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Written by Cory Puffett
Published November 13, 2026
It was wishful thinking to believe I could beat Thursday Night Football this week, but we're back!
Going into Week 8, it had been nearly three years since the last time the top two scoring teams for the week were matched up with one another. Back in 2023, we had four matchups where teams lost games with 10-1 all-play records.
Now, for the first time in league history, we have back-to-back weeks with a team suffering the worst luck a team can suffer. In Week 8, it was Eric Meyer losing a matchup with the second highest point total of the week. This time it was Will Massimini. He is now the only manager besides Eric with multiple 10-1 breakdown losses in his AFL career.
As it turned out, we also had a manager enjoy the best luck one can have, too. William Battle's squad scored just 77.94 points this week, the second lowest team score of the week. He was fortunate enough to be matched up against his brother, who had the worst game of the week.
This was the second time in AFL history the game of the week has featured the two highest scoring teams. It was also the second time in league history we had a team lose as the second highest scorer and a team win as the second lowest scorer in the same week. The only other time was in Week 13 of the 2013 season when Stephen lost to Brandon with a 10-1 breakdown while Alex Kincaid beat William Battle with a 1-10 breakdown.
If you'd like to check out League Legacy's AI-generated recaps of all six games this week and a preview of Week 10, 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 10 Game of the Week between Stephen April and Alex Mayo.
Let's jump into all the good stuff from Week 9!
Game of the Week: Will Massimini (138.78) vs Alex Mayo (146.64)
Game of the Week: Will Massimini (138.78) vs Alex Mayo (146.64)
All-time H2H: Alex leads series 6-3
We were treated to an electric matchup as the two highest scoring teams faced off in the AFL’s marquee matchup of the week.
Joe Burrow eclipsed 30 points for the third straight week, Bucky Irving eclipsed 20 points for the third straight week, and Ja’Marr Chase topped 25 points for the second straight week as the three fantasy studs accounted for more than 60% of Team Massimini’s point total. It was the third straight week, and the fourth time in five weeks, Will had a Top 3 scoring team in the AFL.
Sadly for the unluckiest manager in the league’s history, he still hasn’t found a rabbit’s foot to reverse his fortune. The Legion opened the season with five straight Top 6 scoring weeks, including a Week 4 performance that earned Alex Mayo a Tom Brady Award. In Weeks 6 and 7, Mayo’s squad finished dead last in scoring twice in a row. In Week 9, that volatility swung back the other way to Will’s misfortune.
Alex’s Green Bay stack of Jordan Love and Christian Watson outscored Will’s Cincinnati stack by more than four points while CeeDee Lamb and Cam Little held serve against Irving and the Bears defense. Despite a bizarre coaching decision to start the Patriots against his own Packers stack instead of the Texans against the winless Chargers, which resulted in negative points and cost him more than 23 points off his final tally, Alex had better balance across the rest of his lineup and built up enough of a lead to hold on through Will’s 56.72-point Sunday Night comeback bid.
Will's top scorer: Joe Burrow, QB | 31.92 points
Alex's top scorer: Jordan Love, QB | 36.90 points
Evan Ash (98.54) vs Cory Puffett (119.39)
Evan Ash (98.54) vs Cory Puffett (119.39)
All-time H2H: Cory leads series 11-9
Evan's top scorer: Dak Prescott, QB | 20.09 points
Cory's top scorer: Christian McCaffrey, RB | 23.44 points
Stephen April (111.95) vs Eric Meyer (79.34)
Stephen April (111.95) vs Eric Meyer (79.34)
All-time H2H: Series tied 7-7
Stephen's top scorer: Kenneth Walker, RB | 36.79 points
Eric's top scorer: James Cook, RB | 19.13 points
Brandon Saunders (106.98) vs William Kellogg (101.81)
Brandon Saunders (106.98) vs William Kellogg (101.81)
All-time H2H: Brandon leads series 1-0
Brandon's top scorer: Matthew Golden, WR | 28.25 points
William's top scorer: Puka Nacua, WR | 29.11 points
Alex Kincaid (90.47) vs Sean Kennedy (98.33)
Alex Kincaid (90.47) vs Sean Kennedy (98.33)
All-time H2H: Sean leads series 8-2
Alex's top scorer: Javonte Williams, RB | 21.80 points
Sean's top scorer: Bijan Robinson, RB | 24.67 points
