1995 Week 6 Recap: QB Depth Proves Key in USFL

Week 6 of the USFL season brings us a major QB controversy, rising hopes in Pittsburgh and Texas, and More concerns in the South as every club in the division loses this week, and two doses of bad news for the Chicago Machine, though the club continues to get results. It all starts with QB injury news and a gutsy performance by the Machine.

We start our recap of Week 6 of the USFL season with our Game of the Week, Tampa Bay coming into Chicago, where the Machine were dealing with the news they did not want to face, that their starting QB Scott Zolak was likely lost for the season. While early X-Rays did not reveal a break in his throwing arm, further testing proved the next worst option was the case, a full tear of the bicep from the elbow. There was significant ligament damage as well, meaning that Scott is in for a long recovery and PT regimen before he can return to play, and there is still a risk that he will not recover his full strength to his throwing arm even after a season away from the game.

Chicago came in knowing they would need to rely on former Express draft pick, Dan McGwire at QB. McGwire, who was generally considered a bust for the Express/Knights, now takes on the mantle of a team that reached the Summer Bowl last year. He has the advantage of a strong defense and a solid run game with Ricky Watters, something his prior team could not boast. In his first game as starter he would face off against Troy Aikman and the Bandits. He would rely heavily on the defense to help him earn the W in his first start in 2 years.

And the defense came up big right from the start. After an unremarkable 3-and-out on Tampa’s first possession, Eric Thomas jumped a hook route on Tampa’s second, grabbed the late throw from Aikman, and ran it back 42 yards for the opening score of the game. It was one of 4 interceptions the Chicago D would make on the day, 2 of Aikman and then 2 of John Fourcade, who came in when the Tampa starter took a brutal hit to the ribs in the 3rd quarter. The 7-point lead quickly grew to 10 as another 3-and-out gave Chicago good field position. It would be 10-3 at the half, and Chicago would never relinquish their lead as the combination of conservative O and aggressive D made it a rough day for the Bandits.

McGwire would finish with a respectable 256 yards and 1 TD toss on the day. More importantly he protected the ball, opting for short passes and safety valves whenever things got heady. It is a formula the Machine may be able to use week in and week out to keep pace with Houston. For Tampa Bay, the loss drops them to 2-4 and their offensive woes continue to be a mystery as they certainly have talent on that side of the ball. But, in a game where Errict Rhett was held to only 19 yards on 15 carries, it seems clear that something is going to have to change in Tampa if they want to rally and remain in the playoff hunt.

SEA 31 HOU 45

Houston’s defense had its issues, but the offense was too much for Seattle as Jim Kelly threw for 5 scores and Thurman Thomas rushed for 145 in the home win. Seattle, playing without the injured Dave Krieg, got a solid game from former Gambler David Klingler, but it was not enough against the explosive Gamblers.

BIR 17 MGN 34

Once again the Birmingham offense sputtered against a solid D, with Brett Favre throwing 2 picks and no TDs. Joe Montana completed nearly 80% of his passes (30 of 38) and Tyrone Wheatley had a huge game, rushing for 141 and 2 scores as the Panthers double up the Stallions.

JAX 26 NOR 35

The Breakers are solidly in a QB controversy as Jamie Martin again shines for New Orleans. Martin threw for 3 scores, and the Breakers got another strong performance from their run game as Erric Pegram and rookie Terrell Davis combined for 132 yards rushing. At one point it was 35-10 over the Bulls before the teams changed gears and Jacksonville was able to claw back to make the game look closer than it was.

MEM 10 STL 26

Just when we thought the Showboats had turned a corner they lay an egg in St. Louis. It was a solid game for rookie QB Todd Collins of the Knights, who went 19 of 30 for 233, a score and only 1 pick. He was helped by a decent game from HB Darrell Thompson and a stronger than usual defensive performance that saw LB Mike Caldwell record 5 tackles, including 2 for loss, and a defensive score from CB Troy Vincent.

ORL 10 TEX 27

The Central Division remains tight as Texas gets the win at home against the Renegades. Two early TD’s from Stouffer helped Texas build a 20-0 halftime lead, and while they relented a bit in the second half, a late Jerome Henderson pick-6 of Mitchell helped put the game away for the homestanding Outlaws.

