Week 2 Review – Finessers answer the call yet again.

As much as I love FPF, the beginning of the winter season is always tough because a lot of games are in sync with the NFL Playoffs. That said, playing will always trump watching, but it’s hard to be 100% focused. Guys on my teams, the opposing team, and even refs we’re discretely talking about the games being played, asking about the score or checking if everybody on the field had seen the earlier game. It’s especially tough for a league writer because I want to do my best to not only play in my own games, but watch a few others so that I can give accurate representations in my recaps and get a much better feel for the teams in Division 5. Let’s face it, if I never come out to watch you guys play, my articles won’t be very good.

Besides Patriots fans, I think that we, as a collective NFL fan base are all a bit concerned. I, for one, am tired of watching the Patriots make the SuperBowl every year. Worse, they often win. That brings us to this year. Forget about the teams still involved for a second. If I told you that Brady’s remaining competition once he got to the Conference Finals we’re Blake Bortles, Case Keenum and Nick Foles, we would laugh together and think that I was probably referring to each team’s backup QB. But no, this is now the reality that we all face together, as a collective group who wants anything but to see the Patriots win yet again.

My girlfriend went as far as saying that if the Pats do in fact win again, that she refuses to watch football with me moving forward. For most, this probably isn’t a big deal. However to me, it’s everything. She knows more than the average wife or girlfriend about the NFL and can tell you about each team’s better players. She knows that JJ Watt has a younger brother on the Steelers, that Philip Rivers has 27 children, that Odell Beckham Jr. and Jarvis Landry are best friends and that Cam Newton went to Auburn. She also doesn’t mind Andy Dalton, oddly enough. The hate is so deeply rooted that while she has yet to pick a favorite team, she has declared that her favorite team will be the ones who knock off the Patriots during this year’s playoffs. The icing on the cake is that every year, we pick a different city to go and watch a football game and make it into a weekend getaway. The goal is to eventually watch a game in every stadium. So you can see why the Patriots winning another Superbowl would be extremely problematic to me.

As a Colts fan, living with a Jags fan would be interesting, but still better than the Patriots winning again.

With my rant coming to a conclusion, you do have to envy the Patriots somewhat. The NFL is a place that has very little loyalty, and when you tie in the salary cap and the level of competition, it’s near impossible to do what they have done. It’s something that FPF handles very well, too. The salary cap in each division in combination with player ratings and the idea that players will get better or worse as seasons go on, allow for rivalries to be formed and parity throughout. You get to know the names and faces of those you line up against season after season and friendships form within the rivalries. I’ve met a lot of people in this league that I now call a friend, yet I can’t help but look forward to throwing over them for a TD.

Whether you love the Patriots, hate them, or feel kind of indifferent, you can’t argue that those feelings bring people together.

Alright, enough with the platitudes, let’s jump into my recap of week 2 and a whole new group of guys who balled out this week.

Week 2 – Recaps

Division 5A

Mud Dogs get caged

I got the call from a buddy of mine, Dave Beltrami to play in this one. Dave, a die hard Jaguars fan has endured a lot of grief. A lot. It’s finally his time. Just like it’s finally time for a young man by the name of Jaylan Greaves to dominate FPF. He seems to be getting his feet wet in the lower divisions, lucky for Mavericks, but let you all be warned, this guy can ball. The game overall was extremely close, trading punches early in the game but the Mud Dogs seemed to have the edge because of their ability to convert in the red zone and get those extra points. The Mavericks defense missed tackles and allowed 10 yard pass plays to get by them and turn into 25 yard touchdowns. Their rusher was of no use as Marc-Antoine Jetté is great at getting the ball out early into his receivers hands. Marc-Antoine moved the ball extremely well and did his best to avoid Beltrami and Greaves, which is why somebody like me was able to get 5 tackles. I’m an easy target to pick on most of the time.

The game got much more interesting in the second half. Right after the Mavericks did not convert on 4th down, Jetté threw a pick to David Bossé which gave the Mavericks a chance to go up by two scores. The difference in this game really came down to Greaves. He only made 4 catches, but two we’re over the middle on deep posts for touchdowns and one catch came on 4th down when he jumped over the defender in the back corner of the end zone and grabbed the ball with one hand. Definitely had my vote for highlight of the night. Jay Onrait would agree. Mud Dogs would add a TD late to make the score more closely resemble the kind of game it was, however that one turnover proved to be the difference in a very exciting game.

