I’m going to be honest with you all; I’m tired. With this being my first year working full-time as a fantasy football analyst, I can tell you that it is different than what you would expect.

Now, don’t get me wrong, I absolutely love my job and I’m very thankful that I get to do what I do. But when I heard people within the industry talk before about how they barely sleep until January, I always assumed they were joking. Spoiler alert, they weren’t joking.

This job is a lot. It’s demanding and it can be draining to get up every week and repeat the same topics over and over again. You have to have resolve, determination, and you have to make sure that you’re taking care of yourself outside of work. But then not only do you have to deal with the mental demands of the job, you’re forced to deal with people shouting in your DMs or notifications that you made a wrong call and lost them their matchup. Or you have to read comments questioning how and why you have the job that you do.

Eventually, it all just becomes white noise. You learn to tune it out and have tough skin, but the comments that talk about how much they appreciate you and your work are the ones that sink in. Recently, we got an email from a podcast listener that talked about how they just recently lost a loved one. They mentioned the positive role that we played in their life over the past few months as a brief escape from reality and the painful situation that they were walking through. Those are the type of messages that give life and give us motivation to keep doing what we’re doing, even when we’re running on essentially empty.

I wanted to write about my experience now ten weeks into my first NFL season as a fantasy football analyst for two reasons. The first reason is that I believe it’s important to be real and authentic and for people to know the behind-the-scenes stuff. You may be reading this and you may want to pursue a career in fantasy football down the road. While there a lot of great parts about this career path, it’s important to know that it’s going to take some mental fortitude. Additionally, the second reason is that I wanted to thank those who take time out of their day to comment posts of appreciation. They’re certainly not needed, but they’re always nice to receive and know that people are listening and that they appreciate what I do. You all are amazing and I appreciate each and every person who listens to The FantasyPros Football Podcast and/or who reads my work.

HOU at CLE | WAS at DET | TB at CAR | PHI at NYG | JAC at GB | BUF at ARI | LAC at MIA | DEN at LVR | SEA at LAR | CIN at PIT | SF at NO | BAL at NE | MIN at CHI

Even though I’m exhausted, we’ve got to keep moving! We’ve got the fantasy football playoffs just around the corner and some key lineup decisions need to be made this week. Below, you’ll find my fantasy projections and player notes for every single fantasy relevant player. These projections are meant to provide the most likely outcome and they’re not meant to be used as true rankings. If you’re looking for my weekly rankings, you can find those here.

Thank you so much for the support again. If you have any questions on anything you read here, please do not hesitate to reach out over on Twitter!

Houston Texans vs Cleveland Browns

Date/Time: November 15, 1:00pm ET
Spread: Browns -3.5
Over/Under: 48.5 points
Implied Vegas point totals: Browns 26, Texans 22.5

Cleveland Browns

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Houston Texans

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Quarterback

Houston: Watson didn’t have as big of a performance as I was expecting in week nine, but he was still a great fantasy option. He gets a slightly tougher matchup here against Cleveland, but Watson has done enough since Bill O’Brien’s departure to be viewed as a consistent mid-range QB1 every single week.

Cleveland: Mayfield has been cleared off of the Covid-19/Reserve list and should be good to go for this matchup against Houston. The Texans defense is an extremely favorable matchup to opposing QBs and Mayfield should be efficient enough in this game to return high-end QB2 production. If you’re in need of a QB this week and Mayfield is sitting on your waiver wire, he’s an excellent pickup.

Running Backs

Houston: At this point, it seems almost certain that David Johnson will miss this game. With that in mind, Duke Johnson should easily receive 15+ touches here. While he wasn’t exactly efficient with his opportunity last week, he should see more than enough volume to finish as a top-24 RB this week. Fire up Duke Johnson as a low-end RB2 that has a safe floor due to his work in the receiving game.

Cleveland: Chubb appears to be trending towards playing in this game, which is great news for fantasy managers. It’s even better news when you consider the matchup that he has in front of him. Houston has been gashed routinely by opposing RBs this season and, assuming that he’s fully healthy, Chubb should receive his full workload and put together a big performance here. Chubb can be viewed as a mid-range RB1 this week due to the upside he presents. Hunt will now take a back seat with Chubb back in the lineup, but that doesn’t mean he should be out of your starting lineup. Hunt will remain heavily involved as a receiver out of the backfield and this is a matchup that he should have a good chance of finding the end zone in. Fire up Hunt in your starting lineup as a mid-range RB2 with upside.

