Orlando Predators Game Notes
May 13, 2003 - Arena Football League (AFL)
Orlando Predators News Release
QUICK FACTS:
Orlando Predators (11-4-0) at Detroit Fury (8-7-0)
Date: Friday, May 16, 2003
Toe-to-Leather Time: 7:30 p.m. (EDT)
Site: The Palace of Auburn Hills (14,826)
Officials: Referee: Bill Athan; Umpire: Rick Nelson; Head Linesman: Neil Brunner; Line Judge: R. G. Detillier Back Judge: Andrew Panucci
Radio: WQTM 740 The Team (Marc Daniels and Tom Morgan)
TV: None
Streaks: Orlando has won five in a row, Detroit has won two in a row.
Series Record: First Meeting in Series
Coaches: Orlando: Fran Papasedero (2nd Season, 20-12-0, .625); Detroit: Al Luginbill (1st Season, 8-7-0, .533)
THE STAKES: With both teams already clinching playoff berths and the top four seeds already determined, this may appear to be a meaningless end-of-season game between two playoff bound teams. Nothing could be further from the truth. For the Predators, currently 11-4, a victory could mean moving up in the final seedings to as high as second â assuring a second home playoff game with a victory in the quarterfinals. It would also mean Orlando would head into the playoffs riding high on the momentum of a six-game winning streak and would also keep them alive for a possible Southern Division championship if Tampa Bay stumbles at Georgia.
For the Fury, the game also carries a lot of importance. Detroit could win the Eastern Division outright and guarantee themselves of a first round home playoff game. Gaining momentum for the playoffs is also an important factor for the Fury, who could finish the season with a three-game winning streak. Depending on the outcome of several games in the final week of the season, a 9-7 record by Detroit may be good enough to claim a number six seeding in the playoffs.
"Without question this last game means a lot to both teams," Predators Head Coach Fran Papasedero says. "We are going up there with a playoff game mentality."
QUOTE OF WEEK: "I told Jay that Carolina was a Pepsi game. When he and Jon were young, they were playing a Little League game against a team sponsored by Pepsi, a team that had not won a game all season. Jay's team was a little overconfident and they lost. Both Jay and Jon were devastated, but from that point on â regardless of the sport -- whenever they were playing a team that everyone thought they would beat, I would remind them...it's a Pepsi Game." âKathy Gruden, Mother of Orlando QB Jay Gruden
IF's:
If the Orlando Predators defeat the Detroit Fury on Friday night, it would:
*Give the Preds a 12-4 record and drop Detroit to 8-8
*Give the Orlando 12 regular season wins for the first time ever
*Give the Orlando a 6-2 road record
*Give the Predators an all-time road record of 60-37-0
*Give Fran Papasedero an all-time record of 21-12-0
*Give the Preds a 1-0 series lead over Detroit
* Give the Preds an all-time record of 131-66-0
*Give the Preds a 4-0 record against Eastern Division teams
*Give the Preds an 8-2 mark against National Conference teams
*Give the Preds a 9-4 mark in season finales
*Would assure the Preds of at least a #3 seed for playoffs
THE CAROLINA GAME: THE GOOD, THE BAD AND THE UGLY
The Good: Orlando's defense was outstanding, holding an opponent to under 40 points for a seventh time this season and for the fourth time in the last five games...the Predators defense recorded a pair of sacks and prevented the Cobras from scoring touchdowns on 8 of 10 drives and from scoring any points on 6 of 10 drives...the Preds defense allowed only two offensive touchdowns and two field goals...Cory Fleming came up big, grabbing three touchdown passes and averaging 18.5 yards on four receptions...Orlando's running game was strong, as the Predators gained a solid 32 yards on nine carries with a pair of touchdowns. The Bad: The Predators continued to have trouble protecting their quarterback, as Jay Gruden was sacked twice and knocked to the turf another half dozen times against a team that came into the game with only eight sacks all season...normally reliable placekicker Brian Schmitz missed all three of his field goal attempts and has now missed 11 straight tries â although almost half of those have come from outside 50 yards. The Ugly: For a second consecutive week, the Predators lost a lineman, as rookie Matt Sweeney went down with a knee injury...Sweeney will be evaluated early this week but will probably be lost for at least a couple of weeks.
A LOOK AT THIS WEEK'S OPPONENT: Detroit was a 2001 expansion team. The Fury finished 7-7 in their inaugural season, losing to Arizona in the first round of the playoffs. Last season, the Fury slipped to 1-13, leading to the dismissal of Head Coach Mouse Davis. Under current Head Coach Tom Luginbill, the Fury have rebounded and now are just one game away from their first division title.
