1996 Week 13 Recap: Chutes and Ladders as Playoffs Loom

The last month of the USFL season is not for the faint of heart. The playoff fortunes of any team can rise and fall each week, with fans agonizing over every game and scoreboard watching in hopes that the out-of-town results will benefit their club. This week 2 more clubs locked in their playoff berths, though just where each will end up by Week 16 is still very much in doubt. With a cluster of teams 1 game from .500, we are likely to go down to the wire for those last few playoff spots, especially in the Eastern Conference, but a win streak, even just a 2-3 game mini-streak, may be enough for some clubs to find themselves in the playoff hunt.

Our game of the week features two teams on the cusp of playoff contention, both hoping that they can muster a string of wins to end the season and find themselves in the dance. On the one side we had the Ohio Glory, one of this season’s feel good stories, currently 6-6 after 12 weeks and with a likely MVP or Offensive Player of the Year candidates in 2nd year wideout Joey Galloway. On the other sideline we have the Texas Outlaws, perennial cuspers, trying hard to dispel their reputation as late season swooners.

These two clubs would play hard-nosed smashmouth football all game, with both defenses holding their own and both offenses seeking to avoid costly turnovers. Both would, as there were no takeaways for either defense the entire game. With both teams playing somewhat conservatively the biggest issue turned out to be penalties, with Ohio called for 8 on the day while Texas had only 2 flags thrown.

The game began slowly, with a 46 yard FG from Ohio’s Don Silvestri being the only score of the first quarter. In the second, Texas would get on the board as an 11-play, 7-minute drive led to a Reggie Cobb TD run. Ohio answered with a long drive of their own, capped off by a short TD pass to, who else, Joey Galloway. Galloway would finish the day with 8 receptions for 117 yards, far and away the top receiver for the Glory. Kelly Stouffer of Texas would spread the ball around a bit more, finding 8 different receivers on the day, with Quinn Early leading the pack, and making the big play late in the game.

Down 10-7 at the half, Texas came out in the 3rd and equalized on a 33-yarder from Chris Boniol. But, for most of the remainder of the half it was the defenses that ruled the day. Texas would go 0-3 on their next 3 third down attempts, Ohio fared slightly better, going 1 for 4 on first downs and adding two field goals over the course of the next 20 minutes. Up 16-10, it would fall on the Glory defense to keep Texas from a late TD to steal the win.

After a nice punt by Ohio, Texas would start on their own 13 with just over 1:21 left to play and needing at TD to win. On their first play, wideout Shawn Collins was hurt, pulling up with what appeared to be a hamstring. The ball was nearly picked, but officials ruled that it was caught after touching the ground, saving Texas for another play. Kelly Stoupher then found Justin Armer and Rodney Thomas on consecutive plays to reach their own 40. After an incompletion to Early, they surprised Ohio with a draw, and Cobb gained 8, creating a 3rd and 2 at the 48. Stouffer hit Steve Wilkes on a hook pattern to get the first down and stopped the clock with 43 seconds to play on the Ohio 45.

With Ohio now playing a soft zone, Texas pulled out a trick play to open things up and it went even better than anticipated. Ryan Yarborough ran a 10-yard hook, while Quinn Early ran a crossing route. When Stouffer hit Yarborough the defenders turned his direction to get the stop in the field of play. Just as they reached him, Yarborough tossed the ball back to the crossing Early, who, already at full speed, took the ball to the sideline and turned up field, with a clear path to the endzone. It was a perfectly executed hook & ladder play, and it caught the over-zealous Ohio defenders flat-footed. The deep safety had converged on Yarborough and was unable to change direction quickly enough to get an angle on Early as he sped upfield. Texas tied the game at 16, and Boniol’s Pat put them up 17-16. It was a brilliant playcall made at exactly the right time and it gave Texas a much-needed win.

The Texans improved to 6-7 and remained in the hunt for the final Wild Card, though still trailing New Orleans by 2 games, while Ohio dropped to 6-7, one of six clubs with that record, all vying for that last playoff spot. Because of tiebreakers, Ohio slipped to 6th among that group. The Glory will need to run the table to have a realistic chance of leapfrogging the other 5 clubs, while Texas needs to win out and get some help from the upcoming teams playing New Orleans if they hope to claw back into contention. Tall orders for both clubs, to be sure, but the win today gave Texas a chance, something a loss would have essentially removed.

