We are on the precipise of Champs 2020 for the inaugural season of the Call of Duty League. One more sleep boys. One day more.
Someone on my Sunday stream asked me about my first CDL blog for Barstool Sports where I compared each squad to an NFL team in an attempt to help other new fans relate to each squad heading into the season. That’s actually one of my proudest moments of the year; I slept like 4 hours over two days watching old CoD footage to put that first primer together.
And now that’s we’re about to head into the post-season, I thought it would be fun to revisit that topic with each team. So let’s dive right in: here’s each Call of Duty League’s NFL comparison as we head into Champs 2020.
Atlanta FaZe (Previous: Kansas City Chiefs, Now: Kansas City Chiefs)
This one was spot on. Right on the money. Kansas City is an offensive powerhouse stacked with young studs like Patrick Mahomes and Tyreek Hill that haven’t even hit their prime yet, just like the Atlanta FaZe. At only 19, Simp has already become one of the best players in the league and is already being projected as a top 10 all-time player with only two seasons to his name. The rest of his squad deserves plenty of credit as well; aBezy really showed out in their last few events, Cellium fried for the entire first half of the season, and Priestahh and MajorManiak have played very well all year in the AR roles. There really aren’t any visible weaknesses for this team and many will be projecting them to win Champs not only this year but many years to come.
Chicago Huntsmen (Previous: New Orleans Saints, Now: Dallas Cowboys)
Many projected the Huntsmen to cruise to an easy top 2 seed at the beginning of the season (myself included), which is why I gave them the comparison to the Saints; one of the most consistently dominant teams in the NFL for the last 3 years. But the Huntsmen have been anything but consistent this year, losing to teams they should have swept easily and narrowly escaping others. And for that reason, I have to compare them to the Dallas Cowboys who seem to always have an extremely talented roster but fail to meet expectations year after year. Don’t count the Huntsmen out thought; they have plenty of championship pedigree between the 4 former champions (Scump, FormaL, Arcitys, Prestinni) and an MVP candidate in Envoy. Also, Scump’s former OpTic squads are known for stumbling through the regular season and then turning it on for Champs. Let’s hope that remains true this year.
Dallas Empire (Previous: New England Patriots, Now: New England Patriots)
Another spot on pick. This team is probably the most hated team in the league sue to the Team Envy roots and despite that, they’re one of the most dominant. You’ve got two arrogant veterans in Clayster and Crimsix who not only know what they’re talking about but have proven throughout their career that they can back it up (kinda like Brady and Gronk). Then there are the three young and hungry studs (Huke, iLLey, and Shotzzy) who have just been absolutely frying all year long. When one has a bad game, the other two have always stepped up. They all had a rather rocky start at the beginning of the season, but the addition of coach Rambo Ray seemed to really kickstart the youngsters into gear in an almost Belichick way. And they’re a top 2 seed. I mean, how much more New England Patriots can they get? I’ll tell you how: by winning it all and giving Crimsix and Clayster each their 3rd ring.
Florida Mutineers (Previous: LA Rams, Now: LA Rams)
At the beginning of the season, I said this team’s success is going to depend on the play of Prestinni and the leadership of Ogre2 in the GM spot. I also said they would either be the 2019 Rams that made it to the Superbowl or the 2020 squad that missed the playoffs entirely. Well…I was sorta still right on both fronts. In that Atlanta Home Series where Florida made a run to their first Finals, it was Prestinni that led the charge. And then when he went out indefinitely, it was Ogre2 that went out and picked up Fero as his replacement. You know what happened in his 2nd event with the team? They won their first Home Series. And when the team started to struggle again? He picked up amateur Owakening and the squad won the next two events back to back. Oh, and all the while he’s mentored Skyz into the best AR in the league. That leadership is as Sean McVay as it can get in esports and it’s the reason that the Mutineers are a top 4 seed heading into Champs.
London Royal Ravens (Previous: N/A, Now: LA Chargers)
When I think of the LA Chargers, I think of Phillip Rivers screaming his fucking head off on the sideline while his kicker misses a 24-yard field goal or fumbling the snap at the 2-yard line on the final play of the game. Somehow, someway, that team always seems to keep the game close and then lose in the most heartbreaking fashion. And that’s what sums up the Royal Ravens this year. This team has so much talent and always seems to play teams close but just can’t get over the hump. The only difference between the Royal Ravens and the Chargers is the fan base. London has one of the most rabid fan bases in the CDL and I have it on my bucket list now to attend an event at their Home Series whenever I get a chance. As for Champs this year, this squad has the potential to make a deep run but they’re going to have to really clean up the mistakes and clutch up against the big boys, something they have failed to do all year.
Los Angles Guerillas (Previous: Seattle Seahawks, Now: “pre-Kyler” Arizona Cardinals)
Ok I was WAY off on this one. I mean can you believe I called ACHES the Russell Wilson of this squad??? What a horrible call by me. Listen, I thought this team was pretty underrated heading into Launch Weekend and it turns out I was dead wrong. The LA Guerillas ended up being a team of young talent all thrown together and expecting to work. Spoiler: it didn’t. This is the worst team in the league. They’re still looking for thier Kyler Murray and Kliff Kingsbury to step up and save them from a quick elimination tomorrow, but I highly doubt that will happen. There’s alot of work to be done in the off-season to turn this team into a contender and I think they’re gonna have plenty of time to do it after they get smoked by OGLA in the opening round of the loser’s bracket.
