FOF2k4 - A vast wasteland (misfit toys)

[JonInMiddleGA]

Time to trim the roster & the pair of 7 week injuries makes it even harder than usual. Can't IR them really, they're both key starters, so they'll take up roster space. We sign former Cardinal CB Allen Carter to provide help in the secondary.

Veterans released include:
LB Nick Johnstone (1 yr w/AZ, 3 games/0 starts)
FB Mel Dubey (1 yr w/AZ, 13 games/0 starts, 1 career TD)
DT Johnny Cortez (1 yr, 7 games/0 starts)
LB Richard Cooper (5 yrs, 46 games/32 starts, 179 tkls/73 asts/1.5 sacks career)
S Wally Barton (6 yrs, 86 games/75 starts,16 Ints, 5.5 sacks career)

Rookies cut include:
OT Bubba Stewart, OG Renaldo Chesser

Placed DE Deon Nobile on IR
Moved rookie RB Louie Tolbert to FB

Our cohesion ratings are
Passing - 85 (2nd of 32)
O-Line - 89 (4th of 32)
D-Front - 100 (1st of 32)
2ndary - 91 (2nd of 32)
Still, our roster rating remains at 2.

[JonInMiddleGA]

2010 Regular Season

Week 1
Beat St.Louis 24-23
Darrell Kelsay & Gerald Lowe connected for 3 TD passes & the Rams missed a 37 yd FG with a minute to play as we hang on for the win. Kelsay was 21/35 for 257, 9 of those completions and 99 yds to Lowe. LB Schneider had 13 stops to lead the defense. The O-Line struggled,allowing 4 sacks & marking only 4 key run blocks (3 of those by LG Brewington). The win was costly, as Schneider is out for 2 weeks with a strained calf muscle, and Kelsay is questionable with an abdominal strain.

Week 2
Beat Denver 20-19
Whew, that was a close one. Archie Covington hit a 36 yd FG with 0:37 left to earn a hard-fought victory. Alonzo Steinbeck came off the bench to gain 92 yards & 2 TD's on 11 carries. Last season's leading rusher didn't appear until the 2nd quarter & broke off a 50 yd TD run on his first carry of the game. Disaster struck just before the half when QB Eddie Dodge's hail mary was picked off & returned 80 yds to give Denver a 13-7 halftime lead. In the 3rd qtr, Steinbeck got his 2nd TD from 7 yds out & Covington added a 23 yd FG to make give us a 17-13 lead. Denver hit a pair of FG's at 11:13 & 3:39 to take a 19-17 advantage but Dodge drove us 51 yds in 10 plays to set up Covington's game-winner. The backup, playing for the injured Kelsay, finished 25/40 with 4 interceptions. Lowe caught 10 passes for 82 yards. Steinbeck, S Casey Burroughs & backup CB Clifton Howard are all banged up & could miss next week's game.

Week 3
Lost to New York 19-14
A banged up offense could manage only 236 total yards & we come up a little short because of it. A strained elbow tendon forced Kelsay to leave the game in the 2nd qtr & Dodge was ineffective in relief, going just 8 of 24 for 161 yds & 1 TD. We also had no running game with Steinbeck on the bench, just 53 yds rushing. Rookie LB Capuco made his first career start & responded with 14 stops, DT Duncan had 12 to go with a sack. From the training room, we expect Steinbeck & LB Schneider to return next week, but will be without Kelsay, CB Billy Comia (elbow tendon), as well as the already injured CB Housley & S Burroughs. We waived rookie LB Cedric Farmer & signed rookie S Bryan Devine as an FA.

Week 4
Lost to Tampa Bay 30-15
3 turnovers & 11/31 passing were fatal against the unbeaten Bucs. Over half our 168 passing yards came on a meaningless (but pretty) 94 yd TD from Dodge to Davison with 2 mins left. Steinbeck returned & was solid with 77 yds on 17 carries but was taken away as a weapon once we trailed badly in the 2nd half. Looks like we'll be in survival mode until the team gets healthy at both QB & in the secondary.

2010 Record after 4 games: 2-2

[JonInMiddleGA]

Week 5
Beat Seattle 17-16
Clutch. Archie Covington hit a 42 yd FG with 5:20 left to give us a win over the division leading Seahawks. We survive 3 turnovers, including an intercepted Sammy Uno pass that was returned for a TD. Derek Lowe had a huge 92 yd KOR for a TD with a minute left in the 3rd to put us up 14-13 but the Seahawks drove & kicked a 19 yd FG with 9:21 to go to put them back in front. Steinbeck had 90 yds & a TD on 20 carries, Uno was 11/19 for 110 yds in his first career start. We'll get Comia & Burroughs back in the secondary next week, but will be without starting SS Andrew Mueller, who goes down for a couple of weeks with a strained foot ligament. The attendance of 51,900 was our largest home crowd since week 8 of 2004.

Week 6
Lost to Atlanta 33-14
We gave up 8 sacks & turned the ball over 3 consecutive times in the 3rd quarter, giving the Falcons plenty of chances including 4 FG's. The game wasn't even as close as the final score, since we scored a meaningless TD on the final play, Heath to Lowe on a 7 yd pass.

Week 7
Bye week
The off-week comes at a pretty good time, giving us the return of Kelsay, Housley & Mueller for next week.

Week 8
Beat St.Louis 24-21
It's great to be healthy again. Kelsay returns to go 18/27 for 218 yds & 2 TD's to Derek Lowe, Steinbeck rushes for 90 and a TD and we run out the clock with a pair of 3rd down conversions to take over sole possession of 1st place in the NFC West (over 4-4 Seattle & San Fran by a half-game & the Rams by 1.5 games). Unfortunately, the injury bug bites us in the butt again, with S Mueller out for a month with a strained patellar tendon, WR Davison & OT Markowitz struggling with shoulder tendonitis & a sprained knee respectively & CB Housley fighting another nagging strained hamstring. At least we get S Bryce Godfrey back from his injury to help in the secondary.

Week 9
Lost to Carolina 17-16
Ouch. An Archie Covington FG with just 1:15 left put us up 16-10. A good KR started the Panthers at their own 35 with 1:01 to go. Incomplete pass, then 21 yds on 2nd down, they're 1st & 10 at our 44 with 0:34. A big sack by Dawson moved them back to our 49 but a 47 yd completion put them at our 2, with a personal foul moving it to the 1 with just 0:19 left. A flip pass to the FB & the Panthers rally to go to 8-1. Kelsay was 22/33 for 313, Lowe caught 7 of those for 103.

2010 Record after 8 games: 4-4 (half game behind Seattle)

[JonInMiddleGA]

Week 10
Tied New Orleans 30-30
Back & forth affair that ends with no decision. We were up 14-0, down 17-14, tied at 17,down 24-17, up 27-24, down 30-27, then tied on Covington's 20 yd FG with 0:15 to play in regulation. We had 537 yds total offense, the Saints had 475, for a total of 1012 yards between the two teams that are now both 4-4-1. The extra time & all the effort cost us dearly in the injury department with the following report after the game:
NT Dawson is out for the year with a torn rotator cuff
WR Lowe is out for 4 weeks with a strained foot ligament
QB Kelsay is probable with a broken finger
CB Strong is probable with a sprained ankle
CB Comia is probable for 4 weeks with knee tendonitis
S Meuller remains questionable with a strained patellar tendon
OT Markowitz remains probable with a sprained knee
CB Housley remains probable with a strained hamstring

Week 11
Lost to San Fran 30-20
We got down 17-0 early and didn't score an offensive TD until 10:50 left in the 4th qtr. Kelsay was just 17 of 41 for 338 and appeared to miss his favorite target Derek Lowe badly. The loss dropped us from alone in first place to alone in last place, at 4-5-1 vs all 3 other NFC West teams at 5-5.

Week 12
Beat Kansas City 24-21
Kelsay hit Thompson for a 21 yd TD pass with 0:10 left to complete the comeback win. The winning drive covered 80 yards in just 5 plays in 1:38. Kelsay finished with 299 yds passing & 2 TD's. After the game, we learned that S Mueller & CB Strong are back to 100% for next week, but LB Schneider is questionable with a pulled groin & RB Steinbeck is doubtful with an abdominal strain.

Week 13
Beat Minnesota 34-17
Casey Burroughs & Harris Capuco both returned interceptions for TD's, part of 4 Viking turnovers on the day. Konruff rushed for 57 yards, Sturm scored on 2 short runs and we survive a day that found Kelsay throwing for just 61 yds on 6/15 before leaving the game with a strained quad muscle.

2010 Record after 12 games: 6-5-1

[JonInMiddleGA]

Week 14
Lost to Oakland 30-27 in OT
We wasted 334 yds passing by Kelsay and 100+ yd receiving days by both Lowe & Chryplewicz, losing a game that we felt we should have won. The Raiders scored on each of their last seven possessions in a game that featured numerous long drives by both teams.

Week 15
Beat San Fran 17-14
We hold on for dear life & get a must win game. Kelsay was 25/44 for 309 yds & ran for 2 TD's. 9 different rcvrs caught passes as we spread things around, Konruff gave us 45 yards & a TD on 12 carries. The win puts us at 7-6-1 and tied with the Saints for the final wildcard spot, a half game ahead of 3 other teams close behind.

Week 16
Beat San Diego 7-6.
Whew. Another close one decided by a critical 3rd down conversion (Sturm 14 yd run on 3rd & 7) in the clutch. We scored with 5:46 left in the 1st qtr, Kelsay to Matsumura 2 yd TD and the Chargers kicked a pair of FG's in the 2nd qtr. And that was it for scoring, as the teams combined for 13 punts in the 2nd half. Steinbeck returns with 82 yds on 13 carries. DE's Schokora & Gotchy combined for 5 sacks to help stifle the Chargers. Now we head to Seattle for the regular season finale - a win gives us the NFC West title, a loss likely ends our season, as we're tied with New Orleans for the last wildcard & Philly & Dallas are both just a half game back.

