GPPs are not won by using a lineup with all the most popular players on the slate. Being a contrarian in a big-field event in your roster construction can help separate your lineup and gain you leverage over the field when some of the more popular names bust.
Hence, the goal of this article won’t be to just highlight the popular “play-it-safe” names. We won’t avoid all the chalky names, because good players are still good players most of the time. However, highlighting contrarian roster constructions and ways to make your lineup unique while maximizing upside will be the goal.
Remember, in most cases, the person who finishes in 10,000th place and the person who finishes in 1,269th place receive the same amount of money in many of these larger field contests, so there is no reason to simply follow the crowd to feel comfortable.
Let’s dive into Week 11 of the 2025 NFL season.
Set your DraftKings fantasy football lineups here: NFL $2.5M Fantasy Football Millionaire [$1M to 1st].
Top DFS Contrarian Stack
Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Buffalo Bills
Baker Mayfield ($6,400) – Emeka Egbuka ($7,200) – James Cook ($5,800) – Tez Johnson ($7,300)
The Buccaneers’ rush defense was exposed last week, allowing 147 yards and two long rushing TDs to rookie TreVeyon Henderson. Despite some positive underlying metrics, they’ve been beaten by a few elite RBs and have a tough matchup against James Cook in Week 11, who is in a great rebound spot. Cook managed only 53 yards and less than 12.0 FPTS in an easy matchup against Miami in Week 10, but should bounce back here. Overall, he’s scored 23.0 or more FPTS four times this season, making him a good target in a game with a solid 47.0 total score as of now.
On the other side, this also presents a potential breakout opportunity for the Buccaneers’ passing game. While Baker Mayfield has scored under 20.0 FPTS in three of his last four games, he looked healthier last week, throwing three touchdowns in the Buccaneers’ loss to New England. Buffalo’s lack of a true shutdown corner could also hurt them this week against the Bucs’ star rookie Emeka Egbuka. Egbuka has been battling injuries but had a big game against the Patriots with 115 yards and a touchdown on 13 targets. He will again be Mayfield’s primary target on many dropbacks, and with the Buccaneers’ defense giving up points and yards, he could again approach his ceiling in target volume.
If we’re targeting the Bucs’ passing game, I’d also consider Tez Johnson in a Mayfield triple stack. With Chris Godwin out, he remains a key part of the offense, catching four or more passes in three straight games. At under $5,000, he’s the kind of player who can give you a 4x or better return with just a couple of catches, thanks to his open-field ability.
Quarterback
Michael Penix Jr. ($4,700)
Penix struggled with accuracy in his last outing, completing just 42% of his passes. However, the Atlanta QB has bounced back from poor outings numerous times this season already with bigger games and remains very undervalued for DFS purposes, given the plethora of weapons at his disposal.
One huge plus for Penix this week is also the fact that he’ll be playing at home. In his three home games, he’s completed 67% of his passes for 4 TDs vs. just one INT and has also averaged over 20.0 FPTS per game. This is in contrast to road starts, where he’s averaged just 11.8 FPTS per game. The Panthers blew out Atlanta earlier, which should also give Penix some added motivation, and Carolina’s secondary hasn’t been great of late, allowing 270+ passing yards in two straight games, including 282 yards and two TDs last week to Tyler Shough.
Running Back
Rico Dowdle ($6,800)
At $6,800 in Week 11, Rico Dowdle profiles as the classic bell-cow RB1 again for DFS. While he did miss some practice time this week, the Panthers are now just managing his reps because of how much they have been using him in games. Overall, he’s now taken 43 carries over the last two games for Carolina and has also stayed involved as a receiver.
While the Panthers’ lack of offensive efficiency is a little concerning (and by lack of efficiency I mean they can’t pass the ball), they will be up against an Atlanta rush defense that is one of the worst in the league. Overall, Atlanta ranks 29th in success rate vs the run and has now allowed the fourth-most FPTS per game to opposing RBs. While a lot of the focus in this game will be on the RBs on the other side, Dowdle remains the best value at this position in what should be a competitive game. Keep playing him until his price fully catches up with his new role.
