Categories: Division 4

2nd-and-Short (Div 4) – Week 5

It’s Week 5 already, and still I don’t have a handle on the division. Just when I think I know a team, they go and surprise me—either playing better than I thought they would, or failing to prove themselves as the contenders I expected them to be. I’m going to have my work cut out for me in next week’s midseason breakdown.

Until then, let’s take a look back at the week that was. 

Recap

Lynx Become Lions

Lynx sent a message loud and clear after downing The Replacements over the weekend: be afraid.

After helping his team score no less than 32 points in each of their previous three games, Lynx QB Mathew Bourbonnière-Morin showed he can play a little defence too, sacking the ever-elusive Matt Bishara on 4th and 5 on the game’s opening drive.

Bourbonnière-Morin went on to lead his side to a 13-0 halftime advantage. While the shutout didn’t last, the domination did, with Lynx cruising to a 27-14 lead late in the game. The Replacements were able to narrow the deficit to seven points with five plays left, but Bourbonnière-Morin was able to get the first down on the ensuing drive to secure the win—and my respect.

 

Outlaws Tame Mustangs

Fresh off a 31-12 romp at the hands of Angry Beavers the week before, Outlaws were out to prove their 2-0 start to the season was no fluke on Saturday.

Taking on Mustangs, Outlaws QB Jean-Michel Beaudin had little trouble picking apart the opposing defence as he led three touchdown drives to take a 21-12 lead into the second half.

Thanks in large part to some errant passes from Mustangs quarterback Simon Vallée, who connected on only 38 per cent of his throws on the night, Outlaws were able to play mistake-free in the second half en route to a 34-24 win.

 

Dam!

It might’ve been one of my most overlooked matchups of the weekend, but Fools of the Country and Angry Beavers wound up put putting on a show on Saturday night.

It was a back-and-forth game from start to finish, with both sides drawing even at 14-14 heading into the second half. Each team had their own unstoppable player, with FOTC QB Etienne Guilmain dominating the ground with his legs and Angry Beavers receiver Alex Hovington finding the endzone just about every time he touched the ball on offence.

But the night ended up belonging to Guilmain. Down 33-26 late in the game, Guilmain was able to evade the rush and find his receiver in the endzone for the score. One two-point conversion later and FOTC were up 34-33 as they went on to win their third game of the season.  

 

Top 10

  1. Sea Assassins (4-0): There is no stopping Daniel Lazzara.
  2. La Sauce (4-0): You get a shutout in FPF, you get a jump in the power rankings. It’s as simple as that.
  3. Lynx (3-1): Rarely does a new team solidify its place as a contender after just four weeks of play. Lynx are that rare team.
  4. Broccasion (4-0): A gutsy win over a previously undefeated squad gives these bros a well-deserved bump in the rankings.
  5. Six Fast Guys Plus Ryan (4-0): It may have come against a struggling team, but 50 points is still quite the feat.  
  6. Predators (3-1): Sorry guys, it’s not that you did anything wrong to drop in the standings—the teams ahead of you simply were more impressive this week.
  7. The Family (3-1): Copy and paste the line above.
  8. Healthy Scratches (4-0): Finally, they showed that they can win by more than a single score.
  9. The Replacements (2-2): A tight loss against an obvious championship contender is no reason to drop the team out of the rankings entirely. These guys are a lot better than their 2-2 record might suggest.
  10. BearSkins (3-1): When half of your completions are for touchdowns, you know you’re going to have a good day.

 

Fantasy Football

Here are the standings after one week of play

1. Mathieu Domon (1-0, +105.77)
2. GM Kolethras (1-0, +29.8)
3. Alex D’Aquila (1-0, +22.63)
4. Brent Callender (1-0, +8.4)
5. Paolo Della Rocca (0-1, -8.4)
6. Roger Emeka (0-1, -22.63)
7. Justin Blanchard (0-1, -29.8)
8. Simon Dagenais (0-1, -105.77)

Interestingly enough, if we’re going by overall points, I jump to fourth in the standings. Suddenly, I don’t like this new format anymore. But I do love seeing that Simon is dead last.

 

Picks of the Week

17-13 on the week brings my total to 56-43, while a 17-12 week from Simon gives him a 61-39 record. I have some catching up to do.

Pickle Fiasco vs. Jaggerbomb

Banana Republicans vs. Smokin’ Aces

Coyotes vs. X-Men

Les Maloudes vs. BearSkins

Predators vs. Kingdom

Quack Attack vs. Lynx

69ers vs. Backyard Bullies

Healthy Scratches vs. Eskimo Brothers

T.C.O. vs. Fruit Loops

Playground vs. Sea Assassins

Outlaws vs. Lockdown

Checkmate vs. La Sauce

Fools of the Country vs. Mustangs

Trapstars vs. ZOO

The Junks vs. Angry Beavers

The Replacements vs. Two and a Half Dans

Gotham Knights vs. Six Fast Guys Plus Ryan (N/A)

Fun Boys vs. Dragons

Team Ethnik vs. Primetime

Les Affreux vs. Ball Busters

Longhorns vs. The Family

Knights vs. Monstars

57 vs. Turf Toe Inc.

Broccasion vs. KGP Lite

Les Prédateurs vs. Flying Comics

Project Mayhem vs. Channel 4 News Team

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That’s all for today. Remember, you can reach me by email at [email protected] or on Twitter @JBlanchFPF. If you haven’t checked out this week’s podcast with Peeze and Brent Callendar yet, you can do so at http://www.theunclehood.com/category/flag-plus-football/. And be on the lookout this Thursday for this week’s joint article by Simon Dagenais and myself!