TEAM: ATLANTA WARRIORS

[GM Lucas]

Thank you, I think this is a big step in the right direction.

[GM Lucas]

Ms. Watson can you get me Coach Bowman.

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Coach Bowman, I have some great news, as I am sure you heard by now, I was able to acquire WR Erik Pitts from Music City. This should give us the target we need to compliment Eric West in the slot and help our Run game. This also got QB Tommy Mazza the big play maker he needs to spread the field evenly and do some great things. Thoughts?

[Talon]

As a coach who's seen him play twice a year in the division, you can't help but get excited to see Erik on the roster.  Excellent move.

[GM Lucas]

I am excited. I can't wait to see what this offense looks like now. Thank you coach. I'll let you go and prepare, he should be here shortly. Once he gets here I'll have him go and introduce himself to you. Just one more thing before you go and then I'll start preparing to get this preseason on it's way. I would like to know how you see the depth chart shaping out as far as starters and bench players go. This will give me an idea of what you see going forward with this team. 

[Talon]

Just like you set it already in the lock in.

[GM Lucas]

Great, Then I'll call in coach Campbell and start putting things down and getting ready to finalize. Thanks coach.

[Talon]

Okay.

[GM Lucas]

Ms. Watson when Mr. Pitts arrives please send him in.

[Talon]

 

Wussup?

[GM Lucas]

First let me welcome you to the Atlanta. I hope your flight was smooth and your check in was easy. Let me just get right to it and say, the fans in Atlanta were warm about our chances before, now everywhere you look people are a buzz. Social media, the news outlets, sports analyst. See, I already felt like we were a rebuilding team on the rise with some really good players and some ballers with some through the roof potential who are ready to shock some people. You dawning that Warriors jersey I believe puts us closer to the now than the later. I hope you are as excited to get started with us as we are to get you starting.   

[Talon]

 

Word.

[GM Lucas]

I would like you to go and meet coach Bowman and Coach Munoz who are excited to start working with you. Coach Bowman had some good things to say about you. If there is anything you need my doors are always open. Welcome to Atlanta.

[Talon]

Word.

[GM Lucas]

great. I'll let you get comfortable. Coach Munoz and Coach Bowman can't wait to meet you.

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- Player Rotation: Balanced
- Tempo: Normal/balanced
- Run/Pass Ratio: 60:40

- Depth Chart Changes:

Collin Leroy called up to the main roster for the preseason
Peter Haney called up to the main roster for the preseason

Game 1

FS 1) Peter Haney  2) Myles bullock  3)Rob O’Shea
WR  1) Erik Pitts  2) Andrew Craven  (Slot) Eric West
RB  (Primary) 1) Daniel Collins   2) Johnny Vasquez  3)Elijah Hood
T   1) Julio Redd  2) Louis Duckett 3) Jamal Seal
C   1) Danny Kirkland 2) Darrell Hendrickson
DT 1) Brian Ezell  2) Rex Mundy  3)George Slender
LB 1) Stephen Leake  2)Harold Van Buren  3) Al Barclay  4)Raul McDowell

KR 1) Collin Leroy   2) Andrew Craven
PR  Coaches decision

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Game 2

RB  (Primary) 1) Daniel Collins   2)Elijah Hood  3) Johnny Vasquez 
WR  1) Eric West 2) Andrew Craven  (Slot) Erik Pitts
FS 1) Myles bullock 2) Peter Haney  3)Rob O’Shea
C   2) Darrell Hendrickson   1)Danny Kirkland
DT 1) Rex Mundy  2) Brian Ezell  3)George Slender

KR Coaches Decision
PR 1)James Cavanaugh 2) Collin Leroy

- Everything else is Coaches' decisions

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In-Season Training Schedule 1
- 1 hours Position Training
- 1 hours Athletic Training
- 0 hour Physical Training
- 1 hours Film Study

Players:
- Rex Mundy
- Harold Van buren
- Darrell Hendrickson
- Allan King


Lock In

[GM Lucas]

Talk about your off-season, what did you like, what did you not like?
Good afternoon ladies and gentlemen, first off It’s finally good to be here at this moment. It was one hell of an off-season for everyone. I personally enjoyed watching the dreams of so many young athletes come true at the draft. And I absolutely enjoyed that with so many new players, we were able to come together as a team, no…as a family to welcome back coach Campbell. I liked how we kept our heads up during coach Campbells absence and get moving forward. As far as pin pointing one thing I didn’t like, well I would have to point the finger at myself. I didn’t like that I promised myself I wouldn’t make any egregious  moves without talking with my owner and coaches and just getting caught up in the excitement of the draft and watching so many team trade so many assets, I got caught up and paid the ultimate price. So, though I think I did a pretty good job with the draft, I learned some hard lessons during it.


