(S1) - Ultimus Week

[Merica]

Offensive Comparison:
The Yellowknife Wraiths and the Colorado Yeti will face off in round one of the first ever NSFL playoffs, a matchup that will feature two #1 receivers who are truly no where even close to being even. It's like Odell Beckham Jr vs Cameron Meredith. The edge is extremely in the favor of Yellowknife.

Who are these receivers? They are Josh Garden and Kendrick Hendrix. Garden is a monster, his game resembling that of the aforementioned Odell Beckham Jr. He has dynamic size at 6-3 225 posing a huge problem for cornerbacks. His ability to spread the field and destroy coverage has enabled him to lead the league in receiving yards and finish second in touchdowns.

Kendrix has been nowhere to be seen on the leaderboard this season, and while he does have good route running skills he has been unable to truly separate himself from even his own teammate, so I don't anticipate he will best Garden.It will be an intriguing match up nonetheless, as we have seen many times lesser known receivers rise to the occasion and surprise the masses. But, one thing I believe to be inherently true is this: Under pressure you do not rise to the occasion, you sink to the level of your training.

Bottom Third
The answer to why the San Jose SaberCats failed to make the playoffs goes all the way back to the inaugural draft, when they decided against drafting quarterback Josh Bercovici, who is poised to become an expansion teams franchise player and destroy opposition at will. Another reason they failed to make the playoffs is because they then decided to trade for a new quarterback, but once again didn't acquire Josh Bercovici and instead went him his teammate Ethan Hunt.

Their complete inability to see star talent when it's right in front of their faces is incredibly perplexing and explains another reason for their failure: poor management and personnel decisions. When Bercovici lights up the sky next seaosn the SaberCats will quickly recognise their horrendous decisions and understand why they couldn't make the playoffs.

These decisions, combined with being in the AFSC with juggernauts Orange County and Arizona, make it difficult for them to compete, especially against the aforementioned teams, who they are heavily outclassed against. Their Defense was laughable all season, I'm really not sure they understood the concept of stoping the offense. It was just brutal to watch. The SaberCats have a long way to go before they are a contender, and with expansion looming they will only get weaker, not stronger. I feel sorry for Ethan Hunt, who will have the tall task of playing behind a terrible offensive line.

Defensive Comparison
The primo playoff matchup in round one belongs to the two best teams in the league with the Orange County Choppers against the Arizona Outlanders. Both these teams have handled competition all season long and a big reason for that is their defense, and as we all know Defense wins championships. The Otters own the leagues best Defense, their stacked and have terrorized opponents all year, but the it appears their weak spot is Arizona, who has owned Orange County all season, especially Mike Boss.

Both of these teams possess dynamic pass rushers, and for the Outlanders that would be Jayce Tuck, a fierce, powerful edge rusher who leads the league in sacks and is a complete animal. Although OC has the best offensive linemen in the league, they will still face a tall task against Tuck, who is also second in tackles for the loss- the point here is that Tuck has been unstoppable.

For the Choppers, they rely on undersized speed demon rusher extraordinare cooter slaying pipe dropping maestro Adewale Tomlinson. The small dick Tomlinson plays with a chip on his shoulder because of his small peniscular, and he has flashed huge flashes of big dick talent, including a league record five sack performance in one game. Tomlinson can shred opponents and will make life difficult for the Outlaws.

[Blaster]

Placeholder

Offensive Comparison

Otters Vs Outlaws is going to be a HUGE matchup and I'm sure everyone will be tuning into the result of this match. We have the Otters who have the most PASSING yards in the league but also the most INTs in the league. They have the lowest passer rating in the entire league, including the two teams who didn't make the playoffs. On the other hand, we have Arizona Outlaw's passing attack having the second most yards, the most touchdowns in the league, and has the third highest passing rating in the league. The Otters QB right now is Mike Boss with the most interceptions in the league, meanwhile the Outlaw's QB, Vincent Draxel is leading the league in yards and touchdowns. Mike Boss has thrown most of his interceptions against this ferocious defense that the Outlaws boast. He will have to step it up if he has any chance of beating the Outlaws defense, let alone Vincent Draxel. Draxel however throws INTS in very clutch situations and will need to keep down the turnovers if he can lead this Outlaws team to a victory. The Outlaws are looking to Vincent Draxel to lead them to another victory against the Otters.

