DFS Strategy Guide
Master cash games, GPPs, and advanced optimization techniques
Back to Command CenterCash Game Strategy
Overview
Cash games reward consistency over upside. You need to finish in the top 50% to profit, making floor and safety paramount.
Key Principles
- Prioritize High Floors: Target players with guaranteed volume and usage
- Pay Up for Stars: Elite players with 20-25 FP floors are worth premium salaries
- Avoid Risky Plays: Limited snap counts, weather concerns, and injury risks should be minimized
- Target Game Environments: High totals and close spreads produce consistent scoring
- Use Chalky Plays: In cash games, it's okay to roster popular players if they're objectively strong
Position-Specific Tips
Quarterback
- Pay up for proven passers in high-scoring games
- Target QBs with rushing upside for safe floors
- Avoid backup QBs or weather concerns
Running Back
- Emphasize three-down backs with receiving roles
- Target volume over boom potential
- Avoid RBBCs unless pricing is exceptional
Wide Receiver
- WR1s with 8+ targets per game are ideal
- Slot receivers provide consistent PPR floors
- Match WRs against soft pass defenses
Tight End
- Pay up for elite TEs (Kelce, Andrews tier)
- Value TEs rarely disappoints in cash games
- Target share is more important than raw totals
Defense
- Target defenses facing backup QBs or poor offenses
- Home favorites are safest plays
- Don't overspend - balance with offensive studs
Optimizer Settings for Cash
- Lineups: Generate 1-3 lineups
- Randomness: Keep low (0-5%)
- Min/Max Exposure: Use to ensure key plays are included
- Stacking: Minimal - QB + 1 pass catcher is sufficient
GPP Tournament Strategy
Overview
GPPs require differentiation and ceiling. You need a top 10-20% finish to profit significantly, prioritizing upside over safety.
Key Principles
- Maximize Ceiling: Target players with 40+ point upside
- Differentiate Ownership: Fade chalk and find leverage on the field
- Embrace Correlation: Stack players from the same game for ceiling
- Take Calculated Risks: Weather, injury, and uncertainty create opportunity
- Build Multiple Lineups: Increase your odds with 20-150 unique entries
Stacking Strategies
Primary Stack
QB + 2-3 pass catchers from same team
Best for high-total games. Maximize ceiling through correlation.
Game Stack
Primary stack + opposing pass catcher
Leverages shootout potential. QB throws, defense responds.
Bring-Back Stack
QB + 1 receiver + opposing RB/WR
Balanced correlation for close, high-scoring games.
Run-Back Stack
RB from favorite + opposing pass catchers
When underdog has to throw to keep pace.
Ownership Leverage
Winning GPPs requires being right when the field is wrong. Look for:
- Contrarian Game Stacks: Games overlooked due to total or spread
- Salary Relief Pivots: Similar players at different ownership levels
- Thin Field Positions: Positions where chalk is concentrated
- Negative Narratives: Players dismissed due to recent performance or matchup
Optimizer Settings for GPPs
- Lineups: Generate 20-150 lineups
- Randomness: Medium to high (15-30%)
- Max Exposure: 50-70% on core plays, 20-40% on pivots
- Stacking: Aggressive - Force QB + 2-3 receivers, game stacks
- Uniqueness: Aim for <5% field duplication
Advanced Tactics
Correlation & Stacking Science
Understanding how players' performances affect each other is key to maximizing ceiling.
- Positive Correlation: QB + WRs, RB + Defense (blowout), WR + Opposing WR (shootout)
- Negative Correlation: RB + Opposing Defense, QB + Opposing Defense
- Game Script Leverage: Predict how games unfold to identify correlated groups
Salary Management
Stars & Scrubs
Pay up for 2-3 elite players, fill in with minimum-priced value. High variance, tournament-oriented.
Balanced Build
Spread salary evenly across roster. Lower ceiling but safer floors. Better for cash games.
Leverage & Ownership Plays
Maximize your edge by identifying where the field is concentrated:
- Chalk Leverage: When a player is 40%+ owned, fading them creates unique builds
- Thin Positions: If QB has one 30% chalk play, pivot to a 5% option for differentiation
- Correlation Leverage: Stack games the field is overlooking
Late Swap Strategy
Adjust lineups after early games complete (DraftKings allows late swap in some contests):
- Monitor early game performance
- Identify where your lineup stands relative to the field
- Swap to safer plays if you're in good position
- Swap to higher ceiling if you need to make up ground
Multi-Entry Strategy
For 20-150 lineup GPP builds:
- Identify 3-5 "core" players (50-80% exposure)
- Identify 5-8 "secondary" plays (20-40% exposure)
- Build around 2-3 different game stacks
- Ensure uniqueness - avoid duplicate lineups
- Balance chalk and contrarian plays across your pool
Using the Optimizer for Advanced Builds
Our optimizer supports advanced strategies with:
- Player Groups: Force/exclude specific player combinations
- Stacking Rules: QB + 2-3 receivers, game stacks, bring-backs
- Exposure Controls: Min/max exposure for every player
- Uniqueness Settings: Prevent duplicate builds
- Randomness Control: Fine-tune lineup diversity
Lineup Pruning & Management
What is Lineup Pruning?
