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

[Abe Sargent]

Here we come Training Camp!


23,500 season tix sold

Rookie Overview Time!

S Jon Prescott - 40/82. Whew! I traded for this guy and I needed him to pan out (although I drafted backups in case of busting)
RB Maurice Carlisle - 53/81 I am a bad, bad boy and someone should spank me for hoarding these RB
C Les Morris - 34/78 - Another whew!
QB Johnny Hernandez - 43/76 - A great backup (better than Rufus Richardson) for a few years. Replacement for Ernest long term? Doubtful, probably not good enough.
LB Mo Razo - 30/67 - This is a bust, but not one o those massive ones where they can’t play. Very disappointing, as I thought Razo was the end to a long line of LB hurt. He’s just the next stage of suckage.
FB Eric Thornton - 44/65
S James Cronin - 28/65
DT Mo Webb - 22/65
WR Travis Parrish - 38/62 - I like him
OT Blaine Preston - 21/62
WR Oliver Clemons - 15/53
RB Glen Bates - 27/48
C Ken Kwan - 27/43
DE Edward Harper - 8/42
S Emmanuel Malecki - 19/40
LB Bernie Kitchens - 17/39

LB Rhineheart busted a bit so he is not as good either.

I cut LB Ted Parliman

[Abe Sargent]

QB Johnny Hernandez (These are pots)

Screen - 100
Short - 86
Medium - 100
Long - 100
Deep - 49
3rd Down - 57
Accuracy - 60
Power - 80
Scramble Freq - 90
Carrying - 74

That is a good QB. If he had 20 more accuracy then he’s be great. As is, he is a strong choice for teams needing a QB. Develop him and trade him because he can be a fine QB in this league.

[Abe Sargent]

Your 2029 Huntington Highlanders

QB Ernest Mayes - He’s awesome. He’s aging.
RB Grady Pender - Skills erode just a little each year
FB Tracy Kramer - Solid
TE Brant Carman - 2 All Pros back to back
WR Kenny Marshall - Back to form please, k thanks
WR Eugene Jonas - Beat out rookie Parrish because he is nice and developed
C Les Morris - Very strong
OG Bruce Holliday - Back to form please
OG Neil Lee - Keep it up!
OT Roger Fisher - Ick
OT Marco Goguen - Icker. Can’t wait until run blocking specialist and green rookie Preston is ready
P Leo Rayburn - Older, gooder
K Christian Huffman - Yay for special teams weapons!
DE Bert Curtain - Solid
DE Floyd Gardner - Good, would like him to sign contract though. Will have to re-sign in offseason
DT Joey Springer - Almost all developed. Adequate
DT Raymond Stargell - Getting better.
LB Jeff Grier - He’s not MLB quality but beggers and choosers come to mind
LB Sedrick Rhinehart - Sigh. Starting at SLB.
LB Lionel Garcia - Intended to be a back up to pressed to service at WLB.
CB Jim Ackerman - In Jim we trust
CB Jimmy Ordona - The Mercury Greene era is over. Good luck UFA CB.
S Derek Long - More development please
S Jon Prescott - Looks really good.

KR/PR are Eugene Jonas, CB Winston Snyder and WR Gerald Branch

[Abe Sargent]

We go 3-1 in the preseason. CB Jon Benton, a UFA signing is out VERY LONG TERM and I IR him. I sign CB Nolan Burks

WR Jonas is questionable as is WR Marshall, and some other assorted injuries.

Jonas is benched for his injury.


Week 1 - We win 27 - 21 vs. the Rams. Pender is Game MVP with 76 yards, 26 carries, a TD. Carman caught a score. LB Lionel Garcia has a fumble recovery 19 yards for a score. In his first start, Ordona grabs a pick. Gardner notches a pair of sacks.

WR Wilkins, Marshall and Jonas are all questionable.

Week 2 - We barely win 14-13 vs. the Falcons. Mayes is Game MVP with 18 of 28, 184, 2:0. Kramer caught both TD. Pender had 70 yards on 26 carries. Ackerman grabbed a pick. Bert Curtain grabbed two sacks.

TE Carman, WR Jonas, Marshall and Wilkins are all questionable. Sheesh.


Week 3 - Mayes is both MVP and OPotW as we defeat the hated Steelers 33-16 on the road. Pender went down and Carlson had 102 yards on 28 carries, 3 scores. 31 of 35, 278, 1:0 for Mayes. Backup TE Geer caught our score and had 7 catches on the day subbing for an injured Carman. S Long grabs two picks. Curtain rapes with 3.5 sacks. LB Rhinehart adds two sacks. Both C Morris and G Holliday clear out 4 KRB.

Questionable - Grady Pender, Brant Carman, Bruce Holliday
Probable - Jonas, Marshall, Wilkins

I’ll bring back Jonas.


Week 4 - We crush the Ravens 42-28. CB Jim Ackerman is NFL Defensive Player of the Week and G MVP with 48 yard pick and return for a score, another pick and a fumble recovery. He outclassed Carlson with his 213 yards on 32 carries and a score. Or Mayes 18 of 26, 224, 4:0 day, or even Curtain’s 3 sack day. Lots of people with great days. S Long had a pick. Lee and Fisher each grabbed 4 KRB. Brant Carman, Kramer, Jonas and Parrish each grabbed TDs.

The fact that I have a great back behind Pender who can crank out the yards and scores, and I have ANOTHER behind him that can do the same is sick. If both QB Mayes and RB Pender went down for the year, I still think I’d be 11-5 or 10-6 and in the playoffs.

[Abe Sargent]

Week 5 - 29-6 over the Bengals. Pender is NFL OPotW and MVP with 155 yards, 25 carries, a score. S Jon Prescott had a pick and return for a score. Huffman is 5 of 6 on the day. Ackerman also had a pick. Sackless.

Week 6 - Pender is NFL OPotW in a losing effort against the Jaguars 36-40. Pender has 190 yards, 21 carries, 2 score.s Mayes throws up an very unusual 3 picks against one score to Parrish. WR Gerald Branch has a PR for a score, 54 yards. LB Lionel Garcia is Game MVP with a 28 yard pick and run for a score. Scores on special teams, defense and offense, and yet a loss. Prescott had a pick too. Again, sackless.

FB Kramer is doubtful.

Week 7 - BYE

Week 8 - We win 24-17. Pender is injured again and Carlson has 94 yards and a score on 22 carries. Carman and rookie FB Thornton have scores. Long and Snyder notch picks. Ely has 2 sacks. T Gogeun clears out 5 KRB.

DT Joey Springer is doubtful and benched.

Week 9 - Cincinnati eats it, 42-9. RB Pender is injured and benched. DE Burt Curtain is Game MVP with four sacks. RAR! Carlisle and Carlson had their carries split. Carlisle had 14 carries, 109 yards, 2 TD. Carlson had 19 carries, 142 yards, 2 TD. Awesome! Mayes hits Carman and Jonas for scores. Ackerman adds a pick. Fisher and Holliday each notched 4KRB.

[Abe Sargent]

Week 10 - 34-10 over the Lone Stars. Game MVP? RB Butch Carlson, 147 yards, 32 carries, 3 TD. Ordona, Ackerman, and Prescott had picks. Giron had 4 KRB.

C Les Morris is doubtful and Kwan will start for a few weeks.

FB Tracy Kramer is back.

Week 11 - 37-10 and the Jaguars fall. Carlson had 141 yards, a score, 26 rushes. Mayes hits Jonas and Carman. Curtin grabs 3 sacks. Prescott and Cronin with picks.

