06-05-2020, 12:41 AM
(This post was last modified: 06-05-2020, 12:42 AM by juicychase.)
Tier 1
One thing that particularly interests me in the history of the NSFL is the trenches. I am always curious to see what sort of impact the offensive line and defensive line have on a gameplan. The most recent season (season 22) saw a bevy of talented defensive lineman who disrupted the line of scrimmage and made a massive impact on the effectiveness of their defense. The top 3 players for sacks in season 22 were a defensive tackle, a linebacker and another defensive tackle. G Kroustis from the Yellowknife Wraiths recorded a league-high 13 sacks to go along with a solid 54 tackles. M Virtanen was next up with 12 sacks at LB followed by another defensive tackle from Arizona in P Miller who also had 12 sacks. Sacks are only part of the story; tackles for loss can make just as much of an impact on a game and are an important measure of a defenses ability to get a team into 2nd and long and 3rd and long situations. Astonishingly, 3 rookies were top 3 in the league in tackles for loss in season 22. First up with a total of 20 tackles for loss in M Hole from Baltimore. Hole plays strongside defensive end and is regularly in the backfield to meet the ball carrier shortly after handoff. Next we have the rookie from San Jose, L Bass, who exploded on the scene with 18 tackles for loss in his rookie season. Bass gained fame when he spent half of his signing bonus on a custom pair of nail clippers with diamond-tipped cutting technology. Next up we have the underrated Simeon Works, rookie from the Chicago Butchers. Simeon had 17 tackles for loss on the season and really made a name for himself on the Butchers. It's no secret that the Butchers were in rebuild mode this offseason and they got an absolute steal in the 7th round with Simeon Works. Works was disappointed with his sack total this season - finishing with only 2 sacks -however, with Chicago consistently playing from behind all season, Works did not have much opportunity to rush the passer as the opposing offense was running the ball most of the time.
Taking a look at the offensive line, we can see why having chemistry and talent is important. the best lineman in the league last year played for the team with the best record, the Yellowknife Wraiths. L Forty-Two had a season-high 85 pancakes which was 19 more than the next offensive lineman! That is absolute dominance. Rarely has there been a more dominant tackle. This guy didn't even allow 1 sack on the season and played in all 13 games. Next up we have L Guard who provided 66 pancake blocks for his champion Colorado Yeti. He also did not allow a sack. I think these 2 aforementioned players are a great example of the importance of the offensive line. The Yeti and the Wraiths were 2 of the best teams last season and their offensive line was a huge part of that success. Bringing up the 3rd place position, G Rubbe from the New Orleans Secondline, also a strong team, finsihed with 65 pancakes and only allowed 1 sack on the entire season.
Jumping back to season 21, we see a bit of a shift in how teams pressure the quarterback. The top 3 players in terms of sacks on the season were all linebackers. M Berry recorded 16 sacks. M Vertanen with 13 and T Brackenridge had 12 sacks. Teams were utilizing zone blitzing more in season 22 and the speed of these linebackers helped them disrupt the passer and give the ball back to their offense. The defensive line definitely impacted the run game with all 3 of the league leaders in tackles for loss were defensive ends. S Bakshi for the Baltimore Hawks was dominant with 18 tackles for loss on the season. K Idlewyld for Austin had 15 tackles for loss and G ILove had 13 tackles for loss for the Philadelphia Liberty.
On the offensive side of the ball, we see the trend of top teams having top offensive lines continue. The champion New Orleans Secondline had G Rubbe who recorded 73 pancakes and did not allow a sack all season. M chungus from the Arizona Outlaws had 68 pancakes and allowed 1 sack. M van Buren had 67 pancakes and allowed 1 sack.
Finally, looking 3 years back at Season 20, we see a similar mix to Season 22. 1 Line Backer and 2 Defensive Tackles were the top 3 leader in sacks while the top 3 in tackles for loss were all defensive ends as well.
And once again we come to the top offensive line belonging to the champion Austin Copperheads. L A'barelyanything had 78 pancakes and only allowed 1 sack for the Copperheads. C MacDennis had 73 pancakes and allowed 4 sacks while M Mushing from the Wraiths had 67 Pancakes and allowed 1 sack.
So I guess if there is a conclusion to my look back on the last 3 years is, first and foremost, have a talented offensive line, then try to get the other team into 2nd and long and 3rd in long by tackling the ball carrier in the backfield and then finish off the drive with a sack on 3rd down.
