BAL 7 JAX 20
Tony Eason was knocked out of the game early but Timm Rosenbach was able to come in and toss two TD’s to spark the Bulls win against a feisty but inefficient Blitz team. Brian Blades was the star of the game with 149 yards receiving and a TD in the first quarter to start the scoring. Bill Brooks was the best player on the day for Baltimore, grabbing 8 balls for 96 yards.
NJ 20 MEM 23
New Jersey played well against the tough Memphis defense, but Greg Boone ran wild against the Generals’ defense, rushing for 156 yards. Mike Kelley hit both Carl Pickens and Jo-Jo Townsell for scores. Doug Flutie had 327 yards passing and added another 43 yards rushing as Memphis focused their D on stopping Herschel Walker, holding the big back to only 47 yards on the ground. In then end it came down to who had the ball last, and that was Memphis and kicker Kevin Shea.
PHI 16 ORL 28
Two interceptions from Browning Nagle and an inability to turn drives into touchdowns doomed the Stars against Orlando. Kelvin Bryant had a solid 125 rushing, but the Stars simply did not put points on the board while Orlando got 2 TD’s from HB Todd Fowler and another 2 from Collier to John Jefferson to earn the home win.
PIT 38 TBY 17
Pittsburgh faced former LA Express QB Mike Rae for Tampa, and a shorthanded Bandits D and made short work of both. Mike Rozier rushed for 4 TD’s on the day to go with his 104 yards rushing. Mike Shaw added another TD as Pittsburgh rolled over a banged up Tampa squad.
TEX 10 ARZ 24
The Wrangler D has been gaining respect this season, and they got Kelly Stouffer’s attention with 4 sacks and several big hits. They also held Reggie Cobb to only 31 yards on 17 carries, a 1.8 ypc average. Meanwhile, the combo of James and Clack gained 104 yards on the day. 3 Mick Luckhurst field goals and a Bosco to Trumaine Johnson TD (with 2-pt conversion) helped boost Arizona to a 14 point win and a 5-3 record.
CHI 19 DEN 16 OT
Chicago finally came out on top in a close game. Both teams struggled to find the endzone, with Chicago’s Wessley Walls catching Scott Zolak’s lone TD pass, while Willie Gillespie, moved into the slot for this game, caught the lone TD from Dave Krieg. The game ball went to Chicago kicker John Carney who booted the winner in overtime, his 4th on the day.
HOU 17 OAK 34
David Klingler struggled to reach 50% completions against a swarming Oakland defense while Gale Gilbert had an easier day, throwing for 327 and 3 scores. His lone mistake was a 54-yard interception return from rookie CB Ashley Ambrose that helped Houston stay close in the first half. Siran Stacy’s best day, with 91 yards rushing, helped Oakland pull away in the second half.
MGN 21 POR 22
The Thunder and Oliver Luck staged a game-winning drive in the final minutes as Luck found Adrian Cooper for 6 with only a minute left to play. Luck would have 2 TD’s on the day and the Portland pass defense picked Jack Trudeau off twice. They still struggle with the run, however as HB Vince Workman averaged 15.1 yards per carry on 9 rushes to gain 136 and 2 scores.
NOR 28 STL 35
Matt Robinson had a huge 3 TD first quarter before suffering what appears to be a season-ending injury. The shock of the injury and an ill-prepared Matt Dunigan helped St. Louis mount a comeback from 21-3 down to win the game in the final minutes. Dan McGwire threw 3 TDs as well, and HB Darrell Thompson had 77 yards and 2 key scores to help the Knights get to 4-4, dropping New Orleans to 5-3 on the year.
WASHINGTON FEDERALS 35 BIRMINGHAM STALLIONS 31
There is not a lot of history between these two founding franchises, but perhaps they should play each other more often if this is the type of game we can expect. Brett Favre threw 4 TD’s as his impressive season continues, but the Feds matched Birmingham score for score throughout the game, turning Favre’s only interception into 6 on their way to a late win.
Both quarterbacks put on a show in Legion Field, with Favre finishing the day 24 of 31 for 404 yards, while Majkowski went 30 of 48 for 322 and 2 scores. It was clear that both defenses were not going to let the other team’s big back do the damage, as they often eschewed nickel coverages for a base 4-3 lineup. Cribbs would finish the day with 70 yards, while Barry Word racked up 69.
In the end, with Birmingham leading 31-28 it came down to a blown coverage. With just over 30 seconds left to play and Washington approaching field goal range with 1 time out left, the Feds used a triple wideout formation on the wide side of the field, with Moore and Walters flanking slot back Duane Gunn. The two flanking receivers headed towards the center of the field, and Gunn took a shallow corner route, but was left uncovered as the Birmingham safety bit on the deeper route run by Moore. Gunn was left all alone, and Majkowski found him for a 40-yard TD to take the game and move to 6-2 on the year. Birmingham fans were stunned, and now the Stallions sit at 4-4 and very much in middling territory, hoping to get hot in the season’s second half.
A hundred yard rushing day is hardly an unexpected surprise from perennial All-USFL back Mike Rozier, but in his distinguished 9 season career, the game this week at Tampa marks the first time he has totaled 4 scores in a single game. And these were not all 1 or 2 yard dive plays. This week’s scoring includes a beautiful 22-yard play that saw Rozier pinball off of one defender and straight-arm another. Only 3 minutes later he would break off a 12-yard score on a perfectly-run sweep play, one which did not see him get touched by a Tampa defender until he was 2 yards from paydirt.
