2004 LFFL Preseason Power Poll

During this fortnight between the draft and the start of the regular season, the weekly LFFL Power Poll presents its draft review and preseason rankings. Sure, not a single down has been played, but the separation has already begun.

These rankings were computed by the following method: Each player on each roster was checked against The Sporting News rankings, which break each position into several categories. Top three classifications of players are premium picks, a notch below, and run of the mill. For each player a team had under the premium picks section, the team received 5 points. For each player under the notch below premium classification, the team received 3 points. For each player that was ranked run of the mill, the team received 1 point. Any player ranked lower than those three categories (ex. reaches and desperation picks) received no points. (Example: Priest Holmes and Edgerrin James are premium picks, 5 pts each; Dominick Davis and Michael Bennett are notch below premium, 3 pts each. Total pts for running back position= 16) Each position received a total score, and each team had a total team score. These scores aided in the rankings, but were not the sole criteria for judging.

2004 LFFL Preseason Power Poll

1) Allentown Iron Men (Overall pts: 43) Being the defending champions of the LFFL should be enough to make Allentown the preseason favorite, but it turns out the Iron Men also had one of the strongest drafts. That, combined with the experience of veteran owner Todd Leight and the youth of his 2004 club, makes Allentown a force to be reckoned with.

The Iron Men are anchored by the one two punch of starting running backs Deuce McAllister and Jamal Lewis. With quality running backs in such short supply, Lewis was a steal with the second round pick. His drug issues aside, there is no reason he shouldn't rush for 1600-1800 yards, or perhaps more should his trial be dismissed or rescheduled. Backup rbs include Chris Brown, Steven Jackson and Duce Staley.

Also looking to score are the Iron Men's WRs, Laveranues Coles, Darrell Jackson and Isaac Bruce. Backups include rookies Larry Fitzgerald and Roy Williams. Last year Allentown suffered from inconsistent play from their wrs. While this year's corps isn’t as explosive, they should prove more consistent.

At tight end the Iron Men scored one of the best in Jeremy Shockey, who is looking to return from a foot injury in order to put up big points for Allentown's offense.

Allentown also has quality quarterbacks with Aaron Brooks and Carson Palmer, reliable kickers with Adam Vinatieri and Aaron Elling, and solid defenses with Dallas and Tampa Bay.

The Iron Men are the youngest team in the league, with 3 rookies and 2 second year players on their rosters. If the running game can produce and the wide receivers play to their potential, Allentown will be a tough team to beat. It's obvious the Allentown Iron Men are serious about defending their title.

2) Koppel Koonhunters (Overall pts: 43) Koppel was one of the strongest teams in the LFFL last year, and it would seem the Koonhunters are ready to pick right up where they left off. The Koonies lost last year’s championship to rival Allentown, and following this year’s draft they find themselves tied with the Iron Men for most quality player points. Koppel equals Klass though, as they offer a solid 2004 team.

Last year Koppel lead with the 1-2 punch of Peyton Manning and Marvin Harrison. This year’s dynamic duo is Daunte Culpepper and Randy Moss. However, Culpepper and Moss came at the cost of accepting middle of the road receivers and running backs. Amani Toomer and Tiki Barber aren’t the Giants they used to be, Eric Moulds had a horrible season last year, Brian Westbrook has durability issues thanks to his size, and Kevin Jones is unproven. That said, it’s very possible that all of the above players may explode and have terrific seasons. There is a definite upside to this Koppel team.

The Koonies did keep their connections to Indianapolis with the drafting of Marcus Pollard at tight end, and have good kickers in Josh Brown and veteran John Hall, and solid defenses with the young teams of Jacksonville and Carolina.

If Koppel’s players can play up to their full potential, then it’s very possible Koppel will have another shot at the coveted championship of the LFFL.

3) Indiana Ignition (Overall pts: 39) Indiana is one of the three new teams in the LFFL this year, but the veteran leadership of owner Ryan Alexander makes this team an instant contender. The Ignition put together a very strong draft this year, drawing the first overall pick. However, the strength of this roster lies in its depth.

With the first overall pick Indiana drafted running back Priest Holmes. While that was no surprise, it was stunning that 19 picks later running back Edgerrin James was still on the board. With that, the Ignition solidified their backfield. The following three picks saw solid wrs Santana Moss, Chris Chambers and Jimmy Smith all fall into the Ignition’s lap. After that, attention was turned to qb with the drafting of Marc Bulger, who, if the offensive line will protect him, can put together a fantastic year.

