Things are finally coming to fruition in Bondi Beach. After a long offseason wait, and (what felt like) a longer preseason, plus stinky ISFL W1 and W2 sim, the Bondi Beach Buccaneer's S30 season is just a few hours from kicking off.
The starters are set, the rookies are excited primed, and the GMs have been testing tirelessly. So how does the roster look in its current form? It varies greatly, depending on where you're looking. So let's break it down, position-by-position.
QB
Coming back again for his 4th year is Dexter Zayrlen in starting role after a disappointing season last year. Many were hoping that through the draft, we could have some new talent have a test drive- but despite making a few mistakes, Zayrlen is not the one to blame for last season's woes. I think a lot of fans changed their tune this preseason when Zayrlen had some really great starts hailing six touchdowns, which is a huge feat for preseason. Plus to show some extra dedication, he even took some reps as punt returner.
This season, Zayrlen enters the season as the undisputed first-string quarterback, in the eyes of the GM, the media, and even the fans. Its a reassuring thing to know that there won't be any controversy on this topic, despite the abysmal 2-14 record last season.
It seems he needs only to stay healthy this year in order to make a huge leap forward in his progression, and hopefully for the rest of the fanbase he can start focusing on looking at the pictures on the sidelines to help aid his tendency to throw the ball to the opposing defense.
RB
Ken Oath is what the fans are looking forward to the most this season. It is entirely possible that Oath has managed to pull higher expectations onto himself than the GMs or even Dexter Zayrlen. Being the first overall pick in the draft will do that.
But more than just that, the rest of Bondi's running backs seem to have waned (or maybe they just pale in comparison?) thus far. Tron Carter had a decent season last year for the Bucs and could probably be a decent #1 for half of the DSFL teams but on the field it seems he might be just a step behind Oath. Thats not the worst problem to have as this combo might well be the best two headed running attack in the DSFL.
Mel Gibson is consistent, but no better than average. He will be the one the Bucs go to when the others desperately need a break from pounding the rock, and probably mostly in pass blocking schemes to keep the others legs a little fresher. In other words, a huge percentage of the Bucaneers' ground game is going to depend on Oath meeting and exceeding the expectations set for him. He can do it, but for a back whose primary concern is age, you have to wonder if it's a good idea for him to try shouldering the load himself.
WR
The Bucs are thrilled with the knowledge that they have upgraded their wide receiver corps from one major target and a bunch of scrubs to two major targets and one potential late round jackpot. Honestly, that's the best-case scenario.
We know Squidward Tentacles will find the end zone frequently. The biggest question is Kotoni Staggs. So far in the preseason, Staggs has looked stellar, having three 100+ yard receiving games, and really allowing the Bucs offense to stretch the field. Problem is, its preseason and those defenses aren't likely to be seen, heck some of those players might not make the final rosters. Certainly, if Staggs can prove himself to be the same consistent receiver that Tentacles is, we should have a nice 1-2 punch on the outside that really opens up the offensive playbook to be a swiss army knife of threats.
Regardless of how, the Bucs need Staggs to be productive this season, because the low man on the pole is Tony Demonson who had a decent preseason but I think coaches and fans are still not sure about the consistency of success. He has really been working hard and I have very high hopes for him, but until we can see his performance on the field he will be a question mark coming into the season.
TE
Travis Scott is back for another season and he came to play this time around. You can tell he put in a lot of work this offseason to really get on the second level for his position. Sadly the depth isn't there for the Bucs as the next man down is Tim Cahil, who was bagging groceries at Woolworths last year and now he is here. He'll mostly slot in for when Scott needs a breather but lets hope we don't see too much of him.
Back to Scott though- he was able to find the endzone in the preseason which fans are happy about as last season it seemed like he was having some trouble tracking the ball. Hopefully we get to see a bit more of him there as Bondi was dead last in the league in red zone scoring last season. Scott has always been good on the blocking end, but lets hope his offseason work paid off and he can start to sprinkle in good numbers on the receiving side, it will take a lot of pressure off Zayrlen and the delicate group at wide receiver, and give Zayrlen a nice big target in the end zone in those goal line sets.
OL
The Bucs' offensive line returns to their bot ways after losing a good one in Bernie Sanders, luckily Pepe Legs Johnson is back again to keep the line solid. I think they should be in pretty good shape despite the loss of their pro-bowl lineman. Red Rooster is playing very well at tackle. Shane Warne is vastly underrated. Andrew Bogut looks more confident and less mistake-prone, something a lot of us were worried about after we heard he made the roster. In the preseason, the offensive line has performed well given the circumstances. Holes have opened up in the run game, and quarterbacks have been hardly touched.