With Pittsburgh now at 7-1 and looking like a team that finally has the pieces in place to make a serious playoff run, Mike Rozier may finally get some team glory to go with the individual accolades that have always been there. Much like Walter Payton in Chicago, who played on so many bad Bears teams before finding glory in 1985, Rozier has suffered in silence as bad Mauler team after bad Mauler team has wasted his talents and his effort. This year may be the culmination of a full career of sacrifice and individual excellence as the Maulers take a real shot at a title run for the first time in team history.
Halfway through the season and the league's five new head coaches are seeing mixed results. While some are slowly building a new culture and evaluating the roster to see how personnel matches their preferred system, others have found immediate success with a team on the rebound. The best situation is clearly that of new Memphis Showboat head coach Buddy Ryan. Ryan, the former DC for the 1985 Bears and former head coach in Philadelphia, has found immediate success with the Showboas, leading them to a 6-2 start and early consideration for coach of the year. Ryan's 4-6 defense has been outstanding, leading the league in points per game allowed and terrifying opposing quarterbacks with a steady pass rush led by Reggie White.
In Birmingham, former NY Giant OC Ron Erhardt has stumbled into a diamond in the rough in 2nd year QB Brett Favre. Favre is dominating, and helping Birmingham overcome its defensive shortcomings by simply going "bombs away" with the Stallion offense. The Stallions sit at 4-4, and it seems that veteran Cliff Stoudt may spend the rest of the year on the bench as Erhardt would be out of him mind to replace one of the league's shooting stars in Favre. Birmingham needs to shore up the D, but with their newfound offensive explosiveness, they could go on a run to challenge Memphis.
Martyball has taken some time to take hold in Chicago, but at 3-4-1 the Machine are still in the hunt for a possible playoff spot. Injury to QB Chuck Long has not helped, forcing another 2nd year QB, Scott Zolak, into action. The Machine have had some tough breaks and still need to shift from wanting to win to expecting to win, but they seem to be picking up what Marty Schottenheimer is trying to teach them, and could be a factor in the second half of the season.
In New Jersey, a bright 2-0 start had turned gloomy, as the Generals have now lost six in a row under new head coach Sam Wyche. Wyche gambled big on retaining QB Doug Flutie over Chris Miller, and Flutie has returned the favor by ending up as the league's worst rated QB after 8 weeks. His 68.3 QBR and 12 interceptions are the worst in the league, and even HB Herschel Walker has seen some bad games in the new offense. Wyche had better find a way to rein in Flutie's mistakes and refocus the offense or this could be a lost season for the Generals.
Finally, Lindy Infante did on week one what Baltimore could not do all of 1991, win a game. The Blitz have not exactly taken the league by storm, winning only 2 of their first 8 games, but by all accounts they are a more focused, more dangerous team than last year. They have lost some close ones, and have shown tenacity on both sides of the ball. It may take a draft or two for Infante to have the roster he wants in Baltimore, but he is building a new culture for a team that had all but lost hope last season.
The headline news this week was the injury to Matt Robinson, who appears to have a ruptured Achilles, which will certainly end his season, and could mark the end of his career with the Breakers.
Robinson had hinted that this year might be his last in the league, and an injury like this, which requires extensive training just to get back to standard shape, much less football shape, could be the catalyst for a decision to retire.
Tony Eason, Jacksonville’s star QB, also suffered a rough injury this week, though not one likely to cost him the season. Eason suffered a fracture in his right tibia, but it is one which will not require surgery, and he may be able to use a soft boot for several weeks to allow it to heal. There is a chance he could return as early as Week 12, but most are predicting a Week 15 or 16 return, and hopes that the Bulls can do enough to allow Eason to return for a playoff run.
Jacksonville took another hit, however, when LB Charles Bratton went down with a groin injury which could keep him out 2-4 weeks. Orlando will be without WR Wamon Buggs for at least 2 weeks with a rib injury, and in Washington there is concern for CB Lester Lyles, who fractured an eye socket in a vicious midfield collision. On the positive front, Troy Aikman has been upgraded to Questionable this week, as has Jim Kelly of Houston. Players expected to return to action include Bulls HB James Wilder, St. Louis LB Chip Banks, Philly DE William Fuller, Breakers WR Charlie Smith, and Baltimore CB Leslie Frazier.
The second half of the season opens with another Intra-conference slate. Jacksonville has a big test in Washington. Birmingham will try to get a win against the league-leading 7-1 Maulers in the battle of steel cities. Tampa will visit Philadelphia, who are hoping to get their 2nd win of the year. Orlando and New Jersey will clash in the Meadowlands, while Memphis is in Baltimore hoping to come away with a 7th win to stay atop the division.
The Pacific clubs will be hosted by the 5 Central Division squads this week as well. Oakland and Chicago (4-4 and 3-4-1 respectively) are hoping a win this week gets them geared up for a solid second half. Portland is in Houston and likely glad they don’t have to face Jim Kelly. St. Louis and Michigan are both 4-4 and will clash in the SilverDome. Arizona and New Orleans, both 5-3 meet in the Super Dome, and Denver will face off against Texas in the annual game played outside of San Marcos, facing off on the campus of the University of North Texas in Denton.