Tag: Regal Beagles

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Draft Lottery Winner

The Live Draft will be Saturday morning August 30th at 11am eastern. That’s 8am for the west coasters and somewhere in between for you middle-America bozos. According to the TL3 calendar, that’s 7 days out. This is another reminder to GET – YOUR – SHIT – TOGETHER.

Air Jordy and Packer Cave have run a series of online and offline randomizers and the winner of the 1st Overall Draft Pick is….
MONEY MANZIEL

The rest of the teams fall in to place based on the rules of the Constitution. The following draft order can be reviewed on the league homepage under League / Draft Info. The Weekly Schedule was also randomized.

1. Money Manziel
2. Reservations For Six
3. Schoolya’gain
4. White Wes Welkers
5. Air Jordy
6. Bagel Time
7. IJamAllDay
8. Lake Hickory Swallops
9. REDSKINS
10. LockinUWL
11. Packer Cave
12. Eastside Forty-Ounces

I do have an update on league membership. We have discharged the Lincoln Co. Chavezes, Put a Bird On It and The Goonies to seek out professional help. Let’s face it, those cats had a problem. They were addicted to NOT playing fantasy football well. Keep up the average effort boys and girls.

We have subsequently added Eastside Forty-Ounces! E40 has several years of fantasy experience and will be tough competition. Don’t sleep on this FNG.

Correction: I have to amend last week’s post to clearly identify this year’s Draft Party MC. The Regal Beagles have updated their appellation to the White Wes Welkers. Clever play on words buddy (hint: Game of Thrones). Big fan of the show, so me likey. The NFC North would likely be on that side of the wall.

Hope all is well. Looking forward to the usual BS on Draft Day next Saturday. I got a pack of blacks and a beat cd, get yo’ freestyle ready.

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2014 Season 3 Preview

I know, I know…it’s way too early for you to be hearing from me in May. But the 2014 NFL Draft is only a week away so Season 3 will be upon us before you know it. That’s really just a bullshit excuse for me to roll out the red carpet on TheLombardiThree.com!

I hope this finds everyone as anxious and excited for Season 3 as I am. As you can see, I’ve been busy. We have managed to step up our game each season so why not have a slick, new website. A virtual one-stop-shop for all your Lombardi Three needs.

Did someone say “shop”? Lombardi Three swag??
Don’t worry; I’m not there…yet. Maybe next year.
Jesus, now I’m wondering how I can get The Swallops’ horse-bird logo on to a wife-beater or flannel shirt. I digress.

I have backfilled the first two season’s correspondence to date and uploaded a surplus of league materials. Check out the League History page for a detailed, statistical look at our first two seasons. I have also linked various resources to aid in this year’s weekly analysis. These will be updated throughout the year as the season progresses.

We’ve given it two good trial runs and fleshed out the bullshit. Time to play for cash like the big boys. Check out the final breakdown of League Dues and how to pay. Paying your dues confirms your intent to play this coming season and guarantees your current position in the Draft Order, or better. If you do not intend to play this year, please let me know soonest. I have had lots of interest from new teams looking to join and I’d like to solidify the League Roster over the next few months.

DRAFT LOCATION: The Regal Beagles have transitioned to San Diego this year and offered to host the live draft over Labor Day weekend. With a few left-coasters in the vicinity, this could make for a fun draft location. Let’s not get too ahead of ourselves though as this is all still TBD.

DRAFT ORDER: Assuming the same 14 teams return this season, the draft order would look something like the below, per the rules laid out in the Constitution. The random drawing for 1st overall pick will be held prior to the beginning of the NFL preseason and announced on this site. Again, this is all TBD as the fantasy season approaches and we lock down the league roster and draft logistics.

Draft Order

*Once the 1st overall draft pick winner is chosen, the above order slides up to fill the empty position. 

Take a look at the site at your leisure and please make sure you sign up to follow the site postings. This will replace all email correspondence. As always, I’m looking forward to everyone’s feedback, comments and suggestions.

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TL3 Newssheet Issue 5

Another season in the books, another newssheet, more stats, more charts, more tables, and like Lieutenant Dan, I’m rollin’! This season’s final issue is packed with this crap. Oh… and there is a little puff piece on our 2013 League Champion

RFS Team Logo 3.1

Dude went on a 7-game streak of terror to close this thing out and did it only scoring the 6th most points this season. Not to mention he did it without a single top-ranked player. For full coverage of his extraordinary run check out Faceless.

