Conference Championship Fantasy Football Quarterback Rankings: Jayden Daniels, Jalen Hurts, Josh Allen and Patrick Mahomes

We’re down to just four teams in the NFL playoffs, which means it’s conference championship time!

Here, we will rank the four quarterbacks from the two games. We’ll go over the defensive matchups first, then rank the quarterbacks.

Looking for start/sit help? Be sure to check out the FantasySP Who Should I Start tool.

Conference Championship Matchups

In the NFC Championship Game, which will be played at 3 p.m. ET on Sunday, January 26, the Washington Commanders and Philadelphia Eagles meet.

Also that day, the Buffalo Bills and Kansas City Chiefs will battle in the AFC Championship Game at 6:30 p.m. ET.

Jayden Daniels will lead the Commanders, while Jalen Hurts guides the Eagles. Daniels has the toughest defensive matchup of any quarterback left, and Hurts’ test is only slightly better.

Josh Allen powers the Bills, while Patrick Mahomes quarterbacks the Chiefs. Mahomes’ matchup is just a touch better than Hurts’, which leaves Allen with the best matchup of the week. KC’s defense was slightly below average when it came to slowing down fantasy quarterbacks this season.

Before we get into things, here is how I see the games unfolding. 

While I’d love to see Buffalo make the Super Bowl, I have the Chiefs edging them in another classic showdown. I picked against Philly and Washington last week and am going with the underdogs and taking the Commanders to win this week and represent the NFC in the Super Bowl.

Quarterback Rankings

1. Josh Allen

Allen was my top fantasy quarterback in the Divisional Round, and I’m sticking with him for the next round, even though he didn’t have a monster fantasy day last week.

Allen finished with 127 passing yards and no touchdowns or interceptions against Baltimore last round. He added 20 rushing yards and two touchdowns to deliver a respectable fantasy score. Allen also didn’t lose a fumble, and has now avoided a turnover in four straight games.

His dual-threat ability makes him one of the best fantasy quarterbacks any week he is playing, and in the most favorable matchup of the week, I like Allen to deliver a good fantasy score. Even if he isn’t throwing for 300+ yards, Allen can post a big score with his rushing numbers.

Of course, the Bills and Chiefs already met this season, with Buffalo winning in a week 11 showdown. Allen had 262 passing yards, a touchdown and a pick in that contest, while adding 55 rushing yards and a score on the ground.

Those numbers seem replicable, and even if he cannot match the yardage total, if Allen can avoid a mistake, his fantasy score will still be very strong.

The reason I’m most confident in Allen is that his fantasy outlook isn’t impacted by the weather. He delivers good scores in adverse weather conditions because the Bills rely on him so heavily in the running game. Allen seems like the safest play with the most upside this week.

2. Jayden Daniels

Daniels has not looked like a rookie across his first two postseason games. He’s been a better passer than most people expected, while adding 87 rushing yards through two playoff games.

Last week, he ripped apart the Detroit defense, throwing for 299 yards and two touchdowns. He avoided an interception and fumble, and rushed for 51 yards to add even more fantasy points to his final line.

Just like Allen, Daniels’ dual-threat ability has made him a great fantasy option in his first season. It also makes him a better option in adverse weather, which could happen in Philadelphia this coming weekend.

Being division rivals, Washington and Philadelphia have met twice this season. Daniels did some nice things in both contests.

In the first clash, Daniels threw for 191 yards, a touchdown and an interception. He rushed for 18 yards. Philly won that game 26-18.

In the rematch, Daniels had 258 passing yards, five touchdowns and two interceptions. He rushed for an additional 81 yards in a wild 36-33 contest.

Despite it being the toughest matchup of the week, Daniels has done enough this season to trust in all types of matchups. His bit of success and familiarity with the Eagles’ defense from the regular season is another plus in my book. The three interceptions against Philly are a bit concerning, but I think Daniels could still put up even yardage and scores to offset a couple mistakes this weekend.

Daniels has the potential to be the top fantasy QB in the upcoming round, but the tough matchup is what slides him to my No. 2 slot.

3. Patrick Mahomes

Mahomes comes in third on my list. He didn’t do anything too special last week, but he avoided mistakes and led the team to another win, which is what his role is on this current team.

Mahomes had 177 passing yards, a touchdown and no interceptions against Houston last week. He added 14 rushing yards.

He was a bit of a fantasy disappointment the past two regular seasons, but his ability to take care of the ball helps the Chiefs keep winning. Mahomes was definitely better down the stretch, with his fantasy performance last round being his worst showing in the past 11 games.

In the week 11 clash with the Bills, Mahomes threw three touchdowns, but also had two interceptions and only 196 passing yards. He didn’t add anything as a runner.

Those two interceptions were actually the last ones Mahomes has thrown on the season. He’s avoided a turnover in his past seven appearances.

Buffalo is a tough matchup, so I see Mahomes as just an average fantasy option this week. Mahomes gets the edge over Hurts because of a higher fantasy ceiling, but it seems unlikely he would outscore Daniels or Allen this week.

4. Jalen Hurts

Hurts is the last fantasy quarterback in my book for the upcoming week. I just have not been overly impressed with his postseason showings so far, and in a tough matchup, I don’t expect him to play significantly better.

He had 128 passing yards, with no passing touchdowns or interceptions against the Rams last week. Hurts did have 70 rushing yards and a score (aided heavily by a 44-yard touchdown scamper) to post a decent fantasy score at least.

Looking back at his regular season gamelogs, Hurts has struggled as a passer for a while now. He’s topped 200 passing yards just once over his past seven contests. One of those games he was injured in, but rushing stats have really saved Hurts as a fantasy performer since about week 11.

In the first game against Washington this season, Hurt had 221 passing yards, but no touchdowns. He avoided an interception and rushed for 39 yards and a score. 

In game two, Hurts was injured early on. He had 11 passing yards and 41 rushing yards before leaving.

Like they have most of the season, and especially in the postseason so far, I see Philadelphia relying on Saquon Barkley instead of making Hurts and the passing game lead the way. I expect Washington to stack the box and try to force Hurts to beat them with his arm.

Washington has struggled to slow the run, being a bit below average against fantasy backs during the regular season, so I expect Barkley to have plenty of success on the ground. That will limit what Hurts can do as a fantasy performer though, and I think it will lead to a so-so fantasy performance, and the worst one of the week among quarterbacks.