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(S22) - Ultimus Week - PSanchez55 - 06-03-2020
Tier 1, option 2, or 3
The Story of the s14 playoffs, but mainly the Pythons
The time? It was the off-season between DSFL S13 and 14. After a strong DSFL class before S11, things had settled down. The next few classes were weak. Teams around the league were running out of talent. Portland had captured the S11 DSFL championship, but the next few seasons had been met with disappointment. They made the playoffs, but continued to lose in the first round.
At this point in time, Portland was running on empty. They had a solid QB in Caleb McCoy, two very good linebackers in Gekume Stokeley and Leighton Lee, a decent receiver Bonaberi Jones, and a serviceable running back in the Pythons legend Smallwood-Chess. The locker room was dead, and morale was low. Then, something happened that would change NSFL history. The legendary S15 NSFL draft class entered the league. All of the sudden, two new teams, Norfolk and Palm Beach, had to come into play to take on this new wave of talent. DSFL GMs were scrambling to scout 100+ new players.
The Pythons knew all along they would draft Edmonov Emoji with their first pick. But what about the later rounds? For the Pythons management, drafting a running back was key. Sure, Terry Taffy, Tom Hanks, and Morgan Marshall were in this draft. But Portland decided to draft the bouncy Kermit Stronglegs. The froglike running back showed a lot of potential, but wasn't good enough to make it past the developmental league. In the 3rd round, Portland grabbed another elite corner Richard D'Attoria to play across from Emoji. With that, and the send down of the Pythons linebacker core, the Stranglehold defense was born.
In the fourth round, Portland grabbed yet another stud defensive back Xerxes Ridley. They weren't done adding defense. In the fifth, they added the guy who would go on to set a DSFL record for tackles in Lanzer Grievous. They added yet another killer LB by drafting Lightsout Lewis in the 6th
With a returning QB, and a strong RB prospect, it's clear Portland wanted to beef up the defense. With that done, they were willing to trade away their 7th round pick for what would become the s15 1OA. They'd had a good draft, and could go home, right? Nope, they drafted Otters stud DT AJ Lattimer in the 8th, grabbed future Otters star and the best QB in the draft Franklin Armstrong in the 11th... Oh, and they drafted the best kicker in the draft in the 13th. All in all, a good draft, but a lot of teams had good drafts. The season was yet to be played.
Oh and BTW, the Colorado Yeti called up QB Caleb McCoy to play safety. This set the stage for rookie Franklin Armstrong to prove he belonged.
In week 1, Portland let the world know they weren't here to mess around. A 41-0 win at home vs Tijuana was a massive accomplishment. Then, they immediately killed their fans dreams by losing 17-20 @ Norfolk. In weeks 3-4, they destroyed the Kansas City Coyotes (the team which faired the worst in the draft) twice. Then in week 5, they traveled to San Antonio to play the undefeated Marshals. Cooter Bigsby and Co squeaked out a win, and suddenly, Portland is looking like the strongest 3-2 team of all time. Portland was 5-2 when San Antonio got to visit Portland. Cooter tossed a costly interception at the goal line, and the Pythons squeezed out a 20-17 win.
Week 9 was a trap game. On the road against a Luchadores team they had dominated week 1, they couldn't pull things together and lost 24-20. They followed that up with a win in Norfolk, then lost an embarrassing game in Kansas City vs the hapless Coyotes. They bounced back and cruised through the 3 game home stretch to close out the season 10-4. In the other division, San Antonio was 13-1...
The first round of the playoffs, Portland faced the scrappy expansion team from Norfolk. It was an ugly game, but Portland survived 16-13. On the other side of the bracket, the sim gods bestowed favor upon Portland. Tijuana rode into San Antonio and crushed the Marshals 15-1 dreams. Remember the Alamo indeed. Now the Pythons would face the team they had beaten 41-0 in week 1... For the title.
Franklin Armstong had an incredible rookie season that lead to MVP, QBoty, and Roty wins. Bonaberi Jones had an WRorty caliber season. But, perhaps it was the RB carousel that allowed the offense to thrive. Stronglegs, BSC, and the waiver acquisition RKANSAW N/A relentlessly wore down defenses. In the Ultimini, perhaps this is most apparent. Armstong tossed 3 picks. The offense should have collapsed. But the RBs combined for over 200 yards on incredible efficiency. Shout out to the defense that held future star Corvo Havran to 15/29 for 165 yards, and Forest Gump to 15 carries and 78 yards. A dominant season ended in a dominant 34-20 win.
