Sports

Tartan Fantasy: the contenders begin to pull ahead

By Marika Yang  |  Oct 7, 2018
Credit: Courtesy of gaurav kumar via Flickr Wikimedia Commons Credit: Courtesy of gaurav kumar via Flickr Wikimedia Commons Credit: Courtesy of Paul Moseley via Flickr Wikimedia Commons Credit: Courtesy of Paul Moseley via Flickr Wikimedia Commons

Alas, I have returned to the bottom of the scoreboard and have been honored with the responsibility to write the recap of Tartan Fantasy League’s Week 4 action. Here’s what went down:

TARTAN FANTASY over futbol 107.50 to 69.90

In this matchup, Photo Editor Lisa Qian’s team TARTAN FANTASY dominated Visual Editor Tracy Le’s team futbol. After starting 2–0, Le’s team moves to fourth place with a 2-2 record, while Qian’s team leapfrogs futbol to third place with a 3–1 record.

For another week, Houston Texans quarterback Deshaun Watson has carried Qian’s team TARTAN FANTASY. This week was no exception, as Watson led the team with 375 passing yards and two touchdowns for 31.10 points. Dallas Cowboys running back Ezekiel Elliot’s 30.00 points, Atlanta Falcons kicker Matt Bryant’s 14.00 points, and the Texans defense’s 13.00 points pushed Qian past Le’s team despite all her other starters scoring in single digits.

Le’s team futbol was derailed by the fact she didn’t update her starting lineup. Her two Carolina Panthers players, quarterback Cam Newton and tight end Greg Olsen, were on a bye, and Cincinnati Bengals running back Joe Mixon is injured. If she had started Indianapolis Colts quarterback Andrew Luck (35.66 points) and Chicago Bears running back Tarik Cohen (23.40), futbol would have had more than enough points to win.

Last Manning Standing over mmichelle123 127.22 to 93.78

This week, Publisher Caleb Miller’s team Last Manning Standing won for a 3–1 record, and second place in the league. Pillbox Editor Michelle Madlansacay’s team mmichelle123 drops to seventh place with a 1–3 record.

Miller’s team Last Manning Standing boasted several strong performances this week. Leading the team was New Orleans Saints running back Alvin Kamara, who recorded 134 rushing yards, three rushing touchdowns, and 47 receiving yards for 36.10 points. The Green Bay Packers defense also had a stellar week, putting up 23.00 points.

On Madlansacay’s team mmichelle123, a 31.68 point performance from Minnesota Vikings quarterback Kirk Cousins was let down by the Vikings defense, who had -3.00 points, just like in the real game. Saints kicker Wil Lutz posted a solid 15.00 points, but the team couldn’t overcome weak performances from the starting running backs, Baltimore Ravens’ Alex Collins and Tennessee Titans’ Derrick Henry, who contributed 8.50 and 3.10 points, respectively.

newz over Slugs 124.60 to 100.02

In the closest contest of the week (which hopefully won’t cause any office drama), News Editor Nora Mattson’s team newz came out on top, defeating Operations Manager Adam Tunnard’s team Slugs. newz scored 21.2 percent more points than projected to move to 3–1 and maintain first place, while Slugs, now 2–2, fall to fifth place.

Mattson’s team newz had a great week overall, with several starters contributing significantly. Detroit Lions wide receiver Golden Tate led the team with 25.20 points from 132 yards through the air and two touchdowns. Texans wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins followed with 22.90 points from 169 yards through the air and one touchdown. Los Angeles Chargers quarterback Philip Rivers finished with 250 passing yards and three touchdowns for 21.70 points.

On Tunnard’s team Slugs, the running backs led the way. Melvin Gordon of the Chargers ran for 104 yards and completed seven catches for 55 yards and a touchdown, totaling 23.90 points. Kareem Hunt of the Kansas City Chiefs had similar numbers, with 121 yards and a touchdown on the ground and 54 receiving yards for 23.50 points. Excluding Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers’ mediocre 15.02 points, all other offensive starts scored less than six points, holding the team down.

Pillbox over Gin and Bear It 107.56 to 56.74

Let’s not sugarcoat it: my team Gin and Bear It took a beating this week, losing to Pillbox Editor Izzy Sio’s team Pillbox by 50.82 points, the highest margin this season so far. I’m all but ready to revoke my title as Sports Editor, but I fear most of this is luck (and my ineptitude). Sio gets her first win of the season and both of our teams are tied at 1–3 and at sixth place.

Sio was smart to pick up the red-hot Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes a couple weeks ago. This week, his 22.86 points from 304 passing yards and two touchdowns were a team high, followed closely by Los Angeles Rams running back Todd Gurley’s 21.60 points from 156 yards from scrimmage and a touchdown. Ravens wide receiver John Brown also had a great week with 17.90 points, his most so far this season.

Only two of my starters scored in the double digits, one of which was my ever-reliable kicker, Justin Tucker of the Ravens, who scored the second-most points with 14.00. The only offensive player with a decent week was Oakland Raiders running back Marshawn Lynch, who recorded 15.70 points from 130 rushing yards and 27 receiving yards. Everyone else let me down.

Next week, Miller’s team Last Manning Standing takes on Qian’s team TARTAN FANTASY, Tunnard’s team Slugs will battle Madlansacay’s team mmichelle123, Sio’s team Pillbox will face off against league leader Mattson’s team newz, and Le’s team futbol will probably beat my team Gin and Bear It.