Running to the Hall

[Crim]

Surely you're not doing this again!!!

?

[stkelly52]

Originally Posted by Crim

Surely you're not doing this again!!!

?

When it comes down to a field goal in the closing seconds, how can I not?

[stkelly52]

Right down the middle. We lose 27-25. Our season is over. What a frustrating way to lose the game especially considering how many first and goals went without TDs.



Leland finished the game with decent stats, 156 yards on 32 carries, but Leland's greatest strength is his ability to find the end zone in short yardage situations. Today he could not do that. Eight times he carried the ball inside the 5 yard line and he could not get the ball in the end zone once. When you lose a game by 2 you can't help but think that had be been able to punch it in once we would have come away with the victory. But alas it was not to be.

[stkelly52]

Season Conclusion.

For the fourth consecutive year the Jacksonville Jaguars make it to the Super Bowl. Unlike last year where their kicker was missed all of his field goal attempts, this year the same kicker made all five of his attempts, including the game winner in late if the fourth quarter. Jacksonville has now won 3 of the last four Super Bowls.

Season Awards
Five players are named to the All-Pro team. Center Courtney Falk, OT Jerry Blanchard and DT Thurman Sharpton are all named to the first team. Guard Sammy Delgado is named to the second team, as is Leland Nixon. And, for the first time in his career, Leland Nixon is named League MVP.

It is hard to come away from this season thinking of it as a failure. In many ways it was the best season under my watch. But the reality is that we failed to reach our goals. Perhaps I just set the goals to high. Perhaps I just expected too much out of the Leland. In the end it does not matter. I still feel defeated. But the beauty of it is that I do not have to dwell on this season for long. I can click on the "end Season" button and get to work on another year.

One more note on our season, for the first time in 19 years, this team has earned a profit. We pull in just short of $3.5 million.

[stkelly52]

2030

This will be a season of major upheaval. It was one thing to shake up our staff like we did last year, but this year we have 9 starters who all will be free agents. Cap wise we would be fine to bring most of them back, but my owner is still worried about returning to the days of consistently losing $50 million. We must be careful with how we spend the money, which means most of these guys will be gone. Perhaps the player that we will miss the most will be QB Toby Glenn. In his three seasons with us he has really had a knack of pulling us through when we couldn't count on Nixon. I would love to keep him around, but he will be a bit on the pricy side. I drafted a replacement for him last season, so I hope that he is ready to step in an get things done for us this year.

For my franchise tag, I decide to keep around my DT. Tito Marroso. I drafted this guy in the fourth round 5 seasons ago. Now he is one of the better DTs in the game. It will be a little pricy for me to keep him, but I do think that I can pull it off.

[stkelly52]

Free agency
Among the FAs that I lose this season is my LT Casey Shea. This is the guy that I franchised last season. Because there was no suitable replacement for him in free agency or the draft I wound up just paying him franchise pay. This year I am allowing him to go look at other offers. I instead will look in other directions for my line. I have my eyes on Mo Newton. He is a bit on the older side, but I still think that he can be a very reliable starter and would be a step up from Shea. Of course, it would cost us, meaning he would likely be the only major FA that I would pursue this year.

We were thrilled when we Mo announced that he had selected Atlanta to be his new home. It will cost us nearly $34 million, but we do believe that he will be worth it. We also add a few other minor free agents here and there, mostly resigning our own players. None of them are big name players, and none of them command big paychecks. Just one, a TE, will likely be a starter this year.

We make our way through a rather uneventful draft and training camp. I head into the preseason not knowing what to think about this team. Overall, we are a rather solid lot. I have very good starters at most of my positions, and I think that I should be in decent shape. However, my starting QB has only thrown 13 passes in his 4 year career, and he has thrown none in the last 4 seasons. I am not sure how well he will fair now that he is our field general.

Goals
We had a great year last season, but we have taken a step backwards this year. This is a rebuilding season. Our QB has some potential, and I think that he can lead us to a Super Bowl, but I don't think that he is there yet. This year should be able to give him that experience under his belt that will guide us in the years to come. But that will hurt us for this year. Frankly, I would be happy with 9 wins and a trip to the Wild Card Round of the playoffs. I find it hard to bring myself to honestly believe that we can do much better.

For Leland I continue to expect great things from him. Our line is as strong as it has ever been. Not only did we get a step up at LT, but our 3rd year backup guard had a breakout camp and he is now ready to fill in should we need him to cover for any injuries. The only think that could hold Leland back is that I think that he will get less carries this year because we will trail more often and will need him less to run out the clock. Nevertheless, I want to see Nixon run for 2000 yards once again, and I would like to see him again top 15 TDs all while maintaining a 4.0 yard average.

[stkelly52]

Preseason,
We are all set for our first preseason game. Mostly we want to see how well our team works together, and how well some of our backup linemen fair trying to block for Nixon. They don't do a good enough job, and less than 5 minutes into the game Leland is injured. His clavicle is broken and Leland will not be seeing any further action during the preseason. We are hopeful that he will be able to return for the regular season opener. We make it through the preseason with a 1-3 record.

Week 1
Carolina @ Atlanta
Leland is not 100%, but we are going to let him start. He will see rather limited action though as we do not want him to reaggravate that injury.
We let Nixon take about half of our carries and he does a serviceable job. In 24 carries he picks up 93 yards and 1 TD. Not a great day by any stretch of the imagination, but he didn't aggravate his injury any. But I digress. Our Defense stepped up big time today. We shut out the Panthers while scoring 20 points. If our defense is able to play this way then I think we will have a better season than I had hoped.

Week 2
Atlanta 1-0 @ Cleveland 0-1
Leland is still not 100%, but he is close and will return to full duty today.
We put up a valiant effort, refusing to give up no matter how hopeless the situation appeared. Late in the fourth quarter we overcame a 15 point deficit to tie the game with 2 minutes left to play. The Browns responded with a 1:59 drive that ended with a field goal. We lose 24-17. Leland had another subpar day, running for just 91 yards in 24 carries, and he was held out of the end zone. Leland's two fumbles really did not help out matters at all for us.

We are also not helped by a few injuries to our starters. Our LT and Center are both out, and our stud DT will also miss a few weeks.

[Crim]

*ping*



Crim

[stkelly52]

Sorry that it has been a while without a post. I have been sick. Tonight there will be an update.

[Crim]

No problem, we understand, take all the time you need. Your health is paramount, of course.

grumble grumble slacker grumble grrr grumble


Crim the imPatient

[stkelly52]

Week 3
Atlanta 1-1 @ Green Bay 1-1
Last year the Packers were one of the top teams in the league. They are certain to be another tough match for us this season. At least Leland is back to 100%, so I expect great things from him.

We started the game strong, but the Pack's QB, Michael Jordan, lit us up in the second half. We gave up 27 unanswered points and lost the game 15-30.
Nixon did well for himself, running for 136 yards and a TD in 30 carries. And this is with two starters out on the line. If he can keep this up we should be able to bounce back from this loss. Of course Nixon did have another fumble, and those never help our cause.

