Well..this is it. It went by like a blur, like it normally does, but after 15 weeks of awesome performances, shitty performances, outta nowhere performances, injuries, suspensions, benchings, promotions, we're here. We started with 12 teams, and now we're down to the final 2. It's a lot of hard work to get this far, hell it's a lot of hard work just to make the playoffs and when you get to the semi finals and lose...it's that much more heartbreaking because you were not only one step away from playing for the Championship, but also one step away from guaranteed money. A win in the semi finals guarantees you a $300 payout, and that certainly isn't chump change. Of course the Champ takes home a whopping $800 so you better believe there is going to be so high tension and pressure for the two teams that will be taking on each other in the Wane McGarity Bowl. So who's in? Do we have first timers in Ryan and Alex, is Albert going to his record 4th Wane McGarity Bowl, is Eugene going to finally get over that hump after two straight 3rd place finishes? Just know, there was one total blowout, and one matchup that went down to the wire. Time to find out who's going to the Wane McGarity Bowl. Here's the results.
SCLSU MudDogs (9-6) 102.36
Rocket Man (10-4) 59.28
Man...this was a total massacre. Unfortunately for Eugene, a crappy combination of injuries and bad weather did in his best 3 players and there was just no way he was able to overcome that. It was my main worry if you remember when I did the playoff preview. His team wins because of Aaron Rodgers, Julio Jones, and Melvin Gordon. His depth for the rest of his team was very questionably to say the least and it showed in spades here. No Julio, No Gordon, and Aaron Rodgers finishes with his lowest point total all season thanks to the super cold weather. Even with Alex's slow Thursday Night start I really wasn't worried because it's so hard to replace elite talent like Julio and Melvin. Eugene worked with what he had (crazy to see how far DeAndre Hopkins has fallen off, even with the injuries, Eugene still benched him, although he was actually decent because Brock Osweiler FINALLY got benched) got a couple decent games from J.J. Nelson and Rishard Matthews but nothing else for anyone else. Half his players scored 5.6 points or less and J.J. Nelson led the team with only 12.3 points. Just a disappointing finish to what was yet another great season for Eugene that was strictly killed by unfortunate injury luck. So Alex had a slow start, and honestly his team didn't have to do much when your opponent doesn't even put up 60 points, but it had to be a sigh of relief to see Drew Brees bounce back in a BIG way after two duds. Brees lost a fumble, but quickly bounced back with 389 passing yards and 4 TD's. Bell and Brees have come through this playoffs for Alex when he has needed them the most. Speaking of Bell, no 50 spot this time, just a "modest" 131 total yards for 15.6 points. That's considering a disappointing game by Bell's standards but hopefully for Alex he gets back to the 25-30 point games he's used to churning out. Again, when you're this far into the playoffs, gutsy calls are a MUST and Alex's last second decision to switch out Delanie Walker for Bilal Powell was a GREAT call and definitely a move that pulled Alex ahead. Powell had 162 yards (including 11 catches for 78) and finished with 21.7 points. If Powell is going to remain the starter for the Jets next week, he's definitely a wild card that could work in Alex's advantage. Outside of those 3, the only concerning thing to me is the receiver situation. Alex doesn't really have a WR3 and Larry Fitzgerald has been struggling as of late. Since Week 11, he's got only 1 double digit game and they play the Seahawks D next. Julian Edelman was decent against a very good Broncos defense and he'll get the shitty Jets next so hopefully he can have an even better game. Carlos Hyde didn't do much this week, but that was more because it was a blowout and it should be a closer matchup against the Rams. So after a shaky 2-4 start, Alex's team has really gotten it together and he makes his first ever Wane McGarity Bowl Appearance. He's been able to so far easily beat two great teams in Mayra and Eugene. Alex could become the 2nd 6th seed to beat the #1, #2, #3 seeds en route to a championship. Albert accomplished that in 2011, though I would argue that the way Alex's squad has been playing has been far from a 6th seed. As for Eugene, well, gotta be frustrating. 3 straight semi-final trips, 3 straight losses. Just can't quite get over that hump yet. At the very least, hopefully he can recapture 3rd place for the 3rd straight year and it'll make the journey next year to finally get over the hump that much more satisfying.
