DraftKings DFS picks sleepers and best bet picks

Fantasy Football DFS Daily Domination: Super Bowl LVIII

Breaking down the top players and sleepers for DraftKings and FanDuel for Super Bowl LVII DFS fantasy football.

It is Super Bowl LVIII week, and this means there is only one game for our DFS enjoyment. Fortunately, all the major sites offer single-game (and even partial-game) contests, often referred to as Showdowns.

These contests introduce different strategies compared to regular full-slate DFS contests, so I will break them down for you besides analyzing the individual players in the game.

First up: The Rules

On DK, you are required to put together a six-man roster for $50k or less, and you must use at least one player from each team. In addition, we must identify one of those six players as your “captain.” The captain receives 1.5x of his total output (including potential negative points). This player also costs approximately 1.5x more when you place them in the captain slot, so you have to weigh the value difference between those extra points versus the extra cost.

On FD, they give you more money ($60k) for fewer spots (only five). You still select a Captain (or as they call it an MVP). The biggest difference, however, is your MVP costs the same as your non-MVPs. There is no penalty for putting a player in that slot. This means that you want the top scorer in your lineup in that slot, regardless of his price.

Second: The Usual Strategies

Much like in regular DFS, you can stack correlative players (QB-WR/TE) or (RB-DEF). The key thing to remember, though, is you need to have at least one player from both teams.

If you believe the game will be one-sided, stack your favored QB along with one of his receiving weapons, plus his RB1, and their defense, and then run it back with a passing game weapon of the opposition.

If you believe the game will be high-scoring and close, then you will probably want to do a stack, including both QBs and at least one receiving option for each team. This is the preferred strategy this week.

If you feel both teams will struggle to score, then you should use both defenses and one or both kickers.

Potential lineups for DK

Captain: Travis Kelce ($15.3k)
Roster: Patrick Mahomes ($10.6k), Brock Purdy ($10.0k), George Kittle ($6.4k), Jauan Jennings ($4.0k), Marquez Valdes-Scantling ($3.0k)

This lineup gives you both QBs and the elite tight end for each team. It also gives you two depth WRs who have seen an uptick in usage recently.

Captain: Christian McCaffrey ($18.0k)
Roster: Deebo Samuel ($9.2k), Brock Purdy ($10.0k), George Kittle ($6.4k), Jake Moody ($5.2k), Clyde Edwards-Helaire ($1.2k)

If you believe that the Chiefs’ luck is about to run out and that San Francisco will make this a cakewalk, this lineup gives you exposure to four of the top offensive pieces for San Fran, plus their kicker.

Captain: Rashee Rice ($11.4k)
Roster: Travis Kelce ($10.2k), Patrick Mahomes ($10.6k), Isiah Pacheco ($8.0k), Harrison Butker ($5.0k), Jauan Jennings ($4.0k)

Maybe you believe the Niners are paper tigers on defense. This lineup gives you the top four options for KC (including Mahomes), their kicker, and a lottery ticket WR for SF.

Captain: Isiah Pacheco ($12.0k)
Roster: Christian McCaffrey ($12.0k), Kansas City Defense ($3.4k), Marquez Valdes-Scantling ($3.0k), Travis Kelce ($10.2k), Rashee Rice ($7.6k)

Maybe you believe the Chiefs are going to roll into Arrowhead West and deliver a smackdown of epic proportions. This gives you the Chiefs defense, four top offensive weapons, and the unavoidable McCaffrey.

Captain: Christian McCaffrey ($18.0k)
Roster: Rashee Rice ($7.6k), Deebo Samuel ($9.2k), Isiah Pacheco ($8.0k), George Kittle ($6.4k), Kyle Juszczyk ($0.8k)

Despite the astronomical price, it is hard to envision not using CMC in the Captain position. This gives you that play and fills out the roster with non-QB options for both teams. If you choose to use CMC, this is my favorite build.

Captain: Noah Gray ($2.7k)
Roster: Travis Kelce ($10.2k), Rashee Rice ($7.6k), Brandon Aiyuk ($8.8k), Brock Purdy ($10.0k), Patrick Mahomes ($10.6k)

Unless you go deep diving at the Captain position, it is hard to fit all the stars into your lineup. This puts a reasonable depth piece into that slot and gives you both QBs and three of the top four passing-game weapons in this game.

Captain: George Kittle ($9.6k)
Roster: Brock Purdy ($10.0k), Travis Kelce ($10.2k), Rashee Rice ($7.6k), Deebo Samuel ($9.2k), Marquez Valdes-Scantling ($3.0k)

This will be one of the few ways to get a QB and four of the top receiving options into the lineup. This is my favorite non-CMC play on DK.

Potential lineups for FD

MVP: Patrick Mahomes ($15.0k) or Brock Purdy ($14.5k)
Roster: Travis Kelce ($13.0k), Rashee Rice ($11.0k), George Kittle ($10.0k), Brandon Aiyuk ($10.5k)

Mahomes or Purdy at MVP tied together with two of the top receiving options for each team.

MVP: Christian McCaffrey ($17.5k)
Roster: Patrick Mahomes ($15.0k), Brock Purdy ($14.5k), Marquez Valdes-Scantling ($7.5k), Kyle Juszczyk ($5.5k)

If you want exposure to CMC and both QBs, you need to take some risky backend options.

MVP: Christian McCaffrey ($17.5k)
Roster: Patrick Mahomes ($15.0k) or Brock Purdy ($14.5k), Rashee Rice ($11.0k), Brandon Aiyuk ($10.5k), Noah Gray ($5.5k)

The safer option, if you want exposure to CMC, involves using only one of the QBs. This is my favorite option this week.

MVP: Christian McCaffrey ($17.5k)
Roster: Travis Kelce ($13.0k), George Kittle ($10.0k), Isiah Pacheco ($12.5k), Jauan Jennings ($7.0k)

You could also use CMC and the TEs and skip the QBs.

MVP: Christian McCaffrey ($17.5k)
Roster: Travis Kelce ($13.0k), Deebo Samuel ($11.5k), Brandon Aiyuk ($10.5k), Marquez Valdes-Scantling ($7.5k)

This is another QB-free lineup I like this week.

MVP: Brock Purdy ($14.5k)
Roster: Deebo Samuel ($11.5k), Brandon Aiyuk ($10.5k), George Kittle ($10.0k), Travis Kelce ($13.0k)

This is an SF-leaning stack with Kelce for the Chiefs.

MVP: Patrick Mahomes ($15.0k)
Roster: Travis Kelce ($13.0k), Rashee Rice ($11.0k), Isiah Pacheco ($12.5k), Jauan Jennings ($7.0k)

This one loads up on the Chiefs and runs it back with Jennings.

MVP: Patrick Mahomes ($15.0k)
Roster: Brock Purdy ($14.5k), Travis Kelce ($13.0k), Marquez Valdes-Scantling ($7.5k), Harrison Butker ($9.5k)

Here is a KC-leaning lineup that allows you both QBs.

MVP: Brock Purdy ($14.5k)
Roster: Patrick Mahomes ($15.0k), Deebo Samuel ($11.5k), Brandon Aiyuk ($10.5k), Jauan Jennings ($7.0k)

Here is an SF-leaning lineup that allows you both QBs.

The Game

San Francisco 49ers vs. Kansas City Chiefs

Brock Purdy had an up-and-down Conference Championship round. He had some amazing luck as a probable interception bounced off of the defender into Brandon Aiyuk’s arms. He also looked very Patrick Mahomes-esque, breaking off runs while under pressure. Ultimately, he still finished with an uninspiring 267-1 through the air. That was against the worst pass defense remaining in the playoffs. Now, he is facing an elite pass defense. This feels like a 225-1 game with fewer than 25 rushing yards.

Patrick Mahomes’ ending line versus the Ravens was less than the line posted by Purdy. Of course, Baltimore’s defense is light-years better than Detroit’s. The San Francisco pass defense falls somewhere in between those two extremes. The Niners also suffered shock and awe from Detroit for the first half before their defense seemed to wake up. A slow start by the defense here will be much harder to come back from. Mahomes should finish with 250-2, adding another 30 on the ground.

Christian McCaffrey continues to post galactic numbers. The sites have noticed and priced him somewhere in the Andromeda galaxy. There is no easy way to ignore him here. KC is much worse against the run than the pass. So, San Francisco will get McCaffrey the ball as often as he can handle it. Considering his price, seriously consider using him outside of the captain slot on DK. Elijah Mitchell saw four touches last week. He saved his line with a short TD while filling in for McCaffrey after a brief injury. Playing Mitchell isn’t about chasing another one-off score. It is about hoping that McCaffrey gets injured early and misses significant time. I fully support throwing out a lineup featuring him in this role. Just know that you need this to break perfectly to capture the tremendous reward. Jordan Mason hasn’t seen a touch in the playoffs. You can ignore him. Kyle Juszczyk seldom carries the ball, but he has made several crucial catches during his career. He has been very active in the postseason, recording three or more targets in five of his 13 career playoff games. Make him the last man in your build.

Despite playing while banged up, Isiah Pacheco just workhorsed his way to 82 total yards and a score versus Baltimore. The rushing yards came at an ugly 2.8 average. Surprisingly, both San Francisco and Baltimore rank in the bottom third of the league, allowing an average of 4.3 YPC. Despite this, opposing offenses are rushing the ball on a league-low 36.4% of their snaps versus the Niners. Andy Reid refuses to abandon the run. Over their three playoff contests, the Chiefs have run the ball on 46.5% of their snaps. If they keep this ratio here, Pacheco should have a better stat line. Clyde Edwards-Helaire saw three touches last week. He has proved valuable in the past as a fill-in. Much like Mitchell, consider using him in a lineup if you want coverage for a potential Pacheco injury. Making matters potentially more interesting, the Chiefs designated Jerick McKinnon (hernia) for return from IR this week. McKinnon has been a stud in the Super Bowl in the past. If he is active for the game, he makes a sneaky last-man play.

Both teams are top-heavy among their pass catchers. Brandon Aiyuk and Deebo Samuel are both premium WRs. Unfortunately, KC is a terror against the pass. If you have to choose one, go with Deebo. Jauan Jennings was great in the Divisional Round while Samuel was out. He reverted to pumpkin status last week (despite a ridiculous catch). He doesn’t offer enough of a discount to consider seriously. If you want a last-man dart throw, go with Ronnie Bell, Chris Conley (revenge game), or Ray-Ray McCloud instead.

Mahomes trusts Travis Kelce and Rashee Rice. The rest of this receiving corps leaves him pulling his hair out. Fortunately, Marquez Valdes-Scantling seems to have finally remembered how to catch a football. Rice’s price is less than Kelce’s, making him a favorite captain option. MVS is seeing just barely enough targets to keep relevant at his price. Consider him as a pivot from Rice in Chiefs-heavy lineups. Justin Watson and Richie James Jr. are great last-man plays. Kadarius Toney may return this week. He is talented, but you do not want to deal with that likely headache. We also can ignore Mecole Hardman Jr. and Justyn Ross.

George Kittle posted a dud versus Detroit. This game won’t be any easier. He has 11 games of playoff experience, but he has topped 40 yards in only three of them while scoring in just two of those games. With the WRs being strangled by KC’s corners, Kittle could see more targets this week. It still won’t make him a preferred player at his price point.

Twenty-one playoff games, 19 playoff TDs for Travis Kelce. He also has topped 70 receiving yards in 12 straight postseason games. When considering your roster build, you may find that you have to choose between Mahomes and Kelce. I’d go with the TE. Noah Gray has five catches on eight targets over the last two weeks. That usage suggests that Mahomes trusts him more than most of his WRs. His discount price makes him a borderline must-start in any Chiefs-heavy build. Blake Bell saw 43% and 44% snap counts in the first two rounds of the playoffs. Last week, he played only 13% of the snaps. Regardless, he has zero targets in any of the games. We can ignore him.

Since the flip of the calendar, Jake Moody has been shaky on FGs. He is only three out of six during his last three games. The extra points add up, but he is nothing more than a run-back play (and arguably too expensive of one) if you stack the Chiefs.

Meanwhile, Harrison Butker continues to show why he is one of the most reliable kickers in history, ranking second ever in field goal percentage. He should be reliable for a floor of eight points this week, but neither kicker makes a powerful play at their price.

The San Francisco 49ers defense should keep this game close, but you are chasing a Pick 6 if you play them.

The Kansas City Chiefs defense blitzed Lamar Jackson into oblivion last week. Purdy doesn’t have the physical or mental tools to overcome this heat, so it will all fall on the offensive game plan. KC should rack up at least three sacks and pick off Purdy multiple times.

The Player Pool

Player	DraftKings Captain Salary	DraftKings Regular Salary	FanDuel Salary
Christian McCaffrey	$18,000	$12,000	$11,000
Patrick Mahomes	$15,900	$10,600	$15,000
Travis Kelce	$15,300	$10,200	$13,000
Brock Purdy	$15,000	$10,000	$14,500
Deebo Samuel	$13,800	$9,200	$11,500
Brandon Aiyuk	$13,200	$8,800	$10,500
Isiah Pacheco	$12,000	$8,000	$12,500
Rashee Rice	$11,400	$7,600	$11,000
George Kittle	$9,600	$6,400	$10,000
Jake Moody	$7,800	$5,200	$9,000
Harrison Butker	$7,500	$5,000	$9,500
San Francisco 49ers	$6,600	$4,400	$8,500
Jauan Jennings	$6,000	$4,000	$7,000
Kansas City Chiefs	$5,100	$3,400	$9,000
Marquez Valdes-Scantling	$4,500	$3,000	$7,500
Elijah Mitchell	$4,200	$2,800	$7,000
Justin Watson	$3,600	$2,400	$6,500
Noah Gray	$2,700	$1,800	$5,500
Mecole Hardman Jr.	$2,400	$1,600	$5,500
Kadarius Toney	$2,100	$1,400	$6,000
Clyde Edwards-Helaire	$1,800	$1,200	$6,500
Kyle Juszczyk	$1,200	$900	$5,500
Jordan Mason	$900	$600	$5,000
Richie James Jr.	$600	$400	$5,500
Blake Bell	$300	$200	$5,000
Chris Conley	$300	$200	$5,000
Jerick McKinnon	$300	$200	$6,000
Justyn Ross	$300	$200	$5,000
Ray-Ray McCloud III	$300	$200	$5,500
Ronnie Bell	$300	$200	$6,000

Fantasy Football DFS Daily Domination: Super Bowl LVII

Breaking down the top players and sleepers for DraftKings and FanDuel for Super Bowl LVII DFS fantasy football.

It is Super Bowl LVII week, and this means there is only one game for our DFS enjoyment. Fortunately, all the major sites offer single-game (and even partial-game) contests, often referred to as Showdowns.

These contests often introduce different strategies compared to regular full-slate DFS contests, so I will break them down for you besides analyzing the individual players in the game.

First up: The Rules

On DK, you are required to put together a six-man roster for $50k or less, and you must use at least one player from each team. In addition, we must identify one of those six players as your “captain.” They award the captain 1.5x his total output (including potential negative points). This player also costs 1.5x more when you place them in the captain slot, so you have to weigh the value difference of those extra points versus the extra cost.

On FD, they give you more money ($60k) for fewer spots (only five). You still select a Captain (or as they call it an MVP). The biggest difference, however, is your MVP costs are the same as your non-MVPs. There is no penalty for putting a player in that slot. This means that you want the top scorer in your lineup in that slot, regardless of his price.

Second: The Usual Strategies

Much like in regular DFS, you can stack correlative players (QB-WR/TE) or (RB-DEF). The key thing to remember, though, is you need to have at least one player from both teams.

If you believe this game will be high-scoring and close, then you will probably want to do a stack, including both QBs and at least one receiving option for each team. This will be my favorite strategy this week.

If you feel both teams will struggle to score, then you should use both defenses and one or both kickers.

Potential lineups for DK

Captain: Tr avis Kelce ($15.9k)
Roster: Patrick Mahomes ($11k), Jalen Hurts ($11.2k), Dallas Goedert ($6.4k), Boston Scott ($3k), Justin Watson ($2k)
This lineup gives you both QBs and the elite tight end for each team. It also gives you two TD-dependent depth pieces, one of which, Watson, may see an uptick in playing time due to injuries.

Captain: Jalen Hurts ($16.8k)
Roster: A.J. Brown ($9.2k), DeVonta Smith ($8.6k), Miles Sanders ($7.8k), Jake Elliott ($4.2k), Justin Watson ($2k)
Perhaps you believe that this will be a blowout by Philly (why, I have no idea). This lineup gives you maximum exposure to the four best offensive pieces for Philadelphia, plus their kicker.

Captain: Patrick Mahomes ($16.5k)
Roster: Travis Kelce ($10.6k), Marquez Valdes-Scantling ($6.2k), Isiah Pacheco ($7.2k), Harrison Butker ($4k), Kenneth Gainwell ($5k)
Or, maybe you believe Philly made it to the big game via an easy path and now they will be tested by an elite KC offense. This gives you the top options for KC, their kicker, and a red-zone TD threat for the Eagles.

Captain: DeVonta Smith ($12.9k)
Roster: Patrick Mahomes ($11k), Jalen Hurts ($11.2k), Dallas Goedert ($6.4k), Marquez Valdes-Scantling ($6.2k), Justin Watson ($2k)
I really like Smith this week, so this would be one of my favorite “shootout” lineups. This lineup also keeps both offenses in play but considers Philly attempting to take Kelce out of the game.

Captain: Philadelphia Eagles defense ($5.4k)
Roster: Kansas City Chiefs defense ($3.4k), Isiah Pacheco (7.2k), Miles Sanders ($7.8k), Jalen Hurts ($11.2k), Patrick Mahomes ($11k)
Both QBs are dealing with various levels of injury. Perhaps you can see both defenses raging passing-game havoc in this one. This still gives you both QBs (who can still gain floor-level points) but also adds both top RBs and gives you credit for sacks and turnovers.

Captain: Quez Watkins ($2.1k)
Roster: Travis Kelce ($10.6k), Marquez Valdes-Scantling ($6.2k) or JuJu Smith-Schuster ($5.6k), DeVonta Smith ($8.6k), Jalen Hurts ($11.2k), Patrick Mahomes ($11k)
Unless you go deep, deep diving at captain, it is hard to fit all the stars into your lineup. This at least puts a reasonable depth piece into that slot and gives you both QBs and three of the top four passing-game weapons in this game.

Captain: JuJu Smith-Schuster ($8.4k)
Roster: Patrick Mahomes ($11k) or Jalen Hurts ($11.2k), Travis Kelce ($10.6k), DeVonta Smith ($8.6k), A.J. Brown ($9.2k), Justin Watson ($2k)
One of the few ways to get all four of the top receiving options into the lineup would be like this. You also get your choice of one of the QBs.

Potential lineups for FD

MVP: Patrick Mahomes ($17.5k) or Jalen Hurts ($17k)
Roster: Travis Kelce ($14k), Dallas Goedert ($10k), DeVonta Smith ($11.5k), Kadarius Toney ($7k)
Mahomes or Hurts at MVP tied together with two of the top receiving options for each team. This is my favorite way to attack this slate.

MVP: Jalen Hurts ($17k)
Roster: A.J. Brown ($12.5k), DeVonta Smith ($11.5k), Dallas Goedert ($10k), JuJu Smith-Schuster ($9k)
This is your Eagles Voltron stack with a KC run-it-back WR.

MVP: Patrick Mahomes ($17.5k)
Roster: Travis Kelce ($14k), JuJu Smith-Schuster ($9k), Marquez Valdes-Scantling ($8k), DeVonta Smith ($11.5k)
As a Chiefs fan, I love this lineup. I just know that it is going to struggle against this pass defense.

MVP: Patrick Mahomes ($17.5k)
Roster: Jalen Hurts ($17k), DeVonta Smith ($11.5k), Marquez Valdes-Scantling ($8k), Justin Watson ($5.5k)
Here is a KC leaning lineup that allows you both QBs.

MVP: Jalen Hurts ($17k)
Roster: Patrick Mahomes ($17.5k), DeVonta Smith ($11.5k), Quez Watkins ($6k), Jake Elliott ($8k)
Here is a Philly leaning lineup that allows you both QBs.

