Last week we ran our first-ever private Big Blue View fantasy contest on FanDuel. Our very own Dennis Esser (@coachesser on Twitter) placed third out of 55 entrants. Yours truly, using a very slightly modified version of a league recommended by the coach, cashed in by placing eighth. Point being, you're in the right place if you want quality Fantasy Football advice.
There is no private league this week. There will be SB Nation-wide leagues both today for the Thanksgiving Day games and Sunday for the remaining Week 13 games.
It's $5 to join the Thanksgiving Day contest and the top 81 finishers will be paid out, including $200 to first place. Added Incentive: Use the SBNATION32 promo code for first-time users to get a deposit bonus.
Never played FanDuel before? You get a $60K salary cap and get to set your lineup any way you like as long it is within the cap. Today's SB Nation FanDuel contest kicks off at 12:30 p.m. ET.
FanDuel Lineup Advice
[EDITOR'S NOTE: The following was written by Mike Gallop, a fantasy junkie and New York Giants fan who will be joining our Fantasy coach, Dennis Esser, to provide you with all the Fantasy Football advice you need to win in your leagues.]
(Homer Simpson voice) mmmmm....turkey......DFS
Thanksgiving has always been a great football day. Playground football with friends/family, followed by gluttonous amounts of goodness drenched in gravy, accompanied by our beloved NFL. The Lions and
Cowboys are the turkey day traditions, but the NFL adding a THIRD game a few years ago puts it over the top. Ten hours of football, plus fatty foods, plus family equals THANKFUL!!
This year especially, we have three fantastic NFL matchups on Turkey Day. All three match-ups have significant playoff implications, but for the purpose of my FanDuel lineup, I'm only focusing on CHI/DET and PHI/DAL. The Niners andSeahawks will surely be a smash mouth wail of a game, but I'm not confident in the fantasy department. I think the odds of a 13-10 defensive struggle are far greater than a shootout. And after looking at the player values on Fanduel, I'm fading all Niners/Seahawks players.
Now on to my FanDuel picks. Even though I've narrowed my choices to four teams, there are still a lot of combinations/value plays that I like.
QB - Matthew Stafford ($8300)
QB is tough, because there's only a $900 spread between Romo at the top and Sanchez as the value play. I think Stafford has a serious bounce back game against the woeful secondary of Chicago. The Lions are at home on the fast track, and need a win to build some momentum for the late season playoff push.
RB- LeSean McCoy ($8000)
The REAL Slim Shady stood up last week, albeit to the Titans sieve-like rush defense. Anyone who has watched McCoy run this year can see the obvious; his early season toe/foot issues have slowed him down considerably. His highlights from last year were straight out of a video game, but this year he has lost that "bounce" that he previously relied on. He looked better last week, and Philly's offensive line is finally getting its act together. Don't throw shade on Shady this week.
RB - Joique Bell ($6300)
I am loving me some Joique this week. I think the Lions passing game gets back on track, which will give Joique plenty of scoring opportunities vs. the Bears swiss cheese defense. Lance Briggs left Sunday's game with a groin injury, and with a short turnaround, will be a longshot to suit up. This, along with the low production coming from the Bush/Riddick passing back role, makes Bell a terrific value at $6300.
WR - Marquess Wilson ($4600)
And here's my dart throw of the week. Being immediately inserted as the Bears WR3 ahead of underwhelming Josh Morgan and Santonio Holmes, Wilson received four targets from Cutler vs. the Bucs on Sunday. He's another big body for Cutler to target in the slot, and you have to assume the Lions staunch secondary will focus most of their attention on Marshall, Alshon, and Bennett. A preseason sleeper favorite, I believe the cost and the opportunity makes him a sneaky play this week. And besides, he allows me to also start:
WR - Dez Bryant ($8800) and Calvin Johnson ($8600)
Finding value at other positions frees up the capital to use two of the top five WRs in the league, and against two of the worst secondaries in the league. Yes please. If you're fearing that Calvin will disappoint again, he should be facing a Bears secondary that's without Kyle Fuller (knee sprain), their
stud rookie CB. Tim Jennings is a good cornerback, but he is roughly three feet shorter than Megatron.
TE - Jason Witten ($5700)
There are no stud TEs playing on Thanksgiving, and I think Witten has the best chance at an end zone spike. The very burnable safeties of Philly make Witten a nice option, and at an affordable price.
K - Robbie Gould ($4500)
I usually don't like to spend money on kickers, and since I do see the Bears moving the football, I think Gould is a value pick. He's $500-$900 cheaper than the other options, and gets to kick indoors. He also gets to prove that Ford Field, in fact, is not haunted by Jason Hansen. It's just that the Lions kickers have been THAT bad.
Defense - Detroit Lions ($5200)
I'm anticipating Smokin' Jay Cutler to show his smug face on turkey day, which is great news for the Lions ferocious defense. Coming off an embarrassing loss against the Pats, Ndamukong Suh and company will be out for blood. They are my favorite defense of the week, and being the fourth-cheapest option is just gravy on the stuffing.
OK gamers, it's now your turn. Let me know who you think the best dart throw/value play is this week on FanDuel. Any position player under $6000 counts. Winner gets a second helping of green bean casserole.