BAL 6 PHI 20
Another week, another loss for the Blitz, as Philadelphia takes the home win thanks to their defense shutting down the modest Blitz attack. Philadelphia outgained Baltimore 319-196, limiting Barry Foster to 33 yards rushing (a 1.5 yard per carry average) and holding Eric Kramer to a 54% completion rate. At the same time the Stars offense got good production from Quinn Early, Mike Quick and Eric Green on their way to a solid 14-point victory.
PIT 18 WSH 24
Pittsburgh built up an 18-10 lead after three quarters, but Washington just kept plugging along, scoring on two Ray Wersching field goals and a beautiful 50-yard TD play from Majkowski to Moore to take the home win and help them stay a game up on Philadelphia for the Atlantic Division title. In a losing cause, Mike Rozier rushed 19 times for 135 yards, but it was not enough to stave off the Federals’ comeback.
BIR 22 MEM 24
Never doubt the power of a rivalry to stoke a team’s fire. Memphis came in determined to snap Birmingham’s win streak, and they did it, in large part due to a strong day for Mike Kelley and the passing offense. Kelley found Jo-Jo Townsell 7 times for 128 yards and connected with TE Keith Jackson for 3 TDs as the Showboats upended the favored Stallions.
ORL 42 TBY 32
Tampa once again lost a close game to a tough opponent as their defense failed to contain Reggie Collier and the Renegades. Collier finished the day with 348 yards passing and 4 touchdowns. Despite the offensive fireworks from both teams, the key play may have been on defense, as Orlando’s Tim McDonald picked off a Troy Aikman pass in the first quarter and ran it back for the score. That play helped Orlando steal a possession from Tampa and add 7 points that would be pivotal as the game wore on.
HOU 19 NOR 23
New Orleans earns the sweep of Houston thanks to a pick-6 as Frederick Wilder stepped in front of a Kelly pass intended for Keith McKeller and winds his way past several players to score late in the 4th. The Breaker offense had been hobbled by what appears to be a season-ending injury to Matt Robinson earlier in the game, and it was only through this defensive gem that New Orleans escaped the game with a win.
MGN 7 TEX 35
Texas continues to roll as the defeat the Mark Hermann-led Panthers handily, despite using 3 quarterbacks in the game. Both Kelly Stouffer and Glen Carano were forced to leave the game after big hits from the Michigan defense, but the damage had already been done. Mike Shula wrapped up the game, but with the Michigan offense showing few signs of life under Hermann, the win was assured by that point. Stouffer is expected to be able to play next week, though another injury could have a huge impact on the Outlaws down the stretch (see below).
DEN 27 OAK 24
A strong day from Timmy Smith and a key stop by the Denver defense gives the Gold an upset victory on the road in Oakland. Smith rushed for 123 on 15 carries, including a 33-yard TD run in the 3rd, and the Denver defense held Oakland to only 87 yards rushing as the Gold played their best game of the year. With the game on the line late in the 4th, LB Marvcus Patton forced the ball out of Richard Williams’s hands and it was recovered by DT David Futrell to change possession and preserve the W for the Gold.
LA 21 POR 52
With David Archer ailing, Kerwin Bell once again got a shot to make his case to be the starter, and this time it may just stick as Bell had a stellar game, completing 30 of 36 passes for 336 yards and 4 touchdowns. His numbers, when starting, have been excellent and Coach Erickson may have no choice but to keep him in over Archer this time around. For LA, it was their best offensive performance of the year, with a solid 94 yards rushing between Buford Jordan and Darrell Thompson, but it was still not enough as the defense simply could not contain the Thunder.
JAX 31 CHI 44
Jacksonville could not get any pressure on Chuck Long ,who had a strong day for the Machine, tossing 2 TD passes and balancing the offense with a rushing attack proved effective when it counted most. Tony Eason had another huge game, 420 yards passing and 3 scores, but the Machine kept pace, scoring on 8 different drives, including 3 long John Carney field goals and 4 combined TDs from Ricky Watters (2), Albert Bentley (2). The win keeps Chicago in range for a longshot playoff push, while Jacksonville slips a game further behind Orlando, clinching the division for the Renegades.
