Okay so it has been a busy week so instead of going into great detail about how each player and each team performed. We are going to focus on the games that were actually close and not the ones that were… how should I say this? Oh thanks BBB, "Blowouts". First off we had Troll Hunters (157) over Big City Hillbillies (73). Troll Hunters read the blog post last week and decided to throw it back in the writers face. 5 of the 7 key spots (excludes the K and DST) had over 15 pts with 3 over 25 pts. Also none were Big Ben with 12 points. Ty Hilton appears to be sick of being on the bench because he put up 25 pts himself. Big City Hillbillies attempted to match this with Brady at 30, Parker 18, and Fournette at 15. However the rest of the 9 man squad got less then 10 pts combined. Not a good day for the Hillbillies. The 30 pts from Howard on the bench wouldn't even have been enough to avoid losing the naming rights for the week. Hillbillies does have a positive outlook with Howard rebounding from a tough week 2 showing and Brady going back to back 30 pt weeks. Hillbillies had a chance to beat TH in week 1 but when it came to the first grudge match this was a one sided Trolling. Second we have BBB (125) over 302 Cadets (92) This was another one sided week. I would say that this match-up was much closer going into the Sunday night game. BBB was around 90 points and 302 had just under 90. Both teams had good performances but 302 was a little behind because of poor performance by Cam Newton. Excluding Cam and prior to the Oakland game, 302 didn’t have a bad game going. 302 had a solid performance by Le’Veon, Thomas, and Ertz with average performance from the rest of the team but still nothing to complain about. BBB was similar Baldwin and McCafferey had great weeks but overall not to of a week for everyone else (prior to the Sunday/Monday Night games. Yes Lamar miller is not doing well and BBB’s is hoping Chris Thompson can continue his 20+ point run through weeks 2-3. The real changing point in this match was Skittles was not beast mode even a little… This was down to Lynch against Fitzgerald and whoever did well would’ve taken the win. The 3 points for Lynch and 302 was not a good start giving BBB’s one of the smallest hurdles of a point or two to beat. Shortly after the game started it was pretty clear that BBB was running away with the W. This now doubles BBBs win total from last year and keeps 302 winless for another week. Third we have The Mullynation (109) over Second Son-In-Law (86) Another win that might look like a blow out (which is was in the end) but was much closer after the first group of Sunday afternoon games then you might expect. Overall this was a just another solid week in the books for Mully. If she would’ve played her stud (Diggs) then this wouldn’t been a knockout of the park for her this week. She tried to go conservative with Kearse (who?? Yeah don’t really know him…) Yes he came off a crazy game in week 2 but didn’t hurt her so you can’t win them all. 2nd Son was looking pretty good Murray, OBJ and McCoy put up solid points (McCoy 10 at Denver isn’t bad). However the 49s against the Rams started a down hill train for 2nd Son. Carlos Hyde ran over the Rams which helped Mully (Obviously) but was making things worse by driving the Rams DST down for 2nd Son. However, there was still a chance, all he needed was Oak to come up big again and feed Crabtree those TDs. However, combined Carr/Crabtree had a dismal 6.4 points. There wasn’t much else Mullynation needed to do after 2nd son quickly noticed he was in trouble. Yes Sammy Watkins would’ve help but was a very unlikely play this week have weeks 1-2. Adding insult to injury Darren Sproles left the game and ended up breaking his arm AND tearing his ACL. Out of all the RBs this to happen to on 2nd Son’s team he has to consider himself lucky but still hurts when you have almost not RB depth to begin with. Forth we got Northside Angels (108) over River Gypsies (95) This shouldn’t have been a close game. However, RGs had a chance (unlikely) but had a chance throughout the Monday night game. NSA only needed Cooper (Sun Night) or Witten (Mon Night) to score more then two points to lock in this win. Finally Brown putting up a expected number but Hogan deciding to join the NE action with a great 20 point game. Rodger being Rodgers put up 25 points like it was nothing. However, RGs had a chance to win this. The Bucs against the Vikes was a expected good DST play. Keenum proved everyone wrong and lit the Bucs up bringing RGs points to -6 pts. If this was even 5 points would’ve made this a very close game. Lastly, Zek had a chance to win this. All he needed was 30 points, unlikely but there was a chance for RGs to avoid a 1-2 start. Both TEs were bad so that is a wash. Overall though looking at RGs top 5 players does look bad 14, 21,17, 20, 18. NSA might be guessing weekly on these RBs with Allen only getting 5 points but Duke on the bench with 19 pts. Overall, can’t complain about NSA’s 108 performance. This was a great job of NSA showing he can still put up points even without DJ (and Cooper too I guess). Pull together another total like this and we’ll move you up the rankings don’t you worry. RGs it is simply, just pick better DST and don’t bet against the hometown team!! SKOL! Last and the most exciting we’ve got Indian Outlaws (80) over Twin City Tree Cats (77) Even though this was the lowest scoring game, it was still the most exciting. It went down to the final day and was only 1 catch away from having TC2 walk away with his first win. Prior to the TC2 had a gift from the Football gods by handicapping his week with the Jags destroying the Baltimore ravens. As such, that was a 7 pt head start and losing the upside for a DST as well. Both teams looked bad. QB play was average with 27 vs 20 points. IOS has his new favorite weapon and not slowing down with 25 pts yet again and TC2 have nothing to counter this. However, IOS had nothing else to offer this match. Sander was third with 11 and a few 8 pts, a few 4 pts and a 1 pointer gets you a “solid” 81 pts which is third worse this week. For TC2, there was nothing too special with no one over 15 points. The RBs leading the TC2 charge are not your first choice and looked like last week with the WRs not looking much different. Note: Evans against Minnesota is tough so 10 pts isn’t actually a bad week. The only questionable play is starting a DST against the NO Saints? All you needed was 2 point from your DST and you could’ve won… that is tough to see but you were better then Baltimore that IOS started at least. The reason why I have this the most exciting game is that I honestly thought that TC2 was going to win this game. The only thing that can’t happen is if Dez gets a TD… and what does Dez do? Get a TD. But 2 rec and 12 yds!!! Arizona secondary is good and there was a legit possibility that Dez ended this game with less then 5 points. Even though Dez scored in the first half it made this match less exciting but still holding him catchless after this TD was crazy. I would say nice win IOS and nice try TC2 but with scores like 80 and 77 won’t help you most weeks in our league. Power Rankings Week 4Power Rankings:
