How crappy is tonight's showdown slate?
The biggest storyline heading in is how much Baker Mayfield will play.
The guy will be in his 3rd day with the Rams, after being claimed on waivers. But Mayfield reportedly has a shot to start if QB John Wolford's neck doesn't feel ready. He should fit in great with a Rams offense that has been wildly disappointing all season.
Mayfield, of course, has been so bad this year that the Panthers -- after trading a draft pick for him -- decided to cut the former #1 NFL Draft pick loose and proceed with P.J. Walker backing Sam Darnold at the most important position.
If pressed into duty, Mayfield would pilot an offense with only Van Jefferson and Ben Skowronek running routes on more than 54% of pass plays. (At least, that's how it played out in Week 13.)
The Rams also sport a flip-floppy backfield. Cam Akers dominated playing time -- and scored twice -- last week. But the usage ran almost exactly opposite the week before, in favor of Kyren Williams.
All of that might not matter a whole lot, because the heavy-hitters all reside in the Raiders offense tonight. Josh Jacobs leads our Week 14 RB rankings after his 3rd straight game over 100 yards. Davante Adams trails just 1 guy in the Week 14 WR rankings. Even Derek Carr sits comfortably in starter range in our Week 14 QB rankings, on the heels of 5 straight games with 2+ TD passes.
So the question as we build our DFS showdown lineups for Thursday night isn't so much who to play as it is: who to play around that Raiders trio.
Let's check the DFS value picks charts below for answers ...