Food For Thought (D4) – Week 4

 

With 40% of the season behind us and two long weeks to reminisce, most teams will want to fix what has been failing and upkeep what has succeeded. Some teams have decided to undergo an extreme makeover focusing on the QB position (Chaos, Marauders, Sharks), while some are still unsure about their main man (Razorbacks).

But apart from the over-mediatised quarterbacks, who exactly drives these tremendous offenses and gritty defensive cores?

The toughest position to judge, based on statistics, might be the receivers. Since only positive stats are taken into account (no dropped balls or poorly-run routes are tracked). Nonetheless, with yards, touchdowns and receptions, a rough overall portrait of the players can be made:

 

Yards per game (3 games minimum)

 

1. Mathieu Bélanger (Patriotes) 77

2. François Deslauriers (Razorbacks) 74.75

3. Louis-Christophe Lafontaine (Eudistes) 70.3

4. Maxime Couture (The Family) 69

5. Thomas Zorko (Maximum Carnage) 65.25

6. Mathieu Fafard (Sphinx) 60.75

7. Scott Mironowicz (Gorilla Juiceheads) 60

8. Derek Daoust (Primetime) 57.25

9. David Caron (Top Guns) 51.5

10. Nick Guarna (Kludgies) 51

 

François Deslauriers is on pace for his best statistical season in 3 years as he might pass the milestone mark of 600 yards this season. Playing for a relatively weak team and receiving passes from 2 different pivots, François has also been quite efficient on the defensive side of the ball with 3 interceptions and 4 passes defended.

 

TDs per game (3 games minimum)

 

1. Mathieu Fafard (Sphinx) 2.5

2. Mathieu Bélanger (Patriotes) 2.3

3. Vince Mancini (Longhorns) 2

4. Thomas Zorko (Maximum Carnage) 1.75

5. François Deslauriers (Razorbacks) 1.5

6. David Caron (Top Guns) 1.5

7. Nathan Groves (Hard Knocks) 1.5

8. Raymond Barisselle (Sphinx) 1.5

9. Louis-Christophe Lafontaine (Eudistes) 1.3

10. Maxime Couture (The Family)  1.25

3 more players tied at 1.25

 

Two players from the best offensive team in the division, the Sphinx, are featured in the top ten. Topping them all is Mathieu Fafard with his Division-leading 2.5 TDs per game, on pace for a whopping 25 TDs this season. But don’t forget the dangerous Raymond Barisselle who, along with Fafard, form the most lethal combination of receivers in the entire division.

 

 

Receptions per game (3 games minimum)

 

1. François Deslauriers (Razorbacks) 5

2. Jeff Chabot (Gators) 5

3. Maxime Laflamme (Marauders) 4.75

4. Jeff Brown (Kludgies) 4.75

5. Mathieu Fafard (Sphinx) 4.5

6. Raymond Barisselle (Sphinx) 4.5

7. Jonathan Girard (The Family) 4.5

8. Mathieu Bélanger (Patriotes) 4.3

9. Louis-Christophe Lafontaine (Eudistes) 4.3

10. Thomas Zorko (Maximum Carrnage) 4.25

2 more players are tied at 4.25

 

While some players on this list are clearly the number one target on their team’s offence, they can’t seem to crack the top 10 in other offensive categories. They gather moderate yardage (40 to 50 yards per game) but can’t seem to muster a touchdown per game (except for Jeff Chabot who has 5). For some, this is due to their role on the team (Jonathan Girard is used mostly in short yardage situations and outside the red zone). Others, like higher division talents Maxime Laflamme and Jeff Brown, suffer for their team’s offensive woes (Marauders and Kludgies).

 

 

In order to evaluate and, ultimately, rate defensive players, a simple calculation is made:

Tackles x 0.5 + Passes Defended x 1 + Sacks x 1 + Interceptions x 2 + Defensive Touchdowns x 3

The result is then divided by the amount of games played and a defensive rating is obtained.

 

Rusher ratings are calculated in a similar but slightly different way:

Tackles x 1 + Passes Defended x 2 + Sacks x 3

Like the defensive rating, the rusher rating is obtained by dividing the result by the games played.

 

Defensive Rating

 

1. Samuel Bibeault (The Family) 6.5

2. Matt Young (Lobster Dinner) 5.25

3. Brian Phaneuf (Gators) 4.63

4. Derek Daoust (Primetime) 4.25

5. Akeem Hoyte-Charles (Monstars) 4.25

6. Kenton Lowe (Run’n’ Wild) 4.13

7. Maïko Zepeda (Barbarianz Squad) 4.13

8. Jeff Moscato (Maximum Carnage) 4

9. David Daoust (Primetime) 4

10. Dane Steele (Hard Knocks) 4

 

Samuel Bibeault’s defensive rating is off the charts due to his sanity-challenging, five interception performance in week 4. The rest of these elite defenders achieved such numbers through balanced statistics (Maïko Zepeda, Akeem Hoyte), a load of tackles (Brian Phaneuf) or an uncanny mastery in the art of deflections (Matt Young). Perhaps the most interesting statistic here is the presence of two Daoust brothers, David and Derek. Their parents must be so proud!

