This is the game of the year. It’s the DraftKings NFL DFS Showdown Slate of the Year. The Ravens and Bills feature the most exciting NFL DFS options. Check out the NFL Divisional Round matchup between the Baltimore Ravens and Buffalo Bills.
Set your DraftKings fantasy football lineups here: NFL Showdown $1M Divisional Finale [$250K to 1st] (BAL @ BUF)
Captain’s Pick
Josh Allen ($17,100): How do they all fit? It can’t be possible to pick Allen, Lamar Jackson and Derrick Henry. They can fit. It requires punts but this is the playoffs. And these quarterbacks pass to punts. Mobile quarterbacks don’t have favorites. They improvise and pass to the open man. Allen and Jackson don’t play favorites. They distribute across the board. If the number on the jersey says you’re a pass catcher, then be ready for some looks. Toss two pass-catching punts into a lineup and Allen’s your captain with the complement of Henry and Jackson.
UTIL Plays
Lamar Jackson ($11,800): Big-time players play big in big-time games. Jackson and Allen have the stats but Patrick Mahomes has the trophies. Jackson and Allen want that action. It’s all on the line. Nothing will be left in the tank. The only question is, “Who to captain?” That’s easy. Build two lineups. What needs to be said about Jackson? Casual fans know he’s an automatic NFL DFS pick on Sunday’s DraftKings Showdown Slate. Don’t overthink it. He runs, passes and wins DFS contests.
Derrick Henry ($11,000): Is it winter? Is it cold? Is there snow on the ground? It’s “Hen-uary” and Derrick Henry is projected to do what he does every season. The late-season dominator doesn’t have an easy matchup. The Bills rush defense is fourth in Expected Points Contributed by Rushing Defense. But it doesn’t appear to matter because they allowed the fifth-most fantasy points to opposing running backs. It’s the playoffs. Forget the matchups. No one has it easy. The soft teams are at home watching along with the rest of us. Some of the Bills might wish they were on the couch, too. Henry scored two touchdowns and rushed for 209 yards on 27 carries in the Ravens-Bills Week 4 matchup. The Bills don’t want to get run over by Henry again but they will be. It’s coming. Winter is coming.
Curtis Samuel ($2,400): This is the key to unlocking the slate. It’s one part of the double punt. Tylan Wallace ($1,000) is the riskier complementary piece that frees up salary. Samuel isn’t too much of a punt. Samuel scored 12.2 FPTS in the regular-season finale. He followed with 15.8 FPTS in the Bills’ Wild Card Weekend win. Half of that production will get the job done on this NFL DFS slate.
Fades
James Cook ($9,600): The bold will fade one of the big three. Mass-entry players will fade one of the big three in the many combinations of lineups they run. What about the rest of us? Cook is the odd man out. Cook isn’t cooked. He could cook. He rushed for over 1,000 yards and scored 18 touchdowns. That’s not making dinner. It’s not cooking Thanksgiving dinner. That’s a three-star Michelin restaurant. Fine dining is expensive. The calculus of Cook’s cost can’t be equated. He doesn’t work with the big three. Aside from price, Cook is TD-dependent. Scoring isn’t easy in the playoffs. Scoring isn’t easy against the Ravens’ No. 1 rush defense.
THE OUTCOME
Who wins? We all win. We’ve been given a gift. Two future Hall of Fame quarterbacks will run, pass and create. It’s a playmaker’s game. One of the greatest running backs ever could be rumbling through the Buffalo snow. Unfortunately, there must be one loser. Allen or Jackson will come up short again. Take the home dog.
Final Score: Bills 34, Ravens 33
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