Second loss in first three games for Vegas as bye week approaches

Two losses in the first three games of the season has given the Vegas Knight Hawks plenty to think about.

Vegas was beaten by San Diego Strike Force, 35-27, in the team’s home opener Friday, April 11 from Lee’s Family Forum. It went down as San Diego’s first win of the season after already having been defeated by Vegas in Week 2 in Southern California.

“We’re just not a team yet,” head coach Mike Davis said. “We’ve got guys that are trying to make plays and we’re just not making plays. Defense started out hot, offense struggled a bit and then you knew [San Diego] with that quarterback were going to get hot eventually.

“And then while they’re starting to come back, we’ve got a two touchdown lead and then our offense stalls out.”

After starting last year with an undefeated record through the first seven games of the season, this year’s team has opened the year 1-2. With a bye week scheduled for next week, the team has plenty to mull over before its road contest against San Antonio Saturday, April 26.

Kickoff is set for 4 p.m.

“We’ve got to get a couple of bodies in here, reset and then go from there,” Davis said.

For the second straight game, the Knight Hawks were held scoreless in the fourth quarter as part of a 21-0 final 15 minutes for the Strike Force. Last week, the team was held scoreless for the entire second half.

Following the first score by the visitors, Vegas had its next drive marred by plenty of penalties. A blindside block and holding penalty stalled the drive for the home team even as it survived a fumble by starting quarterback Ja’Rome Johnson.

By the final horn, the Knight Hawks were penalized 14 times for a total of 80 yards.

“We’ll address those [penalties],” Davis said. “The flags will take care of themselves. The refs let that game get out of control early and we didn’t respond very well on the defensive side of things – let me rephrase that, as a team.”

Despite retaining possession on the heels of the fumble, Johnson was removed from the game in favor of backup quarterback Jayden De Laura. Upon entering the game with a six-point lead, De Laura would throw three straight incompletions bringing about the end of the drive.

In three games this season, Johnson has been lifted from the game. When those decisions are made, Davis doesn’t worry about disrupting the rhythm of last year’s IFL MVP.

“[Disrupting his rhythm] isn’t even on my radar,” Davis said. “You’ve got to do the right things and make the right reads and if you don’t, we’ve got guys that will do it. That’s how it goes on any professional team.”

San Diego scored on the ensuing drive to take its first lead of the game and Johnson would be inserted back into the game. After a false start, he’d throw an interception that would serve as the team’s first turnover against the Strike Force in nearly eight quarters this season.

Johnson ended the game with 201 passing yards on 14-of-24 with two touchdowns and two interceptions on his final two drives. In addition, he added 56 rushing yards and a touchdown on 12 carries.

A week after being brutally honest about the defense’s performance, Davis’ defensive group gave the offense extra chances in a bend-but-don’t-break approach.

On the opening drive of the game, linebacker Makel Calhoun intercepted San Diego quarterback Nate Davis’ pass at the goal line. It would turn into two straight defensive stops to open the game after the visitors missed a field goal on their next possession.

In total, it would be five straight stops of the Strike Force offense going back to the two teams’ first meeting of the season. In addition, the team recovered a fumble while facing the opposition three yards from the end zone. That turnover allowed Vegas to go up 27-14 late in the third quarter.

“For sure we [wasted a defensive opportunity],” Davis said. “I mean, we were up 14 points with the ball. And then we turned the ball over and go from there.”