Semifinals Recap

What a wild pair of semifinals! Two upsets (what sort of genius could have predicted that?!), with one turning a complete 180 on Christmas Day and the other featuring historical ineptitude from the loser.

Rob def. Derrek, 101.45-97.00

Saturday was good to Derrek. Behind Patrick Mahomes II (25.50), Justin Jefferson (23.73), and D.J. Moore (17.87), he took a 93.44-71.18 lead with two players left for each side. He looked like a heavy favorite to reach the championship.

But as good as Saturday was for D, Sunday was better for Rob. Jaylen Waddle's 25.07 for our #1, combined with Raheem Mostert's 3.03 and DeAndre Hopkins's 0.53 for his opponent, put Rob in a position of needing just six yard from Michael Pittman, Jr. on Monday night. The Colts WR wound up with 39 yards (5.20 points), which means Rob will advance to Blingabow XV.

Mike R. def. Dave, 97.59-59.94

The other semifinal wasn't quite as dramatic, though it wasn't fully settled until Monday night, either. Mike got big games from Tee Higgins (23.07), Derrick Henry (16.60), and the Cincinnati defense (12.00). Dave had good - but not great - ones from Travis Kelce (15.07) and A.J. Brown (13.73), but had to helplessly watch the Broncos defense (-6.00) forget how to play football.

That meant that Dave needed a huge Monday night performance from Justin Herbert, while Mike got almost nothing from Keenan Allen and Zack Moss. The former put up a horrible 5.85 while the latter two scored 13.87 and 7.17, respectively, resulting in Mike reaching the Blingabowl for the first time in franchise history.

Weekly Awards

Team Blangums

Rob's 101.45 was the top score this week.

Historically, that's the lowest top score we've ever had (the previous record was held by last year's semifinals. However, Blingabowl II would still have the mark for futility if you don't count third-place games.

Slapped Heartbeat

Dave's 59.94 is the second-lowest score ever in the semifinals. (And while 2015 Richie's 47.17 came in the infamous kicker-free game, that only explains why he didn't break 50, not 60.)

Weekly MVP

Joe Burrow scored 26.25 for Rob.

Dud of the Week

We are not hurting for options in this category. While the Broncos defense put up an absolute minimum of -6.00, they fit a different award better (more on that in a moment). So in honor of this week's overall low level of play, let's look at a nominee from each team.

• Chigoziem Okonkwo put up 1.33 for Rob.
• Zonovan Knight scored 1.80 for Mike R.
• Davante Adams stumbled to 2.00 for Dave.
• Finally, DeAndre Hopkins was nearly shut out and wound up with just 0.53 for Derrek.

Hopkins will take this award when all is said and done.

Start of the Week

Rob won a close game, but left points on his bench. (Though in his defense of one move, he chose Michael Pittman, Jr. (5.20) over Mike Williams (10.13) due to needing just 0.26 points and the former being less likely to be completely shut out.)

Misplay of the Week

Derrek either didn't read - or didn't care - about the weather in Cleveland and played Donovan Peoples-Jones (0.27) over Jahan Dotson (16.13) and Terrace Marshall, Jr. (7.33). Either of the latter would have pushed D to Blingabowl XV, but neither was obvious at the time, so I'll give him a pass.

I'll do so because there's a special level of stupidity to Dave playing the Broncos defense and their -6.00 points. In a real big brain move, our defending champ decided to carry not one nor two, but three defenses in order to best play matchups for the playoffs. That means he had the Patriots (14.00) and the Chargers (22.00) on his bench. Going with Denver over the former, who played the Bengals, makes a lot of sense. And while the Broncos have been good this year and played the disappointing Rams, watching the Chargers put up 28 more points than them against the awful Colts must have driven Dave mad.

It wouldn't have changed the outcome of his game (he'd instead be hating Justin Herbert even more right now), but it was such an incorrect move that it has to be recognized here.

Pickup of the Week

Mike smartly used the #1 waiver priority on Zack Moss, who delivered 7.17 points in his lineup.

Blessed Cahoots

Mike didn't have a bad week - he'd have narrowly defeated Derrek, too - but he got the good fortune of his opponent, Dave, putting up his worst score of the year (and first sub-90 game since week 6).

D'Ernest D'oh

See "Misplay of the Week", although none of Dave's defensive transactions happened between the quarters and semis.

Season Postmortems

Derrek, 8-6 (0.571), 1,497.62 points, 4th place, 8.62 expected wins

Derrek's 2022 is a lesson in staying the course. Sitting at 3-4 and in 10th place after week 7, D didn't panic and trade keeper-ineligible players like Jonathan Taylor or Justin Jefferson. Instead, he went on his customary mid-to-late-season run and very nearly wound up returning to the Blingabowl.

