FanDuel NFL DFS Picks: Thanksgiving Main Slate

The three-game Thanksgiving NFL DFS slate is one of my favorite DFS slates of the year, and given the teams involved this season, the 2025 edition should be a really fun day of football.

Using our NFL DFS projections as a guide, let's take a look at some of the best daily fantasy football plays at each position -- accounting for salary -- on the Thanksgiving FanDuel main slate.

Quarterbacks

Patrick Mahomes, Chiefs

FanDuel Salary: $8,400
Matchup: at Cowboys

All three games are plenty stackable, but my favorite game of the bunch for DFS is the Kansas City Chiefs visiting the Dallas Cowboys -- an indoors matchup with a 52.5-point total and 3.0-point spread. Patrick Mahomes is averaging 22.7 FanDuel points per game for the season, and he can torch a Dallas defense that is 29th overall and 28th versus the pass, per our schedule-adjusted metrics. The Cowboys are allowing 24.8 FanDuel points per game to QBs -- 3.5 more than any other team. Add in Mahomes rushing ability, and the KC signal-caller checks every box.

Jordan Love, Packers

FanDuel Salary: $7,300
Matchup: at Lions

After a great start to the year, Jordan Love has topped 18.0 FanDuel points just once across his previous seven games. But he's at a friendly salary, and the Green Bay Packers-Detroit Lions clash is indoors with a 49.5-point total and 2.5-point spread, giving it shootout potential. The Lions' defense has permitted the eighth-most FanDuel points per game to quarterbacks (19.8) and just got cooked by a short-handed New York Giants offense.

Running Backs

Jahmyr Gibbs, Lions

FanDuel Salary: $9,500
Matchup: vs. Packers

With Jahmyr Gibbs going for at least 38.0 FanDuel points in three of his last five games, including a 52.9-point eruption last week, he is going to attract a lot of attention on this slate. While Gibbs clearly has slate-winning upside, I'll mostly stay away for three reasons -- salary, how popular I think he'll be and the matchup. Green Bay is strong on D and has surrendered the 10th-fewest FanDuel points per game to RBs (17.1). They held Gibbs to 19 rushing yards in Week 1, although he caught 10 passes to avoid a total dud. We project Gibbs as the slate's RB1 (16.8 FanDuel points), but I'm planning to be light on him.

Derrick Henry, Ravens

FanDuel Salary: $8,400
Matchup: vs. Bengals

Derrick Henry's lack of pass-game involvement is always a worry. However, this is a red-carpet matchup for him against the Cincinnati Bengals. Cincy ranks last in overall defense as well as next to last in run defense. They're permitting 29.5 FanDuel points per game to RBs -- 3.0 more than anyone else. Due to his lack of receiving work, Henry needs TD luck to have a big fantasy day. Fortunately, he's got -230 odds to score a touchdown and +250 to score twice.

Chase Brown, Bengals

FanDuel Salary: $7,200
Matchup: at Ravens

Despite scoring only three touchdowns this year and not having Joe Burrow for a lot of the season, Chase Brown is averaging 12.2 FanDuel points per game this season. He's seen a whopping 26 targets over the last three games, something that could come in handy with the Bengals a 7.0-point underdog. Joe Burrow coming back gives the entire offense a boost. Brown's rushing plus receiving yards prop is an appealing 82.5, and the salary is easy to like.

Wide Receivers

Rashee Rice, Chiefs

FanDuel Salary: $8,600
Matchup: at Cowboys

The best stacking partner for Mahomes is Rashee Rice, and he's my favorite WR play on what is a loaded receiver slate. Since coming off suspension, Rice has seen 47 targets over five games. Facing a leaky Dallas pass defense, Rice could go off, and he has -135 anytime touchdown odds, the shortest on KC. The only negative with Rice is that he'll surely be chalky. I also like Xavier Worthy ($5,700) as a salary saver who fits either alongside Rice in a double-stack or instead of Rice.

