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The IFL is a 30 team league that uses the Action! PC football game by Dave Koch Sports. If you would like more information about the IFL please contact Commissioner John Storer at jstorer715@gmail.com

IFL WEEK 12 RECAP

The Jets are thinking playoffs as quarterback Deshaun Watson throws 3 touchdown passes as New York defeats Buffalo 27-7.

Game Scores
Buffalo 7 New York (A) 27                   38 5-15
Buffalo flew to New York to play the Jets, looking for their 2nd win of the season. Their hopes were quickly dashed when the Jets scored on each of their first three possessions.

New York took possession at their 25 after the opening kickoff, and then went 75 yards in 7 plays to take a 7-0 lead on a Watson to Thomas 9 yard pass.

Then after holding Buffalo to 19 yards the Jets Montae Nicholson blocked the punt. This lead to a quick 3 points making it 10-0.

Next the Bills were held to a 3 and out giving the Jets the ball at the NY 43 yard line. This time the Jets went 57 yards in 4 plays ending with a Watson to Woods TD pass, Jets 17-0. The Jets would tack on a FG to make it 20-0 at halftime.

In the second half both teams took their time with the ball, with each team scoring a TD ...the Jets on a Watson pass to Higbee, and the Bills on a Smith pass to Humphries...making the Final 27-7.

For the Jets:
Watson 26-33 308 yards 3 TDs
Thomas 7 catches for 101 yards 1 TD

For the Bills:
Smith 13-21 105 yards 1 TD
Humphries 9 catches for 91 yards 1 TD

Next week Buffalo travels to Cincinnati while New York visits Baltimore.

Houston 19 Denver 35                        40 0-10
Denver gets back on the winning track with a 35-19 victory over Houston at Mile High Stadium. The Texans jumped out to a 10-0 lead after a quarter but the Broncos responded with two 2nd quarter TD's and after a Houston FG the score was 14-13 at the half.

The Broncos got two more 3rd quarter TD's and then after Houston cut the lead back to 9 (a missed PAT) the Bronocs put the game away with a pick 6 late in the 4th quarter.

Cincinnati 37 Pittsburgh 10                 47 Calm
Bengals break open a close game in the second quarter with a 17-3 advantage. Gordon scores three touchdowns for Cincinnati.

  Tampa Bay 42 Detroit 16                     70
Derek Carr throws 5 touchdown passes as the Bucs tame the Lions.

Washington 3 Dallas 26                      70
The very injured and extremely usage-impaired Washington Redskins put up little fight against the Dallas Cowboys under the lights Friday night falling to its division rival 26-3.   Washington could only manage 132 yards total offense (68 on the ground and 83 through the air - don't ask me why it doesn't add up) in the contest and converted a woeful one of 13 third down attempts.   Dallas, not exactly a good team either, overcame two (more) Cam Newton interceptions but managed to win.

Alex Erickson returned three punts for 115 yards, including a 53-yard TD, to help the Cowboys' cause.


New England 34 Miami 49                     80 0-5
The Patriots came to Miami in hopes of improving their playoff chances, while Miami was looking to bounce back from their 1st loss in 2 years.

Both Offenses played well and had a lot of yards and scored a combined 83 points, both Defenses gave up a lot of yards and some big plays. The Patriots had 4 passes of over 25+ yards and 4 runs of 10+ yards and the Dolphins had 5 passes of 25+ yards and 3 runs of 10+. Big plays for both Teams in this one. New England amassed 387 yards while Miami racked up 507 yards as Goff threw for 5 TD's and AP ran for 2 scores as well.

After closing a early Dolphin 14-0 lead to 14-13 score with 4:37 left in the 1st half, the Dolphins opened it up and for the most part and kept a 2 score lead for the duration of the game, the final score was Miami 49 New England 34.

Next week New England is at Jacksonville and Miami travels to Tennessee

Los Angeles (N) 28 San Francisco 30         64 0-10
For the second week in a row, the 49ers faced a team that had only 1 loss going into the game. SF fans, having seen their team win a total of 9 games in 3 years, expected the worse. However, this is a new 49er team and for the second week in a row, upset the division leader by squeaking by 30-28.

Scoring Summary
1 8:26 SF TD Trubisky 4 pass to Diggs (Crosby) (14-75-6:34)
1 2:36 LA TD Luck 25 pass to Burton (Succop) (8-92-3:39)
2 14:51 SF TD Trubisky 12 pass to Howard (Crosby) (7-60-2:45)
2 6:45 SF TD Barber 1 run (Crosby) (11-74-5:46)
2 0:26 LA TD Luck 10 pass to White (Succop) (13-91-6:06)
3 1:40 SF TD Trubisky 17 pass to Diggs (no good) (16-79-9:32)
4 13:58 LA TD Luck 43 pass to Davis (Succop) (5- 82-2:33)
4 5:25 LA TD Luck 4 pass to Davis (Succop) (10-58-5:49)
4 1:07 SF FG Crosby 52 (9-45-4:06)

The game featured long drives and no turnovers and when the Rams took the lead 28-27 with 5:49 left, the onus fell on Trubiskey to get the go ahead score. Trubiskey and the 49ers responded with a 9 play 4 minute drive that yielded a 52 yard FG. The Rams, led by Andrew Luck, took over with less than a minute left and move the ball to their own 48 yard line when the time ran out.

Stars of the game:
SF Trubiskey 27-35, 3 TDs, 277 yards
LA Luck 22-35, 4 TDs, 297 yards
SF Diggs 9 receptions, 112 yrds, 2 TDS.

Green Bay 28 Tennessee 17                   55 Calm
Two 7-4 teams met in a game with many playoff implications. The Packers were favored by 1 but for the first half it looked like a slaughter as Green Bay overcame two turnovers to score on 3 lengthy drives and take a two touchdown lead at the half. A key defensive play for Green Bay was Reshad Jones picking off Matt Ryan in the Packer end zone. The Pack had 301 yards of total offense at the break as Phillip Lindsay shredded the Titan defense. Green Bay 21 - Tennessee 7.

The Titans made a game of it in the 3rd as on their first possession OBJ beat Patrick Patterson deep and scored on a 44 yard pass from Matt Ryan. Neither team could do much for the rest of the quarter. Green Bay 21 - Tennessee 14.

At the start of the 4th Tennessee managed to force Green Bay to punt from their own 17. Andree Roberts returned it to the Titan 44 and Tennessee worked it down to the Pack 23 where the drive stalled. Dan Bailey FINALLY made a field goal to make the score Green Bay 21 - Tennessee 17. After an exchange of possessions the craziness started. From his own 28 Roethlisberger completed an 11 yard pass to AJ Green but Josh Norman ripped it out and Matt Milano recovered for Tennessee at the 24. With 5 minutes left Coach Conners was sweating bullets. However DKS returned the favor on the very next play as TE Jason Croom caught a Ryan pass but Brian Orakpo caused the fumble and senior citizen Mike Adams recovered for the Pack and took it to the Titan 33. Three plays later Big Ben hit AJ Green for a 17 yard TD with 3 and a half to go. Green Bay 28 - Tennessee 17. Needing two scores the Titans managed to move down to the Packer 33 but of course Dan Bailey missed the field goal which would have made it a one score game.

Final Score Green Bay 28 - Tennessee 17.

For Green Bay Phillip Lindsay had 143 yards rushing, Roethlisberger had 3 TD passes and AJ Green caught 8 for 113 yards and 2 TDs.
Matt Ryan threw for 347 yards for the Titans and Beckham caught his 14th TD pass of the year.

Next week Green Bay (8-4) hosts Washington while the Titans (7-5) host the Miami powerhouse.

Atlanta 21 Carolina 37                      67 0-10
Carolina plays their best half of football all year and takes a surprising 13-0 lead in to the half.

Carolina extends the lead to start the 3rd with Drake running it in from 3 setup by his 50 yard catch prior. Atlanta makes dents in the lead throughout with a powerful running game that saw both Miller and Coleman rush for over 100 yards on the day. Carolina's offense remains consistent and and won the turnover battle to pull out the unexpected win.

Minnesota 38 Chicago 24                     18 5-15
The 4-7 Bears, losers of 5 straight hosted the 6-5 Vikings, who were hoping to stay in the playoff hunt. Minnesota took the opening drive 80 yards (Elliott 4 yard run) to take the early lead, but Chicago answered with a long drive to tie (Garappolo 8 yards to Brate). Minnesota 7 Chicago 7 at the end of the 1st quarter.

The second quarter saw the Vikings move the ball while the Bears offense stalled. Two long Brees TD passes (29 to Smith-Schuster and 62 to Brown) gave the visitors a 21-7 lead. Chicago managed a FG as the half came to and end:   Minnesota 21 Chicago 10

Minnesota continued its onslaught in the 3rd quarter, Brees to Smith-Schuster from one yard out and a 51 yard pick six by Taylor put them up big after 3: Minnesota 35 Chicago 10.

The Bears showed some life in the final quarter – James running back a fumble 68 yards and Garappolo hitting Thomas from 8 yards out, but this one was over early.

Minnesota: Brees 22/25, 329, 3 TD; Smith-Schuster 11/170, 2 TD; Elliott 26/95 TD.

Chicago: Garappolo 27/40, 226, 2 TD, 3 INT;

Next week Minnesota hosts Dallas and Chicago has its last home game vs. Arizona.

Philadelphia 26 Indianapolis 16             69
Indianapolis, IND (IFL.com) – The Philadelphia Eagles (7-5) snapped their 4 game losing streak with a 26-16 win over the Indianapolis Colts (4-8). Eagles QB Nick Foles (35-28, 231 YD, 3 TD 0 INT) was named game MVP, and wideout Cooper Kupp caught 13 of those 28 completion on 16 targets for 113 yards. After throwing for 300 yards in consecutive games the Colts Case Keenum (34-23, 1 TD 0 INT) was held to 187 passing yards against a stingy Eagles secondary.

First Half

Philly would open the scoring with a Harrison Butker 45 yard FG, 3-0. The Colts would respond with an 8 play 75 yard drive that ended with a Sony Michel (RB) 6-yard TD run, 3-7 Colts. The Eagles regained the lead with a 5-yard TD pass from Foles to Mohamed Sanu, 9-7 (XP no good). Following a 29-yard FG by Colts Steven Hauschka, Foles ended the first half with a 17-yard TD pass to John Brown 16-10 Eagles.

Second Half

The Eagles outscored the Colts 10-6 in the second half with another Foles to Brown 4-yard TD pass and a Butker 23 yard FG. The Colts added a late TD pass (2 point failed) Keenum to Michael Crabtree 12-yard to finish out the scoring and send the hometown faithful home wondering if the Colts can turn it around next week in Pittsburgh (4-7). Philly travels to NFC Central Division leader Tampa Bay Buccaneers (8-3).

Baltimore 13 Jacksonville 3                 71 0-10 Rain
Ugly, ugly, ugly but it was a fun game that saw an 81 yard punt into the wind, a 38 yard TD by a stat pack RB , (OK it was Le'veon Bell), multiple long turnover returns. resulting in a total of 16 points. With this being the case, Bell was the star of the game with 22 carries for 111 yards and the games only TD. Zach Brown had a nice game for the Jags with 9 tackles and a 60 yard fumble recovery.

Otherwise, both "D's" played well with the difference being the daring play calling of coach Masters when it mattered late in he game.

The Jags plummet to 4-8 while Baltimore soar to 3-9.

Next week:

Baltimore goes to New York while Jacksonville hosts the Pats.

Kansas City 7 Los Angeles (A) 31            68 Calm
The Chargers out gain the visiting Chiefs by 443-232 and coast to an easy win.

New Orleans 13 Oakland 34                   59 0-5
Raiders beat owner Keith Jackson's hometown Saints' 34-13 in a game where the Raiders caught every break. Josh Rosen broke out with over 90 yards rushing as he kept exploiting the Raiders' inability to stop a rushing quarterback.

New York (N) 21 Arizona 34                  75 Calm
What happens when and irresistible force meets an immovable object, according to the laws of physics the object moves! That is exactly what happened when the Arizona met with New York today.

The IFL was kept in suspense as the New York Giants were snow bound and could not get out of the city to fly into Arizona for the game which was originally scheduled for Tuesday evening. Fans in both cities have been a media feeding frenzy prior to the fight for sole possession of first place in the conference. Giants fans claimed no one can move the ball on the Giants period. The under in Vegas set betting records. The Red Bird fans on the other hand said it would take more than 11 seven foot Giants to stop Magic Man Mahomes. The answer would take only 4 plays and a little over two minutes. A run stuff, a first down conversion pass to Barkley, a first down with another conversion to Kirk and then a 36 yard picture perfect pass to Williams would draw first blood. Mahomes and company would never look back and would never lose the lead.

Mahomes made one mistake in the first quarter on his second possession. Trying for another deep ball, Smith would intercept the pass on the first play of the second possession. However, the Cardinal defense rose to the occasion as they abused Wentz early with multiple sacks. The next time Arizona got the ball it would be another 7 points with Mahomes passing it to Barkley.

Arizona would score once more in the first half with a 55 yard strike to Kirk. The Giants offense was held in check by Arizona for the most part but they did find life later with Breida running the ball. The Giants lone TD in the first half came nearing the end of the first quarter as Wentz played one of his better series. However, Mahomes would answer closing out the half with a 55 yard TD pass to his TE.

The Giants received the second half kick off and committed to run with Breida running for big gains play after play. For a while, Arizona fans were regretting their trading Breida to their rival in New York. The Giants would close the gap to 31-14 mostly on the heels of Breida. The Cardinals resorted to a bend but dont break type defense allowing New York to run while also eating clock. On offense, Arizona used their own clock control to take valuable time away from New York.

When the dust settled, Arizona would collect 407 yards from the Giants. Both teams would rush for over 100 yards. The star of the game would be Mahomes with 323 yards of offense and 4 touch down passes to 4 different receivers.

It will be a cat fight between New York, Arizona and Philadelphia for the conference championship as each of these teams beat up on one another. Coach Heaton only quote was "This beats the Hell out of Last Year"!

Rushing Leaders
Lindsay(GB)     22-143
Miller,L(Atl)   22-138 1 TD
Adams,J(Den)    15-121
Breida(NYG)     15-120 1 TD
Bell(Bal)       22-111 1 TD
Coleman,T(Atl) 21-111
Chubb,N(LAC)    18-107
Peterson,A(Mia) 19-104 2 TD
Gordon III(Cin) 13-37 3 TD

Receiving Leaders
Smith-Schu(Min) 11-170 2 TD
Edelman(Mia)     8-125 3 TD
Kelce,T(Oak)     8-124 3 TD
Kupp(Phi)       13-113

Passing Leaders
Goff(Mia)       32-22-379   5 TD 1 Int
Ryan,M(Ten)     43-32-347   1 TD 1 Int
Wilson,R(Car)   21-16-337   3 TD
Mullens(Den)    34-25-330   4 TD
Brees(Min)      25-22-329   3 TD
Mahomes(Ari)    27-14-323   4 TD 1 Int
Watson,D(NYJ)   33-26-308   3 TD
Carr,D(TB)      31-20-305   5 TD – IFL Offensive Player of the Week
Luck(LAR)       35-22-297   4 TD

Defensive Standouts
Poyer(Min)       2 Int 7 Tk – IFL Defensive Player of the Week

Special Teams
Erickson(Dal) 2-49 Kick Ret 5-115 Punt Ret 1 TD – IFL Special Teams Player of the Week
James Jr.(NE) 7-167 Kick Ret

IFL WEEK 12 STANDINGS

IFL WEEK 12 LEAGUE LEADERS

IFL WEEK 11 RECAP

The suprising 49ers are now the hottest team in the IFL after stunning Oakland for their sixth straight win.

San Francisco 20 Oakland 17                 57 Calm
In a tense back and forth game, the Niners thwarted the Raiders' second half comeback with a backbreaking, touchdown drive to win 20-17. The 49ers' stout front seven harassed Raiders' QB Matthew Stafford into an uneven day, while also holding the Raiders to under 75-yards rushing overall.

Baltimore 18 Buffalo 20                     51 15-25
Two cellar dwelling teams who are looking to next year face 15-25 mile an hour winds and 51 degrees which makes for difficult conditions as the Ravens rest Mayfield to start the game but Chase Daniels gets knocked out of the game early and Mayfield must enter but not before Daniels throws a pick 6 to Vander Esch with 32 seconds left in first quarter as the Bills close out the quarter leading 10-0.

The second quarter sees Adam Thielen scamper 31 yards for a TD run but the XPt. was MISSED! 10-6 Bills. The BIlls go on a 8 play 75 yard drive capped off by a TD pass from Alex Smith to Adam Humphries of 6 yards and the half ends 17-6 Bills...

The third quarter scoring belongs to the Ravens as Matt Bryant nails a 52 yarder to make it 17-9 and then Mayfield scampers 9 yards for the TD, the 2 pt. conversion fails and the third quarter ends 17-15 Bills....

With 2:37 left in the 4th Matt Bryant nails a 37 yard FG to give the Ravens their first lead of the game,18-17. Buffalo is backed up to their own 10 yard line with 1:34 left after punting on previous drive and forcing the Ravens to punt. Smith was great in 2-minute drill completing short passes and being helped out by a 15 yard face-mask penalty, with 3 seconds left and a strong wind behind Graham Gano the Bills send the FG unit on for a 62 yarder and he drills it to give the Bills their first win of the season, 20-18!

Adam Thielen was outstanding for the Raves catching 8 for 111 and rushing once for 31 and a TD...Mayfield was solid going 16-21 and 165 with no TD passes or picks.

TJ Yeldon had a solid game running the ball, 15 for 81 and 7 FD's Vander Esch pick 6 on defense...Gano was the MVP for the Bills kicking FG's of 59 and the winning kick of 62!!!

Baltimore heads to Jacksonville next week while the Bills head to New York to play the Jets.

Miami 31 Cincinnati 42                      49 0-10
It was a playoff like atmosphere at Paul Brown Stadium as the defending IFL champion Miami Dolphins and owners of a current 26 game regular season winning streak came to town. Wynonna Judd performed the National Anthem and Axl Rose blurted out "Welcome to the Jungle" thru the loud speakers as the Bengals ran on the field.

The Bengals won the toss and deferred thus kicking off to begin the game. Miami started the game with three straight Adrian Peterson runs and faced fourth and inches. The Dolphins decided to gamble but the Bengals were ready and stuffed Peterson. Taking over at the Miami 35, Rodgers hit Melvin Gordon for 17. Gordon, on consecutive runs, carried it down to the 13. On second and two, Rodgers hit Gordon on a slant for the score and a 7-0 Cincinnati lead.

A dump-off to Peterson on second and five resulted in a 47 yard gain and the Dolphins were quickly in business. Despite a holding penalty, Goff found Jordy Nelson for 17 and then Brandin Cooks for eight tying the score at 7-7 with about seven minutes remaining in the quarter.

The Bengals drove the ball to the Miami 19 but had to settle on a Fairbairn 37 yard field goal attempt, which he missed. The Miami scoring machine took advantage as an Ingram 10 yard run and a Kyle Fuller P.I. moved the ball to midfield. Goff would eventually connect with Nelson for the 20 yard score and a 14-7 lead a couple minutes into the second quarter. Cincinnati made it up before the ten count and had a right of their own as Rodgers found Alshon Jeffery for 58 yards and first and goal at the Dolphin nine. Rodgers then hit Gerald Everett for the score to tie it at 14. The Dolphins would come right back as Goff teamed up with Julian Edelman for 35 and then found him again on third and goal for the seven yard score to regain the lead 21-14.

Things took a bad turn for the home team as Miami safety Adrian Amos intercepted a Rodgers pass on the Bengals first play from scrimmage on their next series. The Cincinnati defense stood strong allowing only a Prater 44 yard field goal to extend their lead to 24-14. With a little over two minutes in the half the Bengals were able to drive down to the four where Gordon scored to cut the Dolphins lead to 24-21 at the half.

The Bengals received the kickoff and had something working until Jarius Wright fumbled after going 33 yards on a rare Cincinnati trick play. Miami took over at their own 38. Once again the Cincinnati defense showed some teeth denying another Dolphin fourth and inches attempt. This seemed to fire up the Cincinnati offense (and also gave some confidence to the coaching staff) as Gordon blasted for 18 on a inside run. Rodgers would eventually find Devin Funchess for the 20 yard score to regain the lead 28-24.

After the Bengals defense forced a three and out, Cincinnati completed a nine play 78 yard drive capped off by a Rodgers to Wright 10 yard score to extend their lead to 35-24.

The game turned into a defensive struggle with multiple punts until the Dolphins would score as Goff tossed it to Ingram from six yards out to cut the Cincinnati lead to 35-31 with about 12 and a half minutes remaining.

Once again the game got gritty as both defenses forced multiple punts until Rodgers would connect with Jeffery on a 31 yard score for the 42-31 final.

Great game by Tony.

Goff finished 28 of 48 for 335 yards, 4 TDs, and an INT. Nelson caught 7 passes for 83 yards and a score.

Rodgers finished 25 of 39 for 342 yards, 5 TDs and an INT. Gordon rushed 23 times for 118 yards and a TD. He also caught 9 passes for 116 yards and a score. Jeffery finished with 7 receptions for 137 yards and a score.

Next week the Dolphins host New England while Pittsburgh looks to bring the Bengals off their cloud.

Philadelphia 13 Green Bay 30                34 0-5
Philadelphia came into Green Bay for a rematch of last year's Divisional playoff round nail biter.

Both teams have been slowed by injuries this season and entered the contest at 6-4. The Eagles came in with 8 players in street cloths, another 3 would be forced out of this one.

After an exchange of punts to open the game, the visitors put together a nice drive but had to settle for a 34 yard Harrison Butker FG. Key play, a Clay Matthews sack on Nick Foles on 3rd and goal from the 5...3-0 Eagles.

Green Bay replied with a 9 play, 75 yard drive of their own. Ben Roethlisberger hit Josh Gordon for a 15 yard TD to cap it off...7-3 Packers after 1.

The start of the second quarter saw both teams go on long drives that resulted in FG's. With just over 2 minutes left in the half it was 10-6. Starting from his own 23, Coach Conners went conservative and handed
the ball off to RB Phillip Lindsay. He found a seam however and went 53 yards all the way down to the Eagles 24. Packers were in business. Five plays later Roethlisberger found TE Ben Watson for a 7 yard score...17-6 Green Bay at the half.

The hosts took the second half kickoff and rode on the back of Lindsay. He ran the ball right at the Eagles defense, despite Coach Mason calling the perfect defense on multiple occasions. The rookie RB capped off the drive with a 5 yard TD run..24-6 Pack.

Green Bay would tack on a couple of FG's before the end of the quarter to go up 30-6 and hang on from there....30-13 was the Final score.

Greg coached a solid game, guessing my offensive play call right on numerous occasions, but on this day the HFA seemed heavily slanted towards the hosts.

Lindsay was game MVP. 21 carries for 148 yards and a TD.

Eagles (6-5) will head into next week's key game at Indy missing 10 players due to injury!

Packers (7-4) travel to Tennessee to face the Law Firm of Brunskill, Hodson and Fukuyama.

Jacksonville 10 New York (A) 20             55 Calm Light Rain
Thursday night football in the Big Apple saw both teams gain a lot of yards, but not put up many points.

The Jags took their opening possession 75 yards in 2:46, and scored on an Allen to Higgins 30 yard pass play. New York responded immediately by taking the ball 75 yards in 4:38, to score on a Watson to Riddick 13 yard pass.

Jacksonville then had a 3 and out which the Jets then took 76 yards on 12 plays in 6:22 to score again. This time it was Watson to Riddick again on a 3 yard pass. Jets 14-7...

After turning it over on downs the Jags forced the Jets to punt. This time they drove to the Jet’s 20 yard line, but had to settle for a 37 yard FG with 1:40 to go in the first half.

The second half saw the Jets punt 4 times, and the Jags punt 3 times along with missing FG.

The only scoring was a 3 yard run by Mack with 1:46 to play in the game. To get the score NY drove 74 yards in 4:25...

Final 20-10...Jets

Next week the Jets host Buffalo, and the Jags host Baltimore.

New Orleans 13 Houston 3                    70
Not much to see here as the 3-7 Saints travel to the 1-9 Texans. The only real stats worth reporting is Joe Mixon for the Texans rushed for 76 yards and future hall of fame QB Josh Rosen go's 21 for 29 for 251 yards and a TD for the Saints. Saints 4-7 will travel to 9-1 Oakland and the Texans 1-10 will travel to 6-4 Denver.

Chicago 16 New York (N) 23                  54 5-15
Giants offense looks pathetic (295 total yards) led by Jeff Driskel (12/27 159 yards) and Matt Breida (21-68) but the #1 defense in the league stands tall forcing 2 turnovers (1 of which went back the other way for 6) by game MVP Chris Harris.

Chicago tied the game up with 1:03 left and gave the ball back to the Giants with :55 left on the clock. Driskel completed a 12 yard out to Robby Anderson and then hooked up with Kenny Golladay for the biggest play of the game, a 67 yard touchdown with :39 on the clock. The Giants kicked away and their defense forced a 3 and out as time expired to complete win number 7.

Next week:

Giants travel to Arizona in a huge divisional matchup
Bears stays home to face the Vikings.

Los Angeles (N) 27 Kansas City 9            43 15-25
Led by a strong defense, the Rams sacked Osweiler 9 times and the offense did enough to secure a 27-9 victory at cold, windy Kansas City. The Chiefs controlled the ball for 38 minutes but were out gained by the Rams to the tune of 242/151. 10 penalties also did not help the KC cause.

Minnesota 35 Arizona 28                     78 Calm
Arizona fans got up Tuesday morning after week 10 results were complete to suddenly realize the Cardinals were leading the division with 7-3 record. After suffering through a miserable 2 win season last year, fans were again energized. Mahomes blossoming into a legitimate elite QB with the addition of Barkley to the roster places opposition defenses in a tough bind. While the Cardinals are for real, they are still young and still lack adequate depth to sustain a meaning charge at the playoffs.

The Minnesota loss was sobering for the energized fans. Bernie Fowler was added to the roster to provide some depth to a thin WR corps. On Zona's second possession Fowler was open speeding to toward the end zone and Mahome's hit him with a dart. Fowler made the reception but somehow while attempting to re-position the ball, he fumbled it as if it was a greased pigskin. The trailing Viking defender jumped on the ball and covered it up to deny Zona's opportunity. Little did anyone know it would ultimately be the key play to an Arizona defeat.

The Zona defense stepped up in the first half limiting the elite Viking offense to 14 points while even adding a defensive score in the second quarter to tie up the game. Mahome's would get a chance to work his magic after the Vikings were forced to punt with 1:19 on the clock. With 5 seconds left to play at near mid field, Mahome's would throw the perfect bomb to Kirk to strike with a 48 yard touch down pass. Zona would go into half time with a 7 point lead.

However, the Zona defense would tire in the second half. Already playing without Harold Landry at OLB, Williams would become injured. Other offensive lineman also were lost to the game. With Costonzo already sitting out the day and additional OL injuries, Mahome's was under additional pressure. With the defense struggling to throttle Brees, the Vikings took the lead 35-28. Mahomes and company would get the ball back with 3:48 to play. Faced with a 4th and less than 1 on their own 35 yard line, Mahomes would convert for new life with a first down. A couple more completions would move the ball to the Minn 39 yard line with 1:05 to go. However, Mahome's had no magic left as he attempted to hit Kirk on a fly pattern. Kirk did his best to contest the ball but Taylor came up with the pick. Kirk would cause Taylor to fumble the ball but Minn was able to maintain possession. Game over, Minnesota wins a nail biter.

Next week the Cardinals meet the Giants for a showdown in the division.

Tampa Bay 28 Dallas 10                      70
Dallas entered the contest with a record of 3-8.   With seven players injured headed into the game, the odds of Dallas pulling off an upset against the 7-3 Tampa Bay squad were slight.

But Dallas' defense played very well in the first half - holding the high-powered Buccaneer offense to a single score - a 14-yard pass from Derek Carr to Davante Adams.

But the Cowboys' plan of double-covering Adams was exploited when Tampa Bay countered that strategy by throwing to its great many other good receivers (TE Cook and WRs Lockett and DeSean Jackson had 151 receiving yards between them).   Additionally, Dallas's roster was further thinned when five more players left the game for good with injuries.

Tampa Bay won 28-10. Dalllas was held to 265 yards in total offense. Carr himself exceeded that team totally by throwing for 273 yards. He completed 23/33 passes - four for scores.

This one could have been much worse had the Bucs converted on third down: they were just 1/10.

Carolina 23 Los Angeles (A) 27              77 Calm
Carolina holds the 23-20 lead with 4 to go in the 4th but the Chargers drive all the way down the field and score a TD in the last Seconds as Manning hits Julio Jones on the TD pass. Chargers convert multiple long 3rd down conversion on the drive, as per usual, the Panthers defense fails when it matters most.

Jones and Chubb could not be stopped for the Chargers gaining 152 and 141 yards respectively.

Denver 30 Atlanta 37                        68
Philip Rivers is named MVP as he leads the Falcons to a 37-30 home win against the Broncos. Rivers had 339 yards, 2 TDs and no INTs against the tough Broncos defense.

The story of the game was that Nick Mullens was virtually unstoppable. He passed for 417 yards and 3 TDs with Tyreek Hill catching almost half with 13 catches for 201 yards and a TD. On one drive Von Miller got a big sack on 3rd down and penalties, the other big story of the game, were the only things that stopped Nick Mullens.

With the win, the Falcons go to 9-2 while the Broncos fall to 6-5.

Tennessee 37 Indianapolis 27                69
Indianapolis, IND (IFL.com) – The disappointing season of the Indianapolis Colts (3-8) continued Sunday with a 37-27 defeat at the hands of the Tennessee Titans (7-4). Both teams combine for a total of 975 yards of offense with game MVP Mat Ryan leading the charge for the visiting Titans. He threw for 460 yards, 3 touchdowns and 1 INT while his counterpart Case Keenum through for 348 yards, 2 TD and 3 costly interceptions.

The most costly interception by Keenum, his 3rd of the game, came in the 4th quarter deep in Titan territory with the Colts driving for the tying score. It was 34-27 Titans when the Colts Defense stopped Tennessee on downs at the Indy 39. Keenum and company would drive down to the Titans 14, where they had a 3rd and 3 when Keenum tried to hit Keenan Allen (WR) on a short-slant for the first. The throw was high, Josh Norman (CB) deflected the high throw and Matt Milano (OLB) intercepted the bounce pass at 11 yard-line.

Tennessee would seal the victory following the turnover with a 13 play 92 yard drive ending with a Dan Bailey 21 yard Field-Goal, Final Score 37-27 Titans.

Other Notables

Tennessee Titans

DeAndre Hopkins (WR) 9 Catches 149 Yards 16.6 Avg. 33 Long
O’Dell Beckham Jr. (WR) 6 Catches 93 Yards 15.5 Avg. 28 Long 1 TD
Rashaad Penny (RB) 14 Rushes 63 Yards 4.5 Avg. 11 Long 1 TD

Indianapolis Colts

Sony Michel (RB) 12 Rushes 78 Yards 6.5 Avg. 16 Long 1 TD
Keenan Allen (WR) 8 Catches 205 Yards 25.6 Avg. 75 Long 2 TD
Telvin Smith Sr. (OLB) 12 Tackles 1 INT 51 YD Ret

Detroit 26 Washington 9                     48 0-5
Two of the bottom feeders would face off in Washington and it turned out to be exactly what one would expect… one ugly game. The Lions would take their possession right down the field for a TD. From there on out the two teams would trade a pair of FGs for a pretty uneventful first half with Detroit owning a 13-6 lead. One concern for Washington was WR Davante Parker would be lost of the game in the first half and with their #1 and #2 WRs already injured would leave just the Skins 4th and 5th string WRs to finish the game.

The Lions would get the ball to start the half and would give the Redskins a glimmer of hope when Williams would fumble the kickoff. However in the scrum the Panthers managed to maintain possession. The Skins would hold them to a 3 and out and with a bad snap rookie Vita Vea would block the punt giving the Redskins prime FG position. This is about the point where the wheels started to come off for the Redskins as on the first play after the blocked punt Tackle Dion Dawkins would be called of a hold. On the next play there was utter confusion and Prescott would lose 3 yards. By the time it was all said and done the Redskins would have to settle for a 35 yard FG in what was their best chance to score a TD on the day.

Detroit would then respond like they have all game by marching down and kicking their own field goal with stud kicker Lutz hitting a 51 yarder and making it look like a chip shot. The Redskins would punt the next possession and pen the Lions deep. The Redskins D would finally show up and sack Darnold for a big loss on 3rd down forcing a punt from deep in their own territory to dangerous return man Cyrus Jones. Unfortunately the only danger he posed was to the Redskins as Jones would cough the ball up at the Redskins 34 yard line. From there the Lions would eventually hit paydirt to put them up 14. With only a quarter left and only two healthy WRs that was all she wrote for the Skins. Detroit would later tack on another FG after a failed 4th down attempt to make it 26-9.

Washington will head to Dallas next week for the race to the bottom of the NFC East while Detroit will host division leading (as of this writing) Tampa Bay.

Pittsburgh 13 New England 28                50 10-20
With the Steelers game planning to stop the run Tannehill and Jackson combine to go 21-26 277 yards and 3 TDs to lead New England to a 28-13 home victory .

Rushing Leaders
Lindsay(GB)     21-148 1 TD
Elliott,E(Min) 26-147 3 TD
Chubb,N(LAC)    17-141 1 TD
Gordon III(Cin) 23-118 1 TD

Receiving Leaders
Allen,K(Ind)     8-205 2 TD
Hill,T(Den)     13-201 1 TD
Jones,J(LAC)    11-152 2 TD
Brown,A(Min)    10-100 1 TD
Crowder(Chi)    10- 78 1 TD

Passing Leaders
Ryan,M(Ten)     46-35-434   3 TD 1 Int
Mullens(Den)    38-27-417   3 TD
Brees(Min)      36-29-365   2 TD
Keenum(Ind)     39-21-348   2 TD 2 Int
Rodgers,A(Cin) 39-25-342   5 TD 1 Int – IFL Offensive Player of the Week
Rivers,P(Atl)   35-24-339   2 TD
Goff(Mia)       48-28-335   4 TD 1 Int
Watson,D(NYJ)   37-26-311   2 TD
Carr,D(TB)      33-23-273   4 TD

Defensive Standouts
Harris Jr.(NYG) 2 Int 8 Tk – IFL Defensive Player of the Week

Special Teams
Lutz(Det)      4-4 FG – IFL Special Teams Player of the Week

IFL WEEK 11 STANDINGS

IFL WEEK 11 LEAGUE LEADERS

IFL WEEK 10 RECAP

Bengals cornerback Kyle Fuller intercepts two Mariota passes and takes one to the house as Cincinnati downs Chicago 27-7.

Game Scores
Cincinnati 27 Chicago 7                     46 0-10
The Bengals travelled to Chicago to take on a wounded Bears team. Chicago was without star halfback Dalvin Cook, 10+ rated ILB Bobby Wagner, plus receivers Marvin Jones Jr and Jamison Crowder. I am sure that played a part in Cincinnati's 27-7 win.

The Bengals stumbled all over themselves the opening drive with four holding penalties before finally punting. After forcing a Chicago three and out Cincinnati put together a 10 play 57 yard drive that saw Gordon go in from a yard out for a 7-0 lead. The Bengals would add a field goal just before the end of quarter one for a 10-0 lead. Cincinnati would add to the lead as Kyle Fuller would intercept a Mariota pass and go the 46 yards for the pick six. Fairbairn would add another field goal and the Bengals would take a 20-0 lead into the half.

The teams would exchange scores in the second half for the 27-7 final.

Rodgers finished 21 of 31 for 235 yards and a score. Kyle Fuller intercepted two passes, including the pick six. Defensive lineman Adam Gotsis had three of the Bengals six sacks on the day.

For Chicago, Mariota faced a lot of pressure, completing just 15 of 31 passes for 135 yards and a TD with 3 INTs. He also scrambled for 58 yards on 4 attempts.

Next week the Bears head to New York to take on the Giants while the Bengals step up to try to end Miami's 26 game winning streak. As Wynonna Judd would croon "Why Not Me?"

Indianapolis 33 Buffalo 27                  50 5-15
It looked like the Bills were going to pick up their first win of the season when Alex Smith connected with T.J. Yeldon for the 28 yard score with just 1:39 remaining giving Buffalo a 27-24 lead. But the Colts tie it thanks to a Hauschka 45 yard field goal as time expires. Then on the final play of overtime Indianapolis quarterback Case Keenum connects with Golden Tate for the 60 yard game winning score.

Philadelphia 17 Dallas 18                   70
Down seven to Philly, Dallas' Cam Newton led his team on an 11 - play, 77 yard drive for a score with nine seconds on the clock and then hit TE Charles Clay for a 2-point conversion to give Dallas an 18-17 lead … and the ultimate win.

This marks an upset as the Cowboys entered the game with a 2-7 record while the Eagles brought a 6-3 record into the contest.

The Cowboys overcame a 300-yard passing game by Nick Foles.   Foles logged those yards on pin-poing accuracy to the tune of a 31/39 completion game.   The Eagles converted an impressive 10/17 third downs into first downs.   Their issue was allowing four quarterback sacks and only turned five red zone chances into touchdowns.   Perhaps the biggest factor in this upset win by Dallas was the fact Philly had nine players who didn't dress due to injuries.

Miami 19 New York (N) 17                    54 0-10
This was a game pitting the number 1 Offense against the number 1 Defense. The Dolphins still unbeaten through nine games and the Giants at 6-2-1 but only allowing about 16 points a game facing a Dolphin Team that averages about 35, something had to give...it did.

Both Teams started a little slow, punting on each of their 1st possessions. Miami got it going on their 2nd drive with a 14 play, 67 yard drive but on a 3rd and goal from the 1, AP loses 2 yards and the Dolphins settle for the FG and the 3-0 lead. A punt by each Team after that but then New York would drive 60 yards early in the 2nd quarter and get the TD to take a 7-3 lead with 12:25 left in the half. Again and exchange of 2 punts by each team on their next 2 possessions. Miami would get the ball on their own 20 with 6:36 to go in the half and travel 80 yards and get the TD with 2:32 left until halftime and regain the lead at 10-7. NY would only use 1:11 of the clock and punt it back to the Dolphins with 1:10 left in the half, but Miami's on their own 18 yard line. Miami quickly moves it to the Giant 28, including converting a 4th and inches at their own 41 and kick the FG with 2 seconds left in the half to go up 13-7 at halftime.

The Giants get the ball to start the 2nd but can muster only one 1st down and punt it back to Miami. The Dolphins travel 60 yards but their drive stalls and they settle for the FG, but they now have a 2 score lead at 16-7 with 8:15 left in the 3rd. Once again an exchange of punts, but on their following possession NY gets it at their own 41 with 3:17 to go in the 3rd quarter, on a drive that carries over into the 4th quarter trailing 16-7.

4 plays into the 4th the Giants kick a 30 yard FG to cut the lead to 16-10, and make it a one score game. Then Disaster strikes the Dolphins, Goff fumbles at his own 10 and the Giants recover to give them 1st and goal at the Miami 8 yard line. Three plays later the Giants get the TD to take the lead at 17-16 with 13:42 left in the game. Again an exchange of punts by each team but with 3:51 left in the game, looks like the Dolphins will get a last shot as the Giants are forced to punt on a 4th and 4 from their own 31, but wait, the Dolphins are called off sides on the punt (1 of 12 penalties for 108 yards on the night) and the Giants maintain possession, the Fins are running out of opportunities. The Giant take it to the 2 minute warning but have to punt it back to the Dolphins with 1:56 left in the game. Miami gets the ball on their own 31 and work the field quickly. They convert a 4th and 6 at their own 35 which would have been the ball game it the Giants could have held. the drive continues quickly aided by a key personal foul penalty on the Giants (1 of only 6 for 66 yards on the Giants, but definitely the most costly) to set the Dolphins up at the Giant 39 yard line, but only 41 seconds remaining. The Dolphins move it down to the Giant 23, where with 2 seconds left on the clock, Prater kicks the 41 yarder to give the Dolphins the win at 19-17.

The Giants would have loved for the headline to read "Last unbeaten falls" but it was not meant to be in this thriller. A exciting game, even though it was a defensive battle back and forth with 3 lead changes. Next week the Giants host the bears and Miami continues on the road with the always tough Cincinnati Team. I wonder if the Commissioner will have any insights or predictions on this one?

Tennessee 41 Baltimore 31                   56 0-5
Tennessee traveled to Baltimore for a track meet at M&T Bank Stadium. The defenses wore their Timberland work boots as the Titans raced to a 41-31 victory to improve to 6-4. The Ravens drop to a disappointing 2-8.

The keys to this one were turnovers and big plays, but more on that later.

Baltimore opened the game with a 9-play, 68-yard drive, culminating in a Mayfield-to-Thielen 14-yard TD pass. Bryant's PAT made it 7-0 Ravens.

Tennessee responded with an 8-play, 60-yard drive ending with a Ryan-to-OBJ 18-yard TD strike. Bailey's PAT tied the game at 7-7.

Baltimore responded to that with their own 8-play, 63-yard drive, highlighted by a Mayfield-to-Fuller 23-yard pass down to the 2. From there, Le'Veon Bell toted it in and Bryant's PAT put the Ravens ahead 14-7.

Not to be out-done, Ryan hit DeAndre Hopkins for 58 on the first play after the kick and the Titans were in business at the Raven 12. I think the Titans were all a little gassed from racing down field, because the drive stalled at the Raven 5 and Coach Brunskill opted for the safe 3 pointer from Bailey. Ravens 14-10.

Mayfield decided now was a good time to give away some candy since it was, after all, Halloween. Josh Norman was in the mood for some sweets and nabbed his 4th INT of the season, returning it to the Raven 12. From there Ryan found Kyle Rudolph in the end zone. Titans 17-14 after the Bailey PAT.

The first punt of the afternoon, by either team, occurred 5 minutes into the 2nd quarter and the Titans took control on their own 19. Seven plays and 81-yards later, Ryan found OBJ open across the middle for a 31-yard TD. Tennessee 24-14.

After a good return from DeAndre Carter, Baltimore started on their own 31 with about 6:00 remaining in the half. Knowing Tennessee would get the ball to start the second half, Baltimore milked the clock with some unexpected run plays, Alas, the drive stalled before the 2:00 warning, though Matt Bryant did boot a 42-yard FG to cut the Titan lead down to seven, 24-17. Leaving time on the clock would prove devastating to the Ravens because...

The Titans still had their track shoes on. Coming in rested off the bench, Wendell Smallwood turned a short out pass into a 39-yard gain on the first play from scrimmage. After an 8-yard gain on a Ryan-to-Hopkins pass, Smallwood ran another 11 to the Ravens 2. Latavious Murray burrowed through the pile up at the goal line for a Titan TD with :27 left before the half. Tennessee 31-17.

Tennessee's first punt came on their first possession of the 3rd quarter, pinning the Ravens at their own 8. After moving the ball out to the 35, the Ravens were faced with a 3rd-and-5. Seeking to avoid the rush, Mayfield rolled outside the pocket, but was met by CB Carlton Davis III, who stripped the ball out. Yannick Ngakoue recovered for the Titans. An Aaron Donald sack and a Titan PEN curbed Tennessee's excitement, but Bailey still knocked a FG through from 41. Tennessee 34-17.

As the 3rd quarter wound down, Mayfield marched the Ravens downfield, knowing they needed to score before the 4th quarter started. Faced with a 4th-and-4 on the Titan 7, Coach Master realized that the Ravens chances of winning didn't increase that much with a FG, so he decided to go for it. Running a corner fade to Jaylen Samuels, Titan OLB Matt Milano smelled it out and covered it perfectly, wrestling the ball from Samuels arms and even returning it 29 yards out of the endzone to the Raven 20.

As the scoreboard rolled to the 4th quarter, Tennessee opened with an 11-yard screen to TE Kyle Rudolph, then let the air out of the ball in an effort to burn the clock with a 17-point lead. Three plays later, they punted and the Ravens took over on their own 20. Mayfield connected with Andrews for a 14-yard hitch, then with Thielen for a 21-yard slant, setting up the Ravens at the Titan 45. Seems Andrews and Thielen noticed something about the Titan defense and asked Mayfield to look for Andrews on another hitch route. He did and the connection worked...but then Andrews pitched the ball to Thielen, who RAN IT TO THE HOUSE! An unplanned hook-and-ladder. Baltimore down by 10, 34-24 with 10:25 remaining.

Tennessee, again looking to burn the clock, got a first down on their next possession, but a another penalty set them back and they couldn't recover. Johnny Townsend's punt pinned the Ravens at their own 8. Mayfield, looked deep for Chris Hogan, but checked down to Thielen for a short 3-yard gain. That set up a medium out pass to Thielen, who slipped through Matt Milano's tackle and raced down the sidelines, where Blake Martinez also missed a tackle. 91-yards later, Thielen was in the end zone. Baltimore within 3, 34-31 with 5 minutes remaining.

After Anthony Levine Sr sacked Matt Ryan on 1st down, Tennessee couldn't quite gain the yardage needed for a first down. Townsend punted and the Ravens took over on their own 22. The Titan D, however, showed up and along with a crucial holding penalty, stymied the Ravens offense. Faced with a 4th-and-20 from their own 22, Baltimore decided to punt and use their 3 timeouts to pray for one last shot.

Tennessee, using their stable of rested RBs, gave the ball to Rashaad Penny for his second carry of the day. Penny didn't stop running until 76-yards later, when he was crossing the goal line and hammering the final nail into the Ravens coffin. Tennessee 41-31. Baltimore wouldn't need those time outs.

Titan Matt Ryan was named the game's MVP. With a 148.8 QB rating, Ryan was nearly perfect on 26-for-31 attempts for 371 yards and 3 TDs. DeAndre Hopkins caught 6 of those passes for 136 scoreless yards.Odell Beckham Jr, however, caught 2 TDs in his 5/71 day.

Raven WR Adam Thielen burst out with a 9 catch game and a whopping 214 yards, 3 TDs and 7 FDs. Baker Mayfield actually out-yardaged Ryan with 385 yards on a 27-for-43 game, but his 2 INTs and 1 lost fumble hurt.

6-4 Tennessee travels to 4-6 Indianapolis next week, where the odds-makers say its a toss-up. A deflated 2-8 Ravens team heads to Buffalo to take on the Bills, who fell to Indy on the last play of OT earlier this week. Though winless, the odds-makers install the Bills as 1 point favorites and say this is the week they get their first win!

  Tampa Bay 25 Green Bay 37                   48 10-20
Bitter NFC central rivals met for the second time this season with plenty on the line. Packers came in at 5-4 and needed a win to have any playoff aspirations.
Tampa Bay (7-2) could pretty much lock up the division with a road victory. Bucs offense looked good early. They took their first possession and drove
65 yards in 12 plays but had to settle for a short FG. 3-0 visitors. That would be Tampa Bay's only points of the half, however, as the Packers defense came to play in this one.

Green Bay took the lead late in the 1st on a drive that featured big catches by Breshad Perriman and AJ Green. Emmanuel Sanders finished it off with a 17 yard TD grab. 7-3 after 1.

Huge moment in came early in the 2nd as Sanders fumbled at his own 17. Coach Chase wanted dearly to cash in on the miscue so he went for it on 4th and 5 from the 12. DE Chris Jones blasted Derek Carr as he faded back to pass, ending the threat. After an exchange of punts the Packers put together another long drive that stalled at the Bucs 37. On 4th and inches Coach Conners decided to do a little gambling himself. With the Bucs playing the run, Ben Roethlisberger went play action and found a streaking AJ Green for a huge TD...14-3

Green Bay could have added to the lead but late in the half a fake FG on 4th and 10 from the 27 was stopped cold....14-3 at the break.

What was a defensive struggle, opened up in the 3rd. Bucs looked sharp on their opening drive of the second half going 80 yards on 8 plays. Devonte Adams hauled in a 24 yard Carr slant pass for 6. Todd Gurley would add the 2 point convert and suddenly it was 14-11. Lambeau faithful were very uneasy.

Packers responded in a big way. Big Ben showed some veteran poise as he moved his club smartly downfield. His 23 yard TD toss to Green restored a 10 point lead....21-11.

The visitors would not go away in this one. After Gurley ripped off a 26 yard run, Carr found some dude named Equanimeous St.Brown (18th century literary character?) for 21 yards. Two plays later Gurley burst in to make it 21-18.

Green Bay would again have to answer, and answer they did. After Ben hit AJ Green for 22 yards to move it to midfield, Perriman flashed wide open on a blown coverage. 48 yards to the house. 28-18 after a wild 3rd quarter.

In the true spirit of Halloween, the Bucs again rose from the dead early in the 4th. Gurley made a couple of big catches to move it down into Packer territory then little known TE Ryan Griffin hauled in a 26 yard out pattern to take it down to the 4. Gurley pounded it in from there 28-25.

Green Bay put together another long drive but this time they had to settle for a 42 yard Robbie Gould FG to push the lead back up to 6...31-25

Penalties killed the Bucs next posession and the visitors were forced to punt from deep in their own end with just over 7 minutes left. Packers got the ball at midfield and put together a time consuming 5 minute drive. Gould added a 35 yard FG with 2:44 left to make it a 2 possession game. 34-25.

Carr had no miracle comeback on this day. Pack add an insurance FG, 37-25 final

Big stat in this one was the 8 sacks by the Packers defense

Carr 28/43 332 1 TD, 8 sacks
Gurley 16-81 2tds
Adams 5-89 1 TD

Roethlisberger 24-41 370, 4TD
Lindsay 16-81
Green 8-148 2TD's

Always an enjoyable time matching wits with Coach Chase

Bucs (7-3) travel to Dallas (3-7)
Packers (6-4) host Philadelphia (6-4)

Jacksonville 31 Pittsburgh 36               45 0-10
The first game earlier this year was played in a downpour in Jacksonville. Pittsburgh turned the ball over 4 times and the game was never close as the Jags won easily at home 30-3. This one would prove to be a much closer contest.

Jacksonville won the toss and decided to receive. But they end up punting on there 1st possession. Steelers would take there opening drive 7 plays and Score on A Brady to Gronk 16 yard TD 7-0 Steelers. But Pittsburgh would lose Gore on the 1st play of the drive for the game. The Jags would answer on a 16 play 91 yard drive that culminated on a Johnson 4 yard TD run 7-7 after 1 quarter

The Steelers would get a 52 yard FG from Vinatieri early in the 2nd for a 10-7 lead. On the 1st play of the next Drive Littleton intercepts Allen and takes it down to the 1 yard line where Anderson bulls in for the TD and suddenly the Steelers are up 17-7. Just as suddenly on there very next play Allen redeems himself with a 75 yard strike to Robinson 17-14. Brady on his next chance hit Foster in stride for a 35 yard strike to get some momentum back. This drive would stall at the 2 and Vinatieri would hit the chip shot 20-14 Pittsburgh. The rest of the quarter would be a punt fest. However on the Steelers last drive they take it down to the 1 yard line with 6 second to go and a timeout left in there pocket . They figure they have enough time for a quick play and timeout they figured wrong. Anderson was stopped short and time expired and although leading at the half could not help to feel the 3 points they blew would come back to haunt them. 20-14 Steelers at the half.

Pittsburgh would take the opening 2nd half kickoff and move down the field on 5 plays but the drive stalls and they again settle for a Vinatieri 46 yard FG. The key play was a 28 yard completion to Foster making it 23-17. after a couple of punts Jacksonville's Rookie Josh Allen attempting a long Slant was picked by fellow rookie Justin Reid . Reid Would run it back for his 2nd TD of the year 30-17 Steelers after 3.

Injuries would play a big part in this game for both teams as key players were in and out of the game especially WR on both sides. This forced a running game in the 4th quarter. Josh Allen started using his feet and ran it in from 18 yards out with 9 minutes to play to cut the lead to 30-24. Pittsburgh went 3 and out and was having trouble moving the ball without a Foster and Herndon in the game. Jacksonville looking to complete a comeback and stay within a game of the division lead gets the drive they needed. A 7 play drive with Johnson scoring his 2nd TD of the game this time from 9 yards out with 3:16 to go 31-30 Jacksonville. Does Brady have a comeback in hm with depleted offensive weapons . Well he received help from the run game as Edwards would run the ball for 71 yards on 7 carries going in from 2 yards out with 25 seconds left. A 2 point conversion failed leaving the Jags with some hope of a miracle ending but those where dashed as Webb picks off a Allen heave to end the game. Pittsburgh 36 Jacksonville 31.

Key Stats
Pittsburgh - Brady 10-16 128 yards 1 TD
                   Edwards 25-150 1 TD
                   Gronk 5-37 1TD

Jacksonville - Allen 18-30 305 yards 1 TD 4 Ints rushed 12-106
                      Johnson 18-74 2TD Caught 6 passes for 92 yards
                       Robinson 4 - 119 yards 1 TD

Next Week Pittsburgh travels to New England and Jacksonville is on the road going to NY

Injuries Jacksonville lost RT Jared Veldheer (ribs) for 3 weeks
          Pittsburgh lost LB Thomas Davis (finger) for 3 weeks and WR Robert Foster (Knee) for 3 weeks

Los Angeles (A) 28 Houston 21               70
Eli Manning throws three touchdown passes and runs for another as the Chargers get by Houston.

Arizona 24 Washington 9                     58 Calm
Cardinals come in and make pretty quick work of the streaking Redskins giving them their first loss in 3 weeks. Arizona was able to put in the endzone consistently and was up 24-0 before Washington was able to get 9 points in garbage time. Statistically, the Washington’s offense had a good day. However almost all of their drives stalled out in no mans land forcing them to go for 4th and long 3 times and converting none of them. Arizona also won the turnover battle 1-0.

Arizona will take their division leading team to Dallas next week. While the Redskins will host fellow cellar dweller Detroit.

Atlanta 34 New Orleans 7                    70
Forbath no good...that's just Forbath missing another XP. He went 1 for 5 on XP as an 80% kicker but it didn't matter as Rivers and the offense took care of business with a 34-7 road victory.

Rivers passed for 255 and hit Nelson Agholor with 3 TD passes. The rest was looked after by the running game with 33 rushes for 81 yards and 2 TDs.

Atlanta jumped out to a quick 19-0 by early 2nd and Josh Rosen just couldn't really get anything done against Atlanta's pass D. Threw 2 picks when it mattered and a TD to Jordan Akins, for the Saints only score, went it didn't.

With the win, the Falcons go to 8-2 while the Saints fall to 3-7.

Detroit 30 Minnesota 31                     68
Surprising Detroit brought its A game to Minnesota for week 10, battling the Vikings down to the wire. A Lutz 53 yard field goal gave the Lions a 30-28 lead with about 7 minutes to go. Drew Brees, though, mindful that an early score would give the Lions the chance to win on a last possession, managed the clock for the Vikings to keep the ball the rest of the game. Working Zeke Elliott play after play, he took 7 minutes to drive the length of the field to the 3 yard line with 3 seconds left -- then Greg the Leg nailed the GW field goal as the Vikings pulled it out, 31-30.

This prolonged drive stood in stark contrast to a two-play, 75-yard drive that ended in a 64-yard TD pass to Antonio Brown to end the first half.

Detroit scored TD's n a 4-yard Artis-Payne run, a 75 yard fumble recovery by Mosley, and a 1 yd run by Williams. Minnesota scored TD's on a 7 yd Brees pass to Jaszycyzk, the 64 yd pass to Brown, a 28 yd pass to JuJu Smith-Schuster and an 18 yd pass to JuJu.

Brrees finished with 317 yards, 4 TDs and a 129.2 qb rating. BIT: He threw his FIRST interception of the season! Darnold threw for 179 yards and an 81.4 qbr.

Artis-Payne ran for 98 years, Elliott for 111 yards.

Minnesota (5-5) next plays at Arizona and Detroit (3-7) plays at Washington.

Oakland 36 Kansas City 3                   53 20-30 Light Rain
Kansas City kept this one close for about 20 minutes, but then the powerful Oakland Raiders took over and cruised to a 36-3 win in rainy, windy Kansas City. Matthew Stafford threw for 295 yards and 2 TD's, and the Oakland defense sacked new starting QB Brock Osweiler 4 times en route to the win.

Los Angeles (N) 28 Carolina 12              60 Calm
Panthers keep it close for most of the game but the worst defense in the league lives up to its reputation and blows it in the end.

Carolina is within 2 points of the division leading Rams with around 6 minutes left to play and winds up loosing by 16 still.

Carson is pretty much unstoppable on the ground for the Rams rushing for 100 yards at 6.7 per carry. Wilson gave it all he had for the Panthers, throwing for 345 yards in a loosing effort.

Denver 21 San Francisco 44                  63 10-20
Denver jumped out to a 14-0 lead in the first then the SF defense created opportunity after opportunity as Denver's Mullens was intercepted 4 times, including a pick 6. The other 3 INTs gave the ball to the 49ers deep within Denver territory, and they scored each time.

Denver outgained the 49ers 403 yards to 257, 23 first downs to 18 first downs but made too many mistakes to win.

Nick Mullens threw for 231 yards and 2 TDs while 49er Trubiskey only mustered 152 yds on 12-28, 2 TDs but had no INTs.

New York (A) 19 New England 28              45 0-10
A 14 play drive ate more than 9 minutes of clock as the Jets took an early 7-0 lead thanks to a Watson to Michael Thomas 3 yard TD. After a Hopkins field goal to make it 10-0 Jets, Lamar Jackson found Zay Jones on a short TD strike and it was 10-7 heading to the half.

Richie James Jr ran the kickoff coming out of the halftime break back 105 yards to give the Patriots the spark they were missing in the first half. After a field goal cut New England's lead to 14-13, Chrsitian McCaffrey scored from 8 yards out to expand the lead to eight points once again. Watson hit Higbee for a 23 yard TD late in the 3rd quarter, but the Jets failed to convert on the 2 point conversion. 21-19 heading to the 4th quarter.

A 15 play, 81 yard drive at nearly 9 minutes of game clock as McCaffrey scored his 2nd TD of the half, this one from 7 yards out, and the Patriots would win this one 28-19.

Watson threw for 324 yards and 2 TDs in the loss. Robert Woods caught 6 balls for 110 yards.

For New England, McCaffrey rushed for 115 and 2 TDs.

New England gets back to .500 at 5-5, while the Jets fall to 6-4.

Rushing Leaders
Edwards,G(Pit) 25-150 1 TD
McCaffrey(NE)   20-115 2 TD – IFL Offensive Player of the Week
Elliott,E(Min) 24-111
Crowell(Ind)    9-110 1 TD
Jones,A(Was)    22-108
Allen,J(Jax)    12-106 1 TD
Carson,C(LAR)   15-100

Receiving Leaders
Thielen(Bal)     9-214 3 TD
Jones,J(LAC)     7-189 2 TD
Tate,G(Ind)     10-143 1 TD
Allen,K(Ind)    13-120 1 TD
Agholor(Atl)     4- 99 3 TD

Passing Leaders
Mayfield(Bal)   43-27-385   3 TD 2 Int
Ryan,M(Ten)     31-26-371   3 TD
Roethlisbe(GB) 41-24-370   4 TD
Wilson,R(Car)   37-28-345
Mullens(Den)    43-26-341   2 TD 4 Int
Smith,A(Buf)    42-26-334   3 TD 1 Int
Carr,D(TB)      43-28-332   1 TD
Goff(Mia)       57-32-326   1 TD
Watson,D(NYJ)   39-24-324   2 TD
Brees(Min)      34-25-317   4 TD 1 Int
Keenum(Ind)     42-29-305   2 TD
Allen,J(Jax)    30-18-305   1 TD 4 Int
Foles(Phi)      39-31-304   1 TD
Manning(LAC)    25-19-300   3 TD
Luck(LAR)       34-21-254   4 TD 1 Int

Defensive Standouts
Fuller,K(Cin)    2 Int 4 Tk – IFL Defensive Player of the Week
Gotsis(Cin)      3 Sk 3 Tk
Autry(LAR)       3 Sk 4 Tk

Special Teams
Prater(Mia)    4-4 FG
Lockett(TB)    5-152 Kick Ret 1-2 Punt Ret
Smith,Tr(NO)   5-153 Kick Ret
Lambo(Car)     4-4 FG
James Jr.(NE) 4-183 Kick Ret 1 TD – IFL Special Teams Player of the Week

IFL WEEK 10 STANDINGS

IFL WEEK 10 LEAGUE LEADERS

IFL WEEK 9 RECAP

Rams quarterback Andrew Luck earns IFL Player of the Week honors as Los Angeles edges Atlanta in overtime.

Game Scores
Atlanta 24 Los Angeles (N) 30               50 Calm
Rams and Falcons met in Los Angeles for a pivotal game halfway through the season. For the Rams a loss would have meant the Falcons controlling the division, having topped the Rams earlier in the season. The Falcons faced the possibility of falling a game back to the Rams. These two teams did not disappoint, the rematch played out almost identical to the first time they, that game also was decided in overtime.

There were several important moments throughout the game, but the ultimate story of the game was told in the in 4th quarter and overtime

Going into the 4th quarter the game was tied 14-14, but the Falcons were driving, they drove the ball all the way to the Rams 3 yard line. Falcons elected for the field, but the Rams would go offside twice, each time the Falcons regrouped and discussed their options, after the final penalty the ball sat at the 1 yard line. Falcons decided to stick with the field goal and took the lead, 17-14. The Rams would answer. On a key 3rd down play at the Falcons 9 yard line Rams QB Andrew Luck found Corey Davis in the back of the end-zone, the Rams took their first lead of the game with 5 minutes left, 21-17. Falcons QB Phillip Rivers had been impressive all day, he was undaunted by the change in momentum. He led the Falcons on an impressive drive with a mix of plays. Coach Golden gambled on a key 4th and 6 from their 47 yard line to keep the drive going. With 1:53 left Rivers hit Nelson Agholor on a 22 yard strike to take the lead 24-21 Falcons.

Rams were feeling deja vu. In the last game against the Falcons, the Rams faced a 7 point deficit with 2 minutes left, but Luck managed to drive the field to force overtime. Initially it looked like the game would be over quickly. Luck missed his first three passes and the Rams faced a 4th and 10 from their 19 yard line with 1:12 left. But on 4th down Luck found TY Hilton to extend the game, Rams timeout. The Rams would soon face another 4th down at their 46 yard line with 30 seconds left. Again Luck found Hilton, drive still alive, 22 seconds remained. After an incomplete pass the deciding play of the game happened. Rams fans were trying out all kinds of nicknames for the play, the "sensational snap" or "remarkable recovery", it's ultimate name to be determined. Luck audibled after seeing the Falcons defense playing loose coverage. But disaster for the Rams the ball was snapped over Luck's head! But somehow "he got it" and completed an 11 yard pass to Hilton. The Rams scrambled to the line and spiked the ball, 2 seconds remained. The ball sat at the Falcons 37 yard line. Rams kicker Ryan Succop had a nightmare of a game to this point, he had missed 2 45 yard field goals earlier, this time he came through and sent the game to overtime.

Falcons won the toss for the overtime kick. The announcers questioned whether either team had any offensive plays left, both teams combined for only 5 punts. After a 5 yard gain on 1st down two big defensive plays: a 5 yard loss on a run and a sack ended the Falcons drive. A 17 yard return of the Falcons punt by the Rams put the ball at the 50. Neither team had any surprises left. The Falcons anticipated pass on the first play, but Rams WR Davis came up with another big play catching the 22 yard heave.. But again almost disaster for the Rams, Davis fumbled, but new addition Eric Ebron was in the right place at the right time to recover. Falcons forced to gamble to make something happen aggressively went after Rams RB Chris Carson, but a timely play action pass from Luck to Ebron led to the final game winning score, 30-24 Rams.

A great game and effort by Marty and the Falcons, after two games decided by 9 points both in overt-time it's clear the teams are evenly match. They may not have seen the last of each other.

Falcons stars of the game:
Zach Ertz 9 catches 91 yards 1 Touchdown
Tevin Coleman 84 total yards 1 Touchdown

Rams stars of the game:
Andrew Luck 314 yards passing 4 Touchdowns
Corey Davis 7 catches 119 yards 1 Touchdown

Both teams hit the road next week to face division rivals. The Falcons look to rebound against the newly remade Saints, while the Rams face the Panthers and the always deadly Russell Wilson.

Buffalo 13 Miami 37                         85 0-5
The Hapless Bills came to Miami running low on Personnel and Morale, but a win in south Florida could boost the Team to finish strong. The Home town crowd was fired up after their Team made the half way point in the season undefeated, the hometown fans would not be disappointed.

Miami would score on 5 of 6 first half possessions including the TD drive right before half, a 5 play 63 yard drive that only took 35 seconds in answer to the Bills scoring a TD with 50 seconds left in the half. The score at the half was Miami 27 Buffalo 7.

The Dolphins would add 10 points in the 2nd half and the Bills would grab a late TD, but this game was never really in doubt. Final score Miami 37 Buffalo 13

Next week the Bills welcome the Colts
And the League scoring leader Dolphins travel to Play the League leading Defensive Team, the NY Giants

New York (N) 24 Philadelphia 7              46 0-10
Carson Wentz connects with Kenny Golladay on two scoring passes as the Giants take over first place in the NFC East.

Pittsburgh 24 Detroit 37                    70
Artis Gilmore-Payne carried the Lions to a win today. His 29 carries for 135 yards was just what the doctor ordered. & I must say that stat line cuts him short on what he did. He played so good I can't get my mind of George Gervin.

New England 3 Washington 26                 52 5-15 Light Rain
The Redskins get their SB revenge and extend their not losing streak to 3 games with a W over the Patriots. Aaron Jones continued his tear with 17 carries for 192 yards and 2 TD. That included a 97 yard TD run to start the 2nd half. Prescott was equally impressive completing 15 of 19 passes for 166 yards and a TD.   For the Patriots it was a rough day at the office. With rookie Lamar Jackson filling in for the injured Tannehill they the Pats just couldn’t get anything going through the air. With the defense focused on stopping the run there just wasn’t anywhere for McCaffrey to go.

The Redskins will hope to continue their not losing streak next week against Arizona

While the Patriots will host the Jets.

New Orleans 24 San Francisco 38             65 5-15
The Saints waited until the last minute and decided a rebuild was needed and it looks like it will reflect on the field. This one was actually close at half with the 49ers only leading 17-14. At the beginning of the 2nd had the Saints actually took the lead as newly acquired Josh Rosen would throw a TD pass to Njoku(his 2nd of the day) from 14 yards out. That was it though as the Niners would run off 21 unanswered points. Final score 38-24. Josh Rosen had a good debut throwing for 228 yards and 2 TD's. Conner rushed for 94 yards and a TD also for the Saints. The 49ers would put up 478 total yards. Trubisky led the way for the 49ers with 315 yards passing and 2 TD's. Diggs caught 9 balls for 112 yards and a TD and Boyd also caught 9 balls for 112 yards. Jordan Howard rushed for 87 yards and a TD.

Baltimore 3 Cincinnati 23                   47 0-10 Light Rain
A rainy afternoon in Cincinnati (it actually is raining here - DKS nailed it!) resulted in both offenses struggling. The Bengals settled for two Fairbairn field goals and took a 6-0 lead into the half.

Cincinnati put together a 10 play 70 yard drive capped off by a Gordon six yard run to begin the third quarter, 13-0 Cincinnati. The Bengals converted a Mayfield interception into another field goal just before the quarter ended to increase their lead to 16-0. Mayfield's final interception, he was benched the remainder of the game, was turned into a Rodgers to Wright 14 yard score early in the final quarter. The Ravens avoided the shutout as Janarion Grant fumbled the punt return and Baltimore converted it into a Bryant 51 yard field goal with about a minute and a half remaining for the 23-3 final.

Both Mayfield and Rodgers struggled with the weather, Mayfield finished 18 of 31 for 146 yards and 2 Ints. While Rodgers faired a little better going 19 of 37 for 193 yards and a TD. Gordon ran for 64 yards and a score on only eight attempts.

Next week, the Ravens host Tennessee while the Bengals have a tough one in Chicago.

Houston 37 Carolina 31                      67 0-5
Winless Houston marches into Carolina in a game the Panthers hope to start a turnaround to their season.

Houston totally dominates the game until the 3rd, jumping out to a 24-7 lead. Carolina finally wakes up and take a 31-24 lead with 3 minutes left in the game.

Houston proceeds to march down the field with Cousins throwing a TD pass to a double teamed Ridley as time expired to tie the game.

No worries for the Panthers though as they won the toss to receive the ball in OT and prepare to march down the field to victory. One Malcom Butler interception returned 59 yards later and the dreadful Panthers continue to fall into the abyss and Houston's coach Pete pulls out a heroic win .

Minnesota 23 Tampa Bay 37                   70 0-5   Light Rain
Coach Robb brought his under performing 4 and 4 Minnesota Vikings south to take on 6 and 2 Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

First quarter (and two plays into the second): Each team is stopped on their first possession. Tampa punts the opening possession to the Viking 1 yard line. The Vikes move the ball out to midfield, but Donta Jackson drills JuJu Smith-Schuster after catching a slant forcing a fumble which he recovers. The Buccaneers exchange the turnover for 7 points. 7 – 0 Tampa. Greg Zuerlein gets Minnesota on the board with a chip shot set up by an Ezekiel Elliott run of 51 yards. 7 – 3 Tampa. Todd Gurley returns the favor taking a check down from Derek Carr 50 yards. He finishes it off with a 10 yard rushing touchdown on the second play of the second quarter. 14 – 3 Tampa.

Second quarter: Minnesota cuts the lead by 7 chewing up 6 ½ minutes using 12 plays to go 80 yards. Smith-Schuster grabs a 24 yard slant from Drew Breese for the TD. 14 – 10 Tampa. The remainder of the quarter has Tampa Bay executing touchdown drives sandwiched around the only three and out of the game by either team. Halftime score 28 – 10 Tampa.

Third quarter: After a great coach Robb pep talk in the locker room, Shelton Gibson fumbles the kickoff return setting up Tampa Bay at the Viking 11 yard line. The defense stands tall. A field-goal makes the score 31 – 10 Tampa. The score makes Tampa Bay’s defensive play calling easier not having to worry quite as much about Elliott. The only additional third-quarter score is a Tampa Bay field goal. 34 – 10 Tampa.

Fourth quarter: The teams played out the string with Tampa Bay gaining enough first downs to keep Minnesota at Bay as Breese heaved the ball deep time after time. The Vikings outscored Tampa Bay 13 to 3 in the fourth quarter. Final score 37 – 23 Tampa.

For Minnesota Drew Breese had an average day completing 58% of his passes on 31 of 53 for 326 yards with 3 touchdowns, no interceptions or sacks, resulting in a QB rating of 95.3. Elliott notches 152 yards from scrimmage - 116 yards on the ground and 36 in the air. Smith-Schuster catches 12 passes for 111 yards. Antonio Brown 11 receptions for 146 yards.
On the Tampa side Derek Carr completed 68% of his passes on 17 of 25 for 260 yards with 3 touchdowns, no interceptions or sacks, resulting in a QB rating of 141.7. Gurley gained 225 yards from scrimmage - 131 on the ground and 94 the air.
Next week the 4 and 5 Vikings host the Detroit Lions while the 7 and 2 Buccaneers head to Lambeau to play the Packers.

Green Bay 27 Chicago 24                     43 10-20
Two teams trying to stay in the playoff race, Green Bay (4-4) visits Chicago (4-4) in week 9. The Bears opened the scoring, Mariota to Gallup from 4 yards out. The Packers drive for an early FG and the first quarter ends Green Bay 3 Chicago 7.

The Packers offense dominates the second quartrer, Roethlesberger 33 to Green and 9 to Sanders, but Chicago manages a late TD, Mariota 10 yards to Blue, with 20 seconds left on the clock. Green Bay 17 Chicago 14 at the half.

Roethlesberger again found Green from 8 yards out, but their attempt to extend the lead later in the quarter fails as the Bears block Gould’s field goal attempt. Green Bay 24 Chicago 14 after 3.

The 4th quarter sees the Bears claw their way back – Rojas hitting a 51 yard field goal to make it a one score game, and Mariota running it in from 22 out to tie the score with 2:21 left on the clock. This proved to be plenty of time for the Packers to drive the field and score on a Gould 52 yard field goal with 2 seconds left in regulation.

Green Bay 27 Chicago 24

Roethlesberger 19/41, 237, 3 TD, 1 INT; Green 5 rec for 82 yards and 2 TD; Green Bay sacked Mariota 7 times.
Mariota 24/32, 220, 2 TD 2 INT;

Next week Green Bay hosts Tampa Bay and Chicago hosts Cincinnati.

Los Angeles (A) 31 Oakland 42               53 10-20 Light Rain
Matthew Stafford throws for two TDs and runs for another as the Raiders hold off the Chargers.

Jacksonville 20 Tennessee 12                54 0-10 Light Rain
Jacksonville only had 239 yards of offense but managed to outscore the Titans 20-12. Probably the key play in the game was the Jags Ryan Switzer returning a punt 82 yards to give Jacksonville a 10 point lead early in the 3rd quarter. The Titans obviously don't like playing in the rain.

Kansas City 17 Denver 49                    56 0-10
Kareem Hunt rushes for 86 yards and 3 touchdowns as the Broncos defeat the Chiefs.

Dallas 9 Arizona 24                         74 Calm
As Zona fans begin to get a whiff of playoff hype, the Cowboys came to play the red birds with one thing on their mind. Stop Saquon Barkley, period, exclamation mark! Unfortunately for Dallas, there is another play maker on Arizona by the name of Patrick Mahomes. Stopping Barkley only pours gasoline on the fire, which was exactly what happened this game.

As the Cowboys focused on Barkley, Magic Man Mahomes would throw for 254 yards and two touchdowns while adding a third TD by taking the ball across the goal line himself. And to add insult to injury, Dallas would not stop Barkley. Barkley would gain 115 yards on 22 carries while catching 3 balls for 47 yards.

However, at the end of the day the game difference was Dallas settling for field goals in lieu of touch downs. Early in the game, Dallas benched their starter Cam Newton in favor of gunslinger Ryan Fitzpatrick. However, drives repeatedly stalled as the Cowboys approached the red zone. Two Dallas turnovers also made life difficult for the Cowboys. It almost looked like Dallas gained new life when they caught the Cardinals sleeping early in the 4th quarter with an onside kick. However, after driving to the Zona 4 yard line, Dallas would turn the ball over on downs. Arizona would squeeze time off the clock and pin Dallas back to their own 8 yard line with 2 minutes to play.

Arizona travels to Washington next week where the Red Skins are making their own noise winning 3 games in a row. Dallas plays the Eagles where they could really help Arizona with a win.

New York (A) 41 Indianapolis 10             69
The New York Jets (6-3) extended their win streak to 3 and the Indianapolis Colts (3-6) dropped its third consecutive game with a 41-10 beat down at hands of their division rival. The Jets racked up 500 yards of Offense and Deshaun Watson (24-18, 301 YD, 3 TD 156.3 QBR) was named game MVP. New York also had three other players with outstanding performances; Marlon Mack (RB) ran for 115 yards on 18 carries, caught a 4 yard TD pass, and ran for 2 scores of 16 and 2 yards. The others were wideouts Michael Thomas (8 catches 165 yards, 45 Lg) and Robert Woods (5 catches 86 yards, 2 TD).


Rushing Leaders
Jones,A(Was)    17-192 2 TD
Peterson,A(Mia) 25-153 1 TD
Artis-Payn(Det) 29-135 1 TD
Gurley II(TB)   23-131 1 TD
Mixon(Hou)      22-119 2 TD
Barkley,S(Ari) 22-119
Elliott,E(Min) 17-116
Mack,M(NYJ)     18-115 2 TD
Bortles(Den)    9-113
Hunt,K(Den)     21-86 3 TD

Receiving Leaders
Evans,M(Car)     7-176 2 TD
Thomas,M(NYJ)    8-165
Brown,A(Min)    11-146 3 TD
Smith-Schu(Min) 12-111

Passing Leaders
Goff(Mia)       39-25-377   3 TD
Wilson,R(Car)   34-24-354   4 TD 1 Int
Stafford(Oak)   51-30-337   2 TD 1 Int
Brees(Min)      53-31-326   3 TD
Trubisky(SF)    43-27-315   2 TD
Luck(LAR)       44-25-314   4 TD 1 Int – IFL Offensive Player of the Week
Watson,D(NYJ)   24-18-301   3 TD
Ryan,M(Ten)     51-31-266   1 TD 2 Int

Defensive Standouts
Quinn(NYG) 2 Sck FF – IFL Defensive Player of the Week

Special Teams
Gould(GB) 2 FG including GW 52 yarder - IFL Special Teams Player of the Week

IFL WEEK 9 STANDINGS

IFL WEEK 9 LEAGUE LEADERS

IFL WEEK 8 RECAP

Miami receiver Brandin Cooks earns IFL Player of the Week honors as Dolphins win shootout over Indy to stay undefeated.

Game Scores
Indianapolis 35 Miami 42                    70
This game would feature a offensive showcase by both Teams, 1002 yards to be exact as each defense only showed up at times throughout the game.

Miami would score Touchdowns on all 5 of their 1st half possessions, while yielding only a FG and TD and take a 35-9 lead at the half.
Miami would then yield 26 points in the 2nd half while scoring only 7, but was able to hold on for the 42-35 win and stay undefeated at the season half way point.
An exciting 2nd half

Standouts:

Indy
RB Michel had a 7.8 avg on 13 carries and a TD
WR Allen had 8 receptions for 119 yards and a 14.9 avg
WR Tate had 9 receptions for 100 yards and a TD

Miami
QB Goff 27 for 35 for 431 yards and 4 TD's ( he started the game 16 for 16 )
WR Cooks had 9 receptions for 236 yards and 4 TD's and was the MVP

Next week the Colts host the Jets and the Dolphins host Buffalo.

New England 19 Buffalo 13                   41 10-20
The Patriots come to Buffalo a 2 pt. underdog to the Bills in search of their first victory. The Bills win the toss and defer, the Pats drive 75 yards in 10 plays capped off by a Lamar Jackson 6 yard run with Elliott kicking the PAT. Buffalo loses 4 yards on their first possession and go 3 and out. The Pats drive 38 yards but must settle for a Elliott FG to go up 10-0. The Bills once again are forced to punt after 3 plays and the Pats drive 34 yards before kicking another FG to go up 13-0. A few more possessions result in no more scoring and the first half ends 13-0.

The Bills take the opening kick off and drive 75 yards in 4 plays with the big play by Humphries on a 42 yard reception from Alex Smith before Mike Davis hauls in a 10 yard pass from Smith for 6 and Gano splits the uprights to make it 13-7. The Bills defense holds and the Bills end the third quarter by driving 52 yards as Mike Davis runs it in from the 2 to tie it at 13 as Gano misses the PAT...

The 4th quarter scoring is two FG's by the Pats as the Bills struggle to move the ball and the Pats win it, 19-13. Lamar Jackson had a fine game of passing and running the ball to go along with McCaffrey and Freeman in the backfield lead the way on offense. T.J. Yeldon had his best game of the year as he rushed for 88 on 11 rushes. Vander Esch was a beast for the Bills as he had 16 tackles to go along with 2 stuffs. Logan Ryan had a key pick for the Pats.

The Pats are now 4-4 and head to D.C. next week to play the Redskins while the 0-8 Bills will head to Miami to play the Dolphins.

Washington 31 New York (N) 31               48 5-15
A great game for everyone... except the kickers for both teams.

1-6 Washington took the trip to New York to take on the Giants. Last week, both teams won on the road.

Quarter 1:

New York took the opening kickoff and opened the game with a 21 yard pass to Robby Anderson from Jeff Driskel (26/36 265 yards), who started the game over Carson Wentz. After that they gave Breida (15/127) the ball five straight times and capped off the drive with D'onta Foreman diving over the top of the line for the first score of the game. (7-0 Giants / 10:52 remaining)

On the Redskins first drive, they let Aaron Jones lead them down the field to the 11 yard line where the Giants defense held strong holding them to just a fieldgoal. (7-3 Giants 5:33 remaining)

New York takes the kickoff and keeps with the gameplan of running the ball giving it to Foreman three times taking them to Washingtons 30 yard line. On the next play, Coach Mays dialed up an out pattern pass to Ricky Seals Jones who takes it 30 yards to the house. (14-3 Giants 3:37 remaining)

Quarter 2:

After trading punts to end quarter 1, the Redskins drive down the field to start quarter 2 and Dak Prescott (22/37 230 yards) hits Will Dissly for a 6 yard touchdown. After a 3&out by the Giants, the Redskins drive down the field again and score from 22 yards out. (17-14 Redskins 9:09 remaining)

On the ensuing drive, the Giants march down the field and cap off the drive with a 6 yard strike to Robby Anderson. The Giants defense steps up again causing the Redskins to go 3&out and punt away to the Giants and they drive down the field in 1:38 to the Redskins 9 yard line and settle for a fieldgoal to end the half. (24-17 Giants End of half 1)

Quarter 3:

Both teams trade punts for almost the whole 3rd quarter until Prescott hits Tre'Quan Smith for a 58 yard touchdown near the end of the 3rd quarter. (24-24 Tie End of quarter 3)

Quarter 4:

To start the 4th quarter, the Giants drive down the field and Jeff Driskel runs it in from 9 yards out. (31-24 Giants 12:23 remaining)

On the Redskins first drive of quarter 4, they drive all the way down to the 2 yard line and hand it off to Shaun Wilson who fumbles the ball and Robert Quinn recovers. The drive took a little over 7 minutes off the clock. Giants defense came up with a huge turnover but that wouldn't last long as 2 plays later, Kenny Golladay catches a pass over the middle and fumbles the ball and Jarrad Davis takes it back 14 yards for the game tying score. (31-31 tie 4:07 remaining)

The teams trade punts on the next two drives and the Giants get the ball with 1:19 on the clock with the ball at Washingtons 32 yard line after a shanked 30 yard punt but the Giants can't move the ball throwing two straight incompletions and then a 3rd pass only going 7 yards. With 20 seconds left in the game, Cairo Santos comes out to attempt a game winning 43 yard field goal with 20 seconds remaining. He shanks it left! After a sack of Dak Prescott, the game goes to OT. (31-31 End of quarter 4)

Overtime:

The Giants start with the ball in OT but neither team could get anything going as they both punted away on their first possessions. Giants get the ball back for a second drive starting at their own 32. (31-31 tie 5:34 remaining)

The Giants finally move the ball a little passing down to the Redskins 26 yard line. On 4th and 1, Coach Mays decides to give Santos another shot at a game winner. He learned quickly that it was a bad decision as Santos misses the 44 yard field goal and give the ball back to the Redskins with 1:55 remaining.

Dak Prescott heated up for this drive, hitting 6 of his first 8 passes to begin the drive but the Giants defense came up strong and forced three straight incompletions at their own 25 yard line. With 8 seconds remaining in overtime and the game, Washington kicker Greg Tavecchio attempts a game winning 44 yarder and to the surprise of nobody in this game, he misses!

The Giants attempt two bombs to Golladay to end the game but can only muster 23 yards on the second attempt and in a thrilling and fun game, it ends with a 31-31 tie.

Great coached game by Kris. It was a lot of fun. If anyone has a kicker available.. send them my way.

Houston 10 Kansas City 27                   49 15-25
Andy Dalton threw for 349 yards and 3 td's as the Kansas Chiefs defeated the Houston Texans 27-10 on a chilly, windy day in KC. Joe Mixon had 98 yards on 24 carries and the lone Texan TD.

Los Angeles (N) 37 New Orleans 31           70
Rams and Saints faced off in New Orleans to complete their season series. On paper the Rams appeared to be prohibitive favorites, mainly because the Saints had to start their third string QB Josh Johnson. Johnson had not been seen in the IFL for a couple seasons, but he was effective in his first start leading the Saints to victory against the Lions the prior week. Could Johnson repeat that success versus the Rams defense? Many doubted his chances, but Saints coach Jim Rice would have his QB ready to play.

Johnson's performance was the story of the game. Some Rams players were heard afterward describing Johnson as the new Jekyll and Hyde. He struggled in first half completing only three passes during his Jekyll act. The Saints relied on their run game mostly to move the ball. Some timely turnovers by the Rams helped keep the game close at the half, Rams led 14-10.

Second half the Rams tried to put the Saints away. The Rams put 14 points on the board quickly after a big Tarik Cohen punt return for 76 yards and on the next drive a long run after catch touchdown by tight end Eric Ebron, 28-10 Rams.

Going into the fourth quarter the Rams still led 28-10 and that's when Johnson entered Mr. Hyde mode. He was so effective the Rams defensive coordinator appeared shaken after the game.

A 6 yard Johnson to Sterling Shepard touchdown pass made it 28-17. The Rams added a field goal after recovering a Saints onside kick attempt, 31-17 Rams. Then Johnson started to roll. He led a 12 play drive for another touchdown, 31-24 Rams hanging on. Inexplicably the Rams came out to field a traditional kick rather then preparing for the onside kick, a big mistake Saints recovered!. Momentum completely in the Saints corner, 2 minutes remained. Johnson leads another drive, Rams put up little resistance. With 22 seconds left Johnson throws a 22 yard strike to Conley, tie game! Saints kicker kicked the ball out of bounds on the next kickoff which created a tense moment or two for the Saints, but they survive. Overtime and the Saints win the toss.

In overtime Johnson, still rolling, throws a 13 yard strike to Cole Beasley, Saints at their 40. Next play Johnson back to pass again, but it was not to be. Johnson's pass was intercepted. Johnson, ran out of Hyde juice. On the sideline he was beside himself. Still the Saints defense had been solid in the 4th quarter.and a 1st down holding penalty put the Rams behind on down and distance. But the Rams would convert and with the ball on the Saints 25 yard line Rams QB Andrew Luck threw a short pass to Corey Davis while the Saints keyed on running back Chris Carson. Davis avoided the Saints DBs and scored the winning touchdown.

Saints Stars
James Conner 23 Carries 118 Yards rushing 1 TD
Josh Johnson 3 Touchdown passes in the 4th Quarter, nearly all of his 179 Yards came in the 4th quarter.

Rams Stars
Tarik Cohen 3 punt returns 27 yard avg, 76 yard long
Eric Ebron 6 catches 113 yards 2 touchdowns

Next Week the Saints and Johnson's Jekyll and Hyde act(During Halloween weekend) travel to SF to take on the 49ers, while the Rams also face a division rival, hosting the Atlanta Falcons.

Tennessee 20 Cincinnati 45                  35 15-25
In a must win game for the Bengals, Aaron Rodgers and company stepped up scoring 38 first half points on their way to the 45-20 win over division leading Tennessee. Cincinnati now trails by just a game. Rodgers threw for 309 yards and two scores. Melvin Gordon rushed for 88 yards and FOUR touchdowns. Gordon also caught a TD pass. (Hopefully you started him in your IFL fantasy league). Alshon Jeffery also had a big day, catching 6 passes for 142 yards and a score. Rodgers and Jeffery hooked up for a 70 yard play in the first quarter that led to a score. It looked like the Titans would be able to keep it close as Ryan connected with Beckham for a 51 yard score to cut the Bengal lead to 14-7 but Cincinnati answered with two straight touchdowns before Tennessee would score again.

Ryan finished 24 of 37 for 262 yards with 3 TDs and an INT. The Bengals held Hopkins in check as he only managed 5 receptions for 41 yards.

Backup defensive end John Simon had 2 sacks for the Bengals.

Next week Tennessee host Jacksonville while Cincinnati hopes to stay hot when Baltimore comes to town.

Pittsburgh 33 Baltimore 31                  51 0-5
Pittsburgh traveled to Baltimore for an intra-division match-up of 2-5 teams. The Ravens were 5 point favorites despite losing four of their last five, while the Steelers were winners of two of their last three. An entertaining, high-scoring game ensued with the Steelers walking away with a 33-31 victory. Here's how it happened:

Pittsburgh's second drive of the game stalled at the Ravens 5 and Adam Vinatieri booted a short, 23-yard FG. Pittsburgh 3-0.

Baltimore responded with a 9-play, 46-yard drive that culminated with a Matt Bryant 47-yard FG. Game tied at 3.

The Steelers struck quickly after the ensuing kick-off with QB Tom Brady hitting WR Andre Holmes for 9, RB Frank Gore running for 25 and Brady hitting WR Robert Foster perfectly in stride for a 41-yard TD strike. Pittsburgh 10-3.

The Ravens returned fire with a drive at the end of the first quarter, highlighted by WR Adam Thielen's 28-yard end-around, putting the ball on the Steeler 16. QB Baker Mayfield's next shot, however, would be a dud as Mayfield's short hitch was picked off by S Corey Graham. Five plays later, Brady's Steelers were knocking on the door at the Raven 8. Baltimore's defense stiffened, and well...then things got weird.

Faced with a 3rd and goal from the Ravens 8, things must have gone haywire, though no video evidence was available because of a solar flare that disrupted all electronic currents. A dense fog may have also descended over the field because no one really saw why Tom Brady attempted a quick punt! Maybe the snap was bad. Maybe Brady thought he could snag a quick three points with a drop-kick. Whatever the reason, the punt sailed the necessary 8 yards for a touchback and the Ravens took over on their own 20.

Seriously, this is what happened. Sam said he called a combo pass and he wasn't anywhere close to the screen where he could have called for a quick punt. In another odd twist, the play-by-play lists Mayfield as the punter and S Jordan Lucas as the returner (two Ravens!), and they weren't even on the field!

Since this was an obvious game error, we tried restoring the game back to the "previous play" only to find that the game thought the "previous play" was the punt and touchback. After numerous attempts to restore to a point "before the punt", we decided to take a break and see if DKS Support could help. Unfortunately, 24 hours later, with no response, we resumed the game with the Ravens having the ball at their own 20. So, back to the recap:

Baltimore, well rested after the break, marched down the field (literally) with a 19 play, 66-yard drive that took 8:46 off the clock. The drive included two successful fourth-down conversions - one from their own 30 with inches to go and the second at the Steeler 28 with a yard to gain. The drive stalled after a false start penalty on a 3rd and goal from the Steeler 9 yard line, but Matt Bryant's 32-yard FG cut into the Steelers lead, 10-6 and that's how it remained going into the locker rooms.

Fans who were still standing at the urinals or concession stands missed a lot as the 3rd quarter started. Mayfield, trying to strike quickly, threw two TD passes. Unfortunately for Ravens fans, one was to Steeler safety Justin Reid, who ran his back 46-yards for a pick-six. Pittsburgh 17-6.

Mayfield's second TD came on the first play after the second kick-off in less than a minute. This one a 72-yarder to Thielen. TE Mark Andrews caught the 2-point conversion and the Steelers lead was cut to 3, 17-14.

