04-10-2022, 06:33 PM
(This post was last modified: 04-11-2022, 10:39 AM by Crunk. Edited 1 time in total.)
Following up on my article about roster moves from the S33 offseason, I'm going to look at how those moves ended up for the players/teams involved as well as moves that happened since the previous article, including those during the season.
(I would have totally posted this after the playoffs were over and we had a complete picture of outcomes, but double media ends before then so...)
Moves since that post
* Mar 3 - Baltimore signs S30 IA OL Clifford Wilson. Seems like maybe they didn't want to since they apparently tried to retract the bid, but I wasn't watching closely. He looks to have played a very small amount as a 6th linesman, participating in 8 games through week 13 with only 3 pancakes. On paper he does have higher TPE than S22 OL Bruce Buckley, but I'm guessing they put a priority on starting the active user over the inactive with 19 more TPE. Not an impact move to say the least.
* Mar 21 - Philly trades away S28 LB Xavier Walls (1257 TPE) to Honolulu for a first and a swap of seconds. Since I'm writing this series purely about players and ignoring picks, clearly Philly lost out here. I believe the GMs knew the results of week 8 when this trade was posted and they were 3-5 at that point in time, so I can see that maybe they figured they didn't have a chance to make the playoffs. Honolulu's pickup looks great as a replacement for the departed Big Slammu and Walls' contract is quite reasonable (though being tamperable with MOs can be hard for the team to bank on).
* Mar 22 - Philly trades S31 CB Cedric Wilkins II (810 TPE) to New York for swapped seconds and getting a 3rd for a 4th. Seems like a big loss for a young CB, though given a contract ending after S34, Philly's pair of really solid S28 CBs, and the team's record at the time of this move I could see it as a move to try and salvage something for a player they were expecting to lose in free agency anyway.
* Mar 22 - Chicago trades S29 CB Hououin Kyouma (394 TPE) and cap space to San Jose for S24 CB Harrison Andrews (622 TPE). Seems like a minor upgrade for this year between two players who seem to not be earning TPE. Andrews seems to still be on the site but isn't updating as of March 29th, so I'm not sure if that's a precursor to a trade deadline retirement?
* Mar 24 - Chicago trade S29 DE Tomme Salami (297 TPE) to Philly for S25 LB Gary Goodman (694 TPE) with some picks and cap moving. Seems like a clear upgrade for a Chicago team which was solidly in the lead in the NSFC at the time of the trade. I'm guessing the leadership likes the look of the team and is trying to go hard at getting to the Ultimus. Goodman actually retired on Feb 20th so this is just a 1-year corpse appearance (and amusingly of one of the Liberty's GMs) and so it makes sense that Philly is continuing their sell efforts.
* Mar 25 - New York trade S31 WR French Fries (429 TPE) and a second to Yellowknife for S34 WR Darius Bailey (365 TPE). Fries looks inactive, but it's interesting to see the Wraiths picking up an ISFL player. Were they trying to upgrade given they were 4-6 and potentially still had a chance to contend in NSFC to make the playoffs this year? Or, was it more that New York needed to figure out a future given their WRs from S25/26/27 and the Wraiths figured that the trade value was enough to make the move? I don't know, but maybe the GMs do so ask them or something.
* Mar 29 - Honolulu trade S26 WR Lalo Salamanca (378 TPE) for New York's S27 WR Joseph Radetzky (712 TPE). Both players had fairly similar stats at the time of trade despite Radetzky's TPE lead. In theory it seems like it should help out the Silverbacks in the next year or two but looking at the situation when the trade was made I'm not sure that's the critical move to keep them in the playoffs this season. Honolulu also doesn't have any DSFL WRs, so I'm not sure what their plan is post-Radetzky. New York presumably is planning to call up Bailey (from the Mar 25 trade with Yellowknife) so it's probably a wash for them with potential value from the pick swap.
Evaluation for joined players
So, how well did each of these moves work out for the teams involved?
ASFC
Arizona Outlaws:
Finished 10-5-1, 2nd in the ASFC
Arrivals:
* S29 FA S Tre'Mendus Johnson - Johnson seems to have been used a bit more in coverage with Arizona rather than pass rushing as with Baltimore. That shift resulted in him dropping from 6 to 1 sack but going from 1 to 9 in passes defensed. Seems to have been a good move in terms of keeping Arizona's defense strong (slight decrease year over year in terms of yards allowed and dropped more than a point/game in points allowed). Seems like a solidly good pickup for the team.
* S29 FA WR Quinton Crash - Crash slotted in as expected as the top receiver on a team contending to win the ASFC. His 1404 yards and 10 TDs were both career records and Crash's 17.6 YPC were both his highest in his career and the entire league. Crash seems in contention for WROTY so this seems like an A+ move for the team.
* S33 callup OL D'Nickashaw Mangoldson - 63 pancakes while giving up 3 sacks were in line with the team's bots (81/7, 72/2, 68/1). Perhaps more importantly, they were very much in line with Silva's last year (66/2) and better than his S34 (72/8). Seems like a solid move, especially if Mangoldson keeps earning in the future (last update increasing TPE was Feb 26).
Austin Copperheads:
Finished 7-9, 6th in the ASFC
Arrivals:
* S28 FA WR Sam the Onion Man - Man was a top receiver for the Copperheads. With a line of 91 receptions/1293 yards/15 TDs he was narrowly behind S28 Cowabunga's 99/1440/11 line but still bested his previous career best in yards and TDs. Nothing to complain about this move for Austin as they had one of the best offenses in the league.
* S32 callup S Tobias Worthington III - 68 tackles, 12 passes defensed, 1 int, and 1 sack seems like a solid rookie stat line. Worthington III wasn't enough to stop the Copperheads' passing defense from dropping to middle of the pack, but nothing in his stat line jumps out as the problem.
