Welcome to those of you who’ve been eliminated from season-long leagues and are still craving fantasy football in your lives. We’re all in this together, so grab a seat, share your story, and learn from your mistakes. Speaking of mistakes, our cash lineup didn’t have too many of those last week, as it was a good time to be playing cash-games.

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If you’re new to DFS, the term cash-game refers to contests where you have to beat half of the entries to essentially double your money, which applies to double-ups, head-to-head matchups, and 50/50’s. When you go to DraftKings, there’s sections strictly for these types of games. The players listed below are for cash-games. While they may also put up massive numbers for a tournament, that’s not what we’re aiming for. We want safety at every position, because we can’t afford to take chances on boom-or-bust players. The players here are high-floor options and the best values at their positions. Now that we know what we’re trying to accomplish here, let’s talk about the players you should build your core around.

Quarterbacks

Russell Wilson (at DAL) $7,000
Don’t be worried after one bad game against a divisional opponent, as that stuff happens all the time. It’s also why Wilson wasn’t listed here last week. The Cowboys, on the other hand, have a very inexperienced secondary and have been starting three rookie cornerbacks. That’s likely why they have allowed 24.1 points per game at home, which is the fourth-most in the league. This game is also in a dome, which eliminates weather concerns in late-December. Here’s a list of the quarterbacks who’ve failed to score at least 16 fantasy points against the Cowboys: Matt Ryan, Kirk Cousins, and Eli Manning. Two of them are divisional opponents (see above). Don’t sleep on Wilson, who had scored at least 19.5 DraftKings points in eight straight games before last week.

Jared Goff (at TEN) $6,100
Almost all quarterbacks I like for cash this week are in the 6-7K range, so why not go with the cheapest one here? Goff has been fantastic this year, especially when Todd Gurley struggles to find room on the ground, which he most likely will against the Titans who have allowed just 3.30 yards per carry and four rushing touchdowns on the season. He’s going to work Gurley in through the passing game, and now has a healthy Robert Woods back at his disposal. The Titans’ last four weeks may look good because they’ve only allowed two passing touchdowns in that time, but take a look at the competition: Jacoby Brissett, Tom Savage, Blaine Gabbert, and Jimmy Garoppolo. Keep in mind that two of them threw for 360-plus yards. I’m going to pay up for Wilson, but if you need to save some bucks, Goff isn’t a bad alternative. The Titans have allowed three quarterbacks to hit the 29-point mark, so he also comes with a nice ceiling.

Running Backs

Alvin Kamara (vs. ATL) $8,300
We didn’t get to see much of Kamara against the Falcons two weeks ago, as he was forced to leave in the first quarter because of his concussion. He did touch the ball four times in the first few minutes, though, which is something you should expect more of this week. The Falcons have allowed a league-high 94 receptions to running backs, to go along with 685 yards and four touchdowns through the air. We know that’s where Kamara shines, as he’s got 141.4 PPR points through the air, which ranks second to only Le’Veon Bell. This matchup is made for Kamara, and he should live up to the hype.

Ezekiel Elliott (vs. SEA) $8,000
Welcome back, Zeke. We thought this would be a tough matchup back when he was first suspended, but after multiple injuries on their defense, it’s one we should target. Elliott spent his suspension working out and is a lot fresher than every other player on the field. The Seahawks defense was just demolished by fellow elite running back Todd Gurley for 180 total yards and three touchdowns. The week before that, it was Leonard Fournette racking up 101 yards and a touchdown against them. Look for Elliott to get 20-plus touches en route to a massive day at the office.

Dion Lewis (vs. BUF) $6,000
There were two roles that we could count on in the Patriots backfield over the last two months. One being that Lewis would see 10-15 carries, a couple targets, but then ultimately lose the goal-line work to Rex Burkhead. Now that Burkhead is out, it would seem that Lewis should get those opportunities, as well as a few more targets in the passing game, especially if Chris Hogan misses another week. The Bills have allowed 14 rushing touchdowns in their last seven games, including two to the aforementioned Burkhead. Lewis himself ran for 92 yards on 15 carries against them in their first meeting, which should be where his floor lies, unless of course you think Mike Gillislee is going to steal all that work. If you do think that, play Gillislee in tournaments.

