Yahoo! Week 3 $1 Million Baller and Cash Game Strategy

Sep 24, 2021

Patrick Smith/Getty Images

Whether you are playing in the biggest tournament of the week on Yahoo! or prefer to play in smaller GPPs, there are some general positional strategies that you can implement in any size tournament. These concepts include stacking, finding pivots off of popular players, and looking for leverage in other spots. While it’s important to implement these into your lineup-building approach, the foundation of any tournament lineup is a solid core, usually players that you would use in cash games.

Listen to TJ Hernandez and Yahoo's Matt Harmon discuss their top Yahoo DFS values and fades each week HERE!

Stacks to Target

QB Justin Herbert, Chargers ($32)

WR Keenan Allen, Chargers ($26)

WR Tyreek Hill, Chiefs ($33)

There are three games on the main slate with an over/under of at least 55 (LAR vs TB, MIN vs SEA, KC vs LAC) and two other teams with implied totals of at least 28 (ARI, BAL). Players from all of these passing games will keep each other's rostered rates in check but if DFS players decide to ignore one quarterback, it could be Justin Herbert after his average outing in a similar spot last week.

This stack has the second-highest ceiling in this week’s Stack Value Report on 4for4 behind the same two receivers with Patrick Mahomes but using Herbert instead saves a valuable $6 in salary. Even as near-touchdown underdogs, the Chargers still carry an implied point total above 24 and Kansas City’s secondary has been a sieve, allowing the third-most yards per pass attempt (10.37) through the first two weeks.

Despite low usage rates on Sunday night, Tyreek Hill is still one of just four players with at least 30% of team targets and 40% of air yards through the first two weeks. Such usage equates to huge fantasy upside but Hill could still see a rostered rate below 20% with so many other pass-catchers in great spots with lower salaries.

QB Russell Wilson, Seahawks ($36)

WR DK Metcalf, Seahawks ($29)

WR Justin Jefferson, Vikings ($28)

Russell Wilson has been the poster boy for efficiency throughout his career and 2021 has started no different. Through two games, Russ ranks 27th in pass attempts but is tied for third in touchdowns. Now he gets a dream matchup against a Vikings defense that has allowed the second-most yards per attempt through Week 2 and Seattle projects for 29 points, top three on the slate.

Tyler Lockett has benefited the most from Wilson’s early success, catching half of the touchdowns resulting in the second-most Yahoo points among wide receivers through two weeks. DK Metcalf currently ranks 36th in fantasy points among wide receivers but his usage has been nearly identical to Lockett’s—both have seen 31% of the Seahawks’ targets, tied for fifth in the league. Lockett’s 51% air yards share is massive but Metcalf’s 33% share and 11-yard average target depth will result in huge games. With Metcalf having a marginally higher salary than Lockett this week, DK should be in fewer lineups.

Minnesota’s wide receiver situation is similar. Justin Jefferson leads Minnesota in targets and ranks sixth in the league in air yards share but it’s Adam Thielen who has scored the touchdowns and is the WR4 while Jefferson is the WR29. Bet on those fantasy numbers converging before the public does and it’s a recipe for GPP success.

WR Chris Godwin, Buccaneers ($22)

WR Robert Woods, Rams ($25)

Mini correlations are a huge part of adding upside to a tournament lineup and opposing pass-catchers in a likely high-scoring game are often ideal pairings. With Antonio Brown landing on the COVID list, Chris Godwin may have an opportunity to expand on his team-leading 24% target share. Robert Woods saw his role increase from Week 1 to Week 2, accounting for 31% of the Rams targets and a team-high 43% air yards share last week. His usage was overshadowed by Cooper Kupp’s touchdowns but that should keep Woods’s rostered rate in check.

Contrarian Plays to Target

RB Ty’Son Williams, Ravens ($18)

Baltimore is favored by over a touchdown against a Lions defense that has allowed the most fantasy points to running backs through two weeks. Lamar Jackson and Mark Andrews should be relatively popular plays, making Williams a great leverage play. He doubles as a salary pivot off of more popular backs such as Naje Harris ($19), Antonio Gibson ($18) and Damien Harris ($18). In a week where passing games will dominate rostered percentages, making lineups unique with contrarian running backs is a sound strategy.

WR Terry McLaurin, Washington ($21)

With so many games expected to be high scoring with efficient passing attacks, many high-volume pass-catchers on other teams will go overlooked. Terry McLaurin’s usage is among the most valuable players in the league on an offense that has surprisingly trended toward the pass. Washington’s number one receiver can be used to make Josh Allen/Stefon Diggs teams unique or as a low-rostered one-off salary pivot off of players such as Chris Godwin ($22).

WR Mecole Hardman, Chiefs ($11)

With a salary near the minimum, Mecole Hardman ranks as a top-three wide receiver value on 4for4 but will likely be overshadowed by his high-profile teammates and high-volume opponents. Last week, Hardman drew a team-high eight targets and his 132 air yards ranked 11th in the league. This was due largely to the Ravens' successful bracket coverage on Tyreek Hill, a plan the Chargers could implement, a defense that has allowed just one completion on passes 15 or more yards downfield. Because of this, the preferred strategy is to play Hardman and Hill in separate lineups, not stack them together.

Cash Game Strategy

Much like last week, the focus of most lineups will be getting exposure to a handful of offenses in tremendous scoring environments. Most of the top values in those contests are found in the passing game, making the usable running back pool for cash games relatively small. Although it’s rare for a half-PPR site such as Yahoo, player pools suggest that this is a week where using a wide receiver in the flex may be a viable strategy in cash games.