I was expecting the bickering to start at some point lol..
Ok seeing as everyone’s explaining reasons for why their teams are the best I shall put my argument forward. This however is not just why my team is fantastically awesome but also how and why I created my team the way I did…
Firstly let me state that I like my team, yet I'm not convinced it is the best quite yet, however for entertainment purposes this epic shall assume that I do.
Gather round people and hear the story of how the greatest team ever assembled was created…
THE STORY OF THE GREATEST TEAM EVER CREATED
THE FORT WAYNE DANCERS
The team that is assembled follows a pretty basic concept and throughout this drafting process I have tried to stay true to these principals or principal. One word VALUE my team follows a strict value chart of which I believe in and every pick I have made follows this chart. For instance it is my belief that the most important player on any team is the QB position and so I set about to select who I considered the best in the league. Next I set about creating a great defense. Defenses win championships people! And a good 4-3 defense can be dominant. To build a great defense and a 4-3 defense at that I believe you must start from the ground and as a result I chose the focus of my defense to be the front four as after all pressure on the most important player on any team is vital right? From here I set about filling holes by using my value chart and draft board which has taken into account players abilities, age, numbers of other players of similar ability at the position and the value IMHO of positions.
Offense
The role of this offense is simply to compliment the defense. With a two punch running attack and a qb more than capable of leading a successful offense that takes full advantage of the turnovers and great field position that the defense gives it what more could be asked of it. Well this offense still has the ability to score quickly and from anywhere on the Field. With explosive Steve Smith and Felix Jones, a young solid offensive line and possession receivers in Jenkins and Daniels this offense has the ability to be fantastic unit.
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Quarter Backs
QB – Peyton Manning
Still arguably the best QB in the league, every offense he touches turns to gold is my theory. Manning still has game and once again threw for over 4000 yards last year with a shambles of an offensive line and a horrible running game.
In my system that benefits from the huge play potential of Smith and Jones and a stellar defense Manning should put up tremendous numbers.
How might anyone pass on your defenses? Well simply look to the Manning lead passing attack of The Fort Wayne Dancers. After all when has Manning ever not been able to pass on a defense before?
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Running Backs
RB – Felix Jones
RB – LenDale White
These two players are anything but sure things. They aren’t exactly backs capable of carrying the whole load, however together I think they can make beautiful music.
Felix has the big play ability to rival any back in the league right now and although in his rookie season he failed to stay healthy, when healthy he should prove to be very dangerous.
White is not much more than a power back, but with a great defense this offense shall be required to grid out defenses, which White can do superbly. Much like how he paired with Johnson last year White shall again provide that short yardage power back required to perfectly complement Jones.
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Offensive Line
LT – Joe Staley
OG – Aaron Sears
OG – Mike Pollak
RT – Eric Winston
Although not complete this is a young talented line with all the potential in the world. It is immediately better than the line Peyton Manning had last year and should allow the hardest qb in the league to sack (arguably) even more time to work his magic. This is a line that can grow together and one that should provide the bases of the Fort Wayne Dancers offense for the next decade.
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Receivers
TE – Owen Daniels
WR – Steve Smith
WR – Michael Jenkins
WR – Lance Moore
The receiving core of The Fort Wayne Dancers is built on potential. However the potential is quite high.
Steve Smith is an awesome target and one of the best deep threats in the NFL. He is tough, physical, fast, shifty and incredibly productive. Teaming up with a true franchise QB and the best in the league at that, Smith has the chance to go from scary to horrifying.
Jenkins and Daniels are no slouches either and provide great potential for Manning as possession receivers.
Jenkins is a big target and is also rather athletic. Despite taking awhile to develop, the drafting of true qb for the Falcons saw his production increase nicely. Still with room to grow and an even better Qb who has a habit of bringing out the best in all his receivers The Dancers fully expect a great season out of him.
Daniels is also very productive and should provide the safety net for Peyton Manning as Dallas Clark does. Although not at athletic as Clark, Daniels plays the true TE position exceptionally well which is shown by his great production (over 700 yards the last two seasons).
