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What a week of action across the USFL! We had overtime thrillers, a world class upset, close games, blowouts, and huge performances across the league. It’s as if the whole league decided to remind us why we love spring football. Beautiful weather across the league, a festive atmosphere, and some great football. What’s not to love? Picking a game of the week was no easy task this week, with several really huge clashes on the docket, but the combination of gameplay and the significance of this clash atop the Pacific Division made the Denver-LA game our go to for the week. A 60-minute thriller that saw the Gold score 21 points in the final period to grab a much-needed win, this game had everything you could want (except maybe close out defense). Cade McNown had a 4-TD day, while Mark Brunell would throw for 3 scores, all in the final 15 minutes of action. Yet, for a game with such a high score, neither team cracked 400 yards of total offense, so it was not purely two failed defenses being unable to stop anyone. Denver got a huge game from Defensive POTW Leslie O’Neill, who racked up 3 sacks and 3 forced fumbles, including one sack that produced a safety. LA had no fewer than 18 defensive players record a tackle in a game where the Express just could not seem to find a way to contain Brunell when it mattered most. Denver and LA did play some defense, evident in the first quarter, where the Gold built up a 12-7 lead thanks to a safety from O’Neill, and two short drives produced by the defense. Rashaan Salaam got the ball rolling with a 7-yard TD run, but LA countered with McNown finding TE Tony McGee for his first of 2 TD catches on the day. After giving up both the safety and a FG on the ensuing drive, LA took their first lead of the day when McNown found Mike Pritchard, the game’s only 100-yard receiver, for a 20-yard TD pass in the 2nd quarter. The two clubs would head into the half with LA up 14-12 on that score. In the third, Denver briefly took the lead on another Wilkens FG, 15-14, but LA bounced right back with an 82-yard drive that culminated with McNown finding McGee for his second score. Add on a successful 2-point conversion and the Express were up by 7. McNown, who now finds himself among the Top 5 in QBR in the league as a rookie, would finish the day completing only 13 of 30 passes, but with 4 of those 13 completions being for scores. He would be helped out by a good combination of running from Antowain Smith and Michael Pittman, while Denver would rely heavily on Rashaan Salaam (20 carries for 65 yards) to power their offense. Down 22-15 after 3, something clicked for Denver as they started a drive that would end the 3rd and continue into the 4th. For the first time all game Mark Brunell seemed to find time in the pocket as the LA defenders seemed to tire. That time produced a Brunell to Turner TD throw that leveled the score at 22 points. Again LA would respond in kind, with McNown hitting Darnay Scott from 18 yards out to again go up by 7. An uncharacteristically shanked kickoff from Doug Brien gave Denver the ball at the 40, and in only 4 plays they were back in the endzone, with Brunell hitting former Express wideout Dedric Smith from 22 yards out to again tie the game at 29. Smith would finish the day with 6 receptions for 88 yards and this TD against his former teammates. LA tried to slow the game and kill clock on their next drive, and in that they largely succeeded. When Doug Brien hit a 29-yard field goal there were only 93 seconds left on the clock for Denver to work with. The assumption was that this one was LA’s game to lose or that it would head to overtime if Denver could get in range for Wilkens, but Denver’s Dick Jauron had other ideas, pushing Brunell to move fast and look deep as the Gold took the field. Brunell responded, finding Keith Jackson 3 times on the drive, before connecting with Odessa Turner on a corner pattern that produced the winning score. Brunell lofted a ball to the outside shoulder of the racing Turner, who just barely got both feet down in the endzone before tumbling out of bounds. The play produced a long delay as instant replay had to verify if his feet were in and the ball controlled, but after the review, the ref threw both hands straight up to declare the play good, and Denver took home a much needed win. The Gold victory pulls Denver within 1 game of division-leading LA and shakes up the division, potentially creating a race to the finish between the two clubs, with Seattle, Portland, and Arizona also in for the ride. The loss at home for LA was bittersweet. Of course the loss was a rough one to take, but the game pulled a crowd of 41,222, by far the largest to ever attend an Express game since their rebirth in 1995. This season seems to be providing the Express with what they needed most, fans. A run to the playoffs could help add energy to the Express as they finally try to build a fanbase in a city that has been owned by the NFL raiders for years. STL 17 CHI 20 The second contender for GOTW has to be the huge upset Chicago handed the St. Louis Knights. Down 17-3 at the half, the Machine somehow scored the only points of the second half despite being outgained 421-202 for the game. Five, yes, five uncharacteristic Knight turnovers helped make it happen as Chicago picked off Todd Collins three times in the second half, along with forcing a fumble from WR Amani Toomer. In a disastrous half of football, St. Louis gave Chicago the ball within their own 35-yard line three times, and the short field was enough for Alex Van Pelt to lead the Machine to a once-in-a-generation upset. WSH 33 TBY 27 Another thriller in Tampa Bay, where the Bandits scored a game-tying TD with 1:03 left but Washington got their Summer Bowl revenge when Stewart hit Herman Moore for a 40-yard game winner in overtime. Despite losing Barry Word early to injury, the Washington offense clicked all game, with Moore finishing with 157 yards receiving to pace the Feds to the win. Troy Aikman was sacked 7 times by the Federals, who balanced timely defensive stops with a solid day from Kordell Stewart to take the W on the road. POR 27 ARZ 33 Another overtime thriller as the Wranglers get a 63-yard bomb from Plummer to Rocket Ismail in overtime to earn the home win against a very game Portland Thunder squad. Plummer ended the game with 422 yards and 3 touchdowns as the Wrangler run game was all but invisible (15 total yards), while Portland kept trying to force Robert Drummond against the Wrangler defense, but Arizona prevailed, limiting Drummond to 2.4 yards per carry (48 on 20 carries) and had just enough to overcome a big day from Akili Smith (32 of 54 for 327 yards). MGN 31 NOR 25 In a battle of clubs fighting for playoff relevance, the visiting Panthers did just enough to upend the Breakers in New Orleans, moving over .500 and staying in the hunt in the Central. Jamie Martin again had issues with picks, throwing 3 in the game, while Doug Flutie completed 71.4% of his throws and avoided turnovers to help power the Panthers to a road win. OHI 41 MEM 38 Another shootout in Memphis and again the Showboats end up on the short end. Ohio got the last laugh as former Breaker and new acquisition Qadry Ismail pulled in the game winner with just 22 seconds on the clock. Memphis outgained Ohio 457-373, but could not close the door when it counted, largely due to an inability to fully contain Eddie George (4.2 average on 18 carries, with 2 TDs). The win pushes Ohio to 5-4 and costs Memphis their share of first place in the South. PIT 6 BIR 20 The Stallions take over 1st place at 7-2 thanks to an uncharacteristic defensive victory. Pittsburgh contained Brett Favre and the Stallion offense, but the D stepped up big against rookie Sean King, sacking the Tulane product 5 times. Terrell Davis kept Pittsburgh in the game with 106 yards rushing, but the Maulers simply could not find the endzone. NJ 14 ATL 12 A slow-paced defensive game in Atlanta, where the Generals got TDs from their big names, Terry Glenn and Curtis Enis to take home the win against the homestanding Fire. Atlanta got a potential game-tying TD in the final minutes, but could not convert the 2-point PAT and fell for the 8th time in 9 games. Generals’ CB Gene Atkins put in a bid for Defensive POTW with 11 tackles and 2 picks on the day. PHI 24 JAX 34 The Bulls get their third win of the season against a Philadelphia team that just cannot find their groove. Sedrick Irvin seems to be gaining confidence for the Bulls as he rushed for 87 yards and 2 scores, while Kenny Bynum had the play of the game, a 56-yard scamper that broke open the game for the Bulls. Bobby Hebert threw 3 TDs and gained 377 yards, but it was not enough as the Stars fall to 3-6. BAL 42 ORL 23 With Scott Mitchell back under center, the Renegades hoped for a better result, but Trent Green had a field day, going 25 for 31 and tossing 3 touchdowns for the visiting Blitz. Add in a 100 yard game (105, to be exact) for Derrick Fenner and the Blitz had more than enough offense to upend the ‘Gades in the Citrus Bowl. TEX 33 HOU 17 The Battle of Texas went to the Outlaws this time around as Reggie Cobb had a season best 131 yards on 21 carries to pace Texas to the win. Houston’s offense looked good early, with both Derrick Mason and Antonio Freeman scoring in the first half, but wilted down the stretch as Texas pressured Chuck Hartlieb with blitzes. Add in 4 field goals from Texas kicker Tim Seder and the Outlaws pulled away in the 2nd half. OAK 13 SEA 56 A truly ugly performance in all phases for the Invaders as Seattle simply overwhelmed Oakland. It was 33-10 at the half and the unusually explosive Dragons just kept scoring. Corey Dillon rushed for 106 yards and 3 scores against an Invader defense that had no answers. Brian Griese even saw action in the second half, as did little-used HB Joe Montgomery, who rushed for another 64 yards against an Invader defense that was just not effective at all. LOST MOJO Fans in Oakland are wondering what has happened to their once & future star QB, Ryan Leaf. Leaf began his career in Oakland with a really strong start out of the gate, throwing for 5,432 yards, 43 touchdowns and 17 picks in his rookie season. But his best games were his first 8, with a noticeable decline down the stretch as Oakland fell from the top of the Pacific Division to a Wild Card slot and a quick playoff exit. This year Leaf and the Invaders appear to be a shadow of their former selves. After 9 games Leaf has thrown for only 1,699 yards, his completion percentage is down 7.1 points (from 55.6% to 48.5%), and his TD-INT ratio is not skewing in the right direction, 9 TD to 10 picks in 1999. It seems Leaf is pushing, and not making his way through progressions. Add to this stories of dissent in the locker room and a couple of pretty awkward postgame interview moments and there is growing concern that the golden boy brought in to revive the Invaders as a playoff and division title contender may be either losing focus or simply underutilizing the talent he showed early on. Is it a mental issue? What can the Invaders do to put him back on the right path? Is Dan Reeves the man to do it? All good questions and all questions the Invaders’ front office needs to solve and quickly. SHOOTING STAR The opposite end of the spectrum is what we are seeing in LA, where management and their growing fan base is overjoyed by the progress of rookie QB Cade McNown. Already a local hero for his time at UCLA, McNown was seen initially as being a step below the big trio of rookies coming out Couch, McNabb and Akili Smith, but so far McNown is far outshining Smith in the USFL (The other two are headed to the fall league). And what has been really exciting has been the clear progression from Week 1 to now. In his first 2 games in LA the gameplan was conservative, with Coach Hall protecting McNown. He did not surpass 200 yards in either game, though he did throw 3 TDs with 0 picks in those early conservative games. In weeks 3-6 he started to get the training wheels taken off, with a 381 yard, 3 TD game against Ohio sandwiched between solid but unexciting games. He played only a part of the Week 7 clash against Arizona, knocked out with a mild concussion, but since coming back in Week 8 his gam has been on fire. He threw for 353 yards, 4 TDs and 0 picks in Week 9 at Seattle, and against a much tougher Denver defense this week threw for 251 and another 4 TDs (with one pick). McNown is among the top 5 in QBR and is looking every bit the future of the franchise. He has the Express atop the Pacific Division at 6-3 after 9 games and seems to be getting used to the pro game at a really quick pace. This is all good for an LA Express franchise that has had great difficulty building a fan base and gaining on attendance numbers. LA is on the road this week and next, but has already sold more than 32,000 tickets for the Week 12 showdown with Seattle. That has to be music to the ears of the owners, and McNown is a big reason why. NO RESPECT AT ALL One more QB story this week. One day after helping Chicago win only its 2nd game of the season, QB Alex Van Pelt was informed that he would once again be benched as Coach Mornhinweg would be starting newly acquired former NFL QB Jeff George in Week 10 against Texas Outlaws. This seems a common story for Van Pelt, who often plays well only to get the hook as soon as a bigger name or more physically gifted QB is available. This happened with Scott Zolak, with Chris Miller, with Jeff Garcia, and now with Jeff George. Van Pelt could battle to be a starter with another club, but in Chicago it seems he is perpetually cursed to play a yo-yo game of starts and benchings. Sure, he is not a top tier starter, but Van Pelt has shown that, given some talent around him, he can win games, With several clubs around the league struggling at the position, and with 2000’s draft looking like a weak one at the position, some club may be able to upgrade the position at low cost by considering the former Pitt Panther as an option. COACHING HOT SEAT As we get past the midseason point and start looking at weeks 10-16, the pressure on coaches to prove they deserve another year begins to mount. It is too late in the season for a coach to be able to claim that his system is not yet in place, and with several teams certainly underperforming expectations, this could be a year that sees lots of turnover. Here is our list of the coaches who are likely feeling the heat right now. Mike Ditka, New Orleans: Big Mike’s situation is so flammable he needs to be wearing asbestos pants. The Breakers had a rough year last year but surprisingly kept Ditka on, allowed him to trade away most of the draft to sign Ricky Williams, and while Williams has looked good, the Breakers have not. Ditka may need a 6-7 win 2nd half to the year to even think about staying on in a town that seems less than amused by his sideline antics and postgame rants. Sherm Lewis, Atlanta: The Fire have just not gotten better. We keep waiting, and they have some talent across the roster, but Sherm Lewis does not seem to be turning that talent into wins. Tiki Barber seems wasted on a team that cannot produce a consistent passing game and now just traded away their season starter mid-year. The defense has never developed a clear personality, and the club just seems to be floundering. That is not a good sign for Lewis beyond this season. Dan Reeves, Oakland: The decline in production from Ryan Leaf, the failure to address the run game in a meaningful way, and a defense that seems to be a step too slow and far too sloppy is making life tough for Reeves. After a playoff season last year that saw a 2nd half swoon, this year has been all swoon. Reeves needs to get this club at least to 7-9 to make a claim that he deserves another year. Raymond Berry, Philadelphia: There are times when a coach has success with a squad but then simply seems to lose steam. That appears to be the case with the Stars this year. Philly, who won their division last year, and which has had some good years under Berry, is just lacking in energy and urgency. It is not that Berry is a bad coach, but perhaps simply that he is no longer able to get what he needs from this veteran-heavy squad. Vince Tobin, Portland: Much the same as we said of Berry could be true of Vince Tobin in Portland as well. Tobin’s issue is that he came to Portland with a reputation as a defensive guru but the Portland D has never lived up to the hype. There have been some strong seasons under Tobin, including some deep playoff runs, but all too often the killer instinct is just not there with this club. With a new QB suffering through rookie hiccups, this may just be a time to focus on offense and bring in a coach with a creative offensive scheme to help Akili Smith develop. Tobin is not that guy. Skip Holtz, Michigan: This is not so much that the Panthers are bad, but more that they are not getting over the hump. Year in a year out Holtz gets decent, but not dynamic, results with his Panther squad. They end up at or near 8-8 and occasionally make a playoff appearance, but they have been unable to move from good to great, and fans in the Motor City are getting a bit antsy about the lack of urgency to do so. Emmitt Thomas, Pittsburgh: Our last hotseat may be more warm than sizzling, because it was not that long ago that Thomas helped the Maulers upset Houston in the 1995 Summer Bowl, but next year will be 5 since the title and the club seems to be heading in the wrong direction. Yes, retirements and free agency have hurt the core roster, and while he has been adequate, Charlie Batch does not look like the kind of QB who will just throw the team on his shoulders and carry them. Pittsburgh might opt to retain Thomas and look for a new GM, as the draft and signing solid starters has been the biggest issue in the Steel City, but Thomas certainly cannot be considered safe in his position with the Maulers continuing to hover around .500. Two teams came out of the weekend with major concerns as three key players found themselves on IR and done for the year. Philadelphia, who cannot afford to lose talent, lost two key players for the rest of the year. LT Emory Yates is done after his ailing hip was diagnosed as a fracture. He will be largely immobile for the next 4-6 weeks and then need lengthy rehab time before he can return to action, likely in 2000 if he does not opt to retire this offseason. The Stars also lost their star HB Charlie Garner. Garner went down with a ruptured Achilles tendon, a nasty injury for a running back. Garner hobbled off the field on Sunday and it took no time for the team doctor to diagnose the injury, one that abruptly ends his season. With only Pat Chaffey and Kantroy Barber behind Garner on the depth chart, expect the Stars to rely even more heavily on Bobby Hebert’s arm, a tough thing to do when he also just lost his protection at left tackle. Baltimore is looking like one of the best teams in the East, but the news this week throws a huge shadow over the season. QB Trent Green, for the second season in a row, has suffered a significant injury and will be out for the rest of the year. Green stumbled awkwardly at the end of the Blitz game this week and he, like Garner, was diagnosed with a ruptured Achilles. While not as devastating an injury for a pocket passer compared to a one-cut back like Garner, the Achilles will cost Green the rest of the season and even the postseason. That puts a lot of pressure on the Blitz to recalibrate the offense as they will have to fall back on Wally Richardson once again to lead the club. It is a team with a solid 1-2 punch at HB with Fenner and Cloud, and a defense that can win games for them, but the loss of their starter 2 years in a row is certainly not what the Blitz and their fans wanted to see. Other significant injuries this week include Fed’s LB Winston Moss (ACL-IR), Tampa corner Samari Rolle (Wrist, 4-6 weeks), Orland wideout Keenan McCardell (ankle, 4-6 weeks), Seattle CB Al Harris (leg, 2-4 weeks), Birmingham WR Ernest Givens (ribs, 1-2 weeks) and Texas guard Larry Allen (disc, 1-2 weeks). The Hall of Fame votes are in and we have 5 USFL players headed to Canton. Here is your Pro Football Hall of Fame Class of 1999: WR Trumaine Johnson Chicago Blitz (1983), Arizona Wranglers (1984-1994) Career Stats: 1,209 Receptions, 16,580 Yards, 119 TDs, 13.7 YPC All-USFL: 9 Times The no-brainer that everyone expected. One of the most prolific receivers in the history of the USFL, a playmaker, a flamboyant home run hitter of a receiver, and one of the best interviews in the league. Johnson went over 1,000 yards receiving all 12 seasons of his career, including reaching 1,400 yards 7 times. He also had double digit touchdowns in 6 seasons. He retired with a per game average of 89.1 yards receiving and over 16,500 total receiving yards on 1,209 catches. HB John Williams Michigan (1983-1990) Career Stats: 1993 Att., 8281 Yards, 4.2 YPC, 55 TDs. 153 Rec., 1,813 Yards, 6 TDs All-USFL: 4 Times. USFL Champion: 2 Times. John Williams makes it into the Hall of Fame in his 4th year of eligibility. Big John never had the flash or fanfare of other early USFL backs like Walker, Cribbs, or Rozier, but he had the production to rival anyone, and two rings to boot. In eight seasons with the Michigan Panthers he produced 6 1,000 yard seasons, a career average of 4.2 yards per carry, and 61 total touchdowns. K Tim Mazzetti Boston/New Orleans (1983-1994) Career Stats: 1,590 Career Points. 