ANCHORAGE BRUINS [GM YOUNT]

[Talon]

 

If you have a plan change in mind, Im all ears, but we are running what we believe is the best scheme.

[GM Dario]

You're right Coach. Sometimes ya just gotta trust the players to play to their strengths. Can't keep second-guessin'

Let's roll wit it then!!!!

Locked In Baby!!!

[GM Dario]

SEASON 16 - WEEK 12



YUGE!  YUUUUUUGE!   YUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUGE WIN BABY!!!

It wasn't pretty. It wasn't clean. But man does it feel good to come from behind and get that DUB.

Started off steady but losing Runnin' Wolf definitely changed our plans. I thought Coach Cannon's creativity worked well to get us ahead in the ball game after Teddy Marks picked up the Defense and brought back Old Mo' to the SkyBear's side on that pick 6. Seein' him celebrate on the sidelines with the HoneyBears will probably make it on the highlight reels as well.

Liked seein' us control Time of Possession. Gave up a LOT of yards on Defense, especially through the air, but they came through when it counted. Marks was all over the place. Myles Jack had 13 tackles to lead the team. Loved seein' Kieran grab his first KC Pick in the game and how about that close by Blodgett. Forced Jarvis to fumble, then fell on the ball to ice for the home team. 

This win was big for the team too. Ensured that we're gonna be +.500 at home and at least .500 in the division for the first time in a LONG time.  We still got more to do these last 5 weeks. Two games out of the playoffs with 5 to play aint' lookin' good, but run the table and the SkyBear may just bless us with Extra Games.

Happy to see Egypt do the thang as well with a 2nd half comeback over the Canucks. 

This week we travel to DC. We haven't played well on the road but we're gonna still go for the Dub like we always do.  DC's pride got hurt on that trip to London, and we know all too well about that Harrier Team, so we're hopin' the jet lag and the bad vibes stay with DC just one more week.

Any questions for me?


*****

Coach- Fantastic show of pride by our guys on both sides of the ball. Not Pretty, but 48 is more than 45 so we'll take that Win.

Bad news is RW gettin' banged up.  As much as we need him against DC, I think it best to get York the ball as RB1. Set Wolf out for the week. We will need him for the last 4 more than we need him this week. Nieves to RB2,  Koz to RB3 and we'll just let Coach Cannon work his magic after that.

Thoughts?

[Talon]

 

That's the plan, dude.

[GM Dario]

Good to see we're on the same page, Coach.

I'll be back in touch before we head to DC,

******

Shay, lets see if Mike Maker is free.

******

Mike, Mike, Mike, Mike, MIKE!!!! It's Dario Baby!

Wanna hit ya up with 2 possible extensions if we can.

First, William Dalton.  Class act and a good mentor for these kids.
Looking at 1 year at 2.5M w/ 1.5M Bonus for S17

Second, Kieran Stones. 
He could be a a key cog in the SkyBear's Secondary for the future with Alcantar, Brookins and White.
Lookin' for 3 years at 7M + 3M Bonus per Year.

Can I get 2 thumbs up here?

[Talon]

...You're no rookie GM, don't you know its not cool to make multiple offers at the same time?!

That being said and considered, I'm looking for $12MM per season, EACH.  3 years on both deals, and its a yes or no, for both.  If you only one want, the price changes.

[GM Dario]

Mr. Money- you're right. That was a Classic Dario move and that's not right.
So I apologize, cause I'm not tryin' to be Classic Dario any more. Gotta be Dario V.2

So- from the top, Mr Maker.

William Dalton. 
My feelin's for Dalton haven't changed.
He's a Class act and a good mentor for these kids.
I do wanna change the terms, because my offer woulda been voided by the Office.
1 year- 3M plus 1.5M bonus for Season 17

[Talon]

 

Did you ever have AOL as a younger man?

[GM Dario]

I was more of an MSN baby than AOL.

But I gotta feelin' there's some sorta disconnection here, Mike.

[Talon]

 

Gave you my price, told you it was a package deal... You didn't sign them, so in the words of my old web-browser.

GOOD BYE.

[GM Dario]

That went well....

Um Shay, when will Daysam be back in KC, this week or next week?
Didn't know if he needs to be active for DC.

