The wild-card round of the NFL playoffs was just that -- wild. The Texans were the only home team to win, two games went into overtime and two six seeds advanced -- Tennessee and Minnesota. We also might have seen the last of Tom Brady in New England and Drew Brees in New Orleans.
There's plenty of time to get into those storylines for Brady and Brees over the next few months, but now let's focus on the weekend ahead. The divisional round should be exciting with Tennessee at Baltimore and Houston at Kansas City in the AFC, and the NFC games will feature Minnesota at San Francisco and Seattle at Green Bay.
I have to adjust my Super Bowl picks when looking at the playoff challenge options remaining. I had the Saints advancing to Super Bowl LIV in Miami, and I also expected the Patriots and Eagles to win this past weekend.
Now, I'm going with the Ravens and Chiefs winning to make it to the AFC Championship Game, and I like the 49ers and Packers to advance to the NFC Championship Game. I'll take the Ravens and Packers to reach the Super Bowl, and the updated playoff challenge rankings for PPR will reflect that below.
Quarterbacks
1. Lamar Jackson, BAL
2. Patrick Mahomes, KC
3. Aaron Rodgers, GB
4. Russell Wilson, SEA
5. Deshaun Watson, HOU
6. Jimmy Garoppolo, SF
7. Kirk Cousins, MIN
8. Ryan Tannehill, TEN
Jackson should do well against the Titans, allowed three of the final five opposing quarterbacks in the regular season to score at least 20 Fantasy points. And Mahomes already scored 24 Fantasy points against the Texans in Week 6, so you know what he's capable of against this Houston defense.
I'm going with Rodgers third given my Super Bowl pick, and hopefully he gets hot over the next three games. Rodgers only had two games with more than 20 Fantasy points in his final eight outings, but I like him at home this week against the Seahawks -- and we'll see what happens after that.
Wilson just had 325 passing yards and a touchdown, as well as 45 rushing yards, against the Eagles in the wild-card round. I like his chances to play well against the Packers, and he's my favorite underdog quarterback since I wouldn't be shocked if the Seahawks pulled off an upset this weekend.
I also expect Watson to play well against the Chiefs, and he had 247 passing yards and a touchdown, as well as 55 rushing yards and a touchdown, against the Titans. He scored 31 Fantasy points against Kansas City in Week 6.
Garoppolo could play three more games, so take that into account if you like him ahead of Watson, Wilson or Rodgers. I just don't expect him to have a high ceiling since he has one game with more than 14 Fantasy points in his past five outings.
As for Tannehill and Cousins, I expect their season to end in the divisional round. I would give the Vikings a better chance to pull off an upset than the Titans, so Cousins is ranked higher here.
Running backs
1. Aaron Jones, GB
2. Damien Williams, KC
3. Raheem Mostert, SF
4. Derrick Henry, TEN
5. Dalvin Cook, MIN
6. Mark Ingram, BAL
7. Gus Edwards, BAL
8. Duke Johnson, HOU
9. Travis Homer, SEA
10. Carlos Hyde, HOU
11. Marshawn Lynch, SEA
12. Jamaal Williams, GB
13. Alexander Mattison, MIN
14. Justice Hill, BAL
15. Tevin Coleman, SF
16. Darwin Thompson, KC
17. Matt Breida, SF
18. Dion Lewis, TEN
19. Ameer Abdullah, MIN
20. Taiwan Jones, HOU
I'm hoping for three games of Jones with the Packers making a Super Bowl run, so he's No. 1 for me. It sounds like Jamaal Williams (shoulder) will play this week against the Seahawks, but I still like Jones to dominate for Green Bay. He scored at least 16 PPR points in each of his final four games of the regular season.
Damien Williams scored 48 PPR points in his final two regular-season games, and he scored against the Texans in Week 6. And Mostert is the top San Francisco running back and comes into the playoffs on a six-game scoring streak, with eight total touchdowns over that span.
Henry just had 204 total yards and a touchdown against the Patriots, and he would be awesome if he can beat the Ravens. But that's a tough task, which is why he's at No. 4.
The same goes for Cook at No. 5, even though he just had 130 total yards and two touchdowns at New Orleans. If the Vikings can beat the 49ers, which will be tough, Cook could be exceptional moving forward in the playoffs.
