Playoff Predictions: Give a short write up on each of the playoff matches (including the championship game).
Let's get some predictions in here why don't we?
First off, a matchup of two quite different teams, Yellowknife vs Baltimore. In Yellowknife, we have a team that relies on its wide-open, dynamic offense to cover up a suspect defense. Clearly, the air attack, led by likely MVP Chris Orosz, is the focal point of the offense but former MVP Bubba Nuck does enough to keep the defenses honest. That isn't to say the defense isn't without its bright spots as they have had timely stops and turnovers at times of need. They face a team in Baltimore of quite a different nature. Baltimore relies on a strong defense, led by their fierce front seven, and their pounding rushing attack fronted by Darlane Farlane, a good bet to win OROY this year. My prediction is that the Wraiths air attack overcomes the average Baltimore secondary and leads them to victory. Wraiths 31 - 23 Hawks.
Second, we have two strong teams in the ASFC, the Outlaws and the Otters. The Outlaws are defined by their fierce, fast, and dynamic defense. The Outlaws defense is clearly in a class of its own and gives Arizona an advantage against anybody. This is good as their offense, outside of Reg Mackworthy is quite average. It's more than enough to be the class of the league though. The Otters have a strong D as well but are defined more by their gunslinging QB, Mike Boss. Boss is known for interceptions and stalling drives with them. Now, he still throws a lot but is not nearly as bad as last year or early this season. However, with Boss prone to interceptions and that being the Outlaws forte, I predict an Outlaws victory. Outlaws 24 - 17 Otters.
So in the championship game we have another Offense vs Defense matchup with the Outlaws facing the Wraiths. The Outlaws have spectacular outing behind their offense and the defense does enough to hold on. Wraiths 20 - 14 Outlaws.
Bottom Half: Write about why two of the four teams were not able to make the playoffs.
There are a couple of teams that are pretty obvious as to why they didn't make the playoffs, Legion and SabreCats. I won't touch those. I will however talk about the Liberty and Yeti.
So the Liberty are an easy case to analyze as they are an expansion team. So, even with the amount of activity and talent they have on their roster, they are still a very young team. Almost all of their impact players are S2 draftees and with that comes a lack of TPE compared to S1 player laden rosters. It's only natural that they wouldn't make the playoffs. However, the future looks extremely bright for this team as they did much better than expected and competed with every team out there. They are a team to look out for in S3.
The Yeti have a world class defense and a talented offense. However, there is a serious lack of talent on the OL, causing Logan Noble to run for his life on every passing down. Even the inept pass rush of the Wraiths were able to home in on Noble and bring him down. It's too bad as well, because the defense for the Yeti was top notch, generating one of the best point differentials in the league. Unfortunately this is the NSFL, and #AnyGivenSimday can rear its head at any moment, even with playoff tiebreakers. The Yeti didn't score as many points as the Wraiths and were left out in the cold. They'll be back next year though, so have no worries, even if the NSFC is easily the toughest division, the Yeti still look like the best of the bunch.
Future Talent: Write about which S3 waiver pickup will or did have the biggest impact in the playoffs.
The championship game is coming up and the Outlaws are trying to defend their championship against the surprise upstarts of Baltimore. Not many people expected Baltimore to be here when the season started, but everyone expected the Outlaws. This allows for an interesting storyline of new kids on the block and well travelled vets. However, there is a new kid on the block that plays for the Outlaws that just might be enough to to tip this game in their favor. That player is DT Godfrey King. King was picked up in the middle of the season and inserted into a starting DL role for the Outlaws. He isn't the most talented defender on a world class unit, but he is definitely a key component. King does the dirty work in the middle of the line with Arbin Asipi, and allows the stellar ends, Jayce Tuck and Dental Dam to rush the passer with abandon, knowing the middle of the line is shored up. They also allow the superstar linebackers, Ernston, Lee, and Luechly to flow to the ball freely without having to engage the big nasties on the OL. This lead to Lee leading the league in tackles and Ernston, and Luechly to create crazy impact plays. Whoever gets King in the draft will be getting a gem.
Defensive Comparison: Compare one defensive player from each team in a series.
