Thursday Showdown Week 13

Photo: Jim Brown, USA Today Sports

Disclaimer

These contests are intended to be fun as you’re watching the game. It’s incredibly difficult to get a real edge as there are so few options and in MME contests there are often many duplicate lineups. One play or one penalty can change the entire outcome of the game.

This article is going to have a heavy DraftKings lean simply because the decision making process is more interesting with the Captain having a salary premium to correspond with the scoring premium. On FanDuel, the pricing is the same for both MVP and flex, so just play either a quarterback or running back in that spot. There are scenarios where a wide receiver can pay off, but it’s difficult with it being the 0.5 per reception.

Game Strategy

This should be a fun slate as both teams appear to be trending towards a much healthier offense which should yield fantasy points in this game. For the Cowboys, they will have Amari Cooper, CeeDee Lamb, and Michael Gallup all in the lineup after Cooper missed two weeks due to Covid, and Lamb missed last week due to a concussion. For the Saints, the Trevor Siemian era is over, and now we get Taysom Hill in New Orleans against a struggling Dallas defense who are coming off of a 373-yard performance to Derek Carr. The Saints will be without Alvin Kamara and both tackles as Terron Armstead and Ryan Ramczyk will miss this week.

Captain Consideration:

1. Taysom Hill
2. Mark Ingram II
3. CeeDee Lamb
4. Dak Prescott
5. Amari Cooper

Dallas Cowboys

QUARTERBACK

Dak Prescott- Good Captain/Great Flex

Dak Prescott has struggled with consistency throughout the season, but this is the first time all year that he will have his full set of teammates on the field as Amari Cooper, CeeDee Lamb, Michael Gallup, Tyron Smith, Zack Martin, and La’El Collins are all expected to take the field tonight. For Dak, he will be relied upon heavily on this slate as the way to beat the Saints is through the air as they boast the best run defense in the NFL. There is no question that Prescott has one of the highest floors on this slate, as well as has a ceiling of 400 yards passing, but the problem with Prescott as a captain is that he is a little expensive at $17,700, and he is not running the ball as he did prior to his ankle injury as he has just 94 total yards rushing and 1 touchdown while fumbling 4 times already this season. He will be one of the more popular captains on this slate, but you may want to take a chance on one of his receiving options who are cheaper and allow you for more flexibility within your lineup.

RUNNING BACK

Ezekiel Elliott- Fade

This one is all about value, as Ezekiel Elliott’s price at $10,800 simply has not come down enough to justify taking him in this matchup. The Saints boast the NFL’s best run defense as they are allowing the fewest fantasy points to opposing running backs and have three Pro Bowlers on their defensive line. The biggest problem with Elliott is that his volume is significantly down as he battles through injury as he has just 18 total carries over his last two games.

WIDE RECEIVER-

Amari Cooper- Captain Only

Amari Cooper has been a complete boom or bust this season as he has two games this season where he averaged 10.5 receptions 130.5 yards and 1.5 touchdowns, however in his other 7 games, he has averaged 3.3 receptions, 43 yards, and 0.3 touchdowns. Simply put, he’s a great option as a captain simply because of his upside, but as a flex play at $8,600, it’s a difficult number to take him at simply because the floor is so low compared to players in similar price ranges or going with a completely different roster construction build. Cooper should have a favorable matchup especially if Marshon Lattimore focuses in on CeeDee Lamb, as the Saints are allowing the 5^th-most fantasy points to opposing wide receivers. Cooper also is going to potentially be on a snap count based on conditioning issues coming back from Covid.

CeeDee Lamb- Great Captain/Flex

CeeDee Lamb is an interesting case this season as he’s for the most part consistent (6 games of 80+ yards), but when he’s bad he’s awful as he has three games with 25 yards or less. Lamb’s appropriately priced at $10,000 which is still surprisingly less than Ezekiel Elliott surprisingly. This is a matchup where Lamb should be favored to have a big game as the Saints are allowing the fifth-most fantasy points to opposing wide receivers, and while Lamb should see a lot of Marshon Lattimore this week, Lattimore has not been the elite player he has been in past years. Lattimore has had difficulty with speedy wide receivers that line up all over the field which Lamb fits that mold. This should be a potentially big game for Lamb.

OTHER TARGETS-

Michael Gallup- Flex

With Amari Cooper on a snap count, Michael Gallup should see an increase in snaps this week. At just $6,800, he’s very affordable and makes for a great play on a Cowboys stack this week.

Cowboys Defense- Flex

Taysom Hill last season showed a propensity to take sacks as he was sacked 13 times in the four games that he started. The Cowboys have three sacks in each of their last two games, and with the Saints missing both of their left tackles this could be a great opportunity for the Cowboys to get many sacks.

New Orleans Saints

QUARTERBACK

Taysom Hill- Great Captain/Flex

Taysom Hill is in a fantastic spot this week simply based on a pricing mistake. At just $9,600, Hill is the dynamic threat of a quarterback that can completely change this slate. Hill in his four starts last season ran for 53 yards per game while rushing for four touchdowns in those four games all while passing for 230 yards or more in three of he four games (with the fourth being a 31-3 victory). Essentially Hill is putting up numbers that are only slightly worse than Lamar Jackson and to get this guy at $9,600 is a complete gift.

RUNNING BACK

Mark Ingram II- Great Captain/Flex Play

Mark Ingram II is another Saints player who was mis-priced on this slate. DraftKings had full expectations that Alvin Kamara would start this game, and therefore priced Ingram down at a staggering $5,000. Essentially, he is a must play in cash games as he is averaging 20 touches per game over his last two starts including 5 receptions per game. Ingram makes for a great captain this week as well, although the matchup is a somewhat difficult one with Dallas allowing the fourth-fewest DraftKings points to running backs, but to get a captain at $7,500 that is going to touch the ball 20 times in a game is an incredible value regardless of the matchup especially when he will go somewhat overlooked due to the crowd being on Hill and the Cowboys this week.

WIDE RECEIVER

Tre’Quan Smith- Flex

Tre’Quan Smith over the last four weeks has been incredibly consistent since establishing himself after a pre-season injury. Smith is a low-ceiling player, but is averaging 48 yards per game over his last four games with four or more receptions in three of those games. The Saints do not have much at the wide receiver position, but with Taysom Hill, this could bring some extra life to the passing game after Trevor Siemian struggled mightily. At just $5,600 if he can get four receptions for 50 yards and maybe score a touchdown that is more than enough to provide some salary relief at the flex position on this slate.

OTHER TARGETS-

Nick Vannett- Low-End Flex Play

Taysom Hill has shown a propensity to target the tight end position as in his last two starts, Hill completed six passes per game to the tight end position. With Adam Trautman placed on IR, Vannett is a low-end play as you’re hoping for 3 catches in this game and potentially a touchdown in this game. Vannett coming off IR was outsnapped by Juwan Johnson who is likely going to be more popular on this slate, but Vannett has more upside to become the top tight end on this slate simply because of the unknown as we’ve seen Johnson play in every game this season.