Gentlemen at Dixie - 10am

If I'm not mistaken, and I'm not, this is how the season opened up last year. We have strength against strength here, Dixie offense against what has traditionally been a very good Gentlemen defense. When Dixie has all their weapons on offense, they can be hard to stop. If you give Tyler the weapons he needs including a girl TE to checkdown to when the play breaks down, they can move the ball all day. Brent, Kyle and Brett will look to lock down Handsome Joe, Grant, and Tommy with the occasional mix of a hungover Delzotti. I expect Tyler to have more success with his feet than with his arm in this one, but stud middle linebacker Luke might have something to say about that. Keith is back with the Gentlemen under center after hearing possible trade rumors and free agency all off season. Rumor has it his arm is feeling better and he has been pelting his poor 6th grade students with hard slants all winter long in preparation for spring. He will have weapons in Talbot, Fran, Luke and Russ to spread the ball around to and he may even look in the general direction of a female receiver this season. I think these teams trade scores early before the Gentlemen start to take control of the game in the second half. 

Prediction: Gentlemen 28 - Dixie14

Dixie at Assassins - 11am

Dixie will be coming off their early morning game against the Gentlemen. This could work in their favor as they will be warmed up playing an earlier game for the Assassins team. This is by no means an easy double header for Dixie to start the year. If they have the legs, I think they can jump out to a potential early lead against a sluggish Assassins team. The Assassins will be able to move the ball with ease on offense as Kyle will be throwing his receivers open all day. If the Assassins have a full team they have too much speed for Dixie on the offensive side. With Bower, Greg and Ronnie returning to the field, and Armando as one of the best possession receivers in the history of the league, this one could be high scoring. Look for a heavy dose of the girls as well in this. 

Prediction: Assassins 32 - Dixie 24

Sneaky Blinders at Gentlemen - 12pm

First game of the year for a new Sneaky Blinders team. They will catch the Gentlemen on the back end of their split double header. Gentlemen are no spring chickens anymore and could very possibly tighten up with the hour layover. That said, I simply can't pick a new team just familiarizing themselves with the rules and playing in the sand to upset what has been one of the best regular season teams in recent years. Keith should be able to spread the ball around, manage the game clock and put up points. The Gentlemen welcome back previous female MVP Maggie as she looks to get back in the swing of things and joins up with Mary and Carianne who will look to pressure a rookie QB for Sneaky Blinders. Going out on a limb here, but I think Keith looks to make the girls happy and will complete a pass to a female in this one to start the season off right. 

Prediction: Gentlemen 30 - Sneaky Blinders 8

Sandy Cheeks at Peaky Blinders - 1pm

Peaky blinders gets thrown right into the mix with a double header to start the season off. Let's hope they are quick learners as they will look to regroup during the quick break and start to figure out how the league works. They will be taking on a very talented and a team that could have won a lot more games last year in Sandy Cheeks. Sandy Cheeks certainly doesn't lack athletes, they just need to piece it together and start stringing along some wins. If they can finish in that 4-5 range for regular season, they will be a dangerous team come playoffs. Taj will stretch the field vertically and make plays while AJ continues to move the sticks and be a top target for his QB. Eli will use his legs to move the ball and extend plays. I think the experience coming off their first full season will prove to be too much for Peaky Blinders to overcome. 

Prediction: Sandy Cheeks 22 - Sneaky Blinders 16

Sandy Cheeks at Tacos and Hotdogs - 2pm

Sandy Cheeks will have tired legs after playing the previous game. They take on the other new team in Tacos. It's hard to tell how good Tacos will be, but the way Timmy has been hyping them up, they have the potential to be good. In what will be one of the more athletic games of the day. I'm giving slight advantage to Cheeks as they have the experience of being in the league and will shake off the early season mishaps in their earlier game. Darius, Taj, AJ and co will lock down on defense and make enough plays to steal one from Tacos as they familiarize themselves with the league. They got lucky to catch them early. 

Prediction: Sandy Cheeks 26 - Tacos and Hotdogs 24

Season Preview:

Here we are again on the brink of a new season of BAFF. Can you feel the excitement in the air? This year we have 8 teams. Each team will play 10 regular season games and as always every team makes the playoffs. Let's have a good season, and try not to give the refs too hard of a time... they are good people. Below are some odds for each team to get everyone pumped up for the season.

WTDT:

Over/Under Wins: 8.5

Championship Odds: +200

WTDT has emerged as the team to beat in this league over the last few years. They are coming off yet another championship, and if the rumor mill is true they may have acquired a former league superstar. I guess that's where the saying the rich get richer comes from. This is the most complete team in the league, top to bottom, this entire roster can play football. They are led by star QB Timmy, and a ton of speed and size at receiver and on defense. Lindsay and Lauren are an elite tandem of girls who contribute both defensively in the pass rush and offensively as dangerous receiver threats. I originally wanted to set this line at 9.5 but I went with 8.5 because there is typically one week a season where the team is short on people and drops a random game. There are teams in this league who have had some success against WTDT and may be able to steal a regular season win from though. Hammer this under.

Prediction: WTDT goes 8-2 in the regular season and wins another championship.

Assassins:

Over/Under Wins: 7.5

Championship Odds: +250

The Assassins are the winningest team in league history. Before WTDT joined the league, there was nobody who could even compete with this team. Since WTDT joined the league, them and the Assassins have gone back and forth winning championships. People have been saying for years now that the Assassins are too old, and passed their prime. But haven't people been saying the same thing about the Patriots? I'm sure one day this team will decline, but they have shown no signs of it yet. They were 1 play away from beating WTDT in the championship last season, and they will be right back in the mix again this season. A little birdy also told me that will be getting reinforcements from a former teammate this season. Will this be enough to put them back at the top of the league as champions? Time will tell. The Assassins are led by rifle armed QB Kyle and a talented group of versatile and experienced athletes in Bower, Greg, Mando, Cam, Wade and more. This team also has the luxury of having 2 very explosive girls on their roster who wreak havoc on opposing QBs and score touchdowns offensively. I really like this team this season, and think they have a shot to win it all, but history tells me that they tend to start the season slow and round into form come playoff time. Hammer the under on the Wins.

