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The Oakland Raiders and Detroit Lions will play in Sunday’s first Madden sim at 1:00 p.m. ET. It kick off the second three-game slate of the weekend. We break down the ideal lineup strategy, and you can set your lineup here.
Captain’s Picks
Matthew Stafford, QB, Lions ($15,300)
Stafford should spread the ball around at will against Oakland’s below average secondary. Kenny Golladay, Marvin Jones, and T.J. Hockenson will present a challenge for the Raiders, who also don’t have prolific pass rushers. Safety Lamarcus Joyner is Oakland’s only defensive player with an overall rating above 80. That bodes well for Stafford’s production and Detroit’s vertical offense.
Lions Defense/Special teams ($6,600)
Captaining a defense or backup have been effective strategies in some sims, and I think it could work out well here. Even though Detroit had one of the worst secondaries in the league in real life last season, it has the upper hand here. Tyrell Williams will likely be covered by the highly rated (87) Darius Slay, and the Lions’ second best cornerback is significantly better than Oakland’s WR2. Josh Jacobs doesn’t provide much value as a receiver and we haven’t seen many running backs dominate with the ground game alone. I’m rolling with the Lions’ defense/special teams as a sleeper pick that could really allow you to stack the rest of your lineup.
Flex Men
J.D. McKissic, RB, Lions ($2,600)
We’ve seen Kerryon Johnson get benched for McKissic once before, and it could happen again. The two running backs have similar value because of how focused Detroit is on passing. Why not save big time by picking an RB2 who’s proved he can be just as effective as the starter? If the RB1 isn’t a superstar, it’s better to pick the backup in most cases.
Darren Waller, TE ($8,400)
Waller is the Raiders target with the highest overall rating (85) and has the best catching (94) on the team. Few tight ends in Madden 20 can match his speed and consistency as a receiver. It’s hard to make a case against him with numbers like those.