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06-05-2007, 08:39 PM
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Head Coach
Join Date: Sep 2004
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From 1960 On: Miami Dolphins (Yet Again!)
Here I go again. I'm determined to make it all the way to 2007 at least. Wish me luck!
A Look at the 1960 Dolphins by Position: Code:
It's a given that we're going to suck and suck bad. That being said, Murphy looks like the best current QB of the bunch, raw scouted rating aside. Baker has intriguing upside and we're going to be terrible anyway, so I'll probably throw Bryant to the wolves and see how he does. Code:
Roaches isn't as good a back as his rating suggests. He can find the hole and that's about it. Still, he's the best of a very sorry lot so he'll get be our starter. Code:
While I'd love to have an actual running fullback, neither of these guys is good enough, so Powers will start as he's the better blocker. Code:
Ingram is an extremely intriguing rookie from the standpoint of blocking. However, he'll never be a receiving threat, so I'm likely to give Foley, the best receiver of the bunch, the starting nod. Code:
Fink is the closest thing we have to an offensive playmaker on the entire team. I love Griggs' hands but that's about the only skill he has. Everyone else is more or less trash. Thank goodness for 2K7's dynamic gameplanning, which should focus heavily on the run game. Code:
We're in surprisingly good shape here. Bland looks like a very nice guy to have in the middle of the line. Unfortunately, because of a bug in the salary computation where it lists the salary as being multiple years when I try to renegotiate, I can't get him to a long-term deal yet. Griffin's more of a run-blocker in terms of upside. Code:
James has 0 Endurance and Breunig has 0 Blocking Strength, so they don't look as good as they appear to be. Anderson has some well-rounded potential and I may try and hang on to him. Code:
Kramer's got middling potential, but a conflict with Hagood. By and large, this is a case of crap in a box. Code:
69 Kicking Accuracy 0 Power and Hang Time for Cottrell. We won't mention just how bad Van Horn sucks. I think it's safe to say we're replacing these two jokers off the free agent pile next year. Code:
Schau is usually pretty good in this file and that's the case here as well. Hazeltine's an intriguing case for DT, but he's significantly below the recommended weight for the position and as a result would only turn in 95% of his ratings. So I'll see if I can give him a extension and then bulk his ass up. Martin's serviceable for this level. Code:
Breeden's pretty decent and Campbell has cruddy endurance to ruin an otherwise talented DT. Since I'm not impressed with McKnight's bars at all, I switch Breeden over to the right side and lo and behold he increases to 34/48!. I may have to sign him to a long-term deal. Code:
This is largely garbage, though Spiva is worth a look, even though he knows jack about the zone. Jackson has decent upside, but nothing remarkable. Code:
I like ballhawks and none of these guys can intercept a pass except maybe Stryzinski (24/44). Taylor will survive the cuts solely because he can actually return kicks. A poor, poor group. Code:
Gorin goes to 7/42 when I switch him to RCB, but I like his upside enough that he'll get the nod on the right side. Nothing really to see here either. It's going to be the typical ugly year, but mitigated by the fact that there's lots of other expansion teams. We'll probably end up with a Top 10 pick and get a major piece of the building puzzle.
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2006 Golden Scribe Nominee 2006 Golden Scribe Winner Best Non-Sport Dynasty: May Our Reign Be Green and Golden (CK Dynasty) Rookie Writer of the Year Dynasty of the Year: May Our Reign Be Green and Golden (CK Dynasty) |
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06-07-2007, 10:12 AM
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#2 |
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Head Coach
Join Date: Sep 2004
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Preseason
Jacksonville 17 Miami 20 RDT Cliff Breeden shines in his new role, recording 1.5 sacks and earning Game MVP honors. Volney Murphy was exceptionally accurate (8-10) against our expansion brethren and Eric Cottrell was a surprising 3/3 on field goals. Miami 10 Tampa Bay 20 Volney Murphy continues his laser accuracy and gets another TD as he keeps outshining Bryant Baker in their preseason duel for the starting QB job. Our running game continues to be uninspired, but the receivers are looking pretty decent. Miami 13 Carolina 10 Another win in an expansions battle. Zach Roaches rushes 12 times for 88 yards and a TD, our first rushing TD of the preseason and first sign of running game life. Bryant Baker plays pretty well in getting most of the game, despite getting sacked 6 times. I think I'll go with him, just because of his upside. Los Angeles 29 Miami 0 This is more what I expect our games to be like, as the Rams just hammer us. Bryant Baker gets intercepted 3 times and just looks way off his game. Maybe I will start Volney Murphy after all. Regular Season Miami 7 Pittsburgh 30 We get shelled by a Super Bowl contender as expected. Both offense and defense were horrible. The lone bright spot was Gabe Jackson's 22 yard interception return. Buffalo 20 Miami 27 And here it starts, the march towards a mediocre record and draft pick with a close win over our AFC East archrivals. Zach Roaches rushes 17 times for 79 yards, but the real story of the day was Volney Murphy 27-38 for 352 yards, 3 TDs and an interception on his way to Game MVP. Armon Martin had a sensational day with 2.5 sacks, 3 hurries and 3 knockdowns. Starting FB Geoffrey Powers dislocates his shoulder and is out 10 weeks. Don Mcllhenny, a Week 1 Dallas release, is signed to take his place. and RT Jason Jackson is released to make room for him. Houston 13 Miami 3 George Blanda of the Houston Oilers kills us and negates Zach Roaches running for 86 yards. We just couldn't get anything going on offense today despite Zach's efforts. We lose backup SLB Kyle Carpenter for the rest of the year. Luther Randall takes his spot as the backup and former Bengal WLB Terry Carter fills in the roster spot. Miami 7 Tucson 33 Okay I screwed up here. The Titans are now in Tucson. Why? Oh I don't know, I was messing around with the league setup beforehand. Anyway, this is this universe's Arizona franchise and they slay us dead. Volney Murphy is intercepted thrice and that's really all you need to know. First Quarter Statistics Code:
At least our run defense is looking pretty good. Taninecz is proving a very pleasant surprise in the first quarter. Fink's drops are ticking me off. Not sure how I feel about the rest of the team yet. Since they're all on 1-year deals, I essentially have to reconstruct things from scratch, which is always the real hassle in taking an expansion team.
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2006 Golden Scribe Nominee 2006 Golden Scribe Winner Best Non-Sport Dynasty: May Our Reign Be Green and Golden (CK Dynasty) Rookie Writer of the Year Dynasty of the Year: May Our Reign Be Green and Golden (CK Dynasty) |
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06-08-2007, 11:35 AM
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#3 |
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Head Coach
Join Date: Sep 2004
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Miami 18 New England 31
Volney Murphy passes for 283 yards and 2 TDs, but it's nowhere near close enough to get us the win. I think I'm going to switch over to Bryant Baker now and see if he can improve as the season wears on. Miami 13 New Jersey 41 The Jets' QB eats us alive for 341 passing yards, which is pretty much all you need to know about how this game went. Bryant Baker was mediocre in his first start, but I expected that. Zach Roaches continues to show glimmers of being a respectable running back, though he's more of a good insurance backup than a legitimate starter. Green Bay 41 Miami 14 And the slaughterfests continue, with nothing good to report about this one. One thing I do like about this team, though. John Taylor, our red-flag player is averaging 23.7 yards on his kickoff returns. Who says red flags can't be good? He sucks otherwise, though, as does the rest of the team. Miami 0 Chicago 15 This was a game nobody wanted to win. Bryant Baker was particularly odious at 15-41 for 145 yards and an interception. With that stinker of a performance, we're at the halfway point. Code:
I'm definitely getting a feel for some guys that I'll make every effort to re-sign. Roaches, Taninecz, Foley (even though he has turf toe problems), Martin, Schau (who I always end up re-signing in these gos). Most of the team is still wait and see how they look at the end of the year, though. I feel like going through the rest of the season, so I will. Kansas City 20 Miami 24 The Chiefs really suck bad in this universe and it shows as we get our second win of the year. Zach Roaches and Chuck Campbell both rush for 110 yards to become our first backs to break the century mark. With this emphasis on the running game, Bryant Baker doesn't have to do so much and goes for a nice 19-22 for 225 yards and a TD, his best showing as a starter, as evidenced by his Game MVP award. Mondriel Fink was the biggest benefactor of Baker's accuracy, with 7 catches for 153 yards and the TD, making him our first century mark receiver. Too bad his drops are so high, meaning he won't be coming back. Craig Van Horn broke the 40 yard mark with 42.5 punt average, the first time he's reached that milestone. Minnesota 3 Miami 34 Ugh. Here we go. Here's the late-season winning streak to deny me a top of the line pick. Zach Roaches rushes for 117 yards and a TD and Chuck Campbell gets 110 yards and 2 TDs on the ground. Armon Martin gets 2.5 sacks, a hurry and a knockdown and Cliff Breeden picks up 2 sacks and a sack of his own. Miami 7 Detroit 26 What's noteworthy about this game is that the Lions improve to 11-0 on the year. The 1972 that hasn't happened yet is feeling very threatened right about now. No offense to speak of here and as for defense? Earl Morrall throws for 327 yards against us. Fascinating stuff, considering he played for Miami in real life later on down the road. Anyway, with this loss, the best we can finish is .500. FS Adrien Duda pulls a hamstring and will miss at least the next game. Not a big deal considering he's just the backup. Jacksonville 17 Miami 24 Poor Jaguars. They're 1-11 and right now are on track to have either the #1 or #2 overall pick (San Diego's also 1-11). Meanwhile, with this win, we're slated to pick somewhere between 9-12. Yeah, not an exciting prospect considering the help this team needs. In any event, Bryant Baker lights up the Jaguars: 26-36 for 293 yards, 2 TDs and an INT, Tony Profit his main target with 7 catches for 112 yards. Our starting C, Oronde Bland is out for our next game. Not that big a deal since center is one of the few, if the only, depth positions on this team. New England 20 Miami 13 Not much to say concerning this loss, save that losing the turnover battle 3:1 killed us and we really missed Bland opening up holes and buying our quarterback some time. Adrien Duda and Geoffrey Powers are healed up this week, but Powers has long since lost his position on the team. Duda, however, steps back into the spot he left off at. Miami 3 Buffalo 23 We're now at 10 losses on the season. Chief culprit here was our running game stalled and Bryant Baker just can't carry the team by himself yet, if ever. Our run defense also surprisingly disappeared, allowing a 100+ yard rusher from the Bills. Oronde Bland comes back a week later than scheduled, but starting RB Zach Roaches breaks his foot and is lost for our last two games. Chuck Campbell takes over as the starter and Conrad Meyer slides in as the backup. New Jersey 10 Miami 13 Sigh. 5-10. So much for the hopes of a top 5 pick, however remote they were to begin with. Had the Jets won, they would've assured themselves of a winning record and clinched the AFC East. But instead, Chuck Campbell rushes for 127 yards and a TD as he stakes his claim to, if not being a starter next year, at least being signed back. Our pass rush was also everpresent, with Cliff Breeden leading the way with his sack and 3 hurries. Don Mcllhenny, our starting FB, herniates his disc and starting RG Bob Breunig breaks his fibula, giving us a nicely banged up lineup to end the season. Miami 16 Indianapolis 35 And the Colts trample us to finish 15-1 in the regular season, dropping us to 5-11. Johnny Unitas is pin-point perfect in 21-26 for 252 yards and 3 TDs. Indy's balanced running game killed us too. Bryant Baker actually has a respectable game: 20-29 for 197 yards and 2 TDs. But our own running game was nonexistant, along with our pass rush. And so the year ends.  As you can see, about par for the course for the opening year of a historical dynasty. By my reckoning we'll have somewhere between the #8-10 pick in the draft. Sufficient to pick up an impact player at least. Code:
I'm definitely seeing players here I'll want to bring back and maybe our cohesion won't be as bad as it should be next season. Baker showed considerable progress as the year went on after he was handed the starting job and he'll definitely come back. Of course, I'll also draft a challenger, because he'll need it. Super Bowl I Green Bay 27 Cleveland 19 No Dolphins awards. Jim Brown fell short of the 2,000 yard rushing mark, but he still won MVP and Offensive Player of the Year. Bart Starr was the Super Bowl MVP, DE Gino Marchetti the DPOY (Indy). Top rookies were RB Willie Fredrick (ATL - Offense) and SS Jim Norton (HOU - Offense). Let's see. Just after 11:30. I think that'll be enough time to get into at least free agency before I go to work at 3:00. It helps that I don't do interviews because I haven't installed 6.0e patch yet. But I'll do that a bit later.
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2006 Golden Scribe Nominee 2006 Golden Scribe Winner Best Non-Sport Dynasty: May Our Reign Be Green and Golden (CK Dynasty) Rookie Writer of the Year Dynasty of the Year: May Our Reign Be Green and Golden (CK Dynasty) Last edited by Izulde : 06-08-2007 at 12:30 PM. |
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06-08-2007, 10:30 PM
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#4 |
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Head Coach
Join Date: Sep 2004
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We've actually got a semi-respectable staff, but I didn't hire them, so off with their heads!
I'm looking at guys who haven't worked for anybody else. Less competition for one and for two, that way I can track their careers from the very beginning. Now, I've heard about coaches improving their abilities over time, but I've never played long enough to be able to see that. Hopefully I'll be able to this go-round. The new staff: Head Coach: Corey Hammond (43) Motivation: Good Discipline: Good Off. Playcalling: Good Def. Playcalling: Fair Inj. Avoidance: Good A solid all-around young coach who I can hopefully see develop. Offensive Coordinator: Randal Fuller (51) QB: Good RB: Excellent WR: Good OL: Good K/P: Fair YT: Good A real coup as far as offensive coordinators go. He'll go a long way to energizing our offense with any luck. Defensive Coordinator: Clifton Winters (43) K/P: Good DL: Average LB: Good DB: Fair YT: Very Good I'm not sure how I feel about this guy. It was a terrible selection as far as defensive guys. Winters was the best option. Thankfully he's still young so he can get better, but I'll definitely be on the lookout for an upgrade. Scouting Director: Bill Jessup (65) QB: Average RB: Average WR: Good OL: Average K/P: Fair DL: Average LB: Very Good DB: Average YT: Very Good It was a really poor crop of scouts this year, so I went with Old Bill here as a stopgap measure. Dolphins Re-Signings: QB Bryant Baker (2 years, $110k) RB Zach Roaches (2 years, $110k) RB Chuck Campbell (1 year, $50k) FB Geoffery Powers (1 year, $50k) TE Jim Foley (2 years, $110k) TE Riddick Ingram (2 years, $110k) SE Pete Taninecz (2 years, $110k) C Oronde Bland (4 years, $1.34 mill.) LT Chad Kramer (2 years, $110k) LDE Mark Schau (5 years, $1.77 mill.) RDT Cliff Breeden (3 years, $210k) MLB Gabe Jackson (2 years, $110k) SLB Luther Randall (2 years, $110k) WLB Aaron Spiva (5 years, $1.4 mill.) LCB Brent Stryzinski (2 years, $110k) LCB John Taylor (1 year, $50k) RCB Antonio Gorin (2 years, $110k) FS Eugene Janik (1 year, $50k) Total Re-signs: 18 Notable non re-signs: RG Bob Breunig -Wanted too much money for a guy with no blocking strength RDE Armon Martin -Was asking for even more than Schau and his ratings didn't back that up. Free Agency My big goal is going to be to get a mentor in every position group except kickers. That'll bring in... what, 14 guys? Which would mean we'd have... 32 players right there and that's without the 7 draft picks or any other guys we sign in either of the free agent periods. Unfortunately I wasn't entirely successful in my mentor by position quest even in the initial offers. C, T, DT and ILB either had no one or the people they had were prohibitive in cost or clashed with some of my already signed players. Still, it's a start. Week 3 Signings SLB Kendrell Barton (1 year, $100k - Baltimore) -Crap in a box signed only for his mentor ability. Week 3 Losses LG Art Spinney - Minnesota (Indianapolis) -This one really hurt. I was counting on being able to land this guy to not only mentor the youngins, but be a force in my line for a few years. Not cool. Week 4 Signings FS Fred Bruney (3 years, $690k - New England) -He or Janik will move to SS to give us a major upgrade in the secondary. At least we've got one genuine improvement on the team. Week 4 Losses FL Jimmy Orr - Pittsburgh (Re-sign) -Wanted a 5 year deal and got it, but turned down more money from other teams, including us to stay with the Steelers. Smart move, since he's a fan favorite there and a damn fine player. He's in his 5th year, so he'd have solidified our receiving corps in a big way. Week 5 Signings QB Ed Brown (3 years, $800k - Chicago) -A little steep to pay for a guy who doesn't look that good, but he'd be able to step in as a starter, is a mentor, and in fact started and played quite well for the Bears last year. A solid pickup. TE Johnny Carson (3 years, $890k - Houston) -An exceptional route runner with a very high motor and a fan favorite. Good all-around receiver who started for the Oilers last year. He may not be a mentor, but he's a huge upgrade in the passing game and he'll give Brown or whoever is our QB next year a major weapon that we don't have right now. LG Duane Putnam (2 years, $310k - Dallas) -Underachieved with the Cowboys as a starter last year (27.6% KRB), but he's actually a pretty solid guy it looks like and he's a mentor. Essentially the consolation prize for losing out on Spinney, he's still an upgraded linemate for Bland. RT Sherman Plunkett (5 years, $4.05 mill. - Indianapolis) -I broke the bank somewhat to get him, but he's strong as hell, a good all-around blocker and didn't give up a sack last season. Also, he's only a 6th year player, so he'll anchor the RT spot for half a decade. I'm liking the way the o-line is shaping up, as Bland, Putnam, and Plunkett will play together for at least two years, Bland and Plunkett for at least four. That's a way to help build cohesion. Week 6 Signings TE Bob Schnelker (2 years, $440k - New York) -I'd have been happy just to land this vet, but with Carson on board as well, Schnelker becomes a great backup to have in case of injury. He's also a blocking beast and a mentor, which could mean that Foley gets cut if there's an odd man out situation. Started for the Giants last year, but was largely a nonfactor in the passing game. LCB Doyle Nix (1 year, $50k - San Diego) -Mentor corner who, because of our deplorable cornerback situation, is a prime candidate to be a starter, our fifth or six one gotten in this free agency period and we're only halfway through it. Week 6 Losses RT Bob Hagood (1 year, $90k - Detroit) -Hagood was our starter last year and did okay for us, but he's no Plunkett. The Lions can have him. LDE Bob O'Neil (Pittsburgh - Re-sign) -Much like Orr, he opted to re-sign with the Steelers rather than join us. I'm not too fussed about it. He wasn't that good anyway and I only wanted him for his mentor status. RDT Gene Lipscomb (Cleveland - Indianapolis) -Everybody and I mean everybody was throwing money at the top free agent in the class. He turned down $5 million+ deals from us, St. Louis, and Philadelphia among others to sign a relative bargain basement 4 year, $3.78 million dollar deal with the AFC Champion Cleveland Browns. He was a 2nd Team All-Pro DT last season and he wanted to go to a winner. Can't fault him for it all. Week 7 Signings FL Jim Dooley (1 year, $100k - Chicago) -Veteran mentor who, as it stands right now, would start on our team, so pathetic is our receiving situation. The one thing I like about him is that he doesn't drop passes. He'll be a good one for Taninecz to learn from. RDT Penguin Culpepper (6 years, $2.37 mill. - St. Louis) -I admit it, I probably overpaid a wee bit for him, but he's a fan favorite and I love the dude's name. Penguin is an awesome name and Culpepper, well... I still love Daunte for when he kicked ass for me in fantasy football the one year after everyone laughed at me for drafting him in the first round. That C-Pep took me to the playoffs that year, in fact. All that aside though, Penguin is actually a big boost for our line and either he or Breeden will shift to the left side. Incidentally, he'll be old as hell by the time his contract runs out, as in 13th year vet. Week 7 Losses RB Ollie Matson (Houston - Los Angeles) -Opted for the Oilers, which is a shame, as the mentor stood a good chance of knocking Roaches off the starting spot. Oh well. SE Fred Dugan (Dallas - Re-sign) -He sickeningly took a dirt cheap contract to stay with the Cowboys, which depressed the hell out of me. This dude would've stayed firmly planted as the starting split end and would have shifted Taninecz to a slot receiver role. LDE Scott Hazeltine (1 year, $70k - Carolina) -A backup last year and an unremarkable one at that. No big loss here. Week 8 Signings RB Lew Carpenter (1 year, $50k) -Veteran mentor who's absolutely useless as a runner, but shows terrific pass reception skills that will earn him a role on passing downs. Not bad for a one year rental. SE Billy Howton (1 year, $50k - Dallas) -Ideally suited to be a slot receiver, but may start anyway. Ironically enough, he's also a veteran mentor. At least we're not going to be hurting for receiver mentors! Week 9 Signings FB Nelson Simmons (1 year, $50k - Tampa Bay) -A nondescript veteran mentor who could play a small role in the passing game. Week 10 Signings RDE Jim Temp (1 year, $50k - Green Bay) -Just that, a temporary veteran who will be a backup because our DE situation is pretty bad. Hell, he might even start. Week 10 Losses C Lenny Dorsch (1 year, $70k - Kansas City) -I'm sorry to see Lenny go and I probably should have tried to retain him, but them's the breaks as they say. RG Walter Williams (1 year, $70k - St. Louis) -Heh. I let him go and he turns into a guards mentor on me. Lovely. Week 11 Signings C Ken Engram (1 year, $50k - Carolina) -Strictly a backup center who was brought on board to A) give us a backup and B) serve as a chemistry guy and offensive line leader. In fact, he has an exceptional affinity with Bland and a mild affinity with our next signee. RG Frank D'Agostino (3 years, $390k - New Jersey) -I overpaid for him, but he was a starter on the Jets' line last year and he has an affinity with Engram. I also needed a RG who could be a somewhat serviceable starter. He's not even close to Breunig, last year's man at the spot, but he'll provide some continuity. RT Milt Graham (1 year, $100k - New Jersey) -We're sure raiding the Jets here. I'm going to bulk Milt up in the offseason in hopes that he'll be able to switch to LT and start there if I don't get someone in the draft. He's essentially a stopgap measure is all. MLB Dan Lynch (1 year, $50k - Cincinnati) -Pretty mediocre MLB, but we need a body there and he's a mentor in his 6th year. Will probably back up while we continue to try and develop Jackson, but who knows? Maybe he can start. WLB Clancy Osborne (1 year, $50k - San Francisco) -I vaguely recall signing him in a previous Dolphins dynasty, but if I did, here he is again. Obviously he's not going to start ahead of Spiva, but he provides a band-aid backup. And that's all she wrote! Players signed: 37 Holes by the #'s: QB, WR, P, K, DL (2) I'll do the draft sometime tomorrow. I'm a little depressed right now and I want to be in a better frame of mind when I draft.
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2006 Golden Scribe Nominee 2006 Golden Scribe Winner Best Non-Sport Dynasty: May Our Reign Be Green and Golden (CK Dynasty) Rookie Writer of the Year Dynasty of the Year: May Our Reign Be Green and Golden (CK Dynasty) |
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06-09-2007, 01:27 PM
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#5 |
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Head Coach
Join Date: Sep 2004
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All right, here we go. My favorite time of the NFL year, both in real and in FOF. Time for the draft.
