Division E2: Statement Wins, No More Excuses, and Playoff Beers
Week 9 is here and we are officially in the home stretch of the FlagPlus Football regular season with the playoffs just around the corner.
First a fringe team, now a contender?
Three weeks ago, I released my Second Half Questions article (https://flagplusfootball.com/league/flagplus-football/articles/article/218). In it, I mentioned that I thought [Enter Team Name Here] would qualify for the playoffs given their defense and veteran experience. At the time they sat on the outside of the race looking in. Fast-forward to Week 9, and this team is arguably one of the hottest in the division. If you look at their record they have gone (1-1-1) since mid season. That isn’t necessarily anything to write home about, but you have to look at who they played.
The one loss was ugly, as they got hammered (42-6) by Molson Import. In their defense, [Enter Team Name Here] was without their starting Quarterback in Kenny Boutilier, who had to leave their prior game versus No Porkin Around due to a rib injury.
Since his return to the lineup, the team hasn’t suffered a loss.
They fought tooth and nail, in a (34-34) tie versus first place Trailer Park Boys. It was the first and only blemish on the latter’s record so far. I watched the game. Ironically enough, it was the [Enter Team Name Here] defense that let them down, as their inability to stop the deep ball was the only reason they didn’t get the win, even though they were the better team on the field that day.
Yesterday at Concordia, [Enter Team Name Here] stepped it up defensively, as the unit helped hold the number one-ranked Tops'n Tops offense to a season-low 20 points. The defense was aided by a huge performance from Rusher Zackary Alberts-Gill, who had a pass deflection to go along with a game-high five sacks. The future FPF Hall-of-Famer and all-time leader in Quarterback takedowns has a chance to crack 430 for his career this season. Talk about impressive.
On offense, the team also put up a season-high in points in their (40-20) win. Boutilier threw for five touchdowns and added another on the ground to go with six carries for 71 yards.
The win has [Enter Team Name Here] in seventh place. The thrill of victory will be short-lived, as the team is on the backend of back-to-back weekend games, as they take on the fifth-place Flag Dealers this afternoon in Laval. A win for [Enter Team Name Here] would see them leapfrog the Stables for the sixth.
With a game against Super Bock remaining after that, [Enter Team Name here] has a chance to enter the post-season as the hottest and most dangerous squad in Division E2, and a team no one will want to face come playoff time.
Are the Trailer Park Bous a legit number one team?
I mentioned earlier that they were lucky to escape their (34-34) tie against [Enter Team Name Here] with a point. Credit to Quarterback Antoine Meunier for finding the weakness in his opponent’s defense and continually attacking it. Football can be a simple game sometimes. It gets messed up when people or teams try to make it complicated. Meunier avoided making that mistake.
Facing another hungry team yesterday in Vengeance, the Trailer Park Boys eked out a hard-fought (18-8) victory. The victors got a solid effort from sub Rayray Franklin. The speed two-way threat caught his only two targets for 38 yards and a touchdown, while also adding a sack on defense.
When looking at his stats, Meunier was far from perfect as he threw for only 114 yards, to go along with three touchdowns and two interceptions, but he was transformative in the sense that his deep ball which has been a staple of the offense for most of the season, wasn’t there yesterday afternoon. Instead of living or in this case dying by it, he switched to the short passing game and exploited the holes in the Vengeance defense.
None of his receivers in Franklin, Alex Meunier, Frederic Meunier, Jean-Sebastien St-Arneault, nor Marc-Etienne Simard had more than 40 yards receiving, but they didn’t need to.
This is the type of grind it out win that good teams must have. While their tie against [Enter Team Name Here] suggested that Trailer Park Boys are a one-dimensional team that relies on the deep ball, they showed thye can win a different way. They also displayed versatility and a toughness that is indicative of a squad that will not only be a hard out in the playoffs, but is also a legit first place team.