1. Troll Hunters (3-0) +2 We might have to get clarification on last weeks post around what kind of concerns were noted around Cooks, Hilton, and Gronk. It was probably around their scoring potential as they combined to put up over 90% of the last weeks #1 in the power rankings. Overall, there is massive point potential for every key roster spot. Currently holds the leagues point lead with 156.8 pts (without the QB or DST getting massive points. Why get cute with the analysis, has 3 solid RBs, WRs and the top TE at his core. Currently, leading the league with points for and undefeated. Nuff said. (Yes Big Ben sucks a on the road and Luck is still multiple weeks out. TH has enough core members to survive any Big Ben mishaps i.e. just remember the 150+ in week 3) 2. Mullynation (3-0) - Leads the league with consistency with no weekly total below 100. No big changes to the squad expect for the "Shinny New Toy" Derrick Henry might be back in the garage for a little longer. Still waiting for that "Big Game" like we saw last year with multiple games over 130 or 140. Still a 3-0 record and no major injuries has this team turning out to be what we expected. Still a top tier team. 3. Indian Outlaws (2-1) -2 The higher you are the further you fall. You're lucky that I am looking at this objectively and not with a grudge. 3rd worst score of the week barely exceeding 80 pts. I want to move you down further but I think most of your guys had a tough week. However, you put up another sub 90 week and down you go. The lean mean fighting Kareem might be your only consistency here. I believe you will but you need more then your QB and RB1 to exceed 15 pts if you want to remain near the top. I gave TH a pass week one so here is your pass. We might get more requests for blog authors if you rebound with around 150 points to keep the current streak alive. 4. River Gypsies (1-2) - Sorry everyone… I still like RGs core team with Zek/Freeman, Jordy/Hill and Matty Ryan leading the charge. The DST picked each week should even out over time and Rudolf will rebound. I would think most teams below would take this team and a 1-2 record above their own. As such, you can remain at your 4th spot for now. 5. 2nd Son in Laws (aka Vicious Veg-Heads) (1-2) +1 Still won't take too much weight into record just yet but he is one "hamstring issue" away from have some RB issues. McCoy-Murray should still rebound to solid RB pairing. Just as "we" or Chieftain commented last week, this might not be the stud pairing we saw last year. A glimmer of hope which helps move you up the list (it was more 302 moving down though) is that OBJ looks healthy and Sammy Watkins might be back. *I said might. Still this could be good news to solidify his weekly line-up and get the team back to 500. 6. Baby's Big Blowout (2-1) +2 Does he deserve to move up? Some might disagree, but he put up the 2nd highest score this week with a fancy new weapon sitting on the bench. He is currently 5th in points for and at least Fitz/Baldwin finally showing up. BBB might be taking this 1/2 PPR a little too seriously as he might be starting two RBs focused primarily on catching balls out of the back field. Lamar is definitely under performing but who needs him if these receiving backs can put up 25+ (or realistically may 15+) points a game. He might actually have a outside chance to continue moving up the list if he consistently can exceed 100+ a week. 7. 302 Cadets (0-3) -2 I know record shouldn't be to much weight depending on your opponent but 302 is 9th out of 10 when it comes to points for. 302 has the pieces to put together a acceptable starting core. However, they just can't seem to "work together" and put in a high score for at least 1 week. Still like Bell and Lynch as a RB1 and RB2 as well as Thomas, Hopkins and Jeffery. Charles finally had a good game but coming off 2 ACL injuries and multiple scopes has him at no more then 10-12 carries. You at a few TDs and that’s a consistent Flex or RB2 for byes. However, the upside has to be in his current RBs and WR simply performing better (which I would put money on saying they will) 8. Big City Hillbillies (1-2) -1 Big City Hillbillies might be in trouble. The more I write this to more I am concerned that I am ranking BCH too high. Currently has the lowest points for (even if adjusted to add Jordan Howard to his last weeks line-up). No game over 90 points and luckily played NSA rebounding from DJ to earn himself his win. The WR situation is was is pull BCH near the bottom. He was skimpy when it came to purchasing WRs and none have panned out so far with the biggest bust being Proyer. Still think with a solid RB group could hold him above water enough to find a few consistent WRs. 9. NorthSide Angels (2-1) - Yes NSA you won and exceed 100+ pts. Do I care? No… you are still in the rebuilding stage after losing your best asset. Additionally, one of your top 3 support beams (Rodgers, Brown, and Cooper) is not performing well in the slightly (Cooper). 12, 5, and 1 is not a good progression especially when Denver is next on the list. You might've found a few serviceable pieces to fill-in for RB in the near term but consistently performing will be the key to move up the list. You keep getting 100 pts with 3 guys pulling the weight and you might move up. We'll see how generous we are. 10. Twin City Tree Cats (0-3) - Honestly, I forgot you exceed 100 pts in week 1 so at least you have that going for you. So this 0-3 could be better if you would've had a few more favorable match-ups. Unfortunately, you haven't many big weekly payouts. 3 players exceeded 15 pts week 1 (Breeze 15, Thielen 20, Car DST 16), then you had 2 in week 2 (Breeze 20 and Evans 18), and 1 in week 3 (Breeze 20). Its good to see consistency but it should be expected that your QB gets 15+ pts… We've got to see this trend turn around if you want to move back up the power rankings. Both Ingram and Crowell will have to shake off this running back by committee and solidify (and produce) to product more fantasy points. Just notice that Ingram might be one of the most consistent players I've see at 9.6 each week in our 1/2 PPR format. This would be a decent flex output but for a RB1 or even RB2 this will have to get better. There is still plenty of year left and more then enough time though to shake up the rankings and records before we get close to talking about playoffs Good luck to everyone this week and stay safe. Weekly fantasy football can be dangerous and you never know when one of your top guys could go down. The only exception is no luck is headed BBBs way with their dark sorcery. Looks like you will have two eligible RBs this week so no need to embarrass your rival… Looking forward to another fun week of Fantasy Football and hopefully plenty of heartbreaks as well. Could this be the week where our undefeated leaders are brought back to earth? Can one of the 0-3 teams begin to turn their season around. Who will be the next breakout performance or will someone stall for the first time (Cough Cough Kareem Hunt)? We will soon find out with Thursday Night Football!!
