NWFL Super Bowl 2000 Journal
Packers vs Chiefs



Foreword:

For the NWFL 2000 Super Bowl, veteran FBPRO coaches Michael Beck and Michael Leftwich agreed to write up and release scouting journals during their preparation for the big game. I have decided to include it in the University of FBPRO because it offers some valuable insight on how big time FBPRO coaches prepare for a big time game. BTW, Lefty ended up winning his first online title, leading his Chiefs over the Pack 17-6. Enjoy!

Mike Neugebauer, UFBPRO Editor

KC Chiefs Journal - Michael Leftwich
Day 1
Well, I ran one scrimmage today vs. his latest stuff, and although I lost the game, I came away with a great deal of optimism and some ideas for how to play Green Bay in the SuperBowl.  I prepare by actually watching the games – I’ve never been a big fan of the log analyzer programs, I guess because I get a much better feel for the game by seeing what the players do and when they do it.  I also don’t change much from week to week – if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it I always say (maybe that’s why I’ve never been to the SuperBowl before…  ; )  but I figure I got here by doing what I do well, so I’m not gonna try and get fancy about it now.  We’ll run the ball, pick a few pass plays that give us a downfield threat, and shut down what he likes to do most on offense (without leaving ourselves vulnerable to other potentially brand new stuff) – that’s how I approach every game pretty much, but since this is the SuperBowl I’m playing things a little more conservative.  I have a reputation for not covering all 5 potential receivers – and have been burned by someone sending a slow RB out into the flat or motioning him out of the backfield on fly routes.  The defensive scheme usually works – most coaches don’t want to rely on their slowest RB who usually doesn’t have the best HA either to catch the ball – they’d rather use him to block.  So I cover 4 non-backfield receivers (usually by SP or HA) with man coverage by DBs, rush 4 DL, and mix up what I do with the 3 LBs (usually read or blitz logic or some combo of both).  But I don’t want to leave any loopholes open this time – I’m not losing the SuperBowl on one of the worst defensive AI flukes built in to FBPRO  -- the crappy DB coverage options ; ).  As for Coach Beck’s tendencies, so far I’ve noticed two main things:  1)  His reverse motion passes are good if you don’t know how to defend them – and I believe I do, but I haven’t really showed how in a while so hopefully I can catch him off guard with this.  2)  His team plays great in the 4th quarter – don’t know what it is or how he does it, but we’re going to have to either score a TD in the 4th or shut him out to have a chance at winning.  More later…

Day 2
Ran another scrimmage today – this time looking at the stuff he used vs. me in the PCFL, wk6.  Lost again – but at this point the score isn’t as important as how certain plays work in certain situations.  His reverse motion passes weren’t shut down as easily as I expected – but it’s a problem corrected easily enough with who the DBs cover and what type (mostly man and read) coverage they use.  I’ll have to create some new defensive plays, which is to my advantage since he won’t have seen them in any of my previous PPP’s.  More importantly, I outplayed him in the 4th quarter for the first time – outscoring him 14-9.  Once I get some things fine-tuned, I can decrease his 9 and hopefully increase my 14  ; )   I think I can run the ball – both up the middle and outside, but I have to be choosy about what outside run plays I use and when to use them – because I’m usually not getting more than 5-6 yards when they work well.  Passing game is still lame – will probably address it last and focus on defense first, running game second, and passing 3rd.  Special teams look pretty good – probably won’t change much there – about the only thing I could improve would be to insert more starters on punt returns – not sure if I’ll do this or not because I’d hate to lose a key player to injury on a special teams play.

