DraftKings NFL Picks & Optimal Lineups: Browns vs. Broncos Showdown

Captain Breakdown for Browns vs. Broncos

In the first Saturday NFL action we'll quickly find out what time of encore performance the Browns and Broncos can give us to Thursday's game. While the first Week 15 game between the Chargers and Chiefs on Thursday night was an exciting one, it was likely frustrating for fantasy players.

The showdown slate specifically featured both Tyreek Hill and Keenan Allen among the top plays on the board. We saw Hill have an easy touchdown catch bounce off his facemask and Allen got hurt in the second quarter, so it was a run of unfortunate events. But, it's time to turn the tides back and right the ship behind the many intriguing targets in this game.

On the surface, the Browns and Broncos may not look like the greatest game for fantasy football purposes, but at second glance, it's pretty appealing. There are some strong options, potentially low-owned plays and great matchups in a few specific spots. In turn, choosing the top captains can go a few different ways.

With that said, the bulk of captain choices will typically come from high-priced players, but that's not always the best approach to take. This game comes with a healthy projected total of 46.5 (per Odds Shark), so there should be some points in this one.

Often times, I'll use the projected total and a prediction on how the game flow will go in order to construct lineups and even pick captains. If you think we're going to see a shootout with a lot of back-and-forth, then looking for high-upside players would make sense. I'll dive deeper into that, but there are certainly some intriguing names on both sides worthy of captain consideration for this slate.

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Favorite Captain Choices for Browns vs. Broncos

For the most part, I lock in on 4-5 main players to target as captains, which allows me additional flexibility while building lineups. From there, I'll typically zero in on 2-3 who are my favorite choices. I'm going to lay out the handful of names who I'll have in captain consideration, and break down my top targets as we roll through the lineups.

These are the top targets for Saturday's matchup between the Browns and Broncos, all of which feature the 1.5x price tag on DraftKings.

– Phillip Lindsay ($17,700)
– Baker Mayfield ($17,100)
– Nick Chubb ($16,800)
– Jarvis Landry ($15,600)
– DaeSean Hamilton ($9,900)
– Tim Patrick ($8,700)

*David Njoku ($9,000) and Antonio Callaway ($7,800) can be considered as other inexpensive options.

Favorite expensive/mid-range captains: Phillip Lindsay, Nick Chubb

Top value-saving captains: Tim Patrick, DaeSean Hamilton

Although the captains seem to be somewhat top-heavy at first glance, I actually have no issue with paying down at captain if you're expecting more of a low-scoring game. Players such as DaeSean Hamilton and Tim Patrick will provide a solid floor due to the expectation of a potentially high number of targets.

As far as the expensive names go, it's hard to overlook Phillip Lindsay based on his matchup and upside, but the decision on how to roll him out largely comes down to the construction of lineups. If you have the money for Lindsay as a captain, he's a great option. I'm somewhat wary of the ownership for Jarvis Landry after last week's game, though, so using him as a flex option could be wise here.

Let's start things off with the optimal lineup and I'll break down the specific plays along the way.