Tuesday, September 27, 2011

Week Three - Power Rankings

Taking a break from the normal format, the MillerKuz FFL Newsletter proudly presents Week Three Power Rankings. 

But before we get to that, the Commish has kindly asked each member of the League to respond to a poll question on the League's home page.

And now back to your regularly scheduled programming. 

Keep in mind that these rankings reflect the current state of the league.  They do not, in any way, reflect the future performance of any teams.  And, even though it goes without saying, these rankings were compiled by our professional and objective staff.

If you are in anyway bothered or embarrassed by your position in these rankings, I do not care.  Be better at fantasy football and there will not be a problem.

12.  William Wallace - WW has amassed the least amount of points in the league to date (254).  Also, he is 0-3 and Anthony Dixon is still on his roster.

11.  The Big Mac Attack - All of Mac Attack's starting RBs and WRs (five players) combined for 17 points this past week, including Hines Ward, who is (approximately) the Steelers' 7th best WR.

10. Nolan United - NU owns the second-lowest aggregate score (276), but, to be fair, as we always are here in the Newsletter, NU were unlucky to lose the services of both Arian Foster to a hamstring and Peyton Hillis to a sore throat.  On the other hand, NU is quite lucky that their opponents only scored 238 points against them - the second-lowest such total, so quit the excuses.

9.  George Filopolopolous - GF is the current Willy Lowman of the Week and has only scored 281 points (third-worst) this season and is 0-3.  What gives her reprieve from a double-digit ranking is the fact that her opponents have scored 344 points against her - the fourth-highest such total.

8.  Chester Humpley - Don't let his 3-0 start fool you.  Humpley has scored only the eighth-highest total (303) this season and his opponents have only managed 232 points against him - a league low.  He also has six RB's on his bench including Toby Gerhart (6 total carries) and  C.J. Spiller (9 total carries).  That's not as funny as it is perplexing.

7.  Wicked of Lately - WL opponents have only amassed 287 points, which puts him among the top three luckiest teams.  His sixth-highest point total (323) and his 2-1 record combine to place him atop Humpley, which I think we can all agree is a place no one man wants to be.

6.  Vandaley Industries - Changing his name changed his results, at least, so far as he is this week's Stud of the Week.  His opponents have scored more points against him (353) than he has scored (321), but Run DMC has been a strong performer averaging more than 25 points per week.  Same name and same star back - look out, League, here comes the reigning champ.

5.  Knuckle Junction - Eighth place in your standings, second place in your points for, third place in your points against and number one in your hearts, Knuckle Junction.

4.  Whore Hands - WH has been blessed with fourth-luckiest points against total (299), Wes Welker and the uncanny ability to make a story from a strip club on a Wednesday night hilarious, instead of pathetic.

3.  Dunn Givashit - One thing I know for sure is that Travis Dunngivashit about these rankings.  I also know that Rob Gronkowski is murdering all other TEs this year and that Jamal Charles is not coming back.

2.  Barrister's Balls - The third-highest points for total, a first and a second round pick that only average 9.7 points each per week and a newly officer-latched car seat in the back of his Accord.  Yes, all things the Barrister Ball's own.

1.  The Big Sandwich - The only league member with a winning record that has more points against (376) than points for (370), so he is lucky in that respect.  However, it is, contrary to a popular colloquialism, better to be good than lucky, which TBS is with the highest total points through three weeks.  Also, Kenny Britt is out for the year, so missing that (average) 26.0 could be hard to replace.  It also requires TBS to do something he has yet to do this season: Change his lineup.

Tuesday, September 20, 2011

Week Two - Taco, Bench Points and Reigning Champs

I would like to start by thanking David J. Miller for benching all of his good players this week.

