DFS Conference Championship Dart Throws: Jarrett Stidham & Others You're Missing

Championship Sunday isn't won by rostering the same names everyone else has. With just four teams and condensed player pools, the margins are razor-thin. You need true dart throws—the names nobody is talking about, the players buried in depth charts, the guys who need one play to blow up your GPP. Here are the deep cuts that could separate you from the field.

The Matchups

AFC Championship: New England Patriots @ Denver Broncos (3 PM ET, CBS)

NFC Championship: Los Angeles Rams @ Seattle Seahawks (6:30 PM ET, FOX)

Quarterback

Jarrett Stidham, DEN

$4,500

The ultimate contrarian play. Stidham hasn't thrown a regular-season pass since 2023 and will be the first QB since Roger Staubach in 1972 to make his first start of a season in a conference title game. The field will fade him aggressively—and that's exactly why he's interesting.

Here's what the market is missing: in his last four NFL starts, Stidham threw for 197+ yards every time. His preseason this year was electric—30-of-38, 376 yards, 4 TDs, zero picks, 143.0 passer rating. Sean Payton made Stidham a priority free agent signing in 2023 for a reason. "Watch out," Payton said after the Nix injury. "Just watch."

Payton will scheme heavy check-downs and screens to RJ Harvey and the tight ends. New England's defense allowed the 8th-highest adjusted yards per attempt on short passes this season.

Running Backs

Jaleel McLaughlin, DEN

$4,400

McLaughlin is the change-of-pace scat back in Denver's committee, and with Stidham under center, Payton might lean heavily on the ground game to protect his quarterback. McLaughlin played just 14% of snaps against the Bills, but that was with Bo Nix airing it out. The game script changes completely with a backup QB.

At $4,400, you're betting on Payton going ultra-conservative. If Denver commits to ball control and McLaughlin sees 8-10 touches with his big-play speed, he can easily return value. He's averaging 3.2 yards per carry with receiving upside out of the backfield. A touchdown flips his entire slate.

Wide Receivers

Lil'Jordan Humphrey, DEN

$3,400

Humphrey is the Stidham stack piece nobody is talking about. He caught a 29-yard touchdown against Buffalo last week and played 67% of offensive snaps—that's clear WR2 usage behind only Courtland Sutton. With Troy Franklin out (hamstring) and Pat Bryant barely playing (just 4% snaps despite being active), Humphrey is Stidham's security blanket.

At 6'4" with a big catch radius, he's exactly the target a rusty quarterback looks for when the pocket gets muddy. The chemistry is real—they've been working together in practice all season. At $3,400, Humphrey is a core GPP piece if you're going contrarian with Stidham.

DeMario Douglas, NE

$3,600

Douglas is buried behind Kayshon Boutte and Stefon Diggs on the depth chart, but he played 26% of snaps against the Texans as the Patriots' slot receiver. At $3,600, he's essentially a free square if Drake Maye needs a quick outlet against Denver's aggressive pass rush.

Denver's defense funnels opponents into short throws—they allow the 8th-highest adjusted YPA on passes under 10 yards. That's Douglas's bread and butter. He's projected for just 4.7 points, but a couple of catches and a scramble drill touchdown puts him at 3x value. Nobody will have him.

Jordan Whittington, LAR

$3,100

Whittington just earned 60% of offensive snaps against the Bears as the clear WR3 behind Nacua and Adams—a massive jump from earlier in the season. He caught two passes for 35 yards (15 and 20-yard receptions), showing Stafford trusts him on key downs.

The Rams abandoned their 13 personnel packages in the Divisional Round (only 9.1% usage), meaning fewer tight ends and more three-wide looks. That benefits Whittington directly. At $3,100, he's the cheapest path to Rams passing game exposure and lets you pay up elsewhere.

Tight Ends

Eric Saubert, SEA

$4,000

Saubert caught the game-winning two-point conversion against the Rams in Week 16 to complete Seattle's 16-point fourth-quarter comeback. That's not a coincidence—Mike Macdonald trusted him in the biggest moment of the regular season.

He played 47% of offensive snaps against the 49ers, working as Seattle's TE2 behind AJ Barner. The Rams allowed the 4th-most tight end targets per game this season, and Seattle's tight ends combined for meaningful work in both regular season matchups. At $4,000, Saubert has red zone equity that the projections (0.51 FPTS) completely miss. If this game goes to overtime again, you want the guy who already won it.

Colby Parkinson, LAR

$3,500

Parkinson is the Rams' clear TE1 after playing 68% of offensive snaps against the Bears—way ahead of Terrance Ferguson (29%), Davis Allen (12%), and Tyler Higbee (10%). He caught the game-winning touchdown against Carolina in the Wild Card round and scored against Seattle in Week 11.

Seattle allowed the 4th-most tight end targets per game (8.4) during the regular season. Rams tight ends combined for 15 targets (33% share) against the Seahawks in Week 16. At $3,500, you're getting the lead tight end on the league's best passing offense at a discount price.

Terrance Ferguson, LAR

$2,700

Ferguson is the minimum-salary flier. He posted a season-high five targets against the Bears and accounted for 21.3% of the Rams' air yards—just behind Adams and Nacua. The problem: he only played 29% of snaps, so he's heavily TD-dependent.

But at $2,700, you're essentially getting a free lottery ticket on the Rams' passing game. If Stafford looks his way in the red zone once and Ferguson converts, he returns 5x value. Pure tournament play.

Austin Hooper, NE

$3,000

Hooper is the Patriots' TE2 behind Hunter Henry, but he played 34% of offensive snaps against the Texans in the Divisional Round. That's real playing time, and at $3,000, he's essentially free salary relief.

Here's the matchup angle: Denver's elite defense funnels opponents into short throws—they allow the 8th-highest adjusted YPA on passes under 10 yards. That's exactly where Hooper operates. When Drake Maye faces pressure from the Broncos' pass rush (63 sacks this season, most in the NFL), he'll need quick outlets. Hooper has quietly put up a 21-263-2 line this season working behind Henry. If the Patriots go to two-TE sets to help with pass protection, Hooper could see 4-5 targets. One red zone look changes everything at this salary.

Defense

Denver Broncos D/ST

$2,500

The Broncos have been the #1 ranked defense all season, featuring reigning Defensive Player of the Year Pat Surtain II. They're catching a Patriots team with serious ball security issues—Drake Maye has fumbled six times in two playoff games.

Denver is projected for 3.6 sacks and 0.6 interceptions. At Empower Field at Mile High with a raucous home crowd, this defense can absolutely steal a game with a pick-six or scoop-and-score. At $2,500, the Broncos D/ST is the best value on the entire slate.

These aren't the names you'll see on the main slate breakdowns. That's the point. Championship Sunday GPPs are won in the margins—by the players nobody else has when they go off.

You don't need all of them to hit. You just need one to smash at near-zero ownership while the field takes zeros from their chalk. Good luck.