Week 12, Or There's Only Two Weeks Left

***So the Notes this week are going to look a little different. I won't do specific recaps, but will look AHEAD to the scenarios for weeks 13 and 14.***

We've got 4 teams at 7-5, and those teams are currently sitting in playoff position (Hardcore Sacks, Hooked on a Thielen, Death Valley Driver and Pedro Pickles). Honestly, it wouldn't surprise me even a little bit if those were to be the playoff teams. But...I'm not sure that can actually happen.

This week, one of those 7-5 teams will fail to reach 8-5; DVD and Pickles play each other, with the winner being allowed to keep pace for the top seed. DVD follows that up with Hooked in Week 14, so he's got the toughest schedule over the next two weeks.

Hardcore, by contrast, faces zero teams currently in the playoff race (Team Provost and Hamilton Rod and Gun), so he seems the most likely to maintain his spot on the playoffs. Pickles gets Boobies (heh) in the final week of the regular season.

If the DVD-Pickles showdown is the number 1 game of the week, the HRG-Boobies (heh) showdown is 1a. Both are 6-6, and the winner could take over the final playoff spot with a win (provided they have the points to overtake the DVD-Pickles loser; Currently, HRG leads Pickles by 60 points, while Boobies (heh) is up by 6 total points. So if Pickles loses, there's a good chance we have a different 4th seed going into Week 14.

The only team that's been mathematically eliminated is Utah Falco. His best hope is to be 6-8, which won't get it done. He may be the 10 seed going into the Loser Bowl, and could be the front-runner for his first Worst "Title."

While not mathematically eliminated, The Jeff Fisher Effect is virtually eliminated. The best he can hope for at this point is to finish 7-7, and he has no chance of catching even the lowest scoring of the four current playoff teams. How much of "no chance" are we talking here? Pickles, the lowest of the 4 so far, has 1252 points; JFE has 1087.5. That's a difference of 164.5 points. In other words, JFE would need to outscore Pickles by an AVERAGE of 82.5 points a game, which is a point total JFE has failed to eclipse four times this year. So while theoretically possible, it just ain't gonna happen. JFE is basically just hoping to not be The Worst this year.

CURRENT PLAYOFF TEAMS - Opponent in Week 13 and 14
Sacks - Provost, HRG
HOTA - Falco, DVD
DVD - Pickles, HOTA
Pickles - DVD, Boobies (heh)
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CURRENT NON-PLAYOFF TEAMS - Opponent in Week 13 and 14
HRG - Boobies (heh), Sacks
Boobies (heh) - HRG, Pickles
I-Ry - JFE, Falco
Provost - Sacks, JFE
JFE - I-Ry, Provost
Falco - HOTA, I-Ry

So looking ahead to Week 14, the early game that sticks out is the HOTA-DVD matchup. It could possibly be a "winner gets a playoff spot" game.

It's somewhat interesting (and also pretty great) that the luck of the schedule draw has the current Bottom 4 teams all matching up in the last week of the season. It will be huge for Loser Bowl seeding, and likelihood of "winning" The Worst.


TRADE DEADLINE
Just a reminder that the Trade Deadline is tonight! I'm not sure there will be a flurry of deadline action, but I feel it's my duty to inform you of such. But also, I mean....shoot your shot.

ANNUAL THANKSGIVING APPEAL
Also wanted to wish you all a Happy Thanksgiving. And, as usual, say I'm thankful to have a league full of guys I enjoy playing with, and make it easy to be a commissioner. You guys are the best league a guy could ask for. <raises glass>