Week 17
Lost to Seattle 44-19
See for yourself:
06:33 1st - Ari Kelsay to Steinbeck 2 yd TD pass (kick blocked) 6-0 Cardinals
08:16 2nd - Sea Nunes to Maloney 9 yd TD pass (kick missed) 6-6 tie
08:07 2nd - Sea Centers fumble recover 17 yds (kick good) 13-6 Seahawks
00:18 2nd - Sea Colaianne 50 yd FG 16-6 Seahawks
04:42 3rd - Sea Nunes to Sarnow 2 yd TD pass (kick good) 23-6 Seahawks
02:37 3rd - Sea Poole 30 yd run (kick good) 30-6 Seahawks
01:19 3rd - Ari Kelsay to Davison 21 yds pass (kick good) 30-13 Seahawks
09:39 4th - Sea Nunes to Cheney 14 yds pass (kick good) 37-13 Seahawks
04:10 4th - Ari Kelsay to Chryplewicz 21 yd pass (pass failed) 37-19 Seahawks
01:53 4th - Sea Jarvis 6 yd run (kick good) 44-19 Seahawks

Kelsay was 26/47 for 429 yds & 3 TD's. The key play in the game came when Housley fumbled a kickoff midway through the 2nd qtr & Seattle returned it for their 2nd TD in 19 seconds. Davison & Lowe both had 100+ yds receiving.

2010 Record after 16 games: 8-7-1

[JonInMiddleGA]

New Jersey (13-3), Indianapolis (10-6), Oakland (10-6) and Cleveland (7-8-1) win AFC divisions. Jacksonville (10-6) and Miami (9-7) earn wildcards.
Green Bay (15-1), Tampa Bay (12-4), New York (10-6) and Seattle (10-6) win NFC divisions. Carolina (11-5) and New Orleans (9-6-1) earn wildcards.

New Orleans wins the Solecismic Bowl 19-17 over Indianapolis

FL Arlen Frieswyk of Tampa Bay is the League MVP (127 catches, 1986 yds, 17 TDs)
Our unsigned top draft pick, WR Eugene Badalayan is the league's fastest man.

2010 Evaluation
Performance - 45
Value - 10
Profit/Loss - 37
Roster - 83 (2 on the franchise value screen though)
Year-end score - 39

Well, whaddya know? "The owner of your franchise is starting to grumble about the overall value of your franchise." Gee, ya think? (I've played some 50-60 seasons of FOF2k4 & never knew this message even existed until just now)

Our avg attendance was 49,900, up 9% from the previous year. We lost $76.38m on revenues of $83.35m.

[JonInMiddleGA]

2010 Off-season

We make a couple of changes on our staff.

Scout - R.J. Holliday is hired for 3 yrs/$600k. 1 Fair/2 Avg/1 Good/5 VG
Head Coach - Jermaine Feingold stays - 1 Avg (Def)/2 Good (Discipline & Inj.)/2 Exc (Off & Motivation)
OC - Dan Cassiday stays - Avg (Young talent) / Good (RB) / VG (QB,OL,WR) / Exc (K/P)
DC - Allen Mummert hired from Buffalo for 3 yrs/$4m - Good (K/P), VG (young talent) all others Excellent

2011 Free Agency

We begin with 47 players under contract and $34.39m in cap room
We re-sign the following RFA's:
OG Kelly Brewington - 2 yrs/$4.76m
S Bryan Devine - 2 yrs/$1.94m
G Otis Losbuagh - 2 yrs/$1.38m
CB Allen Carter - 2 yrs/$1.63m
DT Billy Joe Bailey - 3 yrs/$4.21m

We decide to let G Jermaine Dunlap (4 yrs in AZ, 57 games/38 starts) explore the market & do not make an offer to injury roster filler DT D.J.Borders (7 games/0 starts).

We make 2 yr/min sal offers to previously undrafted FA's who have never played an NFL game:

DE Howie Blackwell (13/30)
DE Kirk Rigsby (11/30)
DT Joey Mulder (12/33)
DT Todd Shinners (9/26)
LB Nick Johnstone (21/32) (3 games with AZ in 2009)
LB Cedric Farmer (21/32) (11 games w/AZ in '09 &'10)

The largest FA deal signed went to OLB Jared Robinson, who moves from Miami to Jacksonville for 7yrs/$89.15m

[JonInMiddleGA]

2011 Amateur draft

We make a couple of trades (to shift around these picks we can't use anyway)
-- We send a 2011 3rd round & 2012 & 2013 5th round picks to Cincy for a 3rd in 2001 and a 3rd & a 5th in 2012
-- We then deal our #1 pick this year (17th overall) to New Jersey for their 2nd & 3rd round picks this year

Our new scout picked 2 WR's in the 2nd round, then DT/RB/OLB/T/K. Interesting to see the different style of this scout vs the previous scout. Looks like they pick not based on need but rather based on their strongest judgement position areas.
(I believe that's been discussed in the past, but it had slipped my mind. At any rate, the difference can be pretty dramatic IMO).

Last year's 1st rounder, WR Eugene Badalayan, was drafted 15th overall by Buffalo.

[JonInMiddleGA]

2011 Late free agency

Okay, let's see what we can find here this time.
Once again, 2 yr min sal offers to all.

QB Russell Pettet/SE OK St - 23/51 70 volatility
QB Carlton Sterrit/Mich.St - 23/53 67 vol.
QB Jeremy Johnson/Ole Miss - 15/54 36 vol.
QB Jeremy Biekert/West NM - 12/55 2 vol.
RB Leroy Stryzinksi/Kentucky - 22/31 98 vol.
RB Eric Shapiro/Auburn - 15/39 55 vol.
RB Neil Patterson/Vandy - 18/37 21 vol.
RB Daniel Pickering/N.D.State - 23/37 77 vol.
FB Broderick Ford/UCLA - 18/35 63 vol.
TE Louie Kaplan/Notre Dame - 15/34 94 vol.
WR Sedrick Rosian/Cincy - 9/38 60 vol.
WR Randy Arnold/Jax State - 13/35 75 vol.
C Bobby Allen/Vandy - 16/40 60 vol.
C Isaac Minning/Hawaii - 14/42 16 vol.
G J.C. Hancock/Oregon St - 6/38 85 vol.
T Ron Farber/Texas - 13/33 77 vol.
T Darryl Gillespie/Auburn - 6/33 95 vol.
DE Willie Griffith/N'western - 15/38 81 vol.
DE Dwight Carlson/Morris Brown - 17/33 50 vol.
DT Jonathan Money/Stanford - 11/40 88 vol.
DT Gabe Sellers/FSU - 15/39 20 vol.
DT Mel Dollar/Arizona - 13/36 70 vol.
DT Johnny Spradlin/Kent - 11/35 85 vol.
ILB Rich Gilmore/UNC - 18/44 70 vol.
ILB Chad Colley/Arkansas - 13/44 90 vol.
ILB Jimmy Talley/La Tech - 18/41 98 vol.
ILB Jimmy Farmer/BC - 15/41 1 vol.
OLB Daryl Boehner/Cal - 11/35 64 vol.
OLB Matt Robbins/Notre Dame - 12/35 80 vol.
CB Stephen Patterson/Harvard - 6/41 22 vol.
CB Kenny Martinez/Miles - 15/36 59 vol.

That sends us to training camp with 89 players under contract.

Highest current estimates before training camp
QB Darrell Kelsay 69/69
P Glen Stuart 62/62
CB Byron Housley 58/58
C Jose Williamson 55/55
S Bryce Godfrey 45/46

Highest future estimates before training camp
QB Kelsay
P Stuart
CB Housley
S Casey Burroughs 30/56
C Williamson
QB Jimmy Biekert 12/54

[JonInMiddleGA]

Highest current estimates after training camp
QB Darrell Kelsay 69/69
P Glen Stuart 62/62
CB Byron Housley 58/58
C Jose Williamson 55/55
S Bryce Godfrey 46/46 (+1/+0)

Highest future estimates after training camp
QB Kelsay
P Stuart
CB Housley
S Casey Burroughs 30/56 (+4/+0)
C Williamson
QB Jimmy Biekert 14/53 (+2/-1)

Moved Eric Shapiro from RB to WR and he turned into a 13/41, which brings him from a certain cut to competing for a spot on the roster. Easily the best position switch I can recall.

Other significant changes included:
QB Russell Pettet - 26/47 (+3/-4) 70 volatility
QB Carlton Sterrit - 25/47 (+2/-6) 67 vol.
QB Jeremy Johnson- 17/45 (+2/-9) 36 vol.
RB Neil Patterson - 18/29 (+0/-8) 21 vol.
FB Broderick Ford- 20/37 (+2/+2) 63 vol.
TE Louie Kaplan - 15/29 (+0/-5) 94 vol.
WR Sedrick Rosian - 9/25 (+0/-13) 60 vol.
WR Randy Arnold - 13/25 (+0/-10) 75 vol.
C Isaac Minning - 15/33 (+1/-9) 16 vol.
DT Jonathan Money - 12/34 (+1/-6) 88 vol.
ILB Rich Gilmore- 19/40 (+1/-4) 70 vol.
ILB Chad Colley - 15/36 (+2/-8) 90 vol.
ILB Jimmy Talley - 18/34 (+0/-7) 98 vol.
ILB Jimmy Farmer - 15/32 (+0/-9) 1 vol.
OLB Daryl Boehner - 12/30 (+1/-5) 64 vol.
OLB Matt Robbins - 14/36 (+2/+1) 80 vol.
CB Stephen Patterson - 6/35 (+0/-6) 22 vol.
CB Kenny Martinez - 15/27(+0/-9) 59 vol.

[JonInMiddleGA]

Okay, time to trim the roster from 89 to 60

We start with subtraction by addition:
-- We trade QB Thurman Heath to Tennessee for 4 undrafted FA's they recently signed
-- QB Ricardo Hanson,RB Dwayne Jamison, LB Jerry Pierce, & CB Martin Carlisle (Not sure if any of them will survive the cut, but we knew for sure that Heath wouldn't)
-- We trade QB Sammy Uno to Baltimore for a pair of undrafted FA's they recent signed: CB Heath Schiman & LB Neal Jamison (same situation as above)

So now we'll try again, trimming the roster from 93 to 60

We cut veterans:

WR Seth Matsumura (7 yrs, 105 games/30 starts, 241 catches & 17 TD's career)
C Jimmie Turnbull (4 yrs, 35 games/5 starts, O-Line group leader)
WR Darrin Thompson (3 yrs w/AZ, 36 games/5 starts, 74 catches & 6 TD's career)
DT Billy Joe Bailey (2 yrs, 32 games/7 starts, 44 stops, 1.5 sacks career)
LB Harris Capuco (1 yr, 16 games/3 starts, 39 stops, 1 Int, 1 TD career)
LB Archie Leong (1 yr, 16 games/0 starts, 24 stops career)
LB Nick Johnston (1 yr, 3 games/0 starts)

We cut rookies: QB Ricardo Hanson, QB Jeremy Johnson, QB Carlton Sterritt, RB Dwayne Jamison, RB Leroy Stryzinski, FB Broderick Ford, TE Louie Kaplan, WR Cedric Rosian, RB/WR Randy Arnold, C Isaac Minnig, T Darryl Gillespie, DE Dwight Carlson, DE Kris Rigsby, DE Howie Blackwell, DT Todd Shinners, DT Joey Mulder, LB Neal Jamison, CB Heath Schiman, CB Kerry Martinez, CB Martin Carlisle, CB/WR Stephen Patterson, LB J.T. Farmer, DT Mel Dollar, LB Darryl Boehner, LB Chad Cooley, and OT Ron Farber.

