Note: I have a partnership with Underdog, and RSJ receives a payment for sign-ups. Underdog’s tournaments are, far-and-away, my favorite playoff fantasy activity, and I am proud to promote them.
The other options here I have no affiliation, they are just options I’ve enjoyed or heard positive buzz about.
HOW AND WHERE TO PLAY NFL PLAYOFF FANTASY FOOTBALL
Top Option: Underdog Fantasy– Playoff Best Ball Tournaments
The Gauntlet 4 – $2M in prizes ($200K to first!) for a $25 entry fee. Prize Pool:
The Mitten 3 – featuring $500K in prizes ($50K to first!) for just $5. Just look at this finals prize pool – multiple 5-figure pay days!
Each of Underdog’s contests features slightly different Round Advancement styles depending on the total size, but nearly all of the contests see two-of-six advance in Round 1 (besides The Mitten, which is just one!).
In The Gauntlet 4, Underdog’s biggest tournament, the Round Advancement is: 2/6 – 1/10 – 1/10 – 300 Seat Final.
NOTE: In The Mitten 3, it is 1/6 – 1/10 – 1/5 – 375 Seat Final. Only one team advancing definitely changes the teams to target (bye week teams are tougher to stomach).
Payouts increase with each round you last, up to $200K in The Gauntlet 4 if you finish No. 1 of the final 600 as follows:
We’ll dive into Underdog-specific strategy and rules more in a separate post and on some live-draft streams, but here are some key points and best practices:
NFL PLAYOFF FANTASY STRATEGY & BEST PRACTICES (UNDERDOG & ALL FORMATS)
Round-by-Round Advancement (Underdog Specific): Unlike many other playoff fantasy formats, points on Underdog are NOT cumulative each round! Thus, you need a balance of longevity and single-week explosiveness. You’ll need active players from the long-lasting, ideally Super-Bowl-Bound teams if you hope to make a deep run where the big money is!
Team Stacking & Correlation (all NFL Playoff Fantasy Formats): Team stacking and correlation is CRUCIAL. I typically have at least 8 of my 10 players from just 2-3 overall teams (one AFC, one NFC) in hopes they are the ones facing off in the Super Bowl.
NFL Playoff Best Ball Golden Rule: The Golden Rule is trying to have 10 players live & active for the Conference Championships. This really means a max of picking from 3-4 teams total in each draft, and making sure they have a path to meet up in the finals.
To know the right paths and teams to pair, you must have strong:
Schedule Awareness: You must have a strong awareness of playoff brackets, avoiding current or soon-to-be opponents while stacking up the best players on 2-3 total teams. This will help you keep as many potential lineup pieces and high-scorers alive as long as possible, increasing your chances of moving into the Super Bowl round with the life-changing prizes.
Example: If I draft Derrick Henry in Round 1 then I should immediately cross off the Steelers— their Round 1 opponent. I’d also be hesitant to draft many Bills, their likely Divisional Round Opponents (2 seed vs. 3 seed). Meanwhile, I’d elevate other Ravens like Mark Andrews, Rashod Bateman, and Zay Flowers in hopes of the Ravens running all the way to the Super Bowl.
I recommend making a bracket to get a sense of which teams could face off within a Round vs. the opponents with real paths to Conference Met ups. (i.e. avoid overloading 2 & 3 seeds within same conference). Play out a few scenarios. This will help you feel how far apart a same-conference opponent might be from squaring off with another. If I start with a Lions stack, the Eagles or Bucs would be strong NFC teams to target, since they could not meet up until the NFC Championship.
Don’t forget the NFL re-seeds, so the top remaining seed will always face the lowest remaining seeds. As covered in my 2025 Fantasy Football Playoff Rankings, I anticipate a Bills vs. Lions Super Bowl. However, I also sneaky love the Chargers (and their cheap playoff fantasy price tags) to potentially go on a deep run, and enjoy stacking around the Rams, Commanders, and Bucs late.
Here is my projected bracket:
Based on these brackets, I made my 2025 NFL Playoffs Fantasy Football Rankings. They can be used for all formats, but are largely created with Underdog Bestball Tournaments in mind.
Click the banner below, click here, or download & use promo code RSJ for up to a $1000 first deposit bonus on Underdog Fantasy.
Top Option No. 2: Create & Host your Own “Total Points” NFL Playoff Fantasy League
If you prefer facing off with the people you know, setting up your own NFL Playoffs Fantasy League is incredibly easy.
Just like regular fantasy football, you’ll draft actual NFL players and score points based on their performance.
Unlike regular fantasy football, you are NOT matched up with a weekly opponent. Instead, your goal is to score the “most total points” over the entire four-week course of the postseason.
This makes the quality of the NFL team equally, if not more, important than that of the actual players for obvious reasons: the more games played, the more chances to rack up points. One-and-done players become roster dead weight.
Thus, the top picks are the highest point producers on teams with the highest likelihood of 3-4 games played.
IDEAL NFL PLAYOFF FANTASY LEAGUE SETTINGS
League size: Six people
With only 14 NFL teams to select talent from, playoff fantasy rosters can thin out very fast with more than six owners. Fewer teams are acceptable, but just like 12 versus 10-team leagues in regular fantasy, this doesn’t require as much skill and carries a JV Stigma.
