Some interesting matchups this week and hopefully some autocorrecting among the power rankings as the upsets last week put everything in flux. Perhaps an unlikely main event this week, given the #1 versus #12 matchup, but we saw the biggest upset in recent memory when #12 Ducks upended the #1 Whitefish. So mix that in with a rivalry game and add in the "Granddaddy of them All" game as World's Finest vs. Takada Monster Army is the longest-running franchise series of all time and you have enough storylines to make this a true spotlight game. #1 WFFC trails in the franchise series 12 games-to-14 games, but Takada isn't playing so hot and comes into the game with a rock bottom UPI of 0.788, essentially meaning they are playing 22% worse than the league average.
#3 YZ takes on #6 Deer Antler Addicts for only the fourth time ever. This has the makings for an upset as Yankee Zulu has lost another player in the form of WR Calvin Ridley, but could get stud RB Christian McCaffery as McCaffrey (hamstring) "looked real good" in his return to practice Wednesday, potentially setting up a game-time decision this weekend, David Newton of ESPN.com reports. The Addicts face a tough matchup with QB Jalen Hurts taking on a Panthers defense surrendering the six fewest points per game to quarterbacks.
Can the #4 Whitefish get back on track after a heartbreaking and momentum-breaking loss to the Ducks last week? The #7 Strokes are coming off a monster blowout win over the Hawks and look like the unstoppable juggernaut throwing a haymaker at a dazed Whitefish. It's hard to bet against a team that has Josh Allen and Derrick Henry leading the charge and the team is averaging an optimal 130 points per game, but coaching decisions have the team scoring only 121 on average. Despite having one of the best rosters in the league, coaching is keeping this team from being elite right now.
The 3-1 Koalas are putting together quite a team although the loss of David Montgomery might slow down the Queen of the Commonwealth. Meanwhile, Nash Kato looks to bounce back after a 151-85 shellacking to WFFC. Nash has some beneficial matchups in their lineup and has a bounce/bust ceiling of around 130 points, so despite being the lower rank, Nash Kato appears to be heavily favored going into this game.
How low can you go? In the limbo match of the week, #10 Ducks face off against #11 Hawks in a battle to get out of the basement. The Ducks have to be riding high after the stunning beat-down upset they put on the Whitefish last week and they have a chance to win back-to-back games against a weakened Hawk's Bench team who has a gimpy Delvin Cook in the lineup. Cook didn't appear to be fully past the ankle injury that had sidelined him the week before and he was only on the field for 49% of the team's offensive snaps, but another week ahead and he might be out there for 75% and a low-end RB1 or high-end RB2.
Another upset in the making looks to be the 1-3 Penguins taking on the 3-1 Ebola! There's no question that the Pens have been putting up below league average numbers, but Ebola! is actually averaging below the Pens to the tune of 111-108. These two teams have a lot of parallels and are both stuck in the middle of the pack statistically. It's difficult to figure out which way this one will go, but it's likely to come down to the wire Sunday night.
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