Drake Maye Breakout is Beyond Fantasy Football

In today's Fantasy Life Newsletter, presented by Mike's Hard Lemonade:

Did you know that New Mexico is the only state to have an official “state aroma?” It’s true. Apparently it’s the smell of roasting green chiles.

I’ll be honest, I’d never once thought about smells to this degree. And yet I was delighted to find this out.

It got me wondering what other fun facts the lovely and smart and very attractive readers of our newsletter might be interested to learn. So I did some research and compiled the most riveting ones below. But don’t worry, I understand this is a fantasy football newsletter first, so I tied each fact back into the game you all clicked to read about.

Fact #1: Massachusetts hosted the first-ever basketball game in 1891.

It also hosts Drake Maye, the first quarterback to lead the NFL in both Completion Percentage and Passing Yards since Drew Brees achieved the ultra-rare feat in 2011.

One key difference is that Maye is also on pace for roughly 450 rushing yards. Brees, on the other hand, had more seasons with negative rushing yards (four) than seasons with 100+ (one).

Extra fun fact: In the last 50 years, only five other quarterbacks have achieved this dual passing feat, and all of them are in the Hall of Fame. Well, all of them except for Tom Brady. So to anyone who thinks Maye’s fantasy greatness is a fluke, there’s your rebuttal.

Fact #2: Indiana produces more than 20% of the U.S. popcorn supply.

It also produces the No. 1 wide receiver in Yards Per Reception: Alec Pierce. If he keeps this pace up, it’ll be the second year in a row Pierce notches top honors in this stat. No receiver has led the league in back-to-back seasons since Flipper Anderson did it back in 1989 and 1990. (Yes, that’s his name and no, he didn’t play for the Dolphins. I know, I’m bummed too.)

More impressive is that Pierce is having a career year with a 20% target share. That means his stats aren’t being inflated because he only catches one long bomb a game and spends the rest of his time running empty routes. In fact, he has an argument as the WR1 (or at least the 1b) in that Colts offense. And that’s why he’s climbing in this week’s rankings.

Fact #3 - Nevada is home to the world’s largest slot machine, nicknamed Slotzilla, which stands 11 stories tall.

It’s also home to the world’s unluckiest craps table, otherwise known as the Raiders offensive line. Every time they roll the dice by handing the ball off to Ashton Jeanty, which isn’t often these days, fantasy managers clench and hope the O-line doesn’t just fall over in unison.

Anyone who put their chips in on Jeanty this year probably wouldn’t be surprised to find out he has the lowest Yards Before Contact Per Attempt of any qualified running back. One sliver of good news is that Jeanty recorded his highest target total of the season last week. Hopefully that trend continues.

WEEK 12 CHEAT SHEET

Being a Commish is Thankless—But No Longer

If you're reading this newsletter, you likely have a Commissioner in your life. Maybe several. MAYBE IT'S YOU!! Either way, we all know it's a thankless job—constant emails and texts about rules, plus an endless stream of issues: "can we redo that pick, my computer froze" ... "I didn't mean to drop Bucky Irving!" ... "When is the trade deadline?!" ... "How many teams make the playoffs?"— it's nightmare fuel.

As mentioned—thankless—UNTIL NOW

You have one mission today—get your commissioner PAID! Mike's Hard Lemonade wants to help you do it. For the first time ever, Mike's is offering a straight-up endorsement deal to one lucky Fantasy Commissioner as part of the Mike's Fantasy Endorsement Deal contest! Registration ends on Dec. 9, so do it now, PLEASE, before you forget. The winner gets:

a $25,000 "contract"
and a bunch of other cool swag, clout and aura!

Go to MikesFantasyEndorsementDeal.com NOW. Be part of history. And maybe you'll (how did that happen?!) end up with the No. 1 pick next year!

NOMINATE YOUR COMMISH NOW_{NO PURCH. NEC. U.S./D.C. Nominator, 21+; Nominee, 25+. Obtain consent of Nominee. Ends 12/9. Winner (Nominee) not hired as product endorser. Void where prohibited. Rules @}_{https://www.mikesfantasyendorsementdeal.com}_{. Sponsor: Mark Anthony Brands Inc., Chicago, IL. MIKE’S IS HARD. SO IS PRISON. DON’T DRIVE DRUNK ® PREMIUM MALT BEVERAGE WITH FLAVORS. All registered trademarks used under license by Mike’s Hard Lemonade Co., Chicago, IL}

Editors’ Picks

If you got your Thanksgiving shopping done, sit right down and we’ve got some great content to prepare you for tomorrow. If you’re putting off the shopping, Wednesday night won’t be busy at all. 😉 For now, the Week 12 rankings and Xfinity Best Projections will break some ties for lineup setting. Here are some articles you may have missed:

Freedman’s Favorites

TreVeyon Henderson vs the Bengals? Sign us up! And for more Freedman’s Favorites:

Scared Money Week 12

Picture a parlay filled with backups, all inspired by Dwight Schrute. That’s right, cooterdoodle beets it and rides Tyler Allgeier and others.

