Tonight two teams in the top five of the Western Conference face off for the second time this week. The fifth place Portland Trailblazers had a stunning overtime win against the third place Warriors on Thursday which was Golden States second loss in a row since they fell to the Lakers on Christmas Day. With Golden State just 0.5 games behind the conference-leading Nuggets and the Trailblazers at 3.5 games behind both teams will be fighting hard for a win tonight to bring them closer to the top spot. 

Stephen Curry ($9,800/44.67 FPPG) is going to be working hard tonight to help his team avoid a second straight loss to Portland. Despite the loss on Thursday, Curry still performed much better across the board than he did in the loss on Christmas, with 29 points, 5 rebounds, 7 assists, 2 blocks and 2 steals.  Since he has returned to the court on December 1st after an 11 game absence he has been putting up great fantasy numbers with only two games below 30 FP contrasted with  five games above 50 FP. If he can continue to play well and put up similar numbers to those in Thursday’s matchup, Curry will definitely be a smart choice for fantasy players tonight.  

Kevin Durant ($10,700/49.80) will also be working hard tonight to help avoid a second loss to the Trailblazers, especially since his missed shot at the buzzer Thursday would’ve ended the game with a Golden State win. He has had an elite season so far with his average 28.8 points per game the highest of his career since the 2013-14 season as well as a career high assists per game with 6.6. Despite the missed shot, Durant still put up good numbers Thursday with 26 points, 10 rebounds and 11 assists giving him his second triple double game of the season. December has been a productive month for Durant. Thru the 13 games this month he has averaged 26.3 points per game and has great rebound and assist numbers that helped bring him the one triple-double and three double-double games. His on the court performance has made him a great asset for fantasy players this month with 69.2% of his games scoring above 40 FP. Durant will be working hard tonight to help the Warriors avoid another loss to Portland making him a strong pick for fantasy rosters. 

For fantasy players willing to take a risk on a less consistent pick, Jusuf Nurkic ($8,000/35.36 FP) might be worth a look. While he put up a team leading 27 points in Thursday’s victory over the Warriors, his December has featured five games where he put up only single digit points. Despite his weak scoring, Nurkic has put up great rebound numbers with 9.8 per game on average. Having these rebounds have helped Nurkic’s fantasy numbers stay relevant despite the lack of consistent scoring. While he is definitely a more risky pick for fantasy rosters there is still a good amount of upside, especially if he can once again lead the team in rebounds and points against Golden State.

With the close situation in the Western Conference standings, the Trailblazers looking for a second victory to propel them closer to the top, and the Warriors hoping for a revenge win to end their two game streak, this game has implications lasting into the season. Fantasy players will be wise to keep their eye on this matchup with its abundance of elite picks to help propel their lineups to the top. 

Nets vs Hornets 

Vegas Favorite – Hornets (-4.5), O/U – 220.0

DeAngelo Russell (BKN) -($6,800/32.72 FPPG)

Season Averages – 17.5 PPG, 3.8 RPG, 6.2 APG 

Kemba Walker (CHA) – ($9,800/42.65 FPPG)

Season Averages – 25.2 PPG, 4.4 RPG, 6.2 APG

Mavericks vs Pelicans 

Vegas Favorite – Pelicans (-4.0), O/U – 229.5

DeAndre Jordan (DAL) – ($7,500/34.40 FPPG)

Season Averages – 11.4 PPG, 14.2 RPG, 2.2 APG

Jrue Holliday (NOP) – ($9,400/43.06 FPPG)

Season Averages – 20.9 PPG, 4.4 RPG, 8.7 APG 

Raptors vs Magic

Vegas Favorite – Raptors (-5.0), O/U – 209.0

Kawhi Leonard (TOR) – ($10,300/46.58 FPPG)

Season Averages – 26.9 FPPG, 8.4 RPG, 3.1 APG 

Aaron Gordon (ORL) – ($7,000/32.18 FPPG)

