CFL: Tampa Bay Torpedoes - 2005

[wade moore]

After a long absence...

The Free Agency Period begins today. I have had a lot of RL stuff going on with buying a new house, etc.

We lost our offensive coordinator to a debatable offer made by Sacramento. I'll update on our new OC asap.

I have a lot of detail on FA, but I do not want to do it until after moves are made. I think this is a position where I can really tip off my fellow owners and hurt myself. Let's just leave it to say we hope to make a couple of big splashes in FA.

[MIJB#19]

Having second thoughts with sharing info, huh?
I can see your problem.

[wade moore]

Originally Posted by MIJB#19

Having second thoughts with sharing info, huh?
I can see your problem.

Heh... info sharing is fine, you just have to be careful what and when...

But... honestly... it's a coverup for still not having time to do a proper write-up

[MIJB#19]

Originally Posted by wade moore

Heh... info sharing is fine, you just have to be careful what and when...

But... honestly... it's a coverup for still not having time to do a proper write-up

I'll be reading, with or without updates.

[wade moore]

Cap and Roster Situation

The Torpedoes start the season with every single starter from last year having a contract at least through the end of this season (due to renegotiations during the season). There are only 4 UFA's and already 40 folks on the roster.

We have $7.63 mil available in cap room. So, we made some moves to free up so money and make a splash or two in FA.


DT Lincoln Dart - Current Cap Cost - 1,730,000
New Offer - 5 Years, 9.49 mil - 1.04 mil this year
RT Maynard Bedell - Current Cap Cost - 2.28 mil
New Offer - 4 years, 11.2 mil - 2 mil this year
WILB Scott Grieco - Current Cap Cost - 3.01 mil
New Offer - 5 years, 14.92 Mil - 2.29 this year
SS Benjamin Montalvo - Current cap Cost - 5.15 mil
New Offer - 5 years, 25.81 mil - 4.04 this year
SLB Hassan Rea - Current Cap Cost - 2.47 mil
New Offer - 2 years, 1.52 mil - 1.23 this year
RG Greg Fleming - Current Cap Cost - 1.22 mil
New Offer - 4 Years, 8.98 mil - 1.07 this year
QB Chadwick Shepard - Current Cap Cost - 1.84 mil
New Offer - 3 years, 4.79 mil - 1.49 mil this year

If these offers go through, we should expect to save a little over $4 mil in cap room this year and not hurt us majorly down the road as these are all guys that we would like to keep around for awhile.

We put in a few offers, some may shock and amaze. We'll let you know how they go.

[wade moore]

TE Lincoln Denning on Trading Block

Former 1st Team All-League TE Lincoln Denning is officially on the trading block. He is one of the best TE's in the league. He has the record for receptions in a season. However, he does not quite fit in with the offense that I try to run. His numbers dropped off last season under our system. We really get more value out of a blocking tight end than a receiving tight end.

[Taco]

Welcome back, wade! I'm looking forward to Motormouth Bowl III in week 1!!!

[wade moore]

Originally Posted by Taco

Welcome back, wade! I'm looking forward to Motormouth Bowl III in week 1!!!

Bring it on!

With Sov stepping down, it could open up the door for me, you, or 3ric to make a run at the division title.

[wade moore]

WR Wilfredo Tramel Signs With Torpedos

In their first off-season acquisition, the Torpedoes sign WR Wilfredo Tramel. This will be Tramel's 3rd team in as many seasons. The 29 year old WR has played in 31 games, but only started 3. Last year was by far his best season in which he caught 66 of 103 balls thrown his way. he had a 13.1 yard avg with 5 TDs and 7 Drops.

The Torpedoes management hopes that Tramel will fit in well with a new offensive scheme being written up. His main skills are getting downfield and big-play receiving, which should be a major asset to the squad.

The deal is a 3 year, $3.44 mil deal in a year when there are many WRs getting $30 mil contracts.

[wade moore]

In other FA news...

We are making a push for DE Bob McCalla. McCalla is ranked as the top player in the league with a 97/97 rating..

We have a bid in for 3 years, $30.63 mil. We put this in week 1. In week 2, Durham has no jumped into the bandwagon. They have offered a 1 year, $8 mil deal. This could become crucial now as Durham is a divisional foe. Whoever gets their deal through will have a huge impact on at least 2 games a year.