The rest of the league will breathe a sigh of relief that Derrek can't keep Taylor and Jefferson yet again. DeAndre Hopkins could have good value in the fifth round, though, and guys like Jahan Dotson and Donovan Peoples-Jones might be worth keeping in the ninth.

Dave, 8-6 (0.571), 1,552.77 points, 3rd place, 9.17 expected wins

Dave's 2022 is a lesson in staying the course, but then going one step too far. He was also 3-4 (in 9th place) at the halfway point, and thanks to a previous trade for A.J. Brown (more on that shortly), he turned his season around. But a subsequent trade for Dalvin Cook had far worse results (also more on that soon), and Dave failed to defend his title.

Travis Kelce is almost certainly worth the 11th or 12th overall pick, so you have to think Dave will retain him. After that, he might look to Drake London or K.J. Osborn for the standard ninth round cost.

The Year in Trades

Week 1

Trade between Ed and Matt

Ed received:

• Pick 1.11 - from Matt
• Pick 2.04 - from Matt
• Pick 4.04 - from Matt

Matt received:

• Pick 1.07 - from Ed
• Pick 2.08 - from Ed
• Pick 4.08 - from Ed

This trade looked like a big win-win early on. Matt used his new picks to take Saquon Barkley, Courtland Sutton, and Jalen Hurts, while Ed chose Mike Evans, A.J. Brown, and Kyler Murray.

But things turned around, both at the player and team level. Barkley didn't keep up his torrid early-season pace. Sutton fell victim to the Denver disaster. Evans faded dramatically as the season progressed. Brown stayed good all year, but on Dave's roster. And Murray was part of the trade that broke Ed's season (and later torpedoed Scott's).

Both Matt and Ed turned promising starts into playoff-free finishes.

Hurts stayed awesome all year, so with perfect hindsight, Matt won this one on that basis.

Week 6

Trade between Dave and Ed

Dave received:

• A.J. Brown - from Ed - keeper cost: 2nd
• Jameson Williams - from Ed - keeper cost: 10th

Ed received:

• Clyde Edwards-Helaire - from Dave - keeper cost: 4th
• Tyler Allgeier - from Dave - keeper cost: 9th

This was the first of the trades that blew up on Ed, though that risk was part of the deal. Having just lost Cordarrelle Patterson for several weeks, Ed decided to improve his RB depth at the cost of one of his top WRs.

Dave gladly took Brown, who helped propel him to the semifinals. Allgeier had a couple good weeks in Ed's lineup (and might even have some keeper value), but Edwards-Helaire was a disaster. And Ed would have won his week 6 game had he just held onto Brown and played a zero in his other starting slot. This one's a clear win for Dave... and the league, as a different week 6 outcome for Ed would have meant we'd still be waiting for #PlayoffPat to arrive.

Week 7

Trade between Ed and Pat

Ed received:

• CeeDee Lamb - from Pat - ineligible to be kept

Pat received:

• Chris Olave - from Ed - keeper cost: 7th

This was your good team / bad team keeper-for-star trade. The weirdness is that the "bad" team wound up finishing ahead of the "good" team in the standings.

Pat made the playoffs, but would have been better this year with Lamb. Of course, next year looks better with Olave. Ed probably "won" this trade, in that it led to an even bigger deal that looked like a win when it was made (more on that in a minute).

Week 8

Trade between Babel and Dave

Babel received:

• Dameon Pierce - from Dave - keeper cost: 9th
• Jameson Williams - from Dave - keeper cost: 10th
• Khalil Herbert - from Dave - keeper cost: 10th

Dave received:

• D'Andre Swift - from Babel - ineligible to be kept
• Keenan Allen - from Babel - keeper cost: 2nd
• Damien Harris - from Babel - keeper cost: 5th

By week 8, Babel could see that he wasn't making the playoffs, so he went all-in on keepers. Pierce looked like one of the best values in the entire league at the time, and Williams brought draft pedigree, if not current health. Dave was trying to recreate the magic of 2021, when he made several trades like this.

In retrospect, I'm not sure there's a real winner here. Pierce was only OK after the trade and ended up on IR, muddying his keeper value. Swift and Allen were big disappointments for Dave. Williams eventually came off of IR, but has just one catch in the four games he has played.

Trade between Ed and Scott

Ed received:

• Tee Higgins - from Scott - ineligible to be kept
• Josh Allen - from Scott - keeper cost: 2nd
• Mack Hollins - from Scott - keeper cost: 9th

Scott received:

• CeeDee Lamb - from Ed - ineligible to be kept
• Kyler Murray - from Ed - keeper cost: 4th
• D'Onta Foreman - from Ed - keeper cost: 9th

The general reaction at the time was that Ed got the better end of this deal; Higgins and Lamb were comparable, Foreman was a waiver-wire wonder that likely wouldn't keep up his production, and Allen was much better than Murray. But it immediately cost Ed not only Team Blangums, but a win, too, which ultimately kept him out of the playoffs.