As much as I hate living in a fantasy world where Cam Newton routinely puts up 30+ points, where Knowshon Moreno is less relevant than Ryan Leaf and where I pay five American dollars each week on another fill-in tight end, it is, unfortunately, the world I currently occupy, so there is nothing left to do but to make fun of it and everyone else around me.  So let's get into the newsletter for Week Two:

The Stud of the Week:  Our first repeat offender.  The Big Sandwich's 151-point performance was fueled by another outstanding fantasy performance from Aaron Rodgers and a combined 46-point output from his WRs.  Kenny Britt seems to be the steal of the draft thus far.  Cedric Benson and Sebastion Janikowski were the only two starters not register a double-digit total.  On the flip side, his bench only had one double-digit performance (Ryan Fitzpatrick - 23) and seven other single-digit outputs.  Again, great point maximization from The Big Sandwich.  At this rate, it's going to take some serious points to knock off the early favorite.  Amy tried hard this week (123 total points) and still fell. . . pause for mental math. . . 28 points short.

Honorable Mention: Knuckle Junction.  Other than Robbie Gould and Mike Thomas, who had to start due to a number of injuries on the roster, each player in the starting lineup went for double digits.  Great balance leads to high totals (145).  As a general rule in my life, a grown man who professionally goes by the name "Beanie" is not someone I care to associate with, but if he's adding 15 points to my fantasy team and, for all intents and purposes, replacing Knowshon Moreno he would easily become my new best friend if it weren't for Fred Jackson running lose all over Oakland.

The Willy Lowman of the Week:  Our second repeat offender.  William Wallace is getting comfortable on the wrong side of the newsletter.  Just when we all thought Taco was getting his act together by having a seemingly adequate draft, he shows his true colors the first two weeks and finds himself as the Lowman in Week Two.  When your kicker records more points than all but two of your other starters, traditionally, things aren't going too well.  Further, when said kicker doubled the totals of four of your other starters you end up as the Lowman of the Week. 

His bench was equally inadequate so we really can't ridicule his start-bench decisions.  So, in that way, it really wasn't his fault.  But, in a slightly more logical way, it is completely his fault because he picked each and every one of those players. 

It's not all negative this week for Taco, however, because both of his "zeros" were squarely on his bench.  Congratulations for not starting a "zero."  We're proud of you.

Honorable Mention:  New territory here for the Nolans.  Unless, of course, you include almost all of last year.  The 49er's D/ST did not come to the Nolans rescue this week, nor will they ever again, so it may be time to start thinking about starting players not named Davone Bess.  I understand that Santonio Holmes was listed as questionable leading up to Sunday's game, but he played at 1pm and it was announced well before game time that he would in fact be in the lineup.  Under no circumstance is starting Bess over Holmes acceptable unless it's in a fantasy league that deducts points for having illegitimate children and running into problems with the law.  Stop preparing to be new parents and pay more attention to your fantasy team.  Priorities, Nolans.  Priorities. 

Meet the 0.1 Percent:  Danny Amendola is only owned by 3.6 percent of all ESPN fantasy participants.  That, in and of itself, is impressively low.  Amy Tardiff not only doesn't care that (almost) no one else owns him, she also decided that he is worth starting.  According to ESPN.com, Amendola was only started by 0.1 percent of owners last week.  While not confirmed, it is my suspicion that our Mrs. Tardiff is the ONLY owner to start Amendola in all ESPN leagues.  She is the 0.1 percent.  I'm not even mad.  That's impressive.

Email I Don't Expect To See This Week:  Probably won't get a Week Two manifesto from Whore Hands since he lost to Sam and Wicked of Lately.  Leaving 34 WR points on the bench isn't necessarily a bad thing (depth can be good), but when you consider he only started 15 points worth of WR this week, it starts to become a problem.

Reigning Champion Update:  When you start 0-2 after being crowned the first-annual Millerkuz champ a change is necessary.  Unfortunately for Cafaro he can't change his draft.  He did, however, change his name back, which does not, in fact, lead to more points. It's science.  On an unrelated note - if anyone is actively seeking to trade any and all Steeler personnel, please see Jim Cafaro immediately.

Tuesday, September 13, 2011

Week One - Knowshon, Proxies and Large Sandwiches

I would like to start by thanking Knowshon Moreno for being the dumbest thing I have ever committed to and for simultaneously murdering my soul and crushing my will to live.

