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Playoff Picture: Philadelphia, Denver, Seattle, St. Louis, and New Orleans have clinched playoff spots. Portland, Atlanta, Pittsburgh, New Jersey, Houston, Texas, Oakland, and Birmingham have been eliminated from contention.

Playoff Picture: Denver and Seattle have clinched playoff spots. Portland, Atlanta, Pittsburgh, Houston, and New Jersey are eliminated from playoff contention.

So, what did week 12 bring us? Well, Philadelphia again asserted their claim on the Atlantic by knocking off Washington as Coach Hackett opted not to play Kordell Stewart after all. Baltimore got back in the mix by upending Ohio. Memphis stumbled as Birmingham pulled themselves away from the pit of playoff elimination with a home win, Jacksonville broke their 3-game losing streak with a statement win against the Bandits, and Orlando took care of business, shutting down and shutting out the Fire in Atlanta. In the Western Conference we saw Chicago return to .500 and playoff relevance with a win in Houston. St. Louis needed 19 points in the final quarter to edge past a game Texas Outlaw Squad, and New Orleans was snakebit at home, falling to a feisty Michigan Panther squad. Finally, in the Pacific, Denver used home field advantage and a stifling defense to shut down the Wranglers, Oakland upset the Express and put a huge crimp in their playoff plans, and the Portland Thunder, well, yes, lost again, this time in Seattle as the Dragons clinched a playoff spot with a win. Let’s run through it all, starting with our game of the week, a surprising uprising in Oakland. As surprising as the sudden rise of the LA Express was last season, their decline this year has been equally perplexing. The loss this week to Oakland drops them to 5-7 and very likely out of any playoff contention, though mathematically they are still in the mix. The explosive offense and solid, aggressive defense that had propelled them to a division title in 1999 have simply not been as effective or as consistent this year. This week’s game against arch rival Oakland proved that. The Express converted only 2 of 11 third down opportunities against a defense that has been unable to get off the field all season, while the LA defense allowed Oakland to convert 8 of 17 similar chances, a stat that led to a lopsided time of possession advantage for the Invaders. The Express held the lead at three different times in this game yet could not keep Oakland off the board and needed a last minute Doug Brien field goal to send the game to overtime, but that was not enough. They got 166 combined rushing yards and 2 TDs from Antowain Smith and Michael Pittman, but that too was not enough. A big part of the problem was lack of consistency from last year’s Rookie of the Year, QB Cade McNown, who completed 11 of 19 passes, but missed on too many key downs. When your leading receiver for the game has only 3 receptions for 59 yards, you are going to have trouble winning. It also does not help when the opposing QB, in this case Ryan Leaf, completes 20 of 36 and throws 3 scoring passes. Leaf found Ed McCaffrey twice for scores, Marty Booker once, and also completed 6 throws for 108 yards to rookie Plaxico Burress. But it was not an all-out aerial assault for the Invaders, they too found success on the ground, with Troy Davis and Siran Stacy combining for 33 carreis and 134 yards. It also helped that the defense found its way through, around, and over the LA offensive line, to the tune of 6 sacks of McNown. Pressure definitely made it a long day for the former UCLA signal caller, but so did unforced errors. Eight penalties did not help the Express cause. And so, with the loss, the Express find themselves in 8th position after 12 weeks, a game behind the battle of Michigan, Chicago, and Arizona for the final Wild Card spot. And for their part, Oakland, after a horrendous 1-6 start, have won 3 of their last 5, including high scoring wins over Baltimore and Michigan, and a solid performance this week vs. LA. At 4-8 we don’t see the Invaders making a late playoff run, but it is good to see that the team is beginning to improve under Coach Capers, on both sides of the ball. ARZ 13 DEN 26 Arizona’s up and down season again finds them at .500, though a loss at Denver is hardly unexpected. The Gold have been one of the most consistent clubs all season. Rashaan Salaam’s 97 yards rushing helped overcome a rough day for Mark Brunell (2 picks and only 185 yards passing), while the defense tormented Jake Plummer all game (4 sacks, 3 picks). Craig Whelihan was also forced into action in the final period when Plummer went out of the game after failing to opt for a slide at the end of a run and taking a big hit from Marvcus Patton. With the win, Denver’s 10th, they lock up a playoff berth. POR 16 SEA 27 Seattle too punched their ticket to the postseason with a home victory. It will be the Dragons’ first franchise trip to the playoffs and they are still knotted up with Denver in the battle for the Pacific title. Timm Rosenbach saw his first action for Portland as Rick Mirer had to leave the game early. He would only complete 8 of 15 throws as Portland tried to grind the game out on the ground. Gio Carmazzi would throw for 3 scores and complete 24 of 31 as he makes his claim to be the starter even after Brian Griese is able to return from injury. That decision will have to come soon as Griese is getting close to clearing the medical requirements for a return. MGN 31 NOR 28 A huge win for the Panthers as they get back to .500 and knock off the division leading Breakers in New Orleans. Chris Canty’s pick six of Breaker backup Bobby Hoying was the key play that gave the Panthers a 31-13 lead early in the 4th. New Orleans battled back, but it was too little too late as the Panthers took advantage of Ricky Williams’s absence and focused on shutting down Hoying to earn a much-needed divisional win. CHI 13 HOU 3 Chicago also returned to .500 and the Wild Card chase with a divisional win, this time against the offensively challenged Houston Gamblers. Both teams struggled to score, but Chicago also slowed down the game by relying heavily on their 2-back offense. Ricky Watters got stronger as the game progressed, turning 50 yards at the half into 134 by the game’s conclusion. He also scored the only 2 touchdowns of the game as Chicago did not allow Houston any room to breathe. STL 24 TEX 21 The Knights also got an important win, moving within 1 game of New Orleans thanks to a comeback from a 21-5 deficit in the final period. St. Louis got TDs from Kez McCorvey and Reggie Kelley in the final period, converted two 2-point conversions, and got the winning kick from Ryan Longwell with 23 seconds to play to upend the feisty Texas Outlaws and move to 8-4 on the year. Last year St. Louis overcame the Outlaws to claim the division title on the season’s final week. This year it looks like they are going to try the same with New Orleans. OHI 14 BAL 24 A big win for the Blitz, a tough loss for the Glory as Balitmore gets the only points of the 4th quarter to pull past the Glory on a hot, humid day in Baltimore. Ron Dayne had one of his best games of the year, rushing for 110 and 2 scores as he wore down the Glory defense. Add in 227 yards passing from Jeff Garcia and a defense that sacked Kerry Collins 6 times and you have a Blitz victory at home. WSH 21 PHI 30 Philadelphia took over the driver’s seat in the race for the Atlantic Division title with a huge win over Washington at Veterans Stadium. Despite getting only 33 yards rushing from Stephen Davis, Philadelphia fond ways to score on the Feds, thanks in large part to 330 yards and 4 TD passes from veteran QB Bobby Hebert. Scott Zolak struggled against the Philadelphia zone defense in what should be his last start before Kordell Stewart returns, and Washington now finds themselves tied for second with arch rival Baltimore. NJ 26 PIT 24 In the battle of disappointing squads this year, New Jersey eked out a win against the Maulers, a win that most likely delayed the firing of Coach Marty Schottenheimer by another week. Rumors of Marty’s departure even before the season concluded have been running rampant in local media, and even this win may not keep away the wolves at the door for long. MEM 24 BIR 28 The Stallions continue to fight in what seemed a lost season, this time dealing a major blow to the Showboats’ division title hopes. Brett Favre connected with Lawrence Dawsey for 2 scores and Marcus Robinson for the decisive third score, the only TD of the final period, as the Stallions upend the Showboats in front of a raucous Legion Field crowd. TBY 21 JAX 41 The Bulls needed to show up big in this one after 3 straight losses moved them from 1st place to a non-playoff position, and boy did they. Chris Chandler threw for 3 TDs and the combo of Irvin and Bynum combine for 151 yards rushing as the Bulls manhandled the Bandits in front of an appreciative home crowd. Four Bandit turnovers, all fumbles, proved the downfall for Tampa Bay as it just seemed like every time they got something going, someone would cough the ball up. With the win the Bulls edge Ohio and find themselves in the 6th position with 4 games left to play. ORL 17 ATL 0 Atlanta looked completely spent as the Orlando Renegades shut them out and shut them down. Aaron Brooks completed only 18 of 42 pass attempts and Tiki Barber was held to only 42 yards as the Orlando defense owned the day. Craig Ericson got some snaps as an ankle concern for Scott Mitchell led Coach O’Leary to take him out with the game still in the 3rd quarter but the Renegades very much in control. As the season reaches its final weeks, the one thing no playoff contender wants to see are key injuries that will cost them important players. Of course, no team wants to see injuries, but for some losing a key player at this time of the season can alter the entire trajectory of a team. For Chicago, hoping to climb back into the playoff field, losing WR Curtis Conway could be a big blow. The former NFL wideout suffered an abdominal tear, a nasty injury to recover from, and was placed on IR this week. Chicago did not have a very dynamic or a very deep receiving corps, so losing Conway could really be a big blow. Arizona also lost a top receiver, though there is hope that Carl Pickens, and his ankle, will be back for the season closer in Week 16. His absence puts more pressure on Rocket Ismail to continue to be the focal point of the Wrangler passing game. In Orlando the news about Scott Mitchell’s foot is better than first thought. Mitchell had to be assisted off the field on Sunday, but x-rays came back negative for any breaks, prompting Orlando to list him as Doubtful for this week, but that makes it very likely that he could be back by Week 14 or 15 at the latest. In St. Louis, another receiver, the irreplaceable Bert Emmanuel, is listed as Questionable for this week’s game and could be a game time decision as he deals with a hip pointer. Others who may be out this week include Texas LB Dhani Jones (placed on IR), Birmingham DE Mike Rucker (1-2 weeks with broken finger), Portland DE Clyde Simmons (1-2 weeks with knee issue), and Texas WR Jeff Query (Doubtful with elbow injury). DENVER & SEATTLE CLINCH BUT BATTLE ENDURES In what looks like a battle that will come to a head in the seasons’ final week, the Denver Gold and Seattle Dragons both clinch a playoff spot but are also knotted up atop the Pacific Division. The two face off in Seattle on the final week of the year, and from the look of things that game will determine who gets the top seed in the Western Conference, home field advantage throughout the playoffs, and a much desired bye week. On paper these two clubs actually look very similar, Seattle and Denver differ by only 10 points (307 to 297) in points scored, and only 17 (217 to 201) in points allowed. Both have Top 10 defenses against the pass, with Seattle having the edge against the run. Seattle leads the league in rushing with 1,620 yards, mostly thanks to Corey Dillon’s breakout season, but Denver is right behind, 3rd in the league with 1,472 yards, most of theirs from Rashaan Salaam. In fact, you might say that Coach Tiller in Seattle has built a club very much using the model of Denver, solid defense, strong run game, QB play designed first and foremost to protect the ball. It is surprising, considering the reputation that Tiller brought with him from the college game for wide open offenses, but this formula has certainly worked this year, a year which has seen Seattle have to adapt from Brian Griese to rookie Gio Carmazzi at QB. Both clubs are certain of a playoff berth this year, but keep your eyes out for that Week 16 game, it should be an epic battle with a lot on the line. TEAMS ON LIFE SUPPORT On the other end of the playoff spectrum we are seeing several teams who are on playoff life support. Ohio has all but played themselves out of a shot, and certainly out of any chance for a division title, with three straight losses. Admittedly, losing to Memphis, Seattle, and Baltimore is not really that shocking, but with 2 of those 3 games at home, a team with playoff aspirations has to do better. The Glory face only one more team with a winning record in their final 4, so they could rally, but right now they are on the outside looking up at the top 6 positions. Tampa Bay is another club that is on the outside looking in. The Bandits are now 2 games outside of the 6th place slot, with only 4 to play. Back to back losses to New Orleans and Jacksonville have them at 5-7, but they too have a favorable schedule, with Oakland, Birmingham, and Atlanta still to play. That game in week 14 against the Stallions will all but certainly eliminate one of the two Southern squads from contention. Yes, Birmingham is in contention. We know it has not felt like it for most of the season, but at 5-7, tied with Tampa Bay, the Stallions could get lucky and find themselves positioned well for a late run. Their schedule is not the easiest, with back to back trips to Arizona and Tampa up next, and they likely need to run the table and go 4-0 over the final month of the season to have any shot, but it is feasible. As we said, the Tampa Bay game will be vital, as will a week 16 clash at home against the Bulls. Out West, we have a 3-way tie at 6-6, with only 2 of the 3 able to earn Wild Card slots. Michigan and Chicago currently occupy those 2 spots, with Arizona on the outs due to tiebreakers. LA at 5-7 is still also in this mix, but they need to get a lot of help to move up in the standings. Michigan’s path may be the hardest as their next 3 games are home against the Federals, at Seattle, and then home to St. Louis. If they can win 2 of those 3, a tough challenge, they may be in good shape with a Week 16 game against Texas. Chicago’s path to the playoffs is somewhat easier, with their next two games against 2-10 Pittsburgh and 4-8 Oakland before a tougher final 2 against the Breakers and the Knights. They too think 3 of 4 is the key to a playoff spot. For Arizona, 3 of the 4 games are against team with losing records, starting with Birmingham at home this week, then a tough one against New Orleans before finishing with Portland and Oakland. Winning 3 of 4 also looks very good for them. Finally, LA, looking at a schedule that includes Orlando and Seattle, may need to win all 4 to jump over the three 6-6 clubs. Even games against Portland and Texas may not be enough if they cannot upset the Renegades and Dragons, though both games are in LA. AWARD ODDS Is this the year for a defender to take some of the league’s top awards? It very well may be. When we look at the MVP race, there is no clear frontrunner, and some of the top potential vote getters on offense are likely to be on non-playoff teams, so will that cost them votes? Jake Plummer has had an amazing season, mostly thanks to his rushing stats, but the Wranglers are only 6-6 and could easily miss the post-season. Brett Favre is on a 5-7 Birmingham squad. Heath Shuler has not had the kind of season likely to make him an MVP repeat winner, and Scott Mitchell, who has played very well, is outshone by a defender on his own club, DE Chris Doleman. Doleman could very well win MVP this year if Orlando can hold on to win the South. His 17 sacks lead the league, and he has been a terror all around, producing 4 forced fumbles as well. Another potential MVP could be Denver’s Leslie O’Neill, who trails Doleman by 3 sacks, but is equally strong against the run and is a big reason why Denver is 10-2. When we look at Rookie of the Year, the argument is likely to come down to a battle between HB Ron Dayne of Baltimore and DE John Abraham of Seattle. Both are worthy of recognition, with Dayne closing in on 1,000 yards, while Abraham, with 14 sacks, is only 3 behind Doleman for the league title. If it is even, the tie almost always goes to the offensive player, but this year, with Seattle challenging Denver out west, and Dayne easily trailing several other halfbacks, this may be the year for a defender to get the nod, much as Phil Hansen did in his outstanding rookie year. With 4 games left, if Abraham can squeak out 6 sacks to reach 20, we think the title will be his, but fall short of that and Dayne could get the nod. We have our first locked in playoff spots as both the Denver Gold and Seattle Dragons, both 10-2, have clinched a spot in the postseason. Of course, with both in the same division, the battle for the division title, and its very sought-after bye week, could last all the way until a Week 16 clash. Both teams hope to run the table and lock up a week of rest and home field throughout the playoffs. New Orleans is at least a week away from locking up a spot but hold a 3-game lead over the team in 17th place, with only 4 left to play. A win this week could wrap it up. In the Eastern Conference it is a bit more muddled, with 5 teams sporting either 9 or 8 wins and one 7-win club on the outside looking in. Right now the club in that most hated 7th position is Ohio, but, as we have seen recently, standings can change quickly as tiebreakers are influenced by every win or loss, even in games pitting non-playoff teams. This week Orlando has its turn at #1, with Philly in 2nd, and Baltimore, Memphis, and Washington a game behind. But each week there has been movement on the standings, and we expect some of the key aspects of the playoff hunt, particularly seeding to last the rest of the regular season. Right now, only 3 teams are truly mathematically eliminated, Portland, Atlanta, and Pittsburgh. New Jersey is about as close to elimination as a team can get and yet still have a mathematically viable path to a playoff spot. Houston and Texas are close behind. Losses this week by any of these three would likely spell elimination in next week’s calculations. As we anticipated, after the league owners moved to table any expansion talk until 2005 at the earliest, we have started to receive reports of ownership groups, hoping to obtain a USFL franchise, reaching out to various USFL owners to explore the possibility of sale and relocation. This is something the league was hoping to avoid, certainly during the season itself, but also in general, as this kind of disruption can affect not only league integrity, but the day to day functioning of a franchise, and can be death to ticket sales. If a fanbase starts to become concerned that their franchise may be seeking greener pastures, it is easy to tune the team out and certainly spend less on their fandom. So far we have heard from representatives of the franchises in Oakland, Portland, St. Louis, Memphis, and Texas, reporting that they have been approached by a variety of bidders and potential investors who are hoping that the topic of sale and relocation is on the table. The case of the Texas Outlaws is an interesting one. This is a team with a pretty solid fanbase in San Antonio, a good contract with the Alamo Dome and no direct competition for football dollars, with no NFL franchise or major college program in the city. And yet, they seem to be the target of a pretty well-heeled ownership group based out of Dallas and hoping to bring a team to “Big D”. The good news, if there is good news for the folks in San Antonio, is that this group is not affiliated with Jerry Jones and the Dallas Cowboys. In fact, they seem to be pitching SMU’s Gerald Ford Stadium as a potential Dallas venue for a relocated Outlaws squad. The group interested in the Outlaws is led by Michael Dell. Dell is the owner and Chairman of the computer company that bears his name and leads a well-financed group, but the Outlaws are not exactly a team screaming for greater revenue or a change of venue. Despite some rough seasons, the Outlaws draw well and have a solid fanbase. Dallas, long dominated by the NFL Cowboys, seems a city that does not have a deep pool of disaffected football fans crying out for an alternative. The move to bring a USFL team to the city seems more an ego grab by Dell and his minority owners than a proposal fully backed by the city or any potential fanbase in the city. The same is not true in Boston, where an ownership group led by John W. Henry and Les Otten. Henry, a high-end financial manager, has already gotten involved with minor league baseball, the NBA (Orlando Magic) and has made noise about potentially making a bid on the Boston Red Sox. Otten is most known as one of the movers and shakers in the skiing industry nationwide, owning several of the top ski resorts across the Northeast as well as in the Rockies. Another well-financed group, the big issue for the Boston area is stadium access. This group, like others before it, have been unable to make headway on landing a deal with either Foxboro Stadium or the new Gillette Stadium (planned completion in 2002). Without that modern suburban stadium, a Boston ownership group has to work with the somewhat intransigent officials at Boston College or Harvard. We all know the issues that the Boston Breakers had, first resigned to playing in tiny Nickerson Field at Boston U., and then a very poor deal to play at Harvard Stadium, before relocating to New Orleans. While a Boston ownership group has reached out to the Portland Thunder, St. Louis Knights and Memphis Showboats, and a sale could be beneficial for the ownership of those three franchises, USFL leadership would certainly not approve a sale without a strong stadium deal in place, and we just don’t see that happening unless Robert Kraft, owner of the new Foxboro-placed Gillette Stadium changes his strong anti-USFL stance. Finally, we have a new player in the game, one who has also reached out to several franchises, including, oddly enough, Orlando, who do not seem in any position to abandon a good deal in Central Florida. An ownership group led by Cal Turner (Chairman of Dollar General) and Ray Danner (Former head of the Shoney’s restaurant chain), have an agreement for a potential spring football lease of the newly constructed Adelphia Stadium, home to the NFL Tennessee Copperheads. That is certainly a good start if a sale were proposed. The issue we see with Nashville is the immediate complaints from 3 USFL franchises, Memphis, Birmingham, and Atlanta. Adding a 4th franchise to the region seems a challenge, and one that would almost certainly damage the value of the Memphis Showboats in particular. Atlanta has done themselves no favors in building a fanbase by having a perennial loser in the city, but is a large enough market that a Nashville franchise may not be a major hinderance. Birmingham has the opposite situation, a smaller market but one with a rabid fanbase that is fully committed to the Stallions. But Memphis, a city that has major financial issues, and which is losing the race to be Tennessee’s flagship city to Nashville, would almost certainly suffer if a franchise were to locate in Nashville. Of course, Memphis is one of the franchises being wooed by the Turner-Danner ownership group, along with St. Louis and Orlando. Were the Showboats to be sold and relocated to Nashville, it would not be an additional southern team, and that might make the sale more palatable for all owners, but particularly those in Atlanta and Birmingham. That said, the owners of the Showboats, despite their concerns about the long-term viability of the Liberty Bowl Stadium, have a lot of reasons to retain the Showboats. They have a strong revenue stream, a rabid fanbase of their own, success on the field, and enough corporate presence in the region to sell the few luxury boxes available at the Liberty Bowl. So the question becomes one of priorities. Can Turner and Danner produce an offer that is so enticing to Memphis ownership that they would give up their nearly 20-year relationship with the city and its fans. That may be the key to whether or not the Showboats remain a staple of Memphis sports culture or whether Nashville, already a player in the NFL, gets a second team. Week 13 brings us to the final quarter of the season, and so much on the line as the first playoff spots have been claimed, with 10 more slots yet to be decided, and, of course byes, division titles, home field, a lot of cherished playoff advantages still out there to be won. We are in interconference play this week, the last pure interconference week of the season. The Eastern clubs travel to the middle of the country to face Central Division foes while the Southern Division is out on the Pacific Coast. One of the most intriguing matchups pits two defensive stalwarts against each other as the Baltimore Blitz head down to New Orleans to face the Breakers. A win could clinch a playoff spot for New Orleans, something very few saw in their future this past offseason. In another big matchup Michigan, sitting on the cusp at 6-6 is hosting Washington in what we now know will be Kordell Stewart’s return to action. In several other games we have teams looking to play spoiler as New Jersey is in St. Louis, Ohio visits Texas, Pittsburgh is in Chicago, and Philadelphia heads down to Houston. In the Southern-Pacific clashes, the ones to watch are Jacksonville, fresh off a much-needed win, heading to Denver to face the Gold and the attitude, and 8-4 Memphis heading to the Pacific Northwest to face the 10-2 Seattle Dragons, who clinched their first playoff appearance ever this past week. LA hosts Orlando at Farmers Insurance Field, and they absolutely must win if they have any hope of a repeat playoff appearance. Tampa Bay and Oakland also face off in a game that is vital for Tampa Bay if they too want to make the postseason. In Arizona, the Wranglers sit at .500 but 5-7 Birmingham has been coming on, so this is a tough one for the home team. Finally, we have 2-10 Atlanta visiting 1-11 Portland in a game that could well determine who has the top pick in next year’s draft. Should we just call this one the Michael Vick Bowl?