Anthony Battle (69.22) vs William Battle (77.94)
Anthony Battle (69.22) vs William Battle (77.94)
All-time H2H: William leads series 11-8
Anthony's top scorer: Trevor Lawrence, QB | 14.58 points
William's top scorer: Ka'imi Fairbairn, K | 17.80 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 – 173.03
Alex Mayo – 146.64
YTD Tom Brady Award Winner Record: 2-7
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) Alex Mayo #9 in his career
146.64 points Does not rank in Top 100 all-time
$1 - Norm Van Brocklin Award (Top QB) Alex Mayo #13 in his career
Jordan Love, 36.90 3rd career QB1 week
$1 - Adrian Peterson Award (Top RB) Stephen April #10 in his career
Kenneth Walker, 36.79 2nd career RB1 week
$1 - Flipper Anderson Award (Top WR) William Kellogg #2 in his career
Puka Nacua, 29.11 4rd career WR1 week
$1 - Shannon Sharpe Award (Top TE) Brandon Saunders* #22 in his career (most all-time)
Brock Bowers*, 19.48 7th career TE1 week
$1 - Scott O'Brien Award (Top K) Alex Mayo #7 in his career
Cam Little, 19.10 2nd career K1 week
$1 - Chuck Noll Award (Top DEF) Will Massimini #22 in his career (2nd most all-time)
Chicago Bears, 19.47 9th DEF1 week all-time
Alvin Kamara Award (Top Player) Alex Mayo #8 in his career
Jordan Love, 36.90 1st career Kamara Award
David Carr Award (Lowest Scorer) Anthony Battle #15 in his career (3rd most all-time)
#1 Power Ranking Stephen April #28 in his career (2nd most all-time)
#12 Power Ranking Anthony Battle #10 in his career (8th manager to reach double digits)
*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)
Blunders
Anthony Battle 1,000 all-play losses
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) Cory Puffett #14 in his career
One of only two managers to earn positive coaching points in Week 9, Cory earned a league-high 3.35 points by succeeding on his lone coaching risk, adding Demarcus Robinson instead of Adonai Mitchell for a spot start at wide receiver.
Hue Jackson Award (Worst Coach) Anthony Battle #10 in his career
By failing on both of his coaching risks, Anthony cost his team a league high 20.43 points and a win, ranking 76th on the all-time list of worst coaching weeks. He lost 9.33 points by starting Colston Loveland at tight end instead of Travis Kelce and an additional 11.10 points by starting Jason Myers at kicker instead of Spencer Shrader.
Honorable Mention: William Kellogg -- Normally we don't drag anybody else's name through the mud when the Hue Jackson Award goes to the manager who lost the most points, but we do when that manager also costs his team a win. Though William's two failed coaching risks only cost him 6.87 points, a better week than four of his managers, that was enough to cost him a win, too. He cost his team 0.90 points by starting Will Reichard at kicker instead of Chase McLaughlin -- a failed coaching risk in Week 8, as well -- and another 5.97 points by adding the Detroit Lions instead of the New Orleans Saints for a spot start at defense.
Managers took a combined 19 coaching risks this week and were successful on 6. The league's net point differential was -75.02
To date in 2026, the AFL has a .464 success rate on 125 total coaching risks with a -169.81 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
William Battle 1-10 breakdown (#11 scorer for the week)
Sean Kennedy 4-7 breakdown (#8 scorer for the week)
Unlucky Losses
Will Massimini 10-1 breakdown (#2 scorer for the week)
William Kellogg 6-5 breakdown (#6 scorer for the week)
This was the first week of the 2026 season with multiple teams on both sides of the luck coin.
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.
Jordan Love, QB Alex Mayo 36.90 Points (t-#77 all-time)
This was a new career high for Love
Kenneth Walker, RB Stephen April 36.79 Points (#72 all-time)
This was a new career high for Walker, who now has two Top 100 RB games in his career -- both of them this season
Cam Little, K Alex Mayo 19.10 Points (t-#44 all-time)
This was a new career high for Little
Ka'imi Fairbairn, K William Battle 17.80 Points (t-#87 all-time)
Fairbairn now has seven Top 100 kicker games in his career, two of them this season
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.
Alex Mayo left the #2 QB performance of the week on his bench
C.J. Stroud, 36.89 Points
Alex started Jordan Love, the real QB1, who outscored Stroud by 0.01 points. Stroud would have ranked #79 all-time among single-game QB performances.
