Feeling the heat? Players facing a pivotal 2020

The “hot seat” is a term frequently used to describe someone who faces a pressure-packed situation, bearing the weight and responsibility of what is to come. Someone who is on the hot seat often faces job uncertainty or even career ambiguity.

Which MFFL players are facing the pressure in 2020?

The following is a list of players, one from each team, facing a pivotal 2020 season. Some of them have their jobs on the line. Some of them are at career crossroads. And others bear a great deal — if not the lion’s share — of the burden of their teams’ fortunes.

JuJu Smith-Schuster, WR/PIT — Bangkok Blitz

Smith-Schuster was acquired by the Blitz during the Great Purge of 2019. As the Blitz remodeled their franchise and prepared to rebuild for the 2020 season and beyond, Smith-Schuster became one of the building blocks on which the team pinned its hopes. After a stellar 2018, an injury plus poor quarterback play caused a backslide in production last year. Bangkok is counting on a rebound from him. The Blitz placed the Non-exclusive Franchise Tag on Smith-Schuster this offseason, giving him an opening bid of $13 million. That salary, paired with the NFT compensation of two high draft picks, likely ensures Smith-Schuster remains in Bangkok. His salary will account for almost a fifth of the team’s budget, meaning they will heavily rely on his production this season. Fortunately for Smith-Schuster, the Blitz still have the most cap space available plus will have several young rookie playmakers to share the load. Still, Double-J, Double-S will have some pressure on him in 2020.

Derrius Guice, RB/WAS — Christmas Island

Guice was drafted second overall in the 2018 MFFL Draft and has played in just five games in two seasons. He remains the lead running back in Washington, thus his ceiling is still high. The pieces are in place for him to have some success in 2020, but the two big questions that remain are can he stay healthy and will a muddled backfield eat into his production capability? At $6.75 million, he remains an affordable RB3 at the most important position in the MFFL. If the production he showed in his limited 2019 action is extrapolated over a full season, he may even be a bargain in 2020. However, if he struggles to put together a full season for the third straight year, his $9 million salary in 2021 will loom large on the Crabs’ payroll. Guice is the epitome of a player on the hot seat and he amounts to a lottery ticket whom the Crabs hope to cash in on this season.

Mark Ingram, RB/BAL — Ecuador

Ingram has had quite the past year. He signed a one-year contract with Egypt during the 2019 Auction. He was traded to Nagasaki before the trade deadline. His free agent rights were acquired by Switzerland this offseason, only to be traded once more to Ecuador. On top of it all, he faces competition from a young, hungry rookie running back. At 30 years old — the magic number when players at his position are considered senior citizens — he literally faces a career crossroads. He still figures to play a prominent role in 2020, and could even get the lion’s share of the workload assuming he produces. But he has to stay healthy and indeed put up similar statistics to what he displayed in 2019. The Ewoks have placed the NFT on him and he will be a big factor in their backfield. Needless to say, he better have strong shoulders.

Ronald Jones, RB/TB — Egypt

Jones has had a bit of a bumpy road to begin his career. Drafted by Jamaica with the ninth pick in the 2018 Draft, Jones has hopped from team to team. The eventual 2019 Super Bowl champion Crabs acquired Jones during the preseason for wide receiver A.J. Brown. Jones lasted about two months with the team before the Crabs jettisoned him to Egypt for Royce Freeman. After a rocky rookie season, Jones finally started to show growth in his sophomore campaign. When it appeared that Jones would finally be handed the reins as the full-featured running back in Year 3 of his career, the Buccaneers brought in competition for him via the draft. Now Jones will have to earn every penny in this pivotal third year of his career. If he pans out as the starter, the Pharaohs have got themselves a nice piece at a cheap price. If he falters, he becomes just another backup lost in the shuffle.

Chris Carson, RB/SEA — Jamaica

The Jerks traded for the free agent rights to Carson this offseason, and they gave up the next big thing in receiver A.J. Brown, on a cheap rookie contract no less. It goes without saying that the Jerks are likely to try to retain Carson at any cost, lest they lose Brown for basically nothing. Carson has been a steady performer throughout his short career, but he also remains one fumble away from being yanked out of the game and sent to the doghouse. The Seahawks also bolstered their backfield this offseason, meaning the leash will be extra short for Carson in 2020. He remains the lead back there and will have every opportunity to keep his job, but it’ll be anxiety-inducing every time he takes a hit. The Jerks are counting on him to be the No. 2 back for them, but he’ll face even more pressure if No. 1 Dalvin Cook makes good on his threat to hold out.

Aaron Jones, RB/GB — Nagasaki

Jones’ contract was arguably the most valuable in the MFFL last year as he finished the season as a Top 3 running back while playing under a league-minimum salary. A slight regression was expected to begin with, but then his team muddied the picture by selecting A.J. Dillon in Round 2 of the NFL Draft. One would expect Dillon to handle some goal line duties and eat into Jones’ league-leading 16 touchdowns from a season ago. Jones is the featured back and will handle most of the work, and you can’t beat a salary of $0.25 million. But what is in store for that backfield in 2020? And how will it affect both Jones’ career as well as the Kamikazes’ drive for a title?

