{Current Mood: Bootylicious}
Goedenavond,
A little late but it's time to preview my Week 5 Phantasio Football Matchups and maybe (hopefully) give someone out there a piece of good advice along the way.
Like just fading everything I say because I’m doing so poorly.
But, in the same token, I would’ve fared a lot better the past two weeks had I not kept changing my mind and making last minute switches. So maybe the key for anyone dumb enough to follow my advice is to either take my initial advice, pick up players that I drop, bench anyone I’m playing, or play anyone I’m benching.
However I feel like my luck is finally ready to change for the better starting this week whereas, in previous weeks, I was sure the karma would keep going with no end in sight.
Citizens of the Pond! ASSEMBLEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!
1) MONTOYA’S LEAGUE (12 teams, non-PPR, 2 QB, 3 Flex) (The Dayman) (4-0) (1st place in Division 2) (1st place overall) (1st in total points)
I’d say that a loss in this league would be acceptable but I don’t find losing to be acceptable under any circumstances.
The big issue I’m facing here is the fact that Tim Tebow is my second QB and someone with both of their QB’s on bye this week beat me to the last two remaining free agent QB’s that are currently starters (Brandon Weeden & Blaine Gabbert). I would’ve picked up Weeden to play against the Giants and their Walking Wounded secondary but I really didn’t want to drop anyone on my roster. I wound up getting Brandon Bolden off waivers (cutting Jacquizz Rodgers) for depth purposes and probably should’ve cut Bolden for Weeden. #OhWellTooLateNow
(By the way: I love how no one makes any claims last week and now, when I NEED to improve my roster, people decide to be cute and put in claims for Hartline, James Jones, and starting QB’s that I could use. I’ve never hated and loved a league so much at the same time. By the way, guess who had Hartline in this league and dropped him two days before his monstrous outing: THIS GUY! #LikeYouWouldExpectAnythingLessAtThisPoint).
Plus, with the Jets’ QB controversy in full swing and a nationally televised Monday night game against arguably the best defense in the NFL looming, Tebow Time is coming and I think it’s coming this week.
Lots of people were saying that if the Jets’ backup was anyone else, Sanchez would’ve been pulled by the fourth quarter. But they’re apparently trying to avoid a QB controversy (#Wh00psTooLate). Rexy is trying to make it seem like he’s going to live and die by Sanchez since Mark was his first draft choice as a head coach. He also realizes that the world will be watching this game and Tebow = Ratings. Oh yeah, and I’m pretty sure he doesn’t want to lose his job. If the play of The Dirty One (Sanchez) resembled anything other than a crappy rookie QB, this would be a non-issue. He’s started from Day One and hasn’t gotten any better. If he plays this whole game, the Jets will probably get shut out. Sanchez isn’t a leader. Tebow may not be a fundamentally sound QB and he may have cost me some fantasy championships last year but he’s more of a leader than Sanchez can ever hope to be. And if the Jets coaching staff is serious about not wanting to lose their jobs, they’ll find a way to supplant Sanchez and at least give Tebow a shot.
Bottom Line: I don’t know how long I’m losing Jake Locker for so Tebow either needs to play or another starting job needs to open up so I’m not rolling with one QB for an extended period of time.
My opponent this week is the 2-2, 8th place Popcorn Playaz who are currently in 5th in Division 2 but 3rd in total points. If I can win this matchup and keep my momentum rolling, it would make me very excite.
-The Dayman - Week 5 Roster-
QB- Matt Ryan
QB- Timothy Tebow
RB- Shady McCoy
RB- Jamaal Charles
WR- Victorino Cruise
WR- Reginald Wayne
TE- Martellus Bennett
RB/WR- RB Clarence James Spiller
WR/TE- WR Michael Wallace
RB/WR/TE- TE Kyle Rudolph The Red Zone Reindeer (I, unfortunately, can't take credit for that one)
K- Robert Bironas
DEF- Cardinals (11.60)
Bench- QB Jake Locker
Bench- RB Donald Brown
Bench- RB Michael Bush
Bench- RB Bilal Powell
Bench- RB Brandon Bolden
Bench- WR Lance Moore
Bench- WR Jeromy Simpson
Bench- TE Dennis Pitta
-Popcorn Playaz - Week 5 Roster-
QB- Matt Schaub
QB- Cameron Newton the Third
RB- Steven Jackson (7.60)
RB- Reginald Q. Bush
WR- Carolina's Steve Smith
WR- Dwayne Bowe
TE- Robert Gronkowski
RB/WR- WR Golden Taint
WR/TE- TE Heathcliff Miller
RB/WR/TE- Michael Floyd (1.70)
K- "Young GZ" Greg Zuerlein (7.00)
DEF- Vikings
Bench- QB Matthew Cassel
Bench- RB LaMichael James
Bench- RB Isaac Red Man
Bench- RB Mike Tolbert
Bench- WR Darrius Heyward-Bey
Bench- TE Jason Witten
Bench- K Jason Hanson
Bench- DEF Jets
2) BALLBUSTERS (12 teams) (Sizzlers) (1-3) (3rd in “Death Division”) (9th place overall) (3rd in total points)
So I think I found the answer to all my issues. Up until this week, I hadn’t completed a single trade in any of my leagues.
