14. Describe your player and/or team’s journey through this latest season. What were the highlights? What were the lower points? What might you have done differently? What are your expectations for next season?
Chicago had a very successful season in S37, making the playoffs and posting a very respectable 10 and 6 record. Sadly they were eliminated in the first game of the playoffs to a surging Yellowknife team, but it is hard to feel too bad about how the season shook out. For Art Deco, it was a career year for the young cornerback, as he posted career highs in every major category excluding sacks, finishing the season with 87 tackles, 2/1 FF and FR, 2 sacks, 4 picks, a pick six, 19 PDs, and a blocked punt. It was the first time where he got to play an entire season at CB2, and though he was exposed at times matched up against some of the better WR2’s in the ISFL, I thought he held his own admirably. I think the lowest point was the playoff loss, where Deco was elevated to CB1 and had to battle against YKW WR1 Bernd D Brot. It wasn’t a strong showing, and Deco failed to make an impact after such a promising season. If I were to do it again I would probably have put more TPE into hands earlier, as it seems when I started upgrading them my all around performance got a bit better each week (who knew that hands were good for a CB? kek)
I have very high expectations for next season, as Deco will be playing for a Liberty squad that is used to getting a high amount of secondary stats due to the interior pass rush being stout. However, early in the season could be a challenge as Deco will line up again at CB1 and have to face the primary target for a lot of teams early on before he has a chance to improve. Still, with another year of experience under his belt, and a rock-solid safety duo behind him, I think that next season will be an improvement statistically over what has already been his best season to date; and it wouldn’t surprise me to see Philadelphia make a deep playoff push in S38 as well.
8. With awards season upon us, make up an award for your player to win for something not on the football field.
Art Deco would certainly win the award for most dramatic exit from a franchise this season. After the rumor mill began swirling about whether or not he’d be sticking around to sign a long term deal with the Chicago Butchers or not, it didn’t take long for the announcement to come that he was leaving. I say it was a dramatic exit because, solely in the context of the character, he was a high round draft pick for a team that had recently found playoff and championship success. Just like if this was the NFL, if a team that had been a contender for some time picked up a player in the second round at a position of need, you would expect that player to stick around for years to come. To me, it reminds me a bit of the Marquise Brown situation in Baltimore this past offseason, where the first round pick decided that he didn’t enjoy playing in Baltimore’s run-first offense, and requested a trade. Even though it was a fair reason for him to leave, Brown’s trade on draft day to the Cardinals had Ravens fans scratching their heads; much like when ISFL fans and GMs saw Art Deco post about his desire to play for another team. In a relatively quiet offseason for Free Agency, Deco would surely be a lock for this award due to the relative excitement (three threads with 100+ views each) he was able to generate with his departure from the Butchers. Finally, the fact that Chicago did make the post-season, and played in a game where they were eliminated after Deco decided to play for the Liberty next season is the cherry on top of the sundae. It must have been awkward knowing that it would be the last time he would suit up in the red and black.
Chicago had a very successful season in S37, making the playoffs and posting a very respectable 10 and 6 record. Sadly they were eliminated in the first game of the playoffs to a surging Yellowknife team, but it is hard to feel too bad about how the season shook out. For Art Deco, it was a career year for the young cornerback, as he posted career highs in every major category excluding sacks, finishing the season with 87 tackles, 2/1 FF and FR, 2 sacks, 4 picks, a pick six, 19 PDs, and a blocked punt. It was the first time where he got to play an entire season at CB2, and though he was exposed at times matched up against some of the better WR2’s in the ISFL, I thought he held his own admirably. I think the lowest point was the playoff loss, where Deco was elevated to CB1 and had to battle against YKW WR1 Bernd D Brot. It wasn’t a strong showing, and Deco failed to make an impact after such a promising season. If I were to do it again I would probably have put more TPE into hands earlier, as it seems when I started upgrading them my all around performance got a bit better each week (who knew that hands were good for a CB? kek)
I have very high expectations for next season, as Deco will be playing for a Liberty squad that is used to getting a high amount of secondary stats due to the interior pass rush being stout. However, early in the season could be a challenge as Deco will line up again at CB1 and have to face the primary target for a lot of teams early on before he has a chance to improve. Still, with another year of experience under his belt, and a rock-solid safety duo behind him, I think that next season will be an improvement statistically over what has already been his best season to date; and it wouldn’t surprise me to see Philadelphia make a deep playoff push in S38 as well.
8. With awards season upon us, make up an award for your player to win for something not on the football field.
Art Deco would certainly win the award for most dramatic exit from a franchise this season. After the rumor mill began swirling about whether or not he’d be sticking around to sign a long term deal with the Chicago Butchers or not, it didn’t take long for the announcement to come that he was leaving. I say it was a dramatic exit because, solely in the context of the character, he was a high round draft pick for a team that had recently found playoff and championship success. Just like if this was the NFL, if a team that had been a contender for some time picked up a player in the second round at a position of need, you would expect that player to stick around for years to come. To me, it reminds me a bit of the Marquise Brown situation in Baltimore this past offseason, where the first round pick decided that he didn’t enjoy playing in Baltimore’s run-first offense, and requested a trade. Even though it was a fair reason for him to leave, Brown’s trade on draft day to the Cardinals had Ravens fans scratching their heads; much like when ISFL fans and GMs saw Art Deco post about his desire to play for another team. In a relatively quiet offseason for Free Agency, Deco would surely be a lock for this award due to the relative excitement (three threads with 100+ views each) he was able to generate with his departure from the Butchers. Finally, the fact that Chicago did make the post-season, and played in a game where they were eliminated after Deco decided to play for the Liberty next season is the cherry on top of the sundae. It must have been awkward knowing that it would be the last time he would suit up in the red and black.