Like the look of Detroit, especially the D. Reminds me of the Tigers, and that's a good thing IMO.

1956-57 Offseason

Retirements

QB Gilbert Clay
College: Kansas
Teams: Tri-Cities Black Hawks/Hawks (1946-1956)
AFL Championships: 1 (1950)
Awards: Most Valuable Player (1950)

In college, Clay was a pretty good but not amazing player. He only got a single contract once he graduated college, and not even for the team that was closest to him. He would have to travel to Iowa, joining the Hawks just a year after they won their second title in the MWFC. He was brought in as an extra player in case of injury, not taking a single step on the field due to the regular starter going down with injury. He lit a fire under a Hawks team that was starting to be past its prime, taking the Hawks to finish runner-up in his second year as a starter. His play transferred well into the AFL, winning the first Most Valuable Player award and taking the Hawks to win the first championship in the AFL. For a future that would look so bright, that 1950 season would be his peak. He was never able to replicate that season’s success, only leading the Hawks to an additional playoff berth in 1955 and failing to win any awards. His time with the Hawks was rapidly coming to an end, as he was preparing third overall pick Rocco Vanthourenhout to be the new starter once his contract expired. Instead of being traded to the New York Lions, Clay retired playing his entire career with the Hawks. He’s not done with football just yet, as he’s returning to his alma mater to become their quarterbacks coach.



RB Calvin Townsend
College: Pittsburgh State
Teams: Pittsburgh Shamrocks (1947-1949), Buffalo Hammers (1950-1956)
All-AFL: 1 (1952)
All-Star: 3 (1952, 1953, 1954)

Townsend was drafted out of hometown Pittsburgh State to the Shamrocks to become the potential understudy of legendary RB Lonnie Douglas. Unfortunately, he was usurped by Marion Waters and was cut after riding the bench for 3 years. He then signed with the Hammers, and took over the starting position in just his first year with little resistance. He was a staple of the Buffalo backfield for several years, translating into the AFL with three straight All-Star appearances and an All-AFL nomination in 1952. The Hammers have never missed the playoffs while he was trusted as the tailback, but his abilities have decreased over the past two years and has been consistently getting out-snapped by RB Tyler Dye. Even in his relatively short stint in Buffalo, Townsend will finish his time as the all-time leader rusher and all-time rushing touchdowns leader on the Hammers.



WR George Payne
College: Michigan A&M
Teams: Detroit Knights (1944-1951), Tri-Cities Hawks (1952-1956)
All-AFL: 1 (1951)

Payne was signed by his hometown team after most of the team had been drafted to war. He quickly rose to become the number 1 receiver on the team, almost winning the MWFC title twice in 1944 and 1947. He paired well with rising QB Roy Woodward as the Knights always finished in the top 4 in his time in the Championship, but the switch over to the AFL made him never truly reach his potential. His peak was the 1951 season, making the All-AFL team and would have made the All-Star game had it existed a year earlier. Tri-Cities wanted to revitalize their offense after a shocking down year, and traded for both Payne and Detroit OL Cecil Martin in exchange for a plethora of draft picks. Unfortunately, the deal was a wash on both sides. Detroit didn’t get anyone that was worthy of replacing two of their best players, and Payne quickly lost snaps to both WR’s John McLean and Max Ausloos over the years. His last year was the most tragic, not getting a single start and seeing his snaps get fewer and far between. Seeing the writing on the wall, he retired after a fairly productive 13 year career.



WR Bernard Clarke
College: Miami Valley
Teams: Buffalo Hammers (1946-1956)
NYPL Championships: 1 (1948)
All-AFL: 1 (1952)
All-Star: 1 (1952)

The Hammers had lost a majority of their 1942 NYPL championship team due to the war and leaving for the MWFC, and Clarke was just one of many players Buffalo signed to potentially replace them. He would eventually be paired with WR Ben Ferrell, and that tandem helped the Hammers rebound to win their final NYPL title in 1948. Clarke would see similar success in the AFL, making an All-Star and All-AFL appearance in 1952. He was outshadowed by the emergence of Ferrell, but still made the impact before the Hammers drafted their replacements in back-to-back drafts. With Harry Chilton and Julian Washington set to fully replace the original Hammers wide receiver duo, Clarke called it a career after 11 productive years as a top-end receiver.