The Hawks and Wraiths didn't play the most exciting game, but they sure did have some great defensive performances. Who am I comparing here? A.C. Hackett and Stephen Harrison of course. Both of these linebackers are among the best in the NFL by far. However, for both being top linebackers they really couldn't be more different in their approach. Harrison is the large, hulking, fast, bruising backer that wraps up the back and takes him down. Hackett is the more cerebral, quick twitch, tweener type of linebacker that spends as much time running sideline to sideline as he does matching up with receivers.
So who played better? Well, they basically played exactly the same. Harrison had 13 tackles with 1 TFL, showing his ability to get downfield in a hurry. Hackett had 12 tackles, 1 sack, 1 pass deflection, and a forced fumble. Hackett really showed his dynamic ability, creating negative plays and shutting down in coverage while still wracking up the tackles a linebacker needs to. So, who had the better game? I think Hackett made many more game changing plays than Harrison and showed his ability. However, to give Harrison a chance, he is playing on a much better defense and so there is much more of a chance for other players to get the plays over him, but in the end Hackett had the better night.
Playoff Series MVP: Choose an MVP for one of the playoff series and write about why you chose them.
With the Ultimus in the rear-view mirror let's discuss the MVP of that game. There was one guy who stepped up when it looked like they would only win 6 and then only win 13. He pushed them over the top to make them win by 27. This guy was clearly important, and it's none other than Kicker/Punter extraordinaire Cristiano Ronaldo!
Arizona really sucks, and without Cristiano there really wouldn't be a team. The offense was stopped a total of 10 times this game, pretty pathetic. But when you have the 'golden third leg' back there, nothing can stop you. Cristiano averaged a completely amazing 51 yards per punt, with a long of 64 yards. Do you know how long that is? That's over half the field! He's a field position demon! Not only does he change the field with his 'golden third leg' but he generates points with it too. He was a perfect 2/2 from extra point range, but come on even I could hit those. He also was a perfect 1/1 from less than 20 yards away. Did I say the Outlaws offense sucks? The real creme-de-la-creme emerging from that 'extension' out of Ronaldo is the perfect 4/4 from 30-39 yards. What a great man, a real just amazing human being, the full offense of Cristiano Ronaldo.
Let's get some predictions in here why don't we?
First off, a matchup of two quite different teams, Yellowknife vs Baltimore. In Yellowknife, we have a team that relies on its wide-open, dynamic offense to cover up a suspect defense. Clearly, the air attack, led by likely MVP Chris Orosz, is the focal point of the offense but former MVP Bubba Nuck does enough to keep the defenses honest. That isn't to say the defense isn't without its bright spots as they have had timely stops and turnovers at times of need. They face a team in Baltimore of quite a different nature. Baltimore relies on a strong defense, led by their fierce front seven, and their pounding rushing attack fronted by Darlane Farlane, a good bet to win OROY this year. My prediction is that the Wraiths air attack overcomes the average Baltimore secondary and leads them to victory. Wraiths 31 - 23 Hawks.
Second, we have two strong teams in the ASFC, the Outlaws and the Otters. The Outlaws are defined by their fierce, fast, and dynamic defense. The Outlaws defense is clearly in a class of its own and gives Arizona an advantage against anybody. This is good as their offense, outside of Reg Mackworthy is quite average. It's more than enough to be the class of the league though. The Otters have a strong D as well but are defined more by their gunslinging QB, Mike Boss. Boss is known for interceptions and stalling drives with them. Now, he still throws a lot but is not nearly as bad as last year or early this season. However, with Boss prone to interceptions and that being the Outlaws forte, I predict an Outlaws victory. Outlaws 24 - 17 Otters.
So in the championship game we have another Offense vs Defense matchup with the Outlaws facing the Wraiths. The Outlaws have spectacular outing behind their offense and the defense does enough to hold on. Wraiths 20 - 14 Outlaws.
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331 Words
Bottom Half: Write about why two of the four teams were not able to make the playoffs.
There are a couple of teams that are pretty obvious as to why they didn't make the playoffs, Legion and SabreCats. I won't touch those. I will however talk about the Liberty and Yeti.
So the Liberty are an easy case to analyze as they are an expansion team. So, even with the amount of activity and talent they have on their roster, they are still a very young team. Almost all of their impact players are S2 draftees and with that comes a lack of TPE compared to S1 player laden rosters. It's only natural that they wouldn't make the playoffs. However, the future looks extremely bright for this team as they did much better than expected and competed with every team out there. They are a team to look out for in S3.
