We are here to cover the 2022 DraftKings showdown slate for Thursday Night Football Week 5, Indianapolis @Denver. The Colts travel to Denver, feeling good after beating Kansas City for the win. Although it wasn’t pretty they will have a lot to build on especially with Jonathan Taylor out with injury. Denver has been a huge disappointment (at least in my eyes) this year. Russell Wilson was supposed to bring the juice to the offense and move the ball downfield. Instead, he seems to have a luck luster offense, trouble getting to 3 touchdown games, and they just lost their starting running back Javonte Williams. Vegas predicts this to be a slow, low-scoring game with the O/U set to 42, and Denver is expected to win by 3.5. with this in mind, and understanding that both offenses funnel their touches to a few players, I want to stack as many high usage plays, regardless of ownership and price.
DraftKings TNF Showdown 2022 – Indianapolis @Denver Captain Picks
Melvin Gordon ($13,200 Capt/ $8,800 Flex)
Javonte Williams had a season-ending injury opening the starting role to Melvin. Gordon will have plenty of opportunities to run. He is an efficient runner and last year when he played 50% of the snaps he averaged a little over 12 fantasy points a game. Now expect Gordon to have 12 carries and 3 targets, which should boost his fantasy production. I also love that Gordon is super cheap. Only spending 13.2k at the captain spot opens up opportunities to stack my lineups with other high plays. Melvin did okay in his last outing but fumbled the ball giving up a game-winning touchdown. Gordon has the most fumbles out of any player leading into Week 5, but I doubt Denver will use that to stop him from playing since they need bodies.
Michael Pittman Jr. ($15,900 Capt/ $10,600 Flex)
Unfortunately, the Colts will have to rely on Matt Ryan’s arm to generate offense. Although he isn’t bad, he isn’t mobile and will receive a bunch of pressure from Denver’s front 7. I expect Pittman to be peppered with targets as the Colts try to eke out a win. In his last outing, he tied for first in targets and was limited due to injury. With the emergence of Alec Pierce (week 3 – 5 targets, week 4- 6 targets) we could eventually see less coverage making it easier for Pittman to hit value. I think Pittman is necessary for your lineup to win but I’m only putting him in my captain spot, if I expect the Colts to win as he will be the reason why.
DraftKings TNF Showdown 2022 – Indianapolis @Denver Flex Picks
Russell Wilson ($10,400)
Javonte Williams is out for the season, which is going to unsettle this offense that already needs to find itself. At the moment Wilson has a 36% completion rate and no touchdowns in the redzone. If the Colts gain an early lead, Broncos will be pressured to throw the ball more. At some point, Wilson has to click in this offense with the weapons around him.
Courtland Sutton ($9,400 Flex)
Courtland Sutton has been great, despite the struggles of the offense. The issue is that he has struggled to convert opportunities in to TDs. In this game I see his reception and yardage production continue. However, I don’t envision him finding the endzone, since the Broncos are terrible in the redzone and they are a run-first offense. If you add Sutton to your lineup, ensure you stack him with Wilson. For him to truly payoff at that price, he needs to score a lot of fantasy points, and for that to happen Russell Wilson needs a good game.
Jerry Jeudy ($7,800 Flex)
Williams being out could change how this offense works, and a big week for the receivers. He is likely going to have lower ownership than Sutton, so offers a nice pivot. With the savings you can make elsewhere I don’t mind having both in a lineup.
Nyheim Hines ($6,800 Flex)
Johnathan Taylor was ruled out with an ankle injury giving Hines the starting role. Hines is known for his pass-catching ability and will benefit from the additional carries. This would have been a tough matchup for Taylor, such is the Broncos’ strength in RB defense. Hines is priced as an RB2 though and has PPR upside, so it’s hard to not own him on the slate.
Mike Boone ($6,200 Flex)
Mike Boone entered the league in 2018 and played for the Vikings before signing with the Broncos. He finally has his chance to shine and is line for true starter minutes. If you are feeling contrarian, I would swap Gordon out of my lineups with Mike Boone. Something could happen to Gordon early game or he ends the first half with 2 fumbles. He will be lowered own giving you an advantage in GPPs and providing more salary for better plays.
Alec Pierce ($5,400 Flex)
Pierce is a sneaky play on this slate. Pittman is the clear alpha receiver in the offense, but that brings extra defensive attention. Pierce has shown his ability to break receptions for large yardage totals, and has a great price on the slate. Pittman’s upside is higher, but for the price Pierce is a nice pivot option.
Mo Alie-Cox ($4,800 Flex)
With Taylor out the Colts will need to move the ball more in the air. Alie-Cox was a pretty surprise last week grabbing two touchdowns from 6 catches and 85 yards. I don’t normally chase the points, and I’m not sure about doing it here. The thing is that someone needs to catch balls, and I see more endzone pass attempts without Taylor punching it in.
Phillip Lindsay/ Deon Jackson (Both $400 Flex)
Lindsay and Jackson are near min on this slate, because Jonathan Taylor was priced before being ruled out. As a result, you can get ridiculous savings with the addition of one of these two. The Colts are likely to lead with Hines, but then look to one of these two to shoulder some of the carries. Which one? Honestly, I don’t know- I’m creating lineups with both (not on the same roster).
DraftKings TNF Showdown 2022 – Indianapolis @Denver Kickers and DSTs
Grabbing either team’s defense could pay off. The Colts DST ($3,400) and the Broncos DST ($4,200) are both good at limiting points allowed. The Broncos have a good defensive front which could prompt more sacks and force Matt Ryan into more mistakes. The Colts will be looking to try and force Gordon into some more fumbles too, with their tough front. I’m not as high on the Colts DST though, as they are without their star defender Shaquille Leonard.
Cody McLaughlin ($3,800) and Brandon McManus ($4,000), are viable to use to round out your lineups. Both defenses are effective, so could force some drives to stall out with FG attempts instead of scores. The thin air in Denver helps with the range of both of these, and give you a solid floor for the spend.
So, there are our DraftKings selections for the 2022 Showdown of Indianapolis @Denver! Remember any DFS questions, you can check out our articles here. Or you can find us on Twitter, Facebook, or Instagram.
Image Credit: Ron Chenoy – USA TODAY Sports
