The New England Patriots and New York Giants will face off in a Madden sim Friday at 10:00 p.m. ET. We break down the ideal Showdown lineup strategy for the DFS contest that will be played in the snow. You can set your lineup and play in the DraftKings contest before kickoff.
Captain’s Pick
James White ($11,700)
This is a very special Madden After Dark. Not only do we have Adam Kaufman calling his beloved Patriots team, it’s also a rematch of the 2007 and 2011 Super Bowls. The Patriots and Giants haven’t played a meaningful game in a while, so this will definitely be a good one.
Okay, let’s take a look at Captain. So this is between White and Ben Watson ($11,100). Really I like both plays at Captain, so take your pick. White has a better ceiling and isn’t much more expensive. Both have solid floors and likely won’t bust in the Captain. White because of his ceiling has more of a chance of leading this game in scoring.
Fade This Guy
Daniel Jones ($15,000)
I thought about the idea of fading Tom Brady ($18,000) in this spot. Really, it’d just be in the Captain’s spot. That’s a lot of salary to shell out — nearly 40% — for one player. Brady has a high ceiling against the Giants, so I like using him at FLEX. Jones is in a different spot. Danny Dimes has failed to reach 20 fantasy points in eight of the past nine games. So if we’re trying to get a ceiling play, Jones ain’t it. There’s just too much to like about all the Patriots matchups.
Bargain Shopping
If you’re going to stack the hell out of the Patriots — which I think is the right thing to do — then we may want to play both Mohamed Sanu and Phillip Dorsett. Both are below $6K and we know that the Giants’ secondary is trash. Julian Edelman ($10,600) isn’t a bargain but we could look at a stack with Brady, Edelman, White and one of Dorsett and Sanu. Other than that, the value really only lies in Sterling Shepard ($3,600) and the kickers and D/ST, which you’d probably want to lean New England at also.