The depth of Indiana lies with running backs Dominick Davis and Michael Bennett, and developing wide receivers Tyrone Calico and David Givens. Indiana’s kicking tandem of David Akers and Joe Nedney is solid, but questions remain at tight end with sleeper L. J. Smith, and a defensive trio of Minnesota, Seattle and St. Louis which got the Ignition only 2 quality player points. What’s interesting was Indiana’s selection of these three defenses while teams like Jacksonville, Tampa Bay, and Pittsburgh were still on the board.

However, any question marks on this Indiana team are clearly overshadowed by their offense, which includes the best running back in football (even if he did think about retiring during the off-season) quality backups at running back and wide receivers, and a good qb (even if he throws a ton of ints). Yes, the Indiana Ignition have come to play, and the league will find out for sure what this team is made of when they open their inaugural season against fellow expansion team Latrobe on opening weekend.

4) Prospect Pioneers (Overall pts: 35) Last year Coulter’s Cardiac Kids were the class of the LFFL. Losing only one game the entire regular season, they were all but a sure lock to win it all. That is, until they were upset by the Allentown Iron Men in the opening round of the playoffs. While the Pioneers were statistically the best team in the LFFL, they were denied a championship. As they say though, that’s why they play the games. This year though, the Pioneers are clearly weaker on paper to start, and the Leight Trophy they were denied last year will be at the end of a long road, following a tough battle.

It’s obvious though that this years Pioneers will be sink or swim team as they are a team filled with “ifs”. The trio of quarterbacks includes 2 qbs who are due for a breakout year (Plummer and Harrington) and a backup who was a fantasy stud last year (Brad Johnson). However none of these three are a sure thing.

Owner Dan Coulter once called Clinton Portis his “main man”. Well, Coulter and Portis have been reunited again, and it feels so good. Or does it? Portis has moved to Washington, where the offensive line is not even half as good as the one Denver fielded last year. While Portis will get yards and carries, the question is will they be enough? Coulter did keep a Denver connection though, drafting Mike Anderson who when told of his being picked by the Pioneers, promptly popped his groin and went directly to, without passing go, the injured reserve list. On Wednesday the 25^th Prospect picked up Tyrone Wheatley off waivers. While he may be the first team back in Oakland, it has been a long time since the Raiders produced a solid fantasy back. The running back group is rounded out with an older and slower Marshall Faulk and aging Jerome Bettis.

Like Portis, Chad Johnson returns to the Pioneers roster with hopes to make a statement at wide receiver. Following Johnson is number two receiver Peerless Price who looks to have an improved season with a steady quarterback. After Johnson though, the talent drops off significantly, Keenen McCardell isn’t even in camp, and Keyshawn Johnson and Tim Brown aren’t the players they used to be. Also, wide receiver Ashley Lelie is about a stone’s throw away from being a bust. One possibility may be the addition of Marty Booker, who joined Prospect off waivers. He will attempt to steal receptions from Chambers in a weakened Miami offense.

A bright spot on the Pioneer’s roster is Alge Crumpler at tight end, who is an up and coming player hoping for many hookups with his fulltime qb. Also, Prospect is lucky to have the services of an excellent kicker in Jason Elam, along with the services of the best defense in football, Baltimore.

So, IF one of Prospect’s three qbs can step up, IF Portis can find some holes, IF Faulk isn’t too old, IF Johnson isn’t double teamed all year, IF Crumpler is found by Vick, and IF Baltimore dominates as usual, then Prospect can be as good as any team in the LFFL. We’ll find out IF that will be the case when Prospect opens up against Edinburg in week one.

5) Ellwood Dishsoaps (Overall pts: 36) Don’t rub your eyes in disbelief, the Dishsoaps arnt that bad this year. Seriously. Ok, maybe taking Stephen Davis as the number one choice while Culpepper and Moss were still on the board wasn’t the best decision ever, but Ellwood is pretty ok in every position.

At QB Ellwood has last year’s Co-MVP Steve McNair and quality veteran Mark Brunell. McNair is as tough as they come, and with a better backfield should be able to more easily hook up with quality receivers.

If Davis can stay rested and injury free, he is an excellent #1 running back, and Warrick Dunn could have a breakout year. Curtis Martin may be getting older, but he is still the ball carrier Ellwood needs and makes an attractive backup.

The Dishsoaps also have the best wide receiver in football with Tory Holt. Combined with Joe Horn who has promised more game and less show, Ellwood will put 2 great WRs on the field each week. Backups include Joey Galloway, Rod Smith and Reggie Wayne. Each have upside as the #3 receiver, Wayne especially. Also, Anquan Boldin rides the bench nursing an injury.

