Fans of Saturday football have graduated from college to the pros as we inch closer to the end of 2023. As usual, college football Saturdays are on hiatus until the fall, leaving a major gap for the NFL to fill with some games -- and DFS contests -- of their own from here on out.
There are three games on the Saturday slate (Vikings-Bengals, Steelers-Colts, Broncos-Lions), keeping us occupied from 1 p.m. ET all the way until almost midnight. Whether you're watching on the big screen at home or the little one on your phone while trying to complete holiday shopping, our DraftKings and FanDuel DFS lineups are ready to give you something to root for all day long. Just try to refrain from cheering too much and making a scene in public while checking out at Macy's or picking up dinner from your favorite pizza parlor.
Before we break down all of our picks, here are the most notable scoring rules for DraftKings contests: Full-point PPR, four-point passing TDs, three-point bonuses for 100 rushing yards, 100 receiving yards, and 300 passing yards.
WEEK 15 DFS:
DK lineup | FD lineup | Best values | Best stacks
NFL Saturday DraftKings Picks Week 15: NFL DFS lineup for GPP tournaments
Sunday main slate, $50,000 budget
QB Jake Browning, Bengals vs. Vikings ($5,700). The Browning Show enters its fourth week, and to say it's been an impressive run would be an understatement. Cincinnati is 2-1 with Browning as a starter, and they're winning thanks to the QB rather than in spite of him. He's found success with both his arm and legs, scoring a rushing touchdown in back-to-back weeks. Most important, the Bengals' stars are stepping up and helping the inexperienced QB. Browning is obviously not in the same class as Joe Burrow, but Zac Taylor's system is making it look much closer than we initially expected.
RB Joe Mixon, Bengals vs. Vikings ($6,600). One of the stars who's stepped up in a big way is Mixon. The volume has been turned up a notch as Cincinnati relies on their RB to ease the pressure on Browning, and Mixon hasn't disappointed, scoring three touchdowns in the past two weeks. The work has always been there in the ground game, but Mixon's impact as a receiver is the notable thing here. Mixon hadn't cracked 40 yards receiving in a game with Burrow. He's now done that in three straight weeks with Browning. Trust that it will continue, especially against a Vikings team that loves to blitz.
WEEK 15 FANTASY ADVICE:
Sleepers | Busts | Projections | Start-sit
RB David Montgomery, Lions vs. Broncos ($6,400). While Jahmyr Gibbs has settled nicely into a big role in the Detroit offense, we can't forget Montgomery. He might not have the same amount of opportunities as he did early in the season, but the veteran is still effective when given the chance. He just had a four-game TD streak snapped on Sunday, but luckily for him, a matchup with the league's worst run defense awaits. To be fair, Denver's improved against the run lately, if for no other reason than they're limiting opportunities thanks to improved offense. Nonetheless, we expect to see plenty of the physical Montgomery as Detroit tries to reestablish itself down the stretch.
WR Courtland Sutton, Broncos @ Lions ($6,400). Sutton has been a touchdown machine this season, scoring 10 in 13 games. It's no secret that Russell Wilson is relying heavily on the big-bodied receiver as Sutton continues to turn in an underrated season. While we'd like to see a little more volume, the Broncos' WR is doing more than enough to remain fantasy relevant. A matchup against a leaky Lions secondary should help matters, too.
WEEK 15 PPR RANKINGS:
QBs | RBs | WRs | TEs | D/STs | Kickers
WR George Pickens, Steelers @ Colts ($4,800). The squeaky wheel continues to be Pickens. Will the Steelers finally oil that wheel against the Colts? Mike Tomlin appears tired of the WR's antics, saying that the sideline outbursts are a "problem." After seeing six targets against the Patriots last week, plenty of criticism surrounded Pittsburgh's lack of chances for Pickens downfield. We should expect an overcorrection this week against a Colts defense that has experienced plenty of problems defending bigger receivers this season. If Mitch Trubisky can play even just a little better, we anticipate Pickens finding the end zone and having a big day.
WR Josh Downs, Colts vs. Steelers ($4,600). Michael Pittman Jr. is rightfully getting all of the attention as the Colts' best receiver, but Downs needs some love, too. He should get it in Week 15. Despite an inconsistent target share that's trended downward in recent weeks, the Steelers have struggled against slot receivers. JuJu Smith-Schuster became the latest to exploit a weak secondary last week with 90 yards, and Downs will add his name to the list on Saturday. We'll gladly buy some stock in the rookie after his value bottomed out.
