It’s the playoffs but Fantasy Football season doesn’t end on DraftKings with Daily Fantasy Sports contests. The NFL Wild Card Weekend DFS main slate lineups are mostly locked in. The Sunday Night NFL Showdown Slate provides another opportunity to build NFL DFS lineups and win a piece of $750K. Check out the NFL Wild Card Weekend Sunday Night Football matchup between the Washington Commanders and Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Set your DraftKings fantasy football lineups here: NFL $750K Sunday Night Showdown [$200K to 1st] (WAS @ TB)
Captain’s Pick
Baker Mayfield ($14,700 CP): The former No. 1 NFL Draft Pick took the Browns to the playoffs in 2020. A year later, they sent the pick packing. Mayfield bounced around the league and landed in Tampa Bay last season. He’s back in the playoffs after back-to-back 4,000-yard seasons. His QB Rating increased from 94.6 to 106.8 and his touchdown passes jumped from 28 to 41. Mayfield is 29. He’s entering his prime. His past is checkered but development is not linear. The past is the past. One thing that has never changed is Mayfield. He’s a gamer. There will be meltdowns. He can get nuked or nuke. That’s the NFL DFS play that wins slates.
UTIL Plays
Mike Evans ($10,800): If Mayfield is captain then Mike is the copilot. They’ve got to go together. Playing one without the other is a galaxy-brain play. Don’t overthink it. There’s no need to split the atom. If Mayfield nukes the slate, then Evans explodes. No one can stop Evans and certainly not the dusted Marshon Lattimore. If anything, the WR-CB rivalry will bring out the best of Evans. Playoff football is nothing new. Evans knows what to do.
Bucky Irving ($10,000): Everyone is playing Bucky this weekend. He’s among the most popular NFL DFS picks on the main slate. If he’s a top pick in a bigger pool, he’s a must-play in a small pool. Bucky is the Bucs. The offense runs through him. The stories are Baker and Evans. The stats are Irving. This is football. The run game opens up the passing game. So goes Bucky, so goes Baker. The Bucs know. The winning formula is to feed Irving. The rookie rushed for over 1,100 yards and caught 47 passes. Those are impressive numbers in today’s NFL. They’re unbelievable numbers from a fourth-round pick. But that’s the Bucs. They’re misfits — late-round picks and players who have been dismissed. The Commanders are the shiny toys that pick up ownership. The Bucs are the neglected, worn-out Teddy Bear that gets the job done. Win bucks with the Bucs, and Bucky is that Buc.
Jayden Daniels ($11,000): The Bucs may grit this game out. That doesn’t change the fact that Daniels will do damage. The rookie is special. He is a future superstar if he’s not already. What more does he need to do? He’s an elite rusher and passer. In DFS, that’s all that matters. The conundrum of the Sunday Night Football Showdown Slate on DraftKings is not about who will produce. It’s how can they all fit. They can’t. There’s going to be fades and value plays. The value picks will be sick. But one will hit. One will find the goal line. It could be random. Jaden Daniels is not random. He could form an optimal tandem with the random. But the tandem begins with Daniels.
Fades
Brian Robinson Jr. ($8,000): This is low-hanging fruit but an important Public Service Announcement. There’s a DFS player out there preparing to go full galaxy brain. Dear player, don’t play Robinson. His rushing prop is 45.5 yards. He does not project to be a big part of the offense because he hasn’t been––he could be. He has the talent, but he doesn’t have the line. Also, Daniels has much more talent and talented pass catchers. It’s win or go home. The Commanders are putting the ball in Daniels’ hands. Robinson’s hands nearly cost the Commanders the game in their win over the Eagles — two fumbles lost. His yards per carry have dropped off towards the end of the season.
THE OUTCOME
The Commanders look good on paper. Jayden Daniels is one of the most exciting rookies in years. That’s the problem. He’s a rookie. This is easily the biggest game of his career and he never played in any big games in college. He might be fine but he needs to shine. Mayfield won’t shine, but he’ll grit it out.
Final Score: Buccaneers 27, Commanders 24
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I am a promoter at DraftKings and am also an avid fan and user (my username is greenflagradio2) 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 skill 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.