[JonInMiddleGA]

2011 Exhibition Season

Exh. 1
Lost to Jacksonville 23-6
Open auditions for backup roles didn't pan out too well. Rookie QB Pettet was 12/24 for 114, veteran backup Dodge was just 6/15 for 93 with 2 picks, and project QB Biekert for 2/5 for 36. OT Nastasi was schooled on two sacks, and RB Konruff salvaged his night with a 44 yd burst that gave him 54 on 4 carries for the game.

Exh. 2
Lost to Cincinnati 24-14
Dodge was 6/9 for 64 yds, Biekert was decent 11/20 for 197. The running game was anemic again, just 53 yards total. A serious blow to the secondary as Billy Comia requires surgery after the game to repair a damaged ACL, he'll miss the entire season.

Exh. 3
Beat Tennessee 33-31
Archie Covington kicked 4 FG's, including the game winner from 32 yds with 0:20 left. We found our running game (the Titans run defense must be horrible) with 255 yards on 42 carries, led by Wellborn's 16/98 and Konruff 11/77. Pettet & Dodge were 8/16 & 9/16 respectively, combining for 152 yds & 3 TD's. DE Starnes continued his strong play, with 5 stops & 3 sacks. Loshbaugh & Nastasi blocked well. Starting TE Sammie Byers will miss at least a month with a strained foot ligament.

Exh. 4
Beat Pittsburgh 27-24
QB Eddie Dodge played well in relief of Kelsay & engineered a pair of 2nd half scoring drives, including the game-winner with 1:02 left to play. The QB numbers were nearly identical, 13/20 for 123 for Kelsay, 14/20 for 115 for Dodge. Lowe & Davison combined for 17 of the 27 catches. RB Gene Sturm had 39 yards rushing on 8 carries, while Konruff managed just 15 to further complicate the roster decisions that loom at RB.

[JonInMiddleGA]

Time to get the roster down from 60 to 53.

CB Billy Comia & TE Sammie Byers are both placed on IR.

Veterans released included:
G Otis Losbaugh (2 yrs w/AZ, 23 games/1 start)

Rookies released included:
RB Daniel Pickering, DE Jonathan Money, DT Gabe Sellers, and LB Jimmy Talley.

Out of curiosity, I took a look around the league to see how many former Cardinals
(since 2004) were still hanging around. More than I expected
-- QB Spencer Schader spent 2009 with Oakland & is currently an FA
-- QB Darrell Griffin is the #2 QB in Carolina
-- FB Leroy Aceves has bounced around mostly as a starter, 2009 in SF, 2010 in KC, now in Pittsburgh
-- QB Lenny Pugh signed w/Cincy in 2009 & started all 16 games for them in 2010 (6-10 record)
-- LB Louie Cattell hasn't played since 2008 with us but is still an FA
-- LB Albert Guyton is an FA, after playing 1 game with Houston last year
-- OG Jermaine Dunlap is still an FA
-- OT Otis Donaldson is starting his 3rd season in Tampa after playing 3 yrs for Seattle
-- OT J.C.Amador played 2 yrs in San Diego, and 2 more in Miami, none last year but still FA
-- S Herb McDonald played for Cincy in '09 and is now an FA
-- CB Norbert Dix is now an FA after playing 6 games for Pitt last year & '09 as a part-time starter in New Orleans

Other names you might remember include:
-- WR Grady Doherty retired after 1 game with Dallas in 2009 & played all 16 games for Carolina in 2008
-- TE Ricky Bennitt spent two years in New Jersey before retiring after the 2007 season
-- QB Casey de Groh started for 1 season in Cleveland ('07) and then retired

Almost forgot, team cohesion ratings to start the season
Passing - 100 (1st of 32)
O-Line - 98 (2nd of 32)
D-front - 100 (1st of 32)
2ndary - 84 (4th of 32)

Team roster is still rated as a 2.

[JonInMiddleGA]

2011 Regular Season

Week 1
Lost to San Fran 17-10
Couldn't stop them when it counted, couldn't move the ball when we needed to. 49ers score in the first minute of the 4th qtr and again with 1:14 left to play to get the win. Both teams ran the ball well, neither team threw the ball well. Steinbeck led us with 78 yds on 18 carries, Zolak added 42 on 8. Kelsay was just 11 of 26 for 104 yds & 1 TD. Afterwards, we learn that CB Housley is probable for the next month with a strained quad muscle & Steinbeck is probable with a sprained ankle.

Week 2
Lost to Baltimore 27-17
After taking a 10-0 very early in the 2nd qtr, we seemed to lose focus, or desire, or drive, or something, as the Ravens reeled off 27 unanswered points. Kelsay was just 13 of 33 for 181 yds, a TD & an int. Steinbeck had 51 yds but was limited to just 5 carries.

Week 3
Beat Carolina 27-24 in OT
Archie Covington hit a 29 yd FG with 8:40 left in the extra period to cap a remarkable comeback & record our first win of the season. We trailed 20-3 with 1:27 left in the 3rd qtr and our offense finally decided to wake up. 2 plays/64 yds, Kelsay to Lowe 27 yd pass for the TD with 0:16 left in the 3rd. A successful onside kick followed, then 7 plays/58 yds, Kelsay to Patterson 5 yd pass for a TD & we're down 20-17 with 12:30 left. After forcing Carolina to punt, we exchanged punts again & then launced a 7 play/68 yd drive that ended with a 5 yd TD pass from Kelsay to Lowe with just 1:09 left. Our first possession of the OT was a 7 play/72 yd drive that ended with the game-winning FG. For the day, Kelsay was 18/34 for 327 & 3 TD's; Lowe caught 6 passes for 134 yds & 2 TD's; LB Schneider had 14 stops to pace the defense.

Week 4
Lost to New York 14-7
Kelsay went down early & our offense exited with him. Dodge was just 6/20 for 52 yds & a pick, Biekert debuted with a 7/16 98 yd, 1 TD/1 Int performance. Kelsay will miss a month with a strained achilles tendon.

2011 Record after 4 games: 1-3

[JonInMiddleGA]

Week 5
Beat Dallas 16-10
Rookie QB Russell Pettet wins his debut with a solid performance - 15/31 for 207 and no interceptions. We win in spite of being outrushed 202-106 and allowing 5 sacks. Leading receiver Gerald Lowe will miss a couple of weeks with a strained foot ligament.

Week 6
Lost to Philadelphia 27-7
A 7-0 lead disintegrates into an ugly loss. Pettet found Chrypelwicz for a 10 yd TD with 8 mins left in the 1st qtr and then finished 3/18 for 42 yds before being relieved by Dodge (2/8 for 19 & an int) and Biekert (6/9 for 140 and 1 int). Steinbeck gets 69 yds on 16 carries but he keeps disappearing at the end of games as we have to throw to try to come back.

Week 7
Beat Seattle 26-20 in OT
Backup FB Louie Tolbert's only carries of the game were in OT, 6 rushes for 25 yards including the 7 yd game-winning TD. We took the extra frame kickoff & drove it 64 yds in 11 plays, mostly with the fresh back banging away at the Seahawks defense. Archie Covington hit a 52 yd FG as time expired in regulation to tie the game at 20. Byron Housley returned a blocked punt for our first TD, Bryce Godfrey returned an interception 30 yds for a TD on the final play of the first half for our only other TD. Covington hit a 27 yd FG with 1:47 left in the 4th to tie the game at 17, but Seattle quickly drove & hit a 47 yd FG of their own with just 0:31 left. Rookie QB Biekert started & went 13/28 for 62 yds & 1 int, but it was Pettet who relieved & engineered the final 3 drives of the game. Steinbeck had 58 yds on 16 carries, Chrypelwicz caught 7 passes for 69 yds. We come away from the game all banged up, with FB Zolak questionable, SS Burroughs out for 2 weeks with a foot injury, starting TE Howard Bertsch out for 3 weeks with a hyperextended elbow and NT Anthony Dawson questionable with a sprained knee.

Week 8
Beat Washington 22-17
Covington kicked 3 FG's, LB Kelvin Schneider had a 51 yd interception return for a TD, and Russell Pettet found WR Davison for a 9 yd TD pass to generate just enough offense to win. The defense was the real hero of this one though, limiting the Redskins to just 145 yards total offense & coming up with 4 sacks and 2 interceptions. Steinbeck had 117 yards on 19 carries, Pettet scrambled for 39 and went 16/25 for 142 passing. We've battled back to .500 and Darrell Kelsay is due to return after the bye week.

2011 Record after 8 games: 4-4

[JonInMiddleGA]

Week 9
Bye week -- The week off gets NT Dawson, S Burroughs, FB Zolak, and CB Housley all back to 100%. We're tied with San Fran, 1 game back of both Seattle & St.Louis in another close NFC West race.

Week 10
Beat St.Louis 28-21
LB Grady Stokes 38 yd fumble return for a TD in the 2nd qtr sparked our comeback from 14-0 defecit, FB Louie Tolbert provided the game winner with his only carry of the day, a 1 yd run with 4 mins to go. Tolbert also caught a 3 yd TD pass to tie the game just before halftime. Kelsay returned a little rusty, just 12/20 for 174 & 1 TD. Steinbeck led the ground game again, with 68 yds on 24 carries. As usual, LB's Schneider & Gonzales led the team in tackles ... NT Anthony Dawson goes down again, this time for 2 weeks with an elbow injury ... The win moves us into part of a 4-way tie for the lead in the NFC West.

