Word from the Mouth: The Commish Can't Count! edition

Word from the Mouth: The Commish Can't Count! edition

Kevin Kousaie

This week I’m going to try and keep my article shorter than normal. I’m on vacation this week and it’s a lot harder to write while I’m at home rather than work. I have a few things to do around the house and with the wife and girls out of the house I have to clean up after myself for once, take care of all the animals, and keep the kitten away from me while I write since she has a thing for eating laptop screens.

With the final stretch of the season heading our way captains should have all received an email about the sub rule. Just in case you didn’t see it the rule states that as of your team’s 7th game you are only allowed subs to bring you up to 6 players or 7 if your QB doesn’t play defense. Last week we had a team forfeit because of it. That team captain (Jon Iron Wolves D2) should have realized that they were at that point. In the end it didn’t matter because his team still lost, but that left Steve with a decision to make, take the score as is or make it 25-0 for his team. It is a hard choice to make since Outlaws D2 scored more than 25 points, but they gave up more than 0, remember that tie breaker is head-to-head followed by points against.

Last week was a scorcher on both Saturday and Sunday and I’m looking forward to this week where it is calling for rain (ed’s note: only a tiny amount early in the morning at the moment), but let’s remember that I’m saying this on Monday so things can change from now to then.

 

Recap

 

Division 1

 

Bitter Boys vs Gros Coqs (13-26)

All I know about this was Dom was back playing QB after getting banged up last week and that JS wasn’t there for Bitter Boys, so Jon filled in and we all know what that means a slow short passing game. You would have figured that Gros Coqs would win this game easily, but that wasn’t the case. Bitter Boys had it tied up at 13 at half and both teams struggled in the second half until Gros Coqs scored with under 6 minutes left. Once Jon got the ball back and the way he was trying to use the clock it was like he was playing it as the last possession of the game, but when your first 3 plays are 2 incomplete passes and a muffed snap you should punt and hope your defense can do what they did most of the second half (ed’s note: you went from “there’s not enough time!” to “you should punt!” real fast). Instead, Jon went for it and threw a pick. Gros Coqs punched it in a few plays later and that was the game.

 

Division 2

 

Iron Wolves vs Outlaws (33-35)

This turned out to be a good game that didn’t matter after Kris stepped onto the field for Iron Wolves. Jon, the person who wrote the rules, broke them by having a sub and bringing their roster up to 8 players (ed’s note: not an excuse, but I genuinely thought it was our sixth game!). Steve had pointed it out to me right away just so that I was aware of the situation since we had talked about it during the week on the group chat which Jon is on. I can only remember a few plays from this game, and they are all things that teams and players need to remember. Svetna made a miraculous catch along the sideline with 1 hand that was ruled a catch by me. Kris pointed out that he only had 1 foot in, which was right, but he got that one foot down twice, so it was the right call. Near the end of the game Iron Wolves had just missed their 2-point convert to tie the game up and needed a stop on defense. Outlaws on third and two completed a pass that the receiver was falling while making the catch and he might have been falling before the line, but was awarded the first down. Everyone should know that as soon as the player is falling, the spot goes back to where they started to fall. It’s the same as when a receiver is bobbling the ball and gets de-flagged; it’s not where he finally gets possession of the ball, it’s where he was de-flagged. Last thing, don’t forfeit games because your teams roster isn’t correct.

 

Division 3

 

Manitoboys vs Jackrabbits (18-28)

This was a game that was missing all the stars. Manitoboys were missing all their height and a great tackler and Jackrabbits were without speed and their top QB which left them with Raph or Nico taking snaps. I said in last weeks article it was going to be a long day for Raph at QB and that wasn’t the case. Raph balled out, picking apart a depleted defense, but he can only play against who shows up. Manitoboys have a fantastic roster, but their biggest issue is players showing up and that has been the case all season. All I know is when Nico is scoring 20-yard TDs on you it was either a great play call or a blown coverage and I’d bet on the latter. Leon scored with a few minutes left but when they failed on the 2point convert the game was over at that point as long as Raph was smart with the ball and didn’t turn it over and used up some of the clock and made Manitoboys use their timeouts. I know it’s not fun to just kill the last few minutes of the game and doesn’t look good on the stat sheet, but a win is a win and that’s all that matters, especially when you’re the backup QB. Raph relied heavily on his former teammate Gabe who went off for over 100 yards on 9 catches.

 

Division 4

 

Phoenix vs Mustard Tigers (6-9)

When you see a score like this you automatically think this was a defensive game and you wouldn’t be wrong, especially when you see the stats. Mustard Tigers had 6 sacks, really 5 and a pass that was backwards in the endzone for a safety and 3 picks on defense. Phoenix had 3 sacks and 5 picks. After the game I spoke to Brian and he agreed with me that this was a horrible game and neither team could move the ball and when it did get moved it was a first down maybe two at tops. The way the game started for us on Phoenix, I thought it was going to be a breeze. We stopped Mustard Tigers on the first drive of the game, then we went in and scored with ease, and followed that up with a pick, but then it fell apart for us. We weren’t in tune, running wrong routes, me missing reads, once or twice guys switching spots and that screwing with me. I can tell you that when Brian hit Victor for their only score, he was lucky Victor made a great adjustment on the ball. Victor ran a hook and go, and the single high safety came down on Tom which allowed the pass that was way inside to be caught by Victor. That was all the excitement from this game.