Day 3
Ahh – the sweet smell of success.  After a few more tweaks to the DB coverage, I think I’ve found my primary defensive scheme for Coach Beck’s Packers.  It wasn’t as quick/easy as I thought it would be, but I’ve won the 2 games I’ve scrimmaged today (vs. his stuff from PCFL and week 18 NWFL), and with each small change the margin of victory is wider.  I was planning on working on offense last, but it needed more work than I thought, so I hit it right after the defense was set.  I can move the ball, but I’m just not scoring enough TD’s.  But who cares – when you play defense like I did in the last game I ran, you don’t NEED a great, high-scoring offense!   Don’t believe me?  See the stats from the scrimmage and judge for yourself – if I can play like this in the SuperBowl, I’ll have my ring…..It will be mine, oh yes, it will be mine…..  ; )    I’m especially pleased with our time of possession.  The longer Brett Farva-Beans has to sit on the bench the better.
Addendum:  Cruel fate, why do you mock me so???  I’ve knocked GB QB Favre out of the last two games I’ve played – if only I could get that kind of a break during the SuperBowl!!!
Game Stats
__________________________________________________________

        Kansas City vs Green Bay
        Week 0

            Kansas City    16
            Green Bay      0
                               K.C.    G.B.                           K.C.     G.B.
            1st DOWNS          21      10      PASS YDS               199      118
                rushing        10      4           comp/att           16/24    11/22
                passing        10      6           yds/pass           7.1      4.4
                penalty        1       0           sacks/yds          4/30     5/20
            3rd DOWNS          9/16    1/10        ints               0        0
            4th DOWNS          0/0     0/0     PUNTS/AVG              2/38     9/37
            TOTAL YARDS        395     171     TOT RET YDS            38       83
                total plays    64      44          punt returns       4/15     0/0
                avg gain       6.2     3.9         kickoff returns    1/23     5/83
            RUSH YDS           196     53          int returns        0/0      0/0
                num rushes     36      17      PENALTY/YARDS          2/15     6/30
                rush ave       5.4     3.1     FUMBLES/LOST           2/1      2/1
                                               TIME POSS              36:58    23:02
                                               2PT CONV               0/0      0/0

Day 3 (cont.)
More tweaks, more scrimmages, and against more of his various PPP’s.  I’ve noticed he likes to try to get yardage up the gut with his QB – and he’s pretty good at it if you’re not ready for it.  My LBs will be ready for it  ; )   I think I’ve just about got both offense and defense where they need to be to win – I just wish the computer was a little more generous with the INTs – I’ve seen Favre make so many lame throws in the scrimmages that he’d be benched if this were real life because he would have thrown about 9 INTs in a single game.  I’ll probably only run one more scrimmage tonight and then call it quits – I’ve got some kind of sinus infection that makes my head feel like it’s gonna explode.  Anyway, more stats from the latest scrimmage – Favre was again knocked from the game and QB2 Hessler didn’t faire much better, especially since he was pulling “double duty” trying to sneak it up the gut and thread the reverse motion pass in between a sea of red jerseys!  ; )

Game Stats
____________________________________________________________

        Kansas City vs Green Bay
        Week 0

            Kansas City    34
            Green Bay      7
                               K.C.    G.B.                           K.C.     G.B.
            1st DOWNS          20      14      PASS YDS               182      75
                rushing        11      7           comp/att           9/17     10/26
                passing        8       5           yds/pass           10.1     2.4
                penalty        1       2           sacks/yds          1/5      5/36
            3rd DOWNS          5/11    4/15        ints               0        0
            4th DOWNS          1/1     1/2     PUNTS/AVG              3/52     3/44
            TOTAL YARDS        334     231     TOT RET YDS            69       184
                total plays    55      57          punt returns       3/6      3/52
                avg gain       6.1     4.1         kickoff returns    2/63     7/132
            RUSH YDS           152     156         int returns        0/0      0/0
                num rushes     37      26      PENALTY/YARDS          6/40     6/74
                rush ave       4.1     6.0     FUMBLES/LOST           2/1      1/1
                                               TIME POSS              31:25    28:35
                                               2PT CONV               0/0      0/0