After a Pittsburgh 3-and-out, Mayfield deftly moved the Ravens downfield, again finding Thielen, who caught the corner fade for a 9-yard TD. Baltimore took the lead, 21-17.

Brady responded with a lightning strike of his own, this one a 52-yarder to Robert Foster. Pittsburgh regains the lead, 24-21.

Seemed that both defenses were playing a man or two short after scores on five-of-six second half possessions and Mayfield again pushed his team toward the goal line, but another false start penalty stalled the drive and Bryant came on to boot a 51-yard FG, tying the game as 24.

The teams exchanged punts as the game moved into the 4th quarter. TE Rob Gronkowski and RB Gus Edwards were featured in this Steelers drive, but it, too, stalled at the Raven 32. Vinatieri's 50-yard FG gave the lead back to the Steelers, 27-24 with 6:16 remaining.

Baltimore got a nice return from WR Chris Moore and a 5-yard run on first down set the Ravens up nicely north of their own 40 yards line. Then disaster struck. RB Jaylen Samuels fumbled and Steeler DT Treyvon Hester smothered it. Two plays later, Brady found...who else...Robert Foster for a 29-yard TD. Vinatieri's PAT sailed wide. Pittsburgh 33-24 with 5:17 remaining.

Down 9 with just 5:17 remaining, Mayfield knew he had to move fast and that he did, completing 4-of-6 passes, the last one a 23-yard TD to Thielen. Pittsburgh 33-31 with 3:32 remaining.

Aaron Donald registered his league-leading 9th sack on the first play of the Steelers next possession, but Brady hit his new favorite receiver, Foster, for 15 and a new set of downs with 2:30 remaining. Using their timeouts and a tight D, the Ravens forced a punt and would have one last shot, only needing to get into FG range. Things were looking good as they moved towards mid-field, but BW Webb snared a Mayfield laser and two kneel-downs later, Pittsburgh was celebrating on Ravens' turf.

Robert Foster was named the game's MVP with 5 catches on 6 targets for 143 yards, 4 first downs and 3 TDs. Raven WR Adam Thielen had an equally impressive game despite being double-teamed on nearly every play. Thielen hauled in 7 passes on 14 targets for 147 yards, 6 first downs and 3 TDs, not to mention 1 carry for 28 yards.

The 3-5 Steelers start the second half of the season as winners of 3-of-4 as they head to Detroit next week to take on the 1-6 Lions.

Baltimore (2-6) is left licking their wounds as they head to Cincinnati to face the Bengals, who improved to 4-4 with a 45-20 thumping of division-leading Tennessee. Looks like another season leading to a Top 10 draft pick for the Ravens.

Dallas 24 New York (A) 34                   59 0-10
Dallas came to New York to play the Jets, who’d spent a week licking their wounds after suffering a lose to the hapless Redskins.

It didn’t start well for the Jets with Dallas taking the opening kickoff 62 yards, the last 13 of which were a TD pass from Newton to Snead IV.

The Jets responded with a 5 minute 70 yard drive that resulted in a 23 yard FG...7-3 Cowboys. Next drive Dallas was held to a 3 and out. New York again drove down the field, this time for a TD on a 20 yard pass from Watson to Ateman. 10-7 Jets...

Once again the Cowboys were forced to punt, and again the Jets went in, this time on an 85 yard drive for another FG...13-7 Jets.

After having New York score 13 points in a row, Dallas responded with a McCoy 3 yard TD run...14-13...Dallas. New York got the ball back with 2:36 on the clock. They went 75 yards in 1:55 to score on a Watson to Woods TD pass...20-14 Jets at the half.

New York took the 2nd half kickoff and drove 73 yards in 4:42, and scored on a Watson 11 yard run...27-14 Jets.

With 2 minutes to play in the 3rd, Dallas cut it to 27-17. The Jets answered with another long drive that ended with a Watson 15 yard pass to Woods for 6...34-17 Jets.

Dallas tacked on another TD to make the final 34-24 Jets.

For the Jets Watson was 21-28 for 320 yards and 3 TD passes, plus a running TD.

For Dallas Newton looked like Tom Brady going 24-29 for 228 yards, and 2 TD passes.

Next week Dallas travels to Arizona, and New York travels to Indianapolis.

San Francisco 47 Carolina 41                69 0-5
In a wild shootout, the 49ers beat the Panthers 47-41. Dennis Agosta subbed for Carolina and held a lead 31-20 going into the 2nd half when Trubiskey caught fire and threw 4 TD passes in the 2nd half alone.

Chicago 15 Detroit 16                       70
In a true 1970's Black & Blue Division game, The Lions intercept a pass late to pull this one out. Just prior to that the Lions had an interception called back cuz of offside. Speaking of the ref's, the Bears were flagged a lot. It was a very close and fun game.

Next week Det hosts Pitt, while Chi is hosting the the Packers who are coached by the head of the famous IFL Coaching Clinic mega head "Mr Conners", as he insists he be called..

I recommend the Clinic. You can sleep through the meetings & "Mr Conner's" ramblings. Then it's a lot of fun once he stops spewing out his nonsense.

Arizona 42 Philadelphia 24                  48 0-10
The Cards would come into Philly looking to get revenge on an earlier loss in Phoenix. The Eagles have been living on the edge with 1 point game (going 2-1) in the last 3 games. This one would not be that.

The Cards would score first on a Pat Mahomes to OJ Howard 49 yard TD connection to take a 7-0 lead.

The Eagles would get a Harrison Butker FG on their first drive but after that, the Cards would take over. The Cards would score 3 TD's before the Eagles could put up another score and at halftime, they would lead 28-10.

The 2nd half was back and forth but the Eagles would only get within 11 at 35-24 and that was because the defense was able to score on an interception return. The final was 42-24.

For the Cards, Pat Mahomes threw 5 TD passes and was named player of the game. For the Eagles, QB Jameis Winston had his worse game of the year by throwing 3 int's and no TDs for a pitiful 24.7 QB rating.

Next up for the Cards will be division rival Cowboys while the Eagles will take on the 2nd place Giants in a battle for the division lead.

Minnesota 40 Green Bay 35                   34 5-15
Vikings come into Green Bay and hand the Packers their 4th consecutive loss.

This one wasn't as close as the score would indicate. Minnesota raced out to a 21-7 lead and never looked back.

Drew Brees was exceptional in this one, finding his 2 star WR's (JuJu and CooCoo) over and over despite a ton of double teams.

When the Packers keyed in on the pass, Zeke Elliott ran wild with several long scampers

Final was 40-35 due to a couple of late Packer scores but for the most part it
was a double digit lead most of the way.

Brees 27-40 2TDs 106.3 rating (does this guy ever throw int's?)
Smith Shuster 9-129, 1TD
A.Brown 9-87, 1TD

Big Ben 27-44 386 3Td's, 2ints
Josh Gordon 9-172 2Tds
Lindsay 130 combined yards

Great play calling by Rich in this one

Vikings 4-4 visit Tampa Bay
packers 4-4 go to Chicago 4-4

Atlanta 29 Los Angeles (A) 13               73 Calm
Atlanta goes to 7-1 as game MVP Zach Ertz caught 7 passes for 100 yards and 2 TDs. For the Chargers, Chubb was having a big game with 11 rushes for 84 and a breakaway 49 yard TD. Unfortunately, he got injured mid way through the 3rd which disrupted the Chargers offense and forced them pass.

Manning wasn't up to the task as he only managed 186 yards passing and got picked by Demonte Kazee in the red zone half way through the 4th.

From then, the Falcons protected the lead and won 29-13. The Chargers fall to 4-4.

Tampa Bay 37 Jacksonville 6                 68 0-10 Rain
The Buccaneers travelled to Jacksonville for an outing of plunder and pillage - and plunder and pillage they did en route to a 37-6 drubbing of the hapless Jags. The Tampa broadside hit hard and early giving them 20-0 lead at the half to which they never looked back on.

Carr was impressive in the win going 14 of 25 for 219 yards and 4 tds with just 1 interception. Josh Allen was awful in the loss.

Oakland 23 Denver 24                        52 0-5
The Raiders come to Denver undefeated but the Broncos rally in nthe 2nd half and get a tough 24-23 win to keep their division title hopes alive.
Trailing 20-7 at the half Denver finally got the offense rolling and the defense stepped up and shut down the talented Raider offense.
The Broncos held the Raiders to just 5 first downs in the 2nd half with two of those coming on Denver penalties.

Rushing Leaders
Elliott,E(Min) 26-160 3 TD
Hunt,K(Den)     29-130
Breida(NYG)     15-127
Conner(NO)      23-118 1 TD
Jones,A(Was)    15-102
Michel(Ind)     13-101 1 TD
Gordon III(Cin) 19-88 4 TD

Receiving Leaders
Cooks(Mia)       9-236 4 TD – IFL Offensive Player of the Week
Boyd(SF)         9-185 3 TD
Diggs,S(SF)     13-183 1 TD
Gordon,J(GB)     9-172 2 TD
Thielen(Bal)     7-147 3 TD
Foster,R(Pit)    5-143 3 TD
Landry,J(KC)     7-124 3 TD
Anderson,R(NYG) 10-114 1 TD

Passing Leaders
Trubisky(SF)    41-30-441   5 TD 1 Int
Goff(Mia)       35-27-431   4 TD
Roethlisbe(GB) 44-27-386   3 TD 2 Int
Mayfield(Bal)   46-25-383   3 TD 3 Int
Dalton(KC)      29-23-349   3 TD
Watson,D(NYJ)   28-21-320   3 TD
Rodgers,A(Cin) 28-18-309   2 TD
Keenum(Ind)     45-27-305   2 TD
Brees(Min)      40-27-300   2 TD
Wilson,R(Car)   37-19-296   4 TD
Mahomes(Ari)    43-24-284   5 TD 1 Int
Luck(LAR)       29-17-267   4 TD 2 Int
Carr,D(TB)      25-14-219   4 TD 1 Int

Defensive Standouts
Vander Esc(Buf) 16 Tk
Johnson,T(Det)   2 Int 5 Tk – IFL Defensive Player of the Week

Special Teams
Elliott,J(NE) 4-5 FG – IFL Special Teams Player of the Week
Rosas(Chi)     5-5 FG

IFL WEEK 8 STANDINGS

IFL WEEK 8 LEAGUE LEADERS

LOOK WHO WAS SEEN GRABBING SOME SNACKS AT THE LOCAL GREEN BAY SHELL BEFORE THE BIG GAME IN WEEK 8!

THE PACKERS WORST NIGHTMARE!

IFL WEEK 7 RECAP

Washington running back Aaron Jones lets Jet fans know how many touchdowns he scored as the Redskins edge the Jets.

Game Scores
Washington 38 New York (A) 36               67 5-15
Winless Washington goes on the road and stuns the Jets with a last second FG to win the game. The Redskins offense was explosive all game long finishing with two receptions over 25 yards and 7 runs over 10 yards. Austin Pettis had a 47 yard reception, Parker had a 52 yard reception. Aaron Jones had rushes of 23, 38, 64.

Deashaun Watson played a great game throwing for 317 yards and 2 TDs for a 106.5 rating. He would actually lead the Jets from down 35-16 in the 3rd Quarter to a 1 point lead with 2:40 left in the 4th quarter. Unfortunately that was enough time for Prescott to put Tavecchio in range for a 38 yard FG to win the game. Washington was able to win it with a FG because Hopkins missed an extra point and then failed on the 2 point conversion on the last score. Had that not happened it likely would have head to overtime.

Aaron Jones was the MVP with an absurd stat line of 25 carries for 196 yards and 4 TDs.

Washington will travel to NY for a rematch with the Giants while the jets will lick their wounds (while spending a lot of time working on their run defense) and host the Cowboys

Arizona 35 Buffalo 29                       52 5-15
Pat Mahomes throws four touchdown passes as the Cardinals keep Buffalo winless.

Kansas City 17 Baltimore 38                 57 0-5
The Ravens boat race out to a 31-3 half time lead in which they could do no wrong and the Chiefs could do no right, then coast to a 38-17 victory. Baltimore controlled the ball for 37 minutes and went 5 for 5 on touchdowns in the red zone.

Detroit 16 New Orleans 31                   70
The Saints win at home to move to 3-4. They were led by 3rd string QB Josh Johnson as both Flacco and Mullins were out with injuries. He didn't have a big game but threw for 205 yards and 2 TD's and didn't have any turnovers. The Saints were led by James Conner who had 3 total TD's. Sam Darnold would throw for 294 but threw 2 costly interceptions. The Saints will try to tough it out at least one more week with their 3rd stringer and face the 5-1 Rams at home. The 1-6 Lions will host the 4-2 Bears.

Miami 31 Dallas 6                           70
Jared Goff throws three first quarter touchdown passes as Miami cruises to their 23rd straight regular season win.

Tampa Bay 10 Los Angeles (N) 32             69 Calm Light Rain
Rams and Buccaneers engaged in a slug-fest that was much closer then the final score. Surprising rain showers were welcomed by the residents of Los Angeles, but the Quarterbacks came out of the game with a different opinion. The sloppy conditions led to sloppy play, both teams combined for 5 turnovers and 3rd down conversions were tough to come by.

1st Half:
Tampa imposed their will in the first half. Despite a turnover on Tampa's first drive their defense held and TB QB Derek Carr took care of the rest. A 12 play drive ended in a Tampa touchdown, Carr to star WR Davante Adams. The Rams could only answer with a field goal on their ensuing drive, 7-3 Bucs. The half would end 10-3 Bucs, after another impressive drive by Carr and company. The Tampa defense thwarted Rams drives into their territory, forcing two interceptions of Rams QB Andrew Luck. The Bucs were in the driver's seat, set to get the 2nd half kickoff.

2nd Half

On the Bucs opening drive perfect play-call verse the Rams defense on a key third down did not pay dividends for the Bucs forcing a punt. That gave the Rams a foot in the door, Luck led a quick touchdown drive, tied up 10-10. TB started to suffer some injuries along the OL, that appeared to give the Rams the advantage in the 2nd half. The Rams forced a Carr interception on their next drive on a 4th down gamble, that led to more Rams points, 13-10 Rams. Carr seemed to struggle with the conditions as the game went on. A three and out on the Bucs next drive led to another Rams field goal, 16-10 Rams. Another Carr interception mid way through the 4th quarter allowed the Rams to break the game open to 25-10. A garbage time touchdown for the Rams led to the final score 32-10.

Tampa's defense hung tough most of the game, causing numerous penalties by the Rams offense and forcing them to settle for field goals. The injuries to the TB OL seemed to impact TB's run game and Carr also was less effective when his left tackle went out.

TB Stars
Davante Adams 6 Catches 56 yards 1 Touchdown
Tyler Lockett 30 yard avg on kick returns

Rams Stars
Xaviers Rhodes 4 pass deflections and kept Tyler Lockett in check
Corey Davis 6 catches 21.7 yards 2 touchdowns

Next week Tampa travels to the east coast of Florida to play a scrappy Jacksonville Team. While the Rams travel to the bayou to take on divisional rival New Orleans.

Houston 7 Pittsburgh 28                     57 0-10 Light Rain
Winless Texans come into Heinz Field looking for there 1st win of the year against the Steelers who only have 1 win themselves . The teams would play in light Rain 57 degrees. The experts had the Texans as 3 point road favorites.

In the 1st quarter what you might expect happen did.. the 1st 3 possessions the teams punted the ball. After the Texans 2nd punt Brady and company would take over on there own 20. Slowly move down the field mixing run and pass for an impressive 14 play 80 yard drive that consumed over 8 minutes of the clock. culminated in a 1 yard CJ Anderson TD . Pittsburgh 7 Houston 0 after 1

The 2nd quarter again saw 4 punts and 1 first down between the teams in the 1st 9 minutes of the quarter.This time the Texans would take over at there 45 yard line and Cousins would lead them on a 8 play 55 yard drive to tie the score. Cousins would connect with Godwin from 18 yards out . 7-7 at the half.

Pittsburgh would get the opening kickoff and drive it down the field Brady hits Foster from 38 yards out to give the lead back to the home team early in the quarter. After the teams traded punts , Brady on his 3rd drive of the quarter would again hit a long pass this time its Gronk from 38 yards away and the Steelers enter the 4th up 21-7.

Houston would get the ball with 45 seconds left in the 3rd and drive the ball down to Pittsburgh's 35 yard line trying to get back into the game. Cousins however is picked by CB Stroman who returns the interception down to the 1 yard line . Anderson plunges in to give the home team an insurmountable 28-7 lead with just over 11 to play. That's the way it would end as the Steelers pick up there 2nd win of the year.

Game MVP goes to Brady 11-20 172 yards and 2 TD's. Gronk had 6 catches for 98 yards and a TD. Sheard lead the D with 8 tackles 1 stuff 1 hurry

For Houston Cousin was 22-32 for 219 yards 1 TD 1 pick Mixon had 81 yards on the ground and caught 7 passes for another 46 yards .Warner lead there defense with 10 tackles and a pass deflection.

Pittsburgh travels to division rivals Ravens next week while Houston continues there road tour this time in KC.

Oakland 45 Tennessee 24                     76 0-5
Undefeated Oakland came to Tennessee and proved that they are one of the premiere teams in the IFL. The Raiders owned the first 20 minutes of the game and led 17-0 at that point. Medium hitch passes from Stafford to Kelce and Kamara turned into long touchdowns for Oakland. Tennessee tried to make a game of it with two second quarter TDs sandwiched between another Oakland score. It was 24-14 Raiders at the half.

The Titans cut the lead to 7 thanks to a Dan Bailey field goal 6 minutes into the third and it looked like game on. However the Raiders responded with another TD drive where Stafford completed 5 passes in a row and then Kamara finished off the drive with a 3 yard run. Even though it was 31-17 Raiders at this point the Titans weren't done and drove the ball to the Oakland 37 yard line. Matt Ryan looked for Deandre Hopkins on a medium out but Darius Slay jumped the route and took the pick 71 yards for the clinching TD. With the score 38-17 the game was essentially over. Both teams scored a TD in the final quarter to make the final score 45-24 Raiders.

Alvin Kamara was an absolute beast for the Raiders with 132 yards rushing, 130 receiving yards and 3 TDs. Oakland travels to Denver next week and the Titans visit Cincinnati.in a key divisional matchup.

  New York (N) 31 Indianapolis 14             69
Indianapolis, IND (IFL.com) – The New York Giants came into Indianapolis with the number one ranked defense in the IFL in scoring with 15.7 points per game and number 2 in the league in total defensive yards 293.3 behind the number 1 ranked Denver Broncos who average 275 per game in total defense. The G-Men and that collection of defensive stars are led by Myles Garrett (DE) and Leonard Williams (DL) both with 6 sacks apiece which is one behind the league leader Aaron Donald. This unit dominated the Colts from start to finish, leaving the Hoosier state with a 31-14 win, the last score by the Colts came in garbage time.

1st Half

New York own the first half, scoring three touchdowns behind two Carson Wentz TD passes sandwich between a Matt Breida (14 rush 87 YD, 2 TD) 2-yard touchdown run. Early in the first quarter Wentz (23-14, 169 YD 2 TD) first touchdown pass was a 5 yard toss to tightend Ricky Seals-Jones, 7-0 Giants (1 Qtr. 9:17). Following a missed 45 yard field-goal by Colts Steven Hauschka the Giants go on a 11 play 62 yard (5:31 drive) concluded with the Breida 2-yard touchdown run, 14-0 Giants. The Giants will get their third score of the half when safety Ron Parker intercepted Case Keenum (53-34. 332 YD 2 TD 1 INT) at the New York 10 and returned it 40 yards to midfield. Five plays later Wentz would hit Taywan Taylor (WR) for a 39-yard TD pass, 21-0 Giants (2 Qtr. 4:43).

2nd Half

The only bright spot of the game for Indy came in the third quarter when Keenan Allen (WR) took a short hitch 92-yards for the catch and run TD, 21-7 Giants (3 Qtr. 10:14). However the bright light was quickly extinguish as the Giants will score the next 10 points of the game on a Santos 45-yard FG, and a 4th Qtr 1-yard Breida TD run, opening up at 31-7 lead and crushing the hometown faithful. With 1:53 left in the fourth quarter in front of about 2500 fans the Colts would get a garbage time 6-yard TD pass Keenum to Isaiah Crowell (RB), 31-14 Final Score.

Minnesota 30 San Francisco 38               69 0-10
High powered Vikings (3-3) led by Drew Brees and Ezekial Elliot visit SF (2-4). As awesome as the Minnesota offense is as suspect of their defense and 49er Mitchell Trubiskey came out firing to take advantage of it.

In the first half there were no punts and every possession resulted in
scoring.

In order:

1st Quarter
SF drives 75 yards finishing with a Trubiskey-Rogers 33 yard pass for a TD.
Minnesota drives 75 yards with Brees hitting Smith Schuster for 19 yards
for a TD.
For the third 75 yard drive in the first quarter Trubiskey hits Boyd
for a 13 yd TD. Quarter ends with 12-7 SF lead. SF missed both extra points.

2nd Qtr
Vikings drive 57 yards before a defensive play stops them Minnesota
settles for a 41 yd FG.
SF Trubiskey hits Boyd again for 26 yards and a TD.
Minny comes right back with their drive and Brees hits Lynch for a 4
yard TDhits Brown
SF manufactures another 75 yard drive finished with a Trubiskey-Taylor 4
yd TD. Crosby misses his third xp.
Half ends with SF leading 25-17

3rd Qtr
Minny is stopped on their first possession and punts.
SF Trubiskey drives his team 77 yards and Trubiskey hits Diggs for a 14
yd TD. The drive is highlighted with a 57 yard run by Jordan Howard,
Minny right back at /em as Brees drives them 60 yards hits Brown for a
17 yd TD.
SF drives 51 yards and for the first time is stopped but Crosby hit a 41
yd FG
SF leads 35-23 as the quarter ends

4th Quarter
Vikings are not done yet as Brees dooes it again with a longs drive
capped with a 16 yd TD pass to Smith Schuster,
The defenses finally take effect and they exchange the ball 4 times.
Brees is hampered by some untimely penalties and fails on 2 4th down tries.
SF gets the ball on the Viking 14 yard line and converts a FG for a
38-30 lead.

SF holds on for the win in this donnybrook, 38-30.

Trubiskey 31-42 for 381 yards 5 TDs and no INTs.
Brees 20-39 for 262 yards, 4 tds and no INTs.
Vikes Elliot runs for 24 times for 148 yards.

Total offense: 886 yards.

Rich Robb's offense was virtually unstoppable as was the 49ers. The 49
defense played better in the end aided by penalties and made the difference.

Philadelphia 21 New England 20              64 10-20
Eagles wasted little time attacking the Patriots D, scoring within the first 90 seconds of quarter number one as Jameis Winston hit Mohamed Sanu with a 52 yard TD strike to give the Eagles a 7-0 lead.

A 16 play 71 yard drive near the end of the first quarter resulted in McCaffrey 7 yard TD run, and the Patriots had tied the game at 7-7 after one quarter of play.

A Kerryon Johnson 23 yard scamper put Philly in position to score once again, and soon after Winston connected with Evan Engram for a 10 yard TD. Eagles up once again 14-7 early in Q2.

New England looked to answer but their drive stalled out at the Eagle 41 yard line. On 4th and 6, the Patriots made the somewhat surprising decision to go for it instead of looking to pin the Eagles deep. With the Eagles paying extra attention to Patriot QB Lamar Jackson, McCaffrey broke loose and Jackson hit him for a 41 yard TD catch and run. 14-14 midway through the 2nd quarter.

A fumble by Eagle RB Brian Hill led to a Patriot FG, and New England led at halftime 17-14.

An 11-play drive by the Patriots to start the 2nd half ended with an Elliot field goal, and the lead was 20-14. Those were all the points to be had, heading to the 4th quarter.

The Eagles started the 4th quarter with a bang. From their own 40, Winston connected with Kerryon for a 24 yard completion. On the very next play, Winston hooked up with Mo Sanu once again - this time for a 35 yard touchdown. Early in the 4th, Philly led 21-20.

Elliott missed a 51 yard field goal attempt on the Patriot ensuing drive, and that was as close as the Patriots would get to scoring the rest of the way. Eagles hold on for the one point victory.

The Eagles ran all over the Patriot defense, averaging over 8 yards a carry on the day. Kerryon Johnson rushed for 116 yards on a mere 11 carries. Mohamed Sanu caught 5 balls for 119 yards and 2 TDs.

For New England, Christian McCaffrey had 171 scrimmage yards and 2 TDs.

Eagles move to 6-1, while the Patriots drop their 4th straight game and are now 3-4.

Chicago 30 Carolina 35                      77 0-10
Carolina pulls out a last minute victory as Wilson hits Drake on a 44 yard TD pass with 50 seconds remaining in the game.

Game was a somewhat defensive affair in the first half as the Bears held the 10-6 advantage at half time.

The offense for both squads caught fire in the second with a combined 49 points. Chicago may have held on to a deserved win if not for a 4th quarter injury to Dalvin Cook.

Green Bay 29 Atlanta 31                     68
No writeup could do this game justice. Roethlisberger was unstoppable early leading the Packers to a 17-6 lead with 5 minutes left in the second. Then he made big play after big play as he led the Packers back late. Unfortunately, he couldn't overcome a 25-3 run led by game MVP Philip Rivers to take a 31-20 lead.

Rivers passed for 301 yards and TDs to 4 different receivers, including Lamar Miller, Josh Doctson, Zach Ertz and Tevin Coleman, who also had a rushing TD early on. Ultimately, the Falcons held on by their finger nails. Gould hit a FG early in the 4th to make it 31-23. Then, on the last drive of the game, Roethlisberger hit Emanuel Sanders on two big plays for 81 yards and the TD to make it 31-29 pending the two point conversion.

While Roethlisberger was unstoppable early and made the big plays throughout the game, he couldn't convert on the 2 point pass attempt as the Falcons D stepped up big and knocked down the pass.

Both teams had to overcome big injuries as the Packers lost Philip Lindsay for the game and the Falcons lost Larry Fitzgerald.

Some of the *many* highlights:
1) Roethlilsberger had 504 yards passing and 3 TDs
2) The Packers had two big turnovers, including a Roethlisberger lost fumble resulting in what turned out to be the game winning TD
3) Von Miller got a sack on 4th down with 1:30 left
4) The Packers D came up big and they managed the clock beautifully to stop the Falcons and get the ball back, leading to a TD to make the score 31-29 and the eventual failed two point conversion
5) AJ Green had 9 catches for 140 yards, Emanuel Sanders had 8 catches for 138 yards and Josh Gordon had 4 catches for 137 yards
6) Josh Doctson had a career game with 4 catches for 98 yards and a TD
7) The Falcons kicker Kai Forbath missed 4 extra point attempts, 3 of which were blocked by Calais Campbell. In a couple of twists of irony, it turned out that none of them mattered. Despite that, the Falcons stayed with the XP attempts while it turned out that the Packers hit all their XP attempts but were forced to try the 2 point conversion to tie and failed.

With the home win, the Falcons improve to 6-1 while the Packers fall to 4-3.

Cincinnati 7 Denver 30                      61 0-5
Cincy comes to Mile High for a week 6 matchup vs the Broncos but the Broncos defense was ready to play ball tonight defeating the Bengals 30-7. The Denver defense held Bengal QB Aaron Rodgers to 10-25 completions for 147 yards and one interception while also sacking him 5 times.

Los Angeles (A) 23 Jacksonville 22          94 0-10
A close game that wasn't settled until a Jacksonville game winning drive was snuffed out by a Kiko Alonso interception with one minute left preserving a narrow 23-22 Chargers win. Julio Jones and Nick Chubb were big in the Chargers win.

Next week, LA hosts Atlanta while the Jags entertain the Buc's.

Rushing Leaders
Jones,A(Was)    25-196 4 TD – IFL Offensive Player of the Week
Elliott,E(Min) 24-148
Kamara(Oak)     18-132 2 TD
Chubb,N(LAC)    16-124
Johnson,K(Phi) 11-116
McCaffrey(NE)   17-103 1 TD

Receiving Leaders
Thomas,M(NYJ)    9-160 1 TD
Allen,K(Ind)    10-155 1 TD
Diggs,S(SF)     10-127 1 TD
Tate,G(Ind)     10- 49

Passing Leaders
Roethlisbe(GB) 51-31-504   3 TD
Trubisky(SF)    42-31-381   5 TD
Luck(LAR)       39-24-373   2 TD 2 Int
Mariota(Chi)    40-29-345   4 TD
Keenum(Ind)     53-34-332   2 TD 2 Int
Stafford(Oak)   33-21-331   3 TD
Smith,A(Buf)    49-24-323   2 TD
Watson,D(NYJ)   35-25-317   2 TD 1 Int
Wilson,R(Car)   34-21-316   2 TD
Prescott(Was)   29-24-313   1 TD
Rivers,P(Atl)   26-17-301   4 TD
Mahomes(Ari)    35-19-266   4 TD 2 Int
Brees(Min)      39-20-262   4 TD

Defensive Standouts
Vander Esc(Buf) 2 Int 12 Tk
Wagner,B(Chi)    16 Tk
Houston (Den) 2 Sks 2 FF – IFL Defensive Player of the Week

Special Teams
Ervin(KC)      1-25 Kick Ret 3-120 Punt Ret 1 TD
Lockett(TB)    6-181 Kick Ret 1-4 Punt Ret
Succop(LAR)    4-4 FG – IFL Special Teams Player of the Week

IFL WEEK 7 STANDINGS

IFL WEEK 7 LEAGUE LEADERS

IFL WEEK 6 RECAP

Charger rookie running back Nick Chubb goes for 171 yards and 3 TDs as L.A. edges Denver in a wild back-and-forth contest.

Game Scores
Los Angeles (A) 42 Denver 38                73 0-5
The Chargers come to Mile High stadium and steal one away from the Broncos. Charger rookie Nick Chubb rushes for 171 yards and three touchdowns.

Baltimore 23 Chicago 31                     65 20-30
The 3-2 Bears hosted the 1-4 Ravens at a windy Soldier field. After forcing a Bear’s punt on the opening drive, Baltimore found itself pinned on its own 3. Three plays later Kerrigan sacks Mayfield in the endzone for an early Chicago 2 point lead. Chicago scored a field goal on the next drive, but Baltimore answered with a TD, Mayfield to Hogan from 32 yards out. The 2 point conversion failed – Baltimore 6 Chicago 5. The Bears followed with a scoring drive of their own, Mariota hitting Callaway for a 62 yd TD. The first quarter ends Baltimore 6 Chicago 12.

The second quarter saw an exchange of field goals – at the half Baltimore 9 Chicago 15.

Early in the 3rd, Baltimore drove down the field to the Bears 3. On 4th and inches, the Ravens elected to go for it, but Mayfield’s pass failed to connect and the Bears took over on downs. Three plays later, Mariota is intercepted, putting the Ravens back in business on the Chicago 8. Mayfield ran it in himself to give Baltimore its first lead 16-15. The Bears followed with a long drive, and the quarter ended with Chicago still holding the ball. Baltimore 16 Chicago 15.

Mariota completed the drive with a 9 yard TD strike to Cook, 22-16 Chicago. Baltimore immediately answered with a long drive of their own, Mayfield to Thielen from 31 yards out. 23-22 Baltimore. The Bears next drive chewed up clock and ended with Mariota to Thomas from a yard out. The 2 point conversion failed - Bears 28-23. The Ravens last drive stalled, the ball went over on downs, Chicago adds a field goal, and time runs out on the Baltimore comeback drive.

Baltimore: Mayfield 28/47, 349, 2 TD; Thielen 9 rec, 100 yd, TD; Hogan 4 rec, 100 yd TD

Chicago: Mariota 24/32, 286, 3 TD, INT; Callaway 5 rec, 102, TD

Next week Baltimore hosts Kansas City and Chicago travels to Carolina.

Dallas 17 Philadelphia 16                   61 0-10
Dallas (1-4) and Philly (5-0) come into this game going in opposite directions but anything can happen when division rivals meet and this would be no different.

Dallas played ball-control offense in the 1st quarter and, early in the 2nd quarter would get a FG to take a 3-0 lead. After the Cowboy score, the Eagle offense would get moving. Methodically moving down the field under QB Jameis Winston, the Eagles would get to the Cowboy 19-yard line when disaster would strike. On 3rd and 12, Winston would drop back in the pocket and immediately get pressure from the Cowboy DT Kenny Clark. Winston would try to scramble to get away but to no avail. Clark would strip-sack Winston and Cowboy DB Tramon Williams would scoop up the ball and ramble 72 yards to give the Cowboys a 10-0 lead.

Winston, determined to make amends, moves the Eagles back down the field to the Cowboy 20. On 2nd and 5, Winston would make another mistake (the theme of the day) and get picked off on an out route by Cowboy DB Taron Johnson. It wasn't looking good for the Eagles this day and they needed a break of their own. They would get it.

On the ensuing possession, Cowboy QB Cam Newton would hit WR Tyrell Williams on a slant pattern. Williams would be stripped of the ball at the Cowboy 25 which would be picked up by Eagle DB Bashaud Breeland for a 25-yard score to close the gap to 10-7.

The Eagles would not be done in the 1st half as Winston would work the 2-minute offense to perfection. Slicing and dicing through the Cowboy defense, but with time running out, Winston would find an open John Brown running open down the sideline. He would not miss him and the Eagles would take the lead. Unfortunately, the extra point would be missed (a key play in the game) for a 13-10 lead.

The 2nd half would be ruled by both defenses. The only score in the 3rd quarter would be a 51 yard FG by Eagle K Harrison Butker. So, going into the final stanza, the Eagles would lead 16-10.

Midway through the 4th quarter, the Eagles would be faced with a 4th and short from their own 41. The Eagle coaching staff decided to kick and play defense as they had shined all day long. The Cowboys would be pinned on their own 15. It was at this time that Newton came to life and was literally unstoppable. The drive would culminate with an Ito Smith 6 yard TD run. The extra point was good and the Cowboys would retake the lead 17-16 with just over 2 minutes left in the game.

The Eagles would have one last shot to get into FG range to win the game. Winston would move the offense to midfield before throwing another interception to end any hope of the Eagles remaining undefeated. Two knees and the clock would expire on the undefeated season for the Eagles.

Great job by Coach Hart in pulling this one out! The Cowboys go to 2-4 and next meets the tough Miami Dolphins. The Eagles will try to rebound against the just as tough New England Patriots.

Minnesota 42 Detroit 21                     70
The kittens were scared coming in & Elliott & crew scored with ease. Lions sorta made the game interesting when they had the ball down 14 mid 2nd half, but that was it. But, at least we made Mr Cool, Mr Humble, Dirt himself form a bead of sweat before the shellacking was done.

Lions travel to the always tough place to play, New Orleans & Minny hits SF with their high powered offense.

New England 14 Indianapolis 21              69
Indianapolis, IND (IFL.com) – The Indianapolis Colts (3-3) continue their 3-game winning streak with a 21-14 win, and handed the New England Patriots (3-3) their third consecutive lost of the season. DKSports the largest sport book in Vegas installed the Colts a home under dog (-5) for the second time this season and third game in a row overall.
The Colts would score the first 21 points of the game and hold on for the 7 point victory. New England would score 14 unanswered 4th quarter points which terrified to hometown faithful and created a new sense of urgency on the Indianapolis coaching staff.

Indianapolis would score the first 3 touchdowns of the game on long drives which control the clock and the game until midway through the fourth quarter when the Pats would mount their comeback. In the 1st quarter Isaiah Crowell (RB) would score on an 8 yard run following an 11 play 84 yard, 6:17 drive, 7-0 Colts. Sony Michel (RB) capped off a 12 play 75 yard, 6:31 third quarter drive with a 3 yard run behind All-Pro center Mike Pouncey, 14-0 Colts. With 44 seconds left in the third quarter Case Keenum would hit wide receiver Tajae Sharp on a medium slant for a 19 yard TD pass, 21-0 Colts GAME OVER, right? WRONG!!!

The Patriots came storming back with a 14 play 92 yard, 7:03 drive which concluded with a Lamar Jackson 3 yard TD pass to Pats running back Nyheim Hines, 21-7 Colts. With 5:51 left in the game the Patriots would go on a 10 play 82 yard drive, using only 2:53 off the clock when Christian McCaffrey would sweep right for the 8 yard TD, 22-14 Colts.
With 3:11 left, 3 time outs, and after failing on an onside kick earlier in the quarter New England decided to kick deep and put the game in the hands of the defense. Unfortunately for the Pats, Indianapolis would milk the clock with an 8 play 27 yard time killing drive preserving, the 21-14 victory.

New York (A) 20 Miami 42                    70
The Jets travel to Miami for a divisional game to determine the leader of the AFC East.

Miami wins the toss and defers and the Jets can't move the ball on the opening possession and punt to the Dolphins. They take their opening possession and go 62 yards in 8 plays and get the TD to go up 7-0. After a trade of possessions ( Miami going for it on a 4th a 2 and come up inches short) the Jets go on a 8 play drive for 67 yards and get the TD to notch it a 7. Miami gets the ball at their own 9 and go 91 yards (aided by a 24 yard PI call and score from 7 yards out to make it Dolphins 14 Jets 7 with 14:12 to go in the 2nd quarter.

Undaunted, NY takes the kick off and travels 84 yards in just 6 plays and gets the tying score on a 23 yard pass to Thomas to again tie the score at 14 with 11:59 left in the half. The Dolphins get a short field after a big kick return and it only takes them 4 plays to go 38 yards and get the go ahead TD with 10:47 left in the half to retake the lead at 21-14 with 10:47 remaining in the 1st half. After the Dolphins force a punt, NY gets the pick of Goff and push it to the Dolphins 6 yard line but 3 tries from the 6 yield no yards and the Jets settle for the FG to make the score 21-17 with 4:25 left in the half. Miami would take the KO at the 25 and travel 75 yards in 9 plays and score with 1:42 left in the half to increase the lead to 28-17. The Jets only turnover on the night would be a costly one as on the 1st play of the drive Higbee would fumble and give the Dolphins the ball at the 15 and in only 2 plays the Fins would score and push the score to 35-17 and that's the way we would go to half time.

(The dagger in the heart) For the 2nd time in 2 weeks the Dolphins would return the opening 2nd half KO for a TD to go up 42-17. The Jets would muster a FG in the 3rd quarter, but the 2nd half would be the Dolphins trying to run the clock and the Jets not having any success getting to the endzone. As the game ends 42-20 and the Dolphins in firm command of the AFC East.

Next week the Dolphins travel to Dallas and the Jets host the Redskins.

Tennessee 38 Pittsburgh 17                  56 5-15
Central Division leading Titans come into Heinz Field looking to push there record to 5-1. For the Steelers they were coming off there first win on the road against the Bengals and were feeling pretty good about themselves.

Well that feeling went away quickly as the game starts as the game for the Steelers ended last week with a Kick Off return fumbled. But this time it was the Titans that recovered the opening kick off fumble. 2 plays later Ryan to Beckham Jr from 11 yards out 7-0 Titans. After 3 plays that netted -7 yards for the Steelers the Titans start at midfield and in 8 plays score there 2nd TD this time its Murray from 8 yards out. After Tennessee went for it late in the quarter on a 4th and 3 from Pittsburgh's 42 the Steelers would take over and start a drive to end the 1st. Tennessee 14 Pittsburgh 0

Steelers drive would stall at the 18 as Vinatieri hits from 36 yards out to get the home team on the board. The Titans again would have no problem driving down the field getting to the Steelers 11 before Rookie Safety Reid would step in front of a Ryan pass and take it all the way down to Tennessee's 3 yard line. Brady to Gronk on the 1st play makes it 14-10 midway through the 2nd. Again Tennessee would drive the ball down the field this time Ryan is picked off by MLB Littleton at the 6 yard line. 2 Redzone picks for Ryan. Pittsburgh would go on an 9 play drive at the end of the half but this time Brady is picked off in the Redzone by Swearinger with 7 seconds to go on the 12 yard line. Titans 14 Steelers 10 Half Time

Must have been some speech at the half. 1st play of the 3rd 55 yard strike Ryan to Beckham 21-10 Titans. After a Steelers 3 and out the Titans get a Field goal to go up 24-10 mid way through the 3rd. The Steelers have a FG blocked late in the 3rd and the quarter would end 24-10 Titans.

Murray would score his 2nd TD from 7 yards out early in the 4th and the visitors now have this game in hand 31-10 13 minutes to go. After Dickerson the Steelers Punter fumbled the snap giving the Titans a redzone opportunity Zenner runs it in from 3 yards out on the 2nd play and the rout is on. The Steelers get a late TD and thats how it ends . Titans 38 Steelers 17

For Tennessee Ryan is 23-35 for 323 Yards 2TD and 2 Picks
                         Beckham (Game MVP) has 6 catches for 115 yards 2 TD

For Pittsburgh Brady is 20-29 for 215 yards 2TD 1 Pick
                        Herndon has 7 Catches for 93 yards and 1TD

Pittsburgh (1-5) host Houston next week while the Titans (5-1) host the Raiders in a battle of Division leaders

Cincinnati 31 Jacksonville 7                89 0-5
The Bengals shred a confused Jags D at will while the Cinci D overwhelms an impotent Jacksonville offence in route to a 31-7 road win. Aaron Rodgers was extremely effective throwing for three touchdowns with no interceptions while Jags signal caller Josh Allen had a horrible day throwing the ball going 11-27 for 119 yards.

John coached a great game and could have won by 60 had the need been there. Next week the Bengals travel to Denver while the Jags try to bounce back vs the Chargers in Jacksonville.

Rodgers - 21 of 38 for 238 yards 3 TDs
Allen - 11 of 27 for 199 1TD, 1 INT, 3 SKs

Gordon - 19 for 104 1TD
Allen - 13 for 91 1F

Jeffery 4 for 71 1 TD
Smith 2 for 33 1 TD

New Orleans 3 Atlanta 13                    68
Lamar Miller was named game MVP as he rushed 17 times for 70 yards and scored the game clinching TD on a 10 yard pass from Philiip Rivers.

Jim did everything he could to keep it close and did manage to keep the Falcons off balance but, ultimately, it was just too much to overcome when Flacco went down (with Nick Mullens already out).

Unsung hero for the Saints was AJ Bouye who basically shut down Larry Fitzgerald with 3 catches on 13 targets.

While the Saints ran a few times behind Andrew Whitworth and got good gains, he was a net negative when you factor several penalties and very poorly timed as well.

Falcons end up pulling out a close one 13-3 and improve to 5-1 while the Saints fall to 2-4.

Buffalo 0 New York (N) 31                   64 0-10 Light Rain
The Bills and Giants faced off at Metlife. The Giants defense continued its dominance forcing 6 turnovers and sacking the Bills QBs 6 times.

After a first quarter that consisted of punt after punt after punt, the Giants defense got the game finally going with a pick six by Bryce Callahan. (7-0)

After a Buffalo punt, the Giants kicker Santos kicked a 40 yard field goal with 10:23 left in the 2nd quarter. (10-0)

The Bills bad luck continued as they fumbled the ensuing kickoff and the Giants took over. Wentz took a shot and the Giants score one play after the fumble recovery. (17-0)

Giants kick off is downed and the Bills start from the 25 yard line but after a holding penalty, Alex Smith dropped back to pass and Gunter sacks him causing the ball to come loose and the Giants to take over at the Bills 13 yard line. After back to back runs, Wentz hit TE Nick Vannett in the back of the end zone for a 7 yard touchdown. (24-0)

After a couple of punts, the Bills turnover woes continue as Alex Smith throws anther interception making it 4 turnovers in the first half so far. Four plays later, D'onta Foreman plows into the endzone with 47 seconds left in the first half. (31-0)

In the second half, the Giants decided to try to just run the clock out and play ball control.

In the third quarter, the Bills throw INTs on two straight drives and the Giants continue attempting to run the clock out, punting the ball away.

The fourth quarter as much of the same as both teams just traded punts and the game ends 31-0.

Giants move to 4-2 and the Bills fall to 0-6.

Next week:
Giants travel to Indianapolis

Bills stay home to face the Cardinals.

Washington 20 Arizona 41                    80 Calm
The game was a battle between two rebuilding franchises. Neither team will make much noise this year other than perhaps to act as a spoiler. Arizona had a season worth forgetting last year and has already won more games than all of last year. Washington on the other hand is struggling mightily and eyeing a top 10 pick in the upcoming draft.

A quick glance at the score would lead one to an incorrect conclusion. Arizona scored 41 points and appeared to dominate the Skins, but it is not even close to the way the game unfolded. Washington actually had more total yards than Arizona, although not by much. Statistically both teams were nearly identical in all categories except one. Both quarter backs enjoyed solid performances with 70%+ completion percentages. Both teams ran the ball for over 100 yards. And on critical 3rd down conversions, both teams were in 50% range. The sole difference maker was turnovers. The Redskins would commit 3 turnovers while Arizona managed to protect ball.

The game would likely have been the last team with the ball wins had turnovers been more equal. Both teams play again and it will be interesting to see the adjustments.

Green Bay 35 Tampa Bay 42                   91 0-5
wo teams with four and one records, top five scoring offenses and the expectations that come along with a good start to the season met in Tampa Bay to determine which will gain an early leg up for the division crown.
The opening kickoff is sent away from Cordarrell Patterson but ends up out of bounds. It takes Derek Carr three plays to find Tyler Lockett for a 41 yard score and a 6 – 0 Tampa lead after Calais Campbell blocks the Janikowski extra point.
Showing some rare defense, the teams exchange punts. On Green Bay’s next possession a game changing injury gets Green Bay running back Philip Lindsay. He goes off after a Mario Addison hit holding his right thumb and in obvious pain. He did not return to the game. His lesser replacement, Alex Collins, allowed the Buccaneers to play an extra defensive back for most of the rest of the game. Keeping positive, Green Bay’s Ben Roethlisberger gives his team the lead by finding AJ Green on a 19 yard crosser. 7 – 6 Green Bay.
On Tampa Bay’s next possession, Green Bay wins a challenge resulting in fourth and inches at the Green Bay 45 yard line. The Packers focus on Todd Gurley. The result is a play action bomb TD to DeSean Jackson. 13 – 7 Tampa.
The teams manage a bit of defense in the second quarter. Roethlisberger finds the tireless Josh Gordon on a 27 yard long slant and Seabass makes a 45 yarder as the half expires. The teams go into the locker room with the scoreboard showing 14 Green Bay - 16 Tampa Bay.
Donte Jackson jumps a short hitch pattern on the second play of Green Bay’s opening second-half possession setting up his team at midfield. The Davonte Adams takes a play action slant from Carr for the touchdown and a score of 23 to 14 Tampa.
Midway through the third quarter, Green Bay cuts the lead to 23 – 21 on second Roethlisberger touchdown pass to Green. Tampa Bay adds a field-goal stretching the lead back to 26 – 21 Tampa.
The Packers are forced to punt. As the Buccaneers are moving down the field, Patrick Peterson picks off Carr and returns it 37 yards to the Tampa Bay 38 yard line. In three plays Big Ben finds Josh Gordon on a slant and watches him split the defenders and give his team its first lead since early in the second quarter. 28 – 26 Green Bay.
The offenses get even hotter exchanging touchdowns that leave Green Bay leading 35 – 32 after a failed to point Tampa conversion. There is 3:47 left in the game.
Tampa is able to grab the lead back when Tyler Lockett takes a short slant 15 yards for the score. A big play was turned in by Cordarrell Patterson on third and five at the Green Bay 40 when he was able to take a handoff up the middle for 21 yards to the Green Bay 19. Tampa 39 – 35. The home crowd is on pins and needles because the Packers have 1:51 left and all three timeouts to come down and score the winning touchdown.
Roethlisberger lubes up his elbow and starts flinging the ball about. The Buccaneers were able to tip away enough passes and mix in a sack to force the Packers to turn the ball over on downs twice. In between Janikowski added another field-goal for a final of 42 – 35 Tampa.
The teams combined for 1,003 yards of offense. The quarterbacks played to about even. Green Bay ran the ball 14 times for 37 yards. Tampa was able to gain 115 yards on 22 carries. The Packers loss of Sanders made a huge difference.
Next week both teams have tough games on the road. Green Bay heads to Atlanta. Tampa Bay heads to Los Angeles to face the Rams.

Kansas City 10 San Francisco 30             75 10-20 Rain
The Chiefs (2-3) met the 49ers (1-4) in an noninterference game.

Jordan Howard of the Niners scored 3 TDs, 1 by pass and 2 by run to pace SF to a 30-10 Victory. The big plays, however, were SF defensive
interceptions by Leonard (42 yd TD) and Baker, a 57 yd return that set up a FG.

Both team's offenses struggled most of the game but in the end SF maintained possession (33 minutes to 27) and finished 2 long drives (83 and 88 yards) for TDs. Trubiskey was 21-34 for 232 yards, 1 TD and an INT.

KC couldn't get a running game untracked with only 46 yards in 21 carries and had to rely on Andy Dalton's arm. He was 19-35 for 237 yards but had 2 costly INTs. Andy fashioned a 93 yard drive finished with a 63 yd TD pass to TE Kittle.

Chiefs (2-4) visit Baltimore next week while SF (2-4) hosts Minnesota.

Carolina 24 Los Angeles (N) 35              59 Calm
The Rams and Panthers opened their two game series in Los Angeles. The weather was unseasonably cool, 59 degrees, but that did not affect Panthers QB Russell Wilson and Rams QB Andrew Luck, both were red hot throughout the game.

Wilson was hyper efficient only attempting 19 passes for 199 yards. But he made them count throwing three touchdown passes, he also was deadly on the ground running for 75 yards. While Wilson hit big plays and moved his team quickly down the field, the Rams and Luck used a ball control approach. Luck was 26 for 37 for 336 yards and two touchdowns. The game came down who could get stops.

The Panthers only punted once through the first 2.5 quarters, but on their 2nd drive of the 3rd quarter the Rams got a stop. The Panthers had accumulated a number of injuries to this point, which seemed to shift the tide of the game. Rams capitalized taking their fist lead on a short slant to from Luck to TE Trey Burton. A second three and out by Carolina allowed the Rams to go on another time consuming drive to push the lead to 35-21. Carolina managed a field goal with just over two minutes left, but not enough time remained when they got the ball back.

Carolina Stars:
Russell Wilson 12-19 199 yards 3 TDs 75 yards rushing
Mike Evans 5 catches 79 yards 2 touchdowns

Rams Stars:
Andrew Luck 26-37 336 yards 2 Touchdowns
Chris Carson 89 yards 3 touchdowns

Next week Carolina hosts Chicago, while the Rams host Tampa Bay.

Houston 14 Oakland 45                       62 5-15
Kamara rushes for two touchdowns and 112 yards.

Rushing Leaders
Chubb,N(LAC)    19-171 3 TD – IFL Offensive Player of the Week
Elliott,E(Min) 27-147 1 TD
Hunt,K(Den)     25-131
Kamara(Oak)     17-112 2 TD
Gordon III(Cin) 19-104 1 TD
McCaffrey(NE)   15-102 1 TD
Carson,C(LAR)   23-89 3 TD

Receiving Leaders
Hilton(LAR)      8-154 1 TD
Hill,T(Den)     10-122 3 TD
Allen,K(Ind)    10-107
Smith-Schu(Min) 9- 96 3 TD

Passing Leaders
Carr,D(TB)      52-36-434   5 TD 1 Int
Roethlisbe(GB) 48-34-430   5 TD 1 Int
Mayfield(Bal)   47-28-349   2 TD
Luck(LAR)       37-26-336   2 TD
Ryan,M(Ten)     35-23-323   2 TD 2 Int
Goff(Mia)       31-23-305   5 TD 1 Int
Brees(Min)      36-20-290   5 TD
Bortles(Den)    30-20-217   4 TD

Defensive Standouts
Callahan(NYG) 1 Int 22 yds 1 TD – IFL Defensive Player of the Week

Special Teams
Jennings(Mia) 3-178 Kick Ret 1 TD – IFL Special Teams Player of the Week

IFL WEEK 6 STANDINGS

IFL WEEK 6 LEAGUE LEADERS

IFL WEEK 5 RECAP

Da Bears Dalvin Cook on his way to an 86 yard touchdown run as Chicago upends Green Bay on the road.

Game Scores
Chicago 38 Green Bay 31                     56 5-15
Bear come into Green Bay and put the hurt down on the previously unbeaten Packers.

RB Delvin Cook sets the tone early ripping off an 86 yard TD run just a minute in.

After the hosts replied with a touchdown of their own to knot things up at 7-7 (plus got a 3 and out of defense) the Lambeau faithful were feeling good.

On the next series however Prince Amukamara picked off Big Ben and took it to the house. 14-7 Bears. The Cheeseheads sat silent.

Packers never seemed to recover from that one as the visitors would tack on two more TD's before the half to go up 28-10 at recess. Marcus Mariota was in fine form.

The former Ducks QB tossed his third touchdown early in the 3rd to Demarius Thomas.
This one was becoming a blowout 35-10.

Packer showed some life and mounted a comeback with three late TD's to cut it to 38-31 late but a final drive came up short when Roethlisberger was sacked at the Bears 26 with just seconds left and no timeout.

Bears hold on for a big road win 38-31 Final

Mariota was on fire: 27/30 283 3 TD/ 1int 125.4
Cook 12 for 125 1TD
Thomas 7/73 2TDs

Ben 28/53 329 2td's/2ints 68.8
Lindsay just 8/12 1.5 yard ave versus tough Bears D.
but he led the team in catches 9/63

Great game called by Dennis. He had us off balance all game long.

Bears (3-2) host Baltimore (1-4)
Packers (4-1) travel to Tampa Bay (2-2)

Tennessee 37 Detroit 30                     70
Tennessee came into Detroit an 11 point favorite. In one of the wildest & wacky games either coach had been in for a while.

Titans hit a 75 bomb TD to Beckham as the 2nd quarter was ending to tie it at 20. The Lions Deep coverage / Prevent got beat by Ryan & Hopkins who had a big day of 7 catches & 161 yards & 2 TD's. Also Tenn forced 4 TO's.

Ryan was erratic but when he was hot he was HOT.

Lions had their best game of the season, but to no avail. Rookie Darnold ended with a 93 rating, but a desperation heave interception as time was running out, lowered that rating.

It was a fun interesting close game. Congrats to Coach Brunskillson.

Tenn travels to Pitt, Det hosts division rival Minnesota, the high powered offense & senile coach Dirt Robb & all that goes with it.

Denver 34 Houston 3                         70
Denver comes into Houston against the winless Texans and moves to 3-2 with a 34-3 victory.

The Texans got on the board first following a Bronco fumble they hit a FG for a quick 3-0 lead.
Then, it was all Broncos as they scores quickly to build a 34-3 halftime lead.

The 2nd half was anti-dramatic as neither team scored and used the clock.

Los Angeles (A) 20 Kansas City 27           50 5-15
The visiting Chargers are crippled with 10 accepted penalties to only 2 for the home team as the Chiefs come away with a 27-20 victory.

Arizona 31 Dallas 21                        70
Pat Maholmes passed for 293 yards and two scores and Arizona's defense recorded four sacks in a 31-21 win over Dallas Wednesday night.   Jim coached his club to a 4/4 success while in the Red Zone. There were 16 penalties in this one - eight called against each club. The win advances the Cardinals' record to 2-3 while the Cowboys fall to 1-4.

Jacksonville 31 Baltimore 26                64 5-15
Jacksonville (2-2) traveled to Baltimore (1-3) for the always fun inter-division game. The early line listed the Jags as 3 point favorites, but just before kick-off it jumped to 11 for some reason.

Baltimore won the toss and deferred. Jacksonville ran three plays for a yard, with two passes going right through the hands of Raven CB Desmond Trufant. The Jags lined up to punt from their own 23 and the snap sailed over Johnny Hekker's head and Trufant finally snagged that elusive ball on the 14. Baltimore gained 2 yards on the ground on their first two plays and 7 on a Mayfield-to-Samuels slant to present the Ravens' coach with his first major decision of the game - try on 4th-and-1 from the 5 or kick a FG. Figuring there was plenty of time to correct a mistake, Baltimore elected to go for it, running a dive play to stat pack stud Le'Veon Bell...and he was stone-walled for a loss. Jags take over on downs. Mostly on Josh Allen's legs, the Jags marched out to the 50, but stalled. Hekker deftly handled the next snap and pinned the Ravens at their own 11.

A Mayfield-to-Andrews 18-yard hitch garnered a FD on 3rd-and-6 and Mayfield hurried the offense to the line hoping to catch the Jags in a pass defense. He did and the end-around to Jaylen Samuels was the perfect call. Samuels didn't stop until he'd run half the field (51 yards to be exact) to the Jags 16. Two plays later, Mayfield hit Adam Thielen for a TD on an 18-yard out-pattern. Baltimore 7-0.

Allen rallied the troops on the Jags next possession, hitting Allen Robinson on consecutive plays for 26 and 25 yards and absorbed a late hit that added a bonus 15 yards. On the first play of the 2nd quarter, Allen called his own number on a 2nd-and-8 dive play and ran it all the way in from the 16. Tie game 7-7.

Mayfield combined with Bell to lead the Ravens downfield on their next possession and Mayfield teamed up with Thielen again - this time for a 33-yard TD. Matt Bryant's PAT attempt was blocked. Baltimore 13-7.

Undeterred, Allen led the Jags to paydirt, culminating a 10 play, 75 yard drive with a QB sneak from the 1. Jacksonville 14-13.

Baltimore responded with its own 75 yard drive, this one 13 plays that included conversion of three 3rd downs. Le'Veon Bell capped the drive with a 3 yard run on a pitch to paydirt. Baltimore 20-14 with 3:42 remaining in the half, but don't leave early to get concessions and use the bathroom. Lots of action before half-time.

Jacksonville went 3-and-out, giving the ball back to the Ravens with 1:44 left and Mayfield said, "Let's get some points on the board before the half boys!" Three seconds later, Jags rookie Jessie Bates III said "nuh huh" (or something like that) and nabbed his first career INT, returning it to the Ravens 5. Two plays later, David Johnson ran it in and it was the Jags who put the points on the board for a 21-20 Jags lead with 1:23 left.

Mayfield said "that's plenty of time" and moved the ball down to the Jags 38, where Matt Bryant, with the aid of a little wind at his back, knocked it through the uprights from 56 yards out. Finally, it was half time. Baltimore 23-21. Whew! Where were the defenses?

Baltimore opened the second half with a 13-play, 52 yard drive that stalled at the Jags 23. Matt Bryant kicked a 41-yard FG. Giving Baltimore a five-point lead at 26-21. That closed out the scoring in the 3rd as the teams exchanged punts.

Jacksonville's second possession of the 3rd quarter stretched into the 4th a ended with a Randy Bullock 33-yard FG, cutting the Ravens lead to 2. Baltimore 26-24.

Baltimore earned a first down on their first play from scrimmage, but a penalty in the next series of downs, set them back such that they couldn't recover. Rigoberto Sanchez's punt pinned the Jags at their own 8. David Johnson quickly got them out of the soup with an 8-yard dive and then connected with Allen on a medium slant for 58 yards as the Ravens blitz didn't make it to Allen. With the ball on the Raven 26 and just under 10 minutes on the clock, Coach Hood recognized that it'd probably be best to chew up the clock, knowing he could, at minimum, kick a go-ahead FG. Chew-up, he did, munching 6 minutes off the clock using 10 plays before Allen himself punched it in from the 1, despite being keyed on. Jacksonville 31-26.

Gunslinger that he is, Mayfield marched the Ravens to the Jags 33, where they were faced with a 4th-and-5 with 1:09 left. Down by five, they had to go for it and tried to target Adam Thielen on a hitch, but he was smothered. Mayfield instead hit Samuels on the check-down and stretch as he might, he came up a yard short. Jacksonville lined up in victory formation...but wait! With three time outs, Baltimore got the ball back one more time!

Thielen for 18, spike, Hogan for 13, spike...ball on the Jags 45 with 17 ticks left on the clock. Bomb post to Thielen knocked away in the end zone. Bomb fly...checked down to Samuels. Doh! 42 yards short. Jags 31-26 FINAL.

Congrats to Coach Hood, who knew when to milk the clock and get the most out of the tools he has.

Josh Allen was the game's MVP, mostly on the strength of his legs - 14 rushes for 76 yards, while adding 202 through the air on 12-for-22 passes. David Johnson added 160 yards (15/81 on the ground and 4/70 through the air).

Baker Mayfield chucked the pigskin for 339 yards on 28-for-52 passes that included 2 TDs and 1 INT. Adam Thielen snagged 8 of 18 targets for 129 yards and both of Mayfield's TDs.

Raven LB Benardrick McKinney tallied 11 tackles and 1 stuff, while Aaron Donald was a terror with 7 tackles,1 sack, 2 stuffs, 2 hurries and 1 forced fumble. There just wasn't enough help around those two.

Next week, Jacksonville (3-2) takes on Cincinnati (2-2 as of this writing). Baltimore (1-4) travels to the Windy City to take on DAH-Bears (2-2 as of this writing).

New York (A) 31 Buffalo 10                  45 0-5
The New York Jets come to Buffalo and steamroll the Bills led by Watson by air and ground as he was unstoppable with targets Michael Thomas and Robert Woods being the main targets of Watson's great day

Los Angeles (N) 24 Atlanta 27               68
This game we found out the answer to the question...what happens if the defense ignores Chris Carson. He rushed 29 times for 206 yards for a 7.1 YPC. He also had 9 carries over 10 yards and rushed for 10 first downs. Overall, the Rams offense had a big day with 508 yards and controlled the clock for 37 minutes. Andrew Luck had 3 TD passes, hitting Corey Davis for 2 and Tarik Cohen for big TD with 0:47 left in regulation to tie the game at 24.

Ultimately, it was the Falcons that came up with the biggest plays of the game with a 4th and 3 stop in overtime and then converting their own 4th and 3 which led to the game winning 39 yard FG.

Jason Kelce absolutely dominated the game and was named game MVP as the Rams rushed 42 times for 265 yards. He was also directly responsible for 165 yards on runs right up the middle. He also led the offensive line which protected Andrew Luck, preventing him from getting sacked even once from what might be the best pass rush in the IFL.

With the win, the Falcons tie the Rams for the division lead at 4-1 and look forward to the rematch down the road.

Philadelphia 18 New York (N) 17             66 0-5
Despite taking a 14-0 lead over the Eagles, the Giants give up 18 points in the 2nd half with the game winning touchdown coming with 47 seconds left in the game.

Giants fall to 3-2 and welcome Buffalo next week

Eagles go to 5-0 and welcome Dallas next week.

Pittsburgh 27 Cincinnati 24                 58 0-5
The Bengals hosted the Steelers and put together a long nine play 67 yard opening drive with Rodgers connecting with Jeffery for the seven yard score. Pittsburgh answered and perhaps shocked the Cincinnati faithful as Robert Foster burned Kyle Fuller for a 68 yard score on their second play from scrimmage to tie it at seven.

After an exchange of punts, the Bengals put together another long 12 play drive that took about seven minutes. Rodgers found Heuerman from 12 yards out to regain the lead 14-7 with about eight minutes remaining in the half. The Steelers countered with their own long drive, 13 play and 75 yards, with Gore going in from two yards out. After forcing a Cincinnati punt, the Steelers were content to let the clock run out to end the half tied at 14.

Pittsburgh came out after the halftime and put together a ten play 75 yard drive capped off by another Brady to Foster score, this time from 38 yards out. Cincinnati countered with a 17 play drive but had to settle on a Fairbairn field goal to cut the deficit to 21-17. The Bengals finally caught a big break as Micah Hyde intercepted a Brady pass setting up Cincinnati with first and ten at about midfield. Rodgers completed three passes and Gordon went in from less than a yard out, 24-21 Bengals early in the fourth. The Steelers again put together a long 15 play drive that set up the tying field goal with three minutes remaining. Plenty of time for Rodgers and company to move down the field for at least a game winning field goal attempt. BUT WAIT, Bengals kick returner Janarion Grant fumbles the return and the Steelers recover. Pittsburgh has it first and goal at the Cincinnati five but has to settle on another Vinatieri field goal as Cincinnati burned up their time-outs. There is still 1:34 remaining, plenty of time for Rodgers to work his magic and I replaced Grant at kick returner with D.J. Chark. BUT WAIT! Chark fumbles the return too and Pittsburgh recovers. With no timeouts left Brady takes three knees and the Steelers have their first win, 27-24. Two straight tough losses for Cincinnati.

Sam coached a great game. I don't know how he was winless to this point.

Brady finished 15 of 22 for 238 yards and two TDs with an INT. Foster caught two passes for 106 yards, both for scores. And the timeless Frank Gore rushed for 99 yards on 17 attempts.

For Cincinnati, Rodgers was 20 of 30 for 239 yards and two TDs. Gordon rushed 20 times for 89 yards and a score. Bruce Irvin collected two of the Bengals three sacks.

Next week, the reeling Bengals are at Jacksonville while the Steelers host Tennessee.

Oakland 40 Carolina 37                      73 0-5
Jason Myers kicks the game winning field goal as time expires for the 40-37 Oakland win.

Tampa Bay 45 Minnesota 42                   68
In their last 4 games, the Minnesota Vikings have seen the game tied up with less than a minute left: at 0:25, 0:27, 0:30 and 0:43 in the 4th quarter. In the games with 0:25 and 0:43 left, that was enough time for the game to be decided on a field goal with time expiring. In the game with 0:27 left, the opponent apparently won the coin toss (the game never said) for overtime, and then won the game in OT without the Vikings even touching the ball.

These games, nailbiters all, included games against powerhouses Los Angeles Rams (4-1), Green Bay (4-1) and Tampa Bay (4-1).

We could save a lot of time if we considered the game a tie and just played the last minute.

Tampa Bay and Minnesota was a full-value, entertaining contest.

First downs: Vikings 31, Bucs 30
Net yards: Bucs 525, Vikings 513
Rushing yards: Bucs 154, Vikings 141
Passing yards: Vikings 372, Bucs 371
Time: Vikings 33 min, Bucs 27 min
Red zone: 10 red zone trips combined, 10 touchdowns combined

Both teams were explosive! 1,038 yards for both teams combined!

Tampa Bay had the game wrapped up, 42-21 with less than 10 minutes to go in the 4th quarter, but
Drew Brees caught fire, engineering three touchdowns in a row to tie the game with 43 seconds left. On the first TD, Brees got the ball on his own 3 yard line, then went 97 yards for the score; on the second TD, Brees got the ball on his 20, then went 80 yards for the score; and on the last TD, Brees got the ball on his own 1 yard line (pinned in by a GREAT punt by the Bucs' Bryan Anger), but went 99 yards on 12 plays in only 2:37 for the game-tying score. 42-42, with 0:43 left.

The Vikings thought of a squib kick, but they didn't want to let the Bucs have good field position to get within range of a game-winning field goal. So they kicked off deep. But lo and behold, the Bucs, who hadn't done anything returning full kicks to that point, got a 49-yard return by Cordarrell Patterson to put them at midfield, and two successful passes by Derek Carr against a pass defense later, Janikowski booted the game-winner from 44 yards out. Tampa Bay wins 45-42.

What the Viking coach didn't realize was that Patterson was AVERAGING over 50 yards on kick returns to that point. Maybe the squib kick looks a little better in retrospect!

Individual stats:

Tampa Bay
Carr    25/33 371 yd 4 TD 151.6 rating
Adams 9 catches 112 yd 2 TD
Lockett 5 catches 114 yd
Gurley 20/116 2 TD

Minnesota
Brees 27/40 372 yd 5 TD 136.7 rating
A.Brown 11 catches 165 yd 3 TD
Smith-Schuster 8 catches 139 yd 2 TD
Elliott 20/120 1 TD

Next week, in intradivision battles, Tampa Bay hosts Green Bay (both 4-1 teams), and while Minnesota visits Detroit.

Indianapolis 27 Washington 16               69 5-15
The 1-3 Colts came to town to face the dismal 0-4 Redskins in a game that nobody was really interested in watching.

The Colts would get the opening kickoff and proceed to cram it down the Skins throat to go up 7-0. The following a Redskins drive wouldn’t last very long as Prescott would make an ill-advised throw and get picked off by Douglas. 2 plays later and the Colts were up 14-0. Prescott would make up for his mistake on the next series with a 11 play drive that would end with a 9 yard TD to Ebron. The Colts would manage a final drive at the end of the half to kick a FG to put them up by 10 at the half. The Redskins would receive the ball in the second half and Prescott would put together another nice long 12 play drive capped off by a 14 yard Prescott run for 6 points. Unfortunately Tavechio would miss the extra point. Not wanting to be out done Keenum would put together an 11 play driver where he two would run the ball in for 6. From here on out Washington would lose the battle of field position which would result in another 3 points for the Colts which would seal the Redskins fate.

The story of the game was the Colts running game. The colts managed 207 yards on the ground on 37 carries. While nobody would confuse Keenum for Peyton Manning, he did play well enough to keep the Redskins defense on their toes.

Colts move to 2-3 and look to keep the momentum going with a home game against the Pats

While Washington will travel to the desert to face the Arizona Cardinals.

Miami 38 New England 10                     54 0-5   Light Rain
Miami comes to town looking to continue their unbeaten streak which dates back to the season before last, while the Patriots look to rebound from their first loss of the season at the hands of the Jets.

A Lamar Jackson interception on the Patriots first drive positioned Miami to strike first, via a 35-yard field goal. 3-0 Miami

New England's defense held tough on the next drive, forcing a turnover. With the ball in Miami territory, Christian McCaffrey coughed it up after catching a screen pass and Miami was back in business.

Both squads' true colors emerged from that point on, as the Fins proceeded to score touchdowns on their next three possessions (3 TD passes by Goff, two to Cooks and one to Edelman) to close out the half. New England's defense was truly helpless against the Miami passing game. 24-0 Miami at the break.

Things went from bad to worse for the Pats as on the opening kick of the 2nd half, Darius Jennings raced 95 yards for the TD and the rout was on.

Final Score: Miami 38, New England 10

Brandin Cooks caught 6 passes for 107 yards, and Goff completed 20 of 31 for 247 yards and 3 TDs.

San Francisco 9 New Orleans 27              70
Flacco throws two TD passes and runs for another as Saints down the 49ers.

Rushing Leaders
Carson,C(LAR)   29-206
Cook,D(Chi)     12-125 1 TD – IFL Offensive Player of the Week
Kamara(Oak)     17-122 1 TD
Elliott,E(Min) 20-120 1 TD
Henry,D(Car)    19-119 3 TD
Gurley II(TB)   20-116 2 TD
Thomas,R(KC)    22-102
Hunt,K(Den)     13-101 1 TD
Conner(NO)      15-101
Allen,J(Jax)    14-76 3 TD

Receiving Leaders
Brown,A(Min)    11-165 3 TD
Hopkins,D(Ten)   7-161 2 TD

Passing Leaders
Brees(Min)      40-27-372   5 TD
Carr,D(TB)      33-25-371   4 TD
Darnold(Det)    43-27-363   3 TD 2 Int
Stafford(Oak)   41-25-351   3 TD
Mayfield(Bal)   53-28-339   2 TD 1 Int
Newton,C(Dal)   43-29-332   3 TD 1 Int
Roethlisbe(GB) 53-28-329   2 TD 2 Int
Ryan,M(Ten)     29-17-318   4 TD 2 Int
Watson,D(NYJ)   28-25-301   2 TD
Trubisky(SF)    45-30-255

Defensive Standouts
David(Hou)       16 Tk
Watt(Den) 2 SK, ST, FF – IFL Defensive Player of the Week

Special Teams
Roberts,A(Ten) 4-197 Kick Ret 1 TD 1-16 Punt Ret – IFL Special Teams Player of the Week
Myers,J(Oak)   4-4 FG

IFL WEEK 5 STANDINGS

IFL WEEK 5 LEAGUE LEADERS

IFL WEEK 4 RECAP

Minnesota's JuJu Smith-Schuster caught the game winning score as the Vikings edge Cincinnati on the road.

Game Scores
Minnesota 28 Cincinnati 27                  45 Calm
Week 4 of the IFL schedule saw the Minnesota Vikings and their potent offense visit Paul Brown Stadium. The fired up Cincinnati defense forced a three and out on the Viking offense opening drive. The Bengals marched to the Minnesota three but had to settle on a Fairbairn chip shot for a 3-0 lead. Once again the Cincinnati defense forced another three and out. This time the Bengal offense was able to score a touchdown as Rodgers connected with Jeffery on a 15 yard scoring play. The Viking offense finally woke up as Brees connected with fullback Kyle Juszcyk on a 15 yard pass for six, 10-7 Bengals with 11:40 left in the half. Cincinnati could not answer and they were forced to punt. A Craig Robertson sack played a part in the drive stalling. The Minnesota offense took advantage and thanks to a 30 yard Kyle Fuller P.I. Zeke Elliott would plow over from the one to give the Vikings a 14-10 lead at the half.

It did not take the Bengals long to regain the lead in the third quarter as Jeffery scored on a 46 yard pass at the 12:54 mark to give Cincinnati a 17-14 lead. The big "mo" seemed to be going in the Bengals favor as Elliott was stuffed on a fourth and one at the Cincinnati 33. The Cincinnati offense took advantage as Rodgers found Funchess for an 18 yard score to give Cincinnati a 24-14 lead with 4:48 remaining in the third. Minnesota would turn the ball over on downs once again to end the quarter.

The Bengals extended their lead to 27-14 early in the fourth but field goals aren't enough against the explosive Minnesota offense. An unexpected hero in Dontrelle Inman stepped up on the Vikings next drive catching a 19 yard pass on second and 15 and capped off the drive with a 18 yard TD pass to cut the Cincinnati lead to 27-21 with 8:15 remaining. Hoping for at least another field goal the Cincinnati drive stalled thanks to a holding penalty and a sack. The Bengals decided to punt instead of gambling on a 55 yard field goal. The Vikings got the ball back with 5:15 remaining at their own ten. Viking quarterback Drew Brees methodically led Minnesota completing six passes mixed in with an Elliott 23 yard run. Sitting at first and goal at the Bengals one, Cincinnati called a time-out to at least give the home team a chance. Loaded up front for Elliott, Brees connected with Smith-Schuster on the one yard pass for the go ahead score with 36 seconds remaining. There would be no miracles for Cincinnati as the Vikes get the road win.

Brees finished 27 of 38 for 270 yards and three TDs
Elliott rushed for 103 yards on 18 carries and a score.
Smith-Schuster finished with 10 receptions for 109 yards and a score.

For the Bengals Rodgers finished 20 of 30 for 280 yards and three touchdowns. Stat Pack running back Ronald Jones rushed for 81 yards on 17 attempts. And Alshon Jeffery caught 10 passes for 151 yards and 2 touchdowns.

Next week Minnesota welcomes Tampa Bay while Cincinnati host the Steelers.

Kansas City 10 Oakland 31                   68 5-15
Raiders improve to 4-0 as they roll over the Chiefs 31-10.

  Buffalo 17 Indianapolis 20                  69
Indianapolis, IND (IFL.com) – The Colts (1-3) a home dog (-4) get their first win of the season in front of a sold out Lucas Oil stadium and hand divisional rival Buffalo Bills (0-4) their fourth consecutive lost in this young season. The Bills dominated time of procession 38:19 to 21:41, converted 10 of 19 third downs compared to 2 of 9 for the Colts, and ran for 169 yards on 32 carries. However, their undoing came by way of the yellow flags, committing 9 infractions for a total of 86 yards, while the Colts was flagged only once for 5 yards.

The contest would start off very sloppy when both teams exchanged interceptions on their opening drives. With 5:29 left in the first quarter the Colts would tally the first score of the game on a fourth and goal from the 2-yard line when Sony Michel (RB) goes up the middle for the touchdown, 7 plays 45 yards, 7-0 Colts. Both teams could not put together any substantial threats and the first half would end with the Colts holding onto the slim 7-0 lead.

The second half would see a flurry of scoring when both teams would combine to score on 5 straight processions. At the 7:27 mark of the 3rd Qtr. Buffalo would get its first score of the game on a Graham Gano 39-yard field goal, 7-3 Colts. Indianapolis would strike back quickly on its next procession when Case Keenum, QB (24-12, 209 YD 2 TD 1 INT) hit Golden Tate, WR (3-94 YD, 68 LG 1 TD) on a simple medium fly pattern for a 68-yard catch and run TD, 14-3 Colts. It was the Bills turn to hit paydirt and they did, closing the gap to 10-14 on a fourth and goal from the 2 when T. J. Yeldon, RB (7-20 YD, 6 LG 1 TD) swept around the right end for the 2-yard score following an 11 play 75 yard 6:40 drive. The Colts would match the Bills with their own 11-75 yard 5:48 drive and score when Keenum completes a 10-yard medium slant to Keenan Allen, WR (7-95 YD, 23 LG 1 TD) in the end zone for the touchdown (XP no good), 20-10 Colts. Alex Smith, QB (42-22, 150 YD 1 TD 1 INT) and the Bills wouldn’t go away as they responded on their next procession with a 7-75 yard 2:56 drive which concluded with a 19-yard TD pass from Smith to Adam Humphries, WR (7-62 YD 19 LG 1 TD), 17-20 Colts.

With 3:12 left in the game and 3 time outs Buffalo would punt the ball inside the Colts 10-yard line. The Colts would seal the win with a 7 play 67 yard drive which included two 12 yard passes from Keenum to Allen and a back breaking 33 yard sweep by Isaiah Crowell, RB (15-91 YD 33 LG). After a couple kneel downs the Colts had secured their first victory of the season.

Houston 7 Los Angeles (A) 28                92 Calm
It was a Throwback Thursday as the Chargers invoked memories of “Air Coryell” during their 28-7 defeat of the winless
Texans. Eli Manning posted a perfect passer rating(158.3) as he connected on 19 of 23 passes for 358 yards and 4 touchdowns
of 15, 25, 62 and 83 yards.
The main recipients of his throws were Amari Cooper who posted a monster 7-185-26.4-3td line and Julio Jones with a
5-107-21.4-1td performance
. LA relied on the quick strike offense as Houston controlled the clock 38 minutes to 22, plus ran 62 plays to LA’s 41.

Tampa Bay 24 Chicago 34                     54 15-25
Tampa Bay (3-0) visited Chicago (1-2) in a week 4 divisional matchup. The Bucs were a 4 point road favorite, and the early going ran true to form. After scoring a FG on the opening drive, Tampa Bay followed up with a TD on their second drive, Carr 7 yards to Jackson. Tampa Bay 10 Chicago after one quarter.

The Bears offense woke up in the second quarter - Blue a 5 yard TD run made it 10-7, then a Cook 6 yard TD run gave Chicago a 14-10 lead. On the next drive, Onyemata sacked Carr, forcing a fumble, and Bobby Wagner ran it 48 yards for the score. A late field goal extended the Bear lead. Tampa Bay 10 Chicago 24 at the half.

The offenses slowed a bit in the 3rd. Tampa made it a one score game with a late TD (Gurley 4 yd run). Tampa Bay 17 Chicago 24 after 3.

Tampa Bay looked to come back in the 4th. After the Bears scored a FG, Carr found Adams from 12 yards out to pull within 3, but Mariota took the Bears on a long, time consuming drive to put the game away, Blue’s second TD of the game on a 3 yd run.

Tampa Bay: Carr 25/31, 261, 2 TD; Adams 7 rec, 95 yards, TD.
Chicago: 24/29, 234; Jones Jr. 8 red, 95 yards; Chicago D – 7 sacks.

Green Bay 37 Detroit 25                     70
Packers go into Detroit and get a fairly comfortable win.

After going down 17-0 Lions showed some life late in the first half after
a Ben Roethlisberger fumble. Rookie QB Sam Darnold found TE Vance McDonald from 16 yards out to cut the lead to 10 going into the break.

Packers got the ball to start the second half and marched down to
the Detroit 29 before settling for a 46 yard Robbie Gould FG. 20-7 visitors

Lions looked to have a huge momentum changing play when LB Jordan Evans picked off Roethlisberger at midfield and brought it back to the Green Bay 3. Packers defense stood firm and held the hosts to a short FG. 20-10.

Fired up by the huge defensive stand, Big Ben found a streaking Josh Gordon for a 66 yard TD. 27-10

On the next series S Rashad Jones picked off Darnold and took it 63 yards to the house. The lead had mushroomed to 34-10 and fans began streaming out of Ford Field.

Lions would score a couple of 4th quarter TD's but the deficit was just too great.

37-25 Final

Roethlisberger 18 of 24 308 yards 2 tds, 2ints
Gordon 6 for 169, 2TDs

Darnold 16-36 201 2TDs, 2ints
Sammy Watkins 5-80, TD
Fournette 8-13, 1.6 yard average

Green Bay (4-0) returns home to face a tough Chicago Bears squad(2-2)
Detroit (1-3) hosts AFC powerhouse Tennessee (3-1)

New England 17 New York (A) 35              56 0-5
The Jets hosted division rival New England on a beautiful night in New Jersey...

Jets fans were their rowdy selfs, and they weren’t too happy when Watson threw his first interception of the season on the opening drive of the game. The Pats took over on the Jet’s 27 yard line, and in 4 plays they made it 7-0 on a McCaffrey one yard run.

On their next possession Watson took care of the ball, and drove the Jets 75 yards on 8 plays, making it 7-7 on a 18 yard pass to Riddick. New England replied with a 14 play 80 yard drive. McCaffrey scored again on a 1 yard run, this time on 4th down. Coach Kolb sensed an offensive game, and wanted to get 7. Pats 14-7.

The Jets responded with another 75 yard drive capped off with a Watson to Thomas 13 yard pass, 14-14.

New England only had the ball for 5 plays, and the Jets had the ball back. On 2nd and 10 at their 24 yard line Watson hit Thomas on a short slant, a few missed tackles later Thomas was in the end zone...76 yard catch, and run...21-14, Jets.

The Pats ended the first half scoring with a 22 yard FG...Jets 21-17.

The only scoring in the 3rd quarter was medium hitch to Thomas that he turned into a 71 yard TD play...28-17 Jets.

With 10 minutes to go in the game Mack capped off a 52 yard drive with an 18 yard run making it 35-17 Jets.

The last 6 minutes ran off with both teams using their blowout lineups.

For the Jets...

Watson was 13-23 for 271 yards, 4 TD, 1 interception
Thomas 8 receptions for 227 yards and 4 TDs

For the Pats:

Tannehill was 7-13 for 102 yards
Jackson was 7-12 for 98 yards

McCaffrey 15 carries for 46 yards, 2 TDs
Sutton 3 receptions for 79 yards

Next week the Jets visit Buffalo, and New England hosts Miami.

Baltimore 21 Tennessee 30                   65 5-15
Tennessee's offense was rolling in the first half as they jetted out to a 24-7 lead by the 6 minute mark of the 2nd quarter. However Baker Mayfield lead the Ravens on a 75 yard drive near the end of the half that was finished off by a 14 yard TD pass to Will Fuller. Titans 24-14.

Baltimore then received the opening kickoff of the 3rd quarter and marched 68 yards to a TD. The score was now 24-21 Titans. Tennessee responded with a nice drive that stalled with a 4th and one at the Ravens 24. Coach Brunskill went conservative and opted for the 42 yard field goal and Dan Bailey rewarded him by shanking it. Both coaches questioned Brunskill's judgement.

Baltimore couldn't take advantage of the good field position and they went 3 and out. From his own 20 Matt Ryan orchestrated a 10 play 80 yard drive finished with his second TD pass to Deandre Hopkins. The point after was missed (Bailey!) and the score was 30-21 Titans.

Mayfield then completed 6 for 6 to move the Ravens down to the Titan one yard line with a third down half way through the 4th. Leveon Bell (a stat pac) then tried an outside run and was stoned for a 4 yard loss. Coach Master threw caution to the winds and gambled on a 4th and goal from the 5. Mayfield couldn't find an open receiver and tried to run it in but only gained two yards

The Titans took over on their 3 yard line but were stymied by an Aaron Donald sack on 3rd down and they had to punt from their end zone. The Ravens offense moved the ball down to the Titan 19 yard line and then Mike Daniels!! got his one sack for this season and also stripped the ball out to be recovered by Anwausor. This time the Titans effectively killed the clock.. Final Score 30-21 Tennessee.

Baltimore (1-3) hosts Jacksonville next week Tennessee (3-1) visits the Motor City.

Dallas 13 New York (N) 23                   73 0-10
After three straight away games to start their season (2-1), the G Men were extremely excited to come back home and play in front of their fans for three straight home games.

The first half of this game was a defensive battle as Dallas had five drives (FG,Punt,Punt,FG, End of half) and New York had four drives (FG,Missed FG, FG, FG). 9-6 Giants at half.

New York downs the opening kick off and the defensive battle continues as they go 3&out and punt away to Dallas' 29 yard line. The Cowboys get an offside penalty committed by Myles Garrett which starts a drive in which they move it all the way to the 50. On 2nd and 19 (after a holding penalty), Cam Newton gets picked off by Chris Harris and New York takes over on their 46 yard line. New York wanted to get their run game going and decided to give to Breida three straight times to take the Giants to 4th & Inches on the Cowboys 33 yard line. Coach Mays called a QB sneak with Wentz picking up the 1st and keeping the drive going and 2 plays later hit Breida on a screen pass to score the first touchdown of the game. 16-6 Giants with 4:36 left in the 3rd quarter.

The Cowboys down the ensuing kickoff and run three straight times with McCoy. Giants D holds strong bringing up a 4th & Inches on Dallas' own 35. Dallas opted for a QB sneak instead of punting and the Giants defense comes up with a HUGE stop stuffing Cam Newton. Six plays later, Wentz hits TE Nick Vannett for an 11 yard touchdown. 23-6 Giants with 14:54 left in the 4th quarter.

Dallas downs the kick and gain 15 yards before punting away to the Giants. Wentz leads a drive from their own 21 all the way to Dallas' 27 taking off close to 7 minutes off the clock before Santos misses his 2nd FG of the game giving the Cowboys the ball back at their own 27 with 5 minutes left on the clock. Cam Newton decides to get hot too little too late and hits six straight passes including a 7 yard touchdown to McCoy with 40 seconds on the clock. 23-13 Giants with :40 left in the game.

The Giants recover the onside kick and kneel on the ball to get win number 3 on the young season. Was a great defensive battle for most of the game.

Arizona 28 Miami 45                         70
Week 4 has the Cardinals visiting Miami. Arizona comes in with Big play, play makers Patrick Mahomes and Saquon Barkley looking for the upset and although they wouldn't quite get it done, they would not disappoint. Although Miami never trailed in the game, the game was tied 7 all early and twice Arizona cut the lead to 3, the last time with only 7:09 remaining in the game, but the Dolphins would get the TD on the ensuing drive with only 2:09 left to go up by 10, icing the game, the last TD was a gimme as the Cardinals turned it over on downs deep in their own territory. Arizona got 3 TD's from Mahomes while throwing for 306 yards and Barkley would account for 206 total yards and 2 TD's including a 75 yard TD Scamper in the 2nd quarter. Miami would counter with Jared Goff throwing for 291 yards and 3 TD's and AP adding another 111 yards and a TD on the ground. A very well played game from both Teams.
Next week Arizona travels to Dallas and Miami travels to New England

Atlanta 29 San Francisco 28                 73 15-25
In a game that will long be remembered by 49er fans, division rival Falcons met SF as a 4 point favorite.
Before the scoring summary, consider this. Your team just stopped a powerful running attack on 4th and 1 on your own 1 yard line. You hold a 5 point lead. The clock is stopped at 18 seconds left. It's in the bag right? What would you do? Dive with your best fumble free back? Kneel down and take a safety punting to the other team who has a great return man with a 3 point lead? Throw a long pass (or maybe 2 considering the seconds left?)
Well, SF took the first option. Peyton Barber had 1 fumble in over 270 touches (about 1/3 of 1 % chance happening. Well, the impossible happened. Peyton fumbled, Atlanta recovered and ran it in on the next play for a 29-28 victory.
How we got there. The first half watched powerful Atlanta attack run 75, 61 and 68 yards all for TDs. Coleman 1 yards run, Miller 2 yard run and Rivers to Agholer 19 yard pass. 1 XP missed. SF answered with Trubisky throwing into 2 man rush coverage almost all the time fashioning drives of 75 yards and 71 yards for TDs Howard scored on a 5 yard run and Trubisky-Diggs for 19 yards The 49ers a "mini" drive that resulted in a missed 42 yard FG by Crosby.?? A big miss.
Score at half time: Falcon 20, 49er 14.
Bother defenses tightened up in the 3rd qtr.. The only scoring opportunity came up after a Atlanta short punt resulted in a SF short drive where once again Crosby missed a 47 yard FG. Another huge miss.
The action picked up in the 4th qtr. After the only Rivers INT of the day which was deep in Atlanta territory, Trubiskey hit Reed for a 15 yards TD giving the 49ers a 21-20 lead. The Falcons then answered with a 65 yard drive resulting in a Forbath 23 yard FG. Atlanta 23, SF 21.?? Not over yet, SF answered with a 7 play 75 yard drive. To keep it alive on a 3 and 10, Trubisky unexpectedly took off on a 26 yard run. A couple of plays later, Trubisky hit Diggs again, this time for a 32 yard strike. SF leads 28-23! Crowd goes crazy!
Not over still. Atlanta with a little over 4 minutes left goes on a 61 yard drive lead by Rivers passing. With 43 second left they are on the SF 7 yard line . With 18 second left they have a 4 and 1 (goal line) and send Lamar Miller into the middle where he is stopped!???? Game over, right??? Go back and read the opening paragraphs to see what happened! The ending is now known in SF football lore are the "effin" fumble.
All credit goes to Atlanta coach Marty Golden who road this roller coaster with me and threw everything he had and got the win he really deserved. Star of the game for SF was Trubisky who was 19-29 for 209 yards, 3 TDs and ran for 33 yards to boot. He ended up with a 121.2 QBR. Philip Rivers 21-31, 273 yds, a TD and INT for a 91 QBR. Coleman ran for 97 yards for the Falcons and Diggs caught 8 passes for 123 and 2 TDs. Atlanta had 26 first downs and SF had 23. Over 700 yards were gained.

Washington 14 Philadelphia 24               73 0-5
The Skins and Eagles met for the final time this season as the schedule makers wanted early divisional games in 2019. In the first meeting, won by the Eagles 20-6, the Skins were hampered by 3 turnovers and a stout Eagle D. In the encore meeting, it would be a closer nip and tuck game, but still marred by turnovers and penalties from both teams.

The Eagles would get on the board first Eagle QB Jameis Winston orchestrating a 12 play 87-yard drive culminating with a 13 yard TD pass to TE Evan Engram. The Skins would come right back with Skins QB Dak Prescott connecting on a deep pass with WR Dante Petting to knot the game at 7. Winston would get right back to work and, with the help of several key penalties, take the Eagles on another long drive. This time it would be RB Brian Hill over the top from the 1. Eagles up 14-7. Prescott was not going to let the spotlight be taken from him by Winston on this day, so, of course, he leads the Skins down the field and throws another TD to Pettis. That would tie the score at 14 going into halftime.