 

Sooners 45 vs GOATS (46-0)

This game was never going to be close. Goats were missing their QB and even with Goldrick filling in it made no difference. Sooners 45 looked like a really good team in this game, but they didn’t have much resistance to go against. Diego didn’t need to use his legs in this game as he spread the ball all over going 20 of 24 for 217 yards and 7 TDs. Sooners didn’t get stopped once on offense and they walked all over GOATS like they weren’t even there. I really don’t know how I felt about this game, ya Sooners looked good, but they played such a bad team that it’s not worth really talking about. With a name like GOATS you expect a team to be great, I’d settle for even good but they are horrible. A name change needs to happen. (ed’s note: they’re an FA team, they could, you know, improve…)

 

Division 5

 

Phoenix vs Bucks (19-6)

This was a fun game to play, but never was Phoenix ever in trouble of losing this game. Bucks are a good fun team to play, but lack size and speed. I originally wasn’t going to play in this game and Joey was going to make his first ever start at QB, but he’s gone away to Tennessee for law school. On his way back to the airport Dave, his lyft driver, said that he had to sit in the back as the front seat was for his Ukelele. Not only did Joey miss his one shot at playing QB, he also got put in the back by a musical instrument. Now back to the game. Phoenix didn’t have much trouble moving the ball and instead of just going to Vince and Khalil all game I spread the ball and got everyone involved. Before the game I told Khalil I was going to get his sister Myriam into the endzone and at one point of the game we were on the 1 yard line and Bucks didn’t rush anyone and I was just sitting there trying to get her the ball as everyone was running around open after about 5 plus seconds Khalil is like this is enough and to just throw the ball which he caught for a 1 yard TD. Pascal had a good game for Bucks, but couldn’t run like she normally does. Early in the game she was going to Kayla and Steve and was moving the ball, but then she got away from that as the game went along. Pascal also had an interception in this game. This team is fun to play against and they are smiling the entire time that they are playing, they have also improved dramatically since week 1 and that’s great for them, hopefully they come back in the fall.

 

Hard Target vs Heisenberg (12-15)

Hard Target looked like they were going to runaway with this game as they jumped out to a 12-2 lead at half. Heisenberg were so bad in the first half that it looked like they had no shot at coming back. Slowly but surely, Ian got Heisenberg going and was able to find the endzone on their first two drives of the second half. What I don’t get is the fact that Morgan didn’t use Jon and Ben more in the second half of the game. I know you might want to spread the ball around and that’s fine, but anytime you need a play the ball should have been going in their direction. A lot of new teams don’t know this, but should. With little time left in the game when you have the ball and you are up, if the other team can’t stop the clock you might want to just end the game. This week Heisenberg had the ball with just under a minute and a half left and Hard Target having no timeouts left they could have ended the game, but on first down threw a pick giving Hard Target another shot at winning the game. Morgan threw up a pass and was lucky that there was pass interference on the play before he hits Ben for a 7-yard gain. With a minute left Morgan has time to drive the last little bit to get the score, but threw a bad pass and it was picked off by Juan and the game was over.

 

There you have this week’s recap, hope you enjoyed. Look out for a special Podcast this week from Terry and Willie.

 

Players of the Week

 

This week we had a few games that were forfeits and that sucks for the player that didn’t get to play their games or even if they did teams just trying new things having fun. I really can’t bring myself to pick a player from a game that was a forfeit unless the game was played and only afterwards was it changed to a forfeit because of CAP violation.

 

Division 1

Offense

- Kevin Smuda had 7 catches for 81 yards and 2 TDs

Defense

- Jonathan Svetna made 2 tackles, had 1 pick and picked off and returned a 1point convert for 1 point which was the difference in the game.

 

Division 2

Offense

- James Langshaw caught 6 passes for 53 yards and 4 TDs.

Defense

- Tameem Riman made 2 tackles and had 2 picks.

 

Division 3

Offense

- Raph Levy was 26 of 37 for 239 yards, 4 TDs, 2 1point convert, 1 2point convert and ran 2 times for 8 yards.

Defense

- Gabriel Laplante had 2 tackles and 1 pick.

 

Division 4

Offense

- Diego Castro Arellano was 20 of 24 for 216 yards, 7 TDs, 2 2point converts and ran 2 times for 20 yards.

Defense

- Tyler Znoj made 6 tackles all 6 were sacks.

 

Division 5

Offense

- Arron Desrochere made 4 catches for 52 yards and 2 TDs.

Defense

- Justin Kocemba made 2 tackles and had 2 picks.

 

There you have it, this week’s winners and remember you only have a few weeks left to get your name into the drawing. Just go out have fun and do your best, all you can do is hope that you do enough to get your name up above in the last 4 weeks. Guess we will all have to wait and see.

Predictions and Power Rankings Week 7

Predictions and Power Rankings Week 7

Kevin Kousaie

Predictions

 

For the first time this year I didn’t get the win. Jon beat me by 1 game and is now in second place overall. This week we are going to be under new rules when we make our picks. We used to have until Friday night at 11:59 to have our picks in and now we must have them in on Wednesday night at 11:59 so that everyone can see the picks we are making.

There have been people who are under the impression that I am cheating on my picks because I have made a few changes from my article picks. I make my picks normally on Tuesday afternoon or Wednesday afternoon and a lot can change by Friday so with new info why shouldn’t I make changes. I think that they are just mad for a few reasons; 1, I’m winning; and 2, because I seem to be smarter than them by using the team’s rosters on Friday night to make my changes. If I was really cheating, don’t you think I’d do it better than the 69% that I am at (ed’s note: If I was cheating, I would definitely make sure I was at 69%). I mean I went 17 of 22 last week and lost, so how am I cheating? 

Now to my picks and like always they are in bold.

 

Division 1

 

Bitter Boys vs Gros Coqs 

I’m not sure if Dom is back up and running yet, but even if he isn’t there, they will have someone decent taking snaps and distributing the ball around.

 

Trollers vs Outlaws

Right now, I have to take Outlaws. I know Steve will have his team, and if not subs, that are able to fill in and hold their own and Trollers right now seem to be always missing at least 1 player.

