This is the final time this season that you can use a full lineup on DraftKings and FanDuel, and it should be a great Sunday with the AFC and NFC Championship Games. And the matchups are awesome between Buffalo at Kansas City and Washington at Philadelphia.
These teams are familiar with each other since the Bills beat the Chiefs 30-21 in Week 11, and the Commanders and Eagles split their season series. Philadelphia beat Washington 26-18 in Week 11, and the Commanders got their revenge in Week 16 with a 36-33 victory against the Eagles.
The stakes are higher this weekend since the winner of each game advances to Super Bowl LIX. Hopefully, we get some great performances, which will benefit our DFS lineups.
With that in mind, let's go over the best and worst values on DraftKings and FanDuel for the championship round. I'll also show you two lineup suggestions for Sunday as well.
The postseason has been successful for us in DFS so far. Now, let's keep that momentum going with our last full lineup of the season.
Quarterbacks
Good value
Patrick Mahomes $6,000 DraftKings/$7,700 FanDuel
Mahomes was 23-of-33 passing for 196 yards, three touchdowns, and two interceptions at Buffalo in Week 11. And he was 16-of-25 passing for 177 yards and one touchdown, along with 14 rushing yards, against Houston in the divisional round. The Bills have done a good job limiting quarterback production in the playoffs against Bo Nix and Lamar Jackson with 398 passing yards, three touchdowns, and one interception, along with 82 rushing yards and a fumble, and Buffalo was No. 14 in most Fantasy points allowed to quarterbacks during the season. Mahomes has a good history against the Bills in the playoffs with 918 passing yards, eight touchdowns, and no interceptions, along with 93 rushing yards and a touchdown, in three games. He usually steps up against Buffalo, and I expect that to happen again this week.
Bad value
Jalen Hurts $6,500 DraftKings/$8,000 FanDuel
Hurts practiced in full Thursday, and his knee should be fine after getting banged up in the divisional round against the Rams. But Hurts hasn't been a dynamic Fantasy quarterback of late, and we'll see how he does this week. He was OK in the wild-card win against Green Bay with 13-of-21 passing for 131 yards and two touchdowns and six carries for 36 yards. But against the Rams, he was 15-of-20 passing for 128 yards and no touchdowns, along with seven carries for 70 yards and a touchdown. In the first meeting with Washington in Week 11, Hurts was 18-of-28 passing for 221 yards and no touchdowns, and he added 39 rushing yards and a touchdown. He left the Week 16 game in the first quarter with a concussion and was out until the playoffs. The Commanders have limited Baker Mayfield and Jared Goff in the playoffs to 498 yards, three touchdowns, three interceptions, and 30 rushing yards and a fumble. With Hurts potentially at less than 100 percent, I would only use him as a contrarian play in this matchup.
Running backs
Good value
Austin Ekeler $5,300 DraftKings/$5,600 FanDuel
Ekeler missed the Week 16 game against the Eagles while dealing with a concussion, but he was great as a receiver in the first matchup in Week 11. Ekeler had eight catches for 89 yards on nine targets at Philadelphia, along with two carries for 7 yards, and he should be a prime weapon for Jayden Daniels again if Washington is chasing points. In two playoff games so far against Tampa Bay and Detroit, Ekeler has 14 carries for 74 yards and seven catches for 67 yards on eight targets. He's a great option on DraftKings since it's full PPR.
Bad value
Brian Robinson Jr. $5,600 DraftKings/$6,400 FanDuel
Robinson had a great game against Detroit in the divisional round with 15 carries for 77 yards and two touchdowns, along with no targets, but I wouldn't chase that production against the Eagles. In two games against Philadelphia, Robinson combined for 26 carries for 87 yards and one touchdown and three catches for 26 yards on four targets, with two fumbles. Right guard Sam Cosmi (knee) is out, and the Eagles finished the regular season No. 2 in fewest Fantasy points allowed to opposing running backs. Now, in the playoffs, Josh Jacobs (18 carries for 81 yards and a touchdown and three catches for 40 yards on three targets) and Kyren Williams (19 carries for 106 yards and one catch for minus-1 yard on two targets) have done well against Philadelphia, but I don't trust Robinson to the same degree as that duo.
Wide receivers
Good value
Khalil Shakir $5,700 DraftKings/$6,400 FanDuel
Shakir had a great game against the Chiefs in Week 11 with eight catches for 70 yards on 12 targets, and he should be a go-to option again for Josh Allen in the rematch. He has at least six targets in 12 games in a row, and he has eight games with at least six catches, six games with at least 61 yards, and two touchdowns over that span. Two of those outings were the playoffs against Denver and Baltimore, and Shakir had 12 catches for 128 yards on 13 targets. He might not have a blow-up game without a touchdown, but given his cost and target potential, Shakir should be a solid Fantasy option this week.
Xavier Worthy $5,500 DraftKings/$6,500 FanDuel
Worthy only had five catches for 45 yards in the divisional round against Houston, but he was second on the team with six targets, trailing only Travis Kelce (eight). Worthy also had a carry, but it went for minus-8 yards. In Week 11 at Buffalo, Worthy had four catches for 61 yards and a touchdown on five targets. And he now has at least six targets in seven games in a row, with six outings over that span with at least five catches, including three total touchdowns. He should continue to be one of Mahomes' favorite options this week.
