Super Bowl III

babysrus (152.00) vs razoRAMON (111.00)
We told you to be careful didn't we? babysrus was the hottest team over the second half of the season and despite razoRAMON's best efforts, nothing could stop the avalanche that was Gene from crushing the competition. Maybe they were angry over last year's championship game loss versus Jimmy?

Gene entered the playoffs as only the fifth seed but proceeded to eliminate the Dirty Birds (#4), Old English (#1), and finally, razoRAMON (#2). That's nine wins and one tie to close out the season after starting off 0-6. How you like me now?!? What kind of pep talk did Coach Kim give to these guys their 76-89 loss to the Fobsters in WK6? After that point, babysrus went over the century mark every week and even averaged a stunning 130+ points per game.

In the Super Bowl, they busted out for 152 points behind the QB duo of wily Kurt Warner (30) and dynamic Donovan McNabb (26). RBs Brandon Jacobs and Fred Taylor combined for 43.50 points as Reggie Wayne (23) and Terrell Owens (12.50) contributed through the air. Despite a broken leg by Willie Parker, that's all she wrote for the Razors.

Ryan's team walked into the playoffs with a first round bye -- as always -- but couldn't help petering out near the end. Their price number one draft pick, Drew Brees, contributed only 12.5 points in an uneven season and despite the best work of Randy Moss (19.5) and the other Adrian Peterson (17.5), they couldn't keep up with the babies. Joseph Addai and Edgerrin James combined for only 18.5 points and even Ben Roethlisberger's 26 points wasn't enough to stave off defeat.

So it's safe to say that Gene and his team had the greatest comeback season -- even greatest season -- in Black Hole history as they came out of nowhere to become the lord and king of everywhere. Congratulations!

Finals: Frenemies

Here we go, the matchup the whole world has been waiting for. Gene and Ryan typically fight over the number of waiver moves during the season but this week, they'll be fighting for a fantasy football championship. Ryan is rolling and hasn't had his usual playoff collapse. His first round pick, Drew Brees, is finally stepping up (23 pts) and paired with Ben Roethlisberger, the Razors have excellent leadership in the backfield. With the Fobsters hardly putting up a challenge and going down 92.50 - 124.50, the path is clear for the Razors to take a championship. The problem is, their third best player right now might be Jason Witten, a tight end. Can the running game pick it up again? Joseph Addai, Clinton Portis, and Edgerrin James are all big names but they haven't been playing that great recently. Then again, who cares? Randy Moss won't be shut out two weeks in a row will he?

Gene's babyrus pounded the Razors WK 12 (127.00 - 98.50) and haven't lost in eight games -- never scoring below 124.00 points in those games. Can his team go 0-6 to start the season and then clean up on the way to a championship? Crazy right? But Kurt Warner and Donovan McNabb have been just above average, the WRs are Reggie Wayne, Terrell Owens, and Brandon Marshall (a revelation recently). Plus, the run game should be capable every week, as Brandon Jacobs, Marshawn Lynch, and Rudi Johnson are all steady double digit contributors. Hell, Mason Crosby, the kicker scoredd 19 points this week. Gene's team doesn't look as fancy on paper but they've been playing much better and have proven to be a huge threat as they dispatched Old English by a wide margin, 130.50 - 106.50.

Prediction? Perhaps a win for babyrus? Or do we throw our karmic prediction toward the Razors? Nah, I'd rather see a loser to hero outcome with Gene walking away undefeated since October.

Semi-Finals: Show Me The Money!

Old English (9-4) vs babysrus (6-6-1)
If Gene runs the table this post-season and wins a championship, he will officially have the greatest season ever. Actually, he might already have that title. By toppling the Dirty Birds 129.50 to 111.50 -- mainly behind Brandon Marshall's 29 points -- babysrus comes from behind for yet another upset. This week, they'll face off against a well rested Old English team.

