Week 9
Raze escape Stereco 30-29
Piana survives a Monday night rally for its fourth straight win, snapping Sims' streak at three, and the two division leaders lose some ground. All this and more in ...

The Week That Was in Fantasy League Football

In what later might be tabbed this season's Game of the Year, the Piana Raze squeaked by the undermanned Sims Stereco on the graces of home field advantage. Both clubs came into the game riding three-game win straks, and fought tooth and nail to for that fourth.

On Sunday, Sims got 11 points from Ricky Williams, 12 from Terrell Owens, and 17 against from the Chief defense. Piana countered with 10 from Elvis Grbac, 16 from Sebastian Janikowski, and 16 against from the Saints "D." As Monday dawned, Sims had a 13-point defecit to overcome on the leg of (former-Raze) Al Del Greco and the hands of Albert Connell. By Halftime Monday night, they had scored 10 of that 13 and seemed to be well on their way to victory. Yet the wells ran dry in the second half, as Del Greco and Connell could each only muster a point, leaving Sims a single point shy of a tie.

How close was it? Both teams posted 45 offensive points, Sims held a 17-16 defensive advantage, and Piana held the decisive trump card with the two-point home field advantage. The win catapults the Raze above .500 for the first time since Week 1 of 1999 and draws them to the edge of playoff qualification while the loss keeps Sims from claiming a share of the Eastern lead.

Irwin got the best of the Colossal Waste of Time twice in 1997, and it's been a long three years since for the Hellions. Jody downed the Western division leaders for the fifth straight time, snapping their four-game winning streak in the process. As expected, two of the better defenses in the league cancelled each other out; Jody's Miami squad fought Irwin's Tampa Bay team to a repectable 13-13 draw, leaving the game's outcome in the hands of the offense. C.W.O.T. memeber Martin Gramatica led all scorers with 12 points, and he was assisted by quarterback Kerry Collins, who added 8 more. Edgerrin James proved to be the high scorer for the Hellions with a somewhat pedestrian 7 points. The loss, coupled with Piana's win, cuts Irwin's Western lead in half. The win snaps a mini two-game slump for Jody, and throws them back into the think of the Eastern race.

Brandon's Yellow-bellied Overweight Banshees might make a season of it yet. The underdog Banshees downed the East-leading Pimps behind the strong play of Pete Stoyanovich (12 points) and Jamal Anderson (9 points). The defending division champs had a pair of superstars themselves - Ricky Watters with 10 and Derrick Alexander with 13 - but were victimized most by their starting quarterback. Steve Beurlein turned in one of the worst performances of his career, stripping four points away from his own team. The loss is the third straight for The Pimps, who have now backed themselves back into the pack in the East while still clinging to a one-game lead. The win is the second straight for the pesky Banshees, who keep their slim playoff hopes alive for yet another week.

The Abstact Machines broke out of a four-game slump in impressive fashion, throttling the Bock Boys on the road. Shaun King roared to life with 17 points, and he was backed considerably by a four touchdown, 19-point effort from Marshall Faulk. Thomas, electing to keep Trent Green on the bench, threw Daunte Culpepper to the wolves; the first-year quarterback could only manage three points in the loss. The Machines' win avenges an earlier loss to the expansion Bock Boys and pulls them into a third-place tie with Thomas, two back of the Hellions. The loss is the second straight for the Bock Boys, snapping, adversely, the franchise's win-one, lose-one performance pattern.

The Brewmeisters won for the third straight week, having to come from behind against the hard-luck Players. Down by 10 going into Monday night, Anderson's highly-touted MightyTitan defense blitzed The Players for a defensive touchdown, a special teams touchdown, and 17 points against, sending Jeff Garcia and Co. to their fourth straight defeat. Again, Garcia was the brightest spot for The Players as he outdueled the capable Peyton Manning 14-11. Yet the game was turned by the defense, where Anderson held a decisive 23-11 advantage. The win is the Brewmeisters' third straight, bringing them to within a game of The Pimps in the East. Now with their seventh loss, The Players must win out the final four weeks to qualify for the playoffs.