CFFL 2014 Preview

North Division

Well the past three Fantasy  Bowls have been won by North Division teams.  Will that trend continue?

The R.C. Wrecking Crew will be defending their title and it will not be easy.  They will be doing it without Brandon Marshall, but returning will be Jimmy Graham.  Graham will pick right up where he left off last season with his 96 point year.  The Big shock was at QB where they picked Romo with their second pick and then Cutler with their third.  Rumors have it that Cutler will get the nod and have the 11 point connection of Cutler to Bennett to Gould.

Jugghead is back!

The Chislers who are the prior 2 season Fantasy Bowl Champs have once again put together a decent team and should battle for the playoffs.  Phillip "Jugghead" Rivers is back once again.  In fact, Rivers has been a Chisler in 5 of the past 7 seasons.  Truly a lifetime Chisler.  Eddie Lacy returns and had a great rookie campaign.  Look for more of the same with Lacy.  It would seem the Chislers moved their operations from San Diego to Green Bay (home of the Crew by the way) as they have Lacy, Nelson, and Crosby.  So any trips to the Redzone by the Packers and the Chiz is happy.  Lots of Packer, Charger, Vikings games on in the Bunker I suspect.

Malachi or Dalton??

Alex Animals have actually started to put some decent teams together and make some playoff runs as of late.  Andy "Malachi" Dalton will lead this Animal team.  He had a great year last year and looks to get back to the Fantasy Bowl (made it there with the Bums and lost) and win it this year.  It will help having Demaryius Thomas back at wide out and he hopes to follow up his 14 TD catch season with another 10+ TD season.  Add in a healthy Doug "Muscle Hamster" Martin and you have a decent 1-2-3 punch.

Oh those pesky Ferrets, always biting and scratching trying to win a Fantasy Bowl.  Well this will be their 30th try!   The Bizlat is back, Colin Kaepernick, and hopes to have a slightly better season then last.  Plans to move him around the pocket more to get him some more TD runs is what the Ferrets would like.  The Ferrets will be coming in big in the passing game too with Calvin "Megatron" Johnson who is always a threat to score 12 TDs or more, add in a healthy Jeremy Maclin and a 10 point connection potential in Stevie Johnson and this team could make some noise.

Division Winner: Cherry's Chislers (why not, safe bet)
Potential Playoff Teams: Alex Animals
On the Bubble: Crew and Ferrets
Outlook:  It will be a tight race once again as the North teams beat each other up all year.  The dreaded home and home series (Ferrets vs. Crew and Chislers vs. Animals) will have a big impact on the playoffs.  Chislers prevail once again. But this could be anybodies division to win and will depend on if the Bear connection proves valuable for the Crew, if the WR of the Ferrets live to expectations or if Malachi can kill some people in the corn fields...

Eastern Bloc Division

Manning getting frustrated...

The Eastern Bloc Division looked to expand its power in eastern Europe by expanding their Russian teams with the addition of the Molotov Cocktails.  Get ready for the Mother Land Rivalry.

The Roulette are coming off of a disappointing season from last year when they failed to make it to the Fantasy Bowl with Manning, Peterson, and Johnson.  This year Manning is back and the cast of characters they assembled for him are not quite the same as last year.  If they do make it back to the playoffs they will have to do it through the air, since their RBs are a bunch of rookies and handcuffs.  And the preseason is not exactly starting out right as Wes Welker got slapped with a 4 game suspension for PED use.

The new rival for the Roulette is now the Molotov Cocktails from St. Petersburg, Russia, formerly known as Leningrad.  They replaced the long time Twins, and were promptly moved to the cold Mother Land.  Adrian Peterson didn't have to move too far, just a bit north from Moscow.  He will be the key to the success of the Cocktails.  As will Arian "Nation" Foster as long as he can avoid the injuries that have plagued him last year.  If he does, that is a very nice backfield.

Foles and that dude from Napoleon Dynamite

Down in Italy, the Juggernauts are putting together a pretty good team.  Nick Foles at QB will put up some big points in Chip Kelly's system. Then you have two towering bookend WRs that should be in the 10+ TD range this year.  Brandon Marshall and Dez "Fez White" Bryant.  Both are big strong WR that will get plenty of TD catches this season.  The running game will take a little time to take off, but should be pretty high when all said and done between the Bell brothers (Le'Veon and Joique).

It has been a cold and miserable past 2 years in Berlin.  The Krauts are looking to try to get back in the playoffs, but it won't be easy.  Well one thing is for sure Aaron Rodgers was a step in the right direction.  He should be back for a full season and is a top tier QB.  Alfred Morris is hoping to get back on track and get back to the 10+ TD season he had as a rookie.  Crabtree, Roddy White and Kyle Rudolph all should be decent starts at WR.  Looks like the ovens might stay cool come December...

Division Winner:  Juggernauts
Potential Playoff Teams: Roulette and Krauts
Staying Home: Cocktails
Outlook:  The Eastern Bloc had been ruled by the Krauts for years, but the teams have caught up to them.   Juggs look like they have the most well rounded team in the division.  Can't count out the Roulette as long as Manning is playing.  I can't believe the Krauts would miss the playoffs for a third year in a row.  Molotov Cocktails will be heaved in Leningrad.

