But there's no SELLER's market. There is only the season at hand, so the opportunity to mortgage current assets in exchange for future considerations is limited. Even the draft order, the league's only link between seasons, is incentive for winning, doubling down on the BUYER's market. The answer to this riddle is carry-over: KEEPERS and DRAFT PICKS, commodities linked in utility. In order to make one quantifiable, so too comes the other. The proposition has existed before, and will be revisited again this off season.
IN ANY CASE! The contenders will be forced to forge ahead with the team they have, cast-offs and upstarts on the wire the only reinforcements coming. That group of contenders has whittled away another team: most likely the downtrodden Oakwood Drivers who, after four straight losses, now sit at 4-7. However, their battle with the South Park Cows may not be quite over: separated by a scant 1.2 points, a reversal is possible. Ultimately the winner has the longest playoff odds imaginable- but mathematically, a green team will remain eligible for another week. The loser is done, relegated to consolation goals with two weeks left in the regular season.
That was the week's closest duel, but four currently playoff bound teams also had tightly contested games previewing the playoff to come: #1 seed Deputy ousted Savannah 192.63-189.7 in a struggle that came down to the final minute, and could conceivably also feature a stat correction review. Meanwhile, the oldest team in the league outlasted the newest, as Phoenix topped Binghamton and ended their six game win-streak.
Meanwhile, New York's Finest moved into sole possession of the #2 seed, getting to 8-3; Well behind the Van Halens in points, that's likely the highest they can reach after striking a critical blow to Pawnee's Pride. Due to point differential, the Finest will likely need to win out (at Hill Valley, vs Deputy) to secure the bye- but the opportunity is in their hands, no one else can reach 10 wins this season... Pending an overturned call awarding Savannah the game.
At 7-5 and all but assured a post season berth are Phoenix, HCM City, and those Savannah Petes. While this should be the Uprising's eight straight playoff appearance, the Lead Farmers and Petes have much more sordid histories. The Lead Farmers' only post season jaunt was way back in 2010, when (née the Levee G-Men) they upended the Atlanta Rage in the first round before falling to eventual LBII Champion Phoenix. Meanwhile, Savannah has had three tickets punched ('09, '11, and '14) with the last featuring the franchise's only postseason victory, when (as the Margaritaville Parrots) they dropped Toronto LTP before dropping to... Phoenix. (The Uprising would lose LBVI to New York.)
Binghamton sits alone at 6-4, in the sixth and final playoff seed. With a very healthy lead in points, it would take an utter collapse for them to miss the playoffs in their debut season- as long as they win one game the chances of them, in two games, as the odds of them ceding their 175.42 lead on Pawnee or the ~225 points they have on South Park or South Philly are infinitesimally minuscule. HOWEVER, if they lose to Oakwood AND HCM City to close the season, they will fall under .500% and likely see one of those lesser teams steal their seat.
Things of note at the bottom: Mar-A-Lago led the league in points this week, while Hill Valley pushed up into 12th, leaving Toronto in the cellar and Manitoba locked in the sub-basement.
SCOREBOARD:
Week 11 Matchups
- MAL 217: Antonio Brown and Rishard Matthews paced this game, and there was no looking back from the word go. Too late to mean much, but nice to be on top for a week.
- SPC 203: Russell Wilson is putting this team on his back and willing them forward, but even winning out might not be enough. A *SECOND* game lost on reversal would be crushing.
- HCM 202: After hitting a bit of a lull following a 5-1 start, Alec Ogletree and Christian Kirksey picked up their boy Dak Prescott and got the train back on track.
- OAK 201: It looks like Oakwood's fifth season will be their fifth season failing to make the playoffs. They can blame their deplorable running back depth for this one.
- HVM 195: HThe McFlys would prefer to forget this season but with a strong finish they could get to a respectable 6-7 and perhaps secure the top pick for the third time in four years.
- DVH 193: Jadeveon Clowney has been a monster of the midway, the league's premier stopper up front, finally delivering on all of the hype. He's the key to Deputy's great season.
- SAV 190: Aaron Donald was the only one who couldn't deliver at least 7.5 points, and that's what it came down to in this one. Robert Woods going down post deadline hits at their achilles.
- NYF 190: This clutch squad wins, even if it is usually not by much. The lackluster WRs are just who they are now- they overcome it time and time again.
- PHX 186: They survive a horribly inefficient week where they left a ton of points on the board. Lots of depth means lots of choices, which means lots of room for second guesses.
- BIN 175: Their batch of RBs are cream of the crop, but the excess cannot help them now. What can help them is Cam Newton returning from bye. Win & in, they've got two swings at it.
- RUM 172: Kenny Stills, 34.8 on the bench; Jermaine Gresham 1.8 in the flex, 33 point margin, lose by 29.43. Swap them and at 6-5 they're in a three way race for two spots. Instead...
- LTP 166: Injuries piling up to match disinterest wastes one of the best RB tandems in the game. Two glaring holes on the offense wipe out competitiveness: Two more games.
- MMC 153: In a season where nothing has gone right, the effort is there despite the results being absent. They'll be well equipped to bounce back in 2018.
- PAW 150: They've been unable to breach 170 on their 1-4 swoon, as the team that scored 200+ in 5 of 6 weeks to start the year is gone. Perhaps they went a trade too far?
TEAM OF THE WEEK:
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