Opening the season to a sold out crowd in raucous Las Vegas, the newly founded Legion needed to make a strong impression for not only their fans, but the league as well, because there's no been no shortage of hate for the leagues Bad Boys.
The Legion would fall behind at the end of the 1st when Scrub Kyubee connected with Carmel Gibson to put the Hawks up 7-0, silencing the crowd, but the Bercovici led Legion offense would answer back late in the 2nd with a 5 yard pass to Alexandre LeClair.
Defense would rule for the remainder of the game, with each team only managing a field goal apiece. Both teams Achilles heel all game was third downs, neither being able to convert, preventing them from making any progress down the field.
For Josh Bercovici, the leagues highest paid player, this game was more than just an opening week affair, it was a stage for him to show what everyone missed out on. He played fairly well through regulation, with 1 touchdown and 2 interceptions, but certainly not much to write home about. Bercovici would also face a ton of pressure, being sacked SIX times throughout the game, as the Hawks Defense led by Erasmus Broadway attacked the pocket with a vengeance- but despite that, Josh continued to stand tall and deliver the ball, continually talking shit the entire time. Although overall QB hits aren't tracked, it didn't seem like there were but a handful of times when Bercovici had a clean pocket, as he was constantly being pressured and picked up off the ground.
Baltimore would win the toss for overtime, putting the stadium on edge, but they would come up empty as Tyler Varga and the Defense stood tall. Legion fans began to chant "BERC" as he jogged onto the field with the opportunity to lead a game winning drive and send the stadium into hysteria.
One of the points that Bercovici has always been so humble enough to remind everyone of is that pressure doesn't faze him, he feeds on it, and it seperates him from his peers. Well, last night, we got to see that first hand. Bercovici would orchestrate the winning drive in overtime, capping it with a beautiful touch pass to the corner of the end zone where once again Alexandre LeClair would haul it in.
To say the stadium went insane would be an understatement, it was quite a spectacle- there could of been no better way for the Legion, for Bercovici, to open the season, and they've without question put the league on notice- their not your run of the mill expansion team that you'll just torch every week, you'll have to wait till you play Philadelphia for that.
Although it's inevitable that most of the attention will be directed towards Bercovici because he's the quarterback and gets paid so much, it would be unfair not to recognize the players who really made it happen out there.
Star wide receiver Stormblessed would catch 6 passes for 113 yards, an average of 18.4 yards per catch. Stormblessed torched his defenders multiple times, showing exceptional route running skills and speed, opening up the field for the rest of his teammates.
Rookie running back Ardie Savea rushed for 82 yards on 23 carries, while also catching three passes for 41 yards, showcasing his dual threat capability. Savea is a player you should watch closely, he has the potential to be the NSFLs Marshall Faulk, and in an offense like the Legion's he has the opportunity for some truly special numbers.
Although we've already mentioned Alexandre LeClair, it'd be a disservice not to do it again. LeClair proved to be an unstoppable red zone target, with two touchdowns. He had four catches total for 41 yards. I anticipate in future games that defenses will be forced to direct more attention to him inside the 20.
Defensively you have to start with none other than franchise centerpiece Tyler Varga, he totaled 14 tackles as the Legion defense kept the Hawks in check all game, shutting down their passing game almost entirely, holding them to 126 yards through the air.
Josh Bercovici would finish 20/36 with 236 yards, 2 TD, 2 INT and a rating of 74.7. It was the best of performances, but he made up for his early mistakes- both interceptions came in the first half- in the overtime period.
After the game we asked him about how he felt about his performance:
"Not great, honestly- its great to get the win, but I made some bad decisions early on, and we also couldn't convert on third down, but thankfully our defense kept us close." [i]
His thoughts on getting sacked six times:
[i]"Getting sacked six times is just an annoyance more than anything, it doesn't faze me and doesn't change how I play the game, I'm goin to stand tall and take the hit, and it's not like they hit that hard anyway, especially Broadway- I took harder hits in middle school. The other aspect is that it's demoralising to the defense to continually hit the shit out of the quarterback and not have any effect. That being said, I did have words with my offensive line, because I think I spent more time on my back than on my feet tonight."
It was a thrilling opening week, one that Legion fans won't soon forget, but Bercovici definitely hit the nail on the head- they need to get better on third downs and they need to protect him better so he has more time to hit open receivers if their going to keep winning.
