Football
Predictions Week 3
Gators vs Underdogs
GATORS
The Gators beat the Elites with 6/7 guys. The thing that’s impressive about this team is that they barely field a full squad and yet they win. That takes a lot of conditioning and determination to play max effort with a limited team. There were moments in the game where it looked like the Elites could pull the upset. Once the Gators put their foot on the gas, it was game over for the Elites. There are rumors swirling that the Gators plan to add a “Nafi-like” player on their team. If QB Richie has another big target on the team, they can become an extremely dangerous offensive team. You can see the potential this team has and we expect a huge season. Can they beat the juggernaut teams of the league? It will be very interesting to see how they play against the Savages and AK. For now, they have to focus on the Underdogs.
UNDERDOGS
The Underdogs lost in blowout fashion against AK. What is going on with the Underdog’s offense? Their free agent acquisitions should’ve translated into big point totals the first few games of the season. They’ve only scored a total of 33 points in 2 games. Is it due to the fact that they’ve faced 2 good defenses or does Waqas need more time to adapt to the grind of the league? We’re not saying he’s looked bad, we just expected a better offense. Their defense has been ok. They were completely exposed against an angry and rejuvenated AK team. We would’ve liked to see the Underdogs play more man defense against AK. They have the youth, talent and athleticism to do so. The offense did call good plays, but receivers couldn’t get any separation from their defenders. Give AK a lot of credit here – the Underdog receivers were under siege all game. And when a defense is glued to your receivers, the receivers will have to work extra hard to get spacing. When this happens, the offense tires out very quickly.
MATCHUP
This is a great matchup! You have a veteran Gator team against a young Underdog team looking to take the next step and become a top 3 team. They will have to crack the Gator’s zone defense. The Gators added a couple of young players according to our sources, so it will be very interesting to see the new talent they’ve added. The QB matchup is Richie vs Waqas. Right now, we gotta take Richie. He has a bigger and better arm. He’s also more accurate and can scramble better than Waqas. Defensively, we give the edge to the Underdogs. Their youth and athleticism should be able to hold the Gator offense to fewer than 30 points. Offensively, the Gators are a lot better. We expect the Underdog offense to finally come out and score over 20 points. However, we like Richie better. Gators chances of winning – 55%.
Gators 32 – Underdogs 26
AK VS COBRA KAI
AK
Finally Sims and Ritchie have returned to AK! We finally saw the real AK squad that dominated the league last year. The swirling rumors that suggested Ritchie would not return to the team have all been squashed! They dominated from start to finish and easily beat the Underdogs. The Underdogs had no answer for their explosive offense and their incredible defense. Sims is playing at an MVP level and he was determined to show the league that AK is fully back and ready to dominate. We all know how scary good this team is. The question still remains, will Sims be able to play the majority of the regular season? They’re currently 3rd in the power rankings, but we all know this team will surge to the top 2. Will their full team show up week in, week out? Will they look to sit out and rest some players against Cobra Kai?
COBRA KAI
Cobra Kai kicked off their first game in franchise history against the last place Thunder. We didn’t know much about this team. We also noticed a mini-crowd showed up to see what kind of team Cobra Kai is. Boy did that crowd disappear quickly. The Thunder jumped out to a huge lead and never looked back. Cobra Kai only fielded 7 guys. The Thunder were marching up and down the field which tired out Cobra Kai. The game was practically over in the latter part of the first half. From what we know, they were missing half their team. Their QB is competent and has a solid arm with decent accuracy. They’ve brought back former and current SAFL players. We all know that it takes a long time to gel. It takes time to understand the game and defend other teams, especially considering that there are superior teams and elite talent in this league. Unfortunately, Cobra Kai will have a difficult time winning their first year. They need to focus on building chemistry, identifying their strengths and star players. That’s how you build a foundation for the future. We’re curious to see who else is on this roster.
MATCHUP
This is the absolute worst matchup for Cobra Kai. They’re playing against the best offense in the league and the league’s most talented roster. It will be interesting to see how AK plays this game. Do they play with a full squad? Do they bench their key players? We expect this to be a blowout of epic proportions, regardless of who Cobra Kai brings to their team. The only shot they have of winning this game is if Sims, Ritchie, and Amneet don’t play. The QB matchup is not even close. The Cobra Kai QB is new to the league while Sims is a former MVP and can light up any defense. Offensively, AK is one of the best team in the league while Cobra Kai struggled to make a completion last week. Defensively, AK is superior. They have too much talent and speed. This will be an ugly game for Cobra Kai. This will be a quick mercy. AK’s chances of winning – 99.9999%
AK 58 – Cobra Kai 0
BANDITS VS BROWNS
BANDITS
Bandits came off a bye week. The offense will be a big question mark for the remainder of the season. Can they generate enough points to win games? They added ex-Thunder all – star Jay as their QB. Jay is more than capable of holding down the helm as the QB. He has a nice touch on his passes and he’s a good defensive player. Let’s get real…Jay is a solid QB, but we’re not sure if he’s a starter. The Bandits are accustomed to having the star QB with a big arm to lead them to victories. This will be their most challenging season to date. They’re missing a star QB, their best player and more weapons on offense. Their defense should be ok for the remainder of the season. If we look at the other talented teams around the league, there’s at least 5 teams that are better than they are. Captain Burhan has A LOT on his plate this season. He will be severely tested. Burhan embodies the Bandits grit and toughness. They’ll be competitive, but can they win? We will just have to wait and see..
