We are down to the final week of the regular season. 5 teams are now in, 2 teams are out, and 3 teams have one chance to battle for one spot. The standings are exactly the same as last week with the top 5 teams all winning and the bottom 5 all losing. I’m going to break this down team by team and also break into sections the possibilities for the final week.
I have also added to the EFFL history sheet playoff records and playoff brackets for the history of the league. The sheet is out of control at this point with almost 50 tabs. There is a ton of information in there. Also I just wanted to remind you again about players. No player added for the rest of the season can be kept for next year. The teams that do not make the playoffs can make no more moves after the end of the regular season and when each team is eliminated they are prohibited from making any moves. The only exception is that the 2 teams that lose in the semifinals and play for the 3rd place game can make moves in that final week.
THE TOP 4: These are the top 4 seeds. None of these teams can play each other in the first round of the playoffs. Chris has a bye locked up, and most likely Sam or Jimish will have the other bye.
* 1. Maybe This Time (9-3): Sam held off a Monday night surge from EEB to stay in first and take a huge step towards a bye. Would have locked up the bye if the Masons could have taken out Jimish, but they fell 2 points short. At this point are unaffected by the Pylons, and the bye will almost certainly come down to either Sam or Jimish. Sam cannot be the #2 seed as she owns the tiebreaker over Chris, and Sam cannot be the #4 seed as she owns the tiebreaker over the Pylons. A win will lock up the #1 overall seed. A loss and Eyepatches loss also clinches the #1 overall seed. A loss and Eyepatches win will have Sam as the #3 seed unless the Pylons somehow also manage to win and outscore Jimish by 108 points… Not happening.
* 2. The King’s Crusaders (8-4): All of the scenarios from last week are moot. With a win over the Farm, Chris has clinched a playoff spot and locked up a first round bye. Will be the #2 seed if MTT or the Pylons get the bye, or if the Eyepatches get the bye and the King loses. Can only be #1 with a Sam loss, Jimish win, and King win. The Week 13 matchup with Stanky Monkeys is totally irrelevant, and with a bye in week 14, we’ll see you in 3 weeks. It remains to be seen whether the King will rest his starters this week, but hopefully the long layoff doesn’t affect their focus. This is now the King’s 4th bye in 6 EFFL seasons.
* 3. Animals With Eyepatches (8-4): Jimish can fall anywhere from 1-4 based on the results in the final week. Very much still alive for the bye and has a huge advantage in points due to the explosion of Dwayne Bowe over the past 3 weeks. A win will have Jimish no worse than 3rd. A win and Sam loss will clinch a bye (again provided the Pylons don’t win and score 108 more than Jimish). Win, Sam loss and King loss will have Jimish at #1. Win, Sam loss and King win will have Jimish at #2. Win and Sam win will have Jimish at #3. Loss and Pylons loss - #3. Loss and Pylons win - #4.
* 4. Dueling Pylons (8-4): Got a win over a TPG team that totally just did not show up while putting up the second lowest score. Adding the Frank Gore season ending injury just made it that much worse after a win was already sealed. This never, ever happens to me so I will take it and just move on. Also locked up a playoff spot in the process and has finally returned back to the land of misery. The Pylons are 1-4 all time in the playoffs, which is the worst in league history. The only way the Pylons could get a bye as stated previously is with a Sam loss, Jimish win and Pylons win while outscoring the Eyepatches by 108 points. Unless the Pylons put up 200 or more this is not going to happen. Will be the 3 seed with a win and Eyepatches loss. Will be the 4 seed and face Lou with any other scenario.
THE 5: Lou is the 5 seed. He will play either the Pylons or Eyepatches in the first round of the playoffs. Prepare accordingly.
* 5. Stanky Monkeys (6-5-1): Got a huge win in Week 12 and locked up a playoff spot with both TPG and the Farm losing. Also no longer eligible for the bye with the King winning. Locked into the 4-5 matchup, and with the Chris already locking up the bye, has a completely meaningless game Week 13. Take the week off to relax and get ready for a week 14 showdown with one of the Evens division’s finest.
THE 3 FOR 1: The Farm, Gnomes and TITTY are battling for the last playoff spot in that order. Each team needs to win and have all of the teams in front of them lose to get in, or in the case of the Farm have all teams lose yet again. The team that makes the playoffs from these 3 will play Sam, Jimish or myself.
6. Johnson’s Farm (5-6-1): I’m just at a loss for words. This team is so bad it is actually turning out good. This team has now scored 110 or less in 9 of the last 11 games. No other team has more than 7, including the league’s 2 cellar dwellers. The Farm is now tied for dead last in points scored. Nick can make this easy on himself with a win in week 13. A win clinches the #6 seed. A loss and a win by either TPG or TITTY will knock out the Farm. A loss by all 3 would have the Farm in the playoffs at 5-7-1, and an absolute embarrassment.
7. Tequila Party Gnomes (5-7): 2nd in the pecking order of the potential 6 seeds. Due to head to head win over Fusco still holds the number 7 seed, which is extremely large at this point. Also still alive due to the Farm’s ineptitude. Extremely poor showing in Week 12, but still has an opportunity to sneak in. Needs a win AND Farm loss to get in. No other scenario will get TPG in no matter what else happens. Matt has been trash talking EEB all week, but he is now your best friend.
8. Tweeting in the Trenches (5-7): Somehow still alive after yet ANOTHER monstrous game against him. Now has had 140+ scored against him in 7 separate weeks, all losses. Chris can only make the playoffs with one final push. Has points tiebreaker over both the Farm and TPG in case somebody ties in week 13 and it comes into play. Again, without ties across the board, the only way Fusco will be dancing is with a win, Farm loss AND TPG loss. A Farm or TPG win will eliminate TITTY. A playoff spot very well could happen given the way the other two teams have fared recently. I don’t think anybody in the playoffs wants to see this team.
THE BOTTOM 2: These two teams have locked up the #9 and #10 spots in the league. BG has now missed the playoffs for the third straight year.
X - 9. The Stone Masons (3-9): This team has looked pretty good over the past couple weeks but it was just too late to make some damage. With Brandon Lloyd and LeSean McCoy as potential keepers I expect this team to be pretty solid next year. This team had some very strong pieces, but it was the complimentary players that were lacking this season. You know I was pulling for you.
X - 10. Coach Janky Spanky (2-10): One more game until this painful season ends. With a loss in week 12 officially sealed up league’s worst record, so congratulations! Faces a reeling Farm team that has missed one opportunity after the next. Losing a season series to Gambino is just inexcusable. TPG and TITTY will certainly be pulling for you.
Good luck to everyone in the final week. Next week I will have a playoff preview as well as predictions again.
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