Greenies Speak

In the most stunning upset in CTDB Super Bowl history, Gang Green defeated the heavily favored, perennial championship contender Chunky Monkeys. Backing their way into the playoffs on a 3 game losing streak and a 5-8 regular season record, Gang Green got hot at just the right time. Such a dramatic upset has not been seen since the likes of the Giants championship run over the undefeated Patriots and even more so Broadway Joe's guaranteed win for the true Green and White. No doubt this unlikely win will go down in history alongside those memorable games.

No one believed the Gang could overcome such great odds, defeating last year's champion and winner of the division, Battle Angels on their way to the Big Game. The last few years however, CTDB has been a league of parity where anyone can beat anyone on any given week. Green's strategy of being good enough to make the playoffs and getting hot at the right time paid off in spades.

"I'm still in shock. This is truly a dream come true. Splitting the championship with good friend GM Jon in 2007 was awesome, but finally winning a championship outright is extremely satisfying and I can't put into words how good it feels," said GM Greg on the field after the game.

Randy Moss, Super Bowl MVP, and one of the biggest steals in league history said in response to recent criticism about his play, "This championship is even sweeter than my monster season in 2007. Despite all the haters out there I'm a team player and winning this championship outright is what it's all about."

"I'm going to really enjoy this one. I know how hard it is to get here. Even though I didn't get the start in the Super Bowl I know we did it the right way, as a team," said Hines Ward, who has been with Gang Green from the beginning and his days seem to be numbered as he is a free agent next year. Ward was benched at the very last minute in favor of newly acquired Jerome Harrison in a brilliant move that may have sealed the deal to the Green's 2nd championship.

After years of consistently winning with no name talent, Gang Green could be on the rise with young talent in Vincent Jackson and Sidney Rice and possibly finally finding a franchise quarterback in Matt Schaub, but next season can wait as they savor the incredible feeling of winning their very own undisputed championship.

Super Bowl VIIII

So it's happened, the biggest upset in CTDB history and it basically encapsulates what's been happening this entire decade for us. The Chunky Monkeys romp their way to the playoffs, with a roster brimming with talent, and then get upturned somehow. Meanwhile, Gang Green churns along with a roster devoid of any top tier superstars and manages to just keep winning baby. Last week we talked about Team of the Decade? There can be no question anymore, it's Green Team, with two Super Bowl wins, an excellent overall wins record, and a huge heads up matchup record against the Monkeys. Is it any coincidence that kryptonite is green? I doubt it, since Greg's team has managed to turn a five win regular season into a championship. In fact, Gang Green slip slopped their way into the playoffs on the heels of four losses and managed to get hot at the right time, and played three playoff opponents who scored less than 90 points each week. Remember, the four leaf clover is also green!

So yeah, the Superman-esque Monkeys came out flat, losing 88-111. That's all there is to say. Chris Johnson was his usual stellar self with 142 rushing yards and a touchdown, and star receiver Anquan Boldin continued his good play with 15 points. That's all the highlights the Monkeys had. His big move at the quarterback position, from Peyton Manning to Vince Young, resulted in one less point, even though Manning only played a half of a game -- scoring nine pts. Late season sensation Jamaal Charles piled up another fine week with 124 yards combined but was actually outpointed by LaDanian Tomlinson (18 to 13), who turned in two touchdowns from the bench. And key Monkeys' contributor Mike Sims-Walker collapsed with two points, scoring less than both the kicker and the defense.

But even as Evan pulled an absolute clunker, Greg still needed to play the game and take advantage of a tremendous opportunity. Gang Green's stars really showed up this week in full force. QB Matt Schaub has been on a tear lately and continued his (playoff) MVP performance with a 24 point showing, following 29 and 22 points in his previous games. With Schaub as the steady rudder for this squad, Greg has been able to boom and bust with the rest of his roster. Last week, Thomas Jones crapped out with five points. This week he had only low single digits heading into the fourth quarter but then pounded his way to a touchdown and over one hundred yards as the Greenies ground out the clock. Critics may say that Randy Moss doesn't try all the time but he always shows up in big games, scoring three huge touchdowns to put up a tremendous 24 points. The trade for Mr. Moss a few years ago has resulted in a premiere performer for Greg and launched him to both of his Super Bowl victories.

