Post by Pittsburgh Steelers (Malachi) on Sept 5, 2021 11:58:59 GMT -5
Walter Payton Division Preview: There must be something about division's with Payton/Peyton in the name because in 2020 both division finished with two teams at 9-3 and tying for the top spot in the division. In the Walter Payton division it was Minnesota that came away with the division title, but Green Bay that made the run to the conference championship game. Sal will look to make that next step this season and win the division and advance one round further and make it to the LHL Super Bowl, but new man in town German will try to keep Minnesota at the top step of the division and have a better playoff showing than the 2020 Vikings. Vote on the poll and let me know what you guys think
Chicago Bears (John): 2020 Record: 2-10
John deployed an interesting strategy in building his team last year with a handful of Patriots and 4 guys that were QBs (not all starters) and even tried to draft an OLineman at one point. With the draft strategy he deployed it was easy to see John likely had a long term plan in mind and going 2-10 in 2020 netted him the 2nd pick and the top RB in the class. The off-season also saw the Bears decide between Herbert and Baker by trading Baker for TJ Watt, OJ Howard, and a R2nd. Despite that trade there are still 3 QBs on the roster with Justin Herbert being the clear franchise guy and Taysom Hill and Jarrett Stidham still there behind him. It will be interesting to see what John tries to do with Hill and Stidham to potentially help his team. The RB room instantly got better for the Bears this off-season when John took Najee Harris 2nd overall in the rookie draft and with Sony Michel getting traded, James White looks like he will see a solid workload in the Patriots backfield once again. JJ Taylor and Wayne Gallman are both on the roster, but unless Gallman signs in a good spot, neither will be of use this season. If Michael Thomas had gotten his surgery done early on in the off-season this WR room might actually look competitive this season, but as it stands Curtis Samuel and Nico Collins will have to carry the load until Thomas returns. At TE it will be Jack Doyle and OJ Howard, so not stellar options there and with this group, the Bears offense will likely be bottom 5 most weeks. While not elite, the defense for the Bears will be serviceable here in 2021 and it starts with Cory Littleton and TJ Watt at LB. Leonard Flyod and Nick Vigil are also solid choices for John to use at either LB or DP any given week. Danielle Hunter, a pair of Chases (Chase Young and Chase Winovich), and rookie Christian Barmore will be the guys on the defensive front for the Bears, so Hunter and Young will be the big points guys for the unit. The only DB that appears to be worthy of starting is Kevin King. The trio of Avonte Maddux, Malik Hooker, and Bradley McDougald are all below average options at the position currently, so DB will be a place where John loses a lot of points to other teams this season. The Bears in 2021 will likely be served best if they run back the 2020 results and get another top 3 pick next off-season, but with a 5 week stretch against the other last place division teams could see the Bears pick up some wins they likely do not need this season. I am not saying tank, but not winning while setting the best lineup possible seems the best course for John, unless he can pull a rabbit out of his hat this season in a brutal division.
