Playing For Keeps: Super Teams; The Search for Golden State

With the NBA finals nearing its end and talk of “Super Teams” reaching heights of hysteria, I thought this would be a good time to asses our own humble division, and see if any true super teams are currently tormenting div C.

First off, by “Super Teams” I mean any team that has a roster constructed of an exorbitant amount of superstar players, which gives them an unfair talent advantage in this division. I don’t mean powerhouse teams build around a couple of superstar caliber players and supported by solid role players with strong team chemistry. Rather, I’m talking about the truly mercenary teams, the teams put together expressly to add another championship to their trophy case.

Secondly, I’m not trying to make any moral or ethical judgments on these teams. Instead, I applaud them for playing within the rules and shaving corners wherever possible in order to maximize their roster potential. It’s only rational to strive to win within a system that merits championships over all else, and no one can fault a team for acting rationally. Think of the time and effort it took you to put together your roster, now multiply that by several magnitudes and you’ll have an idea how hard it is to construct a truly dominant Super Team.

When assessing div C, we should look for our super teams at the top. First and foremost would be our 1st ranked, defending champions, the Backyard Bullies. Last spring, they dominated div C under the name No Fly Zone, to a 9-1 record and a walloping 47-12 demolition of Broccasion in the finals. The team had a wealth of riches, with four super star caliber players in Rich Humes, Vinny Gualano, Steve Sanner and Eddy Martinez. Of the four, Martinez is not part of the 2017 version of this team, replaced instead by solid role players such as Alex Moreau and Daniel O’Connor. While some argue that this team is simply too strong for div C, I would say otherwise. If you look closely at their roster you see a group of friends who’ve played together for years in the lower divisions, alternating quarterbacks along the way and always managing to find success. Beyond the big three, none of their role players have had such individual success that they should be declared vastly underrated against the cap. Sure, Vinny could have an extra 3-4 points added to his ratings on offense and defense, seeing as he’s a legendary player in this league, but I don’t think it would break the bank. These guys just play the game the right way, with an incredible system on offense, cultivated through years of playing with upper divisional QBs and fine-tuned for this roster. These guys are like the Spurs of our division. We just hate to see them win because they’re always so damn good that they make excellence seem routine.

Next, you’ve got The Commission, which has been an institution in FPF’s lower-to-mid divisions throughout history, with alternating degrees of success along the way. The Commission truly began its revamp this past winter season, going 8-2 in div 4A. The addition of talented, two-way value guys like Domenic Benevento and Eddy Lee helped give a face-lift to this team that was beginning to look a bit long in the tooth. More importantly, we’ve witnessed the renaissance of Sean Avraam at QB. The Dad Bod had forsaken the position for two years, after a rough spell with some mediocre rosters. But he resurfaced this past winter and had a breakthrough with Dad Bod Squad in div 3. Now, with a deft touch pass and renewed confidence, he’s steamrolling through div C like it’s nobody’s business. Definitely one of the very best QBs in the division, and rated accordingly at 77.3. All of that wasn’t enough for Brent Bodkin however, as he still went back to the talent store this offseason and came back with a mixture of up-and-coming feature players and polished veterans. AJ Gomes and Jordan Allard are two meteorically rising talents in the middle divisions, who should soon be common names in the top two divisions as well. Rather than call them full-fledged superstars, Bodkin got them just at the perfect time before their ratings explode northward. Matthew Petrone is a defensive Stallworth. He bunkers down in the middle of the field and creates a toll that most QBs aren’t willing to pay. With the mixture of veteran talent and up-and-coming stars, this team reminds me of the Boston Celtics of div C. If they stick together for the next few seasons and continue building, the sky is truly the limit for where they can find themselves.