* S32 callup OL Beeg Beeg Yoshi - 83 pancakes with 6 sacks allowed was second most in both categories for the team. That's not terrible for a 329 TPE player who hasn't actually applied TPE past the DSFL cap, but I have to imagine the Copperheads are hoping Yoshi returns to actually make use of those TPE. At the price discount vs. the bots I don't think the team's too unhappy, though.
* S33 callup LB Joe Smokes - 30 tackles, 2 sacks, and 2 passes defensed looks like a stat line of a rotational player to me. I'm guessing the Copperheads were playing a nickel base and Smokes was rotated in rather than a full starter. Seems fine for a rookie, but I have to think that both the team and player are hoping more out of next year.
Honolulu Hahalua:
Finished 11-5, 1st in the ASFC
Arrivals:
* S28 tradee QB Dexter Zaylren - Zaylren had a rough year in terms of a career high 21 interceptions, well over his previous highest 10 from S31. His 4423 yards were just a smidge under his rookie year's 4476 but his passer rating of 89.6 was a career low, presumably due to the interceptions. Still, I doubt the Hahalua management are too unhappy after winning the conference. I could also see the receiving depth chart improving in the next couple years and helping out those numbers.
* IA S25 FA OL Brent Silva[/url - 72 pancakes aren't bad, but giving up 8 sacks nearly doubled Silva's career total. Seems like a very down year for Silva, though I'm not sure the inactive linesman really cares much. The sack totals are way higher than Honolulu's bots, though maybe the cap savings were worth it?
* S28 tradee LB Xavier Walls - as a mild digression, I really hate that the index doesn't show per-team splits for players traded during the season. So that being said, it looks like Walls had 46 of his 91 tackles, 0/3 TFLs, 5/14 sacks, the forced and recovered fumbles, and 2/6 pass defenses after coming over to Honolulu. Collectively, seems like a bit of a down year to me with marginally better stats before the trade. The Honolulu defense was solid all-around, but the lower TPE S25 LB Guy Fields I think had the better statistics. That seems unlikely to keep up as Fields gets deeper into regression, though, so I assume the leadership is happy to have a plan for the future.
* S27 tradee WR Joseph Radetzky - in Radetzky's 5 games with Honolulu, he had 24/63 receptions, 255/726 yards, 1/4 TDs. Decent enough stats, but he was clearly not the top options of WR Kendrick-Watts or TE Ami. Still, with younger S30 WR Leroy not earning, Radetzky could be a crucial stopgap for a season or two while the team gets younger options in place.
New Orleans Second Line:
Finished 8-8, 3rd (?) in the ASFC
(I'm still skittish of the displayed standings in the index but they seem to be ahead of NYS)
Arrivals:
* S30 tradee WR Cliff Burton - Burton had a solid year, matching his career high in TDs but being down in receptions and yards. He was definitely second to WR1 S30 Tentacles but the primary cause of the decline looks to me to NOLA being the top rushing and bottom passing team in the league. Seems like he did what the team was looking for, so seems like a decent pickup.
New York Silverbacks:
Finished 8-8, 4th (?) in the ASFC
Arrivals:
* S25 FA WR Cmon Skiuuup - Skiuuup had an up year with more receptions, yards, and TDs than S33. He was still solidly behind WR1 S26 Speedman other than TDs, but I think neither the team nor the player have anything to complain about with regards to Skiuuup's stats. Based on this media post about Skiuuup's planned retirement I think the Silverbacks will be able to use the player next year at roughly 426 TPE, which seems reasonably likely.
* S31 FA DT Anthony MacGuire - MacGuire seems to have been played only rotationally judging by 0 starts and only 10 tackles. He also seems to have never used the 115 TPE sitting around, which presumably is why the lower TPE S22 DT Mendoza got more starts and stats. Teams do need bodies so I imagine that New York isn't wildly distraught over this move not panning out better. At the same time, given that they missed the playoffs based on a tiebreaker, I have to imagine that a fully returned MacGuire could have helped the team out this year.
* S30 FA RB Yaji Robe - Robe did not return to earning and so was used minimally. 154 yards and a TD on a 3.8y/carry rate isn't terrible for as low of TPE as Robe has, I guess, but S28 Prince is the clear leader in the running position.
* S33 callup CB Dax Dangerfield - had a decent year featuring 22 passes defensed. Apparently not so good that it prevented New York from going and picking up Wilkins II in a trade, but seems like everything you want out of a rookie.
* S31 tradee CB Cedric Wilkins II - taking the immediate lead as top TPE CB on the team, Wilkins II in his 8 games in New York had 36/60 tackles, the only TFL, 2/4 sacks, 1/4 FF and 1/2 FR, 7/18 passes defensed, and 1/2 interceptions. Seems like a solid year for the player, though most of his stats were behind S28 Badger. I expect the team to hope to keep Wilkins II around next year.
* S34 tradee WR Darius Bailey - spent the year in the DSFL with the Luchadores. I'm guessing he'll be a callup next season as a replacement for Salamanca who'll be hitting regression hard.
* S26 tradee WR Lalo Salamanca - in Salamanca's 5 games with New York, he had 25/67 receptions, 297/755 yards, 2/5 TDs. Fairly close to Radetzky's stats honestly, so seems like an overall wash to me for this season.
Orange County Otters:
Finished 5-11, 7th in the ASFC
Position swap:
* S30 position swapper to LB Dominos Pizzaman - Pizzaman was a tackling machine and seems to have fit well with S28 LB Rodriguez as the cornerstone of Orange County's linebackers.
Arrivals:
* S33 callup TE Molki Koivu - Koivu's 68 receptions and 1 TD were both on the lower end of TEs, but 45 pancakes seem good. He wasn't quite enough to spark the ASFC's lowest-scoring offense, though, but he has kept up earning so I have to think the team's getting what they expected out of the player.
