American Football League - Fictional History

East Division As it had been in the past few years, the fight for the East Division title was close the entire season. Boston and Washington were the clear front runners before the season began, and made their cases for a division title clear as the year progressed. Washington QB Johnnie Sellers put up similar numbers to his MVP year in 1953, which might have been the reason why he would take home his second MVP from his performance this year. The usual cast of weapons on offense allowed him to shine, though an injury to WR Darius Sanderson late in the year would not see him return until the second week of the playoffs. Rookie WR Gene Cockburn excelled in his absence, and might be featured extensively once the regular #1 receiver returns to the lineup. Boston’s elite defense caved in a little bit this season, but that was expected after an elite season like last year. What changed was their offense, which finally got going after a key acquisition in the middle of the year. Former Bernh...

    East Division The East was once again fairly top-heavy for another year, though it took some time for the top teams to separate themselves from the rest. The Federals seemed to have a repeat of last year: they started out on a post-championship hangover at 3-3 but would win 4 out of their next 5 games leading up to the final week to potentially win repeat division titles. The usual suspects helped out again, though rookie S Bobby Loes proved to be a lethal backfield combination with Josh von Bank, with many toting their secondary as the best in the league. Even with the rest of the division being weak, they would not have a straight shot to a division title like last year, but it wasn’t the expected foe as it was the year before. That team would be the second-year Boston Dragons, who lived up to their expansion year expectations. The team avoided major injury and had QB Sam Eagleburger step up to the starter role, going from 3-9 last year to 6-4-1 and a shot at the divisio...

  East Division The first true expansion teams in the AFL would meet in the first week of the season, with the New York Lions falling at home against the Boston Dragons 19-13 in the first game for either team. Boston would narrowly win against Pittsburgh the following week and they quickly looked like they could be in competition for a playoff spot. However, it all came crashing down that week. The Dragons were extremely unlucky during that game, losing 4 players in their starting front 7 for multiple weeks during the middle of the season. Now starting mostly backups, the Dragons would lose their next 7 games and quickly fell out of playoff contention, only being mathematically eliminated after a loss to the Lions in the penultimate week of the season. The New York Lions on the contrary started out cold, losing their first 4 games though each by a single possession. Their first win in the AFL would come against a hapless Detroit squad, silencing them in a 19-0 trouncing on the road...

  East Division With two of its top teams having new quarterbacks for this season, there was a power vacuum in the East that had to be filled. And in filling that vacuum, a bloodbath ensued to secure those two coveted playoff spots. Pittsburgh did start off on the right foot, getting revenge on the defending champion Federals by crushing them 30-13 in week 1. The Shamrocks got another win one week later against Cleveland to take the lead in the East. However, they would not win another game in the next 5 weeks, losing all but 1 of their games by 1 possession. QB O.J. DeMille showed off that he could be the Shamrocks’ QB of the future like he had promised, but the offense severely lacked any potent weapons that could make him thrive. RB Marion Waters regressed significantly from his performance last year, barely being able to get past the secondary with a drop in his speed. The receiving core was middling at best, with WR David Rice and TE Harry Worley being good but n...

  East Division In a season where Pittsburgh QB Clarence Stanley had to win the championship to prove he is a capable starter, he sure got the Shamrocks headed in the right direction. Stanley relied on veteran RB Marion Waters to move the ball down the field, since he didn’t have a reliable option at receiver. Waters ended up having a great season as a result, finishing third in MVP voting and a driving force to Pittsburgh’s surge to win the East. Pittsburgh’s defense lost a lot of major players for the season, losing both DL Roy Forbes and LB Alex Lee over the course of the year. That didn’t seem to stop the other starters, with DL Archie Webber terrorizing offensive lines on his way to win DPOY. LB Barry Moore, DB Jerry Pruitt, and S Raymond Walters were also key contributors, all getting all-star nominations. They now get the much-needed home field advantage in the play-off game in a rematch against the Hammers. What helped Pittsburgh solidly win the East was the sudden regressi...

East Division With the introduction of the Buffalo Hammers and Pittsburgh Shamrocks into the AFL, many were skeptical if they were able to compete at the same level of the other 6 teams. The NYPL was seen as a mid-tier league at best, and the level of play in the Midwest was far better. In fact, some sports pundits were claiming that Detroit or even Cleveland would win the East Division due to the disparity between the two leagues. Even if Buffalo and Pittsburgh were on par in skill level, Detroit was set to make a huge step up after two years of disappointment. Those who picked Cleveland to win the East were quickly disappointed, as they lost 9 games in a row to secure the first overall draft pick in 1953, in a season they would love to forget. RB Perry Ferguson took a huge step back in his second season, resulting in fellow second-year QB Ronnie Hart to carry more of the offensive load for the Crows, and with the majority of offensive playmakers either in the first or second seasons ...

  After the first season which was practically dominated by two teams, the 1951 season was a bit closer. It wasn’t particularly close for the Hogs, as they were out on a revenge tour after losing to the Hawks in the championship game and the week 1 Labor Day game. After that loss, they rattled off 9 straight wins to firmly sit atop the standings and another chance at winning a title. Everything clicked for the team this year, with QB Alfred Walton leading the league’s best scoring offense with weapons like WR Nicholas Kramer and TE Glenn Chambers on the passing attack, while RB’s Johnnie Hendrix and rookie Brian Bruce split carries on the ground. Walton’s commanding presence on the only efficient offense all year won him both the MVP and Offensive Player of the Year. The Hogs’ defense really stepped up this year, not allowing more than 20 points to any team this year, besides their 21-17 week 1 loss to Tri-Cities. Rookie DL Eric Forbes was one the main reasons why the defense was a...