Four weeks ago it would have been unthinkable, Houston was atop the conference and seemed ready for another deep playoff run. Michigan was in the basement of the division and struggling to string together good games. What a difference a month makes!! The Gamblers collapse was quick and shocking, the Panthers rise was equally surprising. what happens now is anyone's guess, but the message is clear, do not count anyone out, not yet, not until the games are played.
While the most entertaining game of the week was Orlando’s epic comeback against St. Louis, we just could not get ourselves to name the game between the two worst teams in the league the final GOTW of the year, so we chose instead a game with a lot of playoff implications, Philadelphia hosting Baltimore. The Blitz needed the win to have a chance at 9-7 and a Wild Card. Philadelphia needed to win to hold off Pittsburgh and claim their first division crown since 1988 and the departure of Coach Mora.
The game between these two teams separated by only 101 miles started off slowly, as both defenses ratcheted up the intensity for the final week of the year. Chris Miller completed only 1 of his first five passes, and Chuck Long fared little better, completing 2 of 6 to start the game. Baltimore would get the first score as they took advantage of a 35 yard Anthony Miller punt return to get into range for Luis Zendejas. The first quarter ended with only that 3-pointer on the scoreboard. But in the second quarter both clubs started to see their offenses find some room. Philadelphia was the first to get their legs under them, despite Baltimore shutting down Kelvin Bryant (He would finish the game with a 1.9 yard average). Chuck Long hit Cris Carter on a tightrope sideline pass and Carter would fall into the endzone to put the Stars up 7-3. Baltimore got another big play from Miller, as Chris hit Anthony for a go-ahead TD with 1:21 left in the half. Baltimore took a lead into the half in front of a loud and raucous 45,670 at Veterans Stadium.
The second half saw Baltimore increase their lead with 2 more Zendejas field goals in the third quarter. The Blitz defense was giving up yards to Chuck Long, but not breaking down, leading to 3 consecutive fruitless drives for the Stars. But, the 4th quarter would prove to belong to the Stars. Long connected with Carter, Phelan and Eric Green on a long drive to open the final period, and on 2nd and goal, he hit Kelvin Bryant with a short pass and let the big man rumble over the safety to pull the Stars to within 16-14. Seven minutes later another long drive would end with Bryant plunging off-tackle for the go-ahead score. Baltimore had no answer and a jubilant crowd celebrated the rebirth of not only their home town team, but of their team as the best in the East as Philadelphia clinched both the Atlantic Division and the #1 seed in the Eastern Conference at 11-5. Baltimore would finish at 8-8, their best record in 6 years, a far cry from the team that went 0-16, but still a step away from their goal of playoff football.
WSH 13 NJ 23
More playoff drama as both Washington and New Jersey knew that a win would propel them to the playoffs. At the last minute New Jersey realized that Flutie was not ready to return, so it would be Oliver Luck vs. Mike Hohensee, a season-ending battle that few in the Meadowlands wanted to be their lineup for the key game. But, Luck did enough, avoiding turnovers and finding Lam Jones for a TD, while the defense limited Hohensee and the Federals to 13 points to assure the Generals of the Wild Card spot.
BIR 35 MEM 10
The worst thing for Memphis was to go into this game with Birmingham angry about a loss to Denver last week and needing a win for any chance at home field advantage. The result, a Stallions rout, with Brett Favre earning Offensive POTW for his 352 yards and 5 TDs. Mike Kelley tried to compete, but forced the ball, leading to 2 picks and 40.4 QBR for the day. Birmingham finished 11-5 but still the #2 seed behind Philly. Memphis, despite the loss, would earn the #4 seed and a home game next week.
TBY 43 JAX 10
The Bandits, eager to reach .500 under Coach Glanville flashed a lot of potential this year, and brought all of it to this game against a clearly deflated Bulls squad. Tampa scored on their first 4 possessions, taking a 16-7 lead. They would also score on their final 4 possessions as they rout the Bulls in the Gator Bowl.
