Power at Rush Preview

When I saw on the schedule that the Power had their bye week this early in the season, I was pretty disappointed.  It felt like a waste to have it before the team had gotten tired out.  However, by the time that week arrived, I'd changed my tune.  The Power really needed a chance to stop, reassess and regroup after taking an absolute drubbing the first two weeks of the season.

The Sharks destroyed the home team pretty much the same way the Blaze did, and for the same reasons.  Pocket collapse, no special teams, blah, blah.  We can only hope that these were addressed in the off week.

What can we expect from the Rush?  They're currently sitting on a 1-2 record, but they've been facing solid teams in the Barnstormers, Shock, and Talons.  They might seem beatable, but they are a historically strong team and we need to face them in Chicago.

The main threats that the Power will face are Rodney Wright, Reggie Gray, J.J. Payne, and Vic Hall.  All four are standouts and any one of them could change the balance of the game.  Wright is off to a strong start as Coffman's favorite yardage target, already putting up 5 touchdowns and 326 yards on the year.  Gray has been targeted for an additional 8 TDs and over 200 yards.  J.J. Payne leads the team in awesome naming, but is also a dual treat on the ground and air.

Honorable mention goes to Nate Forse, who doesn't generally seem like a huge threat, but he played well against the Power last season with Orlando, so I don't trust him.

Finally, there's Vic Hall who is just a scary-good pick artist.  Jefferson has thrown to the wrong team a few times this year, but he hasn't looked as bad as past Power QBs.  However, Hall still has the chance to absolutely break us Sunday - especially with the old tradition of "the pick that turns the game" we had last year.

The key to the game is what is always is:  The Power needs to not beat itself.  Without protecting the QB and without playing a full sixty, they're never going to win a game unless someone underestimates them.  This week, the Rush stands a good chance of getting cocky, but they can turn that around in a heartbeat if we make them bleed a little. 

Elsewhere in the League

•  The marquee game this week is obviously the Hall of Fame game on Saturday night between the Soul and Barnstormers.  The Soul is looking strong this year with one win and one close call.  Likewise, the Barnstormers have been, well, barnstorming.  Should be a good game.
• My choice of the two early games at 8:00 on Friday would be NOLA at Jacksonville.  The Sharks are undefeated on the season, but it's a division game.  Plus, last year, the Voodoo continued to show that they play hard against the Sharks, win or lose.
• Late game is Rattlers at Shock.  It's the second battle-of-the-undefeated in a row for the Rattlers.  Last week, the Sabercats folded like wet cardboard, giving AZ an easy win.  I don't see the Shock doing this - plus, their undefeated season has been all on the road.  This is their home opener, and I see the advantage being all them in this one.

A Powerful Storm Brews

I'm cautiously optimistic about our second-to-last home game. It's not a slam dunk - after all, we lost to the KC Command - but I think we have a good shot.

The Storm has been hot and cold this season, but they've gotten pretty banged up. Their reciever Amarri Jackson has now been put on IR, and that's a great thing for us. He's been out a few times this season for injuries, but even with a shorter season, he's still set records. Him not being there is great for us. There is also the fact that the Storm hasn't won a game on the road yet this year (and started dropping them at home.) Again, we lost to the winless Command, but it's still a factor in our favor that they're a weak road team.

Last week showed that the Power is capable of gelling as a team. We finally got some protection on our QB, and that allowed him to keep the picks to a minimum. The question is going to be who's behind center. I'm not sure who I'd prefer - and we know it doesn't matter who they say they're starting - but Hines looked good last week. It might have been a fluke, but it's tough to say. Randall has the field time and knows his players... but he's a known quantity. Known both to opposing teams, and to us as a guy who gets happy feet.

Therefore, the most important part will be protecting whoever is there, and holding on to balls when they are passed. Again, we did well with that last week. So, not to belabor the point, but basically we need to do what we did last week, and we should be able to give the home fans a win for once.

The most important part this week is the opposing coach. Long ago, I wrote one of our most popular posts, the famous Tomlin or Epps quiz. Now, I could do something similar with Dave Ewart and Chris Farley, but that's just a cheap shot.

Seriously, I just want to watch him contest a call.

Elsewhere in the league

• For the game of the week, the Mustangs have a good chance to play spoiler against the Sharks on national television. The Mustangs aren't technically eliminated, but the stars would have to align to Shakespearean levels for them to make the post season. The Sharks, however, are in the position of being 4th in the conference, and can only pull ahead with better records than the two non-Philly teams ahead of them (stupid tie-breakers.) It's going to be close, but I take the Sharks.
• Cleveland is getting a bit of a gift this week. In order to make the playoffs, they still need to pretty much win out, and Friday they match up against the Preds. Orlando has blown a few chances to spoil recently, so I don't see them upsetting the Cleveland applecart.
  
