This Thing of Theirs: Emerton Family still living large
The Godfather takes his taste for second straight week; the rest just paying 
tribute
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Week 3 has come and gone, but the Emerton Administration is still running 
the mob, and the books are closed.  Robert Emerton came large once again, 
winning his second straight week, the third straight for the family, and he 
is now "wearing it" to the tune of $32 -- which is more cash than the 
16 
mortadella sticks at the bottom have combined.  In the process, Robert 
becomes the new don of the pool, while Diane is relegated to role of 
underboss.  The three Emertons would have the top 3 places in the pool 
locked up, but longtime wiseguy Mike Godsey held off Eric by a single point 
for the third spot.  "Money" Retsek narrowly avoided being whacked by 
Emerton's jinxing observation that he has never finished in last place, 
finishing just 3 spots from the basement and falling from the Top Three into 
seventh.
     The Emertons aren't the only outfit in the business, however.  If the 
playoffs started today, they'd include not only the three Emertons, but both 
Retseks, a Godsey, JLee, DOliver, and the past two champions.  Furthermore, 
the last seven Slates are all represented in the Top 10.

Picks of the Week
------------------------
Only five people voted this week, but the choices were clear-cut.  K-Dub's 
full 14 on her Broncos edged out Patrick's full 14 on his Chargers, since 
her Broncos were an actual underdog.  The COW award went to the big picks on 
New Orleans, specifically Farnsworth's 13.

Call-outs
-----------
Despite the fantastic week for "team pride," this is obviously going to
be a 
short-lived feature of the Weekly Wrap-up.  Kevin Sabbe finished a point out 
of the money due to his 14 on the Vikings; Patrick finished just four points 
out of the money with his 14 on the Chargers; Kathy finished four points out 
of the money with her 14 on the Broncos, and Mike Godsey held third place 
overall thanks to his 14 and 13 on the Bucs and Bengals.
    But a call-out to Eli Manning and Scott "I'M BACK!" Wyatt was thoroughly
ignored.  A call-out to the HomeBears was answered by a 10 for the visiting 
team.  And Tully Wyatt, who missed the weekly win by a single point, 
actually had dots against his team (an 8 on Carolina).  The Raider fans were 
naturally quiet, and not a peep was peeped regarding the once-great 
Niner-Cowboy rivalry.  Meanwhile, this week's weekly winner put 10 of his 
picks within two points of the pool's average.  It's obvious that the line 
between the proud and the "smart" is clearly drawn, and no amount of call
out will do much but reiterate the pride and irriate the intelligent.
   But one feature that will not go away...

You Woulda Won if....
---------------------------------
Eric Emerton: Bears
Diane Emerton: Niners
Godsey: Titans
JLee: Cardinals
KenDoggie: Panthers (over the Dolphins!)
Wyatt: Chiefs, Raiders
Kevin: Giants, Browns
Bill: Steelers, Packers, Bills


Random Stats:
--------------------
- Sabbe has already missed a 16-pointer, a 15-pointer, a 14-pointer, a 
13-pointer, a 12-pointer, an 11-pointer, a 10-pointer, a 9-pointer, an 
8-pointer, a 7-pointer, a 6-pointer, a 5-pointer, a 4-pointer, a 3-pointer, 
a 2-pointer, and yes, a one-pointer.  He's the only one to do it as early as 
Week 3.

- Four of us (Sabbe, Farnsworth, Schussel, and Franzen) are picking less 
than half the games right.  Farnsworth and SchussDaddy are actually missing 
more points than they're getting (ie. a dartboard would typically do 
better).

- By winning his second straight week, Robert Emerton joins a select five: 
Schussel, McKean, Walser,
Kevin Sabbe, and Dave Moreno.  Chris Sabbe and Eric Emerton are tied with 
the record of three straight weeks.

- The weekly win was Robert's 5th in his career, tying him with Diane, Wego, 
and SchussDaddy on the all-time list.  It also puts him 3rd on the list of 
"Weekly wins per year" behind Mike Godsey and Kevin Sabbe.

- The new godfather is clearly on fire, but his yearly .673 points% is still 
below Money's *career* percentage of .692.

- Eric Emerton, with three Slates, has not won a week in his last 85 tries.



Can We Just Say?
-------------------------
No offense to Kathy's Broncos or Wyatt's Chiefs, but for an hour at least, 
we couldn't even watch those boys run around and fall down while the reality 
show "Ultimate Fighter 2" was on Spike.  This week, one cagefighter 
climbed/rotated around a standing man (like, from his back to his chest and 
back to the back) 240 times without touching the ground; and then fellow 
Library employee Jason Von Flue, bleeding all over the mat, narrowly avoided 
a rear naked chokehold and then beat his opponent with about 80 punches, 
advancing to the next round and getting one step closer to a pay-per-view 
fight and a UFC contract.  It's not for everybody.  Just saying.


Next Week:
No rivalries, no call-outs.  Just a fourth chance to finally pinch the 
Emerton Clan.  And a fourth chance to beat the Bucs or Bengals, clearly the 
two best teams in football.