Other Retirements

OL Gerald Sweet - Northern New York
Teams: Buffalo Hammers (1945-1956) - All-AFL: 1 (1952) - All-Star: 1 (1952)

Sweet almost started every game for the Hammers during his tenure, only missing 6 total games across his first 11 seasons played. His impact was immediately seen by the league, making the inaugural All-Star game and being named to the All-AFL team in the same season. He missed the entirety of the 1956 season, with an injury bad enough that forced him to retire earlier than he had wanted.

DET TE Frederick Arthur - Indiana
Teams: Detroit Knights (1947-1956)

A very solid tight end in Detroit, though was never able to reach the peak as the player he replaced, TE Francis Sellers. He would get starting snaps in his 3rd year, and the Knights had enough faith in him to replace Sellers and gave him a hefty contract, one of the largest for a tight end. That contract would end up not looking great for Detroit, as Arthur quickly fell off after getting the starting job.

Coaching Changes

Cleveland’s 1954 season seems more likely to be a fluke, and owner Ike Schwann realized this after the Crows put up their worst record since the 1952 season. He still had faith in his coordinators, but stepped down from the head coaching position realizing he was no longer able to take them over the top. Another team had a similar revelation, as the Pittsburgh Shamrocks have not made the playoffs since their title appearance in 1953. Owner James O’Leary was forced to resign from the head coach position after three straight seasons under .500 after most of the core that took them to the championship was either dealt away or retired. Only two other teams made any sort of firings, both letting go of their OC and DC after disappointing starts. New York got rid of OC Sam Palmer and DC Ross Pittman after two horrid years with the same expectations as their marginally more successful expansion brother Boston. Tri-Cities made a similar move, with owner Bob Hester firing OC Milton Wheeler and DC Calvin Frost after neither could turn around the Hawks back to title-winning form.

The Crows were the ones to make the first move, making Boston DC Benjamin Chambers their first head coach other than owner Ike Schwann. The Dragons’ defense last year was one of the best the league had seen, allowing the fewest points in a season since the 1951 season, and Chambers’ adjustments from year 1 to 2 was the main reason why. He elevated a unit that was able to punch well above their weight, and with the limited options in Cleveland he should hopefully make a great fit. Boston would promote LB coach Garry Jefferson to their now-vacant DC position, helping LB Bob Jessup win Defensive Player of the Year in just his second year.

Tri-Cities were the quickest to fill their coordinator positions, promoting quarterbacks coach Cliff Hobson and defensive backs coach Francis Mann to become the new offensive and defensive coordinators, respectively. Owner Bob Hester wanted to save the expenditures of interviewing coaches not already within his organization, making this a fairly risky maneuver to bring the Hawks back to relevance in the current state they are in.

New York, on the other hand, was willing to spare no expense to bring in the top coaches for their coordinator positions. They wanted to lure two of the top coordinators, Cincinnati OC Lester Kimball and Washington DC John Norman, to their vacant spots, but they made it clear they were only looking for head coaching positions outside of their current jobs. They instead turned to some of the better names in college ball. The Lions managed to bring back Lonnie Gibbons to the pros as their OC after a successful three year stint as Michigan’s head coach. Gibbons had been the offensive coordinator for the Detroit Knights for the 1952 and 1953 seasons, but was let go after he was not able to fix the many problems plaguing the Knights. He went on to land the Michigan head coaching job, making a bowl game in every year he was coach and finally won his first year before getting poached back to the AFL. Their DC came from a similarly prestigious football school, hiring Brooklyn College DC Oscar Hendricks. The Terriers have not been the same dominant team that they once were during the 40’s and early 50’s, and Hendricks jumped ship to the pros in hopes of revitalizing a fairly mediocre defense.

Pittsburgh made a major shift in terms of who they hired. With the team’s history in mind, they would have gone after top DC in Washington’s John Norman. Instead, they hired Cincinnati OC Lester Kimball as their newest head coach. Kimball was brought in in Cincinnati to reshape an offensive unit that had significantly declined since their first AFL championship appearance, and immediately made it to two straight titles in his two years with the team. The Shamrocks seem to be shifting more towards their offense, and bringing in one of the best offensive minds in the game could breathe life into a stagnating offensive unit. Cincinnati would poach the college level to replace their OC, hiring Calvert OC Hugh Vogel to replace Kimball. Calvert’s offense has been the reason why they’ve stayed at the top of the college football world, and taking the top offensive coordinator at the college level will more likely than not keep the Rivermen in title contention.