• The late game is gonna be a good one. #1 in the West faces off against #2 on the road. The Rattlers already beat Utah at home this season, and they most likely can do it on the road, but the Blaze needs this win. Take the Ratts, cautiously.
• First game on Saturday should be a win for Iowa over the Command.
• It's a good thing for New Orleans that Geogia has a bye week this week. They have to play San Jose on the road, and I just don't see them winning. A loss this week would tie their record with Georgia, and NOLA has the tie-breaker right now, which would leave them in first. This will remain true, even if the Sharks win, as they have the head-to-head there as well.
• Chicago really needs the win this week to keep their playoff hopes alive, and they're strong at home. However, I think that the Talons will win for the Chicago sweep.
• Finally, Sunday at 6:05 is the explosive match. The Shock handed Philly their first road loss earlier this season, and now it's time for the rematch. However, they got blown out last week. Philly is strong, but again, they're in WTF time of the season, and the Shock had their number last time. Another big problem developing is that Philly offensive weapon Tiger Jones has been signed by and invited to camp with the Eagles. The Soul have got one of the most packed rosters in the league, but Jones is one of their biggest play-makers. The development is great for him, but bad for the Soul. Crazy pick again: Shock win.
  

Road Battle Against the Soul, and heading to enemy territory

There's not a lot to be said about this week's matchup. The Power has improved in the last few weeks, but not enough to make it likely that we'll beat the juggernauts from Philly. Frankly, the only chance we have is if the Soul collectively say, "Eh...we'll wait until next week to lock up the one seed in the conference. Let's put Denis the Donut Boy in to cover kick returns."

But, I'm still looking forward to this game. The Brothers Keller and I (and Brother-in-Law Tim) are heading to the Wells Fargo Center to catch the Power on the road. Now, to be honest, we planned this outing at the beginning of the season when we still had stars in our eyes and Rowley in the locker room. However, there's still some excitement for me. I've never actually gotten to see a team I root for on the road.

Now, consciously, I know that teams regularly play on the road. Half the time, to be exact. But having never experienced this, it almost feels like this is a special occasion. An exhibition game. It's not, but that's how it feels. Also, I'm not used to being in a hostile sports environment (even if Philly's probably looking at us the way we look at the Browns.) I'm also not used to rooting for a pathetic underdog without much of a traveling fanbase.

All around, this is going to be interesting. Win or (likely) lose, I'll probably also have a bit of a different outlook in my review. Go Power, and I'll be back on Monday.

Elsewhere in the league

Now that the Soul have locked up the division and a playoff spot, the post season officially begins. From here out, it gets really hard to call games, and it's still a long time until the end of the season. Some teams are going to be playing their ass off to right the ship that is their season, other teams are going to slack because it doesn't matter anymore, others will play soft to guard against injuries because they know they're most likely in and yet other teams are going to say "screw it" and just try to play spoiler against a hated rival. So, what I'm saying is...take these picks with a grain of salt.

• First up is Arizona at Milwaukee. This right here is what I'm talking about. AZ is 99.9% in the playoffs, it's just down to seeding. Without doing the math, I think they'd need to lose out and get some "help" in order to miss out. However, at 10-3 , they're tied with the Talons (and a game behind Philly in the whole league) they're in a footrace for the top spot in the National Conference. On the other hand, Milwaukee is in the hunt with basically everyone in our conference and can't afford a loss. Skill-wise, the Rattlers should win this one, but Milwaukee might want it more. I'll take AZ, but....salt.
• "Friday" game of the week is NOLA visiting ORL. This is another example of what I'm talking about. Everyone in that division except the Preds is within a game of the top spot, and Orlando has some momentum after beating a rival last week. Also, they've already been shamed on a Friday night game - they might as well take the field as the Orlando Spoilers. The Voodoo is the better team, but they still currently have a losing record. I pick them, but I have a bad, bad feeling about this. If you want to take a risk on an upset this week, this is it.
• Cleveland at Jax on Saturday night is almost impossible to call. Same record, both teams in second place in their respective divisions, playoffs still possible. However, I'm taking Jacksonville because Cleveland is on a slide, Jacksonville has a shot at their division and they're at home.
• Next we have the Talons heading down to Tampa Bay for the third Florida game. Talons are the wise choice, but there's still that pesky little road/home curse that the Storm have. I still think the Talons are going to win, because they want home field in the playoffs, and TB is just looking to get in.
• Chicago has a tougher division match on their hands than they really should. KC has been sad this season, but Chicago has struggled on the road. I'm picking the Rush because they have the better team, plain and simple - but I'm not going bet my mortgage on it.
• Georgia has a match on the road against Utah, and they need the win to keep the lead in their division. However, I've been saying all year, they're a mediocre team and their road record isn't great. They're in the lead in a weak division and Utah is seriously in the hunt in a tough one. And they're at home. Take the Blaze.
• Finally, the late game is Spokane visiting the Cats. This one's going to be brutal. Spokane's record in any other division would put them solidly in third place, and likely in second. The Cats need the win to have any chance to scoop the lead from the Talons and Rattlers. The Shock has struggled (even with a solid record) this season...but San Jose also lost to KC. However, given that they slaughtered Spokane (without Rowley) on the road earlier this season, I'll take them.
  

Conference Game Reviews and Arena Bowl XXIV Preview

Another week is in the books, and the Arena Bowl teams are set. This week gave us odd times, but good football. Both games in the Conference Finals were very entertaining and prove that Friday night is going to be fun as hell.

