in the Preakness (illness) and will not be running at Belmont Park this weekend.

But the winner of the Preakness, War of Will, is set to run in the Belmont Stakes. However, he is not the favorite to win.

So—who is?

As of June 3, the odds on the horses racing in the 151st Belmont Stakes are:

· Tacitus +200
· War Of Will +250
· Master Fencer +700
· Bourbon War +800
· Everfast +800
· Intrepid Heart +1000
· Spinoff +1200
· Tax +1200
· Sir Winston +1600
· Joevia +2500

Much like the Preakness, there isn’t a horse with truly long odds like Country House had in the Kentucky Derby. But there are a couple of strong favorites in a field of strong contenders. So, who should you go with? The favorite or is there someone with longer odds (and a chance to win gamblers more money) worth betting on?
Who could win?

Many experts are high on the favorite, Tacitus. But he seems to do his best work when he can run from behind when the race gets off to a fast start early on. He may not get that fast early start this weekend.

Horses that rely on their stamina and ability to comeback have not fared well in the Belmont in recent years. Since 2010, there has only been one winner that was behind by more than three lengths at any point in the race (Tapwrit in 2017).

Some think Master Fencer could be worth a look even though he only got his berth after three other horses dropped out.

Intrepid Heart is receiving some positive press as well. While he has only run in three races this year, he won two of them. In the third, he stumbled coming out of the gate and still took third. His trainer is also a three-time Belmont winner.

Many are also high on Preakness winner, War of Will. He was one of the horses that were impacted by Maximum Security at the Kentucky Derby. Could he have won had his momentum not been slowed down? Maybe—and then we would be looking at the Triple Crown potentially being won for the third time in five years.

But who should you go with because you don’t want a horse without a riding?

The safest bet is definitely Tacitus, but betting on the favorite is not going to win you a lot. However, if you are willing to take a chance to win more, consider going with Intrepid Heart. He hasn’t been run too much this year and should be well rested. Having a Belmont winning trainer makes him a promising candidate as well.

Horse racing tends to attract more attention from casual fans when someone is in contention for the Triple Crown. But this year’s Kentucky Derby winner, Country House, is out sick. But there will be a few horses from the Derby running Saturday afternoon at the Pimlico Race Course. Will one of them win or will the victor be one of the other entries? But Who’s Running And What Are The Odds?

The following horses are taking part in the 144th running of the Preakness Stakes Saturday afternoon:

• Improbable 2-1
• War of Will 3-1
• Alwaysmining 8-1
• Win Win Win 8-1
• Bourbon War 10-1
• Owendale 10-1
• Anothertwistafate 12-1
• Signalman 14-1
• Bodexpress 16-1
• Warrior’s Charge 16-1
• Laughing Fox 20-1
• Market King 33-1

There isn’t a longshot in this group like there was in the Derby. Yes, 33-1 does qualify as long odds, but not quite as long as Country House (65-1). Had he been in the field for this one, Country House would be a popular pick, but he isn’t. Neither is Maximum Security (the horse that did win the Derby but was DQ’d).

So, if you are a novice horse racing fan, who should you pick? Improbable because the odds are the shortest? Market King since you’ll win more because his odds are so long? Or do you just go with whoever you think has the coolest name?

If only you knew a little information about the horses….

A Little Information

Some experts are high on Alwaysmining at 8-1 since he is riding a six-race winning streak. But there are also some who are skeptical of his chances. However, he hasn’t just been winning—he has been killing the competition and winning by an average of six lengths. In his last race (a 1 1/8-mile race) he won by 11 lengths.

Warrior’s Charge has run well in his last couple of races by at least six lengths. However, he has not taken part in a race longer than 1 1/16-miles. But if he can get in front and build an early lead, even if he fades down the stretch, he could still win.

Bourbon War is not going to try to get in front like Alwaysming and Warrior’s Charge. But if they do happen to fade down the stretch, it would not be shocking to see him come from behind and take home the win. In five career races, he has never finished worse than fourth—and against some pretty fierce competition.

Anothertwistafate could be worth some attention. He tends to make use of his speed early on but then also has the endurance it takes to go the distance. In his last five races, he has not finished worse than second.

Beware of War of Will. He was one of the horses cut off by Maximum Security at the Derby. But what should concern betters is that he then faded back to seventh place after it happened.

Think twice before going with Improbable, too. Like War of Will, he faded some after getting cut off by Maximum Security. However, he still managed to finish a respectable fourth. But at his odds, it would be nice if he was more of a sure thing (which he isn’t).

Recommendation:

Of the horses entered into the Preakness, Anothertwistafate is the most intriguing. Since he has done no worse than second his last five times out, it is easy to imagine him being a little more motivated to win (after coming close so many times).

The New England Patriots have had a wrench thrown in their plans with the retirement of popular tight end Rob Gronkowski. For the last nine seasons, he has been terrifying defensive backs and giving defensive coordinators matchup nightmares (when he’s been healthy enough to play, that is).