OUT:
BOS DC Benjamin Chambers (Left for CLE HC)
CLE HC Ike Schwann (Resigned)
CIN OC Lester Kimball (Left for PIT HC)
NY OC Sam Palmer (Fired)
NY DC Ross Pittman (Fired)
PIT HC James O’Leary (Resigned)
TRI OC Milton Wheeler (Fired)
TRI DC Calvin Frost (Fired)

IN:
BOS DC Garry Jefferson (Promoted from LB Coach)
CIN OC Hugh Vogel (was Calvert OC)
CLE HC Benjamin Chambers (was BOS DC)
NY OC Lonnie Gibbons (was Michigan U. HC)
NY DC Oscar Hendricks (was Brooklyn College DC)
PIT HC Lester Kimball (was CIN OC)
TRI OC Cliff Hobson (Promoted from QB Coach)
TRI DC Francis Mann (Promoted from DB Coach)

Trades

As soon as Bob Hester took full control over the Hawks, he immediately began looking to shed salary, paying no mind to how popular the player was with the fans. S Tom Meltzger had just gotten an extension the year prior for his play, making two All-Star games in the previous two years. Hester wanted to get rid of him in favor of cheaper talent, and the first big bidding war of the offseason began. Boston, Buffalo, and Chicago would end up being the final three suitors, but Chicago backed out due to pursuing another player and couldn’t split assets. The bids between Boston and Buffalo were extremely similar, but ultimately Boston would get Meltzger in exchange for their 2nd round pick this year picking 22nd, their 5th round selection next year, and two players from their ASPFL team (RB Peter Moss and OL David Rodgers). The Dragons had made their first playoff appearance in just their second year after their inaugural season didn’t meet the high expectations for the team, and pairing Meltzger with S Carl Allyn could be enough to keep up with the Federals in the East.



With the Crows on the downturn for several years since their championship appearance, star DL Fergus Prenderghast made it clear he did not want another contract from Cleveland. The team brought in Ralph Rogers from Tri-Cities for a haul in an attempt to make it back to the title and create the league’s best defensive line tandem, but neither came to fruition how the Crows wanted it to. Prenderghast wanted to play for a team that would win titles, and all but refused to show up for any team-related business. Other teams caught wind of the situation, and began to bid and outbid one another to land the 4-time All-Star and 3-time All-AFL player. 5 teams in all got consideration: Boston, Chicago, Cincinnati, St Louis, and Washington. They each started at similar bids, but the Hogs were the first to back down after all the other teams added on to a similar compensation they gave to acquire LB Barry Moore last year. Boston would bow out of the competition shortly after for staying put on their offer and not adding additional draft picks, and also from not wanting to overspend after using draft picks on another player. It was then down to either Cincinnati, St Louis, or Washington as his final destination, and ultimately Prenderghast would travel south to become a Cincinnati Rivermen. The trade deal was the largest for a single player, as the Rivermen sent their 1st and 5th round picks this year and a 3rd rounder next year, as well as sending over WR Harvey King and 2 players from Hartford to fill in their gaps on the defense. The Crows could regret sending over possibly the best player in the league to their division rival, but the compensation they got for him more than makes up for it. The Rivermen now have two of the best defensive linemen in the league with Prenderghast and JJ Worthington both about to enter their prime, possibly extending their championship window for another couple of years.



The next trade that came into the commissioner’s office quite literally shocked the league. It was known that the Hawks wanted to shed salary, but the deal Bob Hester sent to St Louis sent Davenport into a frenzy. Two fan favorites were sent over to the Stallions, RB Spike Roosevelt and hometown hero WR Max Ausloos, in exchange for a 1st and 5th round pick next year and a 2nd rounder in 1959, along with St Louis sending RB Daniel Wall and WR Marcus Ayers as replacement players. When news got to LeClaire Field, fans protested outside the stadium against their new owner gutting the team for all it was worth. Hester had another trade proposed, one where he would have sent QB Gilbert Clay and DB William Owens to New York, but the trade never went through because Clay refused to play for any other team than the Hawks, retiring instead of playing for another team. With most of their star players gone, Tri-Cities are not expected to be a good team, and Hester has done little to replace the traded players with similar talent. St Louis on the other hand made out like bandits. Roosevelt will make a great starting running back along with 2nd round pick Andrew Outlaw in the backfield, while 2-time all-star Ausloos will become the number 1 receiver QB O.J. DeMille has sorely needed, meaning the Stallions are more than likely here to stay in playoff contention.



