The Divisional Week is in the books and it’s onto the Conference Championship Week. One of my favorite parts of NFL season is fantasy football. One of my favorite aspects of fantasy football has become playing on DraftKings. Every week is like a new puzzle to figure out. Whether you are more of a cash game player or a tournament player, each presents a unique challenge. Let’s take a look at the best Conference Championship Week DraftKings plays for the entire weekend slate.
NFL Conference Championship Week DraftKings Plays
Divisional Week Recap
It’s always good to be completely transparent and demonstrate accountability. That’s what I like to do with everything I do and that goes for fantasy football as well. Whether it’s bold takes or DraftKings recommendations, I always like to keep track of wins and losses. It’s not only good for the readers to know, but also helps me learn from mistakes moving forward.
🚨RECAP THREAD🚨
For full transparency each week I'll recap my suggested #DraftKings plays to see if they hit the 2.5x we generally shoot for each week in cash builds!#FantasyFootball#NFL#NFLTwitter#DFS@BlazedRTs@MyFantasyLeague@LastWordOnNFL
https://t.co/W03IJD5tuj— ✴️Rob Norton✴️ (@norton0723) January 24, 2022
Looking back at Wildcard Week, it was better than last week. This week 57.9% of the recommendations hit the 2.5x value we look for in cash game lineups. This time the quarterback group led the way with a 75% success rate. Meanwhile, the tight end group brought up the rear this week with a 25% success rate. It was not a profitable week. The cash build lost three out of four double-ups and went 1-5 in H2H’s. We’ll look to do even better with the picks and get back into the profits in the Conference Championship Week DraftKings plays.
- Divisional Week – $160 → $52 ($108 LOSS)
- Playoff Total – $347 → $61 ($286 LOSS)
- Year Total – $6,565 → $5,983 ($582 LOSS)
Conference Championship Week DraftKings Plays
Quarterbacks
Patrick Mahomes (KC) – $7,400 v CIN
Was there really any question as to who would be occupying this spot among the quarterbacks left? Patrick Mahomes is coming off two straight monster 40-point performances. This week the Kansas City Chiefs will be taking on the Cincinnati Bengals. This game has a 54.5-point combined total which is far ahead of the other game’s 45.5-point combined total. Mahomes and the Chiefs are also seven-point home favorites with a 31-point implied team total. No other team has an implied team total of more than 24.5 points. Mahomes is the best quarterback, on the best offense, and in easily the best game environment on the slate. Do not overthink this one as Mahomes is the best point-per-dollar play despite being the most expensive quarterback on the slate.
Patrick Mahomes: 91.8 PFF Grade in the playoffs since 2018
Highest among all offensive players 👀 pic.twitter.com/b32wv5Sh9S
— PFF (@PFF) January 27, 2022
Others to Consider: Matthew Stafford (LAR) – $6,300 v SF
Running Backs
Cam Akers (LAR) – $5,000 v SF
The fact that Cam Akers is even playing so soon after an Achilles injury is impressive in itself. That he is seeing such a massive workload and being so effective is near a medical miracle. There was plenty of skepticism about what type of workload the Los Angeles Rams would give Akers but they have shown no hesitation in feeding him. Last week he saw 24 carries and three targets and turned that into 68 total yards. Sony Michel was relegated to one carry and two targets for no yards. The San Francisco 49ers are a solid run defense but they are not as stingy as the Tampa Bay Buccaneers are, who Akers faced last week. Likely due to his fumbles, his price dropped $500 despite a massive workload. This is definitely a situation to take advantage of. Play Akers and the volume he should see at a depressed price tag.
Others to Consider: Joe Mixon (CIN) – $6,800 @ KC, Jerick McKinnon (KC) – 5,100 v CIN
Wide Receivers
Cooper Kupp (LAR) – $8,600 v SF
Cooper Kupp’s magical season just keeps on going as he keeps piling up stats every single week. Just last week he put up nine receptions for 183 receiving yards and a touchdown on 11 targets. The last time Kupp faced off against the 49ers he saw seven targets and caught all seven for 118 yards and a score plus a rush for 18 yards. That was good for 29.6 DraftKings points. In the previous meeting, he saw 13 targets and caught 11 for 122 yards. That gave Kupp 26.2 DraftKings points in that matchup. The 49ers secondary is the weakness of their defense and Kupp has been the best wide receiver in football this year. They have no chance of stopping him outside of double and triple-teaming him every time. Kupp should have no issue turning in another big performance this week.
Cooper Kupp has almost lapped the field 🤯 pic.twitter.com/cbIby9kWrg
— PFF (@PFF) January 28, 2022
Tee Higgins (CIN) – $5,700 @ KC
As expected, Tee Higgins bounced back in a big way last week. Surprisingly, his salary did not increase at all. That just makes Higgins even more intriguing this week. As previously mentioned, this game is projected to be a shootout with a 54.5-point combined total. The Bengals are also 7.5-point road underdogs so the projected game script will have them throwing early and often to keep up with this high-powered Chiefs offense. The last time these two faced off, only a few weeks ago, they put up 65 combined points. In that game, Joe Burrow threw for 446 yards and four touchdowns. Ja’Marr Chase hogged all the production in that one but should Burrow go crazy again in this one, Higgins will likely have a much bigger piece of the pie this time around. If this game plays out how most expect, Higgins should see a ton of targets and be a great point-per-dollar play at wide receiver this week.
Others to Consider: Tyreek Hill (KC) – $7,000 v CIN, Tyler Boyd (CIN) – $4,200 @ KC, Ja’Marr Chase (CIN) – $6,700 @ KC
Tight Ends
George Kittle (SF) – $5,000 @ LAR
George Kittle had been on about a month-long cold streak heading into last week’s game. While he did not have a huge game by any means, it was nice to see him turn in some solid production. Last week Kittle saw six targets catching four of them for 63 yards. It is also encouraging that he is completely off the injury report as well, as injuries have been something that has held him back over the years. The last two times Kittle faced the Rams he saw seven targets and caught five of them in each matchup. One of those he turned it into 50 yards and a score while the other he only managed 10 yards. The seven targets in each matchup are the more encouraging metric. With the 49ers sitting as 3.5-point road underdogs, the potential game script should be in his favor and his salary is very intriguing.
.@saraperlman breaks down why George Kittle's reception prop is one of her favorite plays for Championship Sunday. 🏈
More on Bet the Edge: https://t.co/vNG97t5Bk9 pic.twitter.com/zZ9MeCY3VR
— NBC Sports Bet (@NBCSportsBet) January 28, 2022
Others to Consider: Tyler Higbee (LAR) – $3,700 v SF
Defense/Special Teams
In terms of choosing a defense/special teams, it’s the last spot I fill in every week. It’s pretty random but there are a few areas to gain an advantage. I look to target the heavily favored teams as they usually are playing with a lead. This forces their opponent to throw it more often which can help lead to extra sacks and turnovers and hopefully a touchdown. Another aspect to target is turnover and sack-prone quarterbacks. My advice is to fill out the rest of your lineup first and then pick your favorite D/ST out of the remaining money.
My Tentative Cash Game Lineup
- QB – Patrick Mahomes
- RB – Cam Akers
- RB – Elijah Mitchell
- WR – Cooper Kupp
- WR – Tee Higgins
- WR – Tyler Boyd
- TE – George Kittle
- Flex – Jerick McKinnon
- DST – San Francisco 49ers
That will do it for this DraftKings series for the season. Make sure to check out the recap tweet next week and hopefully everyone was able to make a nice profit this season. Best of luck to everyone and let’s all enjoy some football and win some money!
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Main photo:
Embed from Getty Images
