Introducing the 25th Anniversary Patch

As mentioned before, the 1973 season will be the 25th Season in the NAAF’s history. To celebrate, the league announced that there would be a 25th Season patch that would be used in the league’s branding this season. 

The first patch is the official league patch that will be used in official manners. The patch takes the league’s logo, swapping out “NAAF” for “25th Season” while the “est. 1949” is replaced with “1973”.

The 2nd patch will be featured on team jerseys this season. The main difference is that the green banner and year have been removed leaving just the football shape and the “25th Season” text.

The patch will be placed on the right side of the player's chest opposite the captain's letter. The exception is the Halifax Mariners, whose patch will be placed on the sleeve, replacing one of the two anchor logos. A green version of the patch will also be used for teams with red jerseys (Louisville and Montreal).

1973 Re-Sign Stage

Boston Independents
Boston focused on retaining key offensive pieces. RB Reggie Whitehead and WR Al Allmendinger would both get big $30,000+ extensions. Then, QB Nathaniel Braddock would sign a new 2-year deal at $46,500, maintaining his previous salary to hopefully give GM Richard Price more cash to work with in free agency. Boston also locked up young S Mason Paquette to a 4-year deal worth $115,000 total and retained a couple of vets in DL Moses Abraham and OL Ken Lafontaine.

The most surprising departure is going to be DL Bjorn Sigmarsson. The 34-year-old has been hoping to win a 2nd championship in his career, but his time in Boston may be ending with the younger talent coming through on the Boston D-line. WR Edward Webb hopes that his solid season in Boston can yield him a solid contract, while RB Wesley Wu wants to see if there is a starting job available after doing well in the absence of RB Reggie Whitehead earlier this season.

Buffalo Blue Wings
GM Casey York’s first moves as a GM would be to lock up two of the team’s top offensive weapons in RB Jasper Dickerson and WR Tracy Driscoll to equal contracts at 3-years, $37,500 with Driscoll’s contract also coming with a No Trade Clause. S Ezra Power would earn a new 1-year deal while WR Jimmy Jack also returns on a 2-year deal. 

York was also not afraid to let go of some key veterans as well. Career-Blue Wings, DB Dean Hawkins and WR Julius Drake are set to hit the open market for the first time in their careers. While Drake intends to just see what the market looks like, Hawkins reportedly wasn’t being offered as high of a salary and the DB is not exactly happy that he feels he is being low-balled by the team. DL Zane Tannith will also join the two veterans in free agency after just a single season with the Blue Wings. 

Calgary Predators
After the Predators had their best season since joining the NAAF, the team was ready to commit to QB Emmitt Jackson, signing the 27-year-old to a 4-year deal with $35,000 a season. They would also maintain several core veteran pieces, locking up DL Damian Battles for 2 years at $36,000 and then LB Junior Abbott to a 3-year, $34,000 contract and WR Ted Jackson at 2 years, $32,500. They would also keep All-Star OL Charles Schwartz and S Jarell Parker. 

The big free agents coming out of Calgary are the Barrett twins being let go. Chris and Roger Barrett have been core pieces on the Preds’ D-line for most of their career. While Calgary wants to maintain their captain in Chris Barrett, they are less enthusiastic about Roger, who is the lower skilled of the two. It appears that the two want to stick together, whether that is with Calgary or another team.

Edmonton Rangers
Despite a lot of signs pointing towards the Rangers needing to get younger, they still focused on bringing back many of their veteran players. 5 of their top 6 contracts given were to players above the age of 30. The key pieces in that are LB Frank St. John, OL Charles Crieghton, and RB Gary Hubbard. The one player below 30 would be 25-year-old DL Caleb Cologne who has broken out as a great option on the D-line. After a disappointing season at QB, the team let go of both Ken Myers and Michael Benedict, but they did retain Leif Christiansen on a 1-year deal who will likely compete for a starting job next season.

