Week 5: Looking at the one-third poll

Bears coach Lovie Smith is famous for breaking down the NFL season schedule by quarters. I offer my Cleopatra team's analysis at the one-third poll of our 15-week Finks League regular season.

Cleopatra is 4-1 with smoke and mirrors heading into their biggest match of the season in Week 6 against the Eggers. Cleopatra ranks first in the league in defense (141 pts), always a dubious category in fantasy based on pure luck, and the team ranks sixth in offense (211).

In the preseason auction, I was outbid in both RBs and WRs for any of my major choices. My No. 1 QB was Brees NO and my No. 1 WR was A. Green CIN. Cleopatra lost its season opener, but then beat Serkus 49-23 in Week 2. With garbage at RB and WR, there was hope.

No other owner has made as many transactions. I have made a transaction every week thus far. I have another one brewing for Week 6. Unbelievably, I have carried nine different RBs on my roster and six WRs. Only one RB (D. Brown IND) remains from my Week 1 roster. My other RBs from Week 1 are a trivia question: Helu WAS, Redman PIT and Starks GB, who I believe has not played this season.

One of the challenges of running a fantasy team is gauging who to listen to for fantasy advice. I don't follow the NFL all that well to know what's happening out there. I need help. But anyone who calls himself an expert, is not an expert. Anyone can be an expert. All you need is a mouthpiece. The KFFL.com expert that had Starks listed in the middle of the pack among preseason RBs was wrong.

What is your experience with following fantasy web sites? Also, feel free to send in your own one-third season analysis as a blog comment or email finks1994@gmail.com.

Week 1 in the books

Thanks to all for getting Week 1 off smoothly.

Defending champion Distillers scored only 23 points and looks to be the front-runner for the WR Cal. Johnson DET sweepstakes. Owner Cassidy will have first free-agent choice.

The Barrels won their Week 1 match with 81 points. The league record for a single match remains 90 points by Simo's Chicago Blitz in 1995, our second season of the league.

The Week 2 matchup of the week is an easy one between the 1-0 husband and wife ownership battle featuring the Eggers vs. Brawlers. Good to you all.

From Khans owners Wanberg: " I didn't expect three zeros in my lineup this week although Colston, Bush and Fitzgerald were only a couple of yards away from giving me three points from each of them. Newton not being able to run the ball Sunday is making me nervous. But plenty of season remains."

Khans reach stadium name agreement

By Lyle Bel
Fantasy Football Writer
Good Housekeeping.com


ULAN BATOR, MONGOLIA -- D.J. Wanberg, owner of the Finks League's Ulan Bator Khans, announced today a new one-year sponsorship deal for the Khans' stadium.

The facility will now be known as Bayangol District Stadium (Bayangol District is an actual neighborhood in Ulan Bator) at Ex Lax Park. Wanberg was hoping for a higher class of sponsor, but with the season approaching he was forced to take what he could get.

At a press conference attended by no one, he said he would try to not schedule any promotions that might cause fans any discomfort or distress in their game day experience. He said  free Shredded Wheat day, scheduled for the game against owner Stan Goff, has been cancelled.

Wanberg's team is in its second year in the Mongolian capital. 

Khans releases theme song

From Khans owner D.J. Wanberg: "I think it best that this be my last shooting off my mouth until the season starts. It's always best to back up what you say. But I haven't felt this good about my team in a long time!!!!!!!!!!!! Hopefully, I'm kicking ass and taking names!!!!!!!!!"

Welcome to Season No. 19

Thanks again for returning for another exciting Finks League season.

Getting right to the auction news:

• Falling through the cracks: WR C. Johnson DET fell through to go unselected. Johnson is the No. 1 WR on many live draft boards, but did not carry a big enough auction number to go Sunday. He was on some owners' penny lists, but will likely be a top free-agent pickup after Week 1.
• How 'bout dem Cowboys: Serkus owner Stan Goff's favorite team is Dallas. He picked up four Cowboys players in the auction.
• Biggest bargain: The Brawlers picked up RB McCoy PHI for 12 cents.
• Spirited bidding: Newt picked up PK Gould CHI for $1.05. One other team bid $1.01.
• The hyphenate-award: The Eggers have Green-Ellis and Jones-Drew on their team.
• Spirited bidding II: Barrels won WR J. Jones ATL for $9.07, topping another team's bid at $9.01.
• No ties: For the first time in recent memory, there were no tie bids resulting in a blind draw for a certain player.
• Pricey: This year's award for the highest player bid goes to the Khans, picking up QB Newton CAR for $42.87.

Good luck to you all this season. 

