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A little late this time around. The whole sordid tale can be found here: http://www.imperialfl.us/forums/showthread.php?t=11564
A player receives one point for their current overall and 1/3 point for unrealized potential. So, a player with a 40/70 rating gets 50 points. The system is based on the Poor, Fair, etc ratings used in the game.
84+ *****
67-83 ****
50-66 ***
33-49 **
16-32 *
OFFENSIVE SKILL POSITIONS
Key Losses: WR Martin Witt (FA DAK) RB Darryl Fletcher (cut)
Key Additions: QB Lawrence Cook (FA VER) QB Gabe Patterson (2.1) RB Keith Keefe (3.4) WR Levon Bullock (4.3)
QB- L.Cook** L.Rogers** G.Patterson*
RB- K.Keefe** R.Particelli** R.Tanner**
FB- M.Prestbye*** A.Sotiroff***
TE- D.Kroeger** D.Gardner**
FL- H.Stills** W.Joyner**
SE- L.Nafis** M.Norris** L.Bullock*
I inquired about trading for Lawrence Cook near the trading deadline last season. I felt sure Vermont would offer him an extension. He became FA priority #1 when he entered the offseason as a UFA. Cook is a caretaker QB nothing more. The Toads were a combined -40 in TO margin in 2019-20. Cook's presence on this team will have an immediate impact on that area. He's one the IFL's safest QB's. Les Rogers is no longer a starter here and I can't see him starting anywhere again in this league barring catastrophe. Rogers is still a top 40 or so QB and a mentor and provides quality depth. Gabe Patterson didn't turn out quite as well as I'd hoped. I still think he ends up with an overall rating around 46-48. I'll hold onto him for now but with Cook the starter and Rogers popularity, contract, still decent skills and mentor status Patterson may begin his journeyman career soon. Were still looking for the Toad future at QB.
Rookie Keith Keefe will start a RB. Keefe should be a solid back the question is: How often will he be on the field?. Keefe could be a small factor as receiver as well. His hands are another huge question mark, though. The battle for RB2 hasn't resolved itself yet. Richard Particelli is coming off an 800 yd. season and an awful camp. Ritchie Tanner is a below average runner with big elusiveness. Tanner will be the 3rd down back. I thought Andrew Sotiroff might take over at FB this season. A stellar exhibition season by Michael Prestbye has delayed those plans. For now they are both Toads. If we get off to another bad start I'll shop Prestbye near the deadline. I can't imagine this situation continuing into 2022.
Dexter Kroeger enters the season as the new starter at TE. I'm not sure Kroeger is a better player than incumbent Deron Gardner yet. There is just too much upside to not play this guy. 2nd year WR Hunter Stills is another first time starter at FL. Stills had a very successful rookie season, with more PT, sustained drives and experience I'm expecting a big year for Whiskey. Veteran WR Wesley Joyner will be the backup FL and our 3rd WR. Louis Nafis was the most productive Toad receiver in 2020. Nafis has been the most productive Toad receiver the last 2 seasons. Veteran Marshall Norris didn't make it all the way back from his second very serious injury. He was already here and there were no better options on the market so he returns for his second year in LR. Rookie Levon Bullock is an ideal 5th receiver. Good hands, running after the catch and BPR but he won't take targets away from more developed receivers. Bullock has some return ability and may help out there down the road.
Synopsis: I was very close to taking the QB May and/or the RB Sparkman. I decided to address holes on the OL and DB this time. Lots of good pieces here but still no huge talents.
OFFENSIVE LINE
Key Losses: T Victor Levine (no offer)
Key Additions: T Lamar Todd (FA LAN) T Kurt Everitt (1.14) G Perry Quinn (2.2) G Don Gamble (UnD)
LT- K.Everitt** E.Jamison**
LG- Q.Perry** H.Stephens**
C- E.Calloway*** M.Staton**
RG- S.Hempstead** B.Bronson** D.Gamble*
RT- L.Todd*** E.Bookwalter**
Rookies Kurt Everitt and Perry Quinn take over the left side of the Toad OL. There will be growing pains. Everitt will never be a great LT and might not even be a very good one. He should develop into a much better than average starter equally skilled as a run and pass blocker. Quinn will be a premiere run blocker someday but that day is a long way off. I've soured some on Ernest Calloway. I expected much more production from him on the bad Toad OL we've fielded the last couple of years. Shaun Hempstead starts at RG. Hempstead is a good run blocker but is a concern in pass protection. Lamar Todd will start out of position at RT. I made a big offer to Todd, cooled on him when I drafted Everitt and got back in the Todd bidding war when I fanned on a couple other FA's. I'm not comfortable with a position switch in this situation. My hope is Todd plays well enough at RT to be our OL leader for the next 4-6 years; if not he is a top 25 or so OT in this league and should have some trade equity next offseason.
