1963 NAAF DRAFT - Round 1

1 - Halifax Mariners - DL Wayne Baxton - Boston, MA
For their first pick as the Halifax Mariners, the team would go with the obvious number 1 pick and take Wayne Baxton. It marks the second straight season that the club takes a DL with their first selection. With DL Pat Butler already looking like a star, Baxton could slot in and make the D-line in Halifax a force to be reckoned with down the line.

Jimmy Yamamoto’s Scouting Report
Baxton is a next-level game-changer on the line. He is great at pushing the O-line back and forcing pressure onto the QB. However, his most unique skill is being able to use his big frame and wingspan to knock down passes out of the backfield. Baxton was certainly one of the most annoying players for QBs to face around the league. Baxton is also a very intelligent player who studies a lot and has every play on the team in his head (both offence and defence). A solid pick for the Mariners to continue to build their team.

2 - Long Island Raiders - LB William Washington II - Albany, NY
The Raiders would be up to pick next and they would land a LB in William Washington II. The younger brother of Boston WR Otto Washington will certainly be looking to make a big impact going significantly higher than his older brother (who went 17th in 1961). Some were a little surprised by the pick, feeling like WR Orlando Barrack and OL Viktor Stahl were better players. 

Vincent Desjardins’ Scouting Report
Washington is a strong aggressive LB that is likely going to create a lot of havoc for teams. He is a general on the field, commanding the middle of the field which makes him a great option for a #1 LB. However, there are some issues with getting a little too aggressive and getting caught out of position. Regardless, Washington looks to be a strong addition to the rebuilding Raiders' defence. 

3 - Buffalo Blue Wings - DB Ezra Power - Providence, RI
The Blue Wings had a tough time with their pick seeing as they wanted to add a DB, WR, and OL which all had top-end prospects available. In the end, they decided to pick the position that had the least depth in the draft and that was DB. 

George Stefanakis’ Scouting Report
Ezra Power is hands down the best DB in the entire draft this season. He is fast and had great agility that allows him to shift directions quickly, which allows him to stay with any receiver. His ability to do so gives him opportunities to make a play on every attempt in his direction. He is a little smaller, which means he can be beaten out by the taller WR’s in the league. 

4 - Indiana Victors - OL Viktor Stahl - Markham, ON
The Victors would continue their streak of OL in the first 2 rounds with their 3rd straight lineman, but there really was no passing on the potential franchise OL who dropped out of the top 3. 

Sterling Brantley’s Scouting Report
Stahl is a wall. He is an excellent outside blocker that will be a major piece to make sure the QB stays upright. Stahl is just a very sound OL that could easily be a franchise piece for the Victors. 

5 - Boston Independents - WR Orlando Barrack - Concord, NH
The Independents were hoping to grab a DB with Ezra Power, however, they may have gotten a huge steal with WR Orlando Barrack. The speedy wide receiver is likely going to add a much-needed weapon to the Boston offence. 

Jimmy Yamamoto’s Scouting Report
An absolute jet, Barrack is a speed demon that will shred secondaries across the NAAF. Barrack grabs a lot of comparisons to a former Boston WR in Samuel Floyd who was a famed speedster. Barrack brings a whole new angle to the Boston offence which has lacked a true speedy weapon that can extend the field. Pairing him up with Braddock will likely create a lot of issues for defences around the league. 

6 - Ottawa Royals - DL Zane Tannith - Hamilton, ON
The Royals early on had a deal in place with the Halifax Mariners to potentially move out of the pick, but with the players the Mariners desired to take already gone, the Royals would keep the pick. They would take an Ontario native in Tannith who will likely be the face of the next generation of the Royals D-line. 

Sterling Brantley’s Scouting Report
Tannith is an interesting piece that is going to be added to the Royals this season. While he has a tendency to be a slow starter, once the game gets going, he starts to raise his game. He has a lot of abilities, kinda can do it all, however, if you catch him off guard early, mistakes are going to be made. 

