Fantasy football: futbol and newz remain undefeated

Welcome to the Tartan Fantasy Football League Week 2 recap! Once again, my team played tragically, and the Sports Editor was the worst player of the week. This week, some teams bounced back after the first week of the season, while others continued to flounder. Here’s how the week went:

Last Manning Standing over Pillbox 108.64 to 95.66

After a dismal showing last week, Publisher Caleb Miller’s team Last Manning Standing scored the most points in the league in a win over Pillbox Editor Izzy Sio’s team Pillbox. Miller’s team moves to a 1–1 record, while Sio’s is 0–2.

After Thursday’s game, Last Manning Standing held a one-point lead that it never gave up. Jacksonville Jaguars running back Leonard Fournette failed to score a single point, but Miller’s team boasted solid performances across the board: Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce scored 22.90 points with 109 receiving yards and two touchdowns, Minnesota Vikings wide receiver Adam Thielen finished with 131 yards through the air and one touchdown for 19.10 points, and Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster added 18.10 points with 121 yards and 1 touchdown.

Sio’s team Pillbox had a chance to win this matchup, with great performances from Los Angeles Rams running back Todd Gurley (29.30 points from 73 yards from scrimmage and three touchdowns) and Vikings wide receiver Stefon Diggs (26.90 points from 128 yards and two touchdowns). However, much of the team let her down: Los Angeles Chargers wide receiver Keenan Allen, Indianapolis Colts tight end Jack Doyle, and Seattle Seahawks running back Chris Carson all recorded point totals in the single digits, Rams kicker Greg Zuerlein was injured in warmups and therefore did not play, and the Baltimore Ravens defense disappointed with minus-one point.

futbol over Slugs 98.70 to 84.94

This week, undefeated teams futbol, of Visual Editor Tracy Le, and Slugs, of Operations Manager Adam Tunnard, faced off. In the end, Le proved victorious, and moves to a 2–0 record on the season, while Tunnard is now even at 1–1.

Le’s team was carried by two performances. Carolina Panthers quarterback Cam Newton passed for 335 yards and three touchdowns, adding 42 rushing yards, for 27.60 points. Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver A.J. Green caught five passes for 69 yards and three touchdowns, finishing with 24.90 points. Chiefs wide receiver Tyreek Hill and New England Patriots kicker Stephen Gostkowski also had decent weeks, scoring 15 and 8 points, respectively.

Tunnard’s team Slugs’ sole 20-point performance came from Chargers running back Melvin Gordon, who recorded 66 yards from scrimmage and three touchdowns, one passing, two rushing, all for 24.60 points. The team had some solid performances from Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers (16.04 points), Chiefs running back Kareem Hunt (14 points), and Tampa Bay Buccaneers wide receiver Mike Evans (12.30 points), but it wasn’t enough to beat Miller’s Last Manning Standing.

newz over TARTAN FANTASY 100.34 to 95.60

In the closest match of the week, News Editor Nora Mattson’s team newz pulled past Photo Editor Lisa Qian’s team TARTAN FANTASY to continue undefeated (2-0). TARTAN FANTASY now has a record of 1-1.

Mattson’s team newz was led by Houston Texans quarterback Deshaun Watson, who bounced back from Week 1’s lackluster performance with twice as many points, 22.80, from 310 yards through the air and two touchdowns. New Orleans Saints wide receiver was next, scoring 18.90 with 89 receiving yards and two touchdowns. Despite no points from Seahawks wide receiver Doug Baldwin, who is injured, Mattson still managed to take the win.

Qian’s team TARTAN FANTASY fell short despite some strong performances; her vice was leaving so many points on the bench. Chargers quarterback Phillip Rivers passed for 256 yards and three touchdowns for 22.74 points, Texans wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins hauled in six catches for 110 yards and a touchdown en route to 17 points, and the Rams defense finished with 13 points. However, these performances were dragged down by paltry weeks from players who could have been replaced with others on the bench. But alas, such is the unpredictability of fantasy football.

mmichelle123 over Gin and Bear It 92.02 to 68.94

Such unpredictability is the reason why I have been the dead-last and dead-worst player in this league. That, and a mix of bad luck and bad decisions. Pillbox Editor Michelle Madlansacay’s team mmichelle123 scored less this week than in her loss last week. That’s saying something. She moves to an even 1-1 record, while I am winless at 0-2.

Madlansacay’s team mmichelle123 was carried by Vikings quarterback Kirk Cousins, who scored 33.50 points with 425 passing yards and four touchdowns. Packers wide receiver Davante Adams also had a good week, with 12.40 points on 64 yards and a touchdown, but overall, mmichelle123 didn’t have a great week across the board. But a win is a win, I guess.

For my tragic team, Gin and Bear It, Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson let me down with only 14.74 points, a significant downgrade from last week’s 20.42 points. I remembered to start a running back that was actually playing, James Conner of the Steelers, who had a decent 14.50 points, but that performance couldn’t hide the fact that four of my seven offensive players finished with less than 10 points. At this point, I’m looking into potential trades, and hoping one of my bench players has a breakout season. If only.

Tune in next Monday to see how the Tartan Fantasy League fared during Week 3 of the NFL season!