Not going to do a lot of introductory fluff, I'm happy to be hear and am looking forward to answering any and all questions that are brought forward. And, as always, go Sabercats!!!
What are your opinions on both the ASFC and NSFC? Which conference do you feel is the stronger?
I’m going to answer your questions together, to be completely honest, I don’t have a great conception of what the rest of the league looks like. Of course, the Hawks went undefeated in the pre-season and the Otters seemed to be a consensus choice to either win their conference or win the whole enchilada, but I can’t really make well-grounded commentary on the state of competition in the NSFL. That’s also not my job. My business is A.C. Hackett and my job is to make sure business stays booming. I’m gonna keep my nose to the grindstone and control what I can control. The fact of the matter is that the Hawks, Yetis, Otters, Wraiths and Outlaws are going to do whatever they’re going to do, I don’t have a shred of control over that. I’m going to be the best linebacker I can be and do everything I can to make the Sabercats the best team it can be.
Do you believe the 'cats can contend this year?
I’ve already spoken a little bit to the relative strength of the teams in the league, so I don’t think it’s necessary to go back into that. But, to answer the question, I believe this team can compete with anybody. We have absolute studs on both sides of the ball with Bailey Cook and Alexander Selich. But, more importantly, I will never, under any circumstances bet against myself. Even though I only play one side of the ball, any team I suit up for is a contender. End. Of. Story. You can quote me on that.
There's been rumblings of future expansion teams, where would you like to see some new teams?
In general, the East Coast is criminally underrepresented, there shouldn't be teams in Colorado and Canada when the most important parts of the United States are absent teams, so any movement in that direction would be a positive sign. From a business standpoint, while you’ll always have to deal with the stench of the catastrophic dumpster fire that is the Jets, it just doesn’t make sense to not have a team in New York City, what is still the world’s largest media market. Being a Maryland boy, I’m of the belief that there is no region quite like the Mid-Atlantic, and with that in mind I’d like to see a team in DC at the very least, and potentially a team in Pennsylvania. Finally, for the sake of geographic diversity, I’d like to follow the early indicators from the NFL and put a team in northern Mexico in a city like Monterrey or something along those lines. Even though the NFL is playing in Mexico City, I think for a smaller league such as the NSFL, logistics simply demand that the team be located closer to the United States.
What is your opinion on the recent changes regarding NSFL player contracts and training (ie training changed from 1mil to 500k for 5TPE)
That’s a great question, basic economic theory, if you ignore some of the psychology behind decision making, dictates that the cheaper something is, the more people will take advantage of it. Without a doubt, I think it is in the best interest of the league to have players improve more quickly. And when you take those two facts together, I think the changes are for the best and will be beneficial to both player development and the long-term health of the league. This is only tangentially related to the question, but I also am a huge fan of the changes regarding media payout structure. We have a lot of really talented writers and incentivizing those folks to write quality pieces will make the league more vibrant.
Other than your own, which NSFL team's logo and color scheme do you like the most?
I know you said with the exception of my team, but I’d be doing a disservice to good design if I didn’t shout out the SaberCats. In terms of both color-scheme and logo I’d say we’re lapping the field and I’d go on record with that position no matter what team I suited up for. To actually answer your question, I’d say the Outlaws and Wraiths are really close in terms of overall design, with a very slight edge in favor of the Outlaws. While the Wraiths’ logo certainly has an aesthetic appeal, it just doesn’t feel like a football logo to me, for whatever that’s worth. I’d definitely put the Otters at the bottom of any subjective ranking. The orange they have is absolutely garish, the white does nothing to balance it out and “Otter” might be the least intimidating team name this side of the Baby Cakes.
Why aren't you very active in the locker room/posting around the site? Nothing wrong with it, just curious.
