The Pro Bowl is obviously very tough to gage when it comes to fantasy purposes. The production could come from anywhere, so where just have to do our best to give ourselves the most scoring chances. That means projecting which players will be on the field the most, and have the most incentive to play hard. Here are some of the more expensive plays ($5,500 and up) that standout on the slate.
Lamar Jackson ($10,000), AFC
Of all the QB options to pay up for, going all the way up for Jackson makes the most sense. It’s his first Pro Bowl, and he’ll be getting the start for the AFC. While QBs rarely run in the Pro Bowl, Jackson is the one guy that I could see making a monster play on the ground. The QBs in this game don’t have many of their own targets as their Pro Bowl teammates, but Jackson leaned heavily on Mark Andrews ($6,000) this season, so you could consider stacking the two. Another interesting note — If you captain Jackson for $15,000, you can use the rest of your salary to roster the other five QBs playing in the game and get exposure to 100% of the passing attempts.
Michael Thomas ($9,400), NFC
Thomas is the only other target in the game that will have his QB (presumably) get some chances to throw him the ball. You’re burning a lot of salary here, but there are the value plays to pay up somewhere, and MT could be a good pivot play off Jackson. Jackson’s obviously dangerous, but if he takes it easy and lays an egg as a pocket passer, Thomas catching one TD could make a huge difference in cashing.
Keenan Allen ($7,000), AFC
Some of these plays in the Pro Bowl take a lot of research to justify why they may get the best opportunity. Others are elementary logic, which is how I landed on Allen. From scrolling through box scores, he’s generally showed up in these games. He led the AFC with four receptions for 95 yards last year.
Amari Cooper ($5,800), NFC
Cooper is a cheaper way to get exposure to the deep ball for the NFC. He played in the game last year, when the NFC got smoked by a score of 26-7. Seven points in a Pro Bowl is pretty embarrassing, so I’d expect some of the returning players to look to turn that around. As the WR3 for the NFC, Cooper could see more snaps than the starters.
I am an avid fan and user (my username is jedlow) and may sometimes play on my personal account in the games that I offer advice on. Although I have expressed my personal view on the games and strategies above, they do not necessarily reflect the view(s) of DraftKings and I may also deploy different players and strategies than what I recommend above. I am not an employee of DraftKings and do not have access to any non-public information.