 

Division 2

 

Marvels vs Nice TDs

I don’t think Nice TDs have any chance in this game and Max should have no issues lighting up the scoreboard.

 

Iron Wolves vs Outlaws

I think this will be another close game, but I just feel that the chemistry that Jon has with his players is better right now. I also feel that after throwing to Demario earlier in the day, Steve throws him at least 1 pick, if not 2.

 

Division 3

 

Manitoboys vs Jackrabbits

 

I was going to take Jackrabbits until I saw they would be without Nico throwing and figured that Raph would have to and with Manitoboys having the players they do on defense, I can see it being a long day for Raph.

 

Panaches vs Iron Wolves

Jon has this team rolling and it helps that they are strong all over the field.

 

Bines vs Thunder Buddies

With Will playing QB and killing it how do I not keep picking them to win?

 

Chiefs vs RawSauce

This one is hard to pick. I feel Chiefs are the better team, but with what happened last week I’m not sure how much of a team they really are and because of that I was going to take RawSauce, but figured Avery is going to come out and prove he is the guy.

 

Division 4

 

Phoenix vs Mustard Tigers NA

I don’t pick my teams games.

 

Sour Peeps vs Cereal Killers 

With the way both these teams play, Cereal Killers should be able to win easily. Unless Sour Peeps have a few studs hidden away this might get ugly and fast.

 

Weakest Link vs Bouchers

Marvin might be the best athlete in this game, but he isn’t a QB. Bouchers have a solid QB in Lukas and the rest of the team is pretty good as well.

 

Canal Club vs Black Diamonds

I just played Black Diamonds and I have seen Canal Club play before and I can tell you Lesniak will be sacked at least 3 times and throw 2 picks just because of the pressure from Francois.

 

Flamingos vs Super Friends

Now we finally get to see who Chris will cheer for in this game. Both teams are very similar and both have a few good pieces to work with, but for me I have to give a slight edge to Super Friends only because Jacob is a better QB than Dimitri.

 

GOATS vs Sooners 45

I haven’t seen GOATS play yet this season, but what I know is that they are still figuring it out. Diego should be able to use his legs all game if he wants to and that’s why they will win.

 

Division 5

 

Hard Target vs Heisenberg

Last week was the first time Heisenberg came with a full team and not sure it will happen again this week, but by now Hard Target have an understanding of the game and should be able to pull this one off in a close came.

 

Cyclones vs Los Pollitos

No one on Los Pollitos will be able to stop Lazar, so Yann will just keep throwing it up to him all game long is what would have happened if Lazar was there. I still think that Yann figures out a way to get it done with the roster that he will have.

 

Improbables vs Mimosa Crew

I would have picked Mimosa to win, but Curren won’t be there this week and they are looking for a QB and you never know who you might get. After 2 weeks of playing QB, Mathieu plays well and wins the game by 2 scores.

 

Phoenix vs Bucks NA

I don’t pick my teams games.

 

Titans vs Drama Club

I know Drama Club is the better team, but it looks like they are missing players so Simon will have a hard time in this game. Titans aren’t a horrible team, but they need to be smart with the ball to have a chance in this one. The matchup to watch is Austin and Quentin. I know this might be a bold pick, but sometimes you just know.

 

Knight Triangles vs Remplacants

I have Knight Triangles as having a slight edge in this game and this being a really close game.

 

I’m done with my picks for this week and you should get to see who everyone else in the media picked in this week’s article most likely at the bottom where Jon has been adding the standings. Good luck to everyone this week and remember it’s for fun so just go enjoy yourself, unless I picked your team to win then I expect to see you diving and killing yourself to make every play.

 

Power Rankings

 

With only a few weeks left in the season doing my rankings in some divisions is getting easier and easier each week as teams start to pull away from each other. After a bunch of important games last week I will be making a few adjustments to this week’s rankings.

 

Division 1

#1- Centurions

#2- Outlaws

#3- A-Team (Changed logo to the van from the TV show)

 

Division 2

#1- Iron Wolves

#2- Redzone

#3- Outlaws

 

Division 3

#1- Jagerbomb

#2- Idaho Udapimps

#3- Thunder Buddies

#4- Manitoboys

#5- Bines

 

Division 4

#1- Canal Club

#2- Mustard Tigers

#3- Bouchers

#4- Flamingos

#5- Super Friends

 

Division 5

#1- Phoenix

#2- Knight Triangles

#3- Remplacants

#4- Cyclones

#5- Drama Club

 

There you have my rankings for this week. I know if I did my reveal live on the Podcast, Terry and Will might make a few arguments and it could last a few hours, but at the end of the day they are pretty spot on and these are my rankings.

 

Final Thoughts

 

It’s looking like a hot one this weekend which is going to suck, but it is a long weekend. With it being St-Jean this Friday I won’t be surprised to see to see players showing up late and being hungover. The good thing about this week’s games is that there are no 5pm games so everyone can get back home and start drinking again. I’m glad it will be a bit of a shorter day for me and give me a chance to go out at a reasonable hour once I get home. With the hot weather this weekend, let me remind you all now to bring and drink plenty of water so you don’t die from dehydration. Marvin don’t call me dad just because I own him on the field, it’s because I look out after everyone while we are out at the field.

Last thing, just a reminder that we are all here playing a game to have fun, so go have fun, enjoy yourself, and be safe.

 

Word from the Mouth: A Lovely Bunch of Ladies! edition

Word from the Mouth: A Lovely Bunch of Ladies! edition

Kevin Kousaie

This season has been far from the best conditions we have had, with only a few weeks back where we had that ridiculous wind. This week we had rain, but not as much as I was expecting and let’s not forget about the first few weeks where it was hot and the field was hard as a rock.

