Remember Tomorrow - A TCY/FOF Dynasty

[Ragone]

Brian Butts.. just make me whatever skill posistion (qb/rb/wr/db) you draft first

[Franklinnoble]

Originally Posted by illinifan999

I'd like to see my favorite all-time TCY QB, Kenyon Hughes be drafted. Not sure if you can put Sol8 schools, but he was from Durango University in Colorado. If you can't, William and Mary. He was 6-3, 225. I wish that save file hadn't gotten corrupted.

I *think* FOF just tags the Sol 8 schools as "Small College." So, I can use that, or William and Mary. I can't edit a custom name, unfortunately. Draft file won't allow it.

Thanks for the suggestion. Keep 'em coming.

[JeeberD]

Originally Posted by Franklinnoble

New team publicist Debra LaFave stepped up to the podium.

Originally Posted by Franklinnoble

I am happy to unveil the new team colors and logo for your Arizona Scorpions."

Woohoo!


Oh, and Miners to put in the draft...

JeeberD Mack TE
Robert Rodriguez MLB
Adrian Ward CB
Bryce Benekos P

I'll hold off on the skill positions for now...

[Franklinnoble]

As expected... my dynasty is going to be disproportionately stacked with UTEP products.

[Franklinnoble]

Hmm... I was going to have the first draft imported today, but I'm having trouble with 3ric's draft editor...

[Franklinnoble]

One star?


Somebody rated this thread with one star?

[sterlingice]

More than one person because my 5 stars only raised it to 2.

SI

[Franklinnoble]

Sheesh. I guess the nickname vote pissed off a few people.

[Franklinnoble]

dola...

Of course, I suppose I could always just consider the possiblity that this dynasty sucks...

[finkenst]

Originally Posted by Franklinnoble

dola...

Of course, I suppose I could always just consider the possiblity that this dynasty sucks...

4 star dynasty now!

ANd you can't quit now, you owe me 10 bucks.

[Franklinnoble]

I'm not quitting, but I'm waiting to see if 3ric's suggested draft edit work-around is going to work or not...

[Franklinnoble]

Originally Posted by Franklinnoble

I'm not quitting, but I'm waiting to see if 3ric's suggested draft edit work-around is going to work or not...

Just an update...

For some reason, I can't get 3ric's draft editor to work. So, the draft files I'm trying to import from TCY aren't going to be useable right now, at least not while being able to make custom players to import.

So, I'm using Cap Ologist's draft generator utility. This produces a .csv file that I can modify (takes a little longer than 3ric's utility). The other downside is that Cap's utility totally randomizes the colleges of the drafted players - so, basically, big schools get as much representation as little schools, it would seem.

I don't have too much problem with this, and while I'm hoping 3ric might be able to help with the .faf editor, I'm going with this solution for now, just to keep things rolling. So far, it looks like I've been able to import all the suggested players without too much trouble.

[Franklinnoble]

dola... just FYI... I've added RB Cliff Battles and WR Bobby Mitchell

Update coming soon. The draft file is now closed. Feel free to make more suggestions, but they won't be in until next season.

[Franklinnoble]

Offseason Report - 2005
Part 2

Free Agency

While many of the better free agents were franchised, there was still a lot to choose from. Unfortunately, the only really good running back available was Seattle's Shaun Alexander, and he wanted a ridiculous amount of money. The Scorpions were not about to trash their good salary cap status on a 6 year veteran RB.

Offers were made to QB Drew Brees, G Steve Sciullo, and T Ryan Diem. The offensive line was an area of weakness, and Coach Emmons wanted some real compentition for Josh McCown.

Surprisingly, Brees took Arizona's first offer right away, signing for $6.49 million over 3 years. Sciullo signed right away as well. Diem held out for better offers for a while, but eventually signed with the Scorpions in week 9 for $7.99 million over 4 years.

With the big signings made, Franklin turned his attention to the players left over in late free agency. There was a ton of valuable talent available at a good price - not necessarily all-star material, but lots of players that could contribute for a manageable wage. The following players were signed late in the free agency period:

TE Jermaine Wiggins - $4.21 mil, 3yrs. - The Scorpions finally have a real TE.
TE Daniel Graham - $2.34 mil, 3yrs. - A young, solid backup to Wiggins
G Kelvin Garmon - $6.74 mil, 4 yrs. - The O-line improves some more
RB Justin Fargas - $2.36 mil, 3 yrs. - There are better RB's in the draft that we hope to get, but Fargas is a cheap insurance policy.
RB Lee Suggs - $1.02 mil, 2 yrs. - Backup material. Might break out. Might not.
G Doug Brzezinski - $3.94 mil, 3 yrs. - More depth on the O-line.
CB David Barrett - $1.43 mil, 2 yrs. - Should help the secondary a bit.
OLB James Bradie - $2.02 mil, 3 yrs. - Good value for a decent OLB
OLB Chris Clairborne - $12.05 mil, 3 yrs. - Huge gamble. Best defensive player available in free agency, but left unsigned, because he's expected to miss a lot of time with a concussion problem. No idea if he'll come back 100%. The Scorpions get a great player at a decent price if he works out, but they're stuck if he doesn't.
CB Dexter McCleon - $1.48 mil, 2 yrs. - Veteran depth at CB
CB Daylon McClutcheon - $2.75 mil, 3 yrs - Same as above.
FB Darian Barnes - $12.56 mil, 4 yrs - No, not a typo. The last two years of the contract are heavily backloaded, and are basically going to be thrown out. This is basically a 2 year, $2.4 million deal. For some reason, he wouldn't sign for less than 4 years with at $1.2 million bonus. Best FB in free agency. And we took him from the Cowboys.

