This is your DFS Minute for Championship Round Weekend. Here are my Draft Kings and Fanduel lineups for the Sunday Divisional round slate of games.
Anyone who plays Daily Fantasy Sports wants their share of the pie. May you find this week’s lineups to be helpful in putting some cash in your pockets. I only have one lineup for you this week, but you can also find my Captain/MVP picks at the bottom for each game. I am rolling with a Chiefs stack for the slate.
Quarterback
Patrick Mahomes: Fanduel $8,800/Draftkings $7,400
The Kansas City Chiefs and Buffalo Bills game lived up to the hype and then some last Sunday. Patrick Mahomes totaled over 400 yards and had four touchdowns, one of them a rushing touchdown. I feel the same this week as I did last week about the Bills matchup. Mahomes will not be slighted and he will carry the team to victory. Expect another 300 yards and multiple touchdowns from Mahomes.
Running Backs
Cam Akers: Fanduel $6,200/Draftkings $5,000
Clyde Edwards-Helaire: Fanduel $5,700/Draftkings $5,300
The carries have been there for Cam Akers since his return to action. He has seen games of 17 and 24 carries. I expect the Los Angeles Rams to try to establish the run game early against San Francisco to thwart back the pass rush. If you want to try to fit Joe Mixon in a running back spot this week in place Akers I totally understand.
I came away impressed with what I saw from Clyde Edwards-Helaire on Sunday. On only seven carries he managed 60 yards. Ultimately I think the Chiefs and Bengals game will come down to the passing attack but I can also see the Chiefs attempting to establish the run early.
Wide Receivers
Byron Pringle: Fanduel $5,700/Draftkings $4,300
Odell Beckham: Fanduel $6,300/Draftkings $5,100
Ja’Marr Chase: Fanduel $8,000/Draftkings $6,700
Five seems to be the magic number for Byron Pringle. The Chiefs receiver has five receptions in each of the last three games to go along with three touchdowns. Pringle scored again in last week’s playoff game against the Bills. Pringle is not going to be the guy that wracks up the yardage for you but the faith the Chiefs have in him in the red zone is worth the play, not to mention his great value in price.
Odell Beckham managed 69 yards on six catches last week in a playoff victory against Tampa Bay. I considered going with three Bengals with a Tyler Boyd, Ja’Marr Chase, and Tee Higgins stack for wide receivers this week but ultimately landed on getting Beckham in the lineup.
The Kansas City Chiefs had no answer for Ja’Marr Chase in their matchup in week 17. Chase dominated with 266 receiving yards and three touchdowns. I cannot imagine Chase repeating that performance, but I could see 150 yards with a touchdown. Chase will be the obvious chalk play but what can you do on a two-game slate.
Tight End and D/ST
Travis Kelce: Fanduel $7,700/Draftkings $6,500
San Francisco 49ers: Fanduel $4,200/Draftkings $2,800
Travis Kelce finished with 96 yards on eight catches in the wild game against the Bills last week. Kelce has five straight games with a touchdown. Unless you want to risk it at tight end this week, Kelce should be an automatic play. You also never know when he will throw a touchdown apparently.
I always attempt to play the defense I feel will put up numbers. This week I believe that is the San Francisco 49ers. I think they will pressure Stafford enough to force turnovers. The 49ers went into Lambeau Field and played great on the defensive side of the ball to take away a victory. I expect the same this week.
Flex
Tee Higgins: Fanduel $6,400/Draftkings $5,700
We finally saw production from Tee Higgins last week after what felt like a disappearance the two weeks prior. Higgins caught seven passes for 96 yards. Higgins only had three catches in the Bengals last matchup with the Chiefs, but I believe this game will turn into a passing showdown and Higgins will benefit.
Fanduel and Draftkings
Quarterback: Patrick Mahomes
Running Backs: Clyde Edwards-Helaire, Cam Akers
Wide Receivers: Ja’Marr, Byron Pringle, Odell Beckham Jr
Tight End: Travis Kelce
D/ST: Los Angeles Rams
FLEX: Tee Higgins
Captain/MVP Picks
Cincinnati Bengals vs Kansas City Chiefs: Ja’Marr Chase or Patrick Mahomes
San Francisco 49ers vs Los Angeles Rams: Cooper Kupp or Eli Mitchell
Thank you for reading! You can find me on Twitter at @ClintonHolmgren and @IDPGuys. Check out all of my Offensive and DFS work at idpguys.org. You can also see me on the IDPGuys Youtube Channel with various content.