Wide Receivers

Houston: Fuller got the job done for fantasy football yet again in week nine. He’s been extremely consistent all season long and he deserves to be in your starting lineup as a high-end WR2 every single week moving forward. Cooks was able to break away for a long touchdown last week and he saw nine total targets. While he only reeled in three of them, the target share is encouraging to see moving forward. Cooks should continue to be viewed as a low-end WR2 that comes with upside in this matchup. Cobb wasn’t involved much last week, but he has a great CB matchup this week against Tavierre Thomas. Thomas has been burned repeatedly all season long, so if you’re looking for a FLEX option in Full PPR leagues, Cobb comes with upside in this game.

Cleveland: Landry stepped into the WR1 role two weeks ago and saw plenty of targets. While he wasn’t able to convert them into much from a fantasy perspective, the target share is encouraging moving forward. In this matchup against the Texans corners, Landry should be viewed as a high-end WR3 that gets a slight bump up in Full PPR formats. Higgins wasn’t targeted much two weeks ago, but the weather in that game could have played a role. Higgins should see enough work to be in the FLEX conversation this week and he does have some upside with his role in this offense.

Tight Ends

Houston: When both Akins and Fells are active, it’s impossible to project which one will have the better day from a fantasy perspective. Both can be left on your bench or your league’s waiver wire.

Cleveland: Hooper should be back in the lineup for this matchup against Houston. If that’s the case, then he should be back in your starting fantasy lineup. Hooper’s role was dramatically increasing each week in this offense and he was producing for fantasy football. Hooper can be plugged into your lineup as a low-end TE1 this week.

FantasyProjection Buster: Either of the Houston tight ends could easily bust my projections for them. Their usage game in and game out is simply too unpredictable to feel confident in their projections. One could easily step in and receive the majority of the targets.

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Washington Football Team vs Detroit Lions

Date/Time: November 15, 1:00pm ET
Spread: Lions -4.5
Over/Under: 46.5 points
Implied Vegas point totals: Lions 25.5, Washington 21

Washington Football Team

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Detroit Lions

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Quarterback

Washington: After the gruesome injury to Kyle Allen last week, Smith came onto the field in relief. While this is a nice matchup for opposing QBs, it’s hard to see how Smith can do enough to enter into the streaming conversation in this offense after what we saw last week. He can be viewed as a low-end QB2 against Detroit.

Detroit: Stafford struggled mightily last week in a plus matchup, even before he left that game with a potential concussion, which doesn’t inspire confidence for fantasy managers that want to start him here. While Stafford has practiced in full this week, he falls just outside the streaming conversation this week in my rankings and he can be viewed as a mid-range QB2.

Running Backs

Washington: Gibson was out-snapped dramatically by McKissic last week, but he was able to salvage his fantasy performance by finding the end zone. This is a great matchup for Gibson though against the Lions porous run defense and Washington should look to establish the run game early on here. Gibson can be started as a mid-range RB2 with upside in this matchup. McKissic soaked up targets out of the backfield last week and was able to reel in nine receptions for 65 yards. He’s game-script dependent, but he’s a solid option to roll out as a low-end RB2 in Full PPR formats.

Detroit: This Lions backfield remains a mess to try and sort through week in and week out. The snap counts are all pretty even between these three players, but Swift remains the most involved. There’s very little upside, due to the offense and the distribution of snaps, but Swift should see enough work to return low-end RB2 value. He’ll need a touchdown to finish much higher than that though. He can be viewed as a low-end RB2 in this tough matchup against the Washington defensive front. Otherwise, it’s probably best to avoid this backfield.

Wide Receivers

Washington: McLaurin is about as solid and dependent a wide receiver as fantasy managers could hope for right now. He’s consistently producing great numbers each week and he should be viewed as a high-end WR2 with upside in this matchup.

Detroit: With Kenny Golladay most likely out again for this matchup, Jones should be the top fantasy option in this receiving corps. However, that’s not exactly saying much. Jones was able to find the end zone last week in a plus matchup, but he simply doesn’t look the same as in previous years. He’s not seeing the target totals we thought he would with Golladay out of the lineup and he now has a pretty tough matchup here against the Washington secondary. Jones is a risky WR3 play, but he always has the chance of saving his fantasy day by finding the end zone. Amendola was peppered with targets last week and can be plugged into your lineup as a solid FLEX option in Full PPR formats.

Tight Ends

Washington: Thomas saw six targets last week, but he was only able to reel in three of them for 28 yards. Thomas remains in the fantasy conversation, but only as a touchdown-dependent TE2.

