The Sanderson Gazette - 2018-11-14 - 7-3
Pat: "Happy Polish Independence Day"
Babel: "Finally, someone recognizes the important holidays. I'm going to be so pissed if Gronk and Gostkowski take a knee today in confused protest"
Week 10 Recap
Derrek def. Pulley, 131.30-123.48:
Christian McCaffrey (33.83) outdueled Ezekiel Elliot (31.90), much like D outdueled Pulley, though this one wasn't decided until Monday night when Robbie Gould's 13.00 points put Derrek over the top. Pulley could have nabbed a win had Cody Parkey (-2.00) made the two field goals he missed, but Parkey and the Indianapolis defense (3.00) combined for yet another poor special teams week for the Pullman.
Pat def. Richie, 123.93-89.59:
The Vistas are back! Pat got 34.00 from Nick Chubb and 26.23 from Matt Breida to convincingly earn his first win of the year. Richie got a huge game from David Johnson (33.13), but no one else scored more than Tom Brady's 12.00 as he fell back to .500 on the year.
Kevin def. Scott, 118.39-104.00:
Ben Roethlisberger (38.60) went off for Kev, while Scott got an off day from Patrick Mahomes II (20.05), and that was the difference here. Corey Davis (22.67) and Kerryon Johnson (20.17) did have good days for Scott, but Alvin Kamara (23.73) did enough to get Kevin a very important sixth win.
Matt def. Babel, 143.91-103.04:
Matt's team exploded behind 39.05 from Mitchell Trubisky, 24.90 from Melvin Gordon III, and 20.23 from Brandin Cooks. Babel got 24.77 from Leonard Fournette in his first game in six weeks, but it wasn't enough to avoid clinching a sub-.500 record for the year.
Rabbit def. Rob, 121.04-106.52:
Rob lost his second straight game and third in four weeks despite getting 31.33 from Zach Ertz, 29.60 from Tyreek Hill, and 24.13 from Mark Ingram. Rabs finally got a big game from LeSean McCoy (23.97) and saw Julio Jones (20.27) score a touchdown for the second week in a row!
Dave def. Mike R., 116.86-92.84:
These two traded prior to their game, and while Dave got a grand total of 3.63 points from his end of it (all from James White), he still pulled a monumental upset. Mike got 21.73 from Odell Beckham, Jr. (his main acquisition in the aforementioned deal), but was undone by 6.13 from Travis Kelce and 6.93 from Tevin Coleman. Dave, meanwhile, had multi-touchdown games from Allen Robinson II (29.73) and Eric Ebron (27.40).
Schertz def. Ed, 105.82-78.75:
Schertz won his second straight game, both against Gross brothers. Saquon Barkley (11.10) had a down week, but Aaron Jones (30.10) more than made up for it. Only Todd Gurley II (23.33) and Andrew Luck (24.05) scored more than 10.27 (T.Y. Hilton) for Ed.
Standings
- Mike R., 7-3, 1232.78
- Derrek, 7-3, 1223.25
- Pulley, 7-3, 1181.51
- Matt, 7-3, 1125.89
- Rob, 7-3, 1064.93
- Kevin, 6-4, 1141.34
- Rabbit, 5-5, 1020.60
- Richie, 5-5, 993.20
- Scott, 4-6, 1128.99
- Schertz, 4-6, 1015.44
- Dave, 4-6, 937.89
- Ed, 3-7, 1042.61
- Babel, 3-7, 1009.72
- Pat, 1-9, 857.67 (e)
Weekly Awards
Team Blangums:
Matt's 143.91 is the sixth highest score this year and his first payout of 2018.
Slapped Heartbeat:
Ed's 78.75 is the fourteenth lowest score this year and his first Slapped Heartbeat of 2018.
Weekly MVP:
Mitchell Trubisky's 39.05 led the way for Matt.
Dud of the Week:
Cody Parkey's -2.00 killed Pulley's hope of moving all alone into first place.
Pickup of the Week:
Rabs picked up the Bills defense and got 11.00 points out of it.
Pryor Play of the Week:
LeSean McCoy finally came through with a big 23.97 for Rabbit.
Special Feature: The Scott / Richie Trade
With DeAndre on bye, Scott wisely played Corey Davis. Was it enough for him to win the trade this week?
Week 10
Scott's side: Hopkins, 0 (bye); Cooper, 10.00; replacements, 22.67 (Corey Davis)
Richie's side: Johnson, 33.13; Tate, 2.53
Net: Richie +2.99
Season
Scott's side: Hopkins, 42.93; Cooper, 23.73; replacements, 26.67
Richie's side: Johnson, 44.50; Tate, 9.50; replacements, 29.60
Net: Scott +9.73
Weeks with Winning Side: Scott 2, Richie 1
(With Scott trading Hopkins to Rob for Tyreek Hill, I'll be using Hill in place of Hopkins from this point forward.)
