The NFL season is just a few weeks away, but you can get some fantasy football this Wednesday night by checking out the Madden 21 sims on the DraftKings Dream Stream. There are six sims throughout the day, but in this post, we’ll focus on the three-game featured classic slate that kicks off at 6:00 p.m. ET with a matchup between the Arizona Cardinals and the Las Vegas Raiders. At 8:00 p.m. ET in primetime, the Green Bay Packers head to virtual Ohio and take on the Cincinnati Bengals, and we close out the action on Madden After Dark with an AFC East matchup between the Buffalo Bills and the New England Patriots.
As you build your lineups, be sure to consider the depth charts for each team. If you’re looking for gameplay details for these sims, along with the upcoming schedule, head over to the Madden Streams Information Page.
Quarterback
Stud
Kyler Murray, Arizona Cardinals at Las Vegas Raiders, $7,400 — Murray’s ratings in both Madden 21 and the new Madden 22 seem a little low to me, but he has shown he can overcome those ratings and still be a great fantasy option. He has over 24 DKFP in five of his past six games with three games over 32 DKFP during that stretch. He ran for 102 yards and a touchdown while throwing for 229 yards and two more scores against the Bills in his most recent sim, finishing with 35.36 DKFP. He had a similar game against the Raiders in one of their three previous matchups, totaling 39.9 DKFP in a 38-7 win. He brings a very high ceiling due to his rushing potential and this favorable matchup against the Raiders.
Other Options — Aaron Rodgers ($7,200), Josh Allen ($6,800)
Value
Joe Burrow, Cincinnati Bengals vs. Green Bay Packers, $6,400 — Burrow has thrown 143 touchdowns in his 102 sims and has multiple scores in four of his past five contests. He doesn’t bring as much rushing potential as Murray or Josh Allen ($6,800), but he did manage to produce 24.62 and 27.08 DKFP in two of his three previous matchups against the Packers. He’ll probably have to air it out once again to try and keep up with Green Bay’s high-scoring offense, making him the best bargain play at QB.
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Running Back
Stud
Aaron Jones, Green Bay Packers at Cincinnati Bengals, $7,800 — Jones has been a true workhorse back for the Packers and has 105 touchdowns in 104 sims while averaging 65.4 rushing yards, 22.4 receiving yards and 3.0 catches per contest. He had 15.1, 18.6 and 16.5 DKFP in his three earlier matchups with Cincinnati and will try to continue his recent touchdown binge after scoring eight times in his five most recent contests.
Other Option — Kenyan Drake ($6,600)
Value
Jalen Richard, Las Vegas Raiders vs. Arizona Cardinals, $4,100 — Since Kenyan Drake ($6,600) is still lining up on the other side of this matchup, there’s work for Richard in his timeshare with Josh Jacobs ($4,700). In Madden 21, Richard has averaged 7.6 DKFP on 3.1 catches for 22.5 yards per sim and has scored 22 times. Richard had one of those scores and 11.3 DKFP in his most recent matchup with Arizona after posting 7.6 and 11.5 DKFP in their first two meetings. He is a very solid play at this price.
Other Option — Gio Bernard ($5,200), James White ($4,300)
Wide Receiver
Stud
John Ross III, Cincinnati Bengals vs. Green Bay Packers, $5,700 — Ross always has a super-high ceiling due to his 96 speed rating. He has had two ceiling games in his three matchups with the Packers, producing 36.5 and 24.0 DKFP with over 100 yards in each of those two contests. He comes into this rematch on a bit of a roll with four touchdowns and at least 12 DKFP in four of his five most recent sims and at least three catches in six straight.
Other Options — Davante Adams ($6,700), DeAndre Hopkins ($5,500)
Value
Henry Ruggs III, Las Vegas Raiders vs. Arizona Cardinals, $5,300 — Ruggs also has a high ceiling due to his speed and has flashed an elite upside. He hasn’t been quite as consistent as Ross but does get a good matchup with Arizona, who he had 9.9 and 19.0 DKFP against in his two most recent matchups. Ruggs can be boom-or-bust, but his ceiling makes him an attractive mid-range option.
Larry Fitzgerald, Arizona Cardinals at Las Vegas Raiders, $3,900 — Fitz doesn’t have the down-field speed and potential of the other two WR highlighted here, but he has remained a solid possession receiver for the Cardinals as their WR2. He has averaged 3.7 catches for 34.1 yards per sim and had at least three catches in each of his three earlier meetings with the Raiders. He is typically a steady PPR producer and can also be a favorite target in the red zone.
Other Options — N’Keal Harry ($5,000), Marquez Valdes-Scantling ($4,600), Hunter Renfrow ($3,500)
Tight End
Stud
Devin Asiasi, New England Patriots at Buffalo Bills, $5,600 — Asiasi has been excellent in these sims despite his rookie status, averaging 4.2 catches for 45.9 yards per sim and scoring 44 touchdowns. He has been on fire lately with at least 12 DKFP in six straight, and this should be a good matchup for him since the Bills’ elite secondary typically forces opponents to target their TEs more. Asiasi had 7.0, 12.6, 25.2, 6.8 and 7.6 DKFP in his five earlier games against the Bills.
Other Options — Darren Waller ($5,800)
Value
C.J. Uzomah, Cincinnati Bengals vs. Green Bay Packers, $4,000 — There’s a steep dropoff from those top two options all the way to Uzomah, who is only $4K. The Bengals’ TE is usually involved in the game plan, averaging 9.6 DKFP on 4.1 catches for 41.7 yards per sim. He didn’t score in any of his three earlier games against Green Bay but did have at least three catches in each meeting.
Other Option — Maxx Williams ($3,900)
DST
Stud
Patriots DST at Buffalo Bills, $3,100 — The Patriots and Bills have the top two defenses on this slate, which is why not many of their offensive plays are highlighted in this post. New England’s defense has been slightly the slightly better option for fantasy, averaging 6.0 DKFP per sim on 106 takeaways, 177 sacks and 18 defensive touchdowns in 103 contests. The Patriots also produced 21 DKFP in their most recent matchup with the Bills.
Value
Arizona Cardinals at Las Vegas Raiders, $2,900 — The Cardinals have multiple sacks in five of their past six contests and have totaled 194 sacks in 100 sims. They haven’t made as many big plays as the Patriots, but they could be set up for a big game against the Raiders, who they totaled 12 sacks against in three previous matchups.
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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.