[12.18.04]
Written by: PWFSI Associated Press

Playoff Preview

Week 14 -- The playoffs are finalized after a great regular season. The finish came right down to the last week of the season with a lot of key games played resulting in surprising results.

The end result saw Rocko getting their eighth win in a row to clinch the final playoff spot away from the grasps of the Detroit Drive. Rhode Island clinched the top seed with a nailbiter victory over the W. Palm Beach Chads. PWFFL will be promised a new matchup for the sixth Puck Bowl as former Puck Bowl matchups fill the playoffs this year.

The top game of the first round of the playoffs is the rematch of Puck Bowl IV. The Rocko Bengals travel south to Rhode Island to take on the Ridicule. The Bengals have been the talk of the league with their amazing run that earned them a spot in the playoffs. This has the top seeded Ridicule a bit worried heading into their matchup this weekend as their team has been hit with under-achieving play the last few weeks. They also have tougher matchups than those of the Bengals, but their higher level of talent should prevail over the lucky Bengals.

The other matchup is the historic playoff battle between the Kalamazoo Vikings and the Seattle Slimy Slugs. This will be the first time these two teams meet up when the Cup is not on the line. The Slugs are clearly not the team they used to be posting their lowest fantasy point total in the team's six year history. The Slugs are just starting to get healthy again and should be back to full strength for their playoff game against the Vikings this week. The Vikings are once again cruised into the playoffs. Despite their four losses, Kalamazoo put together the second most points in league history for the season on way to their second seeding this year. Most of the Viking players are battling nagging injuries that could very well hurt their chances in an important game against their toughest rival. For whatever reason, this is the Slug's turn to win. Seattle continues the back and forth trend with a low scoring victory over the Vikings

Now that the playoff picture is clarified, onto the games for the week...

Rocko 110, Seattle 68
Although the Slugs came into this game as the Vegas favorite, Rocko was clearly the hottest team in the league and it showed. Glad to have their top tight-end back, Todd Heap lead the Bengals with 20 points and combined that with strong games out of Holt and C. Johnson to beat the Slugs.

Kalamazoo 115, England 105
The Teasers decided to put up their first 100-point game of the season at the end. England had such a huge game out of TJ Duckett, that Duckett blew out his knee that required surgery. The Vikings pulled out the victory after Monday night's Gonzalez to avoid their first single digit win finish in their history.

Rhode Island 102, W. Palm Beach 96
The Ridicule looked to have this game in the bag, especially when the Chad's Mason left his game early with an injury. But he came back late in the game to pull in some passes and a touchdown to close the gap. The Ridicule defense held and earned Rhode Island their second President's Cup.

N. Michigan 105, Green Bay 71
The Slackers came close to their first ever winning season, but fell short because they were overmatched against the Yoopers. The Yoopers have had a strong team all season, but a combination of injuries and coaching errors dropped the team out of playoff contention. Northern Michigan finally got a huge game out of their wide receiver core as all three posted double digit numbers. Both teams will face each other twice next year. The league will have some great games between these teams next year.

Timbuktu 88, Wisconsin 77
Timbuktu's sweep of Wisconsin sent the Wannabes down into the bottom tier of the league for the first time ever and gave the Buccaneers their first winning season. The loss of Holmes and the rest of her top running backs have really shrunk the Wannabe's roster down. She has had to play two backs to fill the hole Holmes used to fill. What really hurt Wisconsin in this game was her lack of a passing attack. Harrington and crew were not only dismal this week, but pretty much the entire season.

A Timbuktu player made history in this game. Drew Bennett, the teams second draft pick this year, broke the single-game scoring record for wide-receivers with his 41 points. The previous record was held by two players: Javon Walker of the Wannabes (who tied the previous record earlier this year) and Terrell Owens of the Ridicule.

Detroit 90, Benton Harbor 85
The Drive was determined to overcome their inconsistancy earlier in the season and still make the playoffs, but it was not to be. Rocko won and killed their hopes of their first playoff run, but it will not stop Detroit from getting to the promised land next year. McGahee came on strong and Gates broke out to give Detroit a very strong core heading into 2005.

As for the Hoodlems, this will be most likely their last year playing in Benton Harbor. New owner Angela plans on relocating the franchise and renaming them. This is acceptable as she came into an agreement with the league office before taking over the franchise from the departed owner. All drafted and protected Hoodlems still on the team will be given their unconditional release after the Puck Bowl. These players will surely be some of the first players drafted in 2005. Those that get their release are: Trent Green (QB), Eric Moulds (WR), Justin McCareins (WR), Moe Williams (RB), Najeh Davenport (RB), Ravens (DEF), B. Manumaleuna (TE), Artose Pinner (RB), Tai Streets (WR), Troy Hambrick (RB), and Justin Gage (WR).

Coach of the Week: Timbuktu Buccaneers
Player of the Week: Drew Bennett (WR-Tim)