Defensive Comparison

Again, the Otters and Outlaws are on the opposite sides of the spectrum. The Outlaws lead the league in almost every defensive category and the Otters are almost at the bottom in every category. The Outlaws defense is overall the best defensive team in the league. Hard to choose one but the D-Line is lead by Jayce Tuck and Adamle Tomlinson on the Outlaws and Otters respectively. Jayce Tuck is obviously the better DE having beat Adamle Tomlinson in every single category. Tackles, TFL, Forced Fumbles, Sacks, etc. You name it, Jayce Tuck has the edge over Tomlinson. Jayce Tuck is a huge leader for his team and has shared time with the other defensive ends on his team, Blaster Blade and Dental Dam. Blaster Blade is a season two player who is playing like a top 5 player. Jayce Tuck sharing time with these two guys at the Defensive End position brings his numbers down a little bit but he is clearly one of the best defensive ends in the league. Adamle Tomlinson is also a great player but he will have to step it up if he wants to catch up to his superior at his position, named Jayce Tuck.

Bottom Third
Both teams that did not end up in the playoffs, the Baltimore Hawks, and the San Jose Sabercats were lacking many fundamental things as they lost games over and over and eventually getting knocked out of the playoffs by the other four teams, Colorado Yeti, Yellowknife Wraiths, Arizona Outlaws, and the Orange County Otters. The San Jose Sabercats did not have a solid starting quarterback, and eventually picked up Hunt from the Orange County Otters. Hunt has made it clear that he does not want to return to California once his contract is up with the Sabercats. The quarterback position wasn't the only thing that hurt them, they had no running game most likely caused by the horrific offensive line. Their running back, Vick Bowers Jr, is extremely talented but when you're playing on a team that can't block for their running back, you will have problems. It will take a lot of time for both these teams to bounce back into contention, as they look into free agency and the draft to rebuild a core.

Future Talent
Did the Arizona Outlaws get lucky or what? They came into the season with two solid defensive ends but once they picked up Blaster Blade the 6'5 almost three hundred pounder defensive end, everything changed for their team. At that time they did not know what he would turn into the player he is today and are glad to pick him up. He is a top 5 DE maybe even top three. That is insane considering he is a season two player. He even performed better on a team that had Jayce Tuck, the league's arguably best DE and somehow still beat number one DE's on other teams in the stats. That's impressive when you're sharing time with three other competent Defensive Ends. Arizona most likely will not be picking this guy back up from the draft as he most likely will be one of the top 5 if not the top pick. Another reason why he is a beast is because he was the only DE that has beaten Angus Winchester, the best OLineman in the league.

Playoff Predictions
For the first matchup we have the Colorado Yeti lead by Logan Noble and the Yellowknife Wraiths with their tremendous running game from Bubba Nuck. Both players are MVP candidates and this looks to be a tough matchup. Colorado has a great passing game while the Yellowknife Wraiths can decently go through the air to Josh Garden, one of the league's best Wide Receivers. But, most of their game comes from Bubba Nuck. But it seems Colorado had the best of the Wraiths during the season so I think we have to pick them here.

21 17

The second matchup are the Outlaws and the Otters. Both teams have tremendous players as the Outlaws have one of the best defenses and if not the best defense while the Otters have a crazy Offensive line with the least amount of sacks allowed. Their QB Mike Boss however has seen a lot of trouble with this Outlaws defensive secondary. He has thrown way too many picks to count and people are sure to look out for that. The D-Line of both teams are no joke as they have some of the best players in the league in those positions. I feel like Mike Boss will choke and throw too many ints, Outlaws win.

