Vol. 1, No. 3
Thursday, September 24, 2026
Week 2 Recap
85.8 Points of Quarterback. All of It on the Bench.
Daraiders are 2-0 by a combined 6.44 points, the round 7 kicker finally won a game, and the Gazette's lineup advice went 1 for 3.
By Chet Grindstone, Senior Draft Correspondent, The Thunderdome Gazette
By the time Monday Night Football ended, three quarterbacks sitting on Thunderdome benches had combined for 85.8 fantasy points. Jared Goff scored 29.8 for Daraiders. Patrick Mahomes scored 29.0 for the NW HJ Monsters. Matthew Stafford, the final pick of the draft, scored 27.0 for Trogdor the Burninator. None of it counted. Add every backup quarterback in the league and the total reaches 122.4, which would have been the second highest team score of the week.
The rest of Week 2 had a shape, and the shape was lopsided. Punt Intended hung 123.92 on the Tractor, with Josh Allen scoring 40.8 and Davante Adams 31.5 in the flex. Daraiders beat tjflaig by 6.20 while leaving 44.74 points on the bench, the most in the league, and the difference was Brandon Aubrey outscoring Cameron Dicker 16.0 to 1.0. The Cobras went 2-0 with a lineup that left 0.04 points unused. Trogdor scored 70.42 and the Tractor scored 71.20, both below the 80.06 the Decepticons won with in Week 1. The Decepticons scored 80.78 this week, an improvement of 0.72 points, and lost.
Accountability starts at the masthead. Last week this paper told the Tractor to start Isaiah Likely, told the Mint to start Christian Watson, and told Daraiders that Dallas Goedert over Tyler Warren would fix their one lineup error. The Gazette went 1 for 3. The details are in the capsules, and nobody gets a pass, including the paper.
The Scoreboard / Week 2
| Winner | Pts | Loser | Pts | Margin |
|---|
| Punt Intended | 123.92 | Ed's Broken Tractor | 71.20 | 52.72 |
| The Snoqualmie Mint | 118.38 | Trogdor the Burninator | 70.42 | 47.96 |
| Cobras | 111.36 | Decepticons | 80.78 | 30.58 |
| NW HJ Monsters | 109.14 | ChalupaBatman | 77.12 | 32.02 |
| Daraiders | 98.46 | tjflaig | 92.26 | 6.20 |
The Grades / Week 2
In standings order. Grades measure the decisions: lineup calls and roster moves. The scoreboard already graded the rest.
Cobras
jonnie555, 2-0, 111.36 points
A
The best possible lineup from this roster would have scored 111.40. The Cobras scored 111.36. That is 0.04 points of regret, which is less than a rounding error and less than any other team managed. Kenneth Walker added 17.8, Travis Kelce 16.1, Jalen Hurts 16.2, and the New England defense scored 21.0, the best defensive total of the week. Bijan Robinson scored 8.1, and the team won by 30.58 anyway. Thursday morning, the Cobras released Brenton Strange to add Xavier Worthy and Adonai Mitchell. Strange leaves with 10.0 points in two weeks. The Gazette will not make the Kittle joke again.
Best start: New England defense, 21.0. The top defense in the league, on the top team in the league.
Worst decision: None of consequence. The bench held 0.04 points of upside. The Gazette checked three times this week.
Record: 2-0. 269.08 points for, 35.98 clear of second place. Power rank 1, unchanged.
NW HJ Monsters
rsh3ll, 2-0, 109.14 points
B
Jonathan Taylor scored 25.2, Amon-Ra St. Brown scored 26.2, and the Monsters beat ChalupaBatman by 32.02. Then the quarterback question the Gazette flagged last week answered itself on the bench: Patrick Mahomes 29.0, Jayden Daniels 14.7. Over two weeks, the bench quarterback has 50.7 points and the starter has 32.4. Daniels then dislocated his left elbow, which settles the debate by orthopedic ruling. Tucker Kraft scored 1.5 at tight end. Emmett Johnson, the handcuff to a Kenneth Walker who plays for the Cobras, scored 3.5 on the bench. The mitten remains on the wrong hand.
Best start: Amon-Ra St. Brown, 26.2. The WR1 the draft paid for.
Worst decision: Jayden Daniels over Patrick Mahomes, 14.7 to 29.0. Second straight week. It stopped being a coin flip after the first one.
Record: 2-0. 233.10 points for. Power rank 2, unchanged, with the quarterback controversy now closed by injury.