Despite not installing 6.0e yet, I went ahead and did the 60 interviews for the first time ever, anyway. I think it's given me enough information (while ignoring the Under/Overrated designation) to make some sound decisions. I got hosed on the pick and wound up with the lowest I figured we'd get, which is #10. Not that it's too terrible a concern--I think out of the guys I interviewed, there'll be somebody there I like. DT Bob Lilly is the best player in the draft, but with franchise QBs Fran Tarkenton and Billy Kilmer available, he may well end up dropping. My hunch says Tarkenton and Kilmer go 1-2. First Round 1961 Draft 1. QB Fran Tarkenton - San Diego 2. RB Amos Marsh - Jacksonville That roar you just heard was the draft site up in arms. Marsh is an okay back, but nowhere near worthy of the #2 overall pick. Congratulations, Jags. We'll see you up here next year too. 3. QB Billy Kilmer - Minnesota And the Vikings are the reciepient of Jacksonville's gift. 4. DT Bob Lilly - New England 5. CB Herb Adderley - Cincinnati 6. QB Norm Snead - Seattle Snead was on a lower tier than Tarkenton and Kilmer, I thought, a first rounder, sure. Top 10? Not a chance in hell. 7. T Errol Linden - Kansas City 8. CB Dave Grayson (Baltimore through Buffalo) Grayson was one of the three shutdown corners available and to move up to take him, the Ravens gave the Bills their 1963 1st round pick, their 2nd round pick in this draft and a 6th round pick in the next draft. How this deal pans out for our rivals all depends on how Baltimore does in 1962. Incidentally, I love 2K7 for its more normal draft trades. 9. T Stew Barber - Penn State Our turn. There's a handful of guys I really like here, including DE Deacon Jones, DTs Ernie Ladd and Houston Antwine, LT Charlie Cowan and RCB Irv Cross. There's other players I'd be interested in later on DE and DT, though, and besides, I took Jones in my last historical replay. Sure he worked out great and won DROY for me, but since there's others on the D-line I'd like later on, it comes down to Cowan, who could be our franchise LT for the next ten years or Cross, the last shutdown corner available. Cross has a great combine whereas Cowan was only middling and our defensive backfield needs a lot more help than our offensive line, so Cross is the pick. Irv, incidentally, also projects as a return animal, in addition to his other studly attributes. 10. CB Irv Cross - Miami 11. T Charlie Cowan - Carolina 12. DT Houston Antwine - Los Angeles 13. DT Ernie Ladd - Baltimore (The Ravens are really amping up their D this draft) 14. DE Deacon Jones - Tampa Bay (Surprising he fell this far) 15. CB Jimmy Johnson - Jacksonville through New Orleans Wow, the Jaguars continue to screw themselves. They not only trade up to get a CB I wasn't enamored with because his interceptions looked low, but they gave up their 1962 1st rounder and 1963 1st and 3rd rounders.  The Saints just guaranteed themselves two top 10 picks in the next two years. That's going to be one scary team if they draft right.16. DE Ron McDole - Dallas 17. CB Pat Fischer - Atlanta 18. ILB Chuck Allen - Tucson 19. T Ernie McMillan - St. Louis 20. T John Brown - Washington 21. OLB Steve Stonebreaker - New Jersey 22. RB Tom Matte - Denver 23. QB Steve Etcheverry - Chicago 24. T Roger Shoals - Philadelphia 25. C Jerry Sturm - Houston 26. DE Ben Davidson - San Francisco 27. WR Aaron Thomas - New York 28. OLB E.J. Holub - Detroit 29. ILB Myron Pottios - Pittsburgh 30. G Billy Shaw - Indianapolis 31. DE Clark Miller - Cleveland 32. TE Mike Ditka - Green Bay (Irony alert! Irony alert!  )Every single DE and DT I was looking at got taken off the board between our pick in the 1st and the 9th pick in the second round, much to my annoyance. Luckily, there's still a WR I really like, so I grab SE Bob Coolbaugh to help out our deplorable receiving corps. By the third round, my draft board is looking pretty tattered, but RDT Bob Voight is a run-stopping machine I've had my eye on since I interviewed him, so he's the selection in the third round. Not sure if he'll be able to push out Breeden or not, but at the very least, he'll be a good backup. I draft RB Bill Cooper in the 4th to push our other guys there. It's probably a mistake, given that we have more pressing needs, but I like the looks of him enough to give him a look. The 5th round is when we start scraping the barrel, but there's two guys I have my eye on still and I take one of them here: RG Ken Petersen. We need a backup guard and he's a prime candidate for a creeper I think. The guy I was hoping to drop to me in the 6th did and so I take extremely raw (15% developed) but mildly intriguing prospect RDE Joe Novsek in the 6th. We still need a QB, P, and K, but I'll probably save that for the second round of free agency. Unless there's a leg worth taking in the 7th. I decide to take a flyer on K Allen Green in the 7th. Not the most accurate, but he's got a boomer of a leg, which will be good enough for our sucky team right now. Only Cross and Petersen refuse to sign at the start of late free agency. I stupidly missed out on the rookie free agent signings because I thought they'd be there in late free agency. That's not to say we're quiet in the second round of player hunting of course. Week 2 Signings QB Les Freeman (1 year, $50k - Minnesota) -A body at QB who has a mild affinity with our backfield leader. RCB Johnny Sample (5 years, $2.73 mill. - Indianapolis) -Suddenly our DB situation has gone from woeful to very nice. Sample originally started on the left side so that's where he'll switch back to. Between him and 1st round pick Cross, we've now got a very nice tandem of starting CBs. His only weak spot is run defense. SS Larry Miller (1 year, $50k - New Orleans) -Could see time as a dime back or just a general backup. Might even start, depending on what I want to do with Janik. Week 2 Losses RCB Christian Machado (1 year, $40k - New England) -Largely a non-factor in our defense last year. We won't miss him. Week 3 Losses K Eric Cottrell (1 year, $60k - Carolina) -He was accurate, but it's telling that he only attempted one field goal beyond 40 yards. Naturally he missed it. Week 4 Signings LG Mark Mathias (1 year, $40k - Pittsburgh) -Second year player with some damn exciting upside who looked good in limited duty last season. May well become the top backup or a starter depending on how he does in training camp. SS W.K. Brown (1 year, $40k - Minnesota) -I actually like him better than Miller and he was a starter last year for the Vikings, so he might well take on the same role with us. Week 4 Losses FL Mondriel Fink (1 year, $50k - Minnesota) -Enjoy those 10 drops a year, Vikings fans! I'm not sorry to see him go. RG Bob Breunig (5 years, $1.50 mill. - Philadelphia) -I'm becoming a big believer in blocking strength. Bob had 0 and he gave up 10 sacks last season. So yeah, it would have been nice to have brought up back, but he'll be happier in an Eagles uniform. P Winston Carr (1 year, $50k - Carolina) -Ugh! This is the punter I really wanted and he goes and signs with the Panthers. Oh well, time to scrounge for another leg. RDE Armon Martin (5 years, $1.19 mill. - Pittsburgh) -The more and more I think about it, the more I believe his 8.5 sack season last year was a fluke, so I'm fine with him going to the Steelers. The only problem is that we have a giant hole where he was now. LDT Frank Campbell (5 years, $1.01 mill. - Pittsburgh) -The Steelers are turning their D-line into Miami North. If Frank had better endurance, I would've tried to re-sign him, but since he doesn't, he can go wear black and gold with Martin. P Mike Hollingsworth (1 year, $50k - Cincinnati) -A stopgap and the best of what was left. Our last two rookies sign before training camp and we take 50 players in. Not bad considering I had to rebuild the entire team from scratch. Post Training Camp Rookie Report Code:
Cross may not be the complete shutdown corner we expected, but he's still damn good and will start from Week 1. Coolbaugh will also start, though he's still raw relative to his potential. Voight looks like a bust and Petersen and Novsek look to be scrubs, but improving slightly scrubs. Green's tick up is exciting to see, but what really blows my mind is Cooper's explosion. With that jump, he goes from afterthought to potential starter. At bare minimum, he'll be the top backup.
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2006 Golden Scribe Nominee 2006 Golden Scribe Winner Best Non-Sport Dynasty: May Our Reign Be Green and Golden (CK Dynasty) Rookie Writer of the Year Dynasty of the Year: May Our Reign Be Green and Golden (CK Dynasty) |
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06-09-2007, 08:30 PM
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#6 |
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Head Coach
Join Date: Sep 2004
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Code:
I'm no longer as enthused about Baker as I once was, which means that Brown is the likely starter with Bryant the backup, unless Double B shows something spectacular in preseason. Freeman's a body. Code:
Roaches and Cooper will fight it out in preseason for the starting RB spot. Even if Cooper loses the starter battle, he'll still be the top backup and third down back. Carpenter will serve as the passing down tailback. Simmons and Powers will hold their own starter battle in preseason. Code:
It's a three-way battle between Carson, Schnelker and Ingram for the starting job. Carson's the best route runner, but Schnelker has sure hands and is a better blocker. Ingram has a good balance of skills and considerable upside. Foley's a body and our longsnapper. Code:
Finally a position group where everyone's roles are defined. Dooley and Coolbaugh will start, Howton's the slot receiver, Taninecz will back up Coolbaugh and whichever TE finishes last in that competition will serve as the fifth receiver. Code:
We're set here and I may sign Engram to a longer deal so he can keep up his good affinity work. Code:
Putnam will start on the left side, D'Agostino on the right. Mathias will be their backup and audition for a longer contract. Petersen gets put on the inactive list. Code:
We really need a genuine LT. Since we don't have one, it'll be Kramer and Plunkett as the bookends. If Kramer can develop, no problem, but I have a feeling we'll be searching in the next offseason. Code:
I'd like a better punter, but I'm intrigued enough by Green that he'll probably stay through his rookie contract. Code:
Yeah, it's ugly here. Schau starts obviously and well, probably Novsek because of his upside, if we can actually call it that. This is probably the #1 concern for next year. Code:
Penguin switched over to the left side without any difficulty, so it'll be him and Breeden manning the middle while the rookie Voight learns in sub time. Code:
Randall and Spiva have the outside spots locked up. Jackson and Lynch will go at it for the middle linebacker starting spot, though the tenative edge is to Jackson winning again because of his upside. Code:
Sample took a small hit after switching to the left side, but between him and Cross, we've got a strong 1-2 punch. Nix, Stryzinski and Gorin will fight for nickel and dime package duty. Taylor is here strictly as a kick return man, but he's been surpassed by Cross and Sample in that department. Cross, in fact, has a kick return ability of 100!. Code:
Brown and Bruney are the starters, with Janik and Miller their substitutes. It's going to be one ugly battle for the dime back slot, as Miller joins the three CBs in the contest.
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2006 Golden Scribe Nominee 2006 Golden Scribe Winner Best Non-Sport Dynasty: May Our Reign Be Green and Golden (CK Dynasty) Rookie Writer of the Year Dynasty of the Year: May Our Reign Be Green and Golden (CK Dynasty) |
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06-18-2007, 11:36 PM
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#7 |
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Head Coach
Join Date: Sep 2004
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Preseason
Miami 17 Green Bay 20 We play the Packers surprisingly tough here. Ed Brown is 15-21 for 176 yards and a TD, easily surpassing Bryant Baker who frankly sucked the big one. None of the running backs established themselves, but MLB Dan Lynch put himself firmly ahead of Gabe Jackson for the starting job in the early going. St. Louis 27 Miami 9 Not so good in this one. Bryant Baker shoots himself in the foot with a 3 interception performance and the RBs continue to be unremarkable to terrible. Dan Lynch and Gabe Jackson draw even and TE Johnny Carson is gradually emerging as the leader in the TE starter fight. Starting SS W.K. Brown gets injured and is out for the rest of the preason, but should be back in time for the season opener. Second-year SS Frank Garrett is signed to fill in as the backup strong safety, but he'll park his butt on the inactive list once Brown's back. Minnesota 26 Miami 21 Close game, but still a loss. Thankfully it's only preseason. Bryant Baker has a great game in 15-24 for 180 yards and 3 TDs, but with two bad performances and Ed Brown showing accuracy, Baker's got no chance. Riddick Ingram has a solid day receiving, throwing the TE battle into a bigger muddle. Gabe Jackson does better tacklewise than Dan Lynch but Lynch forces a fumble and has pretty much sewn up the starting MLB slot. That's not to say Jackson will lack for opportunities however, for he's still the man in on nickel and dime packages. QB Ed Brown separates his shoulder and is out 5 weeks, making it likely that Bryant Baker will be our opening day starter. Too bad, as I've gotten to really like Brown. Miami 10 Seattle 20 We close out preseason with another loss. Honestly there isn't much to choose from at the RB position, but Zach Roaches has been more consistent, so he retains his starting job for another year. QB and MLB we've already covered. FB doesn't matter. TE is going to be a week to week decision, but I'll start off with Riddick Ingram as the first man, since he's got the most upside. SS Larry Miller, when the starting strong safety comes back, has won the dimeback job, with Brent Strynczki the nickelback. W.K. Brown is probable for the opener, but I'll let him sit, as he and Larry Miller are close enough in ability that I'm fine with Miller picking up a start or two.
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2006 Golden Scribe Nominee 2006 Golden Scribe Winner Best Non-Sport Dynasty: May Our Reign Be Green and Golden (CK Dynasty) Rookie Writer of the Year Dynasty of the Year: May Our Reign Be Green and Golden (CK Dynasty) |
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06-20-2007, 11:24 AM
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#8 |
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Head Coach
Join Date: Sep 2004
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Regular Season
Buffalo 7 Miami 23 Excellent start to the year, beating our archrivals, though this was less a case of any stellar offense as it was Allen Green booting 3/3 field goals, including a great 47 yarder. Mark Schau was a terror in the backfield with a sack, 5 hurries and 2 knockdowns and Penguin Culpepper got in 3 blocks and a hurry of his own as our defensive line wreaked havoc on the Bills. Tampa Bay 6 Miami 7 Two home games, two victories, this one a hard-fought defensive nailbiter. Billy Howton earned his paycheck as the slot receiver today with 3 catches for 70 yards and Mike Hollingsworth landed 3 punts inside the Bucs 20 yard line as we overcome 3 fumbles by Bryant Baker. Our defensive line once again shone, Mark Schau the big-time player for the second straight game with 2.5 sacks, 2 blocks and a hurry. We sacked Tampa's QB 6 times altogether on the day, critical to preserving the win despite Baker's turnover troubles. QB Ed Brown is probable for next week's game, so he'll get the start, because we're 2-0 in spite of Bryant Baker rather than because of him in my opinion. Miami 7 Pittsburgh 26 So we finally lose, but it's against the Steelers, so no big deal. Bryant Baker proves my decision to start Ed Brown correct by losing 2 fumbles and an interception in mopup duty. Mike Hollingsworth has a good day with a 41.8 punt average and 2 inside the 20. Dan Lynch gets out first 10+ tackle game of the year with 13 tackles and 2 assists, and Mark Schau gets a sack for the third straight game. New England 14 Miami 21 Big, big win over our previously unbeaten division foes. Bill Cooper and Zach Roaches each run for 70+ yards and Cooper scores his first two professional TDs, both rushing. Ed Brown isn't too shabby either at 22-34 for 182 yards, a TD, and an INT. Mark Schau's sack streak comes to an end, but he does get a hurry. Speaking of which, Mark Schau is doubtful for the next game, backup DE Jim Temp is questionable and backup G Mark Mathias is out 4 weeks. Probably the most banged up I've been in a while. Note: I never report niggling injuries, only ones that look like they'll have someone out. Rookie RG Ken Petersen comes off the inactive list to take Mathias's spot. Chemistry happy third year LDE Howard Pane, who led the Carolina Panthers in sacks last year despite being a part-time pass rush specialist and fifth year RDE Rod Perry who started for the Saints last season and led them in sacks. As you might expect, both Perry and Pane are upgrades over rookie Joe Novsek, so they'll start on their respective sides and audition for the starting RDE role when Schau comes back. Novsek could well be cut in a week or two, as Temp is a mentor. Miami 27 Jacksonville 10 I'd be psyched about a road win, except it's over the Jaguars, whose draft day trades I'm still shaking my head over. We rely on our two-headed balanced running game, which leads me to believe that maybe I forgot to reset the recommended playing time, and Ed Brown who's 22-32 for 273 yards, 2 TDs and an INT, our first 200+ yard passing game on the year. Billy Howton is our first 100+ yard receiver this season, with 7 catches for 111 yards and our old friend Pete Taninecz isn't far behind with 7 catches for 80 yards and a TD. Rod Perry gets a tackle, a sack, a block and a hurry, bettering Howard Pane, who got an assist and 2 hurries. Mark Schau's probable, which means I'll go with Rod Perry as the starter at RDE, both for his better performance and the fact that he's a natural at that side. Howard Pane gets bumped to dual backup duty. Lo and behold, it turns out I -did- forget to turn on the adjustment of playing time, but that's done now. I also turn on coaches adjusting gameplan automatically, as it was orginally static Houston 44 Miami 19 Bad decisions? Not really. This Oilers team is a damn good one, and we were a 4-1 paper tiger. Bill Cooper rushes 23 times for 111 yards and earns himself the right, along with his showings when we ran a balanced offense, to be the starter. Allen Green has been a delight to watch kick this year, especially over the scrub we had last season. He's 4/4 here, including a 48 yarder. Jim Temp is now probable, but I just leave him and Joe Novsek on the inactive list. Why I thought I had to cut somebody, I don't know. Miami 15 Buffalo 10 We sweep our archrivals with a come from behind win led by Ed Brown's engineering the perfect 2 minute drill that culminated in throwing a 19 yard TD pass to Jim Dooley with a minute left. Altogether, Brown's 27-42 for 259 yard and a TD. Allen Green wasn't so automatic today as he missed 2 kicks, a 40+ yarder and a 50+ yarder, but considering he was 2/3 on 40+ yard kicks, I'm not complaining. Mark Mathias is probable, so I'll bring him back in the mix. Miami 10 Indianapolis 37 Team, meet Johnny Unitas. Johnny U, shred the Dolphins. Biggest Miami highlight of this game was great to watch though: Larry Miller intercepted a pass and returned it 79 yards for a TD. Mike Hollingsworth averaged 42.4 yards and had 4 punts inside the 20. I very, very belatedly realize I never took W.K. Brown off the inactive list after he came back from injury. Fortunately, he's not pissed about not having gotten PT. That said, Larry Miller's been doing a terrific job this season, so he'll stay the starter at SS, with Brown the backup and our dimeback. We're at the halfway mark of the year and I think that's a good stopping point. At 5-3, we're half a game up on the Jets, who are 4-3. The Patriots and Bills are both 3-4. The division title is definitely a possibility, as is the playoffs. Code:
When you consider that Ed Brown isn't Mr. Butterfingers like Bryant Baker, you really start to see the difference between the two beyond their completion percentage. Improved QB play is a big reason why we're in the hunt for the division, incidentally. Zach Roaches might still be a better back than Bill Cooper, but Bill, quite frankly, has a nose for the endzone that Zach didn't show all that much of last season and I still love Cooper's training camp bustout. Bill Howton may be our leading receiver, but he'll be gone after this year, if not sooner. 1 don't even like 10 drops a season, let alone 10 drops a year, especially not when he's proving to be Brown's favorite target. Our run defense needs work, but our pass defense as you can see by the rankings and by the individual player numbers, has been off the hook. The offseason investments I made in upgrading the secondary have really paid off bigtime and Irv Cross, my first ever draft pick, looks like a blossoming star with his team leading 7 passes defensed and 86.4 pass defense %. WLB Aaron Spiva may not get the press of a Schau or a Cross, but he quietly continues to be an extremely effective performer on defense. I think we've got a real good shot at the playoffs. I really do. Now it just remains to be seen if we can pick up the pace and do it.
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2006 Golden Scribe Nominee 2006 Golden Scribe Winner Best Non-Sport Dynasty: May Our Reign Be Green and Golden (CK Dynasty) Rookie Writer of the Year Dynasty of the Year: May Our Reign Be Green and Golden (CK Dynasty) Last edited by Izulde : 06-20-2007 at 04:38 PM. |
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06-20-2007, 11:23 PM
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#9 |
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Head Coach
Join Date: Sep 2004
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1961 Regular Season: Second Half
Tucson 3 Miami 30 The most complete beatdown we've given to anybody in the year and a half of the franchise. The Titans wither under our rushing attack, Bill Cooper and Zach Roaches getting 79 and 70 yards respectively. Ed Brown is laseresque in his 19-22 for 143 yards and 2 TDs accuracy. Johnny Sample returns an interception for 42 yards, one of two we get on the day. Allen Green is 3/4 on FGs, his lone miss a 40+ yard, though he did hit one from 49 yards out. Penguin Culpepper has his first multisackish game as a Dolphin with 1.5 and throws in a hurry for the fun of it. New Jersey 7 Miami 22 Huge, huge win over the Jets here, keyed by Bill Cooper's 24 rushes for 104 yards and a TD. Johnny Sample picks off a pass for the second consecutive game. Allen Green goes 3/3, including a 49 yarder. Our pass rush records 5 sacks on the day. Just another solid all-around performance by our guys. Backup G Mark Mathias again gets hurt and he's out for four weeks. K Allen Green gives us a scare when he strains his neck looking at the hot cheerleaders on the visitors' bench, but fortunately he's probable. It's not a stretch at all to say that Green's been the most valuable 7th round pick I've ever made in a FOF career. So on comes rookie Ken Petersen to get his undeserved minutes. Miami 27 Carolina 9 We keep right on rolling and assure ourselves no worse than a .500 record on the year as we pick up our 8th win, this time over the hapless Panthers. Mark Schau roars to dominance in this one, with a 6 tackle, 2.5 sack, 2 block, 4 hurry, and a knockdown performance, but the most fun highlight of the game was watching rookie Bob Voight, a DT, picking up a fumble and rumbling down the field 76 yards all the way for a TD. Although Schau won Game MVP honors, it was Voight who got the game ball for that fantastic (and funny) play. Oakland 32 Miami 10 The Raiders pull off a major upset as they run roughshod over us on a day when our offense couldn't get on track and our pass defense took a bigtime nose dive. Larry Miller did record 10 tackles and 4 assists however, to highlight the day. G Mark Mathias is upgraded to probable, so back he comes to active duty. Despite the loss, we're still in the driver's seat for the division at 8-4, with the 6-6 Jets and Bills two games back. Miami 14 Atlanta 6 Our offense stalled for three quarters, but our defense played brilliantly against the Falcons to keep us within a TD at 6-0 at the start of the 4th. Then just before the 2 minute warning Ed Brown throws a long bomb of 44 yards to slot receiver Billy Howton for a TD and Zach Roaches rips off a 30 yard TD run with under a minute to go to seal the deal. Credit this one to an inspired performance from our defense, led by Dan Lynch with 9 tackles, 4 assists, and a sack and game MVP Rod Perry, who rewarded my selection of him for the starting RDE job with 7 tackles and 2 sacks. The Jets lost, so now only Buffalo, at 7-6, is a threat to our hopes of division glory. Win another game, and the division is ours. We've got 3 games to do it in. Miami 27 New England 31 The Patriots started off horribly, but they've been on a tear lately and take on the spoiler role in this heartbreaking loss. If you'd told me Bill Cooper would run for 2 TDs, Ed Brown would be player of the game with a 246 yard, 1 TD performance and that we'd get two interceptions on the day and still lose, I wouldn't have believed you, but that's exactly what happened. Making matters worse, the Bills beat the Jets, so we're now 9-5 and Buffalo's right behind at 8-6. We need to win one of the next two games. That's all there is to it. New Orleans 14 Miami 24 Remember how I said the Saints are going to be scary with two top 10 draft picks in the next two years? Well, the time for the Gold and Black to be frightening isn't now, as we win! That being said, we were down 14-3 at half and it took Ed Brown's second half magic to get us the win as it has so many times this season. 23-29 for 280 yards and a TD. That's some beautiful numbers right there, folks. In fact, in many ways you could say that Brown was the key free agent acquisiton for us. He's accurate and cool under pressure. Billy Howton is doing his damndest to make it difficult for me to get rid of him at the end of the year as the slot receiver comes through with yet another clutch TD catch. The victory coincides with a Bills loss and it's official!!!! The Miami Dolphins are your 1961 AFC East Champions!!!!!!! I can't express just how awesome this makes me feel. I've never won a division championship in a historical dynasty before!  Yay!!!! Playoffs here we come!!!Miami 24 New Jersey 14 We close out the year with a comfortable road win over the Jets. Ed Brown has only the second 300+ yard passing game in Dolphins history at 27-31 for 310 yards and 3 TDs. It's the best performance we've had by a QB yet in Miami. There's a cost to the win, however. Backup DE Howard Pane goes down for at least the first game in the playoffs and SS Larry Miller, who's been dazzling since winning the starting job when W.K. Brown got hurt, is lost for the rest of the season. I have faith that Brown can step up. Backup DE is another matter, which means rookie Joe Novsek will get the call again. Still, no matter how the playoffs go, even if it's the one and out that I anticipate it'll be, this has been a fantastic season. Let's look at the numbers. Code:
I'd say our terrific showing is a combination of playing in a crappy division, cagy 10th year veteran Ed Brown, who's become a QB mentor and has earned the right to stay a Dolphin until he retires, and a whole slew of other newcomers, both free agents and rookies. I'm particularly excited about Bill Cooper, who even though who has a poor YPC, showed he can find the end zone and pick up the yardage even as a rookie, and of course, Irv Cross, who was everything we expected him to be and more. Between him and free agent Johnny Sample, opposing QBs had a real nightmare situation on their hands. Allen Green really cooled off down the stretch and ended up 26/34 (76.5%), 9/13 from 40+ range (69.2%) and 0/2 from 50+ yards. I'm going to attribute the decline to his being a rookie and not used to the 16 game grind of the NFL season. He did well enough that I'll keep him through at least his rookie contract most likely. In terms of the offensive line, C Oronde Bland posted almost identical numbers to last year, including an exact replica of the 36.9% KRB. He also gave up one less sack, despite playing two more games. LG Duane Putnam was 29.2%, an improvement over last season in Dallas, allowing 3 sacks. RG Frank D'Agostino had a more solid year than I expected, with a 32.8% in KRB and a pancake, and he also gave up just 3 sacks, compared to 9 last year with the Jets. LT Chad Kramer showed the biggest improvement of anyone on the line, going up to 37.8% in KRB and, in the most eye-popping number, went from 18 sacks allowed in 1960 to 4 sacks surrendered in 1961. He really made strides this year. RT Sherman Plunkett was something of a disappointment as his numbers dropped. 32.1% in KRB and 4 sacks surrendered, compared to 34.6% and 0 sacks last year with the Colts. A closer look reveals the drop in KRB was a result of one less KRB and one more opportunity, so it's not too bad. To be honest, I'm still trying to figure out what makes a good OL. On the bright side, Sherman had 2 pancake blocks this season. Backup G Mark Mathias, despite being injury-prone, was 50% in KRB, gave up 2 sacks and showed some tantalizing progress. I think it's safe to say that even though he's an injury concern, the forthcoming RFA has shown enough to deserve a longer contract. All in all, a great bunch of guys and I think we've got a real solid team core here. There's always room for improvement, of course, but we have to be happy with what we've accomplished in this sensational single season turn-around. The final regular season standings: 
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2006 Golden Scribe Nominee 2006 Golden Scribe Winner Best Non-Sport Dynasty: May Our Reign Be Green and Golden (CK Dynasty) Rookie Writer of the Year Dynasty of the Year: May Our Reign Be Green and Golden (CK Dynasty) Last edited by Izulde : 06-20-2007 at 11:24 PM. |
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06-21-2007, 03:36 PM
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#10 |
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Head Coach
Join Date: Apr 2001
Location: Whittier
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I'd much rather see you do TCY one instead...
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06-21-2007, 11:02 PM
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#11 | |
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Head Coach
Join Date: Sep 2004
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Quote:
Update on TCY one done  I do like both dynasties an awful lot, though. And I've been thinking about what I'm going to do with the Dolphins this upcoming offseason since yesterday at work, before I even came home and simmed the second half to discover I made the playoffs, which -really- made my day.
