Week 17 DraftKings Daily Fantasy Football Picks, Lineup Tips for Sunday
The second to last week of the 2023 NFL season has arrived, and Sunday's slate is packed full of action and solid fantasy potential.
One of the biggest matchups of Week 17 pits the Miami Dolphins against the Baltimore Ravens in a battle that could end up determining who takes the No. 1 seed in the AFC entering the playoffs.
The New Orleans Saints will meet the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in a big NFC South matchup, and the Kansas City Chiefs will take on the Cincinnati Bengals looking to bounce back from a loss to the Las Vegas Raiders.
With plenty of value on Sunday's slate, let's take a look at the matchups from a position-by-position perspective.
Get the latest DFS values at DraftKings.
Quarterbacks
1 of 5
Kansas City Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes ($7,500) vs. Cincinnati Bengals
Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes hasn't had the best receiving core this season, but after last week's loss to the Las Vegas Raiders, Andy Reid's squad is due to bounce back behind a strong performance from the two-time Super Bowl champion.
Working in Mahomes' favor is the fact that the Cincinnati Bengals have one of the worst passing defenses in the NFL, allowing 256.1 passing yards per game. Additionally, Cincinnati is allowing 23 points per game while the Chiefs are averaging 22.2 points per game.
San Francisco 49ers QB Brock Purdy ($7,000) at Washington Commanders
Like Mahomes, Brock Purdy and the San Francisco 49ers are also hoping to bounce back this weekend with a strong performance against the Washington Commanders.
Purdy has been one of the best quarterbacks in the NFL this season. He ranks second in the NFL with 4,050 passing yards and 29 passing touchdowns.
The 24-year-old will now face a Washington defense that is allowing 261.6 passing yards and 30.2 points per game. With how dynamic the San Francisco offense is, it's hard to imagine the Commanders slowing down the Niners on Sunday.
Los Angeles Rams QB Matthew Stafford ($6,600) at New York Giants
Los Angeles Rams signal-caller Matthew Stafford is one of the hottest quarterbacks in the NFL right now, and with the team still in playoff contention, he should only continue his strong run of play on Sunday against the New York Giants.
Over the last four games, Stafford has thrown for 1,159 yards and 10 touchdowns with no interceptions. L.A. is 3-1 in that span and sits sixth in the NFC playoff picture.
The Rams now face a Giants squad that has been eliminated from playoff contention and doesn't have much to fight for at this point in the season. New York is allowing 229.7 passing yards and 24.7 points per game, which means the L.A. offense figures to remain hot this weekend.
Running Backs
2 of 5
Los Angeles Rams RB Kyren Williams ($8,300) at New York Giants
Rams running back Kyren Williams has been among the best players at the position in 2023. It has been a breakout year for the 23-year-old, who has rushed for 1,057 yards and nine touchdowns in 11 games, in addition to catching 30 passes for 192 yards and three scores.
Williams has rushed for 100-plus yards in four of his last five games and now goes up against a Giants defense that has struggled to defend the run this year, allowing 134.2 yards on the ground per game.
Los Angeles Chargers RB Austin Ekeler ($6,700) at Denver Broncos
Another running back who figures to have a strong performance this weekend is Los Angeles Chargers running back Austin Ekeler.
The Bolts are facing a Broncos defense that is allowing 141.1 rushing yards per game this season, which is the second-worst mark in the NFL. In their first meeting earlier this season, Ekeler rushed for 51 yards and one touchdown and also caught five passes for 49 yards.
Philadelphia Eagles RB D'Andre Swift ($6,500) vs. Arizona Cardinals
Philadelphia Eagles running back D'Andre Swift faces an incredibly favorable matchup against the Arizona Cardinals on Sunday, and there's plenty of reason to like the fourth-year back in this matchup.
The Cardinals are allowing 147 rushing yards and 26.9 points per game this season.
Additionally, Swift is in the midst of a career year, having rushed for 988 yards and five touchdowns in 15 games, in addition to catching 38 passes for 209 yards and one score.
Swift has rushed for 166 yards and one touchdown over his last two games, so he figures to keep the momentum going against Arizona at home.
Wide Receivers
3 of 5
Tampa Bay Buccaneers WR Mike Evans ($7,800) vs. New Orleans Saints
Tampa Bay Buccaneers wide receiver Mike Evans is on a roll, and he's going to have to stay hot on Sunday against the New Orleans Saints if he hopes to help his team put a stranglehold on the NFC South.