Detroit: Hockenson popped up on the injury report on Thursday and missed practice due to a toe injury. His status for Sunday’s game is very much in doubt right now. If he’s not able to suit up, Jesse James would step into Hockenson’s role, but he’s not worth viewing as anything more than a streaming option in this matchup. Washington can be beat at the TE position, but James isn’t anywhere close to the same talent level of Hockenson.

FantasyProjection Buster: James gets the touchdown for Detroit in my projections due to the fact that Washington is allowing the 6th most fantasy points to the TE position, but we could easily see the Lions ignore James for the most part and send the ball elsewhere.

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Tampa Bay Buccaneers vs Carolina Panthers

Date/Time: November 15, 1:00pm ET
Spread: Bucs -6
Over/Under: 50.5 points
Implied Vegas point totals: Bucs 28.25, Panthers 22.25

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

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Carolina Panthers

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Quarterback

Tampa Bay: What version of Tom Brady did we see on the field on Sunday night? This Buccaneers offense was absolutely atrocious against the Saints and Brady made mistake after mistake. Moving forward, it’s going to be very difficult to trust Brady in your fantasy football lineup after what just happened. Even though Brady has an incredible array of weapons at his disposal in this offense now, it’s very difficult to recommend him as a top-12 option this week. The Panthers have been keeping opposing QBs in check this season, which doesn’t help as we look at Brady’s projections this week. Brady can be viewed as a low-end QB1/high-end QB2 in this matchup.

Carolina: Bridgewater is fearless. He’s laid it all out on the field this year and he’s producing even in tough matchups. This is another tough matchup here in Tampa Bay, but we just saw the Saints offense put up 38 points on them. Bridgewater’s in the streaming conversation this week and can be plugged into your starting lineup if you’re in a pinch.

Running Backs

Tampa Bay: For fantasy managers that were hoping for some clarity on what this backfield would look like last week, that didn’t exactly happen. The Buccaneers went into catch-up mode almost immediately and Fournette was out there for the majority of snaps as the pass-catching back. This is a mess to try and project for fantasy football, so both fantasy options need to be downgraded. For this matchup against the Panthers, Fournette can be started as a low-end RB2 with upside due to his involvement in the receiving game. Meanwhile, Jones can be plugged in as a mid-range RB3 in the event that Arians does end up splitting the touches. It’s a plus matchup against the Panthers run defense, but we can’t trust either of these options right now.

Carolina: With Christian McCaffrey back out of the lineup for this game with a different injury, the Panthers will turn right back to Mike Davis. This is a very tough matchup for opposing RBs though, so Davis does receive a bit of a downgrade. He’s a high-end RB2 this week in my rankings due to the matchup, but he should see enough involvement out of the backfield as a receiver to be viewed as a safe option.

Wide Receivers

Tampa Bay: With Brady struggling last week, this receiving corps wasn’t able to get much done. Unfortunately, we weren’t able to get much clarity on what this receiving corps looks like with AB in the lineup, so we’re left guessing yet again for this matchup. Godwin led this WR trio in snaps last week and he should be the safest bet here against Carolina. While there’s a ton of uncertainty with Brady, Godwin should still be looked at a safe WR2. Evans was on the field for the majority of the snaps last week and he led the Buccaneers in receiving. While there are still a lot of unknowns of what this offense will look like when it’s actually functioning properly, Evans should be rolled out as a solid WR3 next week that comes with upside if he can find the end zone. Brady looked Brown’s way a few times last week, but there were a lot of communications issues that showed up on tape. AB just doesn’t have a firm grasp of this offense yet and it’s going to be hard to trust him as anything more than a FLEX option until we see this offense start to click again.

Carolina: Anderson just continues to be peppered with targets in this offense. While he hasn’t provided a huge performance recently, he’s brought an extremely safe floor every single week. Anderson can be started as a mid-range WR2 yet again here that could easily 10+ targets. Early on in the season, Samuel looked like he wasn’t going to amount to anything from a fantasy football perspective. However, that has all changed recently and Samuel has now emerged as a solid WR3 candidate every single week. Samuel’s seeing plenty of targets in this offense and Moore has now faded into the shadows. Samuel has a tough matchup in front of him against Tampa Bay’s defense, but he should see enough volume to return low-end WR3 production. The last two weeks, Moore has finished as the WR51 and the WR77. He has taken a back seat to Curtis Samuel and he can no longer be relied upon as a safe WR3 option. Moore is now merely a FLEX option that you’re hoping is able to break off a big play.

Tight Ends

Tampa Bay: Gronkowski disappointed fantasy managers last week, but this offense struggled to do anything all game long. Gronk should bounce back and he can be viewed as a low-end TE1 in this matchup.

