Power vs Predators review: Ain't got time to bleed

This weekend saw some surprising upsets, gutsy coaching calls, AFL firsts, playoff drama and crushing defeats. Of course, all that really matters to us is what happened in our own little corner of the Arena world, specifically our game against the Preds. Unfortunately, the Power was not able to pull it off, and our playoff chances are now in jeopardy.

This loss did not come because of poor play on Pittsburgh's part, but more because of a couple of flukes, the two teams playing exactly as I'd worried and some surprising moves on the part of Orlando coach, Pat O'Hara.

From the beginning, things got interesting when O'Hara decided to bench Nick Hill in favor of the untested Collin Drafts at quarterback. There are always calls in football (of any variety) that amount to "if it works, they're a genius, if it fails, they're morons." For example, when the Shock decided to start the game a few weeks ago with two onside kicks. That worked, and it was brilliant. When Dallas decided to go for two to beat us, rather than one to tie, that didn't work and I ridiculed them for it.

For the first half of the game, it looked like O'Hara's call was destine for the latter category. The first half ended at 40-27 Power, and our boys were running the game. It could have been called the Campbell and Hall Show, with special guest star, Josh Lay. Eschewing his normal preference for Mike Washington and Lonnell DeWalt, Morris connected with the above receivers most of the first half.

On the other side of the ball, Drafts just wasn't able to get anything going most of the first half, and when he was, Lay was right there to give him heartburn. Lay had two huge turnovers during this game, and broke up a lot of plays when needed. Also, Drafts wasn't having a lot of luck getting big plays out of his studs Toliver and Quiroga, though Josh Bush really got things moving - including a massive 54-yard return for a score in the first half.

It wasn't long into the game before the announcers were betting on Hill's return to the game - in fact, he could be seen on the warmup bike very quickly. Morris boldly stated at the half that they were "going to hear a pin drop in here!" and it certainly looked that way.

Until my prediction reared its ugly, ugly head.

I had warned that Orlando starts slow and Pittsburgh runs out of gas. That's basically what happened in this game, but Pittsburgh's running out of gas was more because of a disastrous third quarter than anything else.

After ending the half with a touchdown, the Preds got to start the second with the ball - and that's when everything went straight to hell. Fairly quickly, TT Toliver got back on the board with another touchdown. Then, the kickoff bounced off the iron, making it a live ball, which Chris Dubalt scooped up and ran in. Then, in what might be an AFL first, the very next kickoff did the same thing, which Dubalt also ran in.

After blowing the lead and giving up 28-straight points, the Power never got back into the swing of things. Morris struggled greatly in the little time he had on the field in the 3rd quarter and couldn't get a rhythm going. Eventually, he attempted to return to the tried-and-true with DeWalt, which did result in another two touchdowns, but it wasn't enough.

Again, the Power did not play a bad game. The first half was all them, and they were able to change it up a bit with different receivers. The defense was huge with Lay's turnovers, Stevenson's pass coverage and Drafts getting sacked twice. Hell, even Edinger went 6-8 in PATs on the night. Really, we only lost by a TD and a two-point conversion, so it wasn't a blow-out by any means. Had those two freak kickoffs not happened... Well, I can't say that those two drives would have ended with scores for us, but the final score probably would have been a lot more favorable to us.

A win's a win, and a loss is a loss, and in the end, it doesn't matter how well we played - the division lead, and possibly the playoffs were lost this week. There is still a chance to make it, but it will not be easy in any way.

Elsewhere in the league

• The most important game to us this week was Cleveland at Milwaukee. Had the Mustangs pulled it off, it would have been a gift to us, but it wasn't to be. Milwaukee played a hell of a game and almost pulled it off, actually. However, two lost fumbles and pick is no way to beat a team as tough as the Gladiators. Despite blocking and recovering a PAT attempt for 2pts, the Mustangs lost in the final seconds when Rocco was able to scramble one in for the win.
• In a mostly meaningless game, the Voodoo pulled off a strong win against Tampa Bay, marking only their 3rd 'W' this season.
  
• In possibly the biggest shocker of the year, San Jose followed their second-worst loss in AFL history by snapping their 7-game losing streak...against the 13-1 Sharks. Had I not been watching, I would not have believed it.

If the Playoffs were today
Hoo-boo. Where to start? Well, we lost the division title (for this week, at least) and with it, our preliminary spot in the playoffs. Where do we go from here? First off, Cleveland is only a game ahead of us, so winning out - which would include beating them - would leave us with tied records, and us with the head-to-head. In theory, we could drop one to the Rattlers next week if Cleveland was nice enough to lose to Utah - but I don't want to count on that. This scenario also relies on both teams finishing the division strong by beating Philly. Now, if Cleveland wants to lose to the Soul next week, I'm not going to argue.

