Week 9: The Playoff Picture Appears, But Doesn't Look Like Anything Yet.

With 5 weeks left to go, no one has clinched a playoff spot or been eliminated.  However, Tommy cannot finish in 1st, 2nd, or 3rd, while Matt, TJ, and Jordan cannot finish last.  Everything else is still up for grabs though.

Game Recaps

Skyler vs Rob: This was 1 of 3 games that featured a person under 100 points, but it somehow wasn't the battle of ineptitude (mostly thanks to Rob). Skyler had Daniels and Jefferson go for 20+, but had 5 single-digit players (4 of them had <5 points).  Rob also only had 2 players score 20+ (Darnold and Kelce), but 6 of his other players also scored in the double digits, which led him to his victory.

Matt vs Tommy: This was the 2nd game to feature a person under 100 points, and this one was the battle of ineptitude and the blowout of the week.  Tommy had a sad sub-80 score, while Matt was a catch away from clearing 130.  Matt had Dobbins, Otton, and JSN each in the 20+ point tier, while Tommy had none. Matt had 3 players in single digits, Tommy had 5...and one of those had negative single digits. 

TJ vs Trevor: This was the 3rd and final game that featured someone scoring under 100 points.  This one was the closest of the 3 matchups as TJ only won by 27-28 points.  He got said win by having Joey B be less than a point away from 40 points (with 4 players scoring double digits). Trevor had no one go over 20, while he had 5 players score double digits.

Jordan vs Brandon: Brandon didn't have the blowout of the night, but he did blow out Jordan this week by nearly 40 points. Brandon had 5 players score 20+ (Baker, Henry, Achane, Kupp, and Chargers DST), while Jordan had Barkley and Wilson (they both actually went for 30+) in the same club. The other big help was Brandon only having 2 players in single digits, while Jordan had 5. Brandon's win means he keeps his crown this week.

Tyler vs Brady: This was the weekly and nightly nail-biter, and also had a Monday Nightmare/Miracle -- or at least a light version of it.  Brady had an 8.7 lead going into MNF, while Tyler only had his DST to play.  Tyler took the lead by virtue of the game starting, but then he slowly started coming back down.  Unfortunately for him, he dropped just enough to give Brady the narrow win. While the Chief's DST was the primetime play, the game really came down to Brady only having 2 players in single digits, while Tyler had 4. Both players had 2 players score 20+ (Brady: J. Allen and C. Brown. Tyler: Lamar and Bijan)

Kyle vs Scott: This was the bonanza this week as the 3rd and 4th highest-scoring teams squared off in the 2nd tightest game of the week. Scott pulled off the victory (and got himself back in the playoff discussion) thanks to Hurts going for 30+ and Davante Adams and the Rams DST going for 20+.  Not to be outdone, Kyle had Mahomes go for 30+ (best game of the season), and Kamara go for 20+.  Kyle had 3 players score in the single digits, and Scott only had 2.  Due to those minor adjustments in Scott's favor, he got the narrow win.

Award Season

King of the Court: Brandon

King of the Course: Back, due to (semi) popular demand, King of the Course gets Tommy a shoutout this week -- but we shall see how much longer he will get this shoutout.

Highest Scorer of the Week: Brandon

Lowest Scorer of the Week: Tommy

Luckiest Team of the Week:  TJ was the lowest-scoring winner this week (8th highest), so he gets the award this week.

Unluckiest Team of the Week: Kyle was the highest-scoring loser and 4th highest-scoring team this week, so he'll get the award this time.

MVP: Chase Brown scored a season (and maybe career?) high for Brady in a week when he won by less than 3 points.

LVP: Mark Andrews had his lowest score in a month, and cost Tyler the win by not keeping up with his recent standard.

Game Previews

Game Previews

Skyler (5) vs TJ (1): Skyler has 0 players on Thursday night and 3 players in primetime. He has 0 players on bye. TJ has 2 players on Thursday night and 1 player in primetime. He has 3 players on bye. 

Rob (10) vs Brady (4): Rob has 0 players on Thursday night and 3 players in primetime. He has 1 player on bye. Brady has 1 player on Thursday night and 2 players in primetime. He has 1 player on bye.

Matt (3) vs Scott (6): Matt has 1 player on Thursday night and 2 players in primetime. He has 1 player on bye. Scott has 0 players on Thursday night and 0 players in primetime.  He has 1 player on bye.

Jordan (2) vs Tommy (12): Jordan has 0 players on Thursday night and 1 player in primetime. He has 2 players on bye. Tommy has 0 players on Thursday night and 0 players in primetime. He has 1 player on bye. 

Brandon (7) vs Tyler (11): Brandon has 1 player on Thursday night and 2 players in primetime. He has 0 players on bye. Tyler has 2 players on Thursday night and 2 players in primetime. He has 4 players on bye. 

Trevor (8) vs Kyle (9): Trevor has 0 players on Thursday night and 1 player in primetime. He has 0 players on bye. Kyle has 1 player on Thursday night and 1 player in primetime. He has 1 player on bye. 

Playoff Scenarios

If the 6 seed is ahead of a lower seed by more games than there are weeks remaining, the lower seed is eliminated.  For example, Tommy is in last place and has 1 win, and the sixth seed (and 3 other teams below him) has 4 wins.  Tommy would need to lose his next two games, and any one of the teams with 4 wins right now would need to win his next two games to eliminate Tommy.  Fortunately for Tommy, 2 of the 4 win teams play each other this week, and another one is playing a 7-2 team, and then the next week, 2 of those 4 teams play each other again.  All of that is a convoluted way of saying Tommy could be eliminated by the end of week 11, but it would be highly unlikely.

Similarly, the 7-2 teams could all lock the playoffs in two weeks if they win out, and three of the four 4-5 teams lose out during those two weeks.  However, we know that some of the 4-5 teams play each other, so unless Brandon, Scott, and Trevor all lose out the next two weeks, we won't likely see all the 7-2 teams guarantee a playoff lock in two weeks.

So everyone, even Tommy, still has something to play for, and no one is safe from elimination.

Good luck to everyone but Rob this week.