HOU 10 CHI 36
Houston’s season-ending 4-game swoon came to a crashing end as the Gamblers were outclassed by the Machine at every turn. Early TD’s from Matthews and Watters put Houston in a hole and they simply were unable to keep pace on a day when Kelly threw only 1 score and 1 pick. Scott Zolak looked more the former Champion, throwing for 3 scores against a mismatched Houston D. Houston, the preseason favorite to represent the West in the Summer Bowl, fell all the way out of the playoffs and Chicago claimed their first Division Crown since coming into the league in 1987.
NOR 21 MGN 27
New Orleans came into the game already eliminated, Michigan had only slim hopes of qualifying for the playoffs at 8-8 with a win, but those hopes were enough to fuel the Panthers to a win. Joe Montana completed nearly 80% of his passes and Marcus Allen scored 2 more rushing TDs to win the league scoring title. The final result, all the breaks they needed went their way and not only did Michigan qualify for the postseason, but, as the #4 seed, they get to host the Wild Card game next week.
ARZ 3 DEN 24
Hunger was the difference in this matchup of Pacific Division rivals. Denver had it, Arizona did not. The Gold scored 17 points in the 2nd quarter and led by 14 at the half. That was all they needed as their underrated defense dominated the Wranglers, limiting their run game to 45 total yards. The win propelled Denver to the #3 seed and a bye, while Arizona fell to #5 and a road game next week.
POR 29 OAK 27
Proving that sometimes clinching the division too early can lead to complacency, Oakland lost their second straight since locking up the Pacific. Despite playing their starters, the Invaders fell behind and were unable to convert a 2-point PAT to tie the game when the result was on the line. For their part the Thunder played hard, with Jack Trudeau exposing issues in the Oakland secondary for 401 yards and 3 scores. Siran Stacy had 124 yards in a losing effort for Oakland, who now get a week to rest before hosting a Divisional Round game.
TEX 17 PIT 27
Say if you will that Pittsburgh was just the better team, but you will not be able to quiet the rumblings in San Antonio after the Outlaws once again failed to reach the playoffs and once again fell apart at the end of the season. For what seems the umpteenth time, the Outlaws ended the year on a losing streak, turning playoff position into a missed opportunity. Losing 5 of their last 7 over the 2nd half of the season led to a predictable result, as we will discuss later on in this report.
STL 31 ORL 34
The Renegades win, but, of course, lose by winning. Thanks to 3 TD's from Craig Erickson, and a combined 124 yards rushing from Hilliard and Fowler, the Renegades came back from 31-14 down and defeated the St. Louis Knights to finish the season at 4-12, but in so doing they lost the #1 draft pick to St. Louis. The Knights got their best performance from Jim Miller, 23 of 33 for 254 and 3 scores, but lost the battle, and by doing so, perhaps won the war.
An angry and highly motivated Brett Favre is exactly what the other clubs in the league did not need to see as the surviving 10 teams prepare for the postseaon, but that is what we saw this week. Favre shredded a very good Memphis defense, and was able to sit out a good part of the 4th quarter after throwing 5 TD’s and blowing the Showboats out of the game early. He hit 3 different receivers for scores, and linked up with Ernest Givens 8 times for 160 yard and 2 scores. That is a bad signal for anyone who has to face Birmingham this offseason. Coach Erhardt again looks to have his team ready to go for the post-season, and if Favre plays like this any defense, even the league leading Philly D, will have their hands full.
You know the basics by now. The final 4 spots have gone to Memphis, New Jersey, Denver, and, quite surprisingly, Michigan. Philadelphia and Chicago are equally surprisingly division champs, though anyone who watched both clubs this year quickly realized that preseason doubters were way off base. So what is next? Two interesting Wild Card games.
NEW JERSEY @ MEMPHIS: Saturday, July 9 @ 7pm ET in the Liberty Bowl
It is a battle of two teams with solid scoring defenses (NJ 4th, Memphis 8th) and quality running games. A lot will depend on if Doug Flutie will return. He was expected to start this week, but was pulled over concerns that he was not at 100%. If he is in the game, New Jersey’s offense is much more dangerous, as Flutie possesses the elusivity needed to avoid the Memphis pass rush. The two teams met in midseason and Memphis won by 10, 24-14, and the Showboats have home field here, so expect a rowdy Mid-South crowd. We like the chances of the Showboats, especially with the strong games Greg Boone has been having.
