Predictions and Power Rankings Week 2

Predictions and Power Rankings Week 2

Kevin Kousaie

Predictions 

 

Here we are that time of the week where I make my picks and tell you who I think will win. Right now I might be at the bottom of the rankings, but if more of you read my article and helped me out I could be on top in no time. Here are what the standings look like after 2 weeks and then I’ll give you my picks and why I picked them. 

 

 

 

 

Division 1 

 

Honor Game vs Centurions 

I think Dave figures it out and gets the job done this week. 

 

Holy Trollers vs Bitter Boys 

They have been getting better and building a better roster plus Max can finally move around a little bit more. 

 

Gros Coqs vs Outlaws 

Outlaws have always had trouble with Gros Coqs, but with Svetna, Marvin and Smuda all playing and being healthy Outlaws win because of size. 

 

Division 2 

 

D#Nasty vs Redzone 

D#Nasty played well last week and Redzone hasn’t played this season, so I expect them to be a little rusty. 

 

Redzone vs OG Panthers 

OG Panthers have a really good roster with few weaknesses. 

 

Les Tannantes vs KOLB 

I think with the new players KOLB have they will be really hard to beat. 

 

Joey’s Haters vs Outlaws NA 

I don’t pick my team games. 

 

Vultures vs Iron Wolves 

Iron Wolves win because they have more experience at the QB position. 

 

Division 3 

 

Jagerbomb vs Pananches 

With the roster they have I can’t see them going 0-2. 

 

Thunder Buddies vs Average Joes 

I think both teams have really strong rosters I just feel at this point Jason might be a little bit of a better QB than Terry. 

 

Petits Phoques vs RawSauce 

RawSauce have an elite defense and will make it a long day for Petits Phoques. 

 

RawSauce vs Thunder Buddies  

I have RawSauce winning this game it will be their redemption for last season’s final. 

 

Blackout vs Mustard Tigers 

I give the advantage to blackout in every category, but the one that matters most experience and that is why Mustard Tigers win the game. 

 

Chiefs vs Iron Wolves 

I wanted to go Chiefs, but I don’t have enough confidence in their QB at this point of the season. 

 

Division 4 

 

Spin Doctor vs Phoenix NA 

I don’t pick my team games. 

 

Drama Club vs Gold Rush 

I wanted to go Gold Rush, but wasn’t sure if Travis will be there or at home do renovations so Katy can move back into her house. 

 

Airborne vs Idaho Udapimps 

I just think they have a stronger roster. 

 

Sneaky Snakes vs Mimosa Crew 

They are too strong of a team to lose to Mimosa Crew. 

 

Bines vs Manitoboys 

I only picked Bines to win because I have seen them play twice and I haven’t seen Manitoboys play yet this season plus I know it will get Richie Rich mad and maybe he will finally do something. 

 

There you have it my picks for this week. I hope everyone has read this and knows what they are supposed to do this week end I could really use some help.  

 

Power Rankings 

 

Here we are that time of the week where I get to tell you who are my top 3 teams. Every week things can change and it is still early in the season so right now all the teams are still close to one another, but how long before we see teams separate and assert their dominance. I'll give my rankings and then tell you why I made those changes. 

 

Division 1 

1) Outlaws 

2) Gros Coqs 

3) Henchmen 

 

Division 2 

1) Outlaws  

2) OG Panthers  

3) KOLB 

 

Division 3 

1) Average Joes 

2) Panaches 

3) RawSauce 

 

Division 4 

1) Sneaky Snakes 

2) Phoenix 

3) Bines 

 

For Division 1 the top two teams are both staying put, but last week I booted Henchmen losing to the Trollers in OT and this week I put them back up here after winning a close one over Honor Game. 

 

In Division 2 I had to do a lot of moving around to make the list. I wanted to move Outlaws from 1, but no one at this time really earned that spot since they have the extra game played, I left them at 1 for now. I kicked both Joey’s Haters and Les Tannantes off the list completely. I put OG Panthers on my list for beating Outlaws and added KOLB for dominating the Haters. 

 

For Division 3 I had to move Thunder Buddies off the list after that performance. Which means that Average Joes and Pananches both moved up one spot and for the third spot on my list I gave it to RawSauce with that great defense they have. 

 

Right now, Division 4 can stay how it is as all three of those teams are still undefeated after two weeks. 

