Each week of the NFL season, NFL DFS gamers must survey the landscape to find potential building blocks, also known as the core plays that form the foundation of most lineups. The popular options rise to the top more often than not, but there also are overlooked plays at every position, usually only a couple of names down the rankings list. In this post, we’ll be making our best NFL DFS Week 15 picks on DraftKings and FanDuel.
Stokastic provides a variety of tools for all DFS sports that can help you sort through the large NFL feature slate player pool. These were utilized in coming up with the recommendations in this article and include, and they are far from limited to such offerings as the NFL DFS Top Stacks tool, player projections, the Boom/Bust tool and the Lineup Generator.
All tools are updated for the DraftKings and FanDuel main slates each week. Additionally, multiple tools are also at your disposal for the sub-slates as well as the primetime “island games” which have turned into one of the most popular DFS offerings on DraftKings and FanDuel. If you’re in the market for more DFS tools, Take a look at the Stokastic Discounts and Coupon Code page as well as the Subscription page to see what packages best suit your needs.
Every team is through the bye weeks, but we did have three Saturday games, along with the standard trio of Thursday, Sunday and Monday Night Football, leaving us with a 10-game featured slate.
In the interest of time, particularly since so much went into the Saturday articles (both the full-slate and the prime-time showdown), this article is a little more succinct this week, but you can trust that the same amount of effort went into the analysis.
NFL DFS Week 15 Picks for DraftKings & FanDuel
Best NFL DFS Week 15 Picks and Building Blocks: Quarterbacks
Matthew Stafford (Rams-Commanders): DraftKings ($6,000, 14.9% ownership), FanDuel ($7,200, 14.4% ownership)
Nothing cures a struggling quarterback quite like the Washington pass defense. Nine of the last 10 quarterbacks that have faced Washington have thrown for multiple touchdowns, with eight topping 279 passing yards. Matthew Stafford has not exactly been struggling — he has thrown for 10 touchdowns over the last three games. There is a great chance he puts a trio of tuddies on the board for a fourth-consecutive game, which would be just ridiculous. He can be considered for cash games (H2Hs, 50/50s, 3-mans, etc.) with the only knock being that he does not add anything with his legs.
Brock Purdy (49ers-Cardinals): DraftKings ($6,800, 12.5% ownership), FanDuel ($8,400, 7.2% ownership)
This is so repetitive at this point, but Mr. Irrelevant continues to be on the shortlist for the NFL MVP race this season. DraftKings and FanDuel each inched up Brock Purdy’s salary by just $300 this week. Last week was his second consecutive 300-plus yard game with multiple touchdowns and his third in the last four weeks. San Francisco is favored by nearly two touchdowns heading into Arizona, but Purdy and company should easily post four touchdowns before the team potentially takes it easy for the second half. The Cardinals have the 28th rushing DVOA and the 31st passing DVOA, and while Purdy may not get extensive volume, the team is certainly up for letting him pad his stats in the red zone.
Bucks Deluxe Plays
Josh Allen and Dak Prescott are squaring off in Dallas on Sunday afternoon. Allen has been ridiculous with 10 games of 20-plus fantasy points in his last 12, which has seemingly gone unnoticed a little bit, with the Bills being on so many alternate slates. That isn’t the case on Sunday. The floor is also worth highlighting — Allen has rushed for a touchdown in nine of his last 11 games, with 10 total on the year.
The Cowboys have allowed 300-plus passing yards to two of the last three quarterbacks they have faced, yet it was Geno Smith and Sam Howell who got there, not Jalen Hurts. Allen is on a similar plane as Hurts, and it will prove tough for the Cowboys to bottle up a top-shelf quarterback two weeks in a row.
Prescott has been sublime this season and is just behind Purdy in the MVP race, per OddsShopper. As an aside, check out the leaderboard that has Tyreek Hill up to fourth. Man, I hope his ankle sprain is not too serious.
In a wild twist, Prescott has just six interceptions this season, which makes his league-worst 15 last year easy to forget. He leads the league with 28 touchdowns, which are three more than Allen and Purdy. He has also tallied 269.6 passing yards per game, which are the fifth-most in the league. Five of the last seven field generals who have battled Buffalo ended their games with multiple touchdowns — but the gaudy yardage totals have not followed at all. That should not be an issue for the Dallas Dak Attack.
Best NFL DFS Week 15 Picks and Building Blocks: Running Backs
This is a ridiculous running back slate. There are plenty of potential paths to success, but here are a few quick thoughts for players at various salaries.
Christian McCaffrey gets the dream matchup and with Jordan Mason as the main backup, so expect him to continue to get something in the 15-carry range. Tamper expectations a bit for the matchup, but with his ability to score in the red zone via the run or pass, he is a cash game building block.
Kyren Williams is back to his absurd workload, Now he gets a cherry matchup against the Commanders. In his three games since returning from the injured reserve, he has 345 rushing yards and 15 targets.
