Embrace the Chaos in Denver on Conference Championship Sunday

In today's Fantasy Life Newsletter, presented by Hims:

When it comes to the Rams, Seahawks and Patriots, I feel like we know what we are going to get this weekend.

But the Denver Broncos feel like an absolute mystery box.

For starters, they’ll be rolling out backup Jarrett Stidham due to Bo Nix breaking his ankle at the end of the Divisional Round game vs. the Bills.

Payton loves Stidham (he signed him to a deal immediately when free agency opened in 2023) and the line (New England -4.5) indicates the drop off from Nix to Stidham isn’t as drastic as one might think.

Still, he’s started only four career games and will now be facing a Patriots defense that just terrorized C.J. Stroud.

The surprises for Denver don’t end there, either.

J.K. Dobbins, who we haven’t seen since Week 10, is back at practice this week. Considering Sean Payton did not seem to trust RJ Harvey as a rusher vs. the Bills (only 6 carries), this has the potential to massively shake up the backfield.

I’m not done yet, either. There’s just as much chaos in the WR room. Both Troy Franklin (hamstring) and Pat Bryant (concussion) exited the Bills game in the first quarter, which paved the way for big games from Marvin Mims (8-93-1) and Lil’Jordan Humphrey (2-33-1).

But both Bryant and Franklin returned to practice this week, as well, which means we shouldn’t get too cozy assuming Mims is the clear No. 2 behind Courtland Sutton.

While all of this uncertainty might seem like a headache, I actually think it provides a ton of fun angles for DFS contests this weekend.

After comparing our projections to ADP on Underdog, the Broncos stood out as the single-best edge to push in contests this weekend.

I’ll explain more below …

CONFERENCE CHAMPIONSHIPS RANKINGS

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Your Early NFL Draft Questions … Answered

Earlier this week, we published our post-title game 2026 NFL Draft Mock. And as the saying goes, "a good mock will raise more questions than answers." So we decided to address some of this year's most burning questions here, as a complement and a service to our readers …

If you were a sharp front office intern, who is the sleeper player you’d keep telling everyone above you that “we need to draft this year”?

FREEDMAN: My name would be UConn WR Skyler Bell.

After a redshirt season (1-15-0 receiving), Bell served as the No. 2 WR at Wisconsin for two years (68-740-6, 13-160-0 rushing, 25 games) and then transferred to Connecticut, where he immediately stepped up as the No. 1 WR in 2024 (50-860-5) and finished as a Biletnikoff Finalist in 2025 (101-1,278-13, 13 games).

A chains-moving craftsman, Bell wins with pacing, leverage and short‑area twitch more than size and deep‑speed juice, but his polished professionalism gives him a shot to go on Day 2 as a plug‑and‑play slot/Z contributor.

And if a team gets him on Day 3, that will be great value.

GENE: Both of these guys will likely be Day 3 selections and possibly even worse, but Morgan State linebacker Erick Hunter and Georgia State receiver Ted Hurst are two people whom I would want in the building.

Hunter is a tackle merchant with length, sideline-to-sideline speed, a high football IQ and an undeniable desire to be great.

Hurst is a 6-foot-4, big-bodied speedster who has underrated hands and basketball player hops. He will test very well, but show up when the whistle is blown even better. He has a lot of the things you can't teach, including the ability to grind.

WHO’S THE BEST COMP FOR THE LIKELY 1.01?

Underdog Strategy: Take a Swing on Jarrett Stidham

Underdog Battle Royale drafters will be faced with a large conundrum: What to do with Jarrett Stidham? By now you’ve probably heard or read that the last time Stidham threw a pass in a regular-season NFL game was Jan. 7, 2024—that’s 747 days ago. That day, he did go 20-for-34, 272 yards and a touchdown (1 INT).

Not bad, BUT THIS IS THE AFC CHAMPIONSHIP GAME! And the Patriots are on a heater defensively, having allowed just 6 points in two playoff games. Can you afford to be stuck with Stidham instead of possibly reaching for Sam Darnold maybe a round or two early? Pete Overzet shared his thoughts on how to approach QB after Matthew Stafford and Drake Maye are off the board:

“Drafters are terrified of getting stuck with Stidham, which means Darnold is getting overdrafted relative to his projection. He projects much closer to Stidham than he does Stafford, and yet his ADP is much closer to Stafford.”

Whether you’re going early QB—check out what Matthew has to say about Stidham—or waiting until the last round to select Stidham, Pete gives you the goods on how to approach these four-team drafts. Hint: There’s a wild card among the RBs. Read on. ⤵️

PUKA, JSN, THEN …

Around The Watercooler

The latest fantasy and NFL gossip, news, memes and more from our merry band of football nerds …

💥 Only three more games to go! Let’s go out with a bang on Underdog.

🔑 What are the key matchups for the Conference Championships?

🪓 You can still draft Guilloteenies. Kendall and LaMarca reviewed their draft strategies.

🚀 Tetairoa McMillan looks primed to take the next step.

🐦‍⬛ The Ravens got their guy. Now, how does he maximize Lamar Jackson?

📰 And it’s official in Tennessee. Second time around.

😆 Brandin Cooks caught the ball…according to the vibes.

📞 The Bills are on the hunt for a coach. Here are the candidates.

🤝 The Bucs land their new OC. The Falcons lost a good one.

🎙️ Is this thing on? Extra points for fantasy punishment originality, but those jokes were …

🤯 What if we told you Wan’Dale Robinson had one fewer target than Justin Jefferson?