NFL Week 4 DraftKings Main Slate: Stacks, Salaries and Stats to Know
The short version
- The Week 4 DraftKings main slate covers 12 teams, with four games offering the strongest projected scoring and two lower-total games flagged as potential swing factors.
- An optimized lineup scored 239.80 points to win last week's MiliMaker on a Jets-Lions stack; Jameson Williams' touchdown kept it from perfect optimization.
- Recommended combos include Lawrence with Tuten and Washington, Burrow with Chase, Cousins with Bowers, Cook with the Bills defense, and Stroud with Collins and Schultz.
- Buffalo leads the NFL at 33.7 points per game; New England is tied with Miami for the fewest at 12.0.
- The 49ers will be without Nick Bosa, whose absence has dropped their pressure rate from roughly 34% to 17%.
Twelve teams fill the NFL Week 4 DraftKings main slate, headlined by stacking options in Jaguars-Bengals, Patriots-Bills, Chiefs-Raiders and Cowboys-Texans.
The DraftKings main slate for NFL Week 4 includes 12 teams, and four of those matchups project the kind of high-scoring conditions that typically decide large tournament fields. Two more games sit on modest totals yet could reshape results, and one defense merits particular attention this week.
Last week, an optimized lineup that narrowly missed perfection won the MiliMaker with 239.80 points. The roster centered on the New York Jets against the Detroit Lions: quarterback Geno Smith paired with wide receiver Garrett Wilson and tight end Kenyon Sadiq, with Detroit running back Jahmyr Gibbs and wide receiver Jameson Williams from the other side. Williams' touchdown was the lone obstacle to a perfect optimization.
Cincinnati hosts Jacksonville as a 2.5-point favorite in a 51.5-point game that anchors the stack recommendations. One build combines Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence ($5,900) with running back Bhayshul Tuten ($5,600) and either wide receiver Parker Washington ($6,500) or Bengals wideout Ja'Marr Chase ($8,100), leaving $4,780 for the other five roster spots. A second goes through Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow ($6,800) with Chase ($8,100) or Jakobi Meyers ($5,000) plus Washington ($6,500), budgeting $4,720 apiece for the final five positions.
Cincinnati gave up 127 rushing yards to Pittsburgh's Jaylen Warren last week at 7.5 yards per attempt, and its defense misses tackles on 40% of outside runs. Tuten has forced 21 missed tackles, 15 on runs toward the edge. Washington holds a 30.3% target share and 48.5% air yards share, and Meyers paced his team last week with eight targets, seven catches and 64 yards. Per Sharp Football Analysis, Jacksonville has allowed explosive pass plays at a 7.7% clip, tied for third most.
Buffalo is a 7-point home favorite over New England in the game carrying the second-highest projected total, 48.5. The Patriots will be without cornerback Christian Gonzalez and defensive tackle Christian Barmore, and their 12.0 points per game matches Miami for the fewest in the league. Buffalo leads the NFL at 33.7. Pairing Bills running back James Cook ($7,400) with the Buffalo defense ($3,300) leaves $5,614 for each of the other seven spots.
Kansas City visits Las Vegas as a 5.5-point favorite in a 47.5-point game. One construction pairs Raiders quarterback Kirk Cousins ($5,100) with tight end Brock Bowers ($6,900); another uses running back Kenneth Walker ($8,200) with tight end Travis Kelce ($5,000) at flex, leaving $4,960 per spot for the final five positions. Cousins has thrown three touchdown passes in each of his past three games. Las Vegas gives up the third-most fantasy points to tight ends (14.4 per game) and has allowed five touchdowns to the position in three games, while Kansas City permits a league-low 11.1 fantasy points to quarterbacks, conceding two touchdowns and three interceptions.
Houston meets Dallas as a 2.5-point favorite in another 47.5-point game. Newly acquired Cowboys cornerback Joey Porter and Texans wide receiver Nico Collins are each expected to play. Houston's defense shares the league lead with Jacksonville at a 7.7% explosive pass-play rate allowed. The stack ties quarterback C.J. Stroud ($5,700), Collins ($7,200) and tight end Dalton Schultz ($4,800) to Dallas wideouts CeeDee Lamb ($7,800) and George Pickens ($6,300), leaving $4,550 apiece for the last four spots.
Denver heads to San Francisco, where the 49ers are 3-point favorites with a 46.5 total and rank second in the league in scoring. The offense centers on running back Christian McCaffrey (62.7% opportunity share, 21% target share, 11.7 carries per game) and tight end George Kittle (19.8% target share, 29.4% red-zone target share, 24.4% first-read target share). Nick Bosa will sit out, and San Francisco's pressure rate has slid from about 34% with him on the field to 17% without him.
The other lower-total game sends the Los Angeles Chargers to Seattle, where the Seahawks are 6.5-point favorites in a 43.5-point matchup. The Chargers have performed poorly so far, while the Seahawks, upset losers to the Washington Commanders last week, are characterized as a very good team.
Games to watch