Season Averages – 15.3 PPG, 7.5 RPG, 3.1 APG 

Clippers v Lakers 

Vegas Favorite – Clippers (-5.5), O/U – 229.5

Tobias Harris (LAC) – ($7,500/35.71 FPPG)

Season Averages – 21.5 PPG, 8.2 RPG, 2.3 APG 

Kyle Kuzma (LAL) – ($7,200/30.52 FPPG)

Season Averages – 18.6 PPG, 5.8 RPG, 2.3 APG 

Spurs vs Nuggets 

Vegas Favorite – Nuggets (-4.0), O/U – 214.5

LaMarcus Aldridge (SAN) – ($7,700/36.10 FPPG)

Season Averages – 18.9 PPG, 9.1 RPG, 2.1 APG 

Nikola Jokic (DEN) – ($9,800/43.89 FPPG)

Season Averages – 17.7 PPG, 9.8 RPG, 7.3 APG

Each week, we’ll dive into Fanduel’s main slate to highlight some of the juiciest matchups and situations to exploit. Whether it’s finding the low(er)-owned gems in a popular upcoming shootout or identifying an overlooked clash that DFSers can use to gain leverage over a tournament field, our aim is to provide you the individual plays and overall strategy to consider as you chase profitability in your DFS portfolio. Let’s jump in.

Raiders at Chiefs (-14, 52.5)
With Spencer Ware ($6,600) likely back in action after making his return to practice this week, the Chiefs will pair him with Damien Williams ($6,900) for a nice 1-2 punch in their backfield. This can be a tricky situation from a DFS perspective as we’re not certain who’s going to get the bulk of the work, but consider that when both backs were healthy against the Ravens in Week 14, Ware handled 20 touches and earned 15.4 FanDuel points while Williams received 13 touches for 17 FD points. That was against one of the top defenses in the league. Volume shouldn’t be an issue when they line up against the Raiders, owners of one of the league’s worst run defenses. As 14-point favorites, the Chiefs should be able to provide volume for each runner as they’ll probably be taking the air out of the ball much of the second half. Williams is the safer choice as he’s been healthy, but Ware offers appeal as a low-owned leverage play.

Speaking of taking advantage of low ownership, Derek Carr ($6,800) will not be a popular play as he’s fresh off a pair of stinkers. But if you’re willing to place the fate of your lineup in Carr’s hands, there are a couple of promising points to hang your hat on. First of all, as much as the Raiders may have enjoyed only attempting 26 passes in last week’s win against the Broncos, they’re likely to have to rely heavily on Carr’s right shoulder in order to keep this contest close. Secondly, the last time these two division foes met back in Week 13, the Raiders and Carr kept things interesting as the latter attempted 38 passes and came away with 24.2 FD points in a 40-33 barn burner.

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Bengals at Steelers (-14.5, 45.5)
After nearly breaking the 30-point barrier, we’re going back to the well on Ben Roethlisberger ($8,700) in a must-win showdown with the Bengals’ sieve defense. The Steelers continue to rely on their passing game, gaining 77.4 percent of their yardage through the air. Meanwhile, they’ll line up against the team that has allowed the most yards from scrimmage in the NFL thus far. Big Ben may not need to chuck it 50 times Sunday, but he’ll be a safe, albeit popular, option this week.

Falcons (-1.5, 52) at Buccaneers
With two high-flying offenses pairing with two incapable defenses, we could be treated to southern shootout to close the chapter on both teams’ disappointing seasons. At the time of this posting, it looked like Tevin Coleman ($6,300) was a long-shot to suit up, leaving Brian Hill ($5,300) in line to handle the bulk of the work. Considering the former is nursing a groin strain, there’s reason to fire Hill up in your lineups even in the event Coleman is active. On the other sideline is Peyton Barber ($5,500), who makes up for a lack of flash with healthy volume. He’s cracked the 20-touch plateau in four of the last six weeks, but not one of those teams was as disinterested in providing defensive resistance as the Falcons.