That was on Saturday. Sunday in Brossard was beautiful except for a few big gusts of wind and having to deal with those rowdy 28-3 guys once they ran out of beer.

This past weekend was Grand Prix and caused traffic to and from the games, but luckily for me I only had to deal with a little bit of it on Sunday and not many of the games, if any, were delayed from it.

This weekend we had a few teams forfeit games for not showing up and for breaking cap. I know that if you give plenty of notice that yes, the forfeit will still take place, but it might not cost you and your team the 160 deposit your team had to put down. That is if Jon has time to find players to fill in for that game, but its not guaranteed. Everyone paid to play 10 games and want their stats for 10 games, so everyone needs to show up and play their games.

We play for fun and exercise and that means playing in the heat, rain, and snow and here in the MFL we have played in all these before. If I was the team that got the forfeit, I’d be pissed about it, unless it was pouring rain and horrible conditions, then I’m glad I don’t have to play. I also think that if two teams are tied and one of those teams had to forfeit a game then it should count against them. I know that won’t happen, but it should be used as the first tie breaker even before head-to-head.

 

Recap

 

Division 1

 

This week I will skip covering D1 since Terry was there refereeing 2 of the 3 games and the other game was ended early because of an injury. Dom, I hope you feel better and that the injury wasn’t too serious.

 

Division 2

 

Nice TDs vs Redzone (12-33)

After a huge game last week from Nice TDs, this week was a struggle. Last week Nice TDs mixed it up by using 2 QBs, this week they were stuck with none and Lazar stepped in and threw for the team. Lazar might be a good athlete, but he isn’t a QB and is just learning the game this year. Redzone went out and dominated the first half of the game with ease, Mike was picking apart the Nice TDs defense like it wasn’t even there. Redzone had 5 possessions in the first half and scored each time. In the second half Mike, was going short, eating clock not trying to run up the score and get players hurt. Thomas was the only player who was able to do anything for Nice TDs and that cant be the case if they want a chance to win any more games this season.

 

Division 3

 

Idaho Udapimps vs Bines (25-19)

 

I know very little from this game, but what I do know is that Brady no longer feels the pressure to score 40 points a game and that Bines are a solid team. This week Simon was back for Bines and should be there the rest of the season and most people would think he would go back to QB, but that won’t be happening since David is a good QB still learning the game, plus Simon might not be there next season so getting David as many reps as possible is what is best for the team down the road. As for Idaho, over the winter Brady struggled because of crap defense. Now let me explain why I say that. When your defense can’t get stops and are giving up points like it’s government money, as a QB you try to do more than you can or should. At one point or another all QBs have all been through that. This season Idaho has a good defense and Brady is being smart with the ball knowing he doesn’t have to score on every drive to have a chance to win. After Bines scored to tie it at 19 with 3:30 left in the game, Brady could have tried to go deep and score quick like he would have last season, but he knew the game was tied and he didn’t necessarily need to score if he controlled the clock, so he went short a few time and used up the clock before finding his safety blanket Kyle for the 2 yard score with under 30 seconds left. On what turned out to be the last play of the game Simon threw a pass that was picked off by Kyle to seal the victory for Idaho.

 

Jackrabbits vs Chiefs (25-0)

 

Chiefs were missing players from the start and had two options to pick from: first, get subs at the field and the game be an automatic forfeit; or two, wait for their players to show up and we start the clock and add 6 points at the beginning of the game and every 5 minutes afterwards. They chose to play with spares from the field, so the game was a forfeit. In the first half Jackrabbits were having fun, but got up 12-6. At half time Avery the QB for Chiefs was leaving since he had other things to do. After a few minutes of talking and Steve being a nice guy, decided that everyone else wanted to finish the game, so Steve went QB for Chiefs. This is when the game got ugly. Steve was able to score on every drive in the second half and had no trouble at all doing it. Jackrabbits on the other hand had trouble doing anything. My bet would be they phoned in the second half after already knowing they won the game.

 

Division 4

 

Phoenix vs Black Diamonds (28-18)

 

This should never have been even a game that was this close. Black Diamonds on their opening drive got a third and 10 from their 5 yard-line that went for a score after Phoenix missed a few tackles that would have prevented the first down and forced them to punt. Phoenix answered that with a score of their own to make it a 7-6 game and then both teams started to play defense and nothing else happened in the first half. Second half started with Phoenix having the ball and after a few plays of nothing happening there was a little miscommunication between me and Rob where I was throwing it quickly into the hole because I saw the safety off and he thought it was going to be over the top because he saw the safety shoot down which led to Carlos picking the ball off and returning it for a score. That was the wake-up call that got me going. Our next possession was a 10-play drive capped off by a TD from Chris diving low between two defenders to get the ball. I knew this game was ours. Then the defense of Phoenix picked Lesniak off on his first throw afterwards. Once we punched that possession in for another score, Phoenix was up 9 points. Black Diamonds had started to put a drive together and it looked like they might score until Manuel picked Lesniak off for the second time of the game. A few plays later Phoenix punted after using some clock up and it didn’t take Lesniak long before giving Phoenix the ball back. Phoenix scored and went up 16 points with very little time left. Phoenix played soft defense to not allow any big plays, so Black Diamonds were able to score but had no time to try and continue the comeback.

 

Super Friends vs Sooners 45 (12-18)

 

I know nothing about this game other than Jacob wasn’t there at QB for Super Friends, so Alex filled in and with that they lost their best offensive weapon. Sooners 45 were only able to score 18 points and gave up 12 to a depleted team, so my take away from this game is that Sooners 45 aren’t that good and it’s more impressive that Super Friends kept it that close.

 

Flamingos vs Weakest link (14-13) OT

 

This was a game that I only got to see the OT of and after about 13 or 14 attempt someone was finally able to get it in for the win. This game had no offense in it at all, both QBs stunk, Marvin couldn’t run, and the defense were equally as bad. Both teams couldn’t catch if their life depended on it.

