This... is... TEXAS! (Cleveland Browns relocation)

[Dianwei32]

Wow... I didn't expect anyone to be interested... I'll work on another write up for Season 2 either tonight or tomorrow. Quick preview: finished 3-13, ended up with the #1 and #2 overall picks and had a monster draft.

[Dianwei32]

Preseason
During the 2010 preseason, the San Antonio Spartans managed to win a preseason game against the St. Louis Rams on a last second field goal by rookie Kicker Leigh Tiffin. Many NFL analysts criticized the Spartans management for taking Tiffin at the beginning on the 3^rd round, but many of those critics were silenced when Tiffin drilled a 54 yard field goal to put the Spartans up 17-14 with 0:25 left in the 4^th quarter. Tiffin connected on all of 13 field goal tries during the preseason as the Spartans red zone woes continued. San Antonio reached the red zone 12 times but only scored 3 touchdowns and kicked 6 field goals.


Regular Season


The first game of the season was against their division rival Cincinnati Bengals, and the Spartans managed to squeeze out a win thanks to rookie QB Sam Bradford. Bradford threw 3 TD passes and connected on 27 of 45 passes for 350 yards. Bradford threw his 3^rd TD pass with just under 2 minutes left in the game to put the Spartans up 32-29. Ndamakong Suh proved his worthiness of the first overall draft pick harassing Carson Palmer all game long. Suh made 10 tackles, including 5 TFL’s and 3 sacks.

The next few games did not go as well as the first, and at the start of week 6 the Spartans were 1-4. An injury to Kris Diehlman of the San Diego Chargers caused the 5-0 Chargers to trade their 1^st and 3^rd round draft picks to the Spartans in return for LG Eric Steinbach in order to continue their bid to win the AFC West. Additionally, the Spartans moved to improve their weak receiving corp by trading their 2^nd round draft pick to the Texans for one-year veteran TE James Casey.

The Spartans would not win another game until week 11 against the Raiders. The Raiders were 2-8 when they went up against San Antonio, mainly thanks to Al Davis’ continued faith in their “franchise” QB, Jamarcus Russell. The Spartans’ defensive backfield feasted on the many mistakes and miscues of the Raiders offense, and Sam Bradford had a breakout game thanks to the acquisition of TE James Casey. Bradford went 29-43 for 400 yards and 3 TDs, with James Casey catching 14 of Bradford’s passes for 210 yards and 2 TDs. The only other receiving threat on the Spartans’ roster, WR Jordan Shipley, was blanketed by Nnamdi Asomugha and made only 2 catches for 23 yards. Following the game, Coach Norv Turner met with the press:

Reporter: “Coach Turner, can you comment on Bradford’s performance in this game? Which player do you think he really is: the one we saw today or the one we’ve seen the rest of the season?”

Turner: “Bradford is a great QB, especially for a rookie. He’ll have good and bad games. We feel that he is the franchise QB for our team, which is why we drafted him when we did.”

Reporter: “Yes, but in the first 10 games this season Bradford has only 9 touchdowns and 13 interceptions. He’s also completed only 45% of his passes. This leaves him ranked 27^th out of all quarterbacks in the league.”


Turner: “Those are all accurate statements, but you also have to look at the relieving corp that Bradford has to work with. I’m not going to lie and say that we’ve got a corp like the Cardinals, but our only consistent wideout is Jordan Shipley. If you look at Bradford’s stats since we traded for James Casey we’ve gained another great receiving target and his numbers have improved.”

Reporter: “Coach Turner, as of now, your team sits at 2-9, but the rest of the season looks pretty difficult with games against all of the other AFC North teams, along with the Patriots and Colts. Do you see any more winnable games in your team’s future or will you finish 2-14?”

Turner: “All of those teams are extremely good, but we also have a game against the 0-11 Buccaneers. Remember that we also beat the Bengals back in week 1 and we can do it again. The Ravens have been playing well all season, but they’ve lost a few close games. If we can take advantage of the injuries in their secondary we should be able to win against them.”

Reporter: “What can you tell us about Jamal Lewis’ performance so far this season? So far he’s only averaging 2.4 yards per carry and he only has 1 touchdown in 11 games.”

Turner: “Lewis is a great veteran running back. He’s got great vision and hits the hole hard. We’ve faced some good run defenses so far this season, and that has been hard on his numbers. However, Jamal has still been a valuable asset to our offense converting several key third downs.”

In their week 13 matchup against Tampa Bay, San Antonio recorded their first shutout of their new existence beating the Bucs 20-0. The Spartans’ need for a new halfback became obvious when Jamal Lewis managed only 60 yards on 25 carries against the Bucs’ 30^th ranked run defense. Bradford was able to pick up the slack that Lewis left behind, having his 3^rd 300 yard game of his rookie season (23-35, 320 yards, 2 TDs, 1 INT).

