Tampa Bay Storm Will Win ArenaBowl XXX Because…

In 2016, the Tampa Bay Storm were arguably the worst team in the Arena Football League. They didn’t win a single road game, and they finished 2-14. Tampa Bay was the worst in passing offense, worst in total offense, and third worst in scoring defense.

They couldn’t settle on a quarterback, and head coach Lawrence Samuels eventually got the boot because of it.

That year, the Storm only made the playoffs because every team did.

This year, changes came both with the team and the league. The AFL lost four teams, then gained an expansion team to bring the final field to five. Tampa Bay hired head coach Ron James, signed players like Randy Hippeard, Joe Hills, and Alvin Ray Jackson to help solidify a contending roster, and brought back a winning culture to bring the cornerstone franchise back to glory.

It worked.

Key Players

Kendrick Ings was just named Playmaker of the Year, Hills was named Wide Receiver of the Year, and Hippeard is an MVP candidate after putting up one of the best seasons of his career (66.4 percent completions, 3,506 yards, 82 TD). These three will be part of the combination that will bring the Storm their record sixth title and first since 2003.

With the above-named trio and like LaMark Brown, Tampa Bay created the most dynamic, consistent offense in the league. While the Soul have their own threats in Darius Renyolds and Shaun Kauleinamoku, they’re prone to have down stretches in games, especially in the first quarter.

Offense

Again, this is where the Storm can shine. Look at the first meeting against Philadelphia, their closest meeting of the season where they had a chance to win. If Hippeard can fire on at least as many cylinders as he did that night, with a healthy complement of targets, the chances will be there.

The offensive line can keep the pressure off Hippeard, giving him time to find the open man. The Soul’s secondary, while formidable, can struggle to play 60 minutes at times. If Hills can muscle his way open, Ings can use his speed to get open, and Brown can find space in the middle, scoring will be a breeze.

Defense

Alvin Ray Jackson needs to continue to step up, and the defensive line will help him. Dan Raudabaugh is easily flustered in the beginning of games. He misses receivers, he overthrows, and takes a series or two to find a rhythm some weeks. Despite how the last two meetings went, the pressure is on the home team to bring a second straight title.

Could that get into Raudabaugh’s head? If so, he’ll struggle, and Cortez Stubbs could elevate his stock with a big play or two early in the game. At least one stop in the first four drives could set an early tone and allow Tampa Bay to relax offensively.

The X-Factor

As good as Ings is on offense, he gives the Storm a tremendous advantage on special teams. He led the league with four kick return touchdowns this year, and one from him at any point in the game will allow for an extra potential possession and force Philadelphia to bleed clock with a lead, which they’re not 100 percent capable of.

Few thought that Tampa Bay could pull off worst to first given 2016, but one year makes a big difference, and the Storm are 60 minutes away from history.

Tampa Bay Finally Wins Blowout

The Tampa Bay Storm (10-3) started out strong and finished even stronger against the Cleveland Gladiators (4-9), jumping out to a quick lead en route to a 57-27 win, their first win by more than 13 points this season.

Joe Hills got the first order of business out of the way early, scoring on a 36-yard pass to extend his touchdown streak to 80 games, and giving the Storm a 7-0 lead. The joy was short lived, as Cortez Stubbs injured his knee going into the boards on the first defensive play of the game. He did not return, and there were no further updates on his injury.

Alvin Ray Jackson gave the home fans something new to cheer about, as he intercepted Arvell Nelson and returned the ball for a touchdown and a two-score lead.

Nelson finally got Cleveland on the board late in the first quarter, finding Michael Preston in the end zone on fourth down. The extra point didn’t go so well, however, as Drew Basil eventually corralled a high snap and threw an interception.

Kendrick Ings answered right back, as he got wide open from defenders to give Tampa Bay a 21-6 lead. The Gladiators put together a good drive, thanks in part to Collin Taylor making a catch between two defenders, but Devin Wilson couldn’t make a 4th down catch in the corner of the end zone to start the second quarter. To add injury to insult, Wilson suffered a concussion on the play, and did not return to the game.

Marrio Norman gave Cleveland a quick boost thanks to a 32-yard pick-six, but the Storm used second-perfect clock management to withstand a strong Gladiators defensive effort. Randy Hippeard went around the left side to score a touchdown from inches away to give the home team a 28-13 halftime lead.

From there, Tampa Bay kept pulling away. Alvin Ray Jackson snatched another interception to start the third quarter, and Kendrick Ings helped the Storm cash in by catching a touchdown pass. Jackson kept his incredible night going by recovering the ensuing kickoff inside Cleveland’s red zone, and LaMark Brown got into the end zone for the first time just two plays later. Before fans could settle in from halftime, the Storm extended their lead to 41-13.

Michael Preston made the highlight of the night, beating Jackson and catching a ball in between his thighs inside the two-yard line. Not being touched, Preston showed the ball to the referee and appeared to score. However, the referees ruled him short, and Arvell Nelson finished the drive with a quarterback sneak.