 

There you have this week’s rankings the only way to make it up here is by winning and beating some good teams. If you’re beating bottom dwellers don’t even ask why your team is not on my list. Right now, some divisions are harder to pick, but that’s only because it is super early in the year, but give it time and the true teams will eventually emerge on top.   

 

Final Thoughts  

 

Another week down another article out of the way. I tried to watch a few NFL games on Sunday, but most of them were really bad. I blame the NFL and the coaches for that. The NFL and the coaches don’t want their starters to play in the preseason because of injury concerns, but then you get these types of games to start the year. I will say at least Monday night’s game was good one of the few times they get it right with the primetime games.  

 

To me the NFL needs to scrap all the primetime games and just have Monday night, Sunday night and Thursday nights after Thanksgiving like it used to be in the good old days. Yes, I’m old get over it I know I must sound like your parents, but I’m right about there being too many games in primetime it has taken away from the game knowing that every team is going to play at least 1 primetime game. No one cares about watching the Jets or Jacksonville on Thursday night, we want to see the best of the best play each other, or at least historical rivalries. Or at least that’s what I want and I’m sure I’m not the only one.  

 

Now that I got that off my chest this week in the MFL we have a bunch of really good matchups that I hope to see in person, since I can’t watch NCAA I better see guys balling out and making some ridiculous catches. Now here is where I tell you that we are all here to play a game we love and to have fun. So play hard, have fun and be safe. Thanks again for reading and see you all Saturday.  

 

Word from the Mouth: Double Reverse Bias! edition

Word from the Mouth: Double Reverse Bias! edition

Kevin Kousaie

The NFL kicked off this week and the refs haven’t missed a beat. I’m not a Cowboys fan, but they got hosed on more than one call, the ref who left his mic on needs to be fined at the least, if not fired. (ed’s note: For what? Discussing the call? He wasn’t saying “let’s just say” in the sense of “let’s tell people X happened”, he’s saying it in the sense of something like “let’s just say he was clearly holding him”. Also, the refs were fine in that game. Anyone calling out the refs for that game are at this point just clearly calling themselves out for their anti-Brady biased. I don’t really care about the NFL (college ball, baby!), but it is tiring to hear people call out a non-existent pro-Brady bias in the NFL when anyone who knows anything about business would understand that literally the exact opposite would be the desire of the NFL. Anyway, if you think the refereeing was biased in that game, you’re the one who is biased.)

This year the NFL is allowing players to wear all sorts of different numbers which will make it more like college and a lot more confusing for the QBs. It looks like the No Fun League is trying to make it more fun for the players. I want them to really allow players to celebrate. Who doesn’t love the Joe Horn cell phone, or the TO ball signing or even the good old dunk over the cross bar? I would love to see the MFL allow some more big play celebrations, but then it might not be spontaneous anymore and teams and players might start planning them ahead of time like they did in basketball.

 

Week 2 Recap

 

Division 1

 

Gros Coqs vs Bitter Boys (44-20)

 

Most of the players on Gros Coqs were coached by Mario from Bitter Boys, so you know that both teams wanted to prove they were better and be able to hold it over the other. I know Bitter Boys added a few players, but they need to add a few more if they want to beat the Gros Coqs. Dom is too good for any rusher on their team and the receivers are all solid and will find holes to sit in. Everyone other than Bitter Boys knew this wasn’t going to be close and it wasn’t. Bitter Boys were only able to stop Gros Coqs from scoring once all game. Defensively Gros Coqs forced JS into some bad throws and anything Bitter Boys got they had to work hard to get. After this game it seems that the student has now become the master and won’t be handing back the reins anytime soon.

 

Division 2

 

Joey’s Haters vs KOLB (14-42)

 

For a team that is supposed to be so good, Haters really looked average at best. Max is finally able to add running back into his arsenal, but he needs to be more accurate when throwing. I found that one of the issues Haters had was that on third and fourth down they wouldn’t go deep enough to get the first down. One-time Lesniak was falling to make a catch and he did catch it past the line, but he started to fall to make the catch before the line which brings the ball to where he started to fall. It sucks cause it would have been a score at the beginning of the game. KOLB have added a few players this season and with the speed those guys have, and the way Jonathan runs around buying extra time teams better watch out and stay back or else expect to give up 40 like Haters did this week. I know that a few players were complaining about being hit, but from what we saw there was nothing there and anyone that knows KOLB they are out to have fun and not beat you up, as the clock was rolling down they were calling their timeouts just so Haters could get a few extra plays on offense. There was one collision that happened when Alexandre was rushing and his legs hit Max’s and he split his eye on Max’s elbow. A flag was thrown and he left the game to bandage it up, but returned later on. This game was never close and even if the Schillers were there it wouldn’t have made a difference.

