NFL Divisional Round Fantasy Recap: Travis Kelce, Jayden Daniels, Saquon Barkley, Josh Allen, Mike Sainristil and More
A recap of the Divisional Round of the NFL playoffs.
The Divisional Round of the NFL postseason delivered some fun games and finishes.
Let’s recap everything that happened over the weekend, highlighting the top players for the winning teams in an effort to point out the top fantasy players for upcoming playoff games. We’ll cover both offensive and defensive players, along with kickers.
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Chiefs Top Texans
In the first game of the week, Kansas City topped Houston 23-14.
Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes completed 16 of his 25 passes for 177 yards, a touchdown and no interceptions. He added 14 yards on seven carries.
Tight end Travis Kelce was Mahomes’ top pass catcher, going for 117 yards and a touchdown on seven receptions and eight targets. Wide receiver Xavier Worthy was the only other pass catcher over 15 yards, going for 45 yards on five catches and six targets.
Backup tight end Noah Gray had 13 yards on three grabs and targets. Running back Kareem Hunt had a two-yard catch on his lone target.
DeAndre Hopkins, Samaje Perine, JuJu Smith-Schuster, Marquise Brown and Isiah Pacheco failed to catch their targets, with Brown being targeted twice and everyone else just once.
Hunt was the top rusher, going for 44 yards and a score on eight carries. Pacheco had just 18 yards on five carries. Worthy had a rush that lost eight yards.
It really wasn’t a great offensive day for any Chief besides Kelce. Mahomes was just an average fantasy performer, and Hunt was only solid because he scored.
Things won’t get any easier against the Bills in the next round. FantasySP will dive into the best fantasy players as the games close in, so check back for those stories!
On defense, Justin Reid led the team with seven total tackles. He knocked down a pass and also hit the quarterback once. Bryan Cook had six tackles, while George Karlaftis, Jaden Hicks, Chamarri Conner, Nick Bolton and Drue Tranquill all had five.
Karlaftis also had three sacks and four quarterback hits. Conner had a sack and joined Bolton, Tranquil, Felix Anudike-Uzomah and Charles Omenihu with a quarterback hit each.
Anudike-Uzomah, Omenihu and Chris Jones had a sack each. Jones finished with two quarterback hits. Tershawn Wharton also had a sack and two QB hits.
Kicker Harrison Butker made all three of his field goals (32, 36, 27 yards) and both of his extra points.
Commanders Outscore Lions
In a high-scoring duel, Washington outlasted Detroit 45-31.
Quarterback Jayden Daniels was fantastic, completing 22 of his 31 passes for 299 yards, two touchdowns and no interceptions. He added 51 rushing yards on 16 carries.
Running back Brian Robinson Jr. had 77 rushing yards and two scores on 15 carries. He was not targeted in the pass game.
Backup RB Austin Ekeler had 47 rushing yards on six carries. He caught all four of his targets for an additional 41 yards. RB Jeremy McNichols had eight yards and a score on four carries.
Wideout Dyami Brown led the pass catchers with 98 yards on six receptions and eight targets. Terry McLaurin had 87 yards and a touchdown on four catches and six targets.
Tight end Zach Ertz went for 28 yards and a touchdown on five grabs and targets. Jamison Crowder had 25 yards on two catches and targets, while John Bates had a 20-yard catch across his two targets. Olamide Zaccheaus didn’t catch either of his two targets.
Daniels had a great regular season, and is quickly putting himself into the elite category of QBs with his postseason success. Robinson did a lot with a modest amount of touches, while Ekeler and McNichols had decent fantasy days in secondary roles.
Brown had a surprise performance, while McLaurin delivered again. Ertz saved an OK fantasy day with his score.
Washington will face a much stiffer defensive test in the next round, but after this performance, several of their offensive players are maybe worth starting next round.
Jeremy Chinn was Washington’s top tackler, finishing with 12 - he also picked off a pass. Frankie Luvu had nine tackles and a fumble recovery, while Bobby Wagner had eight.
Dorance Armstrong had two sacks among his three tackles. Quan Martin Martin picked off a pass and returned it for a score, while Mike Sainristil had two interceptions.
Kicker Zane Gonzalez made a 47-yard field goal, but also missed from 44 yards. He made all six of his extra points.
Eagles Hold Off Rams
Philadelphia held on in the final seconds for a 28-22 win over Los Angeles.
Quarterback Jalen Hurts was 15-of-20 passing for 128 yards, no touchdowns and no picks. He ran seven times for 70 yards and a touchdown.
Running back Saquon Barkley had 205 rushing yards and two scored on 26 carries. He added 27 receiving yards on four catches and targets. Kenneth Gainwell had a 10-yard rush and catch on his two touches.
Tight end Dallas Goedert led the pass catchers with 56 yards on four grabs and targets. DeVonta Smith had 21 yards on four catches and targets. A.J. Brown was held to 14 yards on two receptions and seven targets.
Outside Barkley, not many other Eagles had good fantasy showings. The team’s passing game in the postseason has been very lackluster, making it hard to trust anyone going forward.
Darius Slay Jr., Zack Baun, C.J. Gardner-Johnson, Oren Burks and Reed Blankenship all had six tackles to lead the team. Slay knocked down three passes, while Baun and Isaiah Rodgers (five tackles) each recovered a fumble.
Jalen Carter had two sacks and three QB hits among his five tackles. Nolan Smith Jr. had a sack among his four tackles. Moro Ojomo and Jalyx Hunt each had a sack for their only tackles.
Kicker Jake Elliott made all three of his field goals (44, 23, 37 yards), but missed two of his three extra points.
Bills Edge Ravens
The game of the week, and maybe the season, lived up to the hype, with Buffalo winning 27-25 after Baltimore dropped a two-point conversion pass late.
Quarterback Josh Allen was 16-of-22 for 127 yards, but no touchdowns or interceptions. He rushed for 20 yards and two touchdowns on 10 carries.
Running back James Cook had 67 rushing yards on 17 carries and 15 receiving yards on three receptions and targets. Ty Johnson had 31 rushing yards on five carries and an eight-yard catch on his lone target. Ray Davis had 29 rushing yards and a score on four carries and wasn’t targeted in the passing game.
Khalil Shakir had 67 receiving yards on six receptions and seven targets. Mack Hollins had a 12-yard catch across his two targets. Dalton Kincaid had an 11-yard catch across two targets, Curtis Samuel gained nine yards on two catches and targets and Keon Coleman caught his only target for five yards.
Dawson Knox caught one of his two targets, but for no yards. Amari Cooper failed to catch his only target.
Allen saved a down passing game with a couple rushing scores. Cook was solid despite not finding the end zone. Johnson and Davis continue to eat up enough touches to hold Cook back from being an elite fantasy option.
Shakir was the only pass catcher worth playing in this game, and it might remain that way going into next week. We’ll cover that more later in the week.
Damar Hamlin led the defense with eight tackles - he also had a sack and two QB hits.
Rasul Douglas and A.J. Epenesa had six tackles each. Greg Rousseau had a sack among his five tackles. Matt Milano had three tackles and three quarterback hits.
Taylor Rapp had an interception and two tackles. Von Miller had a tackle and a fumble recovery. Terrel Bernard had four tackles and a fumble recovery.
Kicker Tyler Bass made two field goals (51, 21 yards) and all three of his extra points.