And you don't become a champion without making all the right moves. Heading into the weekend, Greg had Hines Ward lined up as he was looking to go run and shoot. After seeing Evan start out strong on Thursday night with Charles Johnson, Vince Young, and Nate Kaeding (who totaled 38 pts), he made the switch from Ward to running back sensation Jerome Harrison. Good move? How about 148 yards and a touchdown for Harrison, totaling 18 points, versus just five for Hines? That thirteen points made a difference, giving Greg breathing room for the eventual victory. Whew. Sidney Rice's 14 points on Monday night was just the cherry on top of a great weekend for Gang Green.

With possible rule changes in the near future, Greg's stunning victory and playoff run might be the capper to an incredible first cycle for CTDB. Clearly establishing himself as the team and GM of the decade, Greg can no longer be overlooked for accolades and cheers. So Greg, it's true, you're the best around!

Battle for the Best

This is it, the biggest game of the season. And what a matchup we have lined up. Gang Green, winner of only five games in the regular season, are in the Super Bowl for the third time in their franchise's history. At their first appearance, in Super Bowl IV, they lost by one point. Then after a name change (from Green Team), they tied and became co-champs in Super Bowl VII. Will this be the year they capture a title outright? There's going to be a huge hurdle in their way though, as the Chunky Monkeys are heavily favored.

The Monkeys are also in the big game for the third time. They won in Super Bowl VI, lost last year in VIII, and will now face a huge underdog this weekend. In a season that featured quite a bit of league parity, the Monkeys were the highest scoring team, won the Inscrutable Drama Kings division (again) and seem to poised for a huge win that could secure their place in the CTDB pantheon. Only two teams have ever won two titles (Buffy and Dirty Birds) and one of these franchises win join that coveted club and actually leapfrog both Buffy and Dirty Birds as "Team of the Decade" because the Monkeys and Gang Green have the top two records in the league. Really, look it up. Through our first ten years together as a league, the Monkeys have a winning percentage of 66.4% (74-37-2) while Gang Green has the second best overall with a 56.3% (62-48-1)

Last week the Monkeys crushed the Dirty Birds, 119-97, in a matchup that was never very close. Behind Peyton Manning's 38 points and four TDs, along with Jamaal Charles' 23 points, the Monkeys cruised from the beginning. In the other divisional final, Gang Green snuck by defending champs Battle Angels by a narrow margin (86-78) as Drew Brees collapsed with only 14 points, and got outplayed by Matt Schaub, who had twenty two. That sets up this week's game, with the Greenies versus the Monkeys for bragging rights and potential Team of the Decade status. It does seem like Gang Green has the Chunky Monkey's number. While the Monkeys have winning records against every other franchise in the league, they've only managed to beat Greg's team three times (out of ten tries). That bodes well for the underdog. What doesn't bode well is Evan's talent edge and regular season track record. However, should Gang Green win, this would be an upset of Giants vs Pats 2008 proportions. Let's look at the matchups.

Quarterback: Shockingly, Evan is starting Vince Young instead of Peyton Manning. It's not surprising since Peyton will likely play very little as the Colts wrap up a dominant regular season, but it is kind of crazy that the leader of the Monkeys' franchise will be on the bench. In fact, what's actually crazy is that Vince wasn't even on the roster last week, as he was a waiver wire pickup just three days ago. Young has been on a tear recently, with games of 25, 23, and 29 in the last four weeks, so don't be surprised if he provides 90% of Peyton's value.

