A good week if you believe the USFL has an East Coast bias. Denver defeats Washington in overtime and the Texas Outlaws knock off the Stars at the Alamodome to highlight a week with some intense inter-divisional and inter-conference games. In other action Atlanta, Nashville, and Chicago and Pittsburgh all got big wins as they hope to keep their playoff position or move into a possible division title run. It was a good week of games and, fortunately, no more QBs went down as teams try to prepare for a mad dash to Week 16 and the playoff field.
WASHINGTON FEDERALS 17 DENVER GOLD 23 OVERTIME
One of the better inter-conference games this year saw Washington fight their way back into a game that seemed beyond their reach, but all for naught as the Gold put together an overtime drive to secure the win. It was a game that saw both defenses make big plays and both offenses find new weapons to use in response. Peerless Price returned from injury and had a good game with 6 receptions for 106 yards, we saw David Garrard scramble for 31 yards and both Rod Smart for Washington and Maurice Hicks for Denver made the most of their opportunities.
We are saying it is a game defined by the defenses and by offenses having to find alternatives with their big weapons under check, but we should acknowledge that in the middle of this Matt Leinart had one of his best games of the year, throwing for 303 yards and completing 23 of 30 passes. Leinart’s performance truly came to the forefront in overtime after a conservative start to the game. After a scoreless first quarter that saw both teams trying to establish the run with minimal success, Denver finally caught a break when a failed 3rd and 3 run was offset by a roughing penalty, giving the Gold a key first down. They would score the game’s first points 4 plays later when Javon Ringer went off tackle from the 2 and plunged into the endzone.
That would be the only score of the first half, with Denver going into the break with a 7-0 lead as both defenses focused on removing the threat of the deep ball from each other’s offense. At the half, David Garrard was only 4 of 12 while Matt Leinart was 7 of 13, but neither could really string together enough plays to make their offenses a real threat. When the third quarter began it looked like much of the same. A good punt return of 25 yards helped Denver get into field goal range for Graham Gano, and they took a 10-0 lead on his kick. Washington would get their first points only 2 minutes later when Doug Pelfrey connected on a long kick, but this did not look like a game that would produce 21 points in the final period.
And yet, as the game wore on, both defenses began to tire, both offenses began to find alternatives, and both teams would battle for the full 15 minutes. Denver was the first to strike, scoring on a 1-yard plunge by Maurice Hicks to cap off a 71-yard drive that included 4 consecutive completions by Leinart. This gave Denver a 17-3 lead, which looked like a solid win for the Gold, but Washington was not quite ready to give up. They switched up their strategy and went with a no-huddle, quick to the line offense on their next drive. That drive produced their first TD of the game, a Rod Smart 9-yard run, and the Feds were now down only 7.
After a holding call forced Denver to go for a 3rd and 13, a quick punt meant Washington would get the ball back with plenty of time to tie the score. They continued to use the no-huddle, and it worked a second time, this time getting the ball from their own 17 to the Denver 10 in only 7 plays. From their David Garrard found Deion Branch on a fade route and the game was tied up with 3:07 left to play. Denver would get a shot to score before the end of regulation, but when a catch was overturned by instant replay, with Keary Colbert not getting both feet in bounds, the Denver drive stalled. Washington, backed up to their own 7 by the punt opted to plunge into the line twice and then take a knee to go to overtime.
The Federals got what they wanted and, after winning the coin toss, they took the ball to start the overtime period. The Feds worked their way to midfield, but the drive stalled on the Denver 46, too far for a kick, and with 4th and 4, too long to go for it, so the Feds punted. Denver took the touchback and started at the 25. What followed was one of Matt Leinart’s best drives as a pro. He completed 6 of 7 throws, mixed in with short runs by Ringer and Hicks. Ten plays, and 4:22 later the Gold were at the 10 yard line. On first and 10 (a first down was possible on the ½ yard line), Leinart looked to have thrown the winning touchdown to Peerless Price, but again replay undid the result, with Price shown to have bobbled the ball as he fell to the ground. Second and 10 and a draw with Ringer went nowhere, blown up by Federals safety Ed Reed, who crashed the line. Third and 10 and Leinart took the snap in the shotgun, looked to Price, was forced out of the pocket by Kiawanuka, but, as he rolled right, Colbert crossed the back of the endzone. Leinart looped a ball over the arms of Antonio Pierce and found Colbert for the score and the win.
