Wolfpack Knock Off The Brotherhood; Mercenaries in Freefall

As the second half of the season gets underway, some teams have easier paths than others but at the end of the day, teams that are more battle-tested usually fare better in the playoffs. So, instead of being intimidated or angry about the schedule your team faces, you should thank the schedule makers for doing you a favour. Remember: Any Given Sunday…the beauty about football is that any team can beat any other team on any given week. Get out there, stop whining and play ball!

 

RECAPS

 

The Brotherhood Undefeated No More

 

Wolfpack 32 (4-1) Next Week: vs. Westpark Boys (0-5)

The Brotherhood 26 (4-1) Next Week: vs. B.D. Bandits (4-1)

 

This game was chosen as the Game of the Week in division 3 and it did not disappoint. The Wolfpack offense started on fire and looked a step ahead of The Brotherhood defense all night. Pascal Murray responded nicely from a bad outing last week vs. Fun Boys with a near-flawless game. He looked in control all night and called the right plays that exploited the middle of the field with open receivers on every play. The difference in the game was an interception in the end zone by Wolfpack’s Michel Carrier. After Wolfpack went three and out following the interception, The Brotherhood had a chance on a Hail Mary but Theo Ojeaha had no Aaron Rodgers magic on this night.

 

Mercenaries Continue to Struggle

 

OTF 38 (3-2) Next Week: vs. Predators (3-2)

Mercenaries 0 (0-4-1) Next Week: vs. Past Our Prime (1-4)

 

The Mercenaries finished this game the same way they came into it: without a win. Between a default loss, a struggling offense, an inconsistent roster and now a shutout loss, things are getting worse by the week. Gino Di Fazio delivered the ugliest stat line of the season going 12/30 for just 58 yards and 4 interceptions. Mario Porreca didn’t have to do much as his defense pretty much took care of this game outscoring the Mercenaries on its own. On the flip side, OTF has played better by the week and they now look to build on that momentum in the latter half of the season.

 

Two and a Half Geese?

 

Two and a Half Dans 25 (4-1) Next Week: vs. Grip N Rip (3-2)

Mongoose 19 (2-3) Next Week vs. Sea Assassins (4-1)

 

Most people did not believe in Two and a Half Dans coming into the season and saw it as a transition season. However, they’ve shown they belong and with their new additions fitting in nicely, they stand at 4-1 now after four games. Joey Taylor was his normal efficient-self and completed his typical short passes and finished with just five incompletions. Newcomer Tam Vilaydeth made his presence felt in his first game with the Dans with seven receptions and an interception on defense. The Dans will look to keep it rolling vs. what Peeze calls 2HD 2.0 (Grip N Rip), while Mongoose will look to keep the Sea Assassins high powered offense in check.

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Survivor Pool Week 6 Picks:

 

B.D. Bandits escaped with a victory over Westpark Boys as G.M., Vince and Peeze blew a sigh of relief. Justin Blanchard’s gutsy pick 2HD also gets him to the next round.

*Not permitted to pick team we play on

*Once you pick a team, you cannot pick them again

 

Paolo Della Rocca: Fun Boys

G.M. Kolethras: Fun Boys

Vince Nardone: Laval’s Finest

Justin Blanchard: Fun Boys

James Floreani: Eliminated

Simon Dagenais: Eliminated

David Della Rocca: Eliminated

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Week 5 Game Predictions

 

James’ lock of the week: Dark Moose Returns

The last time I picked them in this spot, they went out and choked agaisnt POP. However, this is a case where experience and athleticism will overpower just athleticism. After having held the Sea Assassins to 26 points, I see Dark Moose containing the upstart Jumpmans and winning by a score or two.

Dark Moose Returns 33, Jumpmans 24

 

Lock of the Week Record: 4-1

 

Game of the Week: Metamayhem vs. F.O.E.