NEW JERSEY GENERALS 33 ARIZONA WRANGLERS 30
In a game between two 5-6 teams hoping to reach .500 and get back into the playoff discussion, Doug Flutie made his case to be the definitive starter for the Generals, tossing 52 passes, completing 31, for 318 yards and 3 scores. In a game where the Wrangler D put all their effort into corralling Herschel Walker, limiting him to 78 yards on the day, Flutie had to carry the load, and he did just that against the Arizona D.
Though it was a high octane game, one in which Robbie Bosco found Louis Lipps for 127 yards and went over 300 yards himself, the final score was determined by a last second drive and a long field goal as New Jersey avoided overtime thanks to the quick thinking of Flutie and the strong leg of Roger Ruzek.
With 1:19 left to play, the Wranglers had tied the game at 30 on a Trumaine Johnson catch for 6. New Jersey got the ball back with just over a minute to play, and Doug Flutie led the Generals on a quick-paced drive to get Roger Ruzek in range. With only 5 seconds left and the Generals still too far to try a kick, Flutie took a shotgun snap and immediately rolled to his left, drawing 2 defenders who saw a bootleg run coming. The defenders left TE Jeff Spek unguarded, and Flutie lobbed a slow arcing ball to Spek, who was able to dive out of bounds with 1 second left at the very edge of Ruzek’s range. Ruzek lined up for a 55-yarder, and after getting “iced” by an Arizona time out, proceeded to skim the ball just over the crossbar and through for the score.
The result of the game does not truly help or hurt either team, as New Jersey, at 6-6, is still a game out of a playoff spot, tied with Pittsburgh but also a game behind both Jacksonville and Birmingham for the 3rd Wild Card. For Arizona, the loss certainly does not help, but at 5-7, they too are only 1 game behind the 3rd and final wildcard, with both Michigan and Houston at 6-6 ahead of them. With their interdivisional games completed, both teams can now concentrate on winning within their divisions to try to snag that last playoff berth.
Kerwin Bell again came out to show that he, and not David Archer, should be the man to guide the Portland Thunder to its first playoff appearance. Bell’s 4 TD, 336-yard day certainly helped his case. After early season success which saw him go 2-0 and throw for 8 TDs in the season’s first two weeks, subbing for an injured David Archer, Bell was sent back to the bench, but has appeared in 4 other games, including this week’s strong outing. Taken against Archer’s numbers, Bell has a strong case to make. Let’s look at the two side by side.
BELL: 122/182 1655 Yards 13-5 TD-INT 3-0 as the starter
ARCHER: 184/282 1508 Yards 12-9 TD-INT 5-4 as the starter
Archer certainly has the guile and savvy to lead a team to victory, but on raw performance this year, Bell has a case. Of course, he is also fighting the image in many people’s minds of earlier years when he was the starter for the expansion Thunder team. A team that went a combined 6-42 in the 3 years before Archer arrived. Of course, that was an expansion club, and a lot of the blame for those lean years is shared with a truly awful defense and a lack of playmakers. This year, with this club, perhaps it is time for Bell to return to the starting role. Tough choices ahead for Coach Dennis Erickson as a possible playoff berth, and maybe a division crown, is in the offing.
Two teams clinched playoff berths this week as both Orlando and Texas built a strong enough lead over the current 6th place teams to ensure that even with a 4-game losing streak they would be assured a tiebreaker win and a playoff spot. We expect that both are not satisfied with this, as both the Renegades and Outlaws currently hold 2-game leads in their divisions and would love to wrap up their first division titles, and the bye weeks that go with that distinction, in the next few weeks.