Denver moves to 9-3, tied with Oakland at the top of the Western Conference standings. Washington would remain 2 games behind Philadelphia, thanks largely to an upset win by Texas over the Stars, but now had Baltimore tied with them and New Jersey only a game back.
BOSTON 12 NEW JERSEY 20
The Generals are very much in the hunt for a Wild Card after knocking off the Cannons in front of 52,000 at the Meadowlands. Sam Bradford tossed 2 touchdowns to TE Anthony Becht and the defense stood up, despite 100 yards from Rashard Mendenhall and another 105 from Chad Johnson. New Jersey was outgained by the Cannons, but not outscored as Boston kept settling for field goals.
TAMPA BAY 14 ATLANTA 30
A huge win for the Fire as they overtake Tampa Bay and create a 3-way tie atop the very intense SE Division. Kyle Orton went 23 of 31 and was not sacked once as the Fire picked off Rhett Bomar twice and limited Willis McGahee to 74 yards in the first Bandit game without Daunte Culpepper this year. It was 27-0 before Tampa Bay’s first score of the day as the Fire made a statement that they were, in fact, a legitimate playoff contender.
SEATTLE 17 NASHVILLE 31
The Knights snap a 4-game losing streak in impressive fashion as they throttle the Dragons in a classic St. George situation. Frank Gore rushed for 98 yards and a score, while Jay Culter cut down on the mistakes, throwing 2 touchdowns and no picks against the Seattle defense. The Nashville defense also reasserted itself, limiting Seattle to only 70 yards rushing on the day and only 1 of 9 third downs converted. Nashville is back at .500 and only 1 game behind the Breakers in the South.
ST. LOUIS 17 JACKSONVILLE 51
The Bulls have their biggest offensive explosion in nearly a decade as Josh McCown returns under center. Tim Tebow was hit hard after throwing a TD in the first quarter and had to be sidelined with concussion concerns. McCown came in and went 19 of 29 for 226 and a score, while C. J. Spiller rushed for 122 in a game that simply got away from St. Louis. The Skyhawk D, or what they call a D, allowed 420 yards of offense, and allowed Jacksonville to score on 8 different possessions (along with one defensive score).
LOS ANGELES 16 NEW ORLEANS 23
Some good home cookin’ in N’awlins, as the Breakers move to 7-5 with a solid win at the Dome. WR Santana Moss was open all day on his way to 131 yards on 9 receptions. Add in TDs from Michael Robinson and Early Doucet and the Breakers stay atop the South while LA is quickly fading into that space where fans start talking about draft position.
HOUSTON 28 ARIZONA 12
The Wranglers, at 5-6, were getting feisty, but Houston came in as the hottest team in the league and left feeling very much the same way. Matt Hasselbeck may have completed only 9 of 27 passes (a stunning 33%) but four of those tosses were TDs, and big ones at that, as Hasselbeck connected with Roy Williams for a 54-yard score, Mike Sims-Walker for a 76-yarder, and Ike Hilliard from 56 yards as Arizona simply allowed far too many big plays.
BALTIMORE 18 MEMPHIS 17
Mike McMahon struggled through 4 sacks and 2 picks, but did just enough to get Baltimore the win on the road in his first start for the Blitz. Down 17-5, McMahon led 3 late drives that produced 2 field goals and a TD toss to Harry Douglas to hallow the Blitz to edge the Showboats. Memphis had a shot at the end, but a Jeff Hall 49-yarder got caught in the wind at Liberty Bowl Stadium and veered off to the right as the whistle sounded.