Last week, in my quest to send out feelers to people regarding what they wanted for certain players, someone actually accepted one of my qualifying offers as I traded Lance Moore to Lad No Dad, the leader of our “Death Division,” straight up for Kenny Britt.
Moore was my third WR and a spot starter at best. He’s good for a plug and play, helped us win in Week One, and is the biggest beneficiary of Bob Meachem’s move to San Diego. He’s also been, to this point, a beneficiary of the foot injury that plagued Marques Colston for the first few weeks. I expect this to change, starting with Colston’s monster game against the Packers last week. I basically traded a third or fourth option on a great passing team for the number one option on a decent team that will need to throw a lot because Chris Johnson is a waste of life (yeah he had a good game last week but that'll probably be his best game all season). Now I just need Britt and Nicks to stop being injured so I can pair them with Miles and actually play a 3-WR set.
Also, I thought we had a chance at getting Domenik Hixon off waivers. He was grabbed by the team in last place so we wound up dropping Bilal Powell for Andre Roberts instead.
I considered playing Roberts this week but decided against it because even though he had been on an unbelievable hot streak to start the season, neither him or Fitzy had great games against the Rams last year and they upgraded their top three cornerback spots with Cortland Finnegan, Janoris Jenkins, & Bradley Fletcher. I didn't trust Kevin Kolb or the crappy Arizona offensive line enough to justify playing Roberts. I wouldn't have minded as much if Roberts put up another great game on my bench unless it cost me another win (although Skippy got away with it last week when he benched Quan Boldin). But if I had played A-Rob, I would've had to stare at that crappy 6-point total on my matchup screen for the next two days and wonder what could’ve been.
I was also banking on Kenny Britt playing in this game and now am kinda screwed. Looks like I'm playing Jerome Simpson at WR.
And oh yeah, no one put in a claim on Scott Chandler after his two-TD performance last week. I guess people forgot that someone (Lad No Dad, who traded us Britt) had cut him a few days prior to his big game. But not this guy. We swapped Ramses Barden for Chandler real quick when we saw he was still available. We're still rolling with a 2 TE set this week but we're gonna roll with our original 2 TE set of Rudolph and Olsen. I don't want to overthink these sort of things.
Our opponents this week are the Canes who are 2-2, in 8th place overall, tied for 10th in total points, and are in 4th in the "East" division. Technically I'm in the "Central" division but it's still the "Death" division to me and will still be referred to as such.
A 1-4 start would be the deathblow to any realistic chance at a Sizzlers championship repeat so we need to step up big this week, boys. Don't let me down!
-Sizzlers - Week 5 Roster-
QB- Peyton Manning
RB- Raymell Rice
WR- Jeromy Simpson
TE- Gregory Olsen
TE- Kyle Rudolph the Red Zone Reindeer
Flex- RB Ryan Mathews
K- Robbie Gould
DEF- Giants
Bench- QB Jake Locker
Bench- RB Clarence James Spiller
Bench- RB Donald Brown
Bench- WR Hasheem Nicks
Bench- WR Miles Austin
Bench- WR Andre Roberts (6)
Bench- WR Kenneth Britt
Bench- TE Scott Chandler
-Canes - Week 5 Roster-
QB- Aaron Rodgers
RB- Stevan Ridley
WR- Brandon Lloyd
TE- Martellus Bennett
TE- Jermichael Finley
Flex- WR Victorino Cruise
K- David Akers
DEF- 49ers
Bench- QB Blaine Gabbert
Bench- RB Daniel Thomas
Bench- RB Jacqueline Battle
Bench- RB Rashard Mendenhall
Bench- WR Carlos Santana Moss
Bench- WR Gregorio Jennings
Bench- TE Aaron Hernandez
Bench- K Jason Hanson
3) CONVICKS (10 teams) (This Guy) (1-3) (10th place overall) (10th in total points)
I was put into a very unfamiliar position this week: having first priority on waivers.
