ISFL NEWLETTER |
The
Internet Simulation Football League Newsletter
Volume #15 Issue #20 – January 16, 2012
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Current League Officers
Commissioner: Mark McNeil (blades99@rochester.rr.com)
League Statistician: Mark McNeil (blades99@rochester.rr.com)
ISFL
WWW site: http://www.blades99.com/ISFL/ISFL.htm
ISFL
Review Board: Jeff
Barricelli, Dave Stewart, Don Antonelli
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LEAGUE NOTES
I.
Message from the Commissioner
II.
News from Around the League
III.
Standings
IV.
Round 3 Playoff Results
V.
Super Bowl XV Schedule
VI.
Transactions
VII.
Other News including Players of the Week
I.
MESSAGE FROM THE COMMISSIONER
Denver finally stops the Buffalo run and makes their first Super Bowl
appearance since 6 seasons ago when they won their only appearance.
New Orleans knocks off top seed Detroit to make their second
straight Super Bowl appearance and look for their first win.
Super Bowl XV in Dallas is ready to go, so go ahead and get your
game contacts going and good luck to all!
Also,
ballot prop discussions are welcome to begin.
Please see the email I sent out for specifics and feel free to
send either to me or the list for everyone to toss it around a bit.
I
can’t stress enough that need to IMMEDIATELY send me your game export
when the game is complete.
This is the second straight week that a host had something come up and
forget to send me an export.
It takes about 30 seconds following your game to export it and send it
to me. Send your write up
later on, that’s fine, but I MUST have the game export as soon as the
game ends or I’ll have to sim the game to keep things.
***A
new game update is available dated 11/29, please get it from the ISFL
website before you play any games this week.***
Don’t
forget, if you lose a player for 2 or more games, you can ask for an
injury replacement, but it must be done the same week as the injury, so
don’t wait, get those requests in right away and take advantage,
especially the teams who are already challenged for the amount of games
they have to work with.
Reminder that you MUST send a boxscore and writeup to the league after
each game. The home team is
responsible for this, but either team can do it, as long as it does get
done. Also, you MUST send me
the game export immediately after the game is complete.
It takes about 30 seconds, so I shouldn’t have to chase you down
for that file after a game, just get it in right away so I don’t have to
guess whether a game has happened or not.
***********************************************************************
II.
News from Around the League
In
the AFC, Denver earns the 34-21 win over Buffalo as they head on to the
Super Bowl, their first under head coach Hank Sienzant.
In
the NFC, New Orleans continues to roll as they beat top seed Detroit,
28-17 to head back to the Super Bowl for the second straight year.
Super
Bowl XV is a matchup of the Denver Broncos, who have one win in the big
game in their only appearance, against the New Orleans Saints, who are
back again to try and get the top prize that just eluded them last
season.
***********************************************************************
BRONCOS ADVANCE TO SUPER BOWL!
Down Bills 34-21 Behind Ricky Williams Two TDs
January 15th, 2012: They keep trying to bury the old man.
But he ain't dead yet.
33-year-old Ricky Williams' 56-yard run for a touchdown in the second
quarter gave the Broncos their first lead of the game, a lead they never
relinquished, and the Broncos went on to a 34-21 victory over the
Buffalo Bills in the AFC Championship game. Williams finished with 93
yards on nine carries and scored two touchdowns and got this writer's
vote for MVP of the contest.
The Denver Broncos fell behind 7-0 after kicking off as the Buffalo
Bills had much success running the ball early. But after their initial
possession when they gained 53 yards on the ground on six runs, the
Bills all but abandoned their running attack. Over the remainder of the
contest, they ran only eight more times, picking up only another 11
yards. Obviously, when you have Tom Brady as your quarterback, you want
to maximum his chances to win the game. But that philosophy means if you
stop Brady, you pretty much stop the Bills offense.
The Broncos pretty much stopped Brady when it counted.
Brady was relatively ineffective after the first drive until near the
end of the third quarter, despite the Broncos losing two more pass
defenders to injury. Last week they lost their best cornerback in Tracy
Porter, and that was a key element in the game planning leading up to
this contest. But while rookie corner Kareem Jackson played well in
place of Porter, the Broncos today lost the services of rookie corner
Jerome Murphy and rookie Nate Allen, their nickel back.
But by that time, the Broncos, who fell behind 7-0, had rung up 31
unanswered points and held a 31-7 lead before the Bills got their next
score. In the interim, Brady, who had started four-for-four for 36 yards
and a touchdown, completed only six of his next 14 for another 48 yards,
and had thrown a pick to Kareem Jackson that set up the Broncos final
touchdown with 4:27 left in the third quarter.
