Wk 08 News & Notes

PFFL EAST

Before it was even official the T Bones posted the news on the East message board that they were now in first place in the East. I think I also saw it on one of those banners being pulled behind a plane flying around the city. I don't want to, but I guess I have to give credit where credit is due: Yes the Rebels could have won with a different lineup but starting Schaub over Roethlisberger is what gave the T Bones the 122-109 victory and a jump from third to first in the conference. It wasn't a 4VP win but it was their fifth straight and it puts them 2VP ahead of the Rebels who drop to second. After all the rubbing it in on the message board - and I see even as I write this it continues with more antagonizing messages being posted at this very moment - I doubt that William and Dean shook hands after the game. Dean you could have at least had the courtesy to spell your opponents player's name right in your taunting. You know it's never too late to get your GED. Well I know how you feel William as Dean rubbed it in pretty good on me last week but hey, a question for you Dean: Do you like apples? Well take a look at who won Team of the Week Honors this week. How do you like them apples?

It's easy to second guess after the fact but the fact is if the Rebels start Matt Jones instead of TE Owen Daniels, they beat the T Bones and remain in first. I know I have been hard on you lately William so this week I am cutting you a break; we'll give the blame to Jerry. To be fair you really can't call choosing one of those two over the other a mistake as both are similar in points. Maybe what we can call it though is something the Rebels have had very little of this year: bad luck! With three weeks remaining there is plenty of time for them to make up the 2VP they are now behind first, but at just 3VP ahead fifth and the middle tier, there is also enough time to lose the top tier outright. Now I know I have been hard on the Rebels from time to time this year but I don't think as hard as MFL was this week in the fantasy recap about their upcoming game against the average. Yeah the average has been a formidable competitor compiling a 6-2 record against East teams, but making the average a 117.2 favorite over them for the upcoming week is an affront to the Rebel organization. For the record William I took the points. I figure no way you lose by more than 100!

It's not long ago that we were talking about the Tommy Guns as maybe being the elite team in the league. Well nothing will bring a team back to earth quicker than injuries and byes. Much of their early success can be attributed to the play of Reggie Bush. Before getting hurt he was contributing 21 points a game to the Guns cause. Well last week Bush's injury cost them a game and this week they not only had to play without him, but also their #1 pick Adrian Peterson because of a bye. Well all teams have to put up with the byes and it's actually rare that any team gets through a season without some misfortune of injury. It may be temporary, but right now their misfortune has cost them their top two status which they enjoyed the entire year until now. They at least get their #1 pick back from bye this week but will have to continue playing without Bush for a while longer.

If the pattern continued Green Apple was supposed to score above the league average this week. Well the pattern has finally been broken and so was Green Apple this week. Yeah their opponent Justice scored 141 points but managing just 89 points themselves meant their only chance for victory was playing the Tommy Guns and their conference low of 88 points. That would have been the fair match up as both had key players out this week. Losing Stephen Jackson to injury was bad enough but when you lose Larry Johnson to "spitting", well you know things just aren't going your way. The 5VP they are now behind the leader is the farthest they have been from the top all year. They have been in the top four since week 1 but with no VP cushion currently between them and the fifth place team, that steak is now in jeopardy.

Franchise	VP	W-L-T
T Bones	23	6-2-0
Rebels	21	6-2-0
Tommy Guns	20	5-3-0
Green Apple	18	5-3-0
Cleantown	18	3-5-0
Little Johnny's	17	4-4-0
Justice	16	4-4-0
Commish East	14	3-5-0
Boys of Autumn	12	2-5-1
IC Lightning	10	2-6-0
Aggravators	6	1-6-1

