(S9) - Ultimus Week

[Titan127]

Robbed:

The Yellowknife Wraiths, without a doubt, are not the star-studded squad that we were a season ago. Regression, talent departing, and other factors meant that we simply did not have the same level of elite players that we did last year, when we won the Ultimus Trophy. We got off to a rough start, dropping three games to open the already disappointing season, and it looked like we were going to be the doormat of the league. However, we came back hard, fighting our way back into the edge of a playoff berth by emerging at 3-3 three weeks later. Our confidence was back, even if we still knew that we weren't the same squad as before. After getting up to 6-5 before week 11, we knew that, if we could bring down the also 6-5 Colorado Yeti, we had secured a playoff berth. Unfortunately, that didn't happen, and despite ending the season on a dominant, 52-23 victory over the liberty, we failed to secure a playoff spot. Why did we deserve one over the Yeti, you may ask? Well, for one, the Yeti might have gone 8-6, but it was with a bad point differential of 333-347. They were outscored by their opponents, in short. The Wraiths, meanwhile, clocked a 380-313 point differential, and even if you take away that week 14 blowout against Philly, it comes in at 326-289, still much better than that of the Yeti.

So, in short, while the Yeti may have emerged with the better record, Yellowknife was the better team all season, and was more deserving of a playoff berth.

New Talent:

The trade of Jayce Tuck to the New Orleans Second Line has already affected these playoffs, with the future hall of famer tallying three tackles, a sack, and a safety against the Orange County Otters in a 39-21 victory over the lesser squad. And, if my gut feeling is right, that will not be the end of his playoff production. I can easily see Tuck dominating in a championship appearance against the Hawks, despite their having the 2nd best pass protecting offensive line in the league this season. Tuck is an absolute monster, and I think playing against such a transcendent player at the position could give this solid unit some trouble. If he does well enough, it very well could swing the game in favor of New Orleans. And, of course, you could even go further to say that his leaving the Wraiths was in and of itself changing the playoff picture based on who made it into the tournament, but that's irrelevant at this point. I'm going to predict that Tuck ends the Ultimus with four tackles, maybe more, along with a pair of sacks. Even if he doesn't live up to my predictions, he has still proven to be an instrumental piece in the puzzle of that defense.

Playoff Series MVP: Conference Championship (ASFC) Borkus Maximus III

I've previously noted Tuck's dominant performance, but Borkus was the best player on the field in the NSFC Championship bout by a landslide. At first glance, Darren Smallwood had a fine performance, but at 3.3 yards per carry, that isn't enough to average a first down on three carries. It seems that the Otters took a gamble, and wanted to force the Secondline to beat them on the arm of Borkus. They did just that.

Borkus threw the ball a staggering 43 times for 24 completions and 344 yards, shredding the Orange county defense with four touchdown passes in that dominant outing. Four touchdown passes, in and of itself, is an incredible game, but taking into account that it was on 43 attempts, meaning that Borkus nearly had a TD percentage of ten percent, and it is more impressive. And we can't just forget about the 28 yard run he threw in there, just to add onto his already incredible performance. Now, I mentioned Smallwood earlier, and to his credit, he also managed to haul in three passes for thirty three yards, but that isn't enough to take this honor away from Borkus. The New Orleans quarterback had one hell of a game to guide his team to the Ultimus game.

Matchup Nightmares: Baltimore WRs/QB vs New Orleans Secondary

Baltimore had a solid passing attack this season, totaling an impressive 4,500 yards with 26 touchdowns and twelve picks, good for third in yards and fourth in touchdowns. However, Baltimore's passing attack had two guys who carried the load, WR Willie, who hauled in 80 catches for thirteen hundred yards and a solid eight touchdowns, and LeClair, who had 63 catches for just over nine hundred yards and three scores. Solid numbers, but Willie is the only standout player in this recieving core, going against a New Orleans secondary that's been tough all season. Four of the top ten interceptions leaders in the NSFL are on the Secondline defense, and those four alone combined for eighteen interceptions this season. That alone would have been second in the NSFL, but another four interceptions from other players make them the most ball-hawking unit in the NSFL. You can call me crazy, because Blocksdale, who played well all year, passed for just shy of 600 yards in his two contests against NO, and had four touchdowns to one interception, but I don't expect that trend to continue. This secondary is just itching for another shot at one of the league's better signal callers, and salivating over the opportunity to blanket an extremely top-heavy receiving core.