Mailbag Monday – Most impressive win, Dragons are 1-0

Mailbag Monday – Most impressive win, Dragons are 1-0

The European League of Football kicked off its first season this past weekend. It is finally time to figure out what teams will prevail and reach the championship game in Duisburg on September 24^th! Will it be one of the new teams joining the league? Will the Vikings repeat their illustrious success of last season? Who are the best players coming into the season?

Those are questions that you may ask yourself and I am here to give you the best possible answer! If you have a question and want it to be answered in a future article, please look out on the league’s social channels every weekend. Just leave your question on Instagram or Twitter for me to answer in this article on Mondays! 

Erik_Lingner (on Instagram): What was the most impressive win?

Week 1 of the 2023 season is in the books. With seven games played, there were seven losses and seven wins. A win that stood out to me was the Raiders pulling away in a shootout against the Ravens. 

I put the Raiders at eight in my pre-season power ranking, but they deserve to be much higher after this game. Despite the great plays by Jarvis McClam, Phillip Haun, and Marco Schneider, the Ravens also did not really deliver when it comes to their defensive secondary. 

However, the Raiders showed that they have one of the most dynamic offenses in the league. Now imagine their offense with former New York Giant running back Sandro Platzgummer who tries to return from injury in the next weeks.  

Pedrolo_Wrestler (on Instagram): Why is there a lack of trust in the Dragons’ team quality in all the “expert” opinions?

I know, the Dragons have won their first game of the season despite being talked down all offseason. You can add me to the people who believe(d) the Dragons were not going to the playoffs in 2023. I put them at 15 in my preseason power ranking. Now they have beaten the Helvetic Guards with a final score of 29 – 17. 

But the initial lack of trust in the Dragons’ capabilities originated from the loss of quarterback Zach Edwards, triple crown winner Kyle Sweet, and 2022 Coach of the Year Andrew Weidinger over the offseason. These three pieces played a major role when it comes to the Dragons success last season. 

Do I think the Dragons are better than I thought they would be at the start of the season? Definitely. But do I think they will make the playoffs this season after going 1-0? I don’t. 

But what really impressed me on Saturday was with how much heart the Dragons play. They are a real team, and maybe team chemistry and the right mindset can get you just as far as one of the best quarterbacks in the league and the triple-crown winner. Let’s see if the Spanish franchise can keep up their productivity on offense and their great secondary play against the Seamen in Week 2. 

Schmipper (on Instagram): How desperate do you have to be if Ceesay plays corner?

Many fans ask themselves why the Sea Devils let their 2022 starting quarterback get on the field as a defensive back in 2023. First of all, his production at quarterback in 2022 was certainly not good enough for the franchise which is why they have signed American quarterback Preston Haire for the 2023 season as an upgrade. 

However, Ceesay still is an incredible athlete who actually has started his career at defensive back and played several years as a defender. But I agree with you on the struggling Sea Devils secondary against the Panthers. With three wide open touchdown passes to Tony Tate, the Panthers made it look more than easy to score against the Sea Devils. On one of those touchdowns, Ceesay was in double coverage with another defender and gave up the score. 

Let’s see how the Sea Devils adjust in Week 2. But they certainly have to work on their secondary if they don’t want the be caught deep again by Rhein Fire at the Volksparkstadion in front of more than 25.000 fans.