The Truth: Deception!

Are you able to think back to a year and a half ago? Back when making picks for division one was like stealing candy from a baby. Well, making picks for division one is now harder than training a crocodile to be a house pet. Division one is so chaotic right now; I don’t even know what to think other than: it’s exactly what the league needed. Take a picture of the standings, you might never see Montreal’s Finest sitting in 6th and last place for the playoffs ever again. Although I called it early on that Finest would lose more games this season than any season in the past, I can’t say I thought they would lose the games they have lost so far. Credit goes out to the other division one teams who are stepping up. Teams who have been foaming at the mouth for a long time, paying their dues in lower divisions, refining their craft for the day they get to share the field with the goliath that had become Montreal’s Finest. I do say “had become” for I fear they have started their downfall. Who will fill in the ever so immense shoes that Finest may leave unoccupied come this season’s end? Who ever it is, I look forward to watching the story unfold. This one might be one to remember folks, so stay tuned!                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                             

Quick thoughts

-The unfortunate reality of the bye week is that it comes at a very opportune time for some.

-Last week the title of my article was: “Step Up”, with Solide’s team picture. Well, they shattered Clockwork and forced Marco Masciotra to throw 4 interceptions. That my friends, is STEPPING UP!

-I believe this is the first time I witness so many upsets in a single week. I guess I can no longer trust my judgment when making my weekly picks. Two for twelve last week, if you combine both divisions…sickening!

-Paul Lapierre has thrown 18 touchdowns and no interceptions so far for the Loonatics. If he keeps this up, we might end up with a Loonatics VS CBL as a final in division one.

-Finest lose to got skills… What is this world coming to? Everyone can now blame Montreals Finest for having to watch me half naked on the podcast… Thanks.

-Samuel Drapeau is turning into a serious game changer. He already has two pick sixes on the season.

-Has Finest hit their ceiling? And is everyone else starting to catch up? You thought I was crazy with my preseason predictions though, didn’t you?

-Here: you figure this out… D-Boys beat Finest; DK destroys D-Boys; DK gets owned by Loonatics; Loonatics lose to CBL and Got Skills; Got Skills beats Finest; Rainmakers beat Gotskills; everyone else beat Rainmakers. And well, Flag Moi L’sac just don’t win. SO WHAT DOES THAT EVEN MEAN?!

-When looking at division two’s standings, it feels like a throw back Thursday: Wolverines, Gladiateurs and Terror Squad on top.

-Wild Boys are in shambles. I don’t know what’s going on there but they have very quickly gone from bad to worse.

-Winless Damps 25/8 put a beating on the Raiders. I’ve been saying this all year. With the wide receivers on this team, all Andrew Treffeisen has to do is put the ball in the air and let his studs make plays. Grandison is an absolute beast; he looks like a young Akked Moore.

-Gladiateurs love to prove me wrong. Going forward, I think I will give them the benefit of the doubt that they are simply better than any of their opponents.

-If you need to add a player, do it now. Four weeks have come and gone. Therefore, any new player would need to play the last six to be legible for playoffs.

– Your mid-season report cards are going to be handed out next week, don’t miss it!

-Antonio Lanni jumped Solide’s ship earlier in the season to join his buddies on Clockwork. This week, he was up against his old team. I can’t say he didn’t leave it all on the line to prove his point but in the end he came up short. Bloody knee, bloody elbow, and limping off the field was the sight I laid eyes on when Solide were done with Lanni.

-Who is top tier and who is bottom tier in division one?! Honestly though, if you have a crystal ball send it my way.

 

 

Re-cap:

CBL 51 – Flag Moi l’sac 33

Quite a debacle for FML…from bad to worse this year for the men in blue. CBL continues to find success but this time against a really good team. They have managed to stay under the radar so far, but now I think they’re starting to pop up on most radars. After four weeks of play, CBL is still undefeated. Yes, I know they have two ties against what we thought were lower tier opponents, but that’s still two big points in the standings. FML looks to have lost all their MOJO, as they are currently in deadlast in division one with zero points. Alex Nadeau Piuze’s top receiver, Maxime Fournier, was absent from this game; his replacement: Patrick Jerome. I’m not sure whether or not Patrick Jerome is the answer for this team, but I guarantee he’s not going to make your team worse. Carmine Pollice threw for 257 yards and 8 touchdowns; Sean Kennedy and JP Moreau combined for six touchdowns. Things are not about to get easier for FML. Their next three games are against D-Boys, Montreal’s finest and DK. CBL who I still believe need to make some adjustments on defense to really have a shot going forward, are definitely a team to keep your eye on.

 

D-Boys 32 – Rainmakers 31

Big loss for Rainmakers who just can’t seem to get over the hump. Almost every time they have the opportunity to steal a game from a good opponent, they let it slip. Rainmakers held the lead for most of this contest. A late second half push by D-Boys who locked up their third W of the season. D-Boys welcomed Jamal Gittens back with open arms. He led all receivers in this game with 5 catches for 62 yards and 2 touchdowns. Theo Ojeaha continues his two-way dominance in division one, as he finished with two offensive touchdowns and another interception on defense. It’s still very early in the season to give up hope for the Rainmakers, but they do need to start stringing some wins together or they’ll find themselves on the outside looking in come week eleven.