PITTSBURGH 27 MICHIGAN 7
Sean Hill struggled again and Michigan just had no answers for the Mauler defense as Pittsburgh held on to a share of first in the Central with a convincing win. Cody Pickett threw for 2 scores, but it was the running of DeShaun Foster (29 carries for 127 yards) that helped the Maulers control the clock, the tempo, and the game. After the game, Michigan coach Dick LeBeau would not answer questions about Hill’s status and the possibility of us seeing recent trade acquisition TylerThigpen next week for the struggling Panthers.
OHIO 7 CHICAGO 18
Chicago got the better of their longstanding rival from the Buckeye State, thanks largely to a defense that allowed only 172 through the air and stuffed the Glory on three 4th down attempts. Not a great offensive game for the Machine, but Brady Quinn’s TD toss to Donald Driver, along with a safety and some Seder kicks, were all the home team needed to get this win.
PHILADELPHIA 10 TEXAS 16
The Outlaws were not getting any love from Vegas before this game, an 8-point dog at home to the Stars, but they earned a lot of respect with a gutsy win over the best team in the league. Texas held the Philadelphia offense to one Mike Nugent field goal. The only TD for the Stars was a tipped ball that turned into a pick six for Ryan Nece. Joe Flacco recovered and relied on T. J. Duckett. It was a day for the defense, as the Outlaws limited Slaton to 53 yards and kept Kurt Warner on the run. The win pushes Texas to 7-5 and very much in the hunt in the SW Division.
PORTLAND 39 LAS VEGAS 7
The Thunder continue to struggle without Marshawn Lynch, and it got even worse when Jake Plummer had to be pulled from the game. Tony Banks threw for only 48 yards in the game and Las Vegas finished the day with a paltry 134 total yards of offense. No such issues for the Stags, who got119 yards from the combo of Stewart and Perry, and another 266 with 2 TDs from QB A. J. Feeley.
BIRMINGHAM 19 OAKLAND 31
Oakland continues to impress with great complementary football as the defense limited Birmingham’s scoring chances, while Bob Volek and the offense found ways to get points on the scoreboard. Volek would finish the game with 281 yards and 3 touchdowns as Oakland retained the #1 seed in the West.
ORLANDO 23 CHARLOTTE 17 OVERTIME
The week’s final game was closer than many expected, with Charlotte putting up a good fight against the Renegades. Orlando needed two 4th quarter scores, TD tosses from Brees to Jenkins and McCaerins to send the game to overtime. In the extra period it was TE Derek Schouman who ended the game with a short TD catch as Brees finished with 3 TDs to offset his three earlier picks.
QB Situations Impacting Playoff Positioning
It is a cliché but one based on verifiable facts that team success in pro football begins with the quarterback. So it is no surprise that when teams lose their starting QB’s the depth of that vital position can determine whether they sink or swim. We have seen that dynamic play out with multiple teams this year. Oakland has been the exception in that they have managed to continue winning after losing Joey Harrington for the better part of the season. Harrington is due to return to practice this week, and could be on the field as soon as Week 14, but in his absence Bob Volek has done enough to keep the Invaders atop the Pacific Division and the race for the top seed in the West.
Volek’s numbers have not been elite, but they have done enough. He sports a 79.8 QB Rating, and has thrown 4 picks, but he has also thrown for 9 touchdowns and, with a lot of help from the Oakland run game and a pretty nasty Invader defense, he has helped Oakland retain their position in the Pacific. The same cannot be said for the rotation of QB’s in Michigan after Brian Griese went down. Admittedly, Griese was a bigger piece of Michigan’s success than Harrington for Oakland, but when the 2009 Offensive Player of the Year went down, attempts to fit backups Drew Stanton and Shaun Hill into the same offense have been, shall we say, underwhelming. Stanton had one game under center before a minor injury took him out of action. Hill came in, looked good in a win over Chicago, but has been unable to generate any offense in 4 games since, with Michigan scoring 9 points against Atlanta, 6 against Pittsburgh in Week 10 and then only 7 in the rematch this week. They did muster a win against Ohio in Week 11, but now there is talk that recently arrived trade acquisition Tyler Thigpen will get the start for a desperate Panther team n Week 13.
