This is the final week that Thursday Night Football is exclusively aired on NFL Network. Those with basic cable packages might feel as though the NFL did them a favor after looking at this Jaguars-Bengals matchup, but for fantasy football owners and those in daily fantasy contests, this game counts the same as all the others -- and there’s plenty to be excited about. Well, "plenty" might be pushing it, but there are certainly a few players we’re looking forward to watching and including in our FanDuel single-game tournament lineups. The Bengals opened as 7.5-point favorites with a total of 45, so the suggestion is they'll take care of business this week, which is why our NFL DFS picks have a slight Bengals lean.
Before we get into our picks, here are the key rules 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, and there are no bonuses for 100/300-yard games like on DraftKings.
MORE FD SINGLE GAME: How to win a FanDuel single-game contest
FanDuel Single-Game DFS Picks: Jaguars vs. Bengals
$60,000 budget, need at least one player from each team
MVP (1.5x points): RB Joe Mixon, Bengals ($14,000)
Mixon is seeing a whopping 54.8 percent of the Bengals’ touches. He posted 23 FanDuel points in Week 1 and should be able to venture into the 20-plus-point range again in this matchup.
MORE TNF: DK Showdown lineup | Start 'em, sit 'em
FLEX: WR Ja'Marr Chase, Bengals ($12,500)
Chase is establishing himself as the team’s best receiver, averaging 20 yards per catch on his 11 grabs and could soon command a more dominant share of the targets than the 21.9-percent piece of the pie. Even with his relatively limited targets, he's scored four times. Tee Higgins (shoulder) didn’t practice Tuesday, putting his status for Thursday night in doubt. Higgins being absent or compromised likely puts more on Chase’s plate.
WEEK 4 DFS LINEUPS: DraftKings | FanDuel | Yahoo
FLEX: RB James Robinson, Jaguars ($12,000)
Robinson has seen 43 touches this season and averaged 5.9 yards per clip. After a slow start, Robinson busted out for 22.4 FD points in Week 3. We’re going to bet on him being heavily involved again on Thursday night.
MORE WEEK 4 DFS: Best stacks | Best values | Lineup Builder
FLEX: WR Marvin Jones Jr., Jaguars ($11,500)
Revenge game! All jokes aside, Jones leads the team with 28 targets and has been much more efficient than DJ Chark ($10,500), catching 60.7 percent of his chances compared to 51.3 percent for Chark. He’s also tied with Chark for the team lead in touchdowns (2). There’s nothing wrong with entering a second lineup with Chark if you want to cover your bases.
WEEK 4 FANTASY: Start 'em, sit 'em | Sleepers | Busts
FLEX: WR Tyler Boyd, Bengals ($10,000)
Boyd isn’t nearly as dynamic as his rookie running mate, but he’s leading the Bengals with 19 targets and will continue to handle a heavier load while Higgins is on the mend.