There are all kinds of ways to play fantasy football, but in DFS, Sharona E is trying to wade through the strategies as she learns the ways of this game.
Welcome back to my weekly Daily Fantasy Sports diary where I chronicle playing DFS for the first time. The first two weeks did not go very well so how did I do in Week 3? I am happy to announce I won! OK, only $5 but winning anything is a huge accomplishment for me at this point.
I made a few mistakes in Week 3 (hello Miami!) that I don’t intend to make again such as that Greg Salas pick. So let’s get to it and make our Week 4 selections. Once again I selected a beginners only contest.
RB: I made good decisions last week in David Johnson and DeMarco Murray, and am keeping Johnson in my lineup for Week 4. The Houston Texans’ defense takes a hit losing J.J. Watt to a recurring back injury even though he hasn’t been himself this year. However, they are still solid against the run so instead of going back to the old standby in Murray I opt for Melvin Gordon, who is getting 100% of the San Diego Chargers’ goal line looks after the loss of Danny Woodhead. Bonus, they play the Saints who have the league’s worst run defense.
WR: I have a system and I’m sticking to it, all I need to do is make better overall decisions. I will pick my first two receivers and use my last selection for the final one. Or at least that is my plan.
My top matchups feature Demaryius Thomas, Kelvin Benjamin, and Julian Edelman. Every single one of these guys has burned me in the past. I love Thomas but I take a pass. Same for Edelman who is likely to have Jacoby Brissett under center against the Bills. I think Benjamin will bounce back this week even though Cam Newton hasn’t been the same this season. I will wait at least another week.
Instead, I snag Detroit Lions wideout Marvin Jones Jr. who is having an outstanding fantasy year and plays a Chicago Bears secondary prone to coughing up big plays. Same goes for San Diego Chargers wide receiver Travis Benjamin, who faces the aforementioned porous New Orleans Saints defense. Plus, the game should be a shootout. Sold.
TE: Here I know exactly where I’m going. Travis Kelce faces the Pittsburgh defense which struggles to defend the tight end when healthy and has several injuries at linebacker, such as a knee injury for Ryan Shazier. Baby Gronk is a good value and I have yet to pick a quarterback, defense, or my final wide receiver.
QB: I love Denver’s matchup against Tampa Bay in a lot of ways and I’m finally ready to buy in on Trevor Siemian. He has a good matchup and he is surprisingly cheap despite a great Week 3 fantasy performance.
DEF: I select Denver’s defense for similar reasons. Tampa Bay quarterback Jameis Winston is experiencing second-year struggles and has turned the ball over quite a bit in the first three weeks.
PK: I now have $10,400 to spend on a kicker and my final wide receiver. Dustin Hopkins has been fantasy gold and is cheap at only $4,500 so this is an easy decision. It will also leave me with some good pocket change to pick my final receiver.
WR3: I look at what’s out there at my price tag and I’m not impressed. Then, I spy Will Fuller sitting there at $6,700 which isn’t far off what I have to spend. Plus, he will see a lot of Tennessee Titans defensive backs Brice McCain and Perrish Cox, who have been burned repeatedly over the first three weeks of the season. This is the matchup I’ve been looking for. Time to make some money to make it happen.
I play around a bit with running backs and opt to go with my tried and true in Johnson and Murray. While I like Gordon his price tag is pricier than Murray who has better overall points per game. This frees up some money but not enough.
I turn back to my wide receivers. I like the Travis Benjamin matchup but his numbers are very similar to Jamison Crowder who will face Cleveland. The Browns are giving up the league’s fourth-most fantasy points to wide receivers. Since Crowder is $600 cheaper and fits my budget I go with him. This frees up the money I need for Fuller.
I now have $100 left to spend but I’m happy with my roster. We’re a go! Fresh off my big win in Week 3 I feel certain I’m going to win it all this week.
Addendum:
After I submit my roster the news comes out that Marvin Jones was added to the injury report on Thursday. I will monitor the situation and make changes if necessary since FanDuel does allow you to edit your roster. If changes are made, I will update this diary entry as well.