Power at Barnstormers Preview

Ah, rematches. They're a chance to see if you've learned from mistakes, or in the case of a win, a chance to see if you've gotten too cocky. Either way, it's an opportunity to exorcise demons and give it another go.

The last few weeks have been a solid line of rematches, and unfortunately, they have not gone well for us. (I mean, except for the Gladiators, but that doesn't really count.) The good news is that the Barnstormers have a losing record and are pretty much out of the running for the playoffs. (Maybe not mathematically, but things would have to go very badly for several teams for it to happen.) Neither of us really have anything on the line but pride. Since they already beat us once, I'm going to stretch the definition of it a bit and say that pride's on our side.

In many ways, we're a different team than we were the last time we played, so things might turn out differently. Hines was our QB and Wagner was our kicker. Hymes was just starting out with the team, replacing a fan favorite in DeWalt. PJ Berry had been struggling in the first two games and was starting to break out. Most importantly, we had a different coach.

Stingley is still a question mark for me. He doesn't make the boneheaded calls that Siegfried did and he actually seems to have confidence in a quarterback (Randall will be starting again.) However, as can be seen in this extremely creepy conference, he still doesn't seem comfortable in the role of head coach. Another entry in the plus column is that he knows Coach Ho well. He's an unpredictable coach, but knowing him has got to dial that in a bit.

Last time we played, we lost by two touchdowns, which is A.) fairly close and B.) pretty damn good considering there were 5 turnovers. We've been averaging less than that since then (although it's still an issue) so if we can keep a lid on that, we have a better chance.

The other big problem is that the Barnstomers' defense ran all over us. The good news is that Sione Ohuafi is supposed to be back at center, which is a position our offense has been very weak at. Bad center means worse protection for Randall. Worse protection for Randall means that he gets pressured. When Randall gets pressured, he gets sacked and/or turns the ball over. I know this sounds like a DirectTV commercial, but it's the progression of events.

If we can keep the ball, force a few turnovers of our own and protect Randall, we might have a chance to get another win on our season.

Elsewhere in the league

Full disclosure - I have a feeling my picks might go about 50% this week. Just some ugly choices to make.

• Starting out is Philly at Tampa Bay. Tampa's only lost at home once, and the Soul don't need to play a single game the rest of the season if they don't want to...but I don't think they know how to lay down. Look for Philly to win and Tampa to start planning picnics in late July.
  
• Assuming it doesn't get flexed, the Game of the Week this week is Milwaukee at Cleveland in an important division game. Cleveland needs this win big time. Losing this one puts the Mustangs at the same record as them and splits the series. Both teams are still in the hunt, and this could decide their post season hopes. The Gladiators have now dropped 5 in a row, so it'd be easy to pick the Mustangs...but they're on the road, they've already lost to the Gladiators and Cleveland needs to repair their image at home and on the national stage. I'm pulling for the Mustangs because screw the Gladiators, but my gut tells me Cleveland has this.
• Arizona will secure the division with a win in Spokane and a Sabercats loss. Easy to write, hard to pull off. Rowley still has gas in the tank this season and the Rattlers can't just smile and walk away with the win. When they last played in Arizona, the Ratts barely came away with the win. I hate to pick against them, but I think Arizona will have the loss.
• Finally, an easy choice - KC loses to the Talons.
  
• The game to watch this week if you can is Jacksonville at New Orleans. Tied records separated by one head-to-head. Winner jumps ahead to the top of the division (for this week, at least.) Normally, home team would be the tie-breaker here, but there's still a stigma attached to the Voodoo at home. So, instead, I'm going with the quarterback. So long as Rocco doesn't beat himself with the stupid mistakes he makes when he gets cocky, he's better than Bernie Mo. Take the Voodoo, cautiously.
• In the crowded 8PM slot, the Chicago Rush host the San Jose Sabercats. Both teams need this win pretty badly, and both teams are known for dropping stupid games that they shouldn't. This is a case where the close call most certainly goes with the home team - the Rush haven't lost at Allstate Arena yet this season.
• Final game of the week is Sunday at 3 and should be fun spoiler-bait. The Predators came damn close to beating the Voodoo last week, and they have a shot at making things sticky for Georgia. It was a close, low-scoring game last time they played. I think I'm going to be wild and crazy and pick Orlando. Yep - gonna throw caution to the wind. I'm a wild man.
  

