The Sanderson Gazette - 2021-10-20 - A Not So Good Bye

Week 6 Recap

Schertz def. Mike R., 137.45-90.81

You wouldn't know it from the final score, but there was a chance Mike R. could still win several minutes into the Monday night game. But another huge game from Derrick Henry (34.03) and a big one from Stefon Diggs (17.87) pushed Schertz into the lead, while Mike R. saw the Buffalo defense put up -2.00.

Babel def. Kevin, 135.25-123.81

Babel moved to 6-0 on the year with a pair of Rams - Matthew Stafford (26.75) and the defense (16.00) - leading the charge. Kevin put up a valiant late effort, with Josh Allen (30.75) and Cole Beasley (17.73) putting up nearly 50 points combined on Monday night, but wound up taking the highest scoring loss of the year.

Pulley def. Richie, 118.21-112.41

Pulley won his second straight behind Joe Mixon (23.27), Courtland Sutton (18.53), and Antonio Brown (18.40). Richie made a good game of it, but couldn't get enough from DK Metcalf (7.73) on Sunday night, even though Noah Fant (18.93) and Sam Darnold (15.15) had some late rallies in their own games.

Dave def. Rabbit, 125.81-106.34

Dave won his second straight behind Kirk Cousins (32.25), CeeDee Lamb (32.07), and Jaylen Waddle (21.33). Rabbit got another huge game from Cooper Kupp (29.33), but lost his third straight McCaffrey-less game.

Ed def. Pat, 125.74-91.28

Ed's much-needed victory wasn't really in doubt after Thursday night, when Leonard Fournette (26.23) and Jalen Hurts (25.15) got him out to a big lead. DeAndre Hopkins (19.33) and Aaron Jones (18.13) also lived up to their draft cost. Pat got big games from Darrell Henderson, Jr. (23.67) and Khalil Herbert (17.70), but still lost his fifth straight.

Derrek def. Rob, 112.25-74.38

Jonathan Taylor (28.23) put up another monster performance for D as he improved to 5-1. Rob didn't get much besides a strong outing from Dak Prescott (31.25), and now finds himself asking some tough questions about his team (more on that later).

Matt def. Scott, 90.72-46.10

Matt welcomed back Dalvin Cook (20.40), though he didn't really need him in this laugher. Scott's highest score came from his kicker, Chris Boswell (13.00).

Standings

  1. Babel, 6-0, 739.31
  2. Schertz, 5-1, 718.57
  3. Derrek, 5-1, 703.26
  4. Richie, 4-2, 696.94
  5. Kevin, 4-2, 677.69
  6. Matt, 4-2, 638.21
  7. Dave, 4-2, 595.14
  8. Rabbit, 3-3, 726.07
  9. Ed, 2-4, 613.26
  10. Pulley, 2-4, 577.28
  11. Mike R., 1-5, 657.04
  12. Pat, 1-5, 592.79
  13. Rob, 1-5, 540.78
  14. Scott, 0-6, 420.65

Blingalytics Ratings

  1. Babel, 723
  2. Derrek, 700
  3. Schertz, 642
  4. Rabbit, 632
  5. Richie, 608
  6. Kevin, 584
  7. Mike R., 572
  8. Ed, 472
  9. Dave, 465
  10. Matt, 433
  11. Pat, 430
  12. Pulley, 390
  13. Rob, 292
  14. Scott, 56

Weekly Awards

Team Blangums

Just one week after having Team Blangums stolen from him on Monday night, Schertz pulled the same trick. His 137.45 earns him $20.

Slapped Heartbeat

Scott's fourth Slapped Hearbeat - and third straight! - is not only his worst score of the year, it's the entire league's.

Weekly MVP

Derrick Henry scored 34.03 for Schertz.

Dud of the Week

Take your pick of David Njoku (0.80), James Washington (1.20), or Demetric Felton (1.87), all on Scott's roster.

Start of the Week

Schertz played Darrel Williams (21.80) over Latavius Murray (12.00) and won Team Blangums by less than three points.

Misplay of the Week

Rob picked up Adam Humphries (-0.53) and played him over Allen Lazard (9.60) and Nelson Agholor (3.70). That didn't swing his game, I just felt Pulley would want to see that as a one-day-late birthday present.

Pickup of the Week

Even though he didn't win, Kevin should get credit for picking up the Arizona defense (12.00).

Blessed Cahoots

Matt's 90.72 was only better than that two other teams' this week. Luckily, he played one of them.

Pryor Play of the Week

A.J. Brown's 12.13 isn't great, but it is the first time he's scored more than six points for Ed since week 1.

