TRADE 16: Something Less Controversial

After reaction to last night's blockbuster subsided, two teams on the right side of .500% exchanged depth pieces for the coming week.

ORGRIMMAR ACQUIRES: WR ANTONIO CALLAWAY
SAVANNAH AQUIRES: RB DEVONTAE BOOKER

Neither of these players are currently more than emergency fill ins, but each has the sort of big play ability to reward a team taking a chance on them during a bye or as an injury substitution. Antonio Calloway has seen his target volume vary from week to week, but he's been a part of the game plan since week two, and the rookie could see his role grow as he develops an understanding for the league's nuance. The Horde are working with a rotation at the flex and Callaway is slated to get some immediate play in week nine. With the arrival of Adrian Peterson and the return of Zeke Elliot following his bye, Jalen Richard and Chris Ivory provide sufficient depth at RB for Orgrimmar.

Devontae Booker spent the last two years as a sleeper pick, but was unable to capitalize on the hype. An afterthought in year three, he's unlikely to see an uptick in volume but has been much more efficient as a slasher, gashing defenses for big plays on limited carries. Last week he went over 100 total yards on thirteen touches while Royce Freeman nurses an injury. Desperate for an option this week with Dalvin Cook sidelined again and Corey Clement and Nyheim Hines on bye, this is a low cost flyer. If he succeeds he could stick around for awhile, if he fails he's drop worthy. Callaway was seventh on the Savannah depth chart anyway, while the pickings are slim on the wire.

X: Week Eight Results

The #1 seed South Park Cows continue to cruise, rolling the Killa Beez in convincing fashion to pace the league at six wins. Behind them four 5 win teams (Orgrimmar, Savannah, Phoenix, and Manitoba) followed by three 4 win teams (Deputy, Hill Valley, and Pawnee.) There's your playoff race with five games to go.

In the unlikely but not impossible category are six teams locked at 3-5. Traditionally eight wins is the benchmark to solidify a playoff spot, with seven wins sometimes enough. All six of these teams would need to win out to hit eight wins; Winning four of five is the only path to a winning record. There are, of course, permutations that would result in more than one of these teams making the dance... but in all likelihood, if one of them make it, they'll be the only one: #9 Binghamton, #10 New York, #11 Philadelphia, #12 HCM City, #13 Mar-A-Lago, and #14 Brewtang. 

NOTE: The Grabbers ended their five game losing streak with a win over the Snipers... tentatively. If the result is reversed we'll see Binghamton greatly improve their odds for a playoff spot while all but quashing Mar-A-Lago's dark horse Cinderella prospects. 

SCOREBOARD:

Week 8 Matchups

• Phoenix Uprising217.91New York's Finest236.00
  FinalRecap
• Binghamton Snipers209.70Mar-a-Lago Grabbers210.94
  FinalRecap
• Deputy Van Halens182.31Manitoba Moosecrew192.79
  FinalRecap
• Hill Valley McFlys232.34Orgrimmar Horde239.51
  FinalRecap
• HoChiMinhLeadFarmers169.08South Philly Rum Ham193.35
  FinalRecap
• Brew-tang Killa Beez154.58South Park Cows206.20
  FinalRecap
• Pawnee Pride184.70Savannah Petes223.69
  FinalRecap

SCORING OUTPUT:

1. ORG 240: The Horde have quietly put together the most consistent threat outside of South Park, utilizing shrewd matchups and timely moves to bank wins and grind toward the playoffs.
2. NYF 236: A statement game after shedding some marquee talent, the Finest are pinning their hopes and dreams on Showtime Mahomes stringing some wins together down the stretch.
3. HVM 232: The team played well enough to win but came up just short. The McFlys find their linebackers, traditionally a strength, suddenly depleted. LUKE NEEDS HELP.
4. SAV 224: A good all around performance (and a W) shrouds the team's obvious need for a TE; at some point they'll need to spin off one of their quality wideouts for a goal line option.  
5. PHX 218: Danielle Hunter was denied a sack when the official decided the quarterback had given up on throwing the ball before being tackled for a loss, ending his sack streak.
6. MAL 211: Of course the Grabbers would trade for a RB and his handcuff only to have both get injured, while the player they dropped to make room had his best day. They need this W.
7. BIN 210: A first half injury to Zach Cunningham likely cost the Snipers this game, and perhaps their playoff hopes. A reversal would give them some wiggle room down the stretch.
8. SPC 206: This was the Cows worst game of the season, as they had gone over 228 every week to this point. Larry Fitzgerald finally showed up, and if he continues like this... look out.
9. PRH 194: Solid victory, but here comes a tough stretch where they face the five top teams in the league over the final five weeks of the season with slim margin for error.
10. MMC 193: After a couple of horrific losses, the Moosecrew return to respectability and relevancy, holding the keys to their playoff destiny down the stretch.
11. PAW 185: The win streak ends, but their wheelin' and dealin' still has to have them feeling good, turning Pat Mahomes and Jarvis Landry into Julio Jones and Antonio Brown.
12. DVH 182: Since the obscene scoring outburst in weeks 2-4, the Van Halens have scored in the 180 range in three of four and appear to be hurt most by NFL trade context. 
13. HCM 169: Quiet days from their offensive playmakers doomed them to a loss despite a juicy matchup. The team is currently holding the last bid for the consolation bracket.
14. BKB 155: A goose egg in the flex is bad luck. Six defensive starters scoring under 3 points, is bad management. A nice effort from eight players wastes a winnable must-win opportunity.

TEAM OF THE WEEK:
(image forthcoming)
QB D. WATSON (MMC) 34.56 pts
RB J. CONNER (HVM) 38.9 pts
WR M. EVANS (MMC) 32.7 pts
TE T. KELCE (PAW) 19.9 pts
DL C. DUNLAP (NYF) 21.5 pts
LB B. MARTINEZ (SAV) 22.0 pts
CB D. WARD (PHX) 17.85 pts
SS J. BATES III (NYF)  30.05 pts
K W. LUTZ (ORG) 16.0 pts

TRADE 15: Pawnee Plunderers

The Week 8 results were delayed as I moved yesterday; They should be up later today. More pressing news occurred late last night, as an exchange was made that dramatically reshapes LBX, with the Pawnee Pride acquiring 5th overall pick Antonio Brown to pair him with 10th overall pick Julio Jones at WR, both receivers in compliment to the second overall pick, running back Saquon Barkley.

It is the first time that a team has assembled three healthy first round picks on a single roster in Larkspur Bowl history.

PAWNEE ACQUIRES WR ANTONIO BROWN, QB RUSSELL WILSON
BREWTANG ACQUIRES WR JARVIS LANDRY, RB LATAVIUS MURRAY, QB MITCH TRUBINSKY

So Antonio Brown is the obvious headliner, the #7 WR on the year to date and about as bankable a weekly asset as there is at the position, assured of volume and regular visits to the end zone. Russell Wilson to date has underperformed Mitch Trubinsky, but with his top wideout back in the fold his production ticked up on either side of his bye and with a long track record, he's a surer bet to maintain stability th3rough the end game. Make no mistake, this was a coup by the Pride, who upgrade at wide receiver, likely upgrade at quarterback, and throw in a spare part to open up a roster spot. It's the sort of trade offer that would typically either draw a hard line counter demanding a better third piece, or an eye roll and a decline. BUT ON MISCHIEF NIGHT, ANYTHING CAN HAPPEN.

So lets unpack the Brewtang side of things: Jarvis Landry is a perfect capable WR1. Drafted in the second round, he's a marked notch down from Antonio Brown in floor and upside, but is still a credible piece that would be a weekly play on any team. With Tyreek Hill currently second in points at the position and Marvin Jones due for a schematic upgrade going forward, this was a position of strength and continues to be a healthy spot for the Killa Beez.

At quarterback prognostication is a bit of a toss-up; Wilson is more of a known (if somewhat volatile) commodity in the box score, while Trubinsky is rolling after a lackluster statistical start to his career. Typically the team giving up the best player in the deal takes on less risk, but if Trubinsky is the Apple of the Brew-tang eye this aspect of the deal is understandable if perhaps ill-advised.

It's the last portion of the deal that is really underwhelming: The range of outcomes with Latavius Murray is vast- with volume he could maintain a legitimate claim on a RB2 role, but volume is only assured for another week. After that is a bye, then Murray's value could range down to handcuff or completely droppable; He's not a definitive long term upgrade over Frank Gore, Buck Allen, or Duke Johnson, and the team will likely end up leaning on that committee going forward.

The Killa Beez' need for another running back to compliment Mark Ingram has been well documented and the construction of the deal is sensible, but with Nick Chubb and Chris Carson on the Pawnee roster and far more likely to carry value, they were far more desirable targets- and with Saquon Barkley locking down one RB slot, either could have been expendable.

