Division A and 5v5: Braves Domination, Power Rankings and the Best Performances So Far

What’s up everyone! My name is Jerome Hovington and I will be the article writer for Division A this season. As you might have seen, I am also writing for the brand new 5v5 division. This week, both divisions will be combined into one article, which makes sense, as many of you play in both divisions, and I’m unfortunately at a risk of repeating myself covering the same players twice. Just to introduce myself, I am playing with Wyeth’s Rejects in Division A and with Dime and Bougie in 5v5. Let’s start with the biggest storylines of the season so far.

Division A

• DA Braves start off the season strong with 3 straight wins over KGP, Spearhead and Wyeth’s Rejects
• In their Div A debut season, Mangoose led by Nicolas Schaefer surprise with 2 wins to start the season over KGP and Blessed
• After a close week 1 loss to Wyeth’s Rejects, Party Crashers dominate defensively versus Blessed, picking off Stephen Harripersaud 5 times and William Power 2 more times
• Wyeth’s Rejects’ QB Ignacio Valdez Manzanedo has struggled protecting the ball in his first Div A season, already throwing 8 interceptions
• DA Braves’ Jonathan Maheu sets himself up for another QB of the year campaign after throwing 12TDs with no interception or sack taken in 2 games
• DA Braves’ JD Chevalier takes the lead in the receiver of the year discussion after picking up 211 yards and 4TDs through 3 games
• After a dominant performance vs. Blessed, Khadeem Pierre puts himself on top of the defensive player of the year rankings

5v5 Comp

• As was expected, Braves dominate and pick up 3 wins in a row to start off the season
• Dime and Bougie surprise KGP without Phil Cutler with a dominant 39-12 win
• Royaume Luminaire have struggled to adapt to 5v5 and have only scored 28 points in 2 games, with QB Jesse Dupuis only passing for 2TDs while throwing 3 picks to the opposing defense
• After a tough week 1 loss to Flag Moi L’Sac, Jeff Rosenblatt and The Jamesons bounce back with a comfortable win over Royaume Luminaire, headlined by Anthony Brisebois’ 89 yards and 2 touchdowns
• Flag Moi L’Sac couldn’t repeat the success they had in week 1, and lose their next 2 games by a combined negative differential of 48, whilst only scoring 28 points total
• Party Crashers help Flag Moi L’Sac to only 8 points thanks to dominant defensive performances by Jeanslee Alexis, Jourdain Alexis, Mendel Joseph and Zachary Alexis
• James Drysdale dominated his first 2 games with 218 yards and 6TDs, but there is uncertainty regarding his availability for the rest of the season
• Charles Verreault dominated defensively in week 1 for D&B with 3 interceptions total and 2 of those returned for 6, showing why he’s one of the premier defenders in this league

Last week for 5v5, I gave my power rankings for the division, but it was a huge shot in the dark as we hadn’t seen the full extent of the difference between both the 5v5 and 6v6 format. This week, I will be giving you my Power Rankings for Division A as well as my updated rankings for 5v5, with my justification for the changes (or why it didn’t change).

Division A Power Rankings

#1: DA Braves

It is no secret that Jonathan Maheu is now the best QB in all of FPF with Kevin Wyeth’s absence this season. His near perfect performances so far have led his team to a 3-0 record, and there seems to be no stopping this team with elite 2-way players at every position. So far, it seems there is a huge gap between Da Braves and every other team in Div A.

#2: Spearhead

Though Jeff Rosenblatt is not at Jo Maheu’s level yet, he probably is in the Top3 QBs of Division A. The roster he’s built is genuinely ridiculous, with so many stars, most notably Anthony Brisebois, Jordan Panetta, and James Drysdale. For this team, it will be a question of whether Rosenblatt can remain calm under pressure and limit the turnovers.

