Welcome to the DFS Playbook for NFL Week 13!

I don't know about you but I didn't think that Week 12 would ever end. Wednesday afternoon football? Yeesh! No wonder NBC fought so hard to leave the Rockefeller Center treet-lighting in prime-time becuase if that game was all you had to watch at night, we'd all be changing the channel and waiting for the NBA to start up. Unfortunately for those of us playing main slate DFS this week, it's going to drag on again with two games being played Monday and then another one on Tuesday. Stupid COVID-19 ruining all our fun. But I don't say unfortunately because of the Tueday game as much as it is because our main slate is shortened this week and taking a lot of top players off the board for us. Not only do we lose the Panthers and Buccaneers who are on a bye, but we also  lose the Chiefs, Broncos, Steelers, Washington, Bills, 49ers, Cowboys and Ravens. Ten teams! Ten! Welcome to an 11-game slate, the shortest we've had all season. 

The short slate is lack of high-end players is going to make it difficult for many because their safety nets -- players like Patrick Mahomes , Tyreek Hill , Travis Kelce , Josh Allen , Stefon Diggs , Diontae Johnson -- are unavailable. That means research is more paramount than ever. We need to be very careful where we pay up and even more careful where we pay down. Cash games could end up a little more difficult this week because you're going to see more people use players who should be reserved for GPP play and if those players hit, the cash lines could climb. No fear -- just getting you mentally prepared for a battle this week. #FANation has been battling to stay in the green all season long and we won't stop until the season is over and we're all swimming through mountains of gold coins like Scrooge McDuck!

Also, we are monitring two teams very closely. First is Miami. Not only are we watching closely between Ryan Fitzpatrick and Tua Tagovailoa, but we are also watching to see if the Dolphins activate Myles Gaskin and plan to use him this week. Gaskin could become an intriguing option if he is healthy and getting a full complement of carries. The other situation is Tennessee. As you will read in the player descriptions, I have tilted more towards the Titans side than that of the Browns. However, with word that LG Rodger Saffold is listed as questionable with an ankle injury and there is growing fear that he might sit out, I may have to reverse course. Updates will always be tweeted out, but you will want to keep checking back with the Playbook to see the final results. 

UPDATE -- 12/5 @ 6pm ET: The Dolphins have activated Myles Gaskin from IR and he is expected to play in Week 13. You can consider him a decent pay-down in both cash and GPP, though he still ranks below anyone currently in the Playbook below.

UPDATE -- 12/6 @ 10am ET: Ian Rapoport is reporting that Tua Tagovailoa is expected to start today so I have removed Ryan Fitzpatrick from the Playbook -- make the appropriate adjustments.

Before we get to the actual players in the Playbook, a few reminders for those who may be joining us late, here is your three-step process to lead you up to going through your favorite Playbook plays:

Step 1: Check out the DFS Position Coaches

QB Coach -- James "Babyface" Grande (@The_Real_Grande)

RB Coach -- Justin Vreeland (@JustinVreeland)

WR Coach -- Colby Conway (@colbyrconway)

TE Coach -- Andrew Cooper (@CoopAFiasco)

D/ST Coach -- Dan Malin (@RealDANlanta)

Step 2: Check out the rest of the relevant DFS content

In addition to the positional coaching pieces, you also have things like the DFS Watch List, where I provide you with a list of players I am looking at throughout the week. We have the NFL DFS Podcast with Jon Impemba (@jimpemba777), who also does the Contrarian Corner video and special guest Babyface Grande this week, you can check out the DFS Bargains from Jen Piacenti (@jenpiacenti). Our Master of Tools, Matt Selz (@theselzman), supplies you data junkies with the Weekly Match-Up Report and everyone should also be reading the Weekly Game Previews and WR/CB Match-Up Report from Ryan Hallam (@fightingchance).

Step 3: Make your own list of players

It's real easy to just sit and wait for the Playbook, but as you are doing your research throughout the week, it is important to make notes and list the players who interest you the most. Maybe they end up in the Playbook and maybe they don't. If they're there, then great, it should mean we are honing in on the same things that make him a strong play. If not, maybe you're onto something else that someone overlooked. We aren't perfect and if you uncover something different, maybe you're right. I would be careful of routine groupthink and hype from beat writers, but often times someone will tell me something they saw about their local team that I missed and I am always looking to investigate more if its there. If you do, then say something in the chat. Talk it out and see what the rest of the #FAmily thinks.That's why the chat is there, isn't it?

With those three steps complete and discussions are in progress, you are ready to look at the Playbook players, make comparisons and finalize your list for lineups, so let's get to it.

Stacks

{{stack.team.name}} {{player.name}}
DraftKings {{player.fantasy.price.value[8]}}-
Fanduel {{player.fantasy.price.value[6]}}-