2nd-and-Short (Div D) – Midseason Breakdown I
14-06-2014 12:00 AM
We’re six games into Week 5, and that means it’s time for Part I of this year’s midseason breakdown. This week I’ll rank the 15 teams in Conference A from worst to best, with the Conference B breakdown coming next Tuesday. These are based on stats, my observations and my opinion in general. If you feel slighted, there’s no better way to get your revenge than by proving me wrong.
15. Scared Hitless (0-4): It’s hard to say I’m surprised Scared Hitless are 0-4—when your QB is completing under 50 percent of his passes and has thrown the second-most interceptions in the division, chances are you’re not winning games. This season marks Fred Saleh’s first as a full-time QB, and it shows. On too many occasions does Saleh find himself under pressure and, instead of throwing the ball away or trying to avoid the rusher, throws a prayer up to Phil Cutler hoping he comes down with it. It hasn’t exactly been a recipe for success. With a roster filled with players new to the league or who haven’t played much FPF, it’s safe to say Scared Hitless would’ve been better off learning the game in Division E this season, but hindsight is 20/20. For now, all they can do is take their lumps and hope to close out better than they started.
Prediction: 1-9
14. Angry Birds (0-4): Green Lantern Corps may have changed their name to Angry Birds this season, but their inability to find success in FPF hasn’t changed. It’s tough to put a finger on exactly why that is. You can’t blame a lack of chemistry when the team’s core has been together for a few seasons now. You can’t blame a complete lack of talent when Jerson Previllon has thrown 112 touchdown passes in 29 games over the past three seasons and Mendy Cardichon is one of the lower divisions’ best two-way players. This season, Angry Birds have been competitive in three of their four games so far, but for some reason they haven’t been able to come out on top in any of them. At this point, I can think of nothing else but a poor supporting cast to blame for their struggles this season. Loic Savoiz-Seguin is emerging as a solid no. 2 guy, but despite that and Cardichon being Cardichon, the team has nonetheless scored the fourth-lowest amount of points so far this season. It’s not enough.
Prediction: 1-9
13. Jagerbomb (0-5): The best winless team in my opinion, Jagerbomb have been the victims of bad luck coupled with more bad luck. There’s the bad luck on the field, with the team coming up a few plays short of a win in Weeks 1, 4 and 5. And there’s the bad luck off the field, with QB Simon Duchesne having been able to show up to just three of the team’s five games thusfar. And don’t even get me started on their schedule—their first five opponents are 16-7-1 combined on the season. The good news is that there’s only one way left to go for Jagerbomb, and that’s up. Unfortunately I don’t see them climbing very far.
Prediction: 2-8
12. Longhorns (2-2): Are Longhorns as good as I thought they were in preseason, when I put them in my top 10, and it’s just taken them two weeks to get to that level? Are their back-to-back wins just a matter of luck, seeing as both teams were without their usual starters? Was their 0-2 start just a fluke? Almost five weeks in, and I have more questions than answers about Longhorns. I know that when they’re on their game, the trio of Karim Yasmine, Brian Martin and Chris Rosen can lay waste to just about any defence led by maestro Jon Moodie. When they’re not, the team as a whole struggles to compete. Unfortunately, unless those aforementioned players are having career games week-in and week-out from here until Week 10, an unforgiving remaining schedule makes it hard to see them going anywhere but backwards this season.
Prediction: 3-7
11. Les Blues Branleurs (2-2): For a new team filled with numerous first-year FPFers, and with a linebacker playing quarterback, a 2-2 record at this point is something to be proud of. That being said, I still have my reservations about this team. Offensively, Olivier Pilotto has had difficulty hitting his targets, completing just under 43 percent of his passes and prompting a likely permanent QB change to Minh Ton-That. Defensively, a five-interception game against Los Banditos aside, the Branleurs have struggled to keep opponents out of the endzone. I like what Dac-Toan Do brings to the table at receiver, and Ton-That is one of the mid-to-lower divisions’ best cornerbacks. But I think it’s going to take a little while to get everyone else up to speed. If Minh is able to learn the QB position quickly, the Branleurs might have hope for the playoffs. If not, a tough season awaits them.