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Alright everybody, we’ve already got Week Two in the books. Just like Week One, scores overall were down. Last week, we only had one team break 120 points, and this week there were just two. It would appear that defenses have the early edge this 2017 season, and that’s been reflected in the league-wise scoring downturn. Still, we have one more data-point to help form our reactionary and ultimately baseless speculation. Onward we go.
Baby’s Big Blowout (97.2) defeats Twin City Tree Cats (94.4) This was a battle of my ninth and tenth-place teams from the post-draft review, and I’ve got to say, I’m still feeling pretty decent about those picks. For BBB, Lamar Miller (10.2) is technically the headliner of an underwhelming RB corps, along with McCaffrey (6.4), Powell (1.3), and the now-injured Rob Kelley (7.8). I foresee some difficult times ahead that can’t be assuaged by an also-underwhelming WR corps. It’s easy to look at last year’s totals and feel optimistic about Julio (13.3), Baldwin (7.4), and Fitzgerald (3.6), but so far 2016 production hasn’t translated into 2017 value. Amazingly, the perpetually-underrated Delanie Walker (14.2), Broncos DST (14.9), and Matt Bryant (14) may have to carry this team to their three wins this year. It won’t be fun to watch. For TC2, the RB situation is dire. There’s no other way to put it. Between Crowell (3.7), Ingram (9.6), and Blount (0.5), we’re looking at 4.6 points per RB. Consider the bench options of Adrian (2.6) and Prosise (3.7), and things aren’t much better. Also consider the fact that the bedrock of that lineup, Ingram, was in an offensive bonanza with zero defense and touchdowns/yards galore…and managed 9.6 points. This is nearly the best-case game for Ingram, given the opportunity. The big news of the week was the TC2-VV trade of OBJ + Sproles for DT + Ingram, respectively. I think this is a heavy win for VV, but I can’t pretend like TC2 didn’t need RB help desperately; I just think that OBJ could have commanded more than what he returned. Brees (20.2) is going to ball out, as usual, but he and Evans (18.8) are likely not going to drag this team to the playoffs alone. We need some waiver gold here, Dan! Find the Ajayi and Howard of 2017. Big City Hillbillies (87.9) defeats Northside Angels (78.9) Aaaaand here we have a real stinker of a game, much like our embarrassing BCH-TH game from last week. Once again, we have a team scoring in the eighties and still earning a win. Every dog has its day, I guess. For BCH, the biggest story is Jordan Howard’s (0.7) lethargic start. Howard was penciled in as the solid RB1 for BCH, but so far his situation has been a tad troubling. Seven yards on nine carries, being outscored by his backup two weeks in a row, having an injured right shoulder, and a banged up offensive line are things worth monitoring. Still, Fournette (13.1), Gillislee (12.9), and eventually Doug Martin are all reasons to be optimistic at the RB position. Brady was a revelation, shredding the Saints to the tune of 30.8 points. The problems return though with the WR and TE position. Pryor (4.1) looks terrible, Parker (10.5) didn’t really take advantage of Jason Verrett’s absence, and Martavis Bryant (17.3) is an undeniable game-breaker but also undeniably inconsistent. With Brown and Bell as his teammates, Bryant is going to have games where he’s not used heavily. Factor in Greg Olsen’s (1.5) broken foot, and this team is going to be resting heavily on Fournette’s shoulders. For NSA, we’ve pretty much reached the bottom. The worst-case scenario has almost assuredly manifested. Cooper (5.3) got seriously overshadowed by Crabtree’s three TDs, Reed (5.8) has a shoulder injury and toe injury, Kerwynn Williams (2.2) was beyond unimpressive in his new “DJ” role, and even Antonio Brown (8.7) wasn’t immune. Rodgers (18.5) was himself. The most optimistic news of the week is in the form of Buck Allen (18.6) and Chris Hogan (16.3). Those two give NSA a shred of hope of playoff contention, though the Ravens reported that Terrance West did suffer a minor muscle injury mid-game, leading to Allen’s increased carries. If Allen can keep the job despite West’s presumed-speedy return, NSA might have found himself a replacement RB2 already. Williams remains a point of trouble, though. The Mullynation (104.7) defeats 302 Cadets (99.5) It looked like 302 was ready to make TH the sole 2-0 team in the Red Zone, but they couldn’t survive a late onslaught by Ty Montgomery, and MN now joins TH at the top of the standings. Meanwhile, 302's team somehow is 0-2, tied for last place. Where is the justice? For MN, the first thing that jumps out is the strength of the RB corps. This group boasts Melvin Gordon (17.3), Ty Montgomery (26), Carlos Hyde (16.5), James White (13.6), and now Derrick Henry (15.2). Hyde’s performance is especially noteworthy, coming on the road @SEA. He’s a low-end RB1 right now, getting huge snap percentages and high volume. Despite the Niners not scoring a TD yet and facing two elite front-7s (Panthers and Seahawks), Hyde is scoring as well as almost any back. Jimmy Graham (0.6) is a concern, and Mariota (13) hasn’t exactly taken off yet, but both could be easily replaced if needed. Also, with the way TEs are disappointing, Graham’s terrible start still isn’t enough to throw in the towel on him. Green (9.2) and Diggs (4.1) turned in weaker performances, both tied to rough QB play. Green will bounce back like he always does, and every Vikings fan is hoping Bradford returns next week. With Bradford, Diggs is a low-end WR1. That starting lineup is fierce, and with guys like White, Henry, and Garcon on the bench, the depth is there too. For 302, I think the future is pretty bright. After last week’s putrid 72.6 point outing with only three starters in double-digits, Week Two saw seven double-digit Cadets. Six players (Newton, Bell, Lynch, Thomas, Hopkins, and Ertz) all scored between 10.8 and 12.2 points. Unfortunately, those totals for Newton and Bell are a bit underwhelming, but the overall team effort was impressive. Alshon (18.7) showed up in a big way, flashing that elite talent he’s always had. As long as he’s playing, he can score as a WR1 any given week. I’m still on board with this team as a playoff team. My only hang-up was on Lynch’s role as 302’s RB2, but