The Yeti have a world class defense and a talented offense. However, there is a serious lack of talent on the OL, causing Logan Noble to run for his life on every passing down. Even the inept pass rush of the Wraiths were able to home in on Noble and bring him down. It's too bad as well, because the defense for the Yeti was top notch, generating one of the best point differentials in the league. Unfortunately this is the NSFL, and #AnyGivenSimday can rear its head at any moment, even with playoff tiebreakers. The Yeti didn't score as many points as the Wraiths and were left out in the cold. They'll be back next year though, so have no worries, even if the NSFC is easily the toughest division, the Yeti still look like the best of the bunch.
Code:
276 Words
Future Talent: Write about which S3 waiver pickup will or did have the biggest impact in the playoffs.
The championship game is coming up and the Outlaws are trying to defend their championship against the surprise upstarts of Baltimore. Not many people expected Baltimore to be here when the season started, but everyone expected the Outlaws. This allows for an interesting storyline of new kids on the block and well travelled vets. However, there is a new kid on the block that plays for the Outlaws that just might be enough to to tip this game in their favor. That player is DT Godfrey King. King was picked up in the middle of the season and inserted into a starting DL role for the Outlaws. He isn't the most talented defender on a world class unit, but he is definitely a key component. King does the dirty work in the middle of the line with Arbin Asipi, and allows the stellar ends, Jayce Tuck and Dental Dam to rush the passer with abandon, knowing the middle of the line is shored up. They also allow the superstar linebackers, Ernston, Lee, and Luechly to flow to the ball freely without having to engage the big nasties on the OL. This lead to Lee leading the league in tackles and Ernston, and Luechly to create crazy impact plays. Whoever gets King in the draft will be getting a gem.
Code:
219 Words
Defensive Comparison: Compare one defensive player from each team in a series.
The Hawks and Wraiths didn't play the most exciting game, but they sure did have some great defensive performances. Who am I comparing here? A.C. Hackett and Stephen Harrison of course. Both of these linebackers are among the best in the NFL by far. However, for both being top linebackers they really couldn't be more different in their approach. Harrison is the large, hulking, fast, bruising backer that wraps up the back and takes him down. Hackett is the more cerebral, quick twitch, tweener type of linebacker that spends as much time running sideline to sideline as he does matching up with receivers.
So who played better? Well, they basically played exactly the same. Harrison had 13 tackles with 1 TFL, showing his ability to get downfield in a hurry. Hackett had 12 tackles, 1 sack, 1 pass deflection, and a forced fumble. Hackett really showed his dynamic ability, creating negative plays and shutting down in coverage while still wracking up the tackles a linebacker needs to. So, who had the better game? I think Hackett made many more game changing plays than Harrison and showed his ability. However, to give Harrison a chance, he is playing on a much better defense and so there is much more of a chance for other players to get the plays over him, but in the end Hackett had the better night.
Code:
229 Words
Playoff Series MVP: Choose an MVP for one of the playoff series and write about why you chose them.
With the Ultimus in the rear-view mirror let's discuss the MVP of that game. There was one guy who stepped up when it looked like they would only win 6 and then only win 13. He pushed them over the top to make them win by 27. This guy was clearly important, and it's none other than Kicker/Punter extraordinaire Cristiano Ronaldo!
Arizona really sucks, and without Cristiano there really wouldn't be a team. The offense was stopped a total of 10 times this game, pretty pathetic. But when you have the 'golden third leg' back there, nothing can stop you. Cristiano averaged a completely amazing 51 yards per punt, with a long of 64 yards. Do you know how long that is? That's over half the field! He's a field position demon! Not only does he change the field with his 'golden third leg' but he generates points with it too. He was a perfect 2/2 from extra point range, but come on even I could hit those. He also was a perfect 1/1 from less than 20 yards away. Did I say the Outlaws offense sucks? The real creme-de-la-creme emerging from that 'extension' out of Ronaldo is the perfect 4/4 from 30-39 yards. What a great man, a real just amazing human being, the full offense of Cristiano Ronaldo.
Code:
220 Words