 

Bouchers vs Airborne (37-18)

 

Once again Airborne doesn’t want to catch balls. This week there must have been at least 5 easy drops and that might be being nice. What I know is that Guillaume is dealing with a shoulder issue and Benoit started the game taking reps at QB before Guillaume took over. Bouchers have been hit or miss this season. They either play well or they come out and stink the place up. This week they showed up. Lukas had no issues finding holes in the defense all game long. At half the game was close and I was thinking ‘great we get to see two good teams go at it’ and then all of a sudden, the game wasn’t so close, and I wanted it to end. Xavier and Felix were the two players making all the plays for Bouchers and I’m not sure why an adjustment wasn’t made. If Bouchers can come out like this every week, then they can’t be overlooked, but until they prove it no one will take them seriously. Airborne is one of those teams that you think are good until you play them, and you realize they run the same few plays and are very overrated.

 

Division 5

 

Heisenberg vs Phoenix (0-29)

 

This was a never a game that was ever close and was an easy game for Phoenix. For the first time all season I think Heisenberg didn’t need any subs, so good job to you guys for getting your team out to play this week. The biggest issue with Heisenberg is their play calling. I think they ran the ball with a RB 4 or 5 times in the game and never when they were in a good position, always when they were inside their 5-yardline. In this game Phoenix did a good job of getting everyone involved on the offense. Veronique had a big game with 6 catches and 45 yards, Gab had a long TD run after a short catch and this week Myriam was able to catch 2 balls and wasn’t afraid of the defenders once she caught the ball, maybe it was because her boyfriend the police officer was there looking out for her. Heisenberg aren’t a bad team they just need some direction.

 

Bucks vs Titans (6-24)

 

Each week Bucks keep getting better and better. Last week Jon gave them some coaching tips and helped them out and this week you could see the improvement. Titans had a new QB this week and Tomy was showing off those guns when he tried to go deep. Tomy was a very effective QB spreading the ball all over and have the defense on their toes not knowing where he was going with the ball. I will say that Austin in the second half was playing very little in this game knowing that he was a little bit better than the team he was playing against, so he took it easy and allowed other guys to play and make plays. For Bucks, Pascal is a good runner and she doe have a nice ball when she throws it, but the problem with Bucks is them catching the ball consistently. The Ladies are a very nice bunch of women who have lots of fun and enjoying themselves and that’s what matters.

 

There you have it, this week’s recaps. I know I couldn’t cover all the teams, but I also know Will and Terry were there most of the day and got to see lots of games, so tune into MFL Access on Wednesday to see what they have to say.

 

Players of the Week

 

We are more than half way through the season and everyone is stepping up their game, hoping to make my list and help put their team into the playoff, if they’re not already there. This week I had a few hard picks to make and not everyone could make my list, but you still have a few weeks left. Now to this week’s winners.

 

Division 1

 

Offense

- Austin Thibault made 6 catches for 130 yards and 2 TDs.

Defense

- Hinsley Adams made 5 tackles and 3 sacks.

 

Division 2

 

Offense

- Vincent Deziel caught 7 passes for 50 yards and 4 TDs.

Defense

- Adam Rudick 2 tackles both sacks.

 

Division 3

 

Offense

- Willie Power went 33 of 41 for 343 yards, 9 TDs 1 1point convert, 1 2point convert, ran once for 5 yards and threw 1 pick.

Defense

- Alexandre Szaplipski made 3 tackles and had 2 picks.

 

Division 4

 

Offense

- Lukas Drouin was 19 of 35 for 223 yards, 6 TDs and 1 1point convert.

Defense

- Thomas Trepanier had 2 picks and returned 1 for a TD.

 

Division 5

 

Offense

- Tomy Sicotte was 15 of 21 for 237 yards and 4 TDs.

Defense

- Khalil Agrebi made 7 tackles 6 of them were sacks.

 

There you have my picks for this week. Congratulations to all my winners and if I didn’t pick you that doesn’t mean you didn’t ball out, it just means someone else balled a little bit harder. With just a few weeks left if you want a chance to win my prize at the end of the year, you first need to ball out hard and make my list. After that it’s a draw, so the more you ball and make my list, the better your chances.

Predictions and Power Rankings Week 6

Predictions and Power Rankings Week 6

Kevin Kousaie

Predictions

 

For the first time this season I didn’t win this week picks. I tied with Terry at 67% of games picked right. At the halfway point of the season Will has finally got his score over 50% and are we every proud of him, he is doing better than a coin flip. We should all be watching out for him as he is a second half guy who plans on coming back. I really doubt that, but he will be happy to not finish last.

At this point of the season, I am sitting at 74 and 36 after going 14 of 22 last week. Here are this week’s picks and like always my picks are in bold.

 

Division 1

 

Centurions vs Bitter Boys

Bitter Boys aren’t built to compete with these young kids, don’t be surprised to see Centurions running circles around the old guys.

 

Outlaws vs Gros Coqs

Even without Svetna being there this week, Outlaws will win in a close game. Gros Coqs will have a hard time trying to stop Smuda.

 

A-Team vs Trollers

I think A-Team will try and get back at Trollers for last week, but I just feel with all of the Trollers weapons back this week it will be too much for A-Team.

 

Division 2

 

Tannantes vs Marvels

I was going to go with Tannantes, but then I saw they were going to be missing players and had a sub or two playing so I went with Marvels figuring that they should have a little more chemistry.

 

Nice TDs vs Redzone

Last week was like the Superbowl for Nice TDs and they have nowhere to go but down and down they will go, at least this week.

