The Sanderson Gazette - 2023-11-08 - Self-Reflection

Week 9 Recap

Dave def. Mike R., 92.23-84.46

The Game of the Blingaweek wound up being our most competitive, with Dave holding onto a single-digit lead heading into Monday night. The Chargers-Jets tilt wound up being a dud, with Justin Herbert (6.00 for Mike) and Breece Hall (6.33 for Dave) neutralizing each other with mediocrity... which led to Dave getting a very important win.

Joe Burrow (25.30) and Justin Tucker (15.30) were especially critical for Dave, as Travis Kelce (1.87) and Marquise Brown (3.20) underperformed by a lot. Mike nearly rode the Ravens defense (17.00) to victory, but couldn't close the deal.

Babel def. Richie, 78.43-67.19

This was the only other contest that could have flipped on Monday night, and Richie made a good effort. But Garrett Wilson's (8.67) and Tyler Conklin's (8.80) solid-but-not-great scores couldn't make up for George Pickens (-0.13) and the Houston defense (-2.00) dipping into the negative. Babel ended his three-game skid with good games from Aaron Jones (14.77) and Nico Collins (13.20), but his overall score was also disappointing.

Rob def. Matt, 144.54-81.75

Rob's stack of Dak Prescott (29.60) and CeeDee Lamb (23.47) outdueled Matt's stack of Jalen Hurts (26.45) and Jake Elliott (4.00), even if the result was flipped in the real-life Cowboys-Eagles game. Outside of that, Cole Kmet (19.33) and Gus Edwards (17.20) came through big for Rob, while Kenneth Walker III (1.73) and Brandin Cooks (0.93) came through small for Matt.

Pulley def. Derrek, 123.32-92.49

Pulley continued to roll behind Stefon Diggs (19.47), Sam Howell (19.45), Diontae Johnson (18.00), and the Cleveland defense (22.00). Tank Dell (27.40) and Younghoe Koo (19.20) carried Derrek to a respectable score that still fell well short of our first place team.

Scott def. Schertz, 112.56-97.22

Scott extended his winning streak to three games thanks to Rachaad White (25.43) and Amari Cooper (24.53). Schertz lost his fourth straight to fall below .500 despite a solid total. Jahan Dotson (15.20) was once again good, but D.J. Moore (3.87) was once again not.

Pat def. Kevin, 91.18-79.26

The Raiders defense (21.00) dominated the Giants and kept Pat in the playoff picture, despite players like Lamar Jackson (12.85), Alvin Kamara (8.47), and Ja'Marr Chase (5.47) underperforming. Kevin got 20.30 from Rhamondre Stevenson, but very little else worked out for him.

Ed def. Rabbit, 87.27-61.32

Josh Allen (26.80) and Austin Ekeler (19.77) salvaged a somewhat decent score for Ed. Rabs, on the other hand, suffered through 2.25 from Geno Smith and a zero from the Cowboys defense.

Standings

  1. Pulley, 7-2, 1,100.19
  2. Babel, 6-3, 962.32
  3. Rabbit, 6-3, 957.42
  4. Ed, 6-3, 851.92
  5. Matt, 5-4, 1,012.10
  6. Mike R., 5-4, 974.47
  7. Rob, 5-4, 950.59
  8. Dave, 5-4, 914.05
  9. Pat, 4-5, 890.27
  10. Schertz, 4-5, 882.11
  11. Scott, 4-5, 785.85
  12. Kevin, 3-6, 758.37
  13. Derrek, 2-7, 799.49
  14. Richie, 1-8, 806.99

Blingalytics Ratings

  1. Pulley, 752
  2. Matt, 697
  3. Mike R., 614
  4. Rabbit, 599
  5. Rob, 558
  6. Babel, 554
  7. Dave, 507
  8. Pat, 499
  9. Schertz, 455
  10. Ed, 425
  11. Richie, 359
  12. Derrek, 356
  13. Scott, 332
  14. Kevin, 292

Weekly Awards

Team Blangums

Rob's 144.54 nabbed him the award he just missed out on last week.

Slapped Heartbeat

Rabbit's 61.32 was his worst score of the year.

