[MIJB#19]

General Manager Notes: A winning streak!
And we're still in last place, how about that.

Loyal readers of this journal might be familiair with my general disappointment in that the bye week in the regular season always comes early and rarely at around mid-season when a break is neat to recover some injuries. Things were different in week 5 of the 2103 season, kind of at least. After a hard fought battle in a windy and not so cold Oranje Haven, an influenza outbreak ran havoc in our locker room. No players were ruled out exactly, but more than a dozen felt woozy and wobbly throughout the week. At least that's what the team doctors made of it. But I don't count out the option for some of them wanting a bit of time off after an overtime game that was a torture for the home fans, until the game was won in overtime after all.

European Division Standings
1. Bordeaux 4-0
2. Paris 3-2
3. Gothenburg 3-2
4. Maassluis 2-2

Ok, let's backpaddle just a little bit here. Last time I wrote something about us, we were sitting at the same last place spot, but still winless and now after our first back-to-back wins since weeks 8 and 9 of the 2101 season, we're supposedly back into the mix? Yes, actually, we are back into it. But y'all know victories come by easily in Maassluis in the 2100s.

Week 3 was a game circled by not just the home fans, but also in particular by QB Winfred England. His previous team, the one that shipped him overseas to us, the Augusta Greenjackets, were coming to Oranje Haven. The neutral media proclaim the Augusta quarterback player of the game, but it was England who won the battle and outgained his successor 269 to 187 passing yards on 31 attempts each.

Besides England, the Merchantmen outgained the Greenjackets barely, but boosted by superior field position, a sign of life for the running game, while WR Vinny Buysse and WR Ed Schulz became welcome targets for England during a bit of a down game for WR Calvin Maxwell, the 17-7 victory wasn't quite underserved. Perhaps the visitors deserved a closer score, missing a couple of field goals to help sway the score into the margin it ended up in.

Well, we also know that kind of luck can even out sooner or later and such was the faith of K Oscar Harrison in the next home game against the San Antonio Tidal Force. While the offense was clicking and the defense doing its job, the points weren't always coming on the board. Turnovers hurt us a bit more and amidst all that, no less than 3 field goals didn't get between the Y-sign. Twice the snapper was called out by Harrison and the neutral journalists for the mishap. Things could have been saved by the end of regulation with another field goal attempt, but the staff decided to throw the ball on third down and rather than setting up the game winning field goal, an interception forced overtime. Our kickoff returner Calvin Maxwell and P Manuel Szymanski deserve the credit for nailing them deep and a catch and run from good old WR Ed Schulz, obviously thrown by QB Winfred England, ended the game: 30-24 Merchantmen.

The good news? Well, the winning streak, in spite of it coming at home, we should really cherish this. We'll already reach our home games mid-season point in week 6, so we're really, really, really going to need to keep this up. The bad news, as if that wasn't bad enough, the rest of the division is winning more games than we are.

Vinny Buysse appears to be the greatest beneficiary of the England arrival. With back to back 100-yard games, he actually lead the league in receiving yards after week 4. Calvin Maxwell isn't all that far behind though, while Ed Schulz is the other guy besides Maxwell making the touchdowns, they have 3 each. The RB Bennett Holmes and RB Van Goodwin duo is still struggling, but their combined production is getting better game by game. In front of them, I'm still puzzling with the interior linemen options. C Lincoln Stonge and G Corwin Driver are not impressing me much, which makes me want to try G Bruce Strong at the right guard spot, side by side with C Tevin Bratsch. And FB Damien Wanamaker is showing his face on the run blocking unit for a change. It's about time, kid.

All that said, I'm not quite optimistic about the team just yet. We got clobbered in Kansas, remember? Losing at home against Paris didn't just hurt, but losing divisional games at home is usually that one game you come short to make the playoffs. Maybe I should check the data on it some day, because I'm going completely anecdotal here...

The influenza outbreak has close to vanished. 5 players are still ailing, but I'm confident they'll get by. But as two of them are WR Calvin Maxwell and WR Ed Schulz, guess who might need to make the big catches again? WR Vinny Buysse, I suppose. And we'd applaud it, we have to take every win we can for now. Making the playoffs remains the goal, despite this young, green, non-cohesive bunch. It might still come, while we train up our rookies and other youngsters. DT Gabriel Morris is improving fast, while LB Gus Coleman is trying to stay in pace. A duo to hold onto. Maybe it's time to go old school and try to revive some class of 2064 magic with the 2066 playbook?