Week 12 - Pittsburgh is wondering who stole their defense when we put 42 on them, and they only manage 17. Butch Carlson is Game MVP with 167 yards, 2 scores, 25 carries. Mayes hits Marshall for three scores and Jonas for 129 yards and Carman for a score. LB Grier grabs 2 sacks. Ordona and Ackerman with picks. C Kwan with 4 KRB.

Week 13 - We lose on the road 13-26 to Corpus Christi Cyberhawks. Calrson had 77 yards, on 19 carries. Mayes hits Kramer for our lone TD. Long has a pick.

C Les Morris is back next week.

At 10-2 we are tied with the Titans in our own division. We are playing them next week for control of the division.

[Abe Sargent]

Week 14 - Not even a contest. 40-6. Carlson is NFL OPotW with 201 yards, 2 scores, 29 carries. Mayes hits Kramer and Jonas. LB Grier is Game MVP with a 95 pick and run back for a score. Prescott, Swift and Ordona with picks too.

Grady Pender is back. I will be riding the hot leg and sticking with Carlson. DT Joey Springer is also back.


Week 15 - Denver takes us out 38-31 in our place. Carlson is held to 58 yards. Mayes has a crazy day. 22 of 42, 552, 4:4. That’s Kurt Warner of the Rams esque. Three receivers have 100+ days. Marshall has 163 yards and 3 score.s Parrish has 145 yards and a score. Jonas grabs 103 yards.

Tennessee is rubbing our scrotum again with an identical 11-3 record to ours. We have a Week 17 game against them.


Week 16 - We defeat the 11 win Colts 31-21. S Jon Prescott is Game MVP with a 37 yard pick and return, Snyder also had a pick. Carlson 28, 148, 2. Jonas gets an aerial score. The Titans also won.


Week 17 - Tennessee wins 59-43 at their place. We have lost the AFC Central for the first time in forever.

Carlson had 49 yards, 15 carries 1 score
Mayes was 16 of 36, 326, 4:2.
Marshall was 159 yards 2 scores
Parrish 119 yards 1 score
Jonas 1 score
Ordona 2 picks
Cronin 1 pick
Gerald Branch 91 yards KR RET TD


We finished the game +3 in TO and lost by 16. They had TWO KR RET Tds. Ouch.

[Abe Sargent]

The 2029 AFC Playoffs


Wild Card Weekend

With our 12-4 score, we are the #4 seed and are at home in week one of the playoffs.


We CRUSH the 11-5 Colts 34-3. TE Carman is out with a broken jaw and QB Ernest Mayes is knocked questionable.

S James Cronin is Game MVP with 2 picks.

LB Grier had 2 sacks.
Carlson 113 yards, 2 scores, 27 carries
Mayes hit Carlson and backup TE Geer.


New England crushes Albuquerque 45-17

[Abe Sargent]

Divisional Weekend

We travel to San Antonio

Mayes will start



We win 31-27

Kenny Marshall is Game Mvp with 156 yards, 1 score and 10 catches. Jonas had a score too. Carlson added 87 yards on the ground and 2 scores



Tennessee won 20-10.

[Abe Sargent]

AFC Championship

In week 17, these teams played for home field and the AFC Central crown. One won and is now in the AFC Championship as the home field team. The other lost and went on the road to get to the AFC Championship. They split their series in the regular season and now it is winner take all.


#1 seed 13-3 Tennessee Titans

vs.

#4 seed 12-4 Huntington Highlanders


We win 26-20. However, DE Bert Curtain is out VERY LONG TERM and dropped in ability. Suck. I throw him on IR. QB Ernest Mayes is doubtful and WILL NOT START THE SUPER BOWL. Suck.

Costly.

Game MVP is RB Butch Carlson with 196 yards, 26 carries, 1 score. Mayes and Hernandez each play and hit Marshall and Kramer for scores. Cronin with a pick. Morris and Holliday with 4 KRB.

[Abe Sargent]

The 2029 Super Bowl

Your AFC Champion 12-4 #4 seed Huntington Highlanders without their QB, with a new RB, and without their star DE will face

Your NFC Champion 12-4 #1 seed Tampa Bay Buccaneers with a healthy squad.

Okay, here we go.


We lose, no surprise. 21-48

Carlson held to 68 yards on 15 carries.
Hernandez was 11 of 22, 185 yards, 3:2 ratio.
Parrish caught 2 TD and Jonas one.



Not much there. Ah well.

[Abe Sargent]

Season Awards:

Defensive Rookie of the Year: S Jon Prescott
All Pro 1st Team: RB Butch Carlson, FB Tracy Kramer, OG Neil Lee, DE Bert Curtain, CB Jim Ackerman
All Pro 2nd Team: TE Brant Carman, LB Jeff Grier

Others of Note: None. Only players drafted on my team got awards.

Here is why the injury to Bert Curtain sucks. He was already an overachiever, and this season he had a mammoth season, and his THIRD All Pro despite not being that good on paper. But he produces. However, with the drop in stats, he no longer has starter written on him. 42 run/64pass/41 endurance. Sound like an All Pro to you? Not to me. Sigh. That injury sucked.

Love to see a changing of the guard here. Not Holliday but Lee. Not Pender but Carlson. Tons of first time awards for my draftees. Ackerman, Grier, Carlson, Prescott, Kramer, and Lee all are first timers.

The DT I traded, Stanley Allen, has had two All Pro seasons in back to back years for Austin, so not all of my trades rape people.

[Abe Sargent]

My Peops:

RB Grady Pender, Countless
S Justin Sotiroff, Saints, 1 honor
FB Sam Albriktsen, 1 honor
OG Bruce Holliday, 3 honors
RB Calvin Garrison, 2 honors, Skins
OG Scott Pintsak, Rail, 2 honors
C Jesse Tate, Titans, 5 honors
CB Jesse Pirtle, Snakes, 1 honor
DT Danny Phelan, Panthers, 1 honor
DE Jackie Greene, Snakes, 1 honor
RB Ralph Barrett, Snakes, 6 honors
OT Tyrone Rathbone, Rail, 3 honors
C Ray Hampton, Lone Stars, 2 honors
DE Bert Curtain, 3 honors
CB Rufus McGowan, Cowboys, 3 honors
FB Zach Taylor, Chargers, 5 honors
TE Brant Carman, 3 honors
WR Kenny Marshall, 2 honors
TE Ronnie Meadows, Cardinals, 1 honor
C Bo Austin, Dolphins, 1 honor
OG Riddick Wilkerson, Lions, 1 honor
CB Jim Ackerman, 1 honor
FB Tracy Kramer, 1 honor
RB Butch Carlson, 1 honor
LB Jeff Grier, 1 honor
OG Neil Lee, 1 honor
S Jon Prescott, 1 honor

[Abe Sargent]

Team Stats:

We were the tops in rushing yards again, and ypc (5.1 TEAM average)
12th most passing yards, 5th most ypc
19th fewest rushing yards allowed, Tied for 4th most allowed per rush
7th most passing yards allowed, Tied for 7th most ypc allowed
50 sacks found, tied for 2nd most, 33 allowed, tied for 4th fewest
Led league with +19 TO margin

[Abe Sargent]

Individual Stats:

QB Ernest Mayes, 3601 yards,61%, 30:13 ratio, 95.3 QB Rating

RB Butch Carlson, 1532 yards (led league), 18 rush TD (led league), 5.2 ypc

WR Kenny Marshall, 67 grabs, 963 yards, 8 TD
WR Eugene Jonas, 46, 677, 5
FB Tracy Kramer, 43, 522, 5 - 13 starts
WR Travis Parrish, 40, 566, 4
TE Brant Carman, 38, 421, 6

I have never seen one of my FB do as much in the passing game as Kramer did this year.

