After knocking off the Ravens last week, the Steelers will continue their gauntlet run of AFC North contests. The schedule-makers had an unusual approach with Pittsburgh this season, as the Steelers didn't play any divisional games over their first nine contests and the Steelers jumped out to 7-2 start. However, Thursday Night Football against the Cleveland Browns marks their second of four straight AFC North battles, so how should daily Fantasy football players view this divisional rivalry matchup when making NFL DFS lineups?
The Browns vs. Steelers over/under opened at 42.5 points, but has dropped to 37, according to the latest Week 12 NFL odds from the SportsLine Consensus, so could this be a matchup to consider taking kickers or defenses as value plays in NFL DFS picks? Before locking in any NFL DFS lineups for Steelers vs. Browns on sites like DraftKings and FanDuel, be sure to check out the NFL DFS lineup advice, strategy and player stacks from SportsLine NFL daily Fantasy expert Jimmie Kaylor.
Kaylor is a NFL and DFS expert for SportsLine, who opened the 2022 NFL season by winning DraftKings' NFL Showdown Thursday Kickoff Millionaire contest. He edged out over 355,000 other entrants in the contest and also has multiple five-figure tournament wins on his DFS resume. Kaylor, who cashed big all season in 2022, has covered the NFL and college football for close to a decade as a member of the Pro Football Writers of America, and his background as a former college and NFL player gives him a unique perspective when building his fantasy lineups and locking in his betting picks on sites like DraftKings and FanDuel.
Kaylor hit on epic NFL DFS picks for SportsLine members throughout the 2022 and 2023 seasons. In 2022, he was all over Travis Kelce's four-touchdown performance against the Raiders on Monday Night Football, Kirk Cousins' 460-yard, four-TD performance on Thanksgiving Day, and T.J. Hockenson's 13 catches for 109 yards and two touchdowns in Week 15. In 2023, he hit on Ja'Marr Chase's massive Week 5 performance (15 catches, 192 yards, three TDs), D.J. Moore's eight catches for 230 yards and three touchdowns in Week 14, and De'Von Anchane's breakout performance (233 total yards, four TD's) in Week 3.
This season, some of Kaylor's top picks in Showdown DFS slates include Packers wide receiver Jayden Reed, (4-138-1, 33-1), Bills quarterback Josh Allen (263-4), and Falcons quarterback Kirk Cousins (509-4). Anyone who followed his picks is way up.
Now, Kaylor has turned his attention to Browns vs. Steelers on Thursday Night Football in Week 12 and locked in his top daily Fantasy football picks. You can only see his picks and analysis at SportsLine.
Top NFL DFS picks for Steelers vs. Browns
One of Kaylor's top NFL DFS picks for Thursday Night Football is Steelers wide receiver George Pickens. The second-round pick in the 2022 NFL Draft has had five different starting quarterbacks over his first two-and-a-half seasons in the league, so he's used to forming chemistry with different quarterbacks on the fly. Currently, Pickens is having some of the most consistent success of his career since Russell Wilson has taken over as the starter.
Wilson, a nine-time Pro Bowl quarterback, is the most accomplished signal caller Pickens has played with by a substantial margin. He's a true pass-first quarterback and Pickens has at least 70 yards in four straight games. That gives him three pairings of consecutive games with at least 70 receiving yards. In comparison, Pickens only had four back-to-back games of 70 yards over his first 40 NFL games. Pickens has two touchdowns with Wilson and is a high-floor option for Thursday Night Football NFL DFS lineups.
Kaylor is also targeting Browns quarterback Jameis Winston. The No. 1 overall pick in the 2015 NFL Draft has never been shy about trying to make a big play in the passing game. That can sometimes hinder his team's success, but for Fantasy football players, a quarterback trying to make a huge play nearly every time he takes a snap is exactly what you hope for.
Winston is QB9 in Fantasy football on a points-per-game basis over his three starts with the Browns and he threw for 395 yards and two touchdowns last week against the Saints. Despite losing 35-14, Winston was QB6 in Fantasy football. Winston has more than 40 attempts in all three starts with Cleveland and with the Steelers allowing the fourth-fewest rushing yards per game this season, the Browns may ask Winston to throw often again on Thursday. See who else Kaylor likes right here.
How to set Steelers vs. Browns NFL DFS lineups, player pool
Kaylor is also targeting another undervalued player who could explode for huge numbers in Browns vs. Steelers. This pick could be the difference between winning your tournaments and cash games or going home with nothing. You can only see who it is, and the rest of Kaylor's NFL DFS picks, at SportsLine.
So who is Jimmie Kaylor including in his optimal NFL DFS lineups for Thursday Night Football, and which under-the-radar NFL DFS picks offer huge value? Visit SportsLine now to see optimal NFL DFS picks, rankings, advice, and stacks, all from an NFL DFS expert who won a prestigious Millionaire Maker tournament, and find out.