17 10

Playoff Series MVP

For my playoff series MVP I will choose the Arizona Outlaws and the Orange County Otters matchup. And the player is known as the one and only, interception machine, Mike Boss of the Orange County Otters. I think if we think about it the Arizona Outlaws would not win without the crazy interceptions that Mike Boss threw to this Outlaws defense. Jay Lee had a great and game-ending defensive touchdown to crush the Otters. Most consider Mike Boss the player that likes to throw interceptions to the other team. And this is true as he hold the record for most interceptions in the regular season and post season. Without Mike Boss the Outlaws would not have won. Maybe next season he should go to the Outlaws as he enjoys throwing it to the Outlaws the most. Mike Boss to Outlaws. Make it happen.

[HENDRIX]

Offensive Comparison

Here we will be looking at the QB match in the NSFC conference championship game between Logan Noble of the Colorado Yeti and Chris Orosz of the Yellowknife Wraiths. Both were popular picks for MVP and QB of the year awards, so we arguably have the league's two best passers going at it in this game. We will diving into their respective stats to see if any major advantage can be seen. They were both top two in the league this season in passing attempts. Orosz completed 57.8% of his with a 10.6 yards per completion compared to Noble and his 56.5% completion rate and his 10.3 yards per completion. Orosz and Noble had very similar touchdown pass amounts (14 vs. 15), interceptions (9 vs. 8), and QB ratings (77.6 vs. 77.2) respectively. Both seem to have similar caliber offensive lines in pass protection. Orosz was sacked 43 times vs. 41 for Noble. There was some QB controversy with teams in the ASFC but these two guys were the unrivaled starters for their squads. This is a marquee matchup between two MVP candidates. Whichever one of these QBs has the better game, their team will be the one more likely to advance to the Ultimus game. (206)

Defensive Comparison

In the ASFC conference championship game each team has one of the most feared pass rushers in the NSFL. I am talking about Jayce Tuck of Arizona Outlaws and J.J. Reigns of the Orange County Otters. Nothing is more of a pain in the ass for the QB and the entire offense than ferocious sack artist. Tuck and Reigns thrived getting penetration through opposing offensive lines all year long. Tuck finished with 16 sacks and 17 tackles for loss. Reigns averaged one sack per game with 14 total for the season but far behind Tuck with only 4 tackles for loss. Tuck dominates pass rushing off the edge while Reigns is an interior rushing dynamo. In playoff games the margin for error is extremely small. Disrupting the opposing QB is key. One turnover here, one forced punt there could turn the tide of a game. These are two high caliber players that offensive coordinators have to spend ample time preparing for. Before every snap the offense has to make sure they identify where Reigns or Tuck are lining up. Adequate help blocking is a necessity. Double, or sometimes even triple teams are required to dampen the effectiveness of these two beasts. One of these players will lead their team's defense to the Ultimus, who will it be? (217)

Bottom Third

Why the Baltimore Hawks were not able to make the playoffs: Before we dig deeper into it the simple answer is they had more holes in their defense than Swiss cheese. They allowed 330 points against this year, the next closest team is 39 points away from that mark. That does not happen without having weaknesses against both the pass and the run. Penetration was an issue all year long for Baltimore. They were 2nd worst in the NSFL in tackles for loss. This most likely means members of their front seven (DL + LBs) were not shedding blockers well in pursuit of the ball carrier. The most grisly number of them all though is their 36 total sacks. That mark is the lowest in the league by a whopping 17. The mid season acquisition of stud DT Bert Metas helped, but their defensive snap count leader, Kurt Hendrix, somehow managed to get zero sacks despite leading the league in tackles. No pressure on the QB meant they were vulnerable through the air. The Baltimore offense put up a slightly above average amount of points on the board, but the defense had trouble closing out games as their opponent went into air attack mode. Improving the pass rush will be a priority for Baltimore management. (215)

Future Talent

Dermot Lavelle, a corner back out of the University of Arizona is arguably the best talent available in the S2 draft. He is a man to man style corner checking in at 6'0" 185lbs. He joined the league after the S1 draft and was the first name on the waiver wire where he was snatched up by the Yellowknife Wraiths. He had a great season for the Wraiths. He ended up with 18 pass break ups which was tied for 2nd in the league. He also had 57 tackles and four interceptions. Wide receiver is a position that is deep with a lot of high end talent in the NSFL. In the NSFC conference championship he will have to deal with the Colorado trio of Kendrick Hendrix, Jonathan Shaloiko, and DJ Law. They were the most productive wide receiver trio in the league this year. If the Wraiths are lucky enough to make the finals it won't get any easier with receivers like Stormblessed, Phelps, Westfield, and/or Jefferson to match up with. In these playoffs Lavelle will be leaned on heavily to help neutralize those players. When the season has concluded, all eyes will be on the draft. Having an elite corner back prospect available like Lavelle will draw a ton of attention from the teams with top picks. (219)