Weekly MVP

The Chargers defense scored 29.00 for Rob on Monday night.

Dud of the Week

Geno Smith scored just 2.25 for Rabbit.

Start of the Week

Nothing qualifies this week.

Misplay of the Week

Richie got -0.13 from George Pickens (-0.13) and Gabe Davis (zero) combined. Christian Watson (4.93) and JuJu Smith Schuster (6.80) put up a total of 11.73 on his bench. Richie lost by 11.24.

(An honorable mention will go to Derrek, who played Patrick Mahomes II (16.65) over C.J. Stroud (45.00) - though I don't think anyone would have been bold enough to consider sitting Mahomes for the rookie QB.)

Pickup of the Week

See "Weekly MVP".

Blessed Cahoots

Babel probably didn't think he'd end his losing streak with a sub-80 score, but he was fortunate to play against Richie's sub-70.

Week 10 Preview

Game of the Blingaweek

Keep Calm & Dameon (Babel, 6-3, 2nd) vs. Pralines & Dick (Rabbit, 6-3, 3rd)

Rabbit leads all-time series, 11-7.

Babel ended his three game skid and moved back into bye position, but he also did it by putting up his lowest score of the season. His 6-3 record and solid point total (fourth overall) mean that his situation isn't dire, so he doesn't have to panic. But with Justin Jefferson on IR and Puka Nacua on bye, things might get a little worse before they get better. With a player like Jefferson hopeful to return soon, and with Aaron Jones (@PIT) finally looking healthy again, it's tempting to say Babel should hold... but turning into a buyer would be very understandable, too, even if it would be a bit surprising based on historical franchise behavior.

Rabbit had an even worse week nine than Babel, so he fell out of bye position based on points. It's very easy to blame Christian McCaffrey's (@JAC) bye week for his misfortune, but one single player is never the reason for barely breaking the 60 point barrier. Rabbit historically stands pat as the deadline approaches, and with established-yet-underperforming players like Tony Pollard (vs. NYG) and DK Metcalf (vs. WAS) on his roster, I have to think he'll just hold onto what he's got.

Pick: Pralines & Dick.

Other Blingamatches

Live Commish (Ed, 6-3, 4th) vs. Bernie's Bullies (Mike R., 5-4, 6th)

All-time series tied, 8-8.

Ed's been outplaying his peripherals thanks to an easy schedule (his -26.5% SOS is lowest in the league). So while Ed usually would have a few trades left in him, he is in unfamiliar territory; this is the first time he's had an easier-than-average schedule through nine weeks since 2014. And given that Ed already made some big moves for players like Austin Ekeler (vs. DET) and Mike Evans (vs. TEN), his path forward is to hold and hope Bijan Robinson (@ARI) gets used in line with his real-life draft slot.

Mike was 5-1 and in second place just three weeks ago, and despite falling to 5-4 and sixth, he's actually moved up from fourth to third in total points. So while a win this week turns him into an obvious contender once more, even a loss will probably prompt him to buy; as Dave showed last year, the defending champ won't just go gentle into that good night. Amon-Ra St. Brown (@LAC) and Justin Herbert (vs. DET) headline Mike's lineup, which is solid top to bottom, even if he doesn't have anyone in that truly elite tier.

Pick: Bernie's Bullies.

Rob for Today (Rob, 5-4, 7th) vs. The Vistas are Back (Pat, 4-5, 9th)

Rob leads all-time series, 11-3.

No one has been hotter than Rob the past two weeks. His combined score of 287.01 in weeks nine and ten is the best two-week stretch this season and falls in the top 1% of all time (sixteenth overall). The frustration of that success while still sitting outside the playoff picture almost certainly means Rob is going to buy, and depending on how sustainable you think CeeDee Lamb's (vs. NYG) recent run has been, you might say his roster is a lot like Mike's: a lot of talent, but could use an elite-tier player.

