02-14-2020, 07:08 AM
(This post was last modified: 02-16-2020, 02:54 PM by JKortesi81.)
Ladies and gentleman, welcome again to ESPNSFL. My name is Zerin Nandrews and this is episode number 19 of our “Thoroughfare to Glory” (TTG) saga, bringing you the life of Season 18 QB, the “Portuguese Phenom”, Jay “Football” Cue.
Regular season over and heartbreak for the Arizona Outlaws. They started the season very strong with 3 straight wins and finished on a high with 3 straight wins. But in the middle, only 1 win in 7 games costed them a place in the post season.
What is next for Jay Cue and the Outlaws?
Dirk - So Jay, after 3 long seasons in the DSFL your rookie season is over. What analysis do you make from it?
Jay - I have to say that even though it ended in heartbreak, it was still a very positive season. We can't forget that this season had a few particularities that could have affected our performance, but we managed to avoid that: rookie quarterback playing its first games in the NSFL and a GM change in the middle of the season. Many teams that did this had disastrous seasons that took a lot of time to recover from. Things happen in this league, some are really unpredictable and the only thing we can do is to try and play through them. And i think we did that successfully.
Dirk - Were the Outlaws expecting a 7-6 season?
Jay - We discussed it during pre season and looking at our schedule we were hoping to get 5 or 6 wins to be honest. 7 was a positive thing, over .500 seasons are nothing to be ashamed of, even though we could not get into the playoffs. Do not forget that the Outlaws finished 5-8 in Season 19, so even though we were kind of in rebuilding mode, we still improved.
Dirk - Does the fact that you finish 7-6 and are out of the post season leave you with a sour taste in your mouth?
Jay - Before the season started, we did not have the Playoffs in our minds. We knew that we were probably the 3rd or 4th best team in the ASFC and making it would be very hard. But looking into standings now, we obviously are sad that we missed it by this margin. If we look into all the games, we have a 7-6 record and 3 of those 6 losses were 1 possession games that could have gone either way. We only needed 1 of those games to be in our favor and we would be in the playoffs. Obviously we also beat other teams by one possession as well, but it is hard not to think about that pick i threw, or the tackle someone missed, or the penalty we got on an one possession game that could have changed our season completely. It is just one of those things that you think about and make different scenarios on our minds.
Dirk - Do you regret any play you have made this season, is that what you are saying?
Jay - Definitely not. Every play i make, even the bad ones, serves as a learning process. If i throw a pick or fumble the ball, i use that situation to get better and to try and make it so it does not happen again. My game evolves with good and bad plays.
Dirk - Talking now about your game, after week 3 we did an interview and your numbers were really good, helping the team to a 3-0 start. Since then, even though you had more losses than wins, your number are still pretty good. How do you feel about it?
Jay - I am really happy with my performance. We know, by looking at some of the QBs that played in the league, that rookie QBs tend to struggle in the NSFL. It is really not an abnormal thing in my opinion, you are young, your stats are still developing and you are facing teams with more experienced players that have almost double your abilities. So, it is not uncommon for them to crash and burn on their first games. I really worked on my game coming into the DSFL to get to this point and to try and be a game changer since day one. And i really feel like i accomplished that.
Dirk - What are the teams objectives for next season?
Jay - It is still early to have the objectives set on stone, still a lot of variables to decide that really influence our game, but if i am guessing, we will try to perform the same way we did this year. I feel other teams in our division are on different stages, where they can aim higher, so the playoffs might be a little bit out of our reach in Season 21 still. But we will see, some contract renegotiation's coming, free agency is almost upon us as well, some roster changes will definitely happen that might impact our objectives.
Dirk - Is the team going big in free agency?
Jay - Not that i know of. By some reason we are not looked at as a prime destination when free agents are looking for a team, i have no idea why to be honest. Some players really just look for immediate success i guess, but we are building something here for the future and I hope players everywhere can see that.
Dirk - Is that future success the main reason you re-signed with the Arizona Outlaws?
Jay - It is, no doubt about it. I was thinking that after this first season in the NSFL I should maybe go and test the waters in free agency, but i quickly forgot about that after buying and trusting the process in course here. No other team could give me what i have here, and it is not even a thing about money, i intend to take minimum contracts so that the team can improve other areas. I really hope we can continue with this steady improvement, either through the draft, free agency or both. I trust management to do what is best. Ultimate goal is to win titles, everyone buys into that.
Dirk - What about individual awards, are you looking to win some this season?
Jay - I really do not think about it, but i think i performed well enough to get 1 or 2 to be honest. I think i have a strong argument for the Rookie of the Year award, maybe even Offensive Player of the Year. I also think i should be in consideration for MVP, but the fact that we did not make it into the playoffs hurts my chances. There are a bunch of players that had great seasons and deserve awards, but playoff performances normally are taken very highly into account for awards.
Dirk - Well, thanks for taking the time to answer a few questions, we will see you again during the offseason.
Jay - Thanks Dirk, you are welcome anytime.
