ISFL NEWLETTER
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The Internet Simulation Football League Newsletter
Volume #24 Issue #19 – January 5, 2021
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Current League Officers
Commissioner: Mark McNeil (blades99@rochester.rr.com)
League Statistician: Mark McNeil (blades99@rochester.rr.com)
ISFL Review Board: Hank
Sienzant, Don Antonelli, Ed Minshull
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LEAGUE NOTES
I. Message from the
Commissioner
II. News from Around the
League
III. Standings
IV. Wild Card Round Results
V. Divisional Round
Schedule
VI. Transactions
VII. Other News including Players of the Week
I. MESSAGE FROM THE COMMISSIONER
The Wild Card Round is in the books and it really was wild card 3 lower
seeds knock off their opponents, with two games turning into shootouts
that went down to the fourth quarter.
Denver pulls the big upset knocking off the 3 seed Steelers
behind big plays from Wentz, Parker and Williams and move on to fact
Tennessee. LA Chargers win a shoot out over the Patriots and will head
down to Houston for a round 2 matchup.
NY Giants win easily over Carolina and are the only top seed to
advance and get another shot at the Kansas City Chiefs.
Carolina upsets the Jaguars and will get a third chance to get a
win over the New Orleans Saints. Good luck to all in round 2, everything
is updated and ready to go!
With the regular season concluded we have finished up the first year of
the new subbing procedure with draft pick incentives and I wanted to say
it was a fairly positive experience with a few kinks to be worked out
before next season. We will
be taking a look at this and making a few small tweaks with an eye
towards using it next year but here are the results of the extra draft
picks that will be assigned for the upcoming draft (at the end of each
round). Overall we added just 12 picks to essentially the final 4 rounds
of the regular draft and they are spread out pretty well between all 4.
(quick update as we missed one teams picks for the games they subbed
for).
4th and 8th Round Picks – NYG, DET, NE
5th Round Pick – NYJ, SEA
6th Round Pick – CHI, LAC
7th Round Pick – DEN, GB, NO
8th Round Pick - BUF
I am now accepting Ballot Proposals for this offseason, though we will
not vote on them until I fill the open team positions (so if you haven’t
told me you will be back or not yet, please do so asap).
See my email for the specifics but I would like to have all of
them in by Sunday, January 17th so I can make up a
preliminary ballot and then get that voted on by the end of the
playoffs.
Also it is time for awards voting as one of the last things I need from
each of you before the end of the season. I would really appreciate if
you could take the time and complete the survey based on this past
seasons results and statistics and once completed I will update the
website to show the winner of each award.
Voting will close on Sunday, January 31st at midnight.
Link is below.
https://kwiksurveys.com/s/kgqqcUWa
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 moving along if it is missing at the deadline.
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.
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II. News from Around the League
In what turned in to a
shootout The Chargers advance in the playoffs with a 39-34 win .
New England takes a 28-27
lead early in the 4th quarter . Then Kurt Cousins tosses a 56
yard pass to Randall Cobb to give the Chargers a 33-28 lead . New
England drive down to the Chargers 39 but turn the ball over on downs .
Next play Cousins hits Hardman on a 61 yard TD to gives the Chargers a
39-28 lead . The Patriots add a late TD to make the final score Chargers
39 -Patriots 34 .
Chargers await where we
travel next either Tennessee or
BRONCOS UPSET
STEELERS, 32-28
Wentz Throws for
350 Yards, Two Touchdowns
PITTSBURGH, JANUARY 4TH, 2021: The sixth seed Denver Broncos went
into Pittsburgh and upset the three-seed Steelers 32-28 behind the right
arm of Carson Wentz and some big catches by his receivers. The game went
back and forth with each team taking the lead four times in the
contest.
The momentum of the game appeared to
swing after every big play by either team.
"Our guys made a lot of big plays",
Broncos head coach Hank Sienzant said afterward, "and we're happy to
emerge with the win. The Steelers beat us here in Pittsburgh in week
seven by seven (34-27), and we knew we had to play better to come
away with a win."
The game came down to the Steelers final
possession, trailing by what would prove to be the final score of 32-28.
Taking over at their own 39 following a squib kickoff return with 2:13
left in the game, the Steelers ran Josh Jacobs for 11 yards on a sweep
around the right side to move the ball to the 50. Deshaun Watson
scrambled for 11 to get the ball to the Denver 39, but that's where it
all fell apart. Cole Beasley was called for illegal motion to move the
ball back to the Denver 44, and two Watson passes fell incomplete. A
third down dump off to tight end Jimmy Graham only gained a yard, and
Zack Martin moved before the snap on fourth down, moving the ball back
to the Denver 48, putting the Steelers in a huge hole facing a 4th and
19. Watson's long pass against the Broncos prevent fell incomplete and
the Broncos took over just two kneel downs from victory.
