Fantasy Focus Football — "Fantasy Heroes Who Can Rescue Your Season!" — November 19, 2025

Hosts: Field Yates, Daniel Dopp, Mike Clay

Guest/Producer Shout-outs: Stephania Bell (in absentia), Eric Moody, Trophy Smack

Theme: Identifying the fantasy football "heroes" (players) who can spark playoff pushes, reviewing injuries, breakout candidates, strategies for FAB and streaming, and playoff schedule analysis.

Episode Overview

This episode focuses on the players—both "proven" and "sneaky"—who can salvage your fantasy football season or provide crucial value for playoff pushes in Week 12 and beyond. The hosts break down waiver targets, recent breakouts, schedule strengths, injury impacts, and debate FAB and streaming strategies, all with their trademark banter and insight. They also answer live mailbag questions to help listeners with tough start/sit choices.

Key Segments & Highlights

1. [03:09] Surviving the Week 12 Playoff Push: "Fantasy Heroes"

• Premise: Each host brings two players who could be "heroes" for the fantasy playoff push.

Field Yates’ Picks:

• Tetaro McMillan (WR, Carolina Panthers)

  • Coming off a career-best performance, leads all rookies in receptions and yards.
  • “He will be top 12 probably on my wide receiver board this week.” (Field, 05:32)
  • Panthers have favorable matchup vs 49ers' depleted defense, which has allowed the 5th most FP to WRs.

• Kyle Pitts (TE, Atlanta Falcons)

  • Falcons are without Drake London and likely Michael Penix Jr., so Pitts is in line for more targets.
  • Kirk Cousins’ lack of mobility could further funnel targets to Pitts as a safety valve.
  • "He's just almost handed the football off to Kyle Pitts as an extension of the running game." (Field, 12:20)
  • Hosts all rank Pitts as a top 10 TE for Week 12.

Mike Clay’s Picks:

• Alvin Kamara (RB, New Orleans Saints)

  • Disappointing season so far but saw 25 touches last game and has the easiest remaining schedule for RBs: Falcons, Dolphins, Bucs.
  • “All of [the Saints’] remaining games are against defenses top 14 in fantasy points to running backs.” (Mike, 08:04-08:13)

• Jerry Jeudy (WR, Cleveland Browns)

  • Boasts a high target share and a cake-walk schedule (Raiders, 49ers, Titans, Bears, Bills, Steelers). Only the Bills aren’t a top 10 WR matchup.
  • His value is more questionable if Shador Sanders (rookie) starts at QB instead of Dylan Gabriel.

Daniel Dopp’s Picks:

• Chase Brown (RB, Cincinnati Bengals)

  • RB4 over the last three weeks; heavily utilized in the passing game (14 catches over last 2 games).
  • Bengals RBs have the 4th-easiest schedule rest of season, even counting tough NE matchup.

• Jameson Williams (WR, Detroit Lions)

  • Emergent volume leader with 6+ targets in 4 of last 5 games; more fantasy points than Amon-Ra St. Brown since Week 6.
  • “He’s the guy that came on right at the right time, middle of the season.” (Daniel, 19:31)
  • Lions get Giants, Packers, Cowboys at home for next 3—ideal setup for continued production.

2. [20:13] Sneaky Second-Half Breakouts (Mike Clay’s Deep Dives)

Mike highlights ascending WRs who are widely available and may be breakout/stash options.

• Ricky Pearsall (SF, ~66% rostered): Back from injury; immediately 85% route participation. "Still a viable flex for me... maybe a WR3." (Mike, 22:01)
• Jaden Higgins (Houston, 20% rostered): 7+ targets in 3 of last 4; elevated role in passing attack despite QB change to Davis Mills. "On the ascent."
• Luther Burden, III (Chicago, 94% available): Recently overtook WR3 role, more targets than DJ Moore last two weeks.
• Pat Bryant (Denver, 99% available): Not a consistent option yet but gaining targets, especially while Mims was hurt.
• Xavier Legette (Carolina, 80% available): Two big games in good matchups; coach says they want to scheme him more.
• Isaiah Hodgins (NYG): "From the couch to the starting lineup for the Giants in 72 hours... led the team in both catches and yards." (Field, 30:18)

"Adding Luther Burden off waivers is almost like karma, in case you plan to draft him next year. It’s like I believed in you before anybody else believed in you." (Field, 25:26)

3. [34:10] Fielding Playoff Concerns (Impact of Injuries & Playoff Prep)

Injuries Threatening Playoff Hopes

• Drake London (ATL): Major, ambiguous PCL injury, plus QB change.
• Sam LaPorta (DET): Out at least 3 more weeks; uncertain for fantasy playoffs.
• Joe Burrow (CIN), Jaden Daniels (WAS): May return for playoffs; worth stashing.
• Others Noted: Bucky Irving/Chris Godwin (TB), Omariyon Hampton (NC), Garrett Wilson (NYJ)

“If you told me, ‘It’s week 14 and we’re still not seeing Drake London practice,’ I think that’s at least feasible given the nature of the injury and the Kirk Cousins effect.” (Field, 35:02)