Week 4
Atlanta 1-2 @ Philadelphia 1-4
We have struggled the last two weeks, losing in heartbreaking fashion both times. We need to win this game or I fear that the dam will break and we will lose all confidence and hope.
Most of the first half was two solid defenses refusing to give up much ground to each other. Our longest drive was a 6 play 16 yard drive. The Eagles were able to move the ball easily enough, we just kept taking the ball away from then after long drives. Two turnovers and a missed field goal kept the score knotted up until the closing moments of the first half. That is when our offence finally got into gear. We used 8 plays to move the ball 59 yards for the first score of the game. The TD came on a Nixon 3 yard dive. The second half started of much the same way with another turnover, which we turned into another TD.

Our defense failed a bit in the final quarter, but we held on to win this game 17-12. Leland had another decent afternoon. He picked up 122 yards and a TD on 30 carries. His lack of fumbles was also crucial in this close game. Key to this win was our defense who forced 4 turnovers in the game.

We suffered a few more minor injuries to starters, but I am hoping that they can tough it out.

1/4 season review
We are a fourth of the way through the year and I am really not too surprised at where we are. I think that we are about a .500 club, and that is right where we are at. Injuries are taking their toll on my line, and that hurts Leland's ability to run with the ball. And yet, he has climbed to second in the League with 442 yards rushing. He has 3 TDs and is averaging 4.09 yards per carry.
While we do not throw the ball particularly often, when we do go to the air we have been surprisingly effective. We have also been one of the top teams in third down conversions.
Our defense is solid, though not outstanding. We are fifth in scoring D, and we do quite well against the run, and decently defending the pass.

[stkelly52]

Week 5
Washington 3-1 @ Atlanta 2-2
Washington is doing surprisingly well this year. They really do not have a great team but so far they have been winning.
We took an early lead in the game and from then on our strategy was to have Leland run out the clock. We gave him the ball 39 times. He did not wind up with a good average, but he did pick up a lot of yards, 148 to be exact. While Nixon was held out of the end zone, he did what needed to be done for us to take the win, 23-21. Were it not for poor place kicking the lead would have been more secure, but a win is a win. I should note that Nixon had a fumble, but we recovered the ball.

Week 6
Tampa 0-5 @ Atlanta 3-2
We may be having an off season this year, but Tampa has fallen off the face of the earth. Tampa is our most hated rival, and for the last four years we have split the season series with them. I desire to see that change this year.
This was about as easy of a game as we could hope for. We jumped out to a 28-0 lead in the first half, and then just coasted to a 30-12 win. Leland had a solid game, in spite of the fact that he fumbled the ball yet again. He finished the game with 32 carries for 128 yards and 1 TD, as well as two catches for 23 yards and another TD.

Week 7
Atlanta 4-2 @ Carolina 1-5
This is another game that we should win. At the bottom of our division is a couple of the worst teams in organized sports, and this is good for our post season hopes.
How do you stop Atlanta? Stop Leland Nixon. It is as easy as that. It does not matter how bad your team is, if they can find a way to neutralize Nixon, the game is as good as won. The Panthers were able to do just that today. It was close though. With under three minutes left in the game Nixon scored from 2 yards out, making the score 12-14. We had to go for two, but Nixon was stopped short of the goal line. And that was the final score.
Leland averaged just 3 yards per carry, picking up a mere 88 yards in 29 carries, but at least he didn't fumble.
To make matters worse, another member of our O line is down with an injury. It will be 5 weeks before he is 100%.

[stkelly52]

Week 8
BYE
We can use the break. With a few key players down, this gives us a chance to get healthy, or at least not get any worse.

Week 9
Atlanta 4-3 @ Dallas 4-4
Two weeks ago, Dallas gave the Jets their first win of the season. Last week they were the first team to beat the Saints. Which team will show up this week? Nobody knows. They are a very average team. If they have a weakness it is defending the pass, but we will not likely be able to exploit this.

We win this game relatively easily, largely thanks to great Defense. Nixon ran for 121 yards, but he only averaged 3 yards per carry and was held out of the end zone. To make matters worse, another lineman was hurt. Next week 4 of our 5 starting linemen will be playing through the pain of injuries. Final 17-3.

Mid Season review.
Sitting at 5-3 we are in solid contention for the wild card spot in the playoffs. We will have trouble winning the division this year as the Jonesboro Saints have gone from being one of the worst teams in the League to being one of the best. We are two games behind them, however we still have to play them twice. If we can sweep the season series then we are in the drivers seat. But then again, they just might sweep us.

Leland is clearly having a down year. Yes he is leading the league in rushing yards with 927, but his average of just 3.79 is the lowest he has had in years. Also, Leland is well known for his ability to find the end zone. While 5 TDs isn't bad for a RB at this point in the year it is well below his 15+ average. At this rate, Leland will not reach any of his preseason goals (2000 yards, 15 TD and a 4.0 average).

[stkelly52]

Week 10
New York 4-4 @ Atlanta 5-3
The Giants have a very good QB and a solid RB, and that is it. This is a team that is in serious cap trouble and is paying for it by not being able to field a decent team. But their QB has been playing well enough to keep them in most of their games and has made this team a team that you must be wary of.\

Our QB had about as bad of a day as you can have without throwing an INT. 4 of 23 for 32 yards. Just 32 yards passing in the whole game! With our passing game shut down we turned to Leland and he was able to shoulder the load for us. He carried 45 times for 178 yards, but he was held out of the end zone. Nixon did fumble once, but we were able to recover, averting any damage. In the end our defense held strong again leading us to a close 13-7 victory.

Week 11
Atlanta 6-3 @ Jonesboro Saints 8-1
We are taking on the top team in the NFL, and not many people are giving us much hope. But we believe that, even though the Saints have a stellar QB and the best defense in the league, we can beat them. After all, we have won the last 9 meetings between our two teams.

For the first time in a long time, Leland Nixon was quite effective running the ball. He finished the game with a 4.3 yard average and 2 TDs (his first multi TD game in the last 17 games). Unfortunately we could not contain the Saints for four full quarters. We were looking like we were in complete control of the game until the final 6:39. Leading the game 21-10 we punted on fourth down and 5, that punt was returned 63 yards for a TD, making it 17-21. Then on our next drive, on first down, instead of going to a reliable and solid Leland Nixon, we threw the ball, and it was picked off and returned 38 yards for another TD to give them a 24-21 lead. In less than 30 seconds we went from having a good grasp on the game to trailing by 4. Three minutes later the Saints scored another TD. We responded with a TD with just 1:00 left on the clock, and the 2 point conversion made it a 3 point game. When we recovered the onside kick I thought we might just pull this one out, but we threw a pick on first down again, and the game was over, 32-29. At least there were no new injuries and next week our line with be 100%.