Alex Mayo left the #4 QB performance of the week on his bench
Brock Purdy, 27.01 Points
Alex had three of the top four QBs of the week on his roster and made the ideal start/sit decision.
Anthony Battle left the #3 TE performance of the week on his bench
Travis Kelce, 16.08 Points
Kelce could have been Anthony's top scorer. The 9.33-point difference between Kelce and Anthony's starer, Colston Loveland, would have given Anthony a victory.
Anthony Battle left the #5 K performance of the week on his bench
Spencer Shrader, 17.60 Points
Shrader would have been Anthony's top scorer. The 11.10-point difference between Shrader and Anthony's starter, Jason Myers, would have given Anthony a victory.
Alex Mayo left the #2 DEF performance of the week on his bench
Houston Texans, 21.24 Points
Based on rostered units, the Texans would have been the AFL's DEF1 and earned Alex a dollar if he'd started them.
Anthony Battle scored 69.22 points in his loss to William Battle
His optimal score of 93.73 was higher than William's score of 77.94 points
William Kellogg scored 101.81 points in his loss to Brandon Saunders
His optimal score of 115.77 was higher than Brandon's score of 106.98 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 1,239.39 points in Week 9
This does not rank in the Top 100 in league history out of 194 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.
For the 12th time in AFL history, the two top scoring teams faced off. It was Will Massimini's second career 10-1 breakdown loss.
For the 21th time in AFL history, the two bottom scoring teams faced off. It was William Battle's third career 1-10 breakdown win, and his second against his older brother.
Alex Mayo led the league in scoring while playing in the game of the week, making this the 43rd time in AFL history a manager has won both awards.
Stephen April's league-leading active streak of 100-point games extended to 9
High St Homies league-leading active drought of 100-point games extended to 2
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.
8-1: Brandon Saunders
Of 52 playoff teams in AFL history, 9 (17.3%) began the season 8-1.
Beginning the season 8-1 gives a manager an >99.9% chance of making the postseason.
Of 13 Sabol Bowl champions in AFL history, 5 (38.5%) began their title campaign 8-1.
Beginning the season 8-1 gives a manager a 55.6% chance of winning the Sabol Bowl.
7-2: Stephen April
Of 52 playoff teams in AFL history, 6 (11.5%) began the season 7-2.
Beginning the season 7-2 gives a manager a 66.7% chance of making the postseason.
Of 13 Sabol Bowl champions in AFL history, 2 (15.4%) began their title campaign 7-2.
Beginning the season 7-2 gives a manager an 22.2% chance of winning the Sabol Bowl.
5-4: William Battle, Sean Kennedy, Alex Mayo, Cory Puffett
Of 52 playoff teams in AFL history, 16 (30.8%) began the season 5-4.
Beginning the season 5-4 gives a manager a 42.1% chance of making the postseason.
Of 13 Sabol Bowl champions in AFL history, 4 (30.8%) began their title campaign 5-4.
Beginning the season 5-4 gives a manager a 10.5% chance of winning the Sabol Bowl.
4-5: Evan Ash, Will Massimini
Of 52 playoff teams in AFL history, 7 (13.5%) began the season 3-5.
Beginning the season 4-5 gives a manager a 20.0% chance of making the postseason.
Of 13 Sabol Bowl champions in AFL history, 0 (0.0%) began their title campaign 4-5.
Beginning the season 4-5 gives a manager a <0.1% chance of winning the Sabol Bowl.
3-6: William Kellogg, High St Homies, Eric Meyer
Of 52 playoff teams in AFL history, 2 (3.8%) began the season 3-6.
Beginning the season 3-6 gives a manager an 8.3% chance of making the postseason.
Of 13 Sabol Bowl champions in AFL history, 0 (0.0%) began their title campaign 3-6.
Beginning the season 3-6 gives a manager a <0.1% chance of winning the Sabol Bowl.
2-7: Anthony Battle
Of 52 playoff teams in AFL history, 0 (3.8%) began the season 2-7.
Beginning the season 2-7 gives a manager a <0.1% chance of making the postseason.
Of 13 Sabol Bowl champions in AFL history, 0 (0.0%) began their title campaign 2-7.
Beginning the season 2-7 gives a manager a <0.1% chance of winning the Sabol Bowl.
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