Predicted Finish: First
Apocalypse Coach Owen Lippert refused to show tapes of his team�s last game of the season to his players, but he doesn�t have to. Every player, even the ones who are new this year, remembers every horrifying moment in their head.
�Edgerrin James scores on his third attempt from the one and we�re up by 10,� quarterback Kurt Warner said. �Nine minutes later, he�s rushing untouched into the end zone 36 yards away on a draw play and we�re down by two, and then the game ends. Amazing�
Warner still shakes his head at the nine minutes, perhaps the most famous stretch of football in FFL history in the greatest upset the sport has seen. The Rat Bastards scored three touchdown in a nine-minute stretch in the fourth quarter to erase a 16 point deficit in the Eastern Championship and knocked the 17-point favorite Apocalypse, the only 10-win team in the league last year, out of the playoffs.
�It was awful,� Lippert said. �Honestly, why did you bring it up? I think everybody has moved on, and you guys should too.�
And entering Apocalypse training camp, no player wears the hang-dog look of shock. Everybody has a silent, committed look on their face. Everybody that is, except brash new wide receiver Keyshawn Johnson.
�There was no way I was going to let anybody get down around here,� Johnson said. �Look around you. We are the best team in the league. We won�t let anybody else get close enough to do that again.�
Johnson was the Mountees� most visible player for the past three years, but he wasn�t happy in Canada. The Mountees slowly rose from a losing expansion team to .500, but when he had a chance to join the league�s most potent offense and winningest team from last year, Johnson jumped.
Despite the near-record number of points the Apocalypse scored, Johnson is being looked upon to add a much-needed new dimension to the Warner-Faulk offense that was devastating, but precarious. When either player went down, the Apocalypse could do no better then .500 as their wideouts wilted.
But Johnson�s most important contribution might be in the locker room. With his boasting, trash talking, and a swanky restaurant, he brings a welcome attitude to what could have been a stifling atmosphere.
�Yeah, he talks a lot,� Faulk said. �But he wants to win just as bad as we do. He knows we�re on a mission, and it�s just his way of motivating the team.�
The team personnel hopes Johnson will flourish in an offense that won�t depend on him, and they hope to improve on a team that overwhelmed opponents. The Apocalypse averaged almost 30 points a game and started the year 7-1.
Warner and Faulk, the most prolific quarterback-running back duo in FFL history, is back. Faulk scored 26 touchdowns, nine more then the next best in the league, despite missing three games. And Warner, when he plays, threw more touchdowns per game then anyone else the past two years.
And that brings up what could be the only thing that stops this juggernaut: injuries. When the Apocalypse had their full lineup, they went 9-1, with that one loss being the crushing playoff loss. Without Warner or Faulk, they could do no better then .500. Even with Johnson, the Apocalypse is in the same position. Ron Dayne looked good in preseason, but the former Heisman Trophy winner still has to prove he can run in the FFL. The team is high on Amani Toomer and Az-Zahir Hakim. But this is still a team that depends heavily on it�s big two.
Still, nine other teams in the league wish they could worry about injuries to players named Faulk and Warner. As long as those two are on the field, the Apocalypse will be considered the better team. And Johnson will make sure to let you know.
Keyshawn Johnson
Projected Starters
Scouting Report
QB Kurt Warner
RB Marshall Faulk
RB Ron Dayne
WR Keyshawn Johnson
WR Amani Toomer
WR Az-Zahir Hakim
K Sebastian Janikowski
D Jaguars
ST
"I would be nervous if I were them. Can Warner and Faulk both hold up? Neither player has the cleanest bill of health, and I will be surprised if they play every game� Faulk had one of those once-in-a-lifetime seasons last year. But I honestly think he'll be just as good this year... I can�t see anybody beating them if they have everyone on the field. They got a slightly better supporting cast for their big two, and it took a fluky fourth quarter to beat a healthy Apocalypse last year. They�re not unbeatable, but they�ll look like it at times... They always have big holes in their lineups, but they can afford to. If they had decent scouting, I wonder how dominant they could have been."