amphitheater of pain | RealTime Fantasy Sports

Lineup Prep: Wild Card Weekend

Wed Jan 7 10:17am ET
By JEFF PAUR
Sr Fantasy Writer

Etienne could come up big

Just because the regular season is over doesn’t mean your fantasy season has to end. We have some unbelievable fantasy playoff contests here at RealTime Fantasy Sports. If you have never played in a playoff fantasy contest, I highly recommend giving one a try. There is so much strategy involved and it is a different way to play fantasy. Check out all our contests here: rtsports.com/playoffs. We have a variety of games and price points to fit all our fantasy needs.

And you can start your own playoff league as well and come up with any rules you would like with our playoff commish product: rtsports.com/playoff-commissioner. There are just numerous ways to keep playing fantasy football during the playoffs.

Now for my random thoughts for the week. . . . .

I really feel like this playoff is the hardest to figure out in a long, long time. We just have so many new teams in the mix and some of the old favorites are out of the mix this year. I know I’m having a hard time coming up with all my fantasy playoff rosters because of this. For now, my prediction is a New England/Seattle Super Bowl. My confidence level is low with that pick, though. I like the path for the Patriots and feel they might be the most complete team on both sides of the ball for the AFC. Seattle is a wild card because of Sam Darnold but if can make some big plays in the playoffs, this team can make a run. The defense is so good and Seattle is pretty battle tested, beating most of the main competition to come out of the NFC already during the regular season. Plus, home-field advantage in Seattle is huge.

Like most, I was shocked with the Ravens parting ways with John Harbaugh. He was one of the last coaches I thought would get fired this offseason. He has been a mainstay with the Ravens for 18 seasons and guided them to a ton of success. He should have no trouble finding work again, though. I guess the Ravens just wanted a new voice at the helm. It does make some sense after some disappointing seasons in recent years. Maybe the message had become stale from Harbaugh. And I’m going to give the Ravens the benefit of the doubt here. Baltimore has a pretty top-notch organization from the top down, so I would expect them to find a good fit for the team going forward. But either way, this was some shocking news this week. Never a dull moment in the NFL.

There are going to be some tough players to rank next year. I have not started yet on my 2026 rankings like some but know I will struggle some with those initial rankings. Both Drake Maye and Trevor Lawrence were top five in quarterback scoring this year. Do you keep those guys near the top of the rankings next season? Tough call.

And where do you put Michael Wilson? He had an unbelievable season half to his season, moving him all the way to 11th overall in fantasy receiver scoring. Is he going to sustain that level of success with Marvin Harrison healthy and the Cardinals likely having a different quarterback or Kyler Murray back. I’m sure ranking Wilson will be polarizing for the fantasy community.

Lastly, Kyle Pitts finally moved back to fantasy relevance, ranking second overall in tight end scoring. Is this going to be the Kyle Pitts going forward or is he going to revert back to the inconsistent player from the past few years? Plus, Pitts could be with a new team next year, clouding things even more. These are just a handful of the tough ranking decisions for 2026. This is what makes it so much fun, though, right?

HOT PLAYS

Travis Etienne, RB, Jaguars. Etienne hasn’t produced quite as well down the stretch as he did earlier in the season but the Jaguars are relying more on the pass now, having so much success throwing the ball. Etienne still has 16-plus fantasy points three of his last five games. He is more than capable of the big game. And the Bills have struggled to stop the run all season long. Buffalo allowed the eighth most fantasy points to running backs this season. The Bills allowed more than 200-rushing yards four different times this season. Etienne could have some big-time success in this one.

Dalton Schultz, TE, Texans. Schultz had one of his best seasons as a pro this year, posting much more consistent numbers. He has been especially good of late, having 11-plus fantasy points three of four games. Schultz has 70-plus yards two of those games. Look for him to make some big plays this week against the Steelers, a team that struggles to stop the tight end. Pittsburgh allowed the third most fantasy points to tight ends this season.

Caleb Williams, QB, Bears. Williams had a breakout regular season and will look to carry that over to the playoffs. He gets a Packers team that he had multiple touchdowns against in each of the games he played them this year. Williams finished the season with 21-plus fantasy points three of his last four games. Look for more of the same this week against Green Bay, a team that was more leaky against the pass late in the year.

COLD PLAYS

Omarion Hampton, RB, Chargers. Hampton was rested last week in the Chargers meaningless game but is expected back this week to serve as the lead back for the team. Hampton hasn’t had a ton of success running the ball since returning from injury in Week 14. He has less than 65-rushing yards three of four games. The only thing saving his fantasy value is he is finding the end zone on a pretty regular basis. We aren’t sure he scores this week against the Patriots, though. New England allowed the fifth fewest fantasy points to running backs.

Jakobi Meyers, WR, Jaguars. A move to Jacksonville was a great one for Meyers. He has emerged as the No. 1 receiver for Trevor Lawrence. He has cooled some lately, though, after a quick start to his Jacksonville career. He has less than 50 yards three straight games, failing to hit double-digit fantasy points in any of those games. It could be tough sledding again for him this week against the Bills, a team that allowed the fourth fewest fantasy points to receivers.

George Kittle, TE, 49ers. Kittle returned last week from his ankle injury but was pretty quiet, catching five passes for 29 yards. It was his lowest yardage total since Week 7. Kittle gets another tough defense this week, playing Philadelphia. The Eagles have been dominant against the tight end, allowing the second fewest fantasy points to tight ends. You might want to temper your expectations for Kittle in this one.

SLEEPERS

C.J. Stroud, QB, Texans. Stroud has turned around his game the second half of the season, getting the Texans passing offense going. He has multiple touchdowns two straight games and three of four. With the Texans struggling to run the ball, look for Stroud to carry the offense this week against a bad Steelers secondary. Pittsburgh allowed some big plays to the Ravens passing attack last week and gave up the fourth most fantasy points to quarterbacks this season.

Luther Burden, WR, Bears. Burden has become the go-to receiver for the Bears down the stretch. He has 11-plus fantasy points three of four games. He has 80-plus yards two of those games. He is making big plays on a weekly basis, showing his ability after the catch to make things happen. We like him to make a big play or two this week against the Packers. He had a solid four catches for 67 yards in his only game against the Packers in Week 14.

Blake Corum, RB, Rams. Corum has formed a nice one-two punch with Kyren Williams. He is getting consistent work in that role, having double-digit carries four of his last five games. He has 13-plus fantasy points four of six games. We like the Rams to run often this week against the Panthers, a team that is very good against the pass but can struggle to stop the run. Corum ran seven times for 81 yards and a touchdown against the Panthers in Week 13. Carolina has allowed at least 140-rushing yards three straight games and five of six.

High/Low Scoring Games

Each week we will take a look at some of the high and low-scoring games for the coming week. In high-scoring affairs, get your marginal players on those teams in your lineup to take advantage of the possible points barrage. And in the low-scoring games, keep those marginal players on the bench and make sure to have your defenses involved in those contests.

High Scoring Games: Bills/Jaguars, Packers/Bears, Chargers/Patriots.

Low Scoring Games: Texans/Steelers.

Jeff Paur is a two-time finalist for FSWA Fantasy Football Writer of the Year and won the FSWA award for Best Fantasy Football Article on the Web in 2011. He also was the most accurate expert in 2012, winning the FSTA Fantasy Football Accuracy Award. If you have any questions for Jeff, email him at jeff@rtsports.com. Follow Jeff on Twitter @jeffpaur.

Lineup Prep: Wild Card Weekend

The Paur Report