Three weeks in and it is still hard to gauge were the season is taking us. Boston seems to be cruising right along at 3-0, and Seattle also looks formidable. Ohio’s offense is not where we thought it would be, and the Mauler pass rush is far more devastating than we anticipated. Fans are getting ready to hit the panic button in New Jersey, Orlando, and New Orleans because 0-3 is not what anyone anticipated. But, overall, across the league the divisions have yet to sort themselves out, which is pretty normal for the season’s first month. The storylines are not yet well defined, though, if we had to point to one story to start us off this year, it is the 2-game lead Jacksonville has already put on their division, with a huge win this week in our Game of the Week.
TAMPA BAY 28 JACKSONVILLE 29
We knew this one would be big, as did the league schedule guru, who placed this game on Sunday Night as the dramatic finish to the third week of play. We knew to expect a tight game, as rivalry games often are, and to expect it to depend on which team made the most of its opportunities, and that too came to pass.
The game looked like it was breaking Tampa Bay’s way at the start. Willis McGahee, in particular, seemed dialed in, gaining 55 of his 111 yards in the first quarter alone, with a series of good runs. Within the first 15 minutes and change, McGahee scored twice, and Tampa Bay was looking primed for this game, up 14-0. But it would prove a war of attrition and the tortoise would soon start to gain on the hare.
As the game neared the half, Jacksonville got on the board, a 32 yarder from rookie kicker Justin Medlock, but when McGahee scored his third TD of the game, fans in Jacksonville started to get nervous. 21-3 is not how you want to go into the half, and certainly not with the opposition’s starting halfback close to 70 yards in the half. Jacksonville would recognize the dire urgency of the situation as they put together a 2-minute drill to get more points on the board before the break. Jake Delhomme guided the Bulls to the redzone and the run game took over from there, with Antowain Smith getting the Bulls to the 1 and Travis Minor taking it over the top for the score. At the half, the score was 21-10, but the Bulls were still looking like this could get away from them.
The Bulls got the ball first in the 2nd half, and while they added 3 more points on a second Medlock field goal, once again Tampa Bay responded with a quick score, a 20-yard Culpepper to Moss TD that again increased the lead. At 28-13, it was not looking particularly good for the home team. But, as so often happens, one big play can swing momentum, and that play came on the Bulls’ next possession. After slowly moving the ball from their 20 to the 37, a near-perfect play call gave Jacksonville a new lease on life. Tampa Bay was expecting run, and set their defense with a lone safety up top and 9 men near the line. But when Antowain Smith hit the line of scrimmage, he did not have the ball with him. Jake Delhomme still had it and quickly saw that his tight end, Jason Whitten, had the safety out of position. A perfectly placed ball allowed Whitten to catch the pass in stride, shake off the safety and rumble his way 63 yards for the score. The crowd erupted and Jacksonville was back in business, down only 8.
They would put the pressure on as the 4th quarter began. No more running lanes for McGahee, and no open receivers for Culpepper to locate with the ball. After getting the ball back with just over 6 minutes left, you could feel the confidence the Bulls exuded in the stadium. It took them 7 plays, but Delhomme found Rashaun Woods in the endzone and suddenly the Bulls were within a 2-point PAT of tying the game. Delhomme would try to connect with Whitten for the extra points, but the defense held, leaving Jacksonville down 28-26 with 4 minutes left. They would kick away to the Bandits and put the game in the hands of the defense.
The Bulls’ D is not the most intimidating in the league, but it is a solid, well-disciplined group, and that focus was essential in the final minutes of the game. Tampa Bay would get a first down, but on the next set of downs, they faltered on 1st down, losing 2 yards on a poor outside run attempt, then throwing incomplete on 2nd down. When Culpepper failed to find a receiver and scrambled for a modest gain of 1 yard on 3rd and 12, the Bandits would have to punt.
