2011 fantasy recap, week 4

The Phillies 11-6 win Saturday was significant not just because it started off their post-season in style but also because it broke up an otherwise dreadful weekend for anyone associated with Philadelphia sports. Consider:

-- The Eagles lost a 24-23 disaster to the San Francisco 49ers on Sunday.
-- The Phillies lost 5-4 Sunday night in a game where they led 4-0.
-- Temple was upset by Toledo, 36-13, on Saturday.
-- Villanova was upset by William and Mary, 20-16, on Saturday.
-- The Flyers lost their final pre-season game, 2-1 to the Devils, on Saturday.
-- Former Philadelphia QBs Donovan McNabb (Vikings), Kevin Kolb (Cardinals), and A.J. Feeley (Rams) all lost on Sunday as well.
-- The Philadelphia Union didn’t lose on Sunday, but they didn’t win either -- they had a 1-1 draw.

QB: Aaron Rodgers, 53.92 pts -- started by Bob
RB: Matt Forte, 32.03 pts -- started by Dad
WR: Hakeem Nicks, 26.80 pts -- started by Bob
TE: Jimmie Graham, 24.80 pts -- started by Paul
K: Ryan Succop, 21.00 pts -- on the wire
DEF: Baltimore, 34.00 pts -- started by Jim
D: Chris Houston, 11.00 pts -- on the wire

Bob benefits from Rodgers' ridiculous week: 6 total TDs, 400-plus yards passing. That's the highest individual fantasy total since last year's 57.32 pts performance by Eagles QB Mike Vick, when he had 6 total TDs and over 400 yards of offense. Near as I can tell, that Vick game was the highest individual fantasy total game of the last 20 years (at least by our league's scoring). And, if you remember, I had Vick on my bench that week. But I'm not still bitter about it.

For the record, the Baltimore defense outscored the Baltimore offense 21-13 on Sunday night. Their three defensive TDs also were better than the point totals for 11 other teams on the weekend.

"Terrible QBs" edition
3rd place: Chad Henne, -0.82 pts -- on the wire
2nd place: Matt Flynn, -2.20 pts -- on the wire
1st place: Mark Sanchez, -2.44 pts -- on my bench

Those three Baltimore defensive TDs? They came off of four Sanchez turnovers. The only reason he wasn't worth fewer points was because he got an extra half-point for a tackle after his third fumble of the night.

Speaking of substandard QB work, coach of the week honors go to Sam, who at the last moment on Sunday opted to start Pittsburgh's Ben Rothelisberger over Arizona's Kevin Kolb. The plan worked perfectly -- Corn Kolb was worth a mere 5.58 pts, while Big Ben scored a much more impressive 7.34 pts. Sam was so proud of that move, he asked me to specifically sing his praises in this week's recap. He currently sits almost 94 pts out of first place.

** Through four games, the Jacksonville Jaguars have scored three TDs. The Green Bay Packers have 19.

** The Pittsburgh Steelers are -10 in turnovers this year, but 2-2 in the standings. The Minnesota Vikings are even in turnovers and 0-4.

** Patriots QB Tom Brady (1,559 passing yards) is still on pace for over 6,200 passing yards this season.

** The Denver Broncos longest FG of the year so far is 34 yards. The Oakland Raiders longest FG is 63 yards.

It’s hard imagine that any part of that Eagles/49ers game could be dumber than the plays on the field (Stop handing the ball to RB Ronnie Brown inside the 10. Please), but Fox analyst Jim Mora Jr. was up to the task.

With the Eagles facing a third and one in the third, he remarked that the first-down line was actually much closer. And he astutely observed that the difference would also effect the play call:

“You might not realize this at home, but to coaches there’s a big difference between 6 inches and a yard.”

Now, to me there’s no recognizable difference between 36 inches and 6 inches, but I decided to test Mora’s hypothesis. I took a 6-inch pencil and a yardstick, laid them side by side, then stuck them both in my ear. The pencil jabbed me a little but fit in. The yardstick went pretty far in, and then everything went black, and then I couldn’t hear Mora speaking anymore. So I guess there was a difference.

For the record, the next comment Mora made was about how the 49ers didn’t have enough time to overcome a nine-point deficit, even though they had just scored 14 points in five minutes and the Eagles were only up six.

The NFL always has its finger on the pulse of its fans, so it comes as no surprise that their pick for the 2012 Super Bowl Halftime show is another cutting-edge artist they know and love: Madonna. For those of you unfamiliar with her work, here's a look at some of her career highlights and other notable football moments:

1983 -- Madonna scores her first #1 hit
1983 -- Steelers QB Terry Bradshaw retires

1986 -- Madonna releases "Papa don't preach"
1986 -- Texans RB Arian Foster is born

1989 -- Madonna's controverisal "Like a prayer" video debuts
1989 -- The Cowboys draft QB Troy Aikman

1992 -- Madonna releases her graphic "Sex" book
1992 -- Eagles WR Jeremy Maclin enters kindergarten.

1996 -- Madonna stars in the movie "Evita"
1996 -- The Cleveland Browns move to Baltimore

2001 -- Madonna pens the theme for the latest James Bond movie
2001 -- Cowboys QB Troy Aikman retires

2002 to present -- Patriots win 3 Super Bowls (and lose a 4th)
2002 to present -- Madonna does nothing of consequence

In case you didn't get the joke, she's old.

Sure, the Cowboys lost again on Sunday, but new WR Laurent Robinson had an impressive 8-catch, 116-yard debut for the team. The former Illinois State player could be a major part in righting the ship in the absence of several other WRs. But fans shouldn’t get their hopes up yet -- just look what his name spells out:

Dallas Cowboys wideout Laurent Robinson
Reliable corn dud touts no wins. Always boo.

I know Illinois State is kinda rural, but “corn dud” just seems unnecessary.

Week 4 standings

Nice work all around this week -- everyone scored over 100 pts. But what's Anthony doing up at the top?

** Dad and I split our picks this week, so he's still up two. And, for the record, I picked McNabb to win again this week, and I was wrong again this week.

** Delaware lost this weekend too, to the Maine Black Bears, but I didn't know if I could include them in the "Philadelphia losses" category. I mean, I think all of Delaware is just a Philadelphia suburb, but some folks take offense to that.

** As I was writing this, the Phils won game three by a 3-2 tally. So, forget all those negative things I said at the top. It's all good.