The Spartans would lose the rest of their games, finishing the season 3-13:

Season Stats
Sam Bradford: 297 completions, 480 attempts, 55% completion rate, 2500 yards, 22 TDs, 15 INTs
Jamal Lewis: 254 attempts, 585 yards, 2.3 YPC, 2 TDs
Jordan Shipley: 65 catches, 750 yards, 6 TDs
James Casey: 80 catches, 1140 yards, 10 TDs
Gary Guyton: 165 tackles, 38 TFL, 2 INTs
Brian Batas: 35 tackles, 6 INTs, 25 passes deflected
Randy Dixon: 20 tackles, 15 TFL, 9 sacks
Ndamakong Suh: 60 tackles, 25 TFL, 13 sacks
Joe Thomas: 34 pancakes (made the Pro Bowl)



Offseason

During the offseason, several of the less talented players were released while James Casey was resigned to a 5-year extension on his contract. During the Free Agency period, the Spartans looked to improve their still weak WR crop with the signing of WR Pierre Garçon who was released by the Colts. Garçon was immediately promoted to be one of the starting wideouts across from Jordan Shipley.

Spartans’ Head Coach Norv Turner was sitting in his office working on who the Spartans would draft using the #14 overall pick they received from the Chargers (the Chargers collapsed following a 6-0 start and finished 6-10, Philip Rivers tore his ACL and missed the rest of the season). Turner had the TV in his office tuned to NFL Network where they were looking at some of the top draft prospects. They cut to footage of a linebacker from Penn State at the NFL combine. Coach Turner wasn’t paying attention to the program, but heard a small snippet of commentary:

“… the 40-yard dash in 4.35 seconds. He showed tremendous burst and great speed for his size.”

Coach Turner looked up, thinking that maybe they had moved on the defensive backs, since no linebacker would run a 4.35 40. He saw that it was still showing the Penn State linebacker, but they had moved on to the bench press. Coach Turner turned up the volume on the TV to hear more about this young man:

Analyst: “Navorro Bowman is an outstanding player. He ran a 40 of 4.35 seconds, the best of all the linebackers in the combine, and recorded 34 reps on the bench press. Thirty-four. Bowman ranked 3^rd in the bench press across all positions, and beat the next strongest linebacker by 9 reps. All of our mock drafts have the Tampa Bay Buccaneers taking Bowman with the first overall pick to help rebuild their defense.”

Coach Turner couldn’t believe his ears. A linebacker with defensive back speed and defensive tackle strength. With Bowman playing at middle linebacker, the Spartans would have a defense that could keep them in games even with their anemic offense. Unfortunately, Bowman was a sure first overall pick, and the Buccaneers’ 0-16 record relegated the Spartans to the #2 overall pick. Coach Turner showed the video to the rest of his coaching staff and said simply, “I want him. Make it happen.”

On draft day, the Spartans’ coaching staff contacted the Bucs’ front office in an effort to trade up to the first overall pick. After a good deal of negotiating, the Bucs agreed to trade their first round pick for the Spartans’ first and third round picks (the ones received from the Chargers, #14 in each round) along with the Spartans’ first round pick in 2011 (I’ll trade my first rounder for the lowest rated player on the Bucs next season, I felt that I needed to give up more to get the #1 overall pick).

(Here’s a link to the ratings for Bowman and Berry:
http://www.operationsports.com/forum...post2040502112)

Round 1 Pick 1 (from the Bucs): Navorro Bowman OLB Penn State
Round 1 Pick 2: Eric Berry SS Tennessee
Round 2 Pick 2: CJ Gable HB USC
Round 3 Pick 2: Golden Tate WR Notre Dame
Round 4 Pick 2: Kendric Burney CB North Carolina
Round 5 Pick 2: Scott Solomon DE Rice
Round 6 Pick 2: Amari Spievey CB Iowa
Round 7 Pick 2: Mark Moundrous FB Michigan

[phlstar]

a few more seasons away from a playoff run

[Joshua1207]

Wow Berry and Tate didn't come out last year? Surprising. Are you simming all the game?

[Dianwei32]

Quote: Originally Posted by Joshua1207

Wow Berry and Tate didn't come out last year? Surprising. Are you simming all the game?

Yea, I've simmed all of them so far, with the exceptions of the games last year against the Raiders and the Bucs. Now that my team is decent (thanks to progression and drafting) I plan on playing 3-4 games a year (I'll try and make one of them against a good opponent). I usually play all the games in my franchises, but I usually get burnt out using the same team over and over and end up bored with it by the time I hit year 3. I'm hoping that by simming most of the games I can make it further into the franchise; it also allows me to make more frequent updates.