Playoff Picture: No team has clinched a berth yet, however, Portland, Atlanta, New Jersey, and Pittsburgh are mathematically eliminated from contention for a spot.

Big wins for the Stars, Dragons and Machine highlight a week of action and a cluster of clubs at the top of each conference. We also got a tough upset as Houston shocked the Jacksonville Bulls, their third loss in a row after such a strong start. We also got another ridiculous game from Jake Plummer, the Offensive POTW after Pittsburgh simply could not replicate the success Portland found in containing the Wrangler QB. Another strong game for Jeff Garcia as Baltimore wins again, and Tiki Barber comes close to helping Atlanta pull of a major upset but falls just short. Let’s get to it with that game, as the Fire prove they are still playing hard, putting a real scare into the St. Louis Knights. A game that most expected to be a lopsided affair actually turned out to be a fun watch as Atlanta put a scare into the St. Louis Knights. Tiki Barber returned to All-USFL form and the Fire defense, led by NFL veteran Bruce Smith, proved a challenge to the Knights, at least through the first half. And this was a game of halves, with Atlanta building a 21-7 lead in the first and St. Louis slowly grinding their way out of the hole in the second. Atlanta took a note from Arizona, allowing Aaron Brooks to run a bit, and on their first drive he did just that, scoring on a 6-yard scramble when no receivers were open. After a solid defensive stand on the Knights’ first drive, Atlanta scored again, this time Tiki Barber capping off a drive in which he carried the ball 6 times with a 1-yard TD run to put Atlanta up 14-0. St. Louis would get a score back on an Ahman Green run to pull back within 7, but when the half ended, Atlanta had put up a third score, a Brooks t o James Whalen 9-yard TD toss. Atlanta seemed to have something cooking, but would need to hold onto the intensity of the first half as the game resumed in the second, a task that proved quite difficult. The Knights moved the ball well on their first drive of the half, with Todd Collins finding Amani Toomer on a key 3rd and 7 to keep the drive alive. It would end with a Knights fieldgoal, but points are points and these pulled them within 2 scores. 5 minutes later, after Atlanta failed to convert a 4th and 1 on the St. Louis 40, St. Louis put the ball up and got back to within 3 points as Todd Collins found TE Reggie Kelly wide open on a blown coverage. The turnover on downs, combined with the quick score seemed to enliven the Knights, who had seemed sluggish all game in the Atlanta heat & humidity. Atlanta was fading, and while their defense played well, they eventually tired and on St. Louis’s 3rd drive in the final period, they got what they needed, Atlanta mistakes that provided 2nd chances and an eventual score. Twice on the drive, Atlanta bailed St. Louis out of a whole, once with a defensive holding call that nullified a good 3rd down play, and again when an offsides penalty immediately offset the 5-yard false start penalty one play earlier. St. Louis took the gifts and when Ahman Green burst through the line on a 2nd and goal, the Knights had their first lead of the day, a lead that would hold for the game’s final 3 minutes, giving St. Louis a much-needed win, and once again disappointing the Fire faithful. DEN 14 PHI 31 An offensive explosion from the Stars as Bobby Hebert goes 21 of 24 and throws for 3 scores. Stephen Davis also rushes for 116 and 5.0 YPC as the Stars just simply had Denver’s number all day. Rashaan Salam gained 119 on 15 carries, but with Denver converting only 3 of 11 third downs, they simply could not keep pace and fall for only the 2nd time all year. SEA 35 OHI 13 Seattle takes advantage of Denver’s slip to even their record with the Gold by dominating the Ohio Glory. Seattle built up a 28-0 lead by the 12 minute mark of the 2nd quarter and never looked back. All 3 Seattle backs, Dillon (83 yards), Loville (36) and Joe Montgomery (45) got carries as the Dragons played keepaway for the better part of 3 quarters. NOR 24 TBY 10 New Orleans also caught up to Denver in their hunt for a top seed, shutting down the Bandits offense by holding Errict Rhett to 2.9 yards per carry. With Ricky Williams out, New Orleans used a rotating HB corps to carry the ball, with Erric Pegram getting 20 carries, while James Bostic carried the ball 26 times in a run-dominated offense that allowed Bobby Hoying to hand the ball off more than he threw it (47 runs to only 25 pass attempts). HOU 24 JAX 13 It is officially panic time in Jacksonville as the Bulls fall at home to the 2-9 Houston Gamblers. Mario Greer was Houston’s secret weapon, rushing for 81 yards on only 11 carries. Jacksonville struggled to run the ball, with Irvin getting only 59 yards on 19 carries. Houston was 0 for 10 on third down, but got enough big plays to upend the favored Bulls. ARZ 36 PIT 24 The Wranglers get back to .500 thanks to another ludicrous rushing game for Jake Plummer. 122 yards on 16 carries, nearly as much as his 181 yards passing. Plummer also added 3 rushing TDs to his totals. He is now over 500 yards rushing on the season, with 10 rushing TDs, numbers some teams would love to get from their halfback, much less their QB. LA 26 NJ 20 The Express struggle to pull away from New Jersey, but get two field goals to break a 20-20 tie in the final period. For New Jersey the hero was Anthony Becht, the rookie TE, who bailed Jeff Lewis out time and again, catching 7 balls for 101 yards. For LA it was Tory Holt and Michael Pritchard, who combined for 194 yards receiving as the Express cling to fading playoff hopes. OAK 10 WSH 26 Ryan Leaf’s 2 picks help Washington pull away from the Invaders at home. Oakland actually limited the Feds to only 63 yards rushing, but Scott Zolak, in what may be his last game before Kordell Stewart returns, survived 6 sacks and still completed 14 of 25 for 188 and 2 scores for Washington. POR 10 BAL 27 Baltimore’s defense held Napoleon Kaufmann to only 9 carries before a tender ankle forced him out. Darius Turner could only average 2.5 yards per carry in relief and Rick Mirer completed only 16 of 33 passes as the Baltimore defense stymied the Thunder all game. Jeff Garcia looked good again, with 3 TD passes and 334 against Portland’s porous D. CHI 17 BIR 14 Chicago’s losing streak ends at 5 as something is seriously wrong in Birmingham. For the Stallions to lose at home, and to only score 14 points, is not a good sign. Lawrence Dawsey looked like a one-man show, catching 6 balls for 121 yards and a score, but he got no help as Chicago held the Stallions to only 2 scoring drives. Two short Duce Staley runs and a late Carney field goal were enough for the Machine to get their 5th win and stay alive in the Wild Card hunt. MGN 17 MEM 33 Memphis limited the Michigan offense and pulled ahead by scoring the final 19 points of the game, including 4 Jeff Hall field goals in the second half. Michigan could not find holes for Natrone Means (only 40 yards rushing), while Memphis got 88 from Garrison Hearst and 3 TDs from Heath Shuler to pick up their 8th win. TEX 13 ORL 27 Scott Mitchell looked solid, completing 15 of 24 and throwing for 3 scores as Orlando managed the Outlaws and won comfortably. Terry Kirby had his first 100-yard game of the year, getting 120 on only 14 carries as he split touches with Moe Williams. No season-ending or long-term injuries this week, which is always good to hear. We have quite a few players between Probable and Doubtful and just a few confirmed to be out for certain. Among those who will miss Week 12 and possibly 13 are Atlanta FB Zach Crockett, Ohio DT Jonathan Brown, and Michigan DT Tony Garbarczyk. Players listed as doubtful include Ricky Williams, who likely misses his 2nd game, WR Rob Moore in Baltimore, Generals’ CB Gene Atkins, and Tampa LB Keith McCants. The biggest potential return this week is that of Washington QB Kordell Stewart though with how well Scott Zolak has played, the Feds feel confident even if Stewart’s return is delayed another week. FEDS QB DECISION We start with the Federals’ QB situation in this week’s rundown. The good news for the Feds is that Stewart is almost certainly back next week, and could play this week if Friday and Saturday’s walkthrough go well. The question is whether or not to start him as long as Scott Zolak is producing wins. The cagey vet has produced 5 straight wins for Washington, and while it is pretty common to give the credit to Washington’s 2nd ranked defense and not the 18th ranked offense, the fact remains that Zolak is not costing the Feds games. Since taking over as the starter after Stewart’s injury in Week 1 of the season, Zolak has led Washington to 7 wins to 4 losses, and his stats, while not All-USFL quality, are not bad at all. Zolak has thrown 17 touchdowns to 9 picks and completed nearly 63% of his passes. We all expect Stewart to be under center as soon as he is at 100%, but having such success with their backup means that the Feds don’t have to rush him, or put him in at 80%. That said, if Washington struggles at Philadelphia, a key divisional game this week, the temptation will be there to see if Kordell can spark the offense. Washington finishes up with Michigan, Ohio, Jacksonville, and New Jersey, and a division title is absolutely the target for the Feds, so the pressure will be there to put the best possible team on the field, and that means getting Kordell Stewart ready to play as soon as the coaching staff and trainers believe he gives the team a better chance to win than Zolak can. BULLS LOSE THE MAGIC It is not just that Jacksonville has lost 3 games in a row, or that they have slipped from first place down to a tenuous third place. It is that two of those losses came against teams they were expected to manage easily, New Jersey and Houston. Their first loss, a 4-point squeeker at Memphis, was not really a shock. The Showboats are the defending league champions, playing in their home stadium, and playing very well after a bit of a shaky opening month. The Bulls played well in that game, but not well enough to win. The next week, losing by 3 to the Generals, was a bit worse. Jacksonville’s defense allowed Jeff Lewis to throw for over 300 yards and 2 scores and Curtis Enis to rush for 98, numbers that have to concern Coach Cunningham. The Bulls lost despite getting a combined 221 yards rushing from Irvin, Bynum and FB Edgar Bennett. They needed a 2-minute drill to score a game-tying TD, and then with under a minute left could not keep New Jersey out of field goal range. That is troubling. And then this week, Houston, a 2-win club, with the game at the Gator Bowl and everything to play for as they worked to stay on pace with Orlando and Memphis, the Bulls came out flat. No other way to explain it. Again the run defense failed them, with the combo of Mario Greer and Kevin Faulk gaining 141 yards and scoring twice. The offense also struggled, with Sedrick Irvin gaining only 59 yards on the ground and Chris Chandler unable to lead the club to any 2nd half points. The Bulls had better figure out where the issues are because it does not get much easier down the stretch. J’ville is again at home this week, but against a dangerous Tampa Bay team on the cusp of Wild Card contention. Then it is a brutal 3 game stretch, at 10-2 Denver, at 9-3 Orlando, and home to 8-4 Washington before finishing with another potentially tough divisional game at Birmingham. We expect that the Bulls need to win 3 of 5 just to have a chance at a Wild Card, and if they have any hope left of winning the division, they will need to run the table, and likely get some help since both Orlando and Memphis are ahead of them. What was a brilliant first half of the season could be turning south quickly for the Bulls. CHICAGO BREAKS OUT OF SLUMP After a long and painful 5 game stretch that saw Chicago winless in over a month, the Chicago Machine have finally found their way back to the win column. The Machine started the season strong, much to the surprise of pundits who predicted a last place finish in the division. The defense was playing well and the Machine rattled off early wins against Philly, Arizona, Houston and Portland, not allowing more than 17 points in any of those games. But Week 6 brought a brutal awakening as another surprise club, the Breakers, manhandled Chicago on their way to a 33-7 win. A loss the next week to St. Louis, one in which the machine gave up 38 points, drove home the concerns that the quick start might be a mirage. The defense continued to struggle through losses to Jacksonville and Denver, though each week they gave up fewer points, 23 to the Bulls, 20 to the Gold, and then last week they barely missed out on a win as they lost 16-13 to the Outlaws. The defense was coming around again, but the offense was still an issue. This week, in their 17-14 victory over Birmingham, the defense came up big, shutting down the usually high-flying Stallion passing game and limiting Shaun Alexander to only 32 yards rushing. The offense, however, still remains a big concern if Chicago is going to make a push for a playoff berth. In this week’s game Duce Staley and Ricky Watters combined for 29 carries, but only managed 58 total rushing yards. Yes, Staley accounted for both Chicago touchdowns, but both were goallline plunges. Jeff George has yet to show us that his arm and his head are in the game. Coach Mornihnweg has the big-armed QB throwing short routes to protect him from a suspect front line and the pass rush that always seems to find him, but that means that the talent George possesses is not being used to its fullest. He is a deep ball thrower, so the constant slants, outs, and hooks is not taking advantage of what he can do. But, that of course is predicated on the immobile QB staying upright, and therein lies Chicago’s main issue. Their line, while occasionally strong for the run game, is just not capable of dealing with 7-step drops and delayed routes. The Machine have a favorable finish to the year, at least for the next 3 weeks. They get Houston this week, then a home game against Pittsburgh and a trip to Oakland. All 3 are winnable games, which would put the Machine at 8-6. But then they face those two divisional opponents who ripped their D apart, first the Breakers at Soldier Field in Week 15 and then the Knights in St. Louis in Week 18. They will need to win one of those two games to reach 9-7, which looks like a bare minimum to reach the postseason in the Eastern Conference. So while the club has to be happy that they broke the streak and are back at .500, the road ahead is a tough one. ARIZONA YO YO SEASON CONCERNING We finish our round up of teams looking to make a push with the Arizona Wranglers. Two years ago they surprised everyone with a deep playoff run, and that made many of us predict great things for the Wranglers, but last year they slipped a bit and the unforeseen rise of the LA Express meant that they simply were not in contention. This year they have been the model of inconsistent play. Over the past 7 weeks they have alternated wins and losses, never getting 2 solid results back to back. A week after losing to the Portland Thunder, a shocking upset and a humiliating result for the Wranglers, they came back this week with a solid 12-point win in Pittsburgh. They sit at 6-5, and have some winnable games ahead of them (Birmingham at home in Week 13, Portland again in Week 15, and a visit to Oakland in Week 16), but they also have to face Denver this week, in Denver, a tough game for sure. They also face the New Orleans Breakers in Week 14. So, are the Wranglers destined to an 8-8 season? The answer almost certainly lies with the offense. The team’s defense is pretty solid, 7th in yards allowed, and one of the better pass defenses, though the loss of Winfred Tubbs to injury is a concern. The issue, as it seems we say each year, is the rushing offense. Yes, Arizona ranks 15th of 24 clubs, which is not horrible, but if we remove Jake Plummer’s 521 yards, they drop to a clear dead last in the league. Dorsey Levins, at 415 yards, is the leading back, but we have to remember that most of those yards came when he was playing in Houston, not as a Wrangler. Tim Lester has only 294, Leeland MacElroy, the offseason acquisition from New Jersey, has 204. This is not good for a club that has playoff aspirations. When the Wranglers win, it is often because Plummer makes plays with his legs. In the weeks where the shadow defender strategy works, as it did for Portland, the Wranglers struggle. Even against Portland, when Jake Plummer had great success in the air (336 yards passing), the lack of a run