Post by Cincinnati Bengals (Chris) on Aug 2, 2018 23:41:54 GMT -5
DET (Ryan) 2010-2017
Regular Season Record: 71-25 (.740)
Postseason Record: 9-8 (.530)
Division Titles: 4x NFC North winner (2012, 2014, 2015, 2016)
NFC Champion: 3x (2010, 2012, 2015)
Super Bowl Championships: None
Goose (BAL): “Ryan (DET) was a devoted and excellent fantasy football player, and was unlucky when it came to the playoffs. I had many feuds with him, but there is no denying he was good at trading to his advantage and managing his team.”
Chris (CIN): “As for Ryan, he was here since the beginning (Or very close to it I believe). Everyone in here knows his credentials and his temper tantrums by now, I assume. Basically, he's as close to winning a Super Bowl without having done so as anyone ever. You do have to feel kind of sorry for him as the bridesmaid but never the bride/lovable loser a little bit despite his shenanigans. His teams were often dominant, he had a string of top-5 regular season or playoff finishes for like 6 years straight, owns the record for consistency, as he made the playoffs every single season that he was in the league, and is our second-winningest owner of all-time.
Aaron (DAL): “Few have a record like his year in year out. He never seemed to have a bad season. He could be a tool at times, lol, but still a great GM for that team.”
Matt (MIN): “He will always be remembered for his trade rapes and outbursts.”
Ryan is exactly the kind of personality that fantasy football writer A.J. Mass said is one of the vital 12 personalities/archetypes to a successful league:
“The Loose Cannon: A hothead like Bobby Knight, Mel Gibson or Bill O’Reilly who could snap at the slightest, seemingly-innocent provocation. A league with too many owners with a fuse as short as Christian Bale is sure to end up looking like Gotham City after the Joker goes on one of his destructive sprees. We’re talking a real powder keg here. The tiniest little nitpicky thing might send him into a whirlwind tirade. He might go off on a scathing e-mail rampage simply because you reminded him of an upcoming deadline. Of course, he’s just as likely to lash out if you don’t remind him. He’ll press everybody’s hot buttons, but on the plus side, the loose cannon is extremely passionate, and will do whatever it takes to win. And very often, you’ll find that he does.”
Though we don’t have 2009 data, we can start Ryan’s reign of consistent success in 2010, when he went 11-1, finished sixth in the league in scoring (136 PPG), and dominated in the playoffs, beating PHI (Andrew) by 60 points, SF (Mike) by 30, and avenging his only loss of the regular season to CHI (Brendan, or Spudd as he was known) by 12 points in the NFC Championship Game, to claim his first of three NFC titles. However, the tables were turned in the Super Bowl, where former league member TEN (Joe), beat Ryan handily (By nearly 25) to claim his first and only championship.
In 2011, Ryan took a step back in the record column, finishing a distant second (At 8-4) to Brendan’s Bears, who went 12-0 that year, despite upping his production to 138.64 PPG (Fourth in the league). He was defeated rather easily by DAL (Aaron) in the first round of the playoffs. It says a lot about Ryan that an 8-4 record and playoff appearance was considered one of his most disappointing seasons, but it was. It is, however, important to keep something in context: Ryan always tried to trade away his rookie picks, as he thought rookies are overvalued, and this year was the one exception I remember from the time I was in the league with him, as this is the year he went all in on rookie Cam Newton, trading away valuable assets to do so, and it hurt his short-term performance. How would it work in the long-term?
In 2012, Ryan’s team elevated their play, going 10-2, winning his division by 5 games, and pacing the league in points, averaging 149.8 PPG. He had a 120-point first round playoff win over the Giants, nearly tripling their score, and followed that up by beating his division rival Bears by nearly 90 points as well. Ryan then beat Cecil’s Seahawks by 9 points, for his second NFC Championship, before succumbing to one of then League Commissioner Mike’s two teams, Oakland, in the Super Bowl, by 14 points. No doubt, by this point, Ryan’s Lions had become one of the elite teams, and this season began a streak of dominance for him that has only once been equaled: Four division titles in five years (Garrett (PIT) currently has four-straight from 2014-2017). He also compiled 45 regular season wins in those five years, a figure which has only been topped by fellow 2018 HOF inductee Cecil, and his 48 wins from 2013-2017 (Or 48 wins from 2012-2016).