[Talon]

He should be back now, actually!

[GM Dario]

Will you ask him to talk with me please?

****

Daysam, I'm gonna try to do this right. 

"As-Salaam Alaikum"

It's good to have ya back in KC.
I thought that the excursion to Egypt might help ya out on the field,
but the conversion to Islam is definitely somethin' I didn't see comin'.
Not a bad thing though.
The SkyBear's Team was already a diverse group.
One more just adds to it.

How was everythin' in the Middle East?
What brought along the change?

[Talon]

As-Salaam Alaikum, rayiys.   

First I want to thank you for sending me on this life changing journey.  My path to enlightenment was amazing and has inspired a new work ethic inside my heart. 

[GM Dario]

I think sometimes we forget that there's more to life than football.
I'm glad it's workin' for ya and I'm lookin' forward to seein' how ya work on the field for the last part of the season.

I won't have a chance to talk with the Coaches in Egypt til the offseason.
Were there any major differences in their practices, compared to what ya had at UCLA or here, so far?

[Talon]

 

Intensity level was much higher, the way they work and stop to pray, a lot of cultural differences, obviously, but I embraced them and found the inner peace I have been missing in my life.

[GM Dario]

Well it sounds like it's been a great experience for you. We're glad to have you back in KC. Appreciate the time.

****

Shay, let's get ready for DC!!

York to RB1
Nieves to RB2
Kozlowski to RB3

Running Wolf - inactive

al-Taalim CB6
Navarrete CB7
Cantwell CB8

Locked in Baby!!

[GM Dario]

SEASON 16 - WEEK 13



FROM WAY DOWN TOWN!   

BANG!!!!

ANOTHA YUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUGE WIN BABY!!!

Talk about not given' up. Hats off to everybody in Bruins colors today. Can't say enough about these guys not losin' themselves, with all the injuries and attrition we had durin' the game. We gotta do better on 3rd down, but that's not all on us. DC's Defense kept us behind the chains a lot so hats off to them too. 

We got the ROAD DUB, but at a huge cost. Jacob out for the rest of the regular season and more if we get to play extra games. Peters out for at least 2 weeks and maybe the rest of the regular season. Brandon doubtful to play against San Antonio. But We'll NEXT MAN UP and see if we can't get to 8 Wins at home against the Knights.

Speakin' of Extra Games, we've inched closer. Just 1 game back of that logjam for 6&7, but Portland's a half game behind us as well. So we can't rest. We need Wins and We need Help. And I'm hoping we get both and get the Skybear Nation hyped up for more games.

Tough L to take for our Brothers from Other Mothers in Egypt against the Azzuriri.  But I got faith in #WalkinLikeEgyptians next week.

This week we're back home in the SkyBear's Wigwam against San Antonio.   Good to see Tate comin' to KC, but I'm hopin' he doesn't do TOO well against us. We're beat up but it's Go Time and We need to keep Goin'.

Any questions for me?


*****

Coach- Definitely Not how we drew it up. But 7-5 looks better than 6-6 and I'll take that after a Road Win.

The SkyBear's Shamen have got way too many in the Blue Teepee after this week, but We'll have to make do. Driver can spell Brandon at SS. Starling is gonna have to step in at FS for Peters. Wolf, if he's ready, Nieves and Koz will work for now at RB.  I may look at gettin' another RB to keep Koz at FB but We'll see if there's any gems left in Free Agency.

With York out, we're gonna need another KR. Jesus can move to KR1 and PR1, but who's the next best option after Jesus?

[Talon]

 

Banged up for sure man, but I think at KR2 we look at Cahill. He's got experience and speed.

[GM Dario]

Noted-

Let me see if we can get some running back help. Back with ya shortly

*****

Shay, let's see if Bobby Shapiro is available.

*****

Bobby Baby!  It's Dario.
Is your guy Vernon Cox still available?
I'm down a man and want a guy who knows our system.

750k for the rest of the season if so.

[Talon]

BOBBY ACCEPTS YOUR OFFER

[GM Dario]

Gracias Bobby!