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2006 Golden Scribe Nominee 2006 Golden Scribe Winner Best Non-Sport Dynasty: May Our Reign Be Green and Golden (CK Dynasty) Rookie Writer of the Year Dynasty of the Year: May Our Reign Be Green and Golden (CK Dynasty) |
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06-22-2007, 01:18 AM
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#12 |
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College Benchwarmer
Join Date: Oct 2000
Location: calgary, AB
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I've been enjoying this one and I enjoyed the aborted one. I hope you make it to 2007, although I am torn on if I should root for you or not, you seem like good people and i enjoy your dynasties, but I can't stand that 72 dolphin team and it just sours me on the fish in general. It's going to be a tough decision.
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06-22-2007, 12:54 PM
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#13 | |
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Head Coach
Join Date: Sep 2004
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Quote:
Thanks And I'm fine with it either way, whether you cheer or boo.
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2006 Golden Scribe Nominee 2006 Golden Scribe Winner Best Non-Sport Dynasty: May Our Reign Be Green and Golden (CK Dynasty) Rookie Writer of the Year Dynasty of the Year: May Our Reign Be Green and Golden (CK Dynasty) |
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06-22-2007, 08:28 PM
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#14 |
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Head Coach
Join Date: Sep 2004
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We're rewarded for our fantastic season with a home game against the Houston Oilers in the wildcard round. The Oilers are led by the great fan favorite QB George Blanda, who was phenomenal this year, his 13th pro season. To wit: 67.5%, 3512 yards, 25 TDs, 9 INTs. In both years of this universe, he's completed at least 65% of his passes, thrown for at least 3,400 yards and 20+ TDs with single digit interception totals.
They've a trio of young, promising second-year players as Blanda's targets in TE Billy Cannon, FL Charley Hennigan and SE Bill Groman and a scary good young line to protect Blanda in rookie C Jerry Sturm, second year players LG Bob Talamani, LT Al Jamieson, and RT Rich Michael. Fourth year RG Hogan Wharton is the weak link. That o-line is so young and so good, in fact, that the Oilers could easily be contenders for the next decade based on the strength of that unit alone. I wish I had a line that great. Houston's real offensive weakness is in the running game. RB Ollie Matson, a one year rental from Los Angeles, is nothing special and FB Charley Tolar is grossly underutilized, which is a shame as he has Cszonka-esque type ability. Fifth year DE Dalva Allen erupted this year with 19 sacks and second year opposite side DE Dan Floyd is an emerging talent. They're solid at the DT spots too, but defensive line depth is a major problem. Wahoo McDaniel, one of the original Dolphins in reality, is criminally the backup MLB when he should be starting. The Oilers 'backers starters are all terrific run stoppers, but suspect in pass defense and outside of Wahoo, depth is an issue. Hopefully the gaps in their pass defense can be opened up. Houston's secondary is very good, highlighted by last year's Defensive Rookie of the Year and 1st Team All-Pro S Jim Norton, who already is one of the top safeties in the league. Second year CB Tony Banfield is just the kind of ballhawk I love to have on my team. So, how are we going to beat the Oilers? Chances are, we probably aren't. The only way we win is if Blanda goes down and we put together long drives to wear their defense down and force them to use their really bad backups. But I can't gameplan worth crap, so I have the AI do it and I'm a simmer anyway, let's get this show on the road. We get the ball first and nothing doing on our opening drive, thanks to a fierce Houston pass rush and two very stupid holding penalties on our part. The Oilers are then only too happy to use a mixture of George Blanda's passing magic and two more dumb holding penalties on the Dolphins to score first, an 11 yard zip from Blanda to Bill Groman. Sack, false start, false start. How's that for a bad way to start? Means on second down, we're on our own 5 yard line. It doesn't take a genius to figure out we dont' get anywhere, especially not with another sack on third down. Blanda goes 6 for 7 on the drive, the lone incompletion due to a dropped pass and they score again with 3 minutes left to go in the 1st quarter. 14-0 Oilers. Despite two more false starts on the following drive, we finally get on track as Ed Brown throws a couple of long bombs, including a 23 yarder to Jim Dooley for a TD! 14-7 and we're back in this one! That's all she wrote for the first quarter scoring. Most of the second involves punt trading, but then Blanda gets hot again, leading the Oilers to another TD with 2:12 left in the half. The 21-7 scoreline doesn't hold up for long though, as Brown gets sacked, loses the football, and Houston recovers in time for a field goal right before half. 24-7 halftime score and it's looking grim. Punt trading again until midway through the 3rd quarter when our man Brown puts together some nice passes in a short field for the TD and at 24-14, we're back in it. But that's all we can manage as the Oilers' defensive line wakes up and starts hurrying Brown and just to add insult to injury, Houston tacks on a field goal in the fourth quarter to give us a final line of 27-14. Our running game was invisible the whole game. Irv Cross played well in special teams, averaging 10.5 yards a punt return and 33 yards on kick returns, but that was about it for the real highlights. Ed Brown is a good quarterback, but he's not a franchise guy, especially not in the face of so nasty a defensive front. George Blanda as you might expected was named game MVP: 25-34 for 218 yards, 3 TDs and no interceptions. Now that's vintage performance as he wins the battle of the veteran QBs. I wish the Oilers good luck the rest of the way. The Dolphins still need to improve before they can become a legitimate playoff team, rather than just the best of a bad division, but we're on our way.
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2006 Golden Scribe Nominee 2006 Golden Scribe Winner Best Non-Sport Dynasty: May Our Reign Be Green and Golden (CK Dynasty) Rookie Writer of the Year Dynasty of the Year: May Our Reign Be Green and Golden (CK Dynasty) |
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06-23-2007, 07:17 PM
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#15 |
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Head Coach
Join Date: Sep 2004
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Super Bowl II
Indianapolis Colts 34 San Francisco 49ers 31 Johnny Unitas takes home MVP honors sets a Super Bowl passing yardage record that may never be broken, with 401! Steve Myhra chips in a 20 yard FG with 4 seconds left in the game to give the Colts the win and ruin what had been a brilliant 49ers rally.Once again no Dolphins awards winners. QB Bart Starr (GBY) follows up last year's Super Bowl MVP award with this year's League MVP and Offensive Player of the Year award. LDE Gino Marchetti (IND) repeats as Defensive Player of the Year and announces his retirement right after the Super Bowl celebration. Although he was only in his 10th year, he went out on top with those two Defensive Player of the Year awards and a Super Bowl ring. Smart move. RB Tom Matte, taken in the 1st round at #22 by the Denver Broncos, was the Offensive Rookie of the Year, rushing 1091 yards and 8 TDs. LDT Ernie Ladd, also taken in the 1st, at #13 by the Baltimore Ravens, was Defensive Rookie of the Year and 1st Team DT with 69 tackles, 36 assists, 8.5 sacks, 7 blocks, 12 hurries and 5 QB knockdowns. It's staff hiring time now. Hard to mess with the kind of success we've had, but let's take a look and see how our staff improved or regressed over last year's miracle season. DC Clifton Winters, who had a lot of doubt surrounding him when he was hired not only revived the team's defense, but he improved from Good to Very Good in LB. That's awesome to see! Scout Bill Jessup declines to Fair and Fair in QB and RB, so he's going to be replaced. My top choice for a scout goes off to San Diego, my second choice rejects me flat out and so I have to settle for my third option. Lead Scout: Daryl Crane (52) QB: Good RB: Fair WR: Good OL: Good K/P: Excellent DL: Excellent LB: Very Good DB: Average YT: Average Nobody's getting franchised and I'm not messing with tickets just yet, so it's on to free agency. We have 22 free agents of our own, only 5 of which are restricted. Rather than go through all 22 free agents, I'll mention the 5 restricted and then indicate which of the UFA guys I intend to keep. Restricted Free Agents: SS Frank Garrett Signed as a stopgap measure after W.K. Brown's injury, he played decently for us, but guys like him are everywhere, so there's no real desire to re-sign him. LDE Howard Pane Another stopgap, he lost out to Rod Perry in the RDE starter battle and showed glimmers of pass-rush skills. He has an affinity with Jim Temp, but Temp won't be back next year, meaning Pane's expendable too. SS Larry Miller Absolutely blossomed as a starter after W.K. Brown's injury, but he was only mediocre in New Orleans. So which is the real Larry Miller? That question's an uncertain one and hence, it's going to depend on what type of contract demands he makes whether or not we bring him back. SS W.K. Brown Did well when he came back from injury, but his endurance is now 0, meaning he probably won't come back. This improves Miller's chances of returning to the Dolphins. LG Mark Mathias Yes, he's injury-prone, but he developed nicely this year and played terrifically. Injury bug be damned, I'm going to try and lock him into a long-term deal as I see a future starter in him. As for the unrestricted guys, it depends on who else is out there and what kind of money people are wanting. The lone guy I -have- to bring back is C Ken Engram. He's the affinity glue that holds my entire offensive line together and he's a good backup to boot. Speaking of chemistry, TE Johnny Carson, who was made a backup last year after being a 2nd Team All-Pro TE in 1960, is angrily demanding a trade, so we'll shop around and see what we can get for him. Unfortunately no one's interested in him and when I try to work a trade with the St. Louis Cardinals, who have need for a TE and they have a MLB who's equally angry and wanting a trade and who could start in the middle for me, they say no because of Carson's contract. Oh well. Dolphins Re-signings SS Larry Miller (1 year, $50k) LG Mark Mathias (3 years, $210k) Dolphins Needs By the numbers: QB, FB, WR x 2, P, DE, LB x 2 By talent: We need at bare minimum a young QB that can be groomed to replace Ed Brown, but if we can get a higher level starter, I'm tempted to do that, as Brown's skills look like they're regressing fast. Zach Roaches is upset about losing his starting job to Bill Cooper and has a cap-friendly contract, hopefully making him a prime trade possibility. At any rate, we may see a new backup to Cooper or even a whole new back if one is out there that's exciting enough. We not only need receivers in body, we need them in talent. Bob Coolbaugh isn't looking as good as his 2nd round status suggests and Pete Taninecz dropped more passes than he should've last year. The offensive line is set, except for a glaring hole at LT that's right up there with WR among our big needs. We need a RDE who can be Mark Schau's partner, a new starter-quality MLB and an upgrade at SLB. I'm pleased with our secondary, though I'd like to see some new blood in at the safety positions, especially FS. Mentors, we need RB, FB, TE, WR, C, T, DE, DT MLB, OLB, CB, and SS if we're to have mentors at all position groups. Week 2 Signings SE Fred Dugan (4 years, $1.49 mill. - Dallas) -Talented 6th year WR who broke the 1,000 yard receiving mark with the Cowboys last year. Gives us a major upgrade at SE and will allow us to move Bob Coolbaugh to the slot receiver. Week 3 Signings LT Bob Skoronoski (4 years $2.12 mill. - Green Bay) -I overpaid for this 7th year veteran, as he's a high risk-high reward guy on the field if his years with the Packers are any indication, but he brings Super Bowl championship experience to the table and he was the only decent LT on the market, which was our hugest need. Considering the draft looked bereft of great tackles, especially where we're picking, it made getting Bob a necessity. He's also a tackles mentor. SLB Ronnie Loudo (1 year, $50k - Chicago) -7th year veteran mentor who wanted the chance to start again after being made a backup with the Bears. He'll get that opportunity here in Miami, even if only as a one year rental. In fact, I'd say he'd be the starter right now, if the season were to begin today. FS Brett Woodard (1 year, $50k - Carolina) -5th year player was a two year starter with the Panthers and he's good enough to push Fred Bruney for the starting spot and maybe even win it. It'll be one of the more interesting training camp battles of the year. Week 4 Signings QB Milt Plum (1 year, $50k - Detroit) -Will challenge Ed Brown for the starting job. If nothing else, the 6th year vet will give us a safety blank in case something happens to Brown. The days of Bryant Baker mucking things up are over. RB Tommy Sharpe (1 year, $50k - Kansas City) -Mentor RB who can not only teach Bill Cooper more about the game, but be satisfied with taking the backup role. You know what this means.. bye-bye Roaches. FL Ray Mathews (1 year, $50k - New York) -Ancient receiver (12th year), who appeared in one game last year for the Giants. That said, he's a mentor and good enough that he could be our starting flanker. Will we ever resolve our revolving door at the receiver spots? RDE Nate Borden (1 year, $120k - Chicag) -Smart as hell mentor who has absolutely no run defense skills. Numbers weren't phenomenal as a starter in Dallas two years ago, but he can start if necessary, though I'd like to find a rookie if possible. MLB Dan Lynch (1 year, $50k - Re-sign) -We bring back our MLB mentor and last season's leading tackler, though I have my eye on a certain someone in the draft who would be the starter if I can get him. Week 5 Losses WLB Clancy Osborne (1 year, $50k - Atlanta) -Not a big loss here. Sure, he was a good backup, but he was pissed beyond all belief at having to start behind Aaron Spiva, so I have no problems letting him walk. Week 6 Signings FB Alan Ameche (3 years, $520k - Pittsburgh) -Mentor who's good enough that I don't have to worry about the FB position for the next few seasons. I love his 100 Special Teams ability. C Ken Engram (3 years, $270k - Re-sign) -Yes! My chemistry is intact! There's actually an amusing story that goes with this. I'm taking the dirty clothes to the laundry room when I suddenly freak out, shout, "Oh my god! Shit!" and go tearing to the dining room, which led to the following exchange between me and my mom: Mom: What?! What is it?! Me: Hold on! ..I can't believe I forgot to do that! Shit, shit, shit! Mom: What?! Me: *checks screen and sees Ken Engram still unsigned* Whew! *makes 3 year offer* Mom: What is it?! Me: Oh, I forgot to make an offer to this center in my football game who's the whole key to my offensive line's chemistry. I built my whole line around him. Mom: .....You were panicking over a dumb football game? I thought it was something serious! Me: It was! That would've wrecked my whole line! Mom: *rolls eyes* But Engram's back in town and the kumbaya fest can continue Those are the only offers I had out, so I didn't lose anyone. It honestly wasn't much of a free agent crop this year, at least not one worth blowing huge money on except two of the guys I grabbed, so I'm just going to throw in all the defectors in one blob. Lost Free Agents FB Geoffrey Powers (1 year, $50k - Philadelphia) -Yawn. Ameche's better. 42 players under contract when the first free agency period ends. ...I forgot to send someone to summer league. Oh well. I'll do the draft tomorrow, probably.
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2006 Golden Scribe Nominee 2006 Golden Scribe Winner Best Non-Sport Dynasty: May Our Reign Be Green and Golden (CK Dynasty) Rookie Writer of the Year Dynasty of the Year: May Our Reign Be Green and Golden (CK Dynasty) Last edited by Izulde : 06-23-2007 at 07:18 PM. |
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06-27-2007, 12:01 AM
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#16 |
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Head Coach
Join Date: Sep 2004
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Draft time!
I'll be perfectly honest, there's maybe five guys in this entire draft who'd really excite me if I had a high pick, starting with QBs John Hadl and Roman Gabriel, one of whom will definitely go to Denver at #2 overall. As for the other one, Seattle has the #1 overall pick, but they also have extremely raw, promising Norm Snead at QB, whom the Seahawks took with the #6 overall pick last year. On the other hand, Snead's disgruntled, having been made the second-stringer last season. The Saints, to follow last year's stunning draft, have two top 10 picks as I predicted, at #6 and #8. Unfortunately, this is a really bad year to have a pick not in the top 5 if you're up that high, so New Orleans gets screwed. But maybe they can negotiate something out of it and possibly trade up to get Hadl or Gabriel. The Black and Gold certainly need a QB. We're picking at #24 and to be honest, I don't see anyone I consider worthwhile at that spot right now, but we'll see how the picks pan out. I may end up trading out of the first. 1962 Draft First Round 1. QB John Hadl (Seattle Seahawks) That's going to piss off an already disgruntled Snead. Hmm.. that gives me a possible idea... 2. QB Roman Gabriel (Denver Broncos) 3. DE Gary Cutsinger (Carolina Panthers) 4. S Tommy Morrow (Tampa Bay Buccaneers) 5. OLB Frank Buncom (Minnesota Vikings) 6. QB Manch Wheeler (New Orleans Saints) 7. G Jim Cadile (Cincinnati Bengals) 8. CB Bob Suci (New Orleans Saints) 9. WR Lance Alworth (Tucson Titans) 10. CB Booker Edgerson (Oakland Raiders) 11. DT Danny Birdwell (New Jersey Jets) 12. DE George Andrie (Baltimore Ravens) 13. G Sonny Bishop (Atlanta Falcons) 14. DT Tom Sestak (Washington Redskins) 15. WR Jack Elwell (New England Patriots) 16. G Bob McCollough (Buffalo Bills) 17. DT Fred Miller (Chicago Bears) 18. S Mike Gaechter (Kansas City Chiefs) 19. DE Ike Lassiter (St. Louis Cardinals) 20. G Billy Neighbors (Dallas Cowboys) 21. ILB Nick Buoniconti (Detroit Lions) UGH! Three god damned picks away!!!!! I've been trying to make a deal to move up since the St. Louis pick, but everyone was demanding a lot more than I wanted to give them.  22. OLB Cornell Green (San Diego Chargers) 23. DT George Gross (Houston Oilers) I'm still smarting over the loss of Nicky B when our pick comes up. The guys that are left are a bunch of meh players not really worth a first rounder, but that's how weak this draft is. So I decide instead to have a little conversation with the Seahawks. Will they take our 1st rounder for Norm Snead after drafting Hadl? Why, no! They don't want to lost the cap space! That's only fair I suppose, though it's stupid to tie up that much cap money into two quarterbacks. Will anyone else play make a deal with me? Not for any players I'd be interested in.... Ugh. I knew I should've paid whatever exorbiant sum the Lions would've extracted. Finally after scrounging around, I decide that WR is our biggest need that has the best chance of being filled. I get down to two guys: Bake Turner and Charlie Frazier. Turner has high Vol. score and great combine numbers except for one glaring thing: 10 reps. While that's still decent for a WR, it makes me nervous. Besides I've been burned by Turner before. Frazier, on the other hand, has extremely low Vol, but he's easily the strongest WR at 21 reps and is a little more developed, so he seems the safer bet. Safety is a good thing. 24. WR Charlie Frazier (Miami Dolphins) 25. G Irv Goode (Philadelphia Eagles) 26. G George Flint (New York Giants) 27. DE Ed O'Bradovich (Cleveland Browns) 28. WR Bill Miller (Los Angeles Rams) 29. OLB Tom Erlandson (Carolina Panthers through Pittsburgh Steelers) The Steelers got the two 2nd rounders the Panthers have in next year's draft and Carolina's 4th rounder in this draft. Considering Erlandson is a guy I would've considered if he hadn't conflicted with my team leader, Carolina made out well here. 30. S Claude Crabb (Green Bay Packers) 31. DT Ray Jacobs (San Francisco 49ers) 32. G Larry Bowie (Indianapolis Colts) It's a pretty easy selection in the 2nd round as there's only guy I feel might even be remotely close to being worthy of the pick, particularly given our needs, so DE Dick Stafford joins the team to fight for the right to start opposite Mark Schau. There's a player I've got my eye on for the 4th round, but in the 3rd round, it's intriguing WR Gary Ballman, who I think could pull a Bill Cooper style breakout possibly. My guy goes off the board shortly after my 3rd round pick, but OLB Albert Gursky not only fills a gap, but he could be an improver as well. By the 5th round, I'm grasping at straws, but there's two safeties that interest me as projects. SS Larry Vargo had the far better prospect score and is the biggest safety still on the board, so he's the pick. Project QBs start flying off the shelves in the 6th and there's one that interests me, but FB Bob Ferguson looks like a special teams ace and since he'd be a backup anyway, allowing me to protect my starters' bodies, I take him. In a rare of moment of this draft going right for me, my project QB I had my eye on is available in the 7th and so I take QB Glynn Griffing of the cool name and nice prospect score of 60. This time I scrounge around in the UDRFA pool, only there's not much there, in fact only one player who looks even remotely a possibility. In late free agency, I look for a P and if there's any great players who I think'd improve the team noticeably. There's one guy who I think has a shot at doing something, so I make my offers. Week 2 Losses P B.J. Nixon (1 year, $50k - Green Bay) -Turned down a 3 year, $210k contract from us to sign with the Packers. Bleh. Week 4 Signings FB Willie Simpson (UDRFA) -The lone intriguing rookie free agent, will push our draftee FB for time and place on the team. P Ricardo May (1 year, $50k) -Not a bad secondary option after losing Nixon. Has the benefit of being a fantastic kickholder. Week 4 Losses SE Billy Howton (1 year, $110k - Chicago) -Heh. The Bears are quite welcome to the drop-heavy mentor whose skills are going one direction... downhill off the cliff. NT Jim Prestel (1 year, $60k - Green Bay) -Our second loss to the Packers this free agent season, he turned down a starting opportunity and more money with us to play for a surefire Super Bowl contender in Green Bay. On to training camp. Code:
Very nice uptick from our rookie WRs! I now feel a lot more comfortable about our situation there obviously. Looks like Frazier was the right move to make over Turner, who I haven't checked on. Stafford is a considerable disappointment, especially for being a 2nd rounder. Gursky looks eh as does Vargo. Griffing interests me and while he's nowhere near ready to be a starting QB or even a backup, I like him enough that he'll get playing time in preseason and become a possible future project.
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2006 Golden Scribe Nominee 2006 Golden Scribe Winner Best Non-Sport Dynasty: May Our Reign Be Green and Golden (CK Dynasty) Rookie Writer of the Year Dynasty of the Year: May Our Reign Be Green and Golden (CK Dynasty) |
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06-27-2007, 10:40 PM
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#17 |
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Head Coach
Join Date: Sep 2004
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Code:
Plum's bars don't look anywhere nearly as good as his current/future split suggests. He's also never been more than a backup. His accuracy and timing's likewise suspect, meaning the quarterback controversy expected to materialize probably won't. Baker's potential is still there, but he won't be the backup this year. Griffing is what he is at this point, 7th round pick and practice squad material. Code:
Roaches, despite having the highest ratings, has the shakiest bars and will be third-string, making him so angry he'll want to be traded. Sharpe will duel it out with Cooper in preseason for the starting job. Ameche's the obvious starter at FB, though Ferguson and Simpson are backup coinflips. Ferguson's good at special teams, with the potential to get better, but Simpson's the better third down option. Code:
Carson's -still- angry about last season, but he's clearly the top backup this year, so maybe that'll satisfy him. Ingram will start again, as he's got the best skill balance. Code:
Dugan was a huge, huge free agent signing for us and I figured he was a major upgrade, but I didn't realize just how big until now. He's far and away the best receiver on the team. He'll start along with Frazier. Ballman and Mathews will fight for the slot job, with the loser the fifth receiver behind Coolbaugh, who's turned into a special teams monster. Code:
Bland and Engram are about as perfect a combo as you can get at C. Mathias has now reached a point where he'll supplant Putnam as the starter at LG. Not real thrilled with Petersen, but eh what can you do? Skoronski is a major improvement over Kramer at LT and hopefully Plunkett can start playing up to his ratings. Code:
May might actually stick around as our P for a while. Green needs to show he can last a full season, though. Code:
Schau and Borden will start while Stafford, having the higher upside, will backup both positions and be the RDE in goal-line situations. Really disappointing to see out of a second round pick, but what can you do? Code:
They'll all reprise their roles of last season. I'd like to get a chance to upgrade here eventually. Code:
Lynch and Jackson will once again stage their starters' battle. Loudo takes over on the strong side, with steady Spiva penciled in again on the weak side. Nice to finally be able to put Randall in a backup role. Code:
Sample and Cross form one of the top two starting CB duos in the league according to current ratings. Only the Washington Redskins, who have two guys at 58, can be argued to be better a set. Stryzinski is starting to come into his own as a nickel back, though he'll never be more than that due to his endurance. Gorin won't be re-signed. Code:
Woodard replaces Bruney as the starter at FS, while Miller's back as the starter. Vargo I don't ever see being anything more than a dime back, if he even reaches that. Contract Extensions TE Riddick Ingram: Signed through 1964 ($210k) LCB Brent Strynzski: Signed through 1963 ($130k) These are the two guys I know for sure I want to keep on the team for a couple more seasons at least, though I'm less sure of Stryznski, which is why he only gets an extra year tacked on instead of two, like with Ingram. A bunch of other players will be playing to deserve their extension this year. I feel good about our chances to get back to the playoffs this season, but we'll just have to see what happens.
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2006 Golden Scribe Nominee 2006 Golden Scribe Winner Best Non-Sport Dynasty: May Our Reign Be Green and Golden (CK Dynasty) Rookie Writer of the Year Dynasty of the Year: May Our Reign Be Green and Golden (CK Dynasty) |
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06-28-2007, 12:47 AM
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#18 |
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College Benchwarmer
Join Date: Oct 2000
Location: calgary, AB
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It looks like you've got a good chance at reaching the playoffs, but unfortunately it's going to be tough to do much when you get there. Not alot of skill at the skill positions on the roster, except receiver. How's that positions strength compared to the rest of the league?
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06-28-2007, 03:16 AM
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#19 | |
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Head Coach
Join Date: Sep 2004
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Quote:
In every position group we're middle of the pack or lower, except for a couple Top 10 places that are #9 or #10, with the exception of CB, where it turns out we're #2, behind the Redskins as I figured. Our WR strength is actually in the lower third of the league right now.