This was another underwhelming decision by the league's least successful franchise: They recently sabotaged themselves in a bid to unseat the team's top dog South Park Cows by fielding a woefully unprepared defense and in the process dropped to last in the standings and in overall points. The team will need to win out these last five weeks to clinch their first ever playoff birth. Otherwise it's new name, new logo, same incredibly disappointing results.

TRADE 14: Need Drives Transaction

In 2013 The Orgrimmar Horde drafted Adrian Peterson in the first round. After a successful 8-5 season, the team lost to Toronto LTP in the first round, and went on a half decade hiatus. Returning this year, they have gotten off to a successful 4-3 start. And now they have regained Adrian Peterson.

ORGRIMMAR ACQUIRES: RB ADRIAN PETERSON
PHILADELPHIA ACQUIRES: WR DANNY AMENDOLA

The Horde cashed in their #3 claim on Wednesday's wire and were awarded WR Danny Amendola; they were then able to turn Danny-boy into the future hall of fame running back before he took a snap; literally, mere minutes before he took a snap. Amendola is slated to play tonight, and will do so for South Philly, a team in flux. At 2-5 and with top wideout Allen Robinson a game time decision the Rum Ham decided their security blanket at RB was expendable, and will proceed with a pair of diminutive playmakers in Alvin Kamara and Tiny Tarik Cohen in their backfield. Each has an entire reel of highlights to their credit already this season and a bye week in the rearview, so the Rum Ham will pin their fate on their sky high upside rather than the more workmanlike volume that All Day offers at this stage of his storied career.

Amendola is also small in stature, and although not young, but remains sprightly- and in line to attract heavy target volume. For how long is debatable, as he has an extensive list of past injuries, but sharp routes and soft hands will play as long as he can play. With Adam Humphries and Taylor Gabriel his main competition for snaps, he's an obvious starter in the City of Brotherly Love.

The Horde won't look for Adrian Peterson to be their premier runningback- that's Zeke Elliot. But with him on bye this week, a throwback performance would be welcome. After that he'll remain the team's best RB2 option; Jalen Richard has an opportunity to cement a role, and Chris Ivory has done well when called upon but neither profile as long term distance makers. Meanwhile Spencer Ware (fully recovered from an ACL torn on the eve of the 2017 season) is one of the league's high upside handcuffs, but is not currently playable. Devontae Booker is a never-was, far from relevance and inching closer to oblivion with this move. The Horde could have used Danny Amendola in their flex but made a shrewd move to address a more glaring need.

This deal looks like a trademark win-win, and a master class in turning your waiver claim into a solution in forty hours. If the Rum Ham suffer an injury at running back this trade may haunt them- but needing to win at least five of six down the stretch, it's the sort of boldness necessary to engineer a turnaround.

TRADE 13: Hill Valley Diggs It

A blockbuster between two squads with an acrimonious history: Hill Valley and Mar-A-Lago (in all its previous incarnations) had never linked up on a deal before, but a clear and present need on both rosters made them a match this afternoon. Three players head to a Grabber squad in need of depth, while the McFlys infuse their receiving corps with some high end talent.

HILL VALLEY ACQUIRES WR STEFON DIGGS
MAR-A-LAGO ACQUIRES WR TYLER LOCKETT, RB MATT BREIDA & RB RAHEEM MOSTERT

For Hill Valley this is a return to vintage, the team historically able to compress depth into talent via an aggressive and persuasive approach. Here they land Diggs, who teams with similar players Brandin Cooks and TY Hilton to create a dynamic trio of playmakers. All three are prone to some boom or bust, and Diggs may have both the lowest floor and highest ceiling: capable of dominating games, he also has faded into a decoy role at times; This year he has gone for 43 yards or less four times, abut then totaled 91, 123, and 128 yards in his other three games. There's some of that baked into all players of course, and the McFlys have to be thrilled with adding a player drafted 25th overall for a recently acquired 12th rounder and two free agent pickups.

Of course, that 12th rounder is Tyler Lockett, a player who resembles Diggs in skillset and stature, but has found the red zone with astounding frequency this season. It's a downgrade in pedigree but not in weekly performance. Hidden beneath the surface is the fact that Lockett has already passed his bye week, while Diggs still has his breather to come. For a 2-5 squad that needs every week from here on out, that's a significant swing.