San Jose SaberCats:
Finished 7-8-1, 5th in the ASFC
Arrivals:
* S22 FA RB Tatsu Nakamura - Nakamura's 695 yards were a hair better than S33, but at a reduced 3.9yards/carry and 4 fumbles, it's not quite a storybook finish for the old RB. His stats were in line with the other (much higher TPE) RB on the team, though, so this might be more on the OL than on the RBs.
* S32 IA FA K/P Jack Lewis - 42/44 XPs and 22/27 FGs aren't exactly amazing stats, but given the minimal investment I don't think the Sabercats are complaining about what they got.
* S24 tradee CB Harrison Andrews - Andrews played the first 9 weeks of the season with San Jose (though didn't get the start or any stats in week 1). In those games, he had 34 of his season's 47 tackles, 0/1 sacks, 0/2 interceptions, 6/11 passes defensed, and 0/1 TDs. Seems reasonable enough of stats for a low TPE CB I guess? It's also interesting to compare those stats with his immediate replacement, Kyouma (below).
* S33 callup LB Nick Flint - Flint has a great rookie year, though I'm sure he'll want to cut down missed tackles next year. The only slight I can really say is that for a pass rusher archetype only getting 2 sacks seems like maybe not what you're hoping to see. Still, I have to think the SaberCats are happy here.
* S29 tradee CB Hououin Kyouma - Kyouma didn't seem to be getting all that much play with the Butchers and with 35/44 tackles, 2/3 ints, and 8/13 passes defensed coming in his 7 weeks with San Jose very clearly look like he went from a rotational player to a starter. Given his season stat line vs. Andrews' I think it's pretty much a wash and so I'd default to prefer to have the younger player even at the lower TPE totals.
NSFC
Baltimore Hawks:
Finished 6-10, 6th in the NSFC
Arrivals:
* S26 FA LB Big Slammu - Slammu had a solid season for Baltimore though I'd say it's a bit of a down year from S33 with the Hahalua. 15 sacks is good enough for 7th in the league but I think I'd still prefer his S33 stat line given the choice. That being said, I think even if Slammu's stats were good enough for MVP, his impact will be lost amidst the S33 Ultimus winners dropping under .500 after opening the season on a 5 game losing streak. Probably still a move the team is happy with, just overshadowed by the lack of wins.
* S30 IA OL Clifford Wilson - this vaguely unwanted free agent saw minimal play and similarly minimal stats. Didn't give up a sack, though! Also caught a pass which is fun?
Berlin Fire Salamanders:
Finished 11-4-1, 2nd in the NSFC
Arrivals:
* ]S28 IA FA CB Amy Wong - Wong seems to have played only rotationally as the presumed nickel DB, so the lost cost seems to have resulted in low impact. Still, depth pieces can be important for teams trying to go deep in the playoffs so I figure Berlin is satisfied with the value of what they got here.
* S27 tradee QB Joliet Christ Jr. - Christ Jr. definitely had a worse year than S33 statistically, but that seems to be much more to the Fire Salamanders fielding the league's best rushing game and consequently Christ Jr.'s career low in passing yards and attempts. A 93.6 passing rating and only 10 interceptions both look good for efficiency, though, so I figure Berlin's perfectly fine with this outcome.
* S33 callup RB Marvin Toledo - very much a third fiddle to league rushing leader S25 Tank and TD vulture S30 Holford, I assume Toledo pretty much did what the team wanted. In the bigger picture, having not updated since Feb 12 and having all TPE past the DSFL cap being unused paints a very inactive picture. I'm fairly confident that the team would take activity over stats but it's looking like they'd be disappointed.
* S34 callup WR Zayne Dangle - I think Dangle did about as good as you could expect a rookie in a rush-first offense to do. 11.3 yards/catch is a decent starting point for a rookie even if it is well under his 15.8 last year in the DSFL.
Chicago Butchers:
Finished 12-3-1, 1st in the NSFC
Arrivals:
* S34 callup LB Rumble Ronson - Ronson actually position switched to LB before I posted my article (probably?) and so wasn't a running back at all. As a 4th linebacker he had a really strong stat line despite the lower TPE, including 5 forced fumbles, 8 sacks, and a safety. I have to think that Chicago is really happy with how Ronson's season went.
* S33 callup DE Greg Strongjaw - 4 forced fumbles and 7 sacks stand out vs. only 21 tackles to me. Seems like pretty decent impact for a rookie who I assume was being rushed at the QB and ignoring the ball carrier a bunch. Did start all 16 games, too - I thought there was a chance the Butchers were running a 3-4 base, but apparently not - so seems like a perfectly reasonable year for the rookie.
* S24 tradee CB Harrison Andrews - in his 7 weeks with Chicago, Andrews had 13 of his season's 47 tackles, 1/1 sacks, 2/2 interceptions, 5/11 passes defensed, and 1/1 TDs. Seems like he had a lot of impact on the team, despite being the third CB. I figure the leadership is probably fine with the outcome, though I'm not sure if Andrews was really a big upgrade over Kyouma.
* S25 tradee LB Gary Goodman - Goodman had a decent impact on the Butchers, with 27 of his 64 tackles, 2/4 TFLs, 4/10 sacks, the only forced fumble, and 1/2 safeties coming in his 7 weeks on the team. As a side note, 2 safeties seemed like a huge number until I looked and saw that ILove HotSalads has 3 for the year. The index season records page doesn't track safeties and I'm too lazy to go look at all of the seasons myself, but I'm impressed. But anyway, back to Goodman - as a player from S25 he might not remain on the team for long, but still seems like a solid finish to the season with the team.
