Ashley Jackson, Beat Writer
Banner image by J.R. Lawless
Seattle is known for being the birthplace of some Fortune 500 companies, such as Amazon and Starbucks. It’s located in what is known as the Pacific Ring of Fire, known for its earthquake activity; now, however, it will be know for its first E-sports football team, the Seattle Tyrants! Team owner Mr. Crash Combs decided to move the team from Dallas to Seattle in the offseason to show that he was ready to shake things up, and not just on both sides of the ball. The Seattle Tyrants (formally known as the Dallas Law, then Ruffnecks, and finally Lobos ) has a rich history in the Simulation Football League, which for them started in Season 7. Their front office staff includes, once again, Team Owner Crash Combs (Mr. Stream-able), Junior Senior III as Assistant Defensive Coordinator (Creator of Teal Wars feud with the Tulsa Desperados) and Zack Sandlin as Defensive Coordinator. Fun fact: Zack also participated in last season’s All-Star game as player of one team, and coached the other! It was so awesome to watch his player prevail – a true win-win situation there. Seattle is one of the 9 other teams in the running for this season’s number one spot: the championship title itself.
Some quick facts about the Tyrants:
– They’ll be bringing four non-contract rookies to the postseason with them, with WR Nick Castle, FS Pete Mitchell, MLB Angel Salinas and OLB Lyriic Jenkins
– Zack Sandlin, in addition to being the Season 12 All-Star Game MVP (unfortunately, on the team he did not coach) is also the reigning Season 12 MVP, and is 2nd in the league in rushing yards
– Quarterback Jacques Luyindula has quietly been putting together his own argument for MVP as one of only two quarterbacks in the league to have a season-long rating above 100 (101.8)
– Defensively, the Tyrants have one of the top-five best quarterback threats in the league with Denzel Maverick and his 13 sacks for the season
– They’ve also got Mahmoud Ajlouni, who is T-1st for pick sixes
– While they didn’t make the Championship Game last season, their former incarnation (the Dallas Lobos) did capture the Season 12 Unofficial Championship Title
As a team, Seattle is sitting nicely in the No. 3 position in team ranking, despite winning only four of their last 6 games played. Their record currently stands at 9-2. Offensively, the team has averaged 31 points per game with 24 passing and 7 rushing touchdowns. They have also been highly effective at 3rd down conversions, having 77 out of 125 attempts; that’s the ability to get a first down roughly 61 .6% of the time. Being able to convert 3rd down at crucial opportunities is why the Tyrants are in the position they find themselves in. 
At the helm of the offense, quarterback Jacques Luyindula has 293 completions of 385 attempts for 3070 yards this season. Zack “The Sandman” Sandlin has 278 carries for 1441 yards, and averages 5.4 per carry. Filling out the rest of the offense is Junior Senior III with 87 receptions for 881 yards (10.0ypc), Mason Kirby with 47 receptions for 646 yards (13.7ypc), and the trashman himself, Tristan Carr, with 45 receptions for 573 yards (12.7ypc). The high powered receiving corps are currently sitting at 18 total reception touchdowns total at the moment.
On the defensive side of things, Tyrants are ranked number 3, behind only the Denver Nightwings and Tallahassee Pride.They have allowed only 20 passing touchdowns and a league-low 4 rushing, and are able to keep teams at bay by only allowing an average of 23 points scored per game. So far, only 80 points have been scored on them all season. Impressive.
Leaders on the defense includes EK Vinson (fellow Archer watcher) with 56 tackles, 20 assists and 1 interception, Cain Vasquez with 51 tackles, 23 assists, and 4 interceptions, while Mahmoud Ajlouni is a beast with 51 tackles, 20 assists, and 7 interceptions (two returned all the way to the house!) thus far in the season. Iverson Gamble, Denzel Maverick, Mario Martino and Jukin Roukyn round out the defense with 123 tackles, 29 asst and average 2.9 tackles per game per person.
While Seattle is sure to be locked in as a top 6 team heading into the playoffs, they will have to face playoff contender the Atlanta Swarm at home to end the regular season. With a new team, new city, and new attitude, it has so far equaled success for the Seattle Tyrants. As they’re only 1.5 games back from the current leader, the Denver Nightwings, they want to make it known: other playoff contenders better watch out because, when the dust settles, there may be a new sheriff in town.