D’Andre Swift ($5,800)
Swift has some elite GPP appeal at $5,800 in Week 11. Game script and injury limited his touches a bit in Week 10, but he still managed over 6.0 yards per carry vs the Giants, and the scare of him being in tandem backfield could also work to limit his ownership in Week 11. He’s still the most explosive option out of the backfield and should see up to 15 carries in this spot, plus a handful of targets in the passing game.
Overall, the Vikings are a solid matchup. Their blitz-heavy scheme often leaves them vulnerable to the rush, and they’ve fallen off late in advanced metrics ranking just 22nd in EPA vs the rush on the season. Overall, they’ve allowed at least one TD to an RB in three straight games and got beat on a couple of big runs by another speed-back in Keaton Mitchell in their Week 10 loss. While he’s not uber cheap, at under 6k, Swift has good upside value at this level if you need a mid-tier pivot option off the chalkier plays in this range.
Wide Receiver
Nico Collins ($6,700)
Collins presents as a solid core building block at $6,700 in Week 11. While the absence of C.J. Stroud caps the Texans’ output, backup QBs can often lock onto their most reliable target, and Davis Mills consistently looked Collins’ way in Week 10. While the efficiency wasn’t the greatest, Collins’ 15 targets were a season high, as was the 135 yards he put up against Jacksonville.
From a roster construction standpoint, the quarterback switch may even make Collins a better GPP play due to the perceived downgrade and lower ownership. He’ll also be in a great matchup once again vs. the Titans, who come in off a bye but still struggle in pass defense. Overall, Tennessee ranks 27th in EPA per dropback and has allowed the 9th-most FPTS per game to opposing WRs. If this game stays close, which it could given Houston’s overall struggles, Collins likely flies again and still looks undervalued at under 7k.
Rashid Shaheed ($4,900)
At $4,900, Shaheed profiles as a classic boom or bust tournament play this week. While he’s coming off a 1 catch performance in his debut with the Seahawks, it’s well worth noting that Seattle threw the ball just 12 times vs. the Cardinals in their blowout win. That kind of result seems very unlikely in Week 11, given that they’ll be up against the Rams and are currently +3.0 underdogs, so game flow should be squarely in his favor.
Matchup-wise, Shaheed should have a real shot at getting loose for some big plays vs. the Rams’ secondary as well. Their defensive front is great at getting pressure and disrupting the passer, but Sam Darnold’s quick release and the ability of Shaheed to get open quickly downfield should be enough to counteract that. Overall, their corners are the weakest spot of their defense and have allowed the 15th-most FPTS to opposing WRs this year. It’s a good spot for Shaheed to break out with his new team.
Tight End
Kyle Pitts ($4,000)
Pitts offers a nice combination of volume and upside this week at TE. He’s a rare every-down TE who plays on nearly 85% of snaps and is ready for some TD regression given that he does see a decent share of red zone targets (second-most of all ATL receivers). The Panthers are also a terrific matchup. They’ve given up the seventh-most FPTS to opposing TEs and last week got beat for 92 yards and a TD by Juwan Johnson, setting the stage for a potential Pitts breakout.
From a value standpoint, Pitts needs just 12.0 FPTS points to clear 3x, and his realistic ceiling is much higher than that, especially in this matchup. Pairing him with Penix Jr. here, who is only $4,700 as a cheap QB-TE stack, also has a ton of appeal, just given Penix’s tendencies to excel at home. All told, we’ve seen Pitts perform well most of the season, but this week feels like a true breakout spot, and at $4,000, there isn’t much downside to deploying him as an upside play in GPPs.
Defense/Special Teams
Packers ($3,600)
The Packers get the chance to face Jameis Winston this week, a QB known for throwing downfield and often into the arms of the opposing team. Last season, Winston threw 12 interceptions against 13 touchdowns in 13 games, making this an obvious big upside spot for the Packers’ defense.
Green Bay’s only double-digit fantasy game for their DST was in Week 1 against the Lions, but they played very well last week versus the Eagles and should be able to generate some pressure here, given the Giants’ weak O-line and Winston’s lack of mobility compared to Jaxson Dart and Jalen Hurts. The price should also help keep their ownership numbers lower overall, making them a solid game theory play for those willing to spend less on skill players this week. The change in QB and coach makes this a good upside spot to gamble on for Week 11.