Greg will be playing Matt Schaub, who has been a top five QB this year, and only averages half a point less per week than Peyton. Despite Ben Roethlisberger's 44 points last week (in reserve), Greg wasn't tempted to go with Big Ben. Smooth move because Schaub is the leader of this team and is going up against a weak Dolphins' defense. It's hard to sit down a franchise player but Evan has done it, showing that he won't let emotion overcome his rationale. Due to this, we like his Vince move and think he'll make up well with Schaub. Edge: Even

Running Backs: We could make this a very short paragraph. In fact, we will. Last week Jamaal Charles and Charles Johnson combined for 37 points, and that's with Johnson "only" getting 160 yards rushing/receiving combined. Greg's backfield of Brandon Jacobs and Thomas Jones had ten points total. While the disparity won't likely be that large, it's clear that Evan's team is completely stacked at RB. So stacked that it looks like Greg will throw in a wrinkle of his own. Because his run game has been largely ineffective, he's going run and shoot, sitting down Brandon Jacobs. Might he regret that move, or even have made a mistake in having Jerome Harrison (last week's record setting Brown) sitting on his bench? Time will tell. Edge: Chunky Monkeys

Wide Receivers: It's a real toss up here because while Greg has big names, his four wides might struggle to all get on the same page. It's a good bet that either Vincent Jackson or Randy Moss will have a good game, but probably not both. Sidney Rice is going to put up double digits, but he's cooled off recently. Placing Hines Ward in for Brandon Jacbos will probably be a wash, but at least Ward will get a few points due to his receptions. We're thinking Gang Green's WRs will need to score three TDs between the four of them to have a great week.

On the other side of the ball, Evan's got Anquan Boldin coming off a nice showing last week, and Mike Sims-Walker has been an underrated receiver all year long. They should both catch touchdowns and combine for 25+ points. The question is if TE Jermichael Finely will replace any of Percy Harvin's production. It's interesting that Evan is going with such untested players (Vince and Finley, and Jamaal Charles to an extent), but that just shows his flexibility and willingness to gamble for gold. Edge: Gang Green

Defense and Kicker: While Shayne Graham and Giants Defense are both rated hot for Gang Green, there's not enough evidence here that either team has an edge for Def or K. The Monkeys have Nate Kaeding and the Cowboys and really, will either make the difference here? Probably not. Edge: Even

If I had told you that Peyton Manning, Matt Forte, and LaDainian Tomlinson would be sitting during championship week for the Monkeys, would you have believed me? Would you have said that the Monkeys were going to have a overwhelming talent edge and be an absolute juggernaut? Then again, if I had told you that a team led by Matt Schaub and um, Thomas Jones and Randy Moss, would upset their way to the Super Bowl, you wouldn't have believed it either right? So here we are, with pretty much a toss up for who will win. History tells us the Monkeys tend to collapse under pressure, while Gang Green capitalizes on their chances. History also tells us that a strong running game will lead to a championship, and the Monkeys clearly have the best RBs in this matchup. So here we go, Super Bowl X, and a chance to become the Best Franchise of the Decade!

SMG Playoffs - Rd 2

Greg does it again! Despite being a big underdog, he upsets Jimmy's team, almost doubling the Fobsters' total (111 to 65) and cruises to round two of the playoffs. Despite having a 5-8 regular season record, Greg proves that on any given Sunday you have a chance. For Jimmy, it was a crushing loss as no player scored more than 13 points and his receivers totaled 15 points between the three of them. Greg's defense, the Titans, put up 21 points just by themselves. And that was only Greg's second highest player because Matt Schaub had a huge game of 29 (and Thomas Jones had 21 pts). Heck, Randy Moss even got a negative one for his day and Greg still whooped that ass. So, which Goliath is up next for our intrepid David? Well how about Vu's team, the defending champion Battle Angels who had the best record in the league, scored the most points during the regular season, and boasts the best player in the game, QB Drew Brees? Let's take a look at the matchup.

Quarterback: This isn't even a matchup. League MVP Drew Brees is averaging 28 points a game. He's had scores of 49-31-32 in his most recent three games. Matt Schaub has been nice recently but he's not Brees. Edge: Battle Angels

Running Back: Last week, we said that Green Team's Thomas Jones and Brandon Jacobs weren't good enough to win. Well, thirty one combined points later and they prove their worth. Jones' big game came at the perfect time but he'll have to do it again if Greg wants to have a chance this week. Facing off against the New York duo will be Vu's backfield of DeAngelo Williams and Cedric Benson. While DeAngelo was a superstar late last year, churning Vu's team to a championship, he's been good but not great this year. Despite being statistically a top ten back, he's not had a breakout week since WK10, which was a very long time ago. Benson was similarly much better at the beginning of the year too, and has been injured and not scored 20+ since WK7. Edge: Even

Wide Receiver: With plenty of big names, this is a high powered receiver matchup. Vu boasts Andre Johnson, who has quietly been the best WR in all the land this year, averaging 16 points a game. Behind him is Greg Jennings and Vernon Davis, who are big names and capable of big games. Davis has finally emerged as an offensive force and has been over double digits in four straight games and is now the premier TE in the game. Jennings has been erratic and there's even a chance that the other Steve Smith could replace him, but as a third receiver, he's deadly.

