Week 8 Recap: Brotherly Shove

By Mel AIper, CTDB Analyst

With the regular season in full bore, Gang Green is storming back and are just two games back of the Monkeys with a 11-5 record after its third straight 2-0 week, and the Jail Yard Boyz have the third spot to themselves at 10-6 after posting the best score of the week. Behind them it’s a pileup: Blitz, Battle Angel and the Phreaks all at 8-8.

This past week, the headliner was the Brother Bowl, and it went to Josh. Custom J pushed past Eddie’s Crunch Bunch with two running backs in the high 20s and a quarterback slot that never got on the field. Elsewhere, a free-agent quarterback outscored five Eagles by himself, and one receiver played through two broken ribs and won a game. More on that below. 

The games

Custom J 123, Crunch Bunch 113

Custom J won the Brother Bowl on the ground. Tony Pollard ran for 27, D’Andre Swift for 27 more, and Jonah Coleman, a 13th-round rookie who picked up a bigger role in Denver once RJ Harvey went to injured reserve, added 18. Trey McBride caught 17, Ladd McConkey came back from the concussion protocol with 11, and the Commanders defense, a 2-dollar Wednesday claim, gave 12. That was enough to cover a zero at quarterback. Lamar Jackson, back from three missed games, hurt his right thumb on Baltimore’s first offensive snap and went straight to the locker room.

Coach Eddie got a strong game from Jordan Love, the 5-dollar pickup, who threw for 30. Jaylen Warren ran for 21 and Tucker Kraft caught 14, but the Bunch’s receivers never got going. Amon-Ra St. Brown had 9, Tetairoa McMillan 9, and the Broncos defense and Will Reichard combined for 1. A.J. Brown sat with his knee. Custom J has now won four straight in this series and is 5-2 against the Bunch since 2021. The rematch is Thanksgiving weekend. Pass the stuffing carefully.

Chunky Monkeys 158, A Squad Called Blitz 100

The Monkeys' Jacksonville stack did the heavy lifting this week. With Tyler Shough’s Saints on a bye, Trevor Lawrence threw for 28 and Bhayshul Tuten ran for 29, and came out of it on the injury report. Brock Bowers caught 25, Jaxon Smith-Njigba 21 and Luther Burden III 15, and Christian Watson added 13 and came out with sore ribs. 

Blitz got real production from unexpected places. Chuba Hubbard ran for 21, Harold Fannin Jr. caught 18 at tight end, and Jayden Daniels, picked up for 3 dollars on Thursday, threw for 19. But Blitz's keepers didn’t show. Bijan Robinson, Jonathan Taylor and Drake London combined for 14, CeeDee Lamb had 9, and the Browns defense, a 10-dollar Thursday claim, scored 1. The Monkeys have won three straight in this Bay Area series and lead it 8-3 since 2021. Blitz has slipped from a share of third into the 8-8 crowd.

Jail Yard Boyz 174, LA Buffy 91

The Boyz cashed in the Bengals passing game. Tee Higgins caught 33 and Ja’Marr Chase 26, and Drake Maye threw for 28 with Malik Nabers, Isaiah Likely and Woody Marks all on byes. Bucky Irving ran for 21, the Jaguars defense, a 1-dollar claim, scored 19, and Matthew Golden and Dalton Kincaid added 17 each. The 174 ranks 16th among 920 team scores in this league since 2021. It isn’t even the Boyz’ best this season. They put up 194 in Week 5, the second-best score in this league since 2021.

Buffy's disappointing season continues and this week was no different. Tyler Allgeier, an 11th-round pick, ran for 34, and Tyler Bass, picked up off waivers Wednesday, kicked 14. The rest didn’t follow. Matthew Stafford threw for 12 and came out with a sore arm, Jeremiyah Love managed 2 before hurting a new part of his ankle, and DK Metcalf and Tre Tucker combined for 1. The Boyz now lead this series 7-6.

Philadelphia Phreaks 129, Battle Angel 89

Kirk Cousins, signed for free three Fridays ago, threw for 37, the best score by any starter in the league. GM Ping started five Eagles, Saquon Barkley, Makai Lemon, Dallas Goedert, Jake Elliott and the defense, and together they scored 31, less than Cousins alone. The rest of the roster made up the difference: Jahmyr Gibbs ran for 24, Puka Nacua caught 20 and Justin Jefferson 12.

The Angels needed the depth that carried them past the Monkeys a week ago, and it wasn’t there. Josh Jacobs ran for 20 and Jameson Williams caught 15, but Bryce Young threw for 14, Kyren Williams had 12, and Javonte Williams, last week’s star, managed 6. George Pickens caught 6, and the Seahawks defense closed it out with minus 2 on Monday night. The Angels posted the lowest score of the week. The Phreaks have now beaten them seven straight times.

