DFS Strategy
Daily fantasy sports gets a lot easier once you stop treating every slate like a collection of individual player picks.
Good DFS strategy starts with understanding how the game actually works: choosing the right contests, managing your bankroll, using projections intelligently, understanding ownership and building lineups that make sense for the contests you’re entering.
Whether you’re completely new to DFS or you’ve been building lineups for years, this is where you can find Cover The Slate’s guides to the fundamentals behind better DFS decisions.
New to DFS? Start with DFS 101 and work your way down. If you already know the basics, jump directly to the topic you want to sharpen.
Start Here: Learn the DFS Fundamentals
DFS 101: A Beginner’s Guide to Daily Fantasy Sports
If you’re brand new to DFS, start here. Learn how daily fantasy sports works, how lineups are built, how contests are scored and the basic terminology you’ll see every time you open a DFS lobby.
Cash Games vs. GPPs: Choosing the Right DFS Contest Type
Not every DFS lineup is trying to accomplish the same thing. Cash games reward consistency, while tournaments reward upside and differentiation. Understanding that difference should change how you build.
Learn the Difference Between Cash Games and GPPs →
DFS Contest Selection: Pick the Right Game Before You Build
Who you’re playing against matters almost as much as who you’re putting in your lineup. Learn the differences between head-to-heads, 50/50s, single-entry contests, smaller-field tournaments and massive GPPs, and why choosing the right contest is part of DFS strategy.
Read the DFS Contest Selection Guide →
Build a Better DFS Process
DFS Bankroll Management: How Much Should You Actually Play?
DFS gets a lot less fun when one bad Sunday wipes out your bankroll. This guide covers managing your money, controlling your exposure and deciding how much you should actually put into play on a slate.
Read the DFS Bankroll Management Guide →
DFS Ownership, Chalk & Leverage
Why is everyone playing the same guy? And when should you care? This guide breaks down projected ownership, chalk, leverage and why a good play isn’t automatically a good tournament play.
Understand DFS Ownership, Chalk & Leverage →
DFS Projections: What They Mean and How to Actually Use Them
A projection isn’t a prediction of exactly what a player will score. It’s one piece of information. Learn what projections can tell you, where they can mislead you and how to use them without blindly letting a spreadsheet build your lineup.
Learn How to Use DFS Projections →
DFS Lineup Construction: From Player Picks to a Complete Lineup
Finding good individual plays is only part of the job. Lineup construction is about making those players work together while balancing salary, floor, ceiling, correlation, ownership and the type of contest you’re trying to win.
Read the DFS Lineup Construction Guide →
The Goal Isn’t to Know Everything
DFS can get complicated quickly. Projections, ownership, correlations, late swap, contest structures and a few dozen tabs of research can make it feel like you need a finance degree just to set a lineup.
You don’t.
Build a repeatable process. Understand why you’re making each decision. Know what kind of contest you’re entering and build accordingly.
We’ll keep adding to this library as Cover The Slate grows, but these guides give you the foundation to start making smarter DFS decisions without spending your entire day researching them.