NY at Tampa: LFL Post Game Report
Written by twhigham, Saturday January 16 2010
Three teams played Friday night. One was playing to get into the playoffs. The other was playing against last year's version of itself.
Last night the Tampa Breeze hosted the New York Majesty in a game that, for perhaps the first time in the LFL's short history, actually featured three teams. Two of them won.
The New York Majesty is a team with a split personality. Majesty 1.0 got trounced by Philadelphia 40-6. Players and coaches left the team, and new players and coaches came in. Majesty 2.0 got trounced by Miami 47-7.
That was 2009.
Two months later, a revamped Majesty 3.0 came into Tampa to face a strong Tampa squad that was playing for a spot in the playoffs. A win over New York would give Tampa a fair shot at facing Chicago for the Eastern Conference championship, assuming Tampa can get past an outstanding Miami team next week.
New York was playing to spoil Tampa's hopes.
But mostly, New York was playing to show that it wasn't the punchline in the East.
Tampa, after bouncing footballs off the overhead scoreboard in kick-off warmups, started off with an attempt at an onside kick, indicating that it didn't fear New York's offense.
New York responded by scoring on its very first play from scrimmage; a pass from Nicole Stanley on the strongside in the gap behind the strongside cornerback before the safety could come over to seal the zone. Not to pat myself on the back (but I will anyway), but I predicted that very thing in the pre-game preview I wrote here three days before the game.
This proved two things. First, Tampa is vulnerable in the air. It's run defense is one of the best in the conference, a conference that features some of the best runners in the entire league. Because Philly and Chicago rely so much on their running, neither of those teams has really tested Tampa's secondary deep, and that is exactly what New York came out doing. It paid off with six on the board in less than 5 seconds.
Second, that play proved that Majesty 3.0 is more capable than Majesty 1.0 and 2.0. Krystal Gray, who had been the starting QB for M1.0 and M2.0, was initially forced to sit out after shoulder injuries and an infection put her on the bench. Despite having no shot at playing, she was there to support her team, and support she did. Nicole Stanley was starting at QB and throwing to players who were playing in only their first or second game, and when you're coming in to a rowdy arena where you have no friends, having a veteran from your team in your box can go a long way. Krystal was there because her team was there, and the players were glad she was. Near the end of the game, she got some good news. The coach put her in on the defensive line to pressure Tampa's Denisha Crawford. A forced fumble, some hurried throws; Krystal made an impact.
For the Breeze, that play was a shocker. Nobody had lit them up like that before; and certainly not a team that was in its third version of itself, and never so quickly and so easily. The players were stunned. The coaches were stunned. The fans were stunned.
And the Majesty were celebrating.
Tampa responded with a strong drive and scored. Then they scored again. By the time half-time came, they had a solid lead and were making plans for Miami.
But the Majesty weren't done.
Nicole and Majesty 3.0 came out of the locker room throwing, testing the Tampa defensive secondary deep again. Near the end of the game, a sure touchdown pass was dropped, but it didn't matter. The Majesty scored on a deep pass on the very next play in the exact same zone; behind the strongside corner and beyond the reach of the strongside safety.
Final Score: Tampa 40; Majesty 1.0 7; Majesty 2.0 6; Majesty 3.0 13
The 2010 Majesty 3.0 scored just as many points in one game as the 2009 Majesty did in its entire 2-game history.
That concludes New York's season. For now. Try-outs will be coming up in a month or so and training will start in earnest soon after that. Majesty 3.0 will become Majesty 4.0, and Majesty 4.0 will be able to build on the base that Majesty 3.0 has established. And hopefully the Majesty 3.0 players will work on their game and push Majesty 4.0 to a better season.
As for Tampa, they now have to face a Miami squad that will most definitely work them silly on the long ball. Adonka Dixon is very much capable of connecting with 5'9" Tina Caccavale every single time the ball is snapped. That means the Tampa safeties are going to have their hands full keeping the Miami receivers under wraps. And the best way to do that is to keep Adonka on the run, which opens a whole new can of worms because that means the Tampa linebackers are going to be playing a lot of channel containment while the corners fade into deep coverage.
For Tampa, that means some player shuffling to match talent to assignment. For Miami, it just means worrying whether Tampa's Jenn Myers will be back from her injury to reclaim her starting QB job, or if MVP Denisha Crawford will get the nod. Myers throws a better spiral, but Crawford brings a running threat that keeps the defense honest and opens up gaps downfield for the receivers.
Another concern that Tampa needs to address is finding a center that can give whichever QB they utilize a good, consistent snap. By my count, Tampa goes through centers like New York goes throw quarterbacks. And without that good, consistent snap, it doesn't matter who you have running your offense because she'll be too busy falling on the ball.
As for the Majesty, once you're in New York, those streets will make you feel brand new.
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