KR/PR Gerald Branch, 1 KR TD, 1 PR TD

K Huffman, 25 of 32, long of 53, missed two PAT (Ick)
P Rayburn, 39 of 83 in 20., lower average

DE Burt Curtain, 20.5 sacks - led league, 2 Blocked passes 4 QB Hurries
DE Floyd Gardner, 11 sacks, 5 and 5 (# Blocked Passes is tied for 5th in the league)
LB Jeff Grier, 87 solo tackles, 4 sacks, 1 pick, 6 pasdef, 1 INT RET TD, 1 fumrec - No clue why All Pro is here.

CB Jim Ackerman - 7 picks (tied for 6th most in league), 9 pas def
S Derek Long - 5 picks, 13 pas def (2nd most pasdef in league)
CB Jimmy Ordona - 6 picks, 4 pasdef - Whew! I was hoping I had not made a mistake with Ordona and I didn’t. More picks in his first season as a starter than Greene ever had in a season.
S Jon Prescott - 6 picks, 4 pasdef

This is a strong secondary if they can perform at this level every year.


OG Neil Lee, 32 KRB, 2 sacks allowed
OG Bruce Holliday, 31 KRB, 4 sacks allowed
OT Roger Fisher, 23 and 7
OT Marco G, 21 and 9
C Les Morris, 19 and 4 (13 starts)

[Abe Sargent]

Team Awards:

Offensive Player of the Year: RB Butch Carlson - with starting half the year, and subbing the rest, out rushed the rest of the league. If he had the 105 rushes Pender had, would likely have had 2000 yards. (Pender had 572 yards on 105 rushes, so Carlson should have had similar numbers). Great job Carlson!

Defensive Player of the Year: DE Bert Curtain - This is likely the last time he gets this award with his injury. He continues to grow and grow. Here are his sack numbers chronologically: 8, 9, 9.5, 6, 13.5, 20.5. Except for year 4, he has gotten better every year. Sigh. That was a player whose work ethic won me over and now it may be all over. We’ll see. He’s earned a starting gig next year, but after that?

Special Teams Player of the Year: WR Gerald Branch - Acquired in a trade as a spare player but had two returns for scores for us. Nicely done.

Rookie of the Year: S Jon Prescott - Getting DRotY is no joke and he did it with good stats and good play.

Heart Award: LB Jeff Grier - What was that award? All Pro? Seriously? How does a guy with these stats starting in the MLB only because we have had severe problems with LB become only the second LB I have ever drafted to get All Pro while on my team. (Burroughs was first just a few years ago). This guy is nothing, he just did solidly and continues to shine because of the relatively lack of players at his position. Thanks Jeff!

[Abe Sargent]

Players Leaving of Note:

DE Gardner (RFA coming)


Ernest Mayes 552 passing yards in a game this year is a game record. The previous high was 531 by Charlie Batch in 2002. The next highest was 513, by Charlie Batch in 2005.

[Abe Sargent]

Here we go:


Performance: 95
Value: 42
Profit: 58
Difficulty: 76
Score: 61


Hall of Fame:

RB Heath Shepherd, 93%, Pride of Georgia Tech, 17 all league honors, 156 rushing TD, 16215 rushing yards
DT Brendan Leopold, 82%, Pride of Georgia Tech, 7 honors, 114 sacks,
C Cory Barton, 84%, UNC, 8 all league honors, 46 sacks allowed in 250 starts, 498 KRB

Some years there appear to be some chumps getting in, but this year you can’t question these three.


Leopold was drafted by Corpus Christi and is the first player in their Hall of Fame.

[Abe Sargent]

Franchise:

15th highest value
20th best stadium
The best roster
8th worst fan support
Tied for 17th best economy
Lowest attendance by #, 13th lowest by %

We lost 20 million last year led by a 90 million increase in player bonuses


I keep tickets at the same prices.

[Abe Sargent]

Free Agency:

42 players, 16 million in cap room.

Time to bite the bullet.

I trade 11 year vet Grady Pender to Tennessee for their 2 and 6 round picks (#34 in each round).

Time for a new start.

I cut WR Gerald Branch. He was making too much this year.

I extend OG Bruce Holliday by two years

No surprise that I traded Pender to make way for my new backs. This next trade may surprise you a lot, though.

I trade RB Butch Carlson, my 4th, 7th, 6th and a 6th/36 I’m sitting on to the 49ers for their 1/20 pick.

Carlson was in the final year of his rookie deal and it would cost way too much to resign him when I have a better back on my roster. If I am changing I should really change all of the way.

I sign FB Tracy Kramer to a professional contract, a rarity for me and FB but he really contributed last year.

I trade backup QB Jesse Floyd to the Ravens for their 2/16 pick. I’ve shown you Floyd before and you know he’s a solid backup role player type QB. Before this trade, Baltimore did not even have a QB on their roster, so I think it’s a solid trade.

I have two starters in their final year - LB Jeff Grier and OT Roger Fisher. I still gotta pay DE Floyd Gardner too.


No chasing the FA. There is a good LB there I could chase but he’s too old and expensive. Bad combo.

C Les Morris busted a bit, not much, but a bit and I just noticed. Sigh.


I get nice trade offers for Kramer, Carman and Carlisle (my sophomore RB who I am now going to be running with). I get a 1/9 for Carlisle offered to me and I am saying no. I have my guy.

[Abe Sargent]

The 2030 NFL Amateur Draft


Starters of Need:

LB, LB, DE probably (replace Curtain). OT?

Okay, let’s see what we can find.



Best players on the board at 1/20

WR Pete Waddle - Really strong. Really. 79/100/72/88/66 - 65 (The catching stats, carrying, and endurance pots).
LB Joseph Martinez - 84/78/73/94/44. Great in everything but endurance. A nice pick.


Ah screw it. That sucks. This is a lousy pick to have traded for. There’s not even a great BAP out here. I’d take an All Pro potential CB, DT, S, QB, RB, TE, C, OG, OT, DE, LB - everything but FB, K, and P. But there’s none out here.

Pete Waddle is BAP and I’ve got a great WR corps right now. I have a lot of faith in Jonas and Parrish. There a great run blocking specialist at OG with 98 run blocking potential but just 52 pass blocking, and that’s not worth drafting. (98 and 72 would be.) FB Charlie Fisk an All Pro candidate but I have two FB on my roster, and this is not a position to BAP. RB Rick Caldwell is solid and a good starter but not BAP, not a great player or anything. C Riddick Ashraf is really good but even with his bust, Les Morris is arguably just as good.

FINE


I then grab Martinez at the end of the 1st.

Caldwell is still on the board and I take him as insurance.

Then I BAP a bunch,



Draft Recap:

1/20 - WR Pete Waddle, Kansas
1/35 - LB Joseph Martinez, Fresno State
2/16 - RB Rick Caldwell, Louisiana State
2/34 - OG Gino Collett, SW Missouri State
2/35 - DT Billy Joe Lane, Michigan State
3/19 - QB Alonzo Squires, Tulsa
3/35 - C Andre Baker, Temple
5 - RB Luke Palmer, USC
6/22 - CB Lenny McAllister, Texas Christian



Post draft, I reject a trade offer for TE Carman and sign DE Floyd Gardner to a 4 year deal.

I have 48 players under contract. I make some offers:

I sign the UFAs:

TE Timothy Barnes, Louisiana Tech
OT TJ Martinez, Pittsburgh
CB Mike Shore, Memphis
CB Tommy Powell, Louisville
DE Cris Etaton, Southern Mississippi

[Abe Sargent]

Let’s go to camp!


I reject 3 trades.