[3ric]

Tramel? Didn't he play for Baltimore the first season?

[GoldenEagle]

If anyone wants a CFL team, we have some open. Please go here for details.

Now back to your regualry scheduled dynasty.

[wade moore]

Originally Posted by 3ric

Tramel? Didn't he play for Baltimore the first season?

Yup. Baltimore was one of the 3 teams in 3 years. But you hardly used him at all... I think he had 9 receptions? (do not have the game available right now)

[3ric]

He was buried in the depth chart, like 4th or 5th-string at the time. BTW, we've just released two WRs that were ahead of him then! Still is, according to my scout...

[wade moore]

Originally Posted by 3ric

He was buried in the depth chart, like 4th or 5th-string at the time. BTW, we've just released two WRs that were ahead of him then! Still is, according to my scout...

hmmmmmmmm... maybe I'll have to look..

can you tell the depth of my WR corps is... well..

not so good!

[fantastic flying froggies]

Looks like you got your big prize after all...

[wade moore]

and on that note...

Bob McCalla Makes a Big Splash in Tampa

DE Bob McCalla has been brought in for a 3 year, $30.63 mil deal. The Torpedoes administration expects him to make an immediate impact and more than fill in for the injured Weiland. It is unclear what condition Weiland will be in when he returns. In a worst case scenario, we have McCall to more than fill his shoes. In a best case scenario, we have two dominating DE's, one of which will have to play out of position. This move should solidify Tampa Bay as the most dominant defense in the league.

Those in the Fargo front office claim that McCalla is just an overrated has-been, but we see it a different way. It is hard for a player of his calibre to perform without the correct scheme or supporting cast.

[MIJB#19]

You got the guy you wanted, well done, WM!

[wade moore]

Originally Posted by MIJB#19

You got the guy you wanted, well done, WM!

I am very happy with how the team is shaping up so far. I wish that my OLine was a little more solid and I had a better FL. But beyond that, I just am very excited to get the season started.

[wade moore]

Tampa Bay Welcomes more depth to their Line Backing Corps

Tampa Bay has reached an agreement with 14 year veteran Elijah Clements. Clements adds very good depth to the inside of an already solid linebacking group. He has committed to the team until 2006, when he may consider retirement. The deal is reportedly a 2 year, $2.55 mil deal with a $620,000 signing bonus. Clements spent the last two years with New York. He only started 4 games last year after starting in all 14 that he played in in 2003. In his career, he has 111 tackles, 36 assists, 1 Sack, 1 Blocked Pass, and 1 Hurry. Clements is expected to contribute heavily to the run defense and pass rush. He is expected to serve as a mentor to young MLB Brady Lanza who has struggled attempting to develop sitting the bench behind Ruiz and Grieco. The LB spots have a log jam, but they are all currently content with the situation.

Owner's Note: With this addition we have seven LBs with a VG Rating in Potential, 6 of them with actuals of VG. With our cap status and current roster, I think I want to keep them. The most expensive one is only costing me $2.77 and is in a contract year. So if I dangled one out there, it would be him (Larry Williams).

[MIJB#19]

Interesting strategy to get a mentor LB to develop the LB in front of him on the depth chart. (If only I wasn't doing that myself too with my Merchantmen. )

Wow, that LB corps is looking awesome, reading your post. Add the super DE tandem and CB tandem and: wow!

[GoldenEagle]

I think your defense is set. Did you see Charleston's move to counteract your sigining of McCalla? I think it is a bit unfair, but that is the way things go I guess.

[MIJB#19]

Originally Posted by GoldenEagle

I think your defense is set. Did you see Charleston's move to counteract your sigining of McCalla? I think it is a bit unfair, but that is the way things go I guess.

Not being a CFL player: what did Charleston do then?

[GoldenEagle]

Charleston is owned by a computer, since we do not have an owner for them. They signed an exceelent DE who had been cut by Seattle. The human owners did not get a shot at him, becuase we can not sign players who have been cut in free agency.

[wade moore]

GE:

Did not see that, doh! I think my D is looking quite solid.

MIJB:

Much in the ways of my trading hero.. *cough*... I may have one last trick up my sleeve....

[MIJB#19]

Originally Posted by wade moore

GE:

Did not see that, doh! I think my D is looking quite solid.

