1996 USFL Playoff Preview

It’s playoff time in the USFL. 24 teams down to the 10 best, ready to compete for a trophy, a ring, and the title of World Champions. Sixteen weeks of blood, sweat and tears behind them. Four weeks of the toughtest football they have ever played ahead of them. Ten teams hoping to etch their names into the history books, hoping to prove that they are the best. Only one can hold aloft the John Bassett Trophy, only one can be dubbed Champions of the USFL. Will it be a familiar name like the Gamblers or Stars, or an upstart like St. Louis or Memphis. Can Pittsburgh return to glory the hard way, as a road team? Can Denver, New Orleans, or Tampa claim the glory that has so long evaded them? It’s playoff time in the USFL, and that means that every game matters, every play matters. It’s summertime and for the past 14 years that has meant it’s time for some football.

We have poured over these squads, looked at the film, studied all 16 regular season games for each, and this is our best estimation of who is going to take this home, starting with the longshots and working our way to the favorites.

NEW ORLEANS BREAKERS (9-7, 4TH in Central Division)

LAST 5 GAMES: 2-3, with losses to Chicago and Houston to end the year.

STARS: QB Jamie Martin, HB Terrell Davis, WR Qadry Ismail, DE Jerry Reese, LB Lamar Lathon

OUTLOOK: The Breakers have a tough path forward. They did not end the season particularly strong, and must start their playoff run in Michigan. They did beat the Panthers in their last matchup, but have dropped 3 of 4 since then. Coach Ditka will want to clamp down on Michigan HB Tyrone Wheatley, and he will try to shorten the game with Terrell Davis running the ball. Of course, a win in Michigan means facing Houston next, a team that just beat the Breakers in the Super Dome a week ago. We just don’t think it is in the cards for the Breakers this year.

PITTSBURGH MAULERS (9-7, 3rd in Atlantic Division)

LAST 5 GAMES: 4-1, a late season surge with Robbie Bosco as QB got them here.

STARS: QB Robbie Bosco, HB Mike Rozier, WR Raynard Brown, LB Demetrius Dubose, LB Godfrey Miles

OUTLOOK: The Defending Champs know how to do this. They still have Mike Rozier toting the rock, and they still have the best LB Corps in football with Miles, Dubose and Kumerow locking down the opposition. Their pass defense has not been ideal, 21st in the league, which could be a problem against Memphis, but they have good coaching and a solid shot at getting past the Showboats to face Baltimore, a club they defeated 24-7 just 3 weeks ago.

MEMPHIS SHOWBOATS (9-7, 2nd in Southern Division)

LAST 5 GAMES: 4-1, the Boats surged under interim HC Cam Cameron.

STARS: QB Heath Shuler, HB Moe Williams, WR Carl Pickens, WR Joe Horn, DE Reggie White,

OUTLOOK: Memphis used to be seen as a defensive club, but not this year. While Reggie White at times seems like the only guy giving 100% on defense, the offense under Cameron and with growth by Heath Shuler has vastly improved. Moe Williams did not reach 1,000 yards, but is a solid option, but the key to the Showboats is Shuler throwing the ball to Pickens, Horn, and TE Adrian Cooper. With Pittsburgh having major issues in pass defense, this is the angle Memphis will take to get past the defending champs and on to Baltimore.

MICHIGAN PANTHERS (10-6, 3rd in Central Division)

LAST 5 GAMES: 2-3, including a loss to New Orleans.

STARS: QB Doug Flutie, HB Tyrone Wheatley, WR Weegie Thompson, DE Renaldo Turnbull, CB Chris Snyder

OUTLOOK: Michigan lives off of the run game, play action and a defense that forces turnovers. But they have also proven to be inconsistent all season, with big wins against St. Louis, Washington and Memphis,in recent weeks, but also losses to Texas, Seattle and their opponents in the Wild Card Round, New Orleans. We don’t see the Panthers being good enough on either side of the ball to go all the way, but they have the weapons to challenge New Orleans before getting a major test against the Houston Gamblers.

PHILADELPHIA STARS (9-7, 2nd in Atlantic Division)

LAST 5 GAMES: 2-3 and have only won divisional games since Week 11

STARS: QB Chuck Long, HB Charlie Garner, WR Cris Carter, DE Regan Upshaw, CB Lorenzo Lynch

OUTLOOK: Philadelphia seems to have backed their way into the playoffs, with their last month not impressing many. Only a win over hapless New Jersey kept them from going 0-for-June. Not a good sign with the Tampa Bay Bandits on the schedule. The Stars’ defense will be tested early and often by Tampa’s balanced attack. We are not feeling confident that the group we have seen over the past month can get the job done.