(S22) - Ultimus Week - majesiu - 06-03-2020
3) Write 800 words or more on something that interests you. It could be related to statistics, to a league issue you take seriously, or a niche part of history that doesn’t fit neatly into either of the above categories. This must be directly related to the league, so don’t wax 800 words about your team’s Werewolf server. Be warned that freedom comes with risk, and this category will be judged especially stringently for anyone trying to spew complete nonsense.
Hall of Fame was always and is a big debate in league history and one I'll particularly will pay close to attention next season when my first player in NSFL Vladimir Fyodorovich will be on a ballot. One of recent arguments was that this Hall of Fame was too generous in early days with already inducting 17 S1 players (actually I counted 18) but is it really that much? The S1 class was really big with 137 eligible players so it's still ~12.5% of players making it in - PBE according to my calculations will have quite similar rate. Then we have 6 S2 HoF players - out of 92 it's just 6.5% so either committee was really stingy or players had vastly worse career, which is kind of expected since they were almost always behind S1 class in TPE. It's always conundrum in new sim leagues and I kind of lean the way that we should judge more harshly the classes that had this advantage, but it seems so far that wasn't the case. S3 had 3 studs out of 66, so even lesser percentage made it in: 4.5. S4 was an abberation class due to introduction of DSFL, but for the point of continuation they have 1 player in HoF out of 16 drafted - 6.25%. S5 is a rebound year in terms of this metric as we had 3 players out of 33 so 9.09% made it in. Just exactly the same with S6 class that had 33 drafted and 3 inducted. S7 class is still being judged so let's stop here. We can clearly see that S1 class had an inflation so far of inducted players while especially S3 and to lesser extend S2 where judged really harshly. Should we revision previous selections or just make an adjustments for the future? I kind of like veterans committee-esque idea the MLB has that we could revisit some earlier candidates that were thrown out so we can give them justice with broader picture being available nowadays. We could also move to different methods of voting, forcing a bit number of players being voted in since from what I understand now it's simply a cutoff value - both for staying on the ballot and being inducted with no limit of minimum/maximum players voted in and each member getting same valued vote. Instead we could use some system with variable amount of votes depended of the size of HoF or regression class that is being eligible nowadays, since the sizes of classes are vastly different and if we adopted one strict system now it would hurt bigger draft classes like one we just had in S22. So to illustrate the point instead of the vote we just had:
Marquise Brown - 16/17
Xavier Flash - 2/17
Bobson Dugnutt - 0/17
Rylant Wright - 0/17
let change the rules and start with establishing 10 people HoF (or 15/20th etc. just multiply the induction/cutoff values by the increase % then):
every voter gets 3 (+1 for each 5 eligible players) votes with decreasing value e.g. this year they can assign unique points to 3 players with descending value - 3, 2, 1 - if we had 5 players that'd be 4, 3, 2, 1
This way total amount of points available is: 10*6 = 60
Maximum for single player = 3*10 = 30
To remain on the ballot player needs at least 4 - so at least two people need to vote for that person (3+1, 2+2, 4 x 1 etc.)
To be inducted 20 - at least 7/10 people in the committee had to vote for that person.
It needs more numbers for increasing number of candidates so maybe the veterans committee is easier way, especially since the change to counting votes method will just help with future choices and won't solve past weird results.
We could also use some preview articles, since current HoF announcements and even HoF section is really bleak - we barely know why those players are voted in? Was it the rings? Maybe some records or awards - you won't really know that unless you dig through other forum sections or player was the lucky one with well done wiki page, but even then forum should at least point that direction, like already mentioned ballot above how would I know that Marquise Brown deserved that 16/17 other than that HoF committee decided about it? Or that other two players didn't deserve any votes, while Xavier Flash got 2 votes - there isn't any context available - some even short description would be nice so it's visible that there was real consideration about them. Some standards that we could derive from already inducted would be great too, I started working on them, but it was actually quite hard with current awards/forum/wiki state to gather that knowledge and project is more or less abandoned at this point. Anyway, that's small problem to have and shows that league has come a long way if we care enough HoF enough to spark big discussion there.
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(S22) - Ultimus Week - DarknessRising - 06-03-2020
10) Create an argument for your own player, or for someone else on your team, as to why they should be nominated for awards. Lay out their stats or compare them to other contenders. Make a convincing argument. Written option available for 200 words or more.
