The bad news is that, at least from a picks standpoint, week 12 was a bloodbath. None of us fared particularly well and Rich had an especially tough week. The good news is that bye weeks are over and it’s Thanksgiving, so we’re about 41 hours from kickoff for the early game, about 44 hours from my favorite meal of the year and about 45 hours from my afternoon nap, which will take place during the afternoon game.
So, anyway, back to football. Fantasy guru Anthony Maggio started his rally this week. He gained a couple games in the standings. The rest of us, well, we can only wish. Here are the standings heading into lucky week 13.
Week 12
Season totals
Andy
6-7-1
116-59-1
Tony
7-6-1
111-64-1
Maggio
8-5-1
106-69-1
Rich
3-10-1
100-75-1
Despite our less than stellar picks, the schedule for last week was filled with great games, at least on paper, from top to bottom. Some of the games played out as expected, others were fantastic and fascinating to watch – such as the Broncos/Patriots tilt, which happened to be our Game of the Week.
While there are a couple of pretty good games on the schedule for the week, there are a few duds. The Thanksgiving slate is somewhat underwhelming, though I’m okay with that – more time for eating and snoozing.
Had the Patriots pulled out the win against Carolina last Monday, this game would have carried some huge ramifications. As it is, it’s still a big game, with Denver trying to hang onto its AFC West lead and New England trying to keep pace in the race for the conference’s second playoff bye.
Oh, yeah, it’s another opportunity to watch Peyton Manning and Tom Brady duel, as well. With both of them getting up in QB years, who knows how many more times we’ll get to watch two All-Timers battle.
Denver is the more explosive team, averaging nearly 40 points per game. But it never surprises me anymore when Bill Belichick, Brady and Co. find ways to shut down, or at least slow, offenses. So the Sunday Night showdown should be a good one.
Rich Hill, managing editor of Pats Pulpit, and Sayre Bedinger, co-editor of Predominantly Orange, share their thoughts on what it will take to come out victorious. (more…)
Andy just can’t win for winning. Last week, he managed to not lose a single one of his bets (hitting on two, and getting the first two pushes recorded for our bets this season), and netted an impressive $1,913 in profit.
Good for his balance, but not good enough compared to my week, despite me only hitting .500 again. I hit the first four digit bet of the season with Philly, and tacked on another $1,500 onto my total with an Even win with Oakland (turns out I should have taken them on the moneyline like Andy).
Week 11
Season
Week +/-
Bankroll
Season +/-
Andy
2-0-2
17-25-2
+$1,913
$11,848
+$1,148
Tony
2-2
21-23
+$2,450
$15,694
+$5,694
With just six weeks left in the season, things are definitely being cranked up a notch, so nothing is guaranteed for either of us–I’d still look for one of us to be broke in 3 weeks.
The last play of the Monday Night Football game not only raised the ire of New England Patriots fans who thought Rob Gronkowski was either illegally contacted, held or interfered with on the last play of the game (and they are right). It also kept my brother from gaining any ground on me in our NFL picks segment.
I may not be able to bet worth a damn right now. But I’ve got the straight up thing going on. The Panthers’ narrow escape pulled me into a tie with Tony for Week 11 – we both hit 12 of 15 games.
Fantasy Guru Anthony Maggio and Contributor Rich also had solid weeks, both nailing 10.
So as we head into the regular season’s home stretch, here are the standings:
Week 11
Season totals
Andy
12-3
110-52
Tony
12-3
104-58
Maggio
10-5
98-64
Rich
10-5
97-65
As with last week, when a solid schedule was highlighted by Sunday night and Monday night games that actually mattered, this week’s slate of games is also entertaining. I count six divisional match-ups and a prime time Sunday nighter between Peyton’s Broncos and Brady’s Patriots. Should be some good watching.
Well, the best Monday Night Football game in quite awhile ended in controversy.
An officiating call – to pick up a flag on the last play of the game when pass interference or illegal contact or defensive holding or criminal assault almost certainly should have been called – overshadowed the fact that the Patriots/Panthers contest was one of the most entertaining games of the 2013 season.
That officiating keeps ending up in the news is disappointing. But all season long, officials have been ridiculously inconsistent in their approaches to pass interference and, in particular, roughing calls, particularly when related to helmet-to-helmet contact.
I’m all for eliminating the kill shot from existence. I don’t think the game’s founding fathers – or at least the helmet’s founding fathers – ever intended for the head gear to be a weapon. But when helmet-to-head contact is getting called when it’s actually shoulder-to-shoulder – or when the receiver ducks his head into a position where the defender has no chance to avoid the contact, something has to be tweaked.
And the pass interference rules … wow. Are they handing out different rule books to different officiating crews? The ref tandems are not even close to consistent. This brings to the forefront again the need for full-time officials.
Former Vice President of Officials Mike Pereira, who on twitter disagreed with Monday night’s decision to pick up the flag, told Fox Sports 1 in September that the rule book is too thick – well, Pro Football Talk has long made the argument that full-time officials would lessen the issues the part-timers face now.
With respect to the Monday night game, VP of Officiating Dean Blandino can say what he wants about this being a judgment call. It’s pretty straightforward to me. There was contact that prevented Rob Gronkowski from having any kind of a chance to make a play on Tom Brady’s last-second pass. A slow-mo video at Pats Pulpit makes it look to me like there were at least three steps taken by the interceptor after LB Luke Kuechly initiated contact with Gronk before the ball was caught.
Now, one play does not make the game. The Patriots should have played better, as Bill Belichick and Tom Brady acknowledged in the postgame interviews. And sure, Gronk being able to catch the ball may be a long shot. But the rules say he should have had that shot. And he didn’t. So it should have been a flag. Nobody is going to change my mind on that.
I believe the Kansas City Chiefs are for real. But this week we find out just how real.
Entering the season, everyone expected that Denver would be right in the mix for a division championship, the top seed in the AFC and perhaps a Super Bowl berth. Fewer saw the amazing turnaround taking place in Kansas City.
The Chiefs were 2-14 in 2012. They were obviously better on paper, but through nine undefeated games, that has translated better than expected on the field. But critics abound. Easy schedule. An amazing run of games against backup QBs. And an offense that still isn’t putting up amazing numbers.
So, what wins? The seemingly unbendable Chiefs defense? Or the equally unstoppable Denver offense? Josh Michaels, writer for KCKingdom.com, and Kim Constantinesco, senior editor for Predominantly Orange, share their perspectives on the first of two battles that likely will decide who wins the AFC West championship. (more…)
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