{"id":151333,"date":"2023-11-01T10:00:04","date_gmt":"2023-11-01T14:00:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/?p=151333"},"modified":"2025-09-25T12:14:02","modified_gmt":"2025-09-25T16:14:02","slug":"draftkings-dfs-week-9-tnf","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/2023\/11\/01\/draftkings-dfs-week-9-tnf\/","title":{"rendered":"Under-the-Radar DraftKings DFS Thursday Night Bargains"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">If the prospect of watching the Titans and <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/2023\/04\/10\/way-too-early-afc-north-preview\/\" target=\"_self\">Steelers<\/a> on Thursday Night doesn\u2019t fill you with joy, then you\u2019re a sagacious person. But the DraftKings DFS Captains Showdown slate is here to liven proceedings up a bit, with so many players missing who is going to be the surprise points scorer this week?\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Even if both teams were fully fit this would be a bit of a tough watch in prime time, unless you\u2019re a fan of old-school defensive slobberknockers. But we\u2019re about halfway through the NFL so the injuries are starting to mount up. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Last week the <a href=\"https:\/\/musketfire.com\/posts\/what-are-the-biggest-remaining-games-on-the-patriots-schedule-in-2023-01hb8x83gmev\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Steelers<\/a> had 13 players who were dealing with injuries and that was before they lost Kenny Pickett in the game against the Jaguars. The Titans are hardly fighting fit either mind you, in Week 8 they had 17 players receiving treatment, so this is going to be a war of attrition more than a game of football.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><span data-contrast=\"auto\">DraftKings Thursday Night Bargains<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335559739&quot;:160,&quot;335559740&quot;:259}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/h2>\n<h3><span data-contrast=\"auto\">The &#8220;Next Man Up&#8221; DraftKings DFS Pick &#8211; Connor Heyward<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335559739&quot;:160,&quot;335559740&quot;:259}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/h3>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Only Diontae Johnson and Najee Harriss recorded more receiving yards for the Steelers than Heyward did in Week 8. And $2,800 on the DraftKings DFS slate he definitely fits the bargain category. With Pat Freiermuth out for at least three more weeks Heyward figures to be the Steelers&#8217; first-choice tight end, so he could well improve on last week\u2019s five catches.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335559739&quot;:160,&quot;335559740&quot;:259}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">The Titans have allowed an average of 9 points per game to tight ends and last week three different Falcons tight ends caught passes in Tennessee.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335559739&quot;:160,&quot;335559740&quot;:259}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<h3><span data-contrast=\"auto\">The &#8220;Best Matchup&#8221; DraftKings DFS Pick &#8211; Nick Westbrook-Ikhine<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335559739&quot;:160,&quot;335559740&quot;:259}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/h3>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">At $3,400 on this week\u2019s DraftKings DFS Captains Showdown slate, Westbrook-Ikhine is on the more expensive side. But he\u2019s one of the more dependable options available and with DeAndre Hopkins recovering from an injury Westbrook-Ikhine could be an important part of the Titans lineup. <\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335559739&quot;:160,&quot;335559740&quot;:259}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">He will probably end up lining up opposite Chandon Sullivan in the slot, or maybe against Damontae Kazee. They\u2019ve only defended 29 passes this season, allowing 17 completions. Between them they have conceded 224 receiving yards, so if Westbrook-Ikhine can get open he\u2019ll get plenty of yards after the catch,<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335559739&quot;:160,&quot;335559740&quot;:259}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Only four teams have allowed more points per game to receivers than the Steelers this season.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335559739&quot;:160,&quot;335559740&quot;:259}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<h3><span data-contrast=\"auto\">The &#8220;Sneaky Number One Option&#8221; &#8211; Chigoziem Okonkwo<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335559739&quot;:160,&quot;335559740&quot;:259}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/h3>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Nobody caught more passes from Will Levis than Okonkwo. Well, technically Derrick Henry and DeAndre Hopkins caught the same number. But nobody caught more. And Okonkwo even got a chance to run the ball. Levis might not start again this week as the Titans seem to have more of a pitching rotation than a quarterback depth chart, but even if he doesn\u2019t Okonkwo will be an important part of their lineup.