Daraiders
darock77, 2-0, 98.46 points
C-
Daraiders started Trevor Lawrence, who scored 6.2, over Jared Goff, who scored 29.8. They started David Montgomery at 2.4 and Javonte Williams at 5.0 with Jonah Coleman scoring 11.8 on the bench. Stefon Diggs scored 16.7 behind Garrett Wilson. The optimal lineup was 143.20, which would have been the highest score of the week by 19.28. Instead they scored 98.46 and won by 6.20, because Brandon Aubrey, the kicker drafted in round 7, scored 16.0 and tjflaig's kicker scored 1.0. For the record, the Gazette said to start Goedert over Warren. Warren scored 8.4. Goedert scored 0.4 and was released Wednesday night for Dalton Schultz. Daraiders were right. The paper was not.
Best start: Brandon Aubrey, 16.0. The round 7 kicker has now decided a football game.
Worst decision: Trevor Lawrence over Jared Goff, 6.2 to 29.8. 44.74 points left on the bench, the most in the league, in a 6.20 point game.
Record: 2-0. Won by 0.24 and 6.20, a combined 6.44. Power rank 5, unchanged. Undefeated and unexplained.
Punt Intended
stevets, 1-1, 123.92 points
B-
The high score of the week, and a 52.72 point win, the largest margin of the week. Josh Allen scored 40.8, the best individual total of the week, after finishing second to Caleb Williams in Week 1. Davante Adams added 31.5 in the flex. The recurring problem is Rico Dowdle, who started again and scored 4.4. Over two weeks, Dowdle has 6.5 points as a starter while Aaron Jones has 20.5 on the bench. This week TreVeyon Henderson added 13.6 on the same bench. Malik Nabers scored 0.1. A 52 point win hides a lot. It does not hide 19.58 points left unused.
Best start: Josh Allen, 40.8. The best score of the week by 7.3.
Worst decision: Rico Dowdle, 4.4. Henderson had 13.6 and Jones had 10.5, both on the bench, both better, again.
Record: 1-1. 239.98 points for, second in the league. Power rank 3, up one.
The Snoqualmie Mint
CalViv6, 1-1, 118.38 points
A-
The Gazette said start Christian Watson. The Mint started Christian Watson. He scored 10.1 and the Mint won by 47.96, which the paper will be citing for weeks. The real engine was Jaxon Smith-Njigba at 33.5, the second best individual score of the week, and Brock Purdy at 28.5. Purdy, drafted 117th, now has 49.6 points in two weeks. George Kittle scored 14.0 at tight end after scoring 1.2 in Week 1. The lineup left 2.52 points on the bench, all of it Travis Etienne's 5.1 behind Rhamondre Stevenson's 2.6. The Mint added Alvin Kamara on Saturday and Emanuel Wilson on waivers. The Week 11 bye apocalypse remains scheduled.
Best start: Jaxon Smith-Njigba, 33.5. The fourth pick of the draft, doing fourth pick things.
Worst decision: Rhamondre Stevenson, 2.6. Etienne had 5.1 on the bench. In a 47.96 point win, this is a footnote.
Record: 1-1. 221.18 points for. Power rank 4, up four. The biggest mover of the week.
Ed's Broken Tractor
OldFordTractor, 1-1, 71.20 points
B-
The Gazette told the Tractor to start Isaiah Likely. The Tractor started Isaiah Likely. He scored 3.3, and Harold Fannin scored 5.4 on the bench. The paper has reviewed the tape and stands by the logic, if not the result. The larger problem was not a lineup call. Justin Jefferson scored 5.5, Chase Brown 8.2, Emeka Egbuka 7.3, and the best possible lineup from this roster was 75.20. There was no hidden 60 points on the bench this week. There was just nothing. Jaxson Dart scored 0.8 in reserve and hurt his knee. Punt Intended won by 52.72, the largest margin of the week.
Best start: Jahmyr Gibbs, 17.3. The only starter above 15.
Worst decision: Isaiah Likely over Harold Fannin, 3.3 to 5.4. Made on the Gazette's advice. The paper accepts partial custody.
Record: 1-1. 185.16 points for. Power rank 7, down four. Holding the sixth seed on points, which is the only place the Tractor held anything this week.
Decepticons
Megatron1414, 1-1, 80.78 points
C+
The Decepticons scored 80.78, 0.72 more than the total they won with last week, and lost by 30.58. Saquon Barkley left on the Eagles' first offensive snap with a stinger and finished with 2.0. Colston Loveland scored 0.3 and now has 0.3 points in two weeks. Jeremiyah Love scored 4.5. Ja'Marr Chase recovered with 19.5 and DeVonta Smith added 17.7. The Tampa Bay defense, for which the Decepticons released an 18 point Pittsburgh defense, scored 2.0. Wednesday's waiver run added Tank Bigsby, Tre Tucker, the Kansas City defense, and Kyle Pitts, who scored 0.0 in his only Thunderdome start, for Trogdor in Week 1. The Decepticons now roster two tight ends whose Thunderdome starts total 0.3 points. This paper once called that redundancy.
Best start: Ja'Marr Chase, 19.5. The Week 1 alibi has been withdrawn.