This is my game of the week in division 3. Metamayhem has struggled big time this season and sits at 1-4 through the halfway point. They have the talent to win games but for some reason it just hasn’t clicked so far. They came close to an upset against the Fun Boys but at this point “close” is just not good enough as they may have to run the table to even make the postseason. That HAS to start against an F.O.E. team that has surprised many people thus far with a stingy defense and an efficient offense led by Kevin Lubin.

 

Key Matchups:

 

Kevin Lubin vs. Deemy Feelgood– Kevin Lubin is still a mobile dude and he excels at buying time with his legs. Feelgood has to step up if Metamayhem wants to win this game. His 1 sack on the year is just not cutting it for a defense that had Terrence Adams lighting it up last season.

 

Jeremy Anderson vs. F.O.E. Zone Defense – Jeremy Anderson sits at 14 receptions for 186 yards and just 1 touchdown on the year. This is a guy Metamayhem need more production out of. With a healthy bevy of receivers drawing deep coverage, Anderson needs to be able to find the soft spots in the F.O.E defense.

 

Moses Brothers vs. Metamayhem’s Defensive Backs – Travis Moses looks to be still ailing from that hamstring injury and his movement on the field reflects that. That being said, the dude has amazing hands and he and his brother Jordan have been Lubin’s most productive threats. If Travis can provide the intermediate routes down the sideline and Jordan can provide the short YAC plays and a few over the top plays, F.O.E. will have a great shot at winning their fifth game of the year.

 

Prediction: Right now, Metamayhem has struggled stopping anyone while F.O.E. has been shutting down most offenses. I don’t see this changing this week as F.O.E. wins a close one to send Metamayhem in freefall.

F.O.E. 27, Metamayhem 26

Matchups	James’ Picks ATS	Peeze’s Picks ATS	James’ Picks Straight Up	Peeze’s Picks Straight Up
OTF (-1.5) vs. Predators	N/A	OTF	N/A	OTF
Sea Assassins (-4.5) vs. Les Buddays	Les Buddays	Les Buddays	Sea Assassins	Les Buddays
Ball Busters (-7.5) vs. Dirty Dawgs	Dirty Dawgs	Dirty Dawgs	Ball Busters	Ball Busters
F.O.E. (-3.5) vs. Metamayhem	Metamayhem	F.O.E.	F.O.E.	F.O.E.
Past Our Prime (-3.5) vs. Mercenaries	Past Our Prime	Past Our Prime	Past Our Prime	Past Our Prime
Wolfpack (-6.5) vs. Westpark Boys	Westpark Boys	Wolfpack	Wolfpack	Wolfpack
The Brotherhood (-2.5) vs. B.D. Bandits	The Brotherhood	The Brotherhood	The Brotherhood	The Brotherhood
Triple Sixers (-5.5) vs. Nuggets	Triple Sixers	Triple Sixers	Triple Sixers	Triple Sixers
Grip N Rip (-3.5) vs. Two and a Half Dans	2HD	2HD	2HD	2HD
Game Changers (-2.5) vs. Les Eudistes	Les Eudistes	Les Eudistes	Les Eudistes	Les Eudistes
Dark Moose Returns (-4.5) vs. Jumpmans	Dark Moose Returns	N/A	Dark Moose Returns	N/A
Laval’s Finest (-6.5) vs. Mongoose	Mongoose	Mongoose	Laval’s Finest	Laval’s Finest
Killer Instinct (-9.5) vs. La Sauce	Killer Instinct	La Sauce	Killer Instinct	Killer Instinct
Fun Boys (-8.5) vs. Snatchers	Fun Boys	Snatchers	Fun Boys	Fun Boys
Last Week’s Record	5-8	8-5	9-4	8-5
SEASON TOTALS	36-29	39-26	41-22-2	38-25-2

 

Power Rankings:

 

1. The Brotherhood (4-1) – I’m not going to overreact here by knocking them down for losing but what we saw on video in the GOTW is that The Brotherhood are beatable. (Last Week: 1)

 

2. Fun Boys (4-1) – The defense struggled some but still picked off the opposing QB twice while the offense continued to score points. They only play two top 10 teams the rest of the way. (Last Week: 2)

