Pettis ranked second on the team in receiving and kickoff returns this season.

IRVING, Texas - Will Pettis is flattered (and maybe a little bummed, too) once again this time of year.

For the second consecutive season the Dallas Desperados' do-everything wide receiver/defensive back/kick returner has been named the AFL Ironman of the Year - the league's most prestigious individual award given to its best all-around player.

A flattering accomplishment, along with his fifth straight selection to the AFL All-Ironman Team.

But Pettis called last year's Ironman of the Year honor bittersweet in the wake of an upset divisional-round loss to the Columbus Destroyers. Now he's accepting the award only a couple of weeks after the Desperados were bounced from the playoffs on their home turf by the New York Dragons.

Special teams played an ugly role in each loss. Columbus stunned the Desperados with a pair of blessed bounces off the iron that led to two touchdown recoveries in the second half. This time, New York capitalized on two onside kick recoveries to beat Dallas in the wild-card round, 77-63.

A bummer, to say the least.

"It's the same (feeling), man," Pettis said. "I was talking to somebody earlier about my career and prolonging it (by) maybe not playing both ways anymore. And I was really thinking about that, this probably being the last year that I play both ways.

"The award is great; I'm glad to win it. But I want to win a championship, and if that means bringing in somebody else to get some consistency on the field to help our team, then I'm willing to do that."

Dallas has been the league's best regular-season team over the past three years (40-8) with Pettis as its most impactful player. He finally won the Ironman award in 2007 after logging his second consecutive 1,000-yard season for a Desperados team that won a league-record 15 games.

This year, Pettis remained a versatile force despite playing less defense and missing three games and parts of two others with injuries (hip flexor, concussion). He finished tied for 13th in total points scored among non-kickers with 186 (25 receiving touchdowns, five rushing and one interception return). He also ranked eighth in the AFL with 1,960 all-purpose yards (37 rushing, 1,035 receiving, 817 on kickoffs and a 71-yard interception return).

Pettis' 95 catches preserved his status as the Desperados' all-time leading receiver (571 catches for 6,624 yards and 142 touchdowns). Defensively, he ranked ninth on the team with 22 ½ tackles and four pass breakups while also splitting kickoff returns with speedy free-agent pickup Josh Bush.

Pettis' most impressive performance came in a Week 13 win over Orlando, when he became the first player in AFL history to score a touchdown four different ways in a single game (receiving, rushing, passing and an interception return).

For the next few months Pettis will share his knowledge with the Trinity Christian Academy football team. He's entering his third year as an assistant coach for TCA, this time overseeing the entire secondary.

The Desperados' longest-tenured player will remain a centerpiece next season, but knows other roster changes are likely.

"That's not my job to make changes. Do I think changes need to be made? Not necessarily in personnel, no," Pettis said. "The only thing I think probably needs to change is the consistency of the team, and when I say that I don't just mean the players. I mean management, I mean coaches and I mean players. We all have to be on the same page, bar none.

"It doesn't matter if you're the Ironman of the Year or a practice squad player. We all have to be on the same wavelength."