After the season, there is no doubt in my mind that the Wide Reciever of the year award should go to none other than my teammate, Tychondrius Hood. Consistent, high level performances across th season sees his stats off the charts. Hood played in all 14 games and holds the second spot for yards gained on 835, 103 behind first place Vequain on 938. The difference is the efficiency that Hood produced, getting his yards in 57 catches at a rate of 14.6 yards per catch compared to 72 catches at 13 yards average. Hood not only played in what was one of the most lighting receiving corps, he was there go to guy whilst still only averaging 0.1 yards a play less than his own teammate, Draymond Brooks. Hood also had an ability score, getting 7 touchdowns in the season, only one other person accomplishing that feat though they have 200 less yards and a 1.5 worse yards per catch, being Despacito Jr. Another key stat into the efficiency of Hood over the top 3-yard earners, which include hood, Vequain and third place Cooper, is Yards per TD. Hood went 119.3 yards per TD, compared to Vequain’s 156.3 yards and Cooper’s 164.4, proving is efficiency and ability to score is a tier above his competition. Whilst not having the raw number of yards, due to less catches from a stacked WR core, Hood’s efficiency should make him a sure-fire winner for Wide Receiver of the year.
14) Make a scouting report for any of the NSFL or DSFL draftees. Show their stats, abilities, TPE, highlights, or dead relatives. I’m joking about that last one, please don’t put dead relatives on the scouting report. Written option available for 200 words or more.
A name that is already making waves throughout the league, Tychondrius Hood enters the S23 NSFL draft as a top tier Wide Reciever prospect and one of the best potential players in the overall class. Coming out of Florida, Hood has been a star on the field for the Grey Ducks alongside fellow top tier receiver Kai Sakura but it is Hood’s on field performance and off field attitude that has all the GM’s looking in his direction over the higher potential that is said to be held by Kai. Hood made a mammoth 835 yards from only 57 catches in his rookie season, an average 14.6 yards per catch and claiming 7 touchdowns to his name, a team record for most touchdowns in a single season. Hood’s speed and ability to burn defenders have earned him a reputation as a complete handful for the defence. His speed and agility have allowed him to achieve a longest yard gain of 48 yards, where as rookie with the next highest is 32 yards, a 16 yard difference based on pure, unadulterated talent. Expect Hood to be one of the first receivers off the board as his personality has been infectious, some of the veterns of the league tipping him to go far even after his career as a player is finished and that is exactly the type of guy any franchise seeks in the draft.
8) This task is exclusive to non-recreate rookies of the S22 class and later. In 400 words or more, how has your experience been in the league? Who have you met that has made your time here more fun, friendly, and exciting? Have you been satisfied with your player’s early start? What was it like being drafted for the first time? Do you have any comments or suggestions for the entire league that you think should be implemented?
When I first joined in the league, I wasn’t too sure what to think of it and the users. At the end of the day, its writing random things on random players who play as dots on a random sim that will screw you over quicker than all the 100 speed players will run past you. On paper, the league to me just made me question why? Why are people so into this? Why are people so fiercely competitive like this was real football or any sporting league. Now that I’ve joined and completed my rookie season, I understand every single part of it and am now on of those people.
My first real interaction came from a ping from Jango Rhino in the ducks Locker Room whilst I was still a prospect at 4am in the morning my time, yet after a few mins in the chat, I was laughing and loved it. From there, I wanted and got to be a duck and it has honestly because of all of them and the active users in there that have made my experience the amazing time it has been. From Dewalt and CLG Rampage, as GM’s you made sure everyone understood what they were doing and came together as a Locker Room, leading us in our banter and not focusong on the results and performances, but rather our feelings and thoughts. They both made such a difference in me enjoying this league, with a special shout out to Dewalt for trying his hardest to make me get some stats when I wasn’t doing much to start off with. The ducks would not be who they are or nearly as much of an amazing place if it wasn’t for the like of JangoRhino or ForSucksFake. These two guys are the lifeblood, Rhino single-handidly got me into the ducks LR and these two, everyday, guarantee that I will smile and think good about myself. These two guys alone make this experience fun and worth my investing my time in it, like honestly, words can’t describe what they did for me personally and just want amazing and incredible people they are. Then there is probably the closest person I’m to, Tylus, fellow WR rookie, constantly hyping each other up and makes me so invested to earn to stay infront TPE wise and live out my career as WR that are constantly duking it out. We grown probably the closest than I have with anyone else. Other rookies like Philip Stein, Julio Jones or Ckroyal also made this experience so pleasurable and I love the fact I get to continually be amongst htem as fellow rokkies. Other ducks in the locker roomsuch as TheCC, Reaper, TimeConsumer, Russdrivesthebus, Snowy, and Jamar, you guys all made for some memorable moments (none more than russ and his Spainish moment) and wish yous all the best.
Everything so far has been so enjoyable, the DSFl draft was hype but the NSFL draft hype is unrear, hearing all the rumours and how their own players enter FA/leave teams to open up new possible spots, just can’t wait for draft day. Doing the survey for the S23 league and personally opinion, I would say fixing the first impression for rookies of the site to easily navigate and realise the awesomeness of this site and the league community we have going on.
