Super Bowl V

Here it is, another exciting season for Catch the Damn Ball league -- amazing, our SIXTH. We usher in a new champion, Eric of the Fat Jubas (formerly Flaming Shrapnel), who rose to the challenge and rode Shaun Alexander to a title. Eric becomes the first champion from the Spunky Misunderstood Geniuses division (after four straight wins by members of the Inscrutable Drama Kings). Also new to us this year is team owner Jimmy Wu, who has found some success on the basketball side of things, but is entering his first full season as a football coach. Welcome to the party Fobsters. And we give it up for Jon Chen, of the departed Skool franchise, for his many years of fine effort and participation.

Earlier this year, in a cosmic coincidence and a sign of things to come, team owners Jon, Evan, Eric, and Ping gathered in the Bay Area for a quick impromptu face-to-face greet-and-meet as well as...ahem...a Magic the Gathering tournament. During this time, it was established that we all suck at Magic but at least we know our football.

Moving right along, let's look at how last year's playoffs shook out:

Week 14
Eric defeated Ping (97-93)
Evan defeated Jon (94-74)
Jae and Greg on Byes

Week 15
Eric defeated Greg (94-84)
Evan defeated Jae (103-89)

Week 16
Eric defeated Evan (121-97)

Who will win it all next year? Who will be the underdog team that surprises us all? Stay tuned for the next episode of "So You Think You Can Play (Fantasy) Football?!?"

Article written August 10, 2006

Blockbuster!

CTDB Newswire - Santa Clara, September 12, 2005 --

In a short press release issued by the CTDB league wire, the Monkeys and the Jubas have announced that they have agreed to a deal that will see Shaun Alexander (RB) go to the Jubas in exchange for Terrell Owens (WR). The deal also includes a trade for picks in next year supplemental draft whereby the Jubas will surrender their second round draft selection in return for the Monkey's fifth round pick.

While the departure of Owens leaves a big hole in the Juba's receiver core, GM Eric finally has the franchise back he has been coveting for the past several years. "We will obviously miss TO and his leadership in the lockerroom but we believe that Shaun will give us that final piece of the puzzle for a championship run this year." Alexander had nearly 1700 yards along with 20 TDs last year -- unquestionably one of the top 2 runningbacks in the league.

For the Monkeys, the trade marks the first change to the Monkey's "triplets" of Manning, LT, and SA who have been together since the inaugural 2001 CTDB season. Tomlinson, a Monkey veteran who was a rookie back in the 2001 season, was visibly upset when notified of the trade. "Shaun has been here since year 1 and has been an integral part of our success. He's been a great teammate and I've learned a lot from him." Owens has also been part of the former Flaming Shrapnel franchise since the 2001 season and was not available for comment after being notified of the trade.

According to ESPN's John Clayton, "This trade really makes sense for both teams. Alexander is a legitimate #1 back for the Jubas and will give them a feature back for years to come. While Owens will leave a pretty big void, I believe that GM Liao has a couple options up his sleeve. I doubt that the Jubas are done in terms of trades. For the Monkeys, sources indicate that it was Evan that called up the Jubas exploring a possible trade after learning that Javon Walker would be out for the season. Shaun is a terrific talent but the one area that the Monkeys are deep at is the runningback position. With the emergence of Willie Parker and Larry Johnson, along with Kevan Barlow on the roster, the Monkeys should have sufficient talent to move forward this season. Owens is a top flight receiver and will help tremendously."