The Green Bay Packers will face the Philadelphia Eagles on Wild Card Weekend. Here’s the latest fantasy football news and advice to help you with your lineups this week and moving forward, especially regarding WR Dontayvion Wicks.
Is Dontayvion Wicks Playing vs. the Eagles?
Wicks is not listed on the injury report this week, so barring any setbacks, he is on track to play this weekend.
We’ll continue to monitor the Packers’ injury report. You can also visit and bookmark our NFL Injury Tracker and Fantasy News Tracker for the latest updates.
Should You Start or Sit Donyatvion Wicks on Wild Card Weekend?
Wicks was held without a catch when these teams met in Brazil, but the math has changed since.
Christian Watson (ACL) is done for the season, and that opens up a role that the Packers will need if they are going to pull off an upset that many seem to think is possible. This season, 72.9% of Wicks’ routes have been run alongside Watson, making the scraping of data for the other 27.1% a small sample, but it’s all we have when trying to look at this specific situation.
With Watson off the field, Wicks’ aDOT has spiked by 26.7%. Those deep looks are his path to success in most matchups, but probably not on Sunday – the Eagles are the best defense against long passes in terms of yards per attempt and yards per completion (over 11% better than the league average in both of those categories).
That very much caps the upside of Wicks in the Wild Card Round, but it doesn’t completely rule him out. His involvement in the red zone has been much greater with Watson off the field (12.7% of his targets, up from 1.8% with him sharing the perimeter role).
The target distribution in Green Bay has been close to impossible to forecast weekly this season. Removing one name from the mix gives us a little more clarity, but it’s important to not confuse “more clarity” with “clarity.”
There are still plenty of names capable of sucking up usage in this offense, and the Packers’ clearest path to success is a heavy dose of Josh Jacobs. I’m not tempting fate by going to this passing game in most of my builds.
Are you looking for start/sit advice for other players in your lineup? Read our Wild Card Weekend Fantasy Start-Sit Advice Cheat Sheet for every fantasy-relevant player in every game.
Dontayvion Wicks’ Fantasy Points Projection on Wild Card Weekend
As of Sunday, Wicks is projected to score 9.4 fantasy points in PPR formats. This includes 2.8 receptions for 38.4 yards and 0.5 touchdowns.
Check out the free PFN Fantasy Start-Sit Optimizer for the latest projections and advice for your lineups this week.
PFN Insight on the Eagles' Defense
The Philadelphia Eagles narrowed the gap between themselves and the Broncos over the last month but ultimately have to settle for a second-place finish. Still, the Eagles can enter the postseason feeling good after a dominant three-month finish following a shaky September.
Our metrics weigh pass defense more heavily than run defense, and the Eagles finished with the highest defensive pass success rate of any team this season (60.4%).
As a result, the Eagles allowed the fewest yards per play for any defense this season (4.7). Effective and disciplined rushing attacks can theoretically control the clock with successful runs against Philadelphia, who "only" rank ninth in rushing success rate. But that's a thin needle to thread, as any defense that can tamp down explosive plays will be tough to score on.
There isn't a single statistical flaw in Philadelphia's defense, which ranks top 10 in every metric that encompasses the Defense+ grades (except for sack rate, where they're 15th). That makes them an incredibly dangerous threat to win the NFC, even without the top seed.
For more insight on all other team defenses, head to our PFN Defense+ Metric Analysis.
Dontayvion Wicks’ Fantasy Ranking
Our Weekly Consensus PPR Rankings are below — both positional and overall. They were last updated at 8:30 AM ET on Sunday, January 12. If you're in a Superflex league, make sure you check out our Wild Card Superflex Rankings.
