There's a lot of things that can change the course of a franchise. Sometimes, what can at first be seen as a negative, can actually be a positive. For the first 4 seasons, Orange County had a particular star at their Running Back position. One Otters legend known as, Leroy Jenkins. He had 3 great seasons and one less than stellar one. Leroy decided to hang up the cleats after Season 4, prompting the Otters to look elsewhere. Of course they had Erlich Burnsman who is a goal line vulture, but in between the 20s, he's about as useless as Spector is on defense. He is a liability. So, the retirement of Jenkins allowed the Otters to sign then free agent, and future MVP, Jordan Yates. Over the next 2 seasons, Yates would dominate the statlines and much of the Otters offensive success could be attributed to the amazing ability of Yates. There's the "if" laying out there that "if" Jenkins had not retired and they tried to use Leroy in that same role, that the Otters defense would lose a dramatic aspect of its dynamic high octane offense. It might be fair to say that if Jenkins had never retired, the Otters 3 peat very well might not have happened. Of course there's a lot of other factors at play. If Yates had not signed with the Otters, he might have signed with the Wraiths, or back with San Jose. Both of those teams have been on the precipice of Ultimus Glory themselves, so having that outstanding RB talent could have been the lynch pin to kick start their own dynasties. Of course, we will never know the true answer, because Yates is an Otter and a 2x Ultimus Champ.
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