Peeze’s Playbook (Div 5) – Week 5 – FlagPlus Football League

Peeze’s Playbook (Div 5) – Week 5

Paolo Della Rocca

Half of the season is history and while some teams will try to re-write theirs with a strong second half of the season, others will look to continue their efforts and make history on their quest toward a championship. The season is 10 games long, and with 5 weeks done most teams should have an idea of their chances moving forward. It is important to know where you stand. Is your team in it to run around once a week? Do you want to truly want to be competitive in this league? For some of the struggling teams who thought they might be competitive it may be time to take a look at your roster and begin to think of ways to persuade some of your players to try soccer instead.

Despite Daron Basmadjian begging me to spread the wealth over the next two weeks I decided to be foolish, give up sleep and breakdown all 50 teams in division 5. Normally, in this section I do a weekly overview but I wanted to make sure that I could devote enough effort on the mid-season review. So without further delay, here it is:

Mid-Season Overview

I’ve decided to steal GM Kolethras’ idea of ranking them backwards, from 25-1 in each conference. I figured since his clothes wouldn’t fit me well this would be easier for me to pull off. Moreover, I noted each team’s best off-season acquisition. In some cases the players were added to the roster after the season started, but it’s a form, I filled it out for each team and I had no intention of changing it once I started.

Conference A

25-Roughnecks

Prediction: (0-10)

Key Players: Andrew Proia

Best Off-Season Acquisition: n/a

I hate picking a team to go 0-10. We all play in this league for fun and losing is never fun. I think I’ve mentioned this 100 times on the podcast but the turn around in FPF happens swiftly. It’s just a matter of learning the game. Quarterback Nick Croels has a lot of ability but will need to learn how to move the ball against FPF defenses. This season should be considered a learning experience for them as well as all the other struggling teams.

24- BearSkins

Prediction: (1-9)

Key Players: Marco Bertoldi, David Stein, Neil Etinson

Best Off-Season Acquisition: n/a

Picking on teams while their down is not fun but having seen the BearSkins play I think they should be competing on a much higher level. While Bertoldi, Stein and Etinson have brought their receiving talents to division 5 they seem to have brought the famous Incredibles phantom defense. They’ll have to make some stops if they want to win games.

23- Venom

Prediction: (2-8-1)

Key Players: Zach Stachowski, Eric Linkutis

Best Off-Season Acquisition: Zach Stachowski

It has been a rough start for Venom and I expect the season to continue in this fashion. Having their team split in two, with many players returning to play for Limetime, it has been a rough go for a team that is entering a rebuilding phase (oh, it exists in flag football, I promise). Mitchell Muir seems to have digressed a little but this may be due to the new faces around him. This is a good group of guys that will get better with time.

22- Les Maloudes

Prediction: (3-7)

Key Players: Anthony Beauchamp-Frezza

Best Off-Season Acquisition: n/a

I love that Les Maloudes have decided to sabotage Simon Dagenais Fantasy team by replacing Simon LaFortune at quarterback but uncertainty in shotgun is not a winning formula. In reality, they seem to be a group of friends having a good time, and that is the point of a recreational league. It is also a good way to figure out who your best players are for future seasons.

21- X-Men

Prediction: (3-7)

Key Players: Suhael Brohi,Gautama Swaminadhan

Best Off-Season Acquisition: n/a

Not having Nicholas Abelhauser seems to have paralyzed the X-Men. They are performing as poorly as the above reference to Professor X. I’ve said in the past that experience in division 5 brings you at least 6 wins. It would appear that is no longer true. Brohi has had an excellent start to the season but the team giving up 30 points a game will not cut it. I think the X-Men will improve slightly this season, but the improvement will be slight.

20- Tyrants

Prediction: (3-7)

Key Players: Andre Fredrick, Chris Kaliotzakis, John Kaliotzakis

Best Off-Season Acquisition: n/a

Is there a point where a team, playing together for long enough, actually begins to deteriorate? I hope this isn’t the case for one of division 5’s oldest franchises. In my estimation the George Niktaris experiment has failed. The team had better chemistry with John K at quarterback and I didn’t really understand the change when it happened. I understand the George is the team’s quarterback in outdoor leagues but FPF is a very different world.

19- C Difficile (3-7)

Prediction: (3-7)

Key Players: Frank Kaye, Etienne Villaincourt

Best Off-Season Acquisition: Kevin Marcil

Who is your quarterback? Three guys have played the position in 5 weeks! A revolving door at the quarterback position is not the way to win games. Additionally, I’d like to see Emile Carey and Kevin Marcil get more involved in receiving capacities. Given their roster insecurity starting with the most important position I can’t see much success for C Difficile this season. It looks like their name will, in the end, adequately define their season.

