Week 19 Picks

Last Week: 5-4

Overall: 82-63 (.566)

Pittsburgh at Cleveland: PITTSBURGH.

Iowa at Milwaukee: IOWA.

Jacksonville at Kansas City: JACKSONVILLE.

Georgia at Tampa Bay: GEORGIA.

Orlando at Tulsa: TULSA.

Chicago at Dallas: CHICAGO.

New Orleans at Utah: UTAH.

San Jose at Spokane: SAN JOSE.

Week 18 Picks

Last Week: 3-5

Overall: 77-59 (.583)

Cleveland at Philadelphia: CLEVELAND.

Milwaukee at New Orleans: NEW ORLEANS.

Dallas at Jacksonville: JACKSONVILLE.

Chicago at Georgia: CHICAGO.

Tampa Bay at Tulsa: TULSA.

Kansas City at Iowa: IOWA.

Utah at Spokane: SPOKANE.

Orlando at San Jose: ORLANDO.

Arizona at Pittsburgh: ARIZONA.

Week 17 Picks

Last Week: 5-4

Overall: 74-54 (.578)

New Orleans VooDoo at Tampa Bay Storm: TAMPA BAY.

Pittsburgh Power at Orlando Predators: PITTSBURGH.

Tulsa Talons at Iowa Barnstormers: TULSA.

Utah Blaze at Chicago Rush: CHICAGO.

Jacksonville Sharks at San Jose SaberCats: JACKSONVILLE.

Cleveland Gladiators at Milwaukee Mustangs: CLEVELAND.

Spokane Shock at Arizona Rattlers: ARIZONA.

Philadelphia Soul at Dallas Vigilantes: PHILADELPHIA.

Week 16 Picks

Last Week: 5-4

Overall: 69-50 (.580)

Kansas City at Utah: UTAH.

Tampa Bay at Jacksonville: JACKSONVILLE.

San Jose at Cleveland: SAN JOSE.

Arizona at Philadelphia: ARIZONA.

Milwaukee at Pittsburgh: PITTSBURGH.

Georgia at Orlando: ORLANDO.

Spokane at New Orleans: SPOKANE.

Dallas at Tulsa: TULSA.

Iowa at Chicago: IOWA.

Week 15 Picks

Last Week: 3-4

Overall: 64-46 (.582)

Tulsa at Philadelphia: TULSA.

Orlando at Tampa Bay: ORLANDO.

New Orleans at Georgia: GEORGIA.

Milwaukee at Jacksonville: JACKSONVILLE.

Dallas at Iowa: IOWA.

Pittsburgh at Utah: UTAH.

San Jose at Arizona: ARIZONA.

Chicago at Spokane: CHICAGO.

Cleveland at Kansas City: CLEVELAND.

Week 14 Picks

Last Week: 8-0

Overall: 61-42 (.592)

Philadelphia Soul at Spokane Shock: PHILADELPHIA.

Georgia Force at Cleveland Gladiators: GEORGIA.

Pittsburgh Power at Tampa Bay Storm: PITTSBURGH.

Jacksonville Sharks at Orlando Predators: JACKSONVILLE.

Kansas City Command at Milwaukee Mustangs: KANSAS CITY.

Utah Blaze at Tulsa Talons: TULSA.

Iowa Barnstormers at Arizona Rattlers: ARIZONA.

Week 13 Picks

Last Week: 5-3

Overall: 53-42 (.558)

Milwaukee Mustangs at Philadelphia Soul: PHILADELPHIA.

Jacksonville Sharks at New Orleans VooDoo: JACKSONVILLE.

Chicago Rush at Kansas City Command: CHICAGO.

Cleveland Gladiators at Pittsburgh Power: PITTSBURGH.

Tampa Bay Storm at Georgia Force: GEORGIA.

Orlando Predators at Iowa Barnstormers: ORLANDO.

San Jose SaberCats at Dallas Vigilantes: DALLAS.

