I play around 60% of my action each week in “cash games.” Cash games refer to any contest in which roughly 50% of the field gets paid out, such as head-to-head, double up or 50/50. I try to get as much head-to-head action as I can every week and then supplement that with other cash games.
Each week, I’ll review my cash-game lineup in this space. Sometimes I’ll lose, but hopefully I’ll win more often. Either way, I’ll post it here and give you my thought process.
I decided to focus my cash game attention on FanDuel again this week. I talked about it a bit on the Solo Pod, but the bottom line is I’ve merely wanted to change things up. The scoring system (half-PPR, no bonuses) and pricing structure ($60K cap vs. $50K cap) certainly necessitates a change in strategy.
This slate was defined by awesome RB plays. Jonathan Taylor, Breece Hall, Isiah Pacheco, Tony Pollard and Alvin Kamara were all elite options. Choosing the right three was going to be the key to the slate.
MY MUST PLAYS
* In the game before the bye, the Jets finally showed they understand Dalvin Cook can’t play anymore. Breece Hall racked up 80%+ of the RB touches. I expected that strong role to be sticky, this time in a matchup against the Giants. So even though the Jets offense under Zach Wilson is obviously concerning, I wasn’t about to pass on Hall’s elite skill set with this kind of usage at just $7200.
* Tony Pollard’s workload has been truly awesome this season. He came into this week trailing only Christian McCaffrey and Alvin Kamara in expected fantasy points. The problem has been a lack of efficiency coupled with so many weird Cowboys game flows.
In a home game against the Rams at just $7600, I was always playing this as a buy low spot for Pollard. That tag was cheaper than D’Andre Swift ($7700), Saquon Barkley ($8100), Travis Etienne ($8700), and Raheem Mostert ($9000).
* I knew I wanted three $7K+ RBs and an expensive quarterback. I think emphasizing those positions is the optimal way to play cash on FanDuel. Of course, that means spending down a bit at WR – which I’m fine with in half-PPR and no bonuses. So it’s not that I loved Zay Flowers and thought he was a “must” in a vacuum. But in the context of this slate and the format, Flowers at just $6500 was a lock for me.
MY WANT PLAYS
* I was always playing one of Lamar Jackson or Jalen Hurts. The salary cap on FanDuel is looser and QB scoring makes up a bigger percentage of the final score, so paying up at QB often makes sense.
The matchup for both was awesome, and we had Hurts ahead by 0.2 in projection. Given that Hurts was $400 more, came into the game with a minor knee issue, and this was a division… I was fine going with Lamar.
* Isiah Pacheco vs. Jonathan Taylor was a big decision. Zack Moss (heel, elbow) was active but barely practiced all week. Meanwhile, Pacheco’s ascending role was on a collision course with the leaky Broncos defense in a very cold game. My gut said Taylor here as he’s the far more talented back (vs. Moss), the one who just got the big bag, and the one whose role should be ascending. But I’ve been on the wrong side of a fistful of big IKBs this season, so if I’m being honest perhaps that prevented me from going Taylor here.
* I am far more willing to spend up at D/ST on FanDuel. Eagles, Cowboys, Ravens, Chiefs were all in the $4500-$5000 range and in play. But we also had Falcons against Will Levis and Vikings against Jordan Love, both below $4000. I was prepared to play any of those defenses that fit, and the Falcons fit here.
* Tank Dell vs. Josh Downs was another big 1v1. As noted below, I really liked the spot for Downs. But with Robert Woods out and a pure matchup against the Panthers, I thought Dell was slightly better. We also had Dell 1.4 points ahead in projection.
* The last 2v2 I looked at was TJ Hockenson and Josh Downs vs. Jake Ferguson and Brandon Aiyuk. The underlying usage on Ferguson has quietly been awesome, and Brandon Aiyuk was a no-brainer elite option in this matchup with Deebo Samuel out.
Of course, Hockenson at $6500 was far too cheap given Justin Jefferson (hamstring) remained out. And Downs’ spot against a Saints defense that can funnel targets to the slot, plus his chemistry with Gardner Minshew, made him a prime value at $6100 as well. But in the end, I thought the Ferguson/Aiyuk side had far more touchdown upside in better game environments.
Week 8 Results
I continue to get far too many 1v1s wrong. Lamar Jackson over Jalen Hurts. Isiah Pacheco over Jonathan Taylor. Tank Dell over Josh Downs. Jake Ferguson over Trey McBride. Falcons D over Vikings D. It’s impossible to win when getting all these wrong. No excuses, just need to be better.
Year-To-Date Results
Week 1: 132.7 points, won 51.5% of head-to-heads
Week 2: 126.34 points, won 63.6% of head-to-heads
Week 3: 166.98 points, won 59.8% of head-to-heads
Week 4: 169.12 points, won 75.2% of head-to-heads
Week 5: 107.62 points, won 5.5% of head-to-heads
Week 6: 140.22 points, won 49.1% of head-to-heads
Week 7: 124.98 points, won 51.2% of head-to-heads (FanDuel)
Week 8: 79.58 points, won 10.3% of head-to-heads (FanDuel)
* Note: Win percentages do not include ties.