Carolina: None of the Panthers TEs are worth considering for fantasy football this week.

FantasyProjection Buster: Can I say the Bucs offense? Based on what we saw last week, there’s the possibility that the entire Bucs offense fails to meet my projections for them.

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Philadelphia Eagles vs New York Giants

Date/Time: November 15, 1:00pm ET
Spread: Eagles -3
Over/Under: 44.5 points
Implied Vegas point totals: Eagles 23.75, Giants 20.75

Philadelphia Eagles

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New York Giants

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Quarterback

Philadelphia: Wentz should have the majority of his receiving weapons back in the lineup for this game, which is good news for fantasy managers. Wentz’s questionable decision-making has been on full display this season, but he’s been getting the job done for fantasy football regardless. Fire up Wentz as a low-end QB1 in this matchup against the Giants.

New York: Fantasy managers that are waiting on Jones to turn into a viable fantasy option are simply going to have to keep waiting. It’s unlikely that we ever feel confident plugging Jones into our starting lineup this season. He can be viewed as a low-end QB2 yet again this week.

Running Backs

Philadelphia: Sanders appears to be on track to play in this matchup and he should immediately be plugged right back into your starting lineup. While the Giants have been fairly stout against opposing RBs, Sanders should step right back in and assume his full workload. If that’s the case, Sanders absolutely deserves to be viewed as a low-end RB1 this week. Scott will now move back into his complimentary role with Sanders back in the lineup, but he should see an uptick in his usage. Before Sanders went down with his injury, Scott was barely utilized in this offense when Sanders was in the game. However, with Scott performing so well in his absence, it’s not unrealistic to expect Scott to remain involved. With that being said, it’s not a guarantee, so we need to be a little bit more cautious with Scott and he can be viewed as a low-end RB3 this week.

New York: Freeman had returned to practice this week, but he walked off the practice field early on Thursday and it now appears unlikely that he’ll suit up for this game. With that in mind, Gallman will step in as the main ball-carrier. However, there’s little reason to trust him in this matchup against the Eagles defense. Alfred Morris and Dion Lewis will both take away some touches, which leaves Gallman as a touchdown-dependent RB3.

Wide Receivers

Philadelphia: Fulgham has emerged as one of the league’s biggest surprises this season and he shows no signs of slowing down any time soon. While Fulgham might have more competition for targets on the roster now, he’s still worth rolling out as a high-upside WR2 this week. Reagor came back two weeks ago and was targeted a healthy six times. After a week of rest, he should be ready to go and he’s a solid option to roll into your lineup as a high-end WR3. The Eagles should look to manufacture touches for him and he has the talent to make them count. Jeffery appears to be trending towards playing in this game, but it’s going to be near impossible to trust him in your starting lineup this week. It’s been a long time since we’ve seen him on the field and we need to wait and see what his role looks like before we confidently plug him into our lineup.

New York: Shepard continues to provide a safe floor for fantasy managers since coming back off his injury. While he has a capped ceiling in this offense, he’s still seeing enough targets to provide low-end WR3 value in Full PPR formats. If you need a safe play this week, Shepard should be someone you turn to as a low-end WR3 in this matchup. Slayton disappointed fantasy managers again last week in a tough matchup and it doesn’t look like things are going to get better this week. Slayton should draw coverage from Darius Slay again here and Slayton didn’t exactly produce the last time these two met. Slayton only saw three targets in week seven and he went 2-23-0 with that opportunity. Slayton’s a fade this week for me and I’d be looking to sit him if you can. Slayton can be viewed as a high-end FLEX play this week that comes with a very wide range of outcomes.

Tight Ends

Philadelphia: Goedert will look to make more of an impact this week than he did the last time the Eagles took the field. This is a fantastic matchup for Goedert and we should see this offense bounce back with all the weapons that are now healthy. Goedert can be viewed as a mid-range TE1 with upside in this matchup.

New York: Engram has bounced back in a big way the past several weeks and this coaching staff is finding ways to utilize him correctly. Engram can be viewed as a low-end TE1 this week that should see plenty of targets. Over the last three weeks, only six players in the entire NFL have seen more targets than Engram. He’s an extremely safe option at the TE position.

FantasyProjection Buster: The Eagles WR room is incredibly difficult to try and project right now. With Jeffery back and practicing in full, there’s reason to believe that he’d step right back into his starting role on the outside. However, Greg Ward has been playing extremely well and so has Fulgham. If the playing time looks different than what I’m expecting, these projections for the WRs will be very different.