Tony Graziani was the AFL's most coveted free agent this offseason, and the Soul got the quarterback's attention not only with their money, but also with the look of their team, a look that told Graziani he should sign on with Philadelphia because it felt to him that the Soul had the best chance to bring home a title.

Special
player
By adding Graziani, the Soul are a contender for the AFL title.

He's that kind of difference maker, one of the premier players in the league, and one of the top three AFL quarterbacks.

This is a team that last year that had three quarterbacks who threw for 58 touchdowns and 21 interceptions.

Graziani's coming off a season were he threw 99 touchdowns and only five interceptions.

Graziani's accuracy is in part due to his getting rid of the football very quickly.

So this is a significant upgrade, and an offseason investment that could pay off big time.

A dominant attack
The Soul are a team that can score on every possession.

I think Graziani clicked with his new offense when he made his Soul debut Jan. 30, throwing for eight touchdowns in a big win over Austin.

Graziani had some errant throws for interceptions, which where uncharacteristic for him.

He's calling his own plays for the first time in his career, and I don' know whether that was a distraction for him.

It certainly was something new and he wasn't as efficient as he ordinarily is and he attributed at least some of his errant play to the new responsibility that he has.

Take away the three interceptions Graziani threw in the season opener, and know that this is a guy who protects the ball and gives his offenses more chances at touchdowns.

Not coincidence then that against Austin, Graziani led the Soul to their most points in franchise history (66), and set a new club record for touchdowns in a game (8).

The Soul can score with any team, and outscore any team.

They can play in shootouts -- and they probably will like to play in shootouts unlike some other teams.

Philadelphia is fully equipped to put up 80 points a game if necessary.

Offense is his specialty
The Soul made a nice pickup at offensive specialist in Steve Smith, who caught five touchdowns against Austin.

Smith is one of those really quick offensive specialists.

Smith is a different kind of offensive specialist than Chris Jackson, who played with Graziani last season in Los Angeles.

Jackson was sensational, but Smith is smaller, quicker, and so I think the Soul will have a lot more long plays and a lot of one-play drives.

The smallest guys usually disappear when you get inside the 10-yard-line, but Smith caught a couple of touchdowns in close range, which I think is a good long-term sign for the Soul.

High expectations
Coach Mike Trigg is an established coach who won an AFL title while in his fourth season in Grand Rapids.

He knows what has to be done in Philadelphia, where the Soul were 5-11 last season.

They'll be pressure on Trigg, and also pressure on Graziani, but that should be nothing new to the quarterback who had to deal with high expectations last year in Los Angeles since many -- myself included -- thought the Avengers were the team to beat.

Graziani's got the biggest contract in the AFL, but he seems like a calm kid who can handle that kind of pressure.

For a quarterback, the environment in Philadelphia is much different than it is in Los Angeles.

Fans are much more passionate in Philadelphia, and they demand a lot more out of a quarterback as well.

They will let Graziani hear it if he's not having a good day, but they'll also let him hear it if he's having a wonderful day -- a latter should be music to his ears.