Colorado Yeti:
Finished 2-14, 7th in the NSFC
Position swap:
* S29 position swapper to DT Emperor de Pengu - Pengu had a reasonable enough season as the team's nose tackle. 44 tackles is on the higher end of DTs this season and 5 sacks was hardly bad either. Clearly it wasn't enough to make up for the rest of the team's issues, but I assume the Yeti are just happy to have a solid body on the D-line.
Arrivals:
* S32 callup QB Live Laughlove - Laughlove had a pretty good year in the abstract, leading the league in passing yards and TDs, though he was also third in interceptions. That was good enough to lead the league in passing yards per game but didn't quite translate into points as the Yeti were only in the middle of the pack there. Combined with a defense that gave up the most yards and points in the league, Laughlove wasn't enough to save Colorado's season. Still, I think you can't ask a rookie QB for much more than what the Yeti got here, so I have to think they're satisfied with their future passing game.
* S32 callup DE Mrs. "Stacks" McHits - 5 TFLs and 2 sacks aren't terrible for a rookie DE, but the lack of forced fumbles is definitely something Colorado is going to want to see increased in future years. McHits wasn't a singular weak point of the defense, but forcing some turnovers will be critical to stop giving up so many points.
* S34 callup DE Nathan Explosion - Explosion's rookie season was statistically less impressive than fellow DE McHits' which makes sense as a player 2 seasons newer. Explosion's earning pace is distinctly behind the peak of the S34 class, but still not terrible. So, while I'm sure the Yeti leadership would prefer if it were higher and thereby helping Explosion to perform better, I'm not sure that they can expect much more at the low TPE totals.
* S34 callup S - Cross-Eriksen - 2 sacks, 3 interceptions, 11 passes defensed, and 2 forced fumbles add up to a statistically solid season. Unfortunately, that wasn't enough to shore up the defense alone. And unfortunately for the Yeti, the rest of their secondary is all in regression, which is going to make turning it around a project that's unlikely to be completed by S35.
Philidelphia Liberty:
Finished 6-9-1, 4th in the NSFC
Arrivals:
* S29 FA TE Buffalo Hunter - Hunter had fewer catches than S33 but at a career-highest per-catch average. Besides that, he had 69 pancakes (nice) while giving up no sacks. Seems like pretty much exactly what you want out of a possession TE, I'd think. Hunter wasn't quite enough to fix the offense (and on a tangent, I'm impressed that the team managed to get 4th in the conference with the fewest points scored in the league) but I don't think the team can point at anything else Hunter could have done here.
* S33 callup RB DeAndre King - as a rotational rookie RB, 541 yards and 2 TDs on a 3.9 yards/carry pace seem like a pretty respectable line. Throw in nearly 200 receiving yards and again I don't think you can complain about anything that King's doing here (though he is admitted about 150 TPE off the peak of the S33 class).
* S31 callup WR Malcador "The Hero" - 39 receptions at a 13.1 yard/reception pace isn't bad, though having as many drops as TDs doesn't look great. With "The Hero" not having any updates since Feb 26, I'm not sure how much that's going to improve, though I'm sure the team will try to get the player to get some updates in.
* S31 callup LB Nathan Claflin - Claflin did in fact play rotationally, getting the starter nod in 11/16 games this season. That reflects in his stats with decent tackle numbers but only 1 fumble, 1 sack, and 2 passes defensed. For a rotational player I'm not sure the team can expect more, though.
* S29 tradee DE Tomme Salami - Salami looks to have played 5 games with the Liberty, collecting 11 of his 48 tackles, 3/4 sacks, and 1/2 forced and 1/1 recovered fumble. Seems like a solid impact by the low TPE DE, though I'm sure that Philly hopes he returns, earns, and burns (?) next season.
Sarasota Sailfish:
Finished 10-5-1, 3rd in the NSFC
Arrivals:
* S30 IA FA DE Caleb Watt - Watt had minimal impact statistically, though did manage 2 forced fumbles. I'd argue his stat line is actually better than similarly low-TPE DT Kackpoo's, though obviously comparing a DT to a DE can be unfair. Still, I think Watt did what they were looking for here, which I presume is "be a body on the line this season" more than "be a future star" (though naturally I'm sure they'd love if he did return and become a store).
* S28 IA FA K/P Rainbow Dash - 59/59 XPs looks good, but only making 21/30 FGs (including 2 misses under 30 yards) is rough. Probably not quite fair to complain about your inactive free agent kicker missing kicks, but still hurts.
* S28 FA CB Raeni Clarke - Clarke had a great year with career highs in tackles, forced fumbles, interceptions, passes defensed, and defensive touchdowns. I think this is about the best outcome from a free agent CB other than also getting an extension signed.
Yellowknife Wraiths:
Finished 6-10, 5th in the NSFC
Arrivals:
* S25 IA FA WR Killian Chambers - Chambers got a bunch of receptions, albeit at a per-catch rate way under his career average. Probably unexpected given regression, but still worth noting. 5 dropped passes stands out as not great, but 7 TDs isn't bad. I think Yellowknife got pretty much exactly what they'd expect from Chambers for S34.
* S33 callup DE Daron Arnold - 5 TFLs, 6 sacks, 2 forced/1 recovered fumble is reasonable impact for a rookie DE. Plus, Arnold's keeping up with the TPE leaders of the class, so I can't imagine Yellowknife asking for anything more here. Also, I totally was correct in that he's now the highest TPE D-line player on the team.
* S32 callup CB Dragazor Blaze - 12 defensed passes stands out, but otherwise seems like the kind of stat line you'd expect from a rookie CB. Blaze is earning TPE at a slow rate, so there's hope for improvement but he seems unlikely to jump into max earning if being called up wasn't enough to get him to pick it up.
* S31 tradee WR French Fries - if I'm reading things correctly, Fries never actually got any stats with the Wraiths. Maybe they didn't need him this year but wanted the option in S35 and beyond with the loss of Bailey in the trade? I don't know, but it wasn't like Fries was doing much before the trade either with just 14 catches.
