The Sanderson Gazette - 2020-12-22 - Meme Matchup

Semifinals Recap

Matt def. Babel, 142.99-118.78:

The final score makes this one look like a blowout, but Babel had a real shot at victory for much of the weekend. Jalen Hurts put up 38.20 in the losing effort, while Travis Kelce (17.07) was his usual stellar self.

In the end, Matt's stars were just too much. Lamar Jackson led the way with 31.15, while DeAndre Hopkins and Dalvin Cook added 26.63 and 22.80, respectively.

Kevin def. Pulley, 140.69-102.35:

Josh Allen (40.75), Darren Waller (26.00), and Melvin Gordon III (20.77) gave Kevin 87.52 points before any of Pulley's players suited up. And though Aaron Jones (22.23) and Marvin Jones, Jr. (20.93) had great games for the MondoSquad, this one was never really competitive.

Fifth-Place Game Recap

Derrek def. Rob, 85.36-79.63:

Derrek def. Rob, 85.36-79.63.

Weekly Awards

Team Blangums:

Matt and Kevin became just the fifth and sixth teams to break 140 in the semifinals, with Matt's 142.99 as the top mark this week.

Slapped Heartbeat:

Pulley's 102.35 may have been the low score in the semis, but it's far from an embarrassing figure.

Weekly MVP:

Josh Allen put up 40.75 for Kevin.

Dud of the Week:

Keenan Allen's 2.17 for Babel was his worst score of the year.

Start of the Week:

Kevin wisely left Todd Gurley II (1.90) on his bench. Cam Akers (6.17) didn't do that much better, but, hey, it was still a good choice.

Misplay of the Week:

Babel picked up Salvon Ahmed (20.87), but kept him on the bench in favor of Wayne Gallman, Jr. (2.90). It didn't make a difference in his outcome, but it was still a poor decision.

Pickup of the Week:

Jalen Hurts (38.20) was fantastic for Babel in a losing effort.

Season Postmortems

Adam Pulley, 8-5 (0.615), 1,352.84 points, 4th, 7.17 expected wins

Pulley started the season as only the second team ever to start 7-0 and looked like he'd cruise to a bye. But he lost his next five, failing to break 100 each time and matching his longest losing streak in franchise history. He can take solace in the fact that he destroyed Rob in the Clash of Hatred, though.

Aaron Jones might be a good keeper in the late first, and Antonio Brown and Rob Gronkowski are both late picks that could have nice value in 2021.

Mark Babel, 8-5 (0.615), 1,354.46 points, 3rd, 7.17 expected wins

Babel banked some early luck (three sub-100 wins in the first six weeks), but then proved he was a worthy playoff team by breaking 120 thrice in the final five weeks. He just didn't have enough to take down our Monster Heel in the semis.

You could make an argument that Travis Kelce was the most valuable player to own this year, given how much better he was than every other tight end, so Babel could opt to keep him for a late first round pick in 2021. Beyond that, Babel's options are a little blurrier, with Josh Jacobs, D'Andre Swift, and maybe Keenan Allen appearing to have the most value.

Blingabowl XIII Preview

#1 The Chocolate Donuts (Kevin) vs. #2 Harrison Hammers (Matt)

Kevin leads all-time series, 9-5.

The stars have aligned: Blingabowl XIII will pit good vs. evil in a matchup of the two original Blingamemes: K-Pat vs. the Monster Heel!

Kevin's here because Josh Allen (@NE) was a great keeper and he nailed his WRs (Davante Adams (vs. TEN) and Terry McLaurin (vs. CAR)) and TE (Darren Waller (vs. MIA)) in the draft. RB is a bit of a question mark, though; Todd Gurley II (@KC) was solid early in the year, and Melvin Gordon III (@LAC) has had his moments, but now with Cam Akers (@SEA) out, Kevin can't be super confident in production from that spot.

Matt joins himself (2011-2013) and Rabbit (2009-2011) as the only teams to reach the Blingabowl three straight years. A big difference is that they each went 2-1 in their triads, while Matt'll need Lamar Jackson (vs. NYG) to continue playing like it's 2019 to avoid a goose egg. Dalvin Cook (@NO) has been a matchup-proof star, and DeAndre Hopkins (vs. SF) is back to his early-season form, so if Julio Jones (@KC) can play, Matt could very well be raising the Sanderson Cup once again.

Pick: Harrison Hammers.

Third-Place Game

#3 Keep Calm & Kerryon (Babel) vs. #4 Pullman's MondoSquad (Pulley):

All-time series tied, 10-10.

This will be the record-extending 21st matchup between Babel and Pulley (Pulley/Rob and Matt/Mike R. have occurred 19 times each).

Pick: Pullman's MondoSquad.

Special Feature: The Year in Trades

Week 2, 2020

Trade between Mike R. and Richie

Mike R. received:

  • T.J. Hockenson - keeper cost: 9th

Richie received:

  • Joshua Kelley - keeper cost: 13th

Mike needed a tight end after George Kittle went down, and Hockenson filled in nicely (and was used to get some keepers later in the year). Kelley scored 12.93 in week 2, but never cracked double digits again, even when Austin Ekeler was injured. It's easy - and accurate - to say Mike won this trade.

