Bloodmachines rebound; #Baton and Looney Goons continue to impress.

Whether it’s the Spring or Winter Season, in my opinion, Week 7 is one of the most interesting weeks in FPF. It’s where teams start to establish themselves as contenders and pretenders.  Teams who have struggled to find results, consistency, and chemistry either get their act together and make that push for the playoffs, or they continue running in place and fall flat on their face. Squads that have been riding a favourable schedule, or have caught all the breaks so far, will either make their own breaks or shrink under the pressure including the playoff lights. Besides winning, this is why we play the game, and that is where the beauty lies.

 

With that said, the playoffs are indeed around the corner and the action has been heating up in Div E. A team like#Baton (more on them in a bit) who as of 3 weeks ago had virtually no chance at making the second season, is now sitting one point out in Conference B.

 

The Looney Goons are another team who looked hopelessly lost just a few weeks ago has turned around their fortunes and now occupy the 8^th and final playoff spot in Conference A. Their two current two-game winning streak that was highlighted by a huge upset win over the Tigers has put them 1 point behind their Divisional counterpart.

 

The complete opposite can be said of the Tigers and Been There Done That. Both teams have been struggling as of late. Besides a win over a good Redmen team in Week 3, the former haven’t beaten a quality opponent all season, and come into their Week 8 game against the Falcons losers of 2 straight. The latter haven’t won a game since Week 5, and they have yet to beat a quality team all season, and I don’t think they will get their first big win against FOTC (more on that later.)

 

Now on to more positive observations…

 

For the third week in a row, #Baton’s Offense has looked impressive. QB Jason Dupuis who took the reins at the pivot position and hasn’t looked back put up another solid performance as he threw for 5 TDs and helped his team get their first win of the season with a 38-25 over the Big Blue Wrecking Crew. The W has certainly energized a team who is playing their best football at the best possible time. If they can keep it up, and make it to the dance, this will a team that no one else in Conference B will want to play first round.

 

My pick for game of the week last week between TDs and Beer and no name@ turned into exactly what many thought it would be. No name@’s Defense led by the incomparable Rob White came to play as usual. They forced and pressured TDs and Beer’s QB Brandon Keiller into the worst performance of his FPF career (9 for 24 for 107 yards 1 Touchdown and 3 Interceptions). It got so bad that he got the hook in favour of his brother Myles Keiller. The move did pay off as Myles went 2 for 2 for a remarkable 80 yards and connecting on two long TDs with none other than Isiah Allard. Unfortunately for TDs and Beer, they weren’t able to score on any of their extra point attempts as no name’s stellar Defense rose to the occasion yet again as they prevailed with the 21-18 victory.

 

After suffering their first loss of the season last week against Los Guapos, the Bloodmachines used an explosive second half to lay a 34-12 beating on Loyalty. Now that the Bloodmachines have passed the how do we respond after our first loss of the season test, the next question that remains to be answered is can they generate the momentum they had before the aforementioned loss, and ride it throughout the playoffs? Only time will tell.

 

 

Chris Fields (no name@) – The FPF rookie played a key role in his team’s aforementioned win over TDs and Beer. He not only led his team in receptions for the game, but his 2 TD catches were crucial. Fields also made his presence felt on the other side of the ball as he was even more productive there finishing with a sack and two INTs. I’ll have to ask Rob and Sean Collins if they hand out game balls. If they do, it better go to Fields.

 

Jason Dupuis (#Baton) – For the second week in a row he has taken control of the Offense, and given the team direction, and more importantly production. How Dupuis and his newly confident team play against theBloodmachines on Sunday will speak volumes.

 

Matthew Da Silva (Looney Goons) – The Looney Goons and Grip n Rip WR/DB has a standout game against The Fat and the Furious as he recorded a game-high 7 receptions for 75 yards and 2 TDs to go along with 3 tackles and 3 INTs, one of which he ran back to the house.

 

Carl Boileau (Smokin Axolotls) – His 3 sacks versus the Tigers was a Div. E week high. What makes his performance even more impressive is that he pulled it off against the elusive Rahul Mohan. It’s not often that a rusher puts up more sacks in a week than Jeanguy’s Simon Laporte. When it happens, I think it’s worth mentioning.

 

#Baton – I know this is cheating, but when you’ve waited this long to get your first W of the season, you deserve a spot on the list.

