Good Morning(Afternoon),
With the addition of two new teams to the ISFL, we are going to look at how this will effect the draft.
The main thing that will happen is it will redistribute the talent a little more evenly across all teams. In theory it should create some parity through out the league, but it might take a couple of seasons to for that to be apparent. The thing is, it wont help with bad management of a team. That will always create issues for any team, no matter the talent they get, if the team is ran poorly, those players will leave the team as soon as they can.
That being said, it will make any position that is lower numbers(and actually important) that much more valuable. Position scarcity will be a big part of this draft, not just how much TPE are you going to earn and how active you are. The first two rounds of the draft will be where this really comes into play. And of course with the expansion draft happening first, that will have a big impact on which teams need what. Not all of the unprotected players will be drafted by a new team.
I am not going to do a mock expansion draft at this time, but instead looking at positions and the numbers of each one coming up in the draft and then which teams seem to have a stronger need to see what position is most likely to go where.
Colorado Yetis (current roster)
Two Quarter back
Three Running backs
One Tight End
Three Wide reveivers
Two Offensive linemen
Two Corner backs
Three Line backers
One Defensive tackle
Two Defensive ends
Three Safeties
One Kicker
Sarasota Sailfish (current roster)
One Quarter back
Two Running back
Two Tight ends
Two Wide receivers
Two Offensive linemen
Two Corner backs
Three Line backers
Two Defensive tackles
Two Defensive ends
Three Safeties
One Kicker
Chicago Butchers (current roster)
One Quarter back
Two Running backs
Two Tight ends
Two Offensive linemen
Five Wide receivers
Three Corner backs
Two Line backers
Two Defensive tackles
Three Defensive ends
Two Safeties
One Kicker
Yellowknife Wraiths (current roster)
One Quarter back
Two Running backs
One Tight end
One Offensive linemen
Four Wide receivers
Two Corner backs
Two Line backers
Two Defensive tackles
Two Defensive ends
Three Safeties
One Kicker
Baltimore Hawks (current roster)
One Quarter back
Three Running backs
One Tight end
One Offensive linemen
Three Wide receivers
Three corner backs
Two Line backers
Two Defensive tackles
Two Defensive ends
Three Safeties
One Kicker
Philadelphia Liberty (current roster)
One Quarter back
Two Running backs
Two Tight ends
One Offensive linemen
Three Wide receivers
Two Corner backs
Three Line backers
Two Defensive tackles
Two Defensive ends
Four Safeties
One Kicker
New Orleans Second Line (current roster)
One Quarter back
Two Running backs
Two Tight ends
Two Offensive Linemen
Three Wide receivers
Three Corner backs
Two Line backers
Two Defensive tackles
Two Defensive ends
Two Safeties
One Kicker
Orange County Otters (current roster)
One Quarter back
Two Running backs
Two Tight ends
One Offensive linemen
Three Wide receivers
Two Corner backs
Three Line backers
Two Defensive tackles
Two Defensive ends
Three Safeties
One Kicker
Honolulu Hahalua (current roster)
One Quarter back
Two Running backs
Three Wide receivers
Four Corner backs
Three Line backers
One Defensive tackles
Three Defensive ends
Two Safeties
One Kicker
Arizona Outlaws (current roster)
One Quarter back
Two Running backs
One Tight end
Three Offensive linemen
Three Wide receivers
Three Corner backs
Two Line backers
Three Defensive tackles
One Defensive end
Two Strong safeties
One Kicker
San Jose Sabercats (current roster)
One Quarter back
Two Running backs
One Tight end
Three Wide receivers
Four Corner backs
Two Line backers
Two Defensive tackles
Two Defensive ends
Two Safeties
One Kicker
Austin Copperheads (current roster)
One Quarter back
Two Running backs
One Tight end
Two Offensive linemen
Four Wide receivers
Three Corner backs
Three Line backers
Two Defensive tackles
Three Defensive ends
Two Safeties
One Kicker
I did not take out the expansion GMs from those rosters yet, I will account for that lower down.
