I'm pretty bored right now so I decided to try this for the first time. It won't be nearly as good as Iggy's and probably not a routine sort of thing but just to jump start the season:
1.) Orange Blood Nation vs. San Antonio Natives
This will probably be the most difficult game to assess because we don't really know the Nation's strengths and weaknesses except their clear level advantage. Both teams come in as 2-0 against the Alpha teams and have similar chemistry levels.
The Natives have a more rounded depth, especially on defense which may prove to be vital in this game. Look forward the Nation to probably pound the ball on the ground to gain the advantage with their larger linemen. I believe this game could either be a close game or a blowout. I'll have to go with the Nation purely because of paper points but I wouldn't be surprised if the Natives pulled it off.
Nations 34 Natives 14
2.) Capetown Cubicles vs. Dragasani Dragons
I'm sure there's no doubt that the Dragons most likely started off as a slow build team and having so far one entire season to do so, the question is do they need one more season in order to be competitive? The level gap, although in favor of the Cubicles, is not as big of a difference as it was last year for the Dragons. They also come in with a full chemistry bar. Nonetheless The Cubicles was a playoff team last season and I don't believe they'll have any drop off this season. If we were gambling, go with the Cubicles.
Cubicles 42 Dragons 13
3.) New Jersey Mafia vs. Stanligrad Loyalists
Here's two teams that showed potential last season to really come back the following season and compete for a playoff spot. The Loyalists undergone a complete rebuild for their team as seen from their Chemistry bar and that might bite them in the ass for the first half of the season. The Mafia is a pretty rounded team except their lacking depth in the Linebacker corp which may be an area that gets exploited in this game. I think this will probably be one of the closest games this week and it's probably anybody's guess. I'll go with the Loyalists for now since they did get a couple new coordinators and it'll be interesting to see what difference that makes.
Loyalists 24 Mafia 17
4.) Draguignan Dragons 83 vs. Rome Raiders
The Dragons had a tough season in season 4 but the good news is that they look like they have improved. Although they have good depth, the lack of active players may be frusterating for the owner and may make it difficult for them the rest of the season if a quarter of their players don't start coming back and checking on GLB. The Raiders are a great team and I'd be disappointed in them if they didn't finish near the top 5 this season. No spotty weaknesses and thus the only way to beat them is to just be better than them. Easy choice this game with the Raiders.
Raiders 52 Dragons 10
5.) Istanbul Anatolian Guard Dawgs vs. Macedonia Marauders
Another close game to watch tomorrow features the Dawgs vs. the Marauders. Both teams look very solid and I can't really provide any deep analysis on this game since there doesn't seem to be any glaring issues. I'd be really surprised if a blowout occurs in this game. My guess is with the Marauders since they have the track record.
Marauders 28 Dawgs 21
6.) Serbian Head Hunters vs. Slobodzeya Es Cargo
The Head Hunters are another team that really had potential last season to rebuild some of their weaknesses and come into this season as a competitive playoff team. They get a pretty good warm up match against Es Cargo tomorrow as I don't believe it'll be that difficult for them. Es Cargo is undergoing a rebuilding process this season and I'll be surprised if they get more than 4 wins this season.
Head Hunters 42 Es Cargo 7
7.) Belgrade Blaze vs. Sevastopol Wolverines
The Blaze comes into this season hoping to show a dramatic improvement from last season. Had this been last season, I think the Wolverines would've probably look past them for their next game but it's not. I think the Wolverines would be foolish to look down on the Blaze but I don't expect them to either, especially after dropping to the Pythons in the playoffs coming in as the #1 seed last season. Unfortunately the rebuilding process has taken a toll on the Blaze's chemistry and that might be a key part to winning this game. I'll have to go with the Wolverines, who I believe will still be a playoff team but may not be the #1 seed this season.
Wolverines 28 Blaze 14
8.) Springfield Isotopes vs. Monty Pythons
Ah, the no biased pick for Game of the Week! Just kidding. The Isotopes started last season with the Pythons and it came down to the very last play of the game with the Pythons leading by 3 and the Isotopes in field goal range. The Isotopes misses the field goal and the Pythons come out with a close victory. I won't analyze my team much but I'll say that the Pythons this season is the real deal. I'll go out on a limb and say they are definitely top 4 material in this conference and it'll be exciting to play them in our first game. The one X-factor in this game is going to be whether or not the Python's chemistry affects their game. It sure didn't with their pre season games but that was against Alpha teams (Sorry Alpha, I had to take a jab at you guys at least once here.)
