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+---- Thread: *An overview of S34 class- defense & special teams (/showthread.php?tid=37631)
*An overview of S34 class- defense & special teams - yonggarius - 02-17-2022
Defense oveview
Defensive players are always more on demand than players on the offensive side. That's because ISFL teams need more defensive players on a roster than offensive players (offenses contain about 3~4 offensive line bots in most teams), on top of the fact that there's almost always more users creating in offense, seeking more flashy skill positions like running backs or wide receivers. So prospects on the defensive side of the ball usually see a slight boost to their draft stock, and quite a few GMs create at various defensive positions in order to ensure that their team fills a major hole in that side of the ball. So whereas in offense there were more players than there were spots bar some positions, you will see that there are more spots than players in most defensive positions.
Defensive ends
The Board
Nathan Explosion (London Royals, 217TPE)
Chim Rickles (Kansas City Coyotes, 197TPE)
Joey Din (Minnesota Grey Ducks, 184TPE)
Aldon LaGreca (London Royals, 69TPE)
Olajide Olatunji (Kansas City Coyotes, 65TPE)
Good, max earning defensive ends (or defensive line players in general) are quite hard to come by, and it's most likely that a team will be unable to fill a defensive line exclusively with those kind of players. Hell, teams often struggle to field an entire defensive line of active players. Hence, there's a lot of lower TPE players and inactives in this position. So teams might seek to draft a defensive end if one is available even though they have sufficient number of players in that position, in order to bolster the position in long term. Because of that good defensive line prospects always tend to be in high demand, especially after the creates in those positions decreased following the sim switch as linebackers started to get the bulk of defensive stats.
This season, there's 3 teams with an urgent need at defensive position, which means they don't have enough players to field a whole line, or they are in danger of letting that happening. Those teams are Baltimore Hawks who need either a defensive lineman or linebacker to field a full front 7 (although it's more likely that they go 3-4 and pick a linebacker as that position is a lot deeper in this draft), the Colorado Yeti whose defensive line is in a truly dire state with only 2 heavily regressing defensive ends rostered, and the Arizona Outlaws who also need either a linebacker or a defensive lineman to fill out their front 7, while one of their 3 defensive tackles enter regression. (I also think that it's more likely for the Outlaws to pick a linebacker, as they seem like a 3-4 team to me. Edit: I found out that one of the Outlaws GMs, Z-Whiz, has a linebacker in this class, so that definitely seems like their case of action). Apart from them, quite a few teams have one or more defensive linemen inactive, regressing or both, so they will also be looking to improve on defensive line if the opportunity comes.
Fortunately for those needy teams, there are several good defensive end prospects in this draft. The number 1 among them in my opinion is Nathan Explosion, who also happens to be the highest TPE player among the 5. Explosion is technically a first gen player, but his user- micool003- originally hails from SHL where he is quite well regarded. He's a great earner there, as well as a great presence to hang out in locker rooms from my experience. It's quite likely that he earns well in ISFL too, and becomes a high earning defensive lineman that basically every team needs. I'm quite sure that he won't fall out of the first round, as high earning defensive linemen are quite rare as I said.
Next up are Chim Rickles and Joey Din, whose TPE earning levels are just as good as that of Explosion. Rickles is a recreate of Jangorhino, a long time league veteran who had a very long career with his former player which I think was also a defensive end. He is also quite renowned for making good graphics. He proved that he can be a max earner at the position, so I think he will go in somewhere between mid 1st to 2nd round. Joey Din is a first gen, and his user have been quiet in the forums so far like many other first gen users do. I think he'll go off the board somewhere in the 2nd round.
Apart from the 3 prospects I mentioned, there's two more defensive ends in this class. Aldon LaGreca and Olajide Olatunji has both been inactive for over a month now, and their TPE is barely above ISFL draft eligibility levels. Unless they come back and start earning soon, I feel like they will go in late 3rd to 4th round, with the rest of the inactives.