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335559739&quot;:160,&quot;335559740&quot;:259}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">In his last three games, he has seen 19 targets and hauled in 11 of them. The Titans could do with getting him into space though, if they want him to run the ball and catch it, they must recognize his explosive ability. The Steelers are allowing 9.2 DraftKings points per game against tight ends, last week Evan Engram led the Jaguars with 88 yards and a 100% catch rate.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335559739&quot;:160,&quot;335559740&quot;:259}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Okonkwo costs $4,200 on the DraftKings DFS Captains Showdown slate this week.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335559739&quot;:160,&quot;335559740&quot;:259}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<h3><span data-contrast=\"auto\">The &#8220;All Upside&#8221; DraftKings DFS Pick &#8211; Tyjae Spears<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335559739&quot;:160,&quot;335559740&quot;:259}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/h3>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">He may be currently \u201climited\u201d by an ankle issue, but the Titans have two running backs on IR and Derrick Henry is also dealing with an injury. So, <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/FB_FilmAnalysis\/status\/1719361082064789575?s=20\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Spears<\/a> figures to feature somehow or another.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335559739&quot;:160,&quot;335559740&quot;:259}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">He saw 4 targets last week, the same as Henry and Spears ran for 27 yards on his three rushing attempts. His 6 yards per touch in Week 8 wasn\u2019t as impressive as his 12.6 yards the week before but it\u2019s still not to be sniffed at. There\u2019s definitely a bit of Travis Etienne about the way Spears runs and Etienne gave the Steelers fits last week. Etienne caught three passes for 70 yards and ran for 79 more. If the Titans need a change of pace Spears will go off.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335559739&quot;:160,&quot;335559740&quot;:259}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">At $5,400 on this week\u2019s DraftKings DFS Captains Showdown slate, he\u2019s the fourth most expensive running back and an absolute bargain.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335559739&quot;:160,&quot;335559740&quot;:259}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<h3><span data-contrast=\"auto\">The Biggest DraftKings DFS Bargain Of The Week &#8211; Kyle Phillips<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335559739&quot;:160,&quot;335559740&quot;:259}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/h3>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">The bargain of all bargains this week is Phillips, he\u2019s only $800! There\u2019s a reason for that though, he\u2019s only got 30 receiving yards all season. He\u2019s actually behind Westbrook-Ikhine on the depth chart, so Phillips definitely has limited opportunities to impress.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335559739&quot;:160,&quot;335559740&quot;:259}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">But here\u2019s the thing, in the last two games he\u2019s caught 80% of his targets. He caught all three of his targets in Week 8 and on a short week with a travel day, the Titans won\u2019t have much time to change the offense this week. Phillips should see more than the 26% of the offensive snaps he did last week.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335559739&quot;:160,&quot;335559740&quot;:259}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p>Main Photo Credit: Christopher Hanewinckel-USA TODAY Sports<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>If the prospect of watching the Titans and Steelers on Thursday Night doesn\u2019t fill you with joy, then you\u2019re a sagacious person. But the DraftKings DFS Captains Showdown slate is here to liven proceedings up a bit, with so many players missing who is going to be the surprise points scorer this week?\u00a0 Even if [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1277,"featured_media":151038,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"no","_lmt_disable":"","sfio_featured_image":false,"sfio_embed_code":"","_ef_editorial_meta_date_first-draft-date":"","_ef_editorial_meta_paragraph_assignment":"","_ef_editorial_meta_checkbox_needs-photo":"","_ef_editorial_meta_number_word-count":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[59,32632],"tags":[111,110,40,81,58],"class_list":["post-151333","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-fantasy","category-dfs","tag-dfs","tag-draftkings","tag-nfl","tag-pittsburgh-steelers","tag-tennessee-titans"],"modified_by":"Michael Kovacs, ADMIN","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/151333","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1277"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=151333"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/151333\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":248536,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/151333\/revisions\/248536"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/151038"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=151333"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=151333"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=151333"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}