The Eagles would take the opening 2nd half kickoff and, in short order, score. This time it was Winston to WR John Brown on a 55-yard connection that got the Eagles to the Redskin 1. This time its RB Kerryon Johnson over the top to make it 21-14 Eagles. At this point, it became a game of turnovers. After a Redskin punt, Eagle RB Bilal Powell would fumble on 1st down on their own 9-yard line giving the Skins a prime opportunity to tie the score. However, Prescott would try to sneak a pass to Pettis over the middle. What first seemed to be an incomplete pass ended up being challenged by Coach Mason. The coach's call was a good one as the pass was ruled an interception by CB Bashaun Breeland.

The game would go back and forth until midway into the 4th quarter. After a Redskin fumble at midfield, Winston would get the Eagles into FG range with a little more than 5 minutes remaining. K Harrison Butker would connect on a 41-yard kick that would extend the lead to 24-14. That was as close as the Redskins would get and the Eagles would hold on and remain undefeated on the season.

This was a true team effort by the Eagles on offense and defense. Next up for the Eagles is a date with the NY "football" Giants who are only 1 game behind in the NFC East. The Redskins will try to rebound against the Colts.

Carolina 31 New Orleans 42                  70
Joe Flacco throws five touchdown passes as Saints pick up their first win of the season.

Pittsburgh 3 Jacksonville 30                77 0-5   Rain
   Costly Pittsburgh turnovers (6) spoiled a valiant defensive effort as the Jags down the Steelers 30-3. Pittsburgh's defence played well enough for the win by only surrendering 134 total yards but it was the Jags D that continuously shut down Tom Brady and company that won the day.

Next week the Jags are in Baltimore and the Steelers travel to Cinci.
Los Angeles (N) 20 Denver 13                66 0-5
It was a great game until Bortles started to give away the ball.
Who da thunk it!!!

Rams get the win 20-13 to stay undefeated while the Broncos drop to 2-2.

Rushing Leaders
Mack,M(NYJ)     16-129 1 TD
Peterson,A(Mia) 25-111 1 TD
Elliott,E(Min) 18-103 1 TD

Receiving Leaders
Thomas,M(NYJ)    8-227 3 TD
Cooper,A(LAC)    7-185 3 TD
Gordon,J(GB)     6-169 2 TD
Jeffery(Cin)    10-151 2 TD
Shepard,S(NO)    5-116 3 TD
Smith-Schuster(Min) 10-109 1 TD – IFL Offensive Player of the Week
Ridley,C(Hou)   10- 62

Passing Leaders
Wilson,R(Car)   38-27-385   3 TD
Manning(LAC)    23-19-348   4 TD
Mayfield(Bal)   39-26-343   2 TD
Ryan,M(Ten)     37-25-316   4 TD
Roethlisbe(GB) 24-18-308   3 TD 2 Int
Mahomes(Ari)    42-23-306   3 TD 1 Int
Watson,D(NYJ)   23-13-271   4 TD 1 Int
Flacco(NO)      16-13-238   5 TD

Defensive Standouts
Autry(LAR)       3 Sk 5 Tk
Floyd,L(LAR)     2 Int 5 Tk – IFL Defensive Player of the Week

Special Teams
Smith,Tr(NO)   5-212 Kick Ret – IFL Special Teams Player of the Week

IFL WEEK 4 STANDINGS

IFL WEEK 4 LEAGUE LEADERS

IFL WEEK 3 RECAP

Andre Roberts racked up 178 punt return yards including an 83 yard return for a TD in the Titans week 3 win at Jacksonville.

Game Scores
Tennessee 33 Jacksonville 7                 97 5-15
The score was flattering. The Titans race out to a 30-0 halftime lead and never looked back. Lead by a defensive touchdown and another on a return it was basically a day off for the men in blue.

Titans
Ryan: 12 of 19 for 116, 2tds
Martin: 7 carries 80 yards, 1td
Roberts: 6PRs 178 yards, 1 td

Jags
Johnson: 25 carries 94 yards (garbage time)

Miami 34 Buffalo 10                         59 10-20
The Miami Dolphins come to Buffalo looking to go 3 and 0 and have little problem doing that as they dominate the Bills 34-10 as they took the gas off the pedal in the second half to coast to victory. Jared Goff threw 3 TD's in a 14-19 showing and a 147.4 rating with Edelman and Cooks each catching five passes with Edelman catching 2 TD passes. For the Bills Adam Humphries caught ten balls and Vander Esch returned a fumble 51 yards for a TD. Miami will host Arizona next week while the Bills will visit the Colts.

Philadelphia 34 Arizona 28                  95 Calm
Mahomes to Earth, I have landed! And land he did, hard lessons learned. Like all young quarterbacks, Mahomes needs to learn not to force the ball to tightly covered receivers. Arizona was defeated by the Eagles in a classic brawl Sunday afternoon. Too often Mahomes' tried to throw the laser perfect pass to well covered receivers and paid the price for it with two Eagle interceptions. One of the interceptions would be returned for an Eagle touchdown and ultimately was the difference in the game.

Nevertheless it was a game which kept Zona fans in the stadium until the last play. Time and time again, the Eagles would score and widen the gap only to watch Mahomes and Barkley answer to keep the pressure on. While the Eagles would roll up 388 yards on the day, the Cardinals would put up 437 yards in a losing effort. If only the Cardinals had a defense!

The Eagles played hard nosed football and were patient enough to run the ball for large rewards. Winston was brilliant on the day finishing with a 109 QB rating. However, perhaps the biggest negative for Arizona was playing without star left tackle Terron Armstead. Mahomes would be under pressure all game absorbing 5 sacks. In the end, the negative plays and interceptions were just too much to overcome as the Eagles prevailed 34 to 28. Arizona travels to Miami next week where Mahomes will attempt to again soar like an Eagle, no pun intended to Philadelphia!

New Orleans 24 Los Angeles (N) 31           82 Calm
Rams and Saints renewed their division rivalry for the 2019 season in Los Angeles. Both teams were involved in nail-biters the previous week, which begged the question how would these teams respond. The Saints endured a heart breaking loss to Green Bay, while the Rams escaped Minnesota with a close win. Saints fans' eyes were on the body language of Saints Kicker Brandon McManus, who missed two critical kicks in the Green Bay game. After today's game it's clear McManus is still working out the kinks.

The Rams got out to a fast starting posting 14 points at the midway point of the second quarter. The Rams again had the ball, looked to make it a three score game. But the Rams were relatively deep in their own end. A Questionable deep ball play call back fired on the Rams as Luck tried to check it down and it was intercepted by Saints safety Curtis Riley. Riley ran it in for a score. This play charged up the Saints and the game became a dog-fight. The Rams answered with a field goal, 17-7 Rams. One of the key plays of the game happened on the ensuing Saints drive. Saints QB Joe Flacco and Coach Rice ran a perfect 2 minute drill, moving the ball into field goal range. McManus nervously took the field to attempt the 43 yarder. It was not to be, he shanked it. That would be demoralizing for most teams, but the Saints hung in.

2nd half, the Saints moved the ball nearly the length of the field, but settle for a field goal. This time McManus was true, 17-10 Rams. The game turned into a see-saw affair, the Rams answered, Rams QB Andrew Luck led a quick drive that ended with a 6 yard pass to Trey Burton for a TD, 24-10 Rams. Flacco, with an answer of his own, hit Cole Beasley with an 18 yard strike, 24-17 Rams. The Rams stumbled on their next possession. Saints got the ball back. Momentum seemed to be shifting. Saints with the ball on their 25 yard line on 2nd down, when the game deciding play happened. Flacco ran play action and looked deep, but Rams DE Trey Flowers stripped Flacco. The ball was picked up by Rams DT Denico Autry who ran it in for a defensive touchdown, 31-17 Rams. The Saints eventually added another touchdown with 1:43 left in the game. They failed to recover the onside kick which essentially ended the game.

Rams Stars:
Andrew Luck 246 yards 3 Touchdowns 1 Int
TY Hilton 7 Catches 108 yards

Saints Stars:
James Conner 149 All purpose yards
Joe Flacco 266 yards 2 Touchdowns 1 Int

Next week the Saints look to get revenge on their week 1 opponent, Carolina, in the bayou, while the Rams will head to the thin air of Denver.

Pittsburgh 14 Tampa Bay 27                  78 0-10
The Steelers travel to Tampa Bay seeking their first win of the year versus the 2 - 0 Bucs. This one was all Buccaneers as they lead 24 - 0 at halftime and 27 - 0 into the fourth quarter. Two late Pittsburgh touchdowns make the score somewhat respectable at the end. Tampa adds a third win with a 27 - 14 final.

Next week Pittsburgh tries again at Jacksonville while Tampa Bay goes on the road for the first time to visit Chicago.

Detroit 21 Chicago 26                       83 0-10 Rain
Detroit (1-1) visited Chicago (0-2) in a divisional matchup, the Bears favored by 1. After an exchange of punts, the Bears stopped the Lions on 4th and one from the Chicago 38. Chicago scored first on a Mariota 3 yard scramble, but Detroit followed with a drive of its own to tie the game, Darnold a 14 yard pass to Watkins. 7-7 after 1.

Chicago added a field goal in the 2nd quarter, but the Lions answered again going 75 yards in 3 plays. Fournette ran it in from 19 yards out. The Bears put together a 13 play drive of their own, but Mariota throws an interception in the end zone and the half ends Detroit 14 Chicago 10.

The 3rd period belonged to the Bears – two field goals followed by a Mariota 18 yard TD pass to Cook. Detroit 14 Chicago 23 after 3.

After another late field goal by the Bears in the 4th, the Lions drove quickly down the field to make it a one score game, Darnold 45 yards to Watkins. After forcing a 3 and out, Detroit had the ball with 1:19 left but no timeouts. The comeback failed to materialize.

Darnold 16/31, 244, 2 TD; Mariota 23/36, 336, TD, INT

Oakland 30 Los Angeles (A) 13               97 Calm Rain
     Raiders pull out a 30-13 win that was much closer than it looked. The Raiders' defense forces and recovers two fumbles in the second half that flipped the field and led to two scores that fueled the 17-point victory.

Carolina 27 San Francisco 17                66 5-15
After the Panthers opened with a 74 yard drive that ended with a FG by Lambo, The 49ers dominated for the rest the first half. Mitch Trubiskey passed to Tyler Boyd 12 yards and later plunged in from 1 yard out. The next 4 possessions for the Panthers ended in 45 yards total and at half time the score was SF 14, Carolina 3.

Different teams came out in the second half. Carolina TOTALLY dominated with sustained BACK TO BACK drives 91, 74, and 84 yards. Finishing the drives were Russell Wilson passes of 5 yards to Amendola and 11 yards to Evans. Drake had a 28 yard run for a score. Meanwhile, 49ers only had possession only 3 times in the entire half initially resulting in a FG but then stoned cold.

Carolina rolled up over 360 yards in the 2nd half. Russell Wilson, ice cold in the 1st half finished with 15-28, 189 yards, 2 TDs and no INTs. Henry rushed to 101 yards but Carolina team total running was 223 yards for a 7.0 average.

49ers Mitch Trubiskey who did not have a bad day was 20-33 for 190 yards, 1 TD passing and 1 TD running with no interceptions. But if your defense can't get you the ball, you can't be all that effective.

Rarely does one play make a difference in the games outcome, but there was this one play. Sean coached a great game including when the score was tied 17-17 went for a 4th an 2 on his own 23! That play was blown dead as it resulted in a 5 yard Panther penalty. Not deterred, Sean went for it again on 4th and 7! Wilson then hit Drake for 11 yards and the drive continued for 8 minutes and 84 yards resulting in the game winning TD. Had the 4th down failed, Carolina does not score a TD and SF
gets at least a FG.

Green Bay 33 Minnesota 27                   68
Same old, same old -- except this time with a lesson learned.
Trailing Minnesota by 20-7 with 8 seconds left in the 1st half, Green Bay, instead of kicking the safe field goal, gambled and went for a touchdown on their last play of the half from 18 yards out -- and got it! Ben Roethisberger to Josh Gordon, 18 yard pass, against a 3-1 pass defense -- a gutsy call, typical of Green Bay's swashbuckling coach John "Snake" Conners, who cut the halftime deficit was only one score, 20-14.
Just one play, but it summed up why Green Bay wins.
Why Minnesota keeps coming up short was shown by a play with two minutes in the game.
In the 2nd half, Green Bay mounted 4 long drives. One was a 95-yard drive that ended in a 4-yard TD run by Phillip Lindsay that put the Packers up 21-20. The drive looked to be stalled several times with third and longs, but time and again the Packers got the first down, passing, largely against a 3-1 pass defense by the Vikings that failed.
Fast forward to the end of the game: Minnesota, leading 27-24 with 2:19 to go in the game, had a 4th and 4 on GB's 43 yard line. Too long for a FG. Green Bay would have gone for it. But Minnesota, instead of going for it, and probably getting the first down and running out the clock for the win, played conservative and punted. The Vikes got only a net 21 yards out of the punt. Those 21 yards made it a little more difficult for Green Bay to get a game-winning touchdown. But it did not stop them from tying the game with 27 seconds left on a 44-yard field goal by Robbie Gould.
Moral: When you have a chance to win the game, go for it. Especially when your quarterback leads the league in passing rating and your running back was the NFL's leading rusher.
Going to overtime, 27-27.
You would think DKS would have a coin toss. But no, no coin toss, Green Bay was just given the ball. And, of course, they scored a touchdown to win the game, 33-27, without the Vikings even touching the ball.
Analyzing the game afterwards, the Minnesota coach discovered that the Vikings' vaunted 3-1 defense had been deployed 8 times, mostly in 3rd and long situations, and the Packers had completed 7 passes against it, averaging over 20 yards. That "defense" cost Minnesota the game.
Taking a closer look at the 3-1 defense, the coach also discovered that, while that defense had been effective last year, it figured to be a disaster this year: it featured the three worst pass defenders on the Viking roster. You'd think a coach would know that, but no, not this "coach".
The Vikes are 1-2, but easily could be 3-0 if the coach knew what he was doing. It would only take about one play per game to go differently for the Vikings to be undefeated. That is the "twist" of the lesson we learned this time. We FIRED the defensive coordinator -- no more 3-1 defense, dummy!!
Stat-wise, Drew Brees threw for 332 yards and 4 TDs for a 126.3 passing rating, and Roethlisberger had 412 yards, completing 33 of 50 passes, for 3 TDs and a 111.4 passing rating. For the Packers, Gordon had 141 yards and 2 TDs receiving, and Emmanuel Sanders had 128 yards, while JuJu Smith-Schuster had 120 yards and 3 TDs and Antonio Brown had 113 yards and 1 TD for the Vikings.
The Packers go to 3-0 and play at Detroit next week. The Vikes go to Cincinnati., another one of the IFL's best teams. Would the easier part of our schedule please show up soon?

Houston 21 Atlanta 24                       68
It was all the Falcons could do to win this one. Pete coached an excellent game and it took a 50 yard breakaway TD run by Raheem Mostert, a kickoff return for a TD by Jakeem Grant and a couple of big defensive stops at the end for the Falcons to win.

The Mostert TD gave the Falcons a 7-0 lead but the Texans countered with 2 TD passes by Kirk Cousins to Calvin Ridley and Chris Godwin to give the Texans the momentum and lead 14-7 going into halftime.

The Falcons Jakeem Grant opened the second half with the kick return for a TD to tie up the game 14-7. After trading punts, the Texans dominated the clock for the balance of the 3rd quarter. They went on a 17 play 93 yards drive ending in a Joe Mixon 1 yard TD run after controlling the ball for 10:19.

On the next drive, the Falcons' Tevin Coleman rushed 3 times for 38 yards leading to a 16 yard TD pass from Phillip Rivers to Nelson Agholor to tie the game at 21-21 with 12:08 left in the 4th.

The Texans went for it on 4th and 3 on their next drive but the Falcons doubled the intended target, Curtis Godwin, to force the turnover on downs.

Tied up at 21-21 with 9:23 left in the 4th, the Falcons drove the ball down to the Falcons 8 yard line before the drive stalled to force a Kai Forbath 26 yard chip shot FG to give the Falcons a 24-21 lead with 4:19 remaining in the game.

The Falcons pass rush blew up the next Texans drive with 2 big sacks for a total loss of 16 yards to force the Texans to punt on 4th and 20 from the Falcons 48 yard line.

The Texans used their 3 timeouts and the 2 minute warning to get the ball back with 1:03 left. The Falcons D came up big again with a Demonte Kazee interception, before the Texans could really threaten, with 0:33 left.

The Falcons kneel and run out the clock on a 24-21 home win to go to 2-1 while the Texans fall to 0-3.

New York (N) 23 Washington 19               64 0-10
The Redskins would host the hated Giants this week and the crowd was downright hostile…. As the Giants players entered the stadium to chants of “CHEATERS” The Redskins looked to rebound from a failed upset bid in Miami and take advantage of the offseason chaos of a NY team that is on its 3rd coach in approximately 3 months. In the first half the Skins D would give the fans what they wanted to see.. a dominating performance that saw the G-Men throw up a goose egg while Prescott was efficient leading the Redskins to a 9-0 1st half lead.

To start the second half the Redskins put together a promising drive when Prescott was forced from the field for a few plays and they were forced to put. The Giants ace return man Cannon would breath life into the team taking the punt 66 yards and giving the G-men great filed position. Breida would punch it to make it a 9-7 game. Washington would respond with a grueling 16 play drive that would result in a FG. Unfortunately on that drive the Redskins would lose their star rb Aaron Jones to a knee injury. The following drive the Defense would do their part when Eric Reid would pick 6 Wentz and put the skins up 19-7. The spark would be provided by the IFL leper Matt Breida. Breida spent his offseason rumored in trade talks with just about every team in the IFL until finally finding a home with the 3rd owner of the Giants. Breida would provide the quick answer with 2 30+ yard carries with the second going for 6 and punt the Giants within striking distance.   With the earlier loss of Aaaron Jones the Redskins defense got stuck in neutral and would have to rely on their defense to win the game. However as strong as they had played all game they would fail when it mattered most.. on a 3rd and 10 from the 11 yard line with just under 2 minutes left Wentz would hit Golladay with a strike to give them a 20-19 lead. The kickoff would be fumbled by rookie Mike Hughes and the Giants would tack on another 3 points to make it a 23-19 lead. Prescott would do his best to mount a game winning drive but would run out of time…. For the second week in a row the Redskins upset falls short…

Washington will head to Philly for a week 1 rematch While the Giants will host the Cowboys.

New England 31 Dallas 7                     70
    Dallas fans smelled an upset during the first quarter after the Cowboys took the opening drive into Patriots territory before stall only to miss a 45-yard field goal. Our sprits remain optimistic when New England took over and we sacked Tannehill and then scored following a New England's punt.

The momentum and mood changed after that as Kevin led his team to a FG and then a score to take a 10-7 lead headed into the locker room.   Cam Newton's throws in the second half were all over the place and the Cowboys' sub-par running backs couldn't even run the ball against a 2-4 defense.
When the dust settled, New England remained undefeated with a 31-7 road win.

Lamar Jackson, who shared QB duties for the Pats with Tannehill, was named game MVP. Jackson, who had been scouted as run-first QB, completed 9 of 10 passes for 152 yards and two scores. He also scored with his legs in the contest. McCaffrey had a couple of long gains: 46 yards on an electrifying run and a 44-yard reception on a pass as his elusiveness was on display after the catch.


Cincinnati 34 Baltimore 14                  75 0-10
Since Baltimore joined the league in 2011, the Ravens have beaten the Bengals just once...in game 15 of Baltimore's failed attempt to make the 2019 playoffs. That's 1-15, but on a one game 1 win streak. Unfortunately (for the Ravens), things returned to "normal" and Cincinnati pretty much did whatever they wanted. The game, however, did it's best to keep things close, but in the end, even the Ravens and DKS couldn't beat Aaron Rodgers and the Bengals. Cincy prevailed 34-14.

The game started poorly for the Ravens...a holding penalty on the first play...3 yard run by Le'Veon Bell and two incomplete passes before punting. Feeling generous, Baltimore gave the Bengals a 5 yard head start with an encroachment penalty on the first Bengals' play. Rodgers took it from there completing passes of 15, 13, 13 and 18 yards - that last one was a TD to Devin Funchess. Cincinnati 7-0.

Baltimore got a first down on a Mayfield-to-Thielen connection on the first play of their second possession, but another yellow hankie set them back 5 yards before they could get another play off. Three plays later they were punting...again.

Rodgers again marched the Bengals downfield, this time completing passes of 8, 5, 17, 11, 15 and 10 before the drive stalled and Fairbairn booted a 30-yard FG. Cincinnati 10-0.

Mayfield connected with Adam Thielen for 11 and 9.9 yards, but the Ravens couldn't gain 12 inches in 2 plays and punted...again.

After a 17-yard completion to start the Bengals next drive, the DKS game engine intervened and decided this was a good time for Earl Thomas to step in front of a Rodgers pass for his first INT of the season. Three plays later, Mayfield hit DeAndre Carter in the endzone for a 16-yard TD. Cincinnati 10-7.

Rodgers went back to work, connecting for 23, 3, 16, 13 and 15...that last one was a TD to Everett, coming immediately after Baltimore lost an 85% challenge on a would-be INT. Cincinnati 17-7.

Three punts ensued and the Bengals ended up with the ball barely on their side of the 50 with just over a minute on the clock before half-time. A 9-yard gain put the ball on the Raven 43 with :39 ticks left. Again, the DKS game engine decided to keep things close. Rodgers completed a short, 3-yard check-down to Alshon Jeffrey, but in trying to gain a couple extra yards, the ball popped out and into the arms to S Eric Murray, who ran it 60 yards into the endzone for a Raven score. Cincinnati 17-14 at the half.

Baltimore's D held for a 3-and-out on Cincy's first possession, but Mayfield gave the ball back, throwing it to LB Trevathan. Rodgers made quick work of the opportunity, his second completion was a 18-yard TD to Eifert. Cincinnati 24-14.

Baltimore punted on their next possession and Cincinnati chewed up all the time in the 3rd Q. Fairbairn's 41-yard FG opened the final quarter. Cincinnati 27-14.

Down two scores in the 4th, Mayfield started slinging it like spaghetti in an Italian restaurant and the Bengal defense was eatin' it up. Three INTs later, the Bengals capped the scoring with a 1-yard Jones plunge. Don't think the Bengals were running up the score. What were they supposed to do after Mayfield gave it to them on the 1?

So, things return to normal and the Bengals blitz the Ravens 34-14.

Rodgers finished with 401 yards on 35 completions in 49 attempts. Three of the completions were TDs, all to different receivers.

Mayfield completed more passes to the Bengals than Rodgers threw TDs. =)

Cincinnati (2-1) hosts Minnesota (1-1) next week, while the Ravens (1-2) travel to Music City to take on Tennessee (1-1).

Indianapolis 25 New York (A) 32             76 0-10
After playing their first two games on the road, the Jets hosted the Colts in their home opener this past Friday night.

Things didn’t start well for the Jets...their first drive was a 3 and out. Then the Colts scored on their first possession...3-0 Colts. The two teams then each had a 3 and out before New York finally got their offense going. They went 84 yards in 10 plays with Watson going 7-7, and hitting Riddick for a 13 yard TD.

Another Colt 3 and out, and the Jets took 7 plays to get a FG to go up 10-3. On the next possession the Colts coughed it up, and a play later Watson hit Woods with a short slant that he turned into a 39 yard TD, 17-3.

The Colts hit a 39 yard FG cut it to 17-6.

Indianapolis scored twice in the 3rd quarter, and cut the lead to 17-15. With 17 seconds to go in the 3rd Watson hit Olawale with a 5 yard pass to go up 24-15.

The Colts then scored 10 straight points to take a 25-24 lead with 5:54 to go. Watson then drove the Jets 75 yards in 9 plays taking 3:32 off the clock, and finished the drive with a 5 yard TD run. The Jets went for two, and converted making it 32-25

Indianapolis had the ball with 2:22 to go, but no timeouts. They ran 6 plays, but only gained 19 yards, turning it over on downs. Jets win 32-25.

Watson was 19-21 for 252 yards and 3 TDs. He also ran for a TD.
Mack ran 17 times for 74 yards.
Thomas had 7 receptions for 109.

For the Colts:

Keenum was 20-35 for 266 yards.
Crowell was 17-109
Tate had 8 receptions for 139.

Next week the Jets host the Pats, and the Colts host the Bills.

  Denver 23 Kansas City 20                    81 0-5
The Broncos rush for 242 yards and for the 2nd week in a row KC loses in OT by identical scores.

Rushing Leaders
Breida(NYG)     16-135 2 TD
Crowell(Ind)    17-109 2 TD
Mixon(Hou)      20-107 1 TD
Barkley,S(Ari) 17-104
Hunt,K(Den)     23-102 1 TD
Henry,D(Car)    15-101

Receiving Leaders
Sanders,E(GB)   10-128
Smith-Schu(Min) 9-120 3 TD
Brown,A(Min)    10-113 1 TD
Moore,D(Oak)    11-108 3 TD
Kirk(Ari)        6-100 3 TD
Humphries(Buf) 10- 82
Brown,J(Phi)     4- 75 3 TD – IFL Offensive Player of the Week

Passing Leaders
Roethlisbe(GB) 50-33-412   3 TD
Rodgers,A(Cin) 49-35-401   3 TD 1 Int
Stafford(Oak)   48-35-372   3 TD
Mahomes(Ari)    47-27-349   4 TD 2 Int
Mariota(Chi)    36-23-336   1 TD 1 Int
Brees(Min)      42-30-332   4 TD

Defensive Standouts
Williams,L(NYG) 3 Sk 3 Tk – IFL Defensive Player of the Week

Special Teams
Rosas(Chi)     4-4 FG
Hauschka(Ind) 4-4 FG
Roberts,A(Ten) 6-178 Punt Ret 1 TD – IFL Special Team Player of the Week

IFL WEEK 3 STANDINGS

IFL WEEK 3 LEAGUE LEADERS

IFL WEEK 2 RECAP

Raider's Grady Jarrett three sacks earned him IFL Defensive honors in Oakland's week two win over the Bengals.

Game Scores

Cincinnati 24 Oakland 30                    62 0-10
Raiders dominated the first three quarters as Stafford threw two TD passes and led 24-0. Rodgers gets hot in the final quarter throwing two touchdown passes including one with seven seconds remaining to Jarius Wright to tie the score at 24. However, Oakland won the toss and marched down the field as Stafford hit Kamara for the game winner, 30-24.

Rodgers finished 23 of 41 for 302 yards and two TDs. Paul Richardson caught five passes for 105 yards and a score.

Stafford finished 25 of 41 for 247 yards and three TDs. Kelce caught 9 of his 18 targets for 91 yards and a TD.

Next week Cincinnati travels to Baltimore while Oakland visits the Chargers.

New York (N) 13 New England 27              66 5-15
With both teams coming off Week 1 victories, the Giants and the Patriots were looking to stack another in the W column to move their record to 2-0. For NY, this was the second of three consecutive road games to open the season, while New England hosts for the second consecutive week after defeating Buffalo in the opener.

After an ineffective drive to open the game by NE, Carson Wentz wasted little time against the Patriot defense. Matt Breida opened the drive with a 25 yard gallop out near midfield. A 21-yard completion to Golladay followed immediately after. An 8-yard completion to TE Fells and a 10 yard scramble by Wentz had NY inside the Patriot 5 yard line. Wentz capped the drive with a 3 yard TD to Robby Anderson and NY had the quick 7-0 lead.

Tannehill looked to answer back with a 15 yard completion to Courtland Sutton to open the NE drive. Neheim Hines converted on a 3rd and 5 with an 11 yard dash, and Lamar Jackson came on to hit Hines for a short 6 yard pass moments later. A Tannehill to Zay Jones resulted in a 21 yard gain. Two plays later, Tannehill hit Sutton for an 18 yard TD catch and the game was tied with 2 minutes left in the opening quarter. 7-7

After NY's next drive produced little yardage, Tannehill stayed red hot, hitting Greg Olsen for 22 yards to the NE 41 to end the quarter. An 8 yard completion to McCaffrey was followed by a second TD pass from Tannehill to Sutton, this one for 47 yards, and it was 14-7 NE early in Q2.

NY managed to gain a first down on their next drive but were still forced to punt back to NE. Richie James ran the punt back for 46 yards, and NE was in business again at the NY 38 yard line. The Patriots converted on a 4th and 3 (eschewing the long field goal) when Tannehill connected with McCaffrey for 11 yards. That ultimately allowed NE to move into more comfortable range and Jake Elliott hit a 40 yard FG into the wind - New England led 17-7 with 4:42 in the half.

A 17 yard D'Onta Foreman run followed by a 13 yard Wentz to Anderson pass led to a 45 yard Santos field goal. 17-10 Patriots headed to the half.

The 3rd quarter saw an exchange of punts before NY started putting a nice drive together. A Seals-Jones 9 yard reception was followed by another 15 yards by Breida over the next 3 plays. On 4th and 1 from the NE 47, NY handed to Breida who was stuffed, giving the ball back to NE. NE put together a 14 play 52 yard drive, eating over 7 minutes of game time. The key play of the drive was a Lamar Jackson to Greg Olsen completion for 21 yards on 4th and 5, bringing NE to the NY 13 yard line. Soon, McCaffrey was running the ball in from 1 yard out. 24-10 NE.

After a 3 and out, NE put together another 7+ minute drive, this one resulting in a field goal to make it 27-10 Patriots with 5 minutes to play. A Santos field goal cut the lead to 14, but that was as close as the Giants could get.

Carson Wentz completed 20 of 31 passes for relatively tame 172 yards and a TD. Breida rushed for 53 yards on 13 carries for the Jints. For New England, Courtland Sutton caught 3 balls for 80 yards, including 2 TDs. McCaffrey was held somewhat in check, totaling 97 yards from scrimmage on the day. The duo of Ryan Tannehill and Lamar Jackson combined for 16 completions on 21 attempts for a total of 210 yards passing.

Neither team turned the ball over on the day, and each team was assessed 7 penalties. New England converted all 3 of their 4th down attempts, which helped prolong 3 different scoring drives.

Next week NE travels to Dallas, while the Giants wind up their 3 game road trip at Washington.

Dallas 23 Buffalo 20                        57 15-25
With both teams looking for their first win of the season on a cool 57 degree day with winds gusting from 15-25 mph the Cowboys win the toss and elect to get the ball first. Both teams struggle on their opening drives and with 1:26 left in the first Cam Newton hits Willie Snead on a 17 yd. TD pass to give the Cowpokes a 7-0 lead after one.

Buffalo goes on a 11 play 75 yard drive culminating in Smith to Yeldon 10 yard pass to even the game at 7. Cam Newton comes right back on a 14 play 75 yard march ending in a 19 TD to Stills from Newton to make it 14-7. After a Alex Smith INT the Cowboys make the connection of Stills and Newton again and close out the half leading 21-7.

Buffalo takes the second half kick off and marches 75 yards on 10 plays resulting in a Smith to Valdes-Scantling of 11 yards to close the gap to 21-14. Ito Smith fumbles after losing 4 yards and Buffalo recovers at the Dallas 21 but does't gain a yard on offense as Gano drills a 39 yarder to make it 21-17 heading into the 4th.

The Bills defense which shut down Dallas in second half went on a 15 play 70 yard drive resulting in a Gano 24 yard FG to cut it to 21-20 with 10:30 left. With 5:43 left Gano hooks a 53 yard attempt and both offenses are inept the rest of the way as Smith is sacked for a safety with 45 seconds left and a Dallas 23-20 victory.

Buffalo out gains Dallas 367-229, Dallas commits no penalties which was key...Dallas will host undefeated New England next week while the Bills will host Super Bowl champs Miami.

Green Bay 37 New Orleans 31                 70
This might be just one of those year for the Saints as they drop their 2nd straight overtime game to a tough opponent. The Saints would start Nick Mullins and it would be a performance not to be remembered. The first quarter would start out with an exchange of FG's then Big Ben would connect with Josh Gordan on a 38 yard slant over the middle. 10-3 Pack. The Saints would get the ball back and Conners would plow in from 4 yards out after a 49 yard PI put the Saints in scoring position. The teams would exchange punts until Mullins would throw a pick at midfield. 4 plays later Big Ben would hit Breshad Perriman on a 31 yard long strike. 17-10 Packers. After an exchange of punts Green Bay would punt and Jo Jo Natson would take the punt 66 yards down to the Green Bay 6 yard line. Mullins would then hit Cole Beasley on a 3 yard crossing pattern to tie it up at 17-17 with 5 minutes left in the half. To much time for Ben. Big Ben would construct a 76 yard drive that finished with Big Ben's 3rd TD of the day on a 1 yard pass to Watson. 24-17 HT. The 3rd quarter would be very uneventful except for Mullins getting carted off the field after an abysmal 9 for 20 and 112 yards performance. End of the 3rd quarter 24-17. The beginning of the 4th the Saints were pinned at their own 6 and be forced to punt. Green Bay would take over at the Saints 49 and Big Ben would strike quick with his 4th TD on a bomb to Emanual Sanders. 31-17 Pack attack with 14:20 left in regulation. Right when you think the Saints are gonna throw in the towel Flacco would hit Shephard on a bomb into Packers territory and finish off the drive with a 6 yard toss to Mark Carrier. 31-24 Green Bay. Green Bay would go 3 and out and it was Flacco on the move again. He would put together almost a 5 minute drive together ending in a 15 yard strike to cole Beasley and we are all tied up at 31. The Packers would go 3 and out and punt to the Saints 35 with 4:33 left. It was all set up for a Saints comeback victory. Behind the rushing of James Conner, the Saints would take the ball the whole way down to the Pack attack's 24 yard line and McManus would come in with 3 seconds left for the 39 yard gamewinner and...……..he bricked it. OT 31-31. The Saints would get the ball in OT and Coach Rice was put in a critical situation as his daughter had to get to soccer practice, so he threw an abnormal number of long passes to end it right there. lol. The Saints did manage to get to the Packers 35 and McManus would miss again from 53. 2 plays later Big Ben would go deep again to Perriman for a 56 yard game winning TD for his 5th of the day. 37-31 Packers final. This was a very enjoyable game and competitive till the end. Big Ben was the MVP throwing for 302 yards and 5 TD's. This was even harder to swallow since I'm a Steelers fan. lol

Tennessee 42 Houston 30                     70
Two teams with sieve like defenses collided. The game was decided
in the second quarter when two Houston turnovers deep in their own zone led to 14 Titan points. Other than that teams traded scores for the better part of the game.

Jacksonville 23 Kansas City 20              81 5-15
Randy Bullock kicked a 48 yard FG as time expired in regulation, and then kicked a 47 yard FG as time expired in OT as Jacksonville rallied to defeat Kansas City 23-20.

Atlanta 39 Tampa Bay 41                     86 Calm
his matchup of two teams with playoff expectations did not disappoint.
David Rivers leads the Falcons to a touchdown on the opening drive. He was a perfect 5 for 5 including the 10-yard scoring pass to Zach Ertz. Kai Forbath missed the extra point. 6 – 0.
Cordarrell Patterson returns the ensuing kickoff for a touchdown for the second time in two weeks. 7- 6 Tampa.
Rivers misses on a couple of throws to start the next drive. Atlanta is forced to punt, however, the normally surehanded Tyler Lockett muffs it giving the ball back to the Falcons. Tevon Coleman carries the load thereafter running for 21 yards on two carries a catching a 7 yard TD pass from Rivers. 13 – 7 Atlanta.
Next the Buccaneers turn the ball over on downs and Rivers says thank you very much by completing six passes in a row, including a 6 yard scoring throw to Jalen Richard. After the failed two-point conversion score is 19-7 Atlanta.
Derek Carr is able to keep pace using 6 Todd Gurley rushes and completing 4 of 5 passes. Gurley’s dive from 4 yards out has the scoreboard showing 19 – 14 Atlanta.
Rivers once again moves his team in for a touchdown going 75 yards on 13 plays. The big play was Rivers checking off and finding Josh Doctson for 19 yards on a first and 25. The Falcons had scored a touchdown on each of their 4 possessions and now lead 26 – 14.
The teams traded field goals and headed to the locker room with the scoreboard showing 29 - 17.
The Bucs cut the lead to 5 with the opening possession of the second half. Gurley ran the ball five times mixed in with short Carr passes finishing with a five yarder to Davante Adams. 29 – 24 Falcons.
Next the Rivers and Company Air Show throttles down a bit. They tack on their second straight field-goal for a score of 32 – 24 Atlanta.
On the third play on the ensuing possession, DeSean Jackson catches an out pass and beats the defense down the sideline for a 63 yard quick strike. The game has tightened up to 32 – 31 Falcons.
The defenses figure things out for a while forcing two Atlanta and one Tampa Bay punt.
The Buccaneers take the lead for the first time with eight minutes left in the fourth quarter. Giving up on the run, Carr goes 6 for 6 on the drive finishing with a second scoring pass to Jackson. 38 – 32 Bucs.
The Falcons also go all pass and keep the ball for six minutes. At the two minute warning, they are faced with a 4th and 15 to go from the Tampa 33 yard line and needing a touchdown to take the lead. Tampa is in their Prevent and double teams Larry Fitzgerald and Zach Ertz to no avail. Rivers finds Fitzgerald on the long fly pattern for the go-ahead score 39 – 38 Atlanta.
The Falcons kick the ball away from Patterson, but Tyler Lockett scoops up the squib and returns it 38 yards to the Falcon 43 yard line with 1:34 left. The Bucs only move the ball 5 yards leading the Polish Rifle facing a 56 yarder hoping to put his team ahead with less than 30 seconds left. The talking heads give him a 50% shot at success. The kick is up and the play-by-play guy says, “Dead on. He smoked it!” 41 – 39 Tampa Bay. The Falcons could not muster another quick strike. Game over.
As usual, Marty called a great game. Things might have worked out differently had David Rivers not been given a rare QB fatigue rating in the fourth quarter.
Of course offensive players had some nice stats. They include hundred yard games for Ertz, Agholor and Jackson. Carr and Rivers both had QB ratings over 120. Rivers was 39 for 55 for 468 yards, notching his second 400 yard game to start the season.
Next week the Falcons look to take the tough loss out on the Texans in Atlanta. The Bucs go on the road to visit the Steelers.

Baltimore 7 Denver 34                       74 Calm
After the Broncos dropped their opener last week to Oakland there was some concern. In week two vs a very good Baltimore squad the Broncos showed they are still a team that can scare you as they defeated the Ravens 34-7.

It was a great game from Scott but things just didn't go his way in this one.

Carolina 30 Detroit 33                      70
Game saw Detroit slowly build a 27-7 lead with 3:31 left in the 3rd then saw the Panthers storm back behind Wilson and the real Carolina offense began moving the ball in chunks at a time. Air ground, didn't matter. & tie the game in the last seconds 30-30. OT saw Det win the toss go 3 & out then Carolina had 5 plays & a punt leading to the winning drive of 8 plays for 47 yards capped of with a 47 Lutz FG for the 33-30 for a Lions win.

From what I saw the home ref's helped, and combined with 4 Carolina turnovers were the difference. One of those being a pick SIX for 46 yards by Lions CB Trumaine Johnson.

Teams had 450+ yards each.

Big highlight for the Lions was seeing Fournette run for 134 yards & Darnold played good enough as a rookie not to lose this, but he sure did got cold for awhile, again..

Panthers Wilson threw for 397 & 3 TD's & a 106 rating, but had 2 ints & 2 sacks. Evans caught 134 yards worth for Wilson & Cobb shined with 3 catches for 98 yards.

All in all it was a heck of a great comeback but somehow Detroit pulled it out.

Next week both teams travel to divisional rivals SF & Chicago.

Pittsburgh 27 Los Angeles (A) 38            87 Calm
Steelers score 1st after an opening kick off fumble recovery Brady to Foster 7-0 Pittsburgh.Manning 27 yard TD ties things up midway through the 1st. Wilson 3 yard TD run caps the end of the 1st Quarter as the Chargers take a 14-7 lead into quarter number 2. After a Pittsburgh 3 and out rookie Punter Dickerson for the 2nd week in a row has his punt blocked and it leads to a Chubb 6 yard TD run 21-7. Teams trade FG and at the half its 24-10 for the home team.

Pittsburgh opening drive of the 3rd stalls after a 13 play almost 7 minute drive they settle for a FG 24-13. Later in the Quarter Manning to Cooper from 8 yards out makes it 31-13. Brady to Gronk 22 yard TD makes it 31-20 with 10 to play. LA takes the ball on there own 9 yard line on the next possession and grind the clock down to 1:42 with Chubb running it in from 8 yards out 38-20. Brady to Gronk one more time ends things 38-27.

Manning is 23-33 for 293 and 2 TD while Chubb runs for 2 TD and Jones has 106 yards receiving and a TD. For Pittsburgh Brady throws for 3 TD Gronk Catches 2 of them.

Steelers loss another guard this week it Pamphile for 13 weeks .

Pittsburgh travels to Tampa next week while LA host the Raiders

Indianapolis 20 Arizona 35                  84 Calm
Mahomes cut and pasted the Indy defense completing 20 passes in 29 attempts and throwing 3 TD passes. Oh, and he capped his passing off by rushing for two additional TDs. He was a fantasy wizard making all who drafted him king of the hill last Sunday. Zona would go on th win 35 to 20.

While Mahomes threw lasers to every receiver on the team, Barkley quietly kept the Indy defense on edge as he added 80 yards on the ground. When Barkely needed a breather, Duke Johnson stepped in to add 28 yards on only 3 carries. Indy could not keep up the the Zona weapons.

Zona's first drive of the field for a TD would be repeated 5 times on the day. Only once in those 5 drives did Mahomes misfire with an interception into the waiting hand of Smith Sr.

Indy would also have success against the Zona defense as they also were able to put points on the board. The biggest disappointment was when the on field communications system failed. The Indy QB did not realize it was 4th down and ran a play deep in his own territory. Had Keenum simply glanced to the sideline he would have seen all the coaches frantically waving towels in the air trying to stop him. There may be a grievance filed against Arizona arguing the communications system was purposefully sabotaged. It seemed to work fine for Mahomes.

Zona fans were delighted with a win, a rare thing given last years performance.

New York (A) 36 Philadelphia 40             79 5-15
The battle of the Green's turned into a donnybrook to open up Week 2 for both teams. Each was looking to build on their opening week success and, offensively, it was successful. Defensively? Let's just say both D coordinators have a week to lick their wounds and figure out how to stop someone, anyone!

The game itself was a seesaw affair with the Jets getting out to an early lead. Jets QB Deshaun Watson was on fire early as he hit his 2 deadly WR's, Michael Thomas and Robert Woods, for TD's on the Jets first 2 possessions. Eagles QB Nick Foles would get hot late in the 1st Q into the 2nd Q to begin to close the gap on the visiting Jets. However, on the first possession of the 2nd Q, Foles would go down to a serious shoulder injury that doctors fear will keep Foles out until mid-season. So, in comes backup QB, Jameis Winston. Coach Mason gives Winston a fiery speech and sends Winston out. He does not disappoint. Winston is able to lead the Eagles to a TD and FG just before halftime and the Eagles lead 23-21.

Winston continued to lead the Eagles in the 2nd half as they take the opening kickoff and open up a 30-21 lead. Not to be denied, Watson, mixing things up with Jet RB Marlon Mack, hits Thomas for another TD to close the gap to 30-28.

The Eagles would get a FG early in the 4th, but Watson and Mack would again move the ball through the Eagle defense like a hot knife through butter. A 7 yard Watson run would put the Jets up 36-33 after the 2 point conversion. Not to be denied on this day, Winston would take the Eagles on a time-consuming drive that would culminate with a 2 yard TD pass to WR Mohammed Sanu with less than a minute to play. However, the game was not over despite the Jets being out of time outs. The Jets moved against the porous Eagle defense inside the Eagle 30 by hitting sideline passes to get out of bounds. The Jets would have would get 2 shots at the end zone before rookie Eagle DE Sam Hubbard would sack Watson to end the game!

It was quite a day of offensive explosion! The stat of the game? There was a total of 1 punt and that was by the Jets. Next week, the division-leading Eagles ( Say what!?!?) take on division rival Arizona while the Jets attempt to recover against Indy. Great game by Coach Bob!

San Francisco 34 Chicago 31                 67 Calm
San Francisco (0-1) traveled to Chicago (0-1) in week 2 of the IFL season. Chicago, which had 4 turnovers in week 1, continued to have issues holding on to the ball, adding 3 more to their season total.
Trubisky opened the scoring with a TD pass to Boyd, then SF added to their lead on a Jones pick 6. SF 14 Chicago 0 after one.

Rojas got Chicago on the board with a FG, but Trubisky shredded the Bears defense hitting Boyd, then Diggs with TD passes. Mariota managed to find Thomas in the end zone with time running out in the half, but a quick drive added 3 more to the 49ers total. SF 31 Chicago 10.

The Chicago D came alive in the second half, holding San Francisco to 3 points. The offense also started to mesh and the Bears scored 7 in the 3rd and 14 in the 4th, but fell short in the end.

SF: Trubisky 21/35, 282, 3 TD. Boyd 7/126, 2 TD

CHI: 30/50, 366, 3 TD, 2 INT. Thomas 8/133, TD.

Washington 28 Miami 38                      70
Washington comes to Miami for a week 2 match up with upset minded Dak Prescott leading the way.

The Skins take the opening KO and march 75 yards on 8 plays and get the TD to go up 7-0. The Dolphins go 3 and out on their 1st possession. Washington musters 1 first down on their possession and gives it back to the Dolphins. Miami takes the ball and travels 82 yards in 11 plays and get the TD to notch the score at 7 with 4 seconds left in the 1st quarter.

On the opening drive of the 2nd quarter the Redskins get a couple of 1st downs but at the Miami 38 yard line fail to convert on a 4th and inches and the Dolphins get it back in good field position and go on a 10 play drive culminating in a 6 yd check down to Frisker for the TD and the Dolphins go up 14-7 with 6:41 left in the half. The Redskins get the ball and move it 95 yards highlighted by a 33 yard completion and finishing off with a 25 yard TD sweep by Prescott for the tying score with 1:46 left in the half. That's the way the half would end notched at 14 all.

Miami gets the ball to open the 2nd half moves it to the Redskins 41 but the drive stalls and the Dolphins pin the Skins at their own 4 yard line and on the 6th play of the drive Prescott finds Ebron on a Medium hitch and he goes 40 yards for the score and puts Washington up 21-14 with 8:41 to go in the 3rd. Miami needs just 3 plays (thanks to a 50 yard Goff to Peterson check down) to once again tie the score at 21 all. After an exchange of punts, Washington gets the ball at their 20 with 3:01 left in the 3rd. The Redskins need only 8 plays to move the 80 yards and get the TD with 8 seconds left in the 3rd to go up 28-21 on the Defending Champs and can smell the upset going into the 4th quarter.

Miami refuses to wilt and get the KO and travel 58 yards on 8 plays and go for the TD instead of the FG on a 4th and inches at the goal line and AP takes it into the end zone to notch the score at 28-28 with 11:38 left in the game. The Dolphin Defense shows up and holds the Redskins to a 3 and out and get the ball back. The Dolphins move 60 yards in 5 plays to take the lead back at 35-28 with 6:48 left in the game. Once again the Dolphins Defense stands tall and forces a 3 and out and gets the ball back at the Washington 44 yard line with 5:17 left in the game. Miami moves 25 yards to the Washington 19 yard line where Prater kicks the 37 yard FG to put the Dolphins up by 10 with 2:26 left in the game. Washington would turn the ball over on downs and Miami would run the clock out for the 10 point victory. GM Kris called an excellent game and with a couple of breaks could have left Miami with the Win, but not on this day. The Redskins stood tall amassing 398 yards of offense to the Dolphins 421, not a great defensive effort by either side.

Next week Washington gets the Giants at home and Miami travels to Buffalo for week 3.

Los Angeles 37 Minnesota 34                     68
The Rams were set to take on the Vikings in Minnesota's home opener. The fans were pumped to see the Vikes offense in person, an impressive collection of the two or three best players at their position: Brees, Elliott, Schuster-Smith and Antonio Brown. The other big news hanging over the game was the surprising announcement that Rams QB Andrew Luck intends to retire at the end of the season. The announcement has seemingly increased the pressure on the Rams to deliver this season after being picked to make a deep run in the playoffs and with no future QB prospects on the roster. It will be an interesting story to follow as the season unfolds.

Most analysts felt the game would come down to which team's defense could make a key stop, it might only take one or two to tip the balance. That ended up not being the case, the deciding factor was the team that had the ball last.

IFL fantasy football players were locked in to this game as both teams combined for over 900 yards of offense and only 4 punts; it was an impressive display of offensive efficiency. The teams went toe-toe for most of the game, neither could pull ahead more then a score. That led to fireworks in the 4th quarter; Rams led 27-20 when Brees hit Dontrelle Inman for a game tying Touchdown with 10 minutes left in the game. Brees 3rd TD pass to that point.

After a rare exchange of punts Luck guided the Rams through a 15 play drive, capped by a check down TD pass to Chris Carson, 34-27 Rams. The Rams drive was so long only 1 minute remained in the game. That was more then enough time for Brees. First play for the Vikes after the kickoff, Brees bomb to Brown, 36 yards! Vikes were in business at midfield. Brees in hurry up mode, second play of the drive, bomb to Brown, Touchdown 44 yards! Game was tied,fans were going crazy. Only 25 seconds remained, but the Rams had all of their timeouts. First play a 17 yard strike to Cohen, he scampered out of bounds, clock stopped, 17 seconds remained. Next play a no gain check down, Rams called timeout, 14 seconds left. Third play Luck with 4 wide receivers found seldom used David Moore for 21 yards, 6 seconds remained. Rams called timeout, a debate ensued on the sideline, could they run one more play? Should they just give the field goal a shot? The ball sat at the Vikes 38, meaning it would take a 55 yard kick. Rams kicker Ryan Succop said he had a about a fifty-fifty shot to make it. Rams decided to roll the dice, ran Succop out there and pay-dirt, 37-34 game ending field goal. Rams moved to 2-0 and Vikes fell to 1-1

Vikings Stars:
Drew Brees 22-28 387 yards 4 TDs (158.3 passer rating)
Antonio Brown 142 yards 3 TDs

Rams Stars:
Chris Carson 22 carries 156 yards Rushing 1 Rsh Td 1 Rec TD
Ryan Succop 3 FGs, 55 yard GW

Next week the Rams host the 0-2, but always dangerous Saints, while the Vikings host division rival 2-0 Green Bay.


Rushing Leaders
Jones,A(Was)    19-144 1 TD
Fournette(Det) 21-134
Conner(NO)      27-131 1 TD
Mixon(Hou)      27-115
Peterson,A(Mia) 18-114 1 TD

Receiving Leaders
Thomas,M(NYJ)   10-157 2 TD
Ridley,C(Hou)   10- 75 1 TD

Passing Leaders
Rivers,P(Atl)   55-39-468   4 TD
Wilson,R(Car) 35-22-397   3 TD 2 Int
Dalton(KC)      53-31-394   1 TD 2 Int
Mariota(Chi)    50-30-366   3 TD 2 Int
Watson,D(NYJ)   31-24-340   4 TD
Carr,D(TB)      35-24-316   3 TD
Roethlisbe(GB) 33-20-302   5 TD – IFL Offensive Player of the Week
Rodgers,A(Cin) 41-23-302   2 TD
Cousins(Hou)    52-34-297   4 TD 2 Int

Defensive Standouts
Norman(Ten)      1 Int 15 Tk
Jarrett(Oak)     3 Sk 4 Tk – IFL Defensive Player of the Week
Lee,E(KC)        15 Tk

Special Teams
Ervin(KC)      6-126 Punt Ret 1 TD
King II(Den)   5-121 Punt Ret 1 TD – IFL Special Team Player of the Week
Lutz(Det)      4-4 FG
Butker(Phi)    4-4 FG

WEEK TWO IFL STANDINGS

WEEK TWO IFL LEAGUE LEADERS

IFL WEEK 1 RECAP

The Falcons Phillip RIvers throws six TD passes as Atlanta defeats San Francisco in a track meet.

Game Scores
San Francisco 42 Atlanta 56                 68
6,416 yards and 96 TDs...those are Rivers 16 game projected stats after a 56-42 Falcon win over the 49ers. Rivers was pretty much unstoppable with 401 yards, 6 TDs and no INTs. Larry Fitzgerald also had a big game with 6 catches for 108 yards and 2 TDs.

For the 49ers, Trubisky had a big statistical game with 282 yards passing and 4 TDs. He also had a big game rushing with 58 yards, a TD and 3 big first downs. Tyler Boyd was his most productive target with 102 yards and 3 TDs.

A nice start for the Falcons as they get the divisional win. Next week they travel to face the Bucs while the 49ers continue their road trip in Chicago.

Buffalo 9 New England 31                    61 15-25
Ryan Tannehill had a splendid debut for New England to kick off the 2019 IFL season, as the Patriots took care of the visiting Bills at Foxboro, 31-9.

Tannehill connected with Adam Shaheen for an 8 yard score on New England's first possession of the game to give New England a 7-0 lead. Buffalo answered with a 12 play, 71 yard drive culminating in a Gano field goal, and it was 7-3. Later on in quarter number two, Tannehill engineered an 8- play 55 yard drive highlighted by completions to Courtland Sutton for 19,14 and 13 yards. Tannehill hit Hayden Hurst for a 1 yard TD to cap the drive, and it was 14-3 NE at the half.

An exchange of field goals made it 17-6, but late in the 3rd quarter, Tannehill hit Zay Jones for a 19 yard TD strike, and NE led 24-6.

A Christian McCaffrey 4 yard TD made it 31-6. Graham Gano gave the Bills one of their few thrills of the game late, with a 61 yard field goal to end the scoring.

Tannehill finished 13 of 23 for 179 yards, 3 TDs and zero interceptions. For Buffalo, Alex Smith scuffled most of the afternoon, completing only 16 of 37 passes for 103 yards and 2 interceptions (both by Eli Apple)

Christian McCaffrey was rather quiet on the day, rushing for only 20 yards on 9 carries. CM did catch 6 balls for 78 yards though to help keep the chains moving. Rookie QB Lamar Jackson got some game action in as well, completing 7 of 11 passes for 58 yards, while rushing for another 45 yards on 10 carries.

Buffalo's Devonta Freeman rushed for 90 yards on 16 carries, before leaving the game with an apparent broken ankle.

Buffalo hosts Dallas next week, while New England will host the NY Giants.

Kansas City 37 Houston 30                   70
With Houston driving for the winning score, Richard Sherman scooped up a Chris Godwin fumble with 18 seconds left at the KC 30 with and rumbled 71 yards for the decisive touchdown as Kansas City defeated Houston.

Detroit 17 Green Bay 33                     63 0-10
Defending NFC Champion Packers opened up the season at home to division rival Detroit. The Lions came in with lots of buzz after a stellar 9-7 record last season and the addition of young phenom QB Sam Darnold in the draft.

The visitors came to play in this one. On the Packers second possession coach John Conners gambled and lost on 4th and 2 from the Detroit 48. Two plays later Darnold found a wide open Allen Robinson for a 43 yard score. 7-0 Lions

Green Bay responded with a 7 play, 75 yard drive. RB Jay Ajayi capped it off with a 5 yard TD scamper.
7-7.

After 3 straight punts, Detroit got the first big defensive play of the game when LB Eric Kendricks picked off Ben Roethlisberger at the Packers 34. Four plays later Darnold found much maligned RB Leonard Fournette with an 8 yard check down TD. 14-7 Leos

Pack punched back once again with another long drive (80 yards, 7 plays)
Big Ben found Josh Gordon from 22 yards out to knot things up at 14-14.

On the next possession the Lions drive stalled around midfield. Green Bay drove the ball downfield but settled for a Robbie Gould FG with just under 2 minutes left in the half. 17-14 Packers.

Lions had a quick 3 and out and gave the Green Bay offense one more chance before the break. Roethlisberger found AJ Green on a 21 yard out to move the ball just short of midfield with :59 seconds left and no timeouts. On the next play Gordon somehow got behind the defense for a 52 yard TD.
Packers had all the momentum, 24-14 at the half.

In the third quarter Darnold looked like a rookie. He was off on multiple throws (credited with 7 bad passes in the game) as the Lions offense bogged down mightily. Packers added a pair of FG's to take control 27-14 heading into the 4th.

The teams exchanged FG's to start the final frame as the Lions still held out hope down 2 scores
33-17.

A late stop by the Packers defense on 4th and 1 from their own 2 sealed the deal.

33-17 was the final.

Steve's team played better than the score would indicate but 8 penalties and a dry spell between the 2nd and 3rd quarters spelled their demise.

Roethlisberger started slow but finished 19-39 for 335 yards, 2TD/1 int

RB Phillip Lindsay had a quietly efficient game 18 carries for 92 yards

WR Josh Gordon was solid- 3 catches for 90 yards and 2TDS

Darnold finished 24-52 for 311 yards and 2TD's

Fournette was held in check 14-49

Taylor Gabriel led the Lions WR's 6 rec 90 yards

Costly win for the Packers who lost 4 players to injury heading into New Orleans for week 2

Lions host Carolina next week

New York (N) 23 Dallas 17                   70
The Giants' Carson Wentz threw for 326 yards on 15/35 passing to lead the Giants to a narrow victory over the Cowboys in the season opener for both teams. Dallas had a chance for the win late in the game but Cam Newton threw an interception with 1:20 left in the game. Dallas was hurt by four injuries (which I expected).

Los Angeles (A) 10 Los Angeles (N) 30       70 Calm
Rams and Chargers met in a battle for Los Angeles at Memorial Coliseum to kick off their IFL seasons.

There were fireworks early as both teams exchanged turnovers on their first drives. Akiem Hicks with a strip sack of Rams QB Andrew Luck and Xavier Rhodes with an interception in the end-zone on an errant throw by Chargers QB Eli Manning.

Midway threw the 2nd quarter the Rams built a 16-0 lead behind the running of Chris Carson and a big Corey Davis run after catch. The Chargers answered with a deftly thrown ball by Manning to Julio Jones for a 63 yard touchdown. A decent kick return helped the Rams add another touchdown before the half, 23-7 Rams.

2nd half:

Quality defensive play and some yellow laundry kept both teams quiet in the third quarter. A timely jet sweep by Chargers WR Dede Westbrook for 39 yards would give their fans a glimmer of hope, but the Chargers only mustered a field goal, 23-10 Rams still led.

The Chargers hopes hinged on a key third down on the next Rams drive. The Rams took advantage of Chargers starting CB Michael Davis being out for the game on a 3rd and 5. Luck found Corey Davis, guarded by Davis' replacement, on a short slant that he took 63 yards to pay dirt, pushing the score 30-10 and putting the game out of reach.

Rams Stars:
Andrew Luck 21-27 329 yards 3 touchdowns
Corey Davis 6 catches 177 yards 1 touchdown

Chargers Stars:
Julio Jones 4 catches 109 yards 1 touchdown
Akiem Hicks 4 tackles 1 sack 1 FF

Next week:
The 1-0 Rams travel to face a scary Minnesota offense while the 0-1 Chargers look to rebound against the Tom Brady led Steelers.

Miami 23 Indianapolis 13                    69
Indianapolis, IND (IFL.com) – Colts no match for the defending Superbowl champ Miami Dolphins ground attack of Adrian Peterson (20-103 yards) and Mark Ingram (11-76 yards), which wore down the Colts defenses in the fourth quarter, and outscored 10-0 in the deciding period. The score was deadlocked 13 all entering the final quarter when Dolphins QB Jared Goff (30-20, 267 yards 2 TD) took Miami on a 10 play 67 yard drive which ended with a Prater 21-yard Field Goal, 16-13 Miami. Case Keenum (33-23, 216 yards 0 TD) and the Colts would go three (3) and out on the next possession. Following the 52-yard King punt, Goff would again take the Dolphins on another methodical time consuming drive (11-67 yards, time 6:52) that ended with Julian Edelman (5-51 yards 2 TD) catching a 13-yard TD, his second score of the game giving Miami a 10 point cushion with only 5:39 left to play.

The Colts would drive down to the Dolphins 16 yard-line, facing a fourth and one at the 2:00 warning when Head Coach Ken Griffith turns down the FG and makes the decision to go for the first. The Colts break the huddle, Keenum with a hard count, no movement on the D-line, Michael Crabtree (2-28 yard, 3 drops) goes in motion, last season leading receiver Keenan Allen doubled at the line, Keenum back to pass, short hitch caught by Crabtree, NO right through his hands, his 3rd drop of the game, game over.

When asked about the decision to go-for-it, Griffith says we didn’t feel we’ll get this close again under with less than one minute or so, I felt good about a 50-yard FG try for the tie if we got the ball back. “they had doubled Allen all day, so we went with the XZ 32 YX53 (S-Hitch) to Crabtree, It was a do or die play, and Crabtree dropped the F***ing rock again, it’s his entire fault, and not mine go talk to butter fingers, you better do it now he might not be here Monday.”

Cincinnati 35 Tennessee 28                  72 5-15
The Titans owned the first quarter with two long drives both culminating with Ryan to Beckham TD passes. It was 14-0 Tennessee after one. Then the field tilted the other way and the Bengals scored two unanswered TD's in the second quarter. Melvin Gordon scored the first on a 1 yard plunge. The second was a 2 play 52 yard drive where a 27 yard Aaron Rodgers pass to Gordon was followed by Rodgers scoring on a 25 yard scramble. Score tied 14-14 at the half.

Cincinnati opened the 3rd quarter with a 73 yard drive finished off with a 23 yard TD pass from Rodgers to Alshon Jeffery. Tennessee responded with a quick TD. The key play was a 27 yard Latavius Murray run with 15 yards tacked on due to a face mask penalty. The teams exchanged possessions and then the Bengals went 78 yards in 3 plays as Gordon turned a medium pass into a 51 yard gain. The Bengals were up 27-21 after three.

The first 10 minutes of the 4th quarter were a comedy of errors as Cinci missed a field goal, Matt Ryan threw an interception to Danny Trevathan and then the Titan's Blake Martinez strip sacked Rodgers and took the fumble to the Bengals 21 yard line. Tennessee moved the ball to the 2 yard line and Rashaad Penny took it into the endzone for the TD. The convert gave the Titans a 28-27 lead with 4 minutes to go. Then, surprise surprise Aaron Rodgers took over and lead the Bengals on a 11 play 75 yard game winning TD drive. A 12 yard pass to Jeffery gave the Bengals a 35-28 win.

Melvin Gordon was the stat leader for Cinci as he caught 10 passes for 151 yards. Rodgers and Ryan both were efficient at quarterback. The Bengals overcame 6 sacks by the Titans. Next week Cincinnati visits Oakland while Tennessee travels to play Houston.

Philadelphia 20 Washington 6                66 0-5
2 years ago Dak Prescott was playing in the Super Bowl on a stacked team as a rookie... now? He needs a program just to figure out who is on his own team.

In Philadelphia it wasn't long ago that Jameis Winston was the next big thing that was going to lead the Eagles to the promise land. Now? Maybe he ate too many "W's" instead of winning games. Maybe coach Mason is just looking to light a fire under him. Either way to start the 2019 season Eagles are decided to roll the dice and hope for some Foles magic.

Early on Foles would reward the Eagles faith in him out of the gate leading the Eagles to two FGs and a 6-0 lead. Meanwhile on other side of field Prescott was left running for his life. However in the early 2nd quarter Prescott would find a glimmer of hope. He would catch the Eagles playing a little too aggressive and hit new rookie speedster Dante Pettis for a 62 yard TD. After last years Blair Walsh fiasco the Redskins went out and signed Tavecchio with the hopes of improving the special teams. Early on it looks like those hopes are sorely misplaced as he would miss the extra point leaving the game tied at 6-6.

From there on out things would go downhill. While the Redskins defense was making the Eagles earn every yard they could not overcome the three offensive turnovers. A fumble by RB Deangelo Henderson would leave the eagles with a short field and Foles and company would punch it in for a 13-6 lead. From there on out it was a field position game. One Washington wasn't necessarily losing but they were still in striking distance.... but then on a 4th quarter punt by the Eagles was fumbled by return man Cyrus Jones on the 10 yard line giving the Eagles prime field position. Foles would throw a 10 yard TD which would essentially end any chance the Redskins had of a comeback.

Rookie Kerryon Johnson was named the game MVP with 9 carries for 63 yards and a TD. He also caught 3 passes for 38 yards.

Baltimore 28 Pittsburgh 24                  73 0-10
2 teams not expected to do much this year face off to open the season . Division rivals and fairly evenly matched.

Baltimore won the toss and deferred giving the Steelers the ball to open things up . Pittsburgh goes on an 11 play 70 yard drive culminating in Edwards (12-53) 13 yard TD Run. The teams trade possessions the rest of the quarter . After (1) 7-0 Steelers

Pittsburgh begins a drive on there own 41 after a 3 and out by the visitors. They march down the field in 7 plays Brady finds Foster (5-73) short and he beats a couple men to take it into the end zone for a 14-0 Steelers lead.

Baltimore answers on the next possession driving the ball 10 plays chewing up over 6 minutes and 75 yards Bell (18-33) scores from 8 yards out on a Draw play to cut the lead to 8 Bryant misses the point after to keep the score at 14-6 with 4:30 left in the 2nd. After Pittsburgh holds Baltimore to a 3 and out with only 1:14 left getting the ball on there 36 they decide to get greedy and they pay for it as the best player in the league Aaron Donald(3 Sacks 3 FF) took over and had 2 sacks (15 yds lost) in the series Baltimore used there timeouts for one last crack at it plus they get the ball back to start the second half. After just a 39 yard punt from Rookie Punter Dickson Carter returns it 35 yards and Baltimore is in business 1st and 10 from the Steelers 26 yard line. With only 38 seconds to go Baltimore prize rookie Baker Mayfield (20-32 2TD 1INT) waste little time on the second play connect with Thielen (5-82 1TD) from 11 yards out plus they add the 2 point conversion and we are tied at the half 14 a piece.

To start the 3rd Baltimore waste no time as they get a good return to the 35 yard line Baker hits 3 of 4 passes on the drive then Bell scores from 12 yards out on a sweep to give the Ravens there first lead of the season 21-14 12:19 left in the quarter. Then the next 3 minutes of game time we had the turnover portion of the program 1st Brady (18-39 206 1TD 1INT) is picked off by Murray (5 tkl 1 INT 1FF) Then Bell Fumbles for the Ravens 2 plays later and Suggs(2 tkl 1 Sack 1 Hurry) jumps on it. After a penalty on the Steelers (which was rare no penalties in the 1st half on either side) Brady completes a pass to Gronk who fumbles but Pitt recovers . Pittsburgh is forced to punt but on the very next play Mayfield is picked by fellow rookie 1st round pick of the Steelers Justin Reid (1tkl 1 INT) who returns it 32 yards to the 2. Anderson (10-50 1TD) 2 plays later Dives in and the score is tied at 21 with 9:04 to go. Still in the 3rd with 2;56 to play Rookie Punter Dickson's punt is blocked and Baltimore is again in business courtesy of Pittsburgh Special teams. Set up at the 23 Mayfield again waste little time with the change of possession hitting Carter (2-22 1TD) from 12 yards out on the 3rd play to take a 28-21 lead into the 4th.

With 6:40 to go a Pittsburgh drive stalls on the 24 . The old vet Vinatieri hits a 42 yard field goal to cut the lead to 28-24. Pittsburgh get the ball on there own 38 with 2:01 left and it feels like Brady time even with no time outs. He connect with Homes (2-36) and Foster plus a roughing the passer 15 yard penalty and the home team is in business 1st and 10 from the Ravens 19 with still 1:10 to go. Donald gets his 3rd sack a big one 8 yard loss and with time ticking Brady drops back one more time this time its a strip sack by Muhammad (3tkl, 1Sack, 1FF, 1Hurry) and recovered by Baltimore as there defense comes up huge for the division road win. Baltimore 28 Pittsburgh 24.

Donald was game MVP 7 Tackles 3 Sacks 2 Stuffs 1 Hurry 3 Forced Fumbles quite a day.

On the Injury front for Baltimore lost S Murray (Stinger) for 1 week

for Pittsburgh a much worse story both Starting Guards Teller(broken Angle) and Aboushi (torn pect) went down for 8 weeks and Frank Gore(foot) who left the game early is out 2 games and Starting CB Stroman is Questionable next week with rib issues.

Pittsburgh (0-1) Travels out west to take on the Chargers (0-1) While Baltimore(1-0) continues its road trip to Denver (0-0)

New York (A) 24 Arizona 17                  77 Calm
Arizona picks up right where they left off last year. The game started off promising with Zona stopping the Jets and moving down the field with ease to jump up 7 zip. The Jets however obviously did not want another high draft pick in 2020 so they immediately answered to tie the game. Mahomes said no problem and drove down the again to run the ball in himself and take the lead 14-7. However, the Jets were having none of it and it took all of two plays for the Green to tie it up.

That was about the end of the Arizona highlights for the game. To summarize briefly, Arizona would go on to miss 3 consecutive field goals plus numerous 3 down opportunities as no one could seem to catch the ball. Mahomes would finish the night with 27 completions on 46 attempts. On the other hand, the Green WR and RB rose to the occasion. Often with ever Arizona defensive back on the field, time and time again double teamed wide receivers would make big plays to move the chain. And keyed running backs would shed tacklers like water in the shower.

Next weeks another week. We will see if the Red Birds fly or crash.

Chicago 24 Tampa Bay 40                     83 0-10 Rain
Tampa Bay quarterback Derek Carr threw four touchdown passes, two to Tyler Lockett as the Bucs get by Chicago.

Jacksonville 30 Minnesota 35                68
The Jags' strategy in focusing on Elliott did stop him, holding him to only 41 yards rushing. However, pumped up by potato chips, Brees responded to the challenge by putting up a 147.8 passing rating in powering the Vikings offense to quick scores. The Vikes ran only about half the number of plays the Jaguars ran, but they were efficient. Brees completed 21 of 26 passes for 266 yards, helping the Vikes build a 35-17 lead early in the 4th quarter. Then the Jags scored a touchdown, recovered an onside kick, scored another touchdown, and recovered another onside kick, to make it a thrilling game down to the wire. With 1 second left, and needing 53 yards to win the game, the Jags failed on a Hail Mary pass, ending the contest with the Vikings holding on for a 35-30 victory.

The star of the game for Jacksonville was running back David Johnson, who rushed for 105 yards. In addition to Brees, standouts for the Vikings were JuJu Smith-Schuster and Antonio Brown, who combined to catch 11 of 12 passes thrown to them, for 100 and 80 yards, respectively, and one touchdown each. The defensive star for the Vikes was Darron Lee, who had 17 tackles and one interception that he took 33 yards for a touchdown.

In week 2, Jacksonville goes to Kansas City to face the 1-0 Chiefs while Minnesota hosts the 1-0 Los Angeles Rams.

New Orleans 24 Carolina 30                  91 0-10
Panthers score two fourth quarter TDs to send this one to overtime. Wilson’s nine yard pass to Amenola was the game winner.

Denver 14 Oakland 21                        69 0-10
The Raiders sneak out a 21-14 win over the Broncos thanks to Alvin Kamara's 93 rushing yards and one touchdown and Harrison Smith's interception return for a touchdown.

Rushing Leaders
Mixon(Hou)      20-188 1 TD
Conner(NO)      24-172 1 TD
Mack,M(NYJ)     20-171 1 TD
Carson,C(LAR)   18-127 1 TD
Henry,D(Car)    19-106 1 TD
Johnson,D(Jax) 27-105 1 TD
Peterson,A(Mia) 20-103

Receiving Leaders
Davis,C(LAR)     6-177 1 TD
Landry,J(KC)     7-152 1 TD
Gordon III(Cin) 10-151
Boyd(SF)         6-102 3 TD
Diggs,S(SF)     10- 79
Johnson Jr(Ari) 10- 71

Passing Leaders
Rivers,P(Atl)   36-27-401   6 TD – IFL Offensive Player of the Week
Rodgers,A(Cin) 43-28-369   2 TD
Dalton(KC)      36-24-345   1 TD
Roethlisbe(GB) 39-19-335   2 TD 1 Int
Wentz(NYG)      35-25-326   1 TD
Darnold(Det)    52-24-311   2 TD
Wilson,R(Car)   43-30-310   3 TD 1 Int
Luck(LAR)       27-21-309   3 TD
Carr,D(TB)      33-22-307   4 TD
Cousins(Hou)    35-23-304   2 TD 1 Int
Trubisky(SF)    38-23-282   4 TD 1 Int

Defensive Standouts
Donald(Bal)      3 Sk 7 Tk – IFL Defensive Player of the Week
Lee,D(Min)       1 Int 17 Tk
Woodyard(Car)    1 Sk 22 Tk

Special Teams
Wilson,B(SF)   8-227 Kick Ret
Gould(GB)      4-4 FG – IFL Special Team Player of the Week

WEEK ONE IFL STANDINGS

WEEK ONE IFL LEAGUE LEADERS

2019 IFL PREVIEW

Dolphins hope to repeat

Coming off a perfect season, Miami coach Tony Cox did not spend much time celebrating. The Dolphins added (8) rated defensive tackle Geno Atkins, (7) rated defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh and (7) rated inside linebacker Alec Ogletree to boast the defense while adding veteran wide receiver Jordy Nelson and (7) rated guard Ramon Foster to the offense. Miami returns quarterback Jared Goff, a reinvigorated Adrian Peterson and Mark Ingram in the backfield, and receivers Brandin Cooks, Julian Edelman, and Goff's favorite target last season Doug Baldwin. The Dolphins look loaded and are the prohibited favorites to win the AFC East. Indianapolis has a good shot at a Wild Card berth.

Cincinnati and Tennessee look to be the best bets coming out of the AFC Central with Jacksonville in the picture. Oakland looks to be the favorite in the AFC West but you can never count out Denver and Kansas City.

Over in the NFC East, Arizona could challenge Philadelphia for the division title. The Cardinals have been slowly building, adding Patrick Mahomes a year ago and all-everything Running Back Saquon Barkley this past draft. The upstart Giants are also in the picture.

In the Central, I like Tampa Bay's roster but somehow, some way the Packers make the most with less. And Green Bay added Phillip Lindsay to the backfield. The Lions are another team that could make some noise as well as Chicago.

The Rams look to be the favorite in the NFC West and are my pick to challenge Miami in the Super Bowl. Looking over the Los Angeles roster there aren't many weaknesses. Andrew Luck has an array of targets and Chris Carson can pound the rock. Tarik Cohen is a nice compliment out of the backfield. This team reminds me of Miami's undefeated Super Bowl team last year. The Saints, Falcons, Panthers, and 49ers all look to be in the Wild Card hunt.

It looks to be another fun season in the IFL for 2019.

RAVENS HOPE BAKER CAN COOK

The Baltimore Ravens traded a package that included defensive stars Joey Bosa and Leonard Williams for the opportunity to select what they hope is a franchise quarterback in Baker Mayfield with the first overall selection of the 2019 IFL draft. Detroit, who also traded up, selected another potential franchise quarterback in Sam Darnold with the number two overall pick. The Cardinals then used their third overall pick to draft running back Saquon Barkley. San Francisco took the first defensive player off the board by selecting linebacker Darius Leonard with the number four overall selection. The Jaguars finished off the top five by selecting another quarterback in Josh Allen.

Daniel Jeremiah's 2019 IFL Mock Draft

Daniel Jeremiah is an analyst for the NFL Network, and a writer with NFL.com. He also serves as a color commentator for Los Angeles Chargers games on KFI radio. Jeremiah was a starting quarterback at Northeastern Louisiana in 1997 and Appalachian State from 1998 to 2000. Wikipedia

It's quite the privilege to share my analysis on the 2019 IFL Draft and to follow in the footsteps of some of the greats like Mel Kiper Jr., Todd McShay, and Mike Mayock. This should be an exciting draft.

1. RAVENS - Baltimore went out and did what they have needed to do for a few years, trade up to draft a franchise    quarterback. Of course that franchise quarterback will be Baker Mayfield.

2. LIONS - Another franchise that finally bit the bullet and traded up to draft their potential quarterback. Their decision isn't as easy as Baltimore's. I think Sam Darnold is the odd's on favorite but Josh Allen is rising.

3. CARDINALS - There are "leaks" from the Arizona draft room that some front office officials are dismayed with CEO Jim    Heaton's insistence that the Cardinals select guard Quenton Nelson. Nelson is a great prospect but I think    this is another one of Heaton's smoke screens. No one takes a guard third overall when they have an    opportunity to take a complete running back like Saquon Barkley.

4. 49ERS - I think San Francisco will focus on the defensive side of the ball with this pick and there are a couple players I really like. Derwin James looks to be an all-world safety and the 49ers need another quality defensive back. On the other hand Darius Leonard would be a very nice book-end to Clowney. I'll go with James but you can't go wrong with either pick.

5. JAGUARS - Another team that has been looking for a quarterback. I like Josh Allen here with some consideration for    Lamar Jackson.

6. PATRIOTS - After two straight IFL Championships, New England struggled last season. My sources indicate the Patriots    aren't sold on taking Jackson sixth overall even though they could use some youth in the QB room. The    Patriots usually take the highest player on the board and from my board that is Quenton Nelson.

7. BEARS - Chicago will give some thought to upgrading their receiving corps with maybe Calvin Ridley but I think linebacker Darius Leonard fits like a glove. It would be "Monster's of the Midway" all over again with Leonard joining Kerrigan and Wagner.

8. CHARGERS - I think the Chargers will debate the merit of taking one of the Chubbs but Denzel Ward would significantly    upgrade the secondary.

10. TEXANS - Houston needs help on the offensive line and tackle Mike McGlinchey should be there. However, they need to    find more weapons for Cousins so let's go with the top receiver on my board Calvin Ridley here.

11. REDSKINS - With the first of three first round picks Washington will take the best pass rusher in the draft Bradley Chubb.

12. BILLS - Buffalo's linebacking group looks like a ghost town. Leighton Vander Esch will help rectify that.

13. RAMS - The Rams could go in a couple different directions but I think Mike McGlinchey offers the biggest upgrade.

14. PATRIOTS - With their second of two first round picks New England could go linebacker here but I think now is a good time to gamble on Lamar Jackson.

15. CHIEFS - For years the Chiefs have used LeGarrette Blount as a battering ram against opposing IFL defenses. With    Blount starting to slow down I could see Kansas City investing in a new weapon, running back Nick Chubb.

16. REDSKINS - I think Washington goes the hometown route and zeros in on versatile defensive back Minkah Fitzpatrick with their second of three first round picks.

17. BILLS - I was just notified by my producer that Buffalo also owns three first round selections in this draft. My apologies    to the fine folks in Buffalo for my oversight. Anyway, with their second of THREE first round picks the Bills will    gamble on wayward signal caller Josh Rosen here.

18. STEELERS - The Sam Alberry era begins in Pittsburgh. Left with little in the cupboard, receiver D.J. Moore fills a need    and gives Brady someone to throw to besides Gronk.

19. COWBOYS - Dallas fills a need and gets a heck of a football player at this point in the draft in linebacker Roquan Smith.

20. TITANS - Lots of options available here for Tennessee. They could go with one of the promising young running backs,    linebacker Tremaine Edmunds, or cornerback Jaire Alexander. I lean toward Alexander here.

21. FALCONS - I could see Atlanta trading down from this spot. They really have no need for Edmunds or a running back    otherwise I could see the Falcons having interest in Marcus Davenport here.

22. JAGUARS - The Tremaine Edmunds fall stops here. A nice pick-up for the Jags with their second of three first round selections.

23. RAIDERS - Oakland could use another receiver and Courtland Sutton should be there for the taking.

24. EAGLES - The Eagles have a need at running back and any of the three of Lindsay, Michel, or Kerryon Johnson would    fill the bill. For the sake of dropping a name let's go with Phillip Lindsay.

25. REDSKINS - Washington could use a guard and after Nelson, Will Hernandez is the best on the board.

26. BENGALS - Cincinnati is another team that could go in a lot of different directions. One of the remaining running backs or receiver Christian Kirk would fill needs on the offensive end. But if hometown safety Jesse Bates is available I think that is the direction the Bengals will go.

27. JAGUARS - Jacksonville wrap up a very productive first round with the selection of receiver Christian Kirk.

28. BRONCOS - Sony Michel is a nice value pick here for Denver and will help ease losing Kareem Hunt for half a season.

29. PACKERS - Green Bay is another club happy to boast their rushing attack with the additions of Kerryon Johnson.

30. BILLS - Buffalo finishes off the first round with the selection of defensive lineman Da'Ron Payne.

IFL SUPER BOWL XVIII

MIAMI 26 GREEN BAY 23

Miami's Jared Goff rallies the Dolphins with two fourth quarter touchdown passes.

The Packers and the Dolphins meet at the Superdome to finish the 2018 IFL season. The Dolphins hoping to finish a storybook season and going undefeated and capturing the Crown and the Packers looking to finish their unexpected ( at least by some, certainly not by the Packers) post season run and win the Championship. Both Teams would enter the game healthy which is somewhat of a rarity this time of year, and although the point spread was double digits, the match ups looked pretty even for both sides of the ball for each Team. Both Teams were looking for an exciting game and this one would not disappoint.

The Dolphins would win the toss and defer to the 2nd half. Green Bay gets the ball at their own 32 and look to go deep on the 1st play from scrimmage but with no one open Big Ben checks down to Ajayi for a quick 34 yard pickup and just like that the Packers are at the Dolphins 34 yard line. Through a series of passes and runs the Packers would push the ball down to the Miami 13 but fail to convert on the 3rd and 5 and settle for the FG to open the scoring and lead 3-0. The Dolphins would answer with an 11 play, 63 yard drive but would also stall at the Green Bay 17 yard line and kick the FG to tie the game at 3 with 5:33 remaining in the 1st quarter. On their 2nd possession Green Bay would march 91 yards on 8 plays aided by two big Ajayi runs, but this time no settling and the Packers push it into the end zone for the TD and take the 10-3 lead with 1:57 left in the 1st quarter. Miami would go 3 and out to finish the quarter and give Green Bay the ball back and put the Miami defense back on the field.

Starting at their own 14 the Pack would once again mix it up keeping the Miami defense off balance, and boosted by a Big Ben to Terrance Williams 61 yard bomb fly to the Dolphin 19 yard line, but thanks to a Timmy Jernigan sack on 3rd and 6 from the 15, the Pack has to again kick the FG to take a 10 point lead at 13-3 with 10:35 left in the half. Miami would get the ball back and only able to convert one 1st down punts the ball right back to Green Bay, pinning them at their own 13 with 8:29 to go in the half. The Packers take the ball to the Miami 36 but the drive stalls and Parkey attempts the 54 yard FG but hooks it. That sets the Dolphins up in excellent field position at their own 44 with 5:01 left in the half, but on 3rd and 5 from the Miami 49, Brent Grimes steps in front of a Jared Goff pass and makes the pick and returns it to the Miami 25 and the Packers are in business. They push it down to the Miami 7 yard line but the defense holds and they again kick the FG to push the lead to 16-3 with 2:41 left in the half. Miami gets the ball at the 25 and quickly covers the field and moves it to the Packer 9 yard line but with only 1 timeout and 11 seconds until halftime Miami chooses to run the clock down to 3 seconds and kick the FG and go into the half trailing 16-6.

Miami gets the ball to open the 2nd half and promptly marches down field with a series of runs and 2 passes one of which was a 33 yarder to Cooks, but once again on a 3rd and 6 from the Green Bay 11 yard line, the Dolphins can't convert or get it into the end zone and kick the FG to close it to 16-9 Packers but it has become a one score game with 9:17 left in the 3rd. Green Bay manages one 1st down but aided by a Connor Barwin sack have to punt the ball back to the Dolphins at their own 9 with 6:59 left in the 3rd quarter. Goff seems to be shaking off his slow start and takes the Dolphins on a 17 play, 91 yard drive and on the 1st play of the 4th quarter, Goff hits Chris Thompson on a 9 yard fly for the TD and with 14:54 left in game, it's a whole new, a one Quarter game for the Championship. Miami did take a big risk on the 6th play of this drive from their own 30 on a 4th and inches, Mark Ingram goes over the top to get the 1st down and continue the game tying drive (Whew).

Green Bay is a little stunned but undaunted by the 10 unanswered points, and get the ball with 14:49 in the game and run 7 plays to the Miami 48, but Ben tries to go long and it's picked off by Marcus Peters who promptly pitches it to Adrian Amos before going down, Amos returns it 40 yards to the Green Bay 36 with 10:04 left in the game. On the 1st play from the Packer 36, Goff goes deep to Brandin Cooks and with the Packers looking run, he hits Cooks in stride for the TD to take the 23-16 lead. Miami's 1st lead of the day comes with 9:52 left in the game. But there is absolutely no quit in Green Bay. Starting from their own 20, Green Bay, having given up 20 unanswered points to the Dolphins and not scoring since late in the 2nd quarter, they put together a drive of mixing the run with the pass, gets a big play from Ben Watson who turns a short hitch into a 40 yard gain, aided by a Eric Weddle missed tackle down to the Miami 19 yard line and the Packers are in business and 4 plays later Ajayi catches a 2 yd Touchdown, the XP is good and with 5:36 left in regulation, Green Bay has answered and knotted the score at 23. Miami gets the ball at their own 19 and get nothing on 3 plays, but on the 3rd play a flag comes out and Linval Joseph is called for a facemask giving new life to the Dolphin offense. They run 6 more plays and get the ball to the Packer 30, and with 1:44 left in the game, Matt Prater hits the 48 yard FG to give the Dolphins the lead at 26-23. Green Bay gets the ball on their own 26 and move quickly to the Dolphin 37 yard line with 29 seconds left and one timeout after a Roethlisberger spike. Big Ben throws a quick 5 yarder to Jeremy Kerley but he's hit and fumbles and the Dolphins Kareem Jackson recovers to secure the Dream for one Team and dash it for another. After a kneel down the game ends with a 26-23 Miami Dolphin Superbowl win to complete the unbeaten season from start to finish.

Congratulations to John and a excellent Green Bay Team. his play calling on both sides of the ball, kept the Dolphins off balance all day. The Packers out gained the Dolphins 445 yards to 382, forced 7 bad Goff passes by the defense, but in the end it was the 2nd of 2 turnovers that sealed the win for Miami. So ends the 2018 IFL Year with a exciting, start to finish nail biter, in this type of game it's a shame one team has to lose, Green Bay played all out, but the Dolphins caught a couple of breaks late to get the win.

Everybody can now turn their attention to the 2019 draft, the ratings should be out in a couple of months and the dream starts all over, thanks to everybody that made my dream season possible.

IFL SUPER BOWL WEEK

IFL Super Bowl XVIII features what many are calling a David versus Goliath match up. After all, Miami ended the 2018 IFL regular season with a perfect 16-0 mark including a 42-23 week nine win over their Super Bowl opponent. The Dolphins then cruised to a 39-19 win over Oakland in the divisional round and distinguished a hot Denver squad 41-17 in the conference final. The Dolphins feature the number one offense in the IFL led by quarterback Jared Goff and his league leading 132.1 Passer rating. Doug Baldwin is Goff's favorite target finishing the IFL regular season with 88 receptions for 1,253 yards AND 23 touchdown receptions. If you focus too much on Baldwin, Brandin Cooks is a dangerous secondary receiver as the Broncos found out in the AFC Championship game. Cooks hauled in four touchdown passes. Ted Ginn Jr. provides a capable third receiver and running back Chris Thompson is about as good as it gets as a third down back and a perfect compliment for bruising running back Mark Ingram. Ingram rushed for 1,323 yards, averaging just under six yards a carry to balance the offensive attack. And, oh yeah, Miami features three "9" rated players on their offensive line. Defensively the Dolphins ranked "only" third overall in the IFL. If Miami has a weakness, it could be getting to the quarterback as Everson Griffin led the Dolphins with nine sacks. Besides Navarro Bowman the linebacker corps is pedestrian. However, Miami makes up for it with a lockdown secondary featuring one '9" rated defensive back and three "8's". Miami has a chance to become the third IFL team to go 19-0. Considering this is their first season the team experienced a winning season since 2014, that is amazing!

After a disappointing 7-9 finish in 2017, the Green Bay front office landed quarterback Ben Roethlisberger to turn around their fortunes. Big Ben mirrored his 2017 NFL performance, tossing 28 touchdown passes with a 94.0 passer rating. Veteran Ben Watson led the team with 61 receptions but when the chips are down Roethlisberger turns to Josh Gordon if he is available. Emmanuel Sanders is another potential game breaker with his 15.5 yards per reception. Green Bay uses an array of running backs featuring Jay Ajayi, who led the team with 956 rushing yards. Veterans Jamaal Charles and Danny Woodhead will spell Ajayi when he needs a breather and for certain third down packages. The Packer offensive line features road-grading guard Brandon Brooks but overall is a little over league average. Green Bay's 46 sacks were nine more than their opponent. The Pack needs a good game from Calais Campbell, who tied for second overall in the league with 13 sacks. Defensive tackle Chris Jones and veteran edge rusher Brian Orakpo added seven sacks each. Besides Orakpo, Clay Matthews has the potential to get to Goff. Middle linebacker Ryan Shazier, one of the best in the IFL, rounds out a solid Green Bay linebacker trio. The Packer secondary is solid with two "8" rated players plus a couple "7's" and a "6" for a solid nickel package. Bobby Rainey is a dangerous returner. He returned two kickoffs for scores in the regular season and averaged 45 yards per return in the NFC Conference final. There is no denying Green Bay is battle tested, winning the toughest division in the IFL. Then escaping with a win against a very good Eagles team in Philadelphia in the Divisional round and dominating a division rival in the conference championship game. It's been an impressive run by a team viewed as a prohibitive underdog in the Super Bowl. Perhaps, they have one more magical "blue" collar game in them.

Vegas list the Dolphins as an 11 point favorite. Some believe this is conservative. Green Bay does have a puncher's chance. What do they have to do to win? One, hope Goff has a "off" day. The Miami quarterback has played a little over his head this season, 132.1 passing rating compared to 100.5 rating during the NFL season. Two, keep the Miami offense off the field as much as possible. The Packers ability to run the ball will determine their success. The most points the Dolphin defense allowed during the regular season was the 23 points by the Packer offense. But the Green Bay defense will have to do much better than the 42 points allowed in week nine.

IFL CONFERENCE FINALS

Denver 17 at Miami 41

Miami receiver Brandin Cooks hauls in four touchdowns as the Dolphins defeat Denver to advance to the Super Bowl!

