1968 Free Agency

1968 Free Agency

Free agency opened up with a lot more talent than usual due to the tightened cap. However, that didn’t seem to stop teams from offering out big money, especially for the top players. 

1 - WR Zachariah Pembroke
Pembroke had spent the last 6 seasons with the Buffalo Blue Wings where he won 3 McCallister Cups. Now, he was easily the best player available in free agency. Of course, there were several teams making bids for his services. Boston, Indiana, Long Island, Montreal, Pittsburgh, and Toronto all made an offer to Pembroke. As the bidding for Pembroke’s services continued the price just went up to the point where only Boston, Pittsburgh, and Toronto were willing to pay Pembroke that high of a salary. Pembroke still wanted to compete along with getting paid, so the decision was much easier simply looking at the rosters, where Boston, despite missing the playoffs, had a better foundation. Pembroke would ink a 2-year, $52,000 contract with the Independents. Boston has been in desperate need of a top-tier WR and Pembroke should absolutely provide that. Pembroke also makes a return to Massachusetts, having played his first 3 seasons as a member of the Worcester Athletics. 

2 - DL Tournel Guay
Guay was the next player to leave the Blue Wing Dynasty. With defensive line being a high-demand position, there were many teams in the hunt for Guay, and even some that just threw a deal in just to be considered. London, Montreal, and Toronto would be the highest bidders, but the veteran DL would decide to head home and sign a 2-year contract with the Montreal Rouge. The Montreal native should be a great addition to the Rouge defence, who will be looking to improve on last season. 

3 - OL Richard Justice
Justice ended the 1967 season in Indiana after his longtime team, Toronto, had traded him at the deadline. For a while, many linked Justice to be one to return to Toronto this offseason, however, it appears that Justice was not interested in going back. Despite getting a pretty significant offer from the Steelheads, Justice elected to take a different route and signed with the London Tigers. Justice had enjoyed his time around London the few times the Steelheads played there, and thought it would be a great place to end his career. Justice will likely take recently-retired OL Magnus Gunnersson’s spot on the line for the 1968 season. 

4 - QB Stanley Troyer
Troyer was unable to ink a new deal with the Raiders prior to free agency. He has started almost every game for the Raiders over the last 5 seasons, leading them to 3 McCallister Cup appearances and 1 win. However, GM Wayne Tillman was not confident in his abilities to be counted on in big moments, so he was not looking to pay the QB anything more than what he was making. Troyer of course wanted a raise. Unfortunately, outside of the Raiders, there were not any NAAF teams all that interested in Troyer, at least for a starting role. Tillman offered a cheaper deal in free agency, hoping that Troyer did not get many good offers and would just sign back with the team. Pittsburgh was the only other team rumoured to be making an offer in hopes of adding a little veteran stability behind QB Louis Vaughn. Neither of the contracts Troyer got were anywhere close to being what he wanted. However, he got a very good deal from outside the NAAF. In a shocking move, Troyer would ink a 3-year contract with the GLFL’s Cleveland Captains. Troyer is expected to be the starter for the team next season and will be paid $28,000 a season, $3,000 more than his NAAF salary. Captains' owner, Jack Attwood, was very excited about poaching an NAAF QB to the GLFL.

5 - RB Théodore Lemieux
Running backs were getting a lot of offers from several teams in the NAAF. Whether teams were looking for a new starter or some insurance as a #2 option, big offers were being sent to any of the top RBs available. Théodore Lemieux’s breakout performance in the 1967 playoffs made him the most sought-after RB. He would receive deals from Boston, Buffalo, Long Island, Louisville, Montreal, and Pittsburgh. Boston and Louisville stood out as teams looking for a starter, while Buffalo remained in the conversation due to the potential desire to keep playing with his brother. However, Louisville kept making a push to try and get Lemieux on their team. After all, they got to see what he could do firsthand when he scored 3 touchdowns against them in the West Division Final. In the end, Louisville would sign Lemieux to be their new starting RB on a 2-year, $46,000 deal. 

6 OL Harrison Ward
Ward was traded to the Mariners last season to be given a chance at winning the McCallister Cup. Unfortunately, the Mariners failed to make the playoffs. Ward was considering retirement but still wanted to go for the cup. He would return and get a few offers, even one to return to Montreal where he spent his entire career up to last season. However, Ward’s hunt for the cup would top the desire for familiarity and he would sign a new 1-year deal with the defending champs in Buffalo, who add Ward to probably their weakest position.  

7 - LB Quinn Masters
Masters’ situation seemed to create controversy in Toronto after the former 19th overall pick decided to not even consider the Steelheads’ offer following the expiration of his rookie deal. Masters entered free agency knowing exactly where he wanted to go. The Pittsburgh native grew up with the dream to be on the Pittsburgh Hammers but had decided to head to the NAAF following many controversies surrounding the ACFL and the Hammers. He still hoped he could play for the NAAF's new Pittsburgh team at some point in his career. He took the risk this offseason to enter free agency and it would pay off, landing a 3-year deal with the Pittsburgh Blacksmiths.

