Fantasy Football

2014 Draft Day for the EZEFFL

I Drafted in the 7th position, didn’t pay attention to a player’s Bye Week (as you can tell) and I’m pretty sure I’ve totally mucked it up. But if I manage to win just half the games I play, I’ll finish at least two games better, record-wise, than last year. And then maybe lightning will strike twice, and I win the last 4 games and get to keep the Championship Trophy in my cubicle.

PURPLE WHALES
Player Pos. Bye
QB Peyton Manning, Den QB 4
RB Arian Foster, Hou RB 10
RB DeAngelo Williams, Car RB 12
WR Andre Johnson, Hou WR 10
WR DeSean Jackson, Wsh WR 10
TE Julius Thomas, Den TE 4
FLEX Hakeem Nicks, Ind WR 10
D/ST Seahawks D/ST 4
K Graham Gano, Car K 12
Bench Stevan Ridley, NE RB 10
Bench Fred Jackson, Buf RB 9
Bench Cecil Shorts, Jac WR 11
Started down, up, down, up, down, up, down, still down.
Miata Top Transitions since 10/24/08: 1416

Doll Lane

Doll Lane

For the first time since early spring Donna and I ventured into Hitchcock Woods. We usually stay out of there in the middle of summer, but this morning it was like upper sixties and foggy, so what the heck.

Tonight I’m watching the FRS play the Yankees and this is getting painful. The Sox scored 3 runs in the bottom of the first inning and then gave up three runs right back in the top of the second.

At least with my other eye I’m watching the Giants play the Bills in the NFL Hall of Fame Game so Fantasy Football is getting closer and I need a little sports fantasy about now.

Started down, went up, back down, still down.
Miata Top Transitions since 10/24/08: 1398

Root For The Ol’ Home Team

When it came to draft day for the EZEFFL back in August, a couple of the owners wouldn’t be available to be at the draft. Those that couldn’t make it, made arrangements for a substitute, who had their proxy to pick players. Some had elaborate matrices on who to pick for their stand-ins, while others instructed they use the pick the next best available player strategy.

One of the owners who couldn’t be there, got Donna to pick his team. They both have New Orleans in their roots, so his and her number 1 priority was the drafting of Drew Brees. Along with that, he had a couple of specific requests and a collection of pick the best available of this position in this round selections. As their luck would have it, Donna managed to make all his asked for picks. Because of this, she granted herself the unofficial title of Director of Player Development for the Swamp Rats SR team. So during the season, right after she asks me how my team is doing on Sundays she asks about them.

Fast forward to Tuesday morning of this week. After a mediocre 4-8-1 season I got hot in the playoffs and won three games in a row advancing the Purple Whales into the Championship Game. My opponent is the team with the league’s best regular season record at 10-3, the Swamp Rats SR.

When I asked Donna who would she be rooting for this coming Sunday when the Whales square off against the Rats in the Lenio Bowl for all the marbles, she replied, “I’ll let you know.”

It Is Only A Fantasy

After the early afternoon NFL games Team Wrangler had 10 times as many points as the Purple Whales:
Its Only A Fantasy

After the the late afternoon games the Purple Whales had made a near miraculous comeback to take the lead:
Its Only A Fantasy 2

The lead was guaranteed not to last as Team Wrangler still had 2 players left, one tonight and one more on Monday. But I expected it to last more than 3 minutes into the first quarter on the Sunday Night game. But it was erased by a 54 yard field goal by Denver’s kicker, Matt Prator, which was worth 5 points:
Its A Fantasy 3

The Emperor got a wash yesterday, taken for a nice fall afternoon drive before being hidden away in the garage. The Purple Whale got a bath this afternoon and then huddled under the carport trying to avoid the impending sprinkles.

The Sports Night Apportionment

Right now the Red Sox/Cardinals game is on the big TV and ESPN Monday Night Football is in a small window of the laptop. This display mix is as it should be, because, well, World Series game five vs. keeping track of one guy’s running yardage.

The World Series is tied at 2 games a piece, so it is now down to a best two out of three series with two of the games at Fenway Park. Tonight is not a must win for the FRS, but if they do it would really put the pressure on the Cardinals.

Yesterday morning the Purple Whales were a 43 point favorite entering the day’s football action. By the time the day was over I was trailing by 23 points! I still had a glimmer of hope tonight, my opponent had no one playing and I had my premier running back going, Marshawn Lynch. Mr. Lynch was predicted to get 17 points, but he has had two games over the needed 24 points this year, so I theoretically had a shot.

Had being the operative word. It is now nearly halftime and Marshawn has 8 yards for zero points.

Mountain Getaway

Hiwassee Reservoir

Made a trip into the NC/TN mountains this weekend. We were celebrating my birthday, our anniversary and on a recon mission for an MMC trip up here in November. Total distance traveled between 7:00 AM Friday morning and 1:00 PM Sunday afternoon was 760 miles. I drove every one of them and enjoyed the heck out of myself. We bought premium gas 4 times in that time (if you count the fill up before we left), 2 in the NC mountains with an average cost of $3.89 and 2 in SC midlands with an average cost $3.39. For the trip the Emperor got a little over 28 miles to the gallon, which ain’t half bad considering that about 2/3rds of the driving was spent in 2nd and 3rd gear at 3500 to 4500 RPM being flung around turns.

We stayed in a one bedroom cabin at a place called Fontana Village and had a mostly great time. The only real fault we found with the place is that you are a captive audience restaurant-wise because the nearest place to eat is Robbinsville, 22 twisty mountain miles away and what they have there really isn’t anything worth going for. As such, dining at one of the two open restaurants on the grounds can set you back a pretty penny. On Saturday morning the breakfast buffet at the Mountain View was our only option and at twelve bucks a person (total bill with tax & tip; $29) it was not as good as the $7.95 one at a Golden Corral in Aiken, just served from nicer containers. Dinner at the Wildwood Grill on Saturday night was $40 for 2 hamburgers a beer and a glass of wine. But now that we know there were serious about the fully equipped kitchen in the cabin, next time we are bringing our own (well as least as much as we can carry in the Miata.)

The photo above is of the Hiwassee Reservoir taken at the overlook of the Hiwassee Dam on at about the mid-point of the loop planned for the Saturday drive when we take the Miata Club to Deals Gap. This is the same loop as we did 2 years ago, but we are hoping the weather in November this year will be a lot more like our weather this weekend and not anything like the cold and wet of the 2011 trip.

This afternoon the Emperor got a well deserved bath while I ignored NFL football and its effect on my fantasy football team. I may not watch any games next week either, if that is what it takes, because the football Purple Whales are winning 118 to 106 and I still have one guy playing tonight and my opponent has nobody left to play at all.

Started down, went up, back down, up again, down again, up once more, still up.
Miata Top Transitions since 10/24/08: 1261

1 Angry Owner

After a promising start to the day the Purple Whales faltered and are now a sure lock for being the only team in the EZEFFL without a victory. Right now I trail by one point and my opponent has a kicker going on Monday night. The one in a million shot is that Denver gets shutout or Matt Prater misses as many field goals as he gets points after. Like I said last week: No big thing, every team makes our league’s playoffs.

Just like last Sunday I planned to wash the dead bugs of the Purple Whale and didn’t because I spent the afternoon parked on the couch with the FRS on the big TV and an NFL game in a small window, along with ESPNs Fantasy Cast running in another, on the laptop.

Multimedia

After going to Five Guys for a birthday burger (Thanks Joan) Donna and I went to Lu Lu’s and rode through the automatic car wash in the Sonata.