Career Milestone
Today, Leland surpassed Willie Vernon to become the 10th leading rusher in NFL history with 12092 yards.

[stkelly52]

Week 12
Atlanta 6-4 @ Pittsburgh 5-4-1
For some reason the Stealers are 6 point favorites. Sure we are on the road, but we have trouble accepting that we can be 6 point underdogs. The Stealers are led by a QB who should be considered one of the best in the league, but his stats do not match his red bars. After 8 seasons, he has become a slightly better than average QB.
Leland has another solid showing, averaging 5.7 yards per carry, but for the second week in a row, we choose to give him the ball less. Instead we went more to the air than I would like and 3 picks really hurt us. Nevertheless, we were still in the game right up until we could not convert a 4th and 10 from the 45 yard line in the final minute of regulation. We fall 24-21.

Career Milestone
Leland is well known for finding that way to fight his way into the end zone from one yard out. So it was fitting today that it was on a 1 yard dive over the pile that Leland became just the 2nd player in NFL history to score 100 career TDs. It took Leland less than 7 years to reach this milestone; the other player who did this took 11 years to achieve the same results.

Week 13
San Francisco 4-7 @ Atlanta 6-5
After losing two weeks in a row we know that we need to change our fortune. At 6-5 we are tied for the final playoff spot, and we can't afford to let this slip away from us. The 49ers are a team that we should be able to beat. They are particularly week against the run, so I am hoping that Nixon can continue to pick up good yardage.

For the third week in a row, Leland Nixon is able to average over 4 yards per carry. Once again, Leland does the majority of the work for us, as he was given the ball 43 times. He finished the game with 188 yards, 1 TD and the MVP award. His great play helped spark us for two fourth quarter TDs. This gave us the 20-10 victory.

3/4 season review
With just four games left, there is basically no hope that we can win the NFC South. The Saints are sitting at 10-2 and it is highly unlikely that we will be able to catch them. With a 7-5 record we are in good shape for holding the final wild card spot. We have a one game lead on Seattle, Arizona, Dallas and Chicago, and with a 7-3 record in the NFC, we hold the tiebreaker over all of them. We are currently 20th in the league in scoring, but our defense has been doing a great job and has made us the #3 team in points allowed.

As for Leland Nixon, thanks to great games in the last three weeks, he is back on track to reach his preseason goals. He has 1524 yards rushing (which is 200 yards more than anyone in the league), and he has a 4.03 yard average. Nixon has scored 9 TDs, which means that reaching the preseason goal of 15 is going to be very difficult, but it is possible. Now on the down side, Leland has 9 fumbles this year. That is as many as he had all season. If he fumbles 4 more times then it will match his career high in fumbles.

[stkelly52]

Week 14
Cincinnati 5-6-1 @ Atlanta 7-5
Cincinnati started out the year doing great. They were 5-1 until they lost their starting QB for the year. It was a devastating loss that the Bengals have just not been able to recover from.
Something happened to our offence today, maybe it was something in the food that we ate the day before, but it killed us today. Nixon fumbled the ball 2 times, and our QB threw 5 interceptions. For some reason we abandoned our typical offence and went to the air 45 times, only completing 10 passes. When Leland held onto the ball, he did well averaging 4.4 yards per carry, and he scored once from 6 yards out. But when you have 7 turnovers, there is no way to win. The final score was 24-13. To make matters worse, 5 starters are injured in the game. They will all play next week, but they will not be 100%.

Week 15
Atlanta 7-6 @ Tampa Bay 4-9
Things have not been going our way lately. We have lost 3 of our last 4 games, in spite of decent games by Nixon. The odds makers are not putting much faith in our ability to turn things around as we are underdogs to the lowly Bucs. We do have to take Tampa seriously. They have suddenly turned things around and have now won three of their last four games. There is not much hope that they can reach the playoffs, but they would find some measure of success if they were able to defeat their biggest rivals…us.

We had absolutely no run defense in today. We give up 242 yards rushing. We fell behind quickly and we could never recover. Nixon did average 4 yards a carry, but he didn't have many attempts, and finished the game with just 72 yards and no TDs. Of course another fumble didn't help our cause at all as we are embarrassed 31-10. With the loss we are now one game behind the Bears and the Seahawks for the final playoff spot. We are going to need to turn things around if we are going to have any hope of seeing the playoffs this year.

[stkelly52]

Week 16
Baltimore 8-6 @ Atlanta 7-7
If Nixon is going to run for 2000 yards this year he is going to need to average 160 yards for the final two games of the year. That is not unheard of, but it will not be easy. But if there is a team that we should be able to run against, it is the Ravens. No other team in the league gives up more yards per carry than does Baltimore. Baltimore does not pick up many yards either running the ball or passing the ball. They are also in the bottom half in passing. And yet if the season were to end today they would be in the playoffs. Why have they been winning? Turnovers. They have been on the receiving end of 30 turnovers while only giving up 5 this year. That has been what has kept them in games and it is something that we need to concern ourselves with. Leland has been having trouble holding the ball lately, and our QB has a knack for throwing the ball to the wrong team.

We were facing a must win situation, and Leland Nixon came through in the pinch. 41 carries for 180 yards and 2 TD helped us secure a 24-13 victory. And facing the team that forces more fumbles than any other, Nixon made sure that he kept a firm grip on the ball. To top it all off, our defense recovered two fumbles, against the team that had yet to fumble the ball this year.

Now for the bad news. Our starting RG has a torn lateral knee ligament, and is done for the season. Sammy Delgado has been an All-Pro each of the last 5 seasons, and losing him is devastating to our hopes. In addition, we lose our starting TE for the rest of the year as well.

Week 17
Jonesboro Saints 12-3 @ Atlanta 8-7
We come into the final week of the regular season, and things do not look good for us. Leland needs 140 yards to reach 2000. Again, this will not be easy, but it is doable. It would take a very poor performance to have him drop below 4 yards per carry. And for his final goal of 15 TDs, well he would need 3. It is not unheard of, and in fact he did it twice last season, but I wouldn't count on it. As for my team goal, 9 wins and a wild card birth, it is possible, but I will need a lot of help. Both Chicago and Seattle would need to lose (though they are both playing tough opponents), and then I think that I have the tiebreaker, based on Conference record. But I would have to beat the team with the best record in the NFL, the Jonesboro Saints.

This was a spectacular game. Leland ran very well picking up 126 yards and a TD on 31 carries. When we weren't running, our QB was throwing perfect strikes. Meanwhile the Saints' offence was clicking on all cylinders as well. Throughout the game we continued to switch who had the lead. Early in the fourth quarter the Saints kicked a field goal to tie the game. We answered back with a very long drive that ended in a field goal of our own to take the lead. The Saints then could not get their 54 yard field goal attempt to pass through the uprights, and we took the victory. Leland was named MVP, it was not 160 yards or 3 TDs, but the win was more important. Now if only Chicago and Seattle can lose.