Day 4
Well, I watched one of the worst games yet by my team (vs. his wk19 NWFL PPP’s) – my QB threw 2 picks and got knocked out of the game, and my starting DT Daryl Price (the cornerstone of my DL – if he goes down the timing of everything gets thrown out of whack) also got carted off.  On top of that, my DBs looked like they were running in concrete shoes (the game was played in snow, but I’ve never seen them consistently a step behind as much as I did today).  Despite all of that, I still won the game!  That was the best part of all – to see some key injuries and some critical mistakes and still be able to win the game Chiefs style – running the ball, good defense, and a passing game that keeps the defenses honest.  I think I’m ready – I wish we could just play the game now and get it over with – I’ve been out sick the past two days and that’s put a damper on my energy level and excitement, but I’m still pumped about the game.  I may run another game or two today depending on how I feel later.  Stats from today’s scrimmage are below:

Game Stats
____________________________________________________________

        Kansas City vs Green Bay
        Week 0

            Kansas City    27
            Green Bay      14
                               K.C.    G.B.                           K.C.     G.B.
            1st DOWNS          24      13      PASS YDS               198      255
                rushing        14      1           comp/att           11/26    23/40
                passing        10      12          yds/pass           6.8      6.1
                penalty        0       0           sacks/yds          3/22     2/17
            3rd DOWNS          6/12    2/12        ints               2        1
            4th DOWNS          0/0     0/1     PUNTS/AVG              5/33     8/33
            TOTAL YARDS        374     294     TOT RET YDS            109      144
                total plays    62      55          punt returns       3/3      2/21
                avg gain       6.0     5.3         kickoff returns    3/59     4/94
            RUSH YDS           176     39          int returns        1/47     2/29
                num rushes     33      13      PENALTY/YARDS          2/10     11/75
                rush ave       5.3     3.0     FUMBLES/LOST           2/0      1/0
                                               TIME POSS              32:41    27:19
                                               2PT CONV               0/1      0/0

Day 5
Ran a couple more scrimmages today.  One was against his NWFL vs. Tampa Bay PPP’s (figured an important divisional game would be a good one to scout) using Darrell’s ratings-adjusted NWFL files (trying to kill two birds with one stone).  Speaking of kill, I creamed him – wasn’t even close.  The game looked/ran pretty good – I’ll have to be sure and tell Darrell the specifics of the action.  Anyway, back to scouting, I ran another game with the current league files using his NWFL vs. Chicago PPP’s (again, another important divisional game) – which were the most aggressive (defensively) that I’ve seen yet.  The game was in the snow (again), and he shut my running game down, but my defense played a near flawless game.  The ONLY way he beats me in the Superbowl is if he uses some bizarre gimmick I haven’t seen yet or the game is a total fluke (like the kind where all my starters get hurt and his guys stay hot the whole game).  I made some last minute changes, mostly to special teams and goal line situations, but I also put in some slightly different DB coverages to change the matchups and what my guys do at the snap – that’s the critical part vs. the Packers in my opinion.  Anyway, this is probably the last entry as I won’t do anymore adjustments to speak of.  Wish me luck – in all the years I’ve been playing FBPRO (since ’93-‘94!), I think this is only the 3rd time I’ve reach a title game – and this is the first time it’s happened in an online league, so it sure would be nice to get a win.  Stats below:

Game Stats
____________________________________________________________

        Kansas City vs Green Bay
        Week 0

            Kansas City    19
            Green Bay      0
                               K.C.    G.B.                           K.C.     G.B.
            1st DOWNS          11      8       PASS YDS               142      49
                rushing        3       3           comp/att           6/11     10/25
                passing        5       5           yds/pass           10.9     1.5
                penalty        3       0           sacks/yds          2/15     8/64
            3rd DOWNS          5/15    3/14        ints               0        1
            4th DOWNS          0/0     0/1     PUNTS/AVG              6/51     9/49
            TOTAL YARDS        187     107     TOT RET YDS            119      114
                total plays    57      54          punt returns       6/33     3/4
                avg gain       3.3     2.0         kickoff returns    2/35     4/110
            RUSH YDS           45      58          int returns        1/51     0/0
                num rushes     44      21      PENALTY/YARDS          5/30     6/86
                rush ave       1.0     2.8     FUMBLES/LOST           0/0      1/0
                                               TIME POSS              33:21    26:39
                                               2PT CONV               0/0      0/0