First up is Colorado Yetis
Needs : Tight End (not right now, but future) Quarter Back, Offensive Linemen, Defensive Tackle
They honestly have a good core of running backs and wide receivers all on the way up. They also have some quality youngsters on defense.
They protected five defensive players and only three offense. One running back, one wide receiver and an offensive linemen. Lots of potential losses here.
Of course who they lose in the expansion draft could have a big impact on their needs. They are losing their top TPE defensive tackle to GM one of the new teams, that will definitely create a large hole to fill on that side of the ball. Plus their quarter back is retiring after this season, so two big TPE losses after this season ends, could make for an interesting draft.
Sarasota Sailfish
Needs : Wide Receiver, Offensive Line, Corner Back, Quarter Back
This team has some good young talent, most of them have been protected in the upcoming draft. But they left a couple of their young high earners un protected. They chose and even mix of offensive and defense to protect with one quarter back, running back, wide receiver and tight end each. On the defensive side they picked two line backers, one defensive tackle and their top safety. I have a feeling they might end up losing their top wide receiver and maybe their top corner back, hard to say for sure, but they have two season twenty three guys with tons of TPE, someone might take a gamble and steal one. Their quarter back does appear to be on the decline, so definitely a need to prepare for the future at that position in this or an up coming draft.
Chicago Butchers
Needs : Wide Receiver (after the expansion draft) Tight End(maybe)Line Backer, Defensive End
They have a lot of young talented players, in a couple of seasons, they might be one of the better teams as far as straight up talent goes. But as we all know that is not the only factor going in to which team is the best. If they manage to hang on to their two top wide receivers during this draft, they will come out the other side in a really good spot. They protected four guys on offense, their quarter back, a running back, a wide receiver(not either of their two highest TPE guys) and one offensive lineman. On defense, they protected five guys, two corner backs, two defensive tackles and one safety. They pick mostly newer draft picks with proven earning potential, but this may leave them weak in defensive end, wide receiver, tight end and maybe line backer. It might pay off the way they did their protections, but it could also bite them in booty.
Yellowknife Wraiths
Needs : Offensive Line, Defensive Line, Corner Back
Another team with lots of young guys who appear to be on the up swing and active. Great combination of offensive and defensive players doing great, they do have a couple of older players who are on the down swing and will most likely retire soon. Which is where some of their needs will come from. They have a high TPE running back and a high TPE line backer who are both unprotected and could get poached. Depends on the draft strategy these two new teams decide to go with, are they going to go for youngsters with high upside and just accept the first few seasons might not be great, or will they choose to grab some higher TPE veterans and make a run earlier?
Baltimore Hawks
Needs : Wide Receiver, Defensive Linemen, Offensive Linemen
This team has some good talent from the season 21 through season 24 drafts. They could use a few more pieces to really help push them forwards. The problem is two of their top wide receivers are leaving to general manage one of the expansion draft teams, creating a rather large hole at that position. They chose to protect four offensive players and five defensive players. As most teams have done, they picked their quarter back, top running back, tight end and one of their dsfl wide receivers, my boy Howlett, to try and help replace the leavers. On defense they picked a core of young guys taking two line backers, two corner backs and a safety, completely ignoring their defensive line. Not real sure who is the most in danger for this team, but three options are their remaining corner back, safety or maybe their second running back.
Philadelphia Liberty
Needs : Running Back (maybe after draft), Tight End, Defensive Linemen, Line Backers, Corner Back
This team has some solid players, but appears to have drafted some in active players in the past few seasons. While they have a decent amount of players total, some of them barely contribute to the team beyond having a pulse. They could definitely use some active players on the defensive side of the ball, as all of their linemen and line backers are on the lower side of the TPE scale, not to say they can't perform on the field, but once regressions hits, they wont last long at all. In the expansion draft, they may well lose one or both of their running backs, potentially their tight end (my guess). They protected four offensive players, their quarter back, two wide receivers and their only offensive lineman. On defense they chose three safeties and one corner back.
