SCORES
PHI 15 BAL 23
The Blitz get a vital win at home to pull into a cluster of teams at 3-3 in the division. Stanley Morgan proved to be the key with Philly double covering Jackie Flowers. Morgan snagged 8 balls for 107 yards and a key TD to help Baltimore even their record at .500 and pull the Stars down to 3-3 as well.
WSH 17 PIT 30
This may be a very different Maulers team, as Alan Risher again went off for over 300 yards and the Maulers now find themselves also at 3-3 and right in the thick of things. TE Mike Shaw was a big part of the offense today, catching 5 for 109 and a score while Mike Rozier racked up 106 yards and 2 scores to lead the Maulers over the Federals.
MEM 17 BIR 44
A romp for the Stallions, who got key performances in all three phases, including an interception return for a touchdown, 3 TD’s from Cliff Stoudt and another from Joe Cribbs to defeat the Showboats. Mike Kelley played catchup most of the day, accounting for his 321 yards passing.
TBY 18 ORL 28
Another “Changing of the Guard” game in the USFL as Orlando moves to an impressive 5-1 while sending Tampa deep into trouble at 1-5. The game was over midway through the 2nd quarter when John Reaves was hit hard and went out in obvious pain. Oliver Luck came in but was clearly unprepared to lead a comeback. For Orlando, Curtis Bledsoe had one of his best games in his 6 years in the USFL, racking up 144 yards on 23 carries, while Reggie Collier threw for 245 and 3 scores.
NOR 27 HOU 21
Jim Kelly again struggled, and the Breakers were able to contain Thurman Thomas, holding him to only 73 yards rushing. Meanwhile, the Breaker run game was in full effect. All three backs, Dupree (76 yds), Hilliard (51 yds) and rookie Warren Williams (22 yards) combined to give New Orleans 150 yards rushing on the day. Add a TD from Robinson to Franz and New Orleans pulls even with Houston at 4-2.
OAK 17 DEN 16
A rare home loss for the Gold as Oakland garners their second win on a last second field goal by Kevin Shea. Oakland outgained Denver 327 to 240 on the day, with the biggest performance coming from TE Raymond Chester, whose 84 yards helped Gale Gilvert to his best performance of the year.
POR 16 LA 21
Portland has yet to win on the road this year, but that doesn’t mean they didn’t give LA all they could handle. With Christian Okoye still on the mend, LA had difficulty rushing the ball (84 yards total) and needed a stellar game from Steve Young to pull out the win. Young delivered, completing 82% of his passes and throwing 3 touchdowns, two to TE Todd Christiansen, as the Express move to 4-2 atop the Pacific Division.
CHI 20 NJ 23
Chicago was game as John Carney hit on 4 FG and Chuck Long found Reggie Langhorne to take a 20-17 lead in the 4th, but New Jersey mustered a game-tying field goal to head into overtime, where Herschel Walker helped push the ball down the field and gave Dave Jacobs an easy 24 yard FG for the win. Walker would end the day with 120 yards rushing and the current rushing lead in the league.
ARZ 28 JAX 21
The Bulls’ brutal season continues as they fall at home to an erratic Wranglers squad. Robbie Bosco threw for 296 and a key TD to Trumaine Johnson in the 4th, while the rushing attack for Arizona, which has not impressed most weeks, managed just enough. Darryl Clack found the endzone twice for the Wranglers as they edge Jacksonville to even their record at 3-3.
GAME OF THE WEEK
Texas Outlaws 27 Michigan Panthers 24
We mentioned that Orlando beating Tampa Bay was a “Changing of the Guard”, well, you can certainly look at this game as one as well. The longtime Central Division bullies, Michigan look very vulnerable this year, and the upstart Outlaws, in their first year since the merger of San Antonio and Oklahoma, are looking like they are for real.
The key for Texas is the ability to alternate between the effective rush attack of Stump Mitchell and the deep ball of Doug Williams. In this game Houston chose to focus on Mitchell, holding the usually effective back to only 22 yards on 15 carries, but that left them vulnerable to the pass, and Doug Williams took advantage, completing 20 of 30 for 262 yards and 3 scores. Meanwhile, Ed Luther, who once again had to sub for the dinged up Jack Trudeau, threw two costly interceptions, which all but offset his own 3 TD passes.