Jets at Patriots (-13.5, 46)
It’s been back-to-back strong performances for Sam Darnold ($7,500), who will look to crack 20 FD points for the third straight week. Facing off against the Pats defense is never a walk in the park, but considering the spread is large enough to span the distance between East Rutherford and Foxborough, Darnold figures to be in a position to pad his fantasy stats with meaningless production. The natural inclination will be to stack Darnold with his top target, Robby Anderson ($7,000). The volume has been plentiful (31 targets since Week 14) and the price is reasonable. Before you submit that lineup though, keep in mind that Bill Belichick and Co. are notorious for making teams beat them with secondary options.

 Nuggets v Spurs 

Vegas Favorite – Spurs (-4.0), O/U – 216.0

The number one team in the Western Conference, the 21-10 Denver Nuggets, will be traveling tonight to take on the San Antonio Spurs. The Spurs are 18-16 so far this season which places them 4.5 games behind the Nuggets, but they have been a very good team at home this season with a 13-5 home record compared to a road record of 5-11. While the Nuggets have an overall winning record while on the road this season, they have shown some signs of faltering recently with their last three road games ending in losses. Given that the Spurs have the highest 3 point percentage out of the entire league this season with 40.3% of attempts made, the Nuggets will need to continue their trend of holding their opponent to just 32.4% of shots beyond the three. For San Antonio to come out ahead, the Spurs need to attempt to step up their points in the paint. So far this year they have scored the 5th fewest points in the paint throughout the entire league while the Nuggets are the polar opposite with the 5th highest paint points per game. The Nuggets will have to avoid a slow start similar to the one they had in their last loss, continue their strong defensive performance and play hard and fast through all 4 quarters if they want their road losing streak to end tonight. 

Players to Watch 

Jamal Murray (DEN) – ($7,800/32.18 FPPG)

Season Averages – 17.6 PPG, 4.5 RPG, 5.0 APG 

Jamal Murray has been on a hot streak lately, shooting above 50% in four of his last five games. His recent performances also included a career high 15 assists, along with 7 rebounds and 22 points for a total of 53.9 fantasy points while playing for 39 minutes in Denver’s recent victory over the Mavericks. Throughout this month, with one 13.7 FP exception, Murray has had a decent fantasy showing with an average 35.9 FP across the 9 games the Nuggets have played in December. Tonight against the Spurs, fantasy players will be hoping for him to continue his high shooting accuracy as well as picking up assists and rebounds to help out their lineups. 

DeMar DeRozan (SAN) – ($8,700/40.93 FPPG)

Season Averages – 23.1 PPG, 5.6 RPG, 6.3 APG 

Despite scoring only 12 points in last week’s victory against the Timberwolves, DeRozan rebounded in a big way in San Antonio’s loss to the Rockets on Saturday where he scored 28 points and put up 7 rebounds, 8 assists, 2 blocks and a steal. This game mirrored his overall performance this December with him averaging 21.4 points, 5.5 rebounds and 6.6 assists across 12 games so far this month. Due to his efforts he has been a great asset for the most part to fantasy players recently, scoring above 40 FP in almost half of San Antonio’s matchups this month including two games above 50 FP and one above 60 FP. As DeRozan looks to continues on this trend tonight against the Nuggets, fantasy players will be wise to consider him for their rosters. 

Tonight’s Christmas night NBA slate features two matchups between Western Conference teams. Both the game between the top tier Golden State Warriors defending their home court against the visiting Lakers and the matchup featuring the Jazz looking for their second win in a row against Portland will have plenty of fantasy potential for players looking to create a winning Christmas night lineup. 

Coming off a 42 point game against the Clippers, Steph Curry ($9,700/45.19 FPPG) will be looking to stay hot tonight against the Lakers. He has put up above 20 points per game in 10 out of the 11 games the Warriors have played so far in December and has also averaged 5.4 rebounds per game across that same period. If he can keep up his performance up, fantasy players can expect him to put up a high amount of fantasy points. With the exception of a disappointing showing against the Raptors earlier this month, Curry has put up above 35 FP in every other game played this month, making him an expensive but consistent and worthwhile pick to add to fantasy lineups tonight.