National Conference Final

Arizona hosted the Chicago rush Friday night at way-too-damn-late o'clock. The game had a rocky start for both teams, so much so that I actually wondered if there was something wrong with the balls. Both teams fumbled the ball on their first drive, and even my wife said, “Really? These are the good teams?” However, both teams redeemed themselves by scoring in short order – Chicago in impressive fashion when Jason Simpson returned a kickoff 56 yards.
 

Things were relatively even the rest of the first half with Arizona going into the locker-room with a 9-point lead. The 3^rd quarter is where everything changed when the Rattlers put up 13 and shut the Rush out.

However, this is where Arizona showed their weakness of overconfidence. You could tell by the end of the third that they were starting to lay back and take it easy. Problem is, Chicago didn't feel the same way.

The forth quarter saw the Rush put up 29 points to Arizona's 13 – the highest scoring quarter for either team. At the end of the half, Chicago was only down 6 points and had the ball with seconds left on the clock. Everyone in the world – including those not even interested in this sport – could see the on-side kick coming. 

Thing is, Chicago didn't. Surprising everyone, including the return team, Chicago kicked it deep. With no one there, the Rush charged down the field and attempted to recover in the end zone. A player from both teams fell on it, and the call was so close that it had to be reviewed – Rattlers ball. Game over.

Both teams gave it their best, and the score was close, but the fact of the matter is that Arizona played a much better game. The only reason things ended up as close as they did was because the Rattlers slacked off in the third. 

For one thing, their defense was incredible this game and mostly shut Raterink down. I realize that “shut down” is operative here, as he had 187 yards and three touchdowns. But, considering Chicago turned the ball over five times during the game and didn't score for a whole quarter, they were well shut down.

The pairing of Nick Davila and Jason Geathers was the true story on the field. Davila put up huge numbers with a 50% completion ratio, over 280 yards and a whopping 7 touchdowns. Geathers caught the ball 10 times for 150 yards and 4 TD's. They were just an unholy force and proved that Rats were the team that deserves to play Friday night.

American Conference Final

Monday night in prime-time, the Jacksonville Sharks hosted the Georgia Force in a game that was more competitive than I'd expected it to be. Where-as the National game had less than 7,000 people in attendance and seemed like less, Jacksonville had over 10K and seemed like more. The crowd was fired up, and it showed. At least two plays went against the Sharks because of fan interference – including one where a guy in the front row of the end zone assaulted the returner from Georgia.
 

Look, I'm all about fanhood, and I'm all about getting into it – but some things go too far. Had this guy been wearing a Sharks jersey, he would have gotten called for a personal foul, holding and a facemask. Leave the rough-housing to the guys making $400 a game, mkay? End of digression.

Early on, the Sharks lost their center – who has started every game in the two years the Jacksonville has had a team – and you could see that it threw Garcia off, but they recovered well. Unlike in the National game, there was no clear-cut dominating team in this game. Offense ruled the night, and the score climbed steadily. It took until the third quarter before either team managed a stop when Jacksonville got a turnover on downs to take the ball away from Georgia. The closest that Georgia came to a stop was when they forced a 36 yard field goal attempt late in the 4^th. The kick was about as perfect as possible.

As this was a story of offense, the main characters were the quarterbacks, which were about as even as possible. Both men put up 313 yards and 8 touchdowns and got sacked once. Darnel Kennedy of Georgia was the only one to fire an interception (which actually lost the game for him) and had slightly more attempts with less completions. However, this is fairly elementary, as the numbers were otherwise too close to call.

The stud receivers in this game were Maurice Purify (GA) and Jeff Hugely (JAX). Both had over 150 yards and 3 touchdowns. In this game, both QB's were more likely to spread it around than to have one “go-to” guy, so their receivers were both three deep and gave flexibility.

Neither team in this game slacked off, and both played a full four. Honestly, whichever team won would have equally deserved to represent their conference in the Arena Bowl. In the end, however, the Jacksonville Sharks pulled it out with an interception with only 14 seconds left on the clock. Final score, 64-55 Sharks.

Arena Bowl XXIV

So, there it is: As I called weeks ago, the Arena Bowl this year will see Jacksonville facing off against Arizona. This is going to be a story of age and experience, with different versions going to each team.

Jacksonville is reaching the big game in only their second season in existence. This is an impressive feat, and one that was well-earned with their early-to-mid season records. However, before this, the farthest they'd made it was the divisional round last year where they lost. Arizona, on the other hand, has been to six Arena Bowls and won two of them in their storied career.

In a sport where year-to-year a team can change 100%, does this really matter? Yes it does. Having been there puts a different mindset in a team, even if the players themselves haven't been. Having gone several times and won a few increases this. Think about it this way: The Pittsburgh Steelers have lost two out of their last four Super Bowls, however, the money is generally on them, either in Vegas or simply in popular opinion. Why? Because they'd already won four. Guys that were in grade school or not even born during those games were being given the benefit of the doubt because of the careers of guys that would be comfortably watching their games from ESPN's studio. It might not make a lot of sense, but the psychological edge goes to the team with the history.

