The Sanderson Gazette - 2025-11-19 - Easy Street

Week 11 Recap

Rabbit def. Richie, 93.28-74.50

Richie came very close to pulling off a major upset in the Game of the Blingaweek, needing Brock Bowers (9.60) to outscore George Pickens (25.20) by just about 3.20 points. As you can see, that didn't happen, so Rabbit stayed at first place at 9-2.

Each of these two had a healthy player get a zero; Quentin Johnston for Richie and Jonnu Smith for Rabs. Pickens was the only twenty-point scorer.

Scott def. Mike R., 155.97-112.43

For a bit, it looked like Mike might suffer another devastating loss, but this one stayed in the "tough" zone. Scott got huge games from Bijan Robinson (27.60), Dak Prescott (26.50), and the Steelers defense (23.00) to break 150 for the second time this season. Trey McBride (21.33) was Mike's top player.

Ed def. Derrek, 105.08-103.30

Ed and Derrek had their matchup decided by less than ten points for the sixth time in their last seven games; they've also both scored 100 points in six of their last nine times going against each other.

This week, Tetairoa McMillan (29.33) had the best game of his professional career for Ed, and George Kittle added 20.93. Derrek - as he so often has done this season - got elite games from two players (Christian McCaffrey (31.43) and TreVeyon Henderson (28.33)) and bad ones from most of his team.

The QBs - Lamar Jackson (4.15 for Ed) and Justin Herbert (3.15 for D) - were horrible on both sides of this matchup.

Schertz def. Matt, 126.80-63.32

Jacoby Brissett (26.40, and the new record-holder for completions in a regular season game), Jameson Williams (18.63), Nico Collins (18.27), and De'Von Achane (18.00) gave Schertz's playoff odds a huge boost... though playing Matt's dying star of a team certainly helped, too. Our Monster Heel dropped his ninth straight, with Caleb Williams's 11.25 as his only double-digit showing.

Kevin def. Pulley, 104.56-81.24

Kevin continued rolling, with Jahmyr Gibbs (18.17) and Deebo Samuel (16.17) leading the way. Pulley, surprisingly, didn't put up much resistance; Patrick Mahomes II (14.60) and Amon-Ra St. Brown (5.60) were among his disappointing players.

Rob def. Pat, 97.82-46.75

Rob's team had a fine week, with Michael Wilson (24.67) filling in stupendously for the injured Marvin Harrison, Jr. But - and are you sensing a theme here - Rob didn't really need it, as Pat put up his worst score in more than seven years.

Dave def. Babel, 93.91-77.15

Josh Allen (45.85) had a huge game for Dave, who got bad news in the form of an injury to Josh Jacobs (4.00). Babel's score, while bad, was actually his highest mark in three weeks.

Standings

  1. Rabbit, 9-2, 1,327.65
  2. Kevin, 9-2, 1,214.55
  3. Rob, 8-3, 1,077.56
  4. Dave, 7-4, 1,128.97
  5. Scott, 6-5, 1,243.12
  6. Schertz, 6-5, 1,149.83
  7. Richie, 6-5, 924.83
  8. Pulley, 5-6, 1,106.39
  9. Ed, 5-6, 1,081.23
  10. Mike R., 4-7, 1,238.49
  11. Pat, 4-7, 937.68
  12. Derrek, 3-8, 1,051.00
  13. Babel, 3-8, 950.57
  14. Matt, 2-9, 939.02 (e)
  • (e) - eliminated from playoff contention

Blingalytics Ratings

  1. Rabbit, 747
  2. Mike R., 653
  3. Scott, 644
  4. Kevin, 612
  5. Schertz, 566
  6. Dave, 547
  7. Pulley, 520
  8. Rob, 494
  9. Ed, 481
  10. Derrek, 456
  11. Pat, 336
  12. Richie, 335
  13. Matt, 315
  14. Babel, 295

Weekly Awards

Team Blangums

Scott's 155.97 is his highest score of the year and earned him his third Team Blangums of the season.

Slapped Heartbeat

Pat's 46.75 is the second worst score of the year and also just the second sub-50 game since 2021.

Weekly MVP

Josh Allen put up a whopping 45.85 for Dave.

Dud of the Week

Justin Herbert scored just 3.15 in a winnable game for Derrek.

Start of the Week

Ed played Kareem Hunt (12.30) over Dalton Schultz (6.80) and Tyler Lockett (4.40) and got a narrow win due to it.

