2016 Week 12 Preview: Steel vs Gladiators

(photo credit: clevelandgladiators.com)

The Cleveland Gladiators lost a close game last week to the Orlando Predators with a little bit of controversy that likely went down as a bad call if you're a Glads fan. The fan interference that was reviewed on Greg Carr's tough catch, set up the game winning field goal allowing the Predators to win by three, giving Orlando a moment of joy during a weekend that will go down as one of the more painful ones.

This week the journey continues for Cleveland, a long trip to Portland as the Gladiators go for the season sweep of the Portland Steel. The last time these teams met, it was a battle that saw Cleveland lose a 20-point lead and have to fight for a victory in overtime at the Q in Cleveland.

It was also former Gladiators quarterback Shane Austin's first Arena start of the season. Counting that game and Austin's other four starts, Austin has transformed the Steel a lot more than their 1-9 record indicates. In those five starts, the Steel's offensive line has only allowed one sack, even while Portland is holding onto the ball over three minutes more per game than any other team in the league.

The Steel/league appear to have given the Portland fans reason to believe they will have a team next season, at least as much as they can for now. The Steel hired Meadow Lemon as their new team President on Tuesday. The AFL says Lemon knows the Portland market very well and he is expected to help build a strong fan base. Cleveland might just be visiting at the right time in case the Moda Center starts to fill with loud and crazy fans in the coming weeks.

Who To Watch For:

For Portland:

The injury to Tyrone Goard that puts him on injured reserve is a killer, Austin seemed to be building a strong rhythm with him. Still, Austin looks like he can score with anyone out there. In his last 2 games he has thrown 12 touchdowns and no picks. Seven of those scores were last week while visiting an Arizona team that seems to have found themselves again, Austin also added 351 yards to his total, all in front of 14,401 fans.

For Cleveland:

Quentin Sims scored the milestone 300,000 point in Arena Football League history. Sims pulled in 8 catches for 102 yards and 4 touchdowns, that gives Sims 18 scores in 8 games while his playing time just keeps growing. Sims is clearly a member of a strong one two punch with Collin Taylor. Taylor, was taken in the 5th round of the CAFL Draft by the Beijing Lions. Maybe Sims is warming up for his own big moment this week.

Kickoff is set for 10 p,m. ET Saturday night from the Moda Center.