it’s looking like he’ll be able to hold that position down adequately. With the surrounding talent of Bell, that WR trio, and Ertz, this team could really go far. Bell needs to get back to his RB#1 ways, though. Troll Hunters (130.4) defeats River Gypsies (104.9) Amazingly, this was the only game in which both teams broke 100 points. With the current scoring standard, it’s almost a shame RG had to lose… Almost. For TH, the MVP of the team has to be CJ Anderson (28.9) thus far. CJ has the second-most rushing yards in the NFL this year (Hunt #1, Cook #3, and Hyde #4, like we all guessed, right?), and CJ is running as well as anyone. It would appear the fears of Charles taking over were laughably unfounded. Gurley (23.1) also turned in a great performance, as did Gronk (20.6). The emergence of a groin injury (though reportedly minor) for Gronk is troubling though. He has such a problem with lingering issues that this groin injury is worth monitoring. Spending big money on the pairing of Cooks (5.3) and Hilton (6.9) is beginning to look a little bit concerning, but it’s worth giving the situation another week or so. Cooks just has so much competition for targets in NE, and Hilton is absolutely doomed without Luck. We’ll wait and see. For RG, this week was carried by Ryan (14.9), Freeman (23), Adams (19.9), and the Tampa Bay DST (21.6). Unfortunately for the Adams optimism, Adams’ production was likely due to the injury to Jordy Nelson (0), which ultimately hurts RG. Still, Nelson probably won’t be sidelined for long. Elliot (4.2), Hill (6.9), and Rudolph (6.5) couldn’t match last week’s production, and the total is especially notable for Elliot. This was Elliot’s worst game of his career, and it will be interesting to see how he rebounds next week after showing his mortality. Otherwise, RG’s bench put up an impressive week, with double-digit points from Landry, Rodgers, Gore, and Coleman. After cause for raucous optimism last week, this week tempered the expectations for RG a bit, but only a little bit. Indian Outlaws (149.1) defeats Vicious Veg-Heads (94.7) In the first 50-point beatdown of the season, we saw VV unable to take advantage of the recent VV-TC2 trade. That day may be coming, but it wasn’t here yet. For IO, this was a consistent team-wide effort. With the exception of Giorgio Tavecchio, every single starter scored in double-digits, and Tavecchio himself still scored nine points. Kareem Hunt (24.4) has seemingly established himself as a mid-tier RB1 already in just two games. Sanders (21.2) and Kelce (20.3) also broke 20 points, and with the recent TE news, Kelce is likely the TE#1 currently. Between Dez (15.4), Allen (14.5), and Ajayi (13.6), basically everyone showed up this week. Winston only managed 12.5 points, but that’s likely due to the fact that the Buccaneers instantly blew the doors off the Bears and just tried to control the clock. West, Maclin, and Cohen turned in solid bench performances, but Corey Coleman’s broken hand is a big disappointment. Overall, this week showed the high-highs of the IO starting lineup, while still showing the depth of the bench. For VV, this week probably introduced the tiniest seed of doubt. The bedrock of the Veggies is the combination of Murray (4) and McCoy (7.3), and both disappointed significantly. VV is definitely missing Derrick Henry right about now. The combination of Crabtree (29) and Carr (21.2) set VV up for a potential win, but basically every other starter came up short. Worse still, the bench is looking pretty thin right now. Even though a trio of Murray-McCoy-OBJ may have looked potentially championship-worthy just a short while ago, all the sudden the “Murray-McCoy” aspect of that trio is cause for some concern. Power Rankings
Week 1 Recap!!Hey Everyone, We are already done with Week 1 and it is crazy to think that we are already into the 2017 season of the Red Zone Fantasy Football league. Additionally, this first week did not disappoint in terms of the overall quality of the matchups and plenty of teams had a chance to win (or lose) their match when it came to the final Monday night game. We had a number of injuries that exceed the impact of any of the prior years we have been together in the Red Zone league. I mean, I thought the loss of Keenan Allen in week 1 last year was big but looking back that pales in comparison to what happened this year. I am sure you are all waiting to hear what I have to say so I am going to jump right into the Week 1 Recap. Troll Hunters 84 (1-0) over Big City Hillbillies 74 (0-1) This was by far the least point scoring game out of all the other matches by a long shot. One top team against a bottom half team should've made for a more dominating match from Troll Hunters. On first glance that doesn't look to be the case with only 84 points by Troll Hunters. Hindsight really makes this easy but the worst play by far was playing the Vikings DST against the Saints. A turn over or two would've made this a little more manageable but I did he think this was a smart play which almost lost him the match. The score would've looked better for TH if his DST hd at least 8 or so points but you can't change your picks after the match is completed. Big City Hillbillies would love it if that was the case because the Brandon Marshall and Gillislee swap would've been a masterful move. Marshall was set for a big week without OBJ so prior to Thursday night and Gillislee rolling into 3 TDs, this line-up was about the best you could pick. Brady only getting 10 pts would be a bit disappointing but shouldn’t be the case going forward. RB1 and RB2 for both squads were evenly match with both getting 31 pts. The real difference maker here was actually the flex play performance. CJ Anderson putting the team on his back Monday night to pull off the win for Troll Hunters. Golden Tate against Arizona prior to Sunday looked like a worse matchup then TY (w/o luck) at the Rams. Overall, a surprisingly close match for how low scoring this match was. However, neither of the DSTs here were 20+ which skewed a few of the matches below. The Mullynation 122 (1-0) over Twin City Tree Cats 100 (0-1) I am going to say that no team was effected more by the "bye" week for Miami and Tampa Bay that TC2. When you add OBJs injury to the mix, TC2 doesn't have his top 2 WRs for a tough matchup against The Mullynation. If