Week 1 Preview

Game of the Blingaweek

Live Commish (Ed) vs. Rob for Today (Rob)

Ed leads all-time series, 11-8.

We'll start off with the rematch of last year's Blingabowl.

Ed will send out one of the strongest pairs of RBs in the league in Breece Hall (@SF) and Jonathan Taylor (vs. HOU). Spending all that keeper capital on high-ADP RBs left him with less-than-ideal WRs, though, meaning he'll rely on Tee Higgins (vs. NE) and Amari Cooper (vs. DAL). Will the former be able to capitalize on Ja'Marr Chase's lack of participation in team activities so far? Will the latter produce without Joe Flacco at QB? Is that second question really being asked in 2024?

Rob has his own WR with uncertainty in the form of CeeDee Lamb (@CLE). Lamb will certainly play, but will his now-over holdout result in suboptimal results? Is Justin Herbert (vs. LV) a better QB play than Dak Prescott (@CLE) because of that? How will Saquon Barkley (vs. GB) - or any Packers and Eagles, for that matter - look playing the first NFL game in Brazil?

Pick: Live Commish.

Other Blingamatches

Harrison Hammers (Matt) vs. Pralines & Dick (Rabbit)

Rabbit leads all-time series, 13-8.

This matchup looks like a battle of early vs. late. Rabbit has Lamar Jackson (@KC) and Rashee Rice (vs. BAL) going tonight; a shootout in Kansas City could set him up nicely. But Matt has the Brock Purdy / George Kittle (vs. NYJ) stack stashed until Monday night's game, so unless Rabbit is up huge, this one won't be over until the last minute.

Oh, and it's a battle of Dolphin WRs: Tyreek Hill for Matt vs. Jaylen Waddle for Rabbit (both vs. JAC).

Pick: Harrison Hammers.

Keep Calm & Keon (Babel) vs. Pullman's MondoSquad (Pulley)

Babel leads all-time series, 14-11.

Brandon Aiyuk's (vs. NYJ) post-draft extension has to make Babel feel a lot better about his team. Having a surefire WR1 to add to Josh Allen (vs. ARI) and Travis Kelce (vs. BAL) makes him a solid contender entering the season. Sure, James Conner (@BUF) is his top RB, but let's not focus on that.

Pulley has his usual veteran-laden team. Matthew Stafford (@DET) will start at QB, and Josh Jacobs (@PHI), Stefon Diggs (@IND), and Cooper Kupp (@DET) have all been around the block.

Pick: Keep Calm & Keon.

Slap it Again! (Scott) vs. Bernie's Bullies (Mike R.)

Scott leads all-time series, 5-1.

Scott has a strong Monday-Friday WR combo in A.J. Brown (vs. GB) and Deebo Samuel (vs. NYJ) and should be fine at that position. It's also easy to see keepers Anthony Richardson (vs. HOU) and James Cook (vs. ARI) having big games, too. If Kyle Pitts (vs. PIT) can hit his potential with Kirk Cousins now throwing him passes, Scott looks dangerous.

Mike will hope that the Jared Goff / Amon-Ra St. Brown stack (vs. LAR) picks up where it left off last year. Terry McLaurin (@TAM) might have a rookie QB, but he's also the only real WR present on the Commanders, so that looks promising, too. But ultimately, Mike's season will hinge on whether Mike Evans (vs. WAS) and Alvin Kamara (vs. CAR) can hold off Father Time.

Pick: Bernie's Bullies.

schertzopotamus (Schertz) vs. Ed "richie Armor" gross (Dave)

Schertz leads all-time series, 7-5.

Schertz has the highest Yahoo projection of the week, driven by Christian McCaffrey (vs. NYJ) and Jalen Hurts (vs. GB). There's some risk in playing the Ravens defense (@KC) tonight, though.

Meanwhile, Dave has a new team name. This joke is only going to be funny once, guys.

Pick: schertzopotamus.

The Vistas are Back (Pat) vs. D's Nuts (Derrek)

Derrek leads all-time series, 10-5.

Pat will be looking to get off to a strong start tonight, with Derrick Henry (@KC) suiting up for the Ravens for the first time. A Vikings-Giants shootout will help him, too, as he also is starting Malik Nabers (vs. MIN) and Aaron Jones (@NYG).

Derrek will be hoping for a shootout in a different game: Texans-Colts. If that happens, it'll be likely that C.J. Stroud (@IND), Tank Dell (@IND), and Matt Gay (vs. HOU) all put up nice scores.

Pick: The Vistas are Back.

Ed Gross (Richie) vs. The Chocolate Donuts (Kevin)

Kevin leads all-time series, 7-5.

These two exists to torment me, I swear. Richie with his team name and Kevin because he, for some reason, has only filled 4/9 of his lineup so far.

Pick: The Chocolate Donuts.

Closing Thoughts

Good luck to everyone in year seventeen of Blingaleague!

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