Denver comes to Miami with a berth to the IFL Superbowl on the line. These 2 Teams did not meet in the regular season, but Denver came in hot off a win at Cincinnati and looking to advance.

Miami won the toss and deferred. Denver goes 3 and out on it's 1st possession and punts to Miami. Miami promptly goes on a 9 play 73 yard drive, culminating in the TD for a 7-0 lead halfway through the 1st quarter. With their 2nd possession the Broncos go on a 10 play drive that stalls at the Dolphins 6 yard line and have to settle for the FG to make the score 7-3 with 2:28 left in the first quarter. After a 3 and out for the Dolphins, the Broncos get it back. On the 2nd play of the drive, the 1st of 3 Denver turnovers, a fumble gives the Dolphins the ball with a short field and 3 plays later on the 1st play of the 2nd quarter the Dolphins score to push the lead to 14-3 Miami with 14:50 left in the half.

The Broncos get the ball and convert 2 quick 1st downs, but Bortles throws the INT, returned 19 yards to the Broncos 32 and 4 plays later the Dolphins take it in for the 21-3 lead with 10:23 left in the half. Denver fails to move the ball on it's next 2 possessions, Miami gets the ball back with 2:59 in the half and travels 54 yards in 2:40 and kick the FG with .19 seconds left to take the 24-3 lead to halftime.

Miami gets the ball to start the 2nd half, and moves 75 yards in 5 plays and scores the TD, to push the lead to 31-3. Denver gets the ball back but on the 2nd play of the drive, Bortles throws his 2 pick of the day and 6 plays later the Dolphins score the TD to take a commanding 38-3 lead with 9:34 left in the 3rd quarter. After an exchange of punts Denver goes 61 yards in 10 plays and get the TD to cut it to 38-10 with 2:53 left in the 3rd.

Miami looking for the on sides, recovers at their own 45 and travel 50 yards and kick the FG to take the 41-10 lead with 12:23 to go in the game. There is no quit in the Broncos and aided by a 78 yard check down pass to Hunt, the Broncos get the quick TD to cut the lead to 41-17 with 10:37 left in the game. Sadly, for Denver, this is how the game would end. Denver had a exceptional season, making it to the Conference Championship game, Doug called a great game, but Miami scored 3 TD's on all 3 Denver turnovers and it was too much for the Broncos to overcome. Miami advances to the Superbowl to face the winner of the Green Bay/Tampa Bay winner with a perfect season and the Superbowl championship on the line for the Dolphins.

Tampa Bay 13 at Green Bay 37

Big Ben throws three touchdown passes to help the Packers advance to their first IFL Super Bowl.

It was an all NFC Central showdown for a trip to the Super Bowl.

The upstart Bucs (5 seed) traveled to Lambeau to face the equally surprising 3rd seeded Packers. Things started off on a bad note for the Pack after K Cody Parkey's opening kickoff went out of bounds giving Tampa Bay the ball at their own 40. The Bucs moved quickly into Packer territory using a pair of Todd Gurley runs and a TE Hunter Henry reception. On first and 10 from the Green Bay 37, ILB Ryan Shazier stepped in front of a Derek Carr pass to end the drive.
On the Packers first play from scrimmage, Ben Roethlisberger checked down to RB Jay Ajayi. He was hammered by LB Kyle VanNoy and coughed up the football. Two plays later, Carr hit WR Davonte Adams for a 24 yard TD. 7-0 Bucs less than 5 minutes in.
The early score seemed to rattle the Packers as they struggled to get anything going offensively. Bucs would tack on a Chris Boswell 24 yard FG goal with just over 3 minutes left in the 1st to go up 10-0
On the next Green Bay possession the hosts got the spark they needed after WR Josh Gordon got behind the defense for a 65 yard catch and run TD. The convert was missed 10-6 Bucs after the 1st.
Tampa looked a little rattled after Gordon's big play and proceeded to go 3 and out.
The Packers then put together their first long drive of the day. Roethlisberger used Ajayi's running and multiple RB check downs to move 65 yards in 12 plays. TE Ben Watson's 5 yard TD reception finished it off. Pack had their first lead of the day 13-10 at the half.
Green Bay got a big play to start the second half when returner Bobby Rainey took the opening kickoff back 52 yards to the Tampa 45. After two Ajayi runs went nowhere the Pack faced a 3 and 11. TE Ben Watson caught a seam pass but was held 3 yards short of the first down. Coach Conners took a gamble and brought in long FG ace Cody Parkey to try a 56 yarder in the 31 degree conditions. He nailed the kick to put the hosts up 16-10 early in the 3rd

On the Bucs next possession, Shazier got his second pick of the day as Carr overshot TE Richard Rodgers. Big Ben went to work and found Gordon for another big play (39 yard reception) setting up a Robbie Gould chip shot 22 yard FG. Pack had a 2 score lead. 19-10 Green Bay.

Tampa Bay responded with a nice drive of their own but it stalled out at the Packers 21. Boswell hit from 39 to bring the visitors back to within a touchdown. 19-13 Packers with 4:21 left in the third.

After another good Rainey return, Big Ben started to dial it in. He found WR Emmanuel Sanders for a 13 yard gain (strangely that would be his only reception of the day). Gordon and RB Danny Woodhead added long receptions to take it all the way down to the Bucs 17. Ajayi did the rest on the ground capping it off with a 1 yard TD run. Woodhead would convert the 2pt convert attempt. 27-13 Green Bay after the 3rd.

Early in the 4th Carr threw his 3rd pick of the day. This time CB Brent Grimes made the play and brought it all the way back to the Tampa 15. The Packers went for the jugular on first down. Roethlisberger checked down to Ajayi who took it to house. 34-13 Green Bay

From there on in the hosts would just try to not give up the big play and it worked. Bucs moved the ball well, but, desperate for TD's, turned the ball over on downs
on their next 2 drives. Before it was all over Green Bay tacked on a FG and Carr threw his 4th int.

Final score 37-13 Packers

Mike coached a great game (and had an impressive playoff run) but Carr's 4 interceptions were just too much to overcome on this day. The final score was not indicative of how tight most of this game actually was.

Carr finished with a 24.3 rating. 19 of 45, 180 yard, 1 Td, 4ints
Gurley had another strong outing 113 yards rushing and 34 yards receiving.
Davonte Adams led the Bucs with 70 yards on 4 rec.
Hunter Henry took a hit to the head and missed a good part of this contest.

Big Ben was efficient: 17 of 25, 219 yards 3TDs 134.8 rating
Ajayi rushed 25 times for 84 yards
Gordon had 117 yards and a TD on 4 receptions.

Packers head to their first ever IFL Super Bowl and take on the undefeated Dolphins

Miami will go into the game as 11 point Action PC favorites

IFL DIVISIONAL PLAYOFF ROUND

Oakland 19 at Miami 39

Dolphins quarterback Jarrod Goff throws four touchdown passes as Miami advances to AFC Championship.

Oakland came to Miami off a sound win over Indianapolis in the wild card game, a team the Dolphins struggled with in the next to last game of the regular season. The Oakland Fans would not be disappointed early.

Oakland takes the opening KO and drives 75 yards and gets the TD but can't get the extra point, but start the day with a 6-0 lead over the Dolphins. The Dolphins get the same 75 yards on their opening drive and take it down field and get the TD and convert the PAT to take a 7-6 lead with 3:36 left in the 1st.Oakland fails to score on it's next 2 drives, but with the Dolphins 3rd possession they travel 78 yards and score the TD to take a 14-6 lead with 7:10 left in the half. After an exchange of punts the Raiders get the ball on a Goff INT with 4:46 left in the 2nd quarter. Oakland would take it down the field and get the TD with 1:25 left in the half, the 2 pt try failed and the score was 14-12 Miami and that's the way the half would end.

The Dolphins would get the ball to open the 2nd half, and would drive into Raider territory but stall and settle for the FG to make it a 17-12 Miami lead. Oakland's 1st possession would be a 3 and out and Miami would get the ball on it's own 30, but own the 2nd play of the drive Ingram would take a screen 70 yards to the house for the TD and a Dolphin 24-12 lead. The Raiders aren't finished and on their next drive they cover 75 yards in 15 plays and get the TD to cut the lead to 24-19. Miami goes nowhere on it's next possession but pins the Raiders at their own 2. On the 3rd play Stafford gets sacked in the end zone for a safety and a 26-19 Dolphin lead. Miami takes the kick after the safety and marches 71 yards and gets the TD to go up 33-19 with 10 minutes left in the game. Oakland gets the ball back and goes on a 15 play drive but a sack creates a Stafford fumble and it's picked up and returned for a Miami TD, although the PAT is blocked it puts the game on ice at 39-19 with only 3:41 to play. That's the way it would end, but a hard fought game and effort by the Raiders. Miami advances to face the winner of the Denver / Cincinnati game for the right to move on to the IFL Superbowl.

Denver 20 at Cincinnati 8

Broncos quarterback Blake Bortles ran for one score and threw for another as Denver upset Cincinnati to advance to the AFC Title game.

The Broncos came into Paul brown Stadium in Cincy and came away with a 20-8 victory over the Bengals. The Broncos defense held the Cincy offense at bay for most of the game and the Denver Offense did just enough to get the Win.

Denver got on the board first with a 57 yard FG from Justin Tucker and then Cincy kicker Fairbairn tied it with a 31 yarder to end the scoring in the first quarter.

In the 2nd quarter Denver had a nice drive of 75 yards before Bortles hit WR Murphy from 14 yards out for a 10-3 lead. Cincinnati would then sack Bortles in the endzone for a safety and then tack on another FG before halftime to make it 10-8 at the intermission.

The Denver defense came to play today and forced a 3 and out on the Bengals first possession of the 2nd half. However, Bortles would throw a pick on the next series and as Cincy had some life. But, after a 9 yard run from Gordan left the Bengals with 2nd a 1 from the Denver 39, a Cincy penalty and two incompletions ended the drive with another punt.

Starting another drive back up to the end zone the Broncos offense moved the ball mixing in runs and passes as they went 80 yards in 16 plays taking just over 8:00
of playing time before Tucker hit another FG to get the lead back to 13-8. The Bengals drove down close enough to try a FG but the 52 yard attempt sailed right and the Broncos had the ball again.

Denver once again moved the ball slowly as they ran 10 plays and gained 58 yards before QB Bortles would take a bootleg around the right end for a 3 yard TD and a 20-8 lead with 8:16 remaining to play. The Bengals would throw an interception and then turn the ball over on downs on their next two possessions and the Broncos were able to run out the clock for the win.

It was a great game and season by John and the Cincinnati team.

The Broncos will now travel to Miami to take on the undefeated Dolphins for a trip to the Super Bowl.

Tampa Bay 35 at New Orleans 31

Buccaneers running back Todd Gurley scores the go-ahead touchdown as Tampa Bay to advance to NFC championship game.

Tampa Bay travels to New Orleans for the second time this season. However, this game is for a spot in the NFC championship game. The previous match up was a tight game with New Orleans coming out on top 14 to 7.

New Orleans took the first possession for an eight minute drive. The combination of Jonathan Stewart and Jamaal Williams were effective running the ball. Add in a 18 yard Joe Flacco to Dez Bryant long cross and New Orleans was near pay dirt 2nd down and 2 yards to go. Twice Williams was judged to be into the end zone and twice the calls were reversed. New Orleans goes for it on 4th and inches... Williams over the top puts the Saints ahead by 7!

After exchanging punts, the Buccaneers tie the game up early in the second quarter. The drive included a Hunter Henry lateral to Tyler Lockett on 3rd and 8 yards to go for a 15 yard first down play. (That was the courtesy of Mr. Koch. Nothing to do with the coach Chase’s play call.)

With 5:44 left in the half, coach Rice catches the Buccaneers playing the run and dials up Joe Flacco to Dez Bryant on a bomb fly to put the Saints back ahead by a score of 14 – 7.

The next time with the ball Tampa’s coach Chase feels the pressure of the consistently strong New Orleans offense and decides to go for it on 4th and 2 at the New Orleans 43 yard line. A Derek Carr check down to Todd Gurley falls to the turf and New Orleans makes good use of the short field to go-ahead 21 to 7 just before the teams’ head to the locker room.

Tampa Bay gets a break they sorely needed after punting their initial second half possession away and seeing the Saints score 14 unanswered first half points. On the first Saint play after the punt, Joe Flacco finds Stewart short over the middle, but he fumbles the ball away after a Demario Davis hit! Bucs ball at the Saint 28 yard line. Three plays later a medium out to Gurley goes for 26 yards to the end zone. Saints ahead 21 to 14.

The teams exchanged three punts and then Tampa Bay was able to tie the game up. The two big plays in the game tying drive were Derek Carr to DeSean Jackson via a 38 yard bomb post and then a Carr to Jackson check down that went 15 yards for the touchdown. Tie game at 21.

The Saints reinvigorated their mojo on the ensuing possession. The drive was started with a 30 yard scamper by Stuart. New Orleans moves the ball down to the Buccaneer 17 yard line. On 3rd and 10 Flacco checks down from a long cross to Dez Bryant and finds Williams for 8 yards. On 4th and 2, New Orleans boots the ball through the uprights to take the lead 24 - 21 with 11 minutes left in the game.

The New Orleans defense does their job and forces a Tampa Bay punt. Two plays later Mathieu steps in front of a short cross and gives the Bucs life with a possession starting at the Saint 30. For the second time in the game the Buccaneers turn a turnover in the seven points. And for the second time, the touchdown comes via a check down, this time to Gurley from 9 yards away. Suddenly Tampa Bay is ahead 28 – 24 with 5:48 left in the game!

Next up…. The Saints and coach Rice turn in a humongous clutch drive. The possession consisted of seven plays. Six of them were rushing plays to Stewart, (no panic in the play calling,) one of which was a 3 yard scoring play on 4th and goal from the 2! In the middle of these runs was a 46 yard bomb post to Sterling Shepard. New Orleans is back in the lead 31 – 28 with 2:10 left!

One of several successful New Orleans squib kicks leaves Tampa Bay starting with the ball at their own 16 yard line with 2:06 left and a single time out. Gurley gets the corner on the first play for 18 yards and sets up Tampa at their own 34. Derek Carr goes 3 for 3 and moves the Buccaneers to the 13 yard line with 13 seconds left and still holding that one time out. Tampa was also helped by a 17 yard PI on Jordan Hicks along the way.

For the third time in the game, the dice roll in Tampa Bay’s favor big time on a check down. Carr comes off a medium slant called for Tyler Lockett and finds Gurley in the flat with nobody in front of him. Final score Tampa 35 - New Orleans 31.

Jim called a great game and had Tampa on their heals using 36 rushes for 175 yards in combination with long passing. Tampa managed to come out ahead due to two turnovers that set them up with a short field and the benefit of big play makers Todd Gurley and DeSean Jackson on check down passes for three combined touchdowns. I think straight up New Orleans has a better roster, but lady luck was dressed as a Buccaneer today.
Tampa Bay awaits the winner of the Green Bay - Philadelphia game to play for an opportunity to be part of an IFL Super Bowl.

Green Bay 18 at Philadelphia 13

Packer D-Lineman Chris Jones has two sacks and forces a fumble as Green Bay edges Philly to advance to the NFC title game.

Packers and Eagles would face off at Lincoln Financial. The winner would get to host the upstart Buccaneers next week in the conference final. Wet, windy and cold conditions, turned this contest into a defensive struggle.

On the first play from scrimmage Packers starting corner Brent Grimes was lost for the entire game with a knee injury. After the Green Bay defense forced a three and out, WR Josh Gordon went down the on first offensive series. Things did not look good for the visitors.
The Eagles snatched the early momentum on the next series. They went 87 in yards 12 plays using a mix of RB Demarco Murray and WR Mohammad Sanu. QB Jamis Winston finished off the drive tossing a 10 yard TD strike to Sanu.. 7-0 Eagles early.

Green Bay responded with a 10 play, 39 yard drive but it stalled out at the Philly 32. Packers settled for a 49 yard Robbie Gould FG...7-3 Eagles.

After another Eagles three and out, the Packers got the ball on their own 23 to start the second quarter. They would put together an 8 play, 77 yard touchdown drive that was highlighted by TE Ben Watson's 40 yard reception. QB Ben Roethlisberger would find WR Emmanuel Sanders for an 11 yard TD pass to give the Packers their first lead 10-7. (this would turn out to be Green Bay's only TD drive of the game). The hosts looked like they would answer right back but on 4th and 1 from the Green Bay 30 a Jamis Winston sneak was stuffed at the line for no gain. Packers would dodge a bullet and go to the half up 3.

The 3rd quarter was all defense. 4 straight punts until the Packers got some good field position thanks to Philadelphia having to kick it away from deep in their own end into the wind. One first down was all it took to get Robbie "Solid" Gould into field goal position. He nailed a 48 yarder to make it 13-7 Packers heading into the 4th.

Early in the final frame the Green Bay defense would come up huge. Veteran punter Shayne Lechler had pinned the Eagles in at their own 3 yard line. After Murray went nowhere on first down, Winston was taken down for a safety by big DT Linval Joseph. 15-7 Green Bay

Packers took the ensuing free kick and put together a time consuming 11 play, 60 yard drive that featured a heavy dose of RB Jay Ajayi. Gould hit a short 24 yard FG to make it a 2 score game with just 5:42 left. 18-7 Packers.

Coach Mason did not panic in his play calling. He stayed patient against the loose coverage of the visitors and watched his team move 76 yards in 15 plays during a drive that took 4:16, but more importantly, burned no timeouts. Winston hit Sanu from 15 yards for the touchdown 18-13 with the 2 point try to come.

Winston looked into the end zone but his receiver could not come up with the ball against tight coverage, the convert would fail as it stayed 18-13 with 1:19 left.

Packers were looking for the onside kick but the Eagles elected to kick deep and hope for a stop. Three Ajayi runs went nowhere but forced Philadelphia to use all of their timeouts.

Lecher booted it away. Bernard Reddy got a great return of 15 yards setting the Eagles up at their own 39 with :42 seconds left and no timeouts.

Packer played the sidelines so Winston found little used WR John Brown over the middle for 17 yards. Winston spiked it at Packers 44 with :28 seconds left. Pack used the same strategy so Winston did the exact same thing. This time Brown gained 16 yards to the Green Bay 28. After the quick spike just :02 seconds remained.
Winston looked to the end zone for Brown but the pass was batted away at the last second preventing the astounding comeback. Packers advance 18-13.

Great game (and season) by Coach Mason

Winston was solid 31-47, 249, 2TD's but was sacked 5 times
RB's Powell (12-57) and Murray (12-34) were kept in check for the most part
WR Sanu had 8 receptions for 85 yards and 2TD's

For Green Bay it was the defense who got it done.

Big Ben threw for just 166 yards as the offense could only muster 12 first downs and went 2-12 on third down.
Ajayi had only 54 yards on 18 carries

Packers move on to host the upstart #6 seeded Buccaneers next week in an all NFC Central showdown.

A trip to the IFL Super Bowl will be on the line.

The forecast for Lambeau is 20 degrees with a nasty wind chill

Hope the Floridians bring some long underwear.

IFL WILD CARD WEEKEND

AFC

Tennessee 17 at Denver 38

Blake Bortles throws three touchdown passes as the Broncos cruise past Tennessee.

The Titans came to Mile High to take on the Broncos in the Wildcard round of the playoffs.
The game started off like it would be a high-scoring shootout as both teams got TD's on their first possession going 75 yards in just 4 plays.
From there it slowed down as Tennessee would miss a FG, both teams would exchange punts and then Denver QB Bortles would throw a pick.
Titans QB Matt Ryan would quickly find WR Hopkins for a 35 yard TD strike and then Denver would drive 75 yards in 8 plays before Kareem Hunt
caught a pass in the flats from Bortles for a TD and a 14-14 tie to end the first quarter.

Titans Kicker Bailey would nail a FG to start the 2nd quarter but then Denver would go on their 3rd drive of 75 yards as Bortles hit Eckler in the flats for a TD and
a 21-17 lead. After forcing a punt the Broncos would go get a FG to end the half with a 24-17 lead.

The Titans forced a 3 and out on the Broncos opening possession of the 2nd half but the punt would be muffed and the Broncos pounced on it at the
Titans 16 yard line. Kareem Hunt ran the final two yards for the TD and a 31-17 lead early in the 3rd quarter. Tennessee's offense would not be able to muster a 1st down on their next possession and would be forced to punt. Denver's offense once again went on a long drive, this one covered 68 yards in 11 plays before Bortles leaped over the line for a TD and a 38-17 lead with 3:12 left in the 3rd. After both teams exchanged punts, the Titans drove 81 yards in 8 plays but the drive ended when Matt Ryan would throw a pick in the end zone. From this point the Titans turned the ball over on downs and the Broncos just ran out the clock and moved onto the next round pf the playoffs.

It was a great game from Rick.

Indianapolis 0 at Oakland 31

Alvin Kamara got Raiders off to a quick start returning the opening kickoff to the house.

The Indianapolis Colts traveled to Oakland to face the Oakland Raiders in the Wild Card round of the playoffs. The much anticipated matchup was a dud as the Raiders dominated from the start as rookie Alvin Kamara put his stamp on the game instantly by taking the opening kickoff 97 yards for a touchdown. From that point, the Raiders never looked back as the defense sacked and intercepted Colts' quarterback Case Keenum twice (returning one for a touchdown) and coasted to a 31-0 victory.

Special thanks to Ken for waiting an extra week for me to play as I dealt with an unexpected personal issue. He has a very good team and coached a great game, but the Raiders got every break.

NFC

Atlanta 25 at Green Bay 34

Brent Grimes end zone interception helps Packers turn back Atlanta.

Falcons came into Green Bay as a most dangerous 6 seed.

Packers Coach Conners was worried about this matchup and rightfully so.
The visitors have been an NFC powerhouse for several seasons now and this
year's version was no different.

Atlanta's Dion Lewis would set the tone on the opening kickoff taking it back 79 yards
all the way down to the Packers 15. Four plays later QB Phillip Rivers found RB Lamar Miller on a
4 yard check down in the end zone. Atlanta 7 Green Bay 0. After Green Bay could only generate one first down on their next drive,
they were forced to punt it away.

The visitors took over near midfield looking to take control of this one. Rivers found 4 different receivers on a drive that moved them all the way
down to the Packers 13. Veteran CB Brent Grimes then made, what might of been the most important play of Green Bay's season, when he stepped in front of a pass intended for WR Nelson Agholor and picked off Rivers in the end zone.

The NFC North champs had new life.

After a 6 yard run by Jay Ajayi, Ben Roethlisberger found a streaking Josh Gordon for a 40 yard gain. Ajayi then took a draw play 34 yards to the house.
Green Bay 7 Atlanta 7

Both teams then went on long drives that stalled in the red zone ending in FG's.
10-10 early in the 2nd Falcons then went three and out on a trio of Lamar Miller runs (he was held in check for the most part part in this one) and were forced to punt.
Green Bay would put together a 7 play, 75 yard drive led by a pair of Emmanuel Sanders grabs. The second one went for a 24 yard score.
Green Bay 17 Atlanta 10

Atlanta would come right back. Rivers was firing bullet strikes to Larry Fitzgerald and Agholor as he moved them to all the way down to the Packers 5, first and goal. TE Zac Ertz caught a short slant on first down but was wrestled down at the 2. Rivers looked to Ertz again but the pass was knocked down. On 3rd and goal the Green Bay defense stuffed RB Telvin Coleman on a dive. Falcons would settle for a short Kai Forbath FG. Green Bay 17 Atlanta 13 at halftime

Coach Golden would roll the dice to the start the 3rd and go with the onside kick. Packers Laremy Tunsil got his large mitts on it as the hosts took over with good field position. WR Josh Gordon got in on the action again pulling in a 23 yard cross, which set up a Roethlisberger to TE Ben Watson 12 yard score.
Green Bay 24 Atlanta 13.

Falcons responded with drive that stalled out at the Packers 34. Forbath stepped up and nailed a 52 yarder to make it a one score game midway through the 3rd
Green Bay 24 Atlanta 16.

Both teams exchanges FG's before the end of the quarter
Green Bay 27 Atlanta 19 after 3.

Packers next drive stalled after just one first down but on Atlanta's ensuing drive back to back sacks by Brian Orakpo and Calais Campbell forced the visitors to punt from way back at their own 6. Green Bay took the short field and worked the running combo of Ajayi and Woodhead into the red zone. Big Ben found Sanders from 10 yards out for a huge insurance TD
Green Bay 34 Atlanta 19 with 4:25 left.

Atlanta moved back down the field against the Packers but time was their enemy. Rivers found Agholor for an 18 yard TD but the 2 point convert would fail
Green Bay 34 Atlanta 25 with just 1:48 remaining

Falcons tried the onside but it failed and the Pack were able to hold on for the win

Final score Green Bay 34 Atlanta 25

Great game called by Marty, an enjoyable chess game throughout

Almost 900 yards of total offense in this one

Rivers was 28 of 51 for 299 and 2 Td's but was sacked 4 times and uncharacteristically threw 7 bad passes

Fitz had 9 catches for 93 yards

Atlanta rushed 17 times for just 42 yards

Packers got a great game from Roethlisberger 21-34, 324 yards 3 TD's, 0 ints 122.7 rating

Ajayi 20 for 107 on the ground

Sanders and Gordon combined for over 200 yards receiving.

Packers now head to Philly to face the well rested Eagles.

Tampa Bay 16 at Dallas 3

Buccaneers' Chris Boswell converted three field goals as Tampa Bay upsets Dallas.

Because Dallas' secondary was decimated by injuries (three), Tampa Bay was the heavy favorite in this matchup of 10-6 teams. But Dallas' defense played the Bucs tough. In the end, Tampa Bay would prevail as Dallas' special teams didn't do their part.
Dallas' long snapper hiked the ball poorly during a FG attempt in the first half. Later in the half, Dallas had a FG attempt blocked. With the second half kickoff, Dallas' kickoff team allowed Lockett tor return the kick for 76 yards.
Dallas' offense disappointed as well, only coming away with a single FG in five trips to the red zone.

Tampa Bay would prevail in this defensive struggle 16-3.

The Bucs were led by Todd Gurley who rushed for 104 yards and a score. Gurley also caught six balls for 57 yards.

WEEK 16 RECAP

Titans DeAndre Hopkins caught three touchdowns as Tennessee punches their playoff ticket.

Tennessee 37 Indianapolis 10                69
The Tennessee Titans came to Lucas Oil Field and beat the crap out of the Colts 37-10. Tennessee QB Matt Ryan toss 4 touchdowns, Latavius Murray ran for 114 yards with 1 score, DeAndre Hopkins caught 3 TDs with 115 receiving yards on 7 catches. The Colts Case Keenum attempted 40 passes throwing 3 interceptions with 156 passing yards. Indianapolis came into the game knowing they had already secured a playoff berth, and played like it.

Arizona 0 Kansas City 16                    34 5-15
Gostkowski kicks three field goals and Dalton throws a TD pass as Kansas City shuts out the Cardinals.

New York (N) 0 Houston 30                   70
Giants are held to 2 for 16 on third down as Texans defense tosses the shutout.

New England 10 Cincinnati 30                38 0-5
The Bengals hosted the two time defending IFL champions to close out the season. Brian Hoyer threw two touchdown passes and Melvin Gordon ran for 147 yards and a score as Cincinnati cruises to the 30-10 win.

Patriots QB DeShone Kizer continued to suffer through rookie growing pains completing only 10 of 25 attempts for 134 yards and an interception. Christian McCaffrey showed promise with 68 rushing yards on 11 carries. Another rookie, Zay Jones caught 3 passes for 73 yards.

New England finishes the regular season with unaccustomed 3-12-1 record. While Cincinnati finishes 14-2 and looks forward to a first round bye.

Tampa Bay 24 Los Angeles (N) 10             50 Calm
The Rams hosted the Buccaneers in Los Angeles to close out the season. The Buccs needed a win to stay in playoff contention, the Rams had little to play for, so little in fact many players decided to stop playing throughout the game. The game was tight going into the half, 10-3 Buccs. Both defenses gave the offenses a hard time in the first half. The Buccs though had Todd Gurley to lean on and he came through with a big game. On a key 4th quarter drive Gurley would account for 41 yards of the Buccs offense on the drive including an 11 yard TD run pushing the lead to 17-3. The Rams hung in and managed their only TD on the subsequent drive a Luck strike to TY Hilton, 17-10. The Buccs immediately answered, with the Rams having to sell out to stop the run, Buccs QB Derek Carr found Davante Adams for a 28 yard gain. Gurley would eventually get into the endzone again, this time via the pass, 24-10. That score put the game away for the Buccs.

Buccs Stars:
Todd Gurley 23 carries for 144 yards 2 TDs

Rams Stars:
None

Next week the Rams 7-9 make plane and hotel reservations for the scouting combine. Based on a prior email it appears the Buccs 10-6 have clinched a playoff spot and will face a yet to be named opponent.

Baltimore 24 New York (A) 6                 43 5-15
Baltimore grounded the Jets, 24-6, and are now waiting on the tarmac to see if a playoff spot opens up for them. Ravens players were seen anxiously watching the arrivals/departures board to see the status of the Denver/Dallas and Indy/Tennessee flights.

As for the game, Baltimore played without Le'Veon Bell, who was more concerned with his plans for next year and missed the train to NY. Alex Collins filled in admirably, carrying the rock 26 times for a Ravens' season-high 119 yards. Eli Manning was named the game's MVP on the strength of a Peyton-like 19-for-22 game for 225 yards, 3 TDs and an astronomical 148.5 QB rating. Defensively, DT Aaron Donald registered 3 sacks and 2 forced fumbles, CB Anthony Brown intercepted two, Kendall Fuller added one, two passes defended and 8 tackles. Joey Bosa matched those 8 tackles and added a sack and a hurry.

For the J-E-T-S, WR Robert Woods caught 8 for 83 yards and RB Jerick McKinnon ran for 79 on just 16 carries. QB Deshaun Watson had a nightmare game - 15-for-32 for 167 yards, 3 INTS, 0 TDs and 2 fumbles (1 lost).

The Jets are looking forward to the draft, while the Ravens are waiting to see if their season continues.

Carolina 9 Detroit 19                       70
Both teams coming in thought if the stars are aligned right a playoff birth might, just could, maybe happen.

Both teams struggled on offense. Then late in the 3rd, the Lions intercepted & drove 26 yards in 8 plays. That made the score 10-9 Lions. Next play, intercepted followed by a 4 yard TD to Thomas, extra point missed 16-9 Detroit, followed up by a 4th down stop & the game bleed it's self out. Detroit 19. Carolina 9. Fournette was MVP on 94 yards & a TD. I liked DE Westbrooks who came up big with 2 sacks & Trumaine Johnson who had 11 tackles, over a 100 for the season & a deflection.

The Panthers seemed ready to strike at any time, but the O just couldn't manage many plays together in a row.

9-7 is how they both end the year.

Pittsburgh 26 Buffalo 13                    28 Calm
The Steelers come into Buffalo and intercept Alex Smith 3 times as Tom Brady was solid with a 95.2 rating throwing for 188 yards and 1 TD...CJ Anderson ran 18 times for 65 and a TD, Frank Gore also punched one in. Kendall Wight caught 7 for 66 and a TD, Gronk caught 6 for 79.

Antonio Brown finished off a great season catching 25 for 184 and a TD as he was targeted 31 times by Alex Smith...

The Steelers come away with a 26-13 win as they finish the season at 6-10 while the Bills continued their late season swoon to finish off a once promising season at 9-7.

Oakland 28 Philadelphia 35                  34 0-10
It was a cold, windy day in the city of brotherly love, but the stands were filled with fiery excitement as a capacity crowd of 69,176 came to cheer on their beloved Eagles as they took on the AFC West division leading Oakland Raiders. There was a lot on the line in the game as both teams were looking for wins to clinch their respective divisions. This would be an IFL classic.

The Raiders won the toss and deferred. The Eagles would go 3 and out on their first possession as an early holding penalty put them in a hole. The Raiders would take advantage of good field position and move into Eagles territory where the offense would stall at the Eagle 36. K Zane Gonzalez would be called on to kick a long 54 yard FG into a slight wind. The kick was long enough but missed far right. The Eagles would take advantage of their good field position and methodically move down the field. After loosing up the defense with a series of passes, RB Demarco Murray would run for gains for 5 and 21 yards, the last of which would reach paydirt. Eagles go up 7-0.

The Raiders would stall again in Eagle territory and the Eagle offense would again get on the move. Mixing up the plays with passes and runs, the Eagles would go 53 yards in 11 plays. The TD would come on a 13 yard out pattern from QB Jameis Winston to TE Evan Engram. Eagles up 14-0 early in the 2nd quarter.

At this point, Raider coach Keith Jackson would change his offensive approach. Realizing that he was playing against a somewhat depleted Eagle secondary, he went to a spread offense with RB Alvin Kamara as a receiving threat along with 3 wideouts and dangerous TE Travis Kelce. It wouldn't take long for the Raiders to put up 6. Starting from their own 25, they would go 75 yards in just 7 plays with QB Matt Stafford hitting WR Javon Kearse on a 23 yard out pattern. Raiders cut the lead to 14-7

The Eagle offense would go 3 and out on its next possession. The Raiders would crank up their offense again, but this time would stall out at the Eagle 13. A Gonzalez FG would be good this time and the lead would be down to 14-10.

Just before the half, the Eagles offense would get back on track. Starting from their own 4, they would begin moving the ball hurriedly trying to get into FG range. However, Winston would make a grave error by fumbling the ball on a scramble which gave the Raiders the ball in Eagle territory with 13 seconds left. A Stafford to WR JJ Nelson pass would set up Gonzalez for a 44 yard FG which would be good. The Raiders closed the half on a 13-0 run to make the halftime score 14-13

The 2nd half would open with both defenses stiffening after halftime adjustments. On their second possession of the 3rd quarter, the Eagles offense would get rolling again. Keeping the Raiders off balance, the Eagles would move 71 yards in 5 plays with RB Bilal Powell scoring from 12 yards out. 21-13 Eagles.

Not to be outdone, the Raiders would take the ensuing kickoff and have a drive of their own. After 1 Kamara run, Stafford would go to his passing game and slice and dice the Eagle defense. It would end with an 8-yard pass to Kelce as he crossed through the end zone. The Raiders would go for 2, which would be successful and, gang, we have a tie game at 21 entering the 4th quarter.

The 4th quarter would be one of the most exciting quarters of the season. The Raiders would stop the Eagles on a 4th and 2 at the Raider 36. They wouldn't waste any time. After an Eagle penalty on 1st down, Stafford would find WR Kelvin Benjamin on a deep out pattern to quickly get into Eagle territory. A short pass to Kearce and 2 Kamara runs would get the Raiders into the end zone to take a 28-21 lead.

The Eagles knew they had to score, but there was no panic at this point. They were looking for the big play and got it! On 2nd and 9 from the Eagle 26, Winston handed the ball to RB Bilal Powell on a stretch play to the left. With the Raider defense playing pass defense, Powell was able to get into the secondary and, 74 yards later, paydirt! The Eagles had quickly tied the game at 28!

Oakland would take their next possession and do what they had been doing since they went to the spread attack, move the ball against the Eagle secondary like a hot knife through butter. Assisted by a couple of big Eagle penalties the Raiders would move to the Eagle 27, where the Eagle defense would finally stand up and stop the Stafford & Co. The Raiders would bring on Gonzalez for a 45 yard FG to give them the lead. However, Gonzalez would miss his 2nd FG of the game and it would remain tied at 28.

Inspired by the Eagle defense and the missed Gonzalez FG, the Eagles were determined to get the lead and try to hold off the Raiders. The coaching staff realized that they had a tired WR corp so that went with the RB committee of Murray, Powell and Burkhead and Te Engram to move the ball. Mixing the run with the pass to those 4, the Eagles would move swiftly down the field. The culmination would be a 16 yard Winston to Burkhead connection the Eagles would take the lead 35-28 with just under 5 minutes remaining.

The 2 teams would exchange punts and with just under 3 minutes remaining the Raiders would mount what they would hope to be a game-tying TD and overtime. Methodically moving down the field, to the Eagle 12 yard line with 43 seconds remaining. The Eagle fans rose to their feet to inspire the defense to make a final stand. On 1st and 10, Stafford would go to Kearse on a short out, incomplete. On 2nd and 10, Stafford would try for TE Kelce, but he was double teamed and the ball was knocked down. Sensing that the Eagles would continue to double team Kelce, Stafford went back to Kearce on 3rd down, but the Eagle secondary made the play. So, it would all come down to 4th and 10 with 25 seconds remaining. The Eagles would take off the double teams and play zone. That strategy would work as Stafford's pass to WR Mike Wallace would fall aimlessly into the ground. The Eagle defense had made the stand of the season!

Winston would come out with the offense and take a couple of knees for the Eagle victory and the crowd would go wild celebrating the NFC East Division crown! The stars of the game were the RB trio of Demarco Murray (8-44 rushing 1 TD, 5-55 receiving), Bilal Powell ( 8-125 rushing 2 TD's) and Rex Burkhead (5-50 receiving 1 TD). The Raiders fought hard and now await the results of the Denver-Dallas. Congratulations to Keith and good luck in the playoffs.

The #2 seed Eagles get a much-needed bye week to rest up before hosting their divisional playoff game in 2 weeks.

Washington 10 Los Angeles (A) 9             84 Calm
In a game that meant very little Washington escapes with a victory even if they didn't earn it. Nick Rose was the goat of the week with a missed 35 yard FG in the 2nd half and a missed 35 yard FG with 3:30 left in the game. The final nail in the coffin came when Washington was forced to punt on a 4th and 4 with 1:47 left in the game Derek Wolfe was flagged for offsides giving Washington a 1st down. Washington was then able to milk the clock down to 30 seconds giving the Chargers no hope.

Jerry called a good game unfortunately Koch didn't care and handed him the loss.

Washington finishes the season 7-9 which I believe the Redskins worst finish in a long time while The Chargers fall to 5-11.

Jacksonville 10 Miami 38                    70 Calm
The Jags started the game with 4 straight passes covering 75 yards and getting the TD in only 2:32 to take a 7-0 lead over the undefeated Dolphins. Unfortunately that would be the highlight of the Jags day as Miami would score the next 5 TD's. Although the Jags would move the ball throughout the game they would only muster another 3 points. Dolphins get the win 38-10 to close out the regular season

Miami finishes at 16-0 and had a great season, but unless they win it all, it will lose a lot of it's luster. So let the playoffs begin, and Good Luck to all postseason Teams.

New Orleans 20 Chicago 13                   32 0-10
New Orleans, a 6 point favorite, closed the season at Chicago. Neither offense was outstanding (New Orleans had 274 net yards to Chicago’s 273), but both defenses came to play. The Saints forced 4 turnovers, 3 on interceptions of Jimmy G subbing for the injured Mariota. The Bears had the ball late with a chance to tie, but it in the end it was the Saints on top.

Atlanta 16 Green Bay 0                      27 0-10
First round playoff preview wasn't really a preview at all. Both teams rest starters in anticipation our tough first round
rematch next Thursday at 8:30 est

What we learned from this one:

Phillip Rivers is way better that Matt Cassell
Lamar Miller is way better than stat pack RB Bobby Rainey

Great game called by Marty. A one sided result for the visitors

Dallas 30 Denver 34                         40 0-5
The final game of the regular season had huge ramifications on the playoffs and both teams came into the game
with identical 10-5 records.

Denver started the scoring with a FG on their first possession but Dallas answered that with one of their own for a 3-3 tie.
The Broncos would score a TD on a 4 yard run from Kareem Hunt as the 1st quarter ended making it 10-3 after one quarter.

Dallas would come back and get another FG and then force Denver to punt.

The Cowboys then went 70 yards in 7 plays scoring aTD Cam newton hit TE Lewis from 37 yards out for the score. 13-10 Dallas.

The Broncos answered that big play with one of their own as Blake Bortles hit Tyreek Hill in stride for a 64 yard bomb regaining the lead
for the Broncos 17-13 to end the half.

To start the 2nd half Bortles would throw his first interception of the night giving the Cowboys great field position at their own 45.

The Broncos defense forced a 3 and out and a punt but Denver PR Tyreek Hill muffed the catch and the Cowboys had another great break covering the
fumbled punt at the Denver 15 yard line.
The Broncos defense once again was up to the task forcing Dallas to kick a FG after they lost 8 yards on the series but they did cut the score to 17-16.

The Broncos offense could not even musted a first down on their next series and Dallas got the ball back.
With the Denver defense starting to tire and leading tackler LB Luke Keuchly going out for the game with an injury the Cowboys offense started to gain some ,momentum.
Cam Newton moved the team 79 yards in 8 plays, hitting Kenny Stills from 16 yards out for the TD and after the McCoy run for PAT Dallas had taken the lead 24-17.

Denver's KR Desmond King took the ensuing kickoff 99 yards for the score and the game was tied again at 24 but the tired Denver defense had to head back on the field.
The Broncos defense was tired and the injuries were mounting as Dallas moved the ball into FG range and hit the FG to end the 3rd quarter with a 27-24 lead.

The Broncos were moving the ball a bit when Borltes threw his 2nd interception of the game, and their 3rd turnover of the game.
The Broncos would hold them to a FG and the Cowboys had a 30-24 lead with 12 minutes to go.

Denver's offense started to get going, aided by some Cowboys injuries on the defense. Bortles moved the team close enough for a FG to cut the lead to 3 points at 30-27
with 7:53 left to go.

Dallas gained a first down on their next possession but then had to punt the ball back to Denver with 3:00 minutes left to play.
On a 3rd down and 10 from their own 17 Bortles found McBride open down the sideline for a 20 yard gain and a first down.
After a short gain and a Denver holding penalty, Bortles hit WR Murphy for a 27 yard gain on 3rd and 17 and the Broncos had some life at the 2:00 warning.

After a personal foul on Dallas moved the ball to the Cowboys 30 yard line, Bortles hit RB Kareem Hunt for 11 yards and a first down at the Dallas 19 with 36 ticks left on the clock.
Bortles connected with WR Wheaton for 9 yards on an out pattern and then on 2nd and 1 hit hit him again for another 10 yards as he was knocked out just short of the goal line with 28 seconds left.

On first and goal from the 1 foot line, QB Blake Bortles would take in into the endzone himself on a sneak and after the PAT the Broncos had a 34-30 lead with 16 seconds left.
After a short kickoff return Newton scrambled for 5 and then his long desperation pass with 5 seconds remaining fell incomplete and the Broncos came away with the win.

It was a tough game, overcoming three turnovers and all the injuries and fatigue but we pulled together to get it done, said an excited Denver QB Blake Bortles.

Bortles threw for a season-high 357 yards with Hill receiving 172 of those yards.

The win gives the Broncos a home game next week in the playoffs.

San Francisco 20 Minnesota 34               68
The 49ers came to play in their final game against the Vikings, as running back Jordan Howard rushed for over 100 yards
in the first half alone to power the Niners to a 13-10 lead at the half. The second half, however, was all Drew Brees and the
Vikings, who outscored San Francisco 24-7 to make the final score 34-20 Vikes.

Brees got sentimental at the end, looking to send Jason Witten into a happy retirement. He did, hitting Witten for the last 2
of 3 touchdown passes. Witten led all receivers with 8 catches, netting 88 yards, and Rishard Matthews caught 7 passes for 105 yards. Brees
ended his season completing 25 of 34 passes for 285 yards.

Howard led the 49ers with 135 yards on 17 carries. Marshawn Lynch and Ezekiel Elliott combined for 140 yards on 32 carries.

The Niners finished at 3-13, while the Vikings finished 7-9.


Rushing Leaders
Gordon,M(Cin)   26-147 1 TD
Gurley II(TB)   23-144 1 TD
Miller,L(Atl)   19-143
Howard,J(SF)    17-135
Powell,B(Phi)   8-125 2 TD
Collins,A(Bal) 26-119
Murray,L(Ten)   13-114 1 TD
Darkwa(Jax)     21-102

Receiving Leaders
Brown,A(Buf)    25-184 1 TD
Hill,T(Den)      9-172 1 TD
Cooks(Mia)       4-152 2 TD
Hopkins,D(Ten)   7-115 3 TD – IFL Offensive Player of the Week
Thomas,De(Chi) 12-102

Passing Leaders
Stafford(Oak)   56-33-368   2 TD
Goff(Mia)       28-23-365   5 TD
Bortles(Den)    45-29-357   1 TD 2 Int
Wilson,R(Car)   39-24-318   2 Int
Ryan,M(Ten)     34-24-284   4 TD 1 Int
Smith,A(Buf)    51-39-271   2 TD 3 Int

Defensive Standouts
Love(KC)         3 Sk 7 Tk
Sherman,R(KC)    2 Int 6 Tk
Sendejo(Hou)     2 Int 4 Tk
Brown,A(Bal)     2 Int 2 Tk
Donald(Bal)      3 Sk 4 Tk
Johnson,D(Pit)   1 Int 23 Tk
Bouye(NO)        2 Int 4 Tk
Wise Jr.(Atl)    3 Sk 3 Tk – IFL Defensive Player of the Week

Special Teams
Dawson(Dal)    5-6 FG
King,D(Den)    5-222 Kick Ret 1 TD – IFL Special Teams Player of the Week

FINAL 2018 IFL STANDINGS

FINAL 2018 IFL LEAGUE LEADERS

RAVEN SCOTT'S PLAYOFF SCENARIOS FOR AFC HEADING INTO WEEK 16

Here's where the AFC teams stand now and what they'd need to make the playoffs (please correct me if you see any mistakes):

#1WC - Indy: beat Tennessee, they'd remain the #1WC
· If Indy loses to Tennessee, they could still earn the #1WC with a Denver loss.
· If Indy loses to Tennessee, they would finish with the #2WC if Denver beats Dallas.
#2WC - Denver: beat Dallas and they could finish as the #1WC with an Indy loss.
· If Indy beats Tennessee, they'd remain the #2WC.
· If Denver loses to Dallas, Denver could still make the playoffs if:
· Indy beats Tennessee and
· the Jets beat Baltimore
· Buffalo would lose out if they beat Pittsburgh due to Denver having a better in-conference record (8-4 vs 7-5).
#3WC - Tennessee: beat Indy and they're in.
· If Tennessee beats Indy and Denver wins, Tennessee would be the #3.
· If Tennessee beats Indy and Denver loses, Tennessee would be the #2, due to a better in-conference record (9-3 vs 8-4).
· If Tennessee loses, they could still be the #3 seed with a Jets victory over Baltimore and a Steelers win over Buffalo.
#4WC - Baltimore: beat the Jets and...
· If Dallas beats Denver and Indy beats Tennessee, they'd be the #2
· If Dallas beats Denver and Tennessee beats Indy, they'd be the #3, regardless of what Buffalo does due to a better in-conference record (8-4 vs 7-5 (if Buffalo beats Pittsburgh)).
· If Denver beats Dallas and Indy beats Tennessee, they'd be the #3, ditto what I said about Buffalo above
· If Denver beats Dallas and Tennessee beats Indy, the Ravens are out. So is Buffalo, even if they beat Pittsburgh - again due to Tennessee having a better in-conference record (9-3 vs 7-5).
#5WC - Buffalo: beat the Steelers and...
· have the Jets beat Baltimore, the Colts beat Tennessee
· If those two things happen, Indy would be the #1WC, Denver would be the #2 whether they win (11-5) or lose (10-6, but a better in-conference record than Buffalo - 8-4 vs 7-5) and Buffalo would slip in as the #3WC.

PACKER JOHN'S PLAYOFF SCENARIOS FOR NFC HEADING INTO WEEK 16

Saints-#1 seed home field throughout

Eagles- clinched playoff berth, wins NFC East with win versus Oakland OR
            Dallas loss to Denver

Dallas-clinched playoff berth, wins NFC East with win versus Denver and Eagles loss to Oakland

Green Bay- clinched NFC central and playoff berth

Tampa Bay- clinches wildcard berth with win versus Rams OR loss by Atlanta to Packers
                 (would win tiebreaker over ATL by virtue of better record in common games)

Atlanta- clinches wildcard berth with win over Packers OR loss by Carolina to Lions
             (would win tiebreaker over CAR by better division record)

Carolina-clinches wildcard berth with win over Lions AND a loss by either Atlanta or Tampa Bay
              OR loss to Lions AND win by Atlanta AND loss by Tampa Bay (would win tiebreaker over Bucs by virtue of better
               record in common games, Atlanta wins tiebreaker over Carolina based on better division record)

Detroit-eliminated (would lose tiebreaker to Bucs by virtue of inferior division record)

WEEK 15 RECAP

Ravens keep playoff hopes alive with the win over Cincinnati.

Game Scores
Cincinnati 7 Baltimore 20                   49 Calm
Like a haunting Edgar Allan Poe short story, Coach Storer's Bengals cast a spell over the Ravens that tormented Coach Master's Ravens for more than seven long years. Playing the Orange-and-Black striped helmets was getting to be like going for that exam guys get after they turn 50...twice a year! Sometimes the games were close - Cincinnati won by just 1 point in 2011 and 2014 and just 3 in 2012 - but most years the games were rather lopsided. Earlier this year, the Bengals embarrassed the Ravens, 42-17, the Ravens worst loss since well...we've had a lot of bad losses since I joined the league. But ever optimistic, Coach Master thought "this...is the time. This is...our time. This time...is the RAVENS time!" And well...it was, but I'm not sure how it happened. I'll try to explain.

The Ravens won the toss and elected to put their now-healthy defense on the field against a Bengals offense that would be resting Aaron Rodgers. The strategy worked as Baltimore forced a 4-and-out (they gained 11 on their first play, but then went 3-and-out). Michael Campanero returned the punt 16 yards to give the Ravens good field position at their own 40. Le'Veon Bell ran for 14 on their first play from scrimmage despite being keyed...but then limped off the field to return again nevermore, nevermore. The foggy pall from that EAP story was nestling around the Ravens neck after they were hit with a delay of game penalty when they couldn't find their handkerchief to wipe away the moisture from their eyes. Alex Collins was dropped for a 1 yard loss on the next play, but did carry for 7 on 2nd down. Faced with a 3rd-and-9, Coach Master gave Eli the wink to throw downfield, but Dante Fowler Junior said "not so fast" and sacked Eli for -13. Ugh. It was looking like that same sad story again.

Baltimore pinned the Bengals to their own 4 on the punt, but Carson Palmer and Melvin Gordon led them out to midfield in eight plays. From there though, the zebras said "enough is enough. you can keep abusing the Ravens like this" and called consecutive holding penalties and iced those with a delay penalty as Coach Storer pleaded with the refs for fairness. A field boom mic caught him saying "I'm am the Commissioner you know". Pushed back to their own 25 and facing a 4th-and-27, Cincinnati punted, where Campanero fielded the ball at his own 22...and it wasn't even close...after a "he's got room" it was "he's gone...30...20...10...TD". Matt Bryant's PAT made it 7-0 Baltimore.

After four punts (two by each team), Baltimore's Rigoberto Sanchez again pinned the Bengals to their own 4. A 12-yard Melvin Gordon run gave them some breathing room, but a Barksdale penalty (his 4th just a quarter-and-a-half into the game!) set them back to their 8. Brett Hundley, substituting for Palmer, dropped back to pass on first down, but DT Leonard Williams flushed him out of the pocket. Trying to dump the ball to Gordon, S Keanu Neal jumped in front a snared it, returning the ball to the 1 yard line. Manning took it in himself. 14-0 Baltimore.

The teams again exchanged 4 punts before Palmer led the Bengals down to the Raven 34 (their first foray into Raven territory) with 1:17 left in the half. Palmer hit Delaney Walker on a check-down and Earl Thomas smacked him so hard he dropped the ball...and the Ravens' Matt Judon recovered. End of threat. Start of third quarter.

Baltimore, sensing they had to shorten the game so that Cincinnati would have limited chances (and time) to mount a comeback, came out of the locker room in slo-motion. Besides taking 10 minutes just to get to the sidelines, they also took 10:11 off the clock as they methodically marched to the Bengals 24 and watched Matt Bryant boot a 42-yard FG. 17-0 Baltimore.

Cincinnati countered with a drive the used the remaining 3rd quarter time and Palmer hit Devin Funchess from 12-yards out on the first play of the 4th quarter to pull Cincinnati closer. 17-7 Baltimore.

The Ravens went 3-and-out on the ensuing possession, then punted to the Bengals, who started at their own 21...and went backwards thanks to a -10 yard sack by Joey Bosa, a fumbled snap by Brian Hoyer and a -7 yard sack by Matt Judon. If you weren't counting, that's -20 yards, which put the Bengals on their own 1 yard line, where they punted.

The Ravens started at mid-field and only gained 22 yards, but that was close enough for Matt Bryant to kick a 47-yard FG. Baltimore 20-7.

Two penalties throttled the Bengals next possession and they punted again. Still in slow-down mode, Baltimore was finding it difficult to get anywhere so on 3rd-and-4 decided to give it a shot downfield. With three blockers providing maximum protection, Manning found Adam Thielen streaking down the sideline for a 42-yard gain. Three run plays gained just 8 yards, but more importantly, took another 90 seconds off the clock. Matt Bryant lined up for a 36-yard FG that would put the Ravens up by 16...and he missed.

With just 5:29 left, the Bengals had a chance. Led by Hoyer, they swiftly moved down to the Ravens 7. A poor snap lost 4 yards and two incomplete passes put Cincinnati on the brink - 4th down from the 11 with 2:03 left. Hoyer drops back...finds Funchess at the goal line...but Anthony Brown pulls him down before he could stretch the ball across the goal line. Ravens take over at the one.

The Bengals would get the ball back one more time, but needing two scores and starting on their own 32 with just 1:19 on the clock, the writing was on the wall. The Ravens had broken the spell. FINAL SCORE: BALTIMORE 20, CINCINNATI 7.

Looking at the numbers, you'd think this one was a Bengal win. Three Bengal QBs totaled 253 yards passing. Melvin Gordon rushed for 105 yards. Funchess (7/68) and Alshon Jeffrey (5/68) caught more passes than Eli Manning completed (10). The Bengals outgained the Ravens (333 to 217) and earned nearly twice as many first downs (20 to 11). Somehow, the Ravens came out on top.

Going into the final week of the season, Cincinnati (13-2) looks like a solid #2 seed. They'll host a rebuilding New England squad (2-11-1).

The Ravens (9-6) might be on the outside of the playoff picture, looking in at everyone else having fun. Even taking on the hapless Jets (1-13) on the road, it'll be difficult to get a ticket to the party. Though Buffalo's loss to the Buccaneers briefly put the Ravens in the #3 Wild Card slot, the Titans win over Jacksonville nudges Tennessee back in. Baltimore fans will certainly be pulling for the blue-and-white horseshoe next week and maybe even the black-and-gold worn by their arch rival.

Buffalo 6 Tampa Bay 29                      74 0-10
The 9 and 5 Buffalo Bills traveled to Tampa Bay to take on the 8 and 6 Buccaneers.

Buffalo started the game with the ball. Both teams completed 11 play drives on their first possessions, however, the results were two successful field goals.

The Bills second possession had the Buc defense wearing out early in the game. Alex Smith lead his team down the field with a mix of short passes and runs by Devonte Freeman and Stevan Ridley. Buffalo maintained the ball for a whopping 17 plays and 10:57 of clock. In the end though, the Tampa defense bent but didn’t break. A second Graham Gano FG put the Bills up 6 – 3.

On the next possession, Tampa’s Derek Carr gets going and did so deep. Three consecutive pass completions of 20 plus yards ends with a Buc TD on a 25 yard hook up with Tyler Lockett. Chris Boswell hooks the extra point to leave the score at Tampa 9 and Buffalo 6.

Once again Buffalo begins slowly marching down the field Alex Smith style, but disaster strikes when Freeman is stripped of the ball by Tyrann Mathieu and Antoine Bethea scoops and scores from 77 yards out to change the score to 16 to 6 Tampa’s lead. At this point the Bills had run 37 plays to Tampa’s 19. Before the half Tampa tacked on a FG to send the teams to the locker room with a 19 to 6 score.

Four different Buc defensive down linemen were able to get to Smith for 5 sacks during the first 4 Buffalo possessions of the second half. Each time Bills punter Matt Haack was needed. The Bucs were not fairing much better during this stretch, but did manage a FG to stretch the lead to 22 – 6.

The many relocated Bills fans in attendance get back into the game with 7:20 left when Nigel Bradham deflected a pass intended for Todd Gurley into the air and, after a challenge, it is confirmed Sean Lee got his hands under the ball to secure the interception at mid-field. The possession ended too soon for Buffalo who came up short on 4th and 3 yards to go when Adrian Clayborn dragged down Smith for a 2 yard loss on a QB keeper off a RPO. Tampa adds a Gurley TD to wrap up the scoring at 29 – 6.

Individual stars of the game were Buffalo’s Brandon LaFell with 10 catches, albeit for 69 yards. Tampa’s Devante Adams hauled in 7 passes for 118 yards. Buc Mathieu was a defensive star credited with 13 tackles and the forced fumble leading to a game changing TD.

Next week Tampa travels to Los Angeles to play the Rams and Buffalo hosts Pittsburgh. Playoff implications abound for both contests.

Indianapolis 17 Miami 24                    66 Calm
Indy came to town hoping to avenge a 52-14 loss in week 6, and they came ready to play.

After Miami fizzled with their opening drive, Indy took their opening drive straight down the field for the TD and the 7-0 lead. Miami answered with their 2nd possession to tie the score at 7. Indy's next drive stalled and Miami drove down to the Indy 10 but stalled and had to settle for the FG and a 10-7 lead. After a exchange of punts the Colts got it going again but their drive also stalled at the Dolphin 14 and they kick the FG to tie it at 10, and that's the way it would go into halftime.

The Colts opening drive of quarter 3 goes nowhere and the Dolphins waste little time in scoring the go ahead TD to take the 17-10 lead. Indy was undeterred, they take their next possession straight down the field and tie the score at 17 all. It goes to the 4th quarter tied at 17. Miami takes its 1st possession of the 4th quarter and pushes it down the field and scores the go ahead TD with 7:34 left to take the 24-17 lead. The Colts would get the ball with 7:29 left in the game and drive it down to the Dolphin 11 yard line before a penalty would push them back to the 21 with 56 seconds to go, but they would get no closer than the 14 yard line and turn the ball over on downs and Miami would run off the remaining seconds and secure the win. GM and Coach Ken was very focused and called a great game on both sides of the ball and could have easily come out of Miami with the win, but for now, Miami's magic continues to hold with the hopes of a undefeated Season. It all comes down to next week.

Miami finishes at home against Jacksonville and the Colts host the Titans

New York (N) 17 Arizona 24                  79 Calm
The Arizona Cardinals have a new name. Fans now call them the Giant Slayers after their second win over the New York Giants. Arizona would stage an amazing come from behind victory to snub the Giants 24 to 17. The Giant defense certainly played like Giants, slow and lumbering. In the end they were no match for the Breida-Johnson tandem.

Zona would take the lead on the opening kick off as they drove the length of the field but came up short on a 3rd and 14 and were forced to settle for FG to lead 3-0. The Giant defensive coordinator seemed half asleep as he failed to adjust to situational defense as he relied on his Giants.

With Wentz banged up for the game, the Giants appeared inept in their first series. However, during their second series they found some life. Starting with excellent field position and aided by a key Zona penalty which resulted in a Giants first down, they were able to connect on a couple of pass plays to take the lead 7-3.

After failed series by both teams, McCarron put his best foot forward to lose the game as he has done all season long. On a second and 14 McCarron dropped back the pass and then appeared to hand the ball off to Davison of the Giants. Some suspect McCarron had money on the Giants but most just think he is a moron. In any event, even the lead footed Giants can make it to the end zone when they have an 11 yard head start to the goal line. The Giants took the lead 14-3 and the home town crowd began to feel hopeless.

Late in the third quarter with Wentz out, the Giants went to the run. They pounded the Zona line as the Cards called their best run defenses. Somehow, the Giants scrapped enough for a few first downs and were able to add another 3 points to go up 17-3. It was feeling hopeless for Zona.

However, Zona found the light. With 2:32 left in the half Zona would get the ball on their 25 yard line. McCarron put Duke Johnson to work in the hurry up. Play after play Johnson was target and showed up for big plays. Zona move to their 38 yard line on a Johnson catch. Rinse and repeat, Zona moved to the Giants 43 yard line on another key reception. With 31 seconds left McCarron found Brown on an out pattern to save a time out. Then he hit Johnson for 5 yards and then Johnson again for 17 yards and TD with 11 seconds left to play. The Giants were dumbfounded as the defensive coordinator had no idea how to defend Johnson.

Truth be told, the real Giants never returned to the field. They were dazed, confused and played with a lack of motivation in the second half. The Giants would fail to achieve a first down after three failed running attempts. Arizona called upon their second star of the game Matt Breida. Breida dodged the slow motion lead footed Giants just like the old Frogger Game. He slashed right and then left to add yards and move the chains. Shula always took what the defense would give him and so did Arizona. The Giants defense simply had no idea how to stop a running play. Breida took a pitch right and literally side step two Mountain Men and then hurdled the safety to launch himself into the end zone to tie the game. Breida is a star being born.

However, it was Jaron Brown who would finally put the Giants out of their misery. Brown took a pass over the middle and showed he could also dodge and slash the lead footed Giants. He took the pass 85 yards for the go ahead score and Zona would own the Giants.

The Zona Giant Slayers win their second game 24 to 17.

Dallas 14 Philadelphia 31                   42 0-5
A standing room only crowd would gather in Philadelphia in anticipation of the battle between the 2 teams atop the NFC East, the 10-4 Dallas Cowboys and the 10-4 Philadelphia Eagles. The Cowboys had taken the first game in Dallas by throttling the Eagles 23-7 so the sellout crowd was hopeful that the hometown Eagles could exact some revenge, even the series and take a one-game lead in the division.

The first quarter would be a see-saw battle with both teams moving the ball. The Eagles would score first late in the quarter on an 80 yard 8 play drive culminated by a 26 yard TD pass from QB Jameis Winston to WR Mohamed Sanu. Eagles up 7-0 after the first.

The beginning of the 2nd quarter would see the Cowboys mount a drive of their own. They would take 6:15 off the clock by going 67 yards on 15 plays with QB Ryan Fitzpatrick taking it in from the 6-yard line. Tied at 7. On the ensuing kickoff and drive, the Eagles would begin driving again. However, Winston would make a critical mistake. On 2nd and 10 from their own 40, he would attempt to hit WR Deonte Thompson on a fly pattern. Cowboy CB Robert McClain was sitting on the route, jumped it and took the ball 56 yards for a pick 6! Cowboys up 14-7. The teams would trade punts before the Cowboys would get it back late in the quarter. They would move the ball into Eagle territory and with just over 4 minutes left in the half, they would take a gamble by going for it on 4th and 2. The Eagle defense would rise to the occasion and drop RB J.D. McKissic for a 1-yard loss. The Eagle offense would not waste the opportunity. They would drive 53 yards on 8 plays with Winston once again hitting Sanu for a game-tying TD. 14-14 at the half

The 2nd half would belong to the Eagles. They would take the opening kickoff and get a Harrison Butker 52 yard FG to take a 17-14 lead. On the ensuing drive, the Cowboys would drive all the way to the Eagles 5 yard line. On 4th and 2 from the 5, Cowboy coach Steve Hart would gamble by going for the TD instead of the game-tying FG. The Eagle defense would rise to the occasion again as they would knock down a Fitzpatrick pass. The Eagle offense would take over the game. They would take 7 minutes off the clock by driving 95 yards on 12 plays. Winston would sneak it in from the 1-foot line and the Eagles would go up by 10, 24-14. After the Cowboys punted on the following possession, the Eagles would mount another long drive. This time it was 12 plays covering 92 yards with RB Bilal Powell (20 att 134 yards) scoring the final TD of the day. Final score: Eagles 31 Cowboys 14

The Eagles now take a 1 game lead into the final week. An Eagle win against the AFC West-leading Raiders will give the Eagles the NFC East title. If the Eagles stumble and the Cowboys are able to defeat the Denver Broncos, the Cowboys will take the East by virtue of a better division record.

Los Angeles (A) 13 Houston 21               70
Texan quarterback Kirk Cousins throws two second half touchdowns to Jimmy Graham to defeat the Chargers.

New England 10 New York (A) 0               33 10-20
New England throws a shutout at the Jets.

  Tennessee 20 Jacksonville 13                72 10-20
The resurgent Titans come to Jacksonville looking to extend it`s play-off hopes while Jags look to play spoiler. The result was somewhat predictable as Matty Ryan shredded a depleted Jacksonville secondary for 370 yards and 2tds. The main benefactor to Ryan`s largess was Odell Beckham who torched Tre`Davious White for 9 catches and 155 yards.

While Cutler played well, some of the Jacksonville ``skilled`` players looked awfully fatigued throughout the game thus slowing offensive progress. Allan Hurns continued his strong play with 7 receptions for 115 yards. Darkwa played well in the loss with 103 yards and 1 td.

The Titans play-off hopes are on the line next week vs a strong Indy team while the Jags look to ruin Miami`s prefect season......I don`t like the Jags chances but that is why we play the games!

Minnesota 10 Detroit 37                     70
In week 12 the Vikings had their way with the Lions 33-7, now just a few weeks later the Lions had their way with the Vikes.

The game was tied early in the 2nd at 10 when Detroits All-Pro left tackle Bakhtiari & half back Fournette go down for the game. Things were not looking well for the home squad.

After that point on, Minnesota began getting caught holding many a time and began turning the ball over. Their kicking gave also got involved with a nice 9 yard punt. The kickoff team not to be out done, when Smith-Schuster returned a KO from the 1 for 2 yards to the 3. This stuff just kept happening.

Kessler threw for & 3 TD's, all to game MVP Michael Thomas & I believe he was double covered for all 3.

Terrance West came in for Fournette & went off for 77 yards on 10 carries.

Lion CB Trumaine Johnson had his 7th int for the season & takes it to the house for the 2nd time this season. He added 6 tackles.

Brees had a bit of an off game throwing 2 ints with a 78 rating. The Minny running game was just a half step slow in this one.

Next week the Vikings finish out the year hosting SF. Lions will host the Panthers.

Kansas City 17 Washington 13                51 5-15
Washington's comeback attempt falls short as the Chiefs outlast the Redskins in a close game.

New Orleans 20 Atlanta 22                   68
Atlanta hosted New Orleans with their season on the line. It didn't start out well for the Falcons as the Saints jumped out to a 14-3 lead on 2 Flacco TD passes to Cole Beasley and Dez Bryant.

Atlanta started their comeback with a drive at the end of third and completed it with a 14 yard TD pass from Josh McCown to Larry Fitzgerald. After a failed 2 point attempt, the Saints still led 14-9 early in the 4th.

On the ensuing kickoff, the Falcons tried an onside kick. There was a scramble for the ball and Demonte Kazee recovered it for the Falcons. Then Josh McCown hit Nelson Agholor on a 41 yard TD to give the Falcons their first lead of the game at 16-14. After a 3 and out by the Saints, the Falcons extended their lead to 19-14 with Kai Forbath 50 yard FG with 6:43 left in the game.

The Falcons were hoping to protect the 5 point lead but it wasn't to be. After a bomb for 42 yards to Dez Bryant, Flacco found Cole Beasley in the end zone for a 19 yard TD pass to give the Saints a 20-19 lead, after missing the 2 point conversion, with 3:52 left in the game.

Bray returned the kickoff to the 33 yard line to set up the Falcons. With the a mix of run and pass, the Falcons drove down to the 27 yard line to set up a possible 44 yard FG attempt. Expecting the Saints to look for a run on 3rd and 3, the Falcons went with a play action pass. McCown went through his reads, saw Zach Ertz open over the middle but, just as he was about to throw the pass, Jelani Jenkins sacked him for a 6 yard loss with 1:04 left and the clock running. The Falcons ran down the clock to 0:25 left and then put their season on the right leg of Kai Forbath and his 51 yard FG attempt. Snap...hold...spin the laces away and the kick was up. It was long enough and good to give the Falcons a 22-20 lead with 0:18 left in the game.

The Saints downed the ensuing kickoff in the end zone and took over at the 20 with 0:09 left. Flacco attempted a bomb to Dez Bryant but Dominique Rogers Cromartie knocked it away. The Falcons held on for the 22-20 to keep their playoff hopes alive.

Despite taking some big sacks, Josh McCown made enough big plays to lead the Falcons to victory and was named game MVP with 278 yards passing, 2 TDs and no INTs.

With the win, the Falcons go to 9-6 and will likely have their playoff chances in their own hands. The Saints fall to 13-2 but have everything clinched...best record in the NFC, the bye and HFA throughout the NFC playoffs.

Pittsburgh 14 Los Angeles (N) 23            66 Calm
Rams notch their 7th win of the season in Los Angeles. In a bizarre bit of gamesmanship by the Rams, the game kicked off roughly 1 hour late. The Steelers were on time the fans were on time, but the Rams did not show up to the game. Rams ultimately did get to the stadium. Their tactics may have led to a win in the short term, but there could be long term consequences for the Rams including a fine by the league. Some of the Steelers players in post game interviews speculated they were fatigued from waiting around and having the extra warm up time. Nonetheless the Steelers put up a tough fight, particularly Rob Gronkowski who got revenge on his old team to the tune of 129 receiving yards and a touchdown. At halftime the game was tight, Pittsburgh had managed to hold LA out of the end zone leaving the halftime score 9-7, Rams in the lead. Pittsburgh's 1st drive of the second half had an excellent mix of run/pass ending in a Brady to Gronkowski touchdown from 20 yards out. The Rams managed to answer with a 12 play drive. On a 2nd and 10 Pittsburgh guessed right with a double team of Rams WR TY Hilton, but Hilton, not known for his size, still managed to come down with the ball for a 20 yard TD. Rams convert a 2 point conversion, 17-14 Rams. In the 4th quarter fatigue really set in, Steelers WRs could not raise their hands to catch passes. Brady was frustrated. Gronk persevered, but his gains were significantly reduced. Ultimately the Rams would add two more field goals to put the game out of reach.

Steelers Stars:
Rob Gronkowski 11 catches 129 yards 1 Touchdown

Rams Stars:
Lady luck, Rams fumbled 3 times, recovered each one.
Refs, timely PI calls continued two Rams scoring drives

Next week the Rams host the Buccaneers while the Steelers close out their season in Buffalo.

Green Bay 37 Chicago 3                      25 15-25
Green Bay traveled to Chicago looking to avenge a 23-20 home loss to the Bears in week 12. The Packers defense dominated this one, with 5 turnovers ending any Bears hope of another upset. Two of the Chicago turnovers were fumbles late in the 4th quarter returned for touchdowns.

Green Bay 37 Chicago 3

Roethlisberger was solid for the Packers – 19/28/165 and 2 TD (both to Watson). Marvin Jones was the lone bright spot for the Bears, catching 7 passes for 131.

Denver 19 Oakland 15                        56 0-5
Justin Tucker kicked two fourth quarter field goals as the Broncos rally to beat the Raiders.

Carolina 39 San Francisco 14                42 20-30
It was only a game in the first quarter but when 49ers Trubiskey went
done for the game and Russell Wilson got hot, it was all over.

Rushing Leaders
Ingram,M(Mia)   14-138
Powell,B(Phi)   20-134 1 TD
Crowell(Ind)    18-107
Gordon,M(Cin)   18-105
Darkwa(Jax)     17-103 1 TD
Breida(Ari)     20-102 1 TD

Receiving Leaders
Beckham Jr(Ten) 9-155
Goodwin,M(Car)   7-154 2 TD – IFL Offensive Player of the Week
Diggs,S(SF)      7-152 1 TD
Brown,Ja(Ari)    8-150 1 TD
Jones,J(LAC)    12-148 2 TD
Gronkowski(Pit) 11-129 2 TD
Kamara(Oak)     11- 83
LaFell(Buf)     10- 69
Thomas,M(Det)    4- 54 3 TD

Passing Leaders
Ryan,M(Ten)     39-30-370   2 TD 1 Int
Winston,J(Phi) 34-24-325   2 TD 1 Int

Defensive Standouts
Jones,D(NYJ)     15 Tk
Barron(Bal) 8 Tk, 1 Sk, 3 Def – IFL Defensive Player of the Week

Special Teams
Campanaro(Bal) 4-127 Punt Ret 1 TD
Succop(LAR)    5-5 FG – IFL Special Teams Player of the Week
Tucker,J(Den) 4-4 FG

WEEK 15 IFL STANDINGS

WEEK 15 IFL LEAGUE LEADERS

WEEK 14 RECAP

With the number one defense in the IFL, the Saints claim the number one seed in the NFC.

Game Scores
Tampa Bay 7 New Orleans 14                  70
A low scoring affair in New Orleans as the Saints would muster together a 14-0 lead going into halftime. The first TD was a Flacco dump off to the FB Adams from 6 yards out and the 2nd TD was a 2 yard Jonathan Stewart plunge. Todd Gurley would score from 5 yards out for the only Tampa score of the day. The Saints were again led by their #1 defense holding Tampa to 246 yards on the day. Tampa's D was also stingy holding the Saints to 260 yards.

Detroit 23 San Francisco 13                 54 0-10
In a game dominated by errors, Detroit topped SF 23-13. Detroit's Kessler had 3 intercepted passes in his side of the fileld, but 2 resulted in missed FGs. The most killing break happened when the SF KR
Cunningham fumbled on his on 3 yard line in the 4th qtr and resulted in the TD that put Detroit in front for good. Detroit's Fournette rushed for over 125 yards. Congrats to Steve as he brings his team back to .500
at 7-7. 49ers fell to 3-11.

Houston 17 Arizona 15                       73 Calm
Oddly, Arizona fans were somewhat optimistic with Houston coming to town. While has been an embarrassing season for the Cardinal there were a number of very close games. Zona had lost twice to division leading Dallas, only by one point each time. Then the Cards had risen to the occasion to defeat the Giants. And perhaps even more surprisingly, Zona challenged New Orleans and an upset was nearly in their grasp.

So with mediocre Houston playing in the desert, there seemed to be hope to finish strong and get a head start on next season. With the newly acquired Duke Johnson and the diamond in the rough running back Matt Breida, there was new found light amidst an unusually dark season for Arizona.

The game began as many games had played out this season for the Cards. McCarron was ineffective and Duke could not find the holes in the Houston D. Nevertheless, the Zona D was giving as much as the Zona offense was receiving. Neither team could move the ball and field position ebbed and flowed with each punt.

Then as regular as spring rains, McCarron tossed a standard wounded duck pigskin in the hands of Hilton who retuned it 40 yards for a pick six.

The Cardinal D would continue to stand tall stopping Houston at ever turn but the offense could only generate two field goals. Yet, the Red D kept Arizona in the game as they entered the second half down by only one. The Zona D would prove ineffective in preventing the offense from self destructing. Early in the 3rd quarter, McCarron would find another Houston defender to throw the pigskin too. And two plays later, it was 14-6 Houston.

The Cardinal coaching staff fearful of McCarron turned the game plan over to Matt Breida. And Breida rose to the occasion. Cutting and slashing, he earned 3 first downs and moved the Cardinals into Houston territory. Breida needed some oxygen and Duke took over but was stopped. However the drive ultimately failed.

Houston would take over and capped their first long drive with a FG which was the first points they actually earned in the game making it 17-6. Zona would add another field goal before showing new life. Arizona would march 80 yards to score a TD and close within 2 points. The Cards would immediately line up for the two point conversion, but Duke would be stopped short. With only 13 seconds left, the game would be won by Houston.

New York (N) 0 Los Angeles (A) 23           78 Calm
Julio Jones catches two TD passes as Chargers shutout the “G” Men.

Buffalo 7 Cincinnati 31                     40 0-10
The Bills visited the Bengals but before the game received bad news. Devonta Freeman, listed as questionable all week, was ruled a no-go just before game time. The news got worse for the Bills as T.J. Yeldon was knocked out of the game and possibly all of the postseason on his first carry. After forcing a Buffalo punt, Delanie Walker fumbled giving Buffalo the ball at the Cincinnati 35. The Bengals forced a Bills field goal which Gano converted, 3-0 Buffalo. BUT WAIT, Cincinnati was offside and the Bills decided to take the points off the board and continue the drive. Well, the drive lasted one play as Bengal safety Hyde intercepted on the very next play. This time Cincinnati was able to complete the 13 play drive as Rodgers connected with Funchess from 11 yards out for a 7-0 lead.

In the second quarter Buffalo gambled at their own 38 on fourth and one but Ridley was stuffed and the Bengals took over. After a couple explosive runs by Gordon, Rodgers found Walker for the two yard score and the Bengals led 14-0. The Bills offense finally got rolling as Ridley gained positive yards on the ground and Buffalo QB Alex Smith scampered for 21 yards. Once again the Bills were facing fourth down and goal from the Cincinnati four. This time Smith hit Brown and cut the Cincinnati lead to 14-7. With about 1:45 remaining in the half, Cincinnati moved into long field goal position and Fairbairn drilled it through from 54 yards out, 17-7 Cincinnati. The Bengal defense forced a Buffalo punt with 1:15 remaining. Returner Clay took it to the house from 68 yards out and a 24-7 Bengal lead at the half.

The Bengals closed out the scoring in the third quarter as Walker caught another touchdown pass; this time from Palmer for the 31-7 final.

Smith finished 16 of 28 for 119 yards with a TD and 2 INTs. Ridley rushed for 48 yards on 11 carries. A.B. was held to four receptions for 24 yards but did have a score.

Rodgers completed 16 of 18 for 118 yards and 2 TDs. Gordon rushed for 93 yards on 15 attempts. The Cincinnati defense collected two sacks and two interceptions.

Next week, Buffalo has another tough road game at Tampa Bay while Cincinnati faces a young and talented Baltimore squad with visions of postseason hopes.

Miami 40 Baltimore 20                       31 Calm
The Ravens gave it the best they had, but it wasn't half good enough and the visiting Dolphins rolled into town as 9 point favorites and just churned up and spit out a couple Raven legs on their way to a 40-20 victory that keeps their hopes for an undefeated season alive.

Jared Goff was basically unstoppable, throwing two TD passes to Ted Ginn Jr (32 and 53 yards) and one each to Doug Baldwin (7 yards) and Andre Ellington (9 yards). Goff completed 24-of-34 pass attempts for 350 yards - which easily could have been 500 had Coach Tony not leaned heavily on the run game in the 3rd and 4th quarters.

After the Ravens won the toss and deferred, the Baltimore D held the Dolphins to a 3-and-out, that amazingly included two Goff incomplete passes. The Ravens took eight plays to march into Dolphins territory, but the drive stalled at the 48. A reasonably successful (for the Ravens) first trade of punches. Unfortunately, they were about to get a taste of how quickly the Dolphins offense can move. Starting at their own 14, Goff hit Baldwin for 15, Ingram ran for 4 and 3, before Goff hit Ginn for 10, Cooks for 22 and Ginn again for 32 and 6 points. Miami 7-0.

Hindered by two penalties, Baltimore had to punt and Miami started at their own 28. After an incomplete pass to Keelan Cole, Goff went back to Cole for 17. Aaron Donald sacked Goff for -10, but undeterred, Goff hit Ingram for 11, Baldwin for 14 and Miller for 22 before the quarter ran out. The Dolphins started the 2nd with two Ingram runs (9 and 2 yards) and Goff hit Baldwin from 7 out for a 14-0 Miami lead. In case you weren't counting, Goff went 7-for-9 for 150 yards in the two series.

Baltimore responded with a 14-play, 90 yard drive that saw Alex Collins punch it in from the inch-line and Baltimore was within a single score with just 5 minutes left in the half. Miami 14-7.

In probably the most amazing sequence of plays in the game, Goff threw THREE INCOMPLETE PASSES IN A ROW on the Dolphins next possession. Feeling good, the Ravens thought they might be able to tie the game up before half-time and the receive the 2nd half kick, but those hopes were quickly dashed as Miami forced a 3-and-out and Goff started working his magic. The drive started innocently enough with two Ingram rushes for 9.99 yards. On third-and-inches Goff plunged ahead for the first down then threw strike after strike after strike after strike after strike after strike (yeah...6 strikes) for 16, 11, 19, 8, 13 and 9 yards (72 total yards). That last one being a scoring toss to Ellington just before the half. Kicker Matt Prater was so stunned by the Goff efficiency he forgot to put on his kicking shoe and attempted the PAT barefooted, only to miss by inches. Miami 20-7 at the half.

Upon receiving the 2nd half kick, the Dolphins generously gave the Ravens 5 yards on an encroachment penalty and Le'Veon Bell carried for 4. Given a 2nd-and-1 Coach Master thought this might be a good time to take a shot downfield and Eli Manning hooked up with AJ Green for 35. Figuring "what have we got to lose", Coach Master called for another bomb and Manning hit Adam Thielen streaking down the sideline for 28-yard score. Miami 20-14. A glimmer of hope for the Raven faithful?

With the Dolphins lead cut to 6 just 2 minutes into the 3rd quarter, Miami turned to their ground game to pound the Ravens into submission. Ingram ran for 3 before Goff hit Baldwin for 8 and a 1st down. Ingram then ran for 4, 3 and 2.99, leaving the ball inches short of another 1st down at their own 46. Coach Tony "gambled' and facing a 6-3 stacked defense nosing in and keying on Ingram, Ingram casually went over the top, earning enough for the 1st down. Goff then threw two incompletions in a row (gasp!) and the Ravens were eager to get the ball back. Goff had other plans and hit Ginn on a medium cross, then shook off three defenders on his way to the endzone and a 27-14 Miami lead. That glimmer just dimmed considerably.

Baltimore would go 3-and-out on their next possession and Miami would score again on an 9-play, 75-yard drive. Miami 34-14. The glimmer was just about extinguished.

With the hopes of the Ravens resting on Eli Manning's slouching shoulders, he would lead his teammates into Miami territory...then inevitably thrown an INT. Eric Weddle returned it 32 yards and three plays later, Matt Prater would extend the Dolphins lead, 37-14 with a 43-yard FG. The whiff of smoke was all hope disappearing.

The teams traded punts and the Ravens started at their own 12 yard line, down by 23 with 7:22 left. Manning missed on his first pass and Bell ran for 14 before Manning hit 5 straight passes (!), the last one being a 38-yarder to Thielen, cutting the Dolphin lead to 37-20 after the two-point conversion failed.

After recovering the onside kick, Miami didn't have to go far to give Prater another chance. Six plays and 29 yards later, Prater kicked a 36-yard FG to complete the scoring. Miami 40, Baltimore 20.

The Purple-and-Black gave it a valiant effort, but the Teal-and-Orange Machine was just too much.

Next week, Miami looks to keep its record unblemished with a home game against the playoff hopeful Indianapolis Colts (9-3-1 at the time of this writing). Baltimore somehow drew the #1 and #2 best teams in the AFC (in the IFL maybe?) in weeks 14 and 15 and hopes to keep their playoff hopes alive against 12-1 Cincinnati.

Chicago 17 Carolina 20                      72 Calm
Carolina host Chicago and hopes to keep their playoff hopes alive.

Chicago opens the scoring mid way into the 2nd as Garoppolo, filling in for Mariotta who was injured earlier in the game, finds Jones Jr. with a 24 yards pass for the TD. Carolina answers shortly afterwards with a one yard run by Russell Wilson to knot the score at 7 all. Chicago would add a field goal at the end of the quarter to take the 10-7 lead into half time.

Chicago's defense holds Carolina down in the 3rd as they try to make up for multiple key injuries occurring on Chicago's offense in the game. With 9:33 left in the game, Chicago's D looks to have accomplished it's mission as Bobby Wagner scoops up a fumble and runs it into the end zone giving the Bears a 17-7 lead.

Lambo is able to draw the Panther a little closer with a 39 yard field goal with 5:37 remaining. Russell Wilson then hit Mike Evans on a 20 yard pass for the score to knot the game up at 17 with 1:43 remaining. Jimmy Garoppolo tries to drive the Bears down the field to secure the win, but throws an interception deep in their own half. Carolina runs a couple of dives and kicks a field goal to take the 20-17 lead with 31 seconds remaining. Chicago fumbles the ensuing kick off and Carolina recovers to ice the game.

Chicago deserved better and controlled the game for large stretches. A furious final 5 minutes allow Carolina to steal the win.

Philadelphia 27 Kansas City 16              39 15-25
Eagles convert two fourth quarter field goals to down the Chiefs.

New York (A) 13 Pittsburgh 19               35 0-10 Rain
The 1-12 Jets come to town and New Steelers boss Coach Alberry is hoping for his first win in his new gig after losing 2 on the road quite handily. With 35 degree weather and Rain coming down Pittsburgh Faithful come to see the new coach for the only time this year. Steelers open the game as a 6 point favorite. The Jets come into Pittsburgh having played a good Buc squad down in Tampa last week and only lost on a last minute field goal so they were feeling good about there chances.

1st Quarter
The Jets win the toss and elect to receive. Rookie Deshaun Watson leads them down the field but the drive Stalls at the Pittsburgh 12 yard line so they settle for a 30 yard Hopkins Field Goal. Jets 3 Steelers 0 11:24.
After the Steelers punt the ball Watson Gets picked By Adam Jones who takes it down to the Jets 9 yard line. Inexplicably Brady and Coach Alberry could not get a play off in time and take a 5 yard penalty. The Crowd is not impressed . It gets worse after 2 plays that net 0 yards Brady gets picked on the 3rd play by the Jets Deion Jones LB and he makes like Deion Sanders and takes off for a 25 yard pick return. As we are not even out of the 1st quarter and the boo birds are out.

2nd Quarter
The Jets do take advantage sorta. 16 plays 54 yards 8:36 off the clock the Jets get another field Goal this time 33 yards out . The key play was a 4th and 6 encroachment penalty making it 4th and 1 on the Steelers 31 . The Jets go for it and make it but the drive still stalls on the 15. Jets 6 Steelers 0 Time 11:03

Brady finally heats up late in the 2nd and connects with Wright on a 12 yard pass and the Steelers take the lead on a 7 play 71 yard drive. Steelers 7 Jets 6   time 3:39

Steelers again stop NY And take over with 2:05 to go . With the prospects of taking control of the game as they get the ball to start the second half. Brady Marches them down the field. With a 1st and 10 on there own 46 and Brady in the shotgun 35 seconds to go disaster strikes the home team as the rain causes the snap to get past Brady and is picked up By Jets CB James Bradberry he Returns it 46 yards for the score and a stunned Steelers crowd can only looked on as the 1-12 Jets have a lead going into the half. Jets 13 Steelers 6 Half

3rd Quarter

A for effort by coach Durfee as he calls for a surprise onside kick to open the half but the Steelers get lucky and pounce on it to give Brady and company the short field. 8 plays later Brady to Gronk from 13 yards out gets us to a tie score as the Goat Vinatieri misses a extra point and it just doesn't seem to be the home teams day. Steelers 13 Jets 13 time 11:24

On the Jets next possession they are hit with a 10 yard holding penalty . Then on 4th and 12 from there own 25 they try a fake Punt (hey there 1-12 what the heck pull out all the stops) they do not succeed as the pass is caught but only for 3 yards .

Again blessed with good field position the Steelers Brady to Gronk gets them a 1st and goal from the 9 but a pass on 3rd and goal from the 2 to Gronk falls incomplete and the home team settles for a go ahead Field goal of 20 yards. Steelers 16 Jets 13 Time 7:21

With 4 minutes left the Jets get down to Pittsburgh's 31 but face a 4th and 4 and go for it once again and fail as Watson designed run gets only 3 yards .

4th Quarter

The Steelers take the ball over on downs and drive down the field with and 11 play 62 yard drive that stalls on the Jets 10 yard line . Vinatieri connects from 28 yards out . Steelers 19 Jets 13 Time 13:23 Key Play 3rd and 3 from the Jets 44 they stopped Decker cold for no gain but were flagged for a 15 yard face mask penalty.

After Grant gives the Jets great field Position with a 65 yard kick return that puts them on the Steelers 34 . Watson is picked off on the 1st play by Rashard Robinson. Steelers do nothing with the Ball and the Jets take over on there 16 yard line with 10:30 to go. Watson gets them down to the 14 where again they face a 4th and 7. This time Coach Durfee elects to kick the field goal with 3:19 remaining the only problem was his Kicker Hopkins misses the 32 yard fg . Pittsburgh runs out the clock to end a wild game in Heinz field

Steelers 19 Jets 13 its is a draw if your a betting man .

Each team has 2 turnovers a big difference was Pittsburgh ability to convert 3rd downs 8-15 while the visitors were 2-11.
Gronkowski is the games MVP with 11 catches 150 yards and 1TD

Steelers (5-9) travel to LA to play the (6-7) Rams While the Jets (1-13) host New England (2-10-1)

New England 9 Tennessee 10                  50 0-5
In a remarkably ugly game Tennessee squeaked out a 10-9 win. New England scored all its points in the first quarter on a Deshone Kizer 4 yard TD run (missed convert) and a Jake Elliott field goal. Tennessee did squat in the first half with their one meaningful drive ended by a Ha Ha Clinton-Dix interception.

The Titans put together two good drives in the 3rd and came away with 10 points thanks to a Dan Bailey field goal and a 14 yard TD pass Matt Ryan to DeAndre Hopkins. The convert was successful and that proved to be the difference in the game. It looked like the Patriots might pull it out with a 60 yard drive late in the 4th but a key holding call on Greg Robinson pushed them back and then Elliott missed the potential winning 36 yard field goal.

New England visits the New York Jets in the Mayfield Bowl while Tennessee visits Jacksonville. The Jags might be favored in this one since DKS has decided to make both Hopkiins and Landon Collins miss their one game of the season.

Green Bay 38 Los Angeles (N) 10             63 Calm
Packers dominate the Rams in Los Angeles as the Pack continue their quest to win the NFC South. After an auspicious start for Rams who led 7-0 after the first drive, the Packers would seize control of the game and never look back. Packer QB Ben Rothlisberger completed 18 of 23 passes, two for touchdowns, while Green Bay RB Jay Ajayi rushed for over 100 yards on just 14 carries. Packers Defense lineman Calais Campbell feasted on the Rams offensive line collecting 3 of Green Bay's 5 sacks. Green Bay out-gained Los Angeles 396 yards to 184. The game was never really in doubt, at the end of the first half it was 24-7. Green Bay would add two more touchdowns to take the win comfortably.

Packers Stars were:
QB Big Ben Rothlisberger who finished with a qb rating of 140 and 2 TD passes
And as mentioned above Ajayi averaged 7.8 yards a carry with a TD

Rams Stars:
Rams Punter Brad Nortman averaged 45 yards per punt and had a lot of opportunities.

Next week the Rams take on the Pittsburgh Steelers while Green Bay faces a tough Atlanta team.

