Losing is losing, and losing stinks. Let's get that out of the way. But if you've played this game for any length of time, you know some losses hurt worse than others.
Sometimes it's a bad lineup decision on your part, or an untimely injury that leads to a defeat. That hurts. But sometimes you simply run into a Herculean performance, and you can't survive the avalanche of points. It happens. It's not something you enjoy, but it's something you understand. Great players play great.
Take A.J. Green, for example. He caught 10 passes, went over 200 yards and scored twice on Sunday. He was active all day, too. One on first-half drive he caught five passes for 73 yards. Again, that's one drive. And in the last half of the last quarter he caught two touchdowns, including an 80-yarder.
It had to be frustrating to watch that game if you faced Green (or if you're a Ravens fan), but I think you can live with it. A star receiver played like a star. He's got the talent, the history and the ability. If you play fantasy football long enough, you expect that it will happen to you sometimes. Could be Aaron Rodgers, could be Randall Cobb, and hopefully it's not both. In a way, you even come to respect it and appreciate the performance. It's part of the game.
But Joseph Randle? Devonta Freeman? What in the Wide, Wide World of Sports is going on here? Randle had more than 100 total yards and three scores, and that paled in comparison to Freeman, who was closer to 200 total yards and three scores. And in a PPR league, his five receptions added insult to injury.
Sure, those were the starting backs, so they'd get the opportunities. Any starter can score. But what had Freeman done this year, except make Tevin Coleman a popular waiver wire choice? And while Randle had been better, who expected him to score that many fantasy points?
But see, that's part of the game, too. Julio Jones with 164 yards and two touchdowns is part of football, and so is the lesser player having a huge game. It just stings more when it's someone you didn't respect when you saw your opponent's lineup. And if you started your own flyer, like Terrance Williams, it's that much worse when your own player does nothing. In Williams' case, literally nothing. When Brandon Weeden completes 22 passes, you think Williams would get some of those, right?
Sure. But it doesn't matter. The only thing that took an extra hit is your psyche. Whether it's Adrian Peterson or Alfred Blue, a great day is a great day. It's still just one loss. You're not unlucky, not snake bit, not cursed to a bad season. Even if you're sitting at 0-3, your season isn't over. An unexpected performance has nothing to do with weeks 4-14. The only way it costs you a playoff spot is if you keep losing. Even if Freeman and Randle never score three times in a game again, it doesn't affect you going forward.
Besides, there will be times when you face a star player and they under-perform. You won't complain when Julio Jones gets 60 yards and no scores against you. Or you just happen to face the Rob Gronkowski owner when he's on the bye. It doesn't feel like it, but these things even out.
I'm not saying you have to like it. You don't have to admire it. But you should recognize that it's a part of the game, and it doesn't affect you today, tomorrow or next Sunday. Unless you let it, that is. Shake it off and move on. Good luck this week.
Did you run into an unexpected performance? Did your own flyer take a nosedive? Share your stories below.
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