 

OG Panthers vs Outlaws (34-33)

 

This game had a bad finish to it for Outlaws and a great one for OG Panthers. The first half was completely dominated by OGs. In the first half OGs were able to march up and down all day putting up points and Outlaws couldn’t even slow them down. Outlaws tried everything to try and get pressure on Charles and force a bad throw or two and couldn’t do it. On the other hand, Terry was all over David all game long. David tried to run a few plays that Steve runs, but every QB needs to run what works best for them. Halftime rolls around and the score is 25-14 OGs who are also starting with the ball in the second half. I spoke to Rob at half about making a little tweak to the defense so we could get a more favorable matchup and it seemed to pay off. Stu moved to rush and that left Outlaws with a little more athleticism and speed everywhere else. One that opening drive Stu was able to bat a ball away and got close enough to force a bad throw that was picked off by Nick. Outlaws from that point started to come back and it wasn’t until their last Drive of the game for OGs to do anything, but they were smart and went for 2 and gave them a 7-point lead. This is when Outlaws need to be smart and make a few plays. Now is time for the play that cost Outlaws the game. David found Justin down the sideline wide open and he walks into the endzone. After the play there was some talking going on and Justin was flagged for unsportsmanlike which is a 10-yard penalty. The penalty was added onto the convert so going for 1 from the 15 for the tie or going for 2 from the 20 was no real difference. The pass got picked off and the game was over. OGs beat Outlaws for the second season in a row during the regular season.

 

Division 3

 

Average Joes vs Blackout (28-6)

 

Last week Blackout was able to pull out the win because they were more athletic. This week if they wanted to win, they need to outplay Average Joes. As you can see from the score that didn’t happen. Edwards from Average Joes asked me what I knew about Blackout before the game, and I told him they are athletic and their QB can run, but looks for the deep ball. From the looks of it my input really helped in the way of 6 picks on defense. Jason didn’t play his best game or even close to it, but when your defense gets you 6 extra possessions you can play that way and still get the win. Other than the way Average Joes played defense there isn’t much that happened in this game. All Jason had to work with were short fields and the few times he had to drive the ball the length of the field he was forced to punt. Average Joes might be a top team in the division, but will have to play better if they are to beat some of the other good teams.

 

Iron Wolves vs Petits Phoques (53-13)

 

I was there watching this game and once the beat down was already underway all I could think was maybe Petits Phoques should lose Alexis and get moved to D4. I asked Vince if this was their full roster and he said they were missing Chuck and Etienne and that would have helped them out, but they still would have lost this game. Petits Phoques are here to have fun and play the game. Their QB is new and will develop as the season goes along. On the Iron Wolves side everything was working for them. Their defense stepped up made a few plays, Cat was back sacking QBs, and even Jon got a pick (ed’s note: the MFL is rigged!). With how much of a cap in the rosters there was here it was never going to be close and Petits Phoques never had a chance, but at least they had fun and the winning will get there soon enough.

 

Division 4

 

Gold Rush vs Bines (18-32)

 

Gold Rush was without Travis this week which hurt any chances they might have had to win. Gold Rush also had a few other players subbing for them this week and it was like they weren’t even there. Both Loic and Gabriel are very good players, but weren’t used the way they should have been. Bines is a new team to the league, but I have seen them play twice already and from what I have seen they look legit. Simon their QB is a baller, but against a stronger more organized defense he won’t be able to run as much and he won’t have wide open receivers to hit. Thomas balled out on offense torching gold Rushes defense for 116 yards, 2 TDs and a 1-point convert. I want to see Bines play a team that has played before and that has their roster that week, both their wins were against depleted teams.

 

Phoenix vs Mimosa Crew (24-7)

 

I can tell you from playing in this game that we work the clock most of the game and it seemed to have worked. Phoenix was able to move the ball most of the game and didn’t have many big plays. We’re are all about controlling the game and limiting your possessions. From last season to this season Mimosa Crew might not be as good of a team, but I will tell you that Curren has become a better passer. Last season he would take off running and this year he sits and waits for his players to get open. When the game was starting out, I had no doubt that we would win the game, but after the first few drives, I knew it was going to be a game. Vince opened the scoring with a pick 6 and from there I had the offense going knowing that it was going to be on me to make sure we protect the ball and put-up points. I can see both teams getting better as the season goes along and if we are to see a rematch it will have to be in the playoffs.

