Pirates Found Success Despite Various Injuries Throughout 2022 Season

By: Jake Ignaszewski Pirates Insider August 11, 2022

Throughout the 2022 season, there were a lot of ups and downs for the Massachusetts Pirates as they finished 11-6 after falling to the Quad City Steamwheelers in Round one of the IFL Playoffs. The team's finish record doesn't tell the full story of what the Pirates had to overcome throughout the 2022 campaign.

One major obstacle that the 2022 Pirates team encountered that the 2021 team didn't was injuries. Throughout the 2021 season, the Pirates had some players that went down with an injury, but it wasn't as extensive as in 2022. During the 2022 campaign, there were 22 total injuries and multiple players that were placed on short-term IR more than once. Those injuries made it very difficult for the coaching staff to field a consistent starting lineup and for the front office to fill the holes that the injuries caused. The injury bug was so contagious that there were three players that were sideline after their first game of the season with the team such as Chasz Wright, Corey Dauphine and Harold Brantley.

Every position dealt with multiple players being sidelined, which forced Pirates General Manager Jawad Yatim to find creative ways to replace those players while still fielding a competitive team. Yatim shared his thoughts on the injuries during the season: "I'd say that's the biggest difference from last year was, you know, we were fairly healthy throughout the season. This year it's been kind of all over the place. We've been maxed out on short term almost the whole season and we've got a few guys on long term but that's just the game." Jawad went on to explain how these situations made him better at his job, "Everybody deals with it, so it's not an excuse. You just got to be a little better at your job than you normally would. You obviously account for injuries but you don't necessarily account for this many."

Massachusetts found ways to still win games despite the most important position on the depth chart having to start three different players under center with each of them spending time on the injured reserve list. The team's Opening Night starter and the 2021 United Bowl MVP Alejandro Bennifield went down multiple times throughout the season, which for most teams would cause the offense's production to dip but that wasn't the case for the Pirates. Due to quality scouting by the Pirates GM, the team found reliable replacements for Bennifield in backup Mike Glass III and Taz Wilson.

Wilson was brought on board as an emergency signing since both Glass and Bennifield were on the IR going into Week 13 against the Duke City Gladiators. Even though Wilson was the team's third option, he played like he'd be a starting quarterback on any other team. The 6'4", 230lb QB went 3-2 over five games, won an Offensive Player of the Week award during Week 16, and broke the Pirates All-Time touchdowns record in a single game. He was eventually bit by the injury bug after Week 18 against Bay Area, but luckily Bennifield was healthy enough to take back the reigns.

The defense was another area that was hit hard by injuries and had multiple players such as Naashon Hudges, Chucky Williams, and Jamiyus Pittman who each made multiple trips to the IR. This made it even more difficult for Head Coach and Defensive Coordinator Rayshaun Kizer to have consistency on that side of the ball. These injuries forced some players to play out of position which allowed offenses to take advantage of that weakness such as Defensive Back Reggie Floyd playing Linebacker since Naashon Hudges was injured. Even though the league statistics don't have a metric for overcoming adversity while still being productive, this defense would've led the league if that metric existed.

A team's record and statistics can paint one picture of how they performed in a season, but with the obstacles the Massachusetts Pirates had to overcome throughout the 2022 season, it would be very difficult for another team to put up the numbers they did with everything they had to overcome.

For any team, it's difficult to win games and stay competitive when the starting quarterback goes down, but when even the backup is sidelined, that when it's critical to have an intelligent General Manager and coaching staff. Luckily the Pirates had both during the 2022 season to help the team have consistency under center.