Each week, we’ll be recapping the decisions of the masses and discerning the takeaways that can be applied to future DraftKings NFL contests, focusing on topics like game theory and lineup-building strategies, with the hope of giving everyone the tools to become better DraftKings NFL DFS players. In addition to the recap, this article will also function as a “first look” at the next NFL main slate, giving some initial thoughts on the teams and prices.
The DraftKings Championship Series is the king of competitions, minting 100 millionaires in the 2021-22 season. For more info on the series and all of the events, visit our DraftKings Championship Series Information page.
The 2021 Fantasy Football World Championship, one of the DraftKings Championship Series’ biggest events of the year, is just a few days away and will take place this coming Sunday, Dec. 19. Live from Miami, a collection of the world’s best NFL DFS players will be in attendance to compete for the historic top prize — $2.5 million to whoever winds up on top. The list of competitors in the event includes names like Awesemo, BigT44, and theWhistlesGoWooo, who have been featured on the recent DraftKings series — Chasing The G.O.A.T. — where three top-rated fantasy MVPs journey to take down the 2021 Fantasy Football World Championship, aka the crown jewel of DraftKings Championship Series.
Set your DraftKings fantasy football lineups here: NFL $3.25M Fantasy Football Millionaire [$1M to 1st + ToC Entry]
Mixed Bag in Week 14
The past few weeks of NFL main slates have had some obvious trends — notably with the tight end duo that dominated Week the 13 slate — but Week 14’s results seemed to be a lot more sporadic. The most popular player wound up being Antonio Gibson, likely because J.D. McKissic was out of the lineup, but he managed just 5.1 DKFP for the Washington Football Team against the Dallas Cowboys. Mike Williams was similarly disappointing as the top-owned wide receiver with just 12.1 DKFP, even though he saw a large role increase due to Keenan Allen’s absence for the Los Angeles Chargers. Other popular picks like Alvin Kamara, Javonte Williams, Taysom Hill and Hunter Renfrow all got the job done, but it was a tough week to get everything right with the disappointing results from the top two players.
The other thing that made Week 14 interesting was the defense slot, where the Carolina Panthers and Seattle Seahawks were collectively drafted in 30% of lineups, but combined to score just 8.0 DKFP. There were actually three defenses below 5% (Titans, Chiefs and Cowboys) who went over 20.0 DKFP, but the winning lineup in the Milly Maker managed to not need any of them (more on that below).
Lastly, one of the big surprises of the week was that the highest-profile game wound up only getting a moderate amount of attention, as the ownership numbers on the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Buffalo Bills were probably far lower than anyone was anticipating.
Millionaire Contest Winners
$20 Millionaire
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The million dollar prize in Week 14 went to ‘koob80’ who struck gold with a handful of off-the-board plays. Despite not grabbing any of the high-scoring defenses, this lineup still wound up as the winner with high-end performances at most of the other slots. Josh Allen wasn’t ignored by any stretch at 9.6% ownership, but that number was still lower than what most people probably expected. Allen posted 42.0 DKFP in a losing effort, scoring three total touchdowns and picking up both yardage bonuses (300 passing yards and 100 rushing yards). The biggest difference maker in this lineup, however, was the super-contrarian running back choice in Rashad Penny. Penny entered the week in a two-man backfield with Alex Collins in Seattle, but broke two long runs and wound up earning himself some extra playing time, en route to 137 yards and two touchdowns. At just 2.3% ownership, Penny dramatically outperformed the chalk at the running back position. As a result, ‘koob80’ will be entered into the DraftKings Championship Series Tournament of Champions, in addition to their $1M top prize.
First Look at Week 15
Josh Allen ($8,100) is at the top of the quarterback salary list, and he’s one of a handful of QBs who carry injury designations early in the week. The health of Allen and other guys like Aaron Rodgers ($7,500; toe), Lamar Jackson ($7,200; ankle) and Jalen Hurts ($6,600; ankle) could result in significant shifts over the course of the week; but as it stands, the quarterbacks in the contest between the Houston Texans and the Jacksonville Jaguars stand out as cost-effective options. Davis Mills ($5,400) and Trevor Lawrence ($5,100) are two of Week 15’s cheapest quarterbacks, but they both have plus-matchups for their upcoming head-to-head.
Running backs in the Texans-Jaguars game are cheap, as well, and while there’s ambiguity in the health on the Texans side, it’s clear that James Robinson ($5,400) is the go-to guy in Jacksonville. Robinson has struggled recently, but the matchup is much easier in Week 15 than it’s been in previous games. Najee Harris ($7,800) is the week’s most expensive running back, but James Conner ($6,400) could wind up as the most appealing choice after a big game on Monday night against the Los Angeles Rams. The Arizona Cardinals have a much easier matchup in Week 15 against the Detroit Lions.
Cooper Kupp ($9,000) leads the way at wide receiver, with Davante Adams ($8,900) narrowly behind him. The field may look to that same Texans-Jaguars game for value here, too, with Brandin Cooks ($5,800) seeming pretty appealing at a moderate salary. Marvin Jones Jr. ($4,600) is the Jaguars most expensive receiver even with a price tag below $5K, so it wouldn’t be surprising to see this game turn into a very popular stack choice with so many value options on both sides.
George Kittle ($7,500) continues to climb the board, and is by far the most expensive tight end for the Week 15 main slate. It may be easier than normal to pay up at this spot with all of the aforementioned cheap options at other positions, but Mark Andrews ($6,400) is coming off of a big game of his own and may be a popular choice, as well.
Set your DraftKings fantasy football lineups here: NFL $3.25M Fantasy Football Millionaire [$1M to 1st + ToC Entry]
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All views expressed are my own. I am an employee of DraftKings and am ineligible to play in public DFS or DKSB contests.
The contents contained in this article do not constitute a representation that any particular strategy will guarantee success. All customers should use their own skill and judgment in building lineups.
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