Trailing by 24 at that point, Brady completed 20 of his final 30 for 212
yards and two more touchdowns, but it was too little, too late. By then,
the game had been pretty much decided.
The Broncos answered the Bills opening salvo with one of their own.
Freeman was as stellar in this game as he was last week, and on the
Broncos opening possession, seemed intent on proving he was the best
quarterback on the field. Freeman completed all four of his attempts on
Denver's first possession, picking up 58 yards, and scrambled twice for
another 18 yards. On his final pass of the possession, he hit Dwayne
Bowe for a touchdown from 21 yards out and the game was tied at 7-up.
The defenses took over and neither team had much success until the
Broncos lost the ball on a sack/fumble, with the Bills taking over at
the Broncos 23.
But thank God for instant replay review.
The Broncos challenged the play, and it was reversed into an incomplete
pass, as Freeman's arm was ruled to be going forward. The Broncos then
converted a third-and-13 with a 14-yard completion to Brandon Pettigrew,
and Williams then busted that 56-yarder to put the Broncos up, the
longest run for the Broncos since their 14th game in 2009, and the
longest by Ricky Williams since his 62-yarder for the Giants in week
five last season.
After their first possession, the Bills shyed away from running the ball
despite the success they had early. By contrast, the Broncos were happy
to run it. They finished with 211 yards on the ground on 40 rushes, and
on the possession that followed Williams' 56-yard touchdown jaunt, the
Broncos ran it 15 straight times (one more rush in that possession than
the Bills had in the entire game) to move into position for a Mason
Crosby 28-yard field goal and a 17-7 lead just before halftime. That
drive took almost five minutes off the clock and left the Bills with
just enough time before halftime to take a knee to close out the half.
In that one possession, both Torain and Williams pciked up more yardage
on the ground than the Bills leading rusher had in the game. Torain was
7 for 29 on the march, and Williams rushed six times for 35. The Bills
leading rusher was Tim Hightower, who finished with 28 yards in the
contest.
The Broncos got the second half kickoff and made it 24-7 on another
excellent drive. Taking over at their own 20 following a touchback on
the second-half kickoff, the Broncos converted three separate third
downs (of 12, 5 and 7 yards) on their way to a Ryan Torain touchdown run
from four yards out to give Denver a three-score lead. On the
possession, Freeman missed his first throw (an overthrow intended for
Finley), but hit his next six for 71 of the 95 yards the Broncos gained
from scrimmage on the drive, overcoming two separate penalties for 15
yards.
The next Bills possession was the killer.
After picking up one first down, Tom Brady's pass across the middle
intended for Zach Miller was deflected by the Broncos Will Witherspoon,
and picked off by Kareem Jackson and returned 42 yards to the Bills
18-yard line. From there, it took only three runs to score another
touchdown, with Williams punching it over from a yard out for the 31-7
lead with just 20:27 left in the contest.
Throwing on nearly every down, the Bills star quarterback did the best
he could, but with the Broncos generally playing deep and conceding the
short pass, it wasn't nearly enough. Brady hit Johnny Knox for a 26-yard
score before the end of the third quarter to make it 31-14, but after a
Broncos field goal made it 34-14 with just 12:21 left in the game, the
Bills could manage only one more touchdown (from Brady to Thomas) in the
time remaining. Brady hit Mike Thomas from six yards out for the final
touchdown with just 2:27 left in the game to make it 34-21, but that was
as close as they got.
Game Notes: Tom Brady completed 30 of 48 for 296 yards and three
touchdowns, with one pick for a 92.0 rating. Josh Freeman completed 19
of 24 for 225 and one touchdown, and ran six times for 38 yards. Freeman
finished with a 119.6 passer rating. Davone Bess caught seven for 66
yards to lead the Bills in receptions, but Johnny Knox finished with
five catches for 67 yards, edging out Bess by one yard for the most
receiving yards by a Buffalo player. Knox, THomas, and Miller each
caught a touchdown pass. The Broncos Dwayne Bowe and Brandon Pettigrew
each had four receptions, with Bowe's good for 54 yards and one score,
while Pettigrew gained 48 on his receptions.
The big difference was in the running game. Tim Hightower was the Bills
leading rusher with three for 28, but his last rushing attempt came on
the first play of the Bills second possession - he didn't get another
rushing attempt over the final 48 minutes of the game. Nobody on the
Bills had more than four rushing attempts. By contrast, the Broncos had
four players with six or more rushes, amd two players (Williams and
Torain) each exceeded the Bills total of 62 yards on the ground. Torain
finished with 17 carries for 65 yards and one score, and Ricky Williams
ran nine times for 93 yards and two touchdowns.