BROWNS
Is there any other team in the league that delivers weekly drama and juicy rumors other than the Browns?? This team should have their own reality show. Not only do they dominate the league, but they dominate the chats and rumor mill. What’s the latest rumor you say?? This may be Shu’s last year with the Browns. Now we find that incredibly hard to believe. Shu is practically THE BROWNS. Without him, they may not even eclipse 2 wins. They lost a lot of talent this year and losing him would be a franchise crushing blow. We’ve already been through the rumors that Shu would retire 2 years ago. Now we have this rumor…interesting! The Browns lost a very tough game against the up and coming Savages. It was a back and forth affair all day. The legendary Shu threw a couple of costly picks that allowed the Savages to score. The Browns kill us for getting on their defense. Guess what Browns – you’re now ranked as the second worst defensive team in the league! You’re allowing 44.5 points per game!! We’re not even sure if there was ever a Browns team that allowed that many points. The truth is, the Browns lost a lot of talent during the off-season, and it shows especially on defense. Anwar lit them up and was in cruise control practically the entire game. Do the Browns need to make adjustments on defense? 100% absolutely. Should the alarms be going off? YES! We’re not saying that the Browns are in trouble or their franchise is in shambles, we’re just saying that they have a lot of things to clean up. They were seen bickering on the sidelines. Every team has fights between the sidelines and outside the sidelines. We just can’t remember a time where it was so visible for the league to see. I guess now we can see where the Shu rumors are coming from. We’ve said this during the start of the season. The Browns welcome the huge red target on their backs and they walk and talk with swag – rightfully so. Just be careful with the punches that the teams will throw their way. Teams are gunning for them and right now they’re licking their chops when they see that defensive personnel out there. We understand it’s early and we aren’t counting the Browns out by any means. Teams like the Savages, Gators, Thunder, Underdogs have gotten better offensively, while the Browns lost key defensive players. If they don’t address and tweak their defense, they will be in shoot-outs every week.
MATCHUP
It’ll be very interesting to see what the Bandits do against a weaker Browns defense. Can the Browns tweak their defense in time? Do they even need to tweak their defense against a weak Bandit attack? The Bandits are looking for a shoot-out while the Browns are looking to hold the Bandits under 25 points. The Bandits need this victory, but the Browns need it even more. They’re looking to 3-peat and they don’t want to drop down in the standings early. There’s no defense Shu hasn’t seen. The Bandits always present a difficult matchup for Shu as they tend to anticipate his passes and rely on instincts to beat him. They have a solid defensive system and they will look to pick off Shu as often as possible. If the Bandits beat the Browns, it will be a big upset given the Bandits weaker offense. Can the Browns get it together and defeat the hungry Bandits? There is no QB comparison here – Shu is elite. Offensively, the Browns are dominant while the Bandits are weaker than ever. Defensively, the Bandits have the edge. Bandits just make better reads on defense compared to the Browns. We can’t see the Browns losing to the Bandits. Browns chances of winning – 65%.
Browns 38 – Bandits 20
THUNDER VS SAVAGES
THUNDER
The Thunder notched their first win of the season against a depleted Cobra Kai team. They came out firing on all cylinders with 2 quick scores and a pick towards the end of the half that basically sealed the victory. They completely destroyed Cobra Kai on both sides of the ball. Thunder QB Justin was throwing the ball all over the field and hitting his receivers with accuracy and precision. This is the highest score total in team history and they looked very impressive on both sides of the ball. The question is – can they sustain this? Which team are they? We think they have the potential to be somewhere in between. There’s no reason why this team shouldn’t put up at least 25 points per game. They have the speed and talent to do so. Justin is quietly coming into his own as a solid QB. Also during the game, it was refreshing to see other players step up. The game that may hurt them in the standings is the game against the Elites. If they somehow found a way to beat them, they would’ve been 2-0 and sitting atop the league. The reason why we mention this game is due to their upcoming death schedule of Savages, AK and Browns. If they were 2-0 and lose the next 3 games, they’d only be a game away from .500 and they’d be in good shape. The Thunder want no part of playing a one game playoff. We all remember that shocking defeat in the hands of the Elites last year. The Thunder need to make strides and solidify themselves as a legit competitive threat in this league. They’re the #1 ranked defense right now. Something tells us that will change this week as they play the 2nd best offense in the league. They will be severely tested this week. Which Thunder team will we see?
SAVAGES
The Savages defeated the Browns in a thrilling back and forth affair. The Savages look faster and more determined to win than any team in this league. They’re a legit contender and deserve to be the number 1 ranked team in the league. Ofcourse their naysayers will say that they defeated an AK team without Sims and Ritchie. That’s definitely a legit point, but let’s be fair. A win is a win! We’ve seen the Savages as an average to above average team. We’re finally seeing the maturity and growth of this team after several years. They are a title contender and they’re hungry for title. Their defeat of the Browns early in the season was a huge win that they needed. The Savages are quickly gaining the utmost respect in this league. The only concern we have with the Savages is that they allowed 48 points. We understand the Browns have a potent offense, but 48 points is unacceptable for this talented defense. They need to be better than that. Anwar has this team playing at a high level so we know they’re capable of fixing their offense.
MATCHUP
Both teams came up with 2 big wins that they desperately needed. They both have a lot of speed and youth. The Savages are more disciplined and experienced while the Thunder are coming into their own. The Savages are a legit title contender while the Thunder have new pieces that are trying to gel. It’s very difficult for a team to drop 47 points in this league. We don’t think it’s a fluke score from the Thunder. We believe Justin is the real deal and he will continue to improve every week. Can the Thunder score against the Savage defense? Anwar will look to dissect this #1 ranked Thunder defense. QB Matchup – Anwar is clearly better and more season. Offensively – The Savages are more dangerous and have better play calling. Although, on paper, the Thunder are better statistically, the Savages are a better defensive team. We don’t expect this game to be a blowout. There’s something slightly different about this Thunder team. They’re no pushover and they will come out fighting. The Savages will look to put this game away quickly. Savages chances of winning – 70%.
SAVAGES 38 – THUNDER 19