Aquino's team has been on a tear all season and they have undoubtably the best quarterbacks in the land. Put it this way, Derek Anderson, a surprise fantasy star, hasn't even made it into the lineup (except for bye weeks) for Old English. There's just no way Tony Romo and Peyton Manning can be displaced. Heck, on the season, Anderson has only socred six points less than Peyton.

Eric doesn't need much more from the lineup when he has two outstanding QBs but Jamal Lewis, Kellen Winslow, Tony Gonzalez, and Bobby Engram have contributed mightily too. With the injuries to Laveranues Coles and Travis Henry, depth is an issue but hey, who cares? It's Romo and Manning all the way! The only person who is way underperforming here is superstar WR Steve Smith, who has just been horrific all season long, scoring even less than say, Derrick Mason.

Gene's quarterbacks, Kurt Warner and David Garrard,lack the star power of Eric's team but they have three quality WRs to throw to. Terrell Owens and Reggie Wayne are standouts. Brandon Marshall is explosive and peaking at the right time. And how about the decision to sit Rudi Johnson and Willie Parker last week? Daring. It's doubtful that Chester Taylor, Marshawn Lynch, and Brandon Jacobs will get the starting call again so look for Johnson or Parker, or both, to slide into the lineup. It's a classic battle of star power versus depth and we'll have to see if Gene can keep up his Cinderella season.

RazoRamon (8-5) vs Fobsters (8-5)
In what was touted as a potential slugfest with the Jedi Knights coming on strong, Jimmy's Fobsters handled their business and won by nine points (124 - 114.5). They needed everything they could get from Marion Barber (33), Ryan Grant (22), and Brian Westbrook (20.5) because Jeff Garcia and Steelers defense couldn't score a point and Chad Johnson and Hines Ward were near useless. With Tom Brady tossing another four touchdowns (35 pts), Jimmy had his hands full. In the end, Lum couldn't get Adrian Peterson or Roy Williams on the board so lost by a handful.

That sets up a huge week as defending champion Jimmy will face off against Ryan, who is traditionally a post-season choker. This time around, they're loaded up with a deep and talented roster though, headed by the resurgent Drew Brees. Ramon had a great week last week despite being on bye and Brees, Joseph Addai, Randy Moss, and Jason Witten will enter the semi-finals all fired up. Let's not forget about Big Ben Roethlisberger, Edgerrin James, Clinton Portis, Chris Henry, Roddy White (and maybe Marvin Harrison). The Razors easily have the deepest team on paper -- they lost Ronnie Brown early on too -- the question is, can they win in the playoffs?

Jimmy's hoping the answer to that is a big fat "No." With a running game that must rank as the best in the league, Jimmy will have to play ball control. Chad Johnson needs a huge game one of these days but his QB hasn't been cooperating. To be honest, Jimmy's team is deep too, with Shaun Alexander and Calvin Johnson being mid-season casualties. The difference though, is quarterbacking. Jimmy has Rivers and Garcia (or Trent Edwards), Ryan has Brees and Ben. Might someone need a stronger second QB for this matchup?

This game will be too close to call but I'm going to go with Ryan winning, just to make him feel better.

Playoffs: Round 1

Well, the regular season is over and it looks like Hong and Galvez are on the outside looking in with identical 4-9 records. Our other six esteemed owners will now face off for a chance at the ring. Aquino, the rookie manager looks like a complete ringer as he compiled a 9-4 record on the way to the most wins in the league and a first round bye. Ryan, as always, had an excellent regular season but now his real challenge (struggles) begin. Both Aquino and Ryan have a bye so this week we'll play for who gets a chance to knock off a big boy.

Fobsters (8-5) vs Jedi Knights (5-8)
Jimmy is having quite the fantasy season. In our other keeper league, he's gone from winless a year ago to almost earning a bye in the playoffs. With our Black Hole league, Jimmy's doing almost the same. Despite finishing with a very good record, Jimmy's team just didn't score more points than Ryan's. In fact, during the last six weeks, Jimmy's highest output has been 124 points (WK9) -- discounting a 157-point aberattion in WK 12 -- and he's had plenty of sub one hundred games.

