Week 3 bullies, surprises; and hope for some sub .500 teams

Stand up division 5, time to go to work

It was to be expected, a 42-team division is bound to deliver some can’t-miss moments. And it did. We had upsets, I mean crazy upsets. Then we saw some teams get lit up like matches and looked Corny like Nebraska. Yikes. Luckily, we also witnessed some epic performances with some nail biters. This division is sick.

Back on my day shift, I got my tools and my lunch box. I’m on my grind, full time, but I never punch clocks. I keep proving that success is not an accident. Traffic jammed, I’ve had it man, smashing through like batter rams. Here we go. This week’s agenda is as follows:

– This week’s bullies

– My surprise team is a four-letter word

– Reasons for optimism are still plenty for these under .500 teams

– Upset city A few predictions

– *Sneak peak for next week: Who’s trying to up their FPF ratings with monster performances

 

(3-0) Gators looking to catapult themselves to the top by welcoming opponents to the swamp.

For a team that has undergone a total makeover, Steve Sanner at pivot is not a bad look for the revamped gators. While playing QB on offence for the first two games of the season, the mobile signal caller also plays center field in their traditional 4-1 defence. The unpredictability was to be expected from him at pivot, but that seems to be a thing of the past. He was counted on to make plays for his team and he has delivered since the start of the season. I respect him for that. He moves out of the pocket when needed and shows precision. Even without him in the lineup, the Gators held down the fort to remain undefeated. Eddy Martinez is looking his usual form on both sides of the ball which means opposing teams should fear the swamp. With a few untested receivers on their team, I wasn’t sure what to expect. Having seen them play, I no longer have any concerns. Well-rounded team they have.

 

(3-0) TDs and Beers off to a fast start

First off, love the name. Always have. A talented cast of playmakers to go along with a manageable schedule, ambitious goals are well within reach for these beer drinking athletes. But beer is not the only thing on the menu as a few players have also been taking sips from the fountain of youth having been involved in FPF for some time now. With a few faces from the defunct South Shore Storm squad, these guys are simply finding a way to get things done. Fresh off their best performance of the season, TDs and Beer made quick work of The U after dropping a season-high 39 points. Oh yeah, most of those points come in the form of Isiah Allard’s 4 touchdown grabs. After hauling in his first score of the game in the opening minutes, he was poised for a big game. Brad Evans also took some of the spotlight with another solid performance and has only tossed one interception in his last two outings. Way to protect the ball.

 

Someone asked me which team has surprised you the most this far. A four letter word comes to mind.

No, not that one. I am talking about FOTC. Now think of every acronym possible that these four letters can stand for. Yes, Fans of the Cougars is one. Anymore? Try this. Flight of the Conchords or Football Old Timers Club. Fools of the Country is another one. Certainly FOTC likes to mix things up when it comes to their team’s name. But that is about the only thing that changes when it comes to this group of guys as the roster stays intact.

Étienne Guilmain, one of the fastest players in the division, continues to show his dual-threat at the QB position, having amassed close to 300 yards through the air and over 100 on the ground in the first two games. Last winter, they went 4-6. Having opened the season at 2-0, I would say they have surprised me.

 

Reasons for optimism are still plenty for these under .500 teams

Maximum Carnage (1-2) I always believed to have the right to write about your own team, you better be able to perform on the field. Collectively, our team did that in Week 3 yielding 12 points against an offensive powerhouse in Sticky Hands, which came into the game averaging a staggering 37.5 points a game. With Maximum Carnage’s defence looking out-of-sync at times to start the season, the team finally got it right and ended a two-game losing skid in the process which may have potentially saved their season. Kevin Boustany continues to be a ball hawk in the secondary, while Tomas Chylewski is doing a solid job applying pressure on opposing QBs. It may not always show up on the stat sheet, but disrupting the timing makes life easier for the other 5 players. The new additions of Pat Riot, Karl Jahnke, and Pier-Luc Beauregard will also pay dividends down the road. There will be CARNAGE in this division. Mark my words.

