Do you know how awful your fantasy team has to be to start Joe Flacco? What kind of buffoon picks up Brandon LaFell off the waiver wire and starts him? Why not start the Lions defense while you're at it, fool! These guys are idiots. Until they beat you like a drum on Sunday, of course.
The Matt Ryan/Julio Jones combo is a winner. Usually. Seattle's defense is strong, especially at home. Usually. And you worked hard to keep that depth on your bench, for whatever that's worth. You're good at this game. So why do you feel so powerless sometimes?
Maybe it's because people can pick up scraps off the waiver wire, fasten it into a bat and knock your team out of the park like a low-hanging fastball. You can face an opponent who started Reggie Bush (like I did) and still get throttled so badly that the Monday night game didn't even matter (like this week). This clown started a combination of inactive running backs and nobodys off the waiver wire. Now I'm looking up at him in the standings.
That's what makes this game so frustrating, yet so fantastic. I mean, I expect it in the one-week fantasy leagues. If you choose to play the games with thousands of entries, somebody is going to stare at their screen during a Sunday morning hangover and think "What the heck, let's go with that dangerous Derek Carr/Andre Holmes combination!" No matter who has a huge week, there's a player with a couple of bucks and a dream who has them on their team.
In a regular league, it's a little harder to take. But I meant it when I said it's part of what makes the game fantastic. How boring would it be if the best players always performed and the lesser players simply flailed around and did nothing? The fact that they might under perform, or get hurt or play a different role like a decoy (I'm looking at you, Calvin) makes those huge games even more satisfying and exciting.
Besides, we're supposed to be football fans, right? Tom Brady still has something left in the tank after all. The Cowboys and Eagles -- whose division I sometimes mock -- had convincing wins. Even the lowly Jaguars kept plugging away with a rookie behind center and put themselves in position to win at the end of the game. The Jets didn't roll over, either. And the Raiders might have a real quarterback for the first time since Rich Gannon. So if some players you didn't fear on Saturday burned you on Sunday, try to see it as a fan. Some of these developments are good for the game.
But not for your game, of course. The truth is, I don't have good advice on how best to lick your wounds after some mediocre players beat you up. All I can say is, at least it's not week 12 or 13. You can weather that loss and bounce back. You might get lucky this week and run into a team with bye week problems and make up for it. And maybe you've been that owner who picked up a prayer and had it pay off that weekend. This is the other side of that coin. Win some, lose some. Just don't lose too many, and stay positive. As a Tampa native, I'm still trying to see the bright side of Joe Flacco. It could have been six touchdown passes, I guess. And the Buccaneers won't lose this weekend. That's all I got. Hopefully your hometown team is doing better. Good luck this week.
Did you get rocked by a weak-looking lineup, or did you roll with an underdog who helped carry your team? Share your stories below.