Finally, we have the Royals, or as I like to think of them, the band of high flying acrobats on steroids. These guys went 8-1-1 last spring season in div C, under the name Top Sauce, and lost by 1 point in the quarterfinals to eventual finalist Broccasion. Since then, this team has re-upped by manipulating their roster cap in a brilliant way that’s sure to be emulated by others in seasons to come. Rather than use div 4 QBOY Lonnie Johnson at QB, with his hefty 75.7 QB rating, they decided to go with the criminally underrated Cory Johnson at 62.5. For those who are mathematically challenged, that’s a 13.2 cap savings that was then used to fill their team with a plethora of upper divisional game breakers. Vince Nardone, Justin McLean and Chris Milard are by far the best receiving trio in this division, and would very likely dominate div B together as well. This is only possible because Lonnie Johnson, who’s an excellent snapper in addition to gunslinger, comes in at 68.1 at receiver, a full 7.6 points lower than his QB rating. Also, we can’t ignore that Maxime Giroux is an absolute steal at his current mid-70s rating. All of this explosive power unleashed by some simple calculations and the brilliant mind of GM Kolethras, who along with Nardone orchestrated this roster. Look, in an era with cap restrictions, you’re not going to build a Super Team without some criminally underrated players out producing their evaluations. The Golden State Warriors work because Steph Curry gets $12 million a year, Draymond $15 and Klay $16, allowing them to max out Durant and complete their global domination. A similar concept is at play for the Royals, but none of it works without the excellence of Cory Johnson at QB. On pace for 60 TDs and 2150 yards (including his lost stats), this should be the last time we see Cory and the word “underrated” in the same sentence. For the moment, the Royals have found a way to beat the matrix, as they run laps around the rest of the division and don’t look to be slowing down. The pressure is on them to deliver, however, since it’s clearly championship or bust for this Super Team.

Weekly Remarks

NoName looked better on the stat sheet than in person. As their 37-29 victory over Blue Chips came largely against 5 guys, with a spotted lead. Still, two better games since the switch to Kristian Cerantola at QB.
Junkyard Dogs average 41.5 points/game with Carmine Pollice in the lineup, versus 21.5 without him. Safe to assume they need him to be a contender?
Last week, I called out the offenses in this division for averaging just 25.13 points/game. This week, you responded by posting…24.78 points/game…even lower! Common big O, light up the summer for us.
Nuggets looked disorganized and unconfident in their ShowTime game versus Big D. Back to the drawing board for them, as they continue to fine-tune their game plan.
Show Me Your TDs may be without veteran QB Mike Addona in upcoming weeks, as he severely injured his shoulder while subbing in a div E game. Rest up and heal quick Mike. We wish you the best.
This incident further confirms my suspicions that nothing ever good came out of playing in a div E game.
Simon Duchesne is dealing with a lingering quad issue that flared up last game against Royals, causing him to exit the game before halftime. As per team doctor, Jean-Felix Daloze: “he is battling through a bilateral acl complete tear.” Duchesne is expected to start this week against JYD.

Highlights:

Royals Top Jagerbomb 44-18

Tough night for Jagerbomb, who drop to 1-3 after a disappointing end to their brief one game rally. Simon Duchesne was struggling, with a 50% completion percentage and a 2-1 TD/INT ration, before an injury caused him to exit the game and yield the ball to Darick Forgues in relief. On the bright side, Felix Fontaine-Larouche continued his strong start to the season, with 63 yards and 1 TD. Karl Forgues also chipped in with 39 yards and the other 2 TDs for Jagerbomb.

It was business as usual for the Royals, who continue their blitzkrieg through div C at 4-0. Cory Johnson was once again a near-perfect QB robot, throwing for another 7 TDs and 214 yards, with only 1 INT as a blemish to his night. The yards and scores were very evenly distributed, as Justin Maclean, Chris Milard, and Maxime Giroux each caught 2 TDs. Vince Nardone, who had 5 PDs before this game, finally got a clean break and corralled 2 INTs on the night, breaking Jagerbomb’s back by handing the ball over to such an explosive offense.

The Royals now head into juicy matchups against middle tier opponents in their next 4 games, looking to go 8-0 heading into a week 9 matchup with the Backyard Bullies. As for Jagerbomb, they continue to have a tough road ahead of them, with Junkyard Dogs and Blue Chips on deck in their next three games. Let’s hope Duchesne can bounce back and help weather the storm ahead, or this will be a long summer.

