(S49) Offseason Task

[Seymour]

Pass

[LtHudz]

pass babeee

[AustinP0027]

Tier 1 - Prompt 3

In the DSFL, each year can bring an extremely wild swing of results. As thorough as teams can attempt to be, there’s no way of knowing how each and every new create will respond to the league. As often as we talk about players going on the inactive list, there is also a very real challenge in players who show up for a little bit, and then either significantly slow down their earnings or go inactive even after playing for a few weeks.

The S50 class was touted as the “reddit class” since the reddit advertisements were going to be posted, and higher numbers were expected. As of writing this, the S50 class has 64 players in it, 2 less than the s49 class will have. What this means is that the DSFL GMs will need to be just as planful as always, as they will have 8 rounds (so most likely 8 picks) to fill their team needs.

Looking at the DSFL rosters, there are 47 players who were capped by the end of the season ( and another 15 who were within 10, so should be capped very soon). That’s a lot of talent at high levels considering there are 142 players in total. However, 27 of those players are inactive, still sitting below the 57 TPE requirement to get draft to the ISFL after a full season, so they might be dropped by their respective teams. Additionally, 54 of those players are from classes before S49, so you have to assume that a portion of them are going to get called up to the ISFL this season.

If we take the list of everyone older than s49 (54 players) and get their current TPE, then divide that TPE by the number of seasons their player has existed, we can get a rough average TPE per season for each player. Taking that average, I would then tag any player who is over 300 TPE who also have an average season TPE of greater than 150 as a player who will be called up to the ISFL this season. That gives us 25 players from the list of 54 who aren’t going to be in the DSFL any longer.

Additionally, I’ll drop all 27 of the inactives. I believe a couple of them will actually stick around on their team’s rosters as there are a couple offensive lineman, as well as a few defensive positions that teams won’t want to let go of even if it’s at 50 TPE. But for the purposes of seeing league turnover, let’s drop them.

That leaves us with 89 returning players (a number that will surely be inaccurate). Of these 89, 22 are currently at cap. Breaking that apart, you have the following counts by team:
POR, TIJ, LON: 4
KCC, MIN: 3
DAL: 2
BBB, NOR: 1

With just capped players alone, the top of the league looks to only have shifted slightly, with Portland joining Tijuana and London back at the top. Kansas City moves up as they were on the bottom with Dallas last year. Minnesota stays around the same place they were. Dallas actually moves up slightly because now Bondi and Norfolk sit at the bottom.

Digging in just a little deeper, let’s see where those capped players sit.
POR: 2 offense, 2 defense
TIJ: 2 offense, 2 defense
LON: 1 offense, 3 defense
KCC: 1 offense, 2 defense
MIN: 1 offense, 2 defense
DAL: 1 defense, 1 special teams
BBB: 1 defense
NOR: 1 offense

So what does this new information mean? Well, the top of the league will have a strong defense again AND the league is looking for offense in general. I think that what you’ll see is lower scoring games, especially to start the year while the offenses build up their TPE.

I think the wild card is going to be those players who are close to the cap. If you grab players who are between 230 and 250 TPE, suddenly some teams get a boost.
KCC: 2 offense, 1 defense, 1 special teams
NOR: 3 defense
POR: 2 offense
BBB: 1 offense, 1 defense
MIN: 1 offense, 1 defense
TIJ: 1 defense
DAL: 1 offense

Suddenly, Kansas City jumps up the rankings with more players close to the cap, meaning better early season success. Norfolk is no longer at the bottom due to that defense being strong. Tijuana, Portland, and London stay rich at the top.

But overall, I think Kansas City is going to be the big surprise this season. I think they are returning a fair number of players which lets them draft more strategically to fill holes instead of just needing bodies on one side like a team like Dallas does. That’s going to give them an advantage early that they can build up wins as everyone else catches up. It’ll be tough though, Portland/London/Tijuana will all be strong right away as well. So overall it’s going to be trading wins for everyone. Who comes out on top? I don’t think you can predict because of Inactives and sim flukes, but I think it’ll come from the 4 of Kansas City, Portland, London, or Tijuana.

