Soul destroy Predators...

;)

You don't have to apologize to us! We're more than happy to see other Southern Division teams take any extra loss they can.

Well then we're all happy, all the way around... ;) :P

So long as we don't talk about a certain Mr. 81, yes, we can be happy for now.

No we are not happy we lost.

Since it's the Georgia Force "AND" Arena Football, gotta let it slide. Just don't make a habit of it. :P

The Soul did have a hellva game though. I'll give them credit. Impressive numbers across the board.

But IF we don't win but one game all season, I hope we beat the crap out of them. 45v6v

And the MNF offer still stands..... Hope you make the game.
fgtb76

Everything depends on my relocation schedule...but if there's any way I can, I will...I love to drink beer, watch football, and drink more beer... :P

We don't have to talk about him, but it does require at least a mentioning that he had a fantastic game... You can't fault him for liking Bon Jovi's money better than Blank's...;)

2-0 and both a Graziani and Jackson both had another great game... :) ;)

Hey, I thought we said not to talk about #81 - HA HA HA That includes using his name in any post. :D

But with your Offensive Coordinator, I have faith that they will have problems down the road.

I don't see why you would think that...Connell Maynor was a great all around player...he boast outstanding all around stats in passing, receiving, and rushing...and he's even played defense and proven he can run back kicks. He also brings championship experience as a QB...I would think he'd be a perfect fit at OC...the Soul have a dynamic offense with the league's best QB and some damn fine receivers...but again, I'm still all kinda new to all of this...having only been following the sport for the past couple of seasons...just not seeing how Maynor will be liability... :huh:

3-0 start...and yet another great week for Graziani and You Know Who at WR... ;) Next week...the Western Div. leading LA Avengers...not sure what to expect from that one, after what the Force did to the Avengers, but I figure that if we continue to play offense as well as we have been playing, there won't be many, if any, teams that are going to stand in our way for too long... ;)

How is Graz?


Matt D'razio isn't a bad backup to have.

Don't worry, Bon Jovi will be flipping us off again when we end Phillys season!

As of now, it's just a sprained knee, and it's unclear if he'll be able to play against the Avengers...yes, D'Orazio is nice backup to have, if needed. :)

This would be you'd first have to be lucky and competent enough to actually make it to the playoffs to end our season...so, we'll wait and see if you get there first... :)

I think it is actually harder NOT to make the playoffs in the AFL.

Well, if Philly does win it all then they'll at least have an excuse when they pee in the streets.

Um...you've got a point... :huh: 6g65dd

They have that now...have you ever visited there? Seen the public restrooms? Trust me, pissing in the street is usually excused because the street and the restrooms smell the same... :P ;)

Remember, I'm not a fan of the city...just of the Soul... g6wvuymh87

Mr Injury Prone went down in the 3rd quarter with a sprained knee so the entire season may have just changed for the Soul.

More like "man-love" for JBJ.......... :rolleyes: :P

Soul win but lose star QB
By John Kopp

Inquirer Staff Writer

The 16,102 fans watching the Soul at the Wachovia Center on Sunday erupted in a chorus of cheers.
Tony Graziani had just hit his favorite target, Chris Jackson, for a 21-yard touchdown pass in the third quarter.

Then the arena went silent.

Graziani lay on the turf, writhing in pain from his left knee.

With help, Graziani limped off the field a few moments later, and the Soul went on to beat the New York Dragons, 63-42. But instead of celebrating their 3-0 start, the Soul were left pondering life without their star quarterback.

Graziani injured his medial collateral ligament and will miss at least two to three weeks, team internist Daniel Lazowick said. The exact injury will be determined after Graziani undergoes an MRI test.

Graziani was watching Jackson chase down his pass in the end zone when Dragons defensive lineman John Nix wiped out Graziani at the knees about two seconds after the pass. Graziani said he never saw it coming.

"I've been late-hit a lot; I've been cheap-shotted a lot, but that was by far the worst," Graziani said. "It's bush league. The referee actually said he was watching the ball, because it was so late that he didn't even see the hit. That's how late it was."

Nix was assessed a 15-yard penalty for roughing the passer but remained in the game, much to the dismay of the Soul. They already had problems this season with Nix, who was tossed from each of the teams' two scrimmages during training camp.

"I respect the Dragons' organization," Soul coach Bret Munsey said. "I know they don't teach that kind of football, but yet [Nix] has had a reputation of dirty play. We need to clean that stuff up."

