5 NFL FanDuel Value Plays to Target in the Wild Card Round

One of the crucial aspects of daily fantasy football is unearthing cheap production.

Our projections can help you do just that by allowing you to sort players by their point-per-dollar value. A lot of times, the top value plays come as a result of injury situations, meaning it's imperative to see inactives on Sunday morning before setting your lineups.

When looking for a salary-saving option, check out one of these main-slate players this week.

The Wild Card Round of the NFL is here! We have an exciting six-game slate, and there are plenty of options across the board. Let's take a look at some value plays to help you afford the top stars on the main slate.

Nyheim Hines, RB, Indianapolis Colts ($5,600)

The Indianapolis Colts are on the road to take on the Buffalo Bills in the first game of Wild Card Weekend.

A six-game slate has limited options at each position, but we can find some value at running back with Nyheim Hines. The Colts find themselves as 6.5-points underdogs, and that could force them into a passing game script and less work for Jonathan Taylor in the rushing game. That is where Hines comes into play and where he would provide plenty of value due to his role in the passing game.

Here are the running backs who finished with more targets than Hines (76) during the regular season: J.D. McKissic (110) and Alvin Kamara (107). That's it. Hines was the third-most targeted running back this season and averaged 4.75 targets per game this season. Hines has repeatedly shown himself to be the favorite target among Colts running backs and should continue to play that part. If he is able to see a good volume of targets, he should be able to turn them into plenty of fantasy points due to the fact the Bills allowed 21.3 FanDuel points per game to opposing running backs.

Gabriel Davis, WR, Buffalo Bills ($5,000)

With a few questions at wide receiver for the BIlls, they could offer some value this week.

The wide receiving situation for the Bills has a few moving parts this week, so let's get an overview of everything. Cole Beasley missed last week's game with and leg injury but was spotted at practice today in a limited fashion and is listed as questionable for this week's game. Stefon Diggs is dealing with an oblique injury and was also limited at practice today. Diggs did play last week and it presents a bit more optimism that he will play, but nothing is confirmed.

Diggs led the team with a 29.41% target share, while Beasley had the second-highest target share at 17.98%. If either of these players are ruled out for the game, Gabriel Davis will become a very clear value option at $5K. He held a 10.42% target share -- the fourth-highest on the team -- had the second-most touchdowns (7), and had the second-most (15) red zone targets. Davis ended the season with four targets or more in six straight games and piled up four touchdowns in that time.

Cole Kmet, TE, Chicago Bears ($5,300)

The Chicago Bears are set for a negative game script against the New Orleans Saints and have some value options to consider.

As 9.5-point road underdogs, the Bears should be forced into a passing game script, and that means more fantasy potential for tight end Cole Kmet. The rookie tight end wasn't involved in the offense that much to begin the season, but oh boy, did he end strongly. In the first nine weeks of the year, Kmet played on 50% of the snaps or fewer in every game and saw three targets or fewer in each game. Not a strong start, but that all changed once Week 12 hit. During Weeks 12-17, Kmet played on 78% of the snaps or more in every single game and saw six targets or more in four of those six.

That falls in line with quarterback Mitchell Trubisky returning as the starter in Week 12. If Trubisky is set on feeding Kmet with a good volume of targets, that should work well in this matchup. The New Orleans Saints allowed 10.4 FanDuel points per game to opposing tight ends during the regular season, which was the 14th worst in the league.

Kareem Hunt, RB, Cleveland Browns ($5,900)

If you want value at running back, look at Kareem Hunt this weekend.

The Cleveland Browns' backfield is strong, but it can also raise a few questions from a fantasy perspective. When the Browns have control of the game, they run the ball a ton, and that means work for Nick Chubb. If they are forced into a passing game script, Kareem Hunt becomes the clear pass-catching option. During the regular season, Hunt saw a total of 51 targets, while Chubb only saw 18. That is a substantial difference and presents Hunt as the clear option when the Browns are playing from behind and need to catch up.

Playing from behind is exactly where we should see the Browns against the home Pittsburgh Steelers, who are 6.0-point favorites. You have to love the potential upside Hunt has compared to Chubb, especially when he is nearly $2K cheaper.

Malcolm Brown, RB, Los Angeles Rams ($4,900)

The Los Angeles Rams are dealing with a few injuries and offer value this week.

While there is a question at quarterback for the Rams with Jared Goff, they are also down Darrell Henderson in the backfield, who was placed on injured reserve. Also, Cam Akers is back at practice after being limited earlier in the week. Akers appears to be a full-go for Saturday's game against the Seattle Seahawks, which means Malcolm Brown is the clear backup. Despite that, Brown is a cheaper tournament option, which should provide good leverage against Akers -- the much more popular option. Brown clearly has a low floor of points but can provide plenty of value on a point-per-dollar basis.