Hamburg Sea Devils might be my favorite name in the league. Just so much going on there, makes me hungry for cheeseburgers and some seafood. What is a Sea Devil? I don’t know but I pretty much just found out that Germany was near the sea, so that’s something. But back to football. This team dominated the ELF last year, going 11-1 before losing in the championship, but with some key players leaving, I’ll be interested to see if they could repeat their success.

QB – They are using an import on Preston Haire to be their new starter. Haire played D-II ball in the States and was a dominate player for his college. We’ll find out if his style of play transfers well to the tough ELF play. They had fine QB play last year, but want to try someone new under center this year after their two QB’s split snaps last year.

RB – This is the position where heartbreak comes into play for the Sea Devil faithful. Glen Toonga dominated every aspect of rushing last year and was one of the main reasons the Sea Devils made it as far they did. He had 1,400 yards, a whopping 21 touchdowns and rushed for 122 yards/game. A loss like that will not be easy to replace. It appears like Jakob Michaelsen may be the new guy in their backfield. Young kid who can help in the pass game, but certainly not the type of player Toonga was.

WR – The Sea Devils lost another key piece in Jean Constant (ELF all-time leading receiver) to the Milano Seamen, but they found an excellent replacement in Malik Stanley. Stanley played DI ball at Louisiana Tech and dominated in the ELF last year with the Wroclaw Panthers. An explosive receiver with 1,000 yards receiving and 12 touchdowns, Stanley looks to be the focal point of the new look Sea Devils in 2023.

O-Lineman – The Sea Devils lost a big name in Guard Lewis Thomas, but were able to retain second team all-star center David Weinstock. They also added Lucas Lavin, who played his DI college ball at Northern Colorado. That should help sure up the line a bit, but losing a talent like Thomas can really hurt them. For a team who lost their star running back, they will need strong offensive line play to get their young running backs going.

Defense: This team was number one in rush, pass and total defense last year, but with key losses it may be a struggle to maintain that dominance.

Defensive – This is becoming a major trend for the Sea Devils 2023 roster: another huge loss. Tim Hanni was first team all-defense and wreaked havoc on opposing teams last year for the Devils. He is gone, as is most of that great team from last year. Is that enough loss for one year? Nope, they also lost one of the top sackmen in the league, Kasim Edebali. Hiswil Awuah will have to step up in their place. He was the Rookie of the Year in 2021 on defense and had an alright second season, but he will really need to step up. The team also signed stud defensive end, Robert Lachmann, who was the defensive player of the year in DII in 2022. Look for Moritz Hiendleder, a German-born player who counts as an import after playing in Australia, to also make some plays for this new-look defensive line.

Linebackers – A recurring theme with this team is losing their best player. The sea devils also lost their top tackler in Miguel Boock. Maurice Wright Jr., a former American college player will look to take over top-tackling duties. He was all-state in both football and basketball in high school and will look to use that athleticism to help this depleted team. The team also expects big things out of Jan-Nikolas Makoben, a newcomer to the ELF, we’ll see if his game can transfer over to the best league in Europe.

Defensive Backs- They lose a top three interception man, but the Sea Devils made a splash signing with Deion Harris. Harris was a DI recruit and potential draft prospect before a devastating injury. He made a few preseason camps and played in the XFL, but he will now join the European talent to see if he can make an impact. They also resigned Kevin Fortes, a French player who had three interceptions last year. They will need these two to step up if they are going to do anything this year.

I only see bad things on the horizon for the Sea Devils. Their whole team is absolutely depleted. It’s not the same Sea Devils who almost ran the table last year. I would be absolutely shocked if they made it to a third championship game in a row, but maybe they’ll sign a deal with their own Devil and one of these newcomers will become a star.