Poor line up management cost us dearly in Week 3. Is this the beginning of the end?
There will be only one undefeated team left in Ladies and Edelman, and it is not us. For the first time this season we were underdogs in a matchup and played our part perfectly. As we enter the fourth week of the season, it has become clear that some of our star players are not living up to their potential. Others are exceeding expectations.
This was a severe loss on a personal level since we have now lost to the same manager three weeks in a row. For those of you who followed our baseball team, you will know that the playoffs just ended in that league. Two weeks ago we got blown out by this manager 9-0 to finish the regular season. Then drew his team again in the opening round of the playoffs, which ended in a 6-2 loss. Toss in this week’s 138.98 – 118.04 loss, and it is a safe bet to say we hate this guy.
MATCHUP AND SCORES
Pinstripe Bowl didn’t have any players in the Thursday night game, which meant we trailed for the entire matchup.
Everyone in the starting lineup underperformed. Yet, somehow the two New York Giants players we have (Evan Engram and Sterling Shepard) were our best players.
It has become clear that Sony Michel will not repeat his stellar rookie season. Clearly, the Patriots have different plans this season. We know the moment we take him out of the starting lineup, that will be the week he puts up huge numbers.
Stefon Diggs has also become a major red flag. He is the lowest scoring regular player in our lineup. Diggs avoided the last place because Golden Tate is still suspended. We drafted him in the third round, hoping he’d lead our wide receivers. Rookie wideout Terry McLaurin has 1.10 fewer points in one game with the team.
Tom Brady is the 9th highest scoring player in the league, while Evan Engram is the 23rd highest scorer. That is all we have for players in the Top 25.
If we look back at week 3, we will cringe at the fact that our bench players were more productive in meeting their projections. Also, the bench scored only 38.84 fewer points than the starting line.
Since we make roster decisions based on projections and matchups, you will see why we didn’t start Sterling Shepard or Phillip Lindsay. Those two helped the bench be positive in regards to their forecasts by 16.05 points. Considering the starting lineup was -15.31 in meeting their projections, this week’s bench management really cost us in the points department and the win column.
Had we plugged in Shepard and Lindsay into the top nine, in place of Diggs and Le’Von Bell, we would score a total of 162.54 points. That would have given us a victory by 23.56 points and the second-highest scoring team of the week. Instead, we have to look back and wonder what could have been a 3-0 start.
Here are the rest of the week 3 scores:
As you can see, we ended up as the second-lowest scoring team of the week.
STANDINGS
One loss and you go from the penthouse to the lobby. Thankfully we still have a winning record and can avoid the basement for now. One thing that stands out to me is that the top five teams are positive in the points for and points against. The top five all have winning records too. That is just a testament that if you want to be successful, you need to give up less than you score.
STUDS AND DUDS
Best Player in Starting Lineup: Evan Engram – TE New York Giants
Actual Points: 23.30 Projected Points: 13.65 Stat Line: 113 yards/1 TD
Worse Player in Starting Lineup: Stefon Diggs – QB Minnesota (2x Row)
Actual Points: 4.50 Projected Points: 15.30 Stat Line: 15 yards
Best Player on the Bench: Phillip Lindsay – RB Denver
Actual Points: 29.00 Projected Points: 11.66 Stat Line: 81 yards/2 TD
Best Player in the League: Mike Evans WR – Tampa Bay (Luck’sRetirementTour)
Actual Points: 45.00 Projected Points: 17.07 Stat Line: 190 yards/3 TD
TRANSACTIONS
Pinstripe Bowl still clings to the #1 waiver wire selection they earned in week one. Amazingly as the Wednesday waiver deadline passed, there was only a handful of moves and loads of players still available.
We jumped at the opportunity to grab Washington Redskins wide receiver, Terry McLaurin. There is talk he could be one of the finalists for Rookie of the Year. So far his production has exceeded his projections, which may make him a diamond in the rough.
To make room on the roster, we cut ties with Miami Dolphins running back Kenyan Drake. In his week three matchup, Drake scored only 8.20 points, while McLaurin had 19.00.
Weekly Move Total: 1/4
Season Move Total: 2/50
Stay tuned for next’s week recap of Pinstripe Bowl’s 2019 Fantasy Football season.
Keeping the Stats 