489 of 491 PAT (99.6%), 367 of 423 FG (86.8%) All-USFL: 7 Times League Points Leader 5 Times, Holds record for FG in a season at 49 The Kicking Bartender, Tim Mazzetti, was a mainstay on the Breakers roster from their early days in Boston through the playoff run of 9 straight years, retiring in 1994 as one of the most recognizable and well-renown kickers in league history. His 1990 season produced a record which still stands for field goal attempts with 53, as well as the record for made field goals at 49. FS Frederick Wilder Birmingham (1983-84), New Orleans (1985-1993) Career Stats: 169 Games played, 712 Tackles, 32 Interceptions, 15 Sacks, 106 Passes Defended, 9 Defensive Touchdowns All-USFL: 5 Times. Perhaps the biggest surprise in this year’s class, Wilder gets in on his second attempt. The ballhawking safety started an impressive 155 of 169 possible games, racking up 712 tackles and 32 interceptions in his 13-year career. Wilder had a knack for undercutting receivers to snag picks and 9 times in his career those picks were run back for scores. Wilder was one of many Breaker players to take part in a run of 9 consecutive playoff seasons, but, as with the entire Breakers franchise never earned a Summer Bowl title. WR John Jefferson Pittsburgh (1985-87), Orlando (1988-1994) Career Stats: 160 Games played. 878 Receptions, 12,505 Yards, 70 TDs, 14.2 YPC All-USFL: 5 Times. A huge surprise, not as an entrant per se, but as a first-time candidate, Jefferson may have been helped by his combination of USFL and NFL stats showing that he was elite in both leagues. Originally part of the Air Coryell attack with the NFL Chargers, Jefferson jumped to the USFL in 1985 as an immediate impact player. He would play 10 seasona in the USFL, becoming one of the oldest players at his position by his retirement in 1994. Over his USFL career he caught 878 passes for 12,505 yards and 70 touchdowns. He becomes the first player inducted from the Orlando Renegades, where he won all 5 of his All-USFL accolades. So, a shoo-in, a well-deserved accolade for an undervalued player, the Hall’s first USFL kicker, and two players who, while certainly deserving of the honor, go into the Hall sooner than expected. The hall passed on a couple of deserving candidates from the O-line position, an oversight which has many former linemen upset, including candidates William Copley and Antonio Gardiner, who both were semi-finalists. It is something the USFL and the HOF are going to need to reconcile as there simply are not the statistical categories available to linemen that every other position on the field can use as evidence. Looking at 2000 there may be space for a lineman or two to make the Hall, but we also have to recognize that in the new class of 2000 will be two slam dunk players, Herschel Walker and Eric Truvilion, and two possible coaches in Sam Rutigliano and Dick Vermeil. Add in qualified players like wideout Jo-Jo Townsell, LB Kiki DeAyala, and SS Dave Dumars and it could be rough for Copley, Gardiner, and new candidate, tackle Mark Shively to get the votes they need. It’s another great week of divisional games as all 24 clubs are in division this week. Let’s start in the Pacific where things have gotten interesting. LA is still up one game in the division, but has a tough assignment, traveling to Portland to face the 4-5 Thunder. Denver is a game behind and host the flailing Invaders with a shot at gaining ground if LA stumbles. In Arizona a resurgent Wranglers team can reach .500 if they can cool off the Seattle Dragons, who exploded this week against the Invaders. In the Central the big game is Michigan at St. Louis. If the Panthers want to join the playoff hunt, they may need this one, but after losing to Chicago last week the Knights are out for blood. Houston hopes to rebound after a tough loss to Texas when they face the Breakers in New Orleans this week. Texas is at home, where they hope to shut down the Chicago Machine and remain at least 1 game up in the division. Birmingham has raced out to a 1 game lead in the South, and can go a long way to securing a title if they can knock off the Bandits in Tampa Stadium this week. It is a game that Tampa Bay cannot afford to lose if they want any chance to retake the division title. Orlando and Jacksonville battle in the Citrus Bowl, and at 3-6 neither club can afford another loss. Memphis is 1 game behind the Stallions and hope to make ground as they face the 1-8 Atlanta Fire. And in the Atlantic the parity of the division is on display as 4-5 New Jersey heads to 5-4 Washington and 5-4 Ohio visits 4-5 Pittsburgh in two games that could separate contenders from posers. Meanwhile, the 8-1 Blitz are 3 games up in the division and would love to clinch things early as they head to Philadelphia to face a demoralized and out-of-synch Stars club.

We have reached the midpoint of the USFL season and what a first half it has been. Teams no one saw coming are atop the divisions, squads we expected big things from are struggling, it is not 100% topsy turvey, but it is certainly not what we expected. We will take a look at our preseason picks and make some adjustments, but first, let’s look at the action from this week as we prepare for a wild second half to the year. An overtime thriller between two bitter rivals as 61,344 crazed fans (of both teams) filled Legion Field for a midseason battle between the first place Showboats and the 2nd place Stallions. What we got was exactly the kind of high stakes game that makes pro football so much fun. Both Heath Shuler and Brett Favre had big games, with Shuler going over 400 yards passing and Favre outdoing him by passing for 524. Neither team got much on the ground, but through the air this was a spectacle, one that only ended in extra time as the Stallions pulled off the much-needed win against Memphis and moved into a tie for first in the South. The game began with Memphis having the upper hand. Within 3 minutes of kickoff league passing leader Heath Shuler found Lawyer Tillman for his first score of the day. After what would be a rare stop on Birmingham’s first possession, Memphis doubled up the score when Shuler again found Tillman, this time not on a short pass like their first score, but a 72 yard backbreaker of a play that left the Stallions’ faithful in shock. Memphis would add a field goal as the 2nd quarter began and felt somewhat good about a 17-0 start against the Stallions. But, we all knew this game was far from over. Birmingham all but abandoned the run game and put the ball in the hands of its MVP quarterback, Brett Favre. The Stallions’ offense responded and Favre hit Tyree Davis from 7 yards out to put the Stallions on the board. A late field goal would pull Birmingham within 7 at 17-10 as the game went to the half. Memphis started the second half much as it had started the first, adding 10 points to their total to go up 27-10 thanks to a 28-yard field goal from Jeff Hall and then another big play against a somewhat suspect Stallion secondary, with TE Adrian Cooper going 73 yards for the score to put Memphis up 27-10. Once again Birmingham responded, scoring the final 17 points of regulation to tie the score. The star of the second half was wideout Lawrence Dawsey, who caught Favre TD passes of 20 and 35 yards on consecutive drives to get the Stallions within 3 points at 27-24. On the final drive of regulation the Stallions used Dawsey as a decoy, and dumped the ball off to Stephen Davis for what would be a huge 52-yard pass play on 3rd and7. The Showboats D used a Reggie White sack of Favre to force Birmingham to kick for the tie, and they did just that, sending the game to overtime. Memphis never saw the ball in the extra period as Birmingham, having won the toss, marched down the field in rapid succession, 18 yards to Walter Reeves, 9 yards to Kez McCorvey, 13 to Dawsey, and the final 6 yards, the winning 6 yards to Marcus Robinson. It was a blistering comeback and a thrilling win for the Stallions, who take over a share of first place and look like a team to be reckoned with. Favre finished the day with 524 yards passing and 4 TDs, winning the duel with Shuler and thrilling the home crowd. ORL 6 TBY 10 If the Showboat-Stallion matchup gave us just what we expected, the Orlando-Tampa Bay battle was quite a shocker. With Orlando forced to go with their 3rd string QB everyone and their uncle expected a Bandits blowout, but the Orlando defense kept Aikman and the Bandits in check all day. Aikman would pass for only 177 yards, 8 fewer than the unheralded John Walsh. But, Aikman had only 1 pick, and Walsh tossed 3, including a fatal one late in the game that led to the winning field goal by the Bandits. JAX 42 ATL 7 The battle to escape the Southern basement was about as one-sided as a game can get. Atlanta, despite a solid 70 yards rushing from Tiki Barber, could do nothing while Jacksonville seemed to be able to score at will, with 2 TDs from Danny Wuerfell and 3 rushing scores from Sedrick Irvin. This was an ugly loss for the Fire, who simply do not seem to be able to get out of their own way. NJ 10 OHI 31 In one of the bigger surprises of the week Ohio looked like a legitimate playoff squad as they reached .500 by upending the visiting Generals. A 21-point second quarter gave them a 25 point lead at the half. Galloway had 118 yards receiving and 2 scores to lead the Glory offense, while Robert Massey won defensive player of the week with 10 tackles, 6 passes defended and a huge pick-six to wrap up the win for the Glory. PIT 6 BAL 27 The Maulers were expected to challenge the Blitz, but when QB Charlie Batch injured himself in Friday’s practice, they had to turn to rookie Sean King, and that did not go well. Baltimore slowly but surely just kept adding points to the scoreboard while Pittsburgh struggled to put anything together. The Maulers finished the game just 2 of 10 on third down and with only 59 yards rushing as Baltimore shut them down across the board. WSH 28 PHI 16 After a shaky start to the season the Federals seem to have found their feet and move back to .500 with a road win in Philadelphia. Kordell Stewart kept to the pocket this week and that also worked for him, throwing 3 TD passes and completing 24 of 34 attempts. Barry Word added 65 yards on 8 carries, and the defense, while allowing 307 yards passing, kept Bobby Hebert out of the endzone. The win moves Washington into solid playoff contention at midseason. TEX 10 STL 34 It was the game that those who love defensive football had been waiting for, with two of the league’s best defensive squads facing off. St. Louis got the upper hand early, with scores from Bert Emmanuel and Ahman Green providing a 14-point lead. They would then shut down both Kelly Stouffer and Reggie Cobb to keep Texas at a comfortable length all game. HOU 20 MGN 31 Michigan was a home dog to the Gamblers, but showed that they are still a big cat thanks to a solid 282 yard-3 TD day from the diminutive Doug Flutie. Add in a solid 78 yard day from Tyrone Wheatley and you have enough firepower to outpace Houston, which relies too heavily on defense to win games. Houston only ran for 37 total yards and that meant that Michigan could pursue Chuck Hartlieb all day. CHI 6 NOR 27 The Machine again proved that they may be the worst team in the league, producing only 188 total yards. It was a performance that led the club to immediately make a big move to change things up (see below). For New Orleans, a solid 92 yard day from rookie HB Ricky Williams allowed Jamie Martin room for play action and the veteran connected on 3 scoring tosses to easily upend the Machine. POR 13 DEN 10 The Thunder were outgained and outplayed most of the game, but their defense kept Denver out of the endzone and kept them in the game until one key play allowed them to take the W. Denver was frustrated by unforced errors all day, missing on open receivers, getting big plays called back by penalties, and simply not executing against a weakened Portland offense with Bill Musgrave at the helm. Musgrave had only a few good throws all day, but one of them was a TD toss to Webster Slaughter that would produce a W for the Thunder, who have now won 4 in a row after starting the year 0-4, evening their record. ARZ 31 OAK 20 The Wranglers are hoping this win springboards them back to a possible playoff run, while Oakland seems to be fading fast. Ryan Leaf was injured in the 2nd quarter and longtime backup Cary Conklin came in to try to rally the Invaders, but his rust was evident. Meanwhile Jake Plummer’s 296 yards, 109 of which wen to Carl Pickens, was the catalyst for one of the better offensive games of the year for Arizona. LA 48 SEA 20 Those who still doubt the Express this year may want to watch the replay of this game. The Express looked solid in all 3 phases, and rookie Cade McNown looked like he had full grasp of the Express offense, throwing for 333 yards and 4 touchdowns against a midling Dragon defense. Darnay Scott caught 2 of those 4 TDs, but Tory Holt and Mike Pritchard also contributed, combining for 180 yards and 2 scores between them as the Express raced past the Dragons and now hold a 2-game lead in the Pacific. MOVING THE DECK CHAIRS? We will get to our midyear reevaluation in just a moment, but with midseason comes a major push for coaches and GMs to save their jobs, and that means midseason trades designed to kickstart things. Usually these are clubs adding a piece needed, or upgrading a key position, but occasionally, like this year, you get something a little bigger. Most of the trades this week were fringe adjustments, but there were some interesting moves that could mean more. Let’s start with the big one. Chicago & Atlanta Trade Signal Callers Fed up with the miscues and missed opportunities, both Atlanta and Chicago opted to shake up their quarterback situation. We had speculated for weeks that Chicago might move on from Jeff Garcia as the starter, and with Atlanta benching Jeff George 2 weeks ago, the writing was on the wall that the former NFL top pick was not long for the Peach State. Well, this week both clubs tried to address this pivotal position on their clubs. In a somewhat unprecedented midseason deal Atlanta sent former starter Jeff George to the Chicago Machine and in return received a mid-round draft pick as well as promising young QB prospect Aaron Brooks. What does this mean for each club? Well, we expect Chicago to start George as soon as he has a chance to absorb even a portion of the playbook, likely in Week 10, with Alex Van Pelt taking over this week. They have already cut Jeff Garcia, a somewhat awkward move, but one they felt they needed to make. In Atlanta we believe this is the coaching staff’s endorsement of Eric Zeier as the starter for the remainder of the season. In Brooks they get a project, a solid player, but one not ready to start at this point in his career, so the position seems to be Zeier’s, and we will see how that plays out for the rest of the year. New Orleans Hopes to Boost the Passing Game It is well known that this season could easily be Mike Ditka’s last. He barely hung on to his job last year, and the remarkable trade made to secure the #1 pick and Ricky Williams has placed a lot of pressure on this year for immediate results. A 3-5 record at the halfway point is not good enough for the Breakers’ coach, to be sure, and so this week he and the front office made a move to improve their passing game and provide Jamie Martin with another weapon. New Orleans sent backup receiver D’Wayne Bates and a 5th round pick to Oakland to acquire wideout Johnnie Morton, a good route runner with some speed who could fit into the slot right away and eventually push for the #2 slot on the team. For Oakland this is a sign that they are looking to rebuild a bit around Ryan Leaf. The Invaders have issues on both sides of the ball, so an extra pick may be of more value to them than Morton has proven to be. In the short term this will mean that rookie Marty Booker moves into the #2 slot in