DFS players should target Giants-Vikings NFL wild-card game

If the goal of a contest is to be unpredictable, does that make unpredictable actions predictable?

For example: In order to win big money in daily fantasy sports, you often have to go against the grain by selecting players most others won’t use. Most often, others don’t use these players because they think they won’t perform well, but sometimes, on occasion, players who are obvious don’t reach the proper usage rates because they are too expensive.

To wit, is using Christian McCaffrey, the most expensive running back, and Justin Jefferson, the most expensive wide receiver, a contrarian move on wild-card weekend?

We’re not convinced either will faded by the masses, because recent history begs DFS players to use CMC and Jefferson.

The Seahawks have been terrible against opposing RBs, and  Jefferson has been the best WR all season — including torching the Giants with 12 catches for 133 yards and a score Christmas Eve.

All signs point up for both players, which means their price tags likely won’t be a big deterrent. Hence they feel more like a fade than a pivot.

So what does that leave us with? Well, we do have interest in that recent Giants-Vikings game, which produced plenty of offense, and we expect it to do something similar again. So even though we fear Daniel Jones will be a popular pick, at $7,400 on FanDuel, we love the matchup and like the way Jones has played down the stretch, so we’ll start with him to stack that game.

Since we like that game, we have to like other players in it. The Madman doesn’t favor any one of the Giants top three WR over the other, so we’ll go with the cheapest, Darius Slayton ($5,800). Saquon Barkley ($8,800) also catches passes, so we’ll do the unthinkable and pair an RB with a QB.

They’ll need the opposition to keep scoring to create a shootout atmosphere, and since we’re fading Jefferson for the reasons alluded to earlier, we’ll go with WR K.J. Osborn ($6,100) and tight end T.J. Hockenson ($7,000).

No we fill the rest. We’ll take the Bills defense/special teams ($5,000) against the Skylar Thompson Dolphins and go cheap at our second RB with JaMycal Hasty ($4,900) and Flex with James Cook ($5,900). That leaves us enough to snag  WR  Ja’Marr Chase ($8,700).

So if our target stack game blows up, and we get a TD or two from our cheap options, the Madman’s wild-card winnings could be wild.

Where the wild things are

Key picks you should consider for this weekend’s FanDuel and DraftKings contests:

Dak Prescott QB, Cowboys, at Buccaneers (FanDuel $7,300/DraftKings $6,000)

Newsflash: Dak hasn’t been good this year. Reminder: He wasn’t good vs. the Bucs in Week 1. Conclusion: It isn’t likely he will break out of his season-long funk on the road in the playoffs.

Geno Smith QB, Seahawks, at 49ers (FD $6,900/DK $5,600)

Two of Smith’s five worst fantasy games this season came against the Niners, including his worst, Week 2 at San Francisco. Averaged just 10.7 in those two games. Oh, and bad weather to boot.

Leonard Fournette RB, Buccaneers, vs. Cowboys (FD $6,400/DK $5,300)

Finished in the top in the league in red-zone targets for RBs, and has more than twice as many red-zone carries as backfield mate Rachaad White.

Ezekiel Elliott RB, Cowboys, at Buccaneers (FD $7,000/DK $6,000)

Too TD dependent (39 percent of fantasy production was on touchdowns, compared to 22 for committee partner Tony Pollard).

Elijah Mitchell RB, 49ers, vs. Seahawks (FD $5,500/DK $4,700)

A cheap pivot from Christian McCaffrey. Scored twice last week in his first action since Week 12.

Joshua Palmer WR. Chargers, at Jaguars (FD $6,500/DK $5,300)

He is going to be on the radar with Mike Williams out. But Palmer hasn’t been great with no Williams, averaging 12.4 in PPR over four games.

Insanity’s Daily Dose

Daily fantasy league lineup suggestion:

Team FanDuel

Type: Tourney
Salary: $60K
Fee: $3
Slate: Sat.-Mon. (6 games)
Top Prize: $3K
Tot. pot: $30K

QB — Daniel Jones ($7,400)

RB — Saquon Barkley ($8,800)

RB — JaMychal Hasty ($4,900)

WR — Ja’Marr Chase ($8,700)

WR — Darius Slayton ($5,800)

WR — K.J. Osborn ($6,100)

TE — T.J. Hockenson ($7,000)

Flex — James Cook ($5,900)

DEF — Bills ($5,000)

For late roster chances, follow @NYPost_Loftis and @NYPost_Roto on Twitter

Season risked: $171
Season winnings: Jarad $135, Drew $27