The thing is, Greg counters with an even more explosive trio. Vincent Jackson finally got back on track last week, and while Randy Moss suffered a terrible game, he could be huge any time he plays. Sidney Rice has been in double digits for five straight games and is catching a lot of balls even if he's lost some deep play potential to other receivers on the Vikings. Edge: Even

Defense and Kicker: When they say that defense doesn't matter, Greg points to his Titans, who absolutely dominated and threw up a huge game last weekend. Can they do it again? It's doubtful because they seem like a boom or bust proposition. They've had two other twenty point games this year but they've also had low single digits in most other weeks. Vu's Saints Defense has been much steadier, averaging almost twelve points a game, which is good for best fantasy defense of the year. Kickers Nick Folk (Green) and Garrett Hartley (Angels) are both average real life kickers but because Hartley is working in New Orleans, he's got much higher upside. It seems like riding the Saints is going to work out for Vu in more ways than just at quarterback. Edge: Battle Angels

Wow, I never would of thought that Greg and Vu would match up well. I mean, this is a league leader facing off against a team that barely squeaked into the playoffs. But Greg has proven that his team is nothing if not surprising and we predict a good fight. Still, the powers of Drew Brees will just be too much to overcome and he's going to take the Battle Angels back to the Super Bowl for a championship defense.

IDK Playoffs - Rd 2

Win on the road and go to the Superbowl. That’s as simple as Dirty Birds running back, Adrian Peterson, wants to keep it. He knows the Monkeys are also looking to clinch their 2nd straight Superbowl appearance.

“It ain’t never easy. Our division, ain’t never easy. As coach tells us, we take it one game at a time but honestly, you guys know the history, we know these guys well. We’re divisional foes and we have a lot of game tape on these guys,” Peterson said Monday. “You just want to get to the Superbowl and this weekend will allow us to do that.”

If there was a division rival, its quickly turning into the Monkeys versus the Dirty Birds. These teams have faced off in the playoffs 4 out of the last 5 years (including this year and the last two conference championship games). Despite the Monkey’s vaunted offense throughout the years, the two teams have been pretty even when it counts. The Birds knocked off the Monkeys in the 2007 Conference Championship and the Monkeys re-paid the favor in 2008. On an all-time basis, the Monkeys have the second worst team record against the Birds (the Monkeys have an inexplicable losing record to Gang Green).

“Honestly, I expect to see them now. We’ve seen them the last couple of years and they have a good team. AP and S-Jax are as good as its gonna get in this league and everyone knows about their passing game. Wes Welker, Larry Fitz and Austin Miles …. Our DBs are going to have a heck of a game on their hands,” said Monkey’s captain, Ladainian Tomlinson, during this morning’s media session.

Here’s a look at this weekend’s match up:

Quarterback. Perhaps, the greatest weakness to this Dirty Bird lineup. With Carson Palmer suffering through an injury along with difficult matchups (Minnesota last week and San Diego this week), GM Jon Yang has scoured the waiver to pick up some fillers. Last week was David Garrard. Result? 8 points. bleh. This week, sources indicate that Yang will go with Jason Campbell. Campbell has been on a bit of a tear the last 3 weeks, averaging 28 points a week. The Monkeys have also had a similar issue. GM Evan Shiue signed Brett Favre and Vince Young a few weeks back knowing that a QB rotation will become necessary. While the Monkeys have yet to officially announce their starting QB, its likely they’ll stick with co-captain, Peyton Manning. Manning has been a star this year and the Monkeys expect no different this week. ADVANTAGE: MONKEYS