On the Lakers side of this matchup, Lebron James should have some of the pressure taken off him tonight because of Brandon Ingram’s ($6,000/25.51 FPPG) return to the team two games ago after missing 7 games with an ankle injury. While it may be a little early to say for sure how much he will continue to add to the team, since his return he has appeared to quickly rebound back to his pre-injury performance, having scored 18 points, 7 rebounds and 2 assists against the Pelicans and 20 points, 4 rebounds and 3 assist against the Grizzlies in Sunday’s game. While his fantasy point production was inconsistent and at some times disappointing in parts of the season before his injury, in his return he put up 30.4 FP and 27.3 FP. If he can keep his shooting in line and continue to add rebounds and assists for the Lakers he will definitely continue to have great fantasy potential and be a solid choice to add to fantasy rosters. 

In the last contest of the night, the Portland Trailblazers point guard Damian Lillard ($9,300/43.67 FPPG) will be a excellent choice for fantasy players especially considering his recent production. In Sunday’s game against the Mavericks, Lillard put up team high points (33) and assists (7) which shows his value to both the Portland team and fantasy players. This month he has excelled at shooting with 47.2 percent shooting overall and 47.4 percent from beyond the three for an average 28.2 points per game. This has had a great impact on his fantasy point production as well, with him scoring above 40 FP in 63.6% of the contests in December. He will be looking to keep this hot streak alive tonight against the Jazz and fantasy players wanting to take advantage will be wise to add him to their lineups tonight. 

Joe Ingles ($6,000/27.15 FPPG) will offer fantasy players a value pick that has good upside despite his lower scoring potential. Ingles scores above double digits in Utah’s last three games for the first time since the beginning of December. Despite his low scoring he still offers decent fantasy point potential due to his skills with rebounds and assists, having averaged 3.8 rebounds and 5.3 assists across the 11 games played so far in December. Due to these stats keeping him well rounded, he has put up above 30 FP in 54.5% of the matchups this month, including a 33.5 FP showing in Friday’s game against the same team the Jazz will face tonight, offering fantasy players good potential for a lower price. And because FanDuel drops the lowest scoring pick in a lineup there isn’t much downside in the event that Ingles doesn’t perform well.

With the Lakers looking for a win against a tough Golden State team to help them avoid their 4th loss in five games and the Trailblazers looking for revenge after their loss at home to the Utah Jazz last Friday, both teams will be working hard in these Christmas night games. The picks listed here are just a few of the players with great potential in these matchups and should offer fantasy players some nice gifts as they leave it all on the court tonight. 

Raptors vs 76ers

Vegas Favorite – 76ers (-8.0), O/U – 219.0

This matchup features the top team in the Eastern Conference, the Toronto Raptors, facing off with the number four ranked Philadelphia 76ers, who are 3.5 games behind the Raptors. The Raptors have handily beaten the 76ers twice already this season but will be playing tonight without their top scorer Kawhi Leonard, who put up 31 points in October’s win and 36 points when the teams met earlier this month. Serge Ibaka, Kyle Lowry and Danny Green are also questionable for the Raptors tonight, leaving the offense substantially weakened. The already strong 76ers, who are 3rd best in the league for offense and 18th best for defense since acquiring Jimmy Butler from the Timberwolves will definitely go all out to take full advantage of an injury plagued Raptors team but they will need to avoid turning the ball over. The 76ers had a major problem with turnovers in their losses to the Raptors, with 18 turnovers from Ben Simmons alone across those two matchups. This gave a major advantage to the Raptors, who used the plays resulting from those turnovers to outscore the 76ers 56-33 off them. If the 76ers can keep control of the ball and continue to use their offensive weapons they have a real chance of winning due to the some of Toronto’s key players being sidelined for this matchup.

