Blast from the Past - FOF 2001 Dynasty!!! (With a New Team)

[Abe Sargent]

I have 10 picks already in the draft.

I have trade offers for Severson and Glover for high 2nd round picks. I decide to take both.

I freed up some cap room, got a couple of chumps in the deals. And now I have moved some of the older Oline players. They were taking up a lot of my cap, and they let through a lot of sacks last year. Disturbingly so. I cut the chump QB I was traded.

I now have 32 million in cap room from those two moves. That’s a lot of breathing room to allow me some space to sign some of my players.

I move to figuring out which ex-draftees I need to keep.

I extend Kadanoff’s contract by three years, which jumps his salary up immensely. With Torres a question mark, I need to keep the All Pro 1st year DE on my team. Even if he doesn’t have the best skills. I suspect we’ll see a drop in his sack numbers over time, though.

P Steve Washington’s contract is extended by 2 more years.

I extend Wells by two years. That way, I have kept one OG and traded the other. That strikes me as quite fair.

I trade LB Conrad O’Neal to the Steelers for their 3/6 pick this year.

I extend LB Monty Joseph‘s contract by two years. This costs us a lot o’ money against this year’s cap.

I make a decision that I hate hate hate, but I have to make it.

I trade C Gerald Wright o the Packers for their 5th round/18th selection this year.

Now I have to great Cs on my roster, but again, I have one in the final year so…

I trade C Wally Covington to the Raiders for their 5th rounder next year.

Now I have a good C on my roster, just in his second year, and ready to develop.

Now I have the following players to make decisions on :WR Donald Wagner, OT Ellis Marshall, DE Christian Torres, DT Roosevelt Wilber

I resign Wagner to a 3 year deal that jumps his contract up to the 9 million category.

I add one year to Torres’s contract

I add one more year to Wilbur’s contract. But that jumps him up to real OT money for this and that year.

Wilber is better than any DT in FA this year. The fear is that I might draft someone better, but I doubt free agency will give me someone better. I am going to keep him through the draft and see what’s up after that.

We have 37 players under contract and 14 picks to bring us to 51 players total. We are 24 million under the cap. A good place to be.

[Abe Sargent]

I take a look a free agency. Any that are wowing me?

I need the following starters:

LB, OT, FB, K to replace the aging Mare soon, and I might, want a new G but its not necessary.

Anyone here I just gotta have?

There is a great OG, 5 year veteran, great skills, great stats, one All Pro under his belt. That might be worth pursuing.

After some consideration, I decide to stay out of the Bert Spain sweepstakes. I’ll probably regret it, but I’ll stick with my 14 draft picks and see what we got.

Nah, screw it, I make him an offer.

Week 1 - He signs with Cincinnati, so that wasn’t as big of a deal as I thought it might be.

Week 18 - I take a looksee

FB Gerhardt got signed by Philadelphia, and I’m disappointed to see him go. I was thinking about offering him a deal about now if he was still out there.

I sign no one.

[Abe Sargent]

The 2013 NFL Amateur Draft



Whoa, mega trade offer. Here it is folks.

I trade:

WR Jerome Baker, who I really like, btw

I get

1/3 pick overall, plus some chump S

Now that you just can’t automatically dismiss. WRs are easier to come by than some positions.

Let’s take a look at the draft:

This is a LOUSY draft to have the 3rd pick. They only good players that would be on the board are….WRs. That’s not something I want to trade into. There are no mega great players. Some years I’d make this deal, but not this year, not today, no how.

Idiots didn’t even take a WR at the 3rd pick.

My needs: LB, OT, FB,
Backup Needs: RBx2, WRx2, C, OG, OT, DE, LBx2?, CBx2, S

Starter

My pick arrives

I take the very developed LB over the one with a bit better potential, because if I have Super Bowl intentions again, it makes sense to have the better player now.

There’s just one OT in the top ten that I would allow start on my team, so I take Lenny Perry from Alabama for my first pick in the 2nd. There was a run on tackles before my next 2nd round pick, so it was smart to take him then.

I am going to BAP until I grab my FB. Then BAP from there on in. I raped the draft with Lincoln and May. I cannot believe he was still around in the 5th round. I saw him still there after I grabbed Lincoln, who looks really strong, as does May. Then I grabbed other good players instead of May, but eventually, I had to take him before others did.


Draft Recap:

1. LB Blake Crawford, Manchester
2/3. OT Lenny Perry, Alabama
2/10. OG Scott Pintsak, Indiana (Better than my other guy)
2/14. WR Mel Harden, Penn State (Pure BAP)
2/34. FB Warren Dole, Clemson
3/6. CB Clifton Murphy, Vanderbilt
3/34. RB Jesse Lincoln, Rutgers
4/10. C Jackie Sutton, Ohio State
4/34. DE Doug Gaines, Jackson State
5/18. RB Jason May, Illinois
5/34. LB Oscar Ritchie, Iowa State
6/31. OT Kevin Hargrave, Tennessee - Chattanooga
6/34. TE Peter Phillips, Notre Dame
7. S Wesley Stepp, Virginia




I have 51 players on my roster and I get an interesting offer. I can take the Falcons old rusting WR and their 1st next year for Christian Torres. Hmm. A first? There is no one in the FA pool to replace him, but I could start Watt with his 66 and 62 potentials. Hmm.

I am severely tempted.

I send out some offers. There are a ton of people interested in Torres. I can get a 1st and 6th from Indy, for example. Roll the dice with Torres or roll worse dice with Watt but have a 1st in my back pocket?

Yeah, that’s too tempting. I make the trade to Indy. 1st and 6th.

I sign DT Roosevelt Wilber to a very expensive 4 year deal.

I release FB Walt Devine

I sign UFAs:

DE Greg Tatum, Connecticut
CB Clyde Garrett, Iowa
WR Lamont Ford, Pittsburgh
LB Donnell Karenina, Washington

Let’s go camping

[Abe Sargent]

We sold 61,300 season tickets

Ouch, I have some bust and some slides in places. Nothing too bad, but still.




Let’s look at my rooks:

LB Blake Crawford, 47/76
OT Lenny Perry, 27/73
CB Clifton Murphy, 35/72
RB Jesse Lincoln, 48/66
OG Scott Pinstak, 27/65
FB Warren Dole, 44/62
S Wesley Stapp, 22/60
C Jackie Sutton, 26/58
RB Jason May, 37/55
WR Mel Harden, 33/55 - BUST
DE Doug Gaines, 32/53
TE Peter Phillips, 29/50
OT Kevin Hargrave, 18/48
LB Oscar Ritchey, 9/42 - BUST




I trade Oliver Bailey to the Saints, who need a RB badly, for a 2nd rounder. You might remember Oliver as the pretty good 3rd round RB we drafted a couple of years ago, and now he is developed and he did well in a backup role, but with these two great RBs on my roster, he would be deactivated, so might as well recoup value for drafting him and developing him. We rose one round, from the 3rd we invested to the 2nd we got.

