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Written by Cory Puffett
Published October 15, 2026
We have a few items from Week 5 that don't have a designated place within our template but deserve recognition.
Brandon Saunders and Anthony Battle faced off for the second time this season, rehashing their showdown from Sabol Bowl XIII last season. Including that title bout, Brandon has now won the last three meetings in this series. Perhaps more significantly, this matchup passed the one featuring Brandon and William Battle for the most-contested head-to-head series in AFL history.
This was the 23rd meeting between the managers who claimed the two titles in our 16-team predecessor league all the way back in 2011 and 2012. Brandon's 14 wins in the series are the second most for any manager against a single opponent.
This coming week, Brandon and William will face off for the 23rd time and William will attempt to extend his current record of 15 wins in the series.
Though we saw a lot of scoring this week -- the most of the season so far -- with 10 managers reaching triple digits and the lone holdouts both over 90 points, we had two dud player performances.
Mark Andrews, in Evan's lineup, finished with 4 catches for 28 yards and a pair of first downs. Nothing to write home about but a typical underwhelming tight end outing. Unfortunately, a fumble-6 resulted in a total score of -1.30 points for the game, which is a new record low for a starting tight end in AFL history. This performance passes Cade Otton's -1.00 points in Week 13 of the 2023 season, when he was in Alex Kincaid's lineup.
The Las Vegas Raiders defense, meanwhile, did not quite set a record but their -13.39 points was quite horrid in William Kellogg's lineup. Only one single-game performance in AFL history was worse -- Detroit's -16.14 points in Alex Kincaid's Week 15 lineup in the 2024 campaign. Take it for what you will, but the Lions were facing Buffalo in that game and their unit turned it around against Chicago with around 9 points the following week.
If you'd like to check out League Legacy's AI-generated recaps of all six games this week, and a preview of Week 6, you can check it out on League Legacy.
I've also had the site run a more in-depth Rivalry Spotlight feature story for our Week 6 Game of the Week between Stephen April and Evan Ash.
I'm not sure if this will be an every-week staple, but I also looked back at the upcoming week in AFL history and the highest scoring contest by total points was a Week 6 matchup in 2019. I prompted League Legacy to write up a 'Game for the Ages' look-back on that matchup which you can read, as well.
Let's jump into all the good stuff from Week 5!
Game of the Week: Sean Kennedy (110.57) vs Evan Ash (94.81)
Game of the Week: Sean Kennedy (110.57) vs Evan Ash (94.81)
All-time H2H: Evan leads series 9-7
After a really fun highlighted contest in Week 4, we got another boring one this week. The victory margin wasn’t outrageous or anything, but Sean’s winning point total only surpassed one of the other five winners for the week.
Neither quarterback reached 15 points in this contest. Evan held sizeable advantages at two onesie positions -- quarterback and defense -- and his highest scorer, Jahmyr Gibbs, outscored Sean’s highest scorer, Parker Washington, by double digits.
How, then, did Evan’s team squander this game? Six of his nine starters failed to reach double digits, and Mark Andrews was particularly disappointing -- his -1.3 points set a new record low for a starting tight end in AFL history.
On the other side of the ledger, Sean’s team may not have had the stellar performances at the top to carry his team, but Washington’s 27.25 points were still the 8th most by any player in the AFL this week. Strong supporting performances by his trio of running backs -- Aaron Jones, Kyren Williams, and Bijan Robinson -- rounded things out for an important early-season victory.
Sean's top scorer: Parker Washington, WR | 27.25 points
Evan's top scorer: Jahmyr Gibbs, RB | 38.25 points
Will Massimini (148.25) vs Stephen April (103.86)
Will Massimini (148.25) vs Stephen April (103.86)
All-time H2H: Series tied 6-6
Will's top scorer: Bucky Irving, RB | 32.88 points
Stephen's top scorer: Jared Goff, QB | 28.47 points
Brandon Saunders (142.71) vs Anthony Battle (106.89)
Brandon Saunders (142.71) vs Anthony Battle (106.89)
All-time H2H: Brandon leads series 14-9
Brandon's top scorer: Jacoby Brissett, QB | 25.75 points
Anthony's top scorer: Jaylen Warren, RB | 34.20 points
Alex Mayo (111.50) vs Eric Meyer (137.90)
Alex Mayo (111.50) vs Eric Meyer (137.90)
All-time H2H: Eric leads series 4-3
Alex's top scorer: Christian Watson, WR | 29.15 points
Eric's top scorer: Mike Evans, WR | 24.00 points
William Battle (131.91) vs William Kellogg (93.93)
William Battle (131.91) vs William Kellogg (93.93)
All-time H2H: William B leads series 1-0
William B's top scorer: Josh Allen, QB | 33.17 points
William K's top scorer: Puka Nacua, WR | 29.66 points
Cory Puffett (103.85) vs Alex Kincaid (103.38)
Cory Puffett (103.85) vs Alex Kincaid (103.38)
All-time H2H: Series tied 6-6
Cory's top scorer: George Pickens, WR | 24.10 points
Alex's top scorer: Malik Willis, QB | 19.20 points
Free Agent All-Stars vs Tom Brady Award Winner
Every week, we take the best possible lineup made of players who were available on waivers in the AFL at the end of the week and compare it to the top scoring team of the week in our league. Included percentages for the Free Agent All-Star players represent the percentage of FleaFlicker leagues in which each the player was rostered as of data gathering (usually Tuesday morning).