ST. LOUIS KNIGHTS (10-5-1, 2nd in Central Division)

LAST 5 GAMES: 4-1, only a 2-point loss in Michigan tarnished their home stretch.

STARS: QB Todd Collins, HB Darrell Thompson, WR Rocket Ismail, CB Troy Vincent, SS Rodney Harrison

OUTLOOK: A defense that was Top 5 in both scoring and yards allowed has been the key for the Knights. This is a club that does not allow long drives, with an offense that focuses on ball control and playing it safe. They match up well against Denver, a team in the same mold. If the Knights can win the turnover battle, and avoid costly penalties, they have a shot against the Gold, and then they find themselves in the Western Conference Championship, quite the Cinderella story.

DENVER GOLD (11-5, 1st in Pacific Division)

LAST 5 GAMES: 3-2, with a 1-point loss to St. Louis 3 weeks ago.

STARS: QB Mark Brunell, HB Rashaan Salaam, WR Odessa Turner, DE Leslie O’Neill, LB Kurt Gouveia

OUTLOOK: Denver is one of those sneaky-good teams. They got a lot of easy wins in a pretty week Pacific Division, but they have also knocked off some solid clubs, with wins over several playoff clubs. They will not blow anyone out, that is just not in their DNA, but with Mark Brunell’s efficiency and a solid defense, they will hang around and find a way at the end. Add in that home field advantage for their first match against the Knights and things look good for Denver to have a shot at the Western Conference.

TAMPA BAY BANDITS (12-4, 1st in Southern Division)

LAST 5 GAMES: 5-0, as part of a 7-game win streak, the longest in the league.

STARS: QB Troy Aikman, HB Errict Rhett, WR Shannon Baker, TE Ben Coates, CB Eric Allen, LB Kevin Mitchell

OUTLOOK: Tampa has been the hottest team in the league since the midseason mark, rattling off 7 straight wins. They have a potent offense, led by Aikman and Rhett, with a lot of passing targets, including Shannot Baker (24 yards per catch), Robert Brooks, and the underrated Ben Coates at TE. Their defense has improved, but remains in the bottom half of the league. If they are going to make a run at their first title since 1983, which seems very possible, it will be the offense which leads them there.

HOUSTON GAMBLERS (11-4-1, 1st in Central Division)

LAST 5 GAMES: 4-1, with a 6-1-1 record in the Astrodome this year.

STARS: QB Jim Kelly, HB Thurman Thomas, WR Antonio Freeman, WR Brett Perriman, DE Kavika Pittman

OUTLOOK: We spend so much time praising the Houston offense that we often overlook a defense that has some playmakers as well. Rookie Kavika Pittman is a legit ROTY candidate with 13 sacks this season, and while everyone looks at Jim Kelly’s gaudy 1996 numbers, the Gamblers have the #2 pass defense in football. That combo, the wide open offense and a pass D that prevents comebacks when teams get behind, is a tough combo to overcome. We think Houston, a perennial Summer Bowl participant, has a real shot at getting back there again.

BALTIMORE BLITZ (13-3, 1st in Atlantic Division)

LAST 5 GAMES: 3-2, clinching the division and #1 seed nearly a month ago.

STARS: QB Chris Miller, HB Barry Foster, DE Mike Piel, DT William Perry, DT John Randall, CB Leslie Frazier

OUTLOOK: The best front 4 in football makes the Blitz a terror to play. They stuff the run and they get after the QB. Yes, the Blitz let off the throttle after a 12-1 start locked up the conference 4 weeks ago, and there are fears they won’t be able to crank up the energy, but have you ever spoken with John Randall, I don’t think energy will be a problem. Baltimore’s offense is nothing to write home about, ranked 10th in scoring and 11th in yardage, but when you have a defense that only allows 15.9 points per game, you don’t need to rack up a ton of points. Baltimore starts off their potential run with either Memphis Pittsburgh, the two teams who beat them in the past month, but in neither game did Baltimore show much. We expect a ton of new blitz packages, complex zones, and lockdown play out of D Coordinator Dick Lebeau. If defense wins championships, this is a team that you might want to place a few bucks on in Vegas.

OUR PREDICTIONS: it is hard to get past Houston or Baltimore at the top of each conference. We think both have a better than good chance of making Summer Bowl 1996 in the Meadowlands. Once there it is anyone’s guess. Immovable object or unstoppable force? Houston has come up short the last two times they have been to the Big Game, and we just don’t know if they can do it against a Baltimore squad that has played so well against top offenses. We are going to pick Baltimore to get their first title against Houston, just as Pittsburgh did last year. Sorry, Jim Kelly. We loved you this year, but we are picking the Blitz to take home the title.