ARENA FOOTBALL LEAGUE STANDINGS: With an 11-4 record, the Predators could finish anywhere from first to fourth in the playoff seedings, depending on the outcome of Week 16 games. The most unlikely scenario would be first, as the Predators would need to win, have Tampa lose and have Los Angeles and San Jose play to an overtime tie. More realistic is a second, third or fourth place finish. Here are the scenarios:
SECOND SEED: The Predators could claim a second seed for the playoffs if they defeat Detroit and Georgia defeats Tampa Bay at home.
THIRD SEED: Predators claim the third seed with a win at Detroit and a Tampa win over Georgia.
FOURTH SEED: Orlando would be the fourth seed with a loss to Detroit and a win by Tampa at Georgia.
Playoff Notes: 11 of the 12 playoff participants have been determined. Buffalo, Carolina and Colorado have been mathematically eliminated from the playoffs...Indiana (6-9) could secure the 12th playoff spot with a victory at Chicago on Sunday...the first round pairings could alter drastically based on the outcome of Week 16 games...round pairings listed above are only if the season was already over...after wildcard games, the lowest remaining seed would play at the #1 seed , the second lowest remaining seed would play at the #2 seed and so forth in the quarterfinal games...although the top four seeds are already set in stone, their order could also change drastically based on Week 16 results.
FAMILIAR FACES: Detroit's roster could also be called Orlando North because of the many ties between the two teams. Among the Detroit players that have spent a portion of their careers with the Predators include WR/LB Junior Lord (currently on IR), kicker Nick Gatto (2002), OL/DL Curtis Eason (2000-02), OL/DL Angel Rubio (2001-02), OL/DL Jon McCall (2000-01), and OS Herman Bell (Preds Training Camp 2003). Other Orlando connections include WR Mario Bailey, who played for the Orlando Rage of the XFL in 2001. In addition, Preds quarterback Jay Gruden served as offensive coordinator at Nashville in 1997, where Fury quarterback Andy Kelly blossomed as an AFL signal caller under Gruden's tutelage.
SERIES HISTORY: No history here, as this will be the first meeting ever between the Predators and the Detroit Fury, who entered the league in 2001 as an expansion team.
PREDATORS LOSE SWEENEY, RAY QUESTIONABLE: Predators rookie lineman Matt Sweeney was examined by team physicians on Tuesday and will undergo arthroscopic surgery on Wednesday to repair damage to his knee sustained during the Carolina game. At that time, physicians will also examine Sweeney's ACL for a possible tear. According to Predators Head Trainer Kevin Mercuri, Sweeney's injury will most likely end his 2003 season. The injury comes as a blow to the Predators line, which lost starter Doug Miller (broken foot) for the rest of the season a week earlier in the Colorado game. Veteran center Fred Ray is also hurting (arthritic knee) and may be held out of this week's game with the Fury. The complete injury report:
A QUICK LOOK AT HOW THE PREDATORS 2003 ROSTER WAS BUILT:
Retained Orlando Free Agents (3): Connell Maynor, Fred Ray. Reggie Lee.
Veteran Free Agents (5): Rob Davis, Ricky Wood, Chris Wallace, CJ McLain. Rich McKenzie
Rookie Free Agents (7): Travis McGriff, Thabiti Davis, Jerry Johnson, EJ Burt, Matt Sweeney, Kevin McLeod, Glenn Davis
Re-signed Veterans Not Eligible for Free Agency (10): Antonio Stanley, Jay Gruden (2nd year, 2-year deal), Lamont Moore, Rashad Floyd, Reggie Doster, Kenny McEntyre (2nd year 2-year deal), Doug Miller, Ernest Allen (2nd year-2-year deal), Colin Greczek, Duke Pettijohn
Obtained by Trade (3): Brian Schmitz, Cory Fleming, Justin Cleveland.
Released/Traded Players No Longer on Roster: Junior Lord (Traded)*, Carl Bradley (released), Bill Duff (released), Albert Connell (released), Herman Bell (released), Karl Bates (released), Adrian Burnett (released), Terrell Harris (released), Na Brown (released), Cameron Chance (released)*, Ronney Daniels (released), Andre Purvis (Released), Brian Goolsby (Waived)*, Carlos McLaurin (Waived), Bernard Brown (Waived), Ratcliff Thomas (Waived), Chris Coleman (Waived), Carl Bond (Waived), Rick Hamilton (waived), Vic Penn (Waived from Practice squad),
*Indicates on 2002 Preds Roster
VOICES
"We've been winning on defense, but I am concerned about our offense. You can't score in the 40's against teams like Colorado and Carolina and think that is going to be good enough in the playoffs. I don't know whether is it playing down to the competition or what, but I know we have to perform better this week to gain some momentum for the playoffs."