Final Score:
Free Agent All-Stars – 160.31
TB Award Winner – 148.25
YTD Tom Brady Award Winner Record: 1-4
IR Report
In our league, any player can be placed on IR regardless of injury designation. Once on IR, the player cannot be moved, dropped, or traded for a minimum of three weeks.
After Week 1, IR placements are retroactive to the prior week as long as the player was already on the team's roster but was not in the starting lineup during that prior week. This means those players will be eligible to come off IR after just a two-week stay.
Competitive Lineup Penalty Report
This year, we instituted a new rule requiring managers to start a full lineup of active players. A strike system penalizes managers who leave inactive players, or players on bye, in their starting lineup.
Strike 1: No penalty
Strike 2: Fine of $100 FAAB + move to back of all postseason tiebreakers
Strike 3: Repeat Strike 2 penalty + move to back of every round of next year's draft
Strike 4: Dismissal from AFL
Strikes clear in reverse order, two seasons (currently 30 regular season weeks) after the first earned strike.
Weekly Manager Awards
How were this week's $10 divvied up? Weekly awards with no financial benefit can also be found here
Weekly Manager Awards
How were this week's $10 divvied up? Weekly awards with no financial benefit can also be found here
$4 - Tom Brady Award (Highest Scorer) Will Massimini #15 in his career
148.25 points Does not rank in Top 100 all-time
$1 - Norm Van Brocklin Award (Top QB) William Battle #18 in his career (4th most all-time)
Josh Allen, 33.17 22nd career QB1 week
$1 - Adrian Peterson Award (Top RB) Evan Ash #18 in his career (3rd most all-time)
Jahmyr Gibbs, 38.25 6th career RB1 week
$1 - Flipper Anderson Award (Top WR) William Kellogg #1 in his career
Puka Nacua, 29.66 2nd career WR1 week
$1 - Shannon Sharpe Award (Top TE) William Battle #13 in his career
Pat Freiermuth, 19.48 2nd career TE1 week
$1 - Scott O'Brien Award (Top K) Anthony Battle* #24 in his career (2nd most all-time)
Spencer Shrader*, 22.30 2nd career K1 week
$1 - Chuck Noll Award (Top DEF) Anthony Battle #16 in his career (5th most all-time)
Denver Broncos, 20.67 11th DEF1 week all-time
Alvin Kamara Award (Top Player) Evan Ash #17 in his career (4th most all-time)
Jahmyr Gibbs, 38.25 3rd career Kamara Award
David Carr Award (Lowest Scorer) William Kellogg #2 in his career
#1 Power Ranking Alex Mayo #8 in his career
#12 Power Ranking Anthony Battle #6 in his career
*Repeat from last week
Milestones reached
These managers reached significant milestones this week (powered by League Legacy)
Milestones reached
These managers reached significant milestones this week (powered by League Legacy)
Achievements
William Battle 1,000 all-play wins
Coaching Report
Who earned or cost him team the most points or a win based on coaching decisions? Find out here.
Coaching Report
Who earned or cost him team the most points or a win based on coaching decisions? Find out here.
Chuck Knox Award (Best Coach) Eric Meyer #8 in his career
With just one coaching risk, Eric earned a league-high 19.28 points by starting Mike Evans at FLEX instead of TreVeyon Henderson. This ranks #40 in AFL history for coaching points earned in a single week.
Hue Jackson Award (Worst Coach) William Kellogg #1 in his career
Though he succeeded on one of this two coaching risks, William cost his team a league-high 29.16 points. His successful decision, picking up Will Reichard instead of Nick Folk for a spot start at kicker, netted him 3.70 points. But by starting Deshaun Watson at QB instead of FleaFlicker's recommendation of Drake Maye, h cost his team 32.86 points. This was the 24th worst single-game coaching score in AFL history.
Managers took a combined 10 coaching risks this week and were successful on 5. The league's net point differential was -34.87
To date in 2026, the AFL has a .530 success rate on 66 total coaching risks with a -94.29 point differential
Manager Luck Report
Who suffered an unlucky loss or earned a lucky win this week? Find out here. (Note: Season-long luck has a new home in the Power Rankings chart)
Manager Luck Report
Who suffered an unlucky loss or earned a lucky win this week? Find out here. (Note: Season-long luck has a new home in the Power Rankings chart)
Lucky Wins
Cory Puffett 3-8 breakdown (#9 scorer for the week)
Unlucky Losses
Alex Mayo 7-4 breakdown (#5 scorer for the week)
Positional Top 100 Leaderboards
These players posted one of the 100 best performances in AFL history within their position groups.
Positional Top 100 Leaderboards
These players posted one of the 100 best performances in AFL history within their position groups.
