What’s that under the tree? Oh, a two-game NFL holiday slate. I was hoping for a vintage Danny Woodhead jersey, but this works too.
DraftKings is offering a special primetime Christmas DFS contest for the chance to win $200,000. I’ve gone through the showdown contest and identified a trio of under-the-radar players that can help give you a critical edge.
Set your DraftKings fantasy football lineups here: NFL $1M Christmas Special [$200K to 1st] (Wed)
DraftKings Showdown Value Picks
Xavier Worthy ($5,600)
Kansas City might’ve done it again. They seem to be the most uninspiring 14-1 bunch in league history, stringing together uninspiring performances and consistently inventing new ways to squeak by the competition. The passing attack actually has a better EPA per pass than last season, but visually, they’ve looked like a unit struggling to find cohesion—until now. Rookie Xavier Worthy has started progressing rapidly in recent weeks and is beginning to emerge as the downfield weapon this group has sorely missed.
Worthy has had consecutive showings with at least 19 fantasy points and 11 targets. At the start of the campaign, it appeared Andy Reid was doing everything he could to open up his young threat. Worthy was often in motion or getting designed looks, but now, he’s starting to learn the position and create separation from his own abilities. Pittsburgh has been increasingly weak on the back end and has no answer for the speedster on the perimeter—this is a high-upside swing with promising returns.
Russell Wilson ($5,500)
Russell Wilson has been cooking a serviceable spiral ham. If anyone says it’s their favorite, they are lying to you, but no one at the family gathering will complain about it too much, either. Are there superior options? No doubt, but even if Grandma only brings half of her unbelievable desserts, the ham can stand on its own for a short period of time.
At this point in his career, Wilson is incredibly matchup-dependent. He’s nearly the exact same check-down or go-ball merchant he was in Denver, with superior infrastructure and PR. That formula has looked a bit ugly without George Pickens, but Wilson’s ceiling should elevate a few notches with WR1 set to return to the lineup. The club’s likely path to victory is through the air against a shaky KC pass defense, which gives Wilson the projected volume needed to be a quality signal-caller play in your lineup.
Mark Andrews ($4,300)
Remember when Mark Andrews had the third-most tight end yards in Baltimore at the start of the campaign? That feels like eons ago, but the veteran Pro Bowler has totally burst out of his slump and has been a DFS darling across the last month. Andrews has been a scoring machine, finding the end zone five times in his last six outings, with nine in total on the season. His scoring outburst has translated to fantasy, where he’s routinely exceeding his pre-assigned value.
Even if he’s touchdown-dependent, he’s so gifted near the goalline that it shouldn’t be considered a detriment. Houston’s boundary corners are playing at an elite level, so the Ravens should rely on the run game and quick completions to move the rock. Andrews is a safety valve underneath and presumably sees an uptick in workload.
Set your DraftKings fantasy football lineups here: NFL $1M Christmas Special [$200K to 1st] (Wed)
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All odds provided by DraftKings Sportsbook, lines and odds subject to change.
I am a promoter at DraftKings and am also an avid fan and user (my username is xaiver-aguiar) 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 do not constitute a representation that any particular strategy will guarantee success. All customers should use their own skills and judgment in building lineups. 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.