Wild Card WR PPR Rankings
1) Justin Jefferson | MIN (at LAR)
2) Puka Nacua | LAR (vs. MIN)
3) A.J. Brown | PHI (vs. GB)
4) Nico Collins | HOU (vs. LAC)
5) Mike Evans | TB (vs. WAS)
6) Ladd McConkey | LAC (at HOU)
7) Terry McLaurin | WAS (at TB)
8) Courtland Sutton | DEN (at BUF)
9) DeVonta Smith | PHI (vs. GB)
10) Jordan Addison | MIN (at LAR)
11) Cooper Kupp | LAR (vs. MIN)
12) George Pickens | PIT (at BAL)
13) Jalen McMillan | TB (vs. WAS)
14) Khalil Shakir | BUF (vs. DEN)
15) Quentin Johnston | LAC (at HOU)
16) Jayden Reed | GB (at PHI)
17) Marvin Mims Jr. | DEN (at BUF)
18) Rashod Bateman | BAL (vs. PIT)
19) Keon Coleman | BUF (vs. DEN)
20) Romeo Doubs | GB (at PHI)
21) Olamide Zaccheaus | WAS (at TB)
22) Amari Cooper | BUF (vs. DEN)
23) Calvin Austin III | PIT (at BAL)
24) Dontayvion Wicks | GB (at PHI)
25) John Metchie III | HOU (vs. LAC)
26) Jalen Nailor | MIN (at LAR)
27) Devaughn Vele | DEN (at BUF)
28) Dyami Brown | WAS (at TB)
29) Sterling Shepard | TB (vs. WAS)
30) Mack Hollins | BUF (vs. DEN)
31) Mike Williams | PIT (at BAL)
32) Tutu Atwell | LAR (vs. MIN)
33) Diontae Johnson | HOU (vs. LAC)
34) Nelson Agholor | BAL (vs. PIT)
35) Demarcus Robinson | LAR (vs. MIN)
36) DJ Chark | LAC (at HOU)
37) Van Jefferson | PIT (at BAL)
38) Jamison Crowder | WAS (at TB)
39) Troy Franklin | DEN (at BUF)
40) Robert Woods | HOU (vs. LAC)
41) Malik Heath | GB (at PHI)
42) Curtis Samuel | BUF (vs. DEN)
43) Xavier Hutchinson | HOU (vs. LAC)
44) Bo Melton | GB (at PHI)
45) Jordan Whittington | LAR (vs. MIN)
46) Tylan Wallace | BAL (vs. PIT)
47) Derius Davis | LAC (at HOU)
48) Jahan Dotson | PHI (vs. GB)
49) Lil'Jordan Humphrey | DEN (at BUF)
50) Luke McCaffrey | WAS (at TB)
51) Tyler Johnson | LAR (vs. MIN)
52) Ryan Miller | TB (vs. WAS)
53) Devontez Walker | BAL (vs. PIT)
54) Trey Palmer | TB (vs. WAS)
55) Johnny Wilson | PHI (vs. GB)
56) Rakim Jarrett | TB (vs. WAS)
57) Brandon Powell | MIN (at LAR)
58) Ainias Smith | PHI (vs. GB)
59) Anthony Miller | BAL (vs. PIT)
60) Christian Watson | GB (at PHI)
61) Tyrell Shavers | BUF (vs. DEN)
62) Roman Wilson | PIT (at BAL)
63) K.J. Osborn | BUF (vs. DEN)
64) Dennis Houston | TB (vs. WAS)
65) Dayton Wade | BAL (vs. PIT)
66) Parris Campbell | PHI (vs. GB)
67) Dez Fitzpatrick | LAC (at HOU)
68) David Sills V | DEN (at BUF)
69) Cody Thompson | TB (vs. WAS)
70) Brycen Tremayne | WAS (at TB)
71) Cornelius Johnson | GB (at PHI)
72) Kazmeir Allen | WAS (at TB)
73) Lucky Jackson | MIN (at LAR)
74) Drake Stoops | LAR (vs. MIN)
75) Danny Gray | PHI (vs. GB)
76) Xavier Smith | LAR (vs. MIN)
Packers at Eagles Trends and Insights
Green Bay Packers
Team: It was a difficult end to the season, but the Packers posted their second-best point differential during the Matt LaFleur era (+122)
QB: In Weeks 11-16, Jordan Love’s pressured passer rating was 107.2, a number that has plummeted to 53.6 in two consecutive losses to round out the regular season.
Offense: Green Bay is just 3-5 this season when failing to convert over one-third of its third downs (three-of-10 against the Bears in Week 18).
Defense: The Packers lost on Sunday despite allowing just 18.5 yards per drive (they were 5-0 this season when allowing under 25 yards per drive prior).
Fantasy: Josh Jacobs has rushed for a touchdown in a franchise-record eight straight games and is averaging 5.1 yards per carry over his past three games. He’s been able to add value in the passing game, catching each of his past 13 targets.
Betting: Since 2003, unders are 17-6-1 (73.9%) in Eagles playoff games, the second highest rate among franchises with at least five playoff games over that stretch (exception: Titans at 81.8%).
Philadelphia Eagles
Team: The Eagles have lost six of their past eight playoff games outright when favored (four Wild Card games are included in that sample, all losses).
QB: Jalen Hurts (and the coaching staff) is trusting his reads longer, a continued trend from the past few seasons. His quick pass rate in 2022 was 69.8% – it dipped to 61.7% in 2023 and finished this year at 57.3%.
Offense: Philadelphia was outscored by 14 points in the first quarter this season—just one of the past 12 Super Bowl champions has had a negative first-quarter point differential (2020 Buccaneers).
Defense: In Weeks 1-17, the Eagles were 12-0 when allowing 2.0 or fewer points per drive (1-3 otherwise).
Fantasy: Saquon Barkley led the position in top-10 PPR performances this season (10) despite not playing last week.
Betting: From 2013-20, home teams on Wild Card weekend were just 8-17-3 ATS (32%), but since 2021, when the shift to an 18-week regular season began, they have been 11-7 ATS (61.1%).