--QB Jay Gruden
"At this point in the season, we don't think about it and we don't care about. Our goal is to win a championship. If someone gets MVP or All-Arena, that's fine, but this team has never been about individual recognition. It seems like the players that care most about that stuff are the ones that have to fly to the ArenaBowl by themselves to pick up their hardware because their teams were eliminated before that. It's about the ring and the trophy...nothing else matters."
--Gruden on Orlando's post-season award candidates.
"I think that every kicker goes through it at one time or another. You think you're doing everything the same way and the ball seems to leave your foot the same way but you keep missing. It's frustrating, but the main thing is you can't over analyze. The second you start trying to change things is the second you really start going South. You have to keep focused on the positive."
--Kicker Brian Schmitz on his 0 for 11 Field Goal Slump.
"Believe it or not, there are some mixed feelings about the bye week. If your team is playing really well, you don't necessarily want to take a week off. But on the other hand, it has been a long season and you have some guys that are pretty beat up. It will be nice to get that week off and heal some of those bumps and bruises."
--Predators Head Coach Fran Papasedero
"I called our PR Director and thanked him for inviting me. One of the things about being a pro athlete is that you get asked to do a lot of things for charities and the schools. A lot of guys act put out or don't want to get involved. I think that's a shame. When you get involved, it makes you a better person and you realize how lucky you are to be able to make a living by playing a game. But more importantly, you get a lot more out of it than you give. Saturday's event left me feeling good inside. Is there anything better than that?"
--Predators OL/DL Fred Ray on donating his time as a blackjack dealer for Best Buddies "High Rollers Ball," a fundraiser for the organization that pairs mentors and friends with mentally retarded children and adults.
PREDS NEWS, NOTES, TRENDS
FRAN'S ROAD WARRIORS: Since starting his career with a 0-2 Road Record in 2003, Fran Papasedero's team has won an incredible 11 of their last 14 road games (.785 winning percentage). "I can't really explain it and yes, I think you always like to be at home, but for some reason we play well on the road. I think a lot of it has to do with the fact that there are fewer distractions on the road," Papasedero says. "You don't have hundreds of people bothering you on game day looking for tickets."
TURNOVERS AND DEFENSE KEYS ORLANDO WINNING STREAK: Defense and Turnovers have been the key during Orlando's current five-game winning streak as the chart below shows:
ORLANDO's FIVE-GAME WINNING STREAK
Points For (Avg.) 49.8
Points Against (Avg.) 29.0
Totals Offense (Avg.) 270.8
Total Defense 191.6
Turnover Margin +12
GRUDEN MYSTIFIED BY INTERCEPTION COUNT: With four touchdowns and no picks last week against Carolina, Jay Gruden upped his season totals to 44 touchdowns with just two interceptions, the best touchdown to interception ratio in his eight-year AFL career. This year's totals come on the heels of a season where Gruden threw a league-leading 20 interceptions last year. If you want a reason for Gruden's improvement this season you may not find it from the quarterback. "I can't explain it. When I was winning titles with Tampa Bay, I was always throwing 10, 12 or 14 interceptions every season and I threw 20 last year. The main reason is that I always tried to make things happen and always felt I could throw the ball through a small crack when I had to. If I had to come up with a reason, I'd probably say my group of receivers are bigger and stronger...Cory Fleming and Thabiti Davis will not let a defensive back go through them to make an interception and I guess that's one of the reasons why the pick total is down this year." This season, Gruden is throwing touchdowns at a 22 to 1 ratio compared to interceptions. Prior to this season, Jay's best year for this category was a 5:1 ratio in 1996.
ORLANDO EXTENDS AFL MARK: With an 11-4 start to the 2003 season the Predators have assured themselves of a winning season for an AFL record 12th consecutive year. Orlando can set a new franchise record for most wins in a regular season with a victory this week against Detroit.