Arizona Rattlers at Utah Blaze: ARIZONA.

Week 12 Picks

Last Week: 2-5

Overall: 48-39 (.552)

Orlando Predators at Milwaukee Mustangs: ORLANDO.

New Orleans VooDoo at Philadelphia Soul: PHILADELPHIA.

Utah Blaze at Iowa Barnstormers: IOWA.

Spokane Shock at Kansas City Command: SPOKANE.

Pittsburgh Power at Dallas Vigilantes: DALLAS.

Cleveland Gladiators at Arizona Rattlers: ARIZONA.

Georgia Force at San Jose SaberCats: SAN JOSE.

Tulsa Talons at Chicago Rush: CHICAGO.

Week 11 Picks

Last Week: 4-5

Overall: 46-34 (.575)

Arizona Rattlers at New Orleans VooDoo: ARIZONA.

Tampa Bay Storm at Spokane Shock: SPOKANE.

Philadelphia Soul at Cleveland Gladiators: PHILADELPHIA.

Jacksonville Sharks at Georgia Force: JACKSONVILLE.

Kansas City Command at Tulsa Talons: TULSA.

San Jose SaberCats at Utah Blaze: SAN JOSE.

Dallas Vigilantes at Chicago Rush: DALLAS.

Week 10 Picks

Last Week: 5-4

Overall: 42-29 (.592)

Georgia Force at Philadelphia Soul: GEORGIA.

Kansas City Command at Tampa Bay Storm: TAMPA BAY.

Tulsa Talons at New Orleans VooDoo: TULSA.

Iowa Barnstormers at Jacksonville Sharks: JACKSONVILLE.

San Jose SaberCats at Pittsburgh Power: SAN JOSE.

Cleveland Gladiators at Orlando Predators: ORLANDO.

Milwaukee Mustangs at Utah Blaze: UTAH.

Chicago Rush at Arizona Rattlers: ARIZONA.

Dallas Vigilantes at Spokane Shock: DALLAS.

Week 9 Picks

Last Week: 2-6

Overall: 37-25 (.597)

Jacksonville Sharks at Philadelphia Soul: JACKSONVILLE.

Milwaukee Mustangs at Cleveland Gladiators: MILWAUKEE.

Tampa Bay Storm at Orlando Predators: ORLANDO.

Utah Blaze at Georgia Force: UTAH.

Spokane Shock at Pittsburgh Power: SPOKANE.

New Orleans VooDoo at Kansas City Command: KANSAS CITY.

Chicago Rush at Tulsa Talons: TULSA.

Iowa Barnstormers at Dallas Vigilantes: IOWA.

Arizona Rattlers at San Jose SaberCats: ARIZONA.

Week 8 Picks

Last Week: 5-4
Overall: 35-19 (.648)

Tulsa Talons at Cleveland Gladiators: TULSA.

Dallas Vigilantes at Kansas City Command: KANSAS CITY.

Pittsburgh Power at Georgia Force: PITTSBURGH.

Tampa Bay Storm at Milwaukee Mustangs: TAMPA BAY.

New Orleans VooDoo at Chicago Rush: CHICAGO.

Orlando Predators at Jacksonville Sharks: JACKSONVILLE.

Philadelphia Soul at Iowa Barnstormers: IOWA.

Arizona Rattlers at Spokane Shock: ARIZONA.

Week 7 Picks

Last Week: 6-3
Overall: 30-15 (.667)

Pittsburgh Power at New Orleans VooDoo: PITTSBURGH.

Kansas City Command at Chicago Rush: CHICAGO.

Philadelphia Soul at San Jose SaberCats: SAN JOSE.

Cleveland Gladiators at Jacksonville Sharks: CLEVELAND.

Dallas Vigilantes at Tampa Bay Storm. DALLAS.

Spokane Shock at Orlando Predators : ORLANDO.

Georgia Force at Milwaukee Mustangs: MILWAUKEE.

Iowa Barnstormers at Tulsa Talons: TULSA.

