We have reached the halfway point of the 21st season of the USFFL. This week saw some great games, including multiple in-division matchups that could determine final standing tie-breakers at the end of the season. Kicking things off, Buffalo beat New England by the score of 25-15 to take a 1 game lead in the AFC North (Buffalo also has the tie-breaker here). In the AFC North, Home team Baltimore lost to Pittsburgh, ceding top spot to the Steelers by way of tiebreaker. Moving to the NFC, Philadelphia held off Dallas and New York (NFC) upset Tampa Bay to maintain the top two spots in the NFC East. Atlanta defeated Carolina to move into at tie with Tampa Bay at the top of the NFC South. finally, Seattle topped San Francisco 35-14 to maintain the only undefeated record in the USFFL.

STANDINGS
AFC
Buffalo by 1 over New England
Baltimore and Pittsburgh tied
Tennessee by 1 over Indianapolis
Kansas City by 2 1/2 over Las Vegas and Los Angeles (AFC)
NFC
New York (NFC) by 1 over Philadelphia
Green Bay by 3 over Detroit
Atlanta and Tampa Bay Tied (these teams play each other in weeks 15 and 17)
Seattle by 1/2 over Los Angeles (NFC)
LEAGUE LEADERS (at the 8 Week Mark)
Quarterbacks – Russell Wilson leads the eligible QB’s with a 104.7 QBRating. Patrick Mahomes has 2,550 yards and 22 TDs to lead both of these key categories.
Receivers – Keenan Allen leads the league with 80 receptions (16 over the next highest receiver). Travis Kelce leads the yardage (743) and TD’s 8.
Running Backs – King Henry is absolutely crushing the competition with 1,329 yards, with the next closest ballcarrier, Dalvin Cook, at 873. Cook and Henry both have 10 rushing TDs.
Sacks – Myles Garrett and Chris Jones lead the league with 8 a piece
Interceptions – Malcolm Butler leads with 5 ints
Scoring – Aaron Jones has 68 points to lead all non-kickers, and Ryan Syccop leads all scoring with 77 points scored.
For a truly in-depth and entertaining deep-dive into the first half of the season, check out Anthony Tangorra’s great broadcast on YouTube:
GAME OF THE WEEK

Pittsburgh 14 Baltimore 13 – With 2:06 left in the game Baltimore place kicker Justin Tucker just needed to split the uprights from 38 yards out to seal the win. He could not do it. Trailing 13-6, the Steelers were able to finally score their only TD of the game with twenty two seconds left on the clock. Instead of kicking the extra point for the tie and most likely sending the game into OT, Pittsburgh went for the two point conversion win and was successful. The Ravens had a very slight edge in time of possession and total yardage but eight penalties were a heavy burden to overcome. Ben Roethlisberger threw two more interceptions bringing his USSFL total to 11 in seven games. He had 10 in 15 games in real life. A tough loss for Baltimore who seek revenge in four weeks at Pittsburgh.
TOP PLAYERS OF THE WEEK
Quarterback – Phillip Rivers 19/25, 221 yards and 5 TDs
Receivers – Jalen Reagor – 9 receptions, 144 yards and a TD
Running Backs – David Montgomery 17 carries, 171 yards and 2 TDs
NEXT WEEK LOOKAHEAD
Week 9 features some great games, including Seattle at Buffalo, New Orleans at Tampa Bay, and Baltimore at Indianapolis. Have a great week and good luck!