Playoff Predictions

In the NSFC championship game we have a matchup of the Colorado Yeti vs. the Yellowknife Wraiths. The quarterback matchup in this one has been discussed enough, an elite on both sides in Orosz and Noble. In the rushing game it looks like the Wraiths have an edge there. They were more efficient with their 4.4 yards per rush from workhorse back Nuck. The Wraiths also seem to have an advantage with pass catchers Garden and Maddox. Offensive lines seem like similar caliber in pass protection with each giving up 41-43 sacks. Games like this could come down to special teams. Colorado converted on 87% of FGs this season compared to 82% for Yellowknife. Prediction: Wraiths win 24-17.

In the ASFC championship game we have matchup of the Orange County Otters and the Arizona Outlaws. In this game you have the two best defenses in the entire league. Both create havoc getting sacks and forcing turnovers. I think the Otters have the advantage in the trenches in this game. They're significantly better at protecting their QB and have almost as good of a pass rush as Arizona. Prediction: Otters win 28-24.

If my predictions hold true, that means in the Ultimus championship game the Wraiths would face off against the Otters. I think the Otters will make it difficult on Orosz and move the ball efficiently enough for themselves. Prediction: Otters win 17-14. (233)

[Sanctus]

Saved for later









http://i.imgur.com/UEVAJV8.png

[Ltsmashie]

Offensive Comparison: Compare one offensive player from each team in a series.
Boss Tweed Vs Bubba Nuck

Both the Colorado Yeti and the Yellowknife Wraiths finished the regular season 8 and 6. They meet for the sixth time this season in the NSFC championship game.

Two players who are certain to be the focus of attention are the running backs.

For the Wraiths, Bubba Nuck has been a superstar, a Bona Fide MVP of the year candidate (currently second in the running I believe.) The feature back has the most yardage gained out of any RB in the league with the second placed RB over 200 yards behind him.

It certainly helps that Nuck is running behind one of the finest Olines in the NSFL, but boy has he done his job.

For the Yeti, they have spread the ball a lot during the running game, using a three headed approach of speedster Boss Tweed, all rounder Kieran O'Connell and power rusher Luke Tiernan, However, rumour on the streets is that the Yeti may be changing up from their running back by committee approach and putting their eggs into the basket of early pace setter Boss Tweed.

Having started the season strongly, Tweed has struggled in recent weeks, this has seen his average yards per carry dip from the mid 4's down to 3.7 YPC for the season. The thoughts out of Colorado is that by spreading the carries amongst so many players, nobody is getting into a rhythm and that by the time they have felt out the opposition defence the game is over.

The performance of the running backs could decide this divisional championship game.



Defensive Comparison: Compare one defensive player from each team in a series.

As often is the case, the NSFC championship game could down to turnovers, and two cornerbacks who have been making things happen for their teams are the 's Philippe Carter and the S2 candidate Dermot Lavelle who have both amassed four interceptions during the regular season.

Lavelle missed the S1 draft through what he claims were "paperwork issues", however some claim that a missed drugs test may have had something to do with.
For the S2 draft, Lavelle is sure to be high on many GM's watch lists given his performance during Season 1. On top of his 4 interceptions, he had 57 tackles and 18 pass deflections.

For Carter, some have stated that his season has been one of personal disappointment. The Yeti's first ever pick in the NSFL draft (3rd overall), perhaps Carter has not been the superstar defensive back that many had hoped for. None the less his contribution to the Yeti this season can't be hidden from view. 4 interceptions, 56 tackles and 11 pass deflections makes for a respectable if not uninspiring first season for the Yeti.