Special Teams
This one's easy.
Paul Monitor comes in as the new kicker and punter and needless to say, its nice that we can finally rely on someone after the abysmal performance last seasons kickers put on the field. Monitor is a rookie but he has looked amazing in preseason, bombing 60 yard punts, nailing 50+ yard field goals, and going perfect on extra points, not much more you can ask for.
The Bucs are still leaving the door open as to who will be fielding the task as kick returners, as mentioned before, preseason gave some players an opportunity to put on a show and try out the position. Zayrlen was back on a few ,and even the big man Domino's Pizzaman gave it a crack, well a pretty big crack, as he opened the game against Norfolk with a 99 yard return. Expect punt and kick return duties to be "by committee" until someone stands out.
LB
Ray The Manta Ray was drafted to fill up linebacker position. He had a really nice look coming into the draft and a very promising preseason. He is expected to only stay for one season here in Bondi so lets hope we get some really nice results in his time here!
The other standout LB is Senbyō Korin, coming off an amazing rookie season, Korin is back for more destruction on this veteran Bucs defense. All we can ask is he keeps up what he started last season, four sacks two forced fumbles, he was a nuisance to the opposing offense. Last but not least we have Hugh Jackman rounding out the bunch, Jackman had a great preseason racking up 19 tackles and at this point we are lucky just to have someone that doesn't miss every tackle.
DE
Defensive end might be the biggest question mark on the defense for the Bucs in S30. You might be saying fr? And at first glance it would seem with Tomme Salami coming back as a veteran and Doo Fus slotting in as a promising prospect this wouldn't be a question mark position. But despite these things, it just seems like something is missing with these players. Neither had a stellar preseason. I may just be over analyzing and perhaps they were just saving their play for the regular season but this is definitely a position I'll be keeping close tabs on throughout the season.
DT
HEY THE BIG MEN ARE BACK, WWW dot THEKIDSFROMBONDI dot COM.
Yes, you heard it right, we have the big men back on deck this season. Both Pizzaman and Redding are back for their swan song year. This duo is the best in the league and they are hoping to wreak havoc on the opposing linemen. Pizzaman had a monster preseason, he started with that amazing kick return and was stellar on defense, racking up 3 sacks and a boat load of tackles. He is another one who had a major offseason change really sharpening his skills after his rookie year. Redding is no different- Redding is just a tackle machine, every time there was a play Redding was there to make the tackle or cause the disruption that caused it. This is gonna be fun to watch folks, I don't see the Bucs getting beat on the ground this season so it will be up to the secondary to really lock down the passing game.
CB
Bondi's current cornerback situation entails Guy Gibson and Kade Carlton as starters. Gibson is a vet and should have no trouble handling some of these young DSFL receivers but Carlton is another new face so we will still need to see if he is ready for the big stage. So far in preseason he has been holding his own. The best thing about the CB position this year for the Bucs is their depth, something they really lacked last season. Eric Hall has recently been announced as the Bucs' new nickel back, he scouted very well, and the GMs are really excited to see what he has to offer in this role. Rounding out the cornerback are more young guns, James Sharkey and Felix Hollaway- we haven't really had the chance to see much of them so far, but as long as they stay healthy and don't lose deep they should fit in fin with this much improved defense.
S
In only a few short months, safety has gone from one of the Bondi's biggest holes to perhaps the area with the greatest potential.
This season, Bondi lost their veteran pro-bowl safety Chathack'rius Smith to callups. However they may have found a pretty decent replacement in Straya Carnt. Or even if he doesn't work out one of their what seems like endless cornerbacks can fill the gap with ease. Carnt showed his stuff during preseason flying all over the field and locking down the deep threats, its a stretch to call him pro-bowl caliber but that's ok with the dominance of this front seven and depth of the CB position.
This season will be a fun one for all the Bondi faithful- lets face it, the only way to go is up. Its nice to see that we can have some veterans on both sides of the ball and not losing an entire draft class to call ups. Expect some really tight match-ups and hopefully a playoff berth. Yes I said it, I've been watching this team for a little over 3 months and they look like they have the right pieces for the playoffs, as long as they play as a team and really put it all on the field they should have a lot of success. We'll see tonight when they start their season against the SeaWolves- will they disappoint us last year or give us hope for an UNdefeated season.