It seemed like every time one team
scored, the other would come right back with a score of their own.
The game started as a defensive struggle
through most of the first quarter, with the Steelers taking the opening
kickoff and moving 45 yards to the Bronco 30, where DeShaun Watson was
stuffed on a fourth and one dive play. It was the first of three times
the Steelers would try to convert a fourth down in the game, and the
first of three big failures to do so. "We threw everything but the
kitchen sink at the Steelers on that fourth down", Sienzant said
afterward, "We over-committed to the inside run and were lucky to guess
right there."
But after three consecutive three and
outs and three punts, The Steelers took their first lead in the contest
when Tarik Cohen returned the Jordan Berry punt 20 yards to give the
Steels a lift. Watson hit Chark for 26 on a long slant on the next play
and the Steelers started moving. But the drive stalled and then stopped
at the Bronco 40 when a short pass to Cohen was wide of the mark, and
the Steelers were forced to punt. But a roughing the kicker call against
Myles Garrett kept the drive alive, and the Steelers, with the ball
moved to the Bronco 25 following the roughing call, made short work of
the Broncos, dispatching the defense in two plays, with the touchdown
coming on a Watson to Robert Woods touchdown from 12 yard out following
a Jacobs 13 yard gain on a trap play.
MAYBE THE BIGGEST PLAY OF THE GAME
Corey Ballentine decided to run the ball
out from eight yards deep and was crushed at the Broncos four yard line,
bottling up the Broncos deep. But Devante Parker took a short slant and
turned upfield, finding a seam and racing 96 yards before being dragged
down at the Steelers two by cornerback Stephon Gilmore. Zeke Elliott
banged it over on the next play and the game was tied - until it wasn't,
because Butker's point after was wide and the Broncos trailed 7-6.
STEELERS TURNOVER ON DOWNS
Throwing on nearly every down, the
Steelers moved to the Broncos 35 behind Watson's arm, but two
incompletes and a short pass to Cohen left the Steelers staring at a
fourth and five from the Denver 35. They declined the try at the 53-yard
field goal, and Watson's short pass intended for Chark fell incomplete
for their second turnover on downs.
BRONCOS TAKE THE LEAD
Denver went on a time-consuming drive,
taking over six minutes off the clock to score on Damien Williams three
yard touchdown run. The drive started when Wentz scrambled out of
trouble and pulled the ball down and ran for 13 yards to the Bronco 48.
Two consecutive passes from Wentz to Curtis Samuel gained 34 yards and
move the ball to the Steeler 18. From there it was mostly Williams, and
he picked up 13 of the remaining 18 yards on three runs and one
reception. The touchdown and point after gave the Broncos a six point
lead at 13-7 with just 4:47 left in the half.
STEELERS RETAKE THE LEAD
The Steelers milked the clock and scored
to make it 14-13 on a short pass from Watson to Cole Beasley from seven
yards out with just 33 second left in the half. The drive took ten
plays, went 75 yards and took 4:14 off the clock. The biggest pay was a
Watson to Chark connection for 24 yards, but this was mostly a Josh
Jacobs drive, as he ran six times for 35 yards and caught one pass for
another nine yards.
PERHAPS THE BIGGEST PLAY OF THE GAME
Yeah, I know I said that about the
Parker 94-yard catch and run, but what happened in those final 33
seconds of the first half belies belief. After Ballentine again got
tackled for the second time inside his own ten, the Broncos thought
about taking a knee (they would get the second half kickoff) but opted
instead to run Damien Williams right up the middle. The Broncos line
parted the Steelers front wall like Moses before the Red Sea and
Williams took off straight up the middle and was only tackled 61 yards
later at the Steeler 32 with nine seconds left. Harrison Butker's
50-yard field goal with three seconds on the clock ended the first half
scoring and put the Broncos up by 16-14.
BRONCOS DRIVE STALLED BY HOLDING CALL
The Broncos picked up two first downs to
open the second half, but a holding call against Cam Robinson pushed the
Broncos bak and the Broncos were unable to recover and ended up punting
the ball dead at the Steeler 11 yard line.