Rk Franchise PF

1 Justice 1014

2 Tommy Guns 996

3 T Bones 973

4 Cleantown 964

5 Commish East 942

6 Little Johnny's 923

7 Rebels 912

8 Green Apple 905

9 IC Lightning 900

10 Boys of Autumn 886

11 Aggravators 766

Average 926

PFFL CENTRAL

In a one vs. two showdown, the Twisted Helmets came out on top of the Syndicate in score (132-122) and in the standings. The win puts the Twisted ones back on top of the Syndicate and back on top of the Central. Could the Syndicate have won with a different lineup? Yes. But the Twisted Helmets could have had 161 points with a different lineup so we'll pass on the what ifs here. Other than a brief visit by the Knockout Kings in week 4, the Helmets and the Syndicate have been fighting over first since week 1. Thru the first eight weeks the Syndicate has sat on the throne four times and this will be the Helmets third time in the chair. But it's far from a two-team race. The fourth-place team is just 2VP back making the Central Conference the closest race of the three. Referring to the win over the Syndicate that put them in first this week, the MFL website recap of the game scripted this quote from the Helmets coaching staff: ("We're not going to rest on our laurels," Twisted Helmets coach Kevin, Wade, Chris, Tom, and Mark said.) I was wondering which one of you actually said this and is there room for Todd and Harvey on the staff?

Yes it's true that the Helmets could have scored 161 in the Syndicate's 132-122 loss but I don't think they care about what the Helmets could have done, just what they could have done. The only thing that matters to the Syndicate is they could have won this game with different circumstances so they don't want to be told we aren't going to talk about the what ifs because the Helmets could have scored 161. Had J.T. O'Sullivan not gotten benched there is a very good chance they win the game and remain in first. And if Jay Cutler isn't on a bye they don't need to play O'Sullivan as even an average week from Cutler wins them the game. Ok, why am I making all these excuses for the Syndicate's loss? Have you been reading the Central Message Board lately? If you have you would agree that all is not right with our fellow owner Mickey. I am very concerned about the state of his mental being. I'm afraid the strain of a loss such as this one may take him to the brink. Mick, know that although we are competitors we are still fellow owners and we are all here for you. If you need any help I'm sure Kevin can spare one or two of his many partners to help you out with some of the burden. But just to cover all basis, as I said on the message board, PLEASE READ THE LABELS! Some medications are not to be mixed with others.

Byes and injuries hit us all but they don't effect us all equally. When your on a roll you somehow get by the problems. The Nasty Aggravators have had their share of problems but for whatever reason they are getting through it unscathed. This week they hoped they would get Parker back because their #1 pick Adrian Peterson was on a bye but Parker didn't play again. No problem, they still win their fifth straight. Your opponent could have scored 129 to your 122 with a different lineup but put up just 95; you have to play an emergency fill in player in Kevin Faulk but it's ok he gets you 20 points. These are the things that happen to you when it's going your way. Just as all good things must come to an end so must all bad. Bad things have been happening to the Aggravators but they have still been winning. I would hate to play them when it gets good for them. They remain in third but are now within 1VP of the top spot.

Byes, injuries, shouda, woulda, coulda, whatever, the Knockout Kings have had their share of bad luck but not this week. Their starter points were more than their opponents potential points allowing no room for shoulda woulda couldas. Their 139 points scored was tops in the Central allowing no room for the misfortune of scoring in the top three but still losing like they did in week 4. And scoring the most points in the conference for the week makes it impossible to lose by a single point like they did last week. Because the Nasty Aggravators also earned 4VP they remain in fourth but they cut their distance to the top spot in half to 2VP. They also doubled their distance from the middle tier from 1 to 2VP. All in all a very good week but just 2VP from the middle tier doesn't exactly entrench them in the top section. The Central top four is still totally up for grabs.

