In today's Fantasy Life newsletter, presented by Underdog:
Getting the chance to be in New Orleans for Super Bowl Week representing Fantasy Life and Sirius XM Fantasy Sports Radio at Media Row is as good as it gets. The excitement and energy were obvious all week.
I arrived in New Orleans on Sunday. After getting to the hotel, Kendall Valenzuela, producer Matt Swing, and I went to the New Orleans Ernest N. Morial Convention Center to pick up our credentials and view the setup for our broadcasts.
As someone who works from home, I aim to walk 10,000 steps per day. My plan was to walk since it was about a mile from the hotel. I was hoping Kendall would walk since she barely leaves her house. I convinced her to walk and after making a right turn after a few blocks, the convention center was in sight.
Kendall breathed a sigh of relief. The building is massive, covering 7.5 acres. We kept walking and walking, and the media entrance was way toward the end. After Kendall almost tripped numerous times, we made it.
Later that night, we went to the famous Mother’s Restaurant. While it was 10 p.m., Kendall ordered an omelette. Glad to see she is a proponent of breakfast at all times. Take that Nando Di Fino!
The food was a highlight of the trip, as well as the camaraderie. We work remotely for Fantasy Life and I met many people for the first time. It was only the second time Kendall and I got to meet in person and to do the shows in person.
Matthew Berry took the Fantasy Life crew out to dinner one of the nights, which lasted several hours. It was a fun time with great food and conversation. After dinner, we went to the Media Party. Once again, Kendall almost fell several times on the walk there. At least she walked way more than I anticipated.
One of my personal highlights was interviewing Emmitt Smith. I am a Cowboys fan and the 1990s teams were dominant. I asked Smith what his most memorable game was to see if it was the same as mine. And it was. He talked about his performance with a separated shoulder against the Giants to end the 1993 regular season. Smith injured the shoulder in the second quarter and finished with 42 touches for 229 yards with a touchdown in an overtime win to clinch the No. 1 seed in the NFC in an eventual Super Bowl win. At the end of the interview, Smith and I took a shot of tequila.
Kendall is a Seahawks fan and she had fun interviewing Shaun Alexander, Jaxon Smith-Njigba, and Devin Witherspoon. Marshall Faulk, Shawne Merriman, Andre Reed, Thurman Thomas, Donovan McNabb, and Jay Glazer were among some of the guests we interviewed.
One of the best meals we had was at Desi Vega’s Steakhouse. The food was excellent. For dessert, I heard the words “peanut butter” and said yes! The waiter returned to tell me they ran out of the peanut butter pie and I felt tears begin to form. I passed on dessert and took some of Swing’s bread pudding with vanilla ice cream and it was good. We went to the NFLPA VIP party on the last night.
While a lot of work was involved, being around great people with a strong work ethic made it smooth. Hopefully, we will be back for Super Bowl 60 in the Bay Area next season.
WHO IS IN MATTHEW’S TOP 5 QBS FOR 2025?
The latest analysis and insights from our merry band of football nerds:
💪 More highlights from Super Bowl Week from the Fantasy Life crew.
👀 Matthew looks ahead with his early top 5 WRs.
🚀 What color will the Gatorade be? Oh yeah, and let’s talk national anthem.
🪓 Still time to draft free Super Bowl Guilloteenies. Go head-to-head against a friend.
💤 A sleeper WR could go wild, and more Super Bowl props.
🚑 Other than good health, what do the 49ers need?
🤔 Where could Amari Cooper play in 2025? There are a few options.
🎉 Get ready for your Super Bowl party with our Party Props Sheet and Super Bowl Squares. Then make the guacamole.
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Cam Ward 2025 NFL Draft Profile
Cam Ward’s journey from a player not having received a scholarship, looking to play at the JUCO level, going to the FCS, all the way to starring at schools on opposite corners of the country is one of resilience, extreme natural talent, and growth through good coaching. Thor Nystrom tells it all, and offers up a detailed scouting report along with an NFL comp that is spot on.
When Cam Ward gets cooking, watch out. Ward is a full-field reader, and he trusts what he sees implicitly. He has an elastic, twitchy arm, shooting the pill out from unorthodox sidearm slots. This is a useful trick under duress, but the extra arm action and non-repeatable upper-body mechanics do have slightly deleterious effects on his overall accuracy and placement. He modulates speeds well, and has feathery touch when he needs it.
Ward’s 2,329 career passing attempts in college all came in Air Raid systems. Ward is one of this class’ most cerebral quarterbacks pre-snap. Ward is keenly interested in the way that defenses align to match his receivers in space. He’s quick to relay information back to his teammates, and to adjust the formation, protection, or play as needed. By this point, Ward could call offensive plays in the booth for an Air Raid offense.
Ward hates to check down, and he doesn’t like to throw the ball away. He will keep hunting until the bitter end. He generates explosive plays this way. But it’s also where you see wanton recklessness. Ward has a particularly bad habit of forcing impossible attempts across his body when he’s run out of options on a scramble—leading to interceptions over the middle.
- Thor Nystrom
WARD’S ROAD FROM POSSIBLE JUCO PLAYER TO TOP OF NFL DRAFT
2025 NFL Draft Prospect Risers: Taylor Elgersma And More Are Moving Up
The pre-draft process between the end of the College Football season and late April when these players find their new NFL homes is an interesting process. Players move up and down draft boards based on performances at college all-star games, which can make or break draft stock.
Coach Gene Clemons surveyed the College Football landscape and identified players who have performed well enough to shoot up draft boards. He’s starting off with a formerly little-known QB from the Great White North.
Taylor Elgersma, QB, Laurier (Canada)
The only person talking about Elgersma before the Senior Bowl was Mr. Day 3 himself, Emory Hunt. Then he competed at the Tropical Bowl in late January and jumped on many NFL scouts’ radars. Now after the Senior Bowl everybody’s talking about him. The first thing to notice is the long frame. It’s not as if he is oddly tall—he’s 6-foot-4—but the whip action throwing motion that accompanies his big arm, makes him look longer than he truly is. Bottom line is he can sling it. More important than his arm strength was his willingness to use it. He was firing passes all over the place and pushing the football downfield. In the Senior Bowl game he completed the longest pass of the day, a 43-yard completion. That performance stacked on top of his MVP effort in the Tropical Bowl did wonders for his draft prospects. It's not like he went from unknown to the first round, let’s not get crazy, there are still issues. But he went from a guy who would probably not get a chance in the NFL to potentially a Day 3 pick. That's a massive jump.
- Gene Clemons
TWO MORE OFFSEASON PRIORITIES FOR THE JAGS
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One more day until Super Bowl 59! Have you finished your shopping for the spread? While you wait in line, it’s Fantasy Life Trivia time.
Yesterday’s Trivia Answer: Peyton Manning was the only QB listed who did not lose his first Super Bowl start.
The Eagles are coming off 55 points in the NFC Championship. That’s a record, and it would tie the record for most points in a Super Bowl if they were able to do it again. Which team currently holds the record?
