This was probably the best full week of games so far in this wild season.
We started with a game that had 3 lead changes in the final 2 minutes, went to rookie quarterbacks first win, saw a defense score 3 touchdowns, watched a crazy 4th quarter comeback that lead to an overtime win. Then end the week on a 4 fumble game. The divisional races are heating up with most having many battles to go before any clear winner can be chosen.
Use the links below to get to specific games:
Thursday's Games: Pioneers vs River Hogs || Steamers vs Gunners
Saturday's Games: Crusaders vs Barons || Condors vs Tigers
Sunday's Games: Aviators vs Bulls || Lancers vs Shamrocks
Monday's Games: Diablos vs Monarchs || Bulldogs vs Miners
Pioneers vs River Hogs
WHAT A GAME!
River Hogs came into this game off a win last week, and on the first drive, they were still feeling it. Dre Shivers had 5 rushes, 33 yards, and a touchdown on that drive. The defense managed to keep the Pioneers out of the end zone until the 4th quarter but did have struggles getting off the field before giving up a field goal. Heading into the 4th quarter they had a 20-9 lead that quickly became a 20-17 ballgame. Dre Shivers was doing his thing for most of the game on the ground but on the first drive in this quarter he got them from the 50 to the 15-yard line on his own. Then for some reason, the coach decided to throw the ball the next 3 plays resulting in only getting a field goal. Many fans felt that they needed to keep running shivers to use the clock and punch it into the end zone since the Pioneers were not stopping him that drive. The next drive they get they elect to do two passing plays and a run play which did not take a whole lot of time off the clock to kill the game.
The Pioneers defense had struggled against the run last week and this week, it was happening again. Though you must give them credit because they managed to force the River Hogs into 4 field goals, one was from a stop at the 1-yard line, and another with the River Hogs inside the 20-yard line, they held strong and forced another field goal. Another thing that can hurt these Pioneers going forward is the number of injuries they picked up this game. Hopefully, they are not very serious, but we will find out more in the coming days. The Pioneers' offense couldn’t fully break down Portland’s defense but getting points as often as they could helped them when it came to the 4th quarter to get the win. Getting the ball with 7:01 left in the game and down 23-17. After getting a first down on the drive, Trey Allen is sacked, but after that sack. Allen would connect on his next 5 passes and make a few plays with his own feet setting up a touchdown pass to Pharoah Reignz II to take the lead 24-23 with 1:21 to go.
On the next drive the River Hogs get stuck on a 3rd and 17, but McBride finds a way to connect with Dre shivers on a big pass play getting into Pioneers territory with plenty of time and timeouts to get into field goal range and win the game. A couple of plays later McBride is able to make another pass to get into range for the field goal with less than 20 seconds to go. Here’s where I get confused though. Instead of trying to run down the clock for the final kick, they call a timeout. Then they run the ball and call another timeout leaving 9 seconds on the clock as they attempt the field goal. As the field goal goes through celebration starts amongst the Portland fans even though there are still 5 seconds left in the game. Kickoff comes and the clock ticks to 2 seconds left in the game with Trey Allen and the Pioneers needing a Hail Mary to win the game. I will just leave this hyperlink to let you watch it unfold with the call by Smitty.
This is how you start off week 7!
You can check out the full game on the Relocation Football League YouTube channel or follow this link directly to the game: Madden 22: Pioneers vs River Hogs Week 7 - Trey Way vs Pride McBride! | RFL Season 7
Steamers vs Gunners
The Houston Gunners win 34-31 for the second week in a row. There were many key plays in this game that helped the Gunners to get the win. Some of the most noticeable plays were a fake punt on 4th down that turned into a touchdown run. Then Will Christie forces a fumble just a few plays later at the start of the 4th quarter to give the Gunners more momentum. It was a common theme in this game where the Steamers could not stop the Gunners on 3rd down. This showed in a very key drive near the end of the game where the gunners had 3 third-down conversions and then a 4th down conversion which led to a Ray JR touchdown making it 34-24 with a little over a minute to play. After a sluggish start on offense in the first half converting only 2/6 third downs, the Gunners got focused in the second and had a few drives that took off big chunks of time. They also made big plays on 3rd down, successfully getting 8/11, and 2 of those times they were stopped on 3rd down they ended up converting on 4th down. Hard to lose a game when your offense can keep drives going like that. Does the young rookie Coach Mula have beginners’ luck, is it just that he is so new that coaches haven’t had time to figure him out, or is he going to be the real deal in this league?