Alvin Kamara is the clear top dog in the backfield, particularly with his understudy Jamaal Williams (groin) managing just 59 yards on his last 17 carries. Taysom Hill should be back and that creates another red zone option, but the New York defense can allow multiple rushing touchdowns. Kamara should also see around half a dozen targets as well.
Bijan Robinson has touchdowns in three of his last four games. He is finally getting volume in the rushing game and has averaged half a dozen targets over his last three tilts. The matchup against the Panthers is one of the best in the league. Atlanta is favored, but they may need to play harder on the road.
Rachaad White has seen his price increase but not enough to match his workload. He has six touchdowns in his last six games, which helps dramatically, but he has eight consecutive double-digit fantasy point efforts as well.
Ezekiel Elliott is last but far from least this week as it looks like he will have the backfield all to himself again. In the last matchup that Rhamondre Stevenson missed, Elliott had 22 carries for 68 yards and eight targets for seven catches, 72 yards and a score. The volume should be there again, which should have him with 100 combined yards and a touchdown as a realistic baseline. JaMychal Hasty had two targets and Bailey Zappe had three rushes, but otherwise, everything else was Elliott’s.
Best NFL DFS Week 15 Picks and Building Blocks: Wide Receivers
There are some interesting tidbits covering the more popular wideouts this week:
- Is CeeDee Lamb too expensive?
- How injured is Tyreek Hill, and can he cut on his ankle? If he is out, can Jaylen Waddle carry the load?
- Cooper Kupp and Puka Nacua — will they each be able to top 100 yards in the same game?
- Brandon Aiyuk and Deebo Samuel are amazing, but what happens when they don’t score?
- Does DeAndre Hopkins have revenge in his heart?
- Can rookie Rashee Rice be the WR1 down the stretch for Kansas City?
- Just how many gamers will use Terry McLaurin as the “bring-back” against Stafford?
- Which Zack Wilson will be throwing passes to Garrett Wilson on Sunday?
- Did Jayden Reed have any air yards last week? He got eight receptions and 28 yards on 10 targets. Should we be worried if he doesn’t work his magic and find the end zone via a catch or run?
- Wan’Dale Robinson looks like the punt du jour on DraftKings ($3,700) and isn’t the worst idea on FanDuel ($5,300).
- What about Demario Douglas as a punt on DraftKings ($3,900) and FanDuel ($5,900) — or was he just a flash in the pan?
Premium Members can check out all the other wide receiver options here.
Best NFL DFS Week 15 Picks and Building Blocks: Tight Ends
Travis Kelce (Chiefs-Patriots): DraftKings ($7,600, 10.0%), FanDuel ($7,500, 14.8%)
There are so many superstar receivers playing on days other than Sunday this week that it makes getting to Travis Kelce a breeze. The two worries are, first, that everyone playing Patrick Mahomes in tournaments will also have Kelce and, second, even though the New England defense has been inconsistent and rumblings grow louder by the week that Robert Kraft wants to move on from coach Bill Belichick, we all have that little voice in the back of our minds telling us that this could be a trap if the Patriots sell out to shut down the lumbering tight end.
David Njoku (Browns-Bears): DraftKings ($6,000, 15.4%), FanDuel ($6,200, 5.5%)
David Njoku has been getting insane targets from every one of the myriad quarterbacks who have been under center. Last week was the icing on the cake as he turned eight Joe Flacco targets into six catches for a season-high 91 yards and two scores. He seems to be picking up some steam on DraftKings but getting lost in the sauce on FanDuel for now.
Best NFL DFS Week 15 Picks and Building Blocks: Defense/Special Teams
Cleveland Browns vs. Chicago Bears: DraftKings ($3,500, 8.1%), FanDuel ($4,400, 8.8%)
Do not expect another four turnovers from the Browns. However, they could very well match or exceed the four sacks they posted last week against Justin Fields and the Bears’ woeful offensive line.
New Orleans Saints vs. New York Giants: DraftKings ($3,300, 10.8%), FanDuel ($4,500, 7.3%)
Tommy “Cutlets” DeVito was sacked 26 times in the five games leading into Monday’s matchup. Green Bay not only failed to sack the undrafted rookie, but they even let him run amok for 71 yards on 10 carries, willing the Giants to a 24-22 victory. The Saints should have more poise than that. Expect DeVito to lose some of his swagger this week — even though it is a really fun storyline.
As you get your best NFL DFS Week 15 picks and lineups prepped on DraftKings and FanDuel, Stokastic can help. We have more free DFS content on the NFL DFS homepage, premium DFS software including NFL Sims and the Lineup Generator, and the best live shows and videos from your favorite analysts on our YouTube channel.
You can also talk NFL DFS picks and strategy with the team and the rest of our sharp community on the Stokastic Discord!