 

That’s it for this week’s recaps hope you enjoyed and if I didn’t cover your game go watch Terry and Will on the Podcast.

 

Top Performances of the Week

 

I can see by now that you all have figured it out that you must ball out and win your game to make my list. Unlike Jon, I look over all the stats and I also get to hear from the other refs who made big plays in their games. This week I had tons of players to pick from, but only a few could make my list. If you didn’t make it this week you still have plenty of time, just keep balling out. You don’t need to tell me you balled out and give me your stats. That will get you banned for a few weeks and you will be labeled a Marvin and be given a nickname like D4 player of the century, that is something you don’t want. Now here are this week’s winners.

 

Division 1

 

Offense

I had a hard time picking between two teammates here, but I ended up going with the player that ended the day with more TDs. Jonathan Svetna is this week’s winner. In the two games he played he had 11 catches for 99 yards, 5 TDs and a 2point convert.

 

Defense

This pick was a little easier to make. Kris Hope is a player everyone in the league knows and probably played with once or twice since he is there almost all day on Saturday and always looking to get into more games. This week Kris had 3 tackles to go along with his 3 picks. I can tell you that if Kris wasn’t there this week, Henchmen lose.

 

Division 2

 

Offense

With my pick here I went with a player that my team played against and we couldn’t stop all game long. Francis Savard-Vocino had 7 catches for 92 yards and 3 TDs.

 

Defense

Everyone except QBs overlook the rushers all the time, but when you have to play a player like Jimmy Maddaloni you won’t forget him. Jimmy only had 6 tackles this week with 5 of them being sacks.

 

Division 3

 

Offense

I would love to hear from Brian Tinning on what it’s like to not get yelled at all game for every little mistake. Is this the way you would have performed pulling in 7 catches for 77 yards, 2 TDs and 2 1-point converts?

 

Defense

It seems to be a trend going on in the MFL this season. Before 2 or 3 sacks were great in a game now it seems like 5 is the new number. We had 1 player do it last week 2 players this week, are we getting 3 players next week. Colin Legault is an absolute beast on the field he had 7 tackles and yes 5 sacks to go along with forcing countless bad passes.

 

Division 4

 

Offense

I almost went with a receiver for my pick here then I saw David Brisson and his stat line and couldn’t ignore what he did this week. David went 16 of 22 for 230 yards, 5 TDs and a 1point convert through the air. On the ground David ran 3 times for 36 yards and 2 TDs.

 

Defense

It’s not very often you see a QB getting the award for his defensive skills, but this week Adam Gorzen did it. Adam had 1 tackle and 2 picks on defense, leading his team to victory.

 

There you have it, week 2’s top performers. I know that there were a lot of players that could have made my list, but I couldn’t put you all up here. Try a little harder next week and you might make my list.

Predictions and Power Rankings Week 1

Predictions and Power Rankings Week 1

Kevin Kousaie

Predictions

 

We are back to pick more games this season after Terry won it all in the spring and he is still in the lead after week 1. Right now, it’s still early and it also helps that a few of his teams had byes this week, but over time it will balance out and the crown (which I still haven’t given to him) will end up with someone else.

Here are the standings after week 1 and then you will see my picks for this week’s games and like always my picks are in bold.

 

 

Division 1

 

Gros Coqs vs Bitter Boys

They are younger faster and way more athletic.

 

Outlaws vs Centurions

The big 3 of Marvin, Svetna and Smuda.

 

Outlaws vs Holy Trollers

The Trollers did improve over the off season but they can’t compete with the intelligence of Steve.

 

Henchmen vs Honor Game

They are the more complete team, plus Honor Game will need time to get use to the stronger competition.

 

Division 2

 

Iron Wolves vs Les Tannantes

This is a rematch of last years D3 finals and this time Tannantes won’t be playing a tight game beforehand.

 

Joey’s Haters vs KOLB

Haters are a really good team and KOLB are still banged up looking for new players.

 

D#Nasty vs Vultures

Vultures had a hard game last week that they learn from and come out and use their athleticism to their advantage.

 

Outlaws vs OG Panthers NA

I don’t pick my teams games.

 

Division 3

 

Thunder Buddies vs Pananches

I’m going with Thunder Buddies. Have you seen that roster? If you haven’t seen it, take a look and don’t forget this is D3 not D1.