I sign 1 year UFA Brant McNamee from Army. Brant is signed to sit on the bench and not dress for game day barring an emergency or an injury.

[Abe Sargent]

The 2014 Albuquerque Rail Runners

QB Tony Clements - What can I say more?
RB Heath Shepherd - MR. All Award
FB Warren Dole - The rookie
TE Ed Gardener - I loves him!
WR Jerome Baker - Love him
WR Donald Wagner
C Marty Brennan - Let’s give him a chance to show us what he can do
OG Orlando Wells - I kept him around in order to have some consistency from one year to the next
OG Scott Pinstak - The rookie will start and we’ll try to give him some development time
OT Ellis Marshall - He had a pretty solid last year and he has some big money. What will happen this year?
OT Lenny Perry - Another rookie starts.
P Steve Washington - Awesome
K Olindo Mare - Didn’t slip any more this year from last.
DE Andrew Kadanoff - We signed him to a big deal, can he keep up?
DE Doug Gaines - The rookie starts, probably just a place holder until we can get better here.
DT Ross Meadows - What would a roster be without him?
DT Roosevelt Wilber - Another beneficiary of a big contract, emphasis on big. DTs are premium here,
LB Chris Glenn - Dropped from last year. Age or injury, not sure.
LB Monty Joseph - I like him, because he’s solid.
LB Blake Crawford - He’s okay, we got the best we could, but he won’t set any fires without a lighter and some kerosene.
CB Leon Morabito - AKA, best player on my offense
CB Tim Harris - He’s okay, not great. We could improve this position in the future.
S Eric Carlson - Had a big year last year
S Travis Westbrook - I need him to develop into a major player at safety as well.

WR Lamont Ford will be our KR/PR this year.

[Abe Sargent]

I love this team, especially the offense players. Let’s see what the peops say.


5th best QB in league, 4th best backups
THE best RB in the league, 3rd best backups
11th best FB, 3rd best backup
THE best TE, 3rd best reserves
THE best WR starters, THE best reserves
8th best C, 2nd best reserve
8th worst OG, best reserves
4th worst OT, 7th best reserves
THE best P
7th best K
15th worst DE, 5th best backups
THE best starting DT, 6th best reserve
6th best LB starters, 15th best backups
THE best CB AND reserve
3rd best S, 2nd best reserves

Except for the OG and OT, which are raw because green rookies are starting there, this roster is good.


How many of these players are my draftees? 21 of 22 starters. All but LB Glenn. Not the K or the P.

8 starters and 10 players have been All Pro for me. We had to jettison players like Conrad O’Neal and OT Severson, so that number dropped.



I extend QB Tony Clements’ contract by two years.

Players of concern in their last year:

K Olindo Mare
WR Lamont Ford, my KR/PR

[Abe Sargent]

Let’s go:

We go an convincing 4-0 in the preseason

We have a very streaky schedule:

3 away,
3 at home
3 away
4 at home
Away
Home
Away

Ick

Let’s see how we can start the season.

[Abe Sargent]

Week 1 - We win at Dallas 34-16. S Travis Westbrook was Game MVP with a 68 yard pick returned for a score and 2 picks total on the day. Eric Carlson had a pick plus led the team in tackles. DT Meadows started the season with 2 sacks. OT Perry, in his debut, grabbed us 4 KRB and C Monty Brennan in his debut as a starter had 5. RB Shepherd grabbed 187 yards on the 27 carries he was given. Plus a TD. Clements had a poorer day with 11 of 26 for 91 yards, 2:1 ratio, He hit Gardener and Baker for scores. S Travis Westbrook, who I would like to see step up, is Defensive Player of the Week for the NFL

Tim Harris is knocked to doubtful and rookie Clifton Murphy will be starting in his place. Donald Wagner is down to questionable but will start.

Week 2 - 19-9 over the Cardinals on the road. Lamont Ford caught a TD pass from Clements, and then add 4 Mare field goals. Backup S Tony Trafton, one of the chump players we got off a trade, was Game MVP with a pick, and 3rd on the team in tackles. Eric Carlson grabbed another pick. Shepherd held to 30 yards but Clements exploded with 22 of 36 for 320 and 1:1. Jerome Baker added 125 yards receiving on 7 grabs.

I have several players at Probable - Morabito, Westbrook, Wagner. All will start.

Week 3 - We win in Indianapolis 44-25 to go 3-0 on the road over the first three games. This was a Shepherd MVP Game with a 78 yard run for a score, a 22 yard run for a score, a 58 yard run for a score, 25 runs for 230 yards. Both of this games (Jacksonville and Arizona) saw Tony Clements outduel a former QB of mine, (Last week it was Jrome Allard and this one its Artie Switzer). 23 of 35, 318, 2:1 this week. Baker had 109 yards on 6 catches and a TD. Gardener added another TD. Morabito grabbed a pick. Shepherd was NFL Offensive Player of the Week.

Travis Westbrook was knocked to questionable so I may bench him for a week or two. DT Meadows is questionable but I will start him.


Week 4 - Hopes of eternal glory are shattered when the Bills come to our place and hammer us 37-13. Both Shepherd and Clements had bad days, and that means we are dying when that happens.

Morabito is knocked to questionable but will still start.

[Abe Sargent]

Week 5 - We defeat the Jets in our home 31-28. Tony Clements was Game MVP. He hit Baker twice, and Wagner once. Clifton Murphy, starting in Tim Harris’s spot, had a pick return 50 yards for our final TD of the day. Shepherd had 98 yards. Clements was 24 of 32 for 285, 3:0. Clements was also NFL Offensive Player of the Week.

Meadows is healed. Kadanoff is probable. Morabito upgraded to probable, WR Mel Harden is queisotnable and I deactivate him.


Week 6 - We host the 4-1 Patriots. We hand them their second loss 14-0. Shepherd was Game MVP with a 2point conversion, a TD catch from Wayne Webb, and 149 yards on 31 carries. Webb played most of the game after Clements was injured. OG Wells had 4 KRB. Clements’s injury will not carry over ot next week.

S Travis Westbrook and CB Tim Harris are back from injuries. FB Dole is back from injury and will start next week for the first time this season.

Now we have 3 more games on the road.


Week 7 - 45-28 over Jacksonville. Shepherd is Game MVP with 2 rushing TDs and 1 catching. 135 yards on 20 grabs. Wagner had 2 Tds and Gardener one. Westbrook and Morabito with picks. OG Pintsak had 4 KRB.

LB Chris Glenn is out with Arthroscopic Knee Surgery. His number drop again. I IR him. I sign LB Shannon Pritchett to help us out for the year. LB Monty Joseph moves to the middle, Pritchett will be on the WLB and rookie Crawford moves to the SLB position.