Jake Delhomme and the Bull offense would have their chance to get the ball into field goal range for their rookie kicker. Just over 2 minutes to play and about 50 yards to put the ball comfortably in Medlock’s range. Delhomme would use the full field, and all three of his time outs, connecting with Javon Walker, with Whitten, and with Jeb Putzier to move the ball into range. With 28 seconds left on the clock and facing a 3rd and 11 from the 13 yard line, the call was made to send Medlock in. Tampa Bay iced him, of course, but when the ball was snapped, Medlock sent it true, and the Bulls came away with a last second win that kept them undefeated after 3 weeks.
For Tampa Bay another defeat, after falling last week in Nashville, meant they now trailed the Bulls by 2 full games, while for the Bulls, the win meant they could remain unbeaten and now would hold a 2-game lead over both Atlanta and the Bandits.
MEMPHIS 24 NASHVILLE 17
Friday night in Nashville and the arch rival Showboats are in town with their former MVP QB. Brett Favre had a modest day by his standards, 180 yards on a 15 of 24 night, but it was enough for the Showboats to get the win. Cadillac Williams, Maurice Smith and Lionel Gates combined for 108 yards rushing, and the Memphis D picked off Jay Cutler twice to help preserve the Memphis win.
BALTIMORE 17 NEW JERSEY 10
Baltimore gets their 2nd win of the year by knocking off the punchless Generals. New Jersey continues to struggle on offense, producing only 281 total yards as teams load up against the run and dare Kelly Holcombe to beat them. Holcombe has yet to throw a TD pass three weeks into the season, which does not bode well for the defending champs, who drop to 0-3.
ORLANDO 20 ST. LOUIS 23
A good battle that came down to the final seconds as Luke McNown led a final drive that produced the game winning kick from Rob Bironas. Dominic Rhodes and Michael Bush combined for 103 yards rushing and the Skyhawk D picked off Drew Brees twice as St. Louis gets their first win of the year and sends Orlando to a tough 0-3 start.
CHICAGO 12 WASHINGTON 3
Five field goals was all the scoring these two teams could muster as defense was the name of the game. Michael Turner had his best game of the year, rushing for 120 yards on 24 carries, a big part of Chicago’s ability to get into scoring position on more occasions than Washington.
LAS VEGAS 3 OAKLAND 16
Another defensive war of attrition, but this time Las Vegas was on the wrong end of the low score. The Thunder could only muster a single field goal while Oakland got one big play, a 54-yard screen pass to Ricky Williams, to get the game’s only touchdown.
LOS ANGELES 20 SEATTLE 23
Saturday Night’s big Pacific showdown did not disappoint. It was 20-12 LA after three quarters, thanks in part to two 2nd half TD tosses from Seneca Wallace, but Seattle scored the final 11 points of the game, finishing off the Express with a Troy Walters’ TD and a 2-point conversion just outside of the 2-minute warning. Dillon and Sproles combined for 174 yards rushing as LA simply could not keep the two contained.
NEW ORLEANS 21 BIRMINGHAM 26
The Breakers find themselves at 0-3 after falling short in Birmingham. A 16-0 run by the Stallions in the 3rd and 4th quarter shifted a 14-10 Breaker lead into a 26-14 deficit and Eli Manning could not mount a comeback as Birmingham used 34 carries between Barber and Alexander to grind out the win.
TEXAS 7 OHIO 14
In a game that did not answer any of the questions about Ohio’s offensive deficit this season, the Glory managed to get a W, but not impress in this one. T. J. Duckett outgained Eddie George 86-78, but a Joey Galloway TD saved the game for the Glory, who expected a lot more fireworks than what we have seen this year.
ATLANTA 21 BOSTON 28
The Fire gave Boston a run for their money, but faded in the 4th quarter as both Tiki Barber and Cedric Wilson scored to give Boston a comeback win. David Garrard had his best game of the year, going 21 of 27 for 175 yards and 2 scores, but could not land a late TD to tie the game up.
