The 2013 edition of Pittsburgh Power football will come to an end Friday night in Spokane as the team plays the season finale against the Spokane Shock. Pittsburgh (4-13) is looking to end the season on a positive note and needs a victory over Spokane (13-4) to match their 5-13 record of a season ago.
The quarterback situation remains questionable for the Power as Steven Sheffield recovers from a concussion he suffered in Cleveland. Shane Austin has started the last two games with mixed results. While he has produced some points for the Power he remains an erratic passer who misses wide open receivers. The Power really need him to take advantage of the big plays that present themselves this week if they are to keep pace with Spokane’s high powered offense.
Tyrone Collins has played well the last three weeks in the Power offense, averaging 110 yards per game in that span. His 44 yard diving touchdown catch was the Cutter’s Catch of the Week in the AFL. Mike Washington remains the most dynamic playmaker in the Power offense and he’d love to end a strong 2013 campaign with a big game against one of the best teams in the AFL. Julian Talley might return to the lineup this week after missing last week’s game.
Erik Meyer has been a top MVP candidate since the beginning of the season and has the Shock in position to make a serious run towards an AFL championship this year. He is tied for first in completion percentage (68.6%), second in passing yards (4412), first in passing touchdowns (106), and is second in quarterback rating (124.9) while only throwing for nine interceptions all season.
Spokane’s starting trio of receivers are all highly talented but it starts with Adron Tennell. He’s ranked amongst the AFL’s elite for the second straight year and his size and speed make him a nightmare matchup for opposing secondaries. He has 146 receptions for 1661 yards and 44 touchdowns plus seven rushing touchdowns. Even if you manage to contain him you still need to account for Kamar Jorden (93 receptions, 1068 yards, 25 TD’s) and Brandon Thompkins (59 receptions, 808 yards, 15 TD’s).
The Power beat playoff-bound Tampa Bay last week on the road 48-37 in one of their best defensive efforts of the season. A season high six sacks were recorded by the Power pass rushers, a welcome sight for a team that has struggled in that department all season. They will need to repeat that effort against Erik Meyer to keep him from getting into rhythm with his talented receivers.
Pittsburgh’s secondary will be tested but look for Sergio Gilliam to try and make a few more impact plays before this season ends. He leads Pittsburgh with six interceptions and has four defensive touchdown returns this year. Chris LeFlore has played tight coverage all season long and will need to be on top of his game this week. Jack linebacker Alvin Ray Jackson is also likely to be utilized more in coverage this week to try and slow down Spokane’s passing attack.
Spokane’s secondary features a few ballhawks who have put up impressive interception totals this year. Paul Stephens has 12 interceptions (three for a touchdown) this year to rank third in the league, one behind leaders Clevan Thomas and Virgil Gray. He is coming off an impressive three interception performance last week against San Antonio and also had a five interception game against San Jose earlier in the year. Terrance Sanders leads the team with 93 tackles, has seven interceptions (three for a touchdown), and is also a major factor in the kick return game with 2128 return yards and six touchdowns.
I have a hard time believing the Power offense can match Spokane stride for stride, especially since Pittsburgh has not scored more than 58 points all season and even that total was aided by defensive scores. You can never say never in the AFL because it only takes a few bounces to get things rolling. Having said that, Spokane wants to keep rolling this week as they head into the playoffs and they won’t mess around trying to cause a Power outage real quick.
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