Speaking of lots of talent, let's look at Pat's roster. A team with Ja'Marr Chase (vs. HOU), Davante Adams (vs. NYJ), Lamar Jackson (vs. CLE), Alvin Kamara (@MIN), and Chris Olave (@MIN) should be better than ninth place. But aside from a week one dud - still the lowest score in the league this season - Pat's team has just been OK. One more critical loss, either this week to Rob or in the form of Ja'Marr Chase having a serious injury, means Pat will probably go into sell mode.

Pick: Rob for Today.

Harrison Hammers (Matt, 5-4, 5th) vs. schertzopotamus (Schertz, 4-5, 10th)

Matt leads all-time series, 10-2.

Matt's coming off his first dud of the season, and thanks to his bad-luck start, finds himself in what's close to a must-win situation. So it doesn't help that Jalen Hurts and Tyreek Hill are both on bye this week. Matt's not usually one of our more active traders, but will he look to buy to shore up his lack of depth? On normal weeks he's been starting Jaylen Warren (vs. GB) and Brandin Cooks (vs. NYG); this week, he might have to resort to Tyjae Spears (@TAM) and Taylor Heinicke (@ARI), too.

Schertz hasn't made a trade in four years, so it's easy to predict he'll hold. But he also hasn't made the playoffs in four years, so maybe he... won't? If he wins this week - and Justin Fields (vs. CAR) might be back to help - he'll still be a contender. But if he loses, he's probably out. Will he look to move Saquon Barkley (@DAL) or T.J. Hockenson (vs. NO) for a keeper or two?

Pick: schertzopotamus.

Pullman's MondoSquad (Pulley, 7-2, 1st) vs. Slap it Again! (Scott, 4-5, 11th)

Scott leads all-time series, 3-2.

The Gazette covered Babel's turnaround from last year a lot a few weeks ago, but I've largely ignored Pulley's turnaround. In part, that's because he finished 7-7, but he was dead last in points in 2022. So being all alone in first place by wins, points, and expected wins is quite the feat. You have to think he's going to buy; while he hasn't been as active a trader the last few years, he's always looking to wheel and deal (and already has once this year). Pulley has both star power (Stefon Diggs (vs. DEN) and Travis Etienne, Jr. (vs. SF)) and solid flex depth (Joe Mixon (vs. HOU), Courtland Sutton (@BUF)), which means he has flexibility on how to improve his team.

But he shouldn't overlook Scott, who's 4-1 since he changed his name to taunt the Slapped Heartbeat gods. A few weeks ago, he looked like a seller, and while his team doesn't look like a true contender, he might decide to see if he stays hot and hold, especially now that he has acquired some keepers (as well as Michael Pittman, Jr. (@NE)).

Pick: Pullman's MondoSquad.

Double Digits (Dave, 5-4, 8th) vs. D's Nuts (Derrek, 2-7, 13th)

Derrek leads all-time series, 10-7.

Dave's had a topsy-turvy year. He seemed ready to sell when he was 2-3, but instead pivoted into buy mode. And given his predilection for trades, I'm going to guess he's not done yet. He'll need to make it through this week, when A.J. Brown and Travis Kelce are on bye, with Gerald Everett (vs. DET) and Khalil Shakir (vs. DEN) starting, before he can truly feel like a contender, though.

Derrek is out of it, but will almost certainly hold. That's because he already made a few notable trades for possible keepers Isiah Pacheco (bye), Zay Flowers (vs. CLE), Tank Dell (@CIN), and C.J. Stroud (@CIN).

Pick: Double Digits.

The Chocolate Donuts (Kevin, 3-6, 12th) vs. Ed Gross (Richie, 1-8, 14th)

Kevin leads all-time series, 7-4.

Kevin and Richie will probably both hold. Kevin because he's historically somewhat conservative and is finishing up the work on his house, and Richie because he's probably well-set with keepers after his earlier trade for George Pickens (vs. GB) and the presence of Tua Tagovailoa (bye) on his roster.

With Tagovailoa on bye for Richie and Cooper Kupp and DeVonta Smith on bye for Kev, this matchup between two of our bottom three teams looks especially rough.

Pick: Ed Gross.

Closing Thoughts

Remember, players can be traded up to kickoff of their week twelve games (or the kickoff of the final game of the week if they have a bye). That's just two weeks away!