As mentioned the two QBs will be on their way to new spots this offseason, along with many other depth players. However, the biggest name on the way out is OL Matthew Miller. Miller is a solid O-lineman for the team, but he wants to test the market and see if he can earn more in what may be the final contract of his career. 

Halifax Mariners
The Mariners focused on locking up young talent on their team. All-Star OL Kane Warwick would sign a 3-year deal worth $28,500 a season, then a pair of 25-year-olds in DB Jack Treadaway and TE Brandon McPhail would each sign a 3-year deal themselves. Then S Sampson Wendel would sign a 2-year deal. The only 30+ year old extended was WR Jav Kerrigan. 

On the way out is WR Nathan Murray-Lawrence who has battled injuries and limited targets since returning to Halifax in 1969. He hopes to find a new opportunity elsewhere this offseason. DL Bernard King is the other notable name after having a lacklustre season in 1972. 

Indiana Victors
With the new regime in Indiana, it wasn’t a surprise to see the team only extend 7 players. They retained veteran OL Viktor Stahl on a 1-year deal and K Ross Poindexter on a 2-year deal. The rest of the signings were younger pieces, most notably S Derrick Fayden and DB Byron Knight. 

As expected, longtime QB Tom Applewhite was on the way out after being very frustrated with the team over the last couple of seasons. He hopes to start fresh on a competitive team. OL Jean-Baptiste Desjardins seems to share Applewhite’s frustration as the former 1st overall pick is also heading out on a hunt for the cup. Several 1972 acquisitions, TE Dylan Chowder, WR Jessie Lambert, and LB Benjamin Page all elected to move on after just one season with the Victors.

London Tigers
The Tigers moved along with their continued build towards returning to being a contender by locking up a lot of their young core. DB Victor Vratislav and DL Matt Brown both got extensions following the end of their rookie contracts. TE Pete Mayfield, OL Ethan West and S Frank Thorpe were also included in that mix in what is shaping up to be a great 1970 draft class, despite the team trading their 1st Round Pick from that year in WR Leon Hudson last season. The team also retained key players in DB Bernard Wilkins and OL Felton McDowell. 

On the way out, QB Tyrion Gainsborough leads the way after being the backup last season. He hopes to look for a starting job once again this offseason. WR Alex Browne Sr., who made the move over to London from Edmonton a couple of years ago, didn’t quite get the targets he expected, especially this past season, so he is looking for a new home. Longtime S Ezekiel Locke is also on the way out with the Tigers’ up-and-coming safeties. Finally, disappointing 1st Round Pick, DB Tomik Vrana is also set to find a change of scenery this offseason.

Long Island Raiders
The Raiders would give both DB Rutherford Winters and WR Larry Mossholder matching 1-year $30,000 contracts. Both are 34 and 33 years old respectively but both are still contributors. They would also bring back both of their #2s at each position, also getting matching 3-year contracts at $28,000. The O-line got attention with Doyle MacInnis, Gary Bies, and Alan Mitchell all getting new deals while LB Tyrone Dye would get his first big-boy contract with a 2-year $20,000 contract.

Despite the team bringing back two key veterans, GM Wayne Tillman was still clear on letting go of a lot of other veteran pieces. Most notably, DL Abrahan Evans Jr., S Calvin Hobbes, and WR Otto Washington. Trade acquisitions from last season, LB Tanner Upton and S Pat Washington are also on the way out.

Louisville Thunder
The Thunder would start the offseason by making WR Casey Coleman the highest-paid WR in league history, inking a new 2-year $42,000 contract with their captain. QB Buck Murphy would also get a big contract worth $43,500 over 3 seasons following a pair of solid seasons including the McCallister Cup in ‘71. Former 1st overall pick, LB Ricky Wildgoose, would get his big contract at 4 years, $32,000. Breakout WR Ben Graham would also get a new 3-year deal worth $26,000 a season with a pay raise in the 3rd year. Finally, RB Neil Bradley would stick around with a new 2-year deal at $32,000 despite coming off of an injury last season.

