November 14, 2004.

That was the last time the Giants played a game without Eli Manning starting at quarterback. Kurt Warner was the starter for the Giants that day against the Arizona Cardinals. The Cardinals won that game 17-14 despite only 90 yards from their starting quarterback. That just begs the question, “Who was the starting quarterback for Cardinals on that day, and why is that relevant for my DraftKings value plays this week?”

Quarterback

Josh McCown (NYJ): $5,500 v. KC
Joshua Treadwell McCown. Your starting quarterback for the 2004 Arizona Cardinals.

It’s just too coincidental that Eli Manning is being unceremoniously benched for Geno Smith after 210 consecutive starts for the New York Giants while the team that the Giants share a stadium with, the New York Jets, are starting the quarterback who started against the Giants the last time Eli wasn’t their starting quarterback just over 13 years ago. Did you follow all that?

Coincidences aside, ‘Downtown’ Josh McCown has been a shockingly competent fantasy quarterback this year for the Jets and gets a prime matchup with the barely-there Chiefs secondary. No current starting QB with a season ceiling of at least 29 points is priced as low as ‘Downtown’ Josh McCown who is going for $5,500 this Sunday. He continues to put up points, and only Tyrod Taylor has proven to offer anywhere near the upside that McCown does for QBs priced $5,500 or lower on the Week 13 main Sunday slate. Hopefully, he goes for more than the 90 yards he threw for back in 2004.

Running Backs

Jamaal Williams (GB): $4,700 v. TB
Last Sunday night was Jamaal Williams’ breakout game against the Steelers, and he may be a popular play this week as a result against the Buccaneers who are ranked 25th against RBs. Williams went off for 29 points last week, and you won’t find that type of potential from many other starting RBs priced below $5,000. Williams will see his price above $5,000 before long.

Bilal Powell (NYJ): $4,200 v. KC
Two Jets?!?!? Bilal Powell is better suited for the more risk-oriented DFSers, and he will be lightly owned even if Matt Forte is out this week as I expect him to be. Powell really hasn’t done much of anything since his monster 32-point game against the Jaguars in Week 4 when Forte was out. However, that game does prove that the upside is there for Powell if Forte does in fact sit. The Chiefs have been much better against the run than the pass, but with the Chiefs defense struggling in general, there may be some scoring opportunities for Bilal on Sunday.

Wide Receivers

Cordarrelle Patterson (OAK): $3,400 v. NYG
With Michael Crabtree suspended and Amari Cooper looking like he’s on the wrong side of questionable for Sunday’s game, some low-priced wide receiver on the Raiders is going to end up being great value against the putrid Giants pass defense. I’ll take my chances with Cordarrelle Patterson, who is questionable himself but expected to play, as he offers a whole lot more playmaking ability than Seth Roberts who would be the default No. 1 WR if Cooper joins Crabtree on the sidelines. Patterson caught three passes for 75 yards after Crabtree was ejected last game.

Demaryius Thomas (DEN): $5,300 v. MIA
You know your QB situation is a complete dumpster fire when Trevor Siemian‘s return as starting quarterback makes your WRs more attractive as fantasy plays. Demaryius Thomas is a season-low $5,300 this week against the Dolphins after putting up a single-digit fantasy performance for the third time this season. Thomas has responded well after his previous two single-digit performances, averaging 18.25 points, and Trevor Siemian’s return should be viewed as a positive if that’s even possible.

Tight End

Eric Ebron (DET): $3,000 @ BAL
We’re really throwing darts here, but we need a value play at tight end so let’s go with Eric Ebron against a Ravens pass defense that has only struggled against opposing tight ends. Ebron is a season-low $3,000, albeit it is his fourth time at that price. His best game of the season came in Week 2 at $3,000 in which he went for 15 points against the Giants so
that seems like good enough reason to throw a dart at him if you really, and I mean really, don’t feel like spending on the higher-priced tight ends.

Defense/ Special Teams

Texans D/ST (HOU): $2,400 @ TEN
We’re on a good run here with the value play defenses over the past few weeks so let’s keep that up. The choices are pretty scarce this week, but the Texans seem underpriced at $2,400. Marcus Mariota has been a turnover machine recently with eight interceptions over his last four games, and the Texans are capable of some decent showings even without J.J. Watt as evidenced by double-digit games against the Colts and the Browns. Give them a look if you’re spending heavily elsewhere.

That’s it for Week 13. Good luck.

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Joey Korman is a featured writer at FantasyPros. For more from Joey, check out his archive and follow him @leaveit2divac.