Congrats are in order to my personal favorite squad who vociferously “Schooledya’gain” over our second season. The Stepdads and Bagel Time donned 3rd and 4th place finishes, after barely making the playoffs seated 7th and 8th, respectively, sharing the trophy for Playoff Comeback. A listing of all the 2013 League Trophies, as well as a peek at the 2014 Draft Landscape, and a statistical look at our first two seasons in League History, all accompany this final, 2013 season issue of the Lombardi Newssheet.

League Commissioner,
The Stepdads

See Newssheets Archive for this Issue.

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TL3 Newssheet Issue 3

The playoffs are…here.

That declaration just about sums up how thrilled I am about it. I really do focus my newssheet coverage on the prominent highlights each week, and I prefer to limit any narratives vis-à-vis my own team and my own players, but The Stepdads’ implosion, while quite pleasant and rewarding for the rest of you, is deserving of some light analysis in this week’s issue. I do take a look back at Week 11, which was a defining week for a handful of teams and had its share of controversial Bad Calls. Week 11 was the turning point for The Stepdads and the Hickory Swallops, as they both dropped the last 3 games of the regular season, barely surviving the playoff cut. In turn, Schoolya’gain and Reservations For Six went on terrifying 3- and 4-game win streaks, respectively, to capture 2 of the top spots in the playoffs and make their presence known. Meanwhile, the Regal Beagles dropped a dollar on a sweet steroid shot and Armstrong’d their way to 3-straight wins to close out the regular season and gain the top spot in the consolation bracket. Dream big Beagles – this was a hell of an improvement from last season’s 2-12 record.

Felicitations are in order. Genetic Black Jesus won the regular season trophy and won the award for most points scored. At an average of 180.18 per week, GBJ averaged 24.91 points more than the next strongest average in the league, LockinUWL. Through 13 weeks GBJ scored less than 159 points only once, and holds the single game record at 241.55 in Week 9. Stats, stats, stats…I’m so sick of seeing that luckster’s name next to all these stats.

Truth is, all those stats mean jack shit! The awards are virtual and these accomplishments earned him a #1 seed in the playoffs. That’s it. It’s anyone’s trophy at this point (well, any of the 8 of us in the playoffs). Lincoln Co Chavez took this stroker down in Week 6, so anything’s possible.

There’s so much to look at this week, it’s overwhelming. I sat down Monday night, post Week 11, and took my notes for Bad Calls. I’ve been going through the playoff scenarios since. I hope you enjoy the notes I’ve included in this week’s issue.

League Manager,
The Stepdads

See Newssheets Archive for this Issue.

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TL3 Newssheet Issue 2

Yeah, yeah, yeah…I said this would be quarterly, but this is way too rad and way too much fun for me to not send another Newssheet out before Week 12. And technically, quarterly is defined as 4 per annum. This is officially Issue 2 so I am way behind. As far as you know.

Let’s get the administrative crap out of the way and address the minor racket raised over a “vetoed” trade this week. Without going into the depth I did for the teams involved, this was not my call. As disputed as the trade was, and as much as we all wish that GBJ’s team plane would violently crash in to a shallow ocean of dull-toothed, shark-infested waters, the reality is the trade was accepted in error. I vetted that error and cancelled the trade. I did the same exact thing in Week 5 for two other teams without question. NFL.com does not have a ‘Cancel’ button for you or me to administer this type situation. The officially labeled ‘Veto’ button is our only way to rectify and cancel a trade. I have squashed any beef between the parties involved and continued truckin’.

All that said, this business really brought to light a couple of interesting topics for discussion. Check out the ensuing notes on Trades, Acquisitions, and the emergence of the Lombardi Three Constitution in this week’s issue of The Lombardi Three Newssheet.

League Manager,
The Stepdads

See Newssheets Archive for this Issue.

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TL3 Newssheet Issue 1

Attached is the inaugural TL3 Newssheet. This will replace my draft and regular season memos/correspondence each season. My plan is to send these out quarterly – once after Week 4, once after Week 8, once after Week 12 (prior to the last week of the regular season), and one final issue with a recap of the season.

Nothing would be more radical than to get contributing input that I could publish along with it each week. If you’ve got something to say, or would like me to add something specific for everyone, please let me know. This is a very rough draft and will obviously be better tailored as we move along. Hope you enjoy it.

Good luck this week. I wish it was possible for all of you to lose, but I dream big.

LM – The Stepdads

TL3 Newssheet

It’s been another month and another 4 weeks of play. Only 5 weeks remaining of regular season play. Only 5 weeks to make or break your playoff standing, and there are still 9 teams only a game apart. If you don’t think there is still a chance to win this thing, find another league to play in.

