Introduction
Leagues often do midseason awards and check ins. We plan to have one of those, too. But, sometimes they have one at the quarter pole, too. The trick part about that with our schedule is that the factors of 18 are 1, 2, 3, 6, 9, and 18. Hey, you hire a math guy to run your PR department and that’s what you get.
We couldn’t come up with a witty way to say “one-third of the way into the season” like quarter or half. Maybe if we use “one-third” enough, it will become commonplace and our little nice in the market. In the meantime, if any of you have ideas, write us and we’ll be sure to give you credit and some merch when the shop opens.
Atlantic
Philadelphia Stars (5-1): “Right Back Where They Belong”. Last year’s season went sideways for the Stars. Many penciled them into the playoffs and possibly the championship game. Instead, they finished 8-10 and behind the Breakers in the division. This year, they’re 5-1 and leading the new Atlantic division in the expanded league.
Washington Federals (4-2): “Surprise! The Good Kind!”. The Federals finished 6-12 last year and in third place in the division. This year, they’ve raced out to second place. It remains to be seen if they have the stamina to finish it off, but so far, they look good.
Boston Breakers (2-4): “Still Time to Right the Ship”. After taking the division last year and losing an overtime game against the Invaders in last year’s playoffs, the Breakers find themselves struggling so far in 1984. With twelve games left, though, they have plenty of time to turn things around.
Pittsburgh Maulers (1-5): “We’re an Expansion Team. What Do You Expect?”. The USFL expanded by a massive six teams this year. One of those teams, the Pittsburgh Maulers, are feeling the expansion blues. While becoming an expansion team in a league only one year old isn’t as big a deal, they’re still having trouble competing.
New Jersey Generals (0-6): “Surprise! The Bad Kind.” New Jersey has followed up a disappointing 1983 season with an equally disappointing start so far this year. They are winless and all but out of the playoffs already. There’s plenty of time, but they’d have to go on one of the all time win streaks to make it.
Southern
Tampa Bay Bandits (5-1): “Right Back Where They Belong”. Tampa, too, lived a nightmare of a season last year. With several key injuries, they went 6-12 and finished last in their division. However, like Philadelphia, they came out swinging this year and are atop the Southern division.
Birmingham Stallions (4-2): “Surprise! The Good Kind!”. The Stallions finished last year strong and even found themselves in a bit of a fight for a playoff position. This year, they continue that strong play with a new quarterback. Cliff Stoudt has some people saying MVP this year.
Memphis Showboats (2-4): “Surprise! The Bad Kind!”. While not surprising that Memphis is in third place, the fact that they only won one game so far is a bit surprising. We expected them to compete a little more. They have talent on the offense and defense. Maybe they’ll put it all together later this year or next.
Jacksonville Bulls (1-5): “We’re an Expansion Team. What Do You Expect?”The Bulls join their expansion bretheren in Pittsburgh, Jacksonville, San Antonio, and Oklahoma in finding difficulty putting together a team. While they showed some flashes of brilliance, ultimately this is a year for them to figure things out.
Central
Chicago Blitz (5-1): “Right Back Where They Belong”. Chicago won the championship last year over rival Michigan. They continue that success so far in this season. They show no indication of slowing down any time soon. Expect them to compete again for a championship.
Michigan Panthers (4-2): “Surprise! The Bad Kind!”. While they still have a winning record, Michigan looks far less dominant than they did last year. Nobody expected them to go undefeated again, we didn’t expect them to take a step back as far as they have this year. They may not even make the playoffs in this more competetive division.
Houston Gamblers (4-2): “Surprise! The Good Kind!”. Houston hasn’t experienced the same growing pains as the other expansion teams this year. While they expected to compete with their Kelly Gun offense, I don’t think anyone saw this coming. Averaging almost 40 points a game, they look primed and ready to compete for along time.
San Antonio Gunslingers (2-4): “We’re an Expansion Team. What Do You Expect?” The Gunslingers lived up to their name. They’ve been flying a bit by the seat of their pants this year. They might need to be bought out by their fans like the Boston Breakers did if things don’t get better.
Oklahoma Outlaws (1-5): “Still Time to Right the Ship”. Oklahoma expected to be better this year. With their quarterback Doug Williams, they hoped to at least be more comeptitive. However, things so far haven’t broken their way and they need to get things figured out quick.
Pacific
Los Angeles Express (5-1): “Right Back Where They Belong”. The Express took a huge gamble by putting many of their eggs in Steve Young’s basket. So far, the gamble paid off. They lead a competitive Pacific division and look primed to make a deep run into the playoffs.
Oakland Invaders (4-2): “Surprise! The Bad Kind!” After losing to the Blitz in the championship last year, they hoped to lead the Pacific again this year. Los Angeles took over that mantle and, while they might still make the playoffs, there’s another competitor in town.
Denver Gold (3-3): “Still Time to Right the Ship”. Denver just plays consistent football. In this era of flashy offenses and smothering defenses, that might still be enough for them to turn things around and maybe make the playoffs.
Arizona Wranglers (2-4): “Surprise! The Bad Kind!”. While not a surprise that Arizona is back in last place, they hoped for a better year this year than last. They already won as many games this year, so that’s something. But, Arizona gets hot in the summer. If they don’t win many more games, they might find themselves playing in an empty stadium.
The Verdict
Hope you enjoyed our wrap up after one-third of the season. We’re always trying new things here at the USFL. Let us know if you want more summaries during the year. We plan to bring a midseason review and another update after week 12. Until then, enjoy the games!
