Although most fantasy managers stop playing fantasy football in the regular season, there are multiple fantasy football playoff options, including Fantasy Life’s Guillotine Leagues and DFS options. Here are the top players available at each position for Wild Card Weekend. It is essential to note that these rankings are for this weekend only; they do not account for fantasy formats that benefit players who will play further down the line in the playoffs.
Fantasy Football Playoff Rankings: Wild Card Weekend
Quarterbacks
| Rank | Player |
| 1 | Josh Allen |
| 2 | Trevor Lawrence |
| 3 | Drake Maye |
| 4 | Jalen Hurts |
| 5 | Matthew Stafford |
| 6 | Brock Purdy |
| 7 | Justin Herbert |
| 8 | Caleb Williams |
| 9 | Jordan Love |
| 10 | Bryce Young |
| 11 | C.J. Stroud |
| 12 | Aaron Rodgers |
- The top two quarterbacks, Allen and Lawrence, face off in the opening round of the NFL playoffs with the highest over/under total of the six-game slate, topping over 50 projected points combined. These were two of the best four quarterbacks in fantasy football this season, and come in as the top two in the Wild Card Weekend fantasy football playoff rankings for quarterbacks.
- Maye was the overall QB2 on the season and is one of the favorites for NFL MVP. He will make his playoff debut against the Chargers on Sunday Night Football.
- Purdy was elite down the stretch, having three straight top-four finishes between Weeks 15 and 17. However, he struggled against an elite Seahawks defense in Week 18, only scoring five fantasy points. The Eagles have a good defense, so Purdy ranks outside of the top five quarterbacks.
- Williams and Love battle it out in an NFC North slugfest. I am expecting a lower-scoring game, so I would avoid both of these quarterbacks this weekend.
Running Backs
| Rank | Player |
| 1 | Christian McCaffrey |
| 2 | James Cook |
| 3 | Travis Etienne Jr. |
| 4 | Saquon Barkley |
| 5 | Josh Jacobs |
| 6 | D’Andre Swift |
| 7 | Kyren Williams |
| 8 | TreVeyon Henderson |
| 9 | Omarion Hampton |
| 10 | Rhamondre Stevenson |
| 11 | Kenneth Gainwell |
| 12 | Jaylen Warren |
| 13 | Woody Marks |
| 14 | Rico Dowdle |
| 15 | Blake Corum |
- McCaffrey was the only player to top over 400 fantasy points in PPR leagues across all positions this season. He is the clear overall RB1 and overall top player for this weekend, even against a difficult Eagles defense. His opponent, Barkley, is also a top-four option this weekend.
- There is a split backfield in New England, with both Henderson and Stevenson being very productive. I would expect both to play a critical role in the Patriots game plan.
- The Steelers are another team that has two effective running backs in Gainwell and Warren. However, they face one of the best defenses in the league, the Houston Texans. I would lower expectations for everyone on the Steelers offense in a game that has the lowest over/under total of the week.
Christian McCaffrey had the best fantasy season by a running back since… Christian McCaffrey in 2019 🤯 pic.twitter.com/t77Ief8fS5
— NFL Fantasy Football (@NFLFantasy) January 6, 2026
Wide Receivers
| Rank | Player |
| 1 | Puka Nacua |
| 2 | Nico Collins |
| 3 | A.J. Brown |
| 4 | Davante Adams |
| 5 | Stefon Diggs |
| 6 | DeVonta Smith |
| 7 | Jakobi Meyers |
| 8 | Christian Watson |
| 9 | Tetairoa McMillan |
| 10 | Khalil Shakir |
| 11 | Jauan Jennings |
| 12 | Ladd McConkey |
| 13 | Parker Washington |
| 14 | Luther Burden |
| 15 | Rome Odunze |
- There is no surprise here that Nacua is the overall WR1 for Wild Card Weekend. His teammate, Adams, has been battling injuries, but he is at full strength for the matchup against the Panthers. Adams is a touchdown machine and is a top-four option in the fantasy football playoff rankings for wide receivers.
- The Jaguars passing game has run through Meyers and Washington, not BTJ, the last two weeks. With a high over/under projected total, both Jacksonville receivers should get plenty of work and fantasy production.
- It’s been a disappointing season for McConkey, having top-five fantasy points just twice in his final six games that he played in. However, Herbert and the Chargers will need a big game out of him if they want to beat the Patriots. Expect McConkey to get back on track this week. He had 34.7 fantasy points in the Wild Card Matchup last season against the Texans.
Tight Ends
| Rank | Player |
| 1 | George Kittle |
| 2 | Dallas Goedert |
| 3 | Colston Loveland |
| 4 | Brenton Strange |
| 5 | Hunter Henry |
| 6 | Dalton Schultz |
| 7 | Oronde Gadsden II |
| 8 | Dalton Kincaid |
| 9 | Tyler Higbee |
| 10 | Cole Kmet |
| 11 | Pat Freiermuth |
| 12 | Luke Musgrave |
- With the top six fantasy tight ends from the regular season in total PPR points all missing the playoffs, the tight end rankings for Wild Card Weekend are wide open. The top two guys, Kittle and Goedert, face off against one another. Goedert caught eleven touchdowns this season, while Kittle had six top-eight finishes in just his nine full starts.
- The rookie tight end, Loveland, had a great finish to end the season, scoring over 20 fantasy points in each of his final two games of the regular season. He and quarterback Williams have established a strong connection and look for that to continue throughout the playoffs.
Main Photo Credit: Mark Konezny-Imagn Images