For the Steamers, they have lost their second game in a row dropping them below the .500 mark. This loss also means that the Gunners have swept them this season with a combined score of 62- 52. This was a game that Memphis really could have won. Leading at halftime 10-6, going into the 3rd quarter they were feeling good about being on top of an undefeated team. But they then give up a long touchdown drive and the lead. The offense didn’t panic and answered right back down the field to score a touchdown on a long pass play to Romeo Jackson. But then the wheels fell off the train some and they allowed the 4th down fake for a touchdown and had the fumble at the start of the 4th that got them down 27-17 with 11:50 left in the game. They would get a couple of stops and manage a touchdown drive to get the score to 27-24 with just under 8 minutes to go. But then the Gunners went on their long drive that left under 2 minutes on the clock and a 34-24 game. A great touchdown catch by Romeo Jackson again narrowed the margin but that was all that was left with the game. Coach Jones will need to dig deep as we continue on into the season to try and get back on track in hopes of finding a playoff spot.
You can view the full game on the Relocation Football League YouTube channel or by following this link to the game: https://youtu.be/u5p-AY1bBvw
Crusaders vs Barons
The San Diego Crusaders came into this game off of two straight losses with the total score line being 75 - 19. The Barons came in off a win over the Portland Snowhawks last week and were hoping to catch the Crusaders on their downward path. The game was tightly contested before and after the first points were scored by the Barons on a great pass by Brinker to Patrick Bain. There weren't any more points scored until a safety in the 2nd with 11:28 to go before halftime. Crusaders would take the following punt and go on a long 6-minute drive to score a touchdown and take the lead. Going into half time the Barons had a 10-9 lead due to a forced fumble and field goal late in the second quarter. But the stats showed it was a heavily defensive game up to this point.
The Barons only had 91 total offensive yards while the Crusaders had 125 total yards. San Diego came out at halftime looking to get points on the board and they did just that. After a long 7 minute drive, they punch it in from the 1-yard line on a 4th and goal. Heading into the 4th, the hometown fans were nervous with the Crusaders only a few yards away from the end zone. A minute into the final quarter and the defense conceded another passing touchdown making the score 24-10. The rest of the game was a hard-fought defensive affair ending with the Crusaders winning 27-10. Neither team could get the rushing game going both having less than 70 yards in total. Ben Wakefield quarterback for the Crusaders had 281 passing yards on the game to go with his 2 passing touchdowns. Barons' quarterback had the early touchdown pass but was not able to be consistent as the game went on and only finished with 131 passing yards.
Brooklyn is now (2-5) on the season and will face off with the 6-1 Sacramento Condors next week. While San Diego gets to go back home with a record of 4-3 and have a matchup with the Chicago Tigers (3-4) next week.
To watch the full game, go to the Relocation Football league channel on YouTube or follow this link directly to the game: Madden 22: Barons vs Crusaders Week 7 - Premiere Game! | RFL Season 7
Condors vs Tigers
This was another great week 7 game. Chicago Tigers and rookie Quarterback Cai Cash came into this game without an RFL win on the season. Going up against a 6-0 Sacramento team had some fans doubting they would be able to stand a chance. But Cash was able to start the game 18/18 with 2 touchdown passes. Chicago scored on all 3 of their first 3 drives. Getting 17 points before going into halftime. Cash’s first incompletion was an interception at the start of the second half but he was able to shake it off and get another touchdown pass in the game. The run game was not very effective but that didn’t stop the offense from having a good day. They also only had to punt the ball 1 time. So they got points on all but 2 drives in the game. The defense did give up a bunch of yards through the air but the rush defense was spectacular, only allowing 41 yards throughout the entire game. Also while they gave up 24 points, they only allowed one score in each quarter making it difficult for the Condors to get momentum off of a big scoring quarter.
