ISFL NEWLETTER |
The
Internet Simulation Football League Newsletter
Volume #17 Issue #18 – January 20, 2014
************************************************************************
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
************************************************************************
LEAGUE NOTES
I.
Message from the Commissioner
II.
News from Around the League
III.
Standings
IV.
Round 2 Results
V.
Championship Games Schedule
VI.
Transactions
VII.
Other News including Players of the Week
I.
MESSAGE FROM THE COMMISSIONER
The
Divisional Round was another set of good games as we have a couple of
close games, one that wasn’t so close and a big special teams win in the
final 2 minutes. Congratulations to all who won this round and move on
and the same to those whose season has ended as you all did your teams
proud and made for a great first round of playoff games.
For those not in, please hang around as I will have some final
things for you to complete before the season is over.
Be sure if you have trouble
hooking up to be sure you get a plan in place and a sub if needed.
Thanks for the great work guys!
I have updated files on the website for the end of the regular
season, go ahead and get those and start thinking about awards voting.
I will get playoff files out by Thursday and then you can get
started on your game contacts for the wild card games.
I
can’t stress enough that you need to IMMEDIATELY send me your game
export when the game is complete.
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.
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.
Also, be sure you give me enough names as the more injuries the more
likely someone else already grabbed the guy you want.
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
This
week in the AFC the top seeds hold serve as New England continues their
great run with a big win over the visiting Chargers.
Cleveland wins a very tough game against the Broncos for the
season sweep and earn a big day in New England as they try and get back
to the big game again.
This
week in the NFC Arizona wins the rubber match with the Eagles as they
pull off the mild upset and move on to the NFC Championship game.
Jacksonville needs a big late punt return to hold off the upset
bid from the upstart Lions and reach yet another championship game.
Coming up in the AFC the championship game matches the top two seeds
from the regular season as Cleveland will head to New England .
Coming up in the NFC Jacksonville will host Arizona in a rematch of a
week 7 game where the Jags ended the Cards 6-0 start to the season and
Arizona will have revenge on their mind as well as their first trip to
the Super Bowl if they can pull off the upset win.
Divisional Round Matchup Recaps
The two teams start fast
with 2 strong first drive where the runs of Ridley (5/47/1) and the
passes of Newton (4/4 - 61/1) lead to the first 2 TDs of the evening.
After a 3 and out for San
Diego, New England was able to score again on his 2nd drive, again,
thanks to the connection between Newton and Gronkoski, with a 11 yards
slant for the TE 1 minute in the second quarter.
Then, the two offenses
stalled, with a pair of punts, until the 2 minutes.
On what should be the final
drive of the first half, San Diego started his drive on their 19 with
1.36 left on the clock.
After a 1st down, thanks to
2 complete passes to Cobb, Eli Manning was picked off by S Stevie Brown
on a slant, again, for his primary WR.
With 31 seconds left in the
1st half, on the 38 of San Diego and 3 timeout, Cam Newton was able to
find his receivers repeatedly, but the time wasn't enough to find the
endzone, so the home team must be accept a FG from the 2 with 5 second
left.
So the two teams close the
first half 17-7 for New England.
The 2nd half see the home
team receive the ball on their 16 and start a long drive (almost 7
minutes) that ended with a FG by Succop from the 11 that fix the score
on 20-7.
Thanks to a good job by
their defense, the visiting team tried to come back, but their drive
stalled on their 40 and they have to punt.
But, again, the defense was
able to force a 3 & out and San Diego got the ball on their 36.
This time Manning & co. was
able to engine a really good drive, but, you know, when is not you
time...
In the comeback mode, San
Diego prefer Richardson to Ridley to carry the ball, because of his
better hands, but the rookie RB made a rookie mistake and on the
opponent 6 made a really, really bloody fumble.
One minute in the 4th
quarter and with the ball on their hands, you can think that the game is
over. You're wrong.