 

Iron Wolves vs Outlaws

I wanted to pick Iron Wolves, but Outlaws will have their full roster and I think they are a tad bit better, plus by 3:30 Will would have eaten a few slices of pizza and I might be driving him back to the field so we might get lost along the way or stuck in traffic.

 

Division 3

 

Manitoboys vs RawSauce

I was about to pick RawSauce to win because I figured Antoine was going to get after Loen and get into his head, which is still going to happen, but I went Manitoboys because I know they will show up and I cant say the same for RawSauce.

 

Idaho Udapimps vs Bines

Idaho is just too explosive and unless Brady is having an off day, I can’t see how they lose this game.

 

Jagerbomb vs Old School

I’m going Jagerbomb because I feel they are the better team. The only issue I have is the last few weeks I have picked against Old School and they have won. I guess I have to stick with who I feel is the better team, but if Old School wins I will take them the rest of the year.

 

Thunder Buddies vs Panaches

I think the connection with Will and Rob is too strong and once you add in the rest of the roster, Thunder Buddies are just too good.

 

Jackrabbits vs Chiefs

I’m taking them because Nico is a better QB and when you have a guy like JC that can and will outrun everyone on the other team it makes them hard to stop.

 

Average Joes vs Iron Wolves

I think Average Joes get back going this week and win convincingly.

 

Division 4

 

Phoenix vs Black Diamonds NA

I don’t pick my teams games.

 

GOATS vs Sour Peeps

GOATS pulled one off last week against a better team, so I don’t see why they wont win again this week.

 

Sooners 45 vs Super Friends

Jacob is probably the best QB in the division and shouldn’t have much trouble picking apart this defense. All Super Friends needs to do is stop Diego from running and the game should be easy for them.

 

Flamingos vs Weakest link

I’m taking Flamingos since they are the better team and have a legitimate QB, who can’t only run but make passes as well.

 

Airborne vs Bouchers

I just have to assume that all the drops last week was a fluke and this week they catch the ball and win games.

 

Canal Club vs Mustard Tigers

I think Mustard Tigers are the better team, but I know Francois is the best player on the field and will make a huge impact on the game.

 

Division 5

 

Heisenberg vs Phoenix NA

I don’t pick my own teams games.

 

Knight Triangles vs Mimosa Crew

Tyler is going to be all over Curren all day and not allow him to run.

 

Improbables vs Hard Target

They have way more experience and should be able to win this one in a close game.

 

Titans vs Bucks

They have more height and should be faster which will give them a huge advantage.

 

Drama Club vs Cyclones

I wanted to go Drama Club, but Simon has been sucking recently and Cyclones might be missing 2 players and one is their QB, but Jon will get them a good QB to replace Yann and Cyclones will win the game. It also helps that Lazar will get at least 2 picks in this game.

 

Los Politos vs Remplacants

They are a much stronger team and should be able to win with ease.

 

There you have it my picks for this week. I hope you all have read this far and want to help me out, I would appreciate it. I want to wish everyone good luck this week.

 

Power Rankings

 

The season is half over and now that I have seen most teams play this season my rankings should be getting closer to where teams should acutely be ranked, and I can use the eye test if I think its close between two teams. My rankings won’t be perfect, but most people will agree that they are pretty close.

 

Division 1

#1- Centurions

#2- Outlaws

#3- Trollers

 

Division 2

#1- Iron Wolves

#2- Tannantes

#3- Outlaws

 

Division 3

#1- Jagerbomb

#2- Idaho Udapimps

#3- Bines

#4- Average Joes

#5- Old School

 

Division 4

#1- Mustard Tigers

#2- Canal Club

#3- Super Friends

#4- Flamingos

#5- Airborne

 

Division 5

#1- Phoenix

#2- Cyclones

#3- Knight Triangles

#4- Remplacants

#5- Mimosa Crew

 

Out of all the divisions 5 was the only one I didn’t make changes to. There were a few hard picks I had to make and I’m not completely sold on the some of my picks, but the way some teams have been playing they couldn’t stay on the list. Let’s also not forget that one big win wont get you on the list. You need to win a few to be considered, but a big loss can get you kicked from the list very easily.

 

Final Thoughts

 

I don’t have much to say here (ed’s note: *checks length of remaining text* “The lie detector determined… that was a lie”), but I will like always say something.

With the NFL having mini camps and OTA the season is only a few more month away. I know some people look forward to the preseason, but that’s only for fans of teams that suck and they feel they can judge the season from that. You can’t.

Let’s not forget Cleveland went 4-0 back in 2017 and ended the season at 0-16. With that first overall pick that year they drafted Baker Mayfield, who was supposed to be the future of the team. That was true until Cleveland did a Browns move and traded for Deshaun Watson, paid him all this money, and now are stuck with 2 QBs that won’t play this season for them. Watson will be suspended for trying to get a few (26 & counting) happy endings from his massages and Baker wants nothing to do with the team other than collect the 18.9 million owed to him. Cleveland is snuggled, at least for now, but the fans at least know it, unlike Cowboys fans who know that next year is their year. The NFL has become so soft these days with their suspensions and all the rule changes, soon the game will become flag, just watch, and see. (ed’s note: I’ve been hearing this nonsense since the 90s and it’s just that, nonsense).

 

Word from the Mouth: Snuggle Bunny! edition

Word from the Mouth: Snuggle Bunny! edition

Kevin Kousaie

After a week off, Terry was back out training new refs and scorekeepers on Saturday at Le Ber. I can tell you with us having 2 locations to play at we still need more refs and scorekeepers so that we don’t have them running back and forth. It makes it tough to get games going at the right times without refs being there. We also seem to be having this issue with a few teams waiting on players or subs. To me if you are 6 players and waiting on someone else to show up from the other field the game should start on time, but after talking about it, it has been decided that the games will start a few minutes later.

