Getty Patrick Peterson of the Arizona Cardinals is in the Halloween spirit
DraftKings NFL $1.2M Thursday Night Halloween Showdown is open for entry now. The contest will feature the Arizona Cardinals trying to knock off their division rival, the currently undefeated San Franciso 49ers.
The first place prize winner of the DraftKings TNF Showdown will receive a hefty payout of $300K. Let’s see how to optimize our lineups below.
Rules & Scoring:
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- Six total players (one captain, five flex players)
- Captain selection cost 1.5x standard salary
- Captain scores 1.5x fantasy point values
- Can choose from any position (QB, RB, WR, TE, K, DST)
- You can use as many players at the same position as you’d like
- $50,000 salary cap
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Roster Construction
- Captain: Tevin Coleman $13,500
- FLEX: George Kittle $9,200
- FLEX: 49ers DEF $7,400
- FLEX: Christian Kirk $7,200
- FLEX: Kenyan Drake $6,800
- FLEX: Deebo Samuel $5,200
Why this Lineup?
Since returning from injury, running back Tevin Coleman has taken complete control of the lead-back duties in San Francisco. Over Coleman’s last four games, he’s averaged 19.68 fantasy points and accumulated six total touchdowns. Most importantly, due to the added captain cost, we need to fill our spot with a player of high usage. Coleman is just that type of player, averaging nearly 18 touches per game since Week 5.
George Kittle has averaged 18.9 fantasy points in three of his last four games and seen nearly eight targets in six of his seven games this season. The Arizona Cardinals are the worst defense in fantasy football in terms of defending the tight end position. The Cards have allowed 6.8 receptions and 18.5 fantasy points per game to TEs in 2019.
Since returning from their Week 4 bye, the 49ers DEF has averaged 15.25 fantasy points. To put that in a better perspective, that’s more points than all but two wide receivers in standard-scoring formats over that time frame. The Cardinals have allowed four of the last six defenses they’ve faced off with to rack up an average of 11.75 fantasy points.
Kenyan Drake comes in with great value due to the lone fact that he’s been with the Cardinals for less than a week. However, with Chase Edmonds ruled out and David Johnson likely to follow in Edmonds’ footsteps, you can get a starting running back for less than $7,000 on Thursday night. While the matchup is tough, Drake’s receiving abilities should help fill up the stat sheet. Plus, for all the ‘9ers defensive success this season, they’ve allowed opposing starting running backs to average 99 rushing yards over the past two weeks.
Deebo Samuel is a bit of a flyer, but we’re betting on his skill-level. Even with the acquisition of Emmanuel Sanders, Samuel is still the most talented wideout on the 49ers roster. He found the endzone in Week 8 and is coming off a 13.8 fantasy point outing. The Cardinals have surrendered a league-most 20 receiving touchdowns this season.
Final Thoughts & Obvious Omissions
With David Johnson and Chase Edmonds both likely to miss Thursday night’s outing, it made the building of our lineup all the easier. However, it’s probably quite glaring that we omitted both quarterbacks from our Showdown picks.
Kyler Murray has averaged less than 200 passing yards over the last two weeks, failing to find the endzone in either game. Jimmy Garoppolo was the highest-priced player for Thursday night, despite averaging just 12.32 fantasy points in six of his seven games this season. That’s why we opted for the 49ers defense, who have averaged more points than Garoppolo on the year (14.6) and came in $3,000 cheaper than the chiseled chin quarterback.
Reminder, the game kicks off on Thursday at 8:20 pm ET. Be sure to set your lineups, and good luck!
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