18- Team Ethnik

Prediction: (3-7)

Key Players: Henry Dam, Samer Hage

Best Off-Season Acquisition: François Éthier

After having gone 7-2-1 in their debut season, a lot was expected of Team Ethnik. They may have hit the panic switch a little early going out to get veteran quarterback François Éthier. I do think it is a good pickup and if he can gel with the offence in time they can put some wins up on the board. Unfortunately I do not think it will happen in time. Team Ethnik needs to start evaluating their team and looking at what went wrong.

17- C’Mon Man!

Prediction: (4-6)

Key Players: Jonathan Makris, Niko Zermalias

Best Off-Season Acquisition: n/a

Ok, you’ll notice that I called them out twice in my Rants, Ravings and Reflections segment. It is important to note here that I think these guys are a talented team and I often call out teams with talent because I expect more of them. Unfortunately, good teams find ways to win and bad teams will not take accountability when things go wrong. At the moment I have trouble deciding where on this team falls along that continuum. Jonathan Makris has impressed me so far this season at the quarterback position, while maintaining a high standard of play on defense. In reality I’d like to see him take more chances as it appears as though he is doing what it takes not to lose rather than what it takes to win. Their only wins have come against teams with losing records. Did you expect me to rank you higher without having beaten good team yet? C’Mon Man!

16-Les Albatros

Prediction: (4-6)

Key Players: Sebastien Thibault, Antoine Brisson

Best Off-Season Acquisition: n/a

Combined yardage is the hidden, most important stat in FPF. Right now Sebastien Thibault has 930 combined passing and rushing yards and his play has looked inspired. While they will beat the teams they should beat, they will struggle against veteran division 5 teams. This is a strong team that will be a front-runner in seasons to come, but I don’t think they will be in Winter 2013.

15-Love Cows

Prediction: (4-6)

Key Players: Avery Thompson, Andrew Carruthers, Alex Donia, Vadim Chernyak

Best Off-Season Acquisition: GM Kolethras (because he is multiple acquisitions)

GM Kolethras is good at building teams; I don’t think anyone would dispute that. I mean come on, his name is GM! When you look at the talent on this team it is unfathomable that they have underperformed so horridly. But to quote Bill Parcells “You are what your record says you are”, and right now the Love Cows aren’t very good. I have been critical of quarterback Yannick Doston’s play-calling in the past and I think that his struggles despite this hugely talented receiving corps validate my argument. It is sometimes hard on a quarterback’s ego to take criticism and try to learn from those more experienced but there is really no other way to improve in FPF.

14- Centurions

Prediction: (4-6)

Key Players: Jean-Francois Cloutier, Samuel Paulo

Best Off-Season Acquisition: Nicholas Lapointe

The Centurions have been a strong division 5 team and I still think that is the case but I think that looking at their key acquisition is not as important at looking at who they lost. Veteran Simon Richard has, notably, been left off the roster. Losing a player of that quality is always worrisome. Cloutier has to rally the troops but even then I think having to face TCO and the Cougars in the next two weeks may leave them in too big a hole to climb out of.

13-Primes

Prediction: (4-5-1)

Key Players: Tony Testa, Alessandro Vertullo,

Best Off-Season Acquisition: Peter Mignacca

The Primes have a rough schedule considering this team is the bulk of what was a struggling Crooklyn Dodgers franchise (don’t ask it’s complicated). Their remaining games are against teams who have a combined record of 16-9. While they have made strides I do not think they will make the playoffs. Tony Testa has been dominant but I don’t think he gets the ball enough and he will need to so that this Autobot adorned team can prove me wrong.

12-Lockdown

Prediction: (5-5)

Key Players: Gianfranco Ranaudo, Geoffrey Brown, Alex Guertin

Best Off-Season Acquisition: Jacques Louisdort

One look at this roster and it makes you wonder why Lockdown have been struggling. In reality I think the unstable roster from season to season has begun to plague them. Offensively, this may be the best group that Ranaudo and D’Aquila have put together. Since acquiring new defensive back Jacques Louisdort the defense has improved immensely. There is still time for this once feared franchise to make something of this season but it needs to start now.

11-Ecurie Bar et Tables

Prediction: (5-5)

Key Players: Anthony Bozzo, Richard Bozzo

Best Off-Season Acquisition: n/a

Weird…just weird. I don’t truly don’t understand who this team is. They beat TCO and competed fiercely against the Cougars yet for some reason I am still unconvinced that this team will do well down the stretch. Anthony Bozzo has looked amazing in his first full season as a quarterback and he has spread the ball enough for teams to have to worry about all 5 receivers. I still do not know what to make of them. They face some solid teams moving forward so perhaps we will have a better idea of their caliber as the weeks wear on.

