Welcome to the Season Two NSFL in Review series! There will be 8 parts to this, one for each team in record/elimination order. @RainDelay and I will be looking at the good things, the bad things, and the future scope of each team.
So far in this season’s series:
Nothing. This is the first one.
First up is the Las Vegas Legion, who finished 4th place in the American Simulation Football Conference this season (and last place overall), which did not allow them to qualify for the playoffs.
Las Vegas Legion
3-11
Fourth (Last) in ASFC
The Good
No team wants to be the first team mentioned in this series, and trust me, I didn’t want this to be the first one that I wrote, because there is not a lot of good to write about. Here goes, though.
Number One: Stormblessed has not even come CLOSE to peaking in terms of performance. I need to qualify that statement, because I feel receivers in general are going to see more success in Season Three, but for Stormblessed, there will be even more. Despite being one of the most physically gifted receivers, possibly THE most physically gifted, Stormblessed is only known for two things: his top-notch speed for yards after the catch and piss-poor hands and ability to get open. While his speed is nearing the human threshold, his hands and shuttle times are actually among the worst of all non-rookie starting wide receivers. On an offense like the Legion, this is a major problem, as Bercovici doesn’t have enough time in the pocket for what should be his number one receiver. Next year, though, when he puts that effort into being a more reliable target, expect him to be a consistent deep threat. Defenses will have to dedicate a player up top to slowing him down, which will open up a lot more for the rest of the offense, and hopefully ease the pass rush going against Bercovici.
Number Two: Las Vegas possibly has the best interior pass rush in the league. The Legion may have finished in the middle of the pack in sack numbers, but approximately 60% of those sacks came from two players: Mark Ramrio and Vinny Cox. With most teams putting their best blockers on the outside, expect the interior pressure to only get more intense. If they can add another linebacker to replace one of their two inactives, or a better cover corner/safety, this could be a dangerous team for any offense to face. Notice I am only focusing on pass defense, but that’s because they are already one of the better teams in the league against the run.
Number Three: Ardie Savea. Despite generally failing to acquire talent in the Season Two draft, Savea (who was traded for just after) has been actively improving. One may not think it given his low yards per carry, but I think that has far more to do with the blocking up front. Also, as with Stormblessed, Savea is a poor fit for this offense. Given the lack of blocking, the line is unable to create the kind of holes large enough for a back of Savea’s size, leading to the much smaller and less talented Kyle Cobb seeing a lot more success. Savea seems to be working on his elusiveness, so maybe he’ll be more successful in Season Three, but realistically, Savea’s ideal use seems to be as a blocker so that the rest of the offense can actually function.
The Bad
This section is so obvious that there’s almost no point in writing for it beyond my getting paid by the word. Admittedly, that’s enough for me.
Number One: This team is bad. Unlike the SaberCats and Hawks in Season One, the Legion weren’t the victims of a random slump or Any Given SimDay. They were simply the worst team in the league. As an example, I will type a complete list of games where the Legion weren’t the weaker team below:
Week Seven vs Philadelphia Liberty.
Week Fourteen (Bye week)
That’s it. Out of fourteen games, there was one time where they were actually the better team. They lost that one, though. Home field advantage was the only reason they won any of their games. All things considered, the Legion actually overachieved.
Number Two: This team is going to stay bad. Despite being better than the Liberty in Week Seven, they were already the weaker team for the rematch in Week 10. Why? One of those teams got better. The Legion finished the draft well ahead of the Liberty in total talent and actually on par with the Baltimore Hawks, but two of those three teams actually had more than one motivated rookie working to get better. Next season, there will be zero games where the Legion are the better team, or even where both teams will be approximately even. An optimistic fan could normally look to the Season Three draft, but the Legion have already traded away almost all of their picks. They will have a second and third rounder next year, though, so that will be exciting. Season Four isn’t looking much better. Not only are they already missing a first and third round pick (sent to Arizona, because THERE’S a team desperate for talent), but all of those players are likely going straight into the DSFL for a year.
Number Three: A complete lack of heroes. http://nsfl.jcink.net/index.php?showtopic=2273 Take a look at their contracts. You know how every good team has some stud players that are also cheap as well, undermining the entire spirit of the salary cap? Well, Las Vegas decided not to do that. Even their GM, on most squads a team leader, is nowhere near being among the best value players in the league, as he is neither the best at his position (around tenth, according to most scouts), nor the cheapest ($2 million/year above the minimum). Even if they do acquire talent, where are the role models for them to follow?
The Future
There’s not an easy way to say it, but here’s my prediction: https://youtu.be/TReCZ2auRkE?t=3s
Okay, maybe that’s a bit harsh. The Legion WILL be worse next season than in this one, and probably worse still in Season Four, though by then they’ll have drafted players sitting in the DSFL. I’d say Season Five is when the rebuild starts to actually happen instead of just being prepared for. The Legion will finally have a first round (and first overall pick), and all of their MANY inactive players will be on vet minimum extensions, freeing up a ton of cap space. If the league adjusts minimum salaries to a level more commensurate to their worth, the Legion should be able to start bringing in talent in two ways. Unfortunately, when a team needs two more seasons before a rebuild can officially start, it will probably be a couple more on top of that before things start changing.
