Welcome to the Divisional Round of the NFL Playoffs and the next edition DFS RB Coach! What an ugly week for running backs to kick off the playoffs. Aaron Jones went bananas, but outside of him, there wasn’t much to write home about. Tony Pollard (21.5) proved to be the top play for me in the RB coach, while the rest flopped for anywhere between 6-9 points. We will start to shorten the list of players now that we are getting less and less games / options to choose from. It’s time to start putting those DraftKings and FanDuel lineups together and hit the big paydays! Let’s dive into my favorite RB plays!

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Divisional Round Picks

NFL DFS RB Top Play

Christian McCaffrey, San Francisco 49ers

CMC sat out Week 18 and then had a bye week for Wild Card weekend, but he is fresh, healthy, and ready to go for the Divisional Round now as the 49ers face the Packers. Green Bay ranks as the #1 matchup for running backs out of all the remaining playoff teams and CMC is easily the best back of all remaining running backs with his insane dk ppg average of 25.9. He will cost you far more than any of the other options, but he is superior and in the best spot, so he will likely be heavily played this week. The next three highest salaried backs all face some of the toughest run defenses in the entire league. 

 

NFL DFS RB Mid-Tier Play

Isiah Pacheco, Kansas City Chiefs

Pacheco produced pretty well in the playoff opener, racking up 89 yards on the ground with a touchdown to finish with 15.8 dk points. Over his last five games he has scored 25.9, 24.3, 11.6, 32.5, and 15.8 dk points while getting at least 15 carries in all but one of those games and getting at least three receptions in all but one as well. The Chiefs offense needs a strong ground game more than ever with the lacking abilities of their pass-catchers. Pacheco also has the second best matchup on the slate this week as the Bills were just a middle of the pack team against running backs this season. 

 

NFL DFS RB Value Play

Devin Singletary, Houston Texans

Singletary had a nice game in the win over the Browns, scoring 16 dk points by rushing for 66 yards and a touchdown while catching three passes for four yards. He has scored at least 9.3 dk points in six straight, which isn’t some super high number but it’s not bad and he is the cheapest back of the ones you can actually trust this week. The Ravens, as great as their defense is, weren’t spectacular against running backs this season, so Singletary will be a key factor for the Texans offense as the Ravens were one of the top teams against passing attacks this year. The fact he has at least three receptions in four of his past five games is really nice as well and provides a bit of a floor. 

 

NFL DFS RB Fade

David Montgomery, Detroit Lions

Monty was my fade last week and I wrote “I love Monty, but the trend has been downwards and his upside appears very limited at this point. Jahmyr Gibbs has taken over as the main back in the offense and Monty hasn't seen 20+ touches since Week 5. He hasn't scored 15+ dk points in six weeks and hasn't scored 20+ in eight weeks. Gibbs has seen more work around the goal line recently than he was earlier in the year, so there are a lot of negatives for Monty right now.” And we witnessed more of the same as he rushed 14 times and finished with 13.8 dk points. A solid game, but no upside. This matchup with the Bucs isn’t good and I don’t expect Monty to do a whole lot.