Rivalry Week
The Senior Championship & The Battle of St. Mike's Playground are just some of the big rivalry games that will impact Playoff Qualification and Seedings in Week 13. Rivalry Week is here. While every game is important and 'every point counts', some rivalries are bigger than others. The following is a ranking of this week's rivalry games based on a combination of Off Field Rivalry (OFR, how bad do they want to beat each other in everything that they do), Playoff Importance (PLI, how much impact does this game have for Playoff qualification and seeding), Competitiveness (COM, how competitive is the career H2H record of the rivals). All categories are rated from 1-10. In reverse order:
5. Sean v. Del
OFR 5 + PLI 2 + COM 8 = 15 points (last year's total: 21; last year's rank: 1) Shanghai Showdown. In the past few years this rivalry usually was an important game, but in 2017 the PLI of 2 tells a different story. Instead of playoff aspirations, the Shanghai duo will be jockeying for seeding in the Giorgio Cup. Sean is currently positioned in the 10th seed while the Commissioner is currently situated in the 15th seed (Piss Poor Four). Sean has taken 2 of the last 3 Shanghai Showdowns, if the Commissioner can't find a way to win with all his white players, only one of these brothers will be playing in the consolation tournament. 4. Bo v. Tony
OFR 10 + PLI 3 + COM 5 = 18 points (last year's total: 20; last year's rank: 2) El Classico. The clock might be ticking on Bo, but as we head into Rivalry Week there is another clock ticking: Tony's first playoff win, which will be ticking (again) into the 2018 season. It might be Ho-Hum in the importance category this year, but these two always want to beat each other in everything they do, the animosity cannot be buried in irrelevancy. Bo has never won El Clasico since the annual game was moved permanently to Week 13 in 2014. Can Bo finally get a last week of the season victory? TICK TICK TICK.
3. Andrew v. Billy
OFR 9 + PLI 6 + COM 6 = 21 points (last year's total: 18; last year's rank: 5) Battle of Brotherly Love. It seemed like we were headed for the most important Andrew-Billy contest since they tried to outdo each other with their weddings. This would have been an even bigger game if Andrew had 7 wins going into Week 13, but there is still a lot on the line. Andrew still has a shot at the playoffs (Warren win + Jesse win + point tiebreakers over all 7 win teams). Billy is already locked into the BYE (has tiebreakers over Warren & Jesse), the icing on his superb regular season would be to keep his brother out of the playoffs.
2. Boner v. Jesse
OFR 6 + PLI 8 + COM 10 = 24 points (last year's total: 19; last year's rank: 3) Battle of St. Mike's Playground. Mr. Magoo is somehow in the playoff conversation (Boner win + Jeff loss) & Jesse can still get the BYE (Jesse win + Billy win + Birdman loss). Both can't happen, so, friends now become enemies. Both of these teams have been playing well in recent years with one of them reaching the finals in the past two years. One of them might be headed back. But it is Jesse with the best chance since, well you know, he actually has two starting RBs. Mr. Magoo on the other hand is looking to keep on strolling through traffic safely. 1. Warren v. Jeff
OFR 8 + PLI 9 + COM 10 = 27 (last year's total: n/a; last year's rank: n/a) Senior Championship. Is it really going to happen? Is this finally the year? This is easily the biggest game in the history of Warren playing Jeff in the DelFL. All the Maulers need to do is win and they're in, ending an 11 season playoff drought. The Sushis meanwhile are playing for which seed, 3-6, they will be. You can guarantee that Warren would love to send Jeff to his 12th straight season without a playoff appearance. Both of these teams also have an eye on a Brown Jacket. Can one of these old timers pull it off? They might even play each other again soon.