PHILADELPHIA 28 DENVER 29
The Stars learn how tough Denver can be at Invesco Field as the Gold come back from a 28-20 deficit to steal the win on a late Peerless Price TD catch. Denver went with a platoon at HB and the combo of Benson, Moore and Prentice were effective, combining for 123 yards on the day. Ahman Green was nearly all of Philly’s offense, rushing for 177, but it was not enough as Denver pulls this one out late.
ARIZONA 20 HOUSTON 17
A big divisional road win for the Wranglers, thanks to a big scramble from Jake Plummer, looking like early 1990's Plummer as he bootlegged right, found open field, and raced 71 yards on what have to be crackling knees at this point. It was the biggest play of the game and of the season so far for the Wranglers. That one play undid the 306 yards passing from Matt Hasselbeck which had given Houston a 17-13 lead.
Is it Time to Panic?
That is the question for the Generals, Renegades, and Breakers, all of whom are shocked to find themselves at 0-3. Each has different issues, but each also had higher expectations for their clubs going into the year. To be sure the Generals expected some difficulty after losing their head coach and two star players, but the defending champions did not anticipate starting the year with three losses. Similarly, Orlando knew it would take time to integrate Drew Brees into a new offense, but the ‘Gades have not been clicking at all, something is clearly out of synch. As for the Breakers, one of the feel good stories last year, the return to New Orleans has not at all gone the way folks in the Pelican State had imagined.
We start with the defending champs, who are clearly looking at a major readjustment after losing both Tom Brady and Deion Sanders to the NFL. New Jersey has had issues on both sides of the ball, looking like a very different team than the 2006 USFL title holders. In 3 games the Generals have mustered only 24 points, a measly 8 per game, worst in the league. At the same time their defense is allowing nearly 25 points per game, among the worst in the league as well. Kelly Holcombe has yet to throw a touchdown pass, and, other than a solid 120 yards against the Cannons, Curtis Enis has been handcuffed as defenses are loading the box to stop him, with no fear of the General passing game. And while the Generals’ defense is middle of the pack in both passing and rushing yards allowed, they are giving up far too many points over the first three weeks.
New Jersey will face off against New Orleans in the Super Dome next week, and it may be their best chance to snag a win and change their trajectory. New Orleans has also been struggling, though their 12 points per game and 22 points allowed are both better than New Jersey’s totals. The two issues for New Orleans are a bit different than for the Generals. First on the table is the run game, where rookie Kenny Irons leads all rushers with only 146 yards (averaging fewer than 50 per game). The other big concern is the rush defense, which gave up 128 yards to the Stallions and 155 to the Knights. I guess we should add a third issue as well, with Eli Manning currently sporting a 61.5 QB Rating, with only a 50.4% completion rate and a 1:1 TD/INT ratio (3 each). This is not what fans expected after a pretty solid 2006 as a traveling road team.
Orlando is our final 0-3 club, and they too are looking at some bad numbers across the board. They too are averaging only 12 points a game, but their defense is actually the worst of the three, giving up 28 points per game, including 42 to Jacksonville in Week 2. They are in the bottom 5 in both yards allowed and passing yards allowed as their defense has had major issues containing their opponents’ top receivers. Including both Rashaun Woods and Donald Hayes going over 100 yards in the Bulls game. Of course, the other issue, and the one sports radio in Florida is jumping on, is Drew Brees’s slow start. Brees’s current 66.7 QB Rating is well below the 95.1 he finished with last year in Michigan. It is hurt particularly by the 5 picks he has given up already this year, on pace for well over 20 on the year. Orlando faces a tough matchup in Week 4, heading to Philly to face the Stars, and it does not get much easier with LA, Tampa, Atlanta, and then the Breakers coming up.
DC Desperation?
Another team facing some desperation has to be the Washington Federals. The Feds won their opener, but then lost Kordell Stewart for the year. If this week’s game is any indication, Washington cannot feel good about a full season with Henry Burris starting for them. Against Chicago, Burris struggled to get anything going. He managed not to turn the ball over, but that is about all that could be said. The Feds put up only 3 points and have now lost 2 in a row since Stewart’s injury.