Denver 26 Washington 9                      44 5-15
The Broncos and Kareem Hunt came to Washington looking for a fight and they found one. Hunt was physical and abused the Redskins all game long. He was in their face trash talking and pushed them around to a tune of 149 yards on 32 rushes and 1 TD. He then proceeded to kick them when they were down with a late receiving TD to ice the game. There are currently no highlights available for the game as all footage is in the possession of the DC Police department. Washington has logged a complain with the commissioners office regarding Hunts play.

Washington will now finish no better than .500

While a Denver is still in the fight for a wildcard spot and a slim shot at the division.

Minnesota 24 Atlanta 31                     68
Falcons score 17 unanswered fourth quarter points to rally from a 10 point deficit.

Dallas 3 Oakland 37                         47 Calm
Oakland jumped out to a quick lead and never looked back as the defense held Lesean McCoy and Cam Newton to only 3 points.

Indianapolis 24 Jacksonville 23             77 0-10
The Jags were hoping to make it two wins in a row against play-off contenders, alas it was not to be. Despite playing well throughout the Jags couldn't stop veteran Vernon Davis who amassed 1 TD and 124 yards on just six catches. Allan Hurns played well in the loss (9 catches 116 yards).

This week the Jags host the Titans while the Colts face-off against unbeaten Miami.

Rushing Leaders
Hunt,K(Den)     32-149 1 TD
Hyde,C(Oak)     24-139
Gurley II(TB)   24-135 1 TD
Miller,L(Atl)   15-119
Fournette(Det) 25-114 2 TD
Breida(Ari)     21-111
Ajayi(GB)       14-109 1 TD
Coleman,T(Atl) 9-24 3 TD

Receiving Leaders
Jones,J(LAC)    11-191 2 TD
Gronkowski(Pit) 11-150 1 TD

Passing Leaders
Goff(Mia)       34-24-350   4 TD – IFL Offensive Player of the Week
Winston,J(Phi) 25-20-309   2 TD 1 Int
Brees(Min)      42-28-309   3 TD 1 Int

Defensive Standouts
Campbell,C(GB)   3 Sk 6 Tk – IFL Defensive Player of the Week

Special Teams
Tucker,J(Den) 4-4 FG – IFL Special Teams Player of the Week

WEEK 14 IFL STANDINGS

WEEK 14 IFL LEAGUE LEADERS

WEEK 13 RECAP

Its been a long season for the two time defending champs but the Pats have a blast from the past upsetting Green Bay.

Game Scores
Green Bay 10 New England 24                 40 5-15
Big Ben brings his Packer squad to town looking to extend their record to 9-4 and maintain their division lead over Tampa Bay. However, without RB Jay Ajayi, would the Patriots be able to spring the upset?

Sam Bradford made his first appearance of the season, and wasted no time in hooking up with old friend Jordy Nelson on an 18-yard TD to give New England a 7-0 lead.

A Charles Sims fumble gave New England the ball on the Packer side of midfield, and Bradford once again found Jordy Nelson - this time from 20 yards out - and New England had a surprising 14-0 lead after 1 quarter. Unfortunately for NE, Bradford's injury-marred season continued as he was knocked from the game midway through the 2nd quarter. The teams would trade field goals in the 2nd quarter, and the Patriots led 17-3 heading to halftime.

Malik Hooker picked Rothliesberger on the Packers first drive of the 2nd half, setting up a Kizer to Zay Jones TD and the Pats were up 24-3.

Green Bay just couldn't get anything going as NE played the pass most of the game and the Packer running game was lacking without Ajayi. The Pack finally got into the end zone in the game's final minute - but New England had sprung the upset: 24-10.

Rothliesberger threw for a season high 319 yards, and Emmanuel Sanders also had a season high with 131 receiving yards. Sam Bradford completed 8 of 10 passes for 95 yards and 2 TDs to jump start New England to a lead they would not relinquish.

Patriots finish the year with 3 straight road games, starting with the Titans next week. Green Bay travels to LA to visit the Rams.

Chicago 7 Buffalo 34                        35 15-25 Rain
Da Bears come into Buffalo hamstrung with injuries at RB putting all the emphasis on Mariotta who played well going 20-30 for 181 and a TD pass.. With virtually no running game drives stagnated and the Bears only had the ball for 17:10 which was a killer...

With the Bills controlling the ball for 42:50 they wore down the Bear defense as the ran for 155 and Smith passed for 330...Antonio Brown caught 7 for 96 while Adam Humphries hauled in 6 for 100 with a 50 yard reception...

The Bills move to 9-4 and head to Cincinnati next week while the Bears fall to 4-9 and head to Carolina next week.

New York (A) 13 Tampa Bay 16                78 0-5
Tampa Bay, FL (IFL.com) The Bucs notch their 8th win of the season with a 16-13 triumph over the visiting New York Jets (1-12). The win keeps Tampa a ½ behind division leader Green Bay Packers and squarely in the middle of the playoff hunt. If the season ended today the Buccaneers would have the 5th seed in the NFC playoffs.

Raymond James Stadium
Temp 78 wind 0-5 mph

Scoring Summary

1 Quarter
12:27     Tampa Bay Bucs TD Todd Gurley (RB) 68 run (kick good) -2 plays 72 Yds 1:00
               Score; Jets 0 Bucs 7
6:35       New York Jets FG Chris Hopkins (K) 46 FG – 11 plays 47 Yds 5:48
               Score; Jets 3 Bucs 7
2:15       Tampa Bay Bucs TD David Carr (QB) 13 Yds pass to Jackson (kick no good) – 7 plays 75 Yds 4:20
               Score; Jets 3 Bucs 13

2 Quarter
11:09     New York Jets FG Chris Hopkins (K) 37 FG – 12 plays 56 yards 6:01
               Score; Jets 6 Bucs 13
0:20       New York Jets TD Deshaun Watson (QB) 12 Yd run (kick good) – 9 plays 74 Yds 2:45
               Score; Jets 13 Bucs 13

4 Quarter
1:30       Tampa Bay Bucs FG Boswell (K) 24 FG – 7 plays 8 Yds
               Score; Jets 13 Bucs 16

Player Stats

New York Jets
Watson (QB) 42-29, 259 Yds, TD 0 INT 1, 8 rushes 48 Yds TD 1
Coby Fleener (TE) 6 rec 82 Yds
Michael Clark (WR) 6 rec 65 Yds

Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Carr 19-15, 189 Yds TD 1 INT 1
Gurley (Game MVP) 18 rushes 125 Yds TD 1
DeShean Jackson 4 rec 54 Yds TD 1

Next Game

New York Jets (1-12) at Pittsburgh Steelers (4-8)
Tampa Bay Bucs (8-5) at New Orleans Saints (11-1)

Tennessee 17 Los Angeles (A) 34             87 Calm
Tyrod Taylor tosses two touchdown passes to Amari Cooper as the Chargers put a dent in Tennessee’s playoff hopes.

Indianapolis 23 Detroit 17                  70
Indy came into the game as the #2 Wild card team in the AFC, while Detroit came in riding a three game losing streak.

Coach Griffin seeing the Lions were struggling, was able to pull off a narrow victory while being able to rest his two star wide outs most of the game. Limiting Keenan Allen & Golden Tate's playing time. It almost cost Indy as the Lions had a couple opportunities with the ball in the 4th having a chance at the lead, but to no avail.

It seemed as if over half the big plays in this game were called back. The refs did every thing they could do to screw the Lions in the 1st half. The 2nd half was the very opposite, they tried to ruin the Colts hopes.

The game saw both teams getting poor field position pretty much the whole time as both punters kicked well.

The Colts missed 6 tackles & Keenan Allen of all people dropped 3 passes. The Lions had 4 to's to 1, suffered 4 sacks & didn't get a single sack themselves.

It was within a TD most of the way.

Telvin Smith-Ind was player of the game registering 8 tk, 1 sk, a stuff & 1 int. K.J. Wright added 12 tk, 1 sk, 1 deflection, 1 hurry & 1 int..

Keenum passed for 158 & 3 TD's with a 90.7 rating.

Fournette had holes to run through early in the game but I guess forgot his glasses, cuz he was missing the hole & lucky to get back to the line. He was better in the 2nd half, ending with 68 yrds.

Indy 9-3-1 visits 2-10 Jags, while Detroit 6-7 travels to 3-9 SF. The Lions continue to suffer a rash of injuries. In SF we'll have 6 guys who either start or get a lot of playing time in street clothes. Don't know if that's a lot, but it's a big number for this squad.

Baltimore 20 Kansas City 16                 38 15-25
Eli Manning throws two TD passes as the Ravens go into Arrowhead and edge the Chiefs.

New Orleans 28 Arizona 20                   69 Calm
Arizona returned home after their victory over the Giants with feelings of euphoria. After numerous close games the team was finally able to finish for a win. Now enter the Giant. New Orleans only lost once and Zona had but one single victory on the season. Vegas had actually suspended betting on New Orleans since no one would put money on Arizona. However, just maybe, New Orleans would be just a little bit too over confident. New Orleans would opt to rest many of their starters assuming a day off in the sun in Arizona.

The Cardinals had their own ideas. In a surprise move, Zona benched McCarron and handed the ball off to their future star quaterback Patrick Mahomes. The crowd was deafening when Mahomes walked on to the field. There was blood in the air.

Like two fighters early in the match, the teams simply sparred with one another for the first couple of series. Zona attempted to lean on the Duke who lead the team to victory in New York. However, Johnson proved to be ineffective. New Orleans attempted to play smash mouth football riding on the back of Jamal Williams. However, he appeared to have put on lead shoes. He was so slow getting to the hole, a high school team could have shut him down.

Mid way through the first quarter Heaton benched Duke Johnson and handed the carries to Matt Breida. Breida and Mahomes found their strides alternating with big gains. Mahomes cannon arm would connect perfectly with Brown and slant for 53 yards. One play later Mahomes would throw his first TD pass of his IFL career.

New Orleans was not phased as they continued to hand off the ball to flatfooted Williams. Williams continued to run in slow motion, just to give Zona a chance. Williams is a punters best friend, and punt they did.

Zona and Mahomes lost no time. After another positive by Breida, Mahomes would fire another strike, this time to Miller. Mahomes to Miller looked easy as the play netted 42 yards. Mahomes would find Breida standing in the end zone begging for the ball. Mahomes obliged and it was Arizona 14 and New Orleans zip. The game began to feel like a second trip to the Meadowlands.

The next series for New Orleans began as another rinse and repeat with Williams plodding again into the line. However, this time he found success as Zona was selling out for the pass which seemed certain to be coming. Zona made their first big mistake of the game. Wanting to stop the Williams train, Zona keyed him at the wrong time. Flacco was going deep and he hit Bryant for a 44 yard TD.

The Red Birds were not done however, they were energized. Mahomes would convert for a first down and then Matt Breida would scamper 25 into Saints territory. A sack would force the Hero of Meadowlands to attempt a FG but movement on the line would push the team out of range.

The Saints got the ball back with ample time and put together the best drive of the game. With 27 seconds left in the half, it would be 14 to 14 and a new game.

Flacco had the hot hand and moved the entire his team down the field to go ahead 21-14. Zona could not find their rhythm and New Orleans would add yet another TD with no other than Flat Foot Williams running it into the end zone.

The Cardinals were not beat yet. Breida would enter his own beast mode running for 15 yards and a few plays later for 19 yards while keyed. Mahomes would overcome two penalties and find Taylor in the end zone for their third TD. The energy of the crowd lapsed as the Hero of the Meadowlands missed the extra point. Zona was now down by only 8 points with plenty of time.

Arizona would hold on the next series for New Orleans and were rewarded with a punt going out of bonds at their own 3 yard line. Heaton would switch running backs again to find fresh legs. Elijah McGuire would show off his version of the beast mode. While continuously keyed McGuire would fight for extra yards after contact moving the ball from the 3 yard line to about the 30. Needing a breather, Breida would come back into the game and pick up where McGuire left off. Running on pure will, yards were being accumulated and downs converted to firsts. However, the fairy tale comeback would grind to a halt on New Orleans 42 yard line as Zona failed to convert.

A perfect punt would force NO to start on their 4 yard line. Zona would hold and at least get another shot. Mahomes would strike out and the game was New Orleans, but what a game it was. While there may be little hope for this season, fans are beginning to sense something special for 2019!

Cincinnati 28 Houston 6                     70
The Bengals travelled to Houston for the CBS Thanksgiving special game. The Texans gamble on fourth down their first series but came up short. Cincinnati took over on their own 46 and converted it into a Rodgers to Funchess 5 yard scoring pass for a 7-0 lead. With nothing to lose Houston gambled again on fourth down and again came up short. Again Rodgers connected again with Funchess from 13 yards out and a 14-0 lead. The teams exchanged punts for the majority of the second quarter until the Texans put together a nice 13 play drive but had to settle on a Murray 23 yard field goal to make it 14-3 at the half.

The second half was similar to the first as Cincinnati scored two more touchdowns as Carson Palmer got some work in. Palmer connected with Walker from 10 yards out and Richardson caught a quick pass for the 22 yard score. Houston's Murray closed out the scoring with a 31 yard field goal.

Cousins finished 10 of 23 for 105 yards for the Texans. Houston struggled running the football with 30 attempts for only 57 yards.

Bengal quarterbacks (Rodgers, Palmer and Hoyer) combined to finish 26 of 35 for 262 yards and 4 touchdown. Walker caught 7 passes for 94 yards and a score.

With the win Cincinnati clinched the AFC Central.

Next week Houston travels to Arizona while Cincinnati host a hot Buffalo team.

Jacksonville 24 Denver 9                    43 0-5   Light Rain
The Jacksonville Jaguars came into Denver with a 2-10 record and nothing to lose and
Came away with a decisive 24-9 victory over the Broncos.

Jags RB Darkwa started it off with a 69 yard TD run one minute into the game and
after a Denver 3 and out the jags got a long FG.

Broncos QB Blake Bortles was horrific on the day as he tossed a pick-6 on the next possession and the Jags had a 17-0 lead
in the 1st quarter.

The Broncos couldn't get much going and when they did it led to just a FG or another turnover and the
Jaguars snatched their 3rd victory of the season and set the Broncos division title hopes up in flames.

Los Angeles (N) 13 Philadelphia 20          45 0-10
Philly came into the game riding it's first 2 game losing streak of the season and fresh off losing the division lead to the rival Cowboys. QB Jameis Winston was off the injured reserved list and was hopeful to get the Eagles back on the winning track. The Rams were trying to keep pace for a WC berth and needed a win to do so.

Both teams would exchange punts before the Rams would get in going on their second possession. Playing ball control offense, the Rams would drive down the field and get the first TD of the game as Ram QB Andrew Luck would connect with RB Tarik Cohen on a 36-yard screen pass to put the Rams up 7-0. Meanwhile, the Eagle offense would struggle mightily as Winston attempted to shake off the rust from his 2 game absence. The Rams would tack on 2 FG's in the 2nd quarter to go up 13-0. On their last possession of the half, the Eagle offense would come to life. Starting from its own 10, they would move down the field to kick a FG just before the half to cut the lead to 13-3.

The 2nd half would be a completely different story. While the Eagle defense would stiffen and give the Rams very little, the offense would begin humming by scoring on its first 3 possessions. A Harrison Butker FG, followed by a 40 yard TD throw from Winston to TE Evan Engram and an 11-yard toss to WR Cooper Kupp would stake the Eagles to a 20-13 lead going into the 4th quarter. The struggling Ram offense would mount a late drive that would end at the Eagle 3 yard line. The Ram's had saved all of its timeouts and got the ball back for one last attempt before Eagle CB Ahkello Witherspoon would intercept Luck to end the game.

The star of the game was Winston who shook off the early rust to go 17-27 for 199 yards and 2 TDs. The 9-4 Eagles will next play the KC Chiefs while the 6-7 Rams get the NFC Central Division-leading Packers.

Atlanta 29 Washington 20                    44 0-10
For years the Falcons/Redskins regular season match up had big time playoff implications. Usually the winner would walk away with HFA in the playoffs while the loser would attempt to hold on to the second bye week. This year? It surely has playoff implications but instead of fighting for seeding both teams are merely fighting to make it. In the first half Washington would play solid complimentary football and end the half on a 27 yard fumble return TD by Hayward. However, the good times would not last much longer. In the second half the run game killed the Redskins on both ends. The Falcons would run 32 times for 228 yards averaging 7.1 ypc while the Redskins ran 21 times for 70 yards which was the difference in the game. The Redskins playoff hopes are quickly slipping away at 6-7 with a match up against Denver next week while the Falcons remain in the hunt and will face off against the Vikings.

Minnesota 21 Miami 28                       71 0-10
The Vikings come to Miami hoping to pull the upset, and with Drew Brees anything is possible. Brees was solid with only one int on a tipped ball, but the Viking stars were Lynch with 24 carries with a 5.4 avg. and WR's Juju and Mathews with 17.8 and 17.0 avg's respectively, and each with a TD. Brees had the long ball going tonight. Although the stats may not reflect it, the Viking defense played the bend but don't break and was very effective at stalling some Dolphin drives. In the end though, the Dolphins were again solid but not stellar and pulled it out by taking the lead in the 3rd qtr after the Vikings had tied the score in the 3rd at 21 and holding the Vikings scoreless the rest of the way. The Dolphins were able to run out the clock after holding the Vikings on 4th and 20 with 2:51 left in the game. It was a real nail biter as coach Rich called a excellent game and had the hometown fans on the edge of their seats the entire game.

Next week Miami travels to Baltimore and Minnesota stays on the road going to Atlanta

San Francisco 12 Dallas 26                  70
After finding itself down 12-0 early to the SF 49ers, the Dallas Cowboys benched QB Cam Newton and called upon Ryan Fitzpatrick to bail them out again. Fitz was up to the task as the Cowboys scored 26 unanswered points enroute to a 26-12 victory Sunday night.

Chicago went 90 yards to take a 7-0 lead after the opening kickoff and upped their lead to 9-0 later in the quarter on a safety. A FG upped their lead to 12-0 to the shell-shocked Cowboy faithful.

Dallas answered with a run-oriented drive of 75 yards on 12 plays that ended with Jacquizz Rodgers taking it in from the five.

A 55-yard FG by Phil Dawson drew the Cowboys to 12-10.

Bob's team drove deep into Cowboy territory before the half before his kicker missed a FG with five seconds before halftime.

Fitzpatrick put the Cowboys in front in the third quarter on an 8-yard pass to TE Marcedes Lewis. Dawson missed the PAT (his eighth miss of the year!!!) to put the score at 16-12.    Fitz checked down to FB Charles Clay who took the pass for 50 yards. Dallas would score on a LeSean McCoy run from the two.

Things went south for SF when Geno Atkins blocked a SF punt from deep in SF territory. A Dallas FG made the score 26-12 with 2:49 left to play.

With seven linebackers injured, Dallashad to play with just one healthy linebacker.

Jordan Howard led the SF offense with 108 yards rushing, including a TD run of 56 yards.

Pittsburgh 7 Oakland 27                     68 Calm
Raiders score 17 unanswered points in the second quarter to down the Steelers. Matt Stafford throws two TD passes.

Carolina 14 New York (N) 6                  37 0-10 Light Rain
Russell Wilson connects with Michael Evans for two touchdown passes as the Panthers edge the Giants.

Rushing Leaders
Darkwa(Jax)     16-130 1 TD – IFL Offensive Player of the Week
Lynch,M(Min)    24-129 1 TD
Gurley II(TB)   18-125 1 TD
Breida(Ari)     19-116
Howard,J(SF)    18-108 1 TD

Receiving Leaders
Kittle(KC)       6-156
Bryant,D(NO)     5-152 2 TD

Passing Leaders
Goff(Mia)       40-28-389   2 TD
Smith,A(Buf)    38-27-330   2 TD 1 Int
Roethlisbe(GB) 53-36-319   1 TD 1 Int
Trubisky(SF)    40-31-180

Defensive Standouts
Hughes(Cin) 1 Sk 5 Tk 1 FF - IFL Defensive Player of the Week
Kerrigan(Chi)    2 Sk 15 Tk
Coyle(SF)        16 Tk

Special Teams
Bryant(Bal) 2 FGs 8 Pts – IFL Special Team Player of the Week

WEEK 13 IFL STANDINGS

WEEK 13 IFL LEAGUE LEADERS

WEEK 12 RECAP

In a week full of upsets, Houston linebacker Karlos Dansby intercepts 2 passes as the Texans ambush Washington.

Game Scores
Washington 10 Houston 16                    70
Washington traveled to Houston after a close loss to the Rams and things did not get better for the Redskins. Houston would take a 13-0 lead in the first half aided by the loss of Ingram and Bucannon. In the second half Washington was finally able to move the ball and put some points on the board but the Skins couldn't overcome 3 2nd half Prescott INTs including one on the Texans 24 yard line with 24 seconds left in the game.

Houston played a balanced game on offense and put enough points on the board to pull out the W. The Redskins rushing offense was non-existent outside of Prescott.

Washington will host Atlanta next week while the Bungles travel to Houston.

Buffalo 27 New York (A) 17                  40 5-15 Rain
Buffalo heads into New York to play the Jets and the Jets play the BIlls tough in this divisional game, Watson made some big plays for the Jets despite throwing 2 picks as his play-making ability kept the Bills defense on their toes keeping a spy on him most of the game. Watson threw 2 TD passes while rushing for 29 yards as the spy kept him in check as one 19 yard scamper was his only big run on 9 runs. McKinnon caught 9 for 80 and a TD while Fleener caught 6 for 60...Jets never got their running game going...

Alex Smith threw 2 TDs while being picked twice for 247 yards. Antonio Brown for the most part was kept in check as he only caught 5 for 72 and a TD. LaFell led with 7 catches for 58 yards and a TD.Freeman was the leading rusher on only 9 carries and 42 yards...Sean Lee was the STAR on defense as he picked Watson and took it to the HOUSE on 37 yard scamper while leading the way with 10 tackles a stuff and pass defended...

With the 27-17 victory the Bills move to 8-4 while the Jets fall to 1-11...The Bills head home to host the Bears next week while the Jets head to Tampa Bay.

Philadelphia 7 Dallas 23                    70
This one featured the two teams tied for the lead in the NFC East with identical 8-3 records. However, both teams have sustained lots of injuries to get there. Both had nine players unable to dress due to injuries. Philly would have to rely on their backup QB, Nick Foles.   Dallas would have to play with only two linebackers healthy (and one of them would go down in the contest).

Dallas received the opening kickoff and marched down the field behind Cam Newton's passing completing a 75-yard drive with Cam finding Charles Clay in the end zone from 7 yards out. But Dallas' Phil Dawson would miss the PAT (for the sixth time this season).

After Dallas held the Eagles to a three and out. On Dallas' possession, Philly CB, Patrick Robinson picked Cam Newton off for his (Robinson's) foruth pick of the year. Nick Foles would tie the contest on a 5-yard hitch to Sanu. The kick put the Eagles up 7-6.

Neither team could sustain any offense until the third quarter. Dallas benched Cam Newton for Ryan Fitzpatrick. Fitz put Dallas ahead on a pass to Charles Clay from 6 yards out. LeSean McCoy's run off tackle for the PAT put Dallas up 14-7 at the 10 minute mark of the third quarter.

Nick Foles than unraveled. Backup ILB pressed into service managed to do something he hadn't done in the NFL season - pick off a pass. He jumped the route on a short pass to a RB for the pick. A Cam Newton scampler of 25 yards to paydirt advanced Dallas' lead to 20-7.   I should have been 21-7 …. but … you guessed it …. Phil Dawson missed his seventh PAT of the year. Newton ran five times for 61 yards in the game. In addition to the 25 yard TD run, he had a 26-yard run.   These were vital in this defensive contest - especially with LeSean McCoy unable to run the ball with the Cowboys patchwork offensive line.

Foles threw a second INT in the fourth quarter to doom Philly's chances. But Dallas couldn't score and had to punt. But the Eagles punt returner fumbled the punt and Dallas recovered with 3:59 on the clock.

Dallas would run the ball up the gut to kill the clock. Dawson's FG made it 23-7 and clinched the Dallas win.

Miami 51 New England 14                     36 0-10
Dolphins come to Foxboro as 17 point favorites. In the first quarter, Kizer throws a pick-6 to Marcus Peters to give the Phins an early 7-0 lead. A Clinton-Dix interception of Jared Goff positioned NE for a short McCaffery TD run to tie the game at 7 after one quarter.

Miami proceeded to eviscerate the Patriot defense in the 2nd quarter, to the tune of 28 points. Goff hit Baldwin and Cooks TWICE each for TDs and Miami led 35-7 at halftime.

Miami elected to take the foot off the gas otherwise they'd have scored 100.

Final score: Miami 51, NE 14

Mark Ingram rushed for 126 yards and a TD, while Goff threw for 196 yards and 5 TDs.

Tampa Bay 28 Indianapolis 30                69
Indianapolis IND (IFL.com) – The Indianapolis Colts (8-3-1) beat the visiting Tampa Bay Buccaneers (7-5) in the most thrilling game of the year for both teams. Todd Gurley the 5th leading rusher in the IFL scored 3 of the 4 Tampa touchdowns. Indianapolis’s Isaiah Crowell (RB) ran for 152 Yds, on 24 carries, 1 TD and was named game MVP. Prior to the game Crowell told several members of the media he was looking forward to the running back matchup. It was a true nail biter as the Colts held on to win 30-28. This game had it all; big plays, 4th down tries, key injuries and back breaking turnovers.

First Quarter

Stephen Hauschka (K) kicks a 53 FG to give the Colts a 3-0 first quarter lead. Following the kickoff Tampa’s Tyler Lockett (WR) would return the kick 96 yards to Colts 2, where Gurley would punch it over for the score, 7-3 Bucs. Crowell, the Colts much over looked featured back took a trap off the right-side and scooted the sideline for a 61 yard TD. First Quarter ends 10-7 Colts.

Second Quarter

Tampa would regain the lead when David Carr (25-15, 222 yards 3 TD 2 INT) passes to Lockett on a 14 yard TD, 14-10 Bucs. Indianapolis would score the final 10 points of the half to retake the lead with a 49 yard FG and a Case Keenum to Keenan Allen (WR) 29 yard hookup for the score, 20-14 Colts.

Third Quarter

The Colts would score the only points in the third quarter on a Carr pick-6. Linebacker K.J. Wright under cut a sideline pass to Lockett and return the interception 17-yards for the TD, 27-14 Colts.

Fourth Quarter

Now this was the gutsiest play call I’ve ever seen by an opponent this season. Early in the fourth quarter (14:11) with the Colts holding a comfortable 13 point lead, the Bucs facing a 4th and 1 from their own 29, Head Coach Mike Chase decides to go for the first down, and why not?, he has Gurley the 3rd leading TD rusher in the IFL. If they convert they stay alive, if they fail, the Colts would surely add at least a FG, and the %#*$ gets deeper for the visitors.

Tampa comes out in a 2 RB 2 WR set, Indy is in their traditional 4-3, linebackers keying Gurley licking their chokes, safety in the box, D-line slanting in. Buccaneers break the huddle, Carr looks over the defense, Gurley in the I, Carr barking out signals, they snap the ball, he hands it to Gurley, linebackers crashing the line, WAIT CARR STILL HAS IT, GREAT PLAY ACTION he throws it deep downfield! Caught by DeSean Jackson (WR) at the Colts 28! Rasul Douglas (DB) with the tackle at the 22 a gain of 49. They threw a POST BOMB, a POST BOMB on a 4th and 1 from their own 29 down by 13 in the fourth quarter! No guts, no glory,.. Coach Chase, you are the man. The Bucs would eventually score on that drive on a 9-yard pass from Carr to Gurley, closing the scoring gap to 21-27. Colts kicker Stephen Hauschka would add a 42 FG extending their lead to 30-21, following a 11 play 53 yard drive that chewed up 6:35 of the fourth quarter. The Bucs wouldn’t go away; behind a 42-yard kick return by Cordarrell Patterson, Tampa would score their second touchdown of the final quarter on 3 plays covering 53 yards. The drive started on their own 47, the first play Carr hit Jackson for 16, then Patterson for 26, and scored on a 11-yard screen to Gurley, his 5th receiving TD of the season which gave him a combine total of 11 touchdowns, score 28 -30 Colts.

Indianapolis sent out the hands team, preparing for an onside kick however, with 5:10 left in the game and three timeouts only down by 2, Tampa elected to kick off. The Bucs never saw the ball again. Indianapolis downed the kickoff in the endzone and went on a game ending 12 play 47 yard drive that ended with a Keenum kneel down at the Tampa 27 yard-line, final score 28 -30 Colts.

Game Notes;

Tampa Bay
Gurley (RB) 15 rush 65 yard 1 TD, 6 rec 52 2 TD
Jackson (WR) 5 rec 109 yard
Fourth Down 1-2

Indianapolis
Keenum (QB) 41 att 29 comp 251 yards 1 TD 1 Int
Allen (WR) 9 rec 100 yards 1 TD

Next up
New York Jets (1-10) @ Tampa Bay (7-5)
Indianapolis Colts (8-3-1) @ Detroit Lions (6-5)
Fourth Down 2-3

Arizona 24 New York (N) 21                  53 5-15
With haunting memories of an earlier 51-yard miss, Caleb Sturgis redeemed himself from 48 yards out with 2 seconds on the clock to lift Arizona to it's first W of the season, a 24-21 road shocker against the vaunted Giants of the City That Never Sleeps, in that very city (actually, a few exits down the NJT, but let's not pick nits).

Overshadowed in the AZ victory was the play of New York backup QB Nate Sudfeld. With Carson Wentz crumbling to the ground at the 6:47 mark of the 4th quarter, down 21-7, the Giant faithful had pretty much lost hope of notching their third straight win (they really lost last week to San Fran, but the game was so close that we consider it a moral victory). In comes N.S. - the Don Strock of his era - 4th and 6 at his own 43, < 7 minutes on the clock...right where he wanted to be.

Sudfeld takes the snap and fires a laser to a slanting Robby Anderson for a "by inches" 1st down. 3 plays later, facing 4th and 8, the newest incarnation of Pisarcik to Moorehead connects again for a 17 yarder,,,1st down at the 'Zona 32. More passes, more excitement, and with a 4th and 4 on the Cardinal 13, Sudfeld finds T-Dog, Theo Riddick for TD, it's 21-14 Big Red with 4:15 to go.

Arizona recovers the ensuing onsides kick. AJ McCarron can only lead his team to 16 yards and one first down, staring at a 4th and 7 on the NY 33. Out comes Caleb Sturgis to ice the game. The snap...the kick...and it's NO GOOD. Sturgis is distraught. Coach Heaton stands stone-faced on the sideline, pauses for a moment then waves the D onto the field to finish this one out. But the newest gun slinger in town, the Sudster, had other ideas.

With 59 yards to go for the tying score, Sudfeld went to work. 33 yards to Kroft, a few other dinks and dunks thrown in for good measure, it's 1st and goal at the Cardinal 1. Arizona digs in. Out of time outs, the star QB goes to the air. 1st down - incomplete. 2nd down - incomplete. 3rd and 1, 2TE big beef offense to try to punch this in, Sudsy drops back against the run D, and in comes Reggie Ragland to introduce the QB to the nutrient rich dirt of Giants Stadium. 4th and 5...Giants line up...and Jordan Taylor with an illegal use of his brain penalty sets NY further back. 4th and 10, with a fatigued squad, what's a superhero to do? That's right, he goes to the well one more time. Robby Anderson pulls a Clarence Davis, crashing through defenders to snag the 4th down desperation heave for the TD!!! 21-20. In comes Cairo Santos for the PAT. Can he do it? YES HE CAN. It's 21-21...the crowd of 13,206 ushers and beer salesmen goes wild!!

For an encore, Santos BOOMS the kickoff 9 yards deep, Cards forced to start at their own 25.

In what can only be described as the most mentally deficient defensive stand of the season, NY commits five penalties - by1st round future star Myles Garrett (3) and slick sackster Robert Quinn (2) - three of which occurred consecutively with 16 seconds to go and the ball on the 45 yard line. Overtime you say? Caleb Sturgis will have none of that. With the ball now on the 30 of Big Blue, Coach Heat-on turns on the heat (see what I did there?) and sends out his strong legged kicker to attempt a 48 yarder into the wind. Here's the call from Arizona TV color man Roger Wehrli:

48 yard attempt by Sturgis
he'll try for a game winner
clean snap
he lets it fly
long enough
HE MADE IT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Heaton exalts, players celebrate, Big Red gets off the schneid with a thriller, 24-21 in New York.

Boys in blue circle week 15 on their calendars, and go back to the film room to see what the $%(& happened???

Congrats to Jim on a well coached W!!!

  Jacksonville 10 Cincinnati 43               26 10-20
The beat-up Jags travelled to Cincinnati. The Bengals jumped out to a 23-0 lead and cruised to the 43-10 win. Rodgers was in top form throwing three TD passes before being relieved by Hoyer. Mel Gordon did not do much on the ground, 10 carries for 19 yards, but caught 4 passes for 108 yards. Ten different receivers caught a pass for Cincinnati, probably a team record.

With Cutler out, Chad Henne did the best he could but managed only 8 completions from 18 attempts for 90 yards. He did throw one TD pass but also a pick. Workhorse Orleans Darkwa rushed for 101 yards on only 15 carries.

Next week the Jaguars travel to Denver while the Bengals visit Houston.

Pittsburgh 14 Baltimore 23                  40 10-20 Rain
Turned out the visiting Steelers were in more of a giving mood than the hometown Ravens. A week prior to Thanksgiving it was Pittsburgh that was handing out turkeys left and right on a cold (40 degrees), windy (10-20 mph) and rainy M&T Stadium field. The black-and-gold fumbled four times in the first half, losing two, en route to a 23-14 loss in Coach Sam Alberry's IFL debut.

Pittsburgh won the coin toss and deferred, so the Ravens got first crack. They moved the ball just 26 yards in 5 plays, but got close enough that Coach Master was willing to let gray beard Matt Bryant try from 57 yards out, given the wind was at his back. Grizzled vet that he is, Bryant waited until the wind was just right and booted it through the middle, just inches above the cross bar. Baltimore, 3-0.

Letting Bryant rest up after that long kick, Rigoberto Sanchez kicked off for the Ravens and Matthew Dayes received the ball 1-yard deep in the end zone. Young buck that he is, he brought the ball out, returning it to the 20 where he was met by the Ravens young buck, Justin Evans, who dislodged the ball from Dayes' grasp and Matt Judon pounced on it for the Ravens at the Steeler 21.

Looking to hit a short out, Eli Manning found all his receivers covered with the Steelers defending the sidelines, so he checked down to RB Alex Collins, who scampered through the middle of the field for a 21-yard TD. Baltimore, 10-0 after just 4 1/2 minutes had elapsed.

On the Steelers first real possession of the game, new Coach Alberry mixed CJ Anderson runs with Tom Brady passes to TE Rob Gronkowski and WR Eric Decker for a 9-play, 81-yard drive, culminated by a 2-yard Anderson TD run. Baltimore, 10-7.

Baltimore responded with a 13-play, 48-yard drive, then called Bryant's number again, this time, for a 37-yard FG attempt. The kick was good and Baltimore increased their lead to 13-7.

While Ravens were seemingly enjoying the rain, the Steelers thought the field was a sty. On the first play after the kick-off, Raven DL Aaron Donald forced CJ Anderson to cough up the slippery pig-skin and fellow Raven DL Leonard Williams landed on it belly first in the mud at the Steeler 28. Eight plays later, Manning found TE Jared Cook in the end zone for a 20-7 Raven lead.

Pittsburgh got good field position when Sanchez's kick went out of bounds, but a Donald sack backed the Steelers up and they couldn't recover. After the punt, Baltimore set about on a 16-play, 67-yard march that ate up nearly 7 minutes of the 2nd quarter. With the drive stalled at the Steeler 9, the Ravens called on ol' gray beard again, this time booting a 27-yard FG that gave Baltimore a 23-7 lead.

With 2:00 left in the half, Steeler QB Tom Brady couldn't find the keys to the offense and the black-and-gold had to punt back to the Ravens. Two quick passes from Manning put the purple team in Steeler territory, but Eli being Eli, he tossed an INT just before the half. Thankfully, the Ravens D bailed him out with sacks on consecutive plays to end a miserable first half for the new Steeler regime.

As the rain clouds parted slightly during the halftime break, things started to look better for the Steelers as they rolled 44-yards in 11 plays to set up a FG attempt from the even grayer bearded Adam Vinateri. With the field a sopping mess, Vinateri planted his left foot in a oozing puddle of muck and lost his footing, sending the ball straight into the facemask of LB AJ Klein. It was not meant to be for Pittsburgh.

The teams traded field possession the rest of the way, with Baltimore trying to eat up as much time as they could and Brady being harassed by Donald (another sack) and Joey Bosa (one sack). Brady did connect with Gronk on a 34-yard TD pass with 6:15 left on the clock, but oddly, chose to kick the PAT rather than go for two and try to make it a one-score game. Regardless, Pittsburgh cut into the Raven lead, 24-13.

Pittsburgh would have one more possession but couldn't get past their own 20 and turned the ball over on downs. Manning knelt his way to 0:00 and the Ravens had another win under their belt.

Baltimore played the game without RB Le'Veon Bell, just so we could see what it's going to be like next year. Without Bell, Javorious "Buck" Allen led the Ravens with 43 yards rushing on 13 carries. Collins had 42 yards on 16 carries. Manning had an efficient 23/28/177/2/0 line, finding Allen 7 times, though for just 26 yards, and four other receivers 3 times each. Donald led the defense with 6 tackles, 2 sacks, 2 forced fumbles and a hurry.

Pittsburgh didn't record a sack all game, though LBs Michael Wilhoite and Thomas Davis each tallied 10 tackles. Offensively, the Steelers were led by Gronk (6/98/1) and Decker (6/71) as Brady completed 21 of 29 passes for 226 yards and 1 TD. Anderson led the ground game with just 32 yards on 10 carries.

In Week 13, things don't get any easier for the Steelers (4-8), who travel to Oakland (8-3), while the Ravens (7-5, two games over .500 for the first time in about 7 years, I think) travel to KC (6-5) in hopes of finding a good place to get BBQ ribs.

Chicago 23 Green Bay 20                     30 5-15
Both teams came in to the game with offensive challenges. Bears effectively had zero run game while the Packers were without WR's Emmanuel Sanders and Josh Gordon plus RB Jay Ajayi.

The story in this one was the play of QB Marcus Mariota. He wasn't spectacular, but did convert some big 3rd downs when needed. Ben Roethlisberger, on the other hand, had one of his worst games of the year versus a very good Bears defense. His first quarter pick 6 to CB Jimmy Smith put us behind the proverbial
8-ball all game long.

Packers got within 3 points at the end of the 2nd and 3rd quarters but the Bears answered with TD's each time to hold off the division leaders.

Final was 23-20

Game stars: Mariota 25 of 37 2 Td's, 2 Int's and 55 yards rushing
                  ILB Bobby Wagner 13 tackles

Costly loss for the Packers who missed a golden opportunity
to take full control of the NFC Central.

Next up

Green Bay (8-4) at New England (1-10-1)
Chicago (4-8) at Buffalo (8-4)

Atlanta 12 New Orleans 14                   70
Atlanta rolls into New Orleans and the Falcons and Marty Golden are always tough to beat. The Saints would dominate the 1st quarter forcing 2 3 and outs for Atlanta while the offense would sustain 2 TD drives resulting in a TD pass from Flacco to Sheppard for 32 yards and a Stewart 3 yard TD plunge. 14-0 Saints at the end of 1. That score would end that way at the half as the Saints would live up to their #1 D status. But Atlanta had also brought in the old timer Josh McCown and he would get them back in this one. Atlanta's first drive of the second half would result in a 40 yard FG by Forbath. 14-3 New Orleans. The teams would exchange punts and we would move into the 4th quarter. The Saints would take their first drive in the 4th down to the Falcons 20 and McManus' kick would go wide left. Atlanta would then put together a 6 minute drive but the Saints D would stiffen up at the 8 yard line and Forbath would make it a one score game with the chip shot. 14-6 Saints 5:34 to play. Atlanta expected the Saints to be conservative but New Orleans would stay to the air and take it the whole way down to the Falcons 16 and prepare to kick the game winner with 2:27 left. And McManus' kick...….he bricked another one. McCown would take full advantage, and after a key strike to Fitz for 44 yards , would hit Dion Lewis for an 11 yard TD with 46 seconds left. 14-12 and the all important 2 point conversion. McCown would attempt a pass to Ertz but it was knocked away. The onside kick would fail and the Saints move to 11-1. Final score 14-12. Great chess game as usual against Marty.

Kansas City 10 Denver 3                     41 Calm
KC comes to Denver and gets a great win 10-3.

Both offenses were strapped with injuries but the Chiefs offense was better prepared and Denver turned the ball over 3 times leading to their demise.

San Francisco 24 Carolina 31                59 Calm
Carolina comes roaring out of the gates at home versus San Francisco and take a 17-0 lead at the start of the 2nd quarter. But what looked like an easy day for the Panthers turns into a dog fight that came down to the very end.

San Fran answers with a Trubisky 16 yard TD pass to Diggs to draw within 10 with under a minute to play before half.Right off the bat in the 3rd the 49'ers draw within a field goal as McCourty returns a Russell Wilson pass back for a TD. Carolina looked they gained their second wind by scoring to quick TD's including a 11 yard TD run from Drake in what was a career day for him.

With the lead back to 17 the Panthers assumed they could cruise for the win the rest of the day. San Fran was having none of that Trubisky throws another TD pass to Diggs and Crosby adds a FG with 1:23 remaining in the game to pull within a TD. The 49'ers defense holds and gave their offense one last shot to draw even. Unfortunately, with only 30 seconds left they were not able to tally the score and Carolina holds on for the victory.

Trubisky gave a preview of what is to come for him in the future throwing for 207 yard with two TD's. He also added 94 yards on the ground while averaging 8.5 yards per carry! For Carolina, Kenyan Drake had his best game yet with 125 yards on the ground and 2 TD's.

Detroit 7 Minnesota 33                      68
Two banged up teams, Detroit noting that it had no quarterback and no carries available and Minnesota pointing out that its main running back and its leading receiver were out.

Detroit showed it brought its A game, scoring a touchdown midway through the first quarter, with Cody Kessler first hitting Michael Thomas on a 42-yard pass, then following up with a 14-yard TD strike to Taylor Gabriel.

The Lions shut out the high-scoring Vikings in the first period, leading 7-0.

In the second quarter, the Vikings started to move the ball, but kept getting stuck around the 35 yard line, due to penalties or sacks. They had to settle for three field goals in the second quarter to take a 9-7 lead at halftime.

In the 3rd quarter, the Vikings again got stuck around the 35 yard line, but Greg Zuerlein nailed a fourth field goal to increase the lead to 12-7.

Drew Brees then took over, throwing two TD passes to open up a 26-7 lead, then backup David Fales threw another TD pass to make the score 33-7.

The Lions were blanked the last 3 quarters. Final score: 33-7 VIkings.

The Lions managed only 9 first downs compared to 29 by the Vikings. Marshawn Lynch racked up 153 yards on 26 carries, and Brees had 242 yards on 23/29 passing. Brees QB rating was 124.4, compared to 72.2 by Kessler. Rishard Matthews, listed as questionable before the game, showed up ready to play, and finished with 8 catches and 2 TDs for 102 yards total.

The Vikings are now 0-4 against their two main division rivals (Green Bay and Tampa Bay), but 6-2 against the rest of the league.

In week 13, Minnesota (6-6) visits unbeaten Miami and Detroit hosts Indianapolis.

Los Angeles (N) 10 Tennessee 16             49 0-5
Two above average defenses stifled two inept offenses for most of this game. The only effective LA Ram drive in the first half was stopped by a DJ Swearinger interception of an Andrew Luck pass. The Titans only meaningful first half drive was finished off by a 27 yard TD pass from Matt Ryan to DeAndre Hopkins. Along with an earlier field goal courtesy of a Tarik Cohen fumble Tennessee led at the half 10-0.

The Titans started the second half with a nice drive that stalled at the Ram 20 yard line. However Dan Bailey missed the field goal (what else is new) and this breathed life into the LA offense. A nice 7 play 72 yard drive was capped off with a 30 yard long slant TD pass from Luck to Cody Latimer. The Titans downed the kickoff and Doug Martin gained 3 yards on the next play. DKS stepped in at this point and a short hitch to DeAndre Hopkins was completed, Xavier Rhodes missed the tackle and Hopkins sped 72 yards for the TD. Of course Bailey missed the extra point so it was 16-7 Titans.

Late in the third Andre Roberts fumbled a punt return and the Rams had the ball at the Titan 14 yard line. They couldn't push it in and settled for a Ryan Succop field goal. Tennessee 16 - Los Angeles 10 early in the 4th. A key injury hit LA early in the fourth when LT Riley Reiff went down and the Rams had to operate with two 4 rated OT's. They had three possessions in the quarter but couldn't move the ball at all due to the Tennessee pass rush and some untimely penalties. Tennessee wins 16-10.

Stat back Kenneth Dixon had the best numbers for the Rams with 14 carries for 94 yards. The Titans DeAndre Hopkins had 5 catches for 112 yards and two TDs.

Oakland 23 Los Angeles (A) 7                83 Calm
Carlos Hyde runs for 135 yards and a score as the Raiders score 13 unanswered second half points to defeat the Chargers.

Rushing Leaders
Lynch,M(Min)    26-153
Crowell(Ind)    24-152 1 TD
Hyde,C(Oak)     22-135 1 TD
Ingram,M(Mia)   24-126 1 TD
Drake(Car)      25-125 2 TD – IFL Offensive Player of the Week
Hunt,K(Den)     22-122
Darkwa(Jax)     15-101

Receiving Leaders
Baldwin,D(Mia)   8-124 3 TD
Parker,D(Was)   10-101
Anderson,R(NYG) 12- 95 1 TD

Passing Leaders
Goff(Mia)       21-11-196   5 TD 2 Int

Defensive Standouts
Smith,P(NYG)     1 Int 1 Sk 15 Tk
Dansby(Hou)      2 Int 5 Tk – IFL Defensive Player of the Week

Special Teams
Davis,T(NE)    8-203 Kick Ret 1 TD 1-9 Punt Ret – IFL Special Teams Player of the Week
Barth(Cin)     5-6 FG
Zuerlein(Min) 4-4 FG

WEEK 12 IFL STANDINGS

WEEK 12 IFL LEADERS

WEEK 11 RECAP

Linval Joseph earns IFL Defensive honors with 2 sacks and 2 forced fumbles as the Packers shut out the Jets.

Green Bay 23 New York (A) 0                 51 10-20
The NY Jets hosted the Green Bay Packers, and were they ever hospitable!

The HOME team, did not get the home field advantage, the Jets fumbled 5 times, and threw
one interception. What a great group of guys.

Big Ben was 17-29 for 178 yards and 2 TDs. Ben Watson caught 5 passes, 2 of which were TDs.

For the Jets Mike Parlady punted 6 times putting 3 inside the 20, and averaged 50.3 yards per kick.
He continues to be the Jet's MVP!!

Next week Green Bay hosts Chicago, and the Jets visit Tampa Bay. My guess is the Jet players will
have their golf clubs with them, making it a business trip.

Detroit 20 Buffalo 28                       42 10-20
After three the Bills led 28-7 when Cody Kessler and Michael Thomas got hot to make a comeback only to fall short 28-20 in Buffalo.
Thomas caught 12 balls for 169 yards and 2 TDS while Kessler had his best game of the year passing for 233 yards 3 TDS.
The Bills once again were led by Antonio Brown catching 12 for 195 and 2 TDS. Alex Smithpassed for 334 and 3 TDS along with 1 pick.

The BiIlls move to 7-4 while the Lions fall to 6-5. Detroit heads to Minneaplois next while Buffalo heads to New York to play the Jets.

Cincinnati 38 Oakland 16                    65 5-15
Melvin Gordon ran for 110 yards and a score as the Bengals down the Raiders 38-16. But the big story was the return of Aaron Rodgers to the Cincinnati huddle. Rodgers was a little rusty but finished 15 of 24 for 141 yards, 2 TDs, and an INT. He also rushed for 54 yards and a score. The Bengals rushed for 218 yards, good for a 5.1 average. Oakland suffered a bad break when rookie star running back Alvin Kamara was knocked out of the game early in the third quarter. The Raiders were forced to pass more with the Bengals playing the pass more as Matt Stafford completed 17 of 31 passes for 216 yards with a TD and an INT. Jermaine Kearse was his top target hauling in 7 passes for 91 yards.

Next week Cincinnati host Jacksonville in a AFC Central match-up while the Raiders travel to Los Angeles to take on the Chargers in an AFC West contest.

Houston 17 Tennessee 24                     59 0-10
Tennessee builds a 10-0 lead in the first 25 minutes of the game. Houston's offense finally comes alive as Kirk Cousins puts together a 14 play 75 yard drive finished off by a 19 yard TD pass to Chris Godwin in the last minute of the half. Tennessee 10 - Houston 7.

The Titans own the 3rd quarter with two drives finished off by Matt Ryan TD passes to DeAndre Hopkins and Kyle Rudolph. Houston's offense is in neutral until with 9 minutes left in the game. Then they take over on their 4 yard line and march 96 yards scoring on an 8 yard run by Cousins. However the drive consumed 8:13 of the clock so there were only 24 seconds left in the game. The onside kick is successful and Houston kicks a field goal with 4 seconds left in the game. Final score is Tennessee 24 - Houston 17.

An odd stat is that Houston outgained Tennessee 282 to 261 yards. The only problem was that the Texans accumulated 171 of those yards on the two drives at the end of the half and the end of the game. Matt Ryan finished with a 116 QB rating thanks to 3 TD passes.

Arizona 7 Carolina 38                       65 0-5
Two teams looking for answers clash in Carolina. Arizona unfortunately comes up on the short end of the sticks as AJ McCarron throws 3 interceptions and is sacked 6 times.

Carolina lead 21-7 at the half behind a solid run game. Breida did give Arizona hope with a 97 yard kick return for a TD which made the score 14 -7 Carolina. Arizona was unable to stop the Carolina rushing game though as the Panthers finish with a season high 283 yards on the ground lead by Abdullah with 101 yard performance. Johnson was solid in limited caries for Arizona averaging 5.3 yard per tote.

Los Angeles (A) 25 Jacksonville 14          75 10-20 Rain
Trailing 14-7 at the half, the Chargers score the final 18 points for the comeback win. Tyrod Taylor throws for 224 yards and 2 touchdowns for Los Angeles.

Tampa Bay 3 Miami 52                        87 0-5   Light Rain
Tampa Bay rested key players and Miami just keeps rolling as the Fins roll up 505 yards to 151 for the Bucs.Final was 52-3 Fins.

Goff throws for 251 and 4 TDS with Baldwin catching 11 for 115 and 3 TDS, Ingram ran for 155 and a TD and the

Fins D kept the Bucs in check. Dolphins move to 11-0 while Bucs fall to 7-4. Tampa Bay heads to Indy next week while the Dolphins will head to Foxboro to play the Pats.

Denver 6 Baltimore 27                       45 10-20
Baltimore grounded the high scoring Broncos offense with a swarming defense and a ball-control offense en route to a solid 27-6 victory at home, despite the Broncos being 4 point favorites on the road. Thanks to Patriot Kevin for filling in for Doug. He beat Ken by just 12 minutes.

Le'Veon Bell was named the game's MVP with 153 total yards - 99 on 20 carries and another 54 on 4 catches. Buck Allen (5/33) and Alex Collins (7/25) helped the Ravens rushing attack amass 157 yards on 37 attempts. Eli Manning was about as good as Eli will ever be - 20/31/178/2 TDs and no INTs. Adam Thielen caught a 17-yard TD pass (his fourth) to culminate the opening drive of the game for the Ravens. TE Jared Cook caught a 12-yard TD strike early in the 4th to give the Ravens some breathing room, 20-6. RB Alex Collins capped a 16-play (12 runs), 79-yard drive with a 4-yard TD plunge that took 8:30 off the clock in the 4th quarter and sucked the life right out of the Broncos.

Denver, who came into the game having scored 30+ points in 5 of their 10 games, couldn't cross the goal line versus the stingy Raven D. All their scoring came from the leg of Justin Tucker - FGs of 37 and 30 yards, both in the 2nd quarter. Blake Bortles wasn't bad...well, maybe he was...12-for-22, 136 yards with just 1 INT (S Keanu Neal notched his first pick). Break-away threats Kareem Hunt (16/59 on the ground and 2/25 through the air) and WR Tyreek Hill (4/84) just couldn't get on track and didn't have much of a supporting cast.

Denver's Luke Kuechly (12 tackles) and Carlos Dunlap (7 tackles, 1 hurry) did everything they could to keep it close, but in the end, the Ravens just wore them down. Oddly, there were no sacks for either team in this game.

Denver (8-3) remains tied atop the AFC West with Oakland (8-3), who lost to AFC Central leading Cincinnati (10-1), while the Ravens (6-5) remain tied with Tennessee (6-5) as both hunt for a WC spot. Next week, Denver hosts 6-4 Kansas City and Baltimore hosts 3-7 Pittsburgh.

Los Angeles (N) 19 Washington 13            42 0-10
The Rams win a rematch of last years NFC Championship game 19-13. Too call it a defensive struggle would be an understatement. The two teams combined for 4 interceptions and 13 punts.

Just a little preview of the exciting first half:

Interception
FG
Punt
Punt
Interception
Punt
Punt
Punt
Punt
Punt
Punt
Punt
Punt
Interception
Touchdown
Interception
Field goal

Washington will travel to Houston next week while the Rams will head to Tennessee.

Philadelphia 3 New Orleans 20               70
Philly would march into town with their 8-2 record to face the 9-1 Saints and their #1 ranked defense. The Saints would take the opening kickoff and efficiently take the ball right down the field which ended with a Flacco to Sheppard 14 yard TD strike. 7-0 New Orleans. Philly would then get the ball and after a great kick return would start from their own 41. They would then drive to the Saints 34 where Butker would hammer a 52 yard FG- 7-3 Saints. Both teams defenses would step up as they exchanged punts the rest of the quarter. The 2nd quarter was more of the same until about the half way mark. The Saints would face a 3rd and 1 from their own 30. Coach Rice anticipated a full out run defense and threw the bomb. Flacco completed a 70 yard TD to Dez Bryant for his 11th TD of the season(he better catch them all this season). Saints 14-3. The teams would exchange punts to finish the half. Philly would start the 2nd half deep in their own territory and be forced to punt. New Orleans would start at their own 46 and drive to the Eagles 26 befor McManus would nail a FG. Saints 17-3. Philly would get the ball but be forced to punt again. This time they pinned the Saints deep. The Saints not wanting to get conservative would throw and pay for it. Flacco threw a pick to McLeod. But the Saints D would come up with the stop and force another Butker FG. Butker's kick would sail wide left and that seemed to take the air out of the Eagles sail. The rest of the game was a lot of ball control by the Saints and would add one more FG for the 20-3 win. The Saints D was the MVP of the game holding the Eagles to 140 yards total offense. Flacco had 216 yards passing and 2 TD's with Dez catching for 129 yards and a touch. The Eagles had to start Nick Foles for the injured Winston and will face the 7-3 Cowboys next week. The Saints take a 2 game lead for #1 seed and will take on the 6-4 Falcons at home.

Kansas City 24 Pittsburgh 27                48 0-10
Tom Brady throws three TD passes, two of which were to Gronk as the Steelers hold off a Chief fourth quarter rally.

New England 3 Chicago 30                   34 0-10
The Patriots were unable to move the ball effectively against the Chicago defense, while the Bears offense was efficient. Chicago outgained New England 371-96 and produced 20 first downs vs. 4 for the visitors. Mariota was 23/30/282 and 3 TDs, all to Demaryius Thomas.
Chicago 30 New England 3
Next week New England hosts Miami and Chicago travels to Green Bay.

New York (N) 35 San Francisco 38            67 0-10
With the Giants and the Niners meeting in week 11 with 1 and 2 wins respectively, no one could guess that this would be a shootout between
two young QBs. Giants Carson Wentz threw for 402 yards and 3 TDs while SF's Mitch Trubiskey scored all five 49er TDs, throwing for 3 TDs and
running for 2 others, gaining over 80 yards on 5 carries. Juwan Howard broke out of a season long slump with 26 carries for 141 yards.

Dallas 33 Atlanta 31                        68
Cam Newton was having a good game, with 217 yards and 3 TDs (1 rushing) but coach Steve still pulled him at half time with a 19-14 lead.

Ryan Fitzpatrick hit Tyrell Williams on a 67 yard TD pass on his 3rd play to extend the lead to 26-14. Rivers quickly got the lead for Falcons with 2 TD passes, separated by a successful onside kick.

Chandler Catanzaro extended the lead to 31-26 with a 34 yard FG with 3:07 left. On the Cowboys next drive, they turned it over on downs on their own 30 yard line with 1:38 left. Rivers then kneeled down 3 times, with the Cowboys calling their last two timeouts after the first two and the Falcons after the 3rd. That set up a wind aided 50 yard FG attempt for Catanzaro. With 0:47 left, DePaola snapped the ball, Donnie Jones caught the ball, spinned it and set it up perfectly for Catanzaro's attempt. He kicked it long enough but the wind blew it just wide.

After the missed FG, Dallas took over at their own 40, down 31-26, with 0:44 left, no timeouts and needing a TD to win. After an incomplete pass, Fitzpatrick hit LeSean McCoy on a button and go and he broke free for 44 yards down to the Falcons 11 yard line with 0:26 seconds left. After a Fitzpatrick spike, the Cowboys had 0:10 and most likely one play left to win. Fitzpatrick drops back and goes through one read then another and another, while dodging the Falcons pass rush. On his 4th read, he found Lewis open over the middle and hit him in the end zone for the game winning TD, as the clock hit 0:00.

With the win, the Cowboys go to 8-3 while the Falcons fall to 6-5.

Minnesota 22 Indianapolis 30                69
Indianapolis, IND (IFL.com) – High price free agent Case Keenum threw for 279 yards and 1 TD on 34-25 passes to help improve the Colts record to 7-3-1   over the Minnesota Vikings 5-6.

Minnesota came into the game with the number 2 scoring offense (29.3 per game) in IFL which was a major concern of Head Coach Ken Griffith, “after the butt beating we got last week, a 45-21 thrashing by Buffalo, we knew this was going to be tough, Drew Brees and Marshawn Lynch,…concern, a major concern.” Brees threw 5 touchdowns last week in a win over New England and Lynch ran for 116. Both stars were held in check by the Colts D. Lynch managed only 57 yards on 16 carries and Brees had a better day, tossing 2 TD and finishing with 256 yards, however the Colts were able to sack him 3 times. The defense was the star of today’s game forcing 2 key fumbles, one of which was a 13 yard “scoop and score” of a Brees sack and fumble early in the first quarter which put the Colts ahead 14-0, and they never looked back. On the play Brees faded back to pass from his own 17 when he was HIT and stripped by Cameron Wake (DE) his 7th sack of the year, and linebacker Telvin Smith scoops it up and scores.

Second Half

Early in the 4th quarter Minnesota would close the scoring gap to 22-27 on an 11 play 78 yard drive that finish with a Brees to wideout Dontrelle Inman 3 yard TD pass, his 2nd of the day and 5th in the last 3 games, he finished with 6 catches for 73 yards and 2 TD. Indianapolis would answer that score with a 6:34 minute 14 play 73 yard drive which ended with a Stephen Hauschka 22 yard FG. With 1:39 left in the game Colts leading 30-22, starting from their own 25 Minnesota had one more chance to tie the score but would turn the ball over on downs, final 30-22 Colts.

Next up
Tampa Bay Bucs 7-3 @ Indianapolis Colts (7-3-1)
Detroit Lions (6-4) @ Minnesota Viking (5-6)


Rushing Leaders
Ingram,M(Mia)   24-155 1 TD
Howard,J(SF)    26-141 – IFL Offensive Player of the Week
Anderson,C(Pit) 24-119
Gordon,M(Cin)   20-110 1 TD
Abdullah(Car)   19-101 1 TD

Receiving Leaders
Brown,A(Buf)    12-195 2 TD
Thomas,M(Det)   12-169 2 TD
Baldwin,D(Mia) 11-115 3 TD
Thomas,De(Chi)   8- 88 3 TD

Passing Leaders
Wentz(NYG)      34-26-407   3 TD 1 Int
Smith,A(Buf)    33-26-334   3 TD 1 Int
Goff(Mia)       26-20-251   4 TD

Defensive Standouts
Joseph(GB) 5 Tck, 2 Sacks, 2 FF – IFL Defensive Player of the Week

Special Teams
Succop(LAR)    4-4 FG
Cooper,P(Chi) 1-1 Kick Ret 9-136 Punt Ret – IFL Special Teams Player of the Week

WEEK 11 IFL STANDINGS

WEEK 11 IFL LEAGUE LEADERS

WEEK 10 RECAP

Bills receiver Antonio Brown after scoring one of his three touchdowns as Bills take a step forward in playoff bid.

Game Scores
Indianapolis 21 Buffalo 45                  47 10-20
The Bills looked to get revenge on the Colts after losing in OT at Indy and the Bills did just that as Alex Smith threw for 379 yards and 5 TD's, Antonio Brown caught 12 for 211 and 3 TD's, Adam Humphries caught 6 for 121 as he broke loose for a 68 yarder. Freeman rushed for 107 on 15 carries.

Case Keenum was solid for Indy as he was 23 for 34 211 yards and 3 TD's but for the most part the Bills kept the big plays to a minimum...

The final score was 45-21 Bills as they improve to 6-4 and Indy falls to 6-3-1.The Bills host Detroit next while Indy host Minnesota.

Denver 21 Los Angeles (A) 10                76 Calm
Blake Bortles throws two touchdown passes and runs for another as Broncos rally for come-from-behind win.

New York (A) 6 Miami 45                     81 0-10 Light Rain
Miami scores 21 unanswered second quarter points to cruise to the win. Jared Goff throws four TD passes.

Cincinnati 27 San Francisco 14              57 0-10
49ers strike first thanks to good field position as a Huber punt only netted 27 yards after the Agnew return. A 26 yard strike from Trubisky to Boyd set up a Trubisky 3 yard run for the score, 7-0 San Fran at the 8:12 mark of the opening quarter.

Cincinnati took advantage of a 49er turnover and converted into a Ty Montgomery 9 yard touchdown run to tie it at 7 with 3:26 remaining in the quarter.

At the 9:09 mark of quarter 2, substitute kicker Conner Barth gave the Bengals their first lead booming a 50 yard field goal, 10-7. After forcing a San Francisco punt, Hundley connected with Walker for the 24 yard score to give Cincinnati a 17-7 lead. After another San Francisco punt, Hundley engineered a nine play, 52 yard drive that led to a 39 yard field goal and a 20-7 Bengals lead at the half.

The Bengals extended their lead to 27-7 as Gordon went in from a yard out. The Niners closed out the scoring with a Howard four yard run that was set up by a Diggs 75 yard catch and run for the 27-14 final.

Hundley finished 11 of 21 for 118 yards and a TD. Gordon rushed for 102 yards on 21 carries and a score. Walker led the receivers with 8 catches for 94 yards and a TD.

For San Francisco, Trubisky was 12 of 20 for 150 yards. Howard had 22 carries for 66 yards and a score.

Next week the 49ers host the Giants while Cincinnati is at Oakland.

Detroit 14 Green Bay 19                     46 5-15
First place was on the line as the upstart Lions visited Lambeau.

Lions had things going their way early.

Packers gamble on 4th and 2 from the Detroit 44 and fail.

Steve Nordberg's surprise Kittens take the gift and move quickly downfield
getting big plays from WR Micheal Thomas and RB Leonard Fournette.

Lenny powers it onto the end zone from 1 yard out...7-0 Lions

On the next series Green Bay lost OC Eric Wood for part of a big portion of the game
(and it seemed like forever considering our backup Matt Slauson wasn't even dressed)

After a Packers punt, the hosts looked like they got a break when QB Cody Kessler is picked off
deep in his own end, but a roughing the passes penalty on Calais Campbell would negate the INT.
Two plays later Fournette coughed the ball up after being hammered by ILB Ryan Shazier.

Green Bay was in business at the Lions 44. After a pair of Jay Ajayi runs went for short gains
QB Ben Roethlisberger found WR Emmanueal Sanders for a first down. Nordberg challenged the
reception whining that the ball had hit the turf. The suits in New York agreed and the visitors dodged
a bullet.

The game took a huge turn early in the second quarter when Fournette went down with a serious
ankle injury.

On the next series, down 7-3, Green Bay put together a masterful drive that left the Lions
scratching their proverbial 5-heads.

Mixing Ayaji and Jamal Charles on the ground and using 4 different receivers, the hosts
went 96 yards on 15 plays, culminating with a Roethlisberger to Sanders one yard TD toss

10-7 Packers at the half.

Without Fournette to keep the defense honest, the Lions went back to back
three and outs to start the 3rd. Meanwhile, the Green Bay offense tacked on a
Robbie Gould FG and an uncoverted Sanders 13 yard TD reception to go up 19-7.

The Lions would stay in the game after some no name RB named
Artis-Payne or Artis-Gilmour or something, ripped off a 43 yard TD run
to make it 19-14 to end the 3rd.

The 4th was tension filled as the Pack couldn't get anything going
offensively. Luckily, the Lions never got over midfield on their 3 final three possessions
allowing the home team to escape with a hard fought 19-14 victory.

Always enjoy playing the Lions. Steve called a great game.
Even without Fournette he had us sweating right up until the end.

Notables:

Kessler            15-32 126, 1 int, 44.5 rating
Atris-Gilmour    9 rush-81yards, 43 yard TD
M. Thomas       7 rec-75 yards 17 targets!

Roethlisbeger 23-36 198, 2TDs 96.8 rating
J. Charles       9 rush-75 yards
Sanders          5 rec-56 yards   2TDs

Next:

Detroit (6-4) travels to Buffalo (6-4)
Green Bay (7-3) visits New York Jets (1-9)

Houston 3 Kansas City 23                    44 20-30
Andy Dalton throws 2 TD passes to Jarvis Landry and Steven Gostkowski kicks 3 field goals as the Chiefs dominate the Texans.

New England 10 Minnesota 35                 68
New England, 1-7-1, came into the frozen wild of Minnesota to take on the slumping Vikings (4-5, losers of 4 of their last 5).

On the first play of the game from scrimmage, Drew Brees threw an interception, and two plays later the Patriots were in the end zone on a 1-yard DeShone Kizer run, 7-0, after just a minute of play.

The next possession, New England forced Minnesota to punt, then marched 73 yards down the field in 11 plays, finally settling on a 25-yard field goal by Jake Elliott to up their lead to 10-0.

In the first 10 minutes of the game, the Patriots had scored 10 points, which was only one point short of their game average entering the contest. And Brees had yet to complete a pass.

The Vikings came alive at that point, however, and then there was no stopping them. Brees completed 21 of his next 23 passes, throwing for 5 touchdowns, Marshawn Lynch gobbled up 116 yards on 24 carries, and Chris Ivory came off the bench to add 142 total yards from scrimmage (83 running, 59 receiving) as Minnesota rebounded big time for a 35-10 win.

Stars on the ground for New England were Christian McCaffrey and Kizer, who combined for 111 yards rushing. Kizer netted only 68 yards through the air, for a 43.1 passing rating, whereas Brees, almost twice as old as Kizer, had 259 yards and a 132.8 rating.

The Vikings are now 5-5 (0-4 vs. division rivals Green Bay and Tampa Bay, 5-1 versus the rest of the league) (the Vikings have scored over 30 points in all 6 games versus the rest of the league, but are averaging only 20 vs. division rivals). New England drops to 1-8-1.

In week 11, Minnesota visits powerful Indianapolis, while New England visits struggling Chicago.

Tennessee 19 Pittsburgh 14                  42 0-5   Light Rain
This game was played with the temperature at 42 degrees (farenheit) in light rain. Pittsburgh started off the game with a 75 yard drive capped by a Brady to Gronkowski TD pass. Tennessee then dominated most of the second quarter with a TD on a Ryan to Hopkins 41 yarder along with two field goals. However with only 3:14 left on the clock Brady moved the Steelers 75 yards and scored on a 1 yard QB sneak. At the half it was Pittsburgh 14 - Tennessee 13.

The Titans dominated most of the second half with three substantial drives but these only resulted in two field goals and a failed 4th and 1 gamble on the Steeler 16 yard line. With 3:40 to go in the game the Steelers took over on their 25. Brady mixed runs and passes to move Pittsburgh all the way down to the Titan 7 yard line but only 2 seconds were left on the clock. Brady looked for his favourite target Gronkowski but it got batted away. Final score Tennessee 19 - Pittsburgh 14.

Eric Decker had 8 receptions for 98 yards for the Steelers. Ryan was the game MVP going 24 for 32 for 241 yards and 1 TD.

Many thanks to Ken from Indianapolis for subbing for Vince.

Chicago 9 Tampa Bay 13                      78 0-5   Rain
The Bears, winners of 2 games and 9 point underdogs, paid a visit to the Buccaneers. Tampa is in the middle of a dogfight in the NFC Central along with Green Bay and Detroit, all at six wins. Tampa suffered a 29 to 10 drubbing in Chicago earlier in the season.

The game was played in a light rain. Defense dominated the day. The Bears outstanding defensive lineup held Derek Carr and Todd Gurley in check. The lack of a consistent Chicago running attack allowed Tampa Bay to play an extra DB making it difficult on the young Marcus Mariota.

First quarter action included a 13 play drive by each team, however, two field goals were the result of both efforts. 3 – 3 after one quarter.

The only touchdown and the only truly big offensive play came midway through the second quarter. On fourth down and with mere inches to go, Carr audibles at the line to a play action bomb to Devante Adams for a 54 yard touchdown pass. Rojas adds a field goal late in the quarter for a halftime score of 10 – 6, Tampa with the lead.

Deep in the third quarter Tampa is able to work to the Chicago 11 yard line with the score still 10 to 6. On second down and six to go, Ryan Kerrigan and Bobby Wagner come on one of the many Bear blitzes on the day. Kerrigan strips the ball from Carr and Wagner recovers the fumble to the stop the drive!

After a Chicago three and out the Buccaneers added a field goal to their slim lead. The score after three quarters was 13 – 6 Bucs.

In a sluggish fourth quarter the two teams exchange field goals. Tampa plays conservatively, and Chicago gets a couple of drives going. On fourth down from the Tampa 40 yard line with 1:18 left in the game, Tyrann Mathieu picks off Mariota effectively ending the game.

The two offenses only possessed the ball twice in the red zone. These possessions culminated in a total of 3 points. Chicago managed 250 yards of offense - 116 of that came from Demaryius Thomas. A dominant Bear defense held Todd Gurley to 30 yards rushing on 24 attempts. Ryan Kerrigan led the way on defense for Chicago with 8 tackles, 2 of them sacks, and the forced fumble.

The difference in the game was the one long TD pass to Devante Adams.

Next week Tampa travels east to try and trip up undefeated Miami while Chicago hosts New England.

Dallas 22 Arizona 21                        68 Calm
Where has the Mighty Red Bird gone?

It seems like only yesterday Arizona lost to Oakland in the Super Bowl. Like the Dan Marino years with the Dolphins everyone waited for Big Ben’s return for his ring. However, the team seemed to crumble around their star QB and began to slip each year. It became obvious in 2018 the Cardinals would not be able to rebuild before the setting sun of Big Ben.

The Cardinals GM decided it was time to rebuild, but unfortunately at the cost of the 2018 season. Young players are gaining valuable experience, but also making too many mistakes. For the second time in the same season Zona loses to Dallas by 1 point.

The young Red Birds played a strong game. On Dallas’ first series Thompson intercepted a Newton pass deep in Dallas territory and it only took one play to turn it into 7 points for Zona. The Arizona defense returned to the field energized and held Dallas to three and out. On Arizona’s second possession they would drive the length of the field to put Zona ahead by 14 points.

Dallas appeared to be the deer in the headlights as Zona continually shut down their offense. Dallas would throw a second interception and it looked promising for Zona. However, for those who could read the tea leaves, it was more of the same. Zona simply could not consistently move the ball. Early in the second quarter, Newton would hit Stills for a 71 yard TD to close within 7 points. With just over 4 minutes left Dallas would drive from their own 8 yard line to potentially tie the game. However, a missed extra point by Dallas would leave them behind by 1. Zona would end their chances in the first half with a McCarron interception.

After yet another failed Arizona series on their first possession of the second half, Dallas would drive for a FG to put them up by 2 points. Finally, Arizona would breath again. While Dallas concentrated on stopping Duke Johnson, Zona traversed the field on McCarron’s arm to score their third TD. Now up by 4, Zona only needed to keep Dallas out of the end zone.

On Dallas’ next series Zona shut them out. However, on the very next series McCoy was able to break a short pass into a 46 yard gain. Dallas would take the FG to move ahead by one point. Arizona was not done however. With 15 minutes left Zona would drive from their own 25 yard line to the Dallas 34 yard line while burning 7 minutes off the clock. On a 3rd and 3, Breida would attempt to pick up a first down only to be thrown for a 1 yard loss. Down by 1 point, Zona attempted a long FG without success.

Dallas came close to costing themselves the game with a controversial call on Zona’s one yard line. After failing on a 3rd and 1 with goal to go, Dallas would attempt to score the TD on 4th and 1 rather than taking the chip shot FG. Zona managed a brilliant goal line stand and took over on downs at the one yard line. Zona would move the ball to their 25 yard line before negative plays stopped their final possession.

Philadelphia 24 Washington 28               50 Calm
Washington scores 14 points in the final 5 minutes to beat Philly 28-24. The Redskins have gone from losing to the winless Giants to knocking off the 8-1 Eagles. Philly fans will be spending the rest of the week talking about the aggressive decision to go for a 4th and 1 with j2 minutes left to play at the Washington 42 yard line up by 3. Philly would fail and give the Redskins great field position on their game winning drive.

It was also a physically painful game for Philly as they lost Hitchens for 3 weeks, Winstons for 2 weeks, Rowe for 7 weeks and Witherspoon for 3 weeks.

Carolina 26 Atlanta 31                      68
Josh McCown had a Josh McCown game. He completed a lot of passes but a couple of them were to the other side. Ultimately, though, down 26-17 with 6:02 left, he came up big. He led the Falcons offense on a 10 play 75 yard drive, ending in a Larry Fitzgerald TD to close the gap to 26-24. The Falcons then kicked deep with 1:56 left in the game and all their timeouts. Wilson completed a pass to Mike Evans but it's called back on a DJ Fluker penalty. The Panthers then run 3 times, with a Falcons timeout after each and then punt the ball away.

On the punt, Jakeem Grant returned it 15 yards to the Panthers 43 and fumbled it and fortunately TJ Watt recovered it. Lamar Miller then sets up the Falcons with a 21 yard run at the 14 yard line with 24 seconds left and down by 2, 26-24. Without timeouts, the Falcons decide to try once for the end zone and hit Larry Fitzgerald for a TD to take the lead 31-24. The Panthers take over with 18 seconds left but simply not enough time left against the Falcons prevent defense.

Falcons made the big plays and the ball bounced the Falcon's way at the end which helped the Falcons come away with a 31-26 victory over the Panthers.

With the home win, the Falcons go to 6-4 while the Panthers fall to 4-6.

Russell Wilson was excellent for the Panthers with 245 yards, 2 TDs and no picks. Both his TD passes were to Mike Evans who had 7 catches for 107 yards and the two TDs.

Josh McCown had 311 yards with 3 TDs and 2 INTs. He also had 4 scrambles for 31 yards and a TD rushing. Larry Fitzgerald had 9 catches for 120 yards and 2 TDs. Lamar Miller had 19 rushes for 122 yards to balance the offense.

Los Angeles (N) 7 New Orleans 19            70
Saints dominate Rams in New Orleans. Flacco doesn't throw an incomplete pass and Dez Bryant scores a long late touchdown to put the game out of reach.

Baltimore 30 Jacksonville 10                62 5-15
The Ravens came to Jacksonville and laid a severe beating on the hosts en-route to a 30-10 victory. The pain was swift and decisive as a porous Jags defence was eviscerated for 27 first half points. The Jags on the other hand were a comedy of errors throughout.

Arron Donald was the game MVP with 8 tackles, 2 sacks and one forced fumble.

Oakland 30 New York (N) 0                   45 Calm
The Raiders defense turned this matchup into a rout quickly as the vaunted Silver and Black returned two interceptions for touchdowns and sacked opposing quarterback Carson Wentz for a safety on its way to a 30-0 victory. The Raiders jumped out to a 21-0 first quarter lead and went into safe mode, content with letting its defense run out the string. Matthew Stafford was 9 of 14 for two touchdowns and the Raiders' running backs combined for over 35 carries.

Rushing Leaders
Miller,L(Atl)   19-122
Lynch,M(Min)    24-116
Freeman,D(Buf) 15-107
McCoy,L(Dal)    19-102 1 TD
Gordon,M(Cin)   21-102 1 TD
Morris,A(Mia)   12-100

Receiving Leaders
Brown,A(Buf)    12-211 3 TD – IFL Offensive Player of the Week
Woods,R(NYJ)    10-110

Passing Leaders
Smith,A(Buf)    28-24-379   5 TD
McCown(Atl)     36-26-311   3 TD 2 Int
Brees(Min)      25-21-259   5 TD 1 Int
Goff(Mia)       21-13-194   4 TD

Defensive Standouts
Coyle(SF)        15 Tk
Donald (Bal) 8Tk, 2 Sacks, 1 FF – IFL Defensive Player of the Week

Special Teams
Bailey,D(Ten) 4-4 FG - IFL Special Teams Player of the Week
Lambo(Car)     4-4 FG
McManus(NO)    4-5 FG

WEEK 10 IFL STANDINGS

WEEK 10 IFL LEAGUE LEADERS

WEEK 9 RECAP

Giants linebacker Preston Smith enjoys the final seconds before New York's first win of the season.

Game Scores
Washington 14 New York (N) 15               45 0-5
Behind a game-for-the-ages performance by D Mays (22-74-3.4) and despite my kicker missing 2 PATs and Wentz's pick-six, the Giants pull off a stunning 15-14 upset of the heavily favored Washington un-PC's. New York linebacker Preston Smith contributed 2 interceptions, a sack, and 10 tackles.

Arizona 15 Philadelphia 17                  49 Calm Rain
On a cold rainy day in Philadelphia, the 0-8 Cardinals would come in looking for their 1st win of the season against the division-leading Eagles. The Eagle brass decided before game time to sit starting QB Jameis Winston and RB Demarco Murray in order to save them for the rest of the season. Nick Foles would replace Winston in hopes of continuing the Eagles winning ways.

Arizona would draw first blood against a reinforced Eagle defense by driving 57 yards on 11 plays ending in a Caleb Sturgis FG. Cards up 3-0.

The Eagles would take the ensuing kickoff and drive 75 yards on 11 plays. The Eagles had a 4th and 1 at the goal line and decided to go for it and newly acquired RB Rex Burkhead would leap over the top to put the Eagles in front 7-3. At this point, the Eagle coaching staff was feeling pretty good about the decision to rest some starters.

On their next possession, the Cards would turn in over when QB AJ McCarron would throw it to Eagle LB Sam Acho who would put the Eagles in scoring position at the Cards 30. However, on 2nd down from the Cards 30, Foles would drop back to pass and be sacked and stripped of the ball by Cards DE Tak McKinley. Cards LB Tyus Bowser would pick up the ball and ramble 63 yards for a TD and a 9-7 Cardinal lead after the extra point was missed.

The Eagles would come right back behind the passing of Foles and drive down the field speedily and put the Eagles back in front when Foles hit TE Evan Engram on a 26 yard TD. Eagles up 14-9

This was the point in the game where the offenses fell asleep and the defenses dominated. There were 12 punts between the 2 teams as the field position game was being played. The Eagles were finally able to mount a short drive midway through the 3rd quarter and K Harrison Butker would nail a 51 yard FG to make it 17-9.

The 2 teams continued to exchange punts into the 4th quarter. The Eagle defense had done its job all game holding down a depleted Card offense. However, on their 1st possession of the 4th quarter, McCarron would hit TE OJ Howard on a screen and he would ramble 96 yards to pull the Cards within striking distance at 17-15. The Eagle crowd became anxious at this point.

With just over 11 minutes left in the game, the Cards would get it back with a chance to drive down the field and take the lead. They would take 8 minutes off the clock and go all the way to the Eagle 18. It looked like the Cards would take the lead and possibly win their 1st game of the year. However, consecutive holding penalties would push the Cards back to their 38 and out of FG range. Philadelphia would run the clock under 2 minutes, punt the Cards deep into their own territory and hold on for the victory.

It was a nailbiter all the way. Cards GM and Coach Jim Heaton did a great job hanging in and, if not for those holding penalties, may have pulled off the upset.

Next week, the Eagles will play an important divisional game against the Redskins while the Cards will attempt to win their first game against the tough Cowboys.

Buffalo 31 New England 3                    48 5-15
In Week 3, Antonio Brown was not shy about sharing his displeasure over the off-season trade which jettisoned him from New England to Buffalo. Brown caught 7 passes for 112 yards and 3 TDS in the Bills 37-20 win. So what would A.B do for an encore in his return to Foxboro?

Try 10 catches, 121 yards and 3 more touchdowns.

Alex Smith was outstanding as well, completing 24 of 33 attempts for 241 yards, 3 passing TDs and a rushing TD. Buffalo's defense stifled the inept Patriot offense all day. New England had less yards passing in the first half (10) than they did penalty yards (25).

Buffalo raced to a 24-0 lead at halftime, and could have won this game by 50 had they not taken the foot off the gas. Bills had 25 first downs on the day, to New England's 7. Buffalo's only complaint would be the 10 penalties whistled against them, but even 30 penalties against wouldn't have changed the outcome here. Bills win in a rout: 31-3.

Chicago 7 Detroit 17                        70
This was reminiscent of an early '70's Black & Blue match up. Too bad it was in a dome.

First half was a lot of punting, seeing the Bears leading 7-3 at the half.

Some more punting then the Lions are able to put together a 8 play 80 yard drive to take the lead 10-7. Prior to that a Detroit interception was called back due to roughing the passer, which we did. Shook 'ol Mariota up a bit.

Mariota then thew an interception early in the 4th, on a reviewed play & the Lions went on to win 17-7

Mariota had a bad afternoon with a 57.4 rating, Cody "the Cobra" Kessler ended up with 181 yards and a 95.2 rating

Fournette netted 108 on the ground including a nice 28 yard scamper. Most of all Michael Thomas caught a 51 yard pass to account for 20% of the Lions offense.

Next week Chicago travels to Tampa, while Detroit goes to Wisconsin.

Baltimore 13 Tennessee 30                   66 5-15
The Titans were favoured by 4 in this contest between two teams mired in the middle of the pack quagmire. The first 20 minutes was a field goal kicking contest with Tennessee kicking 2 and the Ravens 1. In the second quarter each team put together a TD drive so at the half it was Tennessee 13 - Baltimore 10. BTW the sack of the year took place with Baltimore having a second and 4 at the Titan 37. Yannick Ngakoue beat his man and started chasing Eli Manning all over the field. Manning finally fell down whimpering 27 yards behind the line of scrimmage.

The second half belonged to the Titans as a rash of penalties and two 3rd quarter turnovers doomed the Ravens. Two Matt Ryan TD passes and another field goal ensured the win as Baltimore could only manage a field goal in the half. Tennessee 30 - Baltimore 13.

Baltimore really missed Aaron Donald as well as Marcus Cannon, Chris Hogan and Joe Thomas. AJ Green was their stat leader with 5 catches of 63 yards. For Tennessee Matt Ryan was 22 for 27, 206 yards and 2 TDs. DeAndre Hopkins caught 7 passes for 113 yards and a TD. In week 10 it's Baltimore at Jacksonville and Tennessee at Pittsburgh.

Pittsburgh 17 Cincinnati 27                 41 5-15
In AFC Central action, the Bengals hosted the Steelers. Pittsburgh struck first at the 6:16 mark of the opening quarter as Vinatieri connected on a 41 yard field goal. The score remained 3-0 Steelers at the end of the quarter.

The Bengals finally started to matriculate down the field. Enough for Fairbairn to tie the game with a 31 yard kick. After an exchange of punts, Cincinnati got the first break of the game. Hyde intercepted Brady. After a 34 yard run by Gordon, Hundley found Funchess for the eight yard score, 10-3 Bengals with less than a minute remaining in the half. Nothing is ever safe when going against Brady. He connected with Gronk for a 47 yard catch and run and with eight seconds remaining found Holton for the 11 yard score, 10 all at the half.

The Steelers were able to set up Vinatieri for a 50 yard attempt to open the second half but it was wide. The Bengals took advantage of the good field position. Mel Gordon continued his hot running with a 22 yard run. Hundley then hit Jeffery for 12 and Richardson for the 18 yard score, 17-10 Cincinnati with about 8:30 left in the quarter. The Steelers went three and out on their next possession. Hundley stayed hot hitting Jeffrey for 29 yards and Richardson for 14. Capping the drive off with another touchdown to Funchess, 24-10 Bengals. The Steelers gambled and failed on fourth and three giving Cincinnati the ball at 50 as the quarter was closing.

Pittsburgh held the line thanks to a sack by Wilhoite, forcing a Cincinnati punt. After forcing another Steelers three and out Ty Montgomery broke free for a 30 yard gain. This set up Fairbairn's 53 yard field goal to give the Bengals a 27-10 lead. Pittsburgh closed out the scoring as Brady found Lewis from 10 yards out for the 27-17 final.

Brady finished 24 of 37 for 290 yards and two TDS and an INT. Gronk had seven receptions for 109 yards.

For Cincinnati, Hundley played his best game of his career (wouldn't take much) going 19 of 26 for 190 yards and three TD passes. Gordon rushed 14 times for 113 yards.

Next week the Steelers host Tennessee while the Bengals travel to San Francisco.

Miami 42 Green Bay 23                       30 0-5
Undefeated Miami comes into Green Bay and puts the hurt down

Packers newcomer Jamal Charles fumbles on the opening drive
setting up the first Dolphins TD. Jared Goff hit Brandon Cooks from 5 yard out to make it 7-0.

After 3 consecutive punts, Miami got a huge play. Packers expecting a run to Mark Ingram deep in Dolphins territory but instead Goff hits a streaking Doug Baldwin for an 86 yard TD. Brent Grimes was burned badly on the play. 14-0

On the next Packers possession penalties and a Roethlisberger sack backed up the hosts. Goff moved down the short field smartly. Ingram punched it in from 2 yards....21-0

Just like last week the Packers would come back however

On the ensuing kickoff Bobby Rainey took it back 53 yards to give the home team some life. 5 plays later Big Ben hit Emmanuel Sanders from 15 yards out.....21-7

After an exchange of punts the Pack got a huge play from the defense. Miami was driving deep into Green Bay territory when Clay Matthews hammered Goff from behind, Brian Orakpo scooped it up
and went 72 yards to paydirt 21-13 (extra point was missed).

Team exchanged late TD's.

28-20 at the end of an entertaining first half

Story of the second half was the Miami defense coming up big on multiple occasions. Packers had the ball first and goal on the Dolphins 1, not once, but TWICE and came up with only 3 points. Huge first down stops and holding penalties on 2nd down killed both scoring chances.

Miami made the most of their 2 second half red zone opportunities scoring TD's both times.

Final score was 42-23 Miami

Goff 23-34 397 5TDs
Baldwin 8-170 2TDs
Ingram 15-65 1TD despite being knocked out early in the 3rd

Roethlisberger 17-32 184 1td
Ajayi 19-100 1Td
Sanders 6-83 1TD

Week 10

Miami (9-0) host the J-E-T-S Jets (1-7) and are favored by 18
Green Bay (6-3) takes on the smoke and mirrors Detroit Lions (5-3).

San Francisco 23 Los Angeles (N) 21         56 Calm
49ers hold on in an exciting finish to get their second win of the season. 49er QB Mitchell Trubisky was the hero of the day, finding some footing in the second half converting third downs and then making a huge play on a two minute drive to put the Niners in position for the winning score.

Rams got off to a fast start scoring 14 points in the first quarter. Rams QB Andrew Luck found Trey Burton for a short score on the opening drive and then a few possessions later Rams punt returner Tarik Cohen returned a Niners punt for a Touchdown. The 49ers regrouped in the 2nd quarter, Trubisky found Seth Roberts on a 3rd 8 in the Rams end to cut the lead in half. On the next Rams possession, Luck threw an interception that was returned for a touchdown by 49ers CB Jason McCourty, tie game 14-14 at the half.

The momentum had shifted, the Niners were able to muster two long drives that resulted in field goals giving them a 20-14 lead. The Rams finally answered late in the 4th quarter. After a key penalty on 3rd and 12 in the Niners end which gave the Rams a new set of downs, Luck found Burton again for his second touchdown, Rams lead 21-20. On the next 49ers possession the Rams forced a couple incompletions making the down and distance 3rd & 10. Trubisky went back to pass, didn't see what he liked and took off, for 50 yards. The Niners ran off some time and kicked a field goal, giving them the lead 23-21. The Rams received the ball with 1:33 left. Luck found TY Hilton for a big 18 yard completion getting the Rams into the Niners end. The Rams edged closer with another couple successful plays. Rams decided to attempt the game winning field goal from 36 yards out, but missed. Rams kicker Ryan Succop, having a terrible season, missed his 8th kick of the year counting both field goals and xps on only 29 attempts. This one was costly, the Niners take the win.

49ers QB Trubisky, did not have eye popping numbers, but running and passing he totaled 252 yards, 100 on the ground. He moved the ball enough in the second half to get the 49ers the win.

Rams defensive end Trey Flowers did his best to keep the 49ers in check, finishing with 13 tackles and 2 sacks, but it was not enough.

Next week the 49ers host the Bengals, while the Rams travel to take on the Saints.

New York (A) 3 Indianapolis 24              69
Indianapolis, Indiana (IFL.com) – The Indianapolis Colts improve their record to 6-2-1 with a 24-3 win over the visiting New York Jets (1-8). Game MVP Case Keenum threw 2 touchdown passes and Isaiah Crowell ran for 92 yards on 15 carries in the win.

First Half

Indianapolis came into the game has an 8 point favorite and finally, the boys in the desert got this one right. The Colts scored the first 10 points of the game on a Malcolm Brown (RB) 7 yard TD run and a Steven Hauschka 43 yard field goal. Following an 11 play 71 yard drive the Jet’s Dustin Hopkins would kick a 38 FG for the first and only score for the boys from Gotham, Jets 3 Colts 10. With 14 seconds left in the first-half Keenum would hit Michael Crabtree (WR) for a 7 yard touchdown, 17-3 Colts at intermission.