Week 8 - We lose in Buffalo 17-22. Lonny Schwartz had a 85 yard receiving play for a score and a 3 yard one later. Shepherd was held to 15 yards on 13 carries. Clements was better with 15 of 30, 228, 2:0. Schwartz had 115 yards on 4 catches. Murphy had a pick. Morabito recovered a fumble.

DE Kadanoff is questionable. I deactivate him for a few weeks.

[Abe Sargent]

Week 9 - We win in New York against the Jets 36-17. S Travis Westbrook was Game MVP with a 30 yard pick for a score 30 yards and another pick. Harris had a pick, as did Morabito who also led the team in tackles. DT Meadows notched a pair of sacks and recovered a fumble. OG Wells had 5 KRB. Shepherd had 152 yards on 24 carries plus a score. Clements hit Wagner twice for scores.

Now we have 4 home games in a row.

Week 10 - The Titans are crushed in our place 35-3. Heath Shepherd had two TD scores and Jason May had one as a backup. Clements hit Shepherd for an aerial score plus backup TE Mitchell Spence got a TD grab of his own. Game MVP was DE Doug Gaines with 2.5 sacks. LB Crawford had a pick. Shepherd had just 51 yards on 18 carries plus two fumbles, in addition to 3 total Tds.

CB Tim Harris is doubtful again and deactivated. WR Wagner is quesitonabl ebut wll likely start in two weeks vs. the Colts.


Week 11 - BYE

8-2 leaving our BYE week.

Week 12 - We host the Colts. We win 30-14. Shepherd is Game MVP with an 11 yard TD catch. Jerome Baker and Lenny Schwartz also got in on the action. Mare was injured and Steve Washington was forced to kick and made a FG. 163 yards on 25 carries for Shepherd. Clements was 19 of 30 for 245, 3:0. Westbrook and Carlson both had picks. OG Pintsak had 6 KRB while OG Wells had 5.

DE Kadanoff is back from injury.

At 9-2 we are tied with the 9-2 Bills, but they swept us, so we are 2nd in our division.

Week 13 - We defeat the Giants 38-21. Tony Clements had the Game MVP with scores to Wagner, Baker, and Gardener twice. Aaron Witt scored against us first for the Giants and had 108 yards against us on 16 carries. Shepherd had 71 yards on 20 carries, so Witt won that. Clements had 407 yards passing and a 4:1 ratio so today was his day, though. Gardener had 133 yards on 8 carries. Baker had 143 yards on 9. Westbrook, Crawford and backup S Trafton had picks. C Brennan grabbed 7 KRB. Clements was NFL Offensive Player of the Week.

Buffalo lost so we are now in the driver’s seat.

[Abe Sargent]

Week 14 - We CRUSH the Dolphins 41-7. RAR! 125 yards, 22 carries, 3 rushing Tds, Shepherd is Game MVP. Lamont Ford had a KR TD. Clements hit Gardener for his lone TD pass on the day. Morabito had a pick.

CB Tim Harris is back next week.


Week 15 - We survive on the road against the Patriots 26-17. S Eric Carlson established himself as the Game MVP with 2 picks and 12 tackles and a fumble recovery. Westbrook added a pick. C Brennan had 4 KRB. Shepherd had 96 yard and a rushing TD. Wagner grabbed two scores.

Buffalo won again. Next week is home and then we end on the road.


Week 16 - We win 45-10. Shepherd is GAME MVP with 3 TD runs of 29, 33 and 5 and 95 yards on 18 carries. Clements hit Baker and…Baker for scores. Westbrook added a pick and Kadanoff had 1.5 sacks. OT Marshall had 4 KRB.

Buffalo won so we have to win on the road against the Dolphins. Win and we get the division crown and are the #1 team. Lose and if Buffalo wins, we drop to #4 and lose the division.

Week 17 - We win 30-3.

Clements was Game MVP with 22 of 31 for 227, and 2:0 ratio, hitting Baker and Spence for scores. Shepherd was held to 49 yards but got a rushing TD. DE Watt added 2.5 sacks. Carlton had a pick as did Minton, a backup dback. DT Ross Meadows had 3.5 sacks. RAR! OT Marshall had 4 KRB.

Buffalo lost anyway.

14-2 and in the 1 slot. Better hope I don’t play Buffalo in the playoffs….

[Abe Sargent]

2014 AFC Playoffs:



Wild Card Wknd

Buffalo defeated New England 34-24. San Diego beat Baltimore on the road 29-17.

Thank you San Diego. Now we don’t have to face Buffalo until the Championship!


Divisional Round:


We host the 8-7-1 Chargers.

We win 29-3.

Seattle trounced Buffalo 35-3 so the Bills are out. Thanks again San Diego!

Clements hit Wagner for an 80 yard score, and Shepherd had a 20 yard TD run. Mare had 4 Fgs on the day.

Shepherd was Game MVP with 112 yards on 19 carries.

Wagner had 102 yards.

Clements, who is usually money in the playoffs, continued with 17 of 30 for 326 and 1:0.

Backup S Trafton had a pick., OG Wells had 5 KRB

[Abe Sargent]

AFC Championship

The #1 seed 14-2 Albuquerque Rail Runners host the

#2 seed 12-4 Seattle Seahawks.

They took out Buffalo hard and Buffalo was our Achilles heel. Will this be another victoire?

26-23 us.

Tony Clements was Game MVP with a td to Baker, 29 of 39, 385 yard and no picks. Shepherd had a TD run and 81 yards on the day. DT Ross Meadows had 3 sacks and fumble recovery. DE Watt had 2 fumrec.

[Abe Sargent]

The 2014 NFL Super Bowl


The 14-2 Albuquerque Rail Runners are seeking their third consecutive Super Bowl.

The 10-6 Green Bay Packers, fighting through as a wild card, seek to be the team to end the juggernaut.

It’s a classic David and Goliath story as all of the pundits are selecting the power of Albuquerque’s offense to out score Green Bay easily.

Will the predictions run true?

34-38. We lose.

Good job Green Bay!

Leon Morabito had an 84 yard INT RET TD. Clements hit Wagner and Baker, and Shepherd had a 54 yard TD run. Yet, despite being ahead 34-14 in the middle of the third, they scored 24 unanswered points to rally and win in what is instantly being called the best Super Bowl ever.

Shepherd had 124 yards on 12 carries.

Clements was knocked out in the second quarter and Webb had to finish the game.

Clements was 6 of 8 for 102, 2:0 already, while Webb went 7 of 16 for 59 yards 0:0.

Stopped just at the edge by an injury. Green Bay manhandled us, we finished with 6 players questionable and 3 more probable.

[Abe Sargent]

Season Awards:

NFL MVP: RB Heath Shepherd
NFL Offensive Player of the Year: RB Heath Shepherd
All-Pro 1st Team: RB Heath Shepherd, TE Ed Gardener, C Marty Brennan, OG Orlando Wells, DT Ross Meadows, S Eric Carlson
All-Pro 2nd Team: QB Tony Clements

Whoot! Lots of good here.

