Week 9

Going into the final week of the session the Predators feel good about their 5-3 record. The previous session the Predators were 0-8 and searching for answers. This year they are smarter, more composed, and ready for any challenge. This week they play The Gunners, who are reigning champions and 8-0 this season. The Gunners are first in the league in points (352) and points against (48), and are obviously the most superior team in the league. The Gunners beat Team Ice 28-20 in close week 5 game where it came down to the final possession. Team Ice committed two costly turnovers early in the game that left them with a two score deficit and were unable to recover. The Gunners are a very solid team that know what to do during certain game situations. Their offense is efficient and they like to throw the ball deep. The Gunners have managed to master the deep pass and racked up points against almost everyone they have played. But if the Predators can take away the deep ball and make pulls quickly on the underneath routes, The Gunners are beatable.

The Predators come into this game fifth in points (101) and third in points against (65) and were neck and neck with Team Ice with ten minutes to go. They are close to being championship caliber and the question is "can the prove it?" It is one thing to look at the numbers and think the Predators are close, but it's another thing to prove it on the field. The Predators have a swagger with both the offense and defense playing well and they need to build on that this week against a fundamentally sound Gunners team.

Offensively the Predators need to continue the progress they have made and play their style of offense. They currently have a play book they are confident in and need to stay within that play book to be successful. It is easy to get too hyped up for a big game and make mistakes because a team is trying too hard. The Predators will come with #7 Brown at quarterback, who has played well recently completing passes on first and second downs and giving the Predators a chance to convert on third downs. #7 Brown looks far more comfortable under center this session and is very excited about the opportunity the Predators have this week. The Predators will also be relying on #27 Clapper to continue his strong play this week by picking up extra yards once the ball enters his hands. #45 Price will need to find the soft spots in the Gunners 3-2 zone and he maybe the key in a Predators upset win. #2 Long is questionable this week after suffering a heel injury last week against the Seed Men. The Predators will be cautious with #2 Long because the playoffs are just around the corner.

Defensively is where the game will be won and lost for the Predators. The Predators defense has been strong the whole season, except for a poor performance against Martindale. If they protect the deep ball (how the Gunners have racked up so many points) and prevent big plays by pulling flags after completions, the Predators will be right there as the game winds down. It all starts with a strong pass rush from #45 Price and #53 Wlotzko. The Gunners quarterback (6) is fast and can throw it from just about anywhere in any situation. The Predators pass rush will have to stay in front of the quaterback and sacrifice sacks to keep him in front and make the QB throw off his back foot. Covering the receivers on the Gunners is another challenge. All of them but the center (28) are excellent players. They have two short, fast players (2, 22), one all around tall fast receiver (21) and one really tall receiver who has out jumped every defensive back in his way (81). They also have one other player and not much is known about him.

Simply, the Predators pass rush has to keep the QB in front of them, the secondary then has to have tight, disciplined coverage, and when a pass is completed a flag needs pulled immediately, preventing a big play before it can happen. And the offense can't turn the ball over putting their defense in high risk situations. It is easy to write what needs to be done to win and it's a totally different thing to execute it on the field against a very good team, but the Predators are ready, excited and always give it their all. Predator management feels that the squad lining up tomorrow night is a more complete, well rounded team than the squad that lined up in week one and gives them the best chance of beating the Gunners tomorrow night. The Predators will suit up again in the red and gold and play spoiler Thursday at 10pm.