[Cycro]

OT Pass

[Schnee]

OT Pass

[Rusfan]

THE GREATEST ROOKIE SEASON ANY SAFETY HAS EVER HAD.

Well, probably. I honestly haven’t checked the rookie seasons of other safeties. It’d be cool if WolfieBot had an option for rookie season stats.

Hey Infi, get on it.

Anyways let’s get into the specifics.

Caleb TheGEICOCamel was shockingly called up right after the offseason started for the Minnesota Grey Ducks at the end of season forty-seven. The third string cornerback was asked to change to free safety right away and spent the offseason learning both the new Hahalua defensive playbook and the new position. One year after barely seeing the field with Minnesota, and hardly even touching the stat book, the season forty-eight first round draftee is well on his way to bringing home multiple awards.

On the season with, at the time of writing, one game left to go Caleb has amassed an impressive 5 interceptions to go with 4 forced fumbles all of which he recovered, as well as 2 sacks. His interceptions are tied for 6th best among all players, and is tied for 2nd best among safeties behind only San Jose’s The Red Panda. His 4 fumble recoveries are tied for the best with quite a few players, but his 4 forced fumbles are best amongst all safeties.

Defensive rookie of the year is almost certainly his. The next best competitor is likely either Willeh Strong and Speed Hawk at linebacker for the Colorado Yeti and the New York Silverbacks respectively, or Lasse Zeigler at safety for the Orange County Otters. None of these listed players have been at the level that Caleb has but they are likely to be the fellow nominees.

Defensive player of the year will, in all likelihood, be given to Yellowknife Wraiths cornerback Kadarius Claypool II. With a near record-setting 9 interceptions, just one shy of the record of 10 in a single season, as well as 2 touchdowns, it’s hard to see anyone else other than Jake Williams having a shot at the trophy with just one week left. Unless something crazy happens on the field against New York in week 16, Caleb will have to be just content with a nomination.

Finally, defensive performance of the year is possibly the hardest call to make of all. Obviously all defensive awards lean towards the linebacker position. This has been, and likely always will be the case. With that being said, I think that performances from the safety position, where stats are much rarer, should be treated with more weight than at linebacker, where stats are much easier to come by.

With that said, I then think that either Caleb’s week 4 performance against Arizona with 1 interception, 2 forced fumbles and 2 fumble recoveries and 1 sack, or Marty Crane’s week 13 game with an interception returned for a touchdown, and a forced fumble he then recovered should be picked to win. There are other performances ranked higher by the sim itself, most notably Ignacious Cleetington’s week one game with 2 sacks, 2 forced fumbles and 2 fumble recoveries-one returned for a score. This performance, while strong, doesn’t outpace other strong linebacker performances enough to overshadow greater performances by lesser positions in my mind, so it will all come down to how strongly the voting committee weighs defensive touchdowns and position strength.

Ultimately coming into the season at 280 TPE, barely above the DSFL cap, expectations for Caleb’s rookie year were extremely low. Safeties with 5 times that will go a whole season without making any plays of significants, so for Caleb to not just outperform his own expectations, but to beat out every other safety in the league is extraordinarily encouraging. With only 1 season under his belt and many more to come, it will be exciting to see just how far his career could go.

[Daileyj6]

Answering #2.

     The Season 50 (S50) draft class may be the greatest draft class of all time. Highly talented players at all positions have declared eligible, intense rivalries between prospects have already sparked, and the mentorship from the previous classes is at a level never seen in the history of the league. As we approach the draft all you can do is be excited, especially to watch the prospect bowl games leading up.
Speaking of rivalries, the two frontrunners of the class, from both an entertainment standpoint and a talent standpoint, seem to be Prospect Offensive Lineman Jordan Drapal and Prospect Defensive End Jonathan Dailey. It didn’t take long for the fire of competition to be lit in their bellies, less than a week to be exact. From chitter chatter in the media to spicy conversation in online chat rooms, the two rookies seem to have each other’s numbers. If I had a vote for a future Hall of Fame inductee, it would undoubtedly be one of these two competitors.

