The 2019-20 Fantasy Impact season is off to a hot start, especially in San Diego!
Team El Diablo Rojo in Austin Hedges’ League got an early jump on that grand prize of a Spring Training trip, posting a Fantasy Impact-best 214.82 points in a victory over Deebo’s Chain Gang. El Diablo Rojo received double-digit production from all starters but the Chicago defense (9 points), with Deshaun Watson, DeSean Jackson and Evan Ingram playing starring roles.
While the Chargers may have left San Diego, fantasy football knowledge sure didn’t. Our second-highest scoring team was also in Austin Hedges’ League.
Doctor D’s Team benefited from a dominating effort by Sammy Watkins, Week 1’s highest-scoring player in fantasy football. Doctor D’s Team’s 203.32 points were good enough for a resounding victory over ggg’s Team.
Here’s a look at our top 10 highest scoring teams after the first week of play:
- El Diablo Rojo (Austin Hedges’ League) — 214.82
- Doctor D’s Team (Austin Hedges’ League) — 203.32
- Impersonal Foul (Zack Wheeler’s League) — 201.52
- Who’s managing now? (Ahmed & Bradley’s League) — 187.96
- ProgressiveSqueeze (Pete Alonso’s League) — 184.82
- Rawlings Rappers (Jack Flaherty’s League) — 171.92
- Conner’s Crazy Team (Jake Odorizzi’s League) — 170.96
- Joseph’s Dandy Team (Zack Wheeler’s League) — 167.76
- Mahome Boys (Ahmed & Bradley’s League) — 162.82
- Wrecking Ball (Michael Wacha’s League) — 162.26
A reminder that the first place team in each league gets a customized Rawlings baseball bat, the first place team in each city gets to throw out a first pitch at a regular season game in 2020 and the first place overall team wins a trip to Spring Training!
But for the guys who are already going to Spring Training (and have a collection of customized bats), they’re playing for special prizes, too.
Though our athletes haven’t yet cracked the top-10 leaderboard, they did pretty well collectively this week, compiling an overall 10-5 record.
- Luke Weaver — 160.44
- Ryne Harper — 151.76
- Steven Matz — 151.12
- Jack Flaherty — 148.02
- Archie Bradley — 142.20
- Pete Alonso — 141.74
- Zack Wheeler — 139.40
- Pat Maroon — 138.84
- Jake Odorizzi — 124.84
- Michael Wacha — 124.10
- Austin Hedges — 121.62
- Nick Ahmed — 121.42
- Adam Wainwright — 118.76
- Kyle Gibson — 111.62
- Steven Souza Jr. — 92.66
Let’s check in with each league and highlight some key performances.
Adam Wainwright’s League
Waino earned a narrow win over MustSeeTV314, 118.76-114.36. MustSeeTV314 held a slim lead after the Sunday late games, but Uncle Charlie emerged victorious, thanks to Steelers TE Vance McDonald’s humble 6-point performance Sunday night against the Patriots. Waino’s quarterback — Lamar Jackson — threw 5 touchdowns and posted 38.56 fantasy points.
It was baseball.edu who had the biggest performance in the Wainwright League, earning a 160.54-110.22 victory over Magdee’s Team. Patriots QB Tom Brady (28.64), Chargers WR Keenan Allen (26.30) and Titans TE Delanie Walker (22.50) led the way for baseball.edu this week.
Michael Wacha’s League
Rough week for Michael Wacha, but don’t you ever say he just walked away. Wrecking Ball never hit so hard in fantasy football (We swear, that was our last one), claiming the top spot in Wacha’s league, thanks to Ravens QB Lamar Jackson (38.56) and the savvy pick of Chargers running back Austin Ekeler (39.40). The margin of victory could’ve been greater, had Wrecking Ball not left Sammy Watkins’ 46.80 points on the bench.
