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John's top NFL DFS lineup picks for FanDuel, DraftKings, and Sunday Night Football - Cowboys vs Vikings showdown slate. His Week 8 SNF daily fantasy football advice.
Welcome to Week 8 and Happy Halloween, RotoBallers! We've been pretty successful so far with these showdown slates and hopefully, that trend continues tonight with Sunday Night Football. Most of us started our fantasy journeys with football, so it's always nice when it comes around. Thanks to the advanced analytics of today, I'll do my best to provide you with as much in-depth analysis as possible regarding positional matchups and the like to help put some lunch money in your pocket. Let's make some coin this season gang, and let's get right to it.
I will be providing you with daily fantasy football picks on FanDuel and DraftKings for the Sunday Night Football showdown slate on October 31st. These lineups can vary from higher-priced players and elite options to lower-priced players and value picks on both DraftKings and FanDuel.
If you have any questions, you can follow me on Twitter @LucidMediaDFS and fire away, or sign up for a premium RotoBaller NFL package and chat with me and other NFL DFS analysts at any time you'd like!
Editor's Note: The FFPC Baby Gorilla Tournament is now open, featuring a $100,000 grand prize and a $675,450 total prize pool! This 12-team, Tight End Premium contest uses a 20-round draft format, with the overall winners determined by total points scored during Weeks 15–17. Get $25 to use toward your first entry by signing up through our link. Grab your team now! Sign Up Now!
DFS Captain/MVP Plays
Dalvin Cook ($14,100 DK, $14,000 FD)
On the other side of the ball, we have Dalvin Cook. While Cook has been effective from a real-life perspective, fantasy-wise he's taken a step back from where he was last season. Of course, he's missed two games, and in the four games, he's played he's rushed for 366 yards and two touchdowns on 80 attempts. He's also caught 12 of 18 targets for 73 yards. His touchdowns should positively regress, and tonight could be a perfect night for that as the Cowboys are middle of the pack in the rushing DVOA department, coming in at -14.8%.
Dak Prescott ($16,800 DK, $16,000 FD)
UPDATE: Prescott has officially been ruled out.
The big news to keep track of throughout the day is whether Dak starts in this one or not. My guess is that with the bye week behind them and an extra break, this could simply just be some gamesmanship from Mike McCarthy. Through the first six games, Dak has thrown for 1,813 yards, 16 touchdowns, and just four interceptions. The gruesome injury he suffered last year has seemed to affect his running game, as he's only rushed for 70 yards on 22 attempts. The matchup isn't great for the Cowboys' passing game tonight, as the Vikings have a defensive DVOA of -10.4%, which ranks third in the league. However, the Cowboys have an offensive pass DVOA of 50.7%, which also ranks third in the league. It's strength vs strength here, and I lean on the Cowboys' powerful offense.
Other Captains/MVPs: CeeDee Lamb, Justin Jefferson
DFS Flex Plays
Kirk Cousins ($10,800 DK, $15,000 FD)
Kirk Cousins has been a nice surprise to fantasy owners this season. Through six weeks, he's thrown for 1,769 yards, 13 touchdowns, and just two interceptions. He's led the Vikings to the 10th best passing DVOA in the league, coming in at 34.9%. Ironically enough, the Cowboys come into this one with a -0.6% defensive DVOA against the pass, which ranks 10th as well. I anticipate this one to be an absolute shootout (assuming Dak is in), and with Kirk's weapons, it may be a double-QB type of night.
Adam Thielen ($8,400 DK, $11,000 FD)
While I certainly like Justin Jefferson more on this slate, I do think Theilen can out-perform him from a value perspective in this one. Theilen has caught 37 of 50 targets for 393 yards and a whopping five touchdowns through the Vikings' first six games, and while his touchdowns are undoubtedly due to regress, it may have to wait a week. With Trevon Diggs likely on Justin Jefferson duty, Theilen should thrive in a matchup against Anthony Brown, who allows a 60% catch rate and 0.34 fantasy points per route run.
Other Flex Options: Ezekiel Elliott, Amari Cooper, Dalton Schultz
DFS Value Plays
Tony Pollard ($5,400 DK, $8,500)
This is more of a value play from a DK perspective as we're looking to see Pollard log some receptions, but he could be played on either site if you're looking to pay up for the big boys. Pollard has rushed for at least 40 yards in each game since week 1, logging 366 yards and one touchdown in total across 61 rushes. He's also caught 15 of 15 targets for 115 yards as well. If we can get a touchdown that would be great, but he should do enough to be a strong value play on this slate.
K.J. Osborn ($5,000 DK, $8,000 FD)
Osborn has started to come alive as the third receiver in the Minnesota offense, catching 26 of 35 targets for 311 yards and two touchdowns through the Vikes' first six games of the season. He's logged at least five catches in three of those five games, and tonight gets a strong matchup against Dallas. With Osborn primarily running out of the slot, he'll be lined up across from Jourdan Lewis, who allows a 62% catch rate and 0.21 fantasy points per route covered. I feel like Osborn should be priced higher, but we'll take it on a pretty top-heavy slate.
Other Value Plays: Greg Zuerlein, Tyler Conklin, Blake Jarwin
Overall Slate Note
This slate could completely flip on its head if Dak gets ruled out, but I really don't see that happening. As long as Dak is in, a shootout feels inevitable. I'd make sure to get bits and pieces of both offenses in every lineup, without going heavy on a single offense except for a few lineups. If you plan on having Dak in the 1.5x spot, I'd suggest stacking him with Lamb and one other pass catcher (Cooper, Schultz, Pollard, Wilson). With Cook in the 1.5x spot, you can run back with Dak and/or Dallas pass-catchers, and I will have a hedge lineup that will be Cook and Zeke heavy, but I'll limit most of my lineups to avoid that correlation. The options are rather endless tonight, and I would definitely suggest making different lineups to cover all your bases.
Enjoy your Sunday night, and good luck, everyone!
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