New Orleans Second Line
Needs : Wide Receiver, Running Back, Offensive Line, Line Backer
Another team with some really good pieces going forwards, one of the main pieces being their season 22 quarter back, their tight end and some strong defensive backs. They could definitely use a line backer or three, and they may need to replace their wide receivers after the draft, their starting running back is about to be on the decline so in the future they will need to plan for that as well as some offensive linemen. They protected three of their offensive players, one of course being their franchise quarter back, running back and tight end. On the other side of the ball they protected one defensive tackle, two safeties and two corner backs to keep their defensive core together.
Orange County Otters
Needs : Quarter Back, Tight End, Offensive Line, Defensive Line (Maybe)
This team is one of the ones with an outgoing quarter back who they did not protect, meaning they will need to have someone in the works in the next season or two. They may end up needing a tight end and could of course use more than one active line men on the offensive side. They protected only two offensive players, one a wide recveiver and one running back. The rest are all defensive players, keeping a strong core together, one corner back, one line backer and three safeties got saved. They are in danger of losing a defensive tackle, defensive end or their top tight end depending on how the teams play their draft hands.
Honolulu Hahalua
Needs : Offensive Line, Defensive Tackle, Wide Receiver(potential)
A team with some really good players in important positions, decent number of season 22 and season 23 draft picks, who appear active and ready to contribute for a long time. They could use any number of offensive linemen as they have zero at the moment, only one active defensive tackle, and depending on the draft they may end up needing some receivers as well. They chose to protect their up and coming quarter back, both of their top two running backs and one wide receiver. On defense they saved two corner backs, one line backer, and one safety to try and keep their best and brightest young guys together.
Arizona Outlaws
Needs : Safety, Defensive End, Wide Receiver
This team has tons of talent from the season 22 draft, made lots of good pick ups there. They are a little thin at safety and potentially thinner after the draft, they only have one active defensive end on the team and one receiver on the regress with two decent uppers. The problem is they may lose, will lose, some of these players, there are some really good active ones they did not protect. They protected their quarter back and one tight end on the offensive side, clearly looking to save their defense going forwards. They saved two corner backs, two line backers and their top defensive tackle. I would guess the top targets in the expansion draft are one of their wide receivers and their top and only defensive end.
San Jose Sabercats
Needs : Offensive Linemen, Defensive End, Line Backer
This team has a lot of potent weapons going forwards on the offense and defense side of the ball. It will definitely come down to who they lose in the expansion draft. They have a franchise quarter back and two really good wide outs with some strong defensive players as well. They do not have any actual offensive linemen at all. So could use a couple of them, potentially they might end up needing defensive end and line backer after this draft takes places. They protected their quarter back and two wide receivers on the offense and one safety, line backer, defensive tackle and the first team to protect their kicker(they are people too!) Not sure who gets taken from this team, but guessing one of the strong defensive players un protected.
Austin Copperheads
Needs : Quarter Back, Running Back, Tight End, Offensive Line, Safety
Wow, this team has some old corpses barely even able to move but somehow still playing. Quarter back is on the way down, as is their tight end and one of their safeties. They protected almost completely the defensive side of the ball, three defensive ends, one defensive tackle and a line backer, I think the first team to not protect a single defensive back. They also protected two wide receivers and one running back on the other side of the ball. Over all not sure who they lose out on but probably a running back or their other wide out not protected.
There you have it, the supposed needs of each team according to my attempt at checking in to rosters of each team. I did not include the needs of the expansion teams, because with out doing a separate mock draft and using that information to see what they will need. Yea, too much guessing at that point. I will say it seems fairly safe to assume they will both need a quarter back some where soon. Even if they take a non protected one, they will need a replacement soon after as all the ones available are old and dying. Obviously a lot of this hinges on how the teams decide they will be best suited in drafting from the other teams. If they load up on young talent and try to basically give them selves a couple of seasons to get everything together they could very quickly become a contender, or they could try and piece together a playoff team with veterans and see if they can get lucky and surprise some people.
