Search this site

PLAYER OF THE WEEK: With so many backups playing this week, we thought it made sense to honor one of the replacements who stepped up, and that is LA Express cornerback Isaiah Oliver, who got the start with Stephon Gilmore resting for the playoffs. Oliver, who moved from the nickel to starting outside corner, proved he was up to the task, making 10 tackles, and snagging a pick-six in the Express win over Las Vegas. PLAYOFF PICTURE: Everyone held serve this week, which essentially means that the teams in position to either earn a Wild Card or claim a division title all won, so no one who was outside of the top 6 in the West got a shot to jump up. Both Dallas and Seattle earned their playoff berths at 10-6. In the South, Memphis held off New Orleans to claim their first division title since 2008. Here are, then, your 12 playoff teams and their seeding as we prepare for Wild Card Weekend. EAST: 1-TBY 2-MEM 3-BAL 4-ATL 5-NOR 6-HOU WEST: 1-MGN 2-ARZ 3-LA 4-CHI 5-DAL 6-SEA

Put a pin in the 2020 USFL regular season, because it is done. The league wrapped up the most unique, offputting, and bizarre season in league history, completing 240 games in empty stadiums. But despite all the strangeness that accompanied the year, including all 30 teams living in hotels, all 240 games played in only 4 states with no team ever truly having a home game, regular testing and a special Covid-19 inactive list complicating roster management all season, the games were played and the season was completed without a single cancellation, forfeit, or rescheduling. Overall, we have to call it a success, even if it felt so odd to watch games on television with either piped-in crowd noise or silence between plays.   And now the USFL prepares for another season, the 2 nd  season, a playoff run that will bring fans back to the stands, though in limited numbers. The 12 remaining teams will stay in hotels for a while longer. The games will continue to be limited to Nevada, Arizona, Texas, and Florida, and we are now into September, a month that has never seen USFL football before. Next week, the Wild Card Weekend for the USFL, will be the opening week for the NFL. How will the two stand side-by-side. And while the USFL is holding to its hub system, the NFL will be back in all 32 franchise cities, taking advantage of limited capacity seating just as the spring league is doing. It will be different, that is sure, but it is still football, and for the USFL it is playoff football. So, let’s get to it.   Showboats, Roughnecks and Dragons Hold Serve in Season Finales Holding serve, an expression that comes out of tennis. It means winning when you have control of the circumstances (the serve) and it is exactly what the Memphis Showboats, Dallas Roughnecks, and Seattle Dragons did this week. Each was in position to get what they wanted. For Memphis that meant their first Southern Division title in over a decade. For Dallas it meant their first playoff appearance since relocating from Boston. And for Seattle, a chance to again join the playoff pool and finally dump the image of a team that starts horribly (0-5 or 0-6) and then scrambles late.  Seattle did not have the horrendous start we have seen in past years under Mike Riley. Sure, 3-5 at the midway point is not ideal, but it is hardly the hole the Dragons have dug for themselves in past years. Prior to this week’s game against Denver, they were already guaranteed a winning season at 9-6, and, more importantly, they were sitting in playoff position. A win over the Gold and they would hit 10 wins for the first time since 2008 and they would lock up a Wild Card for the third time in 4 years. Seattle got the job done, knocking off the Kyle-Orton-led Gold 31-17, punching their ticket to a Pacific Division matchup with the LA Express this weekend.  For Dallas it was also about getting a playoff berth, their first since relocating from Boston in 2015. The Roughnecks had suffered four straight 10+ loss seasons in Dallas since leaving New England, and had started 7 different quarterbacks, but in rookie Justin Herbert they think they may have just found a long term solution, and Herbert helped them flip the script this year, going from 6-10 in 2019 to 10-6 this year after defeating the San Diego Thunder by 14 this week. The victory assures the Roughnecks of the 5 seed and a Wild Card matchup against a very tough Chicago Machine club.  Finally, there was Memphis. The Showboats had not won the Southern Division since 2008. In the 11 seasons since, they had finished with 10 or more losses 8 times, and even when they went 12-4 in 2016, they were still a game behind the Houston Gamblers and had to settle for a Wild Card (which they did parlay into a Summer Bowl appearance). So, this year, with the division on the line, they had a head-to-head with New Orleans, winner take all, and the Showboats stepped up. Rex Ryan’s club stepped up, defeating the Breakers 37-24, with QB Paxton Lynch throwing for 320 and breakout star of 2020, WR Devin Funchess, going for 141 with a TD. The win locked up not only a division title, but a bye week as the 2 seed as well, meaning that Memphis would now sit and wait to see who came out of the LA-Seattle game in 2 weeks.   Holding serve, making full use of the advantage you have and using it to lock up victory, and, in the case of these three USFL teams, breaking long histories of frustration to step into the limelight and remain alive for the league’s first ever September playoff season. It is on to postseason football for all three clubs, and with fans now allowed in the stadiums in all 4 USFL venues, a chance for the diehard fanbases of each club to see their teams in action live, and to make some noise.   MEMPHIS SHOWBOATS 37  NEW ORLEANS BREAKERS 24 There was no way this would not be our game of the week. It was a classic Week 16 showdown. First place Memphis one game up on perennial Southern Division power New Orleans and facing their division rivals in the season finale. In a season that saw Houston slip a few steps down the ladder, it was a chance for the Showboats to do something they had not done in over a decade, win the 4-team Southern Division. It was also a battle of styles, the Breakers having put together a stunning season on offense, leading the league in both passing (332.9 YPG) and total offense (407.9 YPG) and the Memphis Showboats relying on the tried and true combination of running the ball well and stopping the opposition from doing the same. Memphis holds both the top rush offense in the league (121.5 YPG) and the best run defense under Rex Ryan (68.4 YPG). But how would they match up against a team that prefers to spread you out and send their receivers deep down the field?   Well, if the first quarter of this game was any indication, both defenses would be challenged on this day. Memphis did what Memphis loves to do with the opening possession, they ground out first downs, moved the ball crisply but certainly not quickly, and put 7 on the board with a 1-yard TD toss from Lynch to Crowder after 15 plays and nearly 7 minutes of possession. But, only 15 seconds later, New Orleans did what they love to do, with Geno Smith rolling out of the pocket and finding rookie Justin Jefferson for what would be a 60-yard TD pass. Ball control vs. big play. That was the opening salvo from each team and it would be the story of the first half, with a surprise twist worthy of M. Night Shyamalan after the halftime break.   The first quarter would see two more scoring drives, putting 28 total points on the board in one of the highest-scoring opening quarters of any game this year. Memphis responded to the Breaker quick strike with another time-consuming drive, this one nearly 5 minutes long before Jacob Hester ran the ball in from the 1, having vultured the points away from Todd Gurley, who earned most of the yards on the way to the endzone, part of his 97 yards on the day. New Orleans, not happy to be down again, did what they so often did and scored in only 1:10 on only 4 plays, capping off the drive with Geno Smith’s 2 nd  TD of the day, a 13-yarder to Curtis Nelson to once again level the score.   With 28 points scored in the first quarter, the game was off to a frightening start, with all 4 drives resulting in 7 points. That quick pace would continue into the 2 nd  quarter, this time with Memphis getting a quick score on the board. On a 1 st and 10 from their own 32, Paxton Lynch faked the ball to Gurley, and with so much success on earlier drives the Breaker D had to respect the run, which drew up the safeties. Lynch rolled to his right and found Devin Funchess in single coverage. Funchess hauled in the pass, took a step to his left as the cornerback went for the tackle, and had a clear path for a 68-yard touchdown, a taste of New Orleans’s usual medicine. The Breakers were unphased, responding again in short order, a 5-play drive that saw Geno Smith hit on a 3 rd  TD toss, this time to Coby Fleener and once again we were all even. Six possessions, six touchdowns. Surely this could not continue. It did not. While Memphis moved the ball well on their 4 th possession, they bogged down inside the 20, with New Orleans finally making a stop, a deflected pass on 3 rd  and 5. Coach Lathon begrudgingly sent out the field goal unit, uncertain if going for 3 would be a mistake or not. Lewis Ward put the ball through the uprights for a 5 th  score in 5 drives for the Showboats, who now took a 24-21 lead.   What came next was perhaps the most shocking moment in the game, a 3-and-out. After three straight TD drives, Geno Smith finally missed on a play, overshooting Jordy Nelson on 3 rd and 5 and forcing the punt team to come out on the field. Memphis seemed almost stunned to be getting the ball back, with HB Todd Gurley scrambling to find his helmet as he was called back to the field. Memphis took advantage of the rare New Orleans punt and once again moved the ball down the field, this time with the clock a factor, eventually putting up another 3 points on a Lewis Ward field goal as the clock wound down. The Showboats would go into the half up 27-21, but certainly not confident that the game would stay in the 20’s through another half.   But something happened at the half. Either Rex Ryan figured something out or the Breakers somehow lost confidence in themselves. They would play another 30 minutes of football, but in that second half, New Orleans would only put 3 more points on the board. They would gain good yardage, even during a short period when Geno Smith was forced to the sideline by a finger to the eye, but they simply did not connect on the big plays. After three touchdowns in their first three drives, the Breaker offense sputtered the rest of the way. Memphis also struggled more in the second half, going 0-for-3 on third downs in the 3 rd  quarter and coming out of the quarter with only a slim 27-24 lead. In the fourth they added another field goal early, pushing the lead back up to a precarious 6 points, but they too suffered from an offensive drought unforeseen by the first half’s furious pace. It was not until the 5-minute mark in the 4 th when the Showboats again crossed midfield. Realizing that another score could put the game out of reach for New Orleans (assuming that they did not reconnect with their big play success). Memphis was methodical, gaining 3, 5, 3, 7, etc. all the way down the field. When David Williams, again subbing for Gurley who did most of the work on the drive, dove in from the 2, there was only 1:38 left to play and the Breakers were now down 13 points.   New Orleans did not reconnect with their deep ball attack. Memphis used 3-deep, pressuring with only 4 linemen, and that proved effective, with the Breakers forced to go for a 4 th and 4 on their own side of the 50. They failed when Geno Smith threw to TE Dawson Knox, only to have LB Nathan Triplett of the Showboats shove his hand between Knox and the ball. The Showboats took over on downs, drove the clock down to double zeros and claimed not only the win, but the division and the 2 seed. Ryan was doused in Squelch (the USFL’s version of GatorAde) and the Showboats left the field knowing they would now get a well-earned week off before facing a Wild Card winner in the Divisionals. For New Orleans, the loss meant they would be the “road team” in a matchup with Atlanta, which did mean that they would have to leave their hotel in Houston and head to Florida for their first true road experience of this odd hub-based season.   NEW JERSEY 10   PHILADELPHIA 26 With the 1 st  pick in the draft assured, the Stars win their finale and get a spark of happiness in upending their rivals from up the turnpike. In what is likely his last start with the Stars, Matt Gutierrez threw for 258 and a TD to rookie K. J. Hamler. Derrick Henry stayed in the game, hoping to reach 1,200 yards but fell 9 short. New Jersey started 3 rd  stringer Brett Rypien, and, well, he played like a 3 rd  stringer, going 16 for 36 on the day. POTG:  Stars’ HB Derrick Henry: 24 Att, 91 Yds, 2 TD   PORTLAND 34  ARIZONA 14 Portland was the first of the West’s Wild Card contenders to take the field, and they did their part, cruising past a Wrangler squad that struggled to mount any offense at all with Brandon Allen at QB, sparking rumors that Coach Tomsula may switch to 3 rd stringer Tom Savage come the playoffs. Doug Martin rushed for 96 yards for the Stags and QB A. J. McCarron looked like he could well be a playoff QB, throwing for 367 yards and 4 TDs against a Wrangler D that did have several starters out by halftime. POTG:  Stags’ QB A. J. McCarron: 14/24, 367 Yds, 4 TD, 0 Int   BIRMINGHAM 9   HOUSTON 38 The Gamblers won this battle of backups quite handily, with Kellen Clemons throwing for 4 scores, including 2 to WR JuJu Smith-Schuster. Tim Tebow got the start for Birmingham and looked very rusty, going 11 of 30. What was perhaps more surprising is that the athletic QB was sacked 10 times as he simply seemed unwilling to let go of the ball. POTG:  Houston CB Janoris Jenkins: 5 Tck, 1 Int, 1 Def TD   SAN ANTONIO 9   ST. LOUIS 3 We hope no one out there got stuck watching this game. It was a snoozefest from beginning to merciful end. Chad Kelly went 13 of 32 for the Gunslingers, Tyrod Taylor did little better for the Skyhawks, completing only 14 of 34. We got no touchdowns and barely any plays with any pop. One lone Marshawn Lynch run may have been it. A sad end to two tough seasons for these clubs. POTG:  Gunslinger HB Marshawn Lynch: 19 Att, 95 Yds   SEATTLE 31  DENVER 17 Win and you are in. That is the situation Seattle had at hand, and they played like it, dominating the Gold throughout. Brett Hundley threw 3 TD passes and Knowshon Moreno added 120 yards to his season total as the Dragons locked up a Wild Card with the win. Denver started Kyle Orton, with Josh Allen injured, but let Phillip Lindsay add 74 more yards and another TD to his 2020 totals. POTG:  Seattle HB Knowshon Moreno: 20 Att, 120 Yds, 1 TD   SAN DIEGO 24   DALLAS 38 The Dallas Roughnecks were also in a win-and-in situation and they killed all the drama for the teams hoping to get a shot to move into Wild Card position. They held serve, got the win, and locked in the 5 seed in the West at 10-6. San Diego kept it close for a half, but two 2 nd  half TDs gave Dallas a comfortable lead and they claimed the win and their first playoff berth since relocating from Boston. POTG:  Roughneck QB Justin Herbert: 16/25, 322 Yds, 2 TD, 0 Int   JACKSONVILLE 24   TAMPA BAY 31 It was B. J. Daniels, Matt Breida, and Deebo Samuel, not Prescott, Cook, and Bryant, but the Bandits still got the W and finish the year an impressive 15-1. Samuel was the star of the day with 2 touchdowns and 142 yards. Jacksonville saw Teddy Bridgewater return to action, but only for 1 quarter before they put in Cardale Jones. Little-used WR Equanimeous St. Brown got the start as the Bulls rested Tee Higgins, and the hard-to-pronounce wideout responded with 5 catches, 83 yards and a TD. POTG:  Tampa Bay DE Brian Burns: 5 Tck, 2 Sck   BALTIMORE 10   ATLANTA 21 Their playoff positions secured, the Fire and Blitz rested many of their stars and let the backups get some snaps in this one. So, it was Deshone Kizer vs. Nate Sudfeld, Kenyan Drake v. Troymaine Pope, and Dorial Green-Beckham vs. Dion Simms. Atlanta got the win thanks to 3 TDs from Kizer, including one to Dorial Green-Beckham. The two will both be in action next week as they head into the Wild Card round. POTG:  Atlanta DT Jarron Gilbert: 4 Tck, 1 Sck, 1 FF, 1 FR   OHIO 3   PITTSBURGH 33 With the wins by Seattle and Dallas, the Maulers were already eliminated, but they played for pride and the ability to say they were a 10-win team. That was enough to thrash an Ohio Glory team that already knew their head coach was on the chopping block. Andy Dalton went 22 of 33 and threw 2 TDs for the Maulers in what had to be a sad feeling of having a really strong season but losing the chance to continue into the postseason. POTG:  Mauler QB Andy Dalton: 22/33, 221 Yds, 2 TD, 1 Int   LOS ANGELES 23  LAS VEGAS 17 We had a Brock Osweiler sighting for the Express, but the player who made a statement was backup HB Paul Perkins. The UCLA grad may well be pushing for more snaps, and after a 25-carry, 107-yard game, he may get them. Las Vegas receiver Aaron Dobson consolidated his status as the league’s receptions leader with 9 more catches on 13 targets, giving him 138 catches on the season. POTG:  Express CB Isaiah Oliver: 10 Tck, 1 Int, 1 FF, 1 FR   OAKLAND 16   OKLAHOMA 20 The Outlaws wanted to reach 8-8 on the year, the Invaders, already out of Wild Card contention, did not feel equally motivated, and that was the difference as Oklahoma built up a 20-10 lead and then held the Oakland offense to two late field goals. Nick Toon was the star for the Outlaws with 138 yards receiving, most of it coming on a 98-yard TD pass thrown by Hurts from the shadow of his own goalline. POTG:  Outlaw WR Nick Toon: 3 Rec, 138 Yds, 1 TD   NEW ENGLAND 17 WASHINGTON 20  OVERTIME Neither coach really wanted to go to overtime in this one, but that is what we got when neither club could get in field goal range late. Washington got a TD from punt returner Kavontae Turpin in this battle of backups, and in overtime Adam Vinatieri gave the W to Washington, with both teams finishing the season with 6 wins apiece. POTG:  Washington HB Orleans Darkwa: 15 Att, 79 Yds, 1 TD   CHARLOTTE 5   ORLANDO 13 Another snoozer filled with backups and little imagination as both teams ran out the string on a disappointing season. Honestly, we have looked over the box score and have no idea what we should highlight. Nothing stands out. So, it happened, Orlando won. Season over for both teams. POTG:  Orlando OG Mike Iupati: 4 Pancakes, because, why not?   CHICAGO 16   MICHIGAN 35 Normally a heated rivalry game, but Chicago did not want to risk many of its stars, while Michigan knew the 1-seed was in hand thanks to Arizona’s loss, so they too did not do much. Cody Latimer impressed, catching 6 for 146 and 3 scores, and LeVeon Bell locked up another rushing title. We did get a Mike Kafka sighting and young WR Jevon Kearse showed he had some hops, catching 7 for 120, but in the end, it was the Panthers locking up the 1 seed in the West with the win. POTG:  Panther WR Cody Latimer: 6 Rec, 146 Yds, 3 TD   Black Monday Claims Four We had a feeling that this Monday would be a tough one for coaches around the league. And while not every coach we were concerned for ended up finding themselves emptying out their desks, we did see four coaches, in addition to Jim Harbaugh and Franck Reich, who only lasted until midseason, let go from their positions. With the Black Monday departures, we will now have 6 clubs with new men at the helm come 2021. Here is the breakdown of the four positions vacated this week as USFL clubs try to reimagine themselves during the shortened offseason this fall and winter.   Rick Neuheisel (Las Vegas) After three seasons hovering around .500 in Las Vegas, more was hoped for in the former USFL quarterback’s 4 th  year at the helm. Neuheisel came into the year with a 24-24 record, but left 27-37, which is not what you want. The collapse from 8-8 to 3-13 was exactly the kind of indicator that makes owners give up on a coach, and that is what happened to Neuheisel. Finishing the year with one of the league’s worst rushing attacks, and the oddity of having a Top 5 defense in yards allowed and yet a bottom 5 defense in points allowed, a truly bizarre stat, certainly did not help. Expect Las Vegas to look for an offensive-minded coach, along with improvements to the line and the running back room, this offseason.   Tom Coughlin (Ohio) This one is not a surprise to anyone. We had Coughlin on the hotseat before the season, listed him as a coach unlikely to make it 16 weeks, and now, he joins the 5 others as coaches let go this year. The reason is obvious, after a promising rise from 8-8 to 10-6 and a surprising division title in 2018, the Glory collapsed to 4-12 in 2019. Ownership believed Coughlin could turn things around, despite the fact that they did very little to improve the roster in the offseason, so a 3-13 finish this year was not the expectation. What is worse, it seemed clear that players were less and less open to Coughlin’s style of coaching. The disciplinary demands, the fines, the unique rules that no other team had in place, all of it led to greater dissent and greater acrimony. So, Coughlin lost the team, and now loses his position. Expect the players to tell ownership they want a coach who “gets them”, but also expect ownership to try to find an innovator and a coach who can do more with less.   Norv Turner (New Jersey) We had heard rumors, but our expectation was that Turner would escape Black Monday, but it seems that back-to-back losses to the expansion New England Steamrollers, and the 1-14 Philadelphia Stars pushed the needle towards “enough already”. Turner had a pretty solid run in New Jersey, going 57-43-2 over 7 seasons and winning 2 division titles along the way. But, after back to back 9-win seasons, a quick exit from the playoffs last year, and a losing record this year, including some pretty shaky outings against bad teams, it seems that ownership felt that Turner was not getting the job done. Call them unrealistic, and perhaps they are, but for a club that has not been a true contender since the 2004 and 2006 Tom Brady title years, we can understand why the Generals want to set their sights a little higher.   Gus Bradley (WSH) Bradley came over from rival Philadelphia with a reputation as a hard-nosed defensive coach, and he had some success in his first year, getting Washington to 9-7 and just barely missing out on a playoff spot. But since then two things have gone awry. First was the move to bring Ryan Nassib over from Arizona. After a stunning season replacing an injured David Carr for the Wranglers, there was a feeding frenzy for Nassib, and the Federals felt like they had hit the jackpot when he signed with them. That has not worked out as planned. Nassib has gone from a 117.9 QB Rating in that magical year in Arizona to 84.8 last year and 77.5 this year. The other big failing has been the defense, Bradley’s bread and butter. This year’s Federal D gave up nearly 23 points and 360 yards per game and were equally unreliable against both the pass and the run. They stayed in the mix in what was a pretty sub par NE Division for a good part of the year, but went on a 6 game stretch where they went 0-5-1 and that was enough. Bradley is out after 3 years.   So now the coaching hunt will begin. Expect several teams to want to meet with coordinators from the 4 top seeds who are each on bye week right now. Expect them to also pay close attention to the current NFL and NCAA seasons, and to look at coaches let go last year. With the USFL season moved later in the year, there may well be a greater chance that USFL teams will need to wait until January, after the NFL and NCAA seasons to find a coach, at least one coming from outside the USFL, but the search will start right now (and already has for the Stars and Skyhawks.)   League Leaders include 1 New League Record Every year we wonder if we will see any records broken, and while we tend to focus on the big ones—Herschel Walkers’s 1,767 rushing yards in 1983, Troy Aikman’s 1998 total of 54 Touchdowns and 5,675 yards passing, or Eric Truvillion’s 1,959 passing yards and 25 touchdowns—we know that those are going to be very tough records to break. So, when we look at the final stats from 2020, we should not be surprised that we did not see those numbers touched. But, for true stat-heads, we did get one new record this year, and it is an impressive one.   Before we reveal the new record holder, we should acknowledge some great numbers we saw this year, this very bizarre year, in the USFL. Kudos first to Geno Smith , who led the league with 4,944 yards passing and tied for the lead with 37 passing touchdowns. He tied with Dak Prescott , the 2019 MVP who well could win the title again this year as leader of the 15-1 Bandits. Prescott, in addition to finishing 2 nd in yards and tied for first in TDs, was this year’s top rated QB with a 131.3 score.   Once again it was LeVeon Bell leading all rushers, and once again he easily tops the 1,200-yard mark, racking up an impressive 1,529 yards, just slightly lower than his 2019 total of 1,552. Bell also led all rushers with 15 rushing touchdowns and had an impressive 4.5 YPC average.   And yet another tip of the hat to the Man, the Myth, the Legend, Arizona DE Calais Campbell , who, despite missing 2 games early in the season, rolled late to not only catch but surpass Montez Sweat to capture his 12 th  consecutive Sack title, finishing with 26 on the year, his 12 th  straight season with 20 or more sacks, a truly stunning run of excellence.   But, for league records, we have to shift our attention to the receivers, and to one in particular. Jordy Nelson , winner of the yardage title for the 3 rd  time in 4 years, with a total of 1,880 yards, good enough for 4 th  all time, behind three seasons from the inimitable Eric Truvillion, finally has a record of his own. With only 60 catches on the year, Nelson’s 1,880 yards translates into a truly mind-blowing 31.3 yards per catch, the highest YPC average in league history for a player with more than 20 catches (the requirement for consideration). In a league known for the vertical passing game and receivers with deep ball credentials, to average over 30 yards per catch is truly astounding. Could Jordan surpass Truvillion’s record for receiving yards in a season some day? Perhaps, he has tried before, and this year was his best season yet, but this record is one he can be proud of right now, a truly amazing number, and one he can pair with his 13 touchdowns and his title as the receiving yardage leader once again.   Final Game Frustration or Swan Song That is the question that came out of the post-game press conference statements from San Diego MLB A.J. Hawk. Hawk, who will turn 36 this offseason, played his 15 th  season with the Thunder this year, and while the 2-time All-USFL linebacker can certainly be frustrated with the club’s collapse from division champion to 3-13 also ran, there also appeared to be real frustration in Hawk’s comments about his own play.   Hawk, who made a career out of blowing up the run, struggled this year with missed tackles, poor angles, and out-of-position errors. It is clear he has lost a step in his speed, but these are also mental errors, something you would not expect from a 15-year veteran who has put up several 100-tackle seasons. Hawk could well be looking at his team, his own game, and the wear and tear on his body after 15 years at middle linebacker and be considering a departure from the game. While he did not directly state that he was done in the postgame that followed yet another Thunder loss this week, could we really blame him? It is one thing to return for one more year on a contender, especially for a player who has never gotten a ring, but to do so on a team that is likely in full rebuild mode, that is a lot to ask. We will keep an eye out over the next weeks and months, but after expressions of personal and team disappointment in the postgame media room this week, we will not be shocked if Hawk becomes one of this offseason’s departures from the league.   So, here we are, playoff season. As you saw in our Big Story, Memphis won the Southern Division with a season-ending victory over New Orleans, and both Dallas and Seattle held their Wild Card positions with wins this week, so the roster of 12 playoff teams is set. Tampa Bay, Memphis, Michigan, and Arizona will use this week to rest, recover, plan, and position themselves for the Divisional Round. Eight other teams will gear up and game plan for playoff football, all hoping to avoid the dreaded “one and done” scenario. So, what are the matchups in the 2020 Wild Card Round? Here is the schedule of all 4 games, each played in the hub city for the “home” team. Saturday’s Games   6-Seed Houston faces off against NE Division Champion and 3-seed Baltimore. This means the Gamblers actually have to leave Houston for the first time this season as they travel to Orlando to face the Blitz. This will actually be the late game on Saturday as the afternoon matchup will be played in the dome in Houston (without the Gamblers). As an inter-hub game, not only did these two not meet this year, they also have no common opponents in their 16 games.   