I’m a firm believer in the idea that when we’re close to people, we begin to act like them a little bit. Most obvious example that comes to mind is the fact that ever since I’ve known Bailey Cook, I’ve gotten in this weird habit of pronouncing the names of West Coast states incorrectly. But, to answer this one, I’m going to have to throw it back a little bit. The scene is mid-basketball season and I was leaving a game where the Terps absolutely THRASHED the Catamounts. That’s not all that important but I gotta get my digs in. After the game, I ran into UVMs backup two-guard, we struck it up and, over time, became pretty close. For the sake of brevity, I’ll cut to pre-draft, when I journeyed to his home state to train in a distraction-free environment. Seriously, the state’s boring as hell. Of course, I lived with my boy while I was up there and I think that spending a significant amount of time with someone that maxes out on twenty-five spoken words per day had an effect on me, for good, bad or indifferent.
Now I'm not going to applaud a fish for swimming, but you had a very nice preseason as far as tackles and tackles for losses. Will your successes carry over to the regular season?
Yes, next question.
…
But in all seriousness, you can’t fluke your way into tackles. This isn’t like basketball where a bad shooter can have a hot streak or you can put up points by sheer volume. For every tackle I make, I need to diagnose the play, beat the ball-carrier to the spot and execute a form tackle against someone who represents the apex of human athleticism. Oh, and as the cherry on top, I have to do it all in a matter of seconds. Just from a probability perspective, it’d be damn near impossible to do all that by chance once, saying nothing of the twenty-nine times I did it in the preseason. I’m racking up tackles because I’m a damn good linebacker who plays behind a damn good defensive line, and I anticipate both of those things still being true when the regular season rolls around.
Which team are you most looking forward to playing against?
I was born in Baltimore, I was raised in Baltimore, and on draft night, the team in Baltimore elected to pass on me eleven times. I was the sixty-fourth pick in the draft, which means, obviously excluding my teammates, GMs made fifty-three mistakes. While I’m going to make sure all five teams in the NSFL go on to regret was clearly a bad decision, good lord willing and the creek don’t rise I’m laying the wood on anything with a pulse when I go back to Baltimore.
Finally, a question from a kid in the back wearing an Isaiah Thomas jersey and pink shorts. Something...Daley, I think it was. How would your defensive skills as a team stand up to those of the Patriots, the greatest football team to ever grace the earth with its presence?
Well, it’s nice of the kid to pass me a question. I have no comment regarding the New England football team. But I have the utmost faith that this Sabercats squad has the potential to develop into something that would put the Ravens of old to shame. Our linebacking corps and secondary are incredible and that will only become a greater strength as individuals improve and we get a better idea of how to maximize everybody’s strengths.
What are your goals for this season?
First and foremost, I want to do everything I can to help the team win. I know that’s the vanilla answer but, at the end of the day, the only stat that matters is winning percentage. That said, I do have personal goals for the season. I’d like to break the 120-tackle barrier and record at least ten passes defended. I’m not entirely sure of the details surrounding end-of-seasons awards, but the league officially recognizing my status as an elite linebacker sure would be nice.
Tell us how it was rooming with Bailey Cook during camp?
Oh boy, this is gonna be a doozy. Before I start, I just want to say that Bailey is as outstanding a person as he is a receiver, and rooming with someone I knew absolutely eased my move to the West Coast. That said, my man is a neat freaaaaak. With regular people I’m sure that’s no issue, but I’m most at ease in a room that looks like it’s been hit by a Category 2 hurricane. The line between our respective sides of the room were as well-defined as the DMZ. He also has a … unique … sense of style. After seven o’clock he dresses like an entirely different person. I also discovered that he plays 2K as if it’s 2003. If memory serves there was a game where eighty percent of his shots were long mid-range jumpers. Beyond contrasting basketball playstyles, that room was a pretty interesting mix of personalities. Bailey tends towards the more volatile side while I’m among the most laid-back people I’ve ever met. But that contrast was a positive experience and it was undoubtedly an awesome experience getting to room with Bailey.
Describe your pre-game meal?
When I’m done with this answer you’ll understand why those draft profiles said my weight fluctuated. I alternate pre-game meals based on whether it’s an even or odd day. On even days, it’s a hot turkey and American hero with raw onions and mayo. On odd days, it’s a turkey burger with swiss, barbeque sauce, and fried onions. I have a monster sweet tooth, so there are definitely a lot of Sugar Babies and Milk Duds consumed both before, during and after the game.