"I've already called Jerry Trice up at the league office," Soul president Ron Jaworski said, referring the league's vice president of football operations. "You've got to throw the guy out. It's that simple. If you allow that to happen, then it's going to continue to happen."

It did.

Nix drew a personal foul late in the fourth quarter. On the very next play, he was assessed an unsportsmanlike-conduct penalty. This time, Nix was ejected.

"I'm sure there'll be some conference calls tomorrow," Jaworski said.

Unfortunately for the Soul, that won't get Graziani back onto the field any sooner.

The injury is the latest in a series Graziani has incurred the last three seasons. He missed four games last season after separating his left shoulder. In 2006, a dislocated index finger and a torn hamstring sent him to the bench for four games.

The Soul slumped without him both times, but he returned each season to lead the Soul into the playoffs.

The off-season addition of Jackson had the Soul talking Arena Bowl championship, but the signing of quarterback Matt D'Orazio looms large now. D'Orazio quarterbacked the Chicago Rush to an Arena Bowl title in 2006, then tossed a career-high 82 touchdowns last season.

D'Orazio led the Soul on two fourth-quarter touchdown drives to preserve the victory, completing 6 of 10 passes and rushing for a score. Graziani, who left the game with the Soul ahead by 42-28, finished 16 for 27 with 204 yards, six touchdowns and two interceptions.

"It just stinks, because Tony has worked so hard and he deserves to be out there playing," D'Orazio said. "He'll be back, he'll definitely be back."

Until then, D'Orazio is the guy.

"Matt's come in, and he's a seasoned vet," Jackson said. "He's won an Arena Bowl. He's taken Chicago to win one. You can't ask for a better backup."
Top : Bottom

I'm fairly certain that D'Orazio will be able to keep the ship steady until Graz's return...and if he can't...well then I'd say that the Force's chances of winning more games than they lose this season will slightly improve...but hell, a trained seal could come in throw TDs to #81...of course the Force fans should know that, since he was one of the biggest reasons for your success last season... :P

Kinda takes the luster off Graziani then, doesn't it?

We traded ours to Columbus.

To some extent...but makes Graziani great was his ability to spread out another 3 or 4 TDs a game to other WRs besides Jackson... :P

Yup and we should remind some, his replacement, our current QB, set the league record of 117 TD's in a single season.......

But the more important factor was our defense which held the opposing offense to under 40 in all but two games and lead the league in stops.

Much like LA found out Saturday night on 8 consecutively ran plays for the end zone from the 5 yard line or less. And damn, we're missing two starting stars on defense.

Bergeron was knocking on CJ's door last year and Lee and Carl had good numbers also.

CJ was the TD leader, but he didn't carry the team, which was more than apparent in the Championship game.

So, you're telling me that even with CJ last year, you guys couldn't win the championship...and now, minus your best WR, you're off to a 1-2 start, and you honestly think you're a better team now? :unsure: And you said I was crazy for backing the Soul? :P

Nope, just pointing out facts. We didn't win it with CJ last year, and in all likelihood I serious doubt Philly will this year because of CJ. And for the record, CJ is a great player, not taking anything away from him. (Had things been different and that Falcons convick hadn't cost Blank millions, he may have been able to keep him in Atlanta. A few on these boards know how close the Force came to actually being sold.)

If I'm wrong you know I will be the first to admit it.

Granted a late cheap shot knocked Graziani out but it was just a matter of time before he went down. I don't think D'Orazio can or will carry the team. But then again, you did say a trained seal could throw TD's to CJ. Time will tell.

Dane has said all along 3 weeks isn't enough time to prepare for a season, as evident by our play the first 3 weeks. Plank admitted that mistake after Saturday's game. And we still have a lot of improvements to make.

Can we pull off another run to the Championship?

No one expected 14-2 last year, so we'll have to wait and see.

No doubt C.J was a big part of the Force the past few years. Probally the best route runner the league has ever seen. But we still got Troy (who was at times hotter than Jackson) and Morris and Pualey are more than capable of holding down the 2 &3 slots while Marshall's not a bad bench Wr either. The biggest problem has been they haven't yet gelled. Last week the offense played a pretty good game so they could be very well be nearing thier former firepower. The secondary seems to still be a concern, the've been burnt a couple times but hopefully Milligan and Crocker can remedy this when they return. The Force just need to keep winning and stay in the division hunt untill then.


