This weekend, the Ravens host the Bengals in an AFC North wild-card slugfest and rematch of their Week 18 regular-season finale. We don't know how much of Baltimore QB Lamar Jackson we will see, but we do know that Cincinnati has been one of the hottest teams in the NFL. The Bengals look to win their ninth game in a row to advance to the divisional round, while we look to make some money on a FanDuel single-game DFS lineup n for this postseason rivalry game.
The Ravens defense has been solid since acquiring stud linebacker Roquan Smith at the trade deadline, but Baltimore's offense has been as stagnant as ever. Tyler Huntley simply cannot move the ball like LJax, and third-stringer Anthony Brown was even worse last weekend. It will be very difficult for John Harbaugh's squad to keep up with Burrow, Ja'Marr Chase, Tee Higgins, and Joe Mixon, however, it won't be hard for us to put together a solid DFS lineup.
Let's dive right into our FanDuel Single Game Showdown for Sunday night's game. Before we discuss our picks, here are the notable scoring settings for FanDuel single-game contests:
- The point total for the "MVP" is multiplied by 1.5, but he doesn't cost any additional money like the "Captain" in DraftKings Showdown contests.
- FanDuel's default scoring is half-point PPR and four-point passing TDs.
- Unlike on DraftKings, FanDuel features no bonuses for 300-yard/100-yard games.
MORE FD SINGLE GAME: How to win a FanDuel single-game contest
Ravens-Bengals FanDuel Picks
$60,000 budget; must roster at least one player from each team
MVP (1.5x points): QB Joe Burrow, Bengals ($16,000)
In our DraftKings Showdown lineup for this game, I put Ja'Marr Chase in the points-boost so I could afford both him and Burrow. On FanDuel — where it doesn't cost you more to put a player in the 'MVP' boost spot — the choice seemed obvious with Joey B. Plain and simple, get the best fantasy asset in that 1.5-times multiplier spot. Burrow has enjoyed a fantastic season: nearly 4,500 passing yards, 35 TDs/12 INTs, and a 68.3 completion percentage. He's a bona fide Pro Bowler! And more often than not, he is the high fantasy scorer in games he plays. It may seem 'chalky,' but sometimes going chalk is logical. In a half-PPR format against a shaky Baltimore secondary, Burrow is the play.
MORE RAVENS-BENGALS:
Betting preview | Best props | DK lineup
AnyFLEX WR Ja'Marr Chase, Bengals ($16,500)
Chase remains one of the most electric playmakers in the NFL, and his rapport with Burrow dating back to their LSU college years is easy to see. In big games especially, the 2021 Offensive Rookie of the Year shows up. In Cincy's first-round win over the Raiders last season, Chase caught nine-of-12 targets for 116 yards and added 23 yards on the ground. And against Baltimore in the regular-season finale, he hauled in eight-of-13 for 86 and a score. You can't go wrong here.
AnyFLEX WR Tee Higgins ($12,000)
Are you sensing a trend? I have the Bengals dominating this game from the opening kick to the final whistle, so naturally, I am taking multiple pass-catchers. While Joe Mixon ($12,500) has shown flashes of brilliance this season, he only had one game this season over 17 fantasy points and had a roller-coaster of game logs in the second half of the season. Higgins, meanwhile, has three 19-plus FD games over the past seven weeks. Monitor Higgins' health (he's sick and questionable), but start him if he's able to suit up. Higgins and Chase are arguably the most exciting young wide receiver duo in football, and it's a tandem you want on your half-PPR DFS squads.
AnyFLEX WR Tyler Boyd, Bengals ($8,500)
When we drive home a point, we really drive it home! The Ravens have allowed 27.8 FD points to wideouts this season (14th-most) while surrendering just 8.1 points to tight ends (ninth-fewest) and 18.1 to RBs (eighth-fewest). This game script calls for the deep passes, as it did during these teams' regular-season series with Cincy combining for 493 passing yards and just 156 rushing yards (per-game averages of 246.5/78, for the math-challenged). We have the Bengals' wide receiver room essentially monopolized now, and we feel confident we'll get 90 percent of the air yards and close to (if not) all of the receiving TDs.
FLEX RB Kenyan Drake, Ravens ($7,000)
We needed at least one Raven, so we're going with the veteran Drake for an upside play. He scored 14.9 FD points against Cincy last week, and filled in admirably for JK Dobbins and Gus Edwards during their fantasy-plagued 2022 regular season. The Bengals have a fairly stout rushing defense, but they're not unbeatable. They have allowed the fourth-fewest ground yards, however, they have surrendered 12 total TDs and 18.0 FD points per game to RBs. With Edwards questionable with a concussion, we could be in for some Drake touches before and after the Bengals run away with this game.