Over the rest of the season, though, Ed probably still came out ahead. Allen was better than Murray, who missed multiple games with injuries. Foreman mixed great games with some real duds. And while Lamb was better than Higgins, the latter was still quite good and eventually fetched Ed a promising keeper for 2023.

Week 9

Trade between Matt and Rob

Matt received:

• Tyler Boyd - from Rob - keeper cost: 8th
• Deon Jackson - from Rob - keeper cost: 9th

Rob received:

• Mike Williams - from Matt - keeper cost: 3rd

The logic behind this trade was pretty standard: Matt had just had his heartbeat slapped and needed immediate help to cover for injuries and byes, while Rob was in good enough position to stash an injured player with a high ceiling for later. But Boyd and Jackson both fell flat in week 9, resulting in Matt getting his second straight Slapped Heartbeat.

Williams only had one good week (so far) for Rob, but it helped him beat Pulley and is more than Boyd has done. Matt wound up cutting Jackson, who is now back on Rob's roster. Without a doubt, Rob won this trade.

Trade between Mike R. and Pat

Mike R. received:

• Dalvin Cook - from Pat - keeper cost: 1st

Pat received:

• Ja'Marr Chase - from Mike R. - keeper cost: 2nd

Chase's injury meant Mike, who was scrambling to make the playoffs, needed to get something for him. Enter Pat, who was in 12th place and looking ahead to 2023.

Cook put up a good game immediately following the trade, then a great one in week 10 to help Mike defeat Pat. It was the latter's last regular season loss, and Chase returned in week 13 to help turn #PlayoffPat into a reality.

This trade was a win-win even before Mike flipped Cook in what might have been the best single transaction of the year (we're getting to that really soon, I promise).

Week 10

Trade between Ed and Pulley

Ed received:

• Miles Sanders - from Pulley - keeper cost: 3rd

Pulley received:

• Cordarrelle Patterson - from Ed - keeper cost: 5th
• Greg Dulcich - from Ed - keeper cost: 9th

The biggest shocker of the year, perhaps, is that Ed wound up winning this trade both right away and overall. Sanders didn't have a very good week 10, but he outscored Patterson and Dulcich combined.

And while Ed didn't make the playoffs, that wasn't because of this trade; Sanders had five touchdowns over the final three weeks, while Patterson and Dulcich were mediocre for Pulley as he missed the playoffs by a game.

Trade between Ed and Pulley

Ed received:

• Matt Gay - from Pulley - keeper cost: 9th

Pulley received:

• Robbie Gould - from Ed - keeper cost: 9th

This was just two old friends having fun and swapping kickers, who put up 5.60 (Gay) and 6.60 (Gould) immediately following the trade.

Overall, Pulley definitely won this, as Gay was off Ed's roster a week later while Gould scored 20.40 in week 13.

Week 11

Trade between Ed and Richie

Ed received:

• Diontae Johnson - from Richie - keeper cost: 3rd

Richie received:

• Jaylen Warren - from Ed - keeper cost: 9th

Richie traded an OK WR for an OK keeper. Johnson only made Ed's starting lineup once, the week the trade was made (of course, it was his worst score while on Ed's roster). Warren did even less for Richie.

There are no winners here. I'm not sure there are any losers, either. This trade merely exists on the historical record.

Trade between Mike R. and Scott

Mike R. received:

• Dalton Schultz - from Scott - keeper cost: 4th

Scott received:

• Rachaad While - from Mike R. - keeper cost: 9th

Mike was desperate for a tight end. Scott had T.J. Hockenson, so he didn't need Schultz and could take on the speculative value White provided.

Schultz was a key contributor to wins in weeks 12 and 14 for Mike, even though he wound up being the worst of his three tight end options in the semifinals. White topped out at 12.40 on the season, but didn't have any duds for Scott and could be a solid keeper option. This trade is probably win-win, though neither side got that much out of it.

Week 12

Trade between Dave and Ed

Dave received:

• Tee Higgins - from Ed - ineligible to be kept

Ed received:

• Cole Kmet - from Dave - keeper cost: 9th
• Isiah Pacheco - from Dave - keeper cost: 9th

At 5-6, having made quite a few win-now trades already, Ed pivoted and went after keepers. Dave was loading up for another run at the Sanderson Cup.

Pacheco delivered for Ed, scoring 10+ in each of the last three regular season weeks, and looks to be a very solid keeper. Kmet more or less replaced the injured Kyle Pitts. Higgins was flipped right away and never played a game for Dave. He had a great week 12, but an active zero in week 14 balanced that out. Even ignoring Dave's subsequent deal, Ed might have been the winner here.

Trade between Dave and Mike R.