Cam Newton was yes able to
move, well, the ball till the 22 of San Diego, but, on a scramble he
didn't protect the ball enough and Greg Hardy stripped it: fumble and
ball to San Diego on their 22 with 9 minutes left in the game.
"The wind is changing", are
you thinking. Not exactly.
3 plays later, Eli Manning,
while was intent to find a WR, was blindsided by Mercilus. But the
fumble was even more bloody then the first one of Richardson, because
Mercilus pick up the ball and bring it to home for the TD that,
virtually, close the game: SD 7 - NE 27.
The last 3 drives see the
visiting team try to comeback and the home team run the ball to run out
the clock.
MVP: Cam Newton - 17/24 -
224 / 2 - rating: 127.8
Onorable Mention: Whitney
Mercilus. The rookie got 6 tackles, 3 sack, a fumble also recovered for
a TD.
Cecil Short, 7/92, included a 29 yards gane vs Richard Sherman.
For SD, a very good game by
Ridley (only 10 runs but for 82 yards!) and from the defense.
Unfortunately, today the offense wasn't on the same page.
Thanks to Jeff for playing
a really good game and in a convenient time for me. Good luck for the
next season, i'm sure you will be again a contender.
**********************
Cleveland, January 18th, 2014: For want
of a nail, a war was lost.
Trailing by
five, the Broncos twice got inside the Cleveland 25 yard line in the
final three minutes, but came up empty both times.
The 15-2
Browns advance to the AFC Championship game where they will face the
16-1 New England Patriots, who defeated the sixth-seed Chargers to also
advance. The Broncos finish the year 12-6, with an 11-5 regular season
record and a 1-1
post-season
record. It was the first loss in post-season play by a Hank
Sienzant-coached team (5-1 in post-season play).
Rookie T. Y.
Hilton, wide receiver and punt returner for the Browns, accounted for
two of their three touchdowns with a 91-yard punt return to open the
scoring and a 40-yard touchdown reception to close it. In between was
another touchdown by the Browns, an eight-yarder to Doug Baldwin to give
the Browns their biggest lead of the contest at 14-3. Hilton
was the MVP of the contest with a total of 171 yards in the game from
scrimmage and on returns.
The Broncos
final drive reached the Cleveland 14 with the Broncos trailing by 21-16,
out of timeouts, and 43 seconds remaining on the clock. Facing a second
and seven from there, three straight incompletes by Nick Foles turned
the ball over on downs and the Browns Joe Flacco took a knee to end the
contest.
But if the
Broncos had settled for the field goal on the preceding drive, they
might have won the game on a field goal on that final drive.
On the
preceding drive, the Broncos reached the Browns 24-yard line, with a
fourth and six. The Broncos declined the 42-yard field goal try by Dan
Carpenter (three for three in the contest) and threw for the first down
- Foles completed a dump off pass to Jermichael Finley, but Finley was
brought down a yard from the line to gain and the Browns took over with
2:10 remaining the contest and the Broncos in possession of all their
timeouts.
"The Browns
were able to move the ball on us, and we weren't certain we would get
another chance to touch the ball with just over two minutes to go,"
Bronco Head Coach Hank Sienzant explained after the contest.
Two first
downs by the Browns would seal the win, but the Browns could pick up
only one, and were forced to punt the ball back to Denver with :54
remaining.
A sideline
pass designed to pick up about ten yards was turned into a 46-yard catch
and run by Dwayne Bowe, but he was pushed out at the Browns seventeen.
Three dump offs to BenJarvus Green-Ellis gained only three yards, and
Nick Foles' pass across the middle for Dwayne Bowe was knocked loose by
Tarell Brown on a jarring hit to end the Broncos last chance.
The Broncos
stopped the Browns and forced a three-and-out to start the contest, but
the Browns returned the favor and stopped the Broncos at the Denver 48.
