By Will Helms
Once again, we’re stuck with two struggling offenses in a Primetime game (I cannot wait until Thursday to break the cycle) but tonight brings some value on the DFS slate.
I’m here to break that down and give some insight into what my lineups look like tonight on both FanDuel and DraftKings
FanDuel
MVP Options
I actually like the pricing for tonight’s slate on the blue site, with no player outrageously more expensive than others. My main captain option in Justin Fields ($15,000). For all the pushback he’s gotten this season, Fields has quietly put up more than 17 points in back-to-back outings, including a 19.4-point output against a Commanders squad that totally shut down Green Bay’s passing attack.
His rushing upside is great and really helps his chances to be the highest scorer of the night.
The other two guys I’m looking at are the Patriot running backs. With Damien Harris ($12,500) returning, that backfield is a bit more crowded. However, the Bears have struggled to stop the run and if either Harris or Rhomondre Stevenson ($14,000) heats up, each has MVP potential. The two have five combined 15-point games this season, with Stevenson going over 18 points in each of the two games Harris missed.
With Harris less than 100 percent, I’m leaning towards making Stevenson MVP in most of my non-Fields captained lineups, but I may sprinkle in one or two with Harris as MVP.
Value Plays
Because of the lack of truly premier players in tonight’s game, we don’t have to go way low with our value plays. Because of this, I love Hunter Henry at $8000. He has 16 targets in his last three games and hasn’t been overly reliant on touchdowns to score a few points.
If you don’t want or need to go that low, Tyquan Thornton is still only $9000, despite his breakout game last week. He’s a decent value play tonight.
As I typically do in games with a low expected total (Vegas over/under of 40), I may play a kicker in some lineups. I’m leaning towards Cairo Santos, as the Patriot defense has deflated numbers against kickers thanks to the Lions scoring zero on 7 trips inside the 40 a week ago. Both he and Folk are $9000, so take your pick.
DraftKings
Captain Options
I captained Fields on the green site because of his relatively low price-point over there. He’s just the third-most expensive player behind Stevenson and David Montgomery and at $15,600 for a captain, I love the value.
I was still able to play Stevenson and Harris, thanks to an extra value play I really like on DK (I’ll get there in a second). Fields has over 20 passing attempts in each of the last three games, which doesn’t sound like a lot, but represents a huge increase in volume for him.
Given his recent success, I love playing Fields here.
Value Plays
On DraftKings, I always like playing a riskier value play. Here, I chose Velus Jones ($1200). He’s seen an uptick in snaps in recent weeks and has played well on offense (We’re ignoring his muffed punt problems here).
The Bears desperately need a downfield threat and Jones can provide that. This may be the game he breaks out and picks up some serious points.
Notes
I played some combination of Stevenson and/or Harris on every team. I don’t have a strong gauge on how healthy Harris is and it seems the two DFS sites don’t either, with erratic pricing on the Patriot running backs. I faded Mac Jones in most lineups, simply because the Chicago defense has been great against the pass this season and Jones wasn’t exactly lighting it up before his ankle sprain.
In all likelihood, this comes down to which running back (On each team) gets the bulk of the workload and which random receiver catches a few extra passes. A lot of random variation, but a strong core group should position you well to cash.