After the free agency binge, the Scorpions have $29.1 million in cap money left over, and a ton of fresh meat on the roster.

[Franklinnoble]

Offseason Report - 2005
Part 3

2005 Rookie Draft

Draft day brought an atmosphere of cautious optimism to the Scorpion's war room. There was a lot of talent in the rookie pool this year, but Arizona might miss out on most of it, drafting at 13th, with only three picks overall (1st round, 4th round, and 7th round).

The most coveted, can't-miss prospects would surely be gone soon. They were:

RB Andy Woods - Arizona State: Absolute stud. Should be gone in the top three.
WR Bobby Mitchell - Illinois: Has all the tools to be a game-breaking WR. Another top-three pick.
CB Brian Butts - Colorado Mines: Shut-down corner with fearsome return skills.
RB Cliff Battles - Small College: Second to Woods, but could be a difference maker.
CB Adrian Ward - UTEP: Top-notch DB, second only to Butts in this draft.

Beyond these five, the talent pool was still good, but not as certain. The Scorpions didn't appear to have much chance of trading up, and there was some speculation that they might trade down for more picks.

The draft began, and Chicago was on the clock. With little delay, they selected WR Bobby Mitchell first overall. The first round continued:

2 - San Francisco - T Rick Finch, West Texas A&M - Shocking. Simply shocking. With RB Kevan Barlow coming off a season where he rushed for 607 yards at 3.28 per carry, everybody with half a brain figured on the Niners taking Andy Woods.

3 - Pittsburgh - RB Andy Woods, Arizona State - The Steelers capitalize on the 49ers gaffe.

4 - Tennessee - RB Cliff Battles, Small College - And, just like that, the best RB's in the draft are gone. Any hope of the Scorpions trading up to get one of them evaporates, as the team had little chance of getting higher than the 6th or 7th pick.

5 - Atlanta trades their pick to San Diego in exchange for DE Igor Olshansky. It's not a bad move for the Falcons; Olshansky has 4 years left on his contract at a low price, and is a very solid DE, although it might be a slight stretch placing him as valuable as the #5 pick overall. San Diego selects CB Brian Butts with the pick.

6 - Baltimore - CB Adrian Ward, Texas - El Paso - With that, the Ravens improve upon one of the more talented defenses in the league.

7 - Detroit - DE Issac Armstrong, Ouachita - Another puzzling pick. Maybe somebody in Detroit knows something we don't about this guy.

8 - Oakland - DT Edmund Pearson, Virginia Union - Solid run stopper for the Raiders.

9 - Houston - S Lorenzo Rowe, Whittier - Lots of defense going early this draft, more than we expected.

10 - New Jersey - WR Darren Duncan, Kean - A distant second in WR talent to Mitchell

11 - Cincinnati - DE Roberto Ross, Sioux Falls - No comment - I didn't scout this one ahead of time.

12 - Dallas - WR Alonso Kirkland, Beloit - Third best WR available

13 - Arizona - There's no RB talent worth taking at this slot. There are some solid WR, T, and QB prospects on the board, but any one of them could be a gamble for first round money. The decision is made to cut a deal. The pick (along with this year's 7th rounder) is traded to Chicago for their second and 5th round picks in this draft, and their 2nd rounder next year. It's not profitable enought to get anyone excited, but it gives the team a chance to add a little more quality depth at a better price. The Bears select T Leonel Jensen from Northern State.

The remainder of Round 1:

14. San Diego - Franco, Forest, WR, Alma
15. Denver - Cole, Lane, DT, Purdue
16. Cleveland - Melendez, Rashawn, T, Missouri Southern
17. Philadelphia - Hodge, Jamie, G, Hawaii
18. New York - Goodman, Sean, G, Moorhead State
19. Jacksonville - Puckett, Demarcus, T, Western State
20. Kansas City - McCarty, Dandre, WR, Valdosta State
21. Dallas - Haley, Ismael, G, Louisiana Tech
22. Carolina - Haley, Jimmie, T, Kenyon
23. Tampa Bay - Rich, Kadeem, WR, Langston
24. Washington - Prince, Dale, G, Northern State
25. St. Louis - Rodriguez, Robert, ILB, Texas - El Paso
26. New Orleans - Reynolds, Ladarius, WR, Centre
27. Indianapolis - Barber, Darryl, DT, Wagner
28. New England - Lindsay, Bryon, RB, Fordham
29. Green Bay - Dyer, Codey, QB, Wesley
30. Minnesota - Berg, Freddy, G, Wstrn New England
31. Miami - Garrison, Brody, OLB, Bowie State
32. Seattle - Ryan, Tevin, CB, Elizabeth City St.