The Lineup Pruning Tool is a post-build refinement system that helps you intelligently reduce your lineup count without starting over. After generating 150-300 lineups, pruning lets you selectively trim redundant or low-value entries while preserving the strategic diversity and balance you've built.
Think of it as quality control for your lineup pool—not a rebuild, but intelligent filtering that respects your original optimization strategy while removing lineups that don't add value.
When to Use Pruning
- Contest Entry Limits: You built 300 lineups but the contest caps entries at 150
- Excessive Overlap: Your lineups are too similar and lack differentiation
- Exposure Rebalancing: Certain players or team stacks are over-represented
- Budget Constraints: You want to reduce entry costs by trimming to highest-value lineups
- Final Polish: You're satisfied with your pool but want to remove the weakest 10-20%
The Four Pruning Strategies
Each strategy uses a different algorithm to evaluate and rank your lineups. Choose based on your contest type and strategic goals.
Smart Diversity
What it does: Minimizes player overlap between lineups by selecting the most unique player combinations.
How it works:
- Calculates overlap matrix showing player duplication across all lineups
- Uses greedy selection algorithm to keep lineups with least player overlap
- Prioritizes preserving maximum roster variety in your final pool
Best use cases:
- Large-field GPP tournaments (1000+ entries)
- When differentiation from the field is critical
- Multi-entry strategies requiring diverse player exposure
- Avoiding duplicate or near-duplicate lineups
Pro tip: Use this after building with medium-high randomness to create a truly unique lineup pool that covers many different player combinations.
Top Performers
What it does: Keeps lineups with the highest total projected points.
How it works:
- Sorts all lineups by total projected points (descending)
- Selects the top N lineups based on your target count
- Pure mathematical optimization with no other considerations
Best use cases:
- Cash games (50/50s, double-ups, head-to-heads)
- When you have high confidence in your projections
- Smaller field contests where safety matters more than uniqueness
- Final trimming to remove lowest-projection lineups
Pro tip: This is the most straightforward strategy—it simply keeps your highest-projected lineups. Best when projection accuracy is your competitive edge.
Salary Efficient
What it does: Prioritizes lineups with the best points-per-dollar value.
How it works:
- Calculates efficiency ratio: (projected points) / (salary in thousands)
- Ranks lineups by efficiency score (higher is better)
- Identifies lineups that maximize value relative to salary spent
Best use cases:
- Finding value plays and sleeper-heavy lineups
- When salary flexibility is important (punt strategies)
- Identifying lineups with best risk-adjusted returns
- Testing which lineups get the most bang for your buck
Pro tip: This often surfaces lineups with mid-tier players who offer strong value. Great for finding contrarian builds that don't rely on expensive chalk.
Stack Diversity
What it does: Preserves different team stacking combinations across your lineup pool.
How it works:
- Analyzes team stacking patterns in each lineup (QB-WR combos, game stacks, etc.)
- Groups lineups by their unique stacking signatures
- Selects the best-performing lineup from each stack group
Best use cases:
- GPP tournaments where correlation matters
- Maintaining exposure to multiple game environments
- When you've built around specific team stacks and want to preserve variety
- Ensuring your pool covers different high-scoring game scenarios
Pro tip: Essential when you've used aggressive stacking rules in your build. Ensures you don't lose exposure to key game stacks during pruning.
Strategy Comparison Table
| Strategy | Primary Goal | Best Contest Type | Key Benefit |
|---|---|---|---|
| Smart Diversity | Minimize player overlap | Large GPPs | Maximum uniqueness |
| Top Performers | Highest projected points | Cash games | Pure optimization |
| Salary Efficient | Best points/dollar value | Value-focused builds | Identifies sleepers |
| Stack Diversity | Preserve team correlations | GPPs with stacking | Maintains game variety |
Best Practices for Pruning
- Start Light: Prune by 10-20% at a time rather than making aggressive cuts. You can always prune again.
- Always Preview First: Use the Preview button to see which lineups will be removed before applying. Check if you're losing important player exposures.
- Compare Player Exposure: After pruning, review your Build Results to ensure key players still have appropriate exposure levels.
- Match Strategy to Contest Type: Use Top Performers for cash games where pure optimization matters. Use Smart Diversity or Stack Diversity for GPPs where differentiation is key.
- Consider Multiple Strategies: Try different strategies on the same lineup pool to see how results differ. Each algorithm surfaces different lineup characteristics.
- Don't Over-Prune: Trimming from 300 to 150 lineups is smart. Trimming from 50 to 10 may lose too much strategic variety.
Common Pruning Workflows
Cash Game Workflow
- Build 20-30 lineups with low randomness
- Use Top Performers to reduce to 3-5 best lineups
- Manually review and select your favorite 1-3 for entry
GPP Tournament Workflow
- Build 250-300 lineups with medium-high randomness and stacking
- Use Smart Diversity to reduce to 180 lineups
- Use Stack Diversity to further trim to 150 lineups
- Review final exposure distribution and export