10- Dark Knights

Prediction: (5-4-1)

Key Players: Chris Rivest, Bruce Candussi, Mikey Candussi

Best Off-Season Acquisition: Kendal Mayers

After week one Simon Dagenais bragging and Bruce Candussi’s absurd stat line would have had you believe that the Dark Knights were going to be disruptive this season. To be honest, when I took a look at their roster I thought that would be the case. I wonder at times with Dagenais, Rivest and Candussi in the huddle if too many quarterbacks are spoiling the proverbial broth. In any case they have underperformed somewhat but I think that they can right the ship and still make a push for the playoffs.

9-Crooklyn Dodgers

Prediction: (5-4-1)

Key Players: Marco Testa, Matthew Bergamin

Best Off-Season Acquisition: Adam Santorelli

Once Adam Santorelli took hold of the defense and Marco Testa stepped in behind the snapper the Dodgers have looked good. Other than getting blown out in week 1 against one of the top teams in the division (Cougars) they have only lost one game and it was by virtue of a diving catch on a Hail Mary pass against the Primes.

8-Young Bloodz

Prediction: (6-4)

Key Players: Kevin Boustany, Alex Haddad, Daniel Farag

Best Off-Season Acquisition: n/a

It’s hard to figure out how good the Young Bloodz truly are. Every week we seem to see a different team. Perhaps that indicates that they are a middle of the pack team that has some amazing moments. When they are playing well they seem to be a top tier team. When they are bad it will make your eyes bleed. I think they will win enough to get into the playoffs and can be a contender if they can play at the height of their abilities.

7-Green Lantern Corps

Prediction: (6-4)

Key Players: Jerson Previllon, Mendy Cardichon,

Best Off-Season Acquisition: Loic Savoiz-Seguin

GLC are a solid team that can be intimidating if they go on a late season run into the playoffs. Previllon has developed as a passer and has the scrambling ability to make any defense nauseous. He and Mendy Cardichon have been a lethal duo this season. Can anyone cover #23? It will be a challenge. I have some concerns about their defense but in an offensively oriented league such as FPF, with their ability to score, I don’t know if it truly makes a difference.

6-Jaggerbomb

Prediction: (7-3)

Key Players: Martin Gelinas, Simon Duchesne

Best Off-Season Acquisition: n/a

So as a journalist I need to ensure that I avoid all prejudice and bias. That being said, the Jaggerbomb are my favorite team this season. I saw them play week one and despite having some issues with the rules I saw a team with so much raw talent it is frightening. Their offensive style is so much fun to watch; on any given play Duchesne can let it loose and he has the accuracy for it to be seriously threatening. At 13.5 yards/pass this is a high flying offence and defensively they are competent de-flaggers (not common among new teams) and they are extremely athletic and have proven to be a challenge for even experienced quarterbacks. However, I still think they are a key receiver away from being a serious contender. Either way, they will not be an easy win for anyone on their schedule.

5-Project Mayhem

Prediction: (8-2)

Key Players: James Nowakoski, Danny D’Amour

Best Off-Season Acquisition: Alex Holowach

In adding Alex ‘the young holow’ Holowach this off season Project Mayhem not only the player with the coolest nickname in the league, they added a phenomenal athlete who is a matchup nightmare for opposing defenses. Furthermore, he is a team-first type of player and a generally positive influence on any squad. Project Mayhem will do was well as quarterback Norman Bellemare will allow for. He is a quintessential game manager in that he has a very slow, steady methodical offence. If he doesn’t make any mistakes than Project Mayhem usually wins. On a side note it is cool to hear him holler ‘Fuego, Fuego’ at the line of scrimmage.

4-Les Affreux

Prediction: (9-1)

Key Players: Matt Domon, Daniel Bellefeuille, Antoine Del Bello

Best Off-Season Acquisition: Jonathan Lemieux

Les Affreux are one of the most experienced teams in division 5. If one were to choose one word to describe this team it is speed. Mathieu Domon is as scary on the ground as he is in the air. On the other side of the ball Daniel Bellefeuille is one of the most consistent rushers in the division. Any quarterback going up against Bellefeuille will make sure to note his 50+ career sacks. Les Affreux look to be in top form and I believe that we will not see them lose another game in this regular season.

3-Cougars

Prediction: (8-2)

Key Players: Erminio Iadeluca, Matthew Priess, Kenny Charles

Best Off-Season Acquisition: Matthew Priess

Prior to the season the former Crooklyn Dodgers franchise split into three separate teams. The Cougars have been by far, the most successful of the 3. Erminio Iadeluca is on pace to shatter the quarterback touchdown record, a mark that was set just one year ago. Matthew Preiss has helped Iadeluca make a mockery of defenses that they’ve faced. The main issue is: whom exactly have they played? The combined record of the teams they have faced is 9-15-1. Their season will end with a tough match-up against Project Mayhem. Additionally, I see a couple of potential ‘trap’ games on their schedule as well.