The Game

Philadelphia Eagles vs. Kansas City Chiefs

Jalen Hurts isn’t listed as injured, but he continues to treat his earlier shoulder injury. This week’s opponent, KC, gives up a lot of yards through the air. That said, they can be both opportunistic and sloppy at the same time. KC’s pass rush is no joke, but the Philly O-line is considerably better than the scrubs that Cincy rolled out there. Even at less than 100%, Hurts remains a scrambling threat. I like him to finish with 200-2 through the air and 40-1 on the ground.

Patrick Mahomes (ankle) survived the conference championship round, and a high-ankle sprain, as Andy Reid and Eric Bieniemy came up with a game plan where he was able to successfully operate out of the pocket. Much like Cincy, Philly has solid defensive depth at every level. The biggest difference is that Philly features two elite-level shutdown corners on the outside. Still, the Eagles can be beaten over the middle and that is where Mahomes loves to operate with his salsa-mate Travis Kelce. It may not be pretty, but Mahomes will still reach 300-3 with less than 15 rushing yards.

Miles Sanders surprised me by scoring twice versus the Niners. His YPC was crappy, but with two TDs, no one was complaining. The Chiefs are much easier to run against. He should finish with just under 60 total yards and maybe a score. The reason he may not score is that Philly likes to allow everyone in their backfield to vulture him. Kenneth Gainwell didn’t score last week, but his ending line was actually better than Sanders’, and he looked to be the more explosive back. I expect Gainwell to put up about 45 yards and no TD here. The other threat is Boston Scott, who has stolen a score in two straight playoff games. He feels like more of a TD-dependent dart throw here than a reliable choice.

Isiah Pacheco has once again surpassed Jerick McKinnon as option 1a in the rushing game for KC. Against a stout defensive interior, I expect both to see more targets than carries. Pacheco will finish with roughly 50-1 on the ground and two or three short-yardage receptions. McKinnon will score through the air and could haul in five or six catches for close to 50 total yards. You can ignore both Ronald Jones and Clyde Edwards-Helaire (if he suits up).

DeVonta Smith has actually been more reliable than A.J. Brown in recent weeks. I believe this trend continues here as KC’s secondary remains young and thin but is improving. Smith will score, and both will finish with around 70-80 yards. I could see using Quez Watkins or Zach Pascal as a cheap punt to fill out your roster, but neither should be relied upon as anything more than a flier.

We don’t know who will even be active at WR for KC. If active, JuJu Smith-Schuster (knee) is the best bet to lead the WRs in receptions. He will get five or six catches for 50 yards, but I don’t trust him to score, though. Kadarius Toney (ankle, hamstring) is also dinged up, but his skill set makes him a bigger threat to get into the end zone. I don’t like Marquez Valdes-Scantling versus this elite pass defense. That said, if both Toney and Smith-Schuster are out (or limited significantly), you have to consider him. Justin Watson missed the conference championship with an illness. If he plays, he will be a favorite bargain-basement roster filler for me as he always gets one or two deep shots each game. Skyy Moore was forced into a larger role in the previous game. His stats will be minimal if everyone returns.

Dallas Goedert should have an easy go of things in this game. With extra attention devoted to both DeVonta Smith and A.J. Brown, Goedert should operate freely and secure 5-50-1. We can ignore Jack Stoll as he does not see enough usage.

Travis Kelce is going to score and post at least eight receptions for 80 yards. He is the safest player on either side of the ball to use as captain/MVP. Noah Gray, Blake Bell, and Jody Fortson can all be minimum-cost roster fillers. Just expect nothing more than the minimum output from any of them as you chase a random TD.

Jake Elliott has been consistent this year, but I expect neither team will be excited to forego TD opportunities for FG chances. That said, with three extra points and a pair of FGs, his nine-point floor is safer than some of the TD-dependent depth WRs/RBs.

Harrison Butker has been clutch this year (especially on long kicks), but he has also had the occasional case of the yips on some shorter tries. In the big game, he will get three extra points and two or three field goal opportunities. At least one of those will be from 50-plus. I will have a lot of exposure to him as a mid-salaried floor piece.

The Philadelphia Eagles defense is a better real-world unit than fantasy defense. They will be limited to just a pair of sacks and a pair of turnovers.

Meanwhile, the Kansas City Chiefs defense has a great pass rush, but this will be a big test for them. I don’t see over four sacks and just a single turnover here.

The Player Pool

Player	DraftKings Captain Salary	DraftKings Regular Salary	FanDuel Salary
Jalen Hurts	$16,800	$11,200	$17,000
Patrick Mahomes	$16,500	$11,000	$17,500
Travis Kelce	$15,900	$10,600	$14,000
A.J. Brown	$13,800	$9,200	$12,500
DeVonta Smith	$12,900	$8,600	$11,500
Miles Sanders	$11,700	$7,800	$12,000
Isiah Pacheco	$10,800	$7,200	$10,500
Jerick McKinnon	$10,200	$6,800	$9,500
Dallas Goedert	$9,600	$6,400	$10,000
Marquez Valdes-Scantling	$9,300	$6,200	$8,000
Chad Henne	$9,000	$6,000	$5,000
Gardner Minshew II	$9,000	$6,000	$5,000
JuJu Smith-Schuster	$8,400	$5,600	$9,000
Kenneth Gainwell	$7,500	$5,000	$8,500
Kadarius Toney	$6,600	$4,400	$7,000
Jake Elliott	$6,300	$4,200	$8,000
Harrison Butker	$6,000	$4,000	$8,500
Skyy Moore	$5,700	$3,800	$6,000
Philadelphia Eagles Defense	$5,400	$3,600	$9,000
Kansas City Chiefs Defense	$5,100	$3,400	$8,000
Boston Scott	$4,500	$3,000	$7,500
Justin Watson	$3,000	$2,000	$5,500
Quez Watkins	$2,100	$1,400	$6,000
Noah Gray	$1,800	$1,200	$5,500
Clyde Edwards-Helaire	$1,500	$1,000	$6,500
Zach Pascal	$1,200	$800	$5,500
Jack Stoll	$900	$600	$5,000
Blake Bell	$600	$400	$5,000
Jody Fortson	$300	$200	$5,000
Marcus Kemp	$300	$200	$5,500
Ronald Jones II	$300	$200	$5,000

Fantasy Football DFS Daily Domination: 2021-22 Super Bowl Showdown

Breaking down the top players and sleepers for DraftKings and FanDuel for Super Bowl DFS fantasy football

It is Super Bowl LVI week, and this means there is only one game for our DFS enjoyment. Fortunately, all of the major sites offer single-game (and even partial-game) contests, often referred to as Showdowns.

These contests often introduce different strategies compared to regular full slate DFS contests, so I will break them down for you in addition to analyzing the individual players in the game.

First up: The Rules

On DK, you are required to put together a six-man roster for $50k or less and

must use at least one player from each team. In addition, one of those six players must be identified as your Captain. The captain is awarded 1.5x his total output (including potential negative points). This player also costs 1.5x more when you place them in the Captain slot, so you have to weigh the value difference of those extra points versus the extra cost. Consider it as almost a mathematical curve where you want to achieve the highest total points before it becomes cost-prohibitive.

Also on DK, you are allowed to choose one or both defenses as a roster spot. They gain points for typical defensive stats (fumbles, interceptions, sacks, defensive and special teams TDs) as well as being assigned points based on how many points they allow (just as they do in standard contests).

On FD, you are given more money ($60k) for fewer spots (only five). You still select a Captain (or as they call it an MVP). The biggest difference, however, is your MVP costs the same as your non-MVPs. There is no penalty for putting a player in that slot. This means that you want the top scorer in your lineup in that slot regardless of his price. Also, unlike DK, you cannot choose a team’s defense.

Second: The Usual Strategies

Oftentimes on DK, people will attempt to reach for the one bottom-priced player who they believe will score a vultured TD at some point in the contest. This player will give them the highest likelihood of having a different lineup than the rest of the players. Many times this player is a fourth WR, or a backup TE, or a reserve RB, and sometimes even a non-starting QB. These players are hoping that they can catch lightning in a bottle at a subpar price while still rostering the top three or four talents on the slate. This strategy can be effective most of the time. Unfortunately, this week, we have two teams that refuse to utilize depth pieces. There are literally only 18 players (including the two defenses) with a legit chance of doing anything significant this week barring an injury. This is why I do not recommend this strategy this week.

Much like in regular DFS, you can effectively stack players (QB-WR/TE) or (RB-DEF). The key thing to remember, though, is you need to have at least one player from both teams. This encourages doing (QB-WR/TE-Other teams WR/TE) like lineups. This strategy should be popular this week with both teams featuring dynamic passing offenses.

If you think (as most do this week) this game will be high-scoring, then you will probably want to do a combo stack including both QBs and at least one receiving option for each team). This will be my favorite strategy this week. Just know that both sites price their players so that you will likely not be building a stack of Matthew Stafford-Joe Burrow-Cooper Kupp-Ja’Marr Chase (with one of them at Captain/MVP). It mathematically cannot be done on FD. It can be done on DK, but only if you want to round your roster out with the likes of Ben Skowronek and Stanley Morgan. That said, you can do up a competitive DK roster with all four of them if you choose a different player to be your Captain.

Perhaps you feel strongly that the game will be low-scoring. In that case, you may want to use one or both defenses on DK and/or one or both kickers on either site. You can also use a combination of any of these strategies if you feel strongly that one team will be successful while the other one suffers. With a very talented defense like Los Angeles and a weak offensive line (and an electric kicker) like Cincinnati, this strategy has some merit this week.

Also, remember that on FD your MVP salary is the same as his non-MVP price. This means put the player you think will score the most in that slot regardless of his pricetag.

Potential lineups for DK

Captain: Matthew Stafford $16.2k, Roster: Joe Burrow $10.6k, Cooper Kupp $11.6k, Tyler Boyd $5.4k, Rams defense $3.4k, Samaje Perine $2.4k – This lineup gives you both QBs and a top-three receiver for each team. It also gives you exposure to sacks on Burrow and squeezes in Perine, who could see some passing game volume if Cincy falls behind.

Captain: Evan McPherson $6k, Roster: Cooper Kupp $11.6k, Matthew Stafford 10.8k, Joe Burrow $10.6k, Ja’Marr Chase $10.4k, Ben Skowronek $600k – This lineup gets you both QBs and both No. 1 WRs. It also gives you exposure to the elite kicker McPherson and allows you to take a dart throw at Skowronek (maybe he will catch it this week).

Captain: Kendall Blanton $6.9k, Roster: Cooper Kupp $11.6k, Matthew Stafford $10.8k, Joe Burrow $10.6k, Evan McPherson $4k, Tyler Boyd $5.4k – This lineup gets you both QBs, the top WR for Los Angeles, the third WR for Cincy, the best kicker, and gets you the likely starting TE for the Rams (remember Cincy was rotten against the position later in the year). By using Blanton, it offers you some differentiation (although I believe his ownership will be high if Tyler Higbee cannot suit up).

Captain: Cooper Kupp $17.4k, Roster: Matthew Stafford $10.8k, Drew Sample $4.2k, Tee Higgins $7.6k, Tyler Boyd $5.4k, Kendall Blanton $4.6k – Perhaps you really want Kupp as your captain (he is the top scorer per game season to date on the slate). This gives you Kupp and his QB. Two of the Bengals top three WRs, and possibly their starting TE (if C.J. Uzomah is out). Note that this lineup construct does not allow you to roster Burrow. You could sub in Burrow for any of the four, non-Stafford, regular players with a dart throw elsewhere here.

Captain: Rams defense $5.1k, Roster: Cooper Kupp $11.6k, Matthew Stafford 10.8k, Joe Burrow $10.6k, Ja’Marr Chase $10.4k, Ben Skowronek $600k – This lineup gets you both QBs and both of their top WRs. It also gives you differentiation up top if you think that Burrow will have a few sacks (just remember that as Cincy scores, the Rams defense’s total points will go down exponentially).

Captain: C.J. Uzomah $6.6k or Drew Sample $6.3k, Roster: Cooper Kupp $11.6k, Matthew Stafford $10.8k, Joe Burrow $10.6k, Evan McPherson $4k, Cam Akers $6.4k – This lineup gives you both QBs along with Kupp. It gives you exposure and differentiation up top with whichever TE starts for Cincinnati. It also gives you Akers, if you feel that Los Angeles will jump out to an early lead in the game.

Captain: Cam Akers $9.6k, Roster: Cooper Kupp $11.6k, Matthew Stafford $10.8k, Joe Burrow $10.6k, Matt Gay $3.8k, Rams defense $3.4k – Perhaps you believe that Los Angeles will be dominant in the game. This gives you all of the Rams offense and Burrow for playing catchup later in the game.

Captain: Matthew Stafford $16.2k, Roster: Cooper Kupp $11.6k, Odell Beckham $8.4k, Kendall Blanton $4.6k, Rams defense $3.4k, Tyler Boyd $5.4k – If you think that this will be a passing game blowout for Los Angeles you can go Voltron stack on the Rams and then just run it back with the best remaining Bengal that you can afford (Boyd).

Captain: Joe Burrow $15.9k, Roster: Ja’Marr Chase $10.4k, Tee Higgins $7.6k, Evan McPherson $4k, Bengals defense $3.2k, Odell Beckham $8.4k – Perhaps you feel strongly that Cincy will win this one going away as Stafford fumbles under the big spotlight. This lineup gets you loaded on Bengals offensive players and uses the Bengals defense to differentiate from most teams. It then runs it back with the best affordable remaining Ram, Beckham.

Captain: Ja’Marr Chase $15.6k, Roster: Joe Burrow $10.6k, C.J. Uzomah $4.4k or Drew Sample $4.2k, Tyler Boyd $5.4k, Tee Higgins $7.6k, Cam Akers $6.4k – Here is your Cincy Voltron stack where you get Burrow and all four of his top weapons. You can run it back with any Ram that fits, but I like Akers, Van Jefferson, Sony Michel, or Blanton there.

Potential lineups for FD

Roster: Cooper Kupp $16.6k, Matthew Stafford $15.5k, Joe Burrow $15k, Van Jefferson $7k, Drew Sample $6.5k – Kupp, Burrow and Stafford can each be used at MVP here. You can also sub in the combos of Ben Skowronek and C.J. Uzomah or Kendall Blanton and Stanley Morgan for Jefferson and Sample.

Roster: Matthew Stafford $15.5k, Joe Burrow $15k, Cam Akers $10k, Tee Higgins $10.5k, Evan McPherson $9k – This is probably my favorite FD lineup. I get both QBs. I get a Bengals WR not covered by Jalen Ramsey to run it back with. I get the Rams’ top RB since Cincy is rotten against the run, and I get McPherson, who has been absurd this postseason.

Roster: Matthew Stafford $15.5k, Cooper Kupp $16k, Cam Akers $10k, Tee Higgins $10.5k, Kendall Blanton $8k – Here is your FD Rams Voltron stack running it back with Higgins (or Tyler Boyd).

Roster: Ja’Marr Chase $12k, Tee Higgins $10.5k, Cam Akers $10k, Joe Burrow $15k, Joe Mixon $12.5k. – Here is your FD Bengals Voltron stack running it back with Akers (or Jefferson, Matt Gay, or Blanton).

[lawrence-related id=463995]

The Game:

Los Angeles Rams vs. Cincinnati Bengals

Matthew Stafford has the easier matchup of the two QBs as Cincy allowed the seventh-most passing yards per game this season. He also has three or more passing TDs nine times this season and two more games where he had a combined three TDs. The Bengals have been bad against both the run and the pass this season, but the opposition threw the ball on a league fourth-high 62.7 percent of their snaps against them. Some of this has been caused by game script, but you know that Sean McVay will look to jump out early here with a pass-heavy plan.

Joe Burrow has a much harder go of things navigating Aaron Donald, Von Miller, and Jalen Ramsey. Fortunately, Burrow has several weapons to target. He entered the playoffs as the hottest QB in the league, and he has performed right on par with his season averages during the postseason. Typically, you could argue that the veteran presence of Stafford would outvalue Burrow here, but don’t underscore Burrow’s youthful moxie. He also has been unflappable all year despite being battered in the pocket like a Whack-a-Mole.

Cam Akers is starting in the Super Bowl. Earlier this year, you would’ve shocked me if you had declared that he was going to play again before the 2022 preseason. There was also plenty of talk in regards to how well he would perform when/if he did return. Well, not only is he back, but he has been good since his return. Sony Michel got minimal work in the divisional round but saw more of a split in touches in the conference title game. Some of this was due to Akers hurting his shoulder and some may have been attributed to Akers’ fumbles the prior week. Unfortunately for Michel, he did nothing with the extra touches last week. Only eight teams allowed more yards per carry than Cincy, so either or both could be in play here. I’m expecting a pass-heavy game script, so this should favor Akers. That said, if the Rams jump out to a huge early lead, we may see more Michel later in the game. There is also a chance that Darrell Henderson returns this week from his MCL injury. If he returns, it will hurt Michel’s value more than Akers. I just doubt that he would get enough touches to consider here.

Joe Mixon is the main back for Cincinnati. He had a bit of a career resurgence this year as he went from “an RB everyone drafting at the end of the first round was forced to settle for” to “a potential dynasty top-10 RB”. He offers value both in the passing game and on the ground, leaving him a solid floor. Unfortunately, I don’t love having to swallow a floor outcome at a price this high. I also don’t like that he has only three scores in his last seven games. Plus, while he rules the roost in carries, Samaje Perine has seen more usage in the passing game the last couple of weeks. Considering Perine’s price, he could be a valuable bottom-of-the-roster addition. That said, fitting Mixon in will be tough and isn’t one of my preferred strategies this week. Chris Evans has two touches in the playoffs and can be ignored here.

Cooper Kupp is the top per-week scorer in this slate. He should have little difficulty repeating his usual solid line against a subpar secondary that has better strength in outside coverage than over the middle. He needs to be on your roster, unless you firmly believe Cincy will sell out to stop him. Odell Beckham went from being barely rosterable in season-long leagues to back on the dynasty radar. I do not like his matchup this week as much as I like Kupp. Still, he and Tee Higgins make the most sense when considering the “second option” in the passing games of two teams that should throw the ball a lot this week. Van Jefferson went from being a huge part of this offense midway through the year to an afterthought in the postseason. Plus, he is nursing a knee issue. His price makes him a nice roster-filler, but I do not love his recent usage and the chance he leaves the game early due to reinjury. Ben Skowronek has just one playoff target and only five targets since Week 16. His minimum salary provides an interesting roster filler if you believe that Jefferson may play limited snaps due to his knee. That said, will Skowronek be trusted in this big spot? Brandon Powell is the WR5 for Los Angeles. His last target was in Week 16 … of 2020.

Ja’Marr Chase is usually not the undercard at the WR position. Even in ugly matchups this year (yes, I’m looking at you, Marlon Humphrey), Chase has dominated. This week, he faces one of the few WR1s who may be his superior. He also faces another elite-level CB. Facing off with Jalen Ramsey is not the death sentence it once was, but you still need to factor this into your roster builds. Tee Higgins is a great bargain this week compared to the other WRs. When I don’t use Chase, I will likely use Higgins. His matchup should also be easier than Chase’s, so Joe Burrow may look his way more often this week. As much of a bargain as Higgins is, Tyler Boyd is an even bigger bargain. Boyd has scored in four of his last six games, and he is always a part of this offense. His usage may be even higher this week if C.J. Uzomah is out or limited. The Bengals have lots of subordinate WRs, but none has much value. Stanley Morgan, Trenton Irwin, and Trent Taylor don’t do much for me, and they may even be inactive for this game. The one depth WR with some interest to me is Mike Thomas; he gets the revenge-game narrative this week and could have some minimal value.

Kendall Blanton is shaping up to be the starter this week for Los Angeles. He looked very good filling in for the injured Tyler Higbee last week. Obviously, if Higbee plays he will have some value. That said, I doubt he plays. If Higbee does, I could see him being nothing more than a decoy. At the discounted price, Blanton makes a great play at both Captain and on the regular roster. Cincy was one of the worst against the position this year, making this arguably the easiest play on the board.