Ryan’s 2012 team was also one of the best ever on paper, including at various points during the season, Newton (22.61 PPG), Arian Foster (16.79 PPG), LeSean McCoy (13.14 PPG), Calvin Johnson (19.82 PPG), Dez Bryant (10.23 PPG, though in only 7 games that year), Steve Smith (9.92 PPG), and Martellus Bennett (6.83 PPG). Defensively, he had Perry Riley Jr. (11.19 PPG), Thomas Davis (11.36 PPG, but only in 9 games), Brad Jones’ 10.89 PPG in 9 games, Paris Lenon’s 9.52 PPG in 5 games, Mason Foster (9.4 PPG, in only 5 games), Jon Beason’s 9.85 PPG in four contests, Mario Williams’ 6.47 PPG, and Bernard Pollard (10.51 PPG), LaRon Landry (9.85 PPG), Roman Harper’s 8 games of 9.76 PPG, and Stevie Brown’s three-game stint of 12.83 PPG. I’m not saying Ryan had all of these players at once, but clearly, health was his biggest pitfall, especially on defense.
Ryan’s 2013 team was the lone non-division champion Lions’ team over that four-year span, and finished at 9-3, just one game behind Chicago (In Brendan's last year/division championship in the league), despite outscoring him by over 100 points on the season (140 PPG, third in scoring, and beating the Bears head-to-head. He did, however, make another first round playoff exit at the hands of Aaron (DAL) again.
In 2014, Ryan got his string of three-straight division titles (Only exceeded by Garrett, and equaled by Cecil 2015-2017, Aaron 2011-2013, and 2017 HOF inductee Brooks, 2012-2014) underway, but his record fell to 8-4, despite averaging a robust 139.32 PPG (Good for third in scoring that year). However, once again in the playoffs, Aaron (DAL) was waiting for him in the first round, and sunk Ryan’s Lions by 50, ending their season.
The 2015 season was another high for Ryan, winning the NFC North by a game to an upstart (Though the statistics show, incredibly lucky and low strength-of-schedule) Packers, going 9-3, and averaging 143 PPG (Again, third in scoring). This time, with Aaron again waiting in the playoffs’ opening frame, Ryan destroyed Dallas by 61 points, exorcising his demons. He then beat Dave (WAS) by 36, before besting Andrew by 17 to move to the final game, against the former creator of the NFFL’s site, Jacksonville (Jake), winning his third NFC title. Unfortunately, that was as close as he’d ever get to a Super Bowl, as Odell Beckham Jr. was suspended for Super Bowl week because of his fight with Josh Norman. Ryan almost certainly would have won it all if not for Beckham’s suspension, as he lost by only 4 points. It just wasn’t meant to be.
2016 was the first season where you could begin to sense a downturn for Ryan. Though his team still went 9-3, allowing him to win his fourth division title in five years, his activity seriously waned, which was always one of the hallmarks of Ryan as a GM: he is the most active GM in league history, making the most trades, signings, and cuts. When he didn’t log on or make many moves in the offseason, there was some concern. But he logged back on and informed everyone that he had just been really busy with work, which helped to temper that concern. However, despite the fact that his Lions averaged 143.54 PPG, fifth in the league again, and that he won his division over Matt’s Vikings, who had just begun their rise to the top of the division, it just didn’t feel right. That’s the best way I could put it. Pitted in a rematch with Matt in the first round of the playoffs (On his way to an NFC Championship Game of his own), Ryan was destroyed by over 30 points, failing to even reach the century mark.