Second Half

Early in the third quarter Keenum would toss his second touchdown pass of the game on a short 7-yard slant to Golden Tate, which would provide the final score of the game 24-3 Colts.

The win keeps the 2nd place Colts 2 games ahead of the Buffalo Bills (4-4) in the AFC East and 2 games in back of the first place and undefeated Miami Dolphins (8-0).

In week 10 Indianapolis travel to Buffalo and the Jets go to the sunshine state to play the Miami Dolphins the number one ranked team in the IFL power rankings.

Notable Players

New York Jets
Ryan Mallet (QB) 27-21, 205 Yards
Jerick McKinnon (RB) 15- 47 Yards
Robert Woods (WR) 9 – 94 Yards
Sammy Watkins (WR) 7- 65

Indianapolis Colts
Malcolm Brown 10-52 Yards 1 TD
Vernon Davis (TE) 6-54 Yards
Golden Tate (WR) 4-48 1 TD
Telvin Smith (LB) ejected for fighting

Los Angeles (A) 22 Dallas 7                 70
Chargers come up with their best effort of the season. Amari Cooper catches 6 passes for 110 yards and a score for Los Angeles.

Jacksonville 17 Atlanta 19                  68
Philips Rivers was named MVP as he led the Falcons to a 19-17 victory over the Jags.

The Falcons jumped out to a 16-0 lead going into the 4th quarter on a TD pass from Rivers to Tevin Coleman. In the 4th, the Jags started their comeback. It started with an 11 play drive for 65 yards, ending in an 11 yard Elijah Hood TD to get the Jags on the board at 16-7.

After a swap of FGs, Jay Cutler got red hot hitting Jack Doyle for 18 yards, Rashad Higgins for 16 yards and then Torrey Smith twice, including a 25 yard pass for a TD to close the gap to 19-17 with 0:41 left in the game.

Jags then tried an onside kick and recovered it on their on 46 yard line with 31 seconds left. After 3 incompletions, Mackensie Alexander picked off Jay Cutler on 4th down to end the game.

For the Jags, Elijah Hood had a breakout game with 27 carries for 120 yards and a TD while Philip Rivers had 265 yards and a TD pass for the Falcons.

With the win, the Falcons go to 5-4 while the Jags fall to 2-7.

Denver 21 Houston 16                        70
The Broncos get a hard fought win in Houston as the Texans nearly pulled off the upset.
Pete called a great game.

Kansas City 17 Oakland 45                   65 10-20
Oakland wins in a rout despite Kamara going down in the first quarter. Stafford was unstoppable and Carlos Hyde rushed for 129 yards in the 45-17 victory.

New Orleans 24 Carolina 20                  74 Calm
The first place Saints roll into Carolina in a divisional match up. The first quarter was a slog as neither team was able to score. Early in the second Flacco hit Bryant on a 83 yard pass and the Saints punched it in a few plays later for the 7-0 lead. The teams then exchanged field goals before Carolina threw a TD pass to tie the game at 10-10 and that is where it would stay going into the half.

In the third the Saints strike first with a one yard run from Stewart but the Panthers answer quickly with a 6 yard run from Drake.The saints then drive down the field as Flacco punches it in from the one to take the 24-17 lead. Carolina is able to get a field goal with 3 minutes left to draw within 4. The Saints however are able to run the clock out as the largest issue for Carolina rears its head again. No matter what defense is called or who is running the ball behind whatever quality of O-line the Carolina D repeatedly gets gashed by the opponents run game.

The Saints look to have a commanding lead in the West and Carolina is looking for answers.

Tampa Bay 31 Minnesota 21                   68
Tampa Bay's A team showed up, not the scrub team that lost to a winless team, and it thumped the discouraged Vikings. The Vikes started off the game moving the ball, driving deep into Buc territory in the 1st period, but they went for a 4th-and-1 -- and were stymied. They were lifeless after that, and the Bucs opened up a 28-7 lead. Two Vikings touchdowns made the game 28-21, but Tampa Bay kicked a late field goal, 31-21, and that was that.

Great game called by Sir Smog, whose mighty team somehow had been outscored this season going into the game. Hard to figure!!


Rushing Leaders
Hyde,C(Oak)     25-129 1 TD
Gurley II(TB)   24-124 2 TD
Hood,E(Jax)     27-120 1 TD
Gordon,M(Cin)   14-113
Stewart,J(NO)   20-108 1 TD
Fournette(Det) 24-108
Trubisky(SF)    5-101
Ajayi(GB)       19-100 1 TD

Receiving Leaders
Baldwin,D(Mia)   8-170 2 TD
Bryant,D(NO)     5-161 1 TD
Brown,A(Buf)    10-121 3 TD – IFL Offensive Player of the Week

Passing Leaders
Goff(Mia)       34-23-397   5 TD
Stafford(Oak)   36-21-349   3 TD
Cousins(Hou)    47-31-253   1 TD 1 Int

Defensive Standouts
Smith,P(NYG)     2 Int 1 Sk 10 Tk – IFL Defensive Player of the Week

Special Teams
Rainey(GB)     6-151 Kick Ret
Switzer(Jax)   5-168 Kick Ret
Forbath(Atl)   4-4 FG – IFL Special Teams Player of the Week
Mickens(Oak)   7-135 Punt Ret 1 TD

WEEK 9 IFL STANDINGS

WEEK 9 IFL LEAGUE LEADERS

WEEK 8 RECAP

Leonard Fournette rushes for 152 yards and 2 scores as the Lions roll Tampa Bay 36-14.

Game Scores
Detroit 36 Tampa Bay 14                     85 0-10
10 point underdog Lions come out of FLA with a win.

TB jumped of early taking the opening KO dive for a TD. Then as the game progressed as predicted, but alas, Detroit managed an a stop on 3 & inches at mid field when Gurley fumbled leading to a Det FG. Once again the Bucs went on the move, but Carr was intercepted as he went for the TD from the 35, leading to a Kessler-Thomas 44 yrd TD. Holly smolly, it's 10-7 Lions.

Then it was 17-7, 24-7, 27-7 and finished 36-14.

Bucs: Carr started on fire but went cold in the middle of the game. 22/37 for 211 1 int 2 tds, but 3 sacks
Gurley got 93 on the ground.

Lions: Kessler started very slow, then looked his all pro self going 14/19 205 yrds 2 tds
Fournette had 152 yrds with 2 tds

The Lions have now scored 66 of their points in two games, & scoring 58 in the other 6.

In week 9, TB travels to division rival Minny, while Det hosts Chi in another divisional game.

New York (N) 10 Dallas 31                   70
The Cowboys' Tyrell Williams put on a show for the hometown fans catching scoring passes of 39, 43 and 65 yards from Cam Newton as he and the Cowboys defense prevailed 31-10 Wednesday night. Cam Newton had his best game of the year, throwing for 285 yards. The Dallas defense forced three turnovers, including a 29 yard pick six by Dime Back Borbert McClain.

The win was costly for the overachieving Cowboys as three more players went down with multiple game injuries.

Los Angeles (A) 14 Kansas City 16           41 5-15
Charger kicker Nick Rose misses on a 53 yard go-ahead field goal attempt with only 1:38 remaining as the Chiefs dodge a bullet.

Indianapolis 27 New England 27              45 5-15
Case Keenum connected with Vernon Davis on a 30 yard TD pass in the first quarter to give Indy a 7-0. Pats put a field goal on the board to cut it to 7-3 heading to the 2nd quarter.

A Keenum to Keenan Allen 5 yard TD pass made it 14-3 early in quarter number 2. After an exchange of punts, Marlon Mack ripped off a 29 yard run to get the Patriots into Colt territory. A few plays later, Kizer found Mack from 11 yards to cut the lead to 14-10 heading to the half.

Patriots received the ball out of the halftime break and put together an 11 play drive covering 79 yards. A Kizer 22 yard scramble gave the Patriots first and goal from the 1 - and Kizer punched it in on the next play to give the home team a 17-14 lead midway thru Q3.

Neither team would score in the third quarter, but New England was putting together another impressive drive towards the end of the quarter - sparked by a 19 yard reception by Jordy Nelson and an 18 yard run by Marlon Mack. Kizer scored his 2nd TD on the ground, this one from 5 yards out, and NE had a 24-14 lead with just over 12 minutes to play in the game.

A Keenum to Crabtree 35 yard TD pass brought Indy to within 3 points with just under 10 minutes to play. Pats couldn't get any offense going on their next drive, allowing Keenum to march the Colts down the field (5 straight completions) and into FG territory, where Hauschka tied it with a 29 yard FG.

The game would go into overtime, and NE would score on their initial drive - a 26 yard field goal by Elliott - while leaving Indy just under 3 minutes left to tie it up or win it. Keenum would complete 7 of 10 passes however, setting up a game tying 33 yard FG on the final play of the game.

Final Score 27-27

Keenum completed 40 of 52 passes for 436 yards and 3 TDs. Deshone Kizer added 2 rushing TDs himself along with a passing TD to lead New England. New England's Jordy Nelson caught 6 passes for 105 yards, while Golden Tate snared 12 balls for 129 yards for the Colts.

New Orleans 21 Baltimore 10                 63 0-10
In a tight defensive battle, it was the Saints winning the turnover game, 5-2, and knocking off the Ravens in Baltimore, 21-10.

With three Jenkins on defense, the Ravens weren't sure who was rushing the passer or covering the WRs, but Janoris was singled out by the writers as the game's MVP on the strength of 8 tackles, 1 hurry and 1 INT (returned for 22 yards that sealed the game).

The tell-tale dagger, however, was driven into the Ravens heart earlier in the 4th. That, though, we'll get to in a minute.

The game started with 3 punts and fumbles by each team. Baltimore took advantage of their recovered fumble and went on a 10-play, 36-yard drive that resulted in a 41-yard Matt Bryant FG. Baltimore 3-0 with just under a minute left in the 1st quarter.

New Orleans answered with a Joe Flacco-to-Dez Bryant TD strike from 43-yards out. New Orleans 7-3.

The teams exchanged punts before Baltimore went on a 10-play, 59-yard drive that Le'Veon Bell finished with a 7-yard jaunt into the end zone. Baltimore 10-7.

After the Ravens' kick-off went out of bounds, the Saints set up shop at their own 40 and moved quickly downfield, aided by a roughing-the-passer penalty on Joey Bosa. Three plays later, Flacco found Sterling Shepard, for the second time in three plays, for a 14-yard TD toss. New Orleans 14-10.

With 2:10 on the clock before the half, Baltimore had visions of regaining the lead before going into the locker room, but those visions were quickly dashed when Reggie Nelson came up with his first INT of the season. Baltimore's D held and the Saints were happy to lead by 4 as the marching band took to the field.

The second half started with 6 punts. Though neither team really gained any benefit, the Ravens generally held the higher ground, starting their three possessions on their own 31, 30 and 28, while the Saints started their possessions on their own 21, 7 and 20. The teeter-totter quickly teetered toward the Saints when Michael Campanero fielded a punt at his own 12 and tired to make a run of it. DT Andrew Billings lumbered downfield on the punt coverage team and blasted the 150 pound Campanero, who fumbled. Campanero is actually listed at 192, but compared to the 311 pound DT with a head of steam, its no wonder the fumbled. Another Saint water buffalo, G Earl Watford recovered at the Ravens 12. Trying to strike while the Ravens were stunned, Flacco instead found the purple jersey of CB Desmond Trufant, who made his 4th pick of the season. Disaster averted.

Baltimore marched out to mid-field where their drive stalled, due primarily to a Michael Bennett sack, but Rigoberto Sanchez's punt pinned the Saints at their own 4. After a quick three-and-out, Baltimore got the ball back at mid-field and moved down to the Saints 35 with 8:55 left...and here's where the Saints pulled the dagger from their cloak. As the Ravens tried to pound the ball toward the goal lline with Alex Collins, Saint ILB Jon Bostic stripped the ball from Collins' grasp and the ball popped into the air where OLB De'Vondre Campbell caught it in stride and romped 65-yards for a TD. New Orleans 21-10.

The Ravens moved to the 50 with 5:30 left, but chose to punt with 3 timeouts in the cupboard. The kick again pinned the Saints deep into their own territory (at the 9) and a three-and-out returned possession to the Ravens at their own 47, but now with just 3:17 left. After moving to the Saints 33, three straight incomplete passes gave the ball back to the Saints and the Ravens used their timeouts to delay the inevitable. Upon regaining possession, Eli Manning threw his 2nd INT of the game and the Ravens' fate was sealed.

Tennessee 12 Cincinnati 9                   45 15-25 Rain
On a rainy, windy Cincinnati afternoon the Tennessee Titans traveled to Cincinnati in an AFC Central match-up. Neither team threatened through the first quarter as the punters were the stars. Tennessee finally put together a 12 play, 47 drive that ended with a Bailey 47 yard field goal and took a 3-0 lead into the half.

Cincinnati finally got on the board as backup running back Montgomery ran for gains of 17 and 11 yards to allow Fairbairn to convert a 28 yard field goal. The Titans took advantage of the first turnover of the game as Swearinger intercepted a Hundley pass that resulted in a Bailey 26 yard field goal.

The Bengals put together another drive that went into the fourth quarter. The key play was a 23 yard reception to Montgomery on third and 15. Cincinnati wound up with another Fairbairn field goal from 50 yards out to tie the game at 6. The Bengals had a chance to take their first lead after forcing a Titan punt. However, Fairbairn missed from 49 yards out. This set up Tennessee with good field position and on third and 10, Ryan found Rudolph for 41 yards to set up a Bailey 24 yard attempt to give Tennessee a 9-6 lead with only 1:29 remaining.

Cincinnati's next drive did not start out promising as Philon sacked Hundley for an eight yard loss. On third and 18, Hundley dumped it off to Gordon who ran 59 yards to set up a Fairbairn 35 yard field goal to send the game into overtime.

After multiple exchanges of punts in the overtime, the Titans pinned Cincinnati deep in their own territory that resulted in good field position for Tennessee after the Cincinnati punt at the Titans 47. Ryan connected with Hopkins for an 11 yard gain. After consecutive incompletions, Ryan connected with Hopkins again for 10 but fumbled. After the pile was uncovered, Tennessee had recovered. The Titans wasted no time and ran the field goal unit onto the field. Bailey ended the game and Cincinnati's undefeated record with the game winning 48 yarder with a little over two minutes remaining.

Ryan finished 22 of 41 for 151 yards. Rudolph caught 7 passes for 82 yards. Swearinger led the defense with the interception for 27 yards. And of course Bailey was the special team hero connecting on all four of his field goal attempts.

For the Bengals, Hundley finished 18 of 31 for 176 yards, one INT, and he was sacked four times. Gordon only averaged 3.2 yards per carry but caught 6 passes for 83 yards.

Next week, the Titans host Baltimore while the Bengals welcome the Steelers.

Miami 41 Buffalo 20                         49 0-10
The powerhouse Dolphins come to New Era Stadium in Buffalo looking to go 8-0 and they did just that, leading 27-3 the Bills make a furious comeback to cut it to 27-20 in third but Miami showed their superiority as they stiffen and put it away 41-20 as they pick Alex Smith 3 times and Jared Goff was outstanding throwing 5 TD's and 336 yards, Cooks scored 3 TD's and caught 6 for 138, Ginn jr. caught 5 for 106 and a TD..Everson Griffen sacked Smith twice and Marcus Peters chipped in with 13 tackles for the Dolphins.Antonio Brown despite being double covered caught 11 for 108 and a TD catch...Freeman ran for 84 on 13 carries and a TD for the Bills...Miami improves to 8-0 while the Bills fall to 4-4...
Miami heads to Lambeau next while Buffalo heads to Foxboro...

I'll make a bold prediction that Miami will win it all, the moves he has made this year should make him GM of the year as he has built a heck of a squad!!!

Philadelphia 27 Denver 19                   53 0-5
Two division leaders would hook horns at the midseason point looking to continue to lead their divisions as well as hold off the teams chasing them. Denver GM and Coach Doug Crandall was unable to coach his Broncos, so League Commish John Storer stepped into coach the Broncos.

The game would be highlighted by both offenses as they moved up and down the field at will. The Eagles would score TD's on its first 2 possessions, and miss a FG on their 3rd while the Broncos would score a TD and 2 FG's on their 1st 3 possessions. 14-13 Eagles at the half.

In the 3rd quarter, the Broncos would continue moving the ball, but the Eagle defense would only allow 2 FG's. The Eagle offense could not muster much offense and the Eagles would trail 19-14 going into the final quarter.

At the beginning of the 4th quarter, the Eagles would punt to the Broncos and put them deep in their own territory. ON 3rd and 1 from their own 27, QB Blake Bortles would try to get the yard with a sneak. Instead, he was stripped of the ball by Eagle LB Anthony Hitchens who would take it to the house to give the Eagles a 20-19 lead! After a 3 and out by the Broncos, the Eagles would put the game away when QB Jameis Winston, on a 4th and 1 play, would fake the handoff against the Bronco goalline defense and hit a streaking Mohamed Sanu across the middle for a 36 yard TD. The Broncos would mount one last drive, but it would stall at midfield and the Eagles would run out the clock.

Minnesota 24 Green Bay 34                   32 5-15
Huge NFC Central showdown as the 4-3 Vikes visited Lambeau to
take on the 5-2 Packers.

This one was all Minnesota early. Visitors got a big play right off the top as Drew Brees hit JuJu Shuster-Smith for a 53 yard pass and run TD on the opening drive, 7-0.
Green Bay could only manage one first down on their first possession and were forced to punt. On the next drive Coach Robb was masterful, engineering a 14 play 80 yard drive that was capped off by an 8 yard Ezekiel Elliot TD run...14-0 Vikings. Early in the drive Shuster-Smith was knocked out of the game, which would ultimately be a huge loss for Minnesota. The Pack went 3 and out on their next opportunity giving the visitors a chance to take total control. Brees and Co. would not disappoint. They went right back down the field on an 18 play 91 yard rive that ate up over 8 minutes. Brees to Jason Witten from 3 yards out for the TD.

It was 21-0 nothing early in the 2nd quarter!

The Vikings had dominated time of possession 16:46 to 3:46 and outgained Green Bay 228-27. After an exchange of punts the hosts got one last chance to close the gap with just over 2 minutes left before halftime. Ben Roethlisberger had been awful up to that point but found amatchup he liked with Danny Woodhead being covered by a LB. He connected with the veteran RB 3 times on the drive before spotting Emmanuel Sanders for a 24 yard slant and go TD.

21-7 at the half.

The building finally had some energy after a humiliating early stretch that saw the Vikings put the boots to the division leaders. Green Bay got the ball to start the 3rd and drove down the field. TE Ben Watson had a couple of big grabs to set up Sanders second TD catch of the game from 6 yards out. 21-14 with over 9 minutes left in the 3rd. We had a game. Minnesota got a holding penalty that stalled their next drive giving the Packers back the ball with a chance to tie it. A couple of Jay Ajayi runs got the ball down to the Minnesota 36 but the drive stalled out there. Robbie Gould connected from 53 yards out aided by a decent tail wind. 21-17 Minnesota.

After an exchange of punts, the Vikings received a big boost from their kicker when the Minnesota drive stalled at the Packers 38. Greg "the leg" Zuerlien lined up for what appeared to be an ill advised 56 yard attempt into the wind. He stepped up and nailed it to restore a 7 point lead...24-7 at the end of the 3rd.

Early in the 4th Minnesota got a big play from their defense as Ben was picked off by safety Jason Poyer who brought it back to the Packer 38. Vikes were in business to go up by 2 scores. Luckily for the hosts Ryan Shazier picked off Bress on 3rd and 5 and took it back to midfield. After an Ajayi 11 yard run and a pair of Woodhead receptions (he was knocked out of the game during the second grab after he took a vicious hit), the Pack moved the ball all the way down to the Minnesota 12. On 4th and 4 coach Conners thought about going for it but with over 11 minutes opted for the short Gould FG....24-20.

Another holding penalty stalled the next Viking drive and the hosts got the ball back with just over 7 minutes left. Roethlisberger spread the ball around effectively finding TE Ben Watson and RB Charles Sims on a drive that covered 80 yards in 13 plays. Sanders caught his 3rd TD of the game from 22 yards out to give Green Bay their first lead...27-24. Then the Packer defense came up big. CB Steve Smith hammered WR Kelvin Benjamin on a short slant. The ball was jarred loose and S Rashad Jones scooped it up and took it to the house......34-24 Packers would be the improbable final.

Rich called a great game and had us on the ropes all game long. Losing Shuster-Smith early was key. Both games versus Minnesota this season were nail-biters
and could have easily gone the other way.

Brees 23-37 239 2TD 1 int
Elliot 18-77 1TD
Matthews 5-76

Roethisberger 25-42 295 3TD, 2int
Woodhead 8-82
Sanders 7-123 3TDS (player of the game)

Next week:

Minnesota 4-4 hosts Tampa Bay 5-2
Green Bay 6-2 welcomes unbeaten Miami 8-0

Chicago 21 New York (A) 17                  65 Calm
Two 1-6 teams faced off when the Chicago Bears came to the Big Apple to play the Jets.

This game turned out to be a “what have you done for me lately” for one Jets player. It started just as one would think a game between two 1-6 teams would, 3 consecutive punts, 2 by Chicago, and one by the Jets. Then the game got interesting, 3 scoring drives in a row. The Jets started it with an 80 yard drive which culminated in a 34 yard TD pass from Mallett to McKinnon. Remember those 2 names.

Next the Bears drove 75 yards in 10 plays, and scored on a 19 yard pass from Mariota to Crowder. 7-7....

The Jets then went 75 yards in 11 plays and finished it with a Mallett( yes the stat pack star) 8 yard pass to Watkins, 14-7 Jets. That was the score at the half.

The second half opened with the Jets kicking a 29 yard field goal to go up 17-7. Late in the 3rd the Bears put together an 11 play 75 yard drive which led to a Blue TD run that cut the Jet’s lead to 3.

New York started the 4th with the ball, and took 5 minutes off the clock, but ended up having to punt from the Bears 43. The Bears then used up 4 minutes on a drive that ended in an interception by Robey. Mallett hoped to run clock, and the ball, but couldn’t get a first down. So, with 4 minutes to play the Bears, after fielding the Jet’s punt, had to go 83 yards to pull out a win.

Mariota drove his team 51 yards to the Jet’s 32 yard line. On 4th and 4, with 46 seconds to play, Coach Agosta decided not to attempt a 49 yard FG, and the Bears went for it!!

The Jets hold the Bears!! The crowd goes crazy.... 38 seconds to go, and the Jets get their 2nd win. A run by Oliver, a time-out by the Bears. 31 seconds to go, setting the stage for.....On the next play Star Lotulelei strips Mallett, and Wagner picks it up, and rumbles 26 yards for a TD....what had only moments before looked like a Jets win, was now just another lose!!

For the game Mallett went 16-19 for 194 yards, and 2 TD passes. But, he’ll be remembered for coughing up the ball, and the win. McKinnon had 159 yards of total offense, but it was wasted.

Mariota was 36-47 for 304 yards, and Crowder, along with Thomas, had 11 receptions each.

The Jets did get some good news in that their rookie QB, Watson, is getting heathy, and could be back for their final 6 games.

Next week Chicago travels to Detroit, and the Jets fly to Indianapolis.

Atlanta 30 San Francisco 16                 64 0-10
Atlanta jumped out to a 24-7 lead in the first half and held on to overcome SF 30-16 at games end. The 49ers had closed the lead to 24-16 in the third quarter, but couldn’t get over the hump. Each team kicked 3 FGs and Lamar Miller rushed for 92 yards for the winners. Philip Rivers was very efficient at 15-20 for 225 yards and 1 TD. Louis Agholor caught 6 passes for 111 yards. SF QBs Gabbert and Geno Smith completed 26-38 throws but only for an aggregate 177 yards.

Atlanta improves to 4-4 while SF drops to 1-7

Arizona 6 Washington 14                     62 0-10
Washington struggles to put points on the board but thankfully it doesn't take many to beat the Cardinals. The Redskins move on to 5-3 and will face off against the Giants next week while the Cardinals fall to 0-8 and play the division leading Eagles.

Carolina 3 Los Angeles (N) 27               66 Calm
Rams prevail at home 27-3 mostly behind an impressive defensive effort that frustrated the Panthers QB Russell Wilson all game. Since the end of the game a major controversy emerged on social media based on reporting from an intrepid Carolina reporter. According to a source in the article, the Rams, knowing they likely would be at a disadvantage with Andrew Luck playing the season throwing with his left-hand, contracted with local resident and Tesla/Space-X resident Elon Musk to make modifications to their field. Specifically the Rams asked Musk to design a field that would slightly tilt allowing the Rams to play "downhill", while the opposing team would have to play "uphill". The Rams wanted this ability to be adjustable due to the changes on the sides of the field between quarters.

It was unclear after the game if Panthers Coach Sean Britt was aware of the controversial report, but he did make many references to the game feeling like climbing up a mountain or fighting an uphill battle. The Panthers could only muster 190 yards on offense, were 2-12 on 3rd down and, had three turnovers, one of which was returned over 60 yards for Touchdown. On Defense the Panthers had trouble getting off the field early, but eventually found some footing and kept the Rams offense from scoring in the second half.

It's unclear what ramifications from the league the Rams may face if in fact they built a tilting field.

It was difficult to identify a Panthers player who stood out, but based on the potentially slanted conditions they played under it is hard to blame them.

Rams running back Ken Dixon managed 102 yards and a Touchdown to lead the Rams ground game.

Next week the Rams host the San Francisco 49ers while the Panthers host the New Orleans Saints.

Houston 10 Oakland 27                       63 5-15
Raiders score 13 unanswered second half points to defeat the Texans. Travis Kelce catches 6 passes for 124 yards and a score.

Jacksonville 31 Pittsburgh 21               48 0-5
Jaguars score ten fourth quarter points to escape Pittsburgh with the win. Jay Cutler throws for 321 yards and two scores to lead Jacksonville.

Rushing Leaders
Fournette(Det) 28-152 2 TD – IFL Offensive Player of the Week
Johnson Jr(Ari) 22-124
Dixon(LAR)      21-102

Receiving Leaders
William,Ty(Dal) 6-185 3 TD
Thomas,M(Det)   10-169 2 TD
Cooks(Mia)       6-138 3 TD
Tate,G(Ind)     12-129
Sanders,E(GB)    7-123 3 TD
Brown,A(Buf)    11-108 1 TD
Thomas,De(Chi) 11- 99
Crowder(Chi)    11- 86 1 TD
Allen,K(Ind)    10- 77 1 TD

Passing Leaders
Keenum(Ind)     52-40-436   3 TD
Stafford(Oak)   40-29-380   2 TD 1 Int
Goff(Mia)       32-20-336   5 TD
Cutler(Jax)     44-30-321   2 TD 1 Int
Winston,J(Phi) 38-25-309   3 TD
Mariota(Chi)    47-36-304   1 TD 1 Int

Defensive Standouts
White,T(Jax)     2 Int 6 Tk – IFL Defensive Player of the Week

Special Teams
Bailey,D(Ten) 4-4 FG – IFL Special Teams Player of the Week
Tucker,J(Den) 4-4 FG

WEEK 8 IFL STANDINGS

WEEK 8 IFL LEAGUE LEADERS

WEEK 7 RECAP

Miami receiver Doug Baldwin catches three TD receptions as the Dolphins stay perfect in week 7.

Game Scores
Miami 45 Los Angeles (A) 14                 80 Calm
Dolphins score 21 unanswered second quarter points to cruise past the Chargers. Miami receiver Doug Baldwin catches three of quarterback Jared Goff’s four touchdown passes.

Atlanta 10 Baltimore 13                     77 0-5
If you were listening to this game on the radio, you'd have thought it was being played during the approach of Hurricane Michael or maybe on the frozen tundra of Wisconsin or the shores of Lake Michigan, but no, it was a sunny 77 with a light breeze blowing across the jade green grass of M&T Stadium in Baltimore. Regardless, it was a throw-back, ugly, defensive battle where the winning team threw for just 120 yards and the losing team racked up 184 yards on the ground. In the end, it was Baltimore who made a goal-line stand that would have made Ray Lewis proud (SB 47 anyone?) and the Ravens escaped with a 13-10 victory.

The game started ugly, with the Ravens' Desmond Trufant picking off Phillip Rivers on the first play from scrimmage, but Baltimore gained only 7 and kicked a FG for a 3-0 lead. On the ensuing kick-off Jakeem Grant was blown up by Javorious Allen and Mark Barron recovered the fumble on the Falcons 31. The Ravens would gain a first down, but a Von Miller sack pushed the Ravens back and they had to settle for a FG...attempt. I think a butterfly landed on the nose of the ball as Rigoberto Sanchez placed it for Matt Bryant and as he tried to swat the butterfly away, he inadvertently swatted the ball away from Bryant's swinging leg, a la Charlie Brown. So it remained Baltimore 3-0.

When Atlanta finally got to run some plays, they did well, putting together an 11-play, 52-yard drive, but the Ravens' D stiffened and the Falcons had to settle for a 50-yard Kai Forbath FG. Tie game, 3-3.

After 7 punts, the score remained 3-3 going into the locker rooms at the half. Baltimore received the second half kick-off and proceeded to punt again. With Rivers suffering through a 1-for-7 half, good for a whole 17 yards passing, 1 INT and a sack, Coach Golden turned to Josh McGown to generate some offense for the black-and-red to start the second half. A penalty on Joey Bosa gave the Falcons a first down, but on the next play CB Kendall Fuller picked McGown and the Ravens again had a short field at the Falcon 43. Determined to pound the stone, the Ravens gained 24 yards on 4 consecutive running plays, but two incomplete passes left them with a 4th-and-1 on the Atlanta 21. Not confident that a 3-point lead would hold up with nearly 20 minutes of football left, Coach Master decided to go for it, opting for a play-action, roll-out to Le'Veon Bell on the sideline. It worked, but the drive stalled three plays later anyway and the Ravens kicked the FG for the lead - Baltimore 6-3 with 4:45 left in the 3rd quarter.

Atlanta went 3-and-out and the Ravens took control on their own 34 after the punt. Like that little sunbeam of light that shines through the dark storm clouds, Baltimore saw a glimmer of their real offense as they mixed runs and runners and passes and pass catchers as they marched efficiently downfield in 10 plays, the last of which was a 9-yard Manning-to-Theilen TD strike. The extra point made it 13-3 Baltimore.with 12:39 left in the game.

The Falcons gained a first down on their possession after the kick, but a 5-yard penalty and a Mark Barron sack put them in a hole they almost, but couldn't get out of. Faced with a 4th-and-5 from their own 35, Atlanta chose to return the ball to the Ravens via a punt. Three plays later, the Ravens returned the favor and did so quickly, to give the Falcons plenty of time to make a comeback.

Starting at their own 42, McGown led the Falcons on a 10-play drive, aided by a Trufant facemask penalty, that resulted in a Tevin Coleman TD run from 9 yards out. The PAT cut Batimore's lead to 13-10, but while the drive put 7 points on the Falcons side of the scoreboard, it also took away 4 1/2 minutes from the clock.

With just 2:09 left on the clock, everyone in the stadium knew the onside kick was coming, but somehow, someone forgot to tell the Ravens receiving team to catch the kick. Go figure...Atlanta recovered and visions of the Steelers last-play victory over the Ravens just two weeks before flashed on the backs of Coach Master's closed eyelids.

First play after the successful onside kick...16 yards to Zack Ertz. Already in FG position with the wind at their back. A false start penalty set them back 5 yards and a stuff of Lamar Miller put the Falcons in a dire 2nd-and-15 with 1:42 left, but an 8-yard bullet to Grant and a 14-yard jaunt by Coleman gave Atlanta a first down on the 20 with :49 on the clock.

McGown then hit Nelson Agholor for his only catch of the game, an 11-yarder to the Raven 9 with just 24 seconds left. An incomplete pass stopped the clock with 17 seconds left. With two timeouts in his back pocket, Coach Golden decided he wasn't going to sit on the FG and daringly called for a dive play to Coleman. The Ravens stopped Coleman at the 4 with 9 seconds on the clock after the Falcons timeout. Coleman then tried to squeeze through a slim gap in the O-line, but was stonewalled by Stacey McGee at the 1 with 2 seconds on the clock.

Go for the W or kick the tying FG? Pretty easy decision for Coach Golden. Go for the win! After pummeling the Ravens D to the tune of 185 yards on 32 carries, it was up to Dion Lewis to punch it in. Lewis saw a crease and tried to dart through, but there was Matt Judon, gold teeth and all, grinning as he met Lewis head-on and drove him back for a game-saving, 1-yard loss on the last play of the game.

Somewhere, Ray Lewis was doing the Squirrel Dance! Baltimore 13, Atlanta 10.

In a game dominated by defense, it should be noted that Baltimore played without Aaron Donald who left the game with just under 9 minutes left in the 1st quarter and got lost in the catacombs of M&T Stadium, never to make it back on the field. Though Donald has a 10+ durability rating, his direction finding rating must be a 2!

Regardless, it was fitting that Mark Barron (9 tackles, 1 fumble recovery, 1 sack, 1 stuff) was named the game's MVP.

Next week, the Falcons (3-4) take on the winless 49ers (0-6), while the Ravens (4-3) look to stay relevant in the playoff race against powerhouse New Orleans (6-0).

Dallas 20 Tampa Bay 28                      92 0-5
Derick Carr throws three TD passes and Todd Gurley runs for 102 yards and a score as the Bucs hold off the Cowboys.

New York (N) 10 Green Bay 20                65 0-10 Rain
The Giants, led by sub coach Ken, looked poised to pull the much talked about upset in Green Bay. New York came in and absolutely dominated the first quarter and could have been up by more than just 7-0 after 15 minutes. Coach Conners was seen on the sidelines visibly annoyed, his face sporting various shades of
red and purple. The hosts finally got it together early in the 2nd and knotted things up at 7-7 when Ben Roethlisberger
found WR Emmanuel Sanders from 11 yards out. On the next possession Carson Wentz was picked off by CB Brent Grimes (Grimes 4th int of the season). Green Bay then put together an impressive 14 play, 66 yard drive capped off by a Roethlisberger to Nick O'Leary 1 yard toss. 14-7 at the half.

The second half was a tight the whole way. New York hung in there with solid defense and kept it aone score game until late in the 3rd when the Pack added a 35 yard Robbie Gould FG. 17-7. Giants wouldn't go away and drove all the way to the Packers 11 yard line midway through the 4th.
The Green Bay defense dug in and forced a short Cairo Santos FG. 17-10. The hosts then put together a clutch 10 play, 54 yard drive that put them in FG range.
Gould would put it away with a 39 yarder.

Lambeau faithful exhale. Final 20-10 Green Bay.

Ben 22-34 282 2 TDs, 1 int
Sanders 4 recs. 70 yards and 1 TD
Ajayi was quiet 20 rushes for just 54 yards

Wentz 15 of 29 127 1 int
Robby Anderson 6 rec 48 yards

Next week:

Packers (5-2) host Vikings (4-3) in a key division game
Giants (0-7) have another tough one at Dallas (5-2)

Buffalo 17 Kansas City 27                   52 5-15
Andy Dalton’s fourth quarter 11 yard touchdown pass to Jarvis Landry just before the two minute warning puts away the Bills.

San Francisco 31 Tennessee 28               71 5-15
A normal IFL game was taking place with SF up 17-14 at the start of the second half. Then DKS kicked into its weird mode! Tennessee's drive was helped by 3 SF penalties in a row totalling 57 yards. However DKS got its revenge by having a bad snap on the Titan's field goal attempt from 36 yards. The 49ers marched downfield and their drive was salvaged by a crucial penalty on Patrick Robinson on a 3rd and 10 play. SF scored on the next play via a Blane Gabbert 10 yard toss to Julius Thomas. SF 24 - Tennessee 14.

The 49ers tried a squib kick on their kickoff. Tyler Matakevitch helped them out by fumbling the kick and the 49ers recovered at the Titan 25. Next play Gabbert (aka Johnny Unitas) hit Seth Roberts for the TD. Halfway through the 3rd quarter it was SF 31-14.

Early in the 4th Tennessee put together a long drive but opted to gamble on 4th and goal at the 49er 3 yard line. The pass to Hopkins fell incomplete and the Titans would come to regret not taking the guaranteed 3 points. The 49ers had a 3 and out and then the Titans went 68 yards in 1:24, scoring on a Matt Ryan 12 yarder to Kyle Rudolph. With 9 minutes left SF 31 - Ten 21.

San Fran's next drive consumed 5 minutes but fell apart when Gabbert was sacked on two consecutive plays. He fumbled on the second sack and the Titans recovered on their own 48 with 4 minutes left. Matt Ryan then completed 7 of 10 short passes, culminated by a 7 yard TD pass to DeAndre Hopkins on 4th and 4. With 2:15 left it was SF 31 -Ten 28.

SF could not move the ball and was forced to punt with 1:14 left. From the Titan 19 yard line Ryan found Rudolph on a medium hitch. Someone missed a tackle and Rudolph went 40 yards to the San Francisco 41. A short out to Delanie Walker put the ball at the 36 with 18 seconds remaining. SF went into a 3-1 deep zone prevent and somehow 3-rated DE/OLB Lerentee McCray sacked Ryan for a 12 yard loss ending the game. SF 31- Ten 28.

Blaine Gabbert 21/26 301 yards 4 TDS 154.5 rating!
DeAndre Hopkins 11 receptions for 28 yards and 2 TDs.

Congrats to Bob for nabbing his first win of the season.
Patrick Robinson and Delanie Walker both demanded a trade following the game.

Washington 21 Chicago 14                    66 10-20
Washington (-1) vs. Chicago in week 7. Things looked promising for the Bears as Pharoh Copper took the opening kickoff 99 yards and an early 7-0 lead. The Redskins answered after intercepting Mariota and driving the short field in 3 plays, Bryant 30 yards from Prescott. The game then settled into a defensive struggle. Mariota threw a second interception late in the 2nd period, giving Washington a first and goal from the 7. Jones takes it in on the first play and the half ends Washington 14 Chicago 7.

The defenses were strong in the second half. Chicago tied the game at 14 (Blue 10 yard run) in the 3rd, but Washington put together a strong drive late and Prescott found Parker from 11 yards out with 14 seconds left on the clock.

Washington 21 Chicago 14

For Washington, Prescott 23/34/229 2 TD, 1 Int; Parker caught 7 passes for 93 yards and a TD.
For Chicago, Mariota 23/37/180 2 Int.

Washington outgained Chicago 289 to 245 in net offense.

Next week Washington hosts Arizona and Chicago travels to the New York Jets.

Philadelphia 24 Detroit 0                   70
Eagles rebound from their first loss of the season by shutting out the Lions 24-0. The Eagle defense was stout this day against a Lion offense that was led by stat pack QB Cody Kessler. Kessler and company were held to 244 yards of offense and was 0-3 in the red zone. The Eagle offense was balanced and efficient despite 2 ints by QB Jameis Winston. They build a 21-0 lead by halftime and never looked back.

The offensive highlight of the game was a 42-yard touchdown jaunt by Eagle RB Demarco Murray, who was supposed to be resting due to overuse but was called into action when RB Bilal Powell was injured. In addition, the WR tandem of Muhammed Sanu and Cooper Kupp caught touchdown passes.

The Eagles, now 6-1, visit the AFC West division leading Broncos next week while the Lions attempt to bounce back against Tampa Bay in a key interdivisional game.

Arizona 19 Minnesota 30                     68
Arizona, losers of all 6 games this season, but lost the last one by only one point. McCarron had a passing rating of over 100 and started to show promise.

Minnesota, losers of 2 straight and now in 4th place in their division. Can't stop anybody.

The Vikings, playing back to back after being outgunned by Buffalo last night, came out strong, intercepting the ball in Arizona territory less than 2 minutes into the game and scoring a touchdown on a Brees to Matthews 6 yard pass shortly thereafter. 7-0 Minnesota.

Their next possession, the Vikings took 10 plays to drive deep into Arizona territory, where they settled for a 27-yard field goal by Zuerlein to take a 10-0 lead.

In the 2nd Q, Arizona picked off Brees in Viking territory and had a golden opportunity with first down on the Viking 12. Their offense stalled, however, and Arizona had to settle for a Sturgis 22-yard field goal that made it 10-3 Vikings.

Minnesota then drove methodically for a touchdown, capped by a 2-yard Lynch run, that brought the score to 16-3 Vikings.

Sturgis ended the half for Arizona with a 46-yard FG that made the halftime score 16-6 Vikings.

The rest of the game was all touchdowns, two for Minnesota (15-yard pass Brees to Witten and a 17-yard pass Brees to Smith-Schuster) and two for Arizona (McCarron 27-yard pass to Brown and McCarron 8-yard pass to James), as the Vikings closed out the Cardinals 30-19.

Minnesota had the ball for 36 minutes to only 24 for Arizona, as the normally pass-happy Vikings actually had more rushing plays than passing plays. Lynch led the way, running for 136 yards and 8 first downs in 31 carries. Brees hit 21 of 29 passes, 3 TDs and 3 interceptions. For the Cardinals, McCarron only had 161 yards on 29 attempts (62.6 passing rating). Arizona generated only 175 yards of net offense, compared to 359 by Minnesota.

Arizona goes to 0-7, but they already have Mahomes in waiting for next year as well as a top pick in this year's draft. Next week they go to Washington. Minnesota is now 4-3, and next week they host Green Bay.

Indianapolis 34 Houston 14                  70
Colts score 20 unanswered second half points to pull away.

Los Angeles (N) 30 Jacksonville 27          92 0-5
The Rams came to Jacksonville looking stay in the play-off race while the hosting Jags we hoping to garner their second win of the the season. Sadly for the Jags Andrew Luck and TY Hilton were not obliging as they shredded Jacksonville secondary for 3 TDs en-route to a 30-27 road victory.

While the game was close throughout, the Jags inability stop Hilton (7 catches 145 yards, 1 TD) and an anemic passing game (Cutler 45 QB rating) ensured the Rams would be coming home with a victory.

Orleans Darkwa was the Jags only bright spot with 103 yards rushing and 1 TD. Hats off to coach Heaton whose timely play calling kept coach Hood off balance all day.

New York (A) 13 Denver 34                   70 Calm
The Denver Broncos moved to 6-1 on the season with a 34-13 victory over the 1-6 Jets.

The Jets got on the scoreboard first as they drove 71 yards in 11 plays capped by a Mallet to Sammy Watkins pass from 10 yards out to take a 7-0 lead.

The Broncos would then score the next 34 points, led by QB Blake Bortles who threw for 269 yards and 2 TD's as well as rushing for another TD.

The TOP and stats were pretty equal except for the 3 Jet turnovers that proved to be the difference.

The Jets Oliver rushed for 103 yards on the day

The Broncos WR Tyreek Hill snagged 7 balls for 118 yards and a score in the Bronco victory.

It was a great game Bob

The Jets will host the Bears next week while the Broncos will host the Eagles.

Carolina 25 Pittsburgh 20                   64 0-10
Pittsburgh jumps out of the gate to a 14-0 lead with Brady throwing two TD's to take the early lead with 6:14 left in the first quarter. Carolina responds with 22 unanswered point including 3 TD passes by Russell Wilson and a field goal. Due to a missed extra point and two point conversion, Carolina only holds an 8 point lead 10 minutes left in the game.

With the game on the line, Brady drives Pitt down the field and punches it in with 1:21 left in the game, drawing the Steelers to within 2 point. Pittsburgh comes out in a 4 wide for the two point conversion and Carolina responds with dropping into a dime formation. With the game on the line, the Panthers are able to stop the pass from Brady and maintain the lead. Pittsburgh fails to convert and onside kick and a play later Ameer Abdullah breaks a 35 yard run that leads to a field goal and salts the game for the Panthers.

Thanks to Ken for subbing for Pittsburgh and calling a great game.

Tom Brady finishes with 3 TD passes and 229 yards for Pittsburgh, and Wilson throws 3 TD passes and 209 yards for the Panthers.

Cincinnati 16 New Orleans 13                70
The Bengals traveled to the bayou for a battle of two 6-0 teams. After a scoreless first quarter, the Saints took a 7-0 lead thanks to a 19 play 93 yard drive that took over eight minutes as Jamaal Williams plowed in from two yards out. Cincinnati answered as Brian Hoyer connected with Paul Richardson from 16 yards out. New Orleans created a turnover late in the quarter as Jarvis Jenkins stripped Hoyer. The Saints could not capitalize as Brandon McManus missed from 39 yards out.

The Bengals forced New Orleans to punt on their first possession of the third quarter and Jurrell Casey blocked it. Cincinnati had to settle on a Ka’imi Fairbairn 30 yard field goal against the tough Saints "D" for a 10-7 lead. The Bengals had a chance to extend their lead after forcing another New Orleans punt but this time Fairbairn missed from 43 yards. Cincinnati was down to one quarterback as Hoyer was knocked out of the game. McManus made up for his previous miscue by blasting a 55 yards field goal to tie the game at 10. The Bengals answered thanks to a nice kick return by Brendan Langley and a couple Melvin Gordon runs of 17 and 27 yards. Fairbairn connected from 27 as Cincinnati regained the lead 13-10 with a little over 12 minutes left in the game.

After an exchange of punts, the New Orleans offense started to get on track. Williams went for 33 yards on a short pass from Joe Flacco. Then Dez Bryant finally got open for a 38 yard gain. The Bengals defense bent but did not break as the Saints settled on another McManus field goal to tie the game at 13 with a little over three minutes remaining. The Bengals got another nice return from Langley and set up shop at their 47. After Gordon was stuffed for no gain, Brett Hundley connected with Jermaine Gresham for 15 yards. Rookie Fairbairn was called on and connected from 54 yards out to give Cincinnati a 16-13 lead with 1:42 remaining. Flacco was intercepted by Hyde and the Bengals escape with a nice win on their resume.

Flacco struggled finishing 8 of 18 for 119 yards and an INT. Rookie Jamaal Williams rushed 15 times for 61 yards and a score. He also caught 3 passes for 51 yards. Dez finished with 3 catches for 52 yards.

Gordon rushed for 97 yards on a workhorse like 22 carries. Hoyer and Hundley combined to go 11 of 21 for 110 yards with a Hoyer TD pass.

Key to the win was Cincinnati converting 8 of 17 on third downs while the Saints converted just 2 of 11.

Overall a great game. Jim called a fantastic game.

Next week, the Saints are at Baltimore while the Bengals host the Titans as they witness Delanie in strips for the first time.

Oakland 23 New England 0                    60 20-30
Matt Stafford throws three touchdowns and the Raider defense pitches a shutout.

Rushing Leaders
Hyde,C(Oak)     21-138
Lynch,M(Min)    31-136 1 TD
Oliver(NYJ)     21-103
Darkwa(Jax)     21-103 1 TD
Miller,L(Atl)   16-102
Gurley II(TB)   24-102 1 TD

Receiving Leaders
Hopkins,D(Ten) 11-138 2 TD
Baldwin,D(Mia)   6- 55 3 TD – IFL Offensive Player of the Week

Passing Leaders
Ryan,M(Ten)     50-33-355   3 TD
Gabbert(SF)     26-21-301   4 TD
Keenum(Ind)     33-25-269   4 TD
Goff(Mia)       25-18-261   4 TD

Defensive Standouts
Glanton(Ari)     17 Tk
Lawrence(Oak) 9 TK, 2 sacks
Barron(Bal) 9, TK sack - IFL Defensive Player of the Week

Special Teams
Ka’imi Fairbairn(Cin) 3 of 4 FG, 54 Long – IFL Special Teams Player of the Week

WEEK 7 IFL STANDINGS

WEEK 7 IFL LEAGUE LEADERS

WEEK 6 RECAP

Bears kicker Aldrick Rosas 5 field goals helps Chicago upset Tampa Bay in week 6 IFL action.

Game Scores
Tampa Bay 10 Chicago 29                     70 0-5   Light Rain
4-1 Tampa Bay came to 0-5 Chicago as a 10 point favorite. The Bears defense finally showed up, stopping the Bucs offense on drive after drive. Mariota to Thomas from 18 out opened the scoring, and 3 FG and a Cox 2 yard fumble recovery for a TD gave the Bears a 23-0 halftime lead. The Bears outgained the Bucs 212 yards to 20 net offense in the first half.

Things looked like they were starting to turn around when Lockett ran back the opening kickoff of the second half 102 yards, then Burfict intercepted Mariota on the Bears first play resulting in a TB field goal cutting the lead to 13. The Bears defense took over after that, Chicago eked out two more field goals and the game ended Chicago 29 Tampa Bay 10.

Tampa Bay held the ball for only 17:03 and managed only 45 yards of net offense for the game. The Chicago D came up with 7 sacks and forced 2 turnovers.

Next week Tampa Bay is home to Dallas and Chicago hosts Washington.

Houston 20 Los Angeles (A) 14               71 Calm
Matt Forte rushes for 79 yards and a score as the Texans hold off the Chargers.

Baltimore 17 Cincinnati 42                  41 10-20
The Ravens took an early 7-0 lead after an impressive 19 play 75 yard drive with Alex Collins completing it with a 2 yard run. After an exchange of punts, the Bengals finally tied the score at seven with a Gordon 5 yard run at the 11:46 mark of the second quarter. The Bengals took their first lead 14-7 just before the two minute warning as Hoyer connected with Gordon for the 12 yard score. After forcing a Baltimore punt, Cincinnati set up shop at their own 49 and hoped to increase their lead. However, Mark Barron intercepted a Hoyer pass and one play later Manning connected with Fuller for a 44 yard gain. This set up a Bryant field goal to make the score 14-10 Cincinnati at the half.

The Bengals were forced to punt on their opening drive of the half and Michael Campanaro returned it 82 yards for the score and a 17-14 lead. That was probably the last highlight for the Ravens as the Bengals scored 29 unanswered points and go on to win 42-17. Baltimore suffered some bad breaks and deserved a better fate.

Manning struggled completing just 20 of 35 for 159 yards and 2 INTs. Bell and Collins were held in check averaging only 2.8 yards per rush.

Hoyer finished 20 of 34 for 201 yards and 2 TDs with an INT. Funchess caught seven passes for 82 yards and a score. The Cincinnati pass rush finally showed up with six sacks, 2 each by Hughes and Casey. Trevathan had a 15 yard pick six.

Next week in another battle of the birds, the Ravens host the Falcons while the Bengals travel to New Orleans to take on the NFC West leading Saints.

Miami 52 Indianapolis 14                    69
Indianapolis, IND (IFL.COM) - The Colts (4-2) scored a TD on its first possession of the game and the Dolphins (6-0) scored touchdowns on its first six (6) possessions of the game. The score was 42-14 at the half and Miami was well on the way to a embarrassing beat down of the Colts. Miami finished with 560 yards of offense, 226 on the ground on 33 carries, Jared Goff threw for 332 yards, and 6 TDs, final score 52-14. A check of the IFL record books would show this was the worst showing by a Ken Griffith coached team during his 15-year head coaching career. He had no comment after the game and didn't show for the IFL mandatory press conference following the contest.

Arizona 19 Dallas 20                        70
The winless Arizona Cardinals gave the 4-1 Dallas Cowboys all they could handle in a 20-19 loss Thursday night in Dallas.

The take-away is Dallas is not as good as their record and Zona is not as bad as theirs.

The Cardinals took the opening kickoff and cashed in their drive for three poinst on a 45-yard FG.

On the first play from scrimmage for Dallas, Tyrell Williams got behind his defender and Cam Newton hit him for a 75-yard score.   Dalls scored again in the second quarter when backuip QB Ryan Fitzpatrick connected with TE Mercedes Lewis for a 14-yard scoring pass.   The Dallas crowd, most wearing beards, cheered voraciously.

But Arizona scored on McCarron passes to Brandon Marshall and Duke Johnson to go ahead 19-17. It should have been 20-17, but the PAT was missed.

Dallas kicked a FG to go ahead 20-19 to retake the lead.

Arizona mounted a drive but on third and four, their run was good enough for a first down. But, at the request of the Dallas coaching staff (we challenged) the booth reversed the call. Arizona punted the ball to Dallas and the Cowboys held onto the ball for the final four minutes of the contest to preserve the win.

Cam Newton and Ryan Fitzpatrick threw for 323 yards.

Duke Johnson led Arizona's effort with 10 rushes for 54 yards and eight receptions for 81 yards.

Dallas outgained Arizona 438 to 286 in the game.

Washington 31 Philadelphia 10               65 0-10
The Eagles were riding high for the first 5 games of the season as they took on a very dangerous 2-3 Redskin team under the direction of sub coach Ryan Heaton. On the first drive, it looked like all of the other Eagle games this year as QB Jameis Winston drove the Philly offense down the field for a TD by throwing to TE Evan Engram.

However, the Redskins would show this day that they would be a force to be reckoned with. Redskin QB Dak Prescott would take the ensuing drive and march the Skins down the field to tie it. The big play was a booth reversal of an Eagle int. That was a sign of things to come.

The Eagles would get an interception late in the 1st quarter and convert that to a FG for a 10-7 lead. The Redskins would again fight back and on the ensuing drive ( a common theme) would drive the ball 75 yards on 10 plays to take a 14-10 lead. This is when things would fall apart for the undefeated Eagles.

Just before halftime, the Eagles would have a FG blocked on their next to last drive of the half and Winston would throw an interception on the last drive that would lead to a Washington TD for a 21-10 halftime lead.

The second half was about ball control offense for the Redskins and the Eagles inability to move the football. The Skins would tack on 10 more points for a 31-10 win and the Eagles undefeated season comes crashing down.

Pittsburgh 20 San Francisco 17              60 5-15
Pittsburgh holds on for a 20-17 win as SF’s Mason Crosby misses a 47 yard FG with 5 seconds left. Pittsburgh opened up with a 4 play 75 yard drive and didn’t do much after that as SF defense toughened up. The only other TD they scored came after an interception on the SF 15 and an ensuing 4 yard pass to by Brady to Gronk. It was Brady’s second TD pass of the game. SF showed some ball movement (28 first downs) for the 1st time this year but couldn’t close the deal for more than Howard 3 yd run and a Trubiskey pass to Diggs. Pitts came up wih big plays (5 sacks) to end drives.

  Green Bay 24 Detroit 0                      70
Lions racked up 5 first downs & 120 yards of offense.

The game was very close until the very end of the 3rd. Both teams struggled on O.

Big Ben showed a 69 QB rating blowing away "Wild" Cody Kessler who was 17 / 45 for 83 yards, 3 int, 18.3 QB rating.

GB hosts the Giants & Detroit welcomes the Eagles to town.

Jacksonville 6 Tennessee 10                 66 5-15
Two 1-4 teams contested last place in the AFC Central. The game showed both teams deficiencies. Jacksonville was able to pound the ball behind their excellent O-line for 194 yards but their passing game mainly consisted of 5 yard tosses to tight end Jack Doyle. They were never able to get the ball into the end zone, instead settling for 5 field goal attempts. The problem with that was Randy Bullock had a career worst game missing 3 of the 5. Jacksonville 6 points.

Tennessee meanwhile struggled all game moving the ball. However early in the 2nd quarter Matt Ryan found DeAndre Hopkins with a 47 yard bomb for the TD. The only other effective Titan drive in the game came early in the 4th as they drove 71 yards before settling for a Dan Bailey field goal. Jacksonville was unable to mount an effective drive in the closing minutes. Tennessee 10 points.

Doyle caught 14 passes for 82 yards for the Jaguars. Hopkins caught 5 for 122 yards and the game's only TD. Jacksonville (1-5) hosts the Los Angeles Rams (3-2) next week while Tennessee (2-4) hosts San Francisco (0-5).

Atlanta 7 Carolina 42                       69 0-10
Atlanta rolls in to Carolina looking to keep pace in NFC West but a serious of unlucky bounces dooms their attempt.

Carolina opens the scoring with a 5 yard TD pass from Wilson to Drake with 4:20 left in the first. Atlanta quickly evens the score less than a minute later as Rivers hits Ertz with a 3 yard pass for the TD. Unfortunately the wheels fell off for Atlanta after this with Carolina scoring the next 35 points. Turnovers where the issue as Carolina returns a fumble for a TD and converts an interception deep in Atlanta's territory which led to an immediate TD.

Rivers passed for 240 yards and a TD and Agholor 94 yards receiving as the top players for Atlanta.

For Carolina, Wilson passed for 199 and a TD and Mike Evans caught 8 passes for 101 yard.

New Orleans 17 Los Angeles (N) 0            74 Calm
The Saints keep rolling as their defense dominated the Rams in Los Angeles. So dominant was their effort the Saints were able to employ an extremely conservative game-plan, choosing never to gamble when down and distance was not in their favor. The Saints correctly predicted the Rams only chance of scoring in the game would have been a turnover in the Saints own end of the field. Even though the Saints played conservatively they still moved the ball effectively, particularly on the ground the Saints running backs combined for over 200 yards. It was not a pretty game to watch both team's quarterbacks combined for a little over 150 yards. Rams QB Andrew Luck completed less then 10 passes and threw two interceptions. The game was never really in doubt, the Rams never made it to field goal range and only converted one third down.

The MVP of the game was the Saints defense, hard to single out a particular defender that stood out, it was more a complete effort, the Rams only managed 116 total yards.

Rams had no standout players, they got steamrolled.

Next week the Saints host the undefeated Cincinnati Bengals, while the Rams travel to 1-4 Jacksonville.

New York (A) 17 New England 9               64 5-15 Light Rain
JETS GET FIRST WIN WITH A 17-9 VICTORY OVER PATS

Foxboro, MA. (IFL.COM) – The defending Super Bowl champion New England Patriots (1-5), off to its worst start in five seasons was hosting the winless New York Jets. The division rival was the cure for whatever ills bothering the visiting Jets (1-5), as they would walk out of Gillette Stadium with a 17-9 victory, it’s first of the season.

The Patriots out gained the Jets in total yards 378-309, however 3 turnovers and none by New York would be their undoing. Pats running back C.J. Prosise had 2 critical fumbles, the first coming early in the 1st quarter at the Jets 5-yard line.

First Half

After a brief injury to Jets starter Ryan Mallett (36-23, 217 yards, 0 TD 0 INT), backup Scott Tolzien (2-1, 13 yards, 1 TD) came into the game and completed 1 pass, a 13 yard TD to game MVP running back Corey Grant (7-49 yards, 1 TD, 2 catches 18 yards, 1 TD). Down 7-0 the Patriots would drive deep into Jets territory when Prosise (15 carries -77 yards, 2 catches - 27 yards, 1 TD) committed the first of two misuses, FUMBLE at the 5 yard-line, and the Pats never recovered. New England would add an Jake Elliott 47 FG as the first quarter ended with the Jets holding a 7-3 lead. With 1:09 left in the first-half Grant would score his 2nd TD of the game on a 1-yard plunge, giving the Jets a 14-3 half time advantage.

Second Half

Early the 3rd quarter with the Pats at the Jets 30, DeShone Kizer (QB) would hit Prosise on a screen pass and he would take it to the house for the TD, closing the gap to 14-9 (2 – failed). Following a 9 play 51 yard drive Jets kicker Dustin Hopkins would push the lead to 8 with a 44 yard FG, 17-9. At midfield with 0:19 seconds left on the clock, New England will have one more shot at tying the game and forcing overtime when Kizer (33-26, 279 yards, 1 TD 1 INT) turned back into Kizer and he committed the 3rd and final turnover of the game when Kavon Frazier (S) intercepted him at the Jets 15 yard-line and closing the door on the comeback attempt.
In week 7 the Patriots host the 4-1 Oakland Raiders, and the Jets will travel to Mile High to play the Denver Broncos (4-1).

Oakland 22 Denver 23                        73 0-5
In a game with the division lead on the line the Broncos defense scored two pick-6 int's to escape with a 23-22 victory over the rival Raiders.

Raider QB Matthew Stafford threw for 355 yards and 2 TD's but he also threw 3 picks with 2 of them returned for scores.
The Raider offense took a big hit when RB Alvin Kamara went down with an injury in the 3rd quarter and then the Bronco defense was able to contain the Oakland offense much easier.

Kansas City 30 New York (N) 23              61 5-15
Chiefs jump out to a 30-7 lead and the Giants rally falls short. Andy Dalton tosses 3 TD passes for KC.

Buffalo 37 Minnesota 31                     68
Two high-scoring teams with weak defenses met up in week 6, with Minny a 1-point favorite because of home field advantage.

Buffalo jumped out to a quick 14-0 lead, as Alex Smith teamed up with the double-teamed Antonio Brown on a 37-yard pass for the 1st TD, then found
Brandon LaFell from 25 yards out for a 2nd TD. Minnesota, however, got right back in the game as Drew Brees hit Jason Witten for a 9-yard TD strike later in the 1st Q. Buffalo 14-7 after one.

In the 2nd Q, Smith kept on rolling, pushing the lead back to 14 with a 9-yard pass to the (still) double-teamed Brown for another touchdown. Not to be outdone, Brees then threw to JuJu Smith-Schuster for an 18-yard TD pass that made the score Buffalo 21 Minny 14. With 26 seconds left in the half, Graham Gano kicked a 30-yard chip shot to seemingly give the Bills a 10-point cushion. But JuJu took the kickoff and raced 106 yards for a touchdown (in only 5 seconds!) that cut the Bills' lead to only 3 at the half.

After a high-scoring first half, the two teams settled down to play some defense after intermission. The Vikings got a 35-yard field goal from Zuerlein to knot up the game at 24-24 with about 6 minutes left in the 3rd Q. Buffalo answered a minute thirty later on a 39-yard gem of a pass from Smith to the (still) double-teamed Brown for their lone touchdown of the 2nd half.It put the Bills back in front 31-24. Late in the 3rd, Buffalo opened its lead to 10 on a 38-yard field goal by Gano.

In the 4th, though, the Vikings took 3 minutes to go 75 yards for another touchdown, this time Brees to JuJu from 25 yards out, to make it 34-31 with 9 minutes left. Buffalo, however, chewed up over 7 minutes of clock time, getting another FG (this time from 36 yards out) by Gano to lead by 6. Brees had only 1:52 to work with, and it did not help when Buffalo kicked away from JuJu and the stat pack returner caught the kick and slipped on the 3 yard line, where he was touched down by a Viking teammate (??). The Vikes got off 7 plays but could not go 97 yards, as Buffalo held on for a 37-31 victory.

Smith and Brees both stood out, Smith hitting 25 of 41 passes for 305 yards and 4 TDs for a 116.4 passing rating and Brees completing 23 of 34 passes for 270 yards and a 121.0 rating. Devonta Freeman was an unsung hero, amassing 112 yards on 15 attempts, and even rushing for a first down when Buffalo gambled on a 4th and 4 in their own territory late in the game! Brown was DT'd virtually the entire game, yet still caught 9 passes for 166 yards and 3 TDs.
JuJu Smith-Schuster caught 6 for 93 yards and finished with 3 TDs, including his KO return.

It was a fun game. Greg made some gutsy, momentum-changing calls, particularly successfully going for it on 4th and 4 in his own territory late in the game, that kept Buffalo in front, and we salute him for that. He also masterfully ran out the clock in the 4th Q when Brees just wanted the ball back with a little time and less than 97 yards to go.

Buffalo goes to 4-2 with the win and Minnesota slips to 3-3. In week 7, the Bills go to Kansas City, and the Vikings host Arizona.

Rushing Leaders
Ingram,M(Mia)   15-140 1 TD
Freeman,D(Buf) 15-112
Darkwa(Jax)     19-111

Receiving Leaders
Jones,J(LAC)     9-207 1 TD
Brown,A(Buf)     9-166 3 TD
Landry(KC)      10-165 2 TD
Baldwin,D(Mia)   6- 85 3 TD
Bell,L(Bal)     11- 54

Passing Leaders
Stafford(Oak)   48-29-355   2 TD 3 Int
Goff(Mia)       30-18-332   6 TD – IFL Offensive Player of the Week
Smith,A(Buf)    41-25-305   4 TD

Defensive Standouts
Grimes(GB)       2 Int 2 Tk – IFL Defensive Player of the Week
Cunningham(LAR) 15 Tk

Special Teams
Campanaro(Bal) 4-111 Punt Ret 1 TD
Lockett(TB)    4-245 Kick Ret 1 TD
Rosas(Chi)     5-5 FG – IFL Special Teams Player of the Week
Smith-Schu(Min)4-184 Kick Ret 1 TD

WEEK 6 IFL STANDINGS

WEEK 6 IFL LEAGUE LEADERS

WEEK 5 RECAP

In a battle of the birds, the Eagles led by Bilal Powell's 107 yards and two TDs, win this one over the Cardinals.

Game Scores
Philadelphia 27 Arizona 7                   90 Calm
Once upon a time the Tampa Bay Bucs were referred to as the Tampa Bay Yucks. The mood of the fans is similar, except the Yucks were probably better than the Red Birds.
What can you say about an offense which cannot score ANY offensive points? McCarron has been given his shot to start and cannot even provide a first down. The offense generated less than 200 yards of offense and zero points. The defense gave up big play after big play on the afternoon. The team could only generate 3 first downs of 17 third down attempts. The ONLY positive was McCarron did not throw an interception.

Philadelphia on the other hand benefited from big plays. After two stalled drives in the first quarter, it took only one play on the third possession for Winston to connect with Kupp for a 43 yard touchdown. The only misfire by the Eagles was when Winston connected with Zona CB Randall for a pick six. However, the tied game was short lived. On the next possession Blial Powell would break away for a 51 yard touchdown. The Eagles continued to add additional scores while Arizona rarely was able to cross the 50 yard line into Eagle territory.

The fans continue to scream for first round pick Patrick Mahomes to assume control of the offense. However, the coaching staff is remaining stubborn and refuse to step away from McCarron. However, look for changes next year if McCarron does not step up to the call.

Detroit 21 Chicago 16                       50 15-25
The 3-1 Detroit Lions (a 5 point favorite) visited the 0-4 Chicago Bears in week 5. Things got off to a promising start for the Bears when Pharoh Cooper took the opening kickoff on his own goal line and ran 100 yards for a TD, 6-0 Bears after the missed extra point. After a Detroit 3 and out, Mariota led Chicago on a 10 play, 80 yard drive, ending in a 17 yard TD reception by Crowder. Detroit owned the second quarter, scoring on a 6 yd pass, Kessler to Thomas, and a 66 yard pick 6 of Mariota to lead 14-13 at the half.

Both offenses struggled in the second half. The Bears managed a field goal midway through the 4th quarter to take a 16-14 lead, but Kessler’s 23 yard TD strike to McDonald gave Detroit a 21-16 lead with 4:25 left on the clock. Mariota led the Bears on a long drive, converting 4th and 10 twice. With 42 seconds left on the clock, the Bears had a 1st and goal from the Detroit 8. Mariota dropped back to pass and was intercepted by Mosely in the end zone, sealing the Detroit victory and keeping Chicago winless.

Detroit 21 Chicago 16

Chicago outgained Detroit 332 to 264, but two key turnovers made the difference,

Next week Detroit hosts Green Bay and Chicago is home to Tampa Bay.

New York (A) 21 Buffalo 27                  47 15-25
With Watson out at QB and also Mallet the Bills deactivated Antonio Brown, Devonte Freeman along with Dre Kirkpatrick and it almost blew up in the Bills face!

Game time temperature was 47 degrees with winds 15-25 mph, the Bills win the toss and received kick only to punt after 7 plays. The Jets backed up at their own 9 went 3 and out losing 1 yard, each team then threw interceptions before the Bills opened the scoring by marching 80 yards on 7 plays capped off by a Smith to Humphries 9 yard reception, 7-0...

The Jets strike back going on 7 play 64 yard drive ending with Grant plunging in from 1 yard to tie it at 7-7. Buffalo goes 3 and out with the Jets going on a 7 play 64 yard drive with Grant again plunging in from the 1, WOW! 14-7 Jets. With second half winding down the Bills march 75 yards on 7 plays with Yelson running it from 4 yards out to end the half at 14-14...

The Jets receive the second half kick and go 3 and out and then the Bills go on a 10 play 77 yard drive capped off by a Smith to Boyle 10 yard TD to give the Bills a 21-14 lead. Both teams are forced to punt on their next possessions and then the Jets tie the game by by driving 60 yards on 9 plays with Oliver running it in from the 2, 21-21. On the last possession of the third quarter the Bills drive is stymied after 9 plays and 42 yards as they are forced to punt. The Jets then open up the 4th with a costly int by Tolzien as Colvin jumps the route to put the Bills at the Jet 33. The Jets defense stiffens as the Bills drive ends at the five and Gano kicks the FG to put the BIlls up 24-21.

The Jets start the next drive from the 25 and the Jets are moving into Buffalo territory for the tie or lead when on a 3rd and 13 the Bills blitzs Bradham who strip-sacks Tolzien and Colvin recovers at the Jet 39. Facing a 4th and 1 the Bills bring on Gano with 55 seconds left and he drills a 48 yarder to extend the Bills lead to 27-21...

The Jets start at their 25 and Webster picks it to end the game and the Bills survive a big scare from the Jets, Webster was elated as he was picked off the waiver wire this past week.

The Jets fall to 0-5 while the Bills move to 3-2, the Jets head to New England while the Bills travel to Minnesota.

Los Angeles (A) 23 Oakland 29               63 10-20
Matt Stafford throws for 309 yards and 3 touchdowns as the Raiders get by the Chargers.

Houston 14 Dallas 3                         70
Cam Newton was overdue to have a rotten game and it happened tonight. He was no match for Cousins as Houston prevails 14-3. To give credit where credit is due, Pete the Greek called a good game - especially on defense.

Minnesota 14 Tampa Bay 34                   80 5-15 Light Rain
This game was a match-up of division rivals and co-division leaders, both with three wins in their first four games. The Minnesota Vikings traveled to Florida to take on the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Minnesota brings the top scoring offense in the league behind Drew Brees and other stars such as JuJu Smith-Schuster, Jason Witten and Ezekiel Elliott. After dropping the season opener, Tampa Bay has one three games in the row.

The pundits are wondering if the light rain and 5 to 15 miles an hour winds might slow down these offenses.

That would not be the case through the first quarter and deep the second. The first six possessions resulted four in touchdowns. Long drives were the norm. There were no plays over 20 yards. The last of the four drives, which tied the game up at 14, was a 15 play 91-yard Tampa Bay drive consuming 7:21 of game clock.

The defenses showed up in the latter part of the second quarter. The Buccaneers added a field goal to go into the locker room ahead 17-14.

The first (and only) big momentum switch arrived up with nine minutes left in the third as Minnesota had driven to the Tampa Bay 19. On first and five, Buc Safety Antoine Bethea tips a Brees pass and former Viking George Iloka makes the interception to halt the drive.

Tampa is able to move the ball from their own 11 down the field and into the end zone on a Todd Gurley dive to go-ahead 24-14. One of the few big plays of the game made the drive possible. On third and 15 at their own 6 yard line, Todd Gurley took a screen pass 49 yards for the first down. Tampa Bay is now up 24-14 with four minutes left in the third. Of course, plenty of time for the Viking offense.

On the ensuing drive, Brees and Company have the ball for five minutes, but things are not running smoothly. Eight pass attempts result in only two completions and the drive stalls at the Tampa 41. With the wind at his back, “The Leg” tries one from 59 yards, but it falls short. Tampa Bay is still up by ten, 24 – 14, with the ball at midfield.

Leaning heavily on the dog tired Todd Gurley, Tampa Bay takes full advantage of the short field when Gurley scampers in from six to widen the lead to 31-14 with 10 ½ minutes left in the game.

A big comeback was not in the cards for Minnesota. Tampa Bay added a field goal for a final of 34-14.

Team and individual stats show a solid Tampa advantage. The Buccaneers outgained the Vikings 401 yards to 195. Bucs were 11 for 14 on third down. Todd Gurley accounted for 193 yards on 121 yards rushing and 72 yards receiving.

Next week Tampa Bay plays at Chicago wall Minnesota hosts Buffalo.

Tennessee 20 Atlanta 23                     68
After trading FGs, Matt Ryan hit Andre Hopkins for a 27 yard TD pass to give the Titans a 10-3 lead at the end of the first quarter. Rivers tied it up early in the second, leading a 7 play for 75 yard drive which culminated in a 32 yard TD pass to Nelson Agholor to tie the game at 10-10. The two teams would then trade FGs again and go into the half tied at 13.

Atlanta took the lead on FG mid way through the 3rd and then extended the lead on a 4 yard TD pass from Rivers to Doctson to extend the lead to 23-13 early in the 4th quarter.

The Falcons would then do their best to hold off the charge of the Titans. Matt Ryan would manage a 13 yard TD pass to Kyle Rudolph through a double team with 8:08 left in the game.

After a couple of changes of possession, including a big stop by the Titans after punting with less than 2 minutes left to get the ball back and a shot to tie the game. Tennessee managed to drive down to the Falcons 46 yard line, looking for the game tying FG, but an ill timed penalty would set them back 10 yards and essentially kill the drive. On 3rd and 20 at their own 44, Matt Ryan hit Hopkins for a 15 yard pass to get it to 4th and 5 with 0:22 left. Ryan would then try to convert the first on a short button hook to Kyle Rudolph but it was knocked down by Vonn Bell.

With the Titans turning it over on downs, Rivers spiked the ball and ran out the last 0:05 on the clock and the Falcons hold on to win 23-20.

There were no real offensive standouts on the Falcons but Nelson Agholor did have 4 catches for 70 yards and a TD. Matt Ryan led the way for the Titans with 233 yards, 2 TDs and no INTs.

With the win the Falcons go to 3-2 while the Titans fall to 1-4.

New England 10 Miami 41                     82 0-5
New England takes the opening KO and moves downs the field but has to settle for the FG to take the early 3-0 lead, but other than a late TD that's most of the highlights for the Patriots. New England going through the pains of a rebuild, doesn't have a lot of weapons but always calls a good game.

Next week New England host the Jets and Miami travels to Indianapolis

Indianapolis 16 Green Bay 28                49 0-10
Unbeaten Colts came in to Green Bay looking to improve to 5-0 and
knock the Packers out of the NFC Central division race.

The hosts had other plans.

Return ace Bobby Rainey took the opening kickoff back to his own 45 and the
Packers started the game with excellent field position. QB Ben Roethlisberger led his team 55 yards in just 6 plays, capped off by a Jay Ajayi
1 yard TD plunge. 7-0 early. Big play of the drive was a Ben to WR Josh Gordon 31 yard hookup.

The next 3 possessions end in punts.

Green Bay put together another nice drive to end the quarter,. Ajayi scores on a 7 yard pass and run. 14-0 Pack after the first. The unbeaten Colts were reeling.

Early in the 2nd the Indy offense finally got going. QB Case Keenum led a brilliant 6 play 76 yard drive. He found WR Micheal Crabtree on an 11 yard fly. The lead was cut in half 14-7.

Packers respond in a big way. Roethlisberger fires a long out to Gordon who shakes off a tackle and
takes it 75 yards to the house. The lead was back up to 14.

Keenum and the Colts offense then strung together a lengthy 16 play, 87 yard drive but it stalled deep in Green Bay territory. A short Steven Hauschka 24 yard FG made it 21-10 at halftime.

The defenses ruled a scoreless 3rd quarter.

Early in the 4th the Packers increased the lead as Big Ben found little used backup TE Nick O'Learly for 2 yard TD pass. 28-10 Green Bay.

Indy had a chance to get back in it midway through the 4th quarter but on 4th and 1 from the Packers 18, Keenum's pass to WR Chad Hansen was knocked away.

Colts get a late TD but the hosts hold on for a 28-16 victory.

Indy had more total yards and time of possession but the Packers made the most of their red zone opportunities scoring touchdowns on all 3 trips.

Both QB's played well.

Keenum                31/46 336 yards 2 TDs
Roethlisberger      19/25 224 yards 3 TDs

Golden Tate and Keenan Allen combined for 28 catches but no touchdowns

Josh Gordon had 6 receptions for 135 yards and a TD.

After the game it was reported commissioner John Storer plans to ban Gordon for the remainder of the regular season for violation of the leagues substance
abuse policy.

In his post game press conference Packers Coach Conners had this to say:

"Considering what went on at last year's unsanctioned coaches clinic in Vancouver, suspending a player for drug use seems highly hypocritical"

Indianapolis 4-1 travels to 5-0 Miami next week in a HUGE divisional game

Packer 3-2 head to surprising Detroit 4-1 to face the coaching mastermind.

Denver 31 Kansas City 3                     67 10-20 Light Rain
Blake Bortles throws for two touchdowns and Luke Kuechly collects three sacks and 14 tackles as the Broncos maul the Chiefs.

Los Angeles (N) 29 San Francisco 24         67 5-15
Rams entered the game a 5 pt favorite but at half time, they had built a 29-10 lead on the strength of 3 Andrew Luck passes to Hilton (34 yds, 8 yds) and Green (8 yards) and a Turbin 1 yard run. Succop kicked a FG from 29 but oddly, Succop missed 2 of 4 EPAs.   The 49ers had countered with a 47 yard FG by Crosby and an 84 yard drive ending with a 2 yard run by Barber but had punted 6 times on shorts and outs.

The 2nd half was a different story. As the 49ers woke up for at least one half this year! A blocked punt lead to a Dupree (SF) TD and a drive lead to a Howard 1 yard rush. Howard had his best day so far with 118 yards on 23 carries. The 49er defense held the Rams scoreless in the second half. Trubiskey was 20-37 for only 140 yards and 5 sacks.

SF missed 2 field goals n the 2nd half and had they made them, might have had have had their first win of the year.

And BTW, Las Vegas nailed it as the Rams win by 5 points (courtesy of 2 missed EPs!)

LA (3-2) vs Jacksonville (1-3) next week and SF (0-5) meets Atlanta (2-2)

Cincinnati 17 Jacksonville 10               89 0-10
Week 5 sees the highly favored Bengals travel to Jacksonville to take on the slumping Jacksonville Jaguars. While the result was predictable, the game was a close fought affair that saw both offences struggle throughout. The difference boiled down to the steady but unspectacular play of Bengals pivot Hundley who outplayed the turnover plagued Jay Cutler en-route to a well coached 17-10 Cinci victory.

The Bengals D bottled up Orlenes Darkwa with Micah Hyde's two interceptions leading the way.

The Bengals assail to 5-0 while the Jags drop to 1-4

New York (N) 7 Washington 30                70 0-10
6 Giants turnovers help the Redskins to victory in Washington DC.

MVP Dak Prescott 3 TD Passes.

Baltimore 17 Pittsburgh 21                  56 10-20
Regardless of their respective records, you could expect a Ravens-Steelers game to be tight and this one didn't disappoint. The 1-3 Steelers were considered 3 point favorites playing at home against the 3-1 Ravens. With the Steeler owner/coach under the weather, Patriot Kevin filled in at the last minute and led the Steelers to a 21-17 "upset".

Pittsburgh scored first on a long 12-play, 55-yard drive with Frank Gore rushing in from 2 yards out. Pittsburgh 7-0.

Baltimore responded with a 14-play, 94-yard drive capped-off by a Le'Veon Bell 4 yard run as the 1st quarter ended. Tie 7-7.

Pittsburgh started quickly with consecutive first down plays, but the drive fizzled and the Steelers had to punt. Pinned at their own 10, Baltimore's first play was a 5 yard penalty. So started a 15-play, 95 yard drive that culminated with a 4-yard Manning-to-Thielen pass. Baltimore 14-7.

Pittsburgh again started quickly with a 21-yard gain on their first play, but the Baltimore D again forced a punt and with 1:50 left before the half, they decided to make a go of it and try to score despite being pinned deep into their own territory for the third time. Thomas Davis had a different idea and thought it should be the Steelers who should be trying to score. He strip-sacked Manning and recovered the ball at the Raven 3. Gore plunged in for the tying score one play later. 14-14.

The Steelers couldn't get much started on their first possession and punted to the Ravens. Baltimore drove down to the Steeler 27 and Davis forced another fumble that the Steelers recovered. The teams exchanged punts before Pittsburgh started on a 14-play, 75 yard drive that stretched into the 4th quarter. Feeling a FG wouldn't stand up with nearly 12 minutes still on the clock, stand-in coach Kevin decided to go-for-it in true Vince-style on 4th-and-1 from the Raven 12. Brady connected with back-up RB Lawrence Thomas who raced to the 4 yard line before losing the ball when Shaquille Barrett dislodged the ball from Thomas, where another Thomas (Earl of Baltimore) recovered.

Baltimore marched out to mid-field where they had to punt, but on the first play from scrimmage, Kendall Fuller picked Tom Brady and the Ravens were in charge with just over 6 minutes remaining. Confident they could run down the clock and win with a FG kicked with the win, Baltimore plodded to the Steeler 7 where Matt Bryant booted a 25-yard FG, giving the Ravens a 3 point lead. Baltimore 17-14.

Playing a conservative, prevent defense, it worked to perfection - and prevented Baltimore from winning. With Coach Kevin calling the plays and Brady spinning his magic, the Steelers jetted down the field, overcoming a 4th-and-7 with an 11-yard gain to WR Roger Lewis. Brady then hit WR Kendall Wright for 9 and back to Lewis for 19 before calling their last timeout with 20 second left and the ball on the 22 yard line. With the Ravens doubling Gronk, Brady went back to Lewis who found a crease through the middle and stuck the dagger right into the heart of the Ravens as the home fans went bonkers! Pittsburgh 21-17.

Brady was named the game's MVP with a 29-for-41 game good for 284 yards, 2 TDs and 1 INT.

Baltimore (3-2) travels to Cincinnati (5-0) hoping to stay relevant in the AFC Central. Pittsburgh (2-3) takes on winless San Francisco.

Carolina 7 New Orleans 33                   70
2-2 Carolina would roll into New Orleans to try and knock off the unlikely undefeated Saints as they almost went into rebuild mode. The Saints D would step up to the plate holding the Panthers to 140 yards of total offense. Joe Flacco would lead the Saints throwing for 2TD's and no picks. Time of possession was key as the Saints held the ball for over 35 minutes. The big question for New Orleans is whether or not the injuries are going to catch up with them. So far not yet. New Orleans travels to division foe LA and Carolina hosts the Falcons.

Rushing Leaders
Gurley II(TB)   29-121 1 TD
Howard,J(SF)    23-118 1 TD
Powell,B(Phi)   15-107 2 TD – IFL Offensive Player of the Week
Bell,L(Bal)     17-102 1 TD

Receiving Leaders
Tate,G(Ind)     11-120

Passing Leaders
Keenum(Ind)     46-31-336   2 TD
Stafford(Oak)   47-31-309   3 TD
Smith,A(Buf)    38-30-278   2 TD 1 Int

Defensive Standouts
Alonso(LAC)      17 Tk
Kuechly(Den)     3 Sk 14 Tk – IFL Defensive Player of the Week
Hyde,M(Cin)      2 Int 7 Tk
Jenkins,M(Was)   2 Int 5 Tk

Special Teams
Jackson,A(LAC) 5-151 Kick Ret 2-9 Punt Ret
McManus(NO)    4-4 FG – IFL Special Teams Player of the Week

WEEK 5 IFL STANDINGS

WEEK 5 IFL LEAGUE LEADERS

WEEK 4 RECAP

Keenan Allen scores two touchdowns as the Colts edge Buffalo 34-28 to remain undefeated.

Game Scores
Buffalo 28 Indianapolis 34                  69
Indianapolis, IND (IFL.COM) - The Indianapolis Colts (4-0) wins an OVERTIME thriller 34-28 against division rival Buffalo Bills (2-2).

With only 2:00 left of the clock in the final period and Buffalo leading 28-21 the hometown Colts would score with :04 left in regulation when Case Keenum (QB) hit Golden Tate (WR) with an 8-yard TD pass to tie the game at 28-28. In overtime the very game and well coached Bills would never see the ball as the Colts received the kickoff and went on a 9 play 75 yard drive that concluded with Keenum hitting a double-covered Tate for a 7-yard TD for the game winner.

In week 5 the Colts travel to Green Bay to take on the 2-1 Packers while the Bills host division rival New York Jets (1-2).

Los Angeles (A) 21 Denver 30                64 0-5
The Chargers came to Mile high stadium for a divisional game vs. the Broncos and the home team held on for a 30-21 victory.

Denver was led by Rookie RB Kareen Hunt who rushed for 136 yards on 26 carries with 2 TD's.
Tyreek Hill caught 5 passes for 92 yards while QB Blake Bortles threw for 177 yards on a 14 of 19 passing day,

Tyrod Taylor had a nice game for the Chargers as he threw for 284 yards and 2 scores.
Julio Jones caught 8 passes for 111 yards and a TD to lead the SD club.

The Bolts were flagged 11 times for 84 yards of penalties while the Broncos only had 1 for 5 yards.

The win moves Denver to 3-1 as the Chargers fall to 1-3.

Next week both teams remain in division as the Chargers travel to Oakland and the Broncos head to Kansas City.

Kansas City 27 Houston 24                   70
Gostkowski connects on a 41 yard field goal as time expires and the Chiefs rally after being down 14-0 after the first quarter.

Miami 49 New York (A) 3                     56 Calm
Easy story here. The Jets are playing with Ryan Mallett, a stat pack QB, and he threw a pick
on the 3rd play of the game. That lead to a 42 yard TD drive for the Fins.

The Jets went on to turn the ball over 4 times in their first 5 possessions. Oh, Mallett was injured
and replaced by our 3rd string QB.

All told the Jets turned it over SIX times....leading to SIX TD's for the Fins.

In between turnovers the Jets did manage 237 yards, and 15 first downs in 29 minutes when they held
onto the ball.

Next week the Jets visit the Bills, who are already licking their chops, and Miami host the Pats.

Pittsburgh 14 Tennessee 27                  80 Calm
Pittsburgh owned the first half with two nice drives resulting in touchdowns for Gronkowski and Gore. Tennessee responded with one TD drive finished by a 9 yard Ryan to Rudolph pass. 14-7 Steelers at the half.

The Titans dominated the second half with four substantial drives leading to two touchdowns and two field goals. The Steelers' offence was repeatedly stymied by untimely penalties, three sacks and two fourth quarter interceptions within two minutes. Penalties in the game ended up 12 against Pittsburgh versus only 2 against Tennessee. The Titans win 27-14.

Frank Gore had a solid 77 yards on 16 carries for Pittsburgh. Matt Ryan finally had a decent game with 3 TD passes and a 109.1 passer rating. Both teams are now 1-3 with dim playoff prospects. Pittsburgh hosts the powerful Ravens next week while Tennessee visits Atlanta.

Carolina 13 Cincinnati 27                   49 20-30 Light Rain
On a rainy Cincinnati afternoon, the Bengals hosted the Panthers. Carolina won the toss and elected to defer. The Bengals were forced to punt on their first possession. With the Panthers facing third and five, Jalen Ramsey jumped in front of a Russell Wilson pass and went 35 yards for the score. Carolina put together a nine play 75 yard drive on their next series capped off by a 16 yard screen pass to Abdullah for the tying score. Carson Palmer completed a 33 yard completion to Paul Richardson on their next possession setting up a three yard score to Jeffery as the Bengals regained the lead 14-7. After forcing a Panther punt, Cincinnati put together a 13 play 91 yard drive that ended with a Hoyer to Funchess 11 yard score. The extra point was no good as the Bengals extended their lead to 20-7. Carolina was able to cut the lead to 20-10 before the half thanks to a Lambo 44 yard field goal.

Carolina cut the lead to 20-13 with their first possession of the third quarter as Lambo blasted a 54 yard field goal with the help of the strong wind. That would be as close as the Panthers would get. As Hoyer connected with Paul Richardson from 8 yards out in the fourth quarter for 27-13 final.

Wilson struggled with the wind and the Bengals pass rush finishing 14 of 23 for 158 yards with one TD and one INT. Rookie standout Carl Lawson had two sacks for Carolina.

Hoyer finished 15 of 22 for 116 yards and 3 TDs. The Bengals suffered another serious injury at quarterback as Palmer went down and will miss the next seven weeks. The Cincinnati defense played well with the Ramsey interception return for a touchdown and Bruce Irvin two sacks.

Next week the Panthers have a tough road divisional game facing the undefeated Saints. Cincinnati travels to Jacksonville for a tough divisional road game of their own.

Jacksonville 24 Baltimore 27                58 0-10
For the second straight week, the Ravens were out-played in nearly every aspect of the game and still managed to win the game, 27-24, over a talented Jags team. Jacksonville controlled the game with 20 first downs (vs 7 for the Ravens), picking up 241 yards on the ground (vs 113 for the Ravens), led by RB Orleans Darkwa's 157 on 22 carries (vs Le'Veon Bell's 62 on 21); and 137 through the air on the strength of Jay Cutler's 18-for-25 (vs Eli Manning's 10-for-20-for-110).

Unfortunately for Jag's fans, Cutler threw three INTs. The first came after an impressive opening drive that carried the ball down to the Ravens 37. The eight play 38 yard drive turned on Desmond Trufant's INT returned 47 yards to the Jags' 31. Four plays later, with the ball on the Jags 9 yard line, Eli Manning returned the favor, getting picked by CB Stephon Gilmore. The Jags again trudged down the field before stalling at the Ravens 18 where Randy Bullock booted a 36 yard FG. Jax 3-0.

Baltimore responded with a 3-and-out and Jacksonville lumbered downfield again, stalling at the Ravens 34, where Bullock missed, wide left.

Le'Veon Bell got the crowd riled up with a 21 yard jaunt to the Jags 37, but the Raven "drive" stalled 3 plays later, where Matt Bryant kicked a 47 yard FG to tie the game at 3-3.

After the teams exchanged punts and field position, Cutler threw his second INT, though this one took a Raven challenge and a video reply to confirm that Mark Barron actually secured the ball. On the first play after the TO, Alex Collins took it to the house, 45 yards away on a sweep. Baltimore 10-3.

After another exchange of punts, the Jags rumbled downfield with Darkwa toting the ball 4 times for 37 yards, the last time 11 yards into the end zone. Tie game, 10-10 at the half.

After the kick to open the second half, the Ravens moved the ball into Jags territory only to have two holding penalties and a sack put them in a 4th-and-44 situation. A punt to the first down marker pushed Jacksonville back to their own 23 and Jay Cutler loosened up the Ravens D with two 15-yard gains to Allen Hurns. After a short Darkwa run and a Jag penalty, Darkwa burst through the center of the line on a dive play and didn't stop until he reached the goal line, 55 yards away. Jacksonville, 17-10.

Jacksonville's D forced another 3-and-out from the Ravens and Rigoberto Sanchez's punt put the Jags on their own 23. Again, Cutler threw to the wrong color jersey and CB Kendall Fuller returned it to the 8. Three plays later, Bell carried it in for the Ravens. Tie game, 17-17.

The next three possession results in punts. With :41 left in the 3rd quarter and the ball on the Raven 26, Coach Master took a chance on first down and called for a long cross to Adam Thielen. Manning complied and hit the streaking Thielen for 54 yards. Sadly, in what has become a regular thing, the Ravens didn't go any further. Fortunately, they didn't have to and Bryant knocked a 42 yard FG through the uprights. Baltimore 20-17.