After just one season, WR Orlando Barrack is set to leave the team alongside deadline acquisitions in LB Mike Francis and RB George Seahorse. Finally, LB Daniel Timothy, a former 4th Overall Pick, is on the way out with the Thunder picking to keep the younger LB Elias Ragsdale over the somewhat disappointing draft pick. 

Minnesota Serpents
Minnesota focused on extending DB Austin Sherebernikoff to a massive 4-year deal worth $147,000 total. #1 WR, Sebastian Dassler, would also get a new deal at 3-years $35,000. They would finally lock in several O-linemen Jordan Bryson, Daniel Chou, and David Biarski. 

The Serpents have a long list of free agents with 17 in total. Most are 30+ as the team hopes to get a little younger this season. Trade acquisitions LB Conrad Kurst, DB Chris Berrymore, LB Nathan Davidson, and OL Fred Tiny are all among the free agents. DL Winfield Winchester was cut after a disappointing season. Finally, QB Mike Key is looking to see if there is a last chance to start, while WR Colby Bancana still hopes for a larger role out there.

Montreal Rouge
After a disappointing follow-up season to their 1971 McCallister Cup appearance, it wasn’t a surprise to see very few players sign extensions with the team. LB Jean-Christophe Bain was the biggest signing on a 4-year deal at $142,000 total. Then veterans, WR Taylor Karis and OL Mathieu Roy, both got 1-year extensions.

20 free agents in total are coming from Montreal, though many are depth pieces in the team. QB Nathan Houle looks to be on the out after being the 6th Overall Pick in 1970. He’s had a handful of starts, but with an injury this past season, and an impatient team, it looks like they will be looking for a new option at QB. RBs Maxwell Greenfield and Alain Ducharme will at least test the market with RB Bo Frazier being the starter of the future for Montreal. 

Ottawa Royals
The Royals made sure to bring back two key secondary pieces in S Marc Bellecourt and DB Jerome Caldwell. Bellecourt got the team’s biggest deal at 3-years $34,000 a season. They also were able to lock in their future at WR, signing their trade deadline acquisition in WR Sterling Underhill to a 3-year, $32,500 contract, as well as WR Charles Toothacre to a 2-year deal. O-linemen Matt Helmut, Tommy Reynolds, and Dane Hodgeson all also stayed put.

On the way out is mostly depth pieces. The key players are DL Ryan Sargent and OL Martin Graw. Graw has been a solid lineman for the team but remained without a contract as the Royals focused on bringing back other key pieces. 

Pittsburgh Blacksmiths
Last offseason, the Blacksmiths were right up against the cap, and this season it appears they hoped to avoid the same fate, only handing out 5 extensions. The biggest, however, being QB Louis Vaughn, who becomes the first player to eclipse $50,000 as a yearly salary. The 2-time MOP is set to make $256,000 over the next 5 seasons in Pittsburgh with a NTC. They would also sign Vaughn’s top target in WR Taylor Austin to a 2-year deal. Finally, they would sign S Jarrett Sutherland to a new 3-year deal, while DL Jeff Lamonte would land a 2-year deal, keeping intact a very strong D-line. 

With the decision to cut some cap, there are some key pieces that are on the way out. DB Aiden Sargent is the biggest player here, as he wants more money after putting up 5 picks last season. WR Edward Washington was let go after an overall disappointing first 3 years of his career as the 10th overall pick in 1970. Veterans LB Quinn Master and S Garet deVale will also head to market, but both could very well return if the team feels they can get them on cheaper deals.

Providence Gold Stars
The championships bill comes due for the Gold Stars. The biggest bill heading for QB Red King. The former 2nd Overall pick has been good in his 1st couple of seasons as a starter, but injuries have become a concern. Despite that, the Gold Stars are buying in, signing King to a max 6-year deal worth $286,000 in total. The team continued to sign a couple of veterans in OL Emil Jennings and fan favourite DB Neville Falkner. The did end up extending RB Tresean Jones to a 2-year deal at $29,000 a season. They still have RB Ronnie Byers for 1 more year at $28,500, but the team is looking to move the 28-year-old in order to clear some cap. 

