The Darren Smallwood - C.A. Chess rivalry’s first season has come to a close.
First and foremost, let me say this, over the course of the season both Chess and Smallwood hold nothing but the highest regard for each other, this rivalry is not out of betterment but out of a desire from both players to push each other to be the best they can. Ok, let’s begin.
The History
To go into the rivalry, you have to first know how it began. Chess was considered a high round prospect, and a high level wide receiver. Smallwood was considered a high-ceiling project at wide receiver who with the right direction could be a force of nature, but not a high level prospect like Chess. So during the draft Smallwood proposed that he and Chess be rivals to push each other, and Chess responded with “Who are you?”, as he was selected by the Outlaws. Smallwood followed shortly by being selected by the Wraiths. In Yellowknife, Smallwood got himself into gear and stepped up. By the end of the preseason Smallwood led in touchdowns among wide receivers, which got him both the nickname of “Checkers” from the team and the attention of Chess. The Chess-Checkers rivalry was born.
Some Information
It’s important to note, both of them have interesting career trajectories. While Chess was highly touted as a wide receiver, he found himself struggling to get the attention of Bronko as the team had another shiny rookie Wide Receiver in Evans. As a result, Chess found himself as the third option on the Outlaws. In Yellowknife, Smallwood was listed as the WR2, but in terms of targets and receptions, found himself at WR3 as West outplayed him.
The Stats
First here’s the statline total for each
Chess – 36 Catches – 361 yards – 6TDs – 29 Yard Long – 10.3 YPC
Smallwood (total) – 61 Catches – 808 yards – 4TDs – 42 Yard Long, 13.2 YPC
That said, it’s not fair to look at the collection of stats from Smallwood and make a claim, because he did play in two systems, so let’s break it down:
Smallwood YK - 384 Yds - 2 TDs - 8 Games – 48YPG
Smallwood SJ - 424 Yds - 2 TDs - 6 Games – 70.6YPG
I forgot to record catches and longest.
The rest of the S2 rookies
It’s not fair to ignore that the s2 draft brought one of the best wide receiver classes that the NSFL will ever see. Fox North leads, but with players like Evans, Kroetch and Vincent are just handful of names that make up this illustrious class.
Comparing to North is dumb. That dude is a man amongst boys, plus he has the season carry over. It would be like comparing to Garden or Hendricks.
That said, I want to evaluate the rookie class at a whole in a later date, so we’re going to skip it for now.
What does this mean?
For starts, the rivalry has just begun. These two are going to keep pushing each other and both have some interesting highlights, but here’s some interesting facts. Smallwood has shown that he can stretch the field in ways that Chess has not been asked to. That said, when asked to score, Chess is way more reliable. But, here’s the thing, Smallwood has surpassed Chess in yards on both teams. That’s not to say Chess cannot bring yards to the table, but when the defense that is the outlaws is so stout, he doesn’t need to get 70 yards a game to help his team score once, something Smallwood has been asked to do in San Jose. Conversely, Smallwood has shown up in blowouts, and ready to go. It will be interesting to see how this rivalry develops. If they keep improving the way they do, Chess may find himself a TD leader, and Smallwood may eclipse 1,000 yards in their next season. What comes next will be an exciting chapter for their rivalry.
King me? Maybe not so much, but it’s also not checkmate.
@4D Chess
GRADED
First and foremost, let me say this, over the course of the season both Chess and Smallwood hold nothing but the highest regard for each other, this rivalry is not out of betterment but out of a desire from both players to push each other to be the best they can. Ok, let’s begin.
The History
To go into the rivalry, you have to first know how it began. Chess was considered a high round prospect, and a high level wide receiver. Smallwood was considered a high-ceiling project at wide receiver who with the right direction could be a force of nature, but not a high level prospect like Chess. So during the draft Smallwood proposed that he and Chess be rivals to push each other, and Chess responded with “Who are you?”, as he was selected by the Outlaws. Smallwood followed shortly by being selected by the Wraiths. In Yellowknife, Smallwood got himself into gear and stepped up. By the end of the preseason Smallwood led in touchdowns among wide receivers, which got him both the nickname of “Checkers” from the team and the attention of Chess. The Chess-Checkers rivalry was born.
Some Information
It’s important to note, both of them have interesting career trajectories. While Chess was highly touted as a wide receiver, he found himself struggling to get the attention of Bronko as the team had another shiny rookie Wide Receiver in Evans. As a result, Chess found himself as the third option on the Outlaws. In Yellowknife, Smallwood was listed as the WR2, but in terms of targets and receptions, found himself at WR3 as West outplayed him.
The Stats
First here’s the statline total for each
Chess – 36 Catches – 361 yards – 6TDs – 29 Yard Long – 10.3 YPC
Smallwood (total) – 61 Catches – 808 yards – 4TDs – 42 Yard Long, 13.2 YPC
That said, it’s not fair to look at the collection of stats from Smallwood and make a claim, because he did play in two systems, so let’s break it down:
Smallwood YK - 384 Yds - 2 TDs - 8 Games – 48YPG
Smallwood SJ - 424 Yds - 2 TDs - 6 Games – 70.6YPG
I forgot to record catches and longest.
The rest of the S2 rookies
It’s not fair to ignore that the s2 draft brought one of the best wide receiver classes that the NSFL will ever see. Fox North leads, but with players like Evans, Kroetch and Vincent are just handful of names that make up this illustrious class.
Comparing to North is dumb. That dude is a man amongst boys, plus he has the season carry over. It would be like comparing to Garden or Hendricks.
That said, I want to evaluate the rookie class at a whole in a later date, so we’re going to skip it for now.
What does this mean?
For starts, the rivalry has just begun. These two are going to keep pushing each other and both have some interesting highlights, but here’s some interesting facts. Smallwood has shown that he can stretch the field in ways that Chess has not been asked to. That said, when asked to score, Chess is way more reliable. But, here’s the thing, Smallwood has surpassed Chess in yards on both teams. That’s not to say Chess cannot bring yards to the table, but when the defense that is the outlaws is so stout, he doesn’t need to get 70 yards a game to help his team score once, something Smallwood has been asked to do in San Jose. Conversely, Smallwood has shown up in blowouts, and ready to go. It will be interesting to see how this rivalry develops. If they keep improving the way they do, Chess may find himself a TD leader, and Smallwood may eclipse 1,000 yards in their next season. What comes next will be an exciting chapter for their rivalry.
King me? Maybe not so much, but it’s also not checkmate.
Code:
660 words
@4D Chess
GRADED
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