The Raptors Make the NBA Finals, Quarterback Questions Answered and Predictable Offences

Peeze’s Playbook

Week 2

By Paolo Della Rocca

Week 2 Recap

On July 18th 2018 Demar DeRozan (along with the oft forgotten Jakob Poetl) to the San Antonio Spurs for Kawhi Leonard. The reaction seemed bizarre. People seemed to be upset the the team betrayed a loyal soldier and seemed to ignore the fact that the Raptors were able to trade a B+ talent for one of the best players in the league. The upgrade was massive and it seemed to be somewhat of a sombre feeling passing through the nation.

I’m not particularly patriotic (I love poutine, day drinking and beavers as much as anyone else I guess) and I’m not a Raptor’s fan. That said, it was fairly obvious to me that a team that had for years struggled in the post season added a piece that would no make them one of the front runners in the east.

Prior to the season, I had thought that Lockdown was set to be one of division E’s front runners. Pat Riot is likely the best quarterback in the division who has played sparingly in the past few seasons. Regardless of the lapse, I expected the longtime Lockdown pivot to come in and sling it. Two games in and Lockdown appears to be as bland as English vegetables.

On offense the team is as predictable as ever. First looks to Shawn Fontaine and outlet passes to Steven Alberico. On defence Alex “The Eagle” D’Aquila has been frustrated by poor defensive execution. This game against Brewers was no exception. As a passer Jeffery Lefevbre was simply ordinary. He connected with James Moulton, Eddie Laronde and Chris Morin for touchdowns. However, his three rushing touchdowns certainly frustrated a lockdown defence that has been anything but.

Meanwhile, Kawhi Leonard, who was known for his stellar defensive play in San Antonio brought that effort, and spirit to the Raptors. For the first time ever, Toronto will represent the eastern conference in the NBA finals. His defence has made the league MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo look like an inefficient scorer.

Leonord’s moment of course came in the closing seconds of game 7 in the previous round made everyone in the surrounding frame instantly meme-able. It also served as one of those signature moments that are long remembered after playoff and potentially championship runs.

Yet, this was a player who a nation seemed to have trouble getting behind initially. Perhaps the issue was that he was a player who was coming off of an injury. This isn’t altogether uncommon in professional sports. Worst case scenario, Leonard would not have been able to play at the level we have now seen him capable of. However, prior to the trade, the Raptors’ salary table was structured as such that the window for the team as constructed, would have lasted no more than two more seasons before they would have had to reload. Similarly, a concern was presented that Kawhi may be no more than a single season rental wheres DeRozan likely would have stayed in “the six”. Yet, the team as previously built was always criticized for the inability to do damage in the post-season. Now we’ve seen that a single season with Kawhi Leonard has landed the Raptors in a situation where they have an opportunity to win the Larry O’Brien trophy.

Furthermore, since I’ve started the Hot Sauce Sports blog, sports aggregator and podcast, I’ve met some amazing people who’ve done some amazing work in covering the Raptors beat. From what they’ve seen, throughout this season, it appears actually fairly likely that Kawhi Leonard will remain in Toronto past this season. This of course reminds me that if you have not yet checked out Hot Sauce Sports, you’ve been missing out. Shameless plug notwithstanding, we do some pretty interesting work and is definitely worth checking out.

A game worth checking out this week was the tightly contested game where Los Banditos would edge out Mambo 30-25. When Mambo registered I figured they would be a good team. They are a “farm team” to the higher division The U. There is a lot of experience on this team but the questioned remained regarding who would throw for them. After a forced week 1 bye (due to field inability and scheduling conflicts at Bois-de-Boulogne), we now know that Justin Peress will bw taking snaps for Mambo. Interestingly, these were the first snaps he took in FPF. For the most part Peress looked good.

Peress completed 60% of his passes, scored 4 touchdowns and he was a yard shy of 200 (all generally benchmarks for success in FPF). However, the two interceptions were a big part of the reason that Mambo would eventually come up short. Despite connecting with Matt Kendall and Peress’ QB mind-surrogate Joe Kano for two touchdowns, the two interceptions would eventually cost Mambo the win. Imagine if you would that while Justin Peress is in the huddle calling plays, Joseph Kano is lying in a bath tub with wires coming out of his brain and out of the base of the neck (which science fiction would have you believe is where brain fluid is at it’s highest concentration). Let’s hope Joe Kano can play the part of the Oracle throughout the season and help Peress avoid these mistakes moving forward. Know all I can think of is Joe Kan-Oracle (patent pending).

Los Banditos looked to be every part the contender that we expected this season. Vincent Benjamin not only capitalized on one of those aforementioned errors as he recorded an interception and added a pair of touchdowns. Loic Savoiz Seguin intercepted a pass as well as the twin towers continue to create havoc for opposing teams. Heading into the season we knew who would be throwing for Los Banditos. However, there were still questions regarding Francis Desrochers. Desrochers is an excellent athlete but he has had trouble at times when he’s had to stick to being strictly a passer. Desrochers was in a situation that allowed for him to use all of his assets. He threw 3 touchdowns and scored another pair on the ground whilst leading his team to a win.