Oakland. Booker has had some good games in his first year, and this week’s 6 catch, 77 yard performance clearly left Oakland with a good feeling about the young receiver. Stars Look for More Explosiveness Another trade of receivers as the Stars hope to improve their offense and provide Bobby Hebert with some dynamic playmakers. Denver sends two wideouts, speedy Kevin Dyson and untested Alex Van Dyne to the Stars, receiving a 2nd round pick as well as backup possession receiver Germaine Crowell from the Stars. Dyson has only 7 receptions for Denver this year, his second in the league, but as a rookie he was something of a revalation, catching 94 balls for 1,133 yards. It is somewhat surprising that Denver would part with such a dynamic receiver, but with Odessa Turner and former Express wideout Dedrick Smith occupying the top two slots, Dyson’s value was diminished. Denver will now likely go with either Lloyd Hill or promising rookie Peerless Price as the third option in the passing game. In Philadelphia, Dyson immediately moves into the #2 slot behind Cris Carter, pushing Troy Brown into the slot position, though it is likely that the two will split work inside and on the outside. Van Dyne will likely only see limited action for the Stars just as he did with Denver, and could contribute on special teams. Ohio Making a Push Two moves this week seem to indicate that Ohio wants to make a push to get into the upper half of a pretty congested Atlantic Division. First, they signed NFL castoff and former Breakers wideout Qadry Ismail to a 1-year deal. Ismail was thought to possibly be returning to New Orleans, but after a rough departure from the Ditka-led Breakers he opted instead to join Ohio after being released by the Miami Dolphins last month. Ismail cleared the NFL waiver process, making him a true free agent, able to be signed even outside the NFL-USFL transfer window, a rarity in recent years. Ismail will be lined up opposite Joey Galloway in hopes of relieving some of the double coverage the former Buckeye receiver has seen, or, if not, creating a tough single coverage matchup for defenses too used to blanketing Galloway. The other move made by Ohio this week is to improve a mediocre pass rush. DE’s Alonzo Spellman and Cedric Harden have a combined 8 sacks on the year, and Ohio has often resorted to using blitzes to create pressure, exposing their secondary. This week they traded for Seattle’s top DE John Copeland. Copeland has 5 sacks for the Dragons this season, and has had double digit sacks over several seasons in Seattle and Birmingham. He will rotate, most likely with Spellman, and be used frequently on third down passing situations to pressure the QB. Seattle, for their part, picks up a 3rd round pick in next year’s draft and puts some depth in their D-line by adding Lamar King from Ohio. King is likely a bench player, meaning that the two primary DE’s in Seattle will now be Steve Bates and Lorenzo Bromell, with Joe Johnson and King rotating in as well. That is not exactly a murderer’s row for the Dragons, with Bromell and Bates combining for only 4 sacks in 1998. Is Seattle going to make another move to improve that group or are they now going to be a heavy blitz club? The latter seems likely with Takeo Spikes being the most likely candidate to serve as a 4th or 5th rusher on passing downs. Gilbert Brown locks down the center of the 3-4 defense in Seattle, but unless they add more to the pass rush, the Dragons seem to have a weakness when it comes to QB pressure without Copeland. We will see if they opt to do something in the next 2 weeks before the trade deadline. SECOND HALF PREVIEW Time to look ahead, clean off our clearly tarnished crystal ball, and see if perhaps we can actually get some of our picks right as we head down the stretch. Looking ahead, division by division, this is what we see, hopefully a bit more clearly than we did earlier this year. ATLANTIC While Baltimore was predicted by many to be a playoff contender in the Atlantic, it is safe to say that no one thought they could have a 3-game lead on the division after 8 weeks. After watching the division struggle to compete at a level we thought they would, and particularly the collapse of the Stars, We feel pretty confident that Baltimore will maintain that lead over the second half. Washington is coming on and we see them as the 2nd best club. After that it is a crapshoot and any one of the other 4 clubs could make a second half surge to move into playoff position. The problem is they are likely to keep knocking each other off. We are picking New Jersey to just barely edge the others and snag the 6th seed at 8-8, but it honestly could be any one of the 4 clubs in the pack. SOUTHERN Birmingham and Tampa Bay were thought to be the two who would battle it out at the end, and while we love what Memphis has done, we still see those two pulling ahead over the course of the season. Memphis is still a very strong team and should easily qualify for the playoffs after a 6-2 start. Orlando is a bit of a mystery. We had high hopes for them, but they have been forced to use 3 different QB’s in the last month, and if that kind of issue lingers, they could easily fall out of contention. As for Jacksonville and Atlanta, we think they are going to be playing for draft position and to see what talent they have by Week 12 or 13 because we don’t see either one stringing together wins to get back in this. CENTRAL St. Louis has caught up to Texas and we think they are a smidge better than the Outlaws on offense, which can make the difference as the two battle it out down the stretch. Houston is fading just a bit, and they have offensive issues to sort out as well. We still see all three reaching double digit wins and a playoff spot, but watch out for Michigan. If they can string together some good games from Flutie and their run game, they could sneak into this picture. New Orleans likely has to reach 8-8 to save Coach Ditka’s job, and with their erratic play that seems unlikely, and Chicago, well, best not to dwell on Chicago right now. It isn’t pretty in the Second City. PACIFIC This is the division that is just causing us all to scratch our heads. The 2-14 LA Express from 1998 did change a lot of personnel, but for them to be 6-2 and 2 games up on the field right now in the Pacific is just astounding. If Coach Galen Hall does not win Coach of the Year, it may lead to riots, because he is a slam dunk right now. Behind the Express we find a mishmash of inconsistency, but of the clubs in that quagmire, we still like Denver to come out of the mix and end the year with a winning record. And since we picked Arizona to win the division, we are still clinging to a belief that they are better than they have played thus far, and can sneak in at 8-8 as they did last year. Portland and Seattle just do not have our confidence right now, and Oakland clearly looks like a team that needs to find its path. Could this be another short tenure in the USFL for Dan Reeves? Right now it sure looks that way. The second half of the year opens with divisional games out west and with all 6 Atlantic clubs traveling to face Southern Division foes. Starting with the Pacific Division we have a huge game to determine how quickly the division title will be settled. 4-4 Denver already trails 6-2 LA by 2 games, a win for the Gold would bring them back in striking range, a loss could all but wrap up the title for the surprising Express. Portland is also 4-4 after turning around their 0-4 start with 4 straight wins. They are in Arizona, where the 3-5 Wranglers are hoping to turn their season around and get back to the playoffs. One more 4-4 club in the division, Seattle, will host a disappointing 2-6 Oakland squad. A win for the Dragons would keep them in the thick of the playoff chase, especially if LA falls to the Denver Gold. In the Central the big drama is in Houston where the Texas Showdown looks to be a really good matchup of tough defenses. 6-2 Texas will face off against the 5-3 Gamblers with a possible 3-way tie for first on the table. That possibility depends on a Houston win, but also an unlikely result in another rivalry game. Chicago, likely with Alex Van Pelt at the helm at least for 1 week, is hosting the 6-2 Knights. It would be a huge upset for the Machine to pull this one out. The last game in the division is a mid-table matchup between 4-4 Michigan and 3-5 New Orleans. We will have to wait and see if new wideout Johnnie Morton will start for the Breakers, but we know Michigan will prepare for him either way. In the Eastern Conference, the best matchup is the rematch of Summer Bowl 1998, with the 4-4 Federals getting another crack at the Tampa Bay Bandits. Both Washington and Tampa Bay are trailing the leaders in their divisions this year, but their fans still think they both have what it takes to make a run to the top of each division. Another club hoping to make a run is the Pittsburgh Mauler squad that sits at 4-4. They have a tough matchup as they head to Birmingham to face the 6-2 Stallions and one of the most explosive offenses in the league. The other 6-2 club, Memphis, has their own mid-table contender from the Atlantic in town as Ohio visits the Mid-South to face the Showboats and top rated QB Heath Shuler. The leader in the Atlantic, Baltimore (7-1) is in Orlando, where the Renegades are being coy about who will start at QB for them this week. Both Scott Mitchell and Craig Erickson are listed as questionable, meaning either or both are a 50/50 proposition to take the field. If neither can go Orlando may be in trouble starting John Walsh against that nasty Blitz defense. The final 2 games in the East are less dramatic, though both could impact playoff positions down the line. The Philadelphia Stars (3-5) are in Jacksonville and cannot afford a loss to the 2-6 Bulls if they want to get into the mix. New Jersey, sitting at 4-4, needs to string together some wins, and starting with the 1-7 Atlanta Fire seems a good place to begin a run.

After two straight weeks of intriguing upsets, the favorites had a very good week in USFL Week 7. It was not always easy but frontrunners in each division looked like frontrunners this week. We will speak later on about just who those frontrunners are and whey they are such a surprise, but first lets see just how this week’s games played out. We knew this would be a good one and it certainly lived up to the hype. With Randy Moss still working his way back from injury the Bandits offense has not been quite as intimidating these past weeks, while in Baltimore, their revamped defense has been one of the most impressive revelations of the season. That dynamic came into play in a big way in this game, with the Blitz and that defense coming out on top, but only after a late rally by the oft-maligned offense. Baltimore was able to pressure and keep Tampa QB Troy Aikman off balance all day with a mix of coverages. Aikman completed only 28 of 47 passes (59.6%) which for some teams would be fine, but for Tampa means their offense could not produce as needed. They relied a bit more on Errict Rhett to offset this, but while his 4.8 YPC average was solid, it did not produce the big plays that the Tampa Bay offense thrives on. Meanwhile, Trent Green, settling in to the starting job after missing nearly all of last season with an injury, had a strong performance, completing 25 of 36 attempts for 271 yards and 2 scores. With Derrick Fenner unavailable, the rushing duties fell to rookie Mike Cloud, who carried the ball for only 45 yards on 18 carries, but did break off a 20-yard run on a key drive late. The game started slowly from an offensive perspective, with only 2 field goals each in the first half, a pace and score which favored Baltimore as they hoped to avoid a shootout. Both teams struggled with penalties in the first half, with 4 apiece, while the defenses both limited opportunities for big plays. The first real shot of the game would come at the start of the third quarter when an effective play fake to Mike Cloud allowed Trent Green to find Tim Dwight for a 34-yard gain on the Blitz’s longest play of the game. That long completion got Baltimore in range and they capped off the drive with Green hitting TE Kyle Brady for an 8-yard TD to go up 13-6. The Baltimore lead would be short lived as only 3:22 later Troy Aikman would find Orlando McKay for a scoring toss of his own and the game would once again be tied up. Tampa Bay would take the lead one drive later as Aikman, forced to look underneath to receivers like Curtis Marsh, Troy Drayton and Chris Doering, dinked his way down the field on a drive that led to a 27-yard Vanderjagt field goal. It was a slim lead, but Tampa was up in the 4th, 16-13. Baltimore would not answer on their next drive, a 3-and-out, but they would catch a break when on the next possession a completed pass on 3rd and 8 went for 6 yards to Doering. In his attempt to stretch the ball forward, it would pop loose and be recovered by LB Cedric Figaro, giving Baltimore solid field position on the Tampa Bay 38-yard line. The Blitz offense again struggled, but got the ball close enough for rookie Martin Grammatica to boot home a game-tying 29 yard attempt. With 6:21 left to play we were back to a tie ball game. Baltimore would come up big once again on defense. This time, after a 5-yard Errict Rhett run on first down, Aikman would try to connect with TE Ben Coates, but SS Bennie Blades would break up the pass, leaving Tampa with a 3rd and 5 on their own 25. Aikman looked off a pass to Coates and tossed the ball to Robert Brooks, but CB Donnell Woolford was up to the task, barely missing out on a pick, but deflecting the ball out of bounds to force the Tampa Bay punt. Baltimore would get the ball on their 37, and it would be up to the offense to put them in position for a winning kick. They would do that and more as Trent Green found holes in Tampa Bay’s zone, first hitting Rob Moore for 7, then Brady for 8, and Cam Cleeland for 5 more. Add in a couple of Mike Cloud runs, and a nice catch by Lamar Thomas and Baltimore was in the red zone. They played it conservative on first down with Cloud diving into the middle of the line, but on second down they used Tampa’s expectation of a second run play to force man-on-man coverage outside. Green faked the dive play to Cloud and lofted the ball towards the endzone. Tim Dwight beat his man and made the catch towards the back right corner of the endzone. Baltimore was up 23-16 with barely over a minute to play. Tampa Bay would have one more chance, but when Troy Aikman was sacked by Mike Piel on 2nd and 7, it left the Bandits with a tough 3rd and 13 to go. Aikman could not connect with Moss, who was bracket covered by the Blitz, and on 4th and 13 the pass went to Robert Brooks, but Woolford was again up to the task, making a textbook open field tackle of the Bandit receiver 4 yards short of the line to gain. Baltimore moves to 6-1 with the win, alone atop the Atlantic Division. Tampa Bay drops to 4-3, now 2 games behind the surprising Showboats and now in third with both Memphis and Birmingham ahead of them. MEM 48 NJ 14 The Showboats retained sole possession of first in the South with a solid trouncing of New Jersey in the Meadowlands. Garrison Hearst rushed for 3 scores and Heath Shuler threw 3 more as the Showboat offense simply overwhelmed New Jersey’s defenses. While Joe Horn led all receivers with 115 yards, it was slot receiver Bobby Olive who cashed in to the tune of two scores. TE O.J. Santiago also came up big, with 4 catches for 86 yards and a score. BIR 31 OHI 19 Birmingham kept pace with the Showboats by knocking off the Glory in Columbus. Early TD tosses to Lawrence Dawsey and Derrick Walker helped Birmingham build up a 21-0 lead that they would never relinquish. Stephen Davis added 2 TDs as well and the Stallions kept Ohio at bay with defensive pressure, creating 6 sacks and keeping Joey Galloway under 100 yards. ORL 7 PIT 9 Orlando was not as lucky, falling in Pittsburgh thanks to a late safety given up when Terry Kirby and Craig Erickson bobbled the handoff at their own 2 yard line. The delay in putting the ball away gave the Mauler defense all they needed to bring Kirby down in the endzone and turn a brutal defensive 7-7 game into a 9-7 Pittsburgh win. Pittsburgh relied almost entirely on the D to win this one, with the offense gaining only 194 total yards, but holding Orlando to only 192 and only 3 third down conversions in 15 attempts. JAX 7 WSH 35 The Bulls looked very much like a 1-win team as they struggled agains the Federals’ defense. Kordell Stewart starred in a somewhat unorthodox way, throwing for 260 and 1 score, but rushing for 110 yards and 4 TDs on the day, one of the best QB rushing days we have seen in a long time. For Jacksonville the run game again looked inept, as Sedrick Irvin gained only 15 yards on 10 carries and Natrone Means was given only 2 carries on the day. ATL 24 PHI 31 The Fire fell behind early but came back to make it a game, thanks to the return of Tiki Barber to the starting lineup, a week ahead of schedule. Barber rushed for 149 yards and a score against the Stars, but two TDs from Charlie Garner, including a 4th quarter score that gave Philly a 10-point lead, was enough for the homestanding Stars to get the win, their 3rd of the season. SEA 7 DEN 31 In a key Pacific Division battle, the Gold thoroughly dominated the Dragons, putting up the games first 31 points before a late score in garbage time got Seattle on the board. Former LA Express wideout Dedrick Smith led Denver with 75 yards receiving and 2 scores, while Rashaan Salaam and Ricky Whittle combined for 101 yards rushing, with Whittle actually outgaining the starter 53-48. OAK 6 POR 22 A nice game from Robert Drummond (136 yards on 17 attempts) helped Portland outpace Oakland. The run game allowed QB Bill Musgrave to survive a 15 of 36 performance in relief of Akili Smith. Oakland’s Ryan Leaf struggled against the blitz, completing only 47% of his throws, with 5 sacks and a pick against him. It did not help that the combo of Abdul-Jabbar and Troy Davis accrued only 30 yards rushing between them. LA 27 ARZ 20 The Express are proving they are no mirage, knocking off the preseason favorite in the division thanks to 3rd quarter TDs from rookie Tory Holt and veteran TE Tony McGee. With Cade McNown knocked out earlier in the game, it was Brent Pease, the one-time starter, who brought the Express back from a 17-10 deficit in the second half to earn a key road divisional win. CHI 17 HOU 34 Chuck Hartlieb tossed 3 touchdown passes, all to Derrick Mason, and both Kevin Faulk and Dorsey Levins found the endzone as well as the Gamblers moved their record to 5-2 at the expense of the floundering Machine. Houston controlled