Minnesota Rokkr (Previous: Tennessee Titans, Now: Buffalo Bills)
I was born in Buffalo NY. I am a diehard Bills fan and have been for years. And if I had to describe the Bills to someone, I would say it’s a small market team with an extremely loyal fanbase that no matter how hot they start always seems to end up just clinching or just missing the playoffs. And that’s the Minnesota Rokkr this year. No one has suffered more from the switch to online than the Rokkr and especially GodRx, who was recently benched for Exceed heading into Champs. I have no idea how they’re going to perform this weekend; the roster change could produce a deep run or knock them out early. Personally, I’m rooting for these guys to make a deep run. The most entertaining games this year have featured the Rokkr in nailbiting finishes and I think if they can somehow regain that form from those early LAN events, they have a chance to suprise everyone at Champs.
New York Subliners (Previous: N/A, Now: “post-Kyler” Arizona Cardinals)
It’s crazy how much the addition of one player can turn an entire team around. Prior to the addition of Mack, this team was heading straight to the bottom of the standings with LAG. I mean they played multiple events without a single win despite having veterans like Zooma, Attach, and Zer0 leading the charge. Then halfway through the season, Mack was picked up and now this team is now a dark horse contender heading into Champs. Of course, Arizona wasn’t really a contender last year but just think about how much better that squad became with the addition of one player. They still have some work to do to become a true contender but they are leaps and bounds better than the squad that went 3-13 the previous year. The Subliners still had work to do after a poor performance in their final event of the year, but if they can put it all together this week don’t be surprised if they finish in the Top 4.
Optic Gaming LA (Previous: Dallas Cowboys, Now: New York Jets)
I cannot stand this team. My feelings regarding Immortal Gaming’s purchase of OpTic and their treatment of H3CZ aside, this has not been a good team for the majority of the season. And still, they still talk so much shit online. I mean I get that everyone in the CDL pokes fun at each other and most of it is all satirical, but these guys just act like they’re a top 6 team and they haven’t been all year long. And that’s the Jets to me. I hate the fucking Jets. Every year they act like they’re going to turn it around and win the division, and they end up shitting the bed right out the gate. Just like the Jets, there’s a ton of talent on OGLA but no one has consistently played well all year. I think the addition of rookies Hollow and Drazah will get them over LAG, but I am praying if the Rokkr lose their opening round against NY that they demolish OGLA in the losers bracket.
Paris Legion (Previous: N/A, Now: Detroit Lions)
Remember when the Lions went 2-0-1 last season and we all started to think they might be decent, then they lost almost every game the rest of the season and we snapped back to reality? Yea, that’s the Paris Legion. Every single CDL analyst projected Paris to finish near the bottom of the standings, then they went 2-0 at Launch Weekend and made the semi-finals at the next Home Series. Even I started to question whether or not it was a sign of greatness, then they just got shit on the rest of the season. They made a run to the Home Series Final in their last event, but this team is still a full tier below the top 6 teams. I’m expecting an early exit and a whole lot of changes in the off-season.
Seattle Surge (Previous: Cleveland Browns, Now: Cleveland Browns)
Did I call it or did I call it? I said in February that this team has so much individual talent but I’m worried whether or not they’ll be able to put it all together and play like a team. I mean, I don’t think anyone can deny that the Browns are loaded with talent on both the offensive and defensive sides of the ball. They just can’t figure out how to make it all mesh, which is what happened with the Surge all season. Octane is the only player with a positive K/D on the year, Apathy has shown sparks of his greatness, but everyone else has just not figured it out. I think this team is already mentally defeated heading into Champs based on what they’re tweeting, and I think there needs to be some pretty big roster changes to turn it around next season. Does that mean trading Octane and going into “rebuild mode” with amateurs? I don’t know. But dear god, #SomeoneHelpSam.
Toronto Ultra (Previous: N/A, Now: Atlanta Falcons)
Hand up, I shit on the Ultra for the first half of the season. I hate their name, I kinda hate Canada, and outside of Methodz no one else seemed to really stand up all year. And that’s why the just got obliterated for the first half of the season just like the Falcons last year. But I’ll hand it to Toronto, they didn’t give up and they put it all together to salvage their season and end up in the middle of the standings (again, just like the Falcons last year). They’re definitely the most improved season this year but now it has to translate to some big clutches. There are some rumors going around that the only reason that Toronto improved this year was the “start glitch” in SnD, so I’m very interested to see how Cammy and the boys play in their next match. But I have faith in this team and I think they’re going to make a pretty deep run.
Like I’ve said a bajillion times in this blog, Champs 2020 starts tomorrow and runs through Sunday. As many of you know, I am the best CDL gambler on this planet so tune in every day around 11am EST for my picks on each day’s game. Also, you can follow along on Twitter as I rake in stacks of cash.
