Five DraftKings Q Tags Where I'm Scooping the Discount

When drafting on DraftKings, it's important to take advantage of the site-specific strategic elements. One of the lesser discussed of these is that DraftKings places a Q tag or OUT tag next to injured players.

Players with the Q tag range from being out for multiple weeks to missing a few days of practice to already being back at practice.

DraftKings drafters tend to discount players with the Q tag, sometimes heavily.

Here are five players where I'm trying to take advantage of that discount in drafts this weekend.

Tetairoa McMillan

• ADP:
  • 42.3
• Injury:
  • Hamstring tightness

Tetairoa McMillan missed practice this week after dealing with tightness in his hamstring.

Per Deepak Chona, this doesn't look to be a serious injury. Rather, the Panthers are being cautious with their top wideout as preseason winds down.

Keep in mind that McMillan's injury occurred well after he'd established himself as the Panthers' top outside WR and developed a rapport with Bryce Young. This isn't something that derailed his camp. It's a minor injury that shortened it, but he's already where he needs to be in the Panthers' Week 1 plans.

So far, I'm not seeing a huge fall for McMillan. But I'm happy to grab him in the late 4th, and it's possible we see him fall to the 5th round if the Q tag stays on for next week.

I'm buying any discount on McMillan, who I believe is a mid-4th round value.

Calvin Ridley

• ADP:
  • 53.8
• Injury:
  • Soreness

Calvin Ridley missed practice on Tuesday because of soreness. That's about as minor as it gets. Ridley is the Titans' clear-cut No. 1 option. It makes a ton of sense for the Titans to play things safe and keep him out of practice as needed.

Ridley is not a target at his early 5th-round ADP. However, I've seen him fall to the back half of the 6th round since the Q tag went on. He's a lot more appealing at that price.

I'm now even less likely to take Ridley in Round 5, instead pushing him to Round 6. But once in the sixth, I'm happy to scoop the discount.

Travis Hunter

• ADP:
  • 65.5
• Injury:
  • "Upper body"

Travis Hunter is dealing with an undisclosed upper-body injury. It is very clearly a minor injury.

Per Cameron Wolfe, Hunter has already returned to practice in a limited fashion, with the Jaguars expecting to have him back in full for joint practices next week, with no concern about his Week 1 availability.

Teams lie about this stuff, so I understand remaining skeptical about Hunter's exact timeline, but the fact that he's already participating in individual drills makes it unlikely we're dealing with anything particularly concerning.

However, this injury has stirred up the Travis-Hunter-is-injury-prone hive, who is shouting online about how this (still unspecified) injury was always inevitable for a player attempting to play two ways.

Jeff Mueller points out how silly this is:

Hunter's ADP is already in the mid-6th, and this creates the potential for him to fall even further.

I have Hunter as an early 5th round value, but I'm now seeing him fall to the late 6th. For as long as the tag is on, I'm likely to pass in Round 5, then target him aggressively in Round 6.

Rhamondre Stevenson

• ADP:
  • 136.6
• Injury:
  • Undisclosed but already back at practice

Rhamondre Stevenson missed practice with an injury that was never disclosed. But he's back at practice, albeit in a non-contact jersey.

With Stevenson, I'm not really using the Q tag to push him. I'm just happy he's there when I need early-season RB production. Don't let the tag discourage you here. Stevenson looks set for an early-season rushing role, and it's possible he maintains a significant role in the offense all year.

He's a similar bet to J.K. Dobbins, but goes over 30 picks later. Given the difference in offensive line quality, I strongly prefer Dobbins and am not looking to chase Stevenson up the board when the tag comes off. But I'm happy to add Stevenson in Round 11/12 as cheap RB depth.

Hollywood Brown

• ADP:
  • 167.2
• Injury:
  • Ankle/foot, but already back at practice

Hollywood Brown missed a big chunk of Chiefs training camp, and at one point looked pretty uncertain for Week 1.

But Brown is now back at practice. He's limited and is reportedly being eased back in, but Brown's outlook for Week 1 is still much improved.

Brown is now significantly less expensive than he was to begin the summer, having fallen to Round 14 while injured.

I expect that this tag will come off pretty soon, and so I'm breaking ties to Brown over other best ball depth WRs like Josh Palmer, Romeo Doubs, Wan'Dale Robinson, and (if I don't have Drake Maye, which I probably do) Demario Douglas.

If Brown rises back to the Round 11 range, I'll be waiving goodbye. But this discount is a nice way for me to diversify when in need of his WR archetype.

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