The STL BattleHawks had the biggest blowout of the week, defeating the Aluminum Falcons. The Aluminum Falcons actually held the lead going into Monday night’s doubleheader. Saints wideout Michael Thomas (22.30) and Raiders rookie RB Josh Jacobs (24.30) led the way for the STL BattleHawks to rally for a late victory. Knock on wood if you’re with me!
Jack Flaherty’s League
Whether it’s on the mound or in fantasy football, Jack Flaherty isn’t messing around this year.
On Sunday, Flaherty fanned 10 Pirates in a huge victory for the Cardinals, then JFlare put up a W in his Fantasy Impact league. Led by Eagles QB Carson Wentz (28.02) and Seahawks RB Chris Carson (24.10), JFlare defeated Nash Jxn in a matchup where both teams outperformed predictions. Nash Jxn received a pair of valiant efforts Monday night from Texans WR DeAndre Hopkins (31.10) and Raiders WR Tyrell Williams (22.50), but it wasn’t enough to close the gap.
The Rawlings Rappers look like a formidable team, featuring standout performances by running backs Christian McCarthy (42.90) and Austin Ekeler (39.40). They had the biggest blowout win this week in the Flaherty League, over STL From Above.
Pat Maroon’s League
Pat Maroon may have proudly lifted the Stanley Cup for the St. Louis Blues, but he’s got some ground to make up if he wants to hoist the Fantasy Impact Championship Belt. Maroon took a close loss to Egg Toss, going through some bad luck with Tyreek Hill’s early injury. With stud running backs David Johnson (25.70) and Austin Ekeler (39.40) on his roster, as well as the timeless Larry Fitzgerald (25.30), Maroon has a good chance to rebound.
Thanks to Pat Mahomes, who picked up where he left last year, Egg Toss emerged victorious and put up the third-highest point total in the league. Egg Toss played their roster perfectly, as none of the active bench players scored more than 9 points.
Kyle Gibson’s League
Big League Impact VP Kyle Gibson started the season well, with a victory over the Omaha Vikings — despite getting a goose egg from Falcons kicker Matt Bryant. Even without Andrew Luck, T.Y. Hilton came through for Gibby, scoring a team-high 28.70.
Gibby’s archrival Galloping Gorgs earned a win by less than 3 points, in an exciting matchup with Matthew’s Team. Heading into Monday night, less than one point separated the two teams. Even with Christian McCaffrey’s 42.90 performance, the Galloping Gorgs relied on Emmanuel Sanders (19.60) and Will Lutz (15.0) on Monday night to eke out a victory.
Dan Siering earned the blowout of the week award, led by Alvin Kamara (23.90) and Amari Cooper (22.60).
Jake Odorizzi’s League
The Jake Odorizzi League may be one of the most competitive this season, as only one team scored less than 100 this week. Jake took a Week 1 loss by just 5.1 points to Moriarty_Party26, who relied on Mark Ingram II (22.70) and Michael Thomas (22.3) for the victory.
Conner’s Crazy Team posted a solid victory over Dragons, setting the pace early on this season. Though they drafted Sammy Watkins, Conner’s Crazy Team left him on the bench. Still, the team received stellar efforts by Lamar Jackson, Derrick Henry and David Johnson.
Ryne Harper’s League
We’ve got some serious fantasy football experts in Minnesota! Twins pitcher Ryne Harper is leading the way, posting an impressive victory and highest point total in his league. In a close second is Just Win Baby, who delivered some hard knocks to Miracle.
Ryne also had the biggest blowout win of the week, vastly outplaying projections. The Tennessee defense came up huge for Harper, posting 23 points in the victory.
That first pitch at Target Field prize will be hotly contested this year, for sure.
Steven Matz’s League
Ryne Harper isn’t the only BLI athlete leading his league after the first week. Steven Matz is sitting in the pole position after a solid victory over Joe’s Legendary Team.
This will be another competitive league, as among winners, roughly 30 points separate 1st from 6th.
