FanDuel lineup tips and strategies, Week 13: Thanksgiving day lineups

As we start the time-honored tradition of overindulging on tryptophan and poorly explaining our career paths to extended family, we’d be remiss to dismiss today’s slate of games as irrelevant to our FanDuel experiments. We’ll highlight four bargain players who could provide some delicious dividends.

QB - Mark Sanchez, $7,600
Mark Sanchez is successful solely through volume, the fantasy equivalent of Goldeneye’s RCP90; he holds down the trigger, rarely aims, and has a difficult time distinguishing between friend and foe. He has thrown for over 300 yards in each of his three starts, adding seven touchdowns. He has also thrown for four picks, with a completion rate averaging out at 55.59%. Matching up against the Cowboys, fresh off allowing Eli Manning to toss for 338 yards and three touchdowns , should offer Sanchez a good chance at continuing his 300-yard streak. Sanchez will throw at least a pick -- probably one strip-sack too -- but the offense efficiency and floor of 300 yards elevates him to a mid-tier QB1 at a very affordable salary.

RB - Joique Bell, $6,300

Beyond your Montee Ball and your Adrian Peterson, Joique Bell has to land as one of the more frustrating fantasy football plays this year. Electric and bruising last year, Bell has seen his receiving production chipped away by Reggie Bush and Theo Riddick, occasionally also ceding rush attempts to the two smaller, quicker backs. Yet, his past three weeks hint at a promising usage. He had 12 touches against the Dolphins, 17 against the Cardinals, and 20 against the Patriots. His production against these three stifling rush defenses was mediocre at best, but the usage numbers and arrival of a mediocre Chicago defense provide a decent chance for RB2 production. I’ll be starting him in my year-long league, and I think he could be a good play as the cheaper RB for daily games.

WR - Jordan Matthews, $7,600

Priced $600 cheaper than his teammate, Jeremy Maclin, Jordan Matthews is still enjoying a cheaper price point for consistently high production. With Sanchez under center, Matthews has secured at least eight catches and 77 yards in each game, scoring three touchdowns and going over 100 yards in two of the three. He faces a Dallas secondary freshly toasted by the demigod Odell Beckham, Jr; the Cowboys also allow the 12th-most points to WRs over the last three weeks, per FFToday. Fire him up as a nice stacking duo with Sanchez, and hope that the RCP90 eventually finds his target.

K - Phil Dawson, $5,000

With the tight ends and defenses all problematic plays today -- if you’re comfortable dropping $5,800 to get four points out of Martellus Bennett, good luck -- I’d like to focus on freeing up some extra cash with a kicker play. Phil Dawson has been a consistent, if less-than-glamorous, option at kicker, averaging 8.7 points over the course of the season. He’s gone over 10 points in two of his last three, and he faces a Seahawks defense that will assuredly force the 49ers offense to struggle in the red zone. Picking Dawson frees up $300 to $400 to spend on the rest of your squad, investing little for a player with a high floor and possible high ceiling.

Good luck today with all your fantasy exploits. Remember, the only reason you went to college is to pontificate during Thanksgiving dinner today. Put on some “Lose Yourself”, reread the Wikipedia summary of the book you kind of finished, and get ready to let Uncle Peter know exactly why his opinion is terrible.