I have Ingram and Edwards back-to-back just in case Ingram can't play with his calf injury, although early indications are he'll be out there against the Titans. Hopefully, he doesn't suffer a setback, which is why you might give Edwards some attention in the divisional round.
Johnson should be better than Hyde with the Texans likely chasing points at Kansas City. In Week 6, both scored touchdowns against the Chiefs, although their run defense has improved since then. And since this is PPR, I give Johnson the slight advantage.
That's also why I have Homer ranked ahead of Lynch, although Lynch has scored a touchdown in both games with the Seahawks so far. It wouldn't be a surprise if Lynch had the better game against the Packers, but Homer should be more involved in the passing game.
Wide receivers
1. Davante Adams, GB
2. Tyreek Hill, KC
3. DeAndre Hopkins, HOU
4. D.K. Metcalf, SEA
5. Deebo Samuel, SF
6. Tyler Lockett, SEA
7. Adam Thielen, MIN
8. Stefon Diggs, MIN
9. Marquise Brown, BAL
10. A.J. Brown, TEN
11. Emmanuel Sanders, SF
12. Allen Lazard, GB
13. Kenny Stills, HOU
14. Kendrick Bourne, SF
15. Sammy Watkins, KC
16. Will Fuller, HOU
17. Corey Davis, TEN
18. Mecole Hardman, KC
19. Willie Snead, BAL
20. Demarcus Robinson, KC
21. David Moore, SEA
22. Seth Roberts, BAL
23. Tajae Sharpe, TEN
24. DeAndre Carter, HOU
25. Bisi Johnson, MIN
Adams closed the season with at least 22 PPR points in four of his final five games, I hope he gets three more games with a Super Bowl appearance. Hill went off against the Texans in Week 6 with 25 PPR points, and he could easily be No. 1 on this list.
It would also be fun to see Hopkins advance, but I don't like the Texans' chances this week against the Chiefs. That said, he had 16 PPR points against Kansas City in Week 6. And we'll see if Fuller (groin) is able to play this week after being out for the wild-card round.
You have to take Metcalf over Lockett after what just happened in the wild-card round against Seattle. Metcalf led the Seahawks in targets for the second game in a row with nine, and he finished with seven catches for 160 yards and a touchdown. Lockett wasn't awful with four catches for 62 yards on eight targets, but Metcalf has the higher ceiling against the Packers.
Samuel comes into the playoffs with at least 13 PPR points in seven of his past eight games, and I'll take him over Sanders. And we'll see if Thielen can stay hot for another game after he had seven catches for 129 yards on nine targets, which was much better than Diggs (two catches for 19 yards on three targets).
Marquise Brown only has one touchdown in his past five games, but hopefully he can get hot in the playoffs. I'll take him over A.J. Brown, who should have a tough time against the Ravens after struggling against the Patriots last week. He was limited to one catch for 4 yards on one targets against New England.
Tight ends
1. George Kittle, SF
2. Travis Kelce, KC
3. Mark Andrews, BAL
4. Jacob Hollister, SEA
5. Jonnu Smith, TEN
6. Kyle Rudolph, MIN
7. Jimmy Graham, GB
8. Darren Fells, HOU
9. Nick Boyle, BAL
10. Jordan Akins, HOU
11. Hayden Hurst, BAL
12. Robert Tonyan, GB
The top three tight ends from last week are the same this week, and it should be fun to see who gets to advance from Kittle, Kelce and Andrews. All three should be highly productive, but it comes down to total games player to decide which member of that trio will be better in your playoff challenge.
Hollister only had two catches for 16 yards on four targets against the Eagles, but he's easily the No. 4 tight end for me here. Seattle could upset Green Bay, and I trust Hollister much more than anyone on this list other than Kittle, Kelce or Andrews.
DST
1. Ravens
2. Chiefs
3. Packers
4. 49ers
5. Vikings
6. Seahawks
7. Texans
8. Titans
Kickers
1. Justin Tucker, BAL
2. Mason Crosby, GB
3. Robbie Gould, SF
4. Harrison Butker, KC
5. Jason Myers, SEA
6. Dan Bailey, MIN
7. Ka'imi Fairbairn, HOU
8. Greg Joseph, TEN
So what is the optimal NFL Playoff Challenge tournament lineup for Wild Card Weekend? Visit SportsLine now to see the full optimal lineups, all from a professional DFS player who has almost $2 million in career winnings.
