Wide Receiver Matchups to Target For Thanksgiving Slate (2025) - Ja'Marr Chase, Rashee Rice, Zay Flowers, Christian Watson

Kyle's favorite WR vs. CB matchups to exploit for the Thanksgiving Slate of 2025 - DFS wide receivers to target on DraftKings and FanDuel. These WR/CB matchups are GPP and cash game opportunities.

Welcome to the Wide Receiver Matchups to Target column for Week 13 (Thanksgiving Slate) of the 2025 NFL season. We're nearing the end of the season, so we have all the data in the world at our disposal. We'll use individual performance, matchup grades, pace of play, and implied totals to pinpoint the best WRs to target in daily fantasy lineups. Amon-Ra St. Brown and A.J. Brown were big hits from this article in Week 12 as they both crushed value, but Stefon Diggs, Zay Flowers, and Luther Burden III didn't quite come through for us.

This week, we'll break down the top four WR/CB matchups using Pro Football Focus (PFF) grades, along with key usage metrics that indicate which players can realistically hit three times their DraftKings salary. This is meant to serve as a guide for both cash games and GPPs -- these guys are in position to smash regardless of the contest type you're playing in.

Be sure to jump into our RotoBaller Discord! We have so many different channels devoted to whatever you're playing in fantasy football. We also have lots of great NFL DFS articles and NFL DFS tools to help you win MORE this season! Below are my top five WR vs. CB matchups for this week’s DFS main slate. Use these insights to fine-tune season-long lineups, player props, and DFS builds. Let’s get to it!

Ja'Marr Chase, Cincinnati Bengals

• $8.0K on DraftKings, $9.5K on FanDuel
• Vs. Marlon Humphrey (Baltimore Ravens)

We're playing Ja'Marr Chase on a tiny three-game slate, if only for the upside he brings to the table alone. He's coming off a disastrous 6 DK point game against the Steelers, but we'll take whatever ownership discount we can get with people being scared off from playing him. He has clear 30-40+ DK point upside on any given slate, and a matchup against a vulnerable Ravens' secondary, combined with the return of Joe Burrow, could be our opportunity to cash in on another ceiling game from the superstar.

Joe Burrow & Ja'Marr Chase whenever they play the Ravens

Burrow: 299.9/2.3 TDS/ 0.6 INTS

Chase: 120.3 YDS/7.3 RECS/1 TD https://t.co/BYbzldaxLH pic.twitter.com/TMctfPxJ9F

— Playoff Bengals (@PlayoffBengals) November 24, 2025

Baltimore ranks 21st in pass DVOA, 24th in DVOA vs. WR1s, and has allowed the 10th-most fantasy points per game to WRs. They're also top-10 in targets, receptions, receiving yards, and touchdowns permitted to WRs. He'll see a lot of the extremely burnable Marlon Humphrey (111th of 113 CBs), who has recorded a 71% catch rate while allowing 478 yards (14.1 yards per catch) in his coverage this season. With Burrow back in action and Tee Higgins expected to be inactive, this will be the Ja'Marr Chase show in a game with a lofty 51.5-point implied total.

Rashee Rice, Kansas City Chiefs

• $7.5K on DraftKings, $8.6K on FanDuel
• Vs. Reddy Steward (Dallas Cowboys)

Rice followed up his Week 11 dud with his best game so far, recording eight catches on a season-high 12 targets and 141 receiving yards (27.1 DK points) against a tough, but likely overrated, Colts' defense. Rice has scored at least 18.6 DK points in four of his five contests while averaging 20.8 DK points, the highest mark for any WR on this slate. The Chiefs currently hold a high 27.75-point implied team total in a game with a 52.5-point implied total, so there's plenty of reason to believe he and the Chiefs offense will keep humming in Dallas on Thanksgiving Day.

Rashee Rice hauled in 6 receptions for 136 yards in the seams in the Chiefs' Week 12 win over the Colts, the 2nd-most of any player in a game this season.