Byers isn’t the only potential cap casualty. 33-year-old WR Owen Paisley looks to be on the way out with the team extending 25-year-old WR Leon Hudson who they acquired in the draft last season. S Paul Christopher is also likely gone with the team instead holding onto S Murdoch Chesterman. DB Corey Ross also will looking for a new opportunity after falling further in the depth chart with the addition of Neville Falkner. 

Regina Wheat Kings
With their limited resources the Wheat Kings still handed out some solid extensions to several key pieces. Veterans DL Pete Gingers and LB Brett Pride both got new 1-year deals, while DB Madison McGee and WR Leonard Green got a new 2-year deals. The team also remains committed to their backfield with RB Deion Chapman getting a 2-year deal at $30,000 a season while QB Stanley Evans getting a new 2-year deal at $28,000.

There are some interesting players leaving Regina. Notably, WR Nick Spalding who lost some of his target share to the in-coming WR Leonard Green and hopes to get a bigger role elsewhere. DL Derick Parks is also looking to capitalise on a great season after stepping up in the absence of DL Butcher Callahan this past season. The 25-year-old should be a very interesting acquisition for many teams in the league.

Toronto Steelheads
1972 was a solid bounce-back year for the rebuilding Steelheads. They would aim to lock up several of their new core pieces. LB Lincoln Webster would get a 2-year deal at $37,500, keeping LB Judge Barrett and Webster together. DL Haakon Leichenberg would land a 3-year deal at $30,000 for his first big deal after a solid season. WR Cameron Kane would also earn a new 2-year deal despite a major injury last season. RB Shannon West, who shined as the starting back last season, earns a new 3-year deal at $28,500. 

WR Felix Fontaine may look for a fresh start after 2 seasons with the Steelheads. QB David Simmons is also going to be looking for a new opportunity after losing out on the opportunity in Toronto. LB Grover Smith is also looking for a bigger role which led to the Steelheads extending LB Chase Chalker instead of Smith. Finally, OL Alan Farquharson is looking for more money elsewhere after he and GM Reginald McMahon reportedly ended their contract talks with some hostility. 

Vancouver Wolves
A finalist team is one that is worth keeping together as the Wolves extended many key pieces. WR Keshawn Johnston was the biggest signing at 2-years $37,500. WR Akria Sakamoto and WR Tristian Lewis also both landed 2-year deals as the WR corps remains intact. Several other veterans remained with the team, LB Shawn Anderson and DB Christian Allen both on 1-year deals at $34,000, while RB Jeremiah Morrow is also back at $33,500. 

The decision to keep Morrow does lead to RB Nikki Yang being set to test the market. In a similar vein, LB Daniel Shao Li is also looking for a bigger role. Deadline acquisition, DL Ron Prumple was released by the team as well while veteran DL Jared Kendall is a key leader that may be heading to a new team next season as well. 

Winnipeg Falcons
After a year of experimenting at QB, the Falcons elected to only retain QB Emerson Thompson who had the strongest performance out of their 3 starters from last year. Also on offence, the team retained both RB Joe Rivers and WR Terry Upshaw on 2-year deals. WR Elijah Skinner also remains with the team, keeping a solid WR group together. Deadline acquisition, OL Bobby Shields, does remain with the team after the move from Minnesota on a new 2-year deal. 

As mentioned, Thompson is the only QB to remain with the team, meaning both QB Ulysses Lawyer and QB Xerxes Wynn will be hitting the open market once again. LB Kyrell Warner may be a key loss as he hopes to see what else is out there for him. The last key free agent is LB Dallas Rush. The former 11th overall pick was traded to Winnipeg in 1971, but still hasn’t shown much improvement. He hopes for a fresh start next season.