Looking at our Playoff Standings chart. We see that there is still very much to be decided. Washington and Philly continue to battle for the Atlantic Division, just as Portland is tying to hold off Oakland in the Pacific. New Jersey and Pittsburgh are looking for a chance to move up into the wild card range, as are Houston and Arizona, while Michigan and all the 7-5 teams cannot feel safe in their positions. Tampa Bay, which many picked to be near the top of the Southern Division has had a horrible run of games, losing three straight shootouts (Arizona, Texas, and Orlando) as their defense has struggled to slow down some of the league’s better offenses. With three division games left (Memphis, Jacksonville, and Birmingham), the Bandits are not out of it, but even one more loss may mark the end of their playoff expectations. Meanwhile, Chicago, who seemed all but dead a couple of weeks ago, have kept their dreams alive with wins over Memphis and Jacksonville, but now must face a gauntlet of New Orleans (without Matt Robinson), Texas (without Carlos Carson), Houston and Michigan. Not an easy task but winning 3 of 4 could be enough for the Machine to sneak their way into a wild card position.
It seems the Baltimore Blitz are not going to delay in restructuring their front office. While former defensive coordinator Bill Cowher is currently guiding the franchise as interim head coach, the Blitz today announced that they are bringing in an NFL veteran personnel man to help right the team’s course. Baltimore ownership today announced that they have come to an agreement with current San Francisco 49er VP of Football Operations John McVay to be the new President of Football Operations and COO for the Blitz. McVay, who, since 1980, has coordinated with Head Coach Bill Walsh to produce one of the dominant teams in the NFL over the past decade, brings a wide range of skills to the position.
McVay has experience with startup leagues (not that we could still refer to the USFL as a startup), acting as head coach of the Memphis Southmen of the World Football League. He also served as an assistant coach to Bill Arnsparger (currently with the Breakers) when both were with the New York Giants. Since 1980 he has served as VP of Football Operations in San Francisco, leading the 49ers to 4 Super Bowls, and winning 3 championships. McVay will run all football operations, essentially serving as both the Chief Operating Officer and the General Manager. He will be integral in the selection of the next head coach for the Blitz as well as guiding the team through the 1992 offseason and draft process. With the Blitz currently suffering through an 0-12 season, and with the very real potential of going 0-16, there is a lot of work to do. McVay has already met with Interim Head Coach Bill Cowher, and while Cowher has yet to produce a win for the Blitz, his familiarity with current personnel and his reputation as a no-nonsense coach who gets the most out of his players may help him as he auditions for the permanent position over the next few weeks.
You already know the big stories on the injury front. New Orleans has lost Matt Robinson for the rest of the year with a total hamstring tear on his left leg, while Texas discovered that they will be without Carlos Carson for at least 2 weeks with stress fracture in his right hip. Texas is obviously focused on getting Carson back for the final weeks and the playoffs, but for the ALL-USFL receiver, the injury now almost certainly dashes his chances at reaching the elusive 2,000 yard receiving mark. He stands less than 300 yards away, but unless he can come back in week 15 and have two outstanding weeks, the dream of that astonishing accomplishment may be delayed.
In other injury news, LA rookie Raghib “Rocket” Ismael will likely be out at least 2 weeks after suffering a hernia during weight training. Guess he tried to go to heavy too fast, and it cost him. New Orleans will also be without starting center William Copley for a week or two, meaning that backup QB Matt Dunigan will have the familiar face of the backup center in the huddle with him. New Jersey Generals TE Jeff Spek, who was so pivotal in their win this week, will likely miss a week after suffering a dislocated elbow at the end of the game, and Portland is listing their left tackle Bruce Armstrong as questionable with a groin pull suffered in this week’s game.
Week 13 looks like a huge one as we try to figure out playoff positioning. Pittsburgh and New Jersey, both 6-6, face off in what may be essentially an elimination game. Washington and Philadelphia also face each other with 1st place in the division up for grabs. In the Southern Division, Jacksonville has a chance to gain ground on Orlando with the two facing off in the Gator Bowl. Tampa is in Memphis in a game they absolutely must win if they want to keep their slim hopes of a wild card alive. In the Central, a clearly weakened New Orleans squad is in Chicago to face a hopeful Machine team. Michigan and Houston face off in another battle of 6-6 squads, again with elimination a very real impact of the game. Out in the Pacific, Arizona needs to knock off Oakland in Tempe if they want a chance at a wild card, while LA is in Denver playing out the string. In Inter-divisional games, Baltimore has to hope for a miracle to knock off the red hot Texas Outlaws, while Portland and Birmingham hope for a win in their last inter-divisional games of the year.