Best NFL DFS Picks for Thursday Night Football: Patriots vs. Bears (DraftKings and FanDuel)

Thursday Night Football opens Week 7 at Soldier Field, where the New England Patriots (4-2) visit the Chicago Bears (4-2) at 8:15 PM ET on Prime Video. The matchup pits two first-round quarterbacks from the 2024 class against each other, and with a total sitting around 50.5 and the Bears favored by three, the game script points toward plenty of passing from both sides.

Single-game slates play differently than a full Sunday main slate. You are picking from only two offenses, so the goal is to find the players with the clearest roles, then decide how to correlate them. Below are five NFL DFS picks for Thursday Night Football, with salaries listed from the DraftKings Showdown pool (Captain salaries run 1.5x, so adjust accordingly).

Drake Maye, QB — Patriots ($10,600 DK)

Maye is the hottest quarterback on the slate. He has thrown three touchdown passes in each of his last three games, including 18-of-32 for 235 yards and three scores in the 26-19 win over the Jets last week. The week before, he went 26-of-34 for 374 yards and four touchdowns against the Raiders. That is 11 total touchdowns over the three-game stretch, and he has finished as a top-four fantasy quarterback in each of those weeks.

Maye also adds a little rushing juice, with 24 yards on four carries against the Jets and a rushing touchdown against Las Vegas. Chicago’s defense is stingy against the run, which should keep New England leaning on his arm, and his passing yardage line sits around 248.5. He is a natural Captain candidate and the centerpiece of any Patriots stack.

Caleb Williams, QB — Bears ($10,400 DK)

Williams returned from a three-game hamstring absence last Sunday and looked sharp, completing 30 of 36 passes (83.3%) for 305 yards and a touchdown with no turnovers in the 31-23 win over Atlanta. He opened the game by completing his first 12 attempts, a career best.

At home as a three-point favorite, Williams should have the more comfortable script of the two quarterbacks, and his passing yardage prop is set near 244.5. If you want to pivot off Maye as the popular Captain, Williams is a strong alternative that also opens the door to Bears-heavy builds.

Luther Burden III, WR — Bears ($8,400 DK)

Burden is arguably the best receiving spot on the Chicago side. He played just 40% of the snaps last week, well below the roughly 65% he averaged before Week 6, yet he still led the Bears in receptions, receiving yards and targets. A bounce back in snap share would only add to his ceiling.

Burden works heavily out of the slot, which should keep him away from Patriots cornerback Christian Gonzalez, who has been tough on opposing receivers. He and Williams re-established their connection in Atlanta, and that pairing is a worthwhile correlated play at a mid-range salary.

Hunter Henry, TE — Patriots ($6,200 DK)

Henry is the value play of the night. He has scored touchdowns in back-to-back games, including a score in last week’s win over the Jets, and has gone for 44-plus receiving yards in each. He leads New England in red-zone target share at 18% and plays about 70% of the snaps.

With Romeo Doubs on injured reserve and the Patriots’ pass-catching group thinned, Henry should see a steady diet of targets. At $6,200 on DraftKings, he lets you pay up elsewhere while keeping a direct tie to Maye’s touchdown production.

D’Andre Swift, RB — Bears ($9,800 DK)

Swift is the lead back in a Bears backfield that will be without Kyle Monangai, who is listed out with a thumb and toe injury. His rushing line is set at 61.5 yards, and his anytime touchdown price of -160 is the shortest on the board, meaning books see him as the most likely player in this game to score.

The Patriots’ rush defense is respectable, so this is less about ceiling and more about volume and goal-line opportunity at home. He is expensive, but in a Bears-favored game script, Swift is the premium running back option for DraftKings lineups and also fits a FanDuel build.

Building Your Lineup

Both quarterbacks sit at the top of the salary scale, so most lineups will start with one of them at Captain. A Maye Captain pairs naturally with Henry in the flex and a Bears receiver such as Burden as a bring-back, since a shootout would help both sides. Flip it for a Williams Captain with Burden and Swift, and a Patriots bring-back through Henry or A.J. Brown.

Keep an eye on the final inactives before lock, as the Bears’ Tyrique Stevenson and the Patriots’ Kevin Byard are both questionable. If you are building multiple entries, look at the live NFL odds for line movement, and consider mixing in pivots away from the most obvious Captains. If you are new to daily fantasy, our Underdog Fantasy review is a good place to explore other ways to play tonight’s game.