Bullies Stymie SMYTDs 25-18

Rich Humes continued his efficient season with 172 total yards and 4 TDs, with only 1 INT thrown, as the Bullies continued their dominance on route to a 4-0 record. We finally heard from Vinny Gualano on offense, who carried his team with 78 yards and 2 TDs after a slow start to the season offensively. We can attribute that more to an incredibly well-balanced offense rather than Vinny’s play, but it’s still good to see they can get their star going whenever they want to. Alex Moreau once again filed the role of stellar supporting staff, which he was brought in for, and contributed 36 yards and 1 TD. You can’t win without these guys on your roster. Steve Sanner took over this game defensively, with a ridiculous 3 INTs on defense, vaulting himself to the league lead after 4 weeks.

This may have been the final game for Mike Addona in spring 2017, as he would go on to seriously injury his shoulder in a div E game, and may require surgery. If so, it won’t be a game that will sit well, as he threw 4 INTs to only 3 TDs and 127 yards. Alex David was the only noteworthy receiver, with 42 yards and 1 TD. Marc-Antoine Vallee provided a dominant rush for the second consecutive week, piling up another 3 sacks in this game. He now has 8 sacks in 2 games played this season. It will be interesting to see who takes over the quarterback position if needed, as Alex David, George Spano, Alexis Gaumont and Jesse Dupuis all have some experience at the position in this league. My suggestion would be two-time champion Jesse Dupuis, if he could commit for the remainder of the season.

FiLP outlast Red Wave 21-20

This was a largely uneventful game between two teams with some glaring roster holes for the moment. Red Wave were without their foundation of the Moses brothers and Jeremy Anderson, who were away enjoying icy drinks with frilly straws in coconuts on a tropical destination in Mexico. Mario Porreca summoned some formidable replacements in Justin Julien and Kyle Santana, but there was no time to build chemistry as he fluttered to a 44% completion percentage and a 2 Td to 1 INT game. Julien caught a nice deep ball in the second half to keep the game close, finishing with 47 yards and 1 TD. On defense, he also undercut a redzone out route at the end of the first half, returning it for a crucial defensive TD. Henry Skerrett also made an impact defensively with 1 INT and 3 PDs. Mathew Barsetti was in the opposing QB’s kitchen all night, racking up 2 sacks but missing several more by mere inches.

Those missed sacks ended up being the difference in this game, as Danny D’Amour was able to break free and rush for 94 yards and 1 TD. His passing wasn’t as impressive however, as he completed a mere 43.8% to go along with 2 TDs and 2 INTs. Defense picked up their struggling offense in this game to deliver the win. Several redzone stops in critical situations turned out to be key, headlined by Alex Grey’s 2 PDs.

Red Wave will look to gain their first win of the season this week against a struggling MVE, while FiLP will be in deep versus the powerhouse Royals.

Smash Bros take MVE to SmashVille 20-14

The team that went completely under my radar (and many others) in preseason is the now 3-1 Smash Bros, who welcomed back their starting QB Jonah Cohen from a three week absence abroad. Jonah had some rust to work out, as he threw for only 112 yards and 2 TDs on 55% completion, but it was enough to secure the win for his team. The Bros got a big boost from James Floreani, who stopped in to nab 67 yards on 6 catches and put his team in favorable field position. Justin Lerner was the star defensively in this grind-it-out, low scoring affair, contributing 6 tackles and 1 INT to the cause. Kevin Felima’s versatility was on full display, as he chipped in a TD on offense and an INT on defense in the win.

MVE continue their tailspin into irrelevance, falling 1-3 and failing to score at least 20 points on offense in any game this season. Vincent Lauzon made his impact felt, with 10 catches for 82 yards and 2 TDs, but there was little else to look forward to outside of this performance. Gabriel Côté posted another pedestrian game, with 151 yards and 2 TDs with 2 INTs. He now has thrown more INTs (8) than TDs (7) so far this season and has a horrible 53.8 QBR. This is mind baffling considering his raw talent, but this MVE team doesn’t look to be in good shape heading into the midseason break.

