Building A Winner 10.25

Tony focuses his DFS play on FanDuel single-entry and 3-max contests. He thrives in unique formats and positional twists, always looking for hidden edges that others overlook

This article is designed to complement Mike’s weekly Fanduel Player Grid and other OWS Fanduel scroll content by giving you my view on the slate from my perspective as a Fanduel player who focuses on smaller-field, SE/3-max types of tournaments. My usual process is to build a handful of unique lineups for these types of contests each slate and a majority of my weekly DFS bankroll is dedicated to them.

As you will see as you go through the article, based on the week at hand, I find what I think is the critical starting point I want to use for my rosters. This could be a certain game environment, a specific position or positional dynamics, extreme chalk pieces, or low-owned stacks that I am interested in. Each week is unique, so the “Starting Point” for each week will be dynamic and the rest of my thoughts will build from there, helping you see how I am building my lineups and allowing you to form your own thoughts.

Starting Point

• The Week 10 main slate includes 10 total games, with four teams on bye and an early morning Falcons vs Colts game in Germany. There will be seven early kickoffs and three games in the late afternoon. This week isn’t getting the “byemageddon” hype that Week 8 did (six teams on bye), but the combination of four teams off and some regularly-key players and teams playing in primetime makes this one of the most unique slates of the year for me. The starting point for my SE/3-Max FD lineups this week has as much to do with what is not on the main slate as it does with the players and teams that are. A few key points to consider:
  • The teams on bye this week include the Bengals, Cowboys, and Titans, the three teams that have allowed the most raw points in the league this year, and three of the most exploitable defenses to target each week for DFS.
  • RB options NOT on this slate include Jonathan Taylor, Bijan Robinson, Saquon Barkley, Josh Jacobs, Ashton Jeanty, and Javonte Williams; six players with among the best RB roles in the league this year.
  • WR options NOT on the main slate include: Ja’Marr Chase, CeeDee Lamb, and Rashee Rice. Not to mention Drake London, Tee Higgins, George Pickens, both stud Philly WRs, all three usable LAC WRs, etc., the list could go on.
• The combination of fewer (obviously) exploitable defenses to target and the absence of some of fantasy’s biggest stars this week seems likely to lead to a “barbell” ownership distribution where ownership concentrates on the top/most expensive remaining options and a handful of comfortable value options that fit alongside the high-priced stars. I’m not here to fade all of the best plays, but there will be ample opportunity to find mid-priced options you like who will be very modestly owned this week relative to their weekly FD upside.

Running Back Approach