Cheers!: Distillers win Finger Bowl 18

Nelson, Brees lead Cassidy to title

LOCKPORT, Ill. -- Week 2 free-agent pickup WR Jordy Nelson GB nabbed MVP honors with 25 Finks points to lead rookie owner Dan Cassidy to the Finger Bowl 18 title in Week 17. Cassidy's Lockport Distillers defeated Mike Miazga's Ham N Eggers 66-61 in a battle between owners in their first Finks League title match.

The Thorpe Division champions went 10-5 in the regular season and won the Finger Bowl behind QB Brees NO's 24 points and help from two other free-agent pickups: RB Lynch SEA (three points) and PK Nugent CIN (14 points).

Nelson becomes the second GB player to earn Finger Bowl MVP, following RB Levens for Traczek's Helena Handbaskets in Finger Bowl 6.

The two Finger Bowl teams tied the league record for the highest scoring title match, equaling the 67-60 championship in 2004 between Steve Cline's Ghost of Sweetness and Jeff Newton's Go For 2.  

Cassidy becomes the league's fourth rookie owner to win a Finger Bowl, following Mike Wilcox in the inaugural 1994 season, Cline in 2004 and the late Jeff Ponczak in 2006. Cassidy wins the Abe Gibron Traveling Trophy ending the two-year reign by Goff's Serkus Act.

The Eggers were led by 16 points each from QB Brady NE and PK Akers SF, who also earned three points for a TD pass. The Distillers led 66-49 heading into the Monday Night Football game. The Eggers' RB Bradshaw NYG scored two TDs, but could not close the deficit with any bonus points.

Cassidy earned $378.75 for the championship win. Miazga takes $126.25 as runner-up.

Dah Commish was the winner of the 2011 Harvey-Ponz Award. 

BOXSCORE

DISTILLERS 66, EGGERS 61

Distillers
QB Brees NO 24
RB Lynch SEA 3
RB C. Johnson TEN zero
WR Welker NE zero
WR Nelson GB 25
PK Nugent CIN 14

Eggers
QB Brady NE 16
RB Bradshaw NYG 12
RB Benson CIN zero
TE Gronkowski NE 17
WR Wallace PIT zero
PK Akers SF 16

 
Fumble pulls away for third


LONDON -- Dah Commish's Love's Labour's Lost Fumble earned a match-high 19 points from RB Rice BAL to take third place in the 2011 Finks League with a 68-53 win over Kris Herigodt's Dublin Brawlers.

BOXSCORE

FUMBLE 68, BRAWLERS 53

Fumble 
QB E. Manning NYG 16
RB Rice BAL 19
RB Helu WAS 6
TE J. Graham NO 9
WR S. Smith CAR 9
PK Crosby GB 9

Brawlers
QB Flacco BAL 3
RB Spiller BUF 6
RB McGahee DEN 5
WR Cruz NYG 13
WR Robinson DAL 12
PK Rackers HOU 14

From Eggers owner Miazga...

A end-of-season concession from longtime Eggers owner Miazga, who was the runner-up in Finger Bowl 18:

"Where as Janikowski did me in in our second regular season meeting (I put in Akers at the last second Thanksgiving day and Janikowski then kicks 6 FG against Bears on Sunday), Nicks did me in here. I am currently staring at a written out lineup card that had Nicks' name on it originally. If I play him over Wallace, I win by one. However, I am not a fan of starting two guys on a team if I don't have to (Gronkowski being a big exception). That would have given me four of six guys on two teams. Nicks had been inconsistent of late and with the emergence of Cruz, I didn't have the greatest feeling. I didn't have a great feeling about Wallace, but figured with Ben in the game early maybe he could snare a 6 and get out of there, plus Cleveland is no good. However, I should have checked the weather in Cleveleand (extremely windy) and paid more attention to the previous meeting between the two (very low scoring Thursday night game). I went back and forth for a good hour Sunday morning on Nicks-Wallace and Gerhart, Benson, Wells (all turned in zeros and one was inactive).

Anyway, great win and another great game between us. You had guys that were red-hot the last half of the season and Brees was instant gold most of the season. Half of your starters were off the waiver wire (Nelson, Lynch and Nugent), and all played key roles for you. Hard to combat two players with 20-plus point totals in one game.

Where as I was the only Finks owner to score more than 60 in a game during the season and lose (to Distillers), I am only the second Finks owner to score more than 50 in the title game and lose (there was a 67-60 result one year). 

Looks like we have the makings of a fantasy rivalry here. That being said, I'll probably go back to my normal ways and go 3-12 next year.

Looking forward to next season."