Late to the party.

For those of you who had the pleasure to read my articles in the past, you’ll know that me posting on a Saturday is somewhat exceptional. I’d like to apologize for that; it sucks.

On a completely different note, I’ll be out of town next week, so I’ll have a replacement writer for Division A/B. On the plus side, you’ll get to compare in real time. On the down side, well, you know.

A lot happened in Week 2, enough with these intros no one reads anyways.

Let’s get started.

 

Week 2

From DA Finest beating Rare Bears on converts, Rainmakers being the only undefeated team left in Division A, Lightweight goes 2-0, QUAN not catching a break, Sammy Feder’s grandiose return and Top Guns beating Braves on the last play of the game, there is plenty to talk about.

 

Thoughts of the Week

• Kyle Lebofsky is a dominant receiver. I mean, that sideline catch was RIDICULOUS.
• My “buddies” in the media like to make me look atrocious. It’s great when you play new faces and they are 100% sure it’ll be a cake walk filled with INTs.
• Top Guns vs Braves was probably the best game of the season so far.
• Is Theo Ojeaha too good for Division B?
• How many routes will Rod Mashtoub run wide open before he gets his dues?
• I was called crazy for ranking 6-R that high in preseason. I don’t look so foolish nomo’ huh.
• Bad outings happen; I’m not worried for QUAN.
• Same goes for Kings, I suppose.
• Broccasion needed a little bit of reinforcement after week 1. I don’t think week 2’s additions are what they needed though.
• I guess one week was enough for Justin Smolar to shake off the rust. Gosh, I was I could get back into rhythm that quickly too.
• Although many will look at Braves’ first loss thinking Div A won’t as easy as Division 2, it was quite the close game; don’t underestimate them.
• JD Chevalier looked impossible to cover this week. I have a lot of respect for Danny D’Amour, but he simply couldn’t keep up.
• Crazy to think one could lose a game even though you’ve scored on every drive. Makes you think twice about converts.
• No, I don’t think the Rainmakers’ hot start is a fluke.
• Special shoutout to Jameel Greenidge who got a pretty impressive interception in the back of the endzone on a key down where he wasn’t rushing.

 

Recaps

Division A

• Top Guns vs Braves: In a game where JD Chevalier made Danny D’Amour struggle as a DB (not a feat I’m used to seeing, mind you), I was expecting Braves to take this one with ease, but I guess things don’t always go as planned. Jamil Springer’s presence surely helped Top Guns as, but Georges Gariepy’s absence really changed the tone of the game. I’ve been able to watch quite a handful of Braves’ games over the past year and I must say that Jonathan Maheu requires a great deal out of his snapper when things don’t go exactly as planned and Mike Pierrecin did not have his best game on Tuesday with a handful of drops on key downs. Take away Maheu’s favorite target, force him to go elsewhere but his snapper and we’ll see him struggle for the first time since Week 3 of the Winter season. His new found love for JD Chevalier shone bright, but Paul Lapierre’s sporadic plan shone brightest. In fact, going with 3 different Qbs to never set a pace and keep throwing Braves’ off track really worked well for them; both Rob Robinson and Paul Lapierre threw 3 Tds. With the game on the line, many questioned the decision to leave Rob Robinson back there as a QB, but Paul Lapierre is almost impossible to cover in man and he out-bodied the DB in front of him on a post. Once down by 2, Vinny Gualano can now say he’s the only player in FPF history to have bested Braves twice.

• Monstars vs Rainmakers:I’ve only witness some of this, but I must say that seeing Serge Pilon Jr in the lineup shows that Rainmakers aren’t here to piss this one away this season. Ryan Kastner took it upon himself to be at the top of his game this season and it shows as he distributed 7 Tds to five different receivers on the night and made Monstars question their defensive decisions. Sure, Rod Mashtoub was nothing short of spectacular offensively scoring 40 points and no turnovers (I mean, the guy registered a 145.1 QBR and still lost), but Monstars did not walk away with the win on the night and it’s the only thing that actually mattered. With very tough games up next for Monstars, there’s little wiggle room if they want to remain out of the bottom seed whereas Rainmakers could make a push for the playoffs as soon as next week if they can keep the streak alive; with a few more wins, their fantastic win streak could get them a ticket in the playoffs before I have to write a mid-season breakdown!

