Billy Joel's 1980s hit “Pressure” instructs the listener that “You have to learn to pace yourself—pressure!”

For those of you who are struggling this season, this is good advice.

Remember that fantasy football is a game that fits the old cliché “It is a marathon, not a sprint.” The season is long, and a few losses early doesn't mean that a team can't make a late playoff run.

I offer a personal experience as Exhibit A. Two years ago, my auction-league fantasy team couldn't catch a break. That's actually an understatement; the truth is I caught every “piece of s#%&” break possible. Every team I played bested their weekly scoring average by a long shot in downing my squad. One team actually doubled their weekly output the week they embarrassed me. I was the third highest-scoring team out of ten teams, yet I found myself 2-8 after 10 weeks. As a result, I thought there was no chance I would make the playoffs.

I found myself more and more frustrated with every passing week. I felt the pressure of wasting the entry fee I had spent on the league—money I could have used as a new homeowner. I began looking for desperate trades I could make or free agents I could snatch up that would change my fortune. Alas, I found none.

Then, after week 10, I caught a break. One of the other owners dropped Brandon Marshall, who, at the time, was not performing well. However, the week he was dropped, he caught several passes. I looked at my roster and realized I could use an upgrade at wideout as Darrell Jackson was my best player at the position.

I snagged Marshall. I won week 11. Then, I won again week 12. Although he wasn't the only reason, Marshall was a major reason. He began posting 100-yard games and/or touchdowns every week, becoming the scoring punch I needed to begin beating those teams that were putting up huge numbers against me.

Week 13 is the last week of regular season games for this league. I figured I was done, so I ran errands most of the day. When I returned home, my friend, Kevin, who is the commissioner of the league, was on my answering machine. When I hit play, his voice sarcastically offered, “I don't know how you got so lucky, but everyone you needed to lose today did, and you won again. You backed your way into the playoffs, you lucky b%&*@!.”

I beat Kevin by three points in the first round of the playoffs, and then won the semi-final game the following week. My season that started off 2-8 finished with a trip to the championship.

I lost the championship game, but still took home the second-place earnings. In the end, the lesson I learned is that the fantasy football season is long, and many things we think we know week 9 aren't the case by week 14.

Don't despair if your team hasn't performed as well as you hoped it would at your draft. The last thing you want to do is make a desperate trade or stop submitting the best lineup possible each week because you feel pressured at this point. Identify the players on your roster that you believe in and build around those guys—one small tweak to your roster here, one injury to an opponent's best player there can make all the difference in turning your season around.

Ryan Moats reemerged as a fantasy force week eight, blasting through the Bills defense for 126 yards and three trips to pay dirt as the Texans racked up a road win. This performance casts an uncertain cloud over the Houston starting running back situation from here on in—if you own and were counting on Steve Slaton, your season may be in jeopardy. It may be wise to examine possible trades for Slaton, but chances are you won't get value in return for him at this point. Talk about feeling pressure!

Houston Texans at Indianapolis Colts: This divisional contest pits two of the NFL's top offenses. In particular, plan on big performances from both passing games—Indy is first in passing yards per game; Houston is third. Both teams pass for more than two scores per game as well. There could be tons of passing yards and scores tallied in this shootout.

• If you're looking for a deep-sleeper at QB to replace your starter for this week's byes, Alex Smith might be a great choice. Tennessee's defense allows plenty of passing yards and scores.

• This will be a make-or-break week for Jamal Charles. Larry Johnson sits this one out serving his suspension, so Charles has an opportunity to take the KC running back spot for good against the Jaguars, who are 25th against the run.

• Nate Burleson faces the pathetic Detroit secondary—perhaps he can finally show up and help a fantasy team win. Heck, I could look good against roarless Lions.

• With Chris Cooley out, Fred Davis has an opportunity to become a fantasy steal, especially if your usual tight end is on bye.

• Kyle Orton's start to the season was fantastic. However, last week he was all but shutout by the Ravens. Now, he gets to face another AFC North foe in Pittsburgh—look for him to be all but shutout again.

• Despite Marion Barbers short TD run last week, he has been abysmal since injuring his quad week 2. Expecting him to return to form against the Eagles isn't probably a good gamble.

• Roy Williams actually had a TD last week, making him worth a start. However, even a blind squirrel finds a nut every now and then...

• I'm done projecting good things for Greg Olsen. Wake me up when he strings together a few fantasy weeks worth talking about...

In week nine, keep your eye on:

• Miles Austin against the Eagles—Austin has posted 21 grabs for an average of 160 yards per tilt and a total of five scores over the last three weeks (not counting the bye). His performance this weekend against Philadelphia will provide some idea of whether Austin is a must-start option or if he is a start-based-on-match-up player.

• Randy Moss—Moss has been up and down this year, snagging only four scores so far, three of which came against the lowly Titans. He has three 100-yard outings in seven games, which would be great for just about every other receiver in the league, but falls below his lofty expectations. It will be interesting to see if the Patriots devised ways during their bye week to get him more involved in the offense.