Utah Blaze at Arizona Rattlers: ARIZONA.

Week 6 Picks

Last Week: 3-1
Overall: 24-12 (.667)

Milwaukee Mustangs at Dallas Vigilantes: DALLAS. The Mustangs had an outstanding last second win against Philly in their last outing. However, they have not faced a defense as good at the Vigilante's. If Dallas can get solid QB play they should walk to a win.

Tampa Bay Storm at Philadelphia Soul: PHILADELPHIA. Philadelphia has taken a horrible 3 game slide. Luckily, they run into a Storm team in disarray. Even in Tampa's one win this season, they didn't throw a single TD. Philadelphia should have no problems here.

Spokane Shock at Utah Blaze: SPOKANE. This is the game of the week in my opinion. Spokane, while struggling to start the season, are still the defending champs. Utah is one of the darlings of this season, going from worst in the league last year to becoming one of the best teams in the league. This one is likely to come to the wire, but the Shock should squeak it out to begin returning to form.

Jacksonville Sharks at Pittsburgh Power: JACKSONVILLE. The Power have been beaten up over the first four game. On their third QB of the season due to injury, they should have trouble getting past Jacksonville which is one of the best teams in the league.

Orlando Predators at Georgia Force: ORLANDO. Georgia is a surprising 3-1. However, their opponents in those three wins are a whopping 3-9. Orlando, however, is one of the most complete teams in the league. Their only loss is to the best team in the league, on a last second score. Orlando should easily improve to 4-1.

New Orleans VooDoo at Cleveland Gladiators: CLEVELAND. Umm the WhoDoo? Cleveland in a blowout.

Arizona Rattlers at Kansas City Command: ARIZONA. KC got a strong win against a solid Iowa team on overall great play on both sides of the ball. However, they face the top of the ladder this week against the Rattlers. Arizona is too complete to let this one go.

San Jose SaberCats at Tulsa Talons: SAN JOSE. Hard to do it, but San Jose is the better team RIGHT NOW. But this Talons team is continuing to improve, and the defensive backs bring the pain. However, the Talons will need to pressure San Jose QB Mark Grieb to have any chance.

Chicago Rush at Iowa Barnstormers: CHICAGO. This may end up being a great game if Brad Banks plays to his potential for the Barnstormers. However, Chicago has an outstanding defense combined with an All-Star QB. Chicago should win, but by how much depends on Brad Banks.

Week 5 Picks

Last Week: 6-3
Overall: 21-11 (.656)

Dallas Vigilantes at Georgia Force: DALLAS. The NFL game of the week looks to be a good one. Dallas is coming off a bad loss to Utah. Georgia on the other hand completely dominated the VooDoo. Dallas looks to be the better team of the two, behind a great rookie coach. Expect Dallas to bounce back with a strong win.

Utah Blaze at San Jose SaberCats: SAN JOSE. The loss of Gabe Nyenhuis to the Injured Reserve will hurt a San Jose defense that has been less than stellar all year. However, San Jose has to have been focusing on defense all week after the shortfalls of the past few weeks. They should be able to come out and put on a strong showing against the Blaze.

Philadelphia Soul at Orlando Predators: ORLANDO. The Soul have disappeared since their great showing in Week 1. Orlando, despite losing last week, have been playing outstanding ball and is one of the best teams in the league. They should roll to another win.

Iowa Barnstormers at Kansas City Command: KANSAS CITY. Iowa has looked amazing so far this season with impressive wins over Spokane and San Jose. But for some reason this Kansas City team has me intrigued. In front of a strong home crowd the Command should get over the hump and get that first win.

Week 4 Picks

Last Week: 5-2
Overall: 15-8 (.652)

Dallas Vigilantes at Utah Blaze: UTAH.

Jacksonville Sharks at Tampa Bay Storm: JACKSONVILLE.

Iowa Barnstormers at San Jose SaberCats: SAN JOSE.

