LIVESTREAM Germany: Potsdam Royals @ Dresden Monarchs, July 2, 15:00 CET, (3 pm, 09:00 am ET)

Vincent Lospinuso | American Football | 07/02/2022

Fresh off of their bye week, the Potsdam Royals (4-0), look to continue their undefeated start to the German Football League season with a rematch against the slumping defending champion Dresden Monarchs (2-3).

With a win, the Royals would continue their quest of winning their first GFL divisional title and undefeated season in their history. It would also keep them ahead of the rapidly climbing Berlin Adler (4-1) and New Yorker Lions (3-2-0) in the standings.

On the other hand, if the Monarchs get a victory here, it would help their chances of making it back into the playoff hunt after being on the outside looking in for most of the season. If they lose, it could put a dark shadow on the rest of their season, and they could end up being the first team since the 2009 New Yorker Lions to go into the season as defending champions and end up missing the playoffs.

These two teams last met in the first week of the season on May 2, with the Royals eking out a 24-21 home victory. The most valuable player in that game was Potsdam running back Karri Pajarinen, who ran for 171 yards, averaging 5.7 yards per carry, and scored two touchdowns in what has been his best performance for the season. He leads the league in overall rushing yardage with 499 and in rushing touchdowns with six.

The Monarchs have struggled since that opening game loss. Starting quarterback Austyn Carta-Samuels suffered a season-ending injury and they brought in Justin Agner (Stetson University, NCAA Div. 1) for the past three games. Backup Marvin Schöne filled in for one game, a 15-6 victory over the Kiel Baltic Hurricanes. Agner has played decently, throwing for 533 yards and nine touchdowns in the three games he has played. But it takes time for a quarterback to learn a new offense and find chemistry with a new team. On defense, linebacker Andrew McElroy is among the league leaders in tackles per game with 9.2 while teammate Rayshard Ashby averages 6.4.

This is almost a do or die game for the Monarchs. Another loss in a 10-game season would definitely hurt their playoff chances. For Potsdam, this is an opportunity to establish themselves as a true contender for the GFL title.