NFL Draftkings Picks
Thank goodness we have DFS so we can start all over again fresh in Week 16. Covid is still impacting games and there are other injury situations to monitor on top of and as always, be sure to check the inactive lists and follow the breaking injury news. It can often result in a “free square” for your lineup. Each week FantasyData will bring you 20 players that we like for the Draftkings Sunday main slate. Let us get right to it.
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Studs to Splurge For
Here we will highlight two players at each position that are in the top-five of their respective position and are deemed worthy of “paying up” for in your lineup. Please note these players will likely be highly owned so if you are looking to differentiate, you will want to pull more players from the next two sections.
Quarterbacks
Tom Brady | $7400 | TB @ CAR
Tom Brady was shut out in Week 15 for the first time since 2004. That is an insane stat. Look for Brady and the Bucs to bounce back in Week 16 against the division rival Carolina Panthers. We have all seen angry Tom before. It does not usually end well for the opposition. In Week 10 of 2020, the former Patriot put up 31.8 DK points versus Carolina. Despite the poor performance, the future Hall of Famer is averaging 24.6 points per game. Ownership will likely be low due to price and the fact that both Chris Godwin and Mike Evans will likely be out. This is a spot where you can leverage the field if Brady does Brady things.
Justin Herbert | $7200 | LAC @ HOU
Justin Herbert has been about as consistent as they come of late. The Oregon alum has had five straight games of 24.04 DK points or more, including a 38.28 point performance in Week 11 versus the Pittsburgh Steelers. The matchup does not look great on paper as Houston ranks 11th against the position. A big reason for this is how bad they are against the run. Austin Ekeler is battling Covid and may not be available for this one, leaving the Chargers to have to attack through the air more. Herbert can also get you added points with his legs. There is a bit of value here as well as he is second in points per game but priced as the fourth most expensive quarterback.
Running Backs
Dalvin Cook | $8300 | LAR @ MIN
The Chicago Bears did what they usually do when Akiem Hicks is in the game and that is shut down opposing running backs. Dalvin Cook still put up 11.1 points and ran for 89 yards on 28 carries. The Los Angeles Rams come to town in Week 16 and are allowing 22.1 DK points per game to running backs over the past five weeks, including 33.5 to James Conner in Week 13. The Vikings will likely want to control the clock in this one to keep Matthew Stafford and Cooper Kupp on the sidelines as much as possible. A heavy dose of Cook is the most likely scenario here to do so.
**Dalvin Cook Put On COVID-19 List, Out For Week 16
Minnesota Vikings running back Dalvin Cook was placed on the Reserve/COVID-19 list on Thursday. Cook is unvaccinated, so he’s not expected to play on Sunday against the Los Angeles Rams. Unvaccinated players must quarantine for 10 days for a positive test and five days if they are a close contact. The hits just keep coming during the fantasy football playoffs. Cook’s fantasy managers must now look in another direction, but hopefully, they have Alexander Mattison, who just returned from the COVID list himself on Wednesday. Although the Rams defense has allowed just under 100 rushing yards per game this year, Mattison should immediately step in and provide RB1 upside to fantasy managers this weekend. The last time he started in place of Cook, Mattison had 22 carries for 90 yards and a TD and added three catches for 34 yards in Week 13.
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Cordarrelle Patterson | $6700 | DET @ ATL
We highlighted Cordarrelle Patterson here last week and he was disappointed with just 4.3 DK points. Look for him to get back on track in Week 16 against a Detroit Lions defense that gets beat up by the running back position. The Lions rank 29th against the position and have given up big numbers to multiple backs of late. A big reason for the poor performance in Week 15 was the game script. The Falcons fell behind early and the Swiss army knife only saw 11 carries. The workload and targets should increase in Week 16 at home against a beatable opponent.
Wide Receiver
Cooper Kupp | $ 9100 | LAR @ MIN
The price is getting a bit high on Cooper Kupp, but at this point how do we not play him? The highly targeted wideout has 29.9 DK points or more in three straight and averages an insane 28.4 points per game. The matchup is about as good as it gets as the Vikings are dead last in the league versus the position. Kupp leads the league in receptions, yards, and touchdowns. It is a rare feat for a player to get the triple crown in football. Fade him at your own risk in Week 16.