Losing out on both Tom Meltzger forced the Hogs to desperately search for a quality safety with limited options. Of their other two safeties not named Jeffrey Irwin, they had cut one to make room for Meltzger and the other was young and inexperienced. Detroit had heard their woes and decided to make S Charlie Fischer available for trade. Despite an excellent rookie season, he hasn’t been the same since that season and failed to live up to those post-year 1 expectations. The Hogs originally gave up a 2nd and 5th round selection, but Detroit forced them to include TE Billy Phelps as well, having just lost starter Frederick Arthur to retirement. It could have been seen as a bit of an overpay on Chicago’s part, but they were willing to do anything to get a viable safety tandem and stay relevant in the West.



The New York Lions had acquired QB Roy Woodward in an attempt to kickstart their franchise and become relevant. They had hoped he would go back to his glory days of before the AFL, but in the two years they’ve had him he did not go back to said form. With backup QB Gary Byrne performing decently in Woodward’s absence, the Lions decided to move on from that experiment. Philadelphia was looking to draft a quarterback in the upcoming draft and wanted a veteran to help develop the new QB. They would ultimately swap QB’s, with New York sending Woodward and Philadelphia sending QB Freddie Hughes and OL Brian Harper from their ASPFL team. The Lions would have a competition for the starting position between Hughes and Byrne as well as offensive line depth, and the Rattlesnakes got a decent starter for cheap while developing whichever QB they would eventually draft at the number 2 spot.



C&C Appreciated! The retirements section got a bit of a facelift (though I'm sure you know where the format came from) since we're getting to the point where more "notable" players are starting to retire. I've already made the upcoming draft class but still feel free to submit for the future.

1957 Draft Preview

AACA Top 20:
1) Alabama State - 10-0
2) Ohio - 8-1
3) Michigan A&M - 8-1
4) Oklahoma - 9-1
5) Navy - 8-1-1
6) Iowa - 8-1-1
7) Mississippi - 8-1-1
8) Marsh (TX) - 7-3
9) Nebraska State - 8-2
10) St. Joseph’s - 6-3
11) Texas - 6-3-1
12) Arizona - 10-0
13) McTyeire (TN) - 7-3
14) Mississippi A&M - 6-2-1
15) North Carolina - 7-1-2
16) Northern Oregon - 6-2-2
17) Chicago Christian - 6-2-1
18) Army - 7-2
19) Wisconsin State - 6-3
20) Monticello (VA) - 9-0-1

AACA Bowls:
Tournament of Roses Bowl (Los Angeles, CA) - (5) Navy 10-7 (16) Northern Oregon
Palm Bowl (Miami, FL) - (7) Mississippi 48-21 (15) North Carolina
Magnolia Bowl (Houston, TX) - (4) Oklahoma 20-7 (8) Marsh
Columbian Bowl (Chicago, IL) -  (2) Ohio 34-20 (6) Iowa
Gold Bowl (San Francisco, CA) - (3) Michigan A&M 37-21 Los Angeles State
Cigar Bowl (Tampa, FL) -  (10) St. Joseph’s 3-0 (13) McTyeire
Syrup Bowl (New Orleans, LA) - (14) Mississippi A&M 39-7 (18) Army
Sun Bowl (El Paso, TX) - (9) Nebraska State 26-27 (12) Arizona
Orange Bowl (Orlando, FL) - (20) Monticello 9-10 Western Tennessee

AFL Top 25 Prospects
1) OL Victor Gallagher - Maine State - Darknes
2) OL Jerry Wineberg - McTyeire - Wallflower
3) QB Raymond Oram - Nebraska State - DireBear
4) RB Felix Filipow - Michigan A&M - Wallflower
5) DL Hank Jonas - Western Tennessee - DireBear
6) RB Duke Cooper - Alabama State - TheEnigmaticOne
7) WR John Waterloo - Georgia A&M - idm
8) WR Gene Cockburn - Superior State* - Dan O’Mac
9) TE Zebulon Jackson - Central Tennessee - QCS
10) DB Julian Morgan - Georgia A&M - Kingsfan11
11) S Roger Cedrick - Oklahoma - DireBear
12) OL Harold Blackmore - Miami Valley* - Wallflower
13) QB Jasper Grimmes - Georgia - The EnigmaticOne
14) S Sam Salmon - ULA - idm
15) TE Corky Jones - Michigan - Wallflower
16) TE Clem Carter - Vermont - Dan O’Mac
17) QB Dalton Dart - Chicago Christian - Stickman
18) DB Chris Hockenson - Ohio - Jayhawk
19) WR Elliott Branson - Chicago Christian - Kingsfan11
20) RB Rick Goldberg - University of the Bronx - joho42x
21) WR Darius King - California State - Darknes
22) DB Fred Alliston - Louisville State - Wallflower
23) LB Hugo Hoelgebaum - Wisconsin State - Dan O’Mac
24) LB Howie Weinmaster - Colorado State - Dan O’Mac
25) S Erik Forrest - Northern Oregon - Darknes

