NFL DraftKings Plays: Week 14

The Week 14 DraftKings NFL main slate brings us an 11-game slate that will have to account for some weather. It is also a bummer that the Detroit Lions and Dallas Cowboys game took place on Thursday. There are still plenty of great matchups for fantasy purposes, as well as a potential snow game between the Buffalo Bills and the Cincinnati Bengals. That game is currently sitting at 53.5 projected points, the highest by almost a touchdown. So when building lineups, that’s a great place to start. The Tennessee Titans and Cleveland Browns game will also see some snow. Those are the two big spots this Sunday. There is a chance of rain elsewhere on this slate.

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Outside of that mega game, some other potential offenses to target are the Seattle Seahawks, Los Angeles Rams, and Tampa Bay Buccaneers. All three are in great spots offensively, with the Rams and Seahawks playing in domes. However, our quarterbacks will both be playing outside this week, so let’s dive right in.

Favorite DraftKings NFL plays for Week 14

Quarterback

Favorite Play: Tyrod Taylor, New York Jets (4.9K)

A few of the worst fantasy defenses are either on bye or have already played. The Detroit Lions and Dallas Cowboys are the two worst against opposing quarterbacks, and they played on Thursday night. So we will target a decent matchup and save a good bit of salary on DraftKings with Tyrod Taylor. Taylor displays everything you would want from a salary saver on DraftKings with his rushing upside. Coming off a QB7 finish thanks to a rushing touchdown. And the Miami Dolphins are the perfect matchup for Taylor to keep racking up DraftKings points. The Dolphins give up the third-most rushing yards to the position. If you are looking to save some salary on DraftKings, Taylor is the perfect player to do that with. And A.D. Mitchell would be my number one option to stack with Taylor in DFS.

Contrarian Play: Lamar Jackson, Baltimore Ravens (6.7k)

If you asked me at the start of the season if I would have ever put Lamar Jackson as a contrarian play, I would have not believed you. However, we have arrived at that, as Jackson has not put up over eight DraftKings points in any of the last three weeks. However, the Pittsburgh Steelers are allowing the seventh-most fantasy points to the position. I understand that Jackson is still hurt, and the Steelers usually get the better of him. And that is what makes this pick contrarian, because I think most of the slate will ignore him. And at the end of the day, it is still Lamar Jackson, so it is a risk worth taking on the star quarterback.

Favorite Play: James Cook, Buffalo Bills (7.8K)

We are going to have to double-dip on a player on DraftKings for the first time this season in back-to-back weeks. I mentioned Cook last week against the Pittsburgh Steelers. And he finished as RB9 on the week despite not scoring a touchdown. He got the workload we wanted with 35 total touches. However, Josh Allen got the rushing touchdown inside the five-yard line. That will happen in this offense. Even if it happens again this week, it will not matter. Going against the Cincinnati Bengals, there will be plenty of opportunities for Cook to amass fantasy points. The Bengals still give up the most fantasy points to running backs. Cook is second in the league in rushing yards and is quickly approaching Jonathan Taylor for the league lead. I believe he gets there today and has a monster game in a positive game script.

Contrarian Play: Kyren Williams, Los Angeles Rams (6.6K)

The pool for contrarian options is relatively small if we are talking about actual contrarian plays. Most of the popular plays on this slate are running backs. So, let’s go with the running back who has been in a split and hasn’t lived up to expectations over the past few weeks. Kyren Williams is coming off a few disappointing finishes; he hasn’t finished as an RB1 in the past three weeks. And that is thanks to Blake Corum, who has been gradually chipping away at Williams’s work. Corum has had seven or more carries in his last six games. Despite this, Williams is still the goal-line back for the Rams, as he has ten total touchdowns on the year, including seven of those being rushing. We could be talking about Williams in a whole different light if the fade route to Davante Adams hadn’t been so successful. Adams currently leads the league with nine touchdowns inside the five-yard line. And that fact alone makes Williams a contrarian play. With the team being ten-point favorites, we will see a heavy dose of Kyren Williams, and he will go overlooked because of how the Rams operate inside the 20-yard line.

