Chargers FOF 2k4 Dynasty

[Abe Sargent]

Week 13 -

We face the Jets and decimate them 38-0. Louie Stewart threw TD passes to Boston, Curtis, and Ayi. Shane Prescott rushed for a TD and Bobby Hill returned an interception for a score.

Louie Stewart had the kind of game that we brought him here for - 17 of 24 for 222 yards, 3 TDs, no Ints. He was the NFL Offensive Player of the Week.

Chester Curtis had 101 yards on 5 catches.

Marcellus Wiley had a pair of sacks.

SS John Howell and LJ Shelton are fully healed. LJ has been playing for a while but John will start again.


Week 14 -

We host the 49ers and defeat them 13-10. Reche Caldwell caught our only TD. The Game MVP was MLB Terry Pierce with 10 tackles, 5 assts, 1 sack, 1 fumrec. Derrick Dockery had 5 KRB. Not a good offensive game, that's for sure.

TE Chester Curtis is out for a few weeks with another hyperextended knee.


Week 15 -

At 9-4, we have won the AFC West. Yet, the other three AFC division leaders all have better records than us - 12-1, 11-2. 10-3 for the other teams. We could conceivably go 12-4 and still be seeded #4. In the NFC, only one team has a better record than 9-4, and the next best team is 8-4-1, so we'd be the second seed in the NFC, if the season were to end today.

We host and defeat the Chiefs 28-25. Britt Clark rushed for a pair of scores, Kenyon Yamashita caught his first professional TD, Shane Prescott caught the other.

Our defense had very little pressure, not tackles, sacks nor picks.

Chester Curtis is questionable so he'll stay deactivated.


Week 16 -

We lost a throwaway game against Arizona, 35-31. Louie Stewart hit Ross Williamson, Zack Kirk passes 2 TDs to Ayi. Norman Ayi had 146 yards and 2 Tds on 10 receptions. Jamal Reynolds had a pair of sacks.

We have several injuries:

LJ Shelton is doubtful and will sit out the season finale.

Louie Stewart is out for the year with a broken clavicale.

FB Ross Williamson is out for the year with MCL surgery.

SLB Randall Snyder is out for the year with Reconstructive Knee Surgery.

SS Tank Williams is out for the year with a broken fibula.


I place the following players on IR - Louie Stewart, Tank Williams, Randall Snyder, Ross Williamson.

I sign:

FB Marco Rieke
SS Jon Wallace
SLB Jose Elliot


Week 17 -

We lose to the Raiders, 33-30. Zack Kirk hit Norman Ayi twice. Britt Clark added a rush on the ground. Norman Ayi set a record for yards in a game with 188 yards and 2 TDs on 14 catches! Reche Caldwell added 112 yards on 5 grabs. Andre Woolfolk recorded two picks. Even Zack Kirk had a good day with 378 yards passing, 2 TDs and 1 Int.

Injuries:

RB Shane Prescott, questionable

RDE Jamal Reynolds, probable.

Jamal will start, Shane will not.


-Anxiety

[Abe Sargent]

The Playoffs:

Wild Card Weekend:

At 10-6, we are the fourth seed in the AFC with our fourth consecutive AFC West crown.

Buffalo at New England
Chicago at St. Louis
Pittsburgh at San Diego
San Francisco at New York


Pittsburgh scores 15 on five field goals. Zack Kirk hits Chester Curtis for a 40 yard TD and Norman Ayi for a 17 yard FG. Chester Curtis catches the 2 point conversion with 1:21 on the game clock for a tie 15-15, and it's overtime. In overtime, Pitt hits their sixth FG and wins 18-15.

Zack Kirk was 25 of 40 for 311 yards, 2 TDs, 1 Int.

Norman Ayi, 9 grabs for 134 yards and a TD.

Chester Curtis, 8 grabs for 94 yards, TD, and a 2pt conversion

Our defense didn't do too much.


In other news:

New England over Buffalo, 31-12
St. Louis over Chicago 27-24
New York over San Francisco 36-33

Three very close games this week makes for good TV.


Divisional Champs:

New England at Jacksonville, 16-10
New York at Detroit, 19-17
Pittsburgh at Baltimore, 27-24
St. Louis at Tampa Bay, 14-17

Three more very close games.


Conference Championships:

New York at Tampa Bay, 17-31
Pittsburgh at New England, 34-10



NFL Super Bowl Matchup:


Tampa Bay Buccaneers

vs

Pittsburgh Steelers



Tampa Bay 14


Pittsburgh 31


Your NFL Champions, the Pittsburgh Steelers!!!!!



-Anxiety

[Abe Sargent]

End of Season Stuff:

No Awards for the Chargers


Stats:

QB Zack Kirk, 8 starts, 2030 yards, 13 TDs, 9 Int, 83.6 rating
QB Louie Stewart, 8 starts, 1540 yards, 12 TDs, 10 Ints, 84.6 rating

Almost identical. Zack got more stats because he replaced Louie in two games, so Louie really had 6 and 2 halfs games (7 games) and Zack 8 and two halves (9 games). Neither is that much better, statistically, over the other.


RB Britt Clark, 7 starts, 683 yards, 7 TDs, 4.0 ypc
RB Shane Prescott, 9 starts, 608 yards, 4 TDs, 3.9 ypc

Again, no difference. Britt Clark was an undrafted rookie 5 years ago. He's done a good job for us.


WR Norman Ayi, 76 catches, 983 yards, 10 TDs
TE Chester Curtis, 14 starts, 57 grabs, 647 yards, 3 TDs
FB Ross Williamson, 15 starts, 41 snatches, 241 yards, 3 TDs
WR Reche Caldwell, 10 starts, 38 grabs, 572 yards, 3 TDs
WR David Boston, 6 starts, 36 receptions, 376 yards, 4 TDs


A down year for every receiver due to the issues at the QB position. Reche had a load more yards per catch than David Boston.



DE Marcellus Wiley, 51 Tacks, 12 Assts, 16 Sacks, 1 FF, 1 FumRec
DE Jamal Reynolds, 11 starts, 37 Tacks, 12 assts, 6.5 sacks, 1 FF, 1 FumRec
DE Steven Neri, 5 starts, 25 tacks, 10 assts, 6.5 sacks, 1 FF
DT Bert Poston, 40 tacks, 22 assts, 6 sacks, 1 FF
DT Dean Nedney, 22 tacks, 14 assts, 5 sacks


Boy am I glad that I brought back Wiley. Steven Neri, an undrafted DE four years ago, posted almost the same stats as Jamal Reynolds in half of the starts. We brought a lot of pressure this year despite there being no major changes on our D-Line.


SLB Larry Gardner, 9 starts, 64 tacks, 15 assts, 2 sacks, 1 Int, 3 PasDef
WLB Matt Wilhelm, 49 tacks, 21 assts, 3 sacks, 2 Ints, 4 PasDef
MLB Terry Pierce, 7 starts, 50 tacks, 19 assts, 2 sacks, 3 PasDef


Our strength this year became a weakness due to extended injuries to Randall Snyder and Terry Pierce. We'll need to shore that up.


SS John Howell, 14 starts, 69 tacks, 15 assts, 2 sacks, 1 Int, 2 PasDef, 2 FF
FS Xavier Marschalk, 47 tacks, 14 assts, 2 PasDef, 1 FF, 1 FumRec
CB Andre Woolfolk, 14 starts, 45 tacks, 13 assts, 4 Ints, 7 PasDef, 1 FF, 1 FumRec
CB Dana Spatz, 11 starts, 39 tacks, 8 assts, 3 Ints, 2 Int TDs, 10 PasDef
CB Lewis Douglas, 4 starts, 46 tacks, 9 assts, 1 Int, 2 PasDef


John led the team in tackles with just 69. That's not a good sign. We didn't get too many picks either, and that's not a good sign. Overall, we still need to improve our defense, and finally when our D-Line played well, our LB Corps was decimated. Gotta get more help.


RG Casey Matthews, 30 KRB, 6 SkA
LG Dan Torrez, 28 KRB, 8 SkA
TE Chester Curtis, 7 KRB out of 13 KRO, 0 SkA

Chester had a good blocking year and I wanted to point that out. We don't run behind him much, but he has a great percentage and no sacks allowed when he stays back and blocks.


-Anxiety

[Abe Sargent]

More End of Season Stuff:

Score:

Team Performance: 74
Franchise Value: 46
Profit/Loss: 56
Roster: 92

Overall: 62


Balance Sheet:

Revenues: 82.2 million
Costs: 200 million

Profit: (117.8 million)


Our Stadium Renovations are complete! Our stadium is now 90,000 people big with 385 luxury boxes.

With the stadium renovations, our franchise value increases significantly, and our team is now worth 555.73 million - 25th in the league.

Our stadium has improved to 26th in the league. Fan support is still the worst in the league, and our economy is second worst.

Attendance plummted a bit more to 39,500 last season.


San Diego has risen to just -0.4% growth.


-Anxiety

[Abe Sargent]

I decide to make a change at the Head Coach position. I sign:

Rico Banks
38 yrs old
Off: VG, F, G, G
Sp. Teams/Def: G, F, G, G
Yng Tal: G
Skills: VG, G, G, VG, VG

With better playcalling ability than our current coach, and better motivation as well, Rico is a better head coach, right now. Plus, Rico is young enough that he could grow into the role. Additionally, we can sign Rico to a long-term deal now, when I have the chance to do so for a cheap price.