 

Rusher Rating

1. Maurice Kaddis (Top Guns) 8.75

2. Kris Bastien (Hard Knocks) 7

3. Kory De Nie (Longhorns) 6.5

4. Paul Goyens (Razorbacks) 6.3

5. Alex Peelz (Mongoose) 6.25

6. Olivier Ouellet (Sphinx) 5.25

7. Ryan Aridi (Monstars) 5

8. Brian Eudoxie (Chaos) 5

9. Jonathan Samson (Razorbacks) 3.75

10. Alex Blanchet (Sharks) 3.5

 

Several things can be said regarding these rushers. First of all, two Razorback players appear. Between the two of them, Jonathan Samson and Paul Goyens have garnered 4 sacks, 6 passes defended, 10 tackles and an unlikely interception. The most impressive player on the list has to be Maurice Kaddis who has accumulated 10 sacks on pace for a 25 sack season! Twice this season he registered 4 sack games. Quite an accomplishment!

 

As we near the halfway mark of the season, the playoff picture is slowly starting to solidify. While the bottom and top four of each conference should not move too much from now until week 9, several playoff spots should remain up-for-grabs. Only four teams remain undefeated while four others are still winless.

If the playoffs started today, this would be the general picture:

 

Conference A

1. Maximum Carnage (4-0)

2. Gators (4-0)

3. Primetime (3-1)

4. Lobster Dinner (2-1-1)

5. Top Guns (3-1)

6. Park-X Streets (3-1)

7. Mongoose (3-1)

8. Monstars (2-2)

 

The closest divisional race should unfold in the south division with Primetime, Mongoose and Park-X Streets tied at 3-1. Also, let’s not forget about the Jets (2-2) lurking in 9th spot but only 1 point behind division leaders Lobster Dinner. These 2 teams might shift sooner than later if Lobster Dinner QB, Jonathan Brown, doesn’t recover quickly from his injury.

 

Conference B

1. The Family (4-0)

2. Longhorns (4-0)

3. Sphinx (3-1)

4. Hard Knocks (3-1)

5. X-Men (3-1)

6. Barbarianz Squad (2-1-1)

7. Patriotes (2-2)

8. Gorilla Juiceheads (2-2)

 

Divisions East and South should provide ample excitement down the road. In the East, Sphinx and X-Men will most likely fight it out to the end while in the South, Hard Knocks, Barbarianz Squad and Patriotes each stand a good enough chance at clinching the division title. A team that might cause some surprises as the season goes on are les Eudistes. They’ve been playing steadily better every week, and, a bit like the 1-3 Sharks, only need to figure out how to win close games.

 

 

Power Rankings

1.  The Family (4-0): In this week’s francophone battle, Eudistes will fail to win their first game and The Family will continue their undefeated streak.

The Family 38 – Eudistes 26

2. Maximum Carnage (4-0): With their QB out for 2 weeks serving a suspension, Maximum Carnage will trip up and give this one away to Tom Cruise and his Top Guns.

Maximum Carnage 20 – Top Guns 24

3.  Gators (4-0): Easy one against Pedro Pana and the Trapstars. Kevin Marlowe can breath easy for one more week.

Gators 32 – Trapstars 20

4.  Sphinx (3-1): Fun times for this demolition squad as they face the lowly Marauders.

Sphinx 48 – Marauders 19

5.  Longhorns (4-0): The old boys start off a tough stretch of games against an underrated Sharks team. Upset in the making.

Longhorns 24 – Sharks 27

6.  X-Men (3-1): The boys in blue will beat the Kludgies with an inspired defensive stand against QB Mike Bagnato.

X-Men 28 – Kludgies 19

7.  Hard Knocks (3-1): Look for Hard Knocks to bring out their best performance yet as the enigmatic Turf Toe Inc. will be in town.

Hard Knocks 32 – Turf Toe Inc. 18

8.  Primetime (3-1): Doug McKernan will spark up an offensive firework against Park-X Streets who will deeply resent their own lack of depth.

Primetime 42 – Park-X Streets 26

9.  Mongoose (3-1): Determined and focused, Mongoose will tear through the fragile Chaos defense and greet their new QB with a defensive show.

Mongoose 28 – Chaos 22

10. Patriotes (2-2): On the verge of falling from grace, they will redeem themselves and defeat the surging Barbarianz Squad.

Patriotes 41 – Barbarianz Squad 26

 

Enjoy the Superbowl!

 

If you have any suggestions, comments or wish to make a more direct contribution to this article, please contact me at [email protected]