Playoff Scenarios
Mike R. clinches a playoff berth with:
- a win AND a Rabbit loss.
Derrek clinches a playoff berth with:
- a win AND a Rabbit loss AND a Richie loss.
Pulley clinches a playoff berth with:
- a win AND a Rabbit loss AND a Richie loss.
Matt clinches a playoff berth with:
- a win AND a Rabbit loss AND a Richie loss.
Rob clinches a playoff berth with:
- a win AND a Rabbit loss AND a Richie loss.
(Pat has been eliminated from playoff contention.)
Playoff Scenarios, Part II
The unprecedented logjam of five 7-3 teams (only 2012 had as many teams with at least seven wins, and they didn't all have exactly seven) means there are lot of similar clinching scenarios this week. No more than three total can actually clinch, as four of those teams play another 7-3 squad.
What's odd is that the teams in second through fifth place might not want to clinch this week, as that would mean Mike R. will have won (in order to clinch, they all need Richie to lose, and he plays Mike). That said, every one of them still plays at least one other current 7-3 team, so there are going to be plenty of opportunities to move into bye position.
Because Rabbit and Richie trail sixth place Kevin by so many points, them losing plus Kevin winning essentially clinch a spot for Kevin, who would be two games up with two to play.
Playoff Scenarios, Part III: A Six-Way 9-4 Tie
We can have a six-way tie for first place at 9-4.
Kevin needs to win all three of his remaining games, against Babel, Rob, and Dave.
That means Rob has to go 2-0 in his other two games, against Derrek (week 11) and Pulley (week 13).
That means Derrek and Pulley must go 2-0 in their other two games; Derrek plays against Babel (week 12) and Rabbit (week 13), Pulley plays against Matt (week 11) and Rabbit (week 12).
That means Matt must go 2-0 in his other two games, against Pat (week 12) and Mike R (week 13).
That means Mike R. must go 2-0 in his other two games, against Richie (week 11) and Ed (week 12).
So if you want chaos, root for Kevin, Rob, Pulley, and Mike R. this week.
First place has had more than nine wins every year except 2011.
Week 11 Preview
Game of the Blingaweek
Harrison Hammers (Matt, 7-3, 4th) vs. Pullman's MondoSquad (Pulley, 7-3, 3rd):
Pulley leads all-time series, 6-5.
Matt still plays: Pat, Mike R.
Pulley still plays: Rabbit, Rob.
Matt started out gangbusters, breaking 130 points twice to open the season, but then went through a stretch of good-but-not-great play (including an awful Slapped Heartbeat in week 8. He returned to his high-flying ways in week ten, though, and can clinch a playoff spot if some things break right this week. Melvin Gordon III (vs. DEN) has been his clear MVP so far, though Brandin Cooks (vs. KC) and Mitchell Trubisky (vs. MIN) have both been big contributors lately.
Despite losing in week ten, Pulley joined 2010 Rabbit and 2014 Babel as the only teams to score 120 or more points four straight weeks. Drew Brees (vs. PHI) and Michael Thomas (vs. PHI) are always threats to go off (and have the last two weeks), while Ezekiel Elliott (@ATL) plays a Falcons team that just made Nick Chubb look like, well, Ezekiel Elliot. At the time of writing, Pulley has benched both his kicker and defense; the way those positions have produced for him so far, that's probably a smart move.
Pick: Pullman's MondoSquad.
Other Blingamatches
D's Nuts (Derrek, 7-3, 2nd) vs. Rob for Today (Rob, 7-3, 5th):
Rob leads all-time series, 8-5.
Derrek still plays: Babel, Rabbit.
Rob still plays: Kevin, Pulley.
D picked up where he left off to open up the year and has snagged two Blangums since then. And while Pulley's broken 120 the last four weeks, D has the last three, and is also only the fourth team to average 120 or more through ten weeks. If James Conner (@JAC) can play, he's probably in good shape. He's also currently without a tight end with Chris Herndon on bye, but given Herndon's performance this year, you could argue he's been without a tight end all season.
Rob gets Deshaun Watson (@WAS) back this week, but his matchup isn't the best. And Rob welcomes DeAndre Hopkins (@WAS), Watson's top WR, back onto his team after shipping out Tyreek Hill. Dalvin Cook (@CHI), with his own tough matchup, could be a wildcard here. Rob's remaining schedule is brutal; falling all the way out of the playoffs is unlikely, but he has to be a little nervous of an epic collapse after his 6-0 start.
Pick: D's Nuts.
Bernie's Bullies (Mike R., 7-3, 1st) vs. Ova 4-4 40 boys (Richie, 5-5, 8th):
Richie leads all-time series, 4-2.