I sign Rico for five years.


-Anxiety

[Abe Sargent]

Some interesting things around the league:

Wesley Walls is the head coach for the Chiefs.

Dexter Coakley was hired as the Defensive Coordinator for the Eagles.

DE Marcellus Wiley retired.

We are 5.27 million over the cap. This is the first time that we enter the preseason over the cap.


-Anxiety

[Abe Sargent]

Heading into free agency, I take a look at our roster:

Our unrestricted free agents include Matt Wilhelm, Britt Clark and Andre Woolfolk.

I have to make a couple of decisions. So, with heavy heart, I set out to find a team willing to trade for RT Derrick Dockery.

Although Derrick is a great OT, amazing in fact, he just doesn't stay healthy. We need to cut somebody, and trading Derrick seems a good deal at this point.

I also cannot afford both Louie Stewart and Zack Kirk. One has to go, and I look for trade opportunities for both.

I trade Derrick Dockery to the Bengals for their fourth overall selection in the draft this year and Louie Stewart to the Seahawks for their sixth overall selection.

We now have three first rounders to replenish our roster with. I can make some adjustments.

Randall Snyder is undergoing massive surgery. We extend his contract by a year and dramatically reduce his 9 million cap cost, since he knows that he'll be out for a while, he's willing to cut the contract a lot.

We also extend:

MLB Terry Pierce by a year
TE Chester Curtis by three years
SS John Howell by two years
P Ethan Griffith by three years
RG Casey Matthews by four years

As a result of these extensions, we now have 18.43 million available in cap room.

Our draft is estimated to cost 11.52 million, so we don't have much room.


We need the following:

2x RB
2x FB
TE
2x WR
C
G
RT *
LDE *
LDT *
WLB *
OLB
2x S

I choose not to persue anybody until after the draft.

-Anxiety

[Abe Sargent]

According to our scout, here are the top players' positions in the draft:

DE
P
TE
FB
WLB
RT

I see three starters at areas of need among the top six players, so I am looking for DE, WLB and RT in our fourth and sixth overall picks.


Minnesota takes the DE (Damn!)
Phily takes the OT (Damn!)
Indy takes a DT


I draft WLB Dustin Clark from Washtingon State.

KC takes a DE

I take DE Randy Franklin from North Carolina at pick 6.

At pick 26, I look at the board carefully. According to our scout, the best non-kickers are:

FB
SS
C
C
WR

I could take FB, since Ross Williamson will likely be out for the season. But FB is hardly a priority. SS would set me up well for the future, but we just resigned John Howell and he doesn't look as good to me as other players. And the centers look weak.

So I select SE Kerry Hidy from Oregon.

In the second round, I take a look at DT and OT. We still have a need at each position. After reviewing the candidates, I take RT Mike Jells from Arkansas.

In the third, I like C Kyle Will from Arizona.

In the fourth, FS Gus Hochstetler from Ohio State.

Fifth - LDE Gerald Banks from East Carolina.

Sixth - SILB J.C. Linquist from Virginia

Seventh - MLB Mikey Acosta from Southern Mississippi



-Anxiety

[Abe Sargent]

Our first rounders do not sign in the first barrage of negotiations following the draft.

We scored an A- in the draft.

I move Kerry Hidy to Flanker and J.C. Linquist to SLB.

I sign restricted free agent WLB Al Upshaw and FB Bennie Sargent.


I chase the following undrafted rookies:

QB Roy Sellers
RB Maurice Curtis
SS Omar Henson
RDT Jack Jobb
RT Brett Rachal
RG Andy Fong


And the following free agents:

FB Greg Abeykoon
TE Kevin Buckner
FL Donte' Stallworth


All of the players we made offers to sign with us.

I sign our three remianing rookies before camp begins.

FB Ross Williamson and Randall Snyder are placed on IR.

I release Steven Neri as we cannot afford his salary.

I sign, pre-camp, Britt Clark for two years and undrafted rookie K Clay Henson.


-Anxiety

[Abe Sargent]

Post-Camp, I take a look at my rookies:

FL Kerry Hidy looks decent and may start for us. Definately solid, but nothing special.

WLB Dustin Clark has a lot of room to improve. Supposedly, he can be the best run stopping LB we've had in a while, great pass rush, solid man-to-man and zone, he's strong and can be a great play diagnostician. But, he is very green, and I don't know if he'll start or not at this point.

LDE Randy Franklin is likewise very green buts looks like he will dominate after he grows.

RT Mike Jells is a disappointment.

C Kyle Will is also a disappointment, although much less of one.

FS Gos Hochstetler is adequate at best.

LDE Gerald Banks is nothing special.

SLB J.C. Lindquist could eventually grow into an adequate starting player.

MLB Mickey Acosta is actually pretty decent for a 7th rounder, and after he develops he could be a decent backup and adequate emergency starter.

Undrafted Rookies:

QB Roy Sellers, nothing
RB Maurice Curtis, nothing
RG Andy Fong, bleh
RT Brett Rachal, backup
K Clay Henson, interesting, will need another look.
RDT Jack Jobb, backup
SS Omar Henson, backup


Kicker battle:

Clay Henson and Isaac Knight have the same accuracy potential.
Isaac is 20 better than Henson in power.
Henson is 50 better in kickoff distance
Isaac is 25 better at kickoff hangtime.

What I do here will determine who I cut.



Oh, by the way....




We sold 40,300 season tickets!!!



-Anxiety

[Abe Sargent]

Post- Camp, I sign:

QB Nathan Oben
RB Allen Lovell (undrafted)
TE Xavier Page (undrafted)
RCB Dwight Runyan
RT Mo Goulet
LDT Jesse Shackelford


I release:

QB Lenny Clemons
QB Chuck Schnebele
RB Maurice Clemons
TE Earl Spano
K Clay Henson
LCB Keith Bailey
RDT Jack Jobb


I deactivate:

FB Bennie Sargent
TE Xavier Page
RG Andy Fong
RT Brett Rachal
RDT Walt Holliday
MLB Richard Gramatica
SS Omar Henson



I move LDT Walt Holliday to the right side


-Anxiety

[Abe Sargent]

Our Leaders:

RB Shane Prescott
FL David Boston
LT LJ Shelton
SLB Larry Gardner
LCB Adam Stoner

Front Office Football 2004
San Diego Chargers Roster, Scout Overview
   
  Player                #   Pos   Start Exp  Current Estimate  Future Estimate Cntrct 
Kirk, Zack              10  QB    QB    4    57                57                1 yr.
Oben, Nathan            14  QB          4    26                38                1 yr.
Sellers, Roy            13  QB          1    8                 39                1 yr.
Prescott, Shane         24  RB    RB    8    46                46                2 yrs
Clark, Britt            21  RB          6    26                27                2 yrs
Lovell, Allen           39  RB          1    13                23                1 yr.
**Williamson, Ross      22  FB          5    73                73                1 yr.
Abeykoon, Greg          20  FB    FB    3    38                43                2 yrs
##Sargent, Bennie       44  FB          2    16                23                1 yr.
Curtis, Chester         83  TE    TE    8    79                79                4 yrs
Buckner, Kevin          17  TE          3    42                48                2 yrs
##Page, Xavier          86  TE          1    11                29                1 yr.
Boston, David           89  FL          13   39                39                1 yr.
Stallworth, Donte'      87  FL          10   38                38                2 yrs
Hidy, Kerry             81  FL    FL    1    37                59                4 yrs
Ayi, Norman             80  SE    SE    6    71                73                4 yrs
Caldwell, Reche         82  SE          10   47                47                2 yrs
Shelton, Graham         50  C     C     3    50                50                2 yrs
Will, Kyle              51  C           1    20                43                4 yrs
Torrez, Dan             72  LG    LG    7    65                65                4 yrs
Dagostino, Luke         63  LG          5    37                56                1 yr.
Matthews, Casey         65  RG    RG    7    67                69                5 yrs
##Fong, Andy            66  RG          1    13                37                1 yr.
Shelton, L.J.           69  LT    LT    13   53                53                2 yrs
Long, Les               64  LT          3    30                45                2 yrs
Jells, Mike             61  RT    RT    1    20                43                4 yrs
Goulet, Mo              76  RT          2    17                31                1 yr.
##Rachal, Brett         73  RT          1    12                33                1 yr.
Griffith, Ethan         5   P           4    78                78                5 yrs
Knight, Isaac           4   K           3    60                61                2 yrs
Franklin, Randy         93  LDE   LDE   1    32                69                5 yrs
Banks, Gerald           95  LDE         1    23                38                3 yrs
Lang, Tracy             71  LDE         3    22                29                1 yr.
Reynolds, Jamal         98  RDE   RDE   11   46                46                1 yr.
Nedney, Dean            99  LDT   LDT   3    27                40                1 yr.
Shackelford, Jessie     75  LDT         3    26                41                1 yr.
Poston, Bert            94  RDT   RDT   6    49                49                3 yrs
##Holliday, Walt        70  RDT         2    11                26                3 yrs
Pierce, Terry           59  MLB   MLB   9    75                75                2 yrs
Acosta, Mickey          56  MLB         1    22                39                3 yrs
##Gramatica, Richard    91  MLB         2    15                26                2 yrs
**Snyder, Randall       90  SLB         7    67                67                2 yrs
Gardner, Larry          57  SLB   SLB   5    48                48                2 yrs
Linquist, J.C.          54  SLB         1    19                41                3 yrs
Clark, Dustin           53  WLB   WLB   1    38                79                5 yrs
Upshaw, Al              58  WLB         2    23                41                1 yr.
Spatz, Dana             33  LCB   LCB   7    75                75                3 yrs
Stoner, Adam            47  LCB         2    18                39                3 yrs
Douglas, Lewis          28  RCB   RCB   6    51                52                2 yrs
Cash, Chris             42  RCB         10   47                47                2 yrs
Runyan, Dwight          32  RCB         3    24                41                1 yr.
Howell, John            49  SS    SS    11   57                57                3 yrs
##Henson, Omar          34  SS          1    15                34                1 yr.
Marschalk, Xavier       46  FS    FS    2    40                51                3 yrs
Hochstetler, Gus        26  FS          1    25                44                4 yrs
   
$$ - player is in starting lineup, ## - player is inactive.  
   
