Week 3 News and Notes

NFFL Week 3 recap

A wild week saw a number of teams respond in emphatic ways- overall, the scoring this week was the highest so far in 2015.

DFlam 135, Arbo 112

The biggest win of this week came from DFlam as AJ Green ensured that a week without Brees was not an excuse to drop to 0-3.  The second highest total scorer in the league, Flam is right back in the top four mix now with a W under his belt.

The coach goes back to the drawing board with perhaps the first order of business involving a flex position that is getting shakier each week.  With the usefulness of Kaepernick in question after a dismal outing and lacking a convincing WR1 option- Arbo will have a lot to consider in the build up to a critical week 4 matchup.

Tighe 133, Chessman 97

Tighe romps to a big win over the Big Cheese thanks to three 30’s- Rodgers, Smith SENIOR, and Freeman bringing the Busch latte cases home this time around.  The top heavy nature of this squad is not historically unusual but the ongoing struggles of CJ will be of major concern as the bye weeks hit.

Eifert and AJ Green combined for 34 points but unfortunately for Wiseman he held the empty end of that split.  The Chessman will need a new king as Big Ben limps off the board for his annual stint on the DL- perhaps a rook will do, if the Dorsett appearance is to be believed.  Carr has been a nice revelation as a QB2 and will need to carry the load for a team not equipped to lose a QB (read: has no backup QBs except for backup QBs).

TMac 120, Lee 101

Hot acquisition Terrance Williams is still picking up the offense- as evidenced by his zero points- but who needs him when you get five twenty spots and a strong crew of injured guys in White, Foster, and Cutler?  Well White is not hurt but that injury report is coming in HOT alongside the inevitable Andre Johnson ‘injury’- questionable (age)…the Morris thing is really concerning- guys like him have a history of falling off cliffs (Rudi Johnson?) so that situation bears watching.

The return of Bell saw Lee return to losing ways.  Getting an 8 from a QB is no recipe for success in these parts and Lee should be a bit concerned about Foles- just 40 points from three outings.  The Wiseman formation of starting multiple tight ends netted a total of two points- one per TE.

Thompson 102, Malinn 99

Top of the league?  Thompson?  The Cellar Dweller looks stellar and in a three-point game someone had the game winning score so let’s just say Bortles and one of his garbage time TDs did the trick.  A little over-reliant on the Falcons here so let’s see- who has Thompson during the HOT-LANTA bye week…(FLAM!)…otherwise Thompson might be headed toward a one-loss season.

A tight battle saw Malinn slam his forehead down on the panic button as it is getting a whee bit WIN-DEEEEEEEEEEEE in 0-3 city.  Rumors that Marcus ‘The Cat’ Mariotta wants OUT or at minimum a chance to show her friends back home what she can do should do nothing but add to the swirling trade talks.

Concannon 121, #1 Curran 112

Game of the week lives up to the billing here as it goes right down to Monday night.  The title still feels like it is Curran’s to lose but what is officially a slow start from Hill is cause for concern.  Is Blount back, or just gearing up for the annual ‘200 yard rushing night at Indy- then see ya later…’ tradition?

The Commish moves to 3-0 thanks to a competitively top-heavy attack.  The two QB setup is looking very solid as Mr. Manning begins to come around and with players soon returning from various injuries the bye weeks are looking navigable here for a sustained top four assault.  If anyone is looking for Andre Johnson- buy a carton of milk.

Sean 106, Nemo 56

Sean officially starts the wheeling and dealing season by picking up ‘The Jets QB situation’- I have a nice little prediction for him- if that team goes downhill Sean does not have the Jets starter in December.  How dare he not start Ryan Mathews when he got the call over the injured Murray- Yeldon at RB2 for this one smacks of ‘Concannon-itis’- defined as over-reliance on rookie picks combined with an insistence on proving how smart his draft picks were.  The football gods will surely punish him by causing Mathews to roll an ankle while pulling up his jock next weekend.