[stkelly52]

We watch in disgust and disappointment as the Bears upset the Packers, and the Seahawks crush the Rams. Our season is officially over. It is interesting that going into the final week the Bears were leading in the Wildcard race, but with Seattle's win, they moved into first in the NFC West, while the Rams took over the Wild Card slot, leaving Chicago out of the playoffs in spite of a great closing to the season. There are many who wonder if anyone would have been able to beat this team. We will never know.

As for us, we do not make the post season for the first time since I took over the team, and it is the first time in 15 years that a team led by me has failed to make the playoffs. I knew that this would be a rebuilding year, but I still thought that we would reach the playoffs. Things will have to change between now and next season.

Leland finished the year with 487 attempts for 1986 yards and 13 TDs, all of which led the league. He also had 8 catches for 70 yards and a TD. He had the dubious distinction of being second in the league in fumbles with 12.

For those of you who are interested; Jacksonville, in spite of losing 8 games this season, stepped it up in the post season and reached the Super Bowl for the fifth consecutive year. Once there, they crushed the 15-3 Washington Redskins 30-13. This means that they have won 4 of the past 5 Super Bowls. I have never seen a computer run team come even close to this kind of dominance for so long. I am in awe.

Two of my linemen are named to the 2nd team all pro, Sammy Delgado (for the 6th consecutive year) and Jerry Blanchard (for the 4th consecutive year), as well as my DT Tito Marroso.

[stkelly52]

2031
As we head into another season, I think that we are going to be in a better situation than we were last year. We lose two starters on defense to retirement, and four other starters are free agents. One of those free agents is my superstar RT Jerry Blanchard. He is widely considered to be the best tackle in the NFL. There is no way that we can afford to let him go, so we slap the franchise tag on Jerry. We are going to have to negotiate a long term deal with him before the year starts, but for the time being, we cannot afford to let any of our key linemen go. Other than Jerry, none of the players were stars, and I don't think that it will be a very big loss.

I make it through free agency with out any major news. I made an effort to pick up a few new starters, but I was not able to make any significant new signings. I wind up resigning two of my former starter who tried to test the free agent market.
The draft is one of my best ever. While I don't pick up anyone who looks to be a superstar, I do have some breakout players. Of the 7 players that I drafted, 5 look like they will develop into decent starters in the next couple of years. In the final free agency period I pick up a new QB to lead my team. I am reunited with the greatest QB in league history, Moe Swift. Swift is the QB who led my former team to the Super Bowl. He has thrown for over 60,000 yards and 441 TDs. He 95.7 career QB rating is the best in the game. While his ratings have declined over the years, his stats have not. Last year he threw for 4200 yards and 25 TD with a QB rating of 101.9. He is a big step up for us in the QB position and I think that this will be the final piece that will return us to the playoffs.

In the preseason I go 3-1, mostly using backups. As we prepare for our first game of the season, I trim down our roster to just 53 players. Mostly I let go of a few projects that I had hoped might blossom over the years. They don't work out and they are sent packing. Leland decided to end his holdout and has returned to camp.

As I head into the regular season I have much more confidence than I had last year. I have not made many changes, but I really don’t think that I needed a lot to make this team into one of the better teams in the league. The addition of Gearhart, as well as another year of maturing for some of my key players should be worth at least another win, if not two.

So my goals for the year:
Win 10 games and reach the post season
Have Leland Nixon run for 2000 yards and 15 TDs
Have Nixon average 4 yards per carry.

I think that all of these should be very attainable. The one big question to me is Nixon's rushing average. His average has declined each of the past 3 years, and only once in his career has he run for more yards than he did the previous season. Nevertheless, I believe.

[stkelly52]

Week 1
Tampa Bay @ Atlanta
We start off the season with our arch rivals coming into town. Had we beaten them late last year we would have been the in the playoffs. Now it is time for us to exact our revenge.

It was a rather poor start to the season for us. After jumping out to a 13-0 lead, our defense collapsed and gave up 3 unanswered TDs, two in the final 10 minutes. Leland started of the year on a down note, only averaging 3.6 yards per carry, picking up 95 yards and no TDs. One very disheartening stat: we forced 7 fumbles, but we were unable to recover any of them. You would think that we could get one of those, it might have made all the difference, but we start out the year with a 21-13 loss. Injuries mount a we are faced with losing a Safety, and TE for the year. We also have a few other minor injuries. If the season continues in this vain, we will be in trouble.

Week 2
Atlanta 0-1 @ Houston 1-0
Houston is quite healthy, with only one starter out for the game. They look to be susceptible against the run, so I am hopeful that Nixon will bounce back for his poor game last week. By all accounts our defense should be able to shut them down, as they do not look to have a strong offence.

When I check the box scores, the first thing that I look at is the total rushing yards. When I saw that we had 189 rushing yards I was thinking that Nixon must have come through for us. I was wrong. In spite of having 38 carries, Nixon had just 91 yards rushing. That is an average of just 2.3 yards per carry. Leland did score our only TD of the day, so it was not a total wasted day for him. Our two fullbacks came through where Nixon did not and they picked up the big yards that we needed to win the game. In addition our defense played stellar. We gave up just 152 yards, and only 5 first downs all game long. The only reason why the Texans got on the scoreboard at all was because they were able to return a kickoff. This was just a great day for our defense.

On the injury front, things look bleak. Mo Newton, our all pro LT is tore up his ACL. He will need surgery and is out for the season, and he may be done for his career.

[stkelly52]

Week 3.
Green Bay 2-0 @ Atlanta 1-1
Green Bay looks to be a solid team. They have a great QB in Michael Jordan, who has consistently had a 90+ QB rating since he came to the Packers. He will truly test my defense that played so well last week. The Packers have a well balanced defense, playing well against both the run and the pass. This is a team that should be in the post season this year.

Leland finally had that game that he was looking for. Let's hope that this is just the beginning of many more yet to come this year. Leland ran for 167 yards and a TD in 38 carries as we crushed the Packers 27-3. This time both our offence and defense came through for us. We held the shut out until the closing minutes of the game when Atlanta was finally able to get a drive of longer than 5 plays. But the token field goal against our second team defense did little to dishearten us. We win this one 27-3. Nixon did fumble for the first time this year, but we recovered the ball. No harm done.

Week 4
Seattle 2-1 @ Atlanta 2-1
The Seahawks are led by a solid QB/RB tandem. If you try to focus on stopping the pass they will kill you with the run. If you try to stop the run the will burn you through the air. The one weakness they have is run defense, so I am trusting that Leland will be able to exploit this for us.

With the exception of one man, no one in league history has ever had more then 45 carries in a game. Today, Leland did just that for the fourth time in his career, with 51 carries. Once we got out to a decent lead we were content to let Nixon run the ball and kill the clock. He finished the game with his fourth highest rushing total of his career, 220 yards. The odd thing is that he was unable to score during the game. Each time that we got close to the end zone, we ran play action passes for the score. But the most important thing is the score. We hold off a late fourth quarter comeback attempt to win 27-17.