(S22) - Ultimus Week - Vorshayla - 06-03-2020
6) It’s always important to look forward to the future. Examine your team, and in 400 words or more, talk about how they can improve themselves to get a stab at trophy contention next year. Are you loaded with draft capital for the next draft? Do you have plenty of cap space to sign free agents? Go through the roster and note the different strengths and weaknesses, and how you think those will change over the next few seasons. How should your team adapt?
The Sabercats are in great position for the next couple of years. Their defensive core is young, their star WR in DTF is hitting his prime and they have their quarterback of the future in Monty Jack. San jose understands the values of draft picks and as such they have most of their own picks in the early rounds to potentially select another game breaker this year and are in prime shape to take the best player available as they do not have any glaring needs with a few people coming up in the future years to come.
Losing Action Jackson in free agency hurts, but it's part of the game, and this opens up a spot for a prospect that San Jose has their eyes on in the s23 class. San Jose's core players are still very active and we all have our own say in planning for the upcoming week's games. They even managed to convince PickSix to become more of a team focused player by having him play safety at times as well as KR at times due to his explosive speed.
While having a co-Gm step down isn't ideal, the Sabercats leadership remains intact and they are very good at hearing different opinions and ultimately making a decision that will benefit the team as a whole. The locker room is more active than in recent years and they are poised for a great season. A lot of people slept on the cats this year and look what happened. San Jose was in the playoff hunt up until the last day of the season, and while the cards didn't fall for them, it proves that they have what it takes to make it to the dance in the future years.
A lot of perennial contenders are having their star players enter regression and they themselves will be entering into rebuilding mode. San Jose has nurtured their young players and several of them are just starting to hit their primes. In the next few seasons, San Jose will have no less than 6 fully maxed out players if everyone stays healthy and active and that will be a great time to see just what these cats can do. Derpcat may go meow, but San Jose will be in the championship game very soon if the stars keep aligning and management continues to hit home runs with their draft picks. The future is indeed bright in San Jose.
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7) Selflessness is one thing, but ultimately everyone wants to hear their own player’s name mentioned among the greats. Take some time, in 400 words or more, and discuss how your player’s (or past player’s) career is going so far. Are you matching any expectations you set out for yourself? Do you see yourself on a potentially award winning or Hall of Fame career trajectory? If your player is just starting out, what goals and visions do you have for yourself?
PickSix's career started off with a bang, making the rookie probowl, as well as making sure he got his own stats up. His Sophmore season he took a step back from INTs and personal glory, as he embraced more of a team-first culture and became the Sabrecats primary return man. With the emergence of both Chester Sweets and Harris, PickSix also decided to help the team by moving over to Free-Safety for much of the year. However it seems that experiment has ended and PickSix is now once again focused on being the generational cornerback he knows he is.
PickSix has been a nominee for several major awards in his first few years of existence, which means he is close to being the very best of his peers, however for now he remains humble and will bide his time as he continues to learn from the game's best and trains hard every week to ensure that his production can match his want on the field. He is still a very young player and his Hall of Fame aspirations have not changed. Taking another giant leap in development last year where he learned to incorporate team play into his vocabulary, PickSix was able to help guide the San Jose Sabrecats to a winning season ultimately falling short of their prize of making the playoffs.
With opportunities abound and this being a contract year, it's safe to safe PickSix will be focused on personal stats and glory this year just to make sure the rest of the league knows that he is still around. If this helps the Sabrecats, great. If it doesn't, at least it will help PickSix's pocket book during next year's off season when he hits free agency to remind teams exactly why he is the only generational cornerback worth signing to their own team rather than play against him.
All in all, Picksix is on pace for the Hall of Fame. A Sophmore slump is experienced by a lot of players, and with some of bigger WRs retiring and slowing down due to age, PickSix is in a prime spot have a marvelous bounce back season stat wise and will be ready to play come kick off to ensure that one day once he retires from the game he loves, he will hear his name called to the Hall of Fame. Afterall, he did promise Prince Vegeta he could carry PickSix's plaque into the Hall of Fame.
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(S22) - Ultimus Week - TomHanks - 06-03-2020
Tier 3 task: SHL PT
Tier 3 task #10: Ugarth the Dissector deserves to be your defensive rookie of the year in the NSFL. The orc arrived on the scene and immediately started making a huge impact. Most sacks of any rookie taking down the QB 9 teams, tied for 6th best in the league as a whole. He wasn’t just disruptive when it comes to the passing game in terms of sacks, he also swatted down 16 passes throughout the season. Third most of any linebacker in the league, plus he was able to secure one and force a turnover. Speaking of turnovers, this is where Ugarth separates himself from the pack. His 4 forced fumbles ties the top of the league, and if you go back and watch the tape, all 4 of those forced fumbles were recovered by a member of the second. Ugarth also recovered a different forced fumble which was punched out by Bjorn Ironside. His ball awareness and vision has proven to be elite already at such a young age. There was a lot more hype surrounding this potential winner at the early end of the season as he made more flashy plays in those games, but his numbers don’t lie. He may not have been the absolute best at any one thing but in terms of diversity in stats, he was the best well rounded defensive rookie.
