Playoffs: Round I Postgame Analysis
 

My workload just cut in half!

Kamen Bowl Quarterfinals
Silver Lobos (#1) d. Stevies Scapegoats (#8)
93-76
A bit of history for those who don't keep track: the last two champions of the FIRST Robotics League are playing in these playoffs. The current defending champion, the Silver Lobos, had the #1 Seed, and it was well earned. But it didn't mean they got a free pass. In fact, the Scapegoats put up the fight of their lives. The majority of their scoring came from Marcus Trufant's 22, Jamal Lewis's 18, & Burleson's 11, but they still set a high enough mark that the Lobos had to earn their victory. And luckily for the Lobos, they had Peyton Manning, Reggie Wayne, & Indianapolis in that washout against the Ravens. All three combined for 48, and despite Adrian Peterson doing nothing, the Lobos still had Ryan Grant's 14 and Andre Johnson's 10 picking up the slack. This was an excellent game for both teams, but the #1 Seed defends their spot in the playoffs.

Kamen Bowl Quarterfinals
The XaulZans (#5) d. FIRST Force (#4)
78-49
FIRST Force is the second champion in the playoffs (they won it two years ago in 2005), but they didn't fare nearly as well as their counterparts above. Without Brandon Marshall's 18, the Force's scorecard is looking a little barren. On the other side of things, the XaulZans were the only lower seed in these quarterfinals to have a winning record, so this was probably the only matchup where the higher seed didn't have a clear advantage going into the game. As reliant as the Zans are on the Cowboy's passing game, this week, it only helped them; Romo & Witten combined for 26. Bernard Berrian tacked on 10 more. And the defensive 29 was the cherry on top of their victory-flavored sundae. Now, I'm generally not one to call a #5 beating a #4 an upset, but given how dominant the top 4 were in the second half of the season, I'll go ahead and say that this was a pretty nice upset by the Zans.

Kamen Bowl Quarterfinals
Rhode Island Drive (#3) d. Youngstown Hitmen (#6)
83-53
Meanwhile, the Rhode Island Drive look to take their first trip to the semi-finals. They had the Hitmen of Youngstown in their way. The Hitmen's efforts were mostly conglomerative in nature; six players broke the 5 mark, with their big score being David Garrard's 13. Rhode Island outdid that though, with seven players scoring more than 6 points, and big scores coming from Marion Barber (23) and Minnesota (17). It's clear who won this matchup, as Rhode Island takes their very first first-round victory.

Kamen Bowl Quarterfinals
Team Jack (#2) d. Indiana Ironmen (#7)
70-50
I'll be honest with you: I knew Team Jack was going to win this game the moment that no-name Steelers safety guaranteed a win. Why? Well, Team Jack has Tom Brady, and he made the Steelers pay for daring to state that they ever had a chance. That 24 was the high score amongst all players this week. Team Jack's other high score came from LenDale White's 13. The Ironmen "started off pretty strong but really fizzled out in the end" (quote courtesy of Kevyn himself). Nowhere was it more apparent than in this playoff game, where even the Ironmen's usually tight receiving corps couldn't muster up much of anything. They had a 14 from a defender and Roethlisberger would put up 8, but that was it, and that wouldn't do against a rather miffed Brady.

This is the first time that the top 3 all move on to the second round (heck, it's the first time both of the top 2 do so as well). The teams that didn't win have their own little sub-tournament for Bowl placing:

Stevies Scapegoats (#8) vs. FIRST Force (#4)
This game originally happened allllllllll the way back in Week I, where FIRST Force started off the season with a victory. FIRST Force was in that dominant top 4 until their loss last week, while the Scapegoats' only real fault in the playoffs was that they didn't do as well in the regular season, and were therefore relegated to playing the Lobos in the first round. If the Force get back to the way they were the majority of the second-half, this game is easily theirs. However, if they leave a door open for the Scapegoats, I can the Goats stepping through it.

