NFL DFS Lineup Optimizer

By Splash Play Staff · A guide to reading the tools

An NFL DFS lineup optimizer finds the lineups with the most projected points that fit the salary cap and roster rules. It answers one question, which lineup projects highest, and it is only as good as the projections it is given. Splash Play pairs SPAGS projections you can export to an optimizer with simulations that show how lineups tend to finish.

What an optimizer does

An optimizer takes one projection per player, the salaries and the roster rules, and returns the lineups with the highest projected totals. Rules such as exposure limits or stacks narrow the search. It is fast and exact about the question it is asked.

Where an optimizer stops

It works from a single expected score per player, so it does not know how wide the outcomes are, how players move together, or how many other entries will have the same lineup. Two lineups with the same projected total can finish very differently. That is the gap simulations fill.

Two ways to use Splash Play with one

Bring SPAGS projections to your optimizer. Export the projections for your site and slate and upload them through your optimizer's custom-projection import. The import guide lists the checks to run after the upload.
Build from your entries. The Portfolio Builder, part of Apex for NFL and MLB, loads your contest entries, lets you choose a build track, shows player exposures and exports the set for DraftKings or FanDuel. The field guide covers the steps.

Before you build

Set DraftKings or FanDuel and the slate. They decide which players and salaries are in play.
Check for players with a salary and no projection. A zero there is missing data, not a forecast, and an optimizer will treat it as a real zero.
After an import, confirm the row count and spot-check three players you know.
Keep the original export file unchanged.

Start with the NFL tool

Open the NFL tool for the current slate. Exports are part of Squirt Squad VIP and Apex; compare memberships. Lineup tools report projections and model results and do not promise a finish or a payout.

Questions

What is an NFL DFS lineup optimizer?

It is a tool that finds the lineups with the most projected fantasy points that fit the salary cap and roster rules of a contest.

Is an optimizer the same as a simulator?

No. An optimizer ranks lineups by projected points. A simulator plays the slate many times and shows how often lineups cash or finish near the top. Many players use both: one to generate lineups, the other to judge them.

Can I use SPAGS projections in my own optimizer?

Yes, in any optimizer that accepts a custom-projection upload. Exports are part of Squirt Squad VIP and Apex.

Does it work for DraftKings and FanDuel?

Yes. Set the site and the slate before you export or build, because salaries, scoring and roster rules differ between the two.

Will the optimal lineup win?

Not reliably. The highest projected lineup is one outcome among many, and in large contests many entries share similar builds. An optimizer is a starting point for lineup decisions.

More by site and sport

Projections by site

Ownership

Simulators

Lineup building

Showdown

Contest types