Age is a bit more murky. Nick Davila is 26 and in his third year in the league. Aaron Garcia is 40 and has been in the league a staggering 17 years. Experience is without a doubt in his favor, that can't be argued – but age isn't. This season, Jacksonville, in stunning fashion, went on a 13-game winning streak, just owning the league...but as the season went on, the strain became evident. Although they've been doing very well in the playoffs, the Sharks dropped 3 out of their last 5 games. Monday night, Garcia was just looking tired during the game and I wonder how much is left in the tank. Davila, on the other hand, has lead the Rattlers on a steady, win-more-than-you-lose season that was nothing if not consistent. This consistency speaks to an endurance that is going to be critical when they play the 21^st game of the season this week.

Everything else is a catchall kind of category that doesn't favor the Sharks. For one thing, Arizona is at home, which is an obvious advantage. Jacksonville will be facing a multi-hour time change, many miles from home in unfamiliar territory. Add to that the fact that the Rattlers will have had two extra days of rest, and there is an unfair lopsidedness to this. Furthermore, in addition to the things stated above, the QB/Receiver combo of Davila/Geathers is much, much more dominating than Garcia/best man open. Granted, Garcia shows a flexibility that will be very important when his team only really needs to target one guy – but AZ just has a powerhouse there. 

Finally, Arizona is a much more complete team. Their defense is as solid as their offense, and Jacksonville just doesn't play a lot of defense.

Look, I'm rooting for the Sharks. I love a story, and this one is all about an aging gunslinger coming back for “just one more season” who wants a ring to cap off an unbelievable, record-setting, hall-of-fame-earning season. The problem is, Arizona is a more complete, longer-running team with the better all around package. If Garcia and crew wants to pull this off, he's going to have to dig deep-down inside and find his “have-to.”

Gary Busey frowns on my obscure reference

Tune in Friday for one last game of Arena Ball for the season to see who takes it all home. This bad boy will be nationally broadcast on the NFL network and should be a lot of fun.

AFL Playoffs: First Round Recap

It was a great weekend of playoff action, not that the media really wanted us to know. Being that they are on the NFL Network this year instead of ESPN, only one game was aired - the rest were online. Also, that one that was aired got bumped because of the NFL lockout ending, and it wasn't shown until midnight Saturday.

Even so, the games went on. Half the teams advanced, half the teams went home, and everyone ended up where they should have.

Dallas Vigilantes at Chicago Rush

Just a few weeks ago, these two teams met up to determine who got home field advantage in the first round. Winning this, Chicago got a double bonus: First, they got to play at home, and second, they knew that they'd just beaten this same team two games earlier. Even though Michna was still injured, they knew that they could do it with Raterink anyway.

In the beginning, Dallas was maintaining a slight lead in the give-and-take between the teams, thanks to an early field goal. Starting in the second half, Chicago started to assert their dominance on the field before coming back with 13 unanswered points in the third.

Throughout the game, both quarterbacks retained respectable numbers, getting over 250 yards, 6 touchdowns and completing about 2/3 of their passes. Also, neither QB got picked during the game. Even with a slight edge in rushing for Dallas, the teams were evenly matched.

So who won in the end? For that, I want you to think back to what I said after we played Dallas. I said it then, and I'll say it now: Clint Dolezel is a go big or go home kinda guy. I can respect that, but I don't have to agree with it. At the end of this game, they had a chance to kick a close field goal and tie the game, or they could go for a touchdown on 4th and win. Guess which he did?

Guess who gets to play next week.


Arizona Rattlers vs Spokane Shock

One of this season's dominant teams faced off against the defending Arena Bowl champs in a game that really felt like an, "Alright, let them play to feel good about themselves" game. The Shock barely got into the playoffs in the first place and struggled this season. At 9-9, they ended with the same record the Power did when they didn't get to go to the playoffs in a weak division. Also feeling our pain, they struggled often this year, whereas the Rattlers dominated the National Conference, and it showed on the field.

Having split the series this year against their division rivals, it still wasn't a sure thing for the Rattlers going into this game. At the beginning, it was looking ugly for both teams with a total of 5 turnovers. In many ways, it looked like Spokane had control, as they capitalized on their turnovers and their QB Rowley put up much better numbers than Davila - but the Rattlers came back with a slow and steady attack that has carried them through the season.

The old rule of turnovers losing games reared its head for Spokane, because in the end, Rowley threw 4 picks where Davila only threw two. In the end, it was 62-33 Arizona, completely wiping that struggling first half out of anyone's minds.

Arizona advances to play Chicago next week at home.

Jacksonville Sharks vs the Orlando Predators.

This game was meant to be ugly from the beginning. Both teams hate each other on many levels, and when they met last year - with Jacksonville top-seeded then as well - the Preds sent them packing. However, the outcome wasn't surprising given their series history this year.

The main surprise of this game was how effective the Orlando defense was at keeping Garcia contained. He was held to less than 150 yards and only got off 19 attempts. However, in those 19 attempts, he completed 15 of them and snagged 4 touchdowns. On the other side, however, Hill blasted out over 300 yards and six TDs, four of them going to the unmatchable Quiroga and TT Toliver.