I know maybe finding parking is an issue, but I will give you all a tip just this once. If when you arrive at Arthur Therrien and the parking lot is full you can normally find parking on the street, but the last few weeks the street has be closed and its is only one lane each way. Now pay close attention, here is the tip. If you are in the parking lot and it is full, turn right when you leave the parking lot and drive until you reach the lights by Canadian tire turn right and you will find parking behind the school by the baseball fields, and its free not like the parking they set up near the hospital.

That is my tip for the week and a reminder if you want to learn how to ref or be a score keeper, we are always looking for more people.

 

Week 6 Recap

 

Division 1

 

Centurions vs Outlaws (38-36)

Steve was out this week for Outlaws and had Mike from Redzone fill in and he did a fantastic job. With Outlaws still in a sort of limbo state dealing with injuries, it was tough to know who was going to show up for them. Smuda was back which meant AJ was out. Centurions were able to keep it close in the first half, scoring as the time expired, good thing Steve wasn’t there as everyone knows how much he hates when that happens. Second half Centurions kept matching score for score with Outlaws. After Smuda scored a huge 45-yard TD halfway through the first half that was it for Outlaws. Centurions were down 11 at this point, and you’d figure the game should be over, once Mike and Outlaws got the ball back, they would chew the clock. Centurions were able to score with 6 minutes left then had to rely on their defense to step up and get them the ball back. Francis stepped up with 2 huge sacks and forced Outlaws to punt after Mike was able to use up most of the clock leaving under 2 minutes for Gabriel and his offense. Instead of taking that one big shot down field, Gabriel just took the underneath all the way down and on the last play of the game found Yvan for the game winner.

 

Division 2

 

Nice TDs vs Tannantes (31-19)

 

In what must be the biggest upset in MFL history (ed’s note: and predicted by my Bold Prediction!), Nice TDs were big underdogs and even in the coin toss I was joking with Ben that we would spot them 40 and I told the captain from Tannantes not to worry because they were still going to win by 40 so it was fine. Nice TDs did what I thought was a dumb move by rotating QBs each possession, but it seemed to pay off as you got a different play call and a different set of skills, so it kept the defense off guard. This was the first time all season that Nice TDs had their complete roster for a game, so is this a thing to come for these guys. Offensively no one other than Francois from Nice TDs showed up to play. On defense both teams had guys making plays and what changed the game was the pick 6 by Thomas early in the first half. I know that Phil wasn’t there this week, but the way Nice TDs came out and played they weren’t going to lose even if he was there.

 

Division 3

 

Bines vs Manitoboys (18-6)

After the way Leon played last week, this week started the same way or at least the second drive did (ed’s note: so literally did not start the same way…). This game was not filled with much action and we had lots of drops and incomplete passes. At half it was 6-6 and could have gone either way in the second half (ed’s note: obviously…). I was hoping that one of the teams would have made a few adjustments at half and the second half would be more exciting, but neither team did. The one thing that stuck out to me was Leon. It seemed like him and his receivers weren’t on the page, he only hit 3 of his receivers or at least only 3 of them caught passes for him. Simon was out this week for Bines, but he didn’t do much for them. Alex was there to sub, and he caught everything that was thrown his way.

 

Old School vs Average Joes (24-13)

I, like most people, would never have thought that this would happen, at least not on Friday. I know Dahic was injured a few weeks back and wasn’t expected to play until next week, and you had to assume Joes would have everyone available to play, but they ended up missing a few players and it really showed. Normally when I see a score like this from Average Joes its because Jason threw a bunch of picks and just couldn’t get things going. That wasn’t the case this week, he put up yards and scores and only threw 1 pick. What I did notice was that Average Joes couldn’t keep a drive going, it took until their third drive to get a catch. After the game I asked Dahic how they won the game and he led by said because I picked against them and then said that even though he was hurt he didn’t force the ball deep and used the short game to gain yards and eat clock. When Dahic is healthy he likes to take shots down field, but this was a very smart strategy and it paid off for them.

 

Division 4

 

Super Friends vs Phoenix (47-21)

I won’t talk long about my game this week if that is what you want to call it. Super Friends came out on fire scoring on all but one drive in this game. Jacob just picked our defense apart. Phoenix was able to move the ball, but I threw too many interceptions. Here is when the game changed, Super Friends were up by 6 after Phoenix got their only stop of the game, we moved the ball inside the redzone and were looking to tie the game at 27. Rob had mentioned that a post-chair would be open and to throw it to the back corner. I did that, but the corner Oliver never bit on the out and stepped back and managed to jump up, picked the ball off, and stayed in bounds. That was the play that changed the entire game. After that Super Friends scored after a few plays and then Phoenix had to start trying to take shots, but by then it was too late the game was out of reach.

 

Canal Club vs Cereal Killers (28-14)

To start the game Cereal Killers were missing a player and were only 5 players. I asked Canal Club what they wanted to do if they wanted to play 5 on 5 or play 6 on 5 and they decided to play 6 on 5 for the first half until Cereal Killer’s player showed up. I’m not sure what I would have done, but most likely played 5 this way it was at least fair. (ed’s note: I mean, you’re paying to play 6 on the field, so I would say the onus is on the team to show up with 6).

Cereal Killers had their hands full in this one. They tried rushing Francois and playing 4 on the back end and that really didn’t work since he avoided the rusher like he wasn’t even there and Francois was able to find the open player easily. I think if they hadn’t rushed and were able to stay in their zones, Cereal Killers would have been better off on defense at least. George didn’t play bad at QB, but they were short players and that made a big difference in this game. This was the first time I got to see Canal Club play and they are a good team. Francois can run like no one else in this division and he ran 4 times for 83 yards and 2 TDs. I did notice a few things about Canal Club, but I don’t want to ruin it for everyone else, plus if I told you how to beat them, they would know as well and have plenty of time to correct the issue before I might have to play them in the playoffs.

