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USATSI

Super Bowl LVI is here, and hopefully, we get a great game between the Rams and Bengals. More importantly, hopefully, we get some great individual performances for those of you playing DFS lineups or player props for Sunday's game.

With that in mind, let's look at some of my favorite lineups on DraftKings and FanDuel for the Super Bowl, as well as some of my best player props. We've had a good run in the playoffs so far, and I'm hopeful for a strong finish in the biggest game of the year.

For the player props, all odds are posted from Caesars Sportsbook as of Wednesday night, so please check back prior to Sunday in case something changes.

Super Bowl DFS Lineups

DraftKings: Lineup 1

CAPTAIN: Matthew Stafford $16,200
FLEX: Cooper Kupp $11,600
FLEX: Odell Beckham $8,400
FLEX: Tee Higgins $7,600
FLEX: Matt Gay $3,800
FLEX: Samaje Perine $2,400

I'll stack the Rams in this lineup with Stafford in the captain spot, and hopefully, he stays hot in the playoffs. He's averaging 301.7 passing yards and two touchdowns per game, along with one interception and two rushing touchdowns, against Arizona, Tampa Bay and San Francisco. The Bengals have more interceptions (six) than passing touchdowns allowed (five) in the postseason against Derek Carr, Ryan Tannehill and Patrick Mahomes. But Stafford averaged 288.8 passing yards per game at home this season with 25 total passing touchdowns and seven interceptions.

The last time Kupp faced the Bengals in Week 8 of the 2019 season he went nuts for seven catches, 220 yards and a touchdown on 10 targets. Could he do that again? Probably not, but he's averaging 8.3 catches and 128.7 receiving yards per game in three playoff games, with four touchdowns on 32 targets.

Kupp and Beckham are going to put plenty of pressure on this Bengals secondary, and hopefully, Beckham continues his strong postseason run. He scored in the first playoff game against Arizona and has combined for 15 catches for 182 yards on 19 targets in his past two outings against Tampa Bay and San Francisco.

The Bengals have allowed six receivers to score at least 12 PPR points in three playoff games, with four touchdowns to Zay Jones, A.J. Brown, Tyreek Hill and Mecole Hardman.

Gay and Perine are my cheap options in this lineup, and Gay has made 7-of-9 field goals in the playoffs, including nine PATs. Perine just had three catches for 43 yards and a touchdown on four targets against the Chiefs in the AFC Championship Game.

DraftKings: Lineup 2

CAPTAIN: Joe Burrow $15,900
FLEX: Matthew Stafford $10,800
FLEX: Ja'Marr Chase $10,400
FLEX: Tee Higgins $7,600
FLEX: Evan McPherson $4,000
FLEX: Ben Skowronek $600

I'll stick with Stafford in this lineup, but I'll stack the Bengals here, led by Burrow. He's averaging 280.7 passing yards per game in the playoffs with four touchdowns and two interceptions, and this is a brutal matchup against the Rams. In three playoff games against Kyler Murray, Tom Brady and Jimmy Garoppolo, the Rams are allowing an average of just 232.7 passing yards per game with just three touchdowns and four interceptions.

Chase has a touchdown or at least 116 receiving yards in each of the past five full games he played, and he has 20 catches for 279 yards and a touchdown on 27 targets in three playoff games. The Rams secondary is tough, but Chase is going to be a focal point for Burrow. And Deebo Samuel (four catches for 72 yards and a touchdown) and Mike Evans (eight catches for 119 yards and a touchdown) each did well against the Rams in the past two games.

Higgins is probably my favorite DFS option for the Super Bowl given his price and his likely production. He's the cheapest of the top four receivers behind Kupp, Chase and Beckham, but Higgins has been fantastic in the past two playoff games against Tennessee and Kansas City with 13 catches for 199 yards on 19 targets. He has at least five catches and 96 receiving yards in six of his past nine games, with four touchdowns over that span.

McPherson and Skowronek are the cheap options here, and McPherson has made four field goals in every playoff game, including three from at least 50 yards. Skowronek is a dart throw since he had just one target against the 49ers in the NFC Championship Game, but he should have caught it for a touchdown. Hopefully, he can connect on a big play in the Super Bowl.