Tier 2 task #7: Alright so normally I don’t like to talk about myself too often, but with it being wiki update season, I get to take a moment to look over Forrest’s career. It’s hard to complain at this point in my career. In the early NOLA days I probably could’ve built up more illustrious stats given the team wasn’t particularly competitive so running a primary back system would’ve been fine, but I’m happier I played in a committee for most of my career. Even when we were the 1OA team, we still looked like we had some fight, and that made it a lot easier to build our locker room culture. Had we tanked for an ego boost for me, NOLA likely wouldn’t be where we are now, so I have no regrets there. I could also look at potentially saying I should’ve asked to be called up immediately rather than doing what I did which was requesting to stay in the DSFL. I won DSFL MVP and was part of a fantastic DSFL team in the Luchadores, so I similarly have no regrets there, but from an objective perspective, it might have made sense for me to come up early and build up those stats. Right now I’m kind of in between in terms of worthiness to the Hall of Fame, so an extra season could be the difference maker. I have technically 10 pro bowl appearance despite only playing 6 seasons (5 as RB, 1 as OFlex, and 3 as a returner). I have an RBotY, an OPotY, RETotY, and PERotY in the NSFL. I also have an Ultimus Championship and an Ultimus MVP from that game. I’m 7th in rushing attempts all time, 5th in rushing yards, and 6th in rushing TDs. I’m also 5th in punt return touchdowns, and tied first for the longest ever kick return. I’m also 5th in playoff rushing attempts, 4th in playoff rushing yards, 6th in playoff punt return yards, 4th in playoff kick return yards, tied 3rd for playoff kick return touchdowns, and tied for 9th in longest playoff kick return. It’s a whole lot, and I’ve been all over in terms of stats. I have the most rushing yards in NOLA history and second most rushing TDs, 10th in receiving yards, 10th in receiving TDs, and first or second in our team return stats. I think I’m probably a shoe in for NOLA Hall of Fame, but all time Hall of Fame is still to be decided. I haven’t missed a pro bowl yet so here’s hoping that stays the case!
(S22) - Ultimus Week - JaytheGreat - 06-03-2020
SHL PT
2. Make a comparison between your own team and a playoff team, if your team failed to make the postseason, showing why your squad was better.
It was Honolulu first season as a NSFL team and we finished last in the ASFC. There was another expansion team this season who did make the playoffs. Even though Sarasota lost in the Wildcard round, making the playoffs in their first season is a giant accomplishment. When you look at both teams on paper however there isn't much of a gap. The main difference between these two teams is Honolulu is more of a conservative team on offense then Sarasota. Honolulu was 11th in passing yards while Sarasota was 5th. Although Sarasota only had on more TD then Honolulu while throwing for 3 more INTs. Running the ball was the main offensive strategy for Honolulu and they finished 6th in total rushing yards compared to 10th by Sarasota, but both teams have the same amount of TDs. As you can see Sarasota relies on moving the ball through the air in a high risk high reward manner, while Honolulu tends to keep the pressure off their QB and move the ball on the ground. In total both teams are very close with Sarasota getting in edge with just over 200 more total yards, but all in all I'd say the offenses are even. Defensively is a where Sarasota has more of an edge, Sarasota had 7 more tackles for losses, forced 5 more total turnovers had 12 sacks, and deflected 22 more passes then Honolulu. Honolulu only gave up 14 more points then Sarasota, but when your offense isn't a top offense yet those big defensive plays really matter and Sarasota made big plays a lot more then the Honolulu defense did.
3. Present your argument for the playoffs MVP. Show their stats and impact on the games that they played. Written option available for 200 words or more.
Colorado made a miraculous playoff run to win the Ultimus and the biggest piece of the team both in the regular season and the playoffs is without a doubt QB Wolfie McDummy. Accounting for 4 total TDs in 4 games, McDummy proved how big of a threat he is both in the air and on the ground. For a QB what McDummy did on the ground during the playoffs is almost unheard of scoring a rushing TD in every game of the playoffs. While there might be more flashy stats out there, McDummy was responsible for 2 out of their 3 TDs in the Ultimus while only turning the ball over once. Rushing for 72 yards and 3 TDs along with 587 passing yards and 1 TD. Having to go through 3 of the toughest defenses in the NSFL (Sarasota, Yellowknife, and Orange County) makes those numbers even more impressive. McDummy's ability to strike at random were big turning points in the playoffs considering 2 out 3 of the Yeti's wins were won by 1 point. McDummy was by far the most important player for Colorado and he should get recognition for his performances. While being considered a top 3 QB in the league McDummy finally got a championship ring he very much deserves.