Worst decision: Tampa Bay defense, 2.0. Pittsburgh scored 18.0 for this roster in Week 1 and was released for this.
Record: 1-1. 160.84 points for, ninth in the league. Power rank 9, unchanged. Out of the playoffs on points, behind a team that scored 71.20 this week.
tjflaig
tjflaig, 0-2, 92.26 points
B+
The second best managed lineup in the league lost by 6.20. tjflaig left 0.14 points on the bench, behind only the Cobras, and it did not matter. Dak Prescott scored 29.8 and James Cook scored 19.9. The starting wide receivers were DK Metcalf at 2.7 and DJ Moore at negative 0.1 after Moore left Thursday night with a shoulder injury, a combined 2.6. The kicker scored 1.0 against a kicker who scored 16.0. The bench held Puka Nacua, Zay Flowers, and Josh Jacobs, who scored 0.0, 0.0, and 0.0. The pick remains. Wednesday, tjflaig replaced Dicker with Chase McLaughlin and added Denzel Boston for Devin Singletary. Both are the right moves. Neither refunds Week 2.
Best start: Dak Prescott, 29.8. Tied for the fourth best score of the week with Jared Goff, who was on the other team's bench.
Worst decision: Cameron Dicker, 1.0. There was no other kicker on the roster, which is the decision. He has since been released.
Record: 0-2. 196.26 points for, sixth in the league. Power rank 6, up one. The best 0-2 team in the Thunderdome, which is a title no one campaigns for.
Trogdor the Burninator
jacobposey40, 0-2, 70.42 points
C
The lowest score of the week, 70.42, and a 47.96 point loss to the Mint. Caleb Williams, last week's 37.3, left with a hamstring and scored 7.7. Matthew Stafford scored 27.0 on the bench. That one is hindsight; Williams was healthy at kickoff and was the right start. The knowable error was Jalen Coker, the top ranked waiver add in the country last week, who scored 6.6 on the bench while Jameson Williams scored 3.3 as a starter. Ashton Jeanty scored 6.3. A.J. Brown scored 0.0 in reserve. Wednesday, Trogdor added Bryce Young and released Hunter Henry, whose 2.6 would have won Week 1. The roster now holds three quarterbacks, for a league that starts one.
Best start: Kyren Williams, 13.7. The flex outscored everyone else in the lineup.
Worst decision: Jalen Coker on the bench, 6.6. Jameson Williams started and scored 3.3. You claimed Coker. Use Coker.
Record: 0-2. 175.28 points for. Power rank 8, down two. Lost Week 1 by 0.24 and Week 2 by 47.96, which covers most of the range available.
ChalupaBatman
FFBOYZ, 0-2, 77.12 points
C-
Improvement: 77.12 is 18.90 more than last week. Regression: Jaylen Waddle, who scored 0.2 in the flex in Week 1, was benched in Week 2 and scored 13.8. Mike Evans started in his place and scored 5.4. This is the most predictable thing that can happen in fantasy football and it happened to the team that could least afford it. Christian McCaffrey scored 18.6, Chris Olave 14.6, Sam LaPorta 11.2. Drake Maye scored 8.0 and Justin Herbert scored 7.9 on the bench, a combined 15.9 from two quarterbacks, which is less than half of what Josh Allen scored by himself. Devaughn Vele, added Thursday, scored 6.4 in reserve.
Best start: Christian McCaffrey, 18.6. The one part of the house with running water.
Worst decision: Mike Evans over Jaylen Waddle, 5.4 to 13.8. The one week he sat.
Record: 0-2. 135.34 points for, last by 25.50. Power rank 10, unchanged. The reason to hope: two weeks of this cannot be the average. The reason to worry: that is what everyone said after one.
Superlatives / The Hardware
Score of the Week
Punt Intended, 123.92. Josh Allen scored 40.8, the best individual total in the league. Davante Adams added 31.5. The team that left the draft without a kicker now has the second most points in the Thunderdome.
The Kicker Won a Game
Brandon Aubrey, 16.0. Cameron Dicker, 1.0. Final margin, 6.20. Two weeks ago the Gazette called the round 7 kicker a font-size problem. Daraiders are now 2-0 by a combined 6.44 points, and the kicker outscored his counterpart by 15.0 in a game decided by 6.20. The universe remains in on the bit.
The Backup Quarterback Caucus
Goff 29.8, Mahomes 29.0, Stafford 27.0, Nix 14.1, Love 13.8, Herbert 7.9, Dart 0.8. Seven bench quarterbacks, 122.4 points, zero of them counted. In the draft issue this paper mocked teams for rostering backup quarterbacks in a one quarterback league. The Gazette maintains that position. It notes, for the record, that the caucus would have finished second this week.
