Last Place Wisdom: Week 11 - Time for a Throwback

The hardest part about writing the blog each week is being inspired to come up with a hook that turns the post from a basic recap to something more memorable. Sometimes it doesn't happen and you get a post like last week, other times I watch "my boy" kick someone in the face and use that as my key point for the week. John encouraged me to step my game up this week, and as I watched my fantasy week unfold, only one thing came to mind: "I've made a huge mistake". Those of you familiar with Arrested Development know exactly what I'm talking about, so I thought why not go with an old school, throwback, AD themed blog. What's better than to reminisce about a glorious time where I was 9-2 and on a 7 game winning streak, rather than currently sitting in 5th off a 2 game losing streak (John might disagree with me about it being better to live in the past, although I'm sure Andrew is on my side.)

Well it might not be a throwback as far as 1979, but as far as I'm aware at least we didn't have to be afraid of the muffin man in 2013

To be fair, this week didn't involve me making a huge mistake (like leaving Brandon Marshall on my bench), just a lot of little ones leading to a frustrating loss. In literally every position where I could be expected to have a decision about who to play (Brown, Lacy and Marshall were no brainers) I made the wrong call. Start Miller, Mason or Bell over Jennings....I win. Start Matthews or Floyd over Hopkins...I win. Start Rivera over Allen...I win. Heck, even Sturgis or Carpenter (the other options I considered at Kicker) over Graham would've given me the win. Like I said, it's frustrating to think about what could have been. While the win would have been nice, I still have a good chance at the playoffs which is where I am focused these days, so if I'm going to make the right calls I'll save it for Week 14.

In other news, Mike, Dawson and Andrew won big games that are making things interesting, while Stan and Aaron continue their freefall out of the playoffs. The playoff picture is starting to make itself clear, and I think it's time to reflect on how we got here, with a little help from GOB.

While someone might decide to focus on the good calls that have determined how things have shook out, focusing on the huge mistake's we've made seems more fun. So without further ado, here we go

What are the Chances - Injuries to Curt's RBs probably is the biggest culprit to blame here, which is impossible to predict and tough to qualify as a huge mistake. I probably have to go with his selection of Russell Wilson in the first round as his huge mistake, even though Wilson has been fantastic. He probably could've had Lynch in the 1st and Wilson in the 2nd and would've been much better off for it.

I am like the U in the 80s - This one is pretty obvious to me, and that's Doug Martin with his earliest pick. I would've been tempted to take Martin with one of my early picks as well, which is crazy to think about when looking back at how horrible Martin has been.

NINERS - This is a little outside of his control, since RB would have been his strength until Peterson got suspended and Ball got hurt. His huge mistake was probably not getting more RB depth on his team, as he didn't take another one till Williams with his last pick. That definitely hurt him, along with not getting a true star at WR.

RW Throws a Sexy Deep Bomb - I don't think Andrew's mistakes are necessarily responsible for why he's struggled this year. I think his biggest mistake was his earlier trade with John where he gave up Demariyus Thomas. From what I can determine, this cost Andrew at least 1 win and is the difference between being in and out of the playoffs right now. Andy Dalton could also qualify here, as it would've helped Andrew to take a high upside #3 rather than have to rely on Dalton each week.

BISP - CJ Spiller and Ray Rice, although Mike's entire draft could probably qualify here. Looking back at it, it's pretty amazing that Mike is currently in the playoffs considering how horribly his draft went. He deserves credit for turning his season around with smart waiver wire pickups.

The Keith-glorious Basterds - It's hard for me to be objective about my own team, so if any readers have a huge mistake of mine they'd like to nominate in the comments, be my guest. Trusting Zac Stacy certainly hurt me, rather than keeping Gronkowski, but coming off last year I'd probably do it again. 

oh that's nasty - Not taking Marshawn Lynch could qualify here, but I understand Dawson's decision making. 2 things really stand out, Dawson's decision to keep Tavon Austin and rolling out Toby Gerhardt week after week. RB is still Dawson's weak point and not grabbing more guys off the waiver wire could come back to bite him.