Defensive tackles
The Board
Solace Avenger (Dallas Birddogs, 227TPE)
(Yes, that's it)
Oh, how the mighty has fallen. Defensive tackle was one of the most popular positions in the defensive side of the ball back in our league's DDSPF 16 days, as the position got a lot of sacks back then. But following the sim switch defensive tackle became the most underappreciated position in defense, with it not getting many stats of any kind. That resulted in creates in this position dropping dramatically. In terms of needs, it's basically the same with what I wrote above in defensive ends section as both defensive line positions have largely the same dynamics.
There's only one defensive tackle prospect in this draft, and that's Solace Avenger. Fortunately for teams that need defensive line talent (and there's quite a lot of those), Avenger is a very good earner in terms of TPE. MobiausGrander, the user behind Avanger, is a second-time defensive line user with his former player being a defensive end. He enjoyed a long career with said player, again having good earning levels through the career of him. Mobi also holds league jobs, so he's definitely a high caliber prospect in his own right, not just beause there's a shortage of defensive tackles in this draft. And because of that I can't see him falling out of the first round.
Linebackers
The Board
Elessar Jones (Tijuana Luchadores, 229TPE) *GM*
Spottie O'Dopaliscious (London Royals, 229TPE) *GM*
Ganyu (Bondi Beach Buccaneers, 227TPE)
Sam Sung (Dallas Birddogs, 154TPE)
Spot Robodog (Portland Pythons, 125TPE)
Matthew Ashley (Kansas City Coyotes, 117TPE)
Drakocarr Sunazzo (Norfolk Seawolves, 88TPE)
Tyron Brackenridge Jr. (Portland Pythons, 84TPE)
Mary Simpson IV (Dallas Birddogs, 62TPE)
Linebackers are the most popular position in the defensive side of the ball after the sim switch to DDSPF 21, due to its ability to get a wide variety and quantity of stats. A well made linebacker can have a very prolific career, when put in a right spot in the depth chart. (I don't know which spot that was, but I do know that there is one such spot in the depth chart) That resulted in a lot of users creating in the position. That's not a bad thing at all, because linebackers are the most needed position in ISFL with either 3 or 4 linebackers needed per team depending on their defensive schemes. Currently, basically every team has a linebacker or two in various degrees of regression, but most of those linebackers will hold out for an extra season or two so I wouldn't classify most of those team's needs very urgent, apart from teams like Baltimore Hawks and Arizona outlaws who either need an extra defensive lineman or a linebacker to field a full front 7, and New Orleans Second Line who are one linebacker short.
This season's linebacker draft class is 8 prospects strong, but only 6 of those are really draftable. The players whose names are crossed off- Elessar Jones and Spottie O'Dopaliscious, are respectively players created by GMs of Arizona Outlaws and New Orleans second line. So they will be going to their own teams with their second round picks, and will be filling the need for linebackers those two teams currently have like I mentioned before.
Among the draftable prospects, Ganyu stands out as the top guy. A former quarterback turned linebacker following the DSFL draft, I feel like someone whould have given him a chance in ISFL as quarterback as his user, GlimsTC, is a very well regarded user across the community and has maintained a very good earning pace through the long career of his former player bar a few short patches. I think the Baltimore Hawks- the only team with an urgent linebacker need at this point- will most likely take Ganyu with their first round selection, and solve the problem they currently have with a max earner with great locker room presence and personality all around. I'm pretty sure that Glims' former player spent the whole of his career with the Hawks, so that prediction makes sense in more than one way.
Next up is Sam Sung, who currently have 154TPE. Sam Sung and his user, TheNC206, was one of the top picks back in the DSFL draft. He lived up to that hype by being a great user with good locker room activity and league job (rookie mentor), although his earning levels are a little low for a true max earner. Nevertheless Sung will be a More than serviceable starter and a great presence in the locker room for any team that drafts him. I have him dropping to second round, mostly because I think teams other than the Hawks will address positions with more urgent needs before visiting the linebacker position.