he had either of these two and swapped Adrian Peterson out of the line-up he could've had a real chance to beat Mullynation on a week 1 upset. Both teams had great performances from the Vikes WR core of Diggs and Thielen with basically a offset at around or just over 20 pts. The "Flex" play if you move Blount up to RB2 against Mully and TC2 would be around 17 (Ty Montgomery) vs 2 (AP). This primarily makes up the 20 pt swing between these two teams. I understand that Evans or OBJ would've most likely not seen a 20+ pt game but at least there would've been a much higher probability of taking a win against the number 2 team . Outside of the Vikes above average WR point totals, I would say that both team put up expected point totals for the week. No bench play would've effected the final result of the score as well. Overall it was a expected result with TC2 having his top 2 WRs having to sit on the bench week 1. However, he didn't simply give up the week and if Mullynation had take this match lightly she definitely could've lost this matchup. TC2 could definitely move up if OBJ comes back healthy and this team avoids injuries. 110 without OBJ and Evans is a solid score and TC2 seems like he will be ready every week no matter what is thrown at him. Vicious Veg-Heads 109 (1-0) over 302 Cadets 73 (0-1) Even though this is the largest blow out of the week, after a quick glace of the results has one outlier to this matchup… the Rams DST and the 37 pts they gifted the Veg-heads. If you take away the Rams DST the 302 cadets actually win this 73 to 72 even with the Patriots DST pulling down his score by 3 pts. The Colts look bad without luck and I mean real bad. There is really nothing that 302 could've done to compete against the Rams DST. Yes, Bell got only 6 points but even with 30 pts he wouldn't have beat the Veg-Heads. Overall, Cadets shouldn’t get too discouraged with this lose because there wasn't much he could do. Cam should get better and if not Dak will be serviceable as well. Bell will get better and picking DST with negative pts shouldn't be a normal occurrence. If so, maybe just drop the DST for the additional bench spot. I mean 10 pt swing for a DST getting 7 pts and Bell getting back on track will get you around 90 pts each week which gives you more of a shot to win other matches going forward. To offset the knowndecrease that is coming for the Rams DST, I can see expected increases in Counsins and Eifert to get you to around 90-100 points a week. Same situation as 302, there is upside to get to 110+ again but don’t be surprised if you see a 80 week some weeks. You just have to hope for your opponent to have a low week as well (similar to the TH and BCH match above) NorthSide Angels 108 (1-0) over Baby's Big Blowout 105 (0-1) Vicious Veg-Head would've most likely still won his match-up with a "average" DST performance of around 7-10 pts. However, NSA doesn't have the luxury to say that since he would've been smoke if the Jags had a "average" performance. NSA had a guardian angel taking care of the Jags DST. However, this angel was so preoccupied by feeding the Jags points that the BBBs witchcraft (apparently still real) put both NSAs starting RBs on the IR. This really was a unthinkable scenario for NSA. Yes if DJ was the only causality it might've been a big problem but this is a tragedy. The only small consolation prize is starting the year 1-0 against the prior years worst team in the league. It was almost like BBBs was trying to get some insurance that no matter how I do this year, if NSA loses his only two RBs, I know I won't be last place again. That is the only way that this is actually possible. I mean, BBBs should've won this game, yes Stafford over performing but even with that, the Jags shouldn't have got 34 points. I really can't believe that number. However, BBBs is setting himself up to avoid last place. No real surprises from the team outside of Stafford going for 27 pts. If you bump that down to 20 and bump Julio up to 16 that looks like a weekly average for BBBs. As such, I think BBBs will avoid last place again this year. However, if he is looking for the playoffs he'll need the Texans and the Panthers to boast their running game and force feed Miller and McCarfferey (which doesn't appear to be the case at this time.) Overall, BBB got the last laugh kicking the legs off the throne that NSA was sitting on after a solid 2016 performance. We'll all have to wait and see if and how NSA can respond with such a devastating blow. River Gypsies 110.5 (1-0) over Indian Outlaws 109.6 (0-1) Actually, I am going to retract my statement for TC2 because no team was effected more by the week 1 bye for Miami and Tampa Bay, than Indian Outlaws. If Ajayi would've been able to start, Ameer would've been placed on the bench (like he should be) and most likely would've put up the 7 pts needed to win the matchup. That being said, Indian Outlaws did not deserve to win this matchup. I mean 43 pts from Kareem Hunt!!! Come on, your RB2 and WR core got you around 20 pts combined. You should've been able to smoke anyone with a score like that but you end up losing due to a pt correction on Thursday morning. I guess no score is safe if you are within around 3 pts of your opponent. Also the fact that IOS had plenty of bench options West over Ameer or Maclin (Colemon needed to prove himself) over idk Sanders or even Allen (maybe would've caused a tie). RGs played about as good a matchup as he could with a few players in the Miami/Tampa bye game. RGs saw what he needed to do after the Thursdaynight slug fest that Hunt put up and matched it with all around solid points. Yes Tyreek hill got 21 points but spread that over a average DST of 8 (RG had 3) and 4-5 more for Freeman give RGs a reasonable spread of points that could happen every week (except week 2 since he looks to have some tough matchups). Overall, Indian outlaws will need his WR studs to actually show up which might be difficult for Dez. He has tough WR/Corner matchups and a sup 10 pt weeks might actually be the norm. Getting Ajayi's bye out of the way will give him more strength in week 11. Still tough loss to swallow after being declared the winner for a couple days. IOS had a very violate score card with RGs looking much more consistent across the board. We'll all look forward to see the week 6 grudge match