(S22) - Ultimus Week - youngcricket - 06-03-2020
I think the most significant moment in NSFL history was when the Arizona Outlaws were caught cheating the league. As a member of the Arizona Outlaws at the time, I obviously have quite a bit of knowledge on the incident and how it has helped define the league. As a S1 player, I was drafted by ADwyer to the Arizona Outlaws and instantly became a Pro Bowl caliber level player. We had a good team that was not necessarily as active as the Orange County Otters, but we had two decent quarterbacks, a very good runningback, the best DE in the game, and arguably the best LB core with both me and Ernston. While we had all of these pieces, the Orange County Otters had a little clique of guys that were very good and played with the engine a lot. We basically only had Er that played with the engine and he was the simmer. Nobody really expected us to be that good, but we knew that we had a shot to at least be decent in the first season. When the season started, we performed about like we expected to and we had a pretty solid season finishing in the middle of the pack. The Otters appeared to be the far and away best team in the league with some push coming from the Wraiths and maybe the Hawks I'm not sure on that part. But when it was the end of the season, Tuck had the best stats ever and myself and Ernston also were league leaders. We made an unlikely run to win it all, but it wasn't too much of a shock because we were all new to the sim engine and it didn't seem too far fetched that there was a lot more parity than expected in the first season of the league. The Outlaws winning it all was not a huge surprise, but it was odd how many road games we were able to win en route to being the first champs. The second season we were slowly falling behind in TPE to some teams, but still had high expectations because we added guys like Luke Luechly and Tim Pest to our team. Two guys that would end up being Pro Bowlers in their first seasons and would compliment the offensive line and complete the best linebacker corps in the league. So with these additions and no real subtractions to the team, we were set up as a team that could make a run in a league that still had a lot of parity to its name. We ended up winning in season two as well and all of our rookies were active. Almost every rookie we got from kicker to offensive line was active and earning TPE but not overly active in the locker room. Odd, but not really an issue because we were winning and they were putting in their TPE. We win that and return season three as the favorites. Long story short its the same situation and I am ready to leave Arizona because we are winning too much. I am brought back and we win a third championship in a row before I decide to leave the Outlaws. It started to get suspicious as we were winning at a high rate and every player we drafted seemed to be a star in the making. Eventually some people around the league got suspicious about the situation and started to look into IP logs and times that people were online and it caused a giant mess for the Outlaws organization. ErMurazor was shot down as the simmer and was found to have been running multiple multis and likely if he was willing to do this, he tampered with results for the first three seasons. This didn't necessarily discount guys like Bronko, Ernston, Mackworthy, and myself as we were all high earners and dominant players, but it did raise questions as to how much our careers were helped by Er in these times. Er ends up getting one of the heftiest punishments we've seen and the Outlaws are literally destroyed. It takes them until S17 to win another trophy. This scandal wiped out the first dynasty that the league had ever seen. Had this not been caught, there is no telling how many more accoutns would have been made in the name and how much more the organization would have won. It ultimately has put nicks in the reputations of a lot of players' careers and has definitely put a cloud over the Arizona organization as a whole. This was the biggest scandal the league has ever, and hopefully will ever, seen. Without this the Outlaws are likely a top tier team for a couple more seasons and however long that Er is the simmer. I can't remember who brought this down, but the fall of this dynasty was monumental.