The starters are set, the rookies are excited primed, and the GMs have been testing tirelessly. So how does the roster look in its current form? It varies greatly, depending on where you're looking. So let's break it down, position-by-position.
QB
Coming back again for his 4th year is Dexter Zayrlen in starting role after a disappointing season last year. Many were hoping that through the draft, we could have some new talent have a test drive- but despite making a few mistakes, Zayrlen is not the one to blame for last season's woes. I think a lot of fans changed their tune this preseason when Zayrlen had some really great starts hailing six touchdowns, which is a huge feat for preseason. Plus to show some extra dedication, he even took some reps as punt returner.
This season, Zayrlen enters the season as the undisputed first-string quarterback, in the eyes of the GM, the media, and even the fans. Its a reassuring thing to know that there won't be any controversy on this topic, despite the abysmal 2-14 record last season.
It seems he needs only to stay healthy this year in order to make a huge leap forward in his progression, and hopefully for the rest of the fanbase he can start focusing on looking at the pictures on the sidelines to help aid his tendency to throw the ball to the opposing defense.
RB
Ken Oath is what the fans are looking forward to the most this season. It is entirely possible that Oath has managed to pull higher expectations onto himself than the GMs or even Dexter Zayrlen. Being the first overall pick in the draft will do that.
But more than just that, the rest of Bondi's running backs seem to have waned (or maybe they just pale in comparison?) thus far. Tron Carter had a decent season last year for the Bucs and could probably be a decent #1 for half of the DSFL teams but on the field it seems he might be just a step behind Oath. Thats not the worst problem to have as this combo might well be the best two headed running attack in the DSFL.
Mel Gibson is consistent, but no better than average. He will be the one the Bucs go to when the others desperately need a break from pounding the rock, and probably mostly in pass blocking schemes to keep the others legs a little fresher. In other words, a huge percentage of the Bucaneers' ground game is going to depend on Oath meeting and exceeding the expectations set for him. He can do it, but for a back whose primary concern is age, you have to wonder if it's a good idea for him to try shouldering the load himself.
WR
The Bucs are thrilled with the knowledge that they have upgraded their wide receiver corps from one major target and a bunch of scrubs to two major targets and one potential late round jackpot. Honestly, that's the best-case scenario.
We know Squidward Tentacles will find the end zone frequently. The biggest question is Kotoni Staggs. So far in the preseason, Staggs has looked stellar, having three 100+ yard receiving games, and really allowing the Bucs offense to stretch the field. Problem is, its preseason and those defenses aren't likely to be seen, heck some of those players might not make the final rosters. Certainly, if Staggs can prove himself to be the same consistent receiver that Tentacles is, we should have a nice 1-2 punch on the outside that really opens up the offensive playbook to be a swiss army knife of threats.
Regardless of how, the Bucs need Staggs to be productive this season, because the low man on the pole is Tony Demonson who had a decent preseason but I think coaches and fans are still not sure about the consistency of success. He has really been working hard and I have very high hopes for him, but until we can see his performance on the field he will be a question mark coming into the season.
TE
Travis Scott is back for another season and he came to play this time around. You can tell he put in a lot of work this offseason to really get on the second level for his position. Sadly the depth isn't there for the Bucs as the next man down is Tim Cahil, who was bagging groceries at Woolworths last year and now he is here. He'll mostly slot in for when Scott needs a breather but lets hope we don't see too much of him.
Back to Scott though- he was able to find the endzone in the preseason which fans are happy about as last season it seemed like he was having some trouble tracking the ball. Hopefully we get to see a bit more of him there as Bondi was dead last in the league in red zone scoring last season. Scott has always been good on the blocking end, but lets hope his offseason work paid off and he can start to sprinkle in good numbers on the receiving side, it will take a lot of pressure off Zayrlen and the delicate group at wide receiver, and give Zayrlen a nice big target in the end zone in those goal line sets.
OL
The Bucs' offensive line returns to their bot ways after losing a good one in Bernie Sanders, luckily Pepe Legs Johnson is back again to keep the line solid. I think they should be in pretty good shape despite the loss of their pro-bowl lineman. Red Rooster is playing very well at tackle. Shane Warne is vastly underrated. Andrew Bogut looks more confident and less mistake-prone, something a lot of us were worried about after we heard he made the roster. In the preseason, the offensive line has performed well given the circumstances. Holes have opened up in the run game, and quarterbacks have been hardly touched.
