For the first half of the season, Kevin and Lily were at another level above the rest of the league. However, in the final recent month, both teams have lost a lot of momentum and are no longer the invincible force they once were. There is no clear favorite. Three teams are regular participants in the playoffs, and one is making a return after some tortuous rebuilding years. Here's the semi-finals preview:
Lily vs Katy
QB: Team Katy has termed this the Vagina Bowl II. I view it as balance vs. force. Katy has arguably the most exciting fantasy player since 2007 Tom Brady. Her team, like in years past, relies heavily on the performance of the Eagles passing game. However, Mike Vick faces one of the best defenses in the NFL this week. The Giants "limited" Vick to only 15 points and 1 TD run the last time they played in Philly. With the game at NY, Vick will face a more difficult match-up this time even. For Lily, Phil Rivers faces a mediocre pass defense vs. the 49ers. Lily will have to root against her favorite team and hope Norv Turner emphasize the pass instead of the running game. Edge: Lily (slight)
RB: No contest here. Arian Foster is the best fantasy RB to date while Team Katy has a couple of bench-level players in Benson and Jones starting for her. To make things worse, Katy's players face off against decent run defenses. Arian Foster gets a Tennessee defense that's given up on their coach. Edge: Lily (large)
WR: On paper, Lily has two studs in Roddy White and Reggie Wayne facing two soft passing defenses. DeSean Jackson played like one last week vs. Dallas, but again, he's facing a real defense this time. If this was an Asian team facing Katy, there'd be no doubt Davon Bess or Jackson would deliver a fluke-like 20points+, but the magic doesn't usually work vs. Caucasian teams. Edge: Lily (moderate)
TE: Chris Cooley has been uncharacteristically making noises about getting more passes in the red zone, so expect him to score for Katy. Meanwhile, Lily's TE pickup of the week have delivered dud-like performances so far. Edge: Katy (modereate)
K: Both kickers play for good teams facing shaky defenses. Edge: Tie
DST: Raiders are playing against a Denver team in shambles. Plus, they usually do well vs. Denver at home. On most weeks, this would be a choice match-up. However, the Bears get a juicier victim: A Minnesota team that has to play outdoors at home with possibly Patrick Ramsey at QB. Edge: Lily (slight)
Predicted score: Lily 73, Katy 67
Hai vs. Kevin
QB: For Kevin, Manning had a couple of terrible weeks but righted the ship last week and is still playing in must-win game situation at this time of the season. One of the reasons why I was willing to trade Manning was that during this time of the year, he'd usually be benched in the 2nd half since the Colts like to rest their starters after clinching home field. Not this year. As for Hai, Schaub has been up-and-down for him this year. While the matchup vs Tennessee is appealing at first glance, the Texans may be jumping to a big lead and thus dialing down the passing game. Edge: Kevin (moderate)
RB: Chris Johnson may not be playing for much this week, but Houston does have a soft defense. Kevin practically has a non-existent 2nd RB, however. Too many injuries at his RB spots forces him to play a Lion on the road. Hai has consistent and productive performers in the Law Firm and Mendenhall. So there's little downside even though Mendenhall is facing a tough Jets run defense. Edge: Hai (moderate)
WR: Again, injuries limit Kevin's depth here. Andre Johnson is a stud, but the #2 or even #3 spot for WRs are question marks due to injury or performance issues. However, Maclin and Hicks have explosive scoring potential. Kevin hopes that whomever he benches doesn't light it up this week. Hai's receivers are also hot-and-cold. Hai is opting for the upside plays with TO and Austin but Garcon and Rice may get more receptions this week. Edge: Kevin (slight)
TE: Jason Witten has been very consistent since Hai acquired him in a trade. Hai can't blame his team's performance on Witten. Kevin, on the other hand, must face TE karma issues. The rest of the Caucasians are blaming Gates for their tie this past week in the all-star game. However, Zach Miller does get to play against the non-existent Denver defense, so there's hope for Kevin. Edge: Hai (moderate)
K: Hai's Dan Carpenter is having an unreal 2010 season. However, I'm glad Hai didn't nominate Carpenter for the all-star game because I would have picked him and the Asians would have ended up with 4 less points. Kevin's Bironas is, again, a Tennessee player. Enough said. Edge: Hai (strong)
DST: A Packers defense facing against the #1 offense in the NFL, without possibly its star quarterback to help keep Brady and Co. off the field. A Steelers defense vs. a shaky Jets offense in the last month. This is too scarily easy to pick, but I won't over-think for now. Edge: Hai (strong)