Running back. For the first time in a long long time, the Monkeys backfield is no longer the dominant stable backfield that the league has become used to. This year, GM Shiue has rotated between 4 different backs this year. The Monkeys have found a superstar in Chris Johnson but with Tomlinson tailing off (slightly) and Forte having a down year, the Monkeys have found themselves turning to first year back Jamaal Charles at times. We know that CJ will be in the lineup this week but the second back remains to be seen. Tomlinson has publicly lobbied for the start but there’s a good chance that we’ll see Charles in the backfield as well. As for the Birds, the issue is less with the matchup but more health. More specifically, Steven Jackson. S-Jax ran for a season-low 47 yards last week while dealing with a back injury. Assuming S-Jax is healthy, he and Adrian Peterson form the top tandem in the league. The two have combined for nearly 2,500 yards so far this year (through 14 weeks) – good for number 2 and 3 in the league. ADVANTAGE: BIRDS

Wide Receivers. If you add Larry Fitzgerald, Wes Welker, and Miles Austin you get … the best receiving core in the league. Hands down. The three have totaled for 248 catches, 3,150 yards and 24 touchdowns! Okay, so the Birds weren’t always this good … Austin literally came out of nowhere. But when healthy, there is no better receiving core. However, there’s a catch. There always is. Larry Fitz injured his knee last week. It didn’t look good but reports (from Larry’s tweets himself!) say that he’s “sore but ok”. Monkey coaches have publicly told the media that they are preparing as if Larry will play. We’ll see. On the flip side, the Monkeys have some uncertainty. The Monkeys receivers, strangely enough, have all scored roughly amount the same number of points (about 10 points per game) and are right next to each other in the rankings. Anquan Boldin is a certainty to start. With 68 catches, 800 yards and 4 touches … Quan leads the Monkeys in catches and yards this year. Rookie receiver, Percy Harvin, who’s been dealing with migraines will also start if healthy. Harvin has reeled in an impressive 48 catches and 680 yards to go with 6 TDs as a rookie this year. The third receiver slot is the mystery. The Monkeys have Sims-Walker and Kenny Britt on the roster but its unclear who will play. Sims-Walker has had a nice year but is dealing with injury. Britt has been hot but is a rookie. Word on the street is that the Monkeys have been active on the phones with potential free agent. We’ll know soon enough…. ADVANTAGE: BIRDS

Kicker. The Monkeys have Nate Kaeding. The best and most accurate kicker this year. We’re not sure who the Dirty Birds are playing. ADVANTAGE: MONKEYS

Defense. The Monkeys have yet to declare a defense while the Birds counter with the Packers. The Packers have been a top 3 defense this year. ADVANTAGE: Incomplete.

Wow. This one will be a tough one. “With all the star power on the field muddied by the injuries, this game will be a tough game to call.” Long time ESPN analyst Chris Mortensen opined in his weekly analysis. “The Monkeys are not only dealing with injuries with their receivers, I have no clue who they’ll start in the backfield with CJ. However, the Birds have similar issues. I’m not sure if Steven Jackson can play this week and certainly Larry Fitzgerald won’t be at 100%. My guess is that both will play but the Monkeys are deeper than people think. They’ve sort of flown under the radar this year as they’ve had one of their weaker regular seasons in their franchise history (8-5 entering the playoffs). However, this is a team that still won their division and can be very very dangerous. Don’t call me on it but I say Monkeys win by at least 10 here.”

A look back...
The Dirty Birds survived a terrible week. QB, David Garrard, scored 8 points with 139 passing yards and 26 rushing yards but no touchdowns. Steven Jackson barely mustered 5 points with 47 rushing yards. Larry Fitz played little over a half after sustaining a knee injury and finished with 3 points. Despite all of this the Birds mustered 84 points on the backs of AP (26 points with 97 rushing yards and 2 touches) and another clutch game by Miles Austin (71 receiving yards and a touch). Ante Up, who had been one of the hottest teams all year, laid an egg. MVP candidate, Aaron Rodgers (A-Rod), took himself out with a 0 touchdown, 1 fumble performance resulting in 9 points. Starters, Lesean McCoy, Robert Meachem, Reggie Wayne and Chad OchoCinco had a terrible day and combined for less than 30 points. If it weren’t for young Ray Rice’s 166 rushing and 53 receiving yards performance (to go with a long touchdown)...this team would’ve scored under 70 points. Dirty Birds got lucky...but sometimes its better to be lucky than good.

