Playing For Keeps: Happy Canada Day, eh! – FlagPlus Football League

Weekly Remarks

Player A averages 12.5 yards per reception and catches a TD every 2.5 passes.

Player B averages 15.9 yards per reception and catches a TD every 2 passes.

Player C averages 20.3 yards per reception and catches a TD every 1.3 passes.

There should be a viable debate for receiver of the year between teammates Jordan Allard and AJ Gomes, players A and B, respectively. Allard has been dominating the division all season to the tune of 501 yards and 16 TDs on 40 catches, but Gomes trails him by just 73 yards and 3 TDs…with 13 less receptions! If we were to extrapolate Gomes’ production over 40 catches he’d be leading the league with 635 yards and roughly 20 TDs! Either way, it’s nice to have them both.
Oh…and at 40 catches player C would currently have 812 yards and 30 TDs…Well on pace to break both FPF receiving records…Player C is Sasha Papich.
FPF should open a tackling firm called Lapointe, Libman & Aridi. These guys are just machines.
I’ve never witnessed a more lopsided QBOY race with roughly a third of the season still remaining. Insane season for Sean Avraam, who just expertly maneuvered the big speed bump on his path to glory.
It took 7 weeks but we have a new number 1 team in the power rankings.
If the game between The Commission and the Bullies was a spoiler for the conference finals, I’m booking my tickets for that game NOW.
Don’t look now, but SMYTD have won three in a row and are looking to set the trap for the undefeated Commission this week. So much for kissing their season away with the injury to their franchise QB. They look rejuvenated, backed by inspired defensive play.
Last week, Jeremy Anderson of Red Wave posted 6 catches for 102 yards and 2 TDs. The week before Jordan Moses of Red Wave had 6 catches for 103 yrads and 3 TDs. Three weeks ago Travis Moses of Red Wave had 6 catches for 109 yards and 2 TDs. Talk about spreading the wealth. Red Wave is now on a three game winning streak and a large part has to do with QB Mario Porreca’s ability to utilize all his weapons effectively.
Like a kid who grows too fast and becomes uncoordinated, Blue Chips have collapsed this season under the weight of their own rapid growth. The ticker is now on 5 straight losses and playoffs are starting to seem in doubt.

Highlights:

Nuggets ditch sauce and devour FiLP bare

Some questionable managerial decisions by the vacationing Danny D’Amour left FiLP vulnerable to an onslaught by an angry Nuggets team on Sunday. With the two-way QB and Def captain missing, as well as top receiving option Justin Santillo, D’Amour left the offense in the hands of veteran signal caller Dave Daoust and the defense to the author of this article. Both were epic mistakes.

Daoust transitioned his struggles from div D to the higher competition, failing to move the ball smoothly and turning it over frequently. The defense wasn’t any better, as the play calling failed to adapt to the opposition and got blown out of the water. The lone bright spot for FiLP were the Buck brothers, Jared and Chad, who proved to be a formidable duo defensively and helped solidify at least half the field.

On the other side, full credit should be given to the Nuggets, who benefited tremendously from the experience and savvy of Tam Vilaydeth. Playing his first game with the team, he posted 54 yards and 2 TDs on 4 catches. More importantly, his presence over the middle freed up the outside for Samuel Phaneuf, who absolutely exploded for 10 catches, 172 yards and 3 TDs! By far the single most dominant receiver performance I’ve ever witnessed firsthand. Fred Mallette began teeing up on the exposed FiLP defense in the second half, posting a strong 255 yards and 5/1 TD/INT game. Nuggets suddenly look formidable again heading into the stretch run, regaining the 8th and final playoff spot and looking to rise.

BareManz prey on MVE to stay alive

In a battle of 1-5 teams with talented but underperforming rosters, only one team would be able to vault themselves back into the playoff race with 3 games remaining. That team was Texas BareManz, who displayed the competitive will power to remain alive and continue to compete another day. After struggling through an 8/3 TD/INT ratio over his last 3 games, Mike Roy delivered a clutch performance which harkened back to the promise he displayed at the onset of the season. 250 passing yards on 83% completion percentage and 5 TDs to 1 INT is the type of game that makes this BareManz team scary to face. Their offense seems to have gone back to the basics that worked for them so well early on, as the offense was run through their two greatest playmakers, Khalil Kerr and Quaysie Gordon-Maule. The duo combined for 16 catches, 155 yards and 2 TDs. Defensively, Trey Grant stepped up in a huge way, shifting the momentum to his team’s side with a pick 6.