Gang Green 120, City of Angels Masterminds 111

The game of the week came down to two Allens and a pair of broken ribs. Josh Allen came back from the Bills’ bye and threw for 33, and Braelon Allen, a waiver pickup, ran for 22. Michael Wilson caught 23 for Gang Green and said afterward that he broke two ribs in the game. Blake Corum and Derrick Henry added 13 each, which covered 2 from Kyle Pitts Sr. and a zero from Zay Flowers, a keeper. Flowers was the target on the first-snap throw that ended Jackson’s day, and the Ravens offense never recovered in a 36-10 loss at Buffalo.

Coach Marcus lost with the best lineup his roster could give him. Dak Prescott threw for 24, James Cook III ran for 17, and DeMario Douglas, a 12-dollar claim who started in place of Breece Hall, caught 15. Malik Washington had 13 and Brandon Aubrey kicked 12. Travis Kelce and Ashton Jeanty gave 9 each, while Tyler Warren and Parker Washington combined for 7 with Davante Adams out for weeks after hamstring surgery. Gang Green had lost the last two meetings, both in 2025, and now leads the series 8-4.

Heroes and Zeros

Heroes are the players who gave their teams far more than anyone could count on. Zeros are the stars and keepers who started and gave back almost nothing.

Heroes. Cousins, a free agent, led all starters with 37. Allgeier went for 34 from the 11th round. Wilson caught 23 through two broken ribs. Higgins caught 33. Coleman’s 18 came from a 13th-round rookie in a Denver backfield that just got bigger.

Zeros. Flowers, a Gang Green keeper, scored zero. Metcalf, a Buffy keeper, managed 1. Blitz keepers London, Taylor and Robinson combined for 14.

The wire did its part. Douglas paid off his 12 dollars, and Bass, a free pickup, kicked 14. Omar Cooper Jr., Custom J’s 22-dollar claim, went from 20 in his debut to a bagel.

Manager of the Week

This award goes to the start and sit call that won a game.

Manager of the Week: Greg, Gang Green. Wilson and DJ Moore both came into the week questionable, and GM Greg went with Wilson. He caught 23 and outscored Moore by 8 in a game Gang Green won by 8.

Honorable mention: Marcus, City of Angels Masterminds. He benched Hall, who sat out again, for Douglas, who caught 15. Nothing on the Masterminds bench would have scored more.

Calls that cost. Coach Eddie stuck with Love, who threw for 30, and Joe Burrow went for 54 on the Bunch bench in a 10-point loss. Love had earned the job. Burrow picked his week.

The Trainer’s Room

In a keeper league, an injury costs this week’s points, the waiver money spent to cover it, and sometimes next year’s keeper.

Custom J. Jackson, a keeper, needs surgery on his right thumb and is going on injured reserve, which keeps him out at least four games. Kyler Murray, the 1-dollar Friday pickup, is the cover, and the Vikings are evaluating him for a sore hamstring. De’Von Achane, another keeper, is still on injured reserve.

The Monkeys. Harvey went on injured reserve on Oct 31 with a knee injury from practice, and his work in Denver now goes to Coleman, on Custom J. Tuten missed Monday’s walkthrough with an ankle and foot problem, and the Jaguars play Thursday. Rashee Rice, a keeper, returned from his hamstring and knee trouble and caught a touchdown, though from the Monkeys bench.

The Masterminds. Adams had surgery on a ruptured hamstring tendon on Oct 28 and is looking at six to ten weeks. Hall missed a fifth game with his quad but is expected back in Week 9.

Gang Green. Christian McCaffrey, a keeper, is trending toward a return after the 49ers’ bye. Jaylin Noel went on injured reserve with a toe injury and is expected to miss the rest of the season. Wilson plans to play through the ribs.

Blitz. Taylor, a keeper, may not be a Colt much longer. Indianapolis now looks likely to trade him before the Nov 10 deadline, and nobody knows yet where he would land.

Buffy and the Bunch. DeVonta Smith, a Buffy keeper, missed a second straight game with a hamstring injury, and Love’s ankle gets an update later this week. A.J. Brown, a Bunch keeper, sat with a knee flare-up, and the Patriots haven’t committed to him for Week 9.

The Pot and the standings

Week 8 paid the highest-scoring team that lost. The Bunch lost with 113, the best losing score of the week, so Coach Eddie takes the Pot. Week 9 pays the owner of the highest-scoring player on any bench, so this week a big day on the bench at least pays something.

The Monkeys lead at 13-3, and Gang Green is two back at 11-5. The Boyz are third at 10-6. Blitz, the Angels and the Phreaks are 8-8, the Masterminds and Custom J 7-9, the Bunch 5-11 and Buffy 3-13. Every team gets two results a week: one for its game, and one for finishing in the top or bottom half of the league’s scores. Ties break on head-to-head record.

Next week

First place hosts second. The Monkeys and Gang Green split their six meetings from 2021 through last season, and Gang Green comes in with Josh Allen back and McCaffrey possibly back too.

Blitz hosts the Boyz in a Bay Area game, the Phreaks host Custom J, the Bunch host the Masterminds, and Battle Angel hosts Buffy.