Predicted Division Finish: 4th
Green Bay Packers (Sal): 2020 Record: 9-3
Sal and his Packers had a very good showing in 2020 to open their LHL account. Playing the season out to a 9-3 record and just missing out on winning the division due to a tie breaker (quite a few of those in year 1). After claiming the 4th seed in the NFC, Sal’s Packers made a run to the NFC title matchup, ultimately losing to the eventual LHL Champions (the Rams). So Sal can either be disappointed with the season or be excited about what he did in year 1 and build on that and look to do 1 game better this season. Based on what I know about Sal and the roster he has put together again here in 2021, I would say he has a mindset more aligned with the latter of those two options I mentioned. It was a fairly quiet off-season for the Packers with no RFA’s of note leaving and 2 trades during the draft (one that saw Sal move a 1st this past off-season to a 1st next off-season) that saw him take 2 players during the draft. With mostly the same team returning for Sal, the offense will be led this season by his trio of WRs Tyreek Hill, Odell Beckham Jr, and Marvin Jones. Rookie Amari Rodgers will be the sole man behind those 3 at the position. While some have their doubts, I still believe Miles Sanders will be a very good RB this season and that should help this Packers team. Zach Moss and Rashaad Penny fill out the RB group and both will be solid, but have other guys taking touches away from them, that will limit them. For the 2021 season, it appears Sal will lean on Derek Carr again at QB, but does appear to know where the future of the position will land with Jordan Love also on the roster. The TE spot for the Packers will be the biggest question mark on offense with Zach Ertz, Tyler Kroft, and Mo Alie-Cox holding down that position. Ertz is a good TE, but it appears the Eagles are making Goedert the top TE this season and will limit what Ertz can do this season. Alie-Cox in Indy and Kroft with the Jets will both be competing with other guys at the position, so Sal has 3 TEs, that will not be lead guys for their teams currently. Moving to the other side of the ball it would appear Sal has a very solid, very balanced unit on defense. The LB position has Zach Cunningham, Alex Singleton, Germaine Pratt, Christian Kirksey, Mykal Walker, and rookie Ernest Jones. That is a 6 man rotation at the position that should help him have one of the top LB units in the league. A very talented trio at DB of Kamren Curl, Tracy Walker, and Taylor Rapp will also potentially be a top tier unit across the league here in 2021. The one position that will need some work is DL with Quinnen Williams and Clelin Ferrell as the only 2 options currently on the roster. Something that could play a big factor in whether Sal can claim the top spot in the division this season will be his schedule, by finishing 2nd in the division last season. Sal does get the more favorable schedule this season between Minnesota and himself.
Predicted Division Finish: 1st
Minnesota Vikings (German): 2020 Record: 9-3
The Vikings are one of five teams to come into the 2021 season with a new owner running things. After the 2020 season, Nick did not return so now German has come in to run things in Minnesota. The previous regime did well in 2020 by going 9-3 and claiming the top spot in the division. Despite securing a 1st round bye, it was a quick exit for the Vikings in 2020 as they lost to their division foe, Green Bay, in the divisional round of the playoffs. German didn’t do a ton to start making this team his own this off-season. The moves he made over the off-season included letting Za’Darius Smith, Olamide Zaccheaus, Micah Hyde, and Kerry Hyder go during RFA and drafting Caden Sterns in the 3rd round of the rookie draft. With the players lost the 2021 iteration of the Vikings look to be slightly less capable compared to the 2020 Vikings. That being said this team still has talent and will be fighting the Packers and potentially Washington for the division this season. There is nowhere else to start on offense but at RB when the man at RB for this team is Derrick Henry. Anytime you have a big bruising back like Henry on your team, the offense will go where he does. Melvin Gordon should be a solid back up to Henry and German will hope Gurley signs somewhere soon so he can contribute this season. Both in real life and here in LHL the QB for the Vikings is Kirk Cousins, while not a flashy option at QB, Cousins is a solid guy who should keep the Vikings in matchups. The scarcity at both WR and TE will be of concern this season for German as Robby Anderson is the top option between the positions with Allen Lazard, AJ Green, and John Brown at WR and Gronk and Dalton Schultz at TE. A stout LB unit will lead this Vikings defense yet again here in 2021 with arguably the best fantasy/dynasty LB on the roster. Darius Leonard (who I was just speaking of), Demario Davis, and Foye Oluokun will make for one of the best LB groups in the league. The DB group does not lack opportunity or talent to help German this season with Jordan Poyer, Logan Ryan, Eddie Jackson, and AJ Terrell all set to be big contributors. With Nick Bosa and Cameron Heyward leading the line up front, German won’t have to worry about DL many weeks, but the depth behind them will have German in a tough spot if either miss any time. Something that could play a factor in the race for the division for the Vikings will be their schedule from week 4 to week 8 as they will square off with the 5 other division winners in the league from last season. Will the depth German let walk come back to haunt him this season or will he lead the Vikings to their 2nd straight division title?