Bad value
A.J. Brown $6,800 DraftKings/$8,200 FanDuel
Brown was great in the second game against Washington in Week 16 with eight catches for 97 yards and a touchdown on 15 targets, but Kenny Pickett helped Brown in that contest after Hurts suffered a concussion. In the first game against the Commanders in Week 11, Brown had five catches for 65 yards on eight targets. So far, in two playoff games against Green Bay and the Rams, Brown has struggled with three catches for 24 yards and no touchdowns on 10 targets. He's been playing through a knee injury, which could be the reason for his limited production, but it's risky to trust him this week, especially at his price. Instead, I'd rather chance it with DeVonta Smith ($5,800 DraftKings/$7,300 FanDuel), who has at least been productive in the playoffs with eight catches for 76 yards on eight targets.
DeAndre Hopkins $4,700 DraftKings/$5,600 FanDuel
Hopkins had one target and no catches in the playoff victory against Houston. That's now four games in a row with minimal production against the Texans twice, Pittsburgh and Cleveland where he's combined for 11 catches for 80 yards and no touchdowns on 15 targets. It would be nice if Hopkins or Marquise Brown ($4,200 DraftKings/$5,800 FanDuel) would step up this week, but they are tough to trust. I would only rely on Worthy and Kelce as pass catchers in Kansas City in this game.
Tight ends
Good value
Zach Ertz $4,300 DraftKings/$5,500 FanDuel
This is the ultimate revenge game for Ertz, who can knock his former team out of the playoffs. He already excelled in one of two games against the Eagles with six catches for 47 yards and a touchdown on seven targets in Week 11 at Philadelphia, but he was quiet in the rematch at home in Week 16 with one catch for 12 yards on two targets. He just had five catches for 28 yards and a touchdown on five targets against Detroit in the divisional round, and he's now scored a touchdown in three of his past four games, including the playoffs, and he has seven touchdowns since Week 11. At his price, Ertz is an easy tight end to the roster, as well as a solid flex.
Bad value
Dalton Kincaid $3,600 DraftKings/$5,200 FanDuel
The matchup for Kincaid is amazing since the Chiefs are No. 2 in most Fantasy points allowed to opposing tight ends. Even Dalton Schultz had a solid game against Kansas City in the divisional round with four catches for 63 yards on four targets. Kincaid missed the first game against the Chiefs in Week 11 with a knee injury, and Dawson Knox had four catches for 40 yards on six targets in that contest. In two playoff games, Kincaid has four catches for 58 yards on five targets against Denver and Baltimore, which just continues his disappointing 2024. He only has two touchdowns this season and three games with more than 50 receiving yards, with a high of 53.
Lineups
DraftKings
QB: Patrick Mahomes (vs. BUF) $6,000
RB: Saquon Barkley (vs. WAS) $8,600
RB: Austin Ekeler (at PHI) $5,300
WR: Khalil Shakir (at KC) $5,700
WR: Xavier Worthy (vs. BUF) $5,700
WR: Olamide Zaccheaus (at PHI) $3,900
TE: Travis Kelce (vs. BUF) $6,000
FLEX: DeVonta Smith (vs. WAS) $5,800
DEF: Chiefs (vs. BUF) $3,100
I'm going to spend the money on Barkley this week since he's easily the best running back left on the slate. In two playoff games against the Packers and Rams, Barkley has 51 carries for 324 yards and two touchdowns, and six catches for 31 yards on six targets.
Barkley also did well against Washington with 55 carries for 296 yards and four touchdowns and two catches for 52 yards on four targets. If you can afford Barkley, he should be worth it.
Along with Barkley, I'm going to stack the Chiefs here with Mahomes, Kelce, and Worthy, and use Shakir as the counter. I love Ekeler on DraftKings, and I hope Smith will be the best Eagles receiver against Washington.
As for Zaccheaus, he's a good dart throw against his former team. In Week 16, he had five catches for 70 yards and two touchdowns on eight targets against Philadelphia, and hopefully, he can do some damage again in the NFC Championship Game.
FanDuel
QB: Josh Allen (at KC) $8,700
RB: Saquon Barkley (vs. WAS) $9,800
RB: James Cook (at KC) $7,100
WR: Xavier Worthy (vs. BUF) $6,500
WR: Khalil Shakir (at KC) $6,400
WR: Dyami Brown (at PHI) $5,400
TE: Travis Kelce (vs. BUF) $6,800
FLEX: Zach Ertz (at PHI) $5,500
DEF: Commanders (at PHI) $3,600
Allen had 262 passing yards, one touchdown, and one interception against Kansas City in Week 11, along with 55 rushing yards and a touchdown. And in three career playoff games against the Chiefs, Allen has 802 passing yards, seven touchdowns, and one interception, as well as 228 rushing yards and two touchdowns.
He should have another dominant game against Kansas City, and I'll stack him with Shakir and James Cook, who had nine carries for 20 yards and two touchdowns and five catches for 7 yards on six targets against the Chiefs in Week 11. To counter the Buffalo stack, I'll use Kelce and Worthy in this lineup.
For this lineup, I'm hoping Brown stays hot for the Commanders. In two playoff games against Tampa Bay and Detroit, he has 11 catches for 187 yards and a touchdown on 13 targets, so he could be a steal at this price.