Week 11
Lost to San Fran 37-27
We couldn't stop the 49ers when it mattered most (nor any other time, allowing 484 total yards) and this time we couldn't rally all the way back. Kelsay was just 12/26 for 254 & 3 TD's, the ground game was ineffective most of the day and a pair of missed FG's when the game was still in reach hurt too. Injuries limited our options for much of the day, with FS Godfrey now doubtful with an elbow injury, LT Burkhammer out for 3 weeks with a severe wrist sprain, SS Burroughs struggling with a rotator cuff problem & CB Housley out for the year with a severe hamstring pull. Housley was placed on IR after the game and S Barry Banks signed as a free agent replacement (2nd yr pro from Washington State with no prior NFL exp.)

Week 12
Beat Cincinnati 17-6
Alonzo Steinbeck had 102 yds on 24 carries, FB Zolak ran for 1 TD, Kelsay threw to Davison for another & the defense blanked the Bengals in the 2nd half to secure the win. Kelsay finished a conservative day with 10/18 for 163 yds. The defense forced two turnovers & had four sacks to keep Cincy bottled up for most of the day, limiting them to a pair of 2nd qtr FG's. On the injury front, NT Dawson & S Godfrey are back to full strength but we lost LG Kelly Brewington for roughly 3 weeks with a strained abductor muscle.

Week 13
Lost to Minnesota 31-6
The Vikings went to 10-2 by handed us our collective butts. We manage just 197 yds total offense while allowing 494. More discouraging is that we're now 2 full games behind Seattle & San Fran with just 4 to play.

2011 Record after 12 games: 6-6

[JonInMiddleGA]

Week 14
Beat Pittsburgh 30-24 in OT
It should NOT have been this difficult to beat a 2-10 team. It took Covington's 34 yd FG with 0:08 left to send the game into overtime & took a heroic effort by the defense to stop the Steelers & give the Kelsay-to-Lowe combination a chance to hook up for a 40 yd game-winner. Lowe caught 4 passes for 200 yds & 2 scores, part of Kelsay's 19/30, 359 yd & 3 TD performance. Steinbeck gained 109 yds on 21 carries, most of that in the first half. LB Schneider was huge, with 11 solo tackles & 4 assists. Very distressing was the defense's inability to stop Pittsburgh most of the day, allowing 524 total yards, including 261 on the ground. We're 7-6, 2 games behind Seattle & 1 game behind San Fran, Detroit, Dallas & Tampa Bay for the wildcard spots.

Week 15
Beat Seattle 16-10
A relentless ball control offense paid off, with 34:15 in possession of the ball. Steinbeck had 80 yds on 19 carries, Zolak had 46 on 12 carries and Kelsay was 11 of 17 for 181 yds & several key 3rd down conversions. Zolak had our only TD, Covington kicked 3 FG's and the defense held the division leading Seahawks in check just enough to get the win. We're now a game out of 1st in the NFC West & 1 game behind a field of 4 teams for the two wildcard spots.

Week 16
Lost to Cleveland 24-21
Two fumbles in the final 5 minutes doomed us to a disappointing loss. We wasted a 323 yd passing performance by Kelsay, including 123 on 4 passes to 3rd WR Patterson. Steinbeck had 84 yds rushing on 9 carries but once again, falling behind forced us to abandon the run even though it was working well. The back-to-back fumbles gave Cleveland their last 10 points, we scored once with 1:03 to play but couldn't recover the obvious onside kick. We're eliminated from the division race, and trail 3 teams by one game for the final wildcard spot. Still within our grasp though, is a possible 9-win season.

Week 17
Beat St.Louis 33-27 in OT
Schokora blocked a punt & Schnedier scooped it up & ran 40 yds for an overtime game-winner. The score was the 2nd defensive TD of the day, earlier S Bryan Devine returned an interception 93 yds for a TD that put us up 14-7 late in the 2nd qtr. Each team hit FG's in the final minute of regulation, first us from 38 yds & then the Rams from 50 yds to send the game into overtime. Kelsay was 13/21 for 160 & a TD, Steinback ran for only 39 yds on 14 carries but it was enough to put him over 1000 yards for the first time in his career. For the 2nd straight season, we just miss the playoffs.

2011 Record after 16 games: 9-7

[JonInMiddleGA]

Denver (15-1), Indianapolis (14-1-1), Cleveland (10-6) and New England (8-8) win AFC divisions. Cincinnati (9-7) & New Jersey (8-8) earn wildcards (note: Denver & Indy both lost for the first time in week 17)

Philadelphia (12-4), Minnesota, Tampa Bay, and Seattle (all 11-5) win NFC divisions. Atlanta & Detroit (both 10-6) earn wildcards.

Cleveland wins the Solecismic Bowl 30-21 over Minnesota

Indianapolis QB Stephen Brinsfield wins the League MVP (4489 yds, 35 TDs, 99.4 rtg)

Arizona Center Jose Williamson earns 2nd team All-League honors.

[JonInMiddleGA]

Looking back at the season, you really have to wonder what might have been if not for the injuries.

-- QB Darrell Kelsay finished the year with 2382 yds, 17 TD's & only 3 Int's, his highest QB rating ever (94.5)
-- RB Alonzo Steinbeck had 1026 yards but played very little in 2 games early on.
-- WR Derek Lowe finished with 1028 yds on 53 catches but missed 2 games.
-- Our secondary starters missed a total of 11 games between them (Godfrey 2, Burroughs 3, Housley 6, and remember veteran RCB Comia missed the entire season)
-- The offensive line was banged up all year, with only C Williamson & RG Tokunaga playing all 16 games.

It's enough to make you wonder if a healthy lineup might not have won at least one more game somewhere along the way, especially against the Jets in week 4 or San Fran in week 11.

Ah well, you just gotta suck it up I guess.

2011 Evaluation
Performance - 54
Value - 12
Profit/Loss - 48
Roster - 83 (still a 2 on the franchise value screen)
Year-end score - 47

Our attendance actually slipped -11%, back down to 44,200
We lost $66.68m on revenue of $88.01m

[JonInMiddleGA]

Off-season before 2012

No staff changes for the coming year, but we'll have 2 coaches up for renewal next season.

Before free agency began, we traded QB Eddie Dodge, our 2nd round pick this year, and our 3rd round pick in 2014 to New Jersey for their 6th round pick this year & a 2nd round pick in 2014 (his ratings are good but his performance the past two seasons has been terrible, we've given up on him).

2012 Free Agency
We've got 52 players under contract and 3 unsigned FA of our own.
-- DE Carlos Gotchy - A starter for the last two years, he's probably better suited to be a 3rd DE somewhere. With a $1.25m signing bonus request, that'd be somewhere else.
-- RB Jonathan Konruff - Re-signed for 2yr/min sal. A longshot.

We make offers to some former Cardinals
LB Harris Capuco - 2yr/min sal
LB Archie Leong - 2 yr/min sal
OG Otis Losbaugh - 2 yr/min sal
DT Mel Dollar - 2 yr/min sal

Also to 2nd yr pro (no NFL exp)
S Bart Vertelney

[JonInMiddleGA]

2012 Amateur Draft

We trade our 1st round pick (#20 overall) to Pittsburgh for their 2nd Round pick (#33 overall) and a 5th rounder next year.

We drafted a RB from Navy with our 2nd round pick, followed by T/DE/T/P/K

2012 Late free agency
We make 2 yr min sal offers to the following undrafted rookies

QB Steve Grant/Stanford - 17/44 91 vol.
QB Terry Thweatt/Ark.St - 16/44 53 vol.
QB Patrick Wetzell/Wake Forest - 9/45 99 vol.
RB Alex Maynardie/Tx Tech - 34/34 99 vol.
RB Ronnie Rhodes/Oregon - 28/40 25 vol.
RB Bryan Wynn/Iowa - 21/29 95 vol.
RB Marshall Cobb/Utah - 18/41 7 vol.
RB Alex Sweezie/Iowa St - 21/32 16 vol.
TE Timothy Austin/Nebraska - 12/48 9 vol.
TE Jon Moore/La-Monroe - 16/41 68 vol.
TE Quentin Armstrong/UNC - 20/39 23 vol.
WR Donnell Cedeno/Arkansas - 17/34 55 vol.
WR Kenny Darnick/Penn St - 15/35 12 vol.
WR Jake Miller/Ole Miss - 13/31 47 vol.
C Todd Gilmore/Stanford - 27/45 53 vol.
C Jon Dodge/USC - 15/49 70 vol.
C Allen Bandy/Wake Forest - 13/50 77 vol.
C Omar Thibodeaux/New Mexico - 15/46 81 vol.
G Malcolm Fenkner/S.Miss - 19/36 87 vol.
T Kent Jarvie/Michigan - 18/34 76 vol.
T Jerald Conway/N'western - 8/37 67 vol.
K Jeff Strong/Penn St - 23/43 1 vol.
DE Jamal Rice/Iowa St - 8/31 83 vol.
DT Nate Marshall/Tulsa - 7/35 70 vol.
DT Glen Harward/Col. St - 13/32 66 vol.
DT Ricardo Whigham/N.Tx St - 10/33 58 vol.
LB Daryl Spellman/Virginia - 8/35 84 vol.
CB O.J. Sims/Notre Dame - 13/38 12 vol.
CB Duane Reed/N'western - 15/37 94 vol.
CB Jake Rodman/Army - 19/37 94 vol.
CB Jarod Bush/Westminster - 12/35 99 vol.
CB Kelly Anderson/Syracuse - 17/34 64 vol.
S Deon Bates/Pitt - 10/46 40 vol.

Also veteran FA
G Jermaine Dunalp (34/39) offered 3 yrs/$3.83m with $350k bonus

The largest FA contract signed was $112.61m for 6 yrs by WR Calvin Clayton, who moves from Miami to Philadelphia.