The Fear Boners - It will take the playoffs to determine if trading Rivers for Brees is a mistake like I originally said on the blog. Dropping Carson Palmer would have been his huge mistake, but he got bailed out by his injury. Not a lot of huge mistakes for the guy who's scored the most in the league.

Sideliners - Steve had a pretty bad draft looking back at things, as other than Sanders none of his picks really worked out. Thankfully for him, he has some of the best keepers in the league which has made up for his mistakes in the draft. It's scary to think how good his team could be if he didn't blow picks on Gore, Andre Johnson or V.Jax. 

NFL Owener - 1st in the league and ready to roll into the playoffs, it's tough to pick out a huge mistake. He might've whiffed on a few draft picks, but nothing major. So for Shayne, I'm going to point out a potential huge mistake that might happen. Having to start Eli Manning or Brian Hoyer in the playoffs might be a huge mistake, time will tell

Mr.Manager of the Week Award

This is a tough week to give this award. Mike made a good move picking up and playing Alfred Blue, but given his roster it was a bit of a no brainer (Shayne deserves anti-manager of the week points for dropping him for Hillman, whose injury sounds worse than initially thought). Jordan Matthews was a good call for me to pick up, so was Steve's pick up of Crowell. Dawson ignored my advice and stuck with Helu, which wasn't a bad call (turns out Kenny Britt would've been the best. Go figure).

Random Thoughts

Have I said that I hate the TE position? Because I hate the TE position.

Anyways, here how the playoffs could break down. The top 4 teams have locked in. I need one more win to lock up my own playoff spot. Mike can clinch if he wins out, meanwhile if he wins 1 of 2, and either Andrew, Stan or Aaron win their last 2, it will come down to a Points For tiebreaker to determine the 6th seed. If Mike loses both, then Andrew, Stan and Aaron can make it with only one or 2 wins. Andrew has the inside track in any tiebreaker, but not by a huge margin.

Curt is playing for next year.

Trade deadline is on Wednesday of this week. I have no idea if we'll see any trades before the deadline or not.

Week 10 Preview

The Keith-glorius Basterds vs What are the Chances –I'd love to get a win here and stop having to worry about my playoff positioning. No Antonio Brown for me this week, and I have to hope Matt Stafford has a better game that last week. Tough QB matchups for Curt.

oh that's nasty vs BISP – Two fairly evenly matched teams jostling for playoff position. Mike catches Dawson with his MVP, LeVeon Bell, on bye, but both of Dawson's big-2 WRs are back and healthy. Mike is starting Kyle Orton and Ryan Mallett, and the fact he is in the playoffs with those guys playing a significant role is crazy. He has a big decision to make with T.Rich. With Bradshaw hurt Richardson could get a lot more looks, but he's a risky start over the more dependable Bolden or LaFell.

The Fear Boners vs  RW Throws a Sexy Deep Ball – The game of the week. The story of the year so far has been Mike's incredible comeback from last to in the playoffs. Andrew is trying to change that narrative and pull his own comeback, unfortunately he'll have to likely beat John and I to do it. Andrew has a chance this week, but will need a big game from Mettenberger and for Evans to continue his insane streak. Jeffery and Thomas will be going head-to-head at the top WR roles, and the success of the trade on Andrew's end could be determined here. John is trying to get back into the top 2 spots and secure himself his first round bye.

Sideliners vs I am like the U in the 80s  – Aaron is not officially eliminated, but he's likely not going to hold the tiebreaker against any of his rivals. It doesn't get any easier for him losing Bradshaw, who has been Aaron's MVP and one of his few bright spots. Steve is well position to get a bye given his next 2 matchups.

NFL Owner vs NINERS – Stan needs this win, but unfortunately for him Shayne now has Gordon back to go with his already strong team. If Gordon can help Hoyer develop some more consistency, Shayne is going to be tough to beat by anyone I think, but the fun thing about Fantasy Football is that any team can win on any given week.

On the next Last Place Wisdom
- I continue to make huge mistakes when it comes to forecasting the TE position
- I go back to an uninspired joke-less blog posting
- We get a Boner Bowl Part II with huge playoff implications on the line