The AFL betting season enters its fourth week of play this week with just a small four pack of games. Check out how we’re ranking the clubs through the first two weeks of the season! Visit Handicapperspicks.com for more expert arena football news

1: Chicago Rush (3-0 SU, 2-1 ATS) (LW: 1) - Arena Football betting fanatics bet the Rush from +1 up as high as -6 this week, and the end reward came in the form of a two touchdown victory in Arizona. This should easily be a 4-0 team by the time next week’s games are over.
Up Next: Home vs. Utah

2: Tulsa Talons (2-0 SU, 2-0 ATS) (LW: 3) – The Talons were the lone team off last week, and they return to the gridiron on Saturday night with their first road battle of the season after a pair of home wins against solid teams.
Up Next: Away @ Arizona

3: Milwaukee Iron (2-0 SU, 2-0 ATS) (LW: 5) – It wasn’t a guaranteed cover the entire way, but the Iron never really had any doubts about beating Iowa on Friday night. It was another great game for QB Chris Greisen, who threw for 382 yards and seven TDs in a second straight relatively flawless effort. Milwaukee could be ArenaBowl bound if this keeps up.
Up Next: Home vs. Tampa Bay

4: Spokane Shock (2-1 SU, 1-2 ATS) (LW: 6) - Depending on what number you got the Shock at, you could’ve cashed a winning ticket on Saturday against the Battle Wings. The one thing certain about Spokane is that it’s going to score some points every time it takes the field. It has put up at least 60 in all three outings. The question however is the defense, which has now conceded 70+ points twice.
Up Next: Bye

5: Bossier City Battle Wings (2-1 SU, 3-0 ATS) (LW: 4) – Don’t blame QB Raymond Philyaw for the Bossier City loss at Spokane in Week 3 AFL betting action. He threw 10 TD passes, which came up just one shy of the AFL record. Philyaw’s one pick was probably the difference maker in a 78-70 loss, but any time you’re a QB and can drop 70+ points in this league, you’ve done something special.
Up Next: Bye

6: Alabama Vipers (2-1 SU, 2-1 ATS) (LW: 9) - The Vipers went on the road and nailed down a victory against a poor Utah team on Saturday to move into the top half of the AFL power rankings. Alabama FB Dan Alexander had four more rushing touchdowns, giving him 13 on the year. No one else in the league has more than four rushing scores for the entire season.
Up Next: Bye

And the rest…
7: Tampa Bay Storm (1-1 SU, 1-1 ATS) (LW: 8 )
8: Jacksonville Sharks (2-1 SU, 2-1 ATS) (LW: 10)
9: Arizona Rattlers (1-1 SU, 1-1 ATS) (LW: 2)
10: Dallas Vigilantes (0-2 SU, 0-2 ATS) (LW: 7)
11: Oklahoma City Yard Dawgz (1-1 SU, 1-1 ATS) (LW: 14)
12: Iowa Barnstormers (0-2 SU, 0-2 ATS) (LW: 11)
13: Cleveland Gladiators (0-3 SU, 1-2 ATS) (LW: 12)
14: Orlando Predators (0-2 SU, 0-2 ATS) (LW: 13)
15: Utah Blaze (0-2 SU, 0-2 ATS) (LW: 15)

Courtesy of Mike Rose at Handicapperspicks.com
Week 3 AFL QB Power Rankings

In addition to our weekly power poll of all of the teams in the AFL, we’re also going to take a look at how the quarterbacks stack up in this pass happy league. Here’s a look at the top five signal callers through two weeks of play.

1: Chris Greisen, Milwaukee Iron (30/36, 327 yds, 9 TDs, 0 INTs) – Not many quarterbacks can say that they’ve completed 23 straight passes at any level of competition, but that’s what Greisen did against the Shock two weeks ago. He led the Iron offense to 74 points, which could be the first of many 70+ point efforts for this team if he and WR Damian Harrell can remain on the same page.

Last Week’s Stats: Bye

2: Raymond Philyaw, Bossier City Battle Wings (54/75, 630 yds, 16 TDs, 0 INTs) – Philyaw is one of the true gamers in the history of the AFL, and he proved it once again by tossing nine tuddies against the Predators in an offensive spectacle last Saturday night. He’s now got 16 touchdowns without a pick on the season for an offense that hasn’t turned the ball over in two games.

Last Week’s Stats: 26/33, 324 yds, 9 TDs, 0 INTs vs. Orlando

3: Kyle Rowley, Spokane Shock (50/72, 518 yds, 13 TDs, 1 INT) – The Shock have a quarterback on their roster that can really be a nuisance to the defenses in this league. He doesn’t have the biggest arm in the world, but if he plays anything like he did against Utah, he’s going to be tough to contain. Particularly at home where he’s grown very comfortable playing in front of the Spokane faithful.

Last Week’s Stats: 21/29, 224 yds, 6 TDs, 0 INTs vs. Utah

4: Justin Allgood, Tulsa Talons (36/59, 456 yds, 13 TDs, 1 INT) – If you can beat Dallas and Tampa Bay in back-to-back weeks, you deserve some recognition for it. For lack of a better word, Allgood has been all good in his two starts, tossing just one pick in his first AFL experience after graduating from the ranks of the deuce like several other members of this Tulsa team. His stats weren’t great against the Vigilantes, but he did put up seven total TDs and led the team to 63 points.