A deliberate delay of game moved the ball back to the Denver 43,
allowing Jon Ryan to boom the punt rather than kick for the sideline,
but a second penalty for illegal procedure backed the Broncos back
another five yards to the Denver 38. Ryan's punt went to the Browns
nine-yard line, from where Hilton took the ball wide right and then
broke back to the middle and outraced everyone 91 yards for the
touchdown. It was the second punt return touchdown in two post-season
games allowed by the Broncos (Jeremy Kerley returned one 84 yards for a
touchdown last week for the Jets in the wild-card matchup).
The Broncos
responded with a good drive, with Foles completing four of four on the
march, and Dan Carpenter's 44-yard field goal cut the Browns lead to 7-3
midway through the first quarter.
Neither team
could get much going until the Browns took over at their own 29 late in
the first quarter. Brandon Lloyd caught a short hitch on third and ten,
and avoided the first tackle and took the ball 60 yards to the Bronco
11-yard line on the first play of the second quarter before being pushed
out by safety Dawan Landry. After a three-yard run by Ray Rice, Joe
Flacco found Doug Baldwin over the middle for the touchdown to open up
the Browns lead to 14-3.
The Broncos
had been here before. In week three, the Browns opened a 31-3 first half
lead, and in week 11, it was 17-0 in the second quarter before the
Broncos managed to put points on the board. This time it would be
different. The Broncos responded with an 80-yard drive that took 16
plays and nearly seven minutes off the clock before they finally found
the end zone when Nick Foles connected with Mikel Leshoure from seven
yards out for the touchdown. The drive featured a fourth-and-one
conversion by Leshoure just moments before. On the 16-play drive,
Leshoure ran seven times for 40 yards, and Foles completed four of eight
for 27 yards. Green-Ellis added the other thirteen yards on one run. The
touchdown by Leshoure closed the Browns lead to 14-10, and that's the
way the half ended.
The two
teams sparred back-and-fourth early in the third quarter with neither
team mounting a drive until the Broncos Roy Miller roughed Joe Flacco,
with the penalty moving the ball to the Broncos 40. Tow completions
moved it into field goal range, but a long pass intended for Lloyd was
tipped away by Joey Porter on third down and the Browns settled for the
field goal by Rob Bironas. Or thought they did. The
usually-reliable Bironas (26 of 29 during the regular season) missed
from 40-yards out, and the Broncos wasted no time making a big play.
Nick Foles
hit Dwayne Bowe on a short slant and Bowe broke two tackles en route to
a 37-yard gain before he was finally pushed out at the Browns 33. The
Broncos only got to the Browns 28 before the drive stalled, but that was
close enough to convert the Dan Carpenter 46-yard field goal to cut the
Browns lead to 14-13.
After the
Browns were forced to punt late in the third quarter, the Broncos took
the lead for the first and only time in the game with a nine-play,
57-yard drive that got to the Browns 26 before stalling when Nick Foles
missed a check down to Green-Ellis. The big play in the drive was a
23-yard gain on a sweep to the Browns 40-yard line by Green-Ellis. When
the Broncos Dan Carpenter booted it through from 44-yards out to give
the Broncos their first lead in the game, thinks were looking bright for
the Denver upset. There was only 14 minutes left in the game, and the
Denver defense had allowed only one touchdown from scrimmage in the
first 46 minutes.
But the
Browns took only five plays to advance to the Denver 40, with Ray Rice
and Bernard Pierce rushing on the first four plays and moving the ball
27 yards to the Cleveland 47. A 13-yard completion to Lloyd moved the
ball to the Denver 40, then Flacco threw deep and Hilton beat the
coverage and caught the perfectly-thrown ball down the left sideline in
the end zone for the touchdown.
The only two
turnovers in the contest came a few plays apart a few minutes later.
Nick Foles threw a ill-advised pass into tight coverage from the Browns
35-yard line, and Tarell Brown picked it off and returned it 41 yards to
the Denver 31. But on the second play following the turnover, the
Broncos got it back when Flacco scrambled and was hit by Michael
Johnson, who forced a fumble, and Brooks Reed recovered at the Denver 28
with just 5:15 remaining in the game.