To a lesser degree we are seeing the same dynamic also play out in Baltimore and Tampa Bay, where recent injuries to Ben Roethlisberger and Daunte Culpepper throw attention on the backups for both clubs. Mike McMahon struggled this week but still helped Baltimore edge Memphis by one point. Tampa Bay went with Rhett Bomar, who had some outstanding fill-in work last year, but who was undone by the Atlanta defense this week. The playoff hopes of both the Blitz and the Bandits will likely ride on their ability to both support their backup QB’s and find alternatives to generate offense over the next few weeks. As with Michigan, all three clubs risk falling out of playoff contention if they cannot generate wins through defense, rushing attacks, and limited QB mistakes.
A Look Ahead: Teams With QB Concerns
As we enter the final month of the USFL season, and with a draft class that looks to be very deep at the QB position, it is natural to look across the league and wonder just who might be in the market for a QB. There are a few teams with elite players at the position who we can rule out, others who will test the market if a QB seems to fall to them, but who likely will not make huge efforts to land one, and then there are teams who are going to be battling it out with each other to try to secure their top pick for the position. With 5 or more top prospects, there are sure to be some trades and strategies to try to get in the perfect position to land the preferred option. So, who is in the market? Let’s quickly remove those who we don’t expect to be in this fight, then look at the cluster of desperate teams before highlighting a few darkhorse candidates.
NOT LOOKING: I think it is safe to say that the following teams are feeling pretty good about their QB position, or are settled for the time being. That group certainly includes Philadelphia (Warner), Baltimore (Roethlisberger), New Jersey (Bradford), Tampa Bay (Culpepper), Orlando (Brees), Atlanta (Orton), Jacksonville (Tebow), New Orleans (Manning), Chicago (Quinn), Michigan (Griese), Denver (Leinart), Houston (Hasselbeck),Texas (Flacco), Oakland (Harrington), and Seattle (Leftwich). That is 15 of 28 clubs, meaning that there are 13 teams that could be eyeing a change for 2011.
KNOWN NEEDS: Some clubs are just obviously not happy with where they are and are certain to be hunting for a better option this offseason. Will they go to the draft or try to make a deal with a veteran either in free agency or via trade? That is the question each will have to answer over the next few months. Among the sure-fire QB searchers we find:
Birmingham: Kyle Boller is not the answer. He is a solid player, and could be a very good backup, but he has shown in 2 years that he cannot put a team on his shoulders.
Ohio: The retirement of Kerry Collins left a huge hole in the Ohio roster, and they cannot continue to try to cover it with band-aids like Chris Redman or Dereck Anderson. Fans are demanding that the Glory go big or go home.
Charlotte: The Monarchs have given NFL castoff Chris Weinke 3 years to prove himself, and he has proven that the Monarchs need to look elsewhere. While thedefense has been solid in Charlotte, Weinke has just not produced on offense.
Washington: David Garrard has done much better than most expected and has Washington in a playoff hunt at 7-5, but he is clearly a transitional figure and if the Feds can get a hot rookie prospect, they would be wise to try to do so and get that transition moving.
Boston: There was hope that McPherson would be a smooth transition from Drew Bledsoe. He played so well in 2008, but this year is showing that as a full-time starter he is not the worst QB in the league, but he is also not a gamebreaker. Boston is very likely going to go for a young stud at the position and use McPherson as a stopgap until that rookie is ready to take the wheel.
Memphis: We like Jake Delhomme as a guy and as a professional, but he is not the answer. He had some good years in Jacksonville, and he has moments from time to time, but the Showboats should be looking for someone who can do more and help them regain a bit of the swagger they had during the short Favre tenure, or even the longer Heath Shuler years.
ON THE FENCE: So, six teams who absolutely should be prioritizing the QB position, but that leaves 7 more who could, and perhaps should, throw some attention at the position. This is where it gets really interesting, because there are not 13 quality QB’s sitting around for the taking, so if any of these 7 clubs decide that QB is a priority, they will need to fight off some of the 6 above to try to land one.
