[MIJB#19]

75th season anniversary: 50 Legends, Bryson Chow era
To celebrate the 75th season of the Maassluis Merchantmen, I selected 50 players that I consider the legends of that time span from 2004 until the start of the 2078 season. I split the list of players into 5 groups, each being a time period of roughly 15 seasons. We'll continue with episode 4: the Bryson Chow period.

LB #54 Daniel "Double D" Duncan 2040-2049
Daniel Duncan, linebacker out of Penn State, was the Merchantmen's first round pick in the 2040 draft. Technically the second one that draft, taken one pick behind cornerback Mark Crum, but Duncan was taken with the pick corresponding to the IHOF Bowl losing team. Duncan was part of the rebuild of the defense, stepping in as the successor of still playing Fred McCorkle. Teaming op with Wesley Devine, for an exceptional all-around linebacker tandem. Duncan was the second linebacker on team with a last name starting with a D, which combined with his initials were an easy step to his nickname "Double D". His career began with a false start, missing most of his rookie campaign due to injuries. The trend continued, as he missed a total of 20 regular season games in the first 3 years, but in his first full year he broke out with a bang, becoming the 2043 Defensive Player of the Year. Duncan made 101 tackles, 7.0 sacks, 3 interceptions and defended 15 passes. In 2046 he co-lead the league with 8 interceptions. Battling injuries more often, Duncan decided to call it a game after 10 seasons. Despite that, he ranks 9th in tackles, 5th in interceptions and in defended passes for the Merchantmen.

DL #56 Dennis Lucas 2041-2050
Dennis Lucas was a free agent signing in the 2041 off-season. The Oakland Black Panthers decided to let him walk after his 3-year rookie contract, being unable to afford an extension in the final year. The Merchantmen snagged him up and made him their pass rush specialist extraordinary. Lucas played all over the defensive line, rarely listed as a starter, but usually playing his fair share of downs in relief of the tired starters. He was the Merchantmen sacks leader 5 times and earned an equal number of All-IHOF selections, albeit mostly from being listed as a defensive tackle, while seeing a good portion of his playing time at defensive end. Lucas couldn't be bothered and kept making sack after sack, retiring in the 2051 off-season with 100.0 sacks exactly, of which 85.0 were for the Merchantmen, at that time the highest figure in franchise history, surpassing the legendary Charles Gomez. Lucas' pass rush excellence impressed the pundits enough to get him inducted into the Hall of Fame.

WR #84 Scott Dupuis 2043-2053
Wide receiver Scott Dupuis joined the Merchantmen in the 2043 as a trade acquisition from the Texas Sharks for a future third round pick. Dupuis was seen as a backup in a crowded receivers corps, but also as the successor to kickoff return legend Jack Money. Dupuis was active, but barely on the field that first season in Maassluis. But from his second season and onwards, Dupuis was a key figure. Dupuis moved up to the WR3 role, but more importantly lived up to the expectations of becoming an elite kickoff return specialist. In 11 seasons with the Merchantmen, Dupuis scored a franchise high 7 kickoff return touchdowns and ranked first in kickoff return average 4 times, and 5 more times in the league's top three. With 32.0 yards per kickoff return, he ranks second for the Merchantmen and would have ranked equally high in league history if his Texas' numbers weren't included. With those added, he ranks 6th all-time in kickoff return average and tied for 11th in most kickoff return touchdowns.

QB #1 Bryson Chow 2045-2058
"With the first overall pick of the 2045 draft the Maassluis Merchantmen select quarterback Bryson Chow out of Illinois." He was listed at the top of the mock drafts all around, Chow was going to be a franchise quarterback, going to challenge Jackie Collier as the all-time best player in league history. The Merchantmen traded up from the #12 overall slot to get Chow. It quickly became apparent that Chow was a talented player, with the legs to potentially be a dual-threat quarterback, but not quite the all-time best player. He made good progress, but didn't have the talent Collier had. It didn't stop Chow from becoming the Merchantmen starter and remaining that for 12 seasons, leading them to the AOC Championship game twice. In 2057 he lost the starting role despite guiding his team to a 3-2 start. His last pass attempt for the Merchantmen came in garbage time. Chow retired with 192 starts for a 116-86-1 record, throwing for 43,006 yards and 321 touchdowns versus 184 interceptions, ranking second in yardage and touchdowns for the Merchantmen. The cream on the pie came in the 2063 off-season, when Chow against all odds was elected into the Hall of Fame.