LT Ernie Jamison, LG Hardy Stephens, C Marlon Staton, RG Brady Bronson and vet RT Ellis Bookwalter make up our reserve OL. 2nd year player Stephens is the youngest of the group. The other 4 have current ratings over 40.
I listed Victor Levine as a key loss even though I didn't offer him because he was much better than expected for 2 years in LR. Our best line probably features Todd at LT and Bookwalter at RT. We could see that if we're competitive and Everitt starts as slowly as I expect.
Synopsis: Tood, Everitt and Perry add a huge influx of talent upfront. Still a work in progress. We are beginning to put the kind of players you need to win on the field.
DEFENSIVE FRONT SEVEN
Key Losses: LB Donnie Edmonds (cut)
Key Additions: NT Alan Riley (2.4) DE T.J. Graff (3.17)
DE- B.Mattingly*** T.Greer**
NT- S.Coronado*** A.Riley**
DE- M.Levine*** T.J.Graff**
SLB- J.C.Robbins****
SILB- O.Feigenbaum*** M.Wickman*
WILB- D.Sheldon** D.Lindsay*
WLB- D.Edwards**
No changes to the starting front 7. Bucky Mattingly is my first draft pick as Toad GM and a good one. Mattingly has shown consistent improvement in his first two seasons in LR and hasn't quite hit his potential yet. As Mattingly has improved Mickey Levine has become less effective. I'm not thrilled with Levine who is only average against the run and as a pass rusher. His other bars are excellent. I think Mattingly/Levine provide one of the better DE tandems in the IRL but anyone with a monster DE will have the advantage. Travis Greer is an ideal reserve DE decent bars and content to come off the bench. Rookie T.J. Graff will play some but is being groomed to step into Greer's role in a few seasons. I don't think Graff will ever be a starter.
NT and Defensive Front Leader Shawn Coronado bounced back from a bad final year in FRE to have a good debut in LR. NT had been in disarray around here since all world DT Glen Ross suffered career ending injury. Coronado is a well above average starter with zero endurance. Rookie Alan Riley is being groomed to replace Coronado eventually. Riley won't plug the middle as well as some DT's but should have three outstanding bars.
J.C. Robbins and Dustin Edwards are probably the IFL's premeire tandem at OLB. Robbins does everything at a very high level and is the leagues highest rated OLB. Edwards is an outstanding pass rusher. Cutting Donnie Edmonds was a mistake. I thought I was safe missing the cut to 60 sim. The Edge signed with SLC. Good luck, Donnie. I only have 2 OLB's on the roster so Robbins & Edwards need to stay healthy.
For the 3rd year Oliver Feigenbaum and Deron Sheldon will be the Toads ILB's. Neither is exceptionally talented but they seem to get the job done. Feigenbaum has been good since moving inside. Sheldon doesn't put up great numbers but is a talented backer. His versatility has allowed us to keep our best players on the field when someone needs a breather. 2nd year player Marco Wickman and undrafted rookie Deion Lindsay round out our LB corp. Neither is anything more than a cheap project with good run defense potential.
Synopsis: I like our DL, starters and depth, no one is great we do have alot of nice pieces. The loss of Edmonds is huge. Any lost time injury to a LB could be crippling.
SECONDARY
Key Losses: none
Key Additions: CB Shane Matthews (1.1)
CB- E.Whiting**
SS- A.Inskeep**
FS- W.McTyer** B.Money**
CB- S.Matthews**** K.Emmons** D.Strong**
Shane 'Gator' Matthews may be the highest rated CB in the IFL when I release a roster report next season. Selecting Gator at 1.1 generated some controversy. Matthews is a frekish talent and should do more to close the gap between us and Tulsa than any other player on the board. Veteran Emmanuel Whiting is solid opposite Gator. Nickleback Korey Emmons is a younger slightly less talented version of Whiting. I'm hoping to see a spike in production from Emmons as he sees more favorable matchups vs WR3. Dominic Strong seems to be better than his bars.
Reigning DRotY Alex Inskeep is a run stuffing in the box SS. He fits in well with our DB's and does a decent job in coverage. William McTyer didn't look like anything to me when I took this franchise over. McTyer has proven me wrong. He's another guy that fits our M2M scheme. Brady Money was the best safety I could find in the discard pile. He won't be back.