Predicted Division Finish: 2nd
Washington Redskins (John): 2020 Record: 5-7
As the league started to build their roster last season, the one team that decided they were gonna build a rookie heavy roster was this Washington team as John ended up with 11 of his 28 roster spots being filled by rookies. It was a very intriguing strategy and one that I wanted to see play out and will keep watching play out for a couple more years. Year 1 of the strategy resulted in a 5-7 season and the 10th overall pick. I would like to think this is about what John was hoping for when he decided to use this strategy as another top 10 pick would be a nice piece to add to his young roster. Outside of the rookie draft it was a very quiet off-season in Washington as only a couple drops and less than a handful of RFAs were let go to clear some roster space for the team. Washington certainly has question marks on the roster headed into the season and none bigger than the QB as currently there is not a starter on the roster. Haskins is the lone QB on the roster, but is currently the 3rd string QB in Pittsburgh. Jonathan Taylor is a stud RB already and is a great guy to have for the team. The only downside here for Washington is that JT is their sole RB on the roster. John will have plenty of WRs to choose from and will lean heavily on Kenny Golladay, Mike Williams, Jamison Crowder (when he comes back, and rookie Terrace Marshall. He will also be hoping at least 1, but hopefully more, of Keelan Cole, Denzel Mims, Joe Reed, or rookie Josh Palmer break out this season to give him even more depth at the position or even trade bait for a RB to pair with JT. With Darren Waller at TE, the position will certainly be a strength in 2021 for John and he will also have Jared Cook to utilize on Waller’s bye week and potentially at a flex spot. Overall the defense lacks some depth, but will be very solid at LB with Lavonte David, Patrick Queen, and Anthony Hitchens leading the way there. Kevin Byard will need some reinforcements at DB or will need CJ Henderson, Xavier McKinney, or Jeff Gladney (if he signs somewhere) to step up so that John actually has 2 serviceable DBs to start each week. At DL, Derrick Brown, Yetur Gross-Matos, Azeez Ojulari, and Sheldon Richardson won’t strike a ton of fear into opposing teams this season as all 4 are not projected to be top DL options, but 3 of the 4 are young and give Washington a solid building block at the position. With the holes this team is currently dealing with and how good Green Bay and Minnesota both appear to be this season, I do not believe the scheduling break Washington looks set to get will help them chase the top 2 teams down, but could help them make a run at a playoff spot. John will need to add the right pieces though to make that playoff run this season.
Predicted Division Finish: 3rd
Chicago Bears (John): 2020 Record: 2-10
John deployed an interesting strategy in building his team last year with a handful of Patriots and 4 guys that were QBs (not all starters) and even tried to draft an OLineman at one point. With the draft strategy he deployed it was easy to see John likely had a long term plan in mind and going 2-10 in 2020 netted him the 2nd pick and the top RB in the class. The off-season also saw the Bears decide between Herbert and Baker by trading Baker for TJ Watt, OJ Howard, and a R2nd. Despite that trade there are still 3 QBs on the roster with Justin Herbert being the clear franchise guy and Taysom Hill and Jarrett Stidham still there behind him. It will be interesting to see what John tries to do with Hill and Stidham to potentially help his team. The RB room instantly got better for the Bears this off-season when John took Najee Harris 2nd overall in the rookie draft and with Sony Michel getting traded, James White looks like he will see a solid workload in the Patriots backfield once again. JJ Taylor and Wayne Gallman are both on the roster, but unless Gallman signs in a good spot, neither will be of use this season. If Michael Thomas had gotten his surgery done early on in the off-season this WR room might actually look competitive this season, but as it stands Curtis Samuel and Nico Collins will have to carry the load until Thomas returns. At TE it will be Jack Doyle and OJ Howard, so not stellar options there and with this group, the Bears offense will likely be bottom 5 most weeks. While not elite, the defense for the Bears will be serviceable here in 2021 and it starts with Cory Littleton and TJ Watt at LB. Leonard Flyod and Nick Vigil are also solid choices for John to use at either LB or DP any given week. Danielle Hunter, a pair of Chases (Chase Young and Chase Winovich), and rookie Christian Barmore will be the guys on the defensive front for the Bears, so Hunter and Young will be the big points guys for the unit. The only DB that appears to be worthy of starting is Kevin King. The trio of Avonte Maddux, Malik Hooker, and Bradley McDougald are all below average options at the position currently, so DB will be a place where John loses a lot of points to other teams this season. The Bears in 2021 will likely be served best if they run back the 2020 results and get another top 3 pick next off-season, but with a 5 week stretch against the other last place division teams could see the Bears pick up some wins they likely do not need this season. I am not saying tank, but not winning while setting the best lineup possible seems the best course for John, unless he can pull a rabbit out of his hat this season in a brutal division.
