Getty Dak Prescott is headed towards being franchise tagged.
DraftKings’ $1M NFL Sunday Night Showdown is open for entry now. The contest features a bout between two NFC juggernauts in the Dallas Cowboys and Los Angeles Rams.
The first place prize winner of the Showdown will receive a hefty $250K payout. 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: Tyler Higbee $10,800
- FLEX: Dak Prescott $10,800
- FLEX: Ezekiel Elliott $10,400
- FLEX: Cooper Kupp $8,400
- FLEX: Malcolm Brown $4,800
- FLEX: Greg Zuerlein $4,200
Why This Lineup?
Tyler Higbee may seem like an odd choice for captain in such a star-studded lineup. However, maybe this stat line will ease your concerns. Over the final five weeks of 2019, Higbee averaged 21.4 ppg, nearly 5.0 ppg more than the next closest tight end over that span. That span included a 12 reception 111 yard showing against the Cowboys. Dallas was abysmal defending tight ends a season ago, allowing the second-most fantasy points to the position in football.
A top-three scorer amongst all quarterbacks last season, Dak Prescott has cemented himself as a homerun play. The Dallas QB averaged 21-plus ppg in 2019, scoring less than 20.0 points in just five games.
The matchup isn’t eye-popping for Ezekiel Elliott, as the Rams defense allowed the 18th-most fantasy points to RBs in 2019. However, fresh off a season where he averaged 22-plus touches per game, Zeke’s sheer volume should eliminate much concern. Any more concern should be eased by the fact that he gashed the Rams defense to the tune of 2 touchdowns and 34 fantasy points in their lone matchup last season.
You could easily swap Cooper Kupp for Amari Cooper here. However, with the presence of Michael Gallup and the likelihood that Dallas tries to flaunt their first-round steal, CeeDee Lamb, in our faces, Kupp seems like the safer choice. Kupp was a top-10 play over the final five weeks of 2019, scoring a touchdown in every game, including a 16.1-point outing against Dallas.
A starting running back for less than 5K? Yes, please. Will Malcolm Brown dominate the touches in L.A.’s backfield? Likely not. However, the Rams trust Brown, who at times last season was the team’s preferred goal-line back, even with Todd Gurley on the roster.
Greg Zuerlein makes his Cowboys debut facing off against a Rams team for whom he spent the first seven years of his NFL career with. One of the best fantasy kicker options over the past decade, Zuerlein gets a matchup against a Los Angeles team who allowed an average of 9.8 ppg to kickers over five of the final six games of 2019.
Final Thoughts & Obvious Omissions
As we noted earlier, Amari Cooper is a viable play and could replace Kupp in your lineup if you so see fit. Cam Akers is a boom-or-bust play, but with a $10,200 price tag, the potential boom doesn’t outweigh the financial burden. Blake Jarwin is arguably the biggest sleeper on the night, as he should see a solid uptick in usage with Jason Witten now in Las Vegas.
Reminder, Sunday night’s game kicks off at 8:20 pm ET. Be sure to set your lineups and good luck!
- *Check out our other Week 1 Start ‘Em, Sit ‘Ems to further optimize your lineups
- Start-Sit [QBs | RBs | WRs | TEs | DEF | Ks]
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