DraftKings NFL picks, Week 15: Best DFS fantasy football values

The best DFS fantasy football values on the DraftKings NFL Week 15 main slate.

Each week, we analyze the DraftKings NFL DFS main slate (Sunday 1 PM and 4 PM EST games) and highlight the best values at every position. We offer recommendations for players in every pricing tier in order to accommodate every lineup strategy under the all-too-early-setting sun.

First, the bad news. We’re grateful for additional opportunities to take in NFL football this week, but thanks to Thursday’s game between the Los Angeles Chargers and Las Vegas Raiders, two Saturday evening games, Sunday Night Football, and the Monday night “showdown” between the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Brandon Allen-led Cincinnati Bengals, nearly one-third of the NFL will be missing from this week’s Sunday Week 15 NFL DraftKings fantasy football main slate.

Now, the good news: not a single game on the main slate is expected to be subject to adverse weather conditions, and several players at each position find themselves in pure smash spots. The better news: while a few player statuses are in question, no game schedules were threatened by COVID-19 as of the time of this writing.

Week 15 NFL DraftKings Values: Quarterbacks

Premium Tier ($7,000 and up): As much as we like Patrick Mahomes and Russell Wilson, we prefer the value offered by Kyler Murray (ARI vs. PHI, $7,000) in this tier, as we foresee quite a bit of ground game production given the relatively disappointing performance by the Arizona Cardinals backfield to date. Speaking of legwork, we view Lamar Jackson (BAL vs. JAX, $7,500) as a must-start in cash games this week due to both his resurgent play and favorable matchup.

Mid-Tier Values ($6,000 to $6,900): Few signal callers have a better matchup than Ryan Tannehill (TEN vs. DET, $6,700) this week; the Lions have generously bestowed 28.7 FFPG (Fantasy Points Per Game) to opposing quarterbacks over the last three weeks, ranking in the league’s bottom five. Meanwhile, Tom Brady (TB at ATL, $6,600) should take to the air quite a bit against a floundering Atlanta Falcons pass defense with Ronald Jones II on the shelf.

Rounding out this tier are Jared Goff (LAR vs. NYJ, $6,300) and Kirk Cousins (MIN vs. CHI, $6,100). Even though the Bears have been generous to fantasy quarterbacks in their own right in recent weeks, we lean slightly towards Goff, who draws a New York Jets defense that has served up 29 FPPG, fourth-worst in the league since the kickoff of Week 12.

Value Tier ($5,500 to $5,900): Drew Brees (NO vs. KC, $5,900) might be a bit rusty after missing several games due to mutiple rib fractures, but it’s hard to imagine a scenario in which he’s not engaged in a shootout with Patrick Mahomes; the future Hall of Famer faces a Kansas City Chiefs defense that has allowed the seventh-biggest point total to opposing fantasy quarterbacks since Week 10 began.

Meanwhile, Jalen Hurts (PHI at ARI, $5,900) offers boom-or-bust potential against an improving Arizona Cardinals defense that’s still vulnerable to an effective ground assault. Phillip Rivers (IND vs. IND, $5,900) is a lower floor, higher ceiling option at the same price, while Mitchell Trubisky (CHI at MIN, $5,500) is an interesting, high-ceiling GPP option for those with higher risk tolerances.

Bargain Bin: Andy Dalton (DAL vs. SF, $5,400) and Gardner Minshew (JAX at BAL, $5,300) are offered at fair prices this week, but Matt Ryan (ATL vs. TB, $5,400) should take to the air early and often against a Tampa Bay Buccaneers pass defense that has given up 28.6 FPPG to opposing fantasy quarterbacks over the past few weeks. Matty Ice has been cold lately, and given Julio Jones’ absence his price point is fair; that said, we’re still quite interested in Ryan-and-(Calvin) Ridley stack in tournament play.

Best Buy: For us, it’s Lamar or bust this week; if we’re not paying up for the reigning NFL MVP, we’re saving coin for other positions by rolling with Ryan.