Not much to say for Nemo here- the Lynch injury early just about sums this one up after Ivory’s zero snap outing got things rolling downhill.  Everyone gets a loss like this per year so hopefully they saddle up quickly over there at Nemo HQ and move on to Cincinnati.

Trade and waiver analysis

*TMac trades QB Ryan Fitzpatrick and QB Geno Smith to Sean for QB Jimmy Clausen, WR Terrance Williams, and a 2016 4^th round pick

Wooo, a big one!  Or so it seemed, anyway.  Sean picks up some QB flotsam in the form of the ‘Jets situation’ in exchange for a couple of weaks of Clausen and the intriguing Williams.  The trade is a classic now/later deal we see at this stage of the season- TMac can hang in with McCown until Cutler returns while Sean’s cast of cheaper receivers made Williams at least available, if not expendable.  It is notable that the QBs on each side were likely traded at their peak values…

A big factor here was the Romo injury- Williams likely sees a value drop there that offsets his gain from half a season as the #1- but I think I would still shade this deal to TMac a little.  That said, if I was stuck in Sean’s spot, getting this back would be a fairly good return- a solid deal for both sides.

*Vick @ $100 to Tighe, Rawls @ $99 to Lee

Lee and Tighe both hit $0 early in FAAB action as they scoop up this week’s hot pickups.  Vick is a known commodity (a shaky, injury prone one) but his legs should prove an asset during these coming bye weeks with the slight possibility of a trade…

Rawls is less known- unknown, actually- but could be in line for major duties in the event that this is THAT YEAR for Lynch- the bill comes due for every great bruising running back at some point. 

Other sneaky moves I liked:

*Riddick to Malinn could be a spot play with the ongoing chaos in the Lions backfield

*Ginn and Snead to Sean- both WRs are getting targets and although it is unlikely that they are the next Odell Beckham it is possible that we might have this year’s Charles Johnson among the duo- temporary solutions tend to become more permanent than expected on bad teams.

*Gray to Tighe will be intriguing if the Pats trade for him prior to the Indy game.  The entire Dolphins backfield situation is a mess at moment, exciting the only Jay Ajayi owner in the world.

 Week 4 preview

One o’clock games

Chessman v Malinn / Nemo v TMac / Tighe v Curran / Arbo v Concannon

Role reversal?- DFlam v Lee

DFlam has outscored Lee by a wide margin this year- naturally, Lee has a better record.  No flukes or excuses this week.  The key player here might be Brees for Flam- I like his odds on a night game in Dallas- but Winston is a solid backup.  Lee is currently hinting that new man Rawls will line up in the backfield with Eddie Royal out in the slot…uh oh.

Game of the Week- Thompson v Sean

No power ranking as of press time but Thompson is surely in the mix and, in any event, puts his undefeated status up against a squad held together with duct tape and chopsticks.  Thompson is rolling out touchdown reliant Woodhead, Benjamin, and Miller- so this one could get close if the Ryan-Jones connection is a little slow to go on Sunday.

Week 2 News and Notes

NFFL Week 2 recap

A week that saw half the league bit by that mysterious injury bug saw some surprise results and some unfortunate results on our standings…highlights:

*Curran’s second straight league leading week moved him to the top of the board

*Lee tied atop the standings with the tenth highest total points tally

*Four teams remain winless as the bye weeks loom

Lee 86, Sean 80

We start in sad-sack city- the Big D- well represented here and a number of players that crisscross rosters as a result.  The Romo injury was a big one here and in any six-point loss it could be termed the deciding factor.  Lee will consider that fair exchange for the loss of leading receiver Bryant…to which Sean may counter that Lee’s beloved ‘Davantes’ Adams had no value until Nelson went down.  Tough times, indeed.

Overall, Lee was able to sneak away with a handful of shaky calls- Williams had just five touches as a RB2 and Foles put up just ten points at QB.  The luck is likely run out soon…Sean will need to pick up the pieces as arguably his top three guys- Nelson, Romo, and Hyde- are all out or ready to sit.

