2010 Final recap, end-of-year rankings

** CHAMPIONSHIP GAME **
[2] Undefeated (Bob) DEF Favre Failure Wagon (Steve)

It looks as though this game would have been all Steve's: crappy games from UD's Vincent Jackson (WR - SD / 3.70) and Kevin Boss (TE - NYG / 0.00) put him in a great position to win. But a game-ending injury to FFW's Michael Tolbert (RB - SD / -0.10) was a killer.

"But you have to let me off this stretcher - Steve's team needs me!"

But this loss could also have been blamed on Matt Bryant (K - Atl / 2.00), the Chargers Defense (3.78), or Marcedes Lewis (TE - Jac / 2.60).  Going into the Tuesday night game, all Bob needed from his QB was less than 7 points.  Unfortunately for Steve, UD's Quarterback is Mike Vick (QB - Phi / 27.41), who had a strong point value despite a pretty mediocre Eagles loss.  Favre Failure Wagon falls to a 4-2 playoff record (still, not too shabby!) and Undefeated goes to 11-7 in post-season play.  This is Bob's 3rd championship victory in 5 tries, and Steve's second-straight championship appearance; his only losses in the playoffs have been 2 championship games.  You'll get one someday, Steve.

The championship game, like many football championships, was not a particularly exciting one.  But both managers worked hard to get their teams into the playoffs and dominated once they got there.  Winning this season is something to be particularly proud of, since this season had a whopping 14 teams and a large number of fantasy football veterans - finishing with the first place trophy was no easy task.

As for next year, I hope to see you all back.  If you didn't perform well this year, remember that next season is a clean slate and anything could happen.  Please be sure to submit any suggested scoring / roster / rule changes to the Facebook group (which I made a secret one so only members can see it.  I know you're all afraid of being outed as fantasy football nerds).  Thanks for playing!

** FINAL STANDINGS **

Your final standings are below.  I put the regular season finishing rank as well as the variance to that rank from the final standings.

1. Undefeated  /  finished #2 (+1)
2. Favre Failure Wagon  /  finished #4 (+2)
3. Play to Win the Game  /  finished #1 (-2)
4. Mad Max's Mama  /  finished #6 (+2)
5. Sobchak Security  /  finished #3 (-2)
6. Pack Men  /  finished #5 (-1)
7. Little Guy  /  finished #8 (+1)
8. Sexual Chocolate  /  finished #11 (+3)
9. Brown's Backups  /  finished #7 (-2)
10. Boss Hogg  /  finished #9 (-1)
11. RN to the Rescue  /  finished #12 (+1)
12. Boycott LA  /  finished #10 (-2)
13. Two-Hand Touch  /  finished #13 (+0)
14. G-Unit  /  finished #14 (+0)

Season 2010 Playoffs; Week 2

Congratulations to the following teams, who won their place games:

Sobchak Security (7th Place)
RN to the Rescue (11th place)

** [4] Favre Failure Wagon DEF [1] Play to Win the Game **
This game looked to be in the bag for Play to Win the Game.  The only two remaining active players heading into Sunday night's game were his, and they were his best Wide Receivers.  Unfortunately for him, Wes Welker (WR - NE / 2.85) and Danny Woodhead (WR/RB - NE / 8.30) shit the bed.  Even the stellar effort from the Falcons defense (18.16) couldn't overcome the works of FFW's Peyton Manning (QB - Ind / 25.79) and a consistent effort across the board.  Next week FFW plays Undefeated in the championship, while PTW looks to avoid another embarrassment against his wife for third place.

** [2] Undefeated DEF [6] Mad Max's Mama **
Kerri had this game in the bag.  That is, until the freak show that is Michael Vick (QB - Phi / 45.66) busted out for more points in the fourth quarter than I've ever seen.  Without Vick, Undefeated's roster averaged 9.5 points.  It was an impressive effort from Kerri, though - Philip Rivers (QB - SD / 30.55) had another great game and the rest of her roster was strong - 5 of 7 players scored in the double digits.  Mike Vick has not just killed a bunch of innocent dogs - he's also killed Kerri's playoff chances.  Next week Undefeated takes on Favre Failure Wagon for the championship; Mad Max's Mama looks to continue her dominance against Play to Win the Game.