Finessers turn the tables and offer some magic of their own

The Finessers offense just proved to be way too much for Voodoo to handle in this one. From the very beginning, Finnessers scored and scored often, forcing Voodoo to play catch up and it was not something that they looked comfortable doing. I’ve seen Frank Kaye play many times and he can do a lot of damage on the field, however once he starts to force throws and play outside of his comfort zone, it can be disastrous for Voodoo. While Patrick St. Armand still got his, the story was really Ryan Kharouf and just how dangerous he can be on both sides of the ball.

Ryan played well, but also had some help from his receivers. Bachalaani made side-line catch after side-line catch in the back of the endzone and his other receivers decided to get in on the action a little bit more this game, with Thomas G-Lajoie, Nirosh Suresh and Roy Khalil each getting a TD of their own. Voodoo’s touchdowns came on busted coverages on the Finessers side, both in the first half. Finessers made very good adjustments at the half, though, and completely frustrated Voodoo in the second half.

Voodoo has to be concerned moving forward as they fall to 0-2. They will need to stay in close games and close out opponents in order to win games – I don’t see them winning shootouts very often. Finessers, on the other hand, are red hot and after another huge win have Ryan Kharouf currently in 2nd in the league in yards thrown with a perfect 11-0 TD/Int ratio. Bachalaani currently leads all receivers with 200 yards and 7 touchdowns. Fun fact, in the past 4 season, this group of guys only has lot once when Ryan completes 50% of his passes.

Division 5B

No need for Saiyans, Krillin’ could have handled this one

This game was lopsided from the very first drive, which started out by Jordan Allard using his feet mostly, including running around a bit before throwing to Troy Rothdram for the 1 yard TD. As good as the offense looked being run by Jordan Allard, and I emphasize the word run, the Fun Boys defence came to play and make it frustrating originally on Jordan throwing the ball. His receivers had a tough time getting open early. For a name like the Fun Boys, I was expecting to see much more creative jerseys. Both their jerseys and their level of excitement in this one were generally a disappointment on a cold Saturday night.

The key in this game was early turnovers by the Fun Boys. Allard picked off Scott Mironowicz on their first drive after the ball sailed too high over the middle. Jordan’s next pass was a TD to Troy Rothdram again to put the Saiyans up two scores. Funboys QB Scott Mironowicz looked uncomfortable throwing the ball and often used to feet instead to either gain yards or keep plays alive. His 2nd pick also came in the first half when Derrick Fontana grabbed a tipped ball that the Fun Boys receiver would probably like to have back.

The Fontana interception led to a 20 yard TD over the middle on the next play to Tyler Doucette and the game officially got away from the Fun Boys early. The Saiyans looked complete on both sides of the ball and dominated from start to finish. While Scott could improve as a pocket passer, I think the best chance for Fun Boys to be successful moving forward is for him to use his legs and design short passing and trick plays in order to hold onto the ball for longer drives. The big plays just weren’t there that night.

Frank Castle does as Frank Castle does

Things did not start in the Punishers favour, just as the famous story goes. Their first drive began with promise, however they we’re stopped short due to an interception and to make matters worse, gave up a safety on their next drive. Anthony Siggia had an outstanding game in this one, as you will see later on, however he was responsible for knocking the ball out of his QB’s hands in their own end zone to give up the 2 points. By halftime, they managed to be only down 15-6 and I am sure that they knew it could have been worse.

The Punishers plotted their revenge and began to make things easier on themselves, with Adamo Iadeluca finding holes in the defence and not forcing anything until Junior Spera caught a ball in the end zone to give the Punishers the lead. Both teams traded punches for a while, the Punishers make things really easy to create metaphors that tie in with the comics. Anthony Fabrizio was all over the field on defence, ending the game with six tackles. Siggia was really the driving force on offence as Adamo used him to stretch the field and keep the Haterzzz on their toes. I wonder why they have 3 z’s in their name?