It was another rough day at the office for Gabriel Côté, who completed just 55% of his passes for 134 yards and 4 TDs. Once again, the majority of their offense was carried by Laurent Foucault (5 catches, 67 yards, 2 TDs) and Vincent Lauzon (3 catches, 41 yards, 2 TDs). Mathieu René distinguished himself defensively, with 3 tackles and 1 INT, but it was too little too late as MVE are now a longshot to make it into the playoff bracket.

Weekly Fantasy Football:

Weeke 7 Fantasy MVP: Juwan Edgehill

Week 7 (Final)

Alex Danny

QB: Jason Rossie (25.32) QB: Gabriel Cote (19.66)

WR: Quasie Gordon-Maule (20.4) WR: Marcus Mitchell (12.5)

WR: Vincent Lauzon (19.1) WR: Carmine Pollice (23.2)

WR: Jordan Moses (10.9) WR: Dominic Benevento (9.9)

2W: Jonathan Grizzley (19.8) 2W: Juwan Edgehill (25.4)

DEF: NoName (13.5) DEF: Junkyard Dogs (35.5)

Final Score: (109.02) Final Score: (126.16)

Record: 3-3

Overall Score: (648.22 – 644.56 Danny)

Week 8

Alex Danny

QB: Sean Avraam QB: Danny D’Amour

WR: Jad Aridi WR: Justin Santillo

WR: AJ Gomes WR: Travis Moses

WR: Marcus Mitchell WR: Alexandre Noel

2W: Juwan Edgehill 2W: Jonathan Grizzley

DEF: Impeccable D DEF: NoName

***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:

Smash Bros (3-4) vs Friends in Low Places (3-4)

This has all the makings of a heated battle between two evenly matched teams looking to solidify their place in the playoff standings for conference B. The winner should feel confident about locking down a spot in the top 8, while the loser will need to win at least 1 of their final two games to secure their spot.

QB: Jonah Cohen vs Danny D’Amour

Cohen hasn’t looked all-too-comfortable adjusting to the elevated competition of this division since his return in week 4. Completed a tad over 50% of his passes is not going to cut it down the stretch, but he’s demonstrated glimpses of dominance as a signal caller in lower divisions in the past. It seems like the adjustment curve is taking longer than Smash Bros would have hoped, but it will be just a matter of time until he starts catching on. This could be his week against a FiLP team reeling from a shell-shocking defeat against Nuggets last week.

Danny D’Amour gets the nod in this encounter. He hasn’t looked phenomenal by any means this season, also completing just a hair over 50% of his passes, but his running adds another element to his game that makes him a threat each week. Also, D’Amour has been playing with a less-than-optimal FiLP roster for a large part of the season. The good news is that there was a Kevin Smuda sighting this weekend in div B. If Danny gets his main target back for the final few games of the season, we may begin to see the guy who ran the table on div 5 this past winter.

Receivers: Smash Bros vs FiLP

This was the toughest category to determine in the matchup. A real coin flip, both unots have their respective pros and cons. The Smash Bros receiving unit possess the greatest threat of either team in Justin Lerner. As we just witnessed in the div D GOTW video, he’s capable of abusing mismatches and making remarkable grabs in contested areas of the field. Despite his incredible talents, Joseph Kano is actually the better stat producer this season for Smash Bros. He’s the typical tight end for FPF, a big bodied receiver with guaranteed hands who uses his size and route running to box out defenders at different levels of the field. His low-key agility catches many defenses off guard and makes him a special threat in the red zone.

On the FiLP side of the ball, the loss of Smuda this season has created a massive opportunity for the rest of the receiving staff to make a name for themselves, which they’ve done admirably. Justin Santillo is the premier threat for this unit. His height and speed make him an excellent target near the redzone, as evidenced by his 7 TDs on just 12 catches so far. The chain movers are without a doubt Brenden Sabloff and Michael Timmis, who account for 53% of receptions on the team. Sabloff is a crafty receiver who is sometimes misplaced at wideout, but operates much better from the slot. He uses his Julien Edleman-like combination of agility and route running to create space over the middle. Timmins is D’Amour’s Depaneur 24 heurs; he’s always open and always has what Danny needs in a pinch. FiLP edge out Smash Bros in the smallest of margins for the experience these guys have playing with one another over the years.