1/4 season review
With 25% of the season past, things are looking well for the team. We are tied with Atlanta for the division crown. We are 12th in scoring, 16th in rushing average, and 13th in passing average. We are incredible at third down conversions, leading the league with 56.6%. We have given up 5 turnovers, which is 16th. But the real strength of our team has been our defense. We have the top defense against the run, and we are in the top 5 against the pass. We lead the league on 3rd down, only allowing conversions 29.2% of the time. And we lead in points allowed, with 12.0. If our defense can keep this up, there may be no stopping us.

As for Leland, he is struggling with his average. He only has 3.74 yards per carry, and he only has two TDs. He will really need to pick up the pace to reach his preseason goals. He does lead the NFL in rushing yards with 573, well on pace to reach 2000 yards again.

[stkelly52]

Week 5
BYE
I use the week off to rest up and heal a few of my injured players. This is a good time for us to have a break. We use it well and we are in a much better situation as far as injuries.

Week 6
Atlanta 3-1 @ Arizona 4-1
We head into a surprisingly cool Arizona, to take on a solid team. Arizona has been able to win their 3 of their four games by scores of three points or less. They just seem to know how pull out victories in the end.

Arizona's has a knack for winning close games, so we make sure that this isn't a close game. Our defense steps up and completely eliminates the Cardinals' offence. We record a shutout while our offence puts up a comfortable 23 points. Leland was again held under 4 yards per carry, and out of the end zone. He finished the game with 126 yards and 34 carries.

Week 7
Carolina 3-3 @ Atlanta 4-1
Carolina has an undrafted rookie as their starting QB. While he has led the team to three victories, those have been in spite of him, rather than because of him. With our great defense, there is no reason why we should not completely shut down this Panther offence. All we need is a little offence to just put a few points on the board. That should not be too hard either as they have one of the worst run defenses in the NFL.

Facing a defense like the Panthers' we felt our best bet was to run the ball until the proved that they could stop Leland. They never did.
Nixon finished the game with 40 carries, 185 yards, 1 TD, and the MVP award. As I predicted our defense was able to completely neutralize Carolina. We gave up a late TD when the game was already decided, but otherwise we were flawless. Final score, 24-7.

Now for the bad news: three more players were hurt in the contest. While these are not long term injuries, they are not good. We now have 12 players who are hurt. Unfortunately, we don't get another week off this season. This will not affect any of my starters. I am not confident enough with any of their backups to turn to them, so I will take the risk and press on.

[stkelly52]

Week 8
Atlanta 5-1 @ San Francisco 6-1
Last week we had to face off against a cupcake of a team. We will not have that luxury this week. No one has scored as many points as have the 49ers this year. One of the big keys is the fact that have more takeaways and less giveaways than any other team. Even though Leland has only had one fumble this year, this is still a concern. They also have a great passing attack that will surly test my secondary. On defense, San Francisco holds strong against the run, so it may be difficult for Leland to average 4 yards.

The 'Niners may be the highest scoring team in the League, but we have the stingiest defense, and they held strong again. We gave up just two field goals, while scoring three TDs on offence. Nixon was again the MVP with 134 yards and 2 TDs on 35 carries. The average is a bit low, but he came through in the clutch, particularly on 3rd down, with several big conversions. Also, Leland was able to avoid any fumbles again this year, which is a feat against a team that averages to recoveries per game.

Week 9
St. Louis 1-7 @ Atlanta 6-1
When you see a team with a record of 1-7, you assume that they are a really bad team. The thing is that as I look at the players, and even the stats that the Rams have put up, they don't look like they should be this bad. At the beginning of the season, I would have thought that they had the kind of players that made for a team that could be found in the first round of the playoffs. For this reason we are not taking this game lightly. We know that this is still a good team and we do not want to give them any opportunity to topple us.

Once again, we have to give big props to our defense, who holds the Rams under 200 yards of offence, and only allows 3 points. Meanwhile our injured QB has a great day and leads us to an easy victory, 24-3. Nixon again failed to average 4 yards per carry. He did put up another 155 yards though, as well as his 6th TD of the year. That TD was a major career milestone for Leland. With that run, Leland surpasses Nicky Dexter for the most Rushing TDs in a career with 111. It was great for him to be able to break the record at home in front of all of his fans.

Mid Season review.
We are half way through the season, and we are having a great season. Our defense is incredible. Right now we are giving up an average of 8 points per game. The league's all time record was the Cincinnati Bengals of 2013 who gave up 11.4. If we can keep up this pace we would best that by over 3 points per game! On offence, we are about average. We are 13th in scoring, fifth in 3rd down conversions, 3rd in giveaways, and first in turnover margin. With a 7-1 record we are comfortably in the lead in the NFC south. Tampa is 2 games back, but we do have a crucial game against them in Florida next week. If we win that it will all but seal up the division title. We also hold the best record in the league, as the only team with just one loss.

Leland is having a solid season, though not as good as I would have liked.
His 3.85 yards average is a good amount below the 4 yards that I had hoped he would be able to attain. My goal was for him to score 15 TDs this season, but with only 6 so far, that seems unlikely. And yet, it is not too late for him to obtain both of these marks. He is will on pace to eclipse 2000 yards for the fourth time in his career. He leads the league with 1173 yards and 304 carries. That is over 100 carries more than anyone else in the league. He sure seems to be getting the ball a lot lately. One great number for Leland has been his fumbles. He has dropped the ball just one time this year. That is a great number for any QB, much less one who is known for having the dropsy's.

Now that Leland holds the record for most career TDs, the next major record that he may break would be most attempts in a career. He needs 514 more carries to reach this. Assuming Leland stays healthy, he should break this record next season.

[stkelly52]

OK, you may have noticed that my posts have slowed down in recent weeks. I am getting ready to move and I have been very busy with packing and stuff. I have decided that I am going to take a two week break from this dynasty until I have unpacked from my move and gotten things put away a bit. But do not fret this dynasty will continue.

[stkelly52]

Thank you for your patience. I am back and ready to fill you all in on how things are going for our valient hero.



Week 10
Atlanta 7-1 @ Tampa Bay 5-3
We face off against our arch nemesis, the Buccaneers. Tampa is struggling to stay in the playoff race. If the season were to end today, they would be the second wild card team. However, if they lose today, it is unlikely that they will be in that position. In our earlier match up this season, we suffered our only loss to Tampa. We do not desire to see that again.
Tampa is very healthy. They have quite a few players with minor bumps and bruises, but nothing that will keep any of them out of the game for any significant period of time. Tampa is led by a QB who does not put up big numbers, but he certainly knows how to win. He has a winning percentage over 66 %, and he is one of the most popular players in the league. Tampa relies heavily on the pass so we will need to stop him if we want to win this game.