The Condors were coming into this game off a win against the Salt Lake City Elks and favored to win by more than a touchdown. Chase McCoy had a good game with 245 passing yards and 2 touchdowns but the team as a whole was not able to get it done on critical downs. Going 3 for 9 on third-down conversions is going to make it difficult to win games. The run game was shut down all night which make things more predictable on those key downs as to what the offense was going to do. At the start of the second half, cornerback Spencer Garland made an interception, and then the offense scored a couple of plays later, but couldn't stop the Tigers from driving down the field to take the lead right back. While the offense struggled on third down, it was the same on the other side of the ball as the defense wasn't able to get off the field. Failing to get a stop on 14 out of 19 third downs and only forcing 1 punt all game.
Now that the Condors have finally lost (6-1), they will be going up against a struggling Brooklyn Barons (2-5) team who also lost today.
The Tigers (3-4) are now 1 game below .500 on the season and will have to face the San Diego Crusaders (4-3) who won against the Barons today.
To watch the full game, go to the Relocation Football league channel on YouTube or follow this link directly to the game: Madden 22: Tigers vs Condors Week 7 Premiere Game
Celtic Tigers vs Sentinels
An ARC East matchup fell upon us today. The Orlando Sentinels came into the game with a 4-2 record. They had a slow 0-2 start to the season, including a 45-16 loss to the Dublin Celtic Tigers in week 2. Coming into this game with 4 straight wins had the Sentinels feeling confident they could put up a better fight this time around. One of the keys to victor from fellow writer Back was that DeAndre Wilkins Jr was going to have to air it out this game and that is exactly what the Sentinels did. He threw for 340 yards and 3 touchdowns on 34 completions. His main target was Erik Myrick who had 9 receptions, 127 yards, and 2 touchdowns. But without having much of anything in terms of the ground game it took the offense until the middle of the second quarter to score but they were already down 17 points. The defense struggled to stop the Celtic Tigers offense as they managed to get 3 first-half touchdowns and 2 field goals. The defense couldn't stop the run and then that ended up making them also fail to stop the passing attack. While the Sentinels did manage 3 second-half touchdowns, they still gave up 2. It was a long day for Orlando fans but they are hoping that moving forward they can have a more balanced attack and the defense will make the stops when it needs to.
The Celtic Tigers came into the game on a 2 game losing streak. Looking to bounce back they came into this game hungry and that showed throughout all 4 quarters. Justin Jones threw for 338 yards on 28 completions and had one passing touchdown. Fellow writer Back mentioned that having Trey Worsley play well today would help Jones in the passing game and he did have a great game. He had 31 carries for 152 yards and 4 touchdowns. The consistency of the offense was amazing, scoring 27 first-half points and being able to score 18 more in the second half shows they were clicking on all cylinders. The defense while getting beat in the air was able to still get stops when they needed to especially early in the game helping them jump out to a big lead. A few other noticeable players today were Ross Dierdorf who had 9 receptions 126 yards and 1 receiving touchdown. Another receiver Matt Nanee had 7 receptions for 93 yards.
Looking into the near future for these two teams, Dublin will play a non-RFL team which will lead to them becoming 4-3. While the Sentinels (4-3) will be up against the Bisons who will be 6-1 going into that game.
