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DraftKings Showdown Thursday Night Football: Denver Broncos vs Kansas City Chiefs

By Jon DeBuchananne

KANSAS CITY, MO - JANUARY 12: Kansas City Chiefs wide receiver Tyreek Hill (10) runs during a 17-yard reception at the end of the third quarter of an AFC Divisional Round playoff game game between the Indianapolis Colts and Kansas City Chiefs on January 12, 2019 at Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City, MO. (Photo by Scott Winters/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
KANSAS CITY, MO - JANUARY 12: Kansas City Chiefs wide receiver Tyreek Hill (10) runs during a 17-yard reception at the end of the third quarter of an AFC Divisional Round playoff game game between the Indianapolis Colts and Kansas City Chiefs on January 12, 2019 at Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City, MO. (Photo by Scott Winters/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) /
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DENVER, CO – OCTOBER 13: Phillip Lindsay #30 of the Denver Broncos smiles as he walks on the field after the Denver Broncos 16-0 win over the Tennessee Titans at Empower Field at Mile High on October 13, 2019 in Denver, Colorado. (Photo by Dustin Bradford/Getty Images)
DENVER, CO – OCTOBER 13: Phillip Lindsay #30 of the Denver Broncos smiles as he walks on the field after the Denver Broncos 16-0 win over the Tennessee Titans at Empower Field at Mile High on October 13, 2019 in Denver, Colorado. (Photo by Dustin Bradford/Getty Images) /

Each week I will be breaking down the DraftKings Showdown Slates on Monday, Thursday and Sunday night football. The DraftKings showdown slate is one of the more unique game styles that you can pick from on DraftKings.

When playing a showdown lineup you will notice that it is far different from a standard DraftKings contest. Instead of selecting a full roster of position players you have a Captain slot paired with five flex positions. The player you select as your Captain will score 1.5x the standard fantasy point value for each statistic but drafting a player as the Captain will cost you more salary than using them in your flex position. The DraftKings Showdown slate will consist of the same scoring as all other contests not counting the Captain bonus.

Some numbers to keep in mind when building lineups for your showdown slates. Last season the winning lineup had a running back or wide receiver in the Captain slot 71% of the time on the largest prize pool showdown contests.

All Captain selections are major flex considerations

DraftKings Showdown Slate GPP Builds: Broncos vs Chiefs
Captain-

Phillip Lindsay – $13,200

With the Chiefs struggles of late and the game opening at Kansas City -3, people should be way more inclined to play some Broncos in at Captain. I will do so starting with the Broncos most voluminous running back in Phillip Lindsay. The Chiefs struggle stopping the run as they allow the third most points to running backs this season according to FantasyPros.com at 21.8 points per game. He is currently the Broncos leading rusher with 84 carries and third on the team in targets with 26. I will have some lineups with BOTH Bronco running backs, as I believe they can have some success on the ground against this Chiefs defense. The best way to defend Patrick Mahomes, is to keep him on the sideline with a potent ground attack.

Tyreek Hill – $16,800

According to Mike Clay of ESPN, the Broncos have allowed the fewest amount of fantasy points to wide receivers this season. While I am concerned for the other pass-catchers in this offense, Hill is not one of them. He is the perfect Showdown Captain, as he has slate breaking potential with just one touch in this offense. While Hill is likely to see a lot of Chris Harris, the Chiefs do an outstanding job of finding ways to get the ball to their play makers. It would be unwise to have zero Captain shares of Hill, but I do think there are other avenues in which you can differentiate.

Courtland Sutton – $11,400

My favorite receiver on this Showdown slate is Courtland Sutton. He currently leads the Broncos in targets (46), receptions (30), yards (477), and touchdowns (3). The game script should also go in his favor, as the Chiefs are likely to be playing with a lead, allowing for Sutton and Flacco to attack this poor pass defense (23rd) for a full game. His price-tag also allows you to be flexible in your builds while jamming in the top talent on the slate. With a total around 50, this Broncos passing attack is more in play than it typically is. It is also a huge benefit to be playing at home instead of on the road in a hostile environment like that of Chiefs receivers.

Other Captain options to differentiate your lineups and give you a chance at the 300k top prize. 

Royce Freeman – $9,000

I already mentioned above my thoughts on the Broncos running game on this slate. If you really want to differentiate your lineup and have a chance at the top prize, Royce Freeman will likely be one of the lower owned Captains on this slate. While Freeman is 18 carries behind Lindsay on the season, he is tied for third in targets as both running backs have been involved in the passing game. All it takes is for a couple of goal-line carries to go to Freeman instead of Lindsay to smash this slate wide-open. I will have some shares of Freeman in my Captain as this Broncos team will need to run the heck out of the football if they want to keep this game close.

Noah Fant – $5,100

The freakish tight end out of Iowa has game breaking ability that we are just waiting for the Broncos to unleash at some point this season. The sixth overall pick that finished in the 96th percentile in his workout metrics is going to feast one week. While I would prefer the Broncos to be playing the Cardinals #FlowChart courtesy of Al Zeidenfeld, this Chiefs defense can allow points to tight ends as they allow the 9th most to the position. HIGH RISK PLAY