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DeAndre Hopkins, Thomas Rawls spurred Week 11 winner in $350K Baller contest

Week 11’s winner of the “NFL $350K Baller” contest put up 165.14 points, which was enough to take home the $50,000 prize during a low-scoring week. It was hardly a perfect lineup, as Charcandrick West left early with an injury, and Rob Gronkowski produced just 4.70 points despite being the most expensive tight end.

[Yahoo Daily Fantasy: $10 could win you $50K in our $350K contest for Week 12]

Cam Newton threw for 246 yards and five touchdowns, as he was the No. 1 scoring quarterback this week and continues to keep his name in the MVP race. Demaryius Thomas entered with just one TD on the year while seeing 103 targets but scored immediately Sunday thanks in part to Brock Osweiler taking over as Denver’s QB.

Meanwhile, DeAndre Hopkins was owned by just 3% of teams in the tournament, which makes sense considering he had missed practice earlier in the week with a knee injury, had a backup quarterback (T.J. Yates) throwing to him and was likely going to be shadowed by Darrelle Revis. Hopkins nevertheless ended up having a big game, securing 5-of-12 targets for 118 yards and two touchdowns. He was the top scoring wide receiver in Week 11, and with J.J. Nelson, James Jones and Tyler Lockett three others in the top five, Hopkins was a true difference maker in a week that didn’t see many big performances from stars at the position.

The winning entry had Thomas Rawls to thank most of all, as the undrafted rookie back was the overall top scorer of the week. He was owned by just 2.9% of teams, as news of Marshawn Lynch being inactive didn’t break until late afternoon Sunday. Rawls, who was just $10, totaled 255 yards and hit paydirt twice. He’ll be a clear RB1 for fantasy owners as long as Lynch is sidelined. Rawls remains an affordable $14 in Week 12, making him an attractive play even against a Steelers defense that’s been tough against the run.

Danny Amendola became the second player on the winning entry’s squad to exit early with an injury this week, but he did enough damage beforehand (16.20 points) to help secure the victory Monday night. In a weird week with few stars shining, the winner was able to shake off injuries and a few misses (three players scored less than a dozen points) to take home the prize. It helped having the No. 1 scoring quarterback, running back and wide receiver, as it was more of a top-heavy lineup than a well-rounded one that prevailed in this contest.

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