*****

Shay, let's get locked in

Wolf to RB1
Nieves to RB2
Cox to RB3

Williams to KR1 and PR1
Cahill to KR2 and PR2

Driver to SS1
Brandon to SS2
Zamora to SS3

Starling to FS1
Zamora to FS2

Cantwell to CB7

York and Peters - INACTIVE

LOCKED IN BABY!!!

[GM Dario]

SEASON 16 - WEEK 14



Stack 'em up!!!!  Three in a Row and we're knockin' on the door.  Wasn't very pretty but a DUB is a DUB.

Loved seein' Lars break that one for a TD. He's a gamer. Gives us 100% every play. YUUUUUUUGE Props to Driver and Starling in the Secondary. Both doin' yeoman's work in spot starts for Brandon and Peters.

Tremendous game from the Knights on Offense, keepin' us off the field. We executed just enough to keep it close. AMac got us into position on that last drive and I drilled that game winner. The Home Folks left happy.

Another Tough L to take for our Brothers from Other Mothers in Egypt.  Often I think teams look at records and stats and think it's gonna be a cakewalk, but Fate has a way of smackin' ya in the face when you take things for granted.  Canada smacked the Egyptians to get that first Dub.  Hopefully they'll step back up though and break their L Dive.

Congrats to Clint Dickey for breakin' a record that many didn't think could be broken. He might put this out of reach with 3 to go. Gonna be tough for anyone to get there, but that's what they said about this record too.  Big Up to Clint!!

Speakin' of Clint and the Dragons, we're back on the road to New Jersey and it's a clutch game for both teams towards the playoffs. They need it to stay close to winnin' the division. We need it to keep our drive alive towards the Wild Card.  It looks to be a slog of a game with both teams wanting to run, so it may end up bein' whoever can make that last stop that's gonna win. 

As for the last 3 of the season, it doesn't get easier after New Jersey with the 'Peg for the final home game of the regular season in Week 16, and a road trip to the Dakotas in Week 17.  Would I love to see 3 wins? JEAH!!! But all we can do is play 1 at a time.  So we're lookin' at the Dragons this week. We'll worry about the rest after that.

Any questions for me?


*****

Coach- Style Points be Damned!   Dubs Matter. Congrats on gettin the team to a Winnin' season for the first time in a long time. Kudos to you and the staff for doin' some miracle work, accordin' to some.

One thing I wanna ask, is Runnin' Wolf playin' banged up for more than just the last 2 games?  I know he was out for DC, and was 50/50 for this game, but his production since his 142 explosion against Dallas has been : 4, 32, 7, OUT, 36.  With Jacob done for the regular season, we need RW to carry the backfield.

Thoughts?

[Talon]

You're currently two points out of first in the league as the leagues leader in points scored.  Is that something you have an eye on, and what would it mean as a kicker and GM to be the leagues scoring leader?

[GM Dario]

Imma shoot here. I didn't know it was a thing til someone made mention about it earlier. I mean, we're in uncharted territory with me bein' on the field, so a GM to be even in the points thing is wild.

But ya, it's twofold. I'm gettin' points but we're not gettin' TDs then. It's cool to be in the talk though. I'll let AMC or anyone win it, if it means KC gets 3 Dubs in return.

[Talon]

 

We're in race.  Now lets get IN to the dance.

[GM Dario]

Def agree, Coach.   More work still to do to Dance though.

Any ideas on gettin' RW back to 100, or can Nieves and Cox step up?

[Talon]

 

Wolf is back to 100%, should be good to go.

[GM Dario]

His production has been quite low the last five weeks though. But is that more of a case of us or the defenses?

[Talon]

 

He'll get a lot more than the 22 total carries he had across those 5 weeks. His YPC has been the highest of his career.

[GM Dario]

We'll just go with it then. Just let it play out.

Defensively, nothin' really we need to change to deal with their run game and Wright, right?

[Talon]

 

Right.  We just have to play the better game.

[GM Dario]

Then let's get locked in

Brandon to SS1
Driver to SS2
Zamora to SS3

Peters to FS1
Starling to FS2
Zamora to FS3

York INACTIVE

LOCKED IN BABY!!!