Over the last two games, Evans has caught 11 passes for 143 yards and three touchdowns. In the last five games, he has caught 25 passes for 383 yards and six touchdowns.
The Saints are allowing just 194.7 passing yards per game, but Evans caught three passes for 40 yards in their last meeting.
San Francisco 49ers WR Brandon Aiyuk ($7,000) at Washington Commanders
If Purdy is going to have a big game, you can almost guarantee that Brandon Aiyuk will too.
Aiyuk has been Purdy's favorite target this season as he has caught 65 passes for 1,203 yards and six touchdowns in 14 games. He's coming off a tough matchup against a Ravens defense that is solid and still managed to catch six passes for 113 yards.
With how awful the Washington defense has been this season, Aiyuk should feast on Sunday.
Jacksonville Jaguars WR Calvin Ridley ($6,700) vs. Carolina Panthers
The Jacksonville Jaguars are set to face the worst team in the NFL this weekend in the Carolina Panthers, and that should mean some good fortune is coming Calvin Ridley's way despite the loss of quarterback Trevor Lawrence to a shoulder injury.
Ridley has caught 66 passes for 871 yards and seven touchdowns in 15 games this season, and he gets a favorable matchup against a Carolina defense allowing 175.9 passing yards and 25.4 points per game.
.jpg?w=256 "Colts Jaguars Football")
Tight Ends
4 of 5
Kansas City Chiefs TE Travis Kelce ($7,000) vs. Cincinnati Bengals
Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce is probably the best player you could take at the position each week, though he's particularly valuable with Kansas City set to face a Cincinnati defense that has struggled to defend the pass this year.
Kelce has caught 90 passes for 968 yards and five touchdowns in 14 games this season, and he has always played well against the Bengals, catching 19 passes for 225 yards and one touchdown in 4 games against Cincinnati in his career.
Arizona Cardinals TE Trey McBride ($5,900) at Philadelphia Eagles
Cardinals tight end Trey McBride is having an impressive 2023 season, and he figures to play a big role in the team's passing attack on Sunday against the Eagles, especially if Marquise Brown remains sidelined by a heel injury.
McBride has caught 72 passes for 743 yards and two touchdowns in 15 games and caught six passes for 31 yards last week with Brown out of the lineup.
The Eagles are allowed 250.8 passing yards per game, so McBride faces a favorable matchup.
Baltimore Ravens TE Isaiah Likely ($4,600) vs. Miami Dolphins
Baltimore Ravens tight end Isaiah Likely has caught just 26 passes for 338 yards and two touchdowns in 15 games this season, but he has been used more heavily over the last few weeks.
Likely could be a huge factor against the Dolphins on Sunday, especially after he caught three passes for 56 yards in a win over the 49ers last week.
The 23-year-old continues to prove to Lamar Jackson that he's a reliable pass-catcher, and he should see a solid amount of targets against Miami.
Defense/Special Teams
5 of 5
San Francisco 49ers D/ST ($4,200) at Washington Commanders
The 49ers have one of the best defenses in the NFL, and they're going up against a Washington offense that just named Jacoby Brissett its starting quarterback following continued use of Sam Howell throughout the season.
San Francisco is allowing just 222 passing yards, 90.3 rushing yards and 17.8 points per game, so the defense should be able to limit Brissett, who hasn't started at all this season.
Buffalo Bills D/ST ($3,900) vs. New England Patriots
The New England Patriots beat the Buffalo Bills in their last meeting, but the script is bound to be a little different this time around.
The Bills are one of the hottest teams in the NFL and they return home this weekend hoping to clinch a playoff berth. With significant playoff aspirations, Buffalo should be able to hold off Bailey Zappe and an inefficient New England offense.
The Buffalo defense is allowing just 18.4 points per game, but the New England offense doesn't come close to that mark, averaging 14.1 points per game.
Los Angeles Rams D/ST ($3,500) at New York Giants
The Giants made the switch from Tommy DeVito to Tyrod Taylor last week, but that didn't benefit the offense much as Taylor threw for just 133 yards and one touchdown against one interception in a loss to the Eagles.
With an L.A. defense boasting the likes of Aaron Donald, the Giants offense could be in trouble as it continues to have issues moving the ball downfield.
The Rams are allowing just 231.3 passing yards and 105.7 rushing yards per game.
.jpg?w=480 "Colts Jaguars Football")
.png?w=480)
