“You cannot control what happens to you, but you can control your attitude toward what happens to you, and in that, you will be mastering change rather than allowing it to master you.” – Brian Tracy
I will be the first person to tell you that I’m not anything close to an expert on life. I’m just another person trying to make it through with as little frustration as possible. I wake up every morning with almost no idea what I’m doing. I get through on a wing and a prayer most days, just like everyone else. It’s not that I’m unprepared or life is especially difficult; I’m just simply human.
Anyone who says they have it all figured out is guaranteed to be lying. What fun would that be? Part of the joy of life is new experiences and lessons we learn from them daily. I’ve certainly picked up a few things here and there, just like we all have. Some lessons are big ones, some are small, but one I’ve found might be the most important of all of them.
Attitude Is Everything
Our attitude dictates our day from the moment we get out of bed. If you start the morning off knowing your day is going to suck, it probably will. You’ve already put yourself at a disadvantage. Things that could have been enjoyable will probably just end up being frustrating and the frustrating things can become catastrophic. This generally leads to counting down the seconds until you crawl back into bed. I have been guilty of this more times than I can count.
It isn’t easy to be optimistic. Some days it feels impossible. I get it. Life can seem overwhelming. The thing is, you can only control yourself, so why worry about everything else? You’re in charge of your attitude and outlook every single day. My mother-in-law has a saying, and while it sounds corny, it’s true: “Make it a great day, because you get to choose.”
One of the things that has been hard to be optimistic about lately is the direction this NFL season is heading and with it, our fantasy rosters. As we get closer and closer to the fantasy playoffs, many of us are limping towards the finish line. There are positives too. Despite all the adversity, we still have football every Thursday, Sunday and Monday.
The difficulty of managing our rosters has made us better, in theory, at this fake game based on a sport. We’ve had the privilege of watching players like Mac Jones and Najee Harris grow quickly as rookies. Second-year receiver Justin Jefferson continues to be elite and the Arizona Cardinals have emerged as a powerhouse. It’s all about attitude.
In this week’s edition of “Hot, Medium & Mild,” I’ll touch on some players, who, due to injury, could be in for increased usage and have some boom potential to help you make that final playoff push over the next 2 weeks. Nothing is a guarantee, including the players I’m highlighting here, but at this point in the season, we have to work with what’s out there. Let’s get down to business!
Hot, Medium & Mild: Week 13
HOT — Komodo Dragon Pepper
Foster Moreau (TE, Las Vegas Raiders)
This past week saw Las Vegas tight end, Darren Waller, hurt his knee in a Thanksgiving Day win over the Dallas Cowboys. While he has been disappointing so far this season, it’s still a gut punch to anyone who has him rostered. Fortunately, there is a next man up here – Foster Moreau.
Foster Moreau has 10 career touchdowns in limited work for the Raiders.
With Waller listed as week-to-week, Moreau should be in line for an increase in workload in Week 13 against the Washington Football Team. Back in Week 7, with Waller out due to injury, Moreau had a big game against the Philadelphia Eagles. In that contest, he had six catches for 60 yards and a touchdown. That effort resulted in 18 Points Per Reception (PPR) points, which was good enough to make him the overall TE4 on the week.
While Washington is better against tight ends, allowing an average of 10.7 PPR points, as opposed to Philadelphia’s league-worst 15.9, Las Vegas is desperate for viable targets in the passing game. They are currently averaging only 89.1 rushing yards per game, 27th in the league.
Conversely, they are averaging 310.4 passing yards per game and are throwing on the ball on 62.8 percent of offensive snaps. With the only other real options being Hunter Renfrow and Bryan Edwards, Moreau should see significant volume.
At this point in the season, you have to do whatever it takes to win. While you might not love it, tight end-needy teams should be spending up for a player like Moreau. He could be one who changes your fantasy fortunes.
MEDIUM — Hinklehatz Pepper
Boston Scott (RB, Philadelphia Eagles)
That’s right, I’m about to tell you to go out and roster Boston Scott with running back Miles Sanders healthy. Am I crazy? Yes, but not because of this. It’s simple, really. Philadelphia is now a run-first team. In the last 3 weeks, they have only thrown the ball on 40.8 percent of offensive snaps. Heading into a Week 13 matchup against the New York Jets, that is unlikely to change.
Last week against the New York Giants, with Sanders active, Scott saw 15 carries for 64 yards and a touchdown and added two catches in the passing game. Sanders only saw nine carries for 64 yards and no touchdown. It was clear that Scott was being favored in red-zone situations and appears to be the more trusted back overall between the two.
This week he will be going up against the worst run defense in the league in the Jets. Jordan Howard is unlikely to be active with a bye week coming, so look for Scott to again get the ball in high-value situations.
Scott isn’t a long-term add and Howard will be back in Week 15. For now, though, we know he will see enough volume to be relevant as an RB2/FLEX option. He is only rostered in 17.1 percent of ESPN leagues, so he’s most likely out there in your league. If you need a running back this week, Scott is as good as any option out there.
MILD — Melrose Pepper
Ameer Abdullah & Chuba Hubbard (RB, Carolina Panthers)
With Christian McCaffrey now out for the season, everyone is trying to figure out who is the next man up in Carolina. The two most likely candidates are rookie running back Chuba Hubbard and veteran Ameer Abdullah, seeing as those are the only two true running backs currently on the roster. My pick might be a little shocking; it’s neither.
First of all, there is no replacing McCaffrey. Let’s get that out of the way. When healthy, he is the best running back in football. Second, the Carolina Panthers showed last week, with both running backs available, that they would prefer to throw the ball in the absence of McCaffrey. Quarterbacks Cam Newton and P.J. Walker combined to throw the ball 31 times on 49 total snaps. Three of their 18 runs were Newton and one other was strong safety, Sean Chandler.
The ground game in Carolina is likely dead the rest of the season outside of the mobile Newton and Walker if he enters the game. Hubbard and Abdullah had a combined four carries for 1o yards in Week 13. It is clear that head coach Matt Rhule and offensive Coordinator Joe Brady are not yet ready to hand the rookie a full workload and don’t see Abdullah as the kind of back they can rely heavily upon. The best move here is no move. Neither will be worth rostering this season.
And there you have it, folks. Take it or leave it and good luck in Week 13!
And now, I think you know what time it is…
#DadJoke time! This week is a shout-out to my #Movember mustache.
I hated facial hair but then it grew on me.
As always, thanks for reading. For more fantasy and life content, find me on Twitter @JeNateJackFF.