25,300 tix sold



Rookie Overview:

WR Pete Waddle - 58/85
G Gino Collett - 49/78
RB Rick Caldwell - 54/75
QB Alonzo Squires - 42/68
C Andre Baker - 31/68
DT Billy Joe Lane - 22/62
LB Joseph Martinez - 31/60 - Slid about 10 points in each of two skills. Feh
RB Luke Palmer - 18/49
CB Lenny McAllister - 32/32


Not a great class.


Some of my players from last year have slid a bit including RB Carlisle, and QB Hernandez and S Jon Prescott.

[Abe Sargent]

Your 2030 Huntington Highlanders

QB Ernest Mayes - Older but still good
RB Maurice Carlisle - Busted from really, really strong to strong
FB Tracy Kramer - Repeat of last year please.
TE Brant Carman - More All Pros please
WR Kenny Marshall _ I likes him
WR Pete Waddle - Starting over Jonas due to potential, not current stats
C Les Morris - Who eroded over last year
OG Neil Lee - Yay!
OG Bruce Holliday - More All Pros please
OT Roger Fisher - Okay. Will not be extending his contract.
OT Marco Goguen - Again, patch time
P Leo Rayburn - Awesome!
K Christian Huffman - Strongly strong
DE Bert Curtain - Can he still show me something despite the injury
DE Floyd Gardner - Be great!
DT Joey Springer - Fully developed.
DT Raymond Stargell - Very good
LB Joseph Martinez - Despite the green-ness and the busting in a few places still the highest potential LB on my team. Start him in the middle.
LB Sedrick Rhinehart - Almost fully developed. Not good, merely average. SLB
LB Jeff Grier - Despite a very surprising All Pro nod last year, I do not have much faith in Grier, WLB
CB Jim Ackerman - I loves him.
CB Jimmy Ordona - I likes him
S Derek Long - Pretty good I think
S Jon Prescott - More consistency to build upon DRotY honors

KR/PR - WR Eugene Jonas and CB Lenny McAllister

Okay!

[Abe Sargent]

What do others think of my sexy team?


5th best QB
Tied for 10th best RB
2nd best FB
4th best TE
3rd best WR
Tied for 5th best C
Tied for 7th best OG
15th best OT
2nd best P
THE best K
4th best DE
6th best DT
Tied for 14th worst LB
2nd best CB
6th best S


This roster does have some question marks. Change at RB, can DE Curtain still start, rookie starters, will this be the season 13 year vet Ernest Mayes begins his inevitable decline, etc.

[Abe Sargent]

We finish the preseason 3-1 but with 8 injuries. Mostly minor ones. The big one is backup CB Mike Shore, who is out for several months with a shoulder injury. I toss him on IR. I don’t sing anyone immediately. I have coverage on the team after activating Tommy Powell plus I don’t have the cash to do a signing unless I cut/trade so I want to stick with what I can.

Ernest Mayes is questionable for opening week but I will be starting him against the Ravens.


Week 1 - We crush the Ravens 45-17. RB Maurice Carlisle is Game MVP with 33 carries, 176 yards, 3 rushing TDs. Nice to know he can carry the load for his first game, at least. Rookie WR Pater Waddle had 134 yards on 7 catches in his debut, another great start. Caldwell caught a TD. FB Kramer had a TD run. Cronin had our lone pick of the day. C Morris had 6 KRB while OG Holliday notched 5 himself.

There are no additional injuries but Mayes is still questionable. I will still start him.


Week 2 - The Giants fall before us 20-3. CB Jim Ackerman is Game MVP with 2 picks. OG Neil Lee is with 6 KRB. Carlisle adds 198 yards on 26 carries, no scores. Mayes hits Parrish and Jonas for scores. Both of my starting WR were held without a catch. Wow.

Mayes is upgraded to Probable. RB Caldwell is Doubtful and therefore benched.


Week 3 - Another victoire over the Jags, 42-14. QB Ernest Mayes is Game Mvp and OPotW with 26 of 37, 283, and 4:0 ratio. He hit Jonas x2, Parrish and Waddle for scores. Carlisle had 126 yards and two scores on 25 carries. 2 picks by S Prescott. 1.5 sacks by DE Gardner. OG Holliday grabbed 4 KRB.

Week 4 - 48-10 over the Cowboys. RB Carlisle is OPofW and MVP with 243 yards on 23 carries, 5 TD. That is a real statline right there. Palmer has a rushing score. Prescott and Cronin with picks. Morris and Holliday each notch 4 KRB.

In the first quarter of the season we have outscored our foes 155-44

That’s a good start! My RB is on course, right now, for 3000+ yard season. That’s a great start! He has 753 yards and 10 TD already!

[Abe Sargent]

Week 5 - The juggernaut slows a bit as we win 16-10 over the Titans. We come away with a large number of injuries including questionable for TE Brant Carman. WR Pete Waddle is Game Mvp with 179 yards, 10 catches, and a TD. Carlisle is held to just 56 yards on 21 carries. We are slowing down. Ackerman has a pick. No sacks for us.

Week 6 - 23-13 on the road against the Steelers. DT Joey Springer is injured for months with a broken jaw. Billy Joe will be starting for us. LB and rookie Joseph Martinez is Game MVP with 3 sacks. Gardner had 2. CB Ordona grabbed a pick. Carlisle had 85 yards on 19 carries and a score. Mayes hit Marshall for a score before coming out after getting injured. Parrish had 102 yards on 5 catches.

Week 7 - Our three game away streak concludes with a 7 point victory against the Redskins 24-17. WR Kenny Marshall broke his hand and is doubtful. QB Mayes is Game MVP With 32 of 44, 2:2, 374 yards. He hits Jonas and Parrish for scores. Jonas has 116 yards on 6 catches. Carlisle adds 70 yards on 26 carries. Kramer has his second rush TD of the year. Prescott and Ackerman with a pick each. OT Goguen actually had 4 KRB. Wonders Never Cease. And no, I am not Morcheeba.

Week 8 - BYE

Week 9 - Marshall is still doubtful and deactivated. Jonas will start in his stead. This is one place on my roster I can take an injury. I have four good quality WR in Parrish, Jonas, Waddle and Marshall. We defeat the Titans 33-16. Carlisle is Game MVP with 3 scores, 177 yards on 31 carries. Waddle had 157 yards on 9 catches. Parrish caught a TD> Ackerman with a pick. Holliday had 5 KRB while Lee grabbed 4 of his own.

Marshall remains out and probably will not return for several weeks.

8-0 at the halfway mark. There are four teams in the NFL at 6-2, none with just 1 loss.

Carlisle is at 1132 yards at the halfway mark. That’s well on a way to a 200+ yard season. Mayes has a 101.7 QB Rating right now. Let’s see what the 2nd half has in store for my little juggernaut.

[Abe Sargent]

Week 10 - We hold serve at our place against the Bengals 26-15. Carlisle is Game MVP with 195 yards on 35 carries, no scores. FB Kramer had 88 yards on 5 carries, two scores. Kramer is proving himself. DE Curtain had 1.5 sacks. No picks. OT Goguen had 5 KRB.

We now begin a FIVE game away stretch before we finish the final two games with 2 at home. If our 9-0 team is going to falter, it is most likely going to happen in the next five weeks. These games include battles against the 7-2 Ravens, 6-3 Chiefs and 5-4 Rail Runners. (The other two teams are currently with losing records.)


Week 11 - The Chiefs are harvested 36-7. MVP is…..DE BERT CURTAIN!!! YAY!!! 3 sacks. No picks today. Carlisle held to 63 yards and a score on 21 carries. Carman, Parrish and Waddle all caught Mayes Tds. We survived the first contest.