Players to Watch 

Fred VanFleet (TOR) – ($5,800/22.05 FPPG)

Season Averages : 9.9 PPG, 2.5 RPG, 4.5 APG

Ben Simmons (PHI) – ($9,300/41.94 FPPG)

Season Averages : 15.8 PPG, 9.1 RPG, 7.9 APG

Thunder vs Jazz

Vegas Favorite – Jazz (-1.5), O/U – 218.0

The Jazz have had played well in their last two games, beating the Warriors by five and completely dominating the Trailblazers in Portland by 30 points yesterday. They will look to continue this trend tonight as they play at home against the 20-10 Oklahoma City Thunder who are only 1.0 game behind the Western Conference leading Denver Nuggets. This will be one of the toughest stretches of the season for the Jazz with another game against Portland and then a meeting with the 76ers following tonight’s game. The Thunder have been on fire lately winning 7 of their last 10 games including an 11 point victory against the Jazz earlier in December. They also lead the NBA in defensive rating at the moment but their real strength lies in their offensive performers. Their aptly named Big Three, which consists of Russell Westbrook, Paul George and Steven Adams have been averaging an astounding 71.8 points, 29.3 rebounds, 15.7 assists and 6.3 steals per game which not only makes them a killer force for the Thunder but also brings them to the top in every stat category for a set of any three players across the entire NBA. For the Jazz to have any hope of defeating the Thunder, they will have to limit as much performance from these three players as possible while also making sure they keep their own offensive performance in line with their past two games. 

Players to Watch

Paul George (OKC) – ($9,800/47.19 FPPG)

Season Averages : 25.5 PPG, 7.9 RPG, 4.4 APG

Rudy Gobert (UTA) – ($8,700/39.47 FPPG)

Season Averages : 14.4 PPG, 12.3 RPG, 2.0 APG

#24 Furman v LSU

Vegas Favorite – LSU (-8.5), O/U – 148.5

As one of the 8 remaining undefeated teams in college basketball, the 12-0 Furman Paladins have beaten two elite teams already this season: the defending NCAA champions Villanova and Loyola, another Final 4 participant from last year. They have been performing great on both offense and defense so far this season, scoring an average 83.7 points per game as they hold their opponents to just 64.9 on average. Tonight Furman will be going on the road as 8.5 point underdogs to face another strong team, the 8-3 LSU Tigers, who are averaging 81.2 points per game this season while holding their opponents to 71.3. The Tigers haven’t lost a game at home so far this season and two of their three losses were to top ranked teams, the Florida State Seminoles and a still undefeated Houston team. In order for LSU to stay ahead of the powerful Furman defense, the Tigers will need to use their offense to maintain control of the ball and shoot more threes than their current season average of 32.8% for 7.4 per game to ensure that they can put up enough points for a victory. With LSU one of the strongest teams on Furman’s remaining schedule, the Paladins will have to leave it all on the court tonight to avoid having their undefeated season spoiled. 

Players to Watch 

Matt Rafferty (FUR) – ($9,300/43.56 FPPG) 

Season Averages : 17.2 PPG, 9.7 RPG, 4.6 APG

Skylar Mays (LSU) – ($6,900/24.41 FPPG)

Season Averages : 13.3 PPG, 3.5 RPG, 2.5 APG

#14 Buffalo vs #20 Marquette

Vegas Favorite – Marquette (-3.5), O/U – 156.5

In this Top 25 matchup, another undefeated team, the Buffalo Bulls, will be looking to keep their unbeaten streak alive. One of the reasons for the Bulls dominance this season is that they have held their opponent to 66.6 points per game on average while their offense averages around 84 points per game. They face a strong opponent tonight in the 9-2 Marquette Golden Eagles, who are scoring an average 77.5 points per game, while only allowing 66.5 to their opponents. Marquette’s only losses this season have been against other powerful ranked teams, the Indiana Hoosiers and the still undefeated Kansas Jayhawks. One way that Marquette can combat Buffalo’s strong defense is to work on picking up rebounds, something that they lead the Big East in with an average of 40 per game while allowing only 33 to opponents. If the Golden Eagles can continue this trend against Buffalo, they hold a better chance of being able to control the ball more which will give them more scoring opportunities. Since Buffalo will be facing a team with a strong defense similar to their own, they will need to continue their strong offensive performance tonight if they hope to keep their unbeaten record.