game led to a Wrangler defeat. The weirdest part of this tendency for the Wranglers is that their head coach, Art Shell, is a former All-Pro NFL left tackle, yet it is often run blocking that is seen as the biggest issue. The Wrangles simply do not block well for whichever back is in the game. Plummer has success because he scrambles, or bootlegs on designed plays, and the line play is less essential. That the club cannot put together an effective gameplan of inside and outside runs for the backs is truly puzzling. And if they cannot figure that out, and quickly, the odds that they find themselves in the playoffs, and winning what would almost certainly be road playoff games, are not good at all. Weird how tie breakers can shift things. Washington at 7-3 was atop the Eastern Conference, but despite winning this week they slip down to 4th thanks to wins from Orlando, Philly and Memphis, which impacts strength of schedule, a tiebreaker pretty far down the list but one still very relevant right now. Philly takes over first, while Orlando edges Memphis in the South. Five games to play and we need to expect that this muddle at the top will continue. Baltimore is back in play for a Wild card at 7-4, but Ohio, with 2 straight losses has now dropped back. Both are still in the running, of course, while Jacksonville, with 3 straight defeats, has slid to 7th place, just out of a position at present. They will need to turn it around. Out West, Denver holds the tie breakers against New Orleans and Seattle, though all three look pretty good at 9-2. St. Louis gains one on the Breakers, now at 7-4, 2 games back, and Arizona’s win puts them in 5th as the only other team over .500 in the conference. Sitting at 5-6 we have Michigan, LA, and Chicago, after a much needed win. It seems unlikely that any new player will emerge, though a 5-game win streak can help almost anyone get into play. We do have our first eliminations as 1-10 Portland, and the trio of 2-9 clubs in the East (Atlanta, New Jersey, and Pittsburgh) are now officially playing for pride. The second of our three Reebok redesigns was released this week. The Houston Gamblers, in the midst of one of their worst seasons as a franchise, will retool their look for 2001, perhaps in the hope of recapturing some of the glory of past years. The popular Texas G logo remains unchanged, though a new wordmark treatment, with both vertical and horizontal options is on tap for the Gamblers. The color scheme and most of the uniform elements remain largely unchanged as well, with a black helmet, black and white jerseys and black and white pants, all with red features. The helmet will no longer feature stripes as it will be a glossy black shell with the familiar Texas G on either side. The pants are largely the same, though the black pant set no longer has white stripes outside of the center red stripe. It is the jersey’s where we see the biggest shift as Houston joins the popular shoulder yoke and side panel trend. Both the white and black jerseys now feature a thick red side panel, designed to align with the pant stripe and paired with red sleeve caps. The black jerseys also feature a thin white piping line surrounding the shoulder panels, while the white jerseys have a solid black shoulder section, ending at each sleeve seem. The blockish black shoulders contain a single red stripe on the collar. The numbers on both jerseys remain a standard block font with red piping. The look is basic and yet something of a departure from the traditional sleeve stripes the Gamblers have worn since 1984. Week 12 is another barn burner with 12 divisional games as we head into the home stretch, and with so many games looming large for playoff chases, you may have to spend all weekend in front of the TV just to not miss anything. Let’s start in the Pacific where Saturday Night’s game in Denver could be a huge one for both clubs. The Gold need a win to hold onto that #1 position, while Arizona is hoping to move 2-games over .500 and gain an upper hand over all the current 5-6 clubs. LA is one of those clubs hoping to scrap back to .500, and they have a good shot if they can avoid the upset at in-state rival Oakland. Seattle is also in a rivalry game, but with 1-10 Portland in town, they could fall into a trap if they are looking past the Thunder. In the Central, Chicago hopes to make it 2 games in a row to get back on track as they visit the Houston Gamblers. Michigan has a huge task ahead of them as they visit New Orleans needing a win to reach .500 and stay in contention. St. Louis is in Texas on Sunday in a game that they hope positions them for a late run to catch the Breakers as they caught the Outlaws last year. In the South we do not want to miss the Tampa Bay @ Jacksonville game. The Bulls have lost 3 straight, and a 4th would dump them at 6-6. Tampa is hoping to get to 6-6 by knocking off their in-state rival. Memphis is in Birmingham, where the struggling Stallion defense will be tested by Heath Shuler and the Showboats. Orlando travels to Atlanta in the division’s final game.

Hi all, my apologies, but I messed up my order of tasks and simulated Week 11 not realizing that I had not yet created the League Leaders tables for Week 10, so there will not be a Week 10 League Leaders tables, but I will give you enhanced Week 11 tables when I post the recap of that week. Sorry. Sometimes I get ahead of myself.

What, indeed. This week we saw two results that no one saw coming, and while two out of 12 games being hard to predict is not that out of the ordinary in the world of pro football, these two were still odd enough to make us wonder just what is in the water this week. Sure, New Jersey has been close in seemingly every game, but for them to upset the Bulls just did not seem likely. And for Portland to finally get a win just seemed near impossible after weeks of futility, though having a healthy QB with NFL experience might just have been the catalyst the Thunder needed. Let’s look at these two surprising results and all the rest of the action around the league this week. This one was wild, and for once the Generals managed to pull out the close game and get a long-overdue W. In a game that came down to a last minute drive, it was New Jersey snatching victory from the jaws of defeat and not the other way around. Both the Generals and the Bulls had success on the ground, with New Jersey racking up 152 yards and Jacksonville an even more impressive 221. But it was the New Jersey defense, much maligned and often rightly so, that helped the Generals win their first game since opening week. It all began with Jacksonville’s first possession, an ominous start as kick returner Tyrone Shavers muffed the punt at the end of New Jersey’s first drive, forcing the Bulls to start at their own 3. After an Irvin run got them nowhere, Phil Hansen did what he always does, brought down the QB, only this time Chandler was in the endzone. New Jersey started off with a 2-0 lead. The joy in Jersey did not last long as on their next two possessions the Bulls got a 27-yard TD pass from Chandler to Steve Johnson and a 41-yard TD run from big man Edgar Bennett, his only carry of the game. New Jersey would get a late Neil Rackers field goal but headed into the halftime locker room down 14-5. The second half saw New Jersey get even more production out of their defense as a rushed Chandler threw the ball right to LB Lorenzo Styles, and the lanky defender took the ball all the way back for 6, helping New Jersey get back to 14-12. After another solid defensive stand by the Generals produced a 3-and-out, Jeff Lewis guided New Jersey into Bulls’ territory, eventually hitting Terry Glenn with a scoring toss to give the Generals a 19-14 lead. The lead would be short-lived as Jacksonville countered, Chandler to Terrell Owens for 6, but a failed 2-point conversion meant it was a slim 20-19 lead for the Bulls. And that lead too would not last long as the 4th quarter opened with Jeff Lewis finding Terry Glenn for a second time, this one a 25-yard scoring strike on a seam route. With the successful 2-point conversion, New Jersey now lead by 7. That lead would hold until the final minutes of the game, but with 1:30 left on the clock it once again seemed like the Generals were finding a way to lose a game they should win. A defensive holding call kept a desperate drive alive for the Bulls and 2 plays later Chandler found Dez White for the game-tying score. 1:30 left to play and all on the line for a club that had seen so many close games break against them. New Jersey needed 33 yards to get to the outer range of Neil Racker’s ability, but they would get nearly 50 on only 4 plays. Completions to Kevin Johnson, Terry Glenn and rookie TE Anthony Becht got the ball well inside a comfort zone for Rackers, and with only 12 seconds left to play, New Jersey brought out the kicker on 3rd down, just in case something were to go wrong. Nothing did. The kick went right through the uprights and for once the Generals eked out a win in a down to the wire game. The loss was a big one for Jacksonville, their 2nd loss in a row, and one which dropped them from 1st place all the way to 3rd in the South, with both Memphis and Orlando leapfrogging them. For New Jersey it was both a real and a moral victory, proof that their effort would eventually bring results. ARZ 21 POR 24 Can you be considered a hero if you have a sub-par game but still get a W? That is the question many are asking about Rick Mirer’s first full game as the Portland starter. The NFL import completed only 9 of 20 passes for only 100 yards, but he avoided turnovers and he got the W, Portland’s first of the year. Most of the credit should probably go to Napoleon Kaufmann, who shredded Arizona’s defense for 140 yards and a score. That and a defensive scheme that left a spy on Jake Plummer all game long, a spy who held Plummer to -1 yards rushing on 11 attempts. Arizona was frustrated and flustered all game, with Plummer throwing 2 picks and no run game to support him. A bad loss for a club hoping to move into safe playoff position. NOR 10 STL 17 It was a defensive battle of attrition in St. Louis, where both clubs shut down nearly everything the opposing offenses wanted to do. Neither club accumulated 100 yards on the ground. Neither QB threw the ball well, Todd Collins only threw for 84 yards in a truly bizarre day for him. And in the end it was simply field position that allowed the homestanding Knights to get the win, sending New Orleans to defeat for only the 2nd time all year. CHI 13 TEX 16 Another defensive battle in the Central Division, though in this case it may be more that both offenses failed to find a rhythm. The shocker in this one was that backup HB Autrey Detson ended up having a huge game, racking up 190 yards on 25 carries as Reggie Cobb dealt with injury. Nothing else worked for Texas, but Detson’s monster game was enough. With the loss, the once 4-1 Machine now drop to 4-6, five losses in a row. DEN 20 OAK 18 Oakland nearly pulled off another amazing upset in this one, but Denver got a last minute Jeff Wilkens field goal to just get by the Invaders. Rashaan Salaam’s 113 yards helped, but in the end it was Brunell to Peerless Price that got the Gold in position for the winning kick. The win puts Denver in the driver’s seat for a #1 seed, theirs to lose. LA 17 SEA 34 Seattle got solid play from both Corey Dillon and backup Joe Montgomery, combining for 140 yards rushing, and rookie QB Gio Carmazzi went 22 of 29 to upend the Express and win at home. LA struggled with protection as Seattle got 7 sacks of McNown, including 2 from Defensive Rookie of the Year favorite, John Abraham as the Dragons move to 8-2 on the season. BIR 24 BAL 33 The big plays were not there for Favre on this game, perhaps due to the loss of Ernest Givens. Baltimore sacked the prolific Stallion QB 5 times as the Blitz got a much-needed win. As expected, Coach Infante made the move and called up Jeff Garcia to start after several poor outings from Trent Green. Garcia responded with 256 yards passing and 3 touchdowns as the Blitz gain ground in the Atlantic. MEM 31 OHI 21 Ohio got good games from Eddie George and Joey Galloway but it was not enough as Memphis HB Garrison Hearst had one of his best games of the year, rushing for 116 yards and a score. 3 Heath Shuler TD passes more than made up for 3 picks from the defending league MVP. The key play was a 49-yarder to Adrian Cooper that busted open a 21-21 tie and gave the W to the visiting Showboats. ORL 15 PHI 8 Philly struggled to find running room for Stephen Davis, while Orlando’s Moe Williams shared carries with Terry Kirby to produce a combined 125 yards rushing as the Renegades won a tough battle of field position and limited opportunities. In a game where each team scored a safety, a rare occurrence indeed, the Renegades came out on top as Philadelphia only crossed the 50 3 times, and got only 2 field goals in those trips. TBY 27 PIT 13 A good day for Troy Aikman until a late hit produced a possible concussion. He threw for 3 TDs against a failing Mauler defense, and with Errict Rhett adding 78 yards on the ground, Tampa pulled away from the Maulers. Terrell Davis was the one consistent threat for Pittsburgh, rushing the ball 26 times for 133 yards, but failing to score on a key goal line 3rd down run. ATL 10 WSH 40 Aaron Brooks returned under center for Atlanta but little seemed to improve as he completed only 14 of 39 throws (35.9%) and threw three picks against the brutal Federal defense. The combo of Word and Droughns for Washington racked up 116 yards rushing, and Scott Zolak threw 3 TDs to lead Washington to an easy victory, their 4th in a row, and with losses by Philly and Ohio, it is now Washington atop the Atlantic Division at 7-3. HOU 7 MGN 37 We finish with another bad showing from the Houston offense. Houston went 4 for 16 on third down as Matt Hasselbeck completed only 16 of 41 passes. Doug Flutie, on the other hand, went 18 for 20 (90%) and connected on 3 scoring tosses for the Panthers. Jeff Campbell got heavy use in the red zone, scoring twice and catching 8 balls for 120 in total. With the win, Michigan evens its record at 5-5. GARCIA STARTS AND WINS Sometimes it might just be the fans who have the better idea. When Trent Green came back from injury to resume starting duties, many fans thought it a mistake to remove Garcia, who had filled in so well. After 3 straight losses, Coach Infante went back to Garcia and got back on a winning path again. When we look at the stats, we might see why the fans were right about this. Trent Green has thrown more TDs in his action (9 to 8), but he has also thrown 7 picks, while Garcia has tossed only 1 in all his action. Garcia is also completing about 71% of his throws to Green’s 58.2%. That disparity represents a considerably better third down conversion rate for Garcia. For now it looks like Garcia will remain the starter for the rest of the season. Just what this means for Green is yet to be decided but getting demoted is never a good sign for a veteran QB. But this may just be a situation of the right man in the right moment. After all, in past seasons as a starter (With LA and Baltimore during other Green injuries), Garcia has never surpassed a 57% completion rate and his TD-INT ratio was never anything like the current 8-1 ratio we have seen this year. Maybe he is just a better fit for the Blitz system this year, or maybe the game is finally slowing down for him. Either way, Baltimore is happy to have an option like Garcia to call on. HOW DID THEY DO IT? We thought Portland's surprising win over Arizona required a little more analysis, because we honestly did not see this coming. The Thunder defense has been among the worst in the league, 22nd in scoring defense and allowing nearly 360 yards of offense a game, but against the Wranglers they may have found the formula to handcuffing the Arizona offense. Portland went with an unorthodox 3-3-5 alignment, basically daring the Wranglers to run the ball. The 3 man line (Hugh Douglas, Clyde Simmons, and Kelvin Pritchett) were, on most plays, assisted by at least one blitizing linebacker or D-back. They also kept a spy on Plummer, but varied it between LB Bryce Paup and Safety Jerod Cherry, with Cherry playing the role on most passing downs, aided by the 5th, and occasionally a 6th DB in coverage. The impact of Coach Rhodes's unorthodox strategy was that Jake Plummer, while not facing intense D-line pressure, was constantly having to adjust to potential blitzers, and also was hemmed in by the spy shadowing his lateral movement. The result? Plummer scrambled or rushed the ball (designed) 11 times for a grand total of -7 yards. It likely