Wide Receiver

Favorite Play: Michael Wilson, Arizona Cardinals (5.6K)

Without Marvin Harrison Jr. in the lineup, how could it be anyone but Michael Wilson? In the two games without Marvin Harrison Jr., Michael Wilson led the league with 33 targets. That was eight more than any other player saw in that timeframe. Wilson was the fantasy WR3 in those two weeks, only behind Jaxson Smith-Njigba and George Pickens. With a DraftKings salary of only $5,600, he is a must-play in every format. The Los Angeles Rams are 16th in fantasy points allowed to the position, but with Wilson’s situation, that does not matter. The Cardinals throw it more than any other team and are almost ten points underdogs. I would be surprised if we do not see Wilson in the DraftKings optimal lineup tonight.

Contrarian Play: Justin Jefferson, Minnesota Vikings (6.9K)

Look, no one wants anything to do with that Minnesota offense. And I do not blame anyone for that take. However, the Washington Commanders are a super advantageous matchup for any passing game. The Commanders give up the third-most passing yards and the fifth-most fantasy points to opposing wide receivers. Jefferson, despite the struggles, is still an elite target earner. He is the eighth-most-targeted receiver in the league, but it sure does not feel that way. These are the kind of players I gravitate towards on DraftKings. He is an elite player in an elite matchup, but has a negative perception due to other factors. Jefferson is due for a massive game against a weak secondary and will deliver for DraftKings users.

Tight End

Favorite Play: Brenton Strange, Jacksonville Jaguars (3.9K)

This game provides a favorable environment for both starting tight ends. Both teams are in the top five in points allowed to the position. In the past two weeks, since returning from injury, Strange has finished as the TE4 and TE7. He has picked up right back where he left off before his injury. In the past two weeks, Strange has been third on the team with nine targets. The Jaguars are currently underdogs against the Colts, but the spread has dropped to only 1.5 points over the week. Regardless of the game’s outcome, Strange will get looks, as the Colts give up the second-most points to opposing tight ends. A touchdown with his volume and DraftKings salary likely lands him in the optimal today.

Contrarian Play: Colby Parkinson, Los Angeles Rams (3.1K)

DraftKings players can save some DraftKings salary this week. And if you want to, Colby Parkinson is your guy. He has been the most involved tight end for the Rams since Tyler Higbee was injured. Nine targets in Parkinson’s last two games put him only behind Davante Adams and Puka Nacua. Obviously, we do not expect him to pass either of those two, but Parkinson still has been providing a safe floor as of late. It helps that the Rams are projected to score the second-most points this week. Parkinson has finished as a TE1 in three of the last four weeks. I like his odds of repeating that feat against an Arizona Cardinals team that gives up the 11th most points to the position. He is not my first choice for the position, but if you need to save some salary by squeezing him in, so you can play players like James Cook and De’Von Achane. Parkinson is definitely an option.

Final Thoughts

This slate is very much running back-driven. With Jonathan Taylor an afterthought at $9,300, people are flocking towards De’Von Achane, James Cook, Josh Jacobs, Breece Hall, and Kenneth Walker. That opens many avenues to differentiate from players like Derrick Henry, Kyren Williams, and potentially Bucky Irving, depending on how popular he gets before the start of the slate.

Sometimes it isn’t about playing the best plays; it is about playing the leverage game. I’ll use an example from last week. Everyone, including myself, was in on Jaxson Smith-Njigba after he dominated the Tennessee Titans. He was rostered in about 25 percent of lineups and scored only 4.3 DraftKings points.

It is a friendly reminder that there is a game within a game of just picking the best plays. As always, keep an eye on the weather leading up to start time, and best of luck with your lineups this week!

Make sure to check out all of our Week 14 Fantasy Football Rankings and Analysis!