Right now, Arizona, Chicago and Jacksonville have all clinched a spot in the playoffs at this point. Arizona has clinched their division, and Jacksonville has home-field advantage at this point. Here's where the San Jose game comes in. Now, Arizona has a tied record with Jacksonville, with an extra game played (and a bye still to come.) Should they both win out (AZ better not!) then they'd have fully tied records, with Arizona having the head-to-head. If they both make the Arena Bowl - and I expect them to - then it would be in Arizona.

So, that's where we stand, and what these final few weeks have in store. Cross your fingers for the Power, and stay tuned for more.

Shocking Upset:: Keller's Take

As Weidman pointed out in his review, we were both a little worried on Saturday night when we heard the announcement that Bernard Morris was going to be starting.  Actually, it was less "a little worried" and more "ah, crap, now we're sure to lose."  As it turns out, Morris played an excellent game.

You could tell that his timing was off in the first half.  He was a split-second behind his receivers, which led to a number of early incompletions.  He was at least half a second behind DJ Hall on one errant first half pass, which led to Morris' only interception.  After got settled in, he played lights out in the second half, finishing with seven total touchdowns -- five passing and two rushing.  He was the team's leading rusher with 66 yards on eight carries, including a seriously sweet 31-yard touchdown run in the first quarter.

The good news is that I think he's redeemed himself for his early season struggles and I believe that he's a capable quarterback.  He's not holding the ball too long, he's learned to tuck the ball and run when he needs to, he's a more dangerous scrambler than Anthony Morelli, though Morelli has more of a blood thirsty take-no-prisoners approach when he runs with the ball, and he even showed off some arm strength on a 40-yard bomb to Jason Willis on a critical fourth quarter completion.

The bad news is that he's just capable.  He runs a bit better than Morelli and a lot better than McCabe, but there's nothing that really separates him from the pack.  He's a decent quarterback and you can win games with him, but I don't get the sense that he's a great quarterback.  It could be that I'm way off base and that he'll get way better with another week of practice under his belt.  As always when I say something negative about the home team, I hope I'm off base, but I don't think that I am.

Overall, the 11,000 or so fans that didn't show up for the game missed a great show, even if the Sparks didn't come out at halftime to dance.  The offense put up 51 points, Edinger converted a 45-yard field goal, and the defense overcame some early struggles, holding the Shock to 14 points in the second half.  More importantly, they made the big plays when they needed to.  There's the aforementioned bomb to Willis, which came on third and ten from the Power three yard line.  LaRi Stevenson intercepted a pass when Spokane was driving for the game-tying touchdown with under a minute remaining.  Edinger made the aforementioned field goal, which would have changed the complexion of the game had he missed and salted the game away given that he made it.  They avoided critical mistakes and came through with clutch plays when they needed them.  With a capable quarterback and a decent defense, they can win more than they lose if they keep that up.

Other thoughts:

1. As Weidman also mentioned, Shock receiver Greg Orton was destroying the Power secondary in the first half.  This was a direct result of the defense they were playing, which basically involved placing two members of the secondary 20 yards off the line of scrimmage and having them stand there until Orton caught the ball.  In the second half, Coach Siegfried made the adjustment of realizing that Lonnell Dewalt is very tall.  Siegfried placed Dewalt at Jack linebacker and told him to follow the quarterback's eyes.  Wherever the quarterback's eyes ended up when he started to throw, Dewalt headed quickly in that direction and jumped.  He broke up a pass early in the second half and came down with a great pass break-up that was called back for Illegal Defense.  With the secondary covering things deep and Dewalt jumping around like a mad man in the intermediate area, Spokane had to dink and dunk their way down the field until they reached the red zone, which is where the Power defense tends to step up.  This is not a fool-proof defensive strategy, but they may want to roll it out every now and again.
2. The good news is that Josh Lay should be back against the Sabercats.  He's been suspended for the past two games, according to the AFL's transactions page.  He's their best cover guy and they'll need all the help they can get against San Jose.
3. The bad news about the Lay suspension being lifted is that the Power cut Xavier Lee to make room for Lay on the roster.  Now, I'm not sure that they cut him.  The transactions page says that he was placed on something called "recallable reassignment"... which sounds downright Orwellian.  I'm not sure if that term means that he's basically been placed on waivers and will be back, or if it means that he'll be gone for two weeks and come back saying that fumbles are "double un-plus good".  My hope is that it means he'll be back without any kind of re-education.  Lee is an explosive, versatile player and the Power need him on the roster.  In fact, he should replace DJ Hall as the third receiver until Jerome Mathis gets off injured reserve.  Which brings me to my other observations...
4. First of all, this team misses Mathis and Eddie Thompson.  I found out from the transactions page that Thompson was placed on IR on 4/15 and Mathis on 4/27.  They miss Thompson and Mathis on offense and on special teams.  Willis did his best returning kicks on Saturday, but he's a filler player at best.  Mathis is the team's best deep threat and Thompson is a critical player in the red zone.  Hopefully, both players will be good to go soon, but they won't be there to help out against San Jose.
5. I don't like DJ Hall.  He dropped one pass, short-armed another when he heard footsteps, and made just enough of an effort to get to the ball that was behind him (and intercepted) so that he could say that he tried.  If he had made a serious effort to get back to the ball, he may have knocked it down and could have at least tipped it.  Both of those efforts would have avoided the interception.  Basically, put in Lee as the third receiver until Mathis is healthy, then figure out what to do with Lee.  But, cut ties with Hall.  

