Final Pre-Kickoff Rankings and Rival Week 1 Preview
The wait is finally over
We made it everyone. FOOTBALL IS BACK! The road to the 2018 D|League Championship is finally here.
Pre-Kickoff Power Rankings
Thanks to injuries and just regular player ranking shifts since I started the Team Previews, rosters are not necessarily what they were predicted to be at the time of their preview. As such, here are the final pre-kickoff rankings, separated into tiers. These tiers are based off the Short-Term Talent Scale (which is built off of FPros 2018 rankings) on the Franchise Stats page in our Google Doc.
Tier 1: Championship Favorites (Avg S-T Score: 93.22)
— Kurtis
— Tani
— Binh
Tier 2: Still Solid Contenders (Avg S-T Score: 87.38)
— Josh
— Orlando
Tier 3: Ouch, McKinnon (Avg S-T Score: 81.75)
— Anton
Tier 4: Could Leap Into The Playoff Race (Avg S-T Score: 74.16)
— JR
— Kevin
— Joe
— Bunger
Tier 5: Writing Angry Letters to FantasyPros (Avg S-T Score: 61.34)
— Mikey
— Jason
— Marlo
Tier 6: HINKIE SZN (Avg S-T Score: 50.43)
— Jeff
Rivalry Week 1 Preview
Kurtis vs Tani (Super Bowl Rematch)
The premier match-up of Week 1, this should be a high scoring affair! Both teams are still fully loaded after last season’s Super Bowl, and one of these contenders will be able to start their 2018 season with a big statement. Yahoo predicts this as a victory for reigning champion Kurtis, 135.04 to 127.97.
Josh vs Bunger (Chumpion Bowl Rematch)
Josh underachieved last season on his way to a Chumpion Bowl, losing to Bunger, but finds himself back in Tier 2 entering 2018. Bunger meanwhile, currently grades out as a likely Chumpion Playoff team again in 2018. Can Josh get his revenge on Bunger and start his season off with a win? Yahoo seems to think so, predicting a 127.09 to 110.34 victory for Daddy Fat Sack.
Jason vs Marlo (Bunghole Bowl Rematch)
The two 2017 Bunghole contestants haven’t seen much improvement over the offseason according to FantasyPros and Marlo is likely still reeling from the unfortunate Guice injury. Perhaps a Week 1 win kick starts one of these teams towards a surprising 2018 season. Yahoo predicts a close one with JTong claiming a 115.58 to 110.57 victory.
Kevin vs Joe
Battle of the burner accounts. Yahoo predicts a win for Anton over JTong, I mean Joe over Kevin, 117.82 to 112.89.
Mikey vs Binh
Battle of the current roommates. Can Mikey pull off the upset? Yahoo’s verdict: “That’s a no for me dawg”, with a 140.77 (!) to 112.17 blowout for Binh.
Anton vs Lando
Battle of the former roommates. Winner gets a tall boy beer per our usual wagers. This could be a nail-biter, with Yahoo predicting a 122.99 to 120.77 victory for Lando.
Jeff vs JR
Battle of the…names that start with J? Loser has to change their name to Charles. Yahoo predicts an easy win for JR, 126.96 to 105.59.