Misplay of the Week

Derrek could have played Jakobi Meyers (8.53) over Jerry Jeudy (2.80) and beaten Ed.

Pickup of the Week

Mike R. lost, but it wasn't because he picked up Brock Purdy (20.80) to play instead of J.J. McCarthy (7.50) at the last minute.

Blessed Cahoots

The Broncos got close enough to the end zone for Wil Lutz (19.00) to kick a 35-yard field goal to end the game instead of a 53-yarder. That small difference meant that Ed hung on to a win and could exclaim, "Blessed cahoots!"

Pryor Play of the Week

Tetairoa McMillan hasn't had a bad rookie year, but his 29.33 in week eleven was higher than his previous two highest scores combined.

Playoff Scenarios

Rabbit has clinched a playoff berth.

Kevin has clinched a playoff berth.

Rob clinches a playoff berth with:

  • a win.

(Matt has been eliminated from playoff contention.)

Playoff Scenarios, Part II

Rabbit and Kevin are in, as a maximum of six teams can reach their current nine-win total. That's because all three current 6-5 teams cannot win out, as there are upcoming matchups between them (Richie-Schertz and Richie-Scott).

Rabbit and Kevin can each also effectively sew up a bye with a win and a loss by Rob; while that wouldn't mathematically clinch it, each is far enough ahead of Rob (and Dave) in points that being two games up with two to play would mean they are nearly impossible to pass.

Rob needs a win and a loss by any of the three 6-5 teams (Scott, Schertz, and Richie) to clinch a berth. Since he plays Schertz, merely winning will take care of both ends of that.

Dave cannot formally clinch, but if he wins this week against Richie, he'll be two games up on the latter and way ahead in points, and essentially uncatchable. (This doesn't apply to the other two 6-5 teams, Scott and Schertz, as they're both currently ahead of Dave in points.)

Week 12 Preview

Game of the Blingaweek

Double Digits (Dave, 7-4, 4th) vs. Somehow 6-4 [sic] (Richie, 6-5, 7th)

Richie leads all-time series, 8-6.

  • Dave still plays: Rabbit, Kevin
  • Richie still plays: Schertz, Scott

This is a big game for Dave. As noted above, a win more or less locks up a playoff spot. But a loss could lead to some scary times; Dave's next two opponents are a combined 18-4 right now! Josh Allen (@HOU) faces a tough defense, and on a Thursday night, to boot. And will Josh Jacobs (vs. MIN) play? Will DeVonta Smith (@DAL) bounce back from an awful week eleven? That's a lot of questions for a team that's 7-4.

Richie's still at the bottom of the league in points - his historically bad week two is still pulling him down - but he's still got a shot at the playoffs. He can help himself immensely with a hot streak to end the year, as each one of his wins would be against a team that is currently just ahead of him in the standings. Trevor Lawrence (@ARI) is his QB this week, but the bigger question is which, if any, of his RBs play well; Breece Hall (@BAL), Travis Etienne, Jr. (@ARI), and Tyrone Tracy, Jr. (@DET) have all been good at times, awful at others.

Pick: Somehow 6-4.

Other Blingamatches

Rob for Today (Rob, 8-3, 3rd) vs. schertzopotamus (Schertz, 6-5, 6th)

Schertz leads all-time series, 11-4.

  • Rob still plays: Derrek, Pulley
  • Schertz still plays: Richie, Pat

Sitting at eight wins, Rob is all but assured of a playoff berth; while he could miss if he loses out, it would require a very unlikely set of other events to push him out of the postseason for the first time since 2021. That's why missing a few key players - Courtland Sutton and Oronde Gadsden - to their byes isn't a big deal. And with the stack of Baker Mayfield and Emeka Egbuka (both @LAR) on his team, he's capable of blowing up, regardless.

Schertz, on the other hand, does need to get some wins. While his remaining schedule is not particularly tough, losing to a fellow 6-5 team (Richie) next week could be a huge hit to his playoff hopes. If Jacoby Brissett (vs. JAC) and Nico Collins (vs. BUF) repeat their week eleven performances, Schertz will be fine. If not, with De'Von Achane on bye, things could get a lot dicier for him.

Pick: schertzopotamus.

Let him Mind the Gap! (Scott, 6-5, 5th) vs. Keep Calm & Stefon (Babel, 3-8, 13th)

Scott leads all-time series, 4-3.

