Fantasy Football Today (CBS Sports)

Episode: Looking for League Winners! Plus Best and Worst Schedules and NYJ-NE Preview (11/12 Fantasy Football Podcast)
Date: November 12, 2025

Episode Overview

In this episode, host Adam Aizer and analysts Dave Richard, Jamey Eisenberg, and Heath Cummings dive deep into identifying potential “league winners” as the fantasy football season enters its stretch run. They break down best and worst schedules, flag crucial “buy low” and “sell high” candidates, and offer a full preview of the Thursday night matchup between the New York Jets and New England Patriots. The tone is casual, witty, and interactive, as the crew tackles listener questions and debates player value moving forward.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Defining League Winners: Who Can Carry You Down the Stretch?

Starts at [03:29]

• The crew debates which RB, WR, and TE could be true league-winners—not just obvious picks like Jonathan Taylor, but under-the-radar options.
• Heath: “Let’s go Travion Henderson. ...Yes, I do [think he has league-winning potential]” [03:56]
• Jamey floats Jalen Warren as a sneaky call, “That’s definitely not obvious. ...Just getting him the ball, certainly this week he’s going to be great.” [04:31]
• Dave mentions Saquon Barkley and Chris Olave as strong buy lows, while Juwan Johnson is noted for a potentially increased role given New Orleans' projected game scripts.
  • “Olave is going to continue to get a lot of targets. ...Do the same with Juwan Johnson through his bye week.” [05:34]

2. Best and Worst Schedules: Searching for Edges

Starts at [06:58]

• Players with notably good stretch runs:
  • Cowboys, Commanders, Cardinals, Raiders highlighted for soft matchups in Weeks 17/18. [06:35]
  • Jamey dives into Marvin Harrison Jr. as a key by-low: “Wouldn't be that surprised if Marvin Harrison Jr. is a top 12 wide receiver rest of season.” [07:34]
• Cautionary notes:
  • Ashton Genti's brutal schedule detailed ([06:58–07:34]).
  • Bears WR Rome Odunze pegged as a sell-high due to upcoming cold, tough games. [11:20]
  • “...Pittsburgh at Philadelphia, at Green Bay, Cleveland, Green Bay for Chicago. ...That’s potentially got some bad weather there. ...It’s going to be cold. That I can predict.” – Dave [11:50]

3. Emerging League-Winner Sleepers

Starts at [08:31]

• Jamie: “Luther Burden, Darius Slayton, Ricky Pearsall.” [08:31]
  • Cites efficiency: “By far their most efficient wide receiver... The smartest football coach in the world knows it.” [08:46]
• Dave on Ricky Pearsall: “Don’t forget about Ricky. ...He could end up being someone that you’re probably using at this point as a WR3. And I bet he has a couple of WR1 weeks left in him.” [09:56]
• Jordan Addison and Justin Jefferson mentioned as high-variance wildcards with favorable late-season games ([10:40–11:16]).

4. Buy-Low & Sell-High Candidates

Starts at [29:07]; also woven into schedule discussion

Buy Lows

• Marvin Harrison Jr. [07:34; cited again at 30:24]
• Luther Burden: “He’s free, he’s 21% rostered...this is the type of guy you want to have on your bench...I believe if they play him 70% of the snaps, he would be a must-start.” – Jamie [28:35]
• Darius Slayton, Ricky Pearsall, Juwan Johnson, Travion Henderson (if workload rises)
• Jalen Warren, Barkley, Olave

Sell Highs

• Rome Odunze (see above for schedule concerns): “He’s a No. 2 receiver for fantasy purposes, but if someone is buying in after another big game...I don’t mind if you can get top 12 value...doing so.” – Dave [12:19]
• Kamani Vidal: "[Chargers' RB] backfield...when Hampton's back...100% [an annoying split]...there's definitely going to be some presence of Vidal there..." – Dave [33:15]
• DeAndre Swift (schedule, committee concerns): “I would still be selling DeAndre Swift, especially since you can get high for him.” – Jamie [34:30]
• Jackson Smith-Njigba: "He's having one of the most statistically improbable seasons...You don't want to get burned by giving away JSN and not getting enough back for him. But...he carries a lot of heat. He's a league winner." – Dave [36:32]

