Alliance of American Football: Week 2 Point Spreads and Predictions

The AAF drew a pretty decent rating on its post-Super Bowl weekend debut, beating out an NBA broadcast while enjoying airtime on CBS proper.

But as is always the case with an upstart football league, the real test will be whether fans remain captivated in the coming weeks. Week 1 typically produces a “curiosity” draw.

Viewers tuned into a mixed bag of high-level athleticism, lopsided results, and strange rules. Kickoffs are eliminated in favor of ball-placement on the 25 yard line. The AAF has also outlawed blitzes of more than a single player at a time whenever there are already 4 down linemen at the snap.

Defenses aren’t even allowed to “spy” a QB within 5 yards, a rule that got the Birmingham Iron hit with a 15-yard “illegal formation” penalty in last Sunday’s win over the Memphis Express.

Alliance of American Football games are fast-paced compared to the NFL. The play clock begins ticking at the conclusion of every play, and a lack of TV time-outs and other in-game interruptions is noticeable. The constant 2-point conversion attempts diminish the chances of opponents being deadlocked.

Offense in Week 1 ran hot and cold to the extreme. Memphis didn’t score a point in a 26-0 loss to Birmingham, and San Antonio beat Mike Martz’s San Diego Fleet 15-6 on Saturday. So much for the Greatest Show on Surf.

Others found the end zone often. Steve Spurrier’s Orlando Apollos posted a 40-6 victory over the Atlanta Legends as Garrett Gilbert passed for 227 yards and 2 TDs. Wake Forest alum John Wolford passed for 275 yards and 4 scores to lead the Arizona Hotshots over the Salt Lake Stallions 38-22.

Point spreads arrived at online betting sites this Wednesday, giving pundits more of an opportunity to handicap the lines. Here’s a quick “capsule” preview of each of the AAF’s 4 match-ups this week.

Salt Lake City Stallions at Birmingham Iron (-7.5 at Bovada Sportsbook), O/U (44)

Birmingham got off to a terrific start in Week 1 against Memphis, and the Iron’s underdog QB who taught himself football on YouTube is an awesome story. But the point spread has shifted toward Saturday afternoon’s hosts at Legion Field at little too sharply considering that the nascent Alabama franchise is already suffering injury woes.

Salt Lake quarterback Josh Woodrum is ailing with a bad hamstring. But I like head coach Dennis Erickson to coach-up reserve passers Austin Allen and Matt Linehan, and make it a tight ballgame. Pick: Salt Lake City to cover (+7.5)

Arizona Hotshots (-11.5) at Memphis Express, O/U (46)

Arizona posted the most complete win of Week 1, rushing for around 4 yards per pop to help protect Wolford’s backside in the pocket. NFL journeyman Rashad Ross had 5 catches for 103 yards and a touchdown, and former Tennessee Titan LB Steven Johnson had 7 tackles as the Hotshots allowed the Stallions less than 250 yards of total offense.

Memphis looks about as one-dimensional and inept as you would expect a Mike Singletary-coached team to look. At least he didn’t pull his pants down in the locker room during the shut-out loss last weekend. Hotshots vs Express will kick off at 8 PM EST on Saturday night. Pick: Under (46)

Orlando Apollos (-6) at San Antonio Commanders, O/U (44)

Steve Spurrier’s Orlando team is almost as fun to watch as the Central Florida Knights, who also play their home games at Camping World Stadium. The Apollos will be on the road following a crushing win over Atlanta last weekend.

Gilbert will get the credit for big wins, but pay attention to Orlando’s defense, which picked off Atlanta QBs Matt Simms and Aaron Murray 3 times.

PK Nick Rose was San Antonio’s best player in Week 1 as former Toledo Rockets signal-caller Logan Woodside struggled in the passing game.

San Antonio at San Diego will square off at 4 PM Sunday on CBS Sports Network. Pick: Orlando to cover (-6)

Atlanta Legends at San Diego Fleet (-9.5), O/U (42)

Pigskin gamblers are taking the low side of the Over/Under and keeping the totals conservative. Certainly neither Atlanta or San Diego looked like an offensive juggernaut last week, and since the crowds at the games aren’t massive or loud enough to cause trouble for the OL, there won’t be a whole lot of fluctuation in which offenses need only play at home to move the ball.

Martz’s squad could look to improve in the Red Zone this week after running the ball well against San Antonio, then throwing interceptions or otherwise failing to finish drives. Unless there’s a big turnaround from each set of skill players, I’m imagining another low-scoring scrum on Sunday night in SoCal. Pick: Under (42)