FAB & Streaming Strategy

• Is now the time to empty your FAB?
  • Daniel: “Use it while you have it because once you get to the end of the year, if you still have $80 in fab and it didn't help you... now's the time to go out and use it.” (40:56)
  • Mike: “Some weeks are stronger than others. I’m not going to just empty it out just to do it. If it’s an impact player, I’ll do it week 2 or week 17.” (41:10)
• Playoff QB Philosophy:
  • Daniel: Stream JJ McCarthy (great schedule) or Jacoby Brissett; but prefers locking in a QB.
  • Field: “You’re not adding him [McCarthy] now because you intend to play him now ... It’s the idea that if he puts one or two good games together, he’s gone [from waivers].” (43:03)

4. [46:58] Playoff Schedule Watch: Which Offenses Have Best/Worst Schedules Left?

Best Schedules

• Patriots (esp. RBs): Next three games vs. the three worst defenses vs RBs: Bengals, Giants, Bills (47:19)
• Baltimore Ravens: Next four: Jets, Bengals, Steelers, Bengals again.
• Bucs RBs: After Rams, go Cardinals, Saints, Falcons, Panthers, Dolphins, Panthers.

Worst Schedules

• Colts: Chiefs, Seahawks, 49ers, Jags (twice), Texans (twice) – “they don’t have any easy games left.”
• Raiders: Browns, Chargers, Broncos, Eagles, Texans, with relief only in Week 17 vs Giants.

5. [51:09] Board Bet Results & Fantasy Starts Recap

• Troy Franklin (DEN) outscored Courtland Sutton.
• Jamison Williams finishes as WR8 in the week, vindicating Daniel.

“He was the worst quarterback of the week...but one receiver...Nico Collins 24 [points], he was the high score.” (Mike, on Goff/Williams/Nico, 54:02)

6. [56:37] Mailbag: Start/Sit Dilemmas and Trade Talk

• Pick two: Jameson Williams, George Pickens, Michael Pittman? Field: “Gotta have Pittman.” Daniel: “I’d go with JMO [Williams].”
• Is now the time to sell Jonathan Taylor? (Against tough KC matchup, good time to cash out? Gets discussed in context of team needs and schedule.)
• Playoff stash: Ricky Pearsall or Chris Godwin? All prefer Pearsall given health and role.

Notable Quotes and Moments

• “He’s kind of quietly, you know, just chipping away. ... He looks like the real deal. Yeah. Very exciting.” (Mike on Tetaro McMillan, 06:25)
• “If you don’t love me at my worst, you don’t get me at my best or whatever the expression is.” (Field on stashing Luther Burden, 25:41)
• “ESPN Fantasy is not a 2001 cell phone carrier. There are no rollover fab budgets!” (Daniel, on FAB strategy, 40:56)
• “It’s week 12, guys, like, it’s ... I know [long shots] is already clinched.” (Field, on his longshots dominance, 32:02)
• “If you told me Jared Goff is going to complete 14 passes in that game and play that poorly ... he was the worst quarterback of the week, I would have been like, I—well, I got this one wrapped up.” (Mike, 52:16)
• “Adding Luther Burden off waivers is almost like karma in case you plan to draft him next year.” (Field, 25:26)
• “Patriots is unbelievable. Their upcoming schedule is unbelievable. Their next three games are against the three worst defenses against running backs.” (Mike, 47:19)
• “You’re not adding [McCarthy] right now because you intend to play him now ... The idea is, if JJ puts one or two good games together over the next three weeks, nobody is going to see [him] available.” (Field, 43:03)

Timestamps for Key Segments

• [03:09] — Playoff Push Heroes: Each host’s top 2 picks
• [20:13] — Sneaky Breakouts: Mike’s ascending WRs
• [34:10] — Fielding Playoff Concerns: Injuries, stashes, FAB
• [46:58] — Playoff Schedule Watch: Best/worst remaining team schedules
• [51:09] — Board Bets Recap
• [56:37] — Mailbag: Trades, starts, rookie cards, market talk

Tone & Chemistry

The tone is lively, informative, and as always colored by inside jokes, friendly ribbing, and gossip about the fantasy landscape (and collecting Chad Pennington rookie cards!). They riff on each other's picks, dig deep on context (injuries, schedules), and keep the show fun and approachable, even in the weeds of depth-chart speculation.

Takeaways for Listeners

• Roster bubble/waiver wire is still loaded with potential difference-makers: focus on ascending volume and favorable playoff schedules.
• Don’t leave your FAB unused—block rivals or make the move to get your guy now.
• Playoff schedules matter: target running backs and receivers on teams facing bottom-tier defenses rest of way.
• Monitor injuries (especially to London, Laporta, Bucky Irving, and QB situations); value can shift quickly.
• For streaming or stashing, upside and schedule are your guiding stars.
• Don’t be afraid to make bold trade/sit/start decisions—this is the critical stretch!

For More

Check out espn.com for Tristan Cockroft’s "League Winners" column, and watch for more in-depth positional analysis in the "Wide Receiver-Cornerback" segment later in the week!