AFL Power Rankings: 2006 Week 13
John Hoh
Wednesday April 26, 2006
How did Utah go into Colorado and get that win? Or Kansas City going into Nashville and blowing away the Kats? As Yoga Berra once said, “It ain’t over till it’s over.” (Wouldn’t Mr. Berra make a great AFL spokeperson?)
By my math, Colorado and Dallas are in the playoffs. That leaves 15 teams vying for the remaining 10 spots.
The Playoff Race
American Conference
1. Colorado Crush(+)(y)
2. San Jose SaberCats(+)
3. Arizona Rattlers
4. Nashville Kats
5. Chicago Rush
6. Las Vegas Gladiators
Utah Blaze
Grand Rapids Rampage
Los Angeles Avengers
National Conference
1. Dallas Desperados(+)(y)
2. Orlando Predators(+)
3. New York Dragons
4. Austin Wranglers
5. Philadelphia Soul
6. Georgia Force
Columbus Destroyers
Tampa Bay Storm
Kansas City Brigade(e)
+ = Divisional leader
x = Clinched division crown
y = Clinched playoff spot
z = Clinched conference playoff home field
e = Eliminated from playoffs
Herein are the 2006 week 13 Power Rankings. And remember, these are only my opinions and are not scientific. Any attempt to use this information for betting purposes is solely at the gambler’s discretion.
| Rank | Team | Record | Previous Rank | Next Up |
| 1 | Dallas Desperados (DAL) | 11-2 | 1 | AZ |
| Dallas looks to be the team to beat. Host Arizona in a game suddenly more important to Arizona. | ||||
| 2 | Orlando Predators (ORL) | 9-4 | 3 | @COL |
| Preds win the War on I-4. Travel to the Mil High City to take on a team coming off a disappointing loss. | ||||
| 3 | Colorado Crush (COL) | 9-4 | 2 | ORL |
| Upset special as the Blaze invade Denver. Colorado may have looked forward to this game against Orlando. | ||||
| 4 | New York Dragons (NY) | 8-5 | 9 | PHI |
| Dragons gathering steam for the playoffs. Host the inconsistent Soul next. | ||||
| 5 | Austin Wranglers (AUS) | 8-5 | 4 | CLB |
| Wranglers rope in at San Jose; host the Destroyers next. | ||||
| 6 | San Jose SaberCats (SJ) | 7-6 | 10 | @LA |
| SaberCats get gig win over Austin and gain tie for division lead. Cross-state tilt at LA crucial. | ||||
| 7 | Georgia Force (GA) | 7-6 | 5 | CHI |
| Force takes a hit in game against Dallas. Hosting the Rush should help. | ||||
| 8 | Nashville Kats (NAS) | 7-6 | 6 | @GR |
| Did the Kats look ahead of their schedule? Loss to Kansas City stings; can’t let that happen against Grand Rapids. | ||||
| 9 | Arizona Rattlers (AZ) | 7-6 | 7 | @DAL |
| Rattlers stumble against the Rampage. Game at Dallas is crucial. | ||||
| 10 | Philadelphia Soul (PHI) | 7-6 | 8 | @NY |
| Philly destroyed by Columbus team hungry for a win. Next travel to Long Island to head off the red-hot Dragons. | ||||
| 11 | Columbus Destroyers (CLB) | 6-7 | 13 | @AUS |
| Columbus gets a big win in the city of brotherly love. Trip to Austin just as crucial to playoff hopes. | ||||
| 12 | Tampa Bay Storm (TB) | 6-7 | 11 | KC |
| Tampa Bay really needs a win over the Brigade. Problem is, the Brigade have displayed some fight as of late. | ||||
| 13 | Chicago Rush (CHI) | 5-8 | 14 | @GA |
| Rush gets a rush with a needed win to get back into playoff potential. Trip to Georgia could make or break the season. | ||||
| 14 | Las Vegas Gladiators (LV) | 5-8 | 12 | UT |
| Gladiators still in playoff hunt despite loss to Rush. Game against Utah a crucial game for both teams. | ||||
| 15 | Utah Blaze (UT) | 5-8 | 16 | @LV |
| Utah gets a win in Colorado. Travel to Vegas next in hopes of getting a win—and possible inside run for a playoff berth. | ||||
| 16 | Grand Rapids Rampage (GR) | 4-9 | 16 | NAS |
| Rampage pull another upset this week. Host the Kats next. | ||||
| 17 | Kansas City Brigade (KC) | 3-10 | 18 | @TB |
| The Brigade isn’t ready to quit yet—and this doesn’t bode well for Tampa Bay. | ||||
| 18 | Los Angeles Avengers (LA) | 3-10 | 15 | SJ |
| Avengers in a downward spiral and host the division leaders. The good news? They are still very much alive for the playoffs! | ||||
John L. Hoh, Jr., is a free-lance writer from Milwaukee who grew up in Appleton, Wisconsin, as an avid Dolphins fan. He followed Arena Football since its inception, at one point watching tape-delayed games on low-powered WAV-TV in Waukesha. His happiest day was when Milwaukee was awarded the Mustangs franchise; his saddest when the Mustangs were contracted out of the league. John is married to his wife Maija (13+ years) and has a young son, Matthew. John pines for the return of the Arena Football League to Milwaukee.