MIJB:

Much in the ways of my trading hero.. *cough*... I may have one last trick up my sleeve....

That AI guy really should be banned from further FA bids. Exploiting weaknesses in the game, cheater!

Trading hero? Are you talking about me? The guy who wasted a solid QB situation?
I'll be keeping my eyes open to see what the trick could/would be, though.

[wade moore]

Torpedoes Make Blockbuster Trade to shore-up All-Star Defense

After recent comments in the press about the overabundance of talent at the LB position and potential rumblings about playing time, the Torpedoes moved SLB Hassan Rea. Rea spent most of last season injured, but still maintained his form by working hard this off-season. However, he was still slated to backup Larry Williams and was not happy that he would go another season without significant playing time.

That is not the most significant piece here. Rea was packaged with the #28 overall pick this year to obtain DT Albert Poole from Anchorage. Poole was the 2004 All-League 2nd Team Defensive Tackle with 55 Tackles, 32 Assists, 10.0 Sacks, 3 Blocked Passes, and 19 Hurries. According to our scout, Poole is currently the 3rd best DT in the league, and has the potential to be the best DT in the league. Poole will come with a cheap price tag, as $2.46 mil of his $3.44 mil salary this year is bonus money that Anchorage will have to pay. His salary next year is $1.21 mil. After that, we probably will have to consider whether we can afford to keep Poole and McCalla both on the squad.

This move along with obtaining McCalla turns the relative weak spot on the defense (DT) into possibly the strongest part of the defense. The defense looks to possibly be the best defense ever seen in the CFL.

Owners Notes: Wow. This move kind of came about suddenly. I really wanted to sit with my 1.28 pick and see if I could strengthen the OLine a bit. But when this offer came about, I just could not bring myself to turn it down. We essentially clean up an overloaded LB group that we would have been wasting and lose our 1st round pick for the best young DT in the league. I am amazed that we now have one start that is not VG or higher in current rating (LDE Dannie Hickerson is F/G). Now I know ratings only mean so much, but barring injuries I do not see how this defense does not dominate the league. Our depth is even pretty solid. Last year's breakout player, RDE Weiland will be back in week 2 or 3 and play out of position on the left side also. In addition, we have done this while losing zero starters on the offense. We are still attempting to shore up the Right side of our line, where two high round draft picks last year either were busts or just bad picks by previous ownership.

[wade moore]

And yes, I was talking about you MIJB...

[MIJB#19]

wow, impressive blockbuster move.

A move I probably wouldn't have dared to make, I'm just trading to make minor improvements or to create cap room.

Now you can focus even more on the offense and let the defese easily work it out when the offense fails.

[wade moore]

Originally Posted by MIJB#19

wow, impressive blockbuster move.

A move I probably wouldn't have dared to make, I'm just trading to make minor improvements or to create cap room.

Now you can focus even more on the offense and let the defese easily work it out when the offense fails.

Like I said, it's not really a move I hunted for...

I put up a posting on the CFL page about the LBs and how I realized I had such a deep group.. and even posted that I really was really planning on keeping them. Then after a feeler put out by Anchorage, they put this deal out there. I just could not find a reason to pass it up. At the bottom of the round the best I could have hoped for was a slight improvement at OL. So, I figured I'd trade Rea and a good OL for Poole.

It's kind of funny that I'm making drastic improvements on a team that made it to the Conference Finals and you are making minor improvements to the Merchantmen.

Of course... I have not really analyzed my cap for next year... I probably should... but I think we have a great shot now. Next year the cap will probably force us to break up at least part of the defense...

I think getting whooped by Charleston 3 times in a year just triggered me to do this... This is also my first chance to do an off-season, so I was looking to really put my stamp on it.

[steelerdaddy]

Hi everyone. I'm the new owner of Anchorage, the guy Wade traded with.

We both won out, because after doing some capology, there was no way I was signing the guy I traded to Wade *and* some other key FA signings. Since the DT only had a year left, I got some value for moving him. Now my front 7 is nothing to sneeze at either, and I've got another 1st round prospect to work with.

It's nice when both sides win!