SMG Playoffs - Rd 1

Fobsters (7-6) vs Gang Green (5-8)
We've seen this matchup before. In 2007, Gang Green and the Fobsters faced off, with Greg having the higher seed and squeaking by Jimmy in a tight matchup. This year, things look to be a bit different as they are definitely headed in opposite direcitons heading into the playoffs. The Fobsters are riding a three game win streak while Gang Green has lost four in a row. They only got into the playoffs because the Phreaks and Jubas are both on three losing streaks as well. Let's take a look at the matchups.

Quarterback
Normally Tom Brady versus Matt Schaub would be a no brainer but Brady hasn't been the steadiest of quarterbacks and Schaub is the seventh ranked QB this year. Looking into the stats however, Brady is superior and much steadier than Schaub, who is in a three week decline that has him scoring 27, 20, and 14 points recently. Maybe Greg will find another QB for this week but either way, Tom Terrific should be worth 20 points. Edge: Fobsters

Running Back
Brandon Jacobs and Thomas Jones, Greg's Big Apple combo hasn't been quite as effective as in years past. Jones is still a Top 10 back but he's topped twenty points only twice this season and has been averaging closer to 13 points the past six weeks. While Jacbos has underachieved all season, he's hot now after a a 23 point performance last week, but most of that was from a 70+ yard TD reception. I guarantee that's not happening again. Greg really missed Ronnie Brown, who was so hot to start the season.

Of course, it's not like the Fobsters have much of a ground game either. Does Laurence Maroney and Kevin Smith scare you? Maroney has actually been pretty good the past few weeks but turned up a dud last weekend (with four points). Smith has been erratic but occassionally breaks out and has accumulated enough points to be the thirteenth best RB this year. He seems to be trending up and will serve as the Fobsters driving force on the ground. Side note, how far has Reggie Bush fallen? He used to be a decent fantasy play but is almost useless nowadays. Sad. Edge: Fobsters

Wide Receiver
Speaking of falling off, how about that Calvin Johnson? Much like the sequel, this Transformer has been just terrible, barely ranking in the top 25 of wide receivers. He's been injured and unproductive but the good news is that he's had two huge weeks in the past four, so he could really help Jimmy out in the passing game. And Pierre Garcon, Jimmy's great FA pickup, has been scoring 12, 13, 14, 16 points in recent weeks, as he learns to connect with Peyton Manning. Even Jason Witten, with a down year, has had two 100+ yard games in a row and is peaking at just the right time. This all sounds great for the Fobsters right?

Not so fast. Greg's team is stacked at the receiver position. Deep threats Vincent Jackson and Randy Moss anchor the team and Randy is capable of exploding at any time (he's the second best WR this year, with four 20+ games). Jackson had four 20+ games up through WK 9 but none since. In fact, Jackson hasn't topped double digits since then so there's a little bit of concern. However, he's still capable of contributing at any time. It may not matter though because Jackson is really the number three receiver on this team, if you can believe it. FA pickup Sidney Rice has been a top ten WR this year and is exactly in the mold of Ross and Jackson, boom or bust deep threats. For example, the past four weeks have resulted in two 23 point games and 11 and 10. That's steady enough and we like Greg's chances for two of his guys to go big. Edge: Gang Green

Defense & Kicker
This is always an overlooked portion of matchups. Usually it's not a big deal as they should cancel each other out. But it boggles my mind that both GMs are going with defenses that are doing horrible the past three weeks. Sure the Ravens and Titans may sound like big names but neither of them have even put up five points in recent weeks. Greg's kicker, Nick Folk, has missed four field goals in four straight games and has scored 14 total over that span. Meanwhile, Jimmy's kicker has been the hottest in the game. David Akers has been in double digits most weeks and could provide a nice five or six point cushion over Folk's "work." Edge: Fobsters

Fearless Forecast
The good news for Greg is that he's actually outscored Jimmy this season (who has been the lowest scoring team in the league). The bad news is that Jimmy is heating up at the right time and has strung up games of 91-94-121 recently while Greg has been sub 80s, barring one 106 explosion -- which he lost. So I'm gonna go with the hot team here, Fobsters by fourteen.