GRUDEN MAKES A DIFFERENCE: Although he continues to modestly deflect all the credit to his teammates, there is definitely something to be said about what Jay Gruden means to the Orlando Predators. Here is a comparison of the Predators with and without Jay Gruden as the starting quarterback this season:
Orlando With Jay Without Jay
Games 9 6
Record 9-0 2-4
Win Pct. 1.000 .333
Total Points 429 285
Average 52.2 47.5
K-MAC IS IRONMAN : Counting playoffs, DS Kenny McEntyre has now started an Orlando Predators' record 85 consecutive games without missing a start to injury.
ONE MORE ON GRUDEN...WHAT MIGHT HAVE BEEN: With just one week to go in the regular season, one has to wonder what might have been had Jay Gruden not missed six and one-half games with an ankle injury.
RETURN STREAK OVER: Heading into the Carolina game last week, the Orlando Predators had not given up a touchdown via a kickoff return for 20 consecutive games, the longest streak in the Arena Football League. That streak came to an end when Alvin Ashley returned a second quarter kickoff 56-yards for a touchdown. Interestingly, that play put Ashley over the 15,000-yard mark in career all-purpose yards â making Alvin only the 6th player in AFL history to reach that mark. The last person to run one all the way back against the Predators in the regular season was Tampa Bay's Melvin Cunningham, who returned back-to-back kickoffs for touchdowns (55 and 55 yards) against the Predators on Week 8 of the regular season in 2002. Since that point, the Predators did not give up a touchdown via kick return for 20 straight games before Ashley ran it back against Orlando last week. The Predators must remain focused this week, as they will face one of the league's most dangerous return men in Detroit's Ron Carpenter.
AFL 2003 Fewest Touchdowns By Return
Team KO MFG TD Allowed
Orlando 1 0 1
Las Vegas 2 0 2
Tampa Bay 2 0 2
Los Angeles 2 0 2
Colorado 2 0 2
116 AND COUNTING: With no interceptions thrown against Carolina last week, Predators quarterback Jay Gruden has now thrown 116 passes without and interception. Between Gruden, Connell Maynor and Chris Wallace, Predators quarterbacks have thrown just 7 interceptions all season â the fewest in the Arena Football League.
Fewest Interceptions Thrown in AFL
1. Orlando 7
2. Los Angeles 11
3. New York 12
Arizona 12
Tampa Bay 12
McGRIFF JOINS WAGNER AND BURLEY: With 122 all-purpose yards against Carolina, Orlando Predators rookie offensive specialist Travis McGriff joined Barry Wagner and Siaha Burley as the only three Predators players to gain more than 2000 all-purpose yards in a single season. With 2,082 yards, McGriff currently ranks 4th on the Preds all-time list for single season all-purpose yardage.
EJ BURT BREAKS 11-YEAR OLD SACK MARK AS FORMER RECORD HOLDER WATCHES: Orlando Predators rookie OL/DL EJ Burt has done something that no Predators player has been able to do since 1992 â set a new Predators club record for single season sacks. Heading into last week's game, Burt had seven quarterback sacks on the season â one short of Jerry Odom's 1992 single season mark of eight. Burt was credited with one sack in the Carolina game, but a review of the game films by Predators coaches showed that a second sack, originally credited to Ernest Allen, should have been credited to Burt. The Predators applied for a statistical correction on Monday and League officials informed the team on Monday night that the change had been approved. Ironically, Burt breaking the record was witnessed by the record holder. Odom, now the defensive coordinator at East Carolina University, was in attendance for the first time this season. Odom played with the Predators from 1992-98 and still ranks as the team's second all-time leading rusher and is ninth on the career sack list.
PREDS DYNAMIC DUO OF FLEMING/McGRIFF CLOSE IN ON YARDAGE MARK: With one game to go in the regular season, Predators wide receivers Travis McGriff and Cory Fleming can break Barry Wagner and Bret Cooper's club record for the most yards by a Predators receiving duo. Heading into the game, Fleming and McGriff have combined for 2230 yards on 165 receptions. Earlier this season, McGriff and Fleming joined Wagner and Cooper as the only pass catching duo to each go over 1,000 yards in a single season. McGriff and Fleming need to combine for 29 yards in receptions this week to become the most prolific pass catching duo in Predators history.
SPREADING IT AROUND: For the first time in Orlando Predators history, the team has had three different players score 100 or more points each, as Cory Fleming (156), Travis McGriff (152) and Brian Schmitz (109) have all reached the century mark in points scored. In Orlando's previous 12 seasons, they have had two players reach 100 or more points each four times. What makes the 2003 Predators total impressive is that Thabiti Davis (92) can make it four players or more with 100 points with either a pair of touchdowns or a touchdown and a two-point conversion this week.