What is your work out regime like?
In general, I try to take a holistic approach to building my body. Relative to other guys I don’t train with free weights very often, I actually prefer resistance band training coupled with more targeted machine workouts. At some point I intend to get back into swimming for the whole-body benefits, but that’s a goal that has yet to be realized. As it relates to specific muscle groups, as primarily a coverage linebacker, the most valuable asset is the ability to move-in space. I concentrate a lot on lower body workouts and making sure my lateral movement stays top-notch. I also try and make sure I’m consistently targeting my core just to make sure I can both consistently bring down ball-carriers and avoid major injuries.
If you had to play an offensive position, which role would you enjoy the most?
I really don’t know, I’ve been a defense-oriented person essentially my whole life. I guess I’d say an offensive lineman because, in a sense, you’re “defending” the quarterback from the D-Line.
If you weren't drafted to the sabercats, what would be your second choice?
I alluded to this in a previous answer, but I would have wanted to have gone to the Hawks. Not having had a good crab cake in months is really driving home the fact that there truly is no city in the world like Baltimore, and, to expand the scope, no state like Maryland.
Did you play any other sports before going pro?
In high school I was an All-Met basketball player. Unfortunately, the market for stocky 6’1” tweeners is pretty scant on the college level, no matter how good they are on the defensive end. The fact that I was an absolutely pitiful finisher didn’t help matters either.
Cats or dogs?
Cats. I grew up with a dog and they might be the most attention-neediest species of animals in the history of life on earth.
Do you feel overshadowed playing with Selich, or are you happy to ride coat tails?
Neither. I think the phrase “riding coattails” connotes not being a contributor. Obviously Selich is a much more-heralded player than I am, but to harken back to ninth grade biology for a second, I would definitely characterize our relationship as symbiotic. Off the field, he lights a fire under my ass to get to where he is now and, on the field, our games complement each other’s beautifully. He helps to cover for my lack of elite strength and I think my natural feel for the game does him a great service as well. Regardless though, as long as we’re having team success, I certainly have no problem being out of the spotlight on defense.
Words (not counting questions): 2020
Ready to grade? Yes
What are your opinions on both the ASFC and NSFC? Which conference do you feel is the stronger?
I’m going to answer your questions together, to be completely honest, I don’t have a great conception of what the rest of the league looks like. Of course, the Hawks went undefeated in the pre-season and the Otters seemed to be a consensus choice to either win their conference or win the whole enchilada, but I can’t really make well-grounded commentary on the state of competition in the NSFL. That’s also not my job. My business is A.C. Hackett and my job is to make sure business stays booming. I’m gonna keep my nose to the grindstone and control what I can control. The fact of the matter is that the Hawks, Yetis, Otters, Wraiths and Outlaws are going to do whatever they’re going to do, I don’t have a shred of control over that. I’m going to be the best linebacker I can be and do everything I can to make the Sabercats the best team it can be.
Do you believe the 'cats can contend this year?
I’ve already spoken a little bit to the relative strength of the teams in the league, so I don’t think it’s necessary to go back into that. But, to answer the question, I believe this team can compete with anybody. We have absolute studs on both sides of the ball with Bailey Cook and Alexander Selich. But, more importantly, I will never, under any circumstances bet against myself. Even though I only play one side of the ball, any team I suit up for is a contender. End. Of. Story. You can quote me on that.
There's been rumblings of future expansion teams, where would you like to see some new teams?
In general, the East Coast is criminally underrepresented, there shouldn't be teams in Colorado and Canada when the most important parts of the United States are absent teams, so any movement in that direction would be a positive sign. From a business standpoint, while you’ll always have to deal with the stench of the catastrophic dumpster fire that is the Jets, it just doesn’t make sense to not have a team in New York City, what is still the world’s largest media market. Being a Maryland boy, I’m of the belief that there is no region quite like the Mid-Atlantic, and with that in mind I’d like to see a team in DC at the very least, and potentially a team in Pennsylvania. Finally, for the sake of geographic diversity, I’d like to follow the early indicators from the NFL and put a team in northern Mexico in a city like Monterrey or something along those lines. Even though the NFL is playing in Mexico City, I think for a smaller league such as the NSFL, logistics simply demand that the team be located closer to the United States.