Synopsis: Matthews presence alone should pay huge dividends. I'll be disappointed if we're not one of the leagues better defenses.
A player receives one point for their current overall and 1/3 point for unrealized potential. So, a player with a 40/70 rating gets 50 points. The system is based on the Poor, Fair, etc ratings used in the game.
84+ *****
67-83 ****
50-66 ***
33-49 **
16-32 *
OFFENSIVE SKILL POSITIONS
Key Losses: WR Martin Witt (FA DAK) RB Darryl Fletcher (cut)
Key Additions: QB Lawrence Cook (FA VER) QB Gabe Patterson (2.1) RB Keith Keefe (3.4) WR Levon Bullock (4.3)
QB- L.Cook** L.Rogers** G.Patterson*
RB- K.Keefe** R.Particelli** R.Tanner**
FB- M.Prestbye*** A.Sotiroff***
TE- D.Kroeger** D.Gardner**
FL- H.Stills** W.Joyner**
SE- L.Nafis** M.Norris** L.Bullock*
I inquired about trading for Lawrence Cook near the trading deadline last season. I felt sure Vermont would offer him an extension. He became FA priority #1 when he entered the offseason as a UFA. Cook is a caretaker QB nothing more. The Toads were a combined -40 in TO margin in 2019-20. Cook's presence on this team will have an immediate impact on that area. He's one the IFL's safest QB's. Les Rogers is no longer a starter here and I can't see him starting anywhere again in this league barring catastrophe. Rogers is still a top 40 or so QB and a mentor and provides quality depth. Gabe Patterson didn't turn out quite as well as I'd hoped. I still think he ends up with an overall rating around 46-48. I'll hold onto him for now but with Cook the starter and Rogers popularity, contract, still decent skills and mentor status Patterson may begin his journeyman career soon. Were still looking for the Toad future at QB.
Rookie Keith Keefe will start a RB. Keefe should be a solid back the question is: How often will he be on the field?. Keefe could be a small factor as receiver as well. His hands are another huge question mark, though. The battle for RB2 hasn't resolved itself yet. Richard Particelli is coming off an 800 yd. season and an awful camp. Ritchie Tanner is a below average runner with big elusiveness. Tanner will be the 3rd down back. I thought Andrew Sotiroff might take over at FB this season. A stellar exhibition season by Michael Prestbye has delayed those plans. For now they are both Toads. If we get off to another bad start I'll shop Prestbye near the deadline. I can't imagine this situation continuing into 2022.
Dexter Kroeger enters the season as the new starter at TE. I'm not sure Kroeger is a better player than incumbent Deron Gardner yet. There is just too much upside to not play this guy. 2nd year WR Hunter Stills is another first time starter at FL. Stills had a very successful rookie season, with more PT, sustained drives and experience I'm expecting a big year for Whiskey. Veteran WR Wesley Joyner will be the backup FL and our 3rd WR. Louis Nafis was the most productive Toad receiver in 2020. Nafis has been the most productive Toad receiver the last 2 seasons. Veteran Marshall Norris didn't make it all the way back from his second very serious injury. He was already here and there were no better options on the market so he returns for his second year in LR. Rookie Levon Bullock is an ideal 5th receiver. Good hands, running after the catch and BPR but he won't take targets away from more developed receivers. Bullock has some return ability and may help out there down the road.
Synopsis: I was very close to taking the QB May and/or the RB Sparkman. I decided to address holes on the OL and DB this time. Lots of good pieces here but still no huge talents.
OFFENSIVE LINE
Key Losses: T Victor Levine (no offer)
Key Additions: T Lamar Todd (FA LAN) T Kurt Everitt (1.14) G Perry Quinn (2.2) G Don Gamble (UnD)
LT- K.Everitt** E.Jamison**
LG- Q.Perry** H.Stephens**
C- E.Calloway*** M.Staton**
RG- S.Hempstead** B.Bronson** D.Gamble*
RT- L.Todd*** E.Bookwalter**
Rookies Kurt Everitt and Perry Quinn take over the left side of the Toad OL. There will be growing pains. Everitt will never be a great LT and might not even be a very good one. He should develop into a much better than average starter equally skilled as a run and pass blocker. Quinn will be a premiere run blocker someday but that day is a long way off. I've soured some on Ernest Calloway. I expected much more production from him on the bad Toad OL we've fielded the last couple of years. Shaun Hempstead starts at RG. Hempstead is a good run blocker but is a concern in pass protection. Lamar Todd will start out of position at RT. I made a big offer to Todd, cooled on him when I drafted Everitt and got back in the Todd bidding war when I fanned on a couple other FA's. I'm not comfortable with a position switch in this situation. My hope is Todd plays well enough at RT to be our OL leader for the next 4-6 years; if not he is a top 25 or so OT in this league and should have some trade equity next offseason.