Le’Veon Bell, RB/NYJ — Russia

The biggest mistake that Bell made — and Melvin Gordon, too; and, if he’s not careful, Dalvin Cook might make as well — was holding out for the 2018 season. The sooner that running backs learn they’re the most dispensable players in pro sports, the better off they’ll be. He got greedy and wanted excessive money, then was relegated to life with the Jets, and now has fallen from being a surefire RB1 to maybe a mid-RB2. Formerly with the Kamikazes, he got shipped to Ecuador and then sent to Russia where he’ll try to revive his career. If he struggles in 2020, there are rumors the Jets might want to unload him, and then who knows where he ends up. His 2020 season is pivotal for the Renegades, but it might be even more pivotal for his own career.

Alshon Jeffery, WR/PHI — San Juan

At one point in his career, Alshon Jeffery was one of the best receivers in the game. In back-to-back seasons, he averaged 87 receptions, 1,277 yards and 8.5 touchdowns. However, that was during the Obama administration. Those two years aside, Jeffery has failed to top 900 yards or double-digit touchdowns in any of the other 6 seasons in his career. Part of the problem with Jeffery is that he’s built like a wet paper towel. He’s only played a full season three times in his career, missing 26 total games, including 9 in the last two seasons alone. Jeffery’s status for the start of the 2020 season is currently up in the air as he battles to return from his Lisfranc injury. When actually on the football field, he still causes matchup problems for defenders due to his size and catch radius and is a red zone nightmare. But his health status has been one big game of dice and the 30-year-old now faces an even more uncertain future.

Leonard Fournette, RB/JAX — Switzerland

The No. 1 pick in the 2017 MFFL Draft is now back with the organization that drafted him. Switzerland — formerly Greenland — reacquired Fournette’s rights from Christmas Island this offseason after Fournette spent the 2019 season in Jamaica. The Squirrels placed the EFT on Fournette, ensuring he will be with the ball club at least for the 2020 season. Fournette has had a bit of an up-and-down career thus far. When healthy, he has been one of the league’s finest, as exhibited during the 2019 season when he averaged 20.8 points per game en route to a Top 8 finish among running backs. But Fournette has yet to play a full season in his three-year career and missed half the 2018 season. He also has yet to top double-digit rushing touchdowns and finished with just three in 2019 despite his stellar campaign. The Jaguars are one of the odds-on favorites to earn the first pick in the 2021 NFL Draft, which is never a good sign for a featured player. There were rumblings that Fournette could have possibly been dealt, which is another hurdle for Fournette to overcome in this pivotal season.

Melvin Gordon, RB/DEN — Turkey

In 2019 Gordon did about the worst thing a running back can do, and that was hold out. In his absence the Jamaica Jerks (and Los Angeles Chargers) just chugged along without him and Gordon watched his backup, Austin Ekeler, have a career year. It didn’t take long for Gordon to come bolting back to football, realizing the error of his ways. He did return to playing a big role and averaged about 17.5 points per game, which put him as an RB2. Gordon still has a wealth of talent and runs with speed and aggression. A change of scenery this offseason could be just the boost he needs to get back into fringe RB1 territory. This assuming the Broncos don’t throw 50 times a game with all the new toys they acquired this offseason. Still, Gordon should be used quite often, but he’ll have to produce big numbers while playing on a $15.75 million salary. He’s one of the most important players on the Jerky’s roster this year and he’ll shoulder the burden.

Chris Godwin, WR/TB — Ukraine

Godwin was one of the breakout players during the 2019 season. Playing under the league minimum salary, he exploded onto the scene and finished as a Top 5 wide receiver. Knowing full well that they’d have to pay the man, plus running back Christian McCaffrey, the Grainers carefully worked their roster in order to retain both. McCaffrey received the one-year EFT while Godwin was hit with the NFT. It is unlikely Godwin will receive much, if any, action via the auction. Not because he isn’t any good, but because of the cost associated with the tag. Assuming the Grainers retain Godwin at $13 million, he’ll take up about 17% of their budget. The team also traded receiver Odell Beckham, meaning there will be extra pressure on Godwin to pick up where he left off last year and be the featured receiver alongside Tyreek Hill. Godwin likely will put up strong numbers again in 2020, but a change of quarterback and a multitude of mouths to feed might make things a little interesting.

Kenyan Drake, RB/ARI — Wake Island

Drake’s story is well-documented by now. He languished for the first three seasons of his career, never reaching his full potential. A midseason trade in 2019 opened the floodgates and allowed Drake to put up strong numbers in the second half of the season. Now Drake faces the prospect of beginning a full season with a potent offense and everyone is curious what he’s going to do. As Wake Island’s unquestioned No. 2 running back, Drake’s 2020 season is not only pivotal for his own career but for the success of the Wookiees in general. Drake is in a contract year and he can either earn himself a big payday next offseason or fall back into backup territory. No pressure, KD.