Ladies and gentlemen, prepare yourselves for what could be an odd three days of NFL playoff football. Why odd? Well…
- We’re looking at an utterly surprising offensive juggernaut (Denver) traveling halfway across the country to stare down an utterly unsurprising offensive juggernaut (Buffalo).
- We’re looking at a Midwestern heavyweight (Minnesota) flying way out to Cali to stare down a Western middleweight (L.A. Rams).
- And we’re looking at the league’s two most whoda-thunk-it high-end quarterbacks (Washington’s Jayden Daniels and Tampa Bay’s Baker Mayfield).
This explains, in part, why we’re also looking at an odd DFS stew.
NFL DFS Sleepers for Super Wild Card Weekend
It could be argued that three of the 12 teams in action this weekend don’t have a traditional WR1, those three being Pittsburgh (George Pickens…big time cold streak), Buffalo (Khalil Shakir…he’s fine, but whatever), and Green Bay (maybe Romeo Doubs, maybe Jayden Reed, who knows, might depend on the weather).
Compounding the oddness, the highest of the high-end receivers aren’t in the best of fantasy spots. Minnesota’s Justin Jefferson is eyeballing a tough Rams defense in Los Angeles. Tampa’s Mike Evans is on the road against a feisty Commanders defense, and Houston’s Nico Collins is catching balls from a slumping C.J. Stroud.
All of this means that when it comes to this weekend’s DFS game plan, I’m going all-in on the high-end running backs. Nary a one of my six-zillion lineups is without Saquon Barkley or Derrick Henry, and when the puzzle pieces work in my favor, I’m throwing a Kyren Williams or a Bucky Irving into my Flex spot.
With all my cheddar going to my backfield, I’ll have to find value amongst the available pass catchers, be they wide receivers or tight ends. Fortunately, there are a surprising number of bargains at both WR and TE available for (hopefully) advantageous lineup insertion.
Pat Freiermuth
Pittsburgh Steelers, TE
- Opponent: @ Baltimore Ravens
- DraftKings Salary: $4,400
- FanDuel Salary: $5,500
I’m all about targets, and Moooooth has been getting plenty of ‘em, averaging 6.2 per game over his last five outings, most notably his whopping 11 looks in Pittsburgh’s Week 18 loss to Cincinnati. Granted, it’s all fine and good to be about targets, but if the ball ends up on the turf, what’s the point? Fortunately, the former Nittany Lion has hauled in 18 of his last 22, so his hands are plenty sticky heading into the postseason.
The Ravens’ D is a scootch stingy against opposing tight ends, only allowing three touchdowns in all of 2024. That said, they do give up 5.5 receptions per game to TEs, and Freiermuth played 80% of Pittsburgh’s snaps last week, so the volume could make him a solid investment.
Tucker Kraft
Green Bay Packers, TE
- Opponent: @ Philadelphia Eagles
- DraftKings Salary: $3,700
- FanDuel Salary: $5,200
Here’s a fun stat: In terms of receiving yards, Kraft has outgained Mark Andrews, Zach Ertz, and Kyle Pitts and is a mere 19 behind Sam LaPorta. Here’s another fun stat: Kraft ranks 18th among TEs in both targets and receptions, which tells us that he makes the most out of each and every touch.
Green Bay will be without Christian Watson this weekend, so it’ll be all hands on deck for the dinged-up Jordan Love (or maybe the healthy Malik Willis), meaning Kraft could equal or exceed last Sunday’s seven-target outing. Did I mention I’m all about targets?
Jalen McMillan
Tampa Bay Buccaneers, WR
- Opponent: vs. Washington Commanders
- DraftKings Salary: $5,200
- FanDuel Salary: $6,400
To paraphrase Roger Daltrey, meet the new Chris Godwin, same as the old Chris Godwin. The rookie out of Washington has become a legit WR2 in this league, equaling or surpassing his running buddy Mike Evans in snap counts over the Bucs’ last three games.
Over that stretch, McMillan racked up 15 catches on 18 targets for 182 yards, with four touchdowns added in for good measure. Even more enticing, he’s found the end zone in each of his last five games. And fun fact: McMillan scored his first NFL touchdown on opening day against, you guessed it, these very Commanders.
Marvin Mims Jr.
Denver Broncos, WR
- Opponent: @ Buffalo Bills
- DraftKings Salary: $5,100
- FanDuel Salary: $5,900
The slender speedster had himself a heckuva holiday season, managing four touchdowns and 154 yards over his last two games. He hasn’t dropped a ball since Dec. 19. Oh, yeah: his quarterback, Bo Nix, is on a semi-heater, averaging 267 passing yards per outing over his last three. And oh, yeah: Buffalo is just three-ish weeks removed from giving up 42 points and 521 passing yards to the Detroit Lions.
Olamide Zaccheaus
Washington Commanders, WR
- Opponent: @ Tampa Bay Buccaneers
- DraftKings Salary: $4,400
- FanDuel Salary: $5,600
I’m playing 4,216 DFS lineups this weekend, and O.Z. is in 4,215 of them. (I left him out of my ridiculous Broncos stack, but that’s for another article.) With Noah Brown on IR, the sixth-year man has evolved into Jayden Daniels’ clear-cut WR2, and if you can grab a WR2 from a team led by a prolific quarterback for either $4,400 or $5,600, you grab early, and you grab often.