[GM Dario]

SEASON 16 - WEEK 15

** no gif due to time constraints **

From the penthouse to the outhouse, welcome to the HIFL. Extremely tough game for us against New Jersey. But we left points on the field but yet we still had a chance to win at the end. I'm not here to point fingers. I'm not here to play coulda-woulda-shoulda. There's an old saying in the HIFLmemes that I'm gonna quote anybody who's gonna ask a question about this game-  "They coach I GM."

But our next two games just went from "like to win" to "gotta win". Our playoff push is not dead but it's definitely gonna need some help. We've got to stack up two more wins and get a little help for the other divisions to give us a shot. But we have to do our part first and that starts with our final home game against the 'Peg. I don't have to blow smoke about our chances, but this is the HIFL and on any given Sunday you've got a chance. We're goin' to have to deal with some guys on the bench due to injury but that's not gonna be our excuse. We're still gonna go out there and do our best to put up one last home DUB and continue our push towards playoffs.

Questions?

****

Coach- heartbreaker of a loss. But like I said to the media, I'm not gonna point fingers. We win as a team and we lose as a team. One thing we don't need-  we got. Two more injuries on the offensive side.

We can put VC at RB2 and drop Charlie down to RB3. We can put Jesus on the bench and bump Atherton and Cahill up to WR3 and WR4. And will use Cahill at KR1 and PR1-  but who else can return kicks and punts?  Timmy White? Jae Mack? Daysam Al-Taalim?

[Talon]

 

Damn hard day at the office... I know people want to say we should go for it at the 1 yard line, but we ran 3 plays each time and failed, we couldnt afford to get nothing there.

Anyways, Daysam should be the new return man to step up. He's hungry for it

[GM Dario]

To the Wigwam!!!

Atherton WR3
Cahill WR4

Cox RB2
Nieves RB3
Kozlowski RB4

Cahill KR1 & PR1
Al-Taalim KR2 & PR2

York & Williams INACTIVE

LOCKED IN BABY!!!

[GM Dario]

SEASON 16 - WEEK 16

** no gif due to time constraints **

So close yet we're still not there. Nothin' but kudos for our team though. We didn't get a chance to send the fans home Happy this time but when you play the defendin' champions, everythin' just has to fit. Losin' Alejandro early, Definitely put us behind the eight ball even more than we already were. Randy did an amazin' job in relief. It was nice to see RW get back on track as well. The defense got to Patty Owen on numerous occasions. But it also showed that we are simply a good team this year and not a great team. But again, I am not disappointed with this team. I am very enthusiastic about this final game against Rapid City and I'm very happy with how the season is gone. We'll talk more about that after Rapid City. Special shout out to Daysam doin' Yeoman's work in a pinch on special teams against Winnipeg. As for this game on the road against Rapid City, we will play to win like we have each and every week. I do not plan on restin' anybody and I do not plan on gettin' anythin' but a ninth win for this season. If There's not any questions, y'all have a good night. We'll see you after the game in Rapid City.

***

Good not great. That's what you told me earlier than year and that's kind of where we've been all season. Good not great. Still not upset of one bit about how this season is played out. We got one more game against Rapid City. I think we will start Randy in place of McGee. We'll leave everythin' else the same. Anythin' else before we close up this week?

[Talon]

 

We can end this season on a freaking high note and build for the future off of it.  This season was still a success, just not as successful as we had hoped.

Lets go kick some ass!

[GM Dario]

For the SkyBear !!!

Hensley QB1
Mack QB2

McGhee, York & Williams INACTIVE

LOCKED IN BABY!!!

[GM Dario]

SEASON 16 - Off-season



Love endin' the season on a high note. Gettin' a good strong victory against one of our arch rivals in Rapid City, brings forth some very good vibes for the off-season. I was happy to see RW get back to his game and  end up strong. Kudos to Randy playin' lights out in a spot start. Big props to Jerry and Walter on the receivin', and I thought the offensive line did a good job. The defense did what it needed to do to ensure we had that ninth victory of the year.

