Week 9's Thursday Night Football matchup in Pittsburgh represents almost a changing of the guard. Two franchises that have been fixtures in recent years are struggling to stay afloat. While the new kids on the block threaten to take over playoff spots that once belonged to the Titans and Steelers, it reminds us of how quickly things change -- as does the difficult time we had putting together a FanDuel single-game DFS lineup for this one.
It wasn't long ago that Ryan Tannehill almost quarterbacked Tennessee to the Super Bowl, even leading them to a top seed in the AFC. The same goes for the Steelers, with their fans longing for the days of Ben Roethlisberger, Le'Veon Bell, and Antonio Brown once again. T.J. Watt and the defense have helped extinguish that nostalgia to some degree, but it's hard to not have an appreciation for the past this time of year. And while it always makes sense to live in the moment and have excitement for the future, one with Kenny Pickett and Matt Canada isn't one to celebrate.
Before we break down our picks and strategy, here are the most notable scoring rules for FanDuel contests: four-point passing TDs and half-point PPR.
MORE THURSDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL:
DK lineup | ATS pick | Best props | Start-sit | Hopkins update
Titans-Steelers FanDuel Picks Week 9: NFL DFS lineup for GPP tournaments
$60,000 budget, at least one player from each team required
MVP (1.5x points) QB Will Levis, Titans ($15,000). How about an encore? Levis started in place of the injured Ryan Tannehill (ankle) with expectations at an all-time low. Considering how Malik Willis has looked in limited action, fans rightfully didn't have high hopes for Levis, who was QB3 on the depth chart. Then the game kicked off and the mayo-loving quarterback shined bright. Rocking the Oilers throwbacks, Levis tossed four touchdowns and didn't turn the ball over. It was something the Titans fans hadn't seen in quite some time -- an efficient passing game. His next task? Facing the Pittsburgh Watts and overcoming a lethal pass rush. The good news is that the Steelers can't score and seemingly rely on T.J. Watt to steal wins every week. Levis showed great chemistry with DeAndre Hopkins in his first career start, and we anticipate that Tennessee will be turning to the air quite a bit as Pittsburgh tries to shut down the run game. Those explosive plays will be available; it's up to Levis to make them. We think he will.
FLEX WR George Pickens, Steelers ($14,000). In a game that lacks plenty of stars, someone will have to make plays. We're looking to the Steelers' best receiver for some production. Pickens is right up there for targets alongside Diontae Johnson, but our budget allows us to splurge on the former. After back-to-back games of at least 100 yards, Pickens disappointed in brutal weather last Sunday, but he made the most of his one catch, turning it into a 22-yard touchdown. Kenny Pickett (ribs) expects to play, and that leaves the Pickett-to-Pickens connection open for business in Week 9. Pickens is the best of a bunch of bad options against Tennessee's 20th-ranked pass defense on Thursday night.
FLEX WR DeAndre Hopkins, Titans ($13,000). Hopkins caught four passes on Sunday, but three of them were touchdowns. It served as only the second time this season that D-Hop passed the century mark and the first time he found the end zone with the Titans. Levis is going to rely on the veteran receiver as he grows into the role of starting quarterback. Outside of Derrick Henry, there really is nowhere else to turn. Hopkins' involvement should once again be a focus. The Steelers' defense is already allowing around four explosive pass plays per game of at least 20 yards. Without Minkah Fitzpatrick (hamstring) lurking in the secondary, that number could climb even more.
FLEX K Chris Boswell, Steelers ($9,000). We can hype up the offenses as much as we want, but the reality is that field goals are likely going to be a common theme. The Steelers are ranked 24th in red-zone scoring percentage, finding the end zone only 45.5 percent of the time. Meanwhile, the Titans own the second-best red-zone defense, allowing touchdowns at a 34.6-percent rate. With Pittsburgh's injury concerns and anemic offense, we highly doubt it will all begin to click during a short week. Expect a slog on Thursday night with plenty of Boswell cameos.
FLEX K Nick Folk, Titans ($8,500). We can't have Boswell in the lineup without Folk, especially since the analysis remains the same. Bad red-zone offense that's facing a fairly good red-zone defense is a recipe for kicking success. Pittsburgh ranks a little worse than Tennessee in the defense department, allowing TDs 50 percent of the time, but the Titans only score at a 36.4-percent rate in those spots, third worst in the league. With the Titans' offense likely stalling often in a low-scoring game, Folk's number will be called more than a few times.
Best SuperDraft NFL DFS Picks for Titans-Steelers
This year, we're also listing our favorite weekly DFS plays on SuperDraft.
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 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.
MORE: Win BIG with SuperDraft! Get a free $10 deposit when you use promo code "TSN"!
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
- Champion (+50% points): RB Derrick Henry, Titans (Multiplier 1.5x)
- Super FLEX: QB Will Levis, Titans (Multiplier 1.2x)
- Super FLEX: WR DeAndre Hopkins, Titans (Multiplier 1.05x)
- Super FLEX: WR Diontae Johnson, Steelers (Multiplier 1.3x)
- Super FLEX: WR George Pickens, Steelers (Multiplier 1.3x)
There are about five players in this game that we're willing to trust from a fantasy standpoint, and it just so happens that SuperDraft's single-game DFS lineups require five players. In a battle between two teams without much depth on offense, trust the chalkier options to come through.