Fallen and Can’t Get Up
For Vengeance, the loss was their second in a row, and fourth in their last five games overall. I spoke to team Quarterback Matthew Chadwick after the defeat. He was proud of the performance of his teammate Josh Currie who led all players with eight grabs for 85 yards, one touchdown, and two interceptions, but his disappointment over losing was hard to ignore.
With two games left on their schedule, the veteran pivot knows his team is running out of time. Vengeance currently sits in tenth place. Luckily for them they are tied for points with No Porkin Around with six, but the latter has two games in hand.
Vengeance can only control what they can control, and that starts with a huge matchup tomorrow night at Papineau versus a Flag Dealers squad that is looking to stay within shouting distance of first place, as they sit just three points out. I will be the scorekeeper for that game.
The time for excuses is over for Vengeance. Win and give yourselves a chance to make the post-season. Lose, and remain on the outside looking in for good.
Today’s Showdown
I already talked in detail about [Enter Team Name Here]. Let me go a little further on Flag Dealers. As I mentioned earlier, they are in fifth place but sit just three points out of the top spot. A victory today would allow them to leapfrog Illegal Aliens for third, and see them tied with Molson Import and Tops'n Tops for second place.
This game will come down to two things:
Can leading Quarterback of the Year candidate Roy Khalil keep the ball out of harms way while trying to avoid the non-stop motor of Rusher Zackary Alberts-Gill? Expecting another five sacks is probably unrealistic, but Khalil isn’t exactly Lamar Jackson out there. The QB will need to get rid of the ball quickly to evade the constant pressure.
The second thing is can the [Enter Team Name Here] defense have another repeat performance? The Flag Dealers have arguably the best Receiving corps in the division with Marc Haddad, Mike Sirhan, Eric Hamparsoumian, Michael Haddad, and Garbis Garabedian. To get the win, this can’t be the Kenny and Zack show. The team’s other defenders in Josh Vazquez, Kento Kitano, Ricard Martelly, and especially Jonothan Joseph will be tested. They need to step up and make some plays.
Super Bock with a refreshing victory
Coming into Tuesday night in Brossard ahead of their matchup with Special Agents, Super Bock sat two points out of the playoffs, and needing a win to keep pace with a plethora of teams tied near the eight and final post-season spot.
Super Bock answered the call with a solid team effort in their (28-18) victory over Special Agents. From Quarterback Kyle Martel making plays with his legs and buying time for his Receiver to get open, big plays in the passing game from James Alexander Oliveira, Omar McFarlane, Anthony Perusse, and Kosta Floros, to turnovers forced by Martel and Oliveira, and drive-killing sacks by the duo of McFarlane and the speedy Emanuel De Leon, this team got a much-needed win.
I was the scorekeeper for this game, and I can tell you that it wasn’t pretty, but they got what they needed, and that is all that matters.
The victory puts them in ninth place, but they are tied with No Porkin Around (who they beat in Week 4) with six points. The only reason Super Bock is not in sole possession of the spot is because both Rosemere Rhino Pills and Vengeance also sit with three wins. Still, it was a huge win, and with a game in hand on those last two teams, Super Bock has given themselves a chance to be sipping on a few playoff beers in a few weeks.
Picks
[Enter Name Here] vs Flag Dealers – [Enter Team Name Here] (Upset Special #1)
No Porkin Around vs Illegal Aliens – No Porkin Around (Upset Special #2 and my pick for Game of the Week)
Vengeance vs Flag Dealers – Flag Dealers
Trailer Park Boys vs Robins – Trailer Park Boys
Super Bock vs Still an Inch Short - Super Bock (Upset Special #3)
Rosemere Rhino Pills vs Special Agents - Rosemere Rhino Pills
Last Week: (2-2-1)
Regular Season: (8-8-1)
Upset Special: (0-2)
Bonus World Cup
Argentina vs Spain – Spain (I respect Messi, but I can’t cheer for Argentina)
That is it for this week. Good luck to everyone in their games tonight, tomorrow, and next week.
If you liked the article, hated it, or simply felt like I left something out, please feel free to contact me at [email protected], or on the FPF Facebook page.