with both Dez and Zek on byes. I see this favoring IOS because the depth IOS has in WRs is far superior to the depth RGs has at RBs (after Doug Martin makes his return in Tampa). Week 2 Power "Bond" RatingsWow, what a coincidence that I happen to talk about the importance of diversifying investments (players) and bond (team) ratings this week after we had a discussion on the importance of having a personal investment account, 401k and HSA account. The simple reason of having multiple investment vehicles is to cover didn’t situations that will arise in everyone's future. Let's start with HSA. Let us say you are having a baby (RGs perfect example for you), you want to have a HSA maxed out for the end of this year to have plenty of tax free dollars to cover any deductibles or additional medical costs that come up. Without this HSA you are using personal investments (maybe you were saving for a House) on something that could've been paid using tax free income. Additionally, after a year so RGs wants to buy a House but used all his personal funds on the new baby girl (50/50 guess and I'm going with girl) so he pulls money out of his 401K to pay for a down payment. Everything is going smooth until RGs is ready for retirement and notices that he is doesn't have enough to retire and continues to work as the Wheelers, Tibstra, Johnson, Hanson, Hanson, Leventry, Wanous, and Rosenthal are having parties every night enjoying the easy life in retirement. See what happens if you don't invest in a HSA account? It will have a lasting impact on your life. (Hopefully RGs has a HSA but if not we can definitely talk through other options as your local CPA.) Overall, putting too many eggs in one basket could ruin your team and require a lot of moves to get it back to a "safe" investment portfolio again. Back to the league. I have taken off my CPA hat and swapped it for a temporary CFA hat. For those of you who don't know, CFA is Chartered Financial Analyst who deals with investments and financial professionals. I have also consulted with Moody's and Standard's and Poor Bond ratings to utilize for our team "portfolio" ratings. AAA is the top level investment grade, BB is the speculative grade, with CCC-D being the Junk or default imminent. I have leveraged the middle ratings of S&P for my ratings of each team below: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bond_credit_rating
1. Troll Hunters 1 - 0 (-) AAA So the first couple teams might be a little boring because honestly nothing really changed week one for these teams. Troll Hunters has the exact same team with the exact same expectations as last week. Overall, he has top RBs in RB1, RB2, and Flex with backups beyond that a Forte and Rawls (if worst comes to worst). WR depth is no different, Cooks and TY Hilton are a solid WR1 and WR2. Golden Tate is a fill in for byes or a replacement for TY if Luck continues to remained side lined with his shoulder. Ted Ginn and Corey Davis add additional upside to that WR core. Lastly, don't forget Gronk as the TE and if he stays health will keep TH on top. Gurley and Cook performed as expected for week 1 from a RB side and CJA looks to have a tighter grasp on the Denver backfield for now. Low score this week for Gronk and Cooks with Brady having a off day but that should change. Overall, really can't change the rankings because no changes for the team. Only possible change is Luck might have to sit out a few more weeks but we'll reevaluate that next week because you always have to start Big Ben at home!! I'm calling for Gronk to have a monster week. I am sure Brady will force feed Gronk down the Saints DBs and with a high scoring game expected it'll be a fun game to watch!! 2. Mullynation 1 - 0 (-) AAA Same things I mentioned above for TH could be said for Mullynation. The AAA ranking is giving to the RB depth of Gordon, Hyde, and Ty with James White (PPR player) ready to go off the bench. Not to mention a RB1 out of D Henry if Murray would to have a injury which is luckily avoided last year. WR depth is similar with AJ Green, Diggs, and Garcon being a easy WR2 choice for byes or injury fill ins. Having a expected top 3 TE and Mariota as the QB, there is plenty of reason why you should invest in this time right now and not have a second thought. Honestly, once again nothing last week had any red flags that this team shouldn't retain a top grade and the number 2 spot. Sorry for the limited commentary Mullynation but like I said above, these top few will be fairly similar to last week so there is no use going over it again. Just enjoy the view from the top of the pack with a 1-0 record as you look to defend your title. 3. River Gypsies 1 - 0 (-) AA I mean, I could definitely see RGs wondering why he isn't at least 1 or two. I mean he has a top 2 RB and another top 10 at least. Additionally, he has a some top talent at WR/QB as well with Jordy, Hill, and Matt Ryan. But you are really doubling down on the GB WR possibly this week against a formidable defense. Even if you swap Adams for Landry or Crowder, I still think the Mullynation and TH are a step ahead. With the RB market drying up, you have a few backup fill-ins but could be a problem if Zek's suspension gets switched again… or more likely if he gets hurt. Tevin is a needed backup so little would be lost if Freeman went down. However, you are still near the top of the investment grade and honestly it wouldn't be a surprise if you jump up to AAA after week 3. You're not going to win next week so you can start to accept the fact of starting 1-1 right now. On a more serious note, you have extremely strong RB core and a WR1 and WR2 to keep you near the top most weeks. Once again no new changes from number 1 or 2 above you and no big noteworthy changes from your team after week 1. As such, the top 3 will remain the top 3 after concluding week 1. Honestly, GB shut down Seattle and I know Atlanta will shut down GB. Additionally, Zek is against Denver and Rudolph against Pit. So I can't see any crazy high points for this team for week 2. (This has absolutely nothing to do with the fact I Troll Hunters plays River Gypsies in week 2…) 4. Indian Outlaws 0 - 1 (+1) AA So I have to now rewrite part of my commentary because RGs took the win right off of IOS's finger… However, that didn't change the fact that I always had RG ahead of IOS when I was