LIS, WHIT & THE NFL ⟩ Kaheksas nädal. Mõru neelamine ja weird-ass-statistika

Team Tallinn 4-3, võit! Arctic Cats not so much. Mulle hetkel väga meeldib ameerika jalgpall, mis siis, et Carolina kaotas, mina võitsin. NFL Fantasy app kokkuvõte mu mängust algab nii: "This week’s first- and third-highest-scoring teams met in a shootout as Team Tallinn defeated The Swede 197.59 to 152.64. This is the most a team has scored this season without getting a victory."

Kõige suurema töö tegi minu poistest ära Ja’Marr Chase (Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver), kes kogus 37.10 punkti ühe touchdown’i ja 201 jardi eest. Baltimore Ravens sai Cincinnatilt peksa 17-41, mis oli ivake mõru neelata, sest panustatud sai Bengalsi võidule 13-18 punktiga. Nii et see bet polnud loll, lihtsalt mööda. Tampa Bay Buccaneers tappis Chicago Bearsi 38-3, Tom Brady 24.44 fantasy punkti, aga tema söödud püüdnud Mike Evans suisa 31.60. Carolina Panthers kaotas New York Giantsile 25-3 ehk teisisõnu ei skoorinud Carolina mitte touchdown’igi. Mängu ilusaim hetk oli Giants QB Daniel Jones’i ühe käega catch, kolmas veerand oli tolleks hetkeks enam vähem läbi ja seis oli 3-5 New Yorki kasuks. Viimasel veerandajal saadeti Carolina QB Sam Darnold pingile, varumees PJ Walker sai võimaluse mängu särtsu tuua, aga mingit särtsu muidugi kuskilt ei tulnudki.

Daniel Jones with an UNREAL catch pic.twitter.com/OI7SyjgdRq

— Barstool Sports (@barstoolsports) October 24, 2021

I lost. Again. That's 3 in a row. I am 2-5 and in 11th out of 12 places. I lost to a dude who didn't even have all his players - they started Cleveland Browns RB Kareem Hunt, who was on injured reserve (IR). I started Panthers QB Sam Darnold who got 2.48 points. Sam got 2.48 points more than the dude who didn't even put on a uniform. Bad. Very bad. I had to play Sam because my other fantasy QB is Daniel Jones of the New York Giants so I couldn't possibly start him. Of course - because this is how the universe works - had I started Jones instead of Darnold, I would have won. I had picked up TE Zach Ertz who was traded from the Philadelphia Eagles and made his debut as an Arizona Cardinal. He pulled in 16 points in his first outing, already more points than he had received in any of the first 7 games of the season as an Eagle (which is when Lisette had him on her team). Panthers defensive lineman/edge rusher Brian "Spiderman" Burns got 13 points and currently has 6th most fantasy points among all linemen. Well done.

It is extremely difficult for me to enjoy football when my team is playing like asshole. Witnessing what one can only describe as a total implosion of epic proportions the last several weeks has been demoralizing to say the least. First and foremost, I question the Panthers' coaching staff who consistently make bad decisions or no decisions, meaning there have been zero offensive or defensive adjustments at halftime when it has been crystal-clear that what we were doing was not working. And our defense, who started the season playing like gangbusters, has gotten less effective every game due to the offense not producing points.

You cannot win in this league with just a good offense, or just a good defense, as the struggling Kansas City Chiefs can attest to. Star QB Patrick Mahomes and a high scoring offense has appeared in the last 2 Super Bowls yet they currently have the same 3-4 record as the Panthers. The Chiefs have big problems on the defensive side of the ball, prompting Mahomes to try to do too much on offense, forcing bad throws and turning the ball over. The Chiefs and Mahomes aren't used to this kind of losing record, unlike the Panthers, who own a mansion in this zip code. Let me tell you kids, Panthers' QB Sam Darnold is no Patrick Mahomes, as Darnold looks totally panicked and/or scared on 85% of offensive plays. Sam's footwork these last 4 games hasn't been in rhythm with the receiver routes, so by the time he is ready to throw the ball, the routes are still developing and receivers aren't ready. This results in Sam staring down routes so defenders know where he's throwing, panicking in the pocket, and making anxiety-fueled decisions. Also, our receivers have a catching problem.

