We’d be lying to you if we said this wasn’t a weird slate. It is. But you know what? It’s still football, baby. Fantasy football will soon be over. And, after the NFL playoffs, we’ll be back to a long hiatus with no games. So we need to cherish every bit of fantasy we have left. And DFS is the best way to do that. So let’s jump into this mini-slate and figure out the best way to operate. 

 

 

 

NFL DFS TE Top Tier Picks For Christmas

Jake Ferguson, Dallas Cowboys - DraftKings: $4,300 | FanDuel: $6,200

We really don’t trust Travis Kelce this week (more on that below). So the only real option for us in the elite range is Jake Ferguson. He hasn’t been as great since CeeDee Lamb's return, but he’s still clearly the third fiddle on the team with a chance to score in any given week.

The Commanders have struggled in pass coverage at times. And that’s especially true against the tight end, where they quietly rank dead last in DVOA per FTN Fantasy. Just go back and watch Bobby Wagner trying to cover Evan Engram when they matched up. So Ferguson is the clear best option for us this week. 

 

 


 

NFL DFS TE Mid-Tier Picks For NFL Christmas

T.J. Hockenson, Minnesota Vikings - DraftKings: $3,300 | FanDuel: $5,100

Everyone who follows my stuff knows that Evan Engram is my guy. And folks are probably going to gravitate towards him in this range. But he really has not been anywhere close to a full-time player this year (more on that below). 

With T.J. Hockenson, we first need to see if he’s actually going to play, as he’s been listed as a non-participant for each practice so far. However, if he does play, we’re willing to use this contrarian play in certain spots. In the limited exposure we have to Max Brosmer, Hockenson is actually his leading receiver in receptions, yards, and first downs. I mean, it’s 7 catches for 61 yards and 3 first downs, so nothing crazy, but he has caught all 7 of his targets. Again, this slate is crazy, so we need to make some things happen. If Hockenson is out, you can use Josh Oliver instead if you please. 

 

 

 

NFL DFS TE Value Picks For NFL Christmas

Shane Zylstra, Detroit Lions - DraftKings: $2,600 | FanDuel: $4,600

Anthony Firkser has been leading this team in routes run for the tight ends since Sam LaPorta has been out. But that changed last week when Shane Zylsta returned. Zylsta played 49 snaps and ran 40 routes, while Firkser played only 26 snaps and ran 21 routes. Folks are going to look at the production for Firkser last week, which was slightly better than Zylstra's. But we’ll lean into the better usage for Zylstra - and he’s cheaper on both platforms. 

Ben Sinnott, Washington Commanders - DraftKings: $2,600 | FanDuel: $4,800

Ben Sinnott has not been the “Trey McBride who emerges behind Zach Ertz to go crazy”. That much is clear. But he has been leading the tight end group in routes run. And this is his first truly good matchup against Dallas here after facing the Giants and Eagles. Maybe Josh Johnson will just lock in on him, and we can see what he’s got. No one else will likely be doing this, so it’s a big contrarian.  We like Zylsta better on FanDuel because he’s cheaper, but Sinnott is an option on DK. 

 

 

 

NFL DFS TE Fades For Christmas

Travis Kelce, Kansas City Chiefs - DraftKings: $4,500 | FanDuel: $5,400

If Travis Kelce wasn’t already checked out with Gardner Minshew, he certainly looked it when Chris Oladukon came in. Between the two of them, he only caught one pass on the day, a six-yard pass from Oladokun in the 2nd. I’m sure plenty of people are going to try to see if there is any Kelce magic left on Christmas Day, but we’re not super interested. 

Evan Engram, Denver Broncos - DraftKings: $3,000 | FanDuel: $5,000

If T.J. Hockenson is out, then we’ll just pivot to Engram in most cases. But we really don’t love his usage this year. He only has three games where he played over 50% of the snaps, and the most he's played all year is 56%. Just don’t love that kind of upside. They have used him more in good tight end matchups, but this isn’t a good tight end matchup - and this game could get out of hand quickly.