Week 2 Wrap Up
Injuries are a huge part of fantasy football. The best looking teams in the preseason are almost never the best looking teams in the post season.
Week 2 was a nasty week for injuries that has a chance to seriously reshape the landscape of the league. Some season-ending injuries have decimated teams (while improving others), and some temporary injuries look to hobble teams trying to squeak out important inter-divisional wins in the last week before we venture out and play each other.
Either way, it’s clear this season is going to be as ugly as ever as teams try to deal with injuries and prepare to deal with byes.
Storylines
Any Given Sunday/Monday/Thursday
Almost everyone chose either Hallahan/Lederer or Calhoun for the high score, and yet it was Galante and Bartell battling it out late Monday night for the honor. Even Mealey was in on the action with the 3rd highest score only 4 behind Galante. These scores would have beaten every single one of the “top” teams. Hell, the favorite to win the league this year, Calhoun, would have lost to 6 teams this week, in addition to the 4 last week.
No one is safe. The shakeups are already starting.
Sarlo, Hark, and the Pretenders
For a second week in a row supposed their “top” team has not only been beaten, but failed to even put up a “top” score. They have plenty of points on the bench to put them in contention, but at this point it’s looking like this team that tried to fit in with the heavy hitters was a bit out of their league.
Injury Woes
Big injuries this week have changed the landscape and outlook for a few teams. Cleve’s team could have 5+ players out or limited, Marino lost almost all of his running backs, and Falcone and Chris are now looking at possibly missing two major pieces to their team.
What’s even more interesting is Cleve and Falcone/Chris are playing each other in what both teams surely see as a must win.
Remember the Titans
Two teams who were ranked far lower preseason are now running through teams left and right, with Hallahan/Lederer and the Altbaums firmly ahead in their divisions. There is still a lot of time left, but a 2–0 start in the divisions is a great place to be. Only one team in our league’s history has ever gone 2–0 and missed the playoffs, and none since we set up the new divisional structure.
Power Rankings
12. Brett Poulton + Adam Milsted (0–2) ⇔ 0
Nowhere to go but up! But I wouldn’t hold my breath.
11. Nic Martino (0–2) ⇓ 1
Can’t like the prospects of this post-Landry world. In his division he could be fighting for the overall pick.
10. Andrew Bartell (1–1) ⇑ 1
Could easily see themselves jump another team or two here with a win. Deceptively good with guys who are heavily utilized. It may or may not be sustainable, but scores like this week are certainly repeatable.
9. Dan Marino (1–1) ⇓ 3
Possibly an overreaction after moving him up to 6 last week, but the recent injuries and lack of heavy usage of key players means they’re probably in for some worse weeks than better.
8. Nick Sarlo + Mike hark (0–2) ⇓ 1
They continue to fall. Losing and putting up a good score would be one thing, but they just aren’t hitting as hard as they need to to win. Good performances by key players gives hope, but if they can sync those performances up they could easily fall further.
7. John Galante (1–1) ⇑ 3
Strong showing this week, but they’re going to fall off in a big way if they can’t find a replacement for Williams’ looming plunge into irrelevancy. Benjamin and Jeffery are a hell of a group to build a team on.
6. John Mealey + Billy Davis (1–1) ⇑ 3
Unlike the previous team, I think this sort of production can be sustainable. My preseason pick for surprise playoff team, they’re right where they need to be to make it happen.
5. Dave Falcone + Chris Black (1–1) ⇓ 1
Things fall apart. The only consistent RB they have is Murray, and unless they can plug holes and figure out (or acquire) the right guys to put in their FLEX, they’re going to struggle to stay afloat in a rough division.
4. Cleve Bryan (1–1) ⇓ 2
Lots of injuries could force them to field a pretty ugly team in Week 3 and beyond. They squeaked out a much needed win against Martino, but now they’re in a fight to not be the team that leaves the division 1–2. Still a strong team, but not as strong as they need to be to be confident in this division.
3. Mike Altbaum + Troy Altbaum (2–0) ⇑ 2
Their wide receivers are rough and at risk of being consistent. However Forte and Gordon are both lined up for heavy usage, and when Eifert comes back they’ll add another huge piece. They don’t have the reliable depth to move up much past this yet, and better pray Forte can stay healthy on pace for 472 touches.
2. Dave Hallahan + Scott Lederer (2–0) ⇑ 1
Injuries could take some of the spark out of the roster, but they’re deep enough that even if Peterson were done for the year they’d belong here. They’re as firm of a lock as a team can be this early for the playoffs with the state of their division.
- Steve Calhoun (2–0) ⇔ 0
I don’t think its very likely AJ Green and Allen Robinson both have <10 points in the same week again.
This team isn’t as perfect as they looked. Hyde is set to be as inconsistent as many expected, double coverage is going to make AJ Green one of the biggest boom/bust WRs in the league, and the Jags offense looks like they are struggling to use Robinson. But until they lose or put up a really bad score, I can’t take them down from here.