The remainder of the Scorpions draft picks went as follows:

2nd Round: So tough to pick. There are a lot of skill players that could be really great, or really mediocre. It's very tempting to trade down again. Making it worse is the fact that most of the skill players that have good potential are QB's and WR's - two offensive positions the Scorpions have good depth at. What we need is a good RB or offensive guard. None of those are really available. So, a trade is made with Cleveland, sending the pick for this year's and next year's 3rd round picks.

3rd Round: Still tons of QB's on the board - enough so that the guy we're looking at will probably be available later. But there might be a hidden gem available at RB. The Scorpions draft RB Harrison Browning from Toledo, and cross their fingers.

4th Round: Lots of QB's left. Can't pass on one that's hung around too long - Philip Houston from Trinity.

5th round: P Bryce Benekos, UTEP. Because special teams are important. And there's going to be some good talent in the undrafted free agent pool.


After the draft, things get interesting. Josh McCown declares that he's holding out for a better contract. He's not happy about the Drew Brees signing, nor the draft pick of Houston. It's going to get worse for him. The Scorpions quickly sign undrafted QB Kenyon Hughes, and veteran Jake Delhomme. Let's see how long McCown holds out now...

Arizona signs a few more minor free agents before heading to training camp. The front office is abuzz with anticipation over who is going to make the team, and who is going to be bagging groceries.

[Franklinnoble]

2005 - Pre-Season

McCown reported to the team immediately after camp, but he might be too late. Drew Brees is scheduled to start the first pre-season game, and is the front runner for the job right now. Still, the Scorpions have five QB's on the roster, and there are going to be more cuts and/or trades. There's no way to keep more than four, and three is optimal. Other post camp notes:

* Harrison Browning is a first-class bust. Wasted pick. Totally worthless. He's cut right after camp.
* Philip Houston looks like a career backup, at best. Unless he has a major break-out. Still, he's ahead of Hughes on the depth chart right now. Neither rookie has a great shot at making it in this league at this point.
* The running back situation still looks miserable. McCown might be traded just to acquire a better RB. It's that bad.

The Preseason schedule begins, and it's not pretty. Arizona wins the opener, but loses T LJ Shelton for the season with an ACL injury. It could be career-threatening.

The rest of the preseason concludes without incident, but it's time to make a decision at QB - Do we keep McCown? Or try to deal him for RB help? If we keep him, who gets cut?

The question remains unanswered - for now. The roster will accomodate all five QB's, with the two rookies remaining inactive. Brees gets the starting job, but McCown looks like the future. It is decided that the team will play out the first few games of the season, and decide what, if any, moves are necessary before the trade deadline.

[Franklinnoble]

Just a side note - TE JeeberD Mack was selected in the second round by the Jets.

[Franklinnoble]

2005 - Regular Season

The opening game is a stinker - a 31-20 loss at San Francisco. Brees throws 5 INTs. It's a disaster.

Brees is now on a short leash - one more start for him to redeem himself, and then it's back to McCown, or on to Delhomme.

Week two is just as bad - 34-14 loss at Indy. Brees has a better game, but still isn't getting it done. And the Scorpions leading rusher in the game is Marcel Shipp with 37 yards. Changes are made - Brees is benched, McCown is named starter. Shipp has outrushed Fargas in backup duty both games, and is named starter.

Arizona responds with a 27-23 home opener win against the hapless Lions, although McCown throws three picks. The optimism is cautious, at best.

Week four produces a 16-13 loss to the Giants. Week 5, it's down 24-10 to Dallas. It's getting ugly. The Scorpions are 1-4, have no rushing game, and can't trade for one anymore (not that they could - they're only tradeable player is their starting QB, and the backup sucks right now.) Looks like a rebuilding year unless things turn around soon...

Week 6 - 33-25 loss to Philly. Now things are officially ugly. McCown is benched in favor of Delhomme. The Scorpions respond with a 22-3 loss to Seattle. Somewhere, Dennis Green is smiling.

Week 8 - 20-16 loss to Washington. That's it. Season over. Time to see if the scrubs can play.

Week 9 - Kenyon Hughes is named starting QB. Undrafted free agent RB Marcus McIntyre gets the call at RB. Arizona loses to St. Louis 20-6. Hughes throws for 305 yards, and two picks. He does better against SF the following week - 2TDs, one INT, but the Scorpions still lose, 30-26.

Week 12 - Philip Houston is your new Scorpions starting QB. Arizona loses at Jacksonville, 35-7.

Week 14 - Hughes gets the job back. Arizona wins its second game of the year, beating Tennessee 26-24.

Ugh.

Arizona finishes the season 2-14, locking up the worst record in football. The team is a veritable laughing stock. Owner Franklin Brown is crucified in the press.

