Yahoo DFS Football: Divisional Round Picks

Yahoo DFS Football: Divisional Round Picks

This article is part of our Yahoo DFS Football series.

Whether or not you found DFS success during the NFL regular season, Yahoo! will give you a chance to add to your winnings with contests throughout the playoffs. This weekend's contests focus on the Divisional Round, which begins Saturday at 4:35 PM Eastern time. Among the options primed to pop this weekend are a quarterback who does the vast majority of his damage at home and a couple of wide receivers facing defenses that have struggled to defend that position.

TOURNAMENTS (GPP – GUARANTEED PRIZE POOL)

QB: Philip Rivers, LAC at NE ($25): The price is right to look Rivers' way. He's the cheapest of the eight starting quarterbacks left despite ranking fifth among the group in passing yards (4,308) and tied for third in touchdowns (32) this season. The Patriots aren't exactly world-beaters on defense, either, having allowed the 11th-most passing yards during the regular season despite playing in a division with the Bills, Jets and Dolphins, who were all among the eight worst teams at throwing the ball.

RB: Rex Burkhead, NE vs. LAC ($10): It's hard to predict which of Burkhead, James White ($20) or Sony Michel ($19) will lead New England's backfield in production on any given week -- Michel leads the team in carries over the past three games, White leads in receptions and Burkhead ranks a comfortable second in both categories over that span. With any of these guys capable of stepping up depending on a combination of game flow and matchups, you may as well grab the one that costs half as much as the other two.

WR: Tyreek Hill, KC vs. IND ($30): Hill's blazing speed gives him as high an upside as anybody in the league, as he recorded at least 117 receiving yards and multiple touchdowns in the same game on four different occasions this season. This matchup of the league's top two performers in passing touchdowns is likely to be a high-scoring affair, so expect Hill to see all the volume he can handle, as he's a threat to take it to the house any time he touches the ball.

Other Against-the-Grainers

QB: Patrick Mahomes (KC, $39)
RB: Spencer Ware (KC, $13); Marlon Mack (IND, $25)
WR: Keenan Allen (LAC, $23); Ted Ginn (NO, $14)
TE: Gerald Everett (LAR, $11)
DST: Los Angeles Chargers ($14)

CASH GAMES (H2H, 50/50s and DOUBLE UPS)

Quarterback

Jared Goff, LAR vs. DAL ($31)

Both Goff and the Cowboys have extreme home/road splits that should work in the quarterback's favor. Goff threw for 2,737 yards with a 22:3 TD:INT in eight home games this season compared to just 1,951 yards and a 10:9 ratio in as many games on the road. Meanwhile, the Cowboys are 8-1 in Dallas -- including their wild-card round win over the Seahawks-- compared to just 3-5 in away games. With sunny California weather providing ideal passing conditions and offensive wizard Sean McVay calling his plays, Goff's primed for another strong home performance.

Running Back

Ezekiel Elliott, DAL at LAR ($33)

Conventional wisdom says to stay away from running backs on underdog squads, but Elliott's an exception. He's a three-down back capable of contributing in the passing game if Dallas falls behind, and the Cowboys will likely employ a run-heavy approach as long as the game stays close to maximize their defense's rest time. Elliott also appears to be fully healthy after logging 30 touches last week while most of the other running backs in this price range have some injury-related question marks.

Wide Receiver

Alshon Jeffery, PHI at NO ($21)

While tight end Zach Ertz was undoubtedly the favorite target of Carson Wentz (back), Jeffery has emerged as the go-to guy for quarterback Nick Foles. In the four games since Foles took over the starting job, Jeffery has racked up 383 yards and a touchdown on 22 catches. Look for the big-bodied receiver to keep rolling against a Saints defense that surrendered a league-high 3,345 yards to wide receivers this season.

Michael Thomas, NO vs. PHI ($33)

The Eagles aren't far behind the Saints when it comes to allowing wide receivers to find success. Their 3,082 yards allowed to the position in the regular season were third-most in the league, and Chicago's No. 1 wide receiver Allen Robinson racked up 10 catches for 143 yards and a touchdown in a losing cause against Philadelphia in the wild-card round. Thomas is better than Robinson and has a better quarterback throwing him the ball, so an even gaudier stat line is well within the realm of possibility.

Tight End

Eric Ebron, IND at KC ($26)

Ebron's been a touchdown machine in his first year with the Colts, scoring 13 times in the regular season before adding another one in the wild-card round. A Chiefs defense that surrendered the second-most passing yards (273.4) and ninth-most points (26.3) per game this season is unlikely to keep Ebron out of the end zone.

Defense/Special Teams

New Orleans Saints, NO vs. PHI ($11)

Despite his recent postseason success, Foles is still among the three least scary quarterbacks remaining, and Philadelphia's run game has left a lot to be desired of late. A Saints defense that thrives off the boisterous home crowd and averaged 11.3 fantasy points per game in its last seven before the meaningless Week 17 meeting with Carolina makes for a great value against this Eagles offense at just $1 over the minimum.

Honorable Mentions

QB: Drew Brees (NO, $35)
RB: Damien Williams (KC, $17); Alvin Kamara (NO, $32)
WR: Julian Edelman (NE, $20); T.Y. Hilton (IND, $22)
TE: Travis Kelce (KC, $30)
DST: Los Angeles Rams ($17)

The author(s) of this article may play in daily fantasy contests including – but not limited to – games that they have provided recommendations or advice on in this article. In the course of playing in these games using their personal accounts, it's possible that they will use players in their lineups or other strategies that differ from the recommendations they have provided above. The recommendations in this article do not necessarily reflect the views of RotoWire. Sasha Yodashkin plays in daily fantasy contests using the following accounts: FanDuel: Youngsash, DraftKings: Yashdogg,Yahoo: Sasha, Fanball: Yashdogg.
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Sasha Yodashkin
Sasha has been contributing NFL, NHL, NBA, MLB and Tennis content to RotoWire since 2015, with an emphasis on DFS. He is a huge New York sports fan who has been playing fantasy sports since middle school.
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