Week 1 - Evaluating the Barnstormers

The Barnstormers are coming home with a thrilling 69-63 victory over Spokane in overtime - let's break down the victory


Offense: A-

The offense looked strong on nearly every drive, with very few miscues, and few mistakes. I didn't like the fumbling/dropping habit from Thomas, but the offense protected the ball extremely well overall. Raterink looked confident and accurate throwing the football, making some truly impressive throws. Jesse Schmidt already looked to be on midseason form, finding the end zone 5 times, and racking up 150+ receiving yards. He just has a way of making DBs look foolish, and we can hope to see more of that from him continuing on.

Defense: B

The defense made some extremely critical stops, coming up with interceptions when they were extremely critical. The stop in overtime ended up being the difference in the game. However, costly penalties are something that need to be avoided, and the younger players are going to learn that quickly.

Special Teams: A

I was extremely impressed with the Barnstormers special teams squad in this game. Special teams found the end zone twice, and caught up to a ball rebounding off the net on a kickoff. Those kind of recoveries are crucial in the arena game, and the Barnstormers proved they could make them happen. The difference between an A and an A+ here is the kicking game. You can't give up a touchdown on a missed field goal, and I question the value of going for the field goal at all in those situations - better to miss the Hail Mary, play defense on a short field and not worry so much about kick return coverage, especially when you have your bigger lineman out on the field.

What's Next:

The Barnstormers host the Utah Blaze in Des Moines for their home opener. The Barnstormers have momentum on their side, minimal injury. Looks to have great game written all over it. The Blaze are coming off a close loss to Garcia and the San Antonio Talons.


-Shard
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