 

3. Killer Instinct (4-1) – Keep rolling. (Last Week: 3)

 

4. Wolfpack (4-1) – What a game. What a way to prove that they are for real. They looked dominant in beating The Brotherhood. Their defense stepped up when it needed to and now they will look to build on their momentum. (Last Week: 5)

 

5. Laval’s Finest (4-1) – Rod Mashtoub played lights out again but man it must be nice having Jordan McLaren out-jumping all the defenders and pulling in touchdowns left and right. (Last Week: 7)

 

6. F.O.E. (4-1) – They rebounded nicely from their first defeat with a huge 31-point second half. The schedule is very favourable down the stretch and these guys should be a shoe-in for the playoffs barring a collapse of epic proportions. (Last Week: 6)

 

7. Ball Busters (4-0-1) – Dylan Taylor chucked up 3 more interceptions and had his worst outing of the season yet the Ball Busters still won. That’s how well the team has been playing this season. They face a pesky Dirty Dawgs squad and if they’re no careful, that first L will come in no time. (Last Week: 9)

 

8. Dark Moose Returns (3-2) – It turns out the Sea Assassins were in fact just what the doctor ordered. However, they played without Fred Morisette, which is a testament to a nice team win but let’s see if Morissette can turn it up some in the coming weeks as he’s struggled this season. (Last Week: 10)

 

9. Grip ‘N’ Rip (3-2) – This team was known for a strong defense. Now it seems like they forgot how to play defense altogether. You can’t give up 52 points and expect to win. You also can’t allow Jordan McLaren to go off for 136 yards and 4 touchdowns. (Last Week: 4)

 

10. Sea Assassins (3-2) – The offense was kept in check all night and when that happens, that usually means a loss for this team. They just couldn’t manage to stop an Alex Lever-led Dark Moose squad enough times to bail out their offense. (Last Week: 8)

 

Just missed the cut….

Triple Sixers (3-2) – They got by the skin of their teeth winning by a point over the Dirty Dawgs. The defense held strong but the offense only put up 32 against a team that had been giving up 50 regularly. They need to show more.

 

B.D. Bandits (4-1) – They barely escaped against the Westpark Boys. Now they have an angry Brotherhood team coming in.

 

Predators (3-2) – It seemed like the Predators got back on track with the help of newcomer Shawn Steen and with Maxime Giroux missing, Steen stepped up big time with two touchdowns on seven receptions. Now comes a tougher test in a streaking OTF.

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Things We Learned

• C’mon Man! of the week: Mercenaries…getting shutout in D3 is flat out embarrassing. It doesn’t matter who is there and who isn’t. Scoring no points in flag game is simply unacceptable. You guys are talented. Prove it! C’MON MAN!!!

• Pascal Murray stepped up last week as evidenced by the GOTW against The Brotherhood. He called great plays and made the throws he needed to make. Props for rebounding after a tough week!

• Westpark Boys GOT A QUARTERBACK!! Now mark my words, they won’t be an easy out for anyone because as I stated in my midseason report, they have a good team and my 2-8 preseason prediction is now very much attainable with Leon Holder at the helm.

• 2HD has had multiple D1 players come play with them this season (Rochdi Benabdelkader, Alex Pilon, and now Tam Vilaydeth). It’ll be interesting which of these guys will play enough games to qualify for the playoffs.

• 106.3: QB rating of Simon Vallee this week. First time he’s been over 100 all year. Good stuff.

• 8.3: QB rating of Gino Di Fazio this week. Eesh. No wonder they got shutout.

• 4: Point differential in the Westpark Boys’ loss to B.D. Bandits…the first time they were within double digits. A quarterback makes all the difference.

• 91: Points allowed by Grip N Rip in the last two games. They need to step up.

 

Best of luck to all teams for week 6! If you want to reach me for any inquiries or to disagree with me, feel free to hit me up at [email protected] or DM me @JFloMusicMTL on Twitter.