Lockett is not really the headline get anyway. That's Matt Breida if he can get and stay healthy. A ferocious runner with a full toolbox, Breida would be an every week RB2 for a team trying to find a competent compliment to David Johnson. If Breida needs another week, Raheem Mostert is a decent handcuff, a speedy scat back capable of becomng a garbage time all-star. With Mar-A-Lago's only other runner being the yet to breakout Ronald Jones II, this was a vital need well addressed.

Savannah defeats Brewtang

For the second time this season, a result has been reversed at the eleventh hour. This time it is the Savannah Petes scoring a victory over the Brewtang Buzz. The officials awarded Kiko Alonso a tackle on the game's pivotal play:

SAV 199.68
vs
BKB 199.25
00:00

The change catapaults the Petes into the thick of the playoff race, as they rise up to the #6 seed at 4-3, while BKB drops down to #11. It's a tough pill to swallow for the Killa Beez, who now have to collect themselves to face off with the league's top ranked attack, the South Park Cows. Meanwhile, Savannah plays the team the usurped playoff position from, the Pawnee Pride.

TRADE 12: Big Apple Overhaul

The Finest continued to churn their roster with a third deal this afternoon, exchanging another WR.

NEW YORK ACQUIRES WR RANDALL COBB

HILL VALLEY ACQUIRES WR TYLER LOCKETT

With this deal the three WRs that had scored the most in 2017 are gone; In their place a collection of bounce back candidates and role players that New York will roll with going forward. Randall Cobb is the newest member of the team; A superstar in 2014, his numbers have steadily declined in recent years as injuries have taken a toll, and other, healthier bodies took his place. That said, he showed flashes of the explosive playmaker he was in the season opener, and now healthy (and on the right side of the bye) he could return to prominence. Could is the operative word! The entire New York receiving corps could produce, but to date only Desean Jackson actually has on a consistent basis. However, the other four guys were all trade acquisitions, first Dede Westbrook coming up from South Philly, then Chris Hogan and Pierre Garcon in separate back to back deals. There's risk and upside here for a team looking for a spark in the midst of a three game losing streak. If this group can produce, the Finest might find themselves back in the playoffs for the fourth time in the past five years, as the rest of the roster looks far better for these deals: The team now boasts elite players at every other level: QB #1 Pat Mahomes, RB #10 Christian McCaffrey, TE #4 Eric Ebron, DL #6 Khalil Mack, LB #12 Lavonte David, CB #8 Morris Claiborne, and S #13 Landon Collins.

The McFlys held on to Cobb until he was on the cusp of returning, then exchange him for one of the league's foremost touchdown artist. Tyler Lockett has scored five times (and in five of six games) this year, despite only 23 catches on the season. While the current pace is likely unsustainable, the McFly's have a robust collection of able receivers in a league starved for them. With TY Hilton and Brandin Cooks locked into the top spots, Lockett will rotate with Robby Anderson, Keelan Cole, Mike Williams, and Courtland Sutton until the team can turn their depth into a front line starter. 

TRADES 10 & 11: New York's Firesale

Wow. In a three game death spiral, New York's Finest has completely reshaped their roster over the span of seven minutes. Gone are top receivers Julio Jones and Doug Baldwin, who had combined for zero touchdowns over the first seven weeks of the season, as well as reserve quarterback Mitch Trubinsky. A lot to unpack here, so lets start in:

NEW YORK ACQUIRES: QB PATRICK MAHOMES & WR CHRIS HOGAN

PAWNEE ACQUIRES: WR JULIO JONES & QB MITCH TRUBINSKY

NEW YORK ACQUIRES: S LANDON COLLINS & WR PIERRE GARCON 

PHOENIX ACQUIRES: WR DOUG BALDWIN

Coming to the City That Never Sleeps are a pair of elite players- "Showtime" Mahomes has been the league's best quarterback (and #2 overall player, second only to South Park RB Todd Gurley) and shows no sign of stopping. After taking a piecemeal approach to the position, the Finest now have an electric playmaker calling the shots on offense. On the other side of the ball, the team has also invested in a top player, safety Landon Collins, currently #13 at the position. Each player has offered starting worthy totals in all seven games to date, and profiles as every week starters here on out.

