Live And Learn - Reflections from Week 3 DraftKings Cash Game Lineups

Live And Learn - Reflections from Week 3 DraftKings Cash Game Lineups
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This article originally appeared on RotoBaller.com.

Hey RotoBallers! I hope you're all surviving yet another Tuesday-Wednesday without football to consume. I also hope your NFL DFS ventures have been more successful than mine so far.

Writer’s Note: If you play DFS football, make sure to check out RotoBaller’s Fantasy Football Matchup Rating Projections and our NFL DFS Lineup Optimizer.

I've been playing NFL DFS on DraftKings once again this season, and through the first three weeks I feel as though I'm going backwards. So, I thought to myself, what better way to reflect on my process than to write an article for you people! Hopefully, at least a few of you gain some insight from this reflection article at my expense, and hopefully I can hit the reset button and get back to what has worked for me in past NFL seasons.

My weekly approach is much like that of most NFL DFS players. I allocate some of my bankroll towards cash games (specifically Double Ups) and I allocate another portion of my bankroll towards small buy-in tournaments. I'm a multi-entry type of tournament player, and it's almost impossible to break down success or failure in that format with just a three-game sample size, so I want to discuss those cash game entries and why they've left me unsatisfied through Week 3. Here’s my Week 3 lineup:

The Aftermath

The cash line for this single entry Double Up was the lowest yet at 111 DK points. I had some hope that Terrelle Pryor would salvage what was a brutal cash lineup day, but he too fell asleep at the wheel.

DeShone Kizer was the brightest spot in this lineup, and I couldn't be happier in my decision to pay down for him. Unfortunately, Tom Brady went nuts again, but that didn't kill me in cash games. Overall, from a point-per-dollar standpoint, Kizer was a great play. I may have gotten a little lucky with garbage time points, but his versatility and matchup allowed me to save money for other positions in what turned out to be a tightly budgeted week on DK.

Le'Veon Bell didn't quite pay off his price tag, but you can't be mad about a 20-point floor. He wasn't nearly the root of my problems, but then again he didn't put up the type of game that I was hoping for. When you pay up for a RB with high ownership, you really need them to reach more than their floor to feel vindicated. The other RB spots were where the brutality began. Montgomery was still a great play in my eyes. I guess I didn't factor in Green Bay's offensive line injuries enough, as Ty Mont had no room to run on the majority of his carries. However, his snap count was still the same, and he caught eight balls! I'll keep rolling him out until he's priced correctly with the Kareem Hunts of the world.

Jay Ajayi deserves his own paragraph. I went back and forth all week on whether I wanted to play an expensive running back who didn't catch all that many balls out of the backfield. Then I heard about his knee issue and I was set on backing off of him. Then I had a change of heart on Sunday morning, and I went back to Ajayi in his dream spot getting 20+ carries against what I thought was a brutal Jets run defense. My alternative to Ajayi and Pryor was Keenan Allen and Travis Kelce, who also sucked, so the move didn't cost me any money. However, I think I would've felt a little better about those plays failing then I did watching the Dolphins get stomped. With the lack of pass-catching, high price tag, and knee issues lingering, I'll probably stay away from Ajayi for a while.

Pryor felt super safe at wide receiver to me. I thought for sure my Redskins would be trailing in this game, and I definitely believed more in his 11-target Week 1 than I did in his four-target Week 2. However, I'm now realizing that the Redskins don't really need Pryor in order to have success through the air. They have so many weapons, and honestly Pryor hasn't impressed me at all yet. He'll probably breakout at some point this season, but I don't think he's a safe option by any means for the time being. As for my two bargain bin wide receiver plays, I'm just straight up embarrassed. A lot of people got burned by Rashard Higgins, so I can't be THAT upset about that one. But I talked myself into Brandon LaFell trailing the Packers and getting Tyler Eifert's targets. I was rudely reminded that he's still Brandon LaFell, and I really need to be sure there's a target floor when paying down at the wide receiver position.

Lastly, Zach Ertz and the Eagles defense were fine plays. Ertz was still underpriced and in a great spot against a bad Giants middle pass defense. He actually almost blew it for me and the rest his owners by dropping a touchdown, but he got the ball right back on the next play to put up another great day. I was feeling phenominal about the Eagles for the first 35 minutes of that game, but the Giants came roaring back, and I watched the points slowly fall off. Zero sacks was very strange for a team playing Eli Manning and this terrible offensive line, so I don't want to get away from my reasoning because of a late comeback.

Where do I start?! No really... Where do I start? Please tell me what you all think about my approach thus far and where I may be going wrong.

What I can say is that I want to keep putting running backs in my flex position as long as it fits. Hopefully I can find a value running back who catches passes in a good matchup, and that can allow me to pay up relatively for the other two running backs without having to put guys like Higgins and LaFell in my WR spots.

I keep reminding myself that the QB position usually doesn't have a huge point difference between an average perfomance and a good performance. So, if you can pay down for a QB and have them play two thirds as well as the chalk QB who people are paying up for, you've usually won that battle. However, a chalky Tom Brady (and probably Aaron Rodgers some time soon) can really ruin that approach if they go nuts.

Target floors are huge for wide receivers in the same way that they are huge for running backs. Sure, one long catch can save a wide receiver's day, but if you have two guys combine for less than 15 at your WR spots, you're going to be digging yourself out of a hole at other positions.

I want to keep playing around with the idea of flexing a tight end if I don't feel comfortable with three running backs as "cash game locks". It would've been Kelce this past week, which wouldn't have worked out, but their prices generally seem low compared to wide recievers with the similar 8-10 projected targets, so maybe there's something there.

As for defenses, targeting bad offenses is obviously the move. However, you want to target bad offenses that throw the ball. The more drop backs, the more chances for interceptions, sacks, and fumbles. It's nearly impossible to predict defensive TDs, but throwing the ball while trailing can lead to them more often than teams who are simply playing to keep the score respectable.

I'm sure there's a lot more that will go through my head in the next few days before Week 4, but hopefully this helped some of you step back and clear your head like it helped me. I would love to hear more from you all about your approaches in relation to mine. I hope you have had more success than me so far, but if not, let's turn this NFL DFS season around together.

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