Then again, Chris' team had six losses in a row before winning last week to stumble into the playoffs. Those losses are deceiving though, as the Knights have scored more than 107 points in every game since WK8 (120+ five times in that span). That doesn't bode well for the Fobsters, who are much more erratic.

The key to the Knight's success? Tom Brady and Carson Palmer. I'm not sure how Chris only won five games with such an amazing QB duo but that's why they play the game! More importantly, Chris' team is fully healthy now. Steven Jackson and Adrian Peterson are going to rip it up these next few weeks. Roy Williams and Andre Johnson are back and ready to light it up next to Braylon Edwards. In fact, the Knights look like my favorite dark horse despite their weak record. Who can argue with such excellent depth? My pre-season picks had Chris being a very dangerous team and it may just prove to be so.

The Fobsters will have to counter with the best fantasy running back in the land, Brian Westbrook. With Marion Barber slugging it out all season and Packers rookie Ryan Grant contributing mightily, the Fobsters have a good running game. They have good receivers too, with Chad Johnson, Greg Jennings (way underrated), and Hines Ward. However, Jimmy's got quarterback problems. Can Philip Rivers have a good game? Can AJ Feeley have a good game? Who would you rather have in your backfield? Brady-Palmer or Rivers-Feeley?

I'm gonna go out on a limb here and say that Chris upsets Jimmy. Nothing personal but the lineups are just too uneven. Use the Force Chris! Use the Force!

Dirty Birds (7-5-1) vs babysrus (6-6-1)
Oh boy, Jon versus Gene. The matchup the fates deemed must happen. I think I've been knocked out by Gene in the playoffs at least twice so even if that's not true, I'm making it my revenge game this week. The Dirty Birds are riding high recently with a wave of huge games (except last week's 76 point dud). Almost every loss they've had has been because they've stumbled and scored 80 points or below. If the Birds get over the century mark, they usually win.

Gene, of course, is the hottest team in the league. babysrus started off the season 0-6 and then proceeded to not lose again. 6 wins and 1 tie later (to Jon no less) and Gene's team is poised to annihilate the competition. Has this ever happened, it's incredible right? During their winning streak, they've never scored less than 124 points and they've been crushing the competition. What did Gene put in the baby formula?

His team doesn't look amazing on paper but QBs Kurt Warner and David Garrard have been quietly effective. Heck, old man Warner has been straight playing out of his mind. With a good running attack featuring Willie Parker and Chester Taylor, Gene can churn up yardage on the ground. The real star for babysrus though, is Terrell Owens. He's been nothing short of a legend this year. Sure, Randy Moss is getting all the publicity but TO is outperforming him in fantasy. With Reggie Wayne flanking him and young Brandon Marshall on the outside, Terrell Owens has had lots of space to operate. Will Rudi Johnson, Brandon Jacobs, Marshawn Lynch supplant Reuben Droughns in the flex spot? That's up to Gene. What we do know is that management has lost faith in Donovan McNabb -- again.

The Birds feature an aerial attack second to none. Torry Holt, TJ Houshmandzadeh, Anquan Boldin, and Wes Welker are all top ten WRs. Then again, are they? Holt has been sub-par this year, Boldin has been hurt, and while Wes is an animal, he might be facing additional converage this week. It looks like Donald Driver will go if Boldin is still out. The biggest question here is if Brett Favre will play this weekend. With him available, Favre and and Jon Kitna form a serviceable duo. Without him, it's JP Losman. Ouch. Can the Birds get more good performances out of Reggie Bush and Frank Gore -- two backs who are big names but very erratic? I guess we'll see.

We're predictinig a tight game that could go either way. If Favre plays, then Jon wins. If he doesn't, then Gene wins. Simple as that.