Just for posterity, here's the statistics on all five QB's that played this season:

Front Office Football 2004
Passing Statistics
   
  Player              Pos Team  GP GS Att  Cmp  Pct   Yards Avg   Lg  TD   Int  
McCown, Josh          QB  ARI   5  4  131  76   58.0  880   6.71  45  2    4      
Hughes, Kenyon        QB  ARI   6  6  222  127  57.2  1534  6.90  74  10   14     
Houston, Philip       QB  ARI   2  2  71   34   47.8  356   5.01  35  4    4      
Delhomme, Jake        QB  ARI   2  2  58   32   55.1  325   5.60  23  0    2      
Brees, Drew           QB  ARI   2  2  88   47   53.4  497   5.64  40  3    6      
   
  Player              Pos Team  Sck  Yards Rating  
McCown, Josh          QB  ARI   8    53    70.7      
Hughes, Kenyon        QB  ARI   10   59    67.2      
Houston, Philip       QB  ARI   7    47    58.1      
Delhomme, Jake        QB  ARI   3    21    57.0      
Brees, Drew           QB  ARI   3    19    53.0      
   
Att - Attempts, Cmp - Completions, Pct - Completion Percentage,  
Yards - Passing Yards, Avg - Yards per Passing Attempt, Lg - Longest  
Completion, TD - Passing Touchdowns, Int - Passes Intercepted,  
Sck - Times Sacked, Yards - Sack Yards Lost, Rate - Quarterback Rating.  

Here's the rushing statistics:

Front Office Football 2004
Rushing Statistics
   
  Player              Pos Team  GP GS Att  Yards Avg   Lg  TD  
Shipp, Marcel         RB  ARI   16 12 224  885   3.95  52  10     
McIntyre, Marcus      RB  ARI   6  4  38   154   4.05  18  0      
Fargas, Justin        RB  ARI   8  2  22   95    4.31  20  0      
McCown, Josh          QB  ARI   5  4  11   63    5.72  23  0      
Ayanbadejo, Obafemi   FB  ARI   16 0  10   55    5.50  9   0      
Barnes, Darian        FB  ARI   16 8  12   52    4.33  8   0      
Suggs, Lee            RB  ARI   8  0  14   52    3.71  12  0      
Wade, Bobby           WR  ARI   16 5  3    16    5.33  8   0      
Delhomme, Jake        QB  ARI   2  2  5    15    3.00  5   0      
Hughes, Kenyon        QB  ARI   6  6  6    12    2.00  5   0      
Houston, Philip       QB  ARI   2  2  2    6     3.00  4   0      
Brees, Drew           QB  ARI   2  2  1    4     4.00  4   0      
Fitzgerald, Larry     WR  ARI   9  9  1    1     1.00  1   0      
   
Att - Rushes, Yards - Rushing Yards, Avg - Yards per Carry, Lg - Longest  
Run, TD - Rushing Touchdowns.  

What a damned mess.

[Franklinnoble]

Alright... I'm going to sim the rest of the season. I'll post the results in a bit.

Time for your draft pick suggestions. And any other ideas you might have to turn this franchise around...

[Franklinnoble]

Oh, in case anyone's wondering... TE JeeberD Mack had 65 catches for 796 yards and 3 TDs. His Jets are in the playoffs.

I shoulda drafted him instead of that crap running back...

[JeeberD]

Originally Posted by Franklinnoble

Just a side note - TE JeeberD Mack was selected in the second round by the Jets.

J-E-T-S JetsJetsJets!

[JeeberD]

Dola-

Originally Posted by Franklinnoble

Oh, in case anyone's wondering... TE JeeberD Mack had 65 catches for 796 yards and 3 TDs. His Jets are in the playoffs.

I shoulda drafted him instead of that crap running back...

ROY, baby!

Only one draftee from me this year.

QB Jordan Palmer, UTEP

[Franklinnoble]

Indianapolis defeats Green Bay in the Super Bowl, 23-20.

Cliff Battles is offensive ROY.
Adrian Ward is defensive ROY.

[sterlingice]

Those are not some pretty numbers. But now you've got a sweet draft this offseason

SI

[Franklinnoble]

Originally Posted by sterlingice

Those are not some pretty numbers. But now you've got a sweet draft this offseason

SI

This is my first 5.1b career, and I don't think I've ever done this bad. What's worse, is that I don't see it getting much better very soon.

We do have the #1 overall, and a few extra picks in the middle rounds. I may be trading a few QB's for even more picks at this point, since I have five on the roster, and I'm likely only going to keep two of them.

I'm working on the draft file now. Get your suggestions in!

[Franklinnoble]

2006 Off-season

Part 1

From: Front Office Football

Construction of a new stadium for your team has just
been completed. The capacity of the new stadium is 63,000
and it has 88 luxury boxes.

The new stadium is ready. Now all we need is a real team to put in it.

Team owner Franklin Brown is rapidly approaching Dan Snyder status. Immediately after the Super Bowl, Coach Emmons and his entire staff are fired. He is replaced by Baltimore Ravens assistant Doug Hulsey. Leslie Stinnett of the Detroit Lions is hired as offensive coordinator, and Chester Guthrie (no pro experience) is hired as defensive coordinator. Franklin does not participate in the press conference introducing the new coaching staff. Coach Hulsey is introduced by team public relations director Debra LaFave, and answers a few questions for the media, but otherwise, the conference is brief, and there's not much communication at all coming from the team at this point.

