Portland Lumberjacks - An NFL Expansion Team Experience

[SethMurphy]

Stole this idea from another Dynasty on here, but decided to give the Expansion Franchise idea a try. Took over the Raiders and relocated them to Portland, releasing everyone off of the roster and starting with a complete blank slate at the end of season 1. Fired Jack Del Rio too, hiring a generic coach to really create the idea of a completely new franchise.

I am currently playing on All-Pro, but might need to bump back to All-Madden after I played the first game.

Set myself a few house rules as well, could only sign 10 FAs in the first offseason during the signing period, and no major stars (Le'Veon Bell, Drew Brees were FAs for example). Draft picks, UDFA and older FAs filled out my roster.

Here is a look at my first 10 players in the Lumberjacks history, highlighted by defensive standouts Desmond King and Karl Joseph, as well as QB Teddy Bridgewater.

King is a Superstar DEV, Joseph and Johnny Holton are Quick.

[SethMurphy]

The 2017 NFL Draft came and the Lumberjacks had the No. 1 overall pick, and had their eye on the previous season's Heisman Trophy winner, a RB named Allen Solomon (later renamed to Saquon Barkley, because why not). Solomon was the #12 overall prospect on the draft board, and this is where Portland owner Seth Murphy got creative.

Feeling he could get better value for his new franchise, he traded out of the No. 1 overall spot back to No. 2, gaining two additional picks from the Cleveland Browns, including a pick at the end of this year's first round. He then traded back again to No. 7, gaining more picks for this season and next. And with that, Solomon/Barkley was selected as the first draft pick in Portland's history.



With the 31st pick in the first round (acquired from Cleveland) Portland targeted an anchor for the defense up front, someone to pair with King/Joseph. Kyle Kitna was named MVP of the All Star Game with 19 tackles, and as a 3-4 pass rusher, will be moved to DE in the Portland 4-3 defense.



The top of the second round offered a chance to target a key offensive lineman, grabbing LG Josh McBride. And with that the Lumberjacks were off and running building a team.



The entire draft class can be seen here

Portland Lumberjacks Draft Recap
Pick	Player	College	Pos	Ht	Wt
1.7	Saquon Barkley (80)	Penn State	RB
1.31	Kyle Kitna (67)	Cincinnati	RE
2.1	Josh McBride (78)	Toledo	LG
2.2	Adrian McKay (69)	Oklahoma St.	MLB
2.7	Cole Carmazzi (73)	Florida	LE
3.5	Malcolm Jones (72)	Ohio	RT
4.1	Bryant Monk (68)	Rutgers	CB
5.29	Rodriguez Royster (66)	Richmond	WR
6.1	Trevence Troutman (67)	Clemson	DT
6.12	Alexander Kilmer (72)	Louisville	RG
7.1	Ryan Marts (72)	Temple	C

[SethMurphy]

After the draft and with a lot of holes to fill, the Lumberjacks attacked filling out a 53-man roster, grabbing UDFA rookies, and veterans who didn't get offers in the offseason. The team will need some work of course, but with key building blocks the future looks bright.

[SethMurphy]

Week 1 - San Francisco 49ers @ Portland Lumberjacks

Lumberjacks open season with shocking first win, knocking off Garroppolo and the 9ers. Portland used an efficient offensive effort from Teddy Bridgewater, who completed 80% of his passes, and didn't turn the ball over to lead a comeback effort to ignite the city.

After a back and forth first half effort that ended with a 6-3 San Francisco lead, the Lumberjacks were building confidence. But an 88-yard touchdown run by Carlos Hyde put SF up 13-3 and really made Portland feel like it might be over.

But Bridgewater and company put together two touchdown drives in the fourth quarter, including the final score with just under 1 minute left on the clock. Rookie Saquon Barkley finished with 76 yards rushing and another 57 through the air on 6 catches.

[SethMurphy]

Week 2 - Portland (1-1) @ Indianapolis Colts

In a game where Portland started to show the ability to make a comeback, and get stops when needed, the game came down to an unlucky bounce and a short leg. Portland's rookie kicker Todd Bates missed a 57-yard kick in the first half short, leading to Portland being down 23-21 late in the fourth quarter after scoring a touchdown.

The ensuing onside kick attempt was near perfect, bouncing off of the hands of the Colts and bouncing around the field for a few seconds before Indy eventually scooped the ball and returned it for a touchdown. (Yes I'm angered with the Madden game, because like 7 of my guys made attempts to pick up the ball, but not really even though they were laying next to it).

This was still a game to build on for the Lumberjacks, as they were resilient in making the comeback attempt.

[SethMurphy]

Week 3 - Cincinnati @ Portland (1-2)

Week 3 brought a game that wasn't nearly as close as the final score showed, as the Lumberjacks struggled to stop Joe Mixon all game. The 2nd year back finished with 3 total touchdowns for the Bengals in this game, 2 rushing and 1 through the air.

Portland scored on a late touchdown in the final minute to close the final gap, as Johnny Holton scored his first touchdown of the season, Holton being one of the first 10 members to join the Lumberjacks. MLB Josh Mauga also set a career high with 18 total tackles in the game.

Up next is the Bye Week, but before that could happen Owner Seth Murphy jumped on his first action in the trade market. Dallas had young corner Jourdan Lewis (81) on the trade block, so Murphy made that call quickly and sent veteran Buster Skrine along with a 3rd round pick this season and 4th round pick next season in return for the young corner. Now the Lumberjacks have a pair of really talented young corners in Desmond King and Lewis, to go with Karl Joseph at SS and they are starting to build a core on defense.

[SethMurphy]

Week 5 - Portland (2-2) @ Cleveland

Week 5 was one of the better complete games the Lumberjacks have played, showing both efficiency on offense as well as solid defensive play against a poor Cleveland squad.

This game was highlighted by the ups and downs of NFL football all in one game. Rookie RB Saquon Barkley finally broke out, and finished with 143 yards rushing on 22 carries, accented by a big 74-yard run in the second half. Barkley however would leave the game at the end with a shoulder tear and will miss time during his rookie campaign.

Barkley wasn't the only one, as the Lumberjacks' starting LG Josh McBride, their best offensive lineman, also went down injured and will miss time over the next few weeks.

WR Quincy Enunwa finally showed why Portland signed him as one of their first 10 free agents, catching 8 passes for 115 yards in the win.

[Deuce2223]

Living in Oregon (4 hours from Portland), I will be keeping an eye on this. I am would think with Bridgewater's past injury issues, that you want to try and grab a more established backup QB.