BAL 44 OHIO 3

A bad, bad day for the Ohio Glory, coming off 2 straight wins, as Baltimore just dominated in every way possible. Despite playing only a half due to a nagging shoulder issue, Chris Miller threw for 218 yards and 2 scores. His understudy, Cody Carlson added another 2 scores and the Baltimore defense was relentless all day as the Blitz roll to an easy road win in the division.

NJ 10 WSH 19

New Jersey definitely played better with Walker back in the lineup, but Washington still got the better of them, largely because they were able to limit the All-USFL HB to only 47 yards on the day. Doug Pelfrey was Washington’s main weapon, kicking 4 field goals as the Federals came back from a 10-0 deficit with 5 consecutive scoring drives to take the home win.

PHI 21 PIT 34

With a healthy Alan Risher back under center, the Maulers began to look a lot like last season’s playoff squad. Against Philadelphia’s vaunted defense, Risher went 24 of 37 for 270 and 2 scores, and while Mike Rozier did not top 75 yards rushing, he did score twice to pace the Maulers. Three Chuck Long interceptions helped Pittsburgh keep the Stars at arms length all day as Pittsburgh evened their record at 3-3 and sent Philly down to 3-3. Tightening up the Atlantic Division race with the Feds still out in front at 6-0.

ARZ 19 LA 16

The Express seem to flip between good offensive days and good defensive games. If they could do both at once, they might be better than their 1-5 record. Against Arizona, LA did well on defense, but simply could not penetrate the Wrangler D to get on the scoreboard. It was a field goal festival as the two teams combined for 7 kicks and only 2 TD’s, with the 7th, and eventual game winner, coming with 3:27 left in the game.

DEN 19 ATL 3

While most do not blame Cliff Stoudt for Atlanta’s anemic offense, he may have to make way to Eric Zeier just to try to spark something as Atlanta gains a grand total of 162 yards on the day against the Denver defense. The run game was awful, combining 3 backs and Stoudt scrambles for a grand total of 12 yards. For Denver the combo of Salaam (82 yards) and Smith (22) was enough to win on the road.

OAK 10 POR 26

Oakland came into the game hoping to build on a slim divisional lead, but it was the Thunder who came away with a key win to level their record with Oakland’s at 4-2. The key to the game was balance as both Jack Trudeau and Robert Drummond had unremarkable but very solid games. The Portland defense, which is clearly much improved under head coach Vince Tobin, kept Hebert and Stacy in check, led by a solid day from DE Anthony Pleasant and 5 pass defenses from CB Dwayne Galloway.

1. QB Controversy: Our top story this week has to be the QB situation in New Orleans, where Jamie Martin has made it all but impossible for Coach Ditka to bench him now that Timm Rosenbach is ready to come back from injury. Martin, in three and a half games, has lit the league up, throwing for 857 yards, 9 TDs and only 3 picks. He has led New Orleans on a 4-game winning streak after an 0-2 start from Rosenbach. It seems inevitable that Ditka will name him the starter this week, in preparation for the upcoming game against St. Louis. What this means for Rosenbach, who had seen New Orleans as his team after rough QB battles in both Jacksonville and New Jersey, is still to be determined. He has been gracious in praising Martin to the press, but that was while he was injured and unable to play. Now that he is back, how will he handle holding that clipboard? Martin, who now qualifies for league leaders and debuted on the QBR rankings as the #1 QB in the league, is in a position to lock up the position. If his play continues as we have seen in the season so far, he may have just permanently cost Rosenbach a job.

2. QB Depth: QB is the focus of our second story as well. With Scott Zolak out for the year in Chicago, Dave Krieg likely to miss at least a month in Seattle, and Troy Aikman possibly losing a month as well, it is quickly becoming a triage situation around the league. As seems to happen every year, teams with solid backups can weathe the storm. Those who did not invest in depth at the position are likely to suffer. In Chicago, it is up to Dan McGwire to step up for the rest of the year, but, as we stated earlier, he has both a defense and a run game to help him out. Things in Seattle are a little dicier, as the expansion club now looks to David Klingler to help them through the next month. Expect to see more touches for Roosevelt Potts as the Dragons try to take some pressure off Klingler. In Tampa Bay, it is former New Orleans Saint John Fourcade who will carry the team until Aikman can return to action. Fourcade has a career QBR of only 69.6 and has thrown 9 interceptions to 10 Tds over 3 seasons in Tampa. Behind him the Bandits have only untested Perry Klien. Could be a rough month by the bay for a team that has not started well.