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(S22) - Ultimus Week - scorycory - 06-03-2020
3. The thing that I like and appreciate the most about the league is the interpersonal relationship between different players, coaches, GMs and general people in leadership roles. THeir interactions with one another, the way their opinions of each other can evolve and change over time is fascinating. There is a clear delineation in the way that people in this league treat each other based off of their relationship with one another. This is one of the biggest factors that drive things such as how free agency, the draft and trades pan out, not to mention it is probably the biggest factor in league drama. Of course there are other things that factor into a players choice of where to play when they hit free agency, or if they demand to be drafted to a particular destination. BUt we all know that if player A played in the DSFL for player/DSFL GM B there is a much higher likelihood that player A is going to only want to go to player B's team. A couple of great examples of this would be last draft when Tesla said she didn't want to go anywhere but New Orleans. Her GM Scorp played for New Orleans as well as multiple Norfolk Alumni and members of the war room there. This is just one example, things like this happen for every team. SlolthFaceKilla was another example last draft where he told NSFL teams that he only wanted to play for New Orleans. I am not trying to point New Orleans out in particular, DrunkenTeddy is another example from last draft. While he didn't tell teams that he only wanted to play for Orange County, he is an OCO alumni and I am 99 percent the Otters were far and away his first choice of where he wanted to play. Like I said, stuff like this happens every draft for every team. These interpersonal relationships drive free agency in a very similar way as most people want to play with people they enjoy being around and players/teams they have a history with. There will always be the draw of winning or money or just making a big freaking stink in free agency and just wanting every team to want you (player options exist for a reason rookies). This affets the DSFL as well as the NSFL. Oftentimes a player will come into the league on a specific DSFL team and then refuse to play anywhere else when they recreate. They will threaten to hold out, stop earning TPE, be a nuisance in the locker room, just about anything to play for the team that they want to. I will in no way condone some of these actions as I do think a lot of them are bad for teams and the league as a whole. This is why the whole don't be a dick rule is a thing in the first place. This whole interpersonal relationship thing swings another way however. It is also how rivalries form. It's why certain teams will sometimes really not like other teams. It's not always about the winning team, sometimes it's about the attitude of one of the teams conflicting with another. It's why some players will refuse to play for certain teams or with certain players, looking at you @Frostbite. In an ideal world these rivalries are of a friendly nature as the just makes the league a more enjoyable experience for me as a whole. Unfortunately that is just not how the world always works. Interpersonal relationships in this league are fascinating and are indicative of the interpersonal relationships we have in the real world. We're just more willing to be extreme on the internet most of the time. Sadly these relationships can be downright nasty at times. Still fascinating to observe and think about but also a distinctive low point for the league. But this is what I think is the coolest part of these relationships. They always always always evolve over time. Positive relationships can get stronger as the seasons pass or good friends can grow distant. League friendships can even devolve into a rivalry or even genuine dislike, which is very unfortunate. Trust can be broken but it can also be earned. I have seen people in this league who seem to actually hate each other. I have also seen cases like this where they managed to put their differences aside and tolerate each other. Work together. REspect each other. Hell sometimes that hatred turns into genuine like and affection. It's genuinely awesome to see people grow in this manner. As great as it is to see people come into the league and get along with all and be liked by all, I am far more impressed by those who come in with friction and are able to put that behind them and make a positive name for themselves. #free@jeffie43
(S22) - Ultimus Week - Mysa - 06-03-2020
Tier 2, Task 4
I’ll discuss the London Royals – a consistently and beautifully branded team that faced my Tijuana Luchadores in the DSFL’s Ultimini just a week or so ago. These cardiac cats had an absolutely dominant defensive performance en route to the narrowest of losses in the championship game, forcing a 13-10 overtime victory over the conference-leading Minnesota Grey Ducks that straight-up had London’s number throughout the regular season. In all three of their matchups this season prior to the playoffs – including a 24-13 preseason loss – the Grey Ducks absolutely dominated the Royals (37-7, 28-13), including a game that clinched the division for them just days before the playoff game.
In terms of personnel, London’s stars clearly came from the passing game – one of their few categories where they weren’t bottom two statistically. They were best represented by Captain Jack, a dual threat quarterback that has excellent pocket awareness and arm talent (82 arm, 80 int, 82 accuracy) that gave him a very strong argument for QB of the Year (my apologies if awards have already come out). He had the highest QB rating of any high-volume QB (>200 attempts) by nearly three points, and had a favorable 16 TD-9 INT ratio that probably topped the pros. Most importantly, he was accurate and careful with the ball, completing 58.9% of his passes; but this wouldn’t be possible without a high-quality receiving corps He relied heavily on Kaepercolin, a nearly 800 yard receiver (797, 4th overall) who had a monster 51 yard TD grab (longest in the DSFL) and 5 touchdowns. Sure, he wasn’t the flashiest player on average, as a few did pass him up in average yards per catch, but he did his job extremely well. Their receiving corps were similarly utilized throughout, with their third highest yardage receiver (TE Arrabiata) managed 600 yards to Kaepercolin’s 797. Furthermore, they were all excellent TD threads, with Kaepercolin, Arrabiata, and Cash Jr. managing exactly 5 TDs each.
But my favorite topic, as always, is defense. And there was one clear leader from the regular season on defense, linebacker C. Mitchell, who accrued a massive 155 tackles (second in the DSFL) in a nearly impenetrable second line of defense. Their primary corner, van Perkins, managed 3 INTs (T-4th) and 16 PDs (T-2nd) on the season. In the trenches, they relied heavily on defensive end Sternum – who managed a great 14 TFLs (equal to about half of his total tackles!) while paired across from Montain and Arthur, who managed 11 together while splitting games/playing time. Their playoff performance was much of the same – heavy reliance on Captain Jack’s 99.1 QB rating to scarcely sneak past the Minnesota Grey Ducks on top of a game-changing interception from Greedy Sly early in the second quarter to completely reverse the field when their backs were against the wall.
