What do I mean by understanding what happens in the trenches relative to an NFL team? Most DFS players are only focused on the skill players (QB, WR, RB, TE) for each NFL team when constructing multiple lineups for Draftkings contests. In my opinion, DFS players are inclined to do so due to the fact that the skill players are the ones that score fantasy points for your Draftkings lineups and non-skill players, specifically the o-line and d-line in this case, do not acquire points. In my opinion, that is a flawed and short-sighted thought process.

Why do I think focusing on non-skill position players is important in DFS strategy? I will provide that answer for you later in this article as I construct multiple lineups for a large field GPP (guaranteed prize pool) Draftkings NFL classic contest.    

Before we dive into constructing multiple lineups (utilizing the ASL optimizer), let’s review the rules for Draftkings NFL classic contests.   

In NFL salary cap classic contests, participants create a lineup by selecting players listed in the designated Draftkings player pool. The DFS contestant will be tasked with constructing lineups consisting of nine skill players from the player pool provided: 1 QB, 2 WRs, 2 RBs, 1 TE, 1 DST, and 1 FLEX (WR, RB or TE). 

Lineups must include players from at least two different NFL games. These are the basic rules. Additional rules for the Draftkings NFL Classic are available on the Draftkings website.

Now that we have determined the rules for the Draftkings NFL Classic contest, let's shift our attention to my first step in the DFS multiple lineup construction process by accessing the ASL optimizer. In the image is an image of the main screen of the ASL optimizer:

I will be constructing 10 lineups for the $5K Draftkings NFL Wild Card Sunday (main slate) classic contest that consists of three playoff games. My process always begins by identifying my favorite skill player on the slate. After reviewing the relevant data using the ASL tools, my favorite skill player is Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott.  

Now that I have determined that Dak Prescott is the most important skill player on the slate, let’s pivot back to my earlier discussion regarding the importance of non-skill players in DFS. Let me pose a quick question relative to the subject matter.

Are the Cowboys offensive lineman (non-skill players) relevant to Prescott’s ability to score a high number of points for your Draftkings lineups? Absolutely! If the offensive lineman just mentioned cannot protect Prescott than he most certainly can’t post a high number of fantasy points for your Draftkings lineups. Keep that in mind as you construct DFS lineups moving forward.

I am sure you are asking yourself why I like Prescott’s chances of success this week. Let me elaborate. The Dallas Cowboys will be hosting a Green Bay Packers team that clearly has had issues on the defensive side of the football this season.

A clear example of the Packers defensive struggles can be seen in the team’s loss to the lowly Atlanta Falcons two weeks ago. Green Bay allowed Falcons quarterback Desmond Ridder to throw for 267 yards, throw a passing touchdown, and allowed him to add an additional rushing touchdown. If Ridder can do that what will Prescott do?

Through 17 games played in the regular season, Dak Prescott ranks third in overall completion percentage (69.5%), third in total yards (4,516), and first in passing touchdowns (36). In Prescott's last three games played, he has thrown a total of eight touchdowns. Prescott also gets to sling the rock to Dallas WR CeeDee Lamb. Lamb is one of the best receivers in the NFL today.

For this week, I utilized the Set Pro Tabs tool on the ASL optimizer in a way that exposed my lineups to at least 40% of Dak Prescott at QB. I also used the tool to ensure I had appropriate exposure to other relevant Cowboys skill players (WR, TE, RB).

Lastly, now that I have entered the data, I request the optimizer to provide 10 lineups. The ASL optimizer allows you to enter a large number of lineups (up to 150) at one time with ease via a CSV.

For clarity, I constructed ten lineups for an extremely large field Draftkings NFL Classic GPP contest. First prize was $250. In total, I spent only $1.00 to enter and won a total of $2.60 back. The image below shows the Draftkings scattergram of my results:

As shown below, my best lineup finished 161st out of 59,453 entries.  

What did we learn? Well, it turned out that the Green Bay d-line gave Prescott more trouble than expected, with four sacks and pressure that resulted in 2 Int. Nevertheless, Prescott's stat line was still impressive, 41 completions on 60 attempts for 403 yards and 3 TDs, as well as 45 rushing yards. Certainly, the Cowboy's trench battle left something to be desired, but it was enough to result in success in the Draftkings contest. Additionally, we learned that the ASL optimizer is a valuable tool in constructing multiple lineups. The optimizer assisted me in surrounding my favorite skill player (Prescott) with the appropriate players to come very close to taking down one of the largest field GPP contests on Draftkings.

Until next time, continued good luck!