DraftKings NFL picks, Week 16: Best DFS fantasy football values
By Drew DeLuca
Week 16 NFL DraftKings main slate picks and values to build a winning DFS lineup.
The DraftKings NFL DFS main slate (Sunday 1 PM and 4 PM EST games) is approaching once again, this time for Week 16, and we are ready to highlight and evaluate best values at every position. We offer our picks for every pricing tier at every position in order to suit lineup strategies of all kinds.
Week 16 is a unique main slate for DraftKings as the Vikings-Saints game on Christmas Day in addition to three Saturday games and a pair of marquee primetime games on Sunday and Monday nights lighten the player pool quite a bit. Thus, finding value is that much more important.
Once again, no games appear to be threatened by COVID-19 as of the time of this writing, a pleasant surprise given the astronomical number of cases around the country and globe. With that, let’s dive into the best values for Week 16 in the DraftKings NFL DFS fantasy football main slate.
Week 16 NFL DraftKings Values: Quarterbacks
Premium Tier ($7,000 and up): Patrick Mahomes (KC vs. ATL, $8,500) and Lamar Jackson (BAL vs. NYG, $8,000) are great options, but the best bang for the buck in this tier is Aaron Rodgers (GB vs. TEN, $7,800), who should shoulder a heavy load against a vulnerable defense with Aaron Jones and Jamaal Williams both battling injuries this week.
Justin Herbert (LAC vs. DEN, $7,400) would normally be a terrific start here, but we’re a bit concerned about the status of Keenan Allen (game-time decision) and the COVID staus of Hunter Henry. We’d rather pivot to Jalen Hurts (PHI at DAL, $7,000), who draws a favorable matchup, and offers a high floor with his rushing capabilities in an offense that has heavily featured highly successful RPOs of late.
Mid-Tier Values ($6,000 to $6,900): Tom Brady (TB at DET, $6,800) is as big of a lock as one can hope for. It doesn’t seem fair that Brady and Bruce Arians get to match wits with the JV coaching staff of a Detroit Lions team that already fired their head coach and special teams guru in recent weeks, but COVID does what COVID does.
Baker Mayfield (CLE at NYJ, $6,100) has elevated his play of late, not to mention the performance of the players around him. Rashard Higgins has filled in nicely for the injured Odell Beckham, Jr., and rookie Donovan Peoples-Jones, quietly developing as a third option and deep threat, has caught eight of the last ten passes thrown his way.
100%. No one is talking about it, but Rashard Higgins and Donovan Peoples-Jones are stepping up nicely to compliment Landry, and CLE has three capable-to-very-good tight ends...not to mention Hunt (& occasionally Chubb) out of the backfield. The Browns don’t *need* to run to win.
— Drew DeLuca (@DrewDeLaware) December 24, 2020
Value Tier ($5,500 to $5,900): Back in the saddle after a rough go of things at the start of the season, Mitchell Trubisky (CHI at JAX, $5,700) and the Bears are playing for their playoff lives against a franchise that owns the pole position in the Trevor Lawrence sweepstakes. If Allen Robinson is a go, the two make an interesting GPP pairing.
Bargain Bin: Rookie Tua Tagovialoa (MIA at LV, $5,400) willed his team to victory last week, quieting any remaining “why bench Ryan Fitzpatrick in the midst of a playoff hunt” whispers. The Raiders have been walking the plank of late, losing four of their last five while coughing up an average of 36 points per game over that span; with Myles Gaskin back in the fold, we like Tua at this price if DeVante Parker and Mike Gesicki are able to suit up, as well.
Best Buy: We were heavily invested in Mayfield this weekend until the latest Detroit Lions folly surfaced in the news. We love the possibilities for Baker this week, but give us The Goat against a collection of wet-behind-the-ears defensive play-callers for $800 more; expect Brady to have one of his biggest games of the season.