For the first time in their program’s history, Alabama State claimed a piece of the national title after going undefeated in the regular season. In what seems to be a recurring trend around college football, the Southern Conference barred them from taking place in a bowl game after paying two high school students $500 apiece to come to their school. The Big Blue would win the poll amongst the press, but Ohio would win the coaches’ poll after defeating Iowa in the Columbian Bowl 34-20. DB Chris Hockenson would get two interceptions off of the Falcons, setting up QB Christopher Wilke on two of his touchdown passes to TE Nate Coleman and a good ground game from RB Billy Eagle. Another debate raged on between the press, arguing over which player should win the coveted Bernheim Trophy. Michigan A&M RB Felix Filipow was seen as the early-season favorite, who was an elusive back who was able to bob and weave his way through defenders in the first games of the season. He would make a statement game in San Francisco, torching the LA State defense for 200 yards on the ground and 3 touchdowns. However, he would gain some contention throughout the year. The most obvious would come from what would be the top team in the nation, as the Big Blue were led by the bruising RB Duke Cooper. Cooper wasn’t the fastest back around, but could run over defenders once he got going. Cooper would not get an extra game to show off his ability because of Alabama State’s bowl ban, but was still regarded highly as one of the best prospects coming into the AFL. Two other players also got serious consideration, and essentially came out of nowhere mid-season. For the first time in the trophy’s history, an exclusively defensive player received votes. That player would be Western Tennessee DL Hank Jonas. Jonas relied a lot on his strength to overpower offensive linemen, utilizing it to his fullest extent to bully his way to the backfield. His efforts awarded the Fightin’ Catfish an undefeated season and their first-ever bowl game, and Jonas terrorized 20th ranked University of Monticello to an upset 10-9 win in the Orange Bowl. Jonas may have been one of the first to get first place votes for the Bernheim Trophy, but came up just short in fourth place, the highest for a non-two-way defensive player. The player that came out of nowhere to contend was Nebraska State QB Raymond Oram. He became the starter in his junior year and was satisfactory, but improved significantly in his senior year. He dazzled the Missouri River Valley Conference by being able to throw to any of his receivers, regardless of how open or covered they were. He appeared to lead a game-winning drive in the dying seconds of the Sun Bowl, throwing a ball to the corner of the endzone to take the lead with just seconds to spare. Unfortunately for the Bulls, the Arizona Blazers would get just enough yards to kick a walk-off field goal and stay undefeated on the season. In a shocking twist, Oram would controversially win the Bernheim Trophy, beating out both Filipow and Cooper by less than 10 points, one of the closest votes in the trophy’s history.  In the fallout of the Red River Conference scandal, Marsh University in Houston arose from the ashes to win the conference title over traditional state powerhouses for the first time in nearly two decades. Unfortunately, they had to play an Oklahoma team that suffered their first regular season loss in nearly 5 years, as S Roger Cedrick intercepted three passes off of two different quarterbacks to cruise to a 20-7 victory. Navy got a rare bid to the Roses Bowl, with an 8-1-1 record being better than the ECC conference champion. The Sailors played a nailbiter against Northern Oregon, starting out on the wrong foot after Bruins S Erik Forrest jumped in front of a pass for an early interception. The game would be a slow burn, as Navy retook the lead on a late touchdown and held on 10-7. Army didn’t fare as well against their opponent in the Syrup Bowl, only scoring on their first drive before getting outscored by the Mississippi A&M Magnolias to ultimately lose 39-7. The Magnolias’ in-state rivals also took part in a fairly high scoring matchup, as the Mississippi Wildcats took care of the North Carolina Rams 48-21 in the Palm Bowl. Upstate in Tampa, the Cigar Bowl was anything but high scoring. McTyeire played their best football in nearly three decades, tying for second in the SoCon and elected to play against St. Joseph’s in the Cigar Bowl rather than play another southern opponent. Top OL prospect Jerry Wineberg protected the outside for his QB pretty much all game, but the Griffins shut down the Titans offense to narrowly win 3-0 in a poor offensive showing all around.