So far in this season’s series:
Nothing. This is the first one.
First up is the Las Vegas Legion, who finished 4th place in the American Simulation Football Conference this season (and last place overall), which did not allow them to qualify for the playoffs.
Las Vegas Legion
3-11
Fourth (Last) in ASFC
The Good
No team wants to be the first team mentioned in this series, and trust me, I didn’t want this to be the first one that I wrote, because there is not a lot of good to write about. Here goes, though.
Number One: Stormblessed has not even come CLOSE to peaking in terms of performance. I need to qualify that statement, because I feel receivers in general are going to see more success in Season Three, but for Stormblessed, there will be even more. Despite being one of the most physically gifted receivers, possibly THE most physically gifted, Stormblessed is only known for two things: his top-notch speed for yards after the catch and piss-poor hands and ability to get open. While his speed is nearing the human threshold, his hands and shuttle times are actually among the worst of all non-rookie starting wide receivers. On an offense like the Legion, this is a major problem, as Bercovici doesn’t have enough time in the pocket for what should be his number one receiver. Next year, though, when he puts that effort into being a more reliable target, expect him to be a consistent deep threat. Defenses will have to dedicate a player up top to slowing him down, which will open up a lot more for the rest of the offense, and hopefully ease the pass rush going against Bercovici.
Number Two: Las Vegas possibly has the best interior pass rush in the league. The Legion may have finished in the middle of the pack in sack numbers, but approximately 60% of those sacks came from two players: Mark Ramrio and Vinny Cox. With most teams putting their best blockers on the outside, expect the interior pressure to only get more intense. If they can add another linebacker to replace one of their two inactives, or a better cover corner/safety, this could be a dangerous team for any offense to face. Notice I am only focusing on pass defense, but that’s because they are already one of the better teams in the league against the run.
Number Three: Ardie Savea. Despite generally failing to acquire talent in the Season Two draft, Savea (who was traded for just after) has been actively improving. One may not think it given his low yards per carry, but I think that has far more to do with the blocking up front. Also, as with Stormblessed, Savea is a poor fit for this offense. Given the lack of blocking, the line is unable to create the kind of holes large enough for a back of Savea’s size, leading to the much smaller and less talented Kyle Cobb seeing a lot more success. Savea seems to be working on his elusiveness, so maybe he’ll be more successful in Season Three, but realistically, Savea’s ideal use seems to be as a blocker so that the rest of the offense can actually function.
The Bad
This section is so obvious that there’s almost no point in writing for it beyond my getting paid by the word. Admittedly, that’s enough for me.
Number One: This team is bad. Unlike the SaberCats and Hawks in Season One, the Legion weren’t the victims of a random slump or Any Given SimDay. They were simply the worst team in the league. As an example, I will type a complete list of games where the Legion weren’t the weaker team below:
Week Seven vs Philadelphia Liberty.
Week Fourteen (Bye week)
That’s it. Out of fourteen games, there was one time where they were actually the better team. They lost that one, though. Home field advantage was the only reason they won any of their games. All things considered, the Legion actually overachieved.
Number Two: This team is going to stay bad. Despite being better than the Liberty in Week Seven, they were already the weaker team for the rematch in Week 10. Why? One of those teams got better. The Legion finished the draft well ahead of the Liberty in total talent and actually on par with the Baltimore Hawks, but two of those three teams actually had more than one motivated rookie working to get better. Next season, there will be zero games where the Legion are the better team, or even where both teams will be approximately even. An optimistic fan could normally look to the Season Three draft, but the Legion have already traded away almost all of their picks. They will have a second and third rounder next year, though, so that will be exciting. Season Four isn’t looking much better. Not only are they already missing a first and third round pick (sent to Arizona, because THERE’S a team desperate for talent), but all of those players are likely going straight into the DSFL for a year.
Number Three: A complete lack of heroes. http://nsfl.jcink.net/index.php?showtopic=2273 Take a look at their contracts. You know how every good team has some stud players that are also cheap as well, undermining the entire spirit of the salary cap? Well, Las Vegas decided not to do that. Even their GM, on most squads a team leader, is nowhere near being among the best value players in the league, as he is neither the best at his position (around tenth, according to most scouts), nor the cheapest ($2 million/year above the minimum). Even if they do acquire talent, where are the role models for them to follow?
The Future
There’s not an easy way to say it, but here’s my prediction: https://youtu.be/TReCZ2auRkE?t=3s
Okay, maybe that’s a bit harsh. The Legion WILL be worse next season than in this one, and probably worse still in Season Four, though by then they’ll have drafted players sitting in the DSFL. I’d say Season Five is when the rebuild starts to actually happen instead of just being prepared for. The Legion will finally have a first round (and first overall pick), and all of their MANY inactive players will be on vet minimum extensions, freeing up a ton of cap space. If the league adjusts minimum salaries to a level more commensurate to their worth, the Legion should be able to start bringing in talent in two ways. Unfortunately, when a team needs two more seasons before a rebuild can officially start, it will probably be a couple more on top of that before things start changing.