the clock, holding possession for nearly 37 minutes in the game, while Chicago converted only 3 of 13 third downs and committed 10 penalties to stall drives. MGN 14 TEX 34 The Outlaws rebounded from last week’s upset loss by taking care of Michigan early. They got on the board on a pick-6 from Jimmy Hitchcock on the 4th play of the game, and added TD passes from Stouffer to Cobb and Query to build a 21-0 lead after one quarter. Michigan tried to mount a comeback but Doug Flutie’s 2 picks and a whopping 12 penalties by the Panthers made any attempt at coming back a pipe dream. NOR 31 STL 34 St. Louis’s defense had difficulty with the Breakers as Jamie Martin passed for 337 yards and 3 scores in a surprising aerial assault. Ricky Williams did well to gain 81 yards on only 12 carries, but with 39 pass attempts it was clear that New Orleans thought they had the answer for St. Louis’s defense. But, Todd Collins also found success, throwing 3 TDs. Down 31-24 after three quarters, Collins found Patrick Rowe for a game-tying score with 9:08 left to play and then the Knights added a game winning kick with just under a minute to go to eke out a 3-point win at home. Let’s start this week’s story round up talking about what everyone is talking about, the stunning situation of the league standings. We have 4 division leaders atop the 4 divisions that no one saw coming. Only Baltimore was even in the discussion of potential playoff teams from this group. Memphis, Los Angeles, and Texas were simply not seen as viable contenders and yet each of these clubs no leads their division and is well over .500 for the year. This is not an instance of a division having a ton of 3-3 clubs, we have Baltimore, Texas and Memphis all with only 1 loss on the year, and LA at 5-2 is also well beyond leading the division because of a fluke tiebreaker. So how are they doing it? Well, each club has their own story. Let’s take a look at all 4: BALTIMORE: The key to the Blitz’s success is a bit tricky to figure out. While they seem to be solid on both sides of the ball (4th in PPG and 10th in Points against), they are not dominant in any one area. Their best ranking is 9th in run defense, so not exactly a full shut-down defense. Their offense is 12th in total yards as well, so this is not a team that is blowing people away. So, what is working? Takeaways and ball control seems to be the answer. Baltimore is tied for first with a +12 turnover ratio, thanks primarily to only 7 turnovers in 7 games and 19 takeaways. Protect the ball, slow down the game to reduce the number of opposition possessions, and turn mistakes into takeaways and you get wins. That appears to be the formula in Baltimore. MEMPHIS: Memphis is perhaps the easiest team to figure out. They currently have the top ranked scoring offense in the league, thanks in part to Heath Shuler’s 2,046 passing yards and 17-2 TD-INT ratio, but they also have the third ranked scoring defense, leading to a 32.3 to 16.9 scoring difference, that is 15.4 point margin of victory. Garrison Hearst is running hard, with 349 yards to date, and the combination of Joe Horn and Lawyer Tillman have combined for 52 receptions and nearly 1,000 yards already. The duo also has 11 touchdowns between them, one of the better duos in the league. Coach Mora has himself a legitimate contender that can win with both offense and defense. A surprise, yes, but also a very tough looking team. TEXAS: The Outlaws are all about the defense, the league’s best, allowing only 13.9 points per game. They are 4th in yards per game, 4th in passing yards allowed, and 5th in rushing yards allowed. This combination of defensive stats has helped them hold 6 of 7 opponents to 20 points or less, with only their single loss to Arizona breaking that trend. The Outlaw offense still has room for growth, but they are 2nd in the league in rushing, which means that they shorten games and make life easier for their defense. Leading the way on defense are LB Levon Kirkland (43 tackles and 3 sacks), LB Garth Jax (6 sacks), and DE John Bosa (8 sacks), but this appears to truly be a team defense, with several players already over 30 tackles for the season. LOS ANGELES: Perhaps the biggest surprise of the four division leaders. The Express won only 2 games last season and many expected that with a new rookie QB and a lot of youth across the roster, this club would struggle this season. It seems that coach Hall has found a formula for immediate success. LA is currently 3rd in the league in scoring, averaging 29.1 points per game, and they are also 4th in scoring defense, allowing only 17.4 PPG. They seem to be doing it on the front lines, evident in their top 10 rankings in both rushing and rush defense. They are also not beating themselves, with only 7 turnovers in the first 7 weeks of the season, and only 36 penalties called against them (5th in the league). Cade Mcnown’s 88.1 rating is not blowing people away, but his 14-3 TD-INT ratio is certainly keeping Coach Hall happy. Add in 564 rushing yards between Antowain Smith and Michael Pittman and you have a nicely balanced offense. Can these four remain hot all season, that is yet to be seen, but what is true is that these four clubs are proving that preseason picks are about as useful as a fish with a bicycle. As the saying goes “This is why we play the games”, because what we see on paper is not always what you get on the field. BACK TO 100% Robert Drummond is back where he wants to be, atop the rushing leaderboard after 7 weeks. His big week this week pushed him a solid 70 yards ahead of Terrell Davis of Pittsburgh. Portland is going to need him to stay hot as neither veteran backup Bill Musgrave nor rookie Akili Smith have been particularly effective in the passing game this year. Drummond, who averages an impressive 5.3 yards per carry so far this season, is finally looking like the player that all defensive coordinators feared in 1996 and 1997, before an ACL injury took him out and required a long rehabilitation. Younger backs like Salaam, Davis, and Ahman Green are not ready to give up on the rushing title just yet, but for many the return of Drummond atop the leader board is a welcome sign for a player that so many respect and admire. ROOKIES IMPRESS EARLY This year’s rookie crop is looking like a good one, with several outstanding performers among the list of first year players in the USFL. Ricky Williams, the player that cost New Orleans nearly an entire draft to get, is certainly proving valuable with 469 yards and 3 scores in his first 100 carries, a nice 4.7 YPC average. Orlando’s Donald Driver has earned a starting job after only a few weeks and now has 513 yards on 45 receptions in his first season. Michigan’s Andy Katzenmoyer has taken over as the MLB for the Panthers and already has 39 tackles and 4 sacks in his rookie campaign. In Baltimore they are ecstatic about the performance of rookie CB Tyrone Bell, who has 40 tackles and a pick-6 so far. But, perhaps the best story of the year is the success of rookie DE Mike Rucker in Birmingham. The Nebraska product has become a popular figure in the yellowhammer state, racking up 20 tackles and 10 sacks in his first 7 games as a Birmingham Stallion. With numbers like that Rucker could be the first defensive player to win Rookie of the Year since sackmaster Phil Hansen did it with New Jersey in 1991. QB Trouble for a couple of clubs that cannot afford it right now. In addition to losing Scott Mitchell several weeks back, it now looks like Orlando will be without Craig Erickson for at least 1 or 2 weeks after he injured his non-throwing shoulder in this week’s loss. Mitchell is still expected to be out for the same length of time, which means that Orlando will be forced to go with untested John Walsh at QB for the next couple of weeks. The Renegades will also have to move someone to the practice squad so that they can sign a backup for Walsh among the slim pickings in free agency right now. Jacksonville, sitting at 1-6, may also be without Chris Chandler for a week or two. The long time Bulls QB suffered a hernia this week and will need time to recover. He is listed as doubtful and we expect to see Danny Wuerfel under center this week when the Bulls travel to Atlanta. Among other impactful injuries Tampa Bay CB Samari Rolle may be done for the year after an MRI proved that his wrist was broken and not simply strained. Washington will miss WR Bill Schroeder for at least 2-3 weeks with a collarbone fracture, while NJ Free Safety Brian Dawkins is listed as doubtful with turf toe. Possibly returning to action this week (listed as probable) are HBs Siran Stacy (OAK) and Derrick Fenner (BAL), DT Gilbert Brown (SEA), LB Pat Swilling (HOU), and LA Quarterback Cade McNown. This week we are focusing on contract negotiations around the league. There are several high profile players expected to either sign on the dotted line in the next 9 weeks or brave the open seas of free agency. Some of these star players will be hot commodities if they become free agents, but can their teams afford to lose them? Here is our pick for the player on each club that is the biggest questionmark or the biggest potential loss for their squad. ARIZONA: WR Carl Pickens—Signed to a 1 year deal this offseason, Pickens has had mixed results in Arizona and may well opt to try the free agency market once again. ATLANTA: LB Mo Lewis—Leading the league in tackles and the heart of the Fire defense, but the losing has to be getting to Lewis and we could see him holding out for a chance to land on a contender. BALTIMORE: T Jumbo Elliott—An absolute beast of a run blocker and a key to Baltimore’s trench warfare style of offense. Elliott could be the toughest lineman to sign this year, although a real chance at a title has to make him consider Baltimore as a really good option. BIRMINGHAM: WR Lawrence Dawsey—Both Dawsey and Erenest Givens are in their final year, but Dawsey has been making some noise that he is tired of being seen as a 2nd option in the Stallion offense. Unless Givens opts to retire this year, Dawsey may seek a new club where he is the unchallenged #1. CHICAGO: CB Eric Allen—A consistent point of strength on a club that does not have many, the question here is whether Allen trusts new coach Marty Mornhinweg’s plan for the team. At 32, he may not want to be part of a 3-5 year plan to get back to playoff form. DENVER: DT Dan Saleamua—We all know the Gold are going to break the bank to resign DE Leslie O’Neill, so what does that leave for relative newcomer Saleamua? The big man is turning 35 this year, which also raises some questions. If Big Sal heads to free agency it may have more to do with Denver’s priorities than his own. HOUSTON: DE Michael Sinclair—Sinclair is having a breakout season, and his pairing with Kavika Pittman has been nothing short of electric. Keeping both in house will make or break Houston’s offseason, which is bad news for other potential free agents like DT Luther Ellis, G Todd Kaliss, and CB Sam Madison. JACKSONVILLE: Either starting wideout—Both Brian Blades and Terrell Owens are up for new contracts this year, as is QB Chris Chandler. With Jacksonville looking like a club in need of a facelift, either one or both could decide that they are not getting any younger and need to seek out a better chance for a title elsewhere. Considering that wideout is perhaps the one position of strength in Jacksonville, the Bulls need to retain at least one of the duo. LOS ANGELES: DE Santana Dotson—The sack leader for a rising defense, we chose Dotson over wideout Mike Pritchard as the key player to resign. With the emergence of Tory Holt, Pritchard may be expendable, whereas Dotson is a huge piece of a defense the Express need to keep building. MEMPHIS: DE Reggie White—Had the Showboats continued to flounder around .500 as they have in recent years there would be a good chance that White might seek greener pastures. With their surprising success this year, their odds of holding onto one of the best defensive players in the game got significantly better. MICHIGAN: DT Sam Adams—No fewer than 5 defensive starters are on the last year of their contracts in Michigan, but only Adams truly has earned the right to demand top dollar. We expect the Panthers to let 2-3 of the others go if it means keeping Adams happy and firmly entrenched at NT in Pontiac. NEW JERSEY: K Adam Vinatieri—Honestly the Generals are in great shape, with almost no superstars on their last year. Vinatieri has been a top 5 kicker since coming into the league, and signing him will not break the bank, so the Generals can spend a little in free agency to add some talent this offseason. NEW ORLEANS: QB Jamie Martin—A lot of folks might say wideout Raynard Brown or LB Donnie Edwards are more vital to the Breakers, but the QB Market is a tough one and behind Martin the Breakers have only Bobby Hoying and Gus Frerotte, so they cannot feel confident that they will have a true starter if they let Martin go. He will demand dollars well above what his production has merited, so there may be pressure to let him walk and take a shot at an NFL or USFL free agent. If Ditka is out after this year, which is a distinct possibility, then maybe even a rookie like Marshall’s Chad Pennington or Louisville’s Chris Redman may be an option, but not one that will turn things around quickly for the Breakers. OAKLAND: LB Chris Spielman—Decision time in Oakland. Is this a club that needs to reboot once again? And is the LB Corps a place to do that. Spielman has been a solid player in Oakland, but he has not brought about a significant improvement in the defense, and the Invaders have a lot of needs in a lot of areas. Resigning the MLB may not be a top priority for them. OHIO: WR Joey Galloway—Without at doubt one of the few superstar talents on this club. Despite the fact that Galloway is an Ohio guy, unless the club can compete either on the field or with the checkbook, it may be hard to convince the speedy wideout that staying in Columbus is in his own best interest. ORLANDO: C Kevin Mawae--Another club without a lot of big name players on their final year, the Renegades would be wise to resign their pivot to a long eterm deal. The 27-year old Center is the key to their line, and while other free agents like HB Terry Kirby or LB Dexter Coakley have not exactly lit things up in Orlando, Mawae has been a consummate professional for the ‘Gades. PHILADELPHIA: G Ruben Brown—Yes, resigning HB Charlie Garner is important, but Brown is at the top of his class and would be a far less expensive resigning. Garner is simply easier to replace, while a stud in the center of the line, and a 25-year old one at that, is pure gold. Philly needs to upgrade across the skill positions but keeping their line intact is another top priority. PITTSBURGH: T Zach Wiegert—Pittsburgh has 4 of its 5 starting lineman on the final year of their contracts. So we could have listed any of them. Honestly, we think they need to retain at least 3 of them to have any chance of coherence for next year, but LT is always the key position, and the one that will require the most cash to lock in, so that is our pick here. PORTLAND: CB Torin Dorn—The easier pick would be either of their Free Safeties, Mike Dumas or Vencie Glenn, but with 2 to choose from we think one will be locked in soon. Dorn is a tougher case. He is their best corner and while at 31 years old he is not a spring chicken, he has good years ahead of him. SEATTLE: HB Corey Dillon—Dillon has not had the production many expected, but he has improved every year in Seattle, with 951 yards last year and a pace that would put him over 1,000 this year. With growth in several areas of the squad, holding onto a bellcow back seems a necessity for the Dragons. ST. LOUIS: LB Trev Alberts—There are a lot of defenders who could bolt St. Louis, but none would be more damaging to the Knights defense than Alberts. A leader on the field and in the clubhouse, they need his energy and skillset to keep this defense aggressive and agile. If that means losing out on others like DT Mike Lodish, CB Steve Israel, or fellow LB Darrin Smith, that may just have to happen. TAMPA BAY: DT Rollin Putzier—With most of the potential free agents in Tampa on the defensive side of the ball we had to choose between Putzier, LB Bobby Houston, and SS Chris Crooms. All three are valuable, but we feel that the DT position is harder to replace and Putzier is more valuable to the club than even their vocal LB leader. TEXAS: HB Rodney Thomas—How could a backup HB be the most important free agent to hold onto? Well, when you consider Reggie Cobb’s age, and you see how Thomas is used in the Texas offense, we think it is key for the Outlaws to retain him. Sure, LB Levon Kirkland or G Larry Allen would be good choices too, but we expect there to be a handing off of the HB torch very soon, and you want someone who can receive that torch and immediately take off. WASHINGTON: WR Herman Moore—As much as some of our staff wanted to say QB Kordell Stewart, especially after his amazing 5 TD (4 rushing) day this week, everyone also agreed that Moore is the face of the franchise and an elite talent that the Federals cannot afford to lose. If Stewart were to leave, there is some confidence that the combo of Scott Zolak and Brock Huard could step up, but at wideout, Moore is pretty hard to replace. Midseason is upon us and we celebrate with a full slate of Week 8 divisional matchups. In the Altantic it is surging Pittsburgh heading to face division leading Baltimore. Philly and Washington clash at Veterans Stadium, with the winner improving to 4-4. New Jersey and Ohio are also hoping for a win that will push them to 4-4 as well. They will battle on Saturday afternoon at Ohio Stadium in Columbus. It’s a battle for Central Florida when Orlando visits Tampa Bay on Saturday Night. The Renegades can move to 4-4 with a road win, but they will have to do it with a 3rd string QB at the helm. Memphis takes their 6-1 record to arch rival Birmingham, in a game that may bring a crowd of over 60,000 to Legion Field. Jacksonville and Atlanta clash in a battle of 1-6 clubs that cannot be eager to end up 1-7. The Central Division clashes look brutal as 6-1 Texas visits 5-2 St. Louis in what be a very low scoring slugfest. Houston takes their 5-2 record into Michigan, where the Panthers need a win to return to .500. Chicago at 1-6 visits 2-5 New Orleans in a battle of clubs trying to find their way forward. And finally, the Pacific matchups feature upstart LA visiting the 4-3 Seattle Dragons, with a share of 1st place on the line. Arizona and Oakland enter their clash in Northern California at 2-5 and needing a win to get on the right track. Meanwhile 3-4 Oakland will be at Mile High to take on the 4-3 Gold.