would have been even less, but 4 of the times he was captured behind the lines were designated as sacks as he was still within the hashmarks and protection pocket. What has to be particularly gauling for Wrangler Coach Art Shell is that even despite this unique defense, one predicated on containing Plummer and the short pass, the Wranglers were still unable to mount a credible rushing attack. When seeing essentially a skewed nickel on most downs, you would expect a heavy dose of the running game, but despite carries by Levins, Lester, FB Richie Anderson, and Leeland MacElroy, the Wranglers could only muster 27 total yards rushing. That is embarrassingly bad for a pro football team, particularly against a 3-man line with only 3 backers in the game. Admitedly, the three linemen Portland has are solid, and did a great job of keeping the run blocking off kilter all day, but with only 3 linebackers, one would expect the sheer numbers game of O-line to defenders to do the job for the run game, but it did not. The other piece of the puzzle was Portland's ability to score enough points to take advantage of a good defensive plan. Rick Mirer got his second start after an injury-shortened first game earlier this year. And, as noted above, while his 9 of 20, 100 yard day, was hardly the thing of legend, he was a calm presence in the huddle, and helped lead to 4 scoring drives in the first 2 quarters, putting Arizona in a 24-7 hole that also helped diminish the chances of the Wranglers relying on the run. Napoleon Kaufmann had his second really big game of the season, with 140 yards rushing, and Darius Turner also found room, rushing for 57. Once in front, Portland was able to essentially dink, dunk, and run the ball to kill time and keep building drives that limited Arizona's ability to come back. Essentially, Ray Rhodes outcoached Art Shell in this one. He had an insight on how to slow down Arizona, got enough support from the offense to force Arizona into a pass-first mentality, and he contained Jake Plummer's athleticism. Is this a formula others will try to emulate? Almost certainly. But can Rhodes continue to find weaknesses in opposition schemes, or was this simply a perfect alignment of scheme and circumstance for a Portland squad that has struggled to make plays all year? That is still to be seen. MAULER MISSTEPS While many of us could have (or had) predicted rough seasons in places like Atlanta, Portland, or Houston, the collapse of the Pittsburgh Maulers from last year to this is a bit of a mystery. If you recall, the Maulers were one of the hottest teams in the league at the end of last year, rattling off a streak of wins to end the year that landed them a home playoff game, leading the league in rushing with Terrell Davis, and holding teams down with a well-coached, hard hitting defense. So what happened that has led Pittsburgh to a 2-8 record after 10 games this year? Looking at the numbers the answers are not immediately clear. Terrell Davis, while not as dominant as last year, is still closing in on 1,000 yards, though the periferal rushing of others is not really there (Pittsburgh ranks 19th in rushing). The passing game was not expected to be high flying, but currently ranks 14th, which is average at worst. The Defense remains tough against the run, allowing only 99 yards a game, good enough for a Top 10 status. If we are going to point to anything statistically it has to be pass defense. Pittsburgh ranks dead last, allowing 294 yards a game, and when you allow a 300-yard passing game nearly every week, you will have some difficulties. But it is actually more than that. The three facets you want to see in pass defense are pass rush, third down defense, and takeaways. Pittsburgh is not making the grade in any of these areas. They are tied for last in the league with only 17 team sacks, their leading sacker being LB Godfrey Miles with only 4 on the year. The Maulers are also one of the worst teams (22nd) in getting off the field on third down, meaning more drives continue into scoring territory and more points are put on the board. It also means that teams can dominate time of possession, helping to explain why Pittsburgh, which has never been a fast-moving, quick drive, big play offense, is one of the lowest scoring teams in the league. The offense gets yards when it gets the ball, but it is getting the ball less than other teams because the D cannot get off the field. Finally, the takeaways are not coming as they did last year. Pittsburgh is middle-of-the-pack with 8 picks in 10 games, but is not forcing fumbles, and so they find themselves not getting short drives, easy points, or more opportunities. Not to lay all the team's worries on the defense, but when we look at Charlie Batch, Terrell Davis or Andre Rison we are not seeing issues there. When we look at the D, the same cannot be said. The D-Line of Moe gardner, Bob Kuberski, and Jeff Cross is just not keeping blockers off the linebackers. Erik Kumerow, Godfrey Miles, and Nate Webster are not getting any younger and are certainly not the type of speedy pursuers that a 3-4 needs. We think DeMetrius DuBose is still a top flight linebacker, but there is just not enough happening around him. Losing Bobby Taylor from the secondary has also not helped at all. Quintin Jones is not a true #1 corner, and Kareem Larrimore is best suited as a slot/nickel defender, rather than a #2. But, what perhaps is handcuffing Pittsburgh the most is that Patrick Surtain, who was so good last year, is just not playing with his head in the game this year. Far too many blown coverages, too few big plays, and too many short passes leading to broken tackles and longer gains. It is no one player's fault that Pittsburgh is at 2-8, but Coach Thomas has got to look at what he has, what he is trying to do defensively, and make some adjustments, because while it is not immediately apparent in the stats, the chain of cause and effect between a lackluster defensive showing, a lack of scoring, and a losing record is pretty clear. Our first official playoff standings for the year and just in time the Federals have jumped all the way up to the #1 seed. Their 4 game win streak has given them some tiebreakers that put them atop the pack of 7-3 clubs, just ahead of Orlando, with Ohio and Philadelphia trailing. In the West Denver is in prime position to snatch a #1 seed, while New Orleans and Seattle sit a game back. Right now 5-5 will get a Western team into the playoffs while at 6-4 Baltimore is currently out of the picture in the East. With 6 weeks left we expect a lot of change in these standings, but for now things are quite muddled, with even some 3-7 clubs having hope (though not much, really). Ten weeks into the season, so just 6 weeks left for teams to get all their contracts in order for those players about to become free agents. Of course, with a hard salary cap not every player on every team can be resigned. Some tough decisions will have to happen. Veterans let go to make room for younger players, underperforming stars possibly let go, young talent with potential simply squeezed out because other positions are a priority. It is a messy business, and so, as with each offseason, we can expect a good number of players, quality players, to change teams, often to change leagues, as teams must negotiate the cap, decide on priorities, and make tough choices. Looking at the positions and players that are currently in their contract years we see some big names and some budding talent. Which of these players will change locations, teams, or leagues? Which will be resigned over the next 6 weeks? For each club’s personnel departments, this is their playoffs, determining the future of their squads. Let’s take a look at the big names and big decisions ahead. Here is our round up of current contract year players yet to be extended. SECONDARY A lot of corners worth investing in, but not always a position that gets the respect it deserves, especially when there are 2 or more solid players on one squad. The big names potentially looking at the free agent market include Darrien Gordon (TBY), Bobby Taylor (PIT), Tyronne Legette (ATL), Vince Buck (LA), Ashley Ambrose (HOU), Aeneas Williams (ARZ) and Samari Rolle (TBY). Tampa cannot sign both of their top corners, so expect at least one to hit the market. Among safeties there are fewer big names coming up this year, but a few who could prove difficult to resign. Among the top names are Strong Safeties LeRoy Butler (ORL), Jason Sehorn (NJ), Sam Shade (PIT), and Eric McMillian (NJ). Again, with 2 very talented players at the same position, New Jersey will likely have to choose one over the other. In the Free Safety pool we find Darren Woodson (NOR), Joe King (DEN), Jerome Woods (PIT), Mike Prior (MGN), and Mark Carrier (JAX). Carrier, at 34, is a potential cap space victim, but we also see that Pittsburgh has a lot of players to sign and they may downplay the position, sending Woods into the pool. LINEBACKER As usual we see a lot of potential players over 30 in this pool, including Levon Kirkland in Seattle, Lamar Lathon in New Orleans, Cornelius Bennett in Birmingham, and Pat Swilling in Houston. Kirkland and Lathon will be top priorities for resigning, but we could see Bennett or Swilling being let go, especially if there is a change at the top of the organization in either city. Among the younger linebackers who could be squeezed out due to cap restrictions, we have some very talented players, including Kevin Mitchell (TBY), Kailee Wong (OAK), Randall Godfrey (ATL), and Chris Cowart (DEN). Youth often gets some priority, so it will be interesting to see if these clubs let up and coming players go. DEFENSIVE LINE While pass rushing DE’s are often a top priority to resign, in some cases it is the player who wants out. Will that be the case with some very talented edge rushers this year? Well, there are plenty on our list, and some are certainly not feeling the love with their current teams. Hugh Douglas may want out of Portland, and Santana Dotson never seems well-utilized in Tampa Bay, despite earning a ring with the Bandits. Chris Doleman will likely resign in Orlando (They would be fools to let him walk), but Renaldo Turnbull in Michigan, Mike Piel in Baltimore, or Simeon Rice in Chicago may opt to test the market. Defensive Tackle is a position where we often see teams try to just throw bodies at the position, letting top players go to afford other positions. That may mean that several of these players could relocate in 2001: Leon Lett (PHI), Sean Gilbert (CHI), Joel Steed (ORL), Jerry Ball (STL), Leonard Renfro (HOU), or Tim Johnson (OAK). Both Jerome Brown in Washington and John Randall in Baltimore are also on contract years, but we cannot imagine their clubs will let them test the waters. They are far to central to their clubs’ defensive schemes to let them go. OFFENSIVE LINE Other than left tackle, this is always a low priority for resigning, just the nature of the game. So, that means there may be guards, centers and even some right tackles on the market this year. Among Centers the biggest names are Bubba Miller (JAX), Mike Flanagan (BIR), Matt Elliott (BAL), and Brian Brauninger (NOR). There are even more guards potentially let loose, including Corbin Lacina (NJ), Todd Kaliss (HOU), Jesse Sapolo (SEA), and Matt O’Dwyer (JAX). When we look at the tackle position, we expect a lot of resignings, so don’t be surprised if Jermaine Mayberry is locked up by Texas, Herb Webster by the Portland Thunder, or Leon Searcy by Chicago. There may be a few mid-level guys available, such as LA’s Brian Williams, Denver’s Adam Meadows, and Birmingham’s Melvin Hayes, but as always we expect the RT’s to outpace the LT’s as far as free agent finds go. WIDE RECEIVER Always a big pool simply because each club has 6 or more and cannot resign everyone. Some may not be good fits for a new coach, or a new system, others may simply have worn out their welcome. Among the top level receivers potentially joining the free agent market we find Rocket Ismail (ARZ), Ed McCaffrey (OAK), Az Zahir-Hakeem (NOR), Brett Perriman (HOU), Keenan McCardell (ORL), and Robert Brooks (TBY). Others hope a relocation can provide them with more playing time or a move from the 3rd position to a starting job. Among those in this boat we find Kevin Dyson (PHI), Tamarick Vanover (DEN), Cedric Tillman (OHI), Patrick Rowe (JAX), and Darnay Scott (TEX). TIGHT END A tricky pool to predict. Will Philly really let Eric Green go? Will LA double down on Frank Wycheck? Can Dante Whittaker (ORL), Keth McKeller (BAL), or Steve Johnson (JAX) get a new deal despite all being in their 30’s? That all depends on how good the coaches and GMs feel about depth at the position. Tight End is a hard position to evaluate, and a lot depends on whether a coach wants a blocker who occasionally catches, or a receiver who will block on occasion. Get the wrong fit and even a top flight player can be let go. RUNNING BACK This is one where it is as often the player as the team who decides to forestall a contract and look for work elsewhere. We don’t expect Corey Dillon to look outside of Seattle, not now that the Dragons appear to be on a winning track, but can the same be said for Siran Stacy in Oakland, Ricky Watters in Chicago (where Duce Staley also needs to be resigned), or Reggie Cobb in Texas? Others who are far more likely to resign include Ahman Green (STL), Stephen Davis (PHI), and Dorsey Levins (ARZ), but we are not so sure about Darrell Thompson (stuck behind Eddie George in Ohio) or Rodney Thomas (challenged by rookie Shaun Alexander in Birmingham). QUARTERBACK A cavalcade of All-USFL players on this list. Doug Flutie, Bobby Hebert, Troy Aikman, Mark Brunell, Jake Plummer, Todd Collins, and Kelly Stouffer. Do we really expect any to move? That is very hard to picture, and yet it seems that every year we are surprised by at least one player who changes things up. With QB it is all about the coaching and the potential to maximize exposure, since the payscale is going to be solid whether the player stays or moves on. Look to the middle of the pack for more likely movement. Backups who want a shot at starting or players in unsettled positions. In that group we have Cary Conklin (OAK), Matt Hasselbeck (HOU), Bill Musgrave (DEN), Ray Lucas (CHI), Elvis Grbac (MGN) and Danny Wuerfel (JAX). We would not be surprised, with all the QB issues in the league, for someone to overpay based solely on potential with one of these signal callers. KICKERS & PUNTERS Never a high profile position, but one that can win or lose games for you. Among the kickers who may get a look from another team we find Ryan Longwell in St. Louis, John Carney in Chicago, and Brett Conway in Michigan (What is it about the Central Division?). The only punters likely to foster any type of market are Chris Moorman from Atlanta and Chris Hanson from LA. So, a lot of talent there, but, as always, expect at least 50% of these players to be signed by week 16, another group to resign in free agency, and maybe 30%-40% to shift around. Of course, with the NFL transfer window also a factor, you never know if the temptation will be too great for some players to resist taking a swim in the free agent market just to see if competition can increase their value. Week 11 is an interconference week with the coast-to-coast battle of Pacific clubs visiting the Atlantic while the Central Division travels to face Southern teams. Among the better matchups we see 8-2 New Orleans hoping to rebound but facing a feisty 5-5 Tampa Bay squad in Tampa. Another 5-5 club, Michigan, has a tough matchup as they head to Memphis to play the Showboats. Perhaps the most intriguing matchup of the week is Ohio hosting Seattle in a battle of 1995 expansion clubs that finally seem to have found their sea legs. In Philadelphia, the Stars will host the Denver Gold, with hopes of moving back into first place in the Atlantic. Could be a tough task, especially with Washington at home against a struggling Oakland squad. Baltimore hopes they can gain ground, but have to beware the upset as Portland has now tasted victory. In New Jersey the Generals hope to make it 2 wins in a row as they host the LA Express. Pittsburgh is at home against Arizona in a game the Wranglers certainly cannot afford to lose. We will also see two 4-6 clubs battle as Chicago, losers of 5 straight, visit Birmingham. Houston will be in Jacksonville to face an angry Bulls team after this week’s loss, and St. Louis will be the next team hoping to successfully put out the Fire as they head to Atlanta. Finally, Texas will visit Orlando, where the 7-3 Renegades are hoping to get one step closer to a division title.

