As the new year begins and wild-card season is upon us, maybe it is time to shuffle your fantasy football lineup. Here we have several best wild-card picks, from each position in the game. If you need a top-tier quarterback, running back, wide receiver, tight end, and kicker, then we have suggestions for each below.
With the Super Bowl approaching in February, you’ll want to have the best fantasy football team you can muster. You may also be interested in Fanduel’s Super Bowl odds when the actual game rolls around.
Naturally, any stats given are accurate as of writing but are subject to change as the year continues.
1. Quarterbacks
Having stayed at the top of quarterback rankings for the regular season, it is no surprise that Buffalo Bills QB Josh Allen is one of the best wildcard picks too. He made 314 passing yards and 3 touchdowns against the New England Patriots defense in week 16, with 64 yards. Now the Bills are hosting the Patriots for the Wild Card Round and we can expect similar performance.
Of course, Patrick Mahomes is still around for those who can afford him or haven’t picked him up yet. As star QB of the Kansas City Chiefs, they are up against the Pittsburgh Steelers for the Wild Card Round. In their last match-up against the Steelers, Mahomes put in a middling performance but he finished the season strong. In his last game, Mahomes went for 270 yards across 27-of-44 tosses. He also added 54 running yards.
2. Running Backs
As for the running backs that you may want to look at for the Wild Card Round, you should consider Joe Mixon and Najee Harris.
For the Cincinnati Bengals, Mixon is up against the Las Vegas Raiders. While he recently tested positive for COVID-19, the Bengals aren’t taking a hit in terms of their fantasy stats after securing the AFC North title. Even if they had played, Mixon might have sat.
Harris is with the Steelers, so they’re up against the Kansas City Chiefs for the next game. Harris turned heads by carrying the ball 11 times across 28 yards in his week 18 game against the Ravens, which they won. He also added 27 yards in catches. It’s still his rookie season, which should be considered, but he could become RB1 by the end of next year.
3. Wide Receivers
One man stands above wide receiver rankings over every other athlete right now – Cooper Kupp. As a WR for the Los Angeles Rams, he was given 2021 fantasy football MVP by some commentators and fantasy sportsbooks. They are also up against the Arizona Cardinals, whose defense has been generous in allowing touchdowns to wide receivers in the last season.
Ja’Marr Chase of the Cincinnati Bengals and Deebo Samuel of the San Francisco 49ers are solid alternatives, with the Bengals facing the Las Vegas Raiders and the 49ers facing the Dallas Cowboys.
Last week Chase caught two passes for 26 yards and beat Chad Johnson’s record for most receiving yards in a season (1,440).
Samuel, on the other hand, finished the regular season with 1,800 total yards and 15 touchdowns and has been a great fantasy player in the league so far. If that trend continues, you may want him in your roster for the Wild Card Game.
4. Tight Ends
The two best tight end players for the upcoming Wild Card Game are Travis Kelce, of the Kansas City Chiefs, and Rob Gronkowski of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. That’s probably no surprise – both Kelce and the Gronk have been at the top of most tight end rankings all season.
Kelce’s season was very solid, ending with 92 receptions, 9 touchdowns, and 1,125 yards, which is great for a TE. Gronkowski didn’t score in his last game but he did make it a 110+ yard game. It was expected that his performance would suffer after joining the Buccaneers but his 2021 season kept in form. He can make a great pick for 2022, too.
5. Kickers
As for kickers, there are several great options available to fantasy football fans. There are four names at the top of fantasy rankings right now, here’s a brief rundown of them all.
Daniel Carlson of the Las Vegas Raiders has kicked 174 points across 17 games, averaging at 10.2 per game.
Nick Folk, for the New England Patriots, is slightly behind at 171 points with an average of 10.1.
Justin Tucker of the Baltimore Ravens and Chris Boswell of the Pittsburgh Steelers are below 170 points with 162, averaging 9.5 per game.
Representing the top three kickers in the NFL at the moment (with Tucker and Boswell joint third), each is a solid pick for your fantasy football team heading into the Wild Card Game.
Conclusion
Those are the best wild card player picks in the NFL right now. As the Wild Card Game approaches, and we have the Super Bowl coming up after that, it’s important to trim the fat from your fantasy roster and get players that are going to bring returns with every performance.
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