Ready to be graded!
With the new season coming soon, feel free to ask a GM questions about my team, the season ahead, and other things.
@KillaScrilla asked:
Where do you see your team finishing this season?
Honestly, I think we have a very good team this year that could surprise some people. We already surprised people last season and I think we can continue that trend and continue getting better. I think overall, I think we are either the 2nd or 3rd best team in our conference and therefore at least have a chance to shock people in the playoffs and see what we can get done there.
How do your rookies fit into your plans and do you see them contributing right away?
We are incredibly happy with our draft and have gotten some amazing rookies to help us on this journey. There are four rookies who will see immediate time as starters on the team and who will contribute right from the start. Jordan Andrews will be a starter as cornerback and is immediately someone we look to to shut down opposing receivers. We also have another cornerback who will immediately start for us in Willie Woodson, who we also have high hopes in. On the defensive line, we managed to add Ennis, who will be an impact player from day one and we are very excited to see what he can do. On the offensive side, we have Action Jackson, the NSFL's first blind wide receiver. We believe in equality and so we are super excited to give him a path in this league. We are however aware that due to his blindness, he seems to line up as a tight end occasionally so he will see some time in both positions. Obviously from my own player's view, adding another target to throw to was an exciting process for me.
Most importantly is a hot dog a sandwich? Nah I’m kidding but seriously is it?
Honestly, asking someone from Austria about anything bread related is going to get you into trouble. We love to have bread based discussions. You wouldn't believe what I think is bread or isn't bread. Brown bread? Bread. White bread? White bread. Toast? Doesn't have to be toasted, it's just a square white bread. Bread roll? Not bread!
So yeah, I do think a hot dog is a sandwich but I am definitely the wrong person to ask.
@terriblehippo asked:
Where (if anywhere) do you think your roster still needs improvement?
To be honest, it's more of a process for everyone to just get another season of improvements, for all the actives getting better. If we do have a weakness, it probably comes on the D-line. While Ennis and Rax are great players there, we probably need one more good player there to fill that gap on our team. Elsewhere though, I feel very comfortable with where our team and roster is. I think it all looks good right now.
This is at least the second straight offseason where New Orleans failed to sign any available free agents. Does this worry you at all? Do you think your recruiting strategy needs to change at all? Are you going to pursue free agents next offseason, or are you more focused on building through the draft?
While I do see the concern in it, I think it shows a bigger thing. How many significant players actually did change teams in the last two seasons? THere were some, but it wasn't many to begin with. We felt very comfortable with where we were in some of the pitches and we felt like we could sign some guys but in the end, it is what it is. I think it was still a promising sign that we were competing for several free agents that a season or two ago probably wouldn't have considered our team yet. Also, technically, we did sign a free agent in Bonaberi Jones, though he was also previously on New Orleans.
I think our recruiting strategy itself is very good and we do think we have a good chance to sign free agents by next season, as we will be more promising contenders to a lot of people then. I think we also put together some great pitches this season that will bring people back to consider us whenever they are free agents again.
That being said, we are always focused on building through the draft. We had great drafts in S14, S15 and this current one. We also have a lot of picks in the upcoming draft next season, including two first rounders. Our team was already built in the draft.
Speaking of the draft, what do you think of NOLA's most recent draftees, the so-called "Sinister Six"? Are there any S18 draft prospects that have impressed you so far?
We are insanely happy with our most recent draft. We couldn't have imagined it would go this well. The draft itself was insanely great and then we also had the trade for Ennis and the extra pick on top of it. The Sinister Six are a great crew and we look forward to having them all on the team for many seasons to come. We think they will be part of the group that can push us towards title contention for several seasons to come. THey have all been a breath of fresh air in the locker room and we look forward to seeing them in the games.
Finally, what do you like to do in your free time?
I mean, I spend a majority of my free time with these sim leagues haha. It is a ridiculous time investment, really. Otherwise I love to read, I spend a lot of time with board games and video games. I like trivia nights and clearly that comes across in these sim leagues too, where I love to focus on awards, statistics and trivia. I love to work with spreadsheets and always try to come up with new ideas for these leagues and to go deeper with articles and such. And obviously the same stuff as everyone, like music and TV and such.
@ValorX77 asked:
How do you see your team, two seasons from now?
Two seasons from now, we should be seeing this team at the top of the league. We will have a large number of actives just entering their prime. I would not be shocked if we were contenders for a title for several seasons now, and in two seasons that should be the height of that time. We have essentially everyone meaningful under contract for the next few seasons too, so there is a lot of hope there.