Call it a changing of the guard, or just the cycle of success in a league with pretty frequent shifts of power, but what we are seeing this year is a movement. From Seattle to Philadelphia, with stops in New Orleans, Orlando, and Columbus, the balance of power appears to be shifting. Will it hold up all season, or will the predicted league leaders step up as the season draws to a close? Can the upstart Dragons, Breakers, and Glory really run away with their divisions or will clubs like Denver, St. Louis, Baltimore and Memphis retain their positions of power? This week's games seem to hint at a new era in the USFL, but is it all a mirage? Big games produce big performances, and that is what we got when the Seattle Dragons faced off against the St. Louis Knights on Saturday. Both defenses got a score on the day, both offenses put up plenty of points as well, and both clubs had a shot to win the game in the final minutes, but it was Seattle who eked out a road win to consolidate their position as a potential top seed in this year’s Western Conference playoffs. The game actually began with the home team looking formidable, shutting rookie QB Giovanni Carmazzi down on 3 drives while scoring twice in the opening period. It was the usual suspects, with Todd Collins hitting Bert Emmanuel for one score and then repeating with Amani Toomer on the end of his second TD toss. But, Seattle shifted gears in the 2nd period, scoring 20 points in the quarter. They started with a Mike Hollis field goal before two consecutive drives ended with Corey Dillon bulldozing the line for a short TD run. Dillon would not have his most productive day against the St. Louis front 7, but his 62 yards did include the scores that got Seattle back in the game. Seattle had a short-lived lead after Dillon’s second, but on their next possession Carmazzi made a fatal mistake, throwing in the middle of the field late in the play, a standard pro ball no-no. The ball was picked by Jerome Watkins and the speedy safety raced into the endzone to put St. Louis back on top. The quarter ended with another successful Seattle drive as Hollis got them back to within 1 at 21-20. In the third quarter the Dragon defense would pay back the earlier takeaway be St. Louis, with DE Steve Bates clipping Todd Collins as he threw. The lame duck fluttered in the air before being snatched up by Seattle’s Stephen Boyd, who followed a caravan of Dragons to the end zone. Seattle was back on top 26-21 as the 2-point conversion failed. In the 4th, St. Louis would again take the lead, with Collins finding Toomer a second time. Toomer would finish the day with receptions for 83 yards and the two scores as Todd Collins went 27 of 40 for 336. With 8:38 left to play the Knights held a slim 3-point lead. Seattle would take their next drive nice and slow, using 14 plays to get the ball into the endzone, this time faking the ball to Dillon, Carmazzi found WR David Boston in the back of the endzone for the score. Two minutes exactly on the clock and St. Louis now down by 4. The Knights would get the ball on a touchback, and with Collins alternating throws to Emmanuel, TE Reggie Kelly and HB Ahman Green, soon the Knights were in Seattle territory. 1:15 left and only 27 yards from paydirt. Collins hit FB Sammy Morris on a swing pass, but Morris slipped and could not get out of bounds. With only 1 TO left, Collins raced the team to the line, and while what he did was not a spike, the incompletion on 2nd down served the same purpose, stopping the clock with 38 seconds to play. Third down saw Collins try for Kelly in the middle of the field. He would overthrow the big man and bring up a desperate 4th and 4. On the key play the Knights isolated Emmanuel one-on-one with 3 receivers on the opposite side of the field. Collins looked immediately for Emamnuel, but the short hook was not there so he turned to Kelly again. The big TE had a step on the coverage, but the ball glanced off his hands and harmlessly to the turf. Seattle had survived and would go home with a vital conference win, their 7th win in 9 games. For St. Louis, the loss, paired New Orleans’s easy victory over Portland meant that the Knights were now 3 games behind the Breakers in the division, a division they had expected to win once again. ARZ 35 TEX 31 Another example of Jake Plummer taking a team on his back in what may well be an MVP year for the Wrangler signal caller. Texas had this game won at 31-14 after 3 quarters, but Jake Plummer ran in his 2nd rushing TD and threw for two more scores in the final period to upend the Outlaws in the AlamoDome. He would finish with Player of the Week numbers, only 195 yards passing (with 2 TDs), but 127 yards rushing on 10 carries, including 2 scores and a 68 yard crazy scramble that just had to drive Outlaws fans out of their minds. DEN 20 CHI 14 Chicago loses another tight one as they fell behind 20-7 and just could not come back on that solid Denver defense. Rashaan Salaam was held to only 65 yards rushing before leaving the game with a sore ankle. Duce Staley outgained him with 71 yards and a score for Chicago but Denver still got the W. JAX 20 MEM 24 A great battle between two very good Southern Division squads, with Heath Shuler throwing for 3 scores in the 2nd quarter to help the Showboats take over the game. Jacksonville was game but even Sedrick Irvin’s 99 yards rushing could not get them all the way back as Chris Chandler threw a costly INT in the game’s final moments. ORL 20 TBY 9 Another big Southern rivalry game as Orlando held Tampa Bay to only 3 field goals, sacking Troy Aikman a painful 7 times, 3 from Chris Doleman. Aikman still managed to throw for 306 yards, but no touchdowns as Orlando kept the deep ball from hurting them. ATL 17 BIR 30 The Fire continued to struggle with Marc Bulger under center and Birmingham just spend the day slowly building a lead and expanding it over the course of 4 quarters. Atlanta’s D kept the game close for a while, but they just could not generate much on offense and Birmingham wore them down, with Marcus Robinson the pivotal target for Favre, with 108 yards and a score. OAK 41 MGN 13 Oakland backs up their upset of Baltimore by going to Michigan and just laying it to the Panthers. Apparently the anger that recent games have produced in Oakland is being directed to the opposition now. Troy Davis scored the first 3 TDs of the game as Oakland flew out of the gate to a 21-0 lead and never looked back. Stacy and Davis combined for 137 yards rushing and Leaf threw for 329 as the Invaders won their second in a row despite Natrone Means shredding them for 132 yards rushing. LA 17 HOU 40 Another huge upset, this time in Houston, where the Gamblers finally found some offense, much to LA’s chagrin. Mario Greer, stepping in for a dinged up Kevin Faulk, found all kinds of holes on his way to a 121 yard rushing day, adding 2 scores along the way. Matt Hasselbeck also had his best game, completing 14 of 26 for 220 and 2 scores before bowing out late in the blowout. Tory Holt had 4 catches for 134 yards but it was not nearly enough as LA got smoked in the Dome. POR 3 NOR 27 No upset magic for the Thunder, who fall to 0-9. Akili Smith got knocked out of the game and that sent John Stark in to play. Needless to say, not much happened for the Portland offense. Meanwhile Ricky Williams had a solid 20 carry, 101 yard day and Bobby Hoying used play action to complete 14 of 22 for 167 and 2 scores as New Orleans just keeps rolling along. BAL 6 WSH 24 Both defenses came after the opposing QBs, but despite suffering 7 sacks, Scott Zolak got the better of the matchup with Trent Green. Green was picked off twice while Zolak threw for 2 scores. This may just be the game that forces Coach Infante to go with Garcia as Baltimore loses their third in a row since Green’s return from injury. NJ 23 OHI 59 Well, at least it was not a nailbiter as Ohio simply lays the lumber to the Generals. Both Eddie George and Darrell Thompson scored 2 TDs as the two combined for 170 yards rushing and 4 scores against the completely pliant General defense. Kerry Collins played only 3 quarters and threw for 3 scores in this blowout win for Ohio. PHI 27 PIT 14 Philly kept pace with the Glory by knocking off the Maulers in Three Rivers. Stephen Davis had a solid day with 21 carries for 91 yards while both Troy Brown and Bobby Engram scored on Hebert TD throws. Andre Rison had a good day for Pittsburgh with 147 yards and 2 scores, but it was not enough as the Maulers fall to 2-7. Some significant injuries this week, one which could be a career ending situation. Well, that may be a bit dramatic, but Ernest Givens being placed on IR with a Posterior Cruciate tear is quite possibly the last he will play in the USFL. We have been expecting a retirement notification honestly for the past 2 years, and this injury, with its lengthy recovery time, could just be the thing to push Ernest into retirement. No official word yet, and likely not until training camp next February, but we would not be shocked if he calls it a career. Only one other player who is likely out for the rest of the year, Orlando fullback Chris Fuamatu-Ma’afalu has a broken arm that will require a cast and rehab. There are positions where a player could play with an arm cast, especially lower arm as Chris F-M needs, but fullback is not one of them. While it is not officially a season-ender, Akili Smith’s collarbone injury is almost certainly going to be 4-6 weeks, and we simply don’t expect the young QB to come back and assume a starting role. Rick Mirer is healthy again and will likely start the rest of the year, though Portland did bring in a veteran backup as well (see below) so Smith is almost certainly done for the year and the club will have to re-evaluate for next year. Other injuries of note include Birmingham HB Charlie Rogers, lost for at least a month with an elbow injury, Texas HB Reggie Cobb, who could miss 2 to 4 weeks with a foot injury that is proving difficult to isolate. Arizona DT Jason Peter cracked his jaw in some post-play shenanigans and could miss 1, maybe 2 weeks (and will likely get fined as well). Washington will be without Herman Moore, who is dealing with back spasms. They hope to have him back in 2 weeks after taking this next week off. Finally, New Jersey wideout Wayne Chrebet is dealing with some tendon damage in his meniscus, and that could cost him a game or two. TRANSACTIONS POR: place QB Akili Smith on IR, sign QB Timm Rosenbach BIR: places WR E. Givens on IR, sign J. Armour ORL: places FB on IR, sign FB Tim. Johnson TEX: signs CB Rickey Parker NJ: trades QB Spence Fischer & TE Chris Gedney to ATL ATL: trades QB Eric Zeier and DT Darwin Walker to NJ. NJ: signs TE Patrick Hape ATL: signs DT Tim Morabito FISCHER OUT IN NEW JERSEY Desperate to make some moves and do something to improve the defense, the Generals did finally trade away a pretty solid QB in Spence Fischer, along with TE Chris Gedney. The pair will be heading to Atlanta, who also sends a disgruntled QB back to New Jersey in the form of UGA alum Eric Zeier, but the big prize for New Jersey is defensive tackle Darwin Walker, who is expected to move into the starting lineup almost immediately. Zeier has been languishing in the 3rd QB slot, inactive in most games, behind Aaron Brooks and rookie Marc Bulger, while Spence Fischer has been listed as the backup in New Jersey behind Jeff Lewis. This is likely a swap-in-kind deal in that Zeier is unlikely to challenge Lewis, who has played well for New Jersey despite their woeful record on the year. He may also find himself with a 3rd string designation again as Coach Schottenheimer has liked the development of rookie QB Tom Brady from Michigan. Walker is the big win for New Jersey, and should help their last-rated defense. For Atlanta, they get a veteran who can bring some calm to the quarterback room, and they also nab a solid contributor in TE Chris Gedney, who could move into the 2-TE formations right away. A solid trade for both parties as New Jersey needed offensive help and Atlanta was desperate to get help on offense. In the wake of the trade, both clubs also backfilled their roster, with New Jersey signing TE Patrick Hape to replace the traded Chris Gedney, and Atlanta adding veteran DT Tom Morabito to add depth to their defensive line rotation. Neither player is expected to start, but both should participate in some formations or rotations within their position groups. ERNEST GIVENS MAY BE DONE FOR GOOD We mentioned it above, but it deserves noting that if things play out as many expect, Ernest Givens may have played his last game in the USFL. Givens has had several injury plagued years in his last few seasons, having not played in a full 16 games since the 1997 season. Givens’s season ends with only 5 games played, 32 receptions for 512 yards. If this is the end of his storied 15-year career, he will retire as one of the league’s most prolific receivers with over 1,500 receptions and 16,250 yards. A near certain Hall of Fame candidate who just a year ago had his 8th 1,000 yard season, gainin 1,177 yards with 6 TDs in only 12 games. In the short term, Birmingham has signed receiver Justin Armour, but expect to see the primary impact being a shift for Marcus Robinson outside to Givens’s position, while Lawrence Dawsey maintains his usual spot as the flanker. Long term, don’t be surprised to see Birmingham hit WR hard in the draft or sign a potential slot receiver, moving Robinson outside permanently. AKILI SMITH TO IR, PORTLAND SIGNS ROSENBACH OUT OF RETIREMENT Well, never let it be said that the Thunder are not inventive in how they deal with team roster needs. With Akili Smith likely done for the season with a broken collarbone, and with Rick Mirer also having some injury issues, the Thunder needed an answer at QB, a 2nd option just in case Mirer went down again. They could have tried to make a deal for Fischer, or asked in Houston about Hartlieb. They could have found a young free agent, but they went the opposite way, bringing a player back from retirement. Timm Rosenbach, who has played for 4 USFL franchises over his career, was out of football for the past 16 months, but answered the call when Portland rang him up. Rosenbach has always been a bit of a loose cannon, but he does have arm talent, and a lot of experience. Of course the Thunder hope that Rick Mirer, who has been with the club all season since signing from the NFL, will be healthy and ready to go, but if he needs to be subbed at any time, bringing in a veteran presence like Rosenbach may not be a bad deal. Well, we have hit midseason, which means we start to see rollouts from the league’s uniform providers of looks that will be in place for the following year. The first team to roll out a new look is a team that seems to be in an optimistic upswing altogether, the Ohio Glory. Reebok and the Glory released the team’s new look this week as part of a midweek pep rally preceding their big game against Jacksonville. While a lot will remain the same with the Glory, there are a few interesting tweaks for the 2001 look. Ohio is adding a secondary logo to go with their “eagle & banner” primary, it is a map of the state of Ohio, with a draped blue, red & white banner that places a star right about where Columbus lies in the state. This new secondary does not appear on the uniform itself, but the banner pattern of star and striping is a prominent feature of the uniform. The uniform will feature the same blue helmet, blue and white jerseys and blue and white pant sets, but with some new elements. Firstly, the jersey will have a shoulder and sleeve yoke that is predominantly blue, with white piping, which means the yoke appears as only two thin blue lines on the dark jersey, while it has a full blue shoulder/sleeve treatment on the away whites. Mid-sleeve there will be a series of three stripes, red-white-red, to break up the yoke. This is the same pattern as we see on the new secondary logo and in the ribbon of the primary. The pants do something a bit innovative, eschewing the traditional vertical striping of most teams and going with a star and 3-stripe angled horizontal stripe at mid-thigh. Again, this pattern of a star above 3 stripes parallels the new secondary logo. On the White pants, this is contained within a wide blue vertical stripe, while on the blue pants the angled horizontal stripes stand alone on the blue background. The team is also changing fonts, with a more “Colonial” font being used for the lettering and a more rounded, smoother font for the numbers. The new-ish “U” logo for the league will be included as a patch on the front of the left shoulder, and the Reebok symbol, as with all teams, appears on the sleeve cuffs and the right front hip, with the USFL logo on the left front hip. Here, below, is the new uniform design sheet. A sharp look if you ask me. Week 10 brings the Western Conference into divisional play with some big games that will start to impact our first playoff board next week. New Orleans has a 3-game lead on the field as they face the St. Louis Knights. A win and they all but guarantee themselves the division title. Michigan and Chicago are both 4-5 and cannot afford to lose as they face off against Texas and Houston respectively. In the Pacific, the upstart Oakland Invaders face a tough test as the Denver Gold are in town. Seattle is hosting LA and a loss by the Express could be fatal as it would drop them to 4-6. Arizona is hoping they can take advantage of the Portland Thunder’s hospitality to move to 6-4 and solidly in playoff contention. In the Eastern Conference it is time for the Southern teams to head north to face the Atlantic. Memphis will be tested as they face that explosive Ohio offense in front of what may be the biggest crowd in the Glory’s short history. Orlando also has a tough task as they face the 7-2 Stars and that rowdy Philadelphia crowd. Birmingham is not out of It at 4-5, but need to pull off a win in Baltimore, and we are still waiting to hear who the QB will be for the Blitz. Jacksonville has what looks like an easier task, going to New Jersey to face the 1-8 Generals, while Tampa Bay is in Pittsburgh to face the Maulers and the Atlanta Fire will face that brutal Washington defense in RFK.

Midseason is here and while there are a lot of questions to go around, some things seem sure. Denver has a pretty good defense, evident in their shut out win over Pittsburgh. New Orleans may do just fine without Dilfer, especially with the D they are putting out there. Portland is not going to score on anyone. New Jersey is going to play hard but to no avail. And, don’t count out the Stallions or the Bandits as long as they have those offensive weapons. But, the first thing we have learned is that the USFL is damn near impossible to predict. Whether that is the sudden rise of clubs like New Orleans or Ohio, or the upset games, like the one we saw this week, where an angry Oakland squad just vented all their frustration on the usually tough Baltimore Blitz. We did not see that coming. Not the closest game of the week, we had overtime in Chicago for that, but one of the most dramatic, and most unanticipated shootouts in a long time. Baltimore came in as a prohibitive favorite, 8 points despite playing on the road. Their defense appeared well-suited to shut down a floundering Invader offense. Meanwhile Oakland seemed a team on the brink of disaster. Infighting had appeared to divide the locker room, Coach Capers had not yet been able to bring discipline to the squad, and the signing of a potential rival for QB Ryan Leaf could either motivate the temperamental 3rd year starter or lead him right off the cliff. It is no surprise that many people expected a bloodbath. What we got instead was a game where Oakland stayed close, then got huge plays from their defense to take a late lead, but had to hang on for dear life in the game’s final minutes. What we got was a game that Baltimore could not afford to lose, but one Oakland needed to win, and in the end the Invaders pulled off the big upset. The game started much as anticipated, Baltimore took the opening kickoff and in only 7 plays had a score on the board with Ron Dayne running it in from 6 yards out. After two short drives ending in punts, Oakland found an answer, with Ryan Leaf connecting with rookie Plaxico Burress for an Invader TD to take the game into the 2nd quarter tied at 7. Baltimore again took the lead, this time thanks to the right foot of Martin Grammatica, and again we saw both defenses play well, leading to several fruitless drives before Oakland got the ball back with 2:02 left and put a no huddle offense into motion for the 2-minute drill. The lack of substitutions hurt Baltimore, and when Leaf hit Ed McCaffrey for a score, the Invaders went into the locker room up 4, a surprise 14-10 leader at the half. The third quarter saw both clubs trade scores, and again 2 lead changes as Baltimore got on the board thanks to a Mike Cloud run, followed almost immediately with Leaf hitting on his third and final TD of the day, a 21 yard beauty to TE Carlester Crumpler. Baltimore was shocked to find themselves down 21-17 after 3 quarters. Oakland added to that lead with a Nedney Field Goal, and Baltimore, which had seen good success running the ball with Ron Dayne (21 carries for 129 yards) now started to shift gears, trying to score quickly. They did on their next drive, one almost completely based on Trent Green throws, as Green hit speedy Tim Dwight for the game tying score. Oakland could do nothing in response and after a 3-and-out, punted the ball back to Baltimore. But things were about to go south for the Blitz in a big way. On his first