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| Donald John, CB, Denver Gold (27) |
Teams that fit this description are called "spoilers." These teams are nowhere near the playoff race, yet manage to defeat teams that are fighting for their playoff lives.
The Denver Gold and Chicago Blitz both played the role of "spoilers" in Week 12. Denver beat the Detroit Wheels, 32-14, and Chicago knocked off the Arizona Wranglers, 25-16.
Those results leave the Wranglers (7-5) still one game behind the two-time league champion Wheels (8-4) in the American Conference wild card race. The Michigan Panthers (6-6) and Portland Storm (6-6) are two games back.
Denver outscored Detroit, 20-0, in the key third quarter. Detroit QB Mario Valencia had perhaps his worst day ever -- 3 intereceptions, 3 sacks, and a 42.39 QBR. Denver WR Michael Sonnenberg caught six passes for 115 yards and a TD and CB Donald John picked off a pair of passes.
Chicago sacked Arizona QB Jerry Montalvo eight times. RDE Cesar Collins had three of those sacks, DT Dustin Hoy two.
In other Week 12 games:
- New Jersey LDE James Lockette had 15 hurries, 6 sacks, 5 tackles, and forced two fumbles in a 28-14 win over the Portland Storm. New Jersey (11-1) is 19-2 over its last 21 regular-season games.
- Michigan QB Michael London threw for 544 yards and five TDs during a 57-19 rout of the Georgia Force. Michigan is two games back in the American Conference playoff race with four games to play.
- Pittsburgh QB Michael White was 19-for-23 passing for 383 yards and three TDs as the Maulers clinched a fifth consecutive Atlantic Division crown with a 55-17 defeat of the Charlotte Hornets.
- San Jose backup QB Luke Figueiredo threw two TD passes in the final 9 minutes as the SaberCats rallied to beat the Baltimore Stars, 35-32.
- The South Division is now in a three-way tie at 7-5 after Birmingham defeated Shreveport and New Orleans kicked a field goal on the last play of the game to beat the cursed New York Stars.
Week 13 Preview
The Arizona Wranglers (7-5) now have no room for error, and they must host the unbeaten Oakland Invaders (12-0). The Los Angeles Express (11-1) are at Oklahoma (9-3) in a preview of a potential postseason matchup. The Detroit Wheels (8-4) are at the New Orleans VooDoo (7-5) in a renewal of their World Bowl matchup from two seasons ago.Record Book
- Michigan LDE Dwayne Walker and Tampa Bay LDE William Lewis both had seven sacks in a game this season, one shy of the league record of 8 set by Baltimore's Les Lynch last season.
- Cleveland LDE Jim Zarate has already set a league single-season record for hurries with 113 and has four more games remaining to add to that total. Zarate's 21 hurries vs. Portland this season are tied for the league single-game record.