 

X-Men (1-2)

What a difference a week can make. Heading into Week 3 without a win under your belt was not the ideal situation, especially for a veteran team like the X-Men. QB Gautama Swaminadhan, fresh off his Division 6 title run with the Hiesmans, needed to connect more often with his playmakers Suhael Brohi and Wade Williams to potentially salvage their season against The Pack. Swaminadhan and company responded to the critics in the only way that matters, smashing their opponents to the tune of a 40-19 victory, their first of the season. Nicolas Banks put the icing on the cake with a last minute touchdown in the deep corner of the end zone. Although the loss of Tomas Chylewski and Kevin Boustany, both of whom have joined another Marvel squad in Maximum Carnage does hurt, the X-Men displayed their experience and leadership when needed and avoid hitting the panic button for now. Professor Xavier would be pleased.

 

Keyport Lock (1-2)

This team should and could be sitting pretty at 2-1. Instead, they gave the game away to Jagerbomb on a last minute score. A brutal way to lose. The good news is that they did play well enough to win. I am convinced if the two were to play again, Keyport Lock would win that game 9 times out of 10.

Jordan Mcinnis had a quiet game statistically speaking, but he was out there making plays for his team. Jeff Rosenblatt tried to connect with Mcinnis on a few occasions, but the duo could not get on the same page last week. Once they get that sorted out, they will put up more points on the board. The team however, is averaging 26 points per game. That is enough to keep you in the game and win.

 

Upset city

No one can seem to pronounce their name. TOPSZN. Not in the podcast and certainly not around the league. But it didn’t matter. This team looked mean. So I was a little confused to see a scoreless first half in their tilt against the Rednecks. Yes, TOPSZN did not have their best player in the lineup. But one player can’t be the sole reason why you win games and win big. QB Jordan Maxwell was near perfect to start the season. In week 3 he struggled and tossed 4 ints. The inconsistency is to be expected. New player, new league. End of story. Give credit to the Rednecks for not allowing themselves to be intimated and rebounding in a nice way from last week’s outing. They keep finding a way to capture my attention and deservingly so. On the flip side, I don’t believe that anyone is thinking that TOPSZN have been exposed or will face added pressure in the following weeks. They lost and it happens. Hard to go undefeated in this league.

 

A few key games in Week 4 along with some predictions

Game 1

Goats vs The Gryphons

Battle of the undefeated. In the red corner we have the Goats and fighting out of the blue corner, the Gryphons. With experience returning at almost every position, the Gryphons should be poised for another solid winter season. So far, so good. They remain perfect. Although Aleksander Papich did throw for four TDs last week, he struggled with precession. Didn’t help that his receivers uncharacteristically dropped a few balls, which made their last contest much closer than it should have been. Interesting to see how he will bounce back coming off his lowest completion percentage of the year.

Conversely, Goats have been improving on a weekly basis. I think this is the game where their defensive unit comes together and delivers a breakout performance. With several players having already recorded at least one sack, I look for them to keep Papich guessing at who will be coming after him and maybe, just maybe pull off the upset.

 

Game 2

DG Goons vs Road Warriors

The Road Warriors are off to a false start. But this team can still be found on the radar in large part due to their big man. Standing at 6’ 5, yes, it’s rather hard to miss Anthony Barrette. It’s been a minute since I last saw him. In fact, it was at former Alouettes Scott Flory’s retirement press conference. The Concordia Stinger alumni has shown that he has been taking notes from his receiving corps during his pro days, as the Verdun native has hauled in 88 receiving yards on 5 receptions with one score. There are some nice pieces at the skill positions for the Road Warriors to work with. Defensively, however, there are major issues. Can they manage enough offence to keep it interesting against the DG Goons? Right now, my answer is not likely. DG Goons can win. And win big.

 

Game 3

Speed Demons vs J’s

Two veteran teams going head to head should make for an interesting one. The J’s who have been labeled as a conservative team opened up their offensive machine and kept the scorecard spinning until the number 37. Hai Minh Luong was near perfect in Week 3 and distributed the ball effectively to a number of different receivers against Killuminati. He likes the short game and can operative well within that type of play calling.

On the flip side, the Speed Demons have seen it all thus far having recorded one win, a tie and a loss. Adam Copeland remains a reliable target for his QB on short yardage situations and Alex Lewis is certainly one of the go to guys on this offence. The J’s might be able to keep this thing close in the first half, but I think that the Speed Demons’ defence will force a crucial turnover down the stretch and run away with it late in the game.

 

That’s it for this week! Good luck in week 4.