Popeye busts out the spinach, Spinal Tap cranks it up "one louder" to 11 for that extra push over the cliff, and I have Drew Brees — the patron Saint of my fantasy team.
Brees' Monday night Picasso — 363 yards and 4 touchdowns passing and another TD rushing — produced my 12th consecutive head-to-head victory this season and 20th straight dating back to 2010.
A win this week (against my buddy Hans, who already has a 300-point lead courtesy of LeSean McCoy and still has Tuck Brady to go) would cap a perfect regular season and leave me just two wins shy of back-to-back titles.
"What is your secret?" curious folks ask.
"I eat only the brown M&Ms, never wear matching socks and rip all the tags off my pillows," I respond.
Honestly, there is no secret, just a whole lotta luck. But we can help make our own luck through anticipation and preparation, which can turn educated guesses into pay dirt come January.
Here are some tips to help keep you from driving the Big Wheel into the doghouse en route to the finish line:
Weather or not
Reading weather reports is as important as reviewing injury reports this time of year, especially for those leaning on three-receiver lineups.
Starting three wideouts worked wonders under sunny skies in September and October, but Mother Nature could ravage passing games in the weeks ahead. Even heavyweights such as Brady and Aaron Rodgers will struggle throwing into 40 mph monsoons.
If I know the weather is frightful, I lean more on my running backs, knowing that even a No. 4 back could have more upside than a No. 2 wideout on the road at, say, New England, Pittsburgh or Denver.
Exhibit A: While Green Bay does the bulk of its bidding through the air, the Packers are more than capable of moving the ball on the ground with James Starks, who could see a significant uptick in carries on Lambeau's frozen tundra.
If the Pack encounters a blizzard, Starks' typical 12 carries for 50 yards could turn into 25 carries, 120 yards and 2 TDs. Which is why I have him safely tucked away.
Re-inventing the wheel
Fantasy owners can be too smart for their own good in December, straying from successful formulas out of sheer boredom or because someone like me, a buddy or their pet chimp convinces them to take a chance. Tinkering this late without just cause can have dire consequences, so now is not the time to go for it on fourth-and-six from your own 20.
If your core lineup has been good enough to carry you this far, why mess with a good thing? Trust your feelings, Luke ...
Now batting ...
Nothing crushes an owner more than watching a season's worth of work and momentum go down the tubes when stars get benched as a means of postseason preservation (anybody who rode Colts from 2003-2009 knows the drill too well).
I stole a title a few years back when the guy riding my tail fell victim to a mass benching while I rolled with a rookie Frank Gore and a part-timer in DeShaun Foster who both went wild in games that I'm pretty sure had meaning only to me.
Know who will be playing and who will be eating hot dogs on the sidelines in the season's final lap.
My Week 13 lineup — QB: Sir Drew Brees (Lions); RB: Michael Bush (at Dolphins); WR: Marques Colston (Lions), Steve Smith (at Buccaneers) and A.J. Green (at Steelers); TE: Jason Witten (at Cardinals); D/ST: Dolphins (Raiders); K: David Akers (Rams).
Columnist Stu Rosenberg can be reached at srosenberg@modbee.com or (209) 578-2300.
RSS
E-Mail
Print
reprint or license