Jacksonville's win came on the backs of their solid, solid defense and their running game. Their D forced a fumble as well as stopping the Preds 5 times on 3rd downs and 2 out of 3 4ths. Their rushing game accounted for 3 touchdowns, which is a rare feat between top-flight teams - and these both are.

In the end, the Sharks win their first playoff game, the Preds lose to them for the third time this season, the rivalry gets really ugly and the Preds wish a (publicly) fond farewell to their Coach O'Hara. This last part is a bit of a bummer for me, as I dug his style. It was ballsy, in your face, it got them to the playoffs and beat the crap out of us.

Regardless - The Sharks stick around for another week.

Georgia Force vs the Cleveland Gladiators.

Oh, balls - who really cares? Both these teams beat us and we didn't get to go to the playoffs because of them.  In a perfect world, they all would have gotten food poisoning before the game and drew straws to see which team got to get beat up by the Sharks next week.

After a promising first half full of scoring and turnovers, the Glads looked to be sitting pretty. However, after that, the Force shut them down. Off-again-on-again Rocco showed his colors by getting just beat all over the place in the second half, and he was kept off the board until the forth when Cleveland mounted a strong, but ultimately unsuccessful comeback. I say "Cleveland" and not "Rocco," because he got some bench time and a fresh Dutton came in.

He lit the field up with the old standbys of Bergeron and Redd, and put up over a hundred yards. Again, it wasn't enough. With the O line letting Rocco get hit so many times that he lost his cool - not to mention a goose egg for a score in the third - this game ended 50-41.

Not a lot more can be said about this game except that the better team won. When we played the Force, they were a solid team that sent us home. When we played Cleveland, it was split 50/50. They only made it into the playoffs because we fell apart at the end of the season. This isn't really a comment on either team - I think we would have lost in this round had we gone. However, it still points up the fact that, when Cleveland is good, they're great. When they're bad, they fall apart. With rare exceptions like the Philly game, it's not the defense that falls apart, though - it's the offense. They slack and let Rocco get hit, and once that pressure comes, he can't function any more.

Good luck in Jacksonville next week, Force.


Next Week:

Arizona vs Chicago: As much as I've always liked Chicago – after all, they're my non-Power team – I don't think they have a chance. They'll have a slight one if Michna makes it back, but it's still slim. I called it a while back that I saw Arizona and Jacksonville playing for the title, and I don't see any reason to change that opinion.

Arizona is a solid, reliable team with a proven track record. Whereas Jacksonville dominated most of the season, then slacked, then came back, Arizona has been sure and steady. This is their time. Chicago handed them one of their few loses this season, but it was only by a point and Arizona is the better team on many fronts. Adding to this, Chicago has a reputation of choking that would make Peyton Manning blush. The fact that they got past week one is a big accomplishment.

Jacksonville vs Georgia: A few weeks ago, I would have given this one to the Sharks, no questions asked. But after losing to the Sabercats, and going one for four in their last games, anything is possible. All through the season, the American South was a tough division, and the Force only finished 3 games behind their rivals.

However, I'm going to go with my old standby of history. Jacksonville swept the series between these two teams, and probably will again. 

To beat the drum some more: Jacksonville will square off against Arizona in two weeks.

Bye Week Spotlight: The Orlando Predators @Philly Soul

***Update***

Now sure if the schedule I read had a misprint, or if I'm just an idiot - this game was still a road game for the Soul, and their home opener is this week against the Storm on the NFL network

*************

The Power gets a much needed break to rest and rearm this week after a tough loss to the Talons in week four. It’s a light week for the rest of the league with only four games on the schedule, but there is still football to be played. In the spotlight this week is the Orlando Predators at Philly.

Why am I featuring a game by our division rival this week? Two reasons: 1.) I want to watch a game this weekend and 2.) it’s actually fairly important in regards to league standings.

Right now, we are ahead of the Soul in rankings, but we’ve only got a one game lead on them. If they win this week, our records will be tied, and they have the head-to-head. Given that the Gladiators are so far ahead that they aren’t being caught any time soon even if they go on an epic losing streak, and the Mustangs are so far behind that the reverse is true, Philly is who I’m worried about. As things stand, we might be going neck and neck with them all season, and a loss this week will give us a small amount of breathing room.

To be honest, I haven’t followed the Predators a lot this season. I’ve had a bit of a soft spot for them, as they are one of the first teams that I ever watched back in the day, but with the amount of games that I watch for future Power matchups, they just haven’t fit in my schedule this year. They are a tough team to get a read on based solely on their record – in fact, I feel that their one loss so far this year speaks more than their two wins.

Week one, they beat up on the New Orleans Voodoo, which really doesn’t say much in my opinion. It is well documented that New Orleans is team in need of a lot of help, and remain one of the only winless teams in the league. Week two, the Preds won a good one against the Blaze, which is a team with the same record as them at this point. I’ll call that one a push.

