*The Otters Wish Farewell

timeconsumer · (This post was last modified: 09-01-2017, 03:04 PM by bovovovo.)

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After a roller-coaster ride of a season the Orange County Otters begrudgingly had to say goodbye to their three waiver wire pickups from season two, Ricardo Sandoval, Trey Willie, and Al Sims. Starting the season off at 1-3 the Otters appeared to be headed in a downward spiral from their high aspirations of season 1. Their defense was struggling to stop the opposition. Their offense was running stagnant. Their special teams was ineffective. They needed a jump-start in their strategy, in their locker room, and in their roster. These three men were the spark that they needed to help fill those needs.

Although many promising players appeared on the wire throughout the regular season the Otters help fast to their waiver selections when they could. They were looking for the guys who were the right fit. They found who they were looking for.

After being created almost simultaneously it's amazing that the Otters managed to snag both Ricardo Sandoval and Trey Willie at the same time. Sandoval was there to fill an instant need in the Otters struggling front four. His big play style may not have been what other teams were looking for, especially as other teams with offensive line needs were eyeing his brother Antonio who arrived at the same time. But the Otters knew talent and dedication when they saw it, and they jumped on Ricardo. He finished the season with 22 tackles, 1 tackle for a loss, and 2 sacks. Although the stat line doesn't appear flashy, he was a big piece for the Otters defense that allowed their heavy linebacker blitz to succeed. Ricardo is a beast waiting to be unleashed.

Trey Willie was overlooked by many teams for some of the same reasons. Some teams didn't need a third receiver. Some teams were turned off by his route running archetype when they are looking for big speed big strength kind of players. But with a quarterback like Mike Boss under center any receiver who works as hard as Trey Willie is going to find success, regardless of style. He quickly showed his abilities and became a huge underneath threat, creating mismatches for opposing linebackers as they tried to cover the elusive slot receiver. He finished the season with 24 catches for 261 yards and four tocuhdowns in 12 games. Off the field he quickly joined the world of finance and took the reins immediately. Trey Willie is a once in a lifetime type of player.

As the season end drew closer the Otters once again found themselves struggling in the kicker department. The had found a great talent in Christiano Ronaldo on season one waivers, but wrongly anticipated how far he would fall and missed him in the season two draft. They instead grabbed Joey Langford, who turned out to be more of the same that Orange County didn't need. When Al Sims showed up it was meant to be. After waiting the requisite 24 hours for waivers to clear they managed to snag Sims out of free agency. Although he hasn't put in the same amount of work as Willie or Sandoval, he proved to be a good option for the Otters and quickly became the starter.

As the season three draft approaches the Otters leadership is coming to terms that it might not have the opportunity to get their three rookies back and signed. And as much as this hurts to possibly see one of their family play for another team, the Otters are excited to see them find the success that they have worked so hard for. You will always be Otters to us.

@cosbornballboy @ItsJustBarry @Askin

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