@Zoone16
@Stormblessed
@
GRADED
The Legion would fall behind at the end of the 1st when Scrub Kyubee connected with Carmel Gibson to put the Hawks up 7-0, silencing the crowd, but the Bercovici led Legion offense would answer back late in the 2nd with a 5 yard pass to Alexandre LeClair.
Defense would rule for the remainder of the game, with each team only managing a field goal apiece. Both teams Achilles heel all game was third downs, neither being able to convert, preventing them from making any progress down the field.
For Josh Bercovici, the leagues highest paid player, this game was more than just an opening week affair, it was a stage for him to show what everyone missed out on. He played fairly well through regulation, with 1 touchdown and 2 interceptions, but certainly not much to write home about. Bercovici would also face a ton of pressure, being sacked SIX times throughout the game, as the Hawks Defense led by Erasmus Broadway attacked the pocket with a vengeance- but despite that, Josh continued to stand tall and deliver the ball, continually talking shit the entire time. Although overall QB hits aren't tracked, it didn't seem like there were but a handful of times when Bercovici had a clean pocket, as he was constantly being pressured and picked up off the ground.
Baltimore would win the toss for overtime, putting the stadium on edge, but they would come up empty as Tyler Varga and the Defense stood tall. Legion fans began to chant "BERC" as he jogged onto the field with the opportunity to lead a game winning drive and send the stadium into hysteria.
One of the points that Bercovici has always been so humble enough to remind everyone of is that pressure doesn't faze him, he feeds on it, and it seperates him from his peers. Well, last night, we got to see that first hand. Bercovici would orchestrate the winning drive in overtime, capping it with a beautiful touch pass to the corner of the end zone where once again Alexandre LeClair would haul it in.
To say the stadium went insane would be an understatement, it was quite a spectacle- there could of been no better way for the Legion, for Bercovici, to open the season, and they've without question put the league on notice- their not your run of the mill expansion team that you'll just torch every week, you'll have to wait till you play Philadelphia for that.
Although it's inevitable that most of the attention will be directed towards Bercovici because he's the quarterback and gets paid so much, it would be unfair not to recognize the players who really made it happen out there.
Star wide receiver Stormblessed would catch 6 passes for 113 yards, an average of 18.4 yards per catch. Stormblessed torched his defenders multiple times, showing exceptional route running skills and speed, opening up the field for the rest of his teammates.
Rookie running back Ardie Savea rushed for 82 yards on 23 carries, while also catching three passes for 41 yards, showcasing his dual threat capability. Savea is a player you should watch closely, he has the potential to be the NSFLs Marshall Faulk, and in an offense like the Legion's he has the opportunity for some truly special numbers.
Although we've already mentioned Alexandre LeClair, it'd be a disservice not to do it again. LeClair proved to be an unstoppable red zone target, with two touchdowns. He had four catches total for 41 yards. I anticipate in future games that defenses will be forced to direct more attention to him inside the 20.
Defensively you have to start with none other than franchise centerpiece Tyler Varga, he totaled 14 tackles as the Legion defense kept the Hawks in check all game, shutting down their passing game almost entirely, holding them to 126 yards through the air.
Josh Bercovici would finish 20/36 with 236 yards, 2 TD, 2 INT and a rating of 74.7. It was the best of performances, but he made up for his early mistakes- both interceptions came in the first half- in the overtime period.
After the game we asked him about how he felt about his performance:
"Not great, honestly- its great to get the win, but I made some bad decisions early on, and we also couldn't convert on third down, but thankfully our defense kept us close." [i]
His thoughts on getting sacked six times:
[i]"Getting sacked six times is just an annoyance more than anything, it doesn't faze me and doesn't change how I play the game, I'm goin to stand tall and take the hit, and it's not like they hit that hard anyway, especially Broadway- I took harder hits in middle school. The other aspect is that it's demoralising to the defense to continually hit the shit out of the quarterback and not have any effect. That being said, I did have words with my offensive line, because I think I spent more time on my back than on my feet tonight."
It was a thrilling opening week, one that Legion fans won't soon forget, but Bercovici definitely hit the nail on the head- they need to get better on third downs and they need to protect him better so he has more time to hit open receivers if their going to keep winning.
@Zoone16
@Stormblessed
@
GRADED
LAS VEGAS LEGION
Sponsored By Trump Athletics - Mr. 96th Overall- TPE= 280
Sponsored By Trump Athletics - Mr. 96th Overall- TPE= 280