The bad news for Washington is that there are simply not a lot of options for them. It seems unlikely that they will turn to 3rd stringer Jared Lorenzen as anything other than an emergency option. Looking over the free agent pool, there is not much to see, so if Washington wants to make a switch, they are going to have to look for a trade. It seems unlikely that any team, even one with a solidly entrenched starter, would be willing to give up their 2nd QB, so the Feds would have to take a flier on a 3rd stringer who perhaps has some potential. That is hardly a solution if the club is trying to win this year. It is a brutal break for new head coach Sean Payton, who wants to be experimental on offense, but may have to resort to a very conservative, run-first focus simply out of necessity. We expect Burris will improve over time. He simply has not had many snaps in the USFL, so we should not be surprised that he was off to a rough start. But is that enough for a Feds team that was already looking like a rebuilding club?
Another week of action and another player sent to the IR. It was a relatively light week on the injury report, but don’t say that to Michigan linebacker Andy Katzenmoyer, who fractured both bones in his lower left leg and was placed on the injured reserve list this week. Katzenmoyer, in his 9th season in the league, will turn over his captain’s duties to 3rd year player Shawne Merriman, who is also likely to slide into his position in the middle, with Odell Thurman taking over on the strong side and DeMarcus Ware retaining his position on the weak side.
Just a bit to the south, Ohio CB DeShea Townsend is feeling very lucky indeed to be categorized as a 2-4 week absence on IR with a disc displacement. The corner fell awkwardly after going after a high ball, and lay for several minutes on the field before being taken off on the cart and on a back board. There was concern that paralysis could be a factor in the injury, but within a few hours full feeling had returned to Townsends extremities. An MRI would later indicate the nature of the injury and the ability for Townsend to expect a full recovery within a month. A sigh of relief for him and all football fans.
Apart from these two injuries, all other newly reported injuries also fall into the 1-week range, either Doubtful or Questionable. They include Michigan corner Deltha O’Neal (foot), Arizona DE Gary Walker (nerve), St. Louis DT Larry Triplett (finger), Philly CB Antonio Cromartie (tendinitis), Boston WR Joe Jurevicious (hip), Las Vegas corner Antoine Winfield (neck), and Baltimore HB Ron Dayne (finger).
Portland Brings Brooks Back to Oregon
The Portland Stags have found their head coach, and he is a familiar face to fans in the state. Rich Brooks, who just finished his third year as head football coach at the University of Kentucky, is a former defensive coordinator at Oregon State and was the head coach of the University of Oregon Ducks from 1977-1994. He left the Ducks for the NFL in 995, where he coached for the Rams and Falcons before signing on with Kentucky. Brooks, who will turn 67 before the Stags play their first game, is also a former player in the state, having suited up for the Beavers from 1961-1963.
As a head coach Brooks had solid results at Oregon, including a Rose Bowl bid (the first in a long time for the Ducks) in 1994, his last year at the school. With the Rams, Brooks went 7-9 his first year and 6-10 in his second. He was released after that second season and signed on as the DC for the Falcons. In his time at Kentucky, Brooks improved the SEC team from a 4-8 record his first year to 8-5 this past fall, including the university’s first bowl win since 1984.
Brooks takes over a club that as of today has no players, only a few executives in place, and about 4 months before the first free agents will be available to sign. His task is to build a club from the combination of USFL and NFL Free Agents, college draftees, and players made available in the modified USFL Expansion Draft to be held in November. Along with Charlotte, Portland will see its first on-field action in March of 2008.
Charlotte Finds a GM
The Charlotte Monarchs, the last club to be confirmed as part of the two stage USFL expansion from 24 to 28 clubs, has not yet begun its head coaching search, but they have settled on a GM to manage the process. This week Charlotte announced an agreement with Director of Player Personnel Nick Caserio of the NFL Patriots. Caserio, in his new role as General Manager and COO for Football Operations, will be central to the roster-building process. He leaves New England only a few months after signing Cade McNown away from the USFL to be the new Patriot QB.