LT Ernie Jamison, LG Hardy Stephens, C Marlon Staton, RG Brady Bronson and vet RT Ellis Bookwalter make up our reserve OL. 2nd year player Stephens is the youngest of the group. The other 4 have current ratings over 40.
I listed Victor Levine as a key loss even though I didn't offer him because he was much better than expected for 2 years in LR. Our best line probably features Todd at LT and Bookwalter at RT. We could see that if we're competitive and Everitt starts as slowly as I expect.
Synopsis: Tood, Everitt and Perry add a huge influx of talent upfront. Still a work in progress. We are beginning to put the kind of players you need to win on the field.
DEFENSIVE FRONT SEVEN
Key Losses: LB Donnie Edmonds (cut)
Key Additions: NT Alan Riley (2.4) DE T.J. Graff (3.17)
DE- B.Mattingly*** T.Greer**
NT- S.Coronado*** A.Riley**
DE- M.Levine*** T.J.Graff**
SLB- J.C.Robbins****
SILB- O.Feigenbaum*** M.Wickman*
WILB- D.Sheldon** D.Lindsay*
WLB- D.Edwards**
No changes to the starting front 7. Bucky Mattingly is my first draft pick as Toad GM and a good one. Mattingly has shown consistent improvement in his first two seasons in LR and hasn't quite hit his potential yet. As Mattingly has improved Mickey Levine has become less effective. I'm not thrilled with Levine who is only average against the run and as a pass rusher. His other bars are excellent. I think Mattingly/Levine provide one of the better DE tandems in the IRL but anyone with a monster DE will have the advantage. Travis Greer is an ideal reserve DE decent bars and content to come off the bench. Rookie T.J. Graff will play some but is being groomed to step into Greer's role in a few seasons. I don't think Graff will ever be a starter.
NT and Defensive Front Leader Shawn Coronado bounced back from a bad final year in FRE to have a good debut in LR. NT had been in disarray around here since all world DT Glen Ross suffered career ending injury. Coronado is a well above average starter with zero endurance. Rookie Alan Riley is being groomed to replace Coronado eventually. Riley won't plug the middle as well as some DT's but should have three outstanding bars.
J.C. Robbins and Dustin Edwards are probably the IFL's premeire tandem at OLB. Robbins does everything at a very high level and is the leagues highest rated OLB. Edwards is an outstanding pass rusher. Cutting Donnie Edmonds was a mistake. I thought I was safe missing the cut to 60 sim. The Edge signed with SLC. Good luck, Donnie. I only have 2 OLB's on the roster so Robbins & Edwards need to stay healthy.
For the 3rd year Oliver Feigenbaum and Deron Sheldon will be the Toads ILB's. Neither is exceptionally talented but they seem to get the job done. Feigenbaum has been good since moving inside. Sheldon doesn't put up great numbers but is a talented backer. His versatility has allowed us to keep our best players on the field when someone needs a breather. 2nd year player Marco Wickman and undrafted rookie Deion Lindsay round out our LB corp. Neither is anything more than a cheap project with good run defense potential.
Synopsis: I like our DL, starters and depth, no one is great we do have alot of nice pieces. The loss of Edmonds is huge. Any lost time injury to a LB could be crippling.
SECONDARY
Key Losses: none
Key Additions: CB Shane Matthews (1.1)
CB- E.Whiting**
SS- A.Inskeep**
FS- W.McTyer** B.Money**
CB- S.Matthews**** K.Emmons** D.Strong**
Shane 'Gator' Matthews may be the highest rated CB in the IFL when I release a roster report next season. Selecting Gator at 1.1 generated some controversy. Matthews is a frekish talent and should do more to close the gap between us and Tulsa than any other player on the board. Veteran Emmanuel Whiting is solid opposite Gator. Nickleback Korey Emmons is a younger slightly less talented version of Whiting. I'm hoping to see a spike in production from Emmons as he sees more favorable matchups vs WR3. Dominic Strong seems to be better than his bars.
Reigning DRotY Alex Inskeep is a run stuffing in the box SS. He fits in well with our DB's and does a decent job in coverage. William McTyer didn't look like anything to me when I took this franchise over. McTyer has proven me wrong. He's another guy that fits our M2M scheme. Brady Money was the best safety I could find in the discard pile. He won't be back.
Synopsis: Matthews presence alone should pay huge dividends. I'll be disappointed if we're not one of the leagues better defenses.
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