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2006 Golden Scribe Nominee 2006 Golden Scribe Winner Best Non-Sport Dynasty: May Our Reign Be Green and Golden (CK Dynasty) Rookie Writer of the Year Dynasty of the Year: May Our Reign Be Green and Golden (CK Dynasty) |
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06-28-2007, 07:09 PM
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#20 |
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Head Coach
Join Date: Sep 2004
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Preaseason
Miami 13 St. Louis 19 In the battle for starting spots, Tommy Sharpe does a little better in limited duty than Bill Cooper, but Sharpe's also got really low endurance, so he's best off as a backup, settling that decision. Milt Plum and Ed Brown draw even in their contest and will probably be fighting all preseason for the starter's gig. Ray Mathews has a fantastic game with 7 catches for 97 yards and pretty much has the backup flanker job locked up, particularly since I like his bars better. Ricardo May has a weak opening session as punter and Allen Green is showing alarming power troubles. A bright spot on defense: Free agent signee Nate Borden picks up 2 sacks in his first action in a Dolphins uniform. Rookie Albert Gursky has a fine game with 6 tackles and 5 assists, earning himself the right to backup at WLB, rather than have Luther Randall cover both outside spots. Dan Lynch edges Gabe Jackson in their MLB battle Round 1. Chicago 3 Miami 24 A thoroughly satisfying Dolphins looking good in preseason victory. Tommy Sharpe dramatically outperforms Bill Cooper and will get the starting spot in our next preseason game. Ed Brown is a perfect 11-11, but Milt Plum is 13-19 for 147 yards and 2 TDs and shows some running skills too. Ricardo May is continuing to piss me off. Allen Green finds his power stroke but loses his accuracy. Dan Lynch and Gabe Jackson call it a draw on tackles, but Jackson gets a 19 yard interception return. Right now I have Lynch as the starter and the goal-line MLB and Jackson the backup and nickel and dime MLB. Maybe I should keep going with that as they seem to have success that way. Green Bay 17 Miami 27 Another NFC North giant, another great exhibition win. I forgot to give Tommy Sharpe the start, but he does better than Bill Cooper anyway, particularly with Cooper's 3 fumbles. Milt Plum kicks the stuffing out of Ed Brown with a 15-17 for 110 yard and 2 TD performance and will probably be the starter on Week 1. We finally get a good game out of Ricardo May's punting, though Allen Green continues to be erratic. Nate Borden continues his freakish preseason with 2.5 sacks, a block, 3 hurries and a knockdown. Knowing my luck, he'll probably fizzle out in the regular season. Gabe Jackson slightly betters Dan Lynch, but I think I'll go with my current setup. It's working. Our first injury of the year and it's a huge one. LG Mark Mathias, Mr. Injury Prone himself, wrecks the hell out of his knee and has to have surgery, meaning he's out for the entire season. I don't want to have to rely on Ken Petersen as a backup, and luckily there's a 3rd year RG, Howard Glenn on the market who's raw in ratings, but had a sickly 64.9 KRB % as a starter two years ago with the Falcons while giving up 7 sacks. 64.9%! How the hell did he not make the All-Pro team? Needless to say, I sign him as a backup to Duane Putnam, the ressurected starter, quickly. Miami 17 San Francisco 38 So I forgot to make Tommy Sharpe the starter again and ditto Milt Plum, but they both have horrible showings, so it's weakening my resolve again. I think I'll give Bill Cooper the start at halfback and Milt Plum the top QB and monitor the situation as the season goes on. Regular Season Miami 31 New England 23 The Milt Plum era begins with a bang, as our new starting QB is 20-27 for 204 yards, 4 TDs and an INT. 1st round draft pick Charlie Frazier catches 4 of those passes for 90 yards and a breathtaking 43 yard TD reception. Riddick Ingram showed why he's the starting TE over Johnny Carson with 2 short yardage TD receptions of his own. Our defense did just well enough to win, with no standouts. Miami 13 Chicago 16 A gutkicker of a loss that came down to a missed Allen Green field goal that would've tied it and sent it to OT. Penguin Culpepper has 7 tackles, an assist, and half a sack, while fellow DT Cliff Breeden records 2 sacks. This loss wasn't the fault of the defense or of Milt Plum, but rather of the running game. Neither Bill Cooper nor Tommy Sharpe are legitimate starting running backs, it appears. I belatedly realize I forgot to hit recommend. Oops. Bob Voight injures his elbow and will miss at least the next game. RDT Jack Jones, a former starter with the Packers, is signed to a one year veteran contract to fill in. I'm pleased to see that the playing time recommended is variable. Last season, for example, Ed Brown was a 2 and Bill Cooper was 85%. This season, Milt Plum's a 1 and Cooper's a 75%. Miami 9 Indianapolis 21 Bill Cooper finally starts getting a little untracked, but this is still the defending Super Bowl champs with Johnny Unitas. Milt Plum has his third straight game of 200+ passing yards and throws an interception, only his second on the year. Irv Cross averages an incredible 47 yards on two kick returns, but we can't get anything going with the field position. Miami 16 Cincinnati 13 A tough, but needed road win against the Bengals. Despite 2 costly interceptions, Milt Plum is still 20-34 for 208 yards, but the big heroes offensively are Bill Cooper, who breaks free for 26 rushes and 110 yards and Fred Dugan, who finally starts earning his paycheck with 10 catches for 107 yards. Allen Green hits a gorgeous 54 yard FG, but was 3/5 overall. Johnny Sample averaged 36.7 yards on 3 kickoff returns. Irv Cross gives us a scare when he separates his shoulder, but he'll only miss one game it looks like. Bob Voight is ready to come off the inactive list, but I'm liking Jackson's output better, so he'll stay. Our old friend Doyle Nix comes back for a game or two, taking the starting spot at RCB as Antonio Gorin has been terrible this season. Nix also takes over second kickoff return man duties, with Johnny Sample becoming the top returner in kicks and punts. Our situation for returners is so bad that outside of Sample and Cross, the only guys who have any kick return ability is Nix at 13 and we have nobody with an even a single point in current at punt returns. Next offseason, I'll have to look for somebody who can take Gorin's spot as a package defensive back and return kicks. Buffalo 35 Miami 30 We really, really miss Cross this game as we suffer a devastating loss to our archrivals. Our running game stalls and Milt Plum has trouble with his accuracy. Doyle Nix did get an interception in his first game back, but our pass defense hit the drink bigtime. A fumble a piece by Plum and Cooper didn't help matters. Miami 6 Cleveland 35 Irv Cross returns this game but it doesn't matter. We get killed on all sides and all facets of the game. The Browns are one of the top teams in the league and it shows here. Pittsburgh 28 Miami 33 Upset special of the week! The Steelers were 6-0 headed into this game and 10 point favorites, but Bill Cooper spoiled plans of 7-0 with 21 rushes for 116 yards and a TD. Milt Plum doesn't have his most accurate game, but 19-30 for 228 yards, 3 TDs and an INT is nothing to sneeze at. Irv Cross averages 34.3 yards on his kickoff returns. Just a nice, solid performance and one we needed to keep our season alive. New England 10 Miami 27 The Patriots are the worst team in the division and have been since the universe began. Bill Cooper flattens them 21 times for 93 yards and a TD and Milt Plum is a cool 20-27 for 257 yards and a TD. Johnny Sample shows why he's considered one of the top 5 CBs in the league today with 2 interceptions. Mark Schau racks up 2 sacks, a block, 2 hurries and a knockdown. Another important win. Important enough that it puts us at 4-4. Unfortunately, it's not without cost. Mark Schau strains his calf muscle and will miss a game. Riddick Ingram is questionable for our next contest as well and will probably be held out as a precaution. We're also well behind the Jets, who at 6-3 are clearly in front and there's two teams at 6-2 who are significantly ahead in the wild-card chase. The only way we get back to the playoffs is if we get hot and New Jersey starts stumbling. The halfway stats: Code:
Biggest difference between this year and last? Our pass defense, which was stellar last year, is down this season, way down. We'll have to pick that up in the second half. Milt Plum is also fumble-prone, though not as bad as Bryant Baker. Still, I don't like turnover happy QBs and I'm tempted to give Ed Brown the ball in the second half, particularly as last season's hero is unhappy about having to sit as the main backup. In happy news, Charlie Frazier is proving a very pleasant surprise at WR, as is Riddick Ingram's sudden nose for the endzone. So I think I'll let Brown take over from here on out. If he starts sinking and stinking, I can always pull him and let Plum take the spot again.
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2006 Golden Scribe Nominee 2006 Golden Scribe Winner Best Non-Sport Dynasty: May Our Reign Be Green and Golden (CK Dynasty) Rookie Writer of the Year Dynasty of the Year: May Our Reign Be Green and Golden (CK Dynasty) |
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06-30-2007, 09:21 PM
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#21 |
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Head Coach
Join Date: Sep 2004
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Baltimore 10 Miami 37
The Ravens suck this year, but it's still a blowout win and Ed Brown wins Game MVP honors with a 12-16, 119 yard, 2 TD performance. Irv Cross averaged 39 yards on his kickoff returns and it was just a nice, comfortable win. Nate Borden, the starting RDE, is out for at least next game and we're now missing both of our starting ends. This is not cool. I cut RG Ken Petersen, as my first-ever 5th round pick looks like a bust and we need the room for him. LDE Torrance Brooks, a 7th year player who started for Tampa Bay in 1960 and was a backup last season for the Redskins, gets pulled in off the street to start at LDE. Miami 20 New Jersey 14 *HUGE* win over the Jets, captained by an Ed Brown 4th quarter comeback. He's really proving his point about deserving to be the starter. Brown's the man again: 20-38 for 206 yards and a TD. He's not the greatest QB on the planet and he's getting old, but he's got a grittiness that makes him the man you want when the chips are down. 5 forced fumbles, 6 sacks, 2 of the latter by Cliff Breeden and you can tell our defensive line, banged up as it was, was keyed up for this game. Two interceptions by our secondary as well. Minnesota 20 Miami 12 I want to throw up. 22-38 for 265 yards from Ed Brown can't overcome a piss-poor run game. Dan Lynch's 10 tackles and 2 assists? Nice, but ultimately useless as the Vikings ground it out better than we did. San Diego 24 Miami 17 Two straight home games and two straight losses as the Chargers overcome 3 interceptions to steal a win late in the 4th quarter. We need a new running back next season. That's become the single-highest priority and one we'll be looking at intensely in the draft. The loss drops us to 6-6 and puts us a game behind the Jets. Miami 6 Detroit 13 It looks as though all the magic is gone out of Ed Brown's arm. He struggles for the second straight game, negating Rommie Loudo's 11 tackle, 3 assist showing, as well as a very faint pulse from the running game. Plum will start the rest of the year. New Jersey 20 Miami 7 Do or die game against the Jets and we die, despite 80 yards rushing from Bill Cooper and a respectable 25-41 for 252 yards, 1 TD and 1 INT from Milt Plum. Charlie Frazier has a fantastic game with 8 catches for 106 yards, but our special teams and defense both took major naps this game, ruining the offensive starbursts. Green Bay 31 Miami 26 An offensive fireworks game goes the way of the mighty Packers. Despite the closeness of the score, the game really wasn't that much of a competition as our offense was generated largely on Irv Cross and Johnny Sample doing their usual dual 30+ kickoff return yard average. Miami 10 Buffalo 16 And the losing streak finishes out the year. From 6-4 to 6-10. Gotta love six game losing streaks. We finish third in the division. Charlie Frazier is 6 for 6 on targets and catches, good for 85 yards, but that's about the only highlight. I'll do the end cap and all that stuff later. I'm too disgusted right now.
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2006 Golden Scribe Nominee 2006 Golden Scribe Winner Best Non-Sport Dynasty: May Our Reign Be Green and Golden (CK Dynasty) Rookie Writer of the Year Dynasty of the Year: May Our Reign Be Green and Golden (CK Dynasty) |
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07-03-2007, 03:57 AM
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#22 |
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Head Coach
Join Date: Sep 2004
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Code:
The difference between last year and this one? As I said at the halfway point, largely a case of our pass defense heading south. Irv Cross in particularl seems to have had a down year, likely attributable to a sophomore slump. Bill Cooper broke the 1,000 yard mark, but he's not a star back so that's a spot we'll look at upgrading. Charlie Frazier had a very nice rookie season and I expect big things out of him in the future. I think our receiving corps overall is pretty decent now, but we still need a good quarterback and a good running back. ...Actually, looking at the ratings of the top players by position in the recommend screen, we need help pretty much everywhere except cornerback and center. Ouch. No wonder we're a 6-10 team in a terrible division. Cliff Breeden had a great year and Dick Stafford was a pleasant surprise as a rookie, but the rest of our defensive line was blah and the linebackers, Rommie Loudo's tackles not withstanding, were a major disappointment. Oronde Bland had his best year in center, with 42.1% KRB and only 1 sack allowed and Chad Kramer was an incredible 70.6% KRB as a reserve LT, but overall, the offensive line underachieved, particularly Sherman Plunkett, the RT's numbers having continued to drop with each year of the fat deal we gave him. Unfortunately, we're stuck with him for the next three seasons still. Ricardo May did okay punting, but I'm not sure if I'll re-sign him or not. Allen Green is settling into a kicker we can expect to convert about 76% of his FG a year, somewhere in the 63-69% from 40+. Not the most fantastic numbers and he'll have to have a great year next season to earn another contract.  You have to love the NFC South in these historical dynasties, you really do. Now once those Saints boys grow into their potential, we could see some serious football in the league's weakest division. Super Bowl III Green Bay 38 Cleveland 20 The Packers soundly beat the Browns to go 2-0 against Cleveland in the Super Bowl in this rematch of Super Bowl I. This one was all Bart Starr, with his 27-35 for 383 yards and 3 TDs performance. If there's one thing the Colts and Packers illustrate, it's the critical importance of a franchise QB. Bart Starr wins MVP and Offensive Player of the Year. LDE Willie Davis completes the major Green Bay sweep with Defensive Player of the Year. RB Larry Ferguson, a 4th round pick of the Oilers, wins Offensive Rookie of the Year and WLB Frank Buncom, taken in the 1st round at #5 overall by the Vikings, wins Defensive Rookie of the Year. Buncom, by the way, looks like he's going to be a damn good player, surprising considering how weak the 1961 draft class is. Staff hiring time! Offensive coordinator Randy Fuller goes from Good to Average in QB and every effort will be made to replace him, as he's decreased at the most critical position. Defensive coordinator Clifton Winters improves for the second straight year, going from Fair to Average in DB. For a guy I was originally hesitant on, he's really coming a long way in his development and I'll do my darndest to re-sign him when his contract expires next year. I'm going to explore replacing Head Coach Corey Hammond this year, along with Lead Scout Daryl Crane. So basically, the entire staff except Winters may see a turnover. Crane stays, as I can't find anything better. This is a damn fine year for finding good, young head coaches to build a team around and I'm salivating over a young offensive coordinator prospect. I get into a bidding war with our archrivals over the OC prospect, but an extra $20,000 a year is good enough to land him! He's signed to a 4 year deal, unlike the standard 3 year contract. Offensive Coordinator Jared Thamilarasan (37) QB: Good RB: Good WR: Good OL: Very Good K/P: Good YT: Good Head Coach Tyrus Treftz (37) MT: Good DI: Good OC: Good DC: Very Good IA: Good I think I'll stop there on that happy, happy note and take on free agency tomorrow/later today
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2006 Golden Scribe Nominee 2006 Golden Scribe Winner Best Non-Sport Dynasty: May Our Reign Be Green and Golden (CK Dynasty) Rookie Writer of the Year Dynasty of the Year: May Our Reign Be Green and Golden (CK Dynasty) |
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07-03-2007, 09:31 PM
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#23 |
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Head Coach
Join Date: Sep 2004
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First half of free agency, here we come.
This time I actually remember to check and see who I should send to the Summer League. Since Dick Stafford has the biggest gap between current and future, the difference being that of slub and serviceable, he's the easy selection. There's not much in the way of our restricted free agents that I'm all that gung-ho about re-signing, but there's a few that I'll return. Week 1 Re-signings SS Larry Miller (1 year, $50k) LT Chad Kramer (2 years, $160k) P Ricardo May (1 year, $50k) MLB Gabe Jackson (1 year, $50k) SLB Luther Randall (1 year, $50k) By the numbers we need a QB, RB, LB and 8 players overall. We'll be adding a lot more than the minimum 8 between free agency and the draft, I can tell you that much. Week 2 Losses RG Gene Hickerson (4 years, $2.28 mill. - Minnesota (Cleveland) ) -Ouch. I wanted this guy really badly and off he goes to the dumbassed Vikings. LDT Jim Colvin (4 years, $2.42 mill. - Indianapolis Re-Sign) -Another top-tier free agent goes away. Luckily there's another DT I really like, if he hasn't been snatched up already. SLB Rommie Loudo (3 years, $1.1 mill. - Denver) -Cashes in on his high tackle season for us and picks up a nice deal off the Broncos. SS Andy Nelson (4 years, $1.62 mill. - Jacksonville (Indianapolis) ) -Wow, we just keep getting hammered left and right in our efforts to bring in top notch free agents. Luckily, like with Colvin, there's someone else I'm eyeing up. Week 3 Signings SS Ross Fitchener (3 years, $790k - Cleveland) -Extraordinarily consistent strong safety who averaged exactly 81% pass defense his last three years with the Browns and had 4 interceptions his first two seasons. Great upgrade for our secondary and Larry Miller's immediate replacement. FS Don Fleming (4 years, $2.10 mill. - Cleveland) -Say hello to the other Browns' starting safety of the universe's first three years. Apparently these guys are best friends because we've just directly imported both of Cleveland's safety starters and -really- made our secondary a nightmare for opposing QBs. Both Fitchener and Fleming were fantastic in Cleveland, where the cornerbacks weren't as good as Johnny Sample and Irv Cross. Can you say Miami Dolphins #1 secondary in the NFL? I knew you could. Week 3 Losses DE Nate Borden (1 year, $100k - Dallas) -Played okay for us last year, but really, with Dick Stafford showing signs of becoming a pretty good DE, Borden's time was up. Week 4 Signings LG Fuzzy Thurston (6 years, $4.18 mill. - Green Bay) -Long contract and a steep price to pay for the mentor guard, but he's a former 1st Team All-Pro Guard (1961) who has two Super Bowl rings from his Packers days. He's a fantastic player and will allow us to move injury-prone Mark Mathias back to the dual backup role. SILB Dave Lloyd (4 years, $2.85 mill. - Cleveland) -Think we're done raiding the Browns' defense? Not a chance in hell as we snag Lloyd, who will be our starting MLB for the next four years. Kept getting better and better the last three years and is due for a real break-out season this year or next. Week 4 Losses WR Boyd Dowler (6 years, $5.68 mill. - Green Bay re-sign) -This guy is sick. You want to know how sick? Two consecutive seasons of 2,000+ receiving yards, including 2,442 yards last year!. That's the kind of record that may never be broken. Then again, it helps having a guy like Bart Starr throwing to you. The dude's incredible and there was some serious cash being floated his way but he took the lesser deal to stay with the Packers, where he's a fan favorite. Week 5 Signings DT Henry Jordan (5 years, $3.33 mill. - Green Bay) -I keep right on raiding the two teams with two Super Bowl appearances and gleefully so. Jordan's a great all-around DT and he'll start alongside Penguin Culpepper for sure. It's just a matter of what side each one will line up on. Week 5 Losses FS Brett Woodard (1 year, $60k - Baltimore) -Played decently for us last season, but the Ravens can have him after the upgrade we made. And I'll continue this later. Feel fatigued all of a sudden.
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2006 Golden Scribe Nominee 2006 Golden Scribe Winner Best Non-Sport Dynasty: May Our Reign Be Green and Golden (CK Dynasty) Rookie Writer of the Year Dynasty of the Year: May Our Reign Be Green and Golden (CK Dynasty) |
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07-05-2007, 10:19 PM
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#24 |
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Head Coach
Join Date: Sep 2004
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Week 6 Losses
QB Milt Plum (2 years, $320k - San Francisco) -The 49ers are stacked at QB, so why they're signing Milt is beyond me. He does give them a good third-stringer, though. ...Heh. That's sad. Our main starter last year is a third-stringer for another team. SLB Bill Forrester (2 years, $990k - Washington - Green Bay) -11th year mentor vet still plays well and he took less money to play for the Redskins. My guess is he's planning a political career after he retires, since he already has two rings from the Packers. Week 7 Signings WLB Jim Houston (3 years, $300k - Cleveland) -The Browns' D raid continues, though Houston was only a part-timer. He drew considerable interest from a lot of teams, but I like what he did in backup work and his ratings, so I threw him a 3 year deal with a $30,000 bonus, which he happily took. Nice to see, as in a lot of cases, players will take the one year deal anyway. Correction to be made: RDT Cliff Breeden became the Miami Dolphins' first All-Pro player, as he was named to the All-Pro 2nd Team. Congrats, Cliff! That fact I discovered makes it easy for me to keep Penguin Culpepper and recent signee Henry Jordan both on the left side. Houston's signing allows me to switch Aaron Spiva over to the strong side, thus strengthening our overall LB corps. At this point, I think I'm more or less done with free agency. We've now 42 players, with a QB and RB needed. Obviously those two positions will be our focal point in the draft. Naturally there's other spots we're looking at, but we'll talk about that when the time comes. Week 9 Losses RB Tommy Sharpe (1 year, $80k - Baltimore) -Mentor RB fumbled way too much last season, so the Ravens can have him. DT Jack Jones (1 year, $80k - Minnesota) -A solid backup when we needed him last year; I almost considered bringing him back if he fell to late free agency, but he didn't. Draft up next. Going to take a couple Advil as I got a headache going through player cards to interview. When my headache clears, I'll do the draft.
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2006 Golden Scribe Nominee 2006 Golden Scribe Winner Best Non-Sport Dynasty: May Our Reign Be Green and Golden (CK Dynasty) Rookie Writer of the Year Dynasty of the Year: May Our Reign Be Green and Golden (CK Dynasty) |
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07-06-2007, 01:12 AM
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#25 |
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Head Coach
Join Date: Sep 2004
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1963 Draft
The two big names on everyone's lips are CB Willie Brown and OLB Bobby Bell. DT Buck Buchanan and RG Dave Herman look like very quality guys too, but they play lesser positions. There's also a slow of top-quality tackle prospects, so I may find Sherman Plunkett's replacement who can turn into our future LT. Daryle Lamonica is looking like the best QB prospect, but #1, he probably won't last to where we are and #2, there's someone I like a lot better than him. I've researched the hell out of this draft and I've got a pretty good idea of how my board's going to go if things fall the way I plan. We once again get screwed on tiebreakers, so we're picking #12. A trade down is a very real possibility, depending on how things shake out. 1963 Draft Round 1 1. CB Willie Brown - Tucson Titans 2. QB Daryle Lamonica - Buffalo Bills Wow. Huge reach for Lamonica here by our archrivals. I don't see him as The Franchise at all, but evidently the Bills are desparate. 3. OLB Bobby Bell - Seattle Seahawks 4. QB Don Breaux - Cincinnati Bengals 5. T Steve Barnett - Atlanta Falcons 6. QB Don Trull - New Orleans Saints Damn it! I was hoping Trull would fall down to me, but there he goes off the board. There's one other QB who looks good, but he's only 5% developed, which is going to scare off a lot of teams. Maybe he'll fall to us? 7. DT Buck Buchanan - Jacksonville Jaguars through New England Patriots The Jaguars were paranoid that Buchanan wasn't going to drop any more, which they may have been right to believe, as he should've gone Top 5 in my opinion. So what does Jacksonville do? Give up their 1964 and 1965 1st rounders along with their 1965 2nd round pick to our division foes for this pick. Though I sharply disagree with Jacksonville's tendency to make these kinds of trades, it's hard to dispute the results. Remember that 1961 draft day trade at #15, when Jacksonsville moved in and give the Saints two 1st rounders? Well, Jimmy Johnson, the guy the Jaguars took, was just named 1st Team All-Pro CB last year and looks sensational. Meanwhile, the Saints have drafted Bob Soci, who re-defines bust with his now 12/24 rating and this next pick. 8. RG Dave Herman - New Orleans Saints One of my backup choices, but oh well. 9. DT Jim Kanicki - Washington Redskins 10. S Jerry Logan - Tucson Titans through Minnesota Vikings The Titans give up their 1965 1st and 7th rounders along with their 1964 3rd rounder to pick up the best safety in the draft. One more pick and the last good QB will be mine. But then I discover that the Denver Broncos are looking for a new QB themselves, so I contact them to ask about a deal. I offer them my 4th rounder to flip-flop picks, since that's just over the value difference according to the NFL Draft Value chart I use. They accept and we get our man. 11. QB Mickey Slaughter - Miami Dolphins I seriously like his skillset, his intelligence, and even his rawness. He'll be able to learn for a year behind Ed Brown before being shipped off to the Summer League and get ready to take over in his second year. 12. OLB Dave Robinson - Denver Broncos 13. TE John Mackey - Tampa Bay Buccaneers 14. OLB Andy Russell - Oakland Raiders 15. OLB Larry Stallings - Kansas City Chiefs 16. WR Paul Flatley - Carolina Panthers 17. RB Tom Neumann - Buffalo Bills 18. T Frank Laskey - Philadelphia Eagles 19. TE Jackie Smith - Tucson Titans through New York Giants Okay, this is seriously getting a little silly. The Titans give up their 1964 1st rounder and their 1965 2nd and 4th rounder to grab a TE that I honestly don't think looks all that impressive. Furthermore, to my way of thinking, TE is not one of those spots where you give up that much to get, but we'll see how it goes. 20. T Walter Rock - New Jersey Jets 21. DT John Johnson - San Diego Chargers 22. DE Chuck Walker - St. Louis Cardinals 23. T Lane Howell - Los Angeles Rams 24. S Karl Kassulke - Chicago Bears 25. T Bob Vogel - Dallas Cowboys 26. G Walt Sweeney - Houston Oilers 27. S George Saimes - Detroit Lions 28. TE Marv Fleming - Pittsburgh Steelers 29. ILB Dennis Gaubatz - Indianapolis Colts 30. ILB Jim O'Mahoney - San Francisco 49ers 31. G Ed Budde - Cleveland Browns 32. G Jim Battle - Green Bay Packers Lot of teams got some seriously good value late in the 1st by my lights and there's some terrific deals still waiting in the 2nd, though it remains to be seen if any of them will drop to me. Unfortunately, the RBs I had my eye on all get scooped up before my pick comes in the 2nd and furthermore, the best value available is at cornerback, a position I'm already pretty damn well stacked at. But there's also a DE who'd be able to step in as an immediate starter on the right side for me and so DE Don Brumm is the selection. In the 3rd round, the greatest value is still at CB, though I do see a couple guards I have my eye on. On the other hand, the top CB left in my opinion can return kicks, do some punt return work, which we need, and be a special teams guy, so CB Marshall Starks comes aboard. By a fluke, or because his combine was shaky except for his Sol test (44), the 100 Vol guard who is one of the guys I was looking at in the 3rd is still there in the 5th. I consider a certain RB, but decide there's somebody I'd rather take in the 6th if they're still there, so G Jim Simon gets the call. The other RB I looked at is still there in the 6th, leading me to add RB Winfield Sidney, who I take solely on the fact that he appears like he has some small punt and kick return abilities. CB Charley Warner becomes our last pick in the draft because he looks like he could boom and because he appears to be a terrific punt returner. I also put ILB Byron Canale on my watch list, simply because he seems decent for a UDRFA pickup for one and for two, he's a UTEP grad, which will raise the Jeeber interest level in this dynasty, if only for a little bit. Although I didn't intend to, following the post-draft review, I find myself planning to be more active in late free agency than I originally intended. I make my offers and wait to see what happens. Week 2 Signings RB Chris McBath (1 year, $80k - Tucson) -Becomes the new backfield leader and has affinity with Alan Ameche. Coming off a very serious ankle injury that sidelined him for much of the year. Power back who will challenge Bill Cooper for the starting job. Week 2 Losses RB Zach Roaches (1 year, $80k - New York) -Was really angry after being shut out of the running game situation, although he probably was a better back than Cooper or Tommy Sharpe. I'm not sad to see him go, though. Hopefully he'll find happiness with the Giants. Week 3 Signings DE Paul Miller (2 years, $240k - Kansas City) -Very solid starter for the Chiefs the last 3 years and in fact leaves Kansas City as the team's leader in sacks. May or may not start for us, but a huge value in terms of what he brings to the table mentorwise. MLB Dan Lynch (1 year, $50k Re-sign) -Mentor's brought back for one last season, though he won't be anything more than a backup after we signed Don Lloyd. Returning primarily to educate the next signing. ILB Byron Canale (1 year, $30k UDRFA) -Let's be honest. I signed him because he's a UTEP guy for Jeebs and because he looks like he might turn into a backup someday. That's it. Most likely fodder, if you want to know the truth. CB Doyle Nix (1 year, $50k Re-sign) -Brought back solely to be a mentor to Marshall Starks and to occupy a spot in our goal line package. I've grown rather attached to him and Lynch to be honest, as the two guys who keep finding a way to just make it back. Week 2 Losses WR Pete Taninecz (1 year, $50k - Dallas) -Once thought to be an up and coming star for us, he just fell out of the rotation as we drafted guys we liked better and brought in improvements via free agency. MLB Marc Summers (1 year, $50k - Atlanta) -I would've pursued this guy even harder had I not checked and realized that I signed Lloyd. He's a player who looks like he's developing into a really solid middle linebacker and I'll keep tabs on his career if he keeps popping up in free agency. Week 3 Signings FL Ray Mathews (1 year, $50k) -13 year vet and mentor is being brought back for one more season to keep educating the young guys and serve as the fifth receiver. Code:
Those are some ugly, ugly draft results. Slaughter may not be the answer at QB, but Brumm thankfully appears ready to be a good DE. Starks is looking like career nickel/dimeback material. Simon had a nice leap up and could well be the steal of the draft for us. Sidney is in danger of being cut. Warner's bump was nice and Canale's a busting curiosity.