And then there were none. Texas falls in Tempe, so we now have no clubs that are either undefeated or winless. We also saw a big upset in Oakland, where the Invaders came back to shock the St. Louis Knights, and the LA Express blew through the Houston Gambler defense that has been so tough all year. It was a week of shocking results, from Seattle’s big win over Michigan to Pittsburgh’s mauling of New Jersey. It would seem that once again our sense of who is actually a contender and who is a pretender may need to be reset. With LA, Memphis, and Seattle solidly above .500 while Washington, Arizona, and Philadelphia struggle, this looks like a year that will make the preseason prognosticators and early Las Vegas line setters very nervous. How do we tell this story? Did the St. Louis Knights get complacent and let one slip out of their fingers? Or, alternatively, did the Oakland Invaders dig deep and follow their 2nd year QB to a historic comeback? Either way you see it, this was a game for the ages. St. Louis came in at 4-1 and looking very much a dominant force in the league. Oakland had started the year a very disappointing 1-4, and concerns were already being whispered that Ryan Leaf was not all people expected of him after a quick start in his rookie year. We are not sure either narrative is wrong, but the final quarter of this game set that narrative aside as the Invaders found a will to win and shocked St. Louis with a huge comeback victory. Early on, no, honestly for the first 3 quarters, this looked like a game that the Knights would cruise through. Sure, they relied a bit too much on the defense, kicking field goals when the offense struggled to convert third downs (1 for 11 on the day), but after 3 quarters they had a pretty comfortable 16-6 lead. Ryan Longwell had connected from 18, 27, and 39 yards out, with a Todd Collins to Amani Toomer TD toss being the only endzone visit of the game through the first three quarters. The St. Louis D was doing their part, sacking Ryan Leaf 4 times, picking him once, and getting a fumble recovery to boot, but the offense struggled to turn these stands into points, failing on a 3rd and goal from the 1 (Longwell’s 18-yard field goal followed.) Oakland had been forced to go without Siran Stacy due to a mid-week injury, so it was the unheralded combo of Troy Davis and Karim Adbul-Jabbar in the backfield. Through three quarters the Invaders had garnered only a modest 141 yards on offense and only 2 Joe Nedney field goals on the day. But something happened in the final period. It seemed to be sparked by Leaf getting into a shouting match with OC Jack Burns, a visible sign of frustration that seems to have riled up both parties as well as the other offensive players. Whether it was this or the fact that St. Louis let up a bit on the defensive pressure, assured that 10 points was more than necessary against the Invader offense, but something gave way. On their first possession of the final period, Oakland seemed a different squad. They had switched to short passes to move the ball, something St. Louis seemed comfortable allowing. It took them 11 plays, but on a 2nd and goal, Leaf hit TE Carlester Crumpler for a score and the Invaders were now down only 3, with plenty of time left to play. St. Louis tried to counter on their next drive, but once again a timely defensive play forced them to go for a field goal, something Oakland had done all day, bend but not break. Longwell hooked the ball to the left and it sailed wide. The Invaders, down three, would have a chance to flip the scoreboard with one more drive. Again, the Invaders turned to the short passing game, and again they found some space to move doing so. Rookie Marty Booker turned a 3-yard crosser into a 12-yard gain, Ed McCaffrey went for 14 on a short out, then the Invaders caught St. Louis overcommitting to the outside receivers and surprised them with a Karim Abdul-Jabbar draw for 33 yards, the longest play of the game. They were in St. Louis territory, close enough to tie the game with a field goal, but not settling for the three. Leaf scrambled for 4 yards, then Troy Davis went offtackle for 8 more, another pass to Crumpler, and Oakland was on the St. Louis 7-yard line. On first and goal, Leaf faked to Abdul-Jabbar and floated a fade route to Ed McCaffrey, who outstretched the corner and pulled in the ball with only inches to spare on the back line of the endzone. Oakland had scored on two consecutive drives; a feat no other team had managed against St. Louis since the Summer Bowl. The Knights, so confident only minutes earlier, were flustered. This is a club not accustomed to having to come back to win in the final minutes, and really not built for it either. They had relied all day on the steady runs of Ahman Green (95 yards on 20 carries) and the occasional single coverage toss to Bert Emmanuel (6 for 103) but now they were facing a passing situation and Oakland was bracketing their best receiver. Collins tried to hit Amani Toomer on the first play of the 2-minute drill for St. Louis but failed to connect. His second toss would be the game-ender, a floater out towards slot receiver Patrick Rowe on an out pattern, but, pressured by Oakland’s Kailee Wong, Collins threw the ball with a little too much air under it. CB Aeneas Williams was able to undercut Rowe and snatch the ball out from his waiting arms. St. Louis’s drive ended, and the Invaders milked the remaining 68 seconds to take the win at home. Hard to tell if this game, or this final quarter, was a turning point in the Invader season, but it certainly made for dramatic football. St. Louis drops their second game of the year, the second in a row after a 4-0 start, but, thanks to other results this week, remains only 1 game back and tied for 2nd in the Central. TEX 16 ARZ 24 The reason St. Louis stays only 1 game back is because Texas dropped their first game of the year to a pugnacious homestanding Wrangler squad. Texas got to 5-0 with a stifling defense and few offensive mistakes, but three turnovers in this game, combined with some defensive errors, helped the Arizona Wranglers improve their record to 2-4. The big play of the game was an unforced error, Kelly Stouffer simply not seeing Broderick Thomas in coverage and throwing up an easy pick, and one that proved returnable, all the way for 6. HOU 6 LA 38 Houston also dropped their second game in a row as their top-rated defense simply showed up late, far too late, allowing LA 21 points in the first quarter. Cade McNown hit tory Holt and Curtis Mayfield with first quarter scoring tosses and Antowain Smith rumbled for an 18-yard score to give LA what would prove an insurmountable lead. Houston had to abandon their run game early, and that led to a rough day for Chuck Hartlieb. Meanwhile McNown survived the Houston pass rush and had his best game yet, a 282-yard, 18 of 29 performance that included 3 scoring tosses. Even backup Brent Pease saw some action in mop-up duty as the Express surge to 4-2. NJ 10 PIT 38 Speaking of surging, the Pittsburgh Maulers have rattled off 3 straight wins to even their record. The latest was a pure dismantling of the New Jersey Generals at Three Rivers. Terrell Davis had 3 first half TD runs and Charlie Batch dinked and dunked his way to an 84% completion rate before being forced out of the game. Rookie Shaun King came in and repeated the formula, going 8 of 14 and throwing a 3rd quarter TD to Thabiti Davis that made the score a whopping 38-0. It was a full team victory as Pittsburgh won in every way possible. OHI 24 PHI 38 Across the state, in Philadelphia, the Stars were showing that their season was not yet over as they upended the Ohio Glory by 14. Charlie Garner had a Player of the Week kind of day, rushing for 115, with 28 more in the air, and putting 3 scores on the board for the Stars. Add in 114 yards from TE Eric Green, 99 yards from Cris Carter, and a TD each, and you have a very solid home win for the 1998 division champions. BAL 33 WSH 23 In a week rough on visiting teams, Baltimore proved that home field was not an overwhelming advantage, moving to 5-1 on the year with a convincing win over their rivals from DC. Kordell Stewart was knocked out early and rookie Brock Huard was simply not ready to take over, leading to Baltimore pulling away as the game progressed. No huge performances for Baltimore, just solid play in all three phases to cue the win. JAX 19 MEM 42 Heath Shuler and Moe Williams both had big days as the Showboats cruised past Jacksonville at the Liberty Bowl this Saturday. Williams scored twice on the ground and Shuler added 3 TD passes as the Showboats rushed out to a 21-9 halftime lead and never looked back. Jacksonville gave rookie Sedrick Irvin the start in hopes of inspiring Natrone Means, but neither back had much luck, combining for only 59 yards total as Memphis won this one easily. BIR 31 ORL 16 Birmingham continues to impress with a solid win at Orlando, thanks in large part to a reworked defense. Orlando QB Craig Erickson struggled against the Birmingham pass rush, led by Cornelius Bennett and rookie Mike Rucker, each scoring 2 sacks on the day. Meanwhile, the Stallions’ offense was impressive, with Brett Favre throwing for 4 TDs and 364 yards while the combination of FB Mike Alstott and HB Stephen Davis combining for 83 yards rushing. Orlando was down 24-6 at one point and never really challenged the visiting Stallions. ATL 10 TBY 26 Eric Zeier got the start as Coach Lewis felt the pressure to make a change. Atlanta actually hung tough through the first half, a 10-10 tie at the break, but in the second half, the Bandits added three field goals from Mike Vanderjagt and Troy Aikman hit rookie Tai Streets for a score, more than enough to hold off the Fire, who gained a total of 82 yards in the entire second half. Atlanta was not helped at all by a killer 13 penalties, several of which stymied the offense. NOR 7 DEN 28 New Orleans simply could not handle the crowd at Mile High as the Breakers committed 7 false start penalties, and 13 total penalties for a crushing 133 yards in the wrong direction. Add to this 2 Martin picks and only 32 yards rushing for Ricky Williams and this game had everything Denver could have wanted. Rashaan Salaam was held to only 64 yards on 22 carries, but he did score twice as the Gold dominated the game from kickoff to final whistle. CHI 15 POR 25 After a win last week, the calls for Jeff Garcia to be benched were quieted, but his 25 of 45 passing day, in which he only gained 168 yards in the air, are sure to bring those calls back. Duce Staley got the start over Ricky Watters and did well, gaining 80 yards on only 12 carries (6.7 YPC average), but it was not enough as Portland got scores from Matthew Hatchette, Webster Slaughter, and Robert Drummond to pull away over the second half. MGN 20 SEA 38 A big home win for the Dragons, who now sit at 4-2. TE Ken Dilger was named POTG with 127 yards and a TD on the day. Corey Dillon had 3 scores for the Dragons, but still only gained 50 yards on 17 carries as Michigan loaded the box all day. The Panthers were hurt by 3 Doug Flutie picks, including one by SS Corey Chavous that was initially ruled a TD until replay showed he stepped out at the 1. Michigan has now lost 3 in a row after a fast 3-0 start to the season. PANTHER BLUES Let’s start with the rapid turn of fortune for the Panthers, who started the year 3-0 only to drop their next 3 games. Now, admittedly, it may not be time to panic just yet, but we have to recognize that the Panthers earned 2 of their 3 wins against Pittsburgh and Oakland, while the last 3 weeks they have faced St. Louis, Memphis, and Seattle, who are a combined 13-5. They face Texas and then Houston the next 2 weeks, so we should get a good sense of their status over that span. Looking at the stats what we see is a team that is 3rd in total yards, including the 3rd best passing game, but which is having issues stopping the run, which now has them 22nd in that category. They also sit at -4 in turnover differential, with too many costly picks coming from Doug Flutie. If Michigan is going to turn it around, they need to protect the ball better and find a way to improve against the run. With Reggie Cobb coming to town this week, it might need to be fixed sooner rather than later. UP & COMING If Michigan is mystified by their 3-game losing streak, the Pittsburgh Maulers are overjoyed that they have turned a corner and won three straight after a rough 0-3 start to the season. The Maulers started this streak by beating the then-unbeaten Memphis Rebels in Memphis. Since then, they have added home wins against Oakland and division rival New Jersey. If you want to see how, all you need to do is look at the scoring of their 6 opponents this year. The 3 losses came with opponent scores of 24, 23, and 21, respectable, but more than the Maulers could mount on offense. In the last three wins they have held opponents under 20 points, with scores of 17 (MEM), 7 (OAK), and 10 (NJ). They now rate 1st in the league in rush defense and second in points per game allowed. That combo will win you a lot of games and will give new QB Charlie Batch some confidence that the weight of the team is not on him. They have a few tough games coming in the next month, including road games at Baltimore and Birmingham, so we are not by any means ready to punch a playoff ticket for them just yet. That said, 3-3 is more than the once 0-3 Maulers could have hoped for and now they have to determine if they have it in them to keep up the hot streak. DYNAMIC DUO Let’s go back to the Central Division and take a look at a huge story coming out of Houston. The Gamblers, despite some recent poor games, sit 2nd in the league in sacks behind only Birmingham. The reason for this is the combo of Michael Sinclair and Kavika Pittman at DE. Sinclair leads the league with 11 sacks, while Pittman is tied for 2nd with the two most recent sack title holders, Phil Hansen and Chris Doleman. That is 21 of Houston’s 29 sacks coming from just two players. This intense pressure from the front 4, and particularly these two edge rushers, has allowed the Gamblers to commit more players into coverage, sending Allen Aldridge, Quentin Coryatt, and Pat Swilling into coverage duty instead of requiring blitzes to get to the QB. That, in turn, means that the defensive backfield has more support and can take a few risks, risks that can lead to big plays. That means more bracketing of receivers, a big help for CBs Ashley Ambrose and Allen Rossum, who split 5 picks between them, with another 3 (all in one game) from Swilling. As proven this week against the Stallions, Houston still has some work to do on, on offense particularly, where Chuck Hartlieb’s QBR of 61.6 is third worst in the league, but also when facing quick strike offenses, but we are not going to put that on the D-Line and the Gamblers’ two dynamic edge rushers. ROSTER CHANGES Let’s finish up by highlighting a few of the roster moves made this week. First off, we saw that Coach Tobin has opted to stick with Akili Smith at QB in Portland. Bill Musgrave was removed from the injury list by Friday, but it was still Smith who got the start (and the win) this week against Chicago. On the other end of the nation, we see that Coach Sherm Lewis has felt the pressure and opted to go with Eric Zeier this week after a rough start to the year for Jeff George. Did that work? Well, after 1 game, an admittedly small sample, Eric Zeier is now the lowest rated QB in the league at 52.6. He completed only 24 of 46 passes for 178 yards and a pick. By comparison, Jeff George is not looking like a much better option. His 59.2 QBR is fourth worst in the league, and he has only 3 TDs in 5 games. Zeier is expected to get the start this week as the Fire head to Philadelphia to face the Stars. We also saw this week a bit of shuffling in the HB room for several clubs, though that tends to be less dramatic than at QB due to the tendency to split carries in so many offenses. Baltimore gave Derrick Fenner the start over rookie Mike Cloud, but the two essentially evenly split carries. In Chicago Duce Staley was given a shot to either prove his worth or inspire Ricky Watters to greater heights. Watters may be worried after Staley gained 80 yards on 12 carries, though it was not enough to get Chicago a W. In Houston, Dorsey Levins got the first carry of the game for the Gamblers, but ended up splitting carries with rookie Kevin Faulk, neither one gaining much on the ground, though Faulk’s YPC average was about 2 yards higher than Levins’s. Finally, we got our first look at rookie Olandis Gary in Arizona’s win over Texas. The rookie was activated for the first time and got 5 carries. He managed only 11 yards (a 2.2 YPC average) but may still see his carries increase as a sub for Tim Lester. This was a rough week across the league, with several more players now likely to miss the rest of the year. Among the hardest hit were defensive backs. Philly SS Larry Wigham suffered a broken ankle in this week’s game and is done for the year. Likewise, Tampa CB Samari Rolle, a key player in their secondary, is going to be out after a nasty landing led to a broken wrist. St. Louis will be without a top CB as Steve Israel is out at least 8 weeks with a torn quad. While in Seattle, Al Harris, another CB, is out with a fracture in his lower left leg. Memphis’s James Fuller rounds out the bad news for DB’s though he may return if Memphis makes the playoffs. The other position taking a hit is the offensive line, where we are likely to see the following players out at least 2 weeks: PIT G Rod Milstead, NOR G John Hunter, TEX T Ryan Tucker, JAX T Jon Runyan, STL C John Jackson, POR T Herb Webster, and WSH G Roosevelt Patterson. Other impactful injuries include HB Siran Stacy, expected to be out another 2 weeks, BAL HB Derrick Fenner, also expected to miss 2 weeks with turf toe, ATL HB Tiki Barber, listed as Doubtful with a hamstring injury, and PIT LB Erik Kumerow, questionable with a hyperextended knee. Finally, it appears that Portland’s rookie QB Akili Smith may miss up to 2 weeks with bursitis in his throwing shoulder. This means Bill Musgrave returns to the starting position at least on the short term. With questions of ticket sales and financial concerns being raised around the league, we wanted to take a look at one other aspect of finances for the USFL that seems vital and yet only gets