IDK Playoffs - Rd 1

At the time this article is going to press, while its not officially in the books, it does appear the first round playoff matchup is set. Boys and girls, set your tivo to the Dirty Birds and Ante Up as this one is going to be a doozy.

The focus, of course, will be on Ante Up as this was the team that finished with the worst record last year. The same team that had the first pick in this year’s draft. But oh what a draft it was. Outside of veteran receiver, Reggie Wayne, the entire starting lineup as of Week 13 comprised of new players. Wow.

Quarterback. With the first pick of the draft, Jae surprised teams a bit with a quick selection of Aaron Rodgers. That pick now looks genius. Rodgers is the second highest scoring player this year, ahead the likes of Peyton Manning, Tom Brady and Philip Rivers. With over 3,100 yards, 22 td passes and just 5 picks, Rodgers has had an MVP type of year. On the flip side, Jon counters with Carson Palmer and Matt Ryan. While Palmer has experienced somewhat of a renaissance year with Ochocinco back, both quarterbacks have been pedestrian at best. Ryan has had his moments but has been inconsistent with injury. With Ryan still injured, its likely we’ll see Palmer under the gun next week. Edge: Ante Up

Running Backs. Jon is stacked at the skill positions and the Dirty Bird backfield is no exception. Led by the incomparable Adrian Peterson and the multi-dimensional Steven Jackson, the 3rd and 5th best backs in the league respectively, the Dirty Bird backfield is set. On the other side of the field, Ante Up will counter with Most-Improved Player of the Year candidate, Ray Rice and young rookie back, LeSean (Shady) McCoy. Entering the year with Brian Westbrook and Steve Slaton as the starters, Ante Up has completely reworked his lineup. Rice is now a certain keeper and is the 4th highest scoring running back this year. McCoy has shown flashes of brilliance and certainly has extreme athleticism. Expect these two to be in the keeper roster entering next season. Edge: Dirty Birds

Wide Receivers. Reggie Wayne, alongside of Aaron Rodgers, is the unquestioned captain of this young Ante Up team. Wayne is flanked by new starters, Chad Ochocino (probably the best pick of this year’s draft) and newly acquired Robert Meachem. Don’t forget, some dude named TO was also recently signed off the waiver wire. If there’s a veteran component to this Ante Up lineup, there’s no question that it’s the receiving core. Wayne, Owens and Chad Johnson – rewind 3 years and you have a ridiculous receiving lineup. As stacked as Jon is in the backfield, his receiving core is quite possibly even more impressive. Led by the best receiver in the league (sorry Reggie Wayne), Larry Fitz – the Dirty Bird receiver core is complemented by the ridiculous Wes Welker and Miles Austin. For those that don’t know, that’s 3 of the top 6 receivers this year. While we all knew Larry and Wes were awesome, who the hell is Miles? Who cares … this is an uber athletic passing game. Get the damn ball! Edge: Dirty Birds

Fearless Forecast. Jae’s team has had a great year. Regardless of what happens here, Ante Up now has a solid fleet of keepers that will stabilize the roster for years. However, Jon’s roster is just too deep. There’s too much firepower and experience here. Dirty Birds by 15.

Final Standings 2009

Monkeys Resign Favre

With little fanfare, the Monkeys made a quiet move that reunited long-time teammates last week. On November 18th, Monkeys management met Brett Favre in a local diner in the Bay Area and signed him to a one year contract. Despite being unfamiliar with most of the players on the team today, Favre is no stranger to the Monkeys franchise. For those that remember, Brett Favre was an original draft choice of the Chunky Monkeys franchise in their original 2001 draft. As he will for the 2009 team, Favre served as a back-up to Peyton Manning in 2001. Along with Manning, co-captain LaDainian Tomlinson was also on the 2001 team where he was a fresh faced rookie from TCU.