STEELERS COME BACK AGAIN
The Steelers went ahead 21-16 on a
Deshaun Watson touchdown pass to D.J.Chark from six yards out midway
through the third quarter. That touchdown ended the Steelers longest
scoring drive in the game in terms of yards, as they drove 89 yards in
just six plays, with a Watson to Robert Woods completion of 45 yards the
biggest play in the drive. Josh Jacobs runs of 15 and 17 yards
sandwiched around the long completion helped keep the Denver defense off
balance, so much so that they were looking for the run on the touchdown
pass and were caught totally off-guard by the throw.
Following that, the Steelers special
teams stuffed Corey Ballentine at the eight yard line and the Pittsburgh
defense held the Broncos to a three-and-out, sacking Wentz for a six
yard loss back to his own five. Following the 50 yard punt by Jordan
Berry, the Steelers were set up in great field position at the Denver 41
because of Tarik Cohen's 14 yard punt return.
The field position got even better when
Josh Jacobs broke a 13-yard gain on a sweep around the right side,
putting the ball on the Broncos 28.
A BIG TURNOVER STALLS THE STEELERS
The Steelers, up by five and already in
field goal range, threw across the middle and Kareem Jackson jumped the
route and picked it off at the Denver 11, getting brought down
immediately.
BRONCOS RETAKE THE LEAD
The momentum started to shift back to
the Broncos. Down by five, it took the Broncos only four plays to
navigate the 89 yards for a touchdown, and the first was an incomplete
pass. Following that, Wentz aired it out, first hitting Parker for 19,
then connecting with Golden Tate for 42 to the Steelers 28, and then
hitting Golden Tate again on a long pass down the middle for the score.
The touchdown and point after gave the Broncos a slim two-point lead
back at 23-21 with 2:48 left in the third quarter.
STEELERS COME RIGHT BACK TO SCORE
The Steelers scored on a 15-yard called
run to Watson with 11:28 to go in the game to retake the lead at 28-23
after the successful point after. The drive started with a near-disaster
for the Steelers as Josh Jacobs fumbled on the first play of the
possession, but wide out D.J.Chark recovered the loose ball and three
more Jacobs runs moved the ball to the Steelers 45 by the end of the
third quarter. Three consecutive completons by Watson each picked up a
first down and got the ball to the Broncos 21. From there, two more
Jacobs runs gained six, and Watson took it in from there.
AHEAD TO STAY
The Broncos went ahead to stay with
seven minutes remaining in the game when wideout Curtis Samuel caught a
pass just inside the pylon from Wentz for the 11 yard score with seven
minutes left in the game. The go-ahead touchdown was set up by a
connection to DeVante Parker good for 39 yards on a bomb, and three
consecutive runs for another first down followed by Zeke Elliott. The
Samuel score put the Broncos up by just one at 29-28 and it stayed that
way when Elliott's attempt to run it in for the two point conversion got
stuffed by the Steelers.
EXTENDING THE LEAD TO FOUR
But after forcing a Steeler punt on a
fourth and four with 4:27 left and leading by one point, the Broncos
knew they had to put more points on the board to survive the coming
aerial assault from the Steelers in the final minutes. Taking over at
their own 27 following a 15 yard punt return by Alex Erickson, the
Broncos went to the air and Wentz connected downfield with Samuel for 21
yards to move the ball to the Steeler 43. Two short passes to Ebron and
a run by Elliott left the Broncos facing a fourth and two from the
Steeler 35, and after considering going for it, the Broncos instead
opted for the 53-yard field goal try by Harrison Butker. Butker's kick
was true and the Broncos extended their lead to 32-28 with 2:37 left.
The Steelers final possession started of
great with two runs of 11 yards each by Jacobs and Watson, but penalties
stalled the drive and Watson couldn't get it done at the end, and the
Steelers final drive gained only 13 yards in seven plays from where it
started. Two kneel downs by Wentz ended the contest.
GAME NOTES: The Broncos outscored the Steelers 16-14 in each half, to end up
with the final score of 32-28. The Steelers had scored touchdown and
seven points in each quarter.
The Steelers ran 66 plays to the Broncos
46, had 27 first downs to the Broncos 18 and nearly six minutees more in
time of possession.
The Steelers dominated in the ground
game. The Steelers gained 197 on the ground on just 27 carries (7.3 per
rush) compared to the 117 on 22 for the Broncos (5.3). More than half
the Broncos rushing yardage came on the one Damien Williams 61-yard run
just before halftime. Taking that out of the statistics, the Broncos
gained just 56 yards on their other 21 rushes, only 2.7 per attempt.