TONY CLEMENTS FINALLY GOT ALL PRO. Awesome. Also, OG Wells finally got one. Westbrook may have been robbed with his league leading 9 picks in just 13 games.

[Abe Sargent]

Team Stats:

Led the league in rushing easily and ypc easily. 8th in passing by yards and 2nd by ypc.

We allowed the 11th fewest rushing yards, had the 15th worst passing defense by yards and 12th best yards per completion allowed. We led the league with +20 TO. We were 7th in sacks with 45. We allowed just 32, tied for 5th best in the league.

Good stats

[Abe Sargent]

Individual Stats:

QB Tony Clements, 3750 yards, 61.9%, 33:13 ratio, 96.6 QB rating. That’s the 2nd best QB rating and 2nd most Passing Tds., 4th best % and 7th most yards. This was a great year for him.

RB Heath Shepherd - 1670 yards rushing, 17 rushing TDs, 5.0 ypc, 354 yards receiving, 4 Tds.

WR Jerome Baker, 924 yards, 10 TD
WR Donald Wagner, 822 yards, 8 TD
TE Ed Gardener, 804 yards, led the team in receptions with 72, 6 TDs.
WR Lonnie Schwartz, 543, 3 Tds


K Mare was 32 of 45.

P Washington had his average drop considerably. 44 of 69 in the though.

DT Ross Meadows was 6th in the nfl with 14 sacks. RAR! That, ladies and gentleman, is the rock of my team.
DE Scottie Watt, who only had 3 starts, had 9.5 sacks
DE Andrew Kadanoff with 13 starts had just 6.5 sacks. Disappointing.

S Travis Westbrook led the league with 9 picks.
S Eric Carlson had 7 picks, led the team with10 pasdef
CB Leon Morabito had 4 picks
LB Crawford had 2 picks and 9 pasdef. That’s pretty good


C Marty Brennan led the league with 41 KRB.
OT Marshall had 32
OG Wells had 31
OG Pintsak had 27
OT Perry had just 15

[Abe Sargent]

Team Awards:

Offensive Player of the Year: C Marty Brennan. Instead of trying to decide between Shepherd and Clements, I’ll just audible into Brennan who, in his first year as a starter, led the league in KRB. Great job Brennan!
Defensive Player of the Year: S Travis Westbrook. He didn’t get the all-pro nod, but he led the league in picks and I think he should get something, so I am rewarding him here. I needed him to step it up, and he did with 9 picks, and two Game MVPs.
Special Teams Player of the Year: K Olindo Mare. Washington had a down year and my returners had poor average, but 18 year vet Mare had a really solid year.
Rookie of the Year: LB Blake Crawford, with a sack, tackles, 2 picks and 2nd on the team in pasdef, our first rounder had to slide in after our start LB was injured and do well enough despite a lack of experience. Good job Blake!
Heart Award: DE Scottie Watt - He wasn;t a starter, yet he had 9.5 sacks and was a threat in the backfield all year long. Thanks Scottie, for your hard work.

[Abe Sargent]

Score:

95 Performance
51 Value
57 Profit
75 Difficulty

64 Total Score


Hall of Fame Inductees: K Jason Hanson, QB Drew Bledsoe, S Robert Griffith, QB Steve McNair, CB Walt Harris


Olindo Mare did not retire.

Franchise value - 12th
10th worst
Best roster
18th best support
13th best economy

We rehire our scout after bumping his salary a bit for 5 more year

I franchise Mare

[Abe Sargent]

I move to free agency.

We have the 4th overall pick from our trade last year. Plus we are drafting 33rd in each round.

We have 43 players under contract and are 11.2 million under the cap

I need to clear up some space because I have some good players in the last year of their deals,

I trade LB Chris Glenn to the Falcons for their 4/2 pick this year.

I gotta get rid of my backup Qbs. I am paying them 4 million total. Webb is pretty good and he was a 2nd round pick, very developed, and could be a serviceable starter or a great backup, so the Giants, desperate for a QB, trade their 1st rounder next year for Webb, which I think is reasonable. I trade QB Andrew Browning to the Packers for their 3rd rounder next year.

I extend Leon Morabito‘s contract by a year

I cut DT Matt Moore. He was a bust I drafted a couple of years ago. I also cut bust LB Brad Harmon

RB Jason May only wanted a two year deal. Time to move him.

He is really good though, very starterish. I get Green Bay’s 2/34 pick this year.

I sign C Marty Brennan to a new 3 year deal.

We trade TE Marty Spence to Buffalo for their 4th and 7th next year.

We trade CB Tim Harris to the Skins for their 3 and 7 next year.

I extend Ross Matthews’s contract by a year

I give Jerome Baker a professional contract for 4 years.

I trade CB Kenny Minton to the Skins for their 6th next year

Eric Carlson signs a three year deal

I cut LB Oscar Ritchey


I have 13 draft picks and 33 players on my roster for 46 players plus Mare, which puts me at 47.

That’s pretty solid so I’ll leave free agency.

[Abe Sargent]

The 2015 NFL Amateur Draft

Our needs:

Starters: OT?, DE?, LB
Backup: QBx2, RBx2, TE, WR, OG, OT, DE, DT, LBx2, CBx3, S


Okay, here we go.

I hope Mr. McStudly LB is still on the board but I doubt it.

Well, look at that.

Draft Recap

1(4). LB Quinn Burroughs, Southern Mississippi 4.9/8.5 rated LB
1(33). CB Jimmie Rebensdorf, Auburn, 5.4/5.4 rated - Looks amazing, like Morabito level good
2(29). WR Thomas Foster, Mississippi, 3.9/5.5 rated - Looks strong too
2(33). OG Jim Blackburn, Jacksonville, 3.2/4.8 rated - Looks like a solid guy
2(34). QB Mike Harrison, Wake Forest, 4.6/4.6 - Alright
3(33). DT Hunter Bienemy, Boston College 3.4/5.0
4(2). S Jon Berdys, Purdue, 2.2/5.0
4(33). LB Kevin Otis, WVU, 2.7/4.3
5(11). TE Jumbo Howe, UTEP, 3.2/4.8
5(33). C Nate Murdock, Clemson, 2.8/2.8
6(4). RB Rich Wiggins, Rutgers
6(33). CB Mickey McCormick, Oregon - KR
7(33). FB Blaine Clancy, UTEP

I trade FB Carl Serra

Rookies are signed and Mare has a contract but I still need to massage my roster.



Swaggs will be happy about LB Kevin Otis.

[Abe Sargent]

I trade OG Ron Wilkins to the Titans for their 4th in two years.

I similarly trade DT Darren Lindell for a 7th in two years from Green Bay, WR Mel Harden, the bust to the Saints for their 6th in two years.

