Fantasy Football: The Coca Cola Kids Football Club Playoffs

Fantasy Football Playoffs start this week.  The Coca Cola Kids Football Club finished the regular season on a three game win streak after Joe Burrow returned from the IL, but it wasn't enough to make the playoff bracket as the Kids ended with an 6-8 record finishing in 8th place in the We Are United Fantasy Football League.  So the Kids open the Consolation Quarterfinals with a Bye Week.  Not exactly how you want to start the playoffs after coming off of a three game win streak.  

Nevertheless, here is the playoff roster of the Coca Cola Kids: 

Consolation Playoffs: 

Week 1: Bye week

Week 2:  Coca Cola Kids (6-8) vs. LukeIAmYourFather (5-9)

QB: Baker Mayfield, Tampa Bay

WR: Courtland Sutton, Denver

WR: Jauan Jennings, San Francisco

RB: Derrick Henry, Baltimore

RB: Kenneth Gainwell, Pittsburg

TE: Brock Bowers, Las Vegas

W/R/T: Rome Odunze, Chicago

Q/W/R/T: Joe Burrow, Cincinnati

K: Jason Myers, Seattle

DEF: Los Angeles Chargers

Bench: 

WR: Troy Franklin, Denver

QB: Geno Smith, Las Vegas

QB: Cam Ward, Tennessee

WR: Kayshon Boutte, New England

RB: Tyler Allgeier, Atlanta

RB: Bhayshul Tuten, Jacksonville

IR: Garrett Wilson, New York Jets

Check in each week of the playoffs to see the results for the Coca Cola Kids.  

Want to look back on the season?  

Weeks 1-8

Weeks 9-14

Fantasy Football: Kamino Clone Kids Playoffs

The Fantasy Football Playoffs are here and the Clone Kids should be happy...but they aren't.  Two weeks ago, the Kids were flying high in first place of the division and the league.  After losing two straight weeks, they now sit in 2nd place in the Light Side Division and 4th in the league.  

Time to wrap the sore joints, tie up the pads, and strap on the helmets as we head into the first week of the playoffs against the 5th place team in the league and division foe, Pabu Porgs.  The Kids split the season with the Porgs winning one early and losing in Week 13.  It should be a good game for the first round of the playoffs, but the tension is high to prove the good season wasn't a fluke.  

Playoffs: 

Round 1: Clone Kids (8-6) vs. Pabu Porgs (8-6) 177.66 - 160.33 "Kids Top The Porgs with Receivers Going  Deep" 

Round 2: Clone Kids (9-6) vs. Naboo Gungans (10-5) 

The Kids bring three of the top 5 Wide Receivers in the NFL into the playoffs.  Here is the playoff roster for the Kamino Clone Kids: 

QB: Dak Prescott, Dallas

RB: Chase Brown, Cincinnati

RB: Jaylen Warren, Pittsburg

WR: George Pickens, Dallas

WR: Amon-Ra St. Brown, Detroit

TE: Jake Ferguson, Dallas

W/R/T: J. Smith-Njigba, Seattle

W/R/T: Darius Slayton, New York Giants

W/R/T: Tyler Warren, Indianapolis

DL: Maxx Crosby, Las Vegas

LB: Edgerrin Cooper, Green Bay

DB: Jordan Battle, Cincinnati 

Bench: 

QB: Sam Darnold, Seattle

QB: Trevor Lawrence, Jacksonville

RB: Kimani Vidal, Los Angeles, Chargers

WR: Keon Coleman, Buffalo

TE: Jonnu Smith, Pittsburg

DL: Jonathon Cooper, Denver

DB: Budda Baker, Arizona

Want to check out the season for the Kamino Clone Kids? 

Weeks 1-8

Weeks 9-14

Top 5 Star Wars Card Trader Base Cards 2025

Rounding out the Top 5 base card series (last week Marvel, two weeks ago Bunt), I bring you my top 5 Star Wars Card Trader (SWCT) base cards.  I "hoard" way to many category of cards in SWCT like animated cards, droid cards, vehicle cards, and Grogu.  I haven't counted, but it is probably in the ball park of 21 or so cards that I don't workbench.  

I mention all of this because my list actually comes from all cards not just the hoarded ones listed above.  Anyway, here we go!  My top 5 base cards of 2025: 

5.  Grogu - 2025 Base, Series 2 - Tier 1 - White  Card Count: 100

It is no secret that I absolutely adore Grogu, so sorry, not sorry, he will probably always be on a SWCT card list.  I do love the sweet action shot of him raising his arms up for someone to pick him up.  

4.  Black One - 2025 Base, Series 3 - Tier 1 - White  Card Count 40

While the X-Wing may not be my top star ship in Star Wars, the have always looked super cool and battle ready.  They had to be cool, because Lucas wanted something to be fast, real fast like his car racing in Petaluma, CA.  No one flies an X-wing like Poe Dameron.  Gutsy, non-standard, daring, you name it, he tried it.  I can hear you all say, he is better than Luke?  I didn't say he was better, I said, "no one flies and X-wing like Poe."  We see the potential right here! 