There's a number of directions I could've gone here. Most people in my situation probably would've went for Jackie Battle, especially if they owned Ryan Mathews. But, as ya'll know, I'm not most people. And if you check out our most recent Pondcast, you can watch me state my case as to why Mathews is a better long term play than Battle going forward. I wound up dropping Bilal Powell for Andre Roberts. I have to roll with the guys I drafted to be my starters though (minus the crippled Greg Jennings, of course) so Roberts didn't get the start this week.
My opponent this week is the 9th place Silver Bullets who are also 1-3 and 9th in total points.
-This Guy - Week 5 Roster-
QB- Killer of Dogs
RB- Ryan Mathews
RB- Clarence James Spiller
WR- Julius Jones
WR- Marques Colston
WR- Jeremy Maclin
TE- Kyle Rudolph, Everyone's Favorite Red Zone Reindeer
K- Robert Bironas
DEF- Cardinals (4.00)
Bench- QB Jake Locker
Bench- RB Douglas Martin
Bench- RB Donald Brown
Bench- WR Andre Roberts (9.20)
Bench- WR Gregorio Jennings
Bench- WR Kendall Wright
Bench- TE Heathcliff Miller
-Silver Bullets - Week 5 Roster-
QB- Jayson Cutler
RB- Adrian Peterson
RB- Ahmad Rashad Bradshaw Layfield
WR- Andre Johnson
WR- Randall Moss
WR- Justin Black Man
TE- Vernon Davis
K- David Akers
DEF- Giants
Bench- QB Cameron Newton the Third
Bench- RB Shady McCoy
Bench- RB Mike Tolbert
Bench- WR Vincent Jackson
Bench- WR Plaxico Burress (Yes, THAT Plaxico Burress)
Bench- TE Old-Ass Tony Gonzalez
Bench- DEF Steelers
4) KIRBY’S ALL STARS (12 teams) (Powdered Toast Man) (1-3) (4th in Kel Division) (9th place overall) (7th in total points)
It's been a really, really long time since I started this badly in this league. It sucks and I despise everything about this.
The injury bug continues to make unwanted wh00pie with my team and now I have the Bye Week from Hell to worry about. You can see it refelcted in my starting lineup as, this week, I'm losing Megatron, Nicks, Romo, AND Stafford to either injury or the bye week.
Having two QBs on bye is never fun but at least there were options available in free agency. I initially decided to go with Matt Hasselbeck but seeing his name in my starting lineup just brought unwarranted, unwanted, unneeded sadness into my life. So I swapped him with Christian Ponder. I'm playing Kyle Rudolph so why not, right? Plus, he's more of a rushing threat than Hasselsack (as Hasselsack runs for two TDs in this game). I just pray he passes for more than 100 yards this week and maybe throws a TD or two to Rudolph. That would be nice.
I also decided to drop Ramses Barden and Jerome Simpson and wound up getting Brian Hartline and James Jones who both immediately went into my starting lineup this week with Demaryius Thomas. I'm not expecting Hartline to come anywhere close to his numbers from last week but I don't have too many other options at this point. And I'm hoping James Jones can fill in admirably until Greg Jennings comes back from his groin injury.
My opponent for this week is one of the league's newcomers: the 2-2 World's Wildest Police Videos (the team name theme IS 90's television, after all) who are currently in 3rd in the Kel Division, in 8th place overall, and in 8th in total points.
A win here is vital to any playoff aspirations. And if I win this one in the bye week that will probably hit me the hardest, that would be uber fantastical.
