NFL Week 1 DFS: Winning Wide Receiver Combinations

Finding Wide Receiver Groups To Win Your NFL DFS Matchup

August 29, 2021

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When setting your NFL daily fantasy lineup, one strategy is to make selections one position group at a time. At a minimum, a DFS player will be selecting 3 wide receivers. Having a strong grasp of this position presents an opportunity to gain a leg up on opponents. When drafting receivers, it is important to take a holistic approach. Attempting to find the best combination of projected total points and value.

While it is important to be mindful of how you are allocating to each position, there are other times it makes the most sense to go all out with the group’s top players.

Week 1 Receiver Groups (Most Points)

	Receiver 1	Receiver 2	Receiver 3	Combined Points	Combined Salary	% Cap	$/Point	Salary Remaining	Avg $/Player Remaining
0	D.ADAMS	T.HILL	D.HOPKINS	46.550449	25300	42.2	54300.0	34700	5783.0
1	D.ADAMS	T.HILL	D.METCALF	46.314062	24800	41.3	53500.0	35200	5867.0
2	D.ADAMS	T.HILL	A.THIELEN	45.433478	24400	40.7	53700.0	35600	5933.0
3	D.ADAMS	T.HILL	J.JEFFERSON	44.837620	25100	41.8	56000.0	34900	5817.0
4	D.ADAMS	T.HILL	J.CROWDER	44.729584	23000	38.3	51400.0	37000	6167.0
5	D.ADAMS	D.HOPKINS	D.METCALF	44.595513	24500	40.8	54900.0	35500	5917.0
6	T.HILL	D.HOPKINS	D.METCALF	44.518960	24400	40.7	54800.0	35600	5933.0
7	D.ADAMS	T.HILL	C.RIDLEY	44.486786	25200	42.0	56600.0	34800	5800.0
8	D.ADAMS	T.HILL	J.SMITH-SCHUSTER	43.942720	23500	39.2	53500.0	36500	6083.0
9	D.ADAMS	D.HOPKINS	A.THIELEN	43.714929	24100	40.2	55100.0	35900	5983.0

Being successful in NFL DFS often boils down to finding value, or paying the least for each point scored. For example, when paired with Davante Adams and Tyreke Hill, merely substituting Deandrea Hopkins for Jamison Crowder frees up $2,300 while only sacrificing 2 fantasy points (projected).

Week 1 Receiver Groups (Highest Value)

	Receiver 1	Receiver 2	Receiver 3	Combined Points	Combined Salary	% Cap	$/Point	Salary Remaining	Avg $/Player Remaining
0	D.ADAMS	T.HILL	J.CROWDER	44.729584	23000	38.3	51400.0	37000	6167.0
1	T.HILL	J.CROWDER	J.SMITH-SCHUSTER	40.326753	20800	34.7	51600.0	39200	6533.0
2	D.ADAMS	J.CROWDER	J.SMITH-SCHUSTER	40.403306	20900	34.8	51700.0	39100	6517.0
3	T.HILL	D.METCALF	J.CROWDER	42.698096	22100	36.8	51800.0	37900	6317.0
4	D.ADAMS	D.METCALF	J.CROWDER	42.774648	22200	37.0	51900.0	37800	6300.0
5	T.HILL	A.THIELEN	J.CROWDER	41.817512	21700	36.2	51900.0	38300	6383.0
6	D.ADAMS	A.THIELEN	J.CROWDER	41.894064	21800	36.3	52000.0	38200	6367.0
7	T.HILL	J.CROWDER	T.BOYD	38.959987	20300	33.8	52100.0	39700	6617.0
8	D.METCALF	J.CROWDER	J.SMITH-SCHUSTER	38.371817	20000	33.3	52100.0	40000	6667.0
9	D.ADAMS	J.CROWDER	T.BOYD	39.036539	20400	34.0	52300.0	39600	6600.0

One straightforward philosophy to choosing wide receivers is to spend no more than 1/3rd of the cap on the group. According to the week 1 model, there are ways to both spend less than 1/3rd of the cap and include top options like Davante Adams and Tyreke Hill.