Our two frontrunners, Genetic Black Jesus and Lake Hickory Swallops, are averaging 176 and 162 per week, respectively. GBJ has had a heavy dose of good fortune (low injury, high consistency) while The Swallops have kept their nose to the grindstone and made some smooth pickups each week, building on an already imposing roster. The Swallops, riding a league-leading, 5-game win streak, were able to pinch Woodhead and the Colts this weekend after previous owners had to grudgingly release them to fill BYE spots in Week 8. I have a feeling this will catch up to some teams in Week 9.

Packer Cave, The Stepdads and LockinUWL were able to put together 3-game win streaks through the first 8 weeks but have been generally inconsistent in the W-L column. With 7 players on BYE, and having to redecorate the locker room, The Stepdads were especially fortunate after last week’s freebie delivered by the comatose Goonies. The Goonies – maybe they were being held hostage by the Fratellis, who the fuck knows.

We should all send our sincerest sympathies to Bagel Time after tragically having the two hottest players in the NFL for Week 8 on the bench. Andre Ellington and Marvin Jones were scoring machines in Week 8 and accounted for more than 73 fantasy points between the two of them. This only codifies the aforementioned grand fortune that GBJ has enjoyed. Stay positive BT – you are averaging more than 167 per week over the last three.

See Newssheets Archive for the full Issue.

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2013 Season Introductions

I wanted to get this out prior to the long holiday weekend to give you something to chew on during this extended break. Don’t be overwhelmed by this email, as they only come 3 or 4 times a season. And, really?! Find a better League Manager. Let’s get rolling.

In conjunction with my introductory memo on the 2013 season, I have made some significant modifications to the league, the team rosters and the scoring settings. We have added 4 new teams, dropped 1 and combined 1, expanding the Lombardi Three from a 12 to a 14 team league.

Introducing the new teams:

  1. Young neophyte, dimly named, The New Guy (seriously bro, come up with a better name)
  2. Jackie Treehorn’s sleeper squad, the Lake Hickory Swallops
  3. Straight from the spirit world, Navaho tenderfoot, Chavez Chavez
  4. Portland’s parturient, “still waiting to register…any day now…”

We dismissed Don’t Be Butt Hurt to cover his ever-pressing rectal examination schedule, and IJamAllDay and Laces Out have pooled efforts in an attempt to better their chances as each team competes for the prominence and grandeur that comes with the title, 2013 League Champion.

The draft will be the same scenario as last year; however, we will bump up the time to 2 minutes per pick. Last year flew by at 45 seconds per pick. We will certainly host a LIVE DRAFT PARTY on location, and set up Google Hangout for those who can’t make it. Draft day will likely be sometime in mid to late August, no later than the weekend of August 24th. This allows for some previews of the preseason commotion, room to avoid fluke preseason injuries, and 2 weeks to make any trades and plan strategy prior to the regular season start.

I have decided to take the best of both worlds when it comes to the draft order. Some of you may have seen the sneak peek I left on the league home page yesterday. I wanted to maintain real-world conventions by giving the worst teams the higher draft status, but I also wanted to reward the league champion. That said, the draft order will be winner, loser, winner, loser, and so on. The new teams will fill in at the bottom of the order. Subsequent draft rounds will be flipped like last year. See table below.

Screen Shot 2014-04-26 at 1.35.08 PM

The current weekly matchups on our league page are all subject to change. Much of this was automatically activated by NFL.com. I will go in and refresh this when we get closer to the draft, so don’t pay too much attention to what you see now. Just start thinking about your draft picks.

The fantasy playoffs will compete with the top 8 teams (bottom 6 playing in a consolation bracket) and the playoffs will begin one week earlier in Week 14, with the playoffs taking place over weeks 14-16 of the NFL regular season. This will avoid the issue we had last year in Week 17 when the NFL teams typically bench their key players to rest them for the NFL playoffs and you get screwed because your best guy is taking a nap.

As promised, I have made the following roster and scoring changes.

Roster Changes

  • Added 1 additional WR (now 3 WRs)
  • Added 1 Linebacker (LB) position
  • Added 2 Reserve Positions for injured players

Scoring Changes

  • KICK PUNT RETURNS*
    • Kickoff and Punt Return Yards: 1 pt for every 20 yards
    • Kickoff and Punt Return TDs: 6 pts for every TD

*All individual players are eligible to earn these statistics. This is key. Last year you may have had a WR or RB who was returning punts and you weren’t getting the credit for those yards. This will make an otherwise average player that much more valuable if he is adding points in the kick and punt return position.