Josh Jacobs could run at will seemingly
against the Broncos defense. He gained 164 yards on 22 carries, with
nine runs of 10 or more yards. Williams was the Broncos leading rusher,
with 74 yards on only six carries (12.3). He caught three passes for
another 26.
The Broncos averaged over 20 yards a
reception for the game with 350 receiving yards on just 17 receptions.
DaVante Parker was the big gun with 166 yards on four catches, with a
long of 94 and a 41.5 average. Curtis Samuel caught four for 66 and
scored once, averaging 16.5 and Golden Tate caught two for 70, and
scored once. Tate's two receptions came on back-to-back plays late in
the third quarter and put the Broncos ahead 23-21. He was otherwise
quiet.
The Pittsburgh receivers put up 255
receiving yards on 22 receptions, averaging 11.6 per catch. Robert Woods
was the leading Steeler, with five for 88 (17.6) while D.J. Chark also
caught five, gaining 79 (15.8). Tarik Cohen was ineffective, sucking up
eight targets, catching only four and gaining only 12 yards receiving.
Woods, Chark, and Cole Beasley (4-42, 10.5) each had a touchdown
reception.
Deeshaun Watson completed 22 of 38 for
255 and three touchdowns, with one pick. He put up a 93.6 passer rating
and rushed for 30 yards on four rushes (7.5).
Carson Wentz was the MVP of the contest
with 17 of 23 for 350 yards and two touchdowns with no picks. Sometimes
the MVP award goes to quarterbacks for journeyman efforts, while other
players are overlooked, but Wentz MVP was well-deserved. As easily as
Josh Jacobs would pick up yardage on the ground, Wentz would pick it up
through the air. His 144.7 passer rating shows his effectiveness, as
does his 15.2 yards per attempt (not per completion, per attempt). One
wit in the press box quipped that we now know his "Wentzlyvania"
nickname extends to Western Pennsylvania.
Ironically, his longest completion of
the game came on a short pass over the middle to Parker, who did all the
legwork on that catch. Parker's longest reception during this past
season was 75 yards, while Damien Williams longest regular season run
was just 30 yards. Damien Williams efforts during the game reminded this
writer of another Williams, Ricky Williams, who put together some
stellar performances in the playoffs in 2011 for these Broncos en route
to their last Super Bowl win.
Neither kickoff returner was
particularly effective, with Corey Ballentine averaging just 11.7 yards
per return and Harris just 11 yards per return.
Linebacker Dont'e Hightower had ten
tackles and one hurry for Denver, while safety Tre Boston and linebacker
Bobby Wagner had seven tackles each for Pittsburgh. Boston added a
forced fumble and Wagner added a sack.
NEXT MAN UP: There were no new injuries in the game. Pittsburgh played without
cornerback Taron Johnson and Denver was minus the services of linebacker
Denzel Perryman, tackle Sam Tevi, and rookie guard Ben Powers. Tevi will
be back next week for certain, but Perryman and Powers will be game time
decisions.
A LOOK AHEAD: After compiling a 13-3 regular season record, the Steelers only
have the draft to look forward to. Unlike in other sports, football has
a one-and-done post-season and is very unforgiving. Denver will move on,
and as the sixth seed, next week faces off against the 15-1 Tennessee
Titans, the number one seed in the AFC.
Derek Carr was named game MVP as he led the
Panthers to a 19-10 road victory in Jacksonville. He completed 21 of 28
passes for 185 yards and a TD. Mahomes was out for the Jags but Mariota
filled in capably with 13 of 18 for 125 yards and a TD. Problem is that
he couldn't overcome 4 sacks and 8 penalties, including a game changing
penalty by Jimmy Moreland on 3rd and 4 on the Jags 45 with 2:57 left.
That led to a Car FG which made it a two score game and forced the Jags
to use their 3 timeouts.
Well called game by Joe, subbing for Carolina.
With the loss, the Jags look forward to the draft
and next season and wish Carolina luck the rest of the way.
Seahawks bring rookie QB
Josh Allen to town to try to move on, but Allen is generally
ineffective. Combine that with the Seahawks weak offensive line giving
up pressure all day, including 5 sacks and 11 hurries, and the Hawks
could not mount much offense.
Marlon Mack is the MVP,
rushing for 121 of the 217 yards that the Giants piled up on the ground.
Giants win 34-13 and move on to Kansas City for a rematch of an
excellent game played earlier this season.
Coming up
this week in the AFC both lower seeds end up moving on and Denver will
head to Tennessee in a match up of teams who did not play in the regular
season and one which would appear to favor the Titans (ask the Steelers
how that worked out though).