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2006 Golden Scribe Nominee 2006 Golden Scribe Winner Best Non-Sport Dynasty: May Our Reign Be Green and Golden (CK Dynasty) Rookie Writer of the Year Dynasty of the Year: May Our Reign Be Green and Golden (CK Dynasty) |
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07-06-2007, 09:09 AM
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#26 | |
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College Benchwarmer
Join Date: Oct 2000
Location: calgary, AB
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Quote:
I'll say. It's like you were playing Joe Montana every week. It actually looks like your corners did a decent job but your linebackers got burned alot, maybe your getting the base defense out there too often in passing situations? |
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07-06-2007, 11:52 AM
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#27 | |
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Head Coach
Join Date: Sep 2004
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Quote:
I'm not certain. I have the AI in charge of re-setting the gameplan each week and calling the plays. Then again, Hammond, the head coach I just fired, was only Fair at Defensive Playcalling, so that could explain it. If that's the case, we should see major improvent this year with Teftz, who's Very Good in Defensive Playcalling. Honestly, after a real quick glance over our roster, I'm initially pretty excited about our '63 chances, but I'll be taking a closer look after work tonight and making the position breakdown post.
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2006 Golden Scribe Nominee 2006 Golden Scribe Winner Best Non-Sport Dynasty: May Our Reign Be Green and Golden (CK Dynasty) Rookie Writer of the Year Dynasty of the Year: May Our Reign Be Green and Golden (CK Dynasty) |
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07-06-2007, 09:12 PM
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#28 |
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Head Coach
Join Date: Sep 2004
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Code:
Brown has to be happy as he's once again the undisputed starter, which should take away his current disgruntled state. Slaughter will, of course, be the top backup and if the season goes downhill, he may find himself tossed in the fire. It'll be interesting seeing how he does in preseason. Code:
I wonder if Cooper's sick of having to fight for his starting job year after year yet. He'll have to do it this season as well. We have 54 players on the roster, meaning we'll actually have to cut somebody. Sidney's a prime candidate for that cut as he's all green in punt returns (0/26). Ameche was terrible as a blocker last year, but he remains invaluable on special teams. Ferguson is fodder. Code:
Carson is still unhappy, but he's going to have to shut up and deal with it. Ingram is turning into a really nice all-around TE, one who showed a surprising gift in the red zone last year. In fact, I foresee Riddick being a careerlong Dolphins TE. Carson, on the other hand, is out at the end of this year faster than you can say Ed McMahon. Code:
In my opinion, this is a pretty solid group of receivers. Frazier and Dugan will start, Mathews will back up Frazier, Ballman will back up Dugan, and Coolbaugh, a major disappointment for a 2nd rounder, will be the fifth receiver and one of our special teams aces. Code:
Skoronski-Thurston-Bland-Simon-Plunkett will compose our starting five. Simon's boom portends great things and honestly, I've never really been a fan of D'Agostino's and after he tanked it last year, we really need to go with the higher upside guy. You might be wondering why I don't shift Mathias over to RG. #1, he's extremely injury-prone and #2, he has 70 xp at LG, 50 xp at RG. I'm not willing to take the hit at this point, though if he shows some durability and acquires more experience, I'll consider it. I'd love to replace Plunkett or dump his grossly underachieving ass, but there's the small matter of a $420,000 bonus hit I'd take, which is pretty steep when the total salary cap is $12 million. Code:
Both these guys are playing for their chance to stay in a Dolphins uniform this year. If they don't cut the mustard, I have no problems with going in another direction. Code:
Schau will anchor the left side as he has since this universe started. I'm quietly optimistic about Brumm. I really think he could become the first 2nd round pick I've had who doesn't bust. Stafford will probably be the primary backup for both DE spots, since he was our summer league selection. Code:
Breeden was our first All-Pro player last year when he made the 2nd Team, so he'll hold down the right side, while Jordan occupies the left. Culpepper probably isn't going to be happy with the backup role, but he'll just have to live with it. Voight is really little more than a goal line package guy who hasn't developed like I'd hope. Call him a busted 3rd rounder. Code:
Lloyd fills a major hole for us. We've never had a truly great MLB until now. Jackson will probably be the backup. Spiva gets the strong side without question, as he's been our most consistent linebacker in this universe. Newcomer Houston takes over Spiva's old spot on the weak side. Backups are likely to be Jackson and Randall, but we'll see how the numbers game plays out as far as inactives go. Code:
Sample and Cross will return as the starters. Warner has to stay active because he's far and away the best punt returner on the team and his presence will take a huge load off of Cross's back. In fact, Warner has the possibility of becoming one of the best punt returners in the league if he develops. I'll take that for a 7th rounder! Starks is a possible dime back and might even push Stryzinski for the nickel spot. Another consideration is to shift Starks over to the right side and have him back Cross up. Lot of possibilities here. Code:
This one's straightforward. Fichtner and Fleming start, Miller and Bruney the backups.
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2006 Golden Scribe Nominee 2006 Golden Scribe Winner Best Non-Sport Dynasty: May Our Reign Be Green and Golden (CK Dynasty) Rookie Writer of the Year Dynasty of the Year: May Our Reign Be Green and Golden (CK Dynasty) |
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07-07-2007, 04:34 AM
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#29 |
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Head Coach
Join Date: Sep 2004
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Ladies and gentlemen, it's a terrible thing when you've fallen for a girl for the first time in four years and you don't dare to tell her how you feel. Lot of sleepless nights, pacing the floorboards, so many cigarettes smoked and not even Dumas helping to take your mind off of her.
My Park High dynasty is too passive a thing for me to update in times like these, sorry to say MrBug and others. I need something active, something that engages me and so I update this one. My nerves are too jangled to work on my grad school samples right now, anyway. So on we go, boat swimming in the currents of the past. RB Winfield Sidney is, as expected, the lone player cut from the team. 1963 Preseason Miami 27 New York 21 A pleasant preseason opening win. Johnny Sample runs a kickoff 101 yards for a TD and Mickey Slaughter looks quite sharp in his Dolphins debut in going 8-12 for 86 yards and a TD. The running back situation looks worrisome, again, but Marshall Starks makes a claim for nickelback rights with an interception. Allen Green is 2/4. Not a good way to impress me for a new contract. Henry Jordan records 7 tackles, an assist, 4 hurries and 2 knockdowns. Don Brumm looks good with 1.5 sacks. All in all, some promising showings from our rookies and other newcomers. Fuzzy Thurston pulls his calf and is out 6 weeks, making him iffy for the regular season opener. I'm just glad it happened in preseason. Mark Mathias will take over as the starting LG, with Frank D'Agostino the primary guard backup. New Orleans 17 Miami 27 Dolphins looking good in preseason. Ed Brown has a nice game and Chris McBath gets a slight edge over Bill Cooper for the starting RB spot. Don Brumm continues his hot exhibition play with a sack, an interception, 2 hurries and a knockdown. Miami 14 Carolina 27 Surprising upset by the Panthers, caused largely by Ed Brown's 3 interceptions. Mickey Slaughter plays extremely well with 12-20 for 111 yards and a TD. Glynn Griffing even gets in on this one and he's awful: 1-9 for 9 yards and an INT. I'm liking Slaughter's showing in preseason. Gives me hope that he'll be our QB of the future. Charley Warner averages 15 yards a punt return but also has 2 fumbles. Something to keep an eye on in the regular season. Dallas 6 Miami 20 Another efficient performance by Mickey Slaughter in 10-14 for 95 yards, a TD and an INT. Bill Cooper has pretty much lost his starting job to Chris McBath by this point. Penguin Culpepper records 5 tackles, 2 sacks, and a hurry in winning Game MVP. All in all, I'm really liking how this team is shaping up for this year. That's until I get the injury report. Fred Dugan is lost for the year with a high ankle sprain. Well, it's actually 17 weeks, meaning he'd be back in time for the playoffs if we made it, but he'd be too rusty to play, so I put him on the IR and go hunting for a SE. Bob Ferguson hyperextends his knee and is out 4 weeks. Not a big deal as he's a backup FB. Unfortunately, the free agent pool for WRs is bare, like completely bare. While I'm deciding what to do, I sign FB Ethan Granger, a terrific blocking fullback whose presence means Ferguson is going to find himself cut next year, if not this year. Ultimately, I choose to shift Gary Ballman, who I like the more and more I see of him, to SE to start there, with Bob Coolbaugh the backup and Johnny Carson the 5th receiver. This time I make certain to hit recommended playing time before the opening game. 1963 Regular Season New Jersey 31 Miami 6 The Jets lower the sonic boom on us to start the year. Our running game combines for a grand total of 35 yards and Mickey Slaughter throws 2 INTs on 4 attempts in mopup. Ricardo May has his best game as a Dolphin, 45.8 average with 4 inside the 20. Allen Green is 2/2, including a 51 yarder. Heh, it figures. Some solid performances from the D. Dave Lloyd has 7 tackles and 9 assists. Don Brumm gets 6 tackles, 2 assists, half a sack and a knockdown. Henry Jordan rings up 4 tackles, 3 assists, 1.5 sacks and a knockdown. Fuzzy Thurston comes back this next game to give us a big boost on the offensive line (or so I hope). Miami 24 Dallas 17 Important morale win against the Cowboys as we shut them out in the second half. Bill Cooper scores 2 rushing TDs as he takes over for an ineffective Chris McBath. Jim Houston has 9 tackles and 2 assists. Irv Cross posts a great game with 3 passes defensed and 32 yard kickoff return average. The injury train continues as starting SS Ross Fichtener separates his shoulder and is due out 6 weeks. Larry Miller takes over as the starting safety, the awful Larry Vargo becomes the backup and Brent Stryzinski takes over as the dime back. Jacksonville 3 Miami 30 Some home brew against the draft-gambling Jaguars is just what the doctor ordered and we paste them. Bill Cooper erupts for 30 rushes for 127 yards and a TD. I think it's safe to say he's earned his starting job back. Ed Brown is brutally accurate at 18-21 for 156 yards and a TD. His skills are declining fast and there's a chance he may not be back next season, since he seems to demand that he be the starter. 3 interceptions this game: Dave Lloyd (44 yard return), Johnny Sample, and, of all people, Larry Vargo (69 yard return for a TD!). That will probably be the highlight of Vargo's entire career. Henry Jordan got a tackle, 2 assists, a sack, a block, 3 hurries and 3 knockdowns as he was in the Jaguars backfield all day long, harrasing the QB. Johnny Sample showed why he's considered one of the top CBs in the league by defending 3 passes to go with his INT. Just a solid game all-around for our lads. ...And of course, Johnny Sample hyperextends his knee and will miss at least the next game, further banging up our already wobbly secondary. Brent Strynski becomes the starter, Doyle Nix backs up and slides in on goal-line packages, and Marshall Starks, who has a fair amount of kick return talent, becomes the 2nd return man. Buffalo 13 Miami 17 Big-time win over our archrivals keyed by Charlie Frazier's 5 receptions for 90 yards, some solid pass defense and Charley Warner's 15.5 yard punt return average. The margin of victory should have been more, if Allen Green hadn't decided to have an off day on the FGs. Irv Cross sprains his knee and is questionable, but I can't afford to weaken my secondary any more than it already is, so I'll have to gamble and start him. Miami 11 San Diego 21 I keep forgetting to start Bill Cooper. Need to do that. The game wasn't as close as it appeared. Ed Brown threw 2 interceptions and fumbled twice and Mickey Slaughter was a dismal 2-10 in mopup. Dick Stafford was the lone bright spot with 1.5 sacks. All three of my secondary starters who are hurt are now questionable. I want a shot at the playoffs, so I'm going to say screw it and start them all. Denver 14 Miami 34 Well, the gamble paid off in, at the very least, a convincing win. I again neglected to start Bill Cooper, but the AI's smart enough to give him the bulk of the carries anyway, so it's all good, though Chris McBath does get 2 rushing TDs. Honestly, this game wasn't about any superstar performances. It was just about our being good enough to find the endzone at the right times. Fuzzy Thurston hyperextends his elbow, meaning he'll miss the next game. Same subbing drill as before. I do finally remember to make Cooper the starter, though. Kansas City 7 Miami 22 Great performance by Gary Ballman, with 3 catches for 90 yards. He's been a fine replacement for Fred Dugan, in my opinion, though we'll find out after the next game when I do a half-season review. Allen Green is 5/6 on field goals, including a 51 yarder, but flubs a freebie. Charley Warner continues to earn his paycheck with a 19 yard punt return average. Dave Lloyd notches 8 tackles and 4 assists, but the real defensive star is Henry Jordan with 4 tackles, 2 sacks, 4 hurries and 2 knockdowns. Gary Ballman separates his shoulder and will miss at least the next game, while I'm kicking myself for putting Fred Dugan on IR as he's now questionable and would've been a great help here. FL Eric Chaffin is signed as an emergency replacement, which means Bob Ferguson is, as long anticipated, cut from the team. Bob Coolbaugh finally gets to start at SE again, Johnny Carson backs him up and Chaffin becomes the 5th receiver. Miami 28 Oakland 24 What a great game to watch. We come back in the second half to pull off the win, secured when Riddick Ingram receives a 25 yard catch from Ed Brown, helping to alleviate Brown's 2 interceptions. Ray Mathews catches 7 balls for 80 yards in a key showing and for once, Allen Green is flawless in FGs. Irv Cross had an electrifying 86 yard kickoff return for a TD and Charley Warner averaged 14.3 yards on 4 punt returns. I don't think it's a stretch to say that having Warner back there is a significant part of our success this season, occasional fumbleitis aside. Johnny Sample continues his strong play on the year with 2 passes defensed and an interception and Mark Mathias has one of his best games as a Dolphin, 3/4 on key run blocks without a sack surrendered. All of this translates into our being an excellent 6-2, with a two game lead over the Jets and Patriots, who are both 4-4. As of right now, our playoff chances are looking terrific. Let's review the halfway tape. Code:
Remember the last time we went to the playoffs? It was because of our stellar pass defense and we missed out on the postseason last year when our pass coverage went south. This year, it's back up to fantastic and that's why we're doing so well. We live and die by our pass defense. Johnny Sample is having a career year. Despite missing a game to injury, he has 2 interceptions, 9 passes defensed and a mind-boggling 90.1% PD! And he's not even in a contract year! Irv Cross is rebounding nicely after his sophomore slump as well and I suspect having Charley Warner take over punt return duties is a big part of it.Man, did we ever make out in free agency thus far. I splashed a ton of cash and so far it seems to be worth it, as our top 4 tacklers and our best pass rusher are all brand new Dolphins this year. David Lloyd in particular has been a tackling machine and I can't say enough about Henry Jordan, whose been an absolute beast in the middle of the line. I'm also very much encouraged by Don Brumm's rookie campaign so far. It's not lights out by any means, but he's showing signs of turning into a nice pick for us. Mark Schau, on the other hand, has seen his level of play drop off noticeably the last couple of years at least in terms of tackling and sacks. But then again, he's also posting respectable hurry and knockdown numbers and is playing alongside much better linemates who are eating a lot of the statistics that'd go to him. Schau's also signed through 1965, so while he won't be cut, I'll start keeping an eye out for possible replacements. I seriously can not say enough about Gary Ballman. He might turn out to be the steal of his draft class, possibly outperforming Charlie Frazier, who was taken in the 1st round. What an excellent 3rd round pick up I made with him. Bill Cooper is on pace to break the 1,000 yard mark again and maybe it's about time I just owned up that he's a decent back all in all and stop pushing to replace him. He doesn't fumble much and has a nose for the endzone. Ed Brown is definitely on his last legs and we're winning in spite of him rather than because of him as was the case two seasons ago when we made our first playoff trip. That being said, while Mickey Slaughter is showing a small amount of improvement (+2 current so far), he's still nowhere near ready to take over the starting reins, which means we'll probably be QB hunting in free agency. Still, I like this team. I really do. I love the mercanery-overhauled defense and I'm pleased with a lot of our young players. Now if we can just find a legitimate quarterback, I think we could be on our way to making waves in the playoffs, rather than being a likely one and done team.
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2006 Golden Scribe Nominee 2006 Golden Scribe Winner Best Non-Sport Dynasty: May Our Reign Be Green and Golden (CK Dynasty) Rookie Writer of the Year Dynasty of the Year: May Our Reign Be Green and Golden (CK Dynasty) |
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07-07-2007, 06:59 PM
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#30 |
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Head Coach
Join Date: Sep 2004
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Miami 26 New England 3
The Patriots score a meaningless field goal in the 4th quarter to ruin the shutout in this laugher. Bill Cooper rushes 23 times for 95 yards and a TD. Ed Brown breaks the 200 yard passing mark for the first time this year at 203. Bob Coolbaugh becomes our first century receiver on the year with 5 catches for 115 yards and a TD, most of them coming on a beautiful 52 yard rainbow for the score. Mark Schau picks up 2 tackles, 2 sacks, and 4 hurries to win Game MVP. I get worried when I see that Ricardo May is 2/4 on FG and sure enough, Allen Green misses at least the next game with a strained patella tendon. On the bright side, Gary Ballman is now ready to be activated and play again, as he's been upgraded to probable. Goodbye Eric Chaffin. Tom Clark, who has terrible bars, but who averaged 83% and better the last two years in kicking for Dallas and Minnesota, is signed to fill in for Green. Miami 14 New Jersey 7 A bitter defensive battle against the Jets that needed a 4th quarter comeback and a little magic from Ed Brown, who hit Riddick Ingram from 8 yards out with 1:58 left for the game-winning TD. That's Ingram's second clutch TD of the season and I'm beginning to think him a pretty clutch guy. Brown was just off the hook this game: 28-36 for 290 yards and 2 TDs in his best performance of the year. Charlie Frazier took advantage of every opportunity given to him, with 10 catches for 168 yards and a TD. Not only is that a Dolphins season and Frazier career high for yardage, it's why he was a first rounder. We had some terrific defensive performances, too. Dave Lloyd rattled the Jets for 12 tackles and 3 assists, Ross Fitchener added 8 tackles and 5 assists to his pass defense, Henry Jordan dominated the line with 6 tackles, 4 assists, 2 sacks and a knockdown and Don Brumm recorded 4 tackles and 2 assists to go along with his 1.5 sacks and two hurries. This victory is critical for two reasons: First, it guarantees that we finish no worse than .500. Second, since it was over the Jets, it gives us a very comfortable 3 game lead in the AFC East. Philadelphia 31 Miami 24 Tough loss as the Eagles come from behind in the 4th. Ed Brown was erratic today and threw 3 interceptions besides, negating Chris McBath's 93 yards rushing and another fantastic game by Ross Fitchner, who had 11 tackles, an assist, a pass defense, and an interception. Bill Cooper separates his shoulder and will miss at least the next game. Since Allen Green was going to be gone at the end of the year anyway, I decide to gamble on Tony Clark and cut Green. I sign the immortal John Henry Johnson, the once-great Steelers back whose now a mentor on his last legs to get another shot at glory. He'll step in as the starting RB and may stay there even after Cooper comes back. Miami 7 Cincinnati 20 We lose to the lowly Bengals as John Henry Johnson turns out to be not what he once was, at least in this game. 18 rushing yards by the former legend. Yeesh. Jim Houston had 12 tackles and 3 assists in the best showing by a Dolphin all game. That niggling injury bug won't go away and it hits Ross Fitchner again, prompting the same shuffle as the last time he went out. Miami 16 New York 19 Our old pal Zach Roaches knifes us in the back with a TD run and we go down in a game that was largely a battle of field goals. Ed Brown has lost it as a starting QB. Legendary 1961 heroics aside, he won't be back. The loss especially hurts since the Jets are now a game behind and we're floundering with a three-game losing streak and coming off a heartbreaking defeat. I switch the starting RB to Chris McBath because John Henry Johnson just isn't any good anymore. Miami 23 Buffalo 14 This game against our archrivals was as close to a must-win game as anything we've had all year and John Henry Johnson responds to his demotion by scoring 2 TD runs to key the victory. Gary Ballman catches all 8 balls thrown his way for 93 yards as Ed Brown goes 28-34 for 252 yards. Charley Warner averages 18 yards on 4 punt returns. Washington 10 Miami 19 I gambled by sitting Fitchner and Cooper another game, though they probably could have returned and it paid off against the lowly Redskins. Charlie Frazier catches 4 passes for 90 yards and a TD, helping to offset Ed Brown's 2 picks. Dave Lloyd picks up 10 tackles and 2 assists and Don Brumm disrupts things at the line with 2 tackles, 2 assists, and 1.5 sacks. Tom Clark shows that the scouts have no idea what they're talking about with a 4/4 FG showing, including a beaut of a 54 yarder. That win, coupled with the Jets 17-16 nailbiter loss against the Cowboys decides it! Your Miami Dolphins are the 1963 AFC East Division Champions!!! Since we've clinched the division and we've got no shot at anything but a wildcard, I sit Fitchner and Cooper again for our last game, who still haven't moved beyond Questionable. Fitchner should be ready for the playoffs, Cooper's a wild card. New England 10 Miami 24 We coast to an easy win against the Patriots thanks first and foremost to Ed Brown's 21-29 for 217 yards, 3 TD, and 1 INT performance. Charley Warner averages 13.8 yards on 6 punt returns and Dave Lloyd has an excellent all-around game with 8 tackles, 2 assists, half a sack, a hurry and a knockdown. Thankfully no new injuries crop up and we're in pretty good shape for the playoffs.