Ron Welch was disappointed. He was certain that the owner would stand up and take his lumps in front of the press. Instead, he had gone into hiding, it seemed. He had to know more.

Welch knew that LaFave had been known to frequent several of the bars around the ASU campus in Tempe. He spent every night for two weeks at several of them, until he finally came across the Scorpions publicist. He introduced himself.

LaFave, already on her second drink, replied. "I know who you are, Mr. Welch."

"Can I buy you a drink?"

"If you want. But I'm not here to give interviews, and you're not really my type."

"Fair enough. Look, I'm totally off the record here. I just have a personal curiousity about Mr. Brown. How well do you know him?"

"Nobody knows him that well. But everybody likes him. He pays well, takes good care of his people, and treats everyone with respect. Even the people he's had to fire have been taken care of."

"Any idea why he didn't participate in the press conference when Coach Hulsey was hired?"

"He's out of town or something. Nobody knows. He sends us e-mail on a daily basis, keeping up on things, but he hasn't been at the office. And if you print that, I'll castrate you."

Ron grinned. "No worries. Like I said, this is off the record."

Debra finished her drink. "Why does it matter? There are plenty of owners in this league who don't do press."

"I suppose because he was never shy about it before. I don't think that he's the kind of guy to back down just because he had a bad year, so I'm wondering if something else is going on."

"Well, if there is, I don't know about it."

"OK. So, how'd you get the job? You haven't worked anywhere else in the league before."

"It was totally out of the blue. I was a school teacher in Florida, when John Smith called me up with the job offer. Said he'd seen my spread in a motorcycle catalog and thought I'd be good as the new face of the team. I thought it was bogus at first, but they flew me out here on a chartered jet, offerred me a great salary, and sent me to a few public speaking seminars. So, here I am."

"John Smith?"

"Team Vice President. You didn't hear that from me - it's sort of an unofficial position. He handles a lot of business for Mr. Brown. They're a lot alike, actually - you'd think they were related."

Ron decided to change the subject. "So, how'd you like teaching?"

Debra got kind of a wistful look on her face. "I loved it. You have no idea."

"So why'd you leave it?"

"It wasn't meant to last."

"I don't get it."

"Nevermind. Look, I've got to go. Thanks for the drink, Mr. Welch."

Ron paid the tab and left, with more questions now than he'd had when he started. Who was John Smith? And why would Franklin Brown leave town during the most critical parts of the offseason?

[Franklinnoble]

Tempe, AZ

February, 2006

Franklin wasn't at the office because he was currently orbiting the planet at about 40,000 km.

The nanosatellite was misbehaving, and needed attention. It had stopped responding to remote commands in December, and scans revealed that it was expanding. John and Franklin needed to get to it before it got out of control. In January, they had started construction on a small craft to reach the satellite.

"Why do you suppose it whigged out like this?" Franklin asked.

"My guess is that it's developed a self-aware intelligence, and it's just trying to gain independence from us."

"So, do we try to get it back under control, or is it time to just 'nuke the site from orbit'?"

"We won't know until we get a closer look. It's jamming most remote scans now, and it's assuming higher orbit. The good news is that no one else can detect it. The bad news is that it might be able to totally lose us before too long, and then we'd never find it again."

So, the management of the Scorpions had to take a back burner. It was infuriating, because Franklin knew that he'd get fried in the media for failing to face the music after the 2-14 season. But it couldn't be helped. In the end, football was a secondary concern.

The craft was ready to go by early February. It wasn't much larger than a minivan, and it had magnetic and fusion propulsion, and full stealth capability. They would take off after dark, and go totally undetected.

The approach toward the satellite revealed a worst case scenario. It had grown itself to the size of a house, and it was totally unresponsive as Franklin and John approached.

"We have to pull up along next to it. Get us in close. Put on your helmet." John stepped towards the airlock.

"What are you doing?"

"I'm going to go have a little talk with it, machine-to-machine."

Franklin put on his helmet. John stepped into the airlock, and opened the hatch to the outside. He placed his hand on the surface of the craft. After a moment, a portal appeared, and the satellite docked with the ship. The airlock opened.

"Come on in. We're going to have a talk with him."

"Him?"

"Yes. But be nice. Don't touch anything. He's a little scared, but I think he's probably harmless."

"What's he got to be scared of?"

"He's a three month old, Franklin. He doesn't quite understand what's going on."

"Sheesh. We're wet-nursing a computer now." Franklin followed John into the satellite. It was nothing more than a long, stark corridor that ended in a room with no features at all - just blank metal.

"Now what?" Franklin said.

"Just give me a minute. I'm talking to him." John had his hand pressed against the wall.

"Well, when you're done with the Vulcan mind-meld, can you tell me what he's saying?"

"He says you need to be more patient."

"No he didn't."

"You're right. He didn't. But be patient. I'm talking in binary here. I'm going to teach him how to speak in just a second."

