The Dolphins make a rare SNF appearance to take on the Steelers, and they'll get their starting QB back with Tua Tagovailoa slated to return to action. Following a major week six upset of the Buccaneers, Kenny Pickett will look to build upon his rookie campaign as he tries to will the Steelers to another sizable upset.

By: Ryan Humphries on Twitter and LineStar chat @Ryan_Humphries

Pittsburgh Steelers at Miami Dolphins (-7.5) | 44.5 O/U

PIT: 18.5 Implied Points | MIA: 26 Implied Points

Notable DFS Relevant Injuries: WR Jaylen Waddle (questionable), TE Durham Smythe (questionable)

Score Prediction: PIT - 17, MIA - 27

Showdown Roster Construction (in order of preference): 4-2 Dolphins, 3-3 Balanced, 4-2 Steelers, 5-1 Dolphins (light GPP sprinkle)

SICScore/Field View 👩‍⚕️🩺

via sicscore.com

Steelers Defense / Dolphins Offense

Dolphins Defense / Steelers Offense

Players & Stacks to Consider

Top Captains and Core Flex Plays:

WR Tyreek Hill: Tyreek’s fantasy output was not overly affected by QB Tua Tagovailoa missing the better part of Miami’s last three games. In that stretch, Hill has caught 29-of-36 targets (32.7% TGT%) for 384 yards. However, the return of Tagovailoa at QB is a clear upgrade for an offense that has averaged just 16 PPG over this recent three-game losing streak. Due to Hill’s combination of high target volume and elite speed/playmaking ability, he’s going to be a go-to captain selection in this match-up against a Steelers secondary that has allowed THE most FPPG to opposing WRs.

QB Tua Tagovailoa: You would really hope that the Dolphins would not risk rolling out Tua again if he wasn’t 100% ready to go. So, we will work under the assumption that Tua will face zero limitations on Sunday night. Tagovailoa has had one monster performance back in week two that included six TDs, but he has otherwise been fairly mediocre. He’ll have a chance to post up some big numbers against a Steelers defense that has allowed the 2nd most passing YPG this season. Assuming Jaylen Waddle plays, Tua has plenty of upside with his dynamic duo of Tyreek and Waddle at his disposal.

WR George Pickens: There is not much to really “love” about this Steelers offense, but a Steelers receiver may be worth some captain consideration in a game where they are likely to be trailing. My eye goes toward Pickens in this spot. The rookie QB/WR duo of Kenny Pickett and George Pickens has displayed a strong on-field connection. With Pickett operating as the Pittsburgh QB for a significant part of the last three games, Pickens has seen a 21.6% TGT% and a team-high 34.2% Air Yard% with a deep aDOT of 13.5 yards. The Dolphins defense has allowed the 8th most FPPG to WRs so the match-up isn’t any sort of a negative. Pickens won’t break the bank as a captain selection and he brings enough potential upside to make him a viable showdown option.

Flex Plays and Leverage Captain Options:

RB Raheem Mostert: Mostert has seemingly separated himself from Chase Edmonds as the preferred option out of the Dolphins backfield. Mostert has 15+ touches in three consecutive games and he may continue to see 15-20 opportunities either due to a positive game script or if Tua is eased back into things a bit. Opposing teams have also delivered 7.3 TGT/gm to RBs against the Steelers this season so Mostert may have an impact as a pass catcher as well.

TE Pat Freiermuth: ‘Muth’ is another Steelers pass catcher that should benefit from a pass-heavy approach. Freiermuth had an early exit in the week five game against the Bills due to a concussion, which also held him out of last week’s game. But across the Steelers’ first four games, Freiermuth was second on the team with a 23.6% TGT%. The tight end can be a rookie QB’s best friend on the field so, while Freiermuth and Pickett don’t have a ton of established in-game chemistry, this could be the start of a beautiful QB+TE connection under the lights in primetime.

