Week 8 Recap & Power Rankings

Week 8 was defined by a plethora of near-upsets and another miserable week for the Bolden Picks. All games but one were close- five of the six games were decided in the Monday night game.

Besides Leonard Weaver (??), there were no surprising players who had great performances- Brian Westbrook was the only 30+ point player in the league, and only Santana Moss and David Garrard eclipsed 25 points.

It could have been a week that created incredible parity in the middle of the standings, but in the end, the good teams got better, the bad teams got worse, and two once-good teams (Rob College and SINS Bolden) continue their free-fall.

1 Suit Killers (7-1)
Beat out Jackson by less than two points to avoid what would have been one of the biggest upsets of the year. No serious weakness is apparent, though Ronnie Brown has slowed down, and #2 pick Chad Johnson is the weakest player on this team's bench. Kurt Warner unleashed dragons all over the field against Carolina in a losing effort, but continues to show that he's a decent fantasy QB. How many ways can I say that this is the best team?

2 Beer to the Dean (6-2)
While the Suit Killers were nearly knocked off by a mediocre opponent, BD almost lost to Who Dey in what could have been an even bigger upset. They were hobbled by losing Steven Jackson, but still put up 108 points (and this was with Kevin Walter on the bench; how many times do I need to tell you people to fade the Bengals whenever possible?) Dallas Clark's huge game on Monday night gave them win number six, and kept them in control of the number two playoff spot.

3 Ja (6-2)
Ja was yet another near-victim of an upset, as Plaxico Burress, Amani Toomer, Brandon Jacobs, Hines Ward, and Derrick Mason all had very poor weeks- Ja put up only 80 points, the lowest total of any winner this week. It was still good enough to beat a depleted Goldsmiths roster, however. Next week is a matchup against Rob College that would tremendously help this team's playoff chances if Ja can bounce back from a poor showing this week.

4 Soak-n-suds (5-3)
Recurring theme of the week continues: Soak-n-Suds may not yet be one of the league's elite just yet, but they nearly lost to the woeful Team Marketing. Vernon Davis has done nothing all year, and will likely do a lot less- S-n-S cut him last night and will turn to a different answer at TE. TJ Houshmanzadeh failed to do much in his debut, bringing in 63 all purpose yards and no touchdowns- with Carson Palmer likely done for the season, his numbers will stay weak. Ryan Grant and Michael Pittman come back next week.

5 Taking the Reins (4-4)
While not an upset, this one was certainly another case of a Bolden Pick being way off-target- I thought this would be a close game, and I gave TJ the edge if Colston and Shockey were playing...it turned out to be the only game that wasn't remotely close all week, as Taking the Reins poured it on SINS Bolden, nearly doubling their score. Santana Moss and LT were the big stars, scoring 26 and 23 points respectively- those two along with Marshawn Lynch outscored TJ this week. Hightower and McGahee add great depth to the running back spot- TNR is on the outside looking in on the playoff picture for now, but is built to win some games in the coming weeks.

6 Rob College (5-3)
Sound familiar? Rob gets off to a hot start (4-1 this season, 7-0 last year,) and suddenly injuries and bye weeks derail the team everyone thought was unbeatable. Skittles is on a "skid," so to speak, having now dropped two of three. This week they put up just under 69 points in a loss to The Real Schafer. Not having Jay Cutler in the lineup hurt this week, and he will be back next time, but the loss of Sammy Morris and Larry Johnson for at least a few weeks in both cases will cripple this team's dimming playoff hopes if Rob doesn't try to pull off a trade for running back depth.

7 The Real Schafer (4-4)
Not the best win- only three players went over ten points, the Pittsburgh D was miserable, and Edgerrin James actually lost points. Boldin returned- but was seated on the bench while the fading Muhsin Muhammad instead got a start. With Boldin coming in the lineup, this is a better team, but they face an uphill battle, with games against the Suit Killers and Soak-n-Suds looming in the next two weeks.

8 Brooklyn Goldsmiths (3-5)
Almost beat Ja in a game I considered unwinnable, with my large contingent of Packers along with Matt Forte on a bye. Close or not, this week was a poor effort that would rival Team Marketing's level of failure- four players (Hank Baskett, Jason Elam, Marvin Harrison, and Robert Royal) scored two or fewer points. Next week could be a challenge, as the Goldsmiths take on the recently dangerous Who Dey.

9 SINS Bolden (3-5)
Epic fail- I pick this team in a minor upset, and they shit the bed in remarkable fashion, getting doubled by Taking the Reins. This team is on life-support after being considered an elite team just a few weeks ago; they've lost three straight. When Brett Favre can throw three picks and is still your top player of the week, you have problems. This team needs to start looking to next year.

10 Megatron & Co (2-6)
Thanks to a huge game from Brian Westbrook, Megatron nearly upset the heavily-favored Suit Killers, but fell short on Reggie Wayne's anemic Monday night performance. On paper, this remains a decent team, but is plagued by inconsistent play- another candidate for rebuilding.

11 Who Dey (2-6)
The first 100+ point game of the week wasn't enough to give this team a much-needed win. With this team clearly going nowhere, Clinton Portis would be an elite addition to some of the second-tier competitors looking for a ticket to the playoffs. Next up: a fixture with the Goldsmiths.

12 Team Marketing (1-7)
As bad as it seems they are now, remember that Manos was a playoff team last year. If Team Marketing wants to avoid the ignominious fate of tying Torpey's mark of ineptitude from last year (1-13,) next week's game against SINS Bolden could be their best chance all year.

I said it in week three, and I'll say it again: if your team sucks, make trades, either to get better this year, or to add quality keepers for next year.