Mark Walker
With the addition of two new teams to the ISFL, we are going to look at how this will effect the draft.
The main thing that will happen is it will redistribute the talent a little more evenly across all teams. In theory it should create some parity through out the league, but it might take a couple of seasons to for that to be apparent. The thing is, it wont help with bad management of a team. That will always create issues for any team, no matter the talent they get, if the team is ran poorly, those players will leave the team as soon as they can.
That being said, it will make any position that is lower numbers(and actually important) that much more valuable. Position scarcity will be a big part of this draft, not just how much TPE are you going to earn and how active you are. The first two rounds of the draft will be where this really comes into play. And of course with the expansion draft happening first, that will have a big impact on which teams need what. Not all of the unprotected players will be drafted by a new team.
I am not going to do a mock expansion draft at this time, but instead looking at positions and the numbers of each one coming up in the draft and then which teams seem to have a stronger need to see what position is most likely to go where.
Colorado Yetis (current roster)
Two Quarter back
Three Running backs
One Tight End
Three Wide reveivers
Two Offensive linemen
Two Corner backs
Three Line backers
One Defensive tackle
Two Defensive ends
Three Safeties
One Kicker
Sarasota Sailfish (current roster)
One Quarter back
Two Running back
Two Tight ends
Two Wide receivers
Two Offensive linemen
Two Corner backs
Three Line backers
Two Defensive tackles
Two Defensive ends
Three Safeties
One Kicker
Chicago Butchers (current roster)
One Quarter back
Two Running backs
Two Tight ends
Two Offensive linemen
Five Wide receivers
Three Corner backs
Two Line backers
Two Defensive tackles
Three Defensive ends
Two Safeties
One Kicker
Yellowknife Wraiths (current roster)
One Quarter back
Two Running backs
One Tight end
One Offensive linemen
Four Wide receivers
Two Corner backs
Two Line backers
Two Defensive tackles
Two Defensive ends
Three Safeties
One Kicker
Baltimore Hawks (current roster)
One Quarter back
Three Running backs
One Tight end
One Offensive linemen
Three Wide receivers
Three corner backs
Two Line backers
Two Defensive tackles
Two Defensive ends
Three Safeties
One Kicker
Philadelphia Liberty (current roster)
One Quarter back
Two Running backs
Two Tight ends
One Offensive linemen
Three Wide receivers
Two Corner backs
Three Line backers
Two Defensive tackles
Two Defensive ends
Four Safeties
One Kicker
New Orleans Second Line (current roster)
One Quarter back
Two Running backs
Two Tight ends
Two Offensive Linemen
Three Wide receivers
Three Corner backs
Two Line backers
Two Defensive tackles
Two Defensive ends
Two Safeties
One Kicker
Orange County Otters (current roster)
One Quarter back
Two Running backs
Two Tight ends
One Offensive linemen
Three Wide receivers
Two Corner backs
Three Line backers
Two Defensive tackles
Two Defensive ends
Three Safeties
One Kicker
Honolulu Hahalua (current roster)
One Quarter back
Two Running backs
Three Wide receivers
Four Corner backs
Three Line backers
One Defensive tackles
Three Defensive ends
Two Safeties
One Kicker
Arizona Outlaws (current roster)
One Quarter back
Two Running backs
One Tight end
Three Offensive linemen
Three Wide receivers
Three Corner backs
Two Line backers
Three Defensive tackles
One Defensive end
Two Strong safeties
One Kicker
San Jose Sabercats (current roster)
One Quarter back
Two Running backs
One Tight end
Three Wide receivers
Four Corner backs
Two Line backers
Two Defensive tackles
Two Defensive ends
Two Safeties
One Kicker
Austin Copperheads (current roster)
One Quarter back
Two Running backs
One Tight end
Two Offensive linemen
Four Wide receivers
Three Corner backs
Three Line backers
Two Defensive tackles
Three Defensive ends
Two Safeties
One Kicker
I did not take out the expansion GMs from those rosters yet, I will account for that lower down.