Defense: Smash Bros vs FiLP

It’s hard to bet against a team that ranks 5th in the division in PA and who’d defense has carried them to a current playoff spot despite spotty offense at best. The Smash Bros are a defensive team at heart. They are built of underrated but high performing athletes who cover massive ground and close gaps quickly. The Smash Bros D would be on my short list for “The Biggest Revelation of the Year” award if such a team award were exist. Kevin Felima, Patrice Lindor, and Jonathan Garfinkle make this unit legit, and they will bring all of their swagger and playmaking ability to the field this week for a chance to lock down a playoff spot.

The FiLP D is definitely an underrated unit in my books. Although they only rank 13th in PA at the moment, a large part of that has to do with roster inconsistencies in certain games this season against premier opponents. They’ve had other games where they were able to shut down potent offenses and carry their offense to victory. The key players on this unit are definitely D’Amour and Alex Grey. These two defensive generals direct the play from their respective sides of the field. They’re both team first defensive stars who constantly sacrifice their body to break up big plays. The unit is rounded out by the rapidly progressing Jared Buck, who’s becoming more of an impact player for this defense with each passing week. The motor of this unit is rusher Justin Matteo. His constant pressure on the opposing QB is what makes this formula work, as he causes them to make rushed throws into tight windows.

Prediction: 26 – 20 FiLP

Power Ranking

The Commission (7-0): Claim the top spot after a hard fought victory over the Bullies. Finally give us the shock to the hierarchy that we’ve been waiting for all season. The target is now on their backs.
Backyard Bullies (6-1): It’s tough to drop them after they did very little wrong in the loss vs Commission. Still, having the pressure of an undefeated season off their backs may help them in the long term.
Royals (7-0): Offense has looked a little bit average over the past few weeks. Have they peaked? Or is it simply a question of not being challenged by anyone in this division? My guess is the latter.
Bearskins (6-1): Starting to thrust themselves into that tier 1 group. They will certainly stake their claim to elite status with a win this week against the Bullies.
Impeccable D (4-3): An excellent team that has only dropped games against teams above them in the rankings. They beat who they’re supposed to also. As an analyst tasked with predicting outcomes, I thank them for their tremendous consistency.
Junkyard Dogs (4-3): 7 weeks in and still not sure what to make of them. They possess huge upside, but also come up with clunkers now and then. They are the anti-Impeccable D. the unpredictability makes them very intriguing to follow.
Jagerbomb (4-3): Starting to come into their own down the stretch run and headed towards the playoffs. Can I say that I’m surprised to see them start slow? Definitely not. Am I thrilled that they have arrived at last? Absolutely.
Red Wave (3-4): Tall task this week against the powerhouse Royals. This has been the hottest team over the past few weeks. Now is their chance to make an official statement to the rest of the division.

Weekly Awards

QB:

Sean Avraam – Commission:

15/22 – 220 yards – 5 TD/0 INT – 140.2 QBR

Wins this award for posting a stellar game against arguably the toughest opponent in the division. With so much history between these two teams I expected him to struggle finally in this one, but he emerged unblemished with the win, and continues his historically amazing season. His teammates are glad to be along for the ride on this one.

WR:

Samuel Phaneuf – Nuggets:

10 catches – 172 yards – 3 TDs

Just a career making performance by this stud. He was completely unstoppable at all levels of the field, constantly making plays in space and when covered tight. He might very well be the most talented all around receiver in the entire division. The league needs to wake up to this guy NOW.

DEF:

Jordan Moses – Red Wave:

5 TK – 1 INT – 1 PD – 1 TD

Second week a member of this team puts up this award. The offense is humming right now, but the defense is fueling this team’s second half reemergence. He’s a rangy safety who loves when opposing QBs test the deep ball. Case in point.

2WAY:

Justin McLean – Royals:

6 catches – 56 yards – 3 TDs

1 TK – 2 INT – 1 TD

Second time this season he takes home this award. A couple of other times where he was one of the top considerations as well. This guy is a 2WAY beast!

Predictions

Alex (44-18)
Danny (43-19)

Alex Danny

Nuggets Nuggets

Royals Royals

Bearskins Backyard Bullies

Blue Chips Junkyard Dogs

NoName NoName

The Commission The Commission

Jagerbomb Jagerbomb

FiLP FiLP

That’s it for this week! Week 7 of FPF is officially in the books, and week 8 is set to start up soon. See how fast it goes! Enjoy your time on the field because summer 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 8 shook out!