Cincinnati’s starting TE, C.J. Uzomah, is also dealing with a knee injury. He has made it abundantly clear on social media that he intends to play this week. I can’t imagine him being more than a bit player if he does suit up. If he is out, Drew Sample will get the start. Cincy uses their TE more than they use their fourth WR, so whichever one of these two starts will have some value as a roster filler, and Sample (if Uzomah is out) could be a Captain.

Evan McPherson has been absurdly good this postseason. His moxie is right there on par with Joe Burrow. Pairing a great offense with some shortcomings on the O-line against a great defense could produce numerous FG attempts. Considering what he has done recently (40 standard kicking points in the playoffs), I don’t see how you cannot play him. I’ll even use him some at Captain.

Matt Gay hasn’t gotten the attention that McPherson has. That said, he also has 30 standard kicker points in the playoffs. He also has two failed FG attempts, so he could have had even more points. His price is cheaper than McPherson’s on DK, making him a sneaky pivot. Considering the offensive upside, I could even see building a lineup with both of them.

The Rams defense will be very popular as people expect that they will pressure and fluster Burrow repeatedly. Consider using them in a stack with Cam Akers.

The Bengals defense will have far less ownership. To use them you are making the assumption that Matthew Stafford will go full Jared Goff on the situation. I just don’t see it. Still, people seem to always make up at least one lineup with both defenses in it.

The Player Pool

Player	DraftKings Captain Salary	Draftkings Regular Roster Salary	FanDuel Salary
Cooper Kupp	$17,400	$11,600	$16,000
Matthew Stafford	$16,200	$10,800	$15,500
Joe Burrow	$15,900	$10,600	$15,000
Ja’Marr Chase	$15,600	$10,400	$12,000
Joe Mixon	$14,400	$9,600	$12,500
Odell Beckham	$12,600	$8,400	$10,500
Tee Higgins	$11,400	$7,600	$10,500
Cam Akers	$9,600	$6,400	$10,000
Tyler Boyd	$8,100	$5,400	$8,500
Van Jefferson	$7,800	$5,200	$7,000
Sony Michel	$7,500	$5,000	$7,500
Tyler Higbee	$7,200	$4,800	$8,000
Kendall Blanton	$6,900	$4,600	$8,000
C.J. Uzomah	$6,600	$4,400	$7,500
Drew Sample	$6,300	$4,200	$6,500
Evan McPherson	$6,000	$4,000	$9,000
Matt Gay	$5,700	$3,800	$9,500
Rams defense	$5,100	$3,400	N/A
Bengals defense	$4,800	$3,200	N/A
Samaje Perine	$3,600	$2,400	$7,000
Darrell Henderson	$2,400	$1,600	$8,000
Trent Taylor	$1,500	$1,000	$5,500
Ben Skowronek	$900	$600	$6,000
Chris Evans	$600	$400	$5,500
Mike Thomas	$300	$200	$5,000
Stanley Morgan	$300	$200	$5,000
Trenton Irwin	$300	$200	$5,000

Fantasy Football DFS Daily Domination: 2021-22 Conference Championships

Breaking down the top players and sleepers for DraftKings and FanDuel for Conference Championship Week DFS fantasy football

We are down to four teams and two games. This is when things start to get more and more cutthroat. Remember to maximize your combinations this week. Also, this is a reminder that there will not be a Dominator during the Pro Bowl – even I’m not degen enough to break that one down (doesn’t mean I won’t be playing though). We will however return for Super Bowl week for a Showdown/Captain contest breakdown.

Cincinnati Bengals at Kansas City Chiefs

Joe Burrow managed to have a huge passing day last week without throwing a TD. There was zero way to predict that. The touchdowns will be here this week as this projects to be a shootout. Burrow will be my QB2 overall this week.

Patrick Mahomes has to experience a bit of a letdown after last week’s craziness. Of course, he also gets to upgrade from the Bills secondary to the Bengals secondary in terms of the easier defensive matchup. I’m expecting Mahomes to finish with 380-4 here in the top-scoring spot on the docket.

Joe Mixon is the only sure thing as an every-down back on the slate this week. The matchup is reasonable. KC is decent against rushing RBs, but they are rotten against pass-catching backs. Mixon is capable of doing both. I have him as the RB1 on this slate based on volume alone. My biggest concern with him is if Cincy falls behind too much too early, the rushing portion of his splits will vanish. Samaje Perine is back to a reserve role, and he can be ignored in all formats.

Clyde Edwards-Helaire looked very solid last week in his first action since returning from injury. Cincy is truly middle of the pack against RBs. In a likely split backfield situation again, CEH is my RB4 here. I was also impressed with Jerick McKinnon’s work. I’ll place him at RB5 and consider both as an RB2 or FLEX. The biggest concern here is if Darrel Williams returns. He could steal touches from both of them. If Williams is active, I’ll probably avoid this backfield completely.

Ja’Marr Chase went nuclear in the prior meeting between these two teams. He has also been unstoppable most of the season. KC did hold Stefon Diggs in check last week, but Gabriel Davis went off. I don’t expect Chase to finish as huge as in the last meeting, but I still think he finishes as a top-three WR this week. Tee Higgins is my WR5. His discounted price from Chase makes him a nice pivot to get exposure to this game. That said, the best pivot play may be to use Tyler Boyd. Boyd will be running the route tree Davis used last week. Do I need to remind you what Davis did? If Tyrann Mathieu ends up missing this game, Boyd is a must-start at WR2/3. Even if Honey Badger plays, I still will have a hard time fading Boyd. I’m not going to look any lower here.

Tyreek Hill will challenge Chase for that WR1 role this week. It will be hard to fit both of them and consider Travis Kelce, so you will need to make a hard decision on one of the three. Cincy was humiliated by A.J. Brown last week, and they have been schooled by WR1s all year. You want exposure to this game, so you have to at least consider Hill here. If you do opt for Kelce instead of Hill, I still recommend choosing either Byron Pringle or Mecole Hardman as a WR3 here. Both should have a great chance to score. I could even see throwing Demarcus Robinson into a random lineup as a punt-FLEX. Pringle also should be considered a favorite for the Showdown Captain role.

C.J. Uzomah has had back-to-back solid games in the playoffs. This matchup is okay, but I feel most of the action will go to the WRs making him the TE4 on this slate. At his price, I will have some exposure. I just won’t race to get him into my lineup. Drew Sample hasn’t done much this season, but I could see throwing him into a Showdown lineup.

Travis Kelce is the best remaining TE. Cincinnati is the worst remaining defense against the position. You do the math. The price is high enough to make this one tricky, but there isn’t a safer play at the thinnest position. Blake Bell and Noah Grey back up Kelce. They really aren’t in play, outside of Showdown dart throws.

Kansas City’s defense should definitely be considered after watching Burrow get shellacked last week. The FD price for KC makes them an optimal play here on DK not so much. Do not consider Cincy on either site.

San Francisco 49ers at Los Angeles Rams

Los Angeles is doing everything legally (and perhaps illegally) possible to keep this a home game. I still expect enough Niners faithfully to be in attendance. This should help Jimmy Garoppolo remain able to hear his coach in his ear when he tells him each play to hand the ball off. Yes, there is no upside at all to playing Jimmy G. here. His ceiling is 200-2. That isn’t going to get it done, especially when his floor is also two turnovers. He is the QB4 on this board and it isn’t particularly close.

Matthew Stafford had two mediocre starts against San Fran this season. Obviously, the three scores in Week 18 saved that week but neither start featured more than 245 yards passing. If the ticket sales go as planned, Stafford ought to get a home-team reception this time, which should help him. That said, I still cannot confidently expect more than 250-2 here. That leaves him at QB3.

Eli Mitchell is technically the starting RB for San Francisco. Unfortunately, he has shared touches backfield mate with WR Deebo Samuel over the second half of the season. With so few sure things at RB, he still gets the RB3 nod here since LA can be run through and because the Niners cannot win by throwing the ball. If they are forced to throw the ball, Mitchell could lose most of his value as I’d expect Samuel and JaMycal Hasty to split those looks. This could open up Hasty to a sneaky punt-FLEX role. If Deebo is limited or out this week, Mitchell would see a volume bump. Jeff Wilson exited last week’s game with an ankle injury. His status is shaky, at best, for this week. If he plays, he might be usable in Showdown but that is all. Kyle Juszczyk is always in play as a punt-RB2 or FLEX. He is also a great Showdown play because of his price.

Cam Akers had some fumbling issues last week, but it didn’t keep him from out-touching Sony Michel 27-3. This volume is why Akers is my RB2 overall this week. He is also the better pass catcher of the two, and that is one of the easiest ways to succeed with your running backs against the SF defense. Michel will get the nominal RB6 assignment, but his value will only return if Akers is benched due to his fumbles.

Deebo Samuel will likely see a lot of Jalen Ramsey this week. LA has lost this matchup so far this year, allowing a total of 273 yards and three total scores to Samuel. Now, obviously, not all of those yards came against Ramsey as much was had on the ground as well. Just know that Samuel has gotten it done this year against LA. With so much talent on this slate, Samuel gets the WR4 assignment – but if he were to qualify at running back, he would be the RB2. Just make sure to follow his practice status this week as he did suffer an injury last week. Brandon Aiyuk has looked solid as a WR2 for San Fran since Week 9. Then he went out and laid a goose egg last week on one single target. There is a contrarian argument towards throwing him into a lineup or two at WR3. I just don’t feel comfortable doing it unless Deebo is ruled out. I almost feel better about taking a chance on Jauan Jennings. He has five or more targets in five of his last seven games, and he clowned the Rams in Week 18. One player that could eat into Jennings’s action is Mohamed Sanu. Sanu was just activated off IR this week, so there isn’t even a guarantee that he will suit up. Of course, if he does, he may be the most accurate QB on their roster Sunday. I have a hard time trusting the San Fran depth WRs since this offense is going to struggle to score a lot of points.

Cooper Kupp is no worse than WR3 overall this week. The matchup is average, but he is absurdly talented. My largest concern with Kupp is that his price is too damn high. He will be nearly impossible to fit in your lineup, unless you go digging for scraps at other positions. He has topped 115 receiving yards in both games this year, so consider that his floor. The guy who I am the most concerned with here is Odell Beckham. In the two earlier meetings, he had exactly 2-18 and 2-18. Maybe SF just has that something special to frustrate the combustible receiver. He will get the WR8 tag here, but he falls behind the other options at WR2/3 in my personal preference. Van Jefferson has only 14 catches over the last seven games. He has really fallen in the pecking order with Beckham picking up the slack. If OBJ struggles this week, Jefferson might see a slight uptick in usage. That said, I wouldn’t count on it. He is the WR11 overall this week but can be left for a punt-FLEX role or Showdown. Ben Skowronek just doesn’t receive enough snaps to consider seriously. His only value would come if one of the top three were to get hurt.

George Kittle has gone from a consensus top-three dynasty TE this offseason to a great blocker who occasionally is targeted in the passing game. That is frustrating as he is impossible to bring down with the ball in his hands. Kittle did have two solid games against LA earlier this year, but he also has a total of only 13-141 over his last five games. His innate talent keeps him as the TE2 overall here, but I don’t think I will have a lot of exposure to him.

Beckham’s struggles against SF have benefitted Tyler Higbee so far this year. In the two earlier games, Higbee posted 9-75-3 against the Niners. At his price, I like Higbee as a pivot from Kelce if you decide to stack WRs in the early game. He is the TE3 this week and he could even be in FLEX play if you go double-TE. Kendall Blanton scored last week. It was his first career TD. He doesn’t see much usage, but he could be a dart throw in Showdown contests.

These teams will be the most popular choices for the defense position. I will have a fair amount of exposure to each, leaning slightly towards the Rams since Garoppolo is mistake-prone. That said, I still feel the smart play is to use KC and face a smaller ownership rate.

Here are my recommended lineups:

At DK: $7.4k for Patrick Mahomes. $5.9k for Eli Mitchell. $5k for Cam Akers. $7k for Tyreek Hill. $4.3k for Byron Pringle. $4.2k for Tyler Boyd. $6.5k for Travis Kelce. $6.7k for Ja’Marr Chase at FLEX. $3k for the Kansas City Chiefs defense.

At FD: $7.5k for Joe Burrow. $7k for Mitchell. $6.2k for Akers. $8.1k for Hill. $5.8k for Boyd. $5.7k for Pringle. $7.7k for Kelce. $8k for Chase at FLEX. $3.7k for the Chiefs defense.

At Fanball (featuring SuperFlex): Mahomes, Joe Burrow at SF, Akers and Clyde Edwards-Helaire at RB, Cooper Kupp, Hill, and Boyd at WR, Pringle at FLEX, and Kelce at TE.

Quarterback

	DraftKings	FanDuel
Patrick Mahomes	$7,400	$8,800
Joe Burrow	$6,600	$7,500
Matthew Stafford	$6,300	$7,500
Jimmy Garoppolo	$5,400	$6,200

We have two different slates for Divisional Weekend. I will break down each of them game-by-game and give you my Pay-To-Play, Stay Away, and Value Play for each position for each of the two split slates.

However, before we do that, allow me to give you my favorite lineups on the combined slate at each site, too! Note that player salaries may differ on the full slate with the individual day slates (though not by much).

Full Divisional Round Slate

Here are my full Divisional Round Slate recommended lineups:

At DK: $6.6k for Joe Burrow, $5.9k for Devin Singletary, $5.8k for Eli Mitchell, $7.1k for Ja’Marr Chase, $6.2k for A.J. Brown, $5.3k for Odell Beckham, $4.9k for Dawson Knox, $4.6k for Gabriel Davis, and $3.2k for the Green Bay Packers defense.

At FD: $7.7k for Burrow, $7.2k for Singletary, $7.3k for Mitchell, $8.2k for Chase, $7.6k for Brown, $6.5k for Beckham, $5.4k for Tyler Higbee. $5.3K for Davis at FLEX, and $4.5k for the Packers defense.

At Fanball (featuring SuperFlex): Burrow, Josh Allen or Patrick Mahomes at SF, Singletary, and Cam Akers at RB, Brown, Stefon Diggs, and Chase at WR, Anthony Firkser at TE, and Tyreek Hill at FLEX.

Saturday-only Slate

Cincinnati Bengals @ Tennessee Titans

Joe Burrow looked solid in the Wild Card game despite facing an above-average pass defense. This week, he faces a Tennessee defense that allowed the second-most passing yards among all of the playoff teams. During the regular season, only one team allowed more receiving yards to opposing WRs and only three teams allowed more scores to that position. Whereas last week, Burrow struggled to get the ball to Tee Higgins on the outside, both Higgins and Ja’Marr Chase should feast this week (Tyler Boyd, too). Six of the eight QBs on the full slate are elite and lead high-end offenses. This means Burrow will likely jockey for the QB3/4 role on the full slate. However, on Sat-only, he will finish as no lower than QB2.

As I just mentioned six of the eight QBs on the full slate are elite. One that isn’t is Ryan Tannehill. He does get an easy matchup this week, but this is a run-first team. In a decent matchup, I’ll list him as the QB3 on Saturday-only. Unfortunately, due to the other available talent, I cannot rank him higher than QB6/7 overall here. He did get the bye to prepare, and he is coming off his best start of the year in Week 18. Plus, he should have both of his starting WRs healthy together for just the eighth time this season. I could see using him as a sneaky cheap option here if you want to load up elsewhere.

Joe Mixon let us down some last week. Vegas toughened up against the run for the first time all season. Tennessee is dominant against the run. Only three teams allowed fewer total RB scores this season, and only one team allowed fewer RB rushing yards this year. They also are solid against pass-catching backs, so Mixon doesn’t even get to take advantage of that. On Sat-only slate, he is no better than RB3. Fortunately, with multiple split backfields remaining on Sunday, Mixon is still probably the RB5 overall. Samaje Perine and Chris Evans are just backups now (and Evans may be out on kick returns after last week’s struggles). Last week, they each had just one touch. This makes them both unusable here, even if this matchup wasn’t awful, to begin with.

The million-dollar question this week is will Derrick Henry play? And, If so, how much? I mean, frankly, he won’t be needed here, since Cincy is mediocre against the run, and because the Bengals lost the majority of their defensive line to injuries last week. D’Onta Foreman could easily finish as the RB2 overall this week if Henry were not to play. With Henry likely usurping the lion’s share of the touches, Foreman slides back to a change-of-pace role, making him FLEX-worthy at best. Of course, if Henry is a full-go, he is the top RB on Sat-only and overall. I just have a feeling that they will ease him back here opening a little more value for Foreman. Dontrell Hilliard was more involved in the passing game than Foreman while Henry was out. With Cincy allowing the fifth-most receptions and sixth-most receiving yards to opposing RBs, I could easily see using him as a punt-FLEX. Assuming a fully-returning Henry, I’ll rank Foreman as RB7 on Sat-Only and Hilliard at RB6.

Last week, Tee Higgins had a bad game and Ja’Marr Chase had a good but not great game (based on his lofty standards). This was because Vegas is very good at defending outside receivers. This week they are facing one of the worst defenses against outside WRs. They will both finish as top-five options on Sat-only and each makes a nice pivot off of Davante Adams at your WR1. Higgins is particularly valuable since teams might be wary of using him after his dud last week. Tyler Boyd should also have a good game, but I expect he sees fewer targets than the other two. He can be considered as your WR3 on Sat-only and as your WR3 overall to get cheap access to this game on the main slate. Auden Tate has been cleared to practice but didn’t appear in the Wild Card round. Watch his status heading into this weekend as he could have Showdown slate value.

Cincy is middling against opposing WRs. They have done well in the second half of the year against alpha WR1s. So, perhaps A.J. Brown will be outperformed by Julio Jones this week. Of course, I can’t say that last sentence with a straight face. Brown is a stud, Julio used to be one (emphasis on the USED TO BE part). Brown is no lower than the WR4 on Saturday, and he makes an ok WR2 on the main slate if you go cheap at RB. Julio actually out-targeted Brown in Week 18. That won’t happen here. He is a possible WR3 on Sat-only, but he can be ignored on the main slate. There are just too many better-skilled WRs to choose from this weekend. Neither Nick Westbrook-Ikhine nor Chester Rogers should appeal to you with both the starters back healthy and Henry back, too. If I had to choose one of them for Showdown contests, I would go with NWI, because he did have a few solid days when the Titans were shorthanded earlier this year.

As I called, C.J. Uzomah had a great game last week as Cincy looked to throw inside against Vegas. This week will be more difficult as Tennessee is considerably better against TEs than WRs. Saturday-only is a dud of a TE slate, so he still may finish as TE2 there. Overall, he can be ignored.

Cincy has actually been pretty awful against TEs. That said, do you really trust Geoff Swaim and Anthony Firkser? They have combined for five scores this year, but they also have combined to have only one game with more than four receptions and only two games with more than 35 receiving yards. I probably have more faith in them than Green Bay’s options, but not by much. If I was throwing a dart, I’d consider Firkser coming off back-to-back scoring performances against this weak defense. This puts him in play on Sat-only but not the full slate (except in a punt situation). Swaim can be left to Showdown contests since he is more TD-dependent.

Neither of these defenses is a match to their opponent’s strength. I’ll just pass on both of them.

San Francisco 49ers @ Green Bay Packers

Imagine this, Jimmy Garoppolo leads his team to the NFC Championship game and then gets traded or benched heading into next season. It could happen. That said, Green Bay is better against the pass than the run, so if the Niners are going to win, it likely won’t be because the arm of Jimmy G. Garoppolo is the clear bottom QB both on the Sat-only and main slate. The only way he salvages value here is if Green Bay jumps out to a huge lead and he gets to pile up Gar-bage-oppolo Time. A lot of QBs have scored TDs against the Pack in garbage time this year.

Aaron Rodgers will battle with Joe Burrow for the top QB on Saturday. San Fran is actually very solid against the pass, but Rodgers is a step ahead of most other QBs. They also have padded their stats some against bottom-feeding QBs. Rodgers was held to only 261-2 in their earlier meeting, but he also has three or more passing TDs in four of his last six games. I feel 300-3 is back in play for Rodgers here as he has had an extra week to rest his sore toe.

Eli Mitchell is the RB2 on Sat-only and arguably the same overall. If Derrick Henry is limited, he could even finish as the overall RB1 this week. Green Bay’s numbers against RBs are deflated by the fact that they often force their opposition to pass. San Fran won’t care what the score is they will continue to run the ball. The biggest issue that Eli has at this point is Deebo Samuel vulturing his scores. As always, Kyle Juszczyk is a great Showdown play.