We end the FA period with 92 players under contract

[JonInMiddleGA]

Highest current estimate before training camp
QB Darrell Kelsay - 71/71
P Glen Stuart - 63/63
CB Byron Housley - 58/58
C Jose Williamson - 56/56
S Bryce Godfrey - 48/48

Higest future estimate before training camp
QB Kelsay
P Stuart
CB Housley
S Casey Burroughs - 41/58
C Williamson
QB Jimmie Biekert - 13/52
C Allen Bandy - 13/51

We sold 27,400 of 63,000 season tickets

[JonInMiddleGA]

Highest current estimate after training camp
QB Kelsay 71/71
P Stuart 63/63
CB Housley 58/58
C Williamson 56/56
S Godfrey 48/48

Highest future estimate after training camp
QB Kelsay
P Stuart
CB Housley
S Casey Burroughs 44/58
C Williamson
QB Jimmie Biekert 18/52 (+5/+0)
C Allen Bandy 16/51 (+3/+0)

Other significant changes included:
QB Steve Grant/Stanford - 20/41 (+3/-3) 91 vol.
QB Terry Thweatt/Ark.St - 17/39 (+1/-5) 53 vol.
QB Patrick Wetzell/Wake Forest - 10/37 (+1/-8) 99 vol.
RB Alex Maynardie/Tx Tech - 34/34 (0/0) 99 vol.
RB Ronnie Rhodes/Oregon - 29/35 (+1/-5) 25 vol.
RB Marshall Cobb/Utah - 18/32 (0/-9) 7 vol.
TE Timothy Austin/Nebraska - 12/39 (+0/-9) 9 vol.
TE Jon Moore/La-Monroe - 17/31 (+1/-10) 68 vol.
WR Donnell Cedeno/Arkansas - 18/29 (+1/-5) 55 vol.
WR Kenny Darnick/Penn St - 15/29 (+0/-6) 12 vol.
WR Jake Miller/Ole Miss - 14/25 (+1/-6) 47 vol.
C Allen Bandy/Wake Forest - 16/51 (+3/+1) 77 vol.
C Omar Thibodeaux/New Mexico - 18/46 (+3/+0) 81 vol.
T Kent Jarvie/Michigan - 21/38 (+3/+4) 76 vol.
T Jerald Conway/N'western - 9/30 (+1/-7) 67 vol.
K Jeff Strong/Penn St - 24/36 (+1/-7) 1 vol.
DT Ricardo Whigham/N.Tx St - 13/36 (+3/+3) 58 vol.
CB O.J. Sims/Notre Dame - 15/30 (+2/-8) 12 vol.
CB Duane Reed/N'western - 17/37 (+2/+0) 94 vol.
CB Jake Rodman/Army - 24/45 (+5/+8) 94 vol.
CB Jarod Bush/Westminster - 15/37 (+3/+2) 99 vol.
CB Kelly Anderson/Syracuse - 18/25 (+1/-9) 64 vol.

[JonInMiddleGA]

Now we have to somehow get from 92 players down to 60

-- We placed CB Billy Comia on IR (still 17 wks away from returning from his ACL surgery)
-- We placed S Floyd Flickinger on IR (hamstring injury, plenty of depth at S anyway)

We traded G Bobby Allen & our 2013 3rd round pick to KC for RB Norman Pelfrey (a recent undrafted rookie FA signing)

Veterans cut included:
RB Gene Sturm (8 yrs, 124 games/53 starts, 2452 yds rushing, 23 total TD's career)
CB Allen Carter (3 yrs, 48 games/5 starts, 1 career Int)
G Otis Loshbaugh (2 yrs w/AZ, 23 games, 1 start)
RB Jonathan Konruff (2 yrs, 16 games, 2 starts, 174 career rushing yds)
TE Howard Bertsch (2 yrs, 31 games, 14 starts, 24 rcpts, 1 TD career)
LB Harris Capuco (1 yr, 16 games/3 starts, 33 tkls, 6 assists career)
OG J.C. Hancock (1 yr, 14 games/6 starts)
C Bobby Dorff (2 yr, 32 games/0 starts)

Rookies cut included: QB Patrick Wetzel, QB Terry Thweatt, RB Bryan Wynn, RB Marshall Cobb, RB/FB Isaac Sweezy, TE Jon Moore, TE Quentin Armstrong, WR Jake Miller, WR Donnell Cedeno, WR Kenny Darnick, C Jon Dodge, G Malcolm Fenkner, T Jerald Conway, K Jeff Strong, DE Ricardo Whigham, DE Jamal Rice, DT Nate Marshall, LB Darryl Spellman, CB Jared Bush, CB Kelly Anderson, CB O.J. Sims, S Bart Vertelney

Moved DT Glen Harward to DE

Incidentally, DE Carlos Gotchy (6 yrs w/AZ, 87 games/33 starts, 18 sacks career) signed a 1 yr deal with Seattle.

[JonInMiddleGA]

2012 Exhibiton Season

Exh. 1
Lost to Indianapolis 35-14
A defense composed mostly of reserves & hopefuls could do little to slow the Colts. RB Norman Pelfrey showed why he was acquired, sprinting 54 yds for a 2nd half TD. Kelsay played a half, went 12/22 for 127 & a TD. S Devine & ILB Gilmore led the team in tackles.

Exh. 2
Lost to Cleveland 27-13
Better, but not great. We led 13-3 with 5 mins left in the 1st half but two turnovers did us in later. Pelfrey had another long run (21 yds) for a TD & finished with 90 yds on 10 carries. Both Pettet & Biekert were around 50% passing, combining for 225 yds in the air. S Mueller & LB Stokes led the defense. FB Louie Tolbert will miss two months with a broken arm.

Exh. 3
Beat Tennessee 37-20
LB Kelvin Schenider had a 22 yd int. return for a TD, LB Rich Gilmore returned a blocked punt 60 yds for another score. Pelfrey rushed for another TD, part of 4 carries & 13 yds, while Steinbeck gained 60 yds on 13 tries. Kelsay was 11/17 for 99 yds & a TD (to Lowe). LB Stokes had 6 stops & a sack.

Exh. 4
Beat Baltimore 35-6
Kelsay was sharp, 16/23 for 175 yds & 3 TD's, as we routed the Ravens to wrap up the preseason. Davison caught 7 passes for 60 yds & 2 scores. S Burroughs had 3 interceptions. T Adam Markowitz missed his 3rd pre-season game, still hampered by a sprained neck.

[JonInMiddleGA]

Time to get the roster down from 60 to 53

We placed FB Louie Tolbert on IR.

Veterans released included:
LB Archie Leong (1 yr, 16 games/0 starts)
LB Matt Robbins (1 yr, 7 games/0 starts)
CB Clifton Howard (8 yrs, 109 games/45 starts, 4 int. career)
DT/DE Johnnie Spradlin (1 yr, 16 games/3 starts, 1.5 sacks career)

Rookies released included: T Kent Jarvie and G Omar Thibodeaux.

We moved RB Alex Meynardie to FB & moved S Bryan Devine to RCB.

[JonInMiddleGA]

2012 Regular Season

Week 1
Beat Seattle 28-21
Darrell Kelsay went 18/23 for 257 yds & a TD, and the defense forced turnovers & four sacks to get a good season opening win at home. RB Alonzo Steinbeck scored our first TD & our last TD (with 0:39 to play) and finished the day with 51 yds on 21 carries. FB Zolak added 49 yds on 9 attempts. SLB Schneider led the defense with 7 stops. G's Brewington & Tokunaga combined for 7 of our 14 key run blocks. WR Gerald Lowe is doubtful for a couple of weeks with a hyperextended elbow, Kelsay is hobbling a bit with a sprained ankle, and LG Kelly Brewington is probable with a bruised sternum.

Week 2
Beat Buffalo 27-16
Disaster strikes amidst the victory. QB Darrell Kelsay will be out until late 2013 after suffering a serious knee injury that requires surgery to repair his torn ACL. Before the injury, which occurred early in the 4th qtr, he was 11/17 for 160 yds & 2 TDs. Steinbeck carried most of the load during the day, 135 yds on 17 carries, Zolak added 34 on 12 tries. CB Housley & LB's Stokes & Gonzales each had 7 stops on defense, rookie CB Rodman had 2 picks, giving him 3 for the year. In addition to Kelsay, S Bryce Godfrey is out for 3 weeks with a hyperextended knee.

After the game, Kelsay was placed on IR. We traded our 2nd round pick in 2014 to Pittsburgh for rookie QB Bryce Rivera (24/49).

Week 3
Lost to Washington 20-17
Our inability to stop the run cost us more in this one than the time spent finding our way at QB. Biekert started & was relieved in the 2nd qtr by Pettet, who finished 12/14 for 139 yds & a TD. Steinbeck had 70 yds on 15 carries,so the offense clicked reasonably well. But the Redskins were better, getting 177 on the ground & 196 in the air. We had our chances, but missed a potential game-tying FG from 44 yds with just 3:13 to play. Burroughs & Housley combined for 13 tkls & 2 assists, Duncan contributed 2 of our 4 sacks.

Added to our problems is a flu outbreak that sickens 9 players, including QB's Pettet & Biekert, K Covington & C Jose Williamson.

Week 4
Beat Green Bay 23-14
Steinbeck & Welborn (at FB) combined for 142 yds on 29 carries, the defense forced 7 sacks & 3 turnovers & we get a big win on the road. Recently acquired rookie QB Bryce Rivera won his 1st career start, going 11/16 for 102 yds & 1 int. DT Duncan had 3 sacks, S Burroughs had 9 total stops, and LT Burkhammer had 4 key run blocks to help spring the backs. Most of the players have now recovered from the flu bug but both starting T's from this week, Burkhammer (doubtful 3 wk, abdominal strain) & Markowitz (out 3 wk, strained patellar tendon) both come away injured. Steinbeck is also dinged up, with a bruised thigh.

2012 Record after 4 games: 3-1

[JonInMiddleGA]

Week 5
Lost to Chicago 31-11
3rd downs were the difference, as the Bears converted 10/14 and we converted 1/9. Rivera was 17/24 overall, for 175 yds, 1 TD, & 1 Int. Pettet & Grant also took a turn under center but combined to go just 3/12 for 60 yds. Lowe had 8 catches, 143 yds & 1 TD.

Week 6
Tied Minnesota 17-17
A conservative attack manages a tie against the struggling Vikings (2-3-1). QB Rivera was 13/26 for 114 & an int. Steinbeck had 108 on 25 carries, Wellborn gained 57 on 18 tries, and Zolak had 41 on 11 as we rushed for 207 yds for the day. Housley & Burroughs combined for 16 stops, rookie CB Rodman had another interception. The O-Line combined for 17 key run blocks, led by Brewington's 5 & Williamson's 4.