play from scrimmage on their next drive, Trent Green tried to hit Cam Cleeland with a short crosser but it was tipped at the line and Oakland’s Kailee Wong snatched it out of the air, rushing to the corner and crossing into the endzone to put Oakland up by 7. The Green mistake was compounded on the next drive, when the Blitz QB tried to force a ball to Tim Dwight and CB Aaron Beasley was there. He jumped the route, caught the errant pass, and raced 45 yards for the second consecutive pick-six for the Invader defense. Baltimore was now down 14 with only 4:41 left to play. They would need to play some desperate ball. After the kickoff, Baltimore tried to move the ball quickly, but a holding penalty forced them into a 3rd and 18, and they could not convert, choosing to punt rather than try a long 4th down play. The punt was shanked and only traveled 23 yards, giving Oakland the ball in Baltimore territory. Rather than sit on the lead, they went deep right away, and Leaf found a willing and able target in Plaxico Burress. In one play they made it to the Baltimore 2 yard line. One play later Siran Stacy had boosted the lead to 21. A stunned Blitz club could be seen just jaws agape on the sideline. They were down 21 to a team that had proven an easy W for so many other clubs. The offense came back onto the field trying to do the impossible. Oakland went to a soft zone defense and that allowed Baltimore to move the ball and eventually get a Tim Dwight TD to pull within 14. A successful onside kick put some fear in the Invaders, who tightened up the coverages and forced Baltimore to move the ball more slowly, burning timeouts along the way. The Blitz would score again with just a few ticks on the clock, but it was too little too late. Oakland had on a home game in front of a semi-hostile crowd of only 21,827, but it was a win. Baltimore had let one get away from them, and now fell out of a 3-way tie for first in the Atlantic. It would not take long for fans to blame Green and start clamoring on sports talk radio for Jeff Garcia to return to action. We doubt Coach Infante hears them as he has clearly stuck with Green whenever the IU grad has been healthy, but the Blitz cannot afford more of what they got this week. PIT 0 DEN 31 What Pittsburgh got this week was humiliated. They ran into an absolute buzzsaw at Mile High as the Gold limited them to only 229 total yards while racking up 425 themselves. Rashaan Salaam rushed 21 times for 96 yards and Mark Brunell completed 15 of his 17 pass attempts as Denver controlled the clock, the ball, the field position, and the scoreboard in an embarrassing game for the Maulers. PHI 26 ARZ 24 A good game in the desert as the Stars needed a final minute field goal to upend the homestanding Wranglers. New Wrangler Dorsey Levins got the bulk of the carries for Arizona, gaining 41 yards on 12 carries, while Jake Plummer contributed only 4 rushes but threw for 312 yards and 3 touchdowns. Philly had a strong day from backup Pat Chaffey as Stephen Davis was dinged up after only a couple of carries. Chaffey gained 84 yards on 24 carries, about 3 times his normal load, but a huge help to the 6-2 Stars. NJ 16 SEA 19 I think we are all beginning to feel bad for the Generals. Every week they are so close and every week they come up short. Curtis Enis was able to match Corey Dillon, 113 yards to 119, and Jeff Lewis played about as well as Brian Griese, but the kicking game failed the Generals. Neil Rackers, the new Generals kicker after Vinatieri bolted to the NFL, missed on a 51-yarder early and a 38 yarder late in agonizing fashion, while Seattle’s Mike Hollis was good on 4 field goal attempts for the Dragons, and that got them the win at home. MEM 26 TEX 23 Another hard luck team, Texas once again fell in a game they had kept close throughout. Memphis got a late field goal form Jeff Hall to go up 26-15, and while Texas was able to get a final minute TD, they still trailed and could not recover the onside kick. The star for Memphis was CB Fred Weary, who ties the league lead with a pick of Kelly Stouffer in this one. TBY 43 STL 22 Tampa Bay took their show on the road and the change of pace seems to have helped them as they got their offense looking a lot like the 1998 league title squad, scoring 5 TDs on the Knights’ defense. Aikman threw only 19 passes, completing 11, but 3 were for scores, including a 46-yarder to Moss and a 48-yarder to Brooks as the deep ball was a huge part of the gameplan for the Bandits. St. Louis kept pace at first, but when Todd Collins went out with a possible concussion, Rob Johnson struggled to keep the offense on the field. The result was a 21 point loss and a big road win for the Bandits. BIR 35 HOU 21 Houston did a decent job of pressuring Favre (4 sacks, 8 hurries) and Matt Hasselbeck did not play poorly (18 of 37 for 230 yards and a score) but it was just not enough as Favre was able to play pitch and catch with Lawrence Dawsey (7 for 143 and a score) and rookie Shaun Alexander looked good, rushing for 72 yards and a score as Birmingham pulled away late. ORL 24 MGN 20 Orlando had the Panthers’ number on this date, forcing 2 turnovers and holding Natrone Means to a reasonable 64 yards on 25 carries. Scott Mitchell threw for 307 and three scores, including 2 to wideout Keenan McCardell as the Renegades win the close one to move to 5-3. ATL 3 NOR 37 We don’t know what to tell Coach Petrino in Atlanta. It is just not working out, and certainly not when they face a defense that has still not allowed 100 total points this season. Atlanta gained only 160 total yards as Tiki Barber was held to 2.6 yards per carry, Marc Bulger was sacked 4 times, and New Orleans needed very little form Bobby Hoying to win this one. Az-Zahir Hakeem’s 102-yard kickoff return for a score would have been enough. JAX 23 CHI 20 OT The only overtime game of the week saw Chicago take Jacksonville to the limit before the Bulls pulled out the 3-point win with a Kris Brown kick in the extra period. Sedrick Irvin returned to action, but looked tentative, rushing for only 20 yards on the day. That forced Chris Chandler to carry the load, and his 2 TD- 2 Int game helped Chicago stay in it. The Bulls needed a Brown FG to send the game to overtime, and they added another to win the game, but this one was a close call for the Southern Division leaders. WSH 17 POR 10 The Federals got wet in the Portland rain, but got the win they needed, thanks mostly to a combined 134 yards rushing from Barry Word and rookie Reuben Droughns. Portland’s D played well, picking off Scott Zolak twice, but Akili Smith again struggled to move the ball or put points on the board. Webster Slaughter left the game early with an apparent hip injury, and Napoleon Kaufmann rushed for only 35 yards as the Federals shut down Portland’s attempt for a late comeback. OHI 38 LA 14 A big win for the Glory in this battle of 1995 expansion clubs. Eddie George had a monster day, rushing for 162 and a score as Ohio just kept pounding the ball and using play action to keep Kerry Collins upright against the LA pass rush. Cade McNown struggled a bit, completing only 13 of 31 passes and suffering 2 picks in the game. The loss pushes LA to 4-4, while Ohio is still co-leading the Atlantic at 6-2. A better week across the league, but not without some impactful injuries. Seattle took the biggest hit as they may be without QB Brian Griese for up to 6-8 weeks (the entire regular season) after Griese injured his ankle as he ran out of bounds and into a bench. Seattle is expected to promote Giovanni Carmazzi to starter and will likely move their other rookie QB, Tee Martin, from the practice squad to have 3 active (along with John Walsh), but with the Dragons in the heat of a playoff hunt, what if Carmazzi struggles? Will they seek another option, a Spence Fisher or Chuck Hartlieb perhaps? Texas will be shorthanded on defense as starting corner Jerome Henderson is out for the year after suffering a torn posterior cruciate on his left knee. In Atlanta, wideout Hart Lee Dikes could be out 1-3 weeks after separating his shoulder, while in Jacksonville Defensive Rookie of the Year candidate Lavar Arrington, will likely be out this week as he is listed as Questionable with a wrist injury. Finally, as we mentioned earlier, Webster Slaughter, the venerable receiver in Portland, looks to be out only a week, maybe two, with a hip stinger. For the Midseason Report we thought we would bypass our usual division between game-related stories and other “Around the League” news, to really focus on where each team stands at the halfway point of they year. We will take a brief peak at each club, what is working well, what is not going as planned, and what they might do in the second half. This will be followed by our revised picks for the 12 playoff teams and the eventual champion. ATLANTIC OHIO GLORY (6-2, 3-1 in division) POSITIVES: The Glory have been outperforming expectations to be sure. Thei offense in particular has been much stronger than anticipated (2nd in the league in points per game). This is mostly due to the success of Eddie George, who is on pace for 1,400 yards this year, by far his best season. Joey Galloway has become king of the deep ball, averaging nearly 30 yards per catch. The defense has also been better than advertised (5th in the league) including 5th against the pass. NEGATIVES: The rush defense still struggles, 22nd in the league at nearly 134 yards a game. That could play a factor as teams try to keep the ball away from the Glory offense. Kerry Collins is playing well, but his reliance on the deep ball means a lot of 3rd downs end up in 4th down punts. WHAT’S AHEAD?: We don’t see Ohio changing much of what has worked so far, though it would not hurt if they could be more effective against the run, especially with Terrell Davis, Ron Dayne, Stephen Davis, Curtis Enis, and Barry Word all in their division. REVISED PICK: They are tied for first right now, but we see Baltimore coming on, so we are going to say 11-5 and 2nd place. PHILADELPHIA STARS (6-2, 3-1 in division) POSITIVES: So much has gone right for the Stars this year, but we think the big win was with Jim Mora Jr.. He wanted to bring a new culture to the Stars and it seems that he has everyone on board, from newly acquired players to old veterans, the Stars are playing like a team. They are not the best in the league in anything, but they are playing well in all three phases. NEGATIVES: The Stars’ defense is middle-of-the-pack, and that could be a problem down the stretch as the intensity increases. They have a good balance of run & pass but are not truly explosive on offense, so beware of shootouts late in the year. WHAT’S AHEAD?: If Philly could add 1 more piece on defense, a true cover corner, they could be very dangerous, but getting a high quality corner out of another squad mid-year seems unlikely. REVISED PICK: We like what we see building in Philly, but we are not fully sold that they can keep up this run of good performances. We pick them to finish 3rd at 10-6 and earn a Wild Card. BALTIMORE BLITZ (5-3, 3-1 in division) POSITIVES: The Blitz live and die with defensive strength and a clock-killing offense. They currently rank 4th in yards allowed, including a 2nd place rating against the run, and they are one of the best clubs in time of possession, so the formula is working. NEGATIVES: That loss to Oakland is troubling because everything we say about Balitmore failed to appear in that game. It represents a 2nd straight loss and a 2nd straight game in which they have given up more than 30 points. That is worrisome, to say the least. WHAT’S AHEAD?: Baltimore needs to settle on a QB. We think Coach Infante is satisfied with Trent Green, but his 3-pick game against Oakland is making the fanbase antsy. Expect them to turn up their blitzing as well after seeing what Ryan Leaf did to their defense this week. REVISED PICK: We still like Baltimore’s depth, or maybe we are just stubborn. We see them going 6-2 in the second half, tying Ohio at 11-5 and winning the division as originally predicted. WASHINGTON FEDERALS (5-3, 3-1 in division) POSITIVES: The Federals have regained some swagger on defense this year, having kept 6 of 8 opponents under 20 points. They rank 2nd in the league in both points and yards allowed. That has been the formula that has won them titles in the past. NEGATIVES: Losing Kordell Stewart early in the year has been rough. He is expected back for a lat season playoff run, but how ready will he be? While Scott Zolak has not been a disaster, his game is not as dynamic as Stewart’s and that puts more on Barry Word and rookie Reuben Droughns to carry the offense. WHAT’S AHEAD?: A lot depends on when Stewart can return and how he will perform when he does. The pieces are there to possibly make a late bid for the division if Stewart can be 100% when he gets back on the field. REVISED PICK: In another division, we could see Washington coming all the way back but even only 1 game back right now, we think a 4-4 finish could be about what Washington might expect, putting them at 9-7 and on the bubble for a playoff spot. PITTSBURGH MAULERS (2-6, 0-4 in division) POSITIVES: For a team seen as a championship darkhorse, not a lot has gone as planned. Despite an offense designed around 1999 rushing champion Terrell Davis, Pittsburgh is currently 20th in the league in rush yards. So, a positive, well, the run defense is still very solid (4th in the league) so that is a good place to start. NEGATIVES: A longer list. The offense has not been scoring (19th in the league), and Terrell Davis is facing 8 or 9-man fronts every down since few teams respect Charlie Batch to get the job done. The defense, while good against the run, is giving up 330 yards a game passing. That is worst in the league and that means teams don’t need to run to win against the Maulers. WHAT’S AHEAD?: Pittsburgh was simply not the club we expected, and Charlie Batch may not be the long term answer for the offense. The Maulers need to get more pressure against the passer, and need to do a better job protecting Batch or they will continue to flounder. REVISED PICK: At 2-6, and without a divisional win, things look bleak. We think a 3 or 4 win second half is about all they can hope for, putting them around 6-10 for the year. NEW JERSEY GENERALS (1-7, 0-4 in division) POSITIVES: Curtis Enis is having a solid season, on pace for 1,200-1,300 yards, so you have that. You also have a club that is playing hard for Coach Schottenheimer. They have lost games by 3, 5, 2, 3, 7 and 8 points. All were within range, but all slipped away. So a few breaks their way and they could be in a much different situation. NEGATIVES: Despite playing hard, the Generals are currently the worst team in the league in points allowed, roughly 30 per game. You are not going to win many games that way. Coach Schottenheimer recently took over defensive play calling, which we think could help a little, but what the Generals need is to boost the talent level on the defensive side of the ball. WHAT’S AHEAD?: New Jersey has a brutal schedule the rest of the way, with LA, Jacksonville, St. Louis, and Orlando on the schedule along with tough divisional games. That is going to make things look bad for them. REVISED PICK: Honestly, if they can get to 4 wins this year, that would be a major accomplishment. Fans are already eyeing over Class of 2001 draftees in search of the next Lawrence Taylor or Reggie White. SOUTHERN JACKSONVILLE BULLS (6-2, 4-0 in division) POSITIVES: The Bulls were picked to maybe go 8-8 and be a longshot for a Wild Card, but Coach Cunningham has found some magic with this squad. They have gone 4-0 in division including impressive wins against Tampa, Orlando and Memphis. They have 2 losses, a 3 pointer to Arizona on opening week, and a weird 3 point loss to Pittsburgh. This could easily be an 8-0 squad at this point. They are top 6 in both scoring and scoring defense and have looked very much a contender in each game. NEGATIVES: Sedrick Irvin continues to struggle with nagging injuries (currently a groin) and while Kenny Bynum’s 391 yards rushing in relief has been great, he is not a long term answer. 2nd year DE Jevon Kearse was expected to produce a lot of QB pressure, but has only 3 sacks at the halfway point of the year. More from him would be a huge help down the stretch. WHAT’S AHEAD?: A huge game with Memphis next week, and then an up and down end to the year, but the Bulls seem ready for all takers. REVISED PICK: We are going to admit that we did not see this coming, but that we are getting on the Bull bandwagon. We will say 12-4 and the #1 seed for this solid club. ORLANDO RENEGADES (5-3, 3-1 in division) POSITIVES: Orlando has grown into the season thanks to a solid defense and a surprisingly effective passing game. It surprises many to see that Orlando is #2 in the league in passing yards, but 2nd year wideout Donald Driver is becoming one of the toughest receivers in the game to cover. Add in effective receiving backs and solid TE play and you have a pretty balanced offense. NEGATIVES: Orlando has a solid defense, and Chris Doleman has to be gameplanned every week, but they still give up nearly 330 yards a game on defense. WHAT’S AHEAD?: Orlando faces both Jacksonville and Memphis in the season’s final 3 weeks, and those 2 games are likely to determine their final position both in the division and the playoff race. REVISED PICK: We like Orlando, but we don’t love them to do something like run the table. Another 5-3 half seems possible, so we put them at 10-6 and a Wild Card. MEMPHIS SHOWBOATS (5-3, 2-2 in division) POSITIVES: Don’t look now, but the Showboats have won 3 in a row, including a huge win in Tampa. Top 10 in both scoring and points against, this is not a one-dimensional club any more. Heath Shuler is not putting up MVP numbers, but he is doing what the club needs to win. In a similar vein, without Reggie White, the pass rush is not the same, but the defense is finding ways to get to the QB in new ways. NEGATIVES: While things look good for the Showboats, they are dead last in rushing per game, with Garrison Hearst averaging only slightly better than 60 yards a game. Depth may also be an issue as Memphis seems to depend very heavily on just a few playmakers. WHAT’S AHEAD?: Next week’s clash with Jacksonville will tell us a lot. The Showboats also travel to both Birmingham and Seattle, and also face Orlando and Baltimore in the final 2 weeks, so their path to a division title is not an easy one. REVISED PICK: That tough schedule is why we have Memphis finishing 10-6 and nabbing a Wild Card. TAMPA BAY BANDITS (4-4, 1-3 in division) POSITIVES: A lot of the positives for Tampa Bay are potential positives. They have so much talent on offense, we just cannot figure out where the magic of 1998 has gone (It cannot all be the loss of TE Ben Coates). Tampa Bay has solid talent at all the skill positions, at least on offense. NEGATIVES: The defense is a concern. They are 18th in points allowed, 19th in yards allowed, and 23rd in passing yards allowed. Santana Dotson has a solid 8 sacks, but seems to be on an island with a defense that simply does not get off the field quickly enough. WHAT’S AHEAD?: We think anything beyond another 4-4 half is tough to see. Tampa should be looking to trade for more defensive playmakers, but that may not happen until the offseason. REVISED PICK: We are going to say 4-4 again, so an 8-8 finish, which will not make fans happy along the Gulf Coast. BIRMINGHAM STALLIONS (3-5, 0-4 in division) POSITIVES: Brett Favre is still Brett Favre, and there is a lot of talent in that receiving corps. Rodney Thomas has been a great free agent acquisition, and the offense is more balanced than in past seasons with him in the game. NEGATIVES: Well, first off, Thomas is now out for the year, and Birmingham is not sure what they have in rookie Shaun Alexander. The offense is fine, but the defense continues to struggle despite the arrival of Deion Sanders. Birmingham is 17th in points allowed, in large part due to far too many short or fast drives leading to a tired defense at the end of games. WHAT’S AHEAD?: Road games against Baltimore, Arizona and Tampa will not be easy for this club, andthen you add home tilts against Memphis and Jacksonville and that could easily be another 5 losses in the 2nd half. REVISED PICK: 7-9 may be the best we can expect unless that defense finds its way quickly. ATLANTA FIRE (2-6, 2-2 in division) POSITIVES: Um, well…I guess…not a lot. Is that fair to say? We can say that the defense is not horrid, 12th in points allowed and 12th in rushing, so midling. NEGATIVES: Ugh, that offense!! 