I'm trying my hardest to feel for the Sabercats. I really am. At 6-6, just a game back from the playoffs, getting a win in one of their first 2 games this week, both away, would have been a huge step towards getting in there. Winning on Wednesday would specifically give them tiebreaker over one of the currently in playoff teams, NOLA, and winning tonight would have been a huge boost and knocked a key competitor almost out of the playoff race.
The Sabercats' last two games are both home, and they're getting a chance to face a team that should be easy and a playoff team that they can drag down. They still have a chance, but things have gotten a ton harder.
Tonight almost eliminated a team from playoff contention in the AFC, the first team other than the hapless Hahalua that can be said about. Unfortunately, I cannot really feel for the Sabercats, because if it wasn't them, it would have been us. And you'll excuse me if I don't want my team to lose a 4th massive upset by sim.
Maybe that's part of it; for things like the Yeti getting screwed against the Salamanders, I could feel sad about it because I had predictions riding on it. At best, for the Sabercats, I can only say I know how you feel, because the sim has come up with creative ways for my team to lose enough times in my short career.
Of course, there's another reason that I can't really feel bad, it meant my team and I personally did well. After our special teams kicked us in the butt again with a kickoff return to tie the game to end the first half, from what I'm pretty sure is the 2nd kick returner too, and then giving the Sabercats the ball inside our own territory again, I felt us losing a game that we should have won, AGAIN, coming on. Especially when it took all of 2 plays to get into the end zone from that point. Then we drove down the field, practically unopposed, and scored incredibly easily, starting on our own 18 we didn't even have a third down. Game tied at 17. We traded punts, then traded field goals, and finally began OT.
The Sabercats got the luck of the draw, then got just inside our half before punting. Then we come to the Arizona Offense.
I've been pretty frank that I don't feel like Darren Pama was a good DSFL player. During my rookie year I often got outperformed by my backup with less TPE, and ended up barely getting over 4 yards per carry in a league where some got over 5. My second year in the DSFL was better, but my subpar 250 TPE build held me back massively, I ended up a pretty average player all around despite starting as a max'ed player.
The most selfish reason I can't be sad about what happened to the Sabercats is because I freaking owned this period and it might be the capstone of my rookie year. The Arizona offense got 91 yards during OT. I was responsible for 62 of them.
First possession, we start with the ball on the 20. Thorbjornsson loses a yard, incomplete pass. 3rd and 11 on our own 19. I leak out behind the linebacker, catch a pass, and get 15 yards after the catch to bring us out past the 40. We wouldn't get another first down, but considering it was only a 30 yard punt, we definitely didn't want to have that from our 19. Especially considering the Sabercats began to drive, and drive, and drive, all the way down to our 33. 1st and 10, 3 yards away from the point where the sim will definitely decide to kick a field goal. I have to hand it to my teammate Chuck Roth here, getting only 1 yard on back to back plays, followed by an incomplete pass, allowed this next thing to happen. 4th and 8 from our 31, the sim's logic said that going for it was the best option. Sack, turnover on downs. We got the ball on our own 38, got a penalty to move us into Sabercat territory, and then I ran for 4 yards. 2 incomplete passes, a punt, back to the Sabercats on their own 20. After a couple plays which were wiped out by penalties, the Sabercats had their own 30 yard punt, and we got the ball on our 41. 2 yard run for Thorbjornsson, incomplete pass, and then I showed up on the stat sheet again. I got the ball short, with plenty of green grass in front of me, and 29 yards later I had carried Arizona (and at least half of the Sabercats secondary) into field goal range. The next few plays didn't involve me, a 4 yard rush from Thor, a 6 yard catch by Saba, a 5 yard rush from Thor, a 6 yard rush from Cue. With time winding down in overtime, Cue threw to me, I took it to the 1, and then the perfect capstone to my season occurred. I ran it in from one yard, infuriating every Thorbjornsson fantasy owner for the 11th time.
It feels like patting myself on the back, but I legitimately feel like I was the best player this game, and that feels really good.
905 words
The Sabercats' last two games are both home, and they're getting a chance to face a team that should be easy and a playoff team that they can drag down. They still have a chance, but things have gotten a ton harder.
Tonight almost eliminated a team from playoff contention in the AFC, the first team other than the hapless Hahalua that can be said about. Unfortunately, I cannot really feel for the Sabercats, because if it wasn't them, it would have been us. And you'll excuse me if I don't want my team to lose a 4th massive upset by sim.
Maybe that's part of it; for things like the Yeti getting screwed against the Salamanders, I could feel sad about it because I had predictions riding on it. At best, for the Sabercats, I can only say I know how you feel, because the sim has come up with creative ways for my team to lose enough times in my short career.
Of course, there's another reason that I can't really feel bad, it meant my team and I personally did well. After our special teams kicked us in the butt again with a kickoff return to tie the game to end the first half, from what I'm pretty sure is the 2nd kick returner too, and then giving the Sabercats the ball inside our own territory again, I felt us losing a game that we should have won, AGAIN, coming on. Especially when it took all of 2 plays to get into the end zone from that point. Then we drove down the field, practically unopposed, and scored incredibly easily, starting on our own 18 we didn't even have a third down. Game tied at 17. We traded punts, then traded field goals, and finally began OT.
The Sabercats got the luck of the draw, then got just inside our half before punting. Then we come to the Arizona Offense.
I've been pretty frank that I don't feel like Darren Pama was a good DSFL player. During my rookie year I often got outperformed by my backup with less TPE, and ended up barely getting over 4 yards per carry in a league where some got over 5. My second year in the DSFL was better, but my subpar 250 TPE build held me back massively, I ended up a pretty average player all around despite starting as a max'ed player.
The most selfish reason I can't be sad about what happened to the Sabercats is because I freaking owned this period and it might be the capstone of my rookie year. The Arizona offense got 91 yards during OT. I was responsible for 62 of them.
First possession, we start with the ball on the 20. Thorbjornsson loses a yard, incomplete pass. 3rd and 11 on our own 19. I leak out behind the linebacker, catch a pass, and get 15 yards after the catch to bring us out past the 40. We wouldn't get another first down, but considering it was only a 30 yard punt, we definitely didn't want to have that from our 19. Especially considering the Sabercats began to drive, and drive, and drive, all the way down to our 33. 1st and 10, 3 yards away from the point where the sim will definitely decide to kick a field goal. I have to hand it to my teammate Chuck Roth here, getting only 1 yard on back to back plays, followed by an incomplete pass, allowed this next thing to happen. 4th and 8 from our 31, the sim's logic said that going for it was the best option. Sack, turnover on downs. We got the ball on our own 38, got a penalty to move us into Sabercat territory, and then I ran for 4 yards. 2 incomplete passes, a punt, back to the Sabercats on their own 20. After a couple plays which were wiped out by penalties, the Sabercats had their own 30 yard punt, and we got the ball on our 41. 2 yard run for Thorbjornsson, incomplete pass, and then I showed up on the stat sheet again. I got the ball short, with plenty of green grass in front of me, and 29 yards later I had carried Arizona (and at least half of the Sabercats secondary) into field goal range. The next few plays didn't involve me, a 4 yard rush from Thor, a 6 yard catch by Saba, a 5 yard rush from Thor, a 6 yard rush from Cue. With time winding down in overtime, Cue threw to me, I took it to the 1, and then the perfect capstone to my season occurred. I ran it in from one yard, infuriating every Thorbjornsson fantasy owner for the 11th time.
It feels like patting myself on the back, but I legitimately feel like I was the best player this game, and that feels really good.
905 words