Players Under Contract: 55
On Active Roster: 46
   
Salary Cap: $119,000,000
Cap Room: $1,000,000
Maximum for New Player: $1,360,000
Cap Room Lost (to old contracts): $5,460,000
   
Cap Room Lost Next Year (to old contracts): $3,050,000
Cap Room Required Next Year: $113,970,000

-Anxiety

[Abe Sargent]

Front Office Football 2004
San Diego Chargers 2011 Regular Season Schedule
   
  Week    Opponent                              Result    Attendance Weather  
Week 1    at Kansas City Chiefs                   
Week 2    MINNESOTA VIKINGS                       
Week 3    BALTIMORE RAVENS                        
Week 4    OPEN                                    
Week 5    MIAMI DOLPHINS                          
Week 6    NEW JERSEY JETS                         
Week 7    at Denver Broncos                       
Week 8    at Buffalo Bills                        
Week 9    at New England Patriots                 
Week 10   OAKLAND RAIDERS                         
Week 11   KANSAS CITY CHIEFS                      
Week 12   at Chicago Bears                        
Week 13   at Jacksonville Jaguars                 
Week 14   at Detroit Lions                        
Week 15   at Oakland Raiders                      
Week 16   GREEN BAY PACKERS                       
Week 17   DENVER BRONCOS                          
   
Home Games in ALL CAPS
   
Season Tickets Sold: 40,300
Stadium Capacity: 90,000

-Anxiety

[Abe Sargent]

We go 2-2 in the preseason again and emerge with the following serious injuries:

MLB Terry Pierce out for a few weeks with a strained elbow.

Reche Caldwell, out for a month with a strained abductor muscle.

DT Dean Nedney, questionable with a sprained knee.


We are ready, somewhat, for the full season.


A few roster comments:

QB Zack Kirk has his opportunity. Although he has taken the majority of snaps for the past two years, we are handing the keys to him and allowing him to take the team out for a spin. We'll see how he does, but this is his contract year.

David Boston needs to prove that he is worth his lowered salary. He's only getting paid 1.7 million this year, but that is still too much if he cannot get the stats. He will be third on the depth chart while Reche Caldwell is out as Rookie Hidy starts.

We have a hole on our offensive line where Derrick Dockery once stood and we'll need to address it later because we did a poor job of addressing it this past offseason.

Although our linebacker corps has promise with Terry Pierce, rookie Dustin Clark and Randall Snyder (assuming Randall returns from surgery looking decently), our current corps features a very green rookie first rounder, a rookie 7th rounder specialist filling in for the injured Pierce, and an adequate player subbing in for the injured Randall for the long term in Gardner. Not exactly a LB corps that strikes fear into anybody.

Lewis Douglas, our starting RCB and former 4th round selection is the lowest player that I've drafted to start a season due to ability, not injury. 7th rounder Mickey Acosta, drafting 26th in the 7th round, holds the overall record this week when he starts in the place of Pierce.

Last year's first rounder FS Xavier Marschalk will need to pick up his game if he doesn't want to lose his starting job sooner or later. Last year was a disappointment and I expect a lot from my first round selections.

Speaking of which, I have all of my previous 1st round selections on the roster, although Ross Williamson and Randall Snyder are on IR for the season. Only Zack Kirk and Ross Williamson are int he last year of their contracts. If Zack plays well and Ross heals well, both can expect to be signed to future contracts, but both obviously have questions.


-Anxiety

[Abe Sargent]

Week 1 -

We lose to KC 31-17. Shane Prescott rushed for a score and Greg Abeykoon caught a TD pass from Kirk. Rookie WR Hidy brokeout for 117 yards on 7 receptions in his debut.

Injuries that affect playing time:

LT Les Long out for 6 weeks

TE Chester Curtis, doubtful for 3 weeks

LJ Shelton quetsionable for one week

Mo Goulet and Mike Jells will start for us at tackle. An undrafted sophomore and rookie. Ick.


Week 2 -

We lose to Minnesota 19-38. Kevin Buckner caught our only TD of the day. Zack Kirk had another fine day yardage wise - 347 yards this week, 298 last week, but his 2:2 TD:INT ration leaves a bit to be desired. Xavier Marschalk led the team in tackles with 10 solos and 2 assts.

There are no additional injuries of importance. LJ Shelton is back next week.


Week 3 -

We lose to Baltimore 24-17. Kerry Hidy and Greg Abeykoon caught Kirk TDs. Kirk had a nice day going 19 of 36 for 215 yards, 2:0. Our defense just couldn't hold.

Additional injuries of significance:

LJ Shelton is out for a pair of weeks. This man is getting injury prone late in his career.

LDT Jessie Shackelford is questionable for a few weeks.

Terry Pierce will start the week after this Bye because I need him, a week before he should. Likewise LJ and Chester will start early.


Week 4 -

BYE. Healing


Week 5 -

We are 0-3 and we really need to start winning games, this team is meant to do that. We have the 2-2 Dolphins here at Qualcomm an that should be a good remedy.

Unless we lose 16-20. Dana Spatz returned a pick for a TD, his third for us in the year and four games that he has played for us. Shane Prescott rushed for a score and 109 yards on 25 carries. Zack only went 16 of 23 for 167 and 0:0.

Dana Spatz was not mentioned in the player of the week list despite registering two picks, one of which was returned for a score.

David Boston is out for two weeks.


Week 6 -

We lose to the Jets 20-7. Shane Prescott rushed for our only score.

I have no answers. We are not suffering from major injuries, we have more playmakers on the team than last year, we are a deeper football in many areas than we were last year. Sure, our RT sucks, but that's what you get sometimes. There is no reason that our team should be performing this badly. 0-5, what a mess!


Week 7 -

San Diego loses at Denver 13-28. Britt Clark rushed for our only TD on the day. 0-6.

LJ Shelton is out for five weeks or so.



Some stats after six games:

14 sacks (20th in the league)
-3 TO Margin (tied for 24th in the league)
522 rushing yards (31st in league),
138 rushing attempts (worst)
22 Times QB sacked (tied for the most, here that means we have allowed the most sacks, a bad thing)
14.8 pts/game (worst in league)
26.8 pts/game allowed to opponents (worst in league)
3rd Down Prcnt: 35.7% (26th worst in league)
53 penalties (5th most in league, again, a bad thing)


What is this answer to this?!?!

[Abe Sargent]

Editor's Note - GM Abe Sargent Fell Ill and was diagnosed with an ulcer. As such, the coaches on the team finished the season. The Changers finished the season quite strong despite thier unfortunate start. The finished schedule with all of thier scores can be seen below.

Front Office Football 2004
San Diego Chargers 2011 Regular Season Schedule
   
  Week    Opponent                              Result    Attendance Weather  
Week 1    at Kansas City Chiefs                 L, 17-31  81,200     Sunny, 66    
Week 2    MINNESOTA VIKINGS                     L, 19-38  65,900     Sunny, 75    
Week 3    BALTIMORE RAVENS                      L, 17-24  61,400     Sunny, 81    
Week 4    OPEN                                    
Week 5    MIAMI DOLPHINS                        L, 16-20  61,400     Sunny, 74    
Week 6    NEW JERSEY JETS                       L, 7-20   55,900     Sunny, 71    
Week 7    at Denver Broncos                     L, 13-28  66,200     Sunny, 43    
Week 8    at Buffalo Bills                      W, 27-24  51,800     Rain, 36     
Week 9    at New England Patriots               W, 23-17  67,500     Sunny, 36    
Week 10   OAKLAND RAIDERS                       L, 24-31  58,700     Rain, 76     
Week 11   KANSAS CITY CHIEFS                    W, 31-19  59,500     Sunny, 75    
Week 12   at Chicago Bears                      W, 23-13  52,600     Sunny, 68    
Week 13   at Jacksonville Jaguars               W, 24-21  59,100     Sunny, 54    
Week 14   at Detroit Lions                      L, 13-31  65,000     Sunny, 68    
Week 15   at Oakland Raiders                    W, 28-16  63,900     Rain, 64     
Week 16   GREEN BAY PACKERS                     W, 31-20  55,900     Sunny, 64    
Week 17   DENVER BRONCOS                        L, 21-31  66,800     Rain, 45     
   
Home Games in ALL CAPS
   
Season Tickets Sold: 40,300
Stadium Capacity: 90,000

-Anxiety

[mmarra82]

That coach of yours saved his neck by finishing the season strong. It was not looking good for the GM who made the move to change coaches.