Caserio, whose professional career began as a grad assistant at both Saginaw Valley State and Central Michigan, began in the front office of the Patriots in 2001. He has been in the roll of Director of Pro Personnel since 2004, but now moves from Foxboro to Charlotte and from the fall to the spring. Expect the John Carrol grad to be heavily engaged in the process of developing both a player pool and a draft strategy as Charlotte will be building up their roster between this July and next March. With training camp set to be held at nearby Wofford University this February, Caserio will be a busy man between now and then.
Early look at rookie class of 2008
Thinking about the expansion process as well as the 2007-2008 offseason, we thought it would be a good idea to take a quick look at the top potential picks in the College Draft. We anticipate that the league will release the modified Territorial Draft schools soon, though we fully expect that Portland will select both Oregon and Oregon State, while Charlotte is very likely to choose between UNC, NC State, Clemson, and South Carolina, taking advantage of the city’s location close to the state line between the two Carolinas.
If we are correct, then both expansion clubs could find themselves a quality halfback in the 2008 draft, whether it be Oregon’s Jonathan Stewart or possibly East Carolina’s Chris Johnson. Both backs are projected as first round talent, and both could be included in the protected schools for both teams, though Charlotte may opt not to select ECU, but go for one of the bigger schools in the area instead. We know that one of the two clubs will also have the first pick in the Open Draft, with the other choosing third, just as Atlanta and St. Louis did in 2006. So who might be under consideration for both clubs?
That is hard to say, as free agent and expansion draft signings will go a long way to determining which positions will be targets for the two expansion clubs. But, looking over the projected first round talents coming out, there are some intriguing options.
If Charlotte does not protect ECU in an effort to sign Chris Johnson, they could have a shot at the top-rated halfback in the class of 2008, Arkansas’ Darren McFadden. This assumes, of course, that Memphis does not protect McFadden in the T-Draft, where Arkansas is likely to remain a feeder school for the Showboats.
If halfback is not a priority, how about QB? The top two candidates to be early first-round picks in the draft are both intriguing prospects. BC’s Matt Ryan and Delaware’s Joe Flacco are both classic pocket passers, and while Boston might consider Ryan in the T-Draft, Flacco will be available as no club claims Delaware as a protected school.
Among defensive players, D-line is the strongest pool in the draft, with pass rushing ends like Virginia’s Chris Long, Ohio State’s Vernon Gholston, or Florida’s Derrick Harvey among the early candidates. Or, perhaps a run-stuffing DT like LSU’s Glenn Dorsey or USC’s Sedric Ellis will catch a GM’s eye early in the USFL Draft.
O-Line is always a priority, and with a clear cut first rounder like Michigan’s Jake Long available, we expect he would be a top choice, that is if the Panthers don’t select him with one of their 3 T-Draft picks. Linebacker is another deep pool this year, led by Tennessee’s Jerod Mayo, but also looking promising are USC’s Keith Rivers and OU’s Curtis Lofton.
Finally, if a team is looking for that shut down corner, there are three very intriguing prospects, all at schools not currently protected by any USFL club. There is Kansas’s Aqib Talib, Tennessee State’s Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie, and Troy’s Leodis McKelvin. Three potential options out there for teams hoping to shore up the secondary for the pass happy USFL season.
The Vote: Not Falling for Fall Football
Perhaps the largest single moment in USFL history that defined its survival or early demise was debate over shifting from a spring schedule to a fall schedule in 1985. After only a season and a half, in mid-1984, owners around the USFL were beginning to wonder if the concept of spring football was ever going to be profitable. Nearly all clubs had lost money in 1983, with Denver the lone exception, and many were hemorrhaging money in 1984, after participating in a feeding frenzy of college All-Americans and NFL players in an attempt to boost recognition and keep up with the high spending members of the league. Donald Trump, who had purchased the New Jersey Generals from William Duncan (an Oklahoma oil man with no ties to the area), had come in with a lot of flash, and was certainly helping the league get more media play, but he felt that the spring schedule was a loser, and he was not alone.
