Survive and advance. That’s all that matters in survivor pools.

Still, it would have been nice if I didn’t have to sweat out the result of Monday Night Football until the final minutes.

After using the Kansas City Chiefs earlier this season, I was forced to look elsewhere to fill out my survivor pool picks for Week 8.

First, I landed on a 50-50 split with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Green Bay Packers.

At the last minute on Sunday, I swapped out my Packers selection for the Philadelphia Eagles.

Tampa Bay and Philadelphia both won, but both games were much closer than they needed to be.

Here is the Morning Coffee for Tuesday Nov. 3, 2020.

Survivor Pool Sweats

After watching Eagles quarterback Carson Wentz turn the ball over four times in Sunday’s 23-9 win over the Dallas Cowboys, I had to roll my eyes when Buccaneers’ running back Ronald Jones II fumbled deep in his own territory in the first quarter on Monday Night Football. 

It isn’t easy to win games in the NFL when you lose the turnover battle. Just ask Lamar Jackson.

Luckily, my bet on the Buccaneers was also a bet against Daniel Jones and the Giants for that reason.

New York jumped out to a 14-3 lead in the second quarter, but Jones missed a couple of big downfield throws and ended up throwing a pair of interceptions to allow Tom Brady and company to claw their way back into the game.

With the two picks, Jones is up to 34 turnovers in his first 20 NFL games, which is the most by any quarterback through 20 games since Ryan Leaf had 41 in his first 20 games.

Meanwhile, Brady threw for 279 yards and two touchdowns with no turnovers. 

In the end, it was just enough to hang on for a 25-23 win after a failed two-point conversion – and a controversial one at that – by the Giants in the final minute.

NFL underdogs went 10-4 ATS including seven outright upsets in Week 8.

So congratulations if you survived and advanced. That’s all that matters. Because it isn’t about to get any easier over the second half of the season.

Fantasy Football Waiver Wire

Speaking of survive and advance, injuries and bye weeks continue to take a toll on fantasy rosters entering Week 9.

Here are five options I have my eye on that could still be available on the wire in your fantasy football league.

RB JaMycal Hasty, 49ers: The 49ers want to run the football, but almost every running back on their roster has struggled to stay healthy. Tevin Coleman returned on Sunday and then left again with an injury. Raheem Mostert is still sidelined, so Hasty could end up being San Francisco’s best option on a short week. The Green Bay Packers defence was gashed for 163 rushing yards and three scores by Minnesota Vikings running back Dalvin Cook on Sunday, so Hasty could be a decent FLEX option against them on a short week.

RB Gus Edwards, Ravens: J.K. Dobbins led Baltimore with 15 carries for 113 yards in Sunday’s loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers, but he’s already owned in 48.8 per cent of TSN fantasy football leagues. The good news is that the Ravens want to run the football as much as they can, and it looks like Edwards will continue to get the goal-line carries with Mark Ingram sidelined. Edwards ran for 87 yards and a touchdown against the Steelers. If Ingram remains out Week 9, Edwards could be a decent FLEX option.

WR Darnell Mooney, Bears: Mooney is coming off his best performance of the season after delivering five catches for 69 yards and a touchdown on six targets in Sunday’s loss to the New Orleans Saints. He should be able to build off that performance against the Tennessee Titans in Week 9.

WR Demarcus Robinson, Chiefs: Kansas City has an embarrassment of riches at the offensive skill positions, but Robinson could have value as an emergency option if Sammy Watkins remains sidelined against the Carolina Panthers this week. Robinson had four catches for 63 yards and a touchdown on five targets in Sunday’s win over the New York Jets. He’s a desperation option this week if you need help at wide receiver.

TE Logan Thomas, Washington: If you need help at tight end, which a lot of fantasy managers just might in Week 9, then Thomas is a viable option. Thomas had four catches for 60 yards and a touchdown in his last game before Washington’s bye. He should see a decent amount of targets again versus the Giants this week.