To watch the full game, go to the Relocation Football league channel on YouTube or follow this link directly to the game: Madden 22: Orlando Sentinels vs Celtic Tigers -Week 7 Premiere Game
Red Dragons vs Voyagers
In a heavily contested ARC West division, the Houston Voyagers put together a great 2nd and 4th quarter performance to beat the San Diego Red Dragons. The Voyagers were last in the division heading into the game but they managed to get on level standing with the Red Dragons and the River Hogs at 4-3 on the season. While the Voyagers offense and special teams were able to get 23 points, including a touchdown from Nacho Cheese in the 3rd quarter, the defense shined scoring 21 points. They had two pick-sixes by Karlos Ghent with one being almost 100 yards. Then after the second pick-six, San Diego's QB Anthony Savoy fumbled into the end zone which the Voyagers fell on for a touchdown. At halftime, you could tell that the difference on the scoreboard was because of the Voyagers defense. The offense only had 132 yards. But the defense who did give up 226 yards, was able to go without conceding a touchdown and they were able to score. Once the game was over, the Red Dragons had 426 yards on offense but only 1 touchdown to show for it, being forced to settle for field goals time and time again. The Voyagers finished with only 275 total yards of offense but still had 2 offensive touchdowns. The defense in general was great for the Voyagers not just because of the points but they were able to put pressure on the Savoy 13 times while the Red Dragons could only manage to do it 4 times.
Hopefully, the Red Dragons can fine-tune the offense on the opponent's side of the field before their matchup next week against the 6-1 Columbus Aviators.
The Voyagers will be home next week against the Salt Lake City Pioneers
and they will be wanting the defense to keep the same intensity going into that matchup.
To watch the full game, go to the Relocation Football league channel on YouTube or follow this link directly to the game: Madden 22: Red Dragons vs Voyagers Week 7 - Can The Voyagers Split With The Dragons? | RFL Season 7
Aviators vs Bulls
ARC North divisional games are always games you don't want to miss. The Brooklyn Bulls started with the ball and had a good opening drive before stalling out in the red zone and kicking a field goal. But they didn't get points again until a 3 yard run by Gettis with 10:07 left in the second quarter. They had another long drive before halftime that was capped off with a rushing touchdown by 34 RB. Halfway through the third quarter, the Bulls were looking for another touchdown but a pick-six was thrown. A few drives later the Brooklyn defense set up their offense with a big forced fumble. But the offense couldn't get anything more than a field goal. The defense looked a little down after the offense failed to score which led to a big touchdown run for the Aviators on their first play after the field goal. In the 4th quarter, it was still much of the same. While they did score a touchdown, they left points and momentum at the 1-yard line with another red-zone trip stalling into only a field goal. It was a good game for the Bulls even though they lost. 359 passing yards was good and they almost had 100 yards on the ground but the story about the game will still be that they had the ball in the opponents 3 times that resulted in only field goals even a drive getting as close as the 1-yard line.
For the Aviators, they will look at this as a good all-around game for the offense. They had 266 passing yards and 228 rushing yards. They managed a touchdown in every quarter. One touchdown which definitely shifted momentum was the 3rd quarter pick 6 to give them the lead. The run game gave the Aviators two touchdowns including one from their own side of the field. Kingston Kenny did a lot in the run game this game making things easier for Marquise Washington in the passing game. The same can be said the other way around. Both these guys can get the job done when called upon much like they did today. The defense gave up a good amount of passing yards but was able to dial it in when backed up into their own red zone forcing their opponent to settle.
The Columbus Aviators now 6-1 will be going up against a tough Red Dragons team who will not be happy after suffering a defeat this week. The Bulls will have a bye week and then will be back in action in Sacramento against the Miners.
To watch the full game, go to the Relocation Football league channel on YouTube or follow this link directly to the game: Madden 22: Aviators vs Bulls Week 7 - Can The Bulls Stay In ARC North Contentions? | RFL Season 7
Lancers vs Shamrocks
This is definitely the game of the week. After a slow first 5 minutes, Oklahoma City started the scoring with a scoop and score. Then we went back to a very one-sided quarter in terms of plays but no other scoring plays. It was one-sided in the sense that the Shamrocks had 23 offensive snaps for 113 passing yards and 35 rushing yards while the Lancers only had 6 offensive snaps with 7 passing yards and 1 rushing yard. But the one defensive play had them in the lead. Second-quarter came with 3 touchdowns in the final 4 minutes and 2 of those in the final minute and got the fans awake to go into the second half. Shamrocks were down 21-10 thanks to a long pass play by Tom Wilson to Nicholas Andrews for a touchdown. In the second quarter, we saw a lot more of the Lancers offense with them getting 2 touchdowns and ending the half with 123 passing yards which is a big jump from their 7 at the end of the first quarter. Shamrocks managed to add another 100+ passing yards as well to their stats. But were only able to get a field goal before the long touchdown at the end.
