NFL DFS Lineup Optimizer Rules and My Favorite Angle for the Divisional Round

Our Lineup Optimizer is an incredibly powerful tool inside our Player Models, particularly when creating a large number of lineups. However, it’s just that — a tool. We still have to make decisions. Otherwise, everyone would have the same 150 lineups in each contest.

This is intended more as a teaching piece than a step-by-step guide. These rules are suggestions that can show you how to translate your read on these games into lineups.

Each week I’ll go over my favorite DFS angle for the given week and go over some of our Lineup Optimizer settings that are worth considering.

Now, let’s get to it!

My Favorite Divisional Round NFL DFS Angle

Shoutout to Draftkings for giving us a legit 4-gamer as the featured slate this week to make the contests much more interesting. As usual, I am hunting for low-owned pivots that can make or break the slate. This week I have my eye on two receivers that seem to be going under the radar.

Tee Higgins gets just an absurd price tag at just $5,800 and still looks likely to come in below 20% owned. While Ja’Marr Chase has certainly been getting fed since returning from his injury, we have a multi-year history now of Higgins being a legit 1B to Chase’s 1A.

We’ve also seen several coaches scheme heavily towards taking away the opponent’s WR1 this postseason, notably Justin Jefferson last week. Joe Burrow is the type of cerebral QB who takes what the defense gives him and would funnel targets to Higgins in a similar setup. Either way, Higgins is a top-tier talent who can threaten double-digit targets in what should be a true shootout with the potential for 40 pass attempts on each side.

Kadarius Toney comes in at just $4100 and currently projecting for around 10% ownership. Toney is inarguably the Chiefs’ most talented player in the wide receiver room, with scores in two of the team’s last three games. Prior to the setback with his hamstring injury, we saw Toney’s snaps being ramped up each week. Since returning in Week 15, Toney’s snaps have been managed significantly, which I would argue was possibly to keep him on ice for the playoff stretch.

It makes sense to me that Andy Reid would continue looking to scheme up touches to his most explosive player, especially with a week of rest and everything to play for now in the postseason. If Toney could approach just 50% of snaps this weekend, he could completely nuke the slate.

Lineup Optimizer Rules to Consider

Below are the rules to consider for main slate. For more context on optimizer rules or the Showdown format in general, check out my NFL Showdown Primer.

General

Minimum salary cap: 99%

Flex positions: WR, RB, TE ( I like RB in FLEX much less than usual)

Player Correlations

Optimal tournament construction includes stacking your quarterback with at least one, but usually two, pass-catcher(s) from the same team and at least one pass-catcher from the opposing team.

A mobile quarterback with a big rushing game is more likely to only need one teammate paired. These settings can be accomplished through rules in the “Position” tab or through the Player Correlations tab for more control.

I’m OK with single-stacking Daniel Jones, Dak Prescott, and Jalen Hurts this week.

This week with more potent offensives on the slate, I would make a rule to max 1 Giants receiver unless paired with Daniel Jones.

In my Dak stacks, I would like to make sure I have at least one of CeeDee Lamb and Dalton Schultz.

When lineups include ALL of Tee Higgins and Ja’Marr Chase, include Joe Burrow. There is virtually no way for both of these expensive receivers to hit the optimal lineup without Burrow also being included.

Player Groups

• At most one of Devin Singletary and James Cook
• At most two of Jamar Chase, Tee Higgins, and Joe Mixon
• At most one of Jalen Hurts and Miles Sanders
• At most two of Devonta Smith, AJ Brown and Miles Sanders