Randall Cobb may provide the most upside out of all wideouts playing on Thanksgiving
Can you believe it’s already Thanksgiving this week? Where did this year go? Where did this football season go? Bill Parcells used to say, “you are what your record says you are,” and this is the time of year when we start to see how good certain teams actually are.
For example, New England is a lock to be in the playoffs and probably the best team in the league. Carolina is still undefeated and looks very tough to beat with their strong running game and solid defense. Green Bay just had a very important win against Minnesota last week and will be a force to be reckoned with the rest of the season.
On the other hand, teams like the Bengals, Falcons and Jets are all going in the wrong direction. There is still plenty of football to be played, but now is when it starts to get interesting.
I normally don’t do a lineup on Thursdays, but with three games on the schedule, I’ve put together a lineup that would best be served in GPP tournaments.
Enter this week’s Guaranteed to Win FanDuel contest. Nobody loses! 
Quarterback
Matthew Stafford DET vs. PHI $7,200
The Eagles are one of those teams that appear to be trending downward. Their defense was absolutely atrocious last week against Tampa Bay. They allowed Jameis Winston to torch them for 246 yards and five touchdowns. Over the last four weeks, the Eagles have allowed 23.33 fantasy points to opposing QBs (fourth in the league). Stafford has a great opportunity to be a top-10 fantasy QB this week.
Cash Options:
Running Backs
DeMarco Murray PHI @ DET $7,700
Murray is 12th in standard scoring among RBs over the last four weeks. Although the Lions’ defense has been better overall lately, Murray’s ability to catch the ball out of the backfield, gives him a better chance to put up a good fantasy score.
Jonathan Stewart CAR @ DAL $7,100
Jonathan Stewart has been a top-10 fantasy all year. Although he has a much tougher matchup this week against the Cowboys than he did last week against the Redskins, is still a must-start in season-long leagues a good value option in DFS.
Cash Options:
Wide Receivers
Randall Cobb GB vs. CHI $7,400
All of the top three highest priced WRs on Thursday’s slate have either had disappointing seasons, battled injury or both. I’m talking of course about Dez Bryant ($8,300), Calvin Johnson ($8,200) and Alshon Jeffery ($7,600). I’m staying away from all three, which leaves Randall Cobb as the next best option. Cobb hasn’t exactly stepped into the WR1 position like many thought he would when Jordy Nelson went down for the year in the preseason, but he is still averaging double-digit FPPG.
Devin Funchess CAR @ DAL $5,900
Carolina promoted rookie WR Devin Funchess to the starting lineup last week and he made the most of the opportunity. Funchess had 4/64/1 and will look to have another good game on Thursday.
James Jones GB vs. CHI $5,800
Jones found himself in the end zone again last week, after failing to score a touchdown in three straight games. He now has seven TDs on the season. Jones had a good game against the Bears in Week 1 (4/51/2 – 19.1 FanDuel points) and will look to equal that performance Thursday night.
Cash Options:
Tight End
Greg Olsen CAR @ DAL $6,400
During the FOX pregame show last week, Howie Long mentioned that Greg Olsen has been forced to step up in the passing game because of the injury to Kelvin Benjamin this year. He’s done that for the most part and is a big reason why this team is undefeated.
Cash Option:
Kicker
Mason Crosby GB vs. CHI $4,700
Crosby had a huge game against the Vikings last week. He was 5-for-5 in field goals and scored 22 FP. The over/under in this game is 46, so there should be plenty of opportunities for him to score.
Cash Option:
Defense
Carolina Panthers @ DAL $4,700
I’m not quite sure how the Eagles are $100 more than Carolina this week. This is the best defense playing on Thanksgiving and even though Dallas needs this win badly and will in all likelihood play well, I like Carolina more than any other defense.
Cash Option:
- Green Bay Packers
Good luck! Happy Holidays! Enjoy the football, food, family and friends!
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A.J. Stone is a correspondent at FantasyPros. To read more from A.J., check out his archive and follow him on Twitter @ajstone18.
