July 3,2017
(Photo Credit: Tampa Bay Storm)
Staying Home for the Playoffs
– The Tampa Bay Storm have only played in one
playoff game since 2007, but they're going to be playing one in 2017.
The Storm locked up their home game in the first round of the playoffs
by beating the Washington Valor in Week 13. The Tampa Bay/Pittsburgh
franchise is 14-5 all-time in the playoffs at home, including going 13-5
in Tampa. The Storm have announced their postseason game will be played
on Monday, August 14, and it will be the 12th time in AFL history that
there will be a Monday Night Football game in the postseason, including
two ArenaBowls.
Comeback Kids – The Storm found themselves down 10 points in Week 13 to the Valor before Michael Lindsey scored with 0:40 left in the game to cut their deficit to 51-48. This win marked the first time this season that a team has trailed at any point in the fourth quarter by two scores to ultimately win. The last time a team was down double-digits in the fourth to win a game in the AFL was the Cleveland Gladiators in Week 13 last season. The Glads trailed the Jacksonville Sharks 40-27 to start the fourth quarter before ultimately winning 48-47.
It's Getting Really Late – When Cleveland trailed by double-digits in that game in Jacksonville, it was behind by two touchdowns early in the fourth quarter. There's a big difference between merely coming back from down double-digits at some point in the fourth quarter and doing so with less than a minute to play. The last team to be down by 10+ points in the final minute of the game to ultimately win was this very same Tampa Bay team. The Storm were down 48-37 to Cleveland with 0:47 to play before scoring the game's final two touchdowns to win 52-48.
Belton Joins 50-Pick Club – Tracy Belton's 50th career interception wasn't his toughest ever pick, but he'll take it nonetheless. Belton's third quarter interception of Randy Hippeard gave him 50 for his career, making him the seventh in AFL history to reach that mark.
Most Career Interceptions
Kenny McEntyre: 97
Clevan Thomas: 81
Rayshaun Kizer: 67
Marquis Floyd: 60
Eddie Moten: 56
Tracy Belton: 50
Durwood Roquemore: 50
*Bold denotes active player
Storm Consecutive Scoring Streak Comes to Close – The Storm had scored at least one touchdown in 40 consecutive quarters coming into Week 13. After scoring 33 points in the first half, they were shut out in the third quarter, thus ending what was the longest streak in the AFL. The Baltimore Brigade now have the longest active streak in the league of quarters without a bagel at 27.
Most Consecutive Quarters Scored
Baltimore Brigade: 27
Washington Valor: 15
Philadelphia Soul: 1
Tampa Bay Storm: 1
Cleveland Gladiators: 0
A Night of Firsts For Valor – The Valor had a night of firsts in the Sunshine State. Charles McClain had the first ever kick return for a touchdown in his career on the final play of the first half. It was also the first kick return for a TD by a Valor player in franchise history. In the third quarter, Belton logged the first ever defensive fumble recovery for a touchdown in Washington's history. Both plays went for exactly 54 yards, the longest two plays in the history of the Valor.
AFL Week 13 Odds and Ends
-The Storm rushed for 46 yards as a team, the most for the franchise since June 1, 2013 when it had 66 rushing yards versus Iowa.
-Ryan Cave has done plenty in his four-year AFL career, but one thing he hadn't done before Week 13 is carry the football. The big man had his first four career carries on Saturday and did pretty well, leading the game with 19 yards on said rushes.
-The Storm scored 20 points in the first quarter in Week 13, and they did so on just two offensive plays. Tampa Bay only had one play for positive yardage, a 36-yard touchdown pass to Justin Hilton.
-Kendrick Ings finished Week 13 with 287 all-purpose yards, the second most in the AFL this year. Ings also has the most all-purpose yards in a game this season, the Storm-franchise record 346 yards against Philadelphia in Week 2. This was the eighth-most all-purpose yards by a player in a game in Storm history.
Nine Down – The Valor have now lost nine consecutive regular season games. The last team to lose nine games in a row in a single season was the 2015 LA KISS, a team that started 0-9 before winning its tenth (and 11th) games. The most recent single-season losing streak of 10+ games in the AFL came courtesy of the 2014 San Antonio Talons.
AFL Week 13 Accolades
Top Passing Performances
Randy Hippeard (Tampa Bay) – 24/37, 250 Yards, 5 TDs, 1 INT
Sean Brackett (Washington) – 21/31, 248 Yards, 4 TDs, 0 INT
Top Receiving Performances
Kendrick Ings (Tampa Bay) – 11 Receptions, 111 Yards, 2 TDs
Greg Carr (Washington) – 11 Receptions, 103 Yards, 1 TD
Justin Hilton (Tampa Bay) – 7 Receptions, 70 Yards, 2 TDs
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