More Than Playoff Spots on The Line… We Got Byes!

Hey gang! Feels really good to be back. Thanks again to Peeze for covering me while I was away. Had a nice little vacation in South Beach and now ready and refreshed to cover the playoff push in Division D! 

Don’t forget, as Peeze mentioned in his article, the division will now be split in two for the playoffs. *** Division 1 will consist of teams 1-6 and teams 19-24 based on the standings, with the 1-4 seeds getting a bye. Division 2 will consist of teams 7-18 based on the standings, with seeds 7-10 getting the byes. 

The race for the first round bye in D1 is heating up. Les Petites Carottes versus Idaho Udapimps on Sunday will be huge in determining who gets one.

Charles Côté already has 10 picks on the season and still has one game left. The battle for defensive player of the year is tight, but I’d say he’s the slight favourite.

The Penetrators impressively held Bandits D’Ahuntsic to 18 points on Monday night. Josh Jacobson got a season-high 3 sacks on the night. The game was filmed on Instagram. Check it out!

Some of our FPF guys went to play flag football in a tournament in Halifax this weekend! The games are on YouTube under “Football Canada.” I watched some of the games online and the vibe appeared second to none. Give it a quick watch. We also have some FPFers playing in a tournament in North Carolina right now. Good luck boys and girls!

DNE and Big Dracos are fighting for that 24th and final playoff spot. They both sit and 2-6. Big Dracos dropped a big game against Flagtastic. It was Flagtastic’s first win of the season. Congrats boys! DNE and Big Dracos play each other in their last games of the season. Some stories just write themselves. I think whoever gets the W there will grab that 24th spot.

Which 7 win team deserves more credit? Jacob Salvail has incredibly only thrown 1 interception on the season. He has also thrown 34 touchdowns. Les Renards Vifs are not a team anyone wants to play right now. They have this fun and loose way of playing the game that allows them to make mistakes but not panic. They have won 5 of their last 6 games. The one loss came without Salvail in the lineup. Philippe St-Laurent has 15 touchdowns on the year which is good enough for 35% of their total offensive scores. Safe to say this guy needs to be heavily monitored if you wanna beat the boys in yellow.

Why hasn’t D Hop been signed? He is still one of the best receivers in the NFL. Often times we see players get signed when an injury happens in training camp or preseason. Hopkins is too good to play the waiting game on. At 31 years old he has a lot left in the tank. He needs to be signed ASAP.

Studz r us have the least amount of points for in Division D with 104 through 8 games. Yet, they sit in a playoff spot. Go figure…

Save the Turftles got a big win against Longhorns on Thursday to solidify their playoff hopes. It has not been the season I expected out of them, but at 3-6 I still see them being a problem for some of the division’s best teams.

Is Dame gonna end up in Miami or what? He has said he only wants to play for Miami but it may not be that simple. The Blazers don’t seem to want Tyler Herro which complicates things. Ultimately, I think Lillard will take his talents to South Beach and I could not be happier.

Bandits and Prime Time tied 12-12 on Monday. If you like defense this was your type of game. Both Skaf and Lamarre threw 2 picks. They are usually both very careful with the football. I’ll chalk this up as two good defenses making plays at the opportune time. Bandits may need to look to take some more deep shots down the field to keep defenses honest. The short games has worked for them this season, but in their last 2 games they have only scored 32 points.

A few weeks after praising Glory Boyz, they lose a lopsided game to Prime Time 37-12. Now, Prime Time are one of the better teams in the division, but I thought Glory Boyz were as well. Maybe they still are. One thing is certain, they need to beat Why So Serious? this weekend.

Questions Heading Into Week 10

Which team in a playoff spot needs a win most this week?

Bandits D’Ahuntsic have a championship-caliber roster. They have won games they should have, but are missing a quality win. Who better to get that win against than X-Men? X-Men are arguably the best team in the division and are very well coached. Yes, I said coached. They have an offensive and defensive play caller. It’s fun to watch. Back to Bandits D’Ahuntsic now. I am not worried about them, but they are too good to have only beaten teams they “should’ve.” They need to prove to themselves, and me as well, that they deserve to be in the championship conversation.

Who are The Rude Saks?

Having seen them play I can say they got a stingy old-school defense. One that does not allow a free 3 or 4 yards. They’ll make you earn every yard, let alone first down. They’re a passionate group that have been fun to follow. Even if some of their losses they have looked good. They pushed Idaho Udapimps to the edge putting up 32 points and lost a one-point game to Les Renards Vifs. Their win against West Island Boys is was impresses me the most. They will need to improve on their 49.6% completion percentage to be even more competitive. But until then, their defense seems to be keeping them in games.

What are this week’s must see games?

Born in the 80’s VS Bandits, Les Petites Carottes VS Idaho Udapimps, Prime Time VS Les Bleue Dry are the first 3 that jump off the schedule for me. Born in the 80’s are looking for their fifth straight win. As mentioned before, Les Petites Carottes and Idaho Udapimps are fighting for that bye. Both Prime Time and Les Bleue Dry are hoping to end the season with 8 wins. Keep on eye on Friends with Danny VS Ballz Deep. Ballz Deep need the win and I am putting Friends with Danny on upset alert.

Can No Ragrets pull of 1 upset this week?

They are playing against Les Bleue Dry and two days after that they got Bandits. If I was a betting man I would pick against them in both games. That may not mean much because they have the experience and players with championships under their belts to back up their game. I never liked the expression “slowing the game down” and keeping opponents off the field. It makes it seem as if you’re heading into the game as the inferior team. While I don’t like it, I think that will need to be No Ragrets’ strategy for both games. Especially against Les Bleue Dry who like to play at a fast pace and take shots down field. No Ragrets do like to march the ball up the field so this would not be anything new to them.

Who will get the final bye in D2?

In other words, who will finish in 10th place? It’s a battle between the likes of several good teams. The 9-13 seeds consist of Bandits, Les Bleue Dry, Born in the 80’s, Big Fat Bats, and Friends with Danny. While Friends with Danny are currently the 13 seed, I think they’ll grab that 10th spot. They have a favourable schedule while the other teams have tough matchups. They looked poor in their latest game against West Island Boys, but my guess is they’ll finish off the regular season with 2 straight Ws.

Picks!!! (Winners in Bold)

Born in the 80’s vs Bandits

Friend with Danny vs Ballz Deep

X-Men vs Bandits D’Ahuntsic

No Ragrets vs Les Bleue Dry

Les Petites Carottes vs Idaho Udapimps N/A

Glory Boyz vs Why So Serious?

Prime Time vs Les Bleue Dry

The Penetrators vs Blues

Studz r us VS Ballz Deep

Bandits vs No Ragrets

Why So Serious? vs Friends with Danny

The Rude Saks vs DNE

Stallions vs Idaho Udapimps N/A

Riders of Rohan vs Big Dracos

Season Record: 42-16

Bold Prediction: In the X-Men vs Bandits D’Ahuntsic game, there will be more touchdowns than incompletions!

I feel like I wrote my first article last week yet we sit here with only two weeks remaining in the regular season. It’s been a pleasure and a lot of fun writing for the division this year. It’s been competitive without a true favorite. Not only that, but I can tell you a lot of these Division D players can and will be playing in Division A and/or B within the next few seasons. We talk about crunch time… Well it doesn’t get crunchier than this. Two weeks left to punch your ticket to the playoffs and prove you got what it takes to make a run. Appreciate you taking time giving the article a read. See you guys at the fields and until then…

Stay Blessed