It was more of the same for the Alliance of American Football (AAF) in Week 3 with home teams and low scoring games continuing to dominant. Home teams are now 9-3 straight up and 8-4 ATS, while the under has cashed in nine of the first 12 games. In terms of sports betting, public bettors still aren’t running to wager on the AAF but there are opportunities to make money with some of the teams separating from the pack.
How do the teams stack up heading into Week 4? Will home teams and unders continue to cash for bettors? We have our power rankings with some teams moving up and others falling.
Editor’s Note: Get in one the action and play fantasy AAF on PrizePicks this weekend.
Orlando Apollos
Orlando remains in the top spot after a workmanlike 21-17 win over Memphis. The Apollos didn’t come close to covering the 16-point spread but were never really in danger of losing a game they led wire-to-wire.
Orlando has the most talent and the best coach in Steve Spurrier, so I still have them as the clear favorites to win the AAF Championship. However, if you’re looking for a negative, the Apollos haven’t faced the toughest competition yet. The teams Atlanta owns wins over (Atlanta, San Antonio, Memphis) are a combined 1-8.
The Apollos face the Stallions this week in Salt Lake. The Stallions are 1-2 but have one of the AAF’s top defenses. It will be a good test for Garrett Gilbert and the Apollos’ high-powered offense. Orlando is still the top team in the AAF but the gap is closing with Birmingham coming strong.
Birmingham Iron
I’m guilty of not giving the Iron enough credit thus far. Birmingham may not always win pretty but they are 3-0, outscoring opponents 66-21. You can’t argue the Iron haven’t played anyone. Birmingham’s three opponents have the same 1-8 record as Orlando.
The Iron defense has been dominant at times, especially in the second half. Birmingham has allowed just six points after halftime in its first three games.
Luis Perez’s numbers don’t tell the story. He’s one of the top quarterbacks in the AAF and an argument can be made he’s the best. Perez was 16 of 31 for 160 yards and an interception Sunday against the Legends. While those numbers don’t look great, Perez gets no help from his receivers. Drops have plagued Birmingham all year. Perez is the only AAF quarterback playing much better than his numbers suggest.
The Iron have the AAF’s top defense and one of its best quarterbacks. That makes them a serious title contender. Want a laugh? Before the season, Birmingham was +1000 to win the AAF Championship and Atlanta was +500. Those odds are long gone now.
We’ll know more about the Iron in the coming weeks when they face Orlando, Arizona and San Diego. Birmingham gets another somewhat easy game in Week 4 when they host struggling San Antonio.
San Diego Fleet
Here come the Fleet. I almost put Arizona in the third slot but the bottom line is the Fleet have been one of the AAF’s most impressive team over the last two weeks. Since turning to Philip Nelson at quarterback, the Fleet have beaten Atlanta and San Antonio by a combined score of 55-23.
Nelson was the difference Sunday night against San Antonio. After an inconsistent debut, Nelson completed 17 of 25 passes for 193 yards, two touchdowns and an interception. More importantly, he got the ball out quickly and down the field, averaging 7.7 yards per attempt.
The Fleet’s defense has given up just 38 points in its first three games. Following his AAF record 83-yard touchdown run, Ja’Quan Gardner leads the league with 281 yards rushing. Add in consistent quarterback play from Nelson and San Diego isn’t just a playoff contender, it’s a serious threat to Orlando and Birmingham.
The Fleet have a tricky game on tap at Memphis. The Express are better than their 0-3 record and now that Zach Mettenberger is the starting quarterback, it’s a dangerous road game for San Diego. Win that one and the Fleet will be in good position to earn a playoff berth.
Arizona Hotshots
The Hotshots are the toughest team in the AAF to peg right now. After an impressive opening win over Salt Lake, Arizona’s offense struggled in a close win over Memphis and loss in a rematch with the Stallions.
Not only did Arizona lose on Saturday, starting quarterback John Wolford left early in the second half with an injury. Trevor Knight replaced him and didn’t look good, completing 8 of 17 passes for 95 yards.