Tier 2, Task 8
I’m blessed to have had a wonderful experience with management, the administration, my teammates, and fellow draftees throughout my time on the NSFL from day one. Even though I came to the site under pseudonym, I was treated with the utmost respect and as a highly valued prospect in spite of never having a player on this site. I missed out on a little TPE, but that ultimately didn’t impact my draft position much (after all, the GM recreates made up about a third of the players taken ahead of me).
Once I was drafted by the Luchadores, my experience got even better. I was found out by a friend in one of my other sim leagues, and then drafted on to his team – with a reveal on-stream as to who I was! It was a surprise from the get-go, but I knew that meant I’d have to step up for the folks who do both SHL & NSFL. The locker room was active several times a day – so in spite of a busy schedule that rapidly changed in the context of COVID-19 (I’m a healthcare trainee), I had an awesome team that was willing to humor my changing availability. There were a few guys – Jay, Sloth, ADwyer – that I knew from other sim leagues, so I felt immediately at home on my new team. But the team proceeded to sign siddhus/Someone and Nykonax after the draft ended, meaning I had even more familiar faces to hang out with in the LR.
But among those in the LR that I felt most influential, Bigred1580, JPach, Ugarth, and Al_Gringo were easily the most distinct, talkative, and welcoming. Even though ADwyer and I jokingly asked for a trade just days after the draft, JPach took it completely in stride ran with it. Bigred asked me my preferences for a graphic just days after the draft, too, and said that he made similar offers to all of the rookies – which I thought was an awesome way to be introduced to the LR. Ugarth played an alternating meme/mentorship role for me, while Al_Gringo was the wacky innovator that eventually brought us the legendary Fantasy Weather league that’s still on-going to this day! Events like “Draw a Luchadore Night” during week 12ish had our illustrations immortalized in the Discord, and the LR was absolutely BONKERS when we were in the Ultimini. I feel as though this LR is one of the main reasons I’ve decided to continue with this site – it has enhanced my experience greatly, to say nothing of the excellent production value of streams and the excitement around our playoff games.
(S22) - Ultimus Week - frithjofr - 06-03-2020
7) Selflessness is one thing, but ultimately everyone wants to hear their own player’s name mentioned among the greats. Take some time, in 400 words or more, and discuss how your player’s (or past player’s) career is going so far. Are you matching any expectations you set out for yourself? Do you see yourself on a potentially award winning or Hall of Fame career trajectory? If your player is just starting out, what goals and visions do you have for yourself?
Ugarth, the Dissector (and now the Defensive Rookie of the Year) is the greatest player to ever play in the history of the game, period. Simply by virtue of having been born an Orc in a faraway world and being raised in those Orcish traditions. Has anyone else in the league ever killed a direwolf with their bare hands? Not likely... and... as a point, neither has Ugarth. He had to use an axe. That's how fierce direwolves are! Even the strongest of Orcish warriors can't match them in single combat.
Ugarth the Champion has always had one goal, complete and total domination of the NSFL by becoming the greatest player of all time. He has already achieved that, even in his rookie season. He simply needs more time learning how to play this so called "foot"ball, then his physical prowess will allow him to achieve complete and total victory over the league. The New Orleans Second Line was the only team brave enough to take on the challenge of handling his massive ego, and the only team able to finance the purchase of a wheelbarrow sturdy enough to tote his massive balls.
Even as we speak, Ugarth the Defensive Rooky of the Year is out on the field in New Orleans digging a hole to bury his new Defensive Rookie of the Year trophy beneath in. A strategy he... has... totally not used before to hide his valuables from his certainly jealous teammates. One day, thousands of years from now, it is Ugarth's hope that a young, noble adventurer will need to locate one of his powerful artifacts (trophies) in the process of completing a most noble quest, and if the gods will it, Ugarth's spirit will linger on as a vigilant specter of New Orleans, warding would be predators away from his trove of goodies. Also it would be pretty cool to haunt humies and pinkskins, but that's kind of an aside.
Hall of Fame? More like Hall of Shame. Ugarth the Builder will erect his own hall of fame, a TRUE hall of fame, where his multitudinous victories shall be celebrated, and only those who prove themselves worthy in a Gorkian trial of might or Morkian trial of wit will be allowed entry. Brick by mud brick he will build this towering structure in the ancient Orcish ways - Finding a preexisting dwarven settlement, razing it to the ground, and reconstructing overly it as quickly and crudely as possible.