Justin Jefferson | $8100 | LAR @ MIN
If you do not think the Vikings will be able to grind clock and lean on Dalvin Cook, then Justin Jefferson is a good alternative. Adam Thielen is still not practicing. Jefferson is 9th in the league in targets with 122 and is averaging 20.9 DK points per contest. The stud wideout gives us the high ceiling and high floor that we look for in DFS plays. You can usually expect at least 15 from the second-year receiver but he is always capable of putting up 30 or 40 on any given Sunday. Many will likely shy away due to the matchup but you can count on double-digit points regardless.
Tight End
Mark Andrews | $7000 | BAL @ CIN
Rob Gronkowski | $6200 | TB @ CAR
We mentioned in the open that Tom Brady will be without Mike Evans and Chris Godwin in Week 16. The absence of two of the top targets in Tamps should lead to a ton of looks heading Rob Gronkowski’s way. Gronk saw a season-high 11 targets in Week 15 after the departure of the two stud receivers. Look for that number to be even higher this week as the options will be subpar for Brady in this one. The price is a little higher than we would like, but there is no denying the amount of volume that the former Patriot should see.
Sleepers to Separate From the Pack
Up next we give you some players to help differentiate your lineup from the masses and give you the edge you need to compete in some of the bigger tournaments. Just like the section above, we highlight two players at each position except now instead of studs, you get players that are expected to be less than 10% owned on the main slate.
Quarterbacks
Joe Burrow | $5900 | BAL @ CIN
Joe Burrow is coming off a game versus the Denver Broncos that saw him attempt only 22 passes. Up next is a tasty matchup with the depleted secondary of the Baltimore Ravens. The Ravens rank 26th against the position and have allowed 9th most points to quarterbacks over the past five weeks. Burrow went off for 30.64 in the first meeting of the division rivals. The ownership will likely be low here due to the poor Week 15 performance and we should see 20 points or more from the LSU alum in this one. The price is too low to ignore on this one.
Ben Roethlisberger | $5500 | PIT @ KC
Another cheap play with upside is Ben Roethlisberger. Big Ben disappointed last week against a poor Titans secondary putting up just 11.92 DK points. The Kansas City defense has been much improved over the second half of the season and the Steelers are going to have to attack through the air to stay competitive in this one. Their playoff lives are on the line and you can bet the team will be giving it their all on Sunday in an AFC battle royale. Expect Roethlisberger to bounce back much as Burrow will.
Running Backs
David Montgomery | $5700 | CHI @ SEA
The passing game usage for David Montgomery of late makes him appealing here. Over the past three games, Montgomery has seen 22 targets and caught 19 of them. Seattle ranks 31st against the run in 2021. While the numbers are not great the last two games, we did see 28.1 from the Iowa State grad in Week 13 versus the Arizona Cardinals. Justin Fields is nursing an injury from the end of their last game and might be in handoff mode most of the game and the way to attack the Seahawks is on the ground. The price is solid here for the upside.
Devin Singletary | $5100 | BUF @ NE
Devin Singletary has taken back over as the lead back for the Buffalo Bills and saw 22 carries in Week 15 versus a good Carolina run defense. This also marked the second straight week that he reached double digits. The New England Patriots can be run on. We all saw what Jonathan Taylor did to them in primetime last Saturday night. New England also allowed Dontrell Hilliard to put up 19.3 DK points against them in Week 12. In that same game, D’Onta Foreman also posted 11.2. Singletary will likely get the bulk of the carries yet again in Week 16 making him a great play at just $5,100.
Wide Receiver
Tee Higgins | $6200 | BAL @ CIN
Ja’Marr Chase gets all the hype for the Bengals, but Tee Higgins has been getting all the targets. We mentioned earlier that Joe Burrow only attempted 22 passes in Week 15. That led to just three targets for Higgins last week. Before that, the second-year wideout had seen 8, 14, and 7 targets respectively. The Ravens secondary is in shambles and they are stout against the run. This all adds up to a high likeliness of double-digit targets for Higgins. In their first meeting back in Week 7, he saw a season-high 15 targets.