Weekly Fantasy Football:

Danny got the bounce back win this week, despite my best efforts to break serve. In a solid week for QB, Sean Avraam was king with a 252 yard, 6 TD performance where he didn’t even break a sweat. He is our fantasy MVP for the week. Jeff Rosenblatt put up a formidable performance as well in a romp versus Nuggets, but two bobbled balls by his receivers that resulted in INTs didn’t help my cause. Daniel Farag wasn’t the best receiver on Impeccable D this week, but I’m proud of my pick and he gave me excellent value regardless. Danny’s pair of Bertoldi and Larouche proved to be wicked smaht, as they put up 3 TDs combined and provided the foundation to his lineup. Chris Milard vs Justin maclean was a battle of ballers at 2WAY this week, as they both did their thang and made us happy fantasy owners.

Marcus Mitchell missing was a bummer for me. As much as we try, FPF is not yet ESPN and we don’t have our own Adam Scefter with around the clock roster updates (insert thinking emoji here). In order to promote fair play, Danny and I have agreed to remove the other’s least effective positional player whenever this unfortunate incident occurs. Fortunately, this will allow us to take them again on a later date. This week Steve Sanner gets the yank on Danny’s side, which works well because Sanner is a terrific player who had a quiet night on offense. Danny would be wise to consider him for 2WAY next time, as he put up 3 INTs on defense. Both of our defenses came to play this week, but Impeccable D was in another class, holding Nuggets to 12 points scored, to go with 4 sacks and 2 INTs…spanking me proper.

Week 4 (Final)

Alex Danny

QB: Jeff Rosenblatt (25.2) QB: Sean Avraam (34.08)

WR: Laurent Foucault (6.5) WR: Steve Sanner (7.3)

WR: Daniel Farag (17.6) WR: Marco Bertoldi (13.5)

WR: Marcus Mitchell (NA) WR: Felix Fontaine Larouche (15.3)

2W: Chris Milard (24.9) 2W: Justin Maclean (21.8)

DEF: Junkyard Dogs (25) DEF: Impeccable D (31.5)

Final Score: (99.2) Final Score: (116.18)

Record: 2-1 Danny

Overall Score: (349.82 – 302.62 Danny)

Week 5

In keeping with the Super Team theme of this article, I decided to throw caution to the wind and build my own Super Team for this week’s fantasy duel. I’m really loading up here in hopes of evening out the series and balancing the overall score. Foremost for my strategy is the Bullies vs Going Deep matchup. I’m hoping that Rich Humes tees off against his struggling opponent and boosts his stats for the season. A quiet week for Sanner should mean a return to production this week. I’ve been burned by Going Deep already once this season, but the Bullies are too tempting to pass up. I’m bolstering this lineup with Pollice, he’s been the best receiver in the league in the past two weeks for the hottest team. I don’t usually like buying high, but against a struggling Jagerbomb team I expect Rossie to continue to enjoy his success and feed his star receiver. I was looking to buy some shares in the Red Wave game versus MVE, so I figured Jeremy Anderson would be the best way to go. I struggled a bit between him and Jordan Moses, but Jeremy catches more passes and I expect Porreca to bombard him with work after missing him for a week. Papich might have been a bit excessive here. Maybe I should have saved him for later weeks and took a more cautious approach…But maybe, I just don’t give a F….On to you, Danny.

From Danny D’Amour:

After seeing Holo’s fantasy roster this week, the first thing I told him was that there’s no point in even submitting a fantasy team this week considering how many tier 1 players he took. But my competitive attitude would not allow me to do that, so after doing a little research I realized there are still some sleepers to be drafted. One matchup that caught my eye was the RedWave vs MVE contest, whereby both teams are in desperate need of a win but who needs it more? For RedWave to have any chance of making the playoffs, they will need to come out firing this week so Mario Porreca seemed like a wise choice since his core (Travis, Jordan and Jeremy) will have returned from vacation. And given that MVE have scored the second least amount of points to date, snagging the Red Wave defense was a no brainer. The search for a #1 receiver this week didn’t take long as I noticed Samuel Phaneuf of the Nuggets is leading the league in receptions and yards, easy pick. Ryan Aridi has been having himself a great season thus far and I just can’t see Smash Bros shutting him down for a full game. JF Daloze is typically a 10TD per season kinda guy, and has only 2 to date; this just doesn’t make sense so I am looking for him to step up big against a JYD team that may still be missing Jacob Bernett. Given how badly I have been playing at QB in recent weeks, Chris Milard is the obvious choice for 2-way player; he should rake in a few sacks. Also, given how stacked the Royals roster is, having Chris Milard running FLYs from the outside could prove to be a nightmare for FILP. You’re going down, young holo.