Good luck and have a great season everyone.
- Rich
1.) Orange Blood Nation vs. San Antonio Natives
This will probably be the most difficult game to assess because we don't really know the Nation's strengths and weaknesses except their clear level advantage. Both teams come in as 2-0 against the Alpha teams and have similar chemistry levels.
The Natives have a more rounded depth, especially on defense which may prove to be vital in this game. Look forward the Nation to probably pound the ball on the ground to gain the advantage with their larger linemen. I believe this game could either be a close game or a blowout. I'll have to go with the Nation purely because of paper points but I wouldn't be surprised if the Natives pulled it off.
Nations 34 Natives 14
2.) Capetown Cubicles vs. Dragasani Dragons
I'm sure there's no doubt that the Dragons most likely started off as a slow build team and having so far one entire season to do so, the question is do they need one more season in order to be competitive? The level gap, although in favor of the Cubicles, is not as big of a difference as it was last year for the Dragons. They also come in with a full chemistry bar. Nonetheless The Cubicles was a playoff team last season and I don't believe they'll have any drop off this season. If we were gambling, go with the Cubicles.
Cubicles 42 Dragons 13
3.) New Jersey Mafia vs. Stanligrad Loyalists
Here's two teams that showed potential last season to really come back the following season and compete for a playoff spot. The Loyalists undergone a complete rebuild for their team as seen from their Chemistry bar and that might bite them in the ass for the first half of the season. The Mafia is a pretty rounded team except their lacking depth in the Linebacker corp which may be an area that gets exploited in this game. I think this will probably be one of the closest games this week and it's probably anybody's guess. I'll go with the Loyalists for now since they did get a couple new coordinators and it'll be interesting to see what difference that makes.
Loyalists 24 Mafia 17
4.) Draguignan Dragons 83 vs. Rome Raiders
The Dragons had a tough season in season 4 but the good news is that they look like they have improved. Although they have good depth, the lack of active players may be frusterating for the owner and may make it difficult for them the rest of the season if a quarter of their players don't start coming back and checking on GLB. The Raiders are a great team and I'd be disappointed in them if they didn't finish near the top 5 this season. No spotty weaknesses and thus the only way to beat them is to just be better than them. Easy choice this game with the Raiders.
Raiders 52 Dragons 10
5.) Istanbul Anatolian Guard Dawgs vs. Macedonia Marauders
Another close game to watch tomorrow features the Dawgs vs. the Marauders. Both teams look very solid and I can't really provide any deep analysis on this game since there doesn't seem to be any glaring issues. I'd be really surprised if a blowout occurs in this game. My guess is with the Marauders since they have the track record.
Marauders 28 Dawgs 21
6.) Serbian Head Hunters vs. Slobodzeya Es Cargo
The Head Hunters are another team that really had potential last season to rebuild some of their weaknesses and come into this season as a competitive playoff team. They get a pretty good warm up match against Es Cargo tomorrow as I don't believe it'll be that difficult for them. Es Cargo is undergoing a rebuilding process this season and I'll be surprised if they get more than 4 wins this season.
Head Hunters 42 Es Cargo 7
7.) Belgrade Blaze vs. Sevastopol Wolverines
The Blaze comes into this season hoping to show a dramatic improvement from last season. Had this been last season, I think the Wolverines would've probably look past them for their next game but it's not. I think the Wolverines would be foolish to look down on the Blaze but I don't expect them to either, especially after dropping to the Pythons in the playoffs coming in as the #1 seed last season. Unfortunately the rebuilding process has taken a toll on the Blaze's chemistry and that might be a key part to winning this game. I'll have to go with the Wolverines, who I believe will still be a playoff team but may not be the #1 seed this season.
Wolverines 28 Blaze 14
8.) Springfield Isotopes vs. Monty Pythons
Ah, the no biased pick for Game of the Week! Just kidding. The Isotopes started last season with the Pythons and it came down to the very last play of the game with the Pythons leading by 3 and the Isotopes in field goal range. The Isotopes misses the field goal and the Pythons come out with a close victory. I won't analyze my team much but I'll say that the Pythons this season is the real deal. I'll go out on a limb and say they are definitely top 4 material in this conference and it'll be exciting to play them in our first game. The one X-factor in this game is going to be whether or not the Python's chemistry affects their game. It sure didn't with their pre season games but that was against Alpha teams (Sorry Alpha, I had to take a jab at you guys at least once here.)
Good luck and have a great season everyone.
- Rich
Last edited Sep 20, 2008 14:35:43