If you were to face someone in Ultimus, who would it be and why?
Oh that is a very good question. I am honestly not sure. I think the Hawks are the team that stand out somehow, especially with the Ennis trade this season, there is a special relation now between those two teams I think.
Most people view the Second Line as a Dark horse Ultimus candidate, tell me why your team should be feared in S17.
I think we are a dark horse ultimus candidate, yes. We should be feared because we have a really great group of people on our roster. We will have a solid QB with more weapons on offense than last season. We have two of the best RBs in the league who were already the best rushing offense last season. We have a solid defense, headlined by two of the best young LBs in the game, good cornerbacks and safeties and a couple great guys on the D Line. We have a solid group all around. I think we will be able to make a lot of noise.
@iamslm22 asked:
How does it feel to have more SLM clients than any other team?
Did you really have to remind me? I think overall it shows that we have a lot of quality players who value representation and value being on a smart and good team. I think it shows that you yourself value the work we do and think we are on the way up clearly.
How would you grade your past draft?
We think it was an A+. We managed to get a large number of actives, made an incredible trade that netted us two actives for an inactive and we added several guys who have been incredible already and should be able to help us contend for many seasons to come. We are more than excited about the draft.
@duillo05 asked:
Why did you select Terriblehippo as your coGM?
I went the entire S14 season without a co-GM after I took over as GM which was honestly a very very tough thing as someone who was new to it and sort of needed help sometimes, it was hard to not have that. I went into the S15 draft hoping that I would be able to draft someone who would be interested to become co GM and hippo was obviously one of our top choices in the draft in the first round and has been fantastic ever since. He was interested and impressed me with his opinions and help right away.
Has he taught you anything?
He has been great as someone to bounce ideas off of, to plan ahead. I think he has helped me stay balanced and stay true to the NOLA way and build an incredible roster. I couldn't have done it without him.
What do you think is the most interesting part of NOLA history?
I mean, I think this team has had a very long interesting history, from the early days of Las Vegas Legion and that whole debacle, all the way to the meme team glory days. There were a lot of amazing parts to it and I hope we are in the middle of creating another great part of history for this amazing franchise.
With the new season coming soon, feel free to ask a GM questions about my team, the season ahead, and other things.
@KillaScrilla asked:
Where do you see your team finishing this season?
Honestly, I think we have a very good team this year that could surprise some people. We already surprised people last season and I think we can continue that trend and continue getting better. I think overall, I think we are either the 2nd or 3rd best team in our conference and therefore at least have a chance to shock people in the playoffs and see what we can get done there.
How do your rookies fit into your plans and do you see them contributing right away?
We are incredibly happy with our draft and have gotten some amazing rookies to help us on this journey. There are four rookies who will see immediate time as starters on the team and who will contribute right from the start. Jordan Andrews will be a starter as cornerback and is immediately someone we look to to shut down opposing receivers. We also have another cornerback who will immediately start for us in Willie Woodson, who we also have high hopes in. On the defensive line, we managed to add Ennis, who will be an impact player from day one and we are very excited to see what he can do. On the offensive side, we have Action Jackson, the NSFL's first blind wide receiver. We believe in equality and so we are super excited to give him a path in this league. We are however aware that due to his blindness, he seems to line up as a tight end occasionally so he will see some time in both positions. Obviously from my own player's view, adding another target to throw to was an exciting process for me.
Most importantly is a hot dog a sandwich? Nah I’m kidding but seriously is it?
Honestly, asking someone from Austria about anything bread related is going to get you into trouble. We love to have bread based discussions. You wouldn't believe what I think is bread or isn't bread. Brown bread? Bread. White bread? White bread. Toast? Doesn't have to be toasted, it's just a square white bread. Bread roll? Not bread!
So yeah, I do think a hot dog is a sandwich but I am definitely the wrong person to ask.
@terriblehippo asked:
Where (if anywhere) do you think your roster still needs improvement?
To be honest, it's more of a process for everyone to just get another season of improvements, for all the actives getting better. If we do have a weakness, it probably comes on the D-line. While Ennis and Rax are great players there, we probably need one more good player there to fill that gap on our team. Elsewhere though, I feel very comfortable with where our team and roster is. I think it all looks good right now.
This is at least the second straight offseason where New Orleans failed to sign any available free agents. Does this worry you at all? Do you think your recruiting strategy needs to change at all? Are you going to pursue free agents next offseason, or are you more focused on building through the draft?