On the ensuing possession, Jacksonville got a nice return and moved into Raven territory after a personal foul penalty against the purple defense. The drive stalled, however, and Bullock lined up to attempt a 57 yard FG. Kicking with the wind, the Ravens figured there was a good chance he'd make it, but still put Chris Moore deep, just in case. Good move, because the kick landed in the arms of Moore WHO RETURNED IT 109 YARDS FOR A TD! Surely, there would be a flag...but NO. It stood. Baltimore 27-17 with 11 1/2 minutes remaining.

Needing two scores, Coach Hood felt the need to go for it on 4th-and-5 from his own 36. He made the right call, a draw against a pass defense, but Elijah Hood was stopped short. No worries. Baltimore's offense was putrid and could only gain 3 yards before giving the ball back to the Jags.

Jacksonville marched downfield, eating up yards...and time. Their drive resulted in a Cutler-to-Hurns TD, but just 2:22 remained on the clock. Baltimore 27-24.

Baltimore recovered the onside attempt and forced the Jags to burn their timeouts after gaining one of their seven first downs at a most opportune time. Though the Jags would get the ball back with :10 on the clock, Matt Judon ended all hope with a sack of Cutler to end the game.

For Week 5, Baltimore (3-1) travels to division rival Pittsburgh (1-3), while Jacksonville (1-3) hosts division leader Cincinnati (4-0).

New Orleans 21 San Francisco 17             70 0-10
The Saints (3-0) visit the 49ers (0-3) at SF as a 15 point favorite.

As expected, the game featured total domination by the Saints who rushed for over 280 yards. Had 28 first downs (to 13 for SF), controlled the football for almost 40 minutes, gained 411 yards to 240 and basically beat the living daylights out of the SF Defense. But not expected, the 49ers hung tough, and with a couple of breaks and came close to pulling a major upset.

The SF D really “bent” but did not break and SF and only allowed 3 TDs. The Saints missed 2 FGs. SF received major breaks with a 33 yard fumble recovery return TD by Coyle and a 59 yard pass to Boyd from Trubiskey that resulted in a FG.

Despite overall New Orleans domination, the game ended on the Saint 14 yard with a 1st down with the 49ers having a real chance to win. However, Trubiskey threw 4 incomplete passes and that was that.

Chicago 7 Minnesota 31                      68
The two teams had a slugfest in their first match-up, with Minnesota coming back to beat Chicago in the last minute 41-40. What would happen in the rematch?

Let's put it this way. The Bears seemingly dominated the game, but the Vikings came out on top, 31-7.

The Vikes, on their second play of the game, scored a 66-yard touchdown on a Brees to Smith-Schuster pass to take a 7-0 lead. After an interception, the Vikes scored again two plays later on a Marshawn Lynch 3-yard run. 14-0 Vikes two minutes into the game.

Afterwards, the Bears controlled play, except they failed to execute when they had to. Midway through the 1st Q, Rosas had his field goal from 48 yards out blocked. Starting off the 2nd Q, the Bears drove to the Viking 3, but Mariota was picked off. The Bears finally got on the scoreboard late in the 2nd Q
with a 14-yard TD run by Alfred Blue. This awakened the Vikings out of their slumber, as they drove 74 yards in 2:17 to score an answering TD on a 4-yard pass from Brees to Witten. Vikes 21-7 at the half.

In the 3rd Q, the Bears dominated the first 7 minutes of the quarter, driving to the Vikings' 8 yard line before a sack drove them back to the 16. From there they tried another field goal, only to have it blocked again. The Vikings then took virtually the rest of the 3rd Q marching down the field, settling for a 48-yard FG by Zuerlein. That made it 24-7 through three quarters.

Early in the 4th, the Vikes, getting the ball in Bear territory after an interception, wasted little time in scoring another TD, Brees to Smith-Schuster for 14 yards, that made it 31-7, which was the final.

At one time in the the Bears had 100 more net yards than the Vikes, but were down big-time. They finished with 327 net yards to only 281 by the Vikes. They had 20 first downs, compared to only 14 by the Vikes. They had possession of the ball for about 35 minutes compared to only 25 by the Vikes.

The difference was efficiency. Mariota completed only slightly more than half of his passes (18/33) but was picked off 3 times and sacked 3 times for a passing rating of only 33.9. Brees, on the other hand, had a passing rating of 156.3. He had only 240 yards this time, but was 17 for 20 and passed for 3 TDs, with 0 interceptions.

Smith-Schuster had 109 yards receiving on only 5 catches, while Marvin Jones had 95 yards on 6 catches.

Minnesota goes to a surprising 3-1 while Chicago drops to an equally surprising 0-4. In week 5, the Vikings travel to Tampa Bay to take on the division rival Bucs, and Chicago will host Detroit.

Atlanta 10 Los Angeles (N) 16               72 Calm
Atlanta traveled to Los Angeles to face the Rams to close out their season series. In the first game the teams combined for 59 points. Regression hit hard as they only combined for two offensive touchdowns in this one. With so little offense the game came down to three key plays:

1)In the second half the Rams clung to a 9-3 lead. Atlanta was trying to work the ball out of their end. Falcons QB Phillip Rivers, on 2nd down, heaved a long pass attempt downfield, Rams Safety Justin Simmons jumped in front of the pass for an interception. He wasn't done; dodging multiple tacklers Simmons returned the interception 50 yards for a touchdown, Rams extend the lead to 16-3.

2)The very next drive the Falcons immediately marched down the field to the Rams 9 yard line. A score looked imminent, but on 1st down Rivers fumbled the snap, Rams recovered to end the 3rd quarter.

3) The Falcons would eventually get their touchdown to make it 16-10 and then recover an onside kick. Their subsequent time consuming drive ran the clock down to 1:27, but they faced a 4th and 11 from the Rams 15, Rivers threw a slant to WR Ryan Grant, but it was off the mark. Falcons were able to get the ball again with just under a minute, but did not really threaten and were forced to try hail-mary attempts.

Falcons had nearly 400 yards of offense, but little to show for it thanks to the turnovers and some penalties. Their ground attack was very effective: Dion Lewis, Lamar Miller and Tevin Coleman combined for 179 yards on 30 attempts.

The Rams standout was Safety Justin Simmons who managed 4 pass defenses including the biggest play of the game for the Rams.

Next week Los Angeles travels to another division rival, San Francisco.

Atlanta hosts Tennessee.

Green Bay 41 Tampa Bay 45                   84 Calm
Green Bay rolled in to Tampa Bay for the battle of the Bays and an important divisional game with both teams holding 2 – 1 records. The Packers demolished the Buccaneers 31 to 3 the opening game of the season.

Game summary notes include 86 points scored; 9 lead changes; 2 kickoff returns for touchdowns; 803 yards total offense; each QB averaging over 14 yards per completion and a half time score of 31 to 28.

Individual highlights show Packers Bobby Rainey with 5 kickoff returns for 290 yards and 2 touchdowns and Josh Gordon credited with 5 catches for 149 yards (30 yards per) and 1 TD. Buccaneer players Todd Gurley with 79 rushing yards and 126 receiving yards for 205 total yards and Derek Carr tossing for 387 yards and 5 touchdowns.

When it came to crunch time the game was tied at 38 with 6 minutes left. A game changing play took place on third and six with Green Bay driving on the Tampa Bay 22 yard line. Roethlisberger hit Charles Sims for an apparent first down, but Tampa wins a challenge leaving Green Bay little choice but to kick the short field goal for the lead.

On the ensuing possession, Tampa is faced with 4th and 3 at midfield with 3:30 left. Not wanting to give the ball back to Ben Roethlisberger and his explosive offense, the Buccaneers go for it and catch the Packers playing the pass which allows Todd Gurley to scoot around the right side for 5 yards to keep the drive alive. Just before the two minute warning, Derek Carr finds DeShawn Jackson streaking down the right sideline for a 30 yard go-ahead touchdown pass. Score is now 45-41 Tampa Bay.

Bobby Rainey does his thing again bringing the kickoff out to the 35 yard line, however, a holding penalty leaves the Steelers at their own 20 to start the drive. After a quick Roethlisberger strike to Danny Woodhead out to the 32, Terrance Williams hauls in a down and out to the Pittsburgh 46 with 1:40 left. But wait … Steeler Austin Howard is called for holding! On the next play (1st and 20,) Vontaze Burfict drops Roethlisberger for a huge 15 yard sack essentially ending the game. Final TB 45 – GB 41.

Next week the Packers host a strong Colts team while the Bucs welcome another division rival to Florida in the Vikings.

Washington 7 Dallas 17                      70
In a remach of week one opponents, Dallas used a stifling defense and effective running game to defeat Washington 17-7 Saturday afternoon. The Cowboy defense help Kris Heaton's team to 217 net yards. To make matters worse, Kris' club lost a few first downs on penalties. The Redskins were called for nine penalties for 83 negative yards in the contest.

Lesean McCoy rushed 28 times for 152 yards and two scores to lead the Cowboy offense. Cam Newton had a run of 26 yards on third and long in the fourth quarter that was heart-breaking for the Skins.

The defensive game was 7-0 Dallas until late in the fourth quarter.

To the surprise of many, Dallas and its humble roster improves to 4-0. The loss drops Washington to 1-3.

Arizona 5 Oakland 35                        71 5-15
Raider quarterback Matt Stafford throws for 290 yards and 3 touchdowns as Oakland cruises past Arizona.

Detroit 13 New England 6                    47 0-10
Michael Thomas hauled in 8 passes for 116 and a TD, and QB Cody Kessler completed 15 of 24 for 175 yards as visiting Detroit came away with a rather sluggish 13-6 win at New England. Patriot QB Deshone Kizer threw 2 interceptions while the Patriots were in Lion territory, effectively torching two of New England's better scoring chances on the day.

Philadelphia 34 New York (N) 13             65 0-5
In a rematch of division rivals, the Philadelphia Eagles go on the road and sweep the season series from the New York Giants. It was pretty much the same story as it has been all year for the Eagles. A balanced running attack with Demarco Murray and Bilal Powell coupled with the passing attack of QB Jameis Winston, who continues to spread the ball around to WR Mohammed Sanu, WR Cooper Kupp and TE Evan Engram.

The Giants were hampered in their running game due to the trade of CJ Anderson as Coach Jude Law was forced to sit him as to not get him injured. QB Carson Wentz did some good things, but it was not enough against the bend not break Eagle defense.

The Eagles stay undefeated at 4-0 and go to the desert next week to play division foe Arizona, while the Giants, 0-4, will travel to the Nations capital to take on a division foe of their own, Washington.

Rushing Leaders
Stewart,J(NO)   22-162
Darkwa(Jax)     22-157 2 TD
McCoy,L(Dal)    28-152 2 TD
Hunt,K(Den)     26-136 2 TD
Peterson,A(Mia) 17-61 3 TD

Receiving Leaders
Allen,K(Ind)    11-124 2 TD – IFL Offensive Player of the Week
Kupp(Phi)        6- 74 3 TD

Passing Leaders
Carr,D(TB)      39-27-387   5 TD
Keenum(Ind)     42-31-316   4 TD
Smith,A(Buf)    37-28-308   3 TD 1 Int

Defensive Standouts
Eddie Goldman(Det) 1 sack, 3 hur – IFL Defensive Player of the Week

Special Teams
Moore,C(Bal)   4-220 Kick Ret 1 TD – IFL Special Teams Player of the Week
Rainey(GB)     5-290 Kick Ret 2 TD

WEEK 4 IFL STANDINGS

WEEK 4 IFL LEAGUE LEADERS

WEEK 3 RECAP

Cowboys Running Back Jacquizz Rodgers rushes for 109 yards with 2 TDs as Dallas gets by New York.

Game Scores
Dallas 26 New York (N) 18                   80 0-10
Cowboys rally from a 9-0 first quarter deficit to defeat the Giants. Jacquizz Rodgers rushes for 109 yards and two scores on only 16 carries to lead the Dallas offense.

Indianapolis 24 New York (A) 20             70 0-10
The undefeated Colts came in to the Big Apple knowing they were facing Ryan
Mallett, and that certainly didn't scare them.

Well, Mallett gave them more than they expected, but also some of what they
expected. He kept the Jets in the game, but also kept the Colts in the game.

The game was 7-7 when Mallett threw back to back interceptions. His first gave
the Colts the ball at the Jet's 29 yard line....5 plays later it was 14-7, Colts. Next
Jet's play was another pick, leaving the Colts at the 2 yard line....one play, and it
was 21-7, Colts....

But, Mallett wasn't done giving....with the Jets trailing 24-20(after a missed extra point).
Knowing they needed a TD because of the missed extra point, the Jets tried to run clock
and went on a 73 yard drive, that took over 5 minutes. The Jets got to the Colts 23 yard line
when Mallett threw his 3rd pick of the day....game over.

The Jets turned the ball over 4 times total, and couldn't pull out a win.

For the Colts Keenum was 25-34 with 2 TDs. Allen had 8 receptions for 109 yards and 2 TDs.

For the Jets Jones had 12 tackles, and Woods had 8 receptions for 80 yards and a TD.

Next week the Jets host the Dolphins, who are eagerly waiting to face Mallett....and the Colts
host the Bills.

Los Angeles (A) 14 Philadelphia 23          82 5-15
One yard plunges by Powell and Murray along with three Butker field goals lead Eagles to nine point win.

New England 20 Buffalo 37                   55 15-25
With New England in rebuild mode after dominating the last few seasons the Bills saw an opportunity to up their record to 2-1 and they did just that as Alex Smith was the MVP of the game throwing 5 TD passes on 26-36 for 278 yards and rushing for 92 yards on 7 carries...DeShone Kizer played very well in his rookie season throwing for 227 yards and 1 TD finishing with a 97.1 rating, McCaffrey caught 8 balls for only 50 yards and rushed for 34 on 10 carries as the Bills kept him contained for the most part..Despite being double teamed most of the game former Patriot caught 7 balls for 112 yards and 3 TD's for the Bills...The BIlls out-gained the Patriots 422-344 as the Bills pull away in the second after leading 13-3 to take it 37-20.

Tennessee 22 Baltimore 34                   69 0-5
The Titans thoroughly dominated the Ravens: out-gaining them 448 yards to 181, earning more first downs (21 to 9) and held a 7 minute time of possession advantage. Of course, the Ravens won the game by 12, 33-21.

Tennessee set the tone early with a 12-play, 67 yard drive to start the game, but the drive stalled after two incomplete passes by Ryan Ryan and the Titans had to settle for a Dan Bailey 26-yard FG. Tennessee 3-0.

Baltimore responded with a 13-yard TD strike from Eli Manning to AJ Green after Manning found Chris Hogan on a 58-yard streak on 3rd and 6. Matt Bryant's PAT made it, 7-3 Ravens.

The Ravens D forced a 3-and-out but Colton Schmidt's punt pinned the Ravens inside their own 10. The Titans D rose up and stuffed Le'Veon Bell for on consecutive plays (-5 and 0) and that's when the weird stuff started. On 3rd-and-14, Manning saw the D-line jump and thought he had a free play. The O-Line thought so too and allowed Frank Clark straight thru unabated. Clark took advantage of the confusion and plowed Manning into the end zone paint for a safety. Ravens still led, 7-5.

Tennessee took the punt-off and started on another punishing drive, but after gaining 43 yards on 6 plays to push the ball down to the Ravens 17, Aaron Donald sacked Matt Ryan and forced a fumble...that Mark Barron scooped up and returned about 75 yards for a TD. Ravens, 14-5.

Tennessee put together another grinding drive on their next possession - 14 plays and 62 yards - all the way down to the Raven 13 yard line, but Mark Barron picked off Matt Ryan at the 8 and returned it 36 yards. The Titans D tightened (sorry about the pun) and the Ravens were forced to punt....but!...an offside penalty on Tennessee gave the Ravens 5 yards and Coach Master decided to bring out ageless Matt Bryant to try a 55 yard FG with a slight wind at his back. Bryant prevailed. Ravens 17-5, but they didn't even have 100 yards of offense.

The next Titans possession churned out 25 yards in 5 plays, but Shaquill Barrett strip-sacked Matt Ryan...and who picked up the fumble? Mark Barron was the man on the spot and recovered the ball for the Ravens.

Tampa Bay 23 Detroit 10                     70
The game was a close TB 10-Det-0 with about a minute left in the half & the Lions fumbled inside the Buc 10 & ILB Davis returned it 75 yards before he was finally dragged down & Tampa had to settle for 3.
Lions scored on their opening 3rd quarter drive to cut the lead to 7-13. After that Tampa responded with a TD & then by the time it was 23-7 early in the 4th the game was clearly over.

Carr 101 and Lynch 91 ratings both played well. Gurley & Fournette each had approx 140 yard offense.

Next week TB hosts division rial GB, while Det travels to Boston to meet NE.


Jacksonville 13 New Orleans 16              70
Bouye intercepts Cutler in overtime setting up the McManus 20 yard chip shot for the Saints win.

Miami 24 Chicago 6                          75 5-15
The 2-0 Dolphins came to Chicago to play the 0-2 Bears. Vegas had Miami as a 16 point favorite.
The Bears defense finally showed up in the first half, intercepting Goff twice and holding Miami to 3 points. The Bears offense was inefficient though and the half ended Chicago 6 Miami 3.
The Bears intercepted Goff again on the Dolphins first drive of the second half and the hopes of an upset started to grow. Miami finally got things rolling midway through the 3rd on a Goff 43 yard TD pass to Cooks and the Dolphins rolled from there. Miami scored twice more, held the Bears scoreless and won the game 24-6.
Miami: Goff 23/38/359, 2 TD 3 Int; Baldwin caught 7 passes for 126 and a TD.
Chicago: Mariota 18/34/182 Int; Cooks gained 91 on 16 carries before being carted off the field.
Next week Miami travels to the NY Jets and Chicago is in Minnesota.

Los Angeles (N) 3 Carolina 32               94 0-10 Light Rain
With Luck out with injury, the Rams put up a brave effort but are severely handicap on offense against the Panthers. The Panthers jump out to a 20-0 lead in the first half and never look back.

Game standouts include Russel Wilson passing for 270 yards and 3 TD's. Mike Evans goes for 101 yards receiving and 2 TD's. For the Rams, Landry Jones starts the game 9 for 9 passing and finishes with 134 yards.

Houston 3 Denver 31                         73 0-10
Denver was home to the Texans for a week 3 divisional clash.
The broncos jumped out early and then the offense clicked opening up a 28-0 halftime lead

The 2nd half saw both offenses struggle to get much going and the Denver defense sealed the game
Thanks to Pete for a quick and fun game.

San Francisco 7 Atlanta 25                  68
The Falcons beat division rival 49ers 25-7. Larry Fitzgerald was named MVP as he caught 7 passes for 112 yards and a TD. Trubisky was running for his life as he was hurried 6 times, sacked 5 times and was forced to scramble twice for 26 yards.

With the win, the Falcons go to 2-1 while the 49ers fall to 0-3.

Cincinnati 49 Pittsburgh 7                  79 0-5
Leading 14-7 at the half, the Bengals scored 28 unanswered third quarter points to down division rival Pittsburgh 49-7. Penalties and turnovers did in the Steelers. Pittsburgh was called for 11 penalties for 76 yards and they also suffered three turnovers including a pick six from Cincinnati's first round draft pick William Jackson.

Surprisingly Tom Brady struggled completing only 11 of his 30 pass attempts for 66 yards, 1 TD with 2 INTs. Brady was also sacked 4 times. Frank Gore may have been the lone bright spot for Pittsburgh with 88 rushing yards on 14 carries.

For Cincinnati, Brian Hoyer finished 18 of 24 for 196 yards and 3 TDs. Jeffery caught 2 of the TD passes.

Next week, the Steelers are at Tennessee while the Bengals host the Carolina Panthers.

Green Bay 23 Minnesota 20                   68
A match-up between the highest scoring team in the young season (Minn 46.5) and the third stingiest
defense in the league (Green Bay 9.5 pts allowed). A match-up between the two-time reigning IFL
Offensive Player of the Week (Drew Brees, 400+ yards each game) and Old Ben Roethlisberger,
rumored to be a few more interceptions away from retirement. On the other hand, a match-up between
a coach who has never won anything in football (Rich Robb) and an old fox of a coach of a perennial
division champion (John Conners).

Green Bay established its mastery early, holding the Vikings to a 3-and-out on their first possession, then
scoring a TD to cap a 71-yard drive, Roethlisberger to Woodhead on a 9-yard pass. GB 7-0.

On their next possession, Minnesota mounted a long drive to the Green Bay 6, only to be stymied by a penalty that
made them settle for a Zuerlein field goal. GB 7-3.

Green Bay, on their next possession, marched again to the 28 in Minnesota territory, where Gould kicked a field goal.
GB 10-3.

Minnesota then sustained a long drive for over 6 minutes despite suffering 3 sacks and 2 penalties, as Brees fought
through the setbacks to get a series of first downs on four completions over 10 yards. With the half about to end, Zuerlein nailed a
36-yard field goal. GB 10-6.

The second half saw Minnesota gear up its offense and shut down the Packers. Brees hit Smith-Schuster on a 19-yard pass,
then Marshawn Lynch churned in from 8 yards out to give the Vikings their first lead. Minn 13-10.

Minnesota opened the 4th quarter strong, too, as Brees found Smith-Schuster in the end zone on a 21-yard pass to push
the Vikes lead to 20-10.

Old Ben, despite his good start, was below 100 yards for the game at this point.

With their backs to the wall, the Packers started to roll. A 13-play drive, featuring six completions by Old Ben, took only about
3 minutes, but ended in a 27-yard Gould FG. Vikings lead cut to 20-13.

With 11 minutes to go, Green Bay had a real shot at a win again.

The Vikes got two first downs to eat up some clock, but on a 3rd and 1 Brees fumbled, and the Vikes were forced to punt.

Starting with 7:42 left in the game, Roethlisberger led the Pack on their most impressive drive of the game, going 90 yards
for a game-tying touchdown. Old Ben completed 7 out of 7 passes during the drive, capping it off with a 4-yard pass to Watson
in the end zone. Minn 20 GB 20.

Getting the ball with 2:26 left, Brees had only to get in field goal range for the win. In truth, he got only 3 plays off, 2 of them
completions. After a first down, the drive was killed by a Minnesota penalty and by two sacks.

Roethlisberger had only 1:12 left in the game to win it. Starting at mid-field, he hit Ayaji on a 13-yard pass to set up a field goal.
A couple of runs killed the clock and left 3 seconds for a game-winning field goal. Gould was dead-on from 38 yards out, and
the Pack pulled off a great 4th quarter comeback to win, 23-20.

Roethlisberger quieted the Old Ben comments by completing 9 straight passes to finish the game. He sure is no Jay Cutler.
He ended the game with 271 yards and 2 TDs.

Brees finished with 294 yards and 1 TD, but was sacked 7 times. Smith-Schuster caught 7 passes for 123 yards.

There were two keys to the game. One, Green Bay's ferocious pass rush, which sacked Brees 7 times. Two, Green Bay's ability
to avoid flags. They went the last 20 minutes of the game with zero penalties. They had only 5 penalties the entire
game, compared to 11 by the Vikings.

John called a marvelous game, the game would not have been won by a lesser coach. Still, the Vikings take heart from the
fact that they held the Packers to only 10 points through the first 3 quarters, and they feel they could have won the game
if the penalties had been more even. Despite 7 sacks and over twice as many penalties, it took a field goal with 3 seconds left
to beat them.

The Packers did what champions do, though: They get an opportunity, and they capitalize on it.

Both teams are now 2-1. In week 4, the Vikings get a rematch with Chicago (the Vikes won the 1st game 52-27)
and the Packers get a rematch with Tampa Bay (the Pack won the 1st game 31-3).

Oakland 34 Kansas City 14                   75 5-15
Travis Kelce catches 3 TD passes as Oakland downs KC.

Washington 19 Arizona 6                     87 Calm
With only three games played, the Arizona Cardinals fans cannot wait for the season to be over. The Cardinals have yet to notch their first win and it does not look as if any will be coming soon. On the bright side, beer sales at the stadium are at a record high. Seems most fans prefer sitting at the stadium watering hole and watching the Red Zone to keep up with their fantasy teams than watching the Red Birds.

The boo birds were out in force early in the game. For just about 5 minutes in the first quarter it looked like the Birds were ready to play. They took the opening kick off and started with some positive plays. They began at the 25 and moved nearly to mid field ( a game highlight for Zona) before McCarron was rudely sacked. The next play McCarron threw his 6th interception in the very young season. It was pretty much down hill the rest of the way.

Washington would take the gift interception and march 66 yards for the TD. The Skins never looked back or lost the lead. In fairness, both teams looked bad. Washington could only manage a FG before the end of the first half. This was while Zona practiced their punting.

Anytime Zona did anything good, they followed it up with a penalty or turnover. Early in the 4th quarter, Zona got a break. Washington turned the ball over and Zona moved to the 5 yard line. Zona planned to take the three and attempt and onside kick. However, the FG was blocked and Zona still had no points.

Zona would get a late garbage TD but most of the fans had already left the building.

Rushing Leaders
Miller,L(Atl)   21-118
Rodgers,J(Dal) 16-109 2 TD – IFL Offensive Player of the Week
Darkwa(Jax)     19-106
Fournette(Det) 18-101

Receiving Leaders
Hopkins,D(Ten)   6-211 2 TD
Brown,A(Buf)     7-112 3 TD
Kelce,T(Oak)     7- 95 3 TD

Passing Leaders
Goff(Mia)       38-23-359   2 TD 3 Int
Ryan,M(Ten)     43-21-324   2 TD 3 Int
Smith,A(Buf)    36-26-278   5 TD
Stafford(Oak)   25-21-266   4 TD

Defensive Standouts
Byard(Ind)       2 Int 3 Tk – IFL Defensive Player of the Week
Wagner,B(Chi)    2 Int 8 Tk

Special Teams
Lambo(Car)     4-4 FG
Hill,T(Den)    5-130 Punt Ret 1 TD – IFL Special Team Player of the Week
Dayes(Pit)     5-165 Kick Ret

WEEK 3 IFL STANDINGS

WEEK 3 IFL LEAGUE LEADERS

WEEK 2 RECAP

Jags Ryan Switzer 90 yard punt return helps Jacksonville defeat San Francisco.

Game Scores
San Francisco 13 Jacksonville 30            92 10-20
A close game that saw both offences struggle until half way through the 4th quarter when the Jags blew it open with two big plays en route to a 30-13 victory over a game 49er squad. Down 17-13 with eight minutes to go the 49'ers attempted to pin the struggling Jags O deep in their own end only to have Ryan Switzer return the punt 90 yards for paydirt. Jags lead 24-13.

On the ensuing drive the 49'ers turned it over on downs on the Jacksonville 40. Three carries later Orleans Darkwa raced 58 yards to the house ensuring a Jags win.

Coach Beardsley coached a great game but his hands were tied following WR Steffon Diggs getting knocked out early in the second half.

Leaders

Darkwa (JAX) 21 carries, 128 yards, 3TDS
Howard (49rs) 23 carries, 94 yards

Reed (49rs) 8 catches for 42 yards
Doyle (JAX) 5 catches for 58 yards

Next week the 49ers are in Atlanta while the Jags travel to the "Big Easy"

Detroit 30 Arizona 21                       87 Calm
For a few minutes in the first half, Arizona fans thought their team was on track for its first win of the season. Arizona marched down the field after taking the opening kick off and scored a touch down to take the lead 7 to zip.
Detroit lost their starting QB early and Manion was rushed into duty. He quickly moved the ball into zona territory before the drive stalled after a holding penalty. Detroit was forced to settle for a FG.
Arizona made it a quick possession as McGuire scampered 75 yards for a touch down on the first play after kickoff. Zona was on fire. The D was motivated and the Detroit offensive line was forced to commit another holding penalty to protect their young QB. Detroit was forced to punt.
That was about the end of the good news for Zona. ON the next series, McCarron would throw his first of three interceptions in the game. Detroit continued to shoot themselves in the foot as they committed yet another holding penalty and were forced to settle for another FG.
Zona could not move with the offense and the momentum shifted to Detroit. Detroit mixed the run and pass to move down the field from their own 5 yard line. On the Zona 16 yard line the Lions committed their 3rd holding penalty of the half. Again, Detroit had to settle for three to make the score 9-14.
McCarron looked like he was about to sync with his WR. After hitting Marshall for 18 he threw his second pick of the day. With time running out, Detroit picked up a key first down. Then three plays later Mannion hit double teamed Thomas with a perfect pass for 36 yards. With 11 seconds left in the half Fournette would ram the ball down Zona’s throat for a score. Detroit then led 16-14.
Zona would get an early chance in the 3rd quarter as Fournette fumbled the ball on a screen pass but it did not matter. Zona could not find the rhythm. Kessler returned to the game on the next series and promptly turned threw and interception. However, Zona could not move it yet again. Back and forth it went as neither team could get out of their own way. Neither team would score in the third quarter.
Early in the fourth, Kessler found his TE in the end zone for 7 to increase the lead to 23-14.
Zona found some life and made it look like a real game. On their next possession they would move 75 yards down the field and score. Make it 23-21 Detroit. The next highlight of the game was the fourth holding penalty committed by Detroit. The Lions OL coach was so irate he stormed onto the field throwing his own offensive lineman to the ground. The officials ejected him from the game, but it was entertaining.
With the game in the balance, McCarron would turn out to be the chump as he threw his 3rd and last interception of the game. Detroit would add another 7 and it was history.

Houston 21 Miami 33                         82 Calm
The Texans come to town off a closer than expected week 1 loss to Oakland and were determined to have a better outing. Houston took the opening kickoff straight down the field to score in 4 plays and go up 7-0. Miami would score on their next 3 possessions, 2 TD's and a FG to go up 17-7 with 6:37 left in the half. The Texans weren't finished and would mount a drive and score the TD with .30 seconds left in the half to cut the lead to 17-14.
After a scoreless 3rd QTR, Miami would score early in the 4th to go up 24-14 with 14:25 left in the game. Once again Houston would drive the ball right down the field and get the TD with 7:05 left to cut the lead to 24-21. The Dolphins would mount a drive but it stalled, they kick the FG to go up by 6 at 27-21 with 2:47 left. Houston takes the ball, but goes nowhere and has to punt from their own 7 with 2 minutes left. Miami scores a quick TD to go up 33-21 and that's how it ends, but a hard fought battle by Houston. Many thanks to Pete for getting the game in so quickly. next week Houston 0-2 is again on the road at Denver and Miami 2-0 takes to the road for the 1st time this year at Chicago.

Kansas City 10 New England 24               62 5-15
Chiefs come to Foxboro looking to move to 2-0, while the Patriots look for their first win after a poor showing at Indy in week 1.

Rookie Deshone Kizer gets New England going early with a 9 yard completion to CJ Prosise and a 10 yarder to Jordy Nelson, sandwiched around a 16 yard Kizer scramble. Fellow rookie Marlon Mack ran it in from 8 yards out and the Patriots had their first TD of the season.

A KC three and out was followed by another impressive New England drive, highlighted by a 36 yard Kizer to Nelson pass play. Kizer finished the drive with a 1 yard TD dive, and it was 14-0 Patriots with less than twelve minutes gone in the 1st quarter.

The two teams traded punts midway into the 2nd quarter before Kizer got things going again. After a 6 yard McCaffrey rush followed by a 10 yard pass play to Christian, Kizer connected on 3 consecutive pass plays to Jordy for 11, 16 and 11 yards - the final for a TD to give NE a 21-0 lead.

A 56 yard field goal by Gostkowski into the wind got KC on the board, but there was still much work to be done heading into the second half.

A 52 yard Elliott FG got the Patriots on the board early in the 2nd half, opening up the lead to 21 once again. In response, Andy Dalton finally put together a strong drive for the Chiefs, capped by a 13 yard TD to Jarvis Landry, to make it 24-10. But KCs next three drives resulted in a turnover followed by consecutive turnover on downs, and the Patriots would ultimately come away with the 24-10 win.

Kizer completed 19 of 24 passes for 212 yards and a passing TD (plus an INT) and a rushing TD. Jordy Nelson caught 8 balls for 106 and a TD. For KC, Andy Dalton (19-36-0-163 with a TD) was mediocre on the day, with several poorly thrown balls as well as a lost fumble. RB LaGarrette Blount ran for 54 yards on 10 carries. New England's Erik Walden had 2 sacks, bringing his season total to 3.

Thanks to Bob for a good game and for his good sportsmanship.

Oakland 15 Indianapolis 16                  69
Indianapolis, Indiana (IFL.com) – The Indianapolis Colts a 6 point favorite, improve their record to 2-0 in this young season with a 16 to 15 victory over the visiting Oakland Raiders (1–1), a wildcard rematch from 2017. The Raiders won that playoff game 26-17, a game that forced Indy QB Carson Palmer into retirement.

Newly acquired quarterback Case Keenum was the toast of the town after a week one victory over the New England Patriots, however today he threw an astonishing 4 interceptions, 3 in the first half, and the Colts still found a way to victory lane. The much publicize showdown between Keenum and Oakland QB Matthew Stafford didn’t materialize as Stafford was a serviceable, 239 yards and 2 touchdowns while Keenum was a pathetic 19 of 34 for 135 yards 1 touchdown and 4 INT‘s, resulting in to a 35.4 QB rating.

This was a back-and-forth contest and a ugly win by indianapolis. The scoring got under way in the first quarter when Indianapolis running back Isaiah Crowell (24-97 Yards 1 TD) scored on a 4-yard run that was initially called short of the goal however, the call was challenged and the Colts was awarded the touchdown, 7-0 Indianapolis. The Raiders will close the gap to 7-3 on a Jason Myers 29 yard FG which was set up by the first of four interceptions thrown by Keenum. Oakland would take the lead late in the second quarter on a Stafford 14-yard pass to Alvin Kamara (RB), the PAT was no good, 9-7 Raiders and that’s how the first half would ended.

Indianapolis would come back and take the lead 10-9 on a 20 yard Stephen Hauschka FG following a 17 play 84 yard drive that eats up 8:49 of the third-quarter. The Raiders would counter with their own time consuming drive (11-75 yards, 5:28) that concluded with a Stafford 4th quarter 13 yard touchdown pass to wideout Jermaine Kearse (2-point failed), 15-10 Raiders. The Colts didn’t panic with plenty of time left on the clock (11:45) you can see the coaches and players on the sidelines calmly discussing late game strategy as the Fox telecast picked up the audio of Colts DB Kevin Byard saying “I got this.” And like a made for TV movie with 8:O7 left in the fourth quarter, Oakland leading by 5 on the Colts 45, 2nd and 2 Stafford phase back to pass a medium hitch to Travis Kelce (TE), Byard got a finger on it, Kelce bobbles it, the ball is batted up in the air, Byard snatches the loose ball for the interception at the 35 and returns it 56 yards to the Raiders 9 yard line. Two plays later Keenum will hit a medium-slant to Golden Tate (WR) for a 10 yard touchdown (2-point failed), 16-15 Colts. Oakland would get the ball one more time and go on a 10 play drive to the Colts 29-yard line. With 3:44 left in the fourth quarter Myers has a 47 yard FG try to give the Raiders the lead. Myers is waiting for the snap, it’s low but holder Andy Lee (P) got it down, the kick is up,… he hooked it.

Final score Raiders 15 Colts 16, great game by Keith and thanks for getting it in.

Next up for Indianapolis, they travel to the Big Apple to take on the New York Jets (0-1) and the Raiders travel to Kansas City (1-0) for a divisional game against the Chiefs.

Notable player stats;

Oakland
Kamara (RB) 8 catches 83 yards, 1 TD
Kearse (WR) 5 catches 59 yards, 1 TD
Myers (K) 1-3 (29 FG), 0-1 XP

Indianapolis
Tate (WR) 7 catches 61 yards, 1 TD
K.J. Wright (LB) 11 tackles

Washington 7 Tampa Bay 24                   85 0-10
Washington traveled to Tampa Bay with both teams looking for their first victory of the year. As would be true too often for Redskin fans, their team drew two penalties in the first possession and had to punt the ball away.

After two more punts, Tampa is able to get on the board when Derek Carr finds Richard Rogers in the end zone from 7 yards out.

The Redskins answer right back as Dak Prescott gets hot throwing for 49 yards during the drive including a 2 yard score to Pierre Garcon to tie the game at 7. Aaron Jones played a big role ripping off runs and 18 and 13 yards.

Tampa Bay consumes seven minutes on the next drive and goes ahead 14 to 7 on a Todd Gurley 10 yard scamper.

The Redskins hold the ball until less than a minute left in the first half but lose some momentum when Blair Walsh hooks a 29 yard field goal attempt just before halftime.

Tampa extends the lead to 24 to 7 in the third quarter after a field goal and then a Ross Cockrell interception of Prescott which the Buccaneers offense turned into a touchdown. That was the end of the scoring for the day.

The lone offensive bright spot for the Redskins was Aaron Jones gaining 60 yards on just 5 carries. Any chance the Redskins had to gain some momentum was quickly squashed by the referees who called 10 penalties for 52 yards.

Derek Carr had and efficient day going 17 of 23 for 151 yards with two TDs. Todd Gurley ran the ball 20 times for 105 yards and added three catches for 26 yards.

Next week the Redskins travel to the desert to face the Cardinals while the Buccaneers head to the Motor City for a fierce face-off with their undefeated division rival Lions.

New Orleans 24 Pittsburgh 23                65 0-10
Trailing 23-21, Saints quarterback Joe Flacco engineers a 16 play 69 yard drive that sets up a McManus 42 yard game winning field goal as time expires. Two encroachment penalties by the Pittsburgh defense aided the New Orleans drive. Flacco threw for 274 yards and 3 TDs with an INT. The Steelers Brady struggled all afternoon against the Saints pass rush being sacked four times.

Denver 26 Buffalo 30                        65 40+
The Denver Broncos came to Buffalo in week two with gale force winds blowing over 40 mph and the Bills came out with a 30-26 victory.

Alex Smith threw for 286 yards and 3 TD's with Brown catching 12 of those passes for 127 yards and 2 TD's.

For Denver, Bortles threw for 302 yards and a score with one pick.
Tyreek Hill snared 6 balls for 148 yards and RB Kareem Hunt rushed for 100 yards on 15 carries for the losing team.

It was a great game.

Los Angeles (A) 21 New York (A) 3           77 Calm
Not much to say other than Watson is injured, and Mallett had to start.

Chargers dominate the Jets 21-3....The Chargers ran for 206 yards and
held the ball for 38 minutes( they were slowing it down, but....)

Eddie Lacy rolled, literally rolled because he can't run, for 60 yards on 12 carries.

For the Chargers Taylor was 13-22 with1 TD.

For the Jets Parlardy punted 6 times and averaged 48.5 yards.

Next week the Jets host the Colts and the Chargers visit Philadelphia.

Chicago 10 Philadelphia 34                  81 5-15
The Philadelphia Eagles scored on 4 of their first 5 possessions in the 1st half to take a 28-0 halftime lead and coast to a final of 34-10.

The Eagle offense was clicking on all cylinders as QB Jameis Winston was an efficient 13-16 for 170 yards and 3 TDs. The RB tandem of Demarco Murray and Bilal Powell would grind out 156 yards on 27 carries and a Powell TD. On defense, the Eagles were able to disrupt Bear QB Marcus Mariota, sacking him 3 times and intercepting him twice while, also, creating a fumble that the Eagle offense would turn into a TD.

The Bears were led by the dangerous receiving tandem of Demaryius Thomas (9 for 92) and Jamison Crowder (8 for 89), but turnovers, penalties, and a bend but don't break Eagle defense would hold down the Bears on this day.

Next up for the 2-0 Eagles will be the LA Chargers, while the Bears will try to get their first win of the year against the Miami Dolphins.

Atlanta 19 Cincinnati 31                    81 0-10
The IFL Bengals hosted the Atlanta Falcons in their 2018 home opener. The Falcons are one of the more stable and competitive franchises in the IFL as Marty is one of two original members. Chargers coach Jerry Banko is the other. I don't recall ever playing Marty. I played his brother Lorne plenty of times as he is the former Jaguars coach.

The Falcons first play from scrimmage went for 35 yards as Rivers connected with Fitzgerald. The Bengals defense eventually stiffened and held Atlanta to a Forbath 31 yard field goal and a 3-0 Falcon lead. Cincinnati would move down the field as Rodgers connected with Funchess for 11 and Jeffery for 13. However, Rodgers laid motionless on the field after the second completion and IFL Bengal fans worst fears were confirmed. The Bengals franchise quarterback broke his collarbone and will be out for a prolonged period. I am sure I will receive pity emails from my IFL counterparts. Cincinnati was lucky to have veteran QB Carson Palmer ready for such emergencies and he finished the drive as Montgomery went in from 3 yards out giving Cincinnati a 7-3 lead. The Falcons answered with a drive that finished with 3 straight completions to Agholor with the last being from 22 yards out and a 9-7 lead (XP was no good). The Atlanta defense forced a 3 and out on the Bengals next possession but Forbath missed a 45 yard field goal attempt to begin the second quarter. Palmer connected with Funchess for 34 yards, Jeffery's for 16, and again to Funchess for 15 and the score, 14-9 Bengals. The Cincinnati defense stepped up on the Falcons next series as Vinny Rey intercepted Rivers. On 3rd and 9, Palmer found Jeffery in the end zone as the Bengals increased their lead to 21-9. The Falcons cut the lead to 21-16 as Lewis goes over the top on fourth and inches.

The second half began with the teams exchanging punts. A horse collar tackle penalty helped Cincinnati move into field goal range as Fairbairn hit from 42 yards out increasing the Bengals lead to 24-16. Atlanta cut the deficit to 24-19 at the end of the third quarter. The Bengals would add another score as Gordon went in from 9 yards out for the 31-19 final.

Rivers finished 19 of 32 for 272 yards with 1 TD and 1 INT
Agholor caught 5 passes for 93 yards and a score.
Nose tackle Poe was credited with 2 sacks.

For the Bengals Palmer finished 21 of 27 for 265 yards and 2 TDs.
Funchess caught all 8 of his targets for 121 yards and a TD.
Rey had the interception and Casey a sack.

Next week the Bengals travel to Pittsburgh for a key AFC Central match-up while the Falcons host San Francisco.

Green Bay 15 Dallas 16                      70
This contest was a defensive struggle as evidenced by the game featuring 14 punts, 9 sacks and five turnovers.

Dallas marched to the Green Bay four-yard-line on the games opening possession onto to see LeSean McCoy fumble the ball away. From there, neither offense could mount a drive and Dallas was the first to blink when a Cam Newton pass was picked off by the Packer's Patrick Peterson deep in Dallas territory. The Pack would capitalize when Big Ben hit Emmanuel Sanders for a slant from the six to put Green Bay up 7-0 early in the second quarter.

On Dallas' next possession, Cam Newton hit Kenny Stills. While trying to make a big play, Stills was careless and Patrick Peterson stripped the ball from Stills' grasp. Green Bay ball. But Dallas' defense would hold.

Later in the quarter, Roethlisberger connected with Josh Gordon on a 47-yard pass play for the Pack's second score. However, the kicker missed the XP. This would prove decisive.

Just before halftime, Roethlisberger attemped a screen pass. But the Cowboy's DE Dean Lowry anticipated it and intercepted the ball. Dallas would score with six seconds on the clock before halftime on at Newton pass to Tyrell Williams for a 10-yard TD.   Earlier in the drive, Cam tucked a ball under for a key 24-yard scamper.   The score was 13-7 at the half.

Dallas made another costly error in the third quarter when Cam Newton was sacked in Dallas' end zone to put Green Bay up 15-7.

In the fourth quarter, Cam Newton dumped a pass to H Back Charles Clay. Clay would put on the jets and take the short pass 53 yards. Two plays later it was 3rd and 1. Dallas called a medium slant to Stills off a play action. it worked. Stills took it 15 yards to paydirt. Down two points, Dallas went for two. But McCoy's end run was stopped short of the goal.

Dallas got a break when Green Bay drove to the Dallas 32 where the drive stalled. But Gould connected on a 49-yard FG. But wait …. offensive holding.   John had to punt the ball.

After the touchback, Dallas got the ball on its 20 with just 3:10 left on the clock. Three McCoy running plays got Dallas a first down. Then McCoy broke a long run for 54 yards … to the Green Bay 14. After two running plays and a "try to trip him up" screen that went incomplete, Dawson kicked a 31-yard FG to put Dallas up for the first time in the game 16-15.

Green Bay went four and out and Dallas ran out the clock to move to a very unexpected 2-0.

Green Bay falls to 1-1 with the loss.

McCoy rushed for 108 yards and Newton for 85 to lead Dallas' humble offense.

Tennessee 25 Carolina 26                    76 0-5
Two teams who lost close games in week one do battle in Carolina. The first half saw plenty of offense with Tennessee going in to the half with a 19-17 advantage. The highlight of the half was a 45 yard TD run by DeMarco Murray. Tennessee's Dan Bailey missed two extra point which would be the difference in the game.

The second half saw both defenses pick up the pace as both sides denied each other a touchdown. Carolina hits a field goal with 5:28 remaining to take the lead which they would hold on to to win the game.

Tennessee out gained and generally out played Carolina but Bailey's two missed extra points would be the difference.

Tennessee 25
Carolina 26

Standouts for Tennessee include Murray rushing for 100 yards and a TD and Hopkins with 140 yards receiving and a TD.

For Carolina, Goodwin and Evans had 100 and 98 yards receiving respectively. Wilson also tossed 3 TD's.

Baltimore 3 Los Angeles (N) 17              73 Calm
The Los Angeles Rams and Baltimore Ravens played a sluggish game that no fan could be happy they paid to see. Rams started Andrew Luck at Quarterback, who's throwing arm was injured during the past season. The Rams made the controversial decision to train Andrew Luck to throw with his left arm in the off-season. The results have been mixed thus far. Ravens made several trades in the off-season including adding several former Rams (AJ Green, Josh Sitton, Bernardrick McKinney) hoping to make a run to the Superbowl. Neither team's off-season plans paid dividends in this game.

The first half ended 0-0 with neither team able breach the other's 35 yard line. Lots of punts, lots of poor field position.

In the second half Ravens fans had to ask themselves if their defense became their own worst enemy. After dominating Lefty Luck in the first half, the Ravens dynamic pass rush knocked Luck out for the game. In comes Landry Jones for the Rams, able to throw with his strong arm, but easily tires. Jones converted some first downs and at the end of the drive scrambled out of trouble to find TE Trey Burton for a TD, 7-0 Rams. Ravens QB Eli Manning had a good completion percentage, but was unable to pick up chunks of yards or convert key third downs. Ravens line up to punt after another stalled drive, but it's blocked. Second Rams blocked punt in as many weeks. Huge play that gave the Rams a FG, 10-0 Rams. Ravens were not out of it. Still struggling on offense the defense stepped up and forced a fumble from Rams RB Ken Dixon. Ravens in business, but unable to punch it in for a TD, 10-3 Rams still lead. Landry Jones with some help from the refs would answer the score. Up to this point penalties were equal, but then a flag parade began against the Ravens. Including a long pass interference call that put the Rams on the Ravens, 14 yard line. Landry Jones fired a slant to TY Hilton to make it 17-3 and put the game out of reach for the Ravens.

The net offense of the game pretty much told the story, each team had a total of 259 yards, one key caveat, Rams penalties 8-60, Ravens penalties 14-127(including a punt returned for TD called back for an illegal block). The penalties plus the blocked punt played the difference.

Not a lot of exciting performances by individual players

Alex Collins managed 41 yards on just 5 carries for the Ravens and Leveon Bell ran 11 times for 49 yards.

Rams Punter Alex Nortman landed 5 punts inside the 20, but the MVP was Landry Jones who came off the bench to throw for 2 TDs.

Next week the Rams travel to Carolina while the Ravens host the Titans.

Minnesota 52 New York (N) 27                75 0-5   Light Rain
The game was strange from the start. First, after multiple failed attempts to get connected, we finally got it going after over an hour's delay. It was shaping up to be a nailbiter, as Minnesota was up 17-14 midway through the 2nd quarter but was hanging on for dear life as New York was moving the ball well and was deep in Minny territory. Then Wentz went down for the game! But, in an IFL first, the game was interrupted by a wild incident where an irate fan cornered one of the coaches and the police had to be called. The game had to be suspended.

When the game resumed a few nights later, we had more connection problems that lasted again over an hour, with Hamachi refusing to let the Viking coach play unless he coughed up over $350. Suddenly, out of the blue, we received a message from Hamachi, and they announced the Viking coach was now approved to use the program. Whoa, a corporation with a conscience!

When the game resumed, the score was still 17-14, but the Giants were in their own territory and -- miracle of miracle -- Wentz was again healthy. The 2nd quarter saw Minnesota erupt for 17 points to take a 31-21 lead at the half.

In the 3rd quarter, the Giants fought back to cut the deficit to only 3, 31-28, entering the 4th quarter. They blanked the Vikings in the quarter.

Confusion reigned, however, as the Vikings coach thought the game was over. He kneeled out what he could swear was the game, but the scoreboard said only 3 quarters had been completed. Apparently the sluggish pace of the game, which neither coach could figure out how to fix, deceived him.

The 4th quarter turned out to be all Vikings, however, as they blanked the Giants 21-0 to win the game, 52-27.

The 52 points was an all-time high for the Vikings and moved their record to 2-0. The Giants fell to 0-2.

Drew Brees had his second straight 400+ passing game, hitting 30 of 36 passes for 421 yards, 6 TD's and 0 interceptions. Rookie Wentz was 14/23 for 289 yards. Wentz passed for 3 TDs and ran for 1.

Ezekiel Elliott rushed for 98 yards and caught 5 passes for 71 yards, making 169 yards total for him. Rishard Matthews and Juju Smith-Schuster also stood out with 101 and 82 yards, respectively. Theo Riddick led the Giants with 162 yards received, including a 70 yarder. Robby Anderson caught only 2 passes, but both were touchdowns, including a 64-yarder.

The Vikings had 545 yards net offense and the Giants had 386.

Next week Minnesota hosts Green Bay and the Giants host Dallas.

Thanks, Jude, for sticking with this game. Hopefully our connection problems are now solved and there will be smooth going in future games.

Rushing Leaders
Darkwa(Jax)     21-128 3 TD
Fournette(Det) 21-115 1 TD
McCoy,L(Dal)    21-108
Gurley II(TB)   20-105 1 TD
McGuire(Ari)    7-103 1 TD
Hunt,K(Den)     15-100 1 TD
Murray,L(Ten)   18-100 1 TD

Receiving Leaders
Riddick(NYG)     5-162
Brown,A(Buf)    12-127 2 TD

Passing Leaders
Brees(Min)      36-30-421   6 TD – IFL Offensive Player of the Week
Goff(Mia)       40-26-333   4 TD
Bortles(Den)    31-20-302   1 TD 1 Int

Defensive Standouts
Slay(Oak)        2 Int 6 Tk
Walden(NE) 2 sacks 5 TK – IFL Defensive Player of the Week

Special Teams
Tucker,J(Den) 4-4 FG
Switzer(Jax)   2-59 Kick Ret 4-110 Punt Ret 1 TD – IFL Special Teams Player of the Week

WEEK 2 IFL STANDINGS

WEEK 2 IFL LEAGUE LEADERS

WEEK 1 RECAP

Vikings Drew Brees throws 4 TD passes including the game winner with 25 seconds left in the game.

Game Scores
Minnesota 41 Chicago 40                     65 0-5
The Vikings opened their IFL season by traveling to Chicago. Minnesota’s opening drive produced 7 points on a 26 yard run by Marshawn Lynch, but the Bears answered in their opening drive, Mariota to Crowder from 11 yards out. Brees led the Vikings back to the lead on their next possession, Brees 12 yards to Witten. The Bears bounced right back, Mariota to Crowder again getting in from 27 yards out. Rosas missed the extra point. The Bear’s defense finally forced a punt but Minnesota pinned Chicago on their own 4 after the punt. Viking 14 Bears 13 after 4 drives after one.

The Bears continued to move the ball, and a 96 yard drive ended with Mariota’s 3rd TD pass, this time 20 yards to Jones Jr. Chicago forced another punt, drove down the field again, Mariota to Jones Jr. for 6 from 33 yards out. Minnesota stayed in the game when Brees hit Smith-Schuster for a 44 yard TD pass late in the second. Chicago 27 Minnesota 21 at the half.

Things settled down a bit in the 3rd quarter. A field goal by Rosas and two by Zuerlein made it Chicago 30 Minnesota 27 after 3.

Rosas extended the Chicago lead early in the 4th to 33-27, but Brees led Minnesota back with a long drive to put the Vikings up 34-33 (Brees 12 yards to Matthews). (The Bear’s D forced a punt on this drive, but an encroachment penalty kept the ball with Minnesota). Mariota was not done – 8 playes, 75 yards, Mariota to Thomas from 30 yards away, Chicago 40 Minnesota 34. With 1:18 left in the game, Brees led Minnesota back from the 24. With 25 seconds left to go, Brees found Ivory in the end zone from 1 yard out for the game winner. Minnesota 41 Chicago 40

Minnesota: Brees 31/40/420 4 TD; Matthews 7 receptions for 149 and 1 TD; Smith-Schuster 8 for 141 and 1 TD.

Chicago: Mariota 31/42/426 5 TD; D Thomas 11/151 1 TD; Jones Jr. 8/141 2 TD

Chicago had 553 yards of offense and punted once. Minnesota had 464 yards and punted twice.

Buffalo 17 Miami 34                         87 0-5
Two old rivals open the season with a divisional game in a division that for the 1st time in a while is up for grabs. Although Buffalo was active in the FA market pre-draft, Miami was very active in accumulating some Veteran talent to field what they hope is finally a playoff run this post season. Although the score might indicate otherwise, this game never had the feel of being one you could put away until late in the 4th quarter. Buffalo actually out gained the Miami offense 382 yards to 359, dominated in time of possession, and had more 1st downs and a very good game in converting on 3rd down, but a key for the Dolphins was some very untimely penalties on the Bills and Miami was able to capitalize on the 1st Bills turnover which kinda set the tone early, although the Bills would score on their next possession to tie the score, Miami never trailed in the game. Alex Smith started hot and had 2 big scrambles in the 1st half but tailed off in the 2nd half which was a relief to the Dolphin secondary. Both Teams showed flashes of big play offenses, but today the Dolphins come away with a 34-17 win at home to get the season underway. Next week Buffalo will host Denver and Miami will host Houston. Thanks to Greg in getting the game in quickly and the season underway.

Denver 34 Arizona 13                        85 Calm
The Broncos traveled to Arizona for a week one match up with the Cardinals with Denver coming out on top 34-13.

Broncos QB Blake Bortles threw for 319 yards and 3 TD's and Rookie RB Kareem Hunt rushed for 122 yards and one score as the Broncos opened the season
with the win.

Cardinals QB AJ McCarron threw for 260 yards and a TD with 2 picks on the evening.
Cardinals WR Corey Coleman had a big night catching 7 balls for 138 yards.

New York (A) 10 Detroit 14                  70
NYJ QB Watson goes down early in the 3rd & it didn't look good. I'd like to say this was a defensive battle, but the truth is it was two inept offenses
Player of the game was Det wr Thomas who scored 2 TD's. NYJ wr Woods had a nice game with 9 catches & 102 yrds.
Lions QB Kessler ended with a 90 QB rating but only 177 yrds. Watson was 97 rating with 149 yrds in basically a half..
Overall it was two evenly matched teams & Detroit happened to win.

Cincinnati 27 Tennessee 24                  74 0-5
On paper Cincinnati and Tennessee have very good defensive teams. That was not in evidence in the first half as the teams took turns marching up and down the field. By halftime it was 24-21 for the Titans who were greatly assisted by the refs who called 7 accepted penalties against the Bengals in the first quarter alone.
The second half was a different story as both teams struggled to move the ball. The only score in the 3rd quarter was a 41 yard field goal by the Bengals Ka’imi Fairbairn. Tied at 24-24 with 9 minutes to go in the game the Titans put together a nice 5 minute 55 yard drive that stalled at the Bengal 32 yard line. The usually reliable Dan Bailey missed the 50 yard field goal (his second miss of the game). That was doubly punitive as Aaron Rodgers and company took over at their own 40 with 4 minutes left. He moved the team down to the Titan 28 yard line and Fairbairn kicked the winning field goal with 45 seconds on the clock.
The Bengals dynamic secondary (Jalen Ramsey 10, Micah Hyde 9) was the difference in the game as DeAndre Hopkins was limited to 3 receptions on 11 attempts and Odell Beckham got injured early in the 3rd quarter. Rodgers deep passing was very effective with 3 pass completions over 30 yards and Melvin Gordon added 104 yards rushing. Blake Martinez had the best stat line for the Titans with 12 tackles, an interception and a forced fumble.

New York (N) 7 Philadelphia 37              83 5-15
Division rivals opened the Week 1 season with visions of grandeur. Optimism always starts the opening week of every IFL season, but only a few of those teams remain by mid-season.

With that as the background, the Giants and Eagles kicked off. After a 3 and out by the Giants to open things, the Eagles would use their combo backfield of Demarco Murray and Bilal Powell to control the ground in the 1st quarter and not give the Giant offense many opportunities. This would lead to 2 touchdowns and an early 14-0 lead. As the 2nd quarter began, the Giants passing attack under the direction of new QB Carson Wentz would kick into high gear. A long pass to WR Robby Anderson followed immediately by a crossing pass to TE Tyler Kroft would close the gap to 14-7 and that would be the score at halftime.

The 2nd half would begin with the Eagles getting great field position at midfield. Deciding that the run game had loosened things up, the Eagles OC would decide to let QB Jameis Winston go deep to rookie WR Cooper Kupp. The move would pay off with a 50 yard TD bomb. 21-7 Eagles. After another 3 and out from the Giants, the Eagles would go back to their formula of controlling things on the ground. A 10 play 70-yard drive would ensue and culminate with a Murray 2 yard burst taking over 6 minutes off the clock. 28-7 Eagles. The rest of the half was a series of mistakes from the Giant offense that would lead to 3 Eagle FG's and a final score of 37-7.

The entire Eagle offense was the story on this day as they controlled the ball 40 to 20 minutes and scored almost at will. The Eagle defense did its job of getting the Giants off the field in a timely manner.

Thanks to Indy Ken for subbing due to technical difficulties for Giants owner Jude Plante. Next week the Eagles play host to the Chicago Bears while the Giants will have their home opener against the Minnesota Vikings.

Kansas City 17 Los Angeles (A) 3            89 Calm
Chiefs quarterback Andy Dalton throws to first half touchdown passes and the KC defense does the rest.

New England 3 Indianapolis 24               69
Indianapolis, Indiana (IFL.com) – The defending Super Bowl champion New England Patriots (0-1) came into Indianapolis (1-0) looking for their first win of the season and and left with a shocking 24-6 defeat.

The Patriots dominated the time of possession (33:11) with a punishing ground attack, running for 131 yards on 31 carries however they committed 2 turnovers and were a dreadful 4/0/1 in the red-zone. Indianapolis newly acquired QB Case Keenum had a fantastic debut completing 22 passes on 28 attempts for 206 yards with 3 touchdowns. Head coach and general manager Kenneth Griffith said he wasn’t surprised by the performance “hey we gave up a lot to get him, we gave up a first, second, third, and a fourth round selection to get this kid,.. we’re here to win and that’s why we brought him here”.

Other notable players:

New England Patriots-
DeShone Kiser QB 24-14, 138 Yards, 1 Int
Christian McCaffrey RB 10-44, 4.4 avg. 4 rec 17 Yards
Jordy Nelson WR 5 rec 55 Yards

Indianapolis Colts-
Isaiah Crowell 10-49, 4.9 avg.
Keenan Allen 5 rec 44 Yards 2 TD
Golden Tate 6 rec 61 Yards 1 TD

Next up
In week 2 the Patriots host the Kansas City Chiefs and the Colts welcome in the Oakland Raiders.

Pittsburgh 33 Jacksonville 26               84 0-5
Tom Brady shredded an anemic Jacksonville defence for 332 yards and 3TDs en route to a well deserved 33-26 victory. Jacksonville's "88" corners were diced and sliced on a regular basis. Coach Diiorio and Tom Brady eviscerated the hapless Jag's secondary with the skill of a vivisectionist, and it wasn't pretty...

The score was close in the second half, but the 27-13 halftime deficit was too much too overcome.

For the Jags....Well, Cutler sucked. He tossed up four picks, and starting running back.Darkwa was knocked out of all but three plays.

Some dude named Hood ran for 112 yards on 24 carries following Darkwa's hangnail.

Props on Vince for a well coached game.

San Francisco 3 New Orleans 24              70
The Saints would open at home and not disappoint. The Saints would control the ball and gain 143 yards on the ground. Joe Flacco threw 3 TD's for 243 yards. Unsigned Dez Bryant caught 4 balls for 126 yards and 2 TD's. The 49ers offense would struggle most of the day as rookie Trubisky threw for 148 yards but was sacked 4 times. New Orleans was on the borderline of rebuilding but the Saints fanbase know that is rarely in Owner/Coach Rice's vocabulary. Saints win 24-3.

Tampa Bay 3 Green Bay 31                    68 0-5
Battle of the Bays had some extra steam this season as it was the Bucs
who ended Green Bay's 4 year reign as NFC North Champions last season.

Lambeau was rocking for this one.

Packers took the opening kickoff and made it look easy. They went
75 yard in just 5 plays, capped off by Jay Ajayi's 18 yard touchdown run. 7-0 GB

Tampa Bay went three and out on their first possession and were forced to punt.
Packer couldn't get much going on their second drive as things stalled out near midfield.

This is when things got crazy.

Derek Carr would throw back to back INT's that led to 10 more Green Bay points.

17-0 after the first.

Coach Chase would get his team settled down early in the 2nd as Chris Boswell
nailed a 53 yarder to cut the lead to 17-3.

Packers responded with a clutch 7 play, 60 yard drive. The Ben to Ben combo
of Roethlisberger/Watson hooked up for a 26 yard TD to cap it off, 24-3 Pack.

Tampa Bay then put together their best drive of the game moving all the way
down to the Green Bay 11. On the next play Carr would throw his 3rd pick of the half
as Patrick Peterson jumped an out route intended for Davante Adams.

Green Bay's drive stalled in their own end and the Bucs got the ball back in good field position
with a chance to get back into the game with just over a minute left before halftime

After a first down got it close to midfield, Carr fumble the snap from center. Ryan Shazier
scooped it up and went 46 yards to paydirt.

The shell shocked Bucs trailed 31-3 at the half.

Tampa couldn't much going in the 3rd and pulled the starters just before the end of the quarter

31-3 would be the final

Big Ben didn't have to do much. He finished 13 of 20 for 143 yards and 2TD's
Ajayi was solid 17 for 93 and a TD
Josh Gordon added 3 rec. for 74 yards and a TD

Carr had a miserable day: 12-24 for just 131 yards, 3 ints and a lost fumble (26.9 rating)
Todd Gurley was held in check: 13 carries for 51 yards along with 3 rec for 31

Thanks to Mike for being a good sport despite poor treatment from the Action PC gods

Green Bay visits Dallas in week 2
Bucs host Washington

Los Angeles (N) 28 Atlanta 31               68
Falcons have a 21-7 lead go into the half after a TD pass from Rivers to Jalen Richard with 0:02 left in the first half. Falcons extend their lead to 31-14 going into the 4th quarter.

The Rams stop the first Falcons drive of the 4th and then block the punt. Ziggy Ansah scoops it up and runs it in for the TD to close the gap to 31-21. Rams weren't done as Luck hits Hilton for a 57 yard TD pass with 6:42 left in the game to reduce the Falcons lead to a FG.

After a blocked punt, the Rams blocked the FG on the Falcons next attempt. On the Rams next drive, they managed to drive it down to the Falcons 46 yard line with 0:19 left. Unfortunately, it was out of even long FG range so the Rams attempt a last ditch attempt to get into FG range. Luck puts up the pass deep but it's knocked down and the Rams turn it over on downs.

The Falcons run out the clock and win 31-28 to go to 1-0 while the Rams fall to 0-1.

Rivers is named game MVP as he passes for 270 yards and 4 TDs.

Dallas 24 Washington 19                     72 5-15
Cowboys jump out to a 21-0 lead at the half thanks to two Newton runs. Washington rallies with two Prescot touchdown passes but Dallas hangs on.

Oakland 17 Houston 10                       70
Matt Stafford throws two touchdown passes as the Raiders pick up a road win to open the season.

Baltimore 21 Carolina 20                    82 0-5
Thanks to Ram Ryan for subbing. He called a great game and nearly knocked off the Ravens.

Carolina held a 17-6 lead mid-way through the 3rd quarter and recovered a Raven fumble near midfield. Baltimore's defense decided enough was enough and forced a three-and-out that included an offensive penalty and a sack by CB Anthony Brown. Michael Campanaro returned the punt 66 yards and three plays later Le'Veon Bell ran it in from the 10. Eli Manning hit Adam Thielen on a short slant for a two-point conversion that cut the Panther lead to 3.

The Raven D held the Panthers to another 3-and-out just before the quarter flipped over. Carolina stymied the Ravens on the first two plays, but Manning hit Thielen on a medium slant for 43 yards that set up a 24-yard TD strike to AJ Green three plays later. Baltimore took their first lead since the first quarter, 21-17.

Carolina marched 51 yards on 11 plays, but the Raven D tightened in the red zone and held the Panthers to a FG.

The Panthers had two more chances, but really never threatened as Baltimore milked the clock.

Ram Ryan got a sneak-peak at his next opponent as the Ravens travel to Los Angeles. Carolina takes on its second AFC Central opponent, Tennessee in Week 2.

Rushing Leaders
Hunt,K(Den)     22-122 1 TD
Hood,E(Jax)     24-112
Gordon,M(Cin)   22-104 1 TD
McCoy,L(Dal)    20-104
Forte(Hou)      22-102 1 TD
Murray,D(Phi)   17-85 3 TD

Receiving Leaders
Thomas,De(Chi) 11-151 1 TD

Passing Leaders
Mariota(Chi)    42-31-426   5 TD
Brees(Min)      40-31-420   4 TD – IFL Offensive Player of the Week
Brady(Pit)      33-22-332   3 TD 1 Int
Prescott(Was)   44-30-328   3 TD 1 Int
Bortles(Den)    30-21-319   3 TD
Rivers,P(Atl)   35-23-270   4 TD

Defensive Standouts
Alexander(NYG)   15 Tk

Special Teams
Vinatieri(Pit) 4-5 FG
Bullock(Jax)   4-4 FG
Switzer(Jax)   8-247 Kick Ret
Campanaro(Bal) 3-113 Punt Ret – IFL Special Teams Player of the Week

WEEK 1 IFL STANDINGS

WEEK 1 IFL LEAGUE LEADERS

2018 IFL PRESEASON

SPORTS WRITER PETER KING MOCKS THE IFL DRAFT

The former writer for Sports Illustrated and author of five books, Peter King has agreed to attempt to mock the 2018 IFL draft. It is quite the honor to follow in the foot steps of some of the great sports media people in the world stated King. I have done a lot of digging and believe this could be one of the more interesting and surprising drafts in IFL history. So, let's get going!

1 - JETS: When Ryan Mallett is the only QB on your roster it is easy to select a quarterback. I like Mitch Trubiskey but love Deshaun Watson playmaking skills. Watson to the Jets.
2 - GIANTS: Quarterback is not an issue for the football Giants. They could use a pass rusher and Myles Garrett shows plenty of potential in this area.
3 – 49ERS: I don't like the looks of the current 49er quarterback room. Mitch Tribiskey to San Francisco.
4 - RAMS: This is a tough one. Rams need help at running back but with Luck out for the season I could see them taking the highest rated player on the                                      board. That would be cornerback Marshon Lattimore.
5 – BRONCOS: Denver has only one running back currently on their roster. I like Kareem Hunt to go here.
6 – PANTHERS: Running Back is clearly a spot where teams would continue to look at. However, Carolina has a nice committee already in place.    However, even with that said, I don’t see the Panthers passing up on Alvin Kamara.
7 – CARDINALS: Arizona is starting over. Quarterback is probably the best place to start. Patrick Mahomes to the Cardinals.
8 – DOLPHINS: Miami is thinking playoffs this year. Even though they just acquired Mark Ingram, running back Leonard Fournette is easily the best player on the board. Otherwise look for a trade at this spot.
9 – JAGUARS: With no quarterbacks worthy of being selected at this spot, Jacksonville will upgrade receiver with JuJu Smith-Schuster.
10 – VIKINGS: Christian McCaffrey is hanging out there but I don’t believe Minnesota would use two consecutive top ten picks on a running back. The best defensive player remaining is Corner TreDavious White. He would be a huge upgrade for the Vikings.
11 – PATRIOTS: The back-to-back champions have decided to throw in the towel and rebuild. While McCaffrey will be considered I think New England    goes O-Line with tackle Ryan Ramczyk at eleven.
12 – LIONS: This is a good landing spot for Christian McCaffrey as Detroit continues to collect talent.
13 – CARDINALS: A lot of talent to consider at this spot; T.J. Watt, Cooper Kupp, and Evan Engram. However, I look for Arizona to go with corner    Adoree’ Jackson at 13.
14 – CHARGERS: Safety Jamal Adams would be a nice addition to the Los Angeles secondary.
15 – TEXANS: Houston suffered some injuries to their receiver corps. Cooper Kupp would help offset that.
16 – CHIEFS: Evan Engram would be a solid addition to the Chiefs offense and a nice compliment to Jarvis Landry.
17 – COWBOYS: If Jamal Adams slides he would be a nice addition to the Dallas secondary. However, Marcus Williams may have had a better rookie year and is an even better addition to the Cowboys defensive backfield.
18 – BEARS: The Bears needed a running back this time last year and need one this season as well. I think they will have better luck solving this issue by selecting Joe Mixon this time.
19 – EAGLES: While not a pressing need, pass rusher T.J. Watt is the highest rated player still available.
20 – RAMS: The Rams can afford to gamble and hope for a healthy Dalvin Cook to lead their ground game for years to come.
21 – EAGLES: The Eagles probably wish Cook would have fell to this spot but Watt probably would have been scooped up by the Rams. However, receiver Cory    Davis is a nice investment at 21.
22 – FALCONS: With Dumervil getting a little long in the tooth, Solomon Thomas makes sense here.
23 – CARDINAL: Arizona has a lot of needs, I like Marlon Humphrey here.
24 – PATRIOTS: O.J. Howard makes sense here as a long term replacement for Olsen.
25 – SAINTS: Center Pat Elflein would add some youth along an aging offensive line.
26 – RAIDERS: Reuben Foster would be an interesting selection here but I think Oakland plays it safe and fills a need with center Nick Martin.
27 – RAMS: Los Angeles snags Linebacker Jarrad Davis and breaks the Bengals heart.
28 – BENGALS: Once thought to be a position of strength, injuries and performance have made Tight End a priority. Cincinnati likes David Njoku’s    ceiling.
29 – REDSKINS: Tackle is an issue in Washington and of course Dion Dawkins falls in their lap.
30 – PATRIOTS: I think the Pats jump all over Malik Hooker here to end round one.

IFL SUPER BOWL

PATRIOTS 23 REDSKINS 16

Patriots quarterback Sam Bradford earned Super Bowl MVP honors for the second straight season as New England edges Washington.

The Washington Redskins, led by rookie QB Dak Prescott and winners of 10 consecutive games (including two impressive playoff wins against the Rams and Saints), were looking to cap an outstanding season with a win in the 2018 IFL Super Bowl. Their opponents, the New England Patriots, were looking to defend their IFL title behind MVP candidate Sam Bradford and their dynamic WR duo of Antonio Brown and Jordy Nelson.

Washington entered the game as the 3 point betting favorite.

New England won the coin toss and deferred. Marqise Lee ran the opening kick back to the Washington 29 yard line. On the first play from scrimmage and the Patriot line cheating left, Redskin back Jeremy Hill took a handoff right and sprinted FIFTY yards down to the Patriot 22 yard line! That fantastic start was followed by two more Hill runs before, on 3rd and 2, Prescott found DeVante Parker for a 14 yard TD pass. The PAT failed, but with not even two minutes off the clock, Washington led 6-0. One bit of bad news on the drive however, as primary blocking back Jerome Felton was lost for the game to injury.

Bradford started hot for New England also, hitting Latavius Murray for a quick 7 yard completion, and then Greg Olsen for 12 yards to secure a quick Patriot first down. But all eyes quickly were diverted to Patriot WR Jordy Nelson, who appeared to turn an ankle on the play and was down on the field. It quickly became apparent when two assistant coaches had to help him off the field, that Jordy's day was over after only two offensive plays.

A devastating blow to New England's offense, as Jordy had scored 5 touchdowns and hauled in 17 passes for nearly 400 yards in the first two NE playoff games.

With a huge part of the offense now in the locker room, New England looked to Lat Murray to spark them. Trap right for 9 yards - then an off tackle left for the first down. Consecutive completions to Brown, Olsen and Prosise brought the Pats inside the Washington 30 yard line, but the drive would stall and NE would settle for a Sturgis field goal. 6-3 Redskins.

Redskins would control the clock for over 5 minutes on the ensuing drive, taking the ball into Patriot territory thanks to completions to Marqise Lee, Parker and Ebron. At the Patriot 40 yard line, Washington looked to convert on a 4th and 4, but a short out to Hill from Prescott was incomplete and the Patriots would take over with 1:57 to go in the 1st quarter.

Bradford went to work, quickly hitting Greg Olsen for 11 yards. Gerald McCoy sacked Bradford on the next play however, burying New England with a 2nd and 19. A trap play by Prosise into a blitzing defense gained 15 yards back, and a huge facemask penalty on the D provided an additional 15 yards. A 2 yard rush by Murray to the Redskin 26 followed, but on the play Redskin DE Jason Pierre Paul was slow to get up. He would leave the field and not return.

Murray for 2 more yards brought on 3rd and 6, and Bradford then hit Prosise for 6 yards. A measurement showed he was brought down just short of the first down marker. From the Redskin 18, New England passed on the field goal and handed off to Murray who got the necessary yardage for the first down. Another facemask penalty, this one on Sharrif Floyd, gave NE first and goal from the 8 yard line. Washington's D stiffened however, and Sturgis hit the short FG to tie the game at 6-6 with 11:31 to play in the first half.

The two teams would exchange three and outs before Washington would take over with 8:50 in the half. Runs of 9 and 2 yards carried the Skins across midfield, and then Prescott would find Parker on a short slant - AND PARKER BROKE LOOSE - racing 48 yards for the TD to give the Redskins a 13-6 lead!!!

Even with Washington paying extra attention to Antonio Brown, the Patriots were able to string together a nifty 13-play drive in response, with Bradford hitting 5 of 6 pass attempts to the likes of Olsen, Prosise, and Dorial Green-Beckham. The drive stalled in the red zone, and Sturgis would hit his 3rd FG of the game, cutting the Redskin lead to 13-9 heading to the half.

New England would come roaring out of the locker room and move 75 yards in 7 plays to take a 16-13 lead, thanks in part to Latavius Murray who carried 3 times for 28 yards. Patriot starting guard Josh Kline was lost for the game due to injury on the drive, and rookie Christian Westerman had to enter the game. Even so, a Bradford to Olsen 7 yard TD (Bradford's 18th completion in his first 21 attempts) capped the drive and early in the second half, the Patriots had their first lead.

Against their better judgment, New England kicked deep to Marqise Lee.

BIG mistake.

Lee raced 60 yards on the return, handing the Skins great field position at the Patriot 44 yard line. Washington would get as far as the 22, but on 4th and 1, the Redskins took the 3 points. Game tied 16-16 midway through the 3rd quarter.

Starting their next drive at the 25 yard line, Bradford quickly hit Green-Beckham for 7 yards, followed by a Prosise 8 yard rush. An 8 yard completion to Olsen gave NE 2nd and 2 near midfield. Bradford misfired on a short pass to Murray before Prosise ripped off another 8 yard carry to the Washington 44. But, continuing the theme of the day, Patriot RB Lat Murray, blocking on the previous play, was down and out. Another key injury, and the Patriots were left with a near-fatigued CJ Prosise and reserve RB James Starks in the backfield.

Amazingly, 4 plays later, Patriot guard Ruben Foster went down for the game, leaving NE with TWO (3 rated) rookie guards to finish out the final 17 minutes of the Super Bowl.

Bradford hit Starks, Prosise and Green-Beckham on consecutive short passing plays for 22 total yards. Another short gain to Olsen set NE up inside the Redskin 10 yard line, where Bradford hooked up with Antonio Brown for a 7 yard TD. With 1:33 to play in the 3rd quarter, even with key players dropping like flies, NE had the lead 23-16.

Washington's first play from scrimmage saw Jeremy Hill rush for a 4 yard gain. Wouldn't you know it, another Patriot starter was slow to get up!! This time it was starting DE William Gholston limping off. He would not return.

Another short rush by Hill was followed by a Washington penalty. On 3rd and 10, Prescott faded back to pass and hit Parker for a short gain, but was leveled by Patriot DT Ndamukong Suh!! No flag was thrown, but Dak Prescott was hurt!!

Needing assistance off the field, it was apparent that Washington would have to mount a comeback with their starting QB on the sidelines. Dak was done for the day!!

After a loss of 1 yard on a Prosise carry, a holding penalty on one of New England's few surviving offensive linemen (Zach Streif) put NE in a 2nd and 21 hole. A screen to Prosise netted 17 yards however, giving NE an achievable 3rd down opportunity. Then, an 8 yard hookup from Bradford to Green-Beckham gave NE a fresh set of downs.

After another Patriot first down, Washington managed to stop the Patriot offense and force a punt.

Enter Tom Savage, with 9:38 to play, from his own 12 yard line.

Completions to Garcon and Cook gave the Skins a quick 1st down. Then Jeremy Hill ran for 4 yards, giving him 100 yards on the day. Washington would likely need to lean on their star RB down the stretch to take some of the heat off of Savage.

On 3rd and 6 and NE with 6 DBs on the field, Hill took a pitch left............but was stuffed by CB Logan Ryan after a 2 yard gain.

Uh oh.

Now it was Hill who was down on the turf.

Amazing.

Washington had now lost their starting QB and RB on consecutive drives.

A punt to NE followed, and they looked to salt the game away with 7:21 to play.

NE, not wanting to get too conservative however in a one-score game, caught the Redskin DB's looking into the backfield on 1st down. Bradford hit Brown for 16 yards and the first down. Working slowly, the Pats conservatively ran the clock down to 4:27 before punting back to Washington. With 4:13 to play and starting at their own 20 yard line - this could be the ball game for Washington.

Rushes of 4 and 11 yards by Paul Perkins were essentially offset by a Kilgore holding penalty. On 4th and 7 from their own 23, Savage hit Garcon for a KEY first down! Then, two consecutive incompletions and a short Savage rush gave Washington another tough 4th down to convert, but NE bailed them out this time, as a pass interference on Clinton-Dix gave Savage and the Skins a fresh set of downs.

First and ten from their own 40 yard line, with 1:27 to play.

Three consecutive incomplete passes to Garcon brought on another 4th down. And again, for the THIRD time on the drive, Savage converted hitting Lee for 11 yards and into Patriot territory. First and 10 with 1:05 from the NE 49 yard line.

A penalty on G David DeCastro made it 1st and 15. Two incomplete passes and a short hook-up to Garcon brought on a 4th and 11 with 46 seconds to play. This time there would be no 4th down magic however, as Savage was flushed from the pocket and tackled after a 5 yard run.

Turnover on downs, and NE would run the clock out.

Final Score - Patriots 23, Redskins 16

Sam Bradford was the MVP of the Super Bowl for the second consecutive year. After tossing 3 TDs in last year's win over Atlanta, Bradford completed 31 of 38 passes on the day for 252 yards and 2 TDs. In the absence of Jordy Nelson and with Washington's concerted effort to minimize Antonio Brown (5 receptions for 55 yards and a TD), Bradford looked to his secondary receivers often in this one. Tight end Greg Olsen caught 9 balls for 79 yards and a TD. CJ Prosise caught 7 for 53 yards, and Dorial Green-Beckham caught 5 big passes for 37 yards.

On the ground, NE was led by Murray's 13 carries for 55 yards. Prosise kicked in 40 rushing yards on 9 carries.

Jeremy Hill led the Skins offense with 102 yards rushing on 13 carries (50 on the game's initial play from scrimmage). Dak Prescott completed 12 of 16 passes for 136 yards and 2 TDs before he would leave the game late in the 3rd quarter. DeVante Parker led Washington receivers with 5 grabs for 87 yards and 2 TDs.

There were no turnovers in the game. Washington however, was penalized 10 times for 85 yards, while New England was flagged only 3 times for 20 yards. Big advantage for New England on that front.

New England doubled the Redskins with 26 first downs to only 13 for Washington. New England also controlled the ball for over 38 minutes on the day, thus minimizing the damage Prescott was able to do.

Congratulations to Kris on a great IFL season. This was a somewhat disappointing game in that neither team was able to put its best foot forward due to injuries. NINE starting players were lost during the course of the game (5 for NE, 4 for Wash) but Washington's loss of their starting QB and RB in a one-score game was especially devastating.however.

Good luck to everyone in the upcoming off-season! For New England, it will likely be the beginning of a rebuilding effort and stars such as Brown, Suh, Atkins etc may well find themselves elsewhere in training camp 2018!

IFL CONFERENCE FINALS

AFC

PATRIOTS 27 BENGALS 18

Sam Bradford throws for 330 yards and 3 touchdowns to lead the Patriots back to the Super Bowl.

Bengals, winners of 12 of their last 13 games, make the trip to New England looking to advance to the Super Bowl. New England, without all-pro WR Antonio Brown and star LB Jamie Collins, were still installed as 5 point favorites by the sharps in Vegas. Foxboro doesn't often see 70 degrees in the middle of January - but it was the case on this day. What other strange occurrences would this day bring?

Bengals took the opening kickoff and faced an early 3rd an 8. Aaron Rodgers dropped back to pass and was sacked by a blitzing Erik Walden, forcing a fumble which was recovered by New England. With barely a minute off the clock, NE had the ball at the Bengal 27 yard line.

Coming off a 4-TD game in the Divisional round against the Titans, Jordy Nelson once again was active early. Bradford hit him for 11 yards on the first play from scrimmage. A Bengal penalty and it was 1st and 5 from the 11 yard line. A short Lat Murray run was followed by two Bradford misfires however, and the Patriots were forced to settle for a short FG. 3-0 New England.

A Bengal 3 and out gave NE the ball again, this time starting at their own 39 yard line. On first down, Latavius Murray took the pitch but was blasted by the Bengal D for no gain. The crowd quickly went silent as Murray lay flat on the Foxboro turf. He would soon walk off under his own power, but would be escorted immediately to the tent with a suspected concussion. Just like that, Murray was done for the day.

The injury to Murray sucked quite a bit of air out of the stadium, with the Patriots already missing their top WR and now their top RB. Bradford tried to rally the troops, but misfired on a pass to Rod Streater. Then on 3rd down, Bradford looked to connect with spare WR Wendall Williams but was PICKED OFF by Micah Hyde...................who returned it all the way to the NE 16 yard line!!!! Like the Patriots had done to the Bengals earlier in the quarter, the Bengals had now turned NE over in their own territory.

A quick 10 yard pass from Rodgers to Heuerman was followed by a 6 yard Melvin Gordon scamper for the TD!! The PAT was missed, but Cinci had the lead 6-3.

CJ Prosise started the next Patriot drive with a nifty 13 yard sweep. However, Bradford was sacked by Jurrell Casey on the next play, FORCING THE
F-U-M-B-L-E!!! Bengals recovered and had the ball at the NE 39 yard line. Rodgers and company could not get a first down, and Robbie Gould came on to hit a 45 yard field goal. 9-3 Bengals.

The Patriots looked to answer and on the 2nd play of the next drive, Prosise took a screen pass 52 yards to the 23 yard line of Cincinnati. A Bradford to Nelson (double teamed) 9 yard pass gave NE a 2nd and 1 from the 14. However, after Prosise was stuffed on 2nd down, Bradford missed Nelson on a crossing pattern. 4th and 1 - and the Patriots decided to go for it. Prosise rambled for 7 yards to give NE another first down at the Cinci 7 yard line.

Bradford to Greg Olsen was stuffed for a loss of 1. Prosise ran for another 7 yards down to the 1 yard line. Rather than running it in, Bradford tried Nelson on a short slant but it was broken up. Having converted on 4th and 1 just a minute earlier, the Patriots tried again, this time handing it to Prosise............who was STUFFED for no gain!!! Bengals take over and the quarter would end with the Bengals up 9-3.

Rodgers responded like the champ that he is, methodically leading the Bengals from the shadow of their own goal line across midfield, thanks to completions to Eifert, Jeffery and Heuerman. The drive would stall at the 24 yard line however and Cinci would get another 3 points on a Gould FG.
12-3 Bengals.

The two teams would exchange punts on their next drives, though NE had tilted the field in their favor. With 3 minutes remaining in the half, NE would take over at their own 44. Bradford to Olsen for 13, followed by a Bradford to Prosise for 7 yards. Out of the two minute warning, Prosise then swept right for 15 yards down to the Bengal 9 yard line. Then on the next play, Bradford to Prosise from 9 yards out and it was 12-10 Bengals heading to the half.

The third quarter saw the defenses take over. Both teams had their first two drives of the quarter end in punts, eating up nearly 13 minutes of game time. With under two minutes left in the quarter and NE at their own 15 yard line, Bradford looked to make something happen with the wind at his back before the end of the quarter. A quick strike to Olsen for 6 yards started things off. Then on 2nd and 4 from their own 21, he found Jordy on a quick out. Rookie CB Jalen Ramsey failed to wrap him up however and JORDY WAS GONE!!! 79 yards later and NE had the lead just like that! 17-12.

Enter Ty Montgomery, who quickly broke off runs of 5 and 8 yards to get Cinci off to a nice start as the 3rd quarter would end. Completions to Royal (8 yds) and Jeffery (13 yards) book-ended another nifty 12 yard Montgomery run, and it was first and 10 from the NE 29 yard line with 12 minutes to play.
Montgomery was stuffed on his next attempt and the drive stalled. A 44 yard Gould FG cut the lead to just 2 points however. 17-15 Pats

With 11 minutes to play, the Patriots knew they couldn't get complacent. Three consecutive completions to Green-Beckham, Olsen and Nelson moved the Pats from their own 25 out to midfield. Then on 2nd and 3, Prosise busted off a 27 yard run down to the Bengal 24. Two plays later Prosise ran for another 17 yards. Then after a misfire to Jordy, Bradford connected with Prosise for their 2nd TD hookup of the day, this one from 7 yards and it was 24-15 NE!

Things looked bleak for the Bengals as they went 3 and out on their next drive. However Trevor Davis muffed the punt giving Cinci new life!!
With 6:27 to go, the Bengals had it at the NE 34 yard line.

A sack by Stefon Tuitt made it 2nd and 15, but Rodgers found Royal and Gordon on consecutive pass plays for a Bengal first down. A sack by Erik Walden derailed the Bengal TD hopes, but Gould hit on his 4th FG of the day - this from 35 yards - and it was 24-18 with 3:07 to play.

Bengals chose to kick deep, and the Pats had it from their own 25 yard line. With Prosise showing signs of fatigue, Bradford threw caution to the wind. With the defense keying on CJ, Bradford hit Nelson on another quick out - and Nelson did all the work again - this time racing 43 yards to the Bengal 32! Another 10 yard pass to Nelson before the 2 minute warning gave NE 3rd and inches. Fullback Zach Line would dive for the first down, and the game was essentially over. Bradford would take 3 knees before Sturgis kicked the game clinching FG - Patriots win it 27-18.

CJ Prosise was the star of the game, rushing for 87 yards on 10 carries while also catching 6 passes for another 87 yards and two touchdowns. Jordy Nelson followed up his 4 TD effort in the Divisional round with another fantastic day, hauling in 7 passes for 170 and a TD. Erik Walden had two QB sacks, following up his 3 sack effort from a week earlier.

For the Bengals, Aaron Rodgers completed 21 of 36 passes for 197 yards. He did not throw a TD nor did he turn the ball over. Melvin Gordon carried the ball 21 times but managed only 56 yards against the Patriot D.

New England managed to overcome 3 turnovers and injuries to two more starters as both Lat Murray and William Gholston left the game in the first quarter. With 5 starters on the sidelines, NE still somehow managed to overcome a gritty and tough Bengal squad.

Congratulations to John on a truly great season. The Bengals ripped off 11 consecutive wins after starting the season 2-2. Winning 14 of the 18 games they played, the Bengals were truly among the elite squads in the IFL in 2017.

New England moves on to their 2nd consecutive Super Bowl, in what should be a great game against the NFC's best - the Washington Redskins.

NFC

REDSKINS 27 RAMS 23

Redskins Eric Ebron scores the deciding touchdown as Washington wins NFC title game.

Los Angeles would head to Washington for a little family feud with the winner heading to the Super Bowl.

LA would get the kickoff first and would take advantage of an aggressive Washington defense mixing and matching personnel. A 3rd and 13 would be picked up by the dynamic White on a screen while Dixon would punch it in from 7 yards out to go up 7-0. While the Rams fans were thrilled to see them get into the end zone the cheers quickly turned to fear as it was announced star RB Mark Ingram would be lost for this game and the following week should they win. Fearing Lee as a return man LA would squib the kickoff but a short kick still resulted in the Redskins starting at the 42 yard line. 3 Plays later Prescot would hit Parker for 47 yards and Hill would finish off the drive with a 6 yard run to tie it up 7-7. LA would follow up with a 3 and out and the Redskins would get it back and be aided by a 24 yard PI call. They would dink and dunk it the rest of the way and Prescott would sneak it in from the goal line.

LA and Washington would exchange a few 3 and outs however the special teams play would provide Washington with the advantage. Good returns and punting during the exchange would lead to LA having to punt from their 5 yard line giving Washington great field position and allow Janikowski to bang through a 55 yard field goal despite a 3 and out to give them a 17-7 lead. Following the score the Rams would go to the ground and run the ball 7 out of 8 highlighted by a 24 yard Luck scramble. Dixon would again find paydirt from 1 yard out. However the LA kicker would shank the XP leaving the score 13-17. With only 2 minutes remaining neither team was able to get anything going before the half.
Washington would get the ball at the half and were looking to put some distance between them. However Prescott would throw a pick on 3rd and 8 giving the Rams amazing field position on the 36 yard line. 2 plays later the Rams would be looking at a 3rd and 12 from the 26 yard line. The Redskins gambled and expected the Rams to go for the score and brought a lot of pressure. The Rams had called a play action pass hoping to catch the Redskins keying on the run and Luck would go down for a 12 yard loss. Now looking at a 4th and 12 in no-mans land and with little confidence in their kicker they would go for it. The gamble would pay off big as Luck would hit the Gronk and he would steamroll the Redskins D on his way to the end zone and a 20-17 lead. Washington would put together a decent drive in response but it would stall out on their own 42. Washington would elect to punt on the 4th and 1 and Martin would deliver pinning LA on its own 2 yard line for the second time in the game. LA would punt a few plays later and set Washington up on the Rams 47 yard line. Prescot would lead them to the 10 yard line but the drive would stall and they would have to settle for the tying FG.