What is your opinion on the recent changes regarding NSFL player contracts and training (ie training changed from 1mil to 500k for 5TPE)
That’s a great question, basic economic theory, if you ignore some of the psychology behind decision making, dictates that the cheaper something is, the more people will take advantage of it. Without a doubt, I think it is in the best interest of the league to have players improve more quickly. And when you take those two facts together, I think the changes are for the best and will be beneficial to both player development and the long-term health of the league. This is only tangentially related to the question, but I also am a huge fan of the changes regarding media payout structure. We have a lot of really talented writers and incentivizing those folks to write quality pieces will make the league more vibrant.
Other than your own, which NSFL team's logo and color scheme do you like the most?
I know you said with the exception of my team, but I’d be doing a disservice to good design if I didn’t shout out the SaberCats. In terms of both color-scheme and logo I’d say we’re lapping the field and I’d go on record with that position no matter what team I suited up for. To actually answer your question, I’d say the Outlaws and Wraiths are really close in terms of overall design, with a very slight edge in favor of the Outlaws. While the Wraiths’ logo certainly has an aesthetic appeal, it just doesn’t feel like a football logo to me, for whatever that’s worth. I’d definitely put the Otters at the bottom of any subjective ranking. The orange they have is absolutely garish, the white does nothing to balance it out and “Otter” might be the least intimidating team name this side of the Baby Cakes.
Why aren't you very active in the locker room/posting around the site? Nothing wrong with it, just curious.
I’m a firm believer in the idea that when we’re close to people, we begin to act like them a little bit. Most obvious example that comes to mind is the fact that ever since I’ve known Bailey Cook, I’ve gotten in this weird habit of pronouncing the names of West Coast states incorrectly. But, to answer this one, I’m going to have to throw it back a little bit. The scene is mid-basketball season and I was leaving a game where the Terps absolutely THRASHED the Catamounts. That’s not all that important but I gotta get my digs in. After the game, I ran into UVMs backup two-guard, we struck it up and, over time, became pretty close. For the sake of brevity, I’ll cut to pre-draft, when I journeyed to his home state to train in a distraction-free environment. Seriously, the state’s boring as hell. Of course, I lived with my boy while I was up there and I think that spending a significant amount of time with someone that maxes out on twenty-five spoken words per day had an effect on me, for good, bad or indifferent.
Now I'm not going to applaud a fish for swimming, but you had a very nice preseason as far as tackles and tackles for losses. Will your successes carry over to the regular season?
Yes, next question.
…
But in all seriousness, you can’t fluke your way into tackles. This isn’t like basketball where a bad shooter can have a hot streak or you can put up points by sheer volume. For every tackle I make, I need to diagnose the play, beat the ball-carrier to the spot and execute a form tackle against someone who represents the apex of human athleticism. Oh, and as the cherry on top, I have to do it all in a matter of seconds. Just from a probability perspective, it’d be damn near impossible to do all that by chance once, saying nothing of the twenty-nine times I did it in the preseason. I’m racking up tackles because I’m a damn good linebacker who plays behind a damn good defensive line, and I anticipate both of those things still being true when the regular season rolls around.
Which team are you most looking forward to playing against?
I was born in Baltimore, I was raised in Baltimore, and on draft night, the team in Baltimore elected to pass on me eleven times. I was the sixty-fourth pick in the draft, which means, obviously excluding my teammates, GMs made fifty-three mistakes. While I’m going to make sure all five teams in the NSFL go on to regret was clearly a bad decision, good lord willing and the creek don’t rise I’m laying the wood on anything with a pulse when I go back to Baltimore.
Finally, a question from a kid in the back wearing an Isaiah Thomas jersey and pink shorts. Something...Daley, I think it was. How would your defensive skills as a team stand up to those of the Patriots, the greatest football team to ever grace the earth with its presence?
