Jacob Henriksen-Willis

My Favorite NFA Players

An old hobby of mine was to boot up Madden and simulate 20 years into the future to write about the computer-generated players that took over the league in that time. None of these guys are real, but through stats & ratings I can find a story to tell about them. Here are some of my favorites.

NFA Football Sim •

Sam Pettin, QB, Boston Generals

Sam Pettin would be the first to tell you: it’s not easy to win over Bostonians. Love ‘em or hate ‘em, they can sniff out BS quicker than any fanbase in the game ‒ and they won’t be quiet about it when they do. They’ll run you out of town the moment you give them a chance.

Does Boston lend itself kindly to stars like Jared Coffey or Breshad Portis, who started slow but just needed some time to figure things out? Absolutely not. If you’re a young player who isn’t ready for primetime, this is where your career goes to die.
NFA Football Sim •

Elias Floyd, QB, Los Angeles Crusaders

You know, I suppose I can understand the hesitancy some fans have when it comes to crowning Elias Floyd the league’s best quarterback. Even after he won his third championship before his 30th birthday. (Please know how much it pained me to write that sentence).

There are NFA writers much older and wiser than I that are refusing to give Floyd his credit, and I’m finally starting to figure out where they’re coming from, even if I disagree.
NFA Football Sim •

Dante Truveris-Vance, QB, Seattle Bucks

I had my hit piece all lined up. It was like shooting fish in a barrel ‒ I would go after Dante Truveris-Vance with all the bitterness and resentment of a Bucks fan that’s had to watch seven years’ worth of crappy Seattle offenses holding back elite Seattle defenses. I could write 800-
1,000 words worth of that in my sleep.

But I had to stop myself at the last second. It’s not my job to mindlessly parrot your average Twitter user ‒ I’m here to think critically about this stuff. I have to roll up my sleeves and go to work.
NFA Football Sim •

Jared Coffey, QB, San Antonio Broncos

My heart broke for Jared Coffey last year. For all he’s done in this league as a player and leader, nobody deserved a win more than him. The 2020 season should have been the culmination of Coffey’s long-winded road to redemption. He was captaining perhaps his best San Antonio team yet, winning 13 games en route to his second career MVP award.

But his arch-nemesis Elias Floyd and those pesky Crusaders reared their ugly heads again.
NFA Football Sim •

Freddie Ner, OLB, Detroit Marauders

Say your buddy Dr. Who lends you his time machine, and you decide to show your 2019 self the frontrunners for the ‘21 Defensive Player of the Year award.

Sure, the past-you would be relieved to see Kione Brown, who at the time was recovering from a brutal knee injury we thought might have been career-ending. And the fact that the list extends any further than just Mario Blanchard may come as a surprise. But none of the names would be particularly shocking.

Except for one. Who the hell is Freddie Ner?