I sign UFA

DE Emmitt Slaton, Purdue
WR Wendell Vogt, Temple
RB Jerome Williamson, Virginia
QB Dexter Majiatic, Stanford
LB Johnny Vardell, Wake Forest
DT Dwight Schreiber, New Mexico Highlands
OT Cedric Karczewski, Colorado


I hit Camp.

[Abe Sargent]

My rooks look good.

I need some more players and I can continue to nickel and dime myself, or I can make a decision.

I cut Ellis Marshall.

I sign OT Jake Adler for one year to be a patch.

I sign UFA OG Michael Baumgardner, Oregon State and LB Wayne Moore from Memphis.


We sold 65,000 season tickets

[Abe Sargent]

2015 Albuquerque Rail Runners

QB Tony Clements - He’s a man
RB Heath Shepherd - And so is he
FB Warren Dole - Adequate
WR Johnny Baker - Solid
WR Donald Wagner - Solid
C Monty Brennan - I want to see another good season out of him.
OG Orlando Wells
OG Scott Pintsak - Let’s get better
OT Lenny Perry - Starting to look good, will his stats follow
OT Kevin Hargrave - We’ll start him, he’s okay
P Steve Washington
K Olindo Mare
DE Andrew Kadanoff - Come one, let’s step it up.
DE Scottie Watt - He’ll start this year instead o Gaines
DT Ross Matthews - Always fun to speak his name
DT Roosevelt Wilber
LB Monty Joseph - Adequately alright
LB Blake Crawford - Okay too
LB Quinn Burroughs - A strong LB, could be amazing
CB Leon Morabito - Awesome
CB Jimmie Rebensdorf - Also awesome
S Eric Carlson - Also strong
S Travis Westbrook - Also strong

KR/PR - WR Wendell Vogt and CB Mickey McCormick



I drafted every one of the 22 starters.


A nice roster

[Abe Sargent]

A nice roster.

Let’s look at my rooks:

LB Quinn Burroughs - 51/96
CB Jimmie Rebensdorf - 56/89
OG Tim Blackburn - 29/74
WR Thomas Foster - 51/64
TE Jumbo Howe - 31/64
LB Kevin Otis - 24/57
S Jon Berdys - 40/56
QB Mike Henderson - 36/56
DT Hunter Bieniemy - 22/55
CB Nate Murdock - 20/42
FB Blaine Clancy - 21/40
RB Rich Wiggins - 24/38
CB Mickey McCormick - 28/31

I love my top two picks. Both are perfect additions to my team.

[Abe Sargent]

6th best QB
THE Best RB, 3rd best RB backs
4th best FB
THE Best TE, 4th best backup
THE Best WR, 3rd best receiving corps
Tied for 3rd best C
11th best OG
15th best OT
2nd best P
7th best K
13th best DE, 3rd best reserves
THE Best DT, 3rd best second stringers
11th best LB, tied for 7th best backups
THE Best CB, 2nd best reserves
2nd best S, 4th best benchers

[Abe Sargent]

Schedule:

4 out of 5 games are at home.
BYE
3 out of next 5 at home
Away
Home
5 of last six away

Need to have strong lead or it could all fall in the end.

This cannot be one of my teams that starts out weak and finishes strong.


We go 2-2 in the preseason

[Abe Sargent]

Week 1 - We defeat the Colts 27-10. Clements hit Baker, Wagner and Baker for scores, including a 54 yard play to Baker. Shepherd was Game MVP with 167 yards on 22 carries. Clements was 19 of 25 for 277 and 3:1. Jerome Baker had 140 yards on 7 catches plus his two TDs. Nickelback Murphy and Backup S McCormick had picks. C Brennan had 5 KRB and OG Pintsak had 4.

Week 2 - We shut out the Dolphins 37-0 in our place. Heath Shepherd had a TD run, Clements rushed for a score, and hit Thomas Foster for his first NFL score. But the Game MVP was S Eric Carlson with a pick for a score. Nickelback CB Murphy had another pick. Meadows had 1.5 sacks. Shepherd had 95 yards, Clements was 2 picks on the day, ick. Wagner had 104 yards on 6 catches.

Week 3 - We lose at home to the Jets 25-28. Shepherd had 99 yards and a score. Backup Lincoln added another on the ground. Wagner had 120 yards on 6 catches. Thomas Foster got a second TD. OG Wells had 4 KRB. We had 0 sacks and 0 picks.

Week 4 - We travel to Seattle and lose to go to 2-2 on the season. 20-27. Wagner nad Foster caught Clements tosses for scores. Shepherd had 110 yards. Carlson had a pick.

[Abe Sargent]

Week 5 - We get back to our winning ways with a 48-7 thumping of Minnesota in our place. Clements hits Gardener and Baker for a 55 yard score. Schwartz gets a fumble return for a score. Shepherd gets a TD run. Game MVP is Eric Carlson with pick returned for a score, and 2 picks on the day plus a fumble recovery. Westbrook and Vardell join him with picks. Bieniemy had 2 sacks.

Week 6 - BYE WEEK

Week 7 - We go on the road and defeat the Bills 10-7. I’ll take any win over the Bills on the road. Shepherd scored our lone TD and had 66 yards on 23 carries. Clements was poor. Westbrook got a pick and was Game MVP. Rookie CB Rebensdorf got his first NFL pick. DT Wilber had 1.5 sacks.

OT Perry and LB Burroughs are questionable and deactivated.

Week 8 - We host the 7-0 Lions. We win 37-26. Shepherd is Game MVP with 150 yard,s 32 carries and a TD. Clements hit Gardener, Wagner and Baker for scores. Gardener had 133 yards on 7 snags. Carlson had a pick. OT Adler had 6 KRB.

DT Ross Matthews is questionable. I deactivate him.

Week 9 - We hang 45 on the Patriots at my place and allow them to get just 16. Shepherd is Game MVP with 2 TD Runs, 235 yards on 29 carries. CB Rebensdorf had a pick return TD, his first ever. Clements hits Gardener and Vogt. LB Joseph had 2 sacks. C Brennan and OG Wells both had 5 KRB. Shepherd was NFL Offensive Player of the Week.

DE Kadanoff is doubtful and deactivated. LB Quinn Burroughs is back.

We are 6-2, but have just two home games in the final 8. Next week, a Super Bowl rematch between us and the Packers in Green Bay.

[Abe Sargent]

Week 10 - We win 41-6. Ouch! Shepherd is Game MVP with 2 TD runs, 109 yards on 20 carries. Also, backup Lincoln broke one 82 yards for a score. Gardener and FB Dole grabbed TD passes. Westbrook had a pick. OT Hargrave had 5 KRB. C Brennan had 4.

Morabito is questionable and I bench him for a week or two.


Week 11 - We host the Bills. We win 31-16 over our kryptonite. Clements is Game MVP with scores to Wagner twice and Shepherd once. Shepherd ran for a score and 95 yards on 27 rushes. Wagner had 111 yards. Rebensdorf and Backup S Berdys have picks.