A majority of the draft talent going to the AFL was not featured in a bowl game this year, as the two best prospects are offensive linemen. Jerry Wineberg is one of those, who will probably be taken by a team that favors the pass given his strengths. The other top lineman is Victor Gallagher out of Maine State, whose immense physical prowess will likely put him on a team that heavily utilizes the run game. Outside of Filipow and Cooper, the next best RB is Rick Goldberg from the Bronx, whose elusiveness and ability to read openings made him similar to Filipow, but lack of ball security has dropped his stock slightly. Wide receivers are few and far between outside the top 4 prospects. John Waterloo from Georgia A&M is the best out of the 4, who is a good all-around player but did have a knack for finding a way to get open when plays broke down. Chicago Christian’s Elliott Branson and Cal State’s Darius King are seen as a slight step down from Waterloo, but each have the potential to be as good as the latter. Branson is a deep threat that is able to contest for catches, while King thrives on making big plays with his vertical. The last receiver is from the Lower Division, as Gene Cockburn from Superior State (WI) was a very reliable pass-catcher throughout college and some say he has the same ability as Waterloo. Unlike wide receivers, if teams need a tight end then this draft has plenty to choose from. Central Tennessee’s Zebulon Jackson is by far the best available, a large tight end best suited for blocking fits a majority of teams that are looking to upgrade in the near future. The next best two, Corky Jones from Michigan and Clem Carter from Vermont are similarly run block-focused, but are very limited in terms of the pass game. The defensive side of the ball is much more limited in terms of talent. Outside of DL Hank Jonas, the only other top-end defensive prospect is Georgia A&M DB Julian Morgan, who had a keen ability to track down throws for interceptions that would most likely result in a touchdown.

The quarterback position peters out rather quickly after Bernheim winner Raymond Oram. There isn’t a definitive immediate franchise altering player, but there are a few that can make an impact given some time. LA State’s Chad Golden, Ohio’s Christopher Wilke, Chicago Christian’s Dalton Dart, and Georgia’s Jasper Grimmes are all around that level of talent. Golden is the most different from the other three, utilizing his legs as well as his arm to push the ball down the field. Grimmes and Wilke can be seen as two sides of the same coin, both are classic pocket passers and are emphatic about leading their team to victory. Both will be a great presence in whichever team they go to whenever they get the starting gig in either the AFL or the ASPFL. That just leaves Dart out of these four, and while he’s proven he may be the smartest out of the bunch, that doesn’t transfer over into his football smarts. He may need a bit to work out how to not be a predictable QB, so he’ll more likely go to a team that sees him as a project. There are two other QB’s that might go late in the draft, and each have some downsides teams will have to work out. One of those is Maryland State’s Richard Cohen, who works well in the clutch but consistently starts out games on the wrong foot. The other is Palmer’s Cameron Cole, who looked amazing in the Lower Division but teams are not sure how his skills will transfer over to the pros.

Draft Picks/Needs:

1 - Cleveland Crows
Picks: 1, 11 (CIN), 13, 25, 37, 49, 59 (CIN)
Needs: RB WR DL LB DB S

2 - Philadelphia Rattlesnakes
Picks: 2, 14, 26, 38, 50
Needs: QB OL WR DL LB
 
3 - Pittsburgh Shamrocks
Picks: 3, 8 (CHI), 15, 27, 39, 51, 57 (STL)
Needs: OL WR DL DB

4 - New York Lions
Picks: 4, 16, 28, 40, 52
Needs: RB OL DL LB

5 - Tri-Cities Hawks
Picks: 5, 17, 22 (BOS), 29, 41, 46 (BOS), 53
Needs: OL WR TE DL LB DB

6 - Detroit Knights
Picks: 6, 18, 20 (CHI), 30, 42, 54
Needs: OL TE DL LB

7 - Buffalo Hammers
Picks: 7, 19, 31, 43, 55
Needs: QB RB OL WR LB DB

8 - Chicago Hogs
Picks: 32, 44, 56
Needs: RB WR LB DB S

9 - St. Louis Stallions
Picks: 9, 21, 33, 45
Needs: TE DL LB DB

10 - Boston Dragons
Picks: 10, 34, 58
Needs: QB RB OL WR TE LB DB

11- Cincinnati Rivermen
Picks: 23, 35, 47
Needs: OL DL LB S

12 - Washington Federals
Picks: 12, 24, 36, 48, 60
Needs: QB WR DB
 

Would love to see Cooper and Grimmes team up.