Happy holidays, everyone! 'Tis the season for family, friends, and food -- as well as fantasy football fun for those fortunate enough to still be alive in their season-long leagues. For those on the outside looking in., there's always DFS. As always, we hold the key to daily fantasy success: identifying the cheapest sleepers and highest-ceiling value plays so you can afford more studs without rostering any duds.
Every Tuesday, we scour DraftKings, FanDuel, and SuperDraft for the most affordable, under-the-radar, and overlooked players who will set you apart from the DFS pack. By finding above-average production at modest prices, we allow ourselves plenty of remaining budget to afford elite weekly performers at other roster spots. When our studs and our sleepers hit, we usually win DFS tournament cash.
We do all the leg work for you. We pore over the player pool, like my kids searching for their gifts under the Christmas tree. We then handpick the most promising sleepers and tell you why they're worth adding to your next DFS squad. All you have to do is choose your favorites. That way, you have plenty of time to get ready for New Year's Eve (or, even better, hibernate in front of the fire with some spiked egg nog).
Achieving daily fantasy success requires the due diligence of analyzing stats both season-long and recent, diving deeper into matchups, exploring the injury front, and comparing pricing to distinguish the vales from the fades. If it was easy, everyone would be rich off DFS. The true experts know that we can't afford a Christian McCaffrey ($9,600 on DK) without investing in the occasional Justin Watson ($3,400).
We have enjoyed consistent success with our DFS sleepers and values all season. Each Tuesday, we share a big list of our hits from the previous week. — with each hit typically netting at least 16-22 fantasy points. Throughout the year, we've been consistently ahead of the game on breakouts like Puka Nacua, Kyren Williams, and Tank Dell, among many others.
Take a look at our collection of hits from last week:
| Pos. | Player | Wk. 16 Game | DK Price | Pts |
| QB | Joe Flacco | Browns at Texans | $5,500 | 29.8 |
| QB | Baker Mayfield | Buccaneers vs. Jaguars | $6,800 | 19.8 |
| QB | Geno Smith | Seahawks at Titans | $5,800 | 17.3 |
| RB | Breece Hall | Jets vs. Commanders | $6,100 | 43.1 |
| RB | James Conner | Cardinals at Bears | $5,900 | 22.2 |
| RB | Aaron Jones | Packers at Panthers | $6,400 | 17.5 |
| WR | Garrett Wilson | Jets vs. Commanders | $5,800 | 15.8 |
| WR | Chris Godwin | Buccaneers vs. Jaguars | $6,200 | 13.9 |
| TE | David Njoku | Browns at Texans | $5,300 | 16.4 |
Only nine hits last week, far from our collection of 13 the week prior. However, our nine hits averaged 21.8 points per game while costing us just under $6,000. If you plugged even one or two of these affordable sleepers into DFS lineups last week, you more than likely made at least some money in your tournaments.
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Let's shower, rinse, repeat! As we have all season, we're incorporating SuperDraft into our weekly DFS column. 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-2x 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. So, the sleepers who carry lower salaries in DK/FD have higher boosts on SD. The best part: SuperDraft users can roster any player with no restrictions.
MORE SUPERDRAFT DFS: How to play SuperDraft
Now, to our picks. Below we will reveal our Week 17 DFS sleepers and values at each position. Good luck, have fun, and have a fantastic holiday break with your loved ones!
All player values are from DraftKings, FanDuel, and SuperDraft. All stats are from NFL.com and Pro Football Reference.
NFL DFS Picks Week 17: QB sleepers, values for DraftKings, FanDuel, SuperDraft
Derek Carr, Saints at Buccaneers (DK: $5,500 | FD: $7,000 | SD: 1.35x)
Carr has six TDs and a 58.8-percent completion rate over the past two weeks, and now he draws a fair-weather matchup against a Buccaneers D that has surrendered the most passing yards per game on the season (264.1) and over the past three games (289.0). As long as the Saints have Chris Olave, Alvin Kamara, and a soft secondary on the other side of the ball, Carr is in play as a DFS value.
Jarrett Stidham, Broncos vs. Chargers (DK: $4,800 | FD: $6,100 | SD: 1.55x)
Sean Payton and the Broncos have announced that Russell Wilson will be benched for Stidham this weekend, which undoubtedly has more to do with Russ's contract incentives than his performance. In any case, Stidham gets a juicy matchup with an abysmal Chargers defense that has surrendered the third-most passing yards per game on the season (259.3) and the second-most passing TDs (2.7) per game over the past three weeks. The former Pats QB is dirt cheap on DK, so the juice might be worth the squeeze here.
