DraftKings NFL Week 13 Positional Breakdown

 

The NFL season is definitely on the down swing at this point, but there are still plenty of opportunities to win some cash. These picks should give you an idea of how ownership in these tournaments could go, and help you gain an edge on the competition. I’m going to keep things shorter this week, focusing on five players from each position, aside from the defense and tight ends. This will work to consolidate options for your lineups.

 

QUARTERBACKS

 

HIGH OWNERSHIP: Without any doubt, Drew Brees ($7600) will be one of, if not the most, highly owned quarterback on the slate. I’d go either all in on him or avoid him all together and hope that the running game is what leads the team to victory. Matt Ryan ($6800) is priced nicely in a great matchup at home, and should be highly owned as well. Even though he had a bad week last week, Russell Wilson ($6300) is back at home and in a good matchup against the Panthers. I like this as a nice bounce back spot for him. Colin Kaepernick ($6100) has been playing at a very high level, and this isn’t a horrible situation for him either, and the price is great. I wouldn’t be shocked if that is where the ownership goes this weekend.

 

LOW OWNERSHIP: For whatever reason, on most weeks, Ben Roethlisberger ($7400) is an underowned option because of the fact that he’s highly unlikely to pick up rushing yards and has a good running game behind him. This is a great spot for him. Aaron Rodgers ($6700) is playing on a team that really can’t get the running game going, and even against a good pass defense, he should be able to put together a nice game. Kirk Cousins ($6400) has been playing lights out football, and that along is enough to make you consider him today. The matchup isn’t great, but I have faith in him. Alex Smith ($5400) is never an exciting options, but at this price and in this matchup, he is at least worth a consideration.

 

HOW I’M USING THEM IN CASH GAMES: Brees/Kaepernick/Roethlisberger

 

HOW I’M USING THEM IN TOURNAMENTS: Kaepernick/Smith/Rodgers

 

RUNNING BACKS

 

HIGH OWNERSHIP – You can definitely bet on David Johnson ($9500) seeing high ownership. I get that he is expensive, but he’s been a lock, as he’s hit 100+ total yards in every game this season. Le’Veon Bell ($9200), also expensive, falls right behind him and should see a high level of ownership this weekend as well. Using running backs against the San Francisco 49ers has been a pretty good strategy this year, so I wouldn’t be surprised to see Jordan Howard ($6900) with high ownership. Theo Riddick ($5800) will be highly owned as a result of going up against the New Orleans Saints. His pass catching ability will be what helps drive his ownership. James Starks ($4400) price is far too low, and he plays for a team that should score points, so I could definitely see higher ownership here.

 

LOW OWNERSHIP – After being unable to put together a good stat line over the last several weeks, Spencer Ware ($6400) will likely see very low ownership, but is in a very good matchup. Thomas Rawls ($5900) is also cheap and while not in a great matchup, I do imagine that he should be able to put together a nice day. Doug Martin ($5700) may go a bit overlooked, but the price and the matchup are very good for him, and I think he will definitely come through this week. Legarrette Blount ($5500) hasn’t been a home run as of late, making this an excellent option to use in tournaments. I could see Blount taking advantage of the Rams on his home turf. Rob Kelley ($4700) is taking on one of the top run defenses in the league. He is risky, but he should see a lot of touches, but if this game gets out of hand, there is a good chance that he will give way to Chris Thompson.

 

HOW I’M USING THEM IN CASH GAMES: Johnson/Howard/Riddick

 

HOW I’M USING THEM IN TOURNAMENTS: Ware/Martin/Blount

 

WIDE RECEIVERS

 

HIGH OWNERSHIP – It’s tough to judge where things are going to go at the top, but I think we could see high ownership of both Antonio Brown ($9100) and Julio Jones ($8700). Brown will get a good home matchup against the Giants, while Julio has a much, much better matchup at home against a Chiefs defense that is having a hard time finding their identity. With Rob Gronkowski out, Julian Edelman ($6800) should see double-digit targets again and makes a great play. We’ve seen the Rams get beat in the passing game over the past few weeks, so I think we could see some more opportunity this week for Edelman. Tyreke Hill ($4600) is criminally underpriced for what he could definitely end up putting together. He might be the highest owned receiver of the weekend. After a big game last week, it shouldn’t shock me to see Marquess Wilson ($4000) carry high ownership as well.