 

Mustard Tigers vs Jagerbomb

They are a very good team, plus last season Brian went 0-5 as a QB and I can see that streak continuing this week.

 

Average Joes vs Blackout

There is too much experience on this team for them to lose unless Jason screws the pooch.

 

Iron Wolves vs Petits Phoques

It will be a long day for Petits Phoques if they can’t figure out their QB. Iron Wolves are going to feast on it like a bunch of wild dogs.

 

RawSauce vs Flamboyant Flamingos

I just feel that RawSauce has the better QB at this point and the best player on the field in Yves.

 

Division 4

 

Free Agents 4 vs Airborne

This is going to be an ugly game but Airborne pulls it off based on the experience of the QBs.

 

Phoenix vs Mimosa Crew NA

I don’t pick my games.

 

Idaho Udapimps vs Sneaky Snakes

They have the better roster from what I know about these teams.

 

Drama Club vs Spin Doctors

I have to assume Raph has his roster back this week and if they do, they should win this one easily.

 

Gold Rush vs Bines

I think that their defense is better than Gold Rushes offense.

 

There you have it my picks for the week. I can tell you some of those picks were easy for me to make, but a few were really hard for me, but I hope that I got most of he right so I can crawl out of the basement of this seasons picks and slowly work my way back to the top (ed’s note: “back”?).

 

Power Rankings

 

Power Rankings are back and after week 1 I already have to make a few changes.

I will show you my ranking and then explain why I made those changes after you’ve seen them.

 

Division 1

 

1) Outlaws

2) Gros Coqs

3) Holy Trollers

 

Division 2

 

1) Outlaws

2) Joey’s Haters 

3) Les Tannantes

 

Division 3

1) Thunder Buddies

2) Average Joes

3) Panaches

 

Division 4

1) Sneaky Snakes

2) Phoenix

3) Bines

 

For D1 I had to kick Henchmen off my list since they lost to the Trollers in week 1. I can’t see them staying off for long with the roster they have.

D2 after the way they got beat up I couldn’t leave OG in my top 3. I moved up the Haters and added Tannates to the mix.

With Iron Wolves get slapped around by Panaches I kicked off Iron Wolves and added Panaches after moving the other teams up a spot.

Spin Doctors are off my list, after a game like that they don’t deserve a spot up here. Sneaky Snakes looked very strong and moved from 3 to 1. Phoenix had a so-so game, but still managed to win the game. With Bines beating who I had at 1 last week, why not add them up here and see if they can keep moving up?

 

There you have it my rankings for the week. Just remember that the season is just starting and I am still feeling the teams out and where they should be in the division.

 

Final Thoughts

 

Football is back. Not just with the MFL, but the NCAA and this week the NFL is back as well. I know most people prefer to watch the NFL (ed’s note: fools!), but I miss being able to get up Saturday, relax a little order some pizza, and watch NCAA all day long. At least I can still watch the late games when I get back home Saturday night and NFL all day Sunday. Football is a game of emotions and intensity. How you handle those emotions and if you play with intensity more often determine who wins the game. Most of the time when a team comes out flat and gets down early its over for them, this is where you have to dig deep and make 1 play at a time to slowly creep back into it. Just remember play fast, play hard, be safe, have fun and remember that we are just playing a game. See you all Saturday.

 

Word from the Mouth: Still Salty After All These Years! edition

Word from the Mouth: Still Salty After All These Years! edition

Kevin Kousaie

Week 1 is in the bag and it went off without any issues. We had a welcome back BBQ this week and I want to give a shout out to Mo for coming and spending his Saturday taking care of the grill. I’d love to get some feedback from you guys the players on what you thought about the BBQ and if you’d like to do it again in the future.

I was planning on writing my article this week while on my flight to Vegas and before getting hammered all week. Plans changed and my trip was cancelled, so I have decided that I’d still get hammered all week since I am still on vacation, what do I have to lose?

I can tell you I definitely didn’t lose any games this weekend and I plan on keeping that streak going for as long as possible.  Now with my intro done, I’ll jump right to my recaps of the week’s games.

 

Weekly Recap

 

Division 1

 

Honor Game vs Gros Coqs (37-44)

 

I only know what I heard about this game and that was it was loaded with offense. I know that Honor Game is still looking to fill out their roster and it might take a week or two to get it straightened out. I also heard that Dave threw another pick this week with no one around. I’m just writing what I heard, but Dave did come up a division and Gros Coqs are a top team in the division. The only other thing I heard was that Honor Game is missing a playmaking safety. From when I looked over the game play by play, Honor Game had a chance to tie or win the game, but with little time left on the clock just couldn’t get it done. They shouldn’t put their heads down; (ed’s note: a semi-colon? Who wrote this?) they should look at the positives and get ready for next week.