Prediction: Assassins go 7-3 in the regular season.

Gentlemen:

Over/Under Wins: 6.5

Championship Odds: +450

The Gentlemen have consistently been near the top of the league since winning their one championship all those years ago in the Spring 2015 season. However, they have failed to claim another championship. They head into this season another year older, devastated by injury, and mounting pressure to show that this team wasn't just a one hit wonder. There still is a plethora of talent on this team though, you don't consistently get the 1 seed over and over again in the regular season without talent. However, given the new additions to WTDT and the Assassins and the losses that the Gentlemen have had in the offseason, is this team still a contender? If I take a hard look at this roster, I say yes. Expect more from Russ and Fran this year as they will have another season of experience playing with QB Keith. Kyle and Brett will also need to step up this year in expanded roles on the defensive side of the ball, but I think they are up to the task. In true Gentlemen fashion, I think they perform better than expected in the regular season before coming up short yet again in the playoffs. I'm taking the over in this one.

Prediction: Gentlemen go 7-3 in the regular season.

Legion:

Over/Under Wins: 5.5

Championship Odds: +650

Legion has been flirting with the top of this league for years now, but they still haven't seem to have gotten over the hump. They are yet to win a championship or even play in a championship game. However, they have come very close to upsetting teams like WTDT, the Assassins, and the Gentlemen in semi-final games and they have beaten those teams at times in the regular season. The looming question is has this team peaked? Is 4th place the best that they are capable of? My answer is NO. There is more in this team than that . Emmett has been their top receiver on offense and 40 has been their rock on defense for years, and look for them to continue to lead this team on their sides of the ball. Karl and Dempsey provide good options at receiver for dynamic QB Zay. Leah and Rachel are also good receiving options out of the tight end spot. If I had to sum up this team in a sentence it would be that on any given day this team can beat or lose to anyone. Consistency is king in this league though. This is a really tricky line, I want to go over, but I'll chalk up an extra loss due to being short players one week for a wedding/vacation/etc.

Prediction: Legion goes 5-5 in the regular season.

Tacos and Hotdogs:

Over/Under Wins: 4.5

Championship Odds: +600

This is a new team and I know hardly anything about them, so these lines are basically me throwing darts at a wall here. What I do know about this team is that defending champs WTDT has told me that they are very good and will be an elite team in this league. However, they are still the new team in the league and there is typically a steep learning curve. Even WTDT and the Gentlemen struggled their first season in the league, so I am expecting this team to have growing pains. I've heard they are very athletic though, which should make the competitive right from the start. They will need to get familiar with new rules, and of course playing on sand. I think they get off to a slow start but begin to round into form towards the end of the season. I am taking the under here, based on the history of new teams in the league.

Prediction: Tacos and Hotdogs go 4-6 in the regular season, but finish the season strong and are very dangerous in the playoffs.

Dixie:

Over/Under Wins: 4.5

Championship Odds: +1,000

I like this Dixie team. They have a great offensive core built around do-it-all QB Tyler, and a couple of very talented receivers in Handsome Joe and Grant. They are a fun team to watch, and can put up points in a hurry. However, their defense has never seemed to catch up to their elite offense. Perhaps they can cook up something special on defense this season and really make a run this year? I'm not expecting that to happen, but either way their offensive firepower makes them dangerous every game. I expect a lot of shootouts this season that often come down to whoever has the ball last. I also really like that they request the early games, so the rest of the league can typically sleep in a little later. Great team to have in the league, and I think they are one piece away from really making a run at this. This is a tough choice, but I'm leaning slightly towards the under.

Prediction: Dixie goes 4-6 in the regular season.

Sandy Cheeks:

Over/Under Wins: 3.5

Championship Odds: +1,250

Sandy Cheeks had an interesting season in the Fall. They struggled early and lost games that they probably should have won. They have a lot of speed, but seemed to lack consistency on both sides of the ball. There was definite improvement over the course of the season and they did start winning games the last couple weeks. The reason these lines are so low is because I'm not sure how much turnover they have in their roster this season. It seems like outside a couple core players, a new team shows up every season. Therefore, I am expecting growing pains again this year. But hey, this is just a hunch. If they show up with the same team consistently then this team is very dangerous. Maybe I'm feeling generous right now, or maybe I believe in the talent of AJ, Taj, D, and company but I like the over here.

Prediction: Sandy Cheeks goes 4-6 in the regular season.

Sneaky Blinders:

Over/Under Wins: 2.5

Championship Odds: +2,000

The only thing I know about this team is that the person who started this team is "a good athlete". So that's not much to go on here. So let me give some advice to the new team in the league. It is very challenging at first, but stick with it. Focus on improving every game. Get familiar with the rules, and playing the game on sand. Watch other games to pick up on some of their strategies, and have fun. Remember even the best teams in this league really struggled in their first season. The Gentlemen who have won a league championship and consistently finish in the top 3 in the league every year didn't win a game in the regular season, but upset the defending champs in the first round of the playoffs in their inaugural season. My point is, one day it just kind of clicks. It's just a matter of how long it takes. So be patient.

Prediction: Sneaky Blinders goes 2-8 in the regular season, but expect improvement as the season goes on.