The Broncos had almost perfect balance offensively, rushing for 211 and
passing for 225. The offensive line performed exceptionally, despite
missing starting guard Eric Wood. Nick Cole started in his place, and
played well. Freeman was not sacked, and the Broncos have surrendered
only one sack in the post-season, and only six over their last eleven
games.
Will Witherspoon wasn't the leading tackler (that honor went to rookie
Kareem Jackson, who was thrown at constantly, but held up pretty well,
making 11 tackles, getting one pass defensed, and picking off Brady and
returning it 42 yards to set up the Broncos final touchdown), but
Witherspoon was the defensive star for the Broncos nonetheless. His
tipped pass was what led to the Jackson pick, and he had five tackles, a
stuff, and two hurries. Jason Pierre-Paul had the only sack of the
contest, getting to Brady in the second quarter for a six yard loss.
That drive ended in a punt, and the Broncos broke open the game with
Williams' 56-yard touchdown run a few plays later. Ray Lewis was the
leading tackler for the Bills, making 11 tackles and adding a stuff,
while safety Madieu Williams had ten tackles.
Of the opening drive when the Bills ran the ball so effectively,
B.J.Raji said that was partly by design. "We didn't want to give up that
many yards early, obviously, but every running play is a play that is
not in Tom Brady's hands. And we didn't want Brady to beat us. So to
some extent, we conceded the run and were happy when they ran." But like
Raji said, clearly the Bills did better than the Broncos wanted or
expected on the opening drive. Their first three runs picked up only
eight yards, but the next three gashed the defense for 16, 12, and 17
yards, with each of the Bills trio of backs (Redman, Benson, and
Hightower) carrying on one of the those big gains. Those three rushing
attempts picked up 45 of the Bills 64 yards in the game. Brady after the
game attempted to explain away the imbalance between the Bills rushes
(14) and passes (41). "I haven't spoken to the coaches about it, but
clearly sometimes the game situation dictates the call, and I think that
was what happened here." Asked what he meant, Brday went on to say,
"Even after their second touchdown, we were still very balanced - maybe
a few more passes than runs. But then they put up three scores with us
hardly touching the ball, and we had to pretty much abandon the running
game." Brady's assessment, it turns out, is right on. Just before the
Broncos started their long march for a field goal near the end of the
half, the Bills had 11 runs and 16 passes. After the Broncos field goal
made it 17-7, the Bills then took a knee to end the half, and the
Broncos added two more touchdowns in the third quarter on a long drive
and another touchdown following the Jackson pick of Brady. In that span,
the Bills had only four plays from scrimmage - two runs and two passes -
but by then the score had ballooned from 14-7 to 31-7. With the score
lopsided in the Broncos favor, it became easier for the Broncos to
defend the Bills, as both teams knew if the Bills were to mount a
comeback, it would be up to Brady to do it.
A Look Ahead: The Broncos will face the New Orleans Saints in the Super
Bowl. The Saints finished the regular season 12-4, and like the Broncos,
had to win three playoff games to get to the big game. They bring a big
play running attack with Arian Foster and Jamal Charles into the game,
and the Broncos run defense will have to be at the top of their game if
they are to have any chance of winning. In their three post-season
contests, the Saints are averaging 247 yards a game - on the ground.
That's about 100 more than the Broncos averaged during the regular
season. Hank Sienzant said that "We consider ourselves a run-oriented
team. The Saints make us look like pikers."
New Orleans
Gazette
Jamaal
Charles Leads the Saints to the Superbowl
Detroit Press
Charles Slays
the Lions
What can I say
but Jamaal Charles has put together a season with an average yard per
carry of over 6 yards. In
this game Charles had 207 yards of the Saints 364 total yards of
offense. He now has passed
teammate Arian Foster in rushing yards at 1756 rushing yards for the
season but Foster still owns the league leading total yards at 2075 to
Charles 1908 total yards.
Holy Yards of Offense Batman for the Dynamic Duo.
The Saints
prevail from 2 special teams fumbles with a red zone defense that is too
tough for the Lions and pull away in the end.
A great season for Dave Stewart and the Lions but it just wasn’t
their day. Will the Saints
take advantage of their second chance in the Superbowl?
Tune in for the next game write-up for the conclusion of the ISFL
season. Will Tony Romo come
back from his injury? Will
the AFC champion win for their conference?
Tune in - Same Bat Time, Same Bat Channel.
*******************
III. STANDINGS
http://www.blades99.com/ISFL/Standings11.htm
***********************************************************************
IV.
RESULTS – Championship Games
New Orleans 28 Detroit 17 Buffalo 21 Denver 34
***********************************************************************
V.
SCHEDULE – Super Bowl XV
New
Orleans vs Denver
VI.