Aaron Jones led the backfield in the earlier meeting between these two teams while A.J. Dillon filled more of a change-of-pace role. Since then, this backfield has morphed into more of a timeshare. Jones was held out of the Week 18 game to rest his injured knee. Right now it appears that it won’t be an issue this week. San Fran has been among the best at holding down RB yardage, but they have given up a few RB touchdowns. Jones probably gets the RB3/4 slot on both dockets thanks to the abundance of split backfields. Dillon makes a decent FLEX play on either slate in case Jones suffers an in-game setback.

Deebo Samuel is simply unstoppable at this point. Green Bay is tough against the pass, but they have nobody that can shut down a versatile stud like this. It will be him or Davante Adams that finishes as WR1 on the Sat-only. It will be hard to roster both of them, so I’d likely choose one of them and pair them with Tee Higgins. If you don’t use Samuel, you could use Brandon Aiyuk as a Sat-only WR2. I’d rank him at WR6/7 on that slate. I don’t love him on the full slate, though, as there are much better/cheaper options in that range of talent. Jauan Jennings continues to have FLEX or WR3 value on the small slates. His salary is low enough that I would consider him as a punt-WR3 on either slate. Travis Benjamin is apparently still in the NFL. Yes, I am also surprised. He has historically snuck in a multiple TD performance at some point every season that he has played. I don’t foresee that happening here. That said, he makes a nice dart throw in Showdown contests only because he will likely serve as the return man.

Opposing WR1s have decimated San Francisco all season. This includes Davante Adams abusing them to the tune of 12-132-1 back in Week 3. I’d expect a similar output here. Adams should finish no lower than WR2 on Sat-Only and WR4 overall. Just know that his salary is high and you can get other cheaper options in this offense to help you fit other high-priced players into your lineup. Those cheaper players are Marquez Valdes-Scantling and Allen Lazard. San Fran has also struggled with both speedy field-stretching WRs and slot receivers. I doubt both of them score, but each should have roughly 5-60. I think MVS has the better chance to score a TD. Against most weaker teams, I would suggest Equanimeous St. Brown or Amari Rodgers as Showdown plays. I just don’t think there will enough points here for them to achieve value.

George Kittle is the top TE on Saturday, but he may finish the weekend as low as the TE4 overall. Green Bay is bottom-tier against TEs but Kittle has struggled late, posting a total of 9-78-0 over San Francisco’s last four games. The Niners have to take advantage of this mismatch to have any prayer this week. I think he has a better game than his recent struggles suggest but he still will just finish middle-of-the-pack.

San Fran does give up a decent number of TE scores. They have also been stingy with the yards to the position, but that is because they have faced a motley collection of TEs. Josiah Deguara and Marcedes Lewis qualify as motley. I doubt either of them does anything here.

Green Bay is the smart play for Sat-only defense. San Fran could be a pivot, but I still prefer taking the chalk here. I also like the Pack on the main slate.

Here are my Saturday-only Slate recommended lineups:

At DK: $6.6k for Joe Burrow, $6.8k for Aaron Jones, $5.8k for Eli Mitchell, $5.7k for Tee Higgins, $7.6k for Deebo Samuel, $6.2k for A.J. Brown, $3.1k for Anthony Firkser, $4.3k for Allen Lazard at FLEX, and $3.2k for the Green Bay Packers defense.

At FD: $7.7k for Burrow, $7.5k for Jones, $7.3k for Mitchell, $8.7k for Davante Adams, $7.6k for Brown, $6.4k for Higgins, $5.2k for Firkser, $5.1k for Dontrell Hilliard at FLEX, and $4.5k for the Green Bay defense.

At Fanball (featuring SuperFlex): Burrow, Ryan Tannehill at SF, Mitchell, and AJ Dillon at RB, Adams, Brown, and Higgins at WR, Samuel at FLEX, and Firkser at TE.

Quarterback

	DraftKings	FanDuel
Aaron Rodgers	$7,100	$8,400
Joe Burrow	$6,600	$7,700
Ryan Tannehill	$5,800	$7,300
Jimmy Garoppolo	$5,200	$6,500
Trey Lance	$5,000	$6,200

Saturday strategy – Joe Burrow and Ryan Tannehill against each other are my favorite plays. I don’t mind Aaron Rodgers, but I don’t love that FD price.

Pay to Play:

Joe Burrow, Bengals @ TEN ($6,600 DK, $7,700 FD)
Burrow has been on fire over the last month. Now he gets to face one of the worst defenses in the league against the pass. Set him as your Sat-only QB and stack him with Ja’Marr Chase or Tee Higgins.

Stay Away:

Aaron Rodgers, Packers vs. SF ($7,100 DK, $8,400 FD) Rodgers at home is never a complete fade, but San Francisco has the best defense on the Saturday slate, and Rodgers is the priciest QB. If you are going to use him, make it on DK where his price is less. More importantly, watch to see how cold it is going to be at kickoff. Rodgers may be used to playing in the cold, but nobody likes catching the ball when it gets ridiculously cold.

Value Play:

Ryan Tannehill, Titans vs. CIN ($5,800 DK, $7,300 FD)
Cincy remains the softest pass defense in the playoffs. This week they travel to Tennessee to face a run-first Titans team that can pass when they need to and that finally has both A.J. Brown and Julio Jones healthy. If Derrick Henry ends up missing this game or he ends up limited Tannehill may be forced to throw to win this game. Even if Henry plays, Tannehill may have to throw just to keep up with the Cincy offense.

Running Back

	DraftKings	FanDuel
Derrick Henry	$7,500	$9,000
Aaron Jones	$6,800	$7,500
Joe Mixon	$6,600	$7,800
Eli Mitchell	$5,800	$7,300
D’Onta Foreman	$5,200	$5,500
AJ Dillon	$5,100	$6,100
Samaje Perine	$4,500	$4,800
Dontrell Hilliard	$4,300	$5,100
Kyle Juszczyk	$4,100	$4,500

Saturday strategy – If we knew that Derrick Henry was going to play the whole game then he would be a must-start at RB1. However, at this point, we don’t even know for certain that he is going to play. I believe he will, but I also believe he will be limited. This opens up Dontrell Hilliard as a sneaky FLEX play. Aaron Jones and Joe Mixon have rough matchups. Jones is also coming off an injury and splits touches. Still, those two and Eli Mitchell are the only trustable volume plays. Eli will be my most frequently used RB1. I think AJ Dillon is the safest RB2 play based on his lower price. Whichever way you slice it, if you don’t play Henry, you are not spending big here.

Pay to Play:

Eli Mitchell, 49ers @ GB ($5,800 DK, $7,300 FD)
With Jimmy Garoppolo dealing with multiple injuries expect San Francisco to lean heavily on their running game. Some of that will go through Deebo Samuel but most will go through Mitchell. San Fran is built to run through the competition, making Mitchell the safest RB play on Saturday.

Stay Away:

Aaron Jones, Packers vs. SF ($6,800 DK, $7,500 FD)
Jones has an ok matchup, but he will be forced to deal with the shadow of AJ Dillon all game. These two have split carries all season. The best we can hope for is a 60-40 touch advantage for Jones. That isn’t enough to make up for the difference in cost.

Value Play:

AJ Dillon, Packers vs. SF ($5,100 DK, $6,100 FD)
That price difference is why I recommend Dillon rather than Jones. They both will get a fair number of carries, and they both may score this week. In that situation, give me the one that frees me up 20 to 25 percent in cost so that I can spend big at WR.

Wide Receiver

	DraftKings	FanDuel
Davante Adams	$8,500	$8,700
Deebo Samuel	$7,600	$8,600
Ja’Marr Chase	$7,100	$8,200
A.J. Brown	$6,200	$7,600
Tee Higgins	$5,700	$6,400
Brandon Aiyuk	$5,100	$5,900
Tyler Boyd	$4,700	$5,800
Julio Jones	$4,600	$5,600
Allen Lazard	$4,300	$6,000
Marquez Valdes-Scantling	$4,200	$5,500
Nick Westbrook-Ikhine	$3,800	$5,100
Jauan Jennings	$3,400	$5,000
Chester Rogers	$3,200	$4,700
Randall Cobb	$3,100	$5,300
Amari Rodgers	$3,000	$4,500
Auden Tate	$3,000	$4,600
Equanimeous St. Brown	$3,000	$4,700
Travis Benjamin	$3,000	$4,600

Saturday strategy – Can I roster five WR1s? Davante Adams, Deebo Samuel, Ja’Marr Chase, A.J. Brown, and Tee Higgins all could be used. I will have two of these fivesome in all of my lineups. I may even use three of them. The backup Packers, Tyler Boyd, and Jauan Jennings are the best options at WR3 and FLEX (if you don’t use a third RB).

Pay to Play:

Ja’Marr Chase, Bengals @ TEN ($7,100 DK, $8,200 FD)
Chase is pricier than his WR teammates but has been an absolute beast this season. His connection with Joe Burrow is immeasurable. Tennessee is rotten against opposing WRs. Plus, they have been particularly putrid against alpha outside WRs. This is a game stack that I like with Burrow and A.J. Brown (especially since I believe this game will be high-scoring).

Stay Away:

Davante Adams, Packers vs. SF ($8,500 DK, $8,700 FD) If you do choose to fade the Packers’ expensive offensive pieces, I wouldn’t blame you. You really want to have two (or three) of those pricy WRs in your lineups, but I have more faith in Green Bay’s backups (Marquez Valdes-Scantling, Allen Lazard, and Randall Cobb) than the other teams’ subordinates. This means that I can still roster two or three of those studs and get exposure to the Pack offense. That said, know that San Fran has been abused by true alpha WR1s all year.

Value Play:

Randall Cobb, Packers vs. SF ($3,100 DK, $5,300 FD)
Cobb is in the playoffs catching passes from Aaron Rodgers … sign me up. Throw in that I can have him on DK for close to one-third of Davante Adams’ price warms the cockles of my heart. He is returning from injury, but we know that Rodgers trusts Cobb wholeheartedly.

Tight End

	DraftKings	FanDuel
George Kittle	$5,300	$6,400
C.J. Uzomah	$3,400	$5,500
Anthony Firkser	$3,100	$5,200
Josiah Deguara	$3,000	$4,900
Geoff Swaim	$2,800	$4,600
Marcedes Lewis	$2,600	$4,200

Saturday strategy – Yuck! George Kittle is the only stud on the board, and he has played like crap over the last month. I will probably hold my nose and play either C.J. Uzomah or Anthony Firkser. Did I say YUCK yet?

Pay to Play:

C.J. Uzomah, Bengals @ TEN ($3,400 DK, $5,500 FD)
Uzomah had a great Wild Card game, but that was against a defense that funnels the ball to the middle of the field. He won’t set the world on fire but, in what should be a high-scoring game, makes a cheap punt option to gain exposure to this offense. If he can get into the end zone again that is an easy 3x on DK.

Stay Away:

George Kittle, Niners @ GB ($5,300 DK, $6,400 FD)
This is another case of a great player horribly underperforming recently and facing a middling defense in what projects to be a lower-scoring contest, potentially in subarctic weather. I’m tired of watching Kittle produce more pancake blocks than receptions. The talent is there, the matchup as I mention above is okay, we just need to see Kittle get it going again. Until that happens, I cannot in good faith spend this much for him. I’d feel considerably better about his chances if we knew that Jimmy Garoppolo was 100 percent. Although, maybe Garoppolo is the problem and Kittle needs Trey Lance to unlock his recent struggles.

Value Play:

Anthony Firsker, Titans vs. CIN ($3,100 DK, $5,200 FD)
Firkser has scored in back-to-back games and Cincy is easily the worst remaining defense against TEs, so he has that going for him. That said, trusting him here makes me kind of want to throw up.

Sunday-only Slate

Los Angeles Rams @ Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Tampa is easy to beat through the air. This sets up nicely for Matthew Stafford, who has several weapons to work with. You can’t run the ball against Tampa Bay, so Stafford will have to take this on his own back. On Sunday-only, he is my QB3, and I could see him finish as high as QB5 on the full slate. His discount price will make him one of my favorite options.

The Rams give up a ton of passing yards but only one team has allowed fewer passing TDs. Tom Brady isn’t just any old QB. He is capable of bending the stats and trends. Unfortunately, his cupboard is looking barer and barer. On name alone, I trust him for a ceiling of 300-2. Still, this might be the low figure on Sunday-only. I do not like his price for the full slate. He should be a fairly easy fade this week.

Cam Akers even playing at this point in the season is remarkable. His trucking defenders and putting up solid overall numbers is just plain crazy. This is not a good matchup for Akers, but his price is so damn cheap still. Making matters tougher here is that Sony Michel is still getting a healthy complement of carries. Regardless, Akers seems to have passed the eye test as far as health goes. His talent is stronger than that of Michel, so as the postseason progresses, I expect him to add more and more touches. One thing I am comfortable with is that Akers will be the passing down back here. That is the ONLY way to do damage against this defense with your RBs. This should secure Akers no worse than RB4 on Sunday-only, and Michel likely slides to RB5/6 range.

Leonard Fournette appeared 100 percent ready to go early last week. Then, as the week progressed, he got more and more questionable. That was a disappointing trend, because the matchup was a positive one. The Rams are middling against the run and against pass-catching backs. If Fournette was 100 percent certain for this week, I would identify him as the clear RB2 on Sun-only and a top-four play overall. Right now, it appears that Playoff Lenny will be a full go for this week, but as I said, that is what we thought last week, too. If Fournette misses this game, the backfield will likely be split once again between Ke’Shawn Vaughn and Giovani Bernard. As a tandem, they could each be FLEX plays, but neither has a clear advantage in role in this particular game script. One piece of clarity is coming out in that Ronald Jones didn’t even practicing yet. I read that to mean he is a no-go, but he’ll get an official update Friday.

Cooper Kupp had, by his standards, a down week last week. That could happen when you run the ball more than twice as often as you throw it. That run-first strategy would be asinine this week. If Los Angeles doesn’t finish this game with a 2-to-1 passing advantage in play-calling, they are going to lose. Kupp will catch a lot of short passes over the middle in a sort of non-run running role. He will also score again. His salary will make it tough to roster this week, but he will approach 3x no matter what. If you want to save some money, I’d use Odell Beckham. OBJ has scored in six of his last eight games. He is basically a cheat code this week as this game will be passing-forward. I also like Van Jefferson to have a more useful game this week. Beckham is a lock at WR2 if you don’t use Kupp. Jefferson can be your WR3 regardless of Cooper’s usage. Kupp is the WR1 overall and for Sun-only. Beckham is Sunday’s WR5 and WR10 overall. Jefferson is more a Sunday-only play as there are better WR3 options to choose from overall. The Rams also have Ben Skowronek. He hasn’t caught a pass the last two weeks. I’m not even sure I would use him in a Showdown contest.

Mike Evans gets the painful assignment of being shadowed by Jalen Ramsey. This isn’t a death knell, but it doesn’t boost his value. Last week, Evans went off despite the Darius Slay shadow. So, he can be effective in bad matchups. That said, I don’t love him, especially when you see his price tag. He is the WR4 on Sunday-only and WR9 overall. Tyler Johnson was second among the WR room last week with two catches. That isn’t good. Johnson, Breshad Perriman, and Scotty Miller combined for an uninspiring seven total targets. Evans had more by himself. Maybe Bruce Arians can swap out the nameplate and number off of Miller’s jersey and replace it with the name and number of Julian Edelman. Then perhaps Brady would look his way. The Rams can be bothered through the air. They allowed the third-most WR receptions and the fourth-most WR receiving yards. Unfortunately, only one team allowed fewer WR touchdowns during the regular season. Evans will get his token TD, but I don’t trust any of these other receivers to catch one. The best you can hope for from any of them is probably 6-60. That is barely good enough to consider for WR3 on Sunday-exclusive slate. Perhaps, the best hope for TB is if Cyril Grayson returns this week. He had a rapport going with Brady over the last couple of weeks of the regular season before getting hurt. Unfortunately, as of midweek he still isn’t practicing, so he is probably doubtful.

Tampa has allowed middling stats against opposing TEs. That said, they also have faced a lot of crappy tight ends, so those numbers are skewed slightly down. Every above-average tight end they have faced has fared well against them. Tyler Higbee is just barely above-average, but his price makes him a sneaky Sunday play, despite the TE4 rank. What is amazing is that even with that low rank on Sunday, he will likely finish no lower than TE5 overall.

With Ramsey attempting to shutdown Evans, Rob Gronkowski should see a ton of targets. The Rams are so-so against TEs also, so Gronk could produce a solid line as the TE2 on Sunday-only. If you want to save some money on the position, I’d use Cameron Brate. He should see a fair amount of targets, too, and all he needs is that one TD to reach 3x on DK. I’m not going to stretch for O.J. Howard outside of a Showdown dart throw.

On Sunday-only, you are playing one of these two defenses. I like the Rams more than the Bucs as Tampa suffered multiple O-line injuries last week.

Buffalo Bills @ Kansas City Chiefs

In this matchup, we just have to throw the stats out the window. We have two dominating offenses facing two upper-echelon defenses. One of two things is going to happen. We will end up with a 20-17 game or a 52-49 game. I don’t see us finishing anywhere in between those extremes. Frankly, I think both QBs will be leaving it all on the field. This should mean the 52-49 game is more likely. This, of course, places Josh Allen right in my sights as the QB1 on Sunday-only and quite probably overall. Allen went berzerker last week at home versus an equally tough New England defense. He will do just fine here.

On paper, Patrick Mahomes has the tougher matchup. Of course, we all know that this means nothing here. If Allen is throwing the ball repeatedly, then so is Mahomes. Each of these QBs could show out with 400-5, but I think both will finish with a floor around 375-3.

Devin Singletary has gone from being the low-end of a three-way split backfield to the only clear every-down back on the Sunday-only slate. He is my RB1 there and no worse than RB4 overall. I will fit him in almost all of my lineups. Zack Moss has been a non-factor since Week 5 and Matt Breida has slipped so far that he hasn’t even been active recently. Moss could be used as an injury pivot on Showdown, but he has no value unless Singletary goes down.

At this point, it appears that Clyde Edwards-Helaire will be the Chiefs’ starting RB this week. CEH looked at full speed on Wednesday, so my hope is that he is good to go. If he can play, he is no worse than RB4 here. Darrel Williams is still battling a toe issue. He suited up for Wild Card Weekend but played second fiddle to Jerick McKinnon. Williams’ practices this week have been limited, and his Wild Card usage concerns me. I’m hoping he is just ruled out for this game to limit the confusion here. You could certainly argue that McKinnon deserves to start based on his performances of late. At worst, he will be a change-of-pace play here and no worse than RB6 on Sunday-only. If all three of them suit up, it is best to just avoid this backfield. If we can limit it to one or two of them, I will load up since Buffalo has looked lost against RBs since late November. Derrick Gore saw minimal touches over the last few weeks. I am not sure I would even use him in Showdown, unless CEH and Williams are both out.

Stefon Diggs is the top WR for Buffalo. Opposing alpha WR1s have given KC fits all season long even as their defense improved over the course of the season. Diggs didn’t do a ton in their earlier meeting, but that game was out of hand pretty early. I have Diggs at WR3 on Sunday slates and WR5 overall. He will be my WR2 in most lineups. Emmanuel Sanders returned last week and immediately scored a long TD. He also had two touchdowns in the Bills’ earlier victory over KC. Of course, that victory came before Buffalo started utilizing Gabriel Davis more frequently. Davis has since passed Sanders on the progression chart of Josh Allen. Either would be a great WR3 play on either slate. I prefer Davis however because of the larger volume of targets. Cole Beasley, on the other hand, has disappeared of late. He has only 12 targets in the three games since returning from his COVID absence. His potential PPR value makes him an always playable WR3 on DK. I just wouldn’t go overboard on him. One of the reasons that Beasley is seeing less work is the continued strong play of Isaiah McKenzie. I trust Beasley more than McKenzie in the main tourneys, but McKenzie is a lock play in Showdown.