The Broncos
mounted a long - patient -drive, converting a second-and-one, a
third-and-one, and a fourth and inches, before the Broncos drive ran out
of steam and Foles pass completion to Jermichael Finley on fourth and
six wound up a yard short of the first down marker. The Broncos managed
to get the ball back and move it to the Browns 14, but the drive ended
there when Tarell Brown's hard hit jarred the ball out of the hands of
Dwayne Bowe.
Game Notes: Joe Flacco completed 18 of 26 for 245 yards and two
touchdowns, for a passer rating of 124.7. Rookie fifth-rounder Nick
Foles set personal highs for attempts, completions, and yards, but
finished with only a 68.4 rating on 28 of 50 for 256 yards and one TD,
and one pick. Ray Rice rushed 20 times for 103 yards (5.2) to lead
the Browns, while Green-Ellis ran 15 times for 90 yards (6.0) to pace
the Broncos. Two Broncos (Tate and Bowe) caught seven passes, and
Jermichael Finley added another six receptions, while the Browns leading
receivers were tight end Brent Celek and running back Ray Rice, with
four receptions each. Browns wideouts, however, were the stars of the
game with Brandon Lloyd catching three for 89 yards, and Hilton adding
three for 74 and one big fourth quarter touchdown.
The Browns
beat the Broncos three times this season, by score of 41-16, 24-7, and
now 21-16. While the final game was certainly the most competitive, it
was also clear the Browns were the better team this season.
The Bronco
defense forced three fumbles in the contest, but recovered only one.
Brooks Reed, Dont'a Hightower and Michael Johnson each forced a fumble.
Jason Pierre-Paul had the only sack of Flacco, while Nick Foles got
excellent protection despite dropping back 50 times to pass (no sacks).
The Broncos
won the time of possession battle (77 plays to 57; and 31 minutes to
29), and also gained more first downs, more rushing yardage, more
passing yards and fewer penalties and penalty yards. But you know what
they say - Statistics are for losers, and the Broncos lost today. The
stats do reveal the Broncos biggest failing - they were only 3 of 17 on
third downs, and only 2 of 4 on fourth downs.
The Broncos
Jon Ryan had another horrendous punting day, despite his gross average
of 47.8. He finished the post-season with a 23.9 net punting average
because of the two long punt return touchdowns the Broncos allowed in
the post-season. In the entire regular season, the Broncos allowed
only 230 punt return yards all season. The two punt return touchdowns
gained 175 between them.
Injuries: Tracy Porter was lost to injury in the game, but he was the
only injury of note for either team. Porter has never played a full
season for the Broncos since being drafted in the third round of the
2009 draft.
A Look Ahead: The Browns will travel to New England
to try to become the third AFC East team in the last five years to win
the Super Bowl (the AFC East has been the winner in three of the past
four Super Bowls - the Jets in 2009 & 2010, Broncos in 2011). The Browns
can make it four out of five by winning their next two. The
Broncos will start breaking down film of the upcoming rookies and
planning for the 2014 draft (they have two firsts, two seconds, and two
third round picks, in addition to eight other picks in the fourth
through eighth rounds).
**********************
Jags advance to the NFC
conference final to face the winner of the Arizona / Seattle game.
**********************
**********************************************************************
III. STANDINGS
http://www.blades99.com/ISFL/Standings13.htm
***********************************************************************
IV.
RESULTS – Divisional Round
Detroit 31 Jacksonville 34
***********************************************************************
V.
SCHEDULE
AFC
Championship Game
***********************************************************************
VI.
TRANSACTIONS
AFC
BUF –
CLE –
DEN –
HOU –
IND –
MIN –
NE
- Returned Scott Fujita to FA pool.
