Top DraftKings DFS Chalk Picks for Week 3 Including Jalen Hurts & Jaxon Smith-Ngigba

Our Week 3 DFS chalk picks on DraftKings spotlight Jalen Hurts, Bijan Robinson, and Jaxon Smith-Njigba as the most popular plays to watch.

Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts (1) drops back to pass during the first half against the Kansas City Chiefs at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium. | Jay Biggerstaff-Imagn Images

When building a lineup in DFS on DraftKings, it's key to understand the projected ownership of players before you set your lineups each week. At times, you want to avoid chalk plays to give yourself an advantage over the field with a contrarian option, and other times you need the chalk plays so you don't fall behind the pack. These are the DFS chalk plays to know for Week 3.

QB Jalen Hurts, Philadelphia Eagles

DK Ownership: 18.94%

Hurts is far and away the most owned quarterback this week in DFS. There is a huge drop off from Hurts to New England Patriots quarterback Drake Maye, who is owned on just 10.77% of rosters on DraftKings. 

Hurts is viewed as the top quarterback on Sunday slates this week, with Joe Burrow and Jayden Daniels injured, and Lamar Jackson and Josh Allen playing on Thursday Night Football and Monday Night Football, but we would avoid paying up for him this week. The matchup with the Los Angeles Rams isn't one we'd target compared to many of the cheaper options.    

RB Christian McCaffrey, San Francisco 49ers

San Francisco 49ers running back Christian McCaffrey (23) runs the ball during the first half against the Seattle Seahawks at Lumen Field. | Steven Bisig-Imagn Images

DK Ownership: 22.63%

CMC hasn't been as efficient as we are used to, but fantasy owners love volume, and no one gets volume quite like McCaffrey. This isn't a bad choice, grabbing him against the Cardinals. Any given week, he can win you a slate; he has the talent, volume, and system to explode. Still, if we are paying up and going chalk, it's probably not on CMC this week.  

RB Bijan Robinson, Atlanta Falcons

DK Ownership: 18.42%

Robinson is the much better chalk play this week between these top two running backs. He's coming off a 22-carry, five-target game in which he posted 168 yards against a solid Minnesota Vikings defense. This week, he plays the Carolina Panthers, who have the worst rush defense in the league. If we are going all in on a high-priced chalk option this week, it's Robinson.  

WR Jaxon Smith-Njigba, Seattle Seahawks

Seattle Seahawks wide receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba (11) is tackled by New York Jets cornerback Michael Carter II (30) during the second half at MetLife Stadium. | Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images

DK Ownership: 15.22%

JSN is the clear WR1 by a mile in Seattle. It makes sense that he would be heavily rostered going up against the New Orleans Saints. Our only fear with this game is that it becomes a slow-paced, run-heavy game. The Saints can't really throw the ball effectively and could be getting blown out by the second half. If this turns into a game where Kenneth Walker III and Alvin Kamara just rushing the ball, it could hurt the options in the passing game. 

WR Ceedee Lamb, Dallas Cowboys

DK Ownership: 12.91%

This one doesn't need much explanation. Lamb is an elite wide receiver with a great matchup going up against the Chicago Bears, who are expected to be without their top two cornerbacks, Jaylon Johnson and Kyler Gordon. He's well worth his price tag and should make a dominant stack with quarterback Dak Prescott.  

TE Trey McBride, Arizona Cardinals 

Arizona Cardinals tight end Trey McBride (85) at Caesars Superdome. | Matthew Hinton-Imagn Images

DK Ownership: 7.60% 

The tight ends are pretty level this week. His ownership percentage isn't all that far ahead of Tyler Warren, who is the second tight end with an ownership percentage of 6.54%, then everyone is bunched together. McBride is the clear top option with concerns about Brock Bowers' knee this week, but Warren, Juwan Johnson, and Tucker Kraft are the next three tight ends based on ownership and are all fine options too. This week, we'd choose our tight end based on our remaining salary cap after building our lineup in most cases. 

Trey McBride 2025 Preseason Analysis

Check out what Senior Fantasy Football Expert Shawn Childs had to say about McBride heading into the 2025 NFL season.

In his final season in college, McBride finished with 90 catches for 1,121 yards on 134 targets, but he only scored one touchdown. Over the previous two seasons, over 16 combined games, McBride had 67 catches for 890 yards and eight scores on 88 targets (76.1% catch rate). His 2021 season started with three active games (13/116, 8/114/1, and 9/109) while maintaining a floor of six catches in 11 of his 12 starts.

Despite needing some work on his blocking techniques, McBride brought a feel of a power tight end with good hands. He worked the short areas of the field, but his overall speed limited his ceiling in the deep passing game. McBride can make plays with his feet in space, and his strength does create some missed tackles. His route running was in the right place to start his NFL career.

In his rookie season of relief of Zach Ertz, McBride caught 29 of his 39 targets for 265 yards and one score. His best stats came in Week 15 (4/55) and Week 17 (7/78/1).

The coin toss of Zach Ertz and McBride in the fantasy market in 2023 landed on the younger option at tight end for the Cardinals. After a relatively quiet first seven games (15/170 on 21 targets), McBride moved into the starting lineup in Week 8, leading to an impact showing (10/95/1). He caught 66 of his 85 targets over his final 10 matchups for 655 yards and three touchdowns, highlighted by three other impact games (8/131, 8/89/1, and 10/102). McBride had a floor of six catches in seven of his final 10 starts.

His second-half success from the previous year translated into a monster tight end season (111/1,146/2 on 147 targets) for McBride in 2024. He continued to come up short in touchdowns (2) and big plays (10.3 YPC). His first touchdown in 2024 came in Week 17.

McBride was the second-best tight end (249.80 fantasy points) in PPR formats. Over his final 10 starts (78/824/2 on 102 targets – 17.86 FPPG), he scored over 15.00 fantasy points in six matchups (9/124, 12/133, 12/96, 9/87, 12/123/1, and 7/65/1). He missed Week 4 due to a concussion.

When building a fantasy starting lineup, the two most important factors should be consistency and explosiveness. McBride checks the first box, but to excel in the second area, he must reach paydirt at a higher rate. Over his 49 games and 221 catches, reaching the endzone has only happened six times (12.2% chance per game, and 2.7% of his catches resulted in a touchdown).

This draft season, McBride is the second tight end selected, matching his final ranking from 2024. His floor is 100 catches and 1,000 yards, mainly due to Kyler Murray’s willingness to take what the defense gives him on many plays. A fantasy drafter must decide if he offers enough of an edge at tight end to select at the 2/3 turn from an early draft position. I’m expecting a bump in touchdowns this year.

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If McBride can finally hit pay dirt in Week 3, DFS managers will gladly take the return—even with his elevated ownership percentage.