Another season draws to a close and teams now prepare for the "real" season. Lots of questions in both conferences that will soon get answers.
Western Conference Round 1
Austin Slackers (9-7 #8 seed) @ Bogota Roosters (13-3 #1 seed)
Austin face a tough rematch with the Roosters who pulled out the #1 seed and home field in their first 3 games. The last time these two teams played was in week 5 when Austin lost 33-10. The two teams both struggled on the ground but Austin struggled with 2 interceptions and their #2 QB had one of the worst games of his career going 3 for 19 for 29 yards.
Prediction:
Bogota by 28. Austin lacks the firepower to hang in with the Roosters.
Royal Invaders Strike Back (10-6 #7 seed) @ Black Sea Seismos (13-3 #2 seed)
An interesting matchup made possible by the Invaders surging late in the season with 5 straight wins while BSS faltered down the stretch with a 2-3 record in their final 5 games of the season. Their first game was a defensive masterpiece where neither team asserted themselves on offense until BSS pulled ahead with just 4 minutes to go on the game's only TD. Neither team was very successful through the air with BSS going 12 of 40 and the Invaders going 6 for 29.
Prediction:
BSS by 14. I think that BSS turns it on for the playoffs and shakes off the rust.
RNG Chaos (11-5 #6 seed) @ Richey Royals (12-4 #3 seed)
RNG has the dots to go toe to toe with anyone and actually pulled off wins against the top three seeds in the regular season. Richey has traditionally been a powerhouse in Elite #1 winning plenty in the postseason. RNG pulled off the early season win in week 4 beating Richey 19-16 on an overtime field goal but looked solid all game long, out-gaining the Royals by over 200 yards.
Prediction:
RNG by 24. Turner is AWOL and the Chaos is primed to make waves in this season's playoffs.
Laos Chaos (12-4 #5 seed) @ Regensburg Steel Rain (12-4 #4 seed)
Two of the most dominant passing attacks in the league meet up when Laos comes to town to take on the Rain. No one would be surprised to see either of these teams go deep into the postseason as they have had success against the teams above them but both come in as underdog types. These teams met up just 4 weeks ago in week 12 where the Steel Rain pulled out some shut down D on the way to a 23-7 win and allowed just 0.3 yard per carry.
Prediction:
Regensburg by 7. Adding dots from a failed franchise won't be enough to get Laos deep in the West.
Eastern Conference
Hawaii Phoenixes (9-7 #8 seed) @ Legion of Dynamic Discord (16-0 #1 seed)
LoDD is on a quite a roll right now however they face the last team to beat them early in a playoff race in Hawaii (season 20). The two teams met with undefeated records in week 4 where the Legion pulled off a 55-17 win where they out-gained the Phoenixes by 350 yards and looked in control throughout.
Prediction:
LoDD by 27. Hawaii is a great team but is over matched here and I can't see them pulling off the upset.
Toronto Hellcats (9-7 #7 seed) @ Newport Newz Pitbullz (13-3 #2 seed)
The Pitbullz have returned to relevance after demoting from and promoting back the Elite league while the Hellcats seem to be back-sliding this season. The two teams met in week 5 when Newport slammed the door on their offense winning 23-7 with 2 interceptions and a meager 0.4 yards per rush allowed. The good news in that game was that Newport couldn't move the ball on the ground either averaging only 1.5 yards per rush.
Prediction:
Newport by 35. NNP gets better as they play teams more frequently and the Hellcats disappear every season in the playoffs. Think this has the potential to be the ugliest outcome.
Clay's Hammer (10-6 #6 seed) @ Manchester Titans (11-5 #3 seed)
After a brilliant 7-0 start the Titans hit some speed bumps and went 4-5 to finish the season. Clay's Hammer was the most consistent D in the East holding teams to low scores nearly every game but was far less consistent offensively. The first meeting was not surprisingly a defensive slug-fest that Manchester took down 10-7. Clay's punter was dominant in the game which kept it close despite Manchester being more efficient in both pass and run.
Prediction:
Clay's by 3. I think that the Titans have a small edge in the talent of their dots but the Hammer turns it on in the big games and I think they pull off the upset.
Apatity Awesome (10-6 #5 seed) @ Madrid Gangsters (11-5 #4 seed)
A team with a rich history of forum excellence takes on a dotball factory with one of the nicer custom fields. These two teams are eerily similar in terms of overall rankings but while AA sports a top 5 rush offense, Madrid shines with their 4th ranked passing D. In their week 12 meeting Madrid emerged victorious with a gritty comeback win over Apatity who started the game with a 17-3 lead in the first quarter.
Prediction:
Madrid by 14. This could change if Sal Basss ever decides to get a decent AI in there but I think Madrid will be just a little too much for Apatity without it.