Tyreek Hill is the WR2 on Sunday and no worse than WR4 overall. The few elite WR1s that Buffalo faced this year fared well against them. More importantly, it is speedy field-stretchers that have had the most success all year. This puts Mecole Hardman into the discussion as a sneaky WR3 play here, too. Hardman has lost some snaps to Byron Pringle recently. Both have a great chance to score. If I don’t use Hill at WR1, one of those two will be in my lineup as a WR3 or FLEX. Demarcus Robinson is riding a solid three-game stretch. If this game goes bananas, he could have a solid line. I’m not going to go out of my way to use him, though. The same goes for Josh Gordon even if he does suit up.

I was so wrong about Dawson Knox last week. I thought he was doomed against New England. This week will be so much easier to trust him. KC has allowed solid lines to virtually all of the legitimate TEs they have faced this year. This included giving up a bunch of receptions and yards to Zach Gentry and Pat Freiermuth last week and allowing Knox to post 3-117-1 earlier this year.

Travis Kelce is never a fade. He can easily go off for 10-110-2 at any time. This isn’t the best matchup for him, but Kelce does have five TDs in his last three games against Buffalo. My biggest concern with Kelce is his price and how to fit him in with all of the big-buck WRs. If you choose to use him, be prepared to go cheap at WR2 and/or WR3.

Both of these defenses can make things happen and force turnovers. That said, there will be many points scored here, which may remove whatever value you might get from those turnovers. If the weather ends up iffy, I could punt with one of them on Sunday-only, but I’d rather use Tampa or LA.

Here are my Sunday-only Slate recommended lineups:

At DK: $7.6k for Josh Allen, $5.9k for Devin Singletary, $5.5k for Cam Akers, $6.6k for Tyreek Hill, $6.5k for Stefon Diggs, $5.3k for Odell Beckham, $4.9k for Dawson Knox, $4.6k for Gabriel Davis at FLEX, and $3k for the Los Angeles Rams defense.

At FD: $7.4k for Matthew Stafford, $7.2k for Singletary, $5.7k for Akers, $9.5k for Cooper Kupp, $8.2k for Hill, $7.8k for Diggs, $4.5k for Cameron Brate. $5.3k for Davis at FLEX, and $4.3k for the Rams defense.

At Fanball (featuring SuperFlex): Allen, Patrick Mahomes at SF, Singletary, and Akers at RB, Kupp, Diggs, and Hill at WR, Brate at TE, Davis at FLEX.

Quarterback

	DraftKings	FanDuel
Josh Allen	$7,600	$8,800
Patrick Mahomes	$7,300	$8,500
Tom Brady	$6,800	$7,800
Matthew Stafford	$6,200	$7,400

Sunday strategy – This Sunday, when choosing your QB, might I suggest ALL OF THE ABOVE. Tom Brady is the GOAT, but he is also the least safe play here. If I fade anyone, it is him. That said, all four of these guys will have big games. So, prepare to make many different lineup combinations featuring each of them.

Pay to Play:

Josh Allen, Bills @ KC ($7,600 DK, $8,800 FD)
Allen is on the road, but don’t let that scare you. Both he and Patrick Mahomes will approach 400-4 here. The advantage Allen has is that he has better running skills than Mahomes, so any point difference this week will likely come on the ground. Plus, even though they are playing better since they last met, KC’s defense is still not as great as the one from Buffalo.

Stay Away:

Tom Brady, Buccaneers vs. LAR ($6,800 DK, $7,800 FD) Tampa suffered some key injuries to their offensive line last week. They are hopeful that all of them can return this week, but if they can’t or if they are limited, Brady could be running for his life from Aaron Donald and Von Miller. I know Brady keeps his body temple healthy, but he is no spring chicken. We don’t want to see him running for his life. Ultimately, Brady’s success or failure this week may depend on how successfully Mike Evans performs in Jalen Ramsey’s shadow coverage.

Value Play:

Matthew Stafford, Rams @ TB ($6,200 DK, $7,400 FD) To save money for the expensive WRs this weekend, you need to pay down somewhere. Tampa Bay has been near the bottom of the league against the pass all season. Meanwhile, Stafford is leading an offense that is hitting a stride, featuring stackable mates: Cooper Kupp, Odell Beckham, Van Jefferson, and Tyler Higbee.

Running Back

	DraftKings	FanDuel
Devin Singletary	$5,900	$7,200
Leonard Fournette	$5,700	$7,000
Ronald Jones	$5,600	$5,200
Cam Akers	$5,500	$5,700
Sony Michel	$5,300	$5,300
Clyde Edwards-Helaire	$5,200	$5,700
Giovani Bernard	$5,000	$5,400
Jerick McKinnon	$4,800	$6,000
Ke’Shawn Vaughn	$4,700	$5,300
Darrel Williams	$4,200	$5,500
Zack Moss	$4,100	$4,700
Derrick Gore	$4,000	$4,700

Sunday strategy: I never thought I would see the day where Devin Singletary would be the only back on a slate guaranteed of not being part of a split backfield. He is my RB1. RB2 is much tougher. If Leonard Fournette starts, he probably deserves to be RB2. That said, we thought he was going to play last week and then he didn’t. If Fournette is out, I’ll likely just use whoever starts for KC at RB2. Cam Akers could be in play in a tough matchup if you trust his receiving skills. Otherwise, there really isn’t an obvious value play, unless Jerick McKinnon or Ke’Shawn Vaughn end up starting for their respective teams.

Pay to Play:

Devin Singletary, Bills @ KC ($5,900 DK, $7,200 FD)
Singletary has been a victim of backfield-by-committee for the last couple of years, but astute owners will remember that when he first came up he looked very good as a featured back. On this slate, he is the only featured back guaranteed to play and not cede touches to another running back. That volume alone makes him the best start on this board. Of course, KC’s inability to cover backs catching passes just boosts his potential.

Stay Away:

Sony Michel, Rams @ TB ($5,300 DK, $5,300 FD)
Good luck trying to run the ball against the league’s best rushing defense. Making matters worse for him, Michel has fallen behind the returning Cam Akers in the pecking order once again. One thing that Tampa is bad at is covering pass-catching backs. Unfortunately for Sony, that is Akers’ role, too.

Value Play:

Jerick McKinnon, Chiefs vs. BUF ($4,800 DK, $6,000 FD) or Clyde Edwards-Helaire, Chiefs vs. BUF ($5,200 DK, $5,700 FD)
Buffalo has struggled against opposing RBs over the last month plus. They particularly struggled last week on passes to New England’s running backs. Edwards-Helaire is likely back as the lead back for KC this week. However, he hasn’t done much in the passing game since early 2020. Darrel Williams has been more of the passing down back for KC this year, but he is doubtful for this week. Meanwhile, McKinnon has looked like he should be the every-down back with his studly play the last two weeks (including both on the ground and through the air). Whichever of these two starts should be in your lineup as RB2 and the other could be a decent FLEX.

Wide Receiver

	DraftKings	FanDuel
Cooper Kupp	$8,600	$9,500
Mike Evans	$6,800	$8,300
Tyreek Hill	$6,600	$8,200
Stefon Diggs	$6,500	$7,800
Odell Beckham	$5,300	$6,500
Gabriel Davis	$4,600	$5,300
Van Jefferson	$4,400	$5,500
Byron Pringle	$4,300	$5,700
Emmanuel Sanders	$4,200	$5,500
Cyril Grayson	$4,100	$5,200
Breshad Perriman	$4,000	$5,100
Cole Beasley	$4,000	$5,200
Mecole Hardman	$3,900	$5,300
Tyler Johnson	$3,700	$5,000
Demarcus Robinson	$3,600	$5,100
Isaiah McKenzie	$3,500	$4,800
Scotty Miller	$3,300	$4,900
Ben Skowronek	$3,000	$4,600
Jaelon Darden	$3,000	$4,600
Josh Gordon	$3,000	$4,600

Sunday strategy – Much like Saturday, I want to start all of the top WRs. I will do what I can to roster two of Cooper Kupp, Tyreek Hill, and Stefon Diggs. I will then pair that twosome with Odell Beckham (if I don’t use Kupp), Gabriel Davis (if I don’t use Diggs), or Byron Pringle (if I don’t use Hill). I could also use one of the other Bills, one of the other Chiefs, or Van Jefferson to differentiate.

Pay to Play:

Cooper Kupp, Rams @ TB ($8,600 DK, $9,500 FD)
Tampa is bad against the pass, and they are particularly bad against the opposition’s top WR. Kupp manhandled Tampa back in Week 3. I see no way that he doesn’t repeat that here.

Stay Away:

Mike Evans, Buccaneers vs. LAR ($6,800 DK, $8,300 FD) Kudos to Evans for putting up a solid line last week against Darius Slay. I didn’t expect it, but he got force-fed so much that volume ultimately paid off. He gets another awful assignment this week in Jalen Ramsey. You can always expect Evans to be in play for a TD, but the yardage and receptions aren’t going to be there this week. There are just way too many better options in the same price range to risk his TD dependency.

Value Play:

Gabriel Davis, Bills @ KC ($4,600 DK, $5,300 FD) Since Week 13, Davis has had five TDs compared to Stefon Diggs’ three. Some of that usage was because Emmanuel Sanders missed some time, but you can’t disregard the scoring. This game will be high scoring and that should present opportunities for all of the Bills’ weapons. Over their last four regular-season games, KC allowed the second-most receiving yards and the third-most TDs to opposing WRs. Then, they allowed 17 receptions and two WR scores last week. Yes, the KC pass defense is better than it was to start the year but they can still be beaten. I particularly like the chances of Davis since he will not see either of the Chiefs’ top cornerbacks.

Tight End

	DraftKings	FanDuel
Travis Kelce	$6,500	$8,200
Rob Gronkowski	$5,800	$7,100
Dawson Knox	$4,900	$6,500
Tyler Higbee	$4,000	$5,400
Cameron Brate	$2,700	$4,500

Sunday strategy – Saturday at TE sucked. Sunday looks relatively pleasant. I may even be able to use double-TE again here. Travis Kelce is expensive but an okay play. Rob Gronkowski and Cameron Brate could see value with Mike Evans being taken out. Tyler Higbee could take advantage of a short-handed secondary in Tampa and my favorite play, Dawson Knox, gets the best matchup on the board.

Pay to Play:

Dawson Knox, Bills @ KC ($4,900 DK, $6,500 FD) I dropped the ball on Knox last week. I really thought New England would hold him in check. Instead, Knox went out and scored twice (although one was a fluke). Dawson has faced KC twice now and he has scored in both games. He also has posted a combined 9-159 in those games.

Stay Away:

Rob Gronkowski, Buccaneers vs. LAR ($5,800 DK, $7,100 FD)
Gronkowski could finish with a reasonable line based on volume if Tom Brady is forced to throw away from Mike Evans. Unfortunately for Gronk, the Rams have managed to hold George Kittle and Zach Ertz in check over consecutive weeks. You know that he will catch a TD, because that is what he does, but the yards might not be high enough to justify that FD price.

Value Play:

Cameron Brate, Buccaneers vs. LAR ($2,700 DK, $4,500 FD)
Someone has to catch passes for Tampa this week. It might as well be Brate. We know that Tom Brady trusts him as evidenced by the Super Bowl celebration last year. He was targeted five times in their earlier meeting and has scored four times since Week 10. All he will need is a TD to reach 3x on DK and yards or receptions will be a bonus.

Fantasy Football DFS Domination: 2021-22 Wild Card Weekend

Breaking down the top players and sleepers for DraftKings and FanDuel for Wild Card Weekend DFS fantasy football.

We have two different slates for Wild Card Weekend. I will break down each of them game-by-game and give you my Pay-To-Play, Stay Away, and Value Play for each position for each of the two split slates.

However, before we do that, allow me to give you my favorite plays on the combined slate (Sat-Mon) at each site, too! Note that player salaries may differ on the full slate with the individual day slates (though not by much).

Full Wild Card Slate

Here are my Full Wild Card Slate recommended lineups:

At DK: $5.5k for Derek Carr, $6.8k for Joe Mixon, $5.9k for Leonard Fournette, $9k for Cooper Kupp, $5k for Tyler Boyd, $4.2k for Zay Jones, $6.4k for Rob Gronkowski, $4.4k for Cedrick Wilson, and $2.7k for the Los Angeles Rams defense.

At FD: $6.8k for Carr, $8.5k for Mixon, $6.6k for Darrel Williams, $10k for Kupp, $5.3k for Z. Jones, $5.4k for Byron Pringle, $7.4k for Gronk. $5.4K for Cam Akers at FLEX, and $4.5k for the Buffalo Bills defense.

At Fanball (featuring SuperFlex): Tom Brady, Matthew Stafford at SF, Eli Mitchell, and Damien Harris at RB, Kupp, DeVonta Smith, and C.Wilson, Gronk at TE, and Darren Waller at FLEX.

Saturday-only Slate

Las Vegas Raiders @ Cincinnati Bengals

Derek Carr is the best value option for the Saturday slate and arguably the overall slate, too. Cincy can score points, but they are also pretty rotten at stopping the pass, the run, the special teams, global warming, urban crime, etc. He isn’t the most physically gifted QB on this slate, but he will be my primary choice here. I have him at QB2, a hair ahead of the questionable Joe Burrow.

Speaking of Joe Burrow, he has been hotter than the inside of a McDonald’s pie. Unfortunately, he took a hit to his knee late in Week 17. We have every reason to believe that Burrow will play, but we have to at least consider that his knee could affect his play. On the Saturday-only slate, I will rank him at QB3 because of the knee injury and Vegas is much better against the pass than the run. That said, I see this game as high-scoring and expect both Carr and Burrow to throw for three TDs. If, by chance, Brandon Allen is forced to start, he instantly becomes the QB4 here, and all the Bengals skill players take a massive hit.

Josh Jacobs got a huge boost to his value when Kenyan Drake was lost for the season, based on assured usage and because Cincy isn’t very good on defense. He will get the nominal RB2 slot on Sat-only. Jalen Richard has resumed his role as a pass-catching backup, and Peyton Barber would step up if an injury was sustained. Jacobs is the only one of the three you should think about outside of Showdown.

The Bengals trolled the DFS community last week by having Samaje Perine listed as their RB1 all week and even having him come out as the team captain prior to the game. They then proceeded to not use him for one single touch. Apparently, they were saving him to serve as a backup this week instead. Needless to say, no DFS user will play him this week. The only way Perine will get any rub is if Joe Mixon ends up out once again this week. That said, there are zero reasons to believe that will happen. Mixon is the best play this entire weekend at RB. He is also reasonably priced. The only reason he would not be in your lineup is if you are throwing darts at being contrarian. Oh, yeah, those two other crumb bums who filled in for Perine last week … you can flat-out ignore them.

Hunter Renfrow has developed into a legitimate stud WR this season. His footwork (particularly in the red zone) is truly second to none. Plus, he receives so many targets each week that he is guaranteed to reach value in PPR formats. That said, I feel he may be over-owned here. The matchup is great, and I will definitely have exposure to him, but this may be a sneaky place for differentiation. If you want to take a leap of faith, use Zay Jones. Since the earlier meeting with Cincy, Jones has averaged 7.7 targets per game. At a considerable cost saving, I want a lot of exposure to Jones, too. Bryan Edwards and DeSean Jackson each have some value against the softest pass defense on the docket. I’ll put Renfrow at WR2, Jones at WR5, and the other two right around WR10.

The Raiders are deceptively solid against outside WRs. Ja’Marr Chase is still the WR1 on this slate by a solid distance, based solely on his skillset. Just know that he may underperform your expectations here. Tee Higgins (this slate’s WR4) may also struggle here for similar reasons. Fortunately for him, his price tag is less than Chase’s. You need to have some exposure to this pass offense, so I’d recommend using Tyler Boyd (my WR7 here) as a solid WR3. If Auden Tate returns this week (no guarantee), he could garner a Showdown spot.

Darren Waller is the top TE on Sat-Only and the TE2 overall. Cincy is bottom-six in every relevant category against opposing TEs. Foster Moreau can even be considered here as a FLEX play or a punt TE play.

As bad as Cincy has been against TEs, Vegas has been worse. Part of the reason their numbers against WRs look so good is that they can’t cover a tight end to save their lives. This puts C.J. Uzomah into value-land on Sat-Only. I’d even rank him as TE2 on this slate.

I believe that the Cincy defense will be used too much here as teams assume they will blister Vegas. They are a better option than Vegas, but I’d rather avoid both and just use one of the late-game options.

New England Patriots @ Buffalo Bills

Poor Mac Jones. Whatever happens here, he will find himself being put under the microscope compared to his predecessor, Tom Brady. This just isn’t fair. He is the worst play on Sat-only and arguably the worst play overall this weekend. Expecting more than 200-2 is a fool’s game.

Josh Allen gets the QB1 nod for Saturday. His matchup is not easy, but he is the most talented QB on this docket and is at home. Allen should score three total TDs, and his rushing numbers will be what catapults him to the top spot here. All of this said, I don’t love his price tag compared to both Burrow and Carr.

Damien Harris and Rhamondre Stevenson both played last week. So, of course, Bill Belichick gave two TDs to Brandon Bolden instead of them. Harris did salvage his day with a score, but Stevenson missed nearly two full quarters with a head injury before returning to the game. With both Harris and Rhamondre looking good to go for this week, I trust them more than Bolden. Buffalo can be run on, Harris has scored FOUR rushing TDs against them already this year. If he was by himself this week, he would be the RB2 here. As is, he will be the RB3 and Stevenson the RB5. Bolden shouldn’t be used in main tourneys, but he makes a great Showdown play in case Belichick gets cute again.

Devin Singletary has established himself as the primary RB for Buffalo over the last month-plus. Since Week 12, he has thoroughly dominated the backfield touches for the team. New England can also be run against (and frankly it is easier than passing against them). I will list him as RB4 here. My biggest concern is Allen vulturing his TDs. Zack Moss just isn’t touching the ball enough to consider outside of Showdown dart throws. As for Matt Breida, he went from usurping the job to healthy scratch faster than a Randy Johnson fastball.

New England has a whole lot of mediocre WRs. I figured by now one of them would have separated from the pack. Midyear, it looked as if Kendrick Bourne would become that guy. Then, all of a sudden, Jakobi Meyers started hogging targets. Of course, the waters got muckier last week as Nelson Agholor returned from his head injury to lead New England in snaps. Buffalo has allowed far and away, the fewest total yards and TDs to opposing WRs, so it is best to ignore this quandary completely. If I had to take a flier on one of them, I’d probably choose Meyers, but there just isn’t any obvious cause to do so.

Buffalo has five WRs that could be considered this week. Unfortunately, New England is also elite against the pass. Emmanuel Sanders may take himself out of the competition due to his injury status. If Sanders is out once again, this opens the door for Gabriel Davis to continue his hot streak. I love Davis as a WR3 this week, and I have him as WR6 overall on this docket if Sanders is out. The WR3 on Sat-only is Stefon Diggs. His price combined with the matchup leads me to want to fade him. Still, he is one of four players to consider at your WR1 slot. Cole Beasley has stunk it up over the last two years against New England. He always is in WR3 consideration, but Davis seems to have passed him in the pecking order. Isaiah McKenzie went bonkers in Week 16 versus New England with Davis and Beasley out. He then went back into the background over the last two weeks. His big-play potential makes him a great bargain Showdown play, but that is about it.

Hunter Henry had a huge performance in Week 18, but he has done next to nothing against Buffalo this year. That should come as no surprise since no one has done anything against Buffalo with their TEs this year. I will fade both Henry and Jonnu Smith here.

As strong as Buffalo has been against TEs, New England is right there with them. In fact, you could argue that they are better than Buffalo against the position. This is why I will also be fading Dawson Knox. The best you can hope for here is a score since Knox does have at least one TD in seven different games this year, including Week 16 versus New England.

Both of these defenses could be a good Saturday-only choice. Buffalo will be highly owned, but they are by far the best overall play here. Just use them and put the onus on Mac Jones to get ‘er done against a top-flight D.

Here are my Saturday-only Slate recommended lineups:

At DK: $5.8k for Derek Carr, $7.1k for Joe Mixon, $6.6k for Josh Jacobs, $6.4k for Hunter Renfrow, $4.6k for Tyler Boyd, $3.9k for Gabriel Davis, $5.7k for Darren Waller, $5.8k for Devin Singletary at FLEX, and $3.2k for the Buffalo Bills defense.

