PFFL Week 15 2009

Pittsburgh Survival Football
Survivor 1: Up till now you could have allowed the system to make your pick for you and survive... up till now! Well it had to happen sooner or later and I guess week 15 is definitely later. For the first time this year the default pick or highest spread on the board went down when Denver was upset by Oakland; and it wasn't just one team this time. Four of the seven teams picked lost. The other three losses weren't significant however accounting for just four fatalities but the Denver loss took out more than half of the week 15 entries. After the smoke cleared 50 of week 15's beginning 86 fell and Denver's toll was 46. The first contest still has a considerable amount in 36 still alive with just two weeks to go but but like a stock split, the value of each has more than doubled!
Survivor 2: The survivors in the second contest also selected seven different teams to win but only two lost here compared to four in the first contention; but of course one was also Denver. Here Denver didn't account for quite half the competition like the first but it was close enough for a significant reduction in the contest. A single pick went down with New Orleans and their bid for an undefeated season but 21 of the week 15 opening 46 perished with the Broncos. There are still less survivors in the second contest than the first but there is still a substantial amount of 24 with two weeks to go.

PFFL POSTSEASON

Week 16 - PFFL League Championship: This week the three Conference Champions play in an interconference three-way title game for the PFFL League Championship. The three Consolation Tournament semifinal round conference winners also play a three-way game to determine the tournament winner. The higher ranked team still wins all ties in the championship games but in the case of a tie between teams of the same rank the tie breakers are as follows: 1. Game potential points. 2. The previous week's point total. If still tied continue back until tie is broken. A reminder that total points continue to accrue through week 17 for all teams. The PFFL Conference and overall Point Champions are determined after week 17.

CONGRATULATIONS TO THE PFFL 2009 CONFERENCE CHAMPIONS!
EAST	CENTRAL	WEST
TD'S	SS STOGGIES	KNOCKOUT KINGS

East Conference Championship Results

#2 TD's 148 - #1 Justice 130

At least Justice can say they left it all on the field after posting a 100% efficiency rating in the game. It also means they don't have any what ifs to dwell on in the off season but more importantly it also leaves little room for legal action so I think it's safe to say this game is official. The game actually went fairly close to what was predicted. The QB's both did well and basically cancelled each other out. It wasn't by much but Justice's receivers out played TD's as expected. The game however was won the way we predicted it would be, with TD's running backs. Although Ray Rice had a solid day he actually did less than expected but so did Justice's Chris Johnson so that left the rest of TD's backs to carry the day. Jones-Drew broke 30 and Jamaal Charles had an excellent day with 25. TD's 71 total running back points was the difference in the game and the reason the TD's will now have an opportunity to be the first team ever to win a second PFFL Championship.

Central Conference Championship Results

#2 SS Stoggies 117 - #1 Reno 101

It wasn't their worst effort of the year but it was the worst effort in the Central for the week. Coming into the game Reno had the second best postseason average in the Central of 131 but they were playing the team with the best postseason average in the entire league of 160. The Stoggies put up no where near their postseason average either but didn't need to and actually got away with one as Reno hasn't scored less than 117 since week 5. As expected Reno's WR's was their strength and bested the Stoggies WR's but their downfall was Favre putting up just 11 and DeAngelo Williams a mere 2. The Stoggies won a point championship in 2005 and now have a chance to add a league championship to their resume.

West Conference Championship Results

#2 Knockout Kings 155 - #1 MNE 142

The East and Central finals were basically devoid of any drama but with MNE holding a 22 point lead going into Monday night the West had some promise. The Kings looked good with Steve Smith and the Giants DEF still to go but 22 points were no lock. The fact that the Kings took the lead before halftime however also took the drama from the West final also. MNE put up a better effort than predicted for sure but with a 157 point postseason average you knew the Kings would be hard to beat. To win MNE needed each of their three studs to go off and while Jones-Drew did his part with 31, Brees was kind of pedestrian with 19 and Welker was a big letdown with just 8. The win gives the Kings their first conference title and a chance at their first PFFL title.

PFFL CHAMPIONSHIP GAME

Championship Game Teams Sorted by Total Points

League Pt. Rk Rank/Franchise VP W-L-T PF PP PWR Eff

1 2 Knockout Kings 32 7-3-1 1962 2373 37.44 82.7%

2 2 SS Stoggies 29 7-4-0 1983 2297 35.73 86.3%

6 2 TD's 29 7-4-0 1951 2195 33.92 88.9%

Championship Team Average 1965

League Average 1789

GAME ANALYSIS

     Note that the Edge determinations are heavily weighted on this week's matchups and this week's fantasy point projections for each player.

     QB: All three have solid QBs but the edge has to go to the Stoggies for two reasons: one they have Brees and two he has a good matchup at home against Tampa Bay. The Knockout Kings' Schaub gets the second nod with the TD's McNabb not far behind but behind nonetheless.
Edge: 1. Stoggies 2. Knockout Kings 3. TD's

     RB: All three have Ray Rice - which says something about the impact Rice has had on fantasy teams this year - so we can just scratch him from the equation. The strength of the TD's is their backs but with Rice cancelled out it will be up to Jones-Drew and either Charles or Forte whomever they choose. With this weeks matchups however I don't expect the same success they had last week. The Stoggies Ricky Williams could be a sleeper this week at home against Houston and if DeAngelo Williams doesn't play they could plug in Jonathan Stewart as a third option strengthening their overall lineup. The Kings would seem to have the edge with AP and he does have a good matchup. They play just two RB's though so their total RB production may not be as high as the others if they play three but AP especially with a good matchup and Rice gives them a two RB edge over Rice and any second back by the other two.
Edge: 1. Knockout Kings 2. TD's 3. SS Stoggies

