The story coming into this game was to see which streak would still be going. When it was all set and done, it was the Albany Empire’s streak that would continue.

WR Quentin Sims caught four touchdowns and QB Tommy Grady threw seven scores as the Albany Empire built a sizeable lead and hung on for a 58-48 win in front of 8,744 at the Times Union Center on Saturday afternoon. WR Malachi Jones and Valor WR Doug McNeill III each had 124 yards receiving. Valor QB Arvell Nelson matched Grady with seven passing touchdowns of his own.

Coming out of the gate, it was going to be an intense matchup, especially with the teams seeing each other for the second time this season and the fifth time (including playoffs) going back to Week 11 of last season. It was not Jones who scored the first two touchdowns for the Empire, but Sims, who made two incredible leaping grabs for Albany.

“In Arena Football, you have small end zones, you can’t always create space,” said Sims. “As a receiver, you’ve got to make those plays.”

The Valor took a 12-7 lead after a stop on defense led to a Nelson touchdown toss to WR Reggie Gray. It would be their last lead as the Empire went on a 23-0 run in the second quarter capped by Jones’ 24-yard touchdown pass from Grady.

“Washington is a great team and they showcased it,” said Jones, who finished with three touchdowns (two receiving, one rushing). “The situation that we both had, us being undefeated and them being 3-0 in the last three games, it definitely adds a little bit of intensity to it.”

Sims’ third touchdown came on the first Empire possession of the third quarter and it increased the lead to 37-12, Albany’s largest lead of the game. This woke up the Valor as McNeil’s catch-and-run for 39 yards took him to the end zone for his first of the game. Both teams (notably Jones and McNeil) traded touchdowns, but an interception by former Empire DB Marrio Norman would lead to McNeil’s third touchdown of the game on a 38-yard pass.

A missed field goal gave the Valor some additional life and they would get within four when Nelson found Gray for the second time in the game and McNeil converted a two-point try. But the Valor failed to convert on an onside kick attempt and it took one play for the Empire to turn it into points as Grady found Sims for the fourth time on the day.

The Valor would get one more possession, but the Empire defense sealed the game with a sack by DLs Rodney Fritz and Harold Brantley and DB Tevin Homer’s near interception of a Nelson pass attempt to Jared Dangerfield. Brantley’s second sack in as many games on third down essentially ended the game.

“The coaches do a good job of bringing guys together who are very hard to be shaken,” said Brantley, who was also credited with the field goal block in the second quarter that was scored as a safety. “We all have an understanding that if we work together and everyone does their individual job as a collective, we’ll come out and do what we need to do.”

Though the end result showed a much closer game, the Empire defense again did an effective job on third and fourth down. The Valor was held to 5-of-11 on third down and 0-of-4 on fourth down. That included a fourth down stop inside their own Red Zone early in the game. Empire head coach Rob Keefe credited several members of the secondary for using their physical tools to their advantage as part of their Red Zone scheme.

“Tevin Homer, Arkeith Brown, Terrence Moore, Terrance Smith, those are really long people,” said Keefe. “We utilize our length and our physicality inside the 10-yard line and in the Red Zone.

“Our defense relishes the opportunity to be on fourth down and I appreciate that.”

Odds and Ends: Empire DB Tevin Homer should receive some early consideration for Defensive Back of the Year. Six games in, the rookie leads the lead in total tackles with 40.5 tackles to go with an interception, and two pass breakups… Valor WR Doug McNeil has 10 touchdowns in his last four games against the Empire. This includes the four he scored in their playoff series last season… The Empire scored over 50 points for the fourth consecutive game, but also won their third consecutive game by 10 points or more. The Empire have won each game by an average of 13 points.

Ryan McCarthy has been an on-and-off Internet columnist and blogger since 1997. He has been an avid follower of Arena Football since 1990 when the Albany Firebirds were established. Ryan currently attends Regent University, where he is pursuing his Bachelors degree in Communications with a Journalism concentration. He anticipates graduating toward the end of 2019. You can follow Ryan on Twitter at @rwhoisryanmcc