Prediction: 3-7
10. Los Banditos (1-2-1): I predicted in preseason that Los Banditos would be among those teams to successfully make the jump from Division E to D. So much for that. I truly believed the addition of Simon Lahaie would be the key to put this team over the top offensively. Statistically, it’s worked out well: he’s leading the team in receptions and yards and is tied for first in touchdowns. But that’s about it. Led by QB Alex Guertin, Los Banditos have managed three touchdowns or less in all of their games this season, while Guertin is leading the division in interceptions. The defence has done as well as expected behind the strong play of Patrick Chahda, Lahaie and captain David Della Rocca. But until Guertin gets back to his usual self, this team will struggle. No matter how good your defence is, you won’t win games turning the ball over four or five times.
Prediction: 3-6-1
9. Tune Squad (1-3): Another team whose record doesn’t do the team justice. Tune Squad have competed hard in all three of their losses, and they weren’t exactly against easy teams—Ball Busters, Lobster Dinner and The BrotherHood are among the division’s best. Tune Squad are also the only team that can say they’ve beaten Les Affreux so far this season. In terms of the roster, I think QB Corey Walwaski looks a lot more comfortable in his second season in FPF. He’s moving around well in the pocket, is making good reads and calling excellent plays. The true star of this team in my opinion though is Omer Naek, who can be counted upon to pressure opposing QBs from start to finish, as well as be the go-to guy offensively. All to say, I don’t think Tune Squad need to make any significant changes to get back on track; the ball simply hasn’t been bouncing their way that often yet, but that should change in the latter half of the season.
Prediction: 4-6
8. Backyard Bullies (2-2): Exhibit A for how fast a season can go from great to disaster, as Backyard Bullies have followed up back-to-back blowout wins at the start of the season with back-to-back losses. QB Rich Humes has played virtually flawlessly in two of his three games up to this point, while the addition of Clockwork’s Emilio Pampena has worked out even better than hoped. I want to believe this team is better than its record shows, but then I’m reminded of the fact most of these guys were on the same Backard Bullies team that started the Spring 2014 season 4-1 only to close the season out without a win in its last five games. Though they’ve lost some key players as a result of the team splitting up into two this season, this is a team I expected a lot more from with Daniel O’Connor, Anthony Raspa and Mark Donohue still on the roster. I still expect more from them.
Prediction 5-5
7. Les Rois Lions (2-3): I want to believe Les Rois Lions are as good as I thought they would be in preseason, but I’m just not seeing it. There is no better example of a one-man team than this one—whether they win is entirely dependent upon whether Nicolas Gendron-Vallée is there, and even then, a win is no guarantee, as shown by their 33-32 loss to Fun Boys a few weeks ago. Their 60-0 loss to Les Affreux this week showed just how bad it can get without NGV. QB Philippe Kotrbaty needs more help from his receivers, who are dropping too many passes. Kotrbaty himself has a lot of work to do as well, spending so much time trying to avoid the rusher and moving backwards that a five-yard hook on paper is a 20-yard throw on the run in reality. The defence must step up as well. To put it briefly, this team remains competitive when Gendron-Vallée is present. But the problem with one-man teams is they rarely get far in the postseason.
Prediction: 5-5
6. Recipe 4 Disaster (2-1-1): Kevin Boustany is the first name that comes to mind when I think of Recipe 4 Disaster, and I think that’s as it should be—after all, he was the one to score three touchdowns on three catches against Trapstars, and he was also the one to intercept three passes in Recipe’s win over Scared Hitless. But just because he’s the first name that comes to mind doesn’t mean he’s the only one. Jake Applebaum has already shown what he can do as the Channel 4 News Team signal-caller. Daniel Farag, not Boustany, leads the team in receptions; Anthony Habashi, not Boustany, leads the team in tackles and interceptions. This is far from a one-man team, and in their first season together, 2-1-1 is as solid as it gets. With still a few more weeks for Applebaum to gel with his receivers and for the defence to learn its strengths and weaknesses, I only see improvement for Recipe going forward.