  • Scott still plays: Pulley, Richie
  • Babel still plays: Mike R., Ed

Scott's coming off an excellent week, but even with three Team Blangums awards in tow, his first postseason berth ever is still very much in doubt - and he's lost team name inspiration Drake London to injury for at least this week. And the fact that his Dak Prescott / CeeDee Lamb (both vs. PHI) face an opponent that has been suppressing opposing offenses lately adds another layer of concern. On the bright side, Bijan Robinson (@NO) might be the only Falcons player worthy of any touches these days.

Another thing in Scott's favor is that his opponent, Babel, is basically just playing out the string. Quinshon Judkins (@LV) and Drake Maye (@CIN) have been more than anyone expected heading into the season, but the rest of Babel's roster - which includes guys like Parker Washington (@ARI) and Josh Downs (@KC) - leaves a lot to the imagination.

Pick: Let him Mind the Gap!

Pullman's MondoSquad (Pulley, 5-6, 8th) vs. D's Nuts (Derrek, 3-8, 12th)

Pulley leads all-time series, 13-9.

  • Pulley still plays: Scott, Rob
  • Derrek still plays: Rob, Rabbit

Pulley lost his first three, then won five in a row, but now has lost three straight again. He is going to need help to make the playoffs, and his schedule is not favorable. Patrick Mahomes II (vs. IND) will need to bounce back from two consecutive poor showings, and old men Aaron Jones, Sr. (@GB) and Alvin Kamara (vs. ATL) will need to show they still have enough in the tank if Pulley wants to move back into the contender ranks.

Derrek, despite his record, is no pushover. By expected wins, he has an 85% chance of having four or more wins, but sits at just 3-7. This week looks rough, though; neither of his two rostered QBs, Justin Herbert (bye) and Michael Penix, Jr. (IR), is available. Neither are Ladd McConkey or week eleven star Wil Lutz, who are both on bye.

Pick: Pullman's MondoSquad.

Live Commish (Ed, 5-6, 9th) vs. The Vistas are Back (Pat, 4-7, 11th)

Ed leads all-time series, 11-6.

  • Ed still plays: Kevin, Babel
  • Pat still plays: Matt, Schertz

Ed's in a situation similar to Pulley's; he can make the playoffs, but he needs a lot of help - though his schedule is easier on paper. Lamar Jackson and Derrick Henry (vs. NYJ) could be on the winning side of a blowout this week, which is good, and George Kittle (vs. CAR) has been back to his old self for the past two weeks. If Tetairoa McMillan's (@SF) week eleven is a sign of things to come, Ed actually has a chance to make some noise.

Meanwhile, Pat's roster has just been falling apart at the seams. Sam Darnold (@TEN) has been a bust since Pat traded away Josh Allen; Rashid Shaheed (@TEN) has not been featured heavily on his new team; and Ashton Jeanty (vs. CLE) is on a disaster of a team.

Pick: Live Commish.

The Chocolate Donuts (Kevin, 9-2, 2nd) vs. Bernie's Bullies (Mike R., 4-7, 10th)

Mike R. leads all-time series, 11-7.

  • Kevin still plays: Ed, Dave
  • Mike R. still plays: Babel, Matt

Kevin's poised to make the playoffs for the first time since his championship 2020 season, though this week could be a challenging win. Ja'Marr Chase will miss the game over a suspension and Deebo Samuel, Sr. and Keenan Allen are on bye, which means that right now, Kevin's only active WR looks to be Jordan Addison (@GB).

Mike, at 4-7, almost certainly will need to win out to make the playoffs despite being second in expected wins and third in points and all-play record. Brock Purdy's (vs. CAR) return from injury went well last week, but will Mike go with him or Daniel Jones (@KC) at QB? Trey McBride (vs. JAC) has been a monster lately, with six touchdowns in his last five games, and Tee Higgins (vs. NE) should benefit from Chase's suspension.

Pick: Bernie's Bullies.

Pralines & Dick (Rabbit, 9-2, 1st) vs. Harrison Hammers (Matt, 2-9, 14th)

Rabbit leads all-time series, 14-9.

  • Rabbit still plays: Dave, Derrek
  • Matt still plays: Pat, Mike R.

It looks like Matt's going to move all alone into second place on the longest losing streak list.

Pick: Pralines & Dick.

Closing Thoughts

The trade deadline is this week. That means that once a player's game has started this week (or the final game of the week, for bye week players), they can no longer be included in a deal. So if you want to trade any Bills or Texans, you need to do it before the Thursday night game kicks off!