 

Raiders 24 – Damps  25/8 31

For the first time this season, Andrew Treffeisen didn’t throw an interception. Not only did he not throw an interception, he was near perfect. Treffeisen finished 16 in 21 for 201 yards and 5 touchdowns. Finally, he gave his team a chance. The Rick Nincheri experiment is still taking form. After two weeks at the helm, Rick is 1-1, but this week he didn’t look so good. On numerous occasions he missed the easy targets, completions that would have kept drives alive. This may be a little late for Damps to turn their season around but if they continue down this path they may give themselves a chance to squeeze into the playoffs and upset some of the favorites. As for the Raiders, giving Damps their first win of the season is going to be a serious blow to their team moral. I think they need to continue working with Rick and tighten things up on D.

 

Chernobyl Circus 27 – O.N.S. 46

Any time you find yourself playing against Kevin Wyeth you should know you’ll have to put up at least forty points to win. Turning the ball over twice (one interception and another on downs) is not the way towards forty plus points. Brian Lariviere led the way on offense catching 3 touchdowns, two of which were incredible catches. Credit to Wyeth for dropping the ball in the tiniest of pockets and trusting his receivers to make plays. Maxime Giroux tried to jump-start his squad with a couple athletic plays. Turning a hook into four missed tackles and a touchdown often helps your quarterback’s confidence. Truth be told, Patrick Chenard never looked on point in this game and that seemed to be Chernobyl’s demise.

 

#NR 39 – Monstars 38

After the game, Jordan Moses told Moe Khan and myself that we are always wrong. He also went on to say our podcast is horrible and that we should get our facts right. Although he was saying it as a joke, I guess we WERE wrong. I was wrong in thinking Jordan could ever be humble after a win with #NR. Although James Floreani was unable to participate in this game due to an ankle injury, Kevin Lubin filled in and found instant success. Kenton Lowe carried the bulk of the offensive load. Lubin and Kenton connected for three majors. #NR scraped through the harder part of their schedule and now sit comfortably at 2-2. As for Monstars, their first season in the upper division might just end up being a learning opportunity. I have no doubt in my mind Rod Mashtoub will one day be an excellent top-tier quarterback in this league. With a strong supporting cast like the Aridi brothers, Theo Bekelis and Allard, I believe this team will figure it out.

 

Untouchables 30 – CLR Forces 31

This was a really entertaining game in many ways. From the Tony Khoury end zone flop, to the incredible catches by James Tyrell this game had a little bit of everything. Only one team had more of everything and on that day it was CLR. Even with a reduced Guillaume Ward at receiver, this offense imposed themselves against firm opponents. Frederic Dupuis continues to impress me. He throws the ball with confidence and accuracy. Both Dominic Lemieux and Frederic Calles have become very important check down options for Dupuis. It’s often overlooked but absolutely crucial for your check downs to be reliable. Not only are they sure handed, they consistently find holes in opposing defenses: an effort that is for sure appreciated by their QB. For the first time in a long time, I saw Untouchables’ quarterback Justin Lavallee flustered in the pocket. He is usually a very calm and collected player but CLR was able to get to him. Knocked off his game, Justin missed open receivers in the end zone on a few occasions. In the end, CLR’s offense was just too much to handle. Big game next week for both these teams, but mostly for Untouchables, who are now 2-2 and sitting in 6th place. CLR may be 3-1 but they’re one loss away from potentially slipping from 2nd to 5th in the conference of death.

 

Vinni’s Stud squad:

QB: Carmine Pollice (CBL) 27/34 for 257 yards and 8 TDs… A man who never seizes to impress!

QB: Kevin Wyeth (O.N.S) 16/29 for 238 and 7 TDs… Not Kevin’s most impressive statline, but seeing some of those TD throws impressed the heck out of me! The touch with which he releases some of his throws is unreal.

WR: JR Verger (LCS) 5 Receptions for 80 and 4 TDs… Very impressive when 80% of your catches are for six points!

WR: James Tyrell (UNS) 5 Receptions for 91 yards and 3 TD… This dude is a newly acquired freak by the Untouchables. I wouldn’t be surprised to see him making noise in Division one soon.

DB: N/A

R: Hinsley Adams (RDR) 3 Sacks and a tackle… No QB likes to be rushed by this stud!

