Twelve franchises are active in JADDL. Eleven of them have won a division or a quad at least once. The twelfth is In Pursuit of Perfection: nineteen seasons, two former names (NoMac's Nomads, The 'Ta Tweeners), two Jared Bowls, one Limousine, and not a single group title. Even the Limousine came in a year Nolan finished second in the West, two games behind Hauloll.
It isn't for lack of chances. In 2015 Nolan was 6-1 after seven weeks and lost the West to Tulsa by one game. In 2021 he was 6-1 again, won seven straight, made the Jared Bowl…and Hauloll won the group. Three more times — 2018, 2019 and 2025 — he sat in a three-way tie for the lead of his group after Week 7. Hauloll won the first. The Bensons won the second. The Boom won the third.
Only five times in league history have three or more teams shared a group lead seven weeks in. Nolan has been in four of them, and the fourth is now. IPP, Tulsa and the Lanniesters are all 5-2 atop the West. The other two have nine group titles between them, and Lannie was in two of those earlier ties. Thirty of the 36 teams ever to be 5-2 after Week 7 made the playoffs, and five won the Limousine. History has nothing encouraging to say about the West.
At least the schedule lets Nolan settle it himself. Week 10 is Lannie, in the War for Wichita, which Lannie leads 24-10. Week 14, the last week of the regular season, is Tulsa.
Nolan owned both halves of Sunday night. Jaxon Smith-Njigba caught 9 of 12 targets for 150 yards and a touchdown, 34.8 points. Patrick Mahomes went 19 of 33 for 165 yards and an interception as Kansas City scored three, and was worth 7.7 points — a week after a 272-yard, no-touchdown, 13.2-point effort, he found a way to do less.
It didn't matter. Zay Flowers caught 8 of 11 for 137 yards and a score in a 35-13 Baltimore loss, 31.7 points. Caleb Williams threw for 308 yards and two touchdowns on Thursday, 25.2 points, and Hunter Henry caught all seven of his targets for 71 yards and 20.1 points.
Ian's 141.3 beat six of the other eleven scores, which has been his whole season. The Falcons have scored 1,090.5 points, second only to the Boom, and they're 3-4. Nolan has scored 1,044.1, fourth in the league, and nobody has had fewer points put up against them: 915.0. Some of 5-2 is the team. Some of it is the opponents. Nolan leads the series 12-4.
There will be no third 7-0 team. Joe Burrow went 22 of 30 for 292 yards and four touchdowns in a 35-13 win at Baltimore, 31.8 points; Jameson Williams caught two touchdowns for 27.1 points; Colston Loveland added 24.9 points. Jason put up the high score of the week, and Pete's 156.15 — fourth-best of the twelve — lost by 13.45 points. Luther Burden caught four passes for 130 yards and 25.2 points in the losing effort.
Pete will be fine. Nineteen teams have been 6-1 after seven weeks. All nineteen made the playoffs.
Jason has now won two straight, and the only precedent for 2-5 is a good one. Thirty-seven teams have been 2-5 after Week 7. Exactly one made the playoffs: the 2019 Hauloll, who then won the whole damn thing. Last week the only team ever to climb out of 1-5 was Adam's. This week the precedent is Jason's own. He leads this series 11-9.
Lannie opened 0-2 and has won five straight. Drake Maye threw for 321 yards and two touchdowns on Thursday and ran in a third, 32.7 points. Bo Nix scored 32.5 points on the bench and nobody will ever bring it up.
James got 30.1 points from Malik Willis and 28 points from Bucky Irving. He also started two tight ends. Sam LaPorta played 66 of 68 snaps and caught one pass for 18 yards, 3.8 points; Isaiah Likely, worth 28.9 points last week, caught two for 12 yards and 4.7 points. James still leads the series 9-7-1.
That 78.3 is the lowest score anyone has put up this season. Burrow's four touchdowns came against the Ravens defense, which Nate started: 35 allowed, one sack, minus 4.5 points. Nico Collins caught two passes for six yards and 2.6 points. The 82.55-point margin is the 21st-largest in 1,660 games of league history. The two-time champion has lost three straight.
Trey McBride caught 10 of 13 for 111 yards and a touchdown, 33.6 points, and KC Concepcion had 129 receiving yards for 26.7 points.
Quinshon Judkins ran for 96 yards and two touchdowns, 25.9 points, and Dak threw three on Monday night. Dan still has the fewest points in the league, and he's 3-4 — the same as the defending champions.
Alex started Myles Price at receiver. Price played two offensive snaps, never touched the ball on offense, and scored 5.8 points on a 46-yard kickoff return and two punt returns. Last week it was Chimere Dike. Return men are apparently the inefficiency this league has decided to exploit.
The week's closest game. Tony Pollard ran 25 times for 129 yards and three touchdowns, 38.5 points, in a game the Titans lost. The Panthers defense gave up 43 to Tampa with no sacks and no takeaways, minus 5.5 points, and Jacob won anyway.
Amon-Ra St. Brown caught 9 for 153 yards and 28.2 points, and Javonte Williams ran for 155 yards on Monday night, 25 points. Ryan's other three receivers — Justin Jefferson, Garrett Wilson and Wan'Dale Robinson — combined for 19.7 points. Robinson caught four passes for seven yards. The series was tied 8-8. Tulsa leads it now, and Ryan is 2-5 on the season — on the brink of existential collapse.