And this is all the time we have for today, stay tuned for more interviews and information on our TTG. This was Zerin Nandrews, for ESPNSFL at the Arizona Outlaws training facility, goodbye, see you next time.
Regular season over and heartbreak for the Arizona Outlaws. They started the season very strong with 3 straight wins and finished on a high with 3 straight wins. But in the middle, only 1 win in 7 games costed them a place in the post season.
What is next for Jay Cue and the Outlaws?
Dirk - So Jay, after 3 long seasons in the DSFL your rookie season is over. What analysis do you make from it?
Jay - I have to say that even though it ended in heartbreak, it was still a very positive season. We can't forget that this season had a few particularities that could have affected our performance, but we managed to avoid that: rookie quarterback playing its first games in the NSFL and a GM change in the middle of the season. Many teams that did this had disastrous seasons that took a lot of time to recover from. Things happen in this league, some are really unpredictable and the only thing we can do is to try and play through them. And i think we did that successfully.
Dirk - Were the Outlaws expecting a 7-6 season?
Jay - We discussed it during pre season and looking at our schedule we were hoping to get 5 or 6 wins to be honest. 7 was a positive thing, over .500 seasons are nothing to be ashamed of, even though we could not get into the playoffs. Do not forget that the Outlaws finished 5-8 in Season 19, so even though we were kind of in rebuilding mode, we still improved.
Dirk - Does the fact that you finish 7-6 and are out of the post season leave you with a sour taste in your mouth?
Jay - Before the season started, we did not have the Playoffs in our minds. We knew that we were probably the 3rd or 4th best team in the ASFC and making it would be very hard. But looking into standings now, we obviously are sad that we missed it by this margin. If we look into all the games, we have a 7-6 record and 3 of those 6 losses were 1 possession games that could have gone either way. We only needed 1 of those games to be in our favor and we would be in the playoffs. Obviously we also beat other teams by one possession as well, but it is hard not to think about that pick i threw, or the tackle someone missed, or the penalty we got on an one possession game that could have changed our season completely. It is just one of those things that you think about and make different scenarios on our minds.
Dirk - Do you regret any play you have made this season, is that what you are saying?
Jay - Definitely not. Every play i make, even the bad ones, serves as a learning process. If i throw a pick or fumble the ball, i use that situation to get better and to try and make it so it does not happen again. My game evolves with good and bad plays.
Dirk - Talking now about your game, after week 3 we did an interview and your numbers were really good, helping the team to a 3-0 start. Since then, even though you had more losses than wins, your number are still pretty good. How do you feel about it?
Jay - I am really happy with my performance. We know, by looking at some of the QBs that played in the league, that rookie QBs tend to struggle in the NSFL. It is really not an abnormal thing in my opinion, you are young, your stats are still developing and you are facing teams with more experienced players that have almost double your abilities. So, it is not uncommon for them to crash and burn on their first games. I really worked on my game coming into the DSFL to get to this point and to try and be a game changer since day one. And i really feel like i accomplished that.
Dirk - What are the teams objectives for next season?
Jay - It is still early to have the objectives set on stone, still a lot of variables to decide that really influence our game, but if i am guessing, we will try to perform the same way we did this year. I feel other teams in our division are on different stages, where they can aim higher, so the playoffs might be a little bit out of our reach in Season 21 still. But we will see, some contract renegotiation's coming, free agency is almost upon us as well, some roster changes will definitely happen that might impact our objectives.
Dirk - Is the team going big in free agency?
Jay - Not that i know of. By some reason we are not looked at as a prime destination when free agents are looking for a team, i have no idea why to be honest. Some players really just look for immediate success i guess, but we are building something here for the future and I hope players everywhere can see that.
Dirk - Is that future success the main reason you re-signed with the Arizona Outlaws?
Jay - It is, no doubt about it. I was thinking that after this first season in the NSFL I should maybe go and test the waters in free agency, but i quickly forgot about that after buying and trusting the process in course here. No other team could give me what i have here, and it is not even a thing about money, i intend to take minimum contracts so that the team can improve other areas. I really hope we can continue with this steady improvement, either through the draft, free agency or both. I trust management to do what is best. Ultimate goal is to win titles, everyone buys into that.
Dirk - What about individual awards, are you looking to win some this season?
Jay - I really do not think about it, but i think i performed well enough to get 1 or 2 to be honest. I think i have a strong argument for the Rookie of the Year award, maybe even Offensive Player of the Year. I also think i should be in consideration for MVP, but the fact that we did not make it into the playoffs hurts my chances. There are a bunch of players that had great seasons and deserve awards, but playoff performances normally are taken very highly into account for awards.
Dirk - Well, thanks for taking the time to answer a few questions, we will see you again during the offseason.
Jay - Thanks Dirk, you are welcome anytime.
And this is all the time we have for today, stay tuned for more interviews and information on our TTG. This was Zerin Nandrews, for ESPNSFL at the Arizona Outlaws training facility, goodbye, see you next time.
![[Image: 5ID1oHm.png]](https://i.imgur.com/5ID1oHm.png)