2-TCO

Prediction: (8-2)

Key Players: Brent Callender, Matthew Rupcic, Curtis Drakes

Best Off-Season Acquisition: Akeem Hoyte Charles

TCO: an acronym that can only mean The Coldest October. Coming into the season I said they were the favorites to win it all. In my opinion adding Akeem Hoyte Charles elevated TCO to another level. I see now that division 5 is far more competitive than it appeared it would be before the season. That being said TCO can very well end up representing Conference A on a sunny spring day in Brossard. Matthew Bondoux has seemed to quiet his critics and has been remarkably efficient and all the while kept his gun-slinging, deep ball approach. The one worry I would have is at times TCO tends to play down to the level of their competition. When they are on their game they are unstoppable. They have blown out 3 of the 5 teams they’ve faced. Be warned TCO looks like they are on a war path.

1-First Downers

Prediction: (9-1)

Key Players: François Morin, Frédéric Fortin, Jonathan Legault

Best Off-Season Acquisition: n/a

The First Downers are easily the most improved team since the spring season. I noticed how strong they were during the Midnight Madness tournament and I can see that they’ve brought that same tenacity to the Winter 2013 season. Théberge has four receivers who have caught more than ten passes and Legault and Fortier both have more than 230 yards receiving already. I don’t think they have the makings of an undefeated team but I do predict that they will be taking the Conferences top spot into the playoffs. Important to note is that they have yet to play a team with a winning record.

Conference B

25-Manatees

Prediction: (0-10)

Key Players: Patrick Massella

Best Off-Season Acquisition: n/a

We say it every season; if you just put a group of friends together and say “Hey, you know what will be fun? Signing up for Flagplus Football!” you will get crushed. We’ve reached a point where the league is so competitive in every division that new teams often start out as fodder for higher caliber and more experienced teams. The Manatees should take this time to learn as much as they can. Figure out which players would be best suited to which position and learn how to win in this league. Hopefully, they can be a more competitive team next season, because I don’t see it happening this season.

24-Hamsterdam Cornerboys

Prediction: (1-9)

Key Players: Matthew Macintosh, John Ranellucci

Best Off-Season Acquisition: n/a

The powder blues have started out slowly, really, really slowly. As hard as it is to get excited about playing it is even more difficult if you are scoring a shade over 12 points a game. Afdaal Martin is one of the few quarterbacks in the league who has thrown more interceptions than touchdowns. Overall, I think if they can begin to improve their offence they will be better. Other than that, they anger me as a team because they seemed to be named after a television reference that I don’t understand.

23- Fools of the Country

Prediction: (1-9)

Key Players: Robin Sirois, Étiene Guilmain

Best Off-Season Acquisition: Robin Sirois

Étiene Guilmain has had some growing pains in his development as a quarterback. He is fun to watch but it is clear that he is relying on his athleticism because he does not yet feel comfortable enough to read a defense. From what I’ve heard Fools of the Country had a very good outdoor season in 2012 and it is a shame they have not been able to recreate that success. For now the more snaps Guilmain gets and the more games they play the better they will get.

22- Overthrowners

Prediction: (2-8)

Key Players: Pier-Luc Beauregaurd, Raphael Ducas LaPalme, Alexandre Lemire

Best Off-Season Acquisition: n/a

One would expect that a team made up of players from winning franchises like Golden Eagles and Certified Flyguys would excel in division 5. That hasn’t been the case for the Overthrowners. Beauregard is a very athletic dual threat quarterback and he throws one of the nicest balls I’ve ever seen. That being said, it doesn’t look like he has all the pieces around him to make this team a serious threat. With 50 teams in the division I think we will see the divide between the stronger teams and weaker teams grow; I think Overthrowners will find themselves on the wrong side of the divide.

21- Loose Cannons

Prediction: (2-8)

Key Players: Brandon Doyle, Cam Tonner

Best Off-Season Acquisition: n/a

Having played some tough opponents so far this season it may be easy for this team to get discouraged. However, it must have felt good to walk away with a win against Big Blue Wrecking Crew. If they want to feel that way again they will need to quarterback JR Beausoliel to play better. A 34.1% completion percentage indicates to me that he is just not being smart with the ball. He should study some of the more efficient quarterbacks in the division as there are 41 of them with more completions.

20- Dolphins

Prediction: (2-8)

Key Players: John Papadmitriou

Best Off-Season Acquisition: n/a

The Dolphins are better than their record. That’s what I’ve been preaching. Most likely it’s because I’ve been a Dolphins since Dan Marino was the savior of Joe Robbie stadium (I know, I’m a masochist). The truth of the matter is this team has athletes and rookie quarterback, Olivier Morvan has faced, arguably the three best defenses in division 5 (TCO, Checkmate and Turf Toe Inc.) They have the elements upon which they can build a good team, a young developing quarterback, an athletic and electrifying wide receiver (Papadimitrou) and a very quick rusher (Alexandre Elfathi). Unfortunately they don’t have a very strong team this season.