Los Angeles: Mark Sanchez is not getting it done for the Express. Despite some good moments, and despite having two of the best receivers in the league, LA is just not putting up points. Will Coach Williams give Sanchez another year, or will the Express jump into the fray, perhaps even trading Sanchez to a QB-needy team to get in position for a new option?
Portland: Another team with a serviceable QB, but not one who we believe can take the club to the next level. A. J. Feeley was a great option for an expansion club trying to piece together a roster from unprotected players, but after 3 years, the Stags should look to upgrade if they want to be contenders in the Pacific.
Las Vegas: Here we see an issue of timing. Jake Plummer has not been the man the Thunder thought they were getting, but he is certainly good enough if the rest of the team can support him. But, there is no telling when Plummer will start to feel the full effect of all those years of scrambling and taking hits. The Thunder would be wise to consider signing an heir to the position if they can.
Arizona: David Carr has actually had a pretty good sophomore campaign after coming over from the NFL. He is currently 7th in the league with 2,611 yards and 4th in scoring with 20 TD passes. So, is Arizona content to let Carr continue to grow with the club, or are they in a hunt. We honestly don’t know. Because, for us, his 2010 campaign should have put Arizona in the “not looking” category, but we hear a lot of talk out of Phoenix that QB is still a priority for the club.
St. Louis: Another team that likely should focus on a different position. Josh Freeman has played well enough to win games, and the Skyhawk offense has not been the big issue this year. Defense is the real culprit for another losing season, so why are they here? Well, Freeman was Doug Williams’s guy, and Doug is now in LA, so could the Skyhawks look to deal the QB, maybe even to the Express, to get into the rookie QB hunt? They have Blaine Gabbert at Mizzou who would be a huge draw in St. Louis.
Pittsburgh: How can a team that is tied for 1st in the Central have a QB issue? Well, to listen to fans, Cody Pickett is the reason they are not all alone at the top of the division. We don’t buy into that. Sure, Pickett is not Kerry Collins, but he is not a scrub either. They picked Pat White last year, and have yet to give him a start, so we honestly think the talk of a QB for this club does not make a lot of sense.
Nashville: How long will the Knights wait for Cutler to turn potential into production? The Knights are a competitive team, but they are just not getting what they need out of Cutler. In our book, this is a team who could truly benefit from trading their starter to a QB desperate team and trying something new. If the Knights don’t rebound and work their way into a playoff spot, that could well be a path that they take.
So, the question really becomes, which teams are willing to deal for a Mark Sanchez, Jay Cutler, or Josh Freeman, and which are going to go all in on the potential for a rookie talent like Jake Locker, Blaine Gabbert, or Christian Ponder?
No teams locked in yet, but two are now locked out as 2-10 records end any hope for the Birmingham Stallions and Ohio Glory. For Birmingham this is not unfamiliar territory, as they have made the playoffs only once since 1999, and will have their 3rd consecutive 10+ loss season. But for Ohio, this is very much a new feeling. Ohio has been in the postseason 8 of the past 10 years, including the league’s only undefeated season in 2002 and the only championship repeat in 2003. But that must feel like eons ago as the post-Collins period has not started well for the Glory. QB has been an issue all year and there is no doubt that the Glory will be major players in the offseason, with a draft class that could have as many as 6 quarterbacks go in the first round.
On the flip side, some clubs are setting themselves up nicely. Houston has now won 6 in a row and is only 1 game behind Denver. Chicago’s 4-game win streak has them atop the Central on a tiebreaker over Pittsburgh. And the Texas Outlaws have won 2 straight to turn a 5-5 record to a viable playoff position at 7-5. They are not there yet, as they currently sit outside due to tiebreakers, but if they keep winning, they could be the 3rd SW Division club out of 6 playoff spots in the West.
In the East, there is a real cluster at 7-5, with 6 clubs vying for 5 spots, including 2 division titles. Only Philadelphia, at 9-3, has risen above it, and with Nashville and New Jersey at 6-6, we are talking about 8 teams all battling for 5 potential spots after the Stars.
