The Cleveland Browns take on the New York Giants tonight on Thursday Night Football. With a chance at fantasy glory and a hefty $300,000 on the line, it’s now more crucial than ever to assemble a winning DraftKings lineup that can dominate the competition. This article offers DFS picks and insights on who should take the coveted captain slot, which core player should anchor your player pool, a value gem that can boost your salary cap flexibility, a sleeper pick with breakout potential, and one player to steer clear of – the dreaded bust. Get ready for a wild DFS TNF showdown.
TNF DraftKings Showdown Picks
*Disclaimer: These picks have been constructed with the mindset of building a single lineup. When building large field/multi-entry tournaments, if the player sees the field you’ll want to have a piece of him somewhere, my “busts” included.
Captain
David Njoku
DraftKings Captain Salary- $11,700
Who would have ever thought that Joe Flacco would be the quarterback to ignite David Njoku’s potential as an NFL tight end? Certainly not I, but here we are. Njoku has caught a touchdown in three straight games including a two touchdown performance in Week 14. To be fair, Njoku had been productive even before Flacco’s arrival. He has reached double digit DraftKings points in 9 out of his last 10 games. With Amari Cooper tending to a heel issue and matching up against some good cornerbacks, Njoku may be called on for extra production. At just $11,700 in the captain slot, Njoku is a safe a bet as any to end TNF amongst the top of the leaderboard.
Core Play
Joe Flacco
DraftKings Salary- $10,600
Four starts, three straight wins. Joseph Vincent Flacco has breathed life into this Cleveland Browns squad. The owner of three straight 300+ yard passing performances, Flacco has been getting his receivers the football at will. Over the last couple of games he has been peppering Amari Cooper and David Njoku, who have a combined 46 targets in the last two games. During his first appearance against the Rams in Week 13, it was actually Elijah Moore who was Flacco’s go-t0 guy. Moore would end the game with a season-high 12 targets. Flacco and Moore overlapped during their time as New York Jets, so technically this TNF contest is a revenge game for the both of them. With the Browns just one win away from clinching a playoff berth, fully expect Flacco to pull out all the stops tonight.
Value
Jerome Ford
DraftKings Salary- $8,400
The New York Jets DST has given up a rushing touchdown in three straight contests. To make matters even worse, they allowed a running back to score twice in back-to-back matchups. Rookie Commanders RB Chris Rodriguez Jr. did it to them last week and Raheem Mostert slashed them for a pair of scores the week before. Ford has the potential to join that list on TNF tonight. Even though he did score last week, Ford is coming off of a rather unproductive outing. His prospects look much better tonight. The wide receivers both have tough matchups, leaving Ford to possibly pick up a few more looks in the passing game. Since Flacco’s arrival Ford has 16 targets (4 games), he should stay involved in that aspect tonight. Especially if Kareem Hunt shows any limitations from the groin injury that had him on the injury report earlier in the week.
Sleeper
Jason Brownlee
DraftKings Salary- $2,800
Jason who? If you were paying attention earlier in the season (off-season) then you may know the name. Brownlee had been a standout in camp this past summer and even earned the praise of Aaron Rodgers. Had Rodgers not gotten injured, who knows? Maybe we’d be more familiar with the rookie playmaker out of Southern Miss. Brownlee only had one catch last week, but he made it count with an 8-yard touchdown. That was just Brownlee’s third catch of the season. But at 6-9 and eliminated from playoff contention, the Jets may elect to see what their younger players can do. It wouldn’t be shocking to see them treat these remaining games as sort of an early start to preseason next year. It appears that they’ve already begun seeing as Brownlee was on the field for 82 percent of offensive snaps last week. TNF could be the night that Brownlee puts his name on the map. Although, at $2,800 DK dollars and Trevor Siemian throwing him the rock, we’ll settle for a few big catches.
TNF Bust
Breece Hall
DraftKings Salary- $11,000
I finally mention a current New York Jets player and I’m calling him a bust. Sorry, but that’s just the way the cookie crumbled. Breece Hall would be a fine play tonight, only he plays for the Jets. Even if he was on a team with a good offensive line, he’d still be looking at a tough matchup. The leading rusher in the last three games against the Browns DST have all been held under 45 rushing yards. Travis Etienne went for 35 rushing yards in Week 14, Roschon Johnson ran for 36 yards in Week 15, and Devin Singletary was limited to 44 yards last week. Factor all of that and take into account that before last week Hall hadn’t topped 45 yards himself in six straight weeks. It sounds like a bust if you ask me. If it makes you feel better, before last week Hall had gone nine straight weeks without a rushing touchdown. With a touch TNF matchup on tap, Hall is not looking worth his $11,ooo price tag.
Week 17 Rankings: Quarterback | Running Back | Wide Receiver | Tight End |