Players to Watch

CJ Massinburg (BUF) – ($8,200/31.03 FPPG)

Season Averages : 17.9 PPG, 7.2 RPG, 3.1 APG

Markus Howard (MARQ) – ($8,500/34.20 FPPG)

Season Averages : 23.2 PPG, 4.2 RPG, 4.5 APG

Sometime over your holiday break, you need to read this interview I stumbled across about how the audience and contestants are picked for The Price is Right. So, so many good nuggets in here about what can help and what can hurt your chances of making it in the door to the studio and also what can improve your chances of getting on stage. Who knew that showing up to the line a little drunk might improve your odds of getting in? Also, they allocate more tickets to the show than they can actually accommodate? Some grandma who planned her whole vacation so she could get into The Price is Right is told to go back to Omaha disappointed? Brutal.

Here’s another hint from the former staffer on improving your chances: Don’t be one of those people who says “woooo!”

Perhaps the most interesting piece of info in here is the fact that the producers screen each person before they go into the studio to see if they are the right type of person who would do well on stage. Apparently, they aren’t just taking the pretty people or the old people or those who made the best shirts, but instead the ones who won’t get up there and start licking Drew Carey’s face.

According to their numbers of audience size, that means everyday they are evaluating 325 people to determine whether they can trust them or if they are going to make the producers, the show, the network, and the advertisers look like buffoons.

I don’t know about you, but it sounds to me like every DFS player would be extremely qualified for that job.

How many times a week do we sit and stare at a list of hundreds of players just to determine if they can help us or bankrupt us that day? I love the part in the article talking about regulars who constantly try to crash the studio audience wearing wigs and fake mustaches even though they have been asked to never come back. Sounds familiar…

“Well there is David Njoku again. He’s cheap and has done some good things in the past. Baker Mayfield is improving, right? The match-up isn’t the toughest. He had 182 air yards one week last year.”

No. Get out of my life, David Njoku. I only believe that you are going to royally screw me. And there are countless players like this.

My hope for you this holiday season is that as you screen the tricky list of players in this injury-filled week that you are gifted the players who produce as you expect and that they do it in a way that boosts your ROI enough to pay off the holiday bills.

On to the players whose price is right in Week 16.

Quarterback

Mitchell Trubisky ($7,900) – Trubisky is the 10^th most expensive quarterback on the slate this week, despite facing a San Francisco defense that is giving up the 8^th most FD QB points on the year. In fact, only the Raiders have given up more passing touchdowns than the 49ers, who also give up the fifth most FD points to opposing wide receivers.

Trubisky, who has been known to throw a bad pass or two in his life, especially on the road, doesn’t have to worry about too much this week. The 49ers are in the basement of the league with only two interceptions all year. Two is pretty awful. The next closest team is six.

But it’s not all about the defense he is facing. Trubisky has 26 total touchdowns on the season – despite missing two games to injury – more than two TDs per game. He tends to torch the teams with bad passing defenses this year – as several millionaire contest winners will testify. Against other teams in the top ten of most FD points to QBs (Tampa Bay, New England, and Miami), Trubisky has scored 43.46, 33.42, and 28.34 points. As Chicago looks to lock up a first-round bye, I imagine they keep their foot on the pedal in this one.

Running Back

Elijah McGuire ($5,700) – Green Bay, McGuire’s opponent, is decidedly average against the run on the season. They have allowed a middle-of-the-pack 20.8 FD points and 11 touchdowns to running backs on the year. They struggle most against pass-catching running backs, ranking 28^th in the league in DVOA. McGuire, since his return from injury, has at least four targets in 2/3 of his games and now has the backfield all to himself with Crowell and Powell gone for the year.

In their past five games, the Packers have allowed 4.5 yards per carry and have given up four rushing touchdowns as they have been gashed by Chris Carson, Dalvin Cook, David Johnson, and Jordan Howard. Whether or not you put McGuire in the same class as those rushers is another conversation, but there is no question he is talented. The diminutive running back from UL Lafayette has ranked in the top 25 in fantasy points for running backs the last two weeks despite facing Houston and Buffalo, two teams in the top 10 for rushing defense DVOA.