So while Lavelle has been slightly the better of the two CB's on the stats sheet, another interception from either of these cornerbacks could be the turning point in tonights divisional championship game.



Bottom Third: Write about why the Baltimore Hawks and/or San Jose Sabercats were not able to make the playoffs. Can be completed at any point


Baltimore Hawks - it's not a passing league!
One of, if not the key reason why the Baltimore Hawks did not make the playoffs is because of their shockingly poor running game.

The hawks ran the ball 405 times but amassed a paltry 1369 yards during those carries. That amounts to 3.4 yards per carry on average, with a statline like that over the course of the season it's no wonder that the Hawks didn't make it to the dance.

Hawks favoured running back Marcus Robinson actually has the fifth most yards in the NSFL this season, however when you look at the fact that he has carried on 228 of those 405 team carries, it does not paint such a rosy picture - a 3.6 YPC average is not something to be proud of, but when looking at the games I think it's unfair to point the finger of blame at Robinson.
Indeed the offensive line just did not function during the run game for the Hawks this season.

If I was Robinson I would be pleading with the front office to beg, borrow and steal some offensive linesmen who can put in a run block this off-season, because the fact of the matter is, with the current state of their o-line, there will not be any improvement in the rushing numbers of Robinson and the Hawks next season.


Future Talent: Dermot Lavelle CB Yallowknife Wraiths


Dermot Lavelle was the first of the season two prospects to be picked up in free agency. A solid performer for the Wraiths this season, he has led the team in interceptions, turning the ball over four times in total. More impressive is his 18 passed deflected, among the best of the year, and this combined with his impressive number of tackles means that Lavelle is sure to be the first defensive back off the board in the season two draft.

The 6ft tall Cornerback out of the University of Arizona, is your prototypical man to man cornerback, and given the depth of talent in the league at wide receiver I think you will find almost every General Manager in the league have Lavelle down on their watchlist with a view to picking him up in the draft.

Indeed Lavelle is almost certain to play in the season one pro bowl, a man of his talent just has to be there. Undoubtedly the Wraiths will struggle to find a comparable replacement for Lavelle and whichever team does have the honour of picking him, they know that they will have a near instant improvement in their secondary.

But the question remains where will he play next season?


Best play of the championship game

Pass by Noble, L., to Hendrix, K.. INTERCEPTION by Flock, R. at the COL - 24 yard line and returned for 24 yards.


Upon recapping the inaugural NSFL it is fair to suggest that it leaves a bitter taste in many a fan's mouth. Unfortunately it was one sided, unfortunately it seemed over almost before it started, and unfortunately the Yeti did not get to hoist the Ultimas trophy at the end of the game.

The signal of how the game was going to shape up, came early. Outlaws D-back Ryan flock picked out a Noble thrown pass to Karl Hendrix, and returned it all of twenty five yards to claim a pick six, and a soul crushing blow for the Outlaws over the Colorado Yeti.
It is not Hyperbole to suggest that it was the greatest play of the championship.

At 3rd and 7 and with the Yeti hoping to extend their drive on their own 24. the Yeti's QB dropped back, and attempt a pass to his best WR, Hendrix. Outlaw's Ryan Flock showed great anticipation to by jumping the Hendrix Route, and with nothing but green grass in front of Flock, it was a case of "feet don't fail me now" as Flock took it the house for the touchdown and the Outlaws were up by 7 already.
This would be a preview of the rest of the match, with the Outlaws defense stomping out any hopes of life by the Yeti offense, and providing their offense great field position.

With the Outlaw's defensive in stingy and unforgiving mood, not allowing a single opposition TD during the game, this defensive touchdown would have proved to be the winner, had it not been for a couple more offensive TD's to be added leaving the outlaws with a heavy winning margin.