In the third quarter, the lancers came out strong and got a good pass play that resulted in a touchdown to go up 28-10. But the Shamrocks could only answer with a field goal. Throughout much of the early parts of the game, both teams would have drives that took several minutes off the clock but would still end in punts. But the 4th quarter was like a completely different ball game.
With a total of 49 points being scored in this single quarter, neither team wanted to lose down the stretch. After the Shamrocks get another field goal, Trey Maison answers with a huge touchdown pass to John Johnson. This made it 35-16 and had many fans thinking of going home. If any did, they missed something they may not see again for a while. With less than 7 minutes to go the Shamrocks score a touchdown. About a minute late the Shamrocks get a pick 6. Making it a 35-30 game. Another minute goes by and we get another Shamrocks pick 6. Oklahoma City comes down the field and answers back after a review with another long bomb from Trey Maison. Another Wilson to Andrews bomb gets the Shamrocks the lead 45-42 right before the 2-minute warning. The Lancers march down the field but get stuck at the 6-yard line and have to kick a field goal. WE GOT OVERTIME! The Lancers got the ball first but the Shamrocks held strong. After getting the punt, Tom Wilson was determined to win the game. Throwing an absolutely beautiful pass deep, he finds Roland Woods. They set up some runs for the field goal. And here is the final call by Smitty.
Tom Wilson finished the game with 32 completions for 495 yards and 3 touchdowns while Trey Maison III finished with 28 completions, 410 yards, 3 touchdowns but two costly pick-sixes. Lancers run game was non-existent which did allow time to be on the clock as they had to throw more. Dublin's Lester Gasden had 28 rushes for 104 yards which helped enough for the Shamrocks to keep Oklahoma City guessing. Lancers two receivers Johnson and McLeland combined for 16 receptions, 326 yards, and 3 touchdowns. While Dublin's Andrews, Woods, and Agurs had 16 receptions for 350 yards and 2 touchdowns. Craig Chatman and Eric Hamiter had the two pick-sixes.
Shamrocks will be up against the Steamers next week while the Lancers will up against the Desperados.
To watch the full game, go to the Relocation Football league channel on YouTube or follow this link directly to the game: Madden 22: Lancers vs Shamrocks Week 7 - Who Will End Their Losing Streak? | RFL Season 7
To watch the full 4th quarter use the following link: Must-see 4th quarter
Diablos vs Monarchs
A lot of fans were predicting a heavily defensive game going into this showdown. They were not wrong. A back and forth first quarter ended 0-0 with neither team wanting to give up anything. According to the stats sheet, the Diablos had -53 rushing yards? craziness. The Monarchs finished with -1 passing yards. In the second quarter, both teams managed a touchdown and a field goal. the Diablos were able to throw for 170 yards in the first half but again a somehow -43 yards on the ground. London was able to get 94 passing yards and 34 rushing hards before halftime. Both defenses looked sharp in forcing long drives and not giving up very many points up to this stage in the game. The highlight from this quarter was the scoring off a nice pass in the back corner of the end zone to tie the game at 7.
The second half brought more defense. The Monarchs' defense was a little better in only giving up a field goal while their offense was able to score a touchdown on the Diablos. Diablos could only get 40 passing yards in the quarter while the monarchs went from 94 to 227 passing yards. Neither team had much going in the run game. The final quarter came around and only London could find 3 points in another defensive slugfest 15 minutes. In the final few minutes, Mexico City had a chance to win the game but McAfton was not able to find someone on first, second or third down, then on the final play for his team, he finds the defender. Both teams were able to get over 200 passing yards but for some reason, McAfton and the diablos couldn't put those passes together when it mattered most. Preston Shroeder had some struggles too but he was able to finish off two drives for touchdown passes.