(I would have totally posted this after the playoffs were over and we had a complete picture of outcomes, but double media ends before then so...)
Moves since that post
* Mar 3 - Baltimore signs S30 IA OL Clifford Wilson. Seems like maybe they didn't want to since they apparently tried to retract the bid, but I wasn't watching closely. He looks to have played a very small amount as a 6th linesman, participating in 8 games through week 13 with only 3 pancakes. On paper he does have higher TPE than S22 OL Bruce Buckley, but I'm guessing they put a priority on starting the active user over the inactive with 19 more TPE. Not an impact move to say the least.
* Mar 21 - Philly trades away S28 LB Xavier Walls (1257 TPE) to Honolulu for a first and a swap of seconds. Since I'm writing this series purely about players and ignoring picks, clearly Philly lost out here. I believe the GMs knew the results of week 8 when this trade was posted and they were 3-5 at that point in time, so I can see that maybe they figured they didn't have a chance to make the playoffs. Honolulu's pickup looks great as a replacement for the departed Big Slammu and Walls' contract is quite reasonable (though being tamperable with MOs can be hard for the team to bank on).
* Mar 22 - Philly trades S31 CB Cedric Wilkins II (810 TPE) to New York for swapped seconds and getting a 3rd for a 4th. Seems like a big loss for a young CB, though given a contract ending after S34, Philly's pair of really solid S28 CBs, and the team's record at the time of this move I could see it as a move to try and salvage something for a player they were expecting to lose in free agency anyway.
* Mar 22 - Chicago trades S29 CB Hououin Kyouma (394 TPE) and cap space to San Jose for S24 CB Harrison Andrews (622 TPE). Seems like a minor upgrade for this year between two players who seem to not be earning TPE. Andrews seems to still be on the site but isn't updating as of March 29th, so I'm not sure if that's a precursor to a trade deadline retirement?
* Mar 24 - Chicago trade S29 DE Tomme Salami (297 TPE) to Philly for S25 LB Gary Goodman (694 TPE) with some picks and cap moving. Seems like a clear upgrade for a Chicago team which was solidly in the lead in the NSFC at the time of the trade. I'm guessing the leadership likes the look of the team and is trying to go hard at getting to the Ultimus. Goodman actually retired on Feb 20th so this is just a 1-year corpse appearance (and amusingly of one of the Liberty's GMs) and so it makes sense that Philly is continuing their sell efforts.
* Mar 25 - New York trade S31 WR French Fries (429 TPE) and a second to Yellowknife for S34 WR Darius Bailey (365 TPE). Fries looks inactive, but it's interesting to see the Wraiths picking up an ISFL player. Were they trying to upgrade given they were 4-6 and potentially still had a chance to contend in NSFC to make the playoffs this year? Or, was it more that New York needed to figure out a future given their WRs from S25/26/27 and the Wraiths figured that the trade value was enough to make the move? I don't know, but maybe the GMs do so ask them or something.
* Mar 29 - Honolulu trade S26 WR Lalo Salamanca (378 TPE) for New York's S27 WR Joseph Radetzky (712 TPE). Both players had fairly similar stats at the time of trade despite Radetzky's TPE lead. In theory it seems like it should help out the Silverbacks in the next year or two but looking at the situation when the trade was made I'm not sure that's the critical move to keep them in the playoffs this season. Honolulu also doesn't have any DSFL WRs, so I'm not sure what their plan is post-Radetzky. New York presumably is planning to call up Bailey (from the Mar 25 trade with Yellowknife) so it's probably a wash for them with potential value from the pick swap.
Evaluation for joined players
So, how well did each of these moves work out for the teams involved?
ASFC
Arizona Outlaws:
Finished 10-5-1, 2nd in the ASFC
Arrivals:
* S29 FA S Tre'Mendus Johnson - Johnson seems to have been used a bit more in coverage with Arizona rather than pass rushing as with Baltimore. That shift resulted in him dropping from 6 to 1 sack but going from 1 to 9 in passes defensed. Seems to have been a good move in terms of keeping Arizona's defense strong (slight decrease year over year in terms of yards allowed and dropped more than a point/game in points allowed). Seems like a solidly good pickup for the team.
* S29 FA WR Quinton Crash - Crash slotted in as expected as the top receiver on a team contending to win the ASFC. His 1404 yards and 10 TDs were both career records and Crash's 17.6 YPC were both his highest in his career and the entire league. Crash seems in contention for WROTY so this seems like an A+ move for the team.
* S33 callup OL D'Nickashaw Mangoldson - 63 pancakes while giving up 3 sacks were in line with the team's bots (81/7, 72/2, 68/1). Perhaps more importantly, they were very much in line with Silva's last year (66/2) and better than his S34 (72/8). Seems like a solid move, especially if Mangoldson keeps earning in the future (last update increasing TPE was Feb 26).
Austin Copperheads:
Finished 7-9, 6th in the ASFC
Arrivals:
* S28 FA WR Sam the Onion Man - Man was a top receiver for the Copperheads. With a line of 91 receptions/1293 yards/15 TDs he was narrowly behind S28 Cowabunga's 99/1440/11 line but still bested his previous career best in yards and TDs. Nothing to complain about this move for Austin as they had one of the best offenses in the league.
* S32 callup S Tobias Worthington III - 68 tackles, 12 passes defensed, 1 int, and 1 sack seems like a solid rookie stat line. Worthington III wasn't enough to stop the Copperheads' passing defense from dropping to middle of the pack, but nothing in his stat line jumps out as the problem.
* S32 callup OL Beeg Beeg Yoshi - 83 pancakes with 6 sacks allowed was second most in both categories for the team. That's not terrible for a 329 TPE player who hasn't actually applied TPE past the DSFL cap, but I have to imagine the Copperheads are hoping Yoshi returns to actually make use of those TPE. At the price discount vs. the bots I don't think the team's too unhappy, though.