5. Analyzing Matchup Plays & Rest-of-Season Ranks

• Rapid-fire "fill in the blank" and rest-of-season tiers for players like Brock Purdy (“QB14 or 12” [20:23]), Woody Marks (“RB22–25” [20:52]), Tez Johnson (WR3) [14:23], RJ Harvey (“high end flex” to “low-end RB2” [14:38]), etc.
• Deep-dive on Jameson Williams’ “code”: performs much better from under center and on play action – Eagles allow the third-most yards on PA, which bodes well for this week [25:56].
  • “He is worlds better…could just be small sample…but it’s this, it’s play action. He’s better off play action and he’s better under center.” – Dave [26:52]

6. Quarterback Trade Analysis & Strategy

• Mahomes vs. Drake May schedules: Mahomes draws Denver (twice), Houston, Chargers—all tough defenses; May may be a streaming option for those looking to trade from a position of strength ([38:18–40:08]).
• “If you’ve picked up Burrow and you want to trade Mahomes, I’d cosign that.” – Heath [42:56]
• General theme: You’re starting your studs, but schedule/streaming awareness is key.

Thursday Night Preview: Jets vs. Patriots

Begins in depth at [44:10]

Jets

• Breece Hall:

  • Difficult matchup; Pats have allowed only two RBs >13.1 fantasy points (Bijan & Achane, both big pass-catching days).
  • “Fully buy into this Patriots run defense...do not see [Hall] getting a ton of targets and catches in the game like those other RBs did. He’s gonna need...to catch a screen and take it 40 yards to the house.” – Dave [45:19]
  • Staff generally ranks Hall between RB17–22.

• Pass-Catchers:

  • No Jets WR or TE recommended for fantasy.

Patriots

• Travion Henderson:
  • With Stevenson out: a high-upside RB2, ranks range from RB11 (Heath) to RB16 (Dave) [53:43].
  • With Stevenson active: both become low RB2s; “Henderson, but it'd be very close...” Jamie [53:58].
• WRs:
  • Stefon Diggs is the highest-ranked, but generally a low-end WR2/high WR3 due to low volume and yardage (TD-dependent).
  • “It’s the same every week…living anywhere between 22nd and 30th among WRs in PPR.” – Dave [52:06]
  • Mac Hollins and Kyle Williams are pure dart throws.
• Hunter Henry: not a recommended start; position is deep enough to avoid [49:59].
• DST: Patriots DST is a recommended start vs. Jets.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• Jamey, on Marvin Harrison Jr.’s buy-low potential:
  “Wouldn't be that surprised if Marvin Harrison Jr. is a top 12 wide receiver rest of season.” [07:34]
• Dave, breaking down Jameson Williams’ splits:
  “But it’s this, it’s play action. He’s better off play action and he’s better under center.” [26:52]
• Heath, on reviewing trade value for Odunze:
  “He’s a No. 2 receiver for fantasy purposes, but if someone is buying in after another big game...I don’t mind if you can get top 12 value...doing so.” [12:19]
• Dave, on being careful about JSN hype:
  “You don’t want to get burned by giving away JSN and not getting enough back for him. But...he carries a lot of heat. He’s a league winner.” [36:32]
• Jamey, on Luther Burden’s upside:
  “He’s free, he’s 21% rostered...he would be a must-start WR if he was played 70% of snaps.” [28:35]

Important Timestamps (MM:SS)

• [03:29] Fill-in-the-blank: picking league-winner RB/WR/TE
• [06:58] Schedules: best/worst stretch run matchups
• [08:31] “Emerging out of nowhere” potential league winners
• [14:23] Quick takes: Tez Johnson, RJ Harvey, Woody Marks
• [20:23] Rest-of-season QB/RB tiers (e.g., Brock Purdy, Woody Marks)
• [25:56] Dave’s “cracked the Jameson Williams code”
• [29:07] Buy-low & Sell-high rapid fire: key candidates
• [33:15] Discussion: Chargers’ RB committee outlook
• [44:10] Jets @ Patriots Thursday Night Preview

Final Takeaways & Listener Value

• Target running backs with soft playoff schedules (e.g., Henderson, Harvey).
• Don’t overlook emerging or returning WRs like Marvin Harrison, Luther Burden, Ricky Pearsall for upside bench stashes.
• Be aggressive selling WRs with tough weather/defensive slates ahead (e.g., Odunze, Swift).
• Don’t panic about Mahomes’ tough schedule unless you can trade for a significant upgrade elsewhere and stream a decent QB.
• Thursday night approach: Start Patriots DST, Henderson (if Stevenson out), and Hall as a risky RB2.

The episode is packed with actionable, sharp insights and a good dose of banter, reflecting the team's camaraderie and deep knowledge of fantasy football strategy as the playoff push intensifies.