WIN STREAK IMPRESSIVE: Orlando's current five-game winning streak ties the 1997 and 2000 Orlando Predators for the sixth longest in club history. The team record for consecutive wins is 11, set by the 1992 Predators and matched by the 1994 team. Of the nine longest winning streaks in franchise history, two of them have come during the 2003 season.
PAPASEDERO'S WINNING PERCENTAGE CLIMBS: After starting his AFL coaching career with a 1-4 record, Orlando Predators Head Coach Fran Papasedero has guided his team to 19 wins in his last 27 games â a winning percentage of .704. Overall, the Predators are 18-11 in regular season games under Papasedero and his .621 winning percentage ranks 9th on the all-time list.
*Minimum of 10 coaching wins needed for inclusion on list...regular season games only...current through Week 15 of 2003 Season...Active Coaches in Italics...Coaches that spent at least part of their coaching career in Orlando is highlighted in bold type face.
SCORING FIRST TRANSLATES TO VICOTRY: How important is for the Orlando Predators to score first in a game? Well if you just look at the stats, you would say extremely important. Orlando is a perfect 11-0 this season when they score first in a game. When they don't score first, they are 0-4.
PREDATORS POST SEASON AWARD CANDIDATES ROOKIE OF THE YEAR: Travis McGriff rebounded with a 122 all-purpose yards last week. He led the Predators with seven receptions. For the season, McGriff leads the Predators in receiving yards (1,133), is second in receptions (74), ranks second in receiving touchdowns (24), is second in scoring (152), and first in all-purpose yards (2,082). He has accomplished this in just 13 games, missing two contests with a strained knee. With two "Rookie of the Month" awards to his credit, McGriff has to be a strong candidate for the "Rookie of the Year" award.
With nine quarterback sacks (second in AFL) and seven forced fumbles (first) in AFL, OL/DL EJ Burt has also emerged as a "Rookie of the Year" candidate. Burt had 29.5 tackles on the season â a hefty number for an AFL lineman, to go with five additional Tackles-For-Loss.
MVP: Jay Gruden is the Predators nominee here. Quite often the argument for MVP centers around the question of where would the team be without a particular player. If one uses that logic, it's next to impossible to ignore where the Predators would be without Gruden. Has any player been more valuable to a team then Gruden and his veteran leadership has been to Orlando this season? Consider Orlando's 9-0 record with Jay under center, compared to Orlando's 2-4 mark without him. Add in a 22:1 touchdown to interception ratio â all while playing on a severely damaged ankle -- and you can make a pretty strong case for Gruden.
COACH OF THE YEAR: This one is way too early to call, but if the Predators run the table be beating Detroit next week to finish with five straight wins then Fran Papasedero deserves some consideration for this award. This is a coach who had to replace his top two receivers (Clif Dell and Siaha Burley), capable back-ups Junior Lord, Damon Bowers and Andre Cooper, his top two fullbacks (Tommy Dorsey and Duke Pettijohn), and star linemen Curtis Eason and BJ Cohen, as well as part-time starter Angel Rubio at the beginning of the season. Toss in a six-week ankle injury to starting quarterback Jay Gruden and a pretty good argument can be made that Papsedero should be considered among the league's coaching elites this season for his ability to retool the Predators and get them through an extremely difficult period of time.
DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE YEAR: Kenny McEntyre, a former two-time winner of this award is certainly in the hunt this year. A pure defensive specialist, McEntyre has scored five touchdowns this season, ranks fourth in tackles, second in interceptions and tied for second in pass defenses. McEntyre had 3.5 tackles and one pass defense last week, as Orlando's defense limited the Cobras to just 24 points and just over 200 yards (201 exactly) of total offense.
FIRST TEAM ALL-ROOKIE: The Predators have three solid candidates here in Travis McGriff, WR/LB Thabiti Davis and OL/DL EJ Burt. McGriff and Burt's exploits are noted under the "Rookie of the Year" section, but take note of Davis' first season. Davis ranks third on the team in both receptions (62) and receiving yards (745) and has scored 92 points this season. Backing up Cory Fleming at "jack" linebacker, he has 22.5 tackles to go with an interceptions and a fumble recovery this season.
ALL-ARENA: Gruden, McGriff, McEntyre and Burt are all solid candidates but add OL/DL Ernest Allen to the list. A former three-time selection to the second team, Allen probably should have been named first team at least one of those seasons when a couple of guys seemed to pass Allen on reputation alone. It would be nice to see Allen get some recognition this year, particularly in light of the fact that he once again has posted solid numbers (4 sacks) and plays the important nose tackle position on a defense that leads the league in turnover ratio and ranks third in takeaways.