Additionally, I would like to officially welcome the neophytes to the (in)famous Millerkuz Newsletter.  The newbies went an impressive 2-1 in their first week match ups and the only loser - The Big Mac Attack - was the leagues highest scoring loser, which is a lot like being the tallest midget, but even midgets need a silver lining.

In brief, the newsletter works as follows: We start by congratulating the highest scoring team of the week as well as the second highest scoring team in the Stud of the Week and the Honorable Mention respectively.  Then we move to the Willy Lowman of the Week and the Honorable Mention, which allows us to laugh at the two worst teams of the week.  Then we'll add some random categories and mock stupid things done by relatively smart individuals.

The Stud of the Week - The Big Sandwich blew up all over the Big Mac Attack and the rest of the league this week posting 143 points, made all the more impressive after the Steelers' D/ST blew up all over themselves and posted a -3.  Kenny Britt overcame the fact that Matt Hasselbeck is his quarterback and threw down 32 points.  Even Matt Forte and Cedric Benson got in on the fun.  Benson, fresh off his stint in jail, and only available because of time off for good behavior posted a 19 for the victorious Bengals.  Answering the age-old question: If the Bengals and the Browns play in Week 1 and absolutely no one cares, is there still a winner?  Apparently, yes. 

All around great point maximization from TBS as his bench posted a solid number of zeros and includes a man by the name of Titus Young.

Honorable Mention - Our first newcomer to get a spot in the newsletter - Whore Hands aka Proxy Vote.  Even though the real Steve Smith ran circles around the Arizona Defense and scored 36 points for the WH bench, they still managed to post the second highest total.  If you start Smith this week, he'll probably go for three dozen against Charles Woodson and the Packers.  Try it.  WH should be eternally grateful for Wes Welker (35 pts) after Wes bailed him out quicker than Manny Ramirez.  Seriously, it took someone an entire day come up with the $2,500 to bail out Manny "for being Manny," or (allegedly) beating his wife as the case may be.  Two WR's with 30 point weeks?  Awesome.  Welcome to the league.  Also, I hate you.

The Willy Lowman of the Week - Wicked of Lately.  WL managed to put up the only "healthy" zero in a starting lineup this week thanks to the only Raven that didn't score against the Steelers this week - Lee Evans.  Other than Drew Brees, no one wanted to play this week for WL.  Seventy eight points is not a lot, but its even less when you consider Drew Brees scored 31 of them.  The other 47 points came from a conglomeration of single-digit starts and two other double-digit adults - Felix Jones (11) and the dismal Arizona D/ST (16).  There are three zeros sitting on that bench as well, so good luck turning this ship around.  Additionally, Peyton Manning has nerve damage in his neck that just required a second surgery, not sure if you heard.

Honorable Mention - This is a newsletter first.  We have a tie for second-worst.  Congratulations to both the Lounge Lizards (aka Lizzy) and William Wallace (aka Taco).  Congratulations for being pretty terrible at fantasy football.

Since we don't allow ties here, we're going to settle this by deciding who was worse this week.  Taco's bench put up 72 points which has "missed opportunities" written all over it.  Lizzy's bench only (and "only" in this context is extremely relative) put up 67 points, which also has "missed opportunities" written all over it just not in large capital letters with a Sharpie marker.  So Taco takes it.  Well played.

Fun Things to Do When Watching Terrible Players Try to Score Points for Your Team:
When you verbally urge your RB to make it back to the digital blue line of scrimmage every time he touches the ball this is a sign of two things: One, the RB is not good and should stay on your bench.  Two, you need to settle down.  Next time, keep in mind that positive thoughts yield positive results.  Also keep in mind that that last sentence does not apply to Knowshon Moreno.  But hey, at least it gave DJ something to do during the 4:15 game.

Obligatory Kicker Fact:
Nate Kaeding, RIP, is no longer a feasible fantasy option, sorry Proxy Vote.  In other news, Sebastian Janikowski booted a 63-yard FG Monday night, because obviously The Big Sandwich needed even more points this week.  When it rains it pours. 