BAL 24 NOR 17

It came down to the wire in the Crescent City, but in the end the Blitz were able to hold off the Breakers, thanks in large part to an 8 catch, 81 yard day from Bill Brooks, and 2 TDs from Chris Miller. New Orleans was within 7 at the end, but could not connect on a Hail Mary to tie as the clock ran out.

NJ 7 STL 35

Coach Knox gave Rob Johnson the start against the Knights, which was hardly doing him any favors, as Johnson was sacked 4 times and picked off twice by St. Louis’s defense. The New Jersey offense showed nothing, as the club’s only points came on a pick 6 provided by the defense. The Generals finished the day with only 151 yards of offense and only 6 first downs to the Knights’ 20.

PIT 16 CHI 17

The Machine edged the Maulers thanks to a Derrick Burroughs pick six and 70 yards from backup HB Mario Bates. Mike Rozier returned to action but was not 100%, rushing for only 48 yards on the day. With Louis Lipps out, Freddie Scott took over the position and had his first 100-yard day but it was not enough for the Maulers.

PHI 13 HOU 17

The Stars confounded the Gamblers offense all day, but in the end Houston had just enough to edge the visitors. TD catches from Brett Perriman and Thurman Thomas helped Houston build a 17-13 lead, and in the waning moments of the game Eric Kramer missed on a toss to Eric Green and threw his second pick of the day, ending any chance for a Stars’ comeback.

WSH 14 MGN 27

Michigan got a strong defensive performance, limiting Barry Word to 47 yards rushing, and scores by Tyrone Wheatley and Rodney Culver helped propel the Panthers to a home win. Don Majkowski connected with Herman Moore for both Federals scores, but it was not enough against a Michigan club that controlled the clock and limited Washington opportunities all day.

ATL 14 POR 28

The Thunder raced out to a 21-0 lead and then held on as Atlanta tried to mount a comeback. Robert Drummond’s 108 yards rushing helped him rise to the top of the league’s rushing leaderboard and Jack Trudeau connected on 3 scoring tosses to power the Thunder victory.

BIR 10 ARZ 29

Arizona’s defense was aggressive again and the surprising power outage for the Stalliions’ offense continued as Birmingham looked completely out of synch, gaining only 157 total yards on the day. Ernest Givens was limited to only 1 catch for 23 yards, and the combination of Karim Abdul-Jabbar and Vaughn Dunbar gained 106 yards rushing to power Arizona to another surprise win.

JAX 28 DEN 42

Denver dominated in the second half, pulling back from a 21-17 halftime deficit to overwhelm the Bulls. Mark Brunell completed 29 of 41 passes for 314 and threw for 5 scores, including 3 to wideout Odessa Turner as the Gold scored the game’s final 24 points to clinch the Pacific Division title and a playoff bye.

MEM 27 SEA 32

Rookie Jon Kitna continued to impress, throwing for 3 scores as the Dragons upended the Memphis Showboats in front of 42,022 in Husky Stadium. Eric Metcalf had 107 yards and a TD on the day and the Seattle D stuffed Moe Willams, limiting him to only 43 yards rushing, while the Dragon combo of Dereck Loville and Roosevelt Potts combined for 132 on the ground.

ORL 30 LA 14

Scott Mitchell connected with veteran Danny Knight for 2 scores and the duo of Kirby and Barber rushed for 110 as Orlando became the only 6-6 team in the East to pull out a victory this week. Bert Emmanuel had a big game as well for the Renegades, accounting for 123 yards in the air on 7 catches.

TBY 30 OAK 24

The Invaders held tough all game long, but a late Freddie Solomon TD gave Tampa the 6-point victory on the road. Troy Aikman connected with 7 different receivers on the day, with Robert Brooks leading the group with only 4 receptions, but it was enough to outpace the Invaders, who had another rough day running the ball, with a total of only 27 yards rushing.