After a failed onside kick, Joe Hills quickly got open and caught his second touchdown of the night. Then, to cement Defensive Player of the Week honors, Alvin Ray Jackson started the fourth quarter by recovering an Arvell Nelson fumble. The offense got going quickly, but lost LaMark Brown on the drive due to another injury. The drive stalled thanks in part to an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty, and Mark Lewis came out to attempt a 39-yard field goal, which he made to extend the lead to 51-20. Michael Lindsey added to the fun by recovering the kickoff off the bar and running into the end zone.

Tanner Marsh came into the game after the score, and started off by fumbling his first snap. Things didn’t get better, as his first pass was nearly intercepted. Jordan Miller, who committed a roughing the passer penalty just prior, redeemed himself with a third-down sack. Right after the one-minute warning, backup quarterback Chris Bonner returned the snap-fumbling favor, and Nick Seither scooped the ball up and ran 44 yards into the end zone for the last touchdown of the night.

The Storm now go through their final bye week of the season before ending the regular season in Philadelphia taking on the Soul. Kickoff is set for 7:00 p.m. on Saturday, August 5, and the game will be televised on CBS Sports Network.

Arena Football League Week 6 Power Rankings

With this week’s games, we’re officially one-third of the way through the 2017 Arena Football League season. Each of the teams has had at least one bye week, and only Washington has not played five games (last week was their second bye week). That said, the league is starting to shape up and certain teams are rising to the top. Here are this week’s power rankings.

5. Washington Valor

Even after firing offensive coordinator Steve Thonn, the Valor still struggled on offense. Quarterback Erik Meyer had issues with the snap, and two late fumbles in the fourth quarter allowed Tampa Bay to capitalize and steal a road win. Despite such talents as Greg Carr, Mike Washington, and Tracy Belton, there’s still a long way to go to fix football in the Beltway.

4. Baltimore Brigade

A win against the Soul certainly would’ve boosted this ranking. However, it was a second straight heart breaker in the closing seconds. Shane Carden continues to prove himself under center, but their defense can’t rely solely on Varmah Sonie to lock opponents down and generate stops. Once head coach Omarr Smith can generate a complete effort from his team, they can officially knock Washington out of the playoff picture.

3. Cleveland Gladiators

The team was on their bye week this week, but with two weeks to prepare for a rematch against Philadelphia, the Gladiators can prove to the league that they’re still trending upward. The only thing keeping them in third place is the fact they’re still unable to finish games. When they do, they’ll put the rest of the league on notice.

2. Tampa Bay Storm

Their only loss on the season was by four points at home to Philadelphia in Week 2. They have the second most dangerous receiving corp in the entire league. However, the offensive line is still not protecting Randy Hippeard as they should, and Washington alone managed three sacks. Plus, penalties keep hurting this team at key times. Granted, crucial stops help win games, but extending defensive possessions will eventually wear down players like Alvin Ray Jackson and could cost them key games for playoff positioning.

Finally, at #1, we have the Philadelphia Soul. Yes, their league record streak of consecutive quarters with a score at 155, and they struggled to beat the Baltimore Brigade this weekend, they’ve already scored more than 60 points in three consecutive games (the rest of the league has just four games combined). They needed a major stop to stay undefeated, and they got just that by forcing a turnover on downs  with eight seconds left to seal a win.

Tampa Bay Storm Best Baltimore Brigade, 62-55

The Tampa Bay Storm rallied in the final minute Sunday to defeat the Baltimore Brigade 62-55 on Sunday afternoon in the first home game in Baltimore franchise history in front of a crowd of 5,915.

Both teams started red hot on offense, scoring a touchdown on their first two possessions, and Tampa Bay came up with a big play on defense after an Alvin Ray Jackson interception, which would lead to a LaMark Brown touchdown, giving the Storm a 14-6 lead after the first quarter. They would add to that lead when Paul Stephens returned an interception for a touchdown to make the score 27-13.

After both teams traded touchdowns, Tampa Bay would take a 34-20 lead into the locker room at Royal Farms Arena. Baltimore pulled back into the game by scoring a touchdown and a two point conversion in the third quarter, but could not get the Storm offense off the field as they marched right back down and reclaimed the lead minutes later.

Finally, the Brigade took the lead after Tampa fumbled the ball and Shane Carden found Browning to give the Brigade a 48-41 lead. But Baltimore returned the favor by coughing up the ball after Tampa tied it, which led to Joe Hills catching his fourth touchdown of the game to give the Storm a 54-48 lead.

After the Brigade took the lead on the ensuing possession, Tampa would drive the field and win it on a Brown touchdown and two point conversion, spoiling the home opener for the Brigade.

Next up for the 1-3 Brigade, a return to trip to Philadelphia, where they lost last week in the Soul’s championship banner night game. The next home game for the expansion franchise owned by Wizards owner Ted Leonsis is May 27 against the Cleveland Gladiators.