Ellwood rounds out their team with 3 sets of interesting players, first, two interesting tight ends, with interesting names, Boo Williams and Bubba Franks. Next comes a pair of kicking Johns with John Kasay and John Carney, and the Pennsylvania defense, drafting both Pittsburgh and Philadelphia.

Clearly this team has a chance to outperform last year’s squad, and the Dishsoaps are just a couple of key quality performances away from being a marquee LFFL team.

6) Eastbrook Mooncrickets (Overall pts: 34) Danny Palumbo has successfully made the transition from fantasy baseball to fantasy football with the solid team Eastbrook has put together. From top to bottom, the Egomaniacs are solid.

At quarterback, the trio consists of Trent Green, Jeff Garcia and Drew Bledsoe, each of who have a chance to put together better seasons than the last. At running back, Eastbrook has the best running back in football with LaDainian Tomlinson, probable Denver starter Quinton Griffin and goal line stud T. J. Duckett.

Also, the Egomaniacs assembled a corps of durable and explosive wide receivers. Terrell Owens will benefit from the new location, and Steve Smith and Koren Robinson are on the upswing. Backups Andre’ Johnson and Freddie Mitchell were sleeper favorites and Ike Hillard is an experienced vet who can pinch hit when needed.

Other positions of strength on this first Eastbrook squad include the tight end position, lead by Jason Witten, who could have a breakout season, and kicker stud Jeff Wilkens. The only question mark on this Egomaniac team is the defense, as the Miami defense isn’t what it used to be, and they could be playing from behind most of the year.

All things considered though, Eastbrook is a very solid team, one which will attempt to storm the LFFL and make waves early. If rookie owner Palumbo can keep this team running on all cylinders, then Eastbrook will be a team to watch out for on the schedule.

7) Edinburg Epidemic (Overall pts: 32) Edinburg started strong last year, but faded fast. This year, the Epidemic look to start strong, and stay strong, and that’s not totally out of the question with the team they’ve put together.

At quarterback the Epidemic are strong with Matt Hasselback starting, and Baron von Byron Leftwich and Josh McCown make for good backups. With running backs, Edinburg has one of the best with Shaun Alexander, and Corey Dillon should have a good season if he can be a team player. However, the rb talent drops off after Dillon, as Justin Fargus, Travis Minor, and Ron Dayne don’t exactly strike fear into the hearts of defenses.

There are also question marks at wide receiver, where Andre Johnson is the #1 receiver. Peter Warrick and Deon Branch round out the starting three. Backups Reggie Williams and Brandon Lloyd may not bring the depth to Edinburg that they’ll need deep into the season.

One bright spot for Edinburg is tight end where stud Tony Gonzalez sits atop the pack to give the Epidemic the performance of the wide receiver. Also, Matt Stover is a quality kicker and the Buffalo defense should provide adequate points.

So, while qb and te are solid, the questions presented by the wide receiver position might be a serious problem for the Epidemic, but it’s certainly not impossible for this team to perform.

8) Chewton Champs (Overall pts: 29) Chewton looks better on paper than the overall quality player points suggest. Donovan McNabb at qb should be much better this year than last now that he has an actual legitimate receiver to pass too, and Brett Favre is a great insurance policy to have at such a valuble position.

However, quality issues exist at running back and wide receiver, where the only marquee player is Ahman Green. Second rb Charlie Garner is questionable at best, and Eddie George is old at best. Julius Jones adds some youth (to balance George’s age) and Musa Smith might get carries if Jamal Lewis is sent away where he has to bunk with a fat man named Tiny.

Derrick Mason looks to have a better year than last, and Donte’ Stallworth will attempt to have a breakout year. However, the rest of the wr crew, Rod Garner, Marcus Robinson, and Alvis Whitted aren’t the guys you want to round out your starting three. Considering Robinson’s injuries and fall on the depth chart, the Champs added Nate Burleson from waivers and will keep the two on the bench until the depth chart is settled.

Tight end Todd Heap is valuable as Baltimore’s best receiver, and will hopefully produce much need points. Mike Vanderjagt was the league’s best kicker last year, connecting on every field goal and point after. Now he’s on the Champs roster. The squad is rounded off with the Denver defense, which is improved with the addition of Champ Bailey and John Lynch.

All in all, Chewton is not in as good a shape as they were last year after the draft, but with the right roster moves and plays, the Champs might be able to get out of the basement. Chewton Champs woooo!

9) Latrobe Brewers (Overall pts: 27) Latrobe, lead by first year LFFL team owner Lisa Andrews isn’t as bad as the quality player points suggest, but they do have some glaring question marks that’ll have to be addressed or answered before they can hope to reach the upper echelon of the league.

