If the Super Bowl matchup set to kick off in New Orleans on February 9 seems familiar, that’s because it is. The Kansas City Chiefs and Philadelphia Eagles are slated to meet for the second time in three years, with the Chiefs seeking to lift their third straight Lombardi Trophy and Saquon Barkley and Jalen Hurts their first. The Eagles duo will have plenty of help, as wide receivers A.J. Brown and DeVonta Smith are no slouches either and the defense is arguably the NFL’s best.
As the best day of the NFL season approaches, DraftKings Network is keeping you updated with cheat sheets on all major players, just like this one.
Of course, DraftKings offers a wide variety of ways to get in on the action for the big game, including an array of prop bets and, of course, a massive Showdown DFS contest with a million dollar first prize.
Here’s everything you need to know about Smith in advance of Super Bowl LIX.
DeVonta Smith Prop Bets
Receiving Yards: Over 50.5 (-112)
Receptions: Over 4.5 (-107)
Longest Reception: Over 20.5 (-115)
First TD Scorer: +1700
Anytime TD Scorer: +245
2+ TDs: +2200
DeVonta Smith Best Prop Bet
DeVonta Smith Anytime TD Scorer (+245)
Smith hasn’t found the end zone since Week 17 of the regular season, since he scored a pair of touchdowns in a 41-7 demolition of the Dallas Cowboys. To be fair, he’s only been targeted 12 total times in three playoff games as Philadelphia has chosen to run the ball aggressively. But the Eagles’ three opponents so far had average or below-average run defenses: the Green Bay Packers (20th in fantasy points allowed to running backs during the regular season), the Los Angeles Rams (13th), and Washington Commanders (19th). Meanwhile, Kansas City’s run defense is the second-best in the league, which should incentivize quarterback Jalen Hurts to be aggressive through the air.
Smith is extremely versatile, lining up on both sides of the field, on the outside, and in the slot, and the Chiefs’ secondary has shown some vulnerabilities in the postseason. All-Pro Second Teamer Trent McDuffie is Pro Football Focus’ second-graded cornerback, but he has allowed a 118.1 passer rating and one touchdown on 13 targets in Kansas City’s first two postseason games. Meanwhile, slot corner Chamarri Conner, who PFF projects to line up against Smith on a plurality of snaps, has allowed catches on all five of his targets, good for a 118.7 passer rating. Smith’s overall (26.6%), red zone (16.4%), and end zone (14.8%) target shares were all second on the team, and this season, the Chiefs allowed 19 touchdown passes to wide receivers, tied for the sixth-most in the league.
DeVonta Smith DFS Analysis
Captain: $11,100 | FLEX: $7,400
I wouldn’t consider Smith as Captain, given that the Eagles are still likely to hand the ball off to Saquon Barkley enough to limit the fantasy ceiling of any Philadelphia pass-catcher. I’m not even sure that I would choose Smith over his teammate A.J. Brown ($9,600), given that Brown had his first good game of the postseason run in the NFC Championship.
Still, the Chiefs’ secondary is beatable, as outlined above. Part of it is a function of volume — teams threw against them more frequently than against the median squad because their run defense is so good — but overall, Kansas City conceded just the 16th-fewest fantasy points to opposing receivers. They were the sixth-worst defense against tight ends, so maybe Hurts will lean heavily on Dallas Goedert ($5,800) too, but if Barkley is at all slowed down in the early going or if the Chiefs open up a lead and force Hurts to throw, both Smith and Brown should have plenty of FLEX viability as well.
Set your DraftKings fantasy football lineups here: NFL Showdown $5M Super Bowl LIX Millionaire [$1M to 1st] (Super Bowl)