How much stock do you put into your teams preseason performance?
Like our organization, both Music City and Seattle are in the rebuilding process so I feel the preseason is like a breath of fresh air for rebuilding teams.  These games are a barometer of how hard these guys are willing to work. There are so many new players and new rookies on all three teams trying to impress. Coaches getting familiar with their talent, trying new things, new formations and most importantly getting their players ready. So, I don’t put to much on the wins and the losses but I do put a lot of stock in the effort I see on the field.


What did you gather from your preseason games?
As a team, I really liked that in both games we controlled the time of possession. I absolutely loved that we were able to run the ball and able to convert on third downs and had few turnovers. Those are all ingredients which could make for a successful season. We saw some great position battles and we saw a lot of these young rookies really make a statement. Don’t get me wrong, we still have a lot to work on but we are headed in the right direction.


What is something you'd like to see your team improve over what they did in the preseason?
Well, when you consider the average age of this team is only 26, and we have over 15 new players spread out at nearly every position I would say we just need time gel. The more we play together the more time we spend on the road, the more time we spend talking about the positives of how we won or what we need to do better in losses the closer these men will become. The more each man on this team will feel less like teammates and more like a bothers


Who was your MVP of the preseason?
Absolutely, without a doubt Coach Campbell. What he went through doesn’t equate with football. The fact he could come back and get back in the drivers wasn’t only inspirational but really helped bring these men together. 


What is your season objective this year, and where do you see yourself finishing the season?
My objective should be what everyone in this leagues objective should be, win games and get better. I'm not going to predict how many wins or talk playoffs because we still have some work to do. I do believe we have the talent to make some noise, put teams on notice and get some positive attention going in this great city. I think we have the coaching, the personal and most importantly the leadership to be a lot better than we were last season. I want us protecting our home field, playing until the clock strikes zero and making sure we punch in, lace up and play hard. We do those things and the objectives will take care of themselves.

[Talon]

Alright, its go time.

[GM Lucas]

I hear you, coach I was impressed by what I saw on both sides of the ball. Now I have a few decisions but before I can make them I have two questions.

First, in each game, DT Rex Mundy and DT Brian Ezell each recorded a sack but I know we maybe shouldn't carry three DT's especially since two are rookies. From what you saw at training camp and preseason, which of the two you think can start in week 1. I will send the other to the minors to begin sharpening and honing his skills.

Second, Who were you most impress with from our rookie class, who do you think needs the most work?

[Talon]

With Mundy being 3 years younger, I'd send him down before I sent Ezell.

As for the overall class, Collins and Redd both stood out, and everyone needs more work certainly. That's why they're rookies.

[GM Lucas]

Thank you coach, the information was very helpful. I'll let you get back to work. I'll call you in once I am ready to finalize our week 1 information.

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Ms. Watson can you get me WR Collin Leroy

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Mr. Leroy, first off let me say I saw you in the preseason and so did the coaches. You made them notice, so much that I am promoting you to the starting line up and you will also be on special teams.

[Talon]

Hells yeah ma'dude!

[GM Lucas]

Congratulations, you worked hard out there and it paid off. Now keep up the good work and who knows Collin, skies the limit.

[Talon]

Yeah man, I'll be on my grind

[GM Lucas]

I'll let you get back with your team mates and continue to prepare for week 1.

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Ms Watson can you get me coach Bowman

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Coach, Seems like Collin won himself a spot on special teams unit, anyone else on this offense you think would help us in the KR/PR department

[Talon]

Eh... West would probably be the best option.

[GM Lucas]

Sounds Good, I'll let you get back to work.

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Ms Watson, if I am seeing  this correct, FB Kevin Mott is available, can you get me his representation please

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Good evening, looking to sign your client for 2 years at 250k per.

[Talon]

Good evening GM Lucas, my name is Riley, I work in the league office.

Going through your recent paperwork we have a major problem.  When you submitted your call up and send down you attempted to send John Flynn to the minor leagues.  That caused a chain reaction that left you with 41 players on the active roster. 

Per the league's rules, any roster violation in salary, PR, or roster limits after the start of the regular season is an immediate violation that will be punished.