     Let’s talk about these guys, or unicorns if you ask me. Jordan Drapal, an athletic pass blocker looking to play LT, has size, strength, and speed to his advantage. It’s just not often you see guys his size move that athletically. What’s in those pancakes you always see him eating? (I would request a performance enhancing drug test before drafting this guy.) Now for Jonathan Dailey, a speedster defensive end. Imagine taking Jordan Drapal and making him faster, that’s Jonathan Dailey. He’s capable of beating anyone in this class off the edge so QB Prospects beware. He’s big, he’s strong, and he’s quicker than quick. I really hope we get to see these guys face off head-to-head in the Prospect Bowl.
 
    Those two guys (along with Quarterback No Pix, Safety Akane Saruta, and Wide Receiver Joe Cool) should carry this class to greatness, maybe even set some records. Depending on how these prospects pan out, we could be witnessing history in the making. The greatest class in the history of the ISFL. Has a ring to it, huh?
     
     So, where do you think those guys will land in the DSFL draft later this week? Defensive End is a need across the board, Drapal may be the best offensive lineman in the draft, multiple QB’s are likely to move up to the ISFL, and you can never go wrong with a strong pick at safety. I believe its likely we see all these names in the first round! Drapal will likely be taken by Dallas Birddogs. The Birddogs have a new QB (Zack Vega Jr.) and only one offensive lineman worth naming, but Drapal may have surpassed him already. Rule number one in being a good GM is to PROTECT YOUR ASSETS making Drapal a lock if Dallas can get their hands on him.
    
     Next up is QB No Pix. Fans love his name, his charisma, and more importantly his impressive play in college. With Quarterback Russell Jimmies potentially moving up, I can see the Kansas City Coyotes targeting Pix as not just a replacement, but an IMPROVEMENT. QB No Pix is smart, he’s accurate, and he’s got a big arm. His only downfall is his speed, which is what the current Kansas City Coyotes QB struggled with all year.
     
     My last draft prediction will go to DE Jonathan Dailey. I can see two potential landing spots for him, one being for pure excitement and the other for team need. We will go with team need first, the Tijuana Luchadores. The Luchadores are very empty at the position with their current starter being less than impressive for them. Picking Dailey would definitely give them a boost with an immediate impact player that could pressure opposing QB’s making their secondary succeed. The second, the Norfolk Seawolves. With a star at DT in WW Jatt and an already good veteran DE in Rick Van Vale, what a spectacle it would be to add DE Jonathan Dailey to make a defensive front that will be talked about for generations to come.

See you at the prospect bowl!

[jdc4654]

OT PASS

[ztarwarz]

7. I'm not sure I've seen a season more valuable than Donovan Winters' S48 since coming back to the league; indeed, I think I've actually never seen a season as valuable. There's been some better seasons in that time, S30 Cortez is something I will always stump for, but as far as "fitting every possible definition of MVP to a T"? I think this is it.

Let's start with the simple one: Is Winters the best QB season this year, the usual way people go about giving MVP in the real NFL? Yes, clearly and blatantly so. You don't even need to go into advanced stats to show that, just looking at the 7 point gap in passer rating to anyone else in the league and the 12 point gap in passer rating for anyone else with more volume is probably enough, but when you get into things like his yards per attempt and his ANY/A it becomes completely undeniable. He leads TANY/A (ANY/A adjusted for rush attempts and fumbles) by 1.3 yards over anyone else.

My personal judge for MVP is "best season regardless of position" and I feel like Winters, having a top 10-15 QB season all time, easily takes that. There's an argument for Justin Willis as a Linebacker but I don't feel like that has that much of a leg to stand on. You might say that Pitter Patter or Kadarius Claypool II have arguments looking just at their raw stats, but their advance stats betray them; you could easily make arguments that neither are even the 2nd best player at their position this season, and with Pitter Patter especially he's more a good player who had a bunch of targets; in terms of yards per target he's below the leaders at the position by 2.5 yards. Said leader, Sem'ga Nah'sim is just straight up a primary WR, this isn't a case of a low usage high efficiency guy skewing the results. Anyways, suffice to say Winters is the best player regardless of position this year.

