If you’re a fan frustrated with the Birmingham Stallions’ offense so far this season, you’re not alone. You’re also not being unreasonable.
Through the first three games of the 2024 season, the Stallions averaged roughly 27 points per game. They are averaging 14 points per game so far this season.
The defense has played well enough to carry the team to a 2–1 record, but that’s not sustainable in the long run.
At some point, the offense will need to kick into gear if the Stallions want to be successful.
The good news for fans is that things offensively might not be quite as bad as they seem.
Reasons for optimism
You can’t solve a problem that you don’t know you have. Coach Skip Holtz is actively trying to find a solution to the early-season offensive problems.
I don’t know what we have to be as an offense right now. I keep saying this, we’re learning who we are. Coach Holtz
In the Arlington game, you could see Coach Holtz trying different things.
- They threw the ball downfield
- They threw some quick game
- Ran the ball three straight times on one possession
- Finished the game with 5 WRs to spread out the defense
The good news is that the Stallions have already proven themselves capable of improvement this season.
Week one against the DC Defender, the offensive line allowed a shocking 8 sacks. They haven’t allowed a single sack since then. Now they must apply that kind of improvement to other aspects of the offense.
Week three saw the Stallions squeak out a 9–10 win over the Renegades.
On paper, scoring 10 points isn’t a very good offensive day, especially when seven of those points came in the last minute. But the final score was a little deceiving.
They gained 308 yards of total offense, which isn’t bad. The big problem was ill-timed errors that left points on the board.
Jace Sternberger was 2 yards from a sure TD when he was stripped, and Arlington recovered. The Stallions also had a possession where they failed to convert a fourth down from their 10-yard line.
That’s 9 points left on the field that would have completely changed the complexion of the game.
Cain Returning
In the first two games of the season, Deon Cain averaged over 30 yards per kick return as well as contributing 93 yards receiving and a touchdown.
Cain missed week 3 due to personal issues. Getting him back should be a boost to the Stallions’ offense and starting field position. He’s not listed on this week’s injury report, which indicates that he will be back this week.
Room for improvement
Starting QB Alex McGough is on IR, which means that he’s out for at least four more weeks. Like it or not, Corral is the guy for now.
His stat line against Arlington wasn’t the greatest.
- 19–41
- 255 yards
- 1 TD
- 1 INT
For the Stallions to have success offensively, Corral needs to play better. Thankfully, there have been some promising signs.
His interception was on a corner route that he put too much air under. After Coach Holtz coached him up on the sideline, you could see him put the advice into practice.
He threw the same route to convert a 3rd and 20 later in the game. It was a great ball, on time with velocity.
Matt Corral is a talented player. If he continues to take coaching well, he should improve.
One thing that could help take some pressure off Corral is establishing the run. Having Corral drop back to throw 41 times a game probably isn’t going to be the recipe for long-term success.
Ricky Person Jr.’s usage has been all over the place. In week two, he had 17 carries. In weeks one and three combined, he only had 11 carries.
Person Jr. has run the ball well when given the opportunity, I would love to see him get more carries as the season goes on.
Upcoming Schedule
Another bit of good news for the Stallions is their upcoming schedule.
They play a very good St. Louis Battlehawks (2–1) team in week 8.
Before that, they will play four games against opponents with a combined record of 2 and 10.
- Houston Roughnecks x2 (1–2)
- Memphis Showboats (0–3)
- San Antonio Brahmas (0–3)
Those records are a little deceiving. The Roughnecks have momentum on their side coming off their first win of the season. Also, the Brahmas looked much improved in their most recent game.
That being said, the next four weeks offer the Stallions an opportunity to get their offense headed in the right direction.