The 5 seed in the West, the Dallas Roughnecks, relocate from Arizona to Texas to face the 4-seed Chicago Machine at NRG Stadium in Houston in the Saturday afternoon game. This is Dallas’s first playoff game since relocating from Boston, while for Chicago it is their first time “hosting” a playoff game since the 2014 season. Too bad it could not be in Chicago, but we expect some diehard fans to travel down to Houston from the Windy City for this one. Another inter-hub game which means absolutely no familiarity with each other and no common opponents on their record to judge the two against each other.   Sunday’s Games Again, we work opposite of geography with the domed stadiums hosting in the afternoon and the open-air Florida game at night. The Sunday early game is a Pacific Division battle as the 10-6 Seattle Dragons, the West’s 6 seed, battles the Division Champion and 4 seed LA Express. The game will be played at Wynn Arena in Las Vegas, and we expect nearly 19,000 fans, many from LA, to be there. As this is a divisional game, we can look back at the two meetings this year, which this year saw a split, with LA winning 27-16 in Week 7 but the Dragons getting the edge in a 27-17 victory only 3 weeks ago.   The final game of the weekend is in Tampa’s Raymond James Stadium, where the Atlanta Fire, the 4 seed despite a 13-3 record, will play host to the New Orleans Breakers, who come in at 11-5 and as the 5 seed. This is the third inter-hub battle, with New Orleans coming over from Houston to face the Southeastern Division Fire. We expect a nice mix of fans from Georgia and Louisiana to make the trip (a very drivable trip) to Tampa for this one, so we may get some really nice atmosphere in the stadium, even if it is only at 25% capacity.   A range of issues across the 8 Wild Card teams, with Baltimore coming in clean, no one reported injured, while most teams have a combination of IR listings and players in various states of availability. The good news is that no players on any of the 8 teams tested positive for Covid-19 this week, so we are expecting that teams will be ready to roll come the weekend.   Among the injuries that could have the most impact are the injury to Kenny Vaccaro, who will miss this game but could be back if Houston advances, and the potential loss of a trio of wide receivers from the weekend’s action, with Atlanta’s A. J. Green listed as doubtful while Dallas’s Courtland Sutton is a 50/50 proposition and Houston is hopeful, but cautious about Mike Evans’s availability. DAL: LB M. Ingram (Q), WR C. Sutton (Q), SS Duke Williams (Q), FS J. Adams (P) CHI: OG V. Ducasse (Out), DT E. Goldman (Out), LB S. Leonard (P), TE T. Eifert (P) HOU: QB L. Jones (Out), DT N. Fairley (Out), SS K. Vaccaro (Out), WR M. Evans (P) BAL: No Injuries   SEA: CB D. Truffant (Out), OT E. Fisher (Out), QB J. Brissett (Out) LA: OG L. Stenberg (Out), WR M. Lee (Out), FS J. Mills (Out), OT r. Odhiambo (P)   NOR: CB D. Jackson (Out), LB T. Williams (D), C G. Mancz (P) ATL: OG J. Poutasi (Out), WR A. J. Green (D)   2021 Early Draft Order & Team Highlights for 2021 Pick 1: Philadelphia Stars Bright Spot for 2021: Even with absolutely no passing game to speak of, Derrick Henry still rumbled for nearly 1,200 yards. If the Stars can find a QB to balance the offense and force defenses to pull their safeties back, he could be unstoppable.   Pick 2: St. Louis Skyhawks Bright Spot for 2021: OLB Trey Hendrickson is developing into a nightmare for offenses, able to play coverage, stuff the run, and get to the QB. Expect St. Louis to even use him as a DE in some situations in 2021 (well, depending on who their new coach is and what kind of defense he sets up, but the potential is there.)   Pick 3: San Antonio Gunslingers Bright Spot for 2021: Expansion seasons are never easy, but what we saw in 2020 is that Joe Flacco can still sling it and Easton Stick has some potential for the future as well, putting up an 84.4 QBR in limited action this year.   Pick 4: Ohio Glory Bright Spot for 2021: Despite a pretty abysmal passing offense this year, WR Terry McLaurin looks like a legit primary receiver in this league. He had 83 receptions for 1,087 yards on a team that was 28 th  in passing yards per game.   Pick 5: San Diego Thunder Bright Spot for 2021: The Thunder, for all their issues, had a 16-sack DE (Jonathan Newsome), and a 6-pick CB (Tye Smith), and Myles Jack is still one of the best run-stuffing LBs in the league, so there are pieces to build on for the defense.   Pick 6: Birmingham Stallions Bright Spot for 2021: Sure, we could highlight Cam Newton again, but what is perhaps a bigger piece of the puzzle, rookie WR Henry Ruggs was on pace for ROTY recognition before his injury. If he can return in form next year, Newton will have a very good target to work with.   Pick 7: Las Vegas Vipers Bright Spot for 2021: For all their issues, you cannot forget that Aaron Dobson had 138 receptions (on a ridiculous 209 targets) and remains the best possession receiver in the game today.   Pick 8: Charlotte Monarchs Bright Spot for 2021: The Monarchs’ 3-game win streak late in the year, including the victory over Tampa Bay, shows that they have potential, though we all know they also have some big questions.   Pick 9: Denver Gold Bright Spot for 2021: HB Phillip Lindsay had 906 yards and 10 touchdowns this year and is also proving effective as a receiver. We think Denver will focus on balance on offense and use Lindsay to allow Josh Allen to go for more deep balls on play action, if they can just find a speedster in the offseason.   Pick 10: New England Steamrollers Bright Spot for 2021: John Fox has to be happy with a 6-10 season out of the gate. That is far better than most predicted, and along the way he learned that he has some real playmakers in HB Kerwynn Williams, LB Jamie Collins, and SS Jaiquawn Jarrett.   Pick 11: Washington Federals Bright Spot for 2021: Wide Receiver Tyreek Hill blossomed this year, catching 71 passes for 1,001 yards and 9 TDs. He is one of the fastest men in pro football and Washington certainly will have plans to use him even more in 2021.   Pick 12: Jacksonville Bulls Bright Spot for 2021: In his first year Coach Winston Moss got immediate results, with Jacksonville improving on defense by leaps and bounds. He also learned that he has a legitimate QB in Teddy Bridgewater, who threw for 3,083 yards with a 17:6 TD:INT ratio. Now he just needs to improve the line (and help the run game) and he could be on to something in 2021.   Pick 13: New Jersey Generals Bright Spot for 2021: MLB Matt Milano took on a leadership role this year and excelled. Not only did he finish the year with 106 tackles, but he was clearly the player others on the D turned to, which is good to see for a younger player in that position.   Pick 14: Oakland Invaders Bright Spot for 2021: With over 1,000 yards rushing and 44 receptions, Christian McCaffrey is the kind of player you can design an offense around. The invaders need to get more inventive on offense, but with McCaffrey, Davante Adams and an emerging Taylor Gabriel, they have some weapons to work with.   Pick 15: Oklahoma Outlaws Bright Spot for 2021: It seems clear that Oklahoma found their QB in Jalen Hurts. In limited action this year he finished with a 99.6 QB Rating and added a buzz of excitement to the Outlaw offense. We expect some changes in the receiver group, but the Outlaws have to be happy with what they saw from their rookie QB this year.   Pick 16: Orlando Renegades Bright Spot for 2021: Montez Sweat and Arthur Moats combined for 39 sacks, which means that the Renegades can build a defense based on a 4-man rush and make life tougher for opposing QBs in 2021. Expect them to look for a corner to put opposite Dee Milliner to make passing a lose-lose situation for opposing QBs.   Pick 17: Portland Stags Bright Spot for 2021: The Stags surprised us with an early season run, and while they faded a bit down the stretch, a 9-7 record and the 4 th  rated offense in the league is a solid base to build on. They just need to figure out how to keep Marcus Mariota upright for 16 games, and they might need to invest in a young study at HB because Doug Martin is getting quite long in the tooth.   Pick 18: Pittsburgh Maulers Bright Spot for 2021: The Maulers are disappointed that 10-6 did not come with a playoff berth, and that 2-week stint when Andy Dalton was a Covid inactive hurt them, but outside of those games, the Maulers were in the mix every week thanks to the combo of Shaquile Riddick and Dwight Freeney on the D-Line, producing 28 sacks, as well as Rasul Douglas developing into a shutdown corner outside.   Award Frontrunners With the regular season completed and the voters now casting their ballots for the USFL Awards, all of which revealed in 3 weeks ahead of Summer Bowl 2020, it seems as good a time as any to recognize the outstanding performances this year and the players likely to take home some hardware, even if this year the hardware will be mailed to them after a fully virtual gala.   MOST VALUABLE PLAYER Even money is that QB Dak Prescott will make it back-to-back MVP awards after he led the Bandits to a 15-1 record and the top seed in the East. Prescott’s numbers are impressive, finishing the year with 37 touchdowns, a QB rating of 131.3 and 4,250 yards, but it is the team success that we think will put him over the top and give us the first repeat winner since David Carr in 2016-17. Chasing him is the other obvious choice, New Orleans QB Geno Smith, the only player to throw for more yards than Dak, 4,944 to Dak’s 4,250. Smith also had 37 touchdowns on the season and trailed only Prescott with a QB rating of 126.9, but at 11-5 and without the division title in hand, we think Smith will finish a close second.   OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE YEAR Another 2-man race as it comes down to the league’s lead rusher, Michigan’s LeVeon Bell, and its best receiver, New Orleans wideout Jordy Nelson. Both had incredible seasons, with Bell beating out 2 nd  place ballcarrier Maurice Jones-Drew by nearly 200 yards (1,529 to 1,349) and scoring 15 touchdowns to also lead the league. Nelson’s performance was equally meritorious, leading the league in receiving yards with 1,880 yards while also setting a new league record with a 31.3 YPC average. Nelson’s total was 236 yards higher than 2 nd  place Sammy Watkins, and his 13 touchdowns, were 3 rd  in the league behind only Dez Bryant (16) and Robert Woods (15). Both have won OPOTY before, with Bell taking the OPOTY the past three of the past 4 seasons (2016, 2018, and 2019) and Nelson winning it the one year Bell did not (2017). Seems like these two are destined to battle for the title each year.   DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE YEAR It couldn’t be Campbell again, could it? Well, he did win the sack title for the 12 th  consecutive year, this time coming back from a 5-sack deficit and winning by 4 in the final weeks. Winning this year would be his 6 th  DPOTY, and it is hard to argue against him, especially not with the way he pulled it off this year. Yes, we would love to recognize the amazing seasons put in by players like LA Express DE Nick Bosa, Jacksonville MLB Sean Lee, or Mauler CB Rasul Douglas, all of whom were outstanding and certainly will be named to the All-USFL team, but it has to be Campbell again.                   ROOKIE OF THE YEAR Early in the season it was all about the wideouts: Birmingham’s Henry Ruggs, Justin Jefferson in New Orleans, Tee Higgins in Jacksonville, no doubt. But, once the Dallas Roughnecks decided to make the switch and let former Oregon Duck Justin Herbert take command of the offense, there was a new sheriff in town. Herbert won his first 3 games, turning a 2-4 team into a 10-6 playoff club. His 8-2 record as a rookie is certainly impressive, his ability to guide the Roughnecks to the playoffs for the first time since they relocated is huge, but even with only 10 weeks as a starter, his stats are impressive as well. Herbert threw for 2,716 yards, yes, an average of 271 yards per game, and threw 21 touchdowns, with 4 games where he had 3 or more touchdowns, all while only throwing 6 picks. It is as impressive a rookie season as we have seen from a QB in a long time. And while Mitch Trubisky now somewhat dubiously won the ROTY in 2017 with far fewer statistical strengths, we think Herbert compares more to prior QB winners like Cam Newton (2011), Sam Bradford (2010) or Matt Leinart (2006) in that he seems destined for a long run of success in the league. COACH OF THE YEAR With Mark Trestman winning the COTY last year, we don’t think he repeats, even though he took Tampa Bay to another level with his 15-1 season. But, will the award still be an honor for Trestman? Yes, we think so, because it goes to his 2019 Offensive Coordinator and the first year coach of the Atlanta Fire, Jaime Elizondo. Elizondo got a lot of credit for Tampa Bay’s offensive success in 2019, and he proved he deserved it by turning Atlanta into one of the most potent attacks in the league this year. His first season in Atlanta saw the fire improve by 9 games over 2019, from 4-11-1 to 13-3, which is actually a bigger leap than Tampa Bay had last year. And along the way he made football exciting in Atlanta (even though the team never played there), which has not been something many Fire fans have said in a long time. While we love what we saw from Marvin Lewis’s Showboats this year, as well as the great story of Kliff Kingsbury and Justin Herbert in Dallas, we think this has to go to Elizondo, the secret weapon in Tampa last year and the key to football success in Atlanta this year.   Wild Card Weekend, and it is a wild one this year, as the USFL not only enters into September football for the first time ever, but also works around NFL and NCAA schedules to put teams in stadiums and put fans in seats. What we get this year is a unique schedule in which the teams in the East, playing in Orlando and Tampa, get the late games so they can be played at night, while games in Houston, Phoenix, or Las Vegas are scheduled during the day to take advantage of climate-controlled stadiums, because, as we all know, September is very much still summer in the South. So, with that weird schedule in front of us, here are the 4 games this weekend, complete with times, networks, and odds.   5- Dallas Rougnecks (10-6) @ 4- Chicago Machine (11-5) Saturday, Sept. 12 @ 3pm ET on NBC NRG Stadium, Houston, TX 18,050 Capacity Expected Chicago -5   6- Houston Gamblers (10-6) vs. 3- Baltimore Blitz (9-7) Saturday, Sept. 12 @ 8pm ET on FOX Camping World Stadium, Orlando, FL 15,054 Capacity Expected Even   6- Seattle Dragons (10-6) @ 3- Los Angeles Express (11-5) Sunday, September 13 @ 3pm ET on ABC Wynn Arena, Las Vegas, NV 18,100 Capacity Expected Los Angeles -5   5- New Orleans Breakers (11-5) @ 4- Atlanta Fire (13-3) Sunday, Sept. 13 @ 8pm ET on ESPN and the ESPN Football Network Raymond James Stadium, Tampa, FL 19,010 Capacity Expected Atlanta -4

PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Jacksonville QB Cardale Jones got a shot to play with Teddy Bridgewater still out and Ben DiNucci struggling, and he took advantage of the opportunity. The former Ohio State star had a huge game as the Bulls knocked off the Monarchs 34-14. Jones's Day? How aobut 20 of 31 for 367 yards and 3 touchdowns. That is a nice start in anyone's book. PLAYOFF PICTURE: We are down to only 2 playoff spots available, both in the West as Houston locks up the last spot in the East while LA secures a playoff spot, but not yet the division title in the Pacific. There will be some position battles next week, but the only two playoff spots left are now in the hands of the Dallas Roughnecks and Seattle Dragons. If they win, they are in. If they lose, Pittsburgh, Portland and Oakland could still find their way into the post-season.

Tampa Bay locked up the SE Division crown and the 1-seed with a far more defensive-minded victory over Atlanta than most expected. The Houston Gamblers wrapped up the Eastern Conference playoff pool, locking in their spot with a big win over Pittsburgh on Saturday. The Blitz also secured the NE Division crown with their win over rival Washington, and now we are down to only 2 playoff spots left (with 5 Western Conference teams still in the mix) and one division title to be claimed, with the Showboats and Breakers in a quasi-playoff game in their finale. This week also saw Arizona go down to defeat for the third week in a row, raising real questions about their viability as a Summer Bowl contender with David Carr sidelined. We will break down all the Week 15 happenings, preview the big games of the season’s final week, look at which teams are likely to rest key players (for those of you headed to your USFL fantasy league championships this week) and take a look at 5 teams who need a major cultural overhaul as we break down the issues with the “Futile Five” franchises in the USFL . It's all coming up, and kicking off with our Big Story, the race for the final 2 playoff spots in the West.   Eastern Playoff Teams Set, West with 2 Spots Left to Decide Week 15 got us one step closer to knowing who the 12 USFL playoff teams will be. We saw the last of the Eastern spots claimed and we are down to only 2 Wild Card bids left in the West. So, what does the playoff situation look like with 1 game left? Who is in control of their own destiny? And who is still alive on the fringes?   Well, the easy thing to say is that we already know 10 of 12 teams that will be suiting up after Week 16: Tampa Bay, Michigan, Arizona, Memphis, Atlanta, Chicago, New Orleans, Los Angeles, Baltimore and Houston are all guaranteed a playoff spot, with Houston and LA locking up their spots this past weekend. We also know five of the six division winners, with only the Southern Division still in play this week. We have two teams that control their own destiny as they try to lock up one of the two remaining Wild Card spots out west, as Dallas and Seattle are both in with a win. Portland needs one of those two to lose and for them to get a win against an Arizona team that has lost 3 in a row since losing David Carr to injury. And then you have 8-7 Portland and 8-7 Oakland, both on life support, and both needing multiple losses by teams ahead of them to have any chance of sneaking in at 9-7.   In the East, all 6 spots are settled, but one big item is still on the table. Memphis leads New Orleans by 1 game, but with a perfect division record (7-0 right now), the Breakers could jump up, even their record with the Showboats, and claim the division, the 2 seed, and the bye that comes with it. And, wouldn’t you know, it is Memphis vs. New Orleans this week in what is an early playoff game, with the winner earning that bye and the loser likely in a tough Wild Card matchup with the 12-3 Atlanta Fire.   For teams already locked into position, it may well be time to rest their starters and prepare for the postseason. In the East, nothing that happens this week will remove Tampa Bay from the 1 seed or Baltimore from the 3. In the West, LA is locked into the 3-seed and Chicago into the 4. That means both will be hosting a Wild Card game, though they don’t yet know who their foe will be. Michigan can still potentially lose the 1-seed with a loss and a Wrangler win, and while Wrangler wins have been harder to come by, don’t expect the Panthers to assume they are safe this week. Houston is locked into the 6 seed, which means they likely will rest their starters and start game planning for a matchup against the Baltimore Blitz in 2 weeks.   Of course, all of this comes with two unique aspects to the season this year. First is the fact that home field means little since no team is playing in their home city or with their home fans dominating the stands. Even Tampa Bay and Arizona, for the sake of parity, will be forced to play games in Orlando, Las Vegas, or Houston to avoid an unfair advantage compared to other “home” teams who do not have the option to actually return to their cities. The second change will be that we will have fans in the stands as of the Wild Card games. Expect capacity to range between 17,000 and 19,000 fans per stadium, which won’t look like a full house, but will allow for more atmosphere and more passion than we have seen all season long.   One week left to go, 2 slots up for grabs, one division to be decided by a head-to-head battle, and 9 teams still playing for something this week. Time to put up or shut up across the USFL.   ATLANTA FIRE 14   TAMPA BAY BANDITS 24 This was it, the game of the week and the deciding game in the battle for the Southeast Division title and a bye week as the 1 seed in the East. Tampa Bay came in 13-1, a game up on Atlanta, but a win by the Fire would give them the advantage in the division race with 1 game left to play. It was also a matchup of two of the best offenses in the game this season. Tampa Bay came in 2 nd in yards per game and 3 rd  in scoring. Atlanta was 1 st  in scoring at 32 points per game and 5 th  in total yards. So we all expected a shootout. What we got showed just how dangerous Tampa Bay could be as they proved they had defensive mettle to go along with offensive firepower.   Both the Fire and the Bandits would put up some yardage, with Tampa Bay outgaining Atlanta 419 to 339, but the Bandits succeeded in two key areas, third down stops (forcing 4 th  down on 12 of 14 attempts) and tightening up the D before Atlanta could get in scoring range, allowing only 3 trips into the red zone all game. And that began with the opening drive, where Atlanta took the kickoff and got stymied at their own 48 when they failed on 3 rd  and 3, with the Bandit D sniffing out the inside run and stuffing Nick Chubb for no gain. Chubb would average only 3 yards per carry all game, a far cry from his season average.   Tampa also showed early that they were very much a threat on offense. They took the punt from Atlanta at the 20 and in 5 plays they were at their own 43 when Dak Prescott found the first of several big plays, a straight up fly route to Ryan Grant that would go 57 yards for the game’s first score. Atlanta had gotten caught with 1 safety deep and Baccari Rambo simply could not get over to the wide side fast enough to stop the blazing Grant after he made the catch.   Down 7-0 early in the first quarter, Atlanta needed a response and they got a pretty good one in the form of a 7-minute, 16-play drive that saw Aaron Murray complete 5 of 7 passing before hitting Kelvin Benjamin from 2 yards out to even the score. While Tampa Bay went big, Atlanta proved they could be patient and take what the Bandit defense gave them. The problem would be that as the game progressed the Bandit D would give them less and less.   Most of the second quarter was occupied by the two teams moving the ball well and then stumbling just outside of field goal range. We got 3 straight punts before the Bandits broke the stalemate and put together a nice drive, thanks in part to a 25-yard run from tailback Dalvin Cook that put the ball on the fringe of the red zone. From there Prescott went back to Grant, his star target on the day with Atlanta shifting coverage to Dez Bryant all game. Grant again came up with the big play, cutting inside just at the right moment to nab the ball from Prescott and then cruising in for his 2 nd  score of the day. Tampa Bay would take that 14-7 lead into the half.   The third quarter saw Atlanta even up the game, with the lone score of the quarter coming when Aaron Murray found Gabe Davis in the back of the endzone for 7. Other than that one drive, a 9-play possession, both teams again traded short drives and punts. Three quarters down and it was anyone’s game, knotted up at 14, but the 4 th  quarter would belong to the Bandits. In the final period, the Bandit defense allowed only 1 first down and caused Atlanta to go 0-for-4 on third down and 0-2 on fourth down. It was a solid performance that proved Tampa Bay was capable of more than simply outscoring opponents. Of course, they did that too, putting up 10 points in the final period. Dak Prescott hit Ryan Grant with a third TD toss 5 minutes into the final period, this time from only 6 yards out. Grant would finish the day with only 3 receptions, but every single one was a touchdown, quite an accomplishment. The fourth also saw Tampa Bay find success on the ground, with the combo of Cook and Breida gaining 61 of their 108 yards in the final 15 minutes. The Bandits controlled the ball, the clock, and the scoreboard down the stretch as Aaron Murray simply could not convert on third down, going 0 for 3 passing and sacked on a 4 th  drive.   The result of the combined Bandit scoring (10 points) and the defensive wall they put up was that the 13-1 Bandits surged to 14-1 and sent Atlanta 2 games back with 1 to play, meaning the division and the 1-seed was theirs. The Fire would have to settle for being a Wild Card teams with one of the most impressive win-loss records in Wild Card history, sitting at 12-3 after 14 weeks.   BALTIMORE 26   WASHINGTON 20 The Blitz lock up the NE Division by knocking off their archrival. With Nassib out, it was Tajh Boyd getting the start for the Feds. It did not look good for 3 quarters as the Blitz put up a 26-6 lead, but in garbage time Boyd got some points on the board for the Federals. Too little and too late to scare the Blitz, however. Brian Hartline had a nice game for Baltimore, with 113 yards and a TD. POTG:  Blitz QB Jake Locker: 25/41, 300 yards, 2 TD, 0 Int   PORTLAND 6   SEATTLE 17 The Dragons blitzed and stunted their way to victory, sacking A.J. McCarron 6 times. Both teams struggled on 3 rd  down, but Seattle just had better luck sustaining drives with Brett Hundley finding Marshall Newhouse for a score and then Gus Edwards plunging into the endzone in the 4 th  to put the game away. Khalil Mack was the POTG with his big defensive day against McCarron and the Stags. POTG:  Seattle LB Khalil Mack: 5 Tck, 3 Sck, 2 PDef, 1 Int   CHICAGO 20  NEW ORLEANS 10 Geno Smith had the Breakers up 7, but then was knocked out of the game, and that gave the edge to the Machine. Josh Norman picked off Pat White and returned it for a 48-yard TD and Bradford found Claypool for a score as the Machine get the W and move to 11-4. New Orleans expects Smith back next week, but may rest him in a game that has only minimal importance for them. POTG:  Machine CB Josh Norman: 5 Tck, 1 Int, 1 Def TD   PITTSBURGH 13   HOUSTON 31 With Andy Dalton out once again due to Covid, the Maulers drop a third in a row, with Houston taking advantage of his absence and Colt McCoy looking good as he throws 4 TDs on the day. TE Gerald Everett has his best game in 2 months, catching 3 for 92 yards, including a 75-yard TD, his 2 nd  of the day. POTG:  Houston QB Colt McCoy: 12/21, 251 Yds, 4 TD, 1 Int   DALLAS 34  LAS VEGAS 23 The Roughnecks move into Wild Card position with a nice win as Sammy Watkins catches 5 for 183. Justin Herbert throws for 324 and 4 TDs as he continues to impress. For Las Vegas, Kareem Hunt had his best game of the season, rushing for 144 yards, but it was not enough as Matt McGloin tossed three interceptions and the offense moved the ball but just did not turn yards into points. POTG:  Dallas WR Sammy Watkins: 5 Rec, 183 Yds, 1 TD   OAKLAND 6   SAN DIEGO 13 A very bad loss for the Invaders as they could not take advantage of one of the worst defenses in the league. Simply nothing worked for Oakland as Tom Brady threw for only 142 and the offense managed only 10 first downs all game, due largely to a 2 of 16 record on 3 rd  and 4 th  downs. The lone TD of the day came from Thunder FB Derrick Coleman on a 1-yard plunge. Oakland now needs a ton of help to sneak into the Wild Card. POTG:  San Diego DE Jonathan Newsome: 6 Tck, 1 Sck   CHARLOTTE 14   JACKSONVILLE 34 The Bulls went with 3 rd  stringer Cardale Jones after a couple of rough outings for Ben DiNucci. In doing so they may have found themselves a new number two. Jones had himself a game, throwing for 367 and 3 touchdowns and looking very much like he was still at Ohio State and facing Akron or Kent State. Kyle Boller fails to get his 4 th  straight win, but played solidly. But this game belonged to the Bulls’ offense, with both Tee Higgins and Mike Williams going over 100 yards and scoring on the day. POTG:  Bulls’ QB Cardale Jones: 20/31, 367 Yds, 3 TD, 0 Int   NEW JERSEY 16   NEW ENGLAND 22 The Steamrollers just wanted this one more, and they played like a team happy to be playing. The Steamroller D held New Jersey to 3 of 12 on third and fourth down. New Jersey was sleepwalking a bit, already eliminated from the playoffs by the Baltimore and Houston wins. We did see Maurice Jones-Drew trying hard as he rushed for 173, but it was not enough as the Generals fell flat. POTG:  New England SS Jaiquawn Jarrett: 6 Tck, 1 Sck, 1 PDef, 1 FR   MICHIGAN 23   SAN ANTONIO 6 The Panthers cruise to their 13 th  win of the year, with LeVeon Bell rushing for 81 yards and 2 scores and the defense holding San Antonio to only 210 total yards and only 94 through the air. Kirk Cousins went 19 of 27 for 222 but threw no touchdowns in a pretty quiet afternoon for the Panthers. POTG:  Panther HB LeVeon Bell: 27 Att, 81 Yds, 2 TD   OHIO 13   BIRMINGHAM 31 Cam Newton has himself a good Cam Newton Day, passing for 326 and 2 scores and running for 64 and another. Stallion fans have to wonder why they don’t see this every week, but part of the answer is that not every foe has a tired and outmatched defense as Ohio does. The Glory started Connor Shaw again, and while he did not turn the ball over, he also did not make many plays. POTG:  Stallion QB Cam Newton: 17/30, 326 Yds, 2 TD, 0 Int, 7 Att, 64 Yds, 1 TD   DENVER 14   OKLAHOMA 31 Josh Allen suffered a scary injury, with his ankle folding under him, though it appears to be only a strain, but he left the game and that gave Oklahoma a big edge. Their other advantage is that rookie QB Jalen Hurts appears to be a keeper, throwing for 282 yards and 4 TDs in this SW Division clash. Dede Westbrook caught 4 for 122 and 2 scores and the combo of Dallas and Hill ran for 119 yards as the Outlaws are still fighting to get to .500. POTG:  Outlaw QB Jalen Hurts: 15/27, 282 Yds, 4 TD, 1 Int   ARIZONA 20   LOS ANGELES 30 You have to be worried if you are a Wrangler fan. Three games without David Carr, three losses, and now the Wranglers are just hoping that the bye week will give them time to figure out how to get their offense back on track. LA sacked Brandon Allen 4 times before Coach Tomsula took him out and tested out Tom Savage. It did not get better with Savage under center. Meanwhile, Reggie Bush rushed for 76 and Kyler Murray threw 3 TDs against an overtaxed Wrangler defense. POTG : Express CB Jamar Taylor: 7 Tck, 1 PDef, 1 FF, 1 FR   PHILADELPHIA 14   ORLANDO 26 Matt Gutierrez was back under center for the Stars after the injury to Lindley, but he did not win back any fans with a 178-yard day. Russell Wilson had a better day, going 31 for 39 with 2 TDs and 290 yards passing. Orlando controlled the clock, holding possession for 38:31 of the 60 minutes. Expect both teams to rest some starters in their finales as there is just not a whole lot of benefit of risking them. POTG:  Orlando QB Russell Wilson: 31/39, 290 Yds, 2 TD, 0 Int   ST. LOUIS 9   MEMPHIS 19 The Showboats struggled on offense, but did enough to get the W as they move to 12-3 and retain the lead in the Southern Division. They still need to beat New Orleans next week, as the Breakers are unblemished in division games, which means a tie would go to New Orleans. As for St. Louis, they are clearly protecting Jackson with their play calls in a lost season. Expect big roster upheaval this offseason. POTG:  Memphis kicker Lewis Ward: 4 of 5 Field Goals.   