Another former first round pick in the DSFL draft, Spot Robodog is up next with 125TPE to his name. It seems like he was last seen very recently, although he missed 2 consecutive updates. But as TMosura, Robodog's user, has been a very good earner with his previous player, (he's a great guy to hang out in locker rooms as well, from my interactions with him) I think he'll return to being a good earner once he returns to updating. For now I can see him going in late 2nd round or early 3rd round. Matthew Ashley is in a similar situation with Robodog, apart from being a recreate bit. Instead he belongs to a first gen user who has been relatively quiet in the forums. Ashley has been inactive for last two weeks or so, but I think he can be a solid mid tier earner if he can come back and continue his earning pace. Like Robodog I can see him going in the late second round to third round.
To round out the class, we have Dyakocarr Sunazzo, Tyron Brackenridge Jr, and Mary Simpson IV. All three have less than 100 TPE, and they all haven't been updated in over a month now. If they don't come back they'll probably end up in somewhere near the end of 3rd or the 4th round. Among the 3, I found Tyron Brackenridge Jr kind of surprising, as he's a recreate of lowlycrib, a well renowned user who has been a max earner before. I hope he can come back and turn things around.
Cornerbacks
The Board
Russet Buster (Kansas City Coyotes, 263TPE) *GM*
Simon the Frog (Bondi Beach Buccaneers, 250TPE)
Cuttino Mobley (Dallas Birddogs, 183TPE)
Demetrius Matthews (Norfolk Seawolves, 92TPE)
Defensive back positions- cornerbacks and safeties- are quite a peculiar position group in my opinion. They show a lot of fluctuation in numbers in a seasonal basis, with no obvious reasons. And sometimes that can be a little problematic for drafters, as defensive backs are one of the most consistently needed positions in the ISFL. A team typically need 5 total defensive backs to man their secondary (2 corners, 2 safties and a nickel), but I have seen quite a few teams running with 6 defensive backs. So naturally basically all the teams have one or more player in that position in regression. That's why you see teams with no urgent need on the position stocking up on them when there's a big defensive back class. Currently teams with urgent needs at the position group include San Jose Sabercats who got 3 defensive backs in heavy regression with their only senddown being inactive for the last 2 months, Colorado Yeti where literally everyone in the defensive back room are in regression with no senddowns in DSFL, New Orleans Second Line who need 1 more defensive back to field a whole roster as well as having 2 of the 4 they currently have in regression, And Austin Copperheads Who have 2 defensive backs in regression and another retiring pre-ultimus. And as there's plenty of other teams with regressing players in the position like I mentioned before, I will say that there's plenty of need for defensive backs this draft.
Prospect wide, this is a little unfortunate for teams that were looking for some defensive back talent as this defensive back class is on the smaller side of the scale. And the numbers suffer even more, as the top TPE player of the cornerback class, Russet Buster, is actually a GM player for the San Jose Sabercats, and is not eligible to be drafted freely. Buster will be filling up the urgent defensive back need in San Jose, while the Sabercats might look for some additional talents in the position as it is most likely they need multiple players in this position group.
Among the draftable players, The highest on TPE standpoint is Simon the Frog, which happens to be my own player. This might look like a brag a little, but I do think my player is a more than decent prospect. He's a player in a position with high demand who has been earning max so far, and I have proved that I can maintain the pace for a long time with my former player, too. So I can see myself going in the first round, probably early second round at the latest.
Next up, with a good earning level of 183TPE total, is Cuttino Mobley. Mobley is a recreate of user stupiduglyidiot, whom I know a little as he was my teammate in Dallas back when I was a first gen. He was relatively quiet in the locker room back then, but I heard he got a lot more active when he got to Chicago. So with a vastly improved TPE earning pace compared to his last player, I expect to see his draft stock see a significant rise with the need for defensive backs. I see him going in late first to second round.
Rounding up the cornerback class is Demetrius Matthews from the Norfork Seawolves, who currently got 92TPE. He's technically a recreate, but his former player had a very short career so he's basically a first gen user. He has been creating several graphics so far, and I expect him to be a solid mid tier earner if he stays active with current pace. I can see him going in late 2nd to 3rd round.
