Welcome to the Week 6 DFS Cash Game breakdown and picks article! If you’re new to this article or DFS cash games, please check out my ’10 Rules to Live By’ article.
Well, everyone has to lose sometime. I mentioned last week that the bye weeks were starting and there were a lower number of games on the slate. That ultimately played a major role on FanDuel last week, and I ended up with my first loss of the season. The takeaway for me was it’s probably a good idea to scale my volume of play depending on how many games are on the slate. With ownership condensed, winning and losing on FanDuel last week came down to one or two plays. I had a 2 v 2 with Jaylen Hurts and Kalif Raymond vs. Kirk Cousins and Zay Flowers that I was deciding on. I also had a Patrick Mahomes lineup in the mix, and ultimately, that was the one that would have cashed.
The point of the introduction is the margins are even slimmer when we have fewer games, so it probably makes sense to play a higher volume when we have more games and scale back a bit on the smaller slates. I do strongly prefer FanDuel cash over DraftKings, but with the way they price players differently, there was more diversification on DraftKings. Therefore, it does not surprise me that I was able to pull out a win over there. I will admit it was with some help from my Saturday night roundtable with fellow DFS player SwiftBlade17. With that, I am 4-1 on the season on both sites.
Let’s get back on track with a win on both sites this week. On to the Week 6 DFS cash game picks!
Week 6 DFS Cash Game Picks:
QUARTERBACK
Jalen Hurts
FanDuel: $8700
DraftKings $8200
This is not a mistake. I use the previous week’s article as a template for the next week’s as a way to save time on formatting all the different headers and spacing etc. Just like last week BOTH Hurts and Tua are back in the article! Hurts still hasn’t had the true blow-up game but that also has kept his price in check as well. He is averaging 22.62 FP/G (No. 2) and has the highest floor of any quarterback in the league.
Tua Tagovailoa
FanDuel: $8300
DraftKings: $7600
And here is the aforementioned Tua Tagovailoa, the captain of the most explosive offense in the league. The running game had been dominating the last two games, dinging Tagovailoa’s production. Sadly though, Devon Achane has gone down with injury. Tagovailoa is leading the NFL with 1,614 Passing Yards (No. 1). He has the upside we want with 9.4 Adjusted Yards Per Attempt (2nd) and his receivers averaging 5.33 YAC Per Target (No. 1).
Tua Tagovailoa Advanced Efficiency Metrics
My only concern is the Panthers put up so little resistance that Tagovailoa doesn’t need to throw the ball much in the 2nd half.
Bonus: Matt Stafford DK Only $6100
This will be short and sweet. Over on DraftKings, Matt Stafford is significantly cheaper than the top tier of quarterbacks we are looking at. Cooper Kupp returned last week and looked like he never missed a step with eight receptions for 118 yards. Puka Nacua didn’t drop off a cliff and looks to be here to stay. Consider Stafford on DraftKings if you need to save some salary at quarterback.
Running Back
Joe Mixon
FanDuel: $7000
DraftKings: $6300
I swear this is actually a new article. Joe Mixon is back this week again, and his price is almost identical with only a $100 movement on DraftKings. He is coming in as the second-rated running back in my model on both FanDuel and DraftKings.
After last week, Mixon’s Opportunity Share has moved up to 87.1-percent (1). I am still concerned that he hasn’t actually done a lot with that opportunity. This is a three running back week, so if you feel strongly about someone else, feel free to bypass Mixon for them.
Travis Etienne
FanDuel: $7700
DraftKings: $7100
I woke up last weekend, and Travis Etienne was having a decent game. I thought to myself, well, that’s an okay day for a London game. Next thing I knew, he had two touchdowns and a pile of fantasy points. I still believe we haven’t seen the best of Etienne yet. He may just now be finally hitting his stride. The other option here on DraftKings is Raheem Mostert. He is too expensive on FanDuel, but on DraftKings, he should be in the pool.
Chuba Hubbard
FanDuel: $5500
DraftKings: $4300
Miles Sanders is officially out. This isn’t quite the famed free square that is an insta-play. It is, however, a very good play for the price. Is Chuba Hubbard a legit starting running back in the NFL? No. Can he pay off his price? Yes. There are some concerns that Miami runs the Panthers out of the building. Combined with his price and the fact the Panthers have been targeting their running backs in the passing game, it would be difficult for Hubbard not to reach his payoff. D’Onta Foreman is also an option, particularly on DraftKings.
WIDE RECEIVER
Jordan Addison
FanDuel: $6700
DraftKings: $5700
With Justin Jefferson going down, there is some surplus volume in the Viking’s passing game this week. Jordan Addison has shown himself to already be a solid NFL Wide Receiver. KJ Osborn is also a solid option on DraftKings this week. I didn’t write him up because his FanDuel price is too high for me. For whatever reason, the projection models aren’t high on Addison, but that is fine for me. I will take the reduced ownership and plug him in.
Ja’Marr Chase
FanDuel: $9300
DraftKings: $8300
With as great as running back is this week, wide receiver is pretty blah. I don’t think Ja’Marr Chase‘s price is anything special. The reason why Chase is here is he finally blew up last week with 52.2 fantasy points. He was the difference between winning and losing last week in DFS.
Although Tee Higgins is supposed to be back this week, I will bet on the Bengals going back to what worked last week and fire Chase up here.
TIGHT END
Evan Engram
FanDuel: $5500
DraftKings: $4500
Evan Engram is the top-rated tight end on both sites this week. Engram is also near the top of tight ends on the season with 37 targets (No. 2) and 29 receptions (No. 2). He leads all tight ends with 173 Yards After the Catch (No. 1). Injuries have sapped his production in previous years, but these are the kind of numbers we would expect from someone with his elite talent when healthy.
Evan Engram Advanced Stats & Metrics
I would not play both him and Etienne though, so a decision will need to be made there. On DraftKings, you can go with Engram and Mostert to avoid the double Jaguar combination.
DEFENSE
New England Patriots
FanDuel: $3600
DraftKings: $2600
The Patriots have been terrible this year. However, it has really been their offense that has been awful. The reason I am comfortable with them is the game has a 41.5 O/U. The salary opens up things elsewhere, and I am always happy to bet on the Raiders making mistakes and being generally bad.
Conclusion
People love to ask the question: Is it a three running back week? Yes! Yes, it is. Running back this week is the best it has been all year. I could have easily written up seven different running backs. Find the plays you like at other positions and then take your favorite running backs in the salary bucket you are left with.
GPP bonus play this week is Seattle against Cincinnati. For Seattle, I like Kenneth Walker as a one-off. The stack I like is Geno Smith with DK Metcalf and Tyler Lockett and a Chase or a Mixon runback. It can be flipped around to go Burrow with Chase and a Walker runback.
Good luck this week!