Therefor, you have been fined the standard $5MM salary cap fine for this season and next, and will forfeit a roster spot for the remainder of Season 10.  The roster violation puts you $2MM over the salary cap after we processed the move to send Armando Shumaker to the minor leagues. 

You Currently need to reduce your active roster by 1 and shed a minimum of $2MM in salary in order to be in compliance.

You have the option of using your S11 amnesty clause to do this, or you may find another way to comply.

Please do so hastily and be more careful in the future, future violations will only gain severity.

[GM Lucas]

With everything taken care of let's go ahead and get ready for week 1

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(Lucas walks into the locker room)

Gentlemen, if I can have your attention for a moment. Have a few things to say. First and foremost I am honored to be standing here with you men. I love the hard work it took for all you gentlemen to get here today. I want to thank you all for being a part of this team. Now, let me tell you gentlemen something, before we left Atlanta I heard a radio show, not a major company or sports broadcasting channel but still, two guys with a mic and a magazine doing a run down on the entire HIFL. See, when they got to our division, yes I said OUR division, they spoke about about Alabama, Miami, Orlando, Charlotte and Music City. But, when they had a chance to talk about Atlanta they said we weren't worth talking about. One of them even said that we are worst now than this team was last year. I shook my head in disbelief wondering who gave these two so called analyst a mic. I had to change the station, not because they decided to omit us from their conversation, no. I had to change the station because they weren't any different than any of these other talking heads. Just like everyone else, they were following along and playing it safe, singing the praises of Alabama, Miami and Orlando casting us to the side. You know what, the entire league is casting us to the side. No one is giving this team a chance and I love it. You should too. Whatever fuels you, what ever gets your juices going, add this fact to it, everyone has already written us off. See, I love being under the radar. I love being cast off and completely ignored. We will be the underdog in every game so let them put their guard down. Let them think we are a tune up, a warm up or extended preseason. Let them go into our games unprepared. See, I am going to love see you men surprise people. I will love seeing that look on their face when we punch them in the mouth and they have no response. I will love to hear those same two so called analyst have to flip flop and go back on their ill-advised predictions and save face by calling us a surprise story, using words like "Fluke" and "Overachieving". See, for the guys who were here last year, for those who joined us from other teams and for all the men who will be lacing up their boots for the first time in the High Impact Football League, next season is here. I wish I could throw on some pads and a helmet and march on that field, shoulder to shoulder, side by side with you men, you Warriors and just hit somebody. I wish I could share in that raw emotion when you all put this league on notice, but I can't. So, what I need for you all to do is release that tension, get rid of the butterflies and let me hold that for you. Let me hold it because I want each of you to go out there and play like you know how and better. This is a new season gentlemen and I promise, if we play an entire 60 minutes, we will get closer to achieving success. If we play hard, loose and we go and have fun then the rest will take care of itself. Don't forget why you got into this profession, this is football gentlemen. That's all it is, football...but football is our lives. Let's go out there and let the league know we are here to stay. Let's let Alabama know we are renting a space in their house.

WE. ARE. WARRIORS

[Talon]

THE TEAM IS READY

[GM Lucas]

Depth Chart

WR-(1)Pitts, (2) Craven, (Slot) West, (4) Leroy, (5) Flynn
RB-(1) Collins (2) Vasquez (3) Hood

KR West
PR Leroy

All other decisions are coaches

LOCK IN

[GM Lucas]

1.Talk us through this week's game. What did you like, what do you want to see improved?
Some might say what positives can you find when you lose giving up 40, well I did see some positives, one positive, we saw Alicea come in and step up, always good to know we have guys ready to step up and step in if needed. A negative, it was because our starter Tommy Mazza got hurt. Another positive, we controlled the time of possession and managed 18 first downs which will be important going forward as our young players get experience. A negative, we had trouble taking advantage of how much we had the ball and moved down the field. If we can get some points up to match how much we have the ball we should be fine moving forward. A positive, Coach Munoz was aggressive, he put a little fear in their coach, I mean for a team in Alabama who is supposed to be so dominant, who is supposed to run away with the division, to start pulling players in fear of us being so aggressive they might get hurt doesn’t scream strong team. I’m sorry, this is a man’s game, play from clock start to clock stop. I get it though, their coach saw his superstars all get held under 100 yards, I don't think he wanted them to be embarrassed and have to answers questions about, Why weren't they able to move more efficiently against Atlanta?.