Rice also totaled a career-high 103 YAC, gaining 10+ YAC on three separate plays in the 2nd half.#INDvsKC | #ChiefsKingdom pic.twitter.com/IaGL1A1qUB

— Next Gen Stats (@NextGenStats) November 23, 2025

The Cowboys are the best matchup a wide receiver can have. They've allowed the most fantasy points per game to WRs, rank 30th in pass DVOA, and rank 30th in DVOA vs. WR1s. They rank 29th in PFF's defense grade and 27th in their coverage grade. Dallas has also permitted the sixth-most receiving yards (1,843) and the most receiving touchdowns (18) to the position this season. He projects to primarily match up with Reddy Steward (34th of 113 CBs), who ranks well per PFF but has allowed an eyebrow-raising 89% catch rate on 26 targets this season. Plug in Rice against this terrible defense and reap the rewards.

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Zay Flowers, Baltimore Ravens

• $6.1K on DraftKings, $7.1K on FanDuel (DraftKings Preferred)
• Vs. Josh Newton, Dax Hill (Cincinnati Bengals)

Zay Flowers has been a mainstay in this article, as he's always affordable as a WR1 in a Lamar Jackson-led offense. He has been remarkably consistent, scoring in double digits in nine of eleven games, but his ceiling has been capped, as he hasn't exceeded 14.9 DK points since Week 1. The Ravens are a run-centric offense and have Rashod Bateman, DeAndre Hopkins, Mark Andrews, and Isaiah Likely competing for targets, which has resulted in no ceiling games for Flowers and only one touchdown this season.

This could be the matchup where that changes. The Ravens are projected to score 29 points, which is the most on the Thanksgiving Day slate. The Bengals rank 32nd in PFF's defense grade, 28th in PFF's coverage grade, and 32nd in pass DVOA. Even if Baltimore prefers to keep the ball on the ground, they'd be crazy not to attack this defense through the air. Flowers will face off with Josh Newton (62nd of 113 CBs) and Dax Hill (87th of 113 CBs), neither of whom has had a strong season. Keep rolling with Flowers at this price - we'll get a ceiling game out of him eventually (right?!).

Christian Watson, Green Bay Packers

• $4.7K on DraftKings, $6K on FanDuel
• Vs. Terrion Arnold, Amik Robertson (Detroit Lions)

It's always difficult to trust the Packers' wide receivers in daily fantasy contests, as they're a run-first offense with six wide receivers and no true "alpha" target-earner. Their "leading" receiver, Watson, is priced at $4,700 on DraftKings, which is indicative of the volatility in this WR corps. However, we have to take some chances on a three-game slate, and Watson could be stepping into a larger role with Jayden Reed still out and Matthew Golden, Dontayvion Wicks, and Savion Williams all currently listed as questionable.

Per @FantasyPtsData, eight pass catchers produced 2.00 yards per route or higher with a target per route rate at 20% or below.

The most notable players include Christian Watson, Alec Pierce, Terrance Ferguson, and Oronde Gadsden among players with a 25% route percentage. pic.twitter.com/TcTVhs9JYG

— Corbin (@corbin_young21) November 26, 2025

Watson has strung together a few quality performances, scoring 9.9 DK points in Week 12 and 20.6 DK points with a two-score output in Week 11. His numbers don't pop off the page as he has only played in five games, but he should be in for a productive day against this Lions' secondary. Detroit allows the eighth-most fantasy points per game to WRs, and they rank 25th in DVOA vs. WR1s. They've also allowed 15 touchdowns to the position, the second-most in the league. Watson will see Terrion Arnold (82nd of 113 CBs) and Amik Robertson (78th of 113 CBs), both of whom have not had a good season.

Watson is an excellent GPP play this week, as he could pop off for a ceiling game, but he's not a safe play for cash games.

Thanks for reading, and good luck with your DFS contests!

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