Mike Johnson (MJohnson86) has racked up nearly $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 likely evolve as the season progresses but should provide a lot of value. Enjoy!!
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:
Dalvin took a back seat to the Justin Jefferson show in Week 1 and then was a victim of circumstance in Week 2 as the entire Vikings offense flopped. Cook is playing on 75% of the offensive snaps and has a good chance to see 20 to 25 touches in a great matchup this week. Cook could also see added work as a receiver against a Lions team that loves to blitz.
Mixon is seeing 29.5 opportunities (carries plus targets) per game and is facing a Jets defense that just gave up 100 yards and 3 TDs to Nick Chubb. Mixon is a talented back and is cheaper than many running backs whose teams are projected to score fewer points and have higher Week 3 salaries.
Swift is the same price as teammate Amon-Ra St. Brown, both are projecting very similarly in both median and ceiling projections, yet ARSB is projected for about 3x the ownership at a position with many more replacement options. Swift’s efficiency is incredible and if he ever sees anything close to a bell cow workload he would be in the “prime CMC/Kamara/Saquon” level of fantasy value. A road game against a division rival would not be a shocking time to see Swift’s usage spike.
A home favorite on a team that is hurting for weapons. Fournette is likely to see 22 to 25 touches this week at a relatively low price tag. He will carry ownership, but if you are differentiating your lineups elsewhere you can live with that for the stability he provides in the barren wasteland of sub-$7k running backs.
SIDE NOTE:: Running back is a tough position this week, as there aren’t any cheap backups stepping up into big roles, and paying up at the position theoretically hurts the ceiling of your lineups with so many good passing attacks on the slate. I can’t in good conscience get myself to put many of the more popular RBs of the week who project well on this list, guys like: Josh Jacobs, Dameon Pierce, David Montgomery, and Michael Carter. Any of them could have a good day, but I don’t think any of them are going to break me for not playing them and I think they all have very low floors for the situations and/or roles they are in. Rather, I will be looking to play the backs listed above, using some of the backs listed below in certain situations, or looking to correlate my running back spots with other players already in lineups.
Permanent Price Bump coming at the end of Week 2!
Lock in the lower price for life!
