Playoff fantasy football RB rankings: Christian McCaffrey tops the list

Playoff fantasy football leagues put an interesting twist on traditional season-long formats, requiring even more strategy than usual. Managers begin these postseason leagues by snake-style drafting a full roster of players, as they normally would. The catch is that there are fewer players to choose from, and rostered players surrender when their NFL team loses.

When teams are eliminated from the NFL Playoffs, their players are no longer options for fantasy football lineups. This completely changes the approach on draft day, adding another layer to analyzing potential options. Their values come not only from their individual outlooks but their potential to make a deep postseason run as well.

Loading up a roster with talented players from the Wild Card round may be beneficial in the opening week. Still, if those players are on teams that lose, managers may find it difficult to put out a solid lineup in the later rounds. While waivers are available in playoff fantasy football, very few legitimate options ever become available. This is especially true as the player pool shrinks as each round passes.

Bye weeks play another important factor when determining which players to target in drafts for playoff fantasy football formats. For the running back position, Christian McCaffrey is clearly the best overall fantasy running back, but he comes with a potential issue in these leagues. He can't be used on Wild Card weekend, as the San Francisco 49ers earned a first-round bye.

Gus Edwards and Justice Hill are also among the solid options with a chance at making a deep run to the later round but will be unavailable to use in the first round with the Baltimore Ravens also on a bye. They all still make for solid targets on draft day, but managers must also make alternative plans to replace them in their lineups for the opening round.

Taking all of these types of situations into account for every running back in NFL Playoffs this year, here's how they stack up in the fantasy football rankings.

RB rankings for playoff fantasy football

Isiah Pacheco

1. Christian McCaffrey
2. Tony Pollard
3. Isiah Pacheco
4. Raheem Mostert
5. James Cook
6. Kyren Williams
7. Jahmyr Gibbs
8. Gus Edwards
9. De'Von Achane
10. David Montgomery
11. D'Andre Swift
12. Justice Hill
13. Rachaad White
14. Jerome Ford
15. Devin Singletary
16. Aaron Jones
17. Najee Harris
18. Kareem Hunt
19. Rico Dowdle
20. Jerick McKinnon
21. Leonard Fournette
22. Jaylen Warren
23. Clyde Edwards-Helaire
24. Kenneth Gainwell
25. Latavius Murray
26. Jeff Wilson Jr.
27. Elijah Mitchell
28. Dameon Pierce
29. AJ Dillon
30. Boston Scott

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