Arbo 113, Nemo 105

The Coach and defending champion find the win column with a gutsy display against Nemo’s 3^rd scoring team.  Sitting Allen Robinson was a move that did not bite back and gives Arbo another intriguing option going forward.  The status of QB Stafford will be a big story for a team lacking a backup QB.

Nemo was poised to move to 2-0 but should be encourage with another strong outing.  The starting lineup will continue to be menacing barring injury (barring injury!!!) so look for Nemo to remain a tough out early on.  What happens when that bug comes biting, or perhaps even just a series of bye weeks comes in, remains to be seen and depth will certainly need to be addressed to maintain a top four challenge.

#1 Curran 126, DFlam 95

Curran retains top spot with another league leading week.  Behind his outstanding QB play, Curran is almost a widely regarded lock for a top-four finish and is the current favorite among the bookmakers.  However, the early struggles of Hill and Jennings are cause for some alarm- there is not much behind those guys at RB.  Rumors of a Lewis-Palmer swap are being started in this sentence but should pick up steam moving forward…

Flam is our first of four winless squads but he has been OK so far.  Goose eggs from Allen and Abdullah hurt while Sankey returned to his 2014 form.  Fitzgerald presented himself as an option last week and could see a switch to a four-receiver set as soon as this week.  Despite the tough start, solid QB play and three top receivers mean Flam will likely sit tight and ride out a tough start.

Concannon 97, Malinn 85

There have been some good late-night battles over the years here but it was not to be thanks to the return of Luck to 2014 AFC Championship game form.  The commish saw injuries to non-essential personnel continue to mount but hung on thanks to fifteen from the late-sub Decker.  With the QBs clicking, league-leading depth elsewhere should allow the good times to continue.

Malinn would have expected more from his team after two weeks and the 0-2 start is surely cause for some concern.  With an extra QB at his disposal thanks to the Weeden ‘investment’- I think a deal is almost a guarantee before next week. 

Thompson 90, Tighe 71

Thompson ascends to 2-0 after a strong start.  With possible rookie breakout candidates in Jones and Johnson- could Thompson be the dark horse in the league after two weeks?  The QB play remains the only question but with signal callers dropping left and right- who is to say that Thompson is not among the well positioned at the moment?

Tighe drops to 0-2 and the injuries at the moment are not helping- all three RBs this week were impacted.  Freeman is the only other option here and his ascension in the wake of the Coleman injury could provide a temporary boost.  The slow start for Bradford might be of concern if things do not change and soon- however, Sanchez proved a capable deputy last season and could repeat those heroics, fantasy-wise, if a switch was made.

Chessman 105, TMac 82

The rolling dumpster fire barrels through TMac, sending the latter to 0-2.  Sideman has now started Parker for two straight games and the player has responded to his coach’s show of faith by tallying zero total points.  Depth does remain a minor issue here.  As long as Derek Carr can continue to approach thirty points per game- things should be just fine here.

Tmac will need to consider some emergency measures if the declines for White and Wallace have not been over exaggerated.  The Cutler injury is a minor cause for concern but with Picks-Patrick  ready to step in, the impact might be reduced.  TMac had to have been hoping to sneak a couple of wins, pre-Foster, but it looks like those hopes are quickly being dashed.

That damn injury bug!

We all hate that stupid bug…but who has caught it the worst?

Honorable mention must go to my sorry squad- although no major injuries outside of the gimpy Alshon Jeffrey- by my count thirteen players have been impacted, slowed, or stopped by injury so far in 2015- Wtten, Decker, Jeffrey, Coleman, Bell, White, Gurley, Mason, Cruz, Quick, Turbin, Herron, Ajayi.  That is half the roster!  Caveats must be made for those selected despite knowledge of said injury and, again, the lack of any impact guys going down- so we’ll sit here with honorable mention.

Third prize goes to Lee…the sheer volume of week one woes left us shellshocked.  Ellington, Hilton, and Bryant are key guys while Bell going down…oh, you mean he was not hurt?  Never mind him.   The Adams injury this week bears watching- all four guys starters on a team with a paper thin WR corps…

Second prize goes to Tighe- his squad struggled through a very targeted assault by said bug, with starting RB trio Lacy, Anderson, and Miller all impacted this week.  Low quantity, high quality could see the likes of Matt Asiata summoned in the worst case scenario this week.