1. What was the best moment for you this season, and what was the worst?

The best moment for the team to me, on so many levels, was that signature win against DC on the road to get that vaunted eighth win of the year. I thought we were a good enough team to get to eight wins when we started the season. We lost a couple we should've won, and to be honest, we won a couple we should've lost.  But gettin' that win at DC when we did not play very good on the road, to lock in the first winnin' season since before I got here, really makes me feel good for our fans, for our players, for our coaches and everybody associated with the Skybear's team.

Worst part of the season was not a public event. But I want to tell you about it now. We had our third loss in a row and we had an in-house meetin' that was kind of like a "check up from the neck up" as one of my old bosses used to say. And I know at that point, we could've gone really far down and lost it all. But I really think that at that low point, we all just kind of said , "you know what we Gotta do. So what we Gotta do it. Let's step up our game and see where this takes us." I don't like havin' to do those types of things.  I like to have a very positive attitude, but I was really worried that the team had lost themselves and I lost the team.


2. How does it feel to be done playing football while other teams advance to the playoffs?

It's bittersweet that we're not playing extra football but we weren't eliminated from the possibility of playing extra football until two weeks ago. So we had the opportunities, and the potential to get in, and to come up two games short this time, as opposed to being 5, 6 or 8 games. Yeah it's not a good thing, but I won't say that it's a bad thing either. It gave everybody on the team a little taste of what to strive for in the future. And I'm OK with that. Yeah I'd like to be playin' some more football.  Right now. I'm pretty happy with where we're at.


3. Who was your team's MVP this season?

There's a lot of Players on this team who really turned it up this season. AMac did a fantastic job in his first HIFL Season. RW and York really set the tone in the run game. Walter was on fire as usual. Jett was solid and professional on the line. Jack was his all pro self. Marks stepped up as a full time starter. Big Bear led us in sacks again. And I really liked how Brandon came outta nowhere and looks to be a future force on this defense.  But the MVP for the team is Jerry Jeudy. I know a lot of people were very critical of tradin' the #2 pick for a cache of picks and Jeudy, but Jerry has been lights out in the pass game and he looks to be one of the top receivers in the HIFL in the near future.

4. How would you evaluate your coaches performance this season?

As a whole, I think that Coach Graham, Coach Cannon, and Coach Shoes exceeded expectations for this team. We thought we would be good enough on both sides of the ball to cause some problems for the rest of the league. And offensively, we showed that. Top-five was not somethin' we expected to see in the offense and I still think we left some points on the table, but what needs to be done in the future is to strengthen the Defense to make it a more complete team. But overall, I'm very pleased with how the coaches worked out this season.

5. How would you evaluate your own performance this season?

As a player, if anybody expected a 38 year old kicker to lead the league in points when you have all of the superstars on every team gunning for that pinnacle, I've got some ocean front property in Skybear Country to sell you. To me, that's an honor to have that points title, but That means we scored field goals when we should've scored touchdowns. And if we scored those six points instead of threes, we would be talking about playoffs right now.

As a general manager, I am extremely pleased with how the season went. We made a couple good moves. We made a couple questionable moves, but all in all, I'm very happy with how things ended up. Lotta personal goals were met when I honestly didn't know if we had enough on the team to do it. I'm sure many of you know that I am extremely confident about my team, whether they are the best team or not. I'm going to be exertin' that confidence. But I feel like the team stepped up their game this season, which in turn, makes me step up my game, which in turn, makes the team better and so on and so on. So I'm very happy with how the season worked out. I'd love to be in the playoffs, but it gives me one more goal to look forward to.


6. Do you expect to be back next season, with this club?

I've said since the season started that I didn't wanna contract extension, based on an IF. I wanted to prove my value to the team and to the High Chief. Technically, I am a free agent, and I'd be a fool not to listen to offers, but I am very loyal, sometimes to a fault. Not only to my players, but to my coaches, and to the staff that works for me. So I will tell you that I want to be in Kansas City next year and for future years, but that somethin' that will be discussed hopefully very shortly.