Then there's the one that I see trotted out often, and I absolutely hate. "Did he carry his team?" This viewpoint often punishes players for being on good teams or for making teammates better. That being said, if you really want to go this route, Winters is probably one of the best MVP candidates of all time.

Arizona was not a particularly dominant team this year, outside of one particular stat. Sure, they had a good rush defense by yardage, but were the worst team in the league at pass defense, which led to an average defense both in terms of yards allowed and points against, 7th in the league in each. By pure yards, they had the 4th best rushing offense, but that came from being a great team up in a bunch of games. At 4.3, they were 9th in yards per carry, the worst of the top 4 offenses in the league by a significant distance. The Hawks, Crash, and Second Line were all up at 4.6 and 4.7 yards per carry. This wasn't the worst run game in the league by any metric (oh my goodness Fire Salamanders what were you doing) but it was at best average, and I'd call it below average.

But they had the most yards for of any team, and the most points for. They were the best offense, and this was entirely due to the strength of the passing attack. It's not even like any target stood out particularly; both Bamford and Benji were great, might make All Pro teams, but are way too spread out to be, say, on the ballot for OPOY/MVP. If Winters was more supported this season then Arizona would be the 1st seed overall and at bare minimum host the Conference Championship. Winters for MVP.

[Commaperiod]

Tier 2: Short Form Tasks (Each must be 300+ words)
8. In 300 words or more, how has your experience been in the league? Who have you met that has made your time here more fun, friendly, and exciting? Have you been satisfied with your player’s early start? What was it like being drafted for the first time? Do you have any comments or suggestions for the entire league that you think should be implemented?

I’d never even heard of sim leagues before my friend Parky mentioned it. He and I have been friends for decades now in real life as well in a couple long-standing fantasy football leagues. I’ve been into D&D my whole life, so the idea of combining the stats and knowledge of football with some role-playing sounded pretty interesting. The cast of characters is diverse in this league and I’ve already had numerous chuckles at the memes and trash-talk shenanigans on the server.
As a Seahawks fan, our notorious under-investment in offensive linemen led me to start in the trenches, wanting to protect my quarterback and make lanes for running plays. I love having pancakes as my main results metric!
I only got to play a few games before last season ended, but watching dot-ball and following along in the realtime chat has become a great after-work wind down. I hope to make more impact in the coming season and am curious to see if the team I end up on needs me as an offensive lineman or at another position. Despite loving pancakes, I imagine it’s fun to have more statistics to count like catches or broken plays or, heck, even touchdowns. Has there been a Mike Vrabel-style linebacker who’s lined up at tight end for surprising scoring formations? I don’t know, I’m new, though I’d guess somebody’s probably done it in one of these FIFTY(!) seasons!
It was exciting to be picked up off of waivers and even more so to be courted, I mean scouted, by multiple teams leading up to my first draft. I’ve heard about some of the thought and preparation that goes into the draft, and its attendant spectacle, and can’t wait to see the output of all of that hard work and enthusiasm.
I’m still trying to wrangle some of the more confusing elements and even some of the simple ones: beware the Confurius counting failures. I promise I know how to count and how to use Discord. I guess it’s just combining the two that makes it hard for me.

Tier 3: Written/Graphics Tasks (Each must be either 150+ words or a graphic)
21. Graphic Option: Create the cover art for your player’s show.
https://imgur.com/a/ityi0gs

31. Make up an award for your player (or even someone else) to win for something not on the football field. (Written)
TMosura Award for Bad Counting
Confurius is excellent at following the hard count but not so good at actual counting. Whether it’s trying to count while socially distracted at a party, or trying to count too early in the day, Confurius has been confounded by counting. He keeps practicing on his own, counting everything from cars to cards to cardinals, hoping that his next counting mistake will be in ordering milkshakes and cheesesteaks, not ruining high stakes streaks. Taking breaks might mitigate the errors he makes, but it’s hard for him to wait when there are salaries at stake. He’ll hold this humble award proudly until he’s able to overcome his numerical challenges and some other player takes over as TMosura’s spiritual descendant. In the meantime, his admission of addition remission will remain a scarlet number on his pride, keeping him intellectually humble as defensive lines crumble before him in the upcoming season.