NFL Week 16 DFS Contrarian Picks: Matthew Stafford, James Cook & More
NFL Week 16 is here and with two Saturday games scheduled, our Sunday DFS main slate is back to 11 games on DraftKings and 12 on FanDuel. We’ve been diving into the matchups all week long and have just checked in with the most recent NFL DFS Ownership projections so it’s time now to check in with some of our favorite contrarian picks.
Remember, having the right DFS contrarian picks in your lineups is important if you want to take down the big GPP money, but it’s more than just looking at our ownership projections and seeing who is expected to be lower-owned. The matchups need to be on-point as well. In fact, we’re looking for situations that are even more favorable, yet the public has not yet unearthed it.
If you tailed our contrarian picks last week, it was a great DFS day for you. While the rest of the world was leaning on Derrick Henry, I had the Lamar Jackson/Mark Andrews tandem in GPP tournament lineups and that went unbelievably well.
So did our use of Terry McLaurin who found the end zone twice at less than six-percent ownership in most tournaments. The only pick from the video that didn’t hit was David Montgomery and that was because of a knee injury. Nothing you can do about that. At least he didn’t give us a zero.
But that was last week and we’re onto a new one here. Let’s get to our favorite NFL Week 16 DFS contrarian picks:
NFL Week 16 DFS Contrarian Picks
- Matthew Stafford, QB Los Angeles Rams ($5,900 DK; $7,100 FD)
- James Cook, RB Buffalo Bills ($7,000 DK; $8,700 FD)
- Jameson Williams, WR Detroit Lions ($5,500 DK; $6,100 FD)
- Mike Gesicki, TE Cincinnati Bengals ($3,300 DK; $5,000 FD)
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Player News
Dolphins signed No. 13 overall pick DT Kenneth Grant to a four-year contract.
ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler reports that Grant will sign his contract today. The former Michigan defensive tackle is expected to fill a major void left by Christian Wilkins, who left for the Raiders in the 2024 offseason. Grant totaled 32 tackles, three sacks, and seven TFLs in his final season at Michigan and excelled at stopping the run while also generating 27 pressures in his final season, per PFF.
Beat reporter John Hendrix reports that free agent WR Donovan Peoples-Jones is among the 16 players that the Saints will host for their rookie minicamp.
Peoples-Jones last played regular season snaps with the Lions back in 2023, when he caught 13-of-24 targets for 155 yards. He is highly unlikely to return to fantasy relevance at this point but could perhaps sign on as a special teams contributor.
Titans signed fourth-round pick WR Elic Ayomanor to a four-year contract.
Ayomanor will now begin learning behind Calvin Ridley. Although Ayomanor is unlikely to find a meaningful role in year one, dynasty managers should note his status as training camp gets underway this summer. The former Stanford receiver flashed big-play ability in his two college seasons.
Buccaneers signed seventh-round pick WR Tez Johnson to a four-year contract.
Johnson will serve as a rotational deep-threat option for Baker Mayfield. His thin frame (5'10/154) simply does not lend itself to the repeated hits one incurs in a full-time role. Johnson did earn 100-plus targets in his two seasons at Oregon, though. His big-play style make him a better fit in best ball for now, pending any major on-field breakthroughs.
Giants waived DT Casey Rogers.
Rogers was a 2024 undrafted free agent and logged 33 defensive snaps for the Giants in his rookie season. He is credited with zero tackles and/or sacks. He may find his way onto another roster as a practice squad option.
Vikings signed third-round pick WR Tai Felton to a four-year contract.
Felton is quietly in play to challenge Vikings No. 3 WR Jalen Nailor in training camp. Nailor (5'11/190) caught 28-of-42 targets for 414 yards and six touchdowns in his first season as a starter last year, with the latter category buoying his fantasy productivity. Felton (6'1/183), meanwhile, caught 96-of-143 targets for 1,119 yards and nine touchdowns while averaging 2.32 yards per route run in his final college season. Fantasy managers should monitor Felton’s training camp reports this summer, as he could have a matchup-based WR5 role if everything falls into place.