This article is part of our DFS NFL series.
A Thursday Night Football matchup between the Texans and Jets looked like a playoff preview at the beginning of the season. The Texans have held up their part by going 6-2, but the Jets are 2-6, their playoff hopes dashed. Let's dive into the DFS options for the single-game contests on DraftKings and FanDuel.
Quarterback
After a banner rookie season, C.J. Stroud ($10,000 DK, $15,000 FD) has dealt with injuries to his best wide receivers this year. That has contributed to him throwing no more than one touchdown pass in five of his eight games. He has also thrown for at least 300 yards just twice. As disappointing as the Jets have been this season, they have still allowed the second-fewest passing yards per game in the league.
Aaron Rodgers ($9,000 DK, $13,000 FD) has been more productive than Stroud in terms of touchdowns, throwing for at least two in five of his eight games. He has much better weapons than Stroud, too, now that Davante Adams is in the fold. The downside for Rodgers in this game is that the Texans have allowed the third-fewest passing yards per game in the league. Still, with better weapons at his disposal, Rodgers might be the better option between these quarterbacks.
Running Back
Because they have so many injuries at wide receiver, the Texans have relied heavily on Joe Mixon ($11,000 DK, $16,500 FD). He has been up to the task, rushing for at least 102 yards and a touchdown in each of the four full games he has played. He was given at least 25 carries in three of those games. With no shortage of work likely coming his way in this matchup, lineups can be built around him.
Things haven't been as great for Breece Hall ($10,400 DK, $14,500 FD), who has just one game with at least 100 rushing yards. In fact, he has finished with fewer than 55 rushing yards in a game five times. The silver lining is that he has caught 33 passes for 316 yards and a touchdown this season. The problem in this matchup is the Texans have allowed the fourth-fewest FanDuel points per game and the fourth-fewest DraftKings points per game to running backs.
Braelon Allen ($4,400 DK, $9,500 FD) had 12 carries for 32 yards and a touchdown last week against the Patriots, but that was an outlier performance for him. Prior to that, he had received a total of 18 carries over his last four games.
Wide Receiver/Tight End
Nico Collins (hamstring) is still on injured reserve and now the Texans will be without Stefon Diggs (knee) the rest of the season. Their top receiving option is Tank Dell ($9,200 DK, $12,000 FD), who only has a 14.1 percent target share this season. He has shown big upside, including three games last season in which he had at least 114 receiving yards. This isn't an ideal matchup for him, but volume alone could make him valuable in DFS.
As far as the next best receivers behind Dell, Xavier Hutchinson ($4,000 DK, $10,000 FD), Robert Woods ($3,000 DK, $7,000 FD) and John Metchie III ($2,800 DK, $7,500 FD) will battle for targets. While Woods is the more established player, he has received just seven targets this season. The best receiving option behind Dell might be tight end Dalton Schultz ($7,000 DK, $8,000 FD), who had four receptions for 52 yards last week. He has been targeted at least five times in five of the last six games.
The Jets have wasted no time with Davante Adams ($9,800 DK, $10,500 FD), giving him 15 targets his first two games with the team. He turned them into seven receptions for 84 yards. While he is still looking for his first touchdown with the team, he has been targeted three times inside the red zone. His arrival has not proven to be a detriment to Garrett Wilson ($9,600 DK, $13,500 FD), who has 10 receptions for 174 yards on 17 targets over the last two games. Allen Lazard ($5,800 DK, $8,000 FD) is listed as week-to-week with a chest injury, but even if he does play, there isn't another wide receiver outside of Adams and Wilson to be excited about on the Jets. Tight end Tyler Conklin ($5,600 DK, $7,500 FD) has caught a touchdown pass in back-to-back games, but he posted a total of 49 receiving yards during that span. The Texans have allowed the fewest receptions in the league to tight ends.
Kicker
The Jets placed Greg Zuerlein (knee) on injured reserve. They recently signed Spencer Shrader and Riley Patterson to their practice squad, so one of them will take over the kicking duties for this game. The Texans have a much better situation at kicker with Ka'imi Fairbairn ($5,200 DK, $9,000 FD) having converted 19 of his 21 attempts this season. He is 9-for-10 on kicks of at least 50 yards.
Defense/Special Teams
As mentioned, the Jets ($3,400 DK, $8,500 FD) and Texans ($4,600 DK, $8,500 FD) have both been good at defending the pass this season. Both teams also rank inside the top-10 in the league in sacks. One big difference is that the Texans have forced 12 total turnovers this season, compared to just six turnovers for the Jets.