 

Division B

• Coyotes vs QUAN: In Sammy Feder’s return, Coyotes’ offence looked red-hot as they clicked on all cylinders and made QUAN’s defence look foolish for most of the night. Sure, they had a few set backs, but putting up 40 points is no easy feat and they made it look effortless. It took no time for the Feder-Lelinowski chemistry to emerge and it’s something daunting. For the second straight week, QUAN looks nothing like a Division B roster as the cap they put up almost fits the other division (mise-a-part Alex Holowach’s QB cap) and feels lacklusting. To be fair, QUAN had receivers open most of the night as Minh Ton-That ran flys for days and kept beating the DB infront of him, but his QB was looking the other way. I don’t think the roster composition is the problem and the way they’ve fought STL last week shows they should be more than able to compete in Division B this season; it’s only a matter of execution and playing at the top of their game.
• Broccasion vs Rich & Famous: In Rich Humes’ absence, Lonnie Johnson stepped in to replace him and, well, the adjustment was no easy feat. With three interceptions on the night that were mostly lower division plays that defences adjust to and are too quick to let go, Broccasion had a real shot at stealing the show to get their first W. With new acquisitions and some outside help in Matt Kirouac, I actually believed the Bros would rally and put this one away late in the second half up 19-12, with the ball, in the redzone. Kristian Cerantola fired an absolute bullet that was only deflected by his receivers and caught by Shawn Steen in the back of the endzone; the beginning of the end. R&F scored, but couldn’t get the convert. Broccasion were still up by a point, but this is when Kristian Cerantola’s second interception came into play as Steve Sanner jumped the route and almost got 6. Lonnie Johnson went back at it and got his team up by 5 with few plays left. For the third straight attempt at sealing the deal, Broccasion simply couldn’t knock it in and lost a 24-19 game that had their name written all over it.
• STL vs Kings: Adjusting to two different rushers is a pain when you’re a QB as they both change pace constantly and you need to keep an eye out for most of the game. With Terrence Adams and Jameel Greenidge splitting reps, I can already see myself hating facing STL. Mathieu Rene learnt that the hard way on Tuesday night as he struggled to beat the rusher time and time again and his offence struggled to move the chains. Glossing over the scoresheet, you’d think that Rod Mashtoub was the premier target and managed the two touchdowns, but it was a much different story as he kept running his routes and creating separation, but wasn’t being targeted. On the flip side, STL looked like they’re already in mid-season form as Dylan Taylor distributed 7 scores with ease and put up a whoopin’ 47 points against the Kings’ defence that looked great in their first outing. After this week’s game, I can’t help but wonder whether Kings’ week 2 game was a fluke or if STL is really THIS dominant on a good night.

 

Players of the Week

Division A

• Kevin Wyeth (DA Finest): Another dominant performance as he nears perfect QBR and put up 40 points in 6 scores. Oh, and he distributed them pretty well too!
• JD Chevalier (Braves): I don’t care whether he won or not, he had himself a fantastic game breaking free of any sort of coverage three times on glorious routes. He was his team’s number one weapon for the entire hour.
• Ryan Kastner (Rainmakers): On a night where the offence scores 47 points, we need to tip our hats to the QB leading the charge. Another impressive outing.

 

Division B

• Yafet Meshesha (OTF): Two offensive touchdowns, 89 receiving yards and an interception. I’ve talked a lot about him and he’s showing everyone why.
• Anthony Brisebois (Six Fast Guys Minus Ryan): With two offensive Tds and two interceptions, you’re bound to turn heads. Oh, and almost a hundred receiving yards too.
• Sammy Feder (Coyotes): In his Division B debut, he made his team look REAL good with 6 passing Tds and even led his team in tackles. For one who doesn’t regularly play defence, he did more than asked of him.
• Louis-Philip Thibodeau (Lightweight): Back from hiatus, he got two clutch interceptions to turn the tide in his team’s favor. Impressive for someone who doesn’t even have 10 games played total under his belt.

 

Power Rankings

Division A

1. Rainmakers (2-0): I can already hear the quacks complaining, but at the end of the day, Rainmakers is the ONLY team undefeated in Division A. How bow dat.
2. DA Finest (1-1): After week 1’s slump, they made it clear they aren’t dropping two in a row.
3. Top Guns (1-1): The team that showed up to Brossard on Tuesday can go very far this season.
4. Braves (1-1): Losing on the last play of the game doesn’t really render them justice, but a loss is a loss.
5. Monstars (1-1): Their offence continues to impress, but they’ve got some tweaking to do defensively after allowing 47.
6. Rare Bears (0-2): The only winless team in Division A. Yes, they’ve lost to Finest in a great game, but sadly the final result remains the same.