Unfortunately in this league if you miss the playoffs you seriously run the risk of folding or being demoted to af2, so the pressure to succeed is always on. But I'm not too worried about Mr. Blanks finnaciel situation. He is an incredibly weathly man. Not to long ago he looked in to acquiring the braves and he is still one of the leading canidates for the ownership of the future MLS team.

In all seriousness, outside of the friend smack talk here...I respect the Force, their tremendous fans, and of course, Uncle Artie...I don't see that franchise going bellyup anytime soon...neither will the Soul though... :) ;)

Well like I said, "If I'm wrong, I'll be man enough to admit it."

So get out the crow and serve it up.

Just damn is all I can say.

D’Orazio didn't seem to miss a beat and CJ had 6 TD's. But then again, Ton said a trained seal could hit CJ. Either or they got it done.

Three teams have a shot at beating them, but it's gunna be a hard played game to succeed.

I wasn't gonna say nuffin...well, Ok, I was, but not for another couple of days... :)

D'Orazio isn't a slouch...he's not your typical backup...he's won a title before as a starting QB...he'll be fine until Graz comes back...and to correct an earlier erroneous statement that you made...3 teams don't have a chance to beat us...only 1 team does...The Soul. If we don't beat ourselves, then we'll be just fine... :)

Atta Boy Matty D....nice game...he and CJ were CLUTCH...!!! 5-0... :)

Congrats I watched the game and ya all look pretty damn good.

The Soul is on a roll and in a very dangerous situation next week.

They play Utah.............. an 0-5 team with nothing to lose and everything to gain. How embarrassing would that loss be?

On the other hand, and seriously, I don't think Utah can or will beat them, but how many times have we seen an NFL, like the Falcons who are the Kings of losing, go in a spoil someones record? It can happen. That's why they play the games.

But the game I'm waiting for will be played on April 28th.

Philly vs Dallas. That one could be better than this years Arena Bowl.......

A MNAF game. Hell I'm almost tempted to put together a viewing party for that one, especially if both are still undefeated.

Woohoo...6-0, another one bites the field turf...D'Orazio and CJ hooked up for 5 TDs...Next Up, San Jose... :P ;)

With New Orleans handing San Jose their ass hat Philly has got to be pickled tink to be playing one very confused San Jose team. It's going to be very hard for the Sabercats to get a handle on a solution to their problems much less a solution to beating Philly. This game should be another win for Philly but they can't mail in their performance on this game like they did this week against Utah. If they do then it's very likely the Saberkitties will scratch as this game is in San Jose. Still I see Philly winning albeit a close one.

So far Philly's season has been much like this last game against Utah. Mailed in. I'll grant you they've played three teams that ain't nothing to sneeze at but Chicago stumbled out of the gate and still has yet to perform at the same level as the last two years however they are getting better every week. Orlando is a very average team this year. Tampa is quickly disentigrating so I have a hard time throwing them in as a qualified W but that's a much better qualified W than LA, UT or NY.

With that said looking at the rest of Philly's schedule I just can't see them going the distance undefeated. They have two big games against Dallas and three bubble games against Columbus (twice) and one away at Georgia (call me a Homer). The biggest of all these will be against Dallas in Dallas. Everyone will know before that game what the rest of the season will look like depending on their performance over the next three games and especially that third game down the road with Dallas coming to town on the 28th. All the AFL will be watching that game. If I were a betting man I'd throw down with Dallas but that's a hard call as I hates Dallas... ah heck, I hates Philly too. End of season estimate 13-3 maybe 12-4. Home field advantage in the playoffs goes to Dallas winning the division at 14-2 maybe 13-3.

We'll be just fine as the season goes forward. We're beating teams, good or bad, with our backup QB. Dallas is a good team, but they've played a schedule that's no harder than what we've played. The Force will always be a tough team, but with your best WR last season, no playing for us, not to mention starting a better QB (either of them), we should cruise in that game...there's been no phoning it in this season. We're simply just playing at a higher level right now. If we maintain our focus, I see no reason why things won't go as they've gone so far...going undefeated isn't likely, I know...but based on what I've seen so far from the rest of the league, I'm having a hard time just arbitrarily selecting any team to beat us...as of now, I'll stick to my statement a few weeks ago...the only team that can beat the Soul, is the Soul. :)