24th in points, in yards, and in passing yards at 148.9 per game. Yup, less than 150 yards a game passing. That, in this league in particular, is not going to get the job done. Coach Petrino has alternated between Bulger and Brooks, but neither seems to show enough to merit starting full time. Add in a mediocre season from Tiki Barber and this offense is in big trouble. WHAT’S AHEAD?: More pain and more losses, we expect. A big week 13 showdown with Portland could go a long way to determining draft order, if that is something you want to talk about. REVISED PICK: 5 wins would be a boon right now. But when we look at their schedule, the game against Portland may be their only solid chance to get another W this year. CENTRAL NEW ORLEANS BREAKERS (7-1, 4-0 in division) POSITIVES: What can we say? We were wrong about this club. What Mike Nolan has done is astounding. The Breakers enter midseason with both the #1 scoring offense and the #1 defense. They are first in both points allowed at a measly 10.5 per game, and in yards, with an equally impressive 228.2 allowed. They have been dominant on both sides of the ball. NEGATIVES: The injury to Trent Dilfer is hugely deflating. While we expect the defense to continue to excel, the Breakers now have a lot less firepower on offense (Who would have thought we would be talking about Dilfer as a dynamic offensive weapon?) If the offense falters the Breakers could slip a notch, and in this division, that could give St. Louis a shot. WHAT’S AHEAD?: The Breakers play the Knights in a couple of weeks. We should get a good idea where they stand in that game. After that Michigan and Arizona may be the only real obstacles to a division title and top seed. REVISED PICK: Just forget what we said about the Breakers in preseason. We, like everyone else, were so used to the ineffective Ditka years that we just did not see the potential here for a quick turnaround. Right now the Breakers look like a potential #1 or #2 seed. ST. LOUIS KNIGHTS (5-3, 4-1 in division) POSITIVES: What was the famous Dennis Green quote? They are who we thought they were. That sums up the Knights. Defensive pressure and conservative offense is their game. They are currently 3rd in rushing thanks in large part to Ahman Green’s steady development. Bert Emmanuel continues to be a dangerous target, and the defense, while not as dominant as in past years, is certainly formidable. NEGATIVES: Pass rush has been an issue for St. Louis, and that could mean trouble against some of the better quarterbacks in the league. Fortunately the Central Division is perhaps the league’s worst at the QB position. WHAT’S AHEAD?: That big game against New Orleans. Lose that and the division is lost, win and the Knights have a chance to do what they did last year and steal the title in the season’s final weeks. REVISED PICK: We think New Orleans is still too good this year, so it is a solid 10-6 and a Wild Card for the Knights. MICHIGAN PANTHERS (4-4, 3-1 I division) POSITIVES: In their 4 wins, the Panthers have beaten some good teams, Baltimore, St. Louis, and (maybe) Chicago). But in their 4 losses, we find a lot of inconsistency. When Natrone Means can get 25 carries or come close to 100 yards on the ground, the Panthers have a shot against nearly anyone, but if he is held in check, they struggle. NEGATIVES: Michigan is middle of the pack in so many categories it is hard to identify strengths and weaknesses. They need to blitz to get pressure on QB’s, but their secondary is not stury enough to protect them when they do blitz. Not a great combo. WHAT’S AHEAD?: A schedule with some potential wins (Oakland, Houston, Texas) but also some brutal games (at New Orleans, at Seattle, at Memphis). This could be just more of the same 4-4 football. REVISED PICK: We think the schedule is not going to make life easy for Michigan, so we are going to say 7-9 is what looks most likely. CHICAGO MACHINE (4-4, 1-3 in division) POSITIVES: The Machine have overperformed, at least when you look at their stats. Their 3-1 start included good wins against Philly and Arizona, but their 1-3 streak in the 2nd quarter of the season showed they struggle against the better clubs, losing to St. Louis, New Orleans and Jacksonville. NEGATIVES: The Machine are an enigma. They are in the bottom 5 clubs in passing and total yards, as well as in yards allowed and pass defense. That they are 4-4 may be a bit of a fluke. WHAT’S AHEAD?: Life does not get easier with Denver, followed by a 3-game road trip. They do have a nice lineup of 5 straight games against sub-500 clubs (Texas, Birmingham, Houston, Pittsburgh, Oakland) but we are not saying that this will create a 5-game win streak either. REVISED PICK: Honestly, 4-4 is a good possibility here, leading to an 8-8 season which is still better than we expected from this club. TEXAS OUTLAWS (2-6, 1-3 in division) POSITIVES: This is not the season the Outlaws expected, and they seem to be struggling across the board. The most positive thing we can say about this year is that at least Texas is not the Houston Gamblers. NEGATIVES: The passing game is inefficient and not explosive enough, the run game is slow and the loss of Rodney Thomas has hurt their depth there. The defense, which helped them so much in 1999 seems overworked and too prone to giving up big plays. Other than that, they are just fine. WHAT’S AHEAD?: Their 2nd half lineup of games is not a murderer’s row, with a lot of mediocre clubs there. They could steal a couple of upset wins in this lineup of games. REVISED PICK: We think 5-11 or 6-10 is perhaps the most the Outlaws can expect unless things start to change quickly. HOUSTON GAMBLERS (1-7, 0-4 in division) POSITIVES: The Gamblers play in a dome, so Houston’s humidity is not an issue for fans. There, that is a positive. Ooh, wait, Kavika Pittman and Michael Sinclair are still dangerous, that is 2 positives. Good for you, Houston. NEGATIVES: Pretty much everything else. You name it. If it were not for Portland’s utter futility we would be really shaking our head at the Gamblers. Bottom 4 in pretty much every major team statistic. WHAT’S AHEAD?: Misery we expect. Another potential draft-impacting game in Week 14 when the Gamblers travel to Portland. Lose there and the top pick may be yours. Could that be Michael Vick? REVISED PICK: Honestly, while finishing 1 game ahead of Portland would be something, it is not really a good thing. PACIFIC DENVER GOLD (7-1, 4-0 in division) POSITIVES: This may be the best Denver team we have seen. Are they finally ready to shake off their reputation as also-rans? The defense is Top 5 in several key categories, including a dynamic season so far from Leslie O’Neil. The offense is Top 3 in points and 4th in rushing, a tough combo. NEGATIVES: We are a bit concerned that the Gold are overworking Rashaan Salaam. He is 2nd in the league in rushing but averages less than 4 yards per carry. If he wears out, that could deeply impact the Gold’s entire offensive scheme. WHAT’S AHEAD?: We think the entire division comes down to that final Week 16 game at Seattle. The winner of that could be all set up for a long and deep playoff run. REVISED PICK: We don’t see Denver catching New Orleans for the #1 seed, the Pacific is too balanced for them to run the table. But, #2 with a bye and a home playoff game is very possible, again, if they can win in Seattle in Week 16. SEATTLE DRAGONS (6-2, 2-2 in division) POSITIVES: Seattle is yet another of the upstart clubs overperforming expectations. Corey Dillon is on fire, leading the #1 rush offense in the league, and Brian Griese has been a solid playcaller and game manager. The Defense is looking good, ranked 10th in the league and 2nd against the pass. Kudos to rookie John Abraham for a very strong start to his career with 10 sacks in his first 8 games. NEGATIVES: It feels a bit like the talents of Eric Metcalf and David Boston to play the deep ball are being wasted with Griese at QB, and the trade of Jon Kitna means that Seattle is not exactly deep at the position. Now that they are likely to be without Griese for at least a month, that could be a real issue for the Dragons. WHAT’S AHEAD?: Just as we said with Denver, that Week 16 game is vital to their potential playoff success. The next 3 weeks are also vital with St. Louis, LA, and Ohio all on the schedule. Not an easy run of games. REVISED PICK: We like the Dragons, but not as much as Denver. Wild Card would still be a very good season in the evergreen state. LOS ANGELES EXPRESS (4-4, 3-1 in division) POSITIVES: When they play well together, the Express are a very solid team. They can run the ball, can win in the air, can step up on defense, and they have a very good ballhawking secondary. NEGATIVES: But. When you are 4-4 there is always a “but”. For LA that but has been consistency. They just have not had it. They have yet to beat a team with a winning record (losing to Denver, St. Louis and Ohio), so we are just not sure how good they can be. WHAT’S AHEAD?: LA needs to win the games they are expected to win, and a couple where they are not favored. It may already be too late to catch up to Denver and Seattle, but they absolutely could make a Wild Card slot with just a bit more consistency. REVISED PICK: We like LA to go 5-3 over the final 8, which puts them in solid Wild Card standing at 9-7. ARIZONA WRANGLERS (4-4, 2-2 in division) POSITIVES: Jake Plummer. That is all we need to say. He has been at his best all year, a dual threat to run or pass the club to a victory. NEGATIVES: Jake Plummer is having to do it all because others have not stepped up. The defense is 15th in scoring and 20th against the run, the run game is, as always with Arizona, a non-factor. We like the acquisition of Dorsey Levins, but unless he suddenly becomes Mike Rozier we are not sure he is the answer. WHAT’S AHEAD?: Arizona needs to sweep their next 3 against weaker clubs (Texas, Portland, Pittsburgh) because things get tough after that. If they can be in range of the playoffs, finishing the season against Portland and Oakland could be enough to propel them to the playoffs. REVISED PICK: Yup, 5 games against weak teams may bode well for the Wranglers. They also have a winnable game against Birmingham in the mix, so we are going to say 9-7 and they edge out the Express. OAKLAND INVADERS (2-6, 1-3 in division) POSITIVES: Despite all the chaos, there have been a couple of bright spots for Oakland. The run game is surprisingly effective, ranked #10 despite not having a true stud at halfback. The defense is adequate against the pass, but… NEGATIVES: But, that may be because they are the worst run defense in football. 153 yards a game means teams don’t need to pass to beat you. That is negative #1, but the one getting all the press is Ryan Leaf. It is not that he is playing horribly, he is decent at least, but his attitude, and his hysterics every time Oakland loses are beginning to wear very thin with everyone, teammates, coaches, ownership, fans. It is not good when your leader is not leading but turning people away. WHAT’S AHEAD?: No team on their remaining schedule is worse than 4-4, so if they want to win, they are going to have to play spoiler as they did this week. We expect a couple of upsets are in their future, but 2-3 at the most. REVISED PICK: We think 4-12 is about right for this club. Top 5 draft pick but not Top 3. PORTLAND THUNDER (0-8, 0-4 in division) POSITIVES: It can’t get any worse, can it? Nowhere to go but up? Even a blind squirrel finds a nut sometimes? That is the best we can do. NEGATIVES: This team has a legitimate chance to go 0-16. That is where things stand. WHAT’S AHEAD?: They have a two game stretch at home against 2-6 Atlanta and 1-7 Houston. If they are going to win a game this year, those are their best opportunities. REVISED PICK: What if they win the game against Houston but lose out on Michael Vick by doing so? And if they draft Vick what are the odds he does not join the NFL instead? So maybe it doesn’t matter. Maybe picking 2nd and taking a solid DT would actually be better for them in the long run. A team doesn’t really need a QB, right? The second half of the season starts off with a bang as several rivalry games within the Eastern Conference are on tap, along with a couple of very intriguing matchups out West. We start in the East where Baltimore and Washington both sit at 5-3 as they renew the War of I-95 in RFK, both 1 game behind Philadelphia. The Stars are also in a rivalry game as they head out to western PA to face the Pittsburgh Maulers. Pittsburgh was a preseason favorite to win the Atlantic, while most of us picked Philly for 6th place. Oh, how the times have changed. Finally, New Jersey hopes they can finally break through after several weeks of nailbiting losses, but they face Atlantic Co-Leaders, the 6-2 Ohio Glory, who are likely in no mood for charity this week. In the South we have another 2 matchups that likely have significant playoff importance (even in Week 9) as Orlando heads down to Tampa Bay with both clubs hoping to gain ground with a win. Jacksonville, leading the division at 6-2, is in Memphis, where the Showboats are hoping they are on their way back to the top of the division. A win by Memphis would get them right there with the Bulls. In the Western Conference, where the Central teams are hosting the Pacific Division, we have a really nice matchup of styles as Seattle (6-2) visits St. Louis (5-3). Will the Dragons and league leading rusher Corey Dillon be able to build up a ground game against that Knights defense? Hey, Dragons v. Knights, that is classic already!! Also worth a watch is Denver, taking their Conference-leading 7-1 record to Chicago to face a Machine club that started the season white hot but has faded of late. Arizona, sitting at 4-4, is hoping to get back over .500 with a win in San Antonio against the Texas Outlaws, while Michigan, also 4-4, has similar hopes as they host the Oakland Invaders. LA, the last of our Western 4-4 clubs, is in Houston, where the Gamblers are struggling through a 1-7 first half of the season. Finally, in a game that has potential to be a disaster, the 7-1 New Orleans Breakers, with their top-rated defense, are hosting an 0-8 Portland squad that cannot seem to score points on anyone. Could this be a huge blowout? Likely. The greatest upset in league history? Far less likely, but you never know.

Week 7 was a week of divisional matchups that could have a huge impact on the future playoff runs of most of the USFL’s 24 clubs. We saw a battle for the top of the Atlantic Division, a showdown of two unexpected 3-3 clubs in the South, a preseason favorite assert their claim in the Central, and a showdown of 5-1 clubs trying to lay claim to the Pacific Division title out West. We also saw every single 0 or 1-win team go down to defeat again as the battle of haves and have-nots seems to be pushing away from league parity this season. We start our coverage with a real shootout in the South as two clubs who did not expect to be at .500 this late in the season fought to get above that line and start a push for the playoffs. For the second consecutive week the Bandits find themselves in our Game of the Week, again at home, and again a nailbiter, though the folks in Tampa Bay are certainly not going to be as happy with this one as they were with last week's win against New Jersey. This one did not look like a game that would go to overtime, much less one that would see the trailing club score 20 unanswered points to take the win, but that is exactly what happened as Tampa Bay blew a 14 point lead in the final 6 minutes of their home game against Memphis. It was an epic comeback led by Heath Shuler as the Showboats came all the way back, tying the game with only seconds to play, and then taking that momentum into the extra period to stun the crowd at Tampa Stadium. The Bandits looked like a team on a mission early, scoring 24 points to Memphis’s 3 over the first 22 minutes of play, but slowly and surely the Showboats pulled themselves back into this one and Tampa faded down the stretch. The Bandits went up 14-0 in the first as Errict Rhett rushed for a TD on his 3rd carry of the game, a game that would see him touch the ball 26 times (3 receptions included) and score 2 TDs. His game-opening score was quickly followed by a Randy Moss deep ball that went for a 43-yard TD. After a Showboat field goal, Tampa came bac with a Vanderjagt kick and Errict Rhett’s second score, this time a 4-yard reception from Aikman. But, despite trailing by 21, the Showboats would not go away. Memphis added a Garrison Hearst TD run and a Bobby Olive TD reception to pull within 7 at the half. For Hearst it was part of a rare 100-yard game as he carried 23 times for exactly 100 yards. For Olive it was one of only 3 catches on the day, but it would foretell a much more important catch later on. Despite a pretty raucous first half, there was no scoring in the 3rd and Tampa retained their 7 point lead. They added to it at the start of the 4th with another Vanderjagt kick, but Memphis would respond with a field goal of their own, a 41-yarder from Jeff Hall. Tampa would then put up what most in the stadium certainly saw as the game clincher, an Aikman to Doering 48-yard TD play that sent the crowd into hysterics. With only 6:44 left to play, Memphis was down 14. The Showboats used a full 4 minutes on their next drive, but it was a drive that ended with a score as little-used TE Dennis Ransom caught a short TD pass from Shuler. 2:24 left to play and Memphis would try the onside kick. After a high bounce, the ball was touched by Tampa LB Ron Moten, but he could not fully grasp the ball and it was recovered by Memphis’s Summer Bowl hero, Tydus Wynans on the 50. Memphis wasted no time, moving down the field on only 3 plays before Shuler again found the former Seattle Dragon, Bobby Olive, this time from the 5 yard line, and with only 21 seconds left the Showboats had tied the game. Tampa Bay, rattled by the quick 14 points put up by Memphis played it safe and took a knee to go to overtime. That proved to be a mistake as Memphis won the toss and never gave Tampa Bay’s offense a chance to touch the ball. The Showboats used 7 plays to move the ball once again inside the 10 yard line, and when Aaron Stecker, the 2nd year scatback who had only touched the ball 2 times all day, took a pitch out right, the Tampa defenders were not well positioned and the speedy back found the pylon for 6, ending the game and sending the dejected Bandit faithful home with a sour taste in their mouths. The win moved Memphis to 4-3, only 1 game behind 1st place Jacksonville, while Tampa fell into a 3-4 rut and 4th place in the division. BIR 17 ORL 24 Despite 132 yards from HB Rodney Thomas, who would have to leave the game in the 4th, Birmingham could not hold a lead against Orlando as the Renegades came back from a 17-7 deficit to upend the Stallions. Scott Mitchell hit Donald Driver for one 4th quarter TD and, in a rare feat, ran in another to end the game with an Orlando W. Chris Doleman was the defensive star for Orlando, sacking Brett Favre twice and forcing a key fumble late in the game to secure the win for the ‘Gades. ATL 13 JAX 23 The final game in the South was a bit less dramatic, as Atlanta’s only TD came on defense (a Tyrone Legette pick six). Coach Petrino had given rookie Marc Bulger the start as once again Akili Smith was not 100%. Bulger would complete only 11 of 34 pass attempts for a miserable 29.3 QB Rating. Meanwhile Jacksonville, playing without Sedrick Irvin, turned to backup Kenny Bynum, who came up big as this week’s Offensive POTW with his 25 carry, 125 yard, 2 TD performance to move the Bulls to 5-2 on the year. PHI 37 BAL 21 The big game in the Atlantic saw the upstart Stars upend the Blitz in Baltimore. Philly got 88 yards and 2 scores from their new bell cow, Stephen Davis, and with Bobby Hebert using the short game to perfection, he completed 26 of 32 passes (81.2%) for 284 yards and 2 scores as well. Baltimore rookie HB Ron Dayne did not fare as well, rushing for only 59 yards, and Trent Green struggled to a 16 of 36 day with two picks. At the end of the game you could hear some fans chanting for backup Jeff Garcia, but Coach Infante kept Green in until the very last play as Philly bested the Blitz. WSH 29 NJ 24 The Generals’ “close but no cigar” streak continued again on Saturday as a late Herman Moore TD catch once again pulled defeat from the jaws of victory for the homestanding New Jersey Squad. Jeff Lewis threw for 3 TDs and hit Terry Glenn for 131 yards receiving, but in the end it was Scott Zolak’s 295 yards and 2 TD tosses that did in the generals. Rookie HB Reuben Droughns got 2 more carries than Barry Word as the Generals struggled to contain the outside run, Droughns rushing for 81 yards to Word’s 36. PIT 17 OHI 30 Ohio took a share of 1st place as well, thanks to a solid day on both sides of the ball against a Pittsburgh club that is struggling to score. Terrell Davis had 111 yards and a score for the Maulers, but balance was the key for Ohio, who got 2 scores in the air from the Collins to Qadry Ismail connection, and another from Eddie George as the Glory moved to 5-2. STL 38 CHI 35 The game of the week in the Central was St. Louis at Chicago, a budding rivalry in the USFL to match the baseball rivalry of Cardinals-Cubs. Chicago proved their mettle, but in the end the experience of St. Louis paid off as they scored the game’s final 17 points to come back from a 35-20 deficit in the 4th. Bert Emmanuel was the hero with 3 second half TD receptions. Ahman Green and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar combined for 131 yards rushing to lead St. Louis, and even a stunning 240 yards rushing between Watters (140), Staley (75) and Bates (23) could not help Chicago as their defense simply wore out in the final quarter. NOR 27 HOU 13 New Orleans’s defensive domination and Houston’s offensive woes were an ugly matchup on paper, and that proved to be the case on the field as well, with the Breakers outgaining Houston 415-202 on the day. Ricky Williams was dominant with 141 yards on 23 carries, but it was backup James Bostic who got the goalline plunges, 2 scores on the day. Houston started Matt Hasselbeck, back from injury, but he struggled to only 12 completions on the day as Houston fell for the 6th straight week. The win was a costly one for New Orleans as QB Trent Dilfer is likely out for 4-6 weeks after a poorly-executed slide led to an MCL tear. TEX 20 MGN 27 The Outlaws looked better than their 2-win record would indicate, but it was a moral victory only as Michigan got 139 yards from Natrone Means, including a 4th quarter TD that put the