Predicted Division Finish: 4th
Green Bay Packers (Sal): 2020 Record: 9-3
Sal and his Packers had a very good showing in 2020 to open their LHL account. Playing the season out to a 9-3 record and just missing out on winning the division due to a tie breaker (quite a few of those in year 1). After claiming the 4th seed in the NFC, Sal’s Packers made a run to the NFC title matchup, ultimately losing to the eventual LHL Champions (the Rams). So Sal can either be disappointed with the season or be excited about what he did in year 1 and build on that and look to do 1 game better this season. Based on what I know about Sal and the roster he has put together again here in 2021, I would say he has a mindset more aligned with the latter of those two options I mentioned. It was a fairly quiet off-season for the Packers with no RFA’s of note leaving and 2 trades during the draft (one that saw Sal move a 1st this past off-season to a 1st next off-season) that saw him take 2 players during the draft. With mostly the same team returning for Sal, the offense will be led this season by his trio of WRs Tyreek Hill, Odell Beckham Jr, and Marvin Jones. Rookie Amari Rodgers will be the sole man behind those 3 at the position. While some have their doubts, I still believe Miles Sanders will be a very good RB this season and that should help this Packers team. Zach Moss and Rashaad Penny fill out the RB group and both will be solid, but have other guys taking touches away from them, that will limit them. For the 2021 season, it appears Sal will lean on Derek Carr again at QB, but does appear to know where the future of the position will land with Jordan Love also on the roster. The TE spot for the Packers will be the biggest question mark on offense with Zach Ertz, Tyler Kroft, and Mo Alie-Cox holding down that position. Ertz is a good TE, but it appears the Eagles are making Goedert the top TE this season and will limit what Ertz can do this season. Alie-Cox in Indy and Kroft with the Jets will both be competing with other guys at the position, so Sal has 3 TEs, that will not be lead guys for their teams currently. Moving to the other side of the ball it would appear Sal has a very solid, very balanced unit on defense. The LB position has Zach Cunningham, Alex Singleton, Germaine Pratt, Christian Kirksey, Mykal Walker, and rookie Ernest Jones. That is a 6 man rotation at the position that should help him have one of the top LB units in the league. A very talented trio at DB of Kamren Curl, Tracy Walker, and Taylor Rapp will also potentially be a top tier unit across the league here in 2021. The one position that will need some work is DL with Quinnen Williams and Clelin Ferrell as the only 2 options currently on the roster. Something that could play a big factor in whether Sal can claim the top spot in the division this season will be his schedule, by finishing 2nd in the division last season. Sal does get the more favorable schedule this season between Minnesota and himself.