[2] Undefeated -vs- [4] Favre Failure Wagon

The teams, at a glance:
Playoff Winning Percentage: Undefeated (.411% - .800 %)
2010 Head-to-Head: Undefeated (1-0) Favre Failure Wagon
2009 Head-to-Head: Undefeated (1-1) Favre Failure Wagon
Championship appearances: Undefeated (4-2) Favre Failure Wagon
Championships: Undefeated (2-0) Favre Failure Wagon
Percentage of head covered by hair: Undefeated (35%-0%) Favre Failure Wagon

This is a rematch of last year's semifinals, where Steve handed Bob his first loss in 8 weeks on his way to his championship game.  Head-to-Head, they don't have much of a history - Bob has won twice, Steve once.  There's not much to say about this matchup.  Both teams have been the cream of the crop all season long, and are well-deserving of the honor that comes with the biggest season yet of the league.  Can Bob win his third championship, or will the playoff juggernaut Steve win his first championship in just two tries?

Good luck, guys (you bastards).

Season 2010 Playoffs; Week 1

Congratulations to this week's winners, including Sexual Chocolate and Boss Hogg, who advanced in the consolation playoffs.  Sexual Chocolate will play Browns Backups and Boss Hogg will play The Little Guy for the right to battle for 7th place.  It's better than a poke in the eye.  Slightly.

This week's recap:

** [4] Favre Failure Wagon DEF [5] Pack-Men **
Statistically speaking, Pack-Men was projected to win this one.   His QB alone was slated to get almost 30 points, and Steve's just got through with two piss-poor games.  But Favre Failure Wagon had an optimal lineup and Pack-Men's squad simply let him down.  FFW finally got another strong game from Peyton Manning (QB - Ind / 27.36) and the Chargers Defense (16.06) pitched a shutout to bring FFW to a 3-1 record all-time in the championship playoffs.  Brett is now 0-1 in the playoff but has nothing to be ashamed of - nobody expected Aaron Rodgers (QB - GB / 3.31) to throw a stinker in a 3-7 loss against Detroit.  Yes, I said Detroit.  It goes without saying that Donald Driver (WR - GB / 1.10) suffered from that as well.  Poor Brett's starting roster averaged 5.32 points with the exception of his defense.  Favre Failure Wagon will go on to play [1] Play to Win the Game in the Semifinals; Pack-Men goes on to play [3] Sobchak Security in the 5th Place Game.

** [6] Mad Max's Mama DEF [3] Sobchak Security **
Kerri is an impressive manager in the playoffs.  She is now 9-6 all-time in the playoffs and 3-0 against Rick all-time in elimination play.  Rick is now 3-6 in the playoffs.  So, how'd we get here?  The victory for MMM can be chalked up to general consistency from her players and some disappointing performances from otherwise solid Sobchak players (at least those on his active roster).  Rick was done no favors by Ben Roethlisberger (QB - Pit / 15.27), who had a productive game but no touchdowns.  But what really hurt Rick was the players he didn't start - Darren McFadden (RB - Oak / 37.20) and David Garrard (QB - Jac / 27.39) would have turned the tide for his team, but I wouldn't have played them, either.  Of note: Kerri's kicker David Akers (K - Phi / 19.00) outscored everybody else in the matchup with the exception of Philip Rivers (QB - SD / 20.21).  Mad Max's Mama will play [2] Undefeated in the Semifinals; Sobchak Security will play Pack-Men in the 5th Place Game.