writing the rankings. Overall, IOS receives a AA rating from the Hanson Team Rating Agency. Similar to RG, there isn't much this team needs to do to move up to the AAA rank either by players consistent outstanding performance (i.e.Kareem Hunt) or if one the other teams begins to enter into riskier markets. Kareem Hunt was almost a week 1 savoir for the Outlaws and shows huge upside to this player. However, its only one week. If we rank Hunt as a Top RB1 because of week 1 we would have to rank Bell or Brady as bottom feeders (which is obviously not the case) As such, nothing changed in week 1 that caused me to adjust the rankings from what the Chieftain talked about last week. Outside of Kareem Hunt dropping 43 pts this team has the same look as before. Overall, I would rank Zek and Freeman over the Ajayi and Hunt team 9 times out of 10. So we'll stick with these spots for now. You earned your AA ranking for this week but like RGs it wouldn't take much to move up to AAA as well as it would probably take a lot to move you down to BBB. Highest projected points projection I think will be Ajayi coming off that "bye" week strong. I could hedge my bet and call boom for Hunt after saying he's going to have plenty of bust weeks too. However, that's the easy way out so my pick is Ajayi! 5. 302 Cadets 0 - 1 (+1) BBB 302 earns a BBB ranking and joins the top 5. The benefits included with both of these mean that you are still included within Investment Grade on teams. One of the primary reasons for this rankings is that with DJ out, you now have the undisputed top RB1 in the league. Even though he might be against the hometown team, Bell at home after kicking the rust off the tires last week should pay out some quality dividends. On top of that you have Lynch against the Jets has you with a Solid RB1-2 punch. You pair these guys with M. Thomas, Hopkins, and Jeffery has you above BCH and VVs this week but not enough to break your way into the top 4. You have plenty of WR depth even behind these guys but as our Commander and Chieftain noted last week, RB depth is non-existent with Gio your only Bye week option at this point. As such, it was tempting to move you down to a BB rank with this limited depth but for now you are still investment worthy. However, don’t make me regret giving you this ranking and next week see you in default because of this RB depth… Lastly, I don't have a problem moving you up even though you had the least amount of points last week. As noted above in the recaps, you simply take out the DST and you won that match with Bell simply warming up. My highest point predication will be Michael Thomas against NE. I think it will be a high scoring game and NO will take to the air right at the start. 6. Big City Hillbillies 0 - 1 (+2) BB This was a close one between Hillbillies and the Veggies and you both deserve a BB team grade. On the original Moody's or S&P bond rating they would consider this ranking "Junk" bonds or speculative bonds. This is a medium investment and medium risk situation you have VVs have with your teams. So I am going to focus on the wording of speculative and since I don't think either team should be considered "Junk". Overall, there is a solid case for either being the 6th spot and even the 5th spot. However, like I mentioned, 302 has a slightly better player matchup and the top RB in the league which gives him the edge for now. However, its not that obvious between Hillbillies and Veg Heads. I see Hillbillies RB1 and RB2 this week as both lower RB1s (top 8-12 maybe) with his WRs lacking as a low WR2 for Pryor and WR2 worth Flex worthy players. However, the tipping point is a little forward looking as I like BCH's RB depth better then the VegHeads. After seeing what happened to NSA, having a servicable Gillislee to fill that RB2 spot or Doug Martin during future bye weeks after week 4, has me siding with the Hillbillies. This could give him 4 viable RBs compared incase the worst happens. As such, I wouldn’t be surprised to see the rating move up in the coming weeks when Doug Martin joins the team and takes back the RB1 spot in Tampa. However, that is only speculative that he can take back his spot which once again helps justify the BB rating. Brady is also going to be out for blood this week so I could see this being a high scoring game favoring BCH this week. My highest point predication for BCH is Brady this week. I think he will have no mercy after losing to KC in week 1. 7. Vicious Veg-Heads 1 - 0 (-) BB Similar to 302 above, this team is one player away from defaulting and being pushed down the investment grades. I think any other team would love to have the RB pair of McCoy and Murray. However, the WR Starter situation and RB depth has me very speculative on how this team investment will play out. For this week however, McCoy top 3 RB with Murray having a tougher match up still around the Top 10-20 spot locked (pending injury as always). However, your WRs and Flex are around the high WR2 to high WR3 slots. No solid WR1 at the top to anchor that WR1 spot in you line-up. Like I said above though, what happens if you lose either of these RBs? The Saints backfield is still pretty messy and Charles fumble Monday night isn't helping his case. However you don't need to think about that right now since you aren't in that kind of situation but when investing it is always good to have at least one fall back which I don't see here at this time. As such, this is the slight separation factor in favor of BCH above as well as the reason you received a BB ranking. My highest point predication for VVs will be D Thomas against Dallas. I think that this will be a high scoring game and DT will get plenty of chances for a few big scoring plays. Quick pause as we finish with the bottom 3 spots on this weeks power rankings. I feel like I forgot to mention the Top 3 WR in the Draft. I mean I went through all the Investment /Speculative investment ratings and last comes the junk ratings. It feels odd that I haven't mentioned Antonio Brown, Julio Jones, and Odell Beckman Jr…? Maybe they are on a bye week so I forgot to mention them… no its too early for Bye weeks? Or could it be that Irma has moved up the East coast to Atlanta, NY and Pitt? No, pretty sure I haven't heard any of that on the news… Huh, maybe I should just continue with the team investment ratings and maybe I'll remember where I talked about them in the first 7 spots. 