 

Division B

1. STL (2-0): The way they handled a previously #4 seed shows why they are currently the top dogs in Division B.
2. Six Fast Guys Minus Ryan (2-0): Undefeated with the best +/- in the division. These guys are really a heck of a squad this season. Sorry Ryan.
3. Coyotes (1-1): Having their QB changed everything for these guys and are finally looking like the juggernaut we all envisioned.
4. Incredibles (1-1): Losing due to lack of key players doesn’t sting as much. Let’s see how they bounce back before overreacting.
5. Lightweight (2-0): I hate patting my own back, but it’s tough to deny our current success.
6. OTF (1-1): If Justin Smolar found his rhythm with his new team already, OTF may just be the next best thing to come out of Division B.
7. Kings (1-1): A tough loss in week 2 brings up question marks. How will they react against Broccasion should be a good indication.
8. Rich & Famous (1-1): These guys haven’t look real hot just yet. Hopefully Rich Humes will come save his team next week.
9. Drop The Mic (1-1): If they can work on their redzone offence and who shows up, they’ll be a top contender.
10. QUAN (0-2): Last week’s outing was rough to watch, but everyone has bad nights. It’s only week 2.
11. KGP (0-2): Week 1’s problems seem to have re-emerged in week 2. Can they fix their problematic defence before it’s too late?
12. Broccasion (0-2): With three attempts to win the game, it’s difficult to file this one into the “bad night” category.

 

Matchups to Watch

Division A

• Anthony Vendrame vs DA Finest’ secondary: Last week, no one seemed able to cover Anthony Vendrame once he was allowed to go deep with room to run. Can anyone, this week, take that away? It looked almost impossible last Tuesday.
• Matt Kirouac vs Rod Mashtoub: With time in the pocket, Rod Mashtoub can turn any situation in a favorable one. Can Matt Kirouac take that key instrument away from him? Maybe the baseball stance will prove effective once again.
• Vince Nardone vs Serge Pilon Jr: Now this matchup may seem very lopsided, but Vince Nardone tends to move around a lot defensively and Serge Pilon Jr has to be his number one concern going into this game. Can he or someone else find a way to prevent an explosive night?

 

Division B

• Minh Ton-That vs Gordon Hogan: Seeing how his QB uses Minh Ton-That has a speedster on the sidelines, Gordon Hogan might have a hell of a job on his hands to try and contain him next week. Let’s see if he’s up for it.
• Ryan Lelinowski vs Anthony Brisebois: I can only expect both guys to matchup against each other for most of the night. Two very talented and physical player that might have found their match. I have NO idea how this will turn out.
• Francois Hogue vs Rich Humes: Rich Humes likes to roll out to one side or the other. It’s up to Lightweight’s rusher Francois Hogue to contain him and might his life as difficult as humanly possible if he wants to give his defence a fighting chance.
• Jonathan Lyristis vs Kristian Cerantola: We all know Kristian Cerantola like to run the football. We also know that Jonathan Lyristis is a great rusher. Can he contain the mobile QB to small gains?
• Sasha Papich vs Pat Chenard: There’s only a handful of players in this league that could go up against Sasha Papich and contain him; Pat Chenard is one of them. Unless he can slow down his offensive production, Sasha Papich will have a great night.
• Meshesha brothers vs STL’s secondary: It’s no secret how talented these brothers are and how efficient they can be when a QB feeds them properly. Seeing how they were used last week, there’s no way STL can let that fly.

 

Picks of the Week

Division A

Top Guns vs DA Finest: DA Finest

Rare Bears vs Monstars: Rare Bears

Braves vs Rainmakers: Rainmakers

 

Division B

QUAN vs KGP: QUAN

Coyotes vs Six Fast Guys Minus Ryan: Six Fast Guys Minus Ryan

Rich & Famous vs Lightweight: —-

Kings vs Broccasion: Kings

Incredibles vs Drop The Mic: Incredibles

OTF vs STL : STL

 

That’s it for me this week. Hopefully this is what you’ve all grown to love and expect out of me for your weekly readings. If it isn’t, you can send any sort of formal complaint to Paolo Della Rocca via twitter (@PeezeFPF) so I can keep tab and act like I didn’t know about it. Otherwise, if you have any comments, feel free to hit me up either via emails ([email protected]) or twitter (@DagenaisFPF). Until next time. I have 0 idea why I keep doing these Eags, but they’ve grown on me.