2. What did you make of your teams performance, despite the final outcome of the game?
This year is a growing process. We have so many talented young players who need to get used to the speed of the game. We gave up five sacks but our young O-line did pretty well, not having Redd on the line was huge but they showed gumption. When you consider the defense the other team has I think we did a good job moving the ball. West breaking 100 yards, Alicea did a great job coming in and helping us control the clock. Collins ran hard against a very good D-line in Alabama for a score. I personally feel horrible for Tommy having to leave his very first HIFL game, and I feel bad for coach Munoz. He did such a great job in Alabama and that organization continues to show absolutely no respect to a coach like Munoz who has so much success for them. I wanted this game for him more than anything

3.Are there any major changes you see yourself making this week?
To start changing things wouldn’t help our young players gain the experience they need.  A win would have been great to send a message but no one ever really learns from their first win. Learning comes from losing. We are going to have some tough losses and these guys have a lot to learn but I promise you, we will also have some wins.

4. Talk about at least two news stories from this week.
Well it’s always sad to see a player’s season end in week 1. But that is the beast we call football. Take note, after the injury we didn’t see KC suddenly start pulling guys at the end of fear of more injuries because that wouldn’t be football. I digress, another story which quiet honestly wasn't a story to me was Coach Munoz passion, I mean what can I say, I love this guy. First game of the season and he has deal with the arrogance and disrespect from the other sideline. I mean I loved that he called them out. That is what I was looking for, he is aggressive in all aspects of this game the way you need to be. The bigger story should have been why coach Rudino saw fit to treat game 1 like game 16.
 
5. Talk to us about your match up this week.  Where do you see your opponent having an advantage? What is the key to victory?
Listen, Music city is coming in, in a bit of a downswing. A pretty bad off season situation But, they still have some talent and they still have to play, so, like us, we have to go out and play. As long as two teams are on that field anything is possible. We saw they can still put up points so we will need to capitalize on opportunities. I don't know if an advantage can be talked about, they are going through some drastic changes and we are a brand new team with brand new goals and leadership. If there is an advantage I believe it's with our coaching staff and the fact it is our home opener. When you look at the stat sheet and see 18 first downs, we controlled the clock, had a balanced attacked, that is usually the ingredients to get a win or at least be in a good game. So if we can go in there and limit the mistakes we should be able to have a much better outcome which I expect. Being at home always helps especially with the young guys we got out there.

[Talon]

I appreciate what you had to say, and you having my back.

[GM Lucas]

Absolutely coach. I meant what I said not in the presser but also in the locker room. We are not only part of a team but part of brotherhood and that includes everyone who dawns that logo. we'll see them again and it will be a much more different game.

Coach, how is Tommy doing. He took a pretty nasty hit on that safety. I let out a sigh of relief when I saw he didn't show up on the injury report but how is he doing?

[Talon]

 

He's 100% now, we just had to pull him as a precaution.  Didn't want to risk that he had a concussion.

[GM Lucas]

Good call. It was a tough week, but now it's behind us. I know each game we will get better. We have a lot of young talent starting and I know there will be some growing pains but we'll get there, hopefully this week in our home opener against Music City.

Coach, how is Julio looking?. Is he ready or is he going to need another week?

[Talon]

I'd say he's out for 1-2 more weeks, like the injury report says.

[GM Lucas]

Ok coach, thank you, I know it said 1-2 I just was wondering if you had an exact time frame. Let him take the time he needs we are going to need him for the stretch. I'll you start prepping for Music City.

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Ms. Watson can you get me coach Campbell please

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Coach, I am wondering, hdo you change your blitzing ratio per game or do we keep it at a set ratio? Can you tell me what the current ratio is?

[Talon]

No, each coach has their own desired blitz ratio, and that is what we run unless directed otherwise.

I tend to blitz about 20% of the time.

[GM Lucas]

Though I would like to be a bit more aggressive I am not looking to change anything after one week. I trust we will get rolling and I trust your system. I know this defense is going to need time so we are keeping things as is.

Question, Any particular player you think we should monitor, maybe someone who might be struggling and might need to be moved around or subbed in on certain packages.

[Talon]

Not after one game.. most people in this universe do things on a 4-week basis.

[GM Lucas]

I understand. I was just wondering after mini camps, preseason and the first game if you were noticing anything that we should keep an eye on. Thanks coach, will get back with you in week 4. I'll let you start getting ready for Music City.

