12) It’s once again expansion season in the ISFL. Reflect on the additions of the New York Silverbacks and Berlin Fire Salamanders and discuss how these teams will affect the league. How do you see scheduling or playoff seeding potentially changing? How will these teams change the power balances in their respective conferences? How do you think each team should go about building their roster, whether it’s through the expansion draft, regular draft, or many seasons down the line?
As a new user, I am very excited that expansion is happening before my first ISFL season. It’s great to finally see a New York team, and I’m also a big fan of Berlin’s branding. I thought the connection between the Fire Salamander’s colors and Germany’s flag was some very creative branding. With two new teams, there’s a question if playoff seeding should change. I think the playoff seeding shouldn’t change. With 7 teams in each conference, having 3/7 teams make the playoff seems appropriate. Making the playoffs should be seen as a big accomplishment. As such, having <50% of teams making the playoffs makes going to the playoffs more impressive. Also, the % of teams making the playoffs will be very similar to how NFL playoff seeding works. In the NFL, 14/32 make the playoffs, aka ~44%. For the ISFL, 6/14 teams would make the playoffs, which is about ~43%.
The prospect of building a team from the ground up is a huge challenge for the expansion GMs. New York made what I consider a great trade by trading for QB Sam Howitzer. Howitzer is not only the highest TPE QB in his class, but he’s also the highest overall TPE player as well. As an S24 player, Howitzer will begin regressing in S31. With this mind, New York should build a roster that can be a title contender right before and during Howitzer’s peak. So, New York should try to amass as many players as possible that will peak alongside Howitzer. With how big the S25 draft is, I think it may be a good idea for New York to trade down to get as many picks as possible. Combine this with a solid expansion draft that focuses on perhaps S22 and later players, New York should be competitive within 3-4 seasons.
Unlike New York, Berlin still has a huge question mark at QB entering the draft. The expansion draft offers little long-term options at the positions. Likewise, the S25 draft only features two active QBs. The first, Jackie Daytona, is a GM and will not be an option for Berlin. The second, Matt Peterson, is not close to being a max earner and is far from being a viable option anytime soon. Unless Berlin trades for one of the S24 QBs, they may struggle to address this vital position. For all other positions, Berlin should focus on drafting young players in the expansion draft. If Berlin drafts as many S23 players as possible, they may be able to compete in 4-5 seasons if they draft a QB this year or get someone to position swap.
13) This task is exclusive to non-recreate rookies of the S24 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?
I answered this prompt last season when I had only been in the season for about a week. Since then, so much has happened. I got drafted to the Grey Ducks in the DSFL, I’ve been scouted for the ISFL, and I’ve met a ton of incredible people around the league. Draft night was a great experience and it’s amazing to know that so much work goes on behind the scenes to make it happen. When I got drafted, I had not spent much time in Minnesota’s locker room. I was a little disappointed since I didn’t know anyone on the team that well. In retrospect, I am so happy I got drafted by them. The GMs, scouts, former players, and fellow draftees have all been great! In terms of how our season went, it was disappointing to finish with a 5-9 record. However, with all the pieces we have, I know next season will go much better.
Going beyond my team, I love how the entire league is setup! The ISFL is my first sim league and it has exceeded all my expectations from when I first joined. Things like the media, the live broadcasts of the draft/games, and league twitter make the league more realistic. I have already written some media myself and have had a lot of fun! My first article was an introduction to my player and how he had almost quit football after the death of his mother. My second article was a 10 round DSFL mock draft. I was shocked at the response that this got. A lot of people commented and told me I did a good job. This is my favorite article I’ve written so far. After this, I wrote an article about Minnesota’s struggling passing attack. This was also fun to write and allowed me to share why I thought our team was struggling to pass.
Another form of league media that I enjoy a lot is podcasts. When I first joined the league, I listened to a couple of episodes of ISFL 20 for 20 by Bex. These were enjoyable to listen to and taught me a lot about the league! Recently, I’ve listened to a few episodes of The Sylphreni Show. These have also been great to listen to! I particularly enjoy the episodes where he brings on a DSFL or ISFL GM and talks with them. It’s both cool to get to know people around the league and the episodes themselves can be quite entertaining. Overall, I have a lot of respect for anyone who does league podcasts and I think podcasts add a lot to the league.