Last Week’s Stats: 10/23, 182 yds, 5 TDs, 1 INT vs. Dallas

5: Russ Michna, Chicago Rush (40/55, 576 yds, 14 TDs, 1 INT) – If not for a ton of fumbles against Iowa in Week 1, Michna would be further up on this list, especially considering the fact that his Rush stand 2-0 through two weeks of play. Michna broke into this league two years ago when he replaced Matt D’Orazio as the man in the Windy City, and now HC Mike Hohensee knows that he has a real winner leading his offensive attack.

Last Week’s Stats: 22/27, 315 yds, 8 TDs, 0 INTs vs. Cleveland

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Inside the AFL Week 2 Box Scores
Courtesy of Mike Rose at Handicapperspicks.com

Week 2 of the 2010 Arena Football betting season will forever go down as the week of the underdog. All but one of the five managed to cover the spread with Alabama (+3’), Tulsa (+10’), and Bossier-Shreveport (+2’) all winning outright.

Cleveland Gladiators 56 Chicago Rush 59

This week’s NFL Network broadcast started off with a flurry. The Rush found the end zone on their first offensive snap of the game when QB Russ Michna connected with WR Samie Parker on a 42-yard pass and catch to take a quick 7-0 lead. The Gladiators responded quickly when QB John Dutton and WR Ben Nelson hooked up on a 15-yard scoring strike to tie it up; 14 points were put on the board less than three minutes into the game. The clubs exchanged scoring blows throughout the rest of the first half. Cleveland blew its shot to take the lead at the break when Dutton threw his first INT of the game. Both clubs put 28 points on the board after the first 30 minutes of play. The clubs exchanged leads throughout the 3^rd quarter, but they entered the final 15 minutes of regulation tied at 42 apiece. The Rush grabbed the lead on two occasions before scoring the final points of the game when K Chris Gould split the upright from 12-yards out to move the Rush to 2-0 on the season. Michna was stellar in this one completing 22 of 27 passes for 315 yards to go along with eight TDs and no interceptions. Dutton threw for 379 yards and six TDs, but his three picks ultimately proved to be the Glads downfall.

Jacksonville Sharks 49 Alabama Vipers 63

QB Aaron Garcia and the visiting Sharks held a 28-21 lead at the break. After extending the lead to 14 (35-21) at the start of the 3^rd quarter, the Vipers defense stepped up and kept the Sharks off the board long enough to take a 42-35 lead. With the Sharks already scoring on special teams and Garcia picking the “D” apart through the air, HC Dean Kokinos decided to onside kick the rest of the way. The move paid off handsomely for the home team. The Vipers defense continually kept the Sharks out of the end zone with a smaller field to work with and also recovered a number of onside kicks. When it was all said and done, Alabama outgained Jacksonville 284-190 with QB Kevin Eakin throwing for 244 yards and four TDs. FB/LB Dan Alexander rumbled for 40 yards and four TDs on 13 carries, and the defense forced three Jacksonville turnovers. One of the few teams in the league that utilizes its ground attack, the Vipers dominated the time of possession battle 43:08 to 15:52.

Spokane Shock 68 Utah Blaze 34

In the most lopsided final score of the week, the Shock toyed with the Blaze to bounce back from the Week 1 home defeat they absorbed against Milwaukee. QB Kyle Rowley completed 72 percent of his passes for 224 yards and six scores with WR Huey Whittaker hauling in 12 (2 TD) of them for 95 yards. The Shock took a 35-14 lead with them into the break with the home team Blaze scoring the 14-points by way of special teams. Both Blaze QBs Mike Affleck and Brett Elliott were non factors in this one throwing for a combined 164 yards and two TDs. Spokane gained 310 overall yards and were only faced with having to convert three third downs throughout the games entirety. Utah has plenty to shore up on both sides of the ball if it expects to compete in this league any time soon.

Dallas Vigilantes 59 Tulsa Talons 63

Head coach Mitch Allner and his Talons sit atop the Southwest Division standings along with Bossier after it disposed of the heavily favored Dallas Vigilantes on Saturday night. The four point win was the former AF2’s second win over an original AFL mainstay this season. The team exhibited the passion and tenacity required to upend a loaded squad like Dallas even though the Vigilantes dominated the stat sheet outgaining the Talons 361-188 while holding onto the pigskin for nearly 16 more minutes. Both QB’s Shane Stafford and Justin Allgood tossed five TDs a piece, and their main targets, Derek Lee and Donovan Morgan, had big games. Once Dallas grabbed a 17-point lead (45-28), the Tulsa defense stepped up to force three fumbles to close out the game and secure the impressive outright victory. Tulsa didn’t play well, but it stepped up in the fourth quarter and proved to the rest of the league that it’s an outfit with a never say die attitude.

Orlando Predators 67 Bossier-Shreveport Battle Wings 73

The highest scoring game of the week wasn’t nearly as close as the final score indicates. In a game where defense proved to be highly optional, the Battle Wings raced out to a 13-0 lead and never looked back. The teams then traded scores on nine consecutive possessions. The only stop occurred with one second left before the break. Orlando decided to kick a FG, but the move blew up in its face after WR P.J. Berry returned the miss 56 yards for a score. Both QBs were sensational in this one, or the defenses were just simply awful; pick your poison. Bossier QB Raymond Philyaw tossed nine TD passes, of which six went to the aforementioned Berry (Off Player of the Game). Orlando QB Nick Hill had a fine debut throwing for an obscene 380 yards and four TDs. Look for both of these offenses to continue posting lofty point totals in the coming weeks.

Click here for expert arena football picks from Mike Rose