The Power finally won another game at home, they're at .500, and they may be starting to come together.  Hopefully they keep it together and use what they learned against the Shock when they play the Sabercats this Saturday.

Pittsburgh Power with a Shocking upset

"...and back after 5 weeks on IR, your quarterback, Bernaaaaaaaaaard Mooor-ris!”

Okay, yeah – I'll be honest here. When I heard words to that effect over the PA in the arena, the bottom of my stomach fell out. Really? The guy who had thrown for a game and a half, leading us against the defending Arena Bowl champs the week after they beat the Arizona Rattlers? Oh, God...

Turns out, this wasn't really a bad thing. Aside from some noticeable jitters on the field after a long absence, the team really seemed to gel with their original QB back behind center. Those jitters manifested in a fairly lack-luster first half where the Shock out-scored us almost 2-1. By half time, things weren't looking too good for the home team.

The second half? Wow. Not only did the tables turn, but the Power outscored the Shock almost three to one.

Now, this isn't to say that the Power were perfect Saturday night, because they were not. Penalties are still a problem, but for once the other team gave up more yards than us – but there are still issues with procedural stuff. Off-sides, false starts, etc. Also, in the first half, their coverage was pretty bad. For example, Greg Orton of the Shock is a good player, but we were helping him to look like a god. I can't count how many plays in the first half he ran out, cut up the field, texted a friend, caught the ball, sat down and ate a sandwich and then realized that there were some defenders actually moving towards him.

A bit of an exaggeration, to be sure, but it was a major problem. Enough of one that I expect Siegfried had a chat about it at the half, because they really locked him down in the second half. Which brings us to a real shining point of the game: The defense. Besides eventually roping in Orton, they pressured Rowley in the pocket to a surprising extent.

The Power D forced three turnovers and the offense only lost two. Also, they made some great stands. The Shock were only able to convert on two of eight 3^rd downs, and only three of six fourth downs.

Additionally, DeWalt was all over the place, breaking up plays. He might not have hauled 'em in, but he got a piece of a number of passes that came near him, denying them to the Shock offense.

As for Morris, he was far more impressive than I was expecting. Remember after week one when I said that Mike “The Joystick” Washington was the man to watch, but it never really materialized because Morelli preferred Willis? Well, he came back strong this week. However, they played it smart and didn't ignore their go-to guy, either. Washington and Willis almost perfectly split receiving duty with 85/87 yards respectively with each scoring a pair of touchdowns. Coming in third was a new face, DJ Hall with a respectable 35 yards and a touchdown. The only head-scratcher was that Xavier Lee barely made an appearance on offense.

Rounding out the offensive detail were Josh Rue and – seriously – offensive lineman, Nick Zeck. Rue only picked up 11 yards, but they were critical yards, accomplishing three first downs. Zeck had a pass thrown to him that he just didn't have the vertical to haul in, but he made up for it a few plays later when he rumbled down the field for 16 yards. He was brought down right in front of me, so I got an accurate count. This beast of a man took 5 players to bring him down – and he carried them for at least two yards before they did so.

The cherry on top of this game's sundae? Okay, I need everyone to sit down for this. Well, I guess, those people that read blogs on their computer standing up need to sit down. The point is...and I can't believe I'm saying this...Paul Edinger nailed a 45 yard field goal with 17 seconds left to put the game out of Spokane's reach.

I'm not sure if it is because it was the day before Mother's Day, or if the home crowds are just getting sick of seeing the Power lose, but the crowd was substantially smaller Saturday. We're talking the difference between 9000+ to just over 6000. That's big shame, because all of these people missed perhaps the most exciting game of the season. The Power reached .500 before the Buccos did, and were looking exceedingly strong this week.

Keller commented that if we play next week like we did this week, we have a chance against the Sabercats. That's a bit pie-in-the-sky, in my opinion, but it's certainly a better chance than I would have given us before this week. But, really, just like everyone else in the house, Keller was blinded by ZOMG-we-won euphoria at the time.

Not pictured here: the guy sleeping next to him. Seriously

It happens. I hope it happens a lot more this season.

Elsewhere in the league

• Mustangs and Soul both lost this week, keeping us in second place without a care
• Sabercats completely fell apart in the second half against the Rattlers in the late game Saturday.
• Jacksonville continues to be a force of nature, and it's just too bad that they aren't playing the Rattlers in the regular season.