talked about when things are in crisis, stadium deals. They are messy, often complex, and murky with details, and they shift often as cities, counties, teams, and private interests shift their focus, or push their case for a bigger piece of the pie. So, let’s look at each club’s stadium situation and see what we see. LOOKING GOLDEN These clubs have solid stadium deals in stadia that are either recently built or remodeled and are up to date on technology, services, and amenities. Basically, they are sitting pretty. New Jersey: Giants Stadium may not be the newest in the league, but it is a fine facility and with three clubs calling it home there is plenty of revenue to be shared. The good news for the Generals is that they have it all to themselves most of the season, aside from the occasional monster truck show. Los Angeles: Farmer’s Insurance Field, the home of the Express and the NFL Raiders, is a sweet stadium, with a lot of great perks, and still has room for growth, with the Express still under pressure to reach 100% capacity (even 80% would be nice). The Raiders have a larger stake in it, so they are the primary tenants, but the deal is still a good one for the USFL’s Express. Baltimore: Newly renamed Aetna Stadium in Baltimore was completed 2 years ago and with the Blitz as the first tenants they are the primary for the Maryland Stadium Authority, which means even the arrival of the NFL Ravens did not displace them. A solid deal for a very nice new stadium in a football-crazy town. Tampa Bay: While not the primary tenant in Raymond James Stadium, the 1998 addition to the USFL stadium list, the Bandits still have a pretty solid deal after working out a very good deal with the city and the NFL Buccaneers. It helps that the Bandits often outdraw the Bucs, and a title last year doesn’t hurt either. Tampa is solidly entrenched in the community and have a nice new stadium to tout as well. Texas: It took longer to complete than expected, but the Alamodome has been a very good venue for the Outlaws since their relocation from San Marcos. The Outlaws remain the only major tenant for the dome, so eventually they will need to talk with the city about renovations, but the stadium is only 6 years old, so they have plenty of time to make deals for the future. Jacksonville: The Gator Bowl is seeking corporate naming rights, so it may get a new name, and maybe a facelift, in the next few years, but it is still a solid, if somewhat outdated, venue. The Bulls benefit from having the support of the U. of Florida for use of the stadium for occasional games. It also helps that they are the biggest thing to hit Jacksonville in decades, which means they can ask for renovations and expect the city and county will chip in. Chicago: Soldier Field has seen better days, but it is a solid venue, and the city is open to discussion of renovation with both the Machine and the Bears. Expect any deal to retain the NFL Bears as the primary occupant, but with offset schedules, that has rarely been an issue for the USFL. The only real debate is whether there will be room to add some Machine logos on a more permanent basis. Atlanta: A lot of fans still wish the Fire had gotten on board with the Falcons to play games at the Georgia Dome, because heat and humidity can be a major issue outdoors during the latter part of the USFL season, but Bobby Dowd Stadium is both a good size for the USFL and a nice venue in its own right. Expect the Fire to keep working with Georgia Tech to keep the stadium up to date and in step with both big time ACC football and the needs of the USFL New Orleans: As frustrated as Breaker fans are with their club, they love the Breakers in New Orleans. Both they and the Saints are forming a real love-hate partnership, and both are on good terms with the SuperDome, so we expect this club to be solidly set up in that facility for the future. They are even making a push for the Dome to host one of the upcoming Summer Bowls once again. Orlando: While not the fanciest or most beguiling stadium in the league, the Citrus Bowl is a fine facility and a good partner for the Renegades. Orlando shares the stadium with the U. of Central Florida, a school on the rise in their football program, but the Renegades rarely have any issues with scheduling around the needs of the UCF Golden Knights. This is a stable, if not glamorous situation. FUTURE LOOKS BRIGHT These clubs either have deals in place for a new stadium or are viewed as having good partnerships with local authorities and NFL clubs to get a deal done soon. Arizona: With the arrival of the NFL Cardinals so too came the desire for a new stadium in the Valley of the Sun. They are still in the early stages of planning, but it looks like Glendale may be the new home for both the NFL and USFL within the next decade. Until then Arizona State has been more than happy to share their stadium and rake in all that pro football revenue from clubs playing in both the spring and the fall. Denver: Fans love Mile High, but the city wants to do more, and that helps both the Broncos and the Gold, as they are well on their way to a new stadium. The new, as of yet nameless, stadium just across the parking lot from Mile High, is expected to have all the high-tech amenities, plenty of great seats, luxury boxes, and, once Mile High is demolished, ample parking. It will be awkward for a while as both stadiums still stand, but with a Fall 2001 grand opening, things should be in good shape for the Gold when they move in for the Spring 2002 season. Houston: Another story of healthy partnership between the city, the USFL and the NFL. Houston is expected to open their new retractable roof stadium in 2002. Until then, the Astrodome is an imperfect but much beloved venue for the Gamblers and Oilers alike. Philadelphia: Sharing Veterans Stadium not only with the Eagles but the MLB Phillies has not been easy. The recently announced news of a new football stadium to be built as part of a multi-sport complex is huge for the Stars. The USFL club in the city has been both a box office and sports culture hit for a city which had not had much to cheer for from their other major clubs, so the Stars are likely to get a very nice piece of the stadium pie once the facility is completed. Pittsburgh: It took some doing, but the Maulers were able to wiggle their way into the Steelers’ negotiations with the city of Pittsburgh for the construction of a new stadium. The facility, which is slated to open in 2001, will be home to both pro clubs as well as the Pitt Panthers. The Maulers will be secondary to the Steelers in the stadium deal, but that should not produce issues for spring-summer scheduling, just expect that the share of revenue from the stadium will be greater for the NFL club. QUESTIONS ABOUT THE FUTURE Birmingham: In B’ham the issue is not a lack of love for the Stallions. They remain the only pro team in the area. The problem is that the area is smaller and has a smaller corporate presence than most USFL clubs enjoy. That means there is less money in the coffers of the city and the state to fund renovations to Legion Field or even a new stadium. What this means is that while Birmingham has a solid relationship with the city and is at no risk of being ousted from Legion Field, they will likely trail most other clubs in revenue, and the 1994 Summer Bowl held in Birmingham may be the city’s last for quite a while. Memphis: Much as we see in Birmingham, the trouble with being the lone football franchise in a city and being located in a city with a smaller financial footprint, means stadium improvements and replacements are harder to come by. Memphis is likely in a pinch when it comes to negotiating either upgrade options. That has been a problem already for the Showboats and looks to be a situation worth keeping an eye on. If Boston, Miami, or Dallas keep pressing, Memphis could be a franchise that will eventually look to sell, and sale could easily mean relocation. Michigan: The Silverdome is not the cutting-edge venue it once was, but it is adequate for now. Panthers officials are in conversation with the Detroit Lions, who already have plans for a new downtown Detroit stadium. The relationship between the Panthers and the Lions has not exactly been rosey to date, so there is no guarantee that any new stadium for the Lions would also become the home for the Panthers. If talks with the Lions go nowhere, funding to renovate the SilverDome would be tough to come by. Detroit and the surrounding area are unlikely to support 2 construction projects for 2 different teams. That leaves the Panthers looking at alternatives if the Silverdome is not a long-term solution. Michigan Stadium is far too large a facility, but the Panthers could look at the stadia for Eastern Michigan or even abandon greater Detroit and play further west at WMU. We suspect they would rather not do either, which is why coming to an agreement with the Lions might be paramount in their minds right now. Oakland: Sharing Oakland-Alameda Stadium is not easy, especially when their co-tenant is a MLB club. Scheduling is a mess, playing with a baseball field interrupting the turf is unappealing, and, let’s be honest, the sightlines and setup of the stadium for football is not ideal. It is not a great setup right now and will not keep up with future stadia unless the A’s and Invaders can agree to team up and push for East Bay improvements. Oakland could relocate to Cal’s Memorial Stadium, but that means giving up on alcohol sales, so that is not happening. We are not sure at all that there is a long-term solution in Oakland. Could San Francisco or Sacramento be calling eventually? Ohio: Playing at Ohio Stadium seems a natural, but the Glory have been half-filling the huge stadium for a while now and don’t seem to be coming close to getting a full house any time soon. That means they are paying for a facility they cannot afford. But what are their alternatives? A new stadium just for the Glory seems very unlikely, so that means looking for other stadium options. The state of Ohio is certainly not lacking for football stadiums. Could the Glory be successful in Akron? Cleveland? Cincinnati? Toledo? We may eventually get a chance to see. Their lease with Ohio Stadium is due to end in 2003, so until then we don’t see anything changing, but as that date gets close, the Glory have some serious things to consider. Portland: Civic Stadium was upgraded from 18,000 to 34,000, which is great, but still makes it the smallest venue in the league and one with very little revenue growth. Portland has embraced the Thunder, which is great, but is there enough good will to build a brand-new stadium that has only 1 potential tenant? It is highly unlikely that either Oregon or Oregon State will move more than 1 game a year to a new Portland Stadium, and Portland State is unlikely to make a move to big time football, so it is the Thunder and only the Thunder. That is a big problem. St. Louis: The LA Express were happy to wait a couple of years, relocating to Busch Stadium and waiting for the new Transworld Dome to be completed. And no sooner do they arrive than the Rams relocate and become the favorite child of the city. So now the Knights, who have been challenging for a title on the field, are feeling mistreated by the city and the stadium authority. They are in negotiations with the city, but things are rough as the Knights are still seen as second tier to the beloved Cardinals baseball club, and now to the Rams as well. If I were an investor in one of the other non-USFL cities out there, I would be trying to get a word with Orthwein and his group to see if the Knights might be on the market. Seattle: Husky Stadium is a nice venue, not great, but nice. It is certainly a better option than sharing the KingDome with the Mariners, but with the Seahawks pushing for a new outdoor stadium for their club, it makes sense that the Dragons may want to get in on that action. If they can assist the NFL with a push in Seattle, this situation can move from a question to an exclamation point in Seattle pretty quickly. Washington: If the Federals were on speaking terms with Jack Kent Cooke and the Redskins, the Federals could easily be a nice revenue source at JKC Stadium, but that has been a hard pass from Washington’s ownership ever since the Feds arrived in 1983. The best news for the Federals may be that the Cooke family fails to raise the funds they need to retain ownership and the Redskins are sold. A new owner is a new chance to make the case that having a second tenant in the stadium would make financial sense and having an owner who doesn’t start from a position of obstinate resistance at the head of the Redskins may be the only shot the Feds have of finding a new home. Week 7 brings us solidly into midseason, and that means that all the divisional games start to take on even more weight. We have 6 this week, with the Pacific and Central Divisions once again going into familiar territory. Among the best matchups we find 5-1 Texas, fresh off their first loss of the year, hosting the 3-3 Michigan Panthers, who could go a long way towards building confidence with a good road performance at Texas. Houston hosts Chicago in what should be a good test for Houston’s ability to score some points, while New Orleans visits St. Louis in another juicy Central matchup. Among the Pacific games, the LA Express, currently tied for 1st in the division, head into Tempe to face the preseason’s pick for the division, Arizona. Seattle is also a surprising 4-2 but they have a huge test as they travel to Denver to face the Gold. Oakland and Portland meet in the Rose City, but only one can get to 3-4 and back in the fray. In the Eastern Conference it is Atlantic clubs hosting the Southern clubs, with the big game being 4-2 Tampa Bay visiting 5-1 Baltimore. That should be a fun clash of styles to be sure. Another good one should be 5-1 Memphis at 3-3 New Jersey. Can the Generals’ D slow down Heath Shuler? Birmingham is at Ohio, hoping their pass rush can rattle Kerry Collins, while Orlando, with backup Craig Erickson at the helm, have to face that surging Pittsburgh Mauler defense. Jacksonville is in Washington, with both clubs very disappointing so far this year. Finally, Atlanta is in Philadelphia in a game that should go the Stars’ way as the Fire will be without their top offensive weapon, HB Tiki Barber.

A huge week for upsets as no fewer than 8 of 11 games went to the underdog (though, admittedly a couple of these were toss up games). This included 2 of the 3 remaining undefeated teams going down in defeat on the road. It was also a week that saw the last of the winless teams both rise up and get their first W of the season. A week of unusual results, but also some really entertaining games. Let’s get right to our GOTW, another overtime thriller. Not many people pegged this game as the potential shoot out of the week, but in a game that saw the erratic Dragon offense rack up 402 yards, we got a whole lot of firepower in this game. Seattle came loaded for bear, and got huge days from rookie David Boston, HB Corey Dillon and our Player of the Week, QB Jon Kitna. New Jersey for their part got solid performances from Terry Glenn and Kevin Johnson out wide, as well as Jason Sehorn, who got his first pick-six since coming over from the NFL. The game started off with a Seattle game plan that was working to perfection against a somewhat flat New Jersey defense. Seattle scored the first 17 points of the game and seemed to have the Generals on the ropes. David Boston caught another of his patented 1-yard TD’s, yet another corner fade, and Derrick Loville got a 1-yard TD run around the left end to give Seattle the big lead midway through the 2nd, but then the Dragons got a bit sloppy and momentum turned. Jon Kitna tried to force a ball to Metcalf and not only did Sehorn step in front of the receiver, but caught the ball in stride, cruising for an easy TD to put New Jersey on the board. This seemed to wake up the Generals, who wen ton to score thirteen more unanswered points to take a 20-17 lead at the half. Spence Fischer hit Terry Glenn for a 17-yard score and Adam Vinatieri nailed a 47-yard kick as time ran out to give New Jersey the lead after their furious comeback. In the third quarter, New Jersey added to their lead with another Vinatieri kick before Seattle hit their own big play, a 42-yard deep ball to Boston, who used his speed to outrun the coverage and put Seattle back on top 24-20. New Jersey answered with yet another Vinatieri kick, and when Leeland MacElroy added a TD to open the 4th Quarter the lead changed again, now with New Jersey up 31-24. Seattle would mount a comeback to send the game to overtime, a nice 11-play drive that ended with Kitna finding O. J. McDuffie for a game-tying score with 1:09 left in regulation. The game moved to overtime and, as so often seems to happen, the fate of the game hinged on the coin toss. Seattle won the toss and decided to receive the ball. Their momentum carried over and 6 plays later Kitna found HB Corey Dillon on a swing route that provided him with a clear path to the endzone and a Seattle win. Dillon finished the game as Seattle’s second leading receiver (4 catches for 45 yards and the game winning score) while David Boston added 129 yards and two more touchdowns to his impressive first season stats. It was, to be sure, a tough loss for the Generals, who still remain above .500 at 3-2, but now fall a game back of Baltimore. For Seattle, who also stand at 3-2, they find themselves very much a part of the crowded Pacific Division. ARZ 17 BAL 34 The Blitz find themselves alone in first place in the Atlantic after doubling up the visiting Arizona Wranglers. The Blitz defense held Arizona to only 4 of 12 on third down and caused 2 turnovers, both factors in the win. They also got strong games from their receivers, with Trent Green hitting 8 different targets on the day. OAK 7 PIT 23 The Maulers made it two in a row by thoroughly dominating a seemingly scattered Oakland Invader squad. Terrell Davis contributed 92 yards on the ground and Andre Rison again led all Mauler receivers with 92 yards and a TD on 7 receptions. The Mauler D also had a strong day, limiting Siran Stacy to only 15 yards rushing and completely shutting out Troy Davis. Ryan Leaf threw two picks and suffered 4 sacks as the Oakland offense just never seemed to figure out a plan