12) It’s once again expansion season in the ISFL. Reflect on the additions of the New York Silverbacks and Berlin Fire Salamanders and discuss how these teams will affect the league. How do you see scheduling or playoff seeding potentially changing? How will these teams change the power balances in their respective conferences? How do you think each team should go about building their roster, whether it’s through the expansion draft, regular draft, or many seasons down the line?
I think it's great that we get a European team into the league, Germany is a big nation with a lot of people who follow the sport, so great move for ISFL and a great move for European football fans! New York as a location is going to attract a lot of players purely by offering the players the opportunity to live and play in New York. I like both of the teams and what they could potentially bring into the league. Could this be the start of ISFL becoming even more international?
If I would be one of the people who run those teams during this exciting and interesting time, the smartest move, in the long run, would more than likely be to focus on younger players and focus in the upcoming drafts. It will be easier to sell the plans of the future to younger players who the teams have drafted compared to players who are near their primes and join the teams through the expansion draft. I have to assume that majority of players who are available to be drafted in the expansion draft might at very least have some doubts about the near future if they get picked by Berlin or New York. There is no denying the fact that move to Berlin is a huge change, is an older player willing to go there just like that? I think that is something that New York has going for them, a lot easier to convince players to move to New York, but even then some players might not be interested in waiting multiple seasons before the expansion teams have a realistic opportunity to win championships.
For that reason, I would coldly focus on bringing as many young players as possible into the organization. They are the future and more likely to turn the struggle of the first few years into positive. As the younger players keep improving steadily, I would only then turn my sights towards the better free agents. Going all-in after the older free agents right away will be the wrong move in my eyes. Sure, it might make the team win a few more games, but at what cost? Potentially winning few more games does not sound so exciting when you could potentially get a mega superstar from the draft.
I would 100% commit to building from the draft. I realize that it will be a slow process, but at the same time, I feel that is a guaranteed road to sunshine.
I think it's great that we get a European team into the league, Germany is a big nation with a lot of people who follow the sport, so great move for ISFL and a great move for European football fans! New York as a location is going to attract a lot of players purely by offering the players the opportunity to live and play in New York. I like both of the teams and what they could potentially bring into the league. Could this be the start of ISFL becoming even more international?
If I would be one of the people who run those teams during this exciting and interesting time, the smartest move, in the long run, would more than likely be to focus on younger players and focus in the upcoming drafts. It will be easier to sell the plans of the future to younger players who the teams have drafted compared to players who are near their primes and join the teams through the expansion draft. I have to assume that majority of players who are available to be drafted in the expansion draft might at very least have some doubts about the near future if they get picked by Berlin or New York. There is no denying the fact that move to Berlin is a huge change, is an older player willing to go there just like that? I think that is something that New York has going for them, a lot easier to convince players to move to New York, but even then some players might not be interested in waiting multiple seasons before the expansion teams have a realistic opportunity to win championships.
For that reason, I would coldly focus on bringing as many young players as possible into the organization. They are the future and more likely to turn the struggle of the first few years into positive. As the younger players keep improving steadily, I would only then turn my sights towards the better free agents. Going all-in after the older free agents right away will be the wrong move in my eyes. Sure, it might make the team win a few more games, but at what cost? Potentially winning few more games does not sound so exciting when you could potentially get a mega superstar from the draft.
I would 100% commit to building from the draft. I realize that it will be a slow process, but at the same time, I feel that is a guaranteed road to sunshine.
Thanks Slothman07!