The last year of Ryan’s involvement in the league, 2017, started out even more ominously. He was completely absent from the offseason, and did very little to shore up holes that were created from his lack of activity from 2016. He logged back on just before the season, indicating that again he had been busy with work, and then was impacted by the hurricane in Week 1 last year. After that period, Ryan mostly disappeared from the site for the rest of the season, becoming an absent GM, making several scant appearances by simply logging on, not posting anything, and not once setting his lineup after Week 1. For the first time ever, he did not make a single trade or roster move once the season began. Without the help of the league setting his lineup, he would have likely suffered his first losing season. His team finished 13th in scoring (119.45 PPG), with a record of 6-6, losing control of the division for the first time since 2013, and losing to Matt in the regular season for the first time. His team fell out of the playoffs once again in the first round, this time losing to Justin (CAR), and also failing to hit 100 points for the second year in a row. He once again logged back on at the beginning of this offseason, stating his intention to play, but then never logged on again, nor answered any texts or PMs from any league member.
Despite his tailing off near the end of his career, Ryan was a phenomenal player in this league, and I don’t think I can overstate that. Was he a nuisance, annoying, grating, or even an unbearable asshole at times? Sure. But he was also one of the most fun and consistently dedicated members in the history our league. There’s not a long-term member of this league that hasn’t swapped some paint with him. And most importantly, true to what A.J. Mass’ archetype of the loose cannon suggests, he did whatever it took to win, and he did win, very often, coming just points from winning it all.
Given his lofty accomplishments; 3 NFC Championships, 4 NFC North division titles, finishing with at least a .500 record and making the playoffs every year that he was in the league, averaging nearly 9 (8.875) wins per year (A .740 winning-percentage that ranks fourth all-time among GMs who have played more than one season, behind only Jordan (JAX) .792, Cecil (SEA) .760, and Garrett (PIT) .750), and our second-winningest GM of all-time at 71-25 (And tied with Garrett for our second-winningest playoff GM of all-time, with 9 wins), a 200-point game (201.47), as well as holding a 5-1 all-time record vs. Brendan (CHI), including 2-0 in the playoffs (Though he only won one NFC North title while Brendan was in the league), and a 7-2 record against Matt (MIN), his other main division rival (7-1 in the regular season), we are glad to enshrine Ryan (DET) into the Canton Dynasty League’s Hall of Fame.
Regular Season Record: 71-25 (.740)
Postseason Record: 9-8 (.530)
Division Titles: 4x NFC North winner (2012, 2014, 2015, 2016)
NFC Champion: 3x (2010, 2012, 2015)
Super Bowl Championships: None
Goose (BAL): “Ryan (DET) was a devoted and excellent fantasy football player, and was unlucky when it came to the playoffs. I had many feuds with him, but there is no denying he was good at trading to his advantage and managing his team.”
Chris (CIN): “As for Ryan, he was here since the beginning (Or very close to it I believe). Everyone in here knows his credentials and his temper tantrums by now, I assume. Basically, he's as close to winning a Super Bowl without having done so as anyone ever. You do have to feel kind of sorry for him as the bridesmaid but never the bride/lovable loser a little bit despite his shenanigans. His teams were often dominant, he had a string of top-5 regular season or playoff finishes for like 6 years straight, owns the record for consistency, as he made the playoffs every single season that he was in the league, and is our second-winningest owner of all-time.
Aaron (DAL): “Few have a record like his year in year out. He never seemed to have a bad season. He could be a tool at times, lol, but still a great GM for that team.”
Matt (MIN): “He will always be remembered for his trade rapes and outbursts.”
Ryan is exactly the kind of personality that fantasy football writer A.J. Mass said is one of the vital 12 personalities/archetypes to a successful league:
“The Loose Cannon: A hothead like Bobby Knight, Mel Gibson or Bill O’Reilly who could snap at the slightest, seemingly-innocent provocation. A league with too many owners with a fuse as short as Christian Bale is sure to end up looking like Gotham City after the Joker goes on one of his destructive sprees. We’re talking a real powder keg here. The tiniest little nitpicky thing might send him into a whirlwind tirade. He might go off on a scathing e-mail rampage simply because you reminded him of an upcoming deadline. Of course, he’s just as likely to lash out if you don’t remind him. He’ll press everybody’s hot buttons, but on the plus side, the loose cannon is extremely passionate, and will do whatever it takes to win. And very often, you’ll find that he does.”