1973 Staff Changes

INDIANA VICTORS
As many expected, the Victors cleaned house after their team crashed and burned in a miserable 4-10 season. GM Everett Henderson, who had been in the position since 1961 was let go. Owner Sammy Kirkdale was thankful for his work, but knew that a change was needed, as this was not the first time that Henderson’s job had been considered in jeopardy. Kirkdale liked the consistency of Henderson and he aimed to hire a younger GM that could be sustained just like Henderson. Ultimately, through links in Long Island, he was set onto the path of Pete Laird. Laird has been an understudy of Owner/GM Wayne Tillman for the last while. Tillman spoke highly of the bright King’s University graduate and thinks he has a future as a GM in the league. However, he also believes he needs more time. Kirkdale didn’t seem deterred by the warning and hired Laird anyway, giving the 33-year-old his first GM job. 

Laird would get right to work on hiring an entirely new coaching staff. His target would be the close-to-home picks, hiring Raiders’ DC Theo Espinoza to be his new Head Coach. Espinoza had been pinned to be a future HC as well, but with HC Levi Bray getting the extension in Long Island, his path there was becoming less apparent. Espinoza is a defensive tactician who should bring stability to a younger but still solid Victors' defence. For coordinators, Espinoza would also hired out of the Raiders’ system. At OC, he would bring on Raiders’ OC Benny Schwartz, who was not going to remain with the Raiders anyway. A developmental coach, who has worked with Espinoza over the last 3 seasons. Then at DC, they would hire Raiders DB/S Coach and former NAAF DPOY Alexander Bradley. Bradley has also been working under Espinoza in recent years in Long Island.

HALIFAX MARINERS
HC Ben McMillan’s name has floated around in the last year or two if he is going to keep coaching the rebuilding Mariners. Finally, the question was answered as he has elected to step away from the coaching duties and take on a front-office role moving forward. To replace the veteran coach, the Mariners initially interviewed both their OC Charlie Shepard and DC William Jennings but decided not to promote either. Both still were signed to extensions in their current positions. Instead, the team would bring on Victors’ OC Alfred Deniau as the new Head Coach. Deniau previously was Halifax’s OC during their McCallister Cup win in 1968, which led to him getting his first Head Coaching role in Montreal shortly after. Deniau only lasted 2 years with the Rouge, but the GM Anthony Vigneault has faith in Deniau and that a familiar place with familiar players will help him this time around. 

BUFFALO BLUE WINGS
The Blue Wings haven’t been as satisfied over the last two seasons since GM Reginald McMahon took a new job with the Toronto Steelheads. Under Earnest Bryan, the team hasn’t been as dominant. Injuries have certainly played a factor, but the conservative GM does take some of the blame with roster depth being a common issue. The team has elected to make a change, promoting Hall of Fame OL Casey York from the scouting department to be the new GM. York has been in the wings in Buffalo for a bit and now has the chance to get in the driver's seat and try to steer his former team back into dominance. 

HC Maurice Evanson also elected to make some changes in the staff after OC Paul McMahon retired. He would promote OL Coach Jean Mathieu-Baptiste to be the new OC. Mathieu-Baptiste is also a Hall of Fame OL for the Blue Wings and has been working in the coaching staff since he retired from playing. Mathieu-Baptiste does have a run-heavy approach to the offence so expect some of the load to be taken off of QB Charles Lemieux. Evanson also decided to change it up at DC, letting go of Maurice Sawyer, and hiring Matthew Carson. Carson has previously spent 9 seasons with the Royals as their DC and has been coaching in Rideau up until 1968 when he was let go by the school. Carson is an older coach but has shown good ability when it comes to working with a more barebones defence which Buffalo has trended towards in the past couple of seasons. 

LONG ISLAND RAIDERS
HC Levi Bray was given an extension to start the offseason, despite that, he knows the team needs to be better after missing the playoffs in back-to-back seasons. The first change is at OC with Benny Schwartz being let go. In to replace him is Louis Jonsson, who had a stint as Montreal’s OC recently. Jonsson is a more developmental coach, and Bray hopes he can work with QB Ivan Sanchez about cleaning up the interceptions, which he led the league in this season. 

