Rangers beef up for a long-shot run at a playoff spot
Rivalries burn deep. Sometimes, those rivalries pile up on each other and get washed, repeated and rinsed in another week or two. Thus is the dilemma of this week’s action as some long-time rivalries boil over and several key divisional battles loom.
The first big trade of the 2026 season is in the books as John Lambert of the Rangers has pushed in a bunch of his bargaining chips to the center of the table to add WR Justin Jefferson and TE Isiah Likely three weeks before the league trade deadline.
In the deal, John shipped WR CeeDee Lamb and an 8th-round draft pick to Jordan Garcia’s winless WTNE. And the deal might reap instant dividends as the Rangers came into his Week 9 matchup with the Recliners as a 5-point underdog. After the trade cleared, he is now favored by 5 points. But does John really have a shot at a playoff spot? ESPN says the Rangers, at 3-5 two games behind the division-leading Invaiders, have a 22% shot at postseason play. Every team in the other (Shit Talkers) division has 1) at least a .500 record and 2) odds that are twice as good. Even the hapless Tirades, in last place in the ST with a 4-4 record, are at 44%.
Postseason odds can swing dramatically in the coming weeks as several trades are expected to go down. Several more of Jordan’s players are still on the “fire sale” block and at least one more team owner (initials MP) indicated he might be getting close to starting his fire sale if fortunes on the field don’t turn around quickly and depending on the landing spot, if dealt, of his keystone, a running back by the name of Jonathan Taylor.
Your intrepid team of reporters at JSFL Today will track the trade rumors, the deals and the pluses and minuses of each deal as they go down.
With this first big trade, John gave up a lot to get a lot in return. Through the first eight weeks of the 2026 season, Lamb has logged 60 receptions, 709 yards (11.8-yard average) and scored six TDs. Jefferson, in that same span, has logged 28 receptions for 335 yards (12.0-yard average) and scored four TDs. What John gave up with Lamb, he likely recovers with Likely from the New York Giants. The big tight end has hauled in 41 receptions for 395 yards (9.6-yard average) and five TDs.
The only new deals in the NFL since our edition last Thursday involved the continued housecleaning in Indianapolis as the Colts dealt DeForest Buckner to the San Francisco 49ers (Go Niners!) and the Cardinals dealing QB Jacoby Brissett to the quarterback-less Baltimore Ravens.
Brissett won’t get the start tonight at home for Baltimore against the Jaguars, though, as the Ravens will stick with the stuff known as the “Mormon Missle” (Joe Fagnano) who led them to defeat last week. They will not be good for either the Recliners (the guy can’t find WR Zay Flowers) nor the Tirades (RB Derek Henry will likely face an eight-man front all night). The Ravens lost both QBs Lamar Jackson and Tyler Huntley to injuries last week.
The first round of deals last week before the Nov. 10 NFL trading deadline have yielded instant dividends. The Bears’ acquisition of defense end Jeffery Simmons from the Titans solidified the Chicago defense, which throttled the Seattle Seahawks on the road Monday night and was the reason the Tirades completed a deal with the Spread Beaters, sending the Texans defense to Matt Pringle for the Bears defense.
Rumors continue to fly around involving Colts RB Taylor, Jets WR Garrett Wilson (who is out with a concussion), Chargers linebacker Khalil Mack, Chargers safety Derwin James, Titans RB Tony Pollard, and WRs Brian Thomas Jr. of the Jaguars and Jauan Jennings of the Vikings.
NFL Schedule
As we prep for the start of the third month of our season, we have only two NFL teams relaxing at the beach and the golf course this week. The teams out this week are the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Tennessee Titans.
The action kicks off tonight with the Jacksonville Jaguars traveling to take on the Baltimore Ravens. Unfortunately, the European games are back this week as the Cincinnati Bengals take on the Atlanta Falcons at 6:30 a.m. PST on Sunday. The Sunday Night game features the Tampa Bay Buccaneers visiting the Chicago Bears. The slate winds up Monday with the Buffalo Bills taking on the Minnesota Vikings.
The scoring matchups we like this week are the Cincinnati Bengals at Atlanta Falcons, Dallas Cowboys at Indianapolis Colts, Detroit Lions at Miami Dolphins, and the Las Vegas Raiders at San Francisco 49ers (Go Niners!). The Bengals at Falcons game carries a combined 52.5-point total and just a 3-point spread. The Cowboys at Colts are in a game with one of the week’s highest potential point totals at 51.5 points and two dreadful defenses. The Lions at Dolphins game seems a bit lopsided as Detroit is favored by 7 points with a combined potential point total of 50.5. The Raiders at 49ers (yay, 9ers!) have a point total projected at 51.5 points and the 49ers are favored by 10.
Another Byemaggeddon looms
If you have not scrolled ahead two weeks, you might want to stop reading now, look at your roster in Week 11, and see the potential carnage that awaits.Each season, the NFL schedule makers give us the high, hard one once a year with a potential "byemaggeddon," when six teams get a week off. But the six NFL teams that are sidelined in mid-November -- the Rams, Falcons, Packers, Seahawks, Patriots and Browns (this is the one exception) -- host some of the top fantasy starters at each position in our league. When I first looked a few weeks back, half of my roster, at the time, was idle that week and I had no way to field a starting roster.