At FD: $6.8k for Carr, $8.5k for Mixon, $7.2k for Jacobs, $7.3 for Renfrow, $6k for Boyd, $5.2k for Davis, $6.3k for Waller, $7.5k for Damien Harris at FLEX, and $4.5k for the Buffalo defense.

At Fanball (featuring SuperFlex): Carr, Joe Burrow at SF, Mixon at RB, Jacobs at RB, Singletary at FLEX, Ja’Marr Chase, Davis, and Renfrow at WR, and Waller at TE.

Quarterback

	DraftKings	FanDuel
Josh Allen	$7,900	$8,800
Joe Burrow	$7,300	$7,800
Derek Carr	$5,800	$6,800
Mac Jones	$5,300	$6,500
Brandon Allen	$5,000	$6,100

Saturday strategy – Derek Carr is the top play. I don’t mind Joe Burrow as long as he isn’t limited by his knee. Josh Allen is a bit of a risk, but his talent is there.

Pay to Play:

Joe Burrow, Bengals vs. LV ($7,300 DK, $7,800 FD)
No QB has been hotter down the stretch than Burrow. If his knee was 100 percent, he might be the play of the slate. That said, he is dinged up, and Vegas is actually fairly strong at covering outside WRs. This is why I prefer to stack him with Tyler Boyd or C.J. Uzomah.

Stay Away:

Josh Allen, Bills vs. NEP ($7,900 DK, $8,800 FD) New England is tough against the pass, and Allen has struggled at home versus the Patriots in his career. His legs should keep him slightly relevant this week, but the price just feels too high with both Carr and Burrow available.

Value Play:

Derek Carr, Raiders @ CIN ($5,800 DK, $6,800 FD)
Cincy has given up the fifth-most passing yards and the third-most completions. They also have allowed 26 passing scores this year. This sets them up as the weakest pass defense on this slate. Carr has thrown for multiple TDs only twice since Week 9, but he gets healthy here in a shootout.

Running Back

	DraftKings	FanDuel
Joe Mixon	$7,100	$8,500
Josh Jacobs	$6,600	$7,200
Damien Harris	$6,400	$7,500
Devin Singletary	$5,800	$6,900
Rhamondre Stevenson	$5,100	$5,200
Samaje Perine	$4,900	$5,100
Brandon Bolden	$4,800	$5,000
Peyton Barber	$4,700	$4,600
Zack Moss	$4,500	$5,200
Jalen Richard	$4,000	$4,700

Saturday strategy – The four highest-priced RBs: Joe Mixon, Josh Jacobs, Devin Singletary, Damien Harris are all great plays. I’d be scared to use any of the backups other than Rhamondre Stevenson or maybe Brandon Bolden.

Pay to Play:

Joe Mixon, Bengals vs. LV ($7,100 DK, $8,500 FD)
Even as the highest-priced RB for the entire weekend, Mixon has a discount price compared to regular season top choices. Vegas allowed the third-most total RB scores this year, including two to Mixon earlier this season. I’ll take a repeat of the 30-123-2 he unloaded on them Week 11.

Stay Away:

Rhamondre Stevenson, Patriots @ BUF ($5,100 DK, $5,200 FD)
I don’t hate Stevenson as a play here, I am just concerned about any ill-effects from last week’s injury. Plus, Bill Belichick could go rogue and use Brandon Bolden again taking value away from Rhamondre. Plus, if Buffalo gets ahead and New England is forced to pass to keep up, Stevenson won’t see the field.

Value Play:

Devin Singletary, Bills vs. NE ($5,800 DK, $6,900 FD)
Singletary has dominated the carries for Buffalo in recent weeks. He also has been the Bills’ primary pass-catcher out of the backfield. That is a huge step up from earlier this year where he was struggling to stay on the field. New England is middle-of-the-pack against the run and downright bad against pass-catching backs. As long as Josh Allen doesn’t step on Singletary’s TD chances, I like him as a sneaky RB2/FLEX play.

Wide Receiver

	DraftKings	FanDuel
Ja’Marr Chase	$7,800	$8,200
Stefon Diggs	$7,500	$8,000
Hunter Renfrow	$6,400	$7,300
Tee Higgins	$6,200	$6,900
Jakobi Meyers	$5,000	$5,900
Tyler Boyd	$4,600	$6,000
Kendrick Bourne	$4,400	$5,600
Emmanuel Sanders	$4,300	$5,400
Cole Beasley	$4,200	$5,500
Zay Jones	$4,000	$5,300
Gabriel Davis	$3,900	$5,200
Nelson Agholor	$3,500	$5,000
Isaiah McKenzie	$3,400	$4,800
Bryan Edwards	$3,300	$5,100
Kristian Wilkerson	$3,200	$4,700
DeSean Jackson	$3,100	$4,900

Saturday strategy –There are three possible WR1 choices: Ja’Marr Chase, Hunter Renfrow, and Tee Higgins (just keep an eye on Higgins as he popped up with a new foot issue on Wednesday). Renfrow is the safest of them, but with less money spent elsewhere, you can target any of them. If you don’t use either of the Bengals up top, then definitely use Tyler Boyd at WR2. The only other options I like there are Jakobi Meyers and the other Bills. Speaking of which, Gabriel Davis is my favorite WR3. Although, I also like Zay Jones and Nelson Agholor.

Pay to Play:

Hunter Renfrow, Raiders @ CIN ($6,400 DK, $7,300 FD)
It is kind of absurd that Renfrow’s price remains so low. He now has five TDs in his last five games, and his target share remains through the roof. It is easy for him to score when he can make opposing defenders look like pretzels in the red zone. This game should be a bit of a shootout, so I want as many pieces of both offenses as possible.

Stay Away:

Stefon Diggs, Bills vs. NE ($7,500 DK, $8,000 FD) Diggs has always performed okay against tough defenses, but this matchup might test him the most. He dominated the COVID-absent Patriots in 2020, but this season he posted only 8-86-1 total over two meetings. This feels like a 5-60-1 game. That is great for your WR2 or WR3, but not so much for your WR1.

Value Play:

Gabriel Davis, Bills vs. NE ($3,900 DK, $5,200 FD)
On a slate with minimal WR value, you need to find a guy who gets a bunch of targets. I’m not happy with the lack of catches and yards the last couple of weeks but he did have 14 targets in Week 18. He also had four scores from Weeks 13-15. New England will give up at least one passing TD this week, I think Davis might have the best chances. Of course, his value will be highest if Emmanuel Sanders remains out.

Tight End

	DraftKings	FanDuel
Darren Waller	$5,700	$6,300
Dawson Knox	$5,100	$6,000
Hunter Henry	$4,500	$5,900
C.J. Uzomah	$3,500	$5,200
Foster Moreau	$3,100	$4,700
Jonnu Smith	$2,700	$4,500

Saturday strategy – On the short slate, only two TEs are great plays Darren Waller and C.J. Uzomah. Everything else feels like a trap.

Pay to Play:

Darren Waller, Bengals vs. LV ($5,700 DK, $6,300 FD)
The top-priced TE is priced like a WR2. Can you really ask for anything more? Oh, yeah, he is facing one of the worst teams in football against the position. Waller will light up this defense for his best game since early this year.

Stay Away:

Dawson Knox, Bills vs. NE ($5,100 DK, $6,000 FD)
New England is hard to score against with TEs. So, of course, both sites decide to price Knox just a pittance below Waller. Knox scored one of the four TE touchdowns that New England allowed this year. He also finished with a total of 4-29 in those two games. There are non-listed backup TEs that I would rather play on this slate.

Value Play:

C.J. Uzomah, Bengals vs. LV ($3,500 DK, $5,200 FD)
Vegas has allowed the third-most TE scores this season at 10. They also are allowing an average of 5.3-60 to the position. Meanwhile, Uzomah is third among Cincy skill position players in targets since Week 12.

Sunday-only Slate

Philadelphia Eagles @ Tampa Bay Buccaneers

The Buccaneers have been one of the league’s worst against the pass all season thanks to numerous defensive backfield injuries. They also have been subpar against rushing QBs. This sets up nicely for Jalen Hurts, who gets my QB4 ranking on Sun-only. Hurts doesn’t have a ton of passing weapons to throw at the Bucs exposed secondary, but his legs should keep him well above value. I like Hurts to finish with two or three total scores and a fair amount of rushing yards to go with just under 200 through the air.

The Eagles are rotten against the run and pretty solid against opposing WRs (especially whoever Darius Slay shadows). Still, this is Tom Brady. He got it done in a tough matchup last week without two of his top three WRs from earlier this year. The big advantage that Brady has here is that Philly is putrid against opposing TEs. Tom has his favorite target in Rob Gronkowski and also Cameron Brate to humiliate Philly. Those two could combine for four TDs this week. Anything that goes to the supplemental pieces is cake. So, even in what appears to be a tricky spot, Brady is the QB1 here.

Ronald Jones is doubtful (and I am certain that he is not playing) but fortunately, Leonard Fournette is ready to resume RB1 duties. Playoff Lenny dominated last season, and I have every reason to believe he will once again. This is an easy start to the 2021 playoffs for him. With no other great RB matchup on this slate, a healthy Fournette gets the RB1 designation. With Fournette back Ke’Shawn Vaughn reverts back to a depth piece. I’ll leave him as an injury play on Showdown lineups. Giovani Bernard may return for this game. He could steal a few targets from Lenny, but not enough to concern me. Even if he suits up, I won’t use him in his first game back. I assume that Le’Veon Bell will be a healthy scratch.

The Eagles have been playing musical chairs with their RBs all season. Now it appears that they may have all hands on deck this week. Both change-of-pace back Boston Scott and goal-line back Jordan Howard missed last week on the COVID list. Also, Miles Sanders may return from his hand injury. If Sanders is back, he could be a volume FLEX play for you, at best. The matchup is awful. He would be no better than RB6 here. I’d almost prefer he misses this game. If so, you could use Scott or Howard as punt-FLEX plays. Scott probably has the best chance at success here since Tampa is hospitable to pass-catching backs. Kenneth Gainwell led the team in Week 18 with everyone out. With everyone back this week, he can be ignored outside of Showdown play, and then, only if Sanders is out.

Mike Evans will likely face the shadow of Slay. He is always reliable for a TD, but he also struggles against premier corners. He is no better than WR5 here. I wouldn’t be surprised if he finishes well below that mark. Tyler Johnson got the bump up to WR2 when Chris Godwin and Antonio Brown left the building. He has the talent to be useful, but he hasn’t been given any real opportunity. In an okay matchup, he can be considered as a WR3 option. I just don’t think that Brady will throw enough passes to any of his WRs this week. The Bucs will also likely be without Cyril Grayson once again. This means that Breshad Perriman and Scotty Miller will man the WR3/4 slots for Tampa Bay. Perriman has had success in previous seasons with lesser QBs. He is actually a better punt WR3 option than Johnson. Miller had some success last season as a fill-in. I could see using him in Showdown slates, but that is about it.

DeVonta Smith is the Philadelphia WR room. Of course, I’m kidding, but he does have nearly 44 percent of the WR targets on the team. Tampa is hideous against the pass and has been particularly bad against opposing WR1s. Smith will actually challenge Evans for WR5 this week. Making him a great WR2 for you. Jalen Reagor was drafted one pick before Justin Jefferson. Let that sink in for a bit as you wonder why Philly hasn’t fired their GM yet. This is a great matchup for WRs, but I still want nothing to do with this festering ball of dog snot. I’d rather take a flier on Quez Watkins or Greg Ward. That said, neither deserve more than a punt-WR3 designation.

The Eagles have been a whipping boy for opposing TEs all season. This week they have to face Rob Gronkowski. This isn’t going to end well for them. Gronk will score multiple TDs this week. My only question is does he score three or more, or does he share one with Cameron Brate? Gronk is the TE1 on this slate, and Brate is the TE7. I like both to score.

Philly has an elite TE of their own in Dallas Goedert. Most weeks, he would be a top-three option. This week, he will be lucky to finish as TE4. The matchup is pretty solid for him, so he could be that guy that you run it back with if you use a game stack of double-TE.

Neither of these defenses belongs anywhere near your lineup this week.

San Francisco 49ers @ Dallas Cowboys

Jimmy Garoppolo is a decent QB. He just doesn’t get the respect he deserves. I truly believe that most of the San Fran faithful would have rather had their team miss the playoffs this year if it meant that the team played Trey Lance more. Dallas has an opportunistic defense, but they also give up many big plays. Garoppolo will likely finish as either the QB4 or QB5 here, but I still like him as a value option.

Dak Prescott is getting hot at the right time. He has 12 TDs over his last three games. San Fran is middle-of-the-pack against the pass, but they have been bested by the top options at the position. Dak definitely qualifies as a top option. I don’t see any way that he doesn’t finish as a top-three scorer among QBs this week.

Dallas has allowed the fourth-fewest RB scores this season. Meanwhile, San Francisco could line up anyone in their backfield and be successful. Eli Mitchell has been the most recent success story for them. He has absorbed 44 touches in his two games since returning from the IR with his knee injury, and he has accrued over 200 yards during that span. Unless he suffers a setback this week, I still like Mitchell to post 100 yards from scrimmage and maybe score a short TD. That is if Deebo Samuel doesn’t vulture him. Jeff Wilson has disappeared with the return of Mitchell. He can be ignored outright. If you need a sneaky play here, consider Kyle Juszczyk. He is minimal salary on both sites and is always a threat to score. In fact, he is a must-start in Showdown contests.

Tony Pollard missed Week 18 with the fallout from his foot injury. He actually played through the pain for each of the prior five weeks. We can only assume that the team decided it was best to let him rest in a non-essential game. It is also possible that it just flared up worse and that he is trending the wrong way. Keep an eye on him up to game time as he could be a decent FLEX play. If he plays, consider him RB6 or RB7. Ezekiel Elliott has played more with Pollard dinged up. His numbers will obviously be better if Pollard doesn’t play, but I expect him to finish as the RB4 or RB5 either way. Corey Clement will act as a change of pace back if Pollard misses this game. He can be ignored here.

Deebo Samuel is the best running back, wide receiver, and possibly quarterback on the Niners roster. He is also the overall top (non-Gronk) option on this slate. You can afford him. Play him as your WR1. Brandon Aiyuk is a decent WR2 play this week, but only if you don’t use Samuel. He has been a steady performer since Week 8. Last week, Los Angeles decided it was a good idea to refuse to cover Jauan Jennings. That didn’t work too well for them. San Francisco has enough weapons to force opponents to devote no more than one person to him. This means that he will continue to be a red-zone threat. I love him as a cheap WR3 option here.

We knew going into the season that Dallas would have three different stars at WR to throw to each week. What we didn’t know is that the third one would be Cedrick Wilson. It seems as if every time one of the starters missed a game, Wilson went off. Now that Michael Gallup is out for the year, Wilson will be an every-down threat the rest of the way. His price makes him the easiest WR3 to choose on any site. Oh yeah, Dallas also has a couple of other WRs named Amari Cooper and CeeDee Lamb. I hear they are pretty good. Lamb hasn’t scored since Week 10. He also has been posting mediocre lines that whole time. His price is too high to justify using here. Cooper is slightly cheaper, but at least he has scored in four of his last five games. He is the WR4 on the slate and a solid WR2 play. Noah Brown and Malik Turner are simply depth pieces. They could be thrown into a Showdown lineup but shouldn’t be used on the main slates.

George Kittle is a stud. This week he faces a Dallas defense that has put up solid numbers against the position except when they have faced stud TEs. On a loaded slate, he is the TE3. That said, his price is cheaper than both Gronk and Travis Kelce’s. In my mind, it makes him a sneaky pivot, one that will not have huge ownership.

Speaking of sneaky pivots, Dalton Schultz is the TE5 on this slate. San Fran does not allow many yards to the position, but Schultz has been doing his best 2019 Tyler Higbee impersonation down the stretch. He will be supremely under-owned this week making him a gorgeous double-TE pairing. Blake Jarwin returned last week, but he didn’t play much. He did let a TD pass fall through his hands, but that was against the TE-coverage-adverse Eagles. I’m not going to waste any time with him here.

I don’t want to use the San Fran defense here, but Dallas could be in play. I expect them to give up a few points, but I also expect a few sacks and maybe a pick-6.

Pittsburgh Steelers @ Kansas City Chiefs

Ben Roethlisberger is a future first-ballot Hall-of-Famer. Unfortunately, it looks like his career may end this Sunday at Arrowhead. KC has allowed a ton of yardage and several TDs (especially on the ground – something Ben is not likely to do) to the position this year. That said, most of those yards and TDs came early in the season before their defense started to click. Big Ben is the QB6 here, and you are really praying he accumulates 300-2 as a ceiling on 80-some-odd pass attempts of five yards or less.

This game could be a bit of a challenge for Patrick Mahomes. Pittsburgh has a decent pass defense and Tyreek Hill may be limited by his heel injury. Still, If Hill is 100 percent, then Mahomes will finish as a top-three QB this week. It is easier to beat Pittsburgh with WRs than TEs, so Travis Kelce could be the trap play here.

Najee Harris is still dealing with some lingering issues from his elbow injury sustained last week. He did return to the game and played through the pain, so his output will be based on pain management this week. Only one team allowed fewer RB touchdowns this year than KC. The one way they have been beaten is by pass-catching backs. Harris is certainly capable of doing damage through the air. If we knew for sure that he would get a full complement of touches, I would make him the RB3 on this slate based on volume alone. That said, we do not know if he will be limited and the matchup is less than optimal. This leaves him as the likely RB4/5 instead. Benny Snell is his backup. If Harris is forced to miss this game, Snell becomes an instant volume play at RB. If Harris plays, Benny becomes only Showdown eligible.

Darrel Williams has actually outproduced Clyde Edwards-Helaire this season. CEH has missed a few games this year with a couple of different injuries, so this is the main reason for the statistical discrepancy. Williams hurt his toe last week, but all signs point to him playing here. CEH is recovering from a shoulder injury, and he should also play, but his status is less certain. If both of them play, neither is better than RB5. If one of them plays they could finish as high as RB3. If neither of them plays, Derrick Gore and Jerick McKinnon could both be in play as a punt FLEX. Otherwise, you can ignore McKinnon and Gore.

Diontae Johnson is my WR2 this week based on volume alone. He gets peppered with passes (usually very short passes), because Big Ben can only throw the ball so far. Chase Claypool is still technically the WR2 for Pittsburgh. That said, he hasn’t done much in the last month. His price is cheap enough to consider at WR3, but I prefer Cedrick Wilson there. Ray-Ray McCloud has actually outproduced Claypool recently. That makes their pricing difference laughable. I feel much better about McCloud here with the cost savings. McCloud also seems to have passed James Washington on the depth charts. Washington had two zero-point showings before missing last week with COVID. If he returns this week, I’ll lose some faith in Claypool and McCloud. Even still, Washington will only be viable in Showdown contests. We also just got word that JuJu Smith-Schuster is back practicing with the Steelers. I doubt he plays this week and even if he does, I doubt he plays enough to be relevant. That said, as a Chiefs fan, I’m kind of hoping that JuJu does play a bit and at least shows that he is healed enough to potentially be a free-agent target for them.

The million-dollar question for KC is, “Will Tyreek Hill be 100 percent this week?” He did play a few snaps last week, and practice reps this week suggest that he will be good to go. This will keep Hill in the WR1 conversation despite a potentially sticky matchup. More importantly, if Hill plays, he will open up the offense for the rest of the KC talent. Mecole Hardman has slid to third on the WR depth chart for KC, but he stands to gain the most if Hill is out. Either way, I like him as a WR3 option here. Byron Pringle has jumped ahead of Hardman in their normal lineup. He is also a great WR3 option this week as Hill and Travis Kelce soak up the heaviest coverage. Demarcus Robinson saw more action last week with Hill limited, but he has been mostly invisible all season. He and Josh Gordon can be left for the Showdown lineups.

Benching Travis Kelce would never be done in a non-DFS environment. This week, I would seriously consider it in the DFS world. The price is higher than Rob Gronkowski’s, despite a much worse matchup. He is always a threat to go off, so don’t completely ignore him. Just know that he may receive even more double-coverage than usual if Tyreek is viewed as limited by the defense.