Another team with QB questions coming into the season was Practice Squad. Tyler Grondin has a lot to work on. He is a raw talent but has a lot of issues regarding, pacing, play-calling, reading plays and progressions. Andel Thomas-Gordon, Kevin Donnet and Nim Jenikovsky are all excellent and versatile pieces that can be used both sides of the ball. Thomas-Gordon actually scored twice and Nom Jenikovsky added another score in a three touchdown output for Practice Squad. That said, the combination of Grondin’s areas that need improvement and the now legendary Bud Knights defense led to 3 interceptions by Bud Knights in a dominant 46-18 win.

Bud Knights have loaded upon the off season. Stephen Harripersaud brought along fellow Montreal Flag League veteran(and now FPF veteran) Shyanne Stewart. The team also brought in higher division stalwart Laurent Foucault. The pair have immediately paid dividends as they both intercepted passes in this game. Meanwhile, Mathieu Kieljan showed all of the promise and poise he showed in his best moments last season.

So far this NBA post season, Kawhi Leonard has given Canada, Raptors fans and NBA fans plenty to cheer plenty of incredible moments. “The Claw” has paid dividends and while there are some, mostly those that don’t understand the defensive facets of the game who believe this will be an easy sweep for the Warriors. The length and athleticism of guys like Kawhi and Pascal Siakam as well as Kyle Lowry’s intelligent work in his defensive switching will make this game a far more interesting series than some may believe. That is of course, unless Kevin Durant returns and the 7 foot alien sinks shots from all over the court and over every defender.

That was the week that was. Hope you enjoyed it!

Division E Power Rankings

Each week Marc Andre Desaulniers and I will rank our elite 8 teams. For the most part we try to ignore the standings and look at trends. Who is on the rise, who is not performing and how have these teams played in the short term. This is a shared segment just as Marc-Andre’s article collects our picks of the week. For our picks please take a look at MAD’s article here: https://www.flagplusfootball.com/en/news/2246.

Peeze’s Elite 8

Clinkers (2-0): On the podcast I said that Clinkers were the best team in the division. After a few days of deliberation, I still feel that way. Marc-Andre Desaulniers has completed over 84% of his passes thus far. That is note worthy.
Los Banditos (2-0): Vincent Benjamin has caught 4 touchdowns and has added two interceptions so far this season. The dude is great and LB will continue to put him in position to contribute in a big way.
Pardon My Swag (2-0): Brad Evans’ 9.7 yards per pass is as accurate an assessment as one could have on PMS. They are reliable if not spectacular. For the moment however, it has them looking like one of the top teams in the division.
Threat Level Midnight (2-0): Week two’s win was offensively ugly. However, Antoine Baril has already accumulated 3 sacks and the Threat Level Midnight defence has already recorded 6 interceptions.
Los Siete Amigos (1-1): This week they dismantled Trojans. Etienne Brisson has not been without mistakes this season. However, I believe this team is strong enough to elevate him and we will see him perform at a high level before the game is done.
Trailer Park Boys (2-0): The defence is aggressive in the flats. That is something that is fairly uncommon in Division E. Antoine Meunier is also vastly improved as a passer and his ability to run at any point make TPB a potential post-season threat.
Honour Game (2-0): Devin Daoust caught three passes from his brother and Honour Game are undefeated after two weeks in the Spring 2019 season.
Jean Guy (2-0): When Jean Guy initially registered, I did not see Simon Laporte’s name on the roster. He has 6 sacks in two games and his presence makes this defence a team that will frustrate you and wear you down

Marc-Andre’s Elite 8

Pardon My Swag : Ce n’est pas l’équipe la plus spectaculaire, mais ils sont drôlement efficaces et une compréhension du jeu hors pair.
Tough Lungs : Tant que les équipes adverses n’auront pas un plan de match pour ralentir Justin Lerner, ils seront presque impossibles à vaincre!
Clinkers : L’attaque a très bien fait et la défensive a été combative.
Threat Level Midnight: Bel attrapé d’Alexandre Guertin pour procurer la Victoire aux siens.
Los Banditos : L’affrontement de la semaine face à Bozy Boyz. LB seront l’un des grands favoris au titre.
Honor Game : Encore une prestation sans fautes pour cette équipe!
Trailer Park Boys : Antoine Meunier a vraiment élevé le niveau de son jeu cette saison.
Bud Knights : Leur alignement fait peur et si Mathieu Kieljan maintien le rythme, ouf !!!

Sunday’s Slippery Subway

Our pictures have been taken, the season is in full swing and we are onto week 3. Let me know your thoughts by reaching me at @PeezeFPF on twitter, @Peeze Della Reeze on Facebook or by emailing me at [email protected].

For further analysis, tune in to the official FPF Division E podcast Calling the Audible where Moe Khan, Stefano Berardi discuss why Janeame Garofolo’s best hair colour, the best Grand Prix races to bet on and toenail stretchers. You can see us on Facebook live or on youtube @ www.youtube.com/flagplusfootball.

Have a great and safe week of action. See you at the fields!