 

 

 

Bobby Sepentgis (The Fat and the Furious) – He went 10 of 22 for 60 yards with 2 TDs and 5 INTs vs the Looney Goons.  You guys know my rule about picks and completions.

 

 

Mile Public House’s Offense – For the last two weeks I’ve been talking about how impressed I’ve been with the Mile Public House’s Offense. After failing to crack the 20- barrier the first four weeks of the season, they did it in consecutive weeks as they scored 25 and 32 points against the Redmen and Smash Bros respectively.

 

This past week against Flight of the Conchords the real MPH Offense showed up as they mustered only 7 points in a lackluster showing. Next up is a tough test against Los Guapos Monday night. The tough times could very well continue.

 

Jeanguy’s first half Offense vs Los Guapos – In all honesty, this turned out to be a good game. As usual, it came down to conversions. Los Guapos were able to get more than Jeanguy, and that huge factor in the former getting the win over the latter. That wasn’t the total story however, as JG’s Offense struggled mightily in the 1^sthalf of the contest. Saying that they struggled is actually putting it nicely, Jeanguy on O were flat out awful in the first stanza. Incompletions drops, and bad passes really hurt them, and their inability to consistently put together meaningful drives and put up points on the board are what really cost them the game. While they deserve all the credit in the world for outperforming their opponents in the second half, the first half miscues came back to bite them in the end.

 

 

 

The Bloodmachines – They made it back to the pay window with their aforementioned win over Loyalty. They now have a huge game against an upstart #Baton team that is coming in with a world of confidence. Will we see the Bloodmachines suffer their 2^nd loss in 3 weeks?

 

No name@ – Another impressive win for Sean Collins’s team. Why they did give up yards and scores to Isiah Allard (Who hasn’t this season?) they did what it takes to get the W. An improving Looney Goons team is next in line.

 

Flight of the Conchords – There’s not much to say after FOTC’s beating of Mile Public House that I didn’t say earlier. The better team won plain and simple. Up next is a game against the underwhelming Been There Done That.

 

Los Guapos – They fell asleep at the wheel and let an average Jeanguy team almost come back and score the colossal upset. Good teams find ways to win however, and that’s just what Los Guapos did.

 

Smash Bros –They move up a spot curtesy of their win over the aforementioned Been There Done That, and a loss by TDs and Beer who held this spot last week. The Smash Bros should make short work of the Big Blue Wrecking Crew this Tuesday before they go on to face the Blodmachines in a HUGE Week 9 matchup.

 

TDs and Beer – As I mentioned above they fall a spot cutesy of their loss. Since they loss to the number 2 team on the list and in such close fashion, I can’t drop them too low. Things don’t get any easier for these guys this week as they take on a tough Redmen team that is fighting for playoff positioning after coming off of a tough 33-30 loss to One Man Show.

 

Falcons – These guys move up a spot as well. They should continue to stay on the list after their upcoming showdown with the Tigers.

 

Redmen – Yes they lost, but they are making their first appearance on the list. As I said last week, the quality of opponent plays a factor. The Redmen finish with three tough games to end the regular season. Up first their toughest of the bunch as they take on TDs and Beer.  The result of that hatch will have a huge impact on the list.

 

 

Bloodmachines vs #Baton                                           

 

The Fat and the Furious vs Smokin’ Axolotls                                      

 

Redmen vs TDs and Beer                                             

 

Tigers vs Falcons             

 

no name© vs Looney Goons     

 

Been There Done That vs Flight of the Conchords                                           

 

JeanGuy vs Royalty                                        

 

Mile Public House vs Los Guapos                             

 

Fuzzy-Kittens vs One Man Show                                              

 

Big Blue Wrecking Crew vs Smash Bros                  

 

 

Last Week: 9-1

 

Season: 44-14-1

 

 

That’s it for this week. I’ll be back next time with your Week 8 re-cap and your Week 9 preview. See you guys next week.

 

I’ve been checking my e-mail and twitter account regularly for feedback and suggestions from you guys. Thanks for everything so far and please keep it coming. 

 

If you loved the article, hated it, or just felt like I left something out, don’t be shy. You can shoot me a tweet on twitter at @BADNEWS51, or do it the semi-old fashioned way and e-mail me at [email protected]