Week 12 - The Bengals fall 31-23. DE Bert Curtain is knocked questionable with a concussion. Ackerman is MVP with 2 picks. S Long has his first pick of the season. Carlisle grabbed 112 yards on 20 carries plus a score. Waddle and FB Kramer catch scores. Mayes rushed for a score. We handled the 2nd contest.

Week 13 - Here it is. The Ravens are 8-3 and looking for revenge. This is the 3rd consecutive away game we’ve played. 30-7 over them! MVP is Ernest Mayes with 23 of 38, 256 and 2:1. He hits Parrish and Waddle for scores. Carlisle added 113 yards on 21 carries. Mayes rushed for another score. Gardner grabbed 2.5 sacks. Grier and Long with picks. Lee made 5 KRB.


Marshall is probable and I keep him out fearing rein jury to his broken hand. It’s not like we need him that badly or anything.

[Abe Sargent]

Week 14 - Oh, we lose, we lose, we lose. The Jaguars beat us 34-31 in OT. Carlisle had 126 yards on 20 carries plus a score. TE Brant Carman had 2 scores and 126 yards on 9 grabs. Parrish had a TD too. Curtain grabbed 2.5 sacks. S Prescott with a pick. OT Fisher is out VERY LONG TERM with Arthroscopic Knee Surgery. Ouch., I IR him.

Week 15 - We take out our Pissed Off at Having Our Perfect Season Ruined By a 4 Win Team Syndrome on Albuquerque 45-10. Mayes is OPotW and Game Mvp with a rocking 29, out of 37, 415 and 5:1 ratio. He hits Jonas for 3 scores, Waddle 12 times for 201 yards and a score, and Carman for 109 and a score too. McAllister with a pick. Carlisle had just 41 yards and a score on 19 carries. Never really got started.

WR Marshall is back. Our final two games are at home.

Week 16 - Indy falls before us 21-16. Game MVP is DE Floyd Gardner with 2 sacks. Prescott and Ordona with picks. Carlisle had 75 yards on 19 carries. Mayes hits Marshall, Carman and Waddle for scores.


Going into week 17, Carlisle needs 138 yards rushing to hit 200. At home. Against the 4-11 Steelers. Doable.


Week 17 - We win 30-17 and finish the season a strong 15-1. I almost don’t want to look at the box scores. Here goes. WR Kenny Marshall is MVP with 118 yards on 10 carries plus two scores. Carlisle has just 98 yards on 21 carries plus a score. 40 yards shy. Ackerman has a pick. And Ordona joins him. LB Rhinehart has 2 sacks.

[Abe Sargent]

The 2030 AFC Playoffs:


Wild Card Weekend


Baltimore 27
Jaguars 24

Seattle 20
Miami 17


Close games!


Divisional Weekend


We host the Ravens.

DT Joey Springer is back from his injury.


We win 26-17.

Mo Webb is Game MVP with 3 sacks. Malecki and Powell have picks, so it was backup week here in West Virginia.

Carlisle grabbed 95 yards on 21 carries. Mayes hits Jonas and Parrish for scores.




The Patriots took care of the Seahawks 30-10.

S Cronin is out VERY LONG TERM after the game.

[Abe Sargent]

AFC Championship:

In a battle of top seeds, we host the 11-5 Patriots.


We manage to win 27-24 in OT with 4:49 left. We scored with 1:30 left in the 4th in order to put it at 24-24 and OT. We also scored earlier in the quarter, so at the beginning of the 4th, the game was 24-10 and looked out of reach.

Ernest Mayes was knocked out and Johnny Hernandez was the QB for almost the entire game, including leading the 4th quarter drives and OT. Hernandez was 13 of 21, 190 and 2:0. That’s really good at the AFC Championship. I thought he was good. Nice to see it confirmed. He hit Marshall and Waddle for scores while Jonas grabbed 134 yards in 7 catches. Carlisle added 92 ground yards and a score on 20 rushes. Seems like a low amount for a game that goes into OT, but we were playing catch up for a long time.


No picks.

Mayes is probable for the Super Bowl and will start.

[Abe Sargent]

The 2030 Super Bowl

Your #1 seed 15-1 AFC Champion Huntington Highlanders

vs.

Your #2 seed 11-5 NFC Champion Arizona Cardinals









We win with one of the odder scorelines you’ll see in the Super Bowl - 15-0.

We actually did score a TD when Jonas caught a Mayes ball for a 31 yard TD play. We tried to run for a conversion, and failed. No, I am not sure why.

Mayes is Game MVP with 27 of 44, 327, 1:0. Carlisle was 119 on 24 carries and fumbled it away once.


Powell had a pick. S Long had our only sack on the day.


Hey, another SB win!

[Abe Sargent]

Season Awards:



NFL MVP - QB Ernest Mayes. And you thought it was going to be Carlisle…
Super Bowl MVP - QB Ernest Mayes
All-Pro 1st Team - QB Ernest Mayes, FB Tracy Kramer, TE Brant Carman, C Les Morris, OG Bruce Holliday, OG Neil Lee, DE Bert Curtain
All-Pro 2nd Team - RB Maurice Carlisle, WR Pete Waddle, CB Jim Ackerman



We did NOT get Offensive Player of the Year? WTF? The guy who did had 1300 and 13 TD rushing, so I checked his receiving, 761 and 3. Carlisle, on the other hand, had 1960 and 19 but played no role in our receiving game. You’d much rather have a back with Carlisle’s statline than the other guy’s. Ah well.

Nice to see a lot of my players getting second awards, showing their ability. Lee, Ackerman and Kramer.

Getting 3 of your 5 O Line All Pro awards is amazing. If I only had good OTs. Sigh.

Bert Curtain with a 4th All Pro is just simply staggering. This guy is just not that good on paper.

Yay for BAP pick Pete Waddle. Again, I hate seeing a rookie get All Pro and NOT ORotY. But the guy who did is a RB with 1307 yards, so that’s not too bad.

I wanted Holliday to get back to this level, and he did.




Other awards of note:

CB Rufus McGowan, Dallas, 1st Team All Pro.

[Abe Sargent]

My Peops:


RB Grady Pender, Countless
S Justin Sotiroff, Saints, 1 honor
FB Sam Albriktsen, 1 honor
OG Bruce Holliday, 4 honors
RB Calvin Garrison, 2 honors, Skins
C Jesse Tate, Titans, 5 honors
CB Jesse Pirtle, Snakes, 1 honor
DT Danny Phelan, Panthers, 1 honor
DE Jackie Greene, Snakes, 1 honor
RB Ralph Barrett, Snakes, 6 honors
C Ray Hampton, Lone Stars, 2 honors
DE Bert Curtain, 4 honors
CB Rufus McGowan, Cowboys, 4 honors
FB Zach Taylor, Chargers, 5 honors
TE Brant Carman, 4 honors
WR Kenny Marshall, 2 honors
TE Ronnie Meadows, Cardinals, 1 honor
C Bo Austin, Dolphins, 1 honor
OG Riddick Wilkerson, Lions, 1 honor
CB Jim Ackerman, 2 honors
FB Tracy Kramer, 2 honors
RB Butch Carlson, 49ers, 1 honor
RB Maurice Carlisle, 1 honor
LB Jeff Grier, 1 honor
OG Neil Lee, 2 honors
S Jon Prescott, 1 honor
WR Pete Waddle, 1 honor
C Les Morris, 1 honor

[Abe Sargent]

Team Stats:

Most rushing yards, by far. Tied for most ypc
2nd most passing yards, 3rd most ypc
13th fewest rush yards allowed, tied for 3rd most rush ypc allowed
17th most pass yards allowed, tied for 8th fewest ypc allowed
46 sacks, 4th most in league
34 allowed, tied for 11th fewest in league
+15 TO margin, 3rd best in league


Great offense and good-solid-strong everywhere else.