Kansas City Command at Spokane Shock: SPOKANE.

Chicago Rush at Cleveland Gladiators: CLEVELAND.

Tulsa Talons at Pittsburgh Power: TULSA.

Georgia Force at New Orleans VooDoo: NEW ORLEANS.

Orlando Predators at Arizona Rattlers: ARIZONA.

Philadelphia Soul at Milwaukee Mustangs: PHILADELPHIA.

Week 3 Picks

Last Week: 6-3
Overall: 10-6 (.625)

Spokane Shock at Iowa Barnstormers: SPOKANE. Spokane finally catches a break here. Going up against two of the best teams in the league is a hard way to start the season for any team. It obviously is even harder on the defending champs. Expect them to finally settle into a groove against a lesser Iowa team.

San Jose SaberCats at Chicago Rush: CHICAGO. This is a toss up. Last week Chicago looked outstanding in a blowout rout of the Soul. The SaberCats were less than impressive in their matchup against the Command. In any toss up, the nod has to be given to the home team.

New Orleans VooDoo at Jacksonville Sharks: JACKSONVILLE. Jacksonville has been a little underachieving this season, but the come up against a struggling VooDoo team. The VooDoo may need a win bad, but the Sharks should be able to take care of things.

Utah Blaze at Orlando Predators: UTAH. Another marquee matchup for Week 3. The Blaze were amazing in their opener last week. Meanwhile the Predators struggled at times to put away a lesser VooDoo team. Utah, as long as Grady plays smart, should pull away with a win.

Cleveland Gladiators at Tampa Bay Storm: CLEVELAND. Losing Dutton for the season hurts, but they come up against a Storm team that has trouble scoring in the air. Cleveland gave the defending champions fits, and that should continue this week.

Arizona Rattlers at Tulsa Talons: ARIZONA. Odie Armstrong returns to the BOK Center in an unfamiliar color. He comes backed with one of the best offensive teams in the league. The Talons have the hardest home opener matchups of any team in the league. The Talons should struggle and fall short, but prove me wrong.

Pittsburgh Power at Milwaukee Mustangs: PITTSBURGH. The Mustangs have struggled with QB play this season. Pittsburgh shouldn't make that any easier either. The Power should control the game and allow their offense to pull away with the win.

Week 2 Picks

Last Week: 4-3
Overall: 4-3 (.571)

Tampa Bay Storm at Utah Blaze: UTAH. The Storm surprised people last week, but that was mainly because of how surprisingly bad the New Orleans VooDoo's line was. Utah has built a much stronger team than last year and should be able to stave off the defending conference champions.

Orlando Predators at New Orleans VooDoo: ORLANDO. Orlando has brought back a large portion of their talent from last year that took them into the second round of the playoffs. They will be missing WR Bobby Sippio though and that could hurt. However, QB Nick Hill was sharp at the end of the season and if he continues that then the VooDoo should be well overmatched.

Philadelphia Soul at Chicago Rush: PHILADELPHIA. Well Philadelphia has picked up where last season's Talons left off. Allgood-Morgan should be better covered this week forcing Allgood to other receivers. The problem, Phily's other receivers are pretty good too.

Georgia Force at Jacksonville Sharks: JACKSONVILLE. Wow, what happened to Jacksonville's defense last week? Expect a strong turnaround on that side of the ball to give the Force more than they can handle.

Kansas City Command at San Jose SaberCats: SAN JOSE. The SaberCats look like they never took two years off. They utterly dominated the defending champs. I really don't see KC even competing in this one.

Tulsa Talons at Dallas Vigilantes: TULSA. I have to say Dallas looked impressive in their game last week. However, that game was against the Command. On the other side, Tulsa was pretty shaky, at least on defense and special teams. However, Bobby Reid is proving that he's a force to watch out for. Expect long routes to open up for the Talons as the defense stays home to cover Reid.