[Abe Sargent]

Yeah, it sure wasn't......


-Anxiety

[Peregrine]

Anxiety, just wanted to say I'm really enjoying your dynasty. For that strange season, it's probably due to the coaching change, sometimes teams respond in strange way to the presence of a new coach, new playcalling, etc.

[Abe Sargent]

Originally posted by Peregrine
Anxiety, just wanted to say I'm really enjoying your dynasty. For that strange season, it's probably due to the coaching change, sometimes teams respond in strange way to the presence of a new coach, new playcalling, etc.

I hope that it's a coach change issue - we'll see. I'm glad that you enjoy it!

-Anxiety

[Abe Sargent]

End of Season Stuff:

Awards:

All League Second String Safety - John Howell


Stats:


QB Zack Kirk, 4103 yards, 26 TDs, 13 Ints, 61.6% completion, 90.4 QB Rating


Zack rallied in a big way and finished with amazing stats - and this is under the patch with QBs having normal years now. Fourth in passing yards, fourth in passing TDs, eighth in rating, Zack had a good year by all means. I might have to resecure his services.


RB Shane Prescott, 286 carries, 997 yards, 8 TDs, 23 catches, 122 yards


Shane has a servicable enough year for a stand in. Sooner or later we'll need a real RB, but as long as we get the same results as we did when we had LT, I see no reason to overspend for the position.

WR Norman Ayi, 70 catches, 1038 yards, 8 TDs
TE Chester Curtis, 10 starts, 46 catches, 493 yards, 1 TD
FB Greg Abeykoon, 43 grabs, 275 yards, 4 TDs
WR Reche Caldwell, 8 starts, 42 completions, 472 yards, 3 TDs
WR Kerry Hidy, 8 starts, 34 grabs, 578 yards, 2 TDs
WR Donte Stallworth, no starts, 35 catches, 714 yards, 5 TDs

Sort of a mixed pot in the catching game, but there were a lot of yards to go around. Assuming Hidy and Caldwell would have had each other's stats, I would have had over 1000 yards from the starting FLs and of course 1038 yards from the SE slot with Norman. Toss in a better year from Chester and a well developed catching ability from Donte and you have a solid year. Unfortunately, injuries hampered some of that plan.


K Isaac Knight, 23 of 33, 57 yard long, 37 of 38 PAT

Not a good year for this fellow.


SS John Howell, 96 tacks, 43 assts, 1.5 sacks, 1 Int, 25 PasDef, 3 FF, 2 FumRec, 1 FR TD
FS Xavier Marschalk, 63 tacks, 27 assts, 1 sack, 9 PasDef, 1 FumRec
CB Lewis Douglas, 61 tacks, 21 assts, 1 Int, 12 PasDef, 1 FF
CB Dana Spatz, 61 tacks, 16 assts, 1 sack, 4 Ints, 1 Int TD, 16 PasDef, 1 FF

Xavier continues to lag behind the rest in ability. Our secondary was numbers 1, 3, 4, and 5 on our team in total tackles in the above order. That's never a good sign. All were healthy and started every game, that is a good sign, however. John Howell had our best year performance defended against passes with 25.


SLB Larry Gardner, 92 tacks, 25 assts, 2 sacks, 2 Ints, 7 PasDef, 1 FF, 1 FumRec
MLB Terry Pierce, 10 starts, 60 tacks, 30 assts, 3.5 sacks, 4 Ints, 3 PasDef, 3 FF, 1 FumRec
WLB Dustin Clark, 48 tacks, 18 assts, 3 sacks, 3 PasDef

Nobody here shone, although Terry had the excuse of missing a few games due to injury. Hopefully Randall Snyder's return to the unit next year can light a fire.


DT Dean Nedney, 29 Tacks, 10 assts, 6 sacks, 1 FF, 1 FumRec
DE Jamal Reynolds, 46 sacks, 12 assts, 4.5 sacks, 1 FF, 1 FumRec
DE Randy Franklin, 27 tacks, 10 assts, 3 sacks, 1 FumRec
DT Bert Poston, 35 tacks, 15 assts, 2 sacks, 2 FumRec

Our defensive line was so porous giant boulders could sift through. This needs to be addressed seriously and swiftly. Rookie and high first rounder Randy Franklin was nowhere last year and definately needs to learn the job.


G Casey Matthews, 28 KRB, 4 SkA
G Dan Torrez, 25 KRB, 10 SkA
C Graham Shelton, 23 KRB, 3 SkA

As much of a hard time as I have given Graham, he didn't allow the rushers through. His run blocking this year was pedestrian at best, but his pass blocking was something to be admired.


-Anxiety

[Abe Sargent]

Steelers beat Bucs 31-14 in the Super Bowl.


Score:

Team Performance - 34
Franchise Value - 43
Profit/Loss - 71
Roster Strength - 90

Overall - 57


Attendance last year: 59,600 (24th), 66.2% of capacity (worst)

+51% over last year


Franchise Value - Second Worst

Economy, second worst only to Jacksonville.

Fan Support - Worst

Stadium - 28th


Balance Sheet:

Revenues: 120,680,000 (+46%)
Costs: 178,630,000 (-10%)

Overall Profit: (-58,170,000)


Our deficit has decreased by half from last year, showing marked improvement.


A good enough year, managerially peaking. Now we head to the football side of things.


-Anxiety

[Abe Sargent]

Two of our staff are out of their contract - our lead scout and offensive coordinator. We need replacements or to re-sign them.

I take a look at our offensive coordinator, with whom I have been most pleased. I offer him another 5 year deal and we'll see if he takes it.

I have become increasingly displeased with our scout, so I begin by looking for a replacement.

I decide to chase the Buffalo scout whose contract has expired.

After week one, we rehire our offensive coordinator, but the Buffalo scout re-ups with them.

I try the Tampa Bay scout but he rejects our offer despite not having any other on the table.

In the third week, I sign:

Lead Scout Jamal Lindsay
49 years old
Off: F, VG, VG, G
K: G
Def: A, G, A
Yng Tal: VG


Jamal is questionable with the quarterbacks but great everywhere else on offense. His defense is acceptable at best, kickers good, and he definately has an eye for the youngsters.


-Anxiety

[Abe Sargent]

Donte Stallworth retired.

We have a cap this year of 122.8 million. We currently have only 10,140,000 under the cap available, thus meaning that we have to make a few moves.

We have a couple of high profile restricted free agents - David Boston, Jamal Reynolds, Zack Kirk, and Ross Williamson.

Do I franchise Zack or Ross? Franchise salaries for Zack are ridiculously high - 16 million. For Ross at the FB position it's an easier 2.4 million.

I franchise Ross Williamson and head into free agency.


The first thing I need to do is clear cap room. I have a powerful decision to make.

LJ Shelton has been a rock for our offensive line for years. Eight years, to be exact. During that time he has earned three All League Honors. However, he has lost significant playing time over the past few years to injuries. He is old, this will be his 14th year in the NFL, so he doesn't have much left in the tank. And he is the third highest salary cap hit on our roster. In addition, his playin skills have decayed with his age.

I reluctantly release LJ Shelton.

I also release OT Les Long.

I extend Britt Clark's salary by a couple of years.

I convert some of Norman Ayi's salary into signing bonus but not so much as to hurt the next two years of my cap, just enough to give me some relief this year.

I extend Dana Spatz's contract by three years and Bert Poston's by two.

After these machinations, we have 23 million in space available. Enough to chase a certain quarterback....


I offer Zack Kirk a five year deal with a market value contract. Let's see what he does.

I also make offers to NT Rien Long and RT Jimmy Garcia.


After a week, we are outbid for Rien, but not the other two. I submit another offer for Rien.

A week later Zack Kirk and Jimmy Garcia sign with us! Three weeks later Rien Long signs with Washington for less money! Bastard!

I wait it out until week 10 so that I can try to sign a few guys for less, if I decide to sign anybody at all.

I make an offer for, of all people, LT Derrick Dockery, who has been moved to LT with bad results. He signs with Indy a few weeks later.

I skip to the draft to try and find a few players there.


-Anxiety

[Abe Sargent]

Heading into the draft, I need the following positions filled:

QBx2
RB
TE
FL
WR
RG
LG
LT *
LT
K?
RDE*
RDE
DT*
CB
SS


We draft 13th.

Pre draft, I am looking at a DT, three DEs, two RBs and a CB. Hopefully at least one will be left on the board.

At pick 13 I have a serious choice:

RB Ian McCormick, Mississippi, low volatility, high current ratings, higher on our board.

RDE Gino Robinson from UK, low but higher than Ian volatility, significantly lower current ratings, lower on our board and was 3rd best DE overall.


Gino or Ian? Ian is the better pick but we need an RDE bad. Does need make our pick, do we pass on the best RB we've ever had a chance at drafting?

I hate to pass on Ian and I hate to pass on Gino. Dare I pass by a DE when they are so expensive to obtain in another method? Do I have the luxury of upgrading my running game when our defensive line was so anemic last year.

BUT - our running game has never been anything special. Get Ian and it could be. We could take our offense into another stratosphere.

Ian, Gino, Ian, Gino, Ian, Gino....

Anguish.


I select Gino and hope that he is a good player, because if he is not, then this decision could come back and haunt us.