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2006 Golden Scribe Nominee 2006 Golden Scribe Winner Best Non-Sport Dynasty: May Our Reign Be Green and Golden (CK Dynasty) Rookie Writer of the Year Dynasty of the Year: May Our Reign Be Green and Golden (CK Dynasty) |
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07-08-2007, 08:38 AM
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#31 |
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Head Coach
Join Date: Sep 2004
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A quick update before a 10 hour work shift that I'll be dead for because I did a small thing called get hit with a major manic cycle and so didn't sleep at all.
Good thing I'm only doing a robotic backroom project today and won't see the floor. Anyway, we're back in the playoffs! And our opponent is... let's see... ...You have -got- to be fucking kidding me. That's right... We're against the Houston Oilers, just like last time. They're still relying on George Blanda, who in his 15th season throws for 4,421 yards, 29 TDs and 12 INTs for a career best 96.3 season rating. I think I'm going to vomit. Here this old dude breaks the 4,000 mark for the first time as a 15th year vet and my guy who's four years younger is falling apart at the seams. Oy. Well, before the ritual slaughter, here's the final regular season standings:  Remember the scary offense from last time with the pedestrian running back? Guess what? Every single last one of them is back and the defense is still frightening. The only chink in the Oilers' armor, besides running back, is a vulnerable secondary, thanks to their top safety getting knocked out for the season in Week 14. Our only shot in this thing is to hope Good Ed shows up and turns this into a shootout, because after our free agent feeding frenzy this offseason, we've got the horses in the secondary to play aerial offense vs. aerial offense. Oh yeah, and if Blanda goes down soon enough? Forget it, it's ours, because George Porgie's backups all blow. ...I can't even pretend to do a game writeup here. All you need to know are the following lines: George Blanda: 24-27, 391 yards, 4 TDs, 0 INTs, 158.3 rating Charley Hennagan: 7 catches, 169 yards, 1 TD Miami Dolphins TDs: 0 Final Score: Houston 42 Miami 12 It's incredible. Old Man Blanda carves us like a pumpkin and we can't do a damned thing about it. We're just Swiss Cheese to his Army Knife and I'm running out of really bad cliches. Jim Houston had 9 tackles, 3 assists, and a sack to be the only Dolphin who didn't suck in this mindboggling defeat. A team summary: Code:
I'm not going to comment on the irony of one of the league's best pass defenses going south when it counted most. I'll only remark on the positives and a few negatives. Dave Lloyd becomes our first 100+ season tackler ever and provided a great stabilizing force in the middle, his 7 times caught in the playoff loss notwithstanding. He's considered the top MLB in the league by the scouts and it's not hard to agree with that. Mark Schau and Don Brumm both exploded in the second half as opponents did their best to try and contain monster in the middle Henry Jordan. Brumm is already close to being Schau's equal after just his rookie season and will probably end up surpassing him. What an absolute steal I made getting him in the second round! Unlike our DEs, Johnny Sample took a major nose-dive in the second half, but that's okay. He and Irv Cross were still quite respectable as our top two corners. Marshall Starks may rebound to be a respectable nickel back after all, something that's good to see. Ross Fitchner's injury troubles hampered what otherwise was a spectacular season from our new safety set imported from Cleveland. Don Fleming in particular was with every dollar spent. Turning to the offense, we're in desparate need of a good QB and a legitimate RB. Bill Cooper is serviceable, but he isn't going to give opposing defensive coordinators nightmares trying to plan against him and while Mickey Slaughter made some small gains this year, he's still extraordinarily raw. He'll go to the summer league of course, but he may need some more seasoning before I give him the reins. Charlie Frazier will probably never be considered one of the premiere receivers in the league, but I don't expect that out of him. He was a late 1st round pick in a supremely bad draft class. What's astonishing is that Gary Ballman taken in the 3rd round of that same crappy class, has become Frazier's equal on the field and, more importantly, a fan favorite. So not all that much will change in the upcoming offseason. Our top two priorities will still be a starting QB and a homerun hitting RB. Everything else is going to depend on how the free agent picture looks, both for us and for the league as a whole. More end season stuff after I go through work and get some sleep.
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2006 Golden Scribe Nominee 2006 Golden Scribe Winner Best Non-Sport Dynasty: May Our Reign Be Green and Golden (CK Dynasty) Rookie Writer of the Year Dynasty of the Year: May Our Reign Be Green and Golden (CK Dynasty) |
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07-08-2007, 08:43 AM
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#32 |
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Head Coach
Join Date: Sep 2004
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Oh, a real quick addition:
Everyone on the offensive line sucked at run blocking this year. The only two to even break 30%: Bob Skoronski, who unfortunately also gave up 10 sacks from the LT spot and, of all ironies, Sherman Plunkett. Very good pass-protection all around outside of Skoronski, though, with more pancake blocks than I figured would come out of this unit, so all in all, it's not too bad. Fuzzy Thurston's injuries really prevented him getting in a rhythm and affected the cohesion of the line as a whole, I think.
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2006 Golden Scribe Nominee 2006 Golden Scribe Winner Best Non-Sport Dynasty: May Our Reign Be Green and Golden (CK Dynasty) Rookie Writer of the Year Dynasty of the Year: May Our Reign Be Green and Golden (CK Dynasty) |
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07-08-2007, 01:30 PM
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#33 | |
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College Benchwarmer
Join Date: Oct 2000
Location: calgary, AB
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Quote:
Good freaking gawd. What did you guys do to him? Say they should ban his walker in a paper? Someone call him gramps at the coin toss? You're in a bad position to fix your needs at qb and rb. The good ones will be gone by the time you pick and your team is good enough defensively to insure that you won't pick early. Are you planning on pulling a big trade? |
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07-08-2007, 07:21 PM
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#34 | ||
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Head Coach
Join Date: Sep 2004
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Quote:
Incredible, isn't it? The dude's that old and he's kicking EVERYBODY's ass this year. I'll post his career card when he finally retires. It's got me tempted to maybe someday try a '60 Oilers dynasty and see if I can win Blanda a ring before he retires, as Houston usually runs into the buzzsaws of Cleveland or Indy.Quote:
I hadn't considered that, but it's something I'll look into. I was going to go the free agent route for our starting QB this year while I wait for Slaughter to develop a little bit more. But if something comes up that could net me a legit threat at either QB or RB, I'd definitely make the move. I'm certainly not going to wait until the '83 draft to get a good QB I'd go look now, but I've been up for 31 hours straight and I'd be seriously prone to making a dumb move.
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2006 Golden Scribe Nominee 2006 Golden Scribe Winner Best Non-Sport Dynasty: May Our Reign Be Green and Golden (CK Dynasty) Rookie Writer of the Year Dynasty of the Year: May Our Reign Be Green and Golden (CK Dynasty) Last edited by Izulde : 07-08-2007 at 07:22 PM. |
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07-09-2007, 09:17 PM
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#35 |
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Head Coach
Join Date: Sep 2004
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Super Bowl IV
Indianapolis 42 Los Angeles 38 Remember when Johnny Unitas threw for 401 yards in Super Bowl II? In this one, he throws for 412 yards, 5 TDs and an INT, but he was outdueled in the yardage department by Frank Ryan, who passed for 423 yards, 3 TDs, and an INT. Talk about a shootout! In fact, this may have been the most exciting Super Bowl ever, with the winning score coming after Unitas threw a 93 yard TD pass to Raymond Berry, who finished with 274! receiving yards and 2 TDs. On the Rams' side, Red Phillips and Bill Miller both broke the 100+ yard receiving mark.There was still time for the Rams to come back and tie it up after Johnny U threw the 93 yarder to break the tie and give the Colts the lead, but Los Angeles could only manage a field goal. Unitas, as you might expect, won his second Super Bowl MVP title and the Colts join the Packers as the only two teams to win the Super Bowl in this universe. Season Awards: Despite our fantastic defense's season, only DT Henry Jordan wins an award, that of 2nd Team All-Pro DT. Congratulations, Henry! Browns QB Len Dawson is the MVP and Offensive Player of the Year. DE Jim Katcavage - New York wins Defensive Player of the Year. Offensive Rookie of the Year goes to WR Ray Poage - Oakland and SS Jerry Logan - Tucson is the very deserving Defensive Rookie of the Year. Staff Hiring: Lead Scout Daryl Crane goes from Fair to Average in RB and from Excellent to Very Good in K/P. The increase in RB scouting has saved his job. Offensive Coordinator Jared Thamilarasan increases from Good to Very Good in RB, a very good sign considering we're looking heavily at RB this offseason. DC Clifton Winters, he of the two increases over the last two years, didn't improve at all this season and his contract expired. There's actually some better defensive coordinator candidates out there, but they exceed the amount of money that the owner's looking to spend, which makes the dilemma of what to do a lot easier. As a result, Clifton Winters signs a 3 year deal to stay in Miami as the DC. And honestly, it's hard to argue with the results he's produced and the improvements he's shown. His staying on board also preserves the staff continuity. Two candidates for summer league emerge: Ultra-raw QB Mickey Slaughter and much more developed, but at less critical CB Marshall Starks. Let's see here. QB: Biggest need. CB: Johnny Sample and Irv Cross signed for two more seasons and good luck prying them away from their starting spots or this team. Yeah, Slaughter it is. So, going into free agency, I notice that we have the #22 pick in the draft and a really, really big name at QB... but said big name is only 8% developed, and after Mickey turned out to be 5% developed, big name or no, I'm not going to make a major play for the dude. Besides, there's a RB that I'm hoping can drop into the teens, so I can trade up to grab him, as I think he'd be great for us. His endurance is a little low in bars, though... Ah well, I'll think about it some more later. Free agency tomorrow.
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2006 Golden Scribe Nominee 2006 Golden Scribe Winner Best Non-Sport Dynasty: May Our Reign Be Green and Golden (CK Dynasty) Rookie Writer of the Year Dynasty of the Year: May Our Reign Be Green and Golden (CK Dynasty) |
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07-10-2007, 05:39 AM
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#36 |
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Head Coach
Join Date: Sep 2004
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Free agency was going to be tomorrow, but I'm wide awake and don't feel like playing CK, so FOF2K7 it is.
19 free agents on our roster this year, only 3 of whom are restricted, only 1 of which I have any interest in bringing back. Week 1 Re-signing RB Bill Cooper: 3 years, $250k Needs by the numbers: QB, RB, TE, P, K, ILB, 10 players Ed Brown is the top FA QB, which is the bad news. The good news is that there's two legitimate top RBs available: Lenny Moore, who's been fabulous with the Colts, a mentor, and a fantastic chemistry fit and Paul Hornung, the Packers' great who seems to be running low on steam, but who would still be our starting RB and who was one of my dad's favorite players as a kid. Week 3 Signings RB Paul Hornung (6 years, $4.32 mill. - Green Bay) -We manage to grab Hornung after a fight for him. He's an 8th year player with a lot of mileage on him (3rd all-time rushing attempts in this universe), but he'll be our starting back for as long as his legs can hold out and I'll be able to tell my dad we signed him. He's also a fan favorite who can put butts in the seats and he gives Mickey Slaughter an affinity.Week 3 Losses RB Lenny Moore (3 years, $3.92 mill. - New Jersey (Indianapolis) -The bidding war on Moore was crazy. He's a 9th year vet with even more carries than Hornung, averaging over 400 carries the last few years. The shorter deal probably makes him a better contract overall, but we're getting kind of scary on our cap numbers, so I wanted Hornung's more modest yearly hit and lesser mileage. A shame Moore's going to the Jets, though. I'm not relishing having to face him twice a year. Week 4 Signings QB Ed Brown (3 years, $700k Re-signing) -I didn't really want to, but I brought Ed back for another few years. There were no other mentor QBs available who could be a reasonable starter if Mickey Slaughter isn't ready. MLB Brenden Schwartz (1 year, $90k - Buffalo) -A good backup to have at MLB. Still has a small amount of upside and was a starter for the 49ers from 60-62 and a top backup for our archrivals last year, the same role he'll fill for us. Week 5 Signings TE Rod Davis (1 year, $90k - Washington) -Had serious wrist injury problems last year, but in previous years, he's been a great starter for a couple of teams. Terrific blocker as well, who'll be a fine backup for Riddick Ingram. Week 5 Losses SLB Luther Randall (1 year, $80k - Dallas) -Average backup for us the last few seasons after starting for one year. Probably could've and should've retained him, but those are the breaks. Those are all the signings I planned on making in the first round of free agency. We're $1.4 million and change under the cap, with roughly $600,000 expected to go in the draft, which would leave us $900,000 in cap room. That's enough to sign a few depth people to 1 year deals, which is fine. I don't want to cut -too- close to the cap. Week 6 Losses MLB Gabe Jackson (1 year, $80k - Pittsburgh) -Never really succeeded in beating Dan Lynch out for the starting MLB job, though he did extremely well as a backup for us. Probably another one I should've tried to re-sign, although I think Schwartz is comparable to him. Week 7 Losses RDT Cliff Breeden (1 year, $80k - Baltimore) -Turned into a DT mentor, our first All-Pro player did, as he went off to the Ravens. A very solid starter that I'm kicking myself for not re-signing in a way, but on the other hand, Penguin Culpepper can start again and be happy. Week 9 Losses P Ricardo May (1 year, $80k - New Jersey) -Damn, I was going to re-sign him. Ah well, I'll pick someone else up in the draft or in late free agency. Not a big deal, really. Week 10 Losses K Tom Clark (1 year, $90k - Minnesota) -Tom kicked 80% of his FGs during the short stint with us, 67% from 40+ yards. Not bad at all, but not enough to make it urgent to re-sign him. The Vikings were only too happy to scoop him back up. Week 11 Losses MLB Dan Lynch (1 year, $90k - Seattle) -Solid starter for us for two seasons, then fell off the earth as a backup last season. It's nice to see him catch on with another team, as I always liked him when he'd constantly beat out Jackson year after year. Draft time! ....I think I'll keep going. We hold the #22 pick, as I said earlier. There's a certain WR I have my eye on in the 1st round, who, if he falls to me, he'll be taken. Should he not be available, there's a number of guys I'm looking at there who should improve our team. Roger Staubach, incidentially, is the extremely raw name QB I mentioned earlier and he's the hot buzz at the top of the draft. DT Tom Keating is the 2nd most hyped prospect and arguably the most NFL ready at a high ceiling and 50% development. Oh, I just told my dad about signing Hornung. He thought that was really nifty and asked about Jim Taylor, but I didn't see him anywhere when I glanced through. I don't care if Hornung doesn't turn out a homerun threat, now. That was just a neat moment with my dad that made it worth it. I do think Paul -will- be a homerun hitter at RB though, enough that I'm not looking at RB in the first round anymore like I'd originally planned.1964 Draft 1st Round 1. WR Bob Hayes - New Orleans Saints Great move by the Saints. They've already got two young QBs on their roster and needed a big-time playmaker for them to throw to. Hayes is that dazzling receiver. 2. QB Roger Staubach - Jacksonville Jaguars through Seattle Seahawks Anyone else surprised that the Jaguars pulled the trigger? ...Me neither, though what the hell did they give up to get the #2 overall pick in the draft? Their 1966 1st, 3rd and 4th rounders. Wow, did the Seahawks ever get ripped off, because it looks like Staubach, even though he appears as raw as I thought, will be an instant starter for god-awful Jacksonville and will probably be pretty good, the Jaguars out of #2 range by '66. Man, I love the Jaguars for their bold trades every year. It makes draft day exciting and has created a real sense of tradition each draft so far. I can just see the articles written about the daredevil GM, who trades like this year in and year out. 3. ILB Bill Budness - Baltimore Ravens 4. QB Dick Shiner - Washington Redskins *laughs* I love that name. One of the best in sports history. 5. S Paul Krause - New England Patriots 6. QB Mike Taliaferro - Tampa Bay Buccaneers 7. DT Tom Keating - San Diego Chargers through New York Giants I'm absolutely amazed that Keating managed to fall this far. The Chargers gave the Giants their 1966 1st rounder, their 1965 3rd rounder and this year's 4th round pick. Pretty fair trade on both sides and a shrewd move by San Diego to grab a player that should've been off the board by now. I could see the Chargers switching to a 4-3 D as a result of this deal. 8. RB Leroy Kelly - New England Patriots Kelly's the top-rated RB, but I honestly like Krause, the Patsies' pick courtesy of the Jaguars, a lot better. Kelly is overrated in my opinion. 9. CB Speedy Duncan - Denver Broncos 10. CB Marv Woodson - Buffalo Bills 11. OLB Ralph Baker - Kansas City Chiefs 12. S Hagood Clarke - Cincinnati Bengals 13. WR Clifton McNeil - Carolina Panthers 14. DE Carl Eller - New York Giants 15. DE Garry Philbin - Chicago Bears 16. DE Ben McGee - New Jersey Jets 17. WR Bucky Pope - Oakland Raiders 18. T Steve Wright - Philadelphia Eagles 19. S Paul Martha - Dallas Cowboys 20. WR Charley Taylor - San Francisco 49ers 21. S Kenny Graham - Atlanta Falcons Yes!!! He made it!!!! There's a lot bigger holes on the team that need to be filled, but I don't care. After I lost out on Nicky B, I'm drafting this guy. 22. WR Paul Warfield - Miami Dolphins I feel a sense of completeness now. 23. RB Dave Kopay - St. Louis Cardinals 24. CB Mel Renfro - San Diego Chargers 25. DE Larry Hand - Seattle Seahawks through Pittsburgh Steelers The Seahawks give up their 1965 1st rounder and both of their 1966 1st rounders! For a late first-round pick, that's absurd. Seattle had damn well better hope that Hand turns out to be the second coming of Jim Katcavage or something, because that's just stupid. Pittsburgh's 70s dominance may be forthcoming after all. Yeesh. 26. RB Mack Lee Hill - Houston Oilers Note: Had Warfield been gone and had I still needed a RB, Hill was my likely choice at #22, so the Oilers will finally have the good RB they've been hunting for. George Blanda, who's going to play for a 16th season, certainly appreciates the help. 27. ILB Ed Cummings - Green Bay Packers 28. T Bob Brown - Detroit Lions 29. G Joe O'Donnell - New York Giants 30. C John Schmitt - Cleveland Browns 31. CB Butch Byrd - Los Angeles Rams 32. CB Willie Mitchell - Indianapolis Colts I'll do rounds 2-7 tomorrow. Feeling sleepy now and I'd like to close out on that happy note of Warfield
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2006 Golden Scribe Nominee 2006 Golden Scribe Winner Best Non-Sport Dynasty: May Our Reign Be Green and Golden (CK Dynasty) Rookie Writer of the Year Dynasty of the Year: May Our Reign Be Green and Golden (CK Dynasty) |
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07-10-2007, 05:37 PM
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#37 |
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Head Coach
Join Date: Sep 2004
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1964 Draft Continued
Before my pick in the 2nd round, Jacksonville gives up their 3rd and 4th rounders to Buffalo to get 2.12. Those crazy Jaguars! Round about 2.16, the outside linebacker that I really, really like is in danger of getting picked up, so I contact Tucson. Since there's still a very good chance of a player I want lasting to our original second rounder, I don't want to trade up, but have a second 2nd rounder, thus I offer the Titans this year's 3rd rounder and next year's 4th rounder. No go. I'm not willing to pay more than the Jaguars did, so I just let it go. Sure enough, they take Jim Purnell, who I wanted. Oh well, I was going to shift Purnell to the strong side where he had less experience anyway.My 2nd round pick comes up and there's two players I'm seriously considering: a QB and an OLB who refused to work out at the combine, but who has some seriously nice bars and an incredible Vol and Sol score set. Mickey Slaughter's ceiling continues to drop and Albert Gursky is an okay, but not great backup LB. On the other hand, Aaron Spiva's numbers have dropped every year and it's not certain that the QB would be able to beat out Ed Brown or have the kind of ceiling that would make him top Slaughter, even though he appears developed enough to at least be the #2 QB. Making things more difficult is the fact that the Oilers, situated behind me, will probably take whichever of the two I don't select. After hemming and hawing a bit, I offer Houston the same deal as I did Tucson: this year's 3rd round pick and next year's 4th round selection. They won't take the deal. I debate the offer of a 3rd and a 3rd, but after looking a little more closely at the two players concerned and my roster, the choice becomes clear and I take QB Bob Berry, reserving the right to go after the OLB, should he continue to drop. The Patriots sweep in and take the Oilers' 2nd rounder for New England's 1966 1st and 7th rounder and this year's 7th rounder. Wow. Yeah, there's no way I'd give up a 1st rounder for a no-combine guy. What'd the Patriots take with the 2nd rounder? A fullback. Yeah, dumb move in my opinion. I don't think Jacksonville has any picks left in the 1966 draft after they trade their 2nd rounder, 5th rounder and 6th rounder from that year to the Browns for Cleveland's 2nd round pick. The OLB I was looking at went with the second to last pick in the second round. Too bad. If he'd lasted until the top of the 3rd, I would've made another push to go up and get him. Jacksonville grabs another pick in the 3rd round by giving Tampa Bay their 1965 3rd rounder and 5th rounder and their 5th round selection in this draft. At the rate the Jaguars are going, they'll have absolutely zero trade assets left and honestly, this team's not very good to begin with. Most of the offensive linemen I was looking at for a 3rd round pick are gone by our turn, leaving me with a FB who'd make a good replacement for Alan Ameche when he retires, an intriguing breakout candidate at OLB, a breakout candidate G, who looks to be a great run-blocker with questionable endurance, and a S who'd be a great pickup to replace the departed Larry Miller as a backup. I narrow it down to the G and the S before deciding that backup safety is a bigger need, given that our only current backup is Larry Vargo and so S Tom Walters becomes the newest Dolphin. At the beginning of the 4th round, the guard is still there, so I see what it'd take to move up. I contact the Giants and propose we flip-flop 4.1 and 4.22, with New York getting our 5th rounder in addition. The G-men refuse and I'm wondering how in the hell the AI actually manages to get trades done. Finally at 4.7, the Vikings take the offer, as Minnesota had only a high 5th and a 7th rounder left and were quite happy to be able to pick up an extra pick, and so I finally take G Lloyd McCoy. As it turns out, moving up was the right thing to do. Not only would McCoy likely have been taken before my pick came up, but the FB prospect I was eyeing was off the board as well, which would've left me with the OLB prospect that I wasn't all that hot on anyway. In the 6th, I'm looking at the only decent T prospect left, the top P available, and a K who looks like a breakout. I choose the K and draft Dick Van Raaphorst because of his breakout potential, his Dutch name and because the P looks awfully raw. Both the T and the P are available with our last pick, so I take the P, who's better developed and put the T on possible UDRFA list. Say hello to P John Seedborg. Late Free Agency There's definitely some players I want to bring in, so let's get to it. Week 2 Signings T Glenn Cothran 1 year, $30k UDRFA -This is the tackle prospect I was looking at in the 6th and the 7th. As I expected, he has the highest potential of any non-kicker out of the rookie free agents, so I'm taking a flyer on him. Week 2 Losses DT Larry Jackson 1 year $80k - Los Angeles (Pittsburgh) -Great chemistry guy who would've been a perfect backup, but he chose the Rams over us. Week 3 Signings RB Tom Watkins 1 year, $80k - Atlanta -Signed strictly for his punt return abilities. Really tailed off his first year in Atlanta after being impressive in Cleveland at the return game, but then he was a starter with the Falcons. He won't have that problem in Miami. DT Bill Herchman 1 year, $90k - Chicago -Solid run-stuffer who's been a backup his entire pro career. Respectable and not flashy, he'll make a good backup to Henry Jordan and Penguin Culpepper. We have exactly 46 players, so nobody goes on the inactive list or gets cut. We're also $690,000 under the cap, which will give us enough wiggle room to be able to sign the inevitable injury cover guys that will come up. Time for a look at our rookies after training camp: Code:
So this is what an A draft looks like! Warfield booms as beautifully as I thought he would. Berry's looking like career backup material and Waters should be a backup as I expected him. McCoy will provide insurance in case Mark Mathias gets hurt. Our Dutch kicker looks fantastic, our punter, not so much. Cothran is fodder.
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2006 Golden Scribe Nominee 2006 Golden Scribe Winner Best Non-Sport Dynasty: May Our Reign Be Green and Golden (CK Dynasty) Rookie Writer of the Year Dynasty of the Year: May Our Reign Be Green and Golden (CK Dynasty) |
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07-11-2007, 02:07 PM
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#38 |
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Head Coach
Join Date: Sep 2004
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Code:
Can anyone say QB controversy across the board? Brown's still the most developed QB, but Slaughter recovered a point of potential and looks like the most promising overall QB, but Berry's midpack development and midpack potential. I think what I'll do is have Slaughter start in preseason the first few games and Berry back up, then let Brown start the last two preseason games with the winner of the Slaughter-Berry fight as the backup.. and whoever wins that contest is our starting QB. Code:
No trouble here. Hornung starts, Cooper's second-string and Watkins helps return punts. Ameche's old ass brings it for one more season. Code:
Wasn't so long ago that WR was the weakest position group on the team and now look at it. Ingram starts at TE naturally. Frazier may be more polished, but Warfield has elite receiver potential and was a real-life Dolphin, so will start. Dugan and Ballman will battle in preseason for the starting SE job, though I'm inclined to give it to Gary as he was a draftee of mine and he's a fan favorite. I give Ingram a two year contract extension for an extra $10,000 this year at the standard rates of minsal + $10k bonus to keep him on the team through 1966. Code:
Skoronski-Thurston-Bland-Simon-Plunkett will be the line, same as it was last year. Mathias was terrible last season and I'm not liking McCoy's bars at all, so Simon continues to be my best 5th round pick ever by holding down the starting RG spot. We could see a major shakeup after this season with a lot of the guys on the line potential UFAs. Engram gets an extension of another year and I'll probably re-sign Bland, as he wants a multi-year deal and he's been, overall, the most consistent of my linemen. In fact, I do extend him, making his new contract 4 years, $960k. It's a much more cap friendly contract than what he was operating under, both now and in the future. It also gives us a little more cap room, to the tune of $900k. Code:
We'll give these guys a shake. Code:
Schau and Brumm are the clear starters at DE. Jordan and Culpepper will hold down the fort in the middle, although Penguin's skills have rapidly declined. Not only that, we're still on the hook for three more years. Voight is finally turning into a useful player and I may end up keeping him. He'll get back up to Culpepper time this season to see. Stafford, like Coolbaugh, is a 2nd round bust. I have real bad luck with 2nd rounders, it seems. Brumm is the only guy I've taken thus far who hasn't busted. Code:
Spiva-Lloyd-Houston the starting set, with Schwartz Lloyd's backup and Gursky getting a chance to be the backup for both outside spots. Code:
Cross's steady decline prolongs itself and I have to wonder just when he's going to level out. He and Sample will still start. Starks is the nickel and backup to both corners. Fitcher and Fleming start again at the safety spots, with Walters their primary backup. It's an awfully thin roster, and one or two bad injuries would kill us, but we'll roll the dice and see what happens.