Week 7
Lost to Seattle 20-17
Doggone it, we had 'em. We led 17-10 at the half, thanks in large part to Housley's 102 KOR for a TD. Our offense in neutral in the final two quarters & opened the door for Seattle to rally, getting a FG early in the 4th & a 19 yd TD pass with just 1:46 to play. Steinbeck had 61 yds & a TD on 21 carries, Zolak rushed for 41 & Rivera was 12/17 for 141 & an int. DE Schokora claimed 2.5 of our 6 sacks on defense.

Week 8
Beat St.Louis 27-17
We get 17 points in the 4th qtr to earn a come-from-behind win at home. Byron Housley had a 99 KOR for a TD with 0:38 before halftime to give us some momentum with a 10-10 after 2 qtrs. The Rams scored early in the 3rd but we tied it early in the 4th on a Rivera-to- Chrypelwicz 8 yd pass. From there, we swapped punts until Archie Covington nailed a 42 yd FG with 0:12 left to play. Rookie Jake Rodman returned an interception 71 yds for another score on the final play of the game. Pettet started at QB but struggled (3/10), Rivera relieved him & went 16/22 for 159 & a TD. Steinbeck had 96 yds rushing.

2012 Record after 8 games: 4-3-1

[JonInMiddleGA]

Week 9
Bye week -- Other than players on the IR list, we're healthy for the first time all year.

Week 10
Beat Detroit 27-24
The Lions missed a 41 yd FG on the game's last play & we survive against a team with just one win on the season. We got 10 points in the final 8 1/2 minutes to save ourselves. Rivera was 18/32 for a career high 261 yds & 3TD's. Chrypelwicz had 8 catches for 153 yds, Steinbeck caught 2 passes both for TD, while rushing for 64 yds on 14 carries. The narrow victory keeps us within a half-game of division leading Seattle.

Week 11
Beat San Fran 30-27 in OT
Archie Covington hit a 30 yd FG to win it with 0:20 left in OT. Housley returned the opening kickoff 96 yds for a TD & set the tone for a wild affair that saw the teams combined for 817 yds of total offense. Rivera was 13/27 for 221 & 2 TD's, Housley had 2.5 of our total six sacks, and Gonzalez had 12 stops. We lost FS Bryce Godfrey for 9 weeks with a broken fibula in the 2nd qtr, RB Steinbeck left the game in the 3rd qtr with a sprained knee that has him questionable for about 3 weeks.

Week 12
Lost to Miami 24-6
Yuck, as we turn the ball over 3 times & allow 7 sacks, while rushing for only 46 yards. A trio of QB's failed to produce much of anything, combining to go 13/39 for 262 yds & 2 ints. Just one of those weeks (I hope) and we fall to 6-4-1, 1.5 games behind Seattle in the division and a half-game behind Carolina & Philly for the wildcard spots.

After the game we discover the full extent of several injuries. WR Gerald Lowe will miss up to a month with a separated shoulder, LB Kelvin Schneider is doubtful with a sprained knee, WR Neil Patterson is questionable with a sprained ankle, RB Steinbeck remains questionable with sprained knee, G Kelly Brewington is probably with a broken hand,

Week 13
Lost to Carolina 24-17
We dug too deep a hole to climb out of and fell short as time expired with Rivera tackled at the Panthers 5 yd line. Down 24-3 after 3 qtrs, we stage a furious comeback with a pair of Rivera-to-Chrypelwicz TD's. We're in deep trouble at this point, 2.5 behind Seattle in the division & 1.5 behind the two wildcard teams.

2012 Record after 12 games: 6-5-1

[JonInMiddleGA]

Week 14
Beat New England 13-10
We hang on & win a defensive battle, thanks to 3 Patriot turnovers. Rookie CB Rodman had two interceptions, including a 4th quarter game-saver in the endzone with 3:30 left. We didn't do much offensively, but Rivera found backup WR Shapiro for a 5 yd TD pass early in the final period to give us the lead. Steinbeck played sparingly before being replaced by Pelfrey who led us with 32 yards on 6 carries. We lost DT Anthony Dawson for the rest of the season & possibly longer, he's out following surgery to repair an injured ankle. We're still 1.5 behind Seattle in the division & a half-game behind Carolina for the final wildcard berth.

DT Eddie Poterala was signed to take Dawson's roster spot.

Week 15
Lost to St. Louis 42-7
4 turnovers, 4 sacks allowed, just 42 yds rushing, and the Rams drilled us for 519 yds total offense. Any questions? Rivera struggled early, Pettet took most of the snaps, throwing for 274 yds on 11/28 passing. Davison & Wellborn both had over 100 rcvg yards, DE Schokora had four sacks. This one pretty much ends our playoff hopes, now 1.5 games behind both in the division & in the wildcard race.

Week 16
Beat New Jersey 24-13
No pressure, as we were eliminated from playoff contention earlier in the day, so QB Bryce Rivera goes 23/36 for 239 yds and Steinbeck rushed for 134 yds on 24 carries, including an 83 yd TD run early in the 2nd quarter. Byron Housley had a 68 PR for a score, his 4th kick return for a TD this year.

Week 17
Beat San Fran 30-28
Steinbeck rushed for 103 yds & 1 TD on 20 carries, Rivera went 15/29 for 251 & 3 TD's and LB Kelvin Schneider returned from his injury to record 11 tackles, 1 assist, and 1 sack and we scored TD's on 4 straight possessions in the 2nd & 3rd qtr to finish with our best record yet.

2012 Record after 16 games:9-6-1.

Cincinnati (13-3), Oakland (11-5), Jacksonville (11-5), and Buffalo (10-6) win AFC divisions. Miami & Indianapolis (both 10-6) earn wildcards.
Tampa Bay (13-3), Chicago (12-3-1), Seattle (11-5) & New York (11-5) win NFC divisions. Carolina & Philadelphia (both 11-5) earn wildcards.

Tampa Bay wins the Solecismic Bowl 31-28 over Oakland

-- Denver QB Jamie Hansen is the League MVP (3221 yds, 17 TD's, 86.2 rtg)
-- Arizona CB Jake Rodman is the League's Defensive Rookie of the Year with 8 int's & 14 pass def.
-- Arizona LG Kelly Brewington is a 1st Team All-League performer, with 36 key run blocks & only 3 sacks allowed in 370 pass plays.

[JonInMiddleGA]

A year that could easily have turned to disaster ends with a lot to be encouraged about. Rodman was incredible in the secondary, making the gamble of starting an untested rookie pay off big. The trade to acquire Bryce Rivera after Darrell Kelsay went down with an ACL turned out better than anyone could have hoped, with a 6-5-1 finish. WR Rob Chrypelwicz was nearly cut in the pre-season & turns into our leading rcvr (61 catches, 976 yds & 7 TD's). Steinbeck finishes with 928 yds & 6 TD's in spite of missing 3 games with injury. DE Duane Schokora finished with 13.5 sacks, DT Kris Duncan had 10.5 sacks to give us two players in double figures, when our previous mark was 8.5 in a season (DE Deon Nobile in '07 & '09)

Our final roster was rated 3, but played a helluva lot better than that.

2012 Evaluation
Performance - 54
Value - 10
Profit/Loss - 34
Roster - 83
Year-end score - 39

We lost $87.49m on revenue of $93.61m
Attendance was down 3% to an avg of 42,800
I'll almost certainly be fired at the end of 2013, owner is now "livid".

[JonInMiddleGA]

Staff hiring time, decisions decisions. When the smoke clears from negotiations, we have

A new head coach -- 47 yr old Thurman Petoskey, who chooses Arizona over Seattle. 2 VG, 2 G & 1 Avg. As a head coach, he's 25-12, after serving as the DC in both Seattle & Tenn.

A new OC -- 57 yr old Erik Raymond, who comes to Arizona after 3 seasons in Cleveland (including their '11 SB win). 2 Exc, 3 G, and 1 Fair.

DC Allen Mummert remains on staff with 3 Exc, 1 VG & 1 G. Scout R.J. Holliday also remains.

[JonInMiddleGA]

2013 Free Agency

We enter early Free Agency with 53 players under contract & 2 FA's.

--Reserve DT Eddie Poterala who showed little to nothing in 3 games as an injury fill-in.
--WR Gerald Lowe. 9 seasons with us, including 3 of 1000+ yds. But his skills have declined steadily. We decide to wait this out, give him a chance to go elsewhere if he wants.

We decided to make a few offer just in case there's a gem in here somewhere.
QB Cary Burks - 12/43 (No NFL exp)
OG Bobby Allen - 20/41 (6 games with AZ, 1 w/ Sea)
WR Kenny Darnick - 14/30 (No NFL exp)
CB Allen Carter - 26/35 (48 games w/AZ, 9 w/Buf)

QB Jamie Hansen signed the largest FA contract, $152.81m for 7 yrs to go from Den to Sea. He turned down 3 bigger offers, including $219.34m for 7 yrs from Indy.

[JonInMiddleGA]

2013 Amateur Draft

-- We trade our 1st (20th) & 4th round picks to Houston for their 2nd(33rd) & 3rd round picks.
-- We trade our 2nd round this year to San Diego for their 2nd round next year.

Our listed needs are ILB, WR, OLB.
We drafted an OT, followed by WR/WR/OLB/DT

[JonInMiddleGA]

2013 Late Free Agency

Let's see what we can find this year, we make 2 yr min sal offers to:
P Kenny Broadway - 80/86 45 vol. (w/$200k bonus)
QB Craig Parker - 23/50 71 vol.
QB Wally McSweeny - 19/51 85 vol.
RB Omar Browning - 25/38 54 vol.
RB Harry Penrod - 17/40 48 vol.
FB T.J. Copeland - 15/41 62 vol.
TE Buddy Stoughton - 22/41 47 vol.
TE Derek Harden - 18/39 92 vol.
WR Fernando Denning - 14/38 70 vol.
WR Dwight Vidal - 16/34 94 vol.
WR Vince Tautuaa - 11/37 51 vol.
WR Junior Grange - 16/33 92 vol.
OG Arnie Keyser - 8/42 23 vol.
OG Trevor Potchynok - 7/38 82 vol.
OT Graham Murray - 11/33 99 vol.
P R.J. Linquist - 50/74 55 vol.
K Mitchell Jackson - 35/50 67 vol.
K Rich Hobbs - 32/58 40 vol.
K Mario Donovan - 23/58 77 vol.
DE Les Norris - 18/36 61 vol.
DE Tracy Bristol - 14/36 19 vol.
DT Tracy Fein - 16/29 80 vol.
LB William Mansell - 8/33 73 vol.
CB Andre Brooks - 7/41 16 vol.
CB Daryl Melvin - 13/39 74 vol.
S Winston Darchi - 13/35 38 vol.

