Week #9
With four weeks left of the regular season, the playoff race is still wide open after a week of close games in week #9. There was 3 games decided by 2 points or less, another coaching blunder that cost a team a win, while the #3 scoring team lost to the #2 scoring team. Close battles in most of the games this week.
The Filiricans and Bandits are slugging it out in the A Division, with the 'Ricans taking the lead after a decisive win over the Bandits this week. The Hitmen are stumbling through the season, but still have a wildcard spot in sight at this point. The Wapati have shown signs of being competitive, but still sit in the A Division cellar.
The Demons are still the league leader in team points, after a narrow win over the Maulers. The Manatees have a wildcard spot in hand at this time, but a complete lack of production at WR makes this team a very one dimensional offense. The Tide had really turned it up a notch in recent weeks, but suffered a one point loss dropping them back out of a wildcard spot. The Maulers have come one a bit of late, but still have lots of ground to make up.
The Fish fell on hard times this week, but still have the lead in the C Division. The Contributors won a key game over the Cossacks, as they both battle for a playoff spot despite a bad start for both. The Machine are in the thick of things as well, and a win over the Fish certainly helped the team stay with the pack.
The Death continue to lead the league in scoring, and almost have the most points against as well. The Luck are a distant second right now in the D Division, after a tough loss to the Death. The Destroyers had a golden opportunity get away this week as they suffered a 2 point loss to the Cows, who are still trying to put it all together but still in the playoff race.
The trade deadline came and went, and few deals were actually consummated. Not much on the trade front this year, but never seems to be anymore in all the fantasy leagues.
Now, lets take a look at the action from week #9:
Filiricans 86 Bandits 46
Johnny/Matt get a crucial win over the
Bandits, and take top honors this week with 86 points. Marshall sure has looked
like the Marshall of old for several weeks now. Go figure, give Marshall the
ball 25 times a game and the Rams win. Martz is such a freaking genius!
Gentleman, we have officially had our 2nd Keyshawn sighting of the year! He had
a team high this week with 24, so now he will climb back into his hole and score
4 or less the rest of the way. Al went into the crucial division game with
league leader super stud all world RB Priest on a bye, and then watched in
disbelief as Bennett sat on his bench as he ran for a 85 yd TD. Bennett? 85
yards? Must have been the same 11 guys on defense that allowed Bettis to run for
40+ yards a few weeks ago. Vick had a bad week and no offensive player hit
double digits for Al. Priest is back this week, and just may score 46 himself
this week.
Hitmen
43 Wapati 35
A very disappointing game that made the
Cincy/Texans game look like a battle of super teams, Bill/John get the win
thanks to their new defense Atlanta with a team high 16. Dante continues to be a
huge disappointment, but the Hitmen won despite his lack of production, again.
Watson filled in nicely for a injured Davis at RB, but this week could be a
tough call as Davis is that dreaded GTD. Boyd/Butch continue to find ways to
lose, this week it was Garcia playing well, and the rest of the Wapati going in
the tank. The Wapati do get their Bronco connection back, and while time is
quickly running out on the team, a playoff birth is still a possibility.
Manatees 62 Tide 61
Rich/Mark get a win, thanks to a big game on
MNF from top pick Green. While the Manatees are in the playoff hunt, one has to
wonder how serious a contender this team is. It was pointed out early on in the
year as Rich talked up his team (his God given right in the good old US of A)
that the Manatees had a serious hole at the WR spot. Well, 9 weeks in and the
team has got a grand total of 48 points from their WR's year to date. Good news!
They have almost equaled the high GAME of the year! Jeff/Scott suffer the tough
loss as a -3 point game from San Diego def was their downfall. I was at the
Chargers/Jets game on Sunday, and I would have to say they were quite lucky they
ONLY got -3! On a positive note, I saw Pennington first hand and the kid has
talent.
Demons
60 Maulers 59
Both B Division games get decided by one
point, as the league leading Demons get the win. Eric/Tom have a sparkling 8-1
record, and while many may question how tough a team they are, the record speaks
for itself and until they get knocked off they are sitting pretty. Merv/Mike had
the chance to get back into the thick of things, but a 1 point loss compounded
by the fact that both their subs scored a TD, and it adds up to more frustration
for the Maulers brass. Tiki almost won the game himself with his big 24 point
game, but a 1 point game from Shipp with a fumble was a key factor.