-Powdered Toast Man - Week 5 Roster-
QB- Christian Ponder
RB- Ryan Mathews
RB- Clarence James Spiller
WR- Demaryius Thomas
WR- Brian "The Hitman" Hartline
WR- James J. Jones
TE- Kyle Rudolph the Red... you know what, you should get the point by now
Flex- TE Jermaine Gresham
K- Robert Bironas
DEF- Bengals
Bench- QB Anthony Romo
Bench- QB Sir Matthew of Stafford Town
Bench- RB Donald Brown
Bench- WR Calvin Johnson
Bench- WR Hasheem Nicks
Bench- WR Kendall Wright
-World's Wildest Police Videos - Week 5 Roster-
QB- Peyton Manning
RB- Adrian Peterson
RB- Andre Brown
WR- Dwayne Bowe
WR- Sidney Rice
WR- Victorino Cruise
TE- Coby Fleener
Flex- RB Jamaal Charles
K- Matt Bryant
DEF- Giants
Bench- QB Josh Freeman
Bench- RB Mark Ingram
Bench- RB Brandon Bolden
Bench- WR Dexter McFuckCluster
Bench- WR Kenneth Britt
Bench- TE Brandon Myers
5) CCFFL (14 teams, points league w/ head to head games) (The Houston Oilers) (2-2) (2-1 in the AFC) (3rd in the AFC) (5th place overall)
One roster change here as I dropped Bilal Powell for Domenik Hixon. And due to the fact that I could lose both Jennings and Britt this week, I have to start Hixon against the Browns.
The conundrum I face is whether to start Leonard Hankerson or Jerome Simpson at the 3rd WR spot.
There's no worse feeling than starting someone in one league while benching him in another and you lose the matchup you benched him in. It's a big part of the reason I'm going with Greg Olsen over Owen Daniels this week. Since I likely have to roll with Simpson in the Ballbusters league AND I have to roll with Ponder in the Kirby league, I almost decided to go with Jerome.
I'm really only going with Jerome in the Ballbusters league out of necessity. And I know that if I bench Hanky he's gonna go off and have a huge game. I'm not just saying that and/or going with Hanky because he's ranked higher in my weekly rankings than Jerome either.
If I whored myself to the rankings, I would've picked up Chaz Schilens to start this week because he's higher on my Week 5 rankings than Hanky or Jerome. And, while it wouldn't be a bad play, I can't justify dropping anyone for him or benching either guy for him at this juncture. Schilens is one of those guys whose name in my starting lineup would bring me sadness. Especially if Jerome and/or Hanky both put up monster games on Sunday and then I'd have to wait a whole day to see if Schilens could do the same. Not a good time. Of course if Hanky puts up a stinker, this is all that's going to be on my mind on Monday.
Regardless, I need a win and I need points. Lots of them. In droves, actually.
My head to head opponent for this week is the 13th place Skilletlickers who is currently 0-4 with an 0-3 "NFC" record.
He had the first overall pick in this year's draft and got Arian Foster as a result so that automatically makes him a threat. But I need this win, and a high scoring week badly. For my own sanity at least.
-The Houston Oilers - Week 5 Roster-
QB- Peyton Manning
RB- Trentylocks Richardson
RB- Clarence James Spiller (BTW, Yes I realize he's playing against the 49ers. I'm still playing him in four of my five leagues)
WR- Julius Jones
WR- Domeniko Hixon
WR- Leonardo Hankerson
TE- Gregory Olsen
K- Robert Bironas
DEF- Bengals
Bench- QB Sir Matthew of Stafford Town
Bench- RB Lamar Miller
Bench- RB Jizzybaluba Rodgers
Bench- WR Kenneth Britt
Bench- WR Jeromy Simpson
Bench- WR Gregorio Jennings
Bench- TE Owen Hart Daniels
-Skilletlickers - Week 5 Roster-
QB- Jayson Cutler
RB- Ahmad Rashad Bradshaw Layfield
RB- Adrian Foster
WR- Vincent Jackson
WR- Randall Moss
WR- Carolina's Steve Smith
TE- Vernon Davis
K- Larry Tynes
DEF- Giants
Bench- QB Jake Locker
Bench- RB Mike Tolbert
Bench- RB Brandon Jacobs
Bench- WR Plaxico Burress (Again... yes, THAT Plaxico Burress. And yes, it's the same owner in both leagues. You can tell by how similar the rosters look)
Bench- WR Golden Taint (who I assume is going in over VJAX)
Bench- TE Zachary Miller
Bench- DEF Steelers
-IN CONCLUSIONASTICS-
I will continue to make up new versions of the word "conclusion."
I will also continue to throw in my one random 90's wrestling reference I spoke of last week until somebody comments on one of these blogs and points it out so I can give away a free one-year subscription to Pond Scum Sports.
Here's to hoping I'm not throwing myself onto the Giants stadium field in anguish and frustration by the middle of the first quarter against the Browns... not because of the Giants playing bad, but because of more potential fantasy ineptitude.
Deuces,
-Ray-
No comments:
Post a Comment