Day 6
Okay, I lied – one more entry  ; )
The SuperBowl is tomorrow.  All the work and strategy will be put to the test and one of us will come out on top – let’s hope it’s me  ; )   I made two more adjustments – I should probably leave well enough alone, but after seeing a couple of close games and even a loss (one of my starting WRs and my starting TE went down with injuries) I wanted to change the defensive DB matchups a little bit.  The results were pretty good, I won 31-7 (forgot to print out the stats) and got 2 INTs by my starting S Brad “Simple” Symonds.  He and my DL may very well be the key to this game – Symonds looks like this:

                       sp ac ag st ha en in di
Symonds, Brad 4yrs     92 86 86 76 91 83 56 58

I’m hoping his HA, ST, SP, and EN will keep him on top of GB’s receivers like a wet blanket.  My CBs are also excellent, and good enough to go 1-on-1 with virtually any receiver in the league, but they’re not as strong as Symonds, and Coach Beck likes to create different matchups by putting speedy TE’s on the field with his WRs, so I had to use Symonds as the safety valve.
Also, I figured what is good for the goose is good for the gander, so I put in a reverse motion pass of my own to give Beck a taste of his own medicine  ; )   I didn’t put in too many versions of it – but the one time it got called it went 75 yards for a TD so I’m satisfied – we’ll see how it goes in the real game.  Look for plays named KCKABLAM and KCKABOOM – those are the reverse motion plays, saved as medium pass middle and long pass middle.

Anyway, here are my final thoughts – the top things I hope to capitalize on to win the SuperBowl:
1. He’s been pretty predictable on offense, and tends to use a small playbook, which I think works against you
2. If I get the lead, my running game almost always gets better as the game goes on
3. My defense should win the turnover battle and shut down the reverse motion passes if he uses them like he has in the past
4. If I get him in goal line or 4th and short situations, I will win – again, he has been too predictable – a short little timing pass to a WR slanting inside after a fake every single time.  Little does Coach Beck know that S Brad Symonds and his 91 hands will be waiting eagerly for the ball to be thrown in his vicinity…  ; )
5. If the game is close at the end, don’t be surprised to see weird clock management and even a punt by GB even though in real life a team would go for it on 4th down.  Not sure if he has accidentally copied over these situations or is using a hybrid profile for both halves, but it doesn’t always look pretty when the game is on the line and he’s behind  ; )
6. The only time we’ve played – he won and I used several defenses that I don’t typically use.  That was in the PCFL, where at the time I had several key injuries and didn’t play well.  This works to my advantage as it forces him to either  a) change what has worked in the past (always a risky proposition in my opinion), or b) stick with what worked against the defense I used then and/or defenses I’ve used recently – neither of which he will see in the SuperBowl!

Congrats ahead of time to Coach Beck and myself for great seasons – may the best team/coach win tomorrow.  And thanks to all my fellow NWFL/PCFL Coaches who continue to make this game one of my all-time favorite hobbies.  Beck talks a lot of smack  ; ) but he does it in the spirit of fun and competition, and has been a real asset to the league with a team that has traditionally struggled.  For him to make the SuperBowl in his first season is a great feat.  I hope it’s an entertaining game for all who choose to join us “live” Sunday night at 9pm Eastern, 8pm Central.  And now, here are the AFC CHAMPIONS, THE KANSAS CITY CHIEFS!!!