Other solid Week 17 values: Aidan O'Connell, Raiders at Colts (DK: $5,300 | FD: $6,600 | SD: 1.4x); Bryce Young, Panthers at Jaguars (DK: $4,900 | FD: $6,600 | SD: 1.45x)
WEEK 17 STANDARD RANKINGS:
QBs | RBs | WRs | TEs | D/STs | Kickers
NFL DFS Picks Week 17: RB sleepers, values for DraftKings, FanDuel, SuperDraft
Travis Etienne, Jaguars vs. Panthers (DK: $7,200 | FD: $8,600 | SD: 1.2x)
This is as pricy a pick as you'll ever see in this column, but we still view Etienne as a value since we have him priced as more like a $9,000 investment this weekend. The Panthers have been abysmal against the run all season, and ETN has been about as dependable as any back not named Christian McCaffrey or Kyren Williams. Almost all of our Week 17 lineups include the second-year back, who has nearly 1,300 scrimmage yards and 10 total TDs on the season.
Josh Jacobs (DK: $6,200 | FD: $7,000 | SD: 1.3x) or Zamir White (DK: $5,100 | FD: $6,100 | SD: 1.45x), Raiders at Colts
If Jacobs (quad) can suit up this weekend, he's a top-10 play at a top-20 value. If the reigning rushing champ can't go for the third straight week, White becomes a top-20 play for the cost of a top-30 back. Indianapolis has made some big plays on defense as of late, but overall, it has been horrendous at stopping opponents' running games. Antonio Pierce has this Vegas team believing it belongs again, so we have no qualms with investing in its backfield in a plus matchup.
More solid Week 17 RB values: D'Andre Swift, Eagles vs. Cardinals (DK: $6,500 | FD: $7,600 | SD: 1.25x); Kenneth Walker III, Seahawks vs. Steelers (DK: $6,100 | FD: $7,000 | SD: 1.3x); Jaylen Warren, Steelers at Seahawks (DK: $5,500 | FD: $5,700 | SD: 1.35x); Javonte Williams, Broncos vs. Chargers (DK: $5,600 | FD: $6,500 | SD: 1.35x)
WEEK 17 PPR RANKINGS:
QBs | RBs | WRs | TEs | D/STs | Kickers
NFL DFS Picks Week 17: WR sleepers, values for DraftKings, FanDuel, SuperDraft
Jerry Jeudy (DK: $5,100 | FD: $6,200 | SD: 1.45x), Broncos vs. Chargers
If Sutton clears the NFL's concussion protocol by the weekend, he's a massive value at his prices and a very attractive stack with Stidham. If Sutton is out, be ready to flex to other options like Jeudy. The Chargers have served up the fourth-most DK points and third-most FD points to wideouts this season.
Adam Thielen, Panthers at Jaguars (DK: $5,900 | FD: $6,900 | SD: 1.35x)
The Jaguars can't stop a nosebleed lately, so we're rolling with the veteran Thielen in multiple spots despite the volatility Carolina has endured with rookie QB Bryce Young. Thielen put up 15.4 DK points last weekend, and the Panthers allowed Mike Evans and Chris Godwin to combine for 35 PPR points last weekend, so the points will come.
More solid Week 17 WR values: Zay Flowers, Ravens vs. Dolphins (DK: $5,600 | FD: $6,300 | SD: 1.4x); Gabe Davis, Bills vs. Patriots (DK: $5,500 | FD: $6,900 | SD: 1.4x); George Pickens, Steelers at Seahawks (DK: $5,300 | FD: $6,800 | SD: 1.45x); Demarcus Robinson, Rams at Giants (DK: $4,600 | FD: $6,400 | SD: 1.5x)
NFL DFS Picks Week 17: TE sleepers, values for DraftKings, FanDuel, SuperDraft
Gerald Everett, Chargers at Broncos (DK: $3,500 | FD: $5,300 | SD: 1.55x)
You had me at the "at Broncos" part. Denver has served up the most DK points to the tight end position this season, and Easton Stick will need to go to his veteran TE early and often to keep the Broncos' pass-rush off him. With L.A.'s wide receiver room banged up the entire season, Everett has been a dependable target along the way. This is a high-floor and high-ceiling play.
More solid Week 17 TE values: Juwan Johnson, Saints at Buccaneers (DK: $3,400 | FD: $5,200 | SD: 1.55x); Dawson Knox, Bills vs. Patriots (DK: $3,000 | FD: $4,800 | SD: 1.7x); Cade Otton, Buccaneers vs. Saints (DK: $3,100 | FD: $5,000 | SD: 1.7x)
NFL DFS Picks Week 17: D/ST sleepers, values for DraftKings, FanDuel
Las Vegas Raiders at Colts (DK: $3,000 | FD: $3,900)
This Raiders defense — and franchise in general — looks completely different since Antonio Pierce took over for Josh McDaniels. This squad believes in itself, and the results have been clear. The Raiders' past three games have yielded standard DK D/ST point totals of 12, 25, and 21, respectively, and we don't like Gardner Minshew and his banged-up skill-position players to buck the trend in Week 17.