The strength of this team is obviously quarterback Peyton Manning. Manning is a fantasy gem, and there’s no reason he can’t improve upon his game from last year. Backup David Carr isn’t good enough to start on a regular basis, but if facing a favorable match up, he may make for a good bye week play.

At running back there are three main questions: Durability, Committee Play, and Age. Fred Taylor anchors the running backs, but many see him as an injury waiting to happen. Second are the duo of Travis Henry and Willis McGahee. Both are quality running backs, both should be starters somewhere. Problem is, they’re on the same team, and it doesn’t look like that’s changing. Who will start? Who will get the carries? Who will get the most when it counts? This one is up in the air right now, and will make for a difficult decision come game time. Finally, Emmitt Smith found a home in the LFFL, but at age 74 can the NFL’s all-time leading rusher really get it done anymore?

With wide receivers Hines Ward and Javon Walker, Latrobe fields two of the leagues best go to guys. Tommy Maddox trusts Hines Ward with his life and Brett Favre and Javon Walker are best buddies on the turf. However, after the top two the talent drops off, with underperforming/underwhelming Muhsin Muhammad, Bobby Engram, James Thrash, and Buffalo rookie Lee Evans finishing off the corps. Depth will be problem on bye weeks for Latrobe.

At tight end is rookie Kellen Winslow II, who is just one tirade from NFL anger management therapy. The Power Poll looks forward to Winslow snapping at some point during the season, possibly fatally injuring someone. Winslow will either be a boom or a bust, as his talent will either surpass that of the defenses who will try to welcome him to the NFL in their own special way, or he will be folded in half the first time he’s hit by Ray Lewis. Either way, it’ll be entertaining, and it could make or break Latrobe’s year.

Reliable kicker Ryan Longwell joins the Brewers to nail long field goals, and the Indianapolis defense will attempt to score some points for Latrobe.

All in all, Latrobe has not put together a bad team, just not a very deep team. How long this team can maintain winning ways without a stocked bench is anyone’s guess, but anyone who remembers last season will tell you that Prospect didn’t win all but one game in the regular season just because they were good, they won because they filled holes with quality players that didn’t skip a beat. That could be a problem for Latrobe this year.

10) Akron Assault (Overall pts: 31) Akron put together an odd draft this year, leading many to wonder if the chemo has finally gotten to owner Ryan Alessio. However, after further investigation, the Power Poll has found out that Alessio wasn’t ever on chemo, suggesting that maybe he’s just not very good at drafting.

The draft began with Akron taking QB Michael Vick 4^th overall. With so few quality running backs out there, and Clinton Portis, Shaun Alexander, Deuce McAllister, Jamal Lewis and Stephen Davis all still on the board, its boggling that Akron went with Vick, even with stud QBs Daunte Culpepper and Peyton Manning still undrafted as well. Sure, Vick is good, but is he so good you can go without the guaranteed quality of a stud RB or the thousands of yards that Culpepper or Manning provide? Only time will tell it seems.

Tom Brady and Eli Manning round out the backup qbs, and provide significant depth at the position for the Assault.

At running back Akron had to settle for Rudi Johnson and Thomas (Tom) Jones because for some reason, by the time they were drafted, all the stud running backs were taken. Also, the Assault reverted to classic form with the drafting of Cleveland’s Lee Suggs in the 9^th round. Should Stephen Davis go down, DeShaun Foster will get the carries to make him a quality number 2 or 3 running back.

Marvin Harrison makes for a fantastic wide receiver, but the talent drops off significantly with Charles Rogers and Plaxico Burress rounding out the top three. With the number 4 receiver comes yet another Cleveland player, Quincy Morgan, taken in the 15^th round. The bottom two wide receivers are Robert Ferguson and Donald Driver, who was stunningly drafted, in the 11^th round no less.

On the plus side Akron has solid tight ends in Randy McMichael and Antonio Gates. Cleveland kicker Phil Dawson was drafted in the 16^th round, ahead of Joe Nedney, Sebastian Janakowski, John Hall and Aaron Ellings.

The strongest position on this team is the defense, with one of the best in New England.

For those of you counting at home, Akron only drafted 3 Cleveland players this year, which is 2 less than last year when at one point they housed 5 Cleveland players (Couch, Green, K Johnson, Heiden, Dawson).

If the wide receivers can produce, and Vick stays off the bench, Akron may have a chance this year, but they’ll have to make a move fast, because with powerhouses such as Allentown, Koppel and Indiana ready to roar, they’ll be left in the dust fast.

Well, that does it for the preseason power poll. Hopefully it has introduced you to the other teams in the league and gives a better overall picture of the league and stirs up some debate.