Tuesday Morning Quarterback--Week 4

Welcome to Tuesday Morning Quarterback’s review of NFL’s Week 4. Bye weeks have now started, injuries have occurred in the past 3 weeks, and moves are being made by all team owners to shore up their teams. Seven of the 10 team owners played their optimal line-ups this week (6 of those combined in 3 matchups). And although I have never really paid attention before, all of the stars this week played on winning teams. Defenses did overall very well, as in week 1.

In the first game featuring optimal lineups, Fairmont Fury broke the losing streak and claimed a 22.64 win over TheRiskers. Coach B. Taylor was bolstered by Jay Cutler’s shredding of the Lions defense and a newcomer to the Stars lineup—the New Orleans defense. He also got great performances from lesser known players Chris Cooley and Johnny Knox. TheRiskers got another great performance from Jacoby Jones and previous star Minnesota defense, but average or below performances from most of his team (notably Patrick Crayton and Chris Johnson). Like most games this week, this first matchup wasn’t too exciting overall. Good job Bob!

The Mt. Morris Mayhem rallied from a couple weeks worth of losses to overcome the Falcon Retrievers 112.37 to 77.05 in another game where both teams played their optimal lineups. Superstar Antonio Gates posted 20 points and finally, FINALLY Steve Slaton gets over his sophomore slump to help carry the Mayhem to victory. The Mayhem also got a great performance from Santana Moss and Marion Barber. The FR had some players who performed above standard, but poor performances from Adrian Peterson and Cedric Benson allowed FR to fall behind and stay there this week. Both coaches pull to 0.500 on the season.

The third game featuring optimal lineups found another victorious Mt. Morris team in the Marauders, who beat Silver Bullets 83.99 to 60.89. Surprisingly, the Marauders featured two star players in Ronnie Brown and the rebounding Jeff Reed, allowing the team to overcome two duds (Darren McFadden and the much maligned Anthony Fasano). The Bullets had ZERO offensive players in double digits, although only two of his starting lineup was expected to surpass 10 points. The win raises the Marauders to 3-1, and drops the Bullets into the comfortable 2-2 zone.

George Crush was able to squash the perfect record of 3-0 Blitzburg with a 31.33 point victory. The Crush was the 7th team to play an optimal lineup. The Denver defense accounted for nearly 35% of the Crush’s total in an overall matchup that saw only 3 positions out of 18 scoring in double digits. The Blitzburg squad must have been blitzed before the game, as NONE of the squad (including the defense) scored more than 9.68 points. In a game projected to be decided by just over a point, George Crush rallied ahead, proving to be yet another potential contender for the top spot.

And finally, TMQ is proud to announce that Powder Puffs has WON a game! Coach L. Taylor must have been giving her team a good lashing, as they finally came out to perform. The Puffs were able to beat Ur Momma by 3.93 points. However, it must be noted that Ur Momma had a roster player on a BYE this week (kicker John Kasay) and had she played a kicker who actually saw field time, the outcome would be different. BUT…the Puffs were able to amass nearly 60 points from star WR Steve Smith (of the NY Football Giants, not of the Carolina Panthers) and K Stephen Gostkowski. She also had a great performance from the Chicago defense. Coach A. Crawford got a great game from most of her team, with 4 offensive players in double digits. The Kicker is the kicker of this game….if one had been played, Ur Momma would have won. Great job Lori!

Stars:

QB—Jay Cutler (Fairmont Fury) 20.06
WR—Steve Smith (Powder Puffs) 20.93
RB—Ronnie Brown (Mt. Morris Mauraders) 19.67
TE—Antonio Gates (Mt. Morris Mayhem) 20.27
K—Jeff Reed (Mt. Morris Mauraders) and Stephen Gostkowski (Powder Puffs) 9.00
DEF—New Orleans (Fairmont Fury) 43.92

Studs:

It's a poor week for studs, so I am going to list them not in highest points total overall, but in best performances based on their projected points:

Jacoby Jones (TheRiskers) 12.60
Chad Ochocinco (Ur Momma) 13.60
Johnny Knox (Fairmont Fury) 13.95
Eli Manning (Falcon Retrievers) 18.30
Phillip Rivers (Mt. Morris Mayhem) 18.42

Duds:

Darren McFadden (Mt. Morris Mauraders) 0.13
Anthony Fasano (Mt. Morris Mauraders) 0.47
LenDale White (Powder Puffs) 0.60
Devin Hester (Silver Bullets) 1.09
Adrian Peterson (Falcon Retrievers) 6.67 (Yes, he got points, but was well below his norm)

Wasted on the Bench:

Rashard Mendenhall (Ur Momma) 24.73—if played, he would have given Ur Momma a win.
Brett Favre (Powder Puffs) 24.64—the Puffs won this week without Favre. This is mainly noted to stop the jeers from the rest of the league for Coach L. Taylor’s keeper pick. She knew something we didn’t!
Kevin Smith (Blitzburg) 15.40
Ricky Williams (Powder Puffs) 12.40