7 - Long Island Raiders (from Providence) - QB Matt Fletcher - Reading, PA
Outside of the 1st pick of the draft, the 7th was likely the second most predictable pick. The Raiders seemed to have their eyes set on Fletcher and were pretty confident he would be available at the #7 pick. They will add him to an already crowded QB room with Lyle Painter, Terry Bourbon, Stanley Troyer, and Joshua Nolan.

Johnny Singleton’s Scouting Report
A near-complete QB, Fletcher is easily the most well-rounded QB of the group this season. He has great awareness of the field that allows him to see where the defence is moving and where holes are going to form. He can easily hit his target with his throws...well at least within his range which is his biggest flaw. He doesn’t have the arm. Most of his throws come up well short of the target or are just off target. However, this still could work for a team that is a run-heavy team that isn’t going to be asking Fletcher to carry the offence with his arm. 

8 - London Tigers - OL Emil Jennings - Toronto, ON
The Tigers decided to reach back a little bit to get an OL since they’ve lost both OL Kazimir Smirnov and OL Ulysses Fairgrove over the last couple of years. They feel that Jennings could be a great piece to add to the line that could keep the team right in contention. 

Wally Flowers’ Scouting Report
Jennings’ biggest strength is in pass protection, which fits well with the Tigers' heavy-passing offence. A strong player overall that should be a stable piece in the long term. 

TRADE ALERT
The Montreal Rouge were aiming to be aggressive this year after a McCallister Cup appearance in 1962. They decided to go after a strong piece in the offence by stealing a piece from the Long Island “purge”. WR Darryl Duke was rumoured to be in trade talks during the deadline last season but was never moved. Montreal decided to go after and grab the veteran WR. They would also receive Long Island’s 12th overall pick. They would send the 9th overall pick, a 5th from next year, and WR Bernard Sandeirs in return. 

Duke will come into a strong WR core with WR Derek Cross and WR Taylor Karis, which makes Montreal an even bigger threat on offence. As for the Raiders, they get a 3rd 1st round pick and a younger WR in Sandeirs. 

9 - Long Island Raiders (from Montreal) - WR Casey Coleman - Toronto, ON
The Raiders would grab their WR Darryl Duke replacement with Coleman at 9. After drafting Matt Fletcher, the team is hoping to get a top-tier WR for their young QB.

Wally Flowers’ Scouting Report
Coleman is a strong all-around WR with strong hands and good route running. One thing that makes him stand out is his ability to improvise and find open space. It can be an invaluable skill to have at the WR position that could be a major gamechanger in the future. 

10 - Halifax Mariners (from Louisville) - WR Jav Kerrigan - Williamsport, PA
The Mariners had only 2 WRs in their organization ahead of the draft, so grabbing Kerrigan was a strong choice for the team. They are interested in some other talent, but a younger WR is a great option for the rebuilding team.

George Stefanakis’ Scouting Report
Kerrigan is a very friendly guy. Down to Earth and always looking to make others smile. It seems to come from his ability to feed off of the energy of the crowd. His strong connection to people fuels him to perform better in big moments. He is able to make a big play out of the blue or step up when the team needs him most. A strong route runner, but more importantly an excellent catcher. 

Last edited by Wallflower (5/18/2021 5:46 pm)

Seeing one of my prospects getting picked 2nd overall makes me very happy. I'm certain that William will be a key player in Long Island for years to come. Montreal trading Sandeirs is sad to see, but they get some good talent in Duke plus a 2nd round pick to hopefully get the player they want.

Last edited by Kingsfan11 (5/17/2021 6:32 pm)

Slipped the commissioner a 20 so my kid goes higher and I’m still being boxed out of the boys club. Worst part is that the 20 was to move Ken up!

Wallflower wrote:

Thehealthiestscratch wrote:

Slipped the commissioner a 20 so my kid goes higher and I’m still being boxed out of the boys club. Worst part is that the 20 was to move Ken up!

Roger may have given a piece of Monopoly money rather than a Canadian 20...

Oh god.... there's a difference?