Leland had a phenomenal game. In 43 carries he ran for 196 yards and a TD. While Nixon did have his first fumble in a long time, it mattered little as the Bucs were not able to do anything with it. We were walking all over Tampa through the first three quarters. The Score was 24-10 as we went into the final quarter. That is when everything fell apart. Tampa put together a solid drive and cut the lead to just 7. Four plays latter, our WR fumbled the ball and gave it to Tampa at the 30 yard line. Our defense held, but Tampa was still able to kick a field goal. On our last drive of the game we managed to eat up all but 49 seconds off of the clock. We punted away and forced Tampa to start at the 20. Four plays, three completions, including a 39 yard strike as time expired, was what the Buccaneers were able to put together in those final seconds. That 39 yard pass put the ball in the end zone and gave Tampa a 27-24 victory. This just makes me sick.

To make matters worse, our All-pro center tore up his knee. This looks like it will end Courtney Falk's career. The thing that really makes me upset about this is that he was having the best season of his career, and it has been a great career. There is much speculation that Falk may see his named added to the Hall of Fame in a few years. But that will have to wait.

Week 11
Jonesboro 3-6 @ Atlanta 7-2
The Saints were awesome last season, but it looks like that was just a one year fluke. Now they are right back where they belong, in the bottom of the heap. They have a great QB, but that is about all that they have going for them. With many injuries things are looking even worse now than they were a few weeks ago.

As I suspected, this game was not difficult for us, or for Leland. In 49 carries Nixon had 194 yards rushing and another TD. Our defense eliminated all threats that the Saints tried to mount, and when the final gun sounded we had the 30-7 on our hands. This victory came with a price though. Sammy Delgado, our 7 time all-pro guard, hurt his knee and will be out for the next few weeks. He should be back to 100% by the start of the post season.

[stkelly52]

Week 12
Atlanta 8-2 @ Tennessee 7-3
Tennessee is trying to become the first team in 9 years, other than Jacksonville, to win the AFC South. They currently have a 1 game lead over the Jags. Much as we have this year, Tennessee wins with defense. They don't give up many points, so this should be a low scoring affair.

There were many stars in this game. While we gave up more points than I would have liked, our defense came up big when it counted. We gave up 17 points, but we forced key turnovers, two inside their 20 that we were able to turn into TDs and two inside our 20 that prevented a Titan score. Nixon was named MVP thanks to his 181 yards and 1 TD in 42 carries. We win this one 27-17.

More bad news for my offensive line. Two more guards go down with injuries. This means that 4 of my opening day starters on the line are now out for the next few weeks. I suppose that I should mention that my TE is out as well. It will be tough to patch together an effective line over the next few weeks for Leland to run behind.

Week 13
Atlanta 9-2 @ Dallas 4-7
Dallas is having a very disappointing season. After having winning seasons each of the past three years, and having one of the better QBs in the league, they were expected to contend for a playoff spot this year. Instead they are cellar dwellers, largely thanks to one of the most porous defenses in the league. They have a terrible time stopping the run, though without my crew of linemen, I may be in trouble anyway.

Even without a line to support him, Leland was able to get the job done (in spite of a few fumbles). He picked up 177 yards on 45 carries as we crushed the Cowboys 24-7. And, there were no new injuries as well. All in all it was a great week for us.

3/4 season review.
With four games still left to play, we have already attained one of my preseason goals, to win 10 games. I had no idea that things would be going this well for me this year, particularly on the defensive side of things. I do not see any realistic scenario that would keep us out of the playoff. However there is one issue that we need to be aware of. We hold just a one game lead over Tampa, and as you may recall, Tampa swept us, giving us our only two losses of the year. If we lose one more game, and Tampa continues to win, then we would find ourselves in the wild card spot instead of having the home field throughout the playoffs.

My Goals for Leland included running for 2000 yards. Leland needs just 79 more yards to do just that. In fact, Nixon has more yards rushing than the team does passing. As for my other goals for Nixon, I don't think that they are going to happen. He currently has a 3.97 yard average. It is possible that he could increase that by .03, but with my offensive line in the condition that it is, I don't know how likely that is. I also sought for him to score 15 TDs. He currently has just 9. Again it is possible for him to score 6 more in 4 games, but it is not something that I would count on. Leland is now up to 5 fumbles this season. Still far below what people thought that he would cough up, but he has fumbled in several consecutive games. I am hoping that this is not a trend that he has restarted.

I must also spend a moment talking about my defense. We are still allowing the fewest points of any team in history (thought that figure is creeping upwards). We allow an average of just 61.7 yards rushing per game (which is far and away the best in history), and we have the 5th best pass defense in the league. In addition, we have more takeaways (29) than any other team while at the same time having the fewest giveaways (15). This has been the key to our success this year.

[stkelly52]

Week 14
Jacksonville 8-4 @ Atlanta 10-2
After starting the season 2-4 everyone thought that Jacksonville's reign of dominance was finally over. But since then they have strung together 6 consecutive wins and are now in command of the AFC south. Jacksonville has build their whole offence around the arm of the incomparable Howie Davidson. They have the #5 passing offence in the country, while at the same time, having the 31st ranked running attack. Their one sided approach has worked beautifully for them this year and our defense has its work cut out for themselves if they want to win today. On the defensive side of things, we match up really well. Jacksonville gives up 4.63 yards per carry, which is among the worst in the league. But their style of play forces other teams to have to go to the air, and when they do, the Panthers eliminate them, with some of the best pass defenders playing today.

Well Jacksonville found a way to slow down Leland. He managed just 2.2 yards per carry, though he did make his way into the end zone twice. What Jacksonville was not able to do was find a solution for our defense. Were it not for a 75 yard TD pass as the final gun sounded, the Jags would have had just 3 points. Instead they finish with 10 compared to our 17. With this win, we have officially clinched a playoff spot

Week 15
Atlanta 11-2 @ Jonesboro 4-9
The Saints are a poor team. We crushed them 4 weeks ago, and we are favored by 11, but Jonesboro's wins have come against some impressive competition this year. We must be careful to not fall into the same pit as those other teams that lost to them. This is a team that can come from out of nowhere and bite you.

Nixon wasn't particularly effective running the ball, averaging just 3.3 yards per carry, but he had 40 carries in the game. Our offence seemed content to do just good enough to get by as our defense completely manhandled the Saints at every turn. For the second time this year we shut out an opponent 10-0.

Several new minor injuries strike, but nothing that will miss any post season time. They will sit out for the rest of the regular season though.

[stkelly52]

Week 16
Indianapolis 6-8 @ Atlanta 12-2
We are sitting a lot of starters for this game, trying to get everyone 100% for the post season. But at the same time, Tampa is still just one game back, and we do not want to give up any ground to them. We are wondering how well we can hold up against the Colts.