Mike R. still plays: Ed, Matt.
Richie still plays: Schertz, Scott.
Mike's on the same impressive list as Derrek, except he's currently topping it. And he's projected for - checks Yahoo - 130 points this week. But first, he'll need to bounce back from a rather disappointing week ten; for that, getting Adam Thielen (@CHI) back is important, as are the matchups for Cam Newton (@DET) and Travis Kelce (@LAR).
Richie's team is still very much in the playoff hunt, though he probably needs to win out to feel comfortable, as tiebreakers will be tough to win with his point total. It doesn't help that Tom Brady is on bye this week. Golden Tate (@NO) really needs to start producing post-trade, and both he and David Johnson (vs. OAK) have nice matchups.
Pick: Bernie's Bullies.
HuntFournetteOctober (Babel, 3-7, 13th) vs. The Chocolate Donuts (Kevin, 6-4, 6th):
Babel leads all-time series, 6-4.
Babel still plays: Derrek, Ed.
Kevin still plays: Rob, Dave.
Babel's team is better than it's record, especially now that Leonard Fournette (vs. PIT) is back. That means he can play spoiler a couple of times, even though he's an amazingly huge longshot to actually make the playoffs. Kareem Hunt (@LAR) and Anthony Miller (vs. MIN) have emerged as key players in the last few weeks and could be key to Babel keeping his mathematical playoff chances alive.
Kevin's broken 100 points every week this year; that ten-game streak ties the record (when you include playoff games). His best player, Alvin Kamara (vs. PHI) takes on a defense that gave up 30 points to Ezekiel Elliot last week, so another triple digit output looks like it's in the cards.
Pick: HuntFournetteOctober.
Pralines & Dick (Rabbit, 5-5, 7th) vs. schertzopotamus (Schertz, 4-6, 10th):
Rabbit leads all-time series, 4-2.
Rabbit still plays: Pulley, Derrek.
Schertz still plays: Richie, Pat.
Last year, through ten weeks, Rabs was 6-4 with a similar expected win total to this year. He lost his last three games to miss the playoffs, and looking at his future schedule, he might succumb to a similar fate should he fall to Schertz this week. Julio Jones (vs. DAL) is finally catching touchdowns again, and Robert Woods (vs. KC) has a good matchup.
Schertz doesn't really have playoff hopes, though he has to be excited that Aaron Jones (@SEA) is finally getting most of the carries for the Packers. Between Jones and Saquon Barkley (vs. TAM), he's looking good for 2019.
Pick: Pralines & Dick.
Chili Right Away (Dave, 4-6, 11th) vs. The Vistas are Back (Pat, 1-9, 14th):
Dave leads all-time series, 6-3.
Dave still plays: Scott, Kevin.
Pat still plays: Matt, Schertz.
Dave is not quite his usual self this year. This could be the first year since 2008 where he winds up with more actual wins than expected wins. His most consistently good player, Cooper Kupp, is now out for the year, but Allen Robinson II (vs. MIN) looks fully healthy and dangerous.
Pat finally got a W last week, but the RBs most responsible, Nick Chubb and Matt Breida, are both on bye this week. Even without them, he might still be a good bet to beat Dave's depleted roster.
Pick: The Vistas are Back.
Live Commish (Ed, 3-7, 12th) vs. Not an MD (Scott, 4-6, 9th):
All-time series tied, 0-0.
Ed still plays: Mike R., Babel.
Scott still plays: Dave, Richie.
Rarely has a trade so dramatically affected someone's season. Had Ed not traded Ezekiel Elliott, Drew Brees, Michael Thomas, and Julian Edelman for Todd Gurley II (vs. KC), Andrew Luck (vs. TEN), T.Y. Hilton (vs. TEN), and Chris Hogan (bye), he'd have scored 149.36 in week nine and 112.72 in week ten - enough to turn two losses into wins (and win a Team Blangums). But instead of being 5-5 and fifth in points, he's 3-7 and completely out of the playoff picture. At least he has the likely #1 pick of 2019 on board already?
Scott's scored 100 or more points the last eight games, but has only won four of them. Patrick Mahomes II (@LAR) and new addition Tyreek Hill (@LAR) have excellent matchups this week, and could put up 80 points on their own. He won't need much on top of them to keep his streak alive.
Pick: Not an MD.
Closing Thoughts
For starters, week ten is now the fifth highest scoring week, and 2018 has three of the top five weeks ever.
I mentioned 100-point streaks a few times this issue. If we include playoff games, Kevin's current ten game streak matches 2011-2012 Rabbit for the longest ever. If we ignore the playoffs, Kevin's at an incredible nineteen straight, dating back to week five of last year.