After a rip-roaring, headline-inducing Week 3 in the 2024 NFL season, the Plas Coch and Metro divisions see a team at 3-0. The ironically nicknamed “PC,” however, sees two teams in huge holes at 0-3 and famously, no team has ever made the NPIFL playoffs from a 0-4 start.
This week’s best bench goes to the winless ERS with 78.94 points, which they certainly could have used on the field. HC Nathan Adams went 2-4 with his picks for the week, taking his season totals to 7-11. Let’s take a look around the NPIFL as we head into Week 4:
Brymbo Miners 107.98 – 124.82 SW 49ers
The 2-0 Miners fell to a defeat in a battle of undefeated teams to the San Wrexham 49ers. Brymbo needed a Monday miracle in both Josh Allen and Brian Robinson Jr. to have quiet days.
Needless to say, that didn’t happen, and Allen’s 4 first-half TDs led him to a 30.92-point day and the 49ers to 3-0. SW had a solid day, with four players hitting between 10-13 points, but Allen was the star of the show here. He and Amon-Ra St. Brown (18.00) make for a very intimidating combo and are capable of putting any game on their backs.
As for the Miners, they should be fairly content as on a weekend when a lot of things went wrong, they still put up enough points to have a shot. The WR corps of Malik Nabers (24.20) and Marvin Harrison Jr. (14.90) almost papered over a horror-show 5.08-point display from QB Anthony Richardson.
With one of the most dynamic and deep RB rooms in the NPIFL, the Miners will be confident of a top-four finish and a playoff run.
Miners HC John Maxwell shared his thoughts with NFLFantasyQs:
“We can take some positives from the loss, and obviously, no team goes a season undefeated in the NPIFL. We’ve added some depth to address what went wrong out there, and now look to go 3-1 against our inner-city rivals this week. If we put them down to 0-4, they ain’t gettin’ back up, and we will be in a very strong spot in the PC.“
Up next for them is the fabled Battle for Brymbo, which is looming even larger with the O’s 0-3. Meanwhile, the undefeated 49ers take on the NPIFL’s other winless team, the ERS. While San Wrexham coach Chris Blockley was heard telling Maxwell on the sidelines:
“You never had a chance fam.”
He then told NFLFantasyQs:
“Well, where to start? The NPIFL is turning into a bit of a farmers league really, didn’t think it would be so easy early on.
“The Brymbo Miners seem to have spent all their points in Week 2, Wardie is living up to expectations as being the worst NFL fantasy manager in history and the only surprise is that You are in Chubble might have a shot this year. As it goes for Santos – Allen is not yours and never will be again, hands off and p*ss off.“
Santos XI 95.38 – 108.46 St. Lewis Rams
In a Metropolitan battle of 2-0 teams, the Rams came out on top against the XI. The magnitude of the event got to some of the players, as what looked like a potential 270-point game fizzled into a tense exchange.
The Rams were led by a triumvirate of stars, with Jayden Daniels (28.06), Jonathan Taylor (26.00) and Justin Jefferson (17.10) putting up 73 of their 108 points. Aside from them, only WR Nico Collins came out to bat for St. Lewis and was the only other player to break 10 points (11.10). St. Lewis will likely have to make some additions to their RB room if they are serious about going all the way, which at 3-0 must be the goal.
Meanwhile, Santos had a bad day at the office and saw multiple players underperform. Much like the Rams, they were led by three stars in David Montgomery (19.70), Zack Moss (18.20) and Patrick Mahomes (16.38), with only one other player breaking 10 points (D.J. Moore 11.20). That was the story of the matchup, with the Rams quartet outperforming the XI’s on the day.
We spoke to both managers after the game, starting with Santos coach Chris Faulkner:
“Honestly? It was the worst of times losing to such a limited management team. I’d give them some praise but I’ve only my own tinkering to blame.”
As for the Rams, HC Lewis Done said:
“What a great week for the neutral! The raft of roster action from the Santos kept me on my toes, mainly because all the notifications meant I had to keep charging my phone. The Doctor is a tough opponent; they will pick up a lot of wins this season & 6th is a false position for them.
“A lot of hate was thrown at Jayden this week but he’s proven his doubters wrong again. He’s young and mistakes will happen but what a fantastic talent we’ve got on our hands – exciting times ahead!!
“On to next week and it’s ToT; this one is going to come down to how well Godwin copes against the Eagles. As the number one team in the league; every game is a cup final for our opponents and this week will be no different.”
You are in Chubble 151.38 – 98.06 ERS
You are in Chubble bounced back from a shellacking at the hands of the Miners and delivered one of their own to the ERS. The ERS seem to be in all kinds of trouble but there was not much they could do against a rampant Chubble, who were led by four huge displays, including:
- Saquon Barkley – 31.60 (147 yds, 2 TDs & 1 2-pt)
- Derrick Henry – 29.90 (174 total yds, 2 TDs)
- Zach Charbonnet – 26.20 (107 total yds, 2 rushing TDs)
- Lamar Jackson – 25.98 (182 yds & 1 TD passing, 87 yds 1 TD rushing)
This was the performance of the week, and an ERS lacking in confidence needed an easy win, which was never on the table. The ERS saw Joe Burrow (25.36) and Ja’Marr Chase (26.80) combine for over 50 points, but other than Jahmyr Gibbs (16.30), they were disappointing.