#NFL Most passes dropped by receivers:#Panthers Sam Darnold - 19#Giants Daniel Jones - 16#Steelers Ben Roethlisberger - 14#Chargers Justin Herbert - 14#Chiefs Patrick Mahomes - 13#Raiders Derek Carr - 13#Dolphins Jacoby Brissett - 12#49ers Jimmy Garoppolo -11 pic.twitter.com/1uDVVCO0g2

— NFL Stats (@mynflstats) October 27, 2021

Selle nädala fantasy lineup on mul paigas. Whitney’lt RB Josh Jacobs’i vastu saadud San Francisco tight end George Kittle istub ikka injured reserve nimekirjas, aga Kyle Pitts (Atlanta Falcons) on väga heas hoos ja ma ei kõhklegi teda platsile saatmast, lihtsalt… Atlanta mängib pühapäeval Carolina vastu. Aga mis siis. Let Kyle Pitts have a day, Carolina lihtsalt võitku. Siis on kõik rahul. Wide receiver positsioonil on mul veidi kahtlane seis, Baltimorel on bye week (igal meeskonnal on hooaja peale üks mänguta nädal), mistõttu Marquise Brown pingil. Variandid on Sterling Shepard (New York Giants) ja Jamison Crowder (New York Jets), hetkel kaldun pigem viimase poole.

Kaks asja, mis mulle ameerika jalgpalli juures lisaks mängule meeldivad, on põhjatu kaev ükskõik millise weird ass statistika jaoks. Umbes, et "Washington are the 4th team since 1970 to not have a lead change in their first 8 games," või et "this is the most dropped catches by a wide receiver in the first half, in the first six games of the season since 2002," kõigest on võimalik tekitada miski olulisena kõlav mõttetus. Ja teine asi on väga äge graafika nii otseülekannetes, aga ka pärast analüüsides. Võimas, mida suudetakse toota visuaaliga ja kui palju see mängule juurde annab.

Mõni aeg tagasi oli ETV stuudiosse jalka EMi või MMi jaoks esimest korda toodud väike mängulaud punaste ja siniste nuppudega kummagi meeskonna mängijate tähistamiseks. Väravavahtide nupud oli kollased. Poolajal või lõpus analüüsiti laua juures olukordi. Ekspert näitas järjest viiele-kuuele täpselt sama värvi nupule, nimetas mängijate nimed, siis liigutas neid - sama värvi nuppe - igatepidi seal mängulaual ja rääkis, kuidas mingi mänguolukord kujunes. Võin nõrgemat sorti mürgi vahele panna, et ei väga pingsalt lauda jälginud Aet Süvari ega keegi teine suutnud umbes kolmandast sekundist järge pidada, kes täpsemalt milline punane või sinine nupp oli, kust ja/või kuhu liikus. "Mäletate, see siin oli siis Ronaldo, eksole, ja tema nüüd liikus siit siia, ja pall on siin, ja tema siin… kes see… Nani, just, see oli Nani, ja kui tema nüüd liikus, ee," andis ka analüütik lõpuks alla.

Stupid bet läheb siiani võiduta Detroit Lions mängule Philadelphia Eagles vastu. Kümps, et Lions võidab 7-12 punktiga, võit 64€, letsgo!

The mixed-reality panther is back!!!! pic.twitter.com/nTxoXIQe7z

— Carolina Panthers (@Panthers) September 19, 2021

Lis, Whit & The NFL on iganädalane artiklisari Ameerika jalgpallist, muuhulgas tuleb juttu fantasy football liigast, tutvustame NFLi meeskondi ja mängijaid ning teeme panuseid tulemustele - often stupid, sometimes lucky.