Well, it’s nice of the kid to pass me a question. I have no comment regarding the New England football team. But I have the utmost faith that this Sabercats squad has the potential to develop into something that would put the Ravens of old to shame. Our linebacking corps and secondary are incredible and that will only become a greater strength as individuals improve and we get a better idea of how to maximize everybody’s strengths.
What are your goals for this season?
First and foremost, I want to do everything I can to help the team win. I know that’s the vanilla answer but, at the end of the day, the only stat that matters is winning percentage. That said, I do have personal goals for the season. I’d like to break the 120-tackle barrier and record at least ten passes defended. I’m not entirely sure of the details surrounding end-of-seasons awards, but the league officially recognizing my status as an elite linebacker sure would be nice.
Tell us how it was rooming with Bailey Cook during camp?
Oh boy, this is gonna be a doozy. Before I start, I just want to say that Bailey is as outstanding a person as he is a receiver, and rooming with someone I knew absolutely eased my move to the West Coast. That said, my man is a neat freaaaaak. With regular people I’m sure that’s no issue, but I’m most at ease in a room that looks like it’s been hit by a Category 2 hurricane. The line between our respective sides of the room were as well-defined as the DMZ. He also has a … unique … sense of style. After seven o’clock he dresses like an entirely different person. I also discovered that he plays 2K as if it’s 2003. If memory serves there was a game where eighty percent of his shots were long mid-range jumpers. Beyond contrasting basketball playstyles, that room was a pretty interesting mix of personalities. Bailey tends towards the more volatile side while I’m among the most laid-back people I’ve ever met. But that contrast was a positive experience and it was undoubtedly an awesome experience getting to room with Bailey.
Describe your pre-game meal?
When I’m done with this answer you’ll understand why those draft profiles said my weight fluctuated. I alternate pre-game meals based on whether it’s an even or odd day. On even days, it’s a hot turkey and American hero with raw onions and mayo. On odd days, it’s a turkey burger with swiss, barbeque sauce, and fried onions. I have a monster sweet tooth, so there are definitely a lot of Sugar Babies and Milk Duds consumed both before, during and after the game.
What is your work out regime like?
In general, I try to take a holistic approach to building my body. Relative to other guys I don’t train with free weights very often, I actually prefer resistance band training coupled with more targeted machine workouts. At some point I intend to get back into swimming for the whole-body benefits, but that’s a goal that has yet to be realized. As it relates to specific muscle groups, as primarily a coverage linebacker, the most valuable asset is the ability to move-in space. I concentrate a lot on lower body workouts and making sure my lateral movement stays top-notch. I also try and make sure I’m consistently targeting my core just to make sure I can both consistently bring down ball-carriers and avoid major injuries.
If you had to play an offensive position, which role would you enjoy the most?
I really don’t know, I’ve been a defense-oriented person essentially my whole life. I guess I’d say an offensive lineman because, in a sense, you’re “defending” the quarterback from the D-Line.
If you weren't drafted to the sabercats, what would be your second choice?
I alluded to this in a previous answer, but I would have wanted to have gone to the Hawks. Not having had a good crab cake in months is really driving home the fact that there truly is no city in the world like Baltimore, and, to expand the scope, no state like Maryland.
Did you play any other sports before going pro?
In high school I was an All-Met basketball player. Unfortunately, the market for stocky 6’1” tweeners is pretty scant on the college level, no matter how good they are on the defensive end. The fact that I was an absolutely pitiful finisher didn’t help matters either.
Cats or dogs?
Cats. I grew up with a dog and they might be the most attention-neediest species of animals in the history of life on earth.
Do you feel overshadowed playing with Selich, or are you happy to ride coat tails?
Neither. I think the phrase “riding coattails” connotes not being a contributor. Obviously Selich is a much more-heralded player than I am, but to harken back to ninth grade biology for a second, I would definitely characterize our relationship as symbiotic. Off the field, he lights a fire under my ass to get to where he is now and, on the field, our games complement each other’s beautifully. He helps to cover for my lack of elite strength and I think my natural feel for the game does him a great service as well. Regardless though, as long as we’re having team success, I certainly have no problem being out of the spotlight on defense.
Words (not counting questions): 2020
Ready to grade? Yes
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