[Abe Sargent]

Individual Stats:


QB Ernest Mayes - 64.3%, 4138 yards, 32:12 ratio, 100.3 rating. That’s 2nd most yards, best rating, 2nd most TD, and 6th fewest picks among 16 game starters.

RB Maurice Carlisle, 380 carries, 1960 yards, 5.1 ypc, 19 rush TD
FB Tracy Kramer, 38, 165, 4 TD

FYI RB Carlson had 1350 yards rushing. Pender had 941 on 224 carries.


WR Pete Waddle - 77 grabs, 1296 yards, 7 TD - 4th most yards in league, 5th most yards per catch
TE Brant Carman - 80 catches, 912 yards, 5 TD - Came close to being my first TE ever with 1000+ yards.
WR Eugene Jonas - 7 starts, 61 grabs, 710, 7
WR Travis Parrish - 61, 683, 7
WR Kenny Marshall - 9 starts, 32, 416, 4 TD
FB Tracy Kramer - 9, 109, 1

A very nice receiving corps, except for Marshall. What is he doing? I don’t think that’s a good statline for 9 starts. Come on now. Less than 50 yards per start? That’s stinky bad.,


KR Jonas had a PR TD.


K Christian Huffman, 28 of 35, long of 52
P Leo Rayburn, 28 of 76 in 20

We just scored too much this year.


DE Bert Curtain, 11.5 sacks, (tied for 10th most in league), 6 blocked passes, (tied for 5th), 8 QB Hurries (tied for 8th)., 46 tackles. Not a bad year for him considering.
DE Floyd Gardner, 11 sacks (Tied for 12th most in league), 13 QB Hurires (2nd), 5 blocked passes (tied for 9th).

I can’t be unhappy about my DE play. Strong performances all around.

LB Joseph Martinez - 75 tackles, 4 sacks, 6 pasdef - not great for MLB, not even a rookie
LB Sedrick Rhinehart - 69 tackles, 6 sacks, 2 pasdef

CB Jim Ackerman, 8 picks, ( Tied for 3rd in league), 7 pasdef
S Jon Prescott, 6 picks (Tied for 7th most), 10 pasdef (tied for 9th most in league)
CB Jimmy Ordona, 4 picks, 9 pasdef
S Derek Long, 2 picks, 6 pasdef - Disappointing


OG Neil Lee, 31 KRB, 3 sacks allowed
OG Bruce Holliday, 29 KRB, 2 sacks allowed
C Les Morris, 29 and 2 as well
OT Marco Goguen, 28 KRB, 11 sacks allowed
OT Travis Fisher, 13 starts, 15 and 7.


Increase that OT play and you have something.

[Abe Sargent]

Team Awards:

Offensive Player of the Year: TE Brant Carman. It was close. Mayes, Carlisle and Waddle were in the conversation, no question. However, I have never had a TE season as good as Carman’s, and I had Ed Gardener as my TE. Great job!
Defensive Player of the Year: CB Jim Ackerman. Dude just plays at a Leon Morabito level year in and year out.
Special Teams Player of the Year: WR Eugene Jonas. In addition to starting for 7 games, Jonas got us a PR TD and that was a really nice bonus.
Rookie of the Year: WR Pete Waddle. No one else is in the conversation. Best rookie year from a WR since Donald Wagner years and years ago. Wagner is now in the HOF.
Heart Award: DE Bert Curtain. I normally look to give this an overperfoming backup, but this year, I am giving it to Curtain. All he does is get All Pros. They guy is NOT GOOD ON PAPER. I swear, you’d never look at a guy like this and say, That’s an All Pro DE right there. Yet, for the 4th time, the FOURTH time, he has gotten All Pro and did so after dropping post major injury. Wow. That is Heart.


Bert Curtain is quickly becoming one of my favorite players.

[Abe Sargent]

Players leaving of import:

OT Roger Fisher
LB Jeff Grier



Here we go:

Performance: 100
Value: 54
Profit: 69
Difficulty: 76


Score: 70

[Abe Sargent]

Franchise:


15th best value in league
17th worst stadium
The best roster
9th worst support
19th worst economy
Lowest attendance by #, 18th lowest by %

We made 45 million last year

[Abe Sargent]

Hall of Fame:

K Irv Linger, 83%, Southern Mississippi, 1 honor, 465 of 587
CB Trevor Ford, 97%, Louisiana State, 3 honors, 51 picks (in 19 years? Come on now)
OG Horace Peters. 84%. UTEP. 7 all league honors. 456 KRB (Now that‘s better, 7 honors is quality)
CB Cory Walters, 81%, Indiana. 1 honor. 58 picks. (Come on now)
WR Jerome Baker, 80%, Clemson. 3 honors. 12,357 yards, 89 scores. (Nice to see one of my own, but not HOF worthy, close though.)
RB Richard Doll, 82%, UC - Davis. 3 honors. 14300 rushing yards, 103 TD.

Only player here that, in my opinion really deserved to be here was OG Peters. If you can’t get at least two all pro honors, come on, especially at CB where four players annually are chosen.

[Abe Sargent]

I sign a new head coach for even less than the old guy and then fire the old guy. He’s a better coach, and younger, too.

Donnie Jacobs, 49
Head Coach, 4.750 mill/year

VG: Av Inj,D Play C, Mot, Y. Tal., WR, OL, DL, K
Good: QB
Fair: O Play C, Discipline, RB, CB
Poor: LB


Not bad.


3rd lowest paid HC in league.


I massage ticket prices a bit.


I have 39 players under roster and have no desire to franchise anyone.

[Abe Sargent]

Let’s head to Free Agency


I get three trade offers. None immediately interest me, but one I put on the back burner until I figure out how to manage my roster for the next year.

I need to make some decisions.


Here’s one. Kenny Marshall is in his final year. Here are his career stats in chronological order:


70, 813, 11
59, 831, 3
52, 604, 0 (10 starts)
85, 1390, 10
105, 1443, 9
64, 742, 6
67, 963, 8
32, 426, 4 (9 starts)


Now is that a WR you want to pay top flight $$ too?

I mean, he gets a lot of distance for his all pro years in 26 and 27. Those were great years. Two years ago was okay, at 963 and 8.

I want a WR making professional $$ to be hitting 1200 yards and 8 TD each and every season. Marshall has hit that yardage goal twice in 8 years. He has hit the TD goal 4 times in 8 years.

He is in his 9th year. I suspect it is time to say goodbye while I still have Parrish, Jonas and Waddle on my team.

It is time to say goodbye to the draftee on my team the longest, Marshall. Sad. I trade Marshall to the Vikings for their 3rd and 6th rounders this year.

I extend OG Neil Lee’s contract for two more years. Same with TE Brant Carman


Players on my team I suspect will be future HOF players:

OG Bruce Holliday - 4 All Pro already in 8 years. Add another one or two and he has a great HOF resume for an O Lineman.
DE Bert Curtain - He still has to over perform, but he’s on his way too.
CB Jim Ackerman - He has the talent and the stats to look like a future HOFer
TE Brant Carman - 6 years in the league and 4 All pro already? Oh yeah.
QB Ernest Mayes - Not one of mine, but there is no question that the NFL MVP is Canton-bound
P Leo Rayburn - haven’t seen a P in the hall yet, but he;s high quality
K Christian Huffman - Oh yeah.

Who Knows?