Prediction: 5-4-1
5. Fun Boys (3-2): When Fun Boys do the little things right, like making the easy catch, making their tackles, and avoiding unwarranted penalties, they can beat just about anyone. When they don’t, they lose. QB Scott Mironowicz has completed over 50 percent of his passes just once this season, though he’s not entirely to blame—outside of Terrance Morsink and Alex Halarides, the team’s receivers have yet to show they can be truly reliable week in and week out. Fun Boys have managed to reach the midway point with a winning record despite that, but I’m afraid if the group’s supporting cast doesn’t improve by Week 10, hopes of a championship are dim.
Prediction: 6-4
4. Tomahawk Nightmare (3-2): I didn’t know too much about Tomahawk Nightmare coming into this season aside from the fact they lost a close game to Eskimo Brothers in the Spring 2013 Division E final. Coupled with a rather unimpressive Week 1 performance from them this season, and I had already written them off in my mind. Four weeks later, and I have to say they’ve definitely surprised me. QB J-F Marquis has done an excellent job sticking to his gameplan and spreading the ball around, while on the other side Mathieu Cauchon is leading an improving defence. I like this team moving forward.
Prediction: 6-4
3. T.C.O. (3-1): Coming off a rough season in Division 4 last year, T.C.O. brought in the ever-elusive Doug McKernan at QB. With Doug having thrown eight touchdown passes to zero interceptions in his two games, it’s safe to say that was perhaps the best free agent acquisition of the division. What isn’t as obvious is whether T.C.O. are clear-cut playoff contenders. As much as I love what Doug brings to the table, I’m still hesitant to go all-in on them considering all three of their wins have been tight games against struggling teams. Regardless, defence has made the plays it needs to when the game’s on the line, while offensively new snapper Tony Lalla has already built a solid rapport with McKernan. A tough back-end to their season awaits them, but I believe they’ll pull through.
Prediction: 7-3
2. Lobster Dinner (5-0): I was going to put my team first overall, but you know what, records don’t mean squat. Am I avoiding the uncomfortabe position of putting my own team no. 1 in my own power ranking? You bet I am. But that’s not the only reason I’m hesitant to rank Lobster Dinner first overall. Yes, we’re the last remaining undefeated team in the conference, and the first team to hit 5-0 in the division. But I still think we have a lot left to prove, and a lot of room for improvement. Aside from not having beaten anyone relevant, I think the offence has dissapeared at times while the defence is still prone to giving up big plays. As a player, I obviously think 10-0 is obtainable. The journalist side of me thinks that’s unlikely, especially with the last five games of the season looking much tougher than the first five.
Prediction: 8-2
1. Les Affreux (4-1): Their slip-up against Tune Squad aside, Les Affreux have proven to be Division D’s most dominant team this side of the division, and I’m not just talking about their 60-0 win against Les Rois Lions. Just their roster itself is scary enough—six of their eight receivers have scored multiple touchdowns, and defensively all but QB Mat Domon and Simon Richard have at least one pass deflection. They have their own star players in: Martin Jackson, a clear two-way player of the season candidate; Daniel Bellefeuille, who’s the undisputed top rusher of the lower divisions; and of course the new addition, Simon Bosquet Beaudoin, who’s as fast as advertised. With the likes of The BrotherHood, T.C.O. and Monstars still on their schedule, I don’t think a 9-1 season is in the cards for them. But as long as they play the way they have been so far, they’re a definite front-runner for the championship in my book.
Prediction: 8-2
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That’s it for this week. Check back here on Tuesday for Part II, where I’ll take a look at Conference B. If you have any questions or disagree with my rankings here, you can email me at [email protected]. If you’d prefer to call me out in public, my Twitter handle is @JBlanchFPF. And if you haven’t done so already, be sure to check out this week’s Division D pocast with Peeze and Brent at www.theunclehood.com/flag-plus-football Good luck to those playing in Lachine this weekend!