For $5,700 you could do a lot worse than a back with 41 touches in the past two weeks playing at home against a deflated Packers team just waiting for vacation.

Wide Receiver

Amari Cooper ($7,000) – Despite the fact that his price (correctly) did not drop or rise after last’s weeks disappointing game against the Colts, Cooper is ranked as the 14^th most expensive wide receiver on the slate. Now, he is headed home to take on a defense giving up 31.9 FD points per game to wide receivers (and 19 total touchdowns in 14 games). No matter what metric you prefer, Tampa Bay is a bottom seven defense against wide receivers this season – pass DVOA, #1 WR DVOA, FD points allowed, touchdowns allowed, etc. They have just been straight terrible at shutting down receivers.

As mentioned above, the Colts game was a disaster for Cooper (6.3 FD points) and all the Cowboys, but it was on the road against a team allowing the fifth fewest FD points to wide receivers, and in a game where the Cowboys were missing their starting center. Cooper’s last four games at home, on the other hand, have been nothing short of spectacular with scores of 44.7, 9.6, 34, and 14.3.

Give me Cooper over the likes of Julian Edelman, Mike Evans and Kenny Golladay, all priced equally or above him in Week 16.

Each week, we’ll dive into Fanduel’s main slate to highlight some of the juiciest matchups and situations to exploit. Whether it’s finding the low(er)-owned gems in a popular upcoming shootout or identifying an overlooked clash that DFSers can use to gain leverage over a tournament field, our aim is to provide you the individual plays and overall strategy to consider as you chase profitability in your DFS portfolio. Let’s jump in.

Steelers at Saints (-6, 53)
If you’re in the mood to spend up at quarterback, look no further than Ben Roethlisberger ($8,700), the top-priced option at the position. Not only do the Steelers gain 76.8 percent of their yardage through the air, but the Saints also surrender 76.8 percent of their yardage through the air, setting up a promising funnel effect for Big Ben and the Steelers. Aside from a worse TD-to-INT ratio, Roethlisberger’s home/road splits have not been as pronounced as we’ve seen in recent seasons. Don’t expect your lineup(s) to be particularly unique if you take this route at QB, but there is immense upside as the Vegas odds suggest a high-scoring affair in which the Steelers are playing catch up. Teams have had success throwing to primary and secondary receivers, so if your desire is to stack this matchup, both Antonio Brown ($8.700) and Juju Smith-Schuster ($8,000) are viable options.

Vikings (-6, 42.5) at Lions
We saw the Vikings impersonate a road grader as Dalvin Cook ($7,100) gashed the Dolphins defense between the tackles en route to 28.8 FanDuel points. The Lions, statistically, have fared better against the run than the ‘Phins, particularly since trading for Damon Harrison, but interim offensive coordinator Kevin Stefanski’s first game calling plays suggests the Vikings want to run, run and run some more. The sample size may be small, but with only two games left in the season, there’s no time to see what constitutes a trend and what is simply a matchup anomaly.

Texans at Eagles (-2, 46)
If bargain shopping under center is your jam, say “hello” to Nick Foles ($6,000), who will run the show again for Philadelphia. While the numbers have not been pretty in his three starts, Foles has averaged 37.7 pass attempts, so it’s not as if the Eagles are keeping a tight leash on him. Philly has leaned heavily on the pass this season, gaining 72.1 percent of their yardage through the air. Meanwhile, Houston’s ability to stonewall opposing rushing attacks has led to opponents earning 74.5 percent of their yardage against them via the pass. No. 1 receivers and tight ends have been particularly troublesome to defend for the Texans pass defense, making Zach Ertz ($7,400) and Alshon Jeffery ($6,300) intriguing stack options.

