One Big Question For Every Sunday Wild Card Game
In today's Fantasy Life Newsletter, presented by Bleacher Nation Fantasy:
I guess that’s why they call it Wild Card Weekend.
Some things go completely as expected—like the Ravens rumbling to a massive victory over an overmatched Steelers squad.
While other things totally surprise us—like Justin Herbert turning into a pumpkin with four INTs and the Texans advancing to the Divisional round.
With three more exciting games on tap today, here is one big question on my mind for each of them …
Can the Bills take care of business? As 9-point home favorites, this is as easy as it’s going to get for Buffalo on their road to the Super Bowl. Because after this one, their road to a title likely features the best team in the AFC (Baltimore), the two-time defending champs (Kansas City), and the best team that emerges from the NFC. They can’t mess around today with that gauntlet awaiting.
Do the Packers have any fight in them? Green Bay enters the playoffs on a two-game losing streak. The last time Jordan Love cleared 20 fantasy points was in Week 11 vs. Chicago. Now they face a dominant Eagles defense. I’m sure they’ll continue to try to establish it on the ground with Josh Jacobs, but this passing game will need to find its form to keep up with Jalen Hurts and Co.
Is Jayden Daniels ready for primetime? The NFL playoffs are often unforgiving to rookie signal callers, but Daniels has already proven his clutch gene multiple times this season. He’ll need to be on point again today vs. a Tampa Bay defense that has improved as the season progressed.
If you’re looking to get in some prop bets for today or draft some fantasy teams, check out some of our favorite plays below …
What else is in today’s newsletter?
- Wild Card Sunday Primer: Focusing on the Bills and Packers
- Watercooler: Derrick Henry goes nuts
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Sunday NFL Wild Card Slate: Let’s Catch You Up.
Two Wild Card Weekend games are in the books with three more on the docket today, capped off by a Monday Night showdown tomorrow.
Whether you’re betting, playing Pick’em, DFS, or getting your last-minute Chopionship entries in, our team’s content has you covered for the most important players on today’s slate, starting with the Bills and Packers ...
Josh Allen | QB | BUF
Dwain McFarland ranked Allen as his No. 1 QB out of the entire playoff player pool, noting “The Bills are the No. 2 seed and carry the fourth-best Super Bowl odds (+650). Allen is a near-lock to play two games as 8.5-point favorites over the Broncos this weekend and has averaged 32.1 points over the last four games—the best in fantasy. Paul Charchian has Allen as his No. 1 player in for Gullotine formats.”
Full Player Tiers For The NFL Playoffs
But if you don’t want to pay a premium for Allen, you can look to his backfield …
James Cook | RB | BUF
He may not have finished the season strong, but Matthew Freedman reminded us how effective Cook has been this year in his favorite fantasy plays for the weekend; “Cook has a paltry 5.4 Utilization Score since the Week 12 bye (per our industry-leading Fantasy Life Utilization Report), but he still finished the year with 1,267 total yards and a studly 18 TDs despite losing goal-line carries to QB Josh Allen."
More Of Freedman’s Favorite Plays
Packers WRs
With Christian Watson sidelined, the Packers WR room condenses, but which ones should you target? In his Wild Card Weekend DFS breakdown, Pete makes the case for all three:
“I'll be taking stabs on all three of these guys in my Battle Royale drafts, even though they each bring upside to the table in different ways.
Jayden Reed is the home-run swing. He's been reduced to a part-time player in recent weeks, but we saw him showcase a monster ceiling vs. this same Eagles team in Week 1 when he exploded for 31 fantasy points.
Romeo Doubs is the Mr. Clutch. He's not as sexy as the other two options, but he has a history of showing up in big spots. In last year's Wild Card round, he exploded for 151 yards and 1 TD vs. the Cowboys.
Dontayvion Wicks is the titular wild card. He earns targets at an absurd clip when he's on the field, but his snap shares (and hands) have been inconsistent. He's coming off three straight games with 5-plus targets and Love does seem to look for him in the end zone.”
How Do They Project For The DFS Slate?
The latest fantasy nuggets, silliness, and NFL gossip from our merry band of football nerds:
⚔️ Wild Card Weekend ends with a MNF dome game … shootout on tap?
👑 The King still has it. He’s built for the playoffs.
🏃 Speaking of the Ravens…they set a single-game franchise rushing record yesterday.
⚡️ The Chargers lost…but Ladd had a monster fantasy day.
🤦 A classic George Pickens quote. Does he really want out?