 

Division 2

 

Outlaws vs KOLB (41-22)

 

I had to miss this game since I was needed to ref at this time. I know KOLB were missing players and had a few new players playing with them for the first time. By now everyone knows that Steve is going to be on point with the offense and only needs to get a stop or two from his defense and in this game the defense stepped up and forced three turnovers. When you can’t stop the Outlaws offense and the defense plays like this you will never beat them. Julien stepped up with 2 sacks and forced Jonathan to throw a few passes before he wanted to which allowed David to get his 2 picks plus the 1 Nick got. It seems that whenever Outlaws need a play, Nick was the one making it in this game.

 

Outlaws vs Vultures (45-26)

 

Let me start by saying that a new team having to play the defending D2 champs from last season in week 1, even if they are weaker, isn’t fair. Vultures are a new team with a QB that hasn’t played the position before, so it will be a learning curve for him and the team. As the game went along the Outlaws tried a bunch of different things including a switch at QB. As I think back on this game all I can remember is Kris running a few corners and Steve placing the ball perfectly time after time. One thing that I noticed about Vultures is it seems like they played a lot of man, yes they might be fast and really athletic, but when you play man and you are getting beat by big Stu and myself you might want to rethink your game plan. The funny thing was that they let everyone run by them for big plays. Then on defense me and Stu were playing safety and they never threw the ball up near us. When you see the old guy and the fat old guy you must attack them. I can bet you that if this was week 10 that the game would have played out differently.

 

Division 3

 

Blackout vs Chiefs (22-18)

 

From seeing this game, you can tell both teams are very athletic and very inexperienced. In time both these teams will figure it out. Let me start by saying both QBs need to stop running around and just get the ball out of their hands faster. Also, not so many deep shots. Allow your WRs to do all the work for you. The first half of the game was very sloppy and both teams were feeling the other out, with the half ending 6-0 for Chiefs. In the second half a few more plays were made and when the game looked to be over Blackouts made a statement by showing no quit and getting back into the game. Blackouts overcame 12 points in under 10 minutes when they didn’t do much before that. Trevin from Blackouts will need to do more spreading the ball around if they want to beat some of the better teams in the division. Chiefs were in the league last season and weren’t very good, but this week even being 11 players they looked good and were almost able to win the game on the last play, but the ball fell short.

 

Iron Wolves vs Panaches (37-44)

 

The first half was a slow and boring half and both teams took long drives and no defense was played with the score being 13-12 Panaches (ed’s note: it was 18-13 Iron Wolves) when the half time whistle was blown. Second half was a very different story, Iron Wolves looked bad in the second half, like really bad. Panaches started with the ball in the and on their first play Guillaume scored a TD making a few Iron Wolves players miss a tackle or two. This is now where it seems that the game slips away from Iron Wolves in my opinion. On fourth down and 1, Jon throws a beautiful pass to Marvin running up the seam with steps on the defender and the ball goes off his hands and falls incomplete. Panaches capitalized and made the game a two TD game. With Iron Wolves not being able to get any stops in the second half and being forced to go for it on more fourth downs than you’d like to the game got away from them.  Marvin’s big drop on fourth down which would have been 6 points was the difference in this game. I guess since Marvin was D4 player of the century moving up to D3 might have been too big of a leap for him.

 

Division 4

 

Drama Club vs Phoenix (20-21) OT

 

This was a game of two halves. First half was dominated by Phoenix. Drama Club couldn’t figure out how to slow down Julian on offense. The defense was led by Gab who dominated the line and forced 3 bad throws that end in picks plus Gab had 5 sacks on the day. Second half was owned by Drama Club, they started the second half with a sack that was a safety and you could tell that it gave them a spark. Drama Club scored on that drive making it a 12-8 game Phoenix. In the second half, Drama Clubs defense really stepped up with Simon getting a pick 6 to go along with the other 2 picks they got in the game. Phoenix had a bunch of drops that didn’t help them on offense as they did nothing in the second half. Simon was trying to talk trash and calling me Matt Ryan, but what he must realize is that with 3 minutes left and being down 8 points, who led his team into the end zone to force overtime? Then in OT got the win. Yes, I played really poorly in the second half, but when it matters I stayed focused and helped my team win the game and in the end winning the game is all that matters and individual stats don’t mean banana pudding.

