3 DFS Value Plays: Bills Vs. Patriots – MNF 12-28-2020

• Monday Night Football kicks off at 8:15 p.m. ET when the Buffalo Bills visit the New England Patriots in an AFC East competition.
• MNF DFS value plays range from underrated receivers to a running back coming back from a long break.

FOXBOROUGH, Mass. – After a Week 16 of NFL that saw plenty of upsets and action, the focus turns to Monday Night Football and the matchup between the Buffalo Bills and the home team New England Patriots.

The script has been flipped compared to the years’ past, as it is Buffalo fighting for playoff seeding while the Patriots have nothing left to fight for.

Still, this doesn’t remove the fact that Monday Night Football offers daily fantasy lineups to win some cash. Using DraftKings’ $1.5M Monday Night Showdown, one lucky winner could bring home $500,000 for finishing first.

Sometimes luck is needed to win the top prize and while everyone will focus on a few athletes, finding that value play in DFS is crucial for separating one’s self from the masses.

Cole Beasley – $10,000

Cole Beasley may be the third most expensive player off the board, but the value is still present. The nine-year veteran does only have four touchdowns on the year, but it is his ability to convert on targets that makes him valuable.

Sitting with 48 targets over the last five games, Beasley has seen at least double-digits in this department in four of those games. With an average catch rate of 72.9%, expect Beasley to take in roughly 7 catches – his average over the last five games – despite legal sportsbooks listing his over-under at 4.5 receptions.

Beasley is only projected to finish with 50.5 yards, but the Buffalo wideout has broken this barrier in just over half of all games this season (8/15).

Sony Michel – $7,000

Getting back into the swing of things, Sony Michel isn’t a must-start but one to keep track of. Having nine games off in between Week 3 and Week 13, Michel saw his highest percentage of offensive snaps last week.

Granted, betting on a New England running back is always a toss-up, but seeing that Michel has recorded at least 10 carries in two of his three games back, one can guess he will continue this trend.

Michel also has shown the ability to beat the Bills’ defense, as his three games against Buffalo have him averaged at 18.7 carries for 91.7 yards (in three games). Michel accomplished these averages with no more than 44% of snaps each game – just in line with his 42% last week against the Miami Dolphins.

Damiere Byrd – $4,000

As a true value play, Damiere Byrd is one of the cheapest options available for Monday Night Football DFS lineups. Byrd costs only $4,000 to roster and has seen at least three catches in six of his last seven games played.

With a snap count being below 85% only twice in those games, it is clear that any moment can be Byrd’s.

The fifth-year player is only projected to record 3.5 catches for MNF but sports bettors have leaned heavily on the over, pushing the odds to -145 and showing their belief in the receiver as well.

Something that could hurt this play is the fact that Byrd only has one touchdown on the year; however, when these two teams played in Week 8, Byrd was on the field for 100% of snaps.

News tags: Buffalo Bills | Cole Beasley | Damiere Byrd | DFS | Fantasy Football | New England Patriots | NFL | Sony Michel