  • KICKING*
    • Point-after Attempt Missed: -1 pt (negative)
    • Field Goal Missed: -1 pt (negative)

*As you all know, I analyzed just about every matchup last season and recognized that more than a few came down to a point or two. Why not add the real-time drama of the end-of-game FG to the fantasy game. I’d love to see one of these pad-less strokes miss a FG at the end of the game and drop some team a point out of the win.

  • DEFENSE*
    • Fumbles Forced: 1 pt
    • Blocked Kicks: 3 pts
    • Kickoff and Punt Return Yards: 1 pt for every 20 yards
    • Points Allowed 0: 25 pts
    • Points Allowed 1-6: 20 pts
    • Points Allowed 7-13: 15 pts
    • Points Allowed 14-20: 10 pts
    • Points Allowed 21-27: 5 pts
    • Points Allowed 28 or more: 0 pts

*No negative points. The worst you can do on DEF is net zero. I’ve enjoyed playing leagues in the past where the DEF output actually had a decent impact on the matchup. The way we were set up last year, the DEF put up pretty indistinct numbers unless you had a rare, blowout game. With the NFL progressing to more of a high-scoring, pass-first offense, I thought we could up the ante on points allowed.

  • INDIVIDUAL DEFENSIVE PLAYER (new LB position)*
    • Tackle: 2 pts
    • Assisted Tackles: 1 pt
    • Sack: 3 pts
    • Tackles for Loss Bonus: 1 pt
    • Sack Yards: 1 pt for every 5 yards
    • Defense Interception: 2pts
    • Forced Fumble (resulting in a turnover): 2 pts
    • Fumbles Recovery: 2 pts
    • Touchdown (Interception return): 6 pts
    • Touchdown (Fumble return): 6 pts
    • Touchdown (Blocked kick): 6 pts
    • Safety: 2 pts
    • Blocked Kick (punt, FG, PAT): 2 pts
    • Interception Return: 1 pt for every 10 yards
    • Fumble Return: 1 pt for every 10 yards
    • 10+ Tackles Bonus: 5 pts
    • 2+ Sacks Bonus: 3 pts

*This is a new, experimental position this year for us. It may look like a point here or two, but this is really a ton of available points, so we’ll see how it goes. Remember, this is only one player and it is rare that they get a tackle, force a fumble, recover the fumble, and run it back 40 yards for a TD (netting 16 pts.) all in the same play. However, I did some analysis on last year’s top LBs and the way these points are set up, the LB can net as much as the top RBs. Something to think about…a good LB may be just as valuable as a good RB.

As always, I’m looking forward to everyone’s feedback, your take on the outlined changes, questions and/or concerns, general bitching about your shitty job and shitty summer vacation, your bad haircut, commentary on former Packer, now Viking receiver, Greg Jennings and what’s wrong with Jermichael Finley’s hands. Oh, and upload an image for your team already, or I’ll do it for you. Let’s see how that goes.

See you all again in about a month to finalize the draft date and location. Travel safe.

-LM, The Stepdads (because we beat you and you hate us)

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12 Week Recap

It’s been nearly 2 months since I last sent out an update. The last 8 weeks have seen some shifts in the standings. Most notably, Regal Beagles has finally put together a pair of wins. The progress comes a little too late for the playoffs, but the Beagles got a fresh bath and a trim and will definitely be contenders in the consolation bracket. Schoolya’gain started off strong at 5-2, but have dropped 4 out of the last 5 and struggling for a spot in the playoffs. After starting 2-4, Packer Cave furnished his squad with some Campbell’s Chunky and some sort of ball-busting, epic halftime speech and they went on a 6-0 path of destruction to take the #2 spot. Genetic Black Jesus had mixed results early in the season, but has since won 5 of their last 6 and showing significant playoff muscle. Reservations For Six sits in the top 5 after winning 4 of the last 6 but shows signs of weakness having let 2 of the last 3 slip away. The Stepdads have dropped 4 of the last 6 and are now in position to potentially slip out of playoff contention, along with a handful of other squads +/- a game out of .500 to date. LockinUWL has maintained their reign at the top, but continues to rack up easy wins against feeble matchups, having the least amount of points scored against them in the league, by more than 350 points. This stat provides evidence that there is a significant dose of luck mixed in with that strong lineup, and that good fortune can run out any week now. Seriously, any week now.