[wade moore]

2005 PRE-DRAFT ROSTER OVERVIEW

Quarterback

  Player                #   Pos   Start Exp  Current Estimate  Future Estimate Cntrct 
Shepard, Chadwick       13  QB          5    20                45                3 yrs
Manuel, Lane            9   QB          4    62                80                3 yrs

Manuel is the obvious returning starter here. He made huge strides in his progression last year, and we expect to see great things from him this year. Returning every single starter from the offense last year, should do Manuel some good with solid cohesion in the passing game (99) and the offensive line (93). Shephard returns as the #1 backup this year and should do a suitable job. We attempted to lock up a mentor for Manuel, but we were outbid. If he goes down, we expect to see a significant drop in our performance.

Running Back

Alvey, Elias            26  RB          5    53                55                3 yrs
Rhodes, Chester         47  RB          3    21                33                3 yrs

Breakout RB Elias Alvey returns this year in hopes of duplicating his performance of last year. There are concerns around the team of his durability, as he had a severe dropoff in the last half of the season. Attempts were made at acquiring a more solid backup via trade, but it fell through. However, Rhodes may see more carries to see if his 4.1 ypc last year was a product of ability or just of few carries and a few long runs spiking his average.

Full Back

Levy, Edward            23  FB          7    55                55                3 yrs
Talkington, Fred        20  FB          4    42                56                1 yr.

Levy returns this year to continue his feud with the obnoxious Motormouth in Durham. Levy was used VERY successfully as a change of pace back last year where he rushed for 305 yards on 41 carries (7.4 ypc) and 4 TDs with several key long runs. He also caught 37 passes for 215 yards. Expect him to continue to be a large part of this offense. Talkington is a very capable backup. We like having two quality FBs on the roster in case of injury.

Tight End

Russell, Gordon         81  TE          4    31                50                1 yr.
Martindale, Mark        84  TE          4    24                46                1 yr.
Denning, Lincoln        82  TE          12   48                48                1 yr.

Wide Receiver

Tramel, Wilfredo        85  FL          7    31                31                3 yrs
McGarry, Eric           88  FL          3    25                33                1 yr.
Stroman, Jermaine       83  SE          3    51                70                6 yrs
Pence, Jarred           87  SE          5    31                37                1 yr.
Lopez, Pedro            89  SE          4    54                54                1 yr.

Stroman and Lopez will again be the starters this year, with Lopez playing out of position. Tramel was added to the group in hopes of increasing the deep threat. You could see more 3 WR sets out of this team this year.

Offensive Line

Davis, Eric             58  C           3    56                70                1 yr.
Logan, Alfred           55  C           3    13                35                1 yr.
Kasowski, Harvey        67  LG          2    30                46                4 yrs
Fleming, Greg           78  RG          3    50                55                4 yrs
Ackerman, Kevin         69  LT          2    16                42                3 yrs
Galarza, Royal          65  RT          4    27                40                1 yr.
Bedell, Maynard         74  RT          5    49                49                4 yrs

We return all of our starters from last year into this year. I am quite dissapointed with the high draft picks made by the previous owner from last year, Ackerman and Kasowski. I had hoped to upgrade the OLine and intended to do so with my 1st round pick, but the chance to get Poole was far too appealing to turn down. So, we will manage with a line that did ok for us last year. Depth is definately an issue here.

Special Teams

Ackerman, Omar          17  P           3    50                50                3 yrs
Cooper, Felton          7   K           5    63                73                4 yrs

We have two of the better kickers in the league and feel very comfortable here. Cooper hit several crucial 50+ yarders last season.

Defensive Line

Hickerson, Dannie       94  LDE         4    32                45                1 yr.
Compton, Terry          93  LDE         3    29                46                2 yrs
Price, Lance            99  LDE         2    26                36                3 yrs
**Weiland, Chris        79  RDE         10   45                45                1 yr.
McCalla, Bob            95  RDE         12   94                94                3 yrs
Dart, Lincoln           96  LDT         3    33                55                5 yrs
Baskerville, Rex        73  LDT         3    23                35                2 yrs
Poole, Albert           77  RDT         6    83                88                2 yrs
Perez, Jerald           75  RDT         2    22                32                2 yrs

This is the area of the team that saw the most change during the off-season - and for the better. With breakout player RDE Weiland out with a serious injury and a future in question, we felt it necessary to fill that void. We did so in a big way, picking up McCall in the off-season for a 3 year, $30mil contract. He is arguably the best DE in the game who underperformed in Fargo. We feel that with our scheme and a great surrounding cast, that he will shine and put up the numbers expected of him. In the middle, Dart performed admirably last year, but running the 3-4 we really wanted a dominant NT. So, we picked up the young stud Poole who is not fully developed, yet is still in the top 5 DTs in the league. He should clog up the middle and cause chaos in the rest of the league. The left side is definately the weakness where Hickerson looks like an amateur compared to his peers, but should still be a solid contributor with the others pulling double teams. Compton, Dart, Baskerville, Price, and Perez form a solid backup crew. One or two of these guys may suffer when rosters are trimmed down.