#3: Party Crashers

While Jeanslee Alexis hasn’t performed up to expectations so far this season, he’s really grown as a quarterback and has shown that he can win against the best of the best, as he did in the last Fall Cup Tier 1 when he won it all with 450 Ballers. The team is also clear and cut the most athletic, with players like Darren Wiltshire, Mendel Joseph, Ryth Jean-Giraud, etc. Even if Jeanslee isn’t having his best game, Party Crashers will make it tough for any opposing QB to score against them.

#4: Mangoose

The team has had a wonderful start, winning their first 2 games over KGP and Blessed. Nicolas Schaefer has been on fire, scoring 10 times and only getting picked off once. Mangoose perhaps don’t have the flashiest names on their roster but they have many players looking to make a name for themselves like Olivier Suri, Simon Anctil and Thomas Coutu. Though the season has started off strong, they will have to face some tough teams and still need to prove to the league that they truly belong amongst the top teams in Div A.

#5: KGP

It’s been a very disappointing start for KGP who were surely looking to finally put themselves in the contender conversation this season. Despite Phil Cutler’s good start to the season, they haven’t been able to get a win yet through 2 games, and that is mainly due to their inability to impact the game defensively. Braves put up an almost effortless 45 points on them, and KGP only stopped Mangoose once. So far, the defense has only been able to get their hands on one pass, and they will surely need to be more productive defensively.

#6: Blessed

After a dominant win over Wyeth’s Rejects in Week 1, Blessed were dominated by Party Crashers‘ defense in Week 2, as the latter picked the former a total of 7 times. It was better for QB Stephen Harripersaud in Week 3 as he connected with star receiver Marvin Steinberg on 4 occasions and was able to find snapper Alexis Ferrand for his 5th passing touchdown of the day. Unfortunately, a disastrous final play attempt where Andrew Grant dropped back and threw a forward pass back to Harripersaud ended the game in disappointing fashion for the team. This feels like one of the weakest rosters Blessed has had in the past few seasons, and they will most likely struggle this season.

#7: Wyeth’s Rejects

The first season for QB Ignacio Valdez Manzanedo hasn’t gone great, with Iggy throwing a respectable 15TDs but a very disappointing 8INTs. It’s a big jump to go from Div3/DivB to DivA, and perhaps the quarterback just needs more time to adapt his game to the highest level. The roster is solid, with athletic players like Rocco Cristiano, Kris Verreault and Gab Champagne, as well as the ever reliable Matt Kirouac. The team has the potential to have some success if Iggy can figure out the way to protect the ball better, but it might be a struggle the rest of the way.

5v5 Updated Power Rankings

#1: Braves (last week: #1)

Things haven’t changed, Braves are still the best 5v5 team and they’ve only solidified that after destroying Flag Moi L’Sac 51-20. The biggest thing to note is that I perhaps underestimated Isiah Allard‘s impact in 5v5. With the field being more narrow, he can take out even bigger lanes from opposing QBs and he showed it immensely with 2 sacks and 4PDs.

#2: Party Crashers (last week: #6)

This is the biggest jump from any team, but they did hang with Braves in Week 1 and made Alex Nadeau-Piuze look terrible in Week 2. I realized that defense is much more important in 5v5 than it is in 6v6, and Party Crashers have some of the best defenders on their roster. Another keep component is speed, and athleticism in general. With the speed this squad possesses, they are able to spread the field much more, and combining that with Fred Dupuis’ arm strength gives them an edge over most teams. Athleticism and the ability to beat players one on one is king in 5v5, and not many teams have that ability like Party Crashers do.

#3: The Jamesons (last week: #4)

For similar reasons as to why Party Crashers made a big jump, The Jamesons do too. They have elite two-way athletes all across the board, and great one on one receivers, mainly Anthony Brisebois, Adam Rosen and Jordan Panetta. As long as Jeff Rosenblatt keeps trusting his receivers to make the tough plays, this team should find some success along the way.

