A storm is approaching Daytona Beach, and it’s not a hurricane.
The United Football League’s Orlando Storm begin their journey to their first United Bowl on June 7 against the reigning champions, the DC Defenders, in a relocated game at Daytona Stadium. It’ll be a makeshift home game less than an hour from Inter&Co Stadium, the Storm’s normal venue which is unavailable due to a prior commitment this weekend.
Despite DC’s pedigree, Orlando enters the postseason as the No. 1 seed with an 8-2 record. The Storm have the No. 1 scoring defense in the UFL with 186 points allowed, making them one of two teams to hold its opponents under 200 this season. Offensively, Orlando is led by starting quarterback and MVP front-runner Jack Plummer.
The Defenders are basically the opposite of the Storm. Fourth-seeded DC finished the regular season 5-5, but it scored a league-best 281 points and has the rushing and touchdown leader in running back Deon Jackson. However, the Defenders have been cold as of late and begin the postseason on a four-game skid after kicking off the season 5-1.
Before the two teams take the field Sunday, here’s everything you need to know.
Half of DC’s four-game losing streak and Orlando’s four-game winning streak occurred against the other in the final two weeks of the season.
The Storm won the Week 9 and 10 matchups 27-19 and 29-23 ahead of their third consecutive showdown.
In both games, Orlando held DC’s quarterbacks to under 200 yards passing and 50% completion percentage. The Storm had the advantage of avoiding Defenders starting quarterback Jordan Ta’amu, who went down with an undisclosed season-ending injury in a Week 8 loss to the Louisville Kings.
Orlando’s defense held DC enough for Plummer to pass for at least 203 yards and two touchdowns in both games.
Plummer has lit up the stat sheet with a league-best 2,188 passing yards with 17 touchdowns and just one interception this season, but it’s running back Jashaun Corbin that could be the X-factor Sunday.
Corbin has been an underrated part of the Storm’s success with 131 rushing attempts for 438 yards, the third-most in the UFL, and three touchdowns. But he hasn’t been as successful against the Defenders in the past two weeks, rushing for a combined 85 yards and no scores on 28 carries.
If Corbin and the offensive line are able to perform how they have for the majority of the season, it will give Orlando a more-balanced approach that should open the defense for the already potent passing game.
Orlando shut down backup quarterbacks Spencer Sanders and Jason Bean in the two matchups through the air, but the pair were both effective on the ground as DC’s leading rushers.
Containing the Defenders’ quarterback was a point of emphasis for Storm head coach Anthony Becht in a midweek media availability, so it wouldn’t hurt Bean or Sanders to improve their efficiency in the passing game against Orlando’s stout defense.
Bean started DC’s last game of the season against Orlando and figures to be the starter in the first round of the postseason. But whether it’s Bean or Sanders, someone has to try to return the Defenders’ offense to the consistency it had before Ta’amu went down.
Orlando has been the hottest team in the UFL for a reason — it’s the full package. The Storm allow the least amount of points to their opponents, have the least amount of turnovers given away, and they have the league’s leading passer and a top-three rusher. Orlando has already beaten DC twice in the last two weeks. The Defenders’ offense just simply hasn’t been the same since losing its starting quarterback, and while I expect Bean or Sanders to lead DC to paydirt a couple times, it won’t be enough to defend (pun intended) its title.
This article originally appeared on The Daytona Beach News-Journal: Why Orlando Storm will beat DC Defenders in UFL playoff game
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