Special Teams
This one's easy.
Paul Monitor comes in as the new kicker and punter and needless to say, its nice that we can finally rely on someone after the abysmal performance last seasons kickers put on the field. Monitor is a rookie but he has looked amazing in preseason, bombing 60 yard punts, nailing 50+ yard field goals, and going perfect on extra points, not much more you can ask for.
The Bucs are still leaving the door open as to who will be fielding the task as kick returners, as mentioned before, preseason gave some players an opportunity to put on a show and try out the position. Zayrlen was back on a few ,and even the big man Domino's Pizzaman gave it a crack, well a pretty big crack, as he opened the game against Norfolk with a 99 yard return. Expect punt and kick return duties to be "by committee" until someone stands out.
LB
Ray The Manta Ray was drafted to fill up linebacker position. He had a really nice look coming into the draft and a very promising preseason. He is expected to only stay for one season here in Bondi so lets hope we get some really nice results in his time here!
The other standout LB is Senbyō Korin, coming off an amazing rookie season, Korin is back for more destruction on this veteran Bucs defense. All we can ask is he keeps up what he started last season, four sacks two forced fumbles, he was a nuisance to the opposing offense. Last but not least we have Hugh Jackman rounding out the bunch, Jackman had a great preseason racking up 19 tackles and at this point we are lucky just to have someone that doesn't miss every tackle.
DE
Defensive end might be the biggest question mark on the defense for the Bucs in S30. You might be saying fr? And at first glance it would seem with Tomme Salami coming back as a veteran and Doo Fus slotting in as a promising prospect this wouldn't be a question mark position. But despite these things, it just seems like something is missing with these players. Neither had a stellar preseason. I may just be over analyzing and perhaps they were just saving their play for the regular season but this is definitely a position I'll be keeping close tabs on throughout the season.
DT
HEY THE BIG MEN ARE BACK, WWW dot THEKIDSFROMBONDI dot COM.
Yes, you heard it right, we have the big men back on deck this season. Both Pizzaman and Redding are back for their swan song year. This duo is the best in the league and they are hoping to wreak havoc on the opposing linemen. Pizzaman had a monster preseason, he started with that amazing kick return and was stellar on defense, racking up 3 sacks and a boat load of tackles. He is another one who had a major offseason change really sharpening his skills after his rookie year. Redding is no different- Redding is just a tackle machine, every time there was a play Redding was there to make the tackle or cause the disruption that caused it. This is gonna be fun to watch folks, I don't see the Bucs getting beat on the ground this season so it will be up to the secondary to really lock down the passing game.
CB
Bondi's current cornerback situation entails Guy Gibson and Kade Carlton as starters. Gibson is a vet and should have no trouble handling some of these young DSFL receivers but Carlton is another new face so we will still need to see if he is ready for the big stage. So far in preseason he has been holding his own. The best thing about the CB position this year for the Bucs is their depth, something they really lacked last season. Eric Hall has recently been announced as the Bucs' new nickel back, he scouted very well, and the GMs are really excited to see what he has to offer in this role. Rounding out the cornerback are more young guns, James Sharkey and Felix Hollaway- we haven't really had the chance to see much of them so far, but as long as they stay healthy and don't lose deep they should fit in fin with this much improved defense.
S
In only a few short months, safety has gone from one of the Bondi's biggest holes to perhaps the area with the greatest potential.
This season, Bondi lost their veteran pro-bowl safety Chathack'rius Smith to callups. However they may have found a pretty decent replacement in Straya Carnt. Or even if he doesn't work out one of their what seems like endless cornerbacks can fill the gap with ease. Carnt showed his stuff during preseason flying all over the field and locking down the deep threats, its a stretch to call him pro-bowl caliber but that's ok with the dominance of this front seven and depth of the CB position.
This season will be a fun one for all the Bondi faithful- lets face it, the only way to go is up. Its nice to see that we can have some veterans on both sides of the ball and not losing an entire draft class to call ups. Expect some really tight match-ups and hopefully a playoff berth. Yes I said it, I've been watching this team for a little over 3 months and they look like they have the right pieces for the playoffs, as long as they play as a team and really put it all on the field they should have a lot of success. We'll see tonight when they start their season against the SeaWolves- will they disappoint us last year or give us hope for an UNdefeated season.
Code:
2014 words
The Riddler
New York Sliverbacks
Dallas Birddongs
Former Players
Dominos Pizzaman S30-S40
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