Iowa Barnstormers at Pittsburgh Power: PITTSBURGH. Pittsburgh was impressive in their opener against the Soul. They appear to be a very complete team that is just a step or two away from championship caliber. They should easily handle an overmatched Iowa team.

Milwaukee Mustangs at Arizona Rattlers: ARIZONA. The Mustangs, while keeping it close all game, was never a threat to the Rush this past week. On the other side, Arizona was very sharp in their opener against a very talented Jacksonville game. This should be a solid win for the Rattlers.

Cleveland Gladiators at Spokane Shock: SPOKANE. Cleveland has a talented roster, boasted even more with the return of Troy Bergeron. However, they walk into an opening game against a Spokane team coming off a rough loss and ready to avenge. Expect a strong showing from Spokane to barely knock off Cleveland.

Week 1 Picks

Tampa Bay at New Orleans: NEW ORLEANS. The Storm have lost a lot from last season. Quarterback. Coach. Everything else. They are basically a shell of the team they once were. This could be a very tough season for them. The VooDoo has quietly put together a solid team that could surprise some people. Of course, I could just be hoping for my old Talons to do well!

Philadelphia at Pittsburgh: PHILADELPHIA. This matchup offers something interesting. Terrance Carter v. Justin Allgood. Teammates for years finally face off. Philadelphia has put together a championship caliber team, but still have to prove it on the field. Pittsburgh has a strong defense (which should make the town proud) but offense is still questionable.

Spokane at San Jose: SAN JOSE. The Sabercats make their return to the AFL to take on the defending champs. This should be great motivation going into the game. The Sabercats are well balanced on both sides of the ball and should impress people. The Shock, while retaining a lot of talent from last season, have lost some stars.

Kansas City at Dallas: DALLAS. Dallas was one of the biggest disappointments of last season (partially due to their opening loss to the Talons). Coming back with Dallas hero Clint Dolezel as head coach should help inspire them to an opening victory over the Command.

Jacksonville at Arizona: JACKSONVILLE. Jacksonville was last season's darling franchise. They should continue that this week against a strong Arizona team. Jacksonville has one of the league's best defenses and has added offensive threat Jeff Hughley. However, Arizona does have one of the best fullbacks in the league, Odie Armstrong.

Tulsa at Georgia: TULSA. Georgia seems somewhat in disarray at this point. There are big questions as to who will be at quarterback. Tulsa on the other hand had a great showing at a scrimmage against Dallas last week. This should be a great learning game for the Talons along the way to a victory.

Chicago at Milwaukee: CHICAGO. Really nothing much to say here. Chicago is still in recovery mode after Coach Ho left. However, Milwaukee, while being more successful in promoting the team, has had a less than stellar offseason.

ArenaBowl XIII Preview and Pick

Tonight marks the 23rd Championship Game for the Arena Football League. The game has an amazing matchup between the Tampa Bay Storm and the Spokane Shock.

The Tampa Bay Storm has been a model franchise in their roughly 20 years in the league. In that time the team has won 5 Arena Bowl Championship.

The Spokane Shock however have been the model of af2 excellence before joining the AFL this season. They did not miss a beat however. The Shock showed that af2 teams can make the move up and be successful.

Now onto the matchup. Both teams are outstanding on Offense. Tampa Bay has one of the best offensive lines I have seen all season. The only time they haven't been good is against poor competition (giving up a lot of sack to Dallas). Spokane has an equally impressive line. Both teams also have solid quarterbacks that worked their way through the af2. The big kicker on offense is that Spokane's star receiver is not expected to play. That could end up costing them a stop or two.

On Defense the Shock seem to plan to outscore people. Their defense is solid, but no where near as dominant as the Storm's. The Storm two weeks ago gave the Talons, one of the league's best offenses, fits all night. The Storm also have a superior pass rush. Even if they don't get sacks the pressure they get on Spokane will show.

I really don't know how to pick this game because it seems to really be a toss up. I will however say that it seems and feels Tampa Bay has a real edge. For that reason I'm going to pick Tampa Bay by less than 6.

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