The Executive Committee has come to an agreement on these awards. They took nearly all the allocated extension time and some were nearly impossible to decide, causing tense moments amongst the Ex-Com. All said and done, you won't find a snub nor an undeserving winner of these preeminent awards. The NFFAA (National Fantasy Football Association of America) recently wrote a sensational article about our Ex-Com and was asked to describe their work ethic in three words. Prodigious. Extravagantly Industrious. Cold-Blooded. Effusively Righteous. We didn't say it, they did. I think that's just one example of the commitment our team has to ensure the consistency and integrity of these awards.
Without further ado. Let's get right into it. Congratulation to this year's recipients. You are all of the utmost deserving.
BEST KEEPER AWARD
Spencer, DK Metcalf
DK has been an absolute stud this year even when his starting QB went down with an injury. As a 9th round pick, DK currently sits as a low WR1 and has yet to have a single-digit scoring game this season. The Ex-Com had gone back and forth on this decision for hours between DK and another player but this year DK gets the nod. I want to kindly remind everyone that as the Commissioner and Chairman of Ex-Com, I do reserve the right to withhold future draft picks should anyone decide to publicly bash these award winners. Slandering of said Ex-Com is not permitted.
WORST KEEPER AWARD
Justin, Calvin Ridley
With players who have played in at least five games, Ridley is the third-lowest scoring keeper on the entire list and the lowest if you take all keepers in the first six rounds. Ridley was kept in the second round and is getting outscored by guys like Kendrick Bourne, Kalif Raymond, and Tim Patrick, all of who are currently not rostered. Is Ridley droppable? Maybe. You could certainly make a case for it. But why drop him when you could leverage his name and get a top 5 fantasy QB and an RB2 for him and a TE who continues to deal with soft tissue injuries. The saying goes, one man's trash is another man's treasure.
BEST NEW POTENTIAL KEEPER FOR 2022
Jared, Ja'Marr Chase
To complement this award, Ja'Marr also wins his first Oscar for best Pre-Season Acting Performance. This fucking guy couldn't catch covid if he lived in Wuhan before the regular season. By dropping everything that came his way, his ADP slipped almost three rounds. Jared was able to snag Ja'Marr in the 8th round and is currently the 3rd overall scoring WR thus far. Once 2022 comes around, Ja'Marr could be looking at a late second to early third-round ADP and being able to keep him in the 6th provides a solid keeper opportunity.
BEST WAIVER CLAIM
Nick, Marquise "Hollywood" Brown
Currently sitting as the 6th highest scoring WR in the league, Hollywood continues to show why he's the best WR in the league when catching passing from a running back. Somehow Marquise went undrafted and was picked up by Nick for 0 FAAB on Saturday before NFL kickoff weekend. Since then, he's scored 19 or more points in 5 of 7 weeks and is tied third for most touchdowns by a WR.
Honorable Mention: Nick, Cordarrelle Patterson
Nick went Worst Waiver Fuck-Up Award in 2020 to the two best Waiver Claims in 2021. Between Cordarrelle and Brown, they have accounted for 25% of Nick's total points scored this year.
WORST WAIVER FUCK UP
Worzie, Damien Williams
Worzie threw down 49 FAAB for Williams, the most spent on a player since we transitioned to budget waiver. After a decent first week as the starting RB where he put up 16pts, he landed on the COVID-19 list and missed a game. Williams returned to the lineup this week and by the looks of it, lost his job. He ended up touching the ball only four times as Khalil Herbert saw most of the workload. With Montgomery due to return in the coming weeks, Williams' workload is steadily declining and the FAAB has yet to see its worth.
BEST DRAFT PICK OF THE FIRST THREE ROUNDS
Ryan, Cooper Kupp
Kupp is going nutsssss this year. He is currently on pace to break multiple NFL single-season records. Should he keep his current pace, Kupp will end up with 196 targets, 136 receptions, 1964 yards and 22 touchdowns. In case you wanted to know that ends up being in fantasy points, it's 464. The only WR to break 400 ever is Jerry Rice in 1995 with 414pts. It would finish as the third-highest scoring fantasy season of all time.
WORST DRAFT PICK OF OF THE FIRST THREE ROUNDS
Jared, Allen Robinson
This category was the only immediate unanimous decision by Ex-Com this year. It took less than two minutes to get through this award. Allen Robinson has been the biggest fantasy disappointment this year bar none. A second-round pick and the 5th overall WR off the board, Robinson has only a single game where he scored double-digit points. He currently sits between Quez Watkins and Byron Pringle as the 61st overall WR through seven weeks.
TEAM OVER .500 WITH THE BEST CHANCE TO MISS THE PLAYOFFS
Commish, 4-3
Was I happy that the Ex-Com decided the Commish was the recipient of this award? I'll be honest, no. Not one bit. Personally, I think it's bullshit but that's life. I understand though because my team is ravaged with injuries. We traded our starting QB without a succession plan and there are rumors that the locker room is losing faith in the process. Fade the haters. I'm here to prove the Ex-Com wrong. There is 0% chance that our team misses the playoffs this year. We haven't missed the playoffs since the inception of the league and we won't start now.
TEAM UNDER .500 WITH THE BEST CHANCE TO MAKE THE PLAYOFFS
Nathan, 3-4
Despite the fact that Nathan had a mediocre draft and has dealt with some costly injuries, he remains just one game under .500. Sitting at 3rd in points-scored and a tough first-half strength of schedule, Nathan might be primed for a post-season run. Should he manage to stay around .500 by the time Hunt and CMC return, don't be surprised to see this team be difficult to beat come the last few games of the season.
MID-SEASON LVM (LEAST VALUABLE MANAGER)
Jere
No one wants to point the finger at the manager who has the most points against halfway through the season. Unfortunately, the Ex-Com did thorough research and came to this conclusion. This is brutal to have to write, but Papa Henderson may have lost his waiver magic this year. Through 7 weeks and 90 FAAB spent on various players who haven't performed, Jere has made concerning waiver moves. He drafted Rhamondre Stevenson only to drop him after week one, only to pick him back up two more times and then drop him both times again. The same thing with Fuller. He drafted him, only to drop him, pick him back up, drop him once more and then add him one more time just in case he wasn't sure the third time. Strange behavior by one of the league's steadiest free agent scouts. With that being said, there is still an opportunity to make the playoffs with a late-season run.
MID-SEASON MVM (MOST VALUABLE MANAGER)
Ryan
I mean.. Look. He really hasn't done shit to earn this. But when you're sitting on top of your division with the most points through seven weeks in league history without having to spend a single FAAB, it means you did your job well. Who needs waiver wires when you draft an all-pro team and they stay healthy. Sometimes less is more. Ryan goes into week 8 with a projected 163.18pts, that's unheard of. A two-time runner up looks to make his presence felt as he is currently the favorite to win this year's championship.
Congrats to all the award recipients and good luck the rest of the year! Ex-Com will be paying close attention as we enter the second half of the season.