Week 1 Receiver Groups Under 1/3 Of DFS Salary (Most Points)

	Receiver 1	Receiver 2	Receiver 3	Combined Points	Combined Salary	% Cap	$/Point	Salary Remaining	Avg $/Player Remaining
0	A.THIELEN	J.CROWDER	J.SMITH-SCHUSTER	37.491234	19600	32.7	52300.0	40400	6733.0
1	D.ADAMS	J.CROWDER	J.MEYERS	37.271122	19900	33.2	53400.0	40100	6683.0
2	T.HILL	J.CROWDER	J.MEYERS	37.194570	19800	33.0	53200.0	40200	6700.0
3	D.METCALF	J.CROWDER	T.BOYD	37.005051	19500	32.5	52700.0	40500	6750.0
4	D.ADAMS	J.CROWDER	G.WARD	36.819456	19500	32.5	53000.0	40500	6750.0

Week 1 Receiver Groups Under 1/3 Of DFS Salary (Highest Value)

	Receiver 1	Receiver 2	Receiver 3	Combined Points	Combined Salary	% Cap	$/Point	Salary Remaining	Avg $/Player Remaining
0	A.THIELEN	J.CROWDER	J.SMITH-SCHUSTER	37.491234	19600	32.7	52300.0	40400	6733.0
1	J.CROWDER	J.SMITH-SCHUSTER	T.BOYD	34.633708	18200	30.3	52500.0	41800	6967.0
2	D.METCALF	J.CROWDER	T.BOYD	37.005051	19500	32.5	52700.0	40500	6750.0
3	T.HILL	J.CROWDER	G.WARD	36.742903	19400	32.3	52800.0	40600	6767.0
4	A.THIELEN	J.CROWDER	T.BOYD	36.124467	19100	31.8	52900.0	40900	6817.0

Some weeks it might make the most sense to free up cap space for can’t miss opportunities at other positions. When this happens, it is vital to still find a group with the potential for a big day.

Week 1 Receiver “Cheap” Receiver Groups (Most Points)

	Receiver 1	Receiver 2	Receiver 3	Combined Points	Combined Salary	% Cap	$/Point	Salary Remaining	Avg $/Player Remaining
0	G.WARD	Z.PASCAL	R.HIGGINS	22.736556	14900	24.8	65500.0	45100	7517.0
1	G.WARD	Z.PASCAL	D.SLAYTON	21.666392	14900	24.8	68800.0	45100	7517.0
2	Z.PASCAL	R.HIGGINS	D.SLAYTON	20.546556	14900	24.8	72500.0	45100	7517.0

In some cases, there are individual matchups that can’t be passed up. Deciding how to round out the unit comes down to finding a good combination of projected points and value.

Week 1 Receiver Groups Including Davante Adams (Most Points)

	Receiver 1	Receiver 2	Receiver 3	Combined Points	Combined Salary	% Cap	$/Point	Salary Remaining	Avg $/Player Remaining
0	D.ADAMS	T.HILL	J.CROWDER	44.729584	23000	38.3	51400.0	37000	6167.0
1	D.ADAMS	J.CROWDER	J.SMITH-SCHUSTER	40.403306	20900	34.8	51700.0	39100	6517.0
2	D.ADAMS	D.METCALF	J.CROWDER	42.774648	22200	37.0	51900.0	37800	6300.0
3	D.ADAMS	A.THIELEN	J.CROWDER	41.894064	21800	36.3	52000.0	38200	6367.0
4	D.ADAMS	J.CROWDER	T.BOYD	39.036539	20400	34.0	52300.0	39600	6600.0

Week 1 Receiver Groups Including Tyreke Hill (Most Points)

	Receiver 1	Receiver 2	Receiver 3	Combined Points	Combined Salary	% Cap	$/Point	Salary Remaining	Avg $/Player Remaining
0	D.ADAMS	T.HILL	J.CROWDER	44.729584	23000	38.3	51400.0	37000	6167.0
1	T.HILL	J.CROWDER	J.SMITH-SCHUSTER	40.326753	20800	34.7	51600.0	39200	6533.0
2	T.HILL	D.METCALF	J.CROWDER	42.698096	22100	36.8	51800.0	37900	6317.0
3	T.HILL	A.THIELEN	J.CROWDER	41.817512	21700	36.2	51900.0	38300	6383.0
4	T.HILL	J.CROWDER	T.BOYD	38.959987	20300	33.8	52100.0	39700	6617.0

Week 1 Receiver Groups Including Deandre Hopkins (Most Points)

	Receiver 1	Receiver 2	Receiver 3	Combined Points	Combined Salary	% Cap	$/Point	Salary Remaining	Avg $/Player Remaining
0	T.HILL	D.HOPKINS	J.CROWDER	42.934482	22600	37.7	52600.0	37400	6233.0
1	D.ADAMS	D.HOPKINS	J.CROWDER	43.011035	22700	37.8	52800.0	37300	6217.0
2	D.HOPKINS	J.CROWDER	J.SMITH-SCHUSTER	38.608204	20500	34.2	53100.0	39500	6583.0
3	D.HOPKINS	D.METCALF	J.CROWDER	40.979546	21800	36.3	53200.0	38200	6367.0
4	D.HOPKINS	A.THIELEN	J.CROWDER	40.098963	21400	35.7	53400.0	38600	6433.0