The Hotshots need Wolford back under center. Arizona has scored 35 points in its last two games after putting up 38 in the opener. The good news? Arizona hosts dreadful Atlanta this week, so it probably doesn’t matter who is playing quarterback.
Salt Lake Stallions
The Stallions got starting quarterback Josh Woodrum back on Saturday and he made a difference. Woodrum completed 22 of 31 passes for 178 yards and a touchdown in Salt Lake’s upset over Arizona.
The Stallions are an interesting team. After allowing 38 points to Arizona in the opener, the defense has played well the last two games against the Hotshots and Birmingham. Salt Lake also possess one of the AAF’s top ground games with Joel Bouagnon and Brenden Oliver. The duo combined for 85 yards and two scores on 27 carries Saturday.
If Woodrum can bring some stability to the quarterback position, Salt Lake can make a run. The key is Woodrum’s health though because backups Austin Allen and Matt Linehan simply aren’t good enough to win consistently in any league.
The Stallions have a huge game on deck Saturday when they host Orlando. Salt Lake can make a big statement with an upset over what many believe is the league’s best team.
San Antonio Commanders
The Commanders were Week 3’s biggest disappointment, getting blown out by San Diego. I’m surprised but not shocked because as I wrote last week, quarterback Logan Woodside was a disaster waiting to happen.
Woodside entered last week competing just over 50 percent of his passes with three interceptions. He should have had even more interceptions but Orlando defenders dropped four easy picks. It was only a matter of time before he imploded. That time came Sunday night when he was benched after completing 12 of 23 passes and throwing two more picks. Marquise Williams took over late. It will either be Williams or Dustin Vaughn this week if the Commanders hope to save their season.
It’s still early but it looks like San Antonio’s opening night win had more to do with Mike Bercovici playing quarterback for San Diego. Since holding the Fleet to just six points, San Antonio’s defense has given up 68 in losses to Orlando and San Diego.
Things don’t get any easier for the Commanders this week. San Antonio travels to Birmingham with questions at quarterback. Good luck.
Memphis Express
The Express dropped to 0-3 with a 21-17 loss to Orlando Saturday. That’s the bad news. The good news is Memphis’ offense came alive after Christian Hackenberg was mercifully benched in favor of Zach Mettenberger. Mettenberger completed 9 of 12 passes for 120 yards and two scores.
I’ve been saying for two weeks that Memphis is better than they look because Hackenberg was holding the team hostage. The Express have one of the top offensive lines in the league and their defense has kept them in every game. Now with a quarterback that can actually throw a forward pass, Memphis may be the most dangerous 0-3 team in football history. Yep, Zach Mettenberger is a savior in the AAF. Says a lot about the quarterback play in the league.
We’ll have to see what Mettenberger can do under center. We know he can’t possibly be worse than Hackenberg. If Mettenberger continues to play well, Memphis will upset some teams. That could start on Saturday when Memphis hosts San Diego.
Atlanta Legends
Listen, I’m a fan of the AAF. I’ve watched every game and I want the league to succeed. The Legends are so bad though that their games are even tough for someone like me to watch. Atlanta is by far and away the worst team in the AAF and they may not win a game all year. And hey, even when an AAF game is boring, at least the halftime entertainment delivers.
Let’s start with Matt Simms. He’s never been good at any level outside of high school. I was good in high school and I can’t play in the AAF. In college, Simms lost his job to Tyler Bray at Tennessee and really shouldn’t have been in an NFL camp. If his father was Phil Jones instead of Phil Simms, this guy would be bartending in Daytona Beach right now.
Simms did put up 328 yards against Birmingham but he also threw three costly interceptions. The stats also don’t show that Simms missed his open tight end in the end zone for a touchdown on Atlanta’s first possession. The Legends were in the red zone four times and came away with three points.
The problem facing Atlanta is Simms isn’t the only issue. The receivers are the worst in the league and Kevin Coyle has no business being a head coach. I’m all for replacing Simms but either way, the Legends are the AAF bottom-feeders.