One thing that particularly interests me in the history of the NSFL is the trenches. I am always curious to see what sort of impact the offensive line and defensive line have on a gameplan. The most recent season (season 22) saw a bevy of talented defensive lineman who disrupted the line of scrimmage and made a massive impact on the effectiveness of their defense. The top 3 players for sacks in season 22 were a defensive tackle, a linebacker and another defensive tackle. G Kroustis from the Yellowknife Wraiths recorded a league-high 13 sacks to go along with a solid 54 tackles. M Virtanen was next up with 12 sacks at LB followed by another defensive tackle from Arizona in P Miller who also had 12 sacks. Sacks are only part of the story; tackles for loss can make just as much of an impact on a game and are an important measure of a defenses ability to get a team into 2nd and long and 3rd and long situations. Astonishingly, 3 rookies were top 3 in the league in tackles for loss in season 22. First up with a total of 20 tackles for loss in M Hole from Baltimore. Hole plays strongside defensive end and is regularly in the backfield to meet the ball carrier shortly after handoff. Next we have the rookie from San Jose, L Bass, who exploded on the scene with 18 tackles for loss in his rookie season. Bass gained fame when he spent half of his signing bonus on a custom pair of nail clippers with diamond-tipped cutting technology. Next up we have the underrated Simeon Works, rookie from the Chicago Butchers. Simeon had 17 tackles for loss on the season and really made a name for himself on the Butchers. It's no secret that the Butchers were in rebuild mode this offseason and they got an absolute steal in the 7th round with Simeon Works. Works was disappointed with his sack total this season - finishing with only 2 sacks -however, with Chicago consistently playing from behind all season, Works did not have much opportunity to rush the passer as the opposing offense was running the ball most of the time.
Taking a look at the offensive line, we can see why having chemistry and talent is important. the best lineman in the league last year played for the team with the best record, the Yellowknife Wraiths. L Forty-Two had a season-high 85 pancakes which was 19 more than the next offensive lineman! That is absolute dominance. Rarely has there been a more dominant tackle. This guy didn't even allow 1 sack on the season and played in all 13 games. Next up we have L Guard who provided 66 pancake blocks for his champion Colorado Yeti. He also did not allow a sack. I think these 2 aforementioned players are a great example of the importance of the offensive line. The Yeti and the Wraiths were 2 of the best teams last season and their offensive line was a huge part of that success. Bringing up the 3rd place position, G Rubbe from the New Orleans Secondline, also a strong team, finsihed with 65 pancakes and only allowed 1 sack on the entire season.
Jumping back to season 21, we see a bit of a shift in how teams pressure the quarterback. The top 3 players in terms of sacks on the season were all linebackers. M Berry recorded 16 sacks. M Vertanen with 13 and T Brackenridge had 12 sacks. Teams were utilizing zone blitzing more in season 22 and the speed of these linebackers helped them disrupt the passer and give the ball back to their offense. The defensive line definitely impacted the run game with all 3 of the league leaders in tackles for loss were defensive ends. S Bakshi for the Baltimore Hawks was dominant with 18 tackles for loss on the season. K Idlewyld for Austin had 15 tackles for loss and G ILove had 13 tackles for loss for the Philadelphia Liberty.
On the offensive side of the ball, we see the trend of top teams having top offensive lines continue. The champion New Orleans Secondline had G Rubbe who recorded 73 pancakes and did not allow a sack all season. M chungus from the Arizona Outlaws had 68 pancakes and allowed 1 sack. M van Buren had 67 pancakes and allowed 1 sack.
Finally, looking 3 years back at Season 20, we see a similar mix to Season 22. 1 Line Backer and 2 Defensive Tackles were the top 3 leader in sacks while the top 3 in tackles for loss were all defensive ends as well.
And once again we come to the top offensive line belonging to the champion Austin Copperheads. L A'barelyanything had 78 pancakes and only allowed 1 sack for the Copperheads. C MacDennis had 73 pancakes and allowed 4 sacks while M Mushing from the Wraiths had 67 Pancakes and allowed 1 sack.
So I guess if there is a conclusion to my look back on the last 3 years is, first and foremost, have a talented offensive line, then try to get the other team into 2nd and long and 3rd in long by tackling the ball carrier in the backfield and then finish off the drive with a sack on 3rd down.
![[Image: SEFpvh0.jpg]](https://i.imgur.com/SEFpvh0.jpg)
