Task 7 - 5 TPE
In Sarasota, celebrating wins often was on the schedule this season. We finished 12-4, a record not many people in the league thought we could get to. In the end it only was the second seed in the NFSC, as the Colorado Yeti went up and away with 14-2. Being on a team with that many wins means, that their must be some incredible performances all over the season.
The first player I want to mention here is the QB, Dexter Banks II. In his second season under center of the Sailfish, he improved to the undeniable threat he is. Banks II leads the league in yards, and that by far. He racked up 5,033 yards over 16 games and is the first QB in ages to crack the 5,000 yard mark. One can argue that it‘s easier to get to that mark with the increased number of games which is true, but looking at the other QBs it‘s not that easy. The second one in the list, Franklin Armstrong, finished with 4,225 yards, over 800 yards less than Banks II. Taking a look back to last season, the leader in passing yards didn‘t even crack the 4,000 yard mark with also 16 games played. He didn‘t post the best completion percentage, but what he got out of his completions is incredible. Banks not only leads the field in yards, he also leads the league in TDs. He threw for 32 Touchdowns in 16 games, which averages 2 TDs per game. He is up there with Wolfie McDummy, who only scored 1 less. The other QBs in the league fell far behind them, with the next best scoring only 25. Banks II is a player who risks the pass, that‘s why he also leads the league in interceptions with 19. Nevertheless the number of interceptions, Banks II had an outstanding passing season.
Looking at the rushing game, Banks II was also a big factor for his team. He was the second best rusher yard-wise for the Sailfish and posted 619 yards on the ground, only 17 yards short of the team leader Raphtalia Chan. His rushing average is 5.4, which puts him in second place amongst all rushers with 10 or more attempts. In fact, he is the only one with an average of over 5.0 besides Easton Cole, who leads the league with 5.6. The workload is significantly different though, as Banks rushed 114 times whereas Cole only rushed 31 times. He also scored 3 touchdowns on the ground.
Combining his yards, Banks II racked up 5,652 yards this season. He is ahead of any other QB by almost 1,000 total yards.
All these numbers should be enough to convince you that Dexter Banks II should win MVP this season.
Task 12 - 5 TPE
When we take a look at expansion, the first thing that comes to my mind is the last expansion which was only 3 seasons ago, when the Sarasota Sailfish and Honolulu Hahalua were added to the league. Looking at that expansion draft in S22, the picture of the league totally changed. In S22, it wasn‘t possible to build a team full of young good earning prospects. In fact, most of the picks after the 3rd round in that expansion draft didn‘t stay longer than 1 season on their team. Most of them retired. This season, everything changed. Every team could select 8 players to protect, including their GMs. With the big S22 draft class, and generally big classes thereafter, there are many young talents which are good earning still available in the expansion draft. That‘s a good base to build your team up from. There are still some high TPE veterans available, who can set up instant success. An interesting aspect this season in expansion draft will be, if one or both teams take the chance on veteran QBs Easton Cole and Wolfie McDummy. It‘ll be only one season they can rely on their services, but it makes way too much sense to let pass by this chance.
The New York Silverbacks traded for S24 QB Sam Howitzer, a top prospect for sure. But when entering his second season, he is still on the very low TPE side for a QB in the league, although he is max earning. Giving Howitzer one more season to develop in the minors and start off with a top QB could be what gives NYS a head start and lots of success right from the start.
The Berlin Fire Salamanders aren‘t set yet on QB, but it is very likely that wide receiver Nick Kaepercolin switches to QB. The problem here is, that his speed and hands don‘t transition well to QB at the moment. If he stays at WR for one more year and let a veteran play this important position, he gets the time he needs to train up his QB assets and take over after one year. By then he‘ll be one of the best QBs in the league, but if he starts right away he loses out on quite a few important attributes.
The core of expansion teams nevertheless is normally built by the regular draft. It is important to make solid draft picks who help you set up success for the future. You need players to step up right away or take over from walking veterans or expansion picks. This is something Sarasota and Honolulu managed really well. Sarasota made the playoffs in their first year, were only one win away in their second and this season they played an amazing 12-4 season and fell only close to the Yeti in the championship game. On the other side, Honolulu grows stronger from season to season, they were close to make the playoffs this year and fell short by only 1 win.