Contributors 59 Cossacks 47
This was a battle of two C Division teams
that started off slowly, and it was the Contributors who get the win thanks to
RB Smith and his 29 point game. For the record. 29 points was more than he
scored in the first 8 weeks combined! McSwain has his team back into a playoff
spot and with the tight wildcard race combined with being just 2 points back of
the Fish, the Contributors have lots of good opportunities ahead. Maze and his
crew (not sure if it is a 1 or 2 person crew these days?) suffer the loss as a
pair off gooseggs from Emmitt and Brown were to much to overcome. Factor in
Williams on the bench with more than enough points to get a win, and Maze is
left wondering when his break is coming? Ummm, I hate to break it to you, but
all the Cossacks good fortune was burned up in their record setting week.
Machine 49 Fish 27
In what looked to be a solid matchup on
paper, the Machine get the win over the Fish in a rather boring game. Frank got
another solid week from Harrison to make up for two zero point games from his
RB's. Bad news was that Taylor FINALLY got hurt, but good news is that it
doesn't appear serious enough to keep him out. Everyone can throw away their
"Which Week Will Fred Taylor Get Hurt Pool", as no one picked anything later
than week #6. Wayne/Jim have a major setback as their Fish have a league 27
points this week. The Fish did pull off the biggest trade of the year as they
acquired Boston for Williams. How did Boston do in his first game as a Fish? A
nice big fat zero! The Fish still have the C Division lead, but certainly can
not afford anymore weeks like this.
Cows
51 Destroyers 49
Tom's Cows get a much need division win as
they narrowly beat the Destroyers. At least for one week, the best team catch
phrase was back, "Just Moo Baby!" WR Smith had a good week as his 16 points led
the team. Steve suffers a key division loss, making that a clean 0-4 in Division
games for the Destroyers. Newly acquired Price led Steve's team with 15, but
Porter on the bench with a TD was a costly mistake for the Destroyers.
Death
75 Luck 69
The Commish gets a win as his Death has the
2nd high score, and they needed every point as the Luck had the 3rd high score
in the league. Manning led the Death with 16, and all 4 RB/WR had a TD to help
the Death to the win. Brian suffers a tough loss as his team had a solid week
but came up a little short. Brady was the league leader this week with 29
points, but a 0 from Bryant and two 1 point games from Dawson and Crumpler were
the scores that were to much to overcome.
Week
#9 Awards:
Top QB:
Brady, Luck 29 Points
Top RB: Smith, Contributors 29 Points
Top WR: Johnson, Filiricans 24 Points
Top TE: Becht, Filiricans 10 Points
Top K: Akers, Filiricans
14 Points
Top Def: Green Bay, Bandits
19 Points
Week #10 Preview
Last week's record: 5-3
Year to Date: 26-22
Filiricans @ Cossacks
Filiricans new A Division leader thanks to
Faulk's recent explosion, Cossacks fading after tough loss.......
Pick:
Filiricans
Bandits @ Contributors
Priest is back for Bandits, Contributors need an upset to keep a hold of
wildcard spot.
Pick: Bandits
Hitmen @ Machine
Hitmen need Dante to find his groove (yet
again), while Machine get Griese back and need another win
Pick:
Machine
Wapati @ Fish Wapati need
to reel off a few in a row, while Fish are looking to bounce back from league
low and get Deuce back
Pick: Wapati
Manatees @ Destroyers
Manatees WR's are horrendous, and Henry on a bye is trouble, Destroyers need
Moss to finally step up
Pick: Destroyers
Tide @ Cows
Both teams 3-6, Tide has Owens on a hot
streak, Cows will miss QB Bledsoe on a bye with RB troubles
Pick: Tide
Maulers @ Luck
Maulers have shown signs of life, Luck have
potent 1-2 punch at RB now
Pick:
Luck
Demons @ Death Battle of
the heavyweights, time for someone to take control of the team to beat title
Pick: Death
Good luck to everyone in week #10! I am outta
here......
The
Commish
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