Bandits win the SE Division with Defense It was the game of the week, a matchup to decide the Southeastern Division and a matchup of two of the most dynamic offenses in the league this year, so, of course, it came down to defense. While both teams moved the ball quite effectively, with each gaining over 100 yards on the ground and finding success in the air, what decided this game was defense, particularly Tampa Bay’s 3 rd down defense.   The Bandits kept Atlanta in 3 rd  and long consistently, which is a huge reason they went 2 of 14 on third down conversions, averaging nearly 8 yards per attempt. And while Aaron Murray went 25 of 35 on the day, his 3 rd down numbers were a more modest 4 of 8, with 2 other 3 rd  downs ended with a sack, as Tampa Bay recorded 5 on the day, with 2 of them drive enders. It is exactly what past Bandit teams have lacked, a defense that could step up if the offense was not firing on all cylinders. That is not the case this year, with Jalen Ramsey among the league leaders in picks, Burns and McPhee closing in on 30 sacks this year, and DeMeco Ryans doing what he always has done, stuffing the run and patrolling the middle of the field. It is a good sign for a 14-1 Bandits team that already knows that they are the top dog in the conference. QB Illness & Injury a Late Season Story When the story is written of the 2020 USFL season, Covid will, of course, be a major part of the narrative, but so will late season QB issues. Whether it is the Wranglers unbeaten with David Carr and winless without him, or Portland’s surprising season hitting a major rough patch after losing Marcus Mariota for the year, or even just Pittsburgh playing without Andy Dalton over a tough 3-game span late in the season, a span that may well cost them a playoff spot (they are still alive but now need help to get there.)   It is not a new story. We all know how valuable a franchise QB is for any football team, but what we have seen this year is how late-season injury (or illness) can turn promise into problems, or momentum into misfortune. Arizona will be in the postseason, but will they be anything like the juggernaut they appeared to be a month ago. Both Pittsburgh and Portland now have their playoff aspirations very much up in the air.                   Several Teams Announce Plans to Rest Key Starters in Week 16 With so many of the playoff spots already locked in, and with several teams playing out the string, it could be a “Celebration of the Depth Chart” this week. We know we will see the starters in games tied to the two remaining Wild Card matchups as well as in the pivotal Memphis-New Orleans game. We also have heard directly from Coach Jim Tomsula that he will play his starters, trying to get one more W before his playoff bye because going into the postseason with 4 consecutive losses would not be a confidence builder. So, as we look towards the final week of the season, and as some of you plan for your fantasy league championships in Week 16, here is who you may want to take a look at with each of the 30 USFL teams.   ARIZONA All starters will play, so maybe start that Wrangler DST group against Portland.   ATLANTA OUT: Aaron Murray, Nick Chubb, A. J. Green, Albert Haynesworth, Luke Kuechley IN: DeShone Kizer, Kenyan Drake, Dorial Green-Thompson, Walter McBee, Zavier Gooden.   BALTIMORE OUT: Jake Locker, Josh Jacobs, C. J. Uzomah, Olivier Vernon IN: Nate Sudfeld, Troymaine Pope, Dion Simms, Jonathan Massaquai   BIRMINGHAM OUT: Cam Newton, Hunter Henry IN: Tim Tebow, Eric Ebron   CHARLOTTE  OUT: Justin Blackmon, Chandler Jones, Rolando McClain IN: Tandon Doss, Isaac Rochell, Jaylon Smith   CHICAGO     OUT: Sam Bradford, Michael Floyd, Arik Armstead, Jason Pierre-Paul, Josh Norman IN: Mike Kafka, Jermaine Kearse, Eddie Goldman, Trevor Guyton, Robert Anderson   DALLAS           All starters expected to play   DENVER        OUT: Josh Allen (IR), Golden Tate IN: Kyle Orton, Michael Crabtree   HOUSTON    OUT: Colt McCoy, Carlos Hyde, Mike Evans, Dante Fowler, Leodis McKelvin IN: Kellen Clemons, Clyde Edwards-Helaire, Josh Reynolds, Emmanuel Ogbah, Siran Neal   JACKSONVILLE     OUT: Tee Higgins, Barkevious Mingo, Dominique Rogers-Cromartie                                   IN: Equanimeous St. Brown, Deatrich Wise Jr., A. J. Terrell   LAS VEGAS: OUT: Kareem Hunt, Matthew Judon, Blake Martinez IN: Matt Jones, Malik Jackson, Nick Perry   LOS ANGELES:   OUT: Kyler Murray, Reggie Bush, Eric Weems, Jason Whitten, Stephon Gilmore IN: Brock Osweiler, Paul Perkins, Nelson Aholor, Jacob Hollister, Isaac Oliver   MEMPHIS:   All starters expected to play.   MICHIGAN:   All starters expected to play.   NEW ORLEANS:  All starters expected to play.   NEW ENGLAND:   All starters expected to play.   NEW JERSEY: OUT: Nick Foles, Odell Beckham Jr, Vic Beasley, Aldon Smith, Aqib Talib IN: Brett Rypien, Kenny Stills, Alton Robinson, Doug Hogue, Isaac Yiadom   OAKLAND:  All starters expected to play.   OHIO:     OUT: Robert Quinn, Ryan Shazier, Tyran Matthieu IN: Datone Jones, Steven Daniels, Ryan Neal   OKLAHOMA: OUT: Mark Andrews, Luis Castillo, Xavien Howard IN: Ben Braunecker, Re’Shede Heggeman, Bradley Fletcher   ORLANDO     OUT: Russell Wilson, Knile Davis, Brashad Perriman, Dee Milliner IN: Kyle Lauletta, Kerrith White, Hunter Renfrew, Kevin Johnson   PHILADELPHIA     OUT: Travis Kelce IN: Cameron Brate   PITTSBURGH  All starters expected to play.   PORTLAND  All starters expected to play.   SAN ANTONIO   OUT: Joe Flacco, Brandon LaFell, Jordan Pugh                                 IN: Chad Kelly, Marquise Goodwin, Duke Shelley   SAN DIEGO OUT: Christian Ponder, Ryan Williams                         IN: Case Keenum, Travis Homer   SEATTLE       All starters expected to play.   ST. LOUIS        OUT: Lamar Jackson, Eddie Lacy, Stevie Johnson, Sheldon Richardson IN: Tyrod Taylor, David Montgomery, David Nelson, Stephen Paea   TAMPA BAY   OUT: Dak Prescott, Dalvin Cook, Dez Bryant, Marcell Dareus, DeMeco Ryans IN: B. J. Daniels, Matt Breida, Deebo Samuel, Bryan Cowart, Devon Kennard   WASHINGTON   OUT: Jahvid Best, Keenan Allen, Chris Long                                 IN: Darrynton Evans, Jalen Saunders, Michael Johnson   One week left, two playoff spots still unclaimed, and not a lot else expected to change as we enter into the final week. Expect to see quite a few backups getting game action this week as there is not as much final week drama as we have seen in recent years. We have 10 playoff spots locked in and 5 teams still alive. Let’s break down where each conference stands, starting with the East, where there is very little left to be decided.     Tampa Bay Bandits (14-1): The Bandits have the 1 seed and a bye locked up. Expect them to rest their starters against Jacksonville this week.   Memphis Showboats (12-3): The Memphis Showboats have a meaningful game left to play. They face New Orleans this week in their finale. The winner of that game claims the Southern Division crown and the bye as the 2 seed. If Memphis wins, then they have a 2-game advantage over New Orleans, but if the Breakers win, they get the title thanks to a perfect 8-0 record against Southern Division foes.   Baltimore Blitz (9-6): The Blitz finish the year with a game against Atlanta, but they are already locked into the 3 seed and will likely rest some starters to prepare for the Wild Card round the next week.   Atlanta Fire (12-3): Atlanta needs to win to ensure that they, and not the 2 nd place team in the South, gets the 4 seed and a chance to “host” their Wild Card game. Honestly, that holds less weight than ever since the games will not be played in the host cities regardless of results, but there are still a few minor perks to being designated the home team, so we would not be shocked to see the Fire keep their staters in the game.   New Orleans Breakers (11-4): For New Orleans the stakes are high in the final week. A win over Memphis and they jump from the 5 seed all the way to the 2, which means they get a bye and at least one “home” game. Lose and they are likely stuck facing the Atlanta Fire in with Wild Card round, a very tough matchup.   Houston Gamblers (9-6): Locked into the 6 seed, Houston will almost certainly rest their stars as they prepare to face the Baltimore Blitz in a 3-6 matchup in 2 weeks.     Michigan Panthers (13-2): The Panthers are feeling very good in the 1 spot, thanks in part to a better conference record than Arizona. They are expected to start their regulars, but we may see only a few drives from Bell, Cousins, and Latimer before they are replaced.   Arizona Wranglers (12-3): Once securely in the top spot, Arizona has lost 3 in a row, and while the analytics say they should rest some starters, Coach Tomsula wants this club to get a W under their belt before they take the Wild Card week off. They need to prove to themselves that they can win games without Carr at QB, so we think they will keep everyone in against Portland.   Los Angeles Express (10-5): The Express lock up the Pacific with a win. A loss could cost them the division and the marginal advantage of being the home team in the Wild Card round. They face a Las Vegas team that has nothing to play for, so if they get a comfortable lead, they may pull some starters to rest them for the Wild Card round.   Chicago Machine (11-4): Locked into the Wild Card and the 4 slot, the Machine have little to play for this week and we expect to see a lot of roster changes as they rest starters and prepare to “host” their Wild Card matchup. They will also be doing a lot of scoreboard watching to see just who that matchup will be.   Dallas Roughnecks (9-6): A win and they are the 5 seed, but a loss could cost them a playoff spot. The face San Diego, who just dealt the Invaders a big blow, and we don’t think they will take them lightly. Expect to see a lot of Justin Herbert and Sammy Watkins in this one.   Seattle Dragons (9-6): Like Dallas, the Dragons control their own fate. A win against the 6-9 Denver Gold and Seattle locks up the last Wild Card spot. They too know that a loss could kill their playoff hopes, so expect them to come out with purpose and expect to see all the starters for 60 minutes.   Pittsburgh Maulers (9-6): Right now the Maulers are the 3 rd  team at 9-6, on the outside looking in. They need to defeat rival Ohio to have any shot and then hope that either the Dragons or Roughnecks stumble in their finales. Still, compared to the two 8-7 teams, they at least have a shot without resorting to tie breakers.   Portland Stags (8-7): The Stags cannot be happy that Arizona has something to play for. They not only need to figure out how to get past Arizona, but also need significant help, in the form of losses by 2 of the 3 teams at 9-6 right now. If that sounds like a lot to ask, well, it is.   Oakland Invaders (8-7): That loss this week to San Diego is a killer. It was the one thing the Invaders could not afford. Now, not only do they need to defeat a pretty feisty Oklahoma team, but they need pretty much everyone ahead of them to lose. That means Portland, Pittsburgh, Seattle, and Dallas. Long odds to be sure.   While many of the players who show up on our injured list likely would have sat out Week 16 regardless of health, you never want to see players go down with an injury at any point in the season. The good news is that even the players on IR this week are all looking at injuries that should be fully healed by the end of November, so no impact on their pre-2021 training. As for playoff teams, we see that New Orleans could be without CB Donte Jackson, LA is hoping to have WR Marqise Lee back in time for the Divisional Round if they can get past their Wild Card matchup, and Arizona expects to have Corey Levin back for their first playoff game as well.   OUT OT       Greg Robinson      BIR         Torn Quad          IR QB         Easton Stick             SAN         ACL                       IR DE          Tyrone Crawford     POR        Hamstring         IR QB         Josh Allen                DEN        Ankle                    IR WR         Marqise Lee           LA             Knee                     2-4 Weeks CB          Donte Jackson        NOR        Back                     2-4 Weeks OG         Corey Levin             ARZ         Foot                      1-2 Weeks DT          Eddie Goldman      CHI          Arm                       1-2 Weeks   DOUBTFUL OT          Demar Dotson       MGN      Wrist WR         A. J. Green             ATL        Shoulder   QUESTIONABLE SS           Duke Williams        DAL        Tendinitis WR         Mike Evans              HOU      Thigh Bruise SS           Kenny Vaccaro       HOU       Pinched Nerve    COVID-19 INACTIVES CHA      HB         Laverne Rollins               MEM     CB          Marcus Williams NOR      LB           Tim Williams OAK      DE          Michael Bennett OAK      OG         Quenton Nelson             SD          WR         Ronald Johnson               STL         CB          Vontae Davis STL         LB           Roquon Smith          2 nd  Week     The Futile Five: Teams Who Need to Change their Culture We talk a lot about dynasties in the world of sports, focusing on the teams that always seem to be on top, always in play for a championship. The 5-10 year runs that define a decade and the teams that just never seem to go too long without finding a way to the top. But what about the opposite situation? What about the teams that just can never seem to put it all together. For every NY Yankees team there is a Chicago Cubs, the Lakers are countered by the Clippers, the Cowboys, Steelers, and 49ers by the Lions, Browns, and Bengals. The USFL is no different. We often discuss the dynasties of the 1990’s Gamblers, or the early 2000’s Glory, the Stars and Bandits, and lately the Panthers and Wranglers, who are in the mix every year, at least for a span of several years, and who seem to find a way to stay on top for longer than the finances of the USFL seem to allow. But who are the sad sacks of the USFL? Who are the teams that never seem to get the breaks, find the franchise QB, or turn good into great? We have picked 5 teams who might fit that bill. Five clubs with varying levels of past success but all with major issues. Sure, some have made it to the Summer Bowl, maybe even won a title, but that is an aberration, and exception to the rule. For these clubs, suffering, disappointment and let-downs are the norm. This is our Futile Five.  Jacksonville Bulls List of Failings: No titles in 37 seasons. 10 losses or more in the past 9 seasons. No playoff appearance since 2007.   Little argument that the Bulls have been a snakebitten team for nearly their entire existence. As they close in on 40 seasons, they still have yet to appear in a Summer Bowl, and for many fans, they have never even been close. The Bulls have not made the playoffs in over a decade, have had 10 or more losses more often than they have reached .500, and every year it seems a different team leaps over them, from basement to penthouse, as Tampa Bay did last year (on their way to this year’s dominance) and as Atlanta has this year.   Their greatest stars have rarely even met the standards for the Hall of Fame. Are you enthused by Chris Chandler as your All-Time QB? Antowain Smith or George Adams as your HB? And while both Brian Blades and Gary Clark were good players, no one mistakes them for the best of all time. So, the Bulls sit atop our list for all the reasons you would think a club would. Sorry Duval County, you deserve better.   San Diego Thunder List of Failings: No titles in 34 seasons. 1 appearance in Conference Title Game since 1997. Third different city since 2000.   We list the Thunder as our 2 nd  most futile team in the USFL. This is a club that has been in the league since the late 1980’s and, like the Bulls, have yet to win a title. They have at least appeared in a Summer Bowl, losing to the Federals back in 1997, which ,by the way, was two cities ago, back when the team was in Portland. The Thunder are perhaps more famous for financial malfeasance than on-field performance. They struggled in Portland, unable to turn a profit despite a pretty rabid fanbase. They relocated to Las Vegas, playing in a barely passable outdoor stadium, often in ludicrous heat, and then were forced to be sold when their ownership was found responsible for major financial malpractice. So now they are in San Diego, where they seemed to have turned things around, making the playoffs for 4-straight years, but in classic futile franchise style, their hopes were dashed this year as the floor fell out beneath them, plunging them back to playoff irrelevance.   Dallas Roughnecks List of Failings: No playoff appearance since 2009 League Title in Boston. 8 seasons with 10 or more losses in last decade, Relocated twice since 2000.   Fans are excited about the Roughnecks this year, and they can lock in their first playoff since moving from Boston with a win next week. But we would warn Roughneck fans not to get too excited. The once Atlanta Fire, then Boston Cannons, and now Dallas Roughnecks, have had a few moments, including a league title 12 seasons ago, but consistent quality has not been the name of the game for this franchise. After struggling both on the field and at the box office in Atlanta, the team relocated to Boston, spending several years in constant frustrating impasse with Boston College, never able to get the stadium improvements needed to truly be a financially viable franchise. And so they moved again, a 2 nd  relocation in less than 2 decades. Now, in Dallas, they have built a fanbase, but little on-field success. That seems to be changing with their exciting rookie QB, Justin Herbert, but as we have seen so many times, a good season does not always foretell a solid run of good years. Be cautious in your enthusiasm Roughneck Nation.   Birmingham Stallions List of Failings: One playoff appearance since 2003. No playoff wins since 1999. 13 losing seasons since 2000.   What was once a proud franchise, led by superstars like Joe Cribbs, Cliff Stoudt, Brett Favre, and Ernest Givens is now a shadow of its own past. The Stallions of the 80’s and 90’s were solid. Sure, they only won a single title, their 1993 title with Favre at the helm, but they were always in the mix, building up a great rivalry with Memphis and a diehard fan base. But the new millennium has not been kind to the Stallions. As we cited above, they have only had one playoff appearance and no wins since 2003. They have one of the most talented and athletic QBs in the game today but still seem to always find a way to stumble to 10 or more losses, as they have this year. They have gone after HB after HB and yet somehow seem to miss all the obviously talented ones out of their own T-Draft school, Alabama. Stallion fans still show up in droves, at least when fans are allowed to show up, but there is a tone of resigned pessimism instead of expectations of greatness.   St.Louis Skyhawks List of Failings: 2 winning seasons in 16 year existence, 10 losses or more in 6 of last 7 years.   Some may be surprised that we have put St. Louis on this list, but that may be the lingering memory of one amazing season. 2012 saw the Skyhawks truly fly. Their QB, Josh Freeman, won the MVP, their veteran HB, Antowain Smith, won the rushing title, and their club took home a title. But when you look at the Skyhawks as a franchise, since their arrival as an expansion team in 2006, what you see is a whole heck of a lot of bad football, with one short run of quality. The year before and after their title run they were 8-8, go a year out in either direction and they were 5-11 (2010) or 4-12 (2014). They were the definition of a flash in the pan. And since 2012, what do we see? How about 5 seasons with 10, 11, 12, or13 losses and only 1 with a winning record. St. Louis already has 13 losses this year, and could hit a new low if they lose a 14 th . So, yes, we think it is fair to say that the Skyhawks are one of the Futile Five, and a team deeply in need of a transfusion of winning culture.   Seattle Releases 2021 Look, Hopes to Wear them in 2 Weeks Hot in pursuit of a playoff spot, the Seattle Dragons this week revealed a new look they hope to debut on the field in 2 weeks, rather than 8 months, and it is a look that fans immediately embraced. Gone is the white helmet and wrap around logo and back in vogue is the return to deep forest green and gold. The new look reduces the role of red in the team’s design, focusing primarily on green with a significant use of yellow as the secondary color.   The look begins with a new logo, the 4 th  dragon design the team has used since coming into the league in 1995. The new design has a green dragon with gold underbelly, red “fins” and a burst of red flame emerging from its mouth. The design also features a flared “tail” that helps the dragon design form the letter “S” for Seattle. This new logo, outlined in black and yellow, now occupies the satin finished green helmet.   The jerseys are simpler than in recent years, but we retain the “Gothic” font for the numbers, with the top of each numeral coming to a point much like a gothic arch. There is a minimal use of red in the jerseys, only seen in the Under Armour logo, the very tip of the collar, and a few logo elements. Both the home greens and the road whites feature a shoulder yoke coming to a point at the sleeve cuff, but on the greens, it is barely noticeable, with only the yellow piping showing us the shape of the yoke. Both jerseys also feature the new primary logo, which means that the secondary “S” design does not appear on the uniform. What does appear is a Chinese symbol, the symbol for “Dragon”, which appears above the nameplate on both jerseys, a nice nod to Seattle’s prominent Asian community.   As with all the Under Armour releases, the Dragons also revealed two alternate looks. The first, of course, is the throwback, taking the look back to 1995, with the green helmet, original yellow dragon logo, and “Spanish Flag” striping of red-yellow-red (so named by fans, not the team). With the forest green helmet used for the primaries and the throwback, that meant Seattle could do something new with their other alternate look, and they did just that, leaning into the city’s nickname as the “Emerald City” by releasing an alternate that uses 3 tones of green, none of them the familiar forest. The helmet is a pale, almost metallic silvery green, paired with a deep midnight green facemask. The third color is a brighter lime or electric green, used primarily in piping and in the logo. Both white and dark jerseys retain the same yoke as the primary, but with the midnight green outlined in the electric highlight color, while the body of the home jersey is the same silvery grey of the helmet. Midnight green pants will be worn with both jerseys as the Dragons embrace the “emerald” nature of their home. Seattle hopes to debut their new primary uniform in 2 weeks, if they can get the W in week 16 and punch their ticket to the postseason. Seattle's design is based on a mesh of the 2020 XFL and 2023 XFL designs, with a nudge from a design by jackkmart on Sportslogos.net Down to the final week of USFL regular season action, and with one division title and two Wild Card spots still up for grabs, there are quite a few games that will have an impact in the playoff picture this week. It will be a bit different from most Week 16 lineups in that the limitations of the USFL’s Hub System means that we won’t see games paired up with each other at the same time to avoid gaming the system. For example, the 5 teams still alive in the Western Conference Wild Card scenarios are not all playing at once, we have Portland playing on Friday Night, Seattle and Dallas both at 4pm on Saturday, Pittsburgh at 1pm on Sunday, and Oakland at 4. That could well lead to the Stags having to wait to see if they are in, even with a win, or both Pittsburgh and Oakland knowing they are out even before they suit up on Sunday.    It will be an odd one, to be sure, but we at least have one game that we know has immediate impact. The Memphis-New Orleans showdown on Saturday night is a battle for the Southern Division Title, and with it, a by week for the playoffs. The Showboats are a game up, but would lose the tiebreaker to New Orleans if they cannot pull out this game. Expect both teams to be in full playoff mode for this one.   FRIDAY 8pm ET    New Jersey (7-7-1) @ Philadelphia (1-14)         Orlando       NBC                No playoff implications   8pm ET   Portland (8-7) @ Arizona (12-3)                                Las Vegas         ABC                 Arizona earns 1 seed with win + Michigan Loss.                Portland earns Wild Card with win + 2 losses from Seattle, Dallas, and Pittsburgh.   9pm ET    Birmingham (3-12) @ Houston (9-6)                    TDECU          ESPN/EFN               No playoff implications.   SATURDAY 1pm ET    San Antonio (2-13) @ St. Louis (2-13)                    NRG           ABC                 No playoff implications.   4pm ET   Seattle (9-6) @ Denver (6-9)                                      Glendale          FOX                 Seattle earns Wild Card with win. Division Title with win + LA Loss.   4pm ET   San Diego (3-12) @ Dallas (9-6)                               Las Vegas         ABC                Dallas earns Wild Card with a win.   8pm ET    Jacksonville (7-8) @ Tampa Bay (14-1)               Gainesville     NBC                 No playoff implications.   8pm ET   Baltimore (9-6) @ Atlanta (12-3)                              Tampa            FOX                 Atlanta earns 4-seed with win or New Orleans loss.   9pm ET   Memphis (12-3) @ New Orleans (11-4)              Rice               ESPN/EFN                 Winner is division champion and earns a bye week.   SUNDAY 1pm ET   Ohio (3-12) @ Pittsburgh (9-6)                                  NRG              FOX                Pittsburgh earns a Wild Card with win + Dallas or Seattle loss.   4pm ET   Los Angeles (10-5) @ Las Vegas (3-12)                 Glendale        ABC               No playoff implications.   4pm ET   Oakland (8-7) @ Oklahoma (7-8)                             Las Vegas      FOX                 Oakland needs a win and multiple losses from Dallas, Seattle, Pittsburgh & Portland to earn a Wild Card.   8pm ET   New England (6-9) @ Washington (5-9-1)         Orlando          ABC                  No playoff implications.   8pm ET   Charlotte (6-9) @ Orlando (7-8)                            Tampa           FOX                                 No playoff implications.   9pm ET   Chicago (11-4) @ Michigan (13-2)                          TDECU          ESPN/EFN                 Michigan earns 1-seed with win.