game in the Panthers’ pockets. Doug Flutie also played well, throwing for 288 yards and a score to help Michigan over the .500 mark at 4-3 in the brutally tough Central Division. SEA 7 DEN 26 Denver held the league’s leading rusher to only 3 yards a carry and 66 total yards as the Gold wore down Seattle at home in the altitude. Neither team would gain even 200 yards passing on a day that saw high winds and intermittent rain, but it was Denver’s defense that seemed the most dangerous condition on the field. LB Chris Cowart scored 2 sacks and a forced fumble against Brian Griese, while Bruce Pickens nabbed a wayward Griese throw late to secure the win for the Gold, giving them sole possession of first place in the division. POR 10 LA 30 The Express continue to rise, now at 4-3 after a pretty lackluster win over the 0-6, now 0-7 Portland Thunder. LA ran the ball 38 times on the day, with Michael Pittman getting 19 carries for 117 yards and Antowain Smith adding another 51 yards on 17 carries, but it was the defense that kept this game from getting close. Akili Smith was picked off three times by an LA secondary that now boasts the top two interception leaders in the league, FS Martin Bayless and CB Ray Crockett (who landed 2 picks in this game alone.) OAK 10 ARZ 17 It wasn’t pretty, but the Wranglers are also back over .500 as they knocked off the Invaders with 10 points in the final period. In a big day for TE O.J. Santiago, the big target finished with 5 receptions for 74 yards, but it was Rocket Ismail’s 4th quarter TD from Plummer that gave Arizona the win over an Oakland club that simply could not get it done on offense. Horrible news out of Birmingham as the Stallions’ lead rusher, former Outlaw Rodney Thomas is lost for the season when it was discovered that he was not simply suffering from a concussion at the end of the game against Orlando, but that he had actually suffered a skull fracture. Thomas complained of dizziness and double vision when taken from the field, and as the impact area began to show swelling, the medical staff for the Stallions sent Thomas to a local hospital where X-rays showed the fracture. It is not sure when in the game Thomas suffered the injury, though he did have back-to-back plays with significant helmet-to-helmet contact. Team officials did not want to mess around with questions of a possible return and placed Thomas on the IR, ending his season and allowing him extensive time to recover. It is expected that rookie back Shaun Alexander will take over as the lead back in Birmingham. Texas also saw a key player go down for the year when linebacker Tedi Bruschi left the game against Michigan with a knee injury. Tests showed that it was the much-feared ACL tear, and that means Bruschi will be out for several months as he rehabs post-surgery. A third huge loss this week as New Orleans could be without their new star, QB Trent Dilfer for as much as 6 weeks after the QB suffered a torn MCL on a poorly executed baseball slide. Dilfer, not know as fleet of foot, got his right foot caught in the turf and it led to his knee twisting awkwardly. Team officials hope he can return within the month, but a 5 or 6 week absence is not out of the question. New Orleans will now have to decide if they go with Gus Frerotte or Bobby Hoying at QB for the next month or longer. Other notable injuries include STL Punter Mark Whittaker, who apparently tore an ab muscle on an awkward kick. Tampa Bay guard William Boatwright could miss 1-2 weeks with a torn meniscus. Chicago SS Anthony Prior is expected to be out at least 1 week with a similar injury, and Michigan CB Chris Canty could miss a week or longer with a fracture in his jaw. QB Rick Mirer is expected to be out again, listed as doubtful this week, and while Jake Plummer is expected to start in Week 8, he did make the list as “probable” with a hip stinger. TRANSACTIONS ARZ: Trades HB K. Barber and 4th Round 2001 pick to Houston for HB Dorsey Levins BIR: Placed HB Rodney Thomas on IR and signed HB Terry Battle. NOR: Moved FS Robert Stevens to the practice squad, signed QB Jason Maher. STL: Moved WR Sean Morey to the practice squad, signed P Andrew Jones TEX: Placed LB Tedi Bruschi on IR, moved LB Dhani Jones to active roster from practice squad BREAKERS MUST WEATHER THE STORM Breakers’ fans must feel jinxed. After several seasons of disappointment, the Breakers get off to a fantastic start, thanks in large part to imported QB Trent Dilfer’s steady hand at the till of the offense, but just as the club builds up a 2-game lead in the division, and with only 9 weeks left to play, Dilfer goes down with what could be a long term concern, an MCL injury. Likely to miss at least a month, and perhaps as much as two full months, Dilfer is now resigned to holding a clipboard and coaching up his replacements. New Orleans’s coaching staff must now decide between two very untested players, long term backup Gus Frerotte, who has thrown a total of 91 passes in 7 seasons, or even less-tested 3rd stringer Bobby Hoyer, who has thrown only 69 passes in his 5 year career with the Breakers. The silver lining, if there is one, is that both backups have been with the club for years, but as this is the first year with a new coach in Mike Nolan, that may not be much help as his offensive schemes look very little like those of his predecessor, Mike Ditka. It is an open competition in practice this week, but if we are going purely on athletic ability the better option may be Hoying, the Ohio State product, who is the more mobile of the two. The truth is that what we need to expect is that New Orleans will rely even more heavily on their top rated defense, a defense that is currently the only one in the league not to give up 100 total points. Expect the Breakers to use Ricky Williams and the run game to slow down games and keep scores low. If Williams can find yardage against stacked defenses, then either Frerotte or Hoying could have some success with play action passes. But that is the best case scenario for the Breakers. They do have a 2 game lead, so as long as they can play even .500 ball until Dilfer’s return, they may have a good shot at retaining their first place position in the division, but for fans who are used to seeing the Breakers disappoint them, the loss of Dilfer at this key juncture in the season does not bode well. A CHANGE IN COMMAND With their defense currently ranked dead last in points allowed (nearly 30 a game) and in the bottom 5 against the pass, something had to give in New Jersey, and what gave was the Defensive Coordinator position. Marty Schottenheimer this week, and likely under pressure from ownership, released DC Dave Adolph. Adolph, a longtime assistant under Schottenheimer since their days in the NFL with Cleveland, has simply not been able to get coherent play from a defense that features one of the league’s premier pass rushers in Phil Hansen. For the short term, which may well be the rest of the season, Schottenheimer will take on defensive play calling, though he did promote Linebackers Coach Greg Manusky to the position of Defensive Assistant, but that is no guarantee that Manusky, an NFL player up through the 1998 season, will have a shot at the DC position when a decision is made to hire a permanent replacement. For now the pressure is on Schottenheimer, known for his defensive schemes, to get better production from a defense that has given up far too many big plays and far too many third down conversions. TRY TRY AGAIN We have long watched as the Arizona Wranglers attempted to replace Tim Lester as their primary back, bringing in rookies with each draft, signing free agents and even trading for players like former General Leeland MacElroy, but to no avail. Year after year Lester ends up as the lead rusher for the Wranglers, and year after year that finds the Wranglers as one of the league’s worst rushing teams. While we feel bad for Lester, who gives it his all each week, it is clear that Arizona needs to rethink their run game in a big way, starting with line play and then consider a retool at HB. Well, that is a long and hard process, and for a club that is trying to get back to a Summer Bowl, and which has a limited window of opportunity with its defense and its star QB, slow and steady does not seem the chosen path. And that explains why the Wranglers have again reached out to nab another potential suitor for the lead back position. This week Arizona dealt former Renegade back Kantroy Barber and a 4th round pick to the 1-7 Houston Gamblers for the rights to HB Dorsey Levins. Levins has some talent, but has never been able to put together a full season or take on the lead back roll completely. He started his career as the heir apparent to Mike Rozier in Pittsburgh, but managed to only start 14 games in 5 seasons with the Maulers. Pittsburgh eventually moved Levins on to Houston, where he works as part of Coach Willsey’s preferred halfback rotation, gaining 9 official starts in 1999, but only averaging 3.5 yards per carry for the Gamblers. This season with Houston he has 282 yards on 71 carries, which is a slightly better 4.0 YPC, but now moves on to Arizona. Expect the Wranglers to give Levins a few starts to see if they have a solution at the position, but you know as well as we do that somehow, some way, Tim Lester will end up getting more carries and will finish the year as the Wranglers’ rushing leader once again. MY KINGDOM FOR A QB Quarterback is universally acclaimed as the most important position on any football team, and while football is the ultimate team sport, this cliché seems to bear itself out year after year in both the NFL and the USFL. Just look at the bottom of the standings across the USFL and you will see teams with serious QB confusion. 0-7 Portland: Akili Smith has struggled to transition to the pro game. While athletic, his decision-making and nervous feet in the pocket have led to far too many mistakes. Cue the veteran presence with Portland signing NFL journeyman Rick Mirer, but no sooner does Mirer get his first start than he gets hurt and the Thunder are back to Smith at QB. 1-6 Houston: After several years of up and down play from QB Chuck Hartlieb, the Gamblers were ready to go in a new direction. They signed Jim Miller away from St. Louis after a few good relief performances by Miller put him in the free agent spotlight. But after a 3-way competition in camp, the starting job was given to untested former BC quarterback Matt Hasselbeck. Hasselbeck struggled in his starts, then got hurt, leading to Hartlieb being the replacement, but not the starter as Miller was given that opportunity. This week it was back to Hasselbeck as Coach Willsey seems lost as to who to trust at the position. 1-6 New Jersey: This one is a bit of a puzzler. Coach Schottenheimer, feeling that while veteran starter Spence Fischer was not the reason for declining production, still opted to sign former Denver backup Jeff Lewis, and Lewis has played well, with 12 TDs to only 3 picks and a solid QB Rating of 89.8 in his first 7 games as a full time starter, and yet, New Jersey is not winning games. Fans have started grumbling about Fischer but even they seem to recognize that there are more pressing issues on the club. 1-6 Oakland: The Invaders did not think they had a QB controversy when the season started, expecting to see growth from 3rd year QB Ryan Leaf, but the results this year have not been great. Yes, he has cut back on his picks, and he has his completion percentage back over the 50% line, but what has been new is the frequency of emotional outbursts, profane tirades, and tantrums as the losses have mounted. The Invaders recently made a deal with Seattle to bring in the cool head of veteran QB Jon Kitna, and many fans are wondering if this marks a turning point for Leaf. Will he shape up, act like a pro, or burn out and get benched for the Seattle import? It is amazing how far we have come from a very promising 44 touchdown rookie year for the highly touted Leaf. 2-5 Atlanta: Many expected the Fire to go after a big name free agent QB from either the NFL or USFL this offseason, but apparently having been burned by the Jeff George signing, they held off, retaining Aaron Brooks as the season starter, with former Bulldog Eric Zeier and rookie Marc Bulger in reserve. Brooks has struggled, throwing 3 picks to only 3 TDs and completing only 46.6% of his passes. And when Brooks went out with a minor injury, Coach Petrino bypassed Eric Zeier completely and has started rookie Bulger, the U. of West Virginia product. As expected, Bulger has had some early issues, throwing 4 picks and only 2 scores in his starts for the Fire. So what is the answer in Atlanta? Do they try to groom either Brooks or Bulger, or do they try to go fishing for a third option since Zeier seems to be a non-factor this year? Could Atlanta make a deal by the trade deadline to bring in someone like Spence Fisher or Chuck Hartlieb? Would that really help? The situation is not quite as explosive for 2-5 Pittsburgh or 2-5 Texas, but questions of QB play have begun to arise. After a solid season last year left the Maulers with a pretty good feeling about Charlie Batch as the starter, he has struggled this season. Batch has some talented receivers, and he is above .500 with a 10-6 TD-INT ratio, but he is missing too many open receivers to keep fans satisfied. But, with only Mike Cherry and Sean King behind him, we don’t see Coach Emmitt Thomas making a move to replace him, at least not during the season. In Texas, Kelly Stouffer has been the undisputed starter since coming to the Outlaws in 1990, and over a decade of play with Texas he has had some very strong seasons, racking up a QBR over 100 three times. But, this year, we are seeing a clear decline. Now part of that may be a lack of top grade receivers (Shawn Collins gets a lot of catches but does little with them, Jeff Query and Darnay Scott are not scaring anyone either), but a big concern seems to be the decline in Stouffer’s power. His arm simply is not what it was in 1990. Texas is another team that really does not have a lot of depth behind Stouffer. Tommy Maddox can come in for relief for a game or two, but has never proven to be a consistent starter, and no one expects to see 3rd stringer Tony Graziani on the field. So what are these teams to do? Each one has a different issue to deal with, and there are few midseason options for these clubs. We do think that a club like Pittsburgh or Texas would be wise to pursue a good second option, like a Spence Fischer or Chuck Hartlieb, but that is not going to turn them to an elite team. For many others it may be the 2001 draft that is their best hope to upgrade the position as it is rare that a truly elite QB ends up as a free agent. If the draft is the route, then Virginia Tech’s Michael Vick is the clear target. But Vick is a unique talent, just as likely to run for 100 as throw for 300. Not many coaches want to try to groom a running QB into a reliable passer, but Vick’s clear talent makes him an interesting pick. Atlanta certainly would be a solid location for Vick, but we could see his star quality also playing well in New Jersey, but not for Schottenheimer, who would never give him the type of offense he would need to excel. Of all the clubs that might be best suited to a talent like Vick, it might be Portland that makes the most sense, but would Vick want to play in the Pacific Northwest in the USFL’s smallest stadium? For the others, after Vick, we look at prospects like Purdue’s Drew Brees, a shorter QB, but in a league that gives us Doug Flutie, Charlie Batch and Jon Kitna, that might not be an issue. There is also Georgia’s Quincy Carter or Washington’s Marques Tuiasosopo, but are either the type to come in and play at an elite level in year one? Not likely. Like we said, QB is a key to any team, and the reason why top QB’s are so coveted is because they are simply rare commodities. For every Jim Kelly or Brett Favre, who can put a team on their shoulders, there are always 10 or more teams each year struggling just to get a confident game manager who won’t lose games for you. Lets continue our exploration of the QB position with a bit of a league-by-league comparison. The USFL has made a name for itself as a more wide open, freewheeling league, one predicated on the excitement of the passing game, and yet, the NFL still has some of the biggest name signal callers in the game. Just how does the USFL stack up against its fall rival? We are going to look at what we consider the 10 best quarterbacks playing pro ball today and see just how the two leagues stack up against each other. 10) Steve McNair (Houston-NFL): McNair’s style is a bit unorthodox, but he has a cannon for an arm and has helped restore some energy to “Love Ya, Blue” in Houston. The Oilers are a perennial playoff contender with McNair at the helm. 9) Cade McNown (Los Angeles-USFL): Perhaps one and a half seasons should not be enough to put a player on this list, but when those 22 games produce nearly 50 touchdowns and turn a flailing franchise into a Summer Bowl contender you have to give respect where it is due. McNown threw 34 TDs to only 6 picks as a rookie and appears to be on pace for over 30 TDs again this year. He is a bright light for the future of the USFL. 8) Jim Harbaugh (San Diego-NFL): Never really given the respect he deserves, and having played in some shaky situations in both Chicago and Indianapolis, Harbaugh is a student of the game and a pretty dynamic comeback kid kind of player. He is famous for his 4th quarter heroics, and yet he is now on his 4th team, which says something about the fickle nature of NFL quarterbacking. 7) Heath Shuler (Memphis-USFL): Yes, 1999 was an amazing year, but it has not been the only time that Shuler showed up big for the Showboats, it may just be the first time that the rest of the team was there to support him. The former Tennessee Volunteer has a legitimate claim to be the best in the USFL right now, but we are going to put a couple of longer-term performers ahead of him. 6) Randall Cunningham (Minnesota-NFL): Exactly the kind of player the USFL would love, Cunningham can run, thrown, and win. His Super Bowl victory in 1998 with the Vikings was a thing of beauty. That entire season was dynamic and even with what many consider a mid-level receiving corps that year (Jake Reed, Eric Moulds, and Frank Sanders), Cunningham managed to lead the Viking to their first title. 5) Troy Aikman (Tampa Bay-USFL): While many might argue that Heath Shuler should be in this place, we have to honor the consistently high play of Aikman over a decade rather than the recent success of Shuler. Aikman’s 1998 season was a masterpiece that few ever achieve, and the decline of the Bandits last season was hardly his fault as he still threw a solid 31 touchdowns. One of the most accurate passers in the game, we have no doubt he would succeed wherever he played. 4) Drew Bledsoe (New England-NFL): A true pocket passer, Bledsoe’s arm and his vision have helped the Patriots reach 2 Super Bowls in his 6-year career. His performance against the Packers in 1996 garnered the franchise its first NFL title, and many expect more before his career is done. 3) Peyton Manning (Indianapolis-NFL): In just 2 seasons the former Volunteer has turned the Colts’ fortunes completely around, from 3-13 as a rookie to 13-3 in his sophomore season, there is no denying Manning’s talent. He looks like the real deal, and certainly is winning the debate that started before the 1998 draft between his upside and that of current Oakland Invader QB Ryan Leaf. 2) Brett Favre (Birmingham-USFL): Despite finishing 2nd in the QB Ratings last season, there is little doubt that most consider Favre to be the best QB in the USFL and perhaps the best USFL signal caller since Jim Kelly. He is a bit of a maverick and will throw some ill-advised passes, but he is also one of the fiercest competitors in the game and a true wild card on any given Sunday. 1) Dan Marino (Miami-NFL): Yes, he is nearing the end of his career (and may retire this offseason) but there is no doubt that Marino is the best QB of his generation. He has shattered so many NFL records and helped his Dolphins to so many playoff appearances (despite no titles) that it is hard to argue that Marino be #1 on this list. A 6-4 split in favor of the NFL, which seems about fair, but certainly enough talent in both leagues to keep fans riveted to football year-round. What the future holds, especially with several top-level QB’s getting close to retirement, is anyone’s guess. While we may see Marino, Favre or Aikman soon leave the game, perhaps in Manning, McNown, and others who are just starting out, we will continue to see heroic QB play far into this new century. Week 8 marks the halfway point of the season, and it offers us a slate of 12 inter-conference games as the Atlantic and Southern Divisions head out on the road to face the Pacific and Central Divisions respectively. Among the more interesting matchups we have Philadelphia at Arizona, Ohio at LA, Jacksonville at Chicago, Orlando at Michigan, and Tampa Bay at St. Louis. We also have what appear to be mismatches in other games, but beware the desperate and unfamiliar opponent as this is often prime upset territory. Among the underdogs hoping to pull off the upset we have Texas hosting Memphis, Houston hosting Birmingham, Atlanta visiting New Orleans (now with a QB issue), New Jersey in Seattle, Oakland hosting Baltimore, Pittsburgh traveling to Denver, and the winless Portland Thunder hosting the Washington Federals. We don’t expect all of these games to go to the underdog, but 1 or 2 would not be a shock.