C #79 Cristian Sampson 2047-2059
Center Cristian Sampson was just a fourth round draft pick for the Merchantmen in the 2047 draft, but after a season on the bench, Sampson saw the arrival of Norbert Talley as the new running back. As a true center, Sampson became the anchor of the run blocking unit. For 10 seasons straight, 30 key run blocks was his minimum, getting to 40+ six times. He peaked in 2053 with 52 key run blocks to co-lead the league, including 10 in a single game versus the Snapfinger Jazz, still a seemingly untouchable franchise record. Sampson was the All-IHOF center 3 times and with 395 key run blocks became the Merchantmen all-time leader, only recently being surpassed by Tom Anaya for second place. IHOF Bowl LIV was Sampson's last game as a starter, despite 6 key run blocks that day.

RB #25 Norbert Talley 2048-2055
Running back Norbert Talley was the #12 overall pick in the 2045 draft, originally the Maassluis Merchantmen's pick. The Merchantmen had traded the pick to the Snapfinger Jazz to be able to get quarterback Bryson Chow. In the 2048 off-season, Talley at last joined the Merchantmen after three decent, but non-spectacular seasons, sending the Jazz the Merchantmen 2049 first round pick. Talley joined a team of lowly drafted, yet coherent and talented guys, with a hard to guess game plan, but more importantly brought his own talent. Talley ran for 1,622 yards in his first season in Maassluis, but things only went up after that. In 2051 and 2053 he topped the 2,000-yard mark, scoring 15 and 17 touchdowns in the process. After just 1,249 in the 2055 season, Talley retired. For years he had battled with Oakland Black Panthers' Nolan Money for the rushing title: he finished second in 2049, 2050, first in 2051, second in 2052 behind Snapfinger's Fred Kwan, first in 2053 and fourth in 2054. Talley broke the all-time carries record with 3,882 and ranks second all-time with 17,399 rushing yards. Talley ranks first for the Merchantmen with 14,027 yards and 76 touchdowns rushing. He ranks fifth with 86 total touchdowns. Talley was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2060, whilst his jersey number 25 got retired by the Maassluis Merchantmen.

LT #64 Roman Torrez 2051-2063
Left tackle Roman Torrez was the Merchantmen's late second round pick in the 2051 draft. Joining an established line with Norbert Talley running from behind it, he had to work himself up in the ranks. He was a starter in his second season filling in for injured guard Sean Schwimmer, but finally became a full-time starter in his fourth season on team. Albeit being volatile in his performance, Torrez was usually a reliable body guard to the quarterbacks and also supported the running game. He peaked with 34 key run blocks and 3 sacks allowed in 2056, earning his only All-IHOF selection. He started at left tackle in IHOF Bowl LIV and LVII, being on the losing end both times.

CB #39 Everett Heiser 2052-2062
Cornerback Everett Heiser was the Merchantmen's second round pick in the 2052 draft. Without hesitation, the Merchantmen decided to throw Heiser into a starting role. It took him a couple of seasons to establish himself as the premier pass defender on the team, making 5 interceptions and 13 defended passes in the 2054 season. In 2057, a divisional round playoffs game at the Toronto Lake Monsters was his moment of fame, as Heiser intercepted 4 passes, being crucial in the 37-31 victory. In 2060 he returned an interception to seal a 34-17 victory against the Atlanta Vipers. He was a starter in IHOF Bowl LIV and LVII, combining for 0 catches allowed, but as the opposing teams threw away from him, the Merchantmen lost both times. After 11 seasons, Heiser retired with 36 interceptions and 112 defended passes on his resume, which rank him third (tied) and fourth respectively in Merchantmen history. With 7 interceptions in the playoffs, Heiser ranks tied for 5th in IHOF history.