1963 Free Agency Part 2

Trade Rundown
The offseason kicked off with a simple trade that would clear some cap space for the Thunder. They would flip DL Clyde Dale to Providence (the team that originally drafted him) for a depth OL in Allen Boyd. Providence got the better player, but it was a necessary move for the Thunder. 

The next trade would be Indiana sending S Gilbert Lopez to the Independents for young WR Otto Washington. Both teams have a lot of players at each position and decided to swap and let other young talents get a shot.

Now for one of the most shocking trades, though not for the reasons that may be expected. The Lyle Painter era in Long Island has officially come to an end as the team has sent him to Indiana. With the other talent the Raiders have brought in at QB, most notably former Indiana QB Stanley Troyer, they didn’t need the struggling QB. Painter’s $36,000 cap hit also wasn’t desirable. In the end, the most surprising part of the trade is what they got back for the former 1st Overall Pick. The Victors only had to give up a 1964 4th rounder and former 4th round pick OL Terrence Patterson. In the end, the Raiders didn’t have a lot of bargaining power and were desperate to get rid of him at this point. 

Despite the low return, the Raiders got from the Painter trade, they were able to get some value elsewhere with a big 5-player trade with the Halifax Mariners. They would acquire young S Eric Willis and RB Bernard Alston. Willis is the main prize with the potential to be a long-term solution at S. Alston is mainly for depth in the backfield. Halifax would receive S Johan Eckhart, WR LeRoy Krueger, DL Martin Garfield, and a 1954 4th rounder. The 3 players will be great for the Mariners to fill out their roster with veteran depth and leadership as they slowly rebuild the team. 

The last of the major moves the Raiders made was sending long-time DB Clinton Gates to Boston for a 2nd round pick, LB Cornelius Mayo, and a 5th round pick. Boston gets the opportunity to round out their secondary with a veteran DB with the move. Boston might have a lot more support for their LB core this season. As for Long Island, they certainly gain a youth and draft capital for their small rebuild. 

The final trade of the offseason would be Boston sending TE Wayne Bruce to Montreal for a 5th round pick. 

Free Agency Recap
Beyond the trades, there were plenty of other players joining new teams. Going down the list QB Oscar Rigano would land in Boston to backup QB Nathaniel Braddock. He did have an offer from his original team of Montreal but desired a fresh start. DB Dennis Kirchner would aim for more playing time in Halifax and will slot in as the team’s #3 DB. There were plenty of WRs available for teams to bring in. The most interesting was WR Trig Jegman, as it appeared a lot of teams were avoiding him due to lots of talk about bad character issues. In the end, only Montreal would be willing to take a chance on the risky pickup. If he stays in line, the Rouge could have a great depth piece in the WR core, but if he continues to have issues, then it could become a distraction. As for the others, Angus Stevenson would head to Providence, Ronald Vernon went back to Boston, and Frederick St. Pierre would land closer to home in Ottawa. The other young WR available, Nick Nacker, would be added to the Mariners lineup this season. Lots of depth signings that could make the difference if top-end players end up going down with injuries. 

Top 25 Free Agents
9 - QB Oscar Rigano LI -> BOS 1Y, $13,000
10 - WR Trig Jegman HFX -> MTL 1Y, $13,000
11 - DB Dennis Kirchner PRO -> HFX 2Y, $14,000
16 - WR Angus Stevenson OTT -> PRO 1Y, $9,000
17 - WR Ronald Vernon PRO -> BOS 1Y, $10,000
18 - WR Fredrick St.Pierre BOS -> OTT 1Y, $7,500
20 - RB Leo Ravelli BUF -> BOS 1Y, $8,000
22 - RB Wally Morton OTT -> PRO 2Y, $5,000
23 - WR Nick Nacker LI -> HFX 2Y, $11,000
24 - OL Jack Workman OTT -> MTL 1Y, $7,500
25 - LB Felix Bender IND -> BUF 1Y, $12,000

Last edited by Wallflower (5/20/2021 10:37 pm)