And the winner…going going SLOD to Sean as the ROMO ROMO ROMO ROMO ROMO effect takes full hold.  The Nelson one was a tough break, the Hyde injury you hate to see to such a promising guy, but ROMO ROMO ROMO ROMO ROMO has long been a buyer beware around these parts and I am sure his injury came to the surprise of zero league members.

Waiver wire roundup

Lots of activity on the wire this week…

*Matthews to TMac- TMac picks up a sneaky option here ahead of Malinn and Tighe.  With 13 targets over two games, Matthews could be in the range of six to eight points over the next couple of games provided he maintains that early pace.

*Benjamin to Thompson- big activity on this bid as Thompson edges Sheckels, TMac, and Tighe.  Benjamin is very much a ‘boom or bust’ type here and with the QB situation in flux it remains to be seen how much value any Browns WR could carry.  A speculative gamble at that price.

*Gillmore, Crocket to DFlam- Twenty one bucks says I can be fantasy relevant again, any takers?  Gillmore returns to the scene after a brief cup of tea with Malinn last year.  Flacco’s preference for TEs makes this an interesting pickup going forward.

*Clausen to Sean- Sean picks up some extortion insurance here for a fee…but…

*McCown to DFlam- Flam makes an uncontested pickup here and at $58 to boot…needless to say, at $21 Flam now is at the bottom of the FAAB standings.  Can McCown step in and do a decent Brees impression?  If so, the price is right here as that would lock him in as a strong QB2 in this league.  However, the decline of the Saints offense has been alarming and significant.  Stay tuned.

 Week 3 preview- One o’clock games

Arbo v DFlam / Chessman v Tighe / Nemo v Sean

2-0 v 0-2

TMac v Lee

Malinn v Thompson

A pair of contests sees 2-0 squads battle winless opponents in games that could create some real definition in the standings.  Wins from Malinn and TMac should arrest early slumps while Thompson and Lee look to keep the good times rolling

Game of the Week

Concannon v #1 Curran

Generally, not a big fan of tooting my own horn in this space but a clash of 2-0 squads with the #1 ranked unit involved is generally not to be missed.  Curran has topped the scoreboard on two straight occasions but the commish has had the touch so far in 2015- yet another fine chapter in the Brady-Manning rivalry to be written this weekend (perhaps).

Week 1 News and Notes

NFFL Week 1 recap

A sluggish first week across the board for many saw just three teams crack the one hundred barrier and a top-three clash fizzle out into a battle of attrition…

Nemo 100, DFlam 99

The game of the week saw Nemo sneak past DFlam behind a subpar but sufficient ten points from last year’s first round choice, QB Bridgewater.  In what was a straightforward MNF matchup, the ten points proved a mighty struggle but the final result ended up being what many expected entering the week’s final game.

Nemo is off to a winning start but the depth is already being tested- Bush and Jackson both exited their games.  DFlam was letdown by just sixteen points from star WR trio Green, Beckham, and Sanders but should be able to bounce back nicely if his somewhat unreliable backfield holds up given his strong QB play.

Concannon 87, Tighe 82

Most likely a ‘game of the week’ given the lofty power rankings of the two squads- but this one was more dud than anything else.  It did come down to MNF as rookie RB Coleman made his case for the next great PB Tzar flex play rookie back with just enough conviction to hold off Bradford’s late surge.

The impending fantasy irrelevance of Manning may be coming a year early for the commish’s tastes- however, with Mallet in the fold the blow may be cushioned a tiny bit in a worst case scenario.  The squad has a sneaky large number of irrelevant injuries but the first team remains unscathed.  Tighe will no doubt be alarmed by the debut of Anderson in terms of both workload and output- however, any improvements to the squad will need to originate elsewhere thanks to a relatively thin RB corps.  Moncrief is one to watch in September- with starters Hilton and Johnson struggling in the opener, the talented year two man may see a significant boost in playing time.

