Monday Night Football brings us what should be a dud of a game, but one that will give the Pittsburgh Steelers a great chance to stop their two-game skid, as they face the two-win Cincinnati Bengals.
The bulk of the fantasy points will likely go to Ben Roethlisberger, Diontae Johnson, JuJu Smith-Schuster, and Chase Claypool. The question is, who are those one or two players further down the radar that will become critical in this game and help you roster more studs and differentiate from the competition in the DraftKings Showdown?
James Conner, RB, $6,600
Monday update: Conner is out, per Adam Schefter. Benny Snell ($6,200) becomes a good value play in his place.
Conner was limited this week with a quad injury, but he is on track to play. The Bengals allow 4.98 yards per carry to running backs and the Steelers will likely want to get their running game back on track. The game-script could also be in Conner’s favor, as the Steelers should have a lead as 14.5-point favorites. If Conner is a surprise Scratch, Benny Snell becomes a strong play.
Eric Ebron, TE, $6,400
The Bengals have allowed the second-most fantasy points and the most receiving yards to tight ends this season, giving Ebron a good shot at meeting value. The last time these two teams met Chase Claypool scored twice, while JuJu Smith-Schuster and Diontae scored twice. Ben Roethlisberger should be able to be productive, the question is who will find the end one.
Trayveon Williams, RB, $1,200
The Bengals likely won’t be able to run the ball or throw the ball deep with Ryan Finley in at quarterback and the Steelers pass rush bearing down on him. That could lead to Williams seeing a good amount of targets. Of course, it isn’t really clear who the receiving back will be this week, but after Gio Bernard’s fumble to start last week’s game, Williams took over the receiving role. Bernard could get the role back, but I think they’ll look to see how Williams does.
Steelers, D/ST, $7,200
The Steelers defense and special teams will likely be heavily rostered this Monday night. They are coming off two losses after winning their first 11 games, the Bengals will have their third-string quarterback, Ryan Finley, starting, who has been sacked on 14 percent of his drop backs over the last two seasons, and Pittsburgh is finally getting some rest after playing a bunch of games in a short period of time due to their opponent’s Covid-19 troubles.