19-Golden Girls (3-7)

Prediction: (3-7)

Key Players: Scott Binns, James Floreani

Best Off-Season Acquisition: James Floreani

Is Jason Rossie being to cautious as quarterback of the Golden Girls? The learning curve is steep for QB’s in FPF. This has been the case for Jason, while he has played well he hasn’t done enough to carry his team just yet. I expect the veteran presence of J-Flo (James Floreani) to have a positive impact n the team as a whole but mostly so on the team’s quarterback.

18-Pendant Publishing

Prediction: (3-7)

Key Players: DanielAronovitch, Shakeel Phinn

Best Off-Season Acquisition: Shakeel Phinn (sorry Moe Khan but your boy is a beast!)

Pendant Publishing are a familiar franchise in FPF. Moe Khan has made a valiant effort to become a starting quarterback in division 5 and he has seen Chuck Dickensian success (It was the best of games, it was the worst of games). He has received an unprecedented amount of support from snapper Bruce Takefman who, in his breakout season, is third in receptions after 5 weeks. Perhaps I am weighing last week’s blowout loss too heavily but I do not think Pendant Publishing will see to much activity in their W column tis season.

17- Ballz Deep

Prediction: (3-7)

Key Players: Treldon James, Rohan Mayers

Best Off-Season Acquisition: n/a

Even though they got off to a hot start and we see some familiar names (notably of Chaos Fame) I am not a believer in this team. While they expected to make a deep… very deep playoff run (see what I did there?) The fact of the matter is that having a couple of impressive players isn’t enough to win in division 5 anymore. I don’t see a bright future ahead for Ballz Deep. I think this team has the potential to get derailed after a few tight games. I hope they can prove me wrong.

16- Warhawks

Prediction: (3-7)

Key Players: Brian Martin, Robert Moores, Joel Watson

Best Off-Season Acquisition: Dave Allen

Whoever made the schedule for the Warhawks must have had it in for them from the beginning. In the first half of the season the battled teams with a combined 15-9-1 (.625) record. The Second half of the season looks even more brutal as they will face off against teams with a combined record of 19-6 (.760). Moreover they were placed in what my occasional cohost Deeze Dukes refers to as the Beast division (Conference B East). Despite having geat individual performances from their three aforementioned key players the Warhawks have not been able to string many wins together. I expect that to continue.

15- Warriors

Prediction: (4-6)

Key Players: Cedrick Sambour

Best Off-Season Acquisition: Paul Lalonde

Paul Lalonde was a huge pickup for the Warriors as they seem to have found their quarterback moving forward and it allows Cedric Sambour to do damage as a receiver. His high risk/high reward style is evident in his 14.9 Yards/Pass as well as his 7 interceptions. The Warriors have definitely become a more entertaining team to watch. That being said, they allow as points as easily as they put them up. If they cannot correct that I can’t see them having a winning record this season.

14- Thoose Guys

Prediction: (5-5)

Key Players: Francesco Martella

Best off Season Acquisition: n/a

Those Guys are a team that can truly attest to the rising caliber of play in the lower divisions in FPF. They are a team that can usually been found in division 4 and C who have not found the success they thought they would early in their div.5 campaign. Of course not having Ryan Perry on the team makes a huge difference. Either way Cody Hemsley is having a respectable season and they are still a solid team. Franceso Martella has been shouldering the load on offence (catching more than double the amount of passes than the next highest on the roster). They will need to find more production out of the rest of their players if they expect to turn this season around.

13– Big Blue Wrecking Crew

Prediction: (5-5)

Key Players: Johnathan Frate, Sergio Sicoli, Mark Rinaldi

Best off Season Acquisition: n/a

This is a new team with a lot of talent. They are big, physical and draw from a wealth of tackle football knowledge. Ron Taylor has had a solid season but the team has played in many close games. My worry is what will become of them when they play teams that can score a lot of points. My prediction is for them to end the season at a .500 mark; while that is a very respectable record in a team’s first season, I don’t think that will be enough to make the playoffs in Conference B.

12- Flying Comics

Prediction: (5-4-1)

Key Players: Frank Grenier, Jonathan Brown, Phillipe Marier

Best off Season Acquisition: N/A

The funny men are a little behind the eight ball here and they need to start winning now. Considering that the hardest part of their schedule came early I think we can see them go on a run. Grenier to Brown has been a reliable connection this year and we can expect a similar kind of output for the rest of this season. Sebastien Ravery had been a mainstay on this team for a while but has not appeared on the roster this season. Has he gone to pursue a lifelong dream of becoming a NASCAR driver? I won’t speculate any further.