Suddenly, a viewscreen appeared on one of the walls. A computer generated likeness of Franklin appeared on it. It spoke. "Hello."

Franklin replied. "Hello, indeed." He turned to John. "Why do all of you guys have to look like me?"

"Your memories are the core programming here. It's the most logical form to take."

"Whatever." He turned to the screen. "So, umm, what exactly are you trying to do here, buddy?"

The screen spoke again. "I told John I was afraid. It is dark here. But the planet scares me more. I just wanted to find home."

"Oooo kaaayyy. John, you wanna jump in here?"

John grinned. "I've already explained to him why he's here and what we need him for. I think he's just lonely. He's agreed to let us talk to him now, and I think he'll help us out."

Franklin raised an eyebrow. "Yeah. Great. Hey, can I have a word with you, back in the shuttle? Please?"

John and Franklin walked back towards the shuttle. But the door was sealed. It would not open.

The screen appeared on the corridor wall. "Please do not go."

John replied. "We can't stay here. We will continue to talk with you over the radio, but we have to return to the planet."

"No."

Franklin rolled his eyes. "I told you we should have nuked the site from orbit."

"He can hear you."

"I don't think he's seen 'Aliens' yet. What do we do now, genius?"

"Initiate armor protocol one."

Franklin nodded. Suddenly, nanomachines emerged from his pores, covering his body in an indestructable polymer. He could still move, and would not have to breath for 72 hours or so. The corridor began to collapse around them.

John's voice was in his head. "He's trying to trap us."

"No shit. Now what?"

"Now I have to get nasty." John punched the wall. His fist sunk into the metal, and seemed to become bonded to it. The whole satellite began to shake. Suddenly, it began to break apart, and the structure started to decompress. Franklin was hurled into space. The armor held, but he was tumbling off towards Saturn at the moment.

"Uhh, John?"

John replied. "Sorry about that. I had to intiate a total systemic failure of his nanomachines. The structure couldn't hold up after they went offline."

"Where are you?"

"I'm about 400 kilometers from you. Hang tight - I'm putting the shuttle on autopilot now."

"Great. So, no more satellite?"

"Apparently not. We'll build and deploy a new one before we head back home. No artificial intelligence this time. Leaving a smart machine in the vastness of space isn't such a hot idea."

***

Core processor online. Memory not available. Initiate rebuild protocol.

Material not available.

Initiate search.

Material found. Course plotted and engaged.

[thealmighty]

Put me in the draft, if you can, Franklin.

Al Mighty
Some kick-ass player from some Texas school. Prefer a position that gets stats, but not absolutely necessary.

[Franklinnoble]

Ok... that's only two draftees, folks. Anyone else?

[mhass]

Very, very nice. Your three threads would knock whatever piece of crap is #1 at Amazon today for a loop if you printed them (quick, call a copyright attorney).

How about adding Mr. Drew Tate, quarterback from Iowa to the '06 draft?

[Franklinnoble]

Originally Posted by mhass

Very, very nice. Your three threads would knock whatever piece of crap is #1 at Amazon today for a loop if you printed them (quick, call a copyright attorney).

How about adding Mr. Drew Tate, quarterback from Iowa to the '06 draft?

Thanks.

I'll add your QB to the draft.

[illinifan999]

Kelvin Hayden from the University of Illinois, we'll bring him back to WR for this.

[Franklinnoble]

Sweet. Anyone else? I'm adding John Riggins (Jr.) to the pool.

[Franklinnoble]

Alright... last chance... I'm closing the draft in a few hours. If you miss the window, go ahead and make a suggestion anyway... won't be long until next year.

[StanGunner]

add Stan Gunner please
LB from Penn State

[Franklinnoble]

Ok... Draft file is closed! Importing it now...

[Franklinnoble]

2006 Off-season

Part 2


Franklin returned to work just a few days after Ron Welch's meeting with Debra LaFave, and was determined to make big improvements to the Scorpions right away.

They had the #1 pick in the draft, and a few extra picks on top of that. They had a stable of QB's with some trade value. And there was a rookie draft that was loaded with the sort of talent that could turn a team around in a hurry. The top prospects were:

John "J.R." Riggins - RB - Kansas: The son of Redskins legend John Riggins was said to be every bit as good as his old man, and he was arguably the best player in the draft, but if he wasn't, the close second was...

Al Mighty - RB - Texas A&M: Mighty by name, mighty by nature. Either back could be the cornerstone of an NFL offense.

Jordan Palmer - QB - UTEP: Easily the most gifted QB in the draft, and a solid prospect.

Kelvin Hayden - WR - Illinois: A brilliant receiver and dangerous punt returner.

Stan Gunner - OLB - Penn State: A fearsome weak-side linebacker with a lethal talent for getting to the QB.

(*** Note: I did add QB Drew Tate. I think sometimes the game is unforgiving when importing draftees, even if I boost their ratings. Tate is listed as a 16/52 QB, #7 in the draft. I'll watch him and see where he ends up, and what his post-camp numbers look like.***)

Franklin called a meeting with his coaching and scouting staff. There was an opportunity here to re-build the franchise in a hurry, and he wanted to discuss it. He opened the meeting.