ARIZONA @ MICHIGAN: Sunday, July 10 @ 3pm ET in the Pontiac Silverdome
The Wranglers still seem shellshocked that they fell from #3 to #5 with one loss, and they will have to play their best ball in a hostile environment as Coach Holtz and the arrival of Marcus Allen and Joe Montana have fans in Michigan believing that they are a lot better than their 8-8 record shows. The Panthers bring in the 2nd best scoring offense, with Allen being the scoring leader among backs. Arizona boasts the 3rd best scoring defense (behind Denver & Philly) but their offense has been erratic at best. Despite finishing the year 8-8 and in the playoffs, Arizona has scored the fewest points in the league, being the only club not to reach 300 points this season. That should scare Arizona, and raise the spirits of the Michigan D, which has been a bit unpredictable this year. We like the Panthers to pull this one out as they have a lot of playoff experience in 4-time Super Bowl champion Joe Montana.
The predictable has become the predicted as 4 clubs cut loose their head coaches on Black Monday. Two were known for weeks as St. Louis was not shy about the eminent departure of Jack Elway and Portland had all but confirmed that Dennis Erickson would not be back. The other two were not surprises, but were the result, in both cases, of late season swoons that took .500 clubs and once again led to their removal from playoff contention. In Texas another late season collapse was one too many for Gene Stallings. Stallings leaves the Outlaws with an overall record of 32-31-1, not horrible, but the tendency for solid Outlaw squads to collapse in the final quarter of the season has led to 3 straight losing seasons. For Galen Hall, early success became hard to sustain and even a Wild Card win in 1993 was not enough after another mediocre year. Hall leaves the Bulls with a 47-49 record, and a 1-2 playoff record in 6 years as the Bulls leader.
And so now, with 4 new teams entering the league, player allocation for the expansion draft on the horizon, and a lot of offseason movement expected, the Thunder, Knights, Bulls and Outlaws will also have to contend with hiring a new leader to mold, motivate and manage their teams. Let the mayhem begin.
For this week’s report, let’s focus on the 4 teams that will face off next week. As we said, most expected Doug Flutie to play Week 16. The fact that he did not at such a crucial time certainly indicates that his situation may still be in flux. But, despite these concerns, Flutie does not appear on Wednesday’s injury report. New Jersey listed 4 players, including the known situation of LT William Israel, who likely won’t return until the Conference Championships. Dino Hacket, Jaime Fields, and Oliver Luck all appear as Probable, so the Generals, if Flutie can start, look to be in pretty good shape.
Memphis is also in good shape, though the fact that their 2 players on the injury list are both at the CB position may be making Lam Jones and Irving Fryar lick their lips. Deon Figures is listed as probable, and likely will get the start. Otis Smith, the Memphis nickel back, may be more of a concern as he is listed as questionable.
The Panthers are going to have to put even more weight on the shoulders of Marcus Allen as it seems they will be without two of their top receivers for the game this week. Weegie Thompson could miss up to 3 weeks with a neck injury and Johny Holloway is also out with a collarbone fracture. Add to that a hamstring issue for RG Rick Cunningham and the Panthers may need some magic from Allen to overcome the Wranglers.
Arizona comes into the game with only 2 players on the injured list, but both are big losses. Center Woodrow McKinnon and veteran wideout Trumaine Johnson are both listed as “Out” this week, hampering an Arizona offense that had issues all year even with these two cogs. If the Wranglers can scrap out a win, it may well be due to their defense as these two losses could derail any offensive plans the Wranglers might have.
You know what is on tap this week. In our next report we will give you the full USFL Playoff Preview, looking not only at the 4 teams that will clash this weekend, but all 10 teams fighting for a shot at the title and this year’s Summer Bowl at Legion Field in Birmingham. Will the Stallions ride their way to a home game for the Summer Bowl? Can Philadelphia use their shut down D to regain their glory? Is there a team from the West who can compete with the two Eastern powerhouses? All this will be discussed in our playoff preview edition, along with updates on coaching searches in Jacksonville, Texas, Portland, and St. Louis.