The replacements at receiver are.. somewhat underwhelming. 5th round pick Chris Hogan and 7th round pick Pierre Garcon are both assured of playing time, and have roles. There's a floor there. They'll figure into a rotation behind Desean Jackson, taking turns with Dede Westbrook and Tyler Lockett. Albert Wilson is unlikely to contribute anymore, as he suffered a hip injury that will likely land him on IR. It's a less than intimidating unit, but the wholesale changes give the team the freedom to mix and match- and with multiple receivers trending upwards on the wire, the team's depth chart could look different still once we arrive upon week eight.

The gem of the day's dealings is Julio Jones, who despite his struggles to score was still the #5 WR to date after being the #10 pick in the draft. The Pride's much maligned receiving corps now has a top dog, giving Jarvis Landry the elite slot role he's a better fit for, while Jordy Nelson should see an uptick in looks as a possession receiver and Christian Kirk is given the opportunity to nail down the flex, with Anthony Miller, DJ Moore, and Marquez Valdez-Scantling also offering options there. The risk? Trubinsky who is riding a three game streak as a 30+ point scorer. He's dynamic, but he's yet to prove he's going to be able to sustain this sort of volume- with a safety net at the position, it's a risk the Pride felt was worth taking. We'll see how it pans out!

As for Phoenix, they open up a hole in the solid defense that has secured their 5-2 record, but they also upgrade their WR corps. Baldwin has been a top option for years now, and appears to have returned to a clean bill of health. With AJ Green on top of the depth chart, Baldwin and Amari Cooper should be the #2 and #3 options, leaving Michael Crabtree and DaVante Parker as flex options. It's addressing a position of scarcity with one of abundance, although the Uprising secondary will need to be addressed promptly.

X: Week Seven Results

We're over the hump! The season's first half has proven two things:

The #1 South Park Cows are the league's best team.
The #2 Phoenix Uprising remain perennial contenders.

After that we have got a dozen teams that are all contending for a playoff spot. Nobody is hotter than #6 Pawnee, and nobody is free falling quite like #14 Mar-A-Lago, but nobody is out of it. Eight wins is the magic number for clinching a playoff spot, six games remain. Do the math and you see a path to the post season for every team.

The rest of the mock bracket lists contenders #3 Deputy, #4 Hill Valley, and #5 Orgrimmar. All three scored in the top four spots in at least one of their most recent two seasons. #7 Manitoba falls behind the playoff pace but sits over .500% alongside a resilient #8 Brew-Tang crew. The six teams behind them find themselves with losing records and a lot of work to do: Winning out would be ideal, but five of six would get it done with some big point totals. #9 Savannah and #10 Binghamton are best poised to make a run of it.

NOTE: Brew-Tang and Savannah are separated by just 1.07, so that matchup is likely to be decided by stat corrections. A reversal would likely push the Petes all the way up to the #6 seed, bouncing the Pride from their playoff spot, at least for the week.

SCOREBOARD:

Week 7 Matchups

• Phoenix Uprising190.04Mar-a-Lago Grabbers141.34
  FinalRecap
• Binghamton Snipers211.58Manitoba Moosecrew155.76
  FinalRecap
• Deputy Van Halens217.12Orgrimmar Horde198.91
  FinalRecap
• Hill Valley McFlys257.70HoChiMinhLeadFarmers178.74
  FinalRecap
• New York's Finest131.95South Park Cows254.01
  FinalRecap
• Brew-tang Killa Beez199.25Savannah Petes198.18
  FinalRecap
• Pawnee Pride239.43South Philly Rum Ham154.89
  FinalRecap

POWER OUTPUT:

1. HVM 258: The backend of this receiving corps has gotten very shaky recently, but the defense has swarmed. The loss of Kwon Alexander (ACL) will be felt, but can be weathered.
2. SPC 254: The Cows continue to be better, smarter, more handsome than the Y! projections. A team so deep their 3rd and 5th round picks (Larry Fitz & Lamar Miller) are spare parts.
3. PAW 239: It was too early to announce their WR group as consistently good, but Nick Chubb's ascendence gives them a terrific rookie backfield and RB depth priced to move.
4. DVH 217: Another team with great RBs and a stellar D but little in the way of dependable wideouts, there's going to be an arms race to acquire available receivers.
5. BIN 212: The defense got it done in this one; The return of G-Reg looked quiet until he scored a game winner. Could be the stash of the year given the dearth of quality at Tight End.
6. BKB 199: Winning by 1 is precarious- if they hold the lead it will continue their pattern of alternating wins and losses. They'll need to string a few together to make their first ever dance.
7. ORG 199: Tough luck losers in week 7, the Horde take on the McFlys next, the fourth (of four) teams ahead of them, stacked in weeks 4, 5, 7, and 8. Back of the schedule looks exploitable.
8. SAV 198:  If the loss stands, it will be the Petes' third loss by less by a single digit margin. The team's skill players continue to dazzle- they just cannot get the results they want!
9. PHX 190: Winning lucky is better than losing good, but the Uprising have done it with smoke, mirrors, and an excessively easy schedule to date.
10. HCM 179: This offense is good enough to suffer Gronk's back spasms or a down week at RB, but the defense has just been deplorable. 4-6 IDPs have scored single digits every single week.
11. MMC 156: The Crew crash land with back to back clunkers on the shoulders of Deshaun Watson. The Running back situation looks dire in the near immediate future.
12. PRH 155: A truly pathetic performance by their WR group with four players combining to score 10.5 total points. The team does have three credible RBs to deal from but... yikes.
13. MAL 141: The team has two very good quarterback options, which is frustrating since only one can play in any given week. With Rivers on bye, Wentz will try to stop the bleeding.
14. NYF 132: The Finest had no shot in this one, even if they did play Trubinsky. The defense is on life support and will look to turn it around without Julio in week 8... he's on bye.

TEAM OF THE WEEK:

TRADE 9: D-FENCE

Last night we saw a rare one IDP for one IDP deal between Binghamton and South Philly. You'd think this sort of exchange would be more popular, especially in bye weeks, but the turnover of sub-elite talents and the lack on bench space typically afforded to defensive players hinders deals; Instead, IDPs are usually dangled for mid-tier offensive players or as sweeteners on blockbusters.

BINGHAMTON ACQUIRES DE JASON PIERRE-PAUL
PHILADELPHIA ACQUIRES LB ERIC KENDRICKS

JPP's change in circumstances made him a questionable entity, and a quiet week one left him free for the taking; After three big weeks, Philly shrewdly stashed him during his bye before spinning him off to the Snipers. Pierre-Paul has scored five sacks in his last four games, with at least one each week, offering the sort of tantalizing floor the position rarely affords; Beyond that, with his bye week in the rearview, he can be a 'set and forget' player for Binghamton, who was burned recently rotating between Carlos Dunlap and the since jettisoned Melvin Ingram. With Danny Trevathan and Jarrad Davis also in the clear for the remainder of the season (barring injury) the Snipers' defense should offer a consistent week-to-week point total in the season's second half.

Eric Kendricks has been a dependable force in four of six games this year and was the #15 linebacker in 2017, a credible LB2 in a league that starts forty-two each and every week. The Rum Ham may be banking on his foundation of healthy tackle number (between four and ten every week) or expecting that the splash plays (10 TFLs, 1.0 sack, 6 PDs, 1 pick six in 2017) to come in abundance the rest of the way. Or maybe both! With Mighty Joe Schobert sidelined for the forseeable future, he'll slot alongside elite options Darron Lee and Vontaze Burfict, with the peerless JJ Watt installed upfront.

Here are the league's only comparable deals over the past ten years:

10/11/12
Saskatoon receives DT Henry Melton
Nebraska receives LB Mason Foster

10/16/15
New York acquires LB Luke Kuechly & WR Stevie Johnson
Savannah acquires LB Daryl Smith & WR Jermaine Kearse

11/12/15
Phoenix acquires CB Patrick Peterson
Manitoba acquires LB Danny Trevathan

X: Week Six Results

The League has distributed evenly into three tiers again.

Up top are the four 4-2 teams: #1 South Park has been the best team in terms of sheer wattage, their 1,417 points dwarfing the competition. Both of their losses have come to other 'cream of the crop' squads; #2 Orgrimmar in week four and #4 Manitoba in week five. Back on the right track, the Cows are the favorites as we go enter the pivotal mid-season mark at Week Seven. The Horde and The Moosecrew both followed a win over South Park with a loss to #3 Phoenix, so there's a nice bit of symmetry going on there.