The shopping list of sidelined starters that week are RBs Kyren Williams (Packers), Bijan Robinson (Invaiders), and Josh Jacob's (Recliners), and WRs Puca Nacua (Band Aids), Drake London (WTNE), Christian Watson (Tirades), Jason Smith-Njigba (Who Dey), and QBs Drake Maye (Spread Beaters).
Game of the Week
Packers (5-3) vs. Who Dey (5-3), Packers favored by 5: Both are coming off of tough losses in Week 8. And, could this be a potential preview of a postseason playoff game? Both teams come in healthy and loaded with plenty of firepower across the board. The Packers are favored at six of the nine starting positions. Jeff gets the edge at both RBs James Cook III at the Vikings and Kyren Williams at Washington, WR Matthew Golden at New England, flex RB Ollie Gordon II at home to Detroit, the Denver Broncos defense at Carolina, and kicker Chase McLaughlin (Tampa Bay) at the Bears. Who Dey is favored at the other three starting positions with QB Joe Burrow at Atlanta, WR Jaxon Smith-Njigba at home to Arizona and tight end Colston Loveland at home to Tampa Bay. The Swami thinks the projection in this one feels right. Take the Packers and 1.
Best of the Rest
Invaiders (5-3) vs. Tirades (4-4), Tirades favored by 4: This is one of those matches that we will see repeated in Week 11. At first look, this one looks like a lopsided affair in the Tirades’ favor. Ron’s team is favored in four of the top starting position at QB with Brock Purdy (yay, 9ers!) at home to the Raiders, both RBs in Christian McCaffrey (yay, 9ers) at home to Las Vegas and Derrick Henry hosting Jacksonville Thursday night, and WR Tee Higgins at Atlanta. The only hope for the Invaiders is a chance the Tirades, as usual, underperform expectations. The favorable matchups for the Invaiders are at tight end with Trey McBride at Seattle, flex RB Zach Charbonnet at home against Arizona and the Houston kicker (Ka’im Fairbairn) at the Chargers. The Swami does not get any upset vibes from this one. Take the Tirades and 3.
Band Aids (6-2) vs. Beaters (2-6), Beaters favored by 4: OK, did we go back in the time machine to 2025? The Beaters are favored in seven of the nine starting positions in this one. Matt Pringle is favored at QB with Drake Maye at home to Green Bay, both RBs with Jonathan Taylor at home to Dallas and Bhayshul Tuten tonight at Baltimore, WR Parker Washington at Baltimore, tight end Harold Fannin Jr. at New Orleans, flex WR Deebo Samuel Sr. at home to Las Vegas, and the Chicago Bears defense at home to Tampa Bay. Red “questionable” tags are hanging over Tuten, WR Rashee Rice and Samuel. The Band Aids get a positional nod only at WR Puka Nacua at Washington. The Swami smells an upset in the making. Take the Band Aids and 5.
Recliners (3-5) vs. Rangers (3-5), Rangers are favored by 5: One of these two teams will be alone in second place in the Shitty Division with a win this week, and with seven games left in the regular season a win this week is crucial. The Rangers will add two new names to the lineup this week with Minnesota’s Justin Jefferson and New York’s Isiah Likely and the changes could bring back instant returns. And, Jefferson’s game at home against the Buffalo Bills could be the one player who changes the direction of this contest. The Rangers are favored only at three starting positions, but are now favored nonetheless. John will be favored at RB with Chuba Hubbard at home to Denver, Jefferson at WR and flex WR Amon-Ra St. Brown at Miami. The Recliners are favored at five of the nine starting positions. Chris, who lost his former starter at QB for the season last week, turns the reins over to Pat Mahomes at home to the New York Jets and he will be favored in that matchup. The other advantages Chris will have is WR Ja’Marr Chase at Atlanta, tight end Brock Bowers at San Francisco (yay, 9ers!), the New York Giants defense at Philadelphia and the Giants’ kicker (Dominic Zvada) at Philadelphia. Despite all of the nice shiny new toys on the Rangers’ roster, the Swami thinks this has upset written all over this one. Take the Recliners and 1.
Dog of the Week
Gerbils (7-1) vs. WTNE (0-7), Gerbils favored by 4: The Gerbils come into this one in first place and are heavily favored to win their 8th game of the season and hand Jordan his eighth-straight loss. The Gerbils are favored in four of the starting positions. Chuck nel;son's team is favored at both RBs as Jahmyr Gibbs is at Miami and Kenneth Walker III is at home to the New York Jets, tight end George Kittle (Go Niners!) at home to the Cardinals, and the Los Angeles Rams’ defense at Washington. Jordan is favored at four starting positions. He gets the nod at QB with Dak Prescott at Indianapolis, WR Drake London at home to the Bengals, flex WR Ceedee Lamb at Indianapolis and at kicker with Detroit’s Jake Bates at Miami. The Swami thinks Chuck will win his 8th game. Take the Gerbils and 10.
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