Jahmyr Gibbs, RB Evan Ash 38.25 Points (t-#55 all-time)
Gibbs has five Top 100 RB scores in the past two seasons
Spencer Shrader, K Anthony Battle 22.30 Points (t-#17 all-time)
New career high
Second Top 100 performance of career -- his first was last week
Ka'imi Fairbairn, K William Battle 18.30 Points (t-#65 all-time)
Shrader and Fairbairn were the AFL's Top 2 kickers last week, too, and both logged Top 100 performances in both weeks
Missed Opportunities
Players riding their managers' benches who would have been key contributors, and matchups with the losing manager's optimal score was higher than their opponent's real score.
Missed Opportunities
Players riding their managers' benches who would have been key contributors, and matchups with the losing manager's optimal score was higher than their opponent's real score.
William Kellogg left the #1 QB performance of the week on his bench
Drake Maye, 41.12 Points
Maye was also the Real QB1 in Week 4 on William's bench. This would have ranked 26th on the AFL's all-time QB leaderboard and would have earned the Alvin Kamara Award for Week 5.
Stephen April left the #2 QB performance of the week on his bench
Jayden Daniels, 33.50 Points
Daniels would have been Stephen's top scorer for the week
William Battle left the #4 QB performance of the week on his bench
Matthew Stafford, 29.93 Points
William had the Real QB3 in his lineup
High St Homies left the #1 TE performance of the week on their bench
Isaiah Likely, 25.40 Points
Lineup was set by platform projections
Anthony Battle left the #1 K performance of the week on his bench
Jason Myers, 25.00 Points
Spencer Shrader still earned the O'Brien Award for Anthony, but Myers would have ranked 6th on the AFL's all-time K leaderboard.
High St Homies scored 103.38 points in their loss to Cory Puffett
Their optimal score of 132.21 was higher than Cory's score of 103.85 points
Weekly League-wide Point Total
How high- or low-scoring was this week in the context of AFL history?
Weekly League-wide Point Total
How high- or low-scoring was this week in the context of AFL history?
The AFL scored 1,389.56 points in Week 5
This ranked #41 in league history out of 190 regular season weeks
Scoring Anomalies
Did the second-highest scoring team lose? Or the second-lowest scoring team win? These sorts of anomalies and more are included here.
Scoring Anomalies
Did the second-highest scoring team lose? Or the second-lowest scoring team win? These sorts of anomalies and more are included here.
The matchup between Cory Puffett and High St Homies was the 36th game in AFL history decided by one point or less.
Alex Mayo's league-leading active streak of 100-point games extended to 8
High St Homies's league-leading active drought of 100-point games ended at 3
William Kellogg takes over as the active leader with his 3rd straight sub-100-point outing.
Historical Playoff Probabilities
Playoff probabilities for managers, by record, based on data from the AFL's first 13 completed seasons. See the power ranking chart for contextualized playoff probabilities, powered by PlayoffComputer.
Historical Playoff Probabilities
Playoff probabilities for managers, by record, based on data from the AFL's first 13 completed seasons. See the power ranking chart for contextualized playoff probabilities, powered by PlayoffComputer.
4-1: Sean Kennedy, Alex Mayo, Brandon Saunders
Of 52 playoff teams in AFL history, 15 (28.8%) began the season 4-1.
Beginning the season 4-1 gives a manager a 65.2% chance of making the postseason.
Of 13 Sabol Bowl champions in AFL history, 4 (30.8%) began their title campaign 4-1.
Beginning the season 4-1 gives a manager a 17.4% chance of winning the Sabol Bowl.
3-2: Stephen April, Evan Ash, William Battle, Cory Puffett
Of 52 playoff teams in AFL history, 18 (34.6%) began the season 3-2.
Beginning the season 3-2 gives a manager a 41.9% chance of making the postseason.
Of 13 Sabol Bowl champions in AFL history, 4 (30.8%) began their title campaign 3-2.
Beginning the season 3-2 gives a manager an 9.3% chance of winning the Sabol Bowl.
2-3: Will Massimini, Eric Meyer
Of 52 playoff teams in AFL history, 11 (21.2%) began the season 2-3.
Beginning the season 2-3 gives a manager a 22.4% chance of making the postseason.
Of 13 Sabol Bowl champions in AFL history, 3 (23.1%) began their title campaign 2-3.
Beginning the season 2-3 gives a manager a 6.1% chance of winning the Sabol Bowl.
1-4: William Kellogg, High St Homies
Of 52 playoff teams in AFL history, 1 (1.9%) began the season 1-4.
Beginning the season 1-4 gives a manager a 3.8% chance of making the postseason.
Of 13 Sabol Bowl champions in AFL history, 0 (0.0%) began their title campaign 1-4.
Beginning the season 1-4 gives a manager a 0.0% chance of winning the Sabol Bowl.
0-5: Anthony Battle
Of 52 playoff teams in AFL history, 1 (1.9%) began the season 0-4.
Beginning the season 0-5 gives a manager a 16.7% chance of making the postseason.
Of 13 Sabol Bowl champions in AFL history, 0 (0.0%) began their title campaign 0-5.
Beginning the season 0-5 gives a manager a 0.0% chance of winning the Sabol Bowl.
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