Predicted Division Finish: 1st
Minnesota Vikings (German): 2020 Record: 9-3
The Vikings are one of five teams to come into the 2021 season with a new owner running things. After the 2020 season, Nick did not return so now German has come in to run things in Minnesota. The previous regime did well in 2020 by going 9-3 and claiming the top spot in the division. Despite securing a 1st round bye, it was a quick exit for the Vikings in 2020 as they lost to their division foe, Green Bay, in the divisional round of the playoffs. German didn’t do a ton to start making this team his own this off-season. The moves he made over the off-season included letting Za’Darius Smith, Olamide Zaccheaus, Micah Hyde, and Kerry Hyder go during RFA and drafting Caden Sterns in the 3rd round of the rookie draft. With the players lost the 2021 iteration of the Vikings look to be slightly less capable compared to the 2020 Vikings. That being said this team still has talent and will be fighting the Packers and potentially Washington for the division this season. There is nowhere else to start on offense but at RB when the man at RB for this team is Derrick Henry. Anytime you have a big bruising back like Henry on your team, the offense will go where he does. Melvin Gordon should be a solid back up to Henry and German will hope Gurley signs somewhere soon so he can contribute this season. Both in real life and here in LHL the QB for the Vikings is Kirk Cousins, while not a flashy option at QB, Cousins is a solid guy who should keep the Vikings in matchups. The scarcity at both WR and TE will be of concern this season for German as Robby Anderson is the top option between the positions with Allen Lazard, AJ Green, and John Brown at WR and Gronk and Dalton Schultz at TE. A stout LB unit will lead this Vikings defense yet again here in 2021 with arguably the best fantasy/dynasty LB on the roster. Darius Leonard (who I was just speaking of), Demario Davis, and Foye Oluokun will make for one of the best LB groups in the league. The DB group does not lack opportunity or talent to help German this season with Jordan Poyer, Logan Ryan, Eddie Jackson, and AJ Terrell all set to be big contributors. With Nick Bosa and Cameron Heyward leading the line up front, German won’t have to worry about DL many weeks, but the depth behind them will have German in a tough spot if either miss any time. Something that could play a factor in the race for the division for the Vikings will be their schedule from week 4 to week 8 as they will square off with the 5 other division winners in the league from last season. Will the depth German let walk come back to haunt him this season or will he lead the Vikings to their 2nd straight division title?
Predicted Division Finish: 2nd
Washington Redskins (John): 2020 Record: 5-7
As the league started to build their roster last season, the one team that decided they were gonna build a rookie heavy roster was this Washington team as John ended up with 11 of his 28 roster spots being filled by rookies. It was a very intriguing strategy and one that I wanted to see play out and will keep watching play out for a couple more years. Year 1 of the strategy resulted in a 5-7 season and the 10th overall pick. I would like to think this is about what John was hoping for when he decided to use this strategy as another top 10 pick would be a nice piece to add to his young roster. Outside of the rookie draft it was a very quiet off-season in Washington as only a couple drops and less than a handful of RFAs were let go to clear some roster space for the team. Washington certainly has question marks on the roster headed into the season and none bigger than the QB as currently there is not a starter on the roster. Haskins is the lone QB on the roster, but is currently the 3rd string QB in Pittsburgh. Jonathan Taylor is a stud RB already and is a great guy to have for the team. The only downside here for Washington is that JT is their sole RB on the roster. John will have plenty of WRs to choose from and will lean heavily on Kenny Golladay, Mike Williams, Jamison Crowder (when he comes back, and rookie Terrace Marshall. He will also be hoping at least 1, but hopefully more, of Keelan Cole, Denzel Mims, Joe Reed, or rookie Josh Palmer break out this season to give him even more depth at the position or even trade bait for a RB to pair with JT. With Darren Waller at TE, the position will certainly be a strength in 2021 for John and he will also have Jared Cook to utilize on Waller’s bye week and potentially at a flex spot. Overall the defense lacks some depth, but will be very solid at LB with Lavonte David, Patrick Queen, and Anthony Hitchens leading the way there. Kevin Byard will need some reinforcements at DB or will need CJ Henderson, Xavier McKinney, or Jeff Gladney (if he signs somewhere) to step up so that John actually has 2 serviceable DBs to start each week. At DL, Derrick Brown, Yetur Gross-Matos, Azeez Ojulari, and Sheldon Richardson won’t strike a ton of fear into opposing teams this season as all 4 are not projected to be top DL options, but 3 of the 4 are young and give Washington a solid building block at the position. With the holes this team is currently dealing with and how good Green Bay and Minnesota both appear to be this season, I do not believe the scheduling break Washington looks set to get will help them chase the top 2 teams down, but could help them make a run at a playoff spot. John will need to add the right pieces though to make that playoff run this season.
Predicted Division Finish: 3rd
