Mike’s DK Player Grid 3.25

Mike Johnson (MJohnson86) has racked up over $500,000 in DFS profit as an NFL tournament player with success in all styles of contests

Welcome back to my (Mjohnson86) Player Grid. The format will vary slightly from JM’s Player Grid, as we each see things slightly differently and play in slightly different contests, but should complement his thoughts and content very well for those looking to build their lineups for the week. The format of this article will vary slightly from my Fanduel Player Grid, which will be more direct in terms of which players I like. Enjoy!!

The Core ::

This is a list of players that stand out to me at each position from using my “Checking the Boxes” criteria outlined in my course you can find in our Marketplace. This list is a starting point, from which I build out lineups using game theory and roster construction concepts (which we will also touch on) with the mindset being to find the best plays with big ceilings. Low ownership is a bonus, but not a must. This section will focus primarily on three positions – running back, tight end, and defense – as the other two positions (quarterback and wide receiver) tend to have more dependent tendencies which I try to attack from other angles (which we will get into in the other sections). I like all of these plays on all sites unless otherwise noted:

Running Back::

• Christian McCaffrey – There is plenty of value available on the slate and CMC continues to churn out good games so far this season. He has yet to truly break one open, but at home against this Cardinals defense that plays right into his strengths seems like a perfect spot for an eruption.
• Bijan Robinson – Bijan may very well be the best running back in the game right now and he is facing what is very likely the worst run defense in the league. Some things are relatively simple. There is the off chance this plays like last week’s Panthers game, where they fell behind so fast that Arizona’s skill players didn’t need to do anything. 
• Kenneth Walker III – He looked like he was back to his old self in Week 2 and now gets the backfield to himself as Zach Charbonnet is listed as doubtful. Matchup, talent, volume, home favorite, and moderate salary.
• Jonathan Taylor – JT plays basically every snap for the Colts and faces a Titans defense that has been gashed so far this year, ranking 31st in run defense DVOA. Quarterback Daniel Jones has three 1-yard touchdowns, which, if they had gone to JT, his salary would be around $8k already.
• Saquon Barkley – This is a player who ran for over 500 yards against the Rams last season. He has been relatively quiet so far this season, but the Rams are a legitimate threat to Philly and Barkley is always a threat to bust the slate.
• Javonte Williams – The Bears defense is really struggling and Williams is dominating the backfield usage for Dallas so far this season. Javonte has looked much better this season than he did in 2024.
• Jordan Mason – Bell cow usage at home in a dome against a Bengals defense we expected to be weak this season. He carries some systemic risk in this spot, but clearly has paths to a very strong game.

Tight End ::