Roster construction once again favored using cheaper running backs and spending up at wide receiver in daily fantasy football contests in Week 13. Not only were almost all of the "value" running backs in good matchups, but there were also plenty to choose from, including: David Johnson, Buck Allen, Shaun Draughn, Jonathan Stewart and DeAngelo Williams.
Given the abundance of value plays at RB, it was much easier to build tournament teams knowing that ownership would not be concentrated too heavily in any one pairing. The elite running backs (Todd Gurley, Adrian Peterson, and Devonta Freeman) were all in less than favorable positions, lending even more to paying down at the position and using salary elsewhere. You could easily see this strategy again in Week 14, as Peterson will be off the board in many contests (playing Thursday), Freeman faces the Panthers, and Gurley faces the resurgent Lions.
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All of the previously mentioned cheap running backs turned in good performances, scoring similar point totals -- with the exception of Buck Allen. Allen was needed to take first place in most GPPs, just like Allen Robinson was a crucial wide receiver to own for winning teams. With Antonio Brown scoring 34 points at nearly 30-percent owned, there is no doubt his name was most popular among teams that cashed last week.
It was another week where the "chalk" plays largely came through, which always leads to higher scoring. Let's take a look at the winning team in the FanDuel Sunday Million contest:
See our optimal Week 14 FanDuel lineup for big-money tournaments here
Even though Robinson was owned across the entire top 10, the Ben Roethlisber-Antonio Brown pairing made up seven of the top 10 teams. Robinson and Allen were indispensable due to their points above replacement, meaning the gap between the next-best player was widest at the receiver position, thus making them the most important to own. That combo could be combined with either Cam Newton, Marcus Mariota or Roethlisberger -- along with any of the value running backs -- for a formidable GPP team. As always, selecting the best defense and kickers help separate the top one percent above the rest.
We've discussed many different styles of teams that win large GPPs, but how do we know which one to use on a weekly basis? I'd recommend choosing to either go all-in with a finite group of players you feel strongly about, or spreading out your teams across multiple scenarios. Regardless, I always start with my favorite QB-WR pairings and work from there.
Choosing a game stack is another easy way to build a high ceiling tournament team. Those entering multiple lineups would be wise to start with a Saints game and add in some less obvious game stacks. Deeper game theory entails not just selecting low-owned plays, but also those who will benefit from the downfall of higher-owned players.
MORE DAILY FANTASY: Best Week 14 values | NFL DFS Playbook
Week 14 daily fantasy football tips and picks
As we look forward, I see a few QB-WR pairing that interest me for Week 14. One could view these plays as chasing production, but upon deeper analysis these players are just in good spots again this week:
Tyrod Taylor facing the Eagles is a great matchup, and Taylor can be played "naked" (due to running ability) or paired with Sammy Watkins. The Eagles offense plays at such a high relative pace to other teams, it results in more possessions for their opponent.
Russell Wilson to Doug Baldwin won me a lot of money two weeks ago, but even I didn't back to the well last week against the Vikings. I'll certainly have shares this week against the poor Ravens pass defense. Baldwin is still a tournament play for me, especially at his inflated price.($6,800).
Some may shy away from the Bengals defense, but I love a Roethlisberger/Brown combo once again. I'm just not sure if the ownership will be low enough for my liking in tournaments.
Jameis Winston wins the recommendation for "Who faces the Saints?" I'm leaning toward playing him alone because I feel like it could be a week where Austin Seferian-Jenkins, Mike Evans, and Vincent Jackson could spread out the production and all score a touchdown. However, pairing him with any of those three is a fine tournament strategy.
As always, good luck this week.
Sporting News contributor maddox2 has been playing Daily Fantasy Sports for two years and was a finalist in the 2015 Playboy Basketball Championship. When not tending to his full-time job in Finance, he's grinding DFS all year long in the three major sports. Follow him @maddox2DFS on Twitter.