Linebackers

Clements, Elijah        91  SILB        14   62                62                2 yrs
Ruiz, Andreas           59  WILB        6    68                71                3 yrs
Grieco, Scott           53  WILB        5    67                74                5 yrs
Lanza, Brady            98  MLB         4    44                71                1 yr.
Williams, Larry         90  SLB         6    65                70                1 yr.
Steinberg, Bernie       56  SLB         2    22                32                2 yrs
Luciano, Lee            57  WLB         12   76                76                2 yrs

Even after trading Rea, this has to be considered the best LBing group in the league, especially when you look at how deep it is. With the front tied up by the beefy new bodies, the LBs should have more freedom to be creative. Expect to see the LBs more aggressive this year as they all have great pass coverage and blitzing skills, allowing the DC to mix it up quite a bit. There is no star that stands out more than the others here, and you should expect to see a lot of split time due to the quality of the depth.

Secondary

Means, Adolph           44  LCB         10   81                81                3 yrs
Koch, Erwin             38  LCB         6    79                82                3 yrs
Decoteau, Robby         34  RCB         15   28                28                2 yrs
Bolen, Jermaine         30  RCB         3    26                33                1 yr.
Haugh, Chris            43  SS          5    57                60                1 yr.
Montalvo, Benjamin      22  SS          10   78                78                5 yrs
Ridley, Randal          39  SS          2    23                29                3 yrs
Burgess, Wilton         32  FS          10   74                74                2 yrs

Something you do not see very often - the best secondary and LBs on the same team. This is alos the best secondary in the league. Means and Koch are complete shut-down corners. Means holds the career and single season record for Passes Defensed (48/26) and Koch is second for the single season record for Ints (8). The Safeties are no slouches either, forming the most formidable safety combination. This team far outpaces the others in Pass Deflections. The only knock is I have been unhappy with their inability to turn the deflections into INts. There is also a severe lacking of depth at the CB position. If Koch or Means are hurt, there will be big trouble for this secondary.

Overall
If this team does not win the whole thing this year, it will not be because of a lack of talent. This team is completely stacked on defense and has a solid offensive cast. Barring injury, this is possibly the best roster in the league and definately the best defensive roster. Cap implications of building this team could be trouble next year, but this year it is just loaded from top to bottom.

[wade moore]

Torpedoes Package Picks to Improve Offensive Line

The Tampa Bay Torpedoes remained active in the off-season today. They traded their 2nd rounder (2.28), 3rd rounder (3.28) and a 3rd rounder next year for the Seattle 2nd rounder (2.1). They used the pick to take LT Toby Terwey out of Syracuse University. It looks as though Torwey will immediately oust Ackerman from his starting role and be the LT of the future for this squad. He has a low volatility and solid combine scores (34 reps!).

Owner's Notes: Terwey is a 16/55 with a 1 volatility. That compared to the 16/42 of Ackerman and I felt this was a move I had to make with what would be available to me later in the draft.

[wade moore]

Interesting AC East Off-Season Acquisitions

25. Baltimore - DE Billy Hopper, UCLA
1. Tampa Bay - LT Toby Terwey, SU
2. Durham - LDT Gerald Plangeard

DUR - LT John Saldivar - Designated as Franchise Player
DUR - RT Andrew Dale - resigned as an unrestricted free agent - $3.8mil, 2 yrs
DUR - RT William Cotto - signed as unrestricted free agent from TBY - 1 year, $740,000
DUR - RG Keith Fike - signed as unrestricted free agent from TBY - 1 year, $640,000

BAL - DT Merrill Tollefson - signed as unrestricted free agent from SAO - $1.83 mil, 2 years

CHT - RDE Andy Boulanger - signed as a free agent - $10.47 mil, 3 years
CHT - LDE Kasey Cha - signed as a free agent - $16.09 mil, 4 years

TBY - DE Bob McCalla - signed as unrestricted free agent from FAR - $30.63, 3 years
TBY - DT Albert Poole - received in trade from ANC


--------------------

Anyone see a trend in the AC East? Between Gordon and Alvey we really have pushed for some upgrades, eh?

