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Houston, Pittsburgh, Philadelphia, and Chicago have all clinched playoff spots, but no division titles are assured. Seattle, Atlanta, St. Louis, Los Angeles, New Jersey and Ohio are eliminated from playoff contention.

You would think that with only 3 weeks left to play the playoff picture would be pretty clear by now, but with some of the tightest division races we have seen in years, it is still wide open in both conferences. This week’s games saw a shift in the Atlantic, but there is still a lot to be settled over the season’s final weeks. Even some clubs at 5-8 still hold faint hopes for a playoff spot, though time is running out. Washington, who started the year at 6-0 and looked like the immovable object at the top of the Atlantic Division faced off against the Pittsburgh Maulers, the irresistible force as winners of 8 in a row, in one of the most anticipated games of the year. What resulted was a classic battle and a game that shook the league to its core, two heavyweights going blow to blow in a title match that could, in the end, determine who has home field throughout the Eastern Conference playoffs. In one of the better played games all season, these two contenders jabbed and parried all day, and yet it was a game where the lead changed only once, and not until the 4th quarter. Washington got on the board first, on their second possession, when Mike Hohensee, a surprise start for Don Majkowski after the Majik Man got cursed by an ankle turn in Saturday’s practice, found Herman Moore for a 5-yard TD at the end of a 65-yard drive. Hohensee would play well all day (32 of 43 for 306), but would also rely heavily on the HB duo of Barry Word and Terry Kirby. Moore, would also have a big day as the Feds’ deep ball receiver, catching 5 balls for 111 yards. Pittsburgh immediately evened up the score as Alan Risher connected with his deep threat, Louis Lipps, on a medium range 13-yard TD score on the Mauler’s next drive. The two defenses soon settle down, and for the remainder of the first half it was a trade off of field goals for the two as key third down plays from the defenses, first by Pittsburgh’s Demetrius Dubose, and then by Washington’s Lester Lyles forced each club to go for 3 in the red zone. Washington added a late field goal as the 2nd quarter wound down and went into the locker room with a slight 13-10 lead. The second half saw Washington expand on their lead, first with a 4th Doug Pelfrey field goal, and then with a 1 yard run from an unusual source, backup to the backup Mark Montgomery. Down 23-10, the Maulers were in need of a spark and once again it was Louis Lipps who provided it. Lipps would have 6 catches on the day, 3 on the Mauler’s next drive, including the TD that would pull them back to within 6 at 23-17. The two defenses traded victories over the next 4 drives, with each able to shut down the opposition before reaching scoring range, But, with 5 minutes left to play, and with Moore drawing the #1 CB in man coverage, Pittsburgh put together another TD drive, this time highlighted by Moore’s opposite across the field, flanker Raynard Brown. Risher found Brown from 20 yards out on a well-executed play action pass to get their first lead of the game with only 1:39 left to play. Washington had time to mount a field goal drive to retake the lead, but it was at this crucial point that Hohensee made a fatal error. On a 3rd and 3 from his own 33, the longstanding Federals’ backup, threw a pass to Duane Gunn, but the ball trailed the crossing receiver. Gunn reached back for the ball, but was undercut by Pittsburgh’s Quintin Jones, who snagged the misplaced toss and ran it back 42 yards to boost the Mauler lead to 31-23. Washington would not recover. With only 1:16 left to play, the Federals went into full panic mode, but Hohensee struggled to find open receivers and a 4th and 7 pass to Joey Walters found the veteran double covered, the ball deflected and harmlessly dropping to the ground. Pittsburgh had taken the win at Three Rivers, and with it propelled both themselves and Philadelphia ahead of Washington in the standings. The Maulers now controlled their own destiny atop the Atlantic, the division crown and the #1 seed fully within their grasp. With only games against slumping Portland, expansion Ohio, and last place New Jersey on their schedule to close the season, the Maulers are perfectly positioned to take both titles and enter the playoffs as the kings of the hill. Washington, now a game behind 2 divisional foes, has to hope for upsets against both the Stars and the Maulers, as they do not play either foe again this season. With 9 wins, they are assured a playoff spot, but it may now require them to play in the Wild Card game after spending 12 weeks atop the division. PHI 17 OHI 15 The Stars joined the Maulers at 10-3 but it did not come easy. The plucky Ohio Glory kept the Stars offense in check most of the game, but the combo of Charlie Garner and Pat Chaffey eventually wore down the Glory linebackers. Ohio had a chance to equalize after a late Ernest Byner TD, but their attempt to go for 2 for the tie at the game’s end failed and Philly escaped with a win that keeps them in the hunt with Pittsburgh. With Oakland, New Jersey and Baltimore on the docket for the Stars, they will need to find more offense to keep pace with Pittsburgh. NJ 6 BAL 25 Baltimore, while out of the Divisional Title hunt, remained a game up in the fight for the final playoff spot by knocking off the Generals in Memorial Stadium. The defense sacked Rob Johnson 3 times and forced three interceptions from the USC rookie. The two teams combined for 8 field goals, 6 from league scoring leader Luis Zendejas, as the Blitz still continue to struggle in the red zone. DEN 17 ARZ 24 The Wranglers continue to play their best ball and hold onto the Pacific title lead as they knocked off rival Denver in Tempe. Arizona fell behind 17-7 early in the 3rd, but got a Tim Lester TD, and a toss from Bosco to Richie Anderson to overtake the Gold and retain first place. OAK 30 LA 35 Oakland’s once promising season has come crashing down as they were outmuscled by the LA Express in Angel Stadium. Brent Pease threw for 2 scores and LB Bryce Paup snagged an early pick-six to undo the playoff hopes of the Invaders. Add in a Darnay Scott 104 yard kickoff return and you have an upset in favor of the Express. ATL 16 POR 31 Portland got the break they needed to snap their losing streak as they nearly doubled up the expansion Atlanta Fire. Robert Drummond had a monster game, rushing the ball 23 times for 191 yards and 3 scores as the Thunder kept the ball on the ground and just overpowered the visiting Fire. The win helps keep Portland alive for a Wild Card as they hold a tie breaker over both Denver and New Orleans, all at 7-6 and fighting for that last spot. CHI 23 SEA 13 Chicago traveled up to the Northwest and got the job done, with Mario Bates stepping in for a dinged up Ricky Watters and gaining 83 yards in the Machine victory. Wessley Walls also helped the cause with 6 catches for 97 yards as a 6-3 halftime lead became a 10 point Machine victory. HOU 41 BIR 27 Birmingham’s hot streak came up against a red hot Jim Kelly. Kelly would throw for 417 yards and 4 scores against the struggling Stallion defense, and the Gamblers pulled away from a 20-17 deficit to win by 14. Brett Perriman had only 2 catches on the day, but they were both huge. The first was a 72-yard TD in the 2nd quarter and the second was an even more impressive 75-yard catch and run in the 4th. Add in 2 Thurman Thomas TDs and you have a solid win for the 11-2 Gamblers, who still remain only 1 game up on Chicago. MGN 14 JAX 10 Michigan, once written off, win again, and a big one as they take down Southern Division leader Jacksonville in the Gator Bowl. In a sloppy game, that saw the two clubs go a combined 4 of 23 on 3rd down, Joe Montana found Johnny Holloway for the game winner and kept themselves on life support for a Wild Card at 6-7. Jacksonville’s fall to 8-5 means they are now only 1 game up on the surging Orlando Renegades for what likely will be the only playoff berth from the South. STL 24 ORL 27 Orlando had their own struggles against the Knights, but held on despite a furious 4th quarter from St. Louis to win by 3. Scott Mitchell threw for 2 scores and the return of HB Dalton Hilliard helped Orlando control the clock down the stretch as the Renegades drew closer to Jacksonville with a huge Week 15 showdown between the two looming on the horizon. NOR 22 MEM 20 New Orleans remained in the Wild Card mix with a key win at the Liberty Bowl. Qadry Ismail had a big game with 9 catches for 109 yards, and kicker Lin Elliot’s 5 field goals were just enough to overcome a solid game by Memphis’s Heath Shuler. New Orleans QB Jamie Martin was hurt in the game, replaced by season starter Timm Rosenbach, and could miss their important week 14 clash with Michigan. TEX 20 TBY 27 A setback for the Outlaws as they fall in Tampa Bay to a resurgent Bandits club. Texas is still in solid position at 8-5, but now fall 3 games behind Houston and will likely find themselves playing host to a Wild Card game. The Bandits survived 3 picks by Troy Aikman, getting a key score from TE Ben Coates late to take the home win and move to 5-8. With 3 games left the picture is getting a little clearer, but these division races could come down to the wire. Pittsburgh and Philly are tied at 10-3 atop the Atlantic. Jacksonville’s lead over Orlando is down to one game in the South. Houston has a 1 game lead over Chicago, with the two slated to battle again next week in what could be a game to determine the division, and Arizona has only a 1 game lead on both Denver and Portland in the Pacific. With 3 weeks left clubs like 5-8 Memphis and Tampa and 6-7 Oakland and Michigan remain mathematically alive, but must sweep their final 3 to have any shot, while clubs like Texas, Portland, Denver, New Orleans and Baltimore must avoid upsets to keep themselves within the top 5 in each conference. We are now at 4 of 10 playoff spots claimed, with Pittsburgh, Philadelphia, and Chicago joining the Houston Gamblers as clinched playoff teams. Washington needs only 1 more win to clinch, but they have lost 2 in a row, while Texas, Arizona, and Jacksonville need some help if they want to clinch in Week 14. 1. BIG GAME: You know someone had a huge game when Jim Kelly’s 4 TD, 417 yard day did not garner him the Offensive Player of the Week honors. Those went to Robert Drummond, who toyed with a possible 200 yard rushing day this week for Portland. Drummond had 191 yards on 23 carries, an 8.3 yard per carry average. Now, admittedly, it was against Atlanta, which has one of the worst rush defenses in the league, giving up an average of 103.3 yards per game, but even so, that game was enormous for a Portland squad that had lost 4 in a row and desperately needed to get a W to stay alive in the playoff hunt. 2. DEFENSIVE STAR: The other big game this week came from an unlikely star for the Arizona defense. In a tight match against Denver, CB Philipi Sparks had perhaps his best moment of the season, snagging a Mark Brunell pass and winding his way through would-be tacklers to score on a 53-yard pick six. The score highlighted a big game for the Wrangler defense, one in which Sparks consistently blanketed Denver’s top receiver, Mark Carrier, and recorded 10 tackles to go along with his scoring play. Add in 4 sacks, including one each from Charles Haley, Broderick Thomas and Al Noga, and you have the kind of defensive day that could propel Arizona to a division title. 3. ROOKIE WATCH: With Rashaan Salaam going down to injury, we are all but assured that the Rookie of the Year votes will be split between Michigan’s Tyrone Wheatley (1,158 yards and 8 TDs) and Houston wideout Antonio Freeman (943 yards receiving and 9 TDs). That said, we should also recognize the great year that Bobby Taylor has had in the Oakland secondary (69 tackles, 3 Int, 2 FF and 1 sack) and the success Tyrone Poole has had on a pretty weak Atlanta defense, garnering 87 tackles and 5 picks. 4. INJURY REPORT: Some nasty injuries this week as we saw Baltimore’s top receiver Bill Brooks go down with a broken leg that could impact his ability to return next season. Atlanta HB Fred McAfee had a nasty looking ankle injury as well, which fortunately the TV broadcast stopped replaying after it was clear what the image held. In Washington LT Ken Lanier likely is out for the rest of the year with a torn quad, while Baltimore lost another key player, DE Mike Piel to a torn hamstring. In Orlando it was tackle Robert Curry who is likely down for the final stretch and Arizona will also be without their LT Kirk Lowdermilk as well. Orlando also got some bad news as their starter, Scott Mitchell suffered a sprained ankle that could cost him the remaining 3 regulars season games. The home stretch for Denver will be tougher as they will have to go without rookie HB Rashaan Salaam, whose season ended with a hip injury. We are still not sure if Don Majkowski will be able to return for Week 14, and St. Louis starter Todd Collins could miss another game as well. The New Jersey Generals this week released their new look for 1996, which combines a bit of a vintage look with some new elements. The Generals began by introducing two new logos. The new primary logo retains the five gold stars outlined in blue, but brings back the laurel leaves which were part of their first look in 1983. The second logo is a that of a revolutionary war general, complete with tri-corner hat and blue coat, arms crossed, within a circle background and with a silhouette of the state of New Jersey in the upper right. The “Jersey General” as they have dubbed him, will be included on the uniform as a patch on the right chest. Also new is the wordmark, which removes the script “Generals” in favor of a block letter format, and also includes a small outline of the state of New Jersey between the two words of the same. All of this is to reemphasize the club’s position as New Jersey’s team, despite the fact that the Generals play in the same stadium as the New York Giants and still draw a significant portion of their fan base from New York. There has long been an issue with NYC teams playing in New Jersey, most notably the Giants, and since their inception in 1983 the Generals have always used New Jersey as their identifier. The uniforms retain many elements of their original look including the red stripeless helmet with white facemask. The larger than required TV numbers on the sleeves and predominantly red and white color palette. What is new is the aforementioned shoulder patch, the use of gold outline and then blue drop shadows on the jersey numbers, and the addition of a thin (2 inch) blue stripe which extends from the underarm down the entire jersey. The stripe continues briefly into the pant, before a gold star and gold chevron form an epaulette-styled cutoff and the stripe shifts to red for the rest of the pant leg. This last addition is as close to a flourish as the largely basic uniform has, with a bit of military style, similar to dress uniforms in several military branches. The new red home jerseys will be available for sale at local retailers and nationwide through the league’s agreement with Walmart stores beginning in January, in time for the league’s annual draft and training camps. All eyes will be on Soldier Field this week as the clear “GOTW” is Houston at Chicago, with the Central Division title up for grabs. Houston decisively won the first matchup of the two Central Rivals, 38-3, but that was in Week 1 of the season and Chicago has been one of the league’s best clubs since then. In addition to this clash of titans, the Central also gives us playoff-impacting games as New Orleans faces Michigan, with the loser likely losing realistic hopes of qualifying for the postseason, and Texas, hoping to lock up a playoff spot, with a win at St. Louis. The Southern Division is also in divisional matchups, but the drama here is not quite as intense. Jacksonville hosts Memphis, and the Bulls need a win to keep pace in the division. A loss, and a win by Orlando at home against the Bandits, and Orlando pulls into a tie with the Bulls, something once thought impossible. Birmingham is out of division as they travel to Seattle, with a chance to return to .500 with a win over the hapless Dragons. The rest of the schedule is also inter-conference as Washington hopes to get back on track with a visit to Atlanta, Pittsburgh and Portland clash in Civic Stadium, Philadelphia hopes to continue Oakland’s losing streak as they face off by the bay, and Ohio is in LA in a battle of expansion clubs. Denver and Arizona both have clashes with Atlantic Division clubs as both try to ensure a playoff spot. Denver hosts the 4-win Generals while Arizona has a much tougher task, facing the 8-5 Baltimore Blitz.

Houston has clinched a playoff spot, but not the division. Washington, Pittsburgh, Philadelphia and Chicago will clinch a spot with a Week 13 win.

With some teams looking to lock up playoff spots, and others jockeying for position, we have entered the crunch time phase of the season. Week 12 marks the 3/4 mark of the year, and with only 4 games left to play the stakes are getting higher and the pressure to make a move is on. Who moved up? Who is sliding? Who is already looking at the draft and next season? Every team has a story to tell, but some are not getting the happy ending their fans wanted. With Troy Aikman back under center, we had a hunch that Tampa Bay would not be an easy out for the Philadelphia Stars, and that certainly proved to be the case as this game went into overtime before we had a winner. Aikman had a rough day, throwing 4 picks, but still managed to throw for 320 yards to help keep Tampa in the game. Chuck Long and the Stars struggled to put the ball in the endzone, so we saw a second half with 7 field goals as the two teams just kept pushing each other 3 points further. The game started with the same back-and-forth energy that it would see all day. After a Bandit field goal opened scoring, Philly responded with a long drive ending in a Charlie Garner 13-yard TD run. Tampa answered right back with their own back, Errict Rhett, scoring from 6 yards out. Philly then ended the first half with a 2-minute drill and a Marcus Pollard 3-yard TD catch. 14-10 Stars at the half. Philly extended their lead as the 2nd half began with the first of what would be 4 second half kicks for cagey vet David Trout. Tampa pulled evened the score on their next drive as Aikman hit Robert Brooks for the score. The Bandits took a 3-point lead with Dean Biasucci’s chip shot 24-yarder on the next drive, and then went up by 6 on another Biasucci kick just as the 4th quarter began. But, Philadelphia can kick the ball too, and 2 straight drives ending in David Trout kicks brought us to 23-23 with 3 minutes left. The Bandits got a good drive from Aikman and with 1:03 left in the game Biasucci kicked what the Tampa faithful hoped would be the game winner, going up 26-23. But, 1:03 and 2 time outs proved to be enough for the Stars to get into range for Trout, and with 7 seconds left in the game Trout equalized the score, sending the game into overtime. Philadelphia won the toss, took the ball, and decided that they would not give Tampa Bay a chance by kicking again. The Stars took 8 minutes and 15 plays to do it, but when Long found Marcus Pollard for his second score on the day (on virtually the same call as the first), the Stars let out a sigh of relief and took the W, their 9th of the year. For the Bandits it was a frustrating loss yet again. The offense played well, but the defense faded down the stretch and was simply unable to contain the Philadelphia Stars in overtime. LA 13 CHI 40 Ricky Watters ran wild against an ailing Express defense, gaining 131 yards on only 16 carries. That opened up the passing game as well, with McGwire finding Wendell Davis 6 times for 104 and a score as the Machine keep pace in the Central. OAK 14 HOU 17 Ten points in the final quarter help Houston overcome the visiting Invaders. Oakland’s Bobby Hebert completed only 36% of his passes on a rough day (13 of 36) but they had the lead until Houston’s Keith Woodside plunged in from the 1 to give Houston the win, making them the first club to clinch a playoff spot this year at 10-2. POR 21 MGN 34 Michigan got healthy against a Portland team that appears to be in a death spiral. Joe Montana threw for 3 scores and Wheatley rushed for 126 and a TD as this one saw the Panthers score 20 unanswered points in the second half to cruise to a home win and stay alive at 5-7. ATL 19 NOR 26 Atlanta gave the Breakers a scare, but Erric Pegram came up big, with 122 yards rushing, to help New Orleans even their record at 6-6. Martin TDs to Ray Rowe and Qadry Ismail helped the Breakers upend the very game Atlanta Fire. ARZ 39 STL 0 The Knights crashed and burned early, trailing 26-0 at the half as Arizona picked off Todd Collins twice including a Kerner pick six, eventually leading to David Archer coming into the game. That did not help either as Arizona was in QB hunting mode by that point. The Wranglers finished with 3 sacks and 3 picks on the day as they cruise to a win and the top spot in the division. DEN 10 TEX 30 Arizona leads the division because Denver came out flat against the Outlaws and was quickly in a hole they could not climb out of. Kelly Stouffer threw 3 TDs, including a 40 yarder to Shawn Collins on the way to the Texas victory. JAX 22 BAL 13 Baltimore stumbles despite picking off Chandler twice. Both the Blitz and the Bulls scored on a pick 6 in a sloppy game that saw several turnovers and 11 combined penalties for nearly 100 yards. The game was 15-13 until late in the 4th, when an Owen Gill run gave Jacksonville the space they needed to finish out the game. MEM 30 NJ 24 Rob Johnson threw for 243 and 3 TD’s but it was not enough as Heath Shuler had another strong day for the Showboats, throwing 3 scores of his own. Both Greg Boone and Tommy Agie rushed for 54 yards exactly as the Showboats pull off the road win despite 111 on the ground from Walker. SEA 3 PIT 34 Getting Dave Krieg back under center was not a silver bullet for the Dragons as Pittsburgh remains white hot and steamrolls the Dragons. Alan Risher returned to action and threw for 3 scores, while Mike Rozier put in a workmanlike 22 carries for 91 yards and a score to help Pittsburgh stay on pace in the Atlantic. BIR 33 WSH 17 Washington falls back into a 3-way tie with Philly and Pittsburgh thanks to the resurgent Birmingham Stallions. Keen to return to .500, the Stallions found holes in Washington’s highly-regarded defense. Ernest Givens caught 6 balls for 147 yards, and both Joseph and Philyaw scored rushing TD’s as the Stallions racked up 442 yards of offense to Washington’s 294. Houston becomes the first playoff team to lock in a berth as they hit the 10-win plateau. Washington falls into a 3 way tie with the Stars and Maulers, and each of the three can clinch a spot next week with a win. Jacksonville now has to worry about what appears to be a reawakened Birmingham squad at 6-6 and within range of the final playoff spot if not the division title too. Out West, Arizona and Denver are tied atop the Pacific, with Portland and Oakland falling back to 6-6. Portland has lost 4 in a row after a 6-2 start, while Oakland has just lost their 3rd in a row. Chicago, at 9-3, is in a good position to line up a playoff berth next week as well, though they are still seeking to catch Houston for the division and hopefully a bye. 1. Chutes & Ladders: There is something of a football cliché to talk about peaking at the right time, and while there is ample evidence that there is truth in this, there is also the inverse, the crunch time collapse. It appears that this year we have a little of both happening. Both Pittsburgh and Philadelphia are on impressive win streaks, 8 and 6 games respectively, and that has allowed them to catch up to Washington, who are 3-3 after a massive 6-0 start. In the South we have Orlando chasing on the tail of Baltimore for the final playoff spot in the East with a 2 game win streak, and Birmingham the winners of 3 in a row to reach 6-6. In the Western Conference we have fewer positive streaks, though Arizona’s 3-game win streak has surprised many. What we have out west are plenty of negative slides. Oakland this week lost their 3rd in a row. Portland is on a 4-game slide that took them from 6-2 down to 6-6. Just why teams are either flopping late or surging towards the end of the year is tough to say. Injuries certainly can play a role, as can the maturation of younger players. Sometimes it is just a slow start to the year being rectified, or a pretender being unmasked that impacts the late season of a club. This year, with only 4 games left. 2. Too Little Too Late?: Brett Favre, and his 4,000 passing yards, have Birmingham surging at the right time as they reached .500 and are looking very dangerous for the rest of the season. Favre, who has been doing it without much semblance of a run game, is not only leading the league in passing yards, but is closing in on Jim Kelly in passing TD’s. Of course, Favre’s 20 interceptions are still a concern, well ahead of other interception leaders, Flutie, Mike Kelley and Aikman. The return of Ernest Givens has been huge, with Givens two straight games over 130 yards receiving after coming off of injury. The defense is still a concern, rated 21st in the league in points allowed, and 22nd in yards allowed, which means that in both categories there is at least one expansion club better than them. They will need to keep scoring in bunches, but there are few that think doing so is impossible for the Stallions. Whether they are playing spoiler or taking a shot at a late Wild Card push, no one wants to face Birmingham right now. 3. Future's So Bright?: Looking at the opposite side of the standings, we can start to look at the 1996 draft. Seattle seems destined to grab the #1 pick as they have only 1 win on the season, but a 2nd win could lead to Atlanta grabbing the top pick. After Seattle and Atlanta, we find St. Louis, Los Angeles, New Jersey, Ohio, and Tampa Bay. Looking at the draft, the players expected to be at or near the top of USFL wish lists include USC wideout Keyshawn Johnson, Illinois defenders Kevin Hardy (LB) and Simeon Rice (DE), Nebraska and Michigan HBs Lawrence Phillips and Tim Biakabatuka, and Ohio State speedster Terry Glenn. Seattle could go a lot of directions with their first pick, and with no top notch QB’s on the table, they might just look at a halfback or some defensive help. Their best bet to get a player who will count only 50% on their cap would be to look at either Oregon DB Alex Molden or Washington Husky DB Lawyer Milloy, but is CB really a need area for a team that lacks offensive punch. We all think Atlanta will look for a HB in the draft, not only because their run game has been so bad in their inaugural year, but because they seem to have QB set with the combo of veteran Cliff Stoudt and rookie Eric Zeier. Either Phillips or Biakabatuka could be a good fit, but don’t count out Auburn’s big tackle Willie Anderson as a way to improve the run game, and then a lower round back like Auburn’s Stephen Davis. For LA, which seems to have some decent talent on offense, they will have to look defense, so they could take a flyer on one of the Illinois products, or go for a half-price cap player such as USC DE Israel Ifeanyi or UCLA LB Donnie Edwards. Of course, the LA schools, UCLA and USC, also offer a lot of offensive talent which might make LA double down. Players like Keyshawn Johnson, HB Karim Abdul Jabbar, and tackle Jonathan Ogden are all enticing options for a team that lacks depth. As for St. Louis, we assume they wish to test out Todd Collins at QB for a full year, so no go for that position. They too could use a halfback, and Phillips would bring in some fans, but they also need defensive help. DE Cedric Jones of Oklahoma or Simeon Rice would be an immediate impact player for the Knights. 4. INJURY REPORT: Arizona’s J.J. Stokes continue to face issues in his rookie year, this time a hip issue could cost him a week or two. In Baltimore the concern is DE, where Mike Piel could be done for the year. Chicago looks like they could be without their offensive engine for at least a week as Ricky Watters has a hamstring issue that could linger. They also are without two starting LB’s as both Robert Hinkley and Mark Munford will miss time. Denver is hoping that Kurt Gouveia can play with what appears to be a case of turf toe, while Jacksonville’s hopes that Natrone Means could return look to be on hold for another week. Pittsburgh could be down to their third best corner as both Quintin Jones and Sonny Gordon are listed as questionable this week, and finally ST. Louis may have to go with David Archer at QB if the injury to Todd Collins’ right eye (a poke from a DE) continues to blur his vision. As always the ability to sign a top recruit, to block out the NFL, remains a major factor in all personnel decisions. As much as the USFL would love to sign the entire top of the NFL draft class, that is just never going to happen. I anticipate perhaps 10 of the top 30 prospects signing with the spring league, just based on what we see year in and year out. So the key, as always, is to find gems among lower-rated players, much as New Orleans seems to have done with 3-year veteran Jamie Martin and rookie HB Terrell Davis. Week 13 looks like a good one, with some really interesting inter-divisional games. The big game is a divisional one as we have 9-3 Washington headed into Pittsburgh to face the surging Maulers. This game could well decide who wins the Atlantic this year. Also in the Atlantic we have Baltimore hoping to knock back New Jersey and stay a leg up on the final Wild Card slot. Philadelphia is in Ohio and eyeing their 10th win. The Pacific also has a key divisional game as Arizona takes on Denver in Tempe. A win here for either team could propel them to a division title. Oakland is headed downstate to face the LA Express, while Portland hosts the Atlanta Fire in an intra-divisional matchup. The other games of interest include Houston facing the red hot Birmingham Stallions, Michigan traveling to Jacksonville, New Orleans in a regional rivalry game with Memphis, St. Louis visiting Orlando and the “Battle of the Bad Guys” as the Outlaws face the Bandits in Tampa Bay. Finally we have Chicago flying out to the Northwest to face the 1-11 Dragons.

Divisional games this week help to either sort out or further muddle the playoff picture. In the Atlantic all three favorites won big, but the South got more confusing with Orlando shocking Jacksonville, while in the Central, Texas made a claim against the “Big 2” by upsetting Chicago. Out in the Pacific it was Portland that failed to keep pace, as Arizona barely squeeked by with a W and Denver stayed hot. A big week to be sure. Seems odd that we pick a game between two teams with losing records while so many playoff-impact games were happening this week, but from a sheer enjoyment standpoint, this game was the best of the week. Second Year QB Heath Shuler had a strong game for the Showboats, completing 36 of 50 passes for 309 yards and 3 touchdowns. Brett Favre matched him with 281 yards and 3 scores of his own in Ernest Givens’ return to the field, a game in which he caught 4 balls for 138 yards and a score. It was a back and forth game all the way from the opening drive. Favre wasted no time, hitting Givens for a 71 yard TD on the 1st play from scrimmage. The play action fly pattern caught the Showboats napping, and they clearly forgot how fast Givens can be when healthy. He flew past the corner and Favre hit him on a pass that sent the crowd at Legion Field into hysterics. Memphis clawed back, thanks to two Kevin Shea field goals to end the first quarter at 7-6. Birmingham would then score 14 unanswered in the 2nd quarter and Memphis 14 unanswered in the 3rd (two Carl Pickens TDs from Shuler) so that by the time the 4th quarter began, it was all tied up at 21 apiece (2 point conversion on Memphis’s 2nd TD helped this). Birmingham struck again to start the final quarter as Favre found Lawrence Dawsey from 22 yards out to put Birmingham back on top. Memphis answered, and with 4:31 a short TD pass from Shuler to Townsell again tied the game. But, 4:31 was way too much time left to Favre and he methodically drove Birmingham down the field for a Scott Norwood kick with 1:37 left. Memphis took the ball on their own 25 and moved the ball down to the Birmingham 35, setting up Shea for a potential game-winning FG with 40 seconds left and a 4th and 2. The sizeable contingent of Memphis fans in the stadium yelled for Coach Ryan to go for it and get Memphis closer, but Buddy opted for the kick, and Kevin Shea has always been a solid long-ball kicker. But, when Shea’s kick hooked left and fell both outside and short, the Birmingham crowd got what they needed and Birmingham moved their record to 5-6, which is now only 2 games behind both Jacksonville (for the division) and Baltimore (for the last wild card). Could the Stallions actually work their way back into playoff contention? Is the lost season not lost? Still 5 games to play, but it now seems possible, something we would not have said only a week or 2 ago. WSH 27 BAL 6 The Federal defense shut down the Blitz, forcing 2 Chris Miller interceptions, and Majkowski hit 3 different receivers for scores as the Federals reasserted their position as the frontrunner in the Atlantic. PHI 30 NJ 6 Philadelphia got an emphatic win over their rivals from New Jersey, thanks to 2 Pat Chaffey TD runs and yet another Cris Carter TD catch. Herschel Walker was held to only 57 yards by the tough Philly D. PIT 17 OHI 14 Ohio proved their mettle yet again, taking the Maulers into overtime before Pittsburgh could pull out the win. Of course, Alan Risher went out early in the 2nd, so once again the Mauler offense was hamstrung. Pat O’Hara struggled, but did put both Mauler TD’s on the board and helped Pittsburgh get into position for the winning Septien kick. TBY 41 SEA 10 Troy Aikman returned to action and it showed as the Bandits put up 403 yards of offense and blew past an undermanned Seattle squad. Rookie Terrell fletcher rushed 6 times for 51 yards in support of Errict Rhett (76 yards on 16 carries). ORL 21 JAX 17 Orlando stayed relevant by upsetting the division-leading Bulls in Jacksonville. All 3 of Orlando’s scores came in the 2nd as they got a TD run (Fowler), a TD pass (Mitchell to Emmanuel) and a Pick-6 (Ryan McNeill) to jump on top of Jacksonville. The Bulls scored 10 in the final half, but could not get the 3rd score they needed to pull out a win. TEX 24 CHI 17 Texas made a huge step towards the playoffs by upsetting the Machine in Soldier Field. Reggie Cobb rushed 22 times for 106 yards and a key score to power the Outlaws attack. The Texas D also held Ricky Watters to only 39 yards on 14 carries as Texas kept Chicago at bay and stuffed a final drive on a 4th and 3 stop. NOR 17 HOU 20 Jim Kelly struggled against the Breaker D (48% completion rate and 2 picks) but got enough help from Thurman Thomas and his defense to upend the Breakers and gain sole possession of 1st in the Central. Rookie Terrell Davis took a big step towards becoming the bellcow for New Orleans, as he rushed 11 times for 60 yards in the loss. STL 17 MGN 9 Michigan’s slide is now officially a free fall as they lose at home to the 2-win Knights. Todd Collins threw for 2 scores, while Michigan, despite 103 yards from Tyrone Wheatley, could not find the endzone. ATL 20 ARZ 22 Atlanta hung close all game but failed on a 2-point Pat late with the game on the line. With rookie Eric Zeier still dinged up, Cliff Stoudt again got the start, and threw 3 TD’s including one to Ernie Jones with 1:24 left to play, but a solid defensive play by Broderick Thomas shut down the 2-point play, preserving the win for the homestanding Wranglers. OAK 3 DEN 22 Denver’s defense frustrated the Invaders all day, completely shutting down the Oakland run game and limiting Bobby Hebert to 145 yards passing. Mark Brunell had the opposite day, completing 80.6% of his passes (29 of 36) and helping guide the team’s only TD drive. Jeff Wilkens added 5 FG to help Denver get a key divisional win. POR 16 LA 24 This was a game Portland had to have, and they failed as Marcus Allen had his first 100-yard game of the season for the Express. Despite Robert Drummond’s 122 yards, Portland could not turn drives into points, and 2 interceptions by the LA defense kept the Express on top, earning them their 3rd win of the year. 1. Young Guns: QB play remains the hottest topic in the league as young guns like Heath Shuler, Mark Brunell and Scott Mitchell are beginning to work themselves into the conversation. While the big names in the league, Kelly, Favre, Hebert, and Stouffer, are doing just fine, it is good to see some young QB’s making the best of their chances. Add in the mixed bag of showings from rookies Todd Collins and Rob Johnson, and there is a sense that we are in a transition phase among USFL signal callers. 2. MVP Race: Looking at the MVP race again, things have tightened up a bit. We still see Jim Kelly as the frontrunner, simply due to the success Houston has had, but Portland’s Robert Drummond is having a heck of a year with 1,126 yards and 12 TDs after only 11 games. Add in a possible late season push from Brett Favre and the Stallions, and a possible run at the Sack record by Washington’s Dexter Manley, and this could be a tight race. 3. Sideline Stars: Coach of the Year could be another tight race. We love the job that Jim Fassel has done in Jacksonville, but if the Bulls fade down the stretch you have to look at what Lindy Infante has going on in Baltimore or what Wade Phillips seems to be building in Denver. We don’t see Houston’s Ray Willsey getting a nod, despite the bounceback season Houston is having, simply because everyone feels that they have too much talent to miss the playoffs again. And while we are impressed with the grit of all 4 expansion clubs, none of them look to be sniffing .500, so that makes giving any expansion coach the award. 4. Steal City: If you are looking for a reason why Pittsburgh has surged into contention in the East, look no further than the turnover margin stats. The Maulers are a whopping +21 with only 8 turnovers committed all season and 29 takeaways. That is a solid +8 over the closest competitor (Jacksonville at +13). On the other end of that spectrum we find Birmingham at -12, thanks largely to the trend of Brett Favre being careless with throws and getting picked. Memphis is little better at -10, as the two southern teams are the only squads in the league with 2-digit negatives. 5. Injury Update: A big blow for the struggling LA Express as DE Santana Dotson is out for the remainder of the year with a torn posterior cruciate ligament. Perhaps the best player on the Express defense will be in rehab well into the offseason after getting rolled up on by a lineman this week. Chicago too suffered a big loss as guard Juan Castenada also suffered ligament damage in his knee and will also be out for the rest of the year. Atlanta lost HB Fred McAfee toa broken foot, and Texas will be without backup TE John Henry Mills thanks to a broken collarbone. St. Louis could miss wideout Rocket Ismail for the rest of the regular season as a torn MCL sidelines the speedy receiver. In Jacksonville some bad news as a fracture in the lower arm of halfback Natrone Means could keep him out until week 16 or even the postseason. Orlando will miss their starting halfback, Dalton Hilliard, for at least 2 weeks with his own arm injury, though it appears not to be a break. Others expected to miss at least a week include Washington WR Joey Walters (knee), LA linebacker Donta Jones (hand), Texas wideout Lawyer Tillman (foot), Pittsburgh QB Alan Risher (foot), Houston WR Brett Perriman (shoulder), and New Orleans guard Jeff Zimmerman (foot). Washington and Houston retain slim leads in their divisions and on the #1 seed in each conference, but things are getting tighter down the line. Baltimore still holds a 2 game lead on Birmingham and Orlando for the 5th and final spot, but they cannot afford to ease up as they have a lot of tough divisional games left on the schedule. Jacksonville too has to be concerned that both the Renegades and Stallions seem to be making late runs. And with Pittsburgh (7 game win streak) and Philadelphia (5 game streak) hot on their heels, the Federals cannot afford to take the pedal off the floor. In the west, Houston now has both a 1 game lead and the tiebreaker (divisional record) over Chicago. Meanwhile Texas is now challenging the Machine for 2nd place. Down at the #5 pick we have 3 teams at 6-5 all fighting for 1 slot. Arizona, Portland, and Oakland are all trailing Denver by only 1 game, but only 1 of them can get a wildcard if they fail to catch up to the Gold. Arizona currently holds the tiebreaker, thanks to a 4-1 division record, but this is still wide open and even 5-6 New Orleans is not out of it. We expect three clubs to have new looks in 1996, and this week we got a peek at the first of the three. While New Jersey is playing coy about their new look, and Chicago's new logo is a requirement of their lost trademark lawsuit, Jacksonville has opted to present us with their new look while the current season still goes on. The Bulls, hoping to ratchet up the support as they hope to lock up the Southern Division, present a new uniform that features more gunmetal grey while retaining the feel of the original garnet and orange looks. The look comes with a new wordmark, three sets of pants which can be worn in combination with the white or garnet jerseys, and just a hint of black in the number outlines. The jerseys feature gunmetal grey yokes and the iconic charging bull logo on each sleeve. The collars also feature the new USFL helmet logo, and just below the collar we find the wordmark. Week 12 has some intriguing inter-divisional games which could impact the playoff picture. On Saturday Houston hosts Oakland and Denver visits San Antonio to take on the Outlaws in the big games. We also have Arizona at St. Louis, Atlanta in New Orleans, LA heading to Chicago and the Michigan Panthers hosting the Portland Thunder. Sunday’s big game is Jacksonville at Baltimore, a game neither team can afford to lose. We also have the Washington Federals possibly facing a tough challenge as Birmingham visits. Philly takes on Tampa Bay with a healthy Troy Aikman. Pittsburgh hosts Seattle, Ohio hosts Orlando, and New Jersey takes on the Memphis Showboats to wrap up the week.

No teams have clinched a playoff spot. Seattle is eliminated.

Hello USFL fans. Just a quick word to say that I have updated the TEAMS page with all new images of each team uniform. You can also see updated info on our new expansion clubs. Teams now have icons for classic uniforms, new uniforms, and the new "mannequin figure" versions of the new uniforms. If you have not visited the TEAMS page in a while, there is a lot to see. And thanks for following USFL LIVES.

Atlanta wins its 2nd in a row, Washington loses another in an epic comeback, Pittsburgh roll s and Jacksonville moves one step closer to clinching the Southern Division as we start getting serious about playoff positioning. In a week with no shortage of drama there were games across the board which will have playoff implications, but none bigger than this week’s GOTW. In a game that would go to overtime after two massive fourth quarter drives, Chicago came back to tie with only 6 seconds on the clock and then held momentum into the extra period to knock off the Washington Federals and stay right in the hunt for the Central Division title. Dan McGwire showed his grit, leading the Machine back in the 4th and then securing the win with an epic opening drive in overtime to put the game away as Chicago once again finds hope in a backup QB. This game was nip and tuck throughout, as both defenses played well, but so did both quarterbacks. Dan McGwire stuck to the game plan of short, quick passes to minimize the impact of the Washington pass rush. Don Majkowski took the occasional shot, but also found that Chicago’s defensive shell forced him to play small ball throughout the game. Both teams also used a HB rotation to keep possession and slow down momentum for their opponent. Between the two teams we had 206 yards rushing, with Barry Word leading the Federals with a 5.2 YPC average while Ricky Watters struggled to only 2.5 YPC, but got relief from the more elusive Mario Bates (4.6 YPC). But in the end, it was the passing game for Chicago that helped snag the win. The first half was largely a testing out period, with Chicago getting an early McGwire to Eccles TD and the Feds settling for 2 Doug Pelfrey field goals. Washington would take the lead 14-7 on a Terry Kirby TD run in the 3rd and a successful 2-point try. Chicago would find their equalizer as the 3rd quarter wound down as McGwire found Wendell Davis from 2 yards out on a rub route. In the 4th, Majkowski found his new favorite target, Duane Gunn, for six and the Federals took the 21-14 lead. The lead held through two short possessions by Chicago, but with 2:07 left to play, the Machine got one more chance, and this time they would find their equalizer. Moving the ball down the field with 5 consecutive completions, one aided by a roughing the passer call on Dexter Manley, Chicago moved deep into Washington territory. A draw to Bates got them to the 2, and, after using their final timeout, McGwire found TE Eccles again, with only 6 clicks left on the clock, to tie the game and send it to overtime. Chicago would win the coin toss, and seemingly found a tired Washington defense waiting for them. It took 9 plays, but once again the Machine soon found themselves inside the 10 yard line of Washington. Knowing that a field goal would only extend the game, Chicago kept pushing towards the end zone, and on a 3rd and 1 from the 1, Mario Bates darted off the right side and plunged into the end zone to give the Machine the win. Chicago, now 8-2, would take a share of first place with the win, thanks to a Houston loss the day before, and Washington, with a loss, dropped to 8-2, with 3 teams in the Atlantic only 1 game behind now as the division tightens up. The loss may have also cost Washington LB Winston Moss for a game or two as he left the field limping after a tough collision with Chicago fullback Kimble Anders. BAL 37 HOU 17 Houston simply did not have it working on Saturday when they faced the Baltimore Blitz. Despite 106 yards from Thurman Thomas, an early injury to QB Jim Kelly hampered the the Gamblers all game, as they fell behind at the half and never fully recovered. Derrick Fenner led Baltimore with 91 yards rushing and a TD, and a late Leslie Frazier pick-six ended any hopes of a comeback. NJ 23 MGN 14 Michigan dropped their fourth in a row as New Jersey got the win in Rob Johnson’s first start. Johnson led a conservative attack that relied heavily on Herschel Walker (26 carries for 98 yards) and the New Jersey defense held Michigan to only 49 yards rushing as the Panthers continue to fade. OHI 27 NOR 13 Jeff Hostetler had his best game since coming over from Pittsburgh, throwing for 3 TD’s as Ohio found holes in the Breaker defense. The Glory also had an answer for the Breakers offense, limiting Jamie Martin to 132 yards passing and only 1 successful third down conversion on the day. PHI 30 STL 24 It was not easy for the Stars, but 20 consecutive points scored in the 3rd and 4th quarters helped them pull away from a game Knights team. Charlie Garner was held to only 42 yards rushing, but 4 St. Louis turnovers, including 3 interceptions by rookie Todd Collins, helped Philadelphia get the road win. PIT 34 TEX 3 Pittsburgh remained the hottest team in the league with an absolute mauling of Texas in San Antonio. The Maulers got a combined 134 yards rushing from Rozier and backup Dorsey Levins, and Alan Risher completed an incredible 83% of his passes on the day as Texas simply had no answers. The Pittsburgh D also proved impenetrable, as they limited Reggie Cobb to only 16 yards on 11 carries. TBY 14 ARZ 27 Arizona got the win they needed to return to .500 as John Fourcade again struggled to move the Tampa Bay offense. Robbie Bosco had his best game of the season, throwing for 3 scores as the Wranglers played error-free football and took advantage of 4 Tampa Bay turnovers for the W. SEA 3 DEN 23 Seattle continued to struggle with David Klingler at QB as Denver dispatched the Dragons quite handily behind 25 carries for Rashaan Salaam, and 3 Jeff Wilkens field goals. Denver held the ball for nearly 40 minutes as they wore down the Seattle defense, gaining 21 first downs to Seattle’s 10 over the course of the day. BIR 24 LA 20 Birmingham got 3 TDs from Brett Favre, with Lawrence Dawsey returning to the lineup to catch 7 balls for 124 yards, as the Stallions edged a determined LA Express team. Brent Pease threw for 3 scores to keep the Express in the game, but were unable to recover an onside kick after pulling to within 4 late in the game. JAX 24 OAK 19 A huge win for the Bulls as the visitors scored 14 points in the final 5 minutes to shock the Oakland crowd. Chris Chandler hit rookie Kez McCorvey for a score with 2:52 left, then, after recovering an onside kick, Chandler did it again, finding Howard Bishop for the game winner with only 44 seconds to play. Oakland, which had led 19-10 only minutes earlier, was left without a response and the Bulls moved a step closer to locking up the Southern Division with the win. MEM 31 POR 28 Portland could not take advantage of the Oakland loss, as 2nd year Memphis QB Heath Shuler impressed in his first start of the year. Shuler completed 23 of 33 for 232 yards and 2 touchdowns. He got a lot of help from veteran Greg Boone, who had his first 100-yard game this year, rushing for 115 and a score as Memphis pulled off the road upset in Portland. ORL 22 ATL 23 Atlanta made it two wins in a row as Cliff Stoudt engineered a 4th quarte drive that ended with a TD to Glenn Kozlowski with only 11 seconds left to play. For the first time all season the Fire gained over 100 yards rushing, as Bernie Parmalee and Ricky Blake combined for 128 on the day. Orlando’s Scott Mitchell threw for 2 scores but had to watch helplessly as the veteran Stoudt drove Atlanta to the win. 1. QB Switches Lead to Immediate Results: The big story this week was the benching of two longtime starters at QB, and the success of the young upstarts. Memphis opted to give Heath Shuler the chance that fans had been clamoring for and Shuler provided immediate dividends, helping Memphis to a road win in Portland. Shuler found success throwing wide to Jo-Jo Townsell (5 receptions for 112 yards and 2 scores) and Carl Pickens (6 receptions for 47 yards), and seemed nimble enough to avoid the Portland pass rush. In the SilverDome, Rob Johnson got the nod over Doug Flutie, and while not quite as successful (23 of 39 for 196), was able to guide the Generals to a win. With both clubs on the outside of playoff contention, looking in, it seems a good time to test out their young QB’s to see if they may be looking at a generational change at the position. At least at first glance there seem to be some positives to take away from the first games from both young guns. 2. Kelly Injury Not Serious: Houston got the news it was hoping for after Jim Kelly left the game against Baltimore with what looked like a left knee injury. X-rays confirmed no fractures, and after evaluations on Monday, Kelly was cleared to play next week, although he will likely wear a protective brace to keep the knee stabilized. Without Kelly the Houston offense looked vulnerable, and with Chicago now tied atop the Central, the Gamblers can ill afford losing their field marshal down the stretch. 3. Panthers Lost in the Jungle: Losing their 4th in a row has to have Michigan questioning some of their roster choices this year. While the trade of Marcus Allen in favor of rookie Tyrone Wheatley has clearly paid off, with Wheatley near the top of the rushing board, veteran Joe Montana simply has not been able to replicate his NFL success with the Panthers. A lack of top level wideouts is partially to blame, but it also seems that Montana simply does not have the same ability to will his team to victories that we saw in San Francisco. With the defense struggling right now, and with teams keying on the run, Michigan appears to be quickly fading out of playoff contention, and many believe that Montana may hang up the cleats once the season is done, leaving Michigan with a need at QB, leaving many concerned because the 1996 draft class does not appear to have any clearly pro-ready prospects at the position. 4. Maulers on a Mission: On the opposite side of the spectrum we find Pittsburgh, winners of 6 straight, and Philadelphia, winners of 4 straight, both making serious claims on the division which Washington now only holds onto by 1 game. The Maulers have rediscovered their run game, and the ageless Mike Rozier seems more than capable of bearing the load of the offense, while the Stars are winning with defense, but also with a good balance between Chuck Long’s passing and Charlie Garner’s run game. Washington still holds an edge, as they remain undefeated in divisional play, but these final few weeks are likely to be a messy give and take as the teams in the Atlantic battle it out. Even Ohio, having won 2 in a row, is now a factor, potentially playing spoiler down the stretch. 5. Injury Update: While Jim Kelly escaped serious injury this week, not everyone was so lucky. Orlando LT Robert Curry is likely gone for the season with a ruptured Achilles. Portland LB Todd Howard is also likely finished as he suffered a major hamstring injury this week. Jacksonville will be without FS Mark Carrier for the next 6 weeks with an abdominal tear, and they also lose T Antone Davis to a biceps injury. In Seattle, wideout O.J. McDuffie just cannot stay healthy, as he will be out again after suffering a neck injury against Denver. And in New Jersey, Dino Hackett is likely to be out a couple of weeks with a lower back issue. Some positive news on the injury front, Birmingham’s #1 receiver may be back this week for the first time since the opening week. Ernest Givens was cleared for action and returned to practice on Wednesday. Others potentially returning this week include SS Eric Reid in Jacksonville, G Todd Kalis in Arizona, LB Scott Stephen in Seattle, and LB Kurt Gouveia in Denver, who suffered a concussion this week but was cleared to resume play. Our first playoff preview of the season finds things getting awfully tight in the Atlantic and Pacific Divisions, while the 2-team dogfight in the Central continues and Jacksonville now looks poised to clinch the Southern Division. With 5 teams in the Eastern Conference already at 7 wins, and with a 3 game gap between 5th place Baltimore and 6th place Orlando, it seems secure which teams will be making the playoffs in the conference, so now it is all about jockeying for position and for byes. In the West, Houston and Chicago will continue to battle for the Central crown and the #1 seed, while there are 6 teams fighting for 3 playoff spots, all either at 6-4 or 5-5. Portland currently holds the tiebreaker to take the Pacific, but they cannot feel safe with Denver, Oakland and Arizona all within range to steal it from them. Week 12 gives us the first of the “home stretch” divisional clashes, with nearly all clubs in divisional play. Washington and Baltimore play in Memorial Stadium in a game that could make things very interesting in the Atlantic. Philadelphia hopes to take out the Generals and QB Rob Johnson to keep pace, and Pittsburgh faces Ohio in Columbus. In Birmingham it is a battle of 4-6 clubs as the Memphis Showboats visit the Stallions. Jacksonville hopes to remove Orlando from contention when the two play in the Gator Bowl. Tampa is the lone Southern team out of division this week as they travel to Seattle to face the Dragons. Texas and New Orleans have tough road clashes this week as they face Chicago and Houston respectively. Meanwhile St. Louis travels to Michigan in a battle of clubs that are just evaluating talent at this point. Out west we find Oakland in Denver in one key clash of Pacific clubs, while Portland visits the LA Express and the Arizona Wranglers take on the visiting Atlanta Fire.

After 10 weeks no teams have clinched a playoff spot and no teams can be eliminated.

Week 9 was a wild one, with one of the biggest upsets we can remember, some stunning blowouts, and several games that came down to the wire. And while some of the frontrunners continued to put some distance on the rest of the league, key matchups of top teams meant that some fell back a step as well. All this and 2 of 4 expansion clubs added another W in a truly memorable week of USFL action. With Houston-Portland, St. Louis-Denver, Chicago-Oakland, and Pittsburgh-Birmingham all coming down to 4th quarter heroics, there were a lot of games this week worthy of GOTW honors, but we have to give the title to the crazy game between Michigan and Atlanta that led to the first win in franchise history for the Fire. No one saw this one coming, and from the looks on the faces of Panther players when the final whistle blew, not even the Panthers thought it was possible. The loss drops Michigan to 4-5 and puts them well off the pace in the Central Division, while Atlanta, which finally showed signs of offensive continuity, finally gave the home town fans something to cheer about as they closed a game and took their first win as a franchise. The day began with the news that Cliff Stoudt would get the start as Eric Zeier was still feeling the effects of his game last week and was having difficulty planting on an ankle that got rolled in their Week 8 game. Stoudt showed every bit of his 13 years of USFL experience as he guided Atlanta to an opening drive score, connecting on 4 of 5 passes and finding Terrance Mathis for the TD on a 3rd and goal. Coach Reeves had scouted the Panthers and determined that short passes, particularly slants and in routes were the best way to attack the Panther defense, getting the ball out of Stoudt’s hands quickly, and he was right. Stoudt would go on to finish the day 23 of 31 for 243 yards and was not sacked once thanks to the quick passing game. The passing game was complemented, for perhaps the first time all season, with a better than average run game. Using a combination of quick traps and misdirection plays, Bernie Parmalee was able to average 5.9 yards per carry on 10 carries, and newcomer Ricky Blake added another 38 yards, with both players scoring touchdowns for the Fire. Michigan, on the other hand, seemed out of rhythm the entire day. This was a classic trap game with the Panthers coming off a tough loss in Texas and possibly looking past the Fire to next week’s matchup against New Jersey. They scored a field goal in the first, and put their first TD on the board in the 2nd, thanks to a solid Tyrone Wheatley run, but trailed 17-10 at the half. Perhaps a bit too confident about their ability to pull the game out, there was a general lack of urgency about the Michigan offense. They continued to feed the ball to Wheatley, but he would average only 3.4 yards per carry and end the day with only 64 rushing yards. Montana was accurate (31 of 40) but that efficiency seemed to falter when it mattered most, as Michigan failed on 4 straight 3rd downs in the second half. After two Brad Daluiso field goals pulled Michigan back to within 1 point at 17-16, Atlanta had its best drive of the day, an 11-play beauty that included a brilliant 3rd and 11 grab by wideout Ernie Jones, and a crowd-pleasing 14-yard catch and run by TE Frank Wycheck in which he caught the safety off balance and sent him crashing to the ground. The drive ended with a Ricky Blake 1 yard bulldozer into the endzone and an 8-point Fire lead. They added to that lead 5 minutes later with a Jason Elam 41-yarder, and led 27-16 with only 3 minutes left to play. Montana would lead the Panthers on a desperation drive, and got the needed TD on a short pass to Jeff Campbell with 1:24 left to play, but when the 2 point conversion failed, it mean that Michigan needed another TD, not just a field goal, and that was too much to ask. Michigan had only 1 timeout left, and when they failed to recover the onside kick, Atlanta was able to milk the clock and end the game up 5 for their first victory after 8 long weeks of frustration. The Fire are not ready to dominate the league with offensive firepower, but at least on this day they had enough to get the victory and hold off a solid opponent. Given time, and perhaps a few upgrades in personnel, the Fire could start to look a lot more like a tough out. HOU 24 POR 20 While the Atlanta game was the week’s biggest surprise, the Houston-Portland showdown was perhaps the best played and most intense game of the week. It took a late Thurman Thomas TD for Houston to snatch the lead away from Portland and get the road win. Portland got 113 yards from Robert Drummond, but Thomas’s 81 yards rushing and 45 yards receiving, combined with another solid day (111 yards on 5 catches) from rookie receiver Antonio Freeman were enough for Houston to keep their win streak rolling. PIT 31 BIR 24 Birmingham played well, but it was not enough against the red hot Maulers. Pittsburgh got 126 yards rushing from Mike Rozier and Alan Risher threw for 2 scores and 315 yards as the Maulers built up a 31-17 lead late in the 4th. Brett Favre threw 3 TD’s but also added 3 more dreaded picks to his league lead in that dubious category. CHI 24 OAK 27 Chicago had been winning games through sheer grit, but against Oakland that would not be enough. The Invaders secondary picked off Dan McGwire twice, and Bobby Hebert found just enough room in the Machine secondary to hit Mark Duper for 108 yards and a score as the Invaders held home advantage and used it to their advantage, getting the winning kick by Joe Nedney with just under 2 minutes to play. STL 24 DEN 29 Denver got the home win, but it was not easy against a Knights squad that has awakened over the past month. Todd Collins threw for 2 scores for the Knights to give them a slim 24-22 lead with 7:17 in the game, but Mark Brunell pushed the Gold down the field as time drained down, hitting Mark Carrier with the winning score with just over 1 minute left to play in this exciting duel of young QBs. BAL 26 MEM 16 Mike Kelley had yet another rough outing, throwing 4 picks against an aggressive Baltimore defense, and yet, Memphis had a 16-13 lead after 3 quarters. But, the final period belonged to the Blitz as Chris Miller led Baltimore on 3 scoring drives, first a 21-yard TD to Rob Moore, followed by two more Luis Zendejas field goals as Baltimore took home the road win to keep pace in the Atlantic. NJ 18 ORL 45 In a game that was 17-11 after 3 quarters, the wheels fell off the Generals’ bus in the 4th as Doug Flutie threw 3, count them 3 pick sixes in the final period. It was a monumental collapse as each Orlando score made New Jersey more desperate and each poor throw turned into 7 for the homestanding Renegades. What started as a close game became a farce by the end, prompting many in the NY-NJ market to declare Flutie washed up and demand a change. OHI 26 TBY 14 Ohio still leads the expansion derby as they nabbed their third win against an ineffective John Fourcade and the Tampa Bay Bandits. Jeff Hostetler went 24 of 33 and Ernest Byner rushed for 2 scores as Ohio dominated time of possession (35-25) against a Tampa squad that simply could not string together drives. PHI 41 SEA 10 Seattle did not have Ohio’s luck as they faced a fully stocked Stars offense. Chuck Long had a career day, going 31 for 36 (a stunning 86%) for 328 and 3 scores, while Charlie Garner and Pat Chaffey combined for 156 yards rushing against an overwhelmed Dragon defense. WSH 30 JAX 3 Washington, angry after their first loss, took out their frustration on a pretty good Bulls squad, dominating from the opening whistle. Duane Gunn was the surprise star of the day, catching 2 TD’s from Majkowski, while Barry Word (93) and Terry Kirby (58) combined for 155 yards on the ground as the Federals left no doubt that they were still the team to beat in the Eastern Conference. NOR 20 ARZ 7 The Breakers rebounded from their poor showing last week with a solid win over the offensively-challenged Arizona Wranglers. Jamie Martin completed just under 70% of his passes and Erric Pegram scored a key second half TD to help put Arizona away. The Wranglers, for their part, struggled to convert 3rd downs (4 of 15) and Robbie Bosco suffered 5 sacks on the day, as New Orleans smothered their passing game. 1. Changing of the Guard?: Our first story this week is potential QB controversy in both New Jersey and Memphis, where 4-interception days do not have fans feeling particularly loyal to either Doug Flutie or Mike Kelley. In Memphis, where the drafting of Tennessee product Heath Shuler last year has put pressure on Kelley, and in New Jersey where former USC signal caller and “prototype QB” Rob Johnson has the New Jersey fans calling for Doug Flutie’s job, the pressure seems to be getting to both starters. It has been a rough year for both, and this week might just prove to be a breaking point. New Jersey is in Michigan this week, and that would be a tough first start for Johnson, but it may have to happen anyway. Memphis has an even tougher task, playing in Portland against an energized Thunder defense, so perhaps going with the 2nd year Shuler is not the way to go, but Coach Ryan is not an orthodox coach, so we shall see if he gives Mike Kelley the hook or not. Either way, a bad performance from either QB on the road could spell the end and we could soon see Shuler and Johnson on the field for two teams whose seasons are slipping away. 2. Diamond in the Rough: In what is a rough first year for the expansion LA Express, we should still find the bright spots, and one of those shining lights is the play of wideout Mike Pritchard. Pritchard, who came over to LA after 4 moderately successful years in Pittsburgh, has flourished under the tutelage of Coach Rick Neuheisel, and with a starting spot assured on a far less polished receiver corps. The result is a receiver who now leads the league in both receptions and yardage. Pritchard is on course to have his first 1,000 year season, after gaining only 321 yards in 1994 behind Louis Lipps and Raynard Brown with the Maulers. His 5 TDs to date are also a career best, and while wins have been hard to come by, you have to be impressed with the way Pritchard has come out of the gate with the reestablished Express squad. 3. Sack Race: After a start to the season that saw some new names at the top of the Sack leaderboard, things seem to be reverting to predicted form as veteran names like Dexter Manley, Phil Hansen and Charles Haley find themselves pulling away from the pack. Add in Leslie O’Neill, a very shrewd NFL signing by the Denver Gold, and you have 4 solid competitors for the title this year. But, where is the Minister of Defense? How is Reggie White not up at 10, 11 or 12 sacks along with these four? White has had a rough year without Santana Dotson lining up opposite him. He has 7 sacks on the season, on pace for 13-15 total, which is no small feat, but he is far off the pace being set by Manley and Hansen. And what about Dotson, playing now for the LA Express? Only 4 sacks on the year as LA has issues all across their defense, and teams can double team the speedy DE, something he never saw when he lined up opposite Reggie White. It is a prime example of how expansion has, to a large degree, watered down the play across the league, and how some teams, like Memphis, took bigger hits than others with key players lost to the expansion draft. 4. Back to Basics: Does anyone remember the weird stat last year that saw 3 of the top 5 tacklers in the league at cornerback? That is proving to be an anomaly, as once again it is linebackers leading the tackles board, as we would expect in most seasons. Pittsburgh’s Demetrious DuBose is flourishing in his new role as the leader of the Mauler LB corps, leading the league with 80 tackles after 9 weeks. This week he also picked up his first interception of the season. Just behind him is New Orleans’s Lamar Lathon and Arizona’s Broderick Thomas. But, lest we think the passing game has lost favor (though there has been more balance this year), we do find both Aeneas Williams (OAK) and Jerome Henderson (TEX) among the league leaders in tackles and both at the CB position. This is still the USFL after all, and while the run game seems to be rebounding, we still expect more 1,000 yard receivers than rushers by season’s end. 5. Injury Update: Finally, looking at injuries, a few concerning blows to the offensive lines across the league. Chicago took a big hit as Juan Castaneda is likely out for the year with a Posterior Cruciate Ligament tear. Tackle Robert Curry in Orlando is also down, this time with an Achilles rupture. And Arizona got word this week that tackle Kirk Lowdermilk will undergo surgery, ending his year as well. In other injury news, Arizona took another hit, as veteran TE Terry Orr will likely miss the rest of the year with an ACL injury, while in Atlanta, their starting MLB, John Roper could be out up to 6 weeks (which is most of the season at this point) with a broken bone in his right foot. Houston could be without starting wideout Brett Perriman for a week or two due to a hamstring issue, while Texas will be without DE Bob Buczkowski due to a wrist injury. The Outlaws will also likely miss wideout Lawyer Tillman at least 1 week as he is dealing with a shoulder problem. And finally, Denver CB Bruce Pickens, the league leader in interceptions, will have to sit out a game after rolling an ankle this week. On the upside, Dave Krieg was able to begin practice for Seattle, and could return to the lineup as early as week 11. Houston’s Pat Swilling is expected to return to action this week, as is Chicago wide receiver Reggie Langhorne and Memphis wideout Carl Pickens. Looking at the Week 10 schedule, we wonder if we will see Rob Johnson start for New Jersey as they travel to Michigan, or Heath Shuler open for Memphis as they play the Thunder in Portland. Washington has another tough game as they head to Chicago, and the Baltimore Blitz will face the best team in the West, the Houston Gamblers. Ohio travels south to New Orleans to face the Breaker while Birmingham heads West to play the LA Express. In Texas the Pittsburgh Maulers will try to win their 6th in a row, while in St. Louis, the Stars come to visit. Tampa Bay hopes they can have Troy Aikman back in the lineup as they head to the desert to face the Wranglers, while Denver hopes to get back in playoff position with a home game against Seattle. Jacksonville will have a tough road trip to Oakland this week, while Atlanta, hot off their first win, gets the erratic Orlando Renegades at Bobby Dodd.

Week 8 gave us 10 divisional matchups and the first showdown of expansion clubs, and what we ended up seeing was a lot of uneven football, blowouts, and only a few close games to enjoy. At the midpoint of the season, what we see are that there are some teams that simply know how to win, others that cannot seem to get out of their own way, and some whose performance varies wildly week to week. With half the season gone, some of the USFL squads may already be looking ahead to 1996, while others might be tempted to make some changes just to try to spark some consistency. Our game of the week takes us to St. Louis, where the Knights have been playing much better ball over the past 3 weeks. After back to back wins, they had a tough draw in facing the 6-1 Houston Gamblers, but they held their own against the explosive Gambler offense. Was it enough for St. Louis to pull off the unexpected third win in a row? Well, not quite, but Coach Johnson has to be happy with their grit in this week’s tough game. Containing Jim Kelly and the Gambler offense is no small task, but St. Louis was largely successful in using a 2-deep zone for most of the game, forcing Houston to think small-ball rather than going for the kill shot. The Gamblers did put the first points on the board, as a long opening drive ended with a short Kelly to Ron Heller TD pass. St. Louis had a response as on their first drive of the game, they found holes in the Houston defense, and then Darrell Thompson had his best run of the year, a delay draw that caught Houston off guard and went for 32 yards and a score. St Louis was up for a game. The two teams would swap field goals for the rest of the first half as the Knights defense simply did not allow Houston to connect on any big gainers, forcing Kelly and Thomas to play for short third downs. Penalties and missed opportunities led to frustration as the Knights built up a 16-10 lead on 3 Cole Ford kicks. In the 2nd Half, Houston regained the lead on one key drive as Kelly connected with James Pruitt at the end of a 14 play drive to give Houston the 17-16 edge. Todd Collins and the Knights would respond on their first drive of the 4th quarter, as he again got Cole Ford in range, and with a 48-yarder, the Knights were back on top. Collins had a modest day, avoiding turnovers and completing 21 of 32 short passes for only 166. The star of the day for St. Louis was clearly Darrell Thompson, whose 132 yards rushing on 22 carries kept the Knights on the field. Thurman Thomas for Houston also drove the Houston offense, as he rushed for an equal 132 on 20 carries. But it would not be Thomas who would give Houston the win, but his backup, Keith Woodside. Houston knew they would need to rely on another patient drive to get the lead back, and so, with 7:22 left in the game, they embarked on what would be a 77-yard drive. Kelly dinked and dunked, hitting Perriman for 7, Freeman for 5, and Heller for 9, mixing in these passes with 33 yards of Thomas rushes. After a failed screen from the 6 gained nothing, Thomas came out and the Gamblers set up for a 2nd and goal in a 3-wide receiver set that screamed pass. Kelly instead handed off to Woodside, who found a hole on the left side of the line, and pushed past 2 tacklers to barely cross the goal line. Houston played the small ball game, was patient with their final drive and took the game, 24-19. It was Houston’s 7th win on the year, and kept them atop the Western Conference. For St. Louis it was a moral victory, but still on the standings would go down as their 6th loss. BAL 14 PHI 36 Baltimore just did not have it in gear against Philly in this lopsided divisional loss. Charlie Garner had the answer for the Blitz defense, rushing for 169 yards and 2 scores on only 19 carries. Add in 10 catches for Cris Carter and you get a definitive win for Stars, who even their record with Baltimore’s at 5-3. NJ 14 PIT 41 The surging Maulers looked like real contenders in the way they dominated the Generals. It was not a huge statistical day, with Rozier rushing for only 62 yards and risher completing 22 of 28 for only 243, but both accounted for 2 TD’s each, and the Mauler D just made Doug Flutie’s day a horrible one, as two tipped balls and three bad throws led to 5 Mauler interceptions on the day. OHI 17 WSH 27 This one looked like it would be ugly, with Washington building up a 20-0 lead early in the 3rd quarter. Joey Walters had 122 yards in the first half, on his way to 143 for the day, and the combo of Word and Kirby would rush for 100 yards combined, but in the 2nd half either the Feds took their foot off the brake, or Ohio started to figure them out, as the Glory scored 17 points to make the game look a bit more respectable. Sticking to their run-first gameplan, Byner and Workman eventually wore down the Washington line, rushing for a combined 121 yards. SEA 31 MEM 38 Memphis would get the win they desperately needed, but it would not come easy against the expansion Seattle Dragons. The two teams traded scores throughout the day before a Jeff Query 98 yard kickoff return would break the backs of the Dragons. Add on a Tommy Agie TD run and Memphis would get the win against the fired-up Dragons, despite a pedestrian 245 yard, 3 Int game from Mike Kelley. BIR 31 ORL 14 Every time we are about to write this off as a lost season for Birmingham, they come up with a game like this. The Stallions got their 3rd win of the year by focusing on their stars. Lawrence Dawsey caught 9 balls for 158 and 2 scores as the Stallions found holes in the Orlando secondary. Scott Mitchell tried his best to rally the Renegades, with 312 yards passing and 2 scores, but with no run game to speak of, Orlando was just too predictable on offense and Birmingham was able to play zones throughout the game to slow down their attack. JAX 17 TBY 13 Both Chris Chandler and John Fourcade struggled in this game. Chandler would eventually get the advantage, hitting Brian Blades for a late score in a game that few would describe as textbook offensive football. Neither team topped 275 total yards, and they were a combined 5 of 25 on 3rd down in a game only a punter’s mother could love. CHI 10 NOR 6 In an even uglier game, Chicago again managed to scrap out a win despite looking just atrocious on offense. The Machine defense made Jamie Martin look so bad that the Breakers actually went with Rosenbach in the second half, but he fared no better as the Breakers simply could not generate offense against the aggressive Chicago defense. The lone TD on the day was a Ricky Watters plunge at the end of a short drive which followed a poor handoff from Rosenbach to Pegram, a fumble which gave Chicago its only red zone visit all game. MGN 12 TEX 20 Michigan slipped to 4-4 with another close loss. In a game with no turnovers, it was a lack of big plays which hurt both clubs. Michigan was forced to stick to field goals as their red zone offense simply did not get it done. Texas had a bit more success, with Stouffer finding Eric Metcalf for one score and Reggie Cobb, who averaged only 2.8 YPC on the day, finding room for a 3-yard score in the 2nd quarter. ARZ 14 OAK 37 Oakland came out of the gates fast against the Wranglers, and by the half they had built up a 31-14 lead. The deep hole was too much for Arizona to overcome and their need to get one-dimensional just played into the hands of the Oakland defense. Robbie Bosco would throw for 403 yards in the losing effort, but this was mostly unproductive yardage that did not draw the Wranglers closer to the cruising Invaders. Milking a lead, Siran Stacy was able to gain 136 yards and we even got a rare Mike Pawlowski sighting late in the 4th. DEN 31 POR 38 Denver was game, and played one of their better offensive games, but Portland still had their number, Building a late 38-24 lead and then holding on as Denver went for two consecutive 4th down trick plays. Robert Drummond was the star of the day, scoring 3 TD’s and carrying the ball 24 times. Mark Brunell played well for the Gold, going 34 of 47 for 390 yards and 4 TDs against Oakland’s D, but it was just not enough to get the win for the now 4-4 Gold. LA 26 ATL 12 In a game that many in Atlanta saw as their best chance for a first win this season, the Eric Zeier-led Fire still came up short against the visiting Express. Bernie Parmalee could only gain 24 yards and newly acquired Ricky Blake had an unimpressive 5 yards on 3 carries to start his Atlanta career. For LA Brent Pease found Mike Pritchard 8 times for 117 yards, and Darnay Scott returned from injury to catch 5 for 102 as well. We have reached the halfway point of the season, and the stories seem to be writing themselves. To sum up the first half of the year, here are our Top 5 Pleasant Surprises, Top 5 Disappointments, and Top 5 Stories to Watch over the season’s 2nd half. PLEASANT SURPRISES 1. Rookie Success: The rookie seasons of Tyrone Wheatley (739 yards rushing in 8 games) and Antonio Freeman (57 receptions, 475 yards, and 5 TDs) have to be making fans in Michigan and Houston smile. The two are neck and neck for Rookie of the Year honors at this point, but if Wheatley can overtake Robert Drummond, he may become the runaway winner. 2. Martin To the Rescue: To say that Jamie Martin’s season has been an unexpected surprise for Breaker fans is a huge understatement. Martin won his first 4 games and was the league’s QBR rating leader after his first month, and while this week’s performance was a head scratcher, Martin seems to have laid claim to the starting job in New Orleans after 3 years as an unmentioned and largely unseen bench player. 3. Federal Surplus: The sudden success of the Washington Federals has the nation’s capital abuzz. They went 6 games undefeated, and stand at 7-1 at the halfway point. The defense looks fierce, the offense more than capable, and the team seems to have everything going there way. Even a Sam Rutigliano broken leg caused by a sideline collision did not derail the Feds. They have a tough slog to go and they will be challenged by Baltimore, Pittsburgh and Philadelphia, but these Federals seem to have found their groove. 4. High Value Import: Chris Chandler’s arrival from the NFL seems to have reawakened the Jacksonville Bulls. They still have some issues, but their offense has been a total revelation under Chandler’s command. Adding Natrone Means from Denver also has helped bring balance to the Bulls, but Chandler’s 2200 yards and 16 touchdowns have fans already forgetting the earlier success of Tony Eason in Duval County. 5. Chicago Love Story: We love what is happening in Chicago. For the second year in a row the Machine have lost their starter for the year, and for the second year in a row they seem to be flipping the bird to convention and just keep winning anyway. Last year it was NFL star Bernie Kosar replaced by unheralded Scott Zolak, and this year, when Zolak went down, former “bust” Dan McGwire stepped in and Chicago just kept winning. Now, no one is going to give McGwire the Offensive POTY award, and his numbers have been pedestrian at best, but the team itself is finding ways to win. They have one of the most dynamic defenses in the league, led by their secondary (Eric Thomas, Derrick Burroughs, Anthony Prior and George Teague) but with solid contributors like Gary Reasons, Darryl Tally, Ray Agnew and Kevin Fagan in the front 7. They are not leading the league in any defensive category, but they are 3rd in scoring defense and still sit at 7-1 after 8 weeks. DISAPPOINTMENTS 1. Diminishing Returns: For as much as we are praising Wheatley and Freeman, we have to wonder what has happened with some of the other major rookie signings. We are going to give the rookie QB’s a pass, as both Eric Zeier and Todd Collins have only recently been able to get starting opportunities, and Kordell Stewart is happily watching as Don Majkowski leads the resurgent Federals. But where are some of the other big name rookies like DE Mike Mamula (10 tackles for Chicago), LB Jason Kyle in NJ, WR Joey Galloway in Ohio (0 TDs), or any of the other halfbacks. With the lone exception of Rashaan Salaam, who has decent numbers (533 yards and 3 scores) for Denver, there are a lot of high round halfbacks who have simply not taken advantage of their chances this year. Terrell Fletcher and James Stewart in Tampa, Rodney Thomas in Texas, Brent Moss in Oakland, Brandon Bennett in Memphis, and Dino Philyaw in Birmingham have been non-factors. The fact that little touted Terrell Davis in New Orleans has more yards rushing (278) than all of the others combined is just sad. 2. No Rush: The run games in Atlanta, Birmingham, and Tampa Bay. What is it about the south that makes these teams not run well? Atlanta has been absolutely miserable, (247 total yards in 8 games) and both Birmingham and Tampa have been nearly as bad. Tampa is the biggest mystery as Errict Rhett was a dynamic player last year as a rookie. Where did that go? Or did all of Tampa’s best blockers go to expansion clubs in the offseason expansion draft? If they did, they did not go to Atlanta, we know that much. Birmigham has just not been good at rushing the ball since Joe Cribbs left, but James Joseph (3.4 YPC average) clearly is not the answer. Compare these three clubs with Michigan, Washington, Portland, or Pittsburgh and you can see why the top rushing teams are also pretty solidly in the playoff hunt and these three are fading fast (again, Atlanta, we did not expect much, but this has been sad.) 3. The Magic is Gone: Doug Flutie is not having a solid year, to the point where there are some in the NY-NJ area who are calling for Coach Wyche to take a look at rookie Rob Johnson, a more prototypical passer. Flutie is the league’s lowest rated starter, with a 67.6 QBR and 12 interceptions to only 7 TDs after 8 games. While his production went up during Herschel Walker’s injury, his success did not, as the Generals struggled throughout those weeks. Flutie will have to show something, and the Generals will have to start winning, because we expect that if Coach Wyche sees the season as a lost cause, it will be a chance for Rob Johnson to get some starts, and that could be big trouble for the 10 year veteran. 4. Picky, Picky, Picky: If Doug Flutie’s 12 interceptions are a disappointment, Brett Favre’s 15 are a disaster. Favre can at least say that he has been without his top receivers for much of the year, which is true. Ernest Givens is still a couple of weeks away from returning to action, and Lawrence Dawsey has been in and out of the lineup all season. This has been great for Cedric Tillman, but horrible for Birmingham in general. The Stallions have had moments, but they have been too few as the team has slipped to 3-5, a solid 3 games behind Jacksonville, and still 2 games behind even a wild card slot. There is time, if Birmingham, and especially Favre, can get it together, but this does not look much like the club that blew the league away 2 years ago on their way to a league title. 5. Expansion or Diminishing: Our final disappointment this year has been expansion in general. We knew the 4 teams would struggle, and their combined 5-27 record seems to indicate that we were right, but what has been even more startling is the impact that the expansion had on the other 20 franchises. Depth is a serious issue across the league, especially apparent on the O-line and D-line where teams are struggling to put together coherent squads and to manage when injuries inevitably take down some of the starters. We have seen more penalties, sloppier play, and more lopsided losses in these first 8 weeks than we can remember in most recent seasons. It may take the league a couple of years to truly rebound from this expansion and to restock their benches with quality players. All the while the NFL is also expanding by 2 clubs this year, so with a combined 54 pro football clubs (plus the CFL) seeking players, the talent pool may be as stretched as we have ever seen. That is not a formula for close games or good play. WHAT TO LOOK FOR IN THE SEASON’S SECOND HALF. 1. Growth Spurt: One thing we are hoping to see is better play from our 4 expansion clubs as they start to gel as units. Offensive line play should improve as the players get better acquainted with each other’s styles, and the coaches should now be able to determine the skills of their players and make better use of them. Will we see any of these clubs rip off a 4-5 game win streak, unlikely, but closer games, occasional upsets, and maybe even a few top performers should emerge over the next 2 months. We certainly are hoping to see better things from LA’s Marcus Allen, Ohio’s Joey Galloway, Seattle with the return of Dave Krieg from injury, and hopefully someone on Atlanta will make waves. 2. Family Squabbles: Divisional showdowns should highlight the second half of the season. We have 4 clubs in the Atlantic all with 5 wins or more, so those battles will be nasty. It is much the same in the Central, where you have 7-1 Houston, 7-1 Chicago and then a solid cluster of Texas, Michigan and New Orleans trailing behind. In the Pacific, Portland has a tenuous 1 game lead over Oakland, but Arizona and Denver are not out of it yet. And the South, well, it won’t necessarily be a close race for the title, as Jacksonville already has a 3-game lead, but Tampa, Birmingham, Memphis, and even Orlando still have hopes for a wild card if they can catch up to some of the Atlantic Division clubs. 3. Run to Daylight: Watch the race for the rushing title. Robert Drummond currently leads Tyrone Wheatly by 21 yards, but with both clubs deep in a playoff hunt, expect both to continue to be fed the ball regularly. Behind them we have a cluster of 4 players in the 600-650 yard range who have an outside chance, and all on solid teams: Garner in Philly, Thomas in Houston, Rozier in Pittsburgh, and Stacy in Oakland. With quality around them on offense, any one of these 4 can bust out for some big games and get in the mix. 4. Who's the Boss: QB Controversy. We already know that there is a battle brewing in New Orleans between upstart Jamie Martin and veteran Timm Rosenbach. We have seen Eric Zeier take over for Cliff Stoudt in Atlanta, but will that last? Todd Collins seems to have unseated David Archer in St. Louis, and now we are hearing calls for Rob Johnson in New Jersey. As teams fade from playoff contention, one of the most common impacts is the “look see” at backup QB’s. Fans love the backup, until they start of course, and with so many young backup QB’s in the league, it is natural for clubs to wonder if their aging vet is past their prime and want to see the young gun. So, do not be surprised if we see some benching if clubs continue to struggle. 5. Make Some Space: Finally, what we expect to see down the stretch is that the consistent clubs, teams like Washington, Houston, Chicago and yes, Portland, may start to pull away from the pack as they battle not for the division title (except maybe the Central) but put their sights on the #1 seed and home field advantage. Separation could be tough as it looks like Chicago and Houston will go down to the wire, Washington has 3 hot clubs in pursuit, and Portland is still not a confident team with an experienced Oakland squad hot on their heels. Only Jacksonville has a comfortable lead, and they will need help to knock Washington down a peg or two and catch the Feds for the top seed. The USFL this week presented a new logo to accompany the familiar monogram. The new logo, which includes the USFL monogram inside a stylized white, red and blue helmet. This new logo will be used on uniforms, located at the neckline of team jerseys, as a sticker on the back of each helmet, and on the right hip of the pants. The logo is very much in the line of the NFL shield which has begun adorning that league’s team uniforms as part of an effort to distinguish official league merchandise from knockoffs. Only official USFL merchandise (produced by Nike, of course) will include the helmet logo element. For most other uses (league marketing, documents, etc.) the flag-themed monogram will remain the primary logo. The first time we should expect to see the new logo included in uniforms is for the 1996 season, where the stickers will be added just below the U.S. flag on each helmet and the small logo will be an embroidered patch on both the pants and jerseys. This will be uniform for all 24 clubs, including Chicago, Jacksonville, and New Jersey, who will each be receiving new uniforms for the 1996 season. Week 9 gives us intra-conference games across the board, with the Atlantic and Southern Divisions battling and the Central facing the Pacific. Some of the better matchups include a huge game between the Federals and Bulls, both atop their divisions. Out West the Chicago-Oakland and Houston-Portland matchups could impact both divisional title hunts. A little bit lower down in the standings we find 4-4 New Orleans at 4-4 Arizona, and some 5-3 vs. 3-5 Atlantic-South games as Baltimore heads to Memphis and Pittsburgh is in Birmingham. Orlando and New Jersey, both 3-5, need a win to stay in the hunt. St. Louis will try to get back in winning ways as they visit Denver. Four games with expansion clubs see their opponents trying to avoid a trap game as Texas visits Los Angeles, Michigan heads to Atlanta, Philadelphia is in Seattle, and the Tampa Bay Bandits host the Ohio Glory.