A bounce-back week in DFS helped
me overcome the frustration of losing in the opening round of
two of my season-long leagues. I cashed in two of my three matchups,
including a $100 GPP ticket fueled by a decent performance from
a DeShone
Kizer/Josh
Gordon stack and a cash game lineup boosted by DeAndre
Hopkins and Adam
Theilen.
The winning cash game ticket proved to be a surprise in that
I was still able to come out on top with a goose egg from Amari Cooper vs. the Chiefs.
Here is the full lineup, including some insight on why I chose
each player and how they performed.
Quarterback: Philip
Rivers Fantasy Points: 23.76
Grade: A
Rivers was No.1 on my list of cash game quarterbacks based on
his recent success of 20-plus point performances against Dallas
and Cleveland. The offense of the Chargers is clicking on all
cylinders, and the probability of a Redskins team traveling cross
country derailing the momentum of Rivers and Keenan Allen seemed
small. My hope was for a floor of 20 points, with the upside of
a monster 30-point game. Although the former proved to be correct,
Rivers gave me exactly what I needed to help secure the win.
Investing in expensive wide receivers Adam Thielen and DeAndre
Hopkins left with the only option of looking for high volume,
inexpensive running backs. Although the outcome of the Bengals
game was a shock, Bernard did give me the type of volume I expected
in both the ground and passing game.
Morris’ production was disappointing, especially when you consider
what Rod Smith was able to do against the Giants. Morris managed
just 85 total yards on 22 touches and failed to score a touchdown.
At $5500, he was an inexpensive way to get 20 touches out of the
backfield, but he did not put up similar numbers to his 127/1
line that he dropped on his former team Week 13.
My wide receiver strategy in cash games is to pair at least one
high floor/high ceiling guy like Hopkins with a home run play.
The logic is a player like Hopkins will give an excellent foundation
of production that could be enough to win the matchup, while the
high-risk player like Cooper provides the ability for a big game
that could be the difference-making player in the lineup.
I like to think of it as a mutual fund with a mixed allocation
of grown and blue-chip stocks intended on providing a solid return,
while not losing too much principle for the investor. In this
case, Amari Cooper coming back from an ankle and head injury to
play against a Chiefs team that he destroyed Week 7 was my risking
growth (tech) stock, with the range of outcomes stretching between
a goose egg and another 40-point game.
Cooper left the game early with another leg injury, leaving me
with the low end of the range of outcomes. But as planned, Hopkins
scored 39 points at home against the 49ers, providing the floor
along with Goodwin to overcome Cooper’s zero.
Tight End: Cameron
Brate Fantasy Points: 2.1
Grade: F
After a 2/39/2 game on the road against Green Bay - one of the
most challenging teams in 2017 for tight ends - Cameron Brate
returned home against the Lions to get only one target from Jameis
Winston. Brate had been one of Winston’s favorite targets
over the past two seasons and ranks in the top 10 in fantasy points
scored this season, yet for some reason, Winston gave rookie O.J.
Howard six targets for 4/54/1.
Thielen looked primed for a bounce-back game after a disappointing
performance against the Falcons Week 13. The matchup against a
Panthers defense that allowed the 10th most points to opposing
wide receivers looked promising, and Thielen responded with six
catches for 105 and a score on a team-high 13 targets.
D/ST: Colts vs. Bills Fantasy Points: 8
Grade: C
Initially, I planned on going with the Jags against the Seahawks,
but the blizzard conditions in Orchard Park were too good to pass
up. There are times in which snow can increase scoring, but blizzard
conditions in which teams forgo the pass typically results in
low scoring games. My hope was that the Colts would force a few
fumbles by rookie Nate Peterman and a possible defensive score.