Our bloated middle class features six 3-3 teams, all jockeying for position in a points race. 258.93 points separate #5 Deputy and #10 Brew-Tang, but being even in the win column showcases the league's parity. Two sets of 3-3 teams will face off this week; #7 Hill Valley take on the #9 HCM Lead Farmers while #6 Savannah take on the aforementioned Killa Beez. None of the 4-2 teams face off, none of the 2-4 teams face off, so we're likely to see the middle expand as we get over the season's hump. Psst don't look now, but the #8 Pawnee Pride have clawed their way back out from an 0-3 hole and not look to get over .500% for the first time in nearly a calendar year- after starting 4-2 in 2017 the Pride dropped three in a row in weeks 7 (HVM), 8 (DVH), and 9 (SAV) before finishing the year at 6-7.

At the bottom of the standings, #11 New York has scored 191 or better in five of six matchups and #12 Binghamton has scored 187 or better in five of six matchups. These are good teams that have caught bad breaks- while analytics would expect them to get some more fortunate run in the second half, nothing is promised and there is ground to make up. The #13 Rum Ham have been Jekyll and Hyding through six weeks, scoring monstrously (219, 255, 263) and meagerly (171, 163, 157) thrice apiece, and somehow losing in their finest form. Chronologically though, this is a South Philly team that has beasted in three of the past four weeks and could be rounding into form. At the very bottom, #14 Mar-A-Lago have fallen hard over the past month, dropping from #1 overall to the pit of dilly dilly misery. The past two weeks have seen them play competitively but come up against the sort of extreme point totals (SPC 265, SAV 243) that were rare in previous years but appear to be commonplace in 2018. They'll hope to right the ship against the defending champions in week seven.

SCOREBOARD:

Week 6 Matchups

• Phoenix Uprising182.14Manitoba Moosecrew134.58
  FinalRecap
• Binghamton Snipers189.54Orgrimmar Horde234.35
  FinalRecap
• Deputy Van Halens189.82HoChiMinhLeadFarmers208.96
  FinalRecap
• Hill Valley McFlys215.60South Philly Rum Ham255.74
  FinalRecap
• Mar-a-Lago Grabbers186.68South Park Cows243.05
  FinalRecap
• New York's Finest191.69Savannah Petes215.95
  FinalRecap
• Brew-tang Killa Beez191.13Pawnee Pride205.11
  FinalRecap

POWER OUTPUT:

1. PRH 256: The Rum Ham get their best week of the season with their best player (Alvin Kamara) resting on the bye. Might this be a harbinger of a great second half?
2. SPC 243: The team has succeeded despite having at least one defensive starter (seven total) score under 4.0 points in the past five weeks? Is this nitpicking. Yes. This team is great.
3. ORG 234: Tough to be critical of a team executing at every level like this. It'd be nice if Myles Garrett was more consistent? The kicker didn't get to do anything? Good problems.
4. SAV 216: Following the team's best ever performance the team put together another steady game plan and executed it brilliantly. PS, yes, Adam Thielen is real, and he's spectacular. 
5. HVM 216: Playing very well and still having no chance to win late in the game is as frustrating as the game can be. Six players scoring under six points mattered in this one.
6. HCM 209: The entire lineup performed admirably in this important victory, as the WRs cover for Michael Thomas (bye) and showcase some impressive depth and credible ceiling.
7. PAW 205: Like polio, Pawnee is making a comeback! Despite a suboptimal lineup and putrid WR play, Bakrley, Mahomes, and a swarming defensive front score a 3rd straight win.
8. NYF 192: Oof, 47.28 points on the bench is the worst sort of regret, but it was an underwhelming performance from their marquee running backs that hurts most.
9. BKB 191: Antonio Brown, Tyreek Hill, and Zach Ertz aside, this is an unremarkable squad that has done enough to hang around and could alter its course with a shrewd blockbuster.
10. DVH 190: The defense is the heart of this squad, and it is beating the war drum hard, but a sickly performance on O (Melvin Gordon aside) doomed Deputy to a 2nd straight loss.
11. BIN 190: After ranging from good to great for five weeks, Jared Goff  struggled in this one, while the defensive front crumbled against the fury of the Horde.
12. MAL 187: Playing well enough to lose with dignity did not end the Grabbers four game slide, but a plethora of byes give the team a reason to overhaul a flagging defense. 
13. PHX 182: Adding the last available kicker would have made this a more respectable 200, but you play to win the game, and the Uprising did that against paltry opposition. 
14. MMC 135: There are duds and there is this catastrophe. After waking up a winner five Tuesdays in a row (losing once on reversal) this horrid result was never in question. 

TEAM OF THE WEEK: