Quote:7) Awards season is a big part of the offseason festivities. Take the stand, in 400 words or more, for one or more players that are not your own, and argue why they should receive awards glory. They can be your teammates or anyone in the league. How did their stats and on the field contribution contribute to their case this year?
Five words: Goat Tank for MVP Consideration. To be fair, I did cheat a little bit by abbreviating MVP, but lets talk about why Goat Tank, defensive tackle for the Myrtle Beach Buccaneers, deserves a serious look at most valuable player in the league. Traditionally, and it may be the case this year, most valuable player goes to an offensive player. In the DSFL this year, this may be no exception. Sam Howitzer and Zoe Watts have both had tremendous seasons and are probably on the short list for the award, but defensive players should receive attention as well. In the DSFL this year, three defensive players stand out over the rest of the pack. The aforementioned Goat Tank, Tijuana linebacker Adam Schell, and Royals linebacker Juan Domine. All three of them are stellar players who have had strong years, but I would consider Goat Tank as worth of extra consideration over these other contenders. First of all, lets get this out of the way: Domine and Schell have more stats than Goat Tank. They have more tackles, more sacks, and more impact in the coverage game. But the MVP award shouldn't just be about the player that accumulates the most stats, it should be the player with the biggest impact. The linebacker position in the DSFL racks stats up like no other position in the league. Defensive ends might only have three tackles in the game and call it successful, while even rookie linebackers can amass eleven in a game. The fact that Domine and Schell have all these stats is a product of the position, less so their pure nature as players. And to be fair, both Schell and Domine are very good. Domine was the number one pick in the ISFL draft last season, his legacy is secured. But could another, slightly worse player, be subbed in for Domine and produce at his level? Maybe. In the case of Domine, let's keep looking at the Royals. Fellow linebacker Busch Light is another veteran of comparable skill, but lets look at rookie L'Gazzy Burfict. Burfict is the third linebacker on the depth chart, but still managed to amass 72 tackles, a forced fumble, 5 sacks, and a pass defend. This compares to Domine's 93 tackles, no turnovers, 12 sacks and 7 pass defends. Obviously Domine is the better player and with the better stats, but if the Royals replaced Domine in their system with Burfict, how different would the production actually be? Enter our friend and subject: Goat Tank. The rookie defensive tackle contributed 59 tackles, 3 fumbles, 3 recovers, 7 sacks, and a safety. As mentioned, at a glance, this is less stats than Domine or Schell. However, not by that much. Yeah the tackles are way off, but a linebacker in the DSFL's job is to collect that garbage. Even rookies with minimal playing time like Burfict can amass large tackle numbers. However, look at the sacks. 7 to 12, not far off. Yes there's no pass defends, but I'm not going to penalize Goat Tank for not doing a job that isn't his. However, his contributions on the turnovers deserves special mention. A sack sets up second and long, a fumble or fumble recovery is the end of the drive, period. Once more, Goat Tank also has a safety to his name, which means he directly impacted the scoreboard in a way that Domine did not. Goat Tank's case gets even stronger when you look at the level of play from the average defensive tackle in the league. Roughly 35 tackles, a sack, and that's about it. Goat Tank amassed the stats of three defensive tackles himself in a rookie season. He brings such an overwhelming upgrade at the position, that he deserves special consideration from the Awards Committee when it comes to handing out hardware.
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Word count: 641Quote:8) It’s always important to look forward to the future. Examine your team, and in 400 words or more, talk about how they can improve themselves to get a stab at trophy contention next year. Are you loaded with draft capital for the next draft? Do you have plenty of cap space to sign free agents? Go through the roster and note the different strengths and weaknesses, and how you think those will change over the next few seasons. How should your team adapt?
So let's talk about the Portland Pythons and their needs next year. In the DSFL, teams can change wildly in between seasons. Its no surprise that the latest Ultimini featured two teams that changed the least and had strong players from the start in London and Norfolk. This makes the DSFL extremely interesting to watch between seasons, but it also means that the teams are constantly needing to be re-evaluated and re-tooled on the fly. Whenever judging a DSFL team, you first need to look at the departures to the ISFL. Those are going to be the talented difference makers on the team, the ones that carried the season before. First, let's get the obvious out of the way: Sam Howitzer. Howitzer has led the Pythons for the last few seasons, and had his rights recently traded to the new New York Silver Backs to potentially be the first starting quarterback of the franchise. There are rumors of a possible bridge quarterback to start before Howitzer, but it could be the case that Howitzer starts next season for his new ISFL. This immediately creates a need at quarterback for the Pythons, which they will address either through the draft or trade. You also have to look at wide receiver as well, with Korbin Brown most likely being called up to his team as well. Finally, you have safety Joel Drake, who may be called up as well. That's three team leaders, all who are in consideration for being the best at their position in the league. Quarterback, wide receiver, safety. And those are just the call ups that are most likely. There's also a handful of players that will be drafted into the ISFL year that may be called up as well, particularly at tight end, offensive line, and cornerback. The team is incredibly strong at running back, and tight end and the offensive line may be tremendous strengths depending on call ups. Defensively, the only notable defensive end is Etrigan Slayer, who will probably be back next year though he's one of the top ends in the league. Defensive tackle should be set, and cornerback can be a strength as well, as long as Foster does not get called up. The first round, and first overall pick, safety Davriel Lavigne should be back next season, but there is still a gap that needs to be filled. Quarterback, wide receiver, safety. The good news is, wide receiver is always an incredibly deep position in the DSFL draft, and that is the case again this season. At safety, there are already a few promising prospects, as well as different options for Portland to scheme their way through the gap. Quarterback, as always, will be the most difficult position to fill, especially if Howitzer isn't around next season. There's talent in the draft and elsewhere in the league, but it will be up to Portland to seize it and build off their recent successful season.
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