Scoring: Keep it consistent with your regular season scoring. For me, I prefer 1/2 PPR & 4-point passing TDs.
Players accumulate total points for as long as they last. Some leagues do bonuses or multipliers based on how deep into the playoffs a player lasts. For example, Player Y’s points may be 1.5x for the Conference Championship Week and 2x for the Super Bowl. For what it’s worth, I don’t prefer multipliers.
Rosters: As mentioned, the drop to only 14 teams shallows out the player pool. Rosters should be adjusted, with our top recommendation being:
- 2 QBs
- 2 RBs
- 3 WR or TE
- 1 Flex (WR / RB / TE)
- 1 K
- 1 DEF
For hosting and customizing your own NFL Playoff Fantasy Football League, we recommend MyFantasyLeague. They go step-by-step, and I had the RSJ Expert League up and running in 15 minutes.
OTHER OPTIONS FOR NFL PLAYOFFS FANTASY FOOTBALL
1. One-and-Done Leagues
You can pick any player, any week, from any team but you can only pick them once. You pick a new roster weekly from whichever players you have not yet chosen. The most total points at the end of the playoffs decide the winner.
So, if you take, say, AJ Brown this 2025 wild card weekend. You wouldn’t get to use him again, even if the Eagles go the distance.
As such, picking talented fantasy players who are likely to get eliminated early is crucial. Mike Evans, Jayden Daniels, Puka Nacua vs. Justin Jefferson (and whoever you see losing between the Rams vs. Vikings) all fit the bill in 2025. Squeeze their fantasy juice before they’re gone!
MyFantasyLeague hosts these style leagues under “Contest Style.”
2. One Player Per Team League
You pick one, and only one, player per team to fill out a 14-position roster (1 per playoff team), such as:
- 2 QB
- 2 RB
- 3 WR
- 1 TE
- 4 FLEX (W/R/T)
- 1 DEF
- 1 K
You get the player for as long as they last, with the most total points winning. If you see a team making an early exit, you should burn the DEF and K spots.
Note: The FFPC hosts a high-stakes ($200) variation of this format with the following 12-man roster: 1-QB, 2-RB, 2-WR, 1-TE, 4-Flex, 1-K, 1-D (Flex can be RB, WR or TE). This means you completely punt two teams. They also 2x all points for Super Bowl squads. Learn more here. The Grand Prize is a whopping $500K!
Note: FPPC is also now offering a lower-cost, higher-field tournament. For $35, you can get a shot at $100K!
3. High Stakes Playoff Leagues
I only know of two potential options: the FFPC Playoff Challenge and the NFFC Post Season Hold ‘Em.
FFPC Playoff Challenge:
The FFPC is my preferred variation, as it’s a bit simpler and follows the aforementioned “One Player Per Team” set up.
They offer two options: a $200 buy-in for a shot at a $500,000 Grand Prize (vs. 6,250 entries), or a $35 buy-in for a shot at a $100,000 Grand Prize (vs .12,500 entries).
The rules and scoring are clearly outlined here.
NFFC Post Season Hold’em:
I’ve never played this, but will likely dabble this season.
These settings are a mix of the above variations, described as follows:
The NFFC Post Season Hold ‘Em Tournament will begin with the first wild card games and continue through the final playoff game. Points will be accumulated throughout the playoffs and the team with the most total points wins the grand prize.
All other prizes will also be paid based on total points. Each week the number of points an NFL player earns for you will be multiplied by the number of consecutive weeks he has been on your roster, rewarding fantasy players who correctly can predict top players on this year’s teams that compete in the Championship game. Players with first-round byes automatically earn twice their total points during Week 2 of the playoffs.
Like most playoff fantasy leagues, the incentive obviously lies in finding teams that could go on major streaks given the multipliers. However, unlike other leagues, you get to “reset” each week and start a new squad based on the remaining talent pool.
The NFFC offers a $150,000 Grand Prize for a $200 buy-in (1750 field size), as well as a $50 “Mini Hold ‘Em” with a $50,000 Grand Prize (2,300 max entries).
4. NFL DFS (DraftKings or FanDuel)
Pretty obvious. You already know how to play (salary cap) and what to do. Just like the regular season, the appeal is the one-week nature and huge prize pools. Use The Wolf’s Week 19 Wild Card Weekend Fantasy Football Rankings to help you dominate NFL Playoffs DFS this coming weekend!
SUMMARY
Clearly, there are tons of NFL Playoff fantasy football options to keep that fantasy itch scratched all postseason. At minimum, we love setting up a six-man league with friends to keep all the things you love about fantasy alive: a draft, trash-talk, side bets. All the goods.
Underdog NFL Playoffs Best Ball remains my favorite way to spice up my playoffs. The prize pools are incredible, and drafting is just so fun. I highly encourage any one to give it a try — and my code will get you up to $1000 Bonus Cash Match!
Still, plenty of other unique variations, such as best ball and high-stakes action, exist. Try a host of them, and squeeze every last fantasy football drop out of this year. Make sure to dominate using The Wolf’s 2025 NFL Playoffs Fantasy Football Rankings.