Alex Danny

QB: Rich Humes QB: Mario Porreca

WR: Carmine Pollice WR: Samuel Phaneuf

WR: Sasha Papich WR: Ryan Aridi

WR: Jeremy Anderson WR: Jean-Felix Daloze

2W: Steve Sanner 2W: Chris Milard

DEF: Backyard Bullies DEF: Red Wave

***The standard scoring will apply as follows:

QB: 25 pass yards = 1 pt, 1 pass TD = 4 pts, 1 INT = -2 pts

Receiving/Rush: 10 yards = 1 pt, 1 TD = 6 pts, 1 REC = 1 pt

DEF: 1 TKL = 0.5 pt, 1 SK = 2 pts, 1 PD = 1 pt, 1 INT = 3 pts, 1 TD = 4 pts

Points Allowed (0): 15 points

Points Allowed (1-6): 11 points

Points Allowed (7-13): 9 points

Points Allowed (14-20): 7 points

Points Allowed (21-27): 5 points

Points Allowed (28-34): 3 points

Points Allowed (35-41): 0 points

Points Allowed (42+): -3 points

Game of the week:

Junkyard Dogs (3-1) vs Jagerbomb (1-3)

QB: Jason Rossie vs Simon Duchesne

This was a far easier call than it should have been. Simon Duchesne has been to two FPF finals as QB. He’s been a precise, poised and inspiring quarterback over the course of his 7 seasons behind the helm. However, so far this season, his 94.3 QBR and 15 TDs leave a lot to be desired. He’s struggled a bit against a brutal schedule and a sometimes outmatched roster. On the other hand, Jason Rossie had some question marks coming into the season with such a talented roster. Was he the right guy to manage it? He only had one season of at least 40+ TDs in nine attempts prior to this spring. So far, he’s silenced the critics and provided the answers with ease. He’s currently on pace for 50 TDs this season, and has been averaging 6.5 TDs in the two games since Carmin Pollice began playing. I’ll take Rossie to continue his hot streak in this one.

Receivers: Junkyard Dogs* vs Jagerbombs

I put an asterisk next to JYD because their dominance in this category hinges on the presence of Carmin Pollice in this game. With him in the lineup, they are scary. Jacob Bernett, Alexandre Noel and Jordan Rossie are all excellent support pieces and depth. Without Pollice however, and his 6 TDs in 2 games, I would take the balanced Jagerbomb core. Felix Fontaine-Larouche is having a breakout season and is flying under the radar still. Jean-Felix Daloze is one of the most consistent threats in the entire league and he and Duschesne could operate together with their eyes closed. The rest of this staff is contributing as well, with all 6 receivers reeling in at least 5 catches to date. If they can get super snapper Gabriel Moreau-Paquette going, as he has in previous seasons, we may see Jagerbomb begin to climb back out of the cellar and back into the spotlight they’re accustomed to.

Defense: Junkyard Dogs vs Jagerbomb

Junkyard Dogs, at their core, have always been a defensive team. This might be the best iteration of their defense to date. The unit is stacked, headlined by tackling machine Marc-André Lapointe and smooth criminal Jacob Bernett. Yavar Ashrafi is the spirit animal of this defense, he brings the intensity that lifts this defense from normal to spectacular. Jordan Rossie is a ball of fire and an underrated zone defender in the flats. They are definitely a top 3 defense in div C and will have a significant advantage in this category on most nights. The Jagerbomb defense isn’t as star studded as its counterpart in this game, but they have excellent team chemistry and work together to create a sum that’s greater than its parts. Jean-Felix Daloze, Karl Forgues, and Felix Fontaine-Larouche create the Bermuda triangle for this unit, where QB passes vanish unexpectedly, in mid-flight. The strength of this unit comes from rusher Francois Hogue, who has a polished career in FPF at the position and already has 6 sacks posted on the season.