Here We Go Again: Barnstormers Preview

Sing along if you know the tune: The Power are in a hole, our starting QB is on IR for at least four weeks, the backup is in, but Coach Siegfried is on the lookout for a full-time starter.

Yep, it's that time again.

So, Bill Stull dislocated his shoulder last week against the Mustangs, played too long and is now out for at least four games. Andrico Hines will start against the Barnstormers and the Power have signed a new backup QB. The Power is not saying who it is, citing a need to play it close to their chest until the ink is dry, however, the transaction page shows that they picked up Derek Cassidy. "Who?" I can hear you thinking - and that's a good question. Well, he played for the University of Rhode Island and was picked up by the Voodoo last year for 150 yards and a touchdown. There might be more, but if I have to dig that far for it, he's not much of a stand out.

So, we have our backup QB (who I actually have more faith in) starting, a seat-filler backing him up and Siegfried checking the couch cushions for Anthony Morelli's number. After hearing (unsubstantiated) rumors of him being in the building last week, I can't help but ask: Can Rowley and the front office please kiss and make up? No? Damnit.

Sadly, I find myself four paragraphs into my game preview, and I haven't talked about the game yet, but that's the way these things work sometimes. Well, we're hosting the Iowa Barnstormers, and I'm hoping that history continues to repeat itself. Last year, we lost our home opener to the Soul, and the following home game thwumped the Barnstormers. Well, we sure did lose to the Soul in our season opener...

The Barnstormers are currently in the same position that we are: Won their first game, lost their second two and have already burned a bye pretty early. However, that doesn't tell the whole story (it never does.) While Philly absorbed some key offensive weapons from Dallas, the Barnstormers have recruited some important people. Namely, they have former Philly - and before that, long-time Chicago - coach, Mike Hohensee and former Rush QB J.J. Raterink. These two are why their loss to the Rush was so tough, but also misleading.

Chicago is always a tough team (at least in the regular season) and Iowa held in there, only losing by a point in OT. The reason this gives me pause is that both coach and QB knew exactly how the team operates and what to expect. I'd have been more surprised if they got blown out. The fact is, Coach Ho is a great coach, and Raterink filled some very big shoes when he covered for the injured Michna last year.

What do we need to watch out for? Well, besides the above Raterink, last week against the Rush, Jason Simpson on special teams was getting almost 20 yards a return. As we saw with Hannah last week and Hughley the week before, this is a major trouble spot for us. Also, they made good use of the ground game last week with Rodney Filer for three touchdowns.

Any weaknesses? Well, two weeks ago against Utah, Raterink and the offense got pressured and coughed up the ball four times. (It should be noted, however, that the defense forced four of their own.) If our defense can come up the way it did against the Preds in week one, then we might be able to do something like that. If they play like the last two weeks, probably not.

On the topic of defense, there's some possible good news: The transaction page shows that the Power re-activated Josh Lay - but in the same post, it said that he was placed on reassignment. So, who knows what we'll see. It's possible that the team is thinking that it's time to reunite Lay and DeWalt on defense. It couldn't hurt.

Back to Andrico Hines. We haven't seen much of him this season, but what we've seen has been...mixed. He was out of sorts in week one, but won the game. Last week, he came in late and started with a turnover, but got into a groove that gives hope. All that's left is to see how he handles a (planned) start.

The game is Friday at 7:30 p.m. at Consol, and re-airs Saturday at 7:30 p.m. on Pittsburgh CW.

Elsewhere in the league

• Game of the week is the Tampa Bay Storm against the New Orleans Voodoo. Tampa has the better record, but the Voodoo is getting stronger and hosts this contest. I actually think they might pull it off.
• Shock at Arizona: The Shock got absolutely nut-slapped by the Sabercats last week and are coming in angry, but I don't think that will be enough to best Nick Davila and the Rattlers
• The late game is the San Antonio Talons visiting the Sabercats. As much as Garcia's my boy, I think the Cats are returning to form this year, and they brought Garcia's win streak to an end last year when they sucked.
• The Force is strong, but I think the Soul is stronger. Look for Philly to add another notch to their belt Saturday.
• The Command hasn't broken 40 points in a game yet this season, and they're playing the Rush on their home turf. The math isn't good for them.
• The Predators are also winless, and the Gladiators are coming off of two big wins. I see them winning, but it's best all around if Cleveland drops one at home this Sunday