Though we don’t have 2009 data, we can start Ryan’s reign of consistent success in 2010, when he went 11-1, finished sixth in the league in scoring (136 PPG), and dominated in the playoffs, beating PHI (Andrew) by 60 points, SF (Mike) by 30, and avenging his only loss of the regular season to CHI (Brendan, or Spudd as he was known) by 12 points in the NFC Championship Game, to claim his first of three NFC titles. However, the tables were turned in the Super Bowl, where former league member TEN (Joe), beat Ryan handily (By nearly 25) to claim his first and only championship.
In 2011, Ryan took a step back in the record column, finishing a distant second (At 8-4) to Brendan’s Bears, who went 12-0 that year, despite upping his production to 138.64 PPG (Fourth in the league). He was defeated rather easily by DAL (Aaron) in the first round of the playoffs. It says a lot about Ryan that an 8-4 record and playoff appearance was considered one of his most disappointing seasons, but it was. It is, however, important to keep something in context: Ryan always tried to trade away his rookie picks, as he thought rookies are overvalued, and this year was the one exception I remember from the time I was in the league with him, as this is the year he went all in on rookie Cam Newton, trading away valuable assets to do so, and it hurt his short-term performance. How would it work in the long-term?
In 2012, Ryan’s team elevated their play, going 10-2, winning his division by 5 games, and pacing the league in points, averaging 149.8 PPG. He had a 120-point first round playoff win over the Giants, nearly tripling their score, and followed that up by beating his division rival Bears by nearly 90 points as well. Ryan then beat Cecil’s Seahawks by 9 points, for his second NFC Championship, before succumbing to one of then League Commissioner Mike’s two teams, Oakland, in the Super Bowl, by 14 points. No doubt, by this point, Ryan’s Lions had become one of the elite teams, and this season began a streak of dominance for him that has only once been equaled: Four division titles in five years (Garrett (PIT) currently has four-straight from 2014-2017). He also compiled 45 regular season wins in those five years, a figure which has only been topped by fellow 2018 HOF inductee Cecil, and his 48 wins from 2013-2017 (Or 48 wins from 2012-2016).
Ryan’s 2012 team was also one of the best ever on paper, including at various points during the season, Newton (22.61 PPG), Arian Foster (16.79 PPG), LeSean McCoy (13.14 PPG), Calvin Johnson (19.82 PPG), Dez Bryant (10.23 PPG, though in only 7 games that year), Steve Smith (9.92 PPG), and Martellus Bennett (6.83 PPG). Defensively, he had Perry Riley Jr. (11.19 PPG), Thomas Davis (11.36 PPG, but only in 9 games), Brad Jones’ 10.89 PPG in 9 games, Paris Lenon’s 9.52 PPG in 5 games, Mason Foster (9.4 PPG, in only 5 games), Jon Beason’s 9.85 PPG in four contests, Mario Williams’ 6.47 PPG, and Bernard Pollard (10.51 PPG), LaRon Landry (9.85 PPG), Roman Harper’s 8 games of 9.76 PPG, and Stevie Brown’s three-game stint of 12.83 PPG. I’m not saying Ryan had all of these players at once, but clearly, health was his biggest pitfall, especially on defense.
Ryan’s 2013 team was the lone non-division champion Lions’ team over that four-year span, and finished at 9-3, just one game behind Chicago (In Brendan's last year/division championship in the league), despite outscoring him by over 100 points on the season (140 PPG, third in scoring, and beating the Bears head-to-head. He did, however, make another first round playoff exit at the hands of Aaron (DAL) again.
In 2014, Ryan got his string of three-straight division titles (Only exceeded by Garrett, and equaled by Cecil 2015-2017, Aaron 2011-2013, and 2017 HOF inductee Brooks, 2012-2014) underway, but his record fell to 8-4, despite averaging a robust 139.32 PPG (Good for third in scoring that year). However, once again in the playoffs, Aaron (DAL) was waiting for him in the first round, and sunk Ryan’s Lions by 50, ending their season.