Monkeys GM, Evan Shiue, told the media earlier “Its great to have Brett back. We actually even gave him his old locker back, next to Peyton’s. To be honest, we were surprised Brett was out there. He’s been having an MVP type of season. We all had dinner last week with LT and Peyton and it was nice to talk about the good ol’ days. I now Fred Taylor and Derrick Mason are still active in the league and all those guys are good friends. But most importantly, Brett will play a very important role in our lineup in the playoffs. Besides being the great clubhouse leader that he’s always been, we anticipate Brett to get significant snaps this season.”

ESPN’s Adam Shefter said “Great move by the Monkeys. The team will needed a back-up to Peyton Manning and you can’t get much better than Brett Favre. The Monkeys have been a little underrated this year with their ups and downs earlier this season and the show that the Angels have put on this year but this is a good good team. They have 4 starting quality backs which they rotate and 4 receivers that are very capable. This may be one of the most complete Monkeys team in recent history. The local word in town is that this team is as good, if not better, than the championship 2006 team. First round bye is a lock so lets see where we are in a few weeks.”

Monkeys 2009 Line-up

QB1: Peyton Manning
QB2: Brett Favre
RB1: LaDainian Tomlinson
RB2: Chris Johnson
RB3: Matt Forte
RB4: Jamaal Charles
WR1: Anquan Boldin
WR2: Percy Harvin
WR3: Mike Sims-Walker
WR4: Jerricho Cotchery
K: Nate Kaeding
D: San Diego

Playoffs Preview

With only one team mathematically eliminated, this is shaping up to be one of the best final regular season weekends in CTDB history. With 3 playoff spots at stake (the top seeds are in), the battles this week will be fierce. Here’s a look at each team and their chances.

SMG Division

• Battle Angels. 1st seed, 1st round bye. Vu has put together another stunning season with not only the best record in his division (only winning team actually), it’s the best record in the whole league.

• Fobsters. Fobsters are in! If Jimmy’s team wins, he locks up the second seed. If he loses, a Gang Green win will likely give Greg the second seed through the points scored tie breaker. However, in the worst case scenario, the Fobsters own the tiebreaker over the Phreaks with a 2-0 heads up record for the final playoff slot.

• Gang Green. A win will likely secure Greg another playoff spot; coupled with a Fobster loss, the Green team could actually sneak into the second slot. With a split with the Phreaks this year, Greg did have a fantastic scoring year which gives him a solid chance in case of a win by the Phreaks. However, a loss coupled with either a Phreaks OR Jubas win means Gang Green would fall out of playoff contention. This would be a stunning collapse with a 3 game losing streak already in place. Broncos anyone?

• Phreaks. Despite a very up and down year, Ping’s team has a shot this year. But they need to win. They also need some help! However, the Phreaks are playing the worst team in the league this week which gives them a shot. The big matchup that all the Phreaks will be following will be the Dirty Birds v Gang Green matchup. A Dirty Birds win means the playoffs for the Phreaks – assuming they take care of business against the Jammers.

• Fat Jubas. Alive. But barely. On the bubble, but burstin’ is around the corner. The Jubas need to win (duh) but they also need the Phreaks AND Gang Green to lose next week. No easy task but weirder things of happened.

IDK Division

• Chunky Monkeys. Like the Angels, its over here. The Monkeys have the first slot locked up. Monkeys are already looking forward to their first week playoff bye. Whapow!

• Dirty Birds. A win secures the Birds the second slot. However, a loss makes things tricky. A win by either Ante Up or Buffy will result in a 3rd place seeding. HOWEVER, if both teams win, the Birds could be on the outside looking in. Similar to the Jubas, a lot of things would need to go wrong but you never know.

• Ante Up. This is where things get tricky with Ante Up entering the final week in a dead heat tie with Buffy. The cleanest way for the Ante Up to get in is to just win. Ante Up, with a regular season split with Buffy, owns a commanding league in the points scored tie breaker. A loss with a Buffy win means Ante Up is out.

• Buffy. See above. Buffy definitely needs to win. On the wrong end of the tie breaker, Buffy needs to win against the Angels (no easy task). They also need Ante Up to lose. If both the Birds and Ante Up lose, the Buffy could actually rise to the second seed. However, GM Roger just wants in. Talk about a big game!

• Tiiite End Jammers. The only team mathematically eliminated. A tough season for the Jammers but they’ll be back next year.