8-2, but about to start a 4 game road streak.

Week 12 - We win 31-10 against the Colts. Shepherd was Game MVP with 2 TD, a TD reception, and 115 yards on 31 carries. Wagner added 105 yards on 9 catches. Carlson and Murdock (who is now starting with Morabito out) had picks. Watt and Bieniemy each had 1.5 sacks. OT Adler, OG Wells each had 5 KRB.

DE Kadanoff is back next week.

Week 13 - We win in New York against the Jets 23-9. LB Monty Joseph is Game MVP with 15 tackles and a sack. Murphy had a pick. OG Pintsak had 4 KRB. Shepherd had 76 yards on 19 carries. Clements hit Baker and Gardener.

DE Kadanoff is out again. I bench DT Wilber for injury. Foster is doubtful and I bench him

[Abe Sargent]

Week 14 - We win in New England 27-21. Westbrook is Game MVP with 2 picks. Shepherd had 22 carries for 79 yards and a score. Clements hit Gardener twice.

LB Johnny Vardell is out VERY LONG TERM with a Stretched Triceps Muscle. I IR him. Morabito will be back.

Week 15 - We travel to Tennessee for another win 43-14. Clements was knocked questionable, then Henderson was knocked out and Majiatic did most of the game, and our 3rd string QB had 9 of 15, 75 yards 2:1. Majiatic hit Wagner nad Vogt for scores. Shepherd was Game MVP with 221 yards and 2 scores. Watt had 2 sacks. Both Bieniemy and Gaines had 1.5. Morabito had a pick. OT Perry had 8 KRB. RAR!

Shepherd was NFL Player of the Week.

Burroughs is knocked to doubtful and benched. I sign LB Jamie Harvey.

QB Henderson will start next week at home vs the 6-8 Ravens.


Week 16 - We lose 21-27, but it was not Henderson’s fault. Shepherd had 152 yards, and was Game MVP. Lincoln and FB Dole had two rushing scores. Henderson hit Shepherd for a score. Henderson was 18 of 34, 183, 1:1, not bad for your first start. Where we failed was defense. No sacks. No picks. No fumble recoveries. C Brennan had 5 KRB.

DT Wilber is back form injury.

Shepherd needs 170 yards to break 2000 this week. Wagner needs 57 to break 1000.

Week 17 - Henderson beats Miami on the road 28-14. The 13-3 record gives us the #1 seed for the playoffs. Morabito is Game MVP with a pick returned for a score, and LB Joseph added a pick. Meadows had 2.5 sacks. Shepherd had just 93 yards on 23 carries but he had 3 Tds.

DE Kadanoff will be back for the playoffs.

[Abe Sargent]

The 2015 AFC Playoffs:


Wild Card Weekend:

Denver 26, Seattle 3

San Antonio 37, Indianapolis 7


The Divisional Weekend:


We host the 11-5 Lone Stars.

Clements will start though probable. WR Foster is back.

We win 37-3.

Jacksonville won 23-20.

Clements is Game MVP with 2 TD passses to Wagner (one 88 yard play in there)and one to FB Dole. Shepherd had 100 yards on 28 carries, and a rushing score. Clements had 22 of 29 for 326 yards, 3:0. Wagner had 165 yards plus the 2 Tds. Murphy and Carlson had picks.

[Abe Sargent]

2015 AFC Championship


The #1 Seed 13-3 Albuquerque Rail Runners host

The #2 Seed 11-4-1 Jacksonville Jaguars

We barely win 34-31. Clements is Game MVP again with scores to Gardener, Gardener, Gardener and RB Jerome Williamson. Shepherd had 126 yards on 21 carries. OG Wells added 4 KRB.

LB Burroughs will start the Super Bowl and Clements is cured.

[Abe Sargent]

The 2015 NFL Super Bowl

The AFC Favorites, #1 Seed 13-3 Albuquerque Rail Runners return for their 4th trip to the Super Bowl in as many years. They are heavy favorite to take home their third Lombardi trophy during that time.

The NFC #2 Seed Champion 12-4 Philadelphia Eagles seek to ground the Rail Runners just like the Packers did last year.


Who will stand and will fall? What name is etched on history?

We win 35-3. Heath Shepherd was Game MVP with 148 yards on 38 carries and 3 Tds. Clements hit Gardener for a score too. Harvey had 2 sacks. Brennan and Wells each had 5 KRB. OG Pintsak had 4.

[Abe Sargent]

Season Awards:

NFL MVP - RB Heath Shepherd
NFL Offensive Player of the Year: RB Heath Shepherd
Super Bowl MVP: RB Heath Shepherd
All-Pro 1st Team: RB Heath Shepherd, TE Ed Gardener, C Marty Brennan, OG Orlando Wells
All-Pro 2nd Team: DT Ross Matthews

[Abe Sargent]

Team Stats:


Top rushing team by yards, 3rd by ypc
13th best by passing yards, tied for 2nd in yards / completion
9th fewest rushing yard allowed, tied for 11th fewest ypc allowed
Fewest passing yards allowed, lowest yards / completion allowed
+5 TO margin, Tied for 5th most sacks with 45, Allowed just 26 sacks, second fewest in the league

[Abe Sargent]

Individual Stats:

Let me show you how Tony Clements was possibly robbed of another All Pro season, this time not by the voters, but by injury and getting injured and being out the last couple of week:

3246 yards, 65.5% completion, 24:11 ratio, 100.5 QB Rating. Just two more games on pace like that and Clements would have likely had another All pro award. He dominated % and QB Rating.

Heath Shepherd had 1923 yards, 19 TDs, 4.9ypc. He also caught 618 yards, and 3 TDs. Most of these set records, except rushing Tds, someone has had 20 in a season already.

Donald Wagner led the team with 78 catches for 971 yards, 6 scores
Jerome Baker had 59 for 814, 5 TD
Ed Gardener was with 535 yards on 48 snags and 7 Tds
Thomas Foster had 350 and 3 on 24

Steve Washington got his punting average way up, one of his best. However, his # in the 20 dropped to 25 of 73.

K Olindo Mare was 27 of 36 and missed a PAT again.

DT Ross Matthews led our team in sacks with 8.5 After that, we had a little cluster. LB Monty Joseph was second with 5.5 DT Bieniemy had 5 on 6 starts. DE Watt had 5. Kadanoff had 4 on 9 starts.

S Eric Carlson led the team with 6 picks and was 2nd on the team and 4th in the league with 11 pasdef
CB Leon Morabito led the team and the league with 14 pasdef and had 2 picks.
S Westbrook had 5 pick
Rookie CB Rebensdorf had 3 pick.