to mount an offense. LA 28 OHIO 35 Ohio moved over .500 with a solid win over a much-improved Express squad. Kerry Collins and Cade McNown both threw for 3 TDs each, but it was a late Collins to HB Keith Woodside TD that won the game for Ohio, breaking up a 28-28 tie with just over 3 minutes to play. LA tried to mount a last minute drive, but needing a TD proved too much for the rookie QB and his inexperienced Express squad. POR 43 PHI 13 This one was a shocker. Despite being outgained by the Stars 413 to 385, Portland blew past Philadelphia largely due to three bad Star turnovers. Akili Smith had his best day as the Thunder QB, tossing 2 TDs and no picks, while Robert Drummond rushed for 99 yards and 2 scores to power the Thunder offense. Philadelphia was able to move the ball, with both Charlie Garner and Cris Carter having solid days, but they just seemed to shoot themselves in the foot every time they reached scoring position. The loss drops the Stars to a surprising 1-4 on the year. DEN 7 WSH 30 The final game of the 6 Pacific-Atlantic clashes saw Washington’s defense come alive against a listless Denver squad. The Federals built up a 27-7 lead at the half thanks to short fields from the D and 4 Kordell Stewart TD passes. The loss was a bad one for Denver, which now falls below .500 and 2 games behind LA in the division. TEX 22 TBY 20 Texas earned their fifth win as they have earned the other 4, solid team effort and a stifling defense. It helped, of course, that Troy Aikman was forced to leave the game and the Bandits found themselves with Mike Pawlowski for a good part of the game, but it still came down to the final moments. Tampa Bay got within 2 when Pawlowski hit Chris Doering with a late TD, but the Bandits could not convert the 2-point conversion. The loss drops them to 3-2 while Texas emerges from the weekend as the only unbeaten. STL 14 ORL 17 St. Louis fell from the ranks of the unbeaten thanks to a strong effort from the Renegades defense, aided a bit by occasional monsoon rain during their game at the Citrus Bowl. Ahman Green struggled to find room against a pressing Renegade defense, averaging only 1.9 yards per carry. On the opposite sideline, Terry Kirby had far better success against the usually staunch St. Louis front 7, rushing 18 times for 92 yards. The win helps Orlando stay on pace in the South, while St. Louis now falls a game back of Texas. HOU 17 BIR 48 Houston built up a 4-0 record on their defense, so when it failed against Brett Favre and the Stallions, the Gamblers did not have many answers. Favre had a very Favre day, completing only 52.6% of his passes but hitting on big plays throughout the game. He connected with Ernest Givens for 172 yards on 6 passes as Houston’s Ashley Ambrose simply could not keep pace with the clever veteran. The win buts Birminham at 3-2 and in solid position in the South, while Houston, like St. Louis, now drop a game back of Texas. MGN 17 MEM 30 The Showboats continue to surprise many as they now claim first place in the South. Michigan could have gotten into the mix with St. Louis and Houston, but the Showboats defense shut down Doug Flutie and the Panther run game. Garrison Hearst had his best game of the year, with 91 yards on 13 carries, while for Michigan the offense ran through wideout Jeff Campbell (12 receptions for 125 yards and both Panther TDs). It was not enough for the visitors, however, as Heath Shuler threw 4 TDs on the day, including 3 to Joe Horn to get the home win. NOR 24 JAX 18 Of the Central squads, New Orleans got one of the better results, edging the Bulls thanks to a strong day from rookie Ricky Williams (18 carries for 94 yards and 2 scores). The defense also helped out, sacking Chris Chandler 4 times and once again proving that the Bulls’s run game is just not working, as Natrone Means averaged only 2.7 yards per carry. CHI 29 ATL 13 The Machine earned their first win of the year and much-maligned QB Jeff Garcia, getting one more chance to prove himself, had a solid game, passing for 290 yards and a late TD to rookie Jim Kleinsasser to help propel the Machine to the win. Jeff George continued to struggle and was actually booed at points in the second half as fans in Bobby Dowd started calling for Eric Zeier to take over. Zeier never saw the field, but the pressure is certainly mounting in Atlanta. NEW KIDS ON THE BLOCK No, not the boy band, the new QBs around the league. We figured 5-weeks in was a good time to take a look at the rookies, free agents, and backups who have taken over as starters across the USFL. The first year as a starter can be tough at any position but no player on the field gets the scrutiny and second guessing that a QB gets, and the first year of action can determine the entire path of a career. So let’s take a look at this year’s three new starters and see what we see so far. Charlie Batch (PIT) 115/208, 1,174 Yards, 8 TD, 2 Int, 55.3 Completion Rate, 80.5 Rating Clearly having a year on the bench has helped Batch. His season started off rough, with three straight losses, but he has looked solid with occasional flashes that there is more to come. Coach Emmitt Thomas is also helping Batch by building the offense around newly-acquired HB Terrell Davis, a strategy that now has Davis atop the rushing leaderboard and is allowing Batch to use play action effectively. It also helps that he has a veteran presence at wideout with Andre Rison in that spot. Rison is a bit of a loose cannon, but he knows how to make life easy for a QB by getting open when there is pressure in the pocket. Realistic expectations this year, and a run-based offense, should help Batch grow into the role. Cade McNown (LA) 83/176, 1,113 Yards, 10 TD, 3 Int, 47.2% Completions, 79.6 Rating McNown is off to a solid start, again thanks to a run-first philosophy that allows McNown to use play action and get adjusted to the speed of the pro game. LA is off to a strong start this year, certainly compared to last season, and while rookie wideout Tory Holt is a bit green, his clear talent is certainly helping McNown. The UCLA product needs to improve on his accuracy and get that completion percentage above water, but he has shown poise behind a somewhat shaky line and leadership in guiding the Express to 3 early season wins. Akili Smith (POR) 61/130, 705 Yds, 2 TD, 3 Int, 46.9% Completions, 59.3 Rating The plan for Smith was to have him sit for at least the first 6-8 weeks, playing behind Bill Musgrave until Coach Tobin felt he was up to speed, but an early injury to Musgrave thrust Smith into games ahead of schedule, and it shows. The Oregon draftee has physical talent, that is clear, but the speed of the game and the complexity of USFL defenses is clearly impacting his play. He is at his best when he breaks the pocket and improvises, but far too often he is going for the higher risk throw instead of dumping the ball down. Portland has a solid run game with Robert Drummond, so they should be working along the same lines as Pittsburgh and LA, but to date they have not been able to get a lot of consistency on the ground and that has hindered Smith’s ability to throw on run downs, simply because teams are not stacking the box. With Musgrave coming back from his injury, Coach Tobin now has to decide which is better for his rookie QB, to return him to the bench to learn more about the pro game or to keep him in the fray and hope that game action is the best teacher. And, while we are discussing QB play, we should mention the current trends we see among the 2nd year QBs around the league. The good, the bad, and the ugly. Right now the good has to be Trent Green, in his 2nd year with Baltimore after several years on the bench in Arizona. Green is not lighting up the league, but he is providing the Blitz with solid leadership and occasional flashes of real quality. We would also categorize Kerry Collins’s 2nd year start as a pretty solid “Good”. He has thrown for 1,534 yards already, among the league leaders, and his 7-4 TD-INT ratio, while not elite is certainly better than what we saw last year. It seems Collins is getting his feet under him in the USFL, which is certainly good news for Ohio. Looking only at 2nd year performance, we have to classify Ryan Leaf’s year so far as “bad”. Leaf started off on fire last year and faded down the stretch and so far this year he has seemingly regressed even further. He is completing barely over 51% of his passes and has 6 picks already this year, level with his 6 TD passes. That ratio is not what Oakland hoped for when they outspent the NFL to sign Leaf after last year’s surprise selection of the Washington State Cougar. If the Invaders are going to get out of the basement in the Pacific, they need Leaf to look like he did weeks 1-8 last year, and not what we have seen since. Finally, under “ugly” we have to put the second year for Jeff George in Atlanta. George currently ranks as the 2nd worst QB with a 59.2 QB Rating, behind only Brian Griese (a bench player who came in for an injured Kitna). George also has 6 interceptions on the year, but only 3 touchdowns to offset it. This is another case where a USFL team jumped for a high visibility NFL player and another case where they are not seeing the same results. LA did this when they signed Marcus Allen from the Raiders, and it appears that the Fire have done the same by snatching up the former Falcons QB. George, as we all knew, has a big arm, but he just does not use it well. The boo-birds have started coming out in Atlanta, and it does not help that George’s backup is local hero, UGA alum Eric Zeier. THE SHORT GAME Each week we provide the top receivers in the league based on yardage, and we see a lot of top yardage receivers averaging 15 or even 20 yards per catch. That is great, and the fans certainly love the deep ball, and while it is guys like speedster Bert Emmanuel, deep threat Randy Moss, or highlight reel players like Joey Galloway and Lawrence Dawsey at the top of that list, when we change the parameters of our rankings a bit and focus on catches rather than yardage, we get a very different picture. When we look at catches, we see players like Philadelphia’s Cris Carter (48), Michigan’s Muhsin Muhammad (42), or Texas’s league leader, Shawn Collins (49). We even find the occasional tight end like Denver’s Keith Jackson (42). These players tend to average between 8-10 yards per catch (Collins is at 9.4, Carter at 9.6). These are the third down specialists, the play action, over the middle, tough yards receivers that every team needs, especially when the weather is not ideal or you need a sure thing on a vital 3rd and 7. It is the rare find that can be a speedy deep option and a precision route runner, racking up yards and catches at the same time. Michigan has one in Jeff Campbell, Orlando in Bert Emmanuel, and Ohio in Joey Galloway. It is a special receiver who can finish the season as Top 5 in both catches and yardage, and yet every year there tends to be at least one “possession receiver” that pulls it off. Who will it be this year? A couple more season-ending injuries hit the league this week, first in Philadelphia, where safety Larry Wigham is done after breaking two hard-to-rehab bones in his foot on Sunday. In Pittsburgh it is TE Jay Riemersma who will be missed for the rest of the year after rupturing a disc in his back. New Orleans could be without guard John Hunter for up to 2 months with a fracture, and Texas tackle Ryan Tucker is out with a torn meniscus, at least one month before he can return. Orlando got the big win this week, but on Monday it was reported that QB Scott Mitchell could miss up to a month after a lingering issue with his plant let was tested and the report came back that it was a partially torn quad. Orlando will have to turn to Craig Ericson to take over in Mitchell’s absence. In Oakland HB Siran Stacy is expected to miss 1-3 weeks with a neck injury, while Tampa Bay is still unsure if Randy Moss can return to action this week with his finger in a splint. Both Troy Aikman and Brett Favre suffered dings this week, but both are expected to start next week. ATTENDANCE V. SALES A couple of weeks ago we reported that the St. Louis Knights organization was being investigated by local media for the way that they reported revenue, ticket sales, and tax liability. It appears that they were overvaluing their ticket sales in some spaces when it benefited them to develop credit and access loans but undervaluing it when reporting for tax purposes, a big no no. This is still a developing story out of St. Louis, but it made us wonder what exactly the distinction between reported attendance and ticket sales actually is in the USFL. Here's the thing, in nearly every pro sport in the USA, there is always a discrepancy between tickets sold and attendance, and it almost always goes in the same direction, with attendance trailing ticket sales. There are logical reasons for that. Season ticket holders do not always make it to every game. Sometimes folks buy ticket thinking they will be able to resell and that does not always happen. Sometimes the weather can keep even a committed fan at home. It is not unusual for a club in the NFL, for example, to have a sellout of 80,000 (at one of the larger stadiums) but only report 74,000 in attendance on game day. The same is true in Major League Baseball, the NBA, NHL, and college sports. But not in the USFL. We looked at numbers from the 1997 and 1998 seasons and it appears that something is very different in the USFL, either in the reporting of sales or in attendance. Over this 2 year span the USFL has reported an average attendance of 43,424, but when we dug into revenue reporting (done for tax purposes) the ticket sales do not add up to that total. It took a lot of digging, and quite a bit of math, but it appears that ticket sales, particularly seat sales (excluding luxury boxes and suites) adds up to just under 37,000 per game, with some variation club to club. Why is this? On the surface the answer does not appear to be nefarious, at least not in most cases. The simplest answer is giveaways. These are common in start up leagues, but we were somewhat surprised to see just how much this impacts a league that is 14 or 15 years into its existence (as of 1998). Teams offer BOGO (Buy one, get one) ticket deals to many games, others offer free seats on game day, often to specific groups (local YMCA/YWCA groups, schools, etc.) and some run contests that can lead to 1,000 or more free tickets being given out to any particular game. This makes sense for a struggling or fledgling league, but is surprising to see in a league with the current financial resources available to the USFL, a league that in many ways has already joined the “majors” in the American sports scene, with huge TV deals, sponsorship packages, and multi-million dollar player contracts. We do see a very logical pattern in the use of these giveaways. If you look at individual teams over the past 2 years, you see that clubs like Tampa Bay, Birmingham, Denver, and Philadelphia offer very few free ticket opportunities, and often as charitable donations to local youth groups or other nonprofits. You see a much higher number of 2-for-1 or kids-attend-free deals, along with more last-minute giveaways in places like LA, Atlanta, Ohio, and New Orleans, where recent play by the clubs has not built up a strong season ticket base or a reliable home crowd. The LA Express, to take the extreme case, have had some games where paid attendance barely topped 10,000 fans. You put that small a crowd in Farmers Insurance Field and it will be horrible optics for the league. Add in even a few thousand more free ticket holders, especially along the sidelines, and you can give the impression of a reasonable following for the club. But what does this mean for the USFL or its individual clubs? Probably not a lot since so much of the revenue is generated through sponsorship and TV money. But if the perception grows that there are free tickets to be had, what is the incentive to pay $2,000 or more for season tickets? What is the incentive to plan ahead and buy tickets if you can get some of these free or 2-for-1 seats with a bit of patience? That is the tricky business the USFL is in. They want to sell tickets. They want reliable fans who attend every home game, because those fans also buy merch, attend offseason events, and tune in to road games. The USFL needs serious fan buy in to get stadia built in various cities. They need boosters and fan clubs, and they need to show investors and creditors that they have a solid flow of funding not only from league-shared revenue streams, but from local and gameday sources as well. Add in the potential scandal of reporting discrepancies, like those under investigation in St. Louis, and you could have some real issues for a club or the league as a whole. It is something we intend to keep an eye on, and something we expect the legal team of the USFL in NYC to also be monitoring because it has the potential to blow up among fans, investors, creditors and potential sponsors, and that is something that even 15-years in, the USFL cannot ignore. Week six of the schedule brings us the third week of Eastern Conference division games, while once again the West sees the Central clubs face off against the Pacific. Among the divisional matchups to watch this week we have Birmingham at Orlando, a tough test for the Renegades and backup Craig Ericson. Baltimore renews their rivalry with Washington as the two clash at RFK, while Philly is at home again, facing an Ohio Glory squad that hopes to stay well above .500 with a win. New Jersey takes their 3-2 record to Pittsburgh to face a Mauler squad that has shown signs of life these past two weeks. We wrap up with Atlanta traveling to Tampa Bay in a tough game against the 3-2 Bandits. It seems Arizona cannot catch a break. Now 1-4, they host the only remaining undefeated team in the Texas Outlaws. We also have good matchups in Seattle and LA, where the Dragons host the Panthers and the Express host the Gamblers one week after getting destroyed by the Stallions. St. Louis is in Oakland, where a 1-4 start is not looking to be getting any better. New Orleans and Denver are both 2-3 and both hoping to hit .500 with a win at Mile High this Saturday. And finally, either Chicago or Portland will turn their first win of the year into a 2-game streak with a win this week at Civic Stadium.