Week 3, 2020

Trade between Mike R. and Pat

Mike R. received:

  • Nick Chubb - ineligible to be kept
  • Julio Jones - keeper cost: 1st
  • Chris Carson - keeper cost: 2nd

Pat received:

  • Kenny Golladay - keeper cost: 1st
  • D.J. Chark, Jr. - keeper cost: 4th
  • Darrell Henderson, Jr. - keeper cost: 9th

This one's really hard to judge, since every player involved wound up missing time after being traded. Like the previous trade, it looks like Mike won this one. Golladay was healthy for only five games for Pat, and one of those was a zero. Chark only broke double digits twice after the trade, though both were huge games. Henderson had a nice stretch as a valuable flex, but tailed off as the year went on. For Mike, Jones and Chubb were eventually cashed in for great keepers, while Carson was good when healthy. Once again, it's probably accurate to call this one for Mike.

Week 5, 2020

Trade between Babel and Rob

Babel received:

  • A.J. Dillon - keeper cost: 9th

Rob received:

  • Kirk Cousins - keeper cost: 9th

Both of these players were later dropped. I'll give this one to Rob, though, since he got 26.65 from Kirk Cousins during Russell Wilson's bye.

Week 6, 2020

Trade between Dave and Ed

Dave received:

  • Noah Fant - keeper cost: 9th

Ed received:

  • Zach Ertz - keeper cost: 3rd

Ed was still holding out some hope for the playoffs when he took a chance on Ertz, whom he later dropped. Fant wasn't that productive, but he holds the distinction of being the lone Bronco to catch a pass during their (and Dave's) laughably bad week 12, so Dave can say he won this trade.

Trade between Ed and Mike R.

Ed received:

  • Joe Burrow - keeper cost: 9th

Mike R. received:

  • Gardner Minshew II - keeper cost: 9th

Burrow had a couple good games for Ed before he - like all past, present, and future players on Mike's roster - got injured. Minshew also got injured, and then benched. Ed comes out ahead on this one, though it was mostly inconsequential.

Week 10, 2020

Trade between Ed and Scott

Ed received:

  • Michael Pittman, Jr. - keeper cost: 9th

Scott received:

  • Brandin Cooks - keeper cost: 4th

Yes, three trades in a row were one-for-one, same-position swaps by Ed. Cooks was a little better to end the season, but Pittman has more keeper value, so this one turned out pretty even.

Trade between Dave and Kevin

Dave received:

  • CeeDee Lamb - keeper cost: 6th
  • Carlos Hyde - keeper cost: 9th

Kevin received:

  • A.J. Green - keeper cost: 2nd
  • Melvin Gordon III - keeper cost: 2nd

None of the players involved in this one contributed consistently to end the year. Lamb's a nice keeper option for Dave, and Gordon had a great game in the semifinals for Kev, so I'm thinking both sides are content with the outcome here.

Week 11, 2020

Trade between Matt and Mike R.

Matt received:

  • Julio Jones - keeper cost: 1st

Mike R. received:

  • Brandon Aiyuk - keeper cost: 9th

Due to a bye and COVID-19, Aiyuk missed his first two weeks on Mike's roster, but he's scored 15 or more every game from week 13 on. Meanwhile, Jones has missed three of the five games since the trade and put up just 5.20 and 12.53 in the other two. The only way this trade doesn't look like a huge loss for Matt is if having Jones over Aiyuk is the reason he beats Kevin in the Blingabowl.

Trade between Mike R. and Rob

Mike R. received:

  • Henry Ruggs - keeper cost: 7th
  • Dalton Schultz - keeper cost: 9th
  • James Robinson - keeper cost: 9th
  • Laviska Shenault, Jr. - keeper cost: 9th

Rob received:

  • Nick Chubb - ineligible to be kept
  • Mike Evans - keeper cost: 2nd
  • Drew Brees - keeper cost: 5th
  • T.J. Hockenson - keeper cost: 9th

The best players involved in this one were Chubb and Robinson. Chubb was an upgrade for Rob from week 11 on, while Robinson certainly holds more keeper value, so both sides got what they expected in that sense. Rob barely played Evans, and Hockenson gave him between 9 and 12 points in every meaningful game since the trade. It's not like this trade was the reason Rob stumbled to end the year, so it's hard to call it a bad one from his perspective. That said, I'm sure he'd be happier going into 2021 not having made it.

Trade between Rabbit and Rob

Rabbit received:

  • Giovani Bernard - keeper cost: 9th

Rob received:

  • Josh Reynolds - keeper cost: 9th

Bernard scored less than 7 points each week for Rabs. Rob never played Reynolds. There are no winners here.

Closing Thoughts

This was an impressive semifinals all-around. Our four participants had an average score of 126.20; only 2019 (126.70) and 2009 (126.58) were better (and just barely). Only 2009 (133.95) had a higher median than this year (129.74), and only 2019 (116.35) had a higher minimum (102.35).