The 2015 season was another high for Ryan, winning the NFC North by a game to an upstart (Though the statistics show, incredibly lucky and low strength-of-schedule) Packers, going 9-3, and averaging 143 PPG (Again, third in scoring). This time, with Aaron again waiting in the playoffs’ opening frame, Ryan destroyed Dallas by 61 points, exorcising his demons. He then beat Dave (WAS) by 36, before besting Andrew by 17 to move to the final game, against the former creator of the NFFL’s site, Jacksonville (Jake), winning his third NFC title. Unfortunately, that was as close as he’d ever get to a Super Bowl, as Odell Beckham Jr. was suspended for Super Bowl week because of his fight with Josh Norman. Ryan almost certainly would have won it all if not for Beckham’s suspension, as he lost by only 4 points. It just wasn’t meant to be.
2016 was the first season where you could begin to sense a downturn for Ryan. Though his team still went 9-3, allowing him to win his fourth division title in five years, his activity seriously waned, which was always one of the hallmarks of Ryan as a GM: he is the most active GM in league history, making the most trades, signings, and cuts. When he didn’t log on or make many moves in the offseason, there was some concern. But he logged back on and informed everyone that he had just been really busy with work, which helped to temper that concern. However, despite the fact that his Lions averaged 143.54 PPG, fifth in the league again, and that he won his division over Matt’s Vikings, who had just begun their rise to the top of the division, it just didn’t feel right. That’s the best way I could put it. Pitted in a rematch with Matt in the first round of the playoffs (On his way to an NFC Championship Game of his own), Ryan was destroyed by over 30 points, failing to even reach the century mark.
The last year of Ryan’s involvement in the league, 2017, started out even more ominously. He was completely absent from the offseason, and did very little to shore up holes that were created from his lack of activity from 2016. He logged back on just before the season, indicating that again he had been busy with work, and then was impacted by the hurricane in Week 1 last year. After that period, Ryan mostly disappeared from the site for the rest of the season, becoming an absent GM, making several scant appearances by simply logging on, not posting anything, and not once setting his lineup after Week 1. For the first time ever, he did not make a single trade or roster move once the season began. Without the help of the league setting his lineup, he would have likely suffered his first losing season. His team finished 13th in scoring (119.45 PPG), with a record of 6-6, losing control of the division for the first time since 2013, and losing to Matt in the regular season for the first time. His team fell out of the playoffs once again in the first round, this time losing to Justin (CAR), and also failing to hit 100 points for the second year in a row. He once again logged back on at the beginning of this offseason, stating his intention to play, but then never logged on again, nor answered any texts or PMs from any league member.
Despite his tailing off near the end of his career, Ryan was a phenomenal player in this league, and I don’t think I can overstate that. Was he a nuisance, annoying, grating, or even an unbearable asshole at times? Sure. But he was also one of the most fun and consistently dedicated members in the history our league. There’s not a long-term member of this league that hasn’t swapped some paint with him. And most importantly, true to what A.J. Mass’ archetype of the loose cannon suggests, he did whatever it took to win, and he did win, very often, coming just points from winning it all.
Given his lofty accomplishments; 3 NFC Championships, 4 NFC North division titles, finishing with at least a .500 record and making the playoffs every year that he was in the league, averaging nearly 9 (8.875) wins per year (A .740 winning-percentage that ranks fourth all-time among GMs who have played more than one season, behind only Jordan (JAX) .792, Cecil (SEA) .760, and Garrett (PIT) .750), and our second-winningest GM of all-time at 71-25 (And tied with Garrett for our second-winningest playoff GM of all-time, with 9 wins), a 200-point game (201.47), as well as holding a 5-1 all-time record vs. Brendan (CHI), including 2-0 in the playoffs (Though he only won one NFC North title while Brendan was in the league), and a 7-2 record against Matt (MIN), his other main division rival (7-1 in the regular season), we are glad to enshrine Ryan (DET) into the Canton Dynasty League’s Hall of Fame.