S Jon Prescott, FB Tracy Kramer, RB Maurice Carlisle, WR Pete Waddle, OG Neil Lee, DE Floyd Gardner.


I sign S Derek Long to two years and his first professional contract. He had a down year last year, but he had good years for me prior, so I’ma give him a chance.

I trade DT Joey Springer to the Chargers for their 2nd and 7th this year . Springer was in the last year, had a high cap value, and had never been really lights out or great. He was just a solid body.

I then trade LB Sedrick Rhinehart to the Eagles for their 2nd rounder. This was my first round LB from several years ago and a bust-ish, but he’s been okay for me. Time to move him and his cap hit in his final year.

I extend K Huffman’s contract by a year and P Rayburn‘s by two.

I have a few decisions still left. Mayes is in the last year, so is Ackerman, Jonas, Parrish, OT Goguen, and DT Stargell. That’s a lot of starters.

I extend Mayes by two years. That will probably take him to the twilight of his career.

I sign CB Jim Ackerman to his first professional contract and a three year extension.


The Chargers agree to send me their 3rd rounder for OT Goguen.

I trade DT Raymond Stargell, my own 2nd, one of the 2nds I got in a trade, and my two 6ths to the Broncos for their 1/9 pick. A good place to find a permanent replacement player, n’est pas?

I trade Eugene Jonas to San Antonio for their 2nd next year and 3rd this one.

Now I have moved all of my starters, or resigned them, except for Parrish. I had ot keep one of my WR with an expiring contract through the draft. We’ll see what happens there before moving Parrish.

Some good players in the FA, but not any OT.

I skip the early stages of FA>


Pender signs with the Bills.

Fisher signs with the Falcons for big $$>


Nothing in the late stages.


I get two draft trade offers at the end of FA. One is a 2nd rounder for FB Kramer. Wow. For a FB? I don’t do it, but its tempting. The other is a 4th for Morris, which I don’t want.


My starter needs: DTx1 (2?), OTx2, LB, WR?

[Abe Sargent]

The 3031 NFL Amateur Draft

Here we go at 1/9. Good players on the board?

Oh yeah. A great OG is here, Antonio Durrough, which of course, I don’t need. TE Adam Savoie looks better than Brant Carman. C Ian Riley is lights out good.

The next tier. DT Bart Davison, 78/76/50. He;s okay. The kind you’d hope to pull at 1/20 not 1/9. LB Craig Zuchowski, 70/84/98/86/59. That‘s pretty good. CB Broderick Harrison is great.

Someday one of my 1st round LB shouldn’t be a bust, right? Right?

Then our 1/36 pick arrives. It’s an obvious need meets value with an OT who is better than anyone I’ve had in a long time. OT with 66/82/66

We are up again at 2.6 Our only pick of the round. Oh look., another OT.

3/6 is here! Time to start BAPing. I break a rule I’ve held since 2001 when I became a GM 30 years ago. I am drafting a P/K. He looks downright awesome, and my P is getting old. He’s in my lap, so I take him.


Draft Recap

1/9 - LB Craig Zuchowski, San Diego State
1/36 - OT Terrell Caserez, Michigan
2/6 - OT Jackie Kemp, Arizona State.
3/6 - P Russell Kelly, New Mexico State
3/10 - TE Troy Briscoe, The Citadel
3/16 - WR Brady Van DeWege, Kansas
3/36 - S Moe Collins, Arkansas - Pine Bluff
4/36 - RB Shaun Hanson, Northwestern
5/36 - C Marcus Gunn, N Mexico Highlands
7/6 - DT Bubba Prescott, Michigan State
7/36 - OG Isaac Rice, Memphis


I reject a trade offer for Ackerman.


I cut P Leo Rayburn

I have 43 players and just 8.5 million to sign me some players.


I sing these UFA:

TE Kenneth Garrison, Oregon State
WR Dan Welch, Virginia Tech
WR Jimmie Dukes, USC
DE Devin Shafer, Kentucky
DE Kent Barlow, USC
CB Trent Dotson, Virginia Tech
CB Alvin Walendy, Brigham Young
LB Brent Shields, Nebraska

I decide to bite the bullet and cut first round bust Mo Razo, LB.

I sign LB Mo Strother to a two year deal. He is just a long term patch but a solid one. I am paying him 6 million a year. Money I cleared by cutting Razo.

I have 51 players so let’s go camping.

[Abe Sargent]

I have five trade offers post camp. Wow.

The offers:

A 2nd for OT Terrell Caserez.
A 1st and a TE for OT Jackie Kemp
A 1st and a LB for OG Gino Collett
A WR straight up for C Les Morris
A 1st and a WR for RB Rick Caldwell


Ok, let’s look at them.

The 1st, 2nd and 4th trades I immediately reject.

This is why you draft Bap, because you can sometimes increase the pick’s value. I grabbed Collett with a 2nd rounder because he was such a good value. Here is him:


98 potential Run Blocking, 65 current
58 potential pass blocking, 38 current
58 endurance

That’s a great OG.

I make the trade. He’s better than Holliday and Lee, but I cant mess with success.

I make the trade with the Titans and get a chump LB.

[Abe Sargent]

Rick Caldwell was the best back in the draft two years ago and I got him in the second. Another high round pick someone wants to convert to a 1st.


Here’s the problem. With Carlisle’s bust a bit last year, I am considering sliding to Caldwell as my starter. Let’s look at the two side by side:


Breakaway Speed:

Carlisle - 71
Caldwell - 58

I want a back that can break it open, and Carlisle does a better job, no question.


Short Yardage:

Carlisle - 59/64
Caldwell - 63/87

I also want a back that can pound it. Carlisle is okay, but Caldwell is really good at it. Note that Caldwell is 23 better in this skill, Carlisle is just 13 better in Breakaway.


3rd Down Running:

Carlisle - 69
Caldwell - 92

Another win for Caldwell

Yards Per Carry:

Carlisle: 61/66
Caldwell: 62/84


And this is where Caldwell begins to really convince me to start him.


Caldwell is better at catching, catch frequency, Carlisle better at 3rd down catching


Carrying:

Carlisle: 63
Caldwell: 98



Endurance:

Carlisle: 83
Caldwell: 52


Frankly, can you see why I like Caldwell better?


There are 5 rushing stats, and Caldwell is better in four of them, and significantly so. He is also better in two of the three receiving stats.


So no, I am not trading Caldwell for a 1st. I expect to be starting him this year. Let’s see what he can do with a full year as a starter.

Part of this is because I feel that Carlisle might have partly been a product of a great year of blocking.

The contracts on both are up next year. One will get a starter contract and the other will get traded. I can hold off until then.

I just keep drafting great RB. From Santoro through Caldwell, I draft backs that can run.

[Abe Sargent]

I sign UFA OT JC Butler, Boise State, DT Charlie Babb, Syracuse and LB Reggie Unverzagt, UCLA

I cut the random LB I got in a trade for the 1st.




I am rocking 53 players. Let’s look at more serious FA.

Players we pass on include a very sexy CB with 2 All Pros already, a nice but 14 year DE, a nice but expensive 5 year DE, a great but expensive WR, a strong DT patch…hmmm…

I sign DT Jay Phillips to a one year deal.

I trade DT Mo Webb to the Titans for their 3rd next year.

QB Wade Grant is in the pit.

LB Jeff Grier is still out there.


Okay, let’s do it.