Franchise	VP	W-L-T
Twisted Helmets	22	6-2-0
Syndicate	22	5-3-0
Nasty Aggravators	21	6-2-0
Knockout Kings	20	4-4-0
Harmony Hornets	18	5-3-0
Weekend Warriors	17	5-3-0
SS Stoggies	15	3-5-0
Donators	13	3-5-0
R&J Inc.	12	3-5-0
TnT	10	2-6-0
Reno	5	1-7-0

Rk Franchise PF

1 Syndicate 1044

2 Knockout Kings 1011

3 Twisted Helmets 1009

4 Weekend Warriors 959

5 SS Stoggies 956

6 Harmony Hornets 936

7 Nasty Aggravators 929

8 Donators 878

9 R&J Inc. 856

10 TnT 830

11 Reno 796

Average 928

PFFL WEST

The MFL fantasy recap quoted the Downtowners as saying: "We sent a message here today," referring to their 135-104 win over the surging Apaches. Well we all know Ron and Dave didn't really say that but scoring 135 (and they had the potential for 169) with Jay Cutler, Brandon Marshall, and Greg Jennings on a bye, they did send a message making me rethink what I said about parity last week. They now have the most VP, the most wins, the most total points and the highest power rank in the league. As we talk about other teams problems with injuries, suspensions, and byes, this is a team that has their byes behind them and have no current injuries or problems. The only problem they will have is who to start each week. Their lead is 4VP and 62 points over the second-place team; not untouchable but close to it. I applaud the Downtowners on their recent success, but I hope they do realize they will have to share the revenues they received from the 73,345 faithful fans that were reported by MFL as attending their game.

The JR's Boys quiet four-game winning streak is now a loud five-game winning streak. It wasn't as easy as the first four but they were able to hold on for a 130-126 victory over French River. Their league-leading coaching efficiency rating was the difference as they out coached their opposition 92.2 to 80.3. The Creek had the points on the bench but their 80.3 rating produced 126 points while the Boys 92.2 netted them their 130. If both hit 100% the Creek would have won 157-141. What won the Boys the game was the decision to play Matt Jones and his 25 points over three or four other legitimate choices. Besides winning them their game that decision also keeps them in the league lead in coaching efficiency. They actually lost a VP to the leaders and are now 4 back but they gained 2VP on the middle tier giving them a 4VP cushion over fifth.

It's been a struggle but Commish West has worked their way back into the top four. The top tier has been a 50-50 proposition for them to this point. Through the first eight weeks they have been in for four and out for four. The victory was over the average but the fact that they finished in the top three in points indicates the odds were in their favor for a win anyway. We all have to make lineup decisions and more often than not they determine whether or not we win. A lineup decision didn't cost them a game but it did cost them a first-place finish. With Santonio Holmes inactivated the decision had to be made to go with Kevin Walter of Houston or pick up Nate Washington with their first position in the waiver order. Washington was the choice and it cost them a first but if a penalty wasn't called nullifying a second Washington TD catch, we wouldn't be talking about this right now. It didn't matter for the standings though as third is where they would be whether taking a first or third for the week.

Not too often do you win a game with just 6 points from the QB position. Because of byes both the Syndicate and the Rounder 17 had to play J.T. O'Sullivan as their QB. It cost the Syndicate their game but the Rounders were able to overcome the 6-point outing defeating Brookline 118-91. Brookline helped out with the weak effort allowing the Rounder 17 to pick up the victory despite O'Sullivan's benching and despite leaving Jerricho Cotchery's 19 on the bench. You can say they backed in but the key word is in as the Rounders are in the top tier once again. With 3 regular season games remaining and 6VP back of first, getting the #1 ranking may be a reach, but the two byes of the second position are still a real possibility.

Franchise	VP	W-L-T
Downtowners	26	7-1-0
JR's Boys	22	6-2-0
Commish West	21	5-3-0
Rounder 17	20	5-3-0
MNE	18	4-4-0
Apaches	17	5-3-0
Brookline	14	4-4-0
Irish Talbots	14	3-5-0
Sharks	10	3-5-0
French River	10	2-6-0
B&B	6	1-7-0

Rk Franchise PF

1 Downtowners 1054

2 MNE 1004

3 Rounder 17 993

4 JR's Boys 992

5 Commish West 976

6 Irish Talbots 926

7 French River 899

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