The Rams would answer back with a nice drive of their own sucking up some clock using just about every offensive weapon they have. They would get the ball to the Washington 2 yard line and face a big decision. 4th and 2 tie game on the road. While it appeared as though the initially thought going for it the Rams ultimately made the decision to take the points and put the game on their defense. The FG would be good and the Rams would lead with 10 minutes left in the game. Washington would be bailed out early on their next drive with a 3rd and 6 holding call against Rhodes. Later in the drive Prescot would pick up a big 3rd and 10 by hitting Marqise Lee for 11 yards to put hte ball on the 38. A few runs later and a Rams challenge would put the ball at 3rd and inches from the 11 yard line. They would call a play action pass looking for Ebron in the middle of the field while the Rams were expecting another QB sneak from Prescot. Ebron would be open and take it in for 6 to give the Redskins a 23-27 lead.

The Rams would try to answer and with just under 6 minutes left they would still be able to use the ground game. Some heavy running by Dixon and Jones would get them to the Washington 34 yard line but a 4th and 3 Jones would come up 2 yards short. With only a minute left the Redskins would force LA to burn its timeouts and put the game on their D. With 40 seconds left with the ball on their own 20 Luck wasn't able to get anything going and Washington would head to the Super Bowl.

IFL DIVISIONAL PLAYOFFS

AFC

PATRIOTS 45 TITANS 21

Patriots Nelson scores 4 touchdowns

New England jumped out to a 35-7 halftime lead thanks to three Bradford to Jordy Nelson TD passes in route to a 45-21 win over Tennessee.
Sam Bradford threw for 347 yards and 5 TD passes, while Jordy Nelson caught 10 balls for 197 yards and 4 TDs.

Beckham Jr caught 8 for 154 and scored all three Titan TDs.

New England was hit hard by injuries in this one, losing 4 starters along the way. Star WR Antonio Brown (D) and LB Jamie Collins (Q) are both uncertain to play in the AFC Championship game against the Bengals. Starting G Josh Kline was also injured and will miss time.

Congrats to Rick on another strong season.

BENGALS 17 RAIDERS 16

Gould's last second field goal lifts Bengals over Raiders.

The AFC West champion Oakland Raiders traveled to Cincinnati to take on the AFC Central champion Bengals in the divisional round of the IFL playoffs. The Raiders held off the Colts 26-17 in the wild card round last week.

The Bengals looked like a well oiled machine on their opening drive, going 68 yards on 13 plays and using over seven minutes as Rodgers scrambled in from six yards out to give Cincinnati the early 7-0 lead.

The teams would exchange punts until Oakland put together a five play 90 yard drive with Bernard going in to tie the game from four yards out with about six and a half minutes left in the half. Travis Kelce's 46 yard reception was the key play of the drive.

The Bengals offense continued to sputter going three and out. The Raiders struggled as well until their final possession of the half as Stafford found Benjamin for a couple first downs setting up a Myers 29 yard field goal to end the half giving Oakland a 10-7 lead.

The Raider offense continued to march down the field to begin the second half. Stafford hit Wallace for 18 and Moncrief for 23. But the Cincinnati defense stiffened and Oakland had to settle on another Myers field goal to extend their lead to 13-7.

The Bengals finally got a big play as Rodgers connected with Jeffery for a 50 yard score as Cincinnati regained the lead 14-13 with about nine minutes remaining in the third.

Oakland begin their march to regain the lead eating up all but one minute remaining in the third quarter. The Raiders recovered two of their own fumbles on the drive but at the Cincinnati 13 Stafford was intercepted by Rey to end the threat.

The Bengals moved to their own 40 before Hicks sacked Rodgers resulting in a fumble and an Oakland recovery. The Cincinnati defense held once more as Myers missed the 47 yard field goal attempt.

Cincinnati took over at their own 37 and Gordon burst for 10 yards on the first play. However, after another run for one yard, Rodgers was intercepted by Slay. The Raiders drove to the Cincinnati seven but a offensive pass interference penalty moved Oakland back ten yards and they had to settle on another Myers field goal attempt. This time the Raider kicker was true from 27 yards out giving the Raiders a 16-14 lead with four minutes remaining in the game.

The Bengals methodically marched up the field. Montgomery ran for seven, Jeffery's caught a pass for 13 yards, Eifert for 10 yards, a Gordon screen pass went for 11 more. Cincinnati was in the 90% success range for a field goal. Meanwhile Oakland started using their time outs. On third and seven with 1:34 remaining Gordon ran for eight to pick up the first. After a couple Gordon dives to center the ball in the middle of the field, Cincinnati called time out with three seconds remaining.. Gould made the 29 yard attempt and the Bengals advance to the AFC Championship game 17-16.

Congrats to Keith on a fine season. His Raiders will be tough again next season.

Stafford finished 25 of 49 for 305 yards and an INT. Kelce caught four passes for 82 yards.

Rodgers went 15 of 26 for 214 yards with a TD and an INT. Jeffery caught six passes for 107 yards and the TD. Gordon rushed 19 times for 69 yards.. He also caught three passes for 58.

Next week the Bengals await the winner of the Tennessee at New England game for the right to represent the AFC in the IFL Super Bowl.

NFC

RAMS 33 BUCCANEERS 13

Mark Ingram's 2 touchdowns help the Rams down Tampa Bay

On a hot 84 degree day in Los Angeles the Central Division Champion Tampa Bay Buccaneers battled the Los Angeles Rams. The local Angelinos appeared to still be getting used to football's return to Southern California. An unofficial count by a reporter at the game suggested there were more people participating in a Global Warming demonstration at the stadium, citing the unseasonably hot weather, than actual Rams fans. Luckily both teams were well equipped to take advantage of the weather, great QBs with explosive wide receivers. The Bucs, combo of Derek Carr, Davante Adams and Desean Jackson can shorten a defensive coordinators' life-span. The Rams were a team though that could keep pace, with Andrew Luck AJ Green and TY Hilton. As it turned out the deep passing game played an important role in the outcome of the game, but instead of the number of completed deep passes determining the outcome it was the timing of the deep passes (complete or incomplete) that turned out to be important.

First Half

Rams won the toss and deferred. Unfortunately that meant the Rams had to start the game by kicking to Cordarelle Patterson, he of a 33 yards per return average. He caught the first kick 5 yards deep and nearly broke free. He only made it to the 29, but the Rams coach was clearly shaken by the decision to kick deep to Patterson. He immediately fired the Special Teams coach during the game, the Rams from then on squibbed kickoffs, without much better results. When asked about Patterson after the game coach Heaton simply stated "He sucks to play against, sucks big time."

The Buccaneers first drive would fizzle after a key holding penalty. The Rams took over at their 20 yard line. The Bucs defense to start was dialed in to the Rams game plan. Whether it was home-field advantage or a soft spot Koch has for Los Angeles, two key third down conversions by penalty and a Luck scramble kept the drive alive. Still the Rams went immediately into another 3rd down. The next play was a key one, a deep fly to AJ Green went for 36 yards. Rams offense was in business and eventually a 12 yard Mark Ingram run put the Rams up, 7-0. The Bucs second drive turned into a 3 and out in what would be a theme for their offense in the 1st half, an incomplete check down on a deep pass attempt on 3rd and 1. Rams next possession leads to a Field Goal, 10-0 Rams. After a couple punts the Bucs found some footing, a short drive leads to a Field Goal 10-3 Rams. Bucs force another Rams punt, the next drive was an important turning point in the game. The Bucs sat 3rd and 3 at the Rams 22. Bucs coach Mike Chase staying aggressive calls another deep pass and catches the Rams in a short zone pass defense, but again it was incomplete. Bucs settle for a field goal, 10-6 Rams. The Rams put together a drive to end the half adding another field goal despite some questionable clock management, 13-6 Rams.

Second Half
Rams get the ball in the situation they hoped for after ending the half with a score a chance to really extend the lead. But the Bucs pass defense stifled the drive and once again Rams settle for a Field Goal, 16-6 Rams. Bucs trying to stay within striking distance needed points on the next drive. They pushed the ball to the Rams 42 and faced a 3rd and 2. The Bucs, with a game plan you had to love, were just going for it. Again another deep pass attempt, but still Carr couldn't connect. Now 4th and 2, what would the Bucs do, Go Deep! But the Bomb wasn't there so Carr scrambled, but was stripped and the Rams recovered. Rams methodically drive the ball to the 32 yard line when Luck hit RB James White on a short pass. White broke a tackle and took it to the house, 23-6 Rams. The Bucs, time running out, got to the Rams 33 and faced a 4th down. This time a Gurley dive was stuffed. The Rams again capitalized, scoring another touchdown, 30-6 Rams. The Bucs fought all the way to the end even as it looked bleak. They scored a touchdown and recovered an onside kick, but that drive fizzled out after the Bucs did not convert a 4th down essentially ending the game.

It was not as explosive an offensive game as initially expected, the Rams offense was fairly efficient boosted by some key Andrew Luck scrambles. The Bucs had success running the ball, but hard trouble finding the range on those deep passes sometimes even against favorable coverages.

The Bucs end the season 11-7, Division Winners, winning a playoff game with impressive seasons by QB Derek Carr and their Wide Receives. Congrats to Mike on a great season and a great game plan.

The Rams await the outcome of the Saints and Redskins two teams the Rams know well for different reasons.

Bucs playoff game Stars:
Spencer Ware 18 Carries 81 yards
Desean Jackson 6 catches 86 yards
Cordarelle Patterson (mainly just pure fear factor)

Rams playoff game Stars:
Andrew Luck 20-29 265 yards and 1 Touchdown
T Y Hilton 9 catches 93 yards
Ryan Succop 4-4 Field Goals

REDSKINS 17 SAINTS 14

Redskins kicker Janikowski field goal wins it in double overtime.

This would be a rematch of a regular season game where Dak Prescott would lead a monster time consuming drive for a game winning FG over the Saints. This one would not disappoint and would be played in a cool Washington with heavy 10-20 mph winds playing a big role in the game. Nola would get the ball first with the wind at their back and get it to midfield but be forced to punt. Washington would go 3 and out and punting in the wind would give the ball right back to Nola at midfield. The Saints would play a little aggressive and go for it on 4th down turning it over to the Redskins in good field position. The Skins would punt it back to the Saints just as quickly and this song and dance would go on for the rest of the 1st quarter. At the very end of the 1st on their own 27 Colquitt would launch the final play of the 1st with the wind at his back and hit a 73 yard punt that would go out the back of the endzone.

With the wind finally at their back Washington had some hope to move the ball through the air but Prescott would throw a pick and Nola would take over at the Redskin 30. Faced with a 3rd and 7 a 11 yard screen pass to Asiata would keep it going and Stewart would punch it in from 3 yards out for the first score of the game. The Redskins would respond with a nice drive themselves as Prescott would finally settle in but instead of 7 they would have to settle for a FG. Nola would go 3 and out and the Skins would get the ball again. They would push the ball to the 50 with 46 seconds left and a 4th and 3 coming up. With the wind in their favor and realizing Nola would have to move the ball pretty far into the wind for a FG chance the Skins went for it. Unfortunately they would not succeed as Perkins would be stopped for no gain. Nola would fail to capitalize so they would go into halftime up 7-3.

In the 2nd half Washington would again take advantage of the weather and move the ball on a long time consuming drive to move the ball into FG range. Again they would have to settle for 3 but would close the gap to 7-6. THe saints would again go 3 and out giving the ball back to the Redskins on the 26 yardline. On 3rd and 2 Prescott would hit Marqise Lee on a short slant that he would take 58 yards. One play later Hill would punch it in from 8 yards out. Up 12-7 with 4 minuets left in the 3rd the Redskins knew they were about to lose the wind in a defensive struggle so they rolled the dice and went for 2. Prescott would take the bootleg and convert giving them a 14-14 lead. The Saints would finally wake up on offense and put together their own time consuming drive and hit Dez Bryant for a 30 yard TD to tie it up. Washington and the Saints would trade long drives but neither could put any points on the board. The 4th would end on a Prescott fumble in Saints territory but time was on nobodies side as that would end regulation.

In overtime the Redskins would get the ball first but have to go into the wind. a few plays and a penalty would have them at the 25 yard line but then on 1st down Paul Perkins would fumble and the Saints would recover. We would now be entering sudden death. The Saints starting from the 25 would put together a promising drive but at midfield the yellow flags started to fly stalling the drive and forcing a punt.

The Skins would be forced to punt it to the Saints who would then be backed up at the 1 yard line. They would move the ball some but then be forced the punt. The Redskins would then mount another drive and get into comfortable field goal range to win 17-14.

IFL WILDCARD WEEKEND

AFC

TITANS 19 STEELERS 17

Dan Bailey hits the game winning field goal with 13 seconds remaining in the game.

This game was essentially a push as DK favored Tennessee by 3 which is the normal home field advantage. Weather was 53 degrees with virtually no wind.

FIRST QTR
This looked like a blowout as 3 plays into their opening drive Pitt's Tom Brady hit Steve Smith Jr. on a long fly for a 48 yard TD. 7-0 Pittsburgh. The Titans could do nothing on their first possession and the Steelers took over at their own 34. Brady completed an 8 yarder to Edelman. Then, as predicted by Nostradamos (aka John Conners), Brady got injured and was out for the balance of the game and the next one. Stat pac QB TJ Yates came on to lead the offense. Two plays later Pittsburgh was punting. Again the Titans could do nothing. From their 27 Pittsburgh drove the ball 54 yards highlighted by a short out to Anquan Boldin that turned into a 41 yard gain. However, another short out attempt was intercepted by David Amerson who returned it to the Titan 43. The Titan offense finally got in gear and moved it to the Steeler 28. Matt Ryan completed a 10 yarder to Delanie Walker but Eric Berry knocked the ball loose and Thomas Davis recovered for Pitt.

2ND QTR
Yates then took Pittsburgh on an 8 play 80 yard drive. With a first and goal from the Tennessee 2 yard line Darren Sproles was stymied three times by the Titan defense. Adam Vinatieri kicked the 20 yarder to make it 10-0 Pittsburgh. The next three possessions were dominated by the defenses and Pittsburgh had the ball at the Titan 49 with 6 minutes to go in the half. With 4th and 3 at the Titan 42 coach Diiorio elected to go for it. Frank Gore tried a sweep right but came up a yard short. The Tennesse offense finally got something going and advanced down to the Steeler 29. Dan Bailey kicked a 47 yard FG from there with 52 seconds left in the half. 10-3 Pittsburgh. An incompletion followed by two Frank Gore runs along with two Titan timeouts forced the Steelers to punt. From his own 37 Matt Ryan screened to Delanie Walker who took it 23 yards to the Steeler 40. With two seconds left in the half Dan Bailey nailed the 58 yard FG. 10-6 Pittsburgh.

3RD QTR
The first four possessions of the 3rd quarter featured little offense. However Pittsburgh was twice penned inside its 5 yard line and unable to move the ball. After their second punt the Titans took over at mid-field. A mixture of runs and short passes moved the ball to the Steeler 7 yard line. On first down Ryan hit Odell Beckham with a short hitch for the TD. 13-10 Tennessee. The kickoff was downed and Pittsburgh took over at their 25. Two short passes to Edelman left them with a 3rd and inches. A medium fly to Edelman fell incomplete. Coach Diiorio decided to go for it. However, the quarterback draw didn't fool the Titans and Yates was brought down behind the line. Tennessee ball at the Steeler 31.
4TH QTR
The Titans couldn't advance from there and Dan Bailey came through with the 42 yard field goal. 16-10 Tennessee. Pittsburgh started the next drive from its 21. Yates went deep for Edelman and it fell incomplete. However a VERY late penalty flag was thrown and Josh Norman was called for a 34 yard interference penalty. Another 15 yard penalty against the Titans (Yannick Ngakoue - pronounced Egg Nog Way) and three completions to Edelman got the Steelers into the end zone. 17-16 Pittsburgh. With 11 minutes to go in the game Tennessee was trapped inside its 10 yard line and its subsequent punt put Pittsburgh at mid-field. With a 4th and 2 at the Titan 42 coach Diiorio again went for it. QB Kevin Hogan snuck into the game and tried for the first down around right end. He was stopped for a 3 yard loss and Tennessee had the ball. Again the Titans couldn't move but figured that a punt from the 50 would hem the Steelers deep in their own end. Colton Schmidt responded with his worst punt of the year - 17 yards! Tennessee's defense had to come up big and they did despite giving up one first down. Pittsburgh's punt went into the end zone and so the Titans had the ball at their own 20 with 3 and a half minutes left. Matt Ryan burnished his MVP credentials going 6 for 6 on a 66 yard drive that brought the ball to Pittsburgh's 14 with 13 seconds left in the game. Dan Bailey came on and calmly made the 32 yarder. Tennessee 19-17. Game over.
Thanks to Vince for a very competitive game.

RAIDERS 26 COLTS 17

Giovani Bernard scores two touchdowns as Raiders advance.

Injuries, injuries, injuries dictated the matchup between the Indianapolis Colts and Oakland Raiders. In a game marred by early injuries to both team's starting running backs as well as key members of their defenses, both teams had to change their game plans midstream to account for the losses. For the Raiders, that meant switching to a pass heavy offense that featured a lot of Giovani Bernard in the screen game offensively and a blitz happy defense to keep pressure on the Colts' Carson Palmer.
The Raiders jumped out to a quick 14-0 lead, but the Colts cut it to 14-7 before the half with a balanced offensive attack that kept the Raiders on their heels.
In the second half, the Raiders switched from single coverage on the Colts' two star receivers to double coverage to limit the number of big plays and turn the game into a grind it out affair. Coupled with RB Bernard's decent running in the second half, the Raiders were able to limit the Colts' chances and grind out a 26-17 victory.

NFC

EAGLES 20 BUCCANEERS 37

Tampa Bay's Desean Jackson hauls in three touchdown passes as the Bucs advance past Philadelphia.

On a beautiful clear winter afternoon in Florida, coach Greg Mason led his 10 win Philadelphia Eagles into Raymond James Stadium to face Mike Chase’s 10 win Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
The Eagles win the toss and elect to defer. Starting from their own 35 Tampa looked to establish the run with Spencer Ware. Ware would carry the ball seven times during the Tampa 15 play drive that would end with a Chris Boswell 31 yard field goal. On the 10th play of the game Eagle starting number two cornerback Darrell Worley would limp off the field not to return. Derek Carr went to work on the new match up of DeSean Jackson verses Eric Rowe. Rowe was targeted four times during the drive, but held his own as Jackson only hauled in one catch, albeit for 20 yards.
Jameis Winston came out ready to play. In his first possession, he drove his team the length of the field for a 11 play 79 yard scoring drive. The Eagles also turned to the run early and often. A nice mixture of Winston passes and DeMarco Murray runs was capped off by a TD strike to Kenny Britt off play action. Philly 7 - Tampa 3.
The ensuing kickoff is returned by Cordarrell Patterson to midfield. Coach Chase leaves the run and tries to work some more on the Jackson – Rowe match up, but the Eagles were waiting and a long ball is picked off by Darius Butler. Philadelphia ball at their own 40.
After giving up one first down, the Tampa defense stiffens which leads to a forth and one at the Tampa 41 yard line. Coach Mason rolls the dice and leaves his offense on the field. Winston is denied the first down on the quarterback sneak. Tampa Bay takes over at their own 41.
On the second play of the possession once again Carr takes a shot downfield to DeSean Jackson. This time it pays off with a 52 yard hook up for touchdown. Tampa 10 – Philly 7.
Philadelphia once again controls the clock and starts to wear out the Tampa defense. They assemble a 10 play drive, highlighted by a 39 yard Murray run in a 17 yard Winston to Britt hook up, but the drive stalls at the Tampa Bay 5 yard line. Nick Folk booted a 23 yard field goal to tie the game up at 10.
Tampa would get another big play on the third play of the next possession. On third and six, Carr looks to Davante Adams running a long hitch. Darius Butler is not able to make the tackle and Adams takes it to the house. The 65 yard scoring play makes the score Tampa 17 Philadelphia 10. Both teams are scoring on nearly every drive.
Philadelphia would answer back once again. The first two plays of this drive were a 19 yard run for Murray in a 47 yard bomb post completion from Winston to Britt leading to a first and 10 at the Tampa 11 yard line. Another Philadelphia drive stalls when on third and seven Trent Murphy corrals Winston for a sack. The Philly field goal makes a score Tampa 17 Philadelphia 13.
Tampa is not able to build their lead turning the ball over on downs when Carr misses Brian Quick on fourth and seven from the Philadelphia 36.
Inside the two minute warning Philadelphia moves to the Tampa 37, but heading in to a light wind coach Mason leaves the offense on the field once again for a fourth down play. Winston is picked off by Bradley McDougal , who runs the ball back to the Philly 43 yard line.
Tampa has another opportunity to increase their lead with 35 seconds left on the clock. Carr moves his team to the Philly 13 yard line with 12 seconds left, however Jamize Olawale is tackled inbounds at the 4 yard line as the clock expires. Halftime score. Tampa Bay 17 Philadelphia 13.
The next big play the game takes place while many fans are still waiting in line for one thing or another. Philadelphia’s Deonte Thompson fumbles the second half kickoff at his own 28 yard line. Once again, Carr goes to the Jackson v Rowe match up on a first play, 28 yard touchdown pass. Tampa Bay 24 Philadelphia 13.
There is no panic with coach Mason. He sticks with the run and moves the ball to midfield, but that is where the possession ends. For the first time in the game a punt team kicks the ball away.
The Buccaneers are able to open up the game gaining yards in chunks once again. They make the score Buccaneers 31 Eagles 13 via consecutive plays of 16 yards, 34 yards, 18 yards, and a third long DeSean Jackson touchdown reception. This time for 32 yards.
Things unraveled for the Eagles. They fumble away the next possession which leads to a Tampa Bay field goal.. Tampa 34 Philadelphia 13.
However, there’s no quit in Mason. Early in the fourth quarter they cut the lead to 14 with a DeMarco Murray 36 yard touchdown jaunt. Tampa 34 Philadelphia 20. That would be Philadelphia’s last score the day. As the threat of the run started to dissipate, Winston is not able to consistently move the Eagles with the pass. The Buccaneers would tack on a field goal to make the final Tampa 37 Philadelphia 20.

It was a huge day for the offenses. Philadelphia put up 424 yards. They tallied 231 yards on the ground and 210 in the air. DeMarco Murray ran for 170 yards on 29 attempts good for a 6 yard average. Kenny Britt caught six balls for 102 yards.
Tampa Bay netted 469 yards of offense. Carr threw for 363 yards on 19 completions for a 19 yard average and four touchdowns. Spencer Ware ran for 106 yards on 21 carries. Davonte Adams hauled in 7 balls for 156 yards, a 22 yard average. DeSean Jackson caught five for 138 yards, a 28 yard average.
Coach Mason called a great game. He has a lot to look forward to next year with both Jameis Winston and Case Keenum on the roster. The rumor mill has it that his GM is already working the phones looking for a possible trade.

SAINTS 28 FALCONS 19

Saints running back Jonathan Stewart's second TD of the game with 2:13 remaining ends Atlanta's season.

Atlanta would roll into New Orleans in a battle of division rivals. The Falcons would win the toss and elect to receive. They would start their first possession at their own 25 and take the ball to the Saints 49. On the next play Quinten Demps would step in front of a Philip Rivers pass for the pick and take it back to the Falcons 25. 3 plays later Joe Flacco would hit Dennis Pitta across the middle for a 13 yard TD strike. 7-0 Saints. The 2 teams would exchange punts and then the Falcons would get the ball midway thru quarter 1 at their own 37. Rivers would go 3 of 4 on the drive ending in a long slant to Victor Cruz for 29 yards against the leagues #1 defense. The extra point was missed and it was 7-6 Saints. The teams would then continue to exchange punts the whole way until around 10 minutes left in the half. New Orleans would start at their own 20 and drive the whole way to the Atlanta 42 and then Flacco would strike long to Dez Bryant for the TD. 14-6 Saints with 7:03 left in the half. As Atlanta did all day, they would not quit and then put together a solid 5 and a half minute drive ending in a Forbath 39 yard FG. 14-9 New Orleans at the half as the team exchanged punts to end the half.

The Saints would get the ball in the 2nd half and would start at their own 25. The Saints would drive down the field anchored by Jonathan Stewart and Tim Hightower. Faced with a 3rd and 4 the Saints would run again against a tired Atlanta defense and Stewart would break the run for an 18 yard TD. Saints 21-9. Atlanta would then get the ball and after 5 run attempts would go to the air against the top notch secondary of the Saints and pay for it. Jordan Hicks would intercept the pass of Rivers at the Falcons 28 yard line. A holding call would stall the Saints and McManus would kick a 39 yard FG to extend the lead. Wrong!!! Wide left as he shanked it. Still Saints 21-9 with 5:31 left in the 3rd quarter. The Falcons would then take the ball to the Saints 34 before Forbath would crush a 52 yard FG cutting the lead to 21-12. The teams would then exchange punts to take us into the 4th quarter. New Orleans would pin the Falcons at their own 9 on a terrific punt by Colquitt with 13:18 left in regulation. Atlanta would then put together a 14 play drive of 91 yards ending in a 2 yard TD plunge from Dion Lewis. The crowd was stunned as no one has really done that to this defense. The score was 21-19 New Orleans with 7:18 left. The Saints would start at their own 38 and would come out firing expecting the D to key the run. The Saints would put together a methodical drive with Flacco completing 5 of 8 balls and Hightower carrying the ball 4 times for 20 yards. All this would lead to the play of the game. The Saints would face a 4th and 1 at the 2 of the Falcons with 2:13 left and the Falcons out of timeouts. A FG gives the Saints a 24-19 lead but leaves the Falcons over 2 minutes. A TD would basically seal the victory. This decision also had to be made after the Falcons D just stuffed Hightower on 3rd and 1. Coach Rice would roll the dice and go for it. The play was a trap to Stewart and he would plunge in the endzone for the score. 28-19 Saints. The Falcons would get the ball and take it to the Saints 41 yard line before fumbling the ball away. Flacco would take a few knees and the Saints advance to the next round. Great game called by Marty and never gave up despite some key injuries. This felt like a chess match the whole way thru.

Key stats:
Atlanta: Rivers 277 yards, 2 picks and 1 TD....Fitzgerald 6 catches and 96 yards

New Orleans: Flacco 196 yards and 2 TD's...Stewart 15 carries for 78 yards and 2 TD's...Bryant 6 catches for 93 yards and a TD

WEEK 16 RECAP

Falcons and Bears fight for their playoff lives in their week 16 IFL match-up.

Game Scores
Chicago 13 Atlanta 22                       70
Chicago and Atlanta faced off in a big game that has serious playoff implications. Chicago wins and they were in. Atlanta lose and they likely go home. That would be the "cleanest" scenario. The alternative, with Atlanta winning, brings everything closer and could bring a lot of tiebreakers into play, depending on results from other games.

Philip Rivers did a good job leading the Falcons to a 22-13 and Von Miller had a big game on defense. He had two game changing sacks and was always in the backfield putting pressure on the Bear's Mariota, contributing to two interceptions. One of the sacks came with the Falcons up 10-3 on 3rd and 6 with Bears on the Falcons 6 early in the second quarter. That forced the Bears to kick a FG to allow the Falcons to maintain the lead at 10-6.

The sack became bigger as the Bears scored a TD on their next drive on an 8 play 93 yard drive, ending in a 27 yard TD pass to Jamison Crowder to give the Bears a 13-10 lead with 3:03 left in the first half.

After a Falcon's 3 and out, Miller got his second sack on 1st and 10 with the Bears on their own 14, killing the Bears next drive and giving the Falcons another drive with 1:09 left in the first half with good field position. The Falcons took over at their own 36. Rivers went 4-5 for 37 yards with passes to Cruz, Ertz and Fitzgerald to set up a Kai Forbath FG with 0:03 left to tie up the game at 13-13 going into the half.

After deferring to start the game, the Falcons started with the ball in the second half. The Falcons started quickly with an 11 yard run by Jalen Richard, With a fresh set of downs, Dion Lewis catches a 6 yard pass which set up a big turning point in the game. The Falcons got two penalties to make a 3rd and 4 a 3rd and 14. Philip Rivers drops back and hits Agholor streaking up the seam. He catches it, cross the first down marker but then Jonathan Cyprien forced Agholor to fumble. There's a scrum and a mad scramble for the ball. The refs break it up, peel the players off the pile and find Agholor on the bottom with the recovery of his own fumble at the Falcons' 46 yard line. Rivers then hit Fitzgerald for a 12 yard gain for another first. After an incomplete pass, Richard rushes for 8 yards but the drive but the Bears D comes up big on 3rd and 2, forcing a 37 yard FG by Kai Forbath. This gave the Falcons what turned out to be the game winning score as the Falcons take the lead 16-13.

Defense dominates the rest of the way with the ball bouncing the Falcons way. Cruz fumbled but it was recovered by Jake Matthews. Mariota then looks for Brate but it's tipped up and picked by Derrick Johnson. Each time, the Falcons respond with a FG to get the end score of 22-13 which keeps it close.

Down two scores, the Bears get to their own 46 on the next drive but it's picked by William Gay. After a Falcons 3 and out, Mariota hits deep passes to Marvin Jones Jr. twice for 43 yards and Eli Rogers for 15 yards. Down 22-13, it set up the Bears with a 4th and 5 at the 11 yard line and a big decision for Coach Agosta on a couple of levels. Needing two scores with 1:23 left, do you take the FG and then go for the onside kick to get the TD or vice versa. If coach Agosta decides to go for the TD then do you go for the endzone from the 11 or the first down (with still two TOs left). Falcons D plays conservatively, going all ot pass to stop the TD. Bears, thinking along with the Coach Golden, call the Mariota QB draw, seemingly a perfect call for the first down with a chance to get the TD. However, the thin Falcons front seven comes up big, stuffing Mariota for no gain and forcing the turnover on downs.

From there the Falcons are basically able to run out the clock. Rivers kneels 3 times with the Bears using their timeouts on first and second. On third, Rivers kneels then lets the play clock run down to 0:01 before calling a timeout with 0:38 left. The Falcons punt and then "prevent" the Bears from completing bombs to Demaryius Thomas and Marvin Jones.

The clock runs out and the Falcons win 22-13. With the win, the Falcons go to 11-5 and lock up a wild card spot while the Bears fall to 10-6 and a tie with the Bucs in the division, Cowboys and Eagles and face the tiebreakers (which I don't have time to look into to right now) for both the central division and the wild card where 2 out of the 4 teams will make the playoffs.

Thanks to Dennis for accommodating my busy schedule and good luck to him with the tiebreakers.

Houston 23 Miami 9                          75 0-5
The Dolphins give up 7 sacks, 11 penalties, and 3 turnovers, in addition to getting to the red zone 5 times and come away with only 3 FG's to end the year on a losing note 23-9. Houston moves the ball, pretty much at will, despite constantly throwing into double coverage and completing passes and moving the chains. The running game was also in good form as Forte carries the rock 32 times for 143 yards. Kudos to the Texans to finish the regular season at 8-8 while the Dolphins finish at 5-11 and look forward to next year. Good Luck to all the Teams that make the post season and as they continue their Quest to the Title...see ya next year.

Detroit 3 Los Angeles 30                    57 Calm
The Lions and Rams met in Los Angeles to close out the season. The Lions looked to even their record to 8-8 and get the momentum for next season going in the right direction. The Rams with a win could clinch a 1st round bye. Prior to the start of the game TMZ sports tweeted a video of some Lions players walking out of a club on the Sunset Strip, Kardashians and Jenners in tow the morning before the game. While the Lions did not appear to take any steps to suspend the players, the "fatigue" of being awake for over 24 hours showed up right away. Lions Coach Nordberg did his best to lead his team to victory, but 3 Lions turnovers on the first three drives helped stake the Rams to a 20-0 lead. In the second half the Lions called on Paxton Lynch to provide a spark; he led a long scoring drive to make it 30-3. But the remainder of the game his arm didn't have the same juice.

Rams have a week off to rest for their playoff opponent.

The Lions closeout the season 7-9 with impressive seasons turned in by WR Allen Robinson and RB Terrence West, both going over 1,000 yards. With a young WR core and a solid offensive line the Lions likely will be looking for a QB to take their team to the next level.

Oakland 17 Indianapolis 27                  69
COLTS PLAYOFF BOUND

Indianapolis, IND (IFL.COM) – The Indianapolis Colts (10-6) hosted the Oakland Raiders (12-4) before a sold out Lucas Oil Stadium in a season finale in which both teams had already secured playoffs berths in the IFL postseason. Both teams rested key starters throughout the game.

Despite the lack of starters playing on the Oakland defense the Colts struggled to a 27-17 victory. Head Coach Ken Griffith told IFL.COM the purpose and main focus of both teams was to come out healthy, “when our starter Trevone Boykin (QB) went down in the 1st quarter we went with Kellen (Clemens), however he played so poorly I couldn’t take it any longer and inserted Carlson (Palmer). Then he went down for a couple plays and I bout lost it,.. he’s okay now and should be ready next week.”

The only key injury for Indianapolis is starting safety Tyvon Branch, he should miss the entire playoffs with a 2nd degree shoulder separation. Several players are listed on the injury report for the Raiders, however the only players that will miss the wildcard round is Trent Williams (T), out 2 weeks with a slight groin pull, Mike Person (G/T) out 4 weeks, kick returner Lance Dunbar 2 weeks, and Rob Ninkovich (DE/OLB) 2 weeks with an undisclosed back injury.


Philadelphia 26 Cincinnati 21               31 20-30
The Eagles invaded PBS with playoff hopes still alive. Meanwhile the Bengals had dreams of the number one seed in the AFC. Philly drove down the field during their opening possession but had to settle on a Folk 33 yard field goal. The Bengals, facing a strong wind, reached the Eagles 28, but had to settle on a Barth field goal attempt. Barth was no match for the wind and missed. After an incompletion, Winston hooked up with Kenny Britt for 22 yards and then for 42 yards and a quick score to extend the Philly lead to 9-0 as the point after was blocked.

On the Bengals next possession Eddie Royal fumbled after a 10 yard reception and the Eagles recovered. One play later Winston fired a strike to Sanu for a 37 yard score and a 16-0 lead with seconds remaining in the opening quarter.

The Bengals finally got something going in the second quarter thanks to a Rodgers 50 yard scamper. One play later Montgomery dove in from a yard out to cut the Philly lead to 16-7. The Eagles again put together a long drive but once again settled on a Folk 29 yard field goal to extend the lead to 19-7 to end the scoring in the half.

The Bengals came out guns-a-blazing in the second half. Rodgers connected with Funchess for a 58 yard gain. Rodgers then took it in himself from 17 yards out to cut the Eagles lead to 19-14.

After an exchange of punts, Philly went with an old school pro set offense with Powell joining Murray. Powell ran for 17 one play and 40 another to set up another Winston to Britt touchdown pass from 12 yards out to extend the Eagles lead to 26-14.

After exchanges of punts, a missed field goal by Folk, and a turnover on downs by Cincinnati, Montgomery ran for 24 yards to set up a Rodgers to Wright 16 yard touchdown pass to cut the Eagles lead to 26-21. However, only a little over two minutes remained in the game. The Bengals decided to forego the onside kick with all three timeouts remaining. It almost worked but Fowler Jr. jumped offside on third and five. Philly was able to run out the remainder of the time for the win.

Winston finished 18 of 23 for 240 yards and 3 TDs. Powell ran for 97 yards on only 11 carries and Britt had five receptions for 100 yards and two TDs.

Rodgers finished 25 of 38 for 268 yards and a TD. He also ran for 86 yards on six carries with a TD. Funchess exploded for 120 yards on five receptions.

The Bengals have a week to heal their injuries while the Eagles must wait for the Dallas at Pittsburgh results among others. I heard Coach Mason is having the team over to watch the game in his living room!

New Orleans 30 Green Bay 14                 28 5-15
Playoff bound Saints came into Green Bay as big favorites. Packers played pretty well in the early going.
Hosts took the opening drive and moved 79 yards in 12 plays capped off by a Brian Hoyer to Christine Micheal 6 yard TD pass. New Orleans came right back and put together a nice drive of their own.
They took it all the way down Packers 11 until three Joe Flacco incompletions forced
them to settle for a short FG to make it 7-3 Packers.

The score would stay that way until early in the second when Hoyer was picked off by ILB Jordan Hicks at his own 26. On the very next play Flacco would find Dez Bryant for a long catch and run TD. 10-7 Saints

Undaunted, Green Bay put together a 75 yard drive versus the powerful Saints defense.
CJ Spiller ran it in from 3 yards out and Green Bay retook the lead 14-10

With just over 6 minutes left in the half Flacco got hot, completing three straight passes
including a 37 yard bomb to Dez Bryant. Jonathan Stewart finished off the drive from 2 yards out.   17-14 Saints at the half

I wish I could say the second half was as close and entertaining as the first but that was not the case.
New Orleans dominated the rest of the way and won going away, 30-14 Final.

Joe Flacco (20-30, 314 yards, 2TDs) and Dez Bryant (5 rec. for 141 and 2 TD's) were standouts

Hoyer (59.1 rating) and the rest of the Packers offense struggled mightily after a hot start versus a very good Saints defense

Jim called a great game as usual, his team will be tough to defeat in the playoffs.
Packers finish at 7-9 and look to be trending downward for 2018

Dallas 21 Pittsburgh 35                     34 0-10
Brady throws three first quarter touchdown passes and Frank Gore goes in from 18 yards out just before the half as the Steelers take a 28-10 lead into intermission. Pittsburgh adds icing to the cake with a 53 yard interception return for a score by Eric Berry.

Minnesota 17 San Francisco 14               62 10-20
Minnesota on an 6 game losing streak visited the 49ers who were on an 8 game losing streak. And the game developed as one expected. 6 fumbles, 2 INTs, 15 punts and untimely penalties highlighted the play. If you can call them highlights.

SF scored first on a Crosby 25 yd FG after a fumble by Minny on their own 12 yd line. The second quarter belonged to Minnesota as they scored 3 times, twice from Brees TD throws to Mitchell (14 yards) and Hard Hittin’ Witten (10 yards) to take a 17=3 lead into the second half. That would be all the offense they could muster but it was enough.

In the 4th quarter, the 49ers briefly came alive with a 53 yd FG by Crosby and a 12 yard pass from Fitzgerald to Jordan Howard. With the 2 point conversion, the score was now 17-14. SF harkened back to earlier in the quarter when Crosby missed a FG – had he made it would have been a tie game in regulation.

Minnesota’s Brees was star of the game hitting 23-39 for 220 yards2 TD and 1 INT. Fitzpatrick was 18-33, 120, 1 TD and 1 INT. Jordan Howard had 80 yards on 22 attempts. Minny’s Chris Ivory only ran of 35 yards, but caught 7 balls for 77 yards, Diggs caught 7 for 65 yards.

Minnesota breaks its 6 game losing streak and ends up 6-10. SF ends up 3-13 with what looks like a lock on the 4th pick in next years draft. Minnesota looks to pick 8th or 9th and did not worsen their draft position with the win.

Offensive Player of the Year for SF: Jordan Howard ends the season with 1323 yards and caught 29 passes for 130 more.
Offensive Player of the Year for Minnesota: Drew Brees, 4040 yards, 31 TDs, com[letting 62% of his passes.

Arizona 0 Baltimore 20                      31 0-5   Light Snow
Baltimore tossed their first shutout since Week 8 of the 2013 season, beating a tired Arizona Cardinals team, 20-0, in a light snow at M&T Bank Stadium.

Eli Manning was named the game MVP, completing 15 of 20 attempts for 253 yards, a TD and no INTs. His 133.3 Passer Rating was his best since Week 16 of the 2015 season when he scored a 142.8 against Buffalo. Le'Veon Bell added another 100 yard game to his resume, his 9th this year and 17th of his career, gaining 102 yards on 28 carries and scoring on a 3-yard run in the second quarter.

As Arizona considers a rebuild (next year's squad is already severely depleted by injury), Ben Rothlisberger's potentially last game in a Cardinal uniform wasn't pretty - 3 INTs and 4 sacks to go with a 23-for-44 game with 232 yards. An exhausted Jay Ajayi ran for 78 yards on 26 carries, giving him 1,438 yards on the season, good for 3rd best in the league. Bell will likely finish 6th, 1 yard behind Jordan Howard and 48 behind Ezekiel Elliott.

As for the game itself, Arizona controlled the clock (33:33 vs 26:27 and 18 vs 14 first downs), but continually turned the ball over. Baltimore wasn't much better at handling the slick, frozen ball, but fortunately, they recovered two of their three fumbles. In the end, it was really two big plays that made the difference. Scoreless well into the 2nd quarter, Baltimore forced Arizona to punt and took possession on their own 27 yard line. Manning threw a short hitch to Adam Thielen (3/85 + 1TD) as the Cardinal D focused on Bell, and Thielen turned it into a 58-yard completion, getting pulled down at the 3. Bell then skated his way into the end zone for the game's first score. Matt Bryant's PAT made it 7-0 Baltimore and it stayed that way until the 3rd quarter.

Receiving the kick after the half, Baltimore was faced with a 3rd-and-5 from their own 30. Manning again connected on a short hitch for a big gain, this time with Ryan Griffin for 53-yards that put the ball on the Cardinal 17. Two plays later, Manning found Thielen in the paint for a 14-0 Baltimore lead.

Bryant would add two more FGs and Arizona threatened to score late, but with a 1st-and-goal on the Raven 9 and 3:14 on the clock, sacks on consecutive plays (Bosa for -11 and Donald for -7) made for a tall order. Big Ben completed a 14-yard pass to Jaron Brown, but Desmond Trufant swatted away their last gasp from the 13.

Arizona (4-12) suffers their first losing season since 2010, when they went 7-9. In the 6 seasons in between, they compiled an impressive 70-26 record. Surely, one of the best in the league over that period.

Baltimore (3-13) hopes that next year is the year the Ravens start a Cardinal-like streak and breaks .500 for the first time since 2009, when they went 12-4. The Ravens are licking their lips (do Ravens have lips?) at another top draft pick to be the last piece of the puzzle to start their run.

New England 0 San Diego 14                  70 0-5
San Diego takes advantage of injuries to key NE offensive stars, Bradford, Brown and Murray to upset playoff bound Patriots 14-0.

Tampa Bay 31 Carolina 3                     55 0-5
The Panthers went over a 100 yard total offense with a 1:30 left in the game. Tampa had 200 yard in the first quarter.

Worst performance I have seen from Carolina in my many years running the franchise.

Tampa moved the ball at will as the Panther's Defense offered no resistance. On Offense Carolina's RB's averaged 2 yards per carry. Spencer Ware had 139 yards rushing for Tampa.

DeSean Jackson had 146 yard receiving including a 52 yards TD on 3rd and 25. Carr for Tampa had 335 yard passing and 3 TD's.

Carolina players were obviously ready to end the season as not one single player did anything of note.

Final total yards:

TB 525
Carolina 120

Carolina is cleaning house after this.

Kansas City 34 Buffalo 15                   39 5-15
The Chiefs come into Buffalo a three point underdog and fall behind early as the Bills take the opening kick and march 75 yards on 11 plays capped off by a 7 yard TD reception by Lafell from Smith and Gano misses the XPT..

Both teams go three and out on their next possessions before the Chiefs go on a 11 play 79 yard drive ending in a 12 yard romp by Blount and Gostkoski converts XPT..

Next two possessions are two and out before Spaight picks up a fumble by Ryan Mathews and scampers 32 yards for the score, XPT good to make it 14-6 Chiefs...

With the Chiefs backed up Dalton takes a deep drop in the end zone and is sacked by Beasley jr. to make it 14-8. The Bills take the next possession 69 yards on 9 plays with Freeman capping it off with a 14 yard run and Gano splits the uprights to close out first half with Bills up 15-14.

The Chiefs take the opening kick in the third and march 83 yards in only 6 plays as Landry TD reception from Dalton make 21-15 after XPT...

The Bills couldn't move the ball in second half as all their drives end in punts with one fumble turnover, the Chiefs add one more TD on a Williams run two FG's to close it out 34-15 and even their season at 8-8 while the Bills fall to 6-10.

Good luck to all playoff teams and wish everyone a great Holiday season and look forward to next year!

Denver 3 New York(A) 9                      41 0-10
Well, the New York Jets ended the season the way they started it, with a win!!

Too bad they lost all their games in between.

Here's hoping they didn't lose the 1st pick in the draft by getting the win!!

The highlight of the game for the Jets looked like it was going to be Pat McAfee's 76 yard punt.
But, Ryan Mallett's bootleg for the winning TD was.

Doug and I agreed that it was a game between two very weak teams.

Tennessee 7 Washington 21                   53 0-5
With not much to play for both teams rested some key players. Brock Osweiler would get the start for the Redskins with a little situational help from Dak Prescott. Matt Ryan would struggle for Tennessee. Washington go on and eat the W 21-7.

New York(N) 3 Jacksonville 30               65 0-10
Colin Kaepernick throws two touchdown passes and David Johnson rushes for 128 yards and a touchdown as Jags close out 2017 with a bang.

Rushing Leaders
Forte(Hou)      32-143 1 TD
Ware,S(TB)      21-139
Freeman,D(Buf) 22-136 1 TD
Gore(Pit)       26-132 1 TD
Johnson,D(Jax) 21-128 1 TD
Jones,M(LAR)    25-113 1 TD
Washington(Ind) 17-112
Bell,L(Bal)     28-102 1 TD

Receiving Leaders
Marshall.B(Ari) 12-111
Watkins,S(NYJ) 10- 99

Passing Leaders
Carr,D(TB)      49-25-335   3 TD – IFL Offensive Player of the Week
Flacco(NO)      30-20-314   2 TD

Defensive Standouts
Alexander(Hou)   4 Sk 9 Tk – IFL Defensive Player of the Week
Bowman,N(Mia)    1 Sk 17 Tk
Mercilus(Ari)    3 Sk 8 Tk
Wagner,B(Chi)    15 Tk

Special Teams
Erickson(Dal) 5-162 Kick Ret 3-26 Punt Ret – IFL Special Teams Player of the Week

FINAL 2017 IFL STANDINGS

FINAL 2017 IFL LEAGUE LEADERS

WEEK 15 RECAP

Eagles edge the Steelers to keep their playoff hopes alive in the battle of Pennsylvania.

Game Scores
Pittsburgh 13 Philadelphia 17               39 10-20
The Steelers and Eagles hooked up in the battle of Pennsylvania with both teams holding on to playoff chances. The Steelers came into the game without QB Tom Brady, who was sitting out due to suspension for calling Commissioner John Storer a high paid self serving good for nothing leader. Ugh!

Both teams struggled in the 1st quarter, but the Steelers managed to get it going late and carried that momentum into the 2nd quarter. That's when strange things started to happen. As the Steelers were driving, Backup QB TJ Yates decided to throw a long pass into the end zone. Eagles CB Darius Butler would step in front of the intended receiver and return in out of the end zone. As Butler made his way out, he would take a ferocious hit and fumble the ball. The Steelers would recover and, 2 plays later, RB Chris Johnson would score to give the visitors a 7-0 lead. The Eagles would move the ball into Steeler territory on their next possession, but K Nick Folk would miss a 52 yard FG. This time, it was the Steelers who would turn in over on a fumble by WR Julian Edleman. The Eagles would take advantage and score on a Demarco Murray 2 yard run. The Steelers would add a FG before halftime to go into the locker room with a 10-7 lead.

The Eagles came out for the 2nd half ready to overcome the mistakes of the 1st. On their 1st possession, they would drive down the field and score on a 10 yard pass from Jameis Winston to Murray. Eagles up 14-10. The Steelers would add a FG at the end of the 3rd and close the gap to 14-13. In the decisive 4th quarter, the Eagle defense would rise to the occasion and keep the Steelers from mounting a comeback. The Eagle offense used their ground game to run clock and add their only FG to make the final 17-13.

This concluded an ugly game as both teams suffered multiple sacks and had 2 turnovers each. In addition, the Eagles were flagged 16 times for 149 yards. The Steelers were hurt by missing 13 tackles.

The Eagles go to Cincinnati next week to try to keep their slim playoff hopes alive, while the Steelers play host to the Cowboys with Tom Brady back off suspension.

Indianapolis 30 New York(A) 16              28 0-10
East Rutherford, NJ (IFL.COM) – The Indianapolis Colts (9-6) broke a 2 game losing with a 30-16 triumph over the struggling New York Jets (1-14). The final score is not a true reflection of the game that was played here today at Met Life Stadium. The game wasn’t decided until late in the 4th quarter with 2:10 left on the clock, Colts holding onto a 24-16 lead, when game MVP Carson Palmer threw a short quick pass to Golden Tate (WR) who was double teamed at the Jets 35 yard-line, one quick move down the sideline for the score, Colts 30-16 victory. This was Carson’s first game back from and injury he suffered 3 weeks ago in a 16-13 lost to the Pittsburgh Steelers (9-5).

The Colts will close out the regular season at home against the AFC West Division leader Oakland Raiders (11-3), and the Jets play host to 4-10 Denver Broncos.

Top Performers

Indianapolis Colts
C. Palmer (QB) 38-25, 243 Yards, 2 TD 101.1 Rating
Golden Tate (WR) 10-123 Yards 2 TD

New York Jets
Ryan Mallett (QB) 37-24, 280 Yards, 1 TD 1 INT 85.4 Rating
Sammy Watkins (WR) 11-197 Yards, 17.9 Avg. 1 TD

Cincinnati 30 Baltimore 13                  40 Calm
Baltimore (2-12) hosted Cincinnati (12-2) earlier this week and graciously let the visitors win. Actually, it was the Bengals who were in a giving mood (Thanksgiving hang-over?) with 4 fumbles (2 lost) and a Rodgers INT. The Ravens returned the favor with 3 TOs of their own and the Bengals cruised to a 30-13 win, though the Ravens hung close enough to make it interesting.

Cincinnati motored down the field on their first possession on two Aaron Rodgers-to-Tyler Eifert tosses, aided by a personal foul penalty, but Raven CB Anthony Brown intercepted Rogers at the Raven 18 to stop the drive, though the call had to be reviewed. Baltimore had to punt after 6 plays and the Ravens' D forced a 3-and-punt on Cincinnati's second possession. Gaining possession near mid-field, Baltimore earned a first down, but the drive stalled and Matt Bryant was faced with a 47-yard FG with the wind at his back. For the 3rd time in 4 attempts (going back to last with against Dallas), he MISSED. Cincinnati took advantage of the short field, but three straight incomplete passes from the Raven 14 brought in Robbie Gould for a 32-yard FG. It was good and the Bengals took the lead, 3-0.

Baltimore couldn't move the ball on their next possession and punted to Cinicinnati, who fumbled the ball on their second play from scrimmage. Again, the Ravens couldn't move, but this time Bryant successfully converted a 38-yard FG. Game tied at 3.

The teams exchanged punts and Cincinnati drove to the Ravens 16, where Gould kicked another FG to give the Bengals a 6-3 lead, with 3 minutes left before the half.

Punt. Punt. Punt. With :41 on the clock Rodgers hit Devin Funchess on the first play after gaining possession with a 57-yard strike, putting the ball on the Ravens 3. Two plays later, Rodgers took it in for a 13-3 Bengal lead at the half.

Baltimore received the kick to start the second half and marched down the field for another Bryant FG to cut the Bengals lead to 13-6.

Rodgers again led his team down the field on their next possession, with another big personal foul penalty aiding the effort. Rodgers capped that drive with another scamper for a 20-6 Bengal lead.

Baltimore's Le'Veon Bell fumbled on the Ravens' next possession and Cincinnati's Darrelle Revis recovered. Cincinnati was forced to punt, but pinned the Ravens at their own 9. Eli Manning went to work and drove his team the length of the field, completing just 6 of 11 passes, but the Ravens got the big plays when they needed them. Bell took it in from 2-yards out to cut the Bengal lead to 20-13 with just over 14 minutes remaining.

After a huge, 47-yard romp by RB Ty Montgomery put the ball on the Ravens' 15, Cincinnati was poised to put this one away. Unfortunately, Jermaine Gresham fumbled, giving the ball back to the Ravens. Baltimore, wanting to return the favor, gave it right back three plays later when Manning was intercepted by Jalen Ramsey. Three plays after that, Gould would add his third FG of the game for a 23-13 lead with 9:12 left.

Baltimore responded with a 13-play drive that stalled at the Bengal 24. Rather than risk missing a 4th-and-1 and getting no points, Coach Master opted to go the conservative route and get back to a 10-point deficit with a "short" FG. Sadly, usually reliable Matt Bryant missed ANOTHER FG attempt from 42-yard out. Cincinnati took two minutes off the clock and punted. After a 4th-and-6 pass to Le'Veon Bell netted 38 and put the ball on the Bengal 17, Eli put the ice cream on the Thanksgiving pumpkin pie by tossing his 2nd INT, which Kenny Vaccaro returned 82 yards to the Ravens 1 with 1:45 left. Aaron Rodgers' 3rd rushing TD capped the scoring and put the nail in the Ravens' coffin. Final score: Cincinnati 30, Baltimore 13.

Rodgers was named the game's MVP on the strength of the 3 rushing TDs. Otherwise, his 22-for-37 game for 237 yards, no passing TDs and one INT was rather ho-hum.

In a losing effort, Baltimore's Le'Veon Bell was a monster - gaining 125 yards on the ground, despite being keyed on all game, and adding another 129 yards on 11 receptions with 1 TD. That's 254 yards from scrimmage on 35 touches (a 7.3 yards-per-touch average).

I guess getting into the end zone is more important to the MVP voters, though Rodgers' commercials with the Australian Cattle Dog gives him bonus points in my book.

Cincinnati (now 13-2) hosts 9-6 Philadelphia in Week 16. The Eagles need a W to keep their playoff hopes alive.

Baltimore (2-13) appears to have sewn up another Top 4 draft pick with neither a W or a L next week against 4-11 Arizona meaning much.

Miami 17 Buffalo 24                         15 0-10
On a cold day in Buffalo the Bills and Dolphins were both banged up a bit as Miami had Goff at QB who has much promise but has stumbled a bit in his rookie season and the Bills were happy to have Smith back running the offense but with LaFell was out, essentially down to two wide-outs and come out running the wishbone on a number of plays which had the Dolphins making adjustments. Tony Cox was frustrated as he double Adam Humphries with Marcus Peters going solo on Jordan Mathews figuring it would shut down the passing game but despite the double coverage Humphries goes deep over and over and catches 10 balls for 149 and 1 TD and even pull off a hook and ladder with Bostick taking it to the house the final 37 yards! Peters did pick Smith twice and Mitchell also picked one as Smith was careless at times. The Fins were effective running the ball with limited attempts, 18-92 for 5.1 average. Goff threw 2 TD's and 246 yards with 1 pick. Buffalo out gains the Dolphins by one yard 327-326 as the Bill sweep the Dolphins this year but the future looks bright in Miami with rookie Jared Goff.

San Francisco 3 New Orleans 21              70
The 49ers would have to travel into New Orleans against the Saints who are not only battling for a playoff spot but also battling for the division. The 49ers would take the opening kick and control the ball taking it to the Saints 17 before kicking a FG. 3-0 Niners. The Saints would then get the ball and waste no time driving the length of the field which ended in a 10 yard TD strike from Flacco to Dez Bryant (his 12th). Saints 7-3. The team would exchange possessions until a key Fitzpatrick pass was picked for 6 by Jordan Hicks. 14-4 Saints. The teams would then exchange possessions until the 7:22 mark of the 2nd quarter. San Fran had a big stop during these exchanges as they stopped Jonathan Stewart on 4th and 1 from the 10. At the 7:22 mark New Orleans would take over at their own 20 and drive the field ending in a 10 yard TD run from Stewart. The drive was keyed by a 42 yard pass to Dez. 21-3 Saints. That is how the half would end. In the second half the Saints would use ball control and their defense continued to be solid and the game would end with that 21-3 score. The Saints move to 11-4 with the win and the 49ers drop to 3-12. The Saints D would force 4 turnovers with 3 sacks. Stewart rushed for 92 yards a TD for the Saints and Jordan Howard rushed for 73 yards on 23 carries for the 49ers.

Tennessee 21 Jacksonville 15                74 0-10
Tennessee came to Jacksonville looking for the easy win and while the Jags were no pushover, the Titan prevailed 21-15. While Jacksonville dominated statistically (335 total yards to 203) in the end it was the big play ability of the Titans (100 yard KR for a TD) and their stout D inside their 20 that did in the Jags.

The playoff bound Titans climb to 10-5 while the hapless Jags fall to 4-11.

A well earned victory for coach Brunskill and the Titans.

Arizona 20 Dallas 27                        70
The Cardinals gave Dallas Cowboys coach Steve Hart the biggest scare since he broke the armrest of a theater seat when the big shark came out of the water in Jaws a few decades ago.
The Cowboys rode Cam Newton's hot hand to take a seemingly comfortable lead at 27-10 early in the fourth quarter.
However, Ben Roethesleberger connected on 7 of 10 passes on the ensuring drive before a Markus Golden sack (his 13th of the year) stalled the Cardinals drive. The Cards had to settle for a FG.   "Whew," I thought. "He burned the clock and only scored three. I'm still up 27-13."
But Jim recovered onside kick (despite my watching for the onsides kick). .Ajayi took advantage of Dallas overplaying the pass for an 18-yard run. Later in the drive, Roethesleberger connected with Jaron Brown (a REC-2) from the 10 to draw his team to within seven at 27-20 with a little over two minutes on the clock.
I expected the onside kick. Jim didn't disappoint. What I didn't expect was Arizona recovering it again!!
Dallas' DT Glenn Dorsey proceded to sack Big Ben on the Zona's first play … for 12 yards. But then Ben connected with Brandon Marshall for a medium pass that went for 32 yards. On third and nine, Big Ben connected on a pass with somebody named Jeff Janis (who caught just two balls in the NFL last year) for 11 yards and a first down. Then on third and six from my 18, Roetlesburger avoided the rush and ran for seven yards.   Ugh!

Jim tried to trip me up by rushing Ajayi. He went for four yards. Then Ben threw two straight incompletions from the 11. On fourth down, his ball was intercepted. I ran out the clock to end the game.
Dallas hangs on for a 27-20 win.
Cam Newton was an impressive 27/38 for 367 yards and three TD's.

Los Angeles 28 Atlanta 7                    70
Rams come in with the right game plan. Run the ball and wear down the Falcon's D. It works and gets compounded as Jones and Jones get injured and the Falcons are down to 2 DLs from early on.
From then on, the Rams offense becomes progressively more unstoppable as the Falcons D wears down and it becomes a blowout.
Rams go to 11-4 and the Falcons fall to 10-5.

Detroit 3 Chicago 26                        30 20-30
7-7 Detroit traveled to Soldier Field to play the 9-5 Bears. Chicago needed a win to stay in the playoff hunt. After an exchange of punts, the Bears put together a short drive and converted the FG to take the early lead. Mumphery fumbles away the kickoff and Mariota needed only one play to find Crowder in the end zone from 16 yards out. Bears 9-0 after the missed extra point. The Lions put together a drive to the Chicago 17, put missed the FG attempt. After a punt early in the 2nd quarter, the Lions again drove deep into Bears territory, this time converting the field goal to pull within 6. After another exchange of punts, the Bears put together a drive, ending with Mariota to Brate from 1 yard out. The half ends Chicago 16 Detroit 3.

Detroit takes the second half kickoff and quickly down the field, stalling at the Bears 15. The kick is good, but the officials throw a flag – holding Detroit. The snap is bad on the second attempt, and the Bears get the ball. Chicago eats up yards on the next drive and DeAngelo Williams runs it in from 15 yards out. Chicago 23 Detroit 3. Detroit fumbles the ball away on the next drive, and can’t mount any real threat after that. Chicago adds a 4th quarter field goal to close out the scoring.

Kansas City 13 Houston 20                   70
Cousins throws two touchdown passes and Forte runs for another as the Texans hold off the Chiefs.

Washington 44 New York(N) 0                 47 5-15
Redskins build up a 31-0 half time lead and cruise to the shutout win. Prescott throws for 368 yards and two touchdowns.

Minnesota 11 Green Bay 24                   19 0-5   Light Snow
Division rival Minnesota came into Green Bay all fired up for the upset.

When asked earlier in the week about his coaching opponent, Packers boss John Conners chuckled and channeled his inner Jay Z "I got 99 problems but Rich ain't one".

The weather was a bone chilling 19 degrees (-7 celcius) at Lambeau. Light snow blanketed the playing surface. Both offenses started slowly with the only first quarter points coming off the foot of Vikings kicker Greg Zuerlein from 28 yards out. 3-0 Vikings Midway through the 2nd Green Bay's offense finally came up with a big play.   QB Brian Hoyer hit WR Terrance Williams in full stride for a 54 yard catch and run TD. 7-3 Packers.
Minnesota QB Drew Brees just couldn't get anything going in the first half as his team managed
just 79 yards through two quarters.

Packers took the second half kickoff and went 75 yards in 10 plays. QB Brian Hoyer checked down to
RB Christine Micheal for a 3 yard score to finish it. 14-3 Packers. On Minnesota's next play Brees was picked off by ILB Ryan Shazier at his own 29.   Five plays later Micheal would run it in from 14 yards out for his second TD. 21-3 Green Bay Any chance the Vikings had for a comeback fizzled when RB Ezekiel Elliott put it on the carpet twice to end the 3rd.

A late 4th quarter Brees to Travis Benjamin 48 yard TD would make it interesting at 21-11,
but the Pack would add a FG to ice it.

Final score 24-11 Packers

Christine Micheal was the star of this one: 29 carries for 114 yards and a pair of scores.
Hoyer threw for 198 and two TD's

Brees (182 yards, 1 TD/ 1 int.) and Elliott (69 yards rushing) were held in check.
WR Benjamin played well, 7 receptions for 141 yards and a TD.

Vikings (5-10) will finish off the year in San Francisco (3-12)

Green Bay (7-8) ends a disappointing campaign at home versus
the playoff bound Saints (11-4).

San Diego 17 Tampa Bay 30                   79 10-20
Carr throws two touchdown passes and Ware rushes for 125 yards, including a 36 yard run to the house as the Bucs down the Chargers.

Denver 17 Oakland 31                        56 0-10
The Raiders thought they could just stroll into this game and sit everyone and walk out with no injuries. So of course Geno Smith went down in the first quarter and Matthew Stafford had to play the entire game. That said, Stafford much like Keanu Reeves before him, led a bunch of scrubs to a shocking 31-17 victory.

New England 20 Carolina 10                  58 0-5
New England cruises to an easy victory over the Panthers. The Panthers never really threatened as the Patriot rested some players to get ready for the playoff run. The Patriot defense stifled Carolina the majority of the game.

New England went in at half leading 10-0 and close it out with a 20-10 victory. CJ. Prosise ran for 72 yard with a 6.0 average. The only standout on the Panthers was Mike Evans with 11 catches for 84 yards and a TD.

Rushing Leaders
Johnson,D(Jax) 36-171
Murray,D(Phi)   23-159 1 TD
Bell,L(Bal)     24-125
Ware,S(TB)      19-125 1 TD
Montgomery(Cin) 7-118
Michael(GB)     29-114 1 TD
Forte(Hou)      21-111 1 TD
Rodgers,A(Cin) 4-17 3 TD

Receiving Leaders
Watkins,S(NYJ) 11-197 1 TD
Parker,D(Was)    6-150
Humphries(Buf) 10-149 1 TD
Bell,L(Bal)     11-129 1 TD
Tate,G(Ind)     10-123 2 TD – IFL Offensive Player of the Week

Passing Leaders
Prescott(Was)   26-21-368   2 TD
Newton,C(Dal)   38-27-367   3 TD 1 Int
Stafford(Oak)   40-23-326   1 TD 1 Int

Defensive Standouts
Peters,M(Mia)    2 Int 6 Tk
Martinez(Ten)    1 Sk 16 Tk
Clinton-Di(NE)   2 Int 10 Tk – IFL Defensive Player of the Week

Special Teams
Franks(Jax)    5-5 FG – IFL Special Teams Player of the Week

WEEK 15 IFL STANDINGS

WEEK 15 IFL LEAGUE LEADERS

WEEK 14 RECAP

Andrew Luck throws for 274 yards and three TDs to lead the Rams past Chicago.

Game Scores

Los Angeles 41 Chicago 24                   40 5-15
The 9-4 Rams played the 9-4 Bears in week 14 – both teams hoping to strengthen their bid to make the playoffs. The Rams drove the ball well on their opening drive, but stalled on the Chicago 37. The FG was good, but negated by a holding penalty, forcing a punt. Jimmy Garoppolo, subbing for the injured Mariota, moved the ball well and the Bears opened the scoring, Thomas an 8 yd TD reception. The first quarter ended 7-0 Chicago. The teams traded field goals early in the 2nd , then the Rams drove for another FG to make it 10-6 Chicago at the half.
Chicago opened the second half with a 4 play, 75 yd drive, Garoppolo to Crowder, 63 yards for the score. LA answered in 6 plays, 62 yards, Luck to Hilton from 11 yards out. Chicago 17 Los Angeles 13. The Bears follow with a 3 and out, but on LA’s first play Wagner intercepts Luck setting up Chicago 1st and 10 from the LA 15. 4 plays later, Garoppolo to Crowder from 4 yards out, Chi 24 LA 13. The Rams came back, moving the ball easily and scored, Luck 11 yds to Hilton – 24-20. The Bears were unable to move the ball and the 4th quarter opened with a Chicago punt. The Rams wasted no time – 3 plays, 65 yards, Luck to Gronkowski for a 38 yard score and a Rams lead 27-24. 3 and out for the Bears, punt, Sherels from the 22, 74 yards later it’s LA 34 Chicago 24. The Bears moved the ball on their next drive, but Ward picks off Garoppolo to end the threat. The Rams make them pay with a 5 play drive, Ingram running it in from 5 yards out. The Bears could not recover.

Ryan called a great game and the Rams playoff bid looks good. The Bears are fighting to stay in it.

Luck was 21/29/274 and 3 TD 1 Int. Ingram 100 yards on 15 carries. Hilton 8 receptions for 109 yards and 2 TD. Garoppolo 22/41/256, 3 TD 1 Int. Crowder 8 receptions for 129 and 2 TD.

New York(A) 10 San Diego 33                 72 10-20
Chargers jump out to a 20-3 halftime lead and cruise to the win. Taylor throws for 252 yards and two touchdowns.

Atlanta 13 Green Bay 10                     23 0-10
Division leading Falcons (9-4) come into Lambeau looking to add to the Packers
season long misery (6-7).

Surprisingly, the home team came to play on this day.

Packers put on one of their best defensive first half performances of the season and lead 10-0 at the break.

Atlanta was held to just 117 yards over the first 2 quarters as the Green Bay front seven was all over the field.

Packers didn't exactly light it up on offense either, except for one 12 play- 95 yard drive midway through the 2nd
that was finished off with QB Brian Hoyer finding WR Manny Sanders from 7 yards out.

Both defenses continued to dominate this one in the 3rd with the only points coming from the foot of Kai Forbath
as Atlanta cut into the lead. 10-3 Packers heading onto the final frame.

After K Cody Parkey missed a relatively easy 45 yarder early in the 4th that would have made it a two score game,
Atlanta's offense finally came to life.

Phillip River found 4 different receivers during an 11 play-65 yard drive. Telvin Coleman capped it off with a 3-yard run.

We were knotted up at 10-10 with 5:45 left.

Packers then went 3 and out, Falcons also went 3 and out.

Green Bay took at their own 28 with 4:51 left with a chance to complete the upset.

Atlanta's defense came up big yet again and forced another 3 and out.
They got the ball back with 2:40 remaining and turned things over to Telvin Coleman.

After Rivers hit Coleman for a 10 yard gain, the 3rd year back broke free for a 13 yard scamper on
the very next play to take it into Packers territory.

After Rivers mishandled a snap on first down, Jalen Richard tore off a 10 yard run to bring up a
crucial 3rd and 2 from the Green Bay 39 with under a minute left. Packers switched into a 5-3 and stunted inside anticipating the run.

Rivers handed it to Coleman on a dive. Somehow he found a small opening a broke free for a 16 yard gain
all the way down to the Green Bay 23 with :46 seconds left.

Falcons wisely knelt three times to force the Packers to burn their remaining 2 timeouts and milk the clock down to 3 seconds,
before they used a timeout of their own. Forbath made no mistake from 43 yards as time expired.

Heartbreak at Lambeau...13-10 Atlanta Final

Marty made some great calls down the stretch and fully deserved the win.
It was a great back and forth battle of two very good defensive teams.

Telvin Coleman was the star of this one with 104 combined yards (74 rushing, 30 receiving)

No offensive standouts for the Pack as we could only produce 233 total yards (just a 2.8 yard per carry rushing average)

Falcons (10-4) host Los Angeles (9-4 at press time) next week in a HUGE NFC West showdown.

With the loss, Green Bay's 4 year reign as NFC Central Champion officially comes to an end.

Packers (6-8) will try to avoid matching their worst record during the Conners regime (6-10) as they host
IFL bottom feeder Minnesota next week.

The game is being advertised as "Guaranteed Win Night" with the team is promising a full
ticket refund if the Packers aren't victorious. Pabst Blue Ribbon will also be on sale for just $1 at all
Lambeau concession stands.

Philadelphia 24 Tennessee 27                61 10-20
Two 8-5 teams with playoff aspirations met in what was the first Phil-Ten game in my memory. It turned into a back and forth game as the teams each scored one touchdown in both the first and second quarters. The defenses tightened up in the third period as the only score was a Dan Bailey 53 yard field goal which gave Tennessee a 17-14 lead.
Things heated up early in the 4th as Philly was able to tie the game with a 37 yard Nick Folk field goal. Tennessee's ensuing drive stalled but Colton Schmidt's punt pinned the Eagles at their own 6 yard line. Jameis Winston then risked a medium fly throw and seldom used Titan LB Mike Morgan picked it off and took it 19 yards for the go ahead score (24-17).
Philly wasn't done and it took them only 6 plays and 2 and a half minutes to march 75 yards and even the score on a 2 yard DeMarco Murray run. A 42 yard pass interference penalty on Josh Norman was the big play. With 8 minutes left Tennessee was able to finally run the ball a bit and the Titans worked the ball down the field to the Eagle's 14 yard line. The drive stalled and a Bailey field goal made it 27-24 Tennessee.
Philly had the ball on their own 26 yard line with 3:47 to go. However a 5 yard penalty, two incompletions and a 3 yard Murray run forced a punt with 2:48 to go. From their own 20 the Titans managed one first down and were able to effectively run out the clock. Titans win 27-24.
Demarco Murray gained 97 yards on 24 carries but Winston could only complete 12 of 26 for 123 yards. Matt Ryan was 21 of 38 for 257 yards and 2 TD's.
Thanks to Greg for a very competitive gain. Eagles (8-6) probably are out of the playoff picture now while the Titans (9-5) are in the hunt for a wild card spot.

Cincinnati 37 Arizona 14                    75 Calm
The Bengals go to the air to down the Cardinals. Rodgers throws for 398 yards and two touchdowns. Jeffery finishes with four receptions for 94 yards and the two scores. Ajayi runs for 100 yards on 20 carries and a touchdown for Arizona.

Next week Arizona is at Dallas while Cincinnati travels to Baltimore.

Indianapolis 13 Houston 17                  70
Matt Forte rushes for 91 yards and a touchdown as the Texans grind out a win over Indy.

Miami 23 Kansas City 6                      43 10-20
The Miami Dolphins rolled into KC fresh off a win over Jacksonville and rolled out of KC on a 2 game winning streak, thumping the Chiefs 23-6. Miami controlled the game from the start, taking a 16-3 lead by the end of the 1st quarter and had put up 300 yards of offense by halftime. The Dolphins were lifted by the performance of sub QB Jared Goff, who entered the game in the 1st qtr. when Tanneyhill went down with an injury. Goff only proceeded to go 16-12-180 with 3 td passes, Brandon Cooks was the beneficiary of his throws, evidently using his super power of invisibility to get open enough to haul in 6 passes for 141 yards and all 3 td passes. The Miami defense held the Chiefs in check for the entire game, allowing only 263 yards of total offense as KC continues to run on fumes late in the season. With the win Miami improves to 5-9 while KC falls to 7-7.

Buffalo 14 Denver 30                        50 0-5
Buffalo headed into Denver with Bryce Petty at the helm in place of the injured Alex Smith and looked good at times but still managed to throw 3 picks while the combo of Bortles and Barkley threw 2 td's(1 each) and no turnovers to get the "W" to improve to 4-10 while Buffalo falls to 5-9 but will get Smith back next week for their rivalry game against Tony Cox and the Fins in a game that will be nasty with plenty of cheap shots and ejections a strong possibilty! Final score 30-14 Broncos!!!

Washington 23 Jacksonville 7                57 Calm
Two teams headed in different directions showed up for this week 14 match-up with a predictable result. For the second straight week the anemic Jags offence could only garner a mere 78 yards passing vs a stacked and talented Redskins secondary. The Jacksonville defence played well but in the end they were worn down in the second half by deft play calling by coach Heaton and the poor Jags passing game. Full props to coach Heaton for a well coached win.

David Johnson was the lone Jags bright spot 197 yards in offence and 1 TD. Pierre Garcon was a pain in the a** all game long!

Next year we will suffer.....

New Orleans 24 Tampa Bay 14                 71 0-10 Light Rain
The 8 and 5 Tampa Bay Buccaneers welcomed the 9 and 4 New Orleans Saints to Tampa for match up of two teams in the upper third of the IFL power rankings. The Saints are in a three-way tie for first place in their division with Atlanta and Los Angeles. The Buccaneers need a win to be assured of staying within one game of the Chicago Bears.

In the first quarter, Tampa Bay would run 23 plays to 11 for New Orleans, however, the score after one would be tied at seven each. The Saints started their second possession at their own 46 yard line after forcing a Tampa three and out deep in their own in their own end. On the first play Joe Flacco found Dez Bryant on a 54 yard bomb post to put their team up by seven. Tampa responded with a 13 play 75 yard drive that was capped off by a Spencer Ward 1 yard plunge into the end zone on fourth and one.

A big play in the second quarter came when Tampa Bay’s Derek Carr could not handle the snap on 3rd and 1 at the New Orleans 43. New Orleans cornerback Janoris Jenkins fell on the fumble to once again give the Saints great field position. Flacco would use a nice mix of runs and passes with primarily Tim Hightower and Cole Beasley and to earn his team a seven point lead with about five minutes left before halftime.

New Orleans started to power away from the Buccaneers as the second quarter wound down. The next time they got the ball the Saints went 75 yards in just 6 plays to score on a 20 yard Flacco to Beasley crossing pattern. Score at the half, 21 for New Orleans 7 for Tampa Bay.

With their first possession of the third quarter. New Orleans would make it three scoring drives in a row with a time-consuming 14 play drive that ended in a 44 yard field goal and a 24 to 7 score. Tampa Bay would get within 10 halfway through the fourth quarter, but the game did not feel in doubt. Final score Saints 24, Bucs 14.

Stars of the game include the entire Saints offensive line; Joe Flacco with a 138.8 quarterback rating; Jonathan Stewart and Tim Hightower combined for 113 yards rushing on 28 attempts; Cole Beasley caught six balls for 70 yards, 4 first downs and a touchdown.

Next week New Orleans plays at home and will look to add to their win total versus their division rival the San Francisco 49ers while the Buccaneers will host the San Diego Chargers in hopes of staying in the wild card race.

Dallas 38 Baltimore 28                      38 0-10
Dallas (8-5 coming in) was in a generous mood traveling to Baltimore (2-11 entering the game) this Thanksgiving, but the Ravens weren't able to cash in on 3 turnovers as Cowboy QB Matt Moore led the Blue-and-Silver to a 38-28 win that wasn't really that close.

Moore missed on just 5 passes all day (23-for-28 for 312 yards and 4 TDs) and chewed up the Baltimore secondary, completing 21 passes for 10 or more yards, resulting in a 137 QB rating. Moore took home the Golden Turducken (game's MVP) for his efforts. WR Willie Snead benefited most, catching 7 passes for 106 yards and 2 TDs. RB Jacquizz Rodgers chipped in 77 yards on 20 carries.

Eli Manning tried to keep up, throwing for 302 yards (26-for-37, 1 TD, 1 INT)) and Le'Veon Bell, back from the Raven hospital ward, contributed 22 carries for 68 yards + 8 receptions for 35 yards, but in the end, the Ravens didn't have enough to compete.

Dallas improves to 9-and-5 and hosts Arizona (4-9), then finishes the regular season at Pittsburgh (8-5) in a game that will likely have big playoff implications.

Baltimore falls to 2-12 and is happy to have Le'Veon Bell and Joey Bosa back when they face the Bengals (11-2) next week. Unfortunately, as Bell and Bosa returned, S Earl Thomas, WR Will Fuller and OT Marcus Cannon all went down with injuries against Dallas and are expected to miss the big "rivalry game".

San Francisco 9 Detroit 14                  70
49ers & Lions played a close game that saw very few highlights. Detroit scored two TDs on a 1 play 6 yd drive & a 8 play 59 yrd drive. Frisco could only manage 3 FGs.

Fitzpatrick was 10/29 106 yrds 1 int 0 TD sporting a 31.7 QB rating
Mannion for the Lions managed to pass for 154 yrds with 1 int 2 TD and a 76 QB rating. Detroit ran for 201 yards including a 49 yard scamper by Terrance West with :31 seconds left vs a run D. That run iced a close hard fought brawl of a game in which the Computer Gods were smiling on the home squad.

49ers had 10 FD's, 199 yards, 7 bad passes & 8 missed tackles. Many a time Bob had his team ready with a nice call, only to misfire.

(3-11) SF travels to New Orleans. Detroit (7-7) is off to Chicago next week.

Pittsburgh 20 New York(N) 16                39 0-10
Steelers rally for ten points in the final quarter to avoid the upset. A T.J. Yates pass to Boldin just before the two minute warning proves to be the game winner.

Carolina 23 Minnesota 7                     18 0-5
Receiving the kickoff, the Vikings went 75 yards by Drew Brees and his marksmanship, capped off by a 9-yard pass to Chris Ivory for an opening touchdown. Vikes led 7-0 after the first 4:48, but that was it for them: they then acted drugged out and stumbled through a 23-7 loss to 3-9 Carolina.

The absence of Zeke Elliott was sorely felt by the Vikes, who at first mounted drives that were killed by fumbles, interceptions or penalties, and then quietly settled into a 3 and out routine.

The Panthers moved the ball freely most of the game, but sputtered several times in goal line situations and had to settle for chipshot field goals.

The loss was the 5th in a row by Minnesota. The win was the second in three games by Carolina.

In week 15, Minnesota gets the pleasure of playing the Pack in Lambeau. Carolina, alas, has to play host to almost unbeatable New England.

New England 20 Oakland 17                   50 10-20 Rain
Pats score 20 unanswered in the second half to win it 20-17.

Rushing Leaders
Johnson,D(Jax) 24-156 1 TD
Riddick(NYG)    21-139 1 TD
West,T(Det)     19-122
Murray,L(NE)    21-118 1 TD
Ingram,M(LAR)   15-100 1 TD
Ajayi(Ari)      20-100 1 TD

Receiving Leaders
Cooks(Mia)       6-141 3 TD – IFL Offensive Player of the Week
Humphries(Buf) 10-116

Passing Leaders
Rodgers,A(Cin) 43-28-398   2 TD
Moore,M(Dal)    28-23-312   4 TD 1 Int
Manning(Bal)    37-26-302   1 TD 1 Int

Defensive Standouts
Waynes(Den) 1 int 7Tk – IFL Defensive Player of the Week

Special Teams
Santos(SD)     4-4 FG
Erickson(Dal) 6-184 Kick Ret 2-7 Punt Ret – IFL Special Team Player of the Week

WEEK 14 IFL STANDINGS

WEEK 14 IFL LEAGUE LEADERS

WEEK 13 RECAP

Matt Ryan throws for 333 yards and 3 touchdowns as the Titans take down previously undefeated New England.

Game Scores
Tennessee 44 New England 28                 31 Calm
Titans come to New England looking to extend their winning streak to three games. New England, riding a 21-game win streak dating back to last year (including the playoffs), hope to cap a perfect home schedule before finishing up its final three regular season games on the road.

Patriots took the opening kick but weren't able to crack their own 30 yard line. On their first drive, Matt Ryan served notice that this was going to be a battle. 10 plays and 71 yards later, Tennessee had a 7-0 lead. That's how quarter #1 would end.

On the first play of the 2nd quarter, Sam Bradford looked to convert on a 3rd and 11 but was PICKED OFF by linebacker Malcolm Smith (his 4th of the season) giving Tennessee the ball just inside Patriot territory. A sack by Stefon Tuitt helped to hinder the drive, but Dan Bailey nailed a 52 yard field goal to give the Titans a 10-0 lead.

An 11 play 75 yard drive followed as the Patriots stormed back to within 3 points thanks to a 22 yard TD reception by Antonio Brown. 10-7 Titans with 7 minutes to play in the half.

After back to back punts, Titans took over at their 21 with four minutes before the half. On 2nd and 20 from their own 45, Ryan connected with TE Rudolph for a HUGE 53 yard completion, down to the NE 2 yard line. Doug Martin capped the drive with a 2 yard plunge, and it was 17-7 with just over a minute to play. An incomplete pass and a sack by Frank Clark appeared to kill any chance that NE could draw closer before the half. With 43 seconds to play, the Titans had the ball at their own 39. Instead of going to the half with the 10 point lead, they looked to stretch the lead a bit further. And for the 2nd time in the half, the Titans connected on a HUGE pass play.

A short slant on first down to Andre Roberts went for 47 yards down to the Pats 14. A couple short passes to Doug Martin were incomplete. On 3rd and 10 with 13 seconds before the half, Ryan hit Rudolph for the 14 yard TD to make it 24-7 at the half.

Titans received the ball coming out of the half, but after 3 consecutive incomplete passes, the Patriots got their first break thanks to a bad snap which resulted in a first down for NE at the Titan 38. Four plays later, Bradford hit Nelson for a 14 yard TD and it was 24-14.

11 plays 45 yards later, Dan Bailey hit a 48 yard field goal to extend the Titan lead to 27-14 with 5:22 to play in Q3.

New England struck back with their own long drive (9 plays 75 yards) including 3 completions to Nelson for 11, 13 and 17 yards. Latavius Murray capped the drive with a 7 yard TD and New England was within 6 points, 27-21.

On their next drive, the Titans faced a 2nd an 9 from their own 39 yard line. Ryan looked for Hopkins on a short out...........and wouldn't you know it..................Nuke took it 61 yards for the TD and just like that it was 34-21!!

After back to back punts, Bradford looked to rally the troops as there was still over 10 minutes to play. After a 5 yard penalty however things looked bleak with NE at their own 5 yard line. Bradford dropped back to pass and looked for James Starks on the screen...........only to have DL Mike Daniels step in front and take it back for the pick 6. The Titans were all over NE, stretching the lead to 41-21.

A garbage time TD by Greg Olsen made it closer than the game really was. Final score, Titans 44 Patriots 28.

A 10 point underdog, Tennessee completely out-classed NE in Foxboro with strong defense and some big plays on offense en route to the convincing 16 point win.

Matt Ryan completed 20 of 35 for 333 yards and 3 TDs (zero interceptions). Meanwhile, Sam Bradford threw for 250 yards and 3 TDS, but was also intercepted 3 times, directly resulting in 13 Titan points. The Titans outstanding duo of tight ends Kyle Rudolph and Delanie Walker combined for 10 catches, 133 yards and a TD.

With the 1972 Dolphins (and IFL Commissioner Storer) sipping from their bottles of champagne, New England now packs their bags to head out to Oakland, hoping to avoid back to back losses. Meanwhile, Tennessee moves to 8-5 and heads home for a tough matchup with the Eagles.

Thanks to Rick for ruining our perfect season. ;)

New York(N) 6 Los Angeles 34                60 Calm
The New York Giants and promising rookie QB Carson Wentz traveled to Los Angeles hoping to play spoiler to the Rams playoff hopes. It was not to be, as the rebuilding Giants left thinking about possible weapons they can add to their young solid foundation and get back to the playoffs.

The Giants defense hung tough most of the game, but a turnover right at the start of the game put the Giants on their heels. Wentz threw an interception to Rams CB Jalen Collins. Three plays later the Rams get a touchdown, 7-0. The Giants mount an answer with a 10 play drive that leads to a Wentz to Tevaun Smith TD hookup, a missed x PAT makes it 7-6. Rams would get their running game going with Matt Jones(137 yards) and don't look back scoring 17 more points in the half, making it 24-6. Giants, due to some player fatigue, were forced to gamble on 4th downs and combined with some more turnovers left the Rams some short fields. Rams add a couple second half scores for the final of 34-6.

Next week the Rams travel to Chicago for a critical playoff battle while the Giants look to spoil the Pittsburgh Steelers playoff chances in New York.

Detroit 23 Houston 20                       70
Statistically Houston looked to have the edge 422 net yards to the Lions 201. But somehow Coach Nordberg and the Lions rise above the stats for the win.

Tampa Bay 10 Denver 22                      49 0-5
The Broncos are starting to get healthy and are starting to get their season turned around.
For the 2nd week in a row they have won, this time defeating the Bucs 22-10 in Denver.

The Broncos rushed for a season-high 184 yards, led by Jamaal Charles with 95 and QB Blake Bortles had his highest rated game of the season
completing 18 of 24 passes for 210 yards and a passer rating of 101.0

The Bucs rushed only 12 times for 23 yards but Carr threw 56 passes, completing 28 of them for 327 yards with a TD and a pick.

The return of LB Justin Houston and Luke Keuchly were huge as they accounted for 11 tackles, 4 sacks, and a forced fumble.

It was a great game and Mike called a great game.

Baltimore 13 Buffalo 9                      15 15-25
The Baltimore Ravens invade Buffalo in cold windy conditions and knock out Alex Smith and Bryce Petty stinks it up as the Baltimore defense overwhelms him sacking him twice while picking him twice as the Bills offense stagnated! The Ravens do enough to get their second win of the season 13-9 and the Bills will play next weeks game without Smith as he has been ruled out.

Arizona 3 New Orleans 34                    70
Joe Flacco throws three touchdown passes in the first half as the Saints roll.

Pittsburgh 16 Indianapolis 13               69
Battle of Backups Yates vs Boykins

Indianapolis, IND (IFL.COM) – Positioning for the AFC wildcard birth began to take shape on Sunday when the Pittsburgh Steelers (8-5) came to Indianapolis (8-5) and snap the Colts 6 game winning streak with a 16 - 13 victory before a sellout crowd at Lucas Oil stadium. The Colts not only lost their 5th game of the season, but they also lost starting QB Carlson Palmer who went down early in the second quarter with a grade 2 hamstring sprain. Palmer and the 63,000 fans watched in horror as back up quarterback Trevone Boykin (18-14, 84 Yards 0 TD 2 INT, 46.5 QB rating) turned the ball over three times, 2 Int and 1 lost fumble in the three point loss. “He (Palmer) will definitely miss next weeks game at the Houston Texans (5-7) then he’ll be reevaluated, hopefully we’ ll have him back for our road matchup with the Jets in week 15” Head Coach Kenneth Griffith told reporters at the post game press conference.

The game started with Pittsburgh taking the opening kickoff and driving down to the Colts 39 where they failed to convert a 4th and 7 when TJ Yates (QB) fired into a tight window to TE Antonio Gates, the pass was swatted away by Colts DB Alterraun Verner. Four plays after the turnover on downs the Colts would return the favor when punter Marquette King was unable to corral a bad snap from long snapper Don Barclay. The bad snap would be recovered by Terrell Suggs (DE/LB) and the Steelers were set up in business at the Indianapolis 31 yard-line. They were unable to capitalize on the miscue and eventually punted. After a 15 play 59 yard, 7:11 minute drive the Colts would settle for a Steven Hauschka 34 yard FG. Hauschka would add a 45 yard field goal with 3:41 left in the first half following a 13 play 49 yard drive, Indianapolis 6 Steelers 0. The Steelers Adam Vinatieri close out the half with a 43 FG, after going on a 10 play 50 yard drive using only 2:03 to put the 20 year vet into position for the kick, Colts up 6-3 at the half.

The third-quarter was all Pittsburgh as they scored 10 points when the Steelers intercepted Boykin twice in the quarter, Safety Eric Berry’s 2nd INT of the season and Eric Weddle’s grabs his 1st. The 2 turnovers led to a Yates to Julian Edelman (6-84 yards, 1 TD) 6 yard touchdown pass and a Vinatieri 47 yard field goal. The third-quarter would end with the Steelers leading 13 - 6 and Indianapolis looking like the game was pretty much over due to the Palmer injury, however with 7:59 left in the fourth quarter, and the Steelers leading 13-6, Pittsburgh punter Jon Ryan goes back to punt when the snap from Phillip Supernaw goes way over the head of Ryan and is recovered by Pittsburgh’s John Greco (OL) at their own 9 yard-line. Three plays later Isaiah Crowell (RB) would score his 11th rushing touchdown of the year on a 4 yard run off right tackle to tie the score at 13-13. As the hometown crowd begins to return into the stadium from the parking lot, just in time to see TJ Yates (29-12, 149 yards, 1 TD 1 INT) lead the Steelers on a 13 play 58 yard 4:42 drive that finished with Vinatieri converting a 35 yard field goal that put the Steelers up 16-13 with 1:47 left in the game. After receiving the ensuing kickoff the Colts start from their 23 yard-line and 1:40 left on the clock, Indianapolis trailing by 3, the crowd began to turn up the volume, everyone was on their feet, Boykin breaks the huddle, shotgun formation, 4 wide receivers, Boykin is calling an audible, the ball is snap, heavy rush Boykin is leaving the pocket, he scrambles looking and looking, tucks it and runs, Pittsburg DE Cliff Avril pops him at the 21, rips the ball out, RECOVERED by Pittsburgh’s Brian Robison (DL), GAME OVER, Steelers win 16-13.

Next week the Colts travel to Houston (5-7) and the Steelers play the New York Jets in the Little Big Apple, better known as New Jersey.

Cincinnati 23 New York(A) 0&n

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