Jared Contestabile 
We kick off December with a fantastic game on TNF. The Bills and Patriots are both jockeying for position in the AFC playoff picture, not to mention the AFC East. This one has massive playoff implications, and I can’t wait to watch it. The Bills are short 3.5-point favorites with a total of 43.5. Let’s get to work on this one!
DraftKings and FanDuel each have a slightly different setup for Showdown slates, with DraftKings using a “Captain” spot. Captain earns you 1.5X points, BUT also costs you 1.5X in salary. FanDuel uses an “MVP”, which is ALSO 1.5X points, but salaries are the same, regardless of position. DraftKings uses 5 FLEX spots, and FanDuel uses 4 “AnyFLEX” spots to fill out your roster.
Captain/MVP Plays
Mac Jones, Patriots ($14,100 DraftKings, $13,500 FanDuel)
Listen, if you’ve read my content, you know I’m not a big Mac Jones fan. Well, Thursday night “Mr. Jones and me” both just wanna be big, big stars. He wants to take down Josh Allen and the Bills, and I’m looking to take down a GPP. Let me explain.
If I asked you right now how many teams had been worse than the Bills against the pass over the last two weeks, would you guess more than one? Only Detroit (55.70 fantasy points per game) has been worse than the Bills. Over the last two games, the Bills have served up five scores and nearly 400 yards to opposing receivers. What does this have to do with Mac Jones, a quarterback? Well I’m glad you asked.
Mac Jones is coming off his best game as a pro (28-39, 382 yards, 2 TD, 0 INT), and the Bills will be without Von Miller once again. This is a vulnerable unit right now, and with Jones and company playing at home, this is the perfect storm for another Mac attack. He may or may not become one of my favorites if he takes care of business in this one.
Isaiah McKenzie, Bills ($10,200 DraftKings, $9,500 FanDuel)
Mixing it up a bit more, but absolutely love this. Obviously these two teams have a long history against one another. However, the recent history has shown the Bills simply massacring their rivals from Foxboro. One of the key pieces in their regular season win last year was McKenzie. He also is coming off one of the best games of his life on Thanksgiving (6-96-1 and 2-7 on the ground. He has become a vital part of this offense, and I think he’s a solid pivot play at the bonus spot.
The Pats have done well against Stefon Diggs…and pretty much nobody else…in recent matchups. McKenzie has seen success in this matchup, going off for 11-125-1 against New England last December. I think he’s a very solid play across the board as well.
Rhamondre Stevenson, Patriots ($15,600 DraftKings, $14,000 FanDuel)
The easy thing to do here would be to talk about Josh Allen, but I don’t like to take the easy route. Allen has embarrassed the Patriots like Phil Dunphy embarrasses his kids. Constantly. Enough about Allen. If you don’t know what he can do, you’ve come to the wrong place.
Enter Stevenson. Not only has he been an absolutely elite option to have on any season-long fantasy team, but he has been dominant IRL (as the kids say). He has taken on an Austin Ekeler-type role, and there isn’t a more coveted role among RB for fantasy purposes.
Over the last five games, Rhamondre Stevenson has thirty-eight targets. Yes, 38. Putting that in perspective, that’s more than Chris Olave, DJ Moore, AJ Brown…and many more. Add that on top of the nicely-packed fantasy gift that is sixty-four carries, and it’s almost too much to handle. Stevenson is a legitimate #1 fantasy option on any team right now. Now he draws a Bills team missing its top defender. I feel right now the way I feel when I see a new Arby’s commercial. Hungry and ready to eat. So let’s eat. Get yourself some Rhamondre!
FLEX/AnyFLEX Plays
Dawson Knox, Bills ($6,200 DraftKings, $8,500 FanDuel)
If perfection exists on the elite level of sport, I’ve only seen it twice in my life. The 2013-14 Spurs against the Heat in the NBA Finals and the 2021 Bills vs. Patriots in the playoffs. Knox was a huge part of that. In fact, he scored the first two touchdowns, and ended up with a monstrous 5-89-2 line.
If you’ve been reading my Tight End article, you’ve seen me mention the Patriots propensity to allow scores to opposing TE. Only the Cardinals have allowed more TD than the eight served up by Belichick’s squad. In fact, New England has only given up six touchdowns to wide receivers all season…
Devin Singletary, Bills ($7,000 DraftKings, $12,000 FanDuel)
I admittedly don’t love Singetary in this spot, but at his DraftKings price, he is hard to ignore. You can build a very nice, balanced lineup with Singletary over there. I respect the Patriots run defense a TON, but I also know that their priority will be taking away Diggs and the passing game.
He has 14, 20, and 15 touches the last three weeks, and although his work in the passing game leaves plenty to be desired, he is in play here. He makes for a solid filler option with a high floor and low ceiling.
Nelson Agholor, Patriots ($4,800 DraftKings, $6,500 FanDuel)
It looks like Jakobi Meyers will suit up for this one, but may be less than 100% with a shoulder injury. Agholor took on a huge role last week in the Turkey Day shootout against the Vikings. He hauled in six of eight targets for 65 yards and a tuddy. Regardless of the status of Jakobi, I like Agholor here in a game script that could heighten the need for passing.
Other Options
I’m taking my stand here, and more than willing to take the the “L”. I’m fading Stefon Diggs. He is very pricey, and dollar for dollar, I much prefer Stevenson. Of course you will want and need Josh Allen shares, regardless of his elbow situation. His goal-line prowess alone raise his floor to enormous heights. Plus, you know, he kinda owns these guys.
Tyler Bass is one of the most reliable kickers in the NFL, and to steal a quote from the great Ludacris, he’s been putting up “McDonald’s numbers”. Nick Folk is a volume kicker as well in an offense that struggles to finish drives. Don’t be shocked if the kickers are among the highest scorers in this one. I don’t mind the idea of throwing them each into a bonus spot if you’re doing MME.
Hunter Henry is coming off what seems like his first productive game in years, and he’s in play against a suddenly beatable Bills defense.
If you’re looking for the deepest discount plays on DraftKings, I don’t mind Kendrick Bourne or Jonnu Smith, but both are very game-script dependent. They are priced accordingly, so tread lightly. The floor they each possess is the same as yours or mine in this one.
Make sure to join our Discord to jump into our conversations with the team and share your successes (I am “Myrtle Beach Mermen”, if you understand the reference, we will get along right away! We have a TON of great tools for you to check out, make sure you’re taking advantage! You can find projections here and try out the optimizer here.
Good luck on Thursday Night! Make sure to follow me on Twitter if you aren’t already, and let’s meet at the top of the leaderboards!