You could make the argument that Pat Freiermuth was this year’s top rookie TE over Kyle Pitts. A lot of his usage has been because Roethlisberger just can’t throw the deep ball anymore. Kansas City is so-so against the position, but they haven’t faced many higher-end tight ends. He is the TE6 on this slate, but much like Dalton Schultz, I like his potential as the other half of a double- or triple-TE lineup. Zach Gentry has also seen an uptick in targets lately, but with so many better options on this docket, he can be ignored.

Kansas City’s defense will be the top-owned team, and rightfully so. I will have a lot of exposure to them. Pittsburgh could have some value, especially if Tyreek is out or limited. This potential play is aided by the fact that Mahomes can take some unnecessary risks at times.

Here are my Sunday-only Slate recommended lineups:

At DK: $7.2k for Tom Brady, $5.7k for Eli Mitchell, $5.6k for Leonard Fournette, $7.9k for Deebo Samuel, $5.4k for DeVonta Smith, $4.3k for Cedrick Wilson, $6.4k for Rob Gronkowski, $4.4k for Dallas Goedert at FLEX, and $3.1k for the Dallas Cowboys defense.

At FD: $8.4k for Brady, $7.4k for Mitchell, $7.3k for Fournette, $8k for Tyreek Hill, $6k for Wilson, $5.2k for Jauan Jennings, $7.4k for Gronk. $5.9k for Goedert at FLEX, and $4.1k for the Dallas Cowboys defense.

At Fanball (featuring SuperFlex): Brady, Dak Prescott at SF, Mitchell at RB, Fournette at RB, Samuel at WR, Diontae Johnson at WR, Wilson at WR, Gronk at TE, Goedert at FLEX.

Quarterback

	DraftKings	FanDuel
Patrick Mahomes	$7,300	$8,700
Tom Brady	$7,200	$8,400
Dak Prescott	$6,700	$8,000
Jalen Hurts	$6,100	$7,700
Jimmy Garoppolo	$5,300	$6,800
Ben Roethlisberger	$5,200	$6,400

Sunday strategy – Tom Brady is the GOAT. He is also the best play on the entire Sun-only Slate. That said, QB is loaded this week. There isn’t a bad play on the board. Just know that based on price, Brady and Jimmy Garoppolo are the only two that are solid plays on both DK and FD.

Pay to Play:

Tom Brady, Buccaneers vs. PHI ($7,200 DK, $8,400 FD)
As is always the case, Brady has a floor of three passing TDs. Those three TDs will go to the Bucs’ tight ends. If he throws for a fourth or fifth touchdown, too, I wouldn’t be surprised, just know that he will throw for at least the three touchdowns to the tight ends.

Stay Away:

Patrick Mahomes, Chiefs vs. PIT ($7,300 DK, $8,700 FD) I don’t really dislike Mahomes this week. I just realize that he is the priciest QB on the board and is facing a decent defense. Plus, his top WR may not be 100 percent, and his second favorite weapon is locking horns with one of the toughest TE defenses in the league. Mahomes will still probably post 300-3. Just accept that this is his ceiling rather than his floor this week.

Value Play:

Jimmy Garoppolo, Niners @ DAL ($5,300 DK, $6,800 FD) Garoppolo will need to use all of his weapons to stay with Dallas offense this week. Fortunately, he has enough weapons to do just that. Dallas is great at taking the ball away, they are also great at being burned by stud WRs and TEs. I know that Jimmy G. will throw a pick or two. If you can deal with those picks, you will be happy when he finishes with a floor of 250-2.

Running Back

	DraftKings	FanDuel
Najee Harris	$6,600	$8,000
Ezekiel Elliott	$6,100	$7,700
Eli Mitchell	$5,700	$7,400
Leonard Fournette	$5,600	$7,300
Clyde Edwards-Helaire	$5,500	$6,600
Tony Pollard	$5,300	$5,700
Darrel Williams	$5,200	$6,600
Miles Sanders	$5,000	$5,900
Le’Veon Bell	$4,700	$5,000
Boston Scott	$4,500	$5,900
Jeff Wilson	$4,500	$4,700
Ke’Shawn Vaughn	$4,500	$5,400
Kenneth Gainwell	$4,400	$5,000
Jordan Howard	$4,300	$5,200
Benny Snell	$4,200	$4,900
Jerick McKinnon	$4,100	$5,200
Corey Clement	$4,000	$4,900
Derrick Gore	$4,000	$5,400
Giovani Bernard	$4,000	$4,700
Kyle Juszczyk	$4,000	$4,500

Sunday strategy: It is playoff time. That means it is Playoff Lenny time. Leonard Fournette is the top option on this slate despite just returning from his injury. I don’t mind Ezekiel Elliott as a pivot at RB1. Eli Mitchell is my RB2. I could see using Darrel Williams at RB2 if (and only if) Clyde Edwards-Helaire remains out. If Miles Sanders or Najee Harris is out, then Boston Scott and Benny Snell could have some volume-based value in so-so matchups. I’m probably taking my FLEX from the TE position on this slate, so don’t worry about hunting for a third option.

Pay to Play:

Leonard Fournette, Buccaneers vs. PHI ($5,600 DK, $7,300 FD)
How high would Fournette’s price be if he wasn’t coming off of an injury? After spending all season throwing nearly five figures at guys like Jonathan Taylor, imagine being able to have one of the top RBs on this slate for under $7.5k. Philly has allowed 305 total yards and three total RB scores over their last two games. With Ronald Jones almost certainly out, Fournette should have little trouble topping 125 total yards (with five or more receptions) and scoring at least once.

Stay Away:

Najee Harris, Steelers @ KC ($6,600 DK, $8,000 FD)
Harris is facing a KC defense that has allowed the second-fewest total RB scores this past season. The only saving grace for Najee is that KC does give up a fair amount of receptions and receiving yards to the position. That said, I’m afraid the game script will end up hurting Harris’ carry count, negating some of that added receiving value. Plus, we need to be wary of whether his elbow injury won’t affect his workload. At this price, those risks are unaffordable. If Najee does suffer a setback this week, Benny Snell could see some value based on volume alone.

Value Play:

Darrel Williams, Chiefs vs. PIT ($5,200 DK, $6,600 FD)
This is a testament to the fact that there is no real value RB on this board. Williams could be a value, but then only if A) He plays, and B) Clyde Edwards-Helaire does not play. Williams has looked very good when he has played by himself and Pittsburgh has allowed the second-most total yards to opposing RBs this year. Even in a split, Williams is the preferred play. Just know that his stats won’t be as plentiful.

Wide Receiver

	DraftKings	FanDuel
Deebo Samuel	$7,900	$8,700
Tyreek Hill	$7,300	$8,000
Mike Evans	$7,000	$8,200
Diontae Johnson	$6,700	$7,200
CeeDee Lamb	$6,300	$7,300
Amari Cooper	$5,900	$7,100
DeVonta Smith	$5,400	$6,200
Brandon Aiyuk	$5,200	$6,100
Chase Claypool	$4,700	$5,900
Breshad Perriman	$4,600	$5,200
Cedrick Wilson	$4,300	$6,000
Mecole Hardman	$4,100	$5,700
Tyler Johnson	$4,000	$5,100
Byron Pringle	$3,900	$5,400
Quez Watkins	$3,800	$5,100
Jauan Jennings	$3,700	$5,200
Ray-Ray McCloud	$3,600	$4,900
Scotty Miller	$3,500	$5,200
Demarcus Robinson	$3,300	$5,000
James Washington	$3,200	$4,800
Jalen Reagor	$3,100	$4,900
Greg Ward	$3,000	$4,600
Josh Gordon	$3,000	$4,600
Malik Turner	$3,000	$4,600
Noah Brown	$3,000	$4,700

Sunday strategy – With little money spent at RB, I don’t see any way that you don’t play Deebo Samuel at WR1. If you do pivot, I’d recommend Tyreek Hill or Diontae Johnson. WR2 should come down to Amari Cooper, DeVonta Smith, or Brandon Aiyuk (if you don’t play Deebo). WR3 is much harder. Cedrick Wilson is the best choice (assuming you don’t use Cooper). Otherwise, I have no issue with using one of the Chiefs, Quez Watkins, Jauan Jennings, Ray-Ray McCloud, or one of the reserve Buccaneers.

Pay to Play:

Deebo Samuel, Niners @ DAL ($7,900 DK, $8,700 FD)
The weather obviously won’t be an issue in what could be a sneaky high-scoring affair between these two teams. Dallas’ secondary likes to jump routes and pick off passes. This leaves them prone to allowing big plays. Deebo can turn any touch into a big play and gets touches any which way possible. This week, he will score a rushing and receiving TD to go with 125 total yards. Maybe San Fran will give him another passing attempt, too.

Stay Away:

Mike Evans, Buccaneers vs. PHI ($7,000 DK, $8,200 FD) Wait, didn’t you name Tom Brady as your Pay-To-Play QB? Why aren’t you naming his only legit WR as a great start this week, too? Two words, “Darius Slay.” Slay is a stud cornerback who regularly shuts down an opposing top WR. Meanwhile, Evans has struggled at times with shutdown corners. Evans’ size and red-zone rapport with Brady keep his TD potential in play, just don’t expect a big output in terms of receptions and yards. Plus, we know that at least three of Brady’s scores will go to the TE room. This means Evans will be feeding on the scraps this week.

Value Play:

Cedrick Wilson, Cowboys vs. SF ($4,300 DK, $6,000 FD) Wilson is my top WR3 play this week. He has stepped in all season when one or more of the Cowboys’ WRs have been out. Now he has the WR3 role all to himself. San Fran is in the bottom 10 in both receptions and receiving yards among wide receivers. The timing is perfect for another big game for Wilson, who has three TDs in the last two weeks.

Tight End

	DraftKings	FanDuel
Travis Kelce	$6,700	$7,500
Rob Gronkowski	$6,400	$7,400
George Kittle	$5,800	$6,500
Dalton Schultz	$5,000	$6,200
Dallas Goedert	$4,400	$5,900
Pat Freiermuth	$4,200	$5,400
Cameron Brate	$2,800	$4,600
Zach Gentry	$2,700	$4,500
Blake Jarwin	$2,500	$4,300

Sunday strategy – This slate screams double-TE or even triple-TE. I may even break out the dreaded quadruple-TE on FanBall once again here. Rob Gronkowski is poised to break the slate. You need both lineups without him to hedge against the chalk and lineups with him to eat the chalk when he goes off. When you do pivot off of him, any of the other five starters would be fine. Ironically the top TE price-wise, Travis Kelce, is the least safe play among them. Personally, I will be doing a lot of lineup stacks of Tom Brady and Gronk while running it back with Dallas Goedert.

Pay to Play:

Rob Gronkowski, Buccaneers vs. PHI ($6,400 DK, $7,400 FD) If you are a fan of making TD prop bets on sports gambling websites, mash the button on Gronk anytime multiple TD scoring until the button falls off. With a short-handed receiving corps, Gronk will catch at least two TDs and quite likely three (assuming he doesn’t share with Cameron Brate and perhaps even O.J. Howard). Philly has no clue what to do with the TE position (which is a surprise since they are known for having very good TEs on offense). They have been made to look like jobbers all season long, and it isn’t going to improve here. The only reason to not start Gronk at TE is if you are trying to achieve variance. In that case, just choose any of the others. Once you’ve done that, click back on Gronk and put him in your FLEX spot.

Stay Away:

Travis Kelce, Chiefs vs. PIT ($6,700 DK, $7,500 FD)
Kelce is never a true “stay away.” In this case, he is just the most expensive guy, and he has a less than stellar matchup. I still think he will catch a TD and probably post a reasonable line. Just know that if Tyreek Hill is at all limited this week, Pittsburgh will double-team Kelce on every play rather than just most plays.

Value Play:

Dallas Goedert, Eagles @ TB ($4,400 DK, $5,900 FD)
Someone has to score for Philly to keep this game close. Tampa has struggled all season with their pass coverage and, by all accounts, DeVonta Smith is primed for a huge game. Of course, Philly needs more than just Smith to be competitive. You cannot run the ball against Tampa, so I firmly expect that the Philly running game will become the Philly “dump the ball off to Boston Scott and Goedert” game. We could see double-digit receptions for the talented TE. I’m not sure how many yards those will account for, but the PPR points will flow.

Monday Night Game

*Note these players are available in the full-slate tournaments and Sun-Mon tourneys. Since their prices are different for Showdown contests, I will only list their salaries for full-slate tourneys.

ALL PLAYERS	DraftKings	FanDuel
Cooper Kupp	$9,000	$10,000
Kyler Murray	$7,200	$8,200
Matthew Stafford	$6,300	$7,600
James Conner	$6,300	$8,000
Sony Michel	$5,400	$6,700
Christian Kirk	$5,300	$6,100
Odell Beckham	$5,100	$6,200
A.J. Green	$4,900	$5,600
Zach Ertz	$4,700	$5,800
Van Jefferson	$4,700	$5,700
Cam Akers	$4,200	$5,400
Tyler Higbee	$4,100	$5,900
Eno Benjamin	$4,000	$5,300
Rondale Moore	$3,700	$5,000
Antoine Wesley	$3,300	$5,200
Ben Skowronek	$3,000	$4,600

Kyler Murray is a solid full-slate play, but there are several QBs below him price-wise I prefer. So, I won’t have much exposure to him.

One of the QBs priced below Murray that I love is Matthew Stafford. Arizona has been brutal against the pass recently, making Stafford one of the safest floor plays.

A healthy James Conner would only be a C-grade start this week against a decent run defense. Unfortunately, he isn’t 100 percent. He also is overpriced by a lot on FD. I’d almost rather see him miss this game. If he does, then we can roll out Eno Benjamin as a great full-slate bargain RB.

Cam Akers returned in Week 18 but didn’t do a lot. I guess that would be asking for the world for him coming back from such a major injury so quickly. This week his price is low enough that you can definitely take a fli

er on him at FLEX. Sony Michel still led the way on the ground for Los Angeles last week. His numbers weren’t great. That is in line with how he performed in the two prior games against Arizona – mediocre. I have to assume his volume will dwindle more this week, which really hurts his value here.

Christian Kirk was a surprising afterthought last week. This week he will have to deal with Jalen Ramsey. This isn’t a great sign. Normally, I would consider using him as a WR2. This week I’ll pass on him. A.J. Green and Antoine Wesley make much better WR3 options here. Wesley’s value could take a hit if Rondale Moore returns for this game to steal snaps. That said, I’m not overly worried about that happening. Greg Dortch should be left for Showdown consideration.

Cooper Kupp is the top WR play on the full slate. He should be your WR1 and price should not matter. With money savings at QB and RB, fitting Kupp on your roster is easy. If you don’t use Kupp at WR1, you need to have one of Van Jefferson or Odell Beckham at WR2/WR3. They both have a great chance to score here. I have even fumbled with the idea of punting WR3 with Ben Skowronek. Truth be told, I probably won’t use him in the tourneys, but may consider him in Showdown.

Zach Ertz is one of the best of the midpriced TE options on the full slate. I am using multiple TEs this week, so he could easily fill my FLEX role if I use him.

Tyler Higbee is overpriced on FD this week. Plus, I feel people will chase his two scores from Week 18. Don’t be that guy. This isn’t a solid matchup as Arizona is very strong against the position.

The Rams defense DK price may lure you into playing them. You could do worse. Their FD price is a shade high though. The Cards also have a decent price tag but I don’t trust them to be able to stop the Rams offense.

DFS Fantasy Football: Favorite Pro Plays – Week 18

WinDailySports’ CEO Jason Mezrahi checks in with his top Week 18 DFS fantasy football for FanDuel and DraftKings

Top-ranked daily fantasy sports pro Jason Mezrahi, founder and CEO of WinDailySports.com, breaks down his favorite DFS plays at various salary ranges for Week 18 of the NFL season. We are back for another year of DFS domination and we have some new tools to take advantage of from my team over at WinDailySports.com.

These are some of the players Jason will be locking in his lineups on DraftKings and FanDuel for this weekend’s slate.

Quarterbacks

Josh Allen, Buffalo Bills

$8,100 DRAFTKINGS
$8,800 FANDUEL

We finally made it to Week 18, and just like the start of the year, we are scrambling to find the right plays. In Week 17, we had a great week over at WinDailySports.com where we had $50,000, $10,000, $5,000, and a ton of big takedowns from our community. Let us hope to find the right plays this week as well, and it starts with Josh Allen. A lot of the elite quarterbacks may be taking the week off, but Allen has to show up and win this week and that will be the key to picking winners. Find players with something to play for is the starting point of every decision. Allen is in line for a big day against a weak Jets defense with all his weapons on the field. The Bills are projected to score 22-plus points, and I see a ceiling game for Allen here.

Taysom Hill, New Orleans Saints

$6,200 DRAFTKINGS
$7,700 FANDUEL

The sneaky play of the week may be Hill. He was the shiny toy everyone wanted to play in his first two weeks as the starter, but after a couple of down games, he’s now the forgotten man in town. The Saints need a win and some help, so Taysom will do whatever he can in this one to help his team win. The price is right, the running upside is always there, and a matchup versus the Falcons brings in a potential ceiling game. Let’s hope for a big running ame from Hill and some rushing touchdowns to help him exceed value on Sunday.

Running Backs

Jonathan Taylor, Indianapolis Colts

$9,300 DRAFTKINGS
$10,200 FANDUEL

Taylor should be the highest-scoring player of the entire slate. Barring any kind of injury, I am guaranteeing one touchdown. I’m pretty sure he gets two and won’t be surprised if he gets three-plus. This is a must-win spot for Taylor and the Colts, and they will not take their foot off the gas until the game is over. We saw what the Patriots did to this Jaguars defense last while putting up 50 and securing four rushing touchdowns on 181 yards rushing. Give me Taylor for 150 yards and three touchdowns on Sunday, and I will get different in other spots.

[lawrence-related id=463497]

Sony Michel, Los Angeles Rams

$6,000 DRAFTKINGS
$7,700 FANDUEL

Michel is another player in a must-win game. The Rams need this victory, and we should see some fireworks in what should be one of the higher scoring spots of the week if the Niners can keep the pace up. Michel has been locked for touches and targets over the past five weeks, and that shouldn’t change this week. The volume will be there for Michel, and the goal-line touches are the path to value for him. With the Rams projected to win this game and score 24.5, the hope is that Michel finds the end zone once or twice and secures a victory for the Rams while eclipsing 100 yards rushing on Sunday.

Wide receivers

Cooper Kupp, Los Angeles Rams

$9,700 DRAFTKINGS
$10,000 FANDUEL

I’m not sure I can afford Kupp along with Taylor, and I will lean Taylor if I had to choose only one, but Kupp is in a great spot again this week. Same story repeats itself … find great players who are in meaningful games, and that’s the situation for Kupp. Averaging 27.7 points on the year, I’m pretty confident he will want to finish the season with a exclamation point and a big win. Earlier in the season, Kupp went for 11 receptions and 122 yards receiving in a poor overall team performance on the road in San Fran, where the Rams lost by 21 points. I think we see the same Kupp with some touchdowns added and a better overall performance by Matthew Stafford in the Rams. The upside and consistency is always there with Kupp, so try your best to get him in your lineups.

Chase Claypool, Pittsburgh Steelers

$5,100 DRAFTKINGS
$5,800 FANDUEL

The chances are slim, but the Steelers need the win and a lot of help to get into the playoffs. We have Claypool in a must-win spot, and he may be without the target monster Diontae Johnson (COVID) beside him. This should lead to a massive target bump to Claypool, and as long as the weather is not to terrible in Baltimore, I love the value he presents. Baltimore ranks 30th against wide receivers and are giving up a league-worst 281.7 passing yards per game. Claypool should go over 100 yards receiving and have a big game on Sunday as the alpha dog for the Steelers.

Tight ends

Zach Ertz, Arizona Cardinals

$5,300 DRAFTKINGS
$5,600 FANDUEL

There is no safer tight end on the slate to hit value than Ertz on Sunday. He has been a target monster ever since DeAndre Hopkins got hurt, and that will continue to be the trend on Sunday. You can lock in 10-plus fantasy points and not have to pay the premium as you would with Mark Andrews, George Kittle, and Rob Gronkowski. Combine that with the fact you get one of the best matchups on the board against Seattle, and it’s a near lock for me. Another bonus about playing Ertz is he has a controlled environment in a dome, so we don’t need to factor in any weather. The Seahawks are giving up the 31st-most passing yards per game, this is meaningful game for the Cardinals, the price is right, and the upside is there. I will be locking in Ertz in almost all my lineups on Sunday and will be betting some of his props now that New York is finally legalized to bet online.