8 - RB Tresean Jones 
Following Lemieux’s signing, many of the remaining RBs started to find contracts fairly quickly. Jones had not played up to par for the Independents over his rookie contract, so he was left out of a deal despite being a former 8th overall pick. Jones got a lot of the same teams as Lemieux did interested in his services, but he would decide to head to Pittsburgh on a new 2-year deal. Jones will pair up with RB Carter Roy as a tandem in Pittsburgh. The interesting thing here is Jones’ contract is worth more than Roy’s which may not sit well with the current starting RB. 

9 - WR Russell Wilcox
Wilcox is easily one of the more underrated WRs in the league. He has spent his entire career with the Tigers, and has been arguably their best WR the past couple of seasons. Only Indiana and Montreal offered contracts to Wilcox. Both were very enticing with both teams needing a 3rd WR. In the end, Montreal was offering a slightly better contract and better position as likely the #2 WR for the team, so he inked a 2-year deal with thwm.

10 - LB Calvin Hardy
The last member of the top 10 was the most hotly sought-after linebacker. Hardy has been the Thunder’s top LB for a couple of seasons, and along with a high demand for LBs, Hardy became a very valuable piece. Many teams made offers, but a team with only 1 true starter on their roster, the Montreal Rouge, would land the linebacker. Hardy would sign a new 1-year contract with the Rouge worth $18,750.

The Rest
Montreal would continue to be busy, signing LB George Yokoi to pair up with Hardy and Conrad Kurst to form a strong LB core for next season. They would also sign DB William Quincy, DL Theo Conte, OL Paul O’Doherty, and WR Denis Langlois. 

Boston was aggressive as well, especially after missing out on some of the other high-end targets. They would give LB Joe Larkin a lucrative deal, and then would add RB Rodney Clark as their new starting RB. Clark has spent the last 7 seasons with the Thunder and has done quite well, although he did see a decline in production last season. Boston would also add DL Chuck Charleston III and OL Brian O’Leary to shore up the lines. 

The last of the busy teams would be Toronto. They did struggle to get any of the top free agents, due to their 2-10 finish last season, but they got some solid pieces in DL Dexter Barbarcos, OL Fabrice Beaufort, and OL Wolfgang Vander Waal. They would also get WR Samuel Petri to return to Toronto after 1 season in Louisville. 

Some other interesting moves would see DB Nick Ulbach swap from the Blue Wings to the Raiders, WR Orlando Barrack would bring his speed to the Blacksmiths’ offence, and DB Ty Boone would sign quite a large contract with the Gold Stars, which many view as an overpay. 

There were also a couple of QBs changing teams with Lee Rogers heading to Indiana to back up Tom Applewhite and QB Magnus Torrensen hoping to potentially take advantage of a Kiernan retirement by joining the Tigers for a pair of seasons. 

Top 25 Free Agents - Format: OLD TEAM -> NEW TEAM Length (Y), Annual Salary ($)
1 - WR Zachariah Pembroke BUF -> BOS 2Y, $26,000
2 - DL Tournel Guay BUF -> MTL 2Y, $26,000
3 - OL Richard Justice IND -> LDN 1Y, $16,500
4 - QB Stanley Troyer LI -> GLFL CLE 3Y, $28,000
5 - RB Théodore Lemieux BUF -> LOU 2Y, $23,000
6 - OL Harrison Ward HFX -> BUF 1Y, $15,000
7 - LB Quinn Masters TOR -> PIT 3Y, $17,500
8 - RB Tresean Jones BOS -> PIT 2Y, $20,000
9 - WR Russell Wilcox LDN -> MTL 2Y, $18,250
10 - LB Calvin Hardy LOU -> MTL 1Y, $18,750
11 - LB Joe Larkin OTT -> BOS 1Y, $19,000
12 - LB George Yokoi LDN -> MTL 1Y, $18,000
13 - RB Rodney Clark LOU -> BOS 1Y, $20,000
14 - DL Dexter Barbarcos LI -> TOR 1Y< $17,500
15 - DB William Quincy HFX -> MTL 1Y, $17,500
16 - DB Nick Ulbach BUF -> LI 1Y, $18,500
17 - WR Derek Cross MTL
18 - DB Ty Boone PIT -> PRO 2Y, $19,000
19 - QB Magnus Torrensen PIT -> LDN 2Y, $17,000
20 - OL Wolfgang Vander Waal HFX -> TOR 2Y, $17,500
21 - WR Orlando Barrack IND -> PIT 2Y, $20,000
22 - QB Ulysses Lawyer LDN
23 - S Peter Sellers PRO
24 - QB Lee Rogers HFX -> IND 1Y, $14,500
25 - OL Brian O’Leary LI -> BOS 1Y, $16,000