Sad Sack South

I don't want to seem like I pick on the South each year, but damn they prove it each and every year.  This year 3 of the 4 teams were all picking from the same computer and software....whats up with that?

McCoy likes the snow

Michigan Mayhem were one of the Three Stooges who were all picking from the same computer and program.  Somehow they managed to put together a somewhat decent team with Stafford at the helm.  As long as he stays healthy he can put up some big points, despite how bad the Lions get.  LeSean McCoy is a big threat in the backfield as well and certainly knows how to run in the snow.  He thrived under Chip Kelly last year.  The WRs would be somewhat of a question but has huge upside, specially with T.Y. Hilton.  I like the Golden Taint 10 point connection possibility too.

Killer Bees for some reason are becoming a hated team in the CFFL.  Maybe its because they no longer come to the draft, hold up the draft online, and continuously disobey roster rules (3 QBs or 3 Kickers...) Andrew Luck is solid and returns to defend the South Crown.  However the RBs are not good..maybe the worse in the league; Bradshaw, Gerhart, Lamar Miller?  Seriously? Good thing for the Bees that they have Julius Thomas to balance some of that out, not to mention one of the top kickers and defense (Gostkowski and Seahawks) Yes I talked kicker and defense for a second.

what the hell??

The Dragons was the Moe of the Stooges and with the loss of Aaron Rodgers, had to go with Big Ben Roethlisberger and back up Tannehill (Homer).  Marshawn "Beast Mode" Lynch is a great add as might be Knowshon Moreno (homer) both were over 10 + TDs but Moreno now in Miami might reduce his production.  Hartline and kicker Caleb Sturgis round out the  homer filled Dragons.  CFFL eyes will be on Zach Ertz who's expectations are high.

And then we come to the Toledo Titans, who were 1-13 last year.  Now wouldn't you think if you were 1-13 you would look for an entirely different team?  Instead the Titan's must have been so happy with their 1-13 team they drafted the exact same RBs form last year.  Monte Ball, LeGarrete Blount and Mark Ingram were all Titans last year.  None did much but there are some expectations that Ball will be good.  A.J. Green is the teams lone star.

Division Winner: Michigan Mayhem
On the Bubble: Killer Bees
Staying Home: Dragons and Titans
Outlook: The Mayhem have traditionally have had the best success in the division while the Freeman Brothers tend to not, specially the younger one from the Titans.  With McCoy, Stafford, Hilton and Golden Taint the Mayhem have the fire power this year to win this sad sack division.  Its pretty amazing the Titans drafted the same exact running backs as last year....1-13!

Wild Wild West

Charles wants to get back to FB

The West might be the best division in the CFFL with the return of the Sinistars to the west.  Any one of these teams could win the West.

Last year's runner up Barcardi Bums will be a force to reckon with this year as they attempt to make it back to the Fantasy Bowl. Jamaal Charles will again anchor the attack.  Carlos Hyde might get more goal line carries as the season goes on.  Keenan Allen and Randall Cobb will give the Bums plenty of chances through the air along with Russell Wilson.  Kenny Britt might have been a bright spot as well until Bradford went down for the count.  So hopes for Britt not so bright.

Drew Brees returns to the Crush and when you have Drew Brees on your team, playoffs are certainly a good possibility.  The rest of the teams are players that are around the 5-7 TD range and could have big years or might not.  Ryan "Glass Collar Bone" Mathews and Jonathan Stewart could put up some points.  Stewart plays for the 4 headed hydra called the Panther backfield though.  Alshon "I WIN" Jeffery had a good season last year and should put up some big points again.

Forte for the Mafia

Mark's Mafia might be the most traveled team in the CFFL with flights from southern Florida to the west coast every year. Matt Ryan, Matt Forte, Larry Fitzgerald, DeSean Jackson, Steven Hauschka. This sounds like a pretty nice group of players doesn't it?  Well that's what the Mafia will be rolling out come opening day.  Its yet to be seen how well they will play, but if historical statistics tell us anything this team is loaded. Not to mention Andre Ellington who looks to get a lot of touches in Arizona.

The Sinistars return to the West after a brief stint in the Eastern Bloc and was tired of the travel from Seattle all the way to Berlin and Moscow every year.  They plan on giving a new meaning to the phrase "Run Coward" as they used their first 2 picks on RBs; DeMarco Murray and Zac Stacey.  Murray was a Sinistar last year and ran for 10 TDs.  Zac Stacey emerged as a starting Ram RB and had 8 TDs.  Heavy reliance will be on Gronkowski as he returns from his injuries.  He will need to produce since "Commissioner" Gordon is suspended.

Division Winner: Mark's Mafia
Potential Playoff Teams: Bums and Crush
On the Bubble: Sinistars
Outlook: This division could go to any of those teams and all of them could make the playoffs.  A very strong year for the West, but look for the Mafia to come out on top with the Bums not too far behind.  The Crush, as much as it pains me to say, will likely make the playoffs too.  Boooooo!

Season Outlook:  The Animals go deep in the playoffs only to come up short once again....Ferrets have to wait 31 years now...Titans win 2 games...Roulette and Manning struggle this year but sneak in...3 teams have a real shot at the Fantasy Bowl XXX title:  Juggernauts, Chislers, and Mafia...

FANTASY BOWL XXX

Marks Mafia over Cherry's Chislers 44-38