3.  AT-ST - 2025 Base, Series 3 - Tier 1 - White  Card Count 38

Classic!  My mind flashes back to 1983 with this card image from The Return of the Jedi.  I remember thinking it was so cool to see those little walkers we got snippets of on Hoth in The Empire Strikes Back.  Here we see that they aren't only used in tundra invasions, but in all relevant moments of power.  Actually, I just thought it was cool to see one so close up and in a forest.  It wasn't until years later that I realized they transported Luke to Vader in an AT-AT.  So cool! 

2.  Millennium Falcon - 2025 Base, Series 1 - Tier 1 - White  Card Count 226

I have a three-way tie for my favorite ship in Star Wars.  Why a three way tie you ask?  It depends on what day and what I've most recently watched whether I say The Ghost, The Razor Crest, or the Millennium Falcon.  Since this card has the ship that has been #1 for the longest and it has a sweet explosion behind it, I go with the Millennium Falcon as my #2 card for 2025.  Tell me it doesn't look awesome!  

1.  Darth Vader - 2025 Base, Series 2 - Tier 1 - White  Card Count 89

I bet you thought my #1 base card for 2025 would be a ship.  You bet wrong.  I had to go with the greatest villain of all-time, Darth Vader.  I had three base card choices for Vader, but I could not deny how impressive, most impressive this card from the Obi-Wan Kenobi series looks.  Clean, shiny armor and dark imposing eyes.  The shattered glass behind him just screams power from this imposing character.  We can feel the power of the Dark Side coming through.  

I hope you have had a chance to take a look at all three Top 5 Base Card posts, Topps Bunt and Marvel Collect.  Let me know what your favorite base cards of 2025 are especially if they are from the Disney or WWE sets.  

Stay tuned in just a few weeks, I will share my favorite "insert" cards of 2025 for each of the three platforms I collect.  May the Force Be With You

Top 5 Marvel Collect Base Cards of 2025

Two weeks ago, I shared my Topps Bunt Top 5 Base Cards of 2025.  This week, I am sharing my Top 5 Marvel Collect Base Card of the year.  If you remember from my July post of my top base cards from 2025 so far, two of the Marvel Collect base cards I highlighted there will show up here.  Don't remember reading that? Check it out here 

Throughout the year, I "hoard" my favorite base cards.  I quote hoard because I don't go after trades to fill the hoard, but I don't workshop them, so they will always stay at the top of the collection when I look the collection by quantity of cards.  

There are 16 cards I found interesting enough not to workshop away and let them move to the top of the base collection.  Here are my favorite 5 of those 16 and I will leave a list of the characters portrayed of to fill out the remaining 16.  

5. Hawkeye, Series 1, White, Tier 1 - Card Count 107

I like how this shows a superhero in a common location, a theme park.  It is a setting to which we can all relate.  The fun spirit is what I like about this card. 

4. Kate Bishop, Series 1, White, Tier 1 - Card Count 107

Let's stay with Bishop's world and take a look at the card highlighting Kate Bishop.  Where, Hawkeye's card is fun and relatable, Kate's card is dramatic and filled with movement.  She looks powerful and invincible taking aim with her bow and arrow standing in a field of flying arrows coming right at her.  This is a card that will stick with me for quite some time.  

3. Spider-Man, Series 1, White, Tier 1 - Card Count 88 

You know this character's card will likely show up in a top 5 for me either in base card collections or in "insert" card collections, probably both.  There is a reason a character in comics becomes a favorite, and for me it is the look, the power, the personality.  For Spider-Man, it is all of those, but the look is why he always shows up on my lists.  Here he is, swinging through the New York night sky with webs all around him and Spidey in some contortion of swing.  The best...well, almost the best this year!

2.  Magik, Series 1, White, Tier 1 - Card Count 100

This card depicts power in full display.  From the pages of the X-Men, Magik holds her soul sword into the ground with the power of light pouring out and the souls of her sword writhing and screaming to get out of the ground.  So much of Magik and her power is on display here.  

1.  X-23, Series 1 - White, Tier 1 Card - Count 99

The theme of this list seems to be power on display, but my favorite part of it is they are all women with power.  X-23 displays it in the most unique and artistic ways.  It is in a point of view from above and her hair is flowing out wildly from her as she crouches flexing her muscles and blades.  This card is perfect!  

It wasn't hard for me to find my top cards when the set was released, but narrowing it down to five was a bit of a challenge.  So, I want to give all 16 of the cards I have been hoarding a shout out.  Here is the remainder of the list:  

Thor

Wolverine

Spider-naut (I discuss in the July post linked earlier)

Spider-Girl

Polaris (beautiful card that uses shading so well)

Emma Frost

Captain America

Elektra

Spider-Gwen

Psylocke

Miles Morales