FanDuel: Lineup 1

MVP: Cooper Kupp $16,000
FLEX: Matthew Stafford $15,500
FLEX: Odell Beckham $10,500
FLEX: Evan McPherson $9,000
FLEX: Kendall Blanton $8,000

I'll change things up a little with this Rams lineup by using Kupp in the MVP spot instead of Stafford, but otherwise, the stack is the same with Stafford, Kupp and Beckham. Blanton is the wild card, and his status is tied to Tyler Higbee (knee), who got hurt against the 49ers in the NFC Championship Game and missed practice Wednesday.

The Rams are still hopeful Higbee will play, but if he's out then Blanton is in a great situation. He had five catches for 57 yards on five targets against the 49ers after Higbee got hurt, and he also scored a touchdown against Tampa Bay in the divisional round.

FanDuel: Lineup 2

MVP: Joe Burrow $15,000
FLEX: Matthew Stafford $15,500
FLEX: Ja'Marr Chase $12,000
FLEX: Tee Higgins $10,500
FLEX: Van Jefferson $7,000

I'll lean Bengals in this lineup with Burrow, Chase and Higgins, but I can also afford Stafford as well, which is great. The cheap option is Jefferson, and hopefully, he breaks out of his recent slump.

He hasn't scored in seven games in a row and has been held to 41 yards or less in three playoff outings. He did get five targets against the 49ers in the NFC Championship Game, but he's fallen way behind Kupp and Beckham. The Higbee injury could help Jefferson, and he could be a surprise star in the Super Bowl.

You'll notice with all of these lineups that I'm avoiding the top two running backs in Joe Mixon and Cam Akers. Price matters with those two guys, but I'm also concerned about their potential lack of production, which you can read about below with their prop bets.

Super Bowl LVI props

Bengals props

1. Joe Burrow over 2.5 rush attempts +100

Burrow had five carries against the Chiefs in the AFC Championship Game and has at least three carries in three of his past six outings.

2. Joe Mixon under 62.5 rushing yards -120

Mixon had 88 rushing yards against the Chiefs and 65 rushing yards against the Ravens in Week 16. But in his six other games going back to November, he's been at 58 rushing yards or less. And in three playoff games, the most rushing yards the Rams have allowed was 51 to Leonard Fournette in the divisional round.

3. Samaje Perine under 14.5 receiving yards +100

While Perine had 43 receiving yards against the Chiefs, that was the only time he's been above 13 receiving yards in his previous five outings. And he only has four catches on six targets in the playoffs.

4. Tee Higgins over 67.5 receiving yards -115 and over 5.5 receptions +100

Higgins has at least 68 receiving yards in six of his past nine games, including two in a row against the Chiefs and Titans. And he has at least six catches in two games in a row and in three of his past five outings.

5. Ja'Marr Chase over 5.5 receptions -135 and over 8.5 targets +100

Chase has at least six catches in four of his past five full games, including twice in the playoffs against the Chiefs and Raiders. And he has at least nine targets in four of his past five full games, also including twice in the playoffs against the Chiefs and Raiders.

Rams props

1. Matthew Stafford over 24.5 completions +100 and over 2.5 rush attempts +100

Stafford has at least 26 completions in three of his past five games, including two in a row against the 49ers and Buccaneers. And he has at least four carries in each playoff game, which is why his rush attempts prop is my favorite one of the Super Bowl.

2. Cam Akers under 16.5 rush attempts -115 and over 2.5 receptions +140

Akers is dealing with a shoulder injury, which could limit his workload, and he only had 13 carries against the 49ers in the NFC Championship Game. Darrell Henderson (knee) could also return this week, meaning Akers could share carries with Henderson and Sony Michel. Maybe the Rams use Akers more in the passing game, and he has at least three catches in two of the four games he's appeared in since coming back from his Achilles injury.

3. Cooper Kupp over 0.5 rushing yards +250, over 8.5 receptions +100 and over 11.5 targets +100

Kupp had one carry for minus-2 yards against the 49ers in the NFC Championship Game and has at least one carry in three of his past six games. Hopefully he can fall forward for 1 rushing yard in the Super Bowl. The receiving props should be easier to attain since he has at least nine catches in two games in a row and five times in his past eight outings. And he has at least 12 targets in four of his past eight games.

4. Odell Beckham over 63.5 receiving yards -105 and over 5.5 receptions +100

Beckham has been over both of these props in each of his past two games against the 49ers and Buccaneers. And Beckham, when he was with the Browns, had at least 74 receiving yards in each of his past two full meetings with the Bengals (with a touchdown in each game). He also tore his ACL against Cincinnati in Week 7 of 2020.