WEEK 15 STANDARD RANKINGS:
QBs | RBs | WRs | TEs | D/STs | Kickers
TE T.J. Hockenson, Vikings @ Bengals ($5,800). The Bengals can't defend tight ends. The Vikings love to throw the ball to theirs. Sometimes it's fairly simple. Hockenson is already the most targeted TE this season (116), and he's facing a Bengals team that surrenders the most yards (71.9) and the most fantasy points per game (9.6). With Nick Mullens under center now, we can expect Hockenson's numbers to climb even more.
FLEX TE Sam LaPorta, Lions vs. Broncos ($6,000). From one tight end to another, LaPorta is another TE with a solid matchup on tap. The Broncos allow the third-most fantasy points per game to the position (8.6), and LaPorta has been one of the best TEs in fantasy this year, which is fairly surprising at a position that notoriously doesn't see much of an impact made by rookies. When Jared Goff turns to the aerial attack, it will likely be with LaPorta on the other end.
DEF Colts vs. Steelers ($3,500). The Bengals will probably be the most popular D/ST in DFS on Saturday. The Steelers also have a similar narrative. Both are good defenses that are facing QBs who won't be confused with stars anytime soon. More importantly, they have proven to be reliable fantasy defenses in the past. The Colts are flying a little more under the radar. Facing Trubisky is nice, and the fact that this defense has scored 11 or more fantasy points in four of the past five is icing on the cake. They might end up being one of the lower-owned D/STs, but they possess arguably the highest ceiling.
NFL Saturday FanDuel Picks Week 15: NFL DFS lineup for GPP tournaments
Scoring based on FanDuel's half-point PPR format
- QB: Jared Goff, Lions ($7,900)
- RB: Jahmyr Gibbs, Lions ($7,500)
- RB: Chase Brown, Bengals ($5,200)
- WR: Michael Pittman Jr., Colts ($7,900)
- WR: Courtland Sutton, Broncos ($7,300)
- WR: Diontae Johnson, Steelers ($6,700)
- TE: T.J. Hockenson, Vikings ($7,000)
- FLEX: WR Tee Higgins, Bengals ($6,300)
- DEF: Pittsburgh Steelers ($4,000)
As you can probably tell, we're very high on the Lions this week, especially their backfield. Jared Goff is the best fantasy QB option on a day that will feature Russell Wilson, Jake Browning, Mitch Trubisky, Gardner Minshew, and Nick Mullens. This trio of games probably won't feature QB play you'll tell your grandchildren about someday, so the rest of the lineup will have to do some heavy lifting. Pittman, Sutton, and Hockenson are all rock-solid options. Johnson continues to be Trubisky's go-to guy, and Higgins should've had a touchdown in each of the last two games. The plays are definitely there to be made. Now, it's up to the players to make them -- which is exactly what Brown did last week as his breakout stretch continues. With more production comes more opportunities. Expect Brown to continue to carve out a spot in Cincinnati's backfield.
Best SuperDraft NFL DFS Picks for NFL Saturday Week 15
This season, we're also listing our favorite Saturday Week 15 DFS lineup on SuperDraft, with some of our picks and analysis overlapping.
For those unfamiliar, SuperDraft's DFS scoring involves point multipliers as opposed to traditional salary-capped or tiered contests. A winning lineup will likely feature a strong mix of stud fantasy contributors with 1x-1.6x boosts, as well as a few matchup-based sleepers with larger multipliers. Each player is assigned a scoring multiplier based on their value as determined by SuperDraft. Users can roster any player in their lineup with no restrictions.
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Here are the most notable scoring rules for SuperDraft NFL contests: Half-point PPR, four-point passing TDs, two-point bonuses for 100 rushing yards, 100 receiving yards, and 300 passing yards.
MORE SUPERDRAFT DFS: How to play SuperDraft
- QB: Jared Goff, Lions (Multiplier 1x)
- RB: Jahmyr Gibbs, Lions (Multiplier 1.05x)
- RB: Joe Mixon, Bengals (Multiplier 1.05x)
- WR: Michael Pittman Jr., Colts (Multiplier 1.1x)
- WR: Courtland Sutton, Broncos (Multiplier 1.2x)
- WR: Diontae Johnson, Steelers (Multiplier 1.35x)
- TE: Sam LaPorta, Lions (Multiplier 1x)
- FLEX: TE T.J. Hockenson, Vikings (Multiplier 1.05x)
Our SuperDraft lineup is going the chalky route, expecting a big bounce-back performance from the Lions while some of the other stars on the Saturday slate come through in a big way. With the playoffs looming, it's the time of year when the best players start to really make their presences felt, and our lineup resembles that reality.