So far I've gone through the preseason and 6 games for year 3, I'm working on a write up right now and I'll post it in a bit. Afterwards I'm going to play a game against the Ravens. I'll work on more in-depth write ups for games that I play.

[Dianwei32]

Preseason
In the preseason of their third year, the San Antonio Spartans managed to go 3-1, beating the Raiders, Chiefs, and Broncos, but losing to the Giants on a last second FG. The Spartans’ offense benefitted from the addition of Pierre Garçon and Golden Tate to take some pressure off of Jordan Shipley. This coupled with Sam Bradford’s experience as an NFL QB increased the potency of the Spartans’ aerial assault (6 TDs to 2 INTs in the preseason), but the ground game was losing steam as Jamal Lewis showed wear and tear with age. HB Reggie Bush was signed at the end of the preseason in an effort to give the running game some much needed explosiveness. Bush worked primarily as a return man on punts and kickoffs and was integrated into the Spartans’ Wildcat formation as the motion man on sweeps.

Regular Season
The beginning of the regular season was not a memorable one, even for San Antonio. After 6 weeks the Spartans were 2-4 (beat the Jets and the Titans) and travelling to Baltimore to take on a struggling Ravens team. Things were not looking good for the Spartans’ passing game, as Sam Bradford managed to complete only 55% of his passes for 950 yards and had thrown 8 INTs to only 3 TDs. The Spartans’ had the 31^st ranked offense in the NFL, including the 32^nd ranked passing offense.

Navorro Bowman and Eric Berry, the #1 and #2 overall picks from the recent draft, did not let their status as rookies stop them from assuming leadership positions on the defense. After 6 games, Bowman led the team in tackles with 48 solo tackles, 10 TFL, 2 sacks and an INT. Berry roamed the secondary, knocking passes loose from WRs and making a team-high 3 INTs, one returned for a touchdown against the Jets.

Next up, the 2-4 Spartans travel to Baltimore to take on the 2-4 Ravens.

[Dianwei32]

Week 7: The Spartans at the Ravens

It was cold and raining as the Spartans’ plane landed in Baltimore, the forecast for the game the next day called for dense cloud cover and a 40% chance of rain. The best part? A high of 30°F, a far cry from the 80°F it would be in San Antonio. Historically the Spartans had not played well in cold weather, amassing a 1-16 record when temperatures dropped below 50°F. 1-10 wasn’t too much worse than their 6-20 record when the temperature was above 50°F, but as a great coach once said, “Half of football is 90% mental.”

At kickoff the next day, the temperature was a lovely 35°F with a wind chill of 31°F thanks to a 4 MPH wind blowing through the stadium. The Ravens won the toss and chose to receive the ball, but went 3-and-out after a tackle by Navorro Bowman to stop a conversion on 3^rd and 2. Reggie Bush managed a 13 yard return on a 55 yard punt, giving the Spartans the ball on their own 41.

Sam Bradford led the Spartans’ offense out onto the field, and after two fairly unsuccessful runs the Spartans were looking at 3^rd and 8. However, Bradford dropped back after a play fake to Jamal Lewis and stepped up to hit Jordan Shipley on a 30 yard strike, and Shipley evaded two defenders to score. Bradford was a perfect 3 for 3 on the drive.

On the Ravens’ following drive, Joe Flacco threw a pass just over the reach of WR Dez Bryant on 3^rd and 4 resulting in the second Ravens 3-and-out in as many drives. The Spartans came back out onto the field, and opened up their Wildcat formation, with CJ Gable lined up at QB. Gable faked a handoff to Reggie Bush and cut upfield for an 8 yard gain, setting up 2^nd and 2. On the next play Bradford was forced to scramble thanks to good coverage by the Ravens. Bradoford picked up 12 yards and the first down on the scramble. On 1^st and 10 from the Ravens 20 yard line, Bradford connected with James Casey again for his first touchdown of the game.

The Ravens came back out on offense and finally managed to put together a decent drive, gaining their first two first downs of the game early in the second quarter. On a crucial 3^rd and 1, Navorro Bowman made another key stop tackling Ray Rice for no gain, forcing a punt. Reggie Bush caught the punt at the Spartans’ 10 yard line, but managed to return it 32 yards out to the 42 yard line. On the ensuing play, Bradford saw that Pierre Garçon was covered one-on-one, so he audibled to have Garçon run a streak down the field. Bradford threw the pass, and Garçon managed to bring in the pass for a 44 yard gain before being tackled by Ed Reed. Two plays later, the Spartans had the ball 3^rd and 9 on the Ravens’ 13 yard line when Ray Lewis managed to sack Bradford for a 6 yard loss. The Spartans were forced to kick a field goal and went up 17-0.