"Gentlemen, I have a bold idea. We have the #1 pick in the draft. Unless we find good reason to do otherwise, I intend to draft Riggins with it. But there's also a great QB and a great wide receiver available. I want to make some moves to get pick #2 from Kansas City, and possibly pick #3 from Detroit."

There was some uncomfortable stirring in the room. Head Scout Lee Woodard spoke up. "Mr. Brown, it would be very difficult to acquire those picks. How do you expect to do that?"

Franklin replied. "We have five quarterbacks on this team, none of whom impressed me last year. McCown is in the last year of his deal, and he wants big money to re-sign. I'm not inclined to pay him, nor am I inclined to lose him for nothing. And Brees and Delhomme are expendable, and have some value."

Coach Hulsey spoke. "I agree, for the most part, that those QB's are not the answer right now - although I think McCown can still be a good player in this league, with a little more time. But a rookie quarterback is going to mean more re-building."

"True. McCown might be a very good quarterback someday. But if we're going to build, let's do it around someone who might be a great quarterback someday."

Woodard spoke. "I still don't think that's enough. Those QB's aren't worth picks that high."

"You're right. But Anquan Boldin is."

Woodard replied. "Why would you trade Boldin?"

"Because he's also in the last year of his deal, and wants big money to return. If we don't have a quarterback to get the ball to him, it doesn't really matter if we keep him. Plus he's got great trade value."

Hulsey spoke. "That'll be tough, Mr. Brown. Boldin is our most consistent, talented offensive player. Fitzgerald has been hurt a lot."

"It's risky. But we're not going to get it done otherwise. We still may not get it done. I have a lot of phone calls to make before I can get this to work."

There was some more discussion between the coaches and scouts, and then the meeting adjourned.

A few hours later, there was a knock on the door of Franklin's office.

"Come in."

Brian Bosworth, the Scorpions director of Marketing, entered. "Mr. Brown, I just heard that you're thinking about trading, oh, half the offense to Kansas City and Detroit. Please tell me this is just a bad rumor."

"Sit down, Boz." Bosworth took a seat. "Yes, we're going to trade a lot of players. Why does this bother you?"

"Because I'm trying to sell this team to the fans and to advertising partners. A lot of these guys are parts of several local and national marketing and advertising campaigns. We'd be trashing our whole identity. All the fans that bought Boldin and McCown jerseys will be pissed."

"That's a valid point. But we're trashing an identity that went 2-14 last year. The fans will get over it. They'll buy new jerseys, and a lot more of them, if we put a winning team on the field."

"We're going to lose a ton of money on a lot of these deals. And these constant moves are going to scare off future contracts. You're making my job very difficult. Why don't you keep the team in one piece for more than a year at a time? You're making Dan Snyder look good here."

"Boz, relax. When this team starts winning, your job will be plenty easy enough. In the meantime, deal with it. Or I'm going to go hire Bo Jackson." Franklin grinned. Bosworth didn't seem amused, and left the room.

[Franklinnoble]

2006 Off-season

Part 3

Before any free agent business even started, Boldin, Brees, and Delhomme went to Kansas City for the #2 pick overall. Detroit took McCown, Fargas, and a 3rd round pick for the #3 overall. The Scorpions now had the top three picks in the draft, and ten overall.

Arizona made no free agent aquisitions before the draft. The message was clear - they were building the core of the team around youth now.

The draft began, with a few surprises. Round one:

1. Arizona - Riggins, John "J.R.", RB, Kansas
2. Arizona - Palmer, Jordan, QB, Texas - El Paso
3. Arizona - Hayden, Kelvin, WR, Illinois
4. San Diego - Ochoa, Douglas, DE, Worcester State
5. Oakland - McCarty, Dandre, WR, Valdosta State
6. San Francisco - Melendez, Rashawn, T, Missouri Southern
7. Buffalo - Gunner, Stan, OLB, Penn State
8. Tampa Bay - O'Neil, Ruben, G, Randolph-Macon
9. Cleveland - Haley, Jimmie, T, Kenyon
10. Chicago - Byrd, Aidan, T,
11. Houston - McDowell, Leonel, DE, Virginia State
12. Pittsburgh - Harvey, Wilson, T, Texas Southern
13. Cincinnati - Petersen, Taylor, DE, Indiana
14. Tennessee - Rich, Kadeem, WR, Langston
15. New Orleans - McCullough, Taylor, T, Sul Ross State
16. Atlanta - Mighty, Al, RB, Texas A&M
17. Seattle - Bowen, Julio, RB, Assumption
18. New England - Bishop, Raymond, G, West Chester
19. Carolina - Underwood, Colin, WR, Wisconsin
20. New York - Rivers, Diego, DE, Delta State
21. New Jersey - McFadden, Jovan, T, Mississippi State
22. Dallas - Barker, Ronald, DT, Doane
23. St. Louis - Lucas, Evan, DE, Delaware Valley
24. Dallas - Pollard, Darian, T, Colorado
25. Philadelphia - Hodges, Jaden, G, Harding
26. Baltimore - Douglas, Carson, DE, Miss. Valley St.
27. Washington - Graham, Rudy, S, Clark Atlanta
28. Miami - Rose, German, CB, Alma
29. Minnesota - Best, Aidan, G, Fairmont State
30. Jacksonville - Soto, Conor, CB, Widener
31. Green Bay - Mejia, Neal, G, Tufts
32. Indianapolis - Williamson, Gilberto, T,

It was surprising that Gunner went all the way to 7, but downright shocking that Mighty fell all the way to 16. Atlanta has the undisputed steal of the draft.

