MESA, Ariz. -- It might be another two weeks before the Arizona Rattlers feel full strength. Injuries have hit, none bigger than the one to quarterback Nick Davila, who is expected back after next week's bye.
But before them, the Rattlers go into Saturday's matchup against the Las Vegas Outlaws at US Airways Center focused on improving with who is available.
"The guys on the field are going to be the ones that have to step up," said Davila's replacement, AFL rookie B.J. Coleman. "The biggest thing for us to continuing to get better. I think we got guys that are excited and ready to go up there and step up to the challenge."
The former Green Bay Packers quarterback won the AFL's weekly fan MVP vote after he led Arizona to a 47-39 victory against the New Orleans VooDoo last week. The win was a positive reaction to a painful loss against the 7-0 San Jose SaberCats a week prior, which pushed the 5-2 Rattlers back in the National Conference standings while also snapping their 14-game home winning streak.
Conjuring up excitement for the challenge ahead comes naturally to Coleman, who's learned to lead from one of the best in the NFL -- Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers -- and Davila in his introduction to the AFL.
"We all really enjoy each other's company," Coleman said of the Rattlers. "That's really a big thing when you're playing. It's an opportunity ... we have an opportunity to play football another year, another day, another week -- that's an opportunity not everyone gets."
Coleman made the best out of his last game, going 18 for 31 for 160 yards and four touchdowns in the victory. After his second AFL start, it's still a learning process. Coach Kevin Guy believes in him, and fullback Mykel Benson said how Coleman carries himself has made him easy to work with.
"You don't see too many rookies with confidence like his," said Benson, a first-year Rattler. "This league is not easy to play quarterback in. He stuck with it."
RATTLERS vs. OUTLAWS
When: 6 p.m. Saturday
Where: US Airways Center
TV: FOX Sports Arizona Plus
Stream: FOX Sports GO
The smaller field size compared to the NFL is an issue, but it only creates the differences in the play. Coleman is learning the nuances of the arena.
"I think it's a league that's not so much dominated by quarterback play as it is the spacing and the timing of the routes at the wideout position," he said. "The red zone's where you got to be really good because everything is really condensed. As a quarterback you think you want to fit throws in there, but really and truly it's the patience that allows you to really see things develop. I'm really working on that."
All season, it hasn't been easy that the receiver position has been one hardest hit by injuries. Receivers Kerry Reed and Rod Windsor missed the first two games of the year before returning, and Reed injured himself again two weeks ago in the loss to San Jose, forcing him to miss the game at New Orleans this past week. The team cleared injured Maurice Purify to return for the first time this year, but he left the team.
So as Coleman grows comfortable, his teammates will need to pick up the same slack needed had Davila never been hurt, especially against an Outlaws team that beat Arizona in Week 2.
Despite Davila and Coleman's combined production this season, no Arizona receiver ranks in the top-10 of the league in total receiving yards. In other words, the challenge in the next two weeks is about more than Coleman learning the ropes.
"If he keeps his mind to it and he stays focused, he's going to be a good quarterback," Guy said. "The guys around him have to be better, too."
Added Benson: "Every team goes through injuries. The team chemistry is there, we just have to put a whole game together."
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