C Marty Brennan had a league leading 37 KRB
OG Orlando Wells had 36 KRB and tied for 2nd most in the NFL.
OG Pintsak had 27
OT Hargrave had 25

[Abe Sargent]

Team Awards:

Offensive Player of the Year: RB Heath Shepherd - He had almost 2000 rushing yards, 19 rushing Tds, another 600+ yards receiving, another 3 Tds in the air. He had a combined 2600+ yards and 22 Tds from scrimmage. That is, simply put, a strong year
Defensive Player of the Year: LB Monty Joseph - DT Matthews had another All-Pro year and CB Morabito led the league in pasdef, but Joseph had the second highest number of sacks on the team, the 2nd highest number of tackles on the team, and added a pick and 6 pasdef himself, all from the SLB position. These are the most picks, pasdef, and sacks he has ever had. Good job Monty!
Special Teams Player of the Year: P Steve Washington - He got his punting average way up, 2.5 yards more / punt than last year. Now I need to see him do that AND have a good year with getting them in the 20.
Rookie of the Year: CB Jimmie Rebensdorf -3 picks plus a return for a score and 4 pasdef. Not bad for a rook. Now let’s see some growth for next year.
Heart Award: QB Mike Henderson - As a rookie expected only to pick up the ball in an emergency, Mike did pretty well spelling Clements. He had two wins, and one loss that was not his fault. 434 yards, 57.3%, 2:3 ratio, 63.8 QB Rating. Not bad for a rookie pressed into service by bad timing.

[Abe Sargent]

And that brings to close another season. Major names leaving us:

K Olindo Mare
WR Lonnie Schwartz
DE Scottie Watt


Season Records:

Here are the records for best in a season that a player of mine has set:

Most Rushing Attempts - 389, Heath Shepherd, 2015
Most Rushing Yards - 1923, Heath Shepherd, 2015
Most Receptions - 142, Marvin Graham, 2008
Most Receiving Yards - 2118, Marvin Graham, 2008
Most Receiving Touchdowns - 16, Marvin Graham 2008
Most Tackles - 150, Conrad O’Neal, 2009
Most Field Goals - 44, Olindo Mare, 2011

[Abe Sargent]

Score:

Team Performance - 100
Value - 52
Profit - 53
Difficulty - 75

Score: 65

A Big Hall of Fame class this year:

Marvin Harrison
Randy Moss
Ex-San Antonio Lone Star CB Sam Madison
Ex San Antonio Lone Star CB Samari Rolle
Donnie Abraham
Lance Schulters
Former WVU player CB Aaron Beasley
Darrell Russell
Tyrone Poole

With Ray Lewis in last year, our free agents have done well.


Mare still did not retire

[Abe Sargent]

We have 38 players n our roster


11th most valuable franchise
10th worst stadium
Best roster
12th best support
13th best economy

I slap the tag on Mare again



We are 8 million under the cap and have 15 picks this year including the 28th and 34th in the first round.

We need to get a lot of money cleared up, because here are the starters in their final year:

RB Heath Shepherd
S Travis Westbrook
WR Donald Wagner
DE Andrew Kadanoff
LB Monty Joseph
OG Orlando Wells
OT Lenny Perry
OG Scott Pintsak
P Steve Washington


That’s going to take a lot of dough, especially Heath Shepherd

[Abe Sargent]

I make a major decision that I hate hate hate to do.


I trade DE Kadanoff to the Patriot for their 2nd and 3rd next year. I hate trading players I drafted that got All Pro, but he has done little in the past two years and I can cut some serious salary by getting rid of him.

I extend TE Ed Gardener’s contract by a year.

I extend P Steve Washington by two years.

I extend WR Donald Wagner by three years

I extend QB Tony Clements by a year

I sign a new four year deal with Shepherd worth a bunch of cash.

I trade, sigh, DT Roosevelt Wilber to the Bills for their 2, 3, and 6 next year. He is a really good DT, but he’s not All-Pro level, and DTs of starting caliber demand such cash that I simply cannot afford him long term anymore.

I extend Orlando Wells’ deal by another year,

I sign S Travis Westbrook to a three year deal.

LB Monty Joseph is extended by two years

I sign Scott Pintsak to a new three year deal.

However, I am not enamored with OT Perry enough. I trade him to the Bucs for their 2nd and 3rd next year

C Jackie Sutton is demanding a trade so I give it to him.

I trade Sutton to the Titans for their 6/16 this year.

34 players under contract + Mare. 24.7 million under the cap. Excellent!

There is a great K in free agency, so I try to get him, which will allow me to drop 19 year vet Mare.

In week two I sign K Claude Johnson, a 6th year vet


I release Mare to the UFA wolves.

[Abe Sargent]

The 2016 NFL Amateur Draft


My needs:

Starter: OTx2, DE
Backup: QB, RB, WRx2, C, OG,OTx2, DEx2, DT, LB

Maybe a backup CB



My choices in the 1st, DE Ernest Clinton, OT Corey Conley, OT Tyrone Rathbone. I take Rathbone, Clinton and Conley in that order in the 1st and 2nd rounds. After that I BAP it to the end.



Draft Recap:

1/28 - OT Tyrone Rathbone, Michigan State
1/34 - DE Ernest Clinton, UCLA
2/34 - OT Corey Conley, UNC
3/11 - QB Bob Kieta, Northwestern
3/20 - LB JJ Roberson, Temple
3/34 - WR Wendell Gustin, Cincinnati
4/10 - OG Norbert Cash, Northwestern
4/34 - DE Richard Packard, California
5/34 - C Robert Price, Central Florida
6/11 - CB Randall Curtis, Illinois State
6/16 - LB Roosevelt Nagel, Arizona
6/34 - DT Darrell Coffey, Abilene Christian
7/10 - OT Terrell Terry, Arkansas State
7/11 - DE Lamar Franklin Virginia Tech
7/20 - RB Reggie Walsh, Temple
7/34 - QB Emmanuel Holliday, Florida

16 players taken

After the rookies are signed, I have 51 players under contract and 2.7 million in cap space

I sign OT Robert Adams from Iowa State, DT Justin Cano from Fairfield.

[Abe Sargent]

Training Camp!

We sold 71,600 season tickets

I release CB Mickey McCormick and sign UFA WR Reggie Haase from Texas Southern.

