Here is a National Arena League Jacksonville Sharks vs. Monterrey Steel Preview! The (4-2) Monterrey Steel look to give the (7-0) Jacksonville Sharks their first blemish of the season in Jacksonville, FL. Here’s what you need to know before this matchup!

National Arena League Preview: Jacksonville Sharks vs. Monterrey Steel

Entering Week 10 of the season, both teams have their fair share of what the other team is like. Monterrey knows how Sharks quarterback Damien Fleming likes to play, facing up against him in their first battle in Week 6. Jacksonville knows how Monterrey uses Jacoby Jones, shutting him down in Week 6 with just 21 yards on four receptions.

Major Keys for Monterrey

In their first game against Jacksonville, it didn’t go as planned. Quarterback Kasey Peters was 17/30 (56.7%) for 140-yards, one touchdown, and two interceptions. Their rushing, as a team, got them only 21 yards the whole game.

The things Monterrey needs to do to win is:

1. Have drives like their first one of the Week 6 game (except for the fumble)

In their first drive, Monterrey looked strong, passing the ball short most of the time, and getting the ball from their own 5-yard line to Jacksonville’s 10-yard line. Peters fumbled the ball while under pressure, giving the ball back to Jacksonville, but outside of that, they put up a decent drive

2. Force Jacksonville to make mistakes and penalties

Jacksonville, as a team, are horrible for penalties. They have 59 penalties for 415-yards, the worst among all NAL teams. Some hard counts, deep passes drawing pass interference, or luring them to make personal fouls should all get Jacksonville to begin having costly penalties back-to-back.

3. Quick/Short passes

Jacksonville, over the last few games, has played a lot of Zone Defense, which makes a quick pass a deadly weapon for Peters and his receivers in this game. If Peters can pass the ball as soon as he gets the ball, he is golden. The only issue with this is that Jacksonville is quick to fix their mistakes, so they could easily catch up to the receiver for only a short gain, but quick, short passes should always trip up the Jacksonville defense. Maybe a screen pass here an there will work, too.

4. Rush the quarterback

The Steel have a few new faces in Monterrey, but a familiar face in Jacksonville. These two are Joe Sykes, and Jerry Turner. Get Sykes and Turner to rush Fleming, the game will go exactly how they want it. Monterrey has to stay patient and not rush things, or else they will lose their momentum and play sloppy.

Major Keys for Jacksonville

1. Have an amazing offensive line the whole game

In Week 8 vs. Corpus Christi, Jacksonville was forced to throw the ball away, due to an offensive line that was caught sleeping at times. That offensive line needs to give it their all for the rest of the season if they want to keep their backup (now starting) quarterback healthy. They have to keep in mind that there’s not always a backup as good as Fleming.

2. Nick Belcher’s deuces

Nick Belcher is an absolute monster on the kickoff deuces. Last game, he made four deuces. The game before, he made three deuces. His extra points and field goals also assist him in holding the sixth most points of any player in the NAL this season with 77 points per game! Averaging 11 points per game, Belcher is a huge reason why this Jacksonville team is still undefeated.

3. Damien Fleming’s accuracy

Fleming isn’t your average backup quarterback. He is great under pressure. He can run, he can make quick decisions and throw it away in the blink of an eye. Fleming is definitely a quarterback worthy of becoming a starter in the future, but not so easy when Tommy Grady is still in the house. Thankfully, for Fleming, he won’t have to worry about fighting for the starting job any time soon.

Fleming continues to show that he has great accuracy with short passes. The speed of his pass is just right for the receivers. Fleming has major potential to bring home a championship to this Jacksonville team, but let’s not get too ahead of ourselves. It’s only Week 10 of the season.

4. Derrick “The Boss” Ross

Derrick Ross plays a huge role in this Sharks offense. He is currently 7th in the league with touchdowns with 12, all from rushing. Ross is also in 10th in the league for the most offensive plays at 65 plays for 208-yards. His 65 plays also leads the league in the most rushing attempts. If Ross can continue to find success, he will easily mow down the defense.