Several other owners, particularly those in some non-NFL cities, agreed that the best option might be to move to the Fall in either 1985 or 1986. They would pair their move with a suit against the NFL for its monopoly on television rights, a monopoly which had made early negotiations to expand spring coverage difficult with all but the original networks ABC and ESPN. The plan, based on letters sent between the fall-leaning owners, was to push the NFL legally, push them on player acquisition, and force a merger, a move that was aimed at primarily helping out the owners in the initial group, largely non-NFL cities plus the NY market of the Generals.
Opposing this viewpoint was John Bassett, and a significant group of USFL owners in NFL markets. Teams in places like Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Chicago, Michigan, and Houston did not feel that their franchises could legitimately compete with the NFL in the Fall, and that moving to the fall would require them to either relocate or fold. Some, like Philadelphia’s Miles Tanenbaum, were already looking for alternatives if the vote did not go their way. It was rumored that Tanenbaum had already scouted Baltimore as a possible relocation site if a move to fall was approved. Others, like Michigan’s Abe Taubman, was in discussion with other owners to potentially merge his Panthers, who would win the 1984 title, with another franchise if the fall move was made.
Studies were conducted, numbers crunched, estimates projected, and leverage assessed. In a fateful league meeting between the 1984 and 1985 seasons the decision would be made. On the one side was Trump and his small band of fall-leaning owners, and on the other was Bassett and his group of spring devotees. While most of the proceedings were conducted in private, what is known is that it got quite heated within the owner meetings, at one point Bassett calling out Trump as a wannabe NFL owner that the NFL would never accept, and Trump replying that Bassett and his spring football group were small potatoes who could not see the big picture.
The decision that came out of that vote was split. The league would remain in the spring, but the lawsuit would be filed, claiming damages to the USFL due to the NFL’s monopoly over both stadia and television rights for fall football, rights that impacted the league even in the spring. Bassett, and the studies he and others had presented, made the case that the spring was the best option to maintain a league, and that a move to fall would have only a slim chance of forcing a merger, and then only for perhaps 4 of the league’s then 16 franchises. It was likely that the realization that only a few markets would benefit, and only a few owners offered the chance to join the NFL club, that likely swayed the final vote.
Donald Trump would sell off the Generals and leave the league within 18 months. The league would win its court case and be awarded a major settlement which came in at just under $400 million (including court and legal fees), and the USFL would, within 2 more years start to see greater corporate and television funds to support its growing footprint. The 15 owners who remained would either sell off their franchises for considerable profit over the years, or remain today as major players in each city’s sports marketplace. The league would move from a sideshow or curiosity into a second major league, now with the financial wherewithal to go head to head with any league in the country. But it all could have been different. We could have seen the end of spring football almost as soon as it began. Maybe a few USFL franchises would now be in the NFL, or maybe the entire endeavor would have failed. We will never know, but what we do know is that in that meeting room in New York City, the future of the USFL was cast. And the league we have today is the result of that decision, perhaps more than any other single decision since the league was first created.
Luther Bradley: “A pinball in motion”
Why, you might ask, would we decide to dedicate a retrospective to safety Luther Bradley? He played only 3 seasons in the USFL (1983-1985), had only 5 career interceptions, and 195 total tackles, and did not win a title. So, why Bradley?
The answer is that Bradley’s experience is very much what the USFL was like in the early years. He saw the league as a second chance, an opportunity to keep playing the game that he had played since his youth. Bradley was a consensus All-American with Notre Dame in 1977, and was drafted in the first round by the Detroit Lions. He would play four seasons in Detroit, starting all 16 games his first two years before injury shortened his 1980 season. By 1981 he was on the bench, and by 1982 he had been cut. From All-American to selling insurance in only 4 years. When the USFL came around in 1983, Bradley would have a second chance, and even better, he would get to play for George Allen and the Chicago Blitz.
