Win Up To $1 Million In DraftKings NFL Pick’Em Contest
The 2020-21 NFL regular season will kick off on Thurs., Sept. 10, and DraftKings is pulling out all the stops to help make it your winningest season yet. It’s the brand new DraftKings NFL Pick’Em Contest!
This will be one of the biggest NFL handicapping contests ever offered on NJ gambling websites, featuring both weekly and end-of-season prizes for the most successful handicappers, including a Grand Prize of a cool $1 million.
How the 2020 DraftKings NFL Pick’Em Contest works
As of this writing, the contest is open to NJ players only. However, between now and the start of the season, DraftKings may extend the invitation to players in select other states.
$1,500 entry fee
If you want to win big, you sometimes have to spend big, and the DraftKings NFL Pick’Em Contest is one of those instances.
The fee for entering is a hefty $1,500.
So clearly, the contest is priced out of many otherwise interested participants’ reach. As with any online casino or sportsbook promotion, if the cost is more than you can comfortably afford, as tempted as you might be, based on the substantial prizes you can win, you should skip it and seek out other offers that are more friendly to your budget.
Handicapping skill is important, too
On the other hand, even if you can afford the $1,500 fee, to lessen the chance of wasting your money, before you proceed gung-ho, you should ask yourself another question. Do you feel you are sufficiently knowledgeable about handicapping professional football to zero in on five games each week where you have a better than average chance of beating the point spread?
If so, the DraftKings NFL Pick’Em Contest is an opportunity you should not pass up. On top of all the fun and excitement this contest provides all season long, you could wind up pocketing many times your investment.
Contest details
The contest runs from week 1 through week 16 of the 17-week regular NFL season. Your task is to pick five games against the point spread posted at the time by DraftKings each week. However, you also get to skip any two of those weeks you wish as bye weeks where you don’t submit any picks.
In other words, you will need to make five point spread picks each week for 14 of the 16 weeks, for a total of 70 picks.
All picks must be made by 10 a.m. EST on the Sunday of the applicable week.
How to participate in the 2020 DraftKings NFL Pick’Em Contest
If you are new to DraftKings Sportsbook, first, you will need to register and set up an account. Otherwise, simply log-in to your account and click on the “Pools” tab.
Follow the directions given on the website for paying the entry fee.
What you can win in the 2020 DraftKings NFL Pick’Em Contest
If you pick all five of your games in any given week correctly, you will win a free $100 bet at DraftKings Sportsbook.
In addition, at the end of the season, DraftKings will award larger cash prizes to the 50 players with the best overall record, including a guaranteed $1 million Grand Prize to the player who finishes in first place.
The following table shows how the 50 prizes will be distributed.
| Rank | Prize |
| 1st Place | $1,000,000 |
| 2nd Place | $250,000 |
| 3rd Place | $125,000 |
| 4th Place | $100,000 |
| 5th Place | $75,000 |
| 6th Place | $60,000 |
| 7th Place | $50,000 |
| 8th Place | $40,000 |
| 9th Place | $30,000 |
| 10th Place | $20,000 |
| 11th-15th Place | $15,000 |
| 16th-20th Place | $10,000 |
| 21st-25th Place | $7,500 |
| 26th-35th Place | $5,000 |
| 36th-50th Place | $2,500 |
If the 2020 NFL season is delayed or canceled
Hopefully, the still ongoing COVID-19 pandemic will not cause the upcoming NFL season to be delayed or canceled, but it remains a possibility. If that is the case, DraftKings has the following contingency plans in place:
- If the season starts after the scheduled Sept. 10 start date, DraftKings will adjust the start of the contest accordingly.
- If the season is canceled before Week 12, your entry fee will be refunded.
- If the season gets canceled between Weeks 12 and 16, all of the payouts for the end-of-season winners will be honored. However, rankings will be made based on the percentage of correct picks rather than the total number of picks to be equally fair to players with fewer picks because they have used one or both of their byes.
The bottom line
Many football handicapping contests require you to make picks on every game. This contest only asks you to make five picks each week. So it is not only an excellent test of a person’s handicapping skill but more in line with the way you would probably bet on sports otherwise, that is betting select games each week rather than all of them.
For those of you who are brand new to sports betting, however, I recommend getting your feet wet with a free or cheap football picks contest rather than this one. You will be up against a very tough field of top-notch handicappers, and while you could have beginner’s luck, finishing in the money is a big longshot.
But if you love football and have not only the requisite funds but also the interest and knowhow to have a good chance to excel in the DraftKings NFL Pick’Em Contest, the sky is the limit.