Borg’s DFS Cash Lineup Review for Week 9
Every week I want to unpack part of the process in assembling my cash game lineup. The goal is neither to boast or wallow in “shoulda, woulda, couldas” but rather give a transparent look at my thought process for the week. Hopefully, this will help DFS Podcast listeners and DFS Pass subscribers get a deeper window into the ups and downs of playing DFS and help you in your selections each week.
For cash, I specifically play 50/50s, Double-Ups, and H2Hs on DraftKings. I’ll share my unfiltered gut reaction, my thought process behind this lineup construction, and at the bottom, I will post my weekly results including ROI and H2H record to stay accountable with you.
If you’re wanting to go back to the drawing board, we did an overview podcast before the season on Cash Game Strategy. I also published an article on How to Approach Each Position in DFS & Gain an Edge.
Week 9 Cash Lineup
Note: Roster percentages shown from NFL Massive $25 Double-Up [Single Entry] with 8,045 entrants. This contest gives one of the better sample sizes for cash in my opinion.
You know it is getting a bit colder outside… Do you notice all those snowflakes in this lineup?
This was by far my chalkiest build of the year with five players rostered over 50 percent each in these double-ups. But apart from Lamar and KC DST, everyone else utterly failed.
I tried to put this week into a clearer, more concise description for Betz as we were processing the week. It was as if my 2-year old got a hold of the simulation and then decided to spill apple juice all over the computer. We ended up with quite possibly the most random assortment of players that showed out for fantasy.
Preparing today's Studs & Duds for WRs…
Elijah Moore- Started in 13% of Yahoo Leagues
DeVonta Smith- 44%
Tim Patrick- 7 %
Olamide Zaccheaus- 3rd in WR snaps on his own team
Malik Turner- Show me a dynasty roster with him even on it… you get zero pts for that.— Kyle Borgognoni (@kyle_borg) November 8, 2021
The Thought Process
I’ll first start out by saying the Borgognonis have had a few busy weekends the last couple of weeks. I did not tinker with my lineup at all this weekend just to be brutally honest. I left for Friday to host my brother’s bachelor weekend in Asheville, NC, and then my wife and I drove back with the kids Sunday. I watched zero football because right when we got home, we hopped back in the car to attend a friend’s wedding on Sunday afternoon. By the time I checked my DK lineups, I was quite confused how the Bills lost to the Jaguars and the Cowboys’ offense decided they wanted to employ Malik Turner as their secret weapon…
Here was my thought process throughout the week in assembling this lineup
- On Tuesday, we identified Lamar Jackson as the prime QB on the slate. Other than toying with Taysom Hill briefly (before Trevor Siemian was named starter), Lamar was the clear points per dollar choice and he smashed.
- Ezekiel Elliott and Austin Ekeler were some of our favorites plays from the get-go and that stayed all the way through to our Best Plays article on Saturday. Elliott was underpriced as a 9.5-point home favorite and Ekeler’s combination of high floor plus receiving work made them locked in cash plays. On a slate without any real value opening up at the RB position, I didn’t consider moving off either at any point and it seemed the field felt the same way.
- With news of Noah Fant on the COVID list, Albert O. was the TE punt play we identified on Friday’s podcast. Before going out with an injury, the big Broncos TE did his job almost 3xing his salary.
- Tyreek Hill was another chalky play but his insane target volume recently was hard to move away from. After dabbling with Davante Adams earlier in the week, the only other high-priced WR I considered was Stefon Diggs. All three guys underwhelmed considering the target volume on Sunday.
- Punting DST is my preferred route every single week. Initially, my favorites were the Panthers ($2600) and Browns ($2500) due to their fearsome pass rushes. With the Aaron Rodgers news, dropping down to the Chiefs ($2300) was a no-brainer.
- Tee Higgins seems to show up in my player pool every week as DraftKings seems to keep his salary in the low $5K range. His dependable volume is bankable and he was trending in a good direction to hit the 100-yard bonus. Cincinnati’s offense fell flat in the 2nd half despite a game script that pushed them to catch up.
- Jarvis Landry also became an option at $5,100 with OBJ being released from the team. The only other WRs I considered to fill out my roster was Hunter Renfrow and Kadarius Toney. I thought Landry would see 5+ receptions and give you a safe PPR game to work with. Instead, Cleveland sat on a lead and let Nick Chubb do his thing.
- The final spot on this roster was the one that I messed with the most before leaving for the weekend. Dallas Goedert was one of my favorite cash game plays on the slate due to the matchup. Since the Zach Ertz trade, he has a 32.5% target share. I also saw this as an opportunity to have a unique roster construction with a chalky build. If you knew you could get a WR to lead his team in targets in a plus matchup with a high total at only $4,500, you’d consider them regardless of position. Unfortunately, DeVonta Smith was the one who went off for Philadelphia.
- In cash lineups this week, you needed to move off at least one chalky RB (Ekeler and Elliott) and avoid one of the higher-priced WRs like Hill, Adams, and Diggs. The line itself was lower (120ish) but with lineups eating up so much chalk, you could swap out one guy and get there. It was a strange week across the board.
2021 Cash Results
| Week | DK Pts | H2H Win % |
| 1 | 129.66 | 90% |
| 2 | 88.04 | 0% |
| 3 | 194.62 | 100% |
| 4 | 129.58 | 28% |
| 5 | 164.06 | 36% |
| 6 | 142.28 | 59% |
| 7 | 143.96 | 50% |
| 8 | 135.46 | 33% |
| 9 | 109.44 | 42% |
Staying afloat people. That is the name of the game at this point. A reminder that head to heads gives you the opportunity to recoup some of your 50/50 losses. Between GPPs and other small-field tourneys, I’ve been able to supplement a lot of these losses. With an easier week on the horizon at least in terms of commitments outside of DFS, I’m looking to wipe this clean again. Check in the DFS First Look Pricing article that comes out Tuesday AM!