* S33 callup LB Joe Smokes - 30 tackles, 2 sacks, and 2 passes defensed looks like a stat line of a rotational player to me. I'm guessing the Copperheads were playing a nickel base and Smokes was rotated in rather than a full starter. Seems fine for a rookie, but I have to think that both the team and player are hoping more out of next year.
Honolulu Hahalua:
Finished 11-5, 1st in the ASFC
Arrivals:
* S28 tradee QB Dexter Zaylren - Zaylren had a rough year in terms of a career high 21 interceptions, well over his previous highest 10 from S31. His 4423 yards were just a smidge under his rookie year's 4476 but his passer rating of 89.6 was a career low, presumably due to the interceptions. Still, I doubt the Hahalua management are too unhappy after winning the conference. I could also see the receiving depth chart improving in the next couple years and helping out those numbers.
* IA S25 FA OL Brent Silva[/url - 72 pancakes aren't bad, but giving up 8 sacks nearly doubled Silva's career total. Seems like a very down year for Silva, though I'm not sure the inactive linesman really cares much. The sack totals are way higher than Honolulu's bots, though maybe the cap savings were worth it?
* S28 tradee LB Xavier Walls - as a mild digression, I really hate that the index doesn't show per-team splits for players traded during the season. So that being said, it looks like Walls had 46 of his 91 tackles, 0/3 TFLs, 5/14 sacks, the forced and recovered fumbles, and 2/6 pass defenses after coming over to Honolulu. Collectively, seems like a bit of a down year to me with marginally better stats before the trade. The Honolulu defense was solid all-around, but the lower TPE S25 LB Guy Fields I think had the better statistics. That seems unlikely to keep up as Fields gets deeper into regression, though, so I assume the leadership is happy to have a plan for the future.
* S27 tradee WR Joseph Radetzky - in Radetzky's 5 games with Honolulu, he had 24/63 receptions, 255/726 yards, 1/4 TDs. Decent enough stats, but he was clearly not the top options of WR Kendrick-Watts or TE Ami. Still, with younger S30 WR Leroy not earning, Radetzky could be a crucial stopgap for a season or two while the team gets younger options in place.
New Orleans Second Line:
Finished 8-8, 3rd (?) in the ASFC
(I'm still skittish of the displayed standings in the index but they seem to be ahead of NYS)
Arrivals:
* S30 tradee WR Cliff Burton - Burton had a solid year, matching his career high in TDs but being down in receptions and yards. He was definitely second to WR1 S30 Tentacles but the primary cause of the decline looks to me to NOLA being the top rushing and bottom passing team in the league. Seems like he did what the team was looking for, so seems like a decent pickup.
New York Silverbacks:
Finished 8-8, 4th (?) in the ASFC
Arrivals:
* S25 FA WR Cmon Skiuuup - Skiuuup had an up year with more receptions, yards, and TDs than S33. He was still solidly behind WR1 S26 Speedman other than TDs, but I think neither the team nor the player have anything to complain about with regards to Skiuuup's stats. Based on this media post about Skiuuup's planned retirement I think the Silverbacks will be able to use the player next year at roughly 426 TPE, which seems reasonably likely.
* S31 FA DT Anthony MacGuire - MacGuire seems to have been played only rotationally judging by 0 starts and only 10 tackles. He also seems to have never used the 115 TPE sitting around, which presumably is why the lower TPE S22 DT Mendoza got more starts and stats. Teams do need bodies so I imagine that New York isn't wildly distraught over this move not panning out better. At the same time, given that they missed the playoffs based on a tiebreaker, I have to imagine that a fully returned MacGuire could have helped the team out this year.
* S30 FA RB Yaji Robe - Robe did not return to earning and so was used minimally. 154 yards and a TD on a 3.8y/carry rate isn't terrible for as low of TPE as Robe has, I guess, but S28 Prince is the clear leader in the running position.
* S33 callup CB Dax Dangerfield - had a decent year featuring 22 passes defensed. Apparently not so good that it prevented New York from going and picking up Wilkins II in a trade, but seems like everything you want out of a rookie.
* S31 tradee CB Cedric Wilkins II - taking the immediate lead as top TPE CB on the team, Wilkins II in his 8 games in New York had 36/60 tackles, the only TFL, 2/4 sacks, 1/4 FF and 1/2 FR, 7/18 passes defensed, and 1/2 interceptions. Seems like a solid year for the player, though most of his stats were behind S28 Badger. I expect the team to hope to keep Wilkins II around next year.
* S34 tradee WR Darius Bailey - spent the year in the DSFL with the Luchadores. I'm guessing he'll be a callup next season as a replacement for Salamanca who'll be hitting regression hard.
* S26 tradee WR Lalo Salamanca - in Salamanca's 5 games with New York, he had 25/67 receptions, 297/755 yards, 2/5 TDs. Fairly close to Radetzky's stats honestly, so seems like an overall wash to me for this season.
Orange County Otters:
Finished 5-11, 7th in the ASFC
Position swap:
* S30 position swapper to LB Dominos Pizzaman - Pizzaman was a tackling machine and seems to have fit well with S28 LB Rodriguez as the cornerstone of Orange County's linebackers.
Arrivals:
* S33 callup TE Molki Koivu - Koivu's 68 receptions and 1 TD were both on the lower end of TEs, but 45 pancakes seem good. He wasn't quite enough to spark the ASFC's lowest-scoring offense, though, but he has kept up earning so I have to think the team's getting what they expected out of the player.
