AAF Report: UFL Blunders Overshadow Record Week
The UFL endures their 'Heidi Moment' during record-setting broadcast.
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Observing the United Football League (UFL) from a distance, it fuels an assortment of emotions. For everything great about the spring league, they seem to consistently do something dysfunctional to offset any positive gains. This past week was a perfect example.
The back-and-forth matchup between the DC Defenders and Arlington Renegades was the most-watched game of the year, averaging 973,000 viewers, according to Mike Mitchell. Unfortunately, many fans were unable to see the end of this nail-biter, as ABC endured their ‘Hedi moment.’ With just seconds remaining, in a game that would go down to the final play, ABC went to a five-minute commercial break, only to return to the NBA Pre-Game Show, which was 20 minutes before tipoff.
By time viewers could realize what happened, it was too late. The game was over. For those of us who have cut the cord on cable, there way no way to view the final outcome. It was a gut-punch to the die-hard fan who had just invested three hours into the viewing experience. It makes you wonder, who in good conscious is signing off on these decisions? It’s hard to win fans over with such poor practices.
UFL leadership under Daryl ‘Moose’ Johnston (above) has ben called into question.
Not only did the UFL disappoint the traditional fan but they also managed to tick off gamblers with their lack of transparency in regards to the Bryce Perkins injury this past week. The Panthers have been the hottest team in the UFL, with Perkins leading the charge as a heavy MVP favorite. When viewers tuned-in at kickoff, they were informed that Perkins would not be playing for Michigan, who was a two-point favorite.
The UFL broadcast would cite an ankle injury. However, Perkins was listed as probable all week and was noted as a full participant on Thursday’s practice, the final one of the week. He was clearly listed as QB1 on the league-distributed depth charts. Again, this is a major error that should have never occurred and would be easy to prevent with simple communication. It leaves a bad taste in the mouth of all fans. Help on the PR side has become glaringly obvious. If you are reading UFL, we’re available to help.
UFL POWER RANKINGS
We have a new number one seed in the UFL Power Rankings, after St. Louis upended Birmingham in a one-point victory that went down to the wire. It would not be surprising to see these two teams meet again in the championship. Meanwhile, DC defeated Arlington in another doozy. In fact, many of the top games have had dramatic finishes. However, fan attendance and tv ratings have fluctuated based on the market. In Week 9, the USFL Division is on the line, as Birmingham visits Michigan in a battle for first place. Birmingham won the previous meeting 21-12 back on April 4th. Hopefully, we will get to watch the game in its entirety!
RANK || TEAM || RECORD
St. Louis Battlehawks (6-2)
Birmingham Stallions (5-3)
Michigan Panthers (6-2)
DC Defenders (6-2)
Arlington Renegades (3-5)
Houston Roughnecks (3-5)
Memphis Showboats (2-6)
San Antonio Brahmas (1-7)
UFL QUARTERBACK RANKINGS
The game between DC and Arlington produced a shootout. Defenders quarterback Jordan Ta’amu continues to state his case as league MVP with 240 passing yards, two touchdowns and more importantly, zero interceptions, pulling off the win. Meanwhile, Renegades ‘Spring King’ Luis Perez had a whopping 350 passing yards and looks as if he should be in an NFL camp. Birmingham quarterback J’Mar Smith turned in a valiant effort, passing for 262 yards and three touchdowns, while adding 45 rushing yards. His resurgence provides the Stallions with a competent option as we inch towards the playoffs. The hottest gunslinger remains Jalan McClendon of Houston, who went for 316 passing yards and tossed a pair of touchdowns. Unfortunately, the Roughnecks have been eliminated from playoff contention. San Antonio signal-caller Kevin Hogan falls out of the top ten after a dismal three-interception performance this past week.
RANK || PLAYER || TEAM
Luis Perez, Arlington
Bryce Perkins, Michigan
Jordan Ta’amu, DC
J’Mar Smith, Birmingham
Jalan McClendon, Houston
Dresser Winn, Memphis
Max Duggan, St. Louis
Danny Etling, Michigan
Alex McGough, Birmingham
Matt Corral, Birmingham
IFL POWER RANKINGS
The combination of head coach Marvin Jones and quarterback TJ Edwards might be the toughest duo in the IFL, making Tulsa the current league favorites, as they knocked off Quad City 36-34. Arizona squeezed out a close victory over Las Vegas in the desert 50-47, while Green Bay continues their hot ways, posting 74 points on Iowa.
RANK || TEAM || RECORD
Tulsa Oilers (5-2)
Quad City Steamwheelers (6-2)
Arizona Rattlers (6-1)
Bay Area Panthers (5-2)
Jacksonville Sharks (5-2)
Vegas Knight Hawks (4-3)
Green Bay Blizzard (5-4)
San Diego Strike Force (3-4)
Tucson Sugar Skulls (3-4)
Fisher’s Freight (2-5)
IFL QUARTERBACK RANKINGS
It was a rather ho-hum week for TJ Edwards of Tulsa, who accounted for another five touchdowns. We saw Jorge Reyna of the Tuscan Sugar Skulls show off his wheels this past week, rushing for 72 yards, lus 127 passing yards and five total touchdowns. The Blizzard scored an avalanche of points behind Max Meylor, who accounted for nine touchdowns, while former Bethel quarterback Joaquin Collazo had seven touchdown tosses for the San Antonio Gunslingers, making him one to watch.