Bradley became one of several NFL vets to join the Blitz that season as Allen assembled a team heavy on veterans, something of a trademark of his. The Blitz were an early favorite to win it all, but struggled through the season, ending with a 5-11 mark, but Bradley started all 16 games and played well. He was looking forward to a second season in Chicago when he fell prey to one of the weirdest moments in USFL history.
Citing an interest in owning the franchise closer to his Phoenix home, owner Ted Dietrich made a deal with Wranglers’ owner Jim Joseph to buy the Wranglers. The Blitz were sold off, and Dietrich was the new owner of the Wranglers, but in the deal, the entire roster of the Blitz, with just a few exceptions, were “traded” for nearly the entire Wranglers’ roster. Bradley and the Blitz would all have to relocate to the desert and suit up for a new team. In his own words, moving to the USFL made Bradley feel like “a pinball in motion”, never knowing what would happen next, where you would be or where you were heading.
Bradley played the next two seasons in Arizona, but between the roster swap and the constant rumors tha the league was either about to fold or about to switch to the fall, skipping the 2006 spring season and delaying the season until August, it was a time of great uncertainty. Bradley would feel that pinball feeling once again. Despite starting every game in his 3-year USFL career, Bradley again would be looking for a new home in 2006. His contract with the Blitz/Wranglers had expired, and he began negotiations with Arizona for a new deal. The problem was that Bradley was asking for significantly more than his original contract, but the USFL at the time had a very limited salary cap, with only 3 players per team allowed to sign larger deals without counting against the cap. Bradley and his agent pushed to be one of the three, but the Wranglers had no intention of having a safety occupy one of those spots.
A deal was never reached with Arizona. Bradley became a free agent as of the end of the 2005 season. He would eventually sign with the Philadelphia Eagles, but was limited by an agreement between the two leagues to waiting for the Fall 2006 season instead of the Fall 2005 season to suit up. In the interim, Bradley would lose focus, lose faith, and gain about 25 pounds. When he arrived in Eagles’ camp, he was not ready for the rigors of NFL camp and was cut before ever playing a game in Philadelphia. And that was Luther Bradley’s last football action.
Bradley’s story is not one of inspiration, but it is one typical of so many early USFL players, given a chance by the new league, always uncertain of what was next, hoping to continue the ride as long as possible, and always looking over their shoulders. For many the path went far smoother, for others significantly rougher, but, just like the league in its early years, it was always a roller coaster, or like being a pinball in motion.
Our schedule for Week 4 includes some really intriguing inter-divisional matchups, including a clash between 0-3 teams that cannot afford a 4th loss, and a 3-0 Boston club heads out to one of the West’s most difficult road sites. Add in a few tight divisional games and this week has a lot to offer. Here is the full lineup of games (National broadcasts in bold).
FRI @ 8pm Arizona (1-2) @ Seattle (3-0) NBC
SAT @ 12pm Orlando (0-3) @ Philadelphia (2-1) ABC
SAT @ 12pm Atlanta (1-2) @ Tampa Bay (1-2) FOX
SAT @ 4pm Ohio (2-1) @ St Louis (1-2) FOX
SAT @ 4pm Texas (1-2) @ Las Vegas (2-1) ABC
SAT @ 8pm Boston (3-0) @ Denver (2-1) ESPN
SUN @ 12pm Washington (1-2) @ Baltimore (2-1) ABC
SUN @ 12pm Nashville (2-1) @ Birmingham (2-1) FOX
SUN @ 12pm Memphis (2-1) @ Jacksonville (3-0) FOX
SUN @ 4pm Pittsburgh (1-2) @ Chicago (1-2) FOX
SUN @ 4pm Michigan (2-1) @ Oakland (1-2) ABC
SUN @ 8pm New Jersey (0-3) @ New Orleans (0-3) ESPN
We suspect that when the league set up this broadcast schedule they could not have imagined it would be a battle of 0-3 clubs on their Sunday night broadcast. They saw the league champions headed to New Orleans and the return of the Breakers to the Crescent City, but here we are, with two winless teams desperate for a W on Sunday night.