Top 5 QB/WR stacks to consider for Wild Card weekend

The Wild Card round is here, and that means you’ll get your first crack at postseason contests this weekend. There will be two games on Saturday and two games on Sunday to get the ball rolling, and we have some advice on what the best QB-WR pairings available might be.

Stacking a quarterback and wide receiver on the same team makes sense because each duo’s DKFP ceiling will be linked. There’s a good chance that if you grab the top-performing wide receiver for the weekend, the signal caller paired with them will be toward the top as well. The inverse is also true. Here are the stacks we think you should consider to get a leg up on the competition:

5. Kirk Cousins ($6,100)/Stefon Diggs ($6,600), Vikings at Saints

Cousins had a solid but not great season as an individual for the Minnesota Vikings but has the tools around around him to put together the best playoff performance of his career. Cousins’ only other two postseason appearances were with Washington. He lost both by at least two scores. But now he has strong running game and one of the better wideouts in the game supporting him.

Of the wide receivers playing in the Wild Card round, Diggs ranks third in Football Outsiders’ DYAR metric — behind Michael Thomas and Tyler Lockett. Diggs also ranks first in DVOA. If the Vikings are ambitious take shots down the field, the Cousins-Diggs duo could be a bright spot for their team’s offense at of the the NFL’s more turbulent venues.

4. Tom Brady ($5,800)/Julian Edelman ($6,500), Titans at Patriots

Brady and Edelman have formed one of the most dominant playoff batteries the NFL has seen in recent years. The two have notched their first postseason appearance together in 2009 and have combined totaled 115 completions between them in 18 games since then.

Brady’s has more experience in meaningful games than any other quarterback in the field and a long standing relationship with his go-to guy. Facing Tennessee’s average pass defense should be a good warmup for Edelman, who hasn’t tallied fewer than five receptions in a postseason contest since 2011.

3. Russell Wilson ($6,800)/Tyler Lockett ($7,200), Seahawks at Eagles

Wilson is the priciest quarterback option in Wild Card weekend’s four-game slate, and there’s a good reason for that. His legs are an asset, he can make any throw, and he nearled had two receivers over 1,000 receiving yards in 2019. None of Wilson’s targets are superstars, but one advantage he does have his number of repetitions.

According to Football Outsiders, Tyler Lockett had the second-highest catch rate (74%) in the NFL this season among players who caught at least 50 passes. He should be able to find space against Philadelphia’s struggling defensive backs and should be even more of a threat now that Seattle’s backfield is questionable.

2. Deshaun Watson ($6,400)/DeAndre Hopkins ($7,700), Bills at Texans

Watson averages more DKFP (23.3) per contest than every other quarterback in the Wild Card round. He will also be coming off an extended rest period alongside his top target after both of them sat in Week 17. Watson’s ability to rack up points as a runner shouldn’t be underestimated, as he was second only to Carlos Hyde in rushing yards this year and used his legs to find the end zone seven times during the regular season.

Hopkins is the the second-best wideout in the Wild Card round, and his price indicates that. He’s notched three 1,000-yard seasons in two and a half years with Watson, which shows the two have great chemistry. This should lead to some form of success, even against the Buffalo Bills’ defense.

1. Drew Brees ($6,600)/Michael Thomas($9,300), Vikings at Saints

The New Orleans Saints’ golden tandem has to be at the top of the totem pole for this weekend’s best QB/WR stacks. Brees has thrown for at least 250 yards and three touchdowns in each of his last four contests, and a large part of his success is owed to Thomas. The stud receiver was targeted more than 13 times per contest in his last four regular season appearances, scoring three touchdowns and surpassing 100 receiving yards in three of those games. He’s tallied more than 30 DKFP six times this season no team seems to have found a way to slow him down.

Thomas, the NFL’s new single-season reception record holder, will face a Minnesota Vikings defense that’s struggled to find consistency at the quarterback position. There’s a good chance he’ll tee off against the visiting team, as it has no answer for him.