Just fired up my DraftKings account this morning feeling that Super Bowl energy. Wanted to nail my lineup without breaking the bank or overcomplicating things. Easy does it.
Digging Into Basics
First thing? Checking who was even playing. Obvious, I know, but gotta start somewhere. Chiefs and Niners. Okay. Scrolled through the player list they had up. Filtered by position because hunting down every dude is a headache.
Stared hard at the prices. Mahomes was sky-high, like expected. Felt my wallet sweating just looking at him. Purdy was easier on the points, but would he hold up? That was the gamble.
My Simple Plan
Kept telling myself: one beast QB, one solid receiver, then find cheap dudes who might pop off. Didn’t wanna spread cash too thin.
- Quarterback: Leaned Mahomes. Price hurt, but it’s Mahomes. In big games? Yeah, took him. Felt like a must even with the cost.
- Running Back: CMC was a no-brainer. Costs almost everything, but dude gets fed touches. Put him in quick before I chickened out.
- Tight End: Kelce? Pricey. But Mahomes loves him. Felt safe-ish for points. Locked him in too.
Budget was screaming at this point. Totally wrecked it already.
Hunting for Value
Scrolled down the list looking for guys basically buried on the price list. Found Deebo lower than I figured. If he’s even half-healthy… boom. Grabbed him.
Needed a punt play. Saw that rookie kicker for the Chiefs, Butker? Solid leg. Cost almost nothing. Fine, done. Saved me precious dollars.
Then dug around for Niners WRs after Aiyuk. Jennings? Cheap as chips. Figured he might get a red zone look. Worth a shot for the price.
Filled the last defensive spot with whatever Chiefs D option was cheapest. Crossed my fingers they get a turnover.
Last Minute Panic & Doubts
Stared at the lineup. Mahomes, CMC, Kelce sucked up so much cash. Got Deebo, Jennings, Butker, Chiefs D, and one other cheap Niners guy. Felt… lopsided? Worried I leaned too heavy on stars.
Thought about swapping Kelce for Kittle to free up cash. Then thought “nah, stick with your gut.” Mahomes-to-Kelce could be the whole game.
Clicked submit. Done deal. No turning back.
My Takeaway Gut Feeling
This simple strategy? Stars and scrubs? It burns your budget fast. Leaves you scraping the barrel. Feels risky betting the farm on Kelce getting a touchdown or Butker nailing kicks. Saw a ton of lineups stacking Mahomes and Kelce hard, makes you wonder. Maybe that rookie running back for the Niners could’ve been a steal instead of an old WR. Hindsight bites.
Honestly? Felt trapped spending all that money early. Next time, maybe I take Purdy instead and spread the cash better. Seems smarter when you look at the mess it leaves for those last spots.
Why the obsession with DFS during my kid’s soccer game?
Life’s funny. Two years back, was laid off when my old job downsized the whole project. Tech writing gigs dried up overnight.
Suddenly unemployed with a mortgage? Gutted me. Spent weeks just applying everywhere.
Ended up taking a part-time gig managing the concession stand at my son’s soccer league. Seriously. Pouring Gatorade and heating up pretzels.
One Saturday, this guy Ron – dad of the goalie – starts talking about his DraftKings lineup while I hand him nachos. Explained the stars/scrubs thing like gospel.
Started messing with $5 contests just to distract myself from the job hunt dread. Got kinda hooked on the build, the puzzle.
Eventually landed a decent tech gig again, but that cheap DraftKings habit stuck. Still fire up a lineup now and then, especially for the big games. Reminds me of sweating behind that counter, wondering how things would turn out. Feels familiar.