Youngstown Hitmen (#6) vs. Indiana Ironmen (#7)
This game originally happened allllllllll the way back in Week I, where Indiana started off the season with a victory. Woah... déjà vu... Anyhow, as two teams with losing records, you almost expected them to wind up in this game. If we were going by recent records, I'd hand this one to the Hitmen (having only lost twice to Rhode Island in the past six weeks), but then again, the Ironmen are the one losing-record team in the playoffs that really didn't have to worry about making the top 8 since about Week XI.

The winner of these two games will face off in the Kamen Bowl Championship V:

Silver Lobos (#1) vs. The XaulZans (#5)
The Lobos and Zans first faced off in Week III, where the Lobos started off a seven game winning streak. The best hope I can give the Zans is that all of their offensive players have favorable matchups this week, but even if they all perform optimally, it still may not be enough to overcome the dominant Lobos.

Rhode Island Drive (#3) vs. Team Jack (#2)
Rhode Island won this game back in Week IX, but that was a victory with caveats. First, Team Jack had Maurice Jones-Drew on their bench for some odd reason, and second, Brady had to face an actual defense that week (the Colts, for the record). The only thing separating these two teams in the standings is the Drive starting off the season with a losing streak, and both teams have shown the capability to put up big scores when they need to. This is probably going to be the game of the week, because it could truly go either way.

Um, go Jets? :p In a few days, our bowl games will be decided. Who will move on to the championship? Nobody knows, but seriously, where would the fun be if we did? See you all next week.

Playoffs: Round II Postgame Analysis
 

It's just a little snow. How bad can it be?

McBride Bowl Qualification
FIRST Force (#4) d. Stevies Scapegoats (#8)
50-44
Of all the times to get two negative scores, the Scapegoats had to do it here. Long story short, they had the Detroit DEF and Tavaris Jackson (and in an ironic twist of fate, had they switched out Jackson for the Lions' Jon Kitna, they'd have won by 2). The rest of Scapegoats defense held their own with a pair of nines, and Jamal Lewis racked up a lot of yardage in freezing cold Buffalo (not the last we'll talk about that game, BTW), but that combined -8 took away any chance of winning. FIRST Force had their third sub-par game in as many weeks, but they at least had a 10 from Carson Palmer. The Scapegoats' negatives allowed the Force to win defense by 6, and the Force offense kept pace. While their relatively low score left a door open for the Scapegoats, the Scapegoats couldn't quite step through.

McBride Bowl Qualification
Youngstown Hitmen (#6) d. Indiana Ironmen (#7)
63-59
This game, like the one above it, needed to wait until Monday Night Football for a resolution. In the meantime, the Hitmen had David Garrard's excellent first half against the Steelers giving them 13. The Ironmen had Ben Roethlisberger's excellent second half against the Jaguars giving them 14. Youngstown also had the services of Leon Washington (10) and Oshiomogho Atogwe (12; I'll admit, I caved and just copy & pasted his name), but found the rest of their middle-offense lacking. Indiana had the services of New England (16) and a Calvin Johnson 7, but found themselves in possession of a Warrick Dunn -2. Nonetheless, the Ironmen were leading after Sunday. But while the Bears offense, um, sucked, their defense on Monday night was pretty darn good. The Hitmen only needed 7 to win (since the Ironmen held the highest applicable tiebreaker); they got 10. If you were looking for suspense, that was it.

Kamen Bowl Semifinals
Silver Lobos (#1) d. The XaulZans (#5)
87-57
I suppose technically, this game was also decided on Monday, but it was really just a test to see if the Lobos could possibly bomb with both Adrian Peterson (of the Vikings; gotta clarify these days) and Brian Urlacher. They didn't. In fact, they piled on 33 more points. The Lobos also had a 17 from Mason Crosby and a 10 from Andre Johnson. The Zans actually looked pretty good themselves on Sunday, getting 15 from Kaeding and 14 from Cromartie. Unfortunately, going into Monday, they were down by 6 and only had E.J. Henderson and Bernard Berrian left to try and steal a win. They didn't. This game was closer than the final score indicated, but the Lobos are still the ones going to the Kamen Bowl.

