This article is part of our FanDuel Fantasy Football series.
There once was a time where we wouldn't have the opportunity to play FanDuel on Super Bowl Sunday given there was only one game and it wasn't allowed. Now we are in a different era and not only can we play a stand alone game like the Super Bowl, there's a monster contest to join for only $5 per entry. The top prize in the "Big Game Bowl" is $1 million, and there's a total of $3.3 million in prize money up for grabs. Let's take a look at how to approach this weekend from both a tournament and cash game perspectives.
The FanDuel format means you can skip the quarterback position completely, and use only the other positions exclusively. I'm not sure that's the right strategy this weekend, as it's tough to see both Joe Burrow ($15,000) and Matthew Stafford ($15,500) having sub-par games. My preference here is Stafford, and using him with Cooper Kupp ($16,000) is a good start to any cash game lineup. Which of the two should you put in the "MVP" (1.5X points) spot? That's a coin flip for me, but I actually think Stafford is the safer play because Kupp has more upside.
Both running backs, Joe Mixon ($12,500) and Cam Akers ($10,000), have similar rushing props, and my lean here is to Akers given the savings against the salary cap. If this ends up being a Rams blowout, I can see Stafford, Kupp and Akers all having big games, so that three-player stack is definitely play. Mixon, given his salary cap hit, is almost a contrarian play, but if you don't go with Burrow in your lineup and expect the Bengals to score, Mixon makes for a logical choice. People who rostered Samaje Perine ($7,000) for the Championship game were handsomely rewarded, although lightning is unlikely to strike two times in a row. Expect his rostering number to be a bit higher than it should be this week after the performance in the Championship game. I'd consider Sony Michel ($7,500) to be a good play given he's going to be an extremely unpopular play. He's had 1 and 1.7 fantasy points in each of his last two games, so he seems like he shouldn't be in consideration in any format. However, he quietly had 11 touches in his last game, and if anything happens to Akers, Michel could be the key to winning a big GPP.
I've already discussed Kupp, but let's look at the rest of the receivers including the tight end position. Odell Beckham ($10,500) is the obvious pivot if you're going to be brave and fade Kupp in tournaments. It's actually a smart move, as Kupp is likely to be one of the most rostered players Sunday, and in a tournament you have to make a few contrarian plays if you want to win. Tee Higgins ($10,500) could easily wind up as a better value than Ja'Marr Chase ($12,000) given that Chase should see a lot of Jalen Ramsey. I also think using the third wide receivers for each team is an extremely smart play, and they're both usable in cash games as economical fillers once your elite players are locked into your lineup. Tyler Boyd ($8,500) could easily see double-digits and had a run of four straight games with a touchdown up until the Divisional round. Van Jefferson ($7,000) is very roster-able despite not doing much since back in December. It's worth noting he had three straight games with a touchdown then and will be an afterthought for the Bengals defense. Just watch the knee injury here.
I waited all week to see if we would get any definitive updates about the tight end spots for both teams, and at this point (Thursday night), it looks like I'll have to make some educated predictions here. Of course, these are two situations that should become clearer this weekend, so adjust based on the latest news. I don't think we see Tyler Higbee ($8,000) this weekend, as he hasn't practiced at all since the NFC Championship game. That leaves Kendall Blanton ($8,000) as an excellent value play. Blanton has scored 8.2 and 8.8 fantasy points over his last two games, which is solid value dollar for dollar. Like all tight ends, he's going to be dependent on scoring a touchdown, and if Higbee is out, he was targeted 21 times in the red zone this season. C.J. Uzomah ($7,500) might be a contrarian play this weekend given he has the stink of coming off an injury, which could lead fantasy players elsewhere. Uzomah has been very good at times this season, with four games of double-digit fantasy points including two 20-plus performances. If he's ruled out, put Drew Sample ($6,500) firmly on your radar, especially at that low of a salary cap hit.
Finally, we get to the kickers. Both Evan McPherson ($9,000) and Matt Gay ($9,500) are interesting tournament options, and McPherson easily gets my nod if I'm choosing between the two. He's had at least 11 fantasy points in seven straight games, going 22-for-23 on field goal tries and 15-for-15 on extra point tries. Gay has been more erratic, but as the kicker for the team favored to score more points, he's worth a gamble as well. I think using a lineup with both and hoping for a field goal-heavy, low-scoring game is worth consideration.
Make sure to check out the free rolls this weekend on FanDuel.com and of course, enjoy the game!