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Defense
This defense is a monster unit, with playmakers at every level and quality throughout it has the potential to carry this team. With an outstanding D line which rivals the Bradenton Super-Manatees in greatness and a secondary which can play man on man as well as any tandem in the league this team has tremendous ability to stop the pass. Furthermore it is going to be incredibly hard to run on. With two ginourmous baby eating DTs and linebackers that thrive in run support, this team’s defense shall be dancing on the graves of RBs and QBs alike when the season begins.
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Defensive Backs
CB – Marcus Trufant
CB – Nate Clements
FS – Oshiomogho Atogwe
These guys are a pretty terrifying tandem although not the best tandem in the CPFL league they are most definitely up there. Both are fantastic in man to man coverage and both also excel in run support. Despite getting up there in years I do not think their best is behind them yet and this next year they shall be as productive as always. They now also benefit from a fantastic defensive line and as we all know a good dline makes a secondary that much better…
Oshiomogho Atogwe is an awesome talent as is a ball hawking safety in the Ed Reed mould. He is incredibly productive and is as effective against the run as he is the pass. Providing 5 forced fumbles last year he will make receivers think twice before going over the middle.
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Defensive Line
DE – Patrick Kerney
DT – Albert Haynesworth
DT – Marcus Stroud
DE – Justin Tuck
When I set about to build a great defense (as after all defenses win championships) I knew d line had to be my main strength. Going against the grain and to hopefully take advantage of future drafts I decided to build a 4-3 scheme.
This unit is exactly what I envisioned and proves to be both etremly effective against the run and the pass.
Albert Haynesworth is a fantastic talent and despite moving to Washington his production IMO should not falter. He is a monster against the run at over 340 pounds and also outstanding against the run amassing 8 sacks last season. Albert is simply un-blockable.
Justin Tuck is another incredible talent. Able to play inside or outside he is incredibly strong and quite fast. As a result he plays the run as well as a he plays the pass (very good).
Marcus Stroud is getting up there in years yet he continues to dominate. His move to buffalo saw his production slip slightly last year but playing with little other help on the Bills line was the main reason for this. In fact last year he was considered to be the glue behind that defense and still had a very good year. Playing with Haynesworth, Kerney and Tuck he no longer will be the main focus of an offense and should benefit.
Patrick Kerney like Stroud is getting up there in years yet despite this his production has not wavered. Although some may point to last year as the beginning of the end for Kerney I disagree. Despite only playing 7 games last year he still managed 5 sacks and 20 tackles, which shows he is definitely not done yet.
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Linebackers
DE/OLB – Vernon Gholston
ROLB – Lance Briggs
MLB – David Harris
LOLB/MLB – E.J. Henderson
Despite this unit not being as good as Chiefscafan’s linebackers (after all who could run on them? Who? WHO? WHO I ASK YOU!??!) this is a very solid unit which is pretty young (apart from Briggs). These guys are all playmakers and are exceptional against the run and thrive in coverage.
Briggs. What can I say about this cat? He does it all and thrives on cover two defense playing the weakside. Briggs simply makes plays and is a leader on that Bears defense. Not many linebackers would be able to successfully challenge Brian Urlacher to a ‘who’s the best linebacker on the team competition’, yet Briggs has and many would argue that Briggs is indeed the better player. This is a credit to how fantastic a player he is and IMHO he is slightly underrated. In the Dancers defense Briggs will play weakside and will be able to use all his playmaking abilities in space. Briggs also figures to be a leader on this defense and an awesome one at that.
Harris and Henderson are somewhat similar. They both play middle in their own systems and are both exceptional against the run and have a lot of playmaking ability especially rushing the passer. One will slide to the left side however yet this should be no problem. They are both also exceptional in pass coverage and more than able to hold their own against the TE.
Gholston has been labeled a bust by some however I think if anyone can get production out of him, its Coach Ryan. He provides great depth at DE and also should slide into the elephant linebacker role on some downs.
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Ok so that’s my team so far and my argument for why my team is totally kick ass! Perhaps I went over the top there, but I have no life, so yer…
I welcome rebuttals!