RANK || PLAYER || TEAM
TJ Edwards, Tulsa
Max Meylor, Green Bay
Dalton Sneed, Arizona
Josh Jones, Bay Area
Jorge Reyna, Tuscan
James Cahoon, Iowa
Kaleb Barker, Jacksonville
Daquan Neal, Quad City
Nate Davis, San Diego
Kenji Bahar, Massachusetts
CFL POWER RANKINGS
The CFL season is officially underway, as the Calgary Stampeders defeated the BC Lions 26-16 during the first preseason game on Monday. Journeyman PJ Walker, formerly of Temple, made his CFL debut for Calgary, completing 8-of-16 passes for 77 yards. On the BC side, former Appalachian State standout Chase Brice completed 14-of-20 passes, for 135 yards and one touchdown.
Programming Alert: Set your alarms on Saturday, as the CFL will host four preseason games, starting at 4:00pm eastern time on CFL+.
RANK || PLAYER || TEAM
Toronto Argonauts
Montreal Alouettes
Hamilton Tiger Cats
Winnipeg Blue Bombers
BC Lions
Ottawa Redblacks
Edmonton Elks
Calgary Stampeders
Saskatchewan Roughriders
Atlantic Schooners
CFL QUARTERBACK RANKINGS
[NO CHANGE FROM LAST WEEK] It was a season filled with turmoil for 2023 Most Outstanding Player Chad Kelly, who started the season with a nine game suspension and suffered a gruesome leg injury during the CFL playoffs. The Argonauts are expecting to have Kelly back for training camp after he broke the tibia and fibula bones last November. While health questions remain, Kelly is the finest quarterback in the league, when healthy. A well-accomplished gunslinger, Vernon Adams Jr. is hoping that a fresh start in Calgary can help jumpstart him towards his first career Grey Cup. He can really air it out and should help turn around the state of the Stampeders, who also signed journeyman PJ Walker to groom as a backup. Taking over the full-time reins for Adams Jr. in BC will be Nathan Rourke, who appeared to be rusty in his return up north after bouncing around several NFL practice squads the past two seasons. In fact, there was plenty of musical chairs this offseason, as Cody Fajardo goes from Montreal-to-Edmonton to backup Tre Ford and McLeod Bethel-Thompson was dealt from Edmonton-to-Montreal to be the backup for Davis Alexander. All of whom are sure to be called on at some point during the season.
RANK || PLAYER || TEAM
Chad Kelly, Toronto
Vernon Adams Jr., Calgary
Bo Levi Mitchell, Hamilton
Nathan Rourke, BC
Trevor Harris, Saskatchewan
Zach Collaros, Winnipeg
McLeod Bethel-Thompson, Montreal
Davis Alexander, Montreal
Tre Ford, Edmonton
Dru Brown, Ottawa
NFL POWER RANKINGS
[NO CHANGE FROM LAST WEEK] The NFL offseason has come and gone, while rookie minicamps have begun. It’s time to assess how free agency and the draft have shaped the top of the NFL landscape. It’s true, the Super Bowl champion Eagles did lose quite a bit of ammunition but they were able to sustain enough of their core to be fit for another deep run. So long that Andy Reid and Patrick Mahomes are paired together in Kansas City, it would appear that the Chiefs have a shot every year. Could this be the year that the Baltimore Ravens or Buffalo Bills can finally get over the hump? Or, will we see a new contender rise in the ranks such as the Chargers, who have done as much as anyone to rebuild the franchise over the past two seasons. Meanwhile, the Commanders have seemed to push all the right buttons and would appear to be on the brink of contention, as they look to join the likes of the Rams and Lions for the right to represent the NFC.
RANK || TEAM
Philadelphia Eagles
Kansas City Chiefs
Washington Commanders
Los Angeles Chargers
Los Angeles Rams
Baltimore Ravens
Buffalo Bills
Detroit Lions
Denver Broncos
Cincinnati Bengals
NFL QUARTERBACK RANKINGS
[NO CHANGE FROM LAST WEEK] The stats may not say it but Patrick Mahomes is still the best quarterback on the planet. Nobody does more with less and while the Chiefs fell just short of the three-peat, getting there alone was quite the feat in itself. One key stat that does matter is Mahomes’ dominant 4-0 postseason record over Josh Allen and the Buffalo Bills. A closer look at the most important position in sports reveals that few Super Bowl champion starting quarterbacks remain in the NFL. The Aaron Rodgers saga in Pittsburgh remains an abyss, while Russell Wilson has become a placeholder for New York Giants first round pick Jaxson Dart. Philadelphia Eagles star Jalen Hurts just earned his first ring, while 37-year old Matthew Stafford gives the Los Angeles Rams a chance to win on any given Sunday.
RANK || PLAYER || TEAM
Patrick Mahomes, Chiefs
Josh Allen, Bills
Lamar Jackson, Ravens
Joe Burrow, Bengals
Jalen Hurts, Eagles
Matthew Stafford, Rams
Jayden Daniels, Commanders
Justin Herbert, Chargers
Brock Purdy, 49ers
Baker Mayfield, Buccaneers
NFL DRAFT RECAP SERIES: NFCE || AFCE || NFCN || AFCN || NFCS || AFCS