DraftKings NFL $1.11M Thursday Night Showdown is open for entry now. The contest features a divisional bout between the Houston Texans and the Indianapolis Colts.
The first place prize winner of the DraftKings TNF Showdown will receive a hefty payout of $250K. 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 costs 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: TY Hilton $14,400
- FLEX: Deshaun Watson $11,600
- FLEX: Deandre Hopkins $11,000
- FLEX: Nyheim Hines $6,200
- FLEX: Ka’imi Fairbairn $3,800
- FLEX: Keke Coutee $2,400
Why This Lineup?
TY Hilton is trending towards making his return to the Colts lineup on Thursday after a three-game hiatus due to injury. If cleared, Hilton makes for a slam dunk fantasy play. The wideout has averaged five-plus receptions, 101+ yards, and nearly a touchdown per game in 15 meetings with the Texans over his career. Houston allows the sixth-most fantasy points to receivers this season. NOTE: Follow Hilton’s Latest Injury Updates Here.
Don’t bank on back-to-back poor showings from Deshaun Watson. After a putrid 5.9 fantasy points a week ago, he still ranks as the fourth-highest scoring fantasy player at his position this season. Indianapolis allowed 296 passing yards and two touchdowns to Nick Foles a week ago.
Not much to be said here. Deandre Hopkins has scored 15+ fantasy points in all but one game this season. He’s a WR1 in every sense of the term. The Colts were just torched by Jaguars’ DJ Chark to the tune of 104 receiving yards and two touchdowns. Give me Nuk over Chark any day.
No Marlon Mack this week should mean a larger workload for Nyheim Hines. All three Colts running backs have intrigue this week, but we’ll opt for the only one that presents a receiving threat out of the backfield. Houston has allowed 13 receptions to running backs over their past two games.
Ka’imi Fairbairn has scored 10+ fantasy points in four of his last six games. Indianapolis has allowed an average of 12 fantasy points to opposing kickers in four of their last five games.
Keke Coutee has been slowed by injuries this season. However, he seems to be approaching 100% heading into Thursday night. Deshaun Watson seems thrilled to have his slot receiver back in the mix. With Will Fuller likely out once again with a hamstring injury and Kenny Stills vastly underperforming, Coutee could end up being the second fiddle to D-Hop in the passing game vs. Indy. Coutee is certainly worth the dirt-poor salary of just $2,400.
Final Thoughts & Obvious Omissions
With a number of injuries littered throughout both rosters, the omissions to our lineups this week are not as glaring as usual. Jacoby Brissett could be considered an obvious omission, however, he’s averaged just 12.51 fantasy points in three of his past four games when healthy.
Jonathan Williams is a hot name in DFS as well as standard fantasy circles this week. While I certainly like him more in a daily fantasy format, the return of Jordan Wilkins and the presence of Nyheim Hines limits his potential. Plus, no running back has rushed for more than 66 yards, nor found the endzone in five of the Texans last six games.
If you’re looking to mix up your roster a bit, Duke Johnson has scored double-digit fantasy points in two of his last three games. The Colts defense has allowed seven-plus receptions to a running back on two separate occasions over the past two weeks.
Reminder, Thursday night’s game kicks off at 8:20 pm ET. Be sure to set your lineups and good luck!
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DraftKings Week 12 Thursday Night Football Showdown: Picks & DFS Lineups