TRANSACTIONS
AFC
BUF –
CLE –
DAL –
DEN –
Sign Anthony Madison to replace Jerome Murphy through the Super Bowl.
HOU –
IND –
MIN –
NE
-
NYJ –
PIT –
SF
-
TEN –
NFC
ARZ –
ATL -
CAR –
DET –
GB
-
KC
-
MIA –
NO
- Return Terrance Copper to FA pool.
NYG –
PHI –
SEA –
STL –
TB
-
DRAFT
PICKS FORFEITED:
None
***********************************************************************
VII.
OTHER NEWS:
PLAYERS OF THE WEEK:
WEEK
ONE
OFFENSE: Matt Forte, NY Giants – 155 yards, 3 TDs
WEEK
TWO
OFFENSE: Eli Manning, Houston – 27 for 32, 291 yards, 4 TDs
DEFENSE: Alphonso Smith, Miami – 2 INTs, 10 tackles
WEEK
THREE:
OFFENSE: Michael Vick, Seattle – 14 for 25 for 221 yards, 5 TDs
DEFENSE: Charles Johnson, Arizona – 3 sacks, 4 tackles, 1 forced fumble
WEEK
FOUR:
OFFENSE: Terrell Owens, St. Louis – 11 catches, 161 yards, 1 TD
DEFENSE: Camerion Wimbley, Buffalo – 3 sacks, 6 tackles
WEEK
FIVE:
OFFENSE: Matt Cassel, Dallas – 29 of 41 for 427 yards, 4 TDs
DEFENSE: Derek Landri, Minnesota – 4 sacks, 7 tackles
WEEK
SIX:
OFFENSE: Rashard Mendenhall, Green Bay – 22 carries, 145 yards, 3 TDs
DEFENSE: Trent Cole, NY Giants – 2 sacks, 8 tackles
WEEK
SEVEN:
OFFENSE: Phillip Rivers, Green Bay – 27 of 42 for 375 yards, 4 TDs
DEFENSE: Lawrence Jackson, Seattle – 5 sacks, 5 tackles
WEEK
EIGHT:
OFFENSE: Jamal Charles, New Orleans – 18 carries, 140 yards, 2 TDs
WEEK
NINE:
OFFENSE: Tom Brady, Buffalo – 17 of 25 for 344 yards, 4 TDs
DEFENSE: Osi Umenyiora, Atlanta – 7 sacks, 8 tackles
WEEK
TEN:
OFFENSE: Shaun Hill, Pittsburgh – 28 of 39 for 332 yards, 3 TDs
DEFENSE: Troy Biermann, Carolina – 4 sacks, 5 tackles
WEEK
ELEVEN:
OFFENSE: Michael Bush, Tennessee – 19 carries, 130 yards, 2 TDs
DEFENSE: Trent Cole, NY Giants – 2 sacks, 10 tackles
WEEK
TWELVE:
OFFENSE: Josh Freeman, Denver – 18 of 26 for 165 yards, 4 TDs
DEFENSE: Brian Orakpo, Dallas – 3 sacks, 7 tackles
WEEK
THIRTEEN:
OFFENSE: Andre Johnson, Dallas – 9 catches, 144 yards, 3 TDs
DEFENSE: Jamaal Anderson, St. Louis – 2 sacks, 10 tackles
WEEK
FIFTEEN
OFFENSE: Ladainian Tomlinson, Jacksonville – 20 carries, 100 yards, 1 TD
DEFENSE: Ike Taylor, New Orleans – 1 INT, 11 Tackles
WEEK
SIXTEEN
OFFENSE: Rashard Mendenhall, Green Bay – 33 carries, 242 yards, 2 TDs
DEFENSE: Tramon Williams, Kansas City – 2 INTs, 3 Tackles
WEEK
SEVENTEEN
OFFENSE: Arian Foster, New Orleans – 27 carries, 179 yds, 2 TDs
DEFENSE: Jason Babin, Philadelphia – 3 sacks, 4 tackles
WILDCARD ROUND
OFFENSE: Tom Brady, Buffalo – 23 of 34 for 249 yards, 2 TDs
DEFENSE: Antoine Bethea, New Orelans – 1 INT, 10 tackles
DIVSIONAL ROUND
OFFENSE: Arien Foster, New Orleans – 26 carries, 153 yards, 3 TDs
DEFENSE: Ray Maualuga, New Orleans – 1 INT, 65 yd TD, 5 tackles
CONFERENCE FINALS
OFFENSE: Jamal Charles, New Orleans – 20 carries, 184 yards, 2 TDs
DEFENSE: Kareem Jackson, Denver – 11 tackles, 1 INT, 1 Deflection
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