One quarter of the season down and we have some surprising situations across the league. We have 3 unbeaten teams and they are all in the same division. That should lead to some real battles as more divisional games get played. We have two surprise division leaders in 3-1 Los Angeles and 3-1 Memphis. We have real concern in Portland, where the transition to Akili Smith at QB has been anything but smooth, and in Chicago, where the miss on Donovan McNabb means Chicago is struggling to get production from the QB position. We could also say that 1-3 starts in Philly, Washington, Oakland, and Arizona are raising some eyebrows, but there are still 12 weeks left to play, so plenty of time for slow starters to get the wheels moving. Looking at the Week 4 games, we have some really interesting outcomes, so let’s get to the games. For the second week in a row the New Orleans Breakers pushed a game to overtime, but this week they could not come out on top as they fell to the Houston Gamblers, keeping the home squad unbeaten this season. It was a game that started slow and built to a dramatic finish. Houston and New Orleans struggled to move the ball in the first half, with both clubs having their share of unforced errors, costly penalties and missed opportunities. Houston’s defense focused on containing Ricky Williams and in the first half they were highly successful, holding him to only 7 carries and 17 yards. New Orleans allowed Faulk and Levins some room on the ground, but pressured Chuck Hartlieb on every passing down, producing 3 first half sacks and a costly pick that ended a Houston drive in field goal territory. Houston would go into the half with a slim 3-0 lead on a long Lindsey field goal early in the 2nd quarter. The halftime adjustments for both clubs seemed to pick up the offensive production, with New Orleans finding their first success as they turned the ball over to Jamie Martin and used Williams mostly as a play action decoy. Martin responded, going 5 for 6 on the Breaker’s opening drive in the half, a drive that ended with the QB finding Isaac Byrd for a short 4-yard TD pass to put the Breakers on top. Houston responded with their own drive, highlighted by a 20-yard draw play to rookie Kevin Faulk on 3rd and 6. They had to settle for another Lindsey fieldgoal, trailing 7-6 after 3 quarters. Houston’s best drive came early in the 4th, when the Gamblers strung together a screen to Levins, a nice gainer to Derrick Mason, and finally a 9-yard TD toss to Antonio Freeman. They would get the 2-point conversion on a well-designed FB fake and toss out to Faulk, a rookie who has been building a repertoire in the Houston offense as a reliable outside threat and 3rd down back. Houston leads 14-7. Setting up the drama of a late drive by the Breakers. After failed drives by both clubs, New Orleans got the ball back with just over 3:30 left to play. Abandoning the pretense of the run, Martin connected with Raynard Brown twice, mixed in with a short toss to Eric Pegram and another to TE David Lafleur. The drive got help from a deep ball pass interference call against Houston CB Allen Rossum. Two plays later Martin found Horace Copeland open in the endzone and with the PAT the Breakers sent the game to overtime. In overtime, the Houston pass rush shut down New Orleans on their first possession, with both Kavika Pittman and Michael Sinclair earning sacks on a short 5 play drive. The sack was Sinclair’s third of the day, pushing him into the league lead with 8 sacks in only 4 games. Houston got the ball back at their own 27, and 5 plays later set up Lindsey for a makeable, but not automatic, 49-yarder. Lindsey connected well and the ball went right down the middle, giving the homestanding Gamblers the win, their 4th in 4 games, and sending New Orleans to the buses at 1-3. TEX 19 CHI 7 Texas kept pace with Houston thanks to a win under bad conditions in Chicago. A windy day mixed with rain and sleet made this a tough game for all involved, including a brave 17,202 who came out to Soldier Field despite the weather and the pretty horrible play of the 0-4 Machine this season. Texas got TDs from Jeff Query and Reggie Cobb as both teams largely kept to the ground. Chicago got a combined 100 yards out of Duce Staley, Ricky Watters and Mario Bates, limiting Jeff Garcia’s role, but still struggled to produce much, gaining only 219 total yards on the day. After the game, Coach Mornihnweg would not commit to Garcia for Week 5, meaning that we may see Alex Van Pelt back under center. STL 38 MGN 17 It was a battle of unbeatens in Pontiac when the St. Louis Knights squared off against the Michigan Panthers. But, after an initial field goal for the home team, St. Louis would rattle off 31 unanswered points over the next 3 quarters, putting the game away as the 4th quarter began. Ahman Green was the star of the day for the Knights, rushing for 115 yards and 2 scores, though backup Chris Howard also found success, rushing for 60 yards and a score as well. Michigan struggled with St. Louis’s pressure D all day, with Flutie throwing 2 picks and Tyrone Wheatley limited to only 20 yards rushing as the Panthers fell to their division rival by 21 points in the end. POR 9 LA 21 On the other end of the spectrum from the 4-0 clubs we have the Portland Thunder who are clearly in a rebuilding year with rookie Akili Smith at QB. Smith had a pretty solid day in LA, throwing for 320 yards, but he also threw two costly drive-killing picks, while fellow rookie Cade McNown again playd a conservative game, protecting the ball and letting his run game dictate the flow of the action. LA got scores from both Antowain Smith and Michael Pittman to outpace the Thunder, moving their record to a surprising 3-1 early in the season, one win better than their entire 1998 campaign. ARZ 20 SEA 19 The Wranglers finally got a notch in the win column, upending Seattle in Seattle on a rainy Sunday afternoon. The Wranglers sacked Seattle QB Jon Kitna a whopping 8 times on a sloppy field at Husky Stadium, and Tim Lester showed up big in the muck, rushing for 91 yards, including a 53-yard TD run that included several defenders hydroplaning right past the runner. Jake Plummer struggled in the rain, throwing 3 picks, but the Wranglers held on and got the 1-point win thanks to a questionable decision by Coach Tiller to go for 2 and the win instead of kicking the ball and heading to overtime. DEN 28 OAK 14 The Gold seem to have found their stride, doubling up the Oakland Invaders thanks to an aggressive pass rush and a solid 2-TD day from Rashaan Salaam. It was not flashy, but Denver was solid on both sides of the ball, corralling the Oakland run game and harassing 2nd year QB Ryan Leaf with 5 sacks. Keith Jackson came up big for Denver, catching 8 balls for 63 yards and a score as well. NJ 26 JAX 20 The best game in the East this week came in Jacksonville, where the Bulls played the Generals tough. The defenses kept finding answers in the second half, with both clubs only able to produce field goals after the half. New Jersey got 4 to Jacksonville’s 1 and that was the difference as Coach Schottenheimer got his club to 3-1 thanks in large part to a defense that picked off Chris Chandler 3 times and limited Natrone Means to only 56 yards rushing. Curtis Enis looked solid, gaining 81 yards on only 12 carries as he split time with Lamont Warren due to a nagging hip pointer. BAL 39 BIR 27 Baltimore kept pace with New Jersey pulling off the always difficult road win in Birmingham. An early sack of Brett Favre helped turn the game as the plucky QB had to leave the game with pain in the elbow of his throwing arm. MRI’s did not reveal any lasting damage and Favre should start next week, but Danny Kannell struggled in his stead, connecting on only 10 of 32 passes. Meanwhile, Trent Green completed 79% of his throws, mostly short tosses, but got support from the big back duo of Derrick Fenner and Mike Cloud, both of whom ran in scores to help the Blitz stay atop the Atlantic and move the Stallions to 2-2 after their fast 2-0 start. PIT 27 MEM 17 The Maulers snuck up on Memphis in this one, perhaps a trap game as the Showboats looked ahead to a Week 5 matchup against Michigan. The Showboats seemed unprepared for a heavy dose of Terrell Davis, which seems surprising when it seems clear he is the key to Pittsburgh’s offense. Davis rushed for 157 yards, including a bruising 47 yard burst that set the tone for the game on Pittsburgh’s first drive. Charlie Batch benefited from the success of the run game, using play action to throw for 3 TD’s, all to top receiver Andre Rison. The Showboats seemed shocked by the energy of their opponent and were never able to match it. They drop to 3-1, which still leaves them atop the Southern Division, but certainly less secure in that position. PHI 17 TBY 33 Tampa Bay joins Memphis atop the South with a solid win over an overmatched Philadelphia Stars club. It was 27-3 until the 4th quarter as Troy Aikman picked apart the Star defense to the tune of 351 yards and 3 TDs. Randy Moss was held to only 2 catches, but that created room for Robert Brooks and Chris Doering to have big days. Add in 136 yards on only 5 catches for big TE Ben Coates and you have a pretty easy win for the homestanding Bandits. WSH 15 ORL 29 The Renegades evened their record at 2-2 with a nice win against the Federals in a rowdy Citrus Bowl. A crowd of just under 50,000 saw the Renegades get 4 TDs from Scott Mitchell (despite 3 picks on the day) and watched as their defense limited Barry Word to only 45 yards rushing, putting pressure on Kordell Stewart to carry the day. The combination of solid defense and time-killing offense by Orlando allowed them to come back from a 15-14 deficit and score the game’s final 15 points to take the win at home. OHI 16 ATL 24 The Fire got their first win of the year at the expense of the visiting Ohio Glory. Tiki Barber contributed 2 TD’s and the defense limited Eddie George to only 45 yards rushing as the Fire contained Ohio’s offense and avoided turnovers to keep the game in range all day. A late Lake Dawson TD from Jeff George gave them an 11-point lead and limited Ohio’s options. The loss drops Ohio to 2-2 in a very tight Atlantic Division. QB IS KEY If you want to quickly gauge the success or failure of clubs in the USFL, all you really need to do is look at the QBR. The top 5 QBs (Collins, Aikman, Stouffer, Shuler, Brunell) have a win-loss record of 16-4, with Denver’s 2-2 record being the only non-division leader. Conversely the lowest QB Ratings among starters with at least 100 pass attempts belong to Akili Smith (0-4 Portland), Jeff Garcia (0-4 Chicago) and Jeff George (1-3 Atlanta). Yes, there are certainly other factors that explain the disparity between these clubs, and yes, the 4th worst QBR belongs to the QB of 4-0 Houston (Chuck Hartlieb) but perhaps that is the exception that proves the rule. The key to the USFL has always been the passing game, and that seems to be the case this season to be sure. So what do the teams at the bottom of the standings do? Well, in Chicago we may see a change as there is certainly no deep connection to Garcia that keeps him in the starting lineup. In Portland the future is in Smith’s hands, but the club needs to do more to support the young signalcaller. The biggest issue might be in Atlanta, where highly touted Jeff George was signed in hopes of providing the Fire not only with a veteran NFL presence at the position, but a potential face of the franchise. He struggled in his first USFL season, but that is not unusual for players coming over from the NFL without an offseason to recover and heal. But 4 games into 1999 and we see a largely immobile QB with a strong arm but issues with decision making. He has 2 TDs to 4 picks in his first 4 games this season, and there are already voices in the Atlanta metro area calling for former Georgia QB Eric Zeier to get back under center. Coach Lewis does not seem ready to make that call yet, but if Atlanta continues to struggle in the passing game it may have to happen. AND WHAT OF THE RUN? It is an old cliché that the run game, paired with defense, was the key to victory. That may have been the case in the NFL, but it has never really panned out in the USFL. Yes, the league has had their share of great backs, but when you look at who has produced championships it has always seemed more tied to the passing game (and again defense) that does it. There are exceptions of course, such as Washington’s use of Barry Word 2 years ago. but when you look at the top rushers over the league’s first 15 seasons, you see that New Jersey did not win titles during Herschel Walker’s most dominant years, Portland has not turned Robert Drummond’s success into championship trophies, and Birmingham did not sniff a title during Joe Cribbs’ illustrious career. Titles have gone to Bobby Hebert, Jim Kelly, Troy Aikman, and Brett Favre in their best years, and that seems to be the path needed to get there more and more each year. When you look at the current rushing leaders you don’t always see frontrunners. Pittsburgh is 1-3 despite Terrell Davis’s league leading 354 yards rushing. Portland is 0-4 and Atlanta 1-3 despite having Drummond and Barber in the Top 5. Only St. Louis’s Ahman Green pairs a top 5 rushing season with a winning club, and we all know that most folks point squarely at the St. Louis defense for that. So, while HB is always a big name position in pro football, more and more the USFL is proving that the key to winning in this league is a dynamic passing game, and that a rusher, while a nice weapon in the arsenal, is not going to move you forward all by himself. Some tough losses this week around the league, led by Pittsburgh guard Rod Milstead with a hip injury that may extend well beyond the season. Milstead seemed to almost fold in half during a rushing play with Davis and had to be carted off with what we now know to be a significant fracture to the hip joint that could impact his entire future career. New Orleans also took a big hit with CB Walt Harris going down with a fracture in his tibia that could take the rest of the year to heal. St. Louis got some bad news with a knee injury to center John Jackson, one which could cost him as much as 2 months of action. In Atlanta the concern is for safety Charles Mincey, who could also miss 6-8 weeks. Tampa Bay will be without their dynamic wideout Randy Moss after he broke a finger in the game this week. Washington’s defense will likely feel the absence of DE Tony Brackens for the next 1-2 weeks as he is doubtful with a painful groin injury. And in Portland more bad news as C Jeff Uhlenake will likely miss action with a fractured cheekbone. We are taking some time to investigate the issue of paid v. donated tickets in the USFL and the impact on both club and shared revenue, and we hope to have a report soon, but in the meantime we wanted to offer something to our fans, so here is a topic that always leads to debate across the league: What are the best rivalries in the USFL? This is not an issue that will be answered definitively, since almost every fan base believes their club’s rivalry is the fiercest, and because rivalries adjust over time as clubs improve or fall behind, shifting the dynamics. Some rivalries are natural by-products of geography, some are built on controversy, and some on frequent playoff clashes. We have a little of all three in the rivalries we have selected. Here are our Top 5 USFL Rivalries for you to consider. 5) Birmingham & Memphis: The prime rule of real estate applies here. Location, Location, Location. With two diehard fanbases located within a comfortable drive of each other, and with natural rivalries having developed between the states and regions thanks to the SEC, this is a fierce rivalry between two clubs that like to take on the mantle of representing football in the South. It is not uncommon for there to be a visiting contingent of 15,000 or more fans at the rival’s home stadium each time these two division foes meet. While this rivalry has rarely produced playoff matchups, it is always a fun time (and a great tailgate feast) when these two meet. 4) Houston & Texas: Regional rivalries do dominate our list, but this one has added drama thanks to one man, Texas coach Jack Pardee. Famously the first coach of the expansion Gamblers in 1984, Pardee helped build a team that would go on to become one of the most storied in the league, though most of its success came when Ray Willsey took the helm. He bolted for the NFL, leaving the Gamblers somewhat sore, and then returned to the USFL not only with another club, but with the other club in the state. The two clubs, separated by less than 200 miles of I-10, would naturally develop a regional rivalry, but the bitterness over the Pardee departure from Houston has added extra bile to the games played in both the Astro Dome and the Alamodome. 3. Houston & Philadelphia: Our first non-divisional rivalry. This one is about bragging rights. Both Houston and Philadelphia like to picture themselves as the historical masters of the USFL, with both having won 3 titles over the league’s first 14 years. Philadelphia was the first to get their title in 1985 and they got their second ring at Houston’s expense, beating the Gamblers in the 1987 title game. Houston would earn their first title the next year and would then add a 2nd in 1992. Many expected the Gamblers to reach their 3rd title first, but they struggled, losing the 1993 and 1995 Summer Bowls to Eastern foes. It was Philly who snagged a third title first, thanks to a swarming defense and a career year for QB Chuck Long. The Stars added title #3 in 1994, inspiring a Houston revival that led to the Gamblers snagging their third 2 years later in 1996. The two clubs do not square off very often, but their fans tend to spend a lot of time calling the other overrated while defending their preferred 3-time champion. 2) New Jersey & Philadelphia: This one is an obvious one. Jersey and Philly, two fan bases known for passion and a certain love-to-hate-you ethos. We see it in the NFL with the Giants and Eagles, and that passion carried over to the USFL with the Stars and Generals. First it was all about the Walker-Bryant debate, then about championships (advantage Philly), and you throw in some controversial calls in big games, and some bitterness about everything from draft choices to quality of cheesesteak and you have a natural rivalry between two divisional foes that goes back as far as the American Revolution (the battle between Philly and NYC to be the nation’s capital before DC was ever imagined.) It’s not for the faint of heart as neither stadium can really claim to have a family-friendly zone when these two play, but if you love passion in football, this rivalry will get you what you crave. Honorable Mentions: Before we reveal what we believe to be the best rivalry at the current time in the USFL, there are a few others that deserve our attention. First up is the Cascade Curfuffle between the Portland Thunder and the Seattle Dragons. Portland and Seattle like to puff up their chests about many topics, and now with both having USFL clubs, the rivalry lives on the field. Another worth exploring is the divisional rivalry between Denver and Oakland. Again with carryover from the old AFL/NFL rivalry between the Raiders and Broncos, this rivalry also benefits from the regular battles between these two for the Pacific Division title. Other than a few incursions by Arizona, it has typically been these two fighting it out, and with Oakland still standing as the only Pacific Division club to ever win a league title, there is a bit of gloating and envy involved as well. Finally, one last honorable mention has to go to the once-vital rivalry between New Orleans and Michigan. This one has faded a bit as the clubs have not been as dominant as they once were, but this at one time was a huge rivalry, stoked in part by having a native Louisianan at the helm of the Panthers during their glory years and by the constant pain of Breaker fans as they were so good but could never get to the title game in the late 80’s and early 90’s. We could also mention the three-way Florida rivalry, but that three-way split makes it harder for any 2 teams to really dominate the ferocity that we see in other rivalries. But, speaking of Florida, we are now ready to talk about the best rivalry in the USFL, and yes, it involves that state heavily. 1) Tampa Bay & Birmingham: Plenty of rivalries to enjoy in the USFL, but if you want that perfect combination of two good teams with exciting players and big plays, regional animosity, parallels with college football competition, and just a real good time at any game, you have to go with the Bandits and the Stallions. Not only do you have a natural animosity as generations of Florida and Alabama football fans continue to battle for football supremacy at every level from HS to the SEC and now pro ball, but you have also had some of the greatest matchups in the battles between these two. Whether it was the early years of Reaves and Anderson vs. Stout and Cribbs, or the current offensive fireworks of Favre v. Aikman, this is just a fun rivalry that is nothing but serious animus between the diehard fans of both clubs. Unlike Memphis-Birmingham we don’t often see large sections of opposition fans at each home stadium, but that is because tickets are so hard to get when these two get together. So there you have it. Our opinion on the best rivalries in the league, sure to anger many, and while we would love to hear your take on how Ohio-Pittsburgh has meaning or how Chicago and St. Louis have natural animosity, we stand by these choices. The best way for you to determine if we are right is to pack up the family trickster and get yourself to each of these rivalry games when they fall into the season, or, if you are really lucky, when they clash in postseason play with everything on the line. Week 5 is a full interconference slate, with Pacific clubs heading east to play the Atlantic Division and Central Division clubs visiting the South. Among the intriguing interconference clashes we have 4-0 Houston in Birmingham, setting up a battle between an aggressive Gambler defense and the Stallions’ passing game. St. Louis is in Orlando in a game that could be a slogfest as rain is predicted for central Florida on Sunday. Texas, the other undefeated, perhaps has the toughest matchup as they also might face the elements in addition to the passing attack of the Tampa Bay Bandits. Tampa will be without Randy Moss, but they still have a wide range of weapons to throw at the Outlaws. On the other side of the coin, there are some matchups of underperformers that could help define the season for each, whether they rise above their early struggles or fall into a spiral. 0-4 Portland is at 1-3 Philadelphia, with neither able to afford another blow to their record. Likewise, 1-3 Oakland are at 1-3 Pittsburgh, with the prospect of dropping to 1-4 not in the plans for either club. 1-3 Washington has a tough matchup as they host the Denver Gold, while the two clubs atop the Atlantic feel they have good matchups as Baltimore hosts Arizona and New Jersey hosts the Seattle Dragons. The LA Express continue their tour of fellow 1995 expansion clubs with a visit to Ohio, a game that in the preseason few would have highlighted on the schedule, but one which now feels like a potentially solid watch. Rounding out the schedule for the week we have Michigan at Memphis in a battle of 3-1 clubs hoping to get to an impressive 4-1 start. We have 0-4 Chicago visiting the 1-3 Atlanta Fire in a game that few are likely to tune into, though Atlanta is trying to get a crowd for the game by doing a BOGO on tickets to Bobby Dowd. Finally, the 1-3 Breakers are in Jacksonville to face the 1-3 Bulls. One of these clubs could scratch their way to relevance with a win.