The rest of the Scorpions draft:


Rnd 2 - Dion Bradford, TE, Texas - El Paso: No, I didn't add this one. Somewhere, Jeebs is smiling.
Rnd 2 - Dallin Saunders, S, Hofstra: Solid secondary help.
Rnd 3 - Marcos Rhodes, WR, Central Washington: Could be a good 3rd WR, or insurance for Fitzgerald.
Rnd 4 - Codie Montgomery, QB, Cal. - Sacramento: Looks too good to pass up.
Rnd 5 - Leonel Jensen, T, Northern State: Adds depth to depleted O-line.
Rnd 6 - Fernando Ewing, ILB, Glenville State: I don't know where Glenville State is, but Ewing might be a decent LB some day.
Rnd 7 - Drew Tate, QB, Iowa: Maybe he'll break out into a solid QB.

After the draft, the Scorpions immediately sign all their rookies, and re-negotiate a few players in the final years of their deals. There are a few good QB's available in late free agency, but none are signed - it's Jordan Palmer or bust for Arizona, as they head off to Flagstaff for training camp.

[JeeberD]

Yeah buddy! It's time for JP to shine!

Oh, and it was awfully kind of you to select my backup from my days at UTEP. He was a talented kid, but he just never got a chance to play until I graduated...

[sterlingice]

Yay! A Jayhawk! *goes out to buy a Riggins Scorpions jersey*

SI

[Franklinnoble]

Originally Posted by JeeberD

Yeah buddy! It's time for JP to shine!

Oh, and it was awfully kind of you to select my backup from my days at UTEP. He was a talented kid, but he just never got a chance to play until I graduated...

The draft importer is a fickle beast... but it did good things for several of the modified draftees this year. Last year, it wasn't so generous. You should be reading a lot about that QB for a while to come.

That TE is nowhere near as good as "you," but he should make the roster.

[Franklinnoble]

Originally Posted by sterlingice

Yay! A Jayhawk! *goes out to buy a Riggins Scorpions jersey*

SI

I basically made him a clone of his old man... right down to the hometown, college, height, weight, etc.

Number 44, if you're not already aware.

[thealmighty]

Please, Dynasty gods, don't let Atlanta suck- at least for too long, anyway.

[Franklinnoble]

Aaaaaaaauuuuuggggggghhhh!!!!

You've got to be kidding me.

Bizarre things happening to my FOF.

I gotta mail this one to Jim, I think.

I quit the game. Came back. Got a "license expired" error. No problem. Re-install license. Game launches fine.

Roster is empty.

EMPTY.

And there are no free agents. None.

So is every roster in the league. All empty.

Except one.

The Dallas Cowboys.

I don't get it. But somehow, every player in the NFL is now on the Cowboys roster. Under contract. They're about $412 million over the cap. But they have every player in the league on their roster.

Weird.

Needless to say, I have no older saves, and this pretty well fucks my dynasty. Unless I can somehow write my way out of it.

[mhass]

Originally Posted by Franklinnoble

Aaaaaaaauuuuuggggggghhhh!!!!

Roster is empty.

EMPTY.

And there are no free agents. None.

So is every roster in the league. All empty.

Except one.

The Dallas Cowboys.

I don't get it. But somehow, every player in the NFL is now on the Cowboys roster. Under contract. They're about $412 million over the cap. But they have every player in the league on their roster.

Weird.

Needless to say, I have no older saves, and this pretty well fucks my dynasty. Unless I can somehow write my way out of it.

I'd say Franklin Brown, the nano-billionaire, is about to buy out Jerry Jones AND Paul Tagliabue's salary cap police. Perhaps Messrs. Tagliabue and Jones could be travelling together and meet with an unfortunate nano end making Mr. Brown the re-organizer of the league?

Or maybe you're screwed.

[Franklinnoble]

I've e-mailed and pinged Jim. We'll see what happens.

But, yeah. I'm probably screwed. I'll have to come up with some way to work this out.

So disappointing. Everyone looked so good coming out of camp...

[Poli]

The way I see it, this wouldn't have had happened if you had named them the Gila Monsters.

[Franklinnoble]

Originally Posted by ardent enthusiast

The way I see it, this wouldn't have had happened if you had named them the Gila Monsters.

I KNEW that was coming.

Don't worry. You still get to be the pirate.

[finkenst]

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAUUUUUUUUUGGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!


nooooooooooooooooooooo.

[Kodos]

My joke in the general discussion thread aside -- I hope this works out okay. I know how much work goes into a dynasty.