8. Triple Bs 0 -1 (+1) CCC BBBs looks more like CCC from the perspective of a investor. BBBs is coming off a tough loss to the NSA who will most likely be limping around for a while as they look to address this RB situation that has been the talk of our league. Overall, there was just a fair amount of consistency about this team but not a crazy amount of upside (until you prove to us we are wrong). The rating of CCC is giving when default is possible and if Julio goes down, default will occur 100%. There are pieces to survive weekly but no one wants to see another 2016 show where you win a match within starting a RB2. You still got last place with a win like that during the year. If Lamar and McCaffary and prove themselve as a RB1 and RB2 (doesn't matter the order) I can see the upside and moving BBB to possibly a BBB ranking which would fit his name perfectly. Overall, this is a wait and see. I am hedging my bets that this could be a problem when comparing to the team above. Some might investor might see this team and bench as "shit". We all know that BBB has seen his fair share the past few months so maybe he found something good in players everyone wants to avoid. Powell and Fat Rob are actually starting RBs, so there is at least some depth here on BBBs bench. So in terms of depth in a RB depth crisis for some teams its appears that BBBs has covered his ass a bit if "shit hits the fan" with Lamar or McCaffary go down. My highest point predication for BBBs will be McCaffrey. I know the obvious choice is Julio against the GB but I think Car want to show off their new toy again especially at home. So McCaffery will show up big next week, you heard it hear first. 9. Twin Cities Tree Cats 0 -1 (+1) CCC Next we have Twin Cities Tree Cats who moves up a spot and is given a CCC rank with his top 2 WRs ODJ and Mike Evans, arguably the top WR pairing out there. Wait, there is another one of the Big 3 WRs and paired with Evans, why is TC2 in the 9th spot and ranked as a default risk. This has to be a fluke right, I mean these two alone have help move him at least to the 5th spot and investment grade. Okay, looking at the flex spot you've got Adam Thielen which is a solid flex so this shouldn't hurt your value by any means. Okay, still not worth a 9 spot designation… looking at the bench you have a few long shot RBs with Adrian (who looked bad on Monday), Sproles and CJ Prosise who might be useful once on a bye but not much depth. Uh what could I be missing… oh I missed the QB and RBs. QB is just fine with Brezy almost bringing up the value you currently have. But wait, I see Crowell and Blount, is this your bench oh no, its your RB1 and RB2… my bad, how could I have missed this. No wonder I have you down at 9 and a CCC grade. Honestly, I am not on the Crowell bandwagon 1) its Cleveland and 2) its Cleveland. I don’t see them being ahead in games and simply pounding the rock. Also it wouldn't surprise me if he turned in a top 15 year, but it also wouldn't surprise me if Duke or another backup RB took the lead role half way through the season. Blount is a boom or bust play, if Philly is at all near the goal line you have a chance to make him a RB2. This is the only one I might be a little biased on because I don't like Crowell/Cleveland. Please prove me wrong!!! I feel like I always hate on the Tree Cats and looking to hate on some new blood. High score predication for this week is Breezy. Kinda obvious picking a QB but NO vs NE should make for a high scoring game. 10. NorthSide Angels 1-0 (-6) D Everyone knows that Fantasy Football is like saving for retirement . You want to invest now to live comfortably later in life (or later in the season for our case). Additionally, you can't make the playoffs or win the championship in week 1. You also can't lose either as well. There are still 12 weeks left before the end of the season and NSA's record is better than half the teams in our league. Most teams plan to diversify there investments at the beginning of the season to plan for the worst. Outside of that it really looks like you defaulted on your investment or at least part of it. If the injury was Brown instead of DJ this would be a completely different story but losing both RBs in the same week was actually the worst case scenario for your team. Yes you still have two high value WR1 and the top QB. But everything after that appears to be complete junk especially the RBs. You want your RBs to score at least 25 pts a week. These guys look to get you 10 combined at best… the DST won't save you many weeks and you literally dodged a bullet last week against BBB. I don't expect you to be in default all year with waivers and trades a must for NSA. However, the immidate investment value of your team has to be a D and your team literally defaulted on your RBs with no viable starters at this time. At best, teams would see flex value but you are required to start them at RB1 and RB2. Like I said above though, this is a 13 week season and you are already ahead of 5 teams. There is still a chance to make the playoffs but it will require a lot of work and maybe parting with one of your top three investments in hopes to diversifying your team to avoid only tragedy. I am going against my comment above and doubling down on the Jags DST. They will once again come up big and save NSA for another week before reality sets in on the roster management work that needs to be done to make the playoffs. With a few teams getting a little cocky about winning the first week. I just wanted to bring back this little gem from the past to remind you all to be safe when trading. Sometimes the risk is never worth the reward… |
By: Hayden HansonMr. Hayden Hanson (Editor in Chief) is an Accountant-extraordinaire, as well as an aspiring writer. He has written several moderately-successful self-help books, the most famous of which is "What Do You Mean You Can Smell My BO?" Gustav Travers of the New York Times praised the book as "A vulnerable, courageous look into the mind of a man who has literally no sense that other people exist. And also no sense of smell. Nope, he definitely doesn't have that either. Just musk, like a hog that's gotten into the cabbage." Archives
September 2019
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