2026 NFL Mock Draft

Is defense going early or will QBs rise to the top? It’s college football Saturday, so let’s revisit Thor Nystrom’s final mock draft for Fantasy Life.

Week 12 WR/CB Matchups: T-Mac Strikes Gold vs 49ers

The rise of Tetairoa McMillan had been gradual until he grabbed the Falcons defense by the neck and turned 12 targets into 8 catches for 130 yards and 2 TDs. Looks like that was the result of the Panthers’ coaching staff moving him around and getting him into advantageous catching situations:

“Of course, it sounds so simple to us, but moving your top receiver away from a defense’s best corner and targeting them can change your offense for the better. As the Panthers had been adjusting McMillan’s route tree to fit into Bryce Young’s comfort zone, where the Arizona product operated was in flux. But shifting him into the slot and sending him on outbreaking routes gave McMillan his first top-10 outing all season. So, we’ve at least got one game where Carolina’s coaching staff has aligned their QB1 and WR1. And now they get to take on the 49ers’ secondary.”

Chris Allen identified McMillan’s matchup with the 49ers as one of the great advantages of the weekend. But like in Star Wars, “there is another.” And another. Check out the matchup advantages, and one disadvantage, for Week 12. ⤵️

THIS WR’S MIND MELD WITH HIS QB HAS BEEN SPECTACULAR

Playoff Mismatch Report: Getting a Look at Weeks 15-17

Yes, it’s Week 12 and we have a glorious Thanksgiving weekend of football on the heels of that. What a time to be alive! Speaking of Ian Hartitz, he took a peek ahead to the fantasy playoffs, starting Week 15. Yes, you have to get there first, but once you’re there it’ll be good to know if you’ll have any mismatches to exploit, like with the 49ers Brock Purdy:

“The schedule is pretty fantastic: San Fran wraps up the fantasy season with matchups against the Titans, Colts and Bears. The former squad is one of the worst pass defenses in the league by most metrics, while the latter two also aren't exactly amazing and have the sort of offenses capable of keeping up and turning these contests into fantasy-friendly shootouts.”

Ian goes position-by-position—even DSTs, though sorry, no kickers—and showcases the teams with the best and worst schedules facing them during the most important time of the year. ⤵️

SAQUON’S PLAYOFF SCHEDULE IS PRETTY, PRETTY, PRETTY GOOD

Stash Tory Horton on Your Dynasty Rosters

Tory Horton sure looked like he was headed for a breakout in the second half of his rookie season. After going 4-48-2 in a blowout win over the Commanders, things were looking up for him. Then came shin and groin injuries that have now knocked him out of three games. Plus, a Seattle trade for speedster Rashid Shaheed may have made it look like their talents were redundant. Our guy Jake Trowbridge said to think again:

“A rookie gobbling up 5 touchdowns in the span of seven games is nothing to sneeze at. Up until his injury in Week 9, Horton was entrusted with 50% of the Seahawks’ end zone targets and turned them into fantasy gold. That’s a big deal!”

Jake has several more big deals to consider for Dynasty managers looking to acquire these players who are under the radar, but may bust out either later this season or in 2026. ⤵️

THIS WR WILL HARDLY BE A BURDEN ON YOUR ROSTER

Around the Watercooler

How many more shopping days until Thanksgiving? Wait, it was a joke that you can microwave a turkey? Anyway, enjoy some fantasy goodies.

😎 Keep these trends in mind as you sneak up on the competition.

👀 ICYMI: Here are the Week 12 Matchups. And if you’re seeking this week’s Rankings Risers/Fallers, look no further.

🎙️ It’s a new era for Fantasy Football Weekly.

🌕 It’s Brock Purdy to the moon in this week’s Smash Starts.

🪑 You just gotta love Jordan Love this week.

💥 Yes, Jared Goff had it rough in the cold in Philly. He’s home/indoors this week and ready to pop.

🪑 Which murky backfields can you trust in Week 12? Kendall and Adam have you covered with their Start/Sit show.

🚑 Is Joe Burrow back?? We’re monitoring his status and more for tomorrow.

➕ An under-the-radar Bengals receiver headlines our list of late-week streamers.

🗣️ Gray area or collusion? This Reddit discussion is getting heated over certain fantasy football strategies.