Week 17 NFL DFS: Best Value Plays for DraftKings and FanDuel

We all love to find the best value for what we pay. Whether it’s the clearance rack at your local department store, the “used” sticker on a former library book, or the five-dollar movie bin at the combination gas station/chain pizza restaurant, getting the most bang for your buck is crucial. Not maximizing your value-cost ratio — in this economy — is just silly.

When opening up your virtual wallet, it’s also important to find quality players that are undervalued by the NFL DFS markets. This column will run down the players bringing you the most impact while also not breaking your bankroll, using 4for4.com’s Player Pricing Tool as the basis for our analysis. We’ll look at players for both DraftKings and FanDuel and find fantasy starters with slashed sale prices.

Here are a few discounted players you should consider for your DFS lineups in Week 17.

Quarterback

Trey Lance, San Francisco 49ers vs. Houston Texans
DraftKings: $4800 | FanDuel: $6400

I don’t need to explain to you why a quarterback who runs is very valuable in fantasy football — we all know those are cheap bonus points that a lot of people don’t factor in, and quarterback rushing is one of the most predictable stats from game to game. So, when a rushing quarterback gets a chance to start and costs a salary at the level San Francisco 49ers passer Trey Lance does this week, we DFS folks sit up and pay attention. In his lone NFL start so far, the first-round rookie Lance passed for just 192 yards and an interception, yet he still ended up with 14.6 fantasy points. How? Lance took off for 16 carries for 89 rushing yards. On his 116 snaps so far, Lance has rushed 30 times — including at least 20 designed rushes. The Niners are going to get him going in Week 17 against a Houston Texans defense that is allowing slightly more QB rushing points than the average unit in 2021 too. Fire up Lance in cash lineups everywhere.

Other Options: Dak Prescott, Dallas vs. Arizona (DK: $6700, FD: $7400); Sam Ehlinger, Indianapolis vs. Las Vegas (DK: $4500, FD: $6000); Mac Jones, New England vs. Jacksonville (DK: $5300, FD: $6800).

Running Back

Chase Edmonds, Arizona Cardinals at Dallas Cowboys
DraftKings: $5700 | FanDuel: $6500

The Arizona Cardinals seem perfectly comfortable rolling out versatile running back Chase Edmonds as an every-down feature, as they showed in Week 16 when he consumed 92% of their offensive snaps. With power complement James Conner’s heel injury still ailing as we head into Week 17, Edmonds looks likely to take the whole backfield over once more. Even though the Dallas Cowboys present a tough defense to compete with, if Edmonds sees most or all of the work, his value at these salaries this week make him easily the top DFS value at his position for the penultimate game of the season.

Other Options: Devin Singletary, Buffalo vs. Atlanta (DK: $5400, FD: $6000); Ronald Jones II, Tampa Bay at Jets (DK: $6300, FD: $7000); Josh Jacobs, Las Vegas at Indianapolis (DK: $6200, FD: $6600).

Wide Receiver

Josh Palmer, Los Angeles Chargers vs. Denver Broncos
DraftKings: $3600 | FanDuel: $5200

The Los Angeles Chargers have seen all three of their top receivers forced onto the COVID-IR over the last three weeks, allowing team WR4 Josh Palmer to steal some extra routes and targets in the offense. When called upon for spot starts in the late season here, Palmer has dazzled with 10 catches on 13 targets, which he has turned into 109 receiving yards and two touchdowns. The potential for Palmer to go off again is well worth the low, low price his presence in your DFS lineup demands in the salary column. There’s a chance Mike Williams returns from the illness list, and Jalen Guyton has already come back, but — either way — Palmer’s prowess may have earned him more run in a tough divisional matchup for the Bolts.

Other Options: Brandin Cooks, Houston at San Francisco (DK: $6000, FD: $6500); Amon-Ra St. Brown, Detroit at Seattle (DK: $6000, FD: $6900); Braxton Berrios, Jets vs. Tampa Bay (DK: $3700, FD: $5300).

Tight End

Gerald Everett, Seattle Seahawks vs. Detroit Lions
DraftKings: $4100 | FanDuel: $5200

After a fairly mediocre early-season stretch, Seattle Seahawks tight end Gerald Everett has finally hit his stride in the waning weeks of 2021. In each of the last two games, Everett has caught four passes for 60 or more receiving yards. Over his last five games, he has scored a touchdown in every other game — totaling three during that span of time. This week, Everett’s salary is still incredibly low in DFS despite his recent run of success and a pending matchup with the Detroit Lions — a defense allowing the fifth-most schedule-adjusted points to tight ends. Maybe you won’t feel comfortable relying on Everett in your lineup this week, but he’s one of the best cheap options at his position for daily fantasy sports in Week 17.

Other Options: Dallas Goedert, Philadelphia at Washington (DK: $5100, FD: $5800); Cole Kmet, Chicago vs. Giants (DK: $3400, FD: $5000); Hunter Henry, New England vs. Jacksonville (DK: $4200, FD: $5700).