San Jose SaberCats:
Finished 7-8-1, 5th in the ASFC
Arrivals:
* S22 FA RB Tatsu Nakamura - Nakamura's 695 yards were a hair better than S33, but at a reduced 3.9yards/carry and 4 fumbles, it's not quite a storybook finish for the old RB. His stats were in line with the other (much higher TPE) RB on the team, though, so this might be more on the OL than on the RBs.
* S32 IA FA K/P Jack Lewis - 42/44 XPs and 22/27 FGs aren't exactly amazing stats, but given the minimal investment I don't think the Sabercats are complaining about what they got.
* S24 tradee CB Harrison Andrews - Andrews played the first 9 weeks of the season with San Jose (though didn't get the start or any stats in week 1). In those games, he had 34 of his season's 47 tackles, 0/1 sacks, 0/2 interceptions, 6/11 passes defensed, and 0/1 TDs. Seems reasonable enough of stats for a low TPE CB I guess? It's also interesting to compare those stats with his immediate replacement, Kyouma (below).
* S33 callup LB Nick Flint - Flint has a great rookie year, though I'm sure he'll want to cut down missed tackles next year. The only slight I can really say is that for a pass rusher archetype only getting 2 sacks seems like maybe not what you're hoping to see. Still, I have to think the SaberCats are happy here.
* S29 tradee CB Hououin Kyouma - Kyouma didn't seem to be getting all that much play with the Butchers and with 35/44 tackles, 2/3 ints, and 8/13 passes defensed coming in his 7 weeks with San Jose very clearly look like he went from a rotational player to a starter. Given his season stat line vs. Andrews' I think it's pretty much a wash and so I'd default to prefer to have the younger player even at the lower TPE totals.
NSFC
Baltimore Hawks:
Finished 6-10, 6th in the NSFC
Arrivals:
* S26 FA LB Big Slammu - Slammu had a solid season for Baltimore though I'd say it's a bit of a down year from S33 with the Hahalua. 15 sacks is good enough for 7th in the league but I think I'd still prefer his S33 stat line given the choice. That being said, I think even if Slammu's stats were good enough for MVP, his impact will be lost amidst the S33 Ultimus winners dropping under .500 after opening the season on a 5 game losing streak. Probably still a move the team is happy with, just overshadowed by the lack of wins.
* S30 IA OL Clifford Wilson - this vaguely unwanted free agent saw minimal play and similarly minimal stats. Didn't give up a sack, though! Also caught a pass which is fun?
Berlin Fire Salamanders:
Finished 11-4-1, 2nd in the NSFC
Arrivals:
* ]S28 IA FA CB Amy Wong - Wong seems to have played only rotationally as the presumed nickel DB, so the lost cost seems to have resulted in low impact. Still, depth pieces can be important for teams trying to go deep in the playoffs so I figure Berlin is satisfied with the value of what they got here.
* S27 tradee QB Joliet Christ Jr. - Christ Jr. definitely had a worse year than S33 statistically, but that seems to be much more to the Fire Salamanders fielding the league's best rushing game and consequently Christ Jr.'s career low in passing yards and attempts. A 93.6 passing rating and only 10 interceptions both look good for efficiency, though, so I figure Berlin's perfectly fine with this outcome.
* S33 callup RB Marvin Toledo - very much a third fiddle to league rushing leader S25 Tank and TD vulture S30 Holford, I assume Toledo pretty much did what the team wanted. In the bigger picture, having not updated since Feb 12 and having all TPE past the DSFL cap being unused paints a very inactive picture. I'm fairly confident that the team would take activity over stats but it's looking like they'd be disappointed.
* S34 callup WR Zayne Dangle - I think Dangle did about as good as you could expect a rookie in a rush-first offense to do. 11.3 yards/catch is a decent starting point for a rookie even if it is well under his 15.8 last year in the DSFL.
Chicago Butchers:
Finished 12-3-1, 1st in the NSFC
Arrivals:
* S34 callup LB Rumble Ronson - Ronson actually position switched to LB before I posted my article (probably?) and so wasn't a running back at all. As a 4th linebacker he had a really strong stat line despite the lower TPE, including 5 forced fumbles, 8 sacks, and a safety. I have to think that Chicago is really happy with how Ronson's season went.
* S33 callup DE Greg Strongjaw - 4 forced fumbles and 7 sacks stand out vs. only 21 tackles to me. Seems like pretty decent impact for a rookie who I assume was being rushed at the QB and ignoring the ball carrier a bunch. Did start all 16 games, too - I thought there was a chance the Butchers were running a 3-4 base, but apparently not - so seems like a perfectly reasonable year for the rookie.
* S24 tradee CB Harrison Andrews - in his 7 weeks with Chicago, Andrews had 13 of his season's 47 tackles, 1/1 sacks, 2/2 interceptions, 5/11 passes defensed, and 1/1 TDs. Seems like he had a lot of impact on the team, despite being the third CB. I figure the leadership is probably fine with the outcome, though I'm not sure if Andrews was really a big upgrade over Kyouma.
* S25 tradee LB Gary Goodman - Goodman had a decent impact on the Butchers, with 27 of his 64 tackles, 2/4 TFLs, 4/10 sacks, the only forced fumble, and 1/2 safeties coming in his 7 weeks on the team. As a side note, 2 safeties seemed like a huge number until I looked and saw that ILove HotSalads has 3 for the year. The index season records page doesn't track safeties and I'm too lazy to go look at all of the seasons myself, but I'm impressed. But anyway, back to Goodman - as a player from S25 he might not remain on the team for long, but still seems like a solid finish to the season with the team.
Colorado Yeti:
Finished 2-14, 7th in the NSFC
Position swap:
* S29 position swapper to DT Emperor de Pengu - Pengu had a reasonable enough season as the team's nose tackle. 44 tackles is on the higher end of DTs this season and 5 sacks was hardly bad either. Clearly it wasn't enough to make up for the rest of the team's issues, but I assume the Yeti are just happy to have a solid body on the D-line.
