Top six remain unchanged in Week 15 AFL Power Rankings

Mike Delrio
Thursday June 19, 2014

Arizona, Pittsburgh, San Jose, Cleveland, and Orlando all won while Philadelphia fell to a higher ranked team (Pitt) in Week 14 action to keep Nos.1-6 unchanged in this week’s AFL Power Rankings.

Power Rankings: Week 15

1. Arizona Rattlers (13-0) (LW: W @ SA 70-34) – Arizona again scored 70 points, this time against San Antonio, on their way to another win. The Rattlers have now put 70 points on the board in five of their last seven games, and there is little chance Los Angeles will end Arizona’s undefeated run when they visit Phoenix this week.

2. Pittsburgh Power (10-3) (LW: W @ PHL 57-56) – Pittsburgh traveled to Philadelphia last week and the in-state rivals battled it out in a matchup between the No.2 and No.6 teams in the Week 14 rankings. The Power came away with a one-point divisional road victory while handing the Soul their third loss in the last four games. Pittsburgh, 6-1 at home this season, will host Iowa this week.         

3. San Jose SaberCats (9-4) (LW: W vs. SPO 47-37) – The San Jose defense was once again solid, holding Spokane to 37, in a 10-point win. The SaberCats are on a bye this week.

4.Cleveland Gladiators (11-1) (LW: W vs. NO 62-46) – As mentioned in this column last week, Cleveland is capable of beating any team in the AFL, but their inconsistent play is cause for concern. After lighting up the scoreboard (86 points) last week against Iowa to rebound from their first loss of the season the week before, the Gladiators beat a 2-8 New Orleans squad that was coming off a 39-point loss to Pittsburgh by just 15-at home. Cleveland will be on the road this week against a hungry Philadelphia team.   

5. Orlando Predators (8-5) (LW: W vs. JAX 58-48) – Orlando played well in downing Jacksonville by 10 last week. Since a 10-point loss to Iowa in Week 12, the Predators have responded with urgency and seem to be coming together just in time for the playoff push. To keep the momentum building, Orlando needs a road win this week when they face division rival Tampa Bay.  

6. Philadelphia Soul (6-7) (LW: L vs. PGH 57-56) – Despite a strong effort, Philadelphia fell to Pittsburgh by a point in front of their home fans last week and has now lost three of their last four games. The Soul need to get back in the win column and are home in Week 15, but will face a tough Cleveland team that will make earning the W a challenge.    

7. Tampa Bay Storm (7-6) (LW: W @ IA 62-56 OT) – Tampa Bay followed up their Week 13 upset of Philadelphia with a overtime win on the road against Iowa last week, and have now won four straight games following a five-game losing streak. The Storm play host to Orlando this week, and will need to pull another upset out of their hat to keep the winning streak going. 

8. Iowa Barnstormers (6-7) (LW: L vs. TB 62-56) – Iowa lost in OT (see above) to Tampa Bay, and now have lost two consecutive games. The Barnstormers travel to Pittsburgh this week.

9. Jacksonville Sharks (4-8) (LW: L @ ORL 58-48) – Jacksonville continues to lack consistency but faces a New Orleans team this week that has failed to show any improvement on either side of the ball, so the Sharks have an opportunity for a road win and need it to get on track.      

10. Spokane Shock (6-7) (LW: L @ SJ 47-37) – Spokane continued to have trouble scoring in a loss to San Jose. The Shock will be home this week against San Antonio.      

11. New Orleans VooDoo (2-10) (LW: L @ CLV 62-46) – New Orleans played better in losing to Cleveland than they had in a Week 13, 39-point loss to Pittsburgh, but the VooDoo now have the second longest losing streak in the AFL (4 games). Jacksonville comes calling this week and while New Orleans has the home field advantage, look for the losing streak to go to five.

12. Portland Thunder (3-10) (LW: L @ LA 69-61) – After playing well against the best team in the AFL in a Week 13 loss to Arizona by a 70-59 count, Portland took a step backwards in losing to Los Angeles last week. Portland is on a bye week.

13. Los Angeles KISS (3-9) (LW: W vs. PO  69-61) – Los Angeles snapped an 8 game losing streak, the longest active streak in the league, by beating Portland last week. The KISS will head to Arizona this week to play the top team in the rankings in what is likely to be a character building exercise.

14. San Antonio Talons (1-12) (LW: L vs. AZ 70-34) – San Antonio took a beating, as many other teams have this season, against Arizona last in a 36-point loss in Week 14. The Talons travel to Spokane this week to play a Shock team that is having offensive troubles of their own, and need to show some improvement.

The Power Rankings are determined by Total Wins, Division Wins, Road Wins, Home Losses, results against common opponents, and Head-to-Head results. The higher-ranked teams are 60-20 since the first week the rankings were released (Week 4), 42-9 since Week 8.