Super Bowl II

Fobulous (132.00) vs Dukes of Hazard (107.50)

With another big upset under their belt, Fobulous becomes the second champion in Black Hole history. Despite entering the post-season as only a fourth seed, Jimmy's team was the dark horse contender simply because of LaDainian Tomlinson.

Showing a savvy beyond the skills of his English, Jimmy worked all year long to secure a roster worthy of being called "Champion." On Christmas day, Jimmy and his Buddhist beliefs took it to the mouth of Gene and Jesus by socking them in the mouth -- and winning handily by 24.5 points. Take that Son of God! Ohm-me-to-fo...

The Dukes of Hazzard didn't just roll over -- perhaps they bent over just a little -- but their effort came up a bit short. Starting off Sunday with some success, the Dukes fell behind early -- Cedric Benson (5), Reggie Wayne (3.5), Antonio Gates (7) -- but fought back hard behind stud running backs Shaun Alexander (27) and Reggie Bush (21). The problems started however, when the passing attack stalled behind QBs Tony Romo (11) and Jay Cutler (14), and most of all, Smurf-sized star WR Steve Smith racked up a hum-dinger, zero. Gene's Kansas City Defense gave it a go, 16 points, but were obviously unable to overcome the potent offense that Jimmy was packing.

Fobulous had ridden the hard charging legs of LaDainian Tomlinson and Brian Westbrook all season long but the two All-Pros combined for only 26.5 points this week -- that's usually just one good half for LDT. Terrell Owens (9) and Anquan Boldin (8) didn't exactly step up either, as they faced double coverage all day.

However, all the attention on these four stars freed WR Bernard Berrian for 12.5 points and gave Maurice Jones-Drew the room to rumble for 32 points! Jeff Garcia (17) has been a revelation for the Eagles and has been steady for Jimmy during the last few weeks. Old war horse Brett Favre -- and Jimmy's favorite Madden football player -- can finally ride off into the sunset with a championship, despite having a sub-par performance, 10 points. And look, a championship for John Carney too, who was delighted to be off of the El Nino's and booted in 12 points to cap the victory.

So, as much as I hate to say it, Jimmy's Fobulous is our champion! Long live Taiwan! Is Jimmy even aware that he won? I think he's on vacation with his girlfriend. Fantasy Champion + Girlfriend = Jimmy? 2006 has been the year of many firsts for Jimmy. Right?

Playoffs: Semi-Finals

Fobsters 142.50 vs Razor Ramon 139.00
Why have the best record when you can have the best player? Proving once again that stars step up when it's crunch time, the best player in the world, LaDainian Tomlinson, led the way to a huge upset with 31.5 points on Sunday. Finishing one yard shy of 200 yards and two TDs (one on a spectacular 80+ yard run), LDT is showing that he can't be stopped.

The Razors didn't have a bad week but they sure didn't seem to have enough to fend off LT and the boys. RB Stephen Jackson did his best LDT impersonation with 24 points but he wasn't even Brian Westbrook (27.5). After that, the disappointments for the Razors piled up. QBs Drew Brees and Tom Brady totaled 21 points; Ahman Green only had 14.5 pts; Plaxico has a respectable 15.

Struggling with indecision before the games, Ryan went with Marques Colston over Terry Glenn -- both WRs got 11.5 pts, no loss there. Maybe Lee Evans would have been the better choice (13.5) but why quibble over two points when you're likely to lose by twenty? Back to those QBs. Brees has been a monster this year but maybe Brady could have picked it up a notch since he was playing the hapless Houston Texans -- Mike Vick had 30 on the bench. Beat a team 40-7 and only rack up 13 fantasy points Tom? Ryan hates you right now. Barring a miracle outing from Marvin Harrison on MNF, the great regular season by Ryan will be only a memory as Jimmy takes him down for the third time this year.