Both teams will get a win next week in non-RFL games so hopefully, they can get some work on offense to be able to make sure their good defenses stay fresh as the season goes on.
To watch the full game, go to the Relocation Football league channel on YouTube or follow this link directly to the game: Madden 22: Diablos vs Monarchs Week 7 - Battle Of The Backs! Axel vs Rhodes! | RFL Season 7
Bulldogs vs Miners
The London Bulldogs came into this game off a loss to their divisional opponent the Orlando Sentinels. Even with a slow start, you could tell they wanted this game. A huge second quarter for 24 points, a big defensive game with multiple forced fumbles. The defenses rocking and the offense was cruising. With only 11 snaps in the first quarter, the Bulldogs had 19 passing and 19 rushing yards. The defense was on the field a lot, 20 snaps in fact. Not expecting the miners to jump out the gate as they did, London gave up 7 points in the first. But then came the second quarter. On the first play, they forced a fumble which was recovered by Duke Pascal. A few minutes later after Timmy Merritt had started the game 3/8 with 21 yards and 1 interception, the offense gets a good little drive going which leads to a nice pass and catch that turns into a touchdown. First play on the Miners next drive, another fumble. This time it is returned for a touchdown by Duke Pascal. A quick one-two punch to make it a 14-7 game. After the miners stall, the Bulldogs march down the field and Timmy Merritt makes another touchdown throw for the second of the game.
At halftime, London was winning 24-7 with 189 passing yards and 50 rushing yards to the Miners 64 passing yards and 89 rushing yards. With only two full drives in the 3rd quarter, all they could put together was a missed field goal. 8 seconds into the 4th quarter and the Bulldogs laid the boom again on the punt returner and forced another fumble. A few plays later and Timmy Merritt throws his 3rd touchdown. They then get the ball with 8:25 to go into the game and go on a very long drive to cap off with a touchdown with 1:49 left and a 38 - 21 lead. They then lay the boom once again for a 4th fumble of the game and use the rest of the clock. The Sacramento Miners have been inconsistent on the year, week in and week out we do not know what team we would get. At the start of the game, they looked good. They scored the first touchdown off a toss play inside the 5-yard line.
The defense also held the Bulldogs to 0 points and not much of anything on offense in the first quarter. The second quarter is where the struggles kicked in. A fumble by Dmani Manuel, gave some momentum to the Bulldogs but they wanted to play with their food so Merritt gave it right back. After another struggling drive, they give up a long drive and a touchdown. Then Dmani Manuel fumbles a second time and this time the Bulldogs weren't playing and immediately scored. Like I said before, the Miners struggled to do much of anything this quarter and finished the half without reaching 100 rushing or 100 passing yards. In the third quarter, they were able to hold the Bulldogs to 0 points again but the only score they could get was a good run by Dmani Manuel. In the 4th quarter the defense does give up 14 points which hurt compared to the 3rd quarter display but you can't blame them after being stuck deep in their own end of the field on one of the touchdown scores for the Bulldogs. One bright spot this quarter was a dime from Chum Lee to Buck Ulbrich. The defense not getting off the field on the next Bulldogs' drive killed the game and also the 4th fumble completely ended it.
The Bulldogs looked back to their old ways and the Miners left searching for more answers again. They had 2 great quarters against the Bulldogs but there are 4 in a game. You need 4 complete ones to beat this team right now. The Bulldogs will be enjoying a win next week against a non-RFL team and the Miners will also be getting a win next week against a non-RFL team but they will be hoping to get some answers while they are out there digging away at the playbook.
To watch the full game, go to the Relocation Football league channel on YouTube or follow this link directly to the game: Madden 22: Bulldogs vs Miners Week 7 - Can the Bulldogs bounce back | RFL Season 7