Some of New York’s bravest, FDNY, are also some of New York’s best fantasy players. FDNY had the biggest blowout of Week 1, benefiting from Sammy Watkins’ breakout game and a solid showing by Chiefs teammate Damien Williams (18.50).
Pete Alonso’s League
Pete Alonso leads baseball in homers, but he’s trailing ProgressiveSqueeze in fantasy football. The rookie slugger had a great performance in Week 1, defeating Triple J by a solid margin, despite a negative performance by the Jaguars defense. Oddly enough, Pete Alonso’s bench (165.04) outscored his starters (141.74). The performances of DeSean Jackson (35.40) and John Ross III (34.80) went all for naught.
Meanwhile, ProgressiveSqueeze had just about the optimal lineup out there. With Christian McCaffrey and Pat Mahomes on the team, ProgressiveSqueeze will be a force to be reckoned with this year. They also received big games from Evan Ingram and T.Y. Hilton.
Zack Wheeler’s League
The top prize in New York will be quite a battle, too. But for now, the league is chasing the lead dog — Impersonal Foul. With a margin of victory of 88.10, Impersonal Foul had the most impressive win of the Zack Wheeler League. Led by Christian McCaffrey, every player in Impersonal Foul’s starting lineup reached double digits.
Next week, Impersonal Foul will face Zack Wheeler, who had a great week, as well. Wheeler drafted Dak Prescott in the 8th round, and the Cowboys signal caller delivered a 37.40 point effort in the opening week. In what feels like a recurring theme, Zack Wheeler won despite having top overall fantasy performer Sammy Watkins on the bench.
Zack’s opponent, King of Queens, will look to have a more regal performance next week. Off games by Julio Jones (15.10), Davante Adams (7.60), Todd Gurley II (11.10) and the Browns defense (0.0) won’t be the norm.
Ahmed & Bradley’s League
Torey isn’t the only member of the Lovullo household who knows how to get the most out of a lineup. Kristen, wife of the D-backs skipper, flexed some fantasy muscle this week with a great performance from Who’s managing now?
Who’s managing now? received nearly 50 percent of their points from two players — Sammy Watkins and Lamar Jackson. David Johnson and Amari Cooper also had standout performances for the first-place team. It’ll be an interesting matchup next week, with Nick Ahmed’s team.
Husband/Wife LawTeam took a hard luck loss this week to Mahome Boys, scoring 144.60 (more than 3 other winning teams), but still coming up short.
Souza & Weaver’s League
Luke Weaver and Archie Bradley have the fantasy football bragging rights in the Diamondbacks clubhouse, with Luke (Bark at the Park) putting up a BLI-athlete best 160.44 points. Steven Souza Jr., a former Fantasy Impact champion, has nowhere to go but up.
Even with a brown-out performance by the Browns D and a lackluster game by Vance McDonald, Bark at the Park claimed a convincing victory, led by Lamar Jackson.
MURRAY, who is nipping at Luke’s heels, had the biggest blowout victory of the league this week. They might want to consider starting team namesake Kyler Murray next week, as the Cardinals rookie posted 23.62 points on the bench compared to starter Kirk Cousins’ 15.32.
Austin Hedges’ League
We may have saved the best for last. El Diablo Rojo and Doctor D’s Team have their eyes on the grand prize, but they shouldn’t pack their bags for Arizona just yet. Tyler’s Team benefited from great games by Carson Wentz and Larry Fitzgerald … and they’ve got Lamar Jackson waiting in the wings, too. Detroit rookie TE T.J. Hockenson had a breakout debut (25.10), but was left on the bench of Tyler’s Team. Look out for them in the coming weeks!
Austin Hedges, who had the best draft of any athlete, managed a close victory over B’s Boss Team. While Austin’s Padres played the Cubs, his fantasy team came through for him in the Monday Night Football doubleheader. New Texan Duke Johnson’s performance last night (13.00) was enough to give Austin the win.
Be sure to check the waiver wire and set your lineups ahead of Thursday night!