This was not a good game for Leland. This makes three weeks in a row that Leland is less than effective carrying the ball. Again he picked up a lot of yards, but only because he was given a lot of carries. He did sore the go ahead TD in the closing minutes of the game though, and so you can't complain too much. Nevertheless, I expect more then 2.6 yards per carry out of Nixon. We win the game 21-14.

In other news, Tampa wins again bringing them to 12-3. We need to win next week to assure ourselves of a first round bye. Also, my QB set a record for most yards passing in a career (This is actually the second time that he set the record as he was passed last year when he sat out most of the season with an injury) with 62930 yards passing. Congratulations Moe Swift.

In injury news one of my backup WRs was injured and is out for the year. This leaves me with three players on IR, the other two are starters on my offensive line. This week I will still be sitting a couple of other players

Week 17
Atlanta 13-2 @ Carolina 5-10
Last week Carolina broke a 6 game losing streak with a blowout victory over the Texans. They would like to repeat that feat against what is considered to be one of the better teams in the league this week. The Panthers are weak against the run, so I am hopeful that Leland will be able to exploit that to our gain. There is no real chance that Nixon will be able to reach 4 yards per carry, and it is highly unlikely that Leland will score 3 TDs to finish with 15 for the year. It is a shame that on a year when the team is playing so well, Leland will not reach 2 of his 3 goals.

Well I stand corrected. Leland can, and did score 3 TDs in a game, and that gave him 15 for the year. He finished the game with a very respectable 127 yards to go with those TDs That was enough to give Leland the game's MVP award. Our defense gave up a long TD run in the first quarter, but after that we held strong and allowed nothing else. Nixon's 3 TDs made the final score 21-7. We win the division, and home field advantage through the playoffs. We suffer a couple more minor injuries, but they should mostly be good by our next game.

In other news around the league, Tampa won their final game, and will be a wild card team, in spite of having the third best record in the league, and being the only team to beat us. Jacksonville won their final game to go 11-5, (winning 9 of their last 10 games) and they will have a first round bye as well. Baltimore was the other team to finish the year with a 14-2 record.

[damnMikeBrown]

Keep it goin

[stkelly52]

Sorry for the delay, holiday weekend and all. Here is the update.

Regular season review
The regular season has concluded, and we did better than I ever could have hoped. I had hoped that we would win 10 games this season, and that we would make the playoffs. We did far better than that. We had the best record in club history. The whole city is ecstatic. Everyone loves the team and there are dreams of Super Bowl Championships dancing in everyone's heads. With a Power Rating of 90, we are the highest rated team in the NFL. The one area of concern is Tampa Bay. They were the only team to beat us this season, and there is a lot of fear that we could lose to them a third time this season. We have, quite simply, the best defense to ever play the game. At 9.5 points per game we are nearly 2 points better than any other team in the history of the NFL, and that has been the secret to our success. We had the best rushing defense, as well as having the 3rd best passing defense in the league. On 3rd downs, no one was better than we were, and we forced more turnovers than anyone else in the league. Our offence did not do too poorly either. We were 5th in third down conversions and 11th in scoring. We didn't pass the ball much, but we did have some success when we did go to the air, ranking 10 in yards per attempt (though we were last in total yards)

Leland had a decent season. He again set new records for rushing attempts (636) and rushing yards in a season (2376), and he led the NFL with 15 rushing TDs. His 5 fumbles this year is an incredible improvement over his performances the last several years (actually, every year). But his 3.73 yard average was very disappointing. Late in the year it looked like he might be able to get that figure up over 4, but in the last several games he was not able to put up a high average, in spite of his gaudy rushing totals. I have to wonder if things would have been different had we had all of our offensive line in healthy all year.

As we head into the post season, we have very few injuries. As you may recall, two starters on the offensive line are on IR, but other than that, all key players are 100%.

[stkelly52]

Wild Card Round
While I am not playing today, I do have an interest in this week. Tampa is playing against the 11-5 49ers. Tampa has the second best record in the NFC, and I am torn as to whether I want them to win or not. Part of me feels like we need to beat these guys, to prove that we are better than they are, but part of me just wants the easiest road to the championship.

The Bucs do win, but because the Redskins won as well, we will not face Tampa next week

[stkelly52]

Conference Semifinals
Washington 12-5 @ Atlanta 14-2
We were the most dominant team during the regular season, but if we were to loose this game, everyone will forget what a great team we were. The only option is for us to reach the Super Bowl. The first step is to take care of the Redskins. Washington started the year off solid, but they fell apart in the final 4 weeks and lost 3 games. Last week's win was a bit of a surprise and it may be a sign that they have turned things back around for themselves.

Washington is a team that relies heavily on their Super Star QB. Letourneau is one of the best in the league. Last year he brought Washington to the Super Bowl, this year he wants to win it. We should be able to run against them as the finished the year with the worst rushing average in the league. Hopefully Leland will be able to take advantage of their week run stoppers.

We won the toss and elected to receive. After a good runback we took over at the 33. Our strategy was obvious from the first play of the game. We would run the ball until the proved that they could stop us. Nixon ran well in his first few carries. But we were not able to sustain the drive and we had to punt it away (it went into the end zone for a touch back). Our defense then came out and did exactly what they were supposed to do. It took just three plays, and we got the ball back as Washington netted just 3 yards on their drive. We would not fair much better though, as our drive would be shortened by an interception on the second play. Fortunately, it was a long pass and it amounted to about the same as a punt, pinning them down inside the 10.

Washington moved the ball quite well, and it looked like they might be able to break the game open, but 94 yards is a long way, and their drive fizzled at our 46 yard line. Their punt forced us to start at our own 2 yard line. We set off on a near perfect drive. We mostly relied on runs by Leland, though we threw in a few passes for good measure as well. We only faced 2 third downs, and both of them were converted as we moved the length of the field to set up a 7 yard TD pass on the first play of the second quarter.

To this point it had been a very close, defensive game we were hoping, though, that this TD would be the spark that we needed to pull away. Washington's next drive would again last just 3 plays before they had to punt. And again we turned to Leland to pick up the bulk of the ensuing drives yards, before concluding the drive with a 9 yard TD pass to put us up 14-0.

It was nearly the exact same scenario that was played out again on the next set of drives. Washington went 3 and out, and we moved the ball easily down the field inside the 10 yard line. On 3rd and one, instead of giving it to the most surefire 1 yard TD RB in the league we tried to trick them with a hand off to the FB. It failed and we were forced to kick the field goal instead. But we still had a 17-0 lead.

Washington finally got a first down on their next drive, but just one before they were again forced to punt. With time running out in the half were put together another solid drive that only ended because we were short on time. With time counting down we kicked the field goal and went into the half with a 20-0 lead. Our defense was playing about as well as you could hope.