Week 14 has Wrangler nation worried, the Machine Guild feeling good, and tensions high between fans of the Bandits and Fire as those two prepare for one of the biggest games of the year. It was a bad week for Denver, Oakland, and Orlando, but things are looking up for the Portland Stags and Houston Gamblers. In other words, it is end-of-season drama at its best. We will break down all the Week 14 results and their impact for the next two weeks and the postseason. We will also take a sneak peak at the top of the draft and teams likely to be there, our Big Story of the week, then highlight some big performances, including at least one very familiar name to USFL fans, and take a look at what could be brutal Black Monday in two weeks. All this, plus our game of the week features a team rallying together after losing their starting QB. Sounds intriguing? Of course, this is the USFL after all.   Who Wants the First Pick in the 2021 USFL Open Draft? The USFL Draft is a funny thing. Not only do you not know who is going to be available in the Open Draft until 1 week prior to making your picks, thanks to the USFL’s long history of a Territorial Draft that allows each team to protect 3 players from a pool of regional schools, but you also have the NFL in the mix every year, which means that at best you have a 50/50 chance of actually landing the player you pick, even with the USFL’s overall number one pick. We have seen time and again that teams just don’t have confidence in the pick, and with the T-Draft in the mix, so many top prospects are taken off the board even before you get to walk your card up to the podium. Many believe that the best use of the 1 st  overall pick is as trade bait, to get you access to another team’s best T-Draft prospect. Others realize that there are always blue chip options left in the Open Draft and that teams near the top of the draft always have multiple needs. For some, the key is to pick a player who almost certainly will be chosen in the middle of the NFL 1 st  round, because that league’s rigid compensation system for rookie contracts gives a Top 5 USFL pick almost certainly a better deal to play in spring than to take the contract available to the 15 th  pick in the NFL draft. So, who are the teams that are still alive for the 1 st  overall pick, and what might they do with it. Well, it starts with 1-win Philadelphia and moves all the way through the teams at 2 or 3 wins, with diminishing odds each step, but we know all of these teams are looking at potential Top 5 picks, so what is their path forward? Do they hold the pick? Go for needs? Best Player Available? Or do they use the pick as bait to acquire veteran players or to get access to someone else’s T-Draft selection and maybe nab that coveted prospect who will never make it to the floor in the Open Draft? So many options, so many possible missteps. It is what makes the USFL Draft exciting, exciting like a single role of the dice at a craps table, because the odds are not in your favor, but a lot is riding on that roll of the dice. Philadelphia (1-13) The Stars are the frontrunner for the 1 st overall selection, and in what could be a QB-rich draft, they certainly could benefit from having that pick. The problem is that none of the top QB prospects are unprotected from potential T-Draft selection. That means that the Stars need to think not necessarily of retaining the 1 st  pick, but of using it as trade fodder to get access to a T-Draft eligible QB. For example, they could trade with Jacksonville to get a shot at Clemson’s Trevor Lawrence, though they likely won’t be the only team barking up that tree. They could also package the pick with some other collateral to get a current USFL QB in trade, though that is not likely the path to getting a franchise guy, because those just are not traded.  St. Louis (2-12) The Skyhawks’ win this week pulled them a game ahead of Philadelphia, which means more likely they are the 2 nd  pick than the first, but if Philly pulls out a win in the final weeks, they could again be in the running. They do not need a QB, as that is just about the only position they have locked down. So, if they get the pick, they are likely to hold onto it and snag the best defensive player available. That just makes too much sense.  San Diego (2-12) A playoff team over several years, the Thunder are still trying to figure out the reasons for their absolute collapse. They don’t think the issue is Christian Ponder, though he certainly has not been at his best this year. If he is fine, then they too are not a QB-hungry team, which means they can look at either halfback, receiver, some line help or defense. If by some miracle they end up at the top of the draft order, and if OT Oregon’s Penei Sewell does not end up on the Stags’ protected list, we could see them go for the QB bodyguard, but if not, and it does seem a longshot, then they, like St. Louis have to go for defense.  Birmingham (2-12) The Stallions always have such a rich pool of talent in their T-Draft, thanks to the Alabama-Auburn pipeline, that they tend to undervalue the Open Draft. That may not be the case if they have the 1 st overall pick. We think they too go defense, though they could surprise us and essentially treat the 1 st  pick like a 4 th  T-Draft option, using their 3 official T-Draft picks on positions of need and still getting the best Alabama prospect left with this pick, which makes a lot of sense, especially if they go WR in the T-Draft ands save Najee Harris for this choice.   San Antonio (2-12) The only team in this group that is not absolutely devastated to be so high in the draft. The Gunslingers expected their first year to be tough. And with Joe Flacco still looking like a good option, they are not QB-obsessed, so even if they get the top pick they are more likely to look at positions of need than to focus on the QB position. We think a HB, maybe a WR, or, perhaps most likely, a solid edge rusher if they think they see one in the draft is the pick for them.  Ohio (3-13) Very unlikely they end up with the first pick, and honestly, they really don’t need it. Picking in the Top 5 or 6 is going to get them what they want. Why? Because their obvious issues at QB can, and almost certainly will, be solved by selecting Ohio State QB Justin Fields in the T-Draft. Fields is athletic, disciplined, and basically pro-ready after playing for the Buckeyes against top level opposition. We cannot imagine the Glory let him slip away as they almost certainly will start wooing him even before the draft and because playing in Columbus will give him instant merchandising and sponsorship options that going elsewhere in the NFL would not.  Las Vegas (3-13) Matt McGloin is not the big issue for the Vipers, but they could still get QB Fever. If we assume they are picking in the Top 5 but not at number 1, the most likely scenario is that they go for a halfback. Their run game is just tragically unreliable, and while that cannot be solved by one rookie tailback, it won’t hurt. They can build up the O-line through plenty of paths this offseason, but getting stud to carry the rock is usually a build-through-the-draft proposition.   OAKLAND INVADERS 21   PORTLAND STAGS 24 For the second time in the 2020 season the Portland Stags were facing an injury to their star quarterback. Marcus Mariota missed both Week 2 and Week 3 to injury earlier this year, and last week he suffered a hamstring tear that ended his season. But, while many immediately began to write off the Stags, some remembered that when Mariota went down early in the season, backup A. J. McCarron came in and helped the Stags defeat the Oklahoma Outlaws.   Well, McCarron was back under center again this week against a tough Oakland pass rush and a pretty good Invader secondary, and he proved once again that he could lead this team. The Portland backup went 17 of 29 for 276 yards with 2 TDs and 2 picks. Despite absorbing 8 sacks in the game, he was in position to win the game on a final drive and he did what needed to be done to get the Stags into field goal range and keep their playoff hopes alive.   It was not all McCarron, of course. Halfback Doug Martin stepped up in a big way, rushing for 101 yards on 26 carries and scoring the game’s first touchdown. Tight end Trey Burton had a nice game as well, catching 6 of 8 targets and rackin gup 82 yards, but the big star of the day, at least for the Stag offense, was WR Alshon Jefferey. While Brandin Cooks racked up more yards, it was Jeffery who brought in two touchdowns, including a toe tapper in the 3 rd  quarter that gave the Stags a 21-10 lead.   All this against an Oakland defense that had helped the Invaders win 8 games and which put points on the board itself. While Doug Martin’s 1-yard TD plunge in the first quarter was the only scoring of the opening period, the Oakland defense got the Invaders right back in the game. Jahleel Addae read McCarron’s eyes perfectly and jumped the throw on an out route to Cooks. He nabbed the ball out of the air and ran it back 35 yards for the equalizer, causing the Portland QB to slam his helmet to the turf on the sideline. But McCarron rebounded and on his very next possession led the Stags on a 14-play, 71-yard trek, taking back the lead with a TD toss to Jeffery.   By the half it was 14-10 and Portland was feeling very much like this was a game they could win. Despite the gloom and doom when Mariota was placed on IR and done for the year, the Stags players rallied and pulled together and now they had the lead with 30 minutes to play. They felt even better when another McCarron-led drive, helped significantly by a 25-yard Doug Martin run, put 7 more points on the board. Alshon Jeffery kept both toes on the turf as he leaned out of the endzone to bring in the McCarron pass, and Portland had themselves an 11-point lead with 8 minutes left in the 3 rd But, Oakland being Oakland, and Tom Brady being Tom Brady, that 11-point lead was in no way secure. The Invaders got a field goal later in the 3 rd to pull within 8, and just as the 4 th  quarter began, they got their biggest play of the day against a conservative Portland shell defense. On a 3 rd and 7 on their own 22, Tom Brady looked to be sacked by Portland LB Nico Johnson, but somehow slipped out of the sack, scrambled to his right and found former Stallion Jerrel Jernigan for an 11-yard gain to keep the drive alive. That play sparked the Oakland offense, and 6 plays later Brady found Davante Adams on a perfect slant & go route, producing a 28-yard TD strike. Down 2, the Invaders went for the play from scrimmage to tie the game. Brady faked the ball to McCaffrey and then found the back in the flat. The Oakland tailback gave a shoulder fake to the safety and dove to the corner, getting the ball across the plane before his knee hit. We had a tie score with just under 8 minutes to go.   The following 8 minutes included 3 changes of possession, starting with a 3-and-out from the Portland offense. That was followed by a rarity, a 2 nd  Tom Brady interception in the same game. Brady tried to squeeze the ball into the hands of Taylor Gabriel, his leading receiver on the day, but the ball glanced off his outstretched hands. In classic tip drill style, Portland’s Taron Johnson dove into the play and snagged the ball before it hit the turf. The Stags were in business with 2:17 left to play and the ball on the Invader 48. They did not rush, using Doug Martin and a nice TE screen to Burton to get the ball into range. Not wanting to risk a turnover they ran the ball three times in an attempt to keep the drive going, but when Martin failed to reach the line to gain on 3 rd  and 4, they sent out Cody Parkey to kick a go-ahead field goal form 40 yards out. Parkey’s kick went right down the middle and Portland was up 3 with 1:20 to go.   Oakland mounted a final drive to either win or tie the game, but the Portland defense held, forcing Roberto Aguayo to attempt a 55-yarder to tie the game. The kick sliced right and the Stags got the win, their second in a row, evening their record with Oakland at 8-6 and leaving a very complicated final 2 weeks in the Pacific as Oakland, Portland, and Seattle all sit 1 game behind the 9-5 LA Express. Just how complex? Well, here are the games on tap the final two weeks for these 4 teams:   WEEK 15 Portland vs. Seattle in what could be a playoff elimination game. LA has to face a desperate Arizona Wranglers team, eager to hold onto the 1 seed. Oakland has what appears to be a cakewalk against 2-12 San Diego, but this is a California Derby game, so who knows.   WEEK 16 None of the 4 teams have a division game. Portland’s road is perhaps toughest, with Arizona on the schedule. Oakland will face the Oklahoma Outlaws, LA goes up against the Las Vegas Vipers, and the Seattle Dragons have the Denver Gold. We could see all 4 win, creating a cluster atop the division, or we could see some teams lose their shot with a badly-timed loss in an interdivisional game. It could be a whole heck of a lot of scoreboard watching too.                                 ORLANDO 24  NEW JERSEY 30 The Generals got back over .500, kept the flame alive for a division title, and eliminated the Renegades from playoff consideration all in one fell swoop, and all despite being outgained. The way they pulled that off was with takeaways. New Jersey won the turnover battle 4-0, a very decisive advantage as they picked off Russell Wilson three times and forced a fumble from Knile Davis on their way to the win. They also got 3 touchdowns from Nick Foles as the New Jersey QB went 22 of 33 in the victory. POTG:  New Jersey LB Aldon Smith, 9 Tck, 1 Sck, 1 FF, 1 FR   LOS ANGELES 17   SEATTLE 27 A huge win for the Dragons as they knock LA back a game and pull themselves within 1 of the division lead. Knowshon Moreno was again the focal point for Seattle, and while he only had 89 yards, his 2 touchdowns helped propel Seattle to 8-6. Kyler Murray hit Eric Weems with 2 TD tosses but it was not enough to get LA the win and a larger margin in this tight division. POTG:  Seattle LB Khalil Mack: 8 Tck, 3 TFL, 1 Sck   MICHIGAN 20  PITTSBURGH 7 With Andy Dalton sidelined by Covid-19, the Maulers struggled to match the Panther offense. They were limited to only 66 yards rushing, well below LeVeon Bell’s total of 115. Michigan got an early TD from Martellus Bennett and added a late one from backup HB Alexander Mattison, and that was really all they needed against a weakened Mauler squad. POTG:  Michigan CB Keivarae Russell: 6 Tck, 5 PDef, 1 Int   MEMPHIS 33   SAN ANTONIO 13 Paxton Lynch returned under center for the Showboats and promptly threw for 295 yards and 2 scores, while Todd Gurley added 119 on the ground as Memphis rolled past the expansion Gunslingers. Devin Funchess was again outstanding, catching 8 of 10 targets for 138 yards, while Robert Woods and TE Dallas Goedert caught TDs from a healthy Paxton Lynch. POTG:  Memphis QB Paxton Lynch: 28/47, 295 Yds, 2 TD, 0 Int   DALLAS 45 DENVER 30 Four Josh Allen picks helped Dallas fend off the Gold and move to 8-6, eliminating Denver from the playoff race in the mix. Allen threw for 310 yards and 3 scores, but the picks were brutal, including a 39-yard pick-six from Dallas CB Patrick Peterson. Dallas also got a strip-sack-recovery-touchdown from DE Connor Barwin and 4 TD passes from rookie Justin Herbert in a battle of two of the league’s young gunslingers. POTG:  Dallas CB Patrick Peterson: 7 Tck, 3 PDef, 2 Int, 1 Def TD   CHARLOTTE 27  WASHINGTON 17 The Monarchs won their third straight, but both they and the defeated Washington Federals were both eliminated this week. In a battle of backups, Kyle Boller and Tajh Boyd fought for the win and for respect, and for the 3 rd week in a row it was Boller getting the win. He got help from the run game with Murray and Hines combining for 145 yards and a TD, and from WR Justin Blackmon who caught 9 passes for 116 yards. POTG:  Monarch WR Justin Blackmon: 9 Rec, 116 Yds   ATLANTA 24  PHILADELPHIA 16 The Fire seemed a bit doused in this one but still managed to get their 12 th win against a deeply troubled Philadelphia squad. Nick Chubb rushed for 121 and Aaron Murray threw for 2 scores despite the absence of star WR A. J. Green. Ryan Lindley was replaced midway through the game as the Stars’ QB as P. J. Walker got a chance to show what he could do. The two Star QBs combined to go 22 of 35, but neither threw a TD and both threw a pick as the Stars all but locked up the 1 st  pick in the draft with their 13 th  loss. POTG:  Atlanta FS Earl Thomas: 8 Tck, 1 Sck, 1 Int, 1 FF, 1 FR   HOUSTON 16   NEW ORLEANS 24 In a huge game for both Southern Division teams, it was a surprise player who starred for the Breakers as Myles Gaskin again made a case for the starting job, rushing the ball 18 times for 112 yards. The threat of the run kept Houston’s pass rush in check and that allowed Geno Smith to hit Jordy Nelson for 114 and a TD and to find TE Coby Fleener for 132 and a score as well. Despite 113 yards from Carlos Hyde, the Houston offense sputtered, with Mike Evans catching only 1 ball on the day, and that was enough for the Breakers to take the game. POTG:  Breaker LB Kwon Alexander: 5 Tck, 1 Int, 1 Def TD   OHIO 13  ST. LOUIS 21 In an odd game that had fans of both teams hoping their club would lose (and improve their draft position) it was St. Louis getting the win, their 2 nd on the year, thanks to a Lamar Jackson TD toss to Stevie Johnson and 5 Zane Gonzalez field goals. Connor Shaw got the start but struggled to 10 out of 21 passing and only 119 yards. Not an impressive win from St. Louis to be sure, and one that many Skyhawk fans dreaded as it now likely removes the Skyhawks from a shot at the first overall draft pick. POTG: Skyhawk LB Trey Hendrickson: 10 Tck, 3 TFL   ARIZONA 10   OKLAHOMA 23 A very bad sign for Wrangler fans as Brandon Allen and the Wrangler offense struggled to get anything going against an Outlaw squad that was eliminated from playoff contention last week. The Outlaws outgained Arizona 472-258 despite a ridiculous 5-sack performance from Calais Campbell. DeeJay Dallas had 100 on the ground and rookie QB Jalen Hurts was back under center and looked very solid, throwing for 332 yards and 2 scores despite being sacked 12, yes, that is right, 12 times by the aggressive Wrangler D (although 3 of those were just him running out of bounds behind the line to be honest.) POTG:  Oklahoma QB Jalen Hurts: 14/24, 332 Yds, 2 Td, 1 Int, Survived 12 sacks.   LAS VEGAS 30  SAN DIEGO 24  OVERTIME San Diego continues to play teams tough but also continues to come up short. They pushed Las Vegas to overtime in a battle of 2-win teams, and again, as with St. Louis, Viper fans seemd almost disappointed when Matt McGloin found Aaron Dobson for a game-winning score in overtime. McGloin looked about as good as he has all year, completing 41 of 50 passes for 360 yards and 3 TDs against an ineffective Thunder secondary. POTG:  Viper QB Matt McGloin: 41/50, 360 Yds, 3 TD, 1 Int   TAMPA BAY 27  NEW ENGLAND 10 The Bandits bounced back from their surprising loss last week by putting together a 24-0 run against the Steamrollers, thanks to three Prescott to Bryant TD tosses, each over 40 yards long. Bryant’s stat line was insane, with 5 receptions for 213 yards and 3 scores. Prescott was sacked 6 times as the Steamrollers played them tough, but the New England offense just could not respond to the Bandits’ scoring run. POTG:  Bandit WR Dez Bryant: 5 rec, 213 Yds, 3 TD   JACKSONVILLE 23   BALTIMORE 35 The Blitz retained their slim lead in the NE Division, thanks in large part to a 292-yard, 4-TD day from QB Jake Locker. It was TE C. J. Uzomah who stood out as a target in this game, with three of his five receptions going for scores. The Blitz also got huge numbers from Josh Jacobs, who averaged 6.2 YPC on his way to 162 yards on the ground. POTG:  Blitz QB Jake Locker: 23/39, 292 Yds, 4 TD, 0 Int   BIRMINGHAM 17   CHICAGO 30 The Machine contained Cam Newton, holding him to 26 yards rushing, and rookie WR Chase Claypool had a nice 6-catch, 2-TD game as Chicago locked up a playoff spot with the win. Sam Bradford is in playoff form, completing 20 of 31 for 331 yards and 2 scores. It was 10-10 at the half, but the Machine put up 20 unanswered before a garbage-time TD from Newton to Anderson made the game a bit closer. POTG:  Chicago QB Sam Bradford: 20/31, 333 Yds, 2 TD, 0 Int     Campbell a One Man Show for Arizona Yes, there are real concerns for Arizona after they dropped their 2 nd  in a row without David Carr, but don’t tell defensive end and team captain Calais Campbell that they are out of it. From this week’s effort it seems Campbell is ready to carry this team on his back if he has to. The league’s all-time sack leader not only put himself back on top of the statistical leaderboard this week, after trailing Montez Sweat all season long, but he also set an Arizona team record with 5 sacks of Oklahoma QB Jalen Hurts (who clearly hurts after this game).   Campbell cannot produce points for the Wranglers (now that I say that I expect he will score on a fumble recovery next week), so there are still issues with Arizona’s bid to repeat, but the 11-time Sack Champion can certainly make life tough for opposing offenses and give the Wranglers a shot. They just need to find an answer or two on offense and they could well run the table, a table set by their future Hall of Fame DE.   Back to Bandit Ball in Tampa Bay The Bandits got exactly what they needed after suffering their first loss of the season in Week 13. Facing expansion New England they had a chance to play their game, lean on the passing game, and play defense aggressively. They did all three against the Steamrollers, with Dak Prescott throwing for 287 and 3 scores and the D holding New England to only 257 total yards. Oh, and we should mention the insane performance from Bandit WR Dez Bryant. The NFL import again showed why he is one of the best deep ball receivers in the league. He had only 5 receptions on the day, but those 5 included touchdowns of 41, 52, and 68 yards. Add them up and throw in two non-scoring deep balls and Bryant finished the day with a season-best 213 yards receiving, on 5 catches!!! 5!!!   That is Bandit Ball folks, an aggressive defense, a complementary run game, and a deep ball threat that is there on every play. It is fun to watch, and so far it has helped the Bandits to the best record in the league, 13-1 with 2 weeks left to play. They have a huge matchup with 12-2 Atlanta, in a game that could blow right past Las Vegas’s 55 point over-under this week. That is a high mark, but we honestly think 70 or more points is what we could see. Bandit Ball fans would love nothing more.   Charlotte Wins 3rd in a Row with Boller The 2020 season for the Charlotte Monarchs has not exactly been a trip through Wonka’s wonderful chocolate factory. Or maybe it has. Every time they think they are getting a sweet treat, they end up losing a game and getting a sad Oompa Loompa song about how they screwed up. Well, that was the story when they sat at 3-8, but they made one move which has at least given fans something to cheer about. After benching pick-prone Mitch Trubisky and giving the ball to veteran backup journeyman Kyle Boller, the Monarchs have rattled off 3 straight wins.   And while this week’s 27-17 victory over Washington may seem a bit mundane after last week’s stunning upset of the Bandits, it still marks a significant improvement, an ability for this team to be in games, to compete each week, and to string together wins. They have 2 weeks left and they could finish the season at 8-8, which seemed nearly impossible less than a month ago. Does Boller’s success mean that they will stick with the veteran next year? Maybe not entirely, but we would not be surprised if Boller does not get a legitimate shot to compete with whatever new talent the Monarchs bring to town. That could be a talented rookie or a free agent from across both pro leagues, or it could mean a deal with another club looking to clear cap room, but what we think is likely is that Boller has given himself a shot. One he could well carry into next year.   Chicago punched their ticket to the postseason and is hoping to lock up a home game in the Wild Card round in the next 2 weeks. They could still technically catch Michigan, but that is largely out of their control, while locking in the 4 seed is very much theirs to control. Arizona is guaranteed a bye as the SW Champion (with several games on the Pacific champ) and the winner of this week’s Atlanta-Tampa Bay game will almost certainly lock up the 1-seed in the East. Memphis and New Orleans are still battling to decide the Southeast, and Baltimore can lock up the NE with a win this week. Meanwhile, a cluster of 8-6 teams in the West are comparing tiebreakers and hoping for a 2-0 finish to climb into the playoffs. It seems likely that only 1 will make it, so will it be Portland, who currently hold down the 6-spot, or can Oakland, Seattle, or Dallas leapfrog the Stags and claim a spot.   Several teams were eliminated this week, including every 6-8 team except Jacksonville (gotta love tiebreakers). So that adds Orlando, Charlotte, Washington, and Denver to the list of teams playing out the string and possibly giving some young players a chance to show what they have.   The QB situation in San Antonio just got interesting. With backup Easton Stick now moved to IR with an ACL tear suffered this week, the Gunslingers have to decide if they want to risk Joe Flacco, still listed as Questionable this week, or trot out 3 rd  stringer Chad Kelly for a start or two to end the year. Our money is on Kelly, but Flacco wants on the field, so maybe he gets his way. One team wishing their QB could come back is Pittsburgh, but Andy Dalton continues to show symptoms, so he is on the Covid-19 list for a second week. Meanwhile in Philly, Ryan Lindley is likely to miss the final two games of the year, so it is back to Matt Gutierrez once again. Weird how injuries late in the year can lead to some odd starting lineups and tough decisions.   OUT QB         Easton Stick               SAN       ACL Tear                    IR DE          Dion Jordan              POR      Quad Tear                   4-6 Weeks DE          Malik Jackson                PHI        Stress Fracture            2-4 Weeks QB         Ryan Lindley              PHI        Pinched Nerve             1-2 Weeks WR         Courtland Sutton           DAL       Thigh Bruise                1-2 Weeks   DOUBTFUL LB           Clay Matthews                DAL       Thigh Bruise   QUESTIONABLE WR         Mike Evans                   HOU     Thigh Bruise SS           Leon McQuay                OKL       Foot   COVID-19 INACTIVES DAL       DE          Taylor Hart PIT         QB         Andy Dalton              2 nd  Week SD          CB          Justin Gilbert             2 nd Week SD          OT          Antonio Garcia SD          CB          Jaquan Johnson STL         LB           Roquon Smith     Could 2020 Be a Very Bloody Black Monday? The Magic 8-Ball seems to be pointing towards “Yes” on that question. We have already had two coaches lose their jobs by midseason, Philadelphia’s Jim Harbaugh and St. Louis’s Frank Reich, and from the look of things, neither interim head coach is likely to get an offer to stay on. So, already we have 2 teams almost certainly in the market for a new head man. And by out estimation, that is not where it will stop. We could see as many as 5 other coaches hit the pavement on Black Monday. Where are we looking? It is not hard to figure that out, just look for teams that have 10 or more losses already, of our 5 coaches looking very shaky, 4 of them are on teams with at least 10 losses. Here is our pool of potential departures, from the club with the worst record to the one that was just eliminated from the playoffs this week.   Tom Coughlin (OHIO) We had Coughlin on our early Hot Seat along with Reich and Harbaugh, and while he was not let go midseason, it seems almost certain that the 3-11 Glory will be moving on from Coughlin and his disciplinarian ways. We expect Coughlin and QB Christian Hackenberg to be part of a franchise wide shakeup after the Glory took a surprising division title in 2018 only to drop to 4-12 last year and what appears to be an equally inept 2020.   Todd Haley (BIR) As we seem to say every year, “this is the year the Stallions get into the mix” was heard often before the season, and despite some strong games from QB Cam Newton, we are looking at a 2-12 season, which does not bode well for Haley. The Stallions went 7-9 last year, but a collapse to only 2 wins right now means that they are guaranteed yet another sub-500 season. For a franchise that had such a tradition, we need to recognize that the Stallions have been at or under .500 in 18 of 20 seasons since the turn of the century. That is a hard pill to swallow for Stallion fans, who just never felt Haley was the guy.  Dick LeBeau (SD) A legendary defensive mind, and a former USFL Champion with the Panthers, LeBeau may seem an odd choice, particularly since he has taken the Thunder to 4 straight postseasons. But even with a 42-22 record between 2016-2019, there were grumbles that the Thunder just could not with the big game, especially in the playoffs, where they were humbled by Arizona 41-10 last year and 38-6 the year before. The hope was that San Diego could finally get over the hump this year, but instead they are staring at 2-12 and, what is even worse, they sport the worst defense in the league, not a good sign for a coach who made his name on defense.  Rick Neuheisel (LV) Another team that many thought was headed in the right direction only to fall flat on their faces with a current record of 3-11. After hovering around .500 the past 3 years under Neuheisel (9-7, 7-9, and 8-8), the floor fell out from under the Vipers. What is particularly troubling is that the weakest areas of the Viper squad are exactly what they were last year and simply were not addressed in the offseason. The run game is among the league’s worst, averaging only 69.7 yards per game. The defense gives up far too many big plays, and the Vipers are not a very complex team to gameplan for. All of those issues lead us to believe that four years under Neuheisel will be all she wrote.  Gus Bradley (WSH) The lone coach whose team could escape the dreaded 10-loss threshold, Washington, and Coach Bradley, are here because of missed expectations. In 2018 the Feds went 9-7 and fans were hopeful that Bradley had found the formula to return Washington to playoff form, but they took a big risk in putting all their eggs in the Ryan Nassib basket, and that has proven to be a huge letdown. Add to that the fact that Bradley, another defensive guru, has struggled to get Washington out of the bottom third of the league in both yards and points allowed. They currently sit 23 rd  of 30 teams in yards allowed, and they are not much better in scoring defense, giving up 23 points per game. It is about 50/50 whether or not Bradley will be back for 2021, and the ability to avoid that 10 th  loss could be the key.   Six Teams that Could or Should be QB Shopping this Winter As the season gets close to reaching its conclusion, many teams are already thinking about next year. Others are looking at unsigned QBs in their final year of a contract and wondering if they will stay put, and others still are hoping their teams are seriously looking for an upgrade. We went through the league and picked 6 teams who well could be on the QB market this offseason. No guarantees, but any of these 6 could be on a quest to find themselves a 10-year starter and a future champion.  PHILADLEPHIA: Currently Ryan Lindley/Matt Gutierrez This one is an easy one. The Stars will soon have a new head coach and we fully expect that by February there will be a new starter. The only question is what route the Stars will take to get there. Will they make a deal to try to land a current USFL QB or will they be one of the teams approaching the Jacksonville Bulls to garner the rights to Clemson’s Trevor Lawrence? Our recommendation would be that they go rookie, because they could get a serviceable guy in free agency or via trade, but getting a true franchise guy is not something you often see.  OHIO: Currently Christian Hackenberg While we are not willing to put all the blame for Ohio’s struggles on Hackenberg (what are his weapons? Where is his line?) we think the former Nittany Lion will be a casualty of a purge we think is inevitable in Columbus. Maybe Hack is the answer for the Stars? After all, he was a star in Happy Valley. But we digress. We think we already know what Ohio is going to do. They are going to go big on the Justin Fields train and claim the Buckeye signal caller in the T-Draft. A clearly popular direction among Glory fans, and not a bad option at all.  WASHINGTON: Currently Ryan Nassib Back to the NE Division and an intriguing situation here because Nassib has a big contract and cutting him loose would coast the Feds a pretty penny (and a lot of dead space in the cap), so what other options do they have? How about this for a scenario? If David Carr cannot or does not return for 2021, could the Feds send Nassib back to Arizona, where he had the kind of season in 2018 to make him a cult hero among Wrangler fans? That would be fun, but more realistic is that they offer to cover some of the cap hit and send him to a team in need of a veteran. That, of course, does not tell us who they will go for at QB if they do find a taker for Nassib, but we think they do want to move on.  ARIZONA: Currently David Carr We have mentioned Arizona, so let’s address the elephant in the room. David Carr turned 37 last month, and with a nasty injury to recover from, we could have seen him play his last game for the Wranglers. Fans don’t want to admit that, but it is a very real possibility. So, what would the Wranglers do if Carr does announce that he is not returning for 2021? Do they go fishing for Nassib, who certainly knows Coach Tomsula’s system, or do they try to get into the mix with a pretty solid rookie class coming up in draft season? We think the Nassib option is very real for this club, but we won’t know if that is what happens until we know what Carr wants to do.  CHARLOTTE: Currently Kyle Boller Yes, Kyle Boller has won 3 straight for the Monarchs, but he is also a 13-seaosn vet who has not been a regular starter in over a decade. While we think the Monarchs keep Boller in the mix and try to find a new home for Trubisky, we have to believe they are going to be part of the mix for Trevor Lawrence, who plays just down the road at Clemson. That would be a coup for the Monarchs.  NEW JERSEY: Currently Nick Foles Of the six, this is the one we are most ambivalent about. It seems obvious that Foles is not going to suddenly become the next Tom Brady for the Generals, but when he is healthy, he is a solid option. He finished last year with a 104.0 QB Rating and a 28:7 TD:INT ratio. This year has been a lot tougher, with some injury issues and some on-field struggles (75.1 QBR and a 14:10 TD:INT ratio), but the bigger issue is that fans in New Jersey are not feeling the love. They want a superstar, not a game manager. Is that an unrealistic request? Not really, not if you are serious about getting another trophy in the case at MetLife Stadium.   Only 2 weeks left in the 2020 regular season, and that means that pretty much every game has meaning either for the USFL playoffs or for the draft order. It means pressure, it means teams have to be at their best. And that even a small mistake can get amplified. It also means that there are few games any of us want to miss, since they all could matter to our favorite team. So, what does Week 15 hold for us?   How about Baltimore hoping to lock up the NE Division after a very up-and-down season? A win over the Feds on Friday (with a little help) could do it. How about Portland and Seattle playing a Cascade Clash which also could be doubling as a Playoff elimination game? That is what happens when both enter Week 15 at 8-6. And, what about a huge inter-conference game between the Chicago Machine and the New Orleans Breakers, neither of whom can afford a loss if their goal is to be playing at home in 2 or 3 weeks?   Saturday is also rich with playoff implications, like when 9-5 Pittsburgh faces 8-6 Houston in a game that could lock up a playoff spot for either or add more drama to Week 16. We also have New England hoping to reignite the Boston-NY rivalry by knocking off the New Jersey Generals and quite possibly ruining any chances they have to sneak into the playoffs. On Sunday we have a really fascinating matchup in Las Vegas, when the Wranglers, who have lost both games since losing David Carr, fight for their playoff position against a 9-5 LA Express team that boasts one of the league’s best defenses and that still has to win games to claim the Pacific title. And then there is the unquestioned Game of the Week, when the 12-2 Atlanta Fire take on the 13-1 Tampa Bay Bandits. This game will be enormous, a must-watch affair as the two battle for the SE Crown and an almost certain bye week in the playoffs. Can the Bandits wrap up the division and the 1 seed, or will Atlanta rise up and clip the team that has been atop the division all season long? No way we are missing that game.   FRIDAY 8pm ET      Baltimore (8-6) @ Washington (5-8-1)        Orlando               NBC 8pm ET        Portland (8-6) @ Seattle (8-6)                           Las Vegas           ABC 9pm ET        Chicago (10-4) @ New Orleans (11-3)           TDECU                 ESPN/EFN   SATURDAY 1pm ET         Pittsburgh (9-5) @ Houston (8-6)                   NRG                      ABC 4pm ET          Dallas (8-6) @ Las Vegas (3-11)                        Glendale            FOX 4pm ET         Oakland (8-6) @ San Diego (2-12)                  Las Vegas           ABC 8pm ET          Charlotte (6-8) @ Jacksonville (6-8)                 Gainesville        NBC 8pm ET          New Jersey (7-6-1) @ New England (5-9)        Tampa                  FOX 9pm ET         Michigan (12-2) @ San Antonio (2-12)             Rice                      ESPN/EFN   SUNDAY 1pm ET         Ohio (3-11) @ Birmingham (2-12)                   NRG                      FOX 4pm ET        Denver (6-8) @ Oklahoma (6-8)                        Glendale            ABC 4pm ET            Arizona (12-2) @ Los Angeles (9-5)                    Las Vegas           FOX 8pm ET            Philadelphia (1-13) @ Orlando (6-8)                Orlando               ABC 8pm ET          Atlanta (12-2) @ Tampa Bay (13-1)                  Tampa                  FOX 9pm ET            St. Louis (2-12) @ Memphis (11-3)                     TDECU                 ESPN/EFN

PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Dez Bryant must have decided that one loss for his Bandit club was enough this year. He only had 5 catches against expansion New England, but with those 5 receptions he racked up 213 yards (that's an average of 42.6 yards per catch) and 3 TDs, including a 68-yarder, a 52-yarder, and a 41-yarder. How is that for a playmaker? PLAYOFF PICTURE: Chicago joins the playoff cool kids' table as they move into the postseason at 10-4. Their addition means that there are 5 spots left and 2 weeks to earn them. We also saw several teams eliminated (Washington, Charlotte, Orlando, and Denver) which means we have 10 teams left battling for those last 5 spots.