#4: KGP (last week: #5)

Despite the catastrophic offensive performance from Joey Taylor in Week 1 vs. Dime and Bougie, there isn’t much that can be taken from this game on KGP’s side. Phil Cutler‘s strengths as a QB will shine in 5v5 and the team was without some of its best players. This team perhaps doesn’t have the crazy athleticism of the teams above, but they will be very good regardless.

#5: Flag Moi L’Sac (last week: #2)

This is a huge drop off for this team as they’ve been insanely good in 6v6. Yes, the start has been awful, but they still have crazy athletes and a great QB in Alex Nadeau-Piuze. They haven’t been able to adjust just yet to 5v5, but I have no doubt that they will eventually.

#6: Dime and Bougie (last week: #7)

Dime and Bougie jumps up one spot after their dominant defensive performance vs. KGP last week. As I said before, not much can be taken from that game considering the circumstances, but Dime and Bougie also have elite 2-way athletes like Marvin Steinberg, Charles Verreault and Gab Champagne. Jules Regimbald is still the question mark, and it will likely stay that way throughout the season.

#7: Royaume Luminaire (last week: #3)

Saying that it hasn’t gone to plan so far for this team would be a massive understatement. The beginning of the season has been nothing short of disastrous. They have struggled mightily on offense and haven’t been able to tip the scales with their defense either. Jesse Dupuis has looked uncomfortable and confused and it doesn’t bode well for the rest of the season. They have an elite athlete in AJ Gomes, but he has only touched the ball 4 times in 2 games. Hopefully they find a way to adjust or else this might be a long season.

Best performances so far this season

Division A

QB: Stephen Harripersaud (Blessed)Week 1 vs. Wyeth’s Rejects

21/29 222 yards 8TDs 0INTs 0Sacks

Receiver: Olivier Suri (Mangoose) Week 3 vs. Blessed

6/6 123 yards 3TDs XP1

Defender: Khadeem Pierre (Party Crashers) Week 2 vs. Blessed

3INTs, 1PD, 2 pick-6s

2-way: Isiah Allard (DA Braves) Week 2 vs. Spearhead

5/6 70 yards 1TD XP1 3PDs

5v5

QB: Jonathan Maheu (Braves) Week 3 vs. Flag Moi L’Sac

25/32 270 yards 7TDs 0INTs 0Sacks

Receiver: James Drysdale (Braves) Week 1 vs. Party Crashers

10/10 129 yards 4TDs 2XP2

Defender: Charles Verreault (Dime and Bougie) Week 2 vs. KGP

3INTs 2pick-6s

2-way: Francois Rocheleau (Flag Moi L’Sac) Week 1 vs. The Jamesons

4/6 83 yards 3TDs 2INTs

Players to watch in this week’s remaining games

DIVISION A

Blessed vs. KGP: Dylan Garber

With 143 yards and 3TDs in 2 games so far, will Dylan Garber continue his hot streak and make a push for receiver of the year?

Spearhead vs. Mangoose: Manu Allard-Roy

With Mangoose probably giving a lot of respect to the other receivers on Spearhead, is it time for Allard-Roy to explode?

Party Crashers vs. Spearhead: Corey Williams

Williams has had a big impact so far for this team and seems to have found a connection with QB Jeanslee Alexis, will he put himself in the conversation for best receivers in the league?

5v5

Royaume Luminaire vs. Dime and Bougie: Rory Semerjian

Semerjian is one the most talented receivers in all of FPF, but his QB’s struggles haven’t allowed him to impact the game the way he wants to. Will he explode tonight?

KGP vs. Braves: Phil Cutler

Cutler’s first 5v5 game will be against the toughest of opponents. Will his game translate well to the new FPF format?

Party Crashers vs. Dime and Bougie: Jules Regimbald and Marvin Steinberg

It will be the toughest test for Regimbald so far this season, but will he be able to find some chemistry with new addition Marvin Steinberg?

Outro

There you guys have it for this week’s article in Division A and 5v5. I hope you enjoyed the read. If any of you have suggestions for the content of these articles, feel free to message me on Facebook.

Good luck in your games this week!