Notable alternatives: Devonta Freeman (at NO) $6,000, Joe Mixon (vs. DET) $5,100, Jonathan Stewart (vs. TB) $3,700

Wide Receivers

Michael Thomas (vs. ATL) $7,600
It’s like clockwork with Thomas – play him until he gives you a reason not to. He’s been a cash-game gem all season long, totaling at least 13.9 DraftKings points in 11-of-14 games, with 18 or more points in six of them. The Falcons just happen to be the team he had his biggest game against when he secured 10 passes for 117 yards and a touchdown, giving him 30.7 points in that game. The Falcons secondary continued to struggle last week, as Mike Evans finished with a line of 5/79/1, but it should’ve been much more, as he had a long touchdown called back on a weak penalty. He’s one of the safest wide receiver plays almost every week.

Doug Baldwin (at DAL) $6,300
This one comes down to matchup for Baldwin, as he’s going to match-up with either Xavier Woods, who has seen just 11 targets in this, his rookie year, or he’s going to see Orlando Scandrick, who would be trying to play through multiple back fractures. Both scenarios are very appetizing, and this is the second-lowest we’ve seen Baldwin’s price all year. Playing inside a dome never hurts when selecting players in cash, as you don’t have to worry about the weather. And for what it’s worth, Baldwin’s two biggest games of the year was when it was obvious he had a plus matchup, totaling 26.8 points against the Redskins, and 29.5 points against the Titans. He comes with a lower floor than I would usually like, but his price already has that risk built into it.

Keelan Cole (at SF) $4,700
When spending up for players like Kamara and Elliott, we are going to need some cheap options to build our lineups. While Dede Westbrook is my favorite Jaguars wide receiver this week, it’s not by much. The price difference between the two doesn’t make much sense, as Westbrook is up at $6,100. Cole has now racked up 334 yards and three touchdowns over the last three weeks, and most of that came while Marqise Lee was still on the field. He’s going to miss this game against the 49ers who have allowed 17 wide receivers to finish as top-36 options against them, including six wide receivers to total more than 100 yards. The Jaguars still have a chance at a first-round bye, so they’ll be playing to win, but they’re likely to limit Leonard Fournette, giving more to the wide receivers. Even if they do play Fournette extensively, the 49ers haven’t allowed a rushing touchdown since Week 8. With Blake Bortles playing so well, getting Cole at $4,700 is a gift. Since Week 5, the 49ers have held just one quarterback to less than two touchdowns.

Tight Ends

Travis Kelce (vs. MIA) $6,900
I’ll always try to give you an expensive tight end and a cheap one, though it’ll be tough to fit an expensive one in cash lineups this week. If you do, Kelce is the one to spend up for. He’ll be at home against the Dolphins who have allowed the fifth-most DraftKings points to tight ends. The 78 receptions they’ve allowed ranks as the second-most, behind only the Browns, who we stream tight ends against all the time. Touchdowns can often be hit-or-miss, so chase the targets and yardage at the position. Kelce’s 218.8 PPR points ranks 10th among wide receivers right in front of Julio Jones, who you’d jump on in this matchup for $6,900.

Cameron Brate (at CAR) $3,300
Going through the Bucs offense, it’s easy to see why Brate is here. The run-game isn’t offering much, DeSean Jackson is hurt, O.J. Howard is on IR, Mike Evans has been playing below his potential, and the Panthers are going to be without one of their best linebackers, Thomas Davis. Even with Davis, the Panthers have allowed five top-10 tight ends, including two multi-touchdown games to Zach Ertz and Darren Fells. Despite playing essentially just one half last week, Jameis Winston found Brate four times for 49 yards against the Falcons. With Howard out for the season, Brate has massive potential. If you were to go through the game logs and look at the production out of Brate/Howard every week when Jameis Winston played the entire game, they totaled less than 14.0 PPR points between them just once, which came their first game of the season. Take a look for yourself:

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Mike Tagliere is a featured writer at FantasyPros. For more from Mike, check out his archive and follow him @MikeTagliereNFL.