In the second I take RCB Dwight Crane from Army.

Third is SS Bryce Gonzalez from Maryland.

In the fourth I take K Harold Rathbone from Iowa.

The fifth sees me select LT Adam Marcum from Buffalo.

Sixth is QB Randall Rose from Arizona.

Seventh is TE Artie Bedford from Wisconsin.


We notched a B+ for the draft.


-Anxiety

[Abe Sargent]

Post Draft, our rookies sign immediately except for Gino.

I sign the following restricted free agents:

LDT Dean Nedney
LDT Jesse Shackelford
LCB Dwight Runyan

I move J.C. Linquist to the weak side.

I hit free agency. I still need:

QB
RB
FL
WR
LG
RG
LT
RDE


I chase the following undrafted rookie free agents:

QB Thurman Pendleton from Oklahoma State
QB Daryl Dzarnoski from Army
RB Sammy Camudgeon from Robert Morris
FL Derek Cailleteau from UCLA
LG Leroy Hudson from Texas Tech
LG Bernard Muller from Florida State
LT Nolan Schwimmer from UNLV
RDE Adrian Ogbogu from California
LDE Conrad Floyd from UTEP


And I chase the following free agents:

SE Alfred Kelly


We sign all of the players that we pursued.

Gino Robinson signs before camp.

-Anxiety

[Abe Sargent]

I head into training camp.

We sold 37,700 season tickets. Need to have a good year this year to increase fan support.

Our leaders:

RB Shane Prescott
SE Alfred Kelley
LG Dan Torrez
SLB Larry Gardner
LCB Adam Stoner


Looks at our rooks:

QB Rose, Pendleton and Dzarnoski

All suck but Rose has the most potential.


RB Sammy Camudgeon

Looks good for an undrafted rookie.


TE Artie Bedford

Nothing.


FL Cailleteau

Nothing either.


LG Bernard Muller

More nothing


***** LG Leroy Hudson

Very green but appears to have a lot of potential. An actual player who is better than thought? Wow.


LT Adam Marcum, Nolan Schwimmer

Neither plays more than a deep backup. Adam might start due to lack of a true starter at the position.


LDE Conrad Floyd

More of nothing.


RDE Gino Robinson

Green but a future star if he develops as we think he should. Not as good as Ian McCormick, but ah well.


RDE Adrian Ogbogwu

Again not much


RCB Dwight Crane

A poor second rounder


SS Bryce Gonzalez

Emergency starter only after he develops.


I sign QB Bryan Lockett

I release:

QB Daryl Dzarnoski
K Isaac Knight
LDE Conrad Floyd
MLB Richard Gramatica


WR Kerry Hidy has busted a bit in his sophomore year and no longer looks like a legit starter.


-Anxiety

[Abe Sargent]

Haven't gotten a chance to play as much as I wanted over the break - this is my first opportunity. Culdcept, for the PS2, is largely to blame, as I have logged 66 hours and 21 minutes playing the game.

Anyways, I'll hit this up a bit, maybe go play a bit o Madden and revitalize that dynasty. Maybe.

-Anxiety

[Abe Sargent]

Front Office Football 2004
San Diego Chargers Roster, Scout Overview
   
  Player                #   Pos   Start Exp  Current Estimate  Future Estimate Cntrct 
Kirk, Zack              10  QB    QB    5    57                57                5 yrs
Lockett, Bryant         13  QB          6    28                44                1 yr.
##Pendleton, Thurman    2   QB          1    11                37                1 yr.
Rose, Randall           7   QB          1    8                 52                3 yrs
Prescott, Shane         24  RB    RB    9    42                42                1 yr.
Camudgeon, Sammy        30  RB          1    30                35                1 yr.
Clark, Britt            21  RB          7    24                25                3 yrs
Williamson, Ross        22  FB    FB    6    66                66                1 yr.
##Abeykoon, Greg        20  FB          4    46                46                1 yr.
Curtis, Chester         83  TE    TE    9    74                74                3 yrs
Buckner, Kevin          17  TE          4    48                48                1 yr.
Bedford, Artie          85  TE          1    13                36                3 yrs
Ayi, Norman             80  FL    FL    7    72                74                3 yrs
Hidy, Kerry             81  FL          2    44                52                3 yrs
##Cailleteau, Derek     87  FL          1    19                25                1 yr.
Caldwell, Reche         82  SE    SE    11   46                46                1 yr.
Kelley, Alfred          84  SE          6    42                42                2 yrs
Shelton, Graham         50  C     C     4    51                51                1 yr.
Will, Kyle              51  C           2    21                35                3 yrs
Torrez, Dan             72  LG    LG    8    65                65                3 yrs
Muller, Bernard         74  LG          1    16                27                1 yr.
##Hudson, Leroy         79  LG          1    11                53                1 yr.
Matthews, Casey         65  RG    RG    8    67                70                4 yrs
Marcum, Adam            67  LT    LT    1    24                42                3 yrs
Schwimmer, Nolan        62  LT          1    13                41                1 yr.
Garcia, Jimmy           64  RT    RT    5    67                67                5 yrs
Jells, Mike             61  RT          2    31                42                3 yrs
Griffith, Ethan         5   P           5    77                77                4 yrs
Rathbone, Harold        6   K           1    44                65                4 yrs
Franklin, Randy         93  LDE   LDE   2    44                68                4 yrs
Banks, Gerald           95  LDE         2    26                38                2 yrs
Robinson, Gino          96  RDE   RDE   1    37                70                4 yrs
Ogbogu, Adrian          77  RDE         1    17                31                1 yr.
Nedney, Dean            99  LDT   LDT   4    36                40                2 yrs
Shackelford, Jessie     75  LDT         4    28                38                2 yrs
Poston, Bert            94  RDT   RDT   7    49                49                5 yrs
##Holliday, Walt        70  RDT         3    12                23                2 yrs
Pierce, Terry           59  MLB   MLB   10   75                75                1 yr.
Acosta, Mickey          56  MLB         2    24                39                2 yrs
Snyder, Randall         90  SLB   SLB   8    59                59                1 yr.
Gardner, Larry          57  SLB         6    48                48                1 yr.
Clark, Dustin           53  WLB   WLB   2    48                77                4 yrs
##Linquist, J.C.        54  WLB         2    20                35                2 yrs
Spatz, Dana             33  LCB   LCB   8    74                74                6 yrs
Stoner, Adam            47  LCB         3    13                26                2 yrs
Douglas, Lewis          28  RCB   RCB   7    51                52                1 yr.
Cash, Chris             42  RCB         11   45                45                1 yr.
Runyan, Dwight          32  RCB         4    29                40                2 yrs
##Crane, Dwight         40  RCB         1    16                42                4 yrs
Howell, John            49  SS    SS    12   57                57                2 yrs
Gonzalez, Bryce         41  SS          1    19                41                4 yrs
Marschalk, Xavier       46  FS    FS    3    47                48                2 yrs
Hochstetler, Gus        26  FS          2    25                42                3 yrs
   
$$ - player is in starting lineup, ## - player is inactive.  
   
Players Under Contract: 53
On Active Roster: 46
   
Salary Cap: $122,800,000
Cap Room: $2,670,000
Maximum for New Player: $3,040,000
Cap Room Lost (to old contracts): $8,000,000
   
Cap Room Lost Next Year (to old contracts): $0
Cap Room Required Next Year: $125,720,000

-Anxiety

[Abe Sargent]

Front Office Football 2004
San Diego Chargers 2012 Regular Season Schedule
   
  Week    Opponent                              Result    Attendance Weather  
Week 1    at Oakland Raiders                      
Week 2    ATLANTA FALCONS                         
Week 3    at Tennessee Titans                     
Week 4    at Pittsburgh Steelers                  
Week 5    OPEN                                    
Week 6    at Baltimore Ravens                     
Week 7    CLEVELAND BROWNS                        
Week 8    at Denver Broncos                       
Week 9    OAKLAND RAIDERS                         
Week 10   CINCINNATI BENGALS                      
Week 11   KANSAS CITY CHIEFS                      
Week 12   at Tampa Bay Buccaneers                 
Week 13   NEW JERSEY JETS                         
Week 14   at New Orleans Saints                   
Week 15   DENVER BRONCOS                          
Week 16   CAROLINA PANTHERS                       
Week 17   at Kansas City Chiefs                   
   
Home Games in ALL CAPS
   
Season Tickets Sold: 37,700
Stadium Capacity: 90,000

-Anxiety

[Abe Sargent]

A review of our starters:


QB Zack Kirk - Once the shamed first round selection of the Chargers, flung into the starting spot twice due to injuries to our erstwhile savior, Zack has performed admirably and been signed to a brand new contract. Zack now controls the keys to the Chargers kingdom. He passed for 4103 yards last year as the full time starter.


RB Shane Prescott - Another year for a marginal starter. We never focus on the run, so Shane doesn't need to be great. He doesn't even need to be good, just adequate. Just enough so that opposing teams can't gang up on our passing game.


FB Greg Williamson - Stats decreased a bit due to a prolonged injury but he is still starting caliber and strong. I need good blockers in my offensive scheme, and Greg is great at that. He's also a decent enough outlet for the pass.


TE Chester Curtis - With 114 starts for us, Chester is an amazingly good TE and a fixture for us.


FL Norman Ayi - Moved to flanker, Norman is still one of the best receivers of the day. Amazingly strong.