This week, however, they lost to the Arizona Rattlers by one point. One. Remember how relieved we were when the Mustangs fell short by 2 points in week 3? That’s close. When you add to this the fact that the Rattlers have steamrolled everyone else they’ve played this season, I’m impressed. Even a when playing someone due for a loss from general fatigue, hanging with a team as powerful as Arizona right to the very end says a lot. These Predators are a team to watch out for.

On the ground, they’re not much to really be concerned about. Their top rusher is their QB Nick Hill, with only 71 yards and a couple of TDs to his name. He’s certainly no Russ Michna or Bobby Reid. However, in the air, he’s good for an average of 300+ yards a game and has a very solid receiving core lead by the awesomely named TT Toliver.

Toliver is an interesting Ocho Cinco-style character. A few years back, he was playing for the then impressive Tampa Bay Storm. One day, he walked in and told (former) head coach Marcum that he was done; not going to play for the Storm anymore. He was suspended for two games, cut, and signed by Orlando a day later.

I don’t know the details and I’m not sure if many people do. Maybe he’s a show-boatin’ idiot. Maybe he saw early all the crap that came out about Marcum. Maybe it was something else entirely – the fact remains that he found a solid home in Orlando and has over 300 yards and 7 TDs on the season this year. Look out, Philly.

On the other side of the ball, we have the Philadelphia Soul. Now, they’re a division rival, they took our home opener away from us, and they’re our main threat this season. That having been said, my two most loyal readers – my wife and my mother-in-law – are both Philly girls, born and raised, so I can’t make with too much hate-talk. (Besides, hockey playoffs are around the corner, and there will be plenty of smack to be spoken then.) I’ll try to stick with the facts – at least until we get later in the season.

Right now, the Soul are sitting at 1-2, with the Power being their only win. That’s not super fantastic. On the other hand, they’ve lost to the Rush, which there is no shame in, and the Mustangs, which was their third road game in a row. The main concern is how they did in the second half last week. It might have been fatigue, but I think Coach Hohensee put it best when he said, “Everything we did right in the first half fell apart in the second half.” Yep. That’s about the long and short of it.

We’ve seen QB Justin Allgood take the field here at home and, generally, his name is about accurate. He might not have the overall yardage of Hill, but he gets the job done. He throws deep and has Donovan Morgan as a solid answer to TT Toliver. Their only rushing weapon is Ryan Vena, so they’re about even on the ground as well. This matchup is going to be a gunslinger shoot out, pure and simple.

Another factor for this week is a series of improbable flukes. First, a little history lesson: Back in 2008, the then Bon Jovi-owned Soul was on top of the world. They beat the juggernaut San Jose Sabercats in the Arena Bowl* to be crowned champions of the league. The next year, that league folded. When it rebooted the following year, neither of those two teams came back with it. Now, they are both back as expansion teams with news faces, but old traditions.

Saturday is the Soul’s first home game of the season, due to a nasty opening schedule. Because of this, this week will actually be the first time that they get to unfurl that Arena Bowl Champions 2008 banner to their home crowd. That will either fire everyone up, or just leave the team shrugging their shoulders. Not many of these guys were around to win it.

*I still, and for always will, contend that Sambora lost money on that game. He didn’t seem happy shaking Jon’s hand afterwords.

How is this game going to shake out? Frankly, I think that the Predators are the better team here. They have a slight edge at QB, better options at receiver, and they’ve proven that they can hang with the best. Philly has been beaten up for three weeks now, win or lose, and they’re coming off a short week after a Monday night game (remember how that worked out for us?) They are finally playing at home and get to use an Arena Bowl banner as a talisman, and that might make the difference – but I really don’t think so. Coach Ho seems to be having trouble bringing his Rush-style tactics to a new team, and the wins just aren’t materializing. I think it’s going to be close, but I’ll take the Preds by five at least.

Next up for the Power: Jacksonville at home in Week 6.

Week 3 Power @Mustangs Review

Any regular readers of this blog will know that one of our mottoes is, “An ugly win is still a win,” and tonight was an ugly win. 49 points turned out to be just barely enough to best the still winless Mustangs, but that's all it was. As with many games, the last minute is where everything was decided, almost to the last second. The game started very strong, but time took its toll on the Pittsburgh Power.

They came out of the gates hard and put the pressure on. Most of the first quarter, they kept the 'Stangs off the board didn't have a drive without a score. From this start, it looked that we'd run the table all night and hand it too them definitively. However, it was not to last. McCabe played the whole game, and I think we started to get tired as the clock ran. By the end of the second half, the ball got away from him more, and the Mustangs were able to exploit that.

That being said, he continued with what I mentioned last week is his strength: Spreading the ball around. “Whatchu Talkin' 'Bout” Willis might not have put up any points or gotten the most yardage, but he was a key receiver, pulling down 8 receptions. When it came to the end zone, Mathis, Thompson, Dewalt and Zeck all put six on the board. This will continue to keep the opposing teams guessing and is something the Power should stick with.

One area that might be overlooked but needs to be addressed is the field shape. About half the league has a rounded end zone rather than the normal rectangle. Mustangs' home turf is one of them. At least two times during the game, McCabe ran into trouble passing to the “corner” of the endzone and having it bounce back into play. If there was a corner there, the receiver probably would have had a few more steps to reach the ball. This is an area that some fans gripe about and say should be a standard shape. Personally, I look at it as Arena's version of “Dome” vs “Open” fields. It's just one of those environmental issues that you learn to deal with after gaining experience.