[sachmo71]

More Breakers news!

[wade moore]

Originally Posted by sachmo71

More Breakers news!

They're on owner #3 ...

And he's made quite a few aggressive moves...

You'd hear more if we were in the same division ...

6. New Orleans - MLB Floyd Lewis, Wake Forest

[sachmo71]

I just checked the board. Seems like an involved owner.

I told him that he needs to put the color back in the Breakers logo. He probably has no idea who I am!

[wade moore]

Originally Posted by sachmo71

I just checked the board. Seems like an involved owner.

I told him that he needs to put the color back in the Breakers logo. He probably has no idea who I am!

"Who the hell do you think you are?!"

[wade moore]

So...

I just did a spreadsheet for a salary cap outlook...

we're in biiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiig trouble. I hope we win this year.

right now we are at 78 mil next year (not counting dead cap space which I believe we have none)...

and our number of players?

29

Ouch.

This is an all or bust year for us I guess... looks like the team is going to have to be blown up...

[wade moore]

Just checking in...

I have not abandoned the dynasty... the draft is moving so incredibly slow that my 4.28 pick has not come up yet.. we are currently mid-way through the 4th...

[fantastic flying froggies]

Originally Posted by wade moore

Just checking in...

I have not abandoned the dynasty... the draft is moving so incredibly slow that my 4.28 pick has not come up yet.. we are currently mid-way through the 4th...

Indeed...

[MIJB#19]

GM von ze Detroit Vampires (CFL) : We used to suck ! (1-15 in 2003, 10-6 conference semifinalist in 2004)

Wow, FFF, that's far more impressive then a 1-15 to 7-9 improvement.

[fantastic flying froggies]

Originally Posted by MIJB#19

Wow, FFF, that's far more impressive then a 1-15 to 7-9 improvement.

Well, I cannot really take all the credit for it. The first season (1-15) was under other management and the guy really had some strange gameplanning. He did have however a young crew of very talented players which I relied on heavily in my 10-6 season. And hopefully, I will build on that to have an even better team this coming season...

If we ever finish this draft, that is...

[wade moore]

Originally Posted by fantastic flying froggies

If we ever finish this draft, that is...

[wade moore]

The draft is now complete and I've decided to blatantly rip-off Taco's format for a review form his Durham Bulldogs Dynasty.

I was forced to go let the cpu pick for the last three rounds as I was unable to make the draft. In hindsight, this was a very poor decision as they picked players that were VERY much not need positions.


2.1 LT Toby Terwey out of Syracuse

6'5", 305 lbs.
40-Yard Dash      5.09 seconds   (??? out of ??? OTs)
Bench Press       34 repetitions (??? out of ??? OTs)
Agility Drill     7.67 seconds   (??? out of ??? OTs)
Solecismic Test   22             (average)
Volatility        1              (very low)
Scout Ratings     15/55          (possible starter)

I traded up from the 2.28 pick here by giving up that pick and my 3rd rounder. Terwey is a very balanced tackle and will compete for a starting position this year. He outperforms Ackerman in every category and looks to be a far superior 2nd round LT than Ackerman was this time last year.


4.28 CB Curtis Bennett out of California

5'11", 191 lbs.
40-Yard Dash      4.55 seconds   (??? out of ??? CBs)
Bench Press       11 repetitions (??? out of ??? CBs)
Agility Drill     7.36 seconds   (??? out of ??? CBs)
Solecismic Test   30             (high)
Volatility        59             (average)
Scout Ratings     13/44          (future nickel back)

With only 4 CBs on the roster, it was important to me to grab another guy who was worth taking the field. I feel this was a quality pick because not only did it fill a spot where I needed a body, but this guy is a bonafide future nickel back. He has the best potential after our two super-star corners. He needs a lot of work this year to get to be able to fill that role in the future, but the potential is obvious.


