The last week of the season is always an interesting experience, especially for people choosing the outcomes of these games. Motivation is always at question when teams don’t have a postseason to play for, or are matched up with teams that need a win to get in.
For instance, Miami and the Jets played a game where it didn’t look like either team wanted to win. The Dolphins had a playoff spot on the line while the Jets did not (and Joe Flacco, the former Raven, was supposed to help the Steelers get in?)
Meanwhile in Green Bay, the Lions were ousted from the playoffs by the Seahawks earlier in the day but turned in an impressive performance in knocking Aaron Rodgers and the Packers out of postseason contention.
And in Indianapolis, the 2-13-1 Texans faced the Colts and the two teams combined for 63 points, including a last minute 2 point conversion by Houston which knocked them out of the #1 draft pick… and got the coach fired almost immediately after – yes, Lovie Smith was probably getting fired anyways, but that had to be the icing on that cake… and also Lovie is probably more loved in Chicago than he was during his entire tenure in the Windy City.
In any event, it can be an unpredictable week for picking, but that’s just what had to be done as we entered into the final week of the APY NFL FOOTBALL POOL. We more or less knew that Donna P was winning (and boy how she did) and Fred was pretty safe in second, but all the other spots were up for grabs. Here’s how the pool shook out at the end:
- Donna P won the pool by submitting her picks on time. Even still, she put up a strong 15 points and won the pool by the widest margin since the pool’s inception. With 231 points Donna won the pool by 7 points over Fred, and 16 (SIXTEEN!) points over fifth place – if she did not submit a pick at all this week, she still would’ve finished fourth! Such utter dominance will need to be hidden from future prospects so as not to scare them off.
CONGRATULATIONS TO DONNA, OUR GRAND PRIZE WINNER!
Donna takes home the $650 Grand Prize! - Fred is a first time participant in the pool, but the unique format did not phase him as he coasted to an impressive second place finish, with 224 points. In many seasons, that would be enough to win, but in this case, Fred will settle for second, taking the spot by five points over third place.
CONGRATS TO FRED, OUR SECOND PRIZE WINNER!
Fred takes home $150! - Randy is also new to the pool, and also turned in a strong rookie season. He was able to hold off the challenges to the prize positions and was able to secure a third place finish.
CONGRATS TO RANDY, OUR THIRD PRIZE WINNER!
Randy’s prize is $80 - Tom is no rookie, as he’s been with us since the start of the pool, which I believe started around the time of single crossbar helmets, but this crafty veteran was able to hold off the challenges from another grizzled vet (Kevin) and a newer participant (Jay) and finish in fourth place.
CONGRATS TO TOM, OUR FOURTH PRIZE WINNER!
Tom will be the recipient of $20 for his trouble. - In Mini-Pool A, eyes were also glued to the main standings, where Darryl was competing for one of the big prizes, which would’ve removed him from MPA contention. Alas, Darryl had to settle for a top 10 finish in the main pool, but his 82 points were enough to hold off strong challenges from Michelle and Keville (80 each).
CONGRATS TO DARRYL, OUR MINI-POOL A WINNER! - In Mini-Pool B, a hard-fought battle between Matt and Jason R was decided on the last day with Matt squeaking ahead to win MPB with 87 points. Jason R finished just behind with 85.
Um, yeah, congrats Matt. - Mini-Pool C was our closest competition perhaps in the entire pool. the prospect of a four or even five way tie was possible here. It came down to the final game, where the win by Detroit meant that this pot was split by Kevin and Steve. They both won MPC with 86 points, just ahead of Terry (85) and Jay (84). Kevin and Steve will each take home $10.
CONGRATS TO KEVIN AND STEVE, OUR MINI-POOL C WINNERS!
APY FINAL STANDINGS
Mini-Pool A
Mini-Pool B
Mini-Pool C
CLOSING
Thank you all very much for joining the APY NFL Football Pool 2022! I hope you’ve enjoyed the pool and for anyone who is interested in reading this year’s content (or wants to bookmark), you can check out the blog: footballpool.allpurposeyards.com!