Two weeks left in the fantasy year and the injuries still haven't stopped coming. Though Rawls going down didn't effect anyone in the playoff run, Dalton certainly hurts Julio and Friends. It would seem they got the bye just when they needed it, but even with the injury and no opponent they put up the week's highest score. It remains to be seen just how badly Eifert and Green will suffer with McCarron throwing the ball. ACL also suffered from Olsen leaving the game early, but hopefully his injury is only a temporary one.
That all said, each of the remaining four playoff teams still look solid going into the final two weeks, even with the wildly different roads they've taken to get here. The tEDDy bEARs drafted terribly, but after their preseason scrambling they have emerged as strong as ever, still somehow having avoided any major injury to any of their starters in a year where it seems no one is safe. Julio and Friends prove the opposite, having suffered plenty of injuries but somehow finding replacements at just the right time to minimize any damage to the team's momentum. ACL's strategy of investing in cheap backups and handcuffs has paid huge returns as the team continues to lead in total points. The Futures' investment in Arizona came in the perfect season to do so, as both fantasy and RL team seem dominant.
Quarter Finals Review
The E-Munnies' wild ride of a season finally came to an end, but it was an exciting one to say the least! After the first half of the season, it seemed pretty clear that big E would face the Friends in the finals, as the team's strategy of riding New England's momentum looked unstoppable. Then the Patriots started losing player after player after player, each seemingly more critical than the last. Lewis, Edelman, and finally Gronk all down, and all owned by the now struggling E-Munnies. At the end Gronk did come back to make the final push an exciting one, putting the team up 20 points against ACL going into Monday night. Unfortunately, Miller had one of his big games and OBJ rarely puts up a dud. Luckily for New England, Edelman looks to join Gronk back on the field in time for the NFL playoffs, but sadly it didn't come soon enough for the Munnies.
What a match between BgDkDdy and The Futures! Less than half a point separated the two teams going into the final game Sunday night, with the Ddy's holding the lead. The final game pit BgDkDdy's Sanders against The Futures' Cooper and Murray. An otherwise terrible game of NFL football was excruciatingly exciting to watch as each team crawled slowly to add decimals to their point totals. Hilariously, all three players put up less than 4pts combined! Cooper put up a big 0, while Murray outscored Sanders by 2pts, which was enough to seal the Ddy's fate and end their season.
Semi Finals Preview
Potentially becoming the first divisional rivalry in the league, ACL and Julio and Friends have faced off twice this season, and twice been the top two scoring teams that week. Each time, the Friends have been the ones to come out ahead (first with a monster 189pt game, and the second time with a 3pt lead over ACL). Those two games were the entire reason ACL found themselves struggling just to maintain a wild card spot despite being the league points leader, so they would love nothing more than to eliminate the Friends' chances at the first title.
From the Friends' point of view, this is just another notch on the way to the end of what has been a runaway season. The only team with 10 wins, they have been a force throughout the season, only losing to the high peaks of rollercoaster teams like BgDkDdy and Show Me Your TDs along with a single loss to The Futures when the Bengals had their breakdown against Houston. If they aren't stopped by ACL this week, they will be heavy favorites going into the finals.
From the Friends' point of view, this is just another notch on the way to the end of what has been a runaway season. The only team with 10 wins, they have been a force throughout the season, only losing to the high peaks of rollercoaster teams like BgDkDdy and Show Me Your TDs along with a single loss to The Futures when the Bengals had their breakdown against Houston. If they aren't stopped by ACL this week, they will be heavy favorites going into the finals.
These two teams haven't faced each other since way back in week 2, when The Futures pulled off a 15pt win despite famously losing Coleman to that rib injury heard 'round the world. In the time since, The Futures have gone through countless lineup shifts and roster changes, while tEDDy bEARs have remained largely unchanged. Despite having the consensus worst draft of the league, they've emerged as the most consistent team week after week. The only hiccup on the bEARs run was their last regular season game, which should have been a homerun against BgDkDdy but resulted in a loss before going into their bye. With two weeks to stew over that loss, the team's morale may be suspect.
The Futures started their season building for...well..the future, but due to injuries were forced to promote their rookies a bit sooner than anticipated. Luckily for them, those rookies rose to the occasion and were able to patch together a solid season locking the team in as a favorite going into the end. With a 50% or greater record against each of the remaining teams, The Futures have odds on their side, as long as their young guns can keep it going with the big boys.