The 2016 Albuquerque Rail Runners

QB Tony Clements - A man
RB Heath Shepherd - Another man
FB Warren Dole - Solid
WR Jerome Baker - Looks good, doesn‘t have the flashy stats
WR Donald Wagner - See Above
TE Ed Gardener - But he does
C Marty Brennan - Two starting years, two All Pro years.
OG Orlando Wells - Playing the best ball of his 11 years
OG Scott Pintsak - Rewarding with his first professional contract.
OT Corey Conley - More developed but less potential of the two rookie Ots
OT Tyrone Rathbone - Less developed but good potential.
K Claude Johnson - Please please please do not disappoint me
P Steve Washington - Strong
DE Doug Gaines - Run stopping specialist with little rush ability
DE Earnest Clinton - Rookie with adequate potential later, but not a great 1/34 pick
DT Ross Meadows - Never get tired of writing his name
DT Hunter Biennium - Did well last year spotting Roosevelt Wilber and now replaces him.
LB Monty Joseph - I likes him
LB Quinn Burroughs - I loves him
LB Blake Crawford - I think he’s okay
CB Leon Morabito - Awesome
CB Jimmie Rebensdorf - Awesome
S Eric Carlson - Awesome
S Travis Westbrook - Solid

KR/PR - CB Murphy and WR Gustin

[Abe Sargent]

Tied for 2nd best QB, 3rd best reserves
The best RB, 4th best reserves
4th best FB
The best TE
The best WR and backups
3rd best C
9th best OG but best reserves
3rd worst OT
2nd best P
2nd best K
3rd worst DE
4th best DT
The best LB
The best CB
2nd best S

[Abe Sargent]

Drafted Rookies by Scout Overview:

QB Emmanuel Holliday, 22/70
G Norbert Cash, 21/66
LB JJ Roberson, 47/64
QB Bob Kieta, 36/63
DE Ernest Clinton, 22/61
OT Tyrone Rathbone, 22/60
OT Corey Conley, 35/58
C Robert Price, 20/58
WR Wendell Gustin, 45/57
DE Richard Packard, 15/50
RB Reggie Walsh, 26/48
LB Roosevelt Nagel, 25/47
CB Randall Curtis, 22/47
DT Darrell Coffey, 16/43
OT Terrell Terry, 10/36
DE Lamar Franklin, 12/34

Not a good draft class. I doubt many of these players will get professional contracts once their rookie one is up. Best chance of that is Rathbone would be my guess. He could develop into a solid starter down the road and I may keep him if he does. Otherwise, this draft is a patch meant to get me through this season and hit the next offseason where I can try to find more permanent solutions.

I only have 7 players whose contract runs up at the end of this season, so I will have an opportunity to splice a lot of players onto next year’s roster. I have several professional staff coming up for a reup next year, Ross Matthews, Leon Morabito, Eric Carlson, Orlando Wells and Marty Brennan, but the only rookie contract next year I’ll need to look at is FB Warren Dole, and I can let him go without any loss of conscience.

We finish the preseason 3-1 and have a few injuries. Orlando Wells is dinged but will play. WR Thomas Foster will play through his injury. LB Quinn Burroughs is questionable but I will play him. Backup S Jon Berdys is questionable and I deactivate him.

[flere-imsaho]

You're pretty much owning the league at this point. I wonder what the ceiling for your RB is.

[Abe Sargent]

I don;t know, but he has yet to get the 2000+ yard mark, so not nearly as high as I've seen other dynasties go.

[Abe Sargent]

Week 1 - We open the season with a win at the Colts 34-21. Shepherd is Game MVP with 121 yards on 20 carries, but FB Dole had two scores on the ground including a 52 yarder. Lincoln, on his one carry of the day, go a TD as well. Clements hit Foster for his lone score, but Baker had 123 yards on 5 grabs. Meadows opens the season with 1.5 sacks. Westbrook had a pick. Brennan had 5 KRB and Conley opened his NFL career with 4.

However, Warren Dole broke his arm and is out for 2-3 months. I toss him on IR and activate Blaine Clancy. There is the end of Dole’s career with me. I doubt I’ll retain him now,

WR Wagner is doubtful and deactivated. Foster drops to doubtful as well I sign WR Hugh Tindale to get us through this WR mess and deactivate Foster as well. WR Gustin will be starting along with Baker until someone gets healed. I increase our run attempts over the next few weeks, so we can lean on Shepherd a bit more.

QB Wayne Webb, of the Giants, was NFL Offensive Player of the Week, our former backup. That reminds me:

My QBs:

QB Jerome Allard, Arizona Cardinals, 15th year. Allard currently holds the record for most passing yards, attempts and TDs in a career over the past 17 years.

QB Artie Switzer, Indianapolis Colts, 10th year. Not the starter anymore after they signed a major QB.

QB Wayne Webb - Now with the Giants and doing well. He has a professional contract and is very developed. Last year, his first as a starter, he had 77.0 rating.

QB Marlon Strickland, Seattle Seahawks, 11th year. This is his first year as a full starter, although he has had years with 8 or 9 starts. You’ll recall that I drafted him with the Lone Stars, he competed with Tony Clements with me considering each as my starter, Clements won, I traded Strickland, he was dropped later and I signed him for a year during my first year at Albuquerque



Week 2 - We win against Buffalo 31-28. Shepherd was Game MVP with 2 TD runs and 97 yards on 21 carries. Clements hit Baker and Gardener for scores, and hit new signee Tindale for a 2 point conversion. C Brennan had 4 KRB.

OT Rathbone has been knocked to questionable. I deactivate him.


Week 3 - We defeat the Jets in our place 39-10. S Travis Westbrook is Game MVP with a 64 yard pick and return and 2 picks total. DT Bieniemy and Matthews had 1.5 sacks each. Shepherd had 166 yards on 18 carries plus two scores. Clements hit Baker for a score, and Baker wound up with 137 yards on 9 grabs. Shepherd was NFL Offensive Player of the Week.

OT Corey Conley is questionable but will start.


Week 4 - We lose in Jacksonville 17-30. Gustin had a 55 yard TD reception from Clements while Haase had a 90 yard receiving play for a score. Shepherd was held to just 35 yards. Rebensdorf had a pick.

[Abe Sargent]

Week 5 - We crush the Jets in New York 40-24. Jerome Baker is Game MVP with 172 yards, a TD and 12 grabs. Gardener grabbed two TD scores. Shepherd had 110 yards on 22 carries plus 2 rushing TDs. Brennan had 4 more KRB.

WR Foster is back and will be starting for us.


Week 6 - We manage to take down Miami 41-27. Shepherd is Game MVP and NFL Offensive Player of the Week with 3 TD runs and a TD catch, 261 yards on 25 rushes. RAR! Clements hits Foster as well. Westbrook and Carlson have picks. No sacks on the day. OT Conley had 4 KRB.

RB Lincoln is questionable and dropped to the bench. OT Rathbone is back.


Week 7 - We defeat Denver 34-14 at our place. Travis Westbrook is Game MVP with a 93 yard pick and return for a score. Morabito added a pick. C Brennan had 5 KRB. Shepherd had 111 yards and 4 rushing TDs on 25 carries. Another sackless game.

WR Donald Wagner is back from injury. QB Monty Joseph is questionable after a concussion and will be benched.


After 7 weeks, Shepherd already has 13 rushing TDs. The record in a season is 20. Westbrook already has 5 picks.

Week 8 - We crush the Browns 34-7. Clements is Game MVP with TD passes to Foster, Foster and Wagner. Shepherd has just 50 yards. Meadows adds 2 sacks and Carlson adds a pick. Packard recovers a fumble and rushes it in a score.

Halfway through the season, Clements has the most passing yards.