Speaking of those Fobsters. It wasn't just the LaDainian Tomlinson show. You don't score 140+ on the back of one great back. The aforementioned Brian Westbrook had 27.5 points and Terrell Owens contributed 20.5. One man's loss is another man's gain as Freddy Taylor's early injury may have doomed Jon to a loss, but Maurice Jones-Drew exploded for 20.5 to match Owens. The passing game is a bit of a weak spot as Fobster QBs Brett Favre and Jeff Garcia combined for only 16 points; as well as weak performances from WRs Anquan Boldin (8.5) and Bernard Berrian (6). Still, we're not looking for perfection here, just wins.

Jimmy is looking like the prohibitive favorite entering the Super Bowl -- he's no regular fourth seed underdog, not with LDT playing the way he is.

MNF - Well, Marvin gave it the old college go didn't he? Eight catches, three TDs and 30 points. Tragically, the Razors needed 34 to win. Ouch.

Dukes of Hazzard (112.00) vs Dirty Birds (63.50)
The Dirty Birds are on their way to a flame out. Sure there's Monday Night left but really, can Carson Palmer, TJ Housmanzedeh and Bengals D take on a 40-point deficit and Reggie Wayne? GM Yang had wanted to stick RB Joseph Addai in his lineup but was late to the computer and was instead left with the turd that Fred Taylor dropped (3 pts) on his way to another injury. The Birds' motto this year is "Never say die, keep flying high!" but it's looking grim as the end of their season nears. Their highest scorer this week? Donald Driver with 10.5 points. Marc Bulger (6), Larry Johnson (9.5), Torry Holt (7), and Larry Fitzgerald (9.5) all crapped out and will be fired immediately following the loss.

It's not like the Dukes had a great week. They will score enough to win, but they didn't have anyone go huge. Solid performances from QBs Ben Roethlisberger (18) and Tony Romo (19) paved the running lanes for RBs Willie Parker (19) and Shaun Alexander (13). WRs Steve Smith and Antonio Gates combined for an ugly 8 points but together, the team should have done enough to advance to the Super Bowl.

This marks the second straight year that Gene will have eliminated Jon on the road to the championship. A true rivalry in the making.

MNF - Well, Reggie Wayne single-handedly outscored the three Bengals -- 17.50 to 16 -- and that puts the nail in the coffin on the Dirty Birds. Good night kids. Never take anyone but Tomlinson with the first pick -- huge mistake.

Playoffs: Opening Round

Dirty Birds (132.00) vs Jedi Knights (76.00)
The Knights have had trouble at the QB position all year and in the end, it was the failures of Jake Delhomme and Chad Pennington that sunk them. The two combined for 8 points total and that's hardly going to win crucial playoff matchups. In fact, the only players who can stick their head high after this game is the surprising Braylon Edwards (16) and Kevin Jones (15). In a coincidence, Jones plays for the Detroit Lions and Braylon Edwards was once a Michigan Wolverine. Go Blue?

The Birds didn't have to rely on hometown heroes to put points on the board and took to the air with TJ Houshmandzadeh (21), Larry Fitzgerald (16.50), Torry Holt (22) and the explosion by Donald Driver (26.5). Tragically, this team has some holes since 2nd QB David Garrard totalled 1 point and 2nd RB Joseph Addai only added 3.5. Still, a win's a win!

Fobulous (145.50) vs Brown Starz (116.00)
The Chinese crew took another one this week as Jimmy eliminates Galvez after a heated battle. In the end, up-and-coming Vince Young (22) helped LaDainian (28.5) -- only first names for him now -- to comfortably win in this first round matchup. LT now has the TD record and a chance to match up with the goliath team, Razor Ramon. Which squad is more scared heading into the semis? The league leading Razors? Or the LT led Fobulous? Tough call -- do we smell upset?

The Starz had Rudi Johnson rumble for 21 points and a good overall effort from Jamal Lewis (14) and Darrell Jackson (14.5), but if you're going against a hot team, you're gonna need more than 19 from your All-Pro quaterback, Peyton Manning. Without his superstar play, the Starz take one on the noggin and exit the playoffs.

Next week: The Semi-Final, the best matchups ever? Tbd.