First up is Colorado Yetis
Needs : Tight End (not right now, but future) Quarter Back, Offensive Linemen, Defensive Tackle
They honestly have a good core of running backs and wide receivers all on the way up. They also have some quality youngsters on defense.
They protected five defensive players and only three offense. One running back, one wide receiver and an offensive linemen. Lots of potential losses here.
Of course who they lose in the expansion draft could have a big impact on their needs. They are losing their top TPE defensive tackle to GM one of the new teams, that will definitely create a large hole to fill on that side of the ball. Plus their quarter back is retiring after this season, so two big TPE losses after this season ends, could make for an interesting draft.
Sarasota Sailfish
Needs : Wide Receiver, Offensive Line, Corner Back, Quarter Back
This team has some good young talent, most of them have been protected in the upcoming draft. But they left a couple of their young high earners un protected. They chose and even mix of offensive and defense to protect with one quarter back, running back, wide receiver and tight end each. On the defensive side they picked two line backers, one defensive tackle and their top safety. I have a feeling they might end up losing their top wide receiver and maybe their top corner back, hard to say for sure, but they have two season twenty three guys with tons of TPE, someone might take a gamble and steal one. Their quarter back does appear to be on the decline, so definitely a need to prepare for the future at that position in this or an up coming draft.
Chicago Butchers
Needs : Wide Receiver (after the expansion draft) Tight End(maybe)Line Backer, Defensive End
They have a lot of young talented players, in a couple of seasons, they might be one of the better teams as far as straight up talent goes. But as we all know that is not the only factor going in to which team is the best. If they manage to hang on to their two top wide receivers during this draft, they will come out the other side in a really good spot. They protected four guys on offense, their quarter back, a running back, a wide receiver(not either of their two highest TPE guys) and one offensive lineman. On defense, they protected five guys, two corner backs, two defensive tackles and one safety. They pick mostly newer draft picks with proven earning potential, but this may leave them weak in defensive end, wide receiver, tight end and maybe line backer. It might pay off the way they did their protections, but it could also bite them in booty.
Yellowknife Wraiths
Needs : Offensive Line, Defensive Line, Corner Back
Another team with lots of young guys who appear to be on the up swing and active. Great combination of offensive and defensive players doing great, they do have a couple of older players who are on the down swing and will most likely retire soon. Which is where some of their needs will come from. They have a high TPE running back and a high TPE line backer who are both unprotected and could get poached. Depends on the draft strategy these two new teams decide to go with, are they going to go for youngsters with high upside and just accept the first few seasons might not be great, or will they choose to grab some higher TPE veterans and make a run earlier?
Baltimore Hawks
Needs : Wide Receiver, Defensive Linemen, Offensive Linemen
This team has some good talent from the season 21 through season 24 drafts. They could use a few more pieces to really help push them forwards. The problem is two of their top wide receivers are leaving to general manage one of the expansion draft teams, creating a rather large hole at that position. They chose to protect four offensive players and five defensive players. As most teams have done, they picked their quarter back, top running back, tight end and one of their dsfl wide receivers, my boy Howlett, to try and help replace the leavers. On defense they picked a core of young guys taking two line backers, two corner backs and a safety, completely ignoring their defensive line. Not real sure who is the most in danger for this team, but three options are their remaining corner back, safety or maybe their second running back.
Philadelphia Liberty
Needs : Running Back (maybe after draft), Tight End, Defensive Linemen, Line Backers, Corner Back
This team has some solid players, but appears to have drafted some in active players in the past few seasons. While they have a decent amount of players total, some of them barely contribute to the team beyond having a pulse. They could definitely use some active players on the defensive side of the ball, as all of their linemen and line backers are on the lower side of the TPE scale, not to say they can't perform on the field, but once regressions hits, they wont last long at all. In the expansion draft, they may well lose one or both of their running backs, potentially their tight end (my guess). They protected four offensive players, their quarter back, two wide receivers and their only offensive lineman. On defense they chose three safeties and one corner back.