[Gwdaja]

Placeholder

[TimPest]

1 Orosz and noble are most likely in my opinion the two best current quarterbacks in the league. Today they will go face to face in the first ever national simulation football league play off game. In the season both had important jobs in making their teams better and getting wins to get to here. Orosz has the stats of 2788 yards and a percentage of 57.8 with 14 touch downs and 9 interceptions. Noble has 2603 yards and a percentage of 56.5 with 15 touch downs and 8 interceptions. If we look at these numbers orosz has more yards and a better percentage and noble has a better touchdown and interception totals. If you asked me who was the better of these two quarter backs I would not give a for sure answer. i would most likely say flip a coin because these two quarter backs are both big time winners. i think the playoff game that will be one of their last games this season will show their skills to the league on the big stage and the quarter back that lays the best and cleanest football will have his team come out on top. I don’t think defense will decide the winner. It will be the quarter backs.

2 Justin tuck and adamale Tomlinson are two of the best defensive ends in there division. These two are on the rivalry teams of the orange county otters and Arizona outlaws. They will be playing again today in there first playoff games against each other. The otters snuck a win in the last game but in this one the outlaws have a lot to lose and really want to win the game. I think this will be done by the team that plays the best defense. These two teams have lots of close games and things like interceptions and sacks decide. Tuck leads the entire league in sacks and has 16 and has the second most tackles for loss and has 17 he also has 1 fumble forced and 1 safety with 47 tackles. Tomlinson is doing pretty good but is behind some guys in the league Tomlinson has 10 sacks and 15 tackles for loss he also has 42 tackles in the season. These guys are both very good on defense and if they play good games and get sacks and tackles for loss there team should have the better chance of winning in the playoffs. Im ready for a good game of defense tonight.

3 Justin tuck and adamale Tomlinson are two of the best defensive ends in there division. These two are on the rivalry teams of the orange county otters and Arizona outlaws. They will be playing again today in there first playoff games against each other. The otters snuck a win in the last game but in this one the outlaws have a lot to lose and really want to win the game. I think this will be done by the team that plays the best defense. These two teams have lots of close games and things like interceptions and sacks decide. Tuck leads the entire league in sacks and has 16 and has the second most tackles for loss and has 17 he also has 1 fumble forced and 1 safety with 47 tackles. Tomlinson is doing pretty good but is behind some guys in the league Tomlinson has 10 sacks and 15 tackles for loss he also has 42 tackles in the season. These guys are both very good on defense and if they play good games and get sacks and tackles for loss there team should have the better chance of winning in the playoffs. Im ready for a good game of defense tonight.

4 The first match of the playoffs is the Arizona outlaws against the orange county otters. These are rivalry teams that have good defense and play rough style football. The teams have played a lot and the outlaws won all games but one. I think the outlaws old winning style will be on show here and they will win a close game for the first ever playoff win in the league against the otters. In the next game its hard to say who is the better of the two teams. The wraiths have the best receiver in the game in josh garden and a very good quarter back. The yeti have some good receivers and a good quarter back in noble. These teams also have good defenses with people like spearhead and saint. It should be an exciting game that I hope is not a blow out like some of the others we have seen. The yeti did win the last game but im sure the wraiths won some to. I say it’s a 50 to 50. Lastly we have the championship so lets say its outlaws and yeti because I picked a random team to face the outlaws. I think the outlaws will win here. They are a good team and when a good team plays well they will win. If noble throws a few interceptions the outlaws will be in a good position to definitely win. Plus the yeti line is much worse then the otters line so the outlaws defense like tuck, lee, blade, and ernston should be able to get in and get sacks. I say outlaws win here.

5 A good future talent in the league for season 2 is gregore Clegane. He is of the orange county otters and somehow the second best lineman in the whole league is going to be up for draft this year. That is crazy and just not fair. I think his impact in the playoffs will be seen like in the regular season where the orange county otters had two running backs that were in the top for rushing in the league. I say this goes on and the points the otters do score in the playoffs mostly will come on the rushing game. If the otters did not have gregore Clegane I think the rushing game for the running backs would be much harder because they wouldn’t have to all stars pushing guys out of the way. Sadly for most teams gregore has said he is only wanting to stay on the otters and keep the best line in the nsfl as one for the future. This means that even if you need a lineman for your team you cant take the best one in the draft and second best in the league but that doesn’t mean gregore isn’t a talent that will be impacting the playoffs and the future.