Next week's matchups:

[1] Play to Win the Game (playoff record: 10-5-1) -vs- [4] Favre Failure Wagon (playoff record: 3-1)
These teams have never faced off in the Playoffs and are 1-1 against one another all-time.  The last meeting was in week 5, when Favre Failure Wagon prevailed, 88.85 to 65.80.  They have a limited but significant history, and this is sure to be another classic.  Will FFW's Peyton Manning have a great game against Jacksonville, or will he shit the bed?  Can Jeff count on Peyton Hillis to have another monster performance, or is Mendenhall going to be his go-to back?  The winner will face the Undefeated/Mad Max's Mama winner in the Championship.  And yes, that is a tie in PTW's playoff record: his team "King of the Road" tied in the first round against "Cardsin2002" (Brad) in the 2002 playoffs.  Ultimately, Brad's team advanced since he had a better head-to-head record that year.

[2] Undefeated (playoff record: 9-7) -vs- Mad Max's Mama (playoff record: 9-6)
These teams are 1-1 against each other in the playoffs, but haven't met in elimination play since 2006.  Kerri won their week 9 matchup, which resulted in Bob's only loss in a 7-game span.  Will Philip Rivers get Kerri his typical 30 points, or his occasional 11?  (Hint: it's December.  He'll probably do just fine).  Can Bob shake off his 13 loss and take the playoffs series lead?  The winner will face the Play to Win the Game/Favre Failure Wagon victor.

Good luck, teams!

Season 2010 Week 13 Recap - Business Time!

Thanks to everybody for making this such a fun season - to those who made the playoffs, congratulations! Brett, you should be proud for being the only rookie to make it into the playoffs, though this is hardly your first rodeo. Good luck to the teams in the Consolation Playoffs, but I won't be posting recaps of those games. Sorry! I hope to see all of you next season and if you have scoring suggestions, please let me know.

First, the recaps.  Then a preview of next week's playoff matchups!

IN THE PLAYOFFS:
1. Play to Win the Game (10-3 / 1191.72)
2. Undefeated (9-4 / 1210.20)
3. Sobchak Security (9-4 / 1088.97)
4. Favre Failure Wagon (8-5 / 1100.17)
5. Pack-Men (8-5 / 1056.03)
6. Mad Max's Mama (8-5 / 1045.98)

CONSOLATION PLAYOFFS:
7. Brown's Backups (8-5 / 963.41)
8. The Little Guy (6-7 / 1053.26)
9. Boss Hogg (5-8 / 1097.32)
10. Boycott LA (5-8 / 1040.45)
11. Sexual Chocolate (5-8 / 963.32)
12. RN to the Rescue (4-9 / 991.50)

OUT:
13. G-Unit (3-9)
14. Two-Hand Touch (2-10)

BARN-BURNER OF THE WEEK:
** Mad Max's Mama (Kerri) DEF Boycott LA (Matt) by 3.66 points **
A close one!  Matt's only bright spot was Steven Jackson (RB - StL / 26.00).  Although Kerri's squad only had a few players in double-digits, her players were somehow more consistent.  She got an okay game from Philip Rivers (QB - SD / 18.50), but that's about it, too.  This is MMM's second straight win, but her team has to play better if she's going to make it in the playoffs.

** Two Hand Touch (Rex) DEF Undefeated (Bob) by 6.28 points **
Number 1 fell to the last-place team in the league.  What happened to Undefeated his week?  Champ Bailey happened.  The Denver cornerback held UD's Dwayne Bowe (WR - KC / 0.00) to a zero-catch game, helping to knock UD out of first place despite the tremendous game from Mike Vick (QB - Phi / 37.53).  THT also benefited from Matt Ryan (QB - Atl / 19.71) and Reggie Wayne (WR - Ind / 19.50).

** Brown's Backups (Josh) DEF G-Unit (Sam) by 22.73 points **
It's a bad game when G-Unit's Brandon Marshall (WR - Mia / 0.00) has more points in a zero-point game than Brett Favre (QB - Min / -2.00).  Poor Sam didn't have a chance against the likes of Michael Turner (RB - Atl / 22.40) and Jay Cutler (QB - Chi / 19.04).

