A new Madden season began Monday on the DraftKings Dream Stream, and Week 1 continues with six more Madden 21 sims throughout the day Tuesday. The early slate includes an oversized Madden Stream $7K Season Special contest, and the featured late classic slate kicks off at 6:00 p.m. ET with a matchup between the Arizona Cardinals and the Tennessee Titans. The New York Giants host the Denver Broncos in the primetime game, and at 10:00 p.m. ET, the Miami Dolphins and New England Patriots meet for the tenth time in Madden 21, setting a new record for the most times two opponents have gone head-to-head.
Check out the current season standings and see how these teams do as the schedule continues. You can find the gameplay details for all the sims and the upcoming schedule on the Madden Streams Information Page and dive into the full depth chart for each team.
Quarterback
Stud
Kyler Murray, Arizona Cardinals at Tennessee Titans, $7,400 — Even though he hasn’t been the most reliable play in all of Madden, Kyler definitely brings a very high ceiling due to his rushing potential, which makes him my top QB to pay up for. Murray has averaged 67.1 rushing yards per sim and scored 32 rushing touchdowns in 77 contests. He has over 21 DKFP in three of his past four contests and should be able to find space against the Titans, who he had 19.04 and 16.44 DKFP against in two earlier Madden 21 losses. He’s not a lock but is a strong play due to his high ceiling and the inconsistency of the rest of the options on the slate.
Other Option — Cam Newton ($6,600)
Value
Daniel Jones, New York Giants vs. Denver Broncos, $6,500 — Jones is a sneaky strong play overall and especially in this matchup against Denver, who has been one of the worst secondaries in Madden 21. Jones comes in on a roll with over 200 passing yards in 14 of his past 15 sims and over 18 DKFP in three of his past four. In his most recent sim, he scored his 11th rushing touchdown on his way to 30.1 DKFP against the Vikings. He has shown the ability to post big totals when he throws multiple scores, which should definitely be possible against the Broncos.
Other Option — Tua Tagovailoa ($6,000)
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Running Back
Stud
Derrick Henry, Tennessee Titans vs. Arizona Cardinals, $7,700 — You won’t find many Titans at any other position in my targets since Tennessee’s offense features Henry incredibly heavily. He has averaged 83.1 rushing yards, 23.6 receiving yards and 3.4 catches per sim while scoring 80 touchdowns in 82 contests. He went off for five touchdowns and 51.9 DKFP in one of his recent sims and has over 17 DKFP in 10 of his past 12. His workhorse role makes him a relatively safe play, and his playmaking ability gives him a sky-high ceiling.
Other Option — Matt Breida ($6,800), Kenyan Drake ($6,600)
Value
Phillip Lindsay, Denver Broncos at New York Giants, $5,100 — Lindsay is the third-down back for the Broncos, sharing time with RB1 Melvin Gordon III ($4,500). Despite added volatility due to the timeshare, he still brings upside if the Broncos go pass-heavy. He has over 9.0 DKFP in seven of his past 11 sims, highlighted by a 20.4-DKFP performance against the Falcons, and had five catches, 52 yards and 11.2 DKFP in his first meeting with the Giants.
Other Option — James White ($4,400)
Wide Receiver
Stud
Julian Edelman, New England Patriots vs. Miami Dolphins, $5,700 — Edelman is averaging 14.0 DKFP in his nine previous meetings with the Dolphins in Madden 21 and has posted over 18 DKFP in each of their three most recent matchups. He has over five catches and over 15 DKFP in each of his past four games overall and should find space for continued success out of the slot against Miami’s secondary, which doesn’t have much depth.
Other Options — Courtland Sutton ($5,500), Sterling Shepard ($5,300)
Value
Golden Tate, New York Giants vs. Denver Broncos, $4,700 — Like Edelman, Tate is his team’s WR1 who does most of his work out of the slot. Tate had five catches and 16.9 DKFP in his first matchup with the Broncos, who have been extremely generous to opposing WRs. He has a tendency to be boom-or-bust, but he and Jones make an intriguing value combo given their favorable matchup in this Week 1 sim.
Jakeem Grant, Miami Dolphins at New England Patriots, $3,300 — Grant brings a ton of upside at this salary barely over the minimum. He has been the Dolphins’ WR3 for seven sims against the Patriots and has three catches or more in five of those games, including a two-touchdown game that resulted in 21.5 DKFP. Grant’s 95 speed rating gives him the ability to make big plays, and the Patriots' elite CBs often force teams to look deeper down the depth chart past their top options.
Other Options — Corey Davis ($4,900), Darius Slayton ($4,800), Larry Fitzgerald ($4,500), Jerry Jeudy ($4,100)
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Tight End
Stud
Evan Engram, New York Giants vs. Denver Broncos, $5,800 — Engram is one of the fastest TEs in Madden 21 and brings big-play potential as a result. He has at least five catches and 17 DKFP in three straight sims and has put up over 12 DKFP in 10 of his past 13. He’s another Giants pass-catcher that could thrive in this soft matchup against the Broncos.
Other Option — Jonnu Smith ($5,200)
Value
Mike Gesicki, Miami Dolphins at New England Patriots, $4,700 — Gesicki has averaged 10.7 DKFP in his previous meetings with the Patriots, posting double-digit DKFP in seven of nine matchups. He has 27 touchdowns in 81 sims and has been a favorite target of Tua Tagovailoa ($6,000) when elite secondaries shut down the outside options.
Other Option — Noah Fant ($3,800)
DST
Stud
Patriots DST vs. Miami Dolphins, $3,200 — With all their COVID-19 opt-out players available, the Patriots have been an elite DST, forcing 82 turnovers in 80 sims and scoring 14 defensive touchdowns. New England is averaging 5.9 DKFP per sim, and only one other DST on the slate is within two points of them.
Value
Titans DST vs. Arizona Cardinals, $3,000 — The Titans have been the second-most productive DST on the slate, averaging 5.2 DKFP per sim. They have forced 60 turnovers in 82 sims while stacking up 173 sacks. Tennessee gets a favorable matchup against turnover-prone Murray and managed to produce an average of 10.0 DKFP in its two earlier contests against Arizona.
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I am a promoter at DraftKings and am also an avid fan and user (my username is Z.Thompson) 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 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.