Fans are calling for a trade or a pickup to replace RB Zamir White (3.40), who has 12.30 points on the year, south of half his projected totals. HC Dan Gittins told NFLFantasyQs:
“Max, what can I say… I made some mistakes. As a writer you’ll know, you can’t write this kind of season. All we can do is keep going, hope that future decisions pay off and we make some headway.”
Chubble HC Oliver Bailey said:
“That loss must have felt worse than a bad case of Chubble. A fantastic response from the guys after last week’s rough loss, and my sympathies to our opponents this week, but we were really on point this time. I’ve got to give myself a pat on the back for managing such an awesome team; I really don’t think anyone could do it better than me.“
Lloyds Leviathans 114.74 – 114.18 WWC
The Leviathans squeezed past the WWC in one of the closest games in NPIFL history, with the margin for error an incredible 0.56 points. Lloyds fans were relieved to get in the win column, as a 0-3 start is such a tough obstacle to overcome.
The Leviathans inched past the WWC thanks to their WR play, with Amari Cooper (24.10) and Rashee Rice (23.10) stealing the show. Their next highest scorer was Harrison Butker (12.00), with only two other players breaking 10 points. Lloyds will be hoping A.J. Brown can return to push the team, and in particular Jalen Hurts, forward.
The WWC were about as close to a win as a team can get and will be wondering how they came up short. Decent displays were aplenty, but a few passengers were too many in this one. TE Cole Kmet led the team (20.70), with Kyler Murray, James Cook and Drake London all hitting 14-17 points.
The killer was on Thursday, where Rhamondre Stevenson put up a galling 0.30 points, which was the difference here. WWC HC Chris Ward told NFLFantasyQs:
“Getting so close and missing out by just 0.56 points is incredibly disappointing; I was hoping for another Bills D sack after the 2-Minute Warning, but alas, it didn’t come.
“We’re in good shape though, and we’re angry. The Old England Pats are gonna get Old England Spanked!”
Leviathans HC Tom Lloyd was pleased to get the win:
“A close game this week, but at last, one for the W column. There are a few places where we need to improve for sure, the Eagles are really missing Brown which has had a big effect. Overall we are just working on the depth of our team.”
Love Train 129.56 – 90.62 Brymbo Originals
The Brymbo O’s were hit by the Love Train in Week 3, although with their total score, the Originals would have lost to every team in the NPIFL. Bad weeks happen, but Brymbo must be concerned with the product on the field.
RB Kyren Williams attempted to put the team on his back and recorded over 33% of their total points with a 30.60-point display. Meanwhile, only WR Garrett Wilson broke 10 points (11.80). The less said about the rest of the team the better, as it was a down day and the O’s will doubtless be better in Week 4.
As for the Love Train, Aaron Jones (23.30) and the Packers D were the top scorers (21.00), with DK Metcalf (18.40), Devin Singletary (16.80) and Breece Hall (16.30) all putting in dominant performances.
The QB flux at TLT is a concern, but Jordan Love should return from injury at some point soon, although reports are extremely vague. HC Damen Griffiths was buoyant while speaking to NFLFantasyQs:
“Really happy with the performance this week. We came up against the weakest manager in the division but you can only play what’s in front of you, and I think this week will put the rest of the league on notice that we’re a serious contender this year, even with some rotten injury luck.
“It’s hard to comment too much on the game as Nathan’s side were truly just a tiny little blip on our radar as we careered through their home patch. It’ll be good to test ourselves against a truly in-form team in YIC next week, but I’m as confident as ever in my boys. All aboard the Love Train, it’s gonna be a wild ride!”
O’s HC Nathan Adams said:
“After calming down I realized that there are more games to come and I’m sure my players aren’t f*cking me every week for fun so I come to you today hopeful once again. We have a big rivalry game this weekend and we intend to “F*CK SH*T UP” in a big way, the Miners go around like they own the place and it’s about time they learn who really runs Mount Zion!”
It will be interesting to see who comes out on top in Brymbo, with the O’s being blasted 140.02 – 79.00 the last time these two teams met.
Old England Pats 95.28 – 91.00 Tyreek or Treat
Tyreek or Treat were disappointing in Week 3, and fell to defeat in a low-scorer against the Old England Pats. The Pats were desperate for the win, and this was the kind of fortune that has been avoiding the ERS thus far.
Chris Godwin (14.30), Jake Ferguson (12.50), DeVonta Smith (11.40) and Travis Etienne (10.50) were the only real talking points for ToT, and it just wasn’t enough. The Dolphins’ QB situation is a worry, as it kept superstar Tyreek Hill quiet with a 5.50-point day. It will be interesting to see what ToT can do in Week 4 against the high-flying Rams.
Meanwhile, the Pats had five players break 10 points and were led by Chris Olave’s 18.60 points. 14-point days from Jared Goff, Bijan Robinson and Stefon Diggs were complimented by a decent Austin Ekeler performance (12.70) and Old England managed to get in the win column.
HC Aminul Hassan spoke to NFLFantasyQs on Wednesday:
“Finally, we get the first W on the board! We need to do better to have any chance of the playoffs though, and that starts with a change at QB. Purdy will be coming in from next week.”
He turned his attention to WWC HC Chris Ward:
“Funny that we’re playing a team that’s called ‘Wardefence wins championships’ when they’ve not won anything in their history.”
As for ToT, manager Jordan Clough was focused on the next one:
“Disappointing result this week to be honest, I’m sure the boys can leave that in the past as we move onto a big fixture next weekend.”
Here’s a look at the table after Week 3:
Week 4 Streamers/Start ‘Ems: Tight End, Wide Receiver, Quarterback & Defenses.