Cracking FanDuel Thanksgiving

Photo: Jamie Germano, USA Today Sports

Thursday Morning Update:

We will be updating this on Thursday Morning in this section for anything that has changed. This update will be if any surprise injury news does get announced.

One thing to note, we are not giving out a Cash Game Lineup for this slate. It seems disingenuous to do so, given that I am not playing this cash game slate and recommend everyone avoids doing so given the incredibly difficult pricing on this slate.

Thanksgiving Slate Thoughts

With this being the 12th Thanksgiving DFS slate that I’ve participated in, each slate is a little bit different. Some years, there are a number of cash game plays, while other years, based on the teams playing it, is more of a GPP slate. This year is more of a GPP year, just because there are such narrow spots where a significant portion of the targets go to one player with situations like Josh Allen/Stefon Diggs, Kirk Cousins/Justin Jefferson, Dak Prescott/CeeDee Lamb, and Jared Goff/Amon-Ra St. Brown or there are teams that we have historically wanted no part of their passing game in New England and the New York Giants. So, needless to say, it’s going to be a difficult slate that you’re going to have to take chances on some players who may not have the best numbers on the season.

SITUATIONS THAT STAND OUT TO THIS WEEK ON THE MAIN SLATE.

• Buffalo (at DET) – 32 points
• Dallas (vs NYG) – 27.5 points

Quarterbacks

Josh Allen- $9,500- Great Cash Game, Consider Fading in GPP

Quarterback is really the first position that you need to address this week. Should you play Josh Allen in cash? FanDuel has raised his price from $9,200 to $9,500 after an abysmal performance against the Browns. While the matchup is better this week, Allen has struggled throwing the ball over the last four weeks. In three of his last four weeks, he has failed to top 215 passing yards. With a team having 32 projected points, this is still the cash game play that you’re going to want to have, as his upside is significantly higher than any quarterback on this slate.

For a GPP play, he’s likely someone you’re going to want to consider fading. Expect Josh Allen to be the highest-rostered player on this slate, and we don’t know that he is 100% healthy given some of his recent passing struggles. While the Bills are projected to score 32 points, logic would tell you that a lot of those points should come through Josh Allen, but if the Bills get up early, it could come from the running backs as we have seen in recent games.

Kirk Cousins- $7,400 Good Cash, Great GPP

Nobody feels great when they click Kirk Cousins’ name, especially after last week’s abysmal performance in which the Vikings simply did not show up in their 40-3 loss to the Cowboys. However, at $7,400, Cousins has an upside that very few quarterbacks have given his history with 300-yard games, his talent at the receiver position makes stacking easy and allows for flexibility to build out the rest of your roster, given some of the difficult pricing decisions that you’re going to have to make this week. The matchup is a neutral one as the Patriots really have not been tested this season as they’ve faced Zach Wilson twice, Sam Ehlinger, Justin Fields, Jacoby Brissett, and Jared Goff over the last six weeks.

QB Rankings

Cash Rankings

GPP Rankings

Running Back

At the running back position, you’re really going to want to save some money where possible this week. The reason for this is that the upside of some of the wide receivers on this slate is tremendous, and being able to spend up for at least one elite wide receiver.

Dalvin Cook- Great Cash Game, Great GPP

If you follow this article, you’ll know that Dalvin Cook burned the Week 11 cash game lineup. However, if you watched the game or look at his overall stat line, he looked great in that game. Cook had 72 yards on just 11 carries, and if not for the blowout, he would have easily topped 100 yards in that game. At $7,800, Cook is underpriced against a New England team that has not faced a gauntlet of running backs recently. This is a defense that, when facing run-heavy offenses, has given up big numbers at times, as Khalil Herbert and David Montgomery combined for 124 yards rushing, while Aaron Jones and AJ Dillon combined for 183 yards earlier this season. If there is a little concern for Cook, it has been the consistent volume as he does have 15 or fewer touches in 2 of his last 5 games, but over the course of the entire season, that’s only occurred three times total, two in 17+ losses to Philadelphia and last week to Dallas. Cook should be utilized heavily this week, assuming that the Vikings do not get blown out against New England, which seems unlikely.

Devin Singletary- Great Cash Game, Low-End GPP Play

Whenever a team is projected to score 30+ points, looking at their running back is always going to be advantageous in cash game formats. When that running back is less than $7k on a short slate in which there is not much value, they become almost a must-play. Detroit’s run defense has been better over the last few weeks, including shutting down Saquon Barkley last week, holding him to just 22 yards on 15 carries, but at $6,900, Singletary is the lowest-priced starting running back of any team on Thursday. Singletary has seen an increase in volume, which historically has been a concern for Singletary, but over the last five games, he has seen a significant increase in touches as he has 14 or more touches in four of his last five games. The only concern here is that in GPPs, he will likely be too popular. With him being such as value play, it’s likely that he could get 50%+ in GPP’s, which there is no guarantee the volume will continue as James Cook could see his volume increase after an 11-carry 82-yard performance last week.

Rhamondre Stevenson- Great Cash Game Play, Good GPP Play

Rhamondre Stevenson is a tricky one this week as the price is fantastic at just $7,200, and the volume has been somewhat consistent as he has 18 or more touches in each of his last seven games. The challenge is that he’s facing what was perceived prior to last week being an elite run-stopping unit. Stevenson has also struggled running the ball, as he had just 26 yards on 15 carries last week and is averaging just 3.4 yards per carry over the last four weeks. However, he’s been outstanding through the passing game as he has at least six targets over the last four games and has topped 55 yards in three of those four games.