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This article originally appeared on Lucky Trader: DraftKings Diary | Buys, Sells, and What to Look for on DraftKings Reignmakers for Week 9
Each week in the DraftKings Diary, Lucky Trader’s Jason Rouslin will walk through his buys, sells and team lookahead to give you insights from an experienced DraftKings Reignmakers player.
Check out Jason’s full portfolio with the Lucky Trader Reignmakers Portfolio Tool.
Week 9 has arrived and we are halfway through the NFL season! And with the arrival of Week 9, we’ve been met with the most significant change to the DraftKings Reignmakers game - the updated list of players with SuperStar status.
This is the first of two scheduled changes to the status, the next of which will come before the postseason. The change has added another layer of intrigue to the game. I’ll cover my feelings on that topic and go over the plan for the Week 9 slate below!
Week 8 Diary
If you missed last week’s article, where I discussed my strategy up to this point in the season, check it out here. Interested in seeing what makes up the 700+ NFT card collection? Check it out here!
Week 8 Top Lineup Strategy/Tier & Contest
Contest: ELITE Level | Main Slate, $250K Fiat Frenzy, $100K to First
Lineup:
- QB: Jalen Hurts
- RB: Tony Pollard
- WR: Jaylen Waddle
- WR: A.J. Brown
- Flex: D’Andre Swift
Total: 155.60
The days leading up to Week 8 were some of the best in terms of pack ripping I’ve experienced since Week 1. As referenced in last week’s article, it was a fantastic week drawing huge cards from RARE packs, providing a ton of flexibility in making near-optimal lineups for the main slate and plenty of options for Showdown slates as well.
The week started HORRIBLY, though, as my near-optimally projected ELITE-level lineup for the Thursday Night game didn’t even come close to cashing. But, fortunes turned around nicely for the game in London, where Travis Etienne’s breakout game came and was the main reason for a No. 13 finish in the ELITE contest on the slate.
Now, onto the main slate. I was able to enter three near-optimal lineups using the cards in the portfolio. The primary lineup featured the Philidelphia stack of Jalen Hurts and A.J. Brown. Their fast start, along with Tony Pollard and Jaylen Waddle’s early TDs, showed prospects of a big hit coming.
D’Andre Swift also added another early touchdown and the lineup was in second through halftime of the early games. However, there was a lot of football left, and with no Alvin Kamara or Christian McCaffrey in the lineup, it failed to keep pace and finished No. 40. Still, a $400 payout added to a solid return on the slate.
Overall, the week yielded a $1,400 return, or about 10 percent of my total investment on 146 lineups entered. The 146 lineups marked a new personal best for me and not one I’ll likely eclipse until the latter stages of the season.
Week 8 Buys & Sells
Wheeling and dealing — that was the theme for me this week. Having pulled not one, but two Stefon Diggs ELITE cards last week, I decided to trade them rather than keep them. The reason is simple — as of right now, the main focus of my portfolio is ELITE and below. With SuperStar guidelines already in place, Diggs would not be moved up. Thus, I could play his RARE-level cards in the ELITE-level contests.
So, I traded each of them for a #1 Saquon Barkley Elite, a D’Andre Swift, a Dalvin Cook, a Jakobi Meyers and a Justin Jefferson, all at the ELITE level. I also added in a Rashod Bateman ELITE card to complete one of the trades.
So, as Sunday came, I needed just two more ELITE cards to complete one of the most optimal projected lineups, and I went with Miles Sanders and Davante Adams. While neither of those buys yielded much return in Week 8, Sanders is in a great spot to make the playoffs, while Adams can’t get any worse ... right?
Also, because not all can be good, I decided to liquidate Darren Waller and Romeo Doubs ELITE cards to help fund the purchase of an Aaron Jones card. Doubs went on to have his best game of the year, while Waller was sold at an all-time low for his card.
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Week 9 Lookahead and SuperStar Analysis
Week 9 brings four separate DraftKings Reignmakers slates.
- Slate #1: Philadelphia vs. Houston
- Slate #2: Main Slate
- Slate #3: Tennessee vs. Kansas City
- Slate #4: Baltimore vs. New Orleans
The changing of SuperStar status undoubtedly changed the entire Reignmakers game. This time around, DraftKings decided to stay moderate on the additions — Jalen Hurts, Joe Burrow, Saquon Barkley, Nick Chubb and Tyreek Hill. They also removed the SuperStar status from seven players, leaving 16 total SuperStars (they can have, at most, 25 SuperStars).