We knew it was a possibility, but we hoped that he’d string us along for a few more years before actually calling it quits. But now that he is, there is one question that must be asked and answered.

How Will Gronk’s Retirement Impact Tom Brady’s Daily Fantasy Value?

At first glance, it may be easy to think it wouldn’t since Gronk played in 13 games last season and Tom Brady wasn’t a great daily fantasy QB. However, while he did play, he was often dealing with some aches and pains throughout the season.

But is there a relationship between how good of a fantasy quarterback Brady is and Rob Gronkowski’s production over the years? Brady ranked 14th among quarterbacks last year with 17.5 fantasy points a game with Gronk only accounting for 47 receptions for 682 yards and three touchdowns in 13 games.

2017: Brady—6th with 18.5 points/game; Gronk: 69 catches for 1084 yards and eight touchdowns (14 games)
2016: Brady—3rd with 21.5 points/game; Gronk: 25 catches for 540 yards and three touchdowns (8 games)
2015: Brady—2nd with 21.5 points/game; Gronk: 72 catches for 1176 yards and 11 touchdowns (15 games)
2014: Brady—9th with 17.4 points/game; Gronk: 82 catches for 1124 yards and 12 touchdowns (15 games)
2013: Brady—18th with 15.7 points/game; Gronk: 39 catches for 592 yards and four touchdowns (7 games)
2012: Brady—3rd with 21.3 points/game; Gronk: 55 catches for 790 yards and 11 touchdowns (11 games)
2011: Brady—4th with 22.9 points/game; Gronk: 90 catches for 1327 yards and 17 touchdowns (16 games)
2010: Brady—3rd with 18.7 points/game; Gronk: 42 catches for 546 yards and ten touchdowns (16 games)

Will Brady Be A Viable Daily Fantasy QB Next Season?

Well, from the data, it looks like Brady has been among the league’s best when Gronk didn’t play much (or well) and when Gronk did produce. From that, we can surmise that Rob Gronkowski’s production or lack thereof has not had a significant impact on Tom Brady’s value as a daily fantasy quarterback.

That being said, unless the matchup is unbelievably good, it might not be a bad idea to wait a week or two before inserting him into your lineup.

No, golf fans, we have not been magically transported back to 2006 when The PLAYERS Championship was last played in March.  The Golf Gods decided to make the switch so we will be enjoying golf’s unofficial fifth major in March this year rather than May.

That will likely be a good thing from a daily fantasy perspective. It is probably safe to say most golfers will play better under cooler conditions rather than the humid days of May. With the money on the line this time (total purse of $12.5 million; first-place share of $2.25 million), we are likely going to see the best of the best doing what they do.

What does that mean as you start to think about who you want to start on your daily fantasy team?

How about a little information about the course and the weather?

The 46th PLAYERS Championship is set to be played from March 14-17 at the TPC Sawgrass in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida. For the 38th time, it will be played on the Stadium Course.

What makes this course interesting is that when course architect Peter Dye was contacted to design it, he was told to make sure that it didn’t favor any one kind of player or style of play. So, while it isn’t the longest course at 7189 (par 72), it is a challenging one.

Weather conditions don’t appear as if they are going to be too bad. Temperatures are expected to be in the high 50’s to high 60’s throughout the weekend. But it may feel a little chillier since it is supposed to be partly cloudy or cloudy.

There is a chance for rain though, but not a major one (10, 20, 30, and 10 percent).

The Players for The PLAYERS

I like to give defending champs the benefit of the doubt since they are obviously familiar with a course. But last year’s win was the first in nine tries. Previously, he hadn’t recorded a single top ten. So far this season he has been too inconsistent to really trust in your lineup (especially when there are so many choices).

But you should consider giving these guys a look:

•    Tiger Woods: There probably isn’t a time when you shouldn’t consider Tiger for your lineup. The neck injury is a good reason to exercise caution, but he says he is good to go. While he isn’t playing a lot, he is playing well (t20, t15, and t10). It will be interesting to see what kind of impact his new putting coach has.

•    Rory McIlroy: This guy is destined to record a win any week now with how he has been playing; when a t6 finish is your worst of the season (five starts), you are apparently doing something right. He has four top-12 finishes at TPC Sawgrass, so you know he can play the course.

•    Justin Thomas: Prior to finishing t30 at the Honda Classic, he had finished inside the top ten in four of his last five tournaments including three top-five finishes. He is definitely hitting the ball well enough to do well this weekend. Not sure about him? He finished t11 here last year and t3 in 2016. He knows the course

•    Hideki Matsuyama: He is not having as good a year as some of the other guys, but he is playing well enough to be in a position to make some noise; he just needs to follow through.

•    Some other players worth giving a look include Tommy Fleetwood, Jon Rahm, Patrick Cantlay, and Xander Schauffele.