SE Reche Caldwell - A guy who keeps playing for us. He's an aged veteran who has held off competetion again and again, and will start this year in lieu of Kerry Hidy and his sophomore slump.


C Graham Shelton - Another first round disappointment with poor skills but amazing strength. Last year, however, with 16 starts, he only allowed 3 sacks and had 22 KRB, a decent enough year.


LG Dan Torrez - A solid and good offensive lineman. We still have him for three years on the contract.


RG Casey Matthews - Another solid lineman and a former second round draft selection of mine. We have Casey signed for four more years.


LT Adam Marcum - Definately a stopgap measure until we find someone new to start for us. This is a problem area with a major exclaimation point, especially considering that I need a good offensive line to run our offense.


RT Jimmy Garcia - A new free agent who looks to be pretty strong, leaving us one questionamrk and one exclaimation point on our offense. And two hispanics in Torrez and Garcia.


P Ethan Griffith - An amazingly good punter who I have no intention of ever replacing.


K Harold Rathbone - A rookie kicker with an average leg.


LDE Randy Franklin - One half of our new duo of rushing ends - I want to shut down the pass or punish my opponent for doing it. If our offense can score quickly through the air, and we can stop our opponent passing to catch up, then we can easily outscore the best running teams by making running a non-factor. Randy is a great end.


RDE Gino Robinson - Rookie Gino looks great but he's a bit green. He needs major development time, but could be a major asset.


LDT Dean Nedney - Good pass rusher, average run stopper, stop gap player for now.


RDT Bert Poston - Although this is Bert's 7th year with the team and his 6th year as a starter, he is merely adequate. Just good enough not to be benched or seriously gotten after replacing.


MLB Terry Pierce - Our solid middle backer and the heart and soul of our defense.


SLB Randall Snyder - Randall came back from an injury with a bit of a loss in his abilities. He's still starting caliber but no longer a stud. However, considering his company, our LB corps is still a strong point.


WLB Dustin Clark - One of last year's first rounders we acquired from our trades, he looks to be a future long range linebacker and a strong player.


LCB Dana Spatz - Three time all league CB, Dana is our only major player in the secondary, surrounded by average players and decent starters back there.


RCB Lewis Douglas - A decent corner and an amazing run stopper, which is a nice bonus. A former fourth round selection of mine.


SS John Howell - Good play man with a lack of play diagnosis. Otherwise, he'd be perfect. As it is, he has two all league honors to his credit because he has a tendancy to outplay his abilities, and that's the sort of player that I like on my team.


FS Xavier Marschalk - A former first round selection who is stinky and barely adequate. He may be the first of our opening stanza selections to be gone from our team.


-Anxiety

[Abe Sargent]

During the pre-season, Shane Prescott goes down with reconstructive knee surgery and will be out for the year. I place him on IR and sign Spencer Ferguson to be our third back. Undrafted rookie Sammy Camudgeon will start for us.


We go 3-1 in the preseaon, here are our other injuries:

MLB Terry Pierce is questionable for a week or two.

SS John Howell is probable and will start.


-Anxiety

[Abe Sargent]

Week 1 -

We lose at Oakland 14-17. Chester Curtis caught a TD and Sammy rushed for one. Franklin notched a sack and a half. Harold Rathbone missed three stinking FGs and that's the game right there. He missed FGs of 47 yards, 28 yards, and 47 yards.

RCB Chris Cash is questionable, TE Chester Curtis is out for a week or two, SE Alfred Kelley is questionable for a week.


Week 2 -

We TIE the Cardinals this week. Norman Ayi caught a TD pass with 144 yards and Rathbone kicked three FGs. He still missed one of 51 yards, but that's an acceptable miss. Sammy rushed for 100 yards evenly despite being an undrafted rookie. Griffith's punting average was 49.6 yards - dang! Dan Torrez notched 6 KRBs. Terry Pierce led the team in tackles and also registered one of two picks - John Howell had the other one.

Zack did fumble the ball four times - not a good sign.

We have some more injuries:

C Graham Shelton is out for 12 weeks with a high ankle sprain.

Reche Caldwell is probable with a sprained thumb.

TE Chester Curtis is now probable and will start next week.


I slap Graham Shelton on IR. Backup Kyle Will isn't ready to start yet, so I go look at free agency. I sign Richie Pfeifer to start for us, he's a real decent center and I'm happy that he was available.


Week 3 -

We travel to Tennessee and lose 20-23. Reche Caldwell catches two TDs with 108 yards and Harold Rathbone kicks two FGs.

There are no additional major injuries.



I extend Randall Snyder's contract for two years.

Reche Caldwell were extended by a year.



Week 4 -

We travel to Pittsburgh and lose 19-27. Rathbone kicks four FGs and Norman Ayi caught a TD pass. Zack Kirk launched the ball for 313 yards, including 111 yards to Ayi and 98 yards to Curtis.


Injuries:

Dana Spatz is probable.

That's the only additional injury.


Week 5 -

BYE


Week 6 -

We travel to the 3-1 Baltimore Ravens and get our first win of the season 30-27. Sammy rushes for two TDs. Chester Curtis and Norman Ayi caught two passes. Rathbone kicks a FG but misses an XP. Zack Kirk launched 329 yards today.

Norman Ayi had 150 yards on the day, a pretty good day all around.

Injuries:

SE Alfred Kelley is out for four weeks with a strained deltoid muscle. Only major injury.



Week 7 -

Rathbone kicked four FGs as we host the Browns and win 27-14. His longest was 52 yards. Chester Curtis caught a conversion pass. Kerry Hidy caught one TD pass while Sammy rushed for a second.

Zack put up 324 yards and 1 TD (no picks). Yet no receiver had more than 82 yards receiving, showing that he really gets the ball around. Terry Pierce registered a pair of sacks on the day.


Injuries:

Terry Pierce is questionable but he'll start.


Week 8 -

We are 1-0-1 at home but 1-3 on the road heading to Mile High Stadium.

And yet we win, 31-28 to go to 3-3-1 on the season. Rathbone kicked a FG. Norman Ayi caught two TD passes from Kirk, including one for 69 yards, 131 yards on the day. Sammy rushed for a score. Reche Caldwell caught a score as well. Zack Kirk had 347 yards on the day but he tossed up 4 Ints to his three TDs. Robinson had 2.5 sacks.

Injuries:

SLB Randall Snyder is doubtful for a week or two and Gardner will start.



-Anxiety

[Abe Sargent]

Week 9 -

We host six of the last nine games and we begin a three week homestand against the Raiders. Oakland is 6-2 and second in the division, so we really need to knock them down here when we have a chance.

Unfortunately, we lose 31-17. Britt Clark rushed for a score and Ayi caught a TD pass. We only turned the ball over once, yet the Raiders defense kept holding us. Rathbone missed FGs of 45 and 51 yards.

Injuries:

TE Chester Curtis is out for a couple of weeks with a strained patellar tendon.

Dana Spaz is probable. Randall Snyder is back.



Week 10 -

The Bengals arrive in town and we edge them out 31-28. Dana Spatz returns a pick for a TD. Sammy rushed for a score and caught a TD pass as well. Britt Clark also rushed for a score. Zack Kirk had three picks - another dangerous game.

There are no additional injuries. 4-4-1 and we need to make a run.


Week 11 -

We host the division leading Chiefs. We need to win overall our three game home stand plus we need to defeat these guys.

And we do. 34-17. Reche Caldwell, Norman Ayi and Kevin Buckner each catch TD passes. Dana Spatz returns another pick for a TD. Sammy added a two point conversion and a couple of Rathbone FGs.

Zack put up 330 yards, Caldwell caught 132 yards, Robinson had a sack and a half. Rathbone missed FGs of 48 and 48 yards.

Injuries:

SE Alfred Kelley is out for a month with a severe wrist sprain.

FB Ross Williamson is out for three weeks with a strained foot ligament.

RG Casey Matthews is out for a few weeks with a hyperextended knee.

We are 5-4-1. But, we are last in the division and have a long road to hoe.


Week 12 -

We travel to the 2-8 Bucs' home, but lose 14-3. Kirk lobs a pair of picks, our defense simply doesn't help us out and neither foes our offense and we toss a stinky game that was eminently winnable.

Injuries:

MLB Mickey Acosta is out for a few weeks with a strained calf muscle.

MLB Terry Pierce is out for a couple of weeks.


I need a MLB so I place Mickey on IR and sign Horace King, a second year man. He'll start until Terry Pierce can return in a week or two.


Week 13 -

We decimate the Jets 28-6 to go to 5-4-1 on the season. Chester Curtis caught a pair of TDs while Greg and Sammy rush for scores.

There are no major additional injuries.


Week 14 -

We travel to New Orleans and emerge victorius 23-13. Dana Spatz returns yet another pick for a score. Add in three Rathbone FGs and a Greg Abeykoon TD catch. Sammy rushes for 108 yards. Reche had 110 yards. Franklin had a sack and a half.


Injuries:

Reche Caldwell is out for three weeks with a strained calf muscle.

John Howell is out for three weeks as well with a hyperextended elbow.

Back in the starting lineup are Casey Matthews and Terry Pierce.


Week 15 -

We have moved up into second place in the division and need to keep clawing to get into the wild card spot. We host the Broncos -

but lose 27-13. Abeykoon caught another TD and Rathbone kicked a pair of FGs. Zack does paste 334 yards on the Bronco defense. Snyder notched a pair of QB takedowns.