While I do see the concern in it, I think it shows a bigger thing. How many significant players actually did change teams in the last two seasons? THere were some, but it wasn't many to begin with. We felt very comfortable with where we were in some of the pitches and we felt like we could sign some guys but in the end, it is what it is. I think it was still a promising sign that we were competing for several free agents that a season or two ago probably wouldn't have considered our team yet. Also, technically, we did sign a free agent in Bonaberi Jones, though he was also previously on New Orleans.
I think our recruiting strategy itself is very good and we do think we have a good chance to sign free agents by next season, as we will be more promising contenders to a lot of people then. I think we also put together some great pitches this season that will bring people back to consider us whenever they are free agents again.
That being said, we are always focused on building through the draft. We had great drafts in S14, S15 and this current one. We also have a lot of picks in the upcoming draft next season, including two first rounders. Our team was already built in the draft.
Speaking of the draft, what do you think of NOLA's most recent draftees, the so-called "Sinister Six"? Are there any S18 draft prospects that have impressed you so far?
We are insanely happy with our most recent draft. We couldn't have imagined it would go this well. The draft itself was insanely great and then we also had the trade for Ennis and the extra pick on top of it. The Sinister Six are a great crew and we look forward to having them all on the team for many seasons to come. We think they will be part of the group that can push us towards title contention for several seasons to come. THey have all been a breath of fresh air in the locker room and we look forward to seeing them in the games.
Finally, what do you like to do in your free time?
I mean, I spend a majority of my free time with these sim leagues haha. It is a ridiculous time investment, really. Otherwise I love to read, I spend a lot of time with board games and video games. I like trivia nights and clearly that comes across in these sim leagues too, where I love to focus on awards, statistics and trivia. I love to work with spreadsheets and always try to come up with new ideas for these leagues and to go deeper with articles and such. And obviously the same stuff as everyone, like music and TV and such.
@ValorX77 asked:
How do you see your team, two seasons from now?
Two seasons from now, we should be seeing this team at the top of the league. We will have a large number of actives just entering their prime. I would not be shocked if we were contenders for a title for several seasons now, and in two seasons that should be the height of that time. We have essentially everyone meaningful under contract for the next few seasons too, so there is a lot of hope there.
If you were to face someone in Ultimus, who would it be and why?
Oh that is a very good question. I am honestly not sure. I think the Hawks are the team that stand out somehow, especially with the Ennis trade this season, there is a special relation now between those two teams I think.
Most people view the Second Line as a Dark horse Ultimus candidate, tell me why your team should be feared in S17.
I think we are a dark horse ultimus candidate, yes. We should be feared because we have a really great group of people on our roster. We will have a solid QB with more weapons on offense than last season. We have two of the best RBs in the league who were already the best rushing offense last season. We have a solid defense, headlined by two of the best young LBs in the game, good cornerbacks and safeties and a couple great guys on the D Line. We have a solid group all around. I think we will be able to make a lot of noise.
@iamslm22 asked:
How does it feel to have more SLM clients than any other team?
Did you really have to remind me? I think overall it shows that we have a lot of quality players who value representation and value being on a smart and good team. I think it shows that you yourself value the work we do and think we are on the way up clearly.
How would you grade your past draft?
We think it was an A+. We managed to get a large number of actives, made an incredible trade that netted us two actives for an inactive and we added several guys who have been incredible already and should be able to help us contend for many seasons to come. We are more than excited about the draft.
@duillo05 asked:
Why did you select Terriblehippo as your coGM?
I went the entire S14 season without a co-GM after I took over as GM which was honestly a very very tough thing as someone who was new to it and sort of needed help sometimes, it was hard to not have that. I went into the S15 draft hoping that I would be able to draft someone who would be interested to become co GM and hippo was obviously one of our top choices in the draft in the first round and has been fantastic ever since. He was interested and impressed me with his opinions and help right away.
Has he taught you anything?
He has been great as someone to bounce ideas off of, to plan ahead. I think he has helped me stay balanced and stay true to the NOLA way and build an incredible roster. I couldn't have done it without him.
What do you think is the most interesting part of NOLA history?
I mean, I think this team has had a very long interesting history, from the early days of Las Vegas Legion and that whole debacle, all the way to the meme team glory days. There were a lot of amazing parts to it and I hope we are in the middle of creating another great part of history for this amazing franchise.