Arrivals:
* S32 callup QB Live Laughlove - Laughlove had a pretty good year in the abstract, leading the league in passing yards and TDs, though he was also third in interceptions. That was good enough to lead the league in passing yards per game but didn't quite translate into points as the Yeti were only in the middle of the pack there. Combined with a defense that gave up the most yards and points in the league, Laughlove wasn't enough to save Colorado's season. Still, I think you can't ask a rookie QB for much more than what the Yeti got here, so I have to think they're satisfied with their future passing game.
* S32 callup DE Mrs. "Stacks" McHits - 5 TFLs and 2 sacks aren't terrible for a rookie DE, but the lack of forced fumbles is definitely something Colorado is going to want to see increased in future years. McHits wasn't a singular weak point of the defense, but forcing some turnovers will be critical to stop giving up so many points.
* S34 callup DE Nathan Explosion - Explosion's rookie season was statistically less impressive than fellow DE McHits' which makes sense as a player 2 seasons newer. Explosion's earning pace is distinctly behind the peak of the S34 class, but still not terrible. So, while I'm sure the Yeti leadership would prefer if it were higher and thereby helping Explosion to perform better, I'm not sure that they can expect much more at the low TPE totals.
* S34 callup S - Cross-Eriksen - 2 sacks, 3 interceptions, 11 passes defensed, and 2 forced fumbles add up to a statistically solid season. Unfortunately, that wasn't enough to shore up the defense alone. And unfortunately for the Yeti, the rest of their secondary is all in regression, which is going to make turning it around a project that's unlikely to be completed by S35.
Philidelphia Liberty:
Finished 6-9-1, 4th in the NSFC
Arrivals:
* S29 FA TE Buffalo Hunter - Hunter had fewer catches than S33 but at a career-highest per-catch average. Besides that, he had 69 pancakes (nice) while giving up no sacks. Seems like pretty much exactly what you want out of a possession TE, I'd think. Hunter wasn't quite enough to fix the offense (and on a tangent, I'm impressed that the team managed to get 4th in the conference with the fewest points scored in the league) but I don't think the team can point at anything else Hunter could have done here.
* S33 callup RB DeAndre King - as a rotational rookie RB, 541 yards and 2 TDs on a 3.9 yards/carry pace seem like a pretty respectable line. Throw in nearly 200 receiving yards and again I don't think you can complain about anything that King's doing here (though he is admitted about 150 TPE off the peak of the S33 class).
* S31 callup WR Malcador "The Hero" - 39 receptions at a 13.1 yard/reception pace isn't bad, though having as many drops as TDs doesn't look great. With "The Hero" not having any updates since Feb 26, I'm not sure how much that's going to improve, though I'm sure the team will try to get the player to get some updates in.
* S31 callup LB Nathan Claflin - Claflin did in fact play rotationally, getting the starter nod in 11/16 games this season. That reflects in his stats with decent tackle numbers but only 1 fumble, 1 sack, and 2 passes defensed. For a rotational player I'm not sure the team can expect more, though.
* S29 tradee DE Tomme Salami - Salami looks to have played 5 games with the Liberty, collecting 11 of his 48 tackles, 3/4 sacks, and 1/2 forced and 1/1 recovered fumble. Seems like a solid impact by the low TPE DE, though I'm sure that Philly hopes he returns, earns, and burns (?) next season.
Sarasota Sailfish:
Finished 10-5-1, 3rd in the NSFC
Arrivals:
* S30 IA FA DE Caleb Watt - Watt had minimal impact statistically, though did manage 2 forced fumbles. I'd argue his stat line is actually better than similarly low-TPE DT Kackpoo's, though obviously comparing a DT to a DE can be unfair. Still, I think Watt did what they were looking for here, which I presume is "be a body on the line this season" more than "be a future star" (though naturally I'm sure they'd love if he did return and become a store).
* S28 IA FA K/P Rainbow Dash - 59/59 XPs looks good, but only making 21/30 FGs (including 2 misses under 30 yards) is rough. Probably not quite fair to complain about your inactive free agent kicker missing kicks, but still hurts.
* S28 FA CB Raeni Clarke - Clarke had a great year with career highs in tackles, forced fumbles, interceptions, passes defensed, and defensive touchdowns. I think this is about the best outcome from a free agent CB other than also getting an extension signed.
Yellowknife Wraiths:
Finished 6-10, 5th in the NSFC
Arrivals:
* S25 IA FA WR Killian Chambers - Chambers got a bunch of receptions, albeit at a per-catch rate way under his career average. Probably unexpected given regression, but still worth noting. 5 dropped passes stands out as not great, but 7 TDs isn't bad. I think Yellowknife got pretty much exactly what they'd expect from Chambers for S34.
* S33 callup DE Daron Arnold - 5 TFLs, 6 sacks, 2 forced/1 recovered fumble is reasonable impact for a rookie DE. Plus, Arnold's keeping up with the TPE leaders of the class, so I can't imagine Yellowknife asking for anything more here. Also, I totally was correct in that he's now the highest TPE D-line player on the team.
* S32 callup CB Dragazor Blaze - 12 defensed passes stands out, but otherwise seems like the kind of stat line you'd expect from a rookie CB. Blaze is earning TPE at a slow rate, so there's hope for improvement but he seems unlikely to jump into max earning if being called up wasn't enough to get him to pick it up.
* S31 tradee WR French Fries - if I'm reading things correctly, Fries never actually got any stats with the Wraiths. Maybe they didn't need him this year but wanted the option in S35 and beyond with the loss of Bailey in the trade? I don't know, but it wasn't like Fries was doing much before the trade either with just 14 catches.
Draft Steal (retired S35 CB) - Profile/Update | Wiki
Troen Egghands (retired S22 DE) - Profile | Update | Wiki