My Rookies:

C Marcus Gunn, 32/72
P Russell Kelly, 32/71
RB Shaun Hanson, 47/69
OT Terrell Casarez, 32/69
TE Troy Briscoe, 29/64
S Moe Collins, 14/58
LB Craig Zuchowski, 42/54
WR Brady Van DeWege, 32/47
OT Jackie Kemp, 24/46
DT Bubba Prescott, 14/42
OG Isaac Rice, 21/40



Zuchowski busted 14 in run defense, 12 in pass rush, increased 10 in zone defense, which is odd. I am starting him at SLB but I suspect I’ll eventually move him to WLB when I have a better LB corps. He has become a pretty good WLB, although I’d prefer my guy to be better at pass rush from that spot.


I only have three players on my team with a potential ranked 80 and above - WR Pete Waddle, CB Ackerman and K Christian Huffman. I used to have so many.

I think my team is more fragile now than it was years ago. Despite my record and Super Bowl last year, I think this team is a bit weaker.

[Abe Sargent]

Your 3031 Huntington Highlanders


QB Ernest Mayes - His skills appear to have eroded a bit over the last couple of years. Will they impact his play?
RB Rick Caldwell - Here we go
FB Tracy Kramer - 2 All Pros back to back.
TE Brant Carman - A receiving machine
WR Pete Waddle - Can he improve on last year? Was it a one year wonder?
WR Travis Parrish - Solid
C Les Morris - All pro once, but I’ve had thousands of C do that. Can he repeat?
OG Bruce Holliday - Getting up there in age. This is his 8th year. I want more All Pros, but how many more can he get me?
OG Neil Lee - In the past three years he has had 96 KRB and allowed 11 sacks. Just great.
OT Terrell Casarez - The better OT, but greener.
OT Jackie Kemp - Better now, not as good down the road.
P Russell Kelly - All eyes will be on him. Can he match my expectations?
K Christian Huffman - Just great.
DE Bert Curtain - Love him. He‘s my guy. But seriously, how many more All Pros can he pull out of his ass? 8th year as a pro.
DE Floyd Gardner - Yay! Now get me an All Pro season.
DT Billy Joe Lane - Solid starter.
DT Jay Phillips - Patch
LB Joseph Martinez - Another year at MLB. Let’s see what he can do.
LB Craig Zuchowski - Be a good LB. Please.
LB Mo Strother - Longer term patch
CB Jim Ackerman - Awesome
CB Jimmy Ordona - Still great, but again, start to push to All Pro.
S Derek Long - Needs to really put on something this year
S Jon Prescott - Been good for two years

KR/PR - CB Trent Dotson and CB Lenny McAllister

[Abe Sargent]

Alright, let’s see what others think


8th best QB
8th best RB
THE best FB
4th best TE
5th best WR
4th best C
9th best OG
6th worst OT
Tied for 14th worst P
THE best K
4th best DE
11th best DT
18th worst LB
THE best CB
5th best S


Here is Jimmy Ordona, this is my UFA CB who broke it open and now starts for me:

Run D - 83
Man to Man - 70
Zone - 82
Picks - 57
Endurance - 67


Now that is really, really good.

[Abe Sargent]

We go just 1-3 in the preseason. None of my injuries are serious. Let’s go! Allons-y!


Week 1 - We win 26-21 vs. the Bucs in our place. Caldwell is Game MVP with 123 yards and a score on 20 carries. Mayes hits Waddle for another score. Prescott has a pick.

Week 2 - 24-16 over the Lions. Waddle is questionable with a broken nose and I bench him for a few weeks. DE Bert Curtain is MVP with 3.5 sacks while DT Lane gets 1.5. Ackerman recovers a fumble and runs it in for a score. Kemp has 4 KRB. 109 yards, 26 carries and a score for Mr Caldwell. Brant Carman caught a TD.

Week 3 - We lose 16-31 to the Steelers on the road. DT Lane is doubtful and gets a rest. Caldwell has 76 yards, 16 carries, a score. Parrish has 190 yards on 11 catches and a score. Mayes tosses two picks though. S Long notches two picks. 1.5 sacks by Curtain.

Week 4 - 50-19 over the Jaguars. Caldwell has 115 yards, 1 score, 26 carries. Mayes rushes for a score and Kramer for two. Van DeWege has 2 scores. No picks, just one sack (by Curtain). C Morris with 7 KRB and Lee adds 4.

[Abe Sargent]

Week 5 - We edge the up until now undefeated Ravens 17-16 in their place. MVP is DE Floyd Gardner with 2 sacks. Ackerman gets a pick. Caldwell is held to 51 yards on 17 carries and a score. Mayes hits Kramer for a score.

Week 6 - We lose to the Titans 17-13. We have a bunch of major injuries too. Not a good game. Caldwell had 73 yards on 15 carries. Mayes hit Caldwell for a score. Ackerman with a pick. Curtain with 1.5 sacks.

Injuries: TE Carman is doubtful and will rest for a few weeks. LB Mo Strother has a dislocated knee and will be out for the long haul. I IR him. I sign UFA Matt Springer from Rice/. WR Dan Welch is out for a long time, months. I IR him. I sign UFA WR Kenneth Riemersma.


Week 7 - BYE.


We Aren’t running the ball like I want to. It’s not Caldwell, it’s the carries. Look at the low number of caries Caldwell has to work with. Let me see what I can do about that game plan wise.

WR Pete Waddle is back. I;ve decided just to start Carman after he upgraded to questionable.


Week 8 - We teach Jacksonville a lesson 55-10. LB Martinez is Game MVP with an 85 yard pick and return for a score (McAllister AND Cronin also get picks for Tds, so we scored 21 points off my picks) Ouch! Curtain grabbed a pair of sacks. Prescott also had a pick. Springer got two sacks, the UFA LB. Ordona got a 70 yard fumble recovery for a score, so my defense scored 28 points. That’s CRAZY! Caldwell and Carlisle both had ground score.s Mayes hit Waddle for a score in his first game back. Martinez is questionable and will start (just like Carman)

Week 9 - We take out Baltimore 24-13. Mayes is Game MVP with 16 of 29, 252 3:0. Waddle, Parrish and Palmer get scores. Waddle had 124 yards on 4 catches too. Caldwell added 130 yards on 25 carries. No picks.

[Abe Sargent]

Week 10 - We lose 7-35 to the now 4 win Raiders. Ouch! WTF? Not going to even bother with the stats on this one.

DT Lane is back next week.

Week 11 - 14-3 over the Titans. RB Caldwell is Game MVP with 104 yards on 23 carries. Dukes gets a TD catch. Ackerman, Long and Prescott with picks. Curtain and Gardner with 1.5 sacks each. C Morris with 6 KRB.

WR Van DeWege is injured and will be out for a few weeks.

In order to give my team a spark, I am benching Mayes for now. After ten games, Mayes is 12:12 with a 70 rating. Once before he came back int eh second half of the season for a great season, but we are 7-3 and so is Baltimore and Tennessee. No time to play games now. Hernandez will be starting next week.


Week 12 - 29-3 over the Steelers. K Huffman is Game MVP with 5 of 5. Four players got picks, Long, Prescott, Ackerman and Martinez. 2.5 sacks for Gardner, 1.5 for Curtain. Caldwell had 43 yards on 14 carries. Hernandez is 16 of 29, 257, 1:1and hit Waddle for 114 yards on 6 catches and a score.

14 carries is ridiculous. OG Holliday is questionable but will start. Lee is doubtful and benched.


Week 13 - Green Bay falls before us 38-10. Waddle is Game MVP with 198 yards, 11 catches and 3 scores. Hernandez was 22 of 29, 296, and 4:0. That’s a strong statline. Caldwell caught the other score. He rushed for 78 yards on 20 carries. Kramer rushed for a score. Gardner with 2.5 sacks, Curtain with 1.5, and picks by Cronin and Ackerman