Daily Fantasy Football Salary Cap League Draft Strategy
by Brandon McNaulty, RotoPicks.com
There's more to NFL Salary Cap leagues than cramming players into a weekly lineup. If you build your lineup at the wrong time or without consulting matchups, you're leaving tons of points in the draft pool. Here's some tips to help with building a team in a daily fantasy football salary cap league.
Step-by-Step Strategy for Salary Cap Leagues
Wait on setting a lineup
On Tuesdays and Wednesdays, NFL coaches tend to be quiet-even cryptic-about injury reports and starting lineups. Since Wednesday's forecast may shake up a few times by gametime on Sunday, wait until Sunday morning to set your lineup. Otherwise, you run the risk of starting an injured or benched player and neglecting to change it. Note: I recommend putting a lineup in, but not finalizing it until Sunday morning. By having a lineup in the system, you protect yourself against unforseen risks, such as your internet being down Sunday morning or you not being able to get to a computer for some odd reason. I've even heard some guys say they forgot! Doh!
Avoid "game-time decision" players who have later (4PM EST and Primetime) start times
A player listed as "Questionable" on an NFL injury report is said to have a 50/50 chance of playing. Normally, coaches will announce on Sunday morning whether the player is active, but some players end up as "game-time decisions." This can cause problems in NFL salary cap leagues because lineups must be finalized before the start of the 1PM EST games. That means that injured players with 4PM EST or Primetime starts could end up burning you if they end up listed as inactive. So why run the risk? If you're starting someone in a later game, make sure he's active. Missing one player's statistics in a GPP league will surely kill your chances of winning.
Build your lineup, starting with cheap sleepers
Every player in a salary league will cost you some fantasy bucks. The superstars and reliable guys cost good money, while backups and no-names can be had for cheap. But which bargain guys are worth it? Check injury reports throughout the week to see who's sitting out. If a starting Running Back gets listed as inactive, start his backup-you'll get a starter's workload at a discount price. Also keep an eye out for rookies and backups who sneak up a team's depth chart throughout the week. If a guy impresses in practice, his coach may name him a starter by the weekend-and you can still grab him for his original price on the draft board.
Find a cheap Defense/Special Teams Unit that faces a weak offense
Defenses (D/STs) typically score less than all the other positions, and even the best defenses are hit-and-miss on a weekly basis. Rather than picking the best possible D/ST, you'd do better to pick a cheap one facing a mediocre offense.
Take either an elite Tight End or a dirt-cheap one with a friendly matchup
Tight End is the most unreliable position outside of D/ST. There are usually a few excellent TEs in the NFL who factor prominently into their team's offensive scheme, but for the most part you can't trust any of these guys. The same TE who catches two TDs in Week 1 might not have another score till Week 7 or 8 or the playoffs. For that reason, either spend big or spend the bare minimum on TEs. A great strategy is to check which teams give up the most fantasy points to TEs, then find a cheap TE who goes against that bottom-five defense. But whatever you do, avoid mid-priced TEs. They usually need to score a TD to live up to their salary value, and those TDs are never a guarantee.
Pick superstars with super matchups
Here's where you can bank serious points if you have money to spend. Don't shy away from high price tags if the matchup is glorious: a top RB vs. a last-ranked run defense, an elite WR against a team that's missing it's best cornerback, or a pass-happy QB facing a broken secondary. Though elite players typically cost a good chunk of your salary, sometimes the matchups make them too good to pass on. Don't overthink it.
Pick mid-carders with good matchups
Once you've gathered bargain guys and superstars, it's time to top off your lineup with mid-priced guys. These are your QBs, RBs, and WRs who don't always explode but have the talent to: a team's no. 2 WR on a week when the no. 1 WR faces an shutdown cornerback; a backup RB who may get extra looks if his team blows out the opponent; an unsung QB who'll have to throw 35+ times to keep his team in the game. Consider favorable matchups and how they can benefit the not-so-obvious guys.
Balance your lineup
Once you've set you're lineup, check it over. If you have extra money to spend, you might want to upgrade one or more positions. If some of your cheap or mid-priced picks aren't sexy enough, you might want to sacrifice a superstar and spread the money around more evenly. Or, if you're itching to grab the week's top players, see if you can live with downgrading at other positions.
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