Holy Fire

SUPER-16 – The AF#14 Who Dat Saints (7-3-0) lit up the scoreboard until the fire alarms went off in the week 10 Game of the Week, exploding for a 293-193 victory over AF#25 1 Eye Til I Die in a performance that will put them into the record books for one of the top 5 highest scores in league history.  The One Eyed Bandit scored just below the league average in this one, but not even their own season high would’ve been enough against the Saints, who set off like a rocket from start of the game, amassing double digits across the board on defense, with 100 points from the offensive skill positions alone, and another 50 from franchise QB Drew Brees.  Even with the loss, the league’s Raider franchise has all but clinched the West Division – especially after Arizona’s meltdown loss to the Jaw Breakers – but the race for playoff seeding remains tight and the head to head loss could hurt them there.  The Who Dat Saints remain undefeated in two games vs 1 Eye.

The Who Dats will likely move up in the AF rankings this week after their record setting performance, but even if they do, they will still trail their biggest rival, AF#13 Birds of Prey (7-3-0) in the league standings, thanks to the Birds’ 223-174 week 10 victory over The Dawg Pound, and a head to head tie breaker advantage.   Division rivals BIGDOGINTEX (6-4-0) and WTF HOUSTON (5-5-0) also come away from week 10 with wins – both of them lopsided – to keep the South Division race exciting and unsettled.  With three weeks to go and some big divisional games looming, the South Division is still anyone’s for the taking.

In the East Division, Steel Curtain (6-4-0) has posted a 1 game advantage on the rest after upsetting the AF#20 Northern Fins (4-6-0) 243-207, their third consecutive victory.  The division loss is not insurmountable for the Fins, but they would need to win out and get some help to capture the East Division title from where they now sit.  Geno’s Jaw Breakers (5-5-0) and Eagle has landed (5-5-0) both got week 10 victories, and for Steel Curtain to take the division, they’ll need to go right through the competition, facing the Jaw Breakers in week 12 and in-state rival Philly in the season finale.

Eagle has landed got to .500 this weekend by doing what no one else could, and finally delivering AF#6 WRATH OF ODIN (9-1-0) their first loss, 218-165.  It was game 2 of a 2 game stand, and the Philly franchise needed to take advantage of Odin playing at bye week strength to pull it off, but a win is a win and a loss is a loss.   Despite the loss, the Norsemen remain #1 in the league, both in the standings and in total scoring, and have clinched the North Division title and a place in the post season, and are on the brink of clinching the inevitable first round bye.

Playoffs

North Division – Odin has clinched

East Division – Steel Curtain needs two wins and 1 loss each by Eagle and Jaw Breakers

West Division – 1 Eye will clinch with a head to head Week 11 win over Arizona

South Division – all four teams have a path to the division title

Wild Cards: At this point most likely to both come from the South, but the East Division #2 could slip in as well.

Seeding: #1 and #2 seeds and first round byes come down to a race between Odin, Birds of Prey, Who Dats, and 1 Eye

Eliminated:  Only Dem Bucking Broncs (3-7-0), The Indy-structibles (2-8-0), and SF’s BowMen (2-8-0) are mathematically eliminated from the playoffs, is their a miracle scenario coming for one of the 4 win teams to still sneak in – 3 wins and the right teams losing.