Terrible Player(s) That May Have Definitely Murdered Your Team:
First and foremost, the 49'ers D/ST completely validated the Nolans seemingly irrational belief in all things Bay Area.  Sorry, Taco, but I have two words for you:  Ted Ginn, Jr.  Back-to-back 108 and 55 yard kick returns is two steps away from a grown man named Kenny dropping 32 points in a single week.  Sorry, Big Mac.

Current Reason I Hate This League:
I've already spent $10 on Free Agents, and one of them was to replace my kicker.  Thanks alot, Vinatieri.

Thursday, September 8, 2011

Ten Things I Learned at the Draft

The 2011 MillerKuz FFL Annual Selection Meeting was a great success.  There were 204 players selected, 48 pieces of pizza eaten and at least 2 DJ temper-tantrums.

Over the three hours of fantasy drafting and pizza feasting, I learned quite a few things.  Here are a list of the ten most important things I learned at the 2011 MillerKuz FFL Annual Selection Meeting:

1.  Taco flavored Doritos are the only Doritos I will buy for the rest of my life.  (Thank you, Taco).

2.  There is - no matter who takes Tom Brady - no crying in Fantasy Football.

3.  It is useless to brag about having seven RBs on your roster after 11 rounds when four of them are back-ups because everyone will just make fun of you.

4.  The only thing Whore Hands hates more than fun is making prompt picks. 

5.  Jim Cafaro visibly gets ill when he picks players not employed by the Steelers.  So much so that he actual took Heath Miller and Issac Redman.  He was, however, well enough to eat "8 to 10" pieces of pizza.

6.  Taco watched some football and/or did his research.  Whatever the case, he is not immune to our ridicule and decided not to donate his $100 to this year's winner. 

7.  Mike Vick insurance should not include anyone named Jason Campbell.  Right, Cropcho?

8.  When DJ says "park in the driveway" what he really means is "park in the driveway only if there is still room to get my car in the garage and E, you should probably stand out there like an asshole and make sure people don't block the garage."

9.  Order was restored to the universe when the Nolans finally took the 49'ers defense.  They did however, show great restraint in leaving Alex Smith on the board.

10.  Spreadsheets printed in color will not prevent you from picking James Starks as a starting RB.  At least they looked fancy, Big Sandwich.

Monday, September 5, 2011

Twas the Night Before Draft Night

A gift from our fearless Commish:

Twas the night before draft night, and all through the league,
The site crawled with squires, doctors & schemes.

Cheat sheets were readied, pages were turned,
So much information, too much to be learned.

Temples were scratched while mock drafts are done,
All to prepare for three, intense months of fun.

So who will you take with your first pick?
Will it be Johnson, Rodgers or Vick?

And who might you add to play in the flex?
Will it be Marshawn, Boldin or Plax?

While questions abound, a few things we know,
Here is a glimpse of how it will go:

The Whore Hands of Christy will be clapping for Pirates,
While Laura the Proxy drafts as his pilot.

Humphrey or Hancock no matter the name,
Cropcho takes Vick to lead him to fame.

Caleb will be outside working on cars,
While his second round pick dances with stars.

We all welcome Travis to partake in our games,
Thankfully points aren’t awarded for names.

The Sandwich of Sowerby will likely draft smartly,
But maybe not so if he takes Garret Hartley.

Cafaro the Homer thinks he’s a wizard,
But he’s been exposed as just a Lounge Lizard.

E looks for sleepers, and will shoot for Fin-Ley,
Whomever he takes will blow out a knee.

No ‘Niner is safe with The Nolans on hand,
Getting them all is surely their plan.

We also add JMac et ux to our flock,
Surely their terrible picks we’ll all mock.

Amy takes Brady, and Sam will take Foster,
Then Sam will take care of the rest of her roster.

The Commish needs to cool it, and just let it be,
And hopefully not draft the Colts useless D.

The draft will go on, and so will the season,
Fantasy football gives it some reason.

Looking forward to seeing you Wednesday,
Come early come hungry to MillerKuz Draft Day!