50 Shades of Fantasy Football, Vol. VIII: Fightin’ for that inch
By Mike Randle
The Fantasy Football season arrives at a crossroads in Week 5. An incredible 14 NFL teams are below the .500 mark on the year. This edition of 50 Shades of Fantasy Football takes a close look at those teams that are currently 1-3 or 0-4.
One of my favorite scenes from any sports movie is Al Pacino’s “Inches” speech from Any Given Sunday. His character, Tony D’Amato, addresses his football team in a pregame speech centered around the importance of coming together as a team before their season is destroyed. This week, there are 14 NFL teams that are in need of hearing that speech and heeding it’s warning. History shows us that 97 percent of teams that start 1-4 fail to make the playoffs. The last team to do so? The 2002 Jets who finished 9-7 and won the AFC East.
The Cleveland Browns face an even bigger challenge this week. No team in NFL history has ever started the season 0-5 and made the playoffs. Their obstacle this week is clearly the most daunting, as the Browns face the New England Patriots with Tom Brady returning at quarterback.
Oh yes, things are quite tense in Week 5.
This week in “50 Shades of Fantasy Football,” we take a look at key fantasy players on those teams in desperate need of a win. Specifically, we focus on those flashes of brilliance that will be a preclude of great things to come. To these players, their team’s current sub .500 record doesn’t matter. The players you will read about always continue to “keep fighting for that inch.”
To paraphrase coach D’Amato:
In Fantasy Football, we fight for that inch
We tear ourselves, and everyone around us
to pieces for that inch.
We CLAW with our player research for that inch.
Cause we know
when we add up all those inches
that’s going to make the difference
between WINNING and LOSING
between a FANTASY TITLE and DYING.
Here are your inches for Week 5!