The final TD of the game was on a post over the middle of the field to Siggia and the Punishers held the fort to get the victory. It was a hard fought game on both sides and will help improve the confidence of the Punishers, something the rest of the league should be worried about.

Power Rankings

Division 5A

Greendale Human Beings (2-0) – Still leading the league in Points for against solid opponents, they did nothing to lose the top spot.
Finessers (2-0) – They did exactly as I proposed and Ryan spread the ball around to perfection. 11/0 TD to int ration will have teams gunning for them.
Hot Boys Hotline (2-0) – They’ve only given up 18 points in two games, can’t help but give them respect.
Ghosts (2-0) – Seeing part of their game, they did not completely dominate but they look like a very complete team.
Longhorns (2-0) – They move up into the top 8 as Texas Baremanz lossed and Hurricane SZN tied. They know how to handle some pressure and will be a tough team to beat.
Grand Lionel (2-0) – Sitting at 2-0, Sebastien Thibault played a near perfect game and Antoine Brisson and Simon Chouinard-Laliberte give them plenty of upside.
Smokin Axolotls (2-0) – They’ve won 2 very close games but still managed to come out on top both times. Counts for something.
Preachers (2-0) – Similar to Smokin Axolotls, this team has overcome a few close ones. They have solid weapons in Labonte and Saro and can easily move up the rankings.

Division 5B

Falcons (2-0) – They move up to top spot after beating a slightly better opponent than Team Y.S. did. Think of these two as more of a 1A and 1B combination.
Team Y.S. (2-0) – Mehzoudi is looking really comfortable so far in his first season and spread the ball around nicely. Hopefully their lack of experience doesn’t cause them to slip up once or twice.
Retired All Stars (2-0) – They get the 3rd spot because of how dominant their defense has been. 22 Points against is impressive.
Wrecking Crew (2-0) – These guys round up the top 4, all in the same Conference. This is definitely the stronger of the two conferences and hopefully Wrecking Crew don’t suffer because of that.
Les Affreux – (2-0) – Turns out, it doesn’t take much to lead Conference A. Two wins in a row will do it. That being said, Affreux know what they are doing on the field and have come out on top in two close games.
Takeover (1-0-1) – The win against the Punishers was not too long ago, but the tie hurts. Ian Einheiber did not have his best game, but I have faith that they will rebound.
Spartans (1-1) – I give them credit for beating Black Knights and their only loss is against a team higher on this list. Don’t count them out.
Super Saiyans – This team will go as Jordan Allard goes. They have a few FPF vets and know how to win, but Allard has to limit the mistakes.

“You ball, You get the call”

Firstly, a reminder, keep checking your facebook messages throughout the week when possible. I usually reach out on Tuesday or Wednesday after all of the games have been played and I would hate to see somebody not included because they missed my message. Secondly, I have to say, this is probably my favorite part of the article. I am not sure if it’s fun to read or not for the rest of the league and I welcome all feedback, but it’s been the best part of my short tenure as a writer. It’s been fun reaching out to some guys that I don’t know very well and get their input and ask about their teams. I do have to tell everybody, the only way to make this list every week is for your team to win. Obviously you need to ball out, but if your team loses, no call. We had some amazing performances in Week 2, here are my selections.

Division 5A

Mavericks – Jaylan Greaves – 4 catches, 75 yards, 4 TDs, 2 tackles, 2 PDs

I had the pleasure of throwing the ball up for you and you made me look good. What goes through your mind before you make those ridiculous one handed catches over the defender?
- I just put myself in the best position to come down with the ball and if that means catching the ball over a defender with one hand, that’s what I’ll do. It ultimately comes down to wants the ball more
Some people would call you cocky, how would you respond to that?
- That’s my personality, that’s how I get in the game

Hot Boys Hotline – Edwouard Valmé – 3 catches, 95 yards, 2 TDs, 3 tackles, 1 INT, 1 TD

