Week 13’s DraftKings DFS Captains Showdown slate features two teams who play back-to-back Thursday games and miss out on a mini-Bye. The Seahawks and Cowboys both played on Thanksgiving with mixed results. The Seahawks look like the Pacific Northwest’s answer to the Jets. The defense is very talented and will do everything humanly possible to keep the team in the game. But the offense, hmmm. Without Kenneth Walker III they couldn’t really establish the run against the 49ers (not many can). And there’s no guarantee he’ll be available this week, so that makes it tricky to expect much offense from the Seahawks.
The Cowboys on the other hand have coped with their injuries quite well, and they’ve currently got 10 players on IR. In Week 12 the five others dealt with issues too. Dan Quinn’s Cowboys defense is ranked 13th for rushing yards allowed and 2nd for passing yards. So, Geno Smith will have to be at his very best to get anything going.
DraftKings Bargains for Thursday Night Football
The Sneaky Good Yet Underused DraftKings DFS Pick – Noah Fant
Cowboys are allowing 11.6 DraftKings DFS points per game to tight ends! But the Seahawks don’t use their tight ends. With their best running back injured they should. And Geno Smith is still recovering from an injury (or two, he’s been beaten up this season) so the Seahawks need to get the ball out of his hand quicker. Fant costs $3,200 in the DraftKings DFS Captains Showdown this week.
Fant has caught passes in every game since Week 2. But he’s yet to record more than 64 receiving yards in a single game. He’s averaging 13.7 yards per catch though, so they really, really should use him more. Only D.K. Metcalf has a better average for the Seahawks offense in 2023.
The Really Cheap Bargain DraftKings DFS Pick – Will Dissly
If Fant is underused, then Dissly is criminally underused. He’s only caught 10 passes this season. But the Cowboys are allowing 11.6 DraftKings DFS points to tight ends per game this season. And nobody has conceded more receiving touchdowns to tight ends in 2023. They are level with the Saints, Eagles, and Jets who have also allowed 6. On average tight ends are gaining 10.3 yards per catch against the Cowboys defense.
Dissly has caught 4 of his 7 targets in his last 4 games. He is averaging 10.8 yards per catch this season, but in those 4 games, he’s averaged 13 yards per catch. He’ll only cost $1,400 on the DraftKings DFS slate this week, if they actually utilize him, he’ll be well worth it.
The Rising Star DraftKings DFS Pick – Jalen Tolbert
On the subject of players who are making the most of limited opportunities, Jalen Tolbert is averaging 11.4 yards per reception this season. But he’s only had 16 catches this season. That does make him Dak Prescott’s favorite receiver outside of the big 3 though. But with the makeup of the Cowboys’ offense, he’s still behind tight end Jake Ferguson and Tony Pollard. Tolbert has found himself being targeted more in the last 4 weeks though. He’s seen 18 of his 28 targets since the 5th of November.
The Seahawks have conceded 11 touchdowns to receivers in 2023, that’s the 6th most in the league. And they are allowing ab average of 37.3 DraftKings DFS points per game to wide receivers. The Cowboys should score a few touchdowns this week and there’s no reason Tolbert won’t catch one. And at just $3,000 in the DraftKings DFS slate, he’s definitely a bargain.
The Consistent Rookie Pick – Brandon Aubrey
He might have missed three extra points this season, but he’s yet to miss a field goal. 22 of 22 is a great start to a career. 6 of his field goals have been from 40 yards or more, bizarrely only 1 has been between 40 and 49 yards while 5 of them have been from more than 50 yards! Aubrey is $4,800 and he’s averaging 10 points per game in DraftKings this season. That’s more than Jake Ferguson who costs $9,300 this week!
The “Are You Sure He’s A Bargain?” DraftKings DFS Pick – Rico Dowdle
Like Jalen Tolbert Dowdle has seen more game time as the season has progressed. He’s had 23 of his 58 rushing attempts in the last 3 games. Over those games, he’s averaging 4.9 yards per carry. He’s also caught all 3 of his targets in those three games. He’s averaging 9.2 DraftKings points in those three games. Dowdle will cost $6,300 this week, which is technically a bit pricey for a bargain. But his matchup with the Seahawks defense is mouthwatering.
The Seahawks have allowed 12 rushing touchdowns and 2 receiving touchdowns to running backs so far this season. And running backs are scoring an average of 26.7 DraftKings DFS points per game against the Seahawks in 2023. Only the Broncos, Cardinals, and Panthers have been worse.
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