** Boss Hogg (Jordan) DEF Pack-Men (Brett) by 31.08 points **
This one was close until BH's Tom Brady (QB - NE / 39.21) took out his whoopin' stick and beat the shit out of PM's Jets Defense (2.68).  That was pretty much all she wrote on that one, though Aaron Rodgers (QB - GB / 35.71) had a good game for PM.

** Sobchak Security (Rick) DEF Sexual Chocolate (John) by 36.24 points **
John needed only 38 points from his Tight End on Monday night to beat Rick and to my surprise, he didn't get it.  Does anybody know what's the matter with Chris Johnson (RB - Ten / 10.35)?  Rick got some decent points from LeSean McCoy (RB - Phi / 26.50) and Ben Roethlisberger (QB - Pit / 17.18), whose nose will be a little harder for the police sketch artist to draw in much detail.

** The Little Guy (Kyle) DEF Favre Failure Wagon (Steve) by 49.04 points **
We can second guess Steve's roster all we want.  After all, Ahmad Bradshaw (RB - NYG / 30.00) would have made it a little closer.  But facts are that even with an optimal lineup, TLG would have beaten him by 8 points thanks to Adrian Peterson (RB - Min / 31.65) and Matt Schaub (QB - Hou / 23.13), who are just two of THT's several strong players this week.  Woe to the team who faces Kyle in the Consolation playoffs!

ASS-KICKING OF THE WEEK:
** Play to Win the Game (Jeff) DEF RN to the Rescue (Megan) by 50.61 points **
It wasn't a pretty victory, but a victory was all Jeff needed to take sole posession of first place.  Megan was hamstrung by Percy Harvin (WR - Min / 0.00) and John Carlson (TE - Sea / 0.00), while Jeff was elevated by Drew Brees (QB - NO / 24.94) and the Rams defense (18.20).

** AKOTW Standings **
1. Undefeated (3-0) - Week 2 +39.78 vs GrNeGgSnHaM, Week 3 +17.64 vs Brown’s Backups, Week 7 +58.84 vs Sobchak Security
2. Play to Win the Game (2-0) - Week 11 +68.12 vs Boycott LA, Week 13 +50.61 vs RN to the Rescue
3. Boycott LA (1-2) - Week 8 +54.95 vs RN to the Rescue
4. Pack-Men (1-0) - Week 12 +53.72 vs RN to the Rescue
5. Boss Hogg (1-0) - Week 9 +52.76 vs RN to the Rescue
6. Sexual Chocolate (1-1) - Week 5 +47.88 vs Boycott LA
7. GrNeGgSnHaM (1-3) Week 4 +41.58 vs Sexual Chocolate
8. Sobchak Security (1-1) - Week 10 +34.72 vs Mad Max's Mama
9. RN to the Rescue (1-4) - Week 6 +26.35 vs GrNeGgSnHaM
10. Mad Max’s Mama (1-1) - Week 1 +24.05 vs GrNeGgSnHaM

PLAYOFF MATCHUPS:
** [4] Favre Failure Wagon -vs- [5] Pack-Men **
Since Brett is a Gardner League Rookie, this matchup doesn't have much of a history; in their first meeting, Brett had a huge game from Aaron Rodgers to hand FFW his second of 4 straight losses in the midst of a 1-for-6 finish to the season.  Can FFW's Peyton Manning shake off his low-scoring performances and lead FFW to another run in the playoffs, or will Pack-Men continue his hot streak and end Steve's season in the first round?  The winner will play [1] Play to Win the Game.

** [3] Sobchak Security -vs- [6] Mad Max's Mama **
This game is a rematch of the 2007 title game; it's also a rematch from 2005's semifinals, when Rick's previously undefeated Striving Buddhist squad had it's first meeting with losing.  Rick won this year's matchup to take a 6-5 lead in their all-time series, but here's a fun fact: Kerri is 2-0 against Rick in the playoffs.  So can Rick overcome his playoff slump, or will Kerri's squad continue their postseason dominance against him?  The winner will play [2] Undefeated.