3. Trade Challenges: Looking across the league at potential midseason trades, there is not a lot of potential for a blockbuster. We know that Atlanta has been working the phones in attempts to add a dynamic halfback, but with many teams using a rotation of backs, it has been hard for them to find a taker. QB is another position that will cost a team to find someone. Even some non-glamour positions like Guard and Defensive Tackle are feeling less than flexible on the trade market. With both NFL and USFL expansion this season, rosters feel thinner and teams seem dead set on retaining their talent and depth across the board. There will certainly be some trades, particularly as some of the weaker teams try to build for the future and some of the top clubs look to add a key piece to get them championship ready, but will we see a big name move? Not too likely.

4. Injury Report: Finally, we return to the injury list for an update on some key items this week. While the biggest item on the list was definitely Troy Aikman’s head/jaw injury, it was not the only one likely to negatively impact teams this week. Arizona lost their starting LT Kirk Lowdermilk for the year, a blow that will certainly affect an already iffy offensive production. Texas will miss one of their defensive leaders as Brian Bosworth could miss the rest of the year with a severe groin injury. In Washington it is LB Michael Barrow who could miss significant time with a hip injury, while in Seattle, injuries to starting wideout O.J. McDuffie and LB Scott Stephen could cost each as much as 2 months, which is essentially the rest of the year. Players potentially returning from injury include Rosenbach, highlighted above, WR J.J. Stokes in Arizona, DT Craig Veasey in Pittsburgh, WR Darnay Scott in LA, and Atlanta SS Robert Blackmon.

An interesting turn of events in the courts as a little-discussed trademark case against the Chicago Machine has come to a decision, and one which does not favor the USFL club. The Machine were being accused of stealing their “gear-M” logo from Maitlin Mechanical, a small, family-owned machining shop in Saginaw, Michigan. While there was little evidence that the Machine were aware of, or directly linked to the small auto parts manufacturer, the court did find that the logo used by the Machine was nearly identical to the one used by the 30-year old machining company.

While league officials as well as Chicago ownership hoped to settle the case out of court with a mediated agreement, the ownership of Matilin pushed the case. Some even went so far as to accuse the family of doing this for rivalry reasons, as the company is based in the heart of Panther fandom, but in the end, no mediation was possible. The court has ruled that Chicago is in violation of the Maitlin Mechanical trademark, and has ordered the Machine to cease and desist from use of the logo. The case is being appealed, and likely legal actions will allow the Machine to continue through the year with the current logos in place, but should they eventually lose their appeal, the franchise would need to develop a new logo package. A rare win for the little guy produces a major hassle for the USFL club in the league’s 3rd largest market.

Week 7 brings us to a mixed slate of divisional and inter-divisional games, including some interesting showdowns of teams at the top of the league. Among the top-end clashes we find 6-0 Washignton at home against the 4-2 Portland Thunder. Oakland is in Pittsburgh to face the rejuvenated Pittsburgh Maulers, and Chicago, fresh off their trademark case, is in Michigan, facing the Panthers.

In Texas we have a really interesting rivalry showdown as the 4-2 Texas Outlaws host the 5-1 Houston Gamblers in what should be a high-tension matchup of these in-state rivals. Birmingham is also in division as they face the Bandits, without Troy Aikman. Both clubs are 2-4 and a win is essential if they have any hope of a possible late season run. Memphis and Orlando are both in similar situations as the two 2-4 clubs face off in the Citrus Bowl. They all trail 4-2 Jacksonville, who have the undermanned Seattle Dragons in town.

Meanwhile, 1-5 St. Louis, fresh off their first win of the year, have a tough matchup as the red hot New Orleans Breakers come to town. Arizona is in New Jersey for a rare matchup against the Generals, and our 3 remaining expansion clubs are all in tough matchups as Atlanta heads to Baltimore, LA is in Philadelphia, and the Ohio Glory host the Denver Gold.