We just finished Week 12 and there are only 2 weeks left to contend for a playoff spot. The central 6 teams in the standings are only 1 game apart from each other and the next 2 weeks will make or break each one of these teams for a playoff spot. I predict you will have to finish 8-6 to contend for a playoff seed in the top 6 teams. If two team’s records are tied, the tiebreaker will be determined by the head-to-head record between the two teams. This scenario will most likely come in to play.

To recap the playoffs: we are set up to play 14 weeks of regular season league play, then the top 6 teams compete in a ‘playoffs’ setting which is played over the last 3 weeks of the NFL’s regular season. The bottom 6 teams play in a consolation bracket during those last 3 weeks. The top 2 teams in each playoff will get an opening week BYE. Your goal is to make the top 6 in order to compete for League Champion. There is no trophy for second place. The league officially ends at the conclusion of the NFL’s regular season.

Some notes for next season:
Lengthen live draft time
Add another WR position
Add Special Teams stats (I thought I had this set up preseason)
Add 1 or 2 Reserve positions for injured players
Change DEF points to start at +20 or +25 wrt points allowed deductions
Add DEF bonus points for a win, despite score (~+5 pts.)
Possibly add Linebacker or Defensive Back position
Possibly change K points to penalize missed FGs (~-1 pt.)
Expanding the league to 14 teams (presently have an additional 2 teams that want to join)
Let me know if there are any other discrepancies and/or things we can do better.

LM,
The Stepdads – because we occasionally drink too much and fall off the couch

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League Update – Week 4

For those that don’t know, our league name was established in honor of the three consecutive NFL titles that Vince Lombardi and the Green Bay Packers won in ’65, ’66 and ’67. The latter titles were Super Bowls I and II. Hence the league name and password 656667. Moving on.

The opening 4 weeks of regular season league play is complete. We are set up to play 14 weeks of regular season league play, then the top 6 teams compete in a ‘playoffs’ setting which is played over the last 3 weeks of the NFL’s regular season. The bottom 6 teams play in a consolation bracket during those last 3 weeks. So, your goal is to make the top 6 in order to compete for League Champion. The league officially ends at the conclusion of the NFL’s regular season.

Week 4 certainly had its share of blowouts, and for now, the league is showing signs of a few standout leaders. Although, no one is undefeated. LockinUWL has had a solid start and has outscored his opponents by an average of 41.2 points a week. He also holds the top score in Week 3 at 181.4 points, inflating the previous statistic. The Stepdads are 3-1 but only have one player in the top 30 for fantasy points this season. Reservations For Six has been outscored by a total of 53.9 points this season and still sits with a winning record at 3-1. There are only 2 winless teams left, and coincidentally, they have had the most points scored against them through week 4. All that said, there is tremendous evidence of variation in the league and this is still anyone’s game.

Performance indicators are starting to surface. Your top draft picks should be showing some consistency in one direction or the other, injuries are playing out, and undrafted league rookies have been staking their claim.

I added some working notes below for next season and hope you have some suggestions to make it more fun and competitive. Of present note is Reserve positions. I can still set up 1 or 2 reserve positions in our lineups, and I can do it now. I thought I had set this up at the beginning of the season, but I guess that setting didn’t take or I missed something. Basically, this allows for you to take any injured players and place them in a ‘Reserve’ spot in order to not have to drop them, and free up that available space on your roster for a free agent. To bring that player back out of ‘Reserve’ you will obviously have to drop someone off your roster to make room for them. Only injured players can be placed in ‘Reserve’.

*Bye weeks are in play so pay extra attention to your lineups and don’t make the epic mistake of playing someone who is off that week. Talkin’ to you Regal Beagles and Laces Out! You both have 4 players on Bye this week.

Some notes for next season:
Add another Wide Receiver position
Add Special Teams stats (I thought I had this set up preseason)
Add 1 or 2 Reserve positions for injured players (again, I thought I had set this up preseason)
**I can still set this up but it must be voted in. I won’t establish mid-season without at least a 10/12 vote.
Maybe add Defensive Line, Linebacker and/or Defensive Back positions

Looking forward to everyone’s feedback, your vote on Reserve positions, questions, general bitching about your shitty team’s performance, or commentary on the unending debauchery between the NFL referees and the Green Bay Packers. The Packers got the other end of the wheel barrow handle this week against the Saints and the Refs blew 2 challenges and a 4th quarter fumble. Just sayin’, something’s amiss.

LM,
The Stepdads – because we beat you, and you hate us