Tuesday Evening Kicker: 2021 Wild Card Recap

Beware the Crabs! The league’s most interesting story over the past month of the season just knocked off the Kamikazes. San Juan and Ukraine won their respective matchups by relatively close margins. Meanwhile, the Blitz cruised to a huge Round 1 victory.

Cinderella Crabs: The improbable story continues as Crabs oust Kamikazes

Christmas Island Crabs 183.02, Nagasaki Kamikazes 146.37 — The incredible Cinderella story continues for the once-tanking Crabs. No team has been hotter over the past four weeks than Christmas Island. The Crabs ousted one of the preseason favorites, the Kamikazes, from the first round of the playoffs while leading the league in scoring for the third consecutive week. Tight end Mark Andrews scored 43.85 points to lead the way for the Crabs. Justin Herbert followed up with 27.97 points while Russell Gage added 27.85. The Kamikazes had gotten off to a hot start with 47.85 points from Travis Kelce, but the rest of the team could not keep pace. Kyler Murray pitched in 17.42 points, Javonte Williams added 15.1, and Darnell Mooney tallied 15.05. Next Week: Christmas Island will have a rematch with Bangkok in the conference title game. The last time the Crabs lost a game was in Week 11 against the Blitz.

Grainers take down Squirrels, recontrol the North

Ukraine Grainers 155.17, Switzerland Squirrels 137.23 — The Squirrels no doubt have been one of the stories of the 2021 MFFL season. From worst to first in the North Division, racking up more victories in this one season than the previous three combined, it was a special ride for Switzerland. But the North Division champs were ousted by the veterans of postseason action, Ukraine, in the first round of the playoffs. Quarterback Jalen Hurts helped secure the victory with 31.27 points. Deebo Samuel tallied 22.85 points, Marquise Brown added 17.8, and CeeDee Lamb finished with 15.25. For the Squirrels, it was a miserable game for Tom Brady, who had just 9.03 points. The Squirrels had half of their starting lineup score in single digits. Only Cooper Kupp’s 40.65 points and Christian Kirk’s 28.9 topped the 20-point mark. Next Week: Ukraine will take on San Juan in a highly-anticipated conference title game.

Scorpions knock off Renegades in 12th-straight victory

San Juan Scorpions 154.05, Russia Renegades 129.68 — The last time the Scorpions lost a game was the week after Labor Day. Since then, the team has rattled off 12 straight victories and the train seemingly can’t be stopped. The Scorpions ousted the Renegades in first-round action. As has been the way all year, Josh Allen led the Scorpions with 24.75 points. Nick Chubb totaled 20.9 points while DeVante Parker added a surprising 20.3. Justin Jefferson tallied 18.7 points against his former team and Zach Ertz pitched in 18.15. For the Renegades, the Indianapolis Colts (20.8) and Miles Sanders (20.2) led the way in the loss. Josh Jacobs added 15.4 points and A.J. Green tallied 14.4. Next Week: San Juan looks to get back to the Super Bowl when they take on Ukraine in the Northwest Conference Championship.

Blitz blast the Jerky, advance to conference finals

Bangkok Blitz 180.88, Turkey Jerky 103.52 — The Blitz had another tune-up game as they crushed the Jerky in wild card action. Tyreek Hill scored 40.05 points to lead the way in victory. Jonathan Taylor (28.8), Aaron Rodgers (28.58), Antonio Gibson (21.5) and Austin Ekeler (20.6) all had huge performances as well. For the Jerky, Tyler Boyd totaled 23.6 points while Davante Adams finished with 20.65 in the loss. What stalled the Jerky most was that 7 of their 10 starters scored 10.6 or less points. Next Week: Bangkok prepares for a red-hot Crabs team that has won four straight while leading the league in scoring for the past three.