New Orleans Second Line
Needs : Wide Receiver, Running Back, Offensive Line, Line Backer
Another team with some really good pieces going forwards, one of the main pieces being their season 22 quarter back, their tight end and some strong defensive backs. They could definitely use a line backer or three, and they may need to replace their wide receivers after the draft, their starting running back is about to be on the decline so in the future they will need to plan for that as well as some offensive linemen. They protected three of their offensive players, one of course being their franchise quarter back, running back and tight end. On the other side of the ball they protected one defensive tackle, two safeties and two corner backs to keep their defensive core together.
Orange County Otters
Needs : Quarter Back, Tight End, Offensive Line, Defensive Line (Maybe)
This team is one of the ones with an outgoing quarter back who they did not protect, meaning they will need to have someone in the works in the next season or two. They may end up needing a tight end and could of course use more than one active line men on the offensive side. They protected only two offensive players, one a wide recveiver and one running back. The rest are all defensive players, keeping a strong core together, one corner back, one line backer and three safeties got saved. They are in danger of losing a defensive tackle, defensive end or their top tight end depending on how the teams play their draft hands.
Honolulu Hahalua
Needs : Offensive Line, Defensive Tackle, Wide Receiver(potential)
A team with some really good players in important positions, decent number of season 22 and season 23 draft picks, who appear active and ready to contribute for a long time. They could use any number of offensive linemen as they have zero at the moment, only one active defensive tackle, and depending on the draft they may end up needing some receivers as well. They chose to protect their up and coming quarter back, both of their top two running backs and one wide receiver. On defense they saved two corner backs, one line backer, and one safety to try and keep their best and brightest young guys together.
Arizona Outlaws
Needs : Safety, Defensive End, Wide Receiver
This team has tons of talent from the season 22 draft, made lots of good pick ups there. They are a little thin at safety and potentially thinner after the draft, they only have one active defensive end on the team and one receiver on the regress with two decent uppers. The problem is they may lose, will lose, some of these players, there are some really good active ones they did not protect. They protected their quarter back and one tight end on the offensive side, clearly looking to save their defense going forwards. They saved two corner backs, two line backers and their top defensive tackle. I would guess the top targets in the expansion draft are one of their wide receivers and their top and only defensive end.
San Jose Sabercats
Needs : Offensive Linemen, Defensive End, Line Backer
This team has a lot of potent weapons going forwards on the offense and defense side of the ball. It will definitely come down to who they lose in the expansion draft. They have a franchise quarter back and two really good wide outs with some strong defensive players as well. They do not have any actual offensive linemen at all. So could use a couple of them, potentially they might end up needing defensive end and line backer after this draft takes places. They protected their quarter back and two wide receivers on the offense and one safety, line backer, defensive tackle and the first team to protect their kicker(they are people too!) Not sure who gets taken from this team, but guessing one of the strong defensive players un protected.
Austin Copperheads
Needs : Quarter Back, Running Back, Tight End, Offensive Line, Safety
Wow, this team has some old corpses barely even able to move but somehow still playing. Quarter back is on the way down, as is their tight end and one of their safeties. They protected almost completely the defensive side of the ball, three defensive ends, one defensive tackle and a line backer, I think the first team to not protect a single defensive back. They also protected two wide receivers and one running back on the other side of the ball. Over all not sure who they lose out on but probably a running back or their other wide out not protected.
There you have it, the supposed needs of each team according to my attempt at checking in to rosters of each team. I did not include the needs of the expansion teams, because with out doing a separate mock draft and using that information to see what they will need. Yea, too much guessing at that point. I will say it seems fairly safe to assume they will both need a quarter back some where soon. Even if they take a non protected one, they will need a replacement soon after as all the ones available are old and dying. Obviously a lot of this hinges on how the teams decide they will be best suited in drafting from the other teams. If they load up on young talent and try to basically give them selves a couple of seasons to get everything together they could very quickly become a contender, or they could try and piece together a playoff team with veterans and see if they can get lucky and surprise some people.
Mark Walker