WR/LB CORY FLEMING has been extremely strong during the past three weeks with nine touchdown receptions (three in each of the last three games). As the playoffs approach, Fleming has become Jay Gruden's "Go To" guy and now leads the team in receptions (91) and receiving touchdowns (26). Defensively, he has 23 tackles to go with 1 TFL, 5 PD, 1 FF, and 1 FR. Working against Fleming is the fact that he is sharing time with rookie sensation Thabiti Davis on the defensive side of the ball and he is also playing a position that is loaded with several outstanding players in the Arena Football League, including Los Angeles star Greg Hopkins and wily Georgia veteran Darryl Hammond.
Players To Watch
Preds Quarterback Jay Gruden: All things considered, Predators Head Coach Fran Papasedero would probably like to rest Gruden this week and give his ankle an extra week to heal for the playoffs. But there are two problems with that idea. First, this game is important for the Predators. A win on Friday night, combined with a loss by Tampa Bay on Sunday at Georgia, would give the Predators the #2 seed for the Arena Football League playoffs and a second home game should the Predators win their quarterfinal game. Secondly, Gruden is a warrior who would have to be dragged off the field rather than voluntarily sit out a game.
Fury Quarterback Andy Kelly: Andy Kelly is one of Arena Football's all-time leading passers and has added significantly to his totals with 3,785 passing yards and a career-high 90 touchdowns this season. The book on Kelly is that he is a big strong-armed quarterback. Although not particularly mobile, he is excellent at side-stepping a rush and getting rid of the ball, rather than taking a sack. On the down-side, his interceptions are up this season with a career-high 19 picks in 15 games.
Preds OL/DL EJ Burt: Orlando will be counting on EJ Burt and the rest of the Predators front four to get some heat on Kelly. When Kelly was directing the Nashville Kats, the Predators had quite a bit of success when they were able to get heat on Kelly, but when they weren't, Kelly was able to lead Nashville to several impressive victories over Orlando. With seven forced fumbles and nine quarterback sacks this season, the Predators will be looking for a good effort from Burt this week.
Fury Defensive Specialist Ron Carpenter: As a defensive specialist who doubles as a kick returner, Ron Carpenter has had some huge games against the Predators. Last season, while playing for the Georgia Force, he returned two kickoffs and one interception for touchdowns against the Predators in a 67-49 season-opening win and then ran back another interception for 38 yards and a touchdown in a 41-40 win in division rematch in Week 13. This season, Carpenter leads the Fury in tackles (85), interceptions (3) and pass defenses (13) and remains one of the most dangerous return men in the business with 2,202 yards (23.9 average) and four touchdowns on 90 kickoff returns.
Preds WR/LB Cory Fleming: For the second week in a row and the third time in Orlando's five-game winning streak, Cory Fleming earned âIronman of the Game" honors. Against Carolina, Fleming caught four balls for 75 yards and three touchdowns, while adding a tackle and a forced fumble on defense. Fleming needs nine receptions in the Predators' season finale to become the first Orlando player to catch 100 passes in a single season and to break Barry Wagner's club record of 99.
Fury WR/DB Marcus Nash: QB Andy Kelly spreads the ball around quite a bit, but Nash is probably the team's most polished receiver with 64 catches for 815 yards and 24 touchdowns. He leads the team in every major receiving category, despite playing in only 11 of Detroit's 15 games. With 12.7 yards per catch, Nash is also Detroit's deep threat.
Preds Defensive Specialist Kenny McEntyre: K-MAC will probably draw most of the coverage on Nash. He has nine interceptions this season and trails league-leader Clevan Thomas by three. McEntyre will most likely need a huge game this week against Detroit if the the two-time AFL Defensive Player of the Year (2000-01) is to have any chance of unseating Thomas (2002) as the Defensive Player of the Year.
Fury K Nick Gatto: The Predators and Gatto received national attention last year when they brought him in as a mid-season replacement for the ineffective David Cool. Gatto became the first athlete to compete in the Arena Football League while missing a limb (born without a right arm below his elbow). While displaying flashes of brilliance for the Predators at times, Gatto's inconsistency cost him and led to his release by the Predators in the off-season. He gained employment as an emergency kicker with Dallas and Chicago earlier this season and may have found a permanent home in Detroit. Since coming on board, Gatto has been a solid 4-8 on field goal attempts and 36 of 43 on extra points.
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