Meadowlands is a nice word for swamp: How bad are things in New Jersey? Well, for the first time all season the AP has the Generals listed last in the unofficial power rankings. The list, which, as expected, has Baltimore at the top, now has New Jersey below all 4 expansion clubs and even Arizona, who have jumped up 4 spaces thanks to back to back wins. The other big loser this week, Bimingham, losers of 4 in a row, who now slip to 21st in the rankings despite a 6-7 record shared by many clubs. St. Louis is perhaps the biggest positive surprise, rising to 4th, above even division winner Denver in the estimation of the writers. Orlando also rose 3 spots to 7th in this weeks poll, thanks to their win over the Express.

Stat Leaders in the wrong way: Rather than looking at the top of the player stat board, we look at the bottom this week, and with that we can see why certain teams are having issues. Rob Johnson ranks dead last among regular starters, a position he reclaimed from Tommy Maddox this week, with a QBR of 61. Bobby Hebert, while looking strong with 28 TDs on the year is also a league leader in interceptions with 20. Add to that the fact that Hebert (10) trails only Texas QB Kelly Stouffer, whose 11 fumbles lead the league.

Bad news for Jacksonville as Natrone Means is out for the rest of the year, and the backup, Jammie Morris holds the worst YPC of any back with 100 carries or more. Morris clocks in at a disappointing 2.6 yards each time he touches the ball, the only back with 100 carries to register below 3 yards per attempt. If you are looking for a reason why the Generals are having trouble in the passing game, one may be the number of drops, particularly from rookie wideout Terry Glenn, who leads the league with 17.

Snyder eyeing title: But let’s not linger on bad news, lets look at a good story. Michigan’s Chris Snyder added a pick to his tally this week, bringing him within 1 of tying Raphel Cherry’s league record of 9, with 3 games left to play. In addition to his league leading 8 picks, we should remember that 4 of these, fully 50% have been pick-six scores for the Panther corner. That in itself is amazing. Snyder, who has been a solid player for several years, has always played in the shadow of veteran CB Garland Rivers, who is no slouch himself with 5 picks this season. But, with his performance, we are seeing more and more teams shift their passing game away from Snyder and towards the older Rivers. That Michigan has such a ball-hawking combo on defense is a big reason for the success this season of the squad. Michigan leads the league with 23 interceptions as well as 110 passes defended. They have scored 6 times on defense, with Snyder’s 4 pick-six plays powering the aggressive Panther secondary.

Injury Report: The injuries continue to mount up as the season progresses. The biggest hit this week was for the Bulls, who will miss HB Natrone Means for the rest of the season after a torn posterior cruciate ligament was the diagnosis on Monday. Means’s rehab could take him well into 1997, but he is expected to return for the start of the 1997 campaign. Bill Romanowski will not be leading the Arizona defense for the final 3 weeks as a ruptured Achilles tendon put an end to his season. In Chicago, the concern is for guard Leo Goeas, who suffered a partial ACL tear and could need 2-3 months to recover, while in Texas wideout Shawn Collins could miss the rest of the regular season with an ankle injury.

Ohio is still very much in the playoff mix, but they will have to go at least the next 2 weeks without QB Jeff Hostetler, who suffered a broken collarbone in the game this week. Washington rookie DE Tony Brackens may be out up to 2 weeks thanks to a blow to the head in this week’s game that may have fractured his eye socket. In Birmingham, the already depleted defense will be without its best corner as Chris Dishman is expected to miss 2 weeks, while Denver LB Kurt Gouveia could be out the next 2 weeks with a hyper-extended knee, but should be good to go when the Gold have their first playoff game in the divisional round.

Two more teams clinched a playoff trip this week, with Denver wrapping up the Pacific Division with their win. Portland could tie them at 9-7 if they won out and Denver lost their final 3 but would still lose on tiebreakers. Houston also guaranteed itself a playoff spot, though not the division title, as they hold a ½ gme lead on Michigan and a 1 game lead on St. Louis.

In the East, Baltimore remains the only team with a spot, with Tampa Bay and Philly looking good to clinch this week. Orlando was the only one of the 6-6 teams to win this week, giving them a leg up on the competition for the #4 seed. Memphis, Jacksonville, Washington, Birmingham, Pittsburgh, and Ohio all sit at 6-7 and only 1 of them can have the #5 seed. Who can rattle off 3 wins over the next 3 weeks and find their way to the postseason? Birmingham has lost 4 straight, so they are looking very shaky. Pittsburgh is banged up, Washington and Ohio have been so erratic, but will play this week, with the winner in much better position than the loser, and don’t rule out Jacksonville, who hold a tie breaker over several other clubs in the Conference.