Safeties
The Board
Cross- Eriksen (Minnesota Grey Ducks, 271TPE) *GM*
Titus Samson (Kansas City Coyotes, 190TPE)
Tom Taylor (Minnesota Grey Ducks, 166TPE)
Matthew Bee (Minnesota Grey Ducks, 113TPE)
Bom Trady (Kansas City Coyotes, 71TPE)
Blaze Jennings (Tijuana Luchadores, 62TPE)
Safety position's dynamics are largely the same with that of cornerback position, as I'm pretty sure that the two positions are somewhat interchangeable in the sim. So I made an overview for the defensive back position group in general in my overview for cornerback position. The general trend, and the team needs for the current draft will be largely same with the cornerbacks, so we'll move on to individual prospects.
This season's safety class have 6 total prospects, but there are only 5 that are really draft eligible as the top TPE prospect of the crop, Cross- Eriksen is another GM player. Cross- Eriksen is a GM player for the Colorado Yeti, and will be helping out the aging secondary out there in Colorado.
The top prospects who are really eligible to be drafted freely are two first gen players, Titus Samson and Tom Taylor. Both are quite prototypical good earning first gen players, with their users being relatively quiet on the forum side of things. I unfortunately don't have much idea about their discord activity. Whereas Taylor have about 25 less TPE than Samson at this point, I have both at max because Taylor was literally the last S34 player to be created, and therefore had a late start. As good earners in a position of need I can see them going from late 1st to the 2nd round.
Next up is Matthew Bee, who currently have 113TPE. He's another first gen user like the aforementioned two, who is a little quiet on the forums. At slightly more than 100TPE I think he will be a solid mid earner if he continues at this pace, therefore being a solid starter for any ISFL he gets drafted into. I see mid to late second round for Bee.
To round up the safety group, there are Bom Trady and Blaze Jennings. Both currently have less than 100TPE, with Trady having 71 and Jennings having 62, and both have been inactive for quite some time now. Unless they come back very soon and start earning I see them going in the end or 3rd to 4th round along with the rest of the inactives.
Kicker/ Punters
The Board
Theo Lariat (Minnesota Grey Ducks, 222TPE)
Moustache Santoso (Norfolk Seawolves, 125TPE)
Ian Cole III (Portland Pythons, 101TPE)
Kicker/ punters are a position that have small demand and a small supply. As teams only need 1 player of the player who double as the team's kicker and the punter, the amount of spots are not that high to start with. And as kickers perform relatively well with less TPE than other positions, the turnaround at the position is not very quick either. But that's balanced by the fact there's not that many kickers creating, in the first place. Currently, 4 teams have regressing kickers; that is the Sarasota Sailfish, Arizona Outlaws, New York Silverbacks and the San Jose Sabercats. But most of those kickers will have the ability to brave out another regression or two without a lot of damage to their performance. I expect those teams to address the position in later rounds, if they have the opportunity.
The undebated top prospect of the kicker class is Theo Lariat. Lariat's user, ctots, is one of the rising new users in this class. He's been heavily involved in the league already, with him securing a HO intern spot recently. And from my experience working with him in the HO I can confidently tell that he's a great guy all around. I feel like he's a very strong candidate for the DSFL most dedicated user award, and I definitely see him going in the early first round. I will be very much surprised if he falls out of the first round, as he also stated that he is willing to change positions out of kicker in a recent media piece.
Apart from Lariat, there's two recreates in Moustache Santoso and Ian Cole. Both prospects are the type that is seem quite frequently among recreate kickers, namely mid earning players with users more focused on discord activity than sim side of things. Teams will be happy to have them in the locker room, and have them be their kicker for a very long time. I can see both of them going in the second or third round.
RE: An overview of S34 class- defense & special teams - TheNC206 - 02-17-2022
Awesome read! I really enjoyed it!
RE: An overview of S34 class- defense & special teams - TMosura - 02-17-2022
I'm alive!
RE: An overview of S34 class- defense & special teams - Jangorhino - 02-19-2022
Great media!!!
Thanks for the love