LA Chargers travel to Houston for the second time this season looking to
avenge a week 4 loss to the Texans but Houston walked through their
schedule this season and will be a very tough out.
Coming up
this week in the NFC Carolina will match up with New Orleans for the
third time this season with the Saints winning a pair but we all know
how hard it is to beat a team three times in one year.
NY Giants and Kansas City will face off in a rematch of their
week 11 game where the Chiefs won by a single point and the Giants will
be looking for some revenge.
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III. STANDINGS
http://www.blades99.com/ISFL/Standings20.htm
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IV. RESULTS – Wild Card Round Results
Seattle 13 New York (N) 34
V. SCHEDULE
Divisional Round
Denver at Tennessee
NY Giants at Kansas City
Carolina at New Orleans
VI. TRANSACTIONS
AFC
BUF –
CLE –
DEN –
HOU –
IND –
MIN –
NYJ –
PIT –
TEN –
NFC
ARZ –
ATL -
CAR –
DET –
GB -
KC -
LAR -
PHI –
SEA –
LAR –
DRAFT PICKS FORFEITED:
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VII. OTHER NEWS:
PLAYERS OF THE WEEK:
WEEK ONE
OFFENSE: Jameis Winston, BUF – 25 of 32 for 406 yards, 5 TDs
WEEK TWO
OFFENSE: Marquise Brown, CAR – 15 catches, 224 yards, 3 TDs
DEFENSE: JJ Watt, SEA – 3 Sacks, 3 Tackles
WEEK THREE:
OFFENSE: Nick Chubb, MIN – 33 carries, 268 yards, 2 TDs
DEFENSE: JC Jackson, SEA – 2 INTs, 3 tackles
WEEK FOUR:
OFFENSE: DK Metcalf, DET – 10 catches, 131 yards, 4 TDs
DEFENSE: Devin Bush, JAX – 1 sack, 16 tackles
WEEK FIVE:
OFFENSE: Carson Wentz, DEN – 18 of 21 for 253 yards, 7 TDs
DEFENSE: Carlos Dunlap, JAX – 3 sacks, 4 tackles
WEEK SIX:
OFFENSE: Dak Prescott, PHI – 38 of 53 for 515 yards, 5 TDs
DEFENSE: Marcus Peters, NE – 2 INTs, 5 tackles
WEEK SEVEN:
OFFENSE: Kirk Cousins, LAC – 27 of 37 for 495 yards, 5 TDs
DEFENSE: Von Miller, NYG – 3 sacks, 7 tackles
WEEK EIGHT:
OFFENSE: Drew Brees, NE – 25 of 31 for 352 yards, 3 TDs
WEEK NINE:
OFFENSE: Mitchell Trubisky, CHI – 31 of 34 for 408 yards, 6 TDs
WEEK TEN:
OFFENSE: Aaron Rodgers, IND – 16 of 24 for 235 yards, 5 TDs
DEFENSE: Patrick Peterson, IND – 1 INT, 15 tackles
WEEK ELEVEN:
OFFENSE: Matt Ryan, SF – 39 of 48 for 437 yards, 6 TDs
DEFENSE: Jordan Hicks, PHI – 2 INTs, 6 tackles
WEEK TWELVE:
OFFENSE: Chris Godwin, LAR – 8 catches, 307 yards, 2 TDs
DEFENSE: Oshane Ximines, CAR – 4 sacks, 7 tackles
WEEK THIRTEEN:
OFFENSE: Josh Jacobs, PIT – 32 carries, 157 yards, 1 TD
DEFENSE: Tre White, LAR – 1 INT, 9 tackles
WEEK FIFTEEN
OFFENSE: Ryan Fitzpatrick, TB – 33 of 41 for 316 yards, 4 TDs
DEFENSE: Sam Hubbard, BUF – 3 sacks, 6 tackles
WEEK
SIXTEEN
OFFENSE: Chris Godwin, LAR – 9 catches, 141 yard,s 4 TDs
DEFENSE: Chris Jones, TEN – 4 sacks, 4 tackles
WEEK
SEVENTEEN
OFFENSE: Matthew Stafford, LAR – 26 of 40 for 389 yards, 4 TDs
DEFENSE: Vic Beasley, Jr, JAX – 4 sacks, 5 tackles
WILDCARD ROUND
OFFENSE: Kirk Cousins, LAC – 18 of 28 for 371 yards, 4 TDs
DEFENSE: Kareem Jackson, DEN – 1 INT, 3 tackles
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