NOTE: Any rankings appearing before names in this edition refer to ESPN power rankings, not my own rankings nor the actual fantasy standings. Additionally, last week’s ranking will be used to recap the below matchups, and the new rankings will be used near the bottom where the Power Rankings and the preview for this week’s matchups are.

The injury plague continues to wreak havoc on the league; let's see what happened.

Hello managers! Carson here. I'm excited to do my first full edition of the Ben newsletter. This week was definitely one for the ages. Lots of close games and lots of blowouts. Let's get into some recaps!

Matchup of the week
#2 Sudais (2-1) 115.8 - 155.74 #1 Johnny (3-0)

Johnny finally did it! He scored the most this week with a whopping 155 points! His running back duo combined for 62.7 points, which is only 17.58 points less than Isaac's whole team! His research is definitely paying off.

Sudais really stood no chance this week. JSN and Kyren continued to play well while the rest of his team struggled. His team is looking for a bounce back, but what more can be expected from Dontayvion Wicks and Devaughn Vele.

#7 Mohit (2-1) 153.28 - 107.46 #6 Ryan (1-2)

Mohit's team is a force to be reckoned with. His running back duo played well, and 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy is continuing his MVP run (not biased btw). The most surprising player on his team has to be Micheal Wilson; after a slow start to the season, it seems he's picked up where he left off at the end of last season. Hopefully, for Mohit, he can keep this up.

What a shame. Ryan's auto draft team is showing its biggest flaw right now: lack of depth. His star running back De'Von Achane suffered a season-ending ACL tear, heartbreaking. Let's not be so doom and gloom; he had some great performances this week, like Brock Bowers breaking out for the season. But it's only week 3; make some trades and come back stronger.

#4 Carson (1-2) 112.34 - 118.14 #8 Luke (2-1)

Luke was able to hold onto the lead and win the week. His team is playing some effective ball right now. Many thanks to Geno Smith of all people to unlock Garrett Wilson, and Ja'Marr Chase will continue to do his thing.

Guys, I don't even know what to say. Eric's devil magic must have carried into this week because Breece Hall went down with a groin injury, and he's now week to week. But at least I have George Kittle and Christian Watson... two people that are notoriously durable. But we must prevail.

#5 Isaac (1-2) 80.28 - 134.22 #3 Eric (2-1)

Eric must've sacrificed another baby lamb to have Justin Jefferson get injured, cementing his dominant win this week. But on another note, Penix is back, so Drake London isn't terrible anymore, yay. So let's all send a prayer for Mohit as "Unethical Eric" faces off with the commish next week.

Yikes. What's going on with the former champ? We will find out soon because Isaac will have to ANSWER TO THE PRESS this week. A late trade this week will hopefully give Isaac the boost he needs for the rest of the season. Will Puka come back this week, and will Jeremiyah Love continue to rise?

#9 Ava (0-3) 117.46 - 130.00 #10 Caden (1-2)

Congratulations to Caden on his first win of the year! Davante Adams continues to show that he can be the WR1 while Puka is injured. Let's see how this trade impacts Caden coming off of his loss streak.

Poor Ava. The rookie is getting a hard welcome to the league, now becoming the only winless team. Her receivers continue to let her down. Their lackluster performance can usually be hidden within Josh Allen's dominance, but her Bills stack equated to 4 turnovers. That's unheard of. Hopefully she can move past these unlucky losses.

Lucky Rankings

Now introducing a new ranking engine that tries to quantify how “lucky” is team over a season. As the season moves on, the more refined and accurate this data becomes. A reminder that if you end up being the most lucky team, you will infact get a trophy for it.

The farther away from 0 you are, the more lucky/unlucky you are. Alternatively, the more greener/redder you are, the more lucky/unlucky you are. 0 is the baseline, meaning your record is exactly what is expected at that point.

On the Move...

A trade was completed over the weekend:

Isaac receives:

Emeka Egbuka

Jeremiyah Love

Puka Nacua

Caden receives:

Devonta Smith

Ashton Jeanty

Commissioner's opinion: Isaac get's a nice return and a well needed change in his team. Caden's floor also raises. I'll go with a slight Isaac win.

Power Rankings

Let’s take a look at the ESPN Power rankings after Week 3:

  1. Johnny
  2. Eric (+ 1)
  3. Sudais (-1)
  4. Luke (+ 4)
  5. Mohit (+ 2)
  6. Isaac (- 1)
  7. Carson (- 3)
  8. Caden (- 2)
  9. Ava
  10. Ryan (- 4)

And here is the Commissioner's Power Rankings:

  1. Johnny
  2. Sudais
  3. Eric
  4. Luke
  5. Mohit
  6. Isaac
  7. Carson
  8. Caden
  9. Ava
  10. Ryan

Here's a visual of the ESPN Power Rankings:

All-Play Standings

The All-Play Record is a record that shows what your cumulative record would be if your team played every other team each week.

This is an indicator that removes some of the luck involved in a head-to-head scheduling, where you play one team a week, and gives a more accurate picture of each team’s performance.

With that being said, these are the cumulative All-play Standings so far this season:

  1. Johnny - 25-2 (92.59%)
  2. Ava - 15-12 (55.6%)
  3. Mohit - 14-13 (51.9%)
  4. Ryan - 14-13 (51.9%)
  5. Carson - 14-13 (51.9%)
  6. Eric - 13-14 (48.1%)
  7. Sudais - 13-14 (48.1%)
  8. Luke - 12-15 (44.4%)
  9. Caden - 8-19 (29.6%)
  10. Isaac - 7-20 (25.9%)

Looking Ahead…

Matchup of the Week - #8 Caden (1-2) vs. #7 Carson (1-2)

Can the new-look Steeler Virginity take down the Forty Minors who is missing one of their RBs in Breece Hall?

The other matchups are as follows:

#9 Ava (0-3) vs. #6 Isaac (1-2)
#10 Ryan (1-2) vs. #3 Sudais (2-1)
#5 Mohit (2-1) vs. #2 Eric (2-1)
#4 Luke (2-1) vs. #1 Johnny (3-0)

Reminders and Fine Print

Make sure you submit a question for Isaac to answer in his Press Conference! Each manager can submit a question, and the more people that send a question, the better. You’re limited to one question. You can send it in the fantasy group chat, or to me if you want it to be a surprise (to be clear, Isaac will know who sent what question, but the questions will not be revealed to him until close to when its time to answer them, giving him little to no time to prepare answers).

Thank you for being in this league.

Fine Print

By participating in this league, you agree to follow the rules. The commissioner reserves the right to issue rulings regarding league matters so long as they don’t conflict with pre-existing rules or previously proposed, but rejected, amendments. These rulings include, but are not limited to: vetoing trades despite public vote, collusion, tanking, and inactivity.