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2006 Golden Scribe Nominee 2006 Golden Scribe Winner Best Non-Sport Dynasty: May Our Reign Be Green and Golden (CK Dynasty) Rookie Writer of the Year Dynasty of the Year: May Our Reign Be Green and Golden (CK Dynasty) |
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07-12-2007, 03:59 PM
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#39 |
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Head Coach
Join Date: Sep 2004
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Preseason
Tampa Bay 7 Miami 17 Both Mickey Slaughter and Bob Berry have splendid games, but Slaughter's got the edge over Berry right now. I'm a little worried about Paul Hornung, as he looked quite rusty this game. John Seedborg and Dick Van Raaphorst were both horrible, but Mark Schau exploded for 4 tackles, 2 assists, 3.5 sacks, a hurry and a knockdown. Johnny Sample defended 3 passes and looks poised to have another great year. Miami 6 Dallas 27 Ouch. Just ouch. Mickey Slaughter has a lot better game than Bob Berry and he's pretty much running away with this competition, so I think I'll switch to Brown vs. Slaughter the rest of the way. Tom Walters is quietly having a pretty nice rookie preseason. Atlanta 0 Miami 26 Ed Brown and Mickey Slaughter draw even here and it's making things a lot tougher to decide. Fred Dugan has been busting his butt, trying to win the starting SE job from Gary Ballman. I'm still undecided what to do there. Dick Van Raaphorst is 4/4 for on the day, including 2/2 from 40+ range and has been improving over the last couple games. Miami 6 New York 13 The running game is seriously starting to worry me as neither Paul Hornung nor Bill Cooper have shown much this exhibition season. Ed Brown has an extremely shaky game, putting me on the point of being convinced that Mickey Slaughter needs to start. Fred Dugan outduels Gary Ballman again and will start at SE. Of course, Fred Dugan then goes and strains his abdominal muscle, leading him to be Doubtful, so he won't start, though he'll stay play. Don Fleming sprains his knee and is listed as Questionable. I have enough interest in Tom Walters that I'll sit Fleming for the season opener. UDRFA Gleen Cothran is out for Week 1, but it's not like I use him anyway. Miami 17 Buffalo 6 Good win to start the year. Paul Hornung rushes 18 times for 82 yards and a TD, finally showing a hint of the big bucks I'm paying him for. Mickey Slaughter has an awful game at 17-30 for 118 yards and 3 INTs. Ed Brown will take over as the starter from here on out. Mark Schau leads a stiff defensive effort with 2 tackles, 2 sacks and a block. I belatedly remember to hit Recommend on playing time. ...On the other hand, Mickey Slaughter jumped up 2 points in current after the exhibition season and this first game, did just come off of the summer league, and we did win our first game.... I'll stick with him for as long as we're holding steady in the division. San Francisco 24 Miami 20 Mickey Slaughter showed some nice accuracy this game, but two late 4th quarter fumbles absolutely killed us. Ed Brown got in for some plays as well, which has me worries about Slaughter's health. Paul Warfield erupts with 5 catches for 114 yards and shows some real promise. Dave Lloyd records 8 tackles and 5 assists and Ross Fitchener isn't far behind with 7 tackles and 3 assists. If it wasn't for those costly fumbles at the end, we win this game. Mickey Slaughter does indeed have a pulled groin, leading him to be listed as Doubtful for 4 weeks. Tom Walters breaks his fibula and is estimated out 6 weeks, causing me to have to start Don Fleming, despite the fact that he's still questionable. Ed Brown will start while Mickey recovers, with Bob Berry the #2 man and Glynn Griffing the 3rd stringer. Miami 20 San Diego 23 Another heartbreaking loss as the Chargers shut down Paul Hornung and come up big on D in the 4th quarter. Ed Brown is 18-31 for 203 yards and 2 TDs and we spoil a great day by Charley Werner, who returns punts for an amazing 26.3 yard average. Dave Lloyd engineers 9 tackles and 2 assists, Ross Fitchener at 8 and 2 respectively, along with 2 pass defenses. The injuries mount up as Paul Hornung dislocates his elbow and is due out 5 weeks. What a bad investment that's turning out to be! Bill Cooper slots in as the starter, Tom Watkins the backup. Fred Dugan's Probable, but Gary Ballman is playing well enough to stay the starter. Miami 9 New England 20 This one hurts and hurts a lot. Ed Brown has his worst game as a Dolphin: 14-41 for 103 yards and 3 INTs for a 12.6 rating. On the bright side, Charley Warner averages 14 yards a punt return and Dave Lloyd at 9 and 2 continues his tackling machine efforts. Mickey Slaughter is ready to come back, but Johnny Sample breaks his toe and is questionable for next week, Bob Skoronski gets a stress fracture in his foot and is out for the next game and Don Brumm hyperextends his knee and will be unavailable for at least the next game. So that's our best CB and our starters at LT and RDE that get hurt, along with our starting RB and our top backup at S that are all out. You see now why I don't have injuries at 200? 100 is enough of a challenge as it is. I leave Sample in because I need wins. I sign 10th year vet RT Willie McClung, a exceptional affinity guy with Ken Engram to back up the tackle spots while Chad Kramer takes over at LT. 4th year RDE Jon Cash, a 1961 4th round selection of the Rams, comes in to back up at DE and play the right side in the goal line set, Dick Stafford the replacement starter. Miami 15 Jacksonville 3 In the midst of all the injury dealing, I forgot to start Mickey Slaughter but that's okay as he was probable anyway. Bill Cooper just misses the century mark at 99 yards on 21 rushes. Dick Van Raaphorst wins Game MVP by going 5/5 on field goals and accounting for the entireity of Dolphins scoring. We basically pull the Jaguars right when we needed them. Think injuries are done yet? Nope. Starting LG Fuzzy Thurston strains a ligament in his toe and will miss the next game. Mark Mathias steps in at LG and rookie Lloyd McCoy gets assigned double backup duty so I don't have to sign anyone else. Houston 26 Miami 14 You want to know the real kick in the crotch about this game? Game MVP was none other than Allen Green, my former drafted kicker, who was 4/4 and 2/2 from 40+ range. Making things even worse, after three years of 76% FG kicking, he's 88.2% this year. I think I'm going to throw up.  If there's any good news in this game, it's that Mickey Slaughter draws even with George Blanda in going 21-38 for 170 yards, 2 TDs and an INt. Yes, *that* George Blanda, the one who's still a pretty damn good QB in his 16th season. Oh yeah, the Oilers are also 5-1. Henry Jordan is our first multi-sack Dolphin in the regular season with 3 tackles, an assist, 1.5 sacks and a hurry. There's a bunch of people listed as questionable, but at this point, I'm like screw it, let them all play, with the exception of Paul Hornung, Bob Skoronski and Don Brumm since I've already subbed out for them and our season's sinking fast anyway. Buffalo 10 Miami 31 Our most complete game of the season. Bill Cooper rushes 28 times for 100 yards to finally give us a century rusher and we get 3 interceptions, including a Ross Fitchner 27 yard return for a TD! Backup MLB Brendan Schwartz goes apeshit on our archrivals to the tune of 12 tackles and 4 assists. This of course means that Dave Lloyd the literal and figurative centre of our front seven, has an inguinal hernia that knocks him out for the rest of the season. Sigh. At least all our other injured guys are now probable, so I go back to as much of my starting lineup as I can. Fifth year journeyman affinity bonus MLB Terrance Doyle joins his fifth team in as many years to be a backup to Brendan Schwartz. Indianapolis 10 Miami 31 Sweet, sweet victory against one of the powerhouse teams that's caught in a down year. Paul Hornung tears about the Colts' D for 129 yards and 2 TDs on 26 attempts, but Mickey Slaughter wins Game MVP with his 14-17 for 169 yards and 2 TDs showing. He's really starting to come into his own as a QB after the summer league. This puts us at 4-4 through the halfway mark, which, oddly enough, is good enough to have us not only half a game behind the Jets and the Patriots for the division lead, but very much in the thick of the playoff race as there's been just 3 dominant teams in the AFC in the first half this year: Pittsburgh (6-1), Houston (7-1), and San Diego (6-1), with no 2-loss teams and New Jersey and New England the only 3-loss teams. Could this be George Blanda's year to get to the Super Bowl? The halfway tale of the tape: Code:
It's pretty clear what's keeping us alive this year despite all the injuries: our defense, in particular our pass defense, which has been notoriously brutal for our opponents, 1962 notwithstanding. Check out that 24.8% 3rd down conversion for our opponents! Mickey Slaughter is having a good season for how raw he is. Paul Hornung has been a major disappointment so far, but he also missed a lot of games to injury. I'm not crazy about Gary Ballman or Charlie Frazier's drop totals, but Ballman's a fan favorite and arguably our best receiver right now, though Paul Warfield is doing his best to take that claim away from him. Henry Jordan is performing his usual juggernaut role in the middle of the line (14 hurries at the halfway point!) and Johnny Sample and Irv Cross are having good years, but it seems like our pass rush is looking pretty anemic this season outside of Jordan. Then again Mark Schau has 8 hurries and he's generally a 2nd half kind of player anyway. I'm pleased with Larry Vargo's success this year. He played well enough in injury time that he's the backup SS rather than Tom Walters covering both spots and if he continues to improve, he just might steal the dime back slot. Marshall Starks seems to really be growing into his own as a nickel back and perhaps someday he could be a starter. Our first repeat trip to the playoffs is very much a possibility, especially if Slaughter can continue to develop and if Hornung can start paying more dividends on his cushy contract. One thing I've already noted for the offseason: I need to find a replacement for Penguin Culpepper at RDT, preferably in the draft.
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2006 Golden Scribe Nominee 2006 Golden Scribe Winner Best Non-Sport Dynasty: May Our Reign Be Green and Golden (CK Dynasty) Rookie Writer of the Year Dynasty of the Year: May Our Reign Be Green and Golden (CK Dynasty) |
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07-12-2007, 05:42 PM
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#40 |
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College Benchwarmer
Join Date: Oct 2000
Location: calgary, AB
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You really do feel like the post Marino Dolphins, lots of defense, very little offense. Hopefully you can put some pieces around Warfield so you can make a run before your D gets old like mine is in the save Barry dynasty.
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07-12-2007, 11:08 PM
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#41 | |
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Head Coach
Join Date: Sep 2004
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Quote:
Yeah no kidding. The only difference is that I'd argue that we actually have some okay receivers all in all. If somebody big comes up in the next draft that I think could really turn this thing around, I may have to bite the bullet and make the huge trade to go up and get him, because the defense is just sick and I have a nice group of young receivers... and Hornung still has some gas left in the tank, though how much is unclear. It'll be fun watching though
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2006 Golden Scribe Nominee 2006 Golden Scribe Winner Best Non-Sport Dynasty: May Our Reign Be Green and Golden (CK Dynasty) Rookie Writer of the Year Dynasty of the Year: May Our Reign Be Green and Golden (CK Dynasty) |
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07-12-2007, 11:53 PM
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#42 |
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Head Coach
Join Date: Sep 2004
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Miami 3 Tucson 23
How bad did we play in this game? So bad that Brendan Schwartz's 10 tackles and 4 assists was the only real highlight. Paul Hornung's 6 carries for 17 yards was particularly putrid. Miami 3 New Jersey 31 Suddenly our offense is completely vacant and our defense disappears. 37 total passing yards does not win football games. I'm at a loss here. Charley Warner does have a 14.8 punt return average and Henry Jordan plows the Jets for 11 tackles, 2 assists and hurries, but even those numbers and Ross Fitchner's 9 tackles, assist and sack can't compete when the offense is this bad. Mickey Slaughter is doubtful after hyperextending his knee and Marshall Starks is questionable after spraining the same body part. Since our season's going south anyway, I decide to throw Bob Berry in to see what he can do. Miami 3 St. Louis 10 3 points in 3 straight games. Ugly, ugly, ugly! At least this one our defense came fired up to play against a superior Cardinals opponent. Bob Berry is blah in his debut: 18-31 for 141 yards. Some noteworthy defensive players: Mark Schau with 2 tackles, 2 sacks, and a block; Brenden Schwartz with 10 tackles, an assist and an interception; and Ross Fitchner with 7 tackles, 2 assists and a sack. Mickey Slaughter is upgraded to questionable, but Bob Berry seems to be a quicker study and we're 4-7 right now anyway. Even though the Jets are still tenatively playoff bound at 5-6, I don't want to fight for a playoff spot only to bow out in the first round again and I still want to see Berry in extended action. Cleveland 10 Miami 19 Credit this win to the following: Jim Brown shut down by our D-line, our own running backs of Bill Cooper and Paul Hornung rush for 98 and 85 yards respectively and Bob Berry plays mistake-free football at 13-16 for 158 yards and a TD. Gary Ballman was the receiving star with 6 catches for 112 yards and a TD and Dick Van Raaphorst wins Game MVP thanks to his 4/4 kicking. John Seedborg has his best punting game at 48.3 yards and Mark Schau racked up 6 hurries and a knockdown. These also aren't your regular Browns, as they're stuck in a 3-9 quagmire. Of course with every good news this year has come bad news and in this case, it's starting C Oronde Bland breaking his ankle and tenatively out for the rest of the year, though he still could come back. Cue the signing of original Dolphin and chemistry bonus C Monty Griffin to back up new starter and offensive line captain Ken Engram. Mickey Slaughter is ready to come back, but we just won with Bob Berry and I'm interested in the things Mr. Berry has done with his two starts. Los Angeles 30 Miami 7 I think I've seen enough of Bob Berry. We get behind early and Berry's not the kind of QB that can carry a team as evidenced by his 17-43 for 240 yards, 1 TD and 3 interception performance, the last two interceptions coming late in the fourth as he was trying to hurry the offense. Gary Ballman did have 5 catches for 137 yards, though and both Aaron Spiva and Brenden Schwartz had 9 tackles and 2 assists. We're now 5-8, with .500 the best we can do. Mickey Slaughter will start the rest of the year, barring injury. New England 25 Miami 38 This is going to be one of those ugly years where we miss the playoffs but don't do poorly enough to have a high draft pick. Gary Ballman continues to be on fire with 4 catches for 97 yards and a TD, but the real heroes of the game are our starting CBs: Irv Cross, who ran a kickoff return 101 yards for a TD and ran back an interception for another TD! in addition to 4 tackles, an assist and a pass defense. And Johnny Sample, who had 2 tackles, 2 assists, 3 pass defenses and 2 interceptions. There's a reason why those two are among the most feared cornerback duos in the league. Mark Schau had a great game as well: 4 tackles, 2 sacks, 3 hurries and 2 knockdowns. Miami 30 Seattle 17 What a time for Mickey Slaughter to put on a passing clinic: 15-17 for 175 yards and 4 touchdowns. He was the highlight of the game, though Paul Hornung's 19 rushes for 80 yards helped to keep the defense honest. We're now the dreaded 7-8 and the Patriots and the Jets are ahead of us at 8-7. New England plays the Bills and will probably win, which gives them the division. We, on the other hand, play New Jersey and need to win to have any shot at the playoffs. And we're also going to miss Fuzzy Thurston for the game as he got hurt. Mark Mathias blah blah blah. The AFC playoff picture is more or less set for the division champs and the first wild card, with only the AFC East questionable, should our archrivals knock off the Patriots. The second wild-card spot, however, is a dogfight. To wit: New Jersey (8-7) Miami (7-8) Denver (7-8) Kansas City (7-8) are all in contention for the last spot. I don't even want to think about the nightmare that figuring out the tiebreaker is going to be. I'm sure there's several long articles being written in newspapers right about now, explaining the detailed scenarios of, if this then this if that then that, etc, etc. Mickey Slaughter, incidentally, is also questionable, but I'm making him play anyway. It might be our last game this year and he really has been our best QB this season. New Jersey 27 Miami 31 Holy cow! What a barnburner!!!! With 2 minutes left in the game, Mickey Slaughter throws a 20 yard pass to Paul Warfield to give us the come from behind win!!!!! Paul Hornung was really up for this game: 13 rushes for 83 yards and 2 TDs. Mickey Slaughter fought his injuries to be briskly efficient at 13-22 for 162 yards and that closing TD. Charley Warner provided a major momentum shift with his 57 yard punt return for his first career TD early in the 4th quarter that gave us the lead back after losing it late in the 3rd. But the game MVP and the biggest reason we've got a shot at the postseason: Mr. Second Half himself, Mark Schau, who had 5 tackles, 3 assists, 3 sacks, a block, 3 hurries and a knockdown. New England beat Buffalo as I thought so they win the division. We've done our part, so now we just have to wait and see if it was good enough. And it was! Denver and Kansas City won their games, but it turned out not to matter, as our 7-5 conference record bettered their 6-6 and 5-7 respectively! We're going to the playoffs for two consecutive seasons for the first time in Dolphins history!!!!
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2006 Golden Scribe Nominee 2006 Golden Scribe Winner Best Non-Sport Dynasty: May Our Reign Be Green and Golden (CK Dynasty) Rookie Writer of the Year Dynasty of the Year: May Our Reign Be Green and Golden (CK Dynasty) |
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07-13-2007, 08:58 PM
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#43 |
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Head Coach
Join Date: Sep 2004
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And we face... Houston again!
Only kidding. This time we're up against the Pittsburgh Steelers, who are remarkably like us: weak at QB and RB, pretty good receivers, decent O-line and a fearsome defense, though theirs is a 3-4 and they have arguably the greatest DE in the game in Willie Davis. We can certainly win this game. It isn't like the Houston games where their firepower was just too much for us. In this one, both offenses are operating at the same pretty low level and the defenses are nightmarish. My prediction is that we're going to see a very low-scoring game completely dependant upon the right breaks at the right time. The oddsmakers favor Pittsburgh by 8 points. I'm pretty sure we can beat the spread. ...I'll let the following statline say it all: QB Mickey Slaughter: 11-27 for 87 yards and 2 interceptions Ed Brown was 5-9 for 71 yards and a TD, but who knows how well he'd have done in the long run. Brenden Schwartz was the lone force at 13 tackles and 4 assists. But it was Willie Davis who showed why he's one of the top DEs in the game. 3 tackles, an assist, 1.5 sacks, a block, 4 hurries, and a knockdown, as he was Slaughter and Brown's faces all afternoon and rightfully won the Game MVP award. Pittsburgh 20 Miami 7 Was definitely a run-dominated day for the Steelers, as they rushed 49 times in a successful effort to control the time of possession and forestall any hope of an Ed Brown-led comeback. An extremely disappointing loss that only highlights more than ever what we've known a while now: This team needs a true QB. But for now, the end season statistics: Code:
Take a look at those passing rankings. Think it's an even bigger sign that yes, we need a QB? Our defensive numbers were way down in the second half, which is also a little discouraging. Bill Cooper just misses the 1,000 yard mark, but it's his second-highest yardage total ever and his career-best YPC. Paul Hornung is looking like a huge waste of cap space. I'll have to see if he'll renegotiate to a kinder, more reasonable contract in the offseason. I forgive Gary Ballman's 8 drops for the following reasons: 1) He becomes the first 1,000 yard receiver in Dolphins history, 2) He's a fan favorite and 3) He had just 1 fumble this year, as opposed to 5 last season. Paul Warfield didn't have as explosive a rookie season as I'd hoped for, but he's still got 20 points worth of developing to do and so will be our summer league player this year. Henry Jordan, Johnny Sample and Ross Fitchner lead the defense, Jordan with even greater numbers than last year and Sample with the best all-around season he's ever had. Mark Schau just misses becoming the first Dolphin in history with a 10+ sack season and was as explosive in the second half as I thought he'd be. Don Brumm's sack total dropped sharply, but his QB hurries indicate improvement and on top of it, he missed 3 games because of injury. Irv Cross is looking more and more like a high 70s PD% guy with the occasional interception. Not bad, especially not with his kick return skills in the bargain, but we did hope for a little more from a top 10 pick. In loyalty issue news Ed Brown is angry as you might expect, but the surprising one is Bob Voight, who's disgruntled and feels that he should be starting. A quick comparison of his ratings to Penguin Culpepper's and a brief study of their statistics that this is in fact quite the valid issue. It's taken him a while, but Voight appears to have finally, in his 4th season, reached the point where he's a legitimate candidate for a starter, especially since he still has upside. This, despite the fact that he didn't play a single down last season and only appeared in 2 games in 1962. Nice recovery for a 3rd round pick I was just about to give up on.
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2006 Golden Scribe Nominee 2006 Golden Scribe Winner Best Non-Sport Dynasty: May Our Reign Be Green and Golden (CK Dynasty) Rookie Writer of the Year Dynasty of the Year: May Our Reign Be Green and Golden (CK Dynasty) |
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07-14-2007, 07:08 PM
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#44 |
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Head Coach
Join Date: Sep 2004
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Super Bowl V
Detroit 13 Houston 16 (OT) Do you believe in miracles? I do now after the Oilers squeak out a stunning Super Bowl victory in overtime. On a day when George Blanda couldn't hit a throw to save his life (18-48 for 222 yards and an INT) and the Lions' offense was humming, Houston's defense stiffened up in the end zone at just the right times. Real-life eventual Dolphin Wahoo McDaniel had 14 tackles and 2 assists. Jim Norton was right behind with 12 tackles, an assist, and most crucially, the 8 yard fumble return for a TD that sparked the Oilers' rally. The real hero of the game was none other than Allen Green. Cut by us, he had the season of his life this year and entered Super Bowl history by hitting all 3 field goal attempts, including not only the 42 yarder that gave Blanda and the Oilers the win in OT, but a 53 yard boomer with 1:23 left in regulation to get the tie. It was an incredible storybook season for one of the game's greatest heroes and a former Dolphin, one that I personally drafted. Season Awards LDT Henry Jordan - 1st Team All-Pro DT After the monster season he had, he definitely deserves to be here. This marks the second straight year he's made an All-Pro team, the first Dolphin to ever do so. It's pretty special that both appearances have come in the aqua and orange. QB Earl Morrall - Detroit wins MVP and Offensive Player of the Year. DE Don Floyd - Houston wins Defensive Player of the Year. Offensive Rookie of the Year goes to RB Leroy Kelly - New England, who also made the All-Pro 1st Team after rushing for 1,698 yards and 13 TDs and serving as the main turnaround for the Patsies into a decent team. MLB Bill Budness - Baltimore is named Defensive Rookie of the Year. George Blanda, as I suspected, retired after winning a Super Bowl ring at long last. The Oilers will greatly miss him. He was a titan among titans.  Staff Hiring Lead Scout Daryl Crane's contract expires and we'll debate whether or not to bring him back, as he's been pretty solid the last few years. A closer look reveals that he dropped in two areas, so he won't be back. Defensive Coordinator Clifton Winters has shown no improvement in abilities the last couple seasons and the defense's second half collapse has me worried, especially with the level of talent we have here. There's a grand total of one truly good scout out there and a massive bidding war erupts over him. We win out in the end, signing him to a $60k per year/4 year deal. Lead Scout Leon Garibay (53) QB: Very Good RB: Very Good WR: Average OL: Good K/P: Excellent DL: Average LB: Good DB: Average YT: Very Good The owner really puts the screws to us in terms of how much we can pay out to a DC, but nonetheless we find a good, young upgrade for exactly the amount the owner will dole out. Defensive Coordinator Royce Womble (34) K/P: Good DL: Good LB: Average DB: Good YT: Good There's two choices for summer league players: QB Bob Berry, who with summer league help could surpass Mickey Slaughter as the starter, and Paul Warfield, who still has 21 points between his current and potential. Given that Warfield could become an All-Pro type of receiver, the choice is pretty easy. Paul goes to the summer league.
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2006 Golden Scribe Nominee 2006 Golden Scribe Winner Best Non-Sport Dynasty: May Our Reign Be Green and Golden (CK Dynasty) Rookie Writer of the Year Dynasty of the Year: May Our Reign Be Green and Golden (CK Dynasty) |
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07-15-2007, 04:55 PM
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#45 |
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Head Coach
Join Date: Sep 2004
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We're seriously up against the cap this year. $1,000,000 under the cap, with only $380,000 for a new player. Worse yet, there's a young man named Gary Ballman who's a restricted free agent this year.