     WR: While the advantages at QB and RB between the three are more subtle than significant, their is a distinct difference at WR. The Kings start four and three of them are in the top 10 in points while the fourth is rated a solid 15. The TD's can hang a bit with their receivers but the Kings still show a clear edge over them. The Stoggies however definitely lag behind all three in the category. And to make matters worse their best receiver Marshall is also on the Kings roster and after Marshall they drop off significantly compared to the other two.
Edge: 1. Knockout Kings 2. TD's 3. SS Stoggies

     K: Kicking is without a doubt the most unpredictable position but circumstances have, I won't say a clear winner hear but maybe a clear loser. Both the Kings and Stoggies have Bironas and the Stoggies also have Crosby but the TD's are stuck with Olindo Mare kicking at Green Bay because their other kicker Nick Folk of Dallas was cut. Kicking is unpredictable but every fantasy information source has Mare rated extremely low while both Crosby and Bironas are rated high. And as you know Bironas has been on a major roll lately and is kicking at home this week.
Edge: 1. (tie) SS Stoggies 1. (tie) Knockout Kings 3.TD's

     DEF: The TD's may have lost the Kicking category but they make up some ground in special teams here. Of all the defenses on the rosters of all three teams, they have the one rated highest this week in Minnesota. The Stoggies' Baltimore and New Orleans are also rated fairly high and believe it or not the Kings actually lose a category. Whichever they pick, SD, Mia, or Gia, they are all rated below their opponents choices in this weeks matchups
Edge: 1. TD's 2. SS Stoggies 3. Knockout Kings

Predicted Order of Finish According to This Weeks Fantasy Projections:

1. Knockout Kings 2. TD's 3. SS Stoggies

Consolation Tournament Championship Game

East #3 IC Lightning
Central #6 Cleantown
West #6 J&J

PFFL Information
League Leaders

Upcoming Week 16 PFFL Championship Total Points Knockout Kings 2114

Weekly Meetings Every Wed Evening Power Rank MNE 37.44

Next Calendar Event Playoff Tournament Draft
Wednesday, January 6 Coaching Knockout Kings 89.9

High Week
KO Kings - wk 14 216

Final League Meeting Wednesday, January 13 Weekly Winnings
Archie's

PFFL STUFF

The Score: This weeks 122.7 average makes it seven straight weeks of above average scoring and six of the last seven the average has been above 120. The current average is now up to an even 119. Because of a slow start it will take a lot these last two weeks to reach 2007's final average of 120.1, but 2009 will at the least be the second highest year of the last four in the current scoring system. The last three year average coming into this year was 117.

2009 Playoff Tournament: Your suggestions have prompted a change of an additional roster player for this year's draft. This year we will draft the same starting lineup of nine players as the main competition by adding the flex player. The draft will be held on Wednesday, January 6. Those participating should arrive no later than 7:30 pm. The General Information of the contest can be found here: Playoff Tournament Information. The website has been upgraded to the 2009 season and is located here: 2009 Playoff Tournament The site still lists last years teams but will change as teams confirm or cancel for this year. Again a reminder that there is a 24 team ceiling for this contest. The final structure of the contest is determined by the number of teams participating so I would appreciate teams interested in reserving a spot do so at their earliest convenience.

Did You Know Stuff

● The TD's survived the conference championship round making the odds now 1 in 3 a team earns a second championship for the first time in the 18 years of the league. The TD's were the 2000 champions.

● I do believe that the 1 vs. 2 matchups in every conference championship game this year was the first time that has happened. I also believe that this is the first time every team in the championship game has the same rank. All three conference champions and championship game participants carry the #2 rank. The #2 rank has won two previous championships so obviously a third is guaranteed this year. The #1 rank has won the most times five, and after this year the #2's third time will be second most. Every rank has won at least once except the 4th. A team ranked 4th has never won the championship.

● The Miami Dolphins made the fewest pass attempts in a single Super Bowl. They attempted only 7 passes during Super Bowl VIII on their way to a 24-7 blowout of Minnesota.

Wishing All A Very Merry Christmas

Total Point Rankings

Rk Franchise PF

1 2 Knockout Kings 2114

2 2 SS Stoggies 1983

3 1 Justice 1976

4 3 Archie's 1976

5 1 MNE 1962

6 2 TD's 1951

7 3 IC Lightning 1934

8 3 TnT 1934

9 4 Downtowners 1909

10 7 Syndicate 1901

11 1 Reno 1873

12 5 T Bones 1851

13 4 French River 1826

14 6 Cleantown 1809

15 10 Smiley's Snipers 1791

16 4 Pretty Kitty Central 1787

17 5 Irish Talbots 1764

18 6 J&J 1750

19 11 Twisted Helmets 1747

20 8 Nasty Aggravators 1740

21 5 Boys of Autumn 1739

22 9 Little Johnny's 1725

23 7 Brookline 1718

24 10 Legion of Doom 1693

25 7 JR's Boys 1690

26 9 Aggravators 1682

27 9 Pretty Kitty West 1664

28 8 Rounder 17 1644

29 10 B&B 1639

30 11 Weekend Warriors 1634

31 6 Commish East 1587

32 8 Darryls 1556

33 11 Commish West 1480

Average 1789

PFFL Defending League Champion
Welcome to the 18th Season of the PFFL!

West Conference

Rounder 17

PFFL Trivia Answer

Bob Griese

Though Griese started for the Dolphins in Super Bowls VII and VIII, he was MVP of neither. Scott was MVP of Super Bowl VII, Biletnikoff was MVP of Super Bowl XI and Howard was MVP of Super Bowl XXXI.