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Dos and Don'ts for fantasy football playoffs: Block opponents, avoid ignoring matchups

With the Eagles leaning on the run game, don't feel obligated to start A.J. Brown this week. Photo by Greg Fiume/Getty Images

Fantasy football managers overthink just about everything. They often need a calm, measured voice of reason to remind them of what makes sense. Don't be afraid. Take a deep breath. Make practical decisions on lineups, trades and foods for the tailgating party, and things will work out. Try to enjoy the ride. You would not believe the things fantasy managers overthink. Well, you are (presumably) a fantasy manager. OK, so perhaps you would.


Don't ... force WR A.J. Brown into playoff lineups

The Philadelphia Eagles wide receiver is one of the most talented in the NFL, and we generally treat him as a WR1 in the rankings. This week, however, Brown and his mates face the cross-state rival Pittsburgh Steelers. These are two exceptional defenses, and Brown might find things more difficult than normal -- and things have, obviously, not been normal with him lately -- because the Steelers figure to assign the excellent Joey Porter Jr. his way as a coverage shadow. Porter has handled other top receivers this season (CeeDee Lamb, Drake London, Courtland Sutton).