NYJ –
PIT –
SF
-
TEN –
NFC
ARZ –
ATL -
CAR –
DET –
GB
-
KC
-
MIA –
PHI –
SEA –
STL –
DRAFT
PICKS FORFEITED:
None
***********************************************************************
VII.
OTHER NEWS:
PLAYERS OF THE WEEK:
WEEK
ONE
OFFENSE: James Jones, SF – 8 catches, 205 yards, 3 TDs
WEEK
TWO
OFFENSE: Carson Palmer, SEA – 20 of 29 for 224 yards, 4 TDs
DEFENSE: Craig Dahl, NYG – 2 INTs, 6 tackles, INT return TD
WEEK
THREE:
OFFENSE: Steven Ridley, SD – 20 carries, 148 yards, 1 TD
DEFENSE: Tamba Hali, ATL – 3 sacks, 6 tackles
WEEK
FOUR:
OFFENSE: Adrian Peterson, NE – 23 carries, 163 yards, 2 TDs
DEFENSE: Linval Joseph, NYG – 3 sacks, 5 tackles
WEEK
FIVE:
OFFENSE: Tony Romo, ATL – 41 of 54 for 475 yards, 4 TDs
DEFENSE: Chris Long, DAL – 5 sacks, 11 Tackles
WEEK
SIX:
OFFENSE: Jamal Charles, NO – 21 carries, 196 yards, 1 TD
DEFENSE: Troy Biermann, CAR – 3 sacks, 3 tackles
WEEK
SEVEN:
OFFENSE: Marques Colston, TEN – 11 catches, 135 yards, 1 TD
DEFENSE: Devin McCourty, TB – 2 INTs, 6 tackles
WEEK
EIGHT:
OFFENSE: Matt Schaub, GB – 29 of 36 for 386 yards, 5 TDs
WEEK
NINE:
OFFENSE: DeMarco Murray, MIN – 32 carries for 198 yards
DEFENSE: Everson Griffen, IND – 3 sacks, 4 tackles
WEEK
TEN:
OFFENSE: Michael Crabtree, SEA – 11 catches, 212 yards, 2 TDs
DEFENSE: Aldon Smith, GB – 7 sacks, 11 tackles
WEEK
ELEVEN:
OFFENSE: Jamal Charles, NO – 26 carries for 188 yards, 2 TDs
DEFENSE: Chad Greenway, PHI – 16 tackles
WEEK
TWELVE:
OFFENSE: Frank Gore, ATL – 35 carries for 230 yards, 3 TDs
DEFENSE: Patrick Peterson, IND – 2 INTs, 6 Tackles
WEEK
THIRTEEN:
OFFENSE: Adrian Peterson, NE – 24 carries for 148 yards, 2 TDs
DEFENSE: Aldon Smith, GB – 4 sacks, 5 tackles
WEEK
FIFTEEN
OFFENSE: DeAngelo Williams, GB – 27 carries for 181 yards, 3 TDs
DEFENSE: Chris Long, DAL – 4 sacks, 8 tackles
WEEK
SIXTEEN
OFFENSE: Drew Brees, JAX – 38 of 57 for 488 yards, 4 TDs
DEFENSE: Eric Weddle, NO – 2 INTs, 2 Tackles
WEEK
SEVENTEEN
OFFENSE: Stevan Ridley, SD – 28 carries for 199 yards, 2 TDs
DEFENSE: Paul Posluszny, STL – 2 INTs, 17 tackles
WILDCARD ROUND
OFFENSE: Ahmad Bradshaw, DET – 14 carries, 109 yards, 2 TDs
DEFENSE: Richard Sherman, SD – 2 INTs, 5 tackles, TD
DIVSIONAL ROUND
OFFENSE: Joe Flacco, CLE – 18 of 26 for 245 yards, 2 TDs
DEFENSE: Whitney Mercilus, NE – 3 sacks, 6 tackles, forced fumble,
fumble recovery |