Over the course of the season, I'll be ranking the top 5 teams in the East and West in my Hazy Power 10. Being a newcomer to the league, I have to go with pure numbers to do the pre-season though. As is usually the case with this type of ranking, there will be mistakes made because well builds > levels and some people are great game planners while others just suck. I basically evaluated roster strength from levels/scouting reports(not just starters), and previous seasons success or lack thereof (with a slight adjustment downward if it was at AAA, but not enough that it would cripple a AAA team).
With that being said, here is how the Western Conference shapes up:
The Title Contenders
1. Monmouth Evil Monkeys - yea, yea, no surprise here. Move on.
2. Honolulu Hurricane Warriors - shocking, I know. This ain't rocket science sometimes.
The Have A Chance If They Get Six Turnovers
3. Parma Burglars - the AAA#1 champions will try to sneak up on some teams in their first season in Pros. I think everyone has their burglar alarms set though because no one will be surprised if they do well.
4. San Francisco Fire - the 3rd best returning Pro team will be somewhere close to there again this season. Not enough to overcome the top 2 though.
5. Dallas Orangebloods - one things for sure, the West is loaded as they got both AAA title winners. Dallas is just a notch below Parma but it wouldn't surprise me at all to see them end up with a home playoff game.
6. Lincoln Navigators - the Navigators drove in the back door but they definitely belong here and will contend with the other three for a home playoff game.
The we get to fight for the right to lose in the first round teams
7. Minnesota Marauders - level wise they have the 2nd highest levels in the league. As everyone knows though that doesn't always equate to winning. If they can fix a few deficiencies, however, this team could surprise a lot of people.
8. Las Vegas Freebirds - a solid team, but you need more than solid to win a title in the Pro's. But hey any team from Las Vegas is a threat in my book and making the playoffs in USA Pro is an accomplishment, no matter what anyone says.
9. Bourbon Street Bullies - these former USA Pro powerhouses have gone on a downward spiral of late. They still have a talented roster but like the Marauders struggle with making the best use of it. A playoff contender, but nothing more.
10. South Bay Spartans - I'm honestly not sure how this team went 12-4 last season. I'm just going to guess that they game plan very well because their roster leaves a little something to be desired, especially in the depth department. I think that will catch up with them this year and they'll come up short of the playoffs.
11. Oklahoma City Thunderstorm - this team is close to breaking through to the playoff chase, but they need a few more pieces to the puzzle before they get there.
The fight to avoid relegation
12. Richmond Rebel Yell
13. Columbus Bucks
14. Dallas Vaqueros
15. Kailua Daggers (I'd really like to know how DD gets season 6 day 40 contracts to not expire, but c'est la vie)
The getting relegated for sure team
16. Anchorage Penguins - this team used to be good. I guess they didn't like losing. A bit disappointing that they gutted after the relegations because a team like the Cincinnati Owls would have made this conference even tougher.
With that being said, here is how the Western Conference shapes up:
The Title Contenders
1. Monmouth Evil Monkeys - yea, yea, no surprise here. Move on.
2. Honolulu Hurricane Warriors - shocking, I know. This ain't rocket science sometimes.
The Have A Chance If They Get Six Turnovers
3. Parma Burglars - the AAA#1 champions will try to sneak up on some teams in their first season in Pros. I think everyone has their burglar alarms set though because no one will be surprised if they do well.
4. San Francisco Fire - the 3rd best returning Pro team will be somewhere close to there again this season. Not enough to overcome the top 2 though.
5. Dallas Orangebloods - one things for sure, the West is loaded as they got both AAA title winners. Dallas is just a notch below Parma but it wouldn't surprise me at all to see them end up with a home playoff game.
6. Lincoln Navigators - the Navigators drove in the back door but they definitely belong here and will contend with the other three for a home playoff game.
The we get to fight for the right to lose in the first round teams
7. Minnesota Marauders - level wise they have the 2nd highest levels in the league. As everyone knows though that doesn't always equate to winning. If they can fix a few deficiencies, however, this team could surprise a lot of people.
8. Las Vegas Freebirds - a solid team, but you need more than solid to win a title in the Pro's. But hey any team from Las Vegas is a threat in my book and making the playoffs in USA Pro is an accomplishment, no matter what anyone says.
9. Bourbon Street Bullies - these former USA Pro powerhouses have gone on a downward spiral of late. They still have a talented roster but like the Marauders struggle with making the best use of it. A playoff contender, but nothing more.
10. South Bay Spartans - I'm honestly not sure how this team went 12-4 last season. I'm just going to guess that they game plan very well because their roster leaves a little something to be desired, especially in the depth department. I think that will catch up with them this year and they'll come up short of the playoffs.
11. Oklahoma City Thunderstorm - this team is close to breaking through to the playoff chase, but they need a few more pieces to the puzzle before they get there.
The fight to avoid relegation
12. Richmond Rebel Yell
13. Columbus Bucks
14. Dallas Vaqueros
15. Kailua Daggers (I'd really like to know how DD gets season 6 day 40 contracts to not expire, but c'est la vie)
The getting relegated for sure team
16. Anchorage Penguins - this team used to be good. I guess they didn't like losing. A bit disappointing that they gutted after the relegations because a team like the Cincinnati Owls would have made this conference even tougher.
. We make something out of nothing. We were 14-2 our first season in PRO and 12-4 last season, so if we follow the trend then we should be around 10-6 this season. That's not too bad lol.