In Sarasota, celebrating wins often was on the schedule this season. We finished 12-4, a record not many people in the league thought we could get to. In the end it only was the second seed in the NFSC, as the Colorado Yeti went up and away with 14-2. Being on a team with that many wins means, that their must be some incredible performances all over the season.
The first player I want to mention here is the QB, Dexter Banks II. In his second season under center of the Sailfish, he improved to the undeniable threat he is. Banks II leads the league in yards, and that by far. He racked up 5,033 yards over 16 games and is the first QB in ages to crack the 5,000 yard mark. One can argue that it‘s easier to get to that mark with the increased number of games which is true, but looking at the other QBs it‘s not that easy. The second one in the list, Franklin Armstrong, finished with 4,225 yards, over 800 yards less than Banks II. Taking a look back to last season, the leader in passing yards didn‘t even crack the 4,000 yard mark with also 16 games played. He didn‘t post the best completion percentage, but what he got out of his completions is incredible. Banks not only leads the field in yards, he also leads the league in TDs. He threw for 32 Touchdowns in 16 games, which averages 2 TDs per game. He is up there with Wolfie McDummy, who only scored 1 less. The other QBs in the league fell far behind them, with the next best scoring only 25. Banks II is a player who risks the pass, that‘s why he also leads the league in interceptions with 19. Nevertheless the number of interceptions, Banks II had an outstanding passing season.
Looking at the rushing game, Banks II was also a big factor for his team. He was the second best rusher yard-wise for the Sailfish and posted 619 yards on the ground, only 17 yards short of the team leader Raphtalia Chan. His rushing average is 5.4, which puts him in second place amongst all rushers with 10 or more attempts. In fact, he is the only one with an average of over 5.0 besides Easton Cole, who leads the league with 5.6. The workload is significantly different though, as Banks rushed 114 times whereas Cole only rushed 31 times. He also scored 3 touchdowns on the ground.
Combining his yards, Banks II racked up 5,652 yards this season. He is ahead of any other QB by almost 1,000 total yards.
All these numbers should be enough to convince you that Dexter Banks II should win MVP this season.
Task 12 - 5 TPE
When we take a look at expansion, the first thing that comes to my mind is the last expansion which was only 3 seasons ago, when the Sarasota Sailfish and Honolulu Hahalua were added to the league. Looking at that expansion draft in S22, the picture of the league totally changed. In S22, it wasn‘t possible to build a team full of young good earning prospects. In fact, most of the picks after the 3rd round in that expansion draft didn‘t stay longer than 1 season on their team. Most of them retired. This season, everything changed. Every team could select 8 players to protect, including their GMs. With the big S22 draft class, and generally big classes thereafter, there are many young talents which are good earning still available in the expansion draft. That‘s a good base to build your team up from. There are still some high TPE veterans available, who can set up instant success. An interesting aspect this season in expansion draft will be, if one or both teams take the chance on veteran QBs Easton Cole and Wolfie McDummy. It‘ll be only one season they can rely on their services, but it makes way too much sense to let pass by this chance.
The New York Silverbacks traded for S24 QB Sam Howitzer, a top prospect for sure. But when entering his second season, he is still on the very low TPE side for a QB in the league, although he is max earning. Giving Howitzer one more season to develop in the minors and start off with a top QB could be what gives NYS a head start and lots of success right from the start.
The Berlin Fire Salamanders aren‘t set yet on QB, but it is very likely that wide receiver Nick Kaepercolin switches to QB. The problem here is, that his speed and hands don‘t transition well to QB at the moment. If he stays at WR for one more year and let a veteran play this important position, he gets the time he needs to train up his QB assets and take over after one year. By then he‘ll be one of the best QBs in the league, but if he starts right away he loses out on quite a few important attributes.
The core of expansion teams nevertheless is normally built by the regular draft. It is important to make solid draft picks who help you set up success for the future. You need players to step up right away or take over from walking veterans or expansion picks. This is something Sarasota and Honolulu managed really well. Sarasota made the playoffs in their first year, were only one win away in their second and this season they played an amazing 12-4 season and fell only close to the Yeti in the championship game. On the other side, Honolulu grows stronger from season to season, they were close to make the playoffs this year and fell short by only 1 win.