The final eight teams are set in the NFL. There are a pair of games on Saturday and two more on Sunday. The primary focus of this piece is the main slate and the classic contests, but there are also showdown picks. Since I'm taking a broad view of offensive and defensive tendencies, gamers entering all contest types and entering a modest number of teams or the maximum number of teams into contests should find value in this piece. Here are my top NFL DFS picks and predictions for Eagles vs. Rams.
Only two superstars and the defenses are featured among the suggested picks for classic contests. Frankly, I'm not optimistic about the Rams keeping up with the Eagles. According to the data suite at Fantasy Points, in Los Angeles's last six meaningful games (Week 13 through Week 17 and the Wild Card Round), they've allowed 100.5 rushing yards per game, 4.60 yards per carry, three rushing touchdowns, a 4.6% explosive run percentage, 0.18 missed tackles forced per attempt and had only a 40.8% stuff percentage. Their inability to bottle up the run doesn't bode well for them against Philadelphia's run-heavy offense and Saquon Barkley.
Since Week 10, the Eagles have had a 51% situation-neutral rush rate. Furthermore, Barkley gashed the Rams for a season-high 255 rushing yards, two rushing touchdowns, four receptions and 47 receiving yards in Week 12. Barkley had a monstrous season, eclipsing 2,000 rushing yards in 16 games, and he started the postseason with a bang, gashing the Packers for 119 rushing yards, two receptions and four receiving yards. Green Bay's run defense was more formidable than Los Angeles's.
The Eagles will likely feed Barkley until the Rams prove they can stop him, and I'm not sure they can. As a result, I'm only interested in Jalen Hurts, A.J. Brown, DeVonta Smith, Dallas Goedert and Philadelphia's modest contributors in showdown contests, where Eagles-leaning or Eagles-onslaught lineups are my favorite constructions.
Since Week 10, the Rams have had a 51% situation-neutral pass rate. In that period, the Eagles faced a 46% situation-neutral rush rate. So, Kyren Williams is a potentially useful pick in showdown contests. Yet, the game's spread renders Williams an unappetizing pick in classic contests. Matthew Stafford and secondary passing weapons Tyler Higbee and Demarcus Robinson are also showdown-only picks.
However, Puka Nacua is a DFS-friendly pick in all contest types. The second-year pro left Week 1 early with an injury. Fortunately, Nacua was a monster after his return. In Nacua's 11 games after returning from his injury, he had the following stats.
Nacua even overcame the challenge of the first matchup against the Eagles, tallying 13 targets, nine receptions and 117 receiving yards. He's not a must-use player in classic contests. Still, gamers entering multiple lineups in GPPs should mix Nacua into their portfolio.