Cole Kmet, Chicago Bears

$3,400 DRAFTKINGS
$4,900 FANDUEL

If you need value, look to Kmet in a matchup in a dome versus the Vikings who have been getting carved up by opposing passing offenses. The Bears have nothing to play for, but Kmet is young and still trying to prove himself out on the field each week. So, while the team has nothing to play for, Kmet should be out there showcasing his talent. I believe this game has some sneaky upside to shoot over the total. Like I said above, I will be locking Ertz into almost all my lineups, but for the ones I can’t afford him, I may make the pivot down to Kmet.

Good luck in Week 18, and if you ever have any questions, please hit me up on Twitter!

Jason Mezrahi has been a professional, top-ranked Daily Fantasy Player on FanDuel and DraftKings for more than eight years. He has won FanDuel’s $155,555 King of the Diamond competition and placed second in DraftKings’ Fantasy Basketball World Championship, earning him $300,000. He owns and operates WinDailySports.com, which supports the DFS and Sports Betting community with resources such as tools, projection models, expert chat, in-depth written analysis and podcasts, plus much more.

[lawrence-newsletter]

DFS Fantasy Football: Favorite Pro Plays – Week 17

WinDailySports’ CEO Jason Mezrahi checks in with his top Week 17 DFS fantasy football for FanDuel and DraftKings

Top-ranked daily fantasy sports pro Jason Mezrahi, founder and CEO of WinDailySports.com, breaks down his favorite DFS plays at various salary ranges for Week 17 of the NFL season. We are back for another year of DFS domination and we have some new tools to take advantage of from my team over at WinDailySports.com.

Our projection model, lineup optimizer, and data tools have been revamped and back tested to start the season off right. So what I will do in this article is list some of our highest projected players based off raw points and our highest point-per-dollar plays based on DraftKings.com pricing. Special Huddle Member Discount: If you would like to give our membership at Win Daily a try, take advantage of a FREE 2-week promotion where you will gain an all access gold pass to our DFS package. Use promo code “thehuddle” at checkout for 2 weeks FREE for our DFS Gold Package. Sign up now.

These are some of the players Jason will be locking in his lineups on DraftKings and FanDuel for this weekend’s slate.

Quarterbacks

Patrick Mahomes, Kansas City Chiefs

$7,800 DRAFTKINGS
$8,500 FANDUEL

It took all the way to 2022 to put some respect back on his name, but the public once again believes in Mahomes and the Chiefs. Shocking to say this out loud but Patrick is still good at football. Throughout all the ups and downs of the season he has still averaged 23.1 points per game. Now he faces off against an offense that can put up a lot of points as well. I have a feeling the public will choose Burrow over Mahomes because of last week and the cheaper price tag, but I will take Mahomes all day. At this point of the season the Bengals defense has more weaknesses than the Chiefs and I will take the upside here with Mahomes. I believe we see ceiling games from everyone involved in this game, so don’t be hesitant to game stack Mahomes with some pass catchers from both sides on Sunday.

Trey Lance, San Francisco 49ers

$4,800 DRAFTKINGS
$6,400 FANDUEL

Lance is more of a DraftKings only play for me due to his value price tag when compared to FanDuel. We saw it last week with Josh Johnson that you don’t need much to hit value when you carry a $4800 price tag. In 2 starts earlier this season versus tougher opponents than what he’s facing on Sunday, he racked up 15.6 and 20.4 points which would be a great floor for Sunday. Lance provides running upside and the matchup versus Houston is a good one. Due to the fact that the 49ers are coming off a tough loss, in a must win, and their defense has been scored on, I think we see an aggressive game plan for a full 4 quarters from Lance and the coaching staff. There are some studs to pay up for this week so use Lance as your free square on DraftKings.

Running Backs

Ronald Jones, Tampa Bay Buccaneers

$6,300 DRAFTKINGS
$7,000 FANDUEL

Boy was I scared when I saw Vaughn score the first touchdown for Tampa Bay last week. But Jones followed it up with a touchdown of his own with 20 carries for 65 yards in a somewhat tough matchup against a stingy Panther defense. This week should be all systems go with Jones as he faces off against the worst run defense in the league in the New York Jets. This is a great spot for Ronald as the Jets are allowing 141 yards rushing per game and the game script should lean heavy in his favor. I expect a breakout performance in this one and I’m predicting a 100+ yard game with 2 touchdowns so play Jones in both cash games and tournaments.

Damien Harris, New England Patriots

$6,600 DRAFTKINGS
$7,400 FANDUEL

The rule to not draft New England running backs in season long and DFS was broken this year with the emergence of Harris. He won at least one person I noticed last week a million dollars with his 3 touchdown performance versus Buffalo and while I cant expect that again, I still see massive upside at his price in a matchup versus the Jaguars. The Jaguars are just bad and the Patriots really don’t need to expose Mac Jones to much passing as they can literally run for four quarters straight and win this game with ease. Harris is a touchdown machine. So I expect his floor to be around 60 yards and 1 touchdown with my goal being to double both stat categories on Sunday.

Wide receivers

Cooper Kupp, Los Angeles Rams

$9,500 DRAFTKINGS
$10,200 FANDUEL

Cooper needs 231 yards and 18 catches to break single-season receiving records and while I don’t see it happening this week, I also wouldn’t be surprised in the very least. Kupp has been an unstoppable force this year and what he has done is truly remarkable. They say don’t look at the box scores when doing your research but I simply can’t resist. He is on auto pilot and he is the McCaffrey of recent years where matchups and price tags truly don’t matter. Take your 25-35 points and simply get different at a different spot. If you want other motivation than his track record and possible record breaking incentive you can also toss in the matchup against the worst ranked passing defense in the league. If you still want to fade him please go look at what Burrow and the Bengals did to the Ravens last week. Enough said play Cooper Kupp!

Antonio Brown, Tampa Bay Buccaneers

$6,100 DRAFTKINGS
$8,500 FANDUEL

While Cooper will be motivated by breaking records, Antonio will receive $333,000 if he eclipses each of these stat lines. He needs 11 more receptions, 281 more yards, and 2 more touchdowns to make a cool $999,000. The 11 receptions are a lock and could happen this week. The yards and touchdowns will come down to how generous his friend Tom Brady is. Brown went for 10 receptions and 101 yards in his first game back and would have gone for more but this game was over quickly as the Bucs blew out the Panthers 32-6. The Jets defense is not terrible but they will be scored on. As long as Brown is healthy (non-participant on Thursday) I like his chances for a repeat performance and some touchdowns to help him reach his bonuses.

Tight ends

Travis Kelce, Kansas City Chiefs

$7,300 DRAFTKINGS
$8,200 FANDUEL

Kelce, as mentioned above with Mahomes, is still good at football. After a couple of rough weeks he came back with a vengeance with a 10 catch 191 yard 2 touchdown walk off performance versus the Chargers. The Bengals have real trouble defending the tight end (check Mark Andrews box score from last week) and defending the pass in general as they rank 29th in the league. One of the great parts about this matchup is that the Bengals can trade punches as their offense is also one of the best in the league. With no run game from the Chiefs and an over which keeps pushing higher (currently at 51) I want stacks in this game and I think the highest scoring pairing will be a Mahomes/Kelce stack.

Dallas Goedert, Philadelphia Eagles

$5,100 DRAFTKINGS
$5,800 FANDUEL

Goedert has quietly turned around his season with 2 great performances in his last 3 games. Goedert has become Hurts most trusted receiver alongside Smith and a matchup versus Washington should be a nice landing spot for him to post another strong game. Washington has been getting gashed through the air all season allowing the 30th most passing yards per game at 269. In a week 15 matchup versus Washington he caught 7 balls for 135 yards and I would love to lock that stat line in again this Sunday.

Good luck in Week 17, and if you ever have any questions, please hit me up on Twitter!

[lawrence-newsletter]

DFS Fantasy Football: Favorite Pro Plays – Week 16

WinDailySports’ CEO Jason Mezrahi checks in with his top Week 16 DFS fantasy football for FanDuel and DraftKings

Top-ranked daily fantasy sports pro Jason Mezrahi, founder and CEO of WinDailySports.com, breaks down his favorite DFS plays at various salary ranges for Week 16 of the NFL season. We are back for another year of DFS domination and we have some new tools to take advantage of from my team over at WinDailySports.com.

These are some of the players Jason will be locking in his lineups on DraftKings and FanDuel for this weekend’s slate.

Quarterbacks

Justin Herbert, Los Angeles Chargers

$7,200 DRAFTKINGS
$8,400 FANDUEL

Herbert has put the offense on his back and is showcasing elite quarterback skills at such a young age in the league. Averaging 25.2 points per game and 24-plus points in six of his last seven games, Herbert has become one of the best and most consistent quarterbacks in the league. He will most likely be without one of his weapons in Austin Ekeler, but that shouldn’t stop the passing attack too much in a juicy matchup versus the Houston Texans. The Texans are giving up the fifth-most points in the league, and Vegas has the Chargers scoring 28 points on Sunday, which is the highest total on the slate currently. Look for another 25-plus-point game from Herbert in Week 16.

Matthew Stafford, Los Angeles Rams

$6,700 DRAFTKINGS
$7,900 FANDUEL

Stafford has thrown for three touchdowns in three of the last four games and has averaged 22.9 points on the season. With all the value on this slate, I find myself paying up at quarterback and locking up points this weekend. The game versus the Minnesota Vikings should be a fireworks show with two potent offenses squaring off in Minnesota. Vegas has the total set for 49 with the Rams favored by three. The Vikings are involved in shootouts almost every week, thus leading to them ranking 31st against opposing quarterbacks and 29th in passing yards allowed. Stafford to Kupp should be a popular play in cash and tournaments, but there are other spots to get different in Week 16.

Running Backs

Ronald Jones, Tampa Bay Buccaneers

$5,100 DRAFTKINGS
$5,400 FANDUEL

Running back is the spot to lock in value plays this week. With almost all the skilled players for the Buccaneers out due to injuries, this team will be a strong source of value at each position. Leonard Fournette and Chris Godwin are out, and Mike Evans is trending that way, so I will be focusing my attention to Jones, Antonio Brown (if he plays), Rob Gronkowski, and the value plays like Tyler Johnson and Scotty Miller as well. At only $5,100 and $5,400 you won’t find a better game script than Jones and the Buccaneers favored by 10 going up against the Carolina Panthers. I’m not too worried about the signing of Le’Veon Bell, and I will be locking Jones in almost all my lines along with combinations of Brown and Gronkowski.

[lawrence-related id=463191]

Justin Jackson, Los Angeles Chargers

$4,200 DRAFTKINGS
$5,400 FANDUEL

Another value spot to lock in is Jackson with Austin Ekeler landing on the COVID-19 list this week. There will be a lot of moving and shaking this week due to the spread of the virus, and there will be so much value here that we need to pick the right spots. Jackson does pose some risk with Joshua Kelly still in the mix for the Chargers. Once again, we do have the game script in his favor with the Chargers favored by 10 in a juicy matchup versus Houston. The Texans rank 27th against opposing running backs and are allowing a league-worst 145 yards per game. Most of my lineup builds will start with both Jones and Jackson at near minimum salaries at both sites.

Wide receivers

Cooper Kupp, Los Angeles Rams

$9,800 DRAFTKINGS
$9,000 FANDUEL

With all the value on the slate, why not lock in the best wide receiver in the game in a plus-matchup? A lot of people will, but week in and week out people continue to fade Kupp for various reasons. I won’t be fading him versus the league’s worst defense at defending wide receivers. The Vikings are one of the worst defenses on the board, and it’s the reason why the Rams are projected to score 26 points in this game. Coming off back to back 30-plus-point games, I will be locking in Kupp in cash games and playing him a ton in tournaments as well.

Antonio Brown, Tampa Bay Buccaneers

$4,900 DRAFTKINGS
$7,000 FANDUEL

Like I stated above with Jones and what I will repeat below with Gronkowski, Brown is in a marvelous spot this week at his price tag. To get a likely No. 1 receiver at $4,900 on DraftKings is just too much to pass up on. Brown is going to slide right back in and prove his worth this week with Tom Brady by his side. Expect all the targets he can handle, and at his DraftKings price tag and a full point PPR, he is going to be a tough fade for me. On FanDuel, I can see a way to fade and lock in Gronk and Jones instead. For most of my lineup builds, I will have two of the three Buccaneers listed in this article as cornerstones.

Tight ends

Rob Gronkowski, Tampa Bay Buccaneers

$6,200 DRAFTKINGS
$6,700 FANDUEL

With Travis Kelce possibly out with COVID-19 and Kittle off the main slate, Gronkowski is lined up for a big day without possibly Evans and definitely Godwin on the field. Gronkowski had his first down game last week alongside Brady, so look for them both to bounce back after being shut out by the New Orleans Saints. For all the reasons listed above with Brown and Jones, lock in Gronkowski as your cash game tight end and make sure you get some shares in tournaments as well.

James O’Shaughnessy, Jacksonville Jaguars

$3,200 DRAFTKINGS
$5,300 FANDUEL

With all the value on this slate, I don’t think you need to creep down to value tight ends, but if you do, O’Shauhnessy is in a good spot. He is averaging five targets per game over the last four games, and his price is right. The matchup versus the New York Jets is one the Jaguars should take advantage of, but don’t expect more than 10 points in this one. Again, there is so much value with COVID that you don’t need to go cheap on tight end, but the Jets defense rank 25th against tight ends and giving up a league-worst 391 yards per game.

I hope each and everyone of you reading this has a happy holiday and safe and happy start to the New Year!

Good luck in Week 16, and if you ever have any questions, please hit me up on Twitter!

[lawrence-newsletter]

DFS Fantasy Football: Favorite Pro Plays – Week 14

WinDailySports’ CEO Jason Mezrahi checks in with his top Week 14 DFS fantasy football for FanDuel and DraftKings

Top-ranked daily fantasy sports pro Jason Mezrahi, founder and CEO of WinDailySports.com, breaks down his favorite DFS plays at various salary ranges for Week 14 of the NFL season. We are back for another year of DFS domination and we have some new tools to take advantage of from my team over at WinDailySports.com.

These are some of the players Jason will be locking in his lineups on DraftKings and FanDuel for this weekend’s slate.

Quarterbacks

Dak Prescott, Dallas Cowboys

$6,700 DRAFTKINGS
$8,100 FANDUEL

Dak and the passing attack have had rough games in two of the last three weeks, but this should be a get-right spot. With a full complement of weapons now, he is set up for a big week at a nice discount in salary on DraftKings. On FanDuel, I will take the higher floor of Patrick Mahomes or Josh Allen, but the DraftKings discount may be too big to pass up. The matchup is the best on the board as Washington ranks 32nd against opposing quarterbacks and are allowing the 30th-most passing yards. Vegas has the Cowboys projected to score 26, and Prescott has a passing prop of 287 yards. So if Dak can eclipse that passing prop and get us to 300 and three touchdowns, we should be in a great position in both cash games and tournaments.

Taysom Hill, New Orleans Saints

$5,600 DRAFTKINGS
$7,700 FANDUEL

I haven’t looked back and checked yet, but to score 27.7 DraftKings points while throwing four interceptions is a rare occurrence and pretty impressive. The rushing upside that Hill possesses is second to none other than Lamar Jackson, and he scored 27 last week without a rushing touchdown. With Mark Ingram on the shelf with COVID-19, combined with a matchup with the New York Jets, we can easily see a repeat performance out of Hill. Like with Prescott, the price is just too cheap on DraftKings to pass up. Similar to Dak on FanDuel, I may just pay up for Allen or Mahomes, but DraftKings has mistakenly kept his price too low. This is the last week to enjoy the discount, so get a full share of Taysom in both cash games and tournaments on DraftKings.

Running Backs

Austin Ekeler, Los Angeles Chargers

$8,300 DRAFTKINGS
$9,200 FANDUEL

The COVID bug is unfortunately spreading fast through NFL locker rooms, and the Chargers may be extremely short-handed with offensive skill players this week as Keenan Allen and Mike Williams are both leaning on the wrong side of questionable right now. If they are both out, I will be loading up on Ekeler and the cheap receiver options. This slate has a ton of value, and Ekeler is one of the safer pay-up options. Ekeler has a nice matchup against the 25th-ranked rushing defense of the New York Giants. Game script will be in his favor as well with the Chargers favored by 10 and projected to put up 26.5 points as per Vegas. In lineups you want to fade the Taysom Hill chalk, you can play Alvin Kamara and fake Ekeler, but I will be loading up on both in cash games and my tournament lineups.

Javonte Williams, Denver Broncos

$5,900 DRAFTKINGS
$6,700 FANDUEL

With Melvin Gordon on the shelf last week, Williams shined for a 32.8-point performance on DraftKings. The rookie was effective as the lead back rushing for 102 yards and hauling in six catches for 76 yards and a touchdown. If Gordon is out again this week, Williams will be a lock in my lineups at his current price tag with a dream matchup versus the Detroit Lions. The Lions are ranked 30th against opposing running backs, and Vegas has the Broncos favored by nine with a projected point total of 25.5. All in all, this is a great spot for Williams if Gordon sits out, and still a good spot even if Gordon is in.

Wide receivers

Stefon Diggs, Buffalo Bills

$8,100 DRAFTKINGS
$8,200 FANDUEL

The Bills face off against the Super Bowl champs in Week 14, and we could see fireworks if Vegas has this 53.5-point total projected right. With the Bucs favored by 3.5, the game script should be in favor of the Bills’ passing attack. After one of the oddest games ever with high winds in Buffalo, the Bills need to bounce back and get this offense moving in the right direction if they want to make a serious playoff run. Diggs is the No. 1 option in this entire offense, and if the Bills can keep pace, Diggs should be in line for a monster game. With the Bucs ranked 19th against the pass and second against the run, everything points to a big game for Diggs. Without an effective run game to even lean on, I will be loading up on Diggs in both cash games and tournaments in Week 14.

Josh Palmer, Los Angeles Chargers

$3,000 DRAFTKINGS
$4,700 FANDUEL

Like I stated above, the Chargers will most likely be without Allen and Williams, so Justin Herbert will be working with Palmer and Jalen Guyton. The passing attack won’t stop just because the No. 1 and 2 receivers may be out. Herbert will continue to air it out, and we have several cheap options to target. I will be taking shots on Palmer, Guyton, and TE Jared Cook in most of my lineups. Along with Ekeler, I will be looking to load up on a couple of other Chargers as well. If I had to choose only one receiver, I would lean on Palmer in the slot. Without much sample size with the two big dogs off the field, I will be splitting up my shares of the passing attack in Week 14 to play it on the safe side.

Tight ends

Travis Kelce, Kansas City Chiefs

$7,400 DRAFTKINGS
$7,500 FANDUEL

Kelce and the Chiefs put up a ton of points in Week 10 versus the Las Vegas Raiders, and we can expect more of the same this week. If I’m paying up for a tight end this week, Kelce is my go-to guy. My only worry with playing any of the Chiefs’ skilled players is whether or not the Raiders can keep pace in this one. It didn’t matter much in the 41-14 blowout a couple weeks back where Kelce went for eight receptions and 119 yards. If Deebo Samuel is out for San Fran, I would prefer George Kittle. So check back in as the week progresses and you can always check out our free live stream at WinDailySports.com Sunday morning at 11 am.

Jared Cook, Los Angeles Chargers

$3,200 DRAFTKINGS
$5,100 FANDUEL

Out of all the value plays in LA, Cook may be the safest option on the board. Cook already has an established connection with Herbert and his role is set. The play is simple and doesn’t need too much explanation. Presuming the big guns are out for LA, Cook is priced way too cheap, and we have a plus-matchup against the New York Giants. Long story short, the Chargers are the easiest value on the board, so pick wisely and get the right shares of this offense in Week 14.

Good luck in Week 14, and if you ever have any questions, please hit me up on Twitter!

[lawrence-newsletter]