Fortunately there's players who are willing to renegotiate their contracts for the good of the team, including Paul Hornung and Fuzzy Thurston. We get some contract extensions going too. Extensions: CB Johnny Sample: 3 years, $1.59 mill. MLB Dave Lloyd: 4 years, $1.68 mill. FS Don Fleming: 5 years, $1.57 mill. DE Mark Schau: 4 years, $1.36 mill. By the time we do all of our renegotiations and extensions, we're a much freer $3.09 mill. under the cap, with $2.47 mill. earmarked as the max for a new player. Next year we'll have some serious money to play with, as a lot of guys, including our highest price option, RT Sherman Plunkett come off the books. Four restricted free agents this season. It doesn't take a genius to figure out one of them we'll re-sign. Week 1 Re-signings: WR Gary Ballman: 6 years, $1.92 mill. FS Larry Vargo: 1 year, $50k Not a bad contract for our first 1,000 yard receiver in team history. That 85 loyalty really helps, I imagine. Free Agent Needs By The Numbers: FB, TE, DT, MLB, 8 bodies total We're still $2.93 mill. under the cap after signing Ballman and Vargo, so we've got some room to play with here. A quick look at the draft class reveals some big name players, but all of the top QBs are looking pretty raw. On the other hand, Mickey Slaughter isn't developing worth a damn, Ed Brown is in his 14th season with way diminished skills and Bob Berry will never be a topflight QB. ...On the other hand, my eyes are going like this when I see what free agents are available. None other than the aging greats Bart Starr and Johnny Unitas as the Packers and Colts go into blowup mode.Week 2 Signings QB Johnny Unitas 3 years, $3.97 mill. - Indianapolis -The legendary and incomparable Johnny U will suit up for the Dolphins for the next three seasons. Who cares that he's an 11 year veteran? He gives us that franchise QB we've been looking for!!!! (Now if we could only find a franchise QB to draft.) He also has an Affinity with Mr. Chemistry himself, Ken Engram. TE Rod Davis 1 year, $90k - Re-signing -Solid backup last season, he returns to fill the same role. Week 2 Losses DT Jim Colvin 6 years, $6.65 mill. - San Francisco (Indianapolis) -I tried so damn hard to get this guy, who would've been perfect to pair alongside of Henry Jordan, but the 49ers offered him just enough more money that he went the Red and Gold. Week 3 Losses DT Joe Lewis 1 year, $100k - Indianapolis (Pittsburgh) -Takes less money to sign with a team that's on its way down, rather than rapidly improving like we are. Can't say that I understand it, but it's looking pretty clear that we're going to look at DT in the draft. I do have one other candidate I want to try and lock up, though. Bart Starr signed in this stage, for $5.21 mill and 3 years to the Baltimore Ravens. I think Unitas is a lot better deal, especially since Starr has an immediate conflict with a team leader. Week 4 Losses DT Dick Guesman 1 year, $90k - Baltimore (Re-Signing) -A combination of his being a fan favorite with the Ravens faithful and excitement over Starr's signing was enough for me to strike out here. We're definitely going to have to go DT in the draft. Week 5 Signings MLB Hubert Bobo 1 year, $110k - Tucson -Probably not as good a backup as Brenden Schwartz, but he has an affinity with Albert Gursky, who somehow became the Defensive Front leader when I wasn't looking. Not that it's a bad thing, because Gursky's got Mild Affinity with Bobo and Mark Schau. Week 6 Signings FB Charlie Scales 3 years, $310k - Baltimore -Great run-blocker with moderate receiving skills. A guy to plug in as a starter for the next 3 years and not have to worry about the fullback spot. Week 6 Losses DT Wesley Evans 1 year, $90k - Cleveland (Seattle) -Turned down more money and a longer contract from us to sign with the still powerful Browns. Had some upside too, so I'm sorry to see him go. Week 8 Signings G Mark Mathias 3 years, $290k Re-signing -Almost forgot to re-sign my favorite combo backup guard, but luckily I remembered in time to get him before anyone else snapped him up. DT Kelly Reichenberg 1 year, $80k (Philadelphia) -A marginal upgrade at DT, but he'll have to stay on left side, which means Henry Jordan would shift back over to the right, unless I find somebody in the draft. Another Mild Affinity with Albert Gursky. DT Austin Dunphy 1 year, $90k - Indianapolis (Tampa Bay) -I offer him more money on a year deal, but instead of taking that and a surefire starting job, he bolts to the Colts. Annoying. That's the end of my intended free agent dealings for the first stage, so let's see where everyone else goes. Week 9 Losses DT Bob Voight 1 year, $80k - Carolina -Sorry to see him go after he developed at the rate he did and maybe I should have tried to re-sign him. At least with the Panthers, he has Exceptional Affinity with their defensive front leader, gets to play with Brenden Schwartz and is pretty much guaranteed a starting job. Week 12 Losses DE John Cash 1 year, $80k Tucson -A filler for us last year, his loss doesn't impact us at all. On to the draft! ...In the next post.
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2006 Golden Scribe Nominee 2006 Golden Scribe Winner Best Non-Sport Dynasty: May Our Reign Be Green and Golden (CK Dynasty) Rookie Writer of the Year Dynasty of the Year: May Our Reign Be Green and Golden (CK Dynasty) |
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07-15-2007, 05:25 PM
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#46 | |
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College Benchwarmer
Join Date: Oct 2000
Location: calgary, AB
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Quote:
Holy freaking crap! |
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07-15-2007, 07:03 PM
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#47 | |
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Head Coach
Join Date: Sep 2004
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Quote:
Exactly my reaction at seeing those two were available in the first place. Think our QB problems are gone now?
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2006 Golden Scribe Nominee 2006 Golden Scribe Winner Best Non-Sport Dynasty: May Our Reign Be Green and Golden (CK Dynasty) Rookie Writer of the Year Dynasty of the Year: May Our Reign Be Green and Golden (CK Dynasty) |
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07-15-2007, 09:07 PM
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#48 |
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Head Coach
Join Date: Sep 2004
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Good draft if you need a tackle. T Glen Ray Hines and T Maxie Williams are two of the top players availabe, the others being OLB Gus Otto and a certain RB by the name of Gale Sayers. Top QB is the raw, but talented Joe Namath.
I'm still looking at DT here, but I'd also like to go T, as both our starters expire their contract next season and it's not certain that I'll bring either of them back. We've the 20th pick in the draft. 1965 1st Round NFL Draft 1. QB Joe Namath - Green Bay Packers With a grand total of 5 players under contract and major cap issues, it's surprising that the Packers didn't trade down. On the other hand, they have 0 QBs on the roster and fans will be clamoring for someone who can go grow into the next Bart Starr. 2. OLB Gus Otto - New Orleans Saints 3. RB Cannonball Butler - Buffalo Bills Granted, Butler was only a shade behind Sayers, but I think this move is one our archrivals' fans will be talking about for years down the road. Dumb, dumb, dumb. 4. T Glen Ray Hines - Atlanta Falcons 5. CB Miller Farr - New England Patriots 6. DE Verlon Biggs - Cleveland Browns 7. RB Gale Sayers - Indianapolis Colts The Colts just got the steal of the draft. If Sayers would've fallen much more, I was seriously about to consider trading up to grab him as the eventual replacement to Paul Hornung. 8. ILB Dick Butkus - Cincinnati Bengals 9. ILB Mike Curtis - Carolina Panthers 10. T Maxie Williams - Baltimore Ravens I really like what the Ravens have done this offseason. They've picked up Starr along with some other quality guys and here they get a player who can protect Bart's backside at a real value spot. 11. OLB John Bramlett - Oakland Raiders 12. WR Roy Jefferson - San Francisco 49ers 13. ILB Al Atkinson - Minnesota Vikings 14. CB Willie Williams - Chicago Bears 15. G Glenn Resslet - Kansas City Chiefs 16. ILB Marty Schottenheimer - Denver Broncos 17. T Harry Schuh - Pittsburgh Steelers 18. CB Clancy Williams - New Jersey Jets 19. WR George Sauer - New York Giants There's too many players for us to choose from, so I'm going to trade down and see what I can get for it. I move down to 3 spots to 23, Dallas moves up to 20 and I net Atlanta's 1966 4th rounder for three spots, as nobody would give up even a 3rd rounder to move. 20. DE Chuck Hurston - Dallas Cowboys 21. DE Roy Hilton - Philadelphia Eagles 22. CB Mike Howell - New England Patriots I could very easily trade down again, but then I'd run the risk of missing out on a player I'd really like to get. There's two DTs I'm spending a lot of time debating between. One is much more NFL-ready and has the somewhat better combine, but his bars have me questioning just how good he is. The other is much more raw, with a slightly worse combine, but better looking bars. Then I remind myself that I'm looking for a starter and with Johnny Unitas under center and Paul Hornung also getting old, I need to try and win now, so I go with the more ready prospect. 23. DT Walter Johnson - Miami Dolphins 24. S Jim Kearney - Minnesota Vikings 25. CB Kent McCloughan - St. Louis Cardinals 26. ILB Dale Lindsey - Tampa Bay Buccaneers 27. ILB Tom Good - Los Angeles Rams 28. OLB Chris Hanberger - Washington Redskins 29. WR Otis Taylor - San Diego Chargers 30. T Ralph Neely - Pittsburgh Steelers 31. C Bill Curry - Detroit Lions 32. DE Tim Powell - Houston Oilers There's one T prospect left that I really, really like when 2.19 comes up, so I snatch T Dick Koepfer off the board so fast, his head must've spun. I really like how the draft played out in the first two rounds. I was able to address my team's biggest needs according to my own personal opinion (the game disagrees with me on that) and get an extra pick next year to boot. The other DT I was looking at finally comes off the board at 2.30 to the Chargers, after a lot of other position prospects were picked. I think San Diego got themselves a real value pick there. By the 3rd round, I'm running out of guys I've interviewed, but luckily there's a good looking safety who can, at the very minimum, be Larry Vargo's replacement and so S Dave Plump becomes a Dolphin. All of my interviewees that I'd have any interest in are exhausted in the 4th, so for my own personal amusement and because he looks like he'd eventually develop into a good 3rd down runner, pass catcher, and special teams guy, I take RB Dan Reeves. What I love most about this guy? His 13 Sol score... way to go future coach. I told myself before the draft that I wasn't going to take a QB, but there's somebody in the 5th round that looks like a boomer, has some good development, and has affinities with 2 of our leaders. There's also a couple of ILBs I have interest in, but the QB is a 2nd-3rd round talent, still here in the 5th and so I give into temptation and draft QB Bob Schweikert. Both ILBs are off the board before my 6th round pick comes up, one of them two picks after me in the 5th, the other at 6.4. I have two 7th round picks in mind that I've interviewed, but neither one is worth a 6th rounder. After some digging around, I pick up raw, but intriguing C Mike Alford, who could break out (99 Vol). Even if he busts, he's definitely worth taking a 6th round flyer on. In the last round, I pick up WR Scottie Brown, who looks to have a tiny amount of receiving skills to go with his moderate amount of kick return skills. Late free agency is all about mentor hunting. Week 2 Signings SE Bob Coolbaugh 1 year, $80k - Re-signing -Yep, our 5th year receiver, my first 2nd round pick, has turned into a prodigal mentor. I probably should've signed him to a 3 year deal, but this way I don't have to pay bonuses for him to be a mentor and our fifth receiver. Week 3 Signings C Robert Yates 1 year, $80k (Indianapolis) -A mentor that I signed only in case Mike Alford booms. If Alford doesn't boom and I have to cut someone, Yates will be the first to go. DT Riley Gunnels 1 year, $80k (Cincinnati) -Nice thing about this guy is that if we get slapped by injury problems, he can be a worthwhile contributor, rather than just a warm body as a lot of mentors tend to be. That ends my free agent shopping for the year. 52 players into camp, the most we've had in a long time, and despite our initial cap fears, we're still $890,000 under the cap. Thank goodness for salary renegotiation! Code:
Despite the high draft grade, this is a seriously ouch class. The one saving grace is Johnson, who instantaneously fills a gaping hole in our defensive line and gives Henry Jordan one hell of a ferocious partner. Still, Koepfer should improve with playing time and after switching positions, Plump is already a brighter prospect than Larry Vargo. Alford could turn into a decent backup. Reeves could become a 3rd down back and already has established his supremacy as a passing down back and a possible special teams player. So maybe this class isn't as bad as I fear. Only time will tell.
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2006 Golden Scribe Nominee 2006 Golden Scribe Winner Best Non-Sport Dynasty: May Our Reign Be Green and Golden (CK Dynasty) Rookie Writer of the Year Dynasty of the Year: May Our Reign Be Green and Golden (CK Dynasty) |
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07-16-2007, 03:18 AM
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#49 |
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Head Coach
Join Date: Sep 2004
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Code:
I've officially given up on Slaughter. He'll go down as a big-time 1st round bust. Unitas is already starting to slip, but even with the slight drop, he's still one of the top QBs in the entire league. Berry keeps quietly improving and is making a push to establish himself as the top backup, perhaps an eventual successor to Johnny U. Schweickert is blah all around. He and Slaughter will hit the inactive list. Brown is still pissed about not being a starter, but he should get over it now that Unitas is here. Code:
Well, it didn't take Hornung long to hit the wall. That 24 endurance really sucks, especially with the cap room he eats. Luckily Cooper's a capable backup and Reeves will take over the passing down duties, possibly even the 3rd down back spot so that Hornung's tank can be preserved as much as possible. Reeves could also be one of our special teams guys this year. I seem to be pretty good at finding value RBs in the 4th round so far *makes mental note to update Skydog thread when he gets further along*. Cooper and Reeves are both 4th round guys, after all. Scales is a great pickup at FB. Can run block like nobody's business and makes a terrific receiver out of the backfield. Code:
Ingram guarantees he'll stay on after acquiring mentor status. I'm looking for Warfield to absolutely explode this year after going to the summer league and continuing to make gains. Ballman continues his creep upwards and between him and Warfield, we have a pretty scary pair of receivers, I think. Frazier's a terrific 3rd receiver and could start for quite a few teams. Dugan will be a solid 4th man and Coolbaugh will occupy his usual 5th receiver role while mentoring Warfield. Brown is an inactive listing, because he's 0 current in punt returns. Code:
Skoronski-Thurston-Bland-Simon-Plunkett for one more season. Skoronski won't be asked back and Plunkett's fate is still up in the air. Engram will back up and serve as Mr. Chemistry again. I'll probably extend him for one more season. Mathias will back up LG, McCoy RG, in hopes of keeping Mathias healthy and seeing what McCoy can bring to the table, though he sucks as a passblocker. Koepfer gets to back up both tackle spots and if he develops enough, I envision the possibility of making him the starting RT next year and re-signing Plunkett to shift over to the left side. That's far from a certainty, however. Code:
Not enthused with either one of these guys and they could be replaced after this year. Then again, there is that memory of Allen Green.... Code:
Schau-Jordan-Johnson-Brumm across the front four. We've gone from having a hole at DT, to being very strong there. Stafford will back both DE spots, but the 2nd round bust will be gone after this season. Reichenberg is Jordan's backup, with Culpepper barely edging out Gunnels to back our exciting rookie. Gunnels will be the extra goal-line DT. Code:
Houston switches from the weak side to the strong side, as Spiva seems to have finally downgraded to where he's best as a backup, especially with his 0 Endurance. Gursky seriously intrigues me. He's grown into a great chemistry guy and though he hasn't been that spectacular on the field, he showed significant improvement last year after being inactive all of 1963. I may sign another outside linebacker in free agency to back up Gursky, what with Spiva's endurance issues. Lloyd is still a beast despite that horrible injury and Bobo will be good as a one year rental. We could see a lot of changes at this position group next season. Spiva won't be back and I'm still debating on Houston. Gursky will return, as he's proven a suprisingly effective leader. Code:
Sample and Cross will start, Starks the nickel, Warner to return punts. I debated long and hard about whether or not to give Cross an extension, but it's pretty damn difficult to dismiss a 29.2 yard career average kick return that's topped the 30 yard average milestone in 2 seasons out of 4 and he's still a good cornerback. By the way, I think there's a bug. Cross should be #1 in Miami history for kick return yards and it's not showing up on his player card. Come to think of it, it's not showing up for Sample, either, who's the far and away #2. I'll have to mention that, even though it was probably fixed in 6.0e, which I haven't updated to yet. Code:
Fichtner and Fleming get the starting spots again. Walters backs up Fichtner and Plump backs up Fleming and becomes the new dime back. Vargo gets to park his ass on the inactive list. I have to think about it, because he's been a bit of a letdown in the pass defending game, although he was a tackle machine last year, but I finally decide to give Fitchner a 5 year, $1.35 mill. contract extension that will allow him and Fleming to stay together for another 5 seasons. There's just something that's really nifty about watching a pair of starters play their whole careers together like that, and the affinity Fichtner has with Fleming makes me think that these two guys have become best friends off the field. And that's just a really cool story.
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2006 Golden Scribe Nominee 2006 Golden Scribe Winner Best Non-Sport Dynasty: May Our Reign Be Green and Golden (CK Dynasty) Rookie Writer of the Year Dynasty of the Year: May Our Reign Be Green and Golden (CK Dynasty) |
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07-16-2007, 07:41 PM
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#50 |
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Head Coach
Join Date: Sep 2004
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I decide to sit Johnny Unitas for the first couple preseason games so he can avoid overextending himself and ditto for Paul Hornung
Preseason Minnesota 7 Miami 27 Bill Cooper picks up 2 rushing TDs to make the difference by himself. Bob Berry outduels Ed Brown in Round 1 of the Backup Battle. Don Brumm picks up 3 tackles, 3 assists, and 2.5 sacks to win Game MVP honors. Don Fleming bruises his thigh bone and is questionable. He'll go on inactive as there ain't no way I'm letting an injured man start in preseason. Dave Plump starts, Larry Vargo backs up and Tom Walters is the new dime back. Miami 10 St. Louis 13 Uh oh. Johnny Unitas was 4 for 10 in this game. and Bob Berry threw two interceptions. I smell injury. I'm really getting sick of John Seedborg's sucky punting, but don't want to try and find someone new right now. Don Fleming is upgraded to probable, but he's the only injury we have. I guess my injury concern was a result of that scoreline from the last game, but we didn't score at all until the 4th quarter. Fleming'll sit this game out too, just to be on the safe side. Johnny Unitas officially starts this game, Bob Berry the backup despite the turnovers last game. Paul Hornung will also start, Bill Cooper his top backup. Miami 28 Green Bay 14 Not a blowout by any means, but Paul Hornung rushes for 77 yards and 2 TDs and Johnny Unitas has a much better game at 12-21 for 137 yards, 2 TDs, and an INT. Bob Berry is a perfect 13-13 in a reserve role. Jim Houston intercepts 2 passes. Don Fleming will start next game. He needs to get the rust off. San Francisco 0 Miami 16 Dolphins looking good in preseason! Johnny Unitas appears to have shaken the rust off with his 15-20 for 148 yards and a TD performance. Dick Van Raaphorst is 3/3, including a 48 yarder that gives me some small hope for him yet. Starting RG Jim Simon is probable the next two weeks after breaking his toe, but I'll stick with him. Regular Season Miami 13 New England 0 So much for last year's division champions. Johnny Unitas wins Game MVP by going 20-28 for 200 yards and a TD and also scrambles twice for 30 yards, scaring me and all the Dolphins faithful. Gary Ballman picks up right where he left off last year with 9 catches for 111 yards. Dave Lloyd shows no ill effects on last year's devastating injury, amassing 8 tackles and 2 assists to go with his hurry and 2 knockdowns. Miami 27 Tampa Bay 10 Isn't it great having a franchise QB? Johnny Unitas is the Game MVP for the second contest in a row: 27-36 for 310 yards and 2 TDs. I can't remember the last time we got a 300+ yard game out of our QBs. Gary Ballman breaks the century mark for the second game in a row with 7 catches for 111 yards and 2 TDs. Dave Lloyd also continues his hot streak with 10 tackles and an assist. Starting SLB Jim Houston separates his shoulder and will miss at least the next game. Ernie Clark, a former 2nd round pick of the Broncos, signs on and I like his all-around game enough that he gets the start ahead of Aaron Spiva. Miami 31 Denver 6 Can anyone stop the Johnny Unitas train? 20-32 for 190 yards and 2 TDs is an efficient outing that gives him his third straight Game MVP nod. Ernie Clark has a sensational Dolphins debut with a 16 yard interception return for a TD to go with his 4 tackles and pass defense. Don Brumm picks up 4 tackles, 3 assists, 2.5 sacks and a hurry and Henry Jordan isn't far behind at 3 tackles, an assist, 1.5 sacks and a hurry. Dick Koepfer is questionable with a strained knee, but he's a backup, so he'll play on. Miami 21 Cincinnati 14 Four straight road games, four straight victories. Johnny Unitas loses his Game MVP streak, though he is brutally accurate at 22-25 for 266 yards, a TD and an INT. Bill Cooper punches the game-winning TD across the line with 1:12 left in the 4th on a 5 yard scamper as the Bengals gave us all we could handle. Dave Lloyd exploded all over the Bengals with 12 tackles, 5 assists and a knockdown. A bunch of niggling injuries crop up, but everyone will play through them except Jim Houston, who's been slow to recover from his separated shoulder. Buffalo 17 Miami 34 Our archrivals are playing suprisingly well this year at 3-1, but we knock the stuffing out of them to put them down to 3-2 as we romp in our first home game of the year. Johnny Unitas is the hero of the game at 32-40 for 330 yards and 3 TDs in what may well be the finest game ever by a Dolphins QB. Gary Ballman takes advantage with 9 catches for 112 yards and a TD. Has there ever been a better 3rd round pick that I've made? I don't think so. Dick Van Raaphorst is 4/4 on field goals, including a 47 yarder. Irv Cross averages an amazing 35.3 yards on 4 kickoff returns. You know how, when things are going really well, something terrible happens to ruin it all? Irv Cross shreds his MCL. He'll be out 14 weeks. Since there's a chance he'll come back, rather than IR him, I cut Scottie Brown, who won't ever amount to anything anyway and sign Harry Bonner, a journeyman 7th year CB. Johnny Sample becomes the backup PR and main KR. Marshall Starks takes the starting RCB slot and second KR spot. Bonner is the new backup CB at both spots, goal-line RCB and nickel back. Jim Houston's upgraded to questionable, but I'm going to hold off a bit yet. Miami 13 Cleveland 24 We had to lose some time and at least it was to a damn good Browns team. Gary Ballman has 8 catches for an even 100 yards and a TD as Bob Berry saw extended action in this one and threw 2 INTs. Dave Lloyd tackles his way to 10 and 3 with a hurry to boot. ...I'm going to be sick. Johnny Unitas, our golden boy, our chosen one, breaks his fibula. Estimate time out: 6 weeks. So now who do I go with? The second year player who's looked horrible this year? (Berry) Our once upon a time phenom who looked good last season but still can't reach his potential and likely never will? (Slaughter) The greybeard who still longs to start but who bombed in relief last year? (Brown) Or the rookie with double affinity and awkward skills? (Schweikert) In the end, it's Bob Berry with Ed Brown second string and Mickey Slaughter third. Pittsburgh 0 Miami 20 Believe me, this game isn't as close as it looks. Bob Berry looked awful at 13-25 for 170 yards and 2 INTs and our running game wasn't spectacular either. Credit this victory to Ross Fitchner's 2 passes defensed and 61 yard fumble return for a TD. Ed Brown will start next game, Mickey Slaughter the backup. I'm sick of Bob Berry's interceptions. Jim Houston's ready to come back, too. FS Larry Vargo finally gets cut, after lasting longer with the team than anybody could've expected. New England 3 Miami 29 When the old man gets mad, watch out! Ed Brown took full advantage of his first start in a long time, 16/24 for 203 yards and a TD, but the real star of the game was Dick Van Raaphorst, as our Dutch kicker was 5/5 on field goals, including a 49 yarder. That makes us 7-1 at the halfway mark, comfortably ahead of the 6-3 Jets. 3 weeks until Johnny Unitas comes back. This is the single best halfway showing I've ever had. Code:
Check out that fantastic defense. Changing coordinators was a good thing. Johnny Sample is a true shutdown corner. 4 interceptions and 16 passes defensed in the first half and a 97.9 pass defense %! To put it in perspective, 4 interceptions is his season career high and 18 passes defensed is his season career high.I'm sure those numbers will come down in the second half, but god damn, is that ever sweet! Johnny Unitas shows there's no such thing as old age by having an insane 10:1 TD to INT ratio. When he comes back from injury, if he can maintain that pace, it'll be his best season since 1962! Of course, having our corps of receivers has a lot to do with it. Gary Ballman is on pace to become the first Dolphin to have 1,000 yards receiving in consecutive seasons and the first Dolphins receiver to reach double digit TD receptions in a season. Paul Warfield, though with too many drops for my liking, is a rising star and Charlie Frazier and Fred Dugan would be starters on quite a few teams. The running game hasn't been too impressive this year and we'll probably be looking for a replacement for Paul Hornung soon. Just as a point of comparison: Hornung has 1,413 career carries, Cooper 1,020. Lenny Moore, who's been in the league a year longer than Hornung and who went to the Jets, has 1,773 career carries and is still a powerful force with New Jersey, with higher attributes than Hornung. I suspect the difference is in part due to endurance: Hornung has 24 Endurance, Moore 58. Since Cooper has an endurace of 42 and has been a split-time back most of his career besides, I'm hoping he'll be in the Moore mold and able to stay our top backup for a long time. Marshall Starks has been suprisingly adequate in relief of Irv Cross and may turn out better than expected. Our pass rush is looking a little grim right now, but you can't deny the effectiveness of our defense and Don Brumm is on pace to have a career year. Our offensive line is looking rough on run-blocking, except for Oronde Bland, who continues to be our most consistent offensive lineman. Our pass blocking is terrific, except for Sherman Plunkett, who's having a serious down season in a contract year. Dick Koepfer is making rapid progress in his development and is a prime candidate to start at RT next season if his pace holds up.
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2006 Golden Scribe Nominee 2006 Golden Scribe Winner Best Non-Sport Dynasty: May Our Reign Be Green and Golden (CK Dynasty) Rookie Writer of the Year Dynasty of the Year: May Our Reign Be Green and Golden (CK Dynasty) |
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