 

Spin Doctors vs Bines (18-27)

Let me start by saying that Spin Doctors broke the sub rules and still lost the game. I know Raph is going to say he didn’t have his players and people were dropping balls, but all I’m hearing are excuses. When you are the reigning QB of the year and the champs from last season, you cant come out and play like that. Bines looked decent in their first outing in the MFL and in time once they’ve learned the game, they might even become one of the better teams in the division. Simon, their QB, looked to run a little more than I like to see, but he was able to buy time whenever he needed to. This game was really close at one point and it looked like Spin Doctors were going to pull it out, but Raph threw 2 of his 3 picks when his team was going into score. Spin Doctors will get better, but losing week 1 looks bad for them. Bines will be fine, but when they meet again, I can see this being a totally different game.

 

That’s it for my recap, but can you believe that out of 16 games 3 went to OT? I’m not sure, but I feel that was more than last season when we had over 200 games played. All this tells me is that the division are closer in competition and that the season is going to be really good with a lot of close games.

 

Top Performances of the Week

 

For anyone new to the league this section of my article is where I pick my players of the week. I will normally pick one player on both offense and defense. Now here are the rules to making my list: you have to ball out and help you team win, you also can only get my nomination for the highest division that you play in unless you are playing a different position in another division. If your team loses and you put up some ridiculous stat line there might be a chance that you make my list, but it has only happened one or twice in the past. Now let me unveil who my picks for week 1 are.

 

Division 1

 

Offense

The player I went with is Charles Rousseau-Belanger from Gros Coqs. Charles grabbed 7 balls for 126 yards and 3 TDs. This week there was no one better than Charles, Honor Game couldn’t keep up with him.

 

Defense

This week I went with a player that has moved back to a position that he hasn’t played in a few seasons and a move that I wanted to make a few seasons back, but it never happened. I had to go with a former teammate of mine, JC Ferland. JC had 3 tackles that were all sacks. Those are just the stats on the stat sheet, but you didn’t see the constant pressure he brought.

 

Division 2

 

Offense

I have no clue who this guy is but what I can tell you is that he tore it up this week. Jeremy Rooney you better be up to the challenge because it might come as easy the rest of the season after a game like this. Jeremy had 11 catches for 107 yards and 4 TDs.

 

Defense

This was the hardest person to pick, since so many of the guys who balled out also play in D1. I ended up going with a teammate of mine from the Outlaws Julien Clouette. Julien played a game and a half since he was a little banged up but he did help his team win both games. Julien had 5 tackles and 3 sacks in his time on the field.

 

Division 3

 

Offense

I narrowed it down to two players based off stats, but I saw Guillaume Tumblom rip it up against Iron Wolves D3 so I gave him the extra bump for being their and seeing how he was unstoppable. Guillaume had 5 catches for 102 yards, 3 TDs and a 1point convert.

 

Defense

This might have been my easiest pick ever. It took all of 10 seconds to pick Alex Morin this week. Alex had 1 tackle to go along with his 4 picks which he took 3 back to the house. I know it was against a new QB from Petits Phoques, but why you still throwing near him.

 

Division 4

 

Offense

I know everyone might be mad at my pick here, but deal with it. I picked a teammate of mine and someone who made me look good multiple times, Julian Sablowski. Julian started out strong cooled in the middle, but then stepped up at the end. Julian had 7 catches for 77 yards, 2 TDs, 2 1point converts and a 2point convert. Ya, those numbers might not pop off to you, but he caught a TD, 2 point convert at the games end to tie it and then the OT winner.

 

Defense

Again, I went with another teammate of mine and this person would get the award from anyone looking over the stats. Gabrielle Chaput made 6 tackles and 5 sacks. Anyone who rushes knows getting 2 or 3 sacks in a game are great, but getting 5 is out of this world. By Gab hustling all game long she was able to force a few bad throws that led to picks.

 

Those are my picks for player of the week and I know not everyone will be happy with them and might feel they should be here instead. All I can say is keep balling out and eventually you might see your name here. Just because you didn’t get up here week 1 it’s not the end, you still have 9 more regular season weeks and possibly 2 more in the playoffs if your team makes it that far.

Fall Season Predictions and Power Rankings!

Fall Season Predictions and Power Rankings!