Now onto the slate preview. Three of the top four rated quarterbacks are in a Showdown slate, with Hurts starting the slate off against Houston on TNF. While playing “SuperStars” in those showdown formats has worked, playing the optimally projected players hasn’t.
This week’s main slate gives the portfolio its first chance at using Josh Allen in the major contests as he goes up against division rival New York. Another game of interest is Miami vs. Chicago, as Miami’s offense looks to be one of the best and most efficient in terms of fantasy production, at least with Tua Tagovailoa at the helm. Chicago struggled mightily on defense against Dallas last week and just traded a top defensive player to Baltimore on Monday.
Patrick Mahomes and Derrick Henry highlight the Sunday Night game, and since they are both SuperStars, it will provide an exciting build strategy for the game.
Lastly, the scorching-hot Alvin Kamara and the New Orleans Saints will go up against Lamar Jackson and the Ravens. I suspect many lineups will start with these two and differentiating among the remaining two players in the lineup will be critical.
Week 9 Targets
My focus starts with the Miami Dolphins against the Chicago Bears. Chase Edmonds has yet to break out, even as good as his offense has been. However, I think he has a chance to break out against a struggling defense. His cards are at near bottom-of-the-barrel prices for players at his position.
Returning from the bye, Austin Ekeler has been one of the best running backs in the league this year. His prices don’t echo that, and with Mike Williams set to miss a few games, Keenan Allen’s prices should also be higher. The Chargers play an Atlanta team that sits atop the NFC South after stealing an OT victory over Carolina last week.
Despite the win though, the Falcons’ defense struggled again, something I expect both Ekeler and Allen should be able to take full advantage of. Gerald Everett should also be considered, as he’s likely to emerge as the third option with Williams out.
Cleveland’s massive win against Cincinnati on Monday gives them solid hope for a playoff run. With Deshaun Watson set to return in two weeks and the possibility of making the playoffs improving, his cards present tangible value still. The same holds true for Amari Cooper, who is clearly a big part of the offense and the No. 1 WR on the team.
Now, a check-in on some of the critical injuries from last week and a few players that seem to be on the verge of a breakout.
For the first time all year, Week 8 provided no significant injuries. Cooper Kupp injured his ankle in the loss against San Francisco, but it looks like he won’t miss any time. If he does, Van Jefferson could see a monetary boost, but Tyler Higbee would likely earn more targets from Matthew Stafford. However, if Kupp is out, that whole offense will suffer greatly.
The 49ers lost star Deebo Samuel but were able to roll on as if he wasn’t even there as Christian McCaffrey asserted himself as a force to be reckoned with. This week would be a great week to add McCaffrey to the portfolio as he’s on a bye, and typically, that’s when prices have been the lowest for star players.
There are also a few players on the verge of a breakout fantasy performance, given their workload. The main one I’m focusing on this week is rookie Garrett Wilson. Wilson had a fast start to the season, scoring more than 30 points in Week 2. Since then, however, he has posted scores of 12, 6, 5, 2 and 6 points before breaking out of the slump with 20.5 point performance. In Week 8 he earned seven targets, his largest amount since Week 2.
The other is Jakobi Meyers, who is continuing to produce solid results, scoring no less than 10 fantasy points this season while scoring more than 18 three times. DeVante Parker went down with an injury in last week’s game, creating more targets for Meyers, who earned 12 in the Week 8 game versus New York. That type of target share will lead to higher ceilings for Meyers, whose cards are trading at a lower price relative to his value.
In a bit of breaking news, Detroit tight end T.J. Hockenson was just traded to Minnesota. The implications for his own cards are significant as he goes from a team with one of the worst chances to make the playoffs to one of the best. On the flip side, Amon-Ra St. Brown could be a benefactor of even more targets as the season progresses for Detroit.
Lastly, a few teams with byes are worth noting. I already mentioned San Francisco, but Dallas and the New York Giants should be watched as well. CeeDee Lamb losing SuperStar status made him a much more intriguing investment, whereas Saquon Barkley’s values came down a bit with his promotion to SuperStar. Nevertheless, it is a great time to add to the portfolio for the season’s stretch run.
That’s all for now, good Luck with all your DraftKings Reignmakers Week 9 lineups!
Looking for a few more additional tips for Week 6, check out the rest of the Lucky Trader Reignmakers content!
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