Michigan looked good early, building up a 17-3 lead on two TD’s from Luther to Jonathan Smiley and Johnny Holloway, but the 2nd half began poorly for the Panthers as an Ed Luther interception led to a Williams to Young TD pass. Texas added another, a Carlos Carson catch, on their next drive, and suddenly it was all tied at 17. At the start of the 4th, Doug Williams hit Dokie Williams for a third score and the Outlaws were up 7. Michigan drove, and Ed Luther found TE Butch Rolle for an equalizer, but there was still too much time on the clock and Texas had all 3 timeouts.
Doug Williams managed the clock, moved the ball down the field, and with only 38 seconds left Nick Mike-Myer put the ball between the goalposts to give Texas the road win and knock Michigan to 3-3 and a solid 2 games behind the now 5-1 Outlaws.
PERFORMANCE OF THE WEEK
Curtis Bledsoe is not the best known or the highest rated halfback in the league. After toiling behind Craig James for 4 years in Washington, he got his shot to start last year as a signee with the Orlando Renegades. It was a solid year for Bledsoe, who gained 956 yards in his first year as a starter. But, this year feels different. Orlando is looking more balanced and more dangerous, and Bledsoe is averaging a solid 75 yards a game. Still not superstar levels, but he currently ranks 10th in the yardage ranks, but what we are seeing from Bledsoe is solid contribution in all phases of the offense each week. He is a sturdy blocker, a solid runner, and he can catch the ball when called on to do so. His game this week was one of his best, averaging 6.3 yards per carry and breaking off a beaut of a 49 yard rush on a key 3rd and 4. He may not top the leaderboards, but Curtis Bledsoe is winning where it counts, and the Renegades are 5-1 and all alone atop their division in large part due to his steady performance each week.
NEWS & NOTES
Let’s talk New World Order. We admit, in our preseason picks we saw names like Michigan, Tampa Bay, Philadelphia and Denver and we thought we knew what to expect this year. But as we look at the Week 6 standings it is time to recognize that things may be shifting in the USFL. When the top two teams in the league are the newly-formed Texas Outlaws and the 2nd year Orlando Renegades, and when Jacksonville, Tampa, and Oakland are at or near the bottom of their divisions, there is something happening.
It is undoubtedly a good thing that teams like Pittsburgh, Arizona and Memphis see themselves as contenders. It is also good that there are no givens, that we cannot just assume that Philly would beat Baltimore or that Houston would crush New Orleans. It adds excitement, it provides hope, and it shows that the league is not one of haves and have nots. Any Given Sunday used to be the theme in the NFL, but these days it seems that the senior league has more of a division between elites (San Fran, Chicago, the Giants, the Broncos) and also-rans, while the USFL is unpredictable and exciting to watch because you just don’t know who is going to come out on top. Here is to hoping that the balance breeds a long and dynamic playoff race, and that we get some new blood in to challenge the traditional powers. Change is inevitable, and it can be a very good thing, especially if you live in Orlando or central Texas.
INJURY REPORT
Tampa Bay’s already bad season got another major blow this week, as John Reaves was forced to leave the game on a cart. It took until Tuesday to get a final analysis, but it was announced then that Reaves’s season would be done, with a torn MCL in his left leg, his plant leg. The MCL tear was complete and will take several months and a surgery to reattach and rehab. That means that Tampa will have to rely on backup Oliver Luck to dig their way out of a 1-5 hole.
Tampa was not the only team to receive season-altering news. Denver DT and core of the D-line Laval Short will also miss the rest of the season, again for a knee. Short has a tear of his anterior cruciate ligament, a tricky injury which can take a year or more to heel. He will be placed on IR and Denver will start scouring the waiver wire for a new DT to fill into their rotation.
LA will miss their star CB Raphel Cherry for at least a month with a broken collarbone, while Jacksonville CB Terry Kinard could be out even longer with a broken wrist. On the positive side, players expected to return to action this week include LA wideout Eric Martin (knee), Oakland CB Derrick Martin (Thigh), Arizona DE AL Noga (Ribs) and Houston LB Kiki DeAyala (Ankle).
LOOKING AHEAD
Week 7 brings us closer to the midpoint of the season and this week we have key conference matchups as the Southern Division hosts the Atlantic and the Pacific hosts the Central. Key games to watch include Philly at Orlando, Washington @ Birmingham, Houston @ LA, Michigan @ Oakland and Texas & Arizona. In other action, New Orleans heads to Portland, Chicago is in Denver, Pittsburgh visits Tampa, New Jersey is in Memphis, and the Blitz visit Jacksonville.
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