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SUNDAY MORNING UPDATE:
Each Sunday around 11 AM EST, this article will be updated based on any surprise inactive or just news in general that is updated throughout the week. It will have the latest recommended cash game lineup included as well.
1) Tyreek Hill's soreness in cash worries me enough that I'm pulling him out of my cash lineup this week.
2) Unfortunately, it looks like Alvin Kamara and David Johnson are both going to play this week, this leaves just Malcolm Brown as the lone extreme value play on the slate.
3) The more I look into this Minnesota game, the more I like Adam Thielen's chances of a big game as Minnesota is going to be forced to go to the air against this vaunted Eagles run defense. The Eagles struggle mightily against the pass and have allowed 100 yards or more to a receiver five times this year.
4) The reports on George Kittle are seeming to be more concerning than originally reported. I'm not sure you can start him this week with reports that there is concern he will be able to finish the game.
- QB Patrick Mahomes, KC, $9,200
- RB Malcolm Brown, LAR, $4,800
- RB Chris Carson, SEA $7,200
- WR DeAndre Hopkins, HOU, $8,400
- WR Adam Thielen, MIN, $7,200
- WR Larry Fitzgerald, ARI $5,600
- TE Zach Ertz, PHI $6,600
- Flex RB- Leonard Fournette, $7,300
- TD Minnesota Vikings, $3,600
Good luck this week to everyone, as always if there are questions feel free to reach out.
SITUATIONS THAT STAND OUT TO THIS WEEK ON THE MAIN SLATE.
- Kansas City (vs Hou) – 29.5 points
- Baltimore (vs Cin) – 29.25 points
- Atlanta (vs ARI) – 26.75 points
- Dallas (vs NYJ) – 25.5 points
- Houston (vs KC) – 25.5 points
BANKROLL STRATEGY- VARIATION
Last week was a bit of a let down as there were a few players that essentially if you did not have, you were likely going to lose. Last week the large decision was Lamar Jackson and Deshaun Watson, and this week the quarterback position will once again be a critical factor as there are five players that are in play in Patrick Mahomes, Kyler Murray, Lamar Jackson, Deshaun Watson and possibly even Matt Ryan. If you are playing in 50/50 contests, you may want to consider running 2 or even three lineups this week with different combinations as there are several different approaches that can work this week. We are only in Week 6, and this is not the week to go above your normal amount from a bankroll standpoint.
Below is Devin Knotts' cash game strategy for Week 5 as well as his cash game lineup.
CASH GAME STRATEGY WEEK 5
SOME OF THE SITUATIONS TO BE THINKING ABOUT ARE BELOW
- We called it out last week, but Lamar Jackson does not look like the same quarterback as he did in the first two weeks of the season. That is mostly due to matchups as he faced Miami and Arizona in the first two weeks of the season. Over the last three weeks, Jackson has thrown just four touchdowns to five interceptions and outside of garbage time production in Kansas City and Cleveland would have been a major disappointment for the last three weeks.
If Jackson was facing an average defense this week, he would be an avoid, but facing the Bengals defense who were the second-worst defense against quarterbacks in 2018, and are starting to show cracks in their defense after a great start as Kyler Murray ran all over this defense last week with 93 yards and a touchdown. In cash games, Jackson is likely a fade this week as there are better options, but something to think about heading into this week. This seems like a great GPP play, but the floor remains lower than other quarterbacks as we saw last week especially without Marquise Brown.
- How to evaluate Deshaun Watson? Watson is an incredibly difficult player to evaluate as there is a disappointing game on the horizon it is just avoiding when it will occur. This season, Watson has had two games in which he greatly disappointed as he threw for 160 yards or less and no touchdowns. He was able to rush for a touchdown in each of those games, but when you are paying up for Watson you want the consistency and upside that quarterbacks bring to the table each week in cash games.
- Where to spend up at wide receiver is a big dilemma this week. DeAndre Hopkins is likely the top cash gameplay simply because of how the game is expected to play out with it being the highest over/under, but even he comes with some worry this week.
- Michael Thomas will likely be popular but draws a tough matchup particularly if Jalen Ramsey suits up this week.
- DeAndre Hopkins is in a great matchup in what should be a high scoring game, but Hopkins has not seen the massive volume that we have become accustomed to over the past few seasons as he has not had more than 8 targets since Week 1.
- Julio Jones is averaging just 46 yards and 3.5 receptions over his last two games but is in a great spot this week against Arizona.
- Amari Cooper has been fantastic so far this season, but is priced up at $8,100 and will likely see Jamal Adams playing him over the top this week at safety as the Jets will likely double Cooper for most of the game.
INJURY UNLOCKS OPPORTUNITY?
This week several injuries are potentially game-changing on how to approach this slate.
- Malcolm Brown is the key to this slate, and the disappointing thing is that it is unlikely we will know Todd Gurley’s status by lock on Sunday. Gurley is considered doubtful at this point, and at just $4,800, would make Malcolm Brown one of the top plays of this slate. The matchup is not a great one as the 49ers have not allowed a rushing touchdown on the season and have allowed just 11.6 FanDuel points per game to opposing running backs, but this is a scenario in which you’re getting a player who will likely get 15 carries for just $4.8k which will open up the entire slate from a salary standpoint.