WR Jaylen Waddle: We'll work under the assumption that Waddle will be active despite being listed as questionable with a shoulder injury. Tyreek Hill has been the WR1 for Miami but Waddle plays a valuable role as well. Waddle has commanded 8.2 TGT/gm which is good for a 22.9% TGT%. He’s been a solid YAC receiver too, averaging 7.7 yards after the catch. And, as mentioned above with Tyreek, this Steelers pass defense has been burned this season while allowing the most FPPG to opposing WRs. And if we look at the three games where Tua played the entire game, Waddle has held a strong floor of 17.7 DKFP.

Flex Fillers, Fliers, and Sleepers:

K Jason Sanders OR K Chris Boswell: As you might expect, a game total in the mid-40s often leads to decent offense but more field goals than usual. As long as the forecasted 10 mph winds are not much of an issue, both kickers can be considered in this game.

Dolphins D/ST: This Miami defense has been very underwhelming this season, outside of the first week. But they are at home facing an offense led by a rookie QB. Over the last four weeks, opposing D/STs have averaged 9.3 FPPG against Pittsburgh. There’s a decent chance Miami can hold Pittsburgh under 20 points, rack up a few sacks, and perhaps account for a turnover or two.

WR Chase Claypool: Expectations aren’t high for the Steelers' offense but one of these receivers should come away with a big game. Claypool is not a bad guy to take a gamble on after coming in off of his best game of the season where he posted a 7-96-1 receiving line. He leads the Steelers receiving corps with a 63.9% catch% and has at least six targets in 5-of-6 games this season.

Sunday Night Football TD Call 🏈

WR Tyreek Hill

Stack Concepts:

Note: [*Player Name] indicates captain selection.

*WR Tyreek Hill, QB Tua Tagovaloa, K Jason Sanders: The ceiling is undeniable for Tyreek, who has three games of at least 160 yards receiving. It’s going to eat up a ton of salary, but I’d be hard-pressed to not work in the correlation by pairing CPTN Tyreek with Tua in the FLEX. We can throw a kicker in there as well to help provide some salary relief and a decent projected floor.

*QB Tua Tagovailoa, WR Tyreek Hill, WR Jaylen Waddle: This CPTN Tua double stack will leave you with $4,233/player on DraftKings, so it will be a tough pathway to being an optimal stack. But we know how much upside this stack can provide. If you want to open up some salary, you could sub out one of the WRs for TE Mike Gesicki and just hope that this is one of the weeks where he is actually involved in the game plan.

*WR George Pickens, QB Kenny Pickett, RB Raheem Mostert: Pickens has sneaky good upside in this match-up so he makes for an intriguing contrarian CPTN play in what should be a pass-heavy Steelers game script. Stack him with Pickett and run it back with Mostert on the other side.

*RB Raheem Mostert, Dolphins D/ST, WR Chase Claypool: Any time an RB has a shot at 15-20 touches in a game where their team is favored by more than a touchdown, they’re deserving of some CPTN consideration. Roll with the Dolphins D/ST for a correlation play and bring it back on the other side with one or two of the Steelers' receivers.

*WR Jaylen Waddle, QB Tua Tagovailoa, TE Pat Freiermuth (Fade Tyreek): As mentioned earlier, Waddle has scored at least 17.7 DKFP in all three games where Tua has been (mostly) healthy. I like the idea of fading Tyreek in any CPTN Waddle lineup. If Waddle ends up as the optimal captain play, that likely means Tyreek posts a floor game.

PrizePicks SNF Power Play ⚡

Here is a two-pick "Power Play" I’m liking for Sunday Night Football over on PrizePicks! Nothing is ever a guarantee to hit but these prop parlays have been treating us pretty well overall this season so let's keep it rolling! If it hits, it will return 3x the wager.

George Pickens MORE than 43.5 Receiving Yards

Raheem Mostert MORE than 7.5 Receiving Yards

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That will wrap us up with today's "Primetime Preview" edition! Once again, you can find me on Twitter or in LineStar chat @Ryan_Humphries. Good luck everyone!