On the ground, our prime weapon continues to be the powerful Joshua Rue, who was the only player to see the end zone more than once tonight. In a game that emphasizes throwing, his 28 yards are no mean feat – especially when since they yielded touchdowns. In the mid-field, he also gains the yards that we need and plows through defenders with a fair amount of ease.

On the other side of the ball, we still have a lot of work to do. On one hand, we kept the pressure on Ward when we could – and in fact, he took the bench and Archer came in eventually – but only while he was in the pocket. Ward – and later, Archer – are both highly mobile once they get out, and then there was no stopping them. By himself, Ward scrambled for as many yards as both of our rushers together and found the end zone for a score. The top two rushers for Milwaukee were their quarterbacks.

In the air, the Power was not able to shut down Burns, who we knew it was going to. Harrell and Elay also picked up very respectable yardage. In a yards-only game, this was all Mustangs, all the way. It's hard to cover everybody with this few people on the field, but their offense is geared towards long bombs to a few targets. Both Ward and Archer had way too much time to think and get the ball to an open target.

Both teams had some amazing goal-line stands that were more reminiscent of the NFL than Arena. While laudable, these showed a failure to keep the opposing team out of the red zone. For the Power, their stands were slightly less effective than the Mustangs, and I'd like to see that shored up a bit before moving on.

Ultimately, the game was decided by Milwaukee's mistakes, not Power triumphs. Two missed PATs kept them away from tying us. Their final kickoff was an obvious onside kick that very well could have worked – had they not gotten greedy. Milwaukee's Lindholm rushed for the ball after it had touched Power players, and intentionally kicked it forward, where the Mustangs recovered. Had it stood there, they would have been in prime scoring position – however, this is an illegal move, which gave us back the ball on the 15, followed by their coach lipping off, giving us 8 more yards. From here, it was “taking a forward knee” to run the clock out and go home.

That was too close.

What did we do right?

Early, hard pressure, passing change-ups, not being afraid to rush – these are all strengths and are shaping up to be our identity. As McCabe settles more into what looks to be his job for the foreseeable future and gets his endurance up, he needs to focus on continuing what works. Rue, barring injury, is only going to keep grinding out the short yardage and score touchdowns. Our receiving corps is varied and strong, with no signs of jealousy or showmanship at this early point.

What did we do wrong?

Did not contain the quarterbacks enough. Although the Power got the pressure on, they were not able make Milwaukee panic like they did in their first two games. Also, once Archer and Ward went mobile, the Power had no answer for it. Open field situations still need a lot of work on D. Finally, they might need to realize that iron men are nice, but if the QB is tired/rattled it might be time to sit him. The Mustangs split the duties this week and both men picked up over 100 yards.

What do we take away?

A win is a win and a loss is a loss. This was a division game, so anything that puts up a W is good. Right now, the Mustangs are winless at the bottom of the division and Cleveland is up top without a loss. Cleveland has only played twice, and neither were division games, and I honestly expect to see them pick up a loss next week. Philly is also down a game, but we're currently tied with them 1-1 in the division. It's still very early in the season, but we are off to a good start.

We also showed that we can play on the road and continue to win. I'm glad that we got that out of the way. Now, we have a short week to gear up for the Tulsa Talons, who are currently 0-3.

Elsewhere in the league

Friday night was an interesting night. The NFL Game of the Week (and the only one nationally televised) was between the winless Barnstormers and the winless defending Arena Bowl champs, the Spokane Shock. This game should have been boring as all get-out, but turned out surprisingly interesting. As we saw last week, the Barnstormers weren't much to worry about, but they pulled off a 43-42 win that they should not have. The Shock pressed hard early and took advantage of constant mistakes made by Iowa – chief among them was kicker Pitor Czech (formerly of the Steelers practice squad) going 1 – 7 on PATs. One. For. Seven. If that man is not a bounced Czech shortly, I will be surprised*. Lucky for him, a timely turnover in the end zone at the end of the 4^th kept the Shock from making up that one point they needed after falling apart in the second half.

*I wanted to make that joke last week. I'm glad I waited.

Also on Friday night was the undefeated Sabercats at the undefeated Rush. This is the game that I wanted on national television, but was denied. Possibly the two consistently best teams in the league, this was a match-up worth seeing. The Sabercats are looking really good and we need to play them this season. This scares me. On the other hand, the Rush continue to look even better. Although they were hit many times with both encroachment and offsides penalties throughout the game, they were able to bring it home 54-41. Quarterback Russ Michna managed to make something out of nothing twice and gain 38 yards for two touchdowns. Remember: He actually has a day job as well, and this was a Friday night game.

So that's that for Week 3. Again, it's a short week before our next home game – which means it's a short week for me to get a preview together for you.

Power vs Mustangs Preview - Monday Night Football, Arena Style

******UPDATE******

According to the Power's press release, Morris is out of action and has been moved to IR. McCabe would be my bet for the start, with the newly re-signed Morrelli backing him up. So, it looks like I'll get my wish to see how McCabe handles starting responsibility.

