Shedeur Sanders makes his highly-anticipated NFL debut when the Cleveland Browns take on the Carolina Panthers at Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte at 7 p.m. ET. Sanders will be the Browns’ starter. on Friday, and the polarizing quarterback will undoubtedly be one of the most popular NFL DFS picks in the Friday NFL DFS player pool. Browns vs. Panthers is one of three NFL preseason games on Friday, with the other two being Lions vs. Falcons and Commanders vs. Patriots.
With this being the first game of the preseason for most teams, many of the established starters in the Friday NFL DFS player pool will play sparingly (or not at all), making it imperative for DFS players to dig deep to find the top NFL DFS values. That’s especially true in the preseason, where games tend to be lower scoring, as evidenced by an over/under of 36.5 or less in all three games. Before making any NFL DFS picks for Friday on sites like DraftKings and FanDuel, be sure to check out the NFL DFS lineup advice, strategy and player stacks from SportsLine NFL daily Fantasy expert Jimmie Kaylor.
Kaylor is a NFL betting and DFS expert for SportsLine, who opened the 2022 NFL season by winning DraftKings’ NFL Showdown Thursday Kickoff Millionaire contest. He edged out over 355,000 other entrants in the contest and also has multiple five-figure tournament wins on his DFS resume. Kaylor has covered the NFL and college football for close to a decade as a member of the Pro Football Writers of America, and his background as a former college and NFL player gives him a unique perspective when building his fantasy lineups and locking in his betting picks. Anybody following his DFS picks over the last three seasons could have seen huge returns.
Now, Kaylor has turned his attention to Friday’s 2025 NFL preseason schedule and locked in his top daily Fantasy football picks. You can only see his picks and analysis at SportsLine, also new players can get $50 in Pick6 credits at DraftKings when they play $5:
Top NFL preseason DFS picks for Friday
One of Kaylor’s top DFS picks for Friday is Browns quarterback Shedeur Sanders. The talk of the 2025 NFL Draft after sliding all the way to pick No. 144, Sanders now has a chance to put that in the rearview mirror as he’ll start for the Browns against the Panthers.
Sanders has a huge range of outcomes this preseason all the way from winning the starting job to not making the active roster, so he’ll be highly motivated to perform well. Sanders should all see extended playing time in this one with Dillon Gabriel and Kenny Pickett both dealing with hamstring issue and confirmed out, while there’s not much to gain by putting 40-year-old Joe Flacco on the field in the preseason.
Part of Kaylor’s Friday NFL DFS strategy includes rostering Patriots receiver Kayshon Boutte. New England head coach Mike Vrabel said New England will play its starters on Friday, which means the opportunity for Boutte to potentially work with Maye for at least the first drive before Joshua Dobbs likely takes over next. Boutte, a sixth-round pick in the 2023 NFL Draft, had a team-high three receptions for 53 yards in Week 1 of the preseason last year, and he became significantly more involved in the New England offense last season with 43 receptions for 589 yards and three touchdowns in his second NFL season.
New England has a crowded wide receiver room this year following the signings of Stefon Diggs and Mack Hollins and selecting Kyle Williams in the third round of the 2025 NFL Draft. Boutte could receive a significant amount of snaps on Friday as he looks to prove himself worthy of maintaining a role in the New England offense. The Patriots play the Commanders, who are planning to rest many of their starters. You can see the rest of Kaylor’s NFL DFS picks here, and new users can see the latest FanDuel promo code to get $150 in bonus bets at FanDuel if your $5 bet wins:
How to build Friday preseason NFL DFS lineups
Kaylor is also targeting another undervalued player who could explode for huge numbers on Friday. This pick could be the difference between winning your tournaments and cash games or going home with nothing. You can only see who it is, and the rest of Kaylor’s NFL DFS picks, at SportsLine.
So who is Jimmie Kaylor including in his optimal NFL DFS lineups for Friday and which under-the-radar NFL DFS picks offer huge value? Visit SportsLine now to see optimal NFL DFS picks, rankings, advice and stacks, all from a DFS expert who already won a single-game millionaire maker tournament, and find out.
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