The Cincinnati Bengals are coming off yet another one-score loss in what's been a frustrating season for a team that had high aspirations. They come into the week at 4-6, and things won't get any easier on the road against what's looking like a playoff-bound Los Angeles Chargers squad. The Chargers are 1.5-point favorites in a contest showing a 47.5 total.

For those unfamiliar, single-game slates feature five flex spots with identical scoring to the main slate. However, kickers are included in these contests, and there is an "MVP" roster slot. The MVP receives 1.5 times his total fantasy points, making this spot crucial.

FanDuel Research's Brandon Gdula has done a deep dive on single-game strategy, and FanDuel Research has NFL DFS projections if you select the game from the slate tab. It's worth checking out both before making your lineups.

All NFL projections via our numbers at FanDuel Research, and NFL odds references are to FanDuel Sportsbook.

Bengals at Chargers NFL DFS Picks

MVP Candidates

Ja'Marr Chase ($16,500) and Joe Burrow ($15,000) carry the slate's highest salaries, which is no surprise after last week's shootout against the Baltimore Ravens. Chase put up an earth-shattering 52.9 FanDuel points while Burrow posted 30+ points for the second straight week.

They're clear frontrunners for MVP but could have a tougher time putting up those kinds of numbers against the Chargers' fourth-ranked schedule-adjusted pass defense. Even so, their profiles speak for themselves.

Among QBs with at least 100 drop backs, Burrow leads the league in passing attempts per game (35.8) while still showing excellent efficiency, ranking fifth in expected points added per drop back (0.13) and sixth in completion percentage over expected (3.3%), per NFL Next Gen Stats.

As for Chase? His market shares have consistently stayed high since Week 5, owning a 29.6% target share and 35.2% air yards share while averaging 2.90 yards per route run over the last six games.

Our NFL DFS projections peg Burrow for the slate's most points, and Chase comes out with the third-most.

Sandwiched between the two in our model is Justin Herbert ($14,000). Excluding last week's run-heavy win over the lowly Tennessee Titans, Los Angeles has shown more of a willingness to pass since their Week 5 bye, and Cincinnati's strong offense should help bring that out of them.

While Herbert still has just one game above 20 FanDuel points this season, he's inside the top 10 in completion percentage over expected (2.4%) and yards per attempt (7.8), and he's even rushed for 30+ yards in two of the past three weeks. The upside should be there if the Bengals can press the Chargers into a shootout.

It also doesn't hurt that Cincinnati has allowed the fourth-most FanDuel points per game to quarterbacks. Herbert will almost certainly see a much lower MVP roster percentage than Burrow, too.

Chase Brown ($11,500) is up against a defense that's given up the second-fewest FanDuel points per game to RBs, but they're closer to middle of the pack versus the run when adjusted for schedule.

With Zack Moss out of the picture, Brown has averaged a whopping 20.0 carries and 8.0 targets over the last two games, racking up 157 and 95 scrimmage yards in the process. He's also logged 88.9% of the red zone carries in that sample. With usage like that, we should be more than happy to slot in Brown at MVP, and he might not even be especially popular because of the matchup.

Tee Higgins ($12,000) is expected to play, putting him on the radar as a dark horse MVP candidate. In his five games, he's earned a 29.2% target share, 42.0% air yards share, and 60.0% end zone target share. While there's always risk in rostering someone coming off a multi-week absence, that could lead him to go overlooked at MVP more than he otherwise would.

Outside of Herbert, it's hard to get overly excited about any other Chargers players at MVP, but J.K. Dobbins ($13,000) projects well and has three games with 20+ points this season. The trouble is the return of Gus Edwards in Week 10 led to a reduced red zone role, as Edwards earned 4-of-6 RZ carries.

Dobbins did see 15 carries and 3 targets, though, so he still has a solid role if Los Angeles ends up leaning on the run, and Cincinnati ranks 25th in adjusted rush defense.

Flex Targets

Ladd McConkey ($11,000) -- In six games with both Quentin Johnston and Josh Palmer active, McConkey leads the team with a 24.0% target share and 30.6% air yards share. He's the No. 1 option in the Chargers' passing attack, which arguably makes him a fringe MVP option, but he's generally better suited as a flex.

Quentin Johnston ($10,000) and Josh Palmer ($9,500) -- In the above six-game sample, Johnston's logged a 18.5% target share and 25.2% air yards share while Palmer is at 13.0% and 20.9%. Our projections see both getting around 4-5 targets apiece with the slight edge going to Quentin.

Andrei Iosivas ($9,500) -- Iosivas is a mere dart throw with Tee Higgins expected back, and it wasn't like he was doing much while Higgins was out anyway. Despite owning a 75.7% route rate with Tee active, it's led to a disappointing 9.1% target share.

Evan McPherson ($9,000) and Cameron Dicker ($9,000) -- There's a fair bit of value on this slate, so the kickers don't feel like a must. However, if you think the game goes under its total, they have a better shot of landing on the perfect lineup.

Mike Gesicki ($8,000) -- Gesicki has popped for a couple of big games this year, but his usage goes into the toilet with Higgins active (5.8% target share). That being said, he's been second on the team in target share (18.1%) over the past three games while averaging 2.26 yards per route run, so it's possible his role doesn't completely evaporate this time around.

Gus Edwards ($8,000) -- Edwards logged 10 carries in his first game off injury, and as noted earlier, he could be the primary goal-line back going forward. He's a very intriguing value play.

Will Dissly ($7,500) -- Since seeing a bump in routes from Week 6 onward, Dissly has actually earned a 22.5% target share, which certainly stands out at this salary. While he's still a poor bet to pile up yardage behind a lackluster 11.9% air yards share, his 27.8% red zone target share suggests he could be due for his first touchdown of 2024.

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The above author is a FanDuel employee and is not eligible to compete in public daily fantasy contests or place sports betting wagers on FanDuel. The advice provided by the author does not necessarily represent the views of FanDuel. Taking the author's advice will not guarantee a successful outcome. You should use your own judgment when participating in daily fantasy contests or placing sports wagers.