Injuries:

John Howell, despite being questionable, will start this week. There is no more room for error folks.


Week 16 -

We host the Panthers but lose 23-17. Sammy rushed for a score and Curtis caught another TD.


There are no major injuries this week.


Week 17 -

We defeat the Chiefs in the final week despite it not mattering. We win 27-20 and go 8-7-1 on the season. Sammy rushed for a TD, Alfred Kelley caught a TD pass and a conversion. Chester Curtis also caught a TD. Ayi caught 116 yards. Franklin sacked the QB twice.

10-6 teams make the playoffs as wild cards in the AFC, not 9-7, so we needed to win both of the last two defeats in order to have made it.


-Anxiety

[Abe Sargent]

The 2012 Playoffs:



Wild Card Weekend:

Carolina at Washington, 13-10
Denver at Kansas City, 12-24
Houston at New England, 0-20
St. Louis at Atlanta, 10-15


Divisional Weekend:

Atlanta at Detroit, 31-21
Carolina at Arizona, 10-13
Kansas City at Baltimore, 22-37
New England at Jacksonville, 30-27


Championship Weekend:

Atlanta at Arizona, 17-28

New England at Baltimore, 20-17


The Super Bowl:


NFC Champion Arizona Cardinals

vs

AFC Champion New England Patriots


Arizona 16


New England 3


Your NFL Champions -

The Arizona Cardinals.



-Anxiety

[Abe Sargent]

2012 Year in Review:

Awards:

Norman Ayi, League's Fastest Man


Some Stats:

QB Kirk, 4439 yards, 59.7% completion rate, 23:16 TD: Int ratio, 84.5 rating

Definately a good year. Kirk was third in the league in yards passing behind Joey Harrington and Byron Leftwich. Only for QBs had 4000+ yard seasons this year. However, Kirk has got to toss more TDs.


Sammy Camudgeon, 248 rushes, 874 yards, 9 TDs, 12 catches, 80 yards, 1 receiving TD.

Proof that you can just about plug in any body into our running gname and have success. We got what we needed from undrafted free agent Sammy.


WR Norman Ayi, 80 catches, 1344 yards, 7 TDs
WR Reche Caldwell, 13 starts, 66 grabs, 940 yards, 4 TDs
TE Chester Curtis, 13 starts, 61 catches, 640 yards, 6 TDs
WE Kerry Hidy, 3 starts, 50 receptions, 649 yards, 1 TD

Norman had a great year and was fifth in the league in receiving yards. Reche would have had a 1000+ yard season if it hadn't been for the injury.


K Harold Rathbone, 28 of 38, 32 XP of 35 tries.

Although Harold cleaned up his act quickly, the THREE missed PATs are serious concerns.

P Ethan Griffith was 3rd in the league in punting average and kicked around 40% of his punts inside the 20 - the second best percentage among starting punters.


MLB Terry Pierce, 13 starts, 83 tacks, 38 assts, 3 sacks, 1 Int, 5 PasDef, 2 FF
SLB Randall Snyder, 15 starts, 75 tacks, 33 assts, 4 sacks, 2 PasDef, 1 FF, 1 FumRec
WLB Dustin Clark, 59 tacks, 16 assts, 1 Int, 3 PasDef, 3 FF


Dustin Clark has got to improve up to his fourth overall selection status. Terry's production has diminished, and yet he still leads the team in tackles despite missing three games.


SS John Howell, 13 starts, 80 tacks, 25 assts, 2 Ints, 12 PasDef, 2 FF, 1 FumRec
FS Xavier Marschalk, 76 tacks, 19 assts, 1 sack, 8 PasDef, 2 FF, 1 FumRec
CB Lewis Douglas. 66 tacks, 26 assts, 1.5 sacks, 1 Int, 11 PasDef
CB Dana Spatz, 56 tacks, 17 assts, 5 Ints, 3 Int TDs, 15 PasDef, 1 FF, 3 FumRec

Xavier continues to disappoint, three seasons of starting and no picks. Dana Spatz had a good year and continues to find the endzone after picking off the football - he has 15 Interceptions returned for TDs in his career.


DE Randy Franklin, 30 tacks, 8 assts, 10 sacks, 2 FF
DE Gino Robinson, 31 tacks, 19 assts, 6 sacks, 1 FF, 1 FumRec
DT Bert Poston, 53 tacks, 16 assts, 3 sacks, 1 FF, 1 FumRec
DT Dean Nedney, 39 tacks, 13 assts, 2 sacks, 1 FumRec

Gino is a rookie so his lack of production is explainable, and we've got to get at least one good DT in here.


T Jimmy Garcia, 35 KRB, 10 SkA
G Dan Torrez, 28 KRB, 7 SkA


Garcia had a good year and seems like a great pickup.


-Anxiety

[Abe Sargent]

End of Season Stuff:

Score:

Performance: 54
Value: 40
Profit/Loss: 56
Roster: 90

Year End Score: 56


The salary cap has risen to 126.6 million. We are currently 1.9 million over the cap.

A couple of our role players - Shane Prescott and Alfred Kelley retired.

Drew Bledsoe was inducted into the Hall of Fame.


Balance Sheet:

Revenues: 117,850,000 (down 3 million from last year)
Costs: 207,900,000 (up 31 million from last year)

Total Revenue: (90.05 million)

Our bonuses increased 20 million, scouting costs 9 million.

Attendance: 60,900, 67.2% of capacity.


We have the lowest valued franchise in the league, second worst economy, lowest support, and are tied for worst stadium.

I submit an offer to our defensive coordinator whose contract has run out. I'd like to retain him. However, I go shopping for a new head coach.

I decide to make an offer to the Cardinals head coach, fully expecting that offer to be superceeded by another.

Our defensive coordinator re-ups, and as expected, the Cards coach also takes a very high deal.

There seem to be several high quality cheap coaching candidates this year. I decide to chase a choach with experience - Wesley Walls, the former HC of the Chiefs.


And Wesley Walls signs with us the following week.

I increase our ticket prices significantly.


-Anxiety

[Abe Sargent]

We have the following major unrestricted free agents:

MLB Terry Pierce
RCB Lewis Douglas
FB Ross Williamson
SLB Larry Gardner
C Graham Shelton

Two of our former first rounders (Williamson, Shelton) are among those out of contract.

Should I franchise somebody? I'd like to franchise Williamson again except it'd cost me 3 million and we are already over the cap already, so I pass.

I take a look at our roster.

Norman Ayi is a 17 million cap hit and that is simply too much. Also big hits are Zack Kirk at 13 million and Dana Spatz, also at 13 million. A QB who tosses two consecutive 4000+ yards counting 13 million against the cap seems fair, to be quite honest. I take a look at Dana's contract.

We redo Dana's contract to free up some capital this year.

That makes Casey Matthews the next iggest cap hit, and we slash some salary, give him a bonus of 2 million and cut a lot of cap space. These two moves alone freed up almost 8 million dollars that we can use to draft. Now I'd like to free up a bit more cash.

We extend Dan Torrez's contract while also cutting a few salary numbers.

We are left with several smaller contracts that are hurting the teams as backups make 1.5 or 2 million against the cap? No way, we need to cut some chaff.

I release:

LDT Jessie Shackelford


Of our own players, I offer a contract to Lewis Douglas. Unfortunately, Terry Pierce wants a 20 million bonus and Ross Williamson wants a deal that will cost 5, 6, 8, and 9 million against the cap in years 2-5, and no FB is worth that.

We'll take a look at free agents and stuff later, but for now we have 12 million in cap room.


-Anxiety

[Abe Sargent]

I sign LG Leroy Hudson, last year's undrafted free agent suprise, to a three year extension.

I make a three year offer to C Graham Shelton. He's not great, but it won't cost us much to resign him.


I need the following players:

QB
RB* 2
FB* 2
TE
FL
WR
C*
RG
LT*
RDE
LDT* 2
MLB*
SLB
CB 2


I also submit an offer for DT Jamie Benton, a run stopping DT who can help us plug up the middle.

I'll hold off on the FB position for now, I just need a blocker and the occasional pass outlet, and all of the top FBs are simply demanding too much money.

Which may mean that Ross Williamson will be our first draft selection from the opening round of the draft to head to another team. Sometimes it's gotta happen.

My major quandary is the middle linebacker spot. If I can't afford to resign Terry Pierce, and I really can't, then I need to find a cheap alternative.

There are essentially four legitmate starting MLBs in free agency, and all are aging.

So I take a look at the draft. We select number 20. There is only one legitimate MLB starter in the draft with any hope of being a franchise player, so we can't look for help there.

I think that I really have to reserve my first rounder hoping that one of four offensive tackles falls to us and move on.

That means we need a MLB. I decide to pursue Gino Arnold, the worst and cheapest and youngest of the four free agents that attract me.


So then, we've made offers to a C, MLB, DT, and CB. Let's see what happens this week.

We sign Gino Arnold immediately, thus filling up our middle LB problem. We are currently the highest bidder on all three of our remaining targets.

The following week, Graham Shelton, Jamie Benton and Lewis Douglas all sign with us. Excellent.