Kamen Bowl Semifinals
Rhode Island Drive (#3) d. Team Jack (#2)
42-34
I really called this the game of the week in my preview, didn't I? I'm not alone; Yahoo called this one 76-71 in Rhode Island's favor. It didn't quite happen that way. Remember that Browns/Bills game I mentioned up top? Well, it held the Drive's Derek Anderson to a measly 2 points. Team Jack's Tom Brady, the main reason they've made it this far, did even worse! His snow/sleet/really bad weather game in Foxboro kept him with a grand total of 0 fantasy points this week. Team Jack only had one player score a TD. That was Hines Ward, who only added 7. The Drive had zero players hitting the end-zone, but did manage a fumble recovery from Marion Barber and a 100+ yard game from McGahee. Their high score was London Fletcher and his 8. We were actually all knotted up at 34 after all of Sunday's games, but Rhode Island had two players going on Monday night (Devin Hester and the Minnesota DEF), and there was virtually a snowball's chance (a little winter weather humor there ;)) that they'd both combine for 0 or less. I was right in that this game could truly go either way (case in point, Rhode Island won), but this was as ugly scoring wise as all those snowy games this week. Talk about your victories with caveats... Nonetheless, the win is all that matters in the playoffs, and this means the Drive will meet the Lobos in the championship.

Here they are, the last games of the season:

Patterson Bowl (from snowy Ralph Wilson Stadium)
Stevies Scapegoats (#8) vs. Indiana Ironmen (#7)
In Week IX, Stevies Scapegoats (there really should be an apostrophe there, BTW) totaled the Ironmen in what would be their biggest win of the season. I don't see this one being quite as lopsided as the first one, as this one may be decided by the QBs alone. The game starts Thursday night with the Ironmen's Roethlisberger, and ends Sunday night with the Scapegoats' Tavaris Jackson. Whoever does better will give a huge advantage to their team, and a good chance of taking this bowl game.

McBride Bowl (from sunny Candlestick Park)
FIRST Force (#4) vs. Youngstown Hitmen (#6)
In Week XI, the Youngstown Hitmen totaled the Force in what would be their biggest win of the season. The Force have lost three games since then, while the Hitmen only lost twice to the same finals-bound team. The Force is going to need to step up on defense, as the Hitmen have offense covered. If the Force can get back to the way they were before the playoffs, they'll win, but like their previous game against the Scapegoats, they can't hold the door open for the Hitmen, because Youngstown will step through.

Murphy Bowl (from cloudy Gillette Stadium)
The XaulZans (#5) vs. Team Jack (#2)
Smack-dab at the midpoint of the regular season (Week VII), there was a game between Team Jack & The XaulZans that ended in a lopsided victory with a palindromic score for Team Jack. That loss for the Zans kicked off a five-game losing skid that almost knocked them out of the playoffs. Team Jack's only three losses this season came to the two teams in the championship. And they have Brady. Attempting to make history. Against the Dolphins. On a relatively clear day. Yikes. I'm not saying the Zans can't win, but they need Brady to be Team Jack's only good score, and they need moderate scores from all their own players. No pressure, huh?

Kamen Bowl Championship V (from sunny cloudy snowy really, really cold Manchester Stadium)
Silver Lobos (#1) vs. Rhode Island Drive (#3)
This is what everybody has been playing for since Week I. Who will win the Kamen Bowl? Well, these two teams faced off in Week V, with the Lobos winning. But that was a long time ago, and both teams have lost exactly once since then. Rhode Island made it this far by being consistent. The Lobos made it this far by being dominant. I won't delude myself here: if both teams play the way they've been playing all season, the Lobos will successfully defend their title. Rhode Island has one key edge though: half of the Lobos lineup is, in real life, playing for nothing. The Drive have a bunch of players on their roster still fighting for their futures. And who knows? The Packers may just be stupid enough to kick to Devin Hester :D. There's a good reason the Lobos are the #1 seed, but that doesn't mean they're guaranteed the title.

If rosters stay the way they are currently, after Sunday night, we'll have a champion. Will the dominant Lobos hang on to become the first two-time champ? Or will the commissioner find a breach in the armor and claim victory? Who will win the other three bowl games? Tune in next week for the final postgame analysis to the 2007 FIRST Robotics Fantasy Football League season.