News out of the League Offices today as the Owner subcommittee which was researching schedule options revealed their report, with surprising results. The subcommittee examined the schedule and league alignment as it currently stands and looked into alternative options which might allow them to address the issues many teams have raised about the current NFL-USFL transfer windows, both of which fall awkwardly during the year, in late January and early February and then in July, right during the USFL playoffs. The conflicting schedules between the USFL and NFL don’t allow for a lot of leeway in these windows, as any shift of the window itself would surely have a negative impact on the regular season of one of the two leagues.

The report cited this concern, as well as ongoing concerns about the impact of poor weather in March on the USFL season. The solution to both issues, according to these owners, is to realign the league from four divisions of six teams to a new alignment of six divisions of four teams and to reduce the regular season from 16 games to 14. It is this last element which will almost certainly result in significant opposition among some owners. Reducing the regular season by two weeks would guarantee a need to adjust television contracts, a major source of revenue for the league, and would cost each club one home game, another source of revenue. While the new alignment and shorter schedule would allow for the league to start its regular season a week later, and end it a week earlier, this alignment would also reduce the number of division games from 8 to 6, and with division games often bringing in the greatest crowds, and having the lowest travel cost (due to proximity of clubs) there will definitely be some concerned that this proposal would result in considerable financial concerns. While the proposal would address some of the concerns about the transfer windows, the financial impact of a 14-game vs. 16 game season seems likely to be a major sticking point.

The proposal also recommends an expansion of the playoff field from 5 teams per conference to 6, with 2 division winners receiving byes in the Wild Card round, 2 more playing as home teams and 2 Wild Card clubs per conference playing as road teams. This component of the proposal is likely to be approved even if the league as a whole rejects the shortened season concept. Adding a sixth playoff team in each conference is going to expand the number of clubs who are playing meaningful games at the end of the season, which certainly increases interest and ticket sales as well.

One potential compromise raises the option of a 14-game schedule over 15 weeks, with each team having 1 bye week during the year. This could minimize the impact of a shorter schedule on TV revenue, but also halves the advantage of shortening the season vis-à-vis the transfer window. The idea of bye weeks has been floated before, with the Competition Committee in favor due to the current impact of injuries over the 16-week season, but has never gained traction, largely due to the already time-constricted schedule and potential conflicts with the NFL. Could a compromise position be in the offing for the USFL on this issue. Certainly there are some clubs who see a reduction of home games and potentially of TV revenue as a major concern, while there are others, primarily the larger market clubs, who view an easing of transfer window scheduling and a later start date for the season as major advantages. The report will be reviewed by several executive committees and would then come before the committee as a whole (the collected owners) at the Fall Owner’s Meeting scheduled for September in New York.

Week 14 brings us back to division play in the Eastern Conference, with the Pacific and Central divisions facing off in the Western Conference. With so many playoff spots left to claim, this week could be huge for several clubs. Pittsburgh, playing without several key performers, heads into Baltimore to face the juggernaut Blitz. Washington and Ohio clash in Columbus, with one dropping to 6-8 while the other will reach .500 again with a win. New Jersey at Philadelphia rounds out the Atlantic clashes. A win should lock up a playoff spot for the Stars. In the South the big game is Jacksonville (6-7) at Orlando (7-6), a Renegade win will put some space between them and the cluster of teams hovering around .500. Birmingham tries to snap a 4-game losing streak in Tampa, while Atlanta will be in Memphis with the showboats hoping to get back to .500 with a win.

The big game in the Western Conference is St. Louis at Denver. The Gold clinched the Pacific last week, while the Knights hope to lock up a playoff spot with a win this week. Houston is in Portland with the Thunder’s playoff chances on life support, while Chicago hopes to get in the mix with a win at Oakland. Texas will be in LA hoping to get even at 7-7 with a road win. New Orleans is in Tempe to face the Wranglers, and the Michigan Panthers travel to Seattle, knowing a win will clinch them a spot in the postseason.