[BrokkLee]

http://i.imgur.com/dqPKjqX.jpg

[White Cornerback]

Offensive Comparison:
Josh Garden, the darling of the NSFL, the chosen one, the comeback kid. Garden will face off against Kendrick Hendrix. The Yellowknife Wraith's will play the Colorado Yeti tonight and what a game we are set for. These two top end receivers will battle it out in arguably the most important match up of their careers for the Glacies trophy. Taking a look back on the regular season, Garden is no doubt the favorite. He leads the league in receiving yards with 1178 compared to Hendrix's 868 yards , 8th in the league. Garden has 7 touchdowns, Hendrix has only 4. Many would argue that Garden's stats are inflated due to him being the standout go to receiver on the Wraith's ahead of QB turned WR Alexandre LeClair. While this may be true, Hendrix has done a great job this season, as he often shares snaps with both Law and Shaloiko. Garden seems to have the upper hand in stats and ability , a view shared by most experts. But if there's one thing we've learned about the NSFL , it's that there's no certainties in football. It will be an interesting match-up and dependent on the winner, Garden could possibly test free agency because of it.
Defensive Comparison:
Dermot Lavelle & Alex Hayden. Yellowknife Wraith's & Colorado Yeti. S1 draftee and S2 prospect. 18 passes defensed, 4 interceptions for both of these cornerstone cornerbacks for either franchise. Hayden finished this year with 63 tackles, compared to Lavelle's 57. Each has a single forced fumble, but only Lavelle has recovered one. These two men will be on opposite sides for the second week in a row when the Yeti face the Wraith's for the NSFC Glacies Trophy. We all know the media loves to hype up QB battles, RB tussles and WR skirmishes. Why? Because there's a general consensus that to the casual fan, defensive players are boring. It's all about the money plays. Both of these players can change a game, there's no doubt about that. Both are first team probowlers - or so we predict. Both players will be spectacular to watch on Friday night and either could make potentially a game winning play. Worth noting that Lavelle who is touted as an early round draft pick (potentially #1) will see this game as an extra chance to impress any critics. Lavelle will need to shut down the Yeti pass game, to bring his team any chance of progressing to the Ultimus cup.
Future Talent:
Gregor Clegane has been the name on many peoples lips , since he first entered the league this year as an S2 prospect. This mountain of a man (his words not mine) has managed 40 pancakes this year which sets him as the joint 12th best offensive lineman this year. This guy's not even a rookie yet! He's all set to go early in next years draft. Even with all of this buzz, he's not without his problems. Rumors have been circulating regarding mental issues, specifically Victorian esque language and speaking in third person. If this wasn't enough of a field day for the media, they weren't reading for the real scoop. Clegane called a press conference citing that he will ONLY play for Orange County if he's drafted in the first round and nobody else. But he will play for anybody if he's drafted later than that. This journalist firmly believes that Clegane is not only nervous regarding his ability to play consistently in the league, but he's called this media circus to take away any critics regarding his inability to prevent sacks in a 1 on 1 situation. Many have claimed it's due to his "loyalty", loyalty to who? A franchise which we have seen will ship anybody to any team in the league if they aren't happy. Loyalty doesn't exist in sports. Fact.
Bottom Third:
Why did Baltimore not hit the playoffs? Firstly, their passing game has not been great. They are ranked last in the league with only 2581 yards and 12 touchdowns. They are also dead last in rushing yards this season, a measly 1369 yards. Just off the basis of these two categories, it's clear to see that the offense is not there and after all you can't win a game if you don't put up points. Dead last in receiving yards was always going to be a given when you're last in passing yards. Taking a look at defense, the hawks have been abysmal. All season they've only gotten 36 sacks, that's 17 less than the nearest team who had 53. That team? The struggling San Jose Sabercats who have more than under performed this year. If at the start of the year you told me that Baltimore would only have 4 wins all season, I'd have laughed right in your face. 4 wins? A team with a front office so craft they could've negotiated a trade with the devil and became the rulers of hell. This coming year will be a great rebuild, the draft will be a godsend to Baltimore who hopefully can prevent this season becoming an ongoing theme of the franchise.
Offensive Comparison:

[Kendrick]

Written Points

Offensive Comparison: Arizona will take on Orange County in the Solis Trophy matchup this coming weekend. Taking a look into each teams rosters it's hard not to focus on the QB matchup that will occur. Vince Draxel will be handed the keys to the vehicle for the Outlaws and he will run up against Mike Boss for the Otters. Mike Boss had a really really bad game in Week 1 for the Otters in which he threw for 6 interceptions. We don't see that happening again this time around, but ti might look similar. Draxel is the best quarterback in the league when you look at the stats. Vince threw for 2858 yards on 444 attempts. That got him a total of 20 touchdowns and 14 interceptions. Now Draxel's stats were not that bad, but Boss's statistics were sub-par. He threw for 2334 yards on 352 attempts for a grand total of 11 touchdowns and 19 interceptions. These two are on opposite sides of the spectrum but it could come down to what the defensive side of the ball does. The Outlaws defense forces turnovers and doesn't give up yardage so they might pick Boss apart once again. Look for the advantage to be for the Outlaws.

Defensive Comparison: Jaylon Lee is the Outlaws minister of defence in their linebacking group. Lee was a force to be reckoned with this year and he showed he could lead a pretty stellar defensive squad. Lee will go toe-to-toe with the Otters big linebacker Arby Krimlaw. The Otters named Krimlaw "The Judge" as his last name is somewhat furious. This matchup will come down to who plugs up the gaps faster and tackles the running backs. Luckily for Lee he has the stats over Krimlaw but that doesn't always mean something when it comes to the final score. Lee's 121 tackles (3 for a loss) combined with his 4 sacks make him a good standout in the pass rush game. His one fumble recovery and one forced fumble aren't anything to laugh at either. Krimlaw's season went pretty well as well, with his 69 tackles. Krimlaw also added four sacks as well as five pass deflections in the pass coverage game. Both these guys are counted on in both the rushing game and the pass coverage areas. What these two do can dictate what the opposing quarterbacks do with their play calling in this heated matchup. Don't sleep on the entire Otters linebacking core though.

Bottom Third: The San Jose Sabrecats really wanted to make the playoffs this year obviously. Unfortunately it was the play of their quarterback that helped that not happen. Jamies Christ had a very terrible year with their passing attack. The young quarterback focused too much on crab legs at dinner and it took away from his play on the field. Jamies Christ's 1670 yards through the air were last in regards to starting quarterbacks statistics this season. Not only that he had only seven touchdowns this past season to go along with 10 interceptions. If San Jose wants to make the postseason next year they will need an upgrade in that position specifically. Baltimore didn't make the playoffs because Marcus Robinson just couldn't do it all for them. The young tailback grabbed 813 yards on 228 carries which was good for 3.6 yards per carry and only three touchdowns. Those numbers don't sit that badly among the other league rushers in that regard, but they aren't breakaway numbers. Robinson will look to try and build on this season and improve his vision for added carries next season. Baltimore as a team was the worst rushing team out there. Both these teams need to improve to make it next season.

Playoff Predictions: With the Colorado Yeti set to take on the Yellowknife Wraiths in the Glacies bowl this weekend and it looks to be a good matchup. Both these teams made the playoffs on the heels of their ballhawk defensive secondaries which both were causing fits for opposing quarterbacks. It looks like now this one might end up being a defensive showdown considering who is on either side of the ball here. Both their offenses weren't blow away fantastic, which means the defenses might be the ones on display in this showdown.

Orange County Otters and Arizona Outlaws will go toe to toe for the Solas trophy this weekend and this one might be a shootout in the old west. Arizona has the best offence and Orange County's is not too far behind them. We might see 40 points from both teams and who knows we might even get some overtime. These teams also don't like each other so you could see some bad blood during this game. After whistle hits and some blood coming from helmets won't be abnormal in this matchup. The west is hot, so we anticipate some cramps in the kick returners who don't get a lot of action.

Graphic Points

Championship Banner: Make a banner (sig style) featuring the MVP of the Championship Game and another player of your choice from the winning teams and S1 Champions or something similar to that. Must be completed after the Championship Game