Thompson 121, Chessman 81

Thompson holds off the dumpster fire with a fairly convincing win.  That said, the Woodhead performance could be more fluke than reliable and should see Thompson down towards more of the middle of the league going forward.  Playing Bortles over Smith is likely to not be replicated.

Where to go with Wiseman that the power rankings did not?  DeVante Parker played one snap out of the flex position and that about sums it up.  The injury to Carr hurt team output and the benching of Hoyer did not improve the backup situation- with little else on the bench, 81 could be a high-water mark for quite some time.

Sean 98, TMac 84

Sean picks up an opening W in week 1, showing that life after Jordy is going to be a little more feisty than some experts predicted.  Hyde showed RB1 potential in the late game and combined with Ryan ‘Touchdown Machine’ Mathews- TJ Yeldon- perhaps a workable arrangement is emerging in the backfield.  The bench showed enough life for optimism.

TMac will need to exercise a little patience- Foster is still out, for one- but the lack of options at RB/WR behind Morris (scored exactly 12 fantasy points for the 456th straight game, approximately) will require a closer look. 

Lee 87, Arbo 63

Heavy lies the crown…hard to tell which team is more disappointed.  Lee took the W and got some reassuring outings from his better lights- however, the injury list is longer than my patience to type it and all roads to the trade block run right through Lee.  Brandon Coleman is on the bench…more on him shortly.

Coach Arbo will likely have his team running extra wind sprints after an embarrassing outing to open his title defense.  Slow starts from AP and Olsen can be overlooked but some of the players he was relying on for breakouts really did not give much reason for hope.  The emergence, possibly, of Arbo favorite ASJ combined with a looming return for Gates could see Olsen hit the block early in the hopes of finding someone more useful for that flex position.

#1 Curran 132, Malinn 92

The year of Father Coffee?  A widely unexpected move to match Brady’s auction bid pays off handsomely here as #12 paced a balanced approach to defend the #1 ranking with style.  With Johnny Football finding his way onto the field and Palmer reportedly griping for more playing time- a deal could be had to further strengthen the current top dog.

A tough loss for Malinn but not much can be done against the leading scorer.  The Mariota party is in full force and presents options if Malinn tires of Newton early on.  There was not much going on behind the scenes here so patience with underperformers Watkins and Randle will be required prior to returns of Cruz/Bryant relegating Randle/Wheaton (respectively) to likely third fiddles in those passing attacks.

Week 2 Preview

A quiet waiver wire and lack of activity on the trade front indicate that teams are willing to wait another week, at least, to confirm any early hunches.  The week two slate:

Chessman v TMac   /   Concannon v Malinn   /   Arbo v Nemo

Notable matchups…

Thompson v Tighe

Tighe and Thompson square off just one week after opening performances did not meet power ranking expectations. 

Beth Israel Bowl- Sean v Lee

An injury to Nelson seemed to doom Sean and relegated him to an early 11^th ranking- Lee countered last week for the medical crown by seeing approximately seventeen players admitted to the hospital.  The focus on Terrance Williams that may come due to the Bryant injury could be one particularly cruel path to 0-2 for Lee.

Game of the Week- DFlam v #1 Curran

DFlam posted a strong season opener but fell to Nemo in a tough one by just a single point.  Curran enters wedding weekend riding high- can Flam recover from disappointment to pick up a first win?

Quotes of the week

‘Mariota has 4 tds’- half of the league

I think I got a pretty good idea of who thought I was serious about picking him #1 and who thought I was bluffing.  A wildly impressive start for the young Titan, to be sure.

‘The start of the Brandon Coleman era’ -Lee

Lee was too busy dusting off his crystal ball to focus on writing his MNF update on time this week.  Oh well.  Coleman will be a part of the solution on a day that saw half of Lee’s team wind up in the hospital.

‘Football, glorious football’ –Sean, quoting (I believe) Dave Dameshek

Welcome back, everyone.  Good luck to all for the rest of the season.