5.28 LG Nolan Chapman out of Oklahoma

6'2", 272 lbs.
40-Yard Dash      5.04 seconds   (??? out of ??? Gs)
Bench Press       33 repetitions (??? out of ??? Gs)
Agility Drill     7.56 seconds   (??? out of ??? Gs)
Solecismic Test   19             (average)
Volatility        39             (low)
Scout Ratings     20/42          (#1 backup)

This was a solid CPU pick. In fact, it makes me question heavily the decisions by my predecessor. The first round pick from last year, Kasowski, is a 30/46 now and is very limited in his run blocking ability. Chapman is more balanced and has almost as much potential. There is a chance that within a year or two, Chapman could be challenging for a starting job, especially considering the differences in cap cost.


6.28 SLB Quinn Caniff out of Miami, Ohio

6'1", 227 lbs.
40-Yard Dash      4.92 seconds   (??? out of ??? LBs)
Bench Press       18 repetitions (??? out of ??? LBs)
Agility Drill     7.23 seconds   (??? out of ??? LBs
Solecismic Test   29             (high)
Volatility        60             (high)
Scout Ratings     26/38          (might not make team)

Ok.. so, I have 5 LBs that are at least "Very Good" in future potential and one more that is just below... and they get a LB in the draft? We are in a 3-4 though, so I suppose having a 7th guy on the roster, even if inactive, might not be too bad. Caniff cannot rush the passer period, but is relatively solid in all other respects for a backup in this league.


7.28 SLB Brad Franz out of Northwestern

6'5", 248 lbs.
40-Yard Dash      4.71 seconds   (??? out of ??? LBs)
Bench Press       11 repetitions (??? out of ??? LBs)
Agility Drill     7.37 seconds   (??? out of ??? LBs)
Solecismic Test   34             (high)
Volatility        25             (low)
Scout Ratings     11/41          (might not make team)

Another puzzling pick by the CPU, especially since I only have 2 QBs on my roster at the moment. Franz has more potential than Caniff, but also has a lot more room to grow. His ratings look like a funny roller coaster ride where he also cannot rush the passer. However, his combine scores are very solid and WAY better than Caniff's, so there is a piece of me that is very intrigued as to whether he will break-out.



-----------------

OVERALL ANALYSIS

Conference Solecismic Draft Grades:
Baltimore: B
Tampa Bay: B-
Charleston: C+
Durham: C+


As you can see, compared to the rest of the conference we did pretty well. I am not too happy with how we used the last two picks in the draft, but at the same time the players intrigue me enough to atleast bring them into training camp. The two Offensive Linemen should really give us a boost in the running game.

[MIJB#19]

Does that mean the draft is over?
I bet it's a bit of a disappointment to not be able to pick your own guys.
But I guess the good news is that the new season will start pretty soon?

So far it sounds like Tampa Bay will be a force again and a favorite for the title, or did I read wrong?

[3ric]

Division preview! Division preview! Division preview!

[fantastic flying froggies]

Originally Posted by MIJB#19

Does that mean the draft is over?

Yes, finally!!!

[wade moore]

MIJB: Yes, the draft is officially over. I am quite happy about that and willing to make the sacrifice on my involvment to move on.

As for being a favorite. Yes, I would say so. When Taco did his rankings, he has me as #1 and the favorite for winning the title. Not to gloat, but I think it is league consensus that it is pretty much myself and San Jose as the teams to beat since the returning champs, Charleston, are the only team in the league without an owner and have run the entire off-season without one.

3ric: I really want to try to get one done, we'll see what I can do!

[MIJB#19]

Originally Posted by wade moore

MIJB: Yes, the draft is officially over. I am quite happy about that and willing to make the sacrifice on my involvment to move on.

As for being a favorite. Yes, I would say so. When Taco did his rankings, he has me as #1 and the favorite for winning the title. Not to gloat, but I think it is league consensus that it is pretty much myself and San Jose as the teams to beat since the returning champs, Charleston, are the only team in the league without an owner and have run the entire off-season without one.

That's prett funny to read, the defending champs the only AI team.
I'm gonna follow your team all season, but following a potential champion is less interesting than following a team still building up.
I'll make the occasional read read and reply.

Originally Posted by wade moore

3ric: I really want to try to get one done, we'll see what I can do!

Actually, I have a feeling our shared divisional rival desires not one but two previews...