As the second half opened, our defense finally stumbled. We gave up an 80 yard drive that cut our lead to 20-7. following a couple of punts that we traded, our offence was again able to extend the lead out to 20 by scoring on another TD pass. And again the key to this drive was the running of Leland Nixon. With the score at 27-7 and the 4th quarter rapidly approaching, we felt quite confident that the game was well in hand.. We went into slowdown mode and tried out best to eat up all of the rest of the clock. Meanwhile our defense remained as stingy as ever throughout the rest of the game. When the final gun sounded we had the 27-7 victory and we were moving on to the NFC Championship.

While he did not score, Leland was a huge star in this game. We gave him the ball 48 times, and he carried for 224 yards. It was nothing less than a thing of beauty. We also suffered no new injuries for next week's game.

In other news around the NFL. Tampa crushed the Eagles in Philadelphia, meaning that we will play them for the third time this year to see who will go to the Super Bowl. Also Jacksonville's incredible run continues. They slipped past the Chargers 17-14. Next week they will travel to Baltimore to take on the 15-2 Ravens to try to earn their 6th consecutive Super Bowl appearance.

[stkelly52]

NFC Championship
Tampa 13-3 @ Atlanta 14-2
The teams with the two best records in the NFC face off to see who will go to the Super Bowl. There is no team in the NFL that we despise more than the Buccaneers. This will be the third time that the two of us meet this year, and as you know, they have beaten up both times. Now it is our turn to win.

Tampa is relatively healthy, with just two minor starters out of the game. Their well balanced offence and defense will challenge us, and we know that they feel confident that they can complete the 3 game season sweep. We must destroy that confidence.

Tampa won the toss and could accomplish nothing on their first drive. Our first drive mirrored theirs, as we both gained 3 yards before punting. Tampa's second drive was much more positive for them. They moved down the field slowly and steadily, converting on third down 3 times, before the drive stalled at our 29. The long field goal was good and Tampa took the lead.

On our next drive things started off really well. On first down Leland picked up 11 yards, then another carry netted 9 more. But two consecutive incompletions forced us to punt. Tampa fumbled the ball on the return, but somehow they recovered the ball and took it 84 yards for a TD, putting us down 10-0.

Our next drive ended after just three plays when my QB threw and INT, giving the Bucs the ball deep in our territory. Tampa slowly but surly marched on their way to the end zone, capping their drive with a 2 yard TD run on the third play of the second quarter. Clearly things were not going our way. In spite of the fact that Leland was running very well, our team was just not clicking on either offence or defense and we were now trailing 17-0.

Being so far down, we were forced to abandon the run game and go to the air. The plan worked as we completed passes of 5 and 14 yards before a controversial 50 yard pass interference penalty gave us the ball at the 1 yard line. On the next play we turned to Leland to cut the led to 10. He made it into the end zone and scored our first points of the game. 7-17

For Tampa's next drive, our defense completely smothered them and forced them to punt after 3 and out.

We kept to the air and again it worked for us. There was no pass interference this time, but a 43 yard TD pass quickly make it just a 3 point game. Suddenly we looked like we might be able to get back in this one.

Tampa responded by launching another slow methodical drive that made it all the way to our 28 before stalling out at the 28 yard line. They tried to kick a field goal, but the kick sailed wide and were took possession. Leland was again trusted to lead the way for us, and he would have done a fine job if not for the stupid penalties. Erased were runs of 28 and 41 yards. Instead on 3rd and long we threw another INT. This set up a chip shot field goal that was really worked out to be a boost for us as we kept them out of the end zone in spite of having first and goal at the 4.

This made the score 20-14 which is were it remained for the rest of the fist half.


To be continued

[stkelly52]

NFC Championship...continuted
We started out the second half with two penalties that forced us to face a first and 25. In three plays we were able to move the ball 23 yards, but it was not enough and we were forced to punt. Tampa's next drive also puttered out quickly. On the first play of our second drive we tried to run Leland inside the right guard, however, he fumbled the ball, giving Tampa possession at our 28 yard line. Tampa would be sure to capitalize on that mistake and extended their lead, 27-14.

After trading a couple of punts, we were able to mound a rather successful drive. We moved the ball from our 32 to the Tampa 24. We were greatly helped by Tampa penalties, as twice they gave us first downs on third down plays. While we moved the ball well during this drive, that was in spite of and not because Leland, who had 5 carries for 3 yards in the drive. This helped eventually kill the drive, though we did pick up 3 points to make the score 27-17 Tampa Bay. We were in the closing minutes of the third quarter and we knew that we would have to step it up if we were going to come back and win this game.

We both again had short drives that ended in punts to close out the quarter. Tampa's first drive of the final frame was going well for us. Following two sacks, we had them in a 3rd and 22 situation. The 80 yard TD pass that came next was just devastating. At that moment, the wind went completely out of our sails. Trailing 34-17, our offence could get nothing going on our next three drives. We only two of our passes were caught, and one of those was caught by Tampa's CB. This set up an easy field goal to extend their lead to 37-17.

Trailing by 20 and with 3:40 left in the game it looked like all hope was gone. Then our QB was hurt on a 17 yard pass completion Our back up QB came in and completed 4 of 5 passes to get the ball in the end zone. But we had under 2 minutes left in the game. Our only hope was a onside kick. We could not recover the kick. Tampa was able to run the ball and eat up almost all of the rest of the clock. We got the ball back for two more plays, but there was no hope of accomplishing anything in 30 seconds. An interception officially ended the game, and sent us home for the year. We had suffered the humiliation of losing to Tampa three times in one season.

Leland finished the game with just 80 yards in 18 carries, and 1 TD. Not a bad average, but his fumble was extremely costly, and we did not have much of an opportunity to use him as we were behind for so much of the game. Well I guess there is always next year.

In other news, Jacksonville had yet again won the NFC championship over 15-2 Baltimore by the score of 37-34. For those keeping track, that is now six consecutive Super Bowl appearances by Jacksonville. I really don’t this. I have rarely seen an AI team remain competitive for 6 consecutive years, much less be the best team in the league for 6.

[stkelly52]

Post Season
Jacksonville would go on to defeat Tampa 30-24 in an OT thriller thanks to a 45 yard TD reception.
The season awards came out and we had many awards come our way. Our DE Glen Wallenbrock was named to the second team All League thanks to his 13 sacks. RG Sammy Delgado was named 1st team all pro (the 8th time he was named and all pro), as was RT Jerry Blanchard (his fifth consecutive year). Leland Nixon received the trifecta, of 1st team RB, Offensive Player of the year and league MVP.

Financially we did very well, as we actually made a profit. Things must still improve for us though.

[stkelly52]

I bet a lot of you guys are wondering what happened to this dynasty. I ran into two problems. 1st, my wife had a baby and she keeps expecting me to help tack care of the children rather than play computer games. Second, my modem died on me, so I couldn't connect to the internet from home. But now I have a new modem (and a cable modem this time), and I am hoping to get some more playing time in. You should start seeing more frequent updates in the coming days.