As a new user, I am very excited that expansion is happening before my first ISFL season. It’s great to finally see a New York team, and I’m also a big fan of Berlin’s branding. I thought the connection between the Fire Salamander’s colors and Germany’s flag was some very creative branding. With two new teams, there’s a question if playoff seeding should change. I think the playoff seeding shouldn’t change. With 7 teams in each conference, having 3/7 teams make the playoff seems appropriate. Making the playoffs should be seen as a big accomplishment. As such, having <50% of teams making the playoffs makes going to the playoffs more impressive. Also, the % of teams making the playoffs will be very similar to how NFL playoff seeding works. In the NFL, 14/32 make the playoffs, aka ~44%. For the ISFL, 6/14 teams would make the playoffs, which is about ~43%.
The prospect of building a team from the ground up is a huge challenge for the expansion GMs. New York made what I consider a great trade by trading for QB Sam Howitzer. Howitzer is not only the highest TPE QB in his class, but he’s also the highest overall TPE player as well. As an S24 player, Howitzer will begin regressing in S31. With this mind, New York should build a roster that can be a title contender right before and during Howitzer’s peak. So, New York should try to amass as many players as possible that will peak alongside Howitzer. With how big the S25 draft is, I think it may be a good idea for New York to trade down to get as many picks as possible. Combine this with a solid expansion draft that focuses on perhaps S22 and later players, New York should be competitive within 3-4 seasons.
Unlike New York, Berlin still has a huge question mark at QB entering the draft. The expansion draft offers little long-term options at the positions. Likewise, the S25 draft only features two active QBs. The first, Jackie Daytona, is a GM and will not be an option for Berlin. The second, Matt Peterson, is not close to being a max earner and is far from being a viable option anytime soon. Unless Berlin trades for one of the S24 QBs, they may struggle to address this vital position. For all other positions, Berlin should focus on drafting young players in the expansion draft. If Berlin drafts as many S23 players as possible, they may be able to compete in 4-5 seasons if they draft a QB this year or get someone to position swap.
13) This task is exclusive to non-recreate rookies of the S24 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?
I answered this prompt last season when I had only been in the season for about a week. Since then, so much has happened. I got drafted to the Grey Ducks in the DSFL, I’ve been scouted for the ISFL, and I’ve met a ton of incredible people around the league. Draft night was a great experience and it’s amazing to know that so much work goes on behind the scenes to make it happen. When I got drafted, I had not spent much time in Minnesota’s locker room. I was a little disappointed since I didn’t know anyone on the team that well. In retrospect, I am so happy I got drafted by them. The GMs, scouts, former players, and fellow draftees have all been great! In terms of how our season went, it was disappointing to finish with a 5-9 record. However, with all the pieces we have, I know next season will go much better.
Going beyond my team, I love how the entire league is setup! The ISFL is my first sim league and it has exceeded all my expectations from when I first joined. Things like the media, the live broadcasts of the draft/games, and league twitter make the league more realistic. I have already written some media myself and have had a lot of fun! My first article was an introduction to my player and how he had almost quit football after the death of his mother. My second article was a 10 round DSFL mock draft. I was shocked at the response that this got. A lot of people commented and told me I did a good job. This is my favorite article I’ve written so far. After this, I wrote an article about Minnesota’s struggling passing attack. This was also fun to write and allowed me to share why I thought our team was struggling to pass.
Another form of league media that I enjoy a lot is podcasts. When I first joined the league, I listened to a couple of episodes of ISFL 20 for 20 by Bex. These were enjoyable to listen to and taught me a lot about the league! Recently, I’ve listened to a few episodes of The Sylphreni Show. These have also been great to listen to! I particularly enjoy the episodes where he brings on a DSFL or ISFL GM and talks with them. It’s both cool to get to know people around the league and the episodes themselves can be quite entertaining. Overall, I have a lot of respect for anyone who does league podcasts and I think podcasts add a lot to the league.
![[Image: chamberssig.png]](https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/752966229312143453/761056067949690910/chamberssig.png)