Predicted Score: Hai 86 Kevin 72
Lily vs Katy
QB: Team Katy has termed this the Vagina Bowl II. I view it as balance vs. force. Katy has arguably the most exciting fantasy player since 2007 Tom Brady. Her team, like in years past, relies heavily on the performance of the Eagles passing game. However, Mike Vick faces one of the best defenses in the NFL this week. The Giants "limited" Vick to only 15 points and 1 TD run the last time they played in Philly. With the game at NY, Vick will face a more difficult match-up this time even. For Lily, Phil Rivers faces a mediocre pass defense vs. the 49ers. Lily will have to root against her favorite team and hope Norv Turner emphasize the pass instead of the running game. Edge: Lily (slight)
RB: No contest here. Arian Foster is the best fantasy RB to date while Team Katy has a couple of bench-level players in Benson and Jones starting for her. To make things worse, Katy's players face off against decent run defenses. Arian Foster gets a Tennessee defense that's given up on their coach. Edge: Lily (large)
WR: On paper, Lily has two studs in Roddy White and Reggie Wayne facing two soft passing defenses. DeSean Jackson played like one last week vs. Dallas, but again, he's facing a real defense this time. If this was an Asian team facing Katy, there'd be no doubt Davon Bess or Jackson would deliver a fluke-like 20points+, but the magic doesn't usually work vs. Caucasian teams. Edge: Lily (moderate)
TE: Chris Cooley has been uncharacteristically making noises about getting more passes in the red zone, so expect him to score for Katy. Meanwhile, Lily's TE pickup of the week have delivered dud-like performances so far. Edge: Katy (modereate)
K: Both kickers play for good teams facing shaky defenses. Edge: Tie
DST: Raiders are playing against a Denver team in shambles. Plus, they usually do well vs. Denver at home. On most weeks, this would be a choice match-up. However, the Bears get a juicier victim: A Minnesota team that has to play outdoors at home with possibly Patrick Ramsey at QB. Edge: Lily (slight)
Predicted score: Lily 73, Katy 67
Hai vs. Kevin
QB: For Kevin, Manning had a couple of terrible weeks but righted the ship last week and is still playing in must-win game situation at this time of the season. One of the reasons why I was willing to trade Manning was that during this time of the year, he'd usually be benched in the 2nd half since the Colts like to rest their starters after clinching home field. Not this year. As for Hai, Schaub has been up-and-down for him this year. While the matchup vs Tennessee is appealing at first glance, the Texans may be jumping to a big lead and thus dialing down the passing game. Edge: Kevin (moderate)
RB: Chris Johnson may not be playing for much this week, but Houston does have a soft defense. Kevin practically has a non-existent 2nd RB, however. Too many injuries at his RB spots forces him to play a Lion on the road. Hai has consistent and productive performers in the Law Firm and Mendenhall. So there's little downside even though Mendenhall is facing a tough Jets run defense. Edge: Hai (moderate)
WR: Again, injuries limit Kevin's depth here. Andre Johnson is a stud, but the #2 or even #3 spot for WRs are question marks due to injury or performance issues. However, Maclin and Hicks have explosive scoring potential. Kevin hopes that whomever he benches doesn't light it up this week. Hai's receivers are also hot-and-cold. Hai is opting for the upside plays with TO and Austin but Garcon and Rice may get more receptions this week. Edge: Kevin (slight)
TE: Jason Witten has been very consistent since Hai acquired him in a trade. Hai can't blame his team's performance on Witten. Kevin, on the other hand, must face TE karma issues. The rest of the Caucasians are blaming Gates for their tie this past week in the all-star game. However, Zach Miller does get to play against the non-existent Denver defense, so there's hope for Kevin. Edge: Hai (moderate)
K: Hai's Dan Carpenter is having an unreal 2010 season. However, I'm glad Hai didn't nominate Carpenter for the all-star game because I would have picked him and the Asians would have ended up with 4 less points. Kevin's Bironas is, again, a Tennessee player. Enough said. Edge: Hai (strong)
DST: A Packers defense facing against the #1 offense in the NFL, without possibly its star quarterback to help keep Brady and Co. off the field. A Steelers defense vs. a shaky Jets offense in the last month. This is too scarily easy to pick, but I won't over-think for now. Edge: Hai (strong)
Predicted Score: Hai 86 Kevin 72
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