Back in August I penned a column about a home league I participate in with my son and a number of college students. I titled the column, “Anatomy of an (Awful) Auction” and I had some pretty harsh things to say about a number of the teams, including my own.
Now that we are in the midst of playoffs, I figure it’s a good time to look back and see how those teams fared, worst to first.
Team Johnny
What I wrote: “Johnny has minimized his risk by playing the middle but he doesn’t have any standout high-floor players for a league this size. With Evans inconsistent, Gordon unpredictable, and Ingram out for the first four weeks, Johnny could be looking at a 1-3 start.”
What happened: Johnny stunk. While I was right about the 1-3 start, that start was actually better than the rest of the season (1-5), as Johnny finished 2-8. Devonta Freeman’s injury devastated an undermanned team, and relying upon Jordan Howard proved to be ill-advised. Rob Gronkowski and Jamaal Williams disappointed, and Johnny finished last in the regular season, losing the Sacko and earning some creative punishment.
Team Jordan
WhatI wrote: “Jordan has to be concerned with that backfield, especially considering how relatively shallow the running back position appears.”
What happened: University of Oregon’s Jordan went big on receivers, spending over 60% of his budget on Antonio Brown and Julio Jones. Stuck with LeSean McCoy and Tevin Coleman in the backfield, Jordan had huge problems. A trade for David Johnson and another for Antonio Brown couldn’t solve those problems, and Jordan had to beat Johnny this past week to avoid Sacko punishment.
Team Blake
What I wrote: ”With a large number of quality receivers available (we only draft two per team), Blake’s weakness coming out of the draft may be fixable as the season progresses.”
What happened: Blake’s initial strength (Le’Veon Bell and David Johnson) proved to be his biggest weakness. He hit it big with $1 Patrick Mahomes, but nothing could make up for Bell not signing, or Mike McCoy not knowing how to use David Johnson. Blake “qualified” for the Sacko (the last place contest), but won his first round match, finishing the season as team in a tie for seventh place.
Team Buster
WhatI wrote: “… but without a single reliable stud, I will be needing smoke and mirrors to compete. At least I’m not Jack.”
What happened: Gosh, I wish I had Jack’s team. My pick of Jerrick McKinnon was as bad as the Le’Veon Bell pick. Dalvin Cook got hurt. A.J. Green got hurt, Greg Olson got hurt Alfred Morris hurt me. It was a bad season but I won my first round Sacko match to avoid punishment.
Team Noah
What I wrote: “Noah has proven very astute on the waiver wire in past years, and it looks like he will be there quite often again this season.”
What happened: Starting with Todd Gurley and Michael Thomas helped a lot, but there was nothing behind those two stars. Noah wasn’t as astute this year on the waiver wire and he languished with an average team, finishing 5-5. Noah qualified for the playoffs, but was eliminated in the first round.
Team Mason
What I wrote: “Mason is reasonably deep but relies upon an injury-prone Fournette and an unproven Freeman to keep his backfield competitive. My money is on someone, anyone, else taking the championship trophy.
What happened: Well, my money was right, as Mason didn’t win, and Fournette got hurt yet again. But, that’s a bit unfair as nine of the 10 teams didn’t win. Mason actually had a competitive team with solid depth, including Adam Thielen, DeAndre Hopkins, Sony Michel and JuJu Smith-Schuster, but the Fournette injury and the disappointing Royce Freeman season prohibited Mason from advancing in the playoffs. Mason lost in the first round.
Team Jack
What I wrote: “In the meantime, Jack is the odds-on favorite for the last place, Sacko, punishment.”
What happened: I was wrong. Jack had the sixth-most points in the league and finished the regular season with a 5-5 record (one game better than mine) and qualified for the playoffs. He had an incredible first round behind the likes of Drew Brees, Christian McCaffrey and Joe Mixon and qualified for the semifinals, where he put up a good fight but lost. Jack left the auction with over 20% of his money left. One has to wonder how great he might have been.
Team Jason
What I wrote: “Going with an extreme stars/scrubs strategy, Jason spent $191 on three running backs (Ezekiel Elliott $68, Saquon Barkley $63 and Melvin Gordon $60) and filled the rest of his roster with $1 players… As Jason has won this the past three years I won’t criticize his methods.”
What happened: Jason’s three-year reign is over. Jason finished the regular season 7-3 an in sole possession of second place. He also had the second most points. Elliott, Barkley and Gordon were formidable, but in fantasy playoffs, one injury can kill a team. Meet Melvin Gordon. Jason got knocked out of the playoffs this week, losing by just 12 points in the two-week competition. His Gordon replacement, Austin Ekeler, amassed just 23.2 points, 22 less than Gordon had averaged. A typical Gordon two-week period and Jason would have been seeking his fourth consecutive title.
Team Kelvin
What I wrote: “Kelvin… went with a modified stars/scrubs strategy, taking Odell Beckham ($70) and Kareem Hunt ($68), along with Travis Kelce ($30). Kelvin went big on Aaron Rogers ($11) and filled his roster with $6 and cheaper players.
What happened: UCSD’s Kelvin had a rough start at 0-3 start, but caught fire thereafter, finishing the regular season 6-4. Kelvin squeaked by in the first round, winning by 16, and defeated Jason by 12 in the semifinals. Kelvin is a prohibitive underdog in the finals, as his roster of Aaron Rogers, Dion Lewis, Jeff Wilson, Robert Woods, Adam Humphries, Travis Kelce, Sterling Shephard and Wil Lutz shouldn’t strike fear in anyone. Getting Odell Beckham, Jr. will help, but probably not nearly enough.
Team Michael
What I wrote: “It could be a long year for young Mike.”
What happened: Young Mike managed the phones like a veteran GM. I doubt that he slept at all this season, as texts with offers would come at all hours of the night. Due to his persistence and intuitiveness, Michael was able to acquire Emmanuel Sanders, Keenan Allen, Kenyan Drake, Tyreek Hill and Sony Michel. Michael ended up with the most points, the best record, and is a prohibitive favorite to win the title, his first ever.
Best of luck. Don’t blink.
Buster