WR Derek Lowe gets a $4.34m/3 yr offer, with a $140k bonus attached.

The signings send us to training camp with 87 players under contract

[JonInMiddleGA]

Highest current estimates before training camp
P Kenny Broadway - 78/84
P Glen Stuart - 62/62
DE Duane Schokora 61/63
CB Byron Housley 56/56
C Jose Williamson 56/56
S Casey Burroughs 54/60
QB Darrell Kelsay 42/42 (the ACL injury appears to have done serious damage)

Highest future estimates before training camp
P Broadway
P R.J. Linquist 49/65
DE Schokora
P Stuart
S Burroughs
K Mario Donovan 24/58

We sold only 25,900 season tickets of 63,000.

[JonInMiddleGA]

Highest current estimates after training camp
P Kenny Broadway 79/81 (+1/-3)
P Glen Stuart 62/62 (0/0)
DE Duane Schokora 61/63 (0/0)
S Casey Burroughs 57/60 (+3/+0)
CB Byron Housley 56/56 (0/0)

Highest future estimates after training camp
P Broadway
P R.J. Linquist 52/64 (+3/-1)
DE Schokora
P Stuart
S Burroughs
K Mario Donovan 29/58 (+5/+0)

Other changes of note:
QB Craig Parker - 26/546 (+3/-4) 71 vol.
QB Wally McSweeny - 20/44 (+1/-7) 85 vol.
QB Cary Burks 13/45 (+1/+2)
RB Harry Penrod - 18/35 (+1/-5) 48 vol.
FB T.J. Copeland - 15/34 (+0/-7) 62 vol.
TE Buddy Stoughton - 23/35 (+1/-6) 47 vol.
WR Fernando Denning - 14/38 70 vol.
WR Dwight Vidal - 16/21 (+0/-13) 94 vol.
WR Vince Tautuaa - 12/26 (+1/-11) 51 vol.
WR Junior Grange - 17/28 (+1/-5) 92 vol.
OT Graham Murray - 14/33 (+3/+0) 99 vol.
P R.J. Linquist - 52/62 (+2/-12) 55 vol.
K Mitchell Jackson - 36/45 (+1/-5) 67 vol.
K Rich Hobbs - 33/47 (+1/-11) 40 vol.
K Mario Donovan - 29/58 (+6/+0) 77 vol.
LB William Mansell - 10/26 (+2/-7) 73 vol.
CB Daryl Melvin - 14/28 (+1/-11) 74 vol.
S Winston Darchi - 14/26 (+1/-9) 38 vol.

[JonInMiddleGA]

Now we have to get the roster down from 87 to 60

-- We traded QB Jimmie Biekert & a 7th round pick in 2015 to KC for their 6th round pick next year & a 4th round pick in 2015

-- Traded DE Glen Harward & a 5th round pick in 2015 to Jacksonville for rookie LB's Clarence Bryant & Bryan Copeland

-- Traded a 5th round in 2014, 5th in 2015 & 6th in 2016 to Washington for rookie WR's Thurman McDaniel & Bernie Francis.

-- Traded WR Neil Patterson & a 2nd round pick in 2015 to Cincinnati for rookies OT Chad Preston, TE Blake Sweeney and 5th & 6th round picks in 2015

-- Traded QB Steve Grant & a 6th round pick in 2014 to Houston for a 5th round pick in 2014

We released the following veterans:
CB Billy Comia (9 yr,missed 2 yrs w/injury, 99 games/94 starts, 12 Int's career)
FB Louie Tolbert (3 yr, 31 games/3 starts, 5 TD's career)
LB Rich Gilmore (2 yrs, 29 games/0 starts)
TE Timothy Austin (1 yr, 16 games/0 starts, 3 catches career)
RB Norman Pelfrey (1 yr, 16 games/2 starts, 117 rushing yards career)

We released the following rookies: QB Wally McSweeney, QB Cary Burks, FB T.J. Copeland, WR Dwight Vidal, WR Bernie Francis, WR Junior Grange, WR Vince Tautuaa, WR Kenny Darnick, WR Fernando Denning, TE Derek Harden, T Chad Preston,
T Graham Murray, G Trevor Potchnyok, G Arnie Keyser, TE Blake Sweeney, K Mitchell Jackson, K Rich Hobbs, K Mario Donovan, DE Les Norris, DT Barry Fein, LB William Mansell, CB Andre Brooks, CB Daryl Melvin, S Winston Darchi.

Switched P R.J. Linquist to K (goes from 52/62 to 23/60)

[JonInMiddleGA]

2013 Exhibition Season

Exh. 1
Beat Denver 17-9
RB Ronnie Rhodes rushed for 121 yds & 1 TD on 13 carries to spark the win. Pettet started at QB & was 5/11 for 56 yds, Rivera relieved & went 10/14 for 141 yds & a TD. Schneider had 10 stops, DT Dollar had 9 to pace the defense. Reserve C Gilmore allowed 2 of our 4 sacks to hurt his standing for a roster spot. Rookie K Linquist hit his only FG attempt from 49 yds out, Broadway punted 7 times for 39.4 yd avg.

Exh. 2
Beat Miami 20-17
Rookie R.J. Linquist hit a 54 yd FG with 0:02 left to complete a 17 pt 4th qtr comeback. Backup QB Craig Parker threw for 2 TD's in the final 2:34 & backup S Flickinger intercepted a pass with 0:09 left to set up the dramatic game-winner. Parker finished the day 19/32 for 278 & 2 TD's in relief of Rivera (9/17 for 82 yds & 1 Int). WR Shapiro caught 10 for 87 & a TD, rookie WR McDaniel caught 8 for 177 & a TD. C Gilmore allowed another sack, RB Browning fumbled once, both hurting their chances to make the team.

Exh. 3
Lost to San Diego 26-7
Our QB's combined to throw 5 interceptions in the 2nd half & pretty much kill any offense we had. Kelsay, still not 100%, made a surprise appearance in the 3rd qtr, going 3/10 for 23 yds & an Int. Encouragingly, he ran twice for 10 yds. Broadway avg 44.2 yds on 4 punts.

Exh. 4
Lost to New England 28-21
Down 20-7 in the 4th, we rally for a 21-20 lead with 2:21 left, but the Patriots drove back for the win. Rivera & Pettet split time, combined for 3 interceptions. Lowe caught 5 passes but dropped two in the 4th qtr. Steinbeck had 46 yds & a TD on just 6 carries.

[JonInMiddleGA]

Time to trim the roster from 60 to 53 for the regular season.

-- Traded C Todd Gilmore & a 5th round pick in 2016 to Pittsburgh for rookies TE Rodney Trowbridge & WR Trevor Woodard.

Veterans cut included:
RB Korey Wellborn (6 yrs, 921 yds rushing & 3 TD's career)
TE Sammie Byers (5 yrs, 102 catches & 6 TD's career)
WR Gerald Lowe (9 yrs, 446 catches, 7078 yds, 32 TD's career)
LB Jerry Pierce (2 yrs, 13 tackles career)
CB Allen Carter (4 yrs, 3 w/AZ, 1 Int career)
S Deon Bates (1 yr, 9 games/0 starts)
G Jermaine Dunlap (6 yrs, 5 w/ AZ, 76 games/41 starts career)

Rookies cut included:
TE Rodney Trowbridge

[JonInMiddleGA]

2013 Regular Season

Week 1
Lost to St.Louis 20-17
A slow start by Rivera (17/30 for 229, 2 TD's & 2 Int's) was just a little too much to overcome. Steinbeck had 57 yds on 16 carries, McDaniel & Zolak caught TD passes. P Broadway avg just 34.4 on 5 kicks in his regular season debut, K Linquist was 1/1 from 34 yds out. S Burroughs led the defense with 11 stops. Afterwards, WR Chryplewicz was listed as doubtful with a hip pointer & CB Housley is questionable with damaged thumb ligaments.

Week 2
Beat Indianapolis 27-24
Rivera & Pettet split time at QB, each threw for a TD and we win it with Linquist's 47 yd FG with 3:00 to play. The dual-QB's combined to go 11/20 for 204 & 2 scores (to Shapiro & McDaniel). S Bryce Godfrey led the defense with 12 stops & a 1st qtr interception that he returned 35 yds for a TD.

Week 3
Beat Philadelphia 28-17
Bryce Godfrey returned an interception 77 yds for a TD and Kelvin Schneider returned a fumble 37 yds for another, both in the 3rd qtr, to spark the victory. Steinbeck rushed for 63 yds & a TD on 20 carries, Rivera was 15/19 for 144 & a TD and WR Davison caught 7 passes for 77 yds to lead the offense. S Godfrey had 11 tackles to go with his big play, S Burroughs contributed 10 stops (7 tkls, 3 assists).

Week 4
Lost to Tampa Bay 28-24
3 fumbles (2 by FB Meynardie) and an interception doomed us to the loss. Rivera was 18/29 for 227 & 2 TD's, Steinbeck gained 43 on 18 carries, Linquist was 1/2 on FG. We come away dinged up, with S Burroughs out for 3 wks with an elbow injury, S Mueller questionable for a month with bruised ribs, Steinbeck probable with a strained rotator cuff, G Kelly Brewington probable with a sprained lateral knee ligament, & T Adam Markowitz probable with a strained quad muscle.

2013 Record after 4 games: 2-2

[JonInMiddleGA]

Week 5
Lost to Seattle 30-21
We're outgained 516 to 293, and the Seahawks had the ball 17 mins more than we did. Rhodes got his 1st start at RB, gets 45 yds on 9 carries. Rivera was 15/21 for 188 & 2 TD's. WR Davison is now questionable with a pulled groin, adding to our injury woes.

Week 6
Beat Atlanta 27-17
Bryce Rivera threw for 241 yds & 2 TD's on 18/31 passing, rookie WR McDaniel caught 7 for 90 & a score, and Bryce Godfrey had 11 tackles & a 45 yd interception return for a TD. We scored the final 21 points of the game in the last 17:12 of action. We're back to .500 and locked in a four-way tie for the NFC West.