7. What is your biggest take away from this season?

I asked Coach Graham near the start of the season what he thought about our team. And in an honest assessment, he said that we were a good team not a great team. When you're a good team, everythin' has to be perfect to get those wins. Ya can't make any mistakes. Ya don't have the weaponry or the defense or the players to compensate for those little mistakes. When you are a great team, ya have those attributes available so I think that we are better than we were last year and we were better than we were a year before that. We're not on the level of we're not on the level of DC, Sydney, Miami, Tucson, Vegas or Bama, even though they didn't make the playoffs this year, but we were good enough to get nine wins when nobody expected us to get four. We were good enough to contend for the playoffs up until the last two games this season and we were good enough to turn some eyes away from the other teams in our division and remind people that Kansas City is not just an also ran. So we're a good team, but not a great one...  just yet.

8. What was this team missing?

We need just a little more production out of our defensive line. We had a ton of hurries and knockdowns that needed to be converted into sacks. We need some help in the secondary to stabilize the back half of our defense. We needed a few less injuries. We need a little more luck. Some of those things you can get. But some of those we just have to pray to the Skybear and hope for the best.

Questions?

[Talon]

Scoring Champ, huh?

Congratulations.

[GM Dario]

Definitely didn't see that happenin' at the beginnin' of the season. And I didn't even realize I was that close until it was brought up before the Winnipeg game. And still, I'd trade that scorin ' title for two more wins and a wildcard berth for the team.

We definitely exceeded expectations this year and that's a testament to how good you and your staff did, so I appreciate all the hard work. If everythin' falls in right with the SkyBear, I'll be retainin' you, Coach Cannon and Coach Shoes. I know that some of the assistants may get picked up by other teams, but is there anybody on the staff that you think we should not retain?

[Talon]

 

It will all come down to the budget you give me and what guys cost.  Coaching staff is my job these days.

[GM Dario]

I'll leave it in your capable hands when it's time. You'll have the budget to make that call. Speakin' of Budget, we'll play it out as we're both comin' back to Skybear Country next season.  I'll have to make some decisions as it plays to makin'' the team better.

Along the DLine, we've got Laporta, Koenig and Fullerton return at DT. We only generated 5 Sacks, 14 Knockdowns and 11 Hurries from those 3.  Is that because of Player Capability or Defensive Scheme?

[Talon]

 

None of them are real pressure generators.  Slower, not great tacklers, more space eaters.  I can't say if Ronald Rich dominates in our system until I see him there, but I think the guys we have are just not those types of guys.

[GM Dario]

So Space-eaters are fine if you have D Ends that can generate pressure. And as you said earlier this year, we really needed a top line End to generate the rush since we aren't gettin' it from the DTs. Our starting' Ends just couldn't tap that challenge it seems. Big Bear and Cochran are the only ones under contract next year. Big Bear had 13 sacks but that was just 28th in the league. We sorta know what we have with Ira.  Is there anythin' to mold with in Cochran?

I feel like we should have had more out of the other three. Plunkett was injured part of the season, but Wiley and Levin both had 2nd round values and I just never felt they lived up to it. Wiley was more of a 3-4 End and Levin had a soft Work Ethic, if I remember the scoutin'.

Thoughts on what we could have done differently or was it just Capability again?

[Talon]

 

We have no speed other than Plunkett.   Cochran was a UDFA for a reason, nothing there.

We lack dynamic talent on the defensive line, but I feel like we've established that before.

[GM Dario]

We have. Definitely will be a Priority in the off season.

Linebacker-Wise, the biggest question is out of our hands. Blodgett has a player option for next season. Jack and Marks are locked in, and hopefully Blodgett will return.  I may reach out to Mr. C to see if there's any lean towards stayin'.

The addition of Stones definitely helped the secondary in the short term. Stones would be a great asset but the cost may be more than we can afford, so I guess I'm Askin' did Kieran bring the level up at CB or was it more of a deck chair shuffle of depth with he, Alcantar, Brookins and White?   

[Talon]

 

I think Stones did help us, now is he elite?  No, but he busts his ass on every play and in every practice, he has legit speed, and he showed us he can impact the room

[GM Dario]

Might be worth a single phone call to his agent.  I'll try not to screw it up this time.

Safety wise, I like your Moxie on startin' Brandon from the jump. Still a bit rough around the edges but too five in tackles on the team does same somethin'. After Manny left, I felt like Starling was a little overwhelmed. Peters comin' over in trade helped stabilize the back half. Do you feel Peters can help Brandon and the rest of the team goin' forward?