 

LOW OWNERSHIP –After a disappointing week where we all thought he was going to shine, Amari Cooper ($7300) is in a poor matchup, but makes for an excellent tournament play. The whole “bad matchup” thing is kind of outdated, and Cooper can win against anyone if the ball is thrown to him. Brandin Cooks ($6400) had the worst game of his career last week, but I’m expecting a big bounce back game. I think it is highly likely that his ownership will be at an all-time low as a result of the poor outing. Even though his game log wasn’t nearly as bad, Doug Baldwin ($6700) is in a prime position in a very good matchup. The Green Bay Packers defense has been really, really bad as of late, so I am willing to take a shot on DeAndre Hopkins ($6000) this week against them. Even though it didn’t pan out, Cameron Meredith ($4100) still had 9 targets and gets a terrific opportunity against the Niners this weekend.

 

HOW I’M USING THEM IN CASH GAMES: Jones/Edelman/Baldwin

 

HOW I’M USING THEM IN TOURNAMENTS: Cooks/Edleman/Baldwin

 

TIGHT ENDS

 

HIGH OWNERSHIP – It’s pretty clear to see that with A.J. Green out, Tyler Eifert ($5300) is likely to see a ton of targets. His price is fair, and Philadelphia is starting to spiral out of control at this point. Travis Kelce ($4700) has back-to-back 100 yard games, so if Maclin is out again, I would load up on all the Kelce I could get. Even if he does play, Kelce still makes a nice target. With Jordan Reed out, it wouldn’t shock me to see Vernon Davis ($3300) with ownership through the roof.

 

LOW OWNERSHIP – With how bad this offense looked last week, it wouldn’t shock me to see Jimmy Graham ($5500) lower owned than he should be. The matchup is nice and he should have a good day. Greg Olsen ($5100) is playing a Seahawks defense that has been giving points up to tight ends, so he is certainly worth a look here, and should carry low ownership as a result. Coby Fleener ($3500) has been a giant disappointment, but the Lions have been bad against the tight end position, so I wouldn’t be shocked if they let Fleener score.

 

HOW I’M USING THEM IN CASH GAMES: Eifert/Kelce/Davis

 

HOW I’M USING THEM IN TOURNAMENTS: Kelce/Olsen/Fleener

 

DEFENSES

 

HIGH OWNERSHIP – While the Browns aren’t on the schedule to be picked on, the Jaguars are, so expect high ownership from the Denver Broncos ($3900). I like this play despite them being on the road. The Seattle Seahawks ($3500) at home are always in play, and the Panthers offensive line woes could definitely end up giving Seattle some points. Finally, the Green Bay Packers ($2900) will be at home against a bad Houston Texans offense and could really come through for you.

 

LOW OWNERSHIP – In comparison to some of the other high priced options, the New England Patriots ($3700) could end up with a lower ownership than one would expect. Jared Goff looked decent against the Saints, but this isn’t the Saints defense. Even though the San Francisco 49ers ($2800) defense is bad, it is possible that they could end up having a decent game against Matt Barkley and the fill-in Bears. The San Diego Chargers ($2900) have managed some pretty good games on decent this year despite giving up points, and Jameis Winston can be reckless.

 

HOW I’M USING THEM IN CASH GAMES: Broncos/Packers/Patriots

 

HOW I’M USING THEM IN TOURNAMENTS: Niners/Seahawks/Chargers

 

I hope you enjoyed this article, and I will be back next week. I hope to see you on the leaderboards!

 

Nicholas Volinchak is a correspondent at FF Nation. To read more from Nicholas, follow him @researchandwin. You can find more of Nicholas’ football work at Research Fantasy.