[Talon]

Alright.

[GM Lucas]

WR Depth Chart
1) Pitts 2) Craven (SLOT) West 4)Flynn 5)Leroy

KR West
PR Leroy

O-line Depth Chart
Julio Redd will sit out due to injury

In-Season Training Schedule 1
- 1 hours Position Training- Danny Kirkland
- 0 hours Athletic Training
- 0 hour Physical Training
- 1 hours Film Study - Tommy Mazza



Everything else is coaches decision.


LOCK IN

[GM Lucas]

Talk us through this week's game. What did you like, what do you want to see improved?

This weeks game wasn’t by any means a barometer of how good I think we can be. Once again, Music City is in a flux, but still in all we won a game we needed to win. We did well with time of possession. We got made some big turn overs from our young guys. It was nice to see our three defensive rookies get on the stat sheet with some drive stopping interceptions including one to the house by James. Mazza got into the End Zone twice and when the game got out of control late in the fourth it was nice to see Alicea come in and continue moving the ball. Our O-line held up nicely and once again no one player other than the Qb managed over a 100 yards against us which is big for a young defensive team.

Through two games this season, who's surprising you for the better, and for the worst?

I don’t know if surprise is the word I would use because I feel like we have a talented team capable of doing some great things the more we go on that field together. I must say though, when I brought Daniel Collins in as a rusher I brought him in for his explosiveness in the running game but is has been a nice surprise to see how well he blocks and just pancakes some of these linebackers and linemen.

Which one-part of your team do you believe is only going to get better going forward?
The comfort level these players have with one another.  We see them starting to come together already with the communication on the field, the 0-line stepping up and how well these players are managing to the speed of the game.

Talk about your news story this week.

Well, what can I say, our young guys had a good game in front of the home crowd which is always a plus. Getting a home opener win is a great way to introduce yourself to your fans.

Talk about at least two other news stories this week.

What about that upset. Congrats to Portland on that big win. This is why as cliché as it sounds it is true blue. Any given Sunday.  These men play with heart, there is honor and integrity on that field and I am sure Portland heard all of the talk about how bad they would be dominated and used it to fuel their victory. As long as men lace up their of boots and tighten their chin straps anything is possible.  Look at what happened in St. Paul. I know Cleveland is a talented team but St. Paul is one of the teams that some of you have making the impact bowl and if not for a return they would have put up a donut.

Talk to us about your match up this week, how do you build on last weeks success?

Well, we go back on the road right over to Charlotte to face the expansion Crowns, but believe me when I say if you see the way they have been playing the last two weeks there isn’t anything expansion about them.  Yeah they are 0-2 but they do a lot of things well like run the ball and get after the QB. Even though our defensive 7 and O-line are going to have their hands full I think we match up well.  We have been moving the ball effectively and really making it difficult for any one player to really stand out against us. When a team plays us they will have to play us as a team and not a few talented individuals. If we do what we did this week next week, I think we have a chance to do some good things.

[Talon]

Win #1 in the books, and in dominant fashion.

[GM Lucas]

Absolutely, we have to build on this and make sure we are making the best of our opportunities and putting away teams like Music City and like our next opponent the Charlotte Crowns which might pose a bit of a challenge. The crowns do not seem to be as far away as these other expansion teams. They have a very talented WR core and we all know what Spurgeon is capable of doing. I think offensively we might have our hands full so I believe the difference will be in how our defense responds.

Any thoughts on how we should approach them as far as depth chart personnel?

How do you feel about our Blitz ratio? I think we can maybe bump it a little to try and force Sullivan into some mistakes or are you happy for now, what do you think?     

[Talon]

 

I know that Coach Carpenter prefers a lower blitz ratio, so I dont think changing it would be very wise.

[GM Lucas]

Understood, I'm thinking, we don't make any changes. Let the guys settle in and continue to grow with the current game plan in place. Do you think the extra time I am giving Mazza in film study is worth it?

[Talon]

 

I think so, he isn't complaining.

[GM Lucas]

Great, I hope the guys can build on this win and we can go into Charlotte and leave with a steak. If nothing comes up, I'll speak to some of the guys and let you start prepping so we can lock in.

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Ms. Watson can you get me Mr. Pitts

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Erik, Great game out there. You made some big catches at important times which really helped us keep some drives alive. But i called you in here just to  see how you are getting situated in Atlanta?

[Talon]

Word. I'm good.