Van Jefferson |$5500| LAR @ MIN
If you are not wanting to pony up for Cooper Kupp in this one, Van Jefferson (or OBJ) are cheaper, high upside options against an atrocious Viking secondary. Week 15 saw a streak of touchdowns in three straight games come to an end for the breakout wide receiver. In each of those three games, Jefferson was over 14.8 points and has that kind of potential at a low cost in Week 16. This game has a total of 49 so there will be plenty of points scored in this one. Jefferson and OBJ are a nice pivot at much less of a cost than what is sure to be a very highly rostered Cooper Kupp.
Tight End
Cole Kmet | $3300 | CHI @ SEA
Cole Kmet has quietly seen his usage increase in 2021. Over his past four contests, the Notre Dame alum has seen 32 targets, good for an average of eight per game. The only thing that has been lacking is the touchdowns. There is a chance the second-year tight end could get his first one of the season on Sunday against a Seattle team that ranks 27th against the position. Kmet is coming off a 13.1 point performance against the Minnesota Vikings, and at just $3,300 does not need much to hit value in this one.
Dan Arnold | $2900 | JAX @ NYJ
You will have to watch the news on this one, but the Jacksonville Jaguars reinstated Dan Arnold from injured reserver this week. Arnold was on his way to a solid season before a knee injury sidelined him for the past few games. The New York Jets rank 25th against the tight end position and the former Panther was being targeted heavily by Trevor Lawrence before his injury. At just $2,900 we do not need much from him at all and it allows us to pay up for other studs like Cooper Kupp or Mark Andrews (flex/TE). The percent rostered should be close to zero as well giving us even more leverage.
Fantasy Data Favorites
In this section, we will give you one play from each position for the week that we like the most. This will be a player that likely will give you a high upside at a lower cost than their counterparts and also come with a low ownership projection. Here you go!
Quarterback
Jalen Hurts | $6400 | NYG @ PHI
We are going with a bit of a stack with our favorites for this week. The Philadelphia Eagles came out of the bye week looking very good against the Washington Football Team. It all started with signal-caller Jalen Hurts. The versatile quarterback fell just short of putting up 30 points for the second time in three games. The game he did not achieve that mark was against these same New York Giants. You can bet he remembers that game and will be looking to put up some good numbers yet again in Week 16 against his division rivals. The Giants rank 17th against the position so the matchup does not scare us off.
Running Back
Miles Sanders | $5600 | NYG @ PHI
We are adding Miles Sanders to the stack simply because of the price and the matchup. Sanders will likely be highly rostered, and rightfully so. The Penn State grad is coming off back-to-back 100-yard performances and 20.2 and 19.6 DK performances respectively. The Giants rank 25th against the position and might be starting Jake Fromm at quarterback in this one. If the Eagles get a lead early like they should look for them to ride Sanders to the finish line.
Wide Receiver
Amon-Ra St. Brown | $5600 | DET @ ATL
Another great value is Amon-Ra St. Brown. The rookie has seen 35 targets over his past three games. D’Andre Swift may be coming back this week which could, in theory, draw some targets away from him. Regardless, a matchup versus an Atlanta Falcons team that ranks 29th against the wide receiver position is hard to ignore. St. Brown has also caught touchdowns in two of three and was over 23.5 DK points in both of them. This is a game between two bad teams and should see lots of points scored despite having a total of just 42.5.
Tight End
Dallas Goedert | $5100 | NYG @ PHI
The third and final piece of our Philly stack is Dallas Goedert. As is the case with Miles Sanders, Goedert has gone over 100 yards in consecutive weeks. At just $5,100, this is highway robbery. Goedert has posted 31.5 and 23.5 DK points over his past two and had a two-touchdown game against the New York Jets in Week 13. The upside here is immense. The total cost of the Eagles stack is just $17,100, leaving you $32,900 or $5,483 per remaining player, including a defense. Philly has an implied total of 25.25 points which is one of the highest on the slate but they may fly under the radar. No pun intended.
Summing It All Up
As we all know, football is unpredictable, we make these picks using the data available to us at fantasydata.com and try to help our readers make educated, thoughtful decisions when creating their DK lineup. If you find this helpful or have any comments, be sure to notate them below. Thank you for reading.
