This is my final football article of the season. It’s been a fantastic year, and I’ve learned a ton writing both cash game and GPP articles. We will combine those articles here because we only have one game to discuss.
It’s the most important game of the season, and I’ll be pulling for the 49ers since I put a wager on them earlier in the season. I don’t feel confident about that bet because this game looks like a true coin flip, but I’m excited to see how it plays out. With that in mind, let’s look at it from a DFS standpoint.
This is my final football article of the season. It’s been a fantastic year, and I’ve learned a ton writing both cash game and GPP articles. We will combine those articles here because we only have one game to discuss.
It’s the most important game of the season, and I’ll be pulling for the 49ers since I put a wager on them earlier in the season. I don’t feel confident about that bet because this game looks like a true coin flip, but I’m excited to see how it plays out. With that in mind, let’s look at it from a DFS standpoint.
NFL DFS Lineup Advice: Super Bowl LVIII
Quarterbacks
DraftKings
Brock Purdy (QB – SF): $10,000 vs. KC
There’s no doubt that Kansas City has the quarterback advantage in this game, but Purdy is the better value on DraftKings. Many people might not realize it, but he averaged more DK points than Patrick Mahomes during the regular season. That makes it shocking that he’s significantly cheaper, especially since Purdy has established an 18-point floor since taking over this job last year. He’s also got the better matchup of the two because KC owns a 10th OPRK against opposing quarterbacks while San Fran surrenders the fifth-fewest fantasy points.
FanDuel
Patrick Mahomes (QB – KC): $15,000 vs. SF
This will be a theme in this article, but it’s much easier to afford expensive players on FanDuel with how their salary is allocated. They offer up to $10,000 more in salary, making using these expensive guys much easier. The reason we love Patty over Purdy on FanDuel is because he’s only $500 more. That’s nothing when examining their pricing, and we all know that Mahomes is a beast during the postseason. He’s averaging over 20 FanDuel points per game throughout his postseason career and should show out in KC’s most important game of the season.
Running Backs
DraftKings
Isiah Pacheco (RB – KC): $8,000 vs. SF
It will be tough to roster McCaffrey over on DK because of how the salaries work, but Pacheco is way too cheap anyway. The Chiefs running back has run away with this backfield, scoring at least 16 DraftKings points in six of his past seven games. We’ve also seen him record 24 carries in two of his past three outings, and it’s clear this team wants to win the game by pounding Pacheco up the middle. That makes the $8K price tag tough to justify, sitting seventh in salary on this single-game slate. Not to mention, San Fran has surrendered 318 rushing yards in their two playoff games.
FanDuel
Christian McCaffrey (RB – SF): $17,500 vs. KC
Since it’s easy to use high-priced studs on FanDuel, McCaffrey needs to be the first player in your lineup. This was the best player in DFS throughout the regular season, averaging 23 FanDuel points per game. He also showcased a 20-point floor, scoring 27 and 28 FD points in his first two playoff games. They’re not going to take this beast off the field in this must-win game, making CMC the safest bet to score 20 FD points on this slate. Most people assume quarterbacks are the safest plays on single-game slates, but that’s not the case here!
Wide Receivers
DraftKings
Rashee Rice (WR- KC): $7,600 vs. SF
This is some of the strangest pricing of any player on this slate. Rice has established himself as Mahomes’ top target in the second half of the season, scoring at least 12 DraftKings points in seven of his past eight outings. He’s also averaging 19 DK points per game in that span while receiving nearly 10 targets per game. That makes it hard to believe that Rice is eighth in salary because he’s likely to be the leading receiver for the team with the better quarterback. There’s no better per-dollar play on DraftKings than Rice.
FanDuel
Deebo Samuel (WR – SF): $11,500 vs. KC
Teams love to feed their best players in big games, and Deebo is an animal whenever he’s given the ball. We saw Samuel pick up eight catches for 89 yards in San Fran’s most recent playoff game, and he was going off before getting injured. Before the season finale, Samuel averaged 21 FanDuel points per game across his final six outings. That was a top-5 total at the wide receiver position, and we love that he can get the ball through the air or on the ground. Getting two weeks to get healthy only adds to his intrigue, which is incredible since he had 14 FD points in the last Super Bowl matchup with the Chiefs.
Tight Ends
DraftKings
Travis Kelce (TE – KC): $13,000 vs. SF
Kelce looked lost in the final weeks of the regular season, but he’s returned to the stud we know and love in the playoffs. The top tight end has 25 and 32 DraftKings points in his two playoff games and always goes off on the biggest stages. It’s funny to even say that he struggled in the regular season because he still led all tight ends with 17 DK points per game. That’s why he’s been the highest-scoring tight end for the last five years, and you know KC will feed their beast in the final game of the season. When he played San Fran last season, Kelce collected six catches for 98 yards! He also had 17 DK points in their Super Bowl matchup a few years ago.
FanDuel
George Kittle (TE – SF): $10,000 vs. KC
Most people won’t use Kittle because of Kelce, but it’s a great way to separate yourself from the field. The 49ers tight end was one of the league leaders with 11 FanDuel points per game but is ninth in salary. He’s the cheapest position player of all the big names in these offenses, but we know he has the ability to go off in any game. When he played the Chiefs last season, Kittle scored 19 FanDuel points in one of his best games of the season!
Defense/Special Teams
DraftKings
Harrison Butker (K – KC): $5,000 vs. SF
This is a single-game slate, and using kickers is allowed. That’s why we’re throwing Butker into this section because he’s quietly been a beast over the past month. He was one of the league leaders with 9.3 DK points per game during the regular season, averaging 12.6 DK points per game across his last five fixtures. To put that in perspective, that’s close to what Kittle was averaging during the regular season. That makes the $5K price tag laughable because he’s half the salary of all the position players and below Jake Moody for some reason.
FanDuel
San Francisco 49ers D/ST: $8,500 vs. KC
It’s hard to believe, but the Chiefs were one of the worst offenses during the regular season. They were in the bottom half for the majority of the year and averaged just 22 points per game. A matchup with San Fran could lead to a subpar showing because the 49ers were eighth in yardage surrendered and third in points allowed. That’s why they’re a favorite in this game, and they could be a sneaky option if Mahomes makes some stupid decisions with his volatile style of play.
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Joel Bartilotta is a featured writer at FantasyPros. For more from Joel, check out his archive and follow him @Bartilottajoel.
