Ethan Thiel 
There are varying strategies in Daily Fantasy Sports Cash Game contests, and we’re going to discuss them here. Whether you are new to DFS NFL or looking for an extra edge, this is your necessary primer.
Sign up NOW for WIN DAILY Premium Gold here. Projections, weather reports, wagering info, 24/7 expert chats and more.
Daily Fantasy Sports Cash Game Overview
There are multiple different types of Daily Fantasy Sports Cash Game types we can choose from. The most known and widely used are 50/50 and double ups but we shouldn’t forget head-to-head. The idea of all of these is that if you finish in the money, you win a fixed amount. If you place 300th out of 1000 you will win the same amount as if you placed first in that contest.
Strategy
When playing an NFL Daily Fantasy Sports Cash Game, we are looking to place with a safe lineup as compared to trying to win with a high risk lineup, as in Tournaments. High volume NFL players will normally have high floors. This means that their worst outcome will still garner some decent points. A high risk player will have a high ceiling but a low floor. I will use two WRs as examples here. Julian Edelman is a high floor type player. He will run many short to intermediate routes that will produce consistent yards. An example of a low floor, high ceiling receiver is DeSean Jackson. He is a vertical threat WR who could have three catches for 150 yards and two touchdowns but may also not convert on the low percentage deep balls and could end up with one catch for 20 yards in any given week.
Julian Edelman (2018 Stats: 850 yards, 6 TDs)
Edelman was suspended for the first four games in 2018. Once he was able to find his groove in his fourth game he was ultra consistent. In eight of nine games he racked up 69 receiving yards or more. He also had six double digit target games in that stretch. That is great volume and a great floor. Edelman is the type of WR to target in Daily Fantasy Sports Cash Game play.
DeSean Jackson (2018 Stats: 774 yards, 4 TDs)
As you can see, the statitsical gap between these two WRs is not that wide of a margin (76 yards and two TDs) and they both played 12 games. In contrast to Edelman’s consistency, Jackson had eight out of 12 games in which he finished with less than 69 yards. There were also three games in which Jackson finished with 112, 129, and 146. Edelman never broke 105 yards. Jackson is the typical high upside, low floor player we try to avoid in Daily Fantasy Sports Cash Game play.
Daily Fantasy Sports Cash Game Tips
Look for Volume
As mentioned above, volume often correlates to a high floor. Look for Quarterbacks who will throw 30+ times a game, Running Backs who get 20+ touches, and Wide Receivers/ Tight Ends who get 10+ targets. This is one of the main Daily Fantasy Sports Cash Game areas to focus on.
Use Vegas
Las Vegas line makers are incredibly good at what they do. Less points scored will obviously translate to less NFL DFS points. Vegas can also give you a good look into game flow. A team favored by seven or more points will most likely run the ball more in the fourth quarter, creating more volume for the team’s ground and pound running back. If a team is an underdog, you may want to look at that team’s pass catching running back as a high volume option.
High Floor Backups
It seems to happen nearly every week where we get a high profile player who gets hurt/ suspended and needs to sit out. Examples in the past year include Kareem Hunt/Spencer Ware/Damien Williams, Jameis Winston/Ryan Fitzpatrick, and Melvin Gordon/Austin Ekeler. These backups are often low priced and will allow you to roster a high floor, high upside player at other positions.
Watch your Exposure
While there may be a week where we have that great bargain option who should see 20+ touches, we need to watch out for using them too much. If you are someone who will play many lineups a week, try to stay away from near 100% exposure to a player in Daily Fantasy Sports Cash Game play. There will be a high volume player who goes down mid-week and creates an opportunity for a “can’t miss” bargain player, who then fumbles and gets in the doghouse. Coaches can also talk up a player, saying they will use them a lot and then give him five touches. These are a couple reasons to not employ a player in multiple lineups you put together, no matter how much of a sure thing it seems to be.
Trust Your Gut
Lastly, Trust you gut! Sometimes numbers can only tell so much and you can only do so much research before putting a Daily Fantasy Sports Cash Game NFL lineup together. Finding the correct plays can sometimes be a gut call. Trust yourself and if you love a player don’t let your friends or the know-it-all co-worker change your mind, especially just minutes before kickoff.
Thank you for reading. You can join the Win Daily team by following the link here. This will give you access to all of the FREE content along with options to join our premium. Follow myself and Win Daily on Twitter at @thiel_boy and @windailydfs.