- Alvin Kamara is a bit of a surprise addition to the injury report as he is questionable with an ankle injury. If he were to be unable to go, Latavius Murray would surpass Malcolm Brown as the top play on this slate at just $5k. Murray is in a much better matchup than Brown, facing a Jaguars defense that has allowed the sixth-most FanDuel points to opposing running backs on the season and is coming off a game in which they allowed 256 yards rushing to Carolina last week.
- Tyreek Hill is truly an unknown at this point. He remains questionable with a shoulder injury, and Dr. Jene Bramel of Footballguys thinks that there are two likely scenarios, either he plays his full complement of snaps, or he is inactive this week as conditioning should not be an issue for Hill. At just $7,400 in what is projected to be the highest-scoring game of the week, Hill is a fantastic play if active.
- Marquise Brown is likely to be inactive with an ankle injury after leaving the game early last week. The problem is that there isn’t a direct replacement for the speedster Brown as his value is not in the number of targets that he gets, but rather what he can do with the targets. Willie Snead and Mark Andrews should see a slight increase, but in reality, the big winner here is likely Mark Ingram who we saw last week have 19 carries which was a season-high. Expect the Ravens to go to a more run-heavy approach this week without their top receiver.
KEY STRATEGY OF THE WEEK
Avoiding the Traps
This week, with no Christian McCaffrey, there is not a single build that is going to be incredibly popular. This week, many players are going to be popular, but the key this week is to avoid the traps. It’s easier said than done, but the approach you should take is to avoid taking players who have low ceilings. Players such as Michael Gallup, Tyler Boyd, D.J. Chark are all going to get some love in cash games this week based on their price and recent production. However, this week, the proper approach is to take players with consistent production who are in good offenses.
KEY CASH CORE
Chris Carson
The fumbling issues that plagued Chris Carson in the early season seem to be behind him. With Rashaad Penny still dealing with a hamstring injury, Chris Carson’s volume has been ridiculous over the last two weeks. Carson has 54 touches over the last two weeks and is going up against a Browns defense that has struggled against the run since Christian Kirksey was lost for the year with a pectoral injury. The 49ers ran for 245 yards last week as if you can get to the second level of this defense the major yards as they run towards rookie linebacker Mack Wilson.
Minnesota Defense
Minnesota’s defense is simply mispriced this week at just $3,600. The Vikings have possibly the best defensive end pairing in the NFL with Danielle Hunter and Everson Griffen who is back to performing at an All-Pro level that we have become used to after a down year last year. The Vikings also have two of the best safeties in football with Harrison Smith and Anthony Harris. This is a unit that has not allowed more than 21 points on the season and is averaging allowing just 14 points per game. With one of the better home-field crowds in the NFL, this unit plays exceptionally well at home as they have averaged four sacks per game and averaging two turnovers per game at home.
Larry Fitzgerald
In what should be one of, if not the highest-scoring game of the week, Larry Fitzgerald remains underpriced as he has been all season. Fitzgerald gets the most favorable matchup against the Falcons this week as he is going to be facing slot corner, Damontae Kazee. Atlanta has allowed the most fantasy points to opposing wide receivers, and a slot receiver has scored a touchdown in every game this season and Larry Fitzgerald has the most targets of any wide receiver inside the 10-yard line.
LINEUPS
Disclaimer: These lineups assume Alvin Kamara is playing, if he’s not, Latavius Murray would replace Malcolm Brown in these lineups where possible. This lineup also assumes Tyreek Hill is playing.
SAMPLE ROSTER 1 ($60K) – PRIMARY CASH- (DD PROJECTED POINTS = 127.8)
- QB Patrick Mahomes, KC, $9,200
- RB Malcolm Brown, LAR, $4,800
- RB Chris Carson, SEA $7,200
- WR DeAndre Hopkins, HOU, $8,400
- WR Tyreek Hill, KC, $7,400
- WR Larry Fitzgerald, ARI $5,600
- TE George Kittle, SF, $6,500
- Flex RB- Leonard Fournette, $7,300
- TD Minnesota Vikings, $3,600
SAMPLE ROSTER 2 ($60K) – ALTERNATIVE CASH Lineup Hou vs KC Game Stack (DD PROJECTED POINTS = 129.3)
- QB Deshaun Watson, HOU, $8,400
- RB Malcolm Brown, LAR, $4,800
- RB Chris Carson, SEA $7,200
- WR DeAndre Hopkins, HOU, $8,400
- WR Tyreek Hill, KC, $7,400
- WR Larry Fitzgerald, ARI $5,600
- TE Travis Kelce, KC, $7,500
- Flex RB- Le’Veon Bell NYJ, $6,800
- TD Minnesota Vikings, $3,600
SAMPLE ROSTER 3 ($60K) – CASH+ ATL vs ARI and KC vs Hou Game STACKs (DD PROJECTED POINTS = 122.6)
- QB Matt Ryan, ATL, $8,100
- RB Malcolm Brown, LAR, $4,800
- RB Chris Carson, $7,200
- WR Julio Jones, $8,500
- WR DeAndre Hopkins, HOU, $8,500
- WR Larry Fitzgerald, $5,600
- TE Austin Hooper, $6,400
- Flex WR- Tyreek Hill
- TD Minnesota Vikings, $3,600
Any questions on your cash game lineup or feedback on the article? Send me a message on Twitter below.