CeeDee Lamb, Cowboys

FanDuel Salary: $8,700
Matchup: vs. Chiefs

On the Dallas side of my favorite game to stack, CeeDee Lamb can break the slate in spite of a difficult matchup against a good Chiefs pass defense. George Pickens is trending up, but Lamb still owns a sizable advantage in both air yards share (45.1% to 29.6%) and target share (31.4 to 25.7%). Lamb also has an edge in anytime TD odds this week -- +130 for Lamb and +155 for Pickens.

Zay Flowers, Ravens

FanDuel Salary: $7,100
Matchup: vs. Bengals

In the two games with Lamar Jackson ($8,700) back in the fold, Zay Flowers has been the clear top target for the Ravens, spearheading Baltimore in air yards share (27.1%) and target share (24.4%). He has the highest receiving yards prop (65.5) on the Ravens by a significant margin; Mark Andrews ($5,600) is second at 37.5. Flowers is a superb one-off play against a bad Bengals defense, and he's the clear number-one stacking partner for Lamar if you're plugging in Lamar at QB.

Christian Watson, Packers

FanDuel Salary: $6,000
Matchup: at Lions

For exposure to the Packers, Christian Watson and Romeo Doubs ($5,800) both stand out. You can make a case for either. I side with Watson, who has paced Green Bay's wideouts in snaps in three straight games. In that three-game span, Watson has gobbled up a 40.3% air yards share. No other Packers player is above 28.6%. That big-play opportunity is a big feather in Watson's DFS cap, especially on a smaller slate.

Tight Ends

Travis Kelce, Chiefs

FanDuel Salary: $6,000
Matchup: at Cowboys

Travis Kelce looks like the best TE play on the slate. Playing in what figures to be a great DFS game environment, Kelce's receiving yards prop is a solid 58.5 yards, and he's +120 to find the end zone. Kelce had scored at least 10.9 FanDuel points in three consecutive games prior to a date with the Indianapolis Colts a week ago, and while he finished with a meh 6.4 FanDuel points in that one, he had a TD called back so it could've been a bigger day.

Isaiah Likely, Ravens

FanDuel Salary: $4,800
Matchup: vs. Bengals

I'm leaning toward punting at tight end, which leads me to Isaiah Likely. This is mostly a shot in the dark as Likely's receiving yards prop is only 24.5 yards. With that said, Likely has played at least 50% of the snaps in seven straight games, and the Ravens might score a boatload of points on the Bengals.

Mike Gesicki, Bengals

FanDuel Salary: $4,000
Matchup: at Ravens

Speaking of a shot in the dark, Mike Gesicki is on my radar. Gesicki's receiving yards prop is 33.5, which catches my eye for a minimum-salaried player. He played a decent 43% of the snaps last week in his first game back. Gesicki can be a value bring-back piece to Ravens stacks or a low-salary one-off.

Defenses

Detroit Lions

FanDuel Salary: $4,400
Matchup: vs. Packers

I'll be honest: I don't like any of the D/STs on this slate, so I'll just do whatever fits best with the rest of my lineup, which likely means saving salary on D/ST. If salary wasn't an issue, I think I could talk myself into Detroit. They've registered multiple sacks in all but three games and have totaled six picks over the last seven contests. But again, I'm definitely not prioritizing a D/ST.

Dallas Cowboys

FanDuel Salary: $3,500
Matchup: at Cowboys

I'm probably going to be punting at the position, so I'll likely be rostering either Dallas or Cincinnati ($3,400). Neither defense is good, but all it takes is one big play to have a serviceable fantasy day. Mahomes has been sacked at least three times in four straight games and has thrown five picks in that time.

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The above author is a FanDuel employee and is not eligible to compete in public daily fantasy contests or place sports betting wagers on FanDuel. The advice provided by the author does not necessarily represent the views of FanDuel. Taking the author's advice will not guarantee a successful outcome. You should use your own judgment when participating in daily fantasy contests or placing sports wagers.