GB PACKERS JOURNAL - MICHAEL BECK

Teams Key Stats in comparision 

Stats Categories Kansas City Green Bay
Offense
Pass ATT 30th 3rd Pass Yards 2nd Pass Rating 1st 8th Passing TD’s 1st Interceptions 4 12 Sacks protection 18th 3rd Rush ATT 1st 18th Rushing Yards 4th 7th Total Yards 7th 3rd Pass 4th 2nd Rush 11th 7th Defense Total Yards allowed 6th 9th Pass 7th 13th Rush 3rd 7th Turnover ratio 3rd 28th Sacks 8th 9th Special Teams Kick Return 13th 10th Punt Return 3rd 2nd Kicker 21th 3rd
Team Rating ( from 1 to 10 , 10 is the best )
Offense 8 9 Defense 9 8 Special Teams 7 8 Coaching 8 8

Players to Watch

Kansas City Chiefs

Kansas City Chiefs Workhosre is RB Greg Hill. He is running behind one of the best Lines in NWFL. Hill is 3rd in rushing attempts ( 321 ), 5th in yards , 3rd in TDs ( 22 ) and run for an average of impressing 4.8 yards per run.

These guy with the help of the great Line keeps the opponent Defense honest. Behind the stable running game keeps QB Mayes with his deeps threats Jack Jackson and Demitrious Stanley the defense backfield busy. Mayes has got the best QB rating in NWFL and WR Jackson is the 2nd best deep WR in NWFL with an average of 25,4 yards/catch.

On the Defense site are the speedy DE more then impressing. Leland Taylor and Andre Wadsworth are the Main reason for the 3rd best rushing D.

The young group of the backfield is loaded with high quality players . Best player in this area is Saftey Brad Symonds.

Green Bay Packers

No question, the best player in the offense remains QB Favre. He leads his Team to the Super Bowl under Coach Mike Beck and it is an advantage to have a senior as him on your roster. He proved a couple of times this season, that he plays at best under presure.

All other offense players are no Super Stars, and under the system of Coach Beck isn’t a place for a Super Star neither. The Packers favour the pass ( Reidel and Sanders end the regular season over 1000 yards pass receiptions ), but also keeps the defense honest with a very explosive and big game loaded running plays.

RB Murrell doesn’t get the ball too often, but when he get his chance he makes the opponents Defense Cordinator sweting. He leads the NWFL with an average of 8.2 per run.

The Defense is loaded with good players . Nevertehless, the only real Super Stars is also the best Defense Player In NWFL.... it’s LB Preston Harrison. These Guy is unbelievable, he can cover allmost every WR and is strong enough to compete with allmsot every OL. He is the NWFL sack leader with 33 sacks and is 19th in tackles.

Also worth to mention is very reliable Kicker John Carney, who has te 3rd best PCT and is perfect in FG <40 yards.


Green Bay’s Game Plan

Offense

Considering the real tough Chiefs Defense Line and the often calling middle LB Blitz, Coach Beck decides to keeps the running plays to a minimum. Just enough to keep them honest, but nothing more. All running plays are fast ones, allmost no time consuming out-site plays. Designed for sure yardage, but allmost no big play possebility.

The passing plays are also quick plays, no long reading or even roll-outs. The Chiefs are blitzing often, and even they don’t blitz, Wadsworth and Taylor are real dangerous sack weapons. But even without real long pass plays, the Packers offense plan had some big play potential included. The scouts of the Packers realized that the Chiefs sometimes don’t cover the FB..... on some plays FB Adrian Murrell goes deep..... very deep..... lets see what happens.

Defense

Becks Defense Coordinators had two big problems. Stoping the heavy rushing attack and stoping the deep pass. You have to die on dead. The Packers decide to risc some long runs instead of getting burned on the long pass the whole day long. They trying to blitz heavy on the first, mixing blitz and Zone Prevents on teh 2nd and plays only prevents with one sigle blitzer , LB Preston Harrison , and a three Line pass rush.
These defense will get burned if the Chiefs change their offense strategy totally by playing short passes all day long . That would kill the Packers. But if they are trying to go deep often, the packers will have a lot of chances to got Mays or to pick up his plays...... lets see......

Prayer:
Last word to the Football God: Please, take care of the Packers, provide them of injuries and turnovers and help Coach Beck to make his promise to lead the Packers to the promise land get true....... Amen.........