11- The Hangovers

Prediction: (6-4)

Key Players: Bruno-Pierre Pelletier, Patrice Clément

Best off Season Acquisition: n/a

After finishing 9-1 in division D in the Summer 2012 season and a disappointing quarterfinal loss to Project Mayhem, the Boozers/Hangovers looked to be a serious contender for the championship. Perhaps it is the fact that in the first half of their season they faced a remarkably difficult schedule. Perhaps they prefer to play in the more temperate summer climate. Either way 2-3 is not where I expected the Hangovers to be. If they can have a strong second half and make the playoffs as I predict they will, the Hangovers will be a dangerous team.

10- Speed Demons

Prediction: (6-4)

Key Players: Bryan Nguyen, Alex Lewis

Best off Season Acquisition: n/a

The Speed Demons were a team that were fortunate enough to play against some weak opponents early including the Warriors (prior to Paul Lalonde’s first start) and the Bruno-Piere Pelltier-less Hangovers. In their last two games they have faced some of division 5’s top tier talent. Despite losing both of those games, the Speed Demons have been close in each of those games. In his second season Samuel Holden has looked good but has not been able to bring his team back when they’ve needed it. If they are to going to make a run, Holden will have to take another step in his development as a quarterback.

9- Limetime

Prediction: (6-4)

Key Players: David Daoust, Dilan Daoust, Brad Demers

Best off Season Acquisition: Mike Zenone

With a relatively easy first half of their schedule behind them, Limetime better brace for a far more challenging second half of the season. That being said they are a great team on both sides of the ball and David Daoust’s receiving numbers have made them almost as happy as they have made me (being that he is on my fantasy team). It is unfortunate that defensive numbers don’t count in our fantasy league because his league leading 13 sacks would have crushed my fellow FPF analysts.

8- Two and A Half Dans

Prediction: (7-3)

Key Players: Joey Taylor, Danny Aylward, Danny McFee

Best off Season Acquisition: n/a

This team is young and energetic; most of them play both ways and make me sad that I never had that endurance in my youth. While they are still new and learning how to adapt in the league their team speed is exciting and their overall playmaking ability are factors to be worried about if you are facing them. They are a homegrown team and the chemistry is evident, as QB Joey Taylor has successfully spread the ball around to the tune of 35 touchdowns. Will they learn enough throughout the course of the season to be considered a potential menace down the line? Only time will tell.

7-Kingdom

Prediction: (7-3)

Key Players: Brad Puklicz (sorry I got your name wrong on the podcast man), Joseph Cecere

Best off Season Acquisition: Emilio Cecere (now that they’ve added him full-time)

Kingdom plays a very interesting and confusing style of defense. They are very aggressive and will pick off many quarterbacks if wide receivers are playing lackadaisical. Puklicz is a very efficient quarterback and paired with Joseph Cecere (the most underrated athlete in this division), we may see the emergence of a new dynamic QB/receiver duo. The one question that one may have of them moving forward is with nearly 30% of the team’s completions caught by one player, do they have enough threats to make noise in the post-season?

6- J’s

Prediction: (7-3)

Key Players: Hai Minh Luong, Alexandre Chasse

Best off Season Acquisition: Adrien “Le Boeuf Français” Dusautois

Hai Min Luong is on pace to throw the most interceptions of his career. If everything plays out like the first half of the season, that career high blemish would be 6 interceptions. The fact is you are more likely to buy football supplies from Hai Min Luong than pick him off. He is a steady performer and armed with Chasse and Dusautois we expect to see a strong season by the J’s. They need to be ready for a fight because the week 10 match-up against Kingdom will most likely be for the division.

5-Aces

Prediction: (8-2)

Key Players: Doug McKernan, Derek Daoust, Devin Daoust

Best off Season Acquisition: n/a

A new franchise with many familiar faces; as many have expected they’ve been hot out of the gates. Doug McKernan has looked very good at Quarterback and he has the playmakers that make is methodical offense very effective. Expect three tough games ahead which. I think this will give them a chance to bond before the playoffs. As a team they tend to be just fine when they are winning but may get frustrated when things don’t go their way. Captains Doug McKernan and Evan Ely Nolet wil need to figure this out or else they will learn that assembling the best group of players does not always make the best team.

4-Moose

Prediction: (8-2)

Key Players: Frédéric Morisette, Yann Drouin, Steven Legault

Best off Season Acquisition: Vincent Lauzon

When you picture a Moose your mind conjures images of large powerful beasts. If you’ve ever seen these guys play it’s not far off. Moose are a team that struggled somewhat in the spring season (going 4-6). They are off to a hot start this season and the combination Morisette, Droiun, Belmihoub have created a Bermuda-esque triangle in which defences are lost and never found again. Hey, that reminds me, do ships still go missing in the Bermuda triangle?Much like the Moose it might be worth paying attention to.