Week 7
Bye week -- The open date comes earlier than usual, but we'll take it, maybe we can get healthy again (at least for a little while)

Week 8
Lost to St.Louis 27-14
QB Rivera suffered probably his worst day at the helm of the Cardinals, going 17/40 for 226 yds and 4 interceptions. WR Chryplewicz caught 6 passes for 112 yds & RB Rhodes rushed for 89 yds & a TD on 13 carries. The turnovers wasted a pretty good defensive performance, as Burroughs had 14 stops & DT Duncan added 9.

Week 9
Beat Carolina 30-13
Rivera rebounds from last week's debacle to go 17/28 for 236 yds & 2 TD's, RB Rhodes had 113 yards & 1 TD on 17 carries, and R.J. Linquist hit three FG's. DT Duncan had two of our four sacks. WR Adam Davison is questionable for next week after spraining his knee.

2013 Record after 8 games: 4-4

[JonInMiddleGA]

Week 10
Lost to New Orleans 20-17
4 turnovers, including 3 fumbles (back-to-back possessions in the 3rd), did us in. Steinbeck had 74 yds rushing off the bench, Rhodes went for 44 but it just wasn't enough as all the scoring came in the 1st three quarters. S Mueller had 10 stops, LB Schneider had 8 as the veterans paced the defense.

Week 11
Beat San Fran 26-14
Rivera was 22/34 for 276 yds & 2 TD's as the passing clicked when the running game didn't. WR Shapiro had 7 catches for 109 yds & a TD. In spite of the rushing woes (just 89 yds on 33 carries), there was just enough to fuel an impressive 19 play, 74 yd drive in the 4th qtr that ate up 10:35 before RB Ronnie Rhodes capped it with a 1 yd TD run to seal the win. LB Schneider led the defense with 9 tackles.

Week 12
Lost to Jacksonville 47-7
5 interceptions, two that were returned for 4th qtr TD's, and a total of six turnovers created an ugly day. Rivera threw 3 picks, Kelsay threw a pair, and all 3 QB's combined for a 22/48 performance. Rookie WR McDaniel was the recipient of 9 passes for 154 yds. We also allowed 5 sacks, just a small part of having our butts handed to us.

Week 13
Lost to Detroit 24-3
6 sacks, 3 interceptions, and only 216 yds total offense. Yuck. Rivera & Pettet both played about a half, combining for just 15/33 and 140 yds.

2013 Record after 12 games: 5-7

[JonInMiddleGA]

Week 14
Lost to Tennessee 30-3
We've now officially taken a step backwards, with an embarassing 6 interception performance against the Titans. Rivera threw 5, Pettet threw 1, and Kelsay had none but only threw 3 passes before leaving with an elbow injury.

Week 15
Lost to San Fran 17-13
We couldn't run (62 yds on 38 carries) and the 49ers scored 10 points in the 4th qtr to hand us our 4th straight loss. Rivera finished 12/24 for 157 yds, 1 TD, and 1 Int. after starting 8 of 9 passing.

Week 16
Lost to Houston 30-27
An interception following a successful onside kick snuffed out our rally & sent us to our 5th straight loss. Pettet relieved Rivera at QB in the 3rd qtr & went 6/9 for 173 yds & 2 TD's before throwing the errant pass with less than 2 mins left. WR Chrypelwicz had 7 catches for 187 yds & a TD. Backup S Flickinger had 10 tackles, 1 assist & 1 sack.

Week 17
Lost to Seattle 24-9
Pettet started at QB, Parker relieved, neither was able to crack the end zone. All 4 Seattle scores came from drives that began inside our 45 yard line. Rhodes had a good day, 74 yds on 11 carries. The dual QB's combined for 13/32 passing for 138 yds. Archie Covington handled 3 of 3 FG's without a miss.

2013 Record after 16 games: 5-11

[JonInMiddleGA]

New England (12-4), Jacksonville (12-4), Cleveland (10-5-1) & Denver (9-7) win AFC divisions. Baltimore (10-6) & Oakland (9-7) earn wildcards.

New Orleans (13-3), Green Bay (12-4), St.Louis (12-4) & Dallas (10-5-1) win NFC divisions. Minnesota (10-6) & Washington (9-7) earn wildcards.

Cleveland won the Solecismic Bowl 24-10 over Green Bay

Jacksonville QB Cass Timberlane won his 2nd League MVP award (4993 yds, 38 TDs,94.9 rtg)

2013 Evaluation
Performance - 5
Value - 7
Profit - 62
Roster - 83
Year-end score - 39

Attendance fell another 4%, to 40,900
Our support is down to 17, worst in the league
Our stadium is now 23, 31st of 32 in the league
We lost $46.26m on revenue of $96.64m
We got fired, but in the spirit of FOFC, we refused to accept the banning ... err, firing.

[JonInMiddleGA]

2014 Staff Hiring Period
We need a new scout and DefCoor as their contract have expired.
We re-sign DC Allen Mummert to his requested contract of $4.88m for 3 yrs.
We finally settle for 58 y/o R.J.Dunk as our scout. He's AVG in every area except 2ndary, where he's VG. There just wasn't much out there for scouts this time around.

2014 Free Agency
We begin with 46 players under contract & 7 free agents.
FB Alex Meynardie, CB Duane Reed, DT Mel Dollar, WR Trevor Woodard, & LB Grady Stokes were all signed to 2 yr, no bonus contracts.
OT's Harvey Burkhammer (7 yrs, 89 games/75 starts) & Mitch Harvey (8 yrs, 116 g/65 starts) will be allowed to pursue free agency.

We sign 2nd/3rd year free agents (with no NFL experience)
K Mitchell Jackson 38/51 and T Roosevelt Laxton 11/31

The largest FA contract signed goes to 2-time League MVP QB Cass Timberlane, who moves from Jacksonville to Philadelphia for a 4 yr/$98.58m deal.

[JonInMiddleGA]

2014 Amateur Draft
-- We traded our #1 pick this year (3rd overall) to New Jersey for 1st round picks in 2015 & 2016.
-- We traded a 2nd rd pick this year (#20/2nd) to San Diego for a 3rd round & 6th round pick this year
-- We traded a 3rd rd this year & a 4th round next year to Baltimore for their 2nd round pick next year

Our biggest needs are listed as WR, ILB, and TE
We drafted a WR/T/OLB/G/DT with our five remaining picks.

[JonInMiddleGA]

2014 Late free agency
Time to try to find some help for recovering from last year's disappointing performance.

We make 2 yr min sal offers to the following undrafted rookies:
QB Timothy Hatcher - 10/49 99 vol.
QB Brant Bruce - 16/46 85 vol.
QB Eddie Goodwin - 7/42 83 vol.
RB Antoine Harding - 27/41 64 vol.
RB Herb Kirkpatrick - 25/40 59 vol.
RB Jeff Griggs - 22/34 70 vol.
TE Pat Tessen - 22/45 72 vol.
TE Emmitt Thamilarasan - 16/44 64 vol.
TE Brent McCaffrey - 12/41 31 vol.
WR Andy Richard - 16/35 74 vol.
WR Luke Bowyer - 13/33 21 vol.
WR Jack Van Arnsdale - 13/32 64 vol.
C Ronald Hickman - 14/44 87 vol.
G Tyrus Ferguson - 8/39 76 vol.
G Matthew Irwin - 12/36 97 vol.
T Jonathan Wang - 8/38 75 vol.
T Jumbo Robinson - 11/37 77 vol.
DE Alvin Wampus - 7/39 90 vol.
DE Rico Hutton - 7/36 31 vol.
DT Gabe Barber - 20/30 79 vol.
LB Freddie Mitchell - 21/34 58 vol.
LB Ray Bay - 17/39 97 vol.
LB Norm Boyer - 13/36 51 vol.
LB Sedrick Ellard - 7/38 2 vol.
LB Gino Freeze - 4/33 97 vol.
S J.J. Truitt - 6/37 97 vol.

[JonInMiddleGA]

We head into training camp with 79 players under contract.

Highest current estimates before training camp
P Kenny Broadway 78/80
G Kelly Brewington 68/68
S Casey Burroughs 64/64
P Glen Stuart 62/62
DE Glen Schokora 58/60

Highest future estimates before training camp
P Kenny Broadway 78/80
G Kelly Brewington 68/68
S Casey Burroughs 64/64
P Glen Stuart 62/62
K R.J. Linquist 28/61

We drop to a pathetic 24,800 of 63,000 season tickets sold.

[JonInMiddleGA]

Highest current estimates after training camp
P Kenny Broadway 81/81 (+3/+1)
G Kelly Brewington 68/68
S Casey Burroughs 65/65 (+1/+1)
P Glen Stuart 62/62
DE Glen Schokora 58/60

Highest future estimates after training camp
P Kenny Broadway 81/81 (+3/+1)
G Kelly Brewington 68/68
S Casey Burroughs 64/64 (+1/+1)
P Glen Stuart 62/62
K R.J. Linquist 28/61 (+3/+0)

Other notable changes included:
QB Timothy Hatcher - 12/40 (+2/-9) 99 vol.
QB Brant Bruce - 18/41 (+2/-5) 85 vol.
QB Eddie Goodwin - 9/37 (+2/-5) 83 vol.
RB Antoine Harding - 28/38 (+1/-3) 64 vol.
RB Herb Kirkpatrick - 25/36 (0/-4) 59 vol.
TE Pat Tessen - 26/47 (+4/+2) 72 vol.
TE Emmitt Thamilarasan - 20/52 (+4/+8) 64 vol.
TE Brent McCaffrey - 15/44 (+3/+3) 31 vol.
C Ronald Hickman - 15/39 (+1/-5) 87 vol.
G Tyrus Ferguson - 8/32 (+0/-7) 76 vol.
G Matthew Irwin - 14/36 (+2/+0) 97 vol.
T Jumbo Robinson - 12/31 +1/-6) 77 vol.
DE Alvin Wampus - 9/35 (+2/-4) 90 vol.
DE Rico Hutton - 8/30 (+1/-6) 31 vol.
LB Ray Bay - 19/35 (+2/-4) 97 vol.
LB Sedrick Ellard - 8/32 (+1/-6) 2 vol.
LB Gino Freeze - 6/29 (+2/-4) 97 vol.
S J.J. Truitt - 8/30 (+2/-7) 97 vol.