Game MVP
Drew Brees (SCLSU MudDogs)
389 Passing Yards, 4 Passing TD's, 1 Fumble Lost, 33.36 Points
Hoosier Daddy (12-2) 104.84
Channel 4 News Team (9-6) 99.80
Damn...for every blowout there's a down to the wire matchup where someone gets a heartbreaking loss. If you recall two years ago, Albert tied (and lost the tiebreaker to Matt) because of one player. DONTE MONCRIEF. He played him over Anquan Boldin and Moncrief got a 0 while Boldin scored 2 points. It would've been enough to beat Matt. This year, same game, different player. Remember the name TY MONTGOMERY, it'll play a factor later in this recap. So this was as close and nerve wrecking as I thought it would be, with Albert literally leading the entire weekend going into the Sunday/Monday Night games. After an awful start Thursday night for Ryan and a decent one for Albert (Albert's Doug Baldwin stole a TD from Ryan's Thomas Rawls) it looked like Albert was in the driver's seat to start off the matchup. Then, the early Sunday games started and Ryan's two guys weren't doing much, and at first neither were Albert's. Than a barrage of points started going up, Andrew Luck finished with 2 TD's, LeSean McCoy was AMAZING with 169 total yards and 2 TD's for 30.4 points, Jordan Howard got a late TD to give him 113 total yards and a TD and it really looked like Albert was going to pull away and this could end up being a blowout, though lost in the shuffle were mediocre games from T.Y. Hilton and Jordan Matthews (they combined for only 11.7 points) and an AWFUL game from Tyler Eifer (held to 1.4 points). Ryan got a pretty disappointing game from Big Ben with under 300 yards and a TD, but at the very least Steve Smith scored and it validated Ryan's move to start him over Kenny Britt. So Ryan had the bulk of his guys go late and Michael Crabtree was able to score a TD and finish with 15 points, while DeMaryius Thomas had 7 catches for 91 yards. The big blow though? Tevin Coleman. It was a risky start, and it didn't quite pay off as this week it was the Devonta Freeman show as he had 3 TD's. Every little point matters and Ryan regretting starting Coleman over Mark Ingram who wasn't that much better but still got almost 3 more points than Coleman. Basically it was going to come down to Zeke/Greg Olsen vs Doug Martin. For Ryan, Zeke would have to be the one to save the day. Ryan took Zeke with the #2 pick overall for moments like these and in true Zeke fashion..ZEKE WAS PHENOMENAL. Elliott performed flawlessly with 188 total yards and a TD for a whopping and crucial 26.3 points. That combined with Doug Martin absolutely sucking (42 yards) basically sealed the deal for the inevitable Ryan win. All Ryan needed was a little over 6 points from Greg Olsen to seal the deal. Olsen's been struggling as of late, so it was still not a 100% guarantee plus it IS fantasy football, weirder things have happened. Right off the bat Olsen caught a 31 yard pass and Olsen almost doubled what he needed for the victory and finished with 6 catches for 85 yards and 11.5 points. Ryan trailed from Thursday all the way until he finally took over the lead in the 2nd quarter of Monday Night's game and won. What an AMAZING comeback, led be a special player in Zeke. If Ryan still needed assurance he made the right choice in Zeke, when it mattered the most, with a trip to the finals on the line, Zeke delivered. It's been a rough 3 year stretch before this for Ryan. Ever since his last 3rd place finish in 2012, Ryan's finished 11th, 8th, and 11th. Nothing but disappointment. But this year was special. Best record in the league, highest points in the league, 2nd best record in league history and it came real close to being all for nothing had he lost. But he didn't, and he now goes on to the Wane McGarity Bowl for the 1st time. He's the 3rd #1 seed to make it to the Finals and he'll hope to do what me and Mayra couldn't do as #1 seeds, win the whole damn thing. He'll definitely have a great chance, but it's looking like another slugfest with Alex's equally talented team. For Albert...man..another heartbreaking semi-finals loss. If not for a couple plays the both time Albert has lost in this spot, he could at the very least been in 5 Wane McGarity Bowls. Remember I mentioned Ty Montgomery? So Albert picked him up last week and I really believed after the news that James Starks was concussed and was going to miss the game, and also being a cold weather game where running would be a big focus, combined with Doug Martin's crappy matchup against the Cowboys, Albert would roll the dice and start Ty over Doug Martin. It never happened....and Montgomery was AMAZINGLY GREAT. He had 162 yards and 2 TD's..29.3 points..ON ALBERT'S BENCH while Doug Martin had a piddly 4.2 points. That's such a nut punch. Albert wins EASILY with the Montgomery play. He's already said Montgomery will haunt him all year, just like Donte Moncrief did two years ago. So in a rematch from two years ago, it will once again be Albert vs Eugene in the 3rd place game. It's not a good feeling being one game away from the Finals, but hey at least someone will recoup their fee by winning the 3rd place game.
Game MVP
Ezekiel Elliott (Hoosier Daddy)
159 Rushing Yards, 1 Rushing TD, 3 Receptions, 29 Receiving Yards, 26.30 Points
Other League News: Well for Me, Drew, Mayra, and Mike our seasons are officially over. I beat Drew in the pathetic 11th place game, while Mayra beat Mike in the 5th place game. There is no more fantasy football for us and personally may I say THANK GOD..because I need a break from the crap in the worst way. I know nobody is paying attention, but how about Dad advancing to the Michael Wiley Loser Bowl!! He's actually on a 4 game winning streak after losing 11 in a row! He'll take on Leland, while Matt and Mark face each other in the 9th place game. Remember, the winner of the Michael Wiley Loser Bowl gets their choice of draft slot, so that would be a pleasant surprise for Dad if he upset Leland to take the "title".
No comments:
Post a Comment