Kevin Kousaie

Predictions

 

I was going to lose this section and make it more like fantasy football, but picking new players every week. Maybe I’ll change it up next week since the rosters will be up by then.

This week the picks are going to be hard to get right since so many teams haven’t submitted rosters yet. I will base my picks off what I know about the teams and maybe make a few lucky guesses.

Last season Terry was the champ, but this season we will crown a new champ even if we must cheat. Here are my picks and like always they are in bold.

 

Division 1

 

Honor Game vs Gros Coqs

 

I know what Gros Coqs bring to the table and with Honor Game getting bumped up a division you don’t know. Plus Dave and his squad are still going to be thinking about how they blew it in the D2 finals last week.

 

Centurions vs Bitter Boys

 

With Bitter Boys losing Guillaume (their best player) not sure what that team will look like and Centurions are a solid team from top to bottom.

 

Holy Trollers vs Henchmen

 

Both teams at this point are a bit of an unknown and I have heard whispers that Henchmen might have a few studs getting added to their roster.

 

Division 2

 

Les Tannantes vs OG Panthers

 

I went OGs just because I know that their team is going to show up and I can’t say the same for Tannantes.

 

Iron Wolves vs Joey’s Haters

 

Jon is smarter than anyone who is calling the defense on the Haters, so Jon finds a way to win in a close one.

 

Outlaws vs Vultures NA

I don’t pick my teams games.

 

Outlaws vs KOLB NA

I don’t pick my teams games.

 

Division 3

 

Flamboyant Flamingos vs Petits Phoques

 

Vacations are over and that means the Flamingos will be at full strength.

 

Blackout vs Chiefs

 

I went Chiefs because they have a little experience and I seem to know nothing about blackout.

 

Les Petits Phoques vs Average Joes

 

This season Average Joes get into the playoffs and that means starting the season off with a hot start.

 

Iron Wolves 3 vs Panaches

Jon has this team stacked (ed’s note: what?) and it will be hard for him to lose this game.

 

Division 4

 

Phoenix vs Drama Club NA

 

I don’t pick my teams games.

 

Sneaky Snakes vs Free Agent 4

 

Just based on experience alone they should win this game.

 

James Neumann Team vs Mimosa Crew

 

I’ll take Mimosa in this one. Last season they gradually got better and playing a team in know nothing about they should win, but it could go either way.

 

Spin Doctors vs Bines

 

I’ll take the D5 champs from last season against a new team.

 

Airborne vs Gold Rush

 

If Airborne can’t stop or even slow down Travis it will be a long day for them.

 

There you have my picks for week 1 of the fall season. Hopefully, I can do better than the 67% of games I got right last season. Good luck to everyone playing this week.

 

Power Rankings

 

Power Rankings are back, and you all know what that means, you all get to see where I feel you are amongst the best teams. Week 1 is always hard because I don’t know all the teams and not all the rosters are in and there is always a surprise team or two that comes out of nowhere and demolishes everyone. Here are my top 3 per division.

 

Division 1

 

1) Outlaws

2) Gros Coqs

3) Henchmen

 

Division 2

 

1) Outlaws

2) OG Panthers

3) Joey’s Haters (ed’s note: and yet the Wolves will beat them, apparently…)

 

Division 3

 

1) Iron Wolves

2) Thunder Buddies

3) Average Joes

 

Division 4

 

1) Spin Doctors

2) Phoenix

3) Sneaky Snakes

 

Those are my rankings. If you didn’t make it up that doesn’t mean you’re a bad team it means you have to show me you deserve to be up here. Win a few games beat a top team do something and eventually if you earned a spot up here, you’ll get it.

 

Final Thoughts

 

Let me start by tell you just in case your team captain hasn’t told you, this week we will be having a Back to Football BBQ at the field on Saturday, I’d say from 11 to 3:30 or whenever we run out of food. There will be music to listen to while you are scarfing down hotdogs, burgers, chips, drinks and donuts from La Beignerie which is owned by a player in the league. They are fabulous by the way.

Stay after your game or come early and grab a bite and watch a little football before heading home. This is something that we used to do often when the league was much smaller (ed’s note: and when Covid wasn’t a thing), and we felt it would be a good way for new players to get to know one another while scouting a future opponent.

With all that being said the new season is here go out, have fun, and remember this is a game and no one is calling you up afterwards to turn pro, so take it easy. We all have places to be on Monday. Thanks for reading and see everyone who is playing this week on Saturday.

 

Leagues
Montreal Flag Football League
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Laval
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