********************

Hey, Power fans – Weidman here to put some more “N'At” in “Steelers N'At.” Today, we're going to look at our upcoming first road game against the Milwaukee Iro- Mustangs.

Seriously, AFL – If you want people to follow the sport, make it easier on them by keeping the same names for a couple of seasons. I'm going to hop up on my cyber soap box for a second and get this off my chest. It's hard enough to build team identity when rosters change every season, but when you also keep changing names...well, it can make even a die-hard throw up their hands. Now, in this particular case, the Mustangs are just reviving their original franchise, so maybe we can give them a pass.

We won't need to worry about that happening. Cleveland has our old name. They can keep it. It's tainted now.

Back to the matter at hand. As stated, this is our first road game. Only time will tell if the Pittsburgh road warrior mentality is in the water, or simply indoctrinated in people with “Rooney” on their paychecks. It's not going to be easy for a new team traveling across the country, a time zone over for the first time. They're also going to be facing their first game without an enthusiastic home crowd. Even the top-of-the-line pros in the NFL have trouble with this – it's no small consideration.

What can we expect out of the Mustangs? I've watched both games they've played this season – first against the Rush, and second against the Arizona Rattlers – and I can't say that I'm impressed.

Their opener was a 49-41 loss to the Rush, which didn't reflect the plays on the field. The 'Stangs looked sloppy and the Rush seemed in charge the whole game. The Mustang's Ward was only 26 for 45 in the air (but did pull off 249 yards) and their rushing game was uninspiring. However, I could look past it. Much like our first week and the Barnstormers last week, it was a revamped team's first game. Also, the Rush are a top-tier team and not to be dismissed. Plus, they only lost by 8.

This week, they went up against another strong team in the Arizona Rattlers and fared even worse. Ward still only pulled off about 50% of his attempts and the team picked up an additional 15 yards rushing. The ground attack did yield 3 of their 4 touchdowns, but that's about it. Final was 62-31 Rattlers.

Where did it all fall apart? In short, everywhere. Ward threw two beautiful passes to the opposing team. The defense missed a lot of their assignments. Ward was totally unprotected. Penalties were constant for them. It was just mess. If this game was the true Mustangs, it's not going to be pretty on Monday night for them against the Power.

That being said – every season is new. We only have a sample-size of two right now and the Mustangs have played two good teams. What we will need to do is exploit their weaknesses.

1. Cover Holmes and Burns. They haven't been necessarily the top receivers, but Ward likes them both. He's thrown three picks already this year, and since we know where the ball is likely going, the Power has a chance to take them away. Plus, I just can't cope with hearing “Ward completes to Holmes.” It screws with my head.

2. Be prepared for it to go long. Ward has low completions but a lot of yards. That's because he likes to air it out. Combine with #1, and we really know where to be.

3. Keep. The. Pressure. On. Especially this past week, the Mustangs proved that they cannot protect their QB. He got sacked a lot, let up a safety (yeah, kinda like Morris...) and he panics in the pocket.

Ward is the key. He doesn't seem to take the bench and plays whole games. Even if we pressure him enough to get pulled, we're going to see him replaced by a QB who hasn't had much field time – it'll be the same situation, but amped up. If the Power can own the defense, the offense we've showed so far this season will take care of itself.

Is there anything to be concerned about? Yes. The 'Stangs are playing at home, are angry at 0-2, and the new upstarts on the block are coming into their house. Before things totally fell apart this week, they had one last burst where they started hammering the Rattlers and pulled off two sacks in a row. Also, they kept the score competitive against a tough team in week one. We can win this one, but we can't write it off.

Off-topic thoughts:

This being an away game, it will not be aired on TV here. You can either catch it on 93.7 The Fan, or watch it streaming on NiFTy TV (details at www.arenafootball.com). I know it's a pain, but we should not downplay it. (Sorry, let me pull out that there soap box again.) Thankfully, Milwaukee tends to air their games locally, so the feed should be decent.

Watching the Rattlers game this week was painful. There doesn't seem to be enough of a fan base there to air them, so they were left with just the booth feed. What I mean by that is there was no on-screen score, lots of arena music cues, kiss-cams and no running commentary aside from the end of plays. Honestly, you never realize how important those idiot bobble-heads in the booth are until they're not there.

We have a loyal sports fan base here and it is our duty to make use of it. Phoenix is a sports town. They have football, baseball, college and pro football, hockey, Fiesta Bowls...it's a sports town. Yet, the arena had a lot of empty seats and no TV coverage (I assume.) In the first half – hand to God, I am not making this up – a dude on a Harley rode on the field with a delightful Sidewinders dance team member on the back to hand-deliver a full rib dinner to one lucky fan.

Hand to God.

Motorcycle delivered dancing girl with a plate of ribs. During the game. And there were empty seats. If that wasn't a sign that this league needs the support of every single fan, I don't know what is. So, Monday night, turn on the radio, hook up your laptop to your TV – do what you need to catch this game and show your support.

Go Power, and I'll be back next week with a recap