There's nothing like turkey, apple pie, and football. Or maybe you prefer stuffing and pumpkin pie. No matter. What we know for sure is that football is good, and in a year when people are supposed to be cutting down on traveling to see family, making a Thursday NFL DFS lineup to enjoy the football with makes sense. We're here to help with our FanDuel tournament picks for the altered two-game Thanksgiving slate.
The one downside is that the slate doesn't resemble anything like what you'd see on a Sunday main slate. You're going to have lineup crossover that doesn't really make sense. For the most part, though, strategy doesn't change all that much. Finding one or two values is key. Stacks can still work. Limiting exposure to the team your defense is playing can still be advisable. It won't be perfect, but it should go well with the pie.
Thanksgiving NFL DFS Lineup: FanDuel tournament picks
Note: This lineup has been updated following the removal of Baltimore-Pittsburgh from the FD main slate after its rescheduling to Sunday. That required a number of lineup alterations, with our most up-to-date lineup now below.
QB Matthew Stafford, Lions vs. Texans ($7,200)
This game promises to be a shootout. The Texans have allowed 19 touchdown passes while intercepting just two passes, meaning Stafford should have his way with the Houston defense. The return of a few Lions from injury would only help Stafford's cause, too, so keep an eye on the status of Kenny Golladay (hip), Danny Amendola (hip), and D'Andre Swift (concussion).
FANDUEL THANKSGIVING DFS:
Texans-Lions | Washington-Cowboys | Ravens-Steelers
RB Ezkiel Elliott, Cowboys vs. Washington ($8,500)
Elliott is far and away the top running back on this slate. Washington's solid front seven lends itself to some hesitation here, but we'll give Zeke a go in our FD lineup on the assumption that his ownership will be pretty high and we won't want to miss out. He also stacks with our defense in the always fun RB/DEF pairing.
DRAFTKINGS THANKSGIVING DFS:
Texans-Lions | Washington-Cowboys | Ravens-Steelers | Full slate
RB Duke Johnson, Texans @ Lions ($6,100)
The Lions have allowed more FD points per game to running backs than any team in football this season, and for at least one more game, this backfield belongs firmly to Duke. He hasn't been amazing filling in for David Johnson (concussion), but Duke's touch share will be high enough to take advantage in Detroit.
WEEK 12 DFS CASH LINEUPS: DraftKings | FanDuel
WR Amari Cooper, Cowboys vs. Washington ($6,900)
In a larger slate, Cooper wouldn't make much sense to play with Zeke and the Dallas defense. On this slate, though, he can still be worth using after he caught seven-of-eight targets in Andy Dalton's return. Expect a similar target share again for Cooper against a Washington team that might be more beatable through the air.
WEEK 12 DFS TOURNAMENT LINEUPS: DraftKings | FanDuel
WR Will Fuller V, Texans @ Lions ($7,400)
We originally rostered Chase Claypool, but that wasn't meant to be. Fuller comes in and gives us the top two WR prices on the slate. We don't have Deshaun Watson in a shootout, but at least we have his top receiver who Detroit shouldn't be able to guard.
MORE WEEK 12 DFS: Best stacks | Best values | Lineup Builder
WR Marvin Jones Jr., Lions vs. Texans ($6,000)
Maybe Jones won't be worth playing if Golladay makes it back on the field, but he'd at worst be the No. 2 WR in a shootout. We have to pick a Lions wideout to stack with Stafford, and Jones makes sense as the fully healthy option who's been known to have multi-TD games occasionally.
TE T.J. Hockenson, Lions vs. Texans ($6,000)
This spot was originally Mark Andrews, but we had to change it after the Ravens' game was postponed. Hockenson is now the best tight end on the slate, and he also stacks with our quarterback in a potential shootout, so he's the logical pivot here.
WEEK 12 PPR RANKINGS:
Quarterback | Running back | Wide receiver | Tight end | D/ST | Kicker
FLEX Terry McLaurin, Washington @ Cowboys ($7,900)
McLaurin hasn't scored fewer than 10.9 FD points in a game since Oct. 11. The Cowboys' defense isn't great, and while we're playing them in our lineup for value, it's not with the expectation that they'll stop McLaurin from having a solid day.
WEEK 12 STANDARD RANKINGS:
Quarterback | Running back | Wide receiver | Tight end | D/ST | Kicker
DEF Dallas Cowboys vs. Washington ($3,300)
This is a risk, for sure. The first time Dallas played Washington, the Cowboys scored two FD points. But paying down for the Cowboys gives us extra money to use elsewhere. We're counting on that making up for this defense and figuring that maybe there's a chance a WFT offense without loads of talent struggles for portions of Thursday's game.