Jaguars at Dolphins (-4, 38.5)
The Dolphins’ backfield warrants monitoring leading up to lineup lock on Sunday as both Kallen Ballage ($5,500) and Kenyan Drake ($5,800) figure to take aim at a Jaguars defense that forces teams to advance against them in a methodical, ground-based fashion, which is fine for a Miami squad that features a run-heavy offense. Ballage handled the bulk of the rushing load in Week 15, but with Drake practicing in full as of Thursday, the carry split becomes murky. But as they say, with risk comes reward. Both backs figure to be on the lower-owned side in tournaments, so if you pick the right one, you may be able to create some separation in tournaments while saving money to spend up elsewhere.

One game with a good amount of fantasy potential is the matchup tonight between the number one and number three teams in the Eastern Conference. The 20-11 Pacers, only 2.5 games behind the Raptors, had their 7 game win streak broken last night in a 92-91 at-the-buzzer loss to the 8-23 Cavaliers. Tonight they will be looking to come back from that disappointing loss as they travel to Toronto for the start of a short two game road trip, while the 23-9 Raptors will be looking to end their current two game losing streak, having suffered losses on the road to the Trailblazers and the Nuggets. 

Victor Oladipo ($8,700/40.10 FPPG) returned to the court last Wednesday after missing the previous 11 games with a knee injury. With him playing around 32 minutes per game with an average 16 points, 6 rebounds and 7.5 assists since his return to the lineup four games ago, his rebound and assist averages appear to have bounced back quickly (average 7.9 rebounds and 4.9 assists pre-injury) but he still needs to put in some work and take some time to help regain his pre-injury scoring average of 24.4 PPG. He also hasn’t had any trouble at all picking back up where he left off in regards to fantasy points with above 30 FP in all four games, including a 57.1 FP showing in the Pacers victory against the Knicks on Sunday. While it may take a little bit for him to get fully back to his pre-injury playing levels, Oladipo has already showed great progress, making him a valuable addition to fantasy lineups tonight. 

With the Raptors plagued by injuries, Kawhi Leonard ($9,700/46.02 FPPG) has seen an uptick in his already high usage lately with 37 and 38 minutes in the two games since he returned to the lineup after a minor injury of his own. In the Raptors loss against the Nuggets on Sunday, Leonard put up a double-double with 29 points, 14 rebounds and 4 assists. Except for a few scattered instances, performances like this one have been common for Kawhi this season, whose average 26.3 points per game makes him the leading scorer for the Raptors as well as the 8th ranked player overall in the league for average PPG scored. Leonard has had impressive fantasy performance this season, finishing with 40 FP or above in 73.7% of the games he has participated in since October 30th including two games above 60 FP. With the Raptors  relying on Kawhi even more than usual, he is a solid choice for fantasy players looking for a dominant pick to add to their rosters tonight.

For fantasy players looking for a value pick to add to their lineups, Fred VanFleet ($5,200/21.17 FPPG) might just fit that bill. While VanFleet was out of Sunday’s matchup due to a back injury, it appears that he will start tonight in place of the injured Kyle Lowry. The last time he was in this role he played for 37 minutes, put up a season high 21 points and was also able to add 4 rebounds and 8 assists for 33.8 fantasy points. His scoring has been pretty inconsistent this season, but he will definitely see his playing time increased tonight which will give him more time on the court to put up points. While VanFleet might not be a fantasy player’s first choice on a normal day, with the injuries on the Raptors team thrusting him into a bigger role and his last performance as Lowry’s replacement in mind he is worth looking at as a low priced pick tonight and if he doesn’t pan out Fanduel drops the lowest scoring player in a lineup so he doesn’t add much risk but the upside is substantial. 

Both teams in this matchup will be desperately seeking a win. While the Raptors are still the top team in the East, with their last two games ending in a loss for them they will be working hard to win tonight so they can keep their advantage against the number two Bucks, who only trail them by 1.5 games. The Pacers, who are the number three team in the East will be looking to close their 2.5 game gap to the top while also attempting to recover from an embarrassing loss against the Cavs last night. No matter what team a fantasy player is rooting for, the picks on both sides of this matchup will definitely leave it all on the court tonight as they look to lead their teams to victory.