What the who? Huh? How? What just happened? That was pretty much everyone’s reaction to a weekend that saw both unbeaten teams fall in the same week. Oakland took advantage of a nasty injury to Arizona QB David Carr and snapped the Wrangler win streak at a stunning 23 games (12 this year, 3 in the 2019 playoffs, and 8 to end the 2019 regular season). Only 4 hours later the Charlotte Monarchs, led by veteran backup Kyle Boller, knocked off the 12-0 Tampa Bay Bandits. It was a shocking 1-2 punch that created one of the wildest Sundays in league history. The historic double defeat will be our lead story, but we will update you on all the Week 13 action around the league, its impact on the 2020 playoff picture, and take a look as well at the playoff odds, all that, plus another starting QB may be lost for the rest of the season, and some good news for the league and for football fans hoping to catch playoff action. It all starts now, with our big story of the week. Unlucky 13 for Arizona & Tampa Bay Whether it is Friday the 13 th , the 13 th  floor of buildings, or just old-fashioned triskaidekaphobia (Yup, fear of the number 13), there is certainly some lore around the bad juju of that number and now the USFL can add Week 13 of the 2020 season to the list, because this week certainly was a bad one for both unbeaten teams, as both Tampa Bay and Arizona fell to defeat for the first time all season.  After what had been a pretty uneventful slate of Friday and Saturday games, at least as far as upsets were concerned, few expected Arizona to be particularly troubled by the Oakland Invaders. Yes, Oakland had a solid defense, but they had struggled to be consistent on offense, and even with Victor Cruz out for the year, the Wranglers still had plenty of ways to challenge the Invader defense. They did, of course, until fate stepped in and produced a season-ending injury to 2-time MVP David Carr. The Wrangler QB had led his club to an opening drive score, a 17-yard TD toss to HB Ka’Deem Carey, but on the first play of the Wranglers’ second possession, Carr was slammed to the ground by DE Michael Bennett, his arm twisted awkwardly beneath him. The Arizona QB got up and immediately sat back down, holding his arm in his other hand. He would walk off the field along with the trainers, but head directly to the locker room.   Following his departure, Brandon Allen stepped up, and while he led the Wranglers to two scoring drives, it was not enough as Tom Brady and the Invaders came back from a 17-10 deficit to win the game 29-24 in the 4 th  quarter, helped by an Allen interception late. It was the first loss for the Wranglers in over one whole calendar year, from Week 8 in 2019 to Week 13 in 2020, and along the way a playoff run to win their third league title. When the medical verdict was in, a torn biceps, and the reality that David Carr’s season was done and that either Brandon Allen or Tom Savage would have to lead the Wranglers in defense of their title, we saw immediate results, with Arizona dropping from the overall favorite to win the league title to 5 th  behind Tampa Bay, Atlanta, Michigan, and New Orleans.  After the shock of the Invader victory over Arizona, devoted fans turned in to watch Charlotte take on 12-0 Tampa Bay on ABC’s Sunday Night coverage. Little did they know they were about to watch the curse of 13 strike again. This time there was no signature injury that turned the tide against the unbeaten Bandits, just sloppy play paired with a solid game plan from a division rival. Charlotte, who had won only 4 games all year, played classic “bend but don’t break” defense, allowing Tampa Bay to rack up 426 yards of offense, including 383 for QB Dak Prescott, but held the Bandits under 20 points for only the 3 rd time all season, and for the first time, it was not enough for Tampa Bay to get the W.   The Monarchs used the rushing duo of Latavius Murray and Nyheim Hines to rush for 152 yards (89 more than the Bandits put together) and to control the clock, taking a 10+ minute advantage in the game by the final whistle. QB Kyle Boller, starting his second game for the turnover-prone Mitch Trubisky, protected the ball, going 18 for 23 with no picks and 3 TDs, and the Monarch defense limited the Bandits to only 2 third down conversions the entire game. When the dust settled on the game, Charlotte had a 24-17 victory, overcoming not only the unbeaten Bandits, but the lowered expectations from the nation, expectations that included being a 12-point underdog before gametime.   The two losses don’t impact the playoff standings, with each at 12-1 and still atop their respective conferences. Arizona even clinched their division despite the loss as no other SW Division clubs has more than 7 wins, but the twin losses certainly broke the aura of invincibility that both the Bandits and Wranglers had fostered all year. And while both teams are already guaranteed a playoff spot, the Wranglers now have only a 1-game lead on Michigan for the top seed in the conference, while Tampa Bay is only 1 game up on Atlanta for the division, and with it the likely one seed. Arizona must now prepare for both a late season stretch and a playoff run without their star QB, while Tampa Bay now faces a final 3 weeks that includes a key matchup with that tough Atlanta Fire club as well as a potential trap game against Jacksonville in the season finale.   What a difference a week can make. The Ohio Glory now can relax as the only club ever to go a full season with out a blemish, much like the NFL 1973 Dolphins, and fans across the league can start wondering if their club has a chance against two clubs that now seem as vulnerable as ever.   ARIZONA WRANGLERS 24   OAKLAND INVADERS 29 We stick with the Wrangler-Invader game as our GOTW, not just because it was a tight matchup that produced an exciting come-from-behind victory for the Invaders, but because it may well be the most impactful game of the year. In the blink of an eye a nasty injury turned the clear Summer Bowl favorite and defending champion hoping for a repeat into a team that may struggle to hold their own down the stretch and into the postseason. The complexity of the Western Conference, which is also home to an 11-2 Michigan team, and three pretty solid defenses in the Express, Machine, and Maulers, all sitting at 9-4, could now be a more wide open affair come the playoffs.   It did not look like we would be in for such a season-defining game when the action started in Wynn Arena. Arizona, the league’s defending champion and a team that had not lost a game since Week 8 of the prior season, took the opening kickoff and marched right down the field in 8 plays, putting up 7 points on a David Carr toss to HB Ka’Deem Carey. Once again it looked like a team known for their defense, this time the Invaders, would not find a way to slow down the Arizona avalanche. But that all changed only minutes later.   Following a short Oakland drive that produced a punt after only 6 plays, the Wranglers got the ball back. After a 3-yard gain by Carey on first down, David Carr took the snap, dropped back to pass, and never saw DE Michael Bennett bearing down on him. He turned his body just as the big edge rusher crashed into him, and the two crashed to the ground. Carr’s throwing arm got caught beneath him, and the ball rolled out. It was declared down by contact, but the bigger issue was Carr himself. He left the field, holding his arm in his hand, and visibly both worried and in pain. We would not get a verdict on the injury until near the game’s final minutes, when the game announcers were informed that it was a torn bicep, likely to require at least 3 months to heal. That meant that Carr’s season was done and backup Brandon Allen would be under center from now on.   Allen responded well to his call to action and on Arizona’s first drive of the 2 nd quarter, he found DeMarcus Robinson for the Wrangler’s second touchdown, building up a 14-0 lead over Oakland. But with Carr sidelined, Oakland focused on the run game and would hold Arizona to only 10 more points all game. Meanwhile, Invader QB Tom Brady started to find his groove, connecting with Davante Adams on two key plays on their next possession, the first a 29-yard catch and run on 3 rd  and 8, and the next a short TD toss to pull Oakland back to within 1 score. They would add a field goal on their next possession and as both teams headed to the locker rooms for the halftime break, Oakland seemed to have momentum as well as higher spirits as the Wranglers looked shaken.   The third quarter saw both defenses hunker down and take command. The quarter produced only 6 points, with both teams connecting on long field goals on their only successful drive. Oakland added a pick of Brandon Allen, while Arizona’s Calais Campbell added a sack to his season total. Oakland would open the 4 th with a second field goal, this time failing to find the endzone after a first and goal from the 9. They settled for 3 after a muffed snap on 3 rd and goal killed their chance for a score to take the lead. They took the 3 points to improve to a 17-16 deficit, hopeful that Arizona’s offense would continue to struggle.   Arizona surprised the Invaders on the next drive, a 13-play march that occupied nearly 5 minutes of clock and finished with Ka’Deem Carey scoring for the 2 nd time, this time on the ground. Brandon Allen had put his pick behind him and completed 3 of 5 passes on the drive. Arizona now led 24-16, an 8-point lead that would require a TD and a 2-point conversion to tie. Oakland wasted no time getting the touchdown, with Brady finding TE Zack Ertz on a well-timed seam route, a 41-yard strike that looked to give the Invaders the chance they needed to break Arizona’s will. But on the 2-point try, Brady’s pass, well thrown and well placed, nonetheless glanced off the hands of WR J.J. Arcega-Whiteside, leaving the Invaders 2 points down at 24-22.   With 5:24 left to play, the message was clear for the Arizona offense, kill the clock, keep the ball, and don’ t give Oakland a chance to win the game on a field goal. Initially the plan seemed to work, with Arizona using the run game to earn two first downs and kill 3 minutes, but inside the Invader 45, they got fancy and tried to fake out the Invader D. Brandon Allen faked the handoff to Isaiah Crowell and threw a quick toss out towards rookie Brandon Aiyuk. But FS Jahleel Addae was not fooled. He had picked off Allen earlier in the game, and he saw something he liked in this play as well. He stepped in front of Aiyuk, picked the ball off, and rolled to the ground, having given the Invaders exactly what they needed, the ball, the momentum, and the feeling that this game was theirs for the taking.   It would take Tom Brady only 2 plays to make Arizona pay for the late mistake. The first was a 17-yard throw and catch to Arcega-Whiteside, a nice vote of confidence after the key drop on the 2-point play. The second was a backbreaker, a simple slant route to Davante Adams, but one that proved effective well beyond its design as Adams split the safeties and scampered 48 yards for the score. When Roberto Aguayo put the ensuing kick through the uprights, Oakland had a 5-point lead with 2:04 left to play.   Those two minutes, along with 3 timeouts, would normally be a sign that Arizona was about to march down field and crush Invader fans’ dreams of the upset. But without David Carr, the yards had been much harder to come by in this game, and with both Michael Bennett and Vinny Curry in full pass rush mode, Allen had little time to make magic happen. As news spread along the sideline of the medical diagnosis for Carr, you could feel the air coming out of Arizona’s balloon. The game came down to a 4 th  and 8, but Allen threw into double coverage on DeMarcus Robinson and Addae again was there, this time swatting the ball down before jumping his way to the sideline as the Invader offense came to the field to end the game with a pair of runs and a kneel down. Arizona had fallen, their QB was now lost for the year, and the Invaders, now 8-5 and in position for a Wild Card, had shaken up the entire Western Conference. WASHINGTON 17  NEW JERSEY 17  OVERTIME The one result that helped neither club is exactly the result the Generals and Federals got, a tie. Both teams have to be upset with their kicking games as Adam Vinatieri went 1 of 3 for the Feds and Ka’imi Fairbairn did exactly the same, with both kickers missing an overtime attempt that could have won them the game, Vinatieri from 48 and Fairbairn from 51. In what was an otherwise nice game between two rivals, the overtime failures left everyone watching with a foul taste in their mouths. POTG:  New Jersey QB Nick Foles: 28/54, 325 Yds, 2 TD, 1 Int   LAS VEGAS 17   SEATTLE 42 The Dragons stay alive in the playoff hunt at 7-6 by absolutely demolishing the Vipers. Knowshon Moreno was just unstoppable, averaging 7.6 YPC on his way to 145 yards and 2 TDs. Backup Wendell Smallwood added another 87 yards on only 8 attempts as it seems Las Vegas completely forgot the fundamentals of tackling in a deeply troubling performance. Even with Aaron Dobson catching 8 for 117 and Arrelious Benn adding 7 for 107, the Vipers just could not keep up. POTG:  Seattle HB Knowshon Moreno: 19 Att, 145 Yds, 2 TD   BIRMINGHAM 6  MICHIGAN 27 Cam Newton has no one to blame but himself after going 9 of 27 for only 111 yards with 2 picks and a pick-six mixed in. He was off all game, completing only 3 throws to wideouts on the day. Meanwhile, despite 3 picks himself, Kirk Cousins gets the win, largely due to 27 carries by LeVeon Bell and a nice TD catch on a wobbly pass by rookie Donovan Peoples-Jones. The win locked up a playoff spot for the Panthers, while Birmingham is very much in the running for a Top 5 draft choice. POTG:  Michigan CB Dre Kirkpatrick: 1 Tck, 1 Int, 1 Def TD   HOUSTON 37  OHIO 3 Ohio went up 3-0 in the first quarter and then watched, almost helplessly, as Houston put up the next 37 points with little to no resistance. McCoy found JuJu Smith-Schuster and Josh Reynolds for scores, rookie Clyde Edwards-Helaire added another, and it all kicked off with CB Leodis McKelvin returning a Hackenburg interception 43 yards for a score as Houston rolls and puts themselves in position to control their own playoff destiny. POTG:  Gambler CB Leodis McKelvin: 7 Tck, 1 Int, 1 Def TD   DALLAS 19  PORTLAND 26 In a game both teams desperately needed and wanted, the Stags raced out to a 19-0 lead in the first half and never relinquished it, despite playing with 3 different QBs after losing Marcus Mariota early. Mariota was lost for the season after suffering a torn bicep on a bad landing after a scramble in the 1 st quarter. A. J. McCarron came in, went 4 for 4, including a TD to James Hardy, and then he went down with a hyper-extended knee, and so we got to watch Steven Tyler manage the game for nearly 3 quarters. But a win is a win is a win. POTG:  Portland DT Ndamukong Suh: 8 Tck, 1 Sck, 1 Sfty   DENVER 38  SAN DIEGO 34  OVERTIME A wild game we will highlight below, but one that saw Josh Allen throw for 430 yards and 5 touchdowns. In a rarity we saw both teams score in overtime. San Diego kicked a field goal on the opening drive, but with a touchdown needed to end the game, the Gold had one drive to match or beat it and they did, with Allen finding Lance Kendricks for the game winner as the Gold struggled with the Thunder but get the win to move to 6-7 and stay alive. POTG:  Gold QB Josh Allen: 26/39, 430 Yds, 5 Td, 0 Int   JACKSONVILLE 7  NEW ENGLAND 36 A surprise scratch as QB Teddy Bridgewater got into a car accident on the way to the stadium and broke his jaw. We kid you not. That meant that Ben Dinucci got the start, with almost no reps all week. The result? What you would expect, a lot of struggles against a Steamroller team that smelt blood in the water and earned the 5 th  win of their expansion campaign despite not having a single receiver with more than 44 yards on the day. POTG:  Steamroller LB Jamie Collins: 5 Tck, 1 Sck, 2 FF, 1 FR   ORLANDO 7  ATLANTA 33 No car accident before the Fire-Renegade game, just a really solid gameplan from the Fire that saw TE O. J. Howard catch 2 touchdowns and the fire score 33 straight points after going down 7-0. Three Orlando turnovers and 13 penalties for 130 yards certainly helped Atlanta’s cause, but so did a 338-yard, 2 TD game from Aaron Murray as the Fire move to 11-2 and may well have sunk Orlando’s playoff hopes as they drop below .500 at 6-7. POTG:  Atlanta QB Aaron Murray: 27/43, 338 Yds, 2 TD, 0 Int   MEMPHIS 27  PITTSBURGH 24 A really good game between two really solid teams, as Memphis edges the Maulers thanks to Ryan Fitzpatrick dishing out more Fitz-Magic. Fitzie went 23 of 41 for 280 yards and 3 TDs to lead Memphis, who also got a combined 137 yards rushing between Gurley, Hester, and David Williams. The Maulers were hurt by the departure of Andy Dalton, who left the field with a bloody nose and a black eye after catching an elbow. Kevn Hogan came in and went 13 of 18 with a TD but could not rally the Maulers when they fell behind late. POTG:  Memphis WR Devin Funchess: 5 Rec, 120 Yds, 1 TD   NEW ORLEANS 20 ST. LOUIS 10 Other than one nice bomb to Nelson, it was a bit of a ho-hum game as New Orleans built up a 10-0 halftime lead and just kept St. Louis at arm’s length the rest of the way. DeMarco Murray had his best game since coming over from Denver, rushing for 86 yards on 9 carries and scoring a TD for his new team. The Breaker D spied Lamar Jackson and he simply did not take off running as much as the past couple of games. POTG:  Breaker WR Jordy Nelson: 3 Rec, 150 Yds, 1 TD   OKLAHOMA 19  LOS ANGELES 20 Oklahoma started Mason Rudolph again, and LA teed off, sacking the former OK State Cowpoke 10 times, with Nick Bosa doing most of the damage with 4 on the day. Oklahoma somehow stayed in it, but kept settling for field goals (4 of them) while LA got TDs from Reggie Bush and Hollywood Brown, enough to finish with a 1-point victory that eliminates the Outlaws from the playoff hunt. POTG:  Express HB Reggie Bush: 26 Att, 104 Yds, 1 TD   TAMPA BAY 17  CHARLOTTE 24 As we outlined above, this one was a shocker, with no major injuries like we saw in Arizona’s loss. It was just a combination of Charlotte playing their best ball and the Bandits perhaps succumbing to the stress of trying to go unbeaten. Kyle Boller may have made himself some fans in the Carolinas by going 18 of 23 and throwing 3 TDs to knock off the heavily favored Bandits. Dak Prescott threw for 368 but was also picked off twice in this major upset. POTG:  Charlotte QB Kyle Boller: 18/23, 158 Yds, 3 TD, 0 Int   PHILADELPHIA 17  BALTIMORE 20 The Blitz survive a game that many thought they would win easily. Philadelphia played them tough but two Ryan Lindley picks and a late Brian Hartline TD catch were enough to help Baltimore comeback from a 17-10 deficit to claim the W. Josh Jacobs added 80 yards and a TD, and the Blitz now sit ½ game ahead of New Jersey thanks to the Feds-Generals tie game. POTG:  Baltimore CB Eric Murray: 10 Tck, 1 Int   SAN ANTONIO 14  CHICAGO 31 The Machine put up 172 yards rushing, with Jeremy Hill having a nice game at 90 yards with 3 touchdowns as Chicago cruises past the Gunslingers. Easton Stick had a solid game for San Antonio, going 23 of 37 with 2 TDs and 1 pick, but it was not enough as the Machine went up 10-0 and 24-7 in a pretty convincing game for them. POTG:  Machine HB Jeremy Hill: 16 Att, 90 Yds, 3 TD   Gold & Thunder Give Us a Wild Overtime Game One would hardly have suspected that the showdown between Denver and San Diego would end up producing some of the highest offensive totals of the year, but that is the surprising shootout that fans watching the Gold-Thunder matchup were provided on Saturday. The overtime thriller saw the two teams combine for 1,005 total yards of offense, 37 first downs, and 72 points. In one game we saw Josh Allen throw for 430 yards and 5 TDs, Christian Ponder go for 322 yards, Ryan Williams crack the 100-yard mark at 110, and 4 different receivers gain 100—Denver’s Golden Tate (131) and Kevin White (112) and San Diego’s Marques Colston (101) and Ronald Johnson (110). We also saw a true rarity, a game in which both teams scored in overtime, with San Diego putting up a field goal, enough to take the lead but not end the game, only for the Gold to rally for a touchdown that gave them the win. It was a wild one, and a game that helped keep Denver alive in the playoff race, though at 6-7 their margin for error is extremely thin.   Express Sack Rudolph 10 Times, Bosa with 4 If the Gold-Thunder game was all about the offenses, the Express-Outlaws game was about the defenses, in particular, the ability of the Express to get to Oklahoma QB Mason Rudolph. The Express sacked Rudolph, who is not exactly an immobile statue at QB, a whopping (and painful) 10 times. That included 4 sacks by our Defensive POTW, Nick Bosa. Throw in 2 picks and what felt like another 30 hits on Rudolph and we can see why Oklahoma ended up settling for field goals on far too many drives, and eventually lost the game to a slightly more successful Express offense.   In addition to Bosa’s big day, the Express defense saw 6 additional defenders record a sack, including SS Rahim Moore, LB Yannick Ngakue, and backup DE Andy Studebaker, none of them known as big parts of the Express pass rush. It also saw both Jalen Mills and LB Keith Rivers come away with picks, while CB Stephon Gilmore, one of the league’s best, led the Express with 6 tackles. While not the lowest point output given up by the Express this year (LA has held 4 teams below 10 points, including last week’s 32-0 shutout of San Diego—who we just saw put up 34 on Denver), this week’s game was another indication of just how nasty Marvin Lewis’s top ranked defense (in yards allowed) can be. The question, of course, is whether the Express can muster enough offense to be successful in postseason play despite the quality of their defense.   Moreno Leads Dragons in Blowout It was a very good week for Seattle Dragon HB Knowshon Moreno. The former Orlando Renegade, now in his 3 rd  season in the Pacific Northwest, drew a lot closer to his second consecutive 1,000-yard season with a 145-yard, 2-TD performance this week against the struggling Las Vegas Vipers. The outing was his third 100-yard game of the season, following a 155-yard day against Dallas and Week 5’s 160-yard outing against the Thunder. Compare this week to the last matchup against the Vipers, when Moreno was held to only 46 yards (Week 3) and we can see that Seattle is doing as Coach Riley promised and focusing energy on the rushing attack. Seattle is slowly moving up the statistical lists, now ranked as the 10 th  best rushing attack, while Moreno now finds himself in 6 th  position among running backs, only 13 yards behind Josh Jacobs. He needs only 19 yards in his remaining 3 games to reach 1,000, but we suspect that his goal is to crack the 1,200-yard club for only the 2 nd time in his career, a full 10 seasons after his 1,352-yard season in 2011.   Bridgewater a Late Scratch, Bulls Blown Out We mentioned it briefly in the game summary, but the weirdness that was Teddy Bridgewater’s Saturday evening deserves a moment. The Bulls’ quarterback had himself a day. First, he misses the team bus up to Gainesville from Orlando because he was doing laundry (what a mundane way to go) and was apparently changing loads without his phone, which caused him to miss the calls and texts from teammates until he returned to his hotel room. So, he gets on the phone with Coach Moss and tells him that he will drive his own car up to the UF campus. He then proceeds to get into a car accident only a half mile from the hotel in Orlando, t-boned by a teen aged driver who mistook a green light in the main lanes for a green turn signal in his turning lane. He winds up with a trip to the local emergency room, forced to make another awkward call to Coach Moss. The diagnosis is whiplash leading to a compression of two vertebrae in his neck. He will likely miss 1-2 weeks, a diagnosis confirmed by team doctors on Monday. He misses the game against New England, one in which backup Ben DiNucci struggles and the Bulls are blown out and shows up on Sunday to answer media questions with a foam neck brace on and the most sheepish look we have ever seen from a starting QB. Not exactly the weekend Teddy B and the Bulls were hoping for.   Carr Lost to Torn Bicep in Wrangler Double Whammy Teddy Bridgewater’s injury, while almost comedic in its bizarre setup, is not particularly worrisome. The same is certainly not true for David Carr, who suffered a full bicep tear after landing awkwardly on his throwing arm as he was sacked by Oakland’s Michael Bennett. Carr’s injury requires surgery, scheduled for this Friday, and will necessitate a lengthy healing and recovery period. The injury will cost him both the remainder of the regular season and any playoff run the Wranglers can put together. It is a devastating blow to the Wranglers’ hopes to repeat as league champions, but also a potential tipping point for the 36-year-old, 2-time MVP. There is real concern among Wrangler fans that the injury may well mean the end of Carr’s distinguished career in Arizona. After all, at 36, Carr has been on the retirement watch list, and now this injury costs him a chance to potentially win a 4 th  title and a possible MVP award and will require significant effort and dedication to heal. The Wranglers are now a huge question mark for the rest of the year, with untested Brandon Allen now at the helm, but so too is Carr’s future on the football field, and that is something you never want to see.   Mariota’s Season Ends with Torn Hamstring A second big blow at the QB position (well, third if you count the blow Teddy B. took from the kid in his car accident) as Portland got the news it dreaded, Marcus Mariota’s hamstring injury is a tear, not a strain. An MRI revealed a 2/3 tear of the hamstring muscle with partial separation, which means he too will be undergoing surgery in the next week or two to reset the muscle and reconnect ligaments. That diagnosis means that Mariota will not be appearing in any upcoming Stags games and could put a major crimp in any hopes the Stags have of reviving their season and reaching the playoffs. The Stags, currently sitting at 7-6, are on the fringe of playoff contention after a 6-3 start has turned to a 1-3 stretch. They got the win this week over Dallas, an absolute must have, but ended up using all 3 QBs on their roster after both Mariota and A. J. McCarron had to leave the game. The good news is that McCarron, the former Alabama and Stallion QB, is OK to go in Week 14, but Mariota is done for the year, and in a year when he was putting up very strong numbers. His year is now prematurely halted with 2,673 yards, 18 touchdowns, and a career-best 111.9 QB Rating as his final numbers.     Three more teams have gotten their invites to the postseason dance. The Michigan Panthers, now 11-2, are now locked into a playoff spot and now only 1 game behind the Wranglers for the top overall seed. Michigan has a 2-game lead over both the Machine and Maulers, and could clinch the division this week with the right combination of results. In the East, both the Breakers and Showboats, both locked up at 10-3, join Atlanta and Tampa Bay in the playoff pool, locking up 4 of the 6 spots. The two Southern teams have a 2-game lead over Houston, who are also currently in playoff position with a 1.5 game lead over the 7 th ranked team in the conference (New Jersey).   The next teams to potentially lock up spots are the group of 3 teams at 9-4, all in the West, where LA, Chicago, and Pittsburgh can all secure spots with wins this week and some help from the 7-6 clubs, who could drop out of the race with losses (again if all games go just the right way). Speaking of dropping out of the race, we saw three more teams now officially out of the running, one of them the Charlotte Monarchs, who despite their stunning upset of Tampa Bay are now out at 5-8. They are joined by two more 5-win clubs, Oklahoma and expansion New England, while 5-7-1 Washington still has a mathematical (though quite convoluted) chance to earn a Wild Card or even the division title, if, that is, both Baltimore and New Jersey completely fold down the stretch. This was a bad week for injuries across the USFL, that cannot be denied. We had 2 star QBs hit injured reserves, lost for the year, but we also saw a rash of less extensive, but still impactful injuries, including Teddy Bridgewater’s accident, a concerning back injury to Seattle LT Eric Fisher, and a shoulder injury to Atlanta WR A. J. Green which could impact their hopes to catch Tampa Bay and steal away the SE Division Title. Green hopes to be back for the Week 15 clash between the two Southeastern powers, but that seems iffy with his diagnosis. Finally, we saw one of the worst weeks of the season for players held out for a 2 nd week with COVID-19 symptoms. 