The Bench Regret Trophy
Daraiders, 44.74 points left unused, including a 29.8 quarterback. Won anyway. Honorable mention to Trogdor at 22.58 and Punt Intended at 19.58. The Cobras left 0.04 and would like everyone to know that.
The Gazette Lineup Advice Audit
Start Likely: 3.3, with Fannin at 5.4 on the bench. Wrong. Start Watson: 10.1 in a 47.96 point win. Right. Goedert over Warren: 0.4 to 8.4. Wrong. One for three. The advice department has been benched in favor of the backup department, which, as established above, would have scored 122.4.
The Tight End Consolidation Award
Decepticons, who responded to Colston Loveland's 0.3 points in two weeks by claiming Kyle Pitts, the 0.0 that cost Trogdor Week 1. Combined points from Thunderdome starts in that tight end room: 0.3. The Gazette described ChalupaBatman's two-of-everything roster as a house with no plumbing. The Decepticons have now installed a second empty sink.
Retired Bit of the Week
Brenton Strange, released by the Cobras on Thursday morning. He was drafted two picks before George Kittle. Kittle scored 14.0 this week for the Mint. Strange leaves with 10.0 points in two weeks and one running joke, now concluded.
Standings / After Week 2
Record, then points for. Top six make the playoffs.
| # | Team | Manager | W-L | PF |
|---|
| 1 | Cobras | jonnie555 | 2-0 | 269.08 |
| 2 | NW HJ Monsters | rsh3ll | 2-0 | 233.10 |
| 3 | Daraiders | darock77 | 2-0 | 203.56 |
| 4 | Punt Intended | stevets | 1-1 | 239.98 |
| 5 | The Snoqualmie Mint | CalViv6 | 1-1 | 221.18 |
| 6 | Ed's Broken Tractor | OldFordTractor | 1-1 | 185.16 |
| 7 | Decepticons | Megatron1414 | 1-1 | 160.84 |
| 8 | tjflaig | tjflaig | 0-2 | 196.26 |
| 9 | Trogdor the Burninator | jacobposey40 | 0-2 | 175.28 |
| 10 | ChalupaBatman | FFBOYZ | 0-2 | 135.34 |
Four teams are 1-1. Points for is the only thing separating the sixth seed from the seventh, and the seventh seed is the commissioner.
Power Rankings / Week 2
Movement is against last week's rankings. Points for still outweighs the win column, which is two games old.
1Cobrasunchanged269.08 points, 35.98 ahead of anyone, and a lineup that left 0.04 on the table. The warning: Bijan scored 8.1 and Nico Collins sat with a hamstring. The praise: it did not matter.
2NW HJ MonstersunchangedTaylor and St. Brown carry. Mahomes, 50.7 points on the bench in two weeks, now starts by necessity. The quarterback room just got better by getting smaller.
3Punt Intendedup 1Second in points, with the best quarterback in the league and a bench that keeps outscoring the RB2 slot. Start Henderson. The Gazette is aware of its record.
4The Snoqualmie Mintup 4Smith-Njigba 33.5, Purdy 28.5, Kittle back from the dead at 14.0. The Mint has the fourth most points and a Week 11 problem it cannot waiver its way out of.
5DaraidersunchangedThe roster that produced a 143.20 optimal lineup is a top three team. The manager that started Lawrence over Goff is 2-0 by 6.44. Rank reflects the average of the two.
6tjflaigup 10-2 with the sixth most points and the second best lineup management in the league. McLaughlin and Boston fix the two holes that lost Week 2. The pick remains on the bench, still at zero.
7Ed's Broken Tractordown 471.20, with a best possible lineup of 75.20. There was nothing to fix and nothing to start. Jefferson at 5.5 is the whole story, and it will not be next week's story.
8Trogdor the Burninatordown 2Three quarterbacks, one hamstring, and Coker on the bench. The waiver work has been sharp for two weeks running. The lineup has to catch up to it.
9DecepticonsunchangedChase and Smith are fine. Saquon is getting an MRI, Love keeps losing carries, and the tight end room has 0.3 points and two members. Bigsby is the insurance. Pitts is a prayer.
10ChalupaBatmanunchangedThe reason to hope: McCaffrey is healthy and scored 18.6, and Waddle clearly works on a one-week delay, so start him now. The reason to worry: 135.34 points, last by 25.50.
Parting Shot
A week ago the Thunderdome's lesson was that its rosters were better than its lineups. Week 2 made the point with quarterbacks: 122.4 points from the bench, including three of the nine best individual scores in the league, and a 2-0 team that left 44.74 unused while its round 7 kicker carried it home. The Cobras remain the only franchise that starts its best players every week. They are also the only franchise that joined this league on the day of the draft. Draw your own conclusions. The Gazette already has.
The Gazette will reconvene when the backup quarterback caucus has been dissolved or promoted.