We are 3.1 million under the cap. Time to trim some fat. I release:

LCB Adam Stoner
RCB Dwight Crane
RB Britt Clark

That frees up some more cash. More trimming will come, but only after I see what is going to happen with the free agency market and maybe the draft as well.


-Anxiety

[Abe Sargent]

So we are early in the free agency process, and looking at losing several important players like Ross Williamson and Terry Pierce. I decide to make a big splash and release DT Bert Poston. Bert has started every game for us for 6 straight years, but it's time to shake things up a bit. And free up over 3 million in cap room.

The following week, Ross Williamson was finally offered a contract and Terry Pierce signed with the Browns.

I make an offer to FS Mercury Schacht, a decent safety who is a fan favorite for the 49ers, who wants a fairly cap friendly contract. If he signs, I expect to release FS Xavier Marschalk, a first rounder selection of mine who has started every game these past three years but only has 19 pass defensed, no picks in his career. That's not first pick caliber, and I am disappointed.

The following week, Ross signs with the Bengals. Four weeks later, Mercury signs with us. Xavier gets his walking papers, being traded, and our second first rounder leaves the team.

I trade Xavier and our 7th rounder to Baltimore for their 4th round selection.

We are now 11 million under the cap and looking in good order.

I wait a couple of weeks then check out free agency to see if there are any bargins left.

Here are the deals that remain:

FL Skip Washington wants a very cap friendly deal. He's a solid receiver, just as good as Reche and Kerry, but do I need a fourth quality receiver?

QB Arnold Biccum wants 1.8 this year and 3.5 next year - he's a very good QB are could start in a pinch. A former first round selection who only started 7 games in his four year career, he's 9:6 in those 7 games. Finding a quality backup like this can often be a treasure.

RCB Nnamdi Asimugha is an aging but cap friendly backup with a good set of skills. He could be a solid nickel back or emergency starter.


There are a few other good deals, Bert Poston is one of the better deals left, but he wouldn't sign with us. TE Jimmy Hitchcok is the best free agent left, but we have no need there. A few injured players have some skills, but who knows what they will look like post-injury?

So, I have a CB, QB and WR to choose from if I want to go shopping. I take a look at my roster -

WR-wise, we are three deep, with Ayi, Hidy and Caldwell. QB-wise, we have a long term project in Randall Rose and our QB in Zack Kirk, but there is a definite need for a QB here. And we only have three CBs on the roster - another solid one would be very handy.

Hmm....

I make the offer to Nnamdi. I have to, we just have a need for a nickelback with decent skills. Before I make an offer to Nnamdi, however, I notice his history - he's missed 20 games in the past two seaons to injury? Nnamdi is an older guy, so I decide to look for a younger gentleman, and offer a contract to the next best corner, three years younger than Nnamdi.

I also make an offer to RB Brady Edmondson, a good looking backup sort of RB with decent skills and a very cheap cost - league minimum.

Alas, I choose not to pursue the WR and QB right now, I just don't have the spare cap room, despite their cheap costs.

Ronald Zimmerman, our corner, signs the following week. Brady Edmondson the week after that.

Several weeks later our QB and WR are still out there. Two more weeks pass, they are still both available. Same contract demands - 1.1 for FL Washington this year, 1.8 for QB Biccum

I can't find 2.9 in cap room for two good players?

We are currently 9.2 million under the cap with 37 players under contract. We have 5.3 in rookie demands. I need to squeeze every penny from this cap. But there are still bad players under contract.


I release:

RDT Walt Holliday
FS Gus Hochstetler

and I offer a contract to FL Skip Washington. He signs with us the following week.

I head to the draft while QB Hiccum is still available along with several other high caliber QBs.


-Anxiety

[Abe Sargent]

To recap our needs:

QB
RB*
RB
FB*
FB
TE
SE
RG
LT*
RDE
DT x 2
SLB
CB
FS


As always, I like to look for best available players to build my roster from. Players like Bert Poston and Lewis Douglas can sometimes rise from the depths of the roster to start for you.


Our scouts grade six players as exceptional - A QB, RB, G, C, DE and S. I doubt any will fall to me, but I'd draft any of them if they did. Additionally, we are looking at an MLB, who most likely won't fall past pick 10, several offensive tackles, a FB and a DT.

We pick number 20.

The first five picks go DE, RB, DE, OT, QB. QB Troy Bell, from good ol' WVU was the only star looking QB in the draft, although there are other marginal players who may get drafted highly.

We are on the clock and there are several interesting choices here:

The offensive tackles that are left that could start for us lack development. I could take an OT - a stretch with my first overall selection and I hate to do that.

I could try to correct one of my past first round mistakes - That studly Center and a fine looking FS are both on the board.

C R.J. Hoyt is a project. He has very high volatility and low current stats. I could draft him, start Graham Shelton this year, and make a decision next year.

FS Jumbo O'Neill also has a very high volatility with an average current development. He might even start over Mercury, our new FS signee.

Other great looking players include LG Mitchell Peterson, FB Howie Davis, and LT Kerry Early, he best OT on the board. Honestly, Peterson looks the best out of the bunch, but all three players are where I have starters. The worst starter is arguably Graham, but Mercury is younger. There are also two other fine looking centers that we can look at in the second round if FB Davis is gone and they are still there.

So it's not center. Therefore, I select FS Jumbo O'Neill, out of Washington.


In the second round, FB Howie Davis is still on the board. We were targeting him with this pick, and everything looks good. The first FB is drafted on the day.


The third round comes and brings with it LT Mickey McGhee. I fully expect McGhee to ride the pine, and I am crossing my fingers with this pick, it's a real gamble.


In the fourth I decide to try to end all kicking problems ever since K Darnell Simonain has fallen to us - the best kicker in the draft.

I use Baltimore's fourth round selection (pick 27 in the round) to grab C Quentin Vang, the best non kicker on our board.


In the fifth, I go for LDT Johnny Keisel, a run stopping specialist.

The sixth round is our last selection, and I draft LT Daniel Fite from Duke, but who was originally from West Virginia.


-Anxiety

[Abe Sargent]

I head into late free agency.

We sign all of our rookies on the first go around.


I sign the following restricted free agents:

RB Sammy Camudgeon
RDE Adrian Ogbogu


Traditionally, I make some decisions after camp, but this year, our cap situation is such that I need to make some cuts now.

I release:


C Kyle Will
T Mike Jells


I make offers to the following undrafted free agents:

FB Vincent Barnett
TE Perry Branch (who looks to be the best reeiving TE in the undrafted class)
LCB Patrick Stevenson (KR Specialist)
RB Hunter Blackwell
SE Brett Kelley
LG Hardy Banner
LDT Wendell Zimmerman
SLB Corwin Conway
QB Kelvin Tucker


We sign all of the undrafted rookies that we were chasing and we are up against the cap. More maneuvering will be needed, although we'll cut a kicker sooner or later. I decide to make it sooner and send Harold Rathbone - Mr. 3 Missed PATs and Lost Us Two Games is gone.


I make offers to undrafted rookies:

QB Jamal Henson
SS Ed Humphrey


And I head into camp with 53 players on our roster and only $110,000 available in cap room.


-Anxiety

[Abe Sargent]

Training Camp - let's look at our rookies. We'll start with the drafted players, in the order they were selected:


FS Jumbo O'Neill - Busted hard in bump and run defense, a bit green elsewhere but acceptable. How often do FS bump and run anyways?

FB Howie Davis - Goon enough to start for a few years, but doesn't appear to be that special FB we were hoping to unearth.

LT Mickey McGhee - Remember when we grimaced as we selected him? It was worth it - good for depth only.

K Darnell Simonain - I gambled with him. Poor kickoffs but great leg and accuracy. And I was right. Needs to develop accuracy but shows promise and has booming leg.

C Quentin Vang - I traded our 7th rounder and Xavier for the selection that became Vang. This was purely a best player selection, and it shows. Vang has great run blocking potential, but is very green, and will never be more than a specialist. But he could be an emergency stater after he develops and we could lean on him.

LDT Johnny Keisel - A selection purely for his run blocking skills, Johnny looks exactly like what we thought - a run stopping specialist with no pass rushing skills to speak of.

LT Daniel Fite - Our sixth round choice could grow into a decent backup, and may be on our team for a while if he can develop as a backup. A solid selection for the sixth round, and maybe our best sixth rounder ever.


Undrafted:

QB Kelvin Tucker - Amazingly green and poor long ball. Poor accuracy as well, but could really grow into something.

QB Jamal Henson - More well rounded but doesn't excel like Kelvin. More developed but also weak at accuracy.

RB Hunter Blackwell - Elusive specialist with no other major skills.

FB Vincent Barnett - Depth only and should be allowed to leave next year.

TE Perry Branch - Poor blocking skills evident. Pass catching skills not as good as advertised.

SE Brett Kelley - Was hoping to be decent receiver but looks poor.

LG Hardy Banner - No worse than any other undrafted rookie but nothing here.

LDT Wendell Zimmerman - Likewise, not much of a player here.

SLB Corwin Conway - Another poor backer, but not as bad as some we've had and a decent enough emergency plug in replacement.

LCB Patrick Stevenson - Very green and will only be a KR man, although we may look for another angle there.

SS Ed Humphrey - Nothing special, green, could eventually be a decent backup or dimeback.


-Anxiety

[Abe Sargent]

This dynasty is on hiatus temporarily while I reopen some older dynasties that have done well in the Golden Scribes voting.


-Anxiety