Fanduel
Log In
The Duel

NFL Playoff Fantasy Football: Start 'Em, Sit 'Em for the Divisional Round

By Jason Schandl

Deshaun Watson makes pre-play adjustments against the Bills in the Wild Card Round.
Deshaun Watson makes pre-play adjustments against the Bills in the Wild Card Round. / Christian Petersen/Getty Images
facebooktwitterreddit

The arrival of the NFL playoffs doesn't mean that fantasy football is done for the year. Whether you're playing DFS, a playoff-long fantasy league or any kind of single-week format, there are still plenty of ways to get your fantasy football fix in the postseason.

NFL Playoff Fantasy Football Picks

With that in mind, here's some start 'em, sit 'em advice for the Divisional Round. Be sure to also check out our full Divisional Round fantasy rankings as well.

NFL Divisional Round Fantasy Football Quarterbacks

Start Deshaun Watson (HOU at KC): The top options (Lamar Jackson and Patrick Mahomes) are relatively obvious plays this week, but Deshaun Watson is your best bet among the underdogs. This game has a slate-high 51-point over/under on FanDuel Sportsbook, Watson ranked second among all QBs in fantasy points per game in the regular season, and the Chiefs allowed the third-most fantasy points to opposing QBs among the eight remaining playoff teams.

Sit Ryan Tannehill (TEN at BAL): Ryan Tannehill's regular season was a ton of fun, but facing elite defenses in the playoffs has put an end to that. The New England Patriots held him to 6.0 fantasy points in the Wild Card Round, and the Baltimore Ravens gave up the second-fewest fantasy points (trailing only the Patriots) in the regular season. Don't expect a bounce-back performance this week.

NFL Divisional Round Fantasy Football Running Backs

Start Damien Williams (KC vs HOU): The Kansas City Chiefs' running back situation has been messy this season, but in his last three fully healthy games (not including when he left early or was returning from injury in Weeks 11 and 16) he played 73 percent, 73 percent and 66 percent of the team's offensive snaps, establishing himself as a clear lead back down the stretch. He averaged 22.0 PPR points per game in those contests, and he should be in for plenty of volume as the Chiefs are expected to be playing with a lead as heavy favorites.

Sit Carlos Hyde (HOU at KC): Carlos Hyde had a big game the last time the Texans the Chiefs met, but this one will likely be different. Hyde's numbers are night-and-day between wins and losses, and in the regular season he averaged 18.3 rush attempts per game in victories but only 10.2 per game in defeat. Since the Texans will likely be forced into a more pass-heavy game plan as underdogs, Hyde could quickly get phased out of this one.

NFL Divisional Round Fantasy Football Wide Receivers

Start Adam Thielen (MIN at SF): The San Francisco 49ers' defense is a scary matchup, but a now-healthy Adam Thielen seems to have overtaken Stefon Diggs in Minnesota's pecking order. Thielen out-targeted Diggs nine-to-three in the Wild Card Round, which we also saw when both were healthy to start the season, as Thielen had a 30-to-23 edge in targets through the first five games.

Sit Will Fuller (HOU at KC): Will Fuller is expected to finally return from his hamstring injury, but he's still really hard to trust in this one. KC has been much better against the pass (sixth in Football Outsiders' defensive DVOA metric) than the run (29th), and they held opposing wideouts to the NFL's third-fewest fantasy points in the regular season. We haven't seen Fuller play more than 20 snaps in a game since Week 15, and the boom-or-bust producer is far more likely to fall on the "bust" side of that spectrum this week.

Join FanDuel Sportsbook Today. New users get a risk-free bet up to $500. Join Now.

Jason Schandl is not a FanDuel employee. In addition to providing DFS gameplay advice, Jason Schandl also participates in DFS contests on FanDuel using his personal account, username Jaymun. While the strategies and player selections recommended in his articles are his personal views, he may deploy different strategies and player selections when entering contests with his personal account. The views expressed in their articles are the author's alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of FanDuel.