Prediction: 33 – 25 JYD

Power Ranking

As predicted, there was some shakeup to the middle tiers this week, but it extended all the way to position 7 as well. The top three remain cemented. I don’t see any reason to rearrange them until someone drops a game. Smash Bros poke their heads in for a peak of the elite. Let’s see if they can get their foot in the door now.

Backyard Bullies (4-0): Keeping the momentum steady. These guys know how to pace themselves. Watch them save their best for the stretch run.
The Commission (4-0): Don’t know what to say about them that hasn’t been said. They’re stuntin’ on div C. Interesting game this week against Blue Chips.
Royals (4-0): The GS Warriors of div C. They’ve pulled into their lane and will be driving smooth until week 9.
Junkyard Dogs (3-1): officially the hottest thing since fidget spinners. They’re on a roll like toilet paper and aren’t looking back anytime soon.
Bearskins (3-1): Scraped out a tough win against a tough opponent. I’d really like to see Etinson get a bit more comfortable on O. Could just be setting themselves up to peak at the right time later this season.
Impeccable D (3-1): On the cusp of overtaking Bearskins in coming weeks if this momentum continues. Put a little chili pepper next to their name right now.
Blue Chips (2-2): Even though they started the game with 5 and spotted their opponent 2 scores, they had to drop a few spots due to the high performance of those above them. Big chance to make a statement this week.
Smash Bros (3-1): Happy to finally include them on this list. A solid start to the season but still lacking a big win. This week is their chance against Big D.

Weekly Awards

QB:

Cory Johnson – Royals:

16/25 – 214 yards – 7 TD/1 INT – 114 QBR

It’s scary that we’re starting to expect this kind of game each week from this guy. The smooth ride continues for the Royals as their signal caller splits defenses thin with his vertical assault.

WR:

Vincent Lauzon – MVE:

10 catches – 89 yards – 2 TDs

It’s been odd not hearing his name for MVE so far this season, but in his second game back he delivered the type of performance that we’ve become accustomed to from him. Now if his QB could only get all his receivers going at once! It sucks that it happened in a losing effort, but hey, better than losing and putting up a goose egg.

DEF:

Steve Sanner – Backyard Bullies:

3 TK – 3 INT

I would give this to Darick Forgues for Jagerbomb, who according to the website posted 11 PDs and 18 defensive touchdowns, without registering any INTs oddly enough….But since I don’t believe in unicorns and fairytales, Steve Sanner gets it this week for his 3 INT effort. In a close fought game against SMYTD, his defense presence made all the difference.

2WAY:

Vinny Gualano – Backyard Bullies:

5 catches – 78 yards – 2 TDs

1 TK – 1 INT

Gualano finally made his presence felt on offense and delivered the kind of overall game that we expect from the Hall of Famer. I wouldn’t be surprised to see his name pop up in this category again before the end of the season.

Predictions

Icarus flew too close to the sun and had his wings melt as a result. Seems to be the case for me, as I got a little risky with my picks last week and paid the consequences. My 6-3 record for the week opens the door for Danny’s comeback, who put up an annoyingly accurate 8-1 response. Oh well, you can’t have a race with one guy miles ahead. Let him make this interesting.

Alex (26-9)
Danny (23-12)

Alex Danny

Bearskins Bearskins

Junkyard Dogs Junkyard Dogs

Royals Royals

Texas Baremanz SMYTD

Impeccable D Impeccable D

NoName Home for the Hollandaise

Red Wave Red Wave

Backyard Bullies Backyard Bullies

The Commission The Commission

That’s it for this week! Week 4 of FPF is officially in the books, and week 5 is set to start up soon. See how fast it goes! Enjoy your time on the field because Spring season passes by in a blur. If you have any feedback, concerns, comments or just want a shoulder to lean on you can reach out to me @alexholowach1 on Twitter, or hit me up on Facebook. If you’re craving more div C content please check out the Calling the Audible podcast featuring GM and Justin, it’s a healthy dose of sophisticated silliness to get you through the week. Thanks for taking the time to read this, and make sure to check back next week to find out how week 5 shook out!