 

Airborne vs Weakest Link (6-7)

I’m going to make this very short and right to the point. Weakest Link won because Marvin ran the ball, he over threw his players all game long on deep routes. Airborne lost this week not because of Guillaume, but because they couldn’t catch balls that were right in their hands all day. At the end of the game Airborne scored and went for 1 and it was no good and if I remember correctly a defender did get a hand on the ball to knock it away.

 

Division 5

 

Remplacants vs Phoenix (25-31)

This game was all over the place. To start the game Remplacants went up 12 points and looked to be running away with it. Phoenix woke up and got things moving after that. When Phoenix got the ball with 7 minutes left, I was thinking to use up the clock and score and make it close at half and figure it out what to do for the second half. We ended up scoring with under a minute left and figured we just couldn’t give up and big plays right before half. On what should have been the second to last play of the half Pierre threw a pass that ended up in the hands of Kat and that gave Phoenix 1 play before half. I called my play looking for a jump ball in the middle of the endzone, but I happened to see Dave open at the front cone so I threw it his way and he caught the ball to tie it at 12. Instead of being down at half we were tied. Second half, Remplacants continued to struggle moving the ball and Phoenix was walking up and down the field like there was no one there. We scored on our next two possessions to make it 24-12 Phoenix. It looked like this one was pretty much over, until Remplacants scored. With ten minutes or so left in the game I knew if we scored again the game was over. We moved the ball all the way to the 6-yard line where Brandon make his second pick of the day. Before the play Dave says “no picks”. I was rolling out right and was looking to run, but when I got close to the line Dave had crept out behind Brandon who had stepped up, but only about a foot and I tried to lay a soft pass up behind him thinking there was more room, but Brandon stepped back, jumped to pick the ball off, and was able to get both feet down on the two-yard line before going out. Pierre now had the ball and knew he needed to score. Pierre drove down the field taking a few yards at a time until they found the endzone. Now for the lead on the convert Pierre looks one way and comes back the other way to find Leonidas for the convert and the lead. It is now up to Phoenix to find the endzone for the win with under 3 minutes left. We complete a short pass to Samuel who made a player or two miss on his way to a big gain. After a few more plays Phoenix was in the redzone and looking to take the lead and win the game. I was able to find sure handed Dave for his second score of the game. Now with just a few seconds left I had a choice to make go for 1 and make it a 6-point lead or 2 and it the lead would be 7 points. I went for 1 knowing that Remplacants hadn’t been goods on converts all day. Kat got the convert and on the last play of the game when Pierre threw it up and Samuel picked it off and could have taken it to the house, but took a knee to end the game.

 

Improbables vs Knight Triangles (14-31)

Knight Triangles were in control of this game the whole time. I just want to point out that after a few weeks of the season Improbables is onto another QB. They went from Charles to Mathieu and the reasoning is that Charles doesn’t want to throw anymore. I feel that this could be a good move for them since Charles is a better receiver than Mat, but Mat seems to be the better QB or at least after 1 game.

 

Cyclones vs Titians (39-0)

This was a blowout and not even really a game. At half of this game Kevin came up to ask me if Cyclones were allowed to have a sub even if they were over cap. I said that they were allowed based off the conversations we have had about it as the committee, but I agreed with him that it was not cool that they were allowed to do what they did, but I’m not the commissioner and I don’t make the rule, I just enforce them.

 

Mimosa Crew vs Heisenberg (28-20)

Curren had pointed out that it wasn’t cool that he was essentially playing Cyclones for a second time this season. I told him that it was allowed because Heisenberg were missing a bunch of players. At the end of the day Mimosa Crew still ended up winning so it wasn’t a big deal, but I get it and would have been pissed if I was Mimosa Crew and we had lost.

 

There you have this week’s recaps. If you want more news look for Terry and Will on MFL Access tomorrow around 6pm.

 

Player of the Week

 

At the halfway point of the season everyone one is making it harder and harder to pick my winners with the way you all are playing. I know people are wondering if you sub can you win player of the week. I don’t like to do it and will probably never do it, but there is that freak chance that you kill it and or everyone else sucking that week, but generally I prefer to give it to players that are on the team they balled out on. Here are this week’s winners and let me say now sorry to all the players who subbed and balled out none of you won this week.

 

Division 1

Offense

- Samuel Collette grabbed 9 passes for 77 yards and 3 TDs.

Defense

- Francois Huot-Locas made 3 tackles which were all sacks.

 

Division 2

Offense

- Francois Rochette 8 catches for 72 yards, 3 TDs and 1 1point convert.

Defense

- Thomas Iribarren made 1 tackle, had 2 picks and ran 1 back for 6 points.

 

Division 3

Offense

- Rob White caught 7 passes for 137 yards and 4 TDs.

Defense

- James Nguyen made 1 tackle, had 2 picks and ran 1 back for 6 points.

 

Division 4

Offense

- Jacob Morin was 21 of 28 for 207 yards, 6 TDs, 3 1point converts and 1 2point convert.

Defense

- John-Anthony Neemeh had 1 tackle and 3 picks.

 

Division 5

Offense

- Kat Blondin had 6 catches for 53 yards, 2 TDs and 1 1point convert.

Defense

- Quentin Leduc made 1 tackle, had 3 picks and returned 1 for 6.

 

There you have this week’s winners. With 6 more weeks you still have a chance to get your name in the drawing for a prize at the end of the season. Every time you win player of the week you get your name in the drawing and I don’t care if you work for the league or in Jon’s case you run and own the league, everyone has a chance to win, except for me since I won’t put myself as player of the week and I have been playing like a snuggle bunny all season.

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Montreal Flag Football League
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Laval
Winter Div 1
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