“The Party told you to reject the evidence of your eyes and ears. It was their final, most essential command.” - George Orwell, 1984

1) A Week 18 championship final is a recipe for an undeserving winner.

There are so many questions as to who will play, how long they will play and who will sit out. If your player is on a team guaranteed a spot in the playoffs he may get rested. If a player is on a non-playoff team he may sit so management may get a chance to look at “the young guys.” Or worse, you may get a guy who starts, plays one quarter just to stay sharp and then sits for three quarters. There’s no way to strategize a fantasy lineup under these conditions. If your league plays through Week 18… you crazy dude (PS – I am in one of these leagues and in the finals).

2) Luther Burden III is a name to remember.

The numbers below put Burden in some elite company. It's funny that fellow Bears rookie Rome Odunze is 82% rostered and Burden is 23% rostered. After this weekend's game I'll bet those numbers will drastically change for next season. For those still competing, Burden suffered a minor quad injury on the last play of the game (8-138-1), but could be ready for the finale when the Bears need the win to maintain the No.2 seed in the NFC.

3) If your running back is on this list, he was hurt because of goal line carries going elsewhere.

True. Sometimes it was a RBBC situation and sometimes it was a running quarterback. If you want the most touchdowns from your running back, you will have to avoid both these situation next season. Derrick Henry (18), Jonathan Taylor (16) and Josh Jacobs (13) had little competition for rushing touchdowns. Recognizing where there is competition in the red zone, or in this case from inside the 5-yard line, should play a role in your draft strategy next season.

4) The three “hottest” quarterbacks over the past three games should all be playing in Week 18, so don’t over think it.

Matchups don't matter to these three guys; Trevor Lawrence (36.4 FPts/G the last three), Brock Purdy (31.8) and Drake Maye (29.5). Lawrence and Jacksonville can grab the No.1 seed with a win and losses by Denver and New England and they play three hours before the other two. Maye plays late Sunday as does the Patriots competition for the top seed - Denver. Purdy can grab the top seed in the NFC with a win over Seattle on Saturday. By contrast, the Rams are in the playoffs, but limited in whether they will be the fifth- or sixth-seed. Be careful, without a bye they just might rest their 37-year-old quarterback - Matthew Stafford.

5) The Dallas cowboys should draft all defensive players in the 2026 April Draft.

Fact. Assuming they re-sign George Pickens, this is a true statement. Their passing game is extremely dangerous, and the return to form of Javonte Williams (252-1201-11) for 15.4 FPts/G has solidified the ground game. If the team had a "real" GM in place instead of a master marketer, they would realize you need defense and offense to win games and go to a Super Bowl even if it's the offense which sells tickets. The NFC would be worried if Jerry Jones brought in a "professional" GM to handle the personnel side and stuck to the business end. Pickens fans be worried if "JJ" or his son starts negotiating directly with the player and not the agent (see Micah Parsons contract negotiations).

Lies

“We are all capable of believing things which we know to be untrue, and then, when we are finally proved wrong, impudently twisting the facts so as to show that we were right." - George Orwell

1) The Saints need to draft a quarterback.

At the beginning of the season I would have said "yes, absolutely." Now I'm not so sure. Despite a team loaded with holes, the rookie from Louisville, Tyler Shough, has led them to a 5-4 record. He's done it with an injured star running back (Alvin Kamara) and a weak receiver room after they traded away an explosive player in Rashid Shaheed. A replacement for the aging Kamara (31) and a second wide receiver threat could make this offense viable. Despite the team flaws, Shough has averaged 22.5 FPts/G over the last five starts... winning four of them.

2) To make the NFL playoffs, you don’t have to be good BOTH on offense and defense.

False. If Tampa Bay beats the Carolina Panthers to make the playoff bracket, no team who ranks 20th-or worse in points scored will have made the playoffs. Detroit, Dallas and Indianapolis finished in the top-10 scoring, but their defensive problems left them outside looking in. Dallas finished last, Detroit 24th and Indy 19th on that side of the ball. Similarly, if Tampa does win Saturday, they will be the only team in the bottom half of the league defensively to make the playoffs. Only the Chiefs and the Vikings ranked in the top-10 in fewest points allowed and didn’t make the second season.

3) Saquon Barkley is having a bad season.

Sure, if you compare it to 2024 when he produced record-breaking numbers (22FPts/G). In fact, I don’t blame his drop in production solely on his running. In 2024, Barkley saw 1,328 yards (3.8 yards per attempt) before first contact on his way to a 2,005-yard season. In 2025, he’s seen just 689 yards on his 280 rushing attempts (2.46 yards per attempt). The after contact yards gained difference is 1.96 in 2024 versus 1.61 in 2025. It’s the injured and weak play from the offensive line which has been the difference.

4) Jonathan Taylor is scoreboard-proof.

To the contrary, in 2025 Taylor was completely score dependent. In eight wins, JT averaged 31.2 FPts/G. In eight Colts losses he averaged 13.4 FPts/G. In 2024 the numbers were similar; 22.6 in wins and 13.9 in losses. I guess, where you draft Taylor in 2026 will depend on whether you think the team they assemble in the offseason is a winner or not.

5) Football players and coaches make horrible actors in commercials (Andy Reid, Patrick Mahomes, Aaron Rodgers and Saquon Barkley).

For the most part, this is a fact. However, if you haven't seen the Malik Nabers IHOP fantasy football commercial, check it out. I almost injured a rib laughing the first time I saw it.