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Chris Greisen’s cell phone was working overtime. It seemed as if the Georgia Force quarterback was hearing from anyone and everyone who ever saw him throw a football. They were all reacting to Greisen’s “SportsCenter” highlights. In his first Arena Football League start, Greisen tossed nine touchdowns in leading the Force to a 69-65 season-opening victory over the Arizona Rattlers.
It was an oddity to some of Greisen’s friends — well, those not familiar with the nuances of the AFL. Nine touchdown passes in a game? Nine.
Georgia’s Chris Greisen is the poster child of the big stats. He threw nine — yes, nine — TDs in the season opener. “They couldn’t believe it, they were like ‘Nine touchdowns in a game, how does that happen?’” Greisen said with a laugh.
That’s Arena Football — a game designed to produce PlayStation-type numbers and stats that seem impossible to attain are suddenly possible. Greisen, the brother of Jacksonville Jags linebacker Nick Greisen, is a perfect example.
After being the backup to Clint Dolezel in Dallas last season, Greisen is the AFL’s top-rated quarterback, throwing 30 TDs against three interceptions and 1,174 yards over four games. If Greisen keeps it up, he will be on pace to throw 120 TDs and 4,500 yards over 16 games. That actually exceeds any PlayStation stats.
“This game is all about scoring and it’s a byproduct of a couple of things, with the motion and being able to run at the line of scrimmage,” Greisen said. “Teams can’t outnumber you from a coverage standpoint, like they can in the NFL. It makes for an offensive game that is very explosive. Talking with my brother, Nick, he understands the Arena game. Just that some of my friends back home who don’t understand the game, can’t see how you throw nine touchdowns in a game.”
Nine touchdown passes in a game is still somewhat of a rarity in the AFL. The undefeated Force are also unique in scoring 60 points or more in each of their first four games, becoming the first team to do that in the league’s history. Greisen’s 135 quarterback rating and 76-percent completion percentage are also unusual (an upper-90 or close to 100 rating marks an elite NFL quarterback).
“It is crazy,” says Utah Blaze quarterback Joe Germaine, who played at Ohio State from 1995-98 and had short stints in the NFL with the Rams, Chiefs and Bengals. “The Arena League produces the crazy numbers because, in my opinion, it’s a different game altogether. In the outdoor, you try to establish a running game, which sets up the pass. There’s no running, or hardly any running, and there’s no punting. It’s almost like fastbreak football. You’re going three-on-two and looking to score almost every time.”
The average AFL game most times results in what is typically a college basketball score — usually landing somewhere in the 50s or 60s.
“We did this on purpose, the high scores and offensive numbers isn’t by accident,” said Tampa Bay Storm’s Tim Marcum, the most successful coach in the league’s history. “Mouse Davis is responsible for the run-and-shoot offense of this league. He made the rules accordingly to have three-on-three down the field. It’s the reason why there are the crazy statistics in this league.
“I remember when I was with Denver in 1987, we brought in a new quarterback (Whit Taylor) on a Tuesday and he threw 10 TDs in our game that Saturday. That’s crazy, isn’t it? If you look at the [the NFL] and took out the linebackers out of pass coverage, ask yourself what kind of scores you would have? You have four-on-four down the field and you might get the same kind of scores we get in the Arena League.”
Defensive players — the pincushions in this offensive array — keep it simple. It’s all about making stops. For an AFL defense to get three or four stops in a game is very good, and usually translates into victory.
“We gave up 47 points and we’re considered one of the better defenses in the league,” said Philadelphia Soul defensive lineman Dwayne Missouri, after the Soul turned back the Colorado Crush, 71-47, last Thursday. “In the outdoor game, TDs are demoralizing, especially when you give up five or six touchdowns. In this league, it’s all about making stops. You make enough of them, you win.”
Utah receiver Siaha Burley is a seven-year AFL veteran. He played with a high potent offense in Los Angeles, he’s played with one of the best QBs in Tony Graziani, and now he catches passes from Germaine. Burley led the AFL in scoring two years ago and finished second behind Colorado’s Damian Harrell last year.
Burley said you better score your share of points when running anywhere from 60 to 70 plays a game. There’s also much more man-to-man defense in the AFL, as opposed to zones in the NFL. We’re also talking about a 50-yard field, with the chance to score on every play.
Burley also thinks the big numbers will continue growing — where scores can reach NBA proportions. He says it has to do with the improved quality of the players in the league.
“I have to admit from my rookie year until now, there’s a lot more talent in this league,” Burley said. “Defensive backs and receivers are much better now. You used to have two of your best receivers play defense the whole game. Now with the open substitution, you have your guys on the field whenever you want.”
But as good as the defensive backs might be these days, they still give up touchdowns regularly. It’s just part of the game.
“You have to have a short memory, because there’s so much offense in this league,” Soul defensive back Eddie Moten said. “This is a different game than the outdoor game.”
The numbers prove it.
By Joseph Santoliquito
