Best Week 11 DFS Picks From PFSN's NFL DFS Lineup Optimizer
Marcus Mariota, QB, Washington Commanders (at MIA)
There are a lot of good matchups this week. As a result, we're going with three stars instead of the usual even split.
Marcus Mariota is not about to salvage the Washington Commanders' season or lead them back into playoff contention. But he still has every incentive to put his best foot forward because he's hoping to get a job in 2026.
The Miami Dolphins had a truly shocking victory over the Buffalo Bills last week. This seems like the perfect spot for a letdown from a defense that had previously been very generous to opposing quarterbacks.
The Dolphins still allow the eighth-most fantasy points per game to the position. As much as Mariota may not be winning games, he's been great for fantasy. The former No. 2 overall pick has reached 17 fantasy points in three of his four starts. He's thrown a touchdown in all of them and rushed for at least 20 yards.
Mariota has an excellent floor and a high ceiling in a favorable matchup.
Woody Marks, RB, Houston Texans (at TEN)
Let's get the obvious out of the way first. Woody Marks is not going to outsnap Nick Chubb 60-10 this week. The split in this backfield has primarily been a product of game script.
At the same time, Marks is a far superior running back to Chubb at this point in their respective careers. He can and should continue to see more work than his veteran counterpart.
Marks overcame a difficult matchup against the Jaguars to post 16.1 fantasy points. He saw 17 opportunities, which marked his second-highest usage of the season.
Things should be much easier this week against a Tennessee Titans defense allowing the ninth-most fantasy points per game to running backs.
Hopefully, C.J. Stroud returns, and the Texans won't be chasing on the scoreboard the entire game. A positive game script is better for Chubb, but it benefits both runners. We also saw Marks serve as the goal-line back last week, suggesting perhaps that is not Chubb's job anymore.
Chubb is startable as well as a desperation RB3, but Marks could be in line for an RB1 performance.
Best DFS Tips and Tricks
There are only 100,000 different views on how to play DFS. Whether you’re chasing a big prize or trying to grind out "cash games" (where nearly half the field gets paid), your personal goals dictate the game you play and thus the strategies you employ.
Playing the flagship contests is fun, but understand that, even with an optimizer, your expected value per lineup isn't going to be great. The most important note for new DFS players is to target the single-entry or three-entry max tournaments.
You want a fair shot at creating the best lineup, and while our optimizer will give you a good chance, the variance game makes your one lineup going against 150 others an equation that won't work in your favor.
As far as lineup construction goes, here is my overarching advice:
- Understand that every slate is different and requires a fresh approach.
- Explore how to stack your daily fantasy lineups.
- Be different in your lineup construction, not crazy.
- Listen to what sportsbooks are telling you.
- Track your progress so you can learn as you go.
- Try many different "lock" options before settling on your favorite.
FAQ
What Is an NFL DFS Optimizer?
The idea of a DFS optimizer is actually quite simple: Take a set of projections, match up the player salaries for the game you're playing, and play around until you find the highest number of projected fantasy points that stays under your budget.
Of course, most main slates (the 1 p.m. and 4 p.m. EST games on Sunday) involve 20+ teams and, thus, hundreds of players. Sifting through that many projections by hand is a near-impossible task, so the job of the optimizer is to do it for you! Simply select the site and slate you are playing, lock in any players you are confident in, or rule out any players you are concerned about. From there, the computer does the tedious math and spits out your personal optimized lineup.
How Do I Use a NFL DFS Lineup Generator?
Using the PFSN NFL DFS Optimizer could not be easier.
Start by selecting the site and slate you are playing or planning to play. The optimizer will then give you the player pool to sift through. At this point, you can lock in any players you want in your lineups or rule out any players you want to avoid. Once you are happy, select the number of lineups you want and hit the build button.
The PFSN NFL DFS Optimizer will give you a recommended lineup or lineups, at which point you can remove any players you do not want, and the Optimizer will provide you with suggested replacements. Once you are happy, you can download the lineup(s) as a CSV, which is ready to be uploaded to your selected site.
Why Should You Use a DFS Optimizer for the NFL?
Using an NFL optimizer is a good way to improve at DFS quickly. They say it takes 10,000 hours of practice at a craft to achieve expertise. Would you rather spend those hours doing pen and paper math, or would you rather spend them honing your projection/evaluation skills while the computer sorts through the tedious lineup building?
An optimizer is, naturally, only as good as the information you put into it. It’s not built to offer an opinion or give reasoning. Ours takes into account some variance because football is difficult to predict, but it's a number-crunching machine that allows you to hone your craft in other ways.
What Is the Difference Between DraftKings and FanDuel?
The site in which you play needs to be included into the optimizer because the rules and price points aren't the same. If you're new to the DFS game, here are a few differences between the two powerhouse sites in the industry.
DraftKings
- $50,000 budget
- Full PPR
- 300-yard passing-yardage bonus (3 points)
- 100-yard rushing-yardage bonus (3 points)
- 100-yard receiving-yardage bonus (3 points)
FanDuel
- $60,000 budget
- Half PPR
- No bonuses
It should be clear from these differences that DraftKings will tend to score higher, while FanDuel will place more importance on scoring touchdowns. Those may seem like minor differences, but as you prepare to take on the world, those are nice notes to remember when planning your strategy.
What Are the Different Slates To Choose From?
Each week of the NFL season is different; thus, the slates can be a bit of a moving target. There are (typically) standalone, one-game slates for every prime-time game. Those carry with them a “Captain” roster slot that will cost you 1.5x the salary he usually would, but will also return 1.5x the points he earned.
The ”main slate” is for the day games on Sunday. This is where you’ll see the contests with $1,000,000 as the grand prize, which is the most analyzed slate. Most sites also offer segmented slates for Sunday’s action. You can choose to play in a contest that features only the first wave of NFL games or just the second.
There are different iterations depending on the specific schedule for a given week, but those are the primary contests offered within most DFS circles.