Week 7 Preview

Game of the Blingaweek

D's Nuts (Derrek, 5-1, 3rd) vs. Harrison Hammers (Matt, 4-2, 6th)

All-time series tied, 8-8.

Our only matchup of teams in playoff position this week is a rematch of Blingabowl XI.

Derrek's team doesn't have any huge holes, but week 7's plethora of bye teams does show that his team isn't especially deep. He's replacing one Jefferson (Justin, bye) with another (Van Jr., vs. DET), and is forced to play Mark Ingram II (@ARI). His TE - Cameron Brate (vs. CHI) - is his biggest weak spot, but that's a function of Rob Gronkowski's injury, not a bye.

Matt started the season with a lack of quality flex options, but he fixed that by trading with Ed. He's losing more starters (Dalvin Cook, Mike Williams, Zach Moss) thanks to all the bye teams, and has a pair of questionable replacements (Amon-Ra St. Brown (@LAR) and Marquez Callaway (@SEA), but on the whole, his starting roster looks a bit better than D's this week.

Pick: Harrison Hammers.

Other Blingamatches

schertzopotamus (Schertz, 5-1, 2nd) vs. Pullman's MondoSquad (Pulley, 2-4, 10th)

Pulley leads all-time series, 8-3.

Schertz is down his second best player (Stefon Diggs) this week, but as long as he has Derrick Henry (vs. KC), he's got a good shot at winning. Pulley has no healthy players on bye; will Antonio Brown (vs. CHI) and Courtland Sutton (@CLE) carry his team to a third straight win?

Pick: schertzopotamus.

DK Country (Richie, 4-2, 4th) vs. Live Commish (Ed, 2-4, 9th)

Richie leads all-time series, 5-4.

Richie is arguably the most negatively affected by byes this week, as he'll be without Ezekiel Elliott and Austin Ekeler. He did pick up D'Ernest Johnson (vs. DEN) to fill in at RB, though, and still has DK Metcalf (vs. NO) and Ja'Marr Chase (@BAL) as high flyers. Ed, like Pulley, is without any bye week players, so he'll rely on Aaron Jones (vs. WAS), Leonard Fournette (vs. CHI), and DeAndre Hopkins (vs. HOU), as usual.

Pick: Live Commish.

Swift Justice (Babel, 6-0, 1st) vs. The Vistas are Back (Pat, 1-5, 12th)

Pat leads all-time series, 7-5.

Babel's quest to become just the third 7-0 team ever will be hampered by Najee Harris, Adam Thielen, and Keenan Allen all having a bye this week. That means D'Andre Swift (@LAR) and Deebo Samuel (vs. IND) will have to carry a bigger load than normal. Pat's without Justin Herbert (bye), but his mostly intact roster still doesn't look as good as Babel's.

Pick: Swift Justice.

The Chocolate Donuts (Kevin, 4-2, 5th) vs. Rob for Today (Rob, 1-5, 13th)

Rob leads all-time series, 9-6.

Josh Allen and Cole Beasley nearly powered Kevin to a huge comeback in week 6, but are now on bye. Marvin Jones, Jr. is on bye, as well, but Kevin still has Davante Adams (vs. WAS) and Cordarelle Patterson (@MIA) to hold down the fort. Rob's roster is dramatically different than last week, with Dak Prescott, Calvin Ridley, Terry McLaurin, and T.J. Hockenson all having been traded away. Will new additions Michael Pittman, Jr. (@SF) and Jaylen Waddle (vs. ATL) help pull a shocker in week 7?

Pick: The Chocolate Donuts.

Super Bash Bros. (Dave, 4-2, 7th) vs. Bernie's Bullies (Mike R., 1-5, 11th)

Dave leads all-time series, 9-4.

Dave has gone even more all-in on Cowboys now that he's traded for Dak Prescott. The problem this week is that Dallas is on bye. His normal QB, Kirk Cousins, is also on bye. The opportunity is there for Travis Kelce (@TEN), Chris Godwin (vs. CHI), and Joe Burrow (@BAL) to get Mike a second victory.

Pick: Bernie's Bullies.

Pralines & Dick (Rabbit, 3-3, 8th) vs. Can I Play the Spread? (Scott, 0-6, 14th)

Scott leads all-time series, 2-1.

Something has to give: either Rabbit will win without the injured Christian McCaffrey, or Scott will win, period.

Pick: Pralines & Dick.

Closing Thoughts

Week 6's 106.47 average lands it as 25th highest of all time.