Western Conference Round 1
Austin Slackers (9-7 #8 seed) @ Bogota Roosters (13-3 #1 seed)
Austin face a tough rematch with the Roosters who pulled out the #1 seed and home field in their first 3 games. The last time these two teams played was in week 5 when Austin lost 33-10. The two teams both struggled on the ground but Austin struggled with 2 interceptions and their #2 QB had one of the worst games of his career going 3 for 19 for 29 yards.
Prediction:
Bogota by 28. Austin lacks the firepower to hang in with the Roosters.
Royal Invaders Strike Back (10-6 #7 seed) @ Black Sea Seismos (13-3 #2 seed)
An interesting matchup made possible by the Invaders surging late in the season with 5 straight wins while BSS faltered down the stretch with a 2-3 record in their final 5 games of the season. Their first game was a defensive masterpiece where neither team asserted themselves on offense until BSS pulled ahead with just 4 minutes to go on the game's only TD. Neither team was very successful through the air with BSS going 12 of 40 and the Invaders going 6 for 29.
Prediction:
BSS by 14. I think that BSS turns it on for the playoffs and shakes off the rust.
RNG Chaos (11-5 #6 seed) @ Richey Royals (12-4 #3 seed)
RNG has the dots to go toe to toe with anyone and actually pulled off wins against the top three seeds in the regular season. Richey has traditionally been a powerhouse in Elite #1 winning plenty in the postseason. RNG pulled off the early season win in week 4 beating Richey 19-16 on an overtime field goal but looked solid all game long, out-gaining the Royals by over 200 yards.
Prediction:
RNG by 24. Turner is AWOL and the Chaos is primed to make waves in this season's playoffs.
Laos Chaos (12-4 #5 seed) @ Regensburg Steel Rain (12-4 #4 seed)
Two of the most dominant passing attacks in the league meet up when Laos comes to town to take on the Rain. No one would be surprised to see either of these teams go deep into the postseason as they have had success against the teams above them but both come in as underdog types. These teams met up just 4 weeks ago in week 12 where the Steel Rain pulled out some shut down D on the way to a 23-7 win and allowed just 0.3 yard per carry.
Prediction:
Regensburg by 7. Adding dots from a failed franchise won't be enough to get Laos deep in the West.
Eastern Conference
Hawaii Phoenixes (9-7 #8 seed) @ Legion of Dynamic Discord (16-0 #1 seed)
LoDD is on a quite a roll right now however they face the last team to beat them early in a playoff race in Hawaii (season 20). The two teams met with undefeated records in week 4 where the Legion pulled off a 55-17 win where they out-gained the Phoenixes by 350 yards and looked in control throughout.
Prediction:
LoDD by 27. Hawaii is a great team but is over matched here and I can't see them pulling off the upset.
Toronto Hellcats (9-7 #7 seed) @ Newport Newz Pitbullz (13-3 #2 seed)
The Pitbullz have returned to relevance after demoting from and promoting back the Elite league while the Hellcats seem to be back-sliding this season. The two teams met in week 5 when Newport slammed the door on their offense winning 23-7 with 2 interceptions and a meager 0.4 yards per rush allowed. The good news in that game was that Newport couldn't move the ball on the ground either averaging only 1.5 yards per rush.
Prediction:
Newport by 35. NNP gets better as they play teams more frequently and the Hellcats disappear every season in the playoffs. Think this has the potential to be the ugliest outcome.
Clay's Hammer (10-6 #6 seed) @ Manchester Titans (11-5 #3 seed)
After a brilliant 7-0 start the Titans hit some speed bumps and went 4-5 to finish the season. Clay's Hammer was the most consistent D in the East holding teams to low scores nearly every game but was far less consistent offensively. The first meeting was not surprisingly a defensive slug-fest that Manchester took down 10-7. Clay's punter was dominant in the game which kept it close despite Manchester being more efficient in both pass and run.
Prediction:
Clay's by 3. I think that the Titans have a small edge in the talent of their dots but the Hammer turns it on in the big games and I think they pull off the upset.
Apatity Awesome (10-6 #5 seed) @ Madrid Gangsters (11-5 #4 seed)
A team with a rich history of forum excellence takes on a dotball factory with one of the nicer custom fields. These two teams are eerily similar in terms of overall rankings but while AA sports a top 5 rush offense, Madrid shines with their 4th ranked passing D. In their week 12 meeting Madrid emerged victorious with a gritty comeback win over Apatity who started the game with a 17-3 lead in the first quarter.
Prediction:
Madrid by 14. This could change if Sal Basss ever decides to get a decent AI in there but I think Madrid will be just a little too much for Apatity without it.
Edited by merenoise on Aug 9, 2011 15:07:01
Edited by merenoise on Aug 9, 2011 15:06:34
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PM on the way...