Bray didn’t intend to change it up at DC, but with Theo Espinoza being poached by Pete Laird and the Victors, he was forced to bring on a new face. He would turn to Maurice Sawyer for the job bringing him on after being replaced in Buffalo. Sawyer’s specialty is the blitz and Bray hopes the team can bring back their dangerous defence moving forward. 

PITTSBURGH BLACKSMITHS
DC Arnold Baker would retire from professional coaching following the conclusion of the 1972 season, leaving Pittsburgh without a DC. They would go out and hire Colton Forrest who had been let go by the Victors in their house cleaning. Forrest has a specialty with pass defence, running some more experimental coverages. He wasn’t able to fully utilize his strategy in Indiana with the younger secondary, but with Pittsburgh’s stronger group, he should be able to show what he can do.  

MONTREAL ROUGE
After a disappointing season following a McCallister Cup appearance, GM Jon Neal pushed HC Malachi Knowles to make some changes. Knowles went out and looked at a few options both at OC and DC. Knowles would have to part ways with longtime friend and coworker, DC Carroll Moss, who just wasn’t getting the most out of a strong Montreal defence. To replace him, he would bring on former Victors’ HC Urick Wilkins. The two also have a history with Wilkins hiring Knowles after he was fired from Louisville in 1970. Wilkins should be a stronger DC and can provide Knowles with more support as a HC with his 9 total seasons as one. Knowles would also look at a couple of options at OC, Benny Schwartz and Louis Jonsson were in consideration, but both signed elsewhere, so the team decided to just extend current OC Andrew Glover, who has still been a good development coach for some of the young stars on the team.

REGINA WHEAT KINGS
The Wheat Kings entered year 2 with their new GM Aaron Thornton. The team looked to improve again after bringing on OC Ben Flemming last offseason. This season, they are hoping to upgrade the DC position, letting go of Ralph Hanson. They would land Thunder LB Coach Jerome Morris for the job. Morris has a rough history as a DC, having not lasted more than 2 seasons in any position he has held. Still, after 6 years of working smaller coaching jobs, he will get an opportunity to prove himself with Regina. Morris is best at development, which Regina hopes he can provide given their young draft picks in DL Butcher Callahan and LB Lewis Vander being keys to their future success. 

CHANGES OVERVIEW

Buffalo Blue Wings
OUT
GM Earnest Bryan - Fired
OC Paul McMahon - Retired
DC Maurice Sawyer - Fired; Hired by LI
IN
GM Casey York - Buffalo Scouting Department
OC Jean Mathieu-Baptiste - Promoted from OL Coach
DC Matthew Carson - Free Agent (was with Rideau)

Halifax Mariners
OUT
HC Ben McMillan - Stepping Away from HC duties, Front Office Position
IN
HC Alfred Deniau - From IND OC

Indiana Victors
OUT
GM Everett Henderson - Fired
HC Urick Wilkins - Fired; Hired by MTL
OC Alfred Deniau - Hired by HFX
DC Colton Forrest - Fired; Hired by PIT
IN
GM Pete Laird - From LI Front Office
HC Theo Espinoza - From LI DC
OC Benny Schwartz - From LI OC
DC Alexander Bradley - From LI DB/S Coach

Long Island Raiders
OUT
OC Benny Schwartz - Fired; Hired by IND
DC Theo Espinoza - Hired by IND
IN
OC Louis Jonsson - From St-Laurent OC
DC Maurice Sawyer - From BUF DC

Montreal Rouge
OUT
DC Carroll Moss - Fired
IN
DC Urick Wilkins - From IND HC

Pittsburgh Blacksmiths
OUT
DC Arnold Baker - Retired
IN
DC Colton Forrest - From IND DC

Regina Wheat Kings
OUT
DC Ralph Hanson - Fired
IN
DC Jerome Morris - from LOU LB Coach