 

FPF FanDuel:

 QB’s:

• 1 point per 10 yards passing
• 3 points per passing TD
• 1 point per 5 yards rushing
• 5 points per rushing TD
• -2 points per interception
• -1 point per sack

 

WR’s:

• 1 point per 5 yards
• 5 points per TD

 

 Defense:

• 1 point per 3 tackles
• 1 point per 2 PD’s
• 2 points per sack
• 3 points per INT
• 5 points per pick-six
• 10 points for allowing 10 points or less
• 8 points for allowing 11-20 points
• 6 points for allowing 21-30 points
• 4 points for allowing 31-40 points
• 2 points for allowing 41-50 points
• 1 point for allowing 51 + points

 

Last Week

FPF FANDUEL	Nathan Taylor		Me
QB	Rochdi.B 183Y 4TD 2INT	34.3	M. Masciotra 216Y 3TD 4INT	28.6
WR1	M.Fournier  0	0	J.McLeran  55Y 1TD	16
WR2	V.Gualano 0	0	N. Arsenault-Hum 32Y 1TD	11.4
WR3	T.Ojeaha 60Y 2TD	22	E.Kalvaldjian 60Y 2TD	22
WR4	E.Deschambeault 58Y 2TD	21.6	P.Jerome 9Y 1TD	6.8
FLEX	Y.Pierre 87Y 2TD	27.4	JD Chevalier 0	0
SNAP	D.Kastner 14Y 1TD	7.8	T.Khoury 41Y	8.2
D	MF 39PA 1INT 1SAC 2PD 13TK	12.3	S.W.I 32 PA 4PD 1 INT 21TK	16
	Total:	125.4	Total:	109

 

Week 5

FPF FANDUEL	Nathan Taylor		Me
QB	Marco Masciotra		Francois Lebeau
WR1	Jordan McLaren		Alex Lever
WR2	Guillaume Ward		Jaylan Grandison
WR3	Nicolas Arsenault-Hum		David Shopov
WR4	Eric Kalvaldjian		Scott Payne
FLEX	Kenton Lowe		Jacob Bernett
SNAP	Brian Lariviere		JC Mercille
D	Served With Ice		Chernobyl Circus
	Total:		Total:

 

So I realized when putting the points together that I might have cheated. Somehow I made the rules and I wasn’t able to follow them. McLaren and Khoury are on the same team; my bad! After three weeks, Nate leads 2-1. Seems to be an obvious problem with our inability to know whether or not the players we pick are going to show up. If you’re reading this and you’re a player chosen but won’t be at your game, please message either me or Nate so we can make a change!

 

My picks and spread:

Last week I went 1/4 in Division 1 and 1/8 in Division 2: now that my friends, is actually insane. This now gives me a total of 23/48 after four weeks.

 

Division Two:

Solide VS Untouchables (-2.5)

Served With Ice VS O.N.S. (-4.5)

Monstars VS Gladiateurs (-6.5)

Terror Squad VS #NR (-8.5)

Wolverines VS Raiders (+4.5)

Wild Boys VS  Damps 25/8 (+1.5)

Legends VS Chernobyl Circus (-2.5)

Clock Work VS CLR Forces (-1.5)

 

The Pool of Hope:

Congratulations to GM who is the only one who didn’t fall to Finest’s losing to Got-Skills. GM now gets a hug from Moe Khan thanks to D-Boys!

 

Vince Nardone: Out

GM: D-Boys

Justin Blanchard: Out

Simon Dagenais: Out

Tony Khoury: Out            

Mat Domon: Out

JC Mercille: Out

Branden Parm: Out

Brent Callender: Out

Peeze: Out

 

Game of the Week:

Monstars VS Gladiateurs

Two teams who would rather stay off my radar, if they could. Although they may not voice their opinions, I know for a fact that the Gladiateurs are not very fond of my opinion of them. Let’s make peace once and for all: beat Monstars, and I’ll permanently place you in my good books. You may think I’m letting them off easy, but you’re wrong. Monstars are not to be taken lightly. They have depth on their roster and play very good defense behind one of the all time best rushers in this league, Ryan Aridi. Although Ryan needs to step up for his team to get into second gear, I believe they will force a few unfavorable match-ups for the Glads.

 

Keys for success:

-Rod Mashtoub taking what the defense gives him.

-Jad Aridi’s yards after the catch.

-Frank Lebeau staying away from Theo Bekelis.

-Charles Baillargeon needs to make a bigger offensive impact. If he doesn’t stretch the field, it’s going to be hard for Alex Lever and Mathew Bishara to work their magic underneath.

-Monstars’ defense can’t allow the deep outs, and the long crossing routes to get open. Frank is one of the few QB’s that can beat you short, deep and in the in-between zones.

 

Key Match-ups:

Alex Nadeau-Piuze VS Isiah Allard

Steph Chartrand & Alex Lever VS Zone defences

Frank Lebeau VS Ryan Aridi

Rod Mashtoub VS The World.

 

I think this will be a fun one to watch. I believe the Glads are going to be too much to handle for Monstars. I have this game pinned on Frank’s ability to slice up your weak spots on defense and I think there is one in particular that stands out like a soar thumb.

Gladiateurs 42 Monstars 35

 

If you haven’t listened to the weekly podcast yet I strongly urge you to do so. I will be writing another article this week covering the division 2 games. I will also be doing a power ranking and division one’s report cards. Anyways, thanks for reading and good luck this weekend!

Ciao for now.