3- Black Ice

Prediction: (8-2)

Key Players: Omer Nayek, Ben Joseph, Anthony DaPonte

Best off Season Acquisition: (no one really, this is essentially the Briscoe High Hawks/Average Joe Franchise)

On last week’s division 5’ calling the audible, we joked that quarterback Ian Einheiber looked like a murder. What isn’t a joke is that this rookie quarterback is murdering opposing defenses. With a strong and athletic supporting cast Einheiber has begun to make this team his. Anthony DaPonte is playing the best Flag Football of his career, and Black Ice look solid on both sides of the ball. The question remains as to whether or not they can make a run with a greenhorn QB.

2-Turf Toe Inc.

Prediction: (8-1-1)

Key Players: Kevin Lubin, Yavar Ashfari,

Best off Season Acquisition: Kevin Lubin

A Quarterback makes all the difference in division 5 and Kevin Lubin is as good as they come. With their two toughest games in the next two weeks we will see if TTI can make an undefeated run (like Kevin Lubin’s Winter 2011 Golden Eagles team). Despite showing a tie on their record, Turf Toe Inc are still undefeated, for the moment. Will that tie eventually cost them the Conference title? Will everyone realize that the last question was rhetorical?

1-Checkmate

Prediction: n/a

Key Players: Anthony Carbone, Michael Carbone, Alex David

Best offseason Acquisition: Julien Bellavance

Checkmate has gotten off to a hell of a start. In previous seasons Checkmate was always considered a strong offensive team and with franchise quarterback Anthony Carbone returning from injury many expected this team to be one of the favorites to win the division 5 championship. No one could have predicted that at the halfway point of the season they would have, arguably, the best defense in the league. Having allowed only 12 points a game and showing 15 interceptions on their stat sheet. Checkmate looks downright nasty.

Power Rankings:

There was a lot of shifting in the rankings this week. The fact of the matter is, with so many teams playing well it was difficult to decide among who the strongest teams were. So instead I based it on how cool their jerseys are.

First Downers- A huge team win has them looking like the team to beat.
Checkmate- Julien Bellavance scored three times as many touchdowns as Pendant Publishing and two of them were on defense!
Cougars- Who needs defense when you score all the time?
Turf Toe Inc.- They got touched by my kiss of death and ended up kissing their sister in a tie this week; they slip to 4^th.
Black Ice- They beat a solid opponent in Kingdom, they move up to 5^th for that.
TCO- Narrow win against a one-win Love Cows who ended the game with 5 players. A little weak, but still strong enough to be in the top ten.
Project Mayhem- A low scoring shutout win shows that you can get it done even when things aren’t going your way.
Moose- They beat up on BearSkins, I’m curious about how they will match up against Aces.
Jaggerbomb- Beating an experienced team is impressive, but less so when the experienced team only has one win

10. Aces- They got into the power rankings after a win against a tough Speed Demons team.

Other teams receiving votes (I admit it, this section a giant cop out. What makes it worse that hey are placed in no particular order).

Les Affreux- Haven’t truly looked dominant all season; moreover, they are lacking the marquee win that would set them apart.
Limetime- Great performances against a fairly soft schedule. They will face their toughest challenges toward the end of the season.
Two and a Half Dans narrowly escaped the Golden Girls; that kind of effort won’t cut it moving forward.
Kingdom- The only two-loss team that was given consideration. They did lose but in probably the toughest game of the week. I will give them a pass but I won’t be so forgiving if this continues.
J’s- If they can deal Checkmate their first loss of the season that would definitely push them into the top 10.

New Faces

Ron Taylor-Big Blue Wrecking Crew

Ron Taylor was remarkable this week as Big Blue washed up the Manatees. Taylor threw 14 completions out of 19 attempts, a completion percentage of 73.6%! He added three touchdowns and kept the ball away from the defense by not throwing any interceptions. Big Blue Wrecking Crew are not an offence that score a lot of points but they drive the field well and are very proficient when they need to be.

The League of Really Ordinary Gentlemen

So after two weeks, I am still in the lead however GM has narrowed the gap. It pleases me greatly to see Simon doing so poorly considering he is beating me in the weekly predictions. I will ensure that I will use every possible moment of this week to trash talk all the other analysts’ teams. After all, isn’t that the point of fantasy sports?

