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Madden Stream Picks: Top DraftKings Fantasy Football DFS Targets, Values for August 16

Zach Thompson gives his top studs and value plays at each position for Monday’s three-game Madden Stream DraftKings slate, which starts at 6:00 p.m. ET.

With the first week of the NFL preseason wrapped up, the DraftKings Dream Stream is ready to bring you some Monday Night Football as part of a full schedule of six Madden 21 sims throughout the day. The featured fantasy football classic slate starts at 6:00 p.m. ET with a matchup between the New England Patriots and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. At 8:00 p.m. ET in primetime, the New York Jets visit the Las Vegas Raiders, and we close out the day with an AFC East matchup on Madden After Dark between the Miami Dolphins and the Buffalo Bills.

As you take a look at the eight teams in play and put together your lineup, be sure to consider the depth charts for each team. If you’re looking for gameplay details for these sims, along with the upcoming schedule, head over to the Madden Streams Information Page.



Quarterback

Stud

Josh Allen, Buffalo Bills vs. Miami Dolphins, $6,800 — Allen’s rushing abilities make him the most productive QB on this slate, averaging 19.4 DKFP per sim on 165.5 passing yards, 63.4 rushing yards and 1.49 total touchdowns per sim. Allen has faced Miami six times and finished with over 17 DKFP in five of those matchups and an average of 19.4 DKFP. He also has over 18 DKFP in five of his six most recent matchups overall, so he’s a great place to start Monday’s lineup build.

Other Option — Tom Brady ($7,100)

Value

Derek Carr, Las Vegas Raiders vs. New York Jets, $5,600 — Carr offers solid upside for a play under $6K in this favorable matchup against the Jets’ beatable secondary. He had over 16 DKFP in two of his three previous meetings with the Jets and has also thrown three touchdowns in each of his two most recent sims, resulting in 21.1 and 22.86 DKFP. He’s definitely higher risk than Allen since he doesn’t have the rushing production to fall back on, but there’s also a good chance he’ll be able to keep things rolling against the Jets.

Other Option — Tua Tagovailoa ($5,200)


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Running Back

Stud

Le’Veon Bell, New York Jets vs. Las Vegas Raiders, $7,300 — Bell has continued his role as the Jets’ RB1 and workhorse RB in these sims and has typically been a pretty productive option, averaging 16.8 DKFP on 53.6 rushing yards, 31.4 receiving yards and 4.8 catches per sim. He has 57 touchdowns in 104 Madden 21 sims and has found the end zone in each of his previous head-to-head matchups with Vegas, producing 17.6, 20.1 and 26.1 DKFP. The Raiders have struggled to stop the run overall, so Bell should be able to find enough room to post another solid game.

Other Option — Devin Singletary ($5,700)

Value

LeSean McCoy, Tampa Bay Buccaneers vs. New England Patriots, $4,800 — McCoy is part of a Tampa timeshare with Leonard Fournette ($5,000) but has been productive in these sims since he typically hauls in plenty of receptions. He has averaged 3.1 catches and 8.3 DKFP per sim in his 111 contests and had 24.0 DKFP with a rushing touchdown, seven catches and 70 receiving yards in his most recent sim against New England. Often, the Patriots’ highly-rated secondary forces opposing offenses to check down to their receiving back, and McCoy should be a great value if that’s again the case in this sim.

Other Options — James White ($4,700), Jalen Richard ($3,700)


Wide Receiver

Stud

Julian Edelman, New England Patriots at Tampa Bay Buccaneers, $6,100 — Edelman probably only has a few more sims left with the impending move to Madden 22 coming soon, but he’s in a good matchup to take advantage of out of the slot in this contest. He has been inconsistent for the Patriots overall, but he has excelled against Tampa Bay with four touchdowns in four sims resulting in 19.9, 5.9, 15.9 and 25.8 DKFP. He also has at least four catches in five straight sims and in nine of his 10 most recent contests

Other Options — Chris Godwin ($6,400), Stefon Diggs ($5,900)

Value

Henry Ruggs III, Las Vegas Raiders vs. New York Jets, $5,600 — Ruggs is loaded with upside due to his 98 speed rating and makes a great tandem with Carr if you decide to go with the value QB. Ruggs has found the end zone in three of his past four sims and is coming off a monster 34.3-DKFP performance against the Cardinals. He also has thrived against the Jets with over 19 DKFP in each of their two most recent matchups.

Jakeem Grant, Miami Dolphins at Buffalo Bills, $3,600 — Grant is another great speed option with a high ceiling, especially if the Bills’ top cover CBs focus on shutting down DeVante Parker ($5,500). Grant has at least three catches in five straight sims, including two games with double-digit DKFP, and he had 15.1 DKFP on seven catches in his most recent sim against the Bills.

Other Options — Chris Hogan ($4,500), Scotty Miller ($4,000)


Tight End

Stud

Devin Asiasi, New England Patriots at Tampa Bay Buccaneers, $5,500 — Asiasi has been very solid as the Patriots’ TE1 in Madden 21, producing 11.6 DKFP on 4.2 catches for 46.0 yards per sim. He had 15.3, 26.8 and 20.7 DKFP in his three most recent games against Tampa Bay, and he should be heavily targeted again in this rematch.

Other Option — Darren Waller ($5,800)

Value

Mike Gesicki, Miami Dolphins at Buffalo Bills, $4,500 — Gesicki has been one of Tua Tagovailoa’s ($5,200) favorite targets in Madden 21, averaging 4.4 catches for 48.6 yards per sim. He has averaged 11.5 DKFP per sim as a result, which is right on par with Asiasi’s production, but he’s $1K cheaper than his AFC East counterpart. Gesicki had seven catches in his most recent matchup with the Bills, and Buffalo has generally been a favorable matchup for TEs since they have such good coverage on the outside.

Other Option — Lee Smith ($2,800)


DST

Stud

Patriots DST at Tampa Bay Buccaneers, $3,100 — The Patriots have been good enough to be a solid play even against the Super Bowl champs on this slate. In 105 sims, they have forced 108 turnovers while scoring 18 touchdowns and piling up 181 sacks. They had 6.0 DKFP in their recent matchup and have totaled 10 sacks in their four sims against their former teammate, Tom Brady ($7,100).

Value

Jets DST at Las Vegas Raiders, $2,800 — The Jets have a solid front seven in Madden 21 and have produced 196 sacks and four safeties to go with eight defensive touchdowns in 104 games. They totaled 11 DKFP in three previous matchups with the Raiders, whose offense has been inconsistent enough to make them a solid matchup to target.

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I am a promoter at DraftKings and am also an avid fan and user (my username is Z.Thompson) and may sometimes play on my personal account in the games that I offer advice on. Although I have expressed my personal view on the games and strategies above, they do not necessarily reflect the view(s) of DraftKings and I may also deploy different players and strategies than what I recommend above. I am not an employee of DraftKings and do not have access to any non-public information.