Leigh Tiffin managed a touchback on the kickoff and the Ravens got the ball back at their own 20. Joe Flacco dropped back and hit Anquan Boldin with a 20 yard pass. Boldin broke two tackles and took the pass 80 yards for the Ravens’ first touchdown of the game.

With one minute left in the half, Bradford dropped back to pass, but was sacked by Haloti Ngata and was injured. Bradford was helped off of the field by trainers on a cart. Initial examinations by trainers indicated that Bradford may have broken a rib, but X-rays were negative and it was determined that his ribs were only bruised. It was determined that with the 27-7 lead that the Spartans had built (thanks to a second James Casey touchdown and another field goal) Bradford would sit out the second half of the game as a precautionary measure.

The second half of the game was much less exciting than the first half with Bradford sidelined and the Spartans working merely to avoid losing their lead. On the Ravens first drive of the half, Joe Flacco threw a pass behind TE Todd Heap and Navorro Bowman intercepted it and managed to run it back 10 yards to the Ravens’ 46 yard line. The Spartans were only able to manage a field goal from 47 yards out on 4^th and 1 from the 37. Through the rest of the third quarter, the Spartans held the Ravens to field goals from the red zone.

At the start of the fourth quarter, the Ravens had the ball 3^rd and 6 on their own 48 yard line. Joe Flacco hit Dez Bryant on a 16 yard completion to convert for a first down. Later in the drive, the Ravens reached 4^th and 1 from the Spartans’ 40 yard line and decided that they had to go for it for a chance to come back in the game. The Ravens ran the ball on a pitch to Ray Rice, but Navorro Bowman came up and made the stop just inches from the first down marker.

The Spartans got the ball back and backup QB Richie Mick hit James Casey on a 15 yard pass. Casey lowered his shoulder and trucked through Ed Reed to take the ball 41 yards for his second touchdown of the day, extending the Spartans’ lead to 34-13. After holding the Ravens to their 4^th 3-and-out of the game, the Spartans got the ball back with 9:00 left in the 4^th quarter. On a subsequent 3^rd and 7, Mick overthrew Jordan Shipley on a post route and was picked off by Ed Reed.

The Spartans managed to stop the Ravens from scoring on their next drive, with Eric Berry missing an interception that bounced off of his hands on 4^th down. The Spartans got the ball back with just under 2:00 left, and decided to break out the Wildcat one more time, with Reggie Bush at the QB position. Bush faked the handoff to CJ Gable and cut through the defense for a 52 yard gain down to the 1 yard line. With time running down, the Spartans decided to run one final play that let Gable punch it in for a touchdown to make the final score 47-13.

Highlights from the game
Final Game Stats

Team Stats
SAN | BAL
Total Yards: 349 | 209
Passing: 174 | 151
Rushing: 175 | 52
1st downs: 11 | 5
T.O.P: 30:19 | 17:41
3rd downs: 2-8 | 2-12

Passing
BAL J. Flacco: 39.3 rating, 11-29, 159 yards, 1 TD, 2 INTs
SAN S. Bradford: 158.3 rating, 7-8, 165 yards, 3 TDs
SAN R. Mick: 73.0 rating, 4-7, 38 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT


Rushing
BAL R. Rice: 12 carries, 46 yards, 3.8 YPC
BAL J. Flacco: 1 carry, 6 yards, 6.0 YPC
SAN J. Lewis: 16 carries, 41 yards, 2.5 YPC
SAN CJ Gable: 8 carries, 46 yards, 5.8 YPC, 1 TD
SAN R. Bush: 1 carry, 52 yards, 52 YPC
SAN S. Bradford: 4 carries, 23 yards, 5.8 YPC (had to scramble a few times)

Receiving
BAL D. Bryant: 3 catches, 34 yards
BAL R. Rice: 2 catches, 10 yards
BAL A. Boldin: 2 catches, 84 yards, 1 TD
BAL T. Heap: 1 catch, 11 yards
BAL L. McClain: 1 catch, 14 yards
SAN J. Casey: 5 catches, 99 yards, 3 TDs
SAN P. Garçon: 3 catches, 61 yards
SAN J. Shipley: 3 catches, 48 yards, TD

Defense
BAL R. Lewis: 6 tackles, 4 TFL, 2 sacks
BAL J. Johnson: 4 tackles, 2 TFL, 2 sacks
BAL T. Pryce: 3 tackles, 2 TFL, 1 sack
BAL E. Reed: 2 tackles, 1 INT
SAN N. Bowman: 6 tackles 2 TFL, 1 INT
SAN E. Berry: 4 tackles, 1 TFL, 1 sack, 2 passes defended
SAN B. Batas: 3 tackles, 1 INT, 3 passes defended

[Joshua1207]

Talk about owning them on the ground lol.