Will this start to sort out in Week 13, or will we head into the final 2-3 weeks with a lot of questions? Honestly, the way we have seen teams rise and fall this year, I would not be surprised if we went into Week 16 with 6 or more of the 12 playoff spots still very much up in the air.
Week 12 brought about a bit of a respite from the constant announcements of IR placements and season-ending injuries. Not to say that there were no injuries, but compared with recent weeks, it is a bit lighter. We did see Texas shutter guard Jorge Diaz’s season after a torn quad, and several other teams reevaluted injured players and put them on IR simply as a statement that they did not want to rush them back for what could be a meaningless Week 15 or 16 game. Arizona did this with corner Dueane Starks. Portland did the same with corner Marquand Manuel, and Charlotte with guard Stephen Peterman.
Of players newly injured, the most noteworthy from Week 12 were Stars’ tackle Jaimie Morris (knee), New Jersey SS Bob Sanders (shoulder), Chicago guard Paul McQuistan, and St. Louis guard Matt Lehr. Orlando will be without TE Ben Watson for the next 2 weeks, and Birmingham may have to go back to Kyle Boller after Anthony Wright developed turf toe in his first game back as a starter.
Expected back in action this week we have Ryan Fitzpatrick, who returns as the backup to Sam Bradford; Tampa Bay LB Kevin Mitchell, Texas LB Chad Greenway, Orlando DT Kenny Smith, Baltimore SS Adam Archuleta, Denver WR Peerless Price, and Jacksonville LB Lavar Arrington.
Birmingham Quickly Removes Doubt of Stability with Stadium Deal
We mentioned the Stallions last week as a team that could be a potential target for Dallas investors, although a tricky one with their partial community ownership. Well, breathe easy Stallion fans. Your club may not be making waves on the field, but their efforts behind the scenes have paid off. The club, in partnership with UAB, have reached an agreement for a private/public investment in a new stadium just off the campus of the university on the city’s Southeast side. The new stadium will be funded 40% by the Stallions, and 30% each by the university (State of Alabama) and the city/county. Bids will go out soon for architects, but it does appear that the Stallions and UAB have settled on a design that will have just over 40,000 seats on the main level with another 20,000 seats in an upper deck which can be separated by security during lower attendance UAB games but open for Stallion games. The timing for construction and the grand opening will depend very much on the architect and engineering firm timetables, but the hope is that the stadium would be available by 2014 at the latest. So, for those who were afraid that Birmingham would be very much a target for relocation and sale, that is now a much less likely scenario, removing at least one club from danger.
Is Expansion Really on the Table Once Again?
It seems hard to believe, just two years after the latest additions to the USFL (Portland and Charlotte) that the league would consider expansion, but with the formation of Destination Dallas raising the question, and with other cities ranging from Miami to Minneapolis, Kansas City to San Diego, all interested in turning their 8-game per year stadia into 16-game per year venues, there is certainly external pressure to once again build up the league. But does it make sense to do so?
Thre questions will really impact the league, and its owners, on this matter: finances, talent distribution, and logistics. The financial element is pretty obvious. More teams means the shared revenue has to be divided even further, but there is more revenue to be distributed, particularly if new markets bring the potential for renegotiation of television rights. Adding major markets like Dallas, Miami, or the upper Midwest with Minnesota, could be an attractive prospect, and as long as the new owners have strong financials themselves, something Mark Cuban’s participation in Destination Dallas all but guarantees for that city’s investment group, well, with deep pockets comes a sense of security for the league about new franchises that may struggle at first.
Talent is the second area, and that is where there will certainly be concern. All you have to do is look at the issues around QB play this year, where even the top-rated QB in the league has a QB rating barely over 100. Compare that to earlier periods when the league had 20 or24 teams and there has been a clear decline in QB play. Some point to improvement and rule changes that help the defenses, but most would simply argue that the current presence of 60 top flight pro football teams (32 in the NFL, 28 in the USFL) simply spreads the talent too thin. Adding two more teams means that talent gets reshuffled again. Add to this the concern about the 2006 and 2008 expansion clubs and issues of competitiveness, and you can see why a quick expansion turnaround might be a serious concern. St. Louis is struggling to be competitive, and while both Atlanta and Portland have had early success, leading to playoff appearances, they have not been able to sustain that success year to year. There is certainly a sentiment among many owners that to add more expansion at this time would be disastrous for clubs that are struggling to build rosters at the current 28-team format.
Finally, there is logistics. And this last item, perhaps the least convincing of the three, leans more towards the argument for expansion. Having 28 team, just like the two years of 26 teams, means that there are simply uneven division alignments, with some divisions sitting at 4 teams, while others have 5 teams. Moving to a 30-team format would return the balance that we saw when the 24-team USFL had six divisions of 4 teams each. We would have 6 divisions of 5 teams, allowing for a balance of divisional games across all 30 clubs. You would essentially have 8 divisional games and 8 extradivisional games, which could be divided in any way the league wanted between conference play and interconference play. It is just an easier schedule to build, and would create greater equity among all 30 clubs. Is that a reason to expand? Yes, but when compared to the financial concerns and the talent distribution concerns, it feels like a very minor one. The more important concern may simply be the risk that declining expansion in the short run, could lead to team sales and relocations, in other words, chaos and tough decisions for owners who would possibly face legal action if they tried to deny sales. Basically a potential legal and public image disaster.
Week 13, and in a league with 26 teams still alive for the playoffs, almost every game could have major playoff implications. The Weekend kicks off with a Cascade Clash that could essentially be the end of one club’s playoff hopes. The loser of this game between Seattle and Portland is almost certainly out, and even a Seattle win may not be enough to keep the Dragons in the chase. On Saturday we have some good battles, including the Bandits heading to slumping Nashville and hoping to stay atop the SE Division. New Orleans wants to retain their hold on the South, but to do that they will need to head north and knock off the Cannons in Boston. Washington and Texas clash in a battle of 7-5 teams hoping to make a late run, and Chicago is in Denver in what could be a Conference Title Game preview.
On Sunday, we kick off early with Orlando facing Atlanta in a battle of 7-5 clubs. Only the winner can retain a share of first place, and could be the sole leader in the SE Division if Tampa Bay loses in Nashville. Then at 4pm we have Baltimore headed out to Arizona, where the Wranglers are still very much interested in a playoff spot. Las Vegas, wounded and up against the wall without Marshawn Lynch, have a tough road game as they head to Houston to take on the Gamblers. The weekend concludes with a plucky New Jersey Generals squad taking on the 9-3 Stars in one of the league’s most storied rivalry games.
FRIDAY @ 8pm ET SEATTLE (4-8) @ PORTLAND (5-7) NBC
SATURDAY @ 12pm ET TAMPA BAY (7-5) @ NASHVILLE (6-6) ABC
SATURDAY @ 12pm ET CHARLOTTE (4-8) @ JACKSONVILLE (5-7) ABC
SATURDAY @ 12pm ET NEW ORLEANS (7-5) @ BOSTON (5-7) FOX
SATURDAY @ 4pm ET CHICAGO (8-4) @ DENVER (9-3) ABC
SATURDAY @ 4pm ET WASHINGTON (7-5) @ TEXAS (7-5) FOX
SATURDAY @ 8pm ET PITTSBURGH (8-4) @ OHIO (2-10) ESPN
SUNDAY @ 12pm ET OAKLAND (9-3) @ MEMPHIS (4-8) ABC
SUNDAY @ 12pm ET MICHIGAN (7-5) @ ST. LOUIS (3-9) FOX
SUNDAY @ 12pm ET ORLANDO (7-5) @ ATLANTA (7-5) FOX
SUNDAY @ 4pm ET BIRMINGHAM (2-10) @ LOS ANGELES (3-9) ABC
SUNDAY @ 4pm ET BALTIMORE (7-5) @ ARIZONA (5-7) ABC
SUNDAY @ 4pm ET LAS VEGAS (7-5) @ HOUSTON (8-4) FOX
SUNDAY @ 8pm ET PHILADELPHIA (9-3) @ NEW JERSEY (6-6) ESPN & EFN