6 players are back on the list after being held out last week, including Memphis’s best pass rusher, Chase Winovich, and Houston corner Siran Neal. We also should note that Washington will go into a pivotal Week 14 game without their starting QB after Ryan Nassib tested positive for COVID this week and must be held out.   OUT QB         David Carr             ARZ            Torn Bicep                  IR QB         Marcus Mariota      POR             Torn Hamstring            IR OT          Eric Fisher             SEA               Back                               4-6 Weeks CB          Jabari Greer        BAL                Hamstring                         4-6 Weeks C             Bradley Bozeman  MEM             Biceps                           2-4 Weeks LB           Chapelle Russell      BAL         Hand                             1-2 Weeks WR         A. J. Green              ATL                Shoulder                        1-2 Weeks QB         Teddy Bridgewater  JAX         Elbow                           1-2 Weeks WR         Michael Pittman Jr  BAL                Finger                              1-2 Weeks   DOUBTFUL TE           Tyler Eifert                   CHI        Knee OT          Jonah Williams                SD           Hamstring DT          Danny Shelton                 CHA        Ribs CB          Jalen Ramsey                 TBY         Toe OG         Cole Madison              POR       Pinched Nerve CB          Jeremy Harris               ARZ         Back   QUESTIONABLE TE           Dustin Keller              LV             Knee DT          Tyson Alualu                 OAK       Broken Nose CB          Desmond King             ATL          Toe   COVID 19 INACTIVES ARZ       CB      Jeremy Harris      2 nd  Week HOU     CB          Siran Neal             2 nd  Week MEM     DE          Chase Winovich     2 nd  Week OHI       LB           Daniel Ellerbe        2 nd Week PIT         QB         Andy Dalton          PIT         FS           Robert Sands         2 nd Week SD          DT          Damon Harrison    2 nd  Week SD          CB          Justin Gilbert                    STL         OT          Tristan Wirfs WSH     QB         Ryan Nassib   Playoff Odds with 3 Weeks Left Three weeks left to play and a lot of teams teetering on the brink as we look over the playoff picture. So, who is in a good position? Who is in need of some help? And who needs an act of God to get the right combination of results to propel them to the post-season? We are ready to break down the situation for 20 of the league’s 30 teams, from locked in to praying for a miracle.   READY TO DANCE: Arizona, Michigan, Tampa Bay, New Orleans, Atlanta, Memphis These six teams are all assured a trip to the 2 nd season, but there is still a lot to determine, from the winner of the Southern Division, where New Orleans and Memphis are locked at 10-3, to the 1 seeds in both conferences, now much more in question as the two unbeatens went down this week. We should also remember that Atlanta is only 1 game behind Tampa Bay, so the Wranglers are the only team locked into a division title after 13 weeks. But, at the very least these teams know that they will be playing football after Week 16, which is a nice feeling to have at this point in the season.   CAN ALMOST TASTE IT: Los Angeles, Chicago, Pittsburgh With a 2-game advantage over the teams in the 7 th through 9 th  spots, LA, Chicago, and Pittsburgh are all in a very good position. They could each lock up a spot this week with a win and some key losses elsewhere, and even if they don’t get it this week, they seem very likely to find a playoff ticket waiting for them soon. Of course, LA is hoping to wrap up a division title as well, and all three are hoping they can garner a home playoff game in the Wild Card round at a minimum.   CONTROL THEIR FATE: Oakland, Portland, Baltimore, Houston The Invaders, Blitz, and Gamblers currently hold playoff positions, which means that if they can win out, they are guaranteed a spot. Portland is also in this group because they have a late season matchup with Oakland this week. A win there and they could be on the path to a Wild Card, if not the division title. Each of these teams has issues, but they also have the ability to decide their own fate. That is a nerve-racking position to have, but still a better one than any team in the next two categories.   NEED HELP: New Jersey, Dallas, Seattle If it were about the Wild Card, New Jersey would already be out, but they are only ½ game behind Baltimore for the NE Division title, even at 6-6-1, so they have a real shot to not only get themselves into the dance but get a home game (in Florida) on their schedule. As for Dallas and Seattle, they need to see Oakland drop at least one game, and they have to be worried about Portland as well. Tiebreakers are about to become a topic of conversation among their fanbase as it very likely will be a factor for both of these teams.   NEED DIVINE INTERVENTION: Jacksonville, Orlando, Washington, Denver These are teams where mathematically there is a chance, in the same way there is a chance that you hit the Powerball lottery. They, of course, need to go on a 3-game winning streak, something none of them has proven is probable this year, and they need some key results along the way. Both the Bulls and Renegades need Houston to tank all 3 games, as well as at least 2 defeats for the Generals, and Orlando also needs to leap over the Bulls to have any shot. That is a lot of asks. For Denver the needs are equally complex. They need to finish the year at 9-7 and hope that Oakland, Dallas, Seattle, and Portland all blow enough games so that Denver has the advantage, which likely means a lot of 0-3 runs. But, hey, at least they are not Washington. The Federals are an extreme longshot for a Wild Card, needing Houston to go 0-3 and all three other teams ahead of them to lose at least 2 games, all while they go unbeaten to reach 8-7-1. Oddly enough, it might be easier for them to win the NE Division, needing only to have Baltimore finish at 7-9, New Jersey to finish either 7-8-1 or 6-9-1, and for them to finish at 8-7-1. Yeah, that is complicated and very unlikely, but it is not mathematically impossible, so they are still alive.   League Gets What it Wants from Nevada, Arizona, and North Carolina The USFL got the news it wanted to hear this week on two fronts. First, the states of Arizona and Nevada approved stadium use policies that would allow for 25% capacity in all venues, joining Texas and Arizona. That all but guarantees that there will be fans in the stands when the USFL playoffs begin in 4 weeks. But where will the playoffs end up? The answer is Charlotte, North Carolina, as the league and the city both hoped would be possible. The original site for Summer Bowl 2020, selected long before anyone had ever heard of Wuhan, infected bats, masking policy, or Covid-19 will host the title game as originally planned. They will do so because the Governor of the state, Roy Cooper signed the bill this week to allow 25% capacity for all sporting events in the state, a long negotiated and often near-dead proposal that carried the weight of the USFL title game on its shoulders.  So, we now know that there will be tickets for sale for playoff games in Las Vegas, Phoenix, Houston, Orlando, and Tampa Bay. We also know that the finale for the season will be at Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte, with a capacity allowance of just under 19,000 fans. The league has not yet announced how tickets will be distributed, though there is some expectation that some seats will go up for sale soon, with others held until the conclusion of Week 16 and the decision as to which teams are playing which in which venues. Expect season ticket holders for each team involved to get allocated some tickets, while others will be for the general public and even a small number made available to season ticket holders of the home city franchises. The goal, of course, is to fill the capacity of each game with diehard fans to create the noise and atmosphere of playoff football after a season of empty stadiums and canned artificial crowd noise on broadcasts.           Hall of Fame Class of 2020 Announced Welcome the USFL Class of 2020 to the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Six former USFL stars join the pantheon of pro football’s best as the latest class of inductees was named on Monday. The presentation included videos of each member being informed of their selection, interspersed with clips from their playing days and messages from former teammates and coaches. The entire announcement was a nicely designed and polished video of about 20 minutes aired on the USFL’s flagship webpage as well as the PFHOF website. And who are the newest members of this elite fraternity? Here is your list of the newest honorees and the newest busts to join the Hall of Legends in Canton:   QB Daunte Culpepper (Tampa Bay 2004-2014) A second-year nominee, Culpepper played 11 seasons for the Bandits after beginning his career in the NFL. During that tenure he threw for nearly 37,000 yards and threw 259 touchdowns, retiring in 2014 after 4 All-USFL nominations and, of course, the honor of being the Playoff MVP in his 2011 USFL Championship season.   HB Eddie George (Ohio 1996-2010): Legacy Selection Long overdue recognition for the former Ohio State back who helped the Ohio Glory go undefeated in 2002 and win the league’s only back-to-back title in 2003. George had issues with his retirement documentation, a paperwork debacle that led to him missing his primary nomination window, but the Legacy Committee could not let that stand and inducted him this year. In his career, George rushed for 16,265 yards, averaging over 1,000 yards per season for his entire career. He also added 102 rushing touchdowns, over 6,000 receiving yards, and 52 receiving touchdowns as one of the league’s great dual threat backs. He retired with 2 titles, 2 Offensive Player of the Year trophies, and 9 All-USFL honors.   CB Quentin Jammer (Texas 2002-03, Philadelphia 2004-13, Birmingham 2014) Another 2 nd  year nominee, Jammer was a 5-time All-USFL corner who retired with 1,040 tackles, 24 forced fumbles, 32 Interceptions, and 343 passes defended. Jammer never won a title during his USFL tenure but was considered one of the best pure cover corners of his era.   LB Joey Porter (Portland/Las Vegas, 1999-2015) A first-year nominee and career-long member of the Thunder, Joey Porter retired in 2015 with 1,443 tackles, 277 for a loss, 57 sacks, 20 forced fumbles, and 13 interceptions. A 5-time All-USFL nominee, Porter was the leader of the Thunder defense during some of the franchise’s best years in both Portland and Las Vegas.   FS Ed Reed (Washington, 2002-2014) Our third player nominated in his 2 nd  year, Ed Reed, was the player you did not want to meet going over the middle. A fierce hitter with a nose for the ball, Reed retired after 12 USFL seasons with 896 tackles, 38 picks, and a reputation for always being in the right place to deliver a big hit. He was a 4-time All-USFL nominee during his years in Washington.   WR Hines Ward (Arizona 1998-2001, Michigan 2002-15) Perhaps the greatest blocking receiver in league history, Hines Ward, never shied away from leading a back around the outside or taking on a linebacker. But he could catch as well, as is evident in his 1,280 career receptions, 18,972 yards, and 121 receiving touchdowns. An 8-time All-USFL nominee, Ward won a title with the Panthers in 2008, midway through his tenure in Michigan after starting his career in the desert with the Arizona Wranglers.   Eight division games and more than a few high impact games for the playoff race are what we are in store for in what could be an action-packed Week 14. We kick it off on Friday night with a triple-header of games that could very well all be vital to the playoff picture. We have Orlando and New Jersey playing at Camping World Stadium, and with both at only 6 wins, the loser very likely is out of any playoff contention. The other 8pm start is from Las Vegas where the LA Express, currently all alone atop the Pacific, face the Seattle Dragons, who sit at 7-6 and need to turn up the heat if they want a shot at a playoff spot.   On Saturday we have 4 divisional games, three of which have big playoff implications. In the 4pm slot we have Dallas vs. Denver. A loss by the Gold and they are out, a win by Dallas and their odds of obtaining a Wild Card are greatly enhanced. We also have Oakland v. Portland at 4pm, with both on the edge of the Wild card race. It is unlikely that both will qualify, so this could be an elimination match. Then, at 9pm we have a classic matchup over the past few years, Houston v. New Orleans. The Breakers have a 2-game lead over the Gamblers in the division, so Houston is largely playing to obtain a Wild Card, but a loss by the Breakers could cost them the division title with Memphis right there as well.   Sunday wraps up the weekend with fewer matchups of playoff-bound teams, though the Jacksonville-Baltimore matchup at 8pm could be impactful. What we have to look for on Sunday is the upset. Can Oklahoma get a win against Arizona now that the Wrangler QB situation is in flux? Could Birmingham stun the Chicago Machine with a big day from Cam Newton, and can the New England Steamrollers cause Tampa Bay to lose a second in a row? Maybe we are grasping at straws, but who saw both Arizona and Tampa Bay going down this week? You never know what can happen.   FRIDAY 8pm ET      Orlando (6-7) @ New Jersey (6-6-1)        Orlando      NBC 8pm ET        Los Angeles (9-4) @ Seattle (7-6)             Las Vegas         FOX 9pm ET         Michigan (11-2) @ Pittsburgh (9-4)      TDECU                 ESPN/EFN   SATURDAY 1pm ET        Memphis (10-3) @ San Antonio (2-11)      NRG                      ABC 4pm ET          Dallas (7-6) @ Denver (6-7)                      Glendale            FOX 4pm ET           Oakland (8-5) @ Portland (7-6)            Las Vegas           ABC 8pm ET          Charlotte (5-8) @ Washington (5-7-1)      Gainesville        NBC 8pm ET           Atlanta (11-2) @ Philadelphia (1-12)         Tampa                  ABC 9pm ET        Houston (8-5) @ New Orleans (10-3)       Rice                      ESPN/EFN   SUNDAY 1pm ET        Ohio (3-10) @ St. Louis (1-12)                  NRG                      FOX 4pm ET          Arizona (12-1) @ Oklahoma (5-8)          Glendale            ABC 4pm ET           Las Vegas (2-11) @ San Diego (2-11)       Las Vegas           FOX 8pm ET           Tampa Bay (12-1) @ New England (5-8)   Orlando               ABC 8pm ET                Jacksonville (6-7) @ Baltimore (7-6)      Tampa                  FOX 9pm ET                Birmingham (2-11) @ Chicago (8-4)      TDECU                 ESPN/EFN

PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Denver's overtime 38-34 overtime victory over the San Diego Thunder was a slugfest, but one player who came out shining like a diamond was Gold QB Josh Allen. Allen threw for 450 yards and 5 TDs without a pick, all personal bests and all needed as the Gold barely edged the 2-11 Thunder. PLAYOFF PICTURE: Three more teams found themselves a golden ticket to Wonkaland, oh, wait, to the USFL playoffs. Michigan at 11-2 and both New Orleans and Memphis at 10-3 have their tickets, though it seems clear that the battle between the Breakers and Showboats for the Southern Title could go down to the wire. We also had 3 more eliminations as 5-8 is not going to keep the Monarchs, Steamrollers, and Outlaws in the hunt. They are all hurt by poor conference records which means that even if there is a playoff team at 8-8, it will not be one of those three.

Week 12 was a week of haves and have-nots, with blowout victories up and down the schedule, and only 1 team that was more than a 3-point underdog pulling out a victory. That team was Jacksonville, who we may need to start taking seriously after they downed Washington 10-3. The rest of the games saw favorite cleaning up, including a 31-point Bandits victory over New Jersey, Atlanta beating New England by 33, the Breakers cruising past Birmingham by 35, Houston topping San Antonio by 21, and LA absolutely steaming past in-state rival San Diego 32-0. Not a week for parity it seems. We will run through all the games, look at the 2021 Draft one more time, and get you up to date on all the happenings across the league as we prepare for Week 13.   OBJ Wants Out After Generals Crushed by Bandits His stats are certainly there, nearly 600 catches and 8,000 yards in 6+ seasons, accolades as well, with 3 All-USFL appearances, but victories, well, those have been tough to come by for Odell Beckham Jr. and the lack of meaningful playoff performances or chances to win a title have apparently worn on the talented receiver. OBJ let off some steam after New Jersey’s humiliating 34-3 loss to the Tampa Bay Bandits. He reminded reporters in the post-game press conference that only 2 years ago the Bandits had the worst record in the league and now they were sitting at 13-0 and looking very much like a potential Summer Bowl favorite.   OBJ contrasted this with the Generals’ organization, a club certainly not in the dregs of the league, having made the playoffs each of the past 4 years, but one which has yet to appear in a Summer Bowl during the receiver’s 6-year tenure in East Rutherford. OBJ seemed adamant that he wants to play for a team that has a real chance at a title. Claiming he is not motivated by dollars or social media followers, but by winning, he questioned the commitment of the franchise to do what it takes to shift from “good enough” to great.   While it is never a good thing to disparage your own team, and while OBJ was careful not to name any names, it is clear that he is looking to find a new home, and if that means burning a few bridges to make that happen, he seems ready to do so. We cannot say we disagree with him either. New Jersey has been just “good enough” for a while, settling for Wild Cards, stuck near 9-7, and never really a threat to the better teams in the conference. They have seemed to settle on a pattern of solid, but not dominant play, a defense that is good enough most weeks, but certainly not overwhelming (ranked 21 st  in PPG allowed and 24 th  in yards allowed this year, a noticeable downturn from past seasons), and, particularly at QB, they just do not have the kind of playmaker that can turn a loss into a win. Nick Foles, while certainly capable as a game manager, is not striking fear into opposing defenses.   So, what happens now? Beckham has 1 year left on his current contract, which means that he is not getting much choice in what happens. He could try to convince ownership that he is primed to garner maximum value on the trade market, a pretty tenable position considering that without a deal New Jersey would only see him on the roster for one more year before free agency, when they gain nothing from his departure. There are certainly plenty of teams that would be interested in OBJ, so it may well make sense for the Generals to look for a deal this offseason, or, and this might be thinking a bit outside of the box, they could take his complaints to heart, realize that they need to improve around their star receiver (and a few others) and actually upgrade at key positions so that they can be a competitor for a title instead of a team that gets into the postseason only to drop their first game and go home. Something for the Generals to consider.   PITTSBURGH MAULERS 17   CHICAGO MACHINE 16 A good ol’ slobberknocker between two of the best teams in the Central Division, that is what we got on Saturday night when the Maulers took on the Machine. Both teams entered the game at 8-3, solidly in the hunt behind 9-2 Michigan. Chicago had the tiebreaker advantage thanks to a 6-0 division record, with Pittsburgh at 3-2. They also had scored more points this season and allowed fewer than the Maulers. But those are the kind of stats that might influence the lines in Vegas, but don’t always translate to what happens when two teams square off on the field.   When they did square off, what we got was a classic war of attrition with both defenses allowing some yardage, but few points, and both teams struggling to outmaneuver each other in a battle of field position and scarce opportunities. Both teams finished with just over 100 yards rushing, both around 350 yards of offense, and both with strong defensive stops, but in the end, it was a question of how each team dealt with red zone defense that decided this game. Pittsburgh went 1 for 2 on red zone TDs, while Chicago went 1 for 3. That, plus one big play were all it took for the Maulers to defy the numbers and claim victory, pushing them ahead of Chicago in the standings and in the playoff race.   The game started well for the Maulers, with Pittsburgh’s initial drive producing 7 points. They got a lucky break on a 3 rd  and 3 when Chicago DE Jason Pierre-Paul was called for offsides trying to guess the snap count. That penalty kept their drive alive, and after a nice toss to HB Sony Michel for 16 yards, they were in the red zone. They capitalized with Andy Dalton finding Brian Quick for a 12-yard TD to take the first lead of the game.   Chicago moved the ball well on their first drive as well, but they got bogged down in the red zone, failing to move the ball past the 13 yard line and forced to settle for 3 after Sam Bradford missed on a throw to Tyler Eifert on 3 rd down. This would be a theme repeated later in the game. But, as the first quarter ended, it was the Maulers up 7-3. That lead would disappear in the 2 nd quarter when Chicago again slowly and deliberately moved the ball down the field. This time it was Pittsburgh making a huge mistake, when a failed 3 rd down throw from Bradford was wiped out by a roughing the passer call on Mauler DE Shaquile Riddick, whose right arm slammed into Bradford’s helmet as the big DE tried to deflect Bradford’s throw.   That penalty kept Chicago on offense and 7 plays later they found their way to the endzone, with HB Marion Mack trampling a safety on his way in for a 6-yard TD run. Chicago took the lead 10-7. Only 3 minutes later Pittsburgh got a break and took advantage of it. Cornerback Josh Norman had to come out after a collision with a teammate on a 1 st  down run by Michel. His replacement, Robert Anderson, misread the coverage, let Adam Thielen by, believing he had safety help, but safety Micah Hyde was chasing down TE Rob Gronkowski, meaning that Thielen was essentially all alone down the left sideline. Dalton caught him with a deep ball and Thielen took it the rest of the way for a 46-yard touchdown, the only play over 25 yards in the game.   Now up 14-10, Pittsburgh added a field goal late in the quarter to take a 17-10 lead into the break. In a game that seemed destined to lead to a final score in the high 20’s if not the 30’s, both teams had found success on offense in the first half. That would change dramatically in the second half. Both defenses made adjustments, Pittsburgh adding more pressure through some calculated blitzes, Chicago using shallow zones and 2 deep safeties to force Andy Dalton to dump the ball off short on key third downs. After going a combined 8 of 11 on third down in the first half, the two offenses would only muster 1 more first down the rest of the way, going 1 of 12 as the defenses stiffened and the spate of scoring came to an almost complete halt.   Chicago mustered only a long field goal (48 yards) in the 3 rd  quarter, cutting Pittsburgh’s lead to 4, but they needed more. Early in the 4 th , a fumble by Cam Akers gave Chicago a perfect opportunity to get more, giving them the ball at the Pittsburgh 31. They pushed the ball into the red zone, got as far as the 5-yard line, but failed on a 3 rd  and goal throw to Michael Floyd. Coach Smith used a time out to consider options, go for it on 4 th and goal from the 5 or kick the 3 and try again later in the quarter. Smith opted for 3 certain points, and he got them, but the chance to add more later simply never came. Pittsburgh played a game-shortening strategy, pinning Chicago deep on their next two possessions and limiting the Machine Offense to short gains on both drives. When Chicago was forced to punt the ball back to the Maulers with 3:31 left to play, the hope was they would get one last chance at getting the ball into field goal range.   The Maulers never gave them that chance. They earned two first downs thanks to the running of Sony Michel and Cam Akers (the two combined for 107 yards on the day), with Andy Dalton throwing only 1 pass, a nice 8-yard gain on play action, in the series. Chicago used up their timeouts, and when Akers dove into the line on a vital 4 th  and 1 from the Chicago 49, the game was done. Pittsburgh could run down the clock without anything more than a Dalton kneel and the Maulers would move to 2 nd  place at 9-3. It was not the prettiest game, but for fans who love good defense, the 2 nd  half of this one was a classic.   