Pretty sure it’s sometime in mid-December but like most of you, I’m so scrambled right now in the holiday blender I couldn’t tell you which day. And just as quick as these weeks fly by, the football season may have passed even faster.

One thing I do know is it must be the fantasy playoffs, since friends I haven’t spoken to in a full year are suddenly looking for random tight end advice.

On to our favorite smash starts for the first week... of the rest of your lives.

Smashy, smashy…

MARK: Saquon Barkley RB, Philadelphia Eagles

I wouldn’t be 100% transparent if I didn’t acknowledge the Charlie Brown vibes that come with trusting the Eagles running back. All that being said, I’m betting on the matchup - not the player. And the Eagles should be ready to shoot Barkley out of a cannon at the Raiders defense.

Is there anyone out there that is advocating for the Eagles to throw the ball more after Monday night? Philadelphia is desperate to stop its three-game spiral, and increasing Barkley’s usage gives them the best shot. Philadelphia successfully worked in some new wrinkles to its running game against LA, resulting in Saquon’s second-best game in terms of rushing performance (122 yards; 6.1 ypc) and fantasy production (18.2 fantasy points).

It’s premature to declare Barkley back to the form that saw him threaten the single-season rushing record. However, he is still more than capable of chaining together multiple explosive runs against the Raiders defense that allows the 11th-most fantasy points to RBs this season.

Considering Las Vegas has lost seven straight games with an eroding rush defense (25th in EPA/rush allowed since Week 9), there will be some situational factors at play that could help Barkley blow the top off his projections. The Eagles RB1 has the sixth-highest Xfinity-Best ceiling amongst running backs (23). I’m all in on Saquon as a SMASH-start.

MARK: Wan’Dale Robinson WR, New York Giants

Everyone gearing up for the fantasy football playoffs should be trying to get a GIANT piece of anyone going against this Commanders defense. I’m convinced that New York’s breakout receiver is the best bet to extract the most value from this gift, courtesy of the scheduling gods.

Per the FantasyLife+ Utilization Report, Robinson owns a 34% target share over the past five weeks. During the same span, the Giants speedy wideout has averaged seven receptions and 10.6 targets per game. It’s fair to expect Jaxson Dart to dial up Robinson’s number even more against such a vulnerable secondary.

Only seven teams have allowed more fantasy points to wide receivers than Washington in 2025. The Commanders are the league’s worst defense against the pass, in terms of dropback/EPA (0.437) and dropback success rate (58.1%) over the second half of the season. The season-long stats don’t paint a prettier picture (32nd; 30th). Let’s face it, Washington is already looking ahead to next season. That’s exactly the type of defense that we want to take advantage of.

Theo Johnson, Robinson’s main competition for targets, is working through a toe injury that could limit his effectiveness, elevating Robinson’s potential ceiling even higher. Robinson is only two weeks removed from a monster 26.1 fantasy point performance against Detroit, where he lit up the Lions for 156 yards and 1 TD. If JJ McCarthy is out in the wild throwing three touchdowns against this defense, I’m betting the Dart-Wan’Dale combination will SMASH our way to a playoff victory. 

JOHN: Derrick Henry, BAL vs Cincinnati Bengals

All hail the king! Sure, tackling Derrick Henry in the December cold’s become an annual fantasy meme—but who among us could blame defenders for not wanting to step in front of 250 lbs. of charging juggernaut? Just thinking about that is sending me toward the kitchen cabinet for Ibuprofen.

Henry’s 2025 campaign feels a little more incognito than usual, despite being fantasy’s RB10 and not missing a single game. I’d argue perhaps his highness is saving the best for last—all eight of his best performances by success rate occurred in the last nine games alone. The train’s picking up steam.

Lamar Jackson’s back under center, but Baltimore’s still on the outside looking in at the playoffs—so you can expect Todd Monken to put their best feet forward on Sunday. How could you not run your unstoppable force at one of the NFL’s most easily movable objects?

Since losing star DE Trey Hendrickson two months ago, an already below-average Bengals’ interior has acted more like a turnstile than anything, evidenced in one of the worst collections of run-stopping stats you’ll find anywhere…

BENGALS’ RUN DEFENSE SINCE WEEK 6:

• -0.17 EPA Per Play: 31st
• 47.0% Success Rate: Last
• 170.1 Rushing Yards Per Game: Last
• 5.7 Yards Per Rush: Last
• 2.3 Yards Before Contact Per Rush: 31st
• 12 +20-Yard Carries: Last
• 12.2% Explosive Rush Rate: 31st
• 45.1% Tackle Success: Last

Henry’s only gone scoreless in two straight games once all season and didn’t find the paint against Pittsburgh last Sunday—you know what that means…

JOHN:  Jaxon Smith-Njigba, WR, SEA at Indianapolis Colts

If you were one of the twelve fantasy drafters in every room to draft Jaxon Smash-Njigba, congrats to you, but the windfall profit’s not done paying off. After completing one of the most impressive fantasy regular seasons of all time, JSN and the Hawks find themselves in a dream spot this Sunday on a fast track in Indy.

It’s so easy to brush past what the former first-round Buckeye accomplished in his third season so far, leading all 100 WRs with +30 targets in receiving yards (1,428), yards/route (4/08), air yards (1,459), and weighted opportunity (88.0%). Truly impressive stuff, especially for a first year battery connection with Sam Darnold.

On the flipside, oh those poor Colts. Man, it felt like just yesterday Jonathan Taylor and the Colts were a wagon—all the usual talking heads couldn’t push Indianapolis to the top of their Super Bowl favorites list fast enough.

Turn the dial to present day and it’s nothing short of an abject disaster for Indy. First, DeForest Buckner (hip) hit the shelf. Uh oh. Then, newly acquired CB Sauce Gardner suffered a serious injury before unpacking his bags. Now, a third Charvarius Ward concussion means a trip to the IR (get well soon).

Long story long, IND’s down worse than bad, sitting dead last defensive EPA/dropback, passing yards per game over the last month. That style of man-heavy coverage will always get disproportionately punished by injuries, being predicated on individual play.