Teams:

Pos.	G.M. Koletheras Dances with Love Cows	Peeze The Big Poppa Peezes	Simon Dagenais Dragonateurs	The Eagle Birds of Prey
QB.	(1)Doug McKernan (Aces)	(1) Mark Andre Theberge (First Downers)	(1)Frederic Morrissette (Moose)	(1)Joe Taylor (Two and a Half Dans)
QB.	(7)Mathieu Domon (Affreux)	(5)Simon Duchesne (Jaggerbomb)	(2) Shawn Lafortune (Les Maloudes)	(5) Brad Puklicz (Kingdom)
WR	(2)Tony Testa (Primes)	(2) Matthew Priess (Cougars)	(3)WR: Alexandre Chasse (Js)	(2)Michael Carbone (Checkmate)
WR	(3)Frederic Fortier (First Downers	(3)Dave Daoust (Limetime)	(5)Jonathan Frate (Big Blue Wrecking Crew)	(3)Jonathan Legault (First Downers
WR	(4)Anthony Da Ponte (Black Ice)	(6)Alex Haddad (Young Bloodz)	(6) Simon Lahaie (Love Cows)	(4)Derek Daoust (Aces)
WR	(5)Andre Frederick (Tyrants)	(7)Patrice Clement (The Hangovers)	(7)Niel Etinson (Bearskins)	(7) James Nowakowski (Prj. Mayhem)
WR	(6)Emilio Cecere (Kingdom)	(8) Alex Lewis (Speed Demons)	(8) Akeem Hoyte-Charles (TCO)	(8) Suhael Brohi (X-Men)
DEF	(8)Checkmate	(4) Defense: Kingdom	(4) Turf Toe Inc	(6)Jaggerbomb
Scoring	851.3	858.8	719.3	827.9

*For information bout scoring please refer to Week 5 of my article, Peeze’s Playbook.

Reflections Rants and Ravings

Saw a team actually attempt a triple blitz this week. Clearly someone is not listening to the division 5. Podcast.
Of the 8 div.5/D teams that have moved to div.4 since last winter, 6 of them have winning records and their record as a group is 25-18. It seems as though this division has become an excellent training ground for teams with aspirations of becoming upwardly mobile.
I’m not thrilled about C’Mon Man! using the Facebook walls to rag on the referees. Good teams rarely find themselves in a spot where they need to rely on the referees to win games.
As part of a two part call-out: Jonathan Makris of C’Mon Man! Word on the street is that you refused to shake hands with Les Affreux after your game. I don’t want to assume it was poor sportsmanship so perhaps the issue was fungal and contagious in nature?
Looks like Stade Hebert will be ready soon; here’s to hoping it’s first collapse was it’s only collapse
Brent Callender was right. Limetime’s Michael Smith does look like a suburban Two Chainz.

Predictions

I keep having killer weeks and Simon Dagenais keeps stretching his lead by the narrowest of margins. His ridiculous 20-4 edged my 19-5 ever so slightly. Last week’s results bring Simon’s total to 64-32 and I am still within reach at 58-38. I am confident that I will catch him by the end of the season. Remember that after the race the tortoise fed the hare to his family (I may not have actually ever heard the story told properly).

Cougars vs Lockdown

Young Bloodz vs Les Maloudes

Big Blue Wrecking Crew vs Hamstermdam Cornerboys

Golden Girls vs Warriors

Centurions vs TCO

Love Cows vs C Difficile

Venom vs Jaggerbomb

Green Lantern Corps vs Les Albatros

Two and a Half Dans vs Ballz Deep

Those Guys vs Speed Demons

Crooklyn Dodgers vs Roughnecks

Fools of the Country vs The Hangovers

Overthrowners vs Loose Cannons

Tyrants vs Les Affreux

Warhawks vs Pendant Publishing

Moose vs Aces

Manatees vs Limetime

X-Men vs Kingdom

BearSkins vs Dark Knight

Dolphins vs Flying Comics

Black Ice vs Turf Toe Inc

Ecurie Bar et Tables vs Team Ethnik

Project Mayhem vs C’Mon Man!

Primes vs First Downers

Week 5 is done and I’ve predicted everyone’s fate. I imagine this is the week when I start to get hate mail. I guess I’ll man up and have you send it to [email protected]. If you can keep your anger contained to 140 characters you can tweet me @PeezeFPF. In the end these are all my opinion, if I am really underestimating your team, feel free to use it as bulletin board material and remember Sarah Conner’s take on pre-determination: “There’s no fate but what we make for ourselves.”

For those who haven’t tuned in or subscribed to ‘Calling the Audible’, available via iTunes or at http://fpf.podomatic.com, you must be living under a rock. It’s not too late, so subscribe now! This week join this week’s co-host, TJ Pothier and I as well as in studio guests Brent Callender and Akeem Hoyte Charles as we discuss the comings and goings of division 5. Moose’s Yann Drouin will be calling in this week and this week’s musical theme is: Peeze’s a Soulman.