Dave received:

• Dalvin Cook - from Mike R. - keeper cost: 1st
• Drake London - from Mike R. - keeper cost: 7th

Mike R. received:

• Tee Higgins - from Dave - ineligible to be kept
• Keenan Allen - from Dave - keeper cost: 2nd

Finally, we get to this: the most consequential trade of the year, perhaps ever.

It made complete sense on paper. Dave had Davante Adams and A.J. Brown, which meant Higgins and Allen - who had been on bye or injured for three of his four weeks on Dave's roster - were expendable. Mike had Derrick Henry, so Cook wasn't necessary, and his WR corps was down to Michael Gallup, Drake London, and the injured Rondale Moore.

As noted above, Higgins was great, good, and horrible in the three remaining regular season weeks. Allen, however, scored 12+ in each of them. Cook, meanwhile, only broken ten points once in that span. Looking at the regular season only, Mike won this trade easily... and almost certainly needed it in order to get a bye.

But then came the playoffs. Cook put up 26.17 in the quarterfinals, though it wasn't necessary as Dave beat Pat by more than 40 points. And in the semis, Higgins and Allen combined for 36.94 while Cook put up just 8.13. That didn't directly decide the outcome, either, but it sure make it look like an even bigger win for Mike.

Blingabowl XV Preview

#1 Rob for Today (Rob, 11-4) vs. #2 Bernie's Bullies (Mike R., 10-5)

Rob leads all-time series, 10-6.

The two teams that got byes made the Blingabowl, just like we all expected, right?

We've talked enough about how these guys got here, so let's get straight to the matchup.

At QB, Rob should have the advantage, as Joe Burrow (vs. BUF) has been better than Tom Brady (vs. CAR) all year long.

At RB, it's hard to beat Mike. Derrick Henry (vs. DAL) might have a tough matchup, but Nick Chubb (@WAS) has seen his value decline a ton as the season has progressed, especially since Deshaun Watson returned.

At WR, it's closer. Rob probably has the upper hand, though Jaylen Waddle (@NE) has a tough matchup and will probably not have Tua Tagovailoa at QB. And whichever one of Terry McLaurin (vs. CLE), Mike Williams (vs. LAR), and Michael Pittman, Jr. (@NYG) Rob decides to roll with is good enough, and at least one other will probably make an appearance one of his flex spots. Mike has semifinals heroes Tee Higgins (vs. BUF) and Keenan Allen (vs. LAR), but not a whole lot after that.

At TE, Mike wins. He's slotted to play Evan Engram (@HOU) as of press time, but Dalton Schultz (@TEN) and Darren Waller (vs. SF) are also solid options. Meanwhile, Rob will likely play Jeff Driskel (vs. JAC) or Chigoziem Okonkwo (vs. DAL).

At K and DEF, Rob has the always reliable Justin Tucker (vs. PIT) and the Browns (@WAS). Tucker hasn't been amazing lately, putting up less than six points in three of his last four, but Cleveland has a nice matchup. Mike has Jason Myers (vs. NYJ), who is coming off a bad week, but has been quite good otherwise. He also has the Bengals defense (vs. BUF), but I have to imagine they'll be replaced due to their opponent.

Are the two best teams playing in Blingabowl XV? Maybe Rob has an argument, but I can't say it with confidence. But one of them will win and etch a brand new name onto the Sanderson Cup.

Pick: Rob for Today.

Third-Place Game

#3 Super Bash Bros. (Dave, 9-7) vs. #4 D's Nuts (Derrek, 9-7)

Derrek leads all-time series, 10-5.

This could be a really good game. I'll take Patrick Mahomes II (vs. DEN) and Justin Jefferson (@GB) over Justin Herbert (vs. LAR) and Davante Adams (vs. SF).

Pick: D's Nuts.

Rule Change Proposals and Results

First of all, a big thank you to everyone for voting in the survey. The end result was that neither of the rule change proposals passed, but in the interest of completeness, I'll review the options here.

Locking Bench Players

Yahoo recently implemented an option to have all players lock at the start of their game, even if they're on your bench. It seemed logical to vote on this as a league.

Overwhelmingly, we elected to keep the existing rule by an 11-3 margin. This means that you will still be able to drop players from you bench after their game has started.

Prohibiting Two First Round Keepers

We currently allow keeping two players with first round costs, with the second player using your second round pick. The rule change proposal was to no longer allow this, instead limiting a team's keepers to include only one first round player.

(This has only been done twice, by Richie in 2019 and by Dave this year.)

"So the league loses their mind? A person who has won it once and a person who has broken .500 three times?" - Richie

The voting resulted in a 7-7 tie, which means we will keep the current rule. Two first round keepers are still allowed.

Closing Thoughts

It's been a hell of a season, and as always, I've massively enjoyed writing The Gazette every week. Hope everyone has had a great holiday season, and best of luck to Rob and Mike!

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