You dominated on both sides of the ball, why such an uneven rating?
- I used to play wide receiver in highschool then switched to defensif back im a two way dominance im hungry in both side
I ranked Hot Boys Hotline at 7th going into this game, was this used as motivation?
- Foreal, this team always been underrated but we like that cuz when we pull up an upset the whole league shook and thats what we do – we underdogs.
Tell us something that the league should know about Edwouard Valmé.
- League should know that first im going for a back to back Defensif player or the year second like i said im playing offence and defense so no matter what im ballin out every single game 3.Hot Boy Hotline aint all about me but about all my teamate if i dont make a play best believe my teamate are making a play

Finessers – Ryan Kharouf – 16/25, 217 yards, 6 TDs, 1 tackle, 2 INTs

I have to start with pointing out your 11-0 TD/Int ratio. Does this season feel different already?
- We added my teamate Nirosh who was part of team quebec and my #1 receiver in highschool and cegep and we killed everyone together. That helped take off pressure off alex. Experience also plays a big role in our success this year. Also, for my 11/0 td ratio, nothing to be surprised…im the best qb in QC.
Who decided on the name change and why?
- We changed the name because we had crazy badluck in our 2 playoff appearances (like illuminati unlucky). Also we needed to change our swag because our shirts ripped out…and because the other material rubbed our nipples too much. We decided on finessers because all we do is finesse everybody in the league, straight hustlin.
We’ve already had Alex on this segment, besides you two, who’s your prediction for the next Finesser to get the call?
- Everybody can make the call, its too easy. I choose who makes the call. If one of my teamates offers 10$ then i make it happen. Who do you want it to be?

Division 5B

Punishers – Anthony Siggia – 8 catches, 80 yards, 2 TDS, 5 tackles, 2 INTs, 1 TD

You guys we’re close to going 0-2, how did you manage to climb back in this one?
- We came into this game refusing to go 0-2, so we had a few challenges in the first half that we addressed at half time and it was really a team effort on both sides of the ball, all the guys really stepped up and really proud to be a part of this team.
You really had a monster game, how do you manage to break out when teams are starting to know your name and probably game plan against you?
- I play every game like it’s the national championship, the guys that play with me know I’m very competitive, especially Adamo Iadeluca and Junior Spera I played with them for over 15yrs together. I put a lot of pressure on myself and I enjoy when we win as a team, so I’ll do what I need to do to get it done. My QB and teammates trust me a lot with the ball so I don’t want to let them down.
Will Power called you out last week as one of his biggest competitors for WROY. Is that one your goals?
- Will is one of the best I’ve played against, we always have good matchups. My main goal is to win a championship. If that comes all the better.

Falcons – Pat Lefebvre – 21/30, 277 yards, 6 TDs, 2 INTs, 2 tackles, 1 INT

You guys sit at 2-0, are you worried people might draw comparisons to the Atlanta Falcons?
- I think it’s too early in the season for comparisons but if people insist, as long as they don’t have reasons to compare us to the Browns we’re doing OK. I can’t say that I’m a “go to guy” type of QB,
It’s 4th down, who’s your go to guy and why?
- I can’t say that I’m a “go to guy” type of QB, I’m more of a “go to play” person. Besides, this year I have 3 of 5 receivers I’ve never played with and that kind of chemistry takes time to grow.
As an FPF vet, you’ve been doing this a while. What’s your pregame routine for all the younger players out there?
- Lets face it, I’m not only an FPF vet… I’m also just plain old. Pregame involves warming up slowly and stretching. Always keeping in mind three things.

Don’t blow yourself out during warmups. (That’s what she said)
Arrive early (What am I gonna do at 10pm… watch more TV?)
Tell my guys what I expect from them today and what I plan to do. Less questions in the huddle and better results on the field.

Falcons – Raphael Ducas-Lapalme – 8 catches, 99 yards, 2 TDs, 1 PD

Your QB had an amazing game but mentioned that he doesn’t usually have a go-to-guy. How did you have so much success?
- I think it’s because I was miss matched all the game, and I’m working hard to be his go-to-guy
Would you compare yourself more to Julio Jones or Mohammed Sanu and why?
- I believe I’m more a deep threat like Jones than a possession receiver like Sanu.
Which other guy on the team tries to call plays for his QB so that he can get the ball?
- Only the Qb calls the play. Our role is to help our Qb to see tendencies of opposing defence.