NEW JERSEY 3   TAMPA BAY 34 New Jersey touted this as a “Stand Up Game”, but it was the Bandits who sat the Generals right back down, dominating from kickoff to the final whistle. With the Generals trying to pressure Dak Prescott all day, it was Dalvin Cook who helped lead the way, rushing for 110 yards and a score. Prescott had his moments, including a 21-yard TD to Dez Bryant, but it was the Bandit D that owned the day, starting with a Jalen Ramsey pick-six only 5 seconds into the game and continuing throughout as the Bandits simply shut down every General drive. POTG:  Bandit CB Jalen Ramsey: 3 Tck, 1 Int, 1 Def TD   SAN DIEGO 0  LOS ANGELES 32 Another very lopsided affair on Friday night as the Express crushed their in-state rival, limiting San Diego to only 124 passing yards and slowly building up the score over all 4 quarters to land a dominant 32-0 final score. Kyler Murray went 16 of 25 for 201 yards and 2 scores, but all kudos to the Express defense, who limited San Diego to 217 total yards and only 1 trip across the Express 40 (a missed field goal). POTG:  LA Corner Stephon Gilmore: 5 Tck, 4 PDef, 1 Int   NEW ORLEANS 48  BIRMINGHAM 13 Friday was a night for blowouts as New Orleans completed the 3-game domination event with a 35-point win over division rival Birmingham. The Breaker D kept Cam Newton under wraps, though the QB did throw for 244 and 2 scores, he had only 1 yard rushing. Meanwhile Geno Smith threw for 319 and 4 TDs, only to be relieved by Pat White in the 4 th  quarter, with White adding 2 more TDs before the game was over. Six different receivers caught scoring throws on the night for the Breakers as they move to 9-3 atop the division. POTG:  Breaker QB Geno Smith: 19/24, 319 Yds, 4 TD, 0 Int   SAN ANTONIO 10   HOUSTON 31 The Gamblers were happy to have expansion San Antonio on the docket. The game got Colt McCoy back in rhythm, throwing for 332 yards and 2 scores while HB Carlos Hyde added 2 more in a dominant win by the Gamblers. Easton Stick struggled against the Gambler defense, throwing a costly red zone pick early and never finding a solid rhythm. Mike Evans was the star for Houston, with 131 yards and 2 scores. POTG:  Houston WR Mike Evans: 6 Rec, 131 Yds, 2 TD   LAS VEGAS 9   ARIZONA 30 The blowouts just kept coming on Saturday as Arizona also made short work of their opponent, division rival Las Vegas. Matt McGloin returned to action for the Vipers but got a rude welcome as Calais Campbell and the Wranglers pressured him relentlessly, including 5 sacks, 2 from Campbell who is back in the race for the league sack title again. Ka’Deem Carey had 2 TDs and combined with Crowell for 159 yards rushing as Arizona cruised. POTG:  Wrangler DE Calais Campbell: 5 Tck, 2 Sck   OKLAHOMA 9   DALLAS 20 Our first close game, but in the end Dallas pulled away as they proved more capable of putting the ball in the endzone than the Outlaws. A pair of rushing touchdowns, one each from Perine and Sims, were enough to give the Roughnecks their 7 th  win and put them 2 games over .500. The defense sacked Mason Rudolph (back under center for the Outlaws) 7 times and held Justice Hill to only 27 yards rushing. POTG:  Dallas DE Connor Barwin: 4 Tck, 3 Sck, 2 FF   NEW ENGLAND 14   ATLANTA 47 The Fire easily dispatched expansion New England, with Atlanta building up a 24-7 lead at the half thanks to TDs from O. J. Howard, Nick Chubb, and a pick-six from Earl Thomas. O. J. Howard added a second TD after the break, and was joined by A. J. Green and Kenyan Drake as Atlanta cruised to their 10 th victory and a playoff berth. POTG:  Fire HB Nick Chubb: 24 Att, 121 Yds, 1 TD, 2 Rec, 16 Yds   WASHINGTON 3   JACKSONVILLE 10 The Bulls continue to impress on defense, holding Washington to a lone field goal and only 64 yards rushing. The Bulls’ offense struggled as well, with Teddy Bridgewater sacked 8 times by an aggressive Washington front seven, but a lone TD toss on a blown coverage allowed the Bulls to get the win and move to 6-6, very much alive in the playoff hunt. Tajae Sharpe went 80 yards on the lone explosive play of the game in a fluke play that ended the scoring as both teams did nothing in the 2 nd  half. POTG:  Bulls’ LB Alex Anzelone: 4 Tck, 1 TFL, 1 FF, 1 PDef   ST. LOUIS 15   MICHIGAN 38 Michigan was ready for Lamar Jackson as a rusher, using a safety to shadow the St. Louis QB. That, paired with a 4-TD day from Panther QB Kirk Cousins made short work of the Skyhawks. Michigan was outgained on the ground as Eddie Lacy returned to action with 106 yards rushing while the St. Louis D keyed on LeVeon Bell, holding him to only 67 yards, but that left Cousins largely unbothered, and he picked apart the St. Louis secondary, finding 4 different receivers for scores. POTG:  Michigan QB Kirk Cousins: 24/28, 290 Yds, 4 TD, 0 Int   SEATTLE 41  OAKLAND 33 What looks like a shootout in the final score was not quite that close as Seattle built up a 21-3 lead, then 35-17 before late Oakland scores made the game look a bit closer. Brett Hundley threw for 322 and 3 scores, while Tom Brady went 25 of 42 for 290 and 4 scores as he tried to lead the Invaders back. The Dragons move to 6-6 and stay alive in the playoff hunt, while Oakland loses their share of 1 st  in the Pacific and drops a game back at 7-5. POTG:  Seattle CB Jaire Alexander: 5 Tck, 1 Int, 1 Def TD   PORTLAND 31   DENVER 34 Another tough loss for Portland as Denver found their offensive groove and built up a 34-16 lead, holding on as Portland tried to mount a comeback. Philip Lindsay rushed for 104 and 3 TDs, but also caught 2 passes for 63 yards. Denver also got a ripping 108-yard kickoff return from Kevin White in one of the plays of the week as they move to 5-7 on the season. POTG:  Gold HB Phillip Lindsay: 25 Att, 104 Yds, 3 TD, 2 Rec, 63 Yds.   PHILADELPHIA 17  CHARLOTTE 21 Kyle Boller gets Charlotte their 2 nd  win in 3 weeks, finding Brandon Pettigrew for the game winner with 41 seconds left to play. Charlotte also got help on defense as Tre Boston returned a Ryan Lindley pick 43 yards for a score. POTG:  Charlotte FS Tre Boston: 4 Tck, 1 Int, 1 Def TD   BALTIMORE 6   ORLANDO 30 Real concerns in Baltimore as the Blitz dropped another one and now sit at 6-6 with 4 weeks left. Jake Locker threw two picks and completed only 16 of 31 passing as Orlando got pressure even as they recorded only 1 sack. Russell Wilson threw for only 199 yards but that included TD tosses to Brashad Perriman and Knile Davis, enough to win their 6 th  on the year and improve to the same record as the Blitz. POTG:  Orlando FS Jemea Thomas: 2 PDef, 2 Int   OHIO 21   MEMPHIS 48 After a first quarter that saw both teams find the endzone on their first 2 possessions, the Memphis defense tightened up, holding Ohio to 7 points the rest of the way. The offense kept rolling, with 4 more touchdown drives over the final 3 quarters. And all this with veteran Ryan Fitzpatrick at the helm. The fan favorite threw for 271 and a career best 6 touchdowns as Memphis rolled. POTG:  Memphis QB Ryan Fitzpatrick: 28/38, 271 Yds, 6 TD, 1 Int   Fitz-Magic in Effect for Memphis With Paxton Lynch nursing a pinched nerve in his throwing shoulder, Coach Ryan made the call on Wednesday that veteran Ryan Fitzpatrick would get the start against the Ohio Glory. Little could Ryan have known that in making that call he would be unleashing a nightmare scenario on the Glory. The Harvard grad and former General, Stag, and Machine QB had not thrown a pass in a regular season game since his last year in Chicago in 2018. That meant that aside from some meaningless and very vanilla footage from 2019 preseason games, there was no film for Ohio to study. They also had no idea how Fitzpatrick’s entrance into the game would alter the Memphis gameplan. In other words, they had no idea what to expect or how to defend against a Fitzpatrick-led Showboat offense. Could 1 game turn into another shot at starting? That lack of familiarity paid off for Fitzpatrick and the Showboats. The journeyman QB had himself a day, finding open receivers all over the field, connecting with Devin Funchess 7 times for 94 yards, Robert Woods 6 times for 65, and TE Dallas Goedert 5 times for 37. He also hit each for a TD, along with 1 more to HB Jacob Hester and 2 touchdowns to slot man Jamison Crowder. Add those up and you have a 6-TD day, the first of his career for Fitzpatrick. It was absolute chaos out there. When Ohio tried to use pressure, Fitzpatrick found his safety valve. When they used soft zones, he picked them apart, and when they left a key receiver in one-on-one, he went deep. It was a thing of beauty for fans of the Showboats, or fans of Fitzpatrick from his long career both in the NFL and USFL. He finished the day with 271 yards on 28 of 38, but with those 6 TDs this was about as perfect a day as any QB could hope for, and, as we have gotten used to seeing from time to time, a clear touch of Fitz-Magic.   Lindsay’s Big Day for Denver After losing 6 of their last 7, and with a switch at OC along the way, the Denver Gold needed a spark to get their offense back on track. They got it this week from halfback Phillip Lindsay. The 3 rd  year back, now clearly the lead in the Denver backfield after the Gold traded away DeMarco Murray, had his best game of the year, putting together a combined 167 yards from scrimmage and scoring 3 times in the Gold’s 34-31 upset over Portland.   Lindsay was the focal point of the entire Denver offense this week, carrying the ball 25 times and targeted 5 more in the passing game. He averaged 4.2 YPC in the game, broke off a really nice 23-yard rumbling run, and put the ball in the endzone from 4 yards out, then 15, then 7, all in the first half as Denver built up a 28-13 halftime lead and then survived a late comeback by the Stags. Denver was helped by a dazzling 108-yard kickoff return late in the 2 nd quarter, but it was Lindsay’s ability to move the chains and produce short and very makeable 3 rd  downs that was the key to Denver’s 34-point output. Can Denver keep momentum going with Lindsay as their offensive focus? It seems the best course for them to take as they are still trying to get more out of the passing game. It certainly should be their strategy this week, when they face the worst rush defense in the league, San Diego’s 30 th  ranked squad giving up over 123 yards per game.   Jacksonville’s D has them at .500 The Bulls finished last season at 4-12, picking first in the USFL Draft, and, to be honest, few expected much more from them this season. They were pretty much universally picked to finish last in the Southeastern Division, but teams don’t stay static year to year and while the Bulls still have a lot of the issues that critics pointed out in camp, they have shown at least one area of significant growth, the defense.   That defense is the primary reason that Jacksonville now sits at 6-6, already 2 games ahead of last year’s final tally, and why they have moved up to 3 rd place behind the unbeaten Bandits and 10-2 Atlanta Fire. With those two teams getting a lot of press this year, you might not have even noticed that the Bulls are playing some pretty solid defense and winning some tough games. The past three weeks they have knocked off New Jersey, Orlando, and Washington, even sweeping the series with the Renegades. And the defense? They are not leading the lead in any of the major categories, but they are more than holding their own. So far this year they have held 5 teams to 20 or fewer points, including limiting Washington to only 3 this week.   The rejuvenated Bulls defense is led by an unexpectedly strong pass rush, with the combo of Robert Ayers and Barkevious Mingo combining for 20 sacks this year (Ayers slightly ahead in the count with 11 to Mingo’s 9). They have also gotten solid pass rush help from their LB group, with Sean Lee and Alex Anzelone adding 5 sacks to the team’s total. The Bulls also have 2 players with 3 picks apiece (CB Dominique Rogers-Cromartie and FS Matt Elam), and as we see almost every year, MLB Sean Lee is among the league leaders with 93 tackles. The overall impact has been that Jacksonville has been in nearly every game this year, with a pair of tight losses and some very solid wins. Can this defense lead them over .500 for the first time since 2007? They need only 1 more win to avoid a 10 th consecutive 10-loss season, and 3 wins in their final 4 games would get them above .500. With New England up this week, then slumping Baltimore and Charlotte clubs after that, they have a real shot.   Campbell Ties Sweat, Seeking 12 Straight Title Rumors of Calais Campbell’s decline appear to have been premature. There was a point in the season’s first half when the perennial Sack Champion was 5 or more sacks behind the leader, his replacement in Orlando, Montez Sweat. But as the season has worn on, Sweat’s lead has shrunk, his productivity dipping, while Campbell has come on like a man possessed. The Arizona DE and 11-time Sack Leader in the USFL missed 2 games early in the season and had only 5 sacks as of Week 7, but in the 5 weeks since he has racked up a stunning 11 sacks and now stands even with Sweat atop the league leaderboard with 16 QB takedowns. Anyone who doubts he can not only keep pace with the Orlando edge rusher but surpass him has simply not been paying attention to football over the past decade. Odds are now back on Campbell to win the title again, an even dozen years of dominance.   Stars talk to Spurrier Don’t look now, but the Ol’ Ball Coach may not be out to pasture quite yet. Rumors have Steve Spurrier, the two-time head coach of the Tampa Bay Bandits meeting with the Philadelphia Stars, who let Jim Harbaugh go after a brutal 0-6 start to the year. Philadelphia, now 1-11 on the season, is not saying whether they met with Spurrier as a consultant, a possible GM, or to bring him back to the sideline, but, of course, scuttlebutt in the City of Brotherly Love is all about the man who brought the Bandits a title way back in 1983 and who many credit with building the Bandit team that won it all again in 2011, returning to the sidelines to resurrect a Stars team that is about as low now as they have ever been in their franchise history. Of course, what is almost comical about this is that there are fans calling for Jim Mora Sr to return, or even his son, Jim Mora Jr, apparently more obsessed with team history than with the current day.   Spurrier, who turned 75 this year, has not led a team since the 2015 season at the University of South Carolina. Few seriously expect he will come back to do so now, and particularly not a franchise with which he has had no prior history. We tend to agree with those who believe Spurrier came to Philadelphia to help guide ownership on a sound path when it comes to rebuilding and finding a coach who can handle what is likely to be a difficult, multi-year project. That just seems so much more likely to anyone who is not either a Stars fanatic or a Spurrier follower.   One more team locks in a playoff spot as 10-2 Atlanta is assured no worse than a Wild Card. They join the two unbeatens as 2020 playoff teams, while 5 more teams drop out of contention, with 3-9 Ohio joining 2-10 Birmingham, Las Vegas, San Diego, and expansion San Antonio in the pool that already included 1-win Philadelphia and St. Louis. Look for more clinching next week as 10-2 Michighan and three 9-3 clubs (New Orleans, Memphis, and Pittsburgh) can lock up spots with wins and a bit of help.   OUT CB          Devin McCourty      BIR           Back              IR OG         Vlad Ducasse           CHI          Leg                  IR C             Philip Blake             MEM       Hip                  IR DE          Nick Fairley           HOU       Neck               6-8 Weeks LB           Jordan Hicks         JAX         Groin              6-8 Weeks DT          Marcel Dareus         TBY         Hernia           1-2 Weeks DT          Danny Shelton         CHA         Ribs                 1-2 Weeks OG         Cole Madison        POR        Arm                  1-2 Weeks   DOUBTFUL LB           Melvin ingram              DAL        Concussion FS           Robert Sands                   PIT           Hand TE           C. J. Uzomah                 BAL         Neck DT          Albert Haynesworth      ATL          Thigh OT          Levi Brown                      TBY          Thigh   QUESTIONABLE QB         Paxton Lynch             MEM    Pinched Nerve DT          B. J. Raji                         NJ          Hip   COVID-19 INACTIVES ARZ       CB          Jeremy Harris ATL         CB          Darius Slay DAL       LB           Melvin Ingram                  DAL       SS           Dezmen Southward      2 nd  Week HOU     CB          Siran Neal MEM     DE          Chase Winovich NJ           CB          Isaac Yiadom OHI       LB           Daniel Ellerbe  PIT         FS           Robert Sands SD          DT          Damon Harrison     Very Early Draft Preview: Offense Two weeks ago we picked our Top 10 Defenders in the 2021 Draft Pool. This week we return with what may well be the focus of the draft, the top offensive stars coming out this year. We have 3 QBs expected to be Top 10 talents, a pair of solid backs, 3 quality receivers and a pair of topflight linemen to choose from. So, what will the story be for these 10 blue chippers? How will the USFL approach them? How will the league fare against the NFL in trying to sign them? That will all be decided this January, but for now, here are the players that all you fans of the Stars, Skyhawks, Gunslingers, and all the non-playoff teams can start obsessing with.   QB Trevor Lawrence (Clemson) The consensus top pick in the 2021 draft, Lawrence has been a star since he took the field for the Tigers back in 2018. In 2 seasons he has amassed a 25-1 record and led Clemson to two consecutive national title games. He lost to LSU and Joe Burrow last year, but he comes back for his junior year, and what almost everyone expects to be his final year, ready to take the Tigers to a third title game. Expect a major feeding frenzy between the two pro leagues to try to get Lawrence into their camps.   QB Zach Wilson (BYU) Another 3-year starter, Wilson’s stats at BYU are not as gaudy as Lawrence’s at Clemson, but he has more than held his own, throwing 23 TDs to 12 picks in his first two years in Provo. A mobile QB with good arm talent, the key with Wilson will be transitioning to the pro style and playing against top level competition every week.   QB Justin Fields (Ohio State) The level of competition he faces in college is not something anyone knocks Ohio State’s Justin Fields on. After transferring from Georgia to Ohio State, Fields lit up the game, going 13-1 as a starter and led the Buckeyes to a Big 10 title and a trip to the Fiesta Bowl. He returns in 2020 with hopes for a national title. A very athletic, elusive QB, he is ideal for a team that wants to emulate the kind of spread offense that we see expanding into the pros in both leagues.   HB Najee Harris (Alabama) You rarely go wrong with a running back from the Crimson Tide. Whether it is Mark Ingram, Eddie Lacy, Shaun Alexander, Bobby Humphrey, or Derrick Henry, Alabama just has a knack for churning out game-changing backs. Harris looks like yet another beast coming out of Tuscaloosa and should be slotted in as a bell cow back from day one.   HB Travis Etienne (Clemson) Rivaling Harris the past 2 years has been Clemson’s Etienne. Seen as a more versatile back, with better receiving skills, Etienne went over 1,600 yards in both 2018 and 2019, and we expect another huge year out of him as Clemson again looks like a potential title contender. After that, he will almost certainly be a target of the Jacksonville Bulls, who would have his exclusive rights in the T-Draft and who need exactly the kind of skills he brings to the game.   WR Ja’Marr Chase (LSU) What Alabama has been to running backs, LSU seems to be for receivers. The immediate success of Justin Jefferson with the Breakers has teams all across the USFL (and the NFL) excited about Chase as well. With New Orleans likely to either trade his rights in the T-Draft or to let him slide into the Open Draft, we could see a WR being a key focal point of the offseason trading block.   WRs Jaylen Waddle and DeVonta Smith (Alabama) Alabama is back with not one WR, but two. It is not so much a question of whether both will be early draft picks, but which will go first. The Stallions are unlikely to pursue both, and with Henry Ruggs already well-established as their future top target, we could even envision a situation where the Stallions trade away both to teams in the West just to be assured that neither ends up with a division rival. Of course the NFL could also come calling, as we always keep in the back of our minds.   OT Penei Sewell (Oregon) The best pure passblocker to come out at LT in several years, and an almost surefire rookie starter, Sewell is the kind of tackle you build your line around. He is athletic enough to work the run in any system, zone or man blocking, and he is without a doubt a gifted pass protector, able to handle both bull rushers and speed guys on the edge. If you are a team with a less-than-agile QB, Sewell should be high on your wish list.   OG Alijah Vera-Tucker (USC) Guard tends to be an undervalued position in the draft, but after the success of Quenton Nelson, excelling in Oakland, we would not be surprised to see Vera-Tucker as a Top 10 pick, which means that the LA Express may well be interested. The USC product might not displace Mitch Morse on the LA line but we could replace LG Logan Stenberg from the get-go, assuming, of course that LA both selects the former Trojan and signs him away from the fall league.   Several 2016 NFL Draftees Likely to be Free Agents Come January Speaking of the draft, it is time as well to consider the reality that the NFL’s rigid rookie deal structure means that we are looking at several 2016 draftees who either must be extended for a 5 th  season or cut loose as free agents. Over the past several years the USFL has found some real gems among the list of 4-year vets who are not extended for a 5 th  year. So, what possible diamonds in the free agency rough could be available this year? Well, some pretty interesting prospects indeed.   QB Carson Wentz (Eagles) The Eagles seem to be souring on the former NDSU star, despite the fact that he has a huge arm. He is not as mobile as many teams want in a QB, and he has had some issues with turnovers, but there is so much natural ability there that it is hard to believe that Philadelphia would simply give up on him, and yet, the rumors are out there that they are looking elsewhere.   HB Ezekiel Elliott (Cowboys) Jerry Jones has a problem. He has a lot of talent, and they all want to get paid. Will the salary cap crunch lead to a big-name back getting let loose to find a new home? Seems almost sacrilegious to see the Cowboys let Elliott walk, and yet weirder things have happened out of JerryWorld.   WR Laquon Treadwell (Vikings) Treadwell has just not been able to catch on in Minnesota. They tried him inside, then outside, but they just don’t seem to know what to do with him. That may be enough for them to consider him something of a bust, which in USFL terms means a reclamation project.   WR Sterling Shephard (Giants) Shephard has not looked bad for New York, but their QB situation is such a mess that they just have not been able to do much with him. We think they want to keep him around for year five, but they have a lot of needs, needs that will take up cap space.   OT Laremy Tunsil (Dolphins) Tunsil started strong his rookie year, had some injury issues, and has now been splitting time at LT, so we think there is a reason not to pay him a balloon deal for a 5 th  year. That could bode well for USFL teams that are looking for a young, athletic tackle.   DE DeForest Buckner (49ers) Buckner has been up and down in San Francisco. After a 12-sack season in 2018 few would think that he would be at risk, but he has not returned to that form since, and barring a strong rebound in 2020, we think there is a chance that the 49ers cut Buckner loose and look to land a DE out of this year’s draft class.   DT Kenny Clark (Green Bay) Clark had a very solid 2019, racking up 62 tackles and 6 sacks. But Green Bay is in cap trouble, and those 5 th  year extensions are cap killers. They almost certainly don’t want to lose Clark at DT, but they may not have many options if they want to keep the rest of their team intact (and pay Aaron Rodgers what he is asking).   San Diego Boosts the Blue with New Look It would not be an exaggeration to say that 2020 has been a “Year of the Blues” for the San Diego Thunder. Instead of competing for a Division Title and another attempt to prove they belong among the league’s elites, the Thunder have completely imploded, sitting now at 2-10, eliminated from the playoffs and likely to earn a Top 5 draft pick. So, with that the backdrop, it seems almost ironic that the newly released 2021 Under Armour uniform set for the Thunder features blue in a stronger way than ever before.   The Thunder retain their affection for ombre effects, color shifting between blue and white on the new home jersey numbers and from their trademark electric green to sky blue on the white jerseys. And if that were all, we likely would not have pointed out the use of blue to replace gold among their color palette, but when you add in the sky blue (don’t call them “powder” or the NFL gets mad) on the cuffs of their sleves, or in their pant stripes, or even their socks. Oh, and then there is the navy blue pant set, meant to be worn with the white jerseys. That is a lot of blue for a team that used to be predominantly green and yellow. You can see the old color scheme in their throwback look, one that goes all the way back to 1988, when the club first debuted in Portland. Back is the old thunderbolt & cloud helmet logo, the original lime or electric green jersey, and the heavier use of Navy. With both their current uniforms and the classic look using a white helmet, we knew that San Diego would pull out something special for their other alternate, and they did exactly what everyone thought they might. They went ombre on the helmet. Yup, a sky blue to electric green ombre effect with color shifting from base to crown, paired with a white facemask. As if that was not enough of the motif, the jerseys do the exact same, but in reverse, with the shoulders and sleeves now sky blue and shifting to green across the chest and back. The numbers here use a navy blue shadow to stand out as they feature their own “reverse” ombre, with white bases transitioning to electric green at the top of each numeral. It is a look that only the Thunder could pull off.   A very light week for divisional matchups in Week 13, as only 4 of 15 games pits divisional rivals against each other. One of those four games is Friday night where the 6-6 New Jersey Generals face the 5-7 Washington Federals. A Generals win pushes Washington 2 games behind the division lead, while a win by the Federals pulls them even with New Jersey but still 1 game under .500.   The best matchup on Saturday is not a divisional game, but pits two of the league’s 9-3 clubs against each other. Memphis faces Pittsburgh in the 9pm ESPN/EFN game and the winner almost certainly locks up a playoff spot. Another biggie on Saturday is Dallas and Portland facing off at State Farm Stadium in Phoenix. Dallas can move 3 games over .500 with a win while Portland hopes to stave off a major collapse and get back over .500 by defeating the Roughnecks.   Sunday features two divisional games with Tampa Bay facing Charlotte and Baltimore taking on Philadelphia. The Blitz need to right their ship and they have a good chance against the Stars. A win means they retain at least a share of first place in the NE Division, and, with a bit of help from Washington, they could have sole possession of first. The other big game is in Las Vegas, where the 7-5 Oakland Invaders face a huge test as they play “host” to the unbeaten Arizona Wranglers. Can the Invaders’ D rise to the challenge and shut down the Wranglers, playing without Victor Cruz, or will Arizona get past this game and continue unblemished?   FRIDAY 8pm ET      Washington (5-7) @ New Jersey (6-6)            Orlando          NBC 8pm ET          Las Vegas (2-10) @ Seattle (6-6)                       Las Vegas        ABC 9pm ET           Birmingham (2-10) @ Michigan (10-2)             TDECU             ESPN/EFN   SATURDAY 1pm ET           Houston (7-5) @ Ohio (3-9)                              NRG                      ABC 4pm ET           Dallas (7-5) @ Portland (6-6)                          Glendale            FOX 4pm ET          Denver (5-7) @ San Diego (2-10)                     Las Vegas           ABC 8pm ET           Jacksonville (6-6) @ New England (4-8)          Gainesville        NBC 8pm ET            Orlando (6-6) @ Atlanta (10-4)                        Tampa                  FOX 9pm ET          Memphis (9-3) @ Pittsburgh (9-3)                    Rice                      ESPN/EFN   SUNDAY 1pm ET          New Orleans (9-3) @ St. Louis (1-10)             NRG                      FOX 4pm ET          Oklahoma (5-7) @ Los Angeles (8-4)              Glendale            ABC 4pm ET           Arizona (12-0) @ Oakland (7-5)                       Las Vegas           FOX 8pm ET           Tampa Bay (12-0) @ Charlotte (4-8)                 Orlando               ABC 8pm ET          Philadelphia (1-11) @ Baltimore (6-6)              Tampa                  FOX 9pm ET        San Antonio (2-10) @ Chicago (8-4)                TDECU                 ESPN/EFN

PLAYER OF THE WEEK: How could we not give this week's POTW to one of America's favorite journeyman players, Fitz-Magic himself, Ryan Fitzpatrick. The Harvard Grad who has played for 4 different USFL teams after having had 3 different NFL teams as well, had himself a game this week. With Paxton Lynch unable to go due to a lingering issue with a pinched nerve in his throwing shoulder, Fitzpatrick got his first start since coming over from Chicago and man, he made the most of it, throwing for 6 touchdowns and going 28 for 38 as Memphis lit up the Ohio glory 48-21. With his contract in Memphis ending this year, could we see this game get Fitz-Magic another shot at a starting job? PLAYOFF PICTURE: We added one more playoff team to the mix this week as the Atlanta Fire, sitting at 10-2, locked up a spot, making that 2 teams from the Southeast clinched already. The Fire still remain 2 games behind the unbeaten Bandits (the two face off in Week 15) but are now guaranteed at least a Wild Card. Michigan is also 10-2, but are not able to clinch just yet as the combo of Oakland and Dallas at 7-5 still could knock them out. Speaking of being knocked out, we also added 5 more teams to the list of eliminated squads. All four teams at 2-10--Birmingham, San Antonio, Las Vegas, and San Diego-- were eliminated this week, as was Ohio at 3-9.

We did not get a huge wave of upsets in Week 11, nor did we get a ton of nailbiters. But, what we did get was our first two teams clinching playoff spots. To no one’s surprise it was the two unbeatens in the league, Tampa Bay and Arizona, both now 11-0, who locked up a playoff spot with 5 weeks left to play. They will now focus on securing the 1-seed and home field throughout the playoffs while the other 28 teams (26 actually, since 2 teams are now also eliminated) fight to land a playoff spot. This week’s recap will run through all the scores and stories of the week, take a look at some players we think would benefit from a change of scenery this offseason, and reveal a pretty significant change coming for the Charlotte Monarchs next year, and we are not talking about their QB position, but we kick it off with a look at 4 teams right on the cusp after 11 weeks, all 4 sitting at 6-5 and hoping they can get hot and make a run at a playoff spot.   The 6-5 Teams with a Lot to Play For As we head into the home stretch across the league and the playoff picture begins to take shape, the pressure is always greatest on the fringe, and right now that fringe sits with a 6-5 record. In the current Playoff Picture (see below), only 2 of the 5 teams now sitting one game over .500 would qualify for the postseason, with the tiebreakers currently leaning in favor of the Baltimore Blitz and New Jersey Generals. Houston, Dallas, and Portland would be on the outside looking in. And, of course, with 5 more teams (Oklahoma, Seattle, Jacksonville, Washington, and Orlando) sitting at 5-6 and nipping at the quartet’s heels, there is no room for error. With 5 games left, these teams need to look at a possible 4-1 run, because even 3-2 may not be enough to guarantee them a playoff spot. Ten wins tends to be a good indicator of playoff eligibility, 9-7, well that is a risk that most teams don’t want to take. So, what are the prospects for each of our four 6-win clubs? We break it down here, looking at each of their chances moving forward.   Baltimore Blitz Key Upcoming Games (Week): Orlando (12), Jacksonville (14), Washington (15), Atlanta (16)   Strengths & Weaknesses: Schedule-wise, Baltimore needs to look at each of their games prior to the Atlanta finale as ‘must wins”. They face 3 of the teams sitting at 5-6, and they cannot afford to stumble against any of them. Having lost to New Jersey this week gives them no room for error if they want to stay in 1 st atop the NE Division. As for roster strengths, offensive balance is key. They need Josh Jacobs to come on strong in the final 5 games so that the pressure is not on Jake Locker to do it all. Brian Hartline should be back from injury soon, so that could be a big help. The defense has been solid, 2 nd in the league against the pass and allowing a reasonable 18.6 PPG, so it is all about the offense being able to put 20 on the board each week.   Our Assessment: Back-to-back losses to Charlotte and New Jersey have us concerned that the Blitz are going to fade down the stretch. They need to prove in this week’s game against Orlando that they are still the frontrunner atop the division. Their schedule is tougher than New Jersey’s, so they just cannot afford another loss against teams below them in the standings.   New Jersey Generals Key Upcoming Games (Week): Tampa Bay (12), Washington (13), Orlando (14)   Strengths & Weaknesses: The good news for New Jersey is that if they can hold their position over their tough 3-game stretch the next 3 weeks, they have a nice wrap up with New England and Philly in the final 2 games. And while this week’s game against Tampa Bay is a big ask, the two more important games are against current 5-6 teams in the Feds and ‘Gades. On the strength side, you have to point to Maurice Jones-Drew, who is well on pace to reach 1,200 yards rushing. The run defense is also very solid. Weaknesses? Well, other than OBJ we are not too keen on the receiver group and their defense is 28 th  against the pass, which may be a bad sign or could just be due to teams having no luck against the run.   Our Assessment: If the Generals can get wins against Washington and Orlando, then coast to a 10-6 record by knocking off the Steamrollers and Stars, they should be in, and they could even have a shot at the division title, because Baltimore is only 6-5 as well.   Houston Gamblers Key Upcoming Games (Week): New Orleans (14), Pittsburgh (15)   Strengths & Weaknesses: The good news for Houston is that their final 5 weeks include some pretty weak sisters, with games against San Antonio, Ohio, and Birmingham on the schedule. The bad news is that they are already 2 games behind both New Orleans and Memphis in the division, so the Gamblers may be in the unfamiliar space of battling for a Wild Card spot. The offense has looked good between the 20’s, still Top 5 in yards, but only 10 th  in scoring, which tells us that they are either not hitting on the big plays or not finding success in the red zone. They need to be able to do both.   Our Assessment: Houston could be at real risk of dropping out of the playoff race. Even if they win all 3 games against weaker foes, they still would only be 9-7. They need to upset either the Breakers or the Maulers to have a real shot at locking in a playoff spot.   Dallas Roughnecks Key Upcoming Games (Week): Oklahoma (12), Portland (13), Denver (14)   Strengths & Weaknesses: Justin Herbert has electrified the fanbase of the Roughnecks, and they have a real opportunity to put any doubts to bed over the next 3 weeks. If they can sweep the Outlaws, Stags, and Gold, they are almost guaranteed a spot. They finish the year with 2-9 Las Vegas and 2-9 San Diego, so we could imagine a 5-0 run, but this week vs. Oklahoma may well be the test of concept on that.  As for the roster, we love what Herbert brings to the passing game, but they need more out of Samaje Perine and the run game. The defense also needs to find ways to create more takeaways. They currently rank 22 nd  in points allowed, which does not bode well, but they are 4 th  in pass defense, so if they could just turn more of those passes defended into interceptions, they could get very hot very fast.   Our Assessment: We love the energy of the Roughnecks, and they have the easiest schedule of any 6-5 club, but they have also been inconsistent and need to look at the next 3 weeks as a crucible. If they can go 3-0 in this stretch, we see them possibly locking in a Wild Card and maybe even hosting a game at 11-5 (well, hosting in Arizona, which is not really home field.) Portland Stags Key Upcoming Games (Weeks): Dallas (13), Oakland (14), Seattle (15), Arizona (16) Strengths & Weaknesses: Losers of their last two, and both to teams below .500, scares us a bit about this Stags team. Portland needs to reestablish their surprisingly good early season form if they want to hold up over what looks like a tough run of games to end the season. After Denver this week, they could be facing nothing but teams with winning records down the road (depending on Orlando’s status), and while they may luck out and face nothing but Arizona backups in Week 16, they cannot count on that, so they need to get W’s now.   Our Assessment: We think the Stags may end up being the odd man out (there will be several) just because they have that brutal run against Dallas, Oakland, Seattle, and Arizona. They need to win at least 3 of the next 4 games and then hope that the Wranglers are resting starters in the finale because we don’t see this Stags team upending a fully-stocked Arizona team.   ATLANTA FIRE 27  CHARLOTTE MONARCHS 24  OVERTIME Charlotte’s experiment with veteran journeyman Kyle Boller produced an upset win over Baltimore in Week 10 and this week gave the Monarchs a solid chance in their matchup against 8-2 Atlanta as Charlotte held a lead until the final seconds of regulation and then fought until the final seconds of overtime before the Fire could finally edge them out for their 9 th  victory of the season. In a game that saw both teams led by a 100-yard rusher and in which neither QB gave up a pick, it was the thinnest of margins that gave Atlanta the final victory and sent Charlotte to 3-8 on the year.   While Atlanta came into the game with one of the league’s highest scoring offenses, Charlotte had struggled all year to maintain drives and turn yardage into points. In this game neither team had difficulty finding success on offense, with Charlotte racking up an impressive 473 yards, including 185 on the ground, while Atlanta held their own with 116 on the ground and a total production of 433 yards. We had only 1 turnover in the game, a fumble by WR Austin Proehl, producing a field goal from the Fire, but what it came down to was the ability to hit the long field goal, with Atlanta’s John Bounds hitting a 58-yarder to send the game to overtime while Charlotte’s Stephen Earl missed from 47 in overtime, a kick that would have given the underdogs the win.   The game began with both teams moving the ball well, with Atlanta settling for 2 field goals in the first quarter while Charlotte turned one possession into a 13-play drive that ended with fullback Khari Blasingame scoring from the 6 on a nicely-run option play. Charlotte held their own throughout the first half and when Kyle Boller connected with wideout Justin Blackmon early in the 2 nd quarter for a 12-yard touchdown, it was the Monarchs, a 9-point underdog in the game, who took a solid 14-6 lead, a lead they would hold through the half.   Atlanta finally found the endzone on the opening drive of the second half, a drive that took only 6 plays to move from the Fire 20 into the endzone. The Fire finally broke through on a 2 nd  and 2, when play action left A. J. Green in single coverage. Aaron Murray found him for a 51-yard TD against the man coverage of the Monarchs. After adding a 2-point conversion, the game was knotted up at 14. Charlotte would retake the lead on the ensuing possession, with Stephen Earl connecting on a 22-yard field goal after Atlanta CB Shaquile Griffin batted down a 3 rd  and goal attempt. But, Charlotte’s lead would be short-lived. Atlanta showed good balance on their next possession, with Nick Chubb rushing the ball 3 times for 22 yards and Aaron Murray again finding A. J. Green for a score, this time a sideline fade from the 18. The quarter ended with the Fire holding a 21-17 advantage.   The fourth quarter started slowly, with both teams struggling to get into field goal range. Penalties were the big issue for Atlanta, as a holding call doomed one drive and offensive pass interference on Kelvin Benjamin ended a second. For Charlotte, the issue was QB protection, with their first drive of the quarter stymied by a sack of Boller on 2 nd  down, creating a very tough 3 rd and 17. The Monarchs would get a second shot midway through the quarter and, using the combined legs of Latavius Murray and Nyheim Hines, they largely kept the ball on the ground on a 14-play drive that finished with Boller finding slot receiver Austin Proehl on a crossing route. Proehl made up for his earlier fumble by going low to scoop up a low pass from Boller, giving Charlotte a 24-21 lead with only 1:11 left to play.   But, as so often happens, the Monarchs left too much time on the clock. With all 3 time outs left, Atlanta needed only to get into field goal range to equalize the score and send the game to overtime. They quickly moved down the field and into the outer edge of John Bounds’s range. But, after failing to move the ball past the Charlotte 41 on three straight pass attempts, the Fire were forced to send Bounds out with just a few ticks left on the clock to attempt a 58-yard kick.   Boller’s kick was low, barely missing the raised hands of the Monarch defenders, but it continued to rise along its route, and it cleared the crossbar to tie the game and send the divisional rivalry into overtime. In the extra period, Atlanta had the ball first but went 3-and-out after a nice defensive play on 3 rd and 5 kept the ball a yard shy of a first down. Atlanta punted and Charlotte had a chance to win the game with a kick. They moved the ball well, again using the ground game with only 1 pass on the drive. The drive stalled out on the Atlanta 30, leaving Stephen Earl with a 47-yard kick. Earl lined up, the snap and hold appeared to be good, but Earl hooked the ball to the left, and it sailed outside the uprights. That was all Atlanta needed. They took the ball back on the 37 and in only 6 plays they got the ball well inside John Bounds’ range. Their kicker came in on 3 rd  and 5 from the Charlotte 17 and put the 34-yard kick right down the center.   Atlanta had hung on and found a way to win, but Charlotte showed they were up for this game, a game that easily could have turned the other way. It was another sign that the shift to Kyle Boller had made a difference and that Charlotte was not as far from being a solid team as fans had feared.     BALTIMORE 17  NEW JERSEY 20 The Generals knew they needed this one, and they got it, a 3-point victory that evens their record with the Baltimore Blitz atop a pretty dicey NE Division. They send Baltimore to a 2 nd  straight defeat and in doing so pull themselves back into the playoff picture. They did it behind a great effort from, who else, Maurice Jones-Drew. Pocket Hercules rushed for 141 and added another 15 as a receiver, powering the General offense despite never finding the endzone himself. POTG:  New Jersey HB Maurice Jones-Drew: 19 Att, 141 Yds, 4 Rec, 15 Yds   ARIZONA 18  SAN DIEGO 12 OVERTIME The Wranglers struggle on offense but still manage to eke out a W over the Thunder thanks to their D and a big day from Calais Campbell, who has worked himself back to within 1 sack of the league lead. Campbell had 4 TFL along with 2 sacks in this game, while both Joe Haden and Jeremy Lane added picks of Christian Ponder as Arizona moves to 11-0 and locks up a playoff spot. POTG:  Arizona DE Calais Campbell: 7 Tck, 4 TFL, 2 Sck   HOUSTON 16  MEMPHIS 24 Houston is another preseason favorite whose offense seems to be struggling of late. Memphis took advantage, picking off Colt McCoy twice and sacking the Houston QB 4 times. Houston’s D did one better, knocking Paxton Lynch out of the game early in the 2 nd , but the problem with that is they then had to face Fitz-Magic. Ryan Fitzpatrick came in, went 15 of 22 and threw for 2 scores as Atlanta moves into a tie atop the South, knocking the Gamblers 2 games back. POTG:  Memphis LB Sam Acho: 5 Tck, 2 TFL, 1 Sck   MICHIGAN 27  OHIO 20 Despite losing Christian Hackenberg to injury the Glory hung in and made this a game. Michigan got 119 yards and 2 scores from LeVeon Bell and Kirk Cousins connected with TE Ladarius Green for a third score as the Panthers held the lead for most of the game but just could not put the Glory away. POTG:  Michigan DE Justin Tuck: 2 Tck, 1 Sck, 2 FF, 1 FR   DALLAS 35  SEATTLE 28 This battle of 5-5 teams was perhaps the most entertaining game this week, with both clubs finding ways to generate big plays and plenty of points. Justin Herbert threw for 322 and 3 scores, while Brett Hundley threw for all 4 Seattle TDs, though only on 193 yards. Dallas used balance to win the game, with Herbert’s big numbers paired with a combined 139 yards rushing from Perine (83) and Charles Sims (56). POTG:  Dallas rookie QB Justin Herbert: 16/31, 322 Yds, 3 TD, 1 Int   LAS VEGAS 17   OAKLAND 20  OVERTIME The Invaders blow a 17-0 lead as Las Vegas equalized the score with 17 unanswered, including a late TD from Jeff Tuel to Aaron Dobson to send the game to overtime. We almost ended with a tie, but on the last play of the game Oakland kicker Roberto Aguayo converted on a 54-yard field goal attempt to give the Invaders the win and a share of first place in the Pacific. POTG:  Viper DE Matthew Judon: 10 Tck, 2 Sck, 1 Sfty   JACKSONVILLE 27  ORLANDO 20 Another bad outing for Orlando and another solid win for an improving Bulls team that now moves into 3 rd  place in the South at 5-6. Teddy Bridgewater was again looking good, completing 14 of 28 for 288 yards and 3 TDs, but he got some help this week as HB Devin Singletary rushed for 111 yards on 17 carries, a total that included a 41-yard scamper in the third quarter. Russell Wilson threw 2 TDs to tight end David Njoku, but it was not enough to keep Orlando from falling to 5-6 and dropping to 4 th  in the division. POTG:  Bulls’ QB Teddy Bridgewater: 14/28, 288 Yds, 3 TD, 0 Int   WASHINGTON 25  TAMPA BAY 27 Washington keeps playing teams tough but keeps coming up short. They gave the Bandits a run this week, but failed on a key 2-point conversion to tie the game, allowing Tampa Bay to run down the clock and claim victory. The Federals’ defense put a lot of pressure on Dak Prescott, sacking the Bandit QB 8 times, but did not force any turnovers and also allowed Dalvin Cook to rush for 95 yards and a TD in the game. POTG:  Bandit LB Don’t’a Hightower: 5 Tck, 2 Sck   BIRMINGHAM 19   SAN ANTONIO 24 The Gunslingers were surprisingly effective against Cam Newton, holding him to only 10 yards rushing while also recording 5 sacks and limiting the Stallion QB to only 1 TD despite 356 yards passing. On offense, Easton Stick was efficient, completing 23 of 34 for 289 yards and finding both Marquise Goodwin and Julius Thomas for scores as both teams end the game sitting at 2-9, but one feeling much better about it than the other. POTG:  Gunslinger LB Gabe Miller: 4 Tck, 2 Sck   CHICAGO 27  ST. LOUIS 23 Lamar Jackson cut loose, rushing for 110 yards, including a 65-yard TD in an effort to get a win, but in the end, Chicago just had a bit more in the tank, scoring the game’s final 14 points to turn a 13-23 deficit into a 27-23 victory. Sam Bradford threw for 334 and found both Chase Claypool and Kenny Golloday for 4 th quarter scores as the Machine improve to 8-3. POTG:  Machine rookie WR Chase Claypool: 7 Rec, 104 Yds, 1 TD   DENVER 14   LOS ANGELES 19 The Express did not wow anyone with offensive prowess, but with 9 sacks of Denver QB Josh Allen, their defense certainly opened some eyes. Allen had a rough game, throwing for only 167 yards and completing 45.2% of his throws under intense pressure from the LA front 7. The Express only mustered 1 offensive TD, but added a pick-six and a safety to help them claim victory and move to 7-4 on the year. POTG:  Express LB Uchena Nwosu: 4 Tck, 2 Sck, 1 Sfty, 1 FF, 1 FR   OKLAHOMA 18  PORTLAND 14 The Stags lose their 3 rd  game in 4 weeks as Oklahoma QB Jalen Hurts gets his first W as a starter. Hurts went 20 of 33 for 308 yards for the Outlaws while the defense sacked Marcus Mariota 5 times and forced 2 turnovers. It was 14-11 Portland after 3, but the Outlaws got the lone score of the 4 th quarter and it was enough to boost them to 5-6 on the year. POTG:  Outlaw QB Jalen Hurts: 20/33, 308 Yds, 1 TD, 1 Int   NEW ENGLAND 26  PHILADELPHIA 11 Someone break up the New England Steamrollers! The expansion club wins their 2 nd in a row and now sits at 4-7 after scoring the first 16 points of the game and holding Philadelphia to only 1 TD in the game. It was the 3-headed run game for New England that got the job done, with Forte (47), Williams (66) and Yeldon (39) combining for 152 yards. POTG:  Steamroller kicker Brett Maher: 4/4 on field goals.   NEW ORLEANS 34  PITTSBURGH 14 The Breakers move to 8-3 with a big win over the Maulers. Geno Smith throws for 323 and 3 scores while HB Myles Gaskin, still getting more carries than Denver import DeMarco Murray, takes the ball 22 times for 108 yards and a score. The Maulers were hurt by two costly Andy Dalton picks, but Dalton was under pressure all game, sacked 6 times and forced to scramble far too often for a pocket passer. POTG:  Breaker QB Geno Smith: 19/26, 323 Yds, 3 TD, 0 Int     Wrangler Offense Struggles as Cruz is Lost for 2020 We understand that few tears are going to be shed for the Arizona Wranglers. They have appeared in 5 Summer Bowls since 2013, won 3 titles, and are the defending league champions. They are also unbeaten this year. But that does not mean that everything is smiles and balloons in the Valley of the Sun. Look at the scores for the Wranglers the past 4 weeks and you see what we mean. Yes, all 4 games were Wrangler wins, but they put up 24, 26, 16, and 18 points. The offense is not what many expected and not what we are used to seeing. And now, with Victor Cruz lost for the year, it may get even worse.   The defense, and once again we have to highlight Calais Campbell, who seems hell bent on getting into the sack race once again, has been carrying the club for the better part of the season. The Wrangler offense which was so dynamic in 2019 has scored 30 or more points only once since Week 2, a 38-13 demolition of Oklahoma. And the honest truth is that we are not sure exactly why. This is still an offense with great balance and good yardage numbers, 2 nd  in the league in rushing at 114.1 yards per game and 5 th  in total yards, but they are just not putting up the big numbers we got so used to seeing. Thank goodness the D is limiting teams to only 217 yards passing per game and 15.2 points. If the Gamblers are going to repeat, they will need that defense to be the focus.   Portland Drops 2nd in a Row as Hurts Gets First Win Another team that seems to be struggling of late are the Portland Stags. After a 5-2 start, the Stags have gone 1-3 in their last 4 games, including a bad loss to the then 1-9 San Diego Thunder and now this week’s lackluster performance against Oklahoma. The high-scoring offense that put up 44 against Oakland in Week 7 and 38 against Denver the week before has put up only 14 points twice in their 3 losses, the other being a defensive collapse against San Diego, producing a 42-27 loss.   Is it that teams have figured out Portland’s formula? That with more film there are more obvious ways to limit the Stag attack? Or is it just the natural ebbing and waning of success for a team not used to winning? The Stags face the Denver Gold again this week, having beaten them 38-27 six weeks ago. This will be a good test to see if Stag Nation needs to be worried or if the club can right the ship against a struggling Denver Gold club.   Herbert Leads Dallas to Big Win in Battle of 5-5 Teams This weeks battle of 5-5 clubs Dallas and Seattle was the tale of two QBs making hay. Seattle may have found an unexpected diamond in the rough with New Jersey castoff Brett Hundley, who threw for 4 scores in this shootout game, but Dallas is thinking they may have their guy for the next decade as rookie Justin Herbert is improving each week and looking very much like a possible Rookie of the Year. Herbert had his best game statistically against Seattle, completing 16 of 31 for 322 yards and 3 touchdowns. He is mixing it up among his receivers as well, with Sammy Watkins starring last week while this game saw Herbert find Courtland Sutton for 127 yards. He is also not afraid to get the backs into the passing game, evident with a pair of beautiful swing passes to Samaje Perine, one for a 32-yard gain and the other for a TD.   As we outlined above, Dallas has a shot to get locked in, go on a tear, and lock up their first playoff berth since the move from Boston (the first since Boston’s 2009 league title, actually), and at the helm of that run would be a rookie QB who is making the most of his first season.   Jackson unleashed in St. Louis Run Game There are not a lot of good moments coming out of a 1-10 season for the St. Louis Skyhawks this year. They got their coach fired midseason. Their star halfback was lost to injury for most of the year, and their defense continues to be as ineffective as those off-brand towels in the Bounty ads. But, one bright spot was seen this week, when interim head coach Dave Borgonzi gave the fans a taste of something they have been craving for a long time, a running Lamar Jackson. Jackson was not only given free reign on some run-pass options, but had several scheduled QB runs added to the playbook. The result? How about 110 yards rushing, including a scintillating 65-yarder, and a much closer game against Chicago than many expected. Jackson still has work to do in the passing game, where he threw for only 162, but the addition of planned runs as well as some RPO plays is very welcome to Skyhawk fans who constantly questioned why Borgonzi’s predecessor, Frank Reich, did not make use of Lamar Jackson’s talents as a runner. Will adding this wrinkle be enough to allow Borgonzi to keep the job at the top of the Skyhawk staff? That seems unlikely, but what it may do is alter what ownership is looking for in their next coach. Bringing in a coach with a penchant for RPO and a love of mobile QBs may be on the agenda if Jackson proves that he can thrive in that kind of system.   Two teams in, two teams out, and 26 left to fight on. The Wranglers and Bandits, both 11-0 are now mathematically locked into no worse than a Wild Card, but you know they are shooting for much more. On the flipside of the table we have the 1-10 Philadelphia Stars and St. Louis Skyhawks, two teams that have already jettisoned their head coaches, officially out of contention and forced to play out the string for the next 5 weeks. In between these two poles we have 26 teams, each with varying control of their own destiny. Looking good we have 9-2 Michigan and Atlanta along with 8-3 New Orleans, Memphis, Chicago, and Pittsburgh. A bit more desperate we have 3-8 Ohio and Charlotte as well as 4-7 New England and Denver. Only 1 returning player on the COVID-list, a season low, and a pretty small group overall. As far as on-field injuries, the story this week is the loss of Victor Cruz for the rest of the season after the speedy wideout tore his hamstring in a non-contact injury. Arizona will certainly miss their speed receiver, as was evident this week as their offense struggled.   OUT WR         Victor Cruz          ARZ       Torn Hamstring             IR DE          Kony Ealy              NJ           PCL Tear                          IR LB           Junior Galette        NEN      MCL Tear                          IR OG         Mike Iupati           ORL      Wrist                            1-2 Weeks DT          Albert Haynesworth     ATL         Thigh Bruise            1-2 Weeks CB          Ronald Darby                   CHA      Hamstring                   1-2 Weeks   DOUBTFUL DE          Kereem Martin              ORL       Groin OT          Levi Brown                     TBY        Thigh DT          Jason Hargrave               ARZ       Knee   QUESTIONABLE QB         Paxton Lynch                MEM     Pinched Nerve WR         JuJu Smith-Schuster    HOU     Finger CB          John Reid                        PHI        Hand QB         Matt McGloin                LV           Neck   COVID-19 INACTIVES BAL        LB           Jarvis Jones                 2 nd Week DAL       SS           Dezmen Southward OKL       OT          Austin Corbett PHI        OT          Dion Dawkins SAN       CB          Jordan Pugh SEA        SS           Terrell Edmunds WSH     LB           Tremaine Edwards   Eight Players Who May Benefit from a Change of Scenery By this stage of the season, we have a pretty good idea of the main storylines of the year. Sure, there may be a late season surge, or a collapse down the stretch, but what we generally know is which teams have the pieces in place to be successful, which do not, and where there might be a mismatch between a coach’s system and the players he has to run that system. We asked our bullpen of USFL experts to take a look at all 30 teams and to identify those places where a team’s system or the coach’s vision of how to build a team just does not mesh well with certain players, to identify players who might well find much more success in a different system. We asked who would benefit from a new system, a change of coaching style, or just a new start with a new team. We found 8 players that most agreed could be successful if they just found a new home and a system that suited their talents.   QB Kyler Murray (LA) Yes, we understand that the 2020 season is only Murray’s 2 nd  in the pros, and maybe it is too early to judge what we have seen from the sophomore QB, but what we see is a QB who is just not aligned well with Coach Lewis’s somewhat conservative offensive approach. Much like Lamar Jackson in St. Louis, Murray is a more instinctive, out of the pocket, passer, a player who can use his feet to keep plays alive and even scramble to make plays. That is not what Coach Lewis is looking for and it shows in Murray’s early career stats. After a rookie year that saw him throw for only 2,650 yards and earn a 73.4 QB Rating, his numbers look even worse this year. He likely will finish with more yards, but with 14 picks already this year and a current QBR hovering around 65, he is simply not showing us the kind of inventive playmaking that was highlighted at his time in Norman as OU’s signal caller.   QB Christian Hackenberg (OHI) There was a time when we saw a lot of potential in Hackenberg. In 2017 he threw for 3,440 yards, and did so again in 2019, but he has always struggled with interceptions, an average of 13 per year his first 3 years. We are only 11 games into 2020, and he already has 17 picks in Ohio’s offense. And here is where we think the issue lies. Coach Coughlin is asking Hackenberg to be a QB that he just does not have the skills to be. Coughlin wants him to play a vertical game, taking advantage of the Glory run game to catch defenses in man coverage and take the ball deep, but Hack is best when he is throwing underneath, finding players in holes in zone and not trying to connect on deep balls. His touch is just not that good on the long ball and far too often he underthrows the ball, which is ideal for deep safeties to have time to come in and snatch the ball away. Put Hackenberg in a West Coast system based on zone beaters and he could find more success. In Coughlin’s system he just is being asked to play a game that is not aligned with his skills.   HB Kenyan Drake (ATL) Atlanta’s change of pace back started his career as the starter for the Fire but has been displaced by Nick Chubb. Chubb is a clear power back, at his best when he is running between the tackles and shedding off tacklers. Drake is best suited to counters, outside runs, and misdirection plays, where his one-cut skills can be maximized. Averaging fewer than 10 touches per game and often asked to mimic Chubbs inside game, we just are not seeing the production that Drake could have if he were in a system that used him to misdirect defenders. Put Drake in a spread offense, or even a 3-receiver base set and he could be a very dangerous weapon, but we don’t see that happening in Atlanta.   WR Chris Givens (SD) There are a lot of issues in San Diego this year, including real concerns that QB Christian Ponder has regressed when compared to past years. One of the obvious issues has been that WR Chris Givens is just not the receiver that San Diego needs in the slot. He has already seen snaps taken away by rookie Laviska Shenault, and he just does not have the quicks to make the kind of routes on the inside effective ones. In our view, Givens has the potential to be a very solid outside receiver, but San Diego is not putting him in that position, not wanting to displace either Marques Colston or Ronald Johnson to give their 3 rd  receiver that shot.   WR Stevie Johnson (STL) There is only one thing you need to know about the 2020 version of Stevie Johnson to understand why he is on this list. He currently trails Allen Robinson in targets, catches, and yards. That seems absurd on the surface and is a clear sign that the Skyhawk coaching staff just does not know what to do with Johnson. They are trying to turn a burner into a possession guy, and that is just not his game. Put Stevie Johnson in a position to use double moves, or just to scream down the field, and he can make big plays. Ask him to go over the middle and turn an 8-yard route into a 20-yard gain and you are setting him up to take a lot of hits that his frame cannot handle. It just does not make sense to use him that way.   DT Sheldon Richardson (STL) We stick with the Skyhawks for one more underutilized or misused player. Sheldon Richardson should be a space eater, the perfect nose tackle for a 3-4 system, but instead he is being asked to work stunts and line shifts in the 4-3. Yes, he is a big man, and he is powerful, but agility is not his best feature and asking him to penetrate the line when he is best suited to hold multiple blockers at bay seems like a complete mismatch between his talents and the system the Skyhawks want to run.   DE Arthur Moats (ORL) With 7 seasons of 10 or more sacks, and with a 20-sack 2017, many felt that Moats should be the highlighted edge rusher for a club, taking over the Left End position that puts him on the blind side of most QBs. Many thought this would happen when Calais Campbell left for Arizona ahead of the 2019 season, but rather than respect Moats’ success as a pass rusher, the Renegades brought in Montez Sweat and offered the rookie the coveted LDE slot, keeping Moats on the right side. His numbers are still fine, with 11 sacks already this year, but he could be doing more and earning more on the left side with a team that allows him to be the main man on that D-line.   LB A. J. Johnson (CHA) Charlotte has a situation at linebacker that most teams would love to have. They have 2 very strong middle linebackers in Rolando McClain and A. J. Johnson. The problem is that Coach Vance Joseph is a fully devoted 4-3 guy, which means that one of the two has to move outside. That man has been Johnson, who is often found in pursuit on the strong side of the formation. Johnson is a natural MLB, and we have seen more than a few times where his size and relative lack of mobility is a hinderance rather than a benefit to the Monarch defense. Put him on either a 3-4 lineup where he can focus on charging the gap against the run or even a 4-3 where he is positioned as the middleman of a linebacker trio and he could be far more effective.    Charlotte to Go Deep Purple in 2021 The Charlotte Monarchs very much feel like a team looking to reboot in 2021, so it is not surprising that their new Under Armour look is very much a departure from their past identity. Gone is the teal-dominant look they have worn since coming into the league as an expansion club in 2008. The team colors remain the same, but a clear shift has occurred as the 2021 uniform design goes purple dominant.   The shift starts with their new helmet, featuring a purple shell and purple facemask. Other than the team name on the rear bumper and a use of teal in the new diamond-pattern found above the rear numbers, there is no teal at all in the helmet. The modified crown logo, now more vertical with an “M” carved in the empty space between the lower white bar and the gold upper crown, features no teal at all, and with no helmet striping, it is a very purple-dominant look.   The jerseys repeat many of the motifs we see in the helmet, the dominance of purple in both road and home uniforms, the use of a diamond motif throughout, particularly in the sleeve cuffs and the collar, and the use of teal in very limited ways throughout, even less prevalent than the use of gold, which we at least see in the outlines around the player numbers. It is a very clean look, including as well a new secondary logo based on the image of a playing card with a stylized king holding a football instead of a sword or scepter. The pants are also very basic, with no prominent striping, only a small crown logo and 3 diamonds on the hip. Under Armour is using a different material, creating a slightly glossy stripe down the center of both pants, but it is a stripe in the same color as the pant set so it only appears to be a bit of shimmer in an otherwise monochrome pant. The alternates are where we see the tradition of Charlotte as a teal-wearing team return. Of course the retro look retains the teal helmet that the Monarchs have worn since their inception, with the full uniform reflecting their 2008 inaugural look, complete with a tapered helmet stripe and the unique chest stripe that formed a crown at the base of the collar. The alternate, appropriately named the “Teal Deal” combines the teal color scheme with the new diamond pattern and minimalist jerseys. Using the same teal helmet shell, but now with a teal facemask, the uniform, in both white and teal versions, simply swaps purple for teal across all elements, creating a look that reflects the new aesthetic while bringing back the color balance from past years of the Monarch franchise.   We enter Week 12 hoping for some tight games and some drama, which is pretty much the norm in the USFL. Friday night could be a good one as we start off at 8pm with New Jersey, now tied for 1 st  in the Northeast, looking for some respect as they take on the unbeaten Tampa Bay Bandits. Can Coach Turner find a way to slow down Dak Prescott and also to put a fire under the Generals’ offense? Friday also offers us two rivalry games, with the San Diego Thunder hoping to knock off their “big brothers” to the north, the LA Express, followed by a classic Southern Division clash as New Orleans takes on Birmingham.   Saturday features 4 divisional games. Two look a bit like mismatches, with expansion San Antonio facing the Houston Gamblers and 2-9 Las Vegas facing 11-0 Arizona, but we also have a nice battle in the Southwest with 5-6 Oklahoma hoping to hit .500 by knocking off 6-5 Dallas and Rookie QB Justin Herbert. Then, in the nightcap, a must-see game in the Central as the Chicago Machine and Pittsburgh Maulers, both 8-3 and a game behind Michigan in the division, face off with 2 nd place, and maybe even a share of 1 st  on the line.   Sunday brings us those 9-2 Michigan Panthers, who face off against St. Louis, who are only 1-10 but seem ready to unleash Lamar Jackson as a dual threat, which could be a challenge for the Panther linebackers. We also have a Pacific showdown with 7-4 Oakland taking on 5-6 Seattle in a game that could raise or crush Seattle’s playoff hopes. The rest of the action is inter-divisional, but some games to check out include 6-5 Portland hoping to snap their losing streak as they take on a disappointing 4-7 Denver squad, and a battle hovering around .500 as the 6-5 Baltimore Blitz battle the 5-6 Orlando Renegades. Both teams have struggled over the past month. Which one can use this game as a springboard to a strong finish?   FRIDAY 8pm ET        New Jersey (6-5) @ Tampa Bay (11-0)             Orlando           NBC 8pm ET          San Diego (2-9) @ Los Angeles (7-4)              Las Vegas        FOX 9pm ET           New Orleans (8-3) @ Birmingham (2-9)         TDECU             ESPN/EFN   SATURDAY 1pm ET        San Antonio (2-9) @ Houston (6-5)                    NRG                      ABC 4pm ET          Las Vegas (2-9) @ Arizona (11-0)                        Glendale            FOX 4pm ET           Oklahoma (5-6) @ Dallas (6-5)                         Las Vegas           ABC 8pm ET         New England (4-7) @ Atlanta (9-2)                   Gainesville        NBC 8pm ET            Washington (5-6) @ Jacksonville (5-6)             Tampa                    FOX 9pm ET           Pittsburgh (8-3) @ Chicago (8-3)                      Rice                      ESPN/EFN   SUNDAY 1pm ET          St. Louis (1-10) @ Michigan (9-2)                     NRG                      ABC 4pm ET          Seattle (5-6) @ Oakland (7-4)                            Glendale            ABC 4pm ET           Portland (6-5) @ Denver (4-7)                           Las Vegas           FOX 8pm ET           Philadelphia (1-10) @ Charlotte (3-8)              Orlando               ABC 8pm ET          Baltimore (6-5) @ Orlando (5-6)                       Tampa                  FOX 9pm ET           Ohio (3-8) @ Memphis (8-3)                               TDECU                 ESPN/EFN

PLAYER OF THE WEEK: While Geno Smith's numbers were great, his impact was not as profound as A. J. Green's was for the Fire, in a much closer game, a rivalry game against Charlotte, Green stepped up and put together his most complete performance of the season, one that included 2 touchdowns in what turned out to be a very close affair. PLAYOFF PICTURE: We had a feeling that this week could produce some movement in the Playoff Picture and it did, with both of the league's undefeated teams now locked into a playoff spot (but obviously hoping for more). The Bandits and Wranglers are both now focused on winning their divisions and clinching the 1 seed. On the other end of the spectrum, we also got our first two eliminations, with 1-10 Philadelphia and 1-10 St. Louis now both out of the running, something most of us had felt was the case for several weeks.