Week 13 Recap: Machine Gun Kelly!

SCORES

BIR 13 BLT 20 Spencer’s 109 yard day powers Baltimore to the home win.

MEM 9 NJ 30 Walker busts loose for 143 yards on the ground for the Generals.

JAX 24 PHI 18 Williams leads Bulls to big road win in Philadelphia.

ARZ 21 NOR 36 Breakers solidify playoff shot with 15 point win over Wranglers.

DEN 16 PIT 19 Gold caught napping by opportunistic Maulers.

LA 16 MGN 26 LA offense cannot keep pace against undefeated Panthers.

HOU 41 OAK 18 Jim Kelly has career day as Gamblers upset Invaders.

GAME OF THE WEEK

Tampa Bay Bandits 21 Washington Federals 24

In a game that the Bandits dominated at the half, 21-10, Federals demonstrate their moxie by dominating the second half to pull of the upset. In a see-saw game, Washington started the game well but had a rough 2nd quarter before putting the pressure on Tampa in the second half. The Federals had a solid opening drive, ending in a Nick Mike-Myer field goal, but Tampa came right back and finished the 2nd quarter with a Reaves to Collinsworth score to flip the score and take the lead 7-3. Washington opened the 2nd quarter with a scoring drive that ended when FB Barry Word plunged in from a yard out. The rest of the quarter would belong to Tampa as Reaves found Collinsworth again to go up 14-10, and then, just before the half, added another scoring toss to TE Mike Tice to build up the 11-point lead. The faithful at RFK had seen this script before.

But the Federals came out to start the second half resolved to fight through. The combo of Charles Haley and Dexter Manley pressured John Reaves and forced an uncharacteristic interception right into the hands of 2nd year CB Lester Lyles. Collier and the offense capitalized as the QB found Webster Slaughter for a score to pull within 21-17. The defense would again come up big in the 4th quarter as LB Bradley Swearingen blindsided Reaves with a blitz, causing the ball to pop out, recovered by Swearingen at midfield. With 3:44 to go, Collier had a chance for a game winning drive and the Federals fans came alive. Collier moved the ball down to the 21 on a pair of Craig James runs, a swing pass to Word, and a scramble for 7 yards. On 2nd and 10 from the 21, wideout Webster Slaughter found a hole in the zone and Collier found him before the safety could come over in support. Washington took the lead back at 24-21, a lead they would hold for the remaining 1:44 to win the game. The win ,coupled with Philly’s loss to Jacksonville, suddenly put Washington right back in the thick of the hunt for the final wildcard spot in the East. The loss knocked Tampa Bay out of a tie for first in the Southern Division as the Bandits now find themselves a game behind Jacksonville.

PERFORMANCE OF THE WEEK

No one has doubted the talent or the toughness of Houston QB Jim Kelly in his 3 years in the league. He has taken more hits than any other quarterback, and while his team has not won a lot of games, he has clearly been the most talented player on the team. This week, against Oakland, the rest of the team stepped up and gave Kelly the type of game fans had been waiting for. Kelly threw for 394 yards against the Oakland defense, and added 5 scoring tosses to help Houston blow out the Invaders, 41-18. Kelly found 4 different receivers for scores: Gerald McNeil, Todd Fowler, Ricky Sanders and Clarence Verdin. Some kudos must go to the oft-criticized Houston line, which did not give up a sack for the first time in over 2 years. More kudos to Kelly and the coaching staff for implementing a quick call, limited huddle offense. The quicker pace, and greater autonomy for Kelly to call plays resulted in a tired Oakland defense, a confident Kelly, and a scoring barrage from a team that has had issues all year with underperformance. If Kelly can convince Coach Pardee to retain the quick-pace offense, the Gamblers may have found a formula to keep Kelly upright and allow his talents to shine.

PLAYOFF PICTURE

Here is where we stand with 4 weeks left in the season. Baltimore has clinched the Atlantic title, but still must worry about Jacksonville (2 games behind) catching them for the #1 seed. Out West, Michigan has no such concerns as they have clinched both their division and the top seed. Their mission now is to try to do something not seen since the 1972 NFL Dolphins, go undefeated. They play the Blitz this week in the toughest game on their schedule. A win now may propel them to history. In the South, Jacksonville takes a 1 game lead over Tampa Bay, meaning that the title is theirs to grab. They face the Bandits Week 16 in what may be a winner-take-all matchup. In the Pacific, Denver still maintains a 2 game lead, thanks to losses by both Oakland and LA. Those losses also mean that New Orleans has a game up on both Pacific teams for the first Wild Card spot and the easier matchup against a likely Denver Gold squad. Back East, Tampa trails the Bulls but has a 2-game lead on 3 Atlantic Division teams for a Wild Card. The three Atlantic Teams, Philly, New Jersey, and Washington are all essentially fighting for the 4th and final spot in the conference. Washington is at a distinct disadvantage due to an 0-4 division record, while the Generals and Stars sit at 2-2.

INJURIES

Good news for Arizona, stuck in a 6 game losing streak, as QB Rick Neuheisel has come off the injury list and is expected to start. Backup Robbie Bosco looked good but was unable to get the Wranglers into the win column in his 3 starts. On the down side, Baltimore will be without DE Rulon Jones for the rest of the season as he tore his ACL and will undergo surgery. This will make it easier for teams to double team league sack leader Junior Ah You. New Orleans QB Tony Eason had to leave last week’s game against the Wranglers with a concussion, but is expected to be back this week after a very solid performance by backup Matt Robinson.

LOOKING AHEAD

All eyes will be on the Baltimore-Michigan showdown as many expect the Blitz to be the only potential obstacle on Michigan’s road to an undefeated season. The USFL schedule-makers were shrewd to make this the Saturday Night game, typically the highest rated each week. In other games of interest, Philly has a tough matchup at New Orleans, Tampa Bay must face both the altitude and the Gold defense out in Denver, Jacksonville will head out to Arizona, and Washington is in Pittsburgh.