Cowboys vs. 49ers: Daily Fantasy Sleepers, Lineup Picks for FanDuel, DraftKings

The most electric fantasy football player of the last few years smashed the expectations for his first playoff game with the San Francisco 49ers.

Christian McCaffrey’s successful wild-card round means he will be the target of most daily fantasy football players in Sunday contests on FanDuel and DraftKings.

McCaffrey is a great foundational piece to have, but he will not solely win you a contest because of the expected high roster percentage.

Making the right sleeper picks from the 49ers and Dallas Cowboys could make all the difference in putting yourself in winning positions on Sunday.

McCaffrey’s backup, Elijah Mitchell, could be one of the under-the-radar stars to watch. Dallas could use its depth at wide receiver and tight end to hurt the 49ers.

The stars on both rosters, like McCaffrey and CeeDee Lamb, will receive most of the touches, but one big play from the potential sleeper stars could alter where you land in DFS contests for the two-game playoff slate.

Elijah Mitchell, RB, San Francisco

Elijah Mitchell is the sleeper alternative to McCaffrey and the other top running backs on Sunday’s slate.

The 49ers backup running back scored last week against the Seattle Seahawks, but that is all he did to contribute to DFS lineups.

Mitchell had nine rushes for two yards and two catches for 25 yards. One of those catches resulted in his second-half touchdown.

Mitchell’s nine carries against Seattle is the statistic that should have DFS players believing in him for another week.

The 49ers are willing to use him to spell McCaffrey, so he is not worthless even if McCaffrey has another big yardage day.

Mitchell’s best DFS position is likely the FLEX so you can work in two top-tier running backs with high usage rates. He could emerge as an unlikely high point-earner, if he is used more in the red zone, or earns more trust in the passing game.

Noah Brown, WR, Dallas

One of Dallas’ lesser-known wide receivers needs to make a big play on Sunday.

T.Y. Hilton has been that go-to guy for Dak Prescott, but Noah Brown can also fill that role when called upon.

Brown caught both of his passes for 18 yards in the wild-card round win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

He was targeted on five or more occasions eight times in the regular season, including six times in the Week 18 loss to the Washington Commanders.

Brown’s yardage production dipped of late, but he still has the target rate that suggests he could break out with a big play or two inside Levi’s Stadium.

CeeDee Lamb has the potential to put up massive numbers if the wild-card games are any indicator of what will happen on Sunday.

Dallas’ No. 1 wide receiver had 68 receiving yards and a touchdown against Tampa Bay.

San Francisco’s defense conceded 136 receiving yards on 10 catches to Seattle’s DK Metcalf.

Lamb could be the key to Dallas pulling off an upset inside Levi’s Stadium and setting up an all-NFC East NFC Championship Game against the Philadelphia Eagles.

Lamb saved his best football for the end of the regular season, as he reeled off three straight 100-yard performances in Weeks 15, 16 and 17.

A Dak Prescott-Lamb combination is a nice start to filling out a Dallas lineup stack. Dalton Schultz, Michael Gallup, Ezekiel Elliott and Tony Pollard are the team’s other top options.

Schultz will be a popular pick after his 95-yard, two-score performance at Raymond James Stadium.

San Francisco only gave up 676 receiving yards to tight ends in the regular season, which was the seventh-fewest total in the NFL, so it could stop Schultz and force the Cowboys to beat it with different players.

Elliott and Pollard had an even split of rushes on Monday, but Pollard was far more productive with 77 yards on 15 carries compared to Elliott’s 27 yards on 13 carries.

Pollard’s effectiveness in the passing game could lead to a lineup choice over Elliott, especially if you think the 49ers can clog the middle and disrupt Elliott, just like the Buccaneers did.

Gallup, Brown and Hilton are the wild-card options inside the Dallas offense. Any one of the three wide receivers could produce a game-changing long gain, but none of them will be targeted as often as Lamb and Schultz.

Christian McCaffrey lived up to expectations in his 49ers postseason debut.

The former Carolina Panthers running back totaled 119 rushing yards on 15 carries as well as 17 yards and a touchdown on two receptions.

The top fantasy football option over the last few years will once again be the focal point of the 49ers offense and DFS lineups on Sunday.

McCaffrey is a must-start option across Sunday’s divisional round games and he will likely have the highest roster percentage of any player on both FanDuel and DraftKings.

Any San Francisco lineup stack should start with McCaffrey. In fact, any DFS lineup may just start with the running back.

Deebo Samuel is the second 49ers option that should be chosen. He had 165 total yards in his return from injury last week.

A McCaffrey-Samuel combination has the potential to put up a massive DFS point total for the second week in a row.

Brock Purdy could be used at quarterback, but the impact that McCaffrey and Samuel have in the rushing game